Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) is headlining his own show over on Disney+ now, with Star Wars: Andor dropping its first three episodes for fans to enjoy. So far, it’s been a great show with a much darker, heavier tone compared to the rest of the Star Wars franchise.
I think that’s what makes it so brilliant so far. It tackles concepts and themes that other Star Wars projects may do as well, but it does it in a way that’s more effective and more geared in realism. Compared to some of the more recent Star Wars shows like The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, and Obi-Wan Kenobi, Andor might be one of the strongest of the bunch.
Synopsis of Episodes 1-3
As a character, Cassian Andor seems to be living a troubled life on the edge. Born in a remote tribe known as the Kenari, Cassian wants to find his sister by any means necessary. However, a problem pits him in a position where he ends up killing two officers in a corporate outpost. This is the catalyst for the dark remainder of what’s to come.
Andor immediately showcases to the viewer just how difficult life is while living under the oppression of the Empire and its laws. There is no justice for the impoverished and no mercy for mistakes. It’s a situation that is grim, but not unrealistic.
Cassian needs to get away from his home before he is arrested for the killings, despite them being out of self-defense. However, the uptight commander of a group of corporate officers doesn’t seem to want to back down and he wants to capture Cassian at all costs.
Cassian goes to enlist the help of his friend, Bix, who contacts a buyer that can take a very expensive piece of a starship from Cassian for a hefty price. Cassian needs the money desperately to get off-planet. However, his plan goes awry when Bix’s boyfriend, Timm, gets jealous and decides to turn Cassian in for the killings.
Eventually, the climax of the three episodes arrives when the buyer and Cassian finally meet up. The corporate officers arrive on the planet to find Andor, where they go to the house of a woman named Maarva first. When Cassian was young, he was rescued by Maarva and was effectively raised by her for a long period of his life, so the officers look for him there first.
Cassian makes the mistake of using comms with his droid, which are heard by the officers, and they chase him down. Although they think they’ve cornered him, Cassian and the buyer manage to outsmart the officers and escape after dealing heavy blows to their numbers.
The Themes of Andor
Star Wars: Andor seems to tackle one of the most interesting concepts of Star Wars: The theme of oppression. The officers don’t seem to care that these people are living in a world that is cruel and damaging.
When their commander is met with the reality of what war looks like, he’s disturbed and traumatized. That scene was powerful, showcasing how many people in positions of authority don’t quite understand the damage they inflict on people until it’s seen with their own eyes.
Timm’s betrayal of Cassian due to his jealousy is also interesting, as it provided for the viewer an understanding of how human beings can go as far as to hurt each other over something that isn’t there. Bix clearly liked Timm and Cassian was just a friend, but Timm chose to see it from a negative perspective instead.
Overall Thoughts
Andor is a great show, for many reasons of course. However, the exploration of a side of the Star Wars universe that we don’t usually get to see is what interested me the most. From the onset, you can tell that this show is different than even The Mandalorian.
I feel like Star Wars is trying to gravitate itself towards older audiences by portraying much darker themes and darker stories, and I think Andor has done the best job of that so far.
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Zainah Yousef
Zainah Yousef is the author of The Fallen Age Saga and specializes in gaming, social media advice, and reviews. She's been writing all her life and she probably won't stop anytime soon.
