Andor - Season 2

Season two of Andor does everything season one does, and then some. Not every hero or villain in Star Wars wields a lightsaber or can move objects with their mind. Some sit behind a desk or transport things and people from one place to another. Andor proves this in the second season. The series is a prequel to the 2016 film Rogue One, which is itself a prequel to the original film trilogy. The series Andor follows Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) as he worked his way up from smuggler to leader of the rebellion against the Galactic Empire in the five years before the original films, and how he was able to play a key role in stealing the plans for the Death Star.

This second season, like the first, consists of twelve episodes. In April and May, Disney+ released a block of three episodes every week, with a year between each block. This makes it feel like four mini-seasons (or four long films) have been made and this is a nice structure because each block has a clear beginning and a clear end. Because of these time jumps, there is also a bit more pace in the story than in the first season.

However, the series needs to get going again after each time jump. It needs to be explained what happened in the meantime and where our key players are now. The makers of the series take their time for this. It requires some patience, but in doing so they lay the fundamental groundwork for spectacular finales. Because the end of each block can be called spectacular in a different way. In nail-bitingly exciting scenes, action and emotion come together well and the viewer's patience is more than rewarded.

This season offers complex characters and spectacular storylines

The enormous complexity of the main characters helps with this. Where most Star Wars media have a classic hero and a classic villain and the dividing line between good and evil is very clearly visible, here there are a lot of shades of gray. The rebels we cheer for sometimes do despicable things. At the same time, we see that behind the machinations of the Empire there are also only people, who can sometimes be called pitiful (and I'm looking at you, Syril Karn (Kyle Soller)).

Characters where this moral ambiguity really stands out are senator Mon Mothma (Genevieve O’Reilly) and antiques dealer Luthen Rael (Stellan Skarsgård), both of whom have ties to the rebels. They both end up in situations in their own way where they have to make difficult choices and no outcome is the right one. On the other hand, we see the ambitious officer Dedra Meero (Denise Gough), who also has to make similar choices. The dilemmas are driven by characters and not to steer the story in a certain direction. In addition, the actors really lift the series to a higher level.

Andor is surprisingly topical in season two

The hooks with contemporary society also help with this. Just like in the real world, we see the spreading of disinformation, the crumbling of critical institutions and the playing off of people and population groups against each other. In Andor, this is particularly evident in the storyline around the planet Ghorman, where the Empire is trying to gain a foothold because of rare raw materials needed for the Death Star. The storyline ends in a heartbreaking episode that can rightly be called one of the best episodes of a Star Wars series.

Andor is often called “Star Wars without Star Wars” due to the absence of the Jedi, the Sith, the Force, lightsabers, and a lack of connections to the rest of the universe. While that may sound plausible, this is still Star Wars through and through. It just looks different and has its own style. Just like the tone of the story, the decor is also a lot more gray. More use is made of practical effects instead of computer effects, and this fits in perfectly with the more down-to-earth nature of the story.

While I really enjoy most other Star Wars series, Andor is a different kettle of fish. It feels much grittier and more realistic, touches on interesting moral themes, and is filled with interesting characters played by excellent actors. That makes season two of Andor the best Star Wars has to offer at the moment.