So far Andor is the best Star Wars anything since The Empire Strikes Back… and I do not say that lightly. It still has time to shit the bed, it is Star Wars after all, a series with a history of falling to pieces as it continues.
I’m trying my hardest to justify how Andor can exist in the same universe as the Original and Prequel Trilogies. They are telling stories built upon one another but have such shockingly different approaches and tones. And here’s what I have come up with…
The original Star Wars trilogy is a junior high textbook on the events of the Galactic Civil War. It boils everything down and is fairly simple. Bad guys are bad because they are bad. Bad guys do a few BIG bad things that are easy to comprehend for 13-year-olds. It hits all the main beats, with a few complexities. Think about how a 13-year-old might get taught about the American Civil War.
The South were keeping black people as slaves. The North wanted to get rid of the evils of slavery. The South wanted to keep their slaves, so they split and went to war. The South won a few early battles under the command of General Robert E. Lee, but then the North won at Gettysburg. Soon after President Lincoln freed the slaves. And then General Ulysses S. Grant pushed south, with the help of General Sherman’s march to the sea, and then General Lee surrendered. The country was reunited, and slavery was ended for good.
“The Civil War in a Nutshell for 7th Graders”
Every single statement in there is accurate, but it lacks a lot of context and nuance. But it’s perfectly fine for early teens.
The prequel trilogy is a book for toddlers about the rise of the Empire and the fall of the Jedi. Everything is super boiled down with zero complexity. Characters seem to lack any motivation, but it’s fine because a 6-year-old isn’t going to grasp something more nuanced. Think about explaining the first Thanksgiving to first graders.
The English settlers arrived in a strange land and didn’t know all the best ways to farm and get food. As fall approached, they were running low on food, so the Indians came with extra food and they had a big feast together.
“The First Thanksgiving for 1st Graders”
I mean… that’s technically accurate, but beyond simplified, just how you need it to be for someone that young.
Andor is a college level textbook on the pre-war period. Very complex. Very nuanced. All the grit and vile detail is there. The Empire aren’t a comical villain, they are crushing people the way real fascist governments crush people… slowly, and right in front of everyone’s eyes for “their own good”. Even the people fighting against the Empire have mixed motivations. They aren’t all one unified “good guy” front.
Maybe one day we’ll get the college level textbook version of the prequels. One can only hope.
I will say that this version of the Empire has me questioning ever wanting to play a Star Wars game again where I am rooting for the Empire. Shame, TIE Fighter is such an excellent game. 😂
Armchair Screenwriter 