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review: andor s1
Dec. 4th, 2022 10:06 amHigh praise has been circulating for Disney's newest foray into expanding the modern Star Wars universe - enough so that I was warily lured out from under my rock for the first time since the Mandalorian.
It brings me no joy to confess I'm apparently still a bit of an unpleasable bastard, and possibly should have stayed under my rock. I can certainly see why Andor has been so well-received, and I don't think the praise is unearned exactly, but for all the facets of it I enjoyed there were others which left me feeling very sour indeed. In a way it has helped clarify for me what I most want from Star Wars by token of not satisfying that desire.
But we'll get into my grumbling later, and start somewhere more positive: Andor is a 12 episode prequel to the 2016 film Rogue One, and seeks to expand that movie's particular legacy by laying out the backstory for one of its main characters, Rebel operative Cassian Andor. Like Rogue One, Andor shifts the focus away from the dramatic frontlines of the battle between good and evil (and light and dark) and delves instead into the murkier grey zone where everyday cannon fodder lives and struggles and dies. It asks what it takes to build a rebellion - logistically, operationally, morally - and the answer is often 'sacrifice'. This is very much in line with the philosophical case made in Rogue One: that grand victories are built on the backs of many smaller ones, and often those at one end of the chain will never know for sure what was achieved by the flap of their personal wings. The story is not about stand-out heroes, but instead about the power of collective effort - and collective pain.
Andor has something to say and makes an effort to say it purposefully, and it's a welcome change compared to many of Disney's other TV offerings. Their technique still needs some work - episodes vary in length from 37 minutes to 53, and early on things would just sort of awkwardly cut to credits in a way that felt more like a long movie was being chopped into chunks than well-crafted episodic storytelling. It tightened up over the course of the show, though, and the story-telling otherwise did well in providing a selection of views into the brewing conflict between the Empire and the Rebellion. One of its clear strengths was in showing the Empire's influence at both its ugliest and its most mundane.
The cast was great and I have no complaints about the acting, save that I can only imagine Diego Luna was ingesting an awful lot of aspirin for jaw pain - I don't think Cassian unclenched for more than five minutes, and not consecutively! The tight-knit community of Ferrix was compelling, and for the number of new faces introduced there were plenty I wouldn't mind seeing again (even if it would be impossible for a few...). Andor also made a step forward in finally (?) having a clear same-sex relationship onscreen, and between two characters who had purpose in the series beyond tokenism to boot! Alas, now that we know for certain that lesbians exist in Disney brand Star Wars, how can we ever justify Padme falling for Anakin.
I've seen sharper intrigue-based plotting, but overall it was a sound spy-game adventure with emotive and nuanced arguments, some exciting climaxes, and typically high production values. I couldn't call the time I spent with the show wasted.
What, then, is my issue?
Ironically, it's the very thing I've often seen put forward as an argument in Andor's favour: it didn't feel like Star Wars.
( 10 YEARS in the abandoned salt mines )
In conclusion: I am coming to the realisation that I want the spectacle and fun of the Mandalorian combined with the mature and thoughtful philosophies of Andor, and I don't UNDERSTAND why this is so HARD to ACHIEVE [bangs fist on desk]. Jury is decidedly out on whether I follow on with any seasons to come. It may rely entirely on whether or not K2 is there.
It brings me no joy to confess I'm apparently still a bit of an unpleasable bastard, and possibly should have stayed under my rock. I can certainly see why Andor has been so well-received, and I don't think the praise is unearned exactly, but for all the facets of it I enjoyed there were others which left me feeling very sour indeed. In a way it has helped clarify for me what I most want from Star Wars by token of not satisfying that desire.
But we'll get into my grumbling later, and start somewhere more positive: Andor is a 12 episode prequel to the 2016 film Rogue One, and seeks to expand that movie's particular legacy by laying out the backstory for one of its main characters, Rebel operative Cassian Andor. Like Rogue One, Andor shifts the focus away from the dramatic frontlines of the battle between good and evil (and light and dark) and delves instead into the murkier grey zone where everyday cannon fodder lives and struggles and dies. It asks what it takes to build a rebellion - logistically, operationally, morally - and the answer is often 'sacrifice'. This is very much in line with the philosophical case made in Rogue One: that grand victories are built on the backs of many smaller ones, and often those at one end of the chain will never know for sure what was achieved by the flap of their personal wings. The story is not about stand-out heroes, but instead about the power of collective effort - and collective pain.
Andor has something to say and makes an effort to say it purposefully, and it's a welcome change compared to many of Disney's other TV offerings. Their technique still needs some work - episodes vary in length from 37 minutes to 53, and early on things would just sort of awkwardly cut to credits in a way that felt more like a long movie was being chopped into chunks than well-crafted episodic storytelling. It tightened up over the course of the show, though, and the story-telling otherwise did well in providing a selection of views into the brewing conflict between the Empire and the Rebellion. One of its clear strengths was in showing the Empire's influence at both its ugliest and its most mundane.
The cast was great and I have no complaints about the acting, save that I can only imagine Diego Luna was ingesting an awful lot of aspirin for jaw pain - I don't think Cassian unclenched for more than five minutes, and not consecutively! The tight-knit community of Ferrix was compelling, and for the number of new faces introduced there were plenty I wouldn't mind seeing again (even if it would be impossible for a few...). Andor also made a step forward in finally (?) having a clear same-sex relationship onscreen, and between two characters who had purpose in the series beyond tokenism to boot! Alas, now that we know for certain that lesbians exist in Disney brand Star Wars, how can we ever justify Padme falling for Anakin.
I've seen sharper intrigue-based plotting, but overall it was a sound spy-game adventure with emotive and nuanced arguments, some exciting climaxes, and typically high production values. I couldn't call the time I spent with the show wasted.
What, then, is my issue?
Ironically, it's the very thing I've often seen put forward as an argument in Andor's favour: it didn't feel like Star Wars.
( 10 YEARS in the abandoned salt mines )
In conclusion: I am coming to the realisation that I want the spectacle and fun of the Mandalorian combined with the mature and thoughtful philosophies of Andor, and I don't UNDERSTAND why this is so HARD to ACHIEVE [bangs fist on desk]. Jury is decidedly out on whether I follow on with any seasons to come. It may rely entirely on whether or not K2 is there.
