Created by Tony Gilroy
Episodes 1-3
Written by Tony Gilroy
Directed by Toby Haynes
Starring Diego Luna, Stellan Skarsgård, Kyle Soller, Adria Arjona, Fiona Shaw
New episodes Wednesdays on Disney+

by Ryan Silberstein, Managing Editor, Red Herring

The thing that is most surprising about the first three episodes of Andor is not the fact that there are no lightsabers or mentions of the Jedi—it’s the lack of Stormtroopers. This Rogue One: A Star Wars Story prequel didn’t seem likely to feature either of the former, but from the moment it was announced it seemed like it would be filled with the iconic white armored Imperial enforcers. But Andor is focused on how a spark becomes a blazing Rebellion, and starts on a smaller, more intimate scale.

The earliest point in time explored in these episodes comes in the form of flashbacks (a rarity in Star Wars storytelling grammar) to a young Cassian Andor (Antionio Viña) on his homeworld of Kenari. Here we see the effect the Republic can have on developing peoples, and how Cassian develops his deep mistrust of authority. These flashbacks are set during the prequel era, before the fall of the Jedi and the Republic, and they are a better illustration of the dissatisfaction with the status quo that is happening on the fringe of those movies (something explored a lot more in the Clone Wars animated series).

The main story takes place 5 years before the events of Rogue One and Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, and it begins with Cassian Andor looking for his sister in what is implied to be a house of ill repute. Thus Tony Gilroy quickly establishes a tone that sets Andor apart from much of the other stories set in the Galaxy Far Far Away. There’s nothing here that is outright inappropriate for kids (unless “bastard” and “shit” count), but the worlds of Andor feel much more menacing and dangerous than even the darkest moments in the films. Much of that feeling comes from the fact that we aren’t seeing any laser swords. So far, Andor is concerned with working class beings trying to scrape by living by dismantling scrap. This thematically ties into Rey's journey in the sequel films, as both she and Cassian are people who are easily discarded by the powers that be.

Despite being a thief and maybe a bit of a con man, Cassian (Diego Luna) only attracts attention when he kills two Pre-Mor employees. Pre-Mor is a corporation that controls the area in and around the planet Ferrix, where adult Cassian lives with his mother, Maarva (Fiona Shaw), and their droid B2EMO (Dave Chapman). It is this corporate authority that is seeking to track down Cassian for these three episodes, led by Syril (Kyle Soller). These capitalist cops believe themselves to be the Empire’s front line in terms of keeping the locals in line. Or at least Syril does. His boss, Chief Hyne (Rupert Vansittart), wants to record the two deaths as an accident. Middle management of Pre-Mor would rather fly under the radar than attract attention, but Syril drips with ambition, and pushes forward in the Chief’s absence. This adds pressure to Cassian, not only are the Pre-Mor goons closing in, but the numerous debts he’s accumulated are coming due. His main motivation so far is money, and knowing where he ends up, it seems like we are on a slow burn journey of independent survivor to partisan freedom fighter.

Could that first step into a larger world be through Luthen Rael (Stellan Skarsgård)? So far, we’ve only seen him as a mysterious buyer of stolen Imperial property. But he wants Cassian for something more. Their escape from Pre-Mor’s cops provides a thrilling action sequence in the third episode, with no real clues pointing to where they are headed next, but plenty of opportunities to show the unrest laying dormant on the streets of Ferrix.

While always eager for new planets and locations, the Ferrix locals make a big impression in these first trio of episodes. B2EMO continues the trend of charming droids, and his mood coming off as wanting to help but so very tired is extremely relatable. Maarva and Bix (Adria Arjona) represent a too rare Star Wars archetype, as women who are unaligned with a faction (from what we see in these first three episodes). They are the Han/Lando sort of characters, trying to work around the oppressive control of the Empire, but not directly fighting back. Seeing how they fit into the larger galaxy is something we hopefully get more of from this season, and I am eager to see how they may be juxtaposed with Mon Mothma (Genevieve O'Reilly) who doesn’t appear in these opening episodes.

It definitely makes sense as to why these three episodes were all released together. Running under two hours total, it recalls the way the Battlestar Galactica reboot was launched with an extended pilot to establish the setting and characters. Although Andor takes place in a well-established universe, this is a side of it we haven’t seen before, and about the kinds of characters who don’t often get the spotlight. These episodes establish a tone much more grounded and rugged than we are used to from Star Wars, as well as already hinting at more moral complexities to come.

At the center of all this is Diego Luna, an excellent actor who was underutilized in Rogue One, which has such a breathless pace that it takes a few viewings to unpack each of the many characters it introduces. Luna is absolutely leading man material, and the way he attunes his performance to his relationships with every other character in the cast demonstrates his aptitude for playing a character like Cassian, who always has an ulterior motive on the job. As the first live action Star Wars show that isn’t relying on nostalgia for movies that are decades old, Andor steps up and delivers a thrilling opening salvo.