This article contains spoilers for Andor episode 10.Andor is easily one of the best Star Wars projects since the original trilogy. In 2012, Disney acquired Lucasfilm for $4.05 billion. It’s an open secret that this new era has been mixed for Star Wars, with the theatrical films in a constant state of flux and the sequel trilogy criticized for coming to a disappointing conclusion. The greatest success, however, has come in terms of transmedia; under Disney, Star Wars has expanded into a true transmedia franchise, where the Disney+ TV shows really do feel just as important as the films themselves.
Tony Gilroy’s Andor is proving to be one of the most successful shows to date, receiving popular and critical acclaim; at time of writing, it has a critic score of 92 per cent on review aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes, and an audience score of 85 per cent, suggesting critics and audiences alike have been won over by the show. It’s a unique project, several steps removed from the main Star Wars saga; Andor consciously cuts down on Easter eggs and fan-service, instead telling a tense story about the birth of the Rebel Alliance in which only one major character (Genevieve O’Reilly’s Mon Mothma) even appears in Lucas’ films. Naturally, this is leading many to compare Andor to everything that’s gone before, and to ask if this really is the best Star Wars to date.
Andor Is One Of The Best Star Wars Projects Since The Original Trilogy
Andor is certainly one of the best Star Wars projects since the original trilogy. The latest Disney+ TV series embraces the political imagery of Star Wars in a way that hasn’t been seen since the prequels, but it handles the politics with a deft skill that was sadly absent in the likes of Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace and Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones. Andor wears its politics on its sleeve, making its statements with an unusual degree of boldness, and the dialogue is sharp enough to draw viewers into even Senate machinations. Looking beyond Lucas’ time in charge of the franchise, Andor blows almost everything else from the Disney era out of the water. Only The Mandalorian and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story can compete, but Andor is better written than either, and has much stronger character arcs.
Andor IS Better Than The Original Star Wars Trilogy In Some Ways
There are some ways in which Andor is clearly better than even the Star Wars original trilogy. The writing is much more sophisticated, and the dialogue is so much better than anything penned by George Lucas; as gifted a visionary as he may be, dialogue was never Lucas’ strong suit. Alec Guinness hated working on the first Star Wars film, complaining that the writing was “rubbish.” “George, you can type this ****, but you can’t say it,” Harrison Ford once snapped at Lucas during production of the original trilogy; he later claimed he was joking, but the comment rings uncomfortably true. The contrast with Andor is marked, with dialogue working on so many different levels, and episode 10 in particular featuring spine-chilling speeches from major actors. It helps that the actors are clearly loving their parts, reveling in the opportunities they’re given by the scripts.
Andor is also much more sophisticated on a thematic level. Lucas always intended Star Wars to serve as something of a commentary on American military exceptionalism; the Rebels are essentially terrorists, inspired by the Khmer Rouge. Andor, however, has taken this one step further, applying these themes to the age of Donald Trump. Luthen’s speech in Andor episode 10 is perhaps the most powerful in the history of Star Wars, giving an idea of what it really means to fight against the Empire in the Dark Times of Palpatine’s reign.
Star Wars’ Original Trilogy Could Never Have Been Like Andor
And yet, it must be noted there’s a sense in which this is comparing apples to oranges. Lucas envisioned Star Wars as principally being aimed at children, and he wanted his story to be noted for its breakneck pace. This can even be seen in the designs for classic Star Wars ships, with the Rebel Alliance’s X-Wings inspired by Lucas’ beloved hot rods. In contrast, Andor is much more mature, and it moves at a much slower speed, taking the time to develop a stronger sense of place and deeper characterization. Lucas and Gilroy are employing completely different approaches to storytelling, and aiming their productions at different audiences, meaning the comparisons aren’t really fair.
Ultimately, Andor Isn’t Better Than The Original Trilogy (But Comes Close)
Ultimately, then, Andor isnt better than the original trilogy – although, to be fair, it comes close. There’s a certain indefinable wonder to the original trilogy, a magic that flows out of every scene. The themes of hope and redemption resound in almost every moment, themes that really wouldn’t be appropriate at Andor‘s point in the Star Wars timeline.
The heroes of the original trilogy are archetypes, meaning they stand larger than life, where Andor’s characters are deliberately designed to feel more like ordinary people struggling to survive in a totalitarian regime. In terms of the villains, Darth Vader is one of the most effective villains in cinematic history, his story taking surprising twists as Lucas’ films continue. It’s true that the plot of the original trilogy is nowhere near as complex as Andor, but that’s actually for the best, because it means the movies can be enjoyed whether a viewer is a five-year-old or 50.
Andor Makes Star Wars’ Original Trilogy Even Better
Star Wars fans love to play different stories against one another, saying which one they consider better. The beauty of transmedia storytelling, however, is that the discrete parts do not need to compete; instead, they can complement. To borrow from Luthen’s monologue in Andor episode 10, Andor is the galaxy at night, telling the story of those who dream of the day. Such a story only derives its meaning from viewers knowing day will indeed break; the torch will be passed from Luthen and Cassian Andor to Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa, champions of the light whose radiance will dispel the darkness. Without the Star Wars original trilogy, Andor is bleak and disturbing, the future in doubt.
Tony Gilroy’s Andor is particularly impressive, though, in that it actually makes the original trilogy better. It gives a sense of just how dark the galaxy really got, how much of a gamble the Rebel Alliance really seemed against the Empire. The themes and concepts in play in the first Star Wars film in particular are given even more depth and power. This is, of course, what all the best prequel stories do; they stand on their own two feet, but add weight to the main story. It’s a delight to see Star Wars pull this off so well.
New episodes of Andor release on Wednesdays on Disney+.
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