Andor S2

[ChandrilanDiscoDroid]

Who else is watching? I love that it has come out to universal rave reviews and proved that you can do something worth a damn in the Star Wars universe, if you have a vision and the skill to pull it off. Tony Gilroy has always known exactly what he's doing - the setting, the dialogue, the character beats, the acting.

Obligatory: my girl Mon dancing like the world is ending, because it is.

It's so much better than the other Star Wars shows. I don't think I've cringed once watching this....

It’s so good - and the first time I’ve been swept away by a Star Wars programme since I watched The Empire Strikes Back at the age of ten!

I love that the Force appears in it not at all. I'm still pissed off about the awful decision to make Rey a descendant of Palpatine and basically create a Royal lineage in space for no fucking reason.

Cassian's scrappy life and semi-anonymous death are so much more meaningful than anything that prick Luke ever did.

It’s fabulous. I love Mon and her dancing.

Mon is absolutely killing it. I love Diego Luna, but Genevieve O'Reilly is the MVP. The original Mon actress made a hell of a lot of hay out of "Many Bothans died to bring us this information", and as someone pointed out, this entire series is basically an expansion of that thesis statement. The gut-shot of Leida throwing her escape route back in her face, Luthen's cold "How nice for you", her falling apart on the dance floor in those frenetic spins.

I want to go to a Chandrilan wedding now also. It looks like a time.

Turn off the lights.

The dorky fascist sexual tension is off the charts.

Oh my! Episode 8 and 9 are some of the most powerful TV ever!

Finished it and then started Rogue One the film. Not quite a seemless transition but I'm amazed they got it so close.

Just finished it too! Maaaaaan. It wasn't perfect but it's a towering achievement, and it has retrospectively added so much weight, meaning, and texture to not just Rogue One but the entire original trilogy. It changed Star Wars while still being Star Wars and having some all-too-timely things to say about fascism. It made me empathise with every single character, like, was that some sort of black magic??

I've got to admit that SPOILER!

Bix being pregnant when she left was a bit hoary, and I wondered if they'd go there. But, well, that does happen in real life, unlike Cassian finding his sister (which I still can't believe people thought was going to happen), and I think Gilroy earned a pass for a bit of sentimentality. Plus I'm so glad we made sure Bee was OK.

I was a little frustrated with the last three episodes which I found a let down after the Ghorman episodes. The series was throttled by being much shorter than originally planned which is such a shame. I did like the development of Kleya and her relationship with Luthen. And I was delighted to see Dedra in that cell at the end.

I agree that the series peaked with the Ghorman massacre. There was still a lot to love about the last 3 episodes though. Kleya the stone-cold badass. The return of Melshi. Melshi, Cass and K2 playing space poker. "I'm telling them I was kidnapped." (Alan Tudyk's voice work is always a delight.) The scene between Dedra and Luthen, face to face at last.

And yeah, seeing Dedra in a Narkina-esque Imperial prison cell, knowing what we know about the sheer horror of it... that really hit. Poetic justice and yet also strangely sad.

Denise Gough has been my favourite actor in this series by a long way. I love this clip of her describing her mouth. https://m.youtube.com/shorts/eKiiYJXGA9c

Just finished it and loved it.
Star Wars grew up with this series.

(was Kleya Cassian’s sister?)

Does one need to know the ins and outs of the Star Wars universe to watch this? I’ve seen stills/clips online and like the look of it, but don’t want to be underwhelmed by the story or characters simply due to my being a n00b.

I have seen several Star Wars films (as part of my parental duty) but generally it was in one ear and out the other. Andor is much better written and constructed than anything by George Lucas and company. I think that you could definitely watch it and enjoy it without seeing anything else partly because it is so good and partly because it is set before the main era of the films.

A caveat, I think it takes a couple of episodes to get going and I almost stopped watching but I'm glad I persevered.

No. She was just Kleya. Cassian's sister is almost certainly long dead.

You really don't. It does lead up directly into Rogue One which leads directly into the original SW (A New Hope), but you don't need to know any of that. It's a very grounded story, a spy story and a story about fascism and resistance.

Kleya wasn’t Cassian’s sister.

@evtheria OP is right, you can watch Andor independently, but I think it adds gravity and poignancy to Cass’ story arc (and a few others) if you know what happens in Rogue One and how significant those actions are for A New Hope. Also adds a lot of irony to some of the Imperial chacacters. So would encourage you to watch them. Rogue One came out about 2016, also stars Diego Luna as the same character, and has a similar feel/ ethos. A New Hope not so much! As it’s classic original Star Wars, so much more corny/ feel good. But they’re still resisting the Empire!