#58

Andor

Who would have guessed that the story of Cassian Andor, a secondary character in the Star Wars movie Rogue One, a show that no one was excited for or wanting, would turn out to be the best Star Wars TV show ever?

Whereas most of the Star Wars franchise feels as if it is based for kids, Andor is 100% Star Wars for adults. The storylines were deeper, the characters more flawed, and the stakes higher.

The stretch when Cassian was in prison in th emiddle of season one were some of the most compelling and fascinating storytelling of the entire run. Then, the brutal Ghorman massacre was frighteningly realistic for the genre.

Diego Luna starred as Cassian Andor and led the cast of outstanding acotrs which included Adria Arjona, Stellan Skarsgård, Alex Lawther. Faye Marsay, Ben Mendelsohn, Benjamin Bratt, Andy Serkis, Forest Whitaker, Denise Gough, Elizabeth Dulau, Kyle Soller, Genevieve O’Reilly, and Alan Tudyk.

What made it even more challenging was the fact that we knew Cassian’s fate. We knew he did not make it out of Rogue One, so why do we bother to give this character such an amazing back story? It takes the events of Rogue One and makes them even more tragic than before. The powerful final scene with Adria Arjona with her child, the child of Cassian Andor, was even more impactful.

Andor received several Emmy nominations and was universally commended for its work. Star Wars should follow this blueprint to move their franchise into the future.