Andor - Season 2
Disney+
Andor has easily become one of the biggest successes for Star Wars and Disney+ over the last few years. While some audience members have felt that Star Wars has lost direction and focus with multiple disappointing releases and questionable creative decisions, it is almost universally agreed upon that Andor, specifically its first season, was a gem. Following Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) in the years leading up to the events of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, many argued that Andor was not simply one of the best projects within the Star Wars lineup, but was simply one of the best shows currently airing in general. Naturally, this reception created some lofty expectations for the show, which promised to conclude its story with Season 2. Continuing to show the build of tension between the Empire and the universe, a pressure cooker that would eventually grow a rebellion, it is hard to argue that Andor's second season isn't one of the few projects to live up to expectations, with the season producing a truly captivating and thrilling political drama.
While much of the story in Andor obviously focuses on its titular character and his journey into the figure audiences met in Rogue One, perhaps the show's greatest strength is how it continually pushes past the character to paint a far grander portrait of this era in the Star Wars timeline. The first season of the show identified compelling angles to show the turmoil and drama both within the Empire itself and those working against their unchecked displays of power and violence, with Season 2 going even deeper into this back-and-forth.
With a quite venomous voice at times that isn't afraid to evoke modern political themes in a manner many would expect a Disney project to avoid, Andor continues to portray mature and complex themes of fascism, political corruption, misinformation, and political violence in a way that doesn't feel sanitized or basic. The size and weight of The Empire feel incredibly well-realized, and the intensity is palpable in many scenes. When it comes to purpose and creating thrilling content through dialogue and framing, Andor is perhaps the best work of any Star Wars entity, feeling like a defining realization of the themes and goals of the franchise at large.
The show is intelligent and meaningful, not feeling like filler streaming content but rather a project with a real vision and identity. Massive praise must be given to the show's writing team, including Tony Gilroy, Beau Willimon, Dan Gilroy, and Tom Bissell, for how strong the dialogue is throughout the season. When it comes to quality writing, Andor is far above anything that has been seen in any Disney+ original series, even beyond the Star Wars filter. There are scenes of characters only talking that pull the audience to the edge of their seat, cementing the show's identity as prestige television.
This scope of depth is mirrored by an incredible scope in production design and world-building. Starting with The Mandalorian, Disney would fully commit to bringing its worlds to life on the small screen using The Volume, a video wall designed by Industrial Light & Magic that allowed for easy transportation of characters to alien worlds without ever leaving a soundstage or having to create full sets. While this technology was revolutionary and an obvious blessing for COVID-era productions that made travel far more logistically challenging, the effects quickly grew to be noticeably limited and poor.
As Star Wars continued to go back to the technology for The Book of Boba Fett, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ahsoka, Skeleton Crew, and even Andor Season 1, shows became almost unwatchable due to how obvious the technology became and how unnatural it felt. Andor Season 2 throws this technology to the side, and the results are spectacular. The show feels truly cinematic, employing massive visuals and tangible sets in a way that feels beyond refreshing. Andor's world feels lived in and real, allowing the audience to buy into the more grounded drama on a far deeper and more natural level. Part of the joy of the original trilogy of Star Wars films is seeing the effort that went into practically creating its world and characters, becoming iconic as a result. This type of iconography is hard to find in modern media. While Andor undoubtedly doesn't reach the same levels and does use plenty of visual effects, it feels like a closer step in the right direction than nearly any piece of franchise media in years.
This isn't to say that the show doesn't have its own set of flaws. The biggest struggle for the show consistently has been its pacing as it rips itself apart with different stories that sometimes fight in a game of tug-of-war for attention and focus. Specifically, Cassian's drama often feels noticeably less when compared to the more dynamic political game happening around him. While there is nothing in Season 2 that sidelines the momentum of the show quite as majorly as Cassian's prison arc of Season 1, there are still times where it feels like the show is more forced to build his character and his expected development out of obligation rather than inspiration.
One key element that helps keep the show together is the impending sense of finality. Andor Season 2 is the end of the show as it finally pushes its character and world forward into what will be explored in other Star Wars media. Because of this understanding, the show doesn't need to worry about filler. It doesn't even have the option to stretch itself out to other unneeded seasons. It is a leash put on the show to ensure focus and closure are found, with the results being rewarding and satisfying. However, there is a unique frustration that is sure to pop up for some, considering the nature of the show's finale. For those who are excited and hyped for the next chapter of this story, the one broadcast in Rogue One, the actual follow-through of this will greatly depend on how one feels about that film. For those who are fans of Gareth Edwards' feature, this will prove to be fine; those who feel colder on the film will feel that disappointment all the more strongly. Even if one likes the film, the change in voice behind the camera is sure to be noticeable, creating a situation that somewhat feels lose-lose after such a strong season of television setting up the content of that feature.
Still, these issues are nuanced points that ultimately do not affect the majority of the season. Andor showed great promise in Season 1, but Season 2 realizes just how special the show actually is. One of the best entries in the overall Star Wars franchise, Andor delivers on every promise and gives even more than what was expected. For fans of the first season, this is sure to be a satisfying conclusion to this slice of Star Wars story, with the hope being that the brand at large can learn from the success of the show and embrace its ideals throughout their upcoming slate of releases.
