Andor is SO FUCKING WELL WRITTEN that it is a show where you can now say that a big working class man sparked a riot by clapping an imperial soldier with a brick made from the ashes of an old rebel who was his best friend's mother is CANON. And we absolutely love it.
16:03 that’s kind of the intentional joke though: Dedra is a “girl boss”, but that’s *bad* because she’s a fucking monster and her being good at her job is like cheering on the most capable SS officer during Saving Private Ryan
My wife and I loved Andor. My wife was an intelligence analyst back in the 80's. She likened the Imperial situation in the ISB to the main problem the Soviet Union had during the cold war. Rampant nepotism and officers playing too much leap frog with each other to get to the top to be truly effective. And when someone is connecting the dots they get shouted down and laughed at for being competent and accused of being the teacher's pet.
Really helpful life advice would be just look up who the writers are. I haven't seen all the mandalorian or seen book of Boba fet or any of the new cartoons. I just read a Tony Gilroy interview and he seemed kind of dope. So I watched andor. That and the composer did Succession.
18:45 - I strongly disagree with the argument that converting the Sterling SMG was E-11 was somehow better than converting the AK-47 into a blaster on two points: First: When Star Wars came out, the Sterling submachinegun had been in service with the British Army for 33 years. In fact, when the British went off to the Falklands war in 1982 (the same war where Newsweek made the famous 'The Empire Strikes Back' cover featuring the HMS Hermes), British soldiers were carrying the Sterling SMG into battle. It was an active duty weapon with the British Army into the 90s when it was finally retired. This directly contributed to the reason why the E-11s were used in the Star Wars production in the first place because part of the production was in the U.K. IMFDB lists the Sterling SMG having appeared in at least 20 different movies (some of which were James Bond films) before Star Wars in 1977. Not to mention at least two TV shows. General audiences would definitely be able to recognize it's silhouette if they had ever seen the gun before. Second, and more importantly: People completely miss out on WHY they made blasters in the silhouette of an AK. Notice how in the entire season there are only ever two of them shown. They're shown in the hands of the Aldhani cell. Every other blaster rifle they had was an E-11, which they needed for the disguises. The production team could have easily just given them more E-11s for the rest of the team, or some other generic blaster design. But they didn't. The blasters are first seen in their hand during the establishing shots introducing the team to the audience. They are there to give an impression. The AK has become associated as a gun used by of rebels, terrorists, freedom fighters, irregulars, etc. The blasters were made in that shape as a visual cue to invoke that association. So many people never think its appearance through and chalk it off to 'laziness'. As if the one Star Wars show that went to the pains of shooting on location and creating a set of an entire town could be called 'lazy' in its production.
I totally agree. Over the last years I got the feeling Star Wars Fans don't understand basic storytelling elements like symbolism. They always whine about how things aren't Star Wars while not being able to say what it means to be Star Wars.
I had this reaction on the first watch to the use of the Scottish Highlands and the very recognisable Cruachan Power Station in particular - and then I thought about it and realised that the Forest Moon of Endor would have looked equally familiar to many residents of the Pacific North West - it was something that really wrecked the suspension of disbelief at the end of TFA as well with the very familiar (to me) rocky sea islets that are all round the coast of Scotland and Ireland. If you live in Iceland, every alien planet must look like home.
I think the use of Kalashnikovs in Andor was deliberate decision and not an oversight of the prop makers. The show wanted to emphasize that this is a rebel movement of the oppressed and they don't have the funds for expensive modern weapons. The Kalashnikov is literally the symbol of rebellion of the underdogs.
@@morphkogan8627this is (PURELY of my own opinion) a bad take, you realise the amount of civilian and aftermarket weaponry that would exist across an ENTIRE galaxy right? There are tens of millions of inhabited worlds in the Star Wars galaxy, at least tens if not hundreds of *thousands* of worlds would manufacture different types of blasters, either for sale to civilians, their own PDF’s, private security firms, corporate forces, imperial units, pirates, rebels etc, the gun still looks unique enough that It isn’t entirely out of place but still gives you an idea of who these people are just by the way their weapons and gear look, they’re rebels. Weapons won’t all look the same and Star Wars weapons, ships, armour, all draw inspiration from real life, it’s like saying the imperial officers uniform takes you out of the story because they look too much like Nazi uniforms
Star Wars is no more only about the Jedi than Warhammer 40k is only about Space Marines. They may be the most recognizable element in the meta sense, but they exist in a galaxy, and most people in each of their respective galaxies have never seen either one of them. There are stories to tell in each franchise without them in it and both could be better served by doing so more often.
The cast is honestly stellar. Not a single miscast with about a dozen of them, your man included, knocking it out of the park. It's so refreshing to see casting done this well in these dark times and for the actors and actresses to really want to shine for a, when all's said and done, Disney Star Wars TV show.
I had only experienced him in Marvel so my experience with him wasn’t that good. Sure I enjoyed the movies but he never had a good role to play even when he was instrumental. Andor makes me appreciate his acting skills.
Watching Andor reviews that just reinforce my own thoughts about how good the show is has become somewhat of a guilty pleasure for me; it this what being in an echo chamber feels like? Nevertheless, I'm quite thankful for this fine addition to my collection of Andor praise videos. My great thanks, Jellyfish.
I’m only a casual SW fan, but I understand and respect the love and passion fans have for this franchise. However for so many years all the air in the room has been dominated by hot takes, hurtful divisions, and dissatisfaction over lackluster stories that it’s no wonder to me how much fans crave any opportunity to just come together and joyfully express their appreciation for this show. From what I’ve seen the worst criticism has been that it’s boring or not “Star Wars” enough, which is just a personal opinion and it’s fine someone feels that way. Nobody is saying it CRUSHED their soul. 😂
Yup, same. I got worried about Andor being underappreciated and forgotten, but realized that those who did appreciate it like me, you and others just keep coming back to it and slowly bringing the attention it deserves. I realized that the appreciation of Andor is meant to be as a slow burn as it's plot, and as with the plot it's not a bad thing, but the natural course.
It is a show that respects the viewers’ intelligence and rewards our patience. I think that’s a huge part of its distinction compared to other Star Wars at the moment. Many of us have looked for Star Wars to grow up with us, but there has been a stated focus on younger viewers (9-14 yr olds?) which I think doesn’t respect even that target market’s intelligence. I know there is a reflex to blame Disney nowadays, but I’d extend this back to the Prequels.
I think Cassian saving Bix is supposed to be symbolic of him saving his sister. Though if they bring back the sister plotline in season 2, I guess I was wrong lol Great review man, It was about time you did Andor. I really like how you take different points of view into consideration
You wouldn't be wrong. A symbolic victory weighs as much as an actual victory, in a narrative sense. Also, it might be telling us that Cassian's sister is long dead, and saving Bix is a way for Cassian to let her go. Even Maarva said it's a fantasy.
Andor is pretty much a 10/10 across every category of filmmaking, from writing to direction, acting, music, costumes, set design, cinematography, etc. Pacing is a minor critique when weighed across everything else it nails. Even the core themes are robustly and maturely explored through each arc and character, and actually add something of value to the philosophies underpinning these themes
Always glad to see people coming around to this show and recognizing its merits as a high quality show so desperately needed in the era of Disney Star Wars
this show is just flat out across the board quality. 40 years of star wars and its the first show that justifies its foundational premise of rebellion against tyranny. Andor makes the empire, and by extension the rebellion, in the greater franchise finally feel real, believable and threatening
There is this difference between novels and the screen these days: Stories written specifically for the screen present us extended action sequences and limited dialog and exposition. Novels give us limited action sequences and extended dialog and exposition. Some shows, like The Expanse and Andor, are novels put to the screen in that respect (and, yes, I know Andor was not originally a novel, but the screenplay was written as though it were).
A lot of people think its a bad thing, but some of the best pieces of cinema are full of plot and dialogue rather than action for action's sake. Theres a reason that some of the highest rated movies of all time include The Godfater, Citizen Kane, 12 Angry Men, etc.
Took me a bit to get to it, but I just finished watching the first season and I must say it was absolutely stunning and gives me a taste of things that I adored about the old Star Wars EU, thank you for this recommendation as it definitely was worth it.@@workingjellyfish
@@workingjellyfishMr Jellyfish, I admit, I took my time to actually get to watch it, in part because I wanted the everyday occurrences to wash away even the vague details you gave of the plot so I'd go with only the most vague details possible, however with that being said, I'm pleased to say that I absolutely enjoyed watching Andor, and it definitely is one if not the best Star Wars work yet done by Disney (not a very high bar I know). Overall I'd say that some of the criticisms as of it being too "slow" do have a little bit of merit, however I find that most of the scenes where not much is happening have some absolutely stunning shots, that give weight to the world, yes on a first watch it could be tedious, but other great works, like Lord of the Rings had such and faced similar criticisms, but nowadays such are simply considered as part of the package so to speak. Another criticism that I definitely do -not- understand is the criticism that Andor looks too much like Blade Runner, when ANH and ESB predate it. ESB being one that featured sci fi environments, but I think that such criticism falls moot given the context that this all takes place in a -galaxy- that is why Lucas definitely showed a variety of environments that are drastically different from each other, compare Naboo, to Coruscant and they are wildly different. Now in terms of tone and vibe it definitely is gritty, but that too was present to an extent in ESB, and it -certainly- was present in some of the best well received works in the Star Wars EU. Furthermore a strong point of Andor is that it makes the imperials less of cardboard cutouts of characters that are campy villains (for the most part), here they are more palpable human beings, and they are no doubt villains, but they are interesting, and given the stakes, we know they can be dangerous as we see plenty of characters that die at their hands. Making them actually threatening, while we know Andor lives to the point of Rogue One, I feel the gravity and threat of the Imperials is more palpable on those around him, which adds to a measure of tension in the series that is a fresh breath of air.
Hot take: Andor is my favorite piece of Star Wars media PERIOD. To me it even surpasses the original trilogy and gives me EVERYTHING I ever wanted out of the Star Wars setting, focusing on how the Empire truly dominated the galaxy and making it more terrifying than it ever was previously, even with all the sith stuff. Deadly efficient bureaucracy is a truly horrifying thing.
Very much appreciate this review, I love Andor. Because I love it so much, it jumped out at me that I heard his name said as “Luther”. Just so people know, it is “Luthen”, and Skarsgard is incredible. And it’s all quality, so the drawn out nature is good with me 😎
19:33 It is modified though. You can see the ejection port doesn't even remotely line up with the magazine. It looks like the lower half and gas port of an AKMS with the upper receiver of an MP40.
Here’s why everyone is wrong about the Kalashnikovs-especially those calling their use _”lazy”._ Andor was shot at Pinewood Studios, the HOME of Star Wars, where they have decades of props and costumes nearby on on-hand. At any given moment they must have quick and easy access to a thousand Stormtrooper blast rifles and hundreds of rebel weapons-ons of all descriptions. In _FACT,_ it would have taken _special effort_ to get ahold of AKs for this arc, _instead_ of simply grabbing something from the prop storage. That means it was a _CHOICE_ to use Kalashnikovs. Why did they do it? Because Tony Gilroy and team were making a deliberate allusion to _REAL_ rebel groups by using the weapon associated with every single group of freedom fighters for more than a half-century. From the Chinese Revolution, to the Cuban Revolution, to the Mujahideen to the IRA, to the Sandinistas, the AK is a staple weapon. Gilroy is using a universal symbol of revolutionary cells. You can complain it ‘took you out of the fantasy’ but you cannot call it ‘lazy’.
Out of all the shows listed and announced, Andor was the only one that interested me because of Rogue One. RO put the "War" in "Star Wars" and while people complained about characters not being fleshed out or having arcs, then they've never watched an old school WWII movie. Like "The Great Escape", "Battle of the Bulge", or "Force 10 from Navarone". I was over Jedi and SIth and Star Wars up to that point after the farce that was TFA. If Andor could capture that feeling that we're in the same universe but seeing it from other's perepective, I'm in. The show is able to break out of the Star Wars box and can easily be shown to people who have seen the OG movie. It fits in so well with the designs and feel. It's a top notch production and if you're a SW fan. You owe it to yourself to watch it. I own guns but I didn't catch the AK and I think most people in general wouldn't have either. I think if it were an AR style that would really stand out to the, because in America that's the weapon of choice for mass shootings. The bricks thing was just stupid. Reminds me of the veritcal book stacking in Ghostbusters. My main complaint is that the sister thing can never be paid off and that they missed an opportunity to have Kenari connected with the other people and close knit community of Ferrix. And it's LUTHEN. Not Luthor.
My dad and I used to watch basically everything Star Wars and Marvel released as soon as it released, but that was sorta falling off, especially when I moved out. We ended up watching Andor together when I came back for the holidays, and let me tell you, it rekindled a little of that love we had for stuff like that, like me staying up late and watching Star Wars Rebels or him waking up early to watch new Clone Wars episodes with me. I’m glad Andor was released, and I’m extremely glad my dad and I got to watch it together
The Sterling submachine gun was used by the British Army until the early 1990s and by the Canadian Army into the late 1980s. It was very recognizable at the time of the original Star Wars trilogy.
If somebody think the show is too slow my recommendation is to watch Rise of Skywalker, that movie is very flashy and very fast pased. If you like quality watch Andor.
Yo, I finished watching Andor for the first time yesterday. I'm a lapsed SW fan. I walked away after TLJ. A friend practically begged me to give Andor a chance. I did. I was blown away. Arguably Top 5 SW incl. the movies. Not a masterpiece as others have said, but very, very good.
Andor did 2 things which never effectively surfaced in the rest of the live action franchise: it made the TIE fighter a truly terrifying weapon platform, and it gave the Storm Troopers an absolutely fascist vibe in their 1940-ish march through the streets of Ferrix City.
Andor is a piece of art and anyone who says otherwise is willfully shooting themselves in the foot. SW isn't a genre, it’s a universe and many different genres, themes, characters, and stories have yet to be discovered in that universe. If someone wants the 'feel' of the old movies there is good news, the old movies still exist, so literally go watch them again. As horrendous as some of the Last Jedi was I have grown to appreciate that Rian was also trying to make something new, his execution in some of that 'newness' was very questionable but the stuff that worked really worked. This misguided unconscious consensus of SW fans that we need to ‘recapture’ those feelings from the first films has led to an over saturation of bad SW trying to live up to something it shouldn’t even need to. Every SW project doesn’t need the same themes, characters, and feeling as the OG trilogy, that'd get repetitive and very boring. Most new projects have virtually become parodies of the source material where nothing is left but references cameos, and generic mic-drop lines that fit in any situation. I love Andor not just because it is full of heart, nuance, and complex storytelling in a thematically dark setting but also because of what it represents: innovation of SW and a new hope that future SW projects don't have to be self referential, sloppily written, poorly executed, mass produced projects rather than pieces of art that stand on their own merit. Disneys and the fans problem has been thinking that SW is a genre and everything must fit into very confined rules. If someone thinks Andor is too boring they need to consider spending less time feeding their dopamine receptors with stuff like Tik Tok and take the time to pay attention to what’s happening between action sequences. They’ll realize that that there is a lot of nuance and character work happening, it is a masterclass of writing and direction. If someone thinks Andor doesn't feel like SW they need to reframe how they understand the IP, it is not a genre of itself. The themes, characters, settings, sounds, textures, virtually everything is straight out of the Lucas doctrine and what story he was trying to tell. If someone thinks it stands shoulder to shoulder on equal footing as Obi Wan, Ahsoka, or Boba Fett they need to try and summarize one of those shows and try to summarize Andor, the difficulty to do so for Andor succinctly is indicative of the complex level of detail and care. Andor is lightyears ahead of those shows in virtually every cinema or storytelling criteria. Anyone who loves this show should be promoting it and recommending it to everyone they know. Systems either change or die and there is only one way out of this SW slump of bad media.
I agree with everything you just said, except the minor praise that you gave Last Jedi. I thought all 3 sequel movies were abominations. Andor is art. If we could have gotten the original 5 season plan and the quality stayed consistent, Andor would be a contender for greatest show of all time, right up there with Breaking Bad, GOT(not season 8)
This show is phenomal and has set the bar! Pay attention you shills at the top of the mouse house, stay the F out of the way and let those who know what they are doing, do it!
@working jelly fish : Ps do u have any theory as to who “Kleya” really is ? some online theories said that’s a pseudonym used by Princess Leia in her early days which would make sense, cuz then Andor seasons 1 and 2 would also show how Leia eventually became apprentice to Mon Mothma - By way of Luthen
Hey Jelly, I'm quite early today and I haven't even finished watching the video, but I have to say I am grateful for these reviews seeing as Disney has not come out with a single show worth watching in the last 3 years and I think it's super important to speak loudly about how good Andor is and let them hear it, they certainly need to make more shows like this. Good review!
Ah I feel you, I think we all need a good mouthwashing after the things Disney released in the past few years, so I'm glad to see a (mostly) positive reception towards Andor. Again, a very good video, hoping to see more of shows like Andor and your takes on upcoming stuff. @workingjellyfish
Wait, a Disney Star Wars show that has writing that doesn't treat its audience like idiots? Competent character decisions and interesting plot points? Hell has frozen over.
That Disney would spend millions of dollars on poorly written fan fiction does make one wonder? Who is dumber, the Disney audience or the one steering the SS Mickey Mouse?
@@mazkeraid4039 Even if it doesn't advance the grander narrative of the Star Wars universe, I can still greatly appreciate it. Much like reading a biography of certain big figures in history can deepen your appreciation for them in larger contexts, seeing Andor's story (along with just how good of a show it is) deepens my appreciation for Rogue One and even the OT.
@working jelly fish : just watched ur review - very nicely done Regarding ur final point, because Andor has practically tied down all loose threads from season 1 except his lost sister, I think they’re saving it for a crucial moment in season 2 (and I’m guessing it’s gonna be something bittersweet, maybe like him finally reuniting with her , only to her killed by stormtroopers 30 seconds later)
Andor is genuinely one of my favourite news shows to come out over the past few years, the first season is near perfection imo and is as good if not better than the Original Trilogy.
As a long time Star Wars fan (30+ years) I kinda slept on Andor because of how bad Boba Fett and Obi-wan was. But after hearing about how good it was I finally went and watched it and my god it was amazing. And if I'm being honest, and we lump all of Star Wars content into one group, I'd honestly rank Andor as the best piece of Star Wars story content ever. Even over the original trilogy. It's honestly that great.
I didn't like any of the modern Star Wars but this show I was looking forward to in advance because I knew Tony Gilroy was writing/directing it. It's quite clear Gilroy was sitting on a pile of geo-political thriller plot snippets that had nothing to do with Star Wars or even Science Fiction, and he poured them all into this show.
After years, Star War Theory was so triggered by the bricks in the new show that he switched his side, and included "Bricks" in his skit mocking the new show, Acolyte. this time rightfully so. flammable bricks, lol
Your comment (16:00) on the clip you play of Denise Gough seems to misinterpret what she was saying, perhaps? Certainly, she didn’t say anything that should launch your stated wish that “…we should put these meat puppets back in their box after the director is finished playing with them.” Describing the people who her character works with in the show, she sums it up as “…incompetent men, mostly.” Then she thinks about it, and recalls that the only ISB directors we hear from are all male, so she corrects herself: ‘All men, actually.” That wasn’t a comment about men in general. It was an accurate description of the other actors in her scenes on Andor. Hardly a reason to box her.
Andor is really great. And it's set in the Star Wars universe, so that makes it fantastic to me. If you haven't seen it, you need to correct yourself. Good review, WJ.
Edit: I meant to post this in your why people hate Disney SW lol I enjoyed THAT vid so much that of course I'm now watching this one!! Fantastic video mate, well done! I've saved this in my SW save folder on YT so I can share with those whom I love, who you call normies (👏) to help them understand my pain and anger over what has become of our beloved universe! You explain it way better than when I have tried, so thank you! Got my sub, looking forward to checking out the rest of your content! G'day mate
19:28 There is no excuse for the space AK and there nothing wrong with that lol ( they did make a custom handguard though it looks like). They deliberately added it because of its significance in revolutions and wanted the audience to notice. Whether that makes the show "less Star Wars" is up to you, but I can keep my suspension of disbelief seeing a weapon from 1947 in a franchise that boils down to historical fiction and fairy tales mixed together and given a coat of rusty space paint. Also doesn't Andor exist in part to Kathleen? I remember reading she brought in Tony Gilroy for both his Star Wars projects when the original concepts for them weren't going anywhere under the original showrunners. Though I think all executive, managerial, and oversight types mostly care about shit getting done on the timeline, hence LucasFilm's good rapport with both Rian Johnson and Tony Gilroy despite their difference in public reception. And it makes sense -- the reshoots of R1 alone prove Tony can do more with hundreds of millions of dollars than the people who worked on Obi-Wan and Boba. And that's basically what someone with a long history of film production like Kathleen would be looking at - how much can we get out of this for the cost?
the funny thing, is that I was about to watch Kenobi instead of Andor, but I made up my mind just before I hit play, so glad that I manged to doge that bs series
to be completely honest i didn't even pay attention to the guns the resistance was using i kind of love it that they accidently or purposefully used AK's
Just about every review starts with being surprised that Andor, a "character I never really cared about especially since he dies at the end of the movie he's in", ends up being part of a compelling story. I feel like I was the only person who was not apathetic, but DISTRAUGHT that they were making Andor. That's because I saw so much potential in this favored character of mine, and I was afraid modern Star Wars would just ruin it all (better left undone). His words and actions in Rogue One imply so much that he's done, thought, and become committed to. I am so massively relieved that not only does Cassian's story (and whole show) not suck, but it's actually become the prime example of quality among a sea of trash peers (much like Rogue One amidst the Sequels etc)
1000% agree. Gave me time between episodes to really consider the characters and the message. However, they were right to make the first few episodes available together, as they didn't quite have the same pull as the Aldhani or prison arcs.
1000% agree with you, Andor is a fantastic show, particularly if like me you are anti establishment at heart. I absolutely loved your comment about the actors, "putting these meat puppets back in their boxes once you've finished playing with them"!!! while Dedra/Denise Gough was regurgitating some of the regular Hollywood nonsense in order to get a fish from her handler.. 😂
Good video! For the AK, they modified the rear by putting a MP-40 butt, but still the main problem is the weapon is too well-known. Otherwise in the originals they used almost unmodified Mg-34 and Lewis lmg for the DLT-19 and T-21 respectively.
let's get one thing straight, andor is so ridiculously good that it outclasses the ENTIRE star wars saga, all games, all movies, all series, there isn't a single thing in star wars that is on andor's level, nto even empire
@@GODCONVOYPRIMEnot even the concept of star wars, the mere aesthetics of star wars, aside from the aesthetics of the original trilogy and of andor, and aside from empire, 2/3 of rogue one and andor, there is nothing of value in that entire franchise in my eyes
I don't necessarily agree that it's better than Empire, but the fact it's even debatable speaks volumes about how insanely good Andor is and how Star Wars can still inspire this level of excitement after so many missteps.
I think it’s funny watching conservative Starwars fans watching the most leftist, Antifa starwars shit ever made and then completely missing all those themes is very, very funny.
Yes that is very funny. I think andor shows that you don't have to sacrifice quality in the name of political messaging like so many other projects seem to do
For the record, Lucas shrunk the Wookies down to Ewoks so that his daughter could play with one of the toys. Not a better reason than penny-pinching, but it's a reason. Little people should be paid the same as Tall people - so they didn't save money, although they did treat the Ewok extras on the set like shit.
Personally speaking... I think Disney Star war is peak star wars. But I'm a fan of the ongoing lore and characters. Obi and boba aside, everything Disney Star wars related after the shitty trilogy has been great. Andor, Rebels, Bad Batch, Clone Wars s7, Tales, Visions, Ahsoka, Mando, all have been some amazing interesting and hype shows. With Bad Batch Final season hinting to a lot of overarching connectivity story arcs from the ongoing storyline, and Ashoka seemingly building upon it
Given that Andor had an entire 3-episode arc (the prison sequence) featuring no women, only dudes, I question whether Kathleen Kennedy even knew it was happening.
For all the times I've watched Andor, it never occurred to me that there were no women in the prison. Which I suppose makes sense, but in the context of the rest of Disney productions seems unnatural and out of place in the best way possible.
@@Gabriel_Cook Star Wars lore is that Palpatine is xenophobic. We kind of saw evidence of that even in A New Hope, from the imperial officer's reaction when Han and Luke took Chewbacca to the detention center. Andor displayed that by the numbers and humanoid-ness of aliens in the general population depending on proximity to Coruscant...really, the proximity to Palpatine. Was that a conscious production decision? I don't know. But also, we should not expect to see a lot of aliens everywhere. In fact, it should be relatively rare. Most worlds will have only native species over most of the world, with a few non-natives in larger cities and maybe more in spaceport cities.
@@kirkdarling4120 really i feel it more cowardly that they haven't directly targeted the extreme xenophobia in the empire in a series. something with no human heros and just show the banal racism of human storm troopers as a unit of oppression. if your going to be preachy, don't be neoliberal, be full left wing. so many series get caught in the neoliberal hole which feels as inauthentic and falsely optomistic as neoliberals are in general. it almost doesn't make sense that anti-human racism hasn't been fermenting on worlds without breathable air and water worlds and hasn't played out as a response to the wretched oppression of the last century of star wars main story and civil war.
Andor is "off brand" in that it is not an entry point for kids and adults are pretty burnt out on the IP. They need to make a few more of this quality and somehow manage to market it differently from the rubbish.
Andor and Rogue One are (IMHO) absolutely works of modern cinema genius. And judging what we've seen to date (thru 2024), it is truly unbelievable that Disney produced these two storylines, because (a) they are so well done, and (b) other than Mandalorian seasons 1 & 2, Disney has literally dumpster-burned _Everyrhing_ else in Star Wars that they have touched. What Fk'ing cultural criminals they are these days!!!
Ooh can't wait to watch this. My take was: "Oh geez a wartime spy-drama with good acting. Hope the plot is good.." Not-spoiler, season 1 sets up season 2 without resolving much. Great character building and great world-building dialogue. This series being good for adult viewers (by maturity, as opposed to juvenile content age-restricted by foul language and sex) should remind ALL OF US that Star Wars (IV) is/was/and forever will be best for boys aged 5-11 years old. If the movies are passable for adults while mesmerizing children, then they are good movies. That said, the Star Wars fandom is mostly over 50, so ANDOR is the best thing for 99% of long-time fans. Dial the dystopia down a notch from "Bladerunner" and you get "Andor." Not dirty or foul, but this show would bore children. Shoutout to "The Bad Batch" being the best overall Disney SW content so far. I will gladly rewatch it with children someday. Cannot suggest this series highly enough for any grandparents who may spend evenings with the tykes.
I know that song! Why that's Rogue Squadron!!! That punches me, right in the member berries! Edit: ...and throwing in a Tomorrow Never Dies clip? my lord, please take me back to 98' when life was amazing. Edit Edit: And a clip from GoldenEye... "I think I died and went to heaven."
Robot Head has made the exact same mistake that so many newer Star Wars fans make.....He's forgetting that the Prequels completely changed The Star Wars Aesthetic! - Andor is by far the closest thing we've got to The OT on screen since Return of the Jedi! Rogue One is the second closest but that's quite a bit behind Andor as Gilroy came in late to Rogue One. - Btw it is Bobba not Boaba! That was another Prequel Retcon! - - - ua-cam.com/video/MJe7e7rVVO8/v-deo.html
![Lp. Сердце Вселенной #60 РОЖДЕНИЕ ЛОЛОЛОШКИ [Финал] • Майнкрафт](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/YoR0pAV9FVQ/mqdefault.jpg)
Brasso doming the Imperial troop with Maarvas brick lives rent-free in my head.
It's what she would have wanted.
Maarva got them in the end. Very fitting.
the headbutt was a first for any Star Wars movie.
Brasso dominating with Maarva’s brick or the bell keeper giving the stormtrooper a “This is Sparta!” kick out of the bell tower?🤔
Brasso talking to B2 after Maarva's death is the defining moment of who he is, for me.
Andor is SO FUCKING WELL WRITTEN that it is a show where you can now say that a big working class man sparked a riot by clapping an imperial soldier with a brick made from the ashes of an old rebel who was his best friend's mother is CANON.
And we absolutely love it.
💯
The highest quality show I’ve seen out of them all on Disney plus. It’s a shame how everyone seems to sleep on it
will not support any Disney Star Wars ... f Andor
@@maximuscryptosx9424 stunning and brave, go off king! 👏
@@maximuscryptosx9424 Andor isn’t just good Disney Star Wars, it’s better than a lot of EU Star Wars.
@@TheEvilMiasma doesn't matter .. it all leads to Rey.. RiP Star Wars 2012
@@maximuscryptosx9424 whats bro chirping about
16:03 that’s kind of the intentional joke though: Dedra is a “girl boss”, but that’s *bad* because she’s a fucking monster and her being good at her job is like cheering on the most capable SS officer during Saving Private Ryan
.... Am I a bad guy for that?
@@nightowl9519 Are we the baddies?!
@@Sekir80 You know it 😈
Add to that: she's highly technically competent, but lacks political savvy, which Maj. Partagaz notes and warns her about.
she also loses her shit and doesn't know what to do in the finale when everything goes to shit and gets saved by Syril.
My wife and I loved Andor. My wife was an intelligence analyst back in the 80's. She likened the Imperial situation in the ISB to the main problem the Soviet Union had during the cold war. Rampant nepotism and officers playing too much leap frog with each other to get to the top to be truly effective. And when someone is connecting the dots they get shouted down and laughed at for being competent and accused of being the teacher's pet.
i completely ignored andor because i was still hurt from book of boba fett and kenobi but then i gave it a chance and it was amazing
I was the same. I was blown away once I gave it a chance.
@@goldenageofdinosaurs7192 Yup. Joining the party. I like to ignore the fact that BoBF and Kenobi even exist.
Really helpful life advice would be just look up who the writers are. I haven't seen all the mandalorian or seen book of Boba fet or any of the new cartoons. I just read a Tony Gilroy interview and he seemed kind of dope. So I watched andor. That and the composer did Succession.
I’ve been telling my brother who loves Star Wars that Andor is the best Star Wars content since ESB. He still hasn’t given it a chance 🤷🏽♂️
EVERYTHING. Everything makes Andor worthy of one’s time. It’s light years ahead of everything Star Wars has delivered since ROTJ.
18:45 - I strongly disagree with the argument that converting the Sterling SMG was E-11 was somehow better than converting the AK-47 into a blaster on two points:
First: When Star Wars came out, the Sterling submachinegun had been in service with the British Army for 33 years. In fact, when the British went off to the Falklands war in 1982 (the same war where Newsweek made the famous 'The Empire Strikes Back' cover featuring the HMS Hermes), British soldiers were carrying the Sterling SMG into battle. It was an active duty weapon with the British Army into the 90s when it was finally retired. This directly contributed to the reason why the E-11s were used in the Star Wars production in the first place because part of the production was in the U.K.
IMFDB lists the Sterling SMG having appeared in at least 20 different movies (some of which were James Bond films) before Star Wars in 1977. Not to mention at least two TV shows. General audiences would definitely be able to recognize it's silhouette if they had ever seen the gun before.
Second, and more importantly: People completely miss out on WHY they made blasters in the silhouette of an AK. Notice how in the entire season there are only ever two of them shown. They're shown in the hands of the Aldhani cell. Every other blaster rifle they had was an E-11, which they needed for the disguises. The production team could have easily just given them more E-11s for the rest of the team, or some other generic blaster design. But they didn't.
The blasters are first seen in their hand during the establishing shots introducing the team to the audience. They are there to give an impression. The AK has become associated as a gun used by of rebels, terrorists, freedom fighters, irregulars, etc. The blasters were made in that shape as a visual cue to invoke that association.
So many people never think its appearance through and chalk it off to 'laziness'. As if the one Star Wars show that went to the pains of shooting on location and creating a set of an entire town could be called 'lazy' in its production.
I totally agree. Over the last years I got the feeling Star Wars Fans don't understand basic storytelling elements like symbolism. They always whine about how things aren't Star Wars while not being able to say what it means to be Star Wars.
it's also disingenuous to say its an "unmodified AK" when it was built not only from an AKMS, but an MP40 as well
I had this reaction on the first watch to the use of the Scottish Highlands and the very recognisable Cruachan Power Station in particular - and then I thought about it and realised that the Forest Moon of Endor would have looked equally familiar to many residents of the Pacific North West - it was something that really wrecked the suspension of disbelief at the end of TFA as well with the very familiar (to me) rocky sea islets that are all round the coast of Scotland and Ireland. If you live in Iceland, every alien planet must look like home.
I think the use of Kalashnikovs in Andor was deliberate decision and not an oversight of the prop makers. The show wanted to emphasize that this is a rebel movement of the oppressed and they don't have the funds for expensive modern weapons. The Kalashnikov is literally the symbol of rebellion of the underdogs.
I think so too. Otherwise they would've noticed it int the editing because the scene literally highlighted the weapon as well.
Still a weird and bad decision
@@morphkogan8627
Nah
Slugthorowers do exist,
@@morphkogan8627this is (PURELY of my own opinion) a bad take, you realise the amount of civilian and aftermarket weaponry that would exist across an ENTIRE galaxy right? There are tens of millions of inhabited worlds in the Star Wars galaxy, at least tens if not hundreds of *thousands* of worlds would manufacture different types of blasters, either for sale to civilians, their own PDF’s, private security firms, corporate forces, imperial units, pirates, rebels etc, the gun still looks unique enough that It isn’t entirely out of place but still gives you an idea of who these people are just by the way their weapons and gear look, they’re rebels. Weapons won’t all look the same and Star Wars weapons, ships, armour, all draw inspiration from real life, it’s like saying the imperial officers uniform takes you out of the story because they look too much like Nazi uniforms
Better belated than never ; )
Andor deserves more eyes on it. The good writing (and acting) is a breath of fresh air.
Star Wars is no more only about the Jedi than Warhammer 40k is only about Space Marines. They may be the most recognizable element in the meta sense, but they exist in a galaxy, and most people in each of their respective galaxies have never seen either one of them. There are stories to tell in each franchise without them in it and both could be better served by doing so more often.
💯
This channel, is by far, the most underrated channel I've ever came across.
You flatter me, thank you.
I saw Stellan Skarsgard and stopped watching your review. I will watch the show in its entirety and return.
Thanks Jellyfish.
Get back here when you're done gotta see your after thoughts lmao
@@stupich5868ffs you’re on the internet. Use google. He’s one of the most well known actors.
@@stupich5868 An actor in the show I am fond of from other movies.
The cast is honestly stellar. Not a single miscast with about a dozen of them, your man included, knocking it out of the park. It's so refreshing to see casting done this well in these dark times and for the actors and actresses to really want to shine for a, when all's said and done, Disney Star Wars TV show.
I had only experienced him in Marvel so my experience with him wasn’t that good. Sure I enjoyed the movies but he never had a good role to play even when he was instrumental.
Andor makes me appreciate his acting skills.
Why you should watch Andor: “I can’t swim”
Watching Andor reviews that just reinforce my own thoughts about how good the show is has become somewhat of a guilty pleasure for me; it this what being in an echo chamber feels like? Nevertheless, I'm quite thankful for this fine addition to my collection of Andor praise videos. My great thanks, Jellyfish.
Hahaha SAME! I obsessed lol
Yup, I’m in the same boat.
I’m only a casual SW fan, but I understand and respect the love and passion fans have for this franchise. However for so many years all the air in the room has been dominated by hot takes, hurtful divisions, and dissatisfaction over lackluster stories that it’s no wonder to me how much fans crave any opportunity to just come together and joyfully express their appreciation for this show. From what I’ve seen the worst criticism has been that it’s boring or not “Star Wars” enough, which is just a personal opinion and it’s fine someone feels that way. Nobody is saying it CRUSHED their soul. 😂
Yup, same. I got worried about Andor being underappreciated and forgotten, but realized that those who did appreciate it like me, you and others just keep coming back to it and slowly bringing the attention it deserves. I realized that the appreciation of Andor is meant to be as a slow burn as it's plot, and as with the plot it's not a bad thing, but the natural course.
For a jellyfish, you have a great sense of humour.
I can be a bit salty sometimes, but thank you.
@@workingjellyfish As am I. Nothing bad with that. I prefer the term "seasoned" myself. Or, from the spacer parlance of Legends: "spiced."
It is a show that respects the viewers’ intelligence and rewards our patience. I think that’s a huge part of its distinction compared to other Star Wars at the moment. Many of us have looked for Star Wars to grow up with us, but there has been a stated focus on younger viewers (9-14 yr olds?) which I think doesn’t respect even that target market’s intelligence. I know there is a reflex to blame Disney nowadays, but I’d extend this back to the Prequels.
I think Cassian saving Bix is supposed to be symbolic of him saving his sister. Though if they bring back the sister plotline in season 2, I guess I was wrong lol
Great review man, It was about time you did Andor. I really like how you take different points of view into consideration
You wouldn't be wrong. A symbolic victory weighs as much as an actual victory, in a narrative sense. Also, it might be telling us that Cassian's sister is long dead, and saving Bix is a way for Cassian to let her go. Even Maarva said it's a fantasy.
Andor is pretty much a 10/10 across every category of filmmaking, from writing to direction, acting, music, costumes, set design, cinematography, etc. Pacing is a minor critique when weighed across everything else it nails. Even the core themes are robustly and maturely explored through each arc and character, and actually add something of value to the philosophies underpinning these themes
Always glad to see people coming around to this show and recognizing its merits as a high quality show so desperately needed in the era of Disney Star Wars
this show is just flat out across the board quality. 40 years of star wars and its the first show that justifies its foundational premise of rebellion against tyranny. Andor makes the empire, and by extension the rebellion, in the greater franchise finally feel real, believable and threatening
Nice video! I’m still absolutely baffled Andor came out in the Kennedy era. Subbed
Welcome aboard, skipper.
I love you making this for one reason: wow that Rogue Squadron music playing in the background certainly takes me back! Cheers.
There is this difference between novels and the screen these days: Stories written specifically for the screen present us extended action sequences and limited dialog and exposition. Novels give us limited action sequences and extended dialog and exposition. Some shows, like The Expanse and Andor, are novels put to the screen in that respect (and, yes, I know Andor was not originally a novel, but the screenplay was written as though it were).
I've been saying for a while, Andor reminds me of the 3 decades worth of Star Wars books I've read. So I definitely get what you're saying.
A lot of people think its a bad thing, but some of the best pieces of cinema are full of plot and dialogue rather than action for action's sake. Theres a reason that some of the highest rated movies of all time include The Godfater, Citizen Kane, 12 Angry Men, etc.
Kudos Jellyfish! The use of the OG Rogue Squadron title track and the Shadows Of The Empire track for background music is much appreciated.
Thank you Mr.Jellyfish, you've convinced me to go watch the show
I hope it meets your expectations.
Palpatine: Do it!!!
Took me a bit to get to it, but I just finished watching the first season and I must say it was absolutely stunning and gives me a taste of things that I adored about the old Star Wars EU, thank you for this recommendation as it definitely was worth it.@@workingjellyfish
@@workingjellyfishMr Jellyfish, I admit, I took my time to actually get to watch it, in part because I wanted the everyday occurrences to wash away even the vague details you gave of the plot so I'd go with only the most vague details possible, however with that being said, I'm pleased to say that I absolutely enjoyed watching Andor, and it definitely is one if not the best Star Wars work yet done by Disney (not a very high bar I know). Overall I'd say that some of the criticisms as of it being too "slow" do have a little bit of merit, however I find that most of the scenes where not much is happening have some absolutely stunning shots, that give weight to the world, yes on a first watch it could be tedious, but other great works, like Lord of the Rings had such and faced similar criticisms, but nowadays such are simply considered as part of the package so to speak.
Another criticism that I definitely do -not- understand is the criticism that Andor looks too much like Blade Runner, when ANH and ESB predate it. ESB being one that featured sci fi environments, but I think that such criticism falls moot given the context that this all takes place in a -galaxy- that is why Lucas definitely showed a variety of environments that are drastically different from each other, compare Naboo, to Coruscant and they are wildly different. Now in terms of tone and vibe it definitely is gritty, but that too was present to an extent in ESB, and it -certainly- was present in some of the best well received works in the Star Wars EU.
Furthermore a strong point of Andor is that it makes the imperials less of cardboard cutouts of characters that are campy villains (for the most part), here they are more palpable human beings, and they are no doubt villains, but they are interesting, and given the stakes, we know they can be dangerous as we see plenty of characters that die at their hands. Making them actually threatening, while we know Andor lives to the point of Rogue One, I feel the gravity and threat of the Imperials is more palpable on those around him, which adds to a measure of tension in the series that is a fresh breath of air.
Hot take: Andor is my favorite piece of Star Wars media PERIOD. To me it even surpasses the original trilogy and gives me EVERYTHING I ever wanted out of the Star Wars setting, focusing on how the Empire truly dominated the galaxy and making it more terrifying than it ever was previously, even with all the sith stuff. Deadly efficient bureaucracy is a truly horrifying thing.
Nicely done, mate.
I will look out your work from now on.
I love this show so much
Thought it was odd this dude hadn't made an Andor review, glad to see it though
yes jellyfish cleared that out of the way early. glad to see he likes it.
I honestly didn't think there was any interest in Andor, glad I was wrong.
@@workingjellyfish well you weren't that wrong unfortunately lol, shows definitely underappreciated if not underrated
Very much appreciate this review, I love Andor. Because I love it so much, it jumped out at me that I heard his name said as “Luther”. Just so people know, it is “Luthen”, and Skarsgard is incredible. And it’s all quality, so the drawn out nature is good with me 😎
I think the AKs fit very well. For whatever the hell that’s worth.
Andor was high quality but very different, and in the middle of a legitimacy crisis, not everyone has a tolerance for different
late but solid review on the best sw content after the OT and rogue one....nice
Thanks, mate. We jellyfish are not known for our speed.
I need me some season 2
Andor feels like a novel. That’s why the pacing is perfect.
I loved it!! It was well written and drives me insane that they can make these great and choose not to 90% of the time
19:33 It is modified though. You can see the ejection port doesn't even remotely line up with the magazine. It looks like the lower half and gas port of an AKMS with the upper receiver of an MP40.
Funnily enough, in the end I found Andor to be far more interesting and captivating than the rest of those other shows put together.
Here’s why everyone is wrong about the Kalashnikovs-especially those calling their use _”lazy”._
Andor was shot at Pinewood Studios, the HOME of Star Wars, where they have decades of props and costumes nearby on on-hand. At any given moment they must have quick and easy access to a thousand Stormtrooper blast rifles and hundreds of rebel weapons-ons of all descriptions. In _FACT,_ it would have taken _special effort_ to get ahold of AKs for this arc, _instead_ of simply grabbing something from the prop storage. That means it was a _CHOICE_ to use Kalashnikovs.
Why did they do it?
Because Tony Gilroy and team were making a deliberate allusion to _REAL_ rebel groups by using the weapon associated with every single group of freedom fighters for more than a half-century.
From the Chinese Revolution, to the Cuban Revolution, to the Mujahideen to the IRA, to the Sandinistas, the AK is a staple weapon. Gilroy is using a universal symbol of revolutionary cells.
You can complain it ‘took you out of the fantasy’ but you cannot call it ‘lazy’.
Out of all the shows listed and announced, Andor was the only one that interested me because of Rogue One. RO put the "War" in "Star Wars" and while people complained about characters not being fleshed out or having arcs, then they've never watched an old school WWII movie. Like "The Great Escape", "Battle of the Bulge", or "Force 10 from Navarone". I was over Jedi and SIth and Star Wars up to that point after the farce that was TFA. If Andor could capture that feeling that we're in the same universe but seeing it from other's perepective, I'm in. The show is able to break out of the Star Wars box and can easily be shown to people who have seen the OG movie. It fits in so well with the designs and feel. It's a top notch production and if you're a SW fan. You owe it to yourself to watch it.
I own guns but I didn't catch the AK and I think most people in general wouldn't have either. I think if it were an AR style that would really stand out to the, because in America that's the weapon of choice for mass shootings. The bricks thing was just stupid. Reminds me of the veritcal book stacking in Ghostbusters. My main complaint is that the sister thing can never be paid off and that they missed an opportunity to have Kenari connected with the other people and close knit community of Ferrix.
And it's LUTHEN. Not Luthor.
My dad and I used to watch basically everything Star Wars and Marvel released as soon as it released, but that was sorta falling off, especially when I moved out. We ended up watching Andor together when I came back for the holidays, and let me tell you, it rekindled a little of that love we had for stuff like that, like me staying up late and watching Star Wars Rebels or him waking up early to watch new Clone Wars episodes with me. I’m glad Andor was released, and I’m extremely glad my dad and I got to watch it together
Really enjoyed your review Mr. Jellyfish. Well done
Thank you kindly.
You both did excellent reviews of Andor. Thank you *very* much for spreading the word.
The Sterling submachine gun was used by the British Army until the early 1990s and by the Canadian Army into the late 1980s. It was very recognizable at the time of the original Star Wars trilogy.
Not only a great Star Wars show, but a great show itself. Even for not star wars fans like me ❤
If somebody think the show is too slow my recommendation is to watch Rise of Skywalker, that movie is very flashy and very fast pased. If you like quality watch Andor.
SW Theory is a clown. Andor is perfect. That is all.
Agreed.
Yo, I finished watching Andor for the first time yesterday. I'm a lapsed SW fan. I walked away after TLJ. A friend practically begged me to give Andor a chance. I did. I was blown away. Arguably Top 5 SW incl. the movies. Not a masterpiece as others have said, but very, very good.
Excellent show
Andor did 2 things which never effectively surfaced in the rest of the live action franchise: it made the TIE fighter a truly terrifying weapon platform, and it gave the Storm Troopers an absolutely fascist vibe in their 1940-ish march through the streets of Ferrix City.
Andor is a piece of art and anyone who says otherwise is willfully shooting themselves in the foot. SW isn't a genre, it’s a universe and many different genres, themes, characters, and stories have yet to be discovered in that universe. If someone wants the 'feel' of the old movies there is good news, the old movies still exist, so literally go watch them again. As horrendous as some of the Last Jedi was I have grown to appreciate that Rian was also trying to make something new, his execution in some of that 'newness' was very questionable but the stuff that worked really worked. This misguided unconscious consensus of SW fans that we need to ‘recapture’ those feelings from the first films has led to an over saturation of bad SW trying to live up to something it shouldn’t even need to. Every SW project doesn’t need the same themes, characters, and feeling as the OG trilogy, that'd get repetitive and very boring. Most new projects have virtually become parodies of the source material where nothing is left but references cameos, and generic mic-drop lines that fit in any situation. I love Andor not just because it is full of heart, nuance, and complex storytelling in a thematically dark setting but also because of what it represents: innovation of SW and a new hope that future SW projects don't have to be self referential, sloppily written, poorly executed, mass produced projects rather than pieces of art that stand on their own merit. Disneys and the fans problem has been thinking that SW is a genre and everything must fit into very confined rules. If someone thinks Andor is too boring they need to consider spending less time feeding their dopamine receptors with stuff like Tik Tok and take the time to pay attention to what’s happening between action sequences. They’ll realize that that there is a lot of nuance and character work happening, it is a masterclass of writing and direction. If someone thinks Andor doesn't feel like SW they need to reframe how they understand the IP, it is not a genre of itself. The themes, characters, settings, sounds, textures, virtually everything is straight out of the Lucas doctrine and what story he was trying to tell. If someone thinks it stands shoulder to shoulder on equal footing as Obi Wan, Ahsoka, or Boba Fett they need to try and summarize one of those shows and try to summarize Andor, the difficulty to do so for Andor succinctly is indicative of the complex level of detail and care. Andor is lightyears ahead of those shows in virtually every cinema or storytelling criteria. Anyone who loves this show should be promoting it and recommending it to everyone they know. Systems either change or die and there is only one way out of this SW slump of bad media.
I agree with everything you just said, except the minor praise that you gave Last Jedi. I thought all 3 sequel movies were abominations.
Andor is art. If we could have gotten the original 5 season plan and the quality stayed consistent, Andor would be a contender for greatest show of all time, right up there with Breaking Bad, GOT(not season 8)
Any time I see something relating to this show in my feed immediately click on it
same here 😅
Also we want the jellyfish OG back his tie was allot more adorable
This show is phenomal and has set the bar! Pay attention you shills at the top of the mouse house, stay the F out of the way and let those who know what they are doing, do it!
@working jelly fish :
Ps do u have any theory as to who “Kleya” really is ?
some online theories said that’s a pseudonym used by Princess Leia in her early days
which would make sense, cuz then Andor seasons 1 and 2 would also show how Leia eventually became apprentice to Mon Mothma -
By way of Luthen
I consider myself a big nay huge star wars fan however ive never seen Ahsoka, obi won or the Acolyte but ive seen Andor and im a happier person for it
I've been searching for your channel but for octopus and squid. I was searching for blue squid logo for a week.
Subscribed now.
Welcome aboard, skipper.
Hey Jelly, I'm quite early today and I haven't even finished watching the video, but I have to say I am grateful for these reviews seeing as Disney has not come out with a single show worth watching in the last 3 years and I think it's super important to speak loudly about how good Andor is and let them hear it, they certainly need to make more shows like this.
Good review!
I've spent too long spitting salt about so many things that it felt nice (albeit very odd) to praise something for a change.
Ah I feel you, I think we all need a good mouthwashing after the things Disney released in the past few years, so I'm glad to see a (mostly) positive reception towards Andor. Again, a very good video, hoping to see more of shows like Andor and your takes on upcoming stuff. @workingjellyfish
Wait, a Disney Star Wars show that has writing that doesn't treat its audience like idiots? Competent character decisions and interesting plot points? Hell has frozen over.
Doesn't change how inconsequential Andor is because it leads to Rogue One.
That Disney would spend millions of dollars on poorly written fan fiction does make one wonder? Who is dumber, the Disney audience or the one steering the SS Mickey Mouse?
@@mazkeraid4039 Even if it doesn't advance the grander narrative of the Star Wars universe, I can still greatly appreciate it. Much like reading a biography of certain big figures in history can deepen your appreciation for them in larger contexts, seeing Andor's story (along with just how good of a show it is) deepens my appreciation for Rogue One and even the OT.
@working jelly fish : just watched ur review - very nicely done
Regarding ur final point, because Andor has practically tied down all loose threads from season 1 except his lost sister,
I think they’re saving it for a crucial moment in season 2 (and I’m guessing it’s gonna be something bittersweet,
maybe like him finally reuniting with her , only to her killed by stormtroopers 30 seconds later)
Always nice to watch something form a fellow Andor enjoyer. Volume levels were a bit low, but the actual contents of the video were very good.
Those bloody Audio levels… thanks mate, I’ll keep working on it.
Andor is genuinely one of my favourite news shows to come out over the past few years, the first season is near perfection imo and is as good if not better than the Original Trilogy.
As a long time Star Wars fan (30+ years) I kinda slept on Andor because of how bad Boba Fett and Obi-wan was. But after hearing about how good it was I finally went and watched it and my god it was amazing. And if I'm being honest, and we lump all of Star Wars content into one group, I'd honestly rank Andor as the best piece of Star Wars story content ever. Even over the original trilogy. It's honestly that great.
I can’t say that you are wrong!
There are no sequel films in Ba Sing Se.
I didn't like any of the modern Star Wars but this show I was looking forward to in advance because I knew Tony Gilroy was writing/directing it. It's quite clear Gilroy was sitting on a pile of geo-political thriller plot snippets that had nothing to do with Star Wars or even Science Fiction, and he poured them all into this show.
After years, Star War Theory was so triggered by the bricks in the new show that he switched his side, and included "Bricks" in his skit mocking the new show, Acolyte.
this time rightfully so.
flammable bricks, lol
Holy sh.... What is the music at the beginning???? Nostalgia hit me hard af
Of course!!! Rogue Squadron!
Your comment (16:00) on the clip you play of Denise Gough seems to misinterpret what she was saying, perhaps? Certainly, she didn’t say anything that should launch your stated wish that “…we should put these meat puppets back in their box after the director is finished playing with them.” Describing the people who her character works with in the show, she sums it up as “…incompetent men, mostly.” Then she thinks about it, and recalls that the only ISB directors we hear from are all male, so she corrects herself: ‘All men, actually.” That wasn’t a comment about men in general. It was an accurate description of the other actors in her scenes on Andor. Hardly a reason to box her.
I am pretty sure she also goes on to say that "dedra is not a women in a man's world, she is fascist in a fascist world"
Ayyy I have the same feeling about the pacing. First 3 episode is nice, then the pacing dip down like iron in water then goes back up halfway
Man I love this show
Andor is really great. And it's set in the Star Wars universe, so that makes it fantastic to me. If you haven't seen it, you need to correct yourself.
Good review, WJ.
Edit: I meant to post this in your why people hate Disney SW lol I enjoyed THAT vid so much that of course I'm now watching this one!! Fantastic video mate, well done! I've saved this in my SW save folder on YT so I can share with those whom I love, who you call normies (👏) to help them understand my pain and anger over what has become of our beloved universe! You explain it way better than when I have tried, so thank you! Got my sub, looking forward to checking out the rest of your content! G'day mate
Thanks mate, welcome to the sheltered harbour. I promise to take good care of your sub. 🐙
The best Star Wars show to date and it really isn’t even close. People WANT grounded storytelling, not end-of-the-world storylines in every damn show.
19:28 There is no excuse for the space AK and there nothing wrong with that lol ( they did make a custom handguard though it looks like). They deliberately added it because of its significance in revolutions and wanted the audience to notice. Whether that makes the show "less Star Wars" is up to you, but I can keep my suspension of disbelief seeing a weapon from 1947 in a franchise that boils down to historical fiction and fairy tales mixed together and given a coat of rusty space paint.
Also doesn't Andor exist in part to Kathleen? I remember reading she brought in Tony Gilroy for both his Star Wars projects when the original concepts for them weren't going anywhere under the original showrunners. Though I think all executive, managerial, and oversight types mostly care about shit getting done on the timeline, hence LucasFilm's good rapport with both Rian Johnson and Tony Gilroy despite their difference in public reception. And it makes sense -- the reshoots of R1 alone prove Tony can do more with hundreds of millions of dollars than the people who worked on Obi-Wan and Boba. And that's basically what someone with a long history of film production like Kathleen would be looking at - how much can we get out of this for the cost?
Andor is one of reasons people hate star wars because it shows that good SW prodoctions are possible, but somehow disney decides to produce bad ones.
the funny thing, is that I was about to watch Kenobi instead of Andor, but I made up my mind just before I hit play, so glad that I manged to doge that bs series
to be completely honest i didn't even pay attention to the guns the resistance was using i kind of love it that they accidently or purposefully used AK's
Just about every review starts with being surprised that Andor, a "character I never really cared about especially since he dies at the end of the movie he's in", ends up being part of a compelling story. I feel like I was the only person who was not apathetic, but DISTRAUGHT that they were making Andor. That's because I saw so much potential in this favored character of mine, and I was afraid modern Star Wars would just ruin it all (better left undone). His words and actions in Rogue One imply so much that he's done, thought, and become committed to. I am so massively relieved that not only does Cassian's story (and whole show) not suck, but it's actually become the prime example of quality among a sea of trash peers (much like Rogue One amidst the Sequels etc)
What is the background music?
A combination of Rogue Squadron 64 and Shadows of the Empire 64.
I LOVED watching it week to week. I'm probably an outlier though
Me too! Lots to discuss on Reddit as the eps dribbled out. Besides, we can always binge it afterwards.
1000% agree. Gave me time between episodes to really consider the characters and the message. However, they were right to make the first few episodes available together, as they didn't quite have the same pull as the Aldhani or prison arcs.
1000% agree with you, Andor is a fantastic show, particularly if like me you are anti establishment at heart.
I absolutely loved your comment about the actors, "putting these meat puppets back in their boxes once you've finished playing with them"!!! while Dedra/Denise Gough was regurgitating some of the regular Hollywood nonsense in order to get a fish from her handler.. 😂
Good video! For the AK, they modified the rear by putting a MP-40 butt, but still the main problem is the weapon is too well-known. Otherwise in the originals they used almost unmodified Mg-34 and Lewis lmg for the DLT-19 and T-21 respectively.
It's an AK-47/74u with the folding stock.
The stock was copied from the PPS-43, which in turn was copied from the MP38/MP40.
Bro that Intro is pure gold 😂😂
Awwww, shucks.
let's get one thing straight, andor is so ridiculously good that it outclasses the ENTIRE star wars saga, all games, all movies, all series, there isn't a single thing in star wars that is on andor's level, nto even empire
So then you don't like star wars you just like the concept of star wars. You're a fan of the concept but not the movies. Or the lore.
@@GODCONVOYPRIMEnot even the concept of star wars, the mere aesthetics of star wars, aside from the aesthetics of the original trilogy and of andor, and aside from empire, 2/3 of rogue one and andor, there is nothing of value in that entire franchise in my eyes
I don't necessarily agree that it's better than Empire, but the fact it's even debatable speaks volumes about how insanely good Andor is and how Star Wars can still inspire this level of excitement after so many missteps.
lol dumbass take. don't watch star wars
no, Knights of the Old Republic II is better than this, but this is a close second
Who's Luthor??
Excellent show, I even got a blu ray rip in superb quality on my shelf. I only pay Disney once. 😁
We seem to have similar thoughts about this show
I think it’s funny watching conservative Starwars fans watching the most leftist, Antifa starwars shit ever made and then completely missing all those themes is very, very funny.
Yes that is very funny. I think andor shows that you don't have to sacrifice quality in the name of political messaging like so many other projects seem to do
For me the Star Wars Universe: Original trilogy - Prequels - Rogue One - Andor
Oh my gosh, so few people understand the AK-47 issue.
Yoo new video, I love you jelly!
For the record, Lucas shrunk the Wookies down to Ewoks so that his daughter could play with one of the toys. Not a better reason than penny-pinching, but it's a reason. Little people should be paid the same as Tall people - so they didn't save money, although they did treat the Ewok extras on the set like shit.
Personally speaking...
I think Disney Star war is peak star wars.
But I'm a fan of the ongoing lore and characters.
Obi and boba aside, everything Disney Star wars related after the shitty trilogy has been great.
Andor, Rebels, Bad Batch, Clone Wars s7, Tales, Visions, Ahsoka, Mando, all have been some amazing interesting and hype shows.
With Bad Batch Final season hinting to a lot of overarching connectivity story arcs from the ongoing storyline, and Ashoka seemingly building upon it
Given that Andor had an entire 3-episode arc (the prison sequence) featuring no women, only dudes, I question whether Kathleen Kennedy even knew it was happening.
I hadn't thought of that before, but...damn.
For all the times I've watched Andor, it never occurred to me that there were no women in the prison. Which I suppose makes sense, but in the context of the rest of Disney productions seems unnatural and out of place in the best way possible.
No aliens in the prison either.
In fact very few aliens in the whole season. Especially if we ignore all the aliens that are extras.
@@Gabriel_Cook Star Wars lore is that Palpatine is xenophobic. We kind of saw evidence of that even in A New Hope, from the imperial officer's reaction when Han and Luke took Chewbacca to the detention center. Andor displayed that by the numbers and humanoid-ness of aliens in the general population depending on proximity to Coruscant...really, the proximity to Palpatine. Was that a conscious production decision? I don't know.
But also, we should not expect to see a lot of aliens everywhere. In fact, it should be relatively rare. Most worlds will have only native species over most of the world, with a few non-natives in larger cities and maybe more in spaceport cities.
@@kirkdarling4120 really i feel it more cowardly that they haven't directly targeted the extreme xenophobia in the empire in a series. something with no human heros and just show the banal racism of human storm troopers as a unit of oppression. if your going to be preachy, don't be neoliberal, be full left wing. so many series get caught in the neoliberal hole which feels as inauthentic and falsely optomistic as neoliberals are in general. it almost doesn't make sense that anti-human racism hasn't been fermenting on worlds without breathable air and water worlds and hasn't played out as a response to the wretched oppression of the last century of star wars main story and civil war.
Andor is "off brand" in that it is not an entry point for kids and adults are pretty burnt out on the IP. They need to make a few more of this quality and somehow manage to market it differently from the rubbish.
Your videos are extremly good
Thanks mate
Andor and Rogue One are (IMHO) absolutely works of modern cinema genius. And judging what we've seen to date (thru 2024), it is truly unbelievable that Disney produced these two storylines, because (a) they are so well done, and (b) other than Mandalorian seasons 1 & 2, Disney has literally dumpster-burned _Everyrhing_ else in Star Wars that they have touched. What Fk'ing cultural criminals they are these days!!!
Ooh can't wait to watch this. My take was: "Oh geez a wartime spy-drama with good acting. Hope the plot is good.." Not-spoiler, season 1 sets up season 2 without resolving much. Great character building and great world-building dialogue.
This series being good for adult viewers (by maturity, as opposed to juvenile content age-restricted by foul language and sex) should remind ALL OF US that Star Wars (IV) is/was/and forever will be best for boys aged 5-11 years old. If the movies are passable for adults while mesmerizing children, then they are good movies. That said, the Star Wars fandom is mostly over 50, so ANDOR is the best thing for 99% of long-time fans. Dial the dystopia down a notch from "Bladerunner" and you get "Andor." Not dirty or foul, but this show would bore children.
Shoutout to "The Bad Batch" being the best overall Disney SW content so far. I will gladly rewatch it with children someday. Cannot suggest this series highly enough for any grandparents who may spend evenings with the tykes.
Bad Batch and Andor really carrying star wars.
I know that song! Why that's Rogue Squadron!!!
That punches me, right in the member berries!
Edit: ...and throwing in a Tomorrow Never Dies clip? my lord, please take me back to 98' when life was amazing.
Edit Edit: And a clip from GoldenEye... "I think I died and went to heaven."
Robot Head has made the exact same mistake that so many newer Star Wars fans make.....He's forgetting that the Prequels completely changed The Star Wars Aesthetic!
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Andor is by far the closest thing we've got to The OT on screen since Return of the Jedi!
Rogue One is the second closest but that's quite a bit behind Andor as Gilroy came in late to Rogue One.
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Btw it is Bobba not Boaba! That was another Prequel Retcon! - - - ua-cam.com/video/MJe7e7rVVO8/v-deo.html