as you may already know i am a big old man war of stars nerd. And one of my favorite things in war of stars Media is all the tiny links and easter eggs embedded everywhere. But sometimes that fan service goes overboard and derails a story in ways that alienate or bore non-fans. Andorthe latest TV show in the set war of stars Universe, not only avoids this problem but also finds perfect ways to use Nerdy war of stars Story without making it boring or tiresome for people who just want to see a good show.
Andorwhich premiered on Disney+ in late September is the latest entry in the war of stars franchise and is set before the events of the original war of stars movie and the movie Villain One. It follows the life of Cassian Andor, played by Diego Luna, as he navigates a galaxy controlled by the evil Empire. He’s not the rebel we know about yet Villain Onebut over the course of this season, and probably next season, he will evolve into the man we met in this popular spin-off.
People throughout my history have been loving Andor. Even people who had previously renounced war of stars completely back and enjoying every minute of the series. Many of them cheerfully point out that the show isn’t a huge excuse for doing fan service every week. But strangely enough Andor has some of the coolest and most interesting parts of the deep cut war of stars lore from anything war of stars-related in years; it’s just so well handled that most people miss it.
A great example is how the show handles Cassian’s home planet. In the first episode of the show, we learn that Cassian was born and raised the planet Canaries. It is recreated for Andor, which gave showrunner Tony Gilroy more freedom to do whatever he wanted with him and his people. But technically, we already knew Cassian’s home planet, and it wasn’t Kenari. back if Villain One came out, Lucasfilm released various bookbindings. A reference work listed Andor’s homeworld as Firmlyan old war of stars Planet that appeared first in the game Dark Forces. So at first I thought the show just retconned that origin. I didn’t get too upset about that as I always prefer when war of stars Media focus on story about lore.
But then clean Andor In episode two we learn that Fest was a lie that Cassian and his adoptive mother told everyone to hide the truth of where he really came from, Kenari. For most viewers, this scene wasn’t such a big deal: Cassian lied because he was trying to hide where he was from, got it. But for war of stars Nerds like me, it was a fantastic opportunity to do something with Recon war of stars Lore while still honoring a reference book from years ago. And it didn’t bother the show at all, allowed normal, non-war of stars Sickos to enjoy the show without rolling their eyes at some forced fan service.
Andor is filled with war of stars Lore and connections like this, which it secretly uses in a way that makes sense to general audiences, but which have deeper, interesting connections to the decades of the franchise’s earlier material. And unlike the last war of stars show, the fun (but not nearly as good) Obi Wan Kenobi, Andor doesn’t get caught up in fanservice that distracts from the actual story and characters. The referees can be found there Andorif you’re interested, but it’s totally fine if you just want to enjoy the thrill of the ride instead.
G/O Media may receive a commission
Get 50% off your 2 week trial.
Food endorsed by animal nutrition experts – for your dog. Just as you feel better when you eat better, your pup will enjoy a shinier coat and more energy over time.
For example, Mon Mothma’s daughter, Liedais not a brand new character, but a very deep one that barely existed in the old one war of stars Expanded Universe. So her appearance on the show not only put her in canon, but was very funny fan service that most viewers didn’t notice.
Similarly, the Kyber Crystal that Luthen gives to Rael Cassian in payment for helping with a heist has its own subtle connection to the Ancient war of stars lore. Sure, many viewers probably vaguely know that a kyber crystal powers lightsabers. And many probably also remembered that we had seen before Villain One Heroine Jyn Erso wear a similar necklace. But while people were looking at the crystal and saying, “Oh, that’s one thing I know about…” Luthen drops one of the show’s coolest lore, explaining that the crystal “celebrates the uprising against the Rakatan invaders “. That might have set off alarm bells in the minds of every fan who played Knights of the Old Republic.
That’s because The Rakatans were created for this game. They were an ancient race of super powerful aliens who possibly invented hyperdrive and once controlled the galaxy as part of their Infinite Empire. Technically they’ve been mentioned in canon before, but this is really the first major reintroduction of the species. Thinking about how they might work in the future war of stars Stories set far in the past got me very excited.
Speaking of video game references, in Luthen’s shop – which is crammed full of fun Easter eggs that could fill an entire separate blog – we see what looks like a suit Sith Stalker armor as first seen in Star Wars – The Unleashed Force. This game and its main character, Starkiller, are no longer canon, and this armor makes an appearance Andor doesn’t change that. But it could indicate that parts of it might fall off one day power unleashed is reintroduced into the modern age war of stars Universe. I mean if Jaxxon is canon these daysEverything can happen.
Continue reading: Lego Star Wars is the antidote to years of toxic fan culture
But all those deep references and bits of fan service were probably never discovered by 90% of viewers Andor, although some of them are directly related to the plot or characters of the series. That’s an impressive feat, and based on interviews with the show’s creatorTony Gilroy, a lot of this was recorded by Lucasfilm nerds and not by himself. He told it recently diversity that he works closely with lore experts like Pablo Hidalgo to ensure he doesn’t do anything the war of stars Universe. But for him, his real focus is Andor’s story and its characters, not references to manuals or old video games.
“The art department will smuggle all that crap into Luthen’s gallery,” Gilroy said diversity. “I had no idea. Like, ‘Oh my god, that thing in the background!’ and people blow it up. That’s the art department. So many cool people work on the show. There’s a deep geekdom in Pinewood, believe me.”
That’s how it should be. If Disney wants to keep making amazing things war of stars productions like Andor, it should bring in more creators and directors like Gilroy. People who are certainly not the greatest war of stars Fans all over the world but with interesting stories to tell. Let these folks create cool stuff while the nerds at Lucasfilm fill in the blanks with fan service that weirdos like me can get excited about without ruining the show for everyone else.
I admit it’s a difficult balance and I don’t expect any future war of stars to be projects Andor. In fact, I would prefer a world where we like both shows Andorthat are for everyone and shows how Tales of the Jedithat are good but aim clearly war of stars nerds like me war of stars can’t grow by focusing only on its big fans, and Andor shows that when you expand the franchise and do something different, you’re not just satisfied in the long term war of stars nerds like me, but also reaching a whole new audience that might never have cared war of stars first of all. Plus, Andor is just very entertaining so more shows like this sounds like a good thing to me.
