It’d be easy, I think, to say that “Announcement” is a comedown after “The Eye.” Certainly, the tension is less pronounced and the narrative less focused than the fifty-odd minutes that episode spends almost entirely on the heist. But in … Continue reading Andor S1E07: Announcement

If Andor is something of a spy show, then “Aldhani” is the first inkling that there are two organized groups: a government intelligence agency, and the insurgent cells operating against them. The episode picks up directly after the frantic raid … Continue reading Andor S1E04: Aldhani

When people complained to me about Andor being slow, I always encouraged them to stick with it until “Reckoning.” I think it’s really the pivotal episode of the series in terms of setting up the quality. The next two episodes … Continue reading Andor S1E03: Reckoning

A multi-season story about the main supporting character in Rogue One, a film that ends with all its characters getting killed off one by one until finally only its leads are left holding each other as the Death Star obliterates … Continue reading Andor S1E01: Kassa

If Andor were to end with “Rix Road” I would be satisfied, at least as far as Cassian Andor’s story goes. Everything I need to know about Cassian has been answered over the course of the series, and “Kill me…or … Continue reading Andor S1E12: Rix Road

I want to talk a little bit about Kino Loy, Andy Serkis’ character, who more or less dominates Andor’s prison triplet. There’s another version of Kino Loy’s character where he’s an antagonist—a power-hungry psychopath, for example, who relishes his position … Continue reading Andor S1E09: Nobody’s Listening!

“Narkina 5” kicks off the prison triplet of Andor, which all take place primarily on a heptagonal floating prison on the eponymous planet. Star Wars gains a lot of currency from how used and lived it is: ships and vehicles … Continue reading Andor S1E08: Narkina 5

To me, the standout feature of “The Eye” is its magnificent bleakness. Don’t get me wrong: it’s a thrilling, tense episode, featuring an almost perfectly executed heist, and because Gilroy and company have given us no information at all about … Continue reading Andor S1E06 The Eye

The writing on Andor is tight enough that you can never say that an episode is “wasted” or treading water. Things advance in each one, some more coherently and compellingly than others. But I think “Daughter of Ferrix” feels like … Continue reading Andor S1E11: Daughter of Ferrix

If Andor has a thesis statement, I would argue that it’s contained within this episode (and then explicitly underscored in “Rix Road”). When you are trapped in an oppressive system, one that thrives on the false belief that compliance will … Continue reading Andor S1E10: One Way Out

The odd thing about “The Axe Forgets” is that it isn’t particularly memorable, and not much actually happens, but I wouldn’t say it’s weak. Much like “That Would Be Me” there isn’t so much of a throughline (though if the … Continue reading Andor S1E05: The Axe Forgets

Every time I watch “That Would Be Me” I’m caught a little offguard by the ending. This was the episode where I was really dying to know what happened next when it first aired. The episode is very much laying … Continue reading Andor S1E02: That Would Be Me