Andor (Series Finale)

One year after the Ghorman massacre, Lonni reports to Luthen that the Empire is building a secret weapon and that Dedra has likely uncovered their identities. Luthen pushes Lonni to find out what else Dedra may know, but ultimately promises him and his family safe passage from Coruscant. Which turned out to be a lie, however, since Luthen immediately kills Lonni in order to ensure his silence.

And that's how the finale of Andor begins: with a murderous betrayal, all in the name of protecting the Rebellion.

Quickly covering up his own tracks, Luthen begins destroying the communications system in his shop, and that's when Dedra confronts him. They both try to play it cool with one another, but it's clear that they both know what's really going on here.

So, before Luthen gets taken into custody, he attempts to commit suicide with a dagger that was hidden in his staff. And I absolutely love the way that this scene played out, since it was intentionally made to look like Luthen was about to whip out a lightsaber.

Luthen being a Jedi was probably the biggest fan theory circulating around the internet, and while I think that could have made for an interesting reveal, I'm glad Tony Gilroy took a different approach with this character. Luthen isn't an interesting character because he's a Jedi, or a former Jedi, or an Order 66 survivor; he's an interesting character because he's just a regular guy with a strong conviction.

So much conviction that he would rather kill himself over giving the Empire any information about the Rebellion. That takes a lot of guts man. And it proves that he was right about burning his life for a sunrise that he would never see. Unfortunately for Luthen, Dedra does take him to a hospital before he actually dies. Meaning that, if they manage to revive him, the Empire will still have the opportunity to torture information out of him.

Leaving nothing up to chance, Luthen's assistant infiltrates the hospital, not to rescue him, but to disconnect his life support systems and let him die. Which made for an incredibly tense sequence! One where we get to learn a lot about Kleya herself. As it turns out, Luthen was a former Imperial sergeant who defected after his unit massacred Kleya's hometown. Finding Kleya hiding on his ship, he basically adopted her and they began selling antiques while waging resistance against the Empire.

Kleya always resented Luthen for what his unit did to her planet, but she needed him in order to exact her own revenge against the Empire. Sometimes her own conviction was so strong, that she's the only thing that kept Luthen going in the first place. Which totally recontextualizes our understanding of their relationship. It's fascinating! Their dynamic is so richly complex; I really wish we got to spend more time exploring it. 

Especially since Elizabeth Dulau gave such fantastic performance as Kleya. She was incredible! And I'm definitely looking forward to seeing her in any other future project. Maybe even future Star Wars projects! Because, while I may have been referring to her character as "Luthen's assistant" throughout my reviews, I promise you, after this episode, I will never forget Kleya's name ever again.

So, after Kleya mercy kills Luthen, Dedra is arrested for her idiotic overreach, which leads to a fantastic interrogation scene with Director Orson Krennic. Probably my favorite interrogation scene since The Dark Knight. Because I absolutely loved Ben Mendelsohn's performance here. As a big fan of the actor and his character, I'm glad he got the chance to chew up some scenery here.

I audibly gasped when Krennic placed his finger on top of Dedra's head. It just showed how much power his character had over her. And it finally gave Mendelsohn the chance to ask someone else "do you feel in charge?" Two Dark Knight trilogy references in a row? Crazy! But hopefully that gives you a good sense of the show's quality.

So, pissed about the fact that the Death Star plans leaked from Dedra's database, and that she decided to confront Luthen without proper backup, Krennic sends Dedra to an Imperial prison! And it looks like it may be the same Narkina 5 prison that Andor was on in season one.

Meaning everything that Dedra has been doing - all in the name of the Empire - has literally been for nothing. There is no commendation for all of the work that she's done. Only punishment for all of the mistakes that she's made. I guess that's fascism for you.

Speaking of which, Partagaz declares Kleya to be a public health concern in order to expedite her arrest. So, while hiding in the Coruscant safe house, Kleya sends Wilmon a distress signal, prompting him to send Cassian, Melshi, and K-2SO there to retrieve her. Which they do, but without the proper clearance, driving a deeperr wedge between the group and the Yavin IV leadership. Knowing she won't be greeted well on Yavin, Kleya passes Luthen's critical intelligence on to Cassian.

Unfortunately for all of them, Kleya's signal was also tracked to the safe house, allowing an Imperial team to arrive after Cassian and Melshi do. Thankfully, as the Imperial unit closes in on them, K-2 breaks into the building and saves their asses. Kleya does wind up wounded though, so Cassian decides to take her back to Yavin anyway.

There, Cassian has a tough time convincing the Rebel leadership to believe Luthen's intelligence about the Death Star, since none of them are overly fond of Luthen. But when a rebel informant associated with Saw Gerrera repeatedly contacts Yavin IV to talk with Cassian, the evidence supporting the Death Star's existence appears to be too great. So the Rebel leaders agree to let Cassian fly to Kafrene to meet with the informant, which is exactly where we find him at the start of Rogue One. And the lead up to the film is utterly seamless.

The last episode basically feels like a long lost prologue to the movie. Which is impressive, especially considering that it still functions as an effective finale. But before the episode comes to an end, we see B2EMO playing with another droid on Mina-Rau, where Bix can be seen cradling a baby. Meaning that Cassian was actually a father this whole time! Which only makes Bix's decision to leave all the more heartbreaking.

Bix knew that Cassian would've left the Rebellion to be a good father. But if Cassian left, then the Rebels may never have learned about the Death Star in the first place. The Empire would continue their reign over the galaxy, leaving his child to grow up under a tyrannical dictatorship. But with Cassian's sacrifice to the Rebellion, his child is free to grow up with a bright future ahead. It's tragically beautiful. Much like his friend Luthen, Cassian also burnt his life for a sunrise that he will never see. The only difference is, Cassian will never know what he missed out on.

And plenty of people in the Star Wars universe will never know how vital Cassian was in overthrowing the Empire. Luke Skywalker may get all of the glory, but it's only because of people like Cassian who were working behind the scenes. That's what Andor is all about; the unsung heroes who don't get a medal of recognition in the end.

People like Luthen, Kleya, Bix, and even Lonni; they're the real heroes here. So it's a shame that no one will ever know the impact that they had in reshaping the galaxy. But I guess the same can be said for people in real life too. And it's sad to think about how the events of Andor do reflect so many real world events. Not just historical events, but modern and recent ones as well. 

Some people may not like to admit it, but Star Wars has always been political. The original trilogy took clear inspiration from World War II and the Vietnam War. The prequel trilogy took a clear stance against the Bush administration. The sequel trilogy even acknowledged the rise of Neo Nazi's. So, the fact that Andor is drawing clear parallels to the rise of fascism isn't particularly new; those parallels just happen to feel more important now than they ever have before.

I mean, I definitely enjoyed hearing Nemik's rebel manifesto in the first season, but it definitely felt more powerful and resonating in the season two finale. But there were a lot of great speeches in this season! Star Wars isn't exactly known for having the best dialogue, but the writing in this series was absolutely fantastic!

So once Kathleen Kennedy finally decides to step down, Tony Gilroy should just be given the keys to the kingdom at Lucasfilm. I mean, I know he wouldn't want to take control of the company, but thats exactly why he'd be the perfect man for the job! His work on Andor speaks for itself. The man is too good to let go of! Disney executives should be backing truckloads of cash onto his yard right now and be on their knees begging Gilroy not to leave Lucasfilm.

None of which is to say that I don't love the other projects that are developed by the company; I absolutely love the works of Favreau and Filoni. I just wish that Lucasfilm would be open to working with other creatives outside of just those two. Because Gilroy's work on Andor is absolutely magnificent.

I was completely blown away by this series. Because, not only did it feature interesting characters, spectacular action sequences, or phenomenal writing in general, but it also managed to successfully recontextualize the Star Wars franchise as a whole. Rogue One and A New Hope now feel like richer, deeper, and better films than they already were. And that's exactly what a good project should do; elevate the material that has come before, all while standing on its own two feet.

And you should know that all of this praise is coming from someone who actually thought the series was a bit too sluggish at first. But I'm glad that I stuck with the series and got over my issues with the pacing, because the slow burning pace definitely pays off. Andor is an awesome and riveting show that packs one hell of an emotional gut punch.

The series may not resolve every plot point that it introduces, but that doesn't stop it from reaching a satisfying conclusion in its own right. I just hope we'll get to see these plot beats explored in future Star Wars stories - and that we'll get to see some of these characters return - since the concepts and characters that were introduced in this show are far too interesting to be left alone forever.

Kino Loy not returning in season two? That makes sense. His purpose in the narrative was filled. But never learning about Cassian's sister? Never learning about his only child? There's too much potential to be left unexplored with them. Especially since they're both (technically) Andor.

So, if you haven't watched it yet, then I don't know what you're waiting for. Andor is a truly exceptional television series that would absolutely get a recommendation from me.