The Axe Forgets

I had initially gone in to this short summary feeling a decent 7, but having watched the episode following this one, it's at least an 8, meaning I "liked it".

It is a pretty important episode. I had thought this and Ep.4 perhaps could have just been a single episode leading up to the next one, but I'm not so sure now. The conversations and set-up in this episode earned all of the screen time. Don't skip this one!

I do really appreciate seeing the different perspectives of it just the Empire, but the rebels as well. Not all of the rebels are against the empire for the same reasons, and not everyone in the empire is a total sleaze-bag.

It's also really well acted and paced. Every episode has ended much sooner than I expected, so I must be really in to it.

Good episode. Not one of the best in this series, but important nonetheless.

After this episode I truly believe that Andor is one of the best story tellings in the entire Star Wars universe (only movies and shows; not games and books).

The writing relies heavily on show don't tell. The stakes feel real. In just one episode the show managed to make me care about a group of entirely new characters, made me interested in where they came from and what their motivations are.

This show diverts entirely from the Star Wars we know and focuses on the little people. We get to see the workings of the empire and not just have them as a luring evil that functions mostly in the background or appears when our heroes need a bit of resistance. They are people doing their jobs and believing in what they do. They, just like the rebells, are driven and have their motivations. We rarely get to see that side of the empire and it is so fascinating to see it.

Andor is (and probably will remain as) one of my favorite story from the Star Wars universe. The story telling is masterful and I cannot wait for more.

Cassian and the crew have some trust issues in the build up to the mission.

This is a solid episode that creates some decent tension and build up to what hopefully will be some intriguing drama.

The plot doesn't move very far but the scenes are quite engaging as characters are fleshed out. Some may find it boring, but I think it is effective world-building and nothing to me feels like needless time filling. The next episode needs to be eventful and develop the plot significantly though, unless the writers have any worthwhile deviations up their sleeves.

All actors do a fine job once again with strong dialogue and the production values are top drawer. I particularly liked the music, which is very 'Bladerunner' and maximises the tension.

On my second watch of the first season (with episodes back to back) I enjoyed it much more knowing what is to come. I felt the tension in certain scenes much more. I also noticed some great visuals such as the seamless transitions between soldiers marching and discussions of soldiering.

The writers of Andor continue their winning streak of delving deeper into dynamics at play amongst the band of rebels.

While shows like the Mando or BoBF would have filled this episode with some kind of wacky side quest distraction, Andor takes the time to build suspense and flesh out characters for the mid season climax to come.

Episode 5 may not be the flashiest or most intense episode yet but its interesting enough to keep the momentum. With the reveal Star Wars universe has cereal with blue milk, Andor is shaping up into a series that will be fondly remembered by fans of Star Wars and breakfast alike.

This is a really intriguing show.

I love the slow pace, it gives weight to the story.

It's not a rush. It's not full of messy CGI and galactic level threats. The multiple streams of storylines work together well and will intersect well further along the storyline.

The tension from a single tie fighter was so well done. Each character feels unique and not shoehorned into the story.

The cinematography is beautiful. The score is fantastic - NB has done extremely well. It feels and sounds almost analogue. The music is crafted to the story unlike Holt's Kenobi score which was a total disgrace and utterly dreadful.

Really enjoying this show so far.