That Would Be Me

Everything about the opening minutes of this episode is done splendidly. We are quickly building such a lively and breathtaking atmosphere for the show. The serious tone and lack of censorship make it genuinely feel like an HBO show. Between more sexual innuendos and the use of a curse word, I'm honestly surprised just how ballsy they're being with the Star Wars brand.

Maarva is such a nice addition to the cast as a parental figure for Cassian. She is a great character to keep Cassian in check and you can feel her fear for her adopted son's safety.

Sgt. Mosk is also great. His enthusiasm over keeping the empire's fascist ways in place along with the way he looks up to Syril and bounces off his personality makes both villains more fun. We are shown Syril's incompetence as a leader but strong need to keep people like Andor in check. This is proving to be an interesting take on a Star Wars villain, compared to the usual over-competence they have.

While I'm understanding the concept of Syril's character more, Timm is easily the most annoying part of this episode. Him anonymously tipping felt like something only in the script to further the plot along. He's absolutely awful for not even telling Bix what he did afterward.

The flashbacks in this episode were very exciting. Seeing this primitive group of children be endangered by the separatist/republic fighting they knew nothing of is heartbreaking.

On top of how solid this was, the tease of Stellan's character excites me even more for the next episode as we continue to see the cast be rounded out with interesting faces.

We're just starting up, and this episode is just as good as the premiere.

They did something very smart when they premiered this show, which was putting the three first episodes together in a bundle. Not only does this give the audience a chance to ease into the show, but it also shows their idea of having these three-episode arcs as the norm. And it also works, because if it had only been the first episode that had been released, it wouldn't have served as an interesting enough beginning to a show that needs all the good will possible. With this second episode, they really start to set themselves a path that looks to go in some interesting directions.

The best thing about the premiere was how it focused on this small planet that doesn't seem like it has a lot of business with the Empire. In this episode, they continue to showcase the almost insignificant role that the planet plays in the grander scheme of things. They know how to keep the Empire at bay and it makes for a more sinister tone. The Empire has always been a sinister force in this universe, and this show may have already done the best job that any other material in the universe has done to really sell the threat of the Empire through a few small moments. The flashbacks fit much better into this episode as it felt like it was moving side-by-side with Andor's present day experiences, showing why he has all that anger dwelling inside of him that we're slowly getting an idea of under the surface. It's not blowing out yet, but it's definitely there. There was also a greater focus on setting up the antagonist, and the snarly hatred he has for Andor seems to be based in a distaste of his superiors just ignoring his actions more than the actions themselves, which makes him a very dangerous foe, although he doesn't seem to really be that comfortable in his position left. This episode definitely stepped it up a notch, and it feels like the writers are finally preparing to take it up another step for the next episode, which will give us a greater idea of the overall story.

"That Would Be Me" does an incredible job of showcasing how far out of the mainstream this planet is, while still teasing the Empire's might. A lot of great character development with the flashbacks adding even more to Andor this time than in the premiere, while the overall narrative is slowly starting to take shape.

First off, does this episode feel like an extension of the premiere? Yes, it very much does. Is this episode also better than the premiere? Yes, I think so. And you can ask me why and say that nothing else happened, and you wouldn't be wrong. But I needed to settle into the idea and tone of this show, so this episode felt more anticipated in its pace and tone. Cassian is still trying to find his sister, but he's in a bit of trouble now, because that Empire police from the first episode, yeah, they're on to him. That doesn't really come into play in this episode, though, so if you're expecting a big shootout, you might have to wait until three. It continues to set the scale for what is to come, and with the introductions of Stellan Skarsgård and Fiona Shaw (and who doesn't like some Fiona Shaw?!), it feels like this little word "rebellion" might start to appear in the episodes a little going forward. I also didn't mean to crap on another "Star Wars" project in the beginning of my review, but the flashbacks in this show are way better than what we saw in "The Book of Boba Fett." (Sorry, not sorry.) I like the primal tone to those flashbacks and the raw setting, but I'm still scared that it's gonna end on a sad note. "Andor" is providing the "Star Wars" that I have been missing, but it still holds off on going all-out on the coming politics.

"Episode 2" is basically "Episode 1, Part 2" but that works for me because I really enjoyed that and ended up enjoying this even more. I don't know where we're going with this arc, but it's clear that the show likes its lead character and wants him to be central to whatever story they're telling.

Andor, a Star Wars series, features a visual motif of people walking with purpose, particularly in its second episode. The show cuts from Cassian and his forest-kid pals on Kenari, who are on their way to an abandoned mining facility where a ship has crashed, to a man on Ferrix ascending to a bell tower for a day-ending ritual. Cassian's walk is then intercut with Ferrix workers hanging up their equipment and presumably heading home. This scene evokes striking shots from Rogue One, including one that is in the trailer but not the movie. The first five or six minutes of Andor are notable for their dialogue-free moments, which give a more tangible sense of place than we've seen in other recent Star Wars shows. The episode is brief, with about 30 minutes spent clarifying and elaborating on setup from the previous episode. For example, we meet Cassian's mother, Maarva, who waits for him with his sensitive droid B2EMO. They, along with Bix's current beau, Timm (James McArdle), have heard the bulletin to watch out for a shifty Kenarian, placing some urgency on Cassian's plan to sell his MacGuffin Empire gizmo and get the hell out of Dodge. Syril Karn gets pumped to apprehend Andor and assembles a hilariously dour 12-man force at the urging of his right-hand man, who enthuses that "corporate tactical forces" like theirs are the Empire's best defense against "fomenting pockets" of rebellion. However, the 12-man force fails to match this level of company spirit, even in the face of Syril's hilariously lacking inspirational speech. Meanwhile, Bix summons her buyer for Cassian, who books a hasty pickup service, refusing to tell the pilot anything about the cargo. The moments that make this episode feel most like a chunk of a longer pilot are the scenelets that introduce Luthen Rael (Stellan Skarsgård). Rael does some purposeful walking as he travels from ship to Ferrix shuttle in relative silence, with Skarsgård on the receiving end of a "hello there" movie-star face-reveal shot. He's presumably traveling to find Cassian, and the show cuts to Cass when another passenger muses to Rael that they can find "anything" at their destination. In summary, Andor is a visually appealing and transitional series that showcases the characters' purposeful walking and the aftermath of a mining disaster.

This episode was an intriguing continuation of the story and a set-up for the third episode. The tone of the show is terrific and unique from any other Star Wars media, and the writing is better than ever before in Star Wars. Sure, the first and second episodes didn't captivate various people in the story similar to something like the Mandalorian, in which the opening was, in my opinion, way slower than this show's, but it made the direction of the show perfectly clear and appealing. It wasn't until the third episode when the actual path of this season became apparent, and all I'm saying is, don't turn away before watching the third one, in case you weren't hooked by the first two episodes.

My condolences to those whose attention span was ruined by marvel and social media. Yes, the first three eps are mostly set uo, but the show has 12 of them and the set up always pays off. There is plenty of action scenes scattered around, but the tone is serious, nothign in interrupted by a "clever" quip. The tone of the show is very mature, fitting with the themes it discusses (surprisingly in depth which i woudl not expect from a dinsey+ show).

This is what i want star wars to be - political intrigue, the struggles of real people, the beurocracy, the backstabbing, the banality of evil. And andor does it perfectly.

Favourite show of the year so far. Even outside my (love.hate) with star wars - this isn't even the best star wars, it's just a good high tension show on its own.

Can't wait for the resolution.