5 burning questions before Andor begins

Here's what we think we know—and what can't wait to find out—about the latest Disney Plus Star Wars series

TV Features Cassian
5 burning questions before Andor begins
Diego Luna as Cassian Andor Screenshot: Lucasfilm

It’s rare for Star Wars fans to reach a consensus these days, but if there’s one thing the majority seems to agree on it’s that Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is one of the best films of the franchise’s modern era. It follows, then, that it would only be a matter of time before Lucasfilm found a way to give us more. With the release of a series centered around one of the film’s standout characters, rebel spy Cassian Andor, that’s exactly what they’ve done.

Andor will premiere on Disney+ on Sept. 21, with the first three episodes dropping all at once. The remaining nine will roll out each succeeding Wednesday. Disney has confirmed that there will be two seasons of the series, for a total of 24 episodes. So we might have to wait until season two for some of the anticipated backstories to be filled in. Even if we already know how the story ends for Cassian, there’s still a lot of mystery surrounding his past and how it shaped him as a character. Here are a few of the questions we’re pondering before the series kicks off.

previous arrow2. What is Cassian’s connection to the Empire in the beginning and what turns him against them? next arrow
2. What is Cassian’s connection to the Empire in the beginning and what turns him against them?
Diego Luna as Cassian Andor Image Lucasfilm

We can expect the series to track Cassian’s journey from an ordinary citizen on the wrong side of the law to a fiercely loyal and dedicated agent of the rebellion, but what caused him to take up arms against the Empire? At this point in history, the Emperor is exerting authoritarian control throughout the remains of the former Republic. There are pockets of dissent here and there, though they haven’t organized into any kind of formal alliance yet, and most people are just trying to go about their daily lives without hassle. Cassian Andor is one of those people, until he isn’t. We know that something causes him to go on the run from the Empire, and that he’ll eventually be recruited to the movement by Stellan Skarsgård’s character Luthen Rael, but Cassian’s initial motivations for joining up aren’t yet known. Is it just to escape from his Imperial pursuers? Is there something special about him that has the Empire hunting him down? At some point he’s destined to change direction and instead of running from the Empire, start running toward revolution. We’re looking forward to that arc, even if we don’t know all the details of his run-ins with the bad guys just yet.

48 Comments

  • drdelicatetouch3384-av says:

    My burning question regarding this series is: Who gives a shit? Seriously, does anyone think this show is worth watching? 

    • murrychang-av says:

      I’m on the fence: I really didn’t like Rogue One, I thought the story was unnecessary and the editing was really bad. So, initially, I really didn’t care about this series.Then I saw the trailer the other day and it actually looks good, so I guess I’m gonna be watching it.

    • egerz-av says:

      I’ll watch it. The prequels didn’t show us enough of the political intrigue due to time constraints, but they can really let that stuff breathe in the longer format. I’m looking forward to seeing exactly which Senate procedural maneuvers Palpatine’s sycophants will abuse until Mon Mothma gets frustrated and takes up arms against the Empire.

    • kped45-av says:

      A prequel to a prequel! This is different than Obi-Wan, which was a sequel to a prequel. Next up will be a prequel to a sequel of a prequel. A russian nesting doll of who the fuck cares about this?

    • toddtriestonotbetoopretentious-av says:

      yeah as a follow-up to who gives a shitseriously who gives a shit

    • truthhurts2023-av says:

      It looks amazing, so please crawl back to your hole. Thanks.

    • pophead911-av says:

      Disney needs to pump out Star Wars for forever since they paid 4 billion for it. I’m guessing in a few years we’ll get a limited series on Han Solo’s time frozen in carbonite. 

    • dragonshanks-av says:

      It must suck to suck.

    • cordingly-av says:

      I usually don’t care for pessimism, but these shows are starting to run up to a large wall, and that’s the issue in that they can’t really impact the larger story.

      Cassian Andor, a character who we know the fate of, meeting other characters we know the fate of, and introducing characters that must not be that important, because they don’t show up in the previously mentioned stories.

      Also not making an appearance; social commentary, homosexual relationships, condemnation of oligarchy…

      • krotchstak-av says:

        I don’t particularly care about the title character specifically – or even Rogue One, for that matter – but most of what I hear about this seems…pretty promising?

        If nothing else, the show is actually blatantly positioning itself as a political thriller which, based on interviews, seems to be aiming for similar things Rogue One did – the sort of grit, bravery, and both moral compass and moral compromise needed for ordinary people to to stage a rebellion against a tyrannical power – only now it has the time to explore those ideas and flesh out the characters it’s using to deliver them. If the show can deliver (and based on articles like these, I have some hope it can), then it could be genuinely excellent. Maybe no LGBT content, but certainly social commentary and condemnation of fascist oligarchy.

    • g-off-av says:

      Interesting differences of opinion here.

      Now that the dust has settled, I think Rogue One is easily the best of the Disney films, and the trailers for Andor make it look similarly gritty and more focused on the Empire than Force stuff. I’m more pumped for this than S3 of Mando.

    • electricsheep198-av says:

      I love Diego Luna, so yes.

    • rottencore-av says:

      Tony Gilroy baby

    • sirpwny-av says:

      Star Wars fans, which clearly doesn’t include you.

      • drdelicatetouch3384-av says:

        One can be a Star Wars fan without being interested in TV series about every character in the galaxy, believe it or not. 

  • dp4m-av says:

    Burning question:  why a slideshow?  Just ask questions!

    • murrychang-av says:

      Web 3.0 is really just a buzzword for the slidification of all content.

    • jonesj5-av says:

      I can sum up the current AVClub with “too many slideshows and too many lists”.

    • g-off-av says:

      What blows my mind is slideshows as an SEO and CPC ploy peaked like 10 years ago.

      • murrychang-av says:

        If there’s one thing I know about capitalism, it’s that most companies are at least 10 years behind actual trends and are always racing to catch up.If there’s two things I know about capitalism, it’sAND I AM ALL OUT OF BUBBLE GUM!

    • electricsheep198-av says:

      If you make your window smaller it turns it into a list for you.  That trick has saved me from many an AVClub slideshow.

      • prozacelf1-av says:

        Apparently my mobile adblocker has been doing this for me for years now.  Ironically, Deadspin was the site that convinced me to finally install adblockers on all my devices, back when they still had good content but management was trying to monetize every second of eyeball time.

  • charliemeadows69420-av says:

    Looks like childish crap that only adult babies can enjoy.

  • TRT-X-av says:

    Man, I can’t wait to find out how Andor’s story ends. I hope he makes it out okay!

  • chasemit-av says:

    Here’s what we think we know—and what can’t wait to find out—about the latest Disney Plus Star Wars seriesReally don’t want to be a dick about this but this site has GOT to do something about the typos. They’re constant, they’re everywhere, and it’s impossible not to notice. Like, is there even an editor anymore

  • magpie187-av says:

    Diminishing returns on these SW series. Mando was great, Boba & Obi not so much. Hopefully this is worthwhile. I do think Rouge One is the best Disney SW film. 

  • elcubanator-av says:

    I’m so looking forward to this. I’m hoping it’ll have a strong spy thriller vibe.

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