Introducing Andor Analysed, Part 2: Welcome to the Rebellion

Jamie Woodcock

Welcome to the second entry in the Andor Analysed collection, which, like the first part, focuses on one season. This season, of course, takes the viewer closer to the inevitable conclusion of Andor’s arc in Rogue One. The reception of Season Two has been as positive as the first, with similar interest in writing for the collection and more widespread responses. In particular, references to Andor have appeared in protests, on picket lines, and in union speeches. The aim of this collection was to bring together a range of contributions that try to make sense of Andor from different angles. Each entry brings a new angle to our understanding of Andor, collectively developing a critical interpretation of the series.

Andor Season Two starts a year after the uprising on Ferrix. The main themes of the series begin to unfold in the first episode: Cassian encounters the chaotic Maya Pei Brigade after stealing a prototype imperial ship. Bix, Brasso, Wilmon, and B2EMO are in hiding as undocumented workers on an agricultural planet. Mon Mothma prepares for her daughter's arranged marriage as her financial problems intensify. Orson Krennic recruits Dedra to his plan to provoke an insurgency on Ghorman. Each of these parts introduces another focus on the work of rebellion and empire.

If Season One featured the industrial working class of Ferrix, on Mina-Rau, we see industrial agriculture. The filming of these scenes involved growing the crops. “Five months before we shot there, they planted 140 acres … worth of rye”, explained visual effects supervisor Mohen Leo. As Sue Row, another visual effects supervisor, noted: “Mohen wanted the wide shots to feel like the huge industrial scale that you get with farming in the US, then plus it times 10!” Then, for the silos, a “key element was to keep them understated. These are part of the environment. The silos are functional not designer, working class people working in a tough environment.”[1] This comes across clearly, with the backdrop as an important character, like Ferrix. It also returns to another powerful representation of work in the Star Wars universe. This time, it is workers with irregular status, moving around the planet to work on the harvests and as mechanics. There is even an immigration raid by Imperial soldiers. Bix survives an attempted sexual assault, killing an Imperial officer. When Andor arrives, he is only able to rescue Bix and Wilmon, as Brasso is cut down by blaster fire. Another character sacrificed to the rebellion.

Every three years, the season jumps forward a year. In part, this is a result of the original plan for the longer Andor project, but it also gives this season an urgency as we rush towards the inevitable events of Rogue One. It also highlights that, despite the name, Andor is not only about Andor. We do, of course, see Andor develop as a character across the series. There are hints at Andor’s politics and his tensions with the rebel leadership at the newly-formed Yavin 4 base. However, there is no clear articulation of his politics as that found in one of the accompanying books:

Now in his mid twenties, Andor grew up in the wilds of the Outer Rim and came of age fighting against the Republic during the tumultuous Clone Wars. His father was killed at the Carida military academy during a protest against the expansion of Republic militarism. Though not a formal Separatist, Andor became part of a Confederacy-backed insurrectionist cell at a young age, tossing rocks and bottles at Republic walkers and clone soldiers. He came to learn firsthand that even the most advanced combat machinery could be crippled with the right grit sprinkled in the right gears. In the time of the Empire, Andor was drawn into anarchist movements that continued to defy Imperial edicts.[2]

It is clear that Karis Nemik had an important influence on Andor’s politics. We have reproduced Nemik’s manifesto later in the collection, which is worth returning to here. However, throughout the series, we see attention shift to other characters, understanding the different roles they play in the development of the rebellion. As Tony Gilroy has explained, the series started with a question:

Can we bring something that’s so intense emotionally and seems so true and has the smallest domestic dramas and the smallest interpersonal relationships that are dropped down in the midst of the epic tectonic revolutionary historical moments where people have to make huge decisions?[3]

In parts of the season, this is about Andor’s journey, but other parts follow the moments between other characters, both minor and major. All faces sacrifices of one kind or another.

In the second year-long jump, we return to Andor as he meets with the Ghorman rebels.  Similarly, Wilmon becomes involved with Saw Gerrera, particularly in the plan to steal rhydonium. There is, unfortunately, not much of Gerrera in this series. As Forest Whitaker explained: 

I appreciated how Andor was able to lean into its gray areas, depicting flawed leaders, misguided rebels, and figures who’d both torture and nurture. Saw exemplifies what it’s like to pursue a cause by whatever means are necessary, and people seem to connect with his journey because his motivations are just.[4]

This is quite different to the sections of existing leaders that break away from the senate to join the rebellion. These tensions between the factions come to the fore, particularly as Andor is not convinced of the Ghorman rebels’ plans. Another of our Season One characters, Cinta, is killed during a heist on Ghorman. She dies as a result of the Ghorman rebels disobeying orders. This is another reference to the chaos of bringing new rebels into the fight, echoing the encounter with the Maya Pei Brigade in the first episode. The rebellion is not clear-cut, drawing in less experienced members with different reasons for fighting. Some threads from the previous season are resolved. For example, Bix breaks into Gorst’s office on Coruscant and uses the torture device from Season One on him. Bix and Andor then blow up the building. However, there are also many threads we do not see pulled back through, particularly Cassian’s search for his sister.

After another year’s jump, the season introduces the rebel base on Yavin 4. Bix and Cassian have moved to the hidden base. While Cassian is hesitant to become involved in Ghorman, Wilmon convinces him to take part in a mission to assassinate Dedra. We see a glimpse of the force at this point, as a force healer tells Bix that Andor will be vital to the revolution. This is the force as mysticism, not as supernatural power or lightsaber duels. This also comes to the fore in the events on Ghorman. Like the overall arc of this season, the people of Ghorman are inching towards an inevitable conclusion: a confrontation with the Empire. The protest on Ghorman and the false flag shooting can feel close to home for many. The representation of a demonstration is powerful, with the energy of the protestors and the impending violence of the Empire bearing down. As Janus Metz, the director of the episode, explains: 

One of the surprising things that happened was how many extras, many of whom had very little screen time, really connected to the spirit of the rebellion. There was a palpable energy in that scene. The moment we were all singing together, you could feel the unity, the hope, and the anger - it brought a sense of belonging that was contagious.[5]

Metz had previously made a documentary, Armadillo, with Danish soldiers in Helmand province, Afghanistan. This experience flows into the scene, with the “claustrophobic” feeling of the shots, the crowds pressing in. There is also a distinct lack of gore; instead, the horror and trauma of the events are displayed on faces in the aftermath. 

Andor is not able to assassinate Dedra, but instead reaches a conclusion with Syril Karn. After two seasons of chasing Andor, Syril finally encounters him. After a fight, Syril is killed by Carro Rylanz, a Ghorman rebel leader. During Andor’s escape from Ghorman, he recovers a damaged KX security droid. After reprogramming in Yavin 4, this will become his future partner, K-2SO. Mon Mothma speaks out against the Emperor in the Senate, calling out the unprovoked attack on Ghorman. Andor extracts Mon Mothma, setting in motion the more established parts of the Rebel Alliance. Her shock at Andor’s violence during their escape is a reminder of the very different role that Mon Mothma has played in the rebellion so far. Back on Yavin 4, Andor attempts to leave the rebellion, but Bix leaves in the night,  telling him he must stay and help.

In the final jump forward, the plot rushes towards Rogue One. Lonni reports to Luthen that the Empire’s project on Ghorman is a doomsday weapon and that Dedra has blown their cover. Luthen kills Lonni and then proceeds to destroy the evidence of the rebellion from his antique shop. It is also worth noting that Luthen, surrounded by the shop's trappings, is reminiscent of a character from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Garak, like Luthen, uses a tailor’s shop as cover for his clandestine activities. They both have military experience yet appear as flamboyant characters, hiding their secrets behind a facade. The killing of Lonni shows Luthen’s ruthless side, like Garak’s assassination of a Romulan senator in DS9 “In the Pale Moonlight” (S6, E19), bringing the Romulans into the war against the Dominion. Back in Andor, Luthen is confronted by Dedra in his shop. After chasing him throughout the two seasons, Dedra’s confrontation is drawn out. Instead of arresting him, during their conversation, Luthen has the opportunity to kill himself. We get glimpses of Luthen and Kleya’s backstory through flashbacks, seeing how Luthen turned his back on the Imperial military. Confronting the brutality of the Empire, he deserts taking the orphaned Kleya with him. In the conclusion of their story, Kleya infiltrates the hospital where Luthen is being held and disconnects his life support.

The series then moves to the aftermath, in which Dedra is arrested for her overreach with Luthen. Dedra continues to help the Empire, this time on the other side of the cell. With her support, the ISB are able to trace Kleya to the safe house on Coruscant. Cassian, Melshi, and K-2SO intervene to help her escape. It is also worth noting that the representation of K-2SO here is particularly visceral. In most of Star Wars, violence is often meted out through the force, gigantic space ships battling it out, or large pitched battles. The ease with which K-2SO takes on the ISB Tactical team is somewhat shocking. K-2SO is capable of extreme violence. As K-2SO explains, “I have carried out many Imperial directives prior to my reprogramming. Killing, maiming, kidnapping, arson, telemarketing. My orders were usually intended to do harm to the Rebel cause.”[6] While we see no evidence of what the “telemarketing” involved (though the idea is intriguing), the scenes at the safehouse show the violence he would previously have wielded against the rebellion.

So far throughout this season, the account of the rebellion's development is complicated. It is never as straightforward as the Rebel Alliance and Empire that we see in the original trilogy. However, there have been different accounts of what can be taken from watching a series like Andor. For example, Gita Jackson argued that “I worry that for many people, the consumption of this television show feels pacifying, as if watching it is a replacement for joining a protest, their fandom for the rebel alliance a stand-in for their politics in the real world.”[7] It is important to point out that a series dealing with these political themes is making money for Disney. There is, of course, an irony in publishing this in The New York Times, given its track record of restricting critical coverage of the genocide in Palestine. This can be contrasted with the support that many of the actors in Andor have voiced for Palestine, including Denise Gough speaking at a demonstration in London following a visit to Palestine.[8] The newspaper also refused to recognise the Times Tech Guild, which has filed “unfair labor practices” with the NLRB. Nevertheless, Jackson makes an important but contradictory point. How can it be that a corporation like Disney can profit from a cultural commodity that many have found political inspiration in? However, this problem is not new. What has been interesting about the reception of Andor is that, while there may be examples of “pacifying” consumption, it has also featured in collective struggles and in debates about what fighting fascism and our own Empire could mean today. Yet it is still an entry in the Disney-owned franchise, aimed not at raising political consciousness but profits. The collection that follows articulates the responses to Andor in different directions, but it is worth remembering this critique.

The final episode of the season brings the remainder of our cast together. They are able to convince the rebels of the veracity of the Death Star intelligence. Back on Coruscant, Partagaz listens to Nemik’s Manifesto, then commits suicide with soldiers waiting outside. Andor is given permission to meet an informant on Kafrene, leading directly into the events of Rogue One. The series then ends with Bix cradling a newborn baby. We have the wrapping up of many threads of the two seasons, while also hinting at future stories to come. 

---

[1] Quoted in Ian Failes, “Andor, Season 2,” Issue #33, Before & Afters, 2025.

[2] Pablo Hidalgo, “Cassian Andor”, Star Wars Rogue One Visual Dictionary, (DK Penguin Rnadom House, New York: 2016).

[3] Tony Gilroy quoted in Kristin Baver, “‘A Potent Moment in History’: Insights from Tony Gilroy and the Andor Cast”, Star Wars, September 21, 2022.

[4] Quoted in Rebelión: An Andor Zine.

[5] Quoted in Rebelión: An Andor Zine.

[6] Quoted in Rebelión: An Andor Zine.

[7] Gita Jackson, “‘Andor’ Is Not the Resistance You’re Looking For”, The New York Times, April 22, 2025.

[8] Mehdi Hasan, “EXCLUSIVE: Israel is ‘Gaslighting’ Us, Says ‘Andor’ Star After Trip to Occupied West Bank”, Zeteo, September 22, 2025.