Andor: The 6 Things Season 2 Did Better Than Season 1

Summary

Season 2 of Andor builds on established characters, reducing time spent on introductions.
Rebellion remains in turmoil post-Season 1, split into factions with conflicting agendas.
Season 2 of Andor plays with non-linear time, flashing back and forward for a richer narrative.

Plans for a Star Wars TV show had been in the works for a long time, even before the prequel trilogy. Like many ideas, though, a live-action iteration did not come to be until decades later when The Mandalorian premiered in 2019. Thanks to its success, Disney saw fit to make more live-action shows, each with a bit of camp to them.

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Then came Andor in 2022, a prequel to 2016’s Rogue One, which felt like something new—a prestige Star Wars show that didn’t pull any punches and was grim, gritty, and exactly what the franchises needed. That’s what made the first season successful, but did the second season outdo it? Let’s find out and compare the two seasons of Andor and where they succeeded the most.

Spoilers Ahead for Season 2 of Andor.

6

The Characters Are Established

Less Time Spent On Introductions

Is the Star Wars origin story better, or are the sequels better? There are reasons why fans prefer the first in a line of movies or sequels, because getting to know the gang is part of the fun. On the other hand, it’s nice when a piece of media doesn’t have to spend much time establishing its characters every time there is a sequel.

That’s one reason why season two of Andor is so good, because fans already know the drill. Some characters returned from the Star Wars saga at large in season one, but there were also many new faces. There is less stress on the brain trying to keep track of new characters in season two, giving the writers more ways to focus on those who had already been established.

5

The Rebellion Is Alive

But Still In Turmoil

Based on the movies, fans may have assumed that the Rebellion would be a well-oiled machine after the end of Andor’s first season. While it is up and running to a somewhat decent degree, it still isn’t perfect. It’s split into a few factions with Bail Organa, Leia’s adopted father, trying to get Yavin 4 up and running.

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Luthen is fighting the Empire his own way, with cutthroat missions mostly carried out by Cassian Andor. Then there’s Saw Gerrera, who is in his own band of cutthroat Rebels who will do anything to win the war. It’s a good reminder that even the Rebels can’t agree on how to stop oppression, as ruling isn’t easy.

It’s That Time Of The Year Toffee

It’s hard to relate anything in our reality to the Star Wars universe, as they are so different. Most depictions don’t have the one thing that almost everyone can enjoy on Earth: TV. That is addressed in Andor season two, and while goofy and out of place sometimes, it is interesting to see characters enjoy films and TV that were made in the Star Wars universe. The first instance happens in episode one where Orson Krennic shows a trade film about Ghorman that feels straight out of the 1940s.

Then, in episode five, a talk show is shown on a TV, and finally, some guards are watching a podracing event on a TV in episode four. Plus, there is a lot of news coverage being broadcast about the Ghorman uprising. It’s all great set dressing to show that this universe likes to relax, too.

3

Cassian Isn’t A Perfect Hero

Flawed Love

Like the Rebellion, Cassian is not a perfect hero. He looks noble in the first arc of the second season, and gives a good speech to an Imperial mechanic before stealing a TIE Avenger. He crash-lands on a foreign planet and is ambushed by a different faction of Rebels, but he doesn’t try to smoke them all out. By the end of the third episode, he goes to save his girlfriend Bix, and this paints Cassian in a new light compared to the first season.

However, by episode four, things start to fall apart. Cassian hates doing missions for Luthen and doesn’t trust Bix’s ability to move on. He keeps wanting to leave the Rebellion, backpedaling on what he promised before. That’s because he just wants a normal life with Bix, and he’s afraid he will lose her again if they persist in fighting back. They say love conquers all, but in a way, love also blinds people, and it’s a good lesson to give Cassian to show the audience that even heroes can be flawed.

2

Playing With Time

Not Constrained By Linearity

Season one of Andor used its three-episode chapters to tell four distinct arcs, which season two does as well. How season two is improved lies in the timeline. The start of season two starts a year after the first season, and in episode four, it jumps ahead a year. Then, in episode ten, it jumps ahead a year one last time.

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Not only that, the majority of episode ten flashes between the present, with Kleya on a rescue mission to find Luthen, and the past, showing how Luthen first found Kleya as a child. There are still some questions regarding their past, especially Luthen, who might have been a Jedi, but that’s for another discussion. For now, season two of Andor deserves high praise for not sticking to one time period in Star Wars canon. Worthy of note, Cassian did have childhood flashbacks in season one, to give it due credit.

1

Tying Into Rogue One

A Welcome Bevy Of Characters

When Andor began, or even when it was announced, fans were excited at the prospect of getting to know more about characters from Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, including Jyn Erso, Galen Erso, Chirrut Imwe, and Baze Malbus. All of those characters are absent from both seasons, and season one instead focused on new characters and returning characters like Cassian Andor, Saw Gerrera, and Mon Mothma.

Season one was pretty far removed from having any real ties to Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, but season two slowly weaved in its narrative about setting up the Death Star. It also reintroduced a fan-favorite villain, Orson Krennic, and Cassian’s sassy droid ally, K-2SO. Both characters don’t have as much screen time as others, but again, at least it sets up the movie better overall, with a pretty tragic ending putting the final touches on the prequel story.