Andorhas attained success in a vastly different metric from the other outings in the Star Wars franchise. While most Star Wars projects are serviceable mass media projects that become profitable beyond rational understanding,Andoris a genuinely stirring piece of art. It’s not just thatAndoris one of the best pieces of the franchise, it’s that Tony Gilroy’s contribution is a different kind of ambition entirely.
The age of streaming entertainment has beenmarked by massive changesin creative direction on a dime. As soon as something breaks through unexpectedly or something else flops, every studio falls over itself to rewrite the multi-year schedule. Star Wars may not be the franchise most affected by this mindset, but it is the one that shows the effects most obviously.
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Looking solely at the viewership numbers of the handful of Disney Plus Star Wars shows, people wantmore ofObi-Wan Kenobiand less ofAndor. By and large, shows with established Star Wars characters perform better than those without.Andorunderperformed when compared toThe Book of Boba Fett, which is widely considered the weakest of Disney’s live-action efforts.Obi-Wandidn’t draw eyes because of its masterful storytelling or groundbreaking new horizon. It had Darth Vader and Obi-Wan, it was a guaranteed hit.Andorgrew in viewership over its first season, while most Star Wars shows slowly lose viewers. They had a better pitch, butAndorhad a better show. Positive wordof mouth madeAndora sleeper hit on its own merits. It would come as no shock if Disney looked at the slightly diminished viewership ofAndorand ignored everything it had to say, but they renewed it for a second season, so they just might be listening.
Andorrepresents a completely new approach to the Star Wars brand. It’s a compelling story that takes elements from the earlier entries and refocuses them. It’s a lesson in perspective that finally gives the fanbase a look into the grim and gritty details behind the fantastical elements. It’s also a wide-awake socially aware meditation on the meaning of the original stories and their place in the new era.Obi-WanandThe Book of Boba Fettare centered on existing characters to tie up loose ends and profit off of their popularity.The Mandalorianis an entirely unrelated side-story that slowly injects more stuff we remember as it goes on. The latter slowly betrays its pitch and the former stars with callbacks.Andorcould be a bold new direction in storytelling for the franchise.
For decades now, Lucasfilm and Disney have tried to sell the galaxy far far away as a place of endless possibilities. That promise has been proven untrue at almost every turn, as the story continues to fall back on the samehandful of characters and concepts. People make fun of the extended universe novels for their obsession with details no one could ever care about, but the films and spin-offs are no better for their non-stop revolving around a single family. For a universe so big, it seems like no one ever cares about anyone who isn’t from the original six films or related to them by blood.Andorcould be the first in a long line of new stories. Inspiredby Gilroy’s instant classic, the franchise could finally fulfill the promise of a massive universe.
A lot of franchise media gets praise for being “the darkest” iteration of the selected series. Usually, that means it’s a bit more liberal with sex and violence. Maybe it focuses on a character who isn’t a paragon of moral superiority.Andoris probably the darkest entry in the Star Wars franchise, but with none of the edgy nonsense implied by that dubious accolade. It’s mature in a nuanced and interesting way. Its violence has meaning,its villains are utterly familiarto any of us who’ve experienced the banality of evil, and every event is imbued with real narrative weight. This type of sincere mature storytelling isn’t entirely new to Star Wars, but it’s been largely absent from the material since toy sales became the most important factor in its financial success. If Disney actually wants to appeal to a wider audience, outside the ever-shrinking bubble of unironic Star Wars devotees, it will have to allow its stories to grow too.
Viewing the franchise honestly, it’s unlikely that the success ofAndorwill change Star Wars much at all. It’ll exist as an aberration, one perfect corner of art inside an otherwise all-consuming sea of products. The second season may even abandon much of what made it special. However,Andorwasn’t an accident or a coincidence. It was theconcerted effort of talented creatorstaking the classic approach to TV storytelling inside a franchise that has routinely stamped out dangerous levels of creativity. In its success lies a blueprint that could guide the franchise into a new era of genuine good art under a diverse world of new creators. We could all see Star Wars as an entirely different and widely beloved force for good. There could be no fate more poetic for a show likeAndorthan to be the spark that finally brings an empire to its knees.
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