Since the release of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, fans have been craving to know more about the mysterious and courageous rebel leader, Cassian Andor. Now, in a three-episode premiere on Disney Plus, we finally get to peel back the curtains and discover who Cassian Andor is, and what lead him to his sacrifice for the rebel alliance in the new series Star Wars: Andor.
Cassian In His Element
The show opens on a scene that harks back to the first time we all met Cassian Andor in Rogue One. Instead of trying to get details about the defection of a pilot, we see that this mission is closer to his heart, as he tries to find information about his missing sister at a brothel on the planet, Morlana One.
In his search, Cassian, played by the talented Diego Luna, is stopped by two security officers that were antagonizing him in the brothel. In a matter of seconds, a fight ensues between the three of them, and in the ruckus of it, Cassian accidentally kills one of the officers. For a moment, we believe that Cassian will spare the other officer as he pleads for mercy. But this mission is too important to let anyone go. Cassian takes swift action and kills the remaining officer. Determined, desperate, and calculated, Cassian shows all of us what he’s willing to do to get his family back.
Fans online seemed to enjoy watching this grittier version of Cassian, as one Twitter user posts:
Friends and Traitors
There’s no doubt that many of us tuned in to Andor to see Cassian’s past, but we will stay for the new characters that make the story that much more interesting. Between Cassian’s previous romantic relationship with the black-market dealer/mechanic, Bix Caleen, his “adoptive” mother Maarva, and now, member of the rebel alliance, Luthen Rael, we all have characters that we wish to succeed. But just like Bix’s boyfriend, Timm, betrayed Cassian, we’ll all have to keep a lookout for any more plots of deception.
The current antagonist of the show, Syril Karn, Deputy Inspector for Pre-Morlana Authority, will keep us on the edge of our seats. Emboldened by power and vengeance for the two fallen security officers, Karn is a ticking time bomb with little patience. What will happen when the unpredictable Karn and decisive Cassian meet? Only time will tell, but one thing is certain, it will be a fight all of us want to see.
Memories of Home
“I’ve been in this fight since I was six years old. You’re not the only one who lost everything.”
Cassian Andor, Rogue One
This line has been sitting with us forever, and now, the puzzle pieces of his childhood are starting to come together. Throughout all three episodes, we are transported to the planet, Kenari, in flashbacks of Cassian’s youth. His village mainly made up of young children and teenagers, is in awe and confusion as a ship crash lands on their planet.
While it should’ve been an exploratory mission, things take a turn for the worse in a swift fashion. Cassian loses everything within just a few moments. The main fighter of their village is killed, and within the chaos, he is left behind by his tribe. As Cassian sneaks onto the ship, everything hits him at once.
Full of rage and sadness over the death of their leader and the potential overtaking of his planet, young Cassian begins to break down, tearing the inside of the ship apart, until two strangers, Maarva and her husband, Clem, take it upon themselves to save Cassian before the Empire comes and kills anyone in sight. Pulled away from his home planet and his sister, it’s no wonder that Cassian fights tooth and nail for what little freedom he has left.
A Leap of Faith
The final takeaway I noted during the three-episode premiere of Andor, was while many characters in the past have chosen to be on the side of good, Cassian doesn’t have much choice. He lost his home planet, his sister, and now the life he thought he knew. Cassian has little to no control over the *forces* in his situation.
But fate has a funny way of working, and when Luthen Rael and Cassian meet for the first time, we couldn’t be happier. This is the beginning of the story we’ve all been waiting for. We even share the same emotions with Cassian when it’s revealed that Rael knows of Cassian’s father.
Confused, curious, but intrigued, we get a beautiful moment of both young and old Cassian looking out the windows of the ships that will take him on a journey he can’t even imagine. And we’ll be right there with him, anxiously watching to see what happens next.
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