STAR WARS HAS always been political, no matter what the MAGA types who cosplay as Imperial agents and scream about Disney shoving diversity into “their Star Wars” say.
The original trilogy showed a band of anti-imperialist fighters going up against a vicious pan-galactic state — based, according to its creator George Lucas, on the Vietnam War, with the Viet Cong “rebels” going up against the United States “Empire.”
The prequels showed the transformation of the Galactic Republic into the Galactic Empire of the original trilogy. In 2018, during Donald Trump’s first administration, James Cameron interviewed Lucas about Star Wars’ anti-authoritarian messaging, highlighting a line spoken by Senator Padmé Amidala as Emperor Palpatine declares that the Republic is now an Empire: “So this is how liberty dies, with thunderous applause.”
Lucas sold Star Wars to Disney in 2012 and hasn’t been involved in production since then, but Andor, the new series set in the universe, doubles down on its anti-authoritarian roots, focusing on the creation of the revolutionary Rebel Alliance. In the process, it gives us a glimpse into the messiness and conflict that often accompanies building a movement on the left, as activists fight over which political philosophies and strategies work best.
I agree with the other comment, it is the best in general. I’m not as old as the other person, but Star Wars has been a part of my life always. I wouldn’t even say any other video media holds a light to it. Obviously the original trilogy have had more influence, but Andor does a much better job of telling a story of rebellion.
Honestly, the jedi aren’t relatable, and that’s why everything else falls flat. They’re spectacle and almost no substance. Andor is entertaining while telling essentially true stories of rebellion that have actually happened. We can see ourselves in the characters, and it’s so much more impactful because of it. They’re also not afraid to show the horrors of war, while the original series mostly handwaves it away. They show a planet blowing up, but they don’t show people suffering. They show battles, but they don’t show civilians or what happens to their loved ones. They’re just rebelling because they were written to, but they’re never actually given a reason.
I only changed my comment at the last second before posting to mention the live action, because I haven’t read the books and seen all the animated series, so didn’t want a brigade of folks who have telling me “well akshully”