#ANDOR TRAILER WHEN.

[supervisormeero]

Did Disney forget where they parked it, or

[chipthekeeper]

going to be very interested in seeing how quickly people will make gifs of the acolyte trailer vs how it happened with andor

[queen-morgana91]

Star Wars has let me down so many times recently that I just can’t get excited for it anymore. Boba Fett sucked, Obi-Wan was disappointing, and Mando Season 3 started ok but has been super disappointing as well. And now we are getting....a sequel of the garbage sequels. I can't sigh....

Yeah Ahsoka trailer looks good, but nothing memorable.

Only Andor was good, and we all know why...

[imogenkol]

ngl this season is making me wanna create some Mandalorian ocs….

[bisexualmikisayaka]

(guy who has absorbed half of wookieepedia’s information into his brain voice) no more star wars we are done with the need for star wars

[butterflydm]

new s3 timeline thoughts

I never would have thought of starting our mains in Tar Valon in order to untangle the potential time-crunch for this season! If it does turn out to be the case (and it sounds like it is a distinct possibility: see @markantonys's post here: a few more tidbits), what a brilliant way to solve the Wondergirls continental yo-yo problem!

Because that's a huge part of why I doubted that we would see the Wondergirls in the White Tower this season, because I couldn't see how we would find the time for it. But if everyone goes back to Tar Valon via the Ways (to warn the Amyrlin about Liandrin being a Darkfriend), then we've re-centered everyone and they can go back out into their own plotlines more sensibly distributed. If the "two episodes in the wetlands before Rand goes to the Waste" is the same two episodes as "the Wondergirls go to the White Tower", then the time-crunch problem is solved.

Okay, the thoughts below contain spoilers for the new trailer, the reports of the new clips, and any other random spoilers like interview spoilers that might be floating around. Some of my speculation definitely overlaps with @markantonys

In the con-exclusive scenes that were aired, one of them was about Liandrin being publicly revealed as a Darkfriend and her escape from the White Tower. Briefly, this scene then cuts to Moiraine and Rand in the streets of a city. If this is the shot of Moiraine in the rain from the trailer, then they're in Tar Valon. This is supported by the interview at the recent con saying that our kiddos start out the season together.

So, I won't worry about the reasoning behind them all going back to Tar Valon right now, and I'll just do some thoughts based on the 'what if'.

It means they're likely saving the bulk of Rand learning politics until after he's already gone through everything with Rhuidean and the Waste (aka until s4 which, if it follows the pattern of s2 & s3, would have two focal episodes for our mains, and it would be Mat and Elayne's turn to have one each, which could really work for their respective arcs) and (since Moiraine is still wearing the clothes from the end of s2), they are going to be rushing away from Falme as quickly as they rushed there, and we are probably going to first see them in Tar Valon (or potentially in the Ways, but that can probably just be assumed, since Loial is with them).

Moiraine is leaning back into the plan that she wants to believe she can still make happen, the one that she made with Siuan back in the day -- where she finds and trains the Dragon while Siuan gets the White Tower ready to work with him (as opposed to imprisoning him). Now that Moiraine knows that Liandrin is a Darkfriend, she can take that information to Siuan (along with the info about the Seanchan) and prove to Siuan that she did not lose her way, that their original plan can still work. They damaged each other's trust in s2 but now she wants to rebuild it.

So, episode one is the reunion in Tar Valon, and the reveal of Liandrin as Black Ajah. Maybe this is also where Egwene and Elayne get rushed through their Accepted Tests by Siuan. Moiraine and Siuan get their romantic reunion. We might get our bubbles of evil here -- Rand destroying the mirror selves is I think what's in trailer when he has that burst of power. Maybe Lanfear making her offer to Rand to find him a teacher comes in here?

Episode two is where I think the rest of our Andorans will come in -- a cold open in Andor, introducing us to the royal family & to Elaida, and Galad and Gawyn coming to train as Warders in the White Tower aka to be Morgase's eyes to make sure her daughter doesn't disappear again (which she will). And Elaida becomes our Red Sister in the White Tower as Liandrin has left.

It seems likely that this will be our trigger point for our team to split up -- Perrin hears the rumors about the Two Rivers, and Nynaeve, Elayne, & Egwene guess that Liandrin is heading to Tanchico, while Rand decides that he needs to go to the Aiel Waste. Why doesn't Mat go with Rand? This is where I wonder if we get our doorway, and the questions, but he gets pointed towards Tanchico instead of the Waste, maybe? TSR is such a strong book for the Mat-Rand relationship, so I really hope we get some of that in the season.

Now, it may be that we have two episodes with the gang together before separation... or we might get three. In the books, Rand does pretty much get tossed into Rhuidean the second he arrives, and we know that Rhuidean is happening in episode four. So maybe they get three episodes together before the split.

Episode three may be when we get Egwene (originally planning to go with Nynaeve and Elayne to chase Liandrin) and Mat (originally planning to go to the Waste with Rand; or to the Two Rivers with Perrin) swapping paths. Mat gets information that points him towards Tanchico (this is based on earlier spoilers that place him there with Nynaeve, Elayne, Min and Thom), while Egwene meets Amys in TAR and decides she needs to go with Rand to the Waste.

At some point during these three episodes, I do suspect that Rand and Egwene will sort out the status of their relationship officially, and I do think we'll get some hints of potential feelings between Rand and Elayne.

Other book-based events we might get in this block of episodes:

Egwene and Elayne trying to 'teach' Rand channeling and failing, thus continuing to remind us all that Rand needs a proper teacher of some kind.

We're definitely getting Rand's bubble of evil. We might get Perrin's, since he picked up an axe last season to kill Daddy Bornhald. And we might get Mat's, giving us a chance to see Mat out and about in Tar Valon (having a streak of good luck?).

Since Galad and Gawyn are both (likely) going to be in the White Tower, this is our only chance to get Mat facing off against them, two on one.

Egwene meeting the brothers and feelings of some kind sparking.

We could get Elaida's prophecy about Rand, and the two of them meeting.

We know we're getting Lan & Nynaeve scenes, because Daniel has already talked them up a lot, saying that they need to catch up and go past where the characters were at during this time of the books (which would be Tear-era).

If we get any kind of indicator of blossoming feelings between Rand and Elayne, maybe we'll get the feathers scene (I would love that so much. I am so fond of the feathers scene and how Elayne keeps the feathers as something precious because Rand wanted to make them into flowers).

I do hope that some of the stuff from the Waste for Mat & Rand can somehow be transposed to these three episodes, since spoilers indicate that Mat will go to Tanchico instead of the Waste.

Episode four is Rhuidean -- Rand sees the past, while Moiraine sees the future. In the side plots, Perrin arrives in the Two Rivers, while Elayne, Nynaeve & Mat arrive in Tanchico (we might even skip them entirely and pick up with those two groups in ep5). A lot of what we saw in the trailer is probably coming from this episode. Rafe mentioned that Rand, Moiraine, and Egwene would all be in their own separate world for a whole episode, so I'll speculate that the episode c plot is Egwene doing Dreamwalker training while Rand and Moiraine are in Rhuidean.

Episodes five & six will probably give us more about the Two Rivers and Tanchico. We might get the coup in here, though that might be saved for the end of the season.

Book events we're possibly going to see:

We'll meet Lord Luc. We may see Brigitte and Uno in TAR as well.

Aviendha being assigned as the person to teach Rand the ways of the Aiel, and him accidentally flirting with her via regard gifts.

Either Egeanin, or Tuon taking on Egeanin's role in the storyline (which would be a good reason for Mat to go to Tanchico instead of the Waste!).

Episode seven is going to be the Battle of the Two Rivers, and probably Perrin's focus episode. If Rand and Moiraine's story climaxes happen in ep8, then we might get the Tanchico storyline climaxing here with Nynaeve's confrontation with Moghedien.

Episode eight is probably going to be Al Cair Dal, and the splitting of the Aiel into the faction following Rand, and the faction following Couladin, but I do think likely the second climax of the episode and the climax of the season as a whole will be Moiraine and Lanfear's confrontation over Rand's future, stealing that bit of TFoH for this season but saving the rest for when Mat comes back into Rand's story in s4. Basically both Moiraine and Lanfear being taken out of the picture so that Rand is going to have to travel the paths between light and shadow without either of them trying to influence him. Our end of season teaser might be the reveal that Asmodean placed the dragons on Couladin's arms.

(yes, this is me letting go of my 'reunion at the end of s3 hopes' lol. at least for now)

This leaves chasing down Couladin for the start of season 4, which would be an appropriate place to bring Mat back into Rand's story to kill Couladin and form the Band of the Red Hand. This is also when Elayne and Thom can come back into Rand's life to help teach him wetlander politics (with Moiraine gone). Given the pattern of the focus episodes, Mat and Elayne seem likely to get theirs in s4, because they're the only members of the core six not to get them yet.

[colleybri]

Possible solution to the mystery of the “complicated” canoodling in the leaked Andor Star Wars Celebration ‘23 trailer ?

Back in the summer of 2023, the lucky attendees of the SW Celebration in London were treated to a short sizzle reel of footage from season 2 of Andor, which featured this shot of Cassian and Bix apparently being intimate. Adria Arjona was immediately asked about in an interview, and while being unable to spill anything said that “even that beautiful shot” was “more complicated” than it appeared. Online, there’s since been considerable debate about this comment. There have been suggestions that the shot might be a flashback, a reunion or a goodbye. But the bottom line is that it’s definitely not going to be a simple seduction scene or anything like that. Why not ? Apart from what Adria says, because Tony Gilroy is not going to waste precious storytelling time on that sort of thing. There’s going to be something else going on. Think of how complicated the story behind the Bix - Timm scenes were in S1.

I think I might have the answer, and it’s to do with the clarity of the new still released about a month ago….

Notice that Cassian is wearing a coat and Bix is wearing a tank top. The location is the apartment (in what looks very much like Coruscant) that we’ve now seen a few times in the leaked teasers, and for the first time clearly in a few new official stills including this one of Cass and Bix eating dinner…

The micro trailer also featured this shot of Cassian, blaster in one hand and something unknown in the other, standing in the doorway of this apartment as it slides open. He’s wearing a coat.

This shot is giving me the vibe of somebody who is not in a panic, but who is definitely starting to get a bit concerned. Perhaps he was expecting Bix to open the door, but she didn’t answer.

Why might she not have answered? Perhaps because something is wrong…?! Did someone get to her?? Has someone betrayed their location??? Is this safe house no longer safe???

Or perhaps… she was just asleep. Or in the shower.

So with all these clues, I think this “complicated canoodling” is a moment of relief. She’s ok!! No need to panic. This time. He’s wearing a coat because he’s just come in. (And I’ve joked before about him bringing home some takeout, but the new shot showing them eating even suggests it might be exactly that that he was carrying in his other hand). 

I think Tony Gilroy is going to be playing with us for however long Cassian and Bix are together in season 2. For very obvious reasons, it’s not going to last. I have a feeling that Gilroy the Sadist is going to have us share Cassian’s extreme concern that he could lose those last few precious loved ones at any time. So much dramatic power in this series comes from knowing the outcome. We know that there will be a “goodbye [to Bix] coming”, as Diego Luna put it in one interview. Not if, but when and how become the big questions. Just like watching a tragedy in the old sense. 

As Cassian unwittingly said to Maarva back in Season 1 , as they part ways: “ I’ll be worried about you all the time.” Her answer, of course: “That’s just love. Nothing you can do about that.”

And as Vel and Cinta are already learning: worry is a constant feature of love at a time of war. The price to pay also when commitment to the cause has to come first. “We take what’s left”. It’s why I think that Bix, just like Cassian, will be fighting to the end and prepared to give up a chance of personal happiness for the greater good.

[talaok]

Since all the nominations for Emmys, I need one fic where reader is either video calling or with Pedro when nominations are announced. Somethig fluffy and full of emotions cuz Pedro deserves all of this 😊

a/n: this ask skipped the line just cause I felt that if I posted this next week it wouldn't have made as much sense, so yeah here it is (also, I’m so happy for him and Bella, like omg man)

Today was the day.

Pedro was never usually one to care about this stuff, yes he was grateful, and yes he was happy, but no other time had he felt this electricity in the air, this buzz telling him that something was about to happen... something good of course.

He had set up his tablet on the coffee table in front of the couch, waiting for the announcement to start, but he hadn't even managed to sit- he was too nervous, too excited.

A ringing sounded through the room all of a sudden, and after an initial scare, he smiled, glad you finally could call him.

You were on set. In Vancouver. A thousand miles from him.

"Is it on yet?"

Your eagerness spurt through the screen.

And he thought he was exited

"nope"

"what? How much longer?"

He glanced at the screen, feeling a tiny goosebump traveling up his back at the countdown.

"two minutes"

"Oh my god!" You squeaked, smiling so wide your cheeks almost hurt "how are you feeling?"

"nervous" he chuckled drily

"Oh c'mon, what about? We both know you're gonna crush it"

"I hope so" he sighed "God I don't know why I care so much" he laughed "The only important thing is that Bella and the show get nominated"

"And you, of course" you chirped in

He tried to fight a smile, but it still pulled at his lips "Well if there's room..."

"There you are" you nodded, your smile fading ever so little after a brief moment "god I wish I could be there"

"Me too" he agreed "but at least w-" a noise in the direction of the coffee table caught his attention

"Oh shit, it's starting"

"shit, go go go go" you mumbled, feeling all too powerless in your position.

He sat down in front of the screen as the announcers appeared on it.

"what are they saying?"

"uh- just their names and stuff"

"ok-"

A moment passed 

"what about now?"

He laughed, ever so thankful for your presence "Still that, sweetheart"

"fine, just- tell me when they start telling the categories"

"ok ok here we go" 

"what is it?"

"talk series"

"Bo-ring" you huffed, making him chuckle "I want the good stuff"

"they're doing reality programs now"

"oh my god! it's like they want to torture us"

...

"Oh shit" 

A pit created itself in Pedro's stomach

"what?"

"lead actor in a drama series"

"oh my god" you screeched, doing a poor job of trying not to freak out "C'mon baby I know believe in you"

"jeff bridges... Brian cox... Kieran Culkin... Bob Odenkirk..."

come on come on come on

His mouth widened as he let out an incredulous breath.

"baby?" you called, already knowing but wanting a confirmation "baby pl-"

"I got nominated"

"I told you!" You basically screamed, jumping out of your chair "I told you, baby! I'm so happy for you! You deserve all of it babe, all. of. it." 

"I can't believe this" he smiled, his eyes glimmering with that spark in his eyes he only got whenever he was truly happy "This is crazy"

"Well believe it baby, you're an Emmy nominee"

"I just-" he interrupted himself as the next category was announced "shit it's best actresses"

You nodded, trying to cool down while really just mindlessly pacing around your trailer 

"Bella Ramsey!" he laughed "Bella Ramsey! They did it! I knew they fucking would"

"oh my god!" you grinned "What a power couple"

"I know right?" he chuckled "I'll have to call them I-" and once again, the announcers interrupted his train of thought.

His gaze moved from you to the tablet again.

"best drama series?"

He only nodded, clearly all the anxiety coming back.

"Andor... Better call Saul... the crown... House of the Dragon..."

he fell silent as his eyes came back to you, and this time... this time they shined with tears of joy.

"yeah?" you asked, feeling your heart beating out of your chest.

"yeah," nodded.

You felt your heart and chest and body fill with pure joy as you let some tears fall from your eyes.

"you did it baby" you sniffled "I knew you would. You deserve it, all of it" you smiled, wishing with all your heart you were there to hug him and kiss him and whisper in his ear

"How are you feeling?"

He laughed "I don't even know, I just- I think I need time to process this" he smiled, his hands slightly shaking "A-Are you ready to go to the Emmys?"

"are you?" You laughed, quite literally quivering from the excitement

"As ready as I'll ever be"

[hegodamask]

My pictures from last weekend in London seeing People, Places & Things one last time and visiting some Andor* filming locations.

I had the best time with @supervisormeero, @lighttailoring (and a surprise @karnpuffs!). I think getting to hang out with you all at the ISB boardwalk and freak out about the D23 trailer together has rewired my brain 🥴 You are all super super super super cool irl and I hope we get to do it again someday 🫶

*Pictures 4, 5 and 6 were used for Season 2 when they filmed at the Barbican in February 2023. The last picture is Canary Wharf station which was used in Rogue One!

[regarding-stories]

The dark abyss that is Andor

There were several things that led to Andor.

On the one hand, Disney screwed up its Star Wars intellectual property by handing it to complete hacks for Episode VII to IX, leading a potential cash cow to attract less and less viewers over the course of three increasingly bad installments. Seriously, The Last Jedi is one of the worst disappointments I've actually watched, and not only was I thinking "This can't get worse..." every five minutes only to be proven, "Yes, it can!!", it completely killed my appetite to see IX (and I would have left the cinema at that one's sheer stupidity). With VII, I saw it once with some initial excitement in a cinema when it released and a strange feeling afterwards, and I never revisited it. VIII I saw on two separate long-distance flights because I couldn't stomach the thing in one sitting. IX I didn't see at all, but devoured YouTube videos ripping it apart. Clearly, Disney had a Star Wars problem.

The other thing is the reboot that was The Mandalorian, especially season 1. The Mandalorian had a penchant for not very strong logic in its writing that you still accepted because you had so much damn fun and loved the characters. Given the fact that it clearly pulled lots of viewers into Disney+ that were loving its vibe that was true to the core of Star Wars, Disney management saw the fact that theaters and theme parks were closed due to COVID on the one hand and that big Star Wars movies were at risk of actually losing money on the other hand, and they did what executives are wont to do - they decided that if it worked once, it will work again and declared they will pump out TEN Star Wars series in the near future.

Meanwhile they cancelled also their ongoing series of "A Star Wars Story" movies that started with what could be called "Episode III.5" - Rogue One. Rogue One was plagued with production problems, so much so that seeming key scenes from the trailer weren't in the movie. "I rebel!", anyone?? Still, it turned out to be something new - a new kind of Star Wars story. It took the idea of a war movie (or its modern equivalent, Band of Brothers) and put it into the Star Wars cinematic universe. It did without an actual Jedi (kinda-sorta) and it showed a strong performance of Diego Luna as the morally gray Cassian Andor. And... (spoiler alert) ... it killed its whole cast in its finale.

I know people that say Rogue One is their favorite Star Wars movie. (But other people dislike it.) I hold it in high esteem. The way the resistance is portrayed also seemed to be somewhat subversive - both to its previous image on screen and to what is portrayable on screen for mainstream audiences in general. It became clear that unlike in the original three Star Wars movies resisting an empire is, on the ground, a dirty business and not just about big battles or commando raids. (Which then happen anyway. Because Star Wars.)

Then followed the lackluster Solo and the third installment Yoda was never made as Star Wars increasingly lost its ability to draw crowds into seats.

And thus it came to Andor

Now what do you do with a character that (spoiler alert? really?) dies. You make a bloody prequel. Which is funny. Andor is a prequel to Rogue One which is a prequel to A New Hope. Prequels, like sequels, carry the risk of rehashing the original material without adding anything to it (Solo ...) and being trapped by the inevitability of what has to happen next, curtailing its writing (Kenobi ...). But Andor season 1 betrays none of that. (Talk about being addicted to prequels, Disney...) It is a strong piece of cinematic art in its own right.

And yes, I'm saying art. About a Star Wars series. That's how I feel about it. Andor not only has strong execution, it has depth. It was a show that made me pause it and think about what just happened on screen. It's a show that gets deeper if you know about history, unlike most shows that actually reveal their shallowness to the knowing eye. (Looking at you, The Man in the High Castle. Boy, I hated that tripe.)

But even before we get into that, let me say how I impressed I was with its set and costume design. Whereas the Book of Boba Fett gave us cyberpunks on floating scooters, Andor poured a lot of heart into how everybody looked in their various environments, creating a more rich and varied Star Wars society by portraying various strata thereof, from the life of imperial senator Mon Mothma to the middle class living literally in her shade somewhere on the middle levels of planet-city Coruscant to the mining town labor class that we find Cassian in. It flawlessly cuts between different well-thought out locations, including, of all things, a holiday resort.

This is paired with some very strong performances by similarly strong actors. I mean, we all knew Stellan Skarsgard would deliver, sure. But Denise Gough absolutely kills it, acting-wise. Her delivery as a villain is perfect, the way she manages to always look so sour and annoyed already is quite something, how she normalizes evil into a technocrat career. Every flinch of her face conveys books of information to me as the fascinated viewer. She is at the heart of this series, and worth the price of admission alone.

And let's not forget Andy Serkis' heart-rending performance. Really, we're being spoiled. People are seriously acting, not just standing in front of a camera wearing costumes! In Star Wars!!

And yet, if it was only that, it still wouldn't have impacted me as deeply as it had. There's one more layer to this, and it's the massive bottom of the iceberg that is Andor. I haven't forgotten, even though I'm writing this a year after watching it.

(And definitely spoilers from here on onwards.)

Life under fascism

The second half of season 1 however can put deep horror into any thinking person's mind. It radically departs from previous portrayals of the evil Empire. It's not relying on cheap gimmicks like Episode VII where we see a village razed by the First Order. (So evil. So cliche, too. Also murdering Max von Sydow. Tsk, tsk. They had to get him off stage before any good acting happens...) Andor creeps under our skin and then reaps havoc.

(This part of this entry will become increasingly dark. You might not want to read on. Because fiction is one thing, and comparing it to historical reality is another. This is an actual trigger warning. Proceed with care.)

The first half of the season is standard fare, almost. Cassian gets himself in trouble and there is really no redeeming quality about it. He also gets everybody else into trouble. The Empire in its heavy-handed hurry to eradicate resistance actually creates it in the first place. And still... the lack of compunction about torture, about going victim by victim, vanishing people into its torture cells, breaking them... this is merely an overture. No hero is born here, but evil wears its mask imperfectly.

Cassian escapes his small world to eventually live the good life on a resort world, getting laid, pretending to be someone else. Instead of being caught as the fugitive and murderer and partisan he actually is by now, he simply gets caught up in the arrest of somebody else. The way the Empire "perpetrates justice" not only gets him arrested while having done no wrong (in that cover identity), he also gets sentenced by a court that doesn't even pretend to actually care about due process in any way. There's a machine of oppression, and instead of competently catching him, Cassian becomes caught up randomly in one of its many gears.

And while this may seem random, it's brilliant. It's one of the many reasons why resistance exists. Because the Empire's overreach is everywhere, grinding up people just living their lives while trying to perfect its control. The corruption of the desire for power leaks through in its banality.

What follows is Cassian's imprisonment, and this segment is brutal and horrifying on a deep level. The more you know, the worse it gets. Cassian is transported to a prison facility where he's forced into repetitive labor to make equipment for the Empire. There's a set of steps every labor team has to execute, and the team with the lowest quota gets punished with electric shocks. Day after day.

This is "Vernichtung durch Arbeit." ("Destruction through labor.") This is what the Nazis did to their political opponents. Before there was a Holocaust, there were concentration camps. And prisoners were made to work - the cynic motto across the gate of Auschwitz was "Arbeit macht frei." ("Labor sets you free.") People would gradually be ground down until they gave out in one way or another, fell sick, die of exhaustion, broke psychologically. The series never tells us its "inspiration," it just goes through similar motions. With the veneer of a super-clean techno prison over it.

Not only that, the very scene reminded me of what I read in a book about the Holocaust. Towards the end of the war the engines for the new secret weapon jet planes or rockets were manufactured by prison labor. Crews of malnourished prisoners would each execute a few pretrained steps and crank out more jet engines in slave labor than was previously done in the Reich's armament factories. This was the culmination of the Nazi system where all labor-intensive things like the bunkers of the Atlantic Wall or the underground factories of Dora-Mittelbau were erected by and on the back of slaves that were themselves gradually killed in the process.

Without ever breathing a word of what is portraying, Andor portrays the same. Skillfully, horribly so.

The devil is in the details

Some way into this horror, everybody gets their sentence doubled. The counter simply goes up. No explanation. Total helplessness in the face of total control. The deep gut feeling of "No one gets out here alive" or "It will never end" begins to descend. That number was a sort of life line for people to brave another day. And it lies!

As unbelievable as it may seem, people did get released from concentration camps, especially those on "lighter charges" like "antisocial behavior." But nobody really knew how long they had to stay or if they were to be released. Often, initially told they had to do 3 to 6 months depending on their conduct, and yet most people never left alive. A quick read in a book behind me says that 8 million people were sucked into the system, 7 million died, 200,000 left by being released by the system itself. The idea you might be released one day added false hope that in itself could create further psychological torture if it was dashed over and over again.

Then there is the "divide and conquer" approach to prisoner management. Work crews are led by other prisoners, rebellion and resistance is quelled within the ranks. This Andor merely hints at, but the Nazi oppression system skillfully created hierarchies to make sure a comparatively small detachment of guards could handle a large mass of inmates which could overwhelm them if acting together.

But it doesn't stop here, not in Andor, either. Eventually we learn that the Empire starts to eliminate the prison population. Rumors start to spread that an entire floor of the super prison was eliminated by electrocution. Just like the real Nazis the space Nazis start to construct yet another death machine to eliminate opposition.

And this leads to that sub-plots final chapter, the prison revolt. There are a few historical mass escapes, even from Nazi death camps. There's also the heroism of the two uprisings of Warsaw (including the ghetto uprising). Left with nothing to lose, left with nothing but death ahead, the prisoners overwhelm the guards.

And this happened in real life, too. It's probably based on the historical case of the death camp inmates that were forced to run the gas chambers and crematoria themselves. This is part of the Holocaust itself, the Nazis had finally dropped all pretenses and resorting to kill people in an industrial manner. And these people knew that eventually their whole detachment would be killed. They knew too much, were witnesses to this massive crime against them and humanity itself. They were also among those destined for death. Like in an antechamber of hell itself they were merely bidding time. So they managed one of the few mass escapes on record.

While Andor doesn't stray as far down the road as actual history does, it knows how to cite history for those who know. It's not made up of whole cloth. It actually is referencing the real history of the most inhumane version of fascism, but it does not put the fact in your face. But if you know, its chamber of horrors becomes so much deeper.

And that's why

This is what makes Andor an absolute masterpiece. It recreates the conditions without blindly copying the source. It adapts, but you can feel how deeply inhumane the circumstances are that it depicts. It gives you the bloody creeps, and even if you don't know how much it is rooted in darkness, you will still feel it. It shows. It tells. But it never spoils the source material.

This is art. This is the deep craft. The banality of evil, the careless, uncaring attitude of evil towards those it deems unworthy and not human. It's all on display. It switches us into the place of Cassian and of Andy Serkis' character as it draws us in as audience. We don't see what happens on other floors. We don't have the information advantage. We can only imagine. We are subjected to the fact that we can only imagine it. And so we share a bit in the plight of these characters. Sometimes not showing a thing is the highest accomplishment of movie making.

And this is why I'm pissed that a series that was planned for five seasons was already cut to play out in two. Because we need more of this and less of more Jedi doing backflips. Just like Loki plays on a completely different level than the rest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Andor leaves all of Star Wars in its dust. If Rogue One was the attempt to tell a different kind of story in the same universe, Andor is the attempt at a different level of depth.

And this, more than Rogue One, makes it clear why they fight.

Watch it if you can.

And sorry if I horrified you.

[ex0rin]

2024 in gifs ♡

as of December 14, 2024

post your favorite and most popular post from each month this year (it’s okay to skip months)

tagged by the absolutely wonderful @six-demon-bag who got into makings gifs this year and is doing a fucking incredible job of documenting all of the obscure horror flicks 😍

January:

most notes (though not a lot at 122): first step of me getting properly into cegan, there'll be a lot of these in here i think (TWD S07E01)

fave: jack quaid being an idiot on instagram stories (affectionate)

February:

most notes (321): "it's more productive to break you, more fun too" aka another cegan set (TWD S07E07)

fave: Rick cutting off his arm in TWD: TOWL with a much needed flashback to him almost doing the same to Carl (on Negan's orders) back in TWD

March:

most notes (957): the first name drop of Carl in TWD: TOWL by Michonne 😭

fave: a super tough call, so either a rework of (colouring-wise) Rick pointing a gun at Michonne's back while saying 'I love you' (this scene knocked the wind right out of me)

or the very first of my comic panel sets (this one with Negan and Carl, quelle surprise)

April:

most notes (678): another comic panel set, Carl being shot in TWD: S06E09 (my second fave set with the comic wound superimposed on Chandler's face)

fave: comic panels of Carl taking off the bandages to show Negan - very much one of my favourite gifs I've ever made is in that set tbh

May:

most notes (765): the appearance of JDM in The Boys trailer that made us all lose our minds for a bit

fave: 'i'd kill you if i was absolutely sure you wouldn't be into it' cegan set (though! the first spotting of me getting into neggie proper was also in May so this was a tough call)

June:

most notes (861): Butcher releasing the bunny from the labs in The Boys S04E05

fave: Maggie Rhee looking hot as fuck in Dead City S01E05, my GOD 🥵

July:

most notes (499): Torres' first appearance in the Cap A teaser trailer (my baby bird uwu etc)

fave: Maggie and Negan at each other's throats with a shot from the Dead City S02 trailer. it's fancy! it's coloured! i love it

August:

most notes (236): more Torres being the sweet baby boy he is in TFATWS S01E01

fave: this other Torres set that I spent WAY too long on and only has 78 notes (happens sometimes)

or honestly, this one of Ash (Danny Ramirez) from No Exit trying to kill his co-star

September:

most notes (156): John Walker in the Thunderbolts* teaser, I didn't have a lot of high note gifsets in September because I was just making Wyatt ones and everyone is sleeping on my boy

fave: be so surprised that it's a comic-style gifset with John Walker

October:

most notes (421): 'o captain my captain' with my original (and forever) blorbo James T Kirk, in his various castings

fave: this one isn't fair cause i made SO MANY GOOD SETS that got overlooked 😭 so here's, like, three of my faves

Maggie x Negan: texts from last night

Maggie x Negan: i'm in her head, living rent-free

Maggie x Negan (are we sensing a theme): and i think we most fully understood each other when once i tried to kill him with a kitchen knife

November:

you just get my two faves from this month:

probably my fave edit of the year, Maggie with a gun pointed on Hornsby

and, Maggie in colour with Beth in black and white

December:

most notes (164): the Brasso hug from Andor S01E12

fave: kill me or take me in edit with Cassian (also from Andor S01E12)

OR!! the set i made last night (which i'll be reblogging again in a moment) with Torres once more, shout-out to finally getting an additional teaser

low-stress tagging: @jdeanmorgan @deputyrook @the-ravening and @5ummit (and anyone else who would like to join!)

[chipthekeeper]

ANDOR: 100 days to go. 100 things I love.

it's kind of wild how easy it is to come up with a hundred things to love about this show and still feel like I've left out sooooo much stuff (mostly serious stuff)(and other people's faves)

but here it is, in the order it all popped into my head (aside from the end)

lesbians

2. silly hats

3. weird little freaks

4. window motif!!

5. vel's puppy dog face

6. cinta veeeery nearly laughing at cassian trying to flirt with her

7. skeen's skrunkle face

8. taramyn's mustache

9. "seven years serving you? i deserve worse than that"

10. "everyone has their own rebellion"

11. The Eye

12. the lady who cries watching the eye

13. Bee

14. Brasso

15. Bix

16. Xanwan and Granik

17. all the ferrixians really

18. ghost maarva

19. WORLDBUILDING

20. on location filming

21. and building a real town

22. ludwig hopper

23. cinta being onto corv from moment one

24. cinta stabbing corv

25. SPLUTES

26. squigs

27. monologues

28. weird drama between exes

29. the ep 7 scene between mon and tay

30. NEWMAN

31. unit 5-2D

32. noodles brian

33. everyone hating syril

34. including his mom

35. flob

36. HAND HOLDING

37. the heist explanation scene

38. how blue vel's eyes are in the heist explanation scene

39. cinta and gorn's telepathic eye roll

40. DRAY

41. vel playing uno reverse when perrin tries to make fun of her

42. mon's "i know what you are" look at vel

43. all of episode 5

44. everything nicholas britell was doing

45. diegetic music

46. diegetic music the remix! x2

47. the Paak boys

48. eedy's nosy neighbor

49. Heert

50. space hoodies

51. scary tie fighters

52. scotland i mean aldhani

53. the charm on vel's walking stick (insert cry emoji)

54. melshi

55. sweet baby Nemik

56. clem

57. keef girgo

58. cassian somebody?

59. windi

60. willi

61. STAIRS DROID

62. kleya's strut

63. everything in luthen's shop

64. mon's limo

65. sharing a blanket

66. ponchos

67. dedra being sadistic

68. ham

69. ham making the jump

70. zinska's step of faith

71. dewi and freedi

72. Jezzi

73. THE DRUMS IN PILGRIM

74. "come away from the window"

75. memorable dray milk

76. lil Kerri

77. Time Grappler

78. Time Grappler kicking that guy off the tower

79. divorced dads Saw and Luthen

80. Benthic having to deal with his divorced dads

81. the music from the s1 trailer that makes me want to run through a wall

82. "never more than twelve"

83. "you love me because i show you what you need to see"

84. when cinta looks right at vel before jumping off the dam

85. "CLIIIIIMB"

86. doctor quadpaw

87. mon framing perrin for her crimes

88. "thesis, please"

89. Blevin's one sentence monologue

90. literally everything about the aldhani arc

91. literally everything about the aldhani crew

92. gornboda

93. "tell him our ghosts have strong hands and long memories"

94. brasso smashing the guy with the brick and then screaming

95. pegla's dogs

96. mostly competent bad guys

97. velcinta

98. 12 full length episodes

99. endless shitposting potential

100. the friends we've made along the way <3

i know i've left out so much so feel free to add your own!!

[lightwise]

TBB S3 E12 Reaction

Alright, this was the last episode that was truly represented in the trailer. I can’t wait to see Hunter kick some Juggernaut butt (why does that sound so bad lol)

- Hemlock wipe that damn smirk off your face

- Again with the shoulder shoves dude

- No why is CX-2 just walking away? We need to follow him and find out who he is!! *low-key screaming in frustration* lol

- I love how Hemlock is so arrogantly confident and uncaring that he comes across as almost respectful in how he takes the time to explain things to other people

- Come on Emerie, you’ve come so far! Don’t keep playing into Hemlock’s hand! You know Omega isn’t safe here and neither are you

- Lol he’s too busy to even wait for the test results. Bitch

- I do wish they had given us Crosshair telling Hunter and Wrecker about Omega. BUT I was very much correct that Hunter would not waste time being angry

- Every time Crosshair says something more about Tantiss it just keeps getting worse and worse 🥺🥺 don’t make that man go back there! Dee’s vocal inflections and the way he talks about Nala Se and Tipoca City is so regretful

- The trust and vulnerability he’s willing to show though with his hand shaking and admitting he doesn’t want to go back he’s so traumatized 😭💔

- No WAY they are bringing back Admiral Rampart! Kudos to those who called that one

- PHEEEE and AZZZZ

- Cross goes from pointing his rifle in Phee’s face to straight up telling her they’re taking her ship 🤣

- Okay, it finally happened. I finally teared up. Phee and Crosshair immediately sass each other, then she drops the fact that she and Tech were close and talked a lot and he TOLD HER ABOUT CROSSHAIR (and in a good light) and we got a BROWN EYES 👁️ 👄 👁️. I was in a puddle on the floor 🥹🥹🥹

- The way she treats all of them like family and helps them and puts her life on the line for them. It is just so satisfying to see her relationship with the Batch continue to develop like this. Truly family to all of them.

- More Andor vibes with this labor camp

- Of course Rampart is still a dramatic bitchy asshole. Prison hasn’t changed him AT ALL (except for the beard. Sorry guys but I’m just not seeing it 😆)

- Aw Wrecker giving Mel a little pat. He’s so sweet

- “Oh relax. I expect you to know a stealth approach when you see one” 🤩🤩 TECH you need to come back and marry this woman RIGHT FREAKING NOW

- Gosh they were so made for each other 😭

- That entire maneuver was insane and incredible

- Hunter’s helmet float 😄 at least one of them was having fun

- As others have pointed out I also really appreciate that they animated Phee with so much aging and tiredness and lines and wrinkles showing on her face. She’s a real woman who’s seen and done a lot of things and she’s incredibly gorgeous and badass and caring and intelligent and she doesn’t need perfect skin or a youthful glow to be completely amazing

- When are we getting the “day in the life of a storm trooper” workplace comedy? I need it Star Wars!

- It’s so good to see the boys working together like this

- The textures and lighting in this episode are just so real looking

- Wow Wrecker really just sucker punched that guy

- And he actually remembers plan 55 😁 so proud of him

- The music when they saunter in 😂 and we got a “how touching” too?!

- Rampart’s face is in the dictionary next to the word offended

- “Hunter, they’re sealing off the bridge!” Hunter: drives faster

- And he was giving Phee a hard time for her flying?? Boy is approaching Evel Knievel levels!!

- I need to see Hunter in a dirt bike rally now 😧

- Pretty sure Hunter is firmly in his Joel Miller Era. He does not care what he has to do or who he has to kill at this point

- “Not exactly a stealth exit boys” such a great line

- “We’re all in this together” sure Rampart sure let’s see how chipper you are about that next episode

- Emerie and Omega’s glances at each other 🥺

- “This is your new home” yeahhh I don’t think so

[iam-lnt]

dreaming of that one day when i wake up and open ytb to find the trailer for andor S2

[syrilism]

it's still crazy to me that from when I started waiting for Andor season 2 it was set to come out in August and at the time that seemed an eternity away as it was just under 2 years and now we're 3 months off. I can only pray that we get an official trailer the day Andor season 2 was supposed to come out 🤞🤞

[colleybri]

Which Rogue One characters should make an appearance in Andor Season 2 ?

^ Orson Krennic. Would be so great if we got a scene with him and… Partagaz? Dedra?!

Casting spoilers and speculation below…

Apart from Cassian, Mon, Melshi and Saw, we now know that K2SO is making his chronological debut, and we’re getting more Krennic. General Draven - Cassian’s commanding officer - can also be glimpsed in the D23 leaked trailer. Mads Mikkelsen is appearing at Star Wars Celebration 2025, fuelling speculation that Galen Erso might be in Season 2.

^ The wonderful Mads Mikkelsen as Galen Erso. I remember whimpering with joy when I first saw he was in this film.

My own point of view? I love Rogue One but I prefer Andor if forced to choose (though I’m excited by Diego Luna’s repeated assertions that after season 2, it will be like watching a completely different film ) and for that reason I don’t want any less screen time for my season 1 favourites. Especially those who I think still have a lot of growth/story to come: Syril, Mon, Bix and Vel. But seeing as the final arc happens merely days before Rogue One begins - and the final scene will literally be Cassian departing for the Ring of Kafrene to meet Tivik the informant - it makes sense for Tony Gilroy to enhance the links to the film.

There are some characters who I would like to see and some who it would make sense to be there. Bail Organa perhaps - he’s clearly known to Mon. Mon even knows about his links to Obi-Wan (“your friend - the Jedi”). He would be a good character to have at least in the background, as an explanation for an increasing awareness of the Force (even in an unlikely character such as Cassian) . Maybe. Not essential though, and I wouldn’t be fussed either way.

The characters who make most sense to me and who I would really like to see : Tivik and - IF we’re getting Galen - Bodhi Rook. Tivik because Cassian clearly knows him and has met him before. An appearance by him – especially if we see the sister that Cassian and Jyn were supposed to be meeting with on Jedha - could add a lot of weight to the scene where… Cassian is forced to off him. You know, deliberately depriving a sister of her brother and all that. What with his own history. And there goes another little sliver of his soul…(This is one of the scenes that Tony Gilroy added in the reshoots in order to enhance the sacrifice theme.)

^ Alas, poor Tivik. With that great big red flag of a wounded arm . Among the all-time greats of “Characters who were unceremoniously shot dead by Cassian Andor”.

I love the film, but the opening 20 minutes or so is pretty confusing and fast moving and we’re given no explanation about why Galen trusted Bodhi enough to give him the hologram message for Saw. This is my biggest personal wish. I would really love to see a scene between Galen and Bodhi. To find out a bit more about this relationship and how it was built up. Bodhi obviously has a great deal of affection and respect for Galen. It doesn’t need to be much or long, but I think it would really enhance the film.

Bodhi Rook - arguably Rogue One’s least developed main character. Could Andor’s final arc do something about that?

Jyn Erso? With apologies to my Rebelcaptain-loving friends, I can’t realistically imagine a scene where Cassian is staring at her hologram image, simply because that wouldn’t happen before the Rogue One Tivik scene - the Alliance only then start looking for her as a possible way to track down Galen and gain safe access to Saw. But there is a hope that she might pop up at least as a mention in any Galen and Bodhi scene, or perhaps via Saw - who looked after her all those years. Maybe even Luthen knows about her in some way from that time.

^ Jyn Erso - might we get a mention or even a glimpse?

For the same reason, I don’t think we’ll see anything of Baze or Chirrut - it makes sense for their first appearance to be in the film.

One more wishlist request from me. Bor Gullet. The alien who works for Saw as a mind-reader. I would really like a little backstory there. No, really. I’m fascinated. (Might Bor even be retconned as a surviving Dizonite?!)

^ Bor Gullet will know your thoughts! The unfortunate side-effect is that one tends to lose one’s mind.. (though not for very long, apparently!)

Over to you. Re-blog or comment with your wish list.

I have a feeling we’re going to love you all over again, K2!