#because he’s ALL about andor and tony gilroy

[chipthekeeper]

I am so unimaginably sick of these people trying to justify their pathetic, useless hate by claiming they “all loved” the characters that i actually do love

Because 1. no the fuck you did not, you fucking people bitch and complain about that as much as any other representation you think is being shoved down your throat and 2. literally what the fuck are you talking about

Abuse??? Because a woman is running this show? Because she’s trying to tell a story that’s different from the ones you’ve already seen? You feel abused? Get the fuck out of here and get my favorite characters’ names out of your mouth

And don’t even get me started on literally a legend “Jyn Eros”

[gffa]

With the confirmation of The Acolyte not getting a second season, I can't say I'm surprised, the numbers for that show were really bad given what its budgets was, like I kept an eye on The Acolyte's numbers and they were really, really down across the board (Ahsoka's numbers aren't super great either but that's getting its second season because it's Filoni's pet show, I suspect), like set aside all the other complicated stuff, whether it was good or bad, how much of the fandom's reaction was pretty heinous and racist, it just was not getting the numbers it needed and it's making me wonder about how all of these shows are not doing well. Mando is doing all right, OWK did all right, Andor's doing okay, but none of these shows are setting anything on fire anymore (ratings-wise, that is), what would it take to create something that takes off again?

I strongly suspect that The Mandalorian only took off because of Favreau, who really does know how to make something really good and fun in the beginning. Filoni gets a lot of credit for that show, but I'd be willing to put ten dollars on the table that Favreau was driving the vast majority of the success of that series. And that makes me wonder about the future of these shows, because I don't think Filoni is strong enough to really carry a show on his own, most of his best work is when he has a strong partner actively working with him or when he was working under Lucas.

And the creators they bring in to create these shows aren't setting anything on fire, either. Yeah, the sequels made a billion dollars for each movie, but I think it's pretty telling that we're not getting comics or books or games about those characters anymore, the way we did for the prequels characters for more than a decade after they came out. Yeah, Tony Gilroy and Deborah Chow had shows that did solidly well, but they're not anything that Star Wars can build future content off of, they're already backstories for other movies themselves. And I don't think Skeleton Crew is going to light anything on fire, either.

Lucasfilm just doesn't seem to know what to do with Star Wars TV and movies. They had some really good early success with their projects, but almost everything ultimately fizzled out after a few years or ended really badly, and it feels like the only thing that's really hitting with audiences are more Clone Wars-era content and The High Republic novels and maybe still The Mandalorian.

Honestly, if I were Lucasfilm, I'd cut out the live action shows and go back to animation and think long and hard about setting up a new movie series. I think, with the right creative team (and not just who they think is a big name to write/direct), they could have a great trilogy with The Old Republic era stuff, because they have got to expand beyond the PT/OT and the Skywalkers, especially since the sequels put a bad taste in a lot of people's mouths about how Luke, Leia, and Han's stories ended.

(I mean, in my ideal world, we'd get an animated series set in between TPM and AOTC or set like 30 years pre-TPM and getting to see the backstories for characters like Mace and Plo and Shaak and Luminara and Yarael, but I'm not holding my breath on that one.)

[colleybri]

It’s not what it looks like!

Well, ok - it kind of is but it also kind of isn’t.

I didn’t watch Andor when it came out but apparently this scene (link at the end) caused a bit of a stir at the time as the ‘first sex scene in Star Wars’. Hmm. Well, you don’t actually see the sex bit so it’s more accurate to say that it’s a scene where sex is ‘very heavily implied to be about to happen’ as someone put it, a little demurely, on X.

So yes, in that sense - it’s exactly what it looks like. But there’s so much more to it than that, because this scene is absolutely packed with story-telling richness in a way that just can’t be appreciated from seeing it out of context. Which is why I am kind of promising myself that I’m no longer going to try and predict anything about Season 2 based on trailers etc.

The storytelling richness turns a ‘sex scene’ into something so much more, and this explains why it’s here at all - Tony Gilroy seems to be the last person to indulge in ‘fan-service’ of this kind. It’s all about what it’s telling us about these characters and this situation. Two things feed into that - the background information that we’ve gathered so far and what’s actually unfolding in the narrative.

Background: Timm and Bix are co-workers, but she’s his boss. They’ve been dating for an unspecified period of time, but it’s implied to be pretty recent: they have apparently agreed to do something together ‘one night a week’ and Timm earlier suggested ‘starting the week tonight’ with dinner in a way that almost implies that they haven’t gone further than that. More speculatively, this very cautious approach seems to come entirely from Bix and suggests a cautiousness about committing too hard, too soon. Meanwhile, Bix has a secretive working arrangement with Cassian, a man who is one of her oldest friends, a kind of sibling figure and also - crucially - something of a serial ex. Gilroy tells us that she’s ‘done with him’ by this time because he’s ‘burned every last bridge’ even though they’re ‘meant to be together’. Cassian turns up to conduct some kind of business with Bix (and we know it’s about providing stolen parts for her to sell on to contacts such as Luthen) from which Timm is deliberately and pointedly excluded. We don’t know if Timm and Bix have even discussed it, but what we do is that Timm is both jealous and suspicious, noticing that Bix “seems upset…” and that this “always seems to happen whenever you come around”. Add to all that, Cassian seems to have a low opinion of Timm anyway, as revealed by their brief confrontation in Ep1 (‘you need to find yourself a less complicated woman… good luck with that!’ - all adding to the shady-ex vibe). Cassian also has a reputation as a womaniser, with a particular predilection for those already in a relationship (Bix’s quip about his ‘fall’ being on a ‘jealous husband’).

Timm thinks his suspicion is justified as soon as he sees what Bix had been reading

Then there’s the actual plot as it stands at this stage. Cassian, desperate to get enough credits to flee from Ferrix, meets up with Bix in a bar. She’s done him yet another huge favour, and has called Luthen ahead of her usual schedule. By this time, the Pre-Mor bulletin asking for information on a ‘Kenari Human Male’ has been issued and Bix knows Cassian is yet again a wanted man. She doesn’t know when or if she will ever see him again, even if he manages to get safely away. In gratitude, he puts his hand on hers. Timm, drinking hard and spying on them, sees this and jumps to a final conclusion. We will find out in the next episode that Bix had told him Cassian was born on Kenari.

Just after Timm leaves, Bix pushes Cassian’s hand from her own. Perfect ironic timing.

If only he’d stayed in the bar another ten seconds… bad timing, Timm With Two Ms :(

Timm betrays Cassian - and by extension Bix - by calling PreMor. He then goes home, sits in moody silence and broods. Bix apparently continues drinking for a while offscreen and then comes to Timm’s door.

So to the sex scene. The obvious immediate point is that as soon as he sees her Timm must on some level realise his mistake. In his typical love of irony, Gilroy even has Bix say “Is it too late?”… oh boy, yes it certainly is for Timm. And he obviously knows it. He knows the relationship is doomed. The end result of that is that he looks so unenthusiastic at the sight of her that Bix picks up on it immediately and looks hurt and depressed at a perceived rejection. ‘No it’s just … I’m surprised!’ Timm tries to cover. Which is also true, but not in the way he wants her to take it.

The obvious irony is that he’s probably been dreaming about this moment for weeks, maybe months, but it’s all just so … disappointing, because of what he’s just done to betray her trust. As for Bix, she doesn’t want sex for the ‘usual’ reasons. And she’s not particularly enthusiastic about Timm or making any real effort here to make him feel genuinely like he’s the man for her. Her whole attitude smacks of ‘having to make do with the consolation prize’ in combination with ‘looking for comfort’. In other words, Bix seems to be using Timm to ease her depressed mood in a way that’s genuinely unusual in these gender roles.

Yikes. Really not what you want to see when you wake up… your lover fully dressed and staring at you.

So it’s a sex scene that is not particularly sexy, beyond the obvious visual image of Adria Arjona starting to undress. OK, yeah, that’s kind of attractive by default I suppose if she floats your boat, but if you’ve seen her in ‘Hit Man’ you’ll know what she’s capable of when her characters choose to really crank up the sensuality dial. Honestly, there’s absolutely no chemistry between Bix and Timm at all in this scene. Her two conversations thus far with Cassian were about a stolen piece of equipment but there was so much sexual tension and angsty subtext between them I vaguely remember indulging my occasional childish habit of yelling ‘Get a room!’ at the screen the first time I watched them.

In summary, it’s a very unsexy sex scene, where ‘going through the motions’ barely begins to cover it. But the broader point is - there’s absolutely nothing on the screen in this series that is not there for a meaningful story-telling purpose. And I will try and keep that promise not to attempt to glean anything from Season 2 trailers. Yeah, I know - ‘good luck with that’.

[darth-memes]

IT HAS BEEN TWO YEARS SINCE THIS BLOG STARTED!!!

And what a year... I don't know if we will have another year with this much Star Wars content... Like no kidding, from Andor, Tales of the Jedi, The Bad Batch, Mandalorian, Tales of the Jedi, Visions and now Ahsoka...

Also I went to Star Wars Celebration which honestly was the highlight of the whole year for me!

Anyways, here are the memes with more notes from each month!

OCTOBER:

This was just amazing. The whole of Andor was amazing and masterful.

NOVEMBER:

Tony Gilroy looked at the themes of Star Wars, said: "you are all cowards" and proceeded to make an anti-fascist masterpiece with no subtlety of how bad the bad guys are. 0 sugar coating. I can't wait for season 2.

DECEMBER:

I can't help but feel that there are many people here that relate to this. Understandable.

JANUARY:

Mandalorians just being themselves. Let's see if they can keep the peace now.

FEBRUARY:

I can imagine the relief on his face when he FINALLY got to give the Darksaber to Bo-Katan.

MARCH:

This was the top meme for the month. But I have to give an honorable mention to this one:

Because @ask-the-almighty-google wrote this amazing fic after seeing it.

APRIL:

You are all just so so horny for Din.

MAY:

The Clone Wars, a summary.

JUNE:

Here he comes, our favourite war criminal! Now Live action!

JULY:

I think the most surprising thing about the Ahsoka series is that he is behaving so far.

AUGUST:

They have to be laughing their asses off.

SEPTEMBER:

The girl really said: time to have my Darkside breakdown. Even if it's for a minute!

HERE IT IS FOR ANOTHER YEAR WITH 1000+ STUPID MEMES!

[elwenyere]

re: “I’ve been in this fight since I was six years old.”

I’m not doing a comparative valuation, but I do want to talk about why I love what Andor did to this line - not in spite of it’s being a retroactive reframing of the earlier narrative but because it’s a retroactive reframing of an earlier narrative. Because for me that’s exactly the political point: according to the capacious, diffuse, collective vision of resistance that Andor gives us, Cassian could only have narrated the moment he joined the fight from a retrospective position. Indeed, that’s the only way any of us can ever narrate our own journey toward revolutionary consciousness because - as Nemik’s manifesto puts it - freedom is an untaught impulse, and we start pushing back before we’re even aware that’s what we’re doing. And that’s something that I think Andor works hard to make clear: we can’t wait to resist until there’s some organized, actively recruiting Resistance to join. Cassian really was Nemik’s ideal reader, and by the time we see him in RO he’s used Nemik’s framework to help make new sense of his prior experience.

which brings me to re: “You’re not the only one who lost everything.”

I think it’s possible (and, for me, attractive) to read this line in such a way that Cassian is not referring (only) to himself. We might imagine he’s thinking about Wilmon and Bix and Brasso and Jezzi living in exile because they resisted Imperial occupation, about Kino and Birnok and the Narkina men who went down fighting. I don’t think it’s necessary for him to have personally been eviscerated by his dedication to the cause to make the anger and grief behind the line land, and in some ways I think it’s more true to Andor’s non-individualist take on rebellion to read it as a broader statement. Do I expect that Cassian will take more damage in season two? Yes, and like all my fellow whump enthusiasts, I am looking forward to it. But I don’t expect Tony Gilroy to tell a story where fighting for the Rebellion is more soul-destroying than living under the Empire. I could be wrong, of course, but my sense is that the show is not that cynical about the potential of armed resistance, and that’s something I personally appreciate about it.

[mostthingskenobi]

CASSIAN'S RECKONING - Chapter 18: The Reach

CHAPTER SUMMARY: A blatant proximity trope. That's what fan fics are for, right?!?!

This is one of my favorite chapters :) Because I am always here for a good proximity trope. If you think about it, the entire Rogue One movie is a forced proximity trope...Tony Gilroy and Gareth Edwards, I thank you.

In this chapter, Cassian says something in Kenari. I did some research about the language and I read that it's a mix of Spanish and Hungarian. Sadly, I don't know anything about Hungarian, but I learned a smattering of Mexican Spanish when I was in high school. So, I decided my version of Kenari would just be Spanish (firstly because I don't speak Hungarian and secondly because I wanted to show Diego respect). Thank you to my dear friend Adela for double checking my translation and helping me make it more accurate. (It's a small moment, but there's more to come in future chapters.)

I hope you enjoy!

READ THE FIC ON AO3

THIS IS A WHUMPY FIC W/GRAPHIC DEPICTIONS OF VIOLENCE. PLEASE HEED THE TAGS ON AO3.

——————–

CHAPTER 18: THE REACH

“One way out! One way out!”

Prisoners were pushing past him by the dozen, shouting their freedom chant as they jumped from the platform to the waves below. The crowd’s momentum pulled him backward, inch by inch getting closer to the edge. He stretched out his hand, reaching through the bodies. “Come on!” he shouted.

Jyn, dressed in the dehumanizing Narkina 5 uniform, cowered, pressing against the prisoners behind her. “I can’t,” she said shaking her head.

He could see she was terrified but this was their only chance. If they didn’t jump now, they’d be prisoners forever. “Jyn, take my hand! We have to go!”

She began to collapse to the ground. “I can’t swim.”

A large figure appeared at his side. He turned and found himself face to face with a man who preyed upon his memory. Kino Loy’s eyes were hard and filled with fury, his hulking body crowding Andor back until he teetered on the platform edge. Paralyzed by fear, the rebel’s own eyes widened with horror; he only had time for his gaze to shift from Kino to Jyn and back before the huge man brutally shoved him overboard. Jyn disappeared as the prison’s exterior wall rushed by. The fall lasted long enough to panic, but the plummet was so sickening Cassian couldn’t even scream. Instead of hitting icy water, he smashed into a durasteal beam, bouncing until he landed on a metal grate inside a citadel tower, every bone in his body bursting like stardust…

…Cassian’s eyelids dragged open.

He lay still for a long time, face down in his bunk, letting his heartrate and breathing return to normal before he allowed himself to move.

This one had felt real.

He hated vivid dreams.

His experience on Narkina 5 was so profoundly dark it had burned its memories into his bones. The prison’s clean orderliness had been a veneer barely masking a system that was so sinister, so hopeless, so deeply futile that it haunted Cassian to this day. Kino Loy, a man who commanded respect and led hundreds of men to a freedom he could never share, was one of Cassian’s deepest regrets. If he could go back and change one thing about his past, he would grab Kino and drag him to safety.

But it hadn’t been possible.

Cassian shivered as he realized he’d left Jyn on that platform just like he’d left Kino.

He rolled onto his back and stared up at the metal bulkhead.

He knew what it all meant; the nightmares weren’t exactly subtle. He was afraid of missing his chance, of being in the wrong place at the wrong time, or in the right place at the right time and messing it up, or making a stupid mistake that killed someone he cared about.

But he also knew he couldn’t control any of that. Which ultimately meant the dream was about living with fear, accepting it, facing it, thriving in spite of it.

Cassian rubbed his hands across his face. “I need coffee,” he grumbled.

What he really needed was a solid night’s rest that didn’t include nightmares of Jyn screaming, bleeding, or crying. Tarkin’s torture had pried open a level of vulnerability Cassian wasn’t sure how to heal. His nerves felt raw, like his past was fighting with the present. Everything Jyn said to him the night before lingered in his mind, battling with a lifetime of insignificance. He had grown up the outsider, the selfish taker, the lost boy. He’d been aimless, careless, and angry. But ever since he’d joined the Rebel Alliance, all that pent up emotion was directed into something meaningful. Even so, Jyn had been right; deep down, in spite of his efforts, Cassian thought he was living on borrowed time. He couldn’t imagine himself as an old man, couldn’t even picture where he’d be in a year, and he always assumed that meant he wouldn’t live to be very old. He’d survived by mere chance so many times that he figured one day fate would catch up and want him to pay his dues. After Jyn said she was proud of him, for the first time in his life Cassian began to wonder if he’d survived all the horror for a reason. Perhaps fate had spared him because he was, in fact, trying to give others the freedom and safety he’d never known.

His brow pulled together as an uncharacteristically buoyant idea crept into his mind. He thought of Jyn, of all the moments that, when you added them up, equaled something undeniable; tackling him to protect him from a grenade on Jedha, supporting his injured body on Scarif, rescuing him from Tarkin, sitting by his bedside holding his hand while he recovered in the medical ward. He hadn’t just survived; he’d been protected. Perhaps they weren’t living on borrowed time; perhaps his time with Jyn was a gift, an opportunity for something neither of them had ever dared accept.

The idea almost scared him.

He loved her; he could finally admit that to himself.

But loving someone meant you had something worth losing.

And that vulnerability terrified him.

Cassian had already lost too much.

Could he risk losing her?

That’s just love. Nothing you can do about that.

Maarva’s words made him catch his breath; he could not think of his mother without also feeling the dull blade of grief.

But he relaxed and closed his eyes, letting the feelings have their way. Cassian lay back, tucking his hands behind his head, and turned inward.

“OK, Mom,” he whispered.

——————–

Rogue One gathered in the bunk room again that evening for another round of sabacc. No one had any money to gamble, so for credits Bodhi purchased several boxes of horrendously sour candy in the ship’s exchange. Whenever someone won a hand, they were required to eat a candy. Jyn currently had tears streaming down her face as she stomped her boot on the floor. “You bastard!” she shouted as the others laughed. She went to crunch the candy in half but they all protested.

“No, no, no!” Cassian cried, grabbing her shoulder. “You can’t cheat!”

“You know the rules!” Bodhi guffawed.

Baze was wheezing so hard he couldn’t speak. No one had ever seen him laugh like that.

Chirrut was beaming, basking in the ebullience created by his friends in the Force.

“I’m literally sweating!” Jyn squawked. “What kind of monster are you?” she pointed at Bodhi. The pilot was in stitches, hugging himself while he laughed. “This candy is evil! Why are you punishing us for winning?”

They had never laughed so hard as a group. And they knew it. An air of awareness hung over them, each realizing what a relief it was to feel joy.

“All the blood has drained from your face,” Cassian burst out, bending forward over his knees as he lost control again.

She gently shoved him and smiled, holding the candy between her teeth. “Just wait ‘til it’s your turn, Andor!” Finally, the sweets dissolved and Jyn gasped for air, wiping sweat from her brow. “You absolute bastard!” she glared at Bodhi. “You look all innocent and mild on the outside, but deep down you’re a fiend.”

“Keeps the playing field even,” Bodhi chuckled.

The group threw more candy in the table’s center for an ante.

“I never want to win again,” Jyn said wiping her eyes.

They played for a long time, but, despite his best efforts, Cassian began fading quickly. When the game paused while Chirrut and Baze went in search of drinks, Jyn turned to him and spoke quietly. “Are you OK?”

“Yeah, why?”

“You can hardly keep your eyes open.”

He rubbed his face hard before pushing his hands up into his hair. “I haven’t been sleeping very well.”

“Is it odd being in a different place? A new ship, a new room?”

A grimace turned up the corner of his mouth. “No, I can sleep anywhere; on the ground, on a ship, in a prison, tied to a chair. I can do it all.”

She forced herself to smile.

“Is that joke too dark?” he teased.

Jyn rolled her eyes. “Of course not.”

He sighed and let his head droop forward.

“Bad dreams?” she asked, her voice serious again but still hushed.

He nodded.

She leaned toward him, her body pressing against his shoulder as she gently touched the fading bruise on his forehead. “No injuries today?” She brushed a rogue lock of hair off his brow.

Cassian turned.

Their eyes met.

And for a moment neither of them could breathe.

“It’s too quiet in my quarters,” he finally said, not breaking eye contact.

“Lets the bad dreams in?”

“I think so.”

She could hear Bodhi rummaging in his footlocker nearby. The members of Rogue One were not fools; Jyn suspected they all assumed something existed between her and Cassian, but she still didn’t like the idea of anyone examining her behavior, no matter what evidence they were looking for. Even so, she couldn’t pull her gaze away from Cassian’s. “What would help you sleep?”

He glanced down at her lips.

She could see that his breathing had deepened.

Suddenly, all Jyn wanted was to push her fingers through Cassian’s hair and close her lips over his. Instead, she swallowed thickly before saying, “Maybe you should try sleeping somewhere noisy.”

Bodhi slammed his locker shut just as Baze and Chirrut arrived with a bottle and glasses.

Cassian blinked and Jyn turned back to the group as Chirrut handed them drinks. “This should get the taste of those awful candies out of your mouth,” the guardian said with a smile.

“You’re a true hero, Chirrut,” Cassian said dryly before tossing the amber liquid down his throat in one go.

“I help where I can,” the guardian responded warmly.

They gathered around the table and shuffled out the cards again, but it wasn’t long before Cassian began to fall asleep sitting up.

“Perhaps I gave you too much,” Chirrut offered as Andor’s head dipped forward before jerking back.

“I’m a lightweight these days,” Cassian replied with a slightly drunken smile.

“I appreciate a cheap date,” the guardian snorted.

“Do you mind if I just lay down for a little?” he asked the group. His eyes shifted to Jyn’s. “I don’t mean to invade your personal space…”

She smiled and gestured with her head that she didn’t mind in the least.

Cassian crawled behind her, stretching out on his back.

“Do you want us to be quiet?” Bodhi asked.

“No,” Cassian replied, his eyes already closed. “I like the noise.”

The bunk was muffled and cozy. His friends continued their game as dark sleep crept around his consciousness. Cassian hadn’t felt this safe in a long time, Jyn sitting by his side, Chirrut laughing, Bodhi shuffling cards, Baze telling jokes. The noise was good. He tucked an arm behind his head, stuffing the pillow into a more comfortable position. His last thought before drifting off was that the soft fabric near his cheek smelled like Jyn.

——————–

When the card game broke up about an hour later, Cassian was deep in sleep. So deep, in fact, that Jyn couldn’t wake him. She shook his shoulder and said his name but received no response. She leaned closer and spoke louder. “Cass.” His left eyebrow pulled up for a second before going slack again. Jyn looked at Bodhi who hovered by her side. “I don’t know what to do.”

The pilot gave her a pathetic noncommittal look before saying, “Nothing you really can do.”

The overhead lights flashed, indicating lights out in five minutes.

“Shit!” Jyn grumbled, throwing up her hands. “Where am I supposed to sleep? I have an early meeting with Draven tomorrow. I need to get some rest.”

“Just get in there next to him,” Baze said, leaning down from his bunk above Jyn’s. “You can fit.”

The thought hadn’t crossed her mind, but she stooped in and found that she could squeeze in by the inside wall.

“If an officer sees you both, you’ll get in trouble,” Bodhi warned.

“I’m an officer, and so is he,” she said hiking her thumb at the unconscious Andor. “If you have a better suggestion, I’m happy to hear it.”

“You didn’t try very hard to wake him up.”

“Be my guest.”

Bodhi took a timid step forward before leaning into Jyn’s bunk. “Cassian,” he said loudly, shaking the commander by both shoulders. A small grunt came from the back of the sleeping man’s throat but other than that, he didn’t budge. Bodhi turned back to Jyn. “Yeah, he’s not waking up.”

“Thanks for your help,” she muttered sarcastically as the pilot retreated to his own bunk. The overhead lights flashed out and orange running lights came on along the floor. Jyn sighed and made up her mind. She grabbed hold of the rack above hers and climbed over Cassian’s body, careful not to jostle him. She pulled shut the long, black privacy curtain then settled against the inside wall. The bunks were incredibly narrow, and since Cassian was flat on his back taking up most of the room, she had to prop up on her right side. Jyn didn’t mind; she’d slept in worse conditions.

A thin line of orange light peeked through the curtain’s edge, backlighting Cassian’s features. Before drifting off she watched him, listened to his steady breathing, felt his weight on the mattress. Her last thought before falling asleep was that seeing him so peaceful was worth getting in trouble.

Hours passed and the room eventually settled and grew silent, apart from the usual sounds aboard a star freighter and the occasional snore.

In the night’s deepest hour Cassian became restless, his arms and legs contracting so much that it shook Jyn awake. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes, unsure what had roused her, but when she heard his panicked breathing she knew he was in the throes of a nightmare. At first, she wasn’t sure what to do; anyone startled from a bad dream could accidentally lash out. The last thing she needed was for Cassian to flail around in these close quarters and break her nose.

Eventually, she settled on trying to calm him without waking him, so she ran her hand across his chest and gently stroked her fingers along his collarbone. She tried to send calming, comforting energy through her palm into his heart.

Without warning he rolled onto his side toward her, bringing them so close together she could feel his breath on her cheek.

He sighed deeply.

She could sense he had awakened.

“Jyn?” he asked too loudly.

“Shhh,” she whispered.

“It’s so dark I can’t see.” he whispered back. “Did I fall asleep in your rack?”

“Yes.”

“Shit.”

He was quiet for a long time. She couldn’t see his face anymore since his shoulders now blocked the light coming in around the curtain’s edge.

He didn’t move to leave.

“Why didn’t you wake me up?” he finally asked, still keeping his voice quiet.

“I tried and so did Bodhi.” She shrugged in the darkness.

“But now what am I supposed to do?” She could hear the smile in his voice; he was teasing her. “What if someone sees me crawl out of your bunk?”

“Who cares?”

She could feel that his face had moved slightly closer to hers. “You don’t care?”

“No.”

“You don’t care how it looks?”

“I’ve never cared what other people think of me. It only matters what I think of me.”

Once again, they both fell silent. She could feel that he was breathing harder, just like her.

Jyn would be lying if she said this was an unpleasant predicament. Cassian’s friendship, their unspoken devotion, was a lovely, meaningful thing. But she could not deny that she found him absolutely and completely attractive. He was handsome to be sure, intelligent and disarming, but his good looks were magnified by far more important traits. No other man could both challenge and uplift her as he did. He was independent, confident, but not too proud to admit when he was wrong. He laughed with her, spoke to her as an equal, treated her with respect even when they first met and he wasn’t sure he could trust her.

Now that they were only inches apart, rolled together in a narrow ship rack in a room with fifty-nine other people, the rest of the galaxy seemed to disintegrate.

Cassian suddenly pulled her into his arms, breathing her name as he nuzzled against her, their lips brushing together. She cupped his face in her hands and gently traced his jaw, his cheek, his lips. He smelled like clear, fresh water warmed by the sun; she found him intoxicating. His fingers slipped up her neck and disappeared in her hair, pulling her even closer against him. Their eagerness was palpable, but they didn’t kiss. Instead, they clung to each other, as though Scarif’s scars demanded they finally come full circle, holding each other as they had on that deadly beach. Their breath came in shuddering gasps as an untenable dam of emotions threatened to break. Pleasure and pain and loss and joy surged to Cassian and Jyn’s surface. These two people, haunted by wrongs they could not right and misfortunes they could not repair, had finally reached for each other. That feat alone was a massive leap of faith, letting their guard down long enough to not just admit their desire, but to act on it.

She hooked her leg over his and completely closed the distance between their bodies. “Cassian,” she sighed, pulling his lips nearer.

His thumb gently played across her mouth. “Te quiero besar,” he whispered in a language he knew she didn’t understand.

She could feel his breath on her tongue.

Just as he was about to press his lips to hers, the bunk above them creaked and Baze grunted down the rack ladder, his foot shifting on the wrung mere inches from Cassian’s head on the other side of the curtain. Cassian froze, both he and Jyn instantly snapping back to reality. He listened wide-eyed as the guardian’s steps hit the floor and shuffled toward the bathroom.

He refocused on Jyn. “I should go. If I get caught here, we’ll both end up in the brig.”

She nodded.

They were disappointed by the interruption but energized by the wall that had suddenly come down between them. Cassian smiled and quickly pressed his cheek to hers. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” he whispered in her ear. He drew back, one final caress sliding over her neck before rolling under the curtain. She couldn’t hear his steps as he walked away. Still a spy, she smiled to herself and pulled the blanket over her head.

——————–

END NOTES

NEXT CHAPTER IS CALLED “THE HOLOGRAM” - Jyn finally learns why she wasn't put on leave. She is not a happy camper. Brace for impact.

Thank you for reading!

Likes, comments, and reblogs are very welcome!

Much love!

——————–

READ IT ON AO3- Kudos and Comments Welcome :-)

READ CHAPTER 1 “The Razor”

READ CHAPTER 2 “The Scythe”

READ CHAPTER 3 “The Cold”

READ CHAPTER 4 “The Expendable”

READ CHAPTER 5 “The Truth”

READ CHAPTER 6 “The Detritus”

READ CHAPTER 7 “The Salt”

READ CHAPTER 8 “The Power”

READ CHAPTER 9 “The Betrayal”

REACH CHAPTER 10 “The Ruse”

READ CHAPTER 11 “The Reprieve”

READ CHAPTER 12 “The Ghosts”

READ CHAPTER 13 “The Redemption”

READ CHAPTER 14 “The Spoils”

READ CHAPTER 15 “The Interrogation”

READ CHAPTER 16 “The Rogues”

READ CHAPTER 17 “The Absolution”

READ CHAPTER 18 "The Reach"

READ CHAPTER 19 “The Hologram”

READ CHAPTER 20 “The Divide”

READ CHAPTER 21 “The Cost”

READ CHAPTER 22 “The Fallout”

READ CHAPTER 23 “The Wounds”

READ CHAPTER 24 “The Hand”

READ CHAPTER 25 “The Heart”

READ CHAPTER 26 “The Beginning”

[favescandis]

new interview with Entertainment Weekly: Stellan Skarsgård gave his Andor speech 10 times before he was happy

The Swedish actor opens up joining the Star Wars galaxy and building a revolution as Luthen Rael

By Devan Coggan June 15, 2023 at 10:00 AM EDT

Star Wars has always dealt in archetypes — the wizened mentor, the scoundrel with a heart of gold, the wide-eyed farm boy destined for greatness. But Andor introduces a far more complex character, one unlike any we've ever seen before.

Stellan Skarsgård plays Luthen Rael, a hardened freedom fighter and early architect of the Rebel Alliance. When the series begins, Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) is still taking his first steps toward revolution. But Luthen has already spent years in the trenches, abandoning all personal attachments to try and kickstart the fight against the Empire. On Coruscant, he poses as a wealthy antiques dealer, donning a wig and peddling trinkets to the upper class — but he's secretly building a revolution, recruiting allies around the galaxy.

Star Wars has long positioned the Rebel Alliance as the good guys, the knights in shining armor determined to fight the Empire's fascism and cruelty. But Luthen is proof that revolution is rarely so black and white: He's willing to sacrifice anything — and anyone — to destroy the Empire.

The 72-year-old Skarsgård is no stranger to massive, otherworldly franchises, starring in Marvel's Thor movies and playing the villainous Baron Harkonnen in Dune. But the Swedish actor shines as Luthen, and he's since earned Emmy buzz for his weary yet determined performance. He plays Luthen with a single-minded intensity that's usually reserved for Star Wars villains, and he delivers Andor's most moving speech, explaining how he's burned his life to make a sunrise he knows he'll never see.

In an exclusive interview, Skarsgård spoke to EW's Dagobah Dispatch podcast about joining a galaxy far, far away. Here, he opens up about how he approached the morally complex Luthen — from that "tense" monologue to the joys of wearing wigs.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Take me back to the beginning. How was this character pitched to you?

STELLAN SKARSGÅRD: Tony Gilroy pitched it to me. He himself was a very great reason for me to take it. He pitched it and said he was going to make a story that is more real than the others. I know him and his writing, and every scene has an urgency to it. Every scene has a great tension to it. I got to read the first three or four episodes, so it was not a big question. And I said yes.

Luthen is a fascinating character. He's so driven and committed to the Rebel cause, at the expense of everything else in his life. What was it about him that you found interesting?

As an actor, it's interesting to play this guy who lives a double life and to make two different characters out of one. That was interesting for me, but he's interesting as well because he is extreme. He's like Che Guevara or the Rote Armee Fraktion in Germany or any terrorists, really. But also, as a revolutionary, he is like George Washington. So, he's got all those ingredients that make him very exciting. He has this conflict between doing the right thing and also being able to kill for the right thing.

You talked about how he lives this double life, and he really is a shape-shifter. We see him put on his wig, and he can suddenly become the shopkeeper from Coruscant. What interested you about the way he literally transforms?

Well, it was very funny. It's a great thing for an actor to do, to be able to play two characters at the same time. But I also love wigs! [Laughs] I think it's fantastic to put a wig on and be someone else.

One of my favorite moments in the season is that speech that Luthen gives, where he talks about why he does what he does. There's that incredible line about burning his life to make a sunrise he'll never see. What do you remember most from filming that scene?

I mean, of course I knew I had a speech that was very well written, and it was probably one of the best scenes in the season. And I worked on it. When we shot it, somehow I was tense. I think I said, "Let's go again, let's go again." I think I did it 10 times in a row, very fast, right on top of each other. 10 times, like "Go, go, go." And then it was good. Then, I was satisfied, and the director was satisfied.

Oh wow. It really is this intense moment.

Yeah, it was very intense.

I've spoken to Tony Gilroy and some of the cast, and they've all talked about the production design on Andor and how big the sets are. What was it like for you to walk around those sets and be in the Star Wars universe like that?

Well, I was very happy to be in that kind of Star Wars universe and not like in many films, where you're just in the world of green screens. Because it affects you physically when you have the set. You can't deny that. It was the same thing with the sets on Dune. They are physically there, these enormous sets, and you feel it in your body. You move differently. We had all of Ferrix built up as this city. It's very exciting.

Was there a day on set where you really felt like, "Oh my gosh, I'm in Star Wars?"

No, but I was happy that I had my own spaceship. I've lacked that in my career so far.

What's that like to get to pilot a spaceship? What's it like behind the controls?

[Laughs] You're like 10 years old when you sit down behind the controls. You become serious, and you turn the wheel and push the buttons and stuff. You become very silly, but it's very fun.

Tell me a little bit about working with Diego Luna on this. There are some really beautiful, intense scenes between the two of you.

He was also a reason for me to take the job. We met several years ago. We were supposed to do a film about football, but it didn't happen — not with us. It sort of broke down. So I've been waiting for him to do a film with me again. And I love the fellow. He's a true actor, and he's a true man.

I also love the scenes with you and Genevieve O'Reilly, where Mon Mothma comes to Luthen's shop. What do you remember most about filming those scenes with her?

I'm playing the Coruscant character there, which is much more flamboyant. But the first scene she entered, she came with this great limousine she has, flying in. She was much more sexy and beautiful, and she took over the space much more than I realized than she had ever done in the films. And then, of course, she has a great humor, so we had a lot of fun doing that.

There's a lot of really great actors that I met all the time there. It's so well cast. I had a lot of fun.

I know season 2 is in the works. How's that been going?

That's going great. I mean, Tony Gilroy has gone on strike, as of the first of May. He finished the scripts right on the day, and then he shut off the phone and disappeared into a picket line somewhere. So, we'll see. He claims that the [series] is director-proof and actor-proof, which means that it can't be destroyed. [Laughs] We'll see if it works.

Well, I can't wait to see what you guys have up your sleeves and where this story goes.

It'll be lovely. But I can't tell you, I'm afraid! [Laughs]

For more from Skarsgård, as well as exclusive interviews with Tony Gilroy, Diego Luna, and more, listen to EW's Star Wars podcast, Dagobah Dispatch.

[someinstant]

So I had to watch the last two episodes of ANDOR on my phone because first I was taking a bunch of teenagers on a trip to DC, and then I was in a cabin with my family on the edge of a swamp and my sister is only up to episode four and no one else has watched the show. Thus, last night I was able to finally sit down and watch episodes 11 and 12 on a television, and now I have a few Thoughts I would like to share:

Remember how in episode 8 Bix and Brasso are talking about Maarva's decline, and Bix says she fell? Brasso asks how, and Bix says she was trying to see if the drainage grate on Rix Road was open-- because she wanted the Rebellion to be able to go into the hotel and take on the Empire. And she says it with that sad little smile, like, We know all know she's imagining things, she's on her way out, but wouldn't that be nice?

IT'S CASSIAN. CASSIAN USES THE DRAINAGE GATE AND GOES INTO THE HOTEL AND TAKES ON THE EMPIRE TO HELP BIX. HE'S THE FUCKING REBELLION, MAARVA. My whole heart, jesus.

When Cass stops by his adoptive father's funerary stone (and gives that sweet, sad half-smile that Diego Luna can just break me with), his fingers and hand are all bloody, and I couldn't figure out why-- and then I remembered he'd been bare rock climbing with Melshi to escape patrols on Narkina 5 in the previous episode, and I wanted to kiss the continuity supervisors for this show on the mouth, because actions have weight and consequences, and injuries take time to heal, and of COURSE Cassian is marked by Narkina 5. Of course it bit into his body the same way it bit into his soul.

The folks over on the A MORE CIVILIZED AGE podcast are absolutely right: Cassian is a water-type Pokémon. The man is always in association with water: breaking out of a dam-slash-base that holds back a sacred river on Aldhani, hiding his money and weapons in a shower in the hotel and then arrested by the sea when he tries to run away to Niamos, marooned in a prison surrounded by water, caught (like a fish in a net! LIKE MEERO'S 'ARE YOU A FISH' SPEECH WITH BIX!) by fishermen by a lake on Narkina 5, finding out Maarva has died while the waves crash on Niamos, listening to Nemik's manifesto as the rainstorm comes down on Ferrix, wading through the water of the Rix Road drain to get to the hotel to liberate Bix-- the water imagery is just there.

And you know why? DO YOU KNOW WHY? It's because water is fucking impossible to pin down. It flows. It shifts. It can freeze solid, become a vapor, bring life, drown the unwary-- it's necessary to life, and antithetical to it. It takes the shape it's forced into. You want an elemental association for a spy? It's fucking water.

In conclusion, I hate everything, Tony Gilroy et al are monsters, I HAD MY CASSIAN ANDOR OBSESSION UNDER CONTROL YOU BASTARDS WHY DID YOU HAVE TO MAKE THIS SHOW SO GOOD.

The only good news is now I have about eighteen months to write an ABSURD amount of fic to fill the void Wednesdays will now represent.

[ogradyfilm]

Andor: The Terrible Mundanity of Evil

[The following essay contains MAJOR SPOILERS; YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!]

How does a totalitarian regime solidify its reign? Through fear and intimidation? Although the Star Wars saga’s nefarious Empire is no stranger to flashy shock and awe tactics (as evidenced by their propensity for planet-obliterating super weapons like the Death Star), Andor—the franchise’s most recent Disney+ series—reexamines this brute force strategy. Tyranny, writer Tony Gilroy argues, is at its most insidious when it subtly permeates all aspects of everyday life, desensitizing the populace to its presence; the machinery of subjugation becomes normal, mundane, inevitable. Indeed, the inherent inefficiency of the bloated, underfunded bureaucracy—the false promises, the inconsequential concessions, the tangled web of red tape—becomes so utterly boring that it’s almost a comfort.

The show’s prison arc—which finds our protagonist incarcerated (without trial) on a remote penal island—explores this theme in miniature. The facility’s security staff is surprisingly minimal; instead of being locked behind iron bars and beaten with truncheons, inmates are forced to perform monotonous menial labor on an assembly line—twelve-hour shifts every day until their sentences expire. The work is as competitive as it is repetitive: the most productive teams are granted insubstantial “rewards” (food that tastes marginally better than their usual flavorless nutrient paste), while those that “neglect their duties” are severely punished (remote electroshock torture). Additionally, certain trusties—such as Andy Serkis’ Kino Loy—wield a modicum of authority, acting as overseers and enforcing the guards’ stringent quotas. These methods serve to dehumanize and isolate the victims, reducing them to individual cogs in a much vaster mechanism: by exhausting them with tedious tasks, making them resent one another, and convincing them that they pose no significant threat, their jailers ensure that they become too resigned to the abusive treatment to deviate from the routine, much less rebel.

Fortunately, the Imperials fail to account for one crucial factor: compassion. Despite his stern exterior, Kino legitimately cares about the men under his supervision, encouraging them to endure their fatigue and despair because he genuinely believes that silent, submissive obedience will guarantee their survival. Thus, when he discovers that their toil is for naught—that the calendar counting down to their scheduled release date is a total fabrication, and they will merely be transferred from factory to factory for the remainder of their natural lifespans—he immediately joins Cassian’s uprising, using the skills that he’s acquired as a foreman to inspire cooperation and unity among his former subordinates:

There is one way out. Right now, the building is ours. You need to run, climb, kill! You need to help each other. You see someone who is confused, someone who is lost, you get them moving and you keep them moving until we put this place behind us. There are 5,000 of us. If we can fight half as hard as we've been working, we will be home in no time. One way out! One way out! One way out!

Once they finally breach the exterior doors, however, Kino reveals that he can go no further: the final stretch of their escape requires them to paddle across turbulent waters, and he never learned to swim. He knew from the beginning that he wouldn’t be able to reach freedom, participating in the revolt solely for the benefit of his comrades—a sacrifice that perfectly mirrors the iconic monologue delivered by Rebel spymaster Luthen Rael during the episode's conclusion:

I burn my decency for someone else's future. I burn my life to make a sunrise that I know I'll never see. And the ego that started this fight will never have a mirror or an audience or the light of gratitude.

When confronted with such altruism, despotism wilts and decays—as all systems of oppression should.

[jyndor]

lol I would love to know what gareth edwards has to say about making rogue one and why he spent so much time away from filmmaking until now.

because as much as I do think tony gilroy is probably right that this is the best cut possibly of rogue one, I don't love that the narrative has sort of removed edwards from having done most of the film without knowing what he experienced, especially given how much trouble other filmmakers had with lucasfilm on their projects.

also if he's right in saying that this is the best cut possible, well... there's still reason to want to see deleted scenes and stuff lol fans like that stuff. a director's cut would be... idk cool even if it's not as good, but I'd rather just see the fucking deleted scenes. as a fan, I grew up watching extras on dvds and stuff. I don't care about directors' cuts personally lol.

this article also has this:

Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) and his robot sidekick K-2SO (Alan Tudyk) remain enduring. Yet the film is burdened by a soggy midsection and a listless lead character in Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones)

which... lol naur she's not but I do think the reshoots made her more quiet which... ugh smdh. its also a very subtle performance and nuanced and has always been misunderstood but whatever. also disagree, the first act is the least good part of the film - and it's really just less good than the rest.

also I mean at least gilroy did have a lot to do with the reshoots - unlike filoni who freddie prinze jr tried to say directed the fucking vader scene lmao, I'm so glad gary whitta stood up for him because that's some revisionist history.

it's so rude to take credit for this movie away from edwards as if he didn't have a lot to do with directing it. unless there's actual proof to the contrary, that's what it is. and I've seen articles actually say that he was fired or didn't have much to do with the film from entertainment "journalists" and its like, lol the fuck? no he wasn't, no one has ever said he was. he just was working on a lot of the vfx according to everyone I've ever heard who was there.

I hope his movie is great and gets all the hype and he works consistently and whatever bullshit he dealt with from the studio is water under the bridge for him. and that he knows a lot of people see his work for what it is: his work, as well as the work of many others who were involved in the production.

[isagrimorie]

I've been thinking, as much as I love and adore Andor I don't think I want all Star Wars property to be Andor.

Star Wars is expansive enough to have different genres. IT can be this hardboiled spy thriller and Star Wars can be a space fantasy about wizards with laser swords.

I do want Star Wars stories to be well-written like Andor and I love Andor's approach to nostalgia, which is how Filoni used to handle it.

Just dropping them there for anyone to pick up but not revering them.

If I had nitpicks for Andor though it's that Tony Gilroy didn't want to include aliens in his main plot stories because he just wanted it to remain a 'Human' Story.

This feels like an oversight since the alien characters and civilizations can also add to it, and serve as a metaphor for the Human Story. Especially since this was the era where Palpatine actively killed off a lot of alien civilizations.

(This also makes me sad because I feel Andor won't even touch on the aspect of Ahsoka also actively working on bringing the Rebel intelligence networks together. More than Ahsoka's post-Original Trilogy story the story I wanted more was exploring Ahsoka's time in between Clone Wars and Return of the Jedi.

I feel like Ahsoka's time outside and in the cold is as morally fraught as it is for everyone in Andor. Unfortunately, I feel like Disney has lost its nerve about showing Ahsoka's flaws and/or putting Ahsoka in situations where moral ambiguity and difficult choices are needed).

Also, Andor seems to have an unfortunate tendency to kill off dark-skinned black men. I don't know if this is an instance of colorblind casting but it stood out.

I hope this aspect gets better handled in season 2 of Andor.

[katalina27ua]

Перше інтерв'ю зі Стелланом Скарсґардом після виходу "Андора"

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Take me back to the beginning. How was this character pitched to you?

STELLAN SKARSGÅRD: Tony Gilroy pitched it to me. He himself was a very great reason for me to take it. He pitched it and said he was going to make a story that is more real than the others. I know him and his writing, and every scene has an urgency to it. Every scene has a great tension to it. I got to read the first three or four episodes, so it was not a big question. And I said yes.

Luthen is a fascinating character. He's so driven and committed to the Rebel cause, at the expense of everything else in his life. What was it about him that you found interesting?

As an actor, it's interesting to play this guy who lives a double life and to make two different characters out of one. That was interesting for me, but he's interesting as well because he is extreme. He's like Che Guevara or the Rote Armee Fraktion in Germany or any terrorists, really. But also, as a revolutionary, he is like George Washington. So, he's got all those ingredients that make him very exciting. He has this conflict between doing the right thing and also being able to kill for the right thing.

You talked about how he lives this double life, and he really is a shape-shifter. We see him put on his wig, and he can suddenly become the shopkeeper from Coruscant. What interested you about the way he literally transforms?

Well, it was very funny. It's a great thing for an actor to do, to be able to play two characters at the same time. But I also love wigs! [Laughs] I think it's fantastic to put a wig on and be someone else.

One of my favorite moments in the season is that speech that Luthen gives, where he talks about why he does what he does. There's that incredible line about burning his life to make a sunrise he'll never see. What do you remember most from filming that scene?

I mean, of course I knew I had a speech that was very well written, and it was probably one of the best scenes in the season. And I worked on it. When we shot it, somehow I was tense. I think I said, "Let's go again, let's go again." I think I did it 10 times in a row, very fast, right on top of each other. 10 times, like "Go, go, go." And then it was good. Then, I was satisfied, and the director was satisfied.

Oh wow. It really is this intense moment.

Yeah, it was very intense.

I've spoken to Tony Gilroy and some of the cast, and they've all talked about the production design on Andor and how big the sets are. What was it like for you to walk around those sets and be in the Star Wars universe like that?

Well, I was very happy to be in that kind of Star Wars universe and not like in many films, where you're just in the world of green screens. Because it affects you physically when you have the set. You can't deny that. It was the same thing with the sets on Dune. They are physically there, these enormous sets, and you feel it in your body. You move differently. We had all of Ferrix built up as this city. It's very exciting.

Was there a day on set where you really felt like, "Oh my gosh, I'm in Star Wars?"

No, but I was happy that I had my own spaceship. I've lacked that in my career so far.

What's that like to get to pilot a spaceship? What's it like behind the controls?

[Laughs] You're like 10 years old when you sit down behind the controls. You become serious, and you turn the wheel and push the buttons and stuff. You become very silly, but it's very fun.

Tell me a little bit about working with Diego Luna on this. There are some really beautiful, intense scenes between the two of you.

He was also a reason for me to take the job. We met several years ago. We were supposed to do a film about football, but it didn't happen — not with us. It sort of broke down. So I've been waiting for him to do a film with me again. And I love the fellow. He's a true actor, and he's a true man.

I also love the scenes with you and Genevieve O'Reilly, where Mon Mothma comes to Luthen's shop. What do you remember most about filming those scenes with her?

I'm playing the Coruscant character there, which is much more flamboyant. But the first scene she entered, she came with this great limousine she has, flying in. She was much more sexy and beautiful, and she took over the space much more than I realized than she had ever done in the films. And then, of course, she has a great humor, so we had a lot of fun doing that.

There's a lot of really great actors that I met all the time there. It's so well cast. I had a lot of fun.

I know season 2 is in the works. How's that been going?

That's going great. I mean, Tony Gilroy has gone on strike, as of the first of May. He finished the scripts right on the day, and then he shut off the phone and disappeared into a picket line somewhere. So, we'll see. He claims that the [series] is director-proof and actor-proof, which means that it can't be destroyed. [Laughs] We'll see if it works.

Well, I can't wait to see what you guys have up your sleeves and where this story goes.

It'll be lovely. But I can't tell you, I'm afraid! [Laughs]

For more from Skarsgård, as well as exclusive interviews with Tony Gilroy, Diego Luna, and more, listen to EW's Star Wars podcast, Dagobah Dispatch.Lu

[andorerso]

you're a bad, bad person! anyway 7, 8, 24

me? starting problems on purpose? no sir, I would never

7. what character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because how how the fandom acts about them?

Hate is a strong word because I don't hate him but I've gotten to a point where I'm kind of indifferent about Melshi now. Mostly because I feel like he's starting to replace Kay (and in certain cases Bodhi) a bit, which I don't vibe with. I get that Melshi got popular after Andor but I don't like to see Kay erased as Cassian's closest friend as a result. As if Cassian wasn't literally devastated when Kay died. As if Kay didn't see him crying on Jenoport. As if Kay, before dying, didn't literally simulate a scenario in his head in which Cassian lived because it pleased him. Kay was absolutely Cassian's closest friend and I'll DIE on that hill. Anyway, this isn't Melshi's fault, but the resentment is growing. (he and Cassian should still fuck though. as a treat.)

8. common fandom opinion that everyone is wrong about

I'm not a fan of manwhore Cassian lmao. not because I'm trying to slutshame him, obviously, I even made a whole post in his defense when people tried that shit. it just... it doesn't feel in character for me. and you can say "but Andor" yeah yeah yeah, whatever, I'm talking about Rogue One Cassian Andor here. I just wasn't buying what they were selling me in Andor about him being a horndog lmao. Cassian Andor, a horndog??? it just feels SO wildly OOC to me. I think he uses flirting as a manipulation tactic (we see this with the hostess and even Cinta) but that's not genuine. and don't get me wrong, I never thought he was an inexperienced virgin either, but the whole thing with him just sleeping around all the time and fucking everyone is just... it's not him to me. like at all.

24. topic that brings up the most rancid discourse

oh boy, I could bring up so many stuff. some of the things Tony Gilroy has said, Syril apologists who think he's the real main character, Cassian haters who think Bix got tortured because of him, saying Diego Luna was miscast, the whole debacle about whether or not Andor retconned stuff (it did) and whether or not we're allowed to be upset about it (we are), Saw haters who miraculously love Luthen, there's just so much.... but ultimately, Maarva apologists, this one's for you. stop excusing that woman.

[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!

[lighttailoring]

Character ask! The terrible cape-wearing man. 1, 5, 18 (doesn't have to be in canon, though, if you have headcanons), 20

KRENK

1. Why do you like or dislike this character?

Ughhh okay so I HATE him but I also LOVE him for the exact same reasons that I FUCKING HATE HIM. He's so clever but he's also such a little bitch! He works so hard just to get noticed and immediately self sabotages by throwing a tantrum when the people he should have known would be rude and cruel to him are rude and cruel to him! He's a genius but uses that intelligence to worm his way in with the popular kids instead of idk, doing anything worthwhile or making actual friends! Because he hates himself for what he is!!! Fucking hell I need him to be in Andor I need to him to be in the one Star Wars show that actually does class analysis because "self-made man who hates himself for his working-class roots even more than the people he's so desperately trying to make love him do and in doing so makes it a self-fulfilling prophecy that they all laugh at him behind his back" is just SO GOOD. Also I hate him. I hope Tony somehow makes him eat shit and die in Andor as well as Rogue One so that I can watch him eat shit and die twice.

5. What's the first song that comes to mind when you think about them?

Daddy Like by Dorian Electra

This started as a joke for the toxic throuple playlist but now the irony has become sincere. "I wanna get you to want me to love you..." yeah

18. How about a relationship they have in canon with another character that you admire?

KRENNIC AND GALEN fucking hell. Even just in Rogue One you can sense how much depth there is to that relationship (how much is down to Gilroy's script doctoring and how much is purely Ben Mendelsohn and Mads Mikkelsen's acting idk). The initial admiration, the ongoing begrudging admiration, the stubborn refusal to accept that Galen might actually respect him as a person and want good things for him, the coercion that destroys everything and then all that's left is bitter, poisonous resentment... that SLAP. AAAAA.

20. Which other character is the ideal best friend for this character, the amount of screentime they share doesn't matter?

Could Krennic have a friend? I honestly don't know. I know we have discussed at length the kind of relationship he could potentially have with Syril but even then he'd have his finger on the garbage disposal button the whole time. I don't think he'd ever trust anybody, or more importantly respect anybody who trusted him. Oh well sucks to be him I guess *replays him getting shot for the 300th time*

[charliethomascoxuniverse]

Marvel is Right to Have Faith in Daredevil - Despite Charlie Cox's Doubts

By Joshua M. Patton  December 27, 2022 (X)

Charlie Cox keeps tempering expectations about his Daredevil: Born Again return, but everyone else - from Marvel Studios to fans - has faith in him.

Charlie Cox has been recently doing rounds of press, invariably being asked to talk about Daredevil: Born Again. In one, he expressed concern that the massive 18-episode solo series may not "hit the spot," resulting in him setting down the horns for good. It's a fair guess, especially with streaming services' strategy for originals narrowing in focus. Yet since he was the star of the most successful of the Marvel Television series on Netflix, Marvel Studios and Disney+ have clear faith in his ability to deliver.

Cox is an adept actor, and his humility may also be a way to deflect from revealing things he's not supposed to. He was more convincing than Andrew Garfield in the run up to Spider-Man: No Way Home, at the very least. If Cox really does still have doubts about his ability to become the Robert Downey Jr. of Disney+, perhaps that's what makes him the perfect Matt Murdock.

Daredevil: Born Again's 18-Episode Series Order Is a Leap of Faith

Until 2022, the average Disney+ original series from Marvel or Lucasfilm ran for roughly six hours per season. Then Andor dropped 12 episodes, with another 12 currently filming. Tony Gilroy had a vision and Lucasfilm didn't want to risk getting it wrong. Daredevil: Born Again could be the Andor of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. A long-game series that looks at the more TV-MA side of the MCU sounds just like the spot the studio is trying to hit.

When working as a young producer on the 2003 film adaptation, Feige championed the script. If it irked him that Daredevil was handed to Jeph Loeb and Marvel Television when the rights came back to Marvel, he's not taking it out on Cox. In fact, Cox helped erase the film version of the character from the fans' consciousness. This was a challenge his fellow The Defenders costars did not face. From the massive season order to his rumored appearance in Echo, the only person seemingly left with doubts is Cox himself. In fact, there was no reason to believe Daredevil would show up in Deadpool 3 until the actor denied it.

Kevin Feige is a big fan of Daredevil, and he wasn't allowed to use the character in the movies. Now he can and has the added benefit of being given an excellent actor to portray the character. It's clear that he no longer sees anyone other than Cox as capable of the role.

Marvel Studios and Disney+ Have Big Expectations for Daredevil and Charlie Cox

Cox may have expressed his doubts because he is aware of how important Daredevil is to Marvel Comics. He is, effectively, the Marvel equivalent of Batman. He is the king of their street-level heroes -- first on the scene for muggers, ninjas and all manner of mildly-powered individuals. In the comic books, he has also gone toe-to-toe with the galaxy's biggest baddies, including Mephisto. If Marvel Studios remains committed to establishing a TV side of the MCU, it will be built on Daredevil's back, just like Iron Man carried the films.

What makes Cox so important is how well he plays the character. His performance as a blind hero is nuanced and respectful to an impressive degree, according to Vice. During and immediately after fight scenes, his out-of-breath acting is some of the most intense in the game. Viewers believe that Daredevil clearly wins the fight, but he's wiped out after doing it. And with the help of Elden Henson and Deborah Ann Woll, he imbues Matt with a heart and pathos that makes all of his superhero work feel more than believable.

Charlie Cox is either truly humble or adept at using humility to deflect questions about projects he can't talk about. Either way, everyone from Feige to the fans knows that Daredevil: Born Again isn't his "last shot." It's what he's due for his accomplishments so far.

~*~