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After the highly successful first season of Andor came to us in 2022, fans had eagerly been awaiting the follow up after being captivated by the characters and their story arcs. Season 2 concludes the journey of Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) as the events lead us right up to a fan favorite, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Ariel Kleiman, Janus Metz, and Alonso Ruizpalacios share directing duties while Tony Gilroy, Beau Willimon, and Dan Gilroy wrote three episodes each. Besides Luna, there are quite a bit of returning faces including Bix Caleen (Adria Arjona), Syril Karn (Kyle Soller), Dedra Meero (Denise Gough), Mon Mothma (Genevieve O’Reilly), and Luthen Rael (Stellan Skarsgård), with some additional familiars that are best kept a surprise for now.

Every character has their own dilemma to face over the course of the 12 episodes that keep you on the edge of your seat the entire time. The final season of Andor answers which characters will seek out their purpose, settle for an ordinary lifestyle, or meet their demise. At the forefront of it all, we are taken on a thrilling journey to uncover the truth as Cassian gets rid of his doubts and ventures into his newfound life from a nobody to a hero.

One of the most fascinating things about the series is its ability to have quite a few storylines that manage to keep you intrigued and interested the whole way. Oftentimes, when a project has a lot of character arcs developing simultaneously, it can become fairly overwhelming and thus leading to a loss of interest. Andor defies that as each story ties in to another, making it enjoyable to piece things together as the season progresses. You find yourself trying to predict what happens next as each episode opens up another hurdle for each mission they are individually on.

Despite the series title, it doesn’t place a primary focus solely on Cassian Andor, but instead sheds that attention on the entire cast. With that being said, it’s a must to point out that Luna shines as he delivers a standout performance, perhaps the best of his Star Wars appearances. His chemistry with Arjona is subtle and in no way overpowering to where this becomes a hero looking to save his damsel in distress. Instead, their romance pours into Cassian’s purpose, further fueling his actions and desire to lead the rebels to a victory.

Although the season spans over 12 episodes that range from 40 to 55 minutes each, you can tell much more was supposed to take place but was ultimately consolidated. Showrunner Gilroy tells SFX that the series was set to take place over over five seasons, but was reworked shortly after COVID. “We were halfway through shooting Season 1…and the monumental size of the show, the effort, and everything else was just dawning on us… I didn’t have enough calories to do it and Diego’s face couldn’t take the time because it just takes too long to make…”

This is likely in reference to Luna being around 50 years old at the conclusion of the original five-season plan. So to still capture the same story they wanted to convey, time jumps were sprinkled throughout this season. From a cinematic perspective, there are several shots that are fairly breathtaking, including one of Bix and Cassian walking out of a building at night and Syril standing in the courtyard with chaos erupting around him.

I bring that up to commend the manner in which Andor plays out like a big screen film rather than a TV series. Without naming names, some shows feel like just that; projects that were diluted and cheaply thrown together and rely on the lore alone to attract viewers. The action sequences are so reminiscent of Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith and could arguably have been turned into a feature length film instead of a series (not that I’m complaining at all). Even the music in a few of the party scenes is solid and caught my attention as they were so current and upbeat, you wouldn’t think you’d find them in a Star Wars piece.

Andor coming to a close after only two seasons is both beautiful and bittersweet. It’s quite a treat to have been able to dive more into Cassian’s character, but sad that it ended so quickly. It would have been great to explore his relationship with Bix more, since every other character’s storyline wrapped properly ahead of Rogue One. The realistic sets and wardrobe lend to the series’ overall tone of being a bit more realistic than the space sequences we know and love. Luna leads an intense cast of bright actors and gives his career best. With its elite storytelling, Andor has concluded as the best spin-off that has come from the Star Wars franchise by an absolute longshot.

The final season of Andor premieres on Disney+ April 22, 2025, with the release of the first three episodes.

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