S01.E01: Kassa

[formerlyfreedom]

Quote

Cassian Andor’s reckless search for answers about his past makes him a wanted man.

Dropping Wednesday, September 21, 2022

[absnow54]

I only had time to watch the first episode this morning, and I love it already! So much seamless exposition and great world building! And another fun droid for my daughter to obsess over, even though she's way too young to watch this show, and will have to live vicariously through YouTube clips! 

[angora]

Me too, @absnow54! It's fascinating to see Cassian like this. He has the same determination and hard edges we saw in Rogue One, but instead of being part of something larger, it's focused on this deeply personal mission for him. He has a good number of friends looking out for him, but he's still scrambling, owing everyone favors or money or excuses because everything he has is feeding his search for his sister.

I love that junky little droid so much, he's adorable! Not sure how much we'll get to see him, especially if Cassian goes on the run, but I hope he gets more screentime.

Intrigued by the zealous deputy inspector. Is he just such a rule-follower that he can't bear to *not* follow through, or is his ambition spurring him on, thinking that solving this case will help him rise in the ranks? He seems to be wound like 300% tighter than anyone else he works with.

[absnow54]

1 hour ago, angora said:

Intrigued by the zealous deputy inspector. Is he just such a rule-follower that he can't bear to *not* follow through, or is his ambition spurring him on, thinking that solving this case will help him rise in the ranks? He seems to be wound like 300% tighter than anyone else he works with.

He's definitely the Dwight Schrute of that office. 

[Tachi Rocinante]

2 hours ago, angora said:

Intrigued by the zealous deputy inspector. Is he just such a rule-follower that he can't bear to *not* follow through, or is his ambition spurring him on, thinking that solving this case will help him rise in the ranks? He seems to be wound like 300% tighter than anyone else he works with.

Don't know if he has a name - wonder if he will become someone in the future?

Gonks are everywhere, it seems.  So are cute sidekick droids.

Very solid beginning.

[thuganomics85]

They weren't kidding about trying to show off a different version of Star Wars!  Come right out of the gate with showing that there are actual brothels that exist in the Star Wars universe and then having its lead character have to execute an unarmed man in order to cover his tracks.  Sure, they established that the guy was kind of a scumbag, but that still a pretty shades of grey move in a universe that is usually known for being obviously black and white.

Mainly just a lot of set up for this first episode, but I thought it was a pretty solid start and I'm intrigued to find out more about Cassian after first meeting him way back in Rogue One.  Looks like he is on a quest to find his long lost sister and also has a lot of connection to a lot of shady places and people, and has earned quite the reputation because of that.  Also there is (was?) clearly something going on between him and that woman played by Adria Arjona (always great seeing her!)

I'm guessing the corporate deputy inspector is going to be an obstacle going forward.  Not sure if he is motivated due to finding true justice or if he thinks this will benefit him personally.  I do love that they already established that he's the kind of boss everyone else in that organization finds so tiring!

Cassian's junk android is already a contender to join all of the other awesome droids in the Star Wars universe!

Will try and tackle the other two episodes later tonight!

[Ottis]

On 9/21/2022 at 2:12 PM, thuganomics85 said:

They weren't kidding about trying to show off a different version of Star Wars!  Come right out of the gate with showing that there are actual brothels that exist in the Star Wars universe and then having its lead character have to execute an unarmed man in order to cover his tracks.

Maybe the best 10 minutes of any of these Disney Star Wars shows, all of which I haven't cared for. Of course, after a surprisingly good opening, they do this ...

On 9/21/2022 at 9:55 AM, angora said:

I love that junky little droid so much, he's adorable!

First a cutesy android, so they can sell merch. Then a nameless village featuring children. All in the first 15 minutes.

It amazes me that this franchise keeps shooting itself in the foot. Every. SIngle. Series. doesn't have to exist to sell merchandise. And it doesn't have to be for children. You can tell different levels of stories within this universe.

I actually had no idea who Cassian was until I read this board. I didn't recognize the character, and I am not a SW expert. I actually thought this was about a moon, but that was Endor, wasn't it? I just like sci-fi, so I give all these shows a chance.

Anyway, aside from that first 10 minutes or so, this seemed mostly boring to me. Shady dude doing shady things, while overzealous cop begins down the path that will make them opponents.

[dwmarch]

10 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

They weren't kidding about trying to show off a different version of Star Wars!  Come right out of the gate with showing that there are actual brothels that exist in the Star Wars universe and then having its lead character have to execute an unarmed man in order to cover his tracks.

Also having a space dog take a piss on a hero droid and the hero droid electrocuting the dog in return. I'm pretty sure that's a first.

[Shanna Marie]

On 9/21/2022 at 9:55 AM, angora said:

Intrigued by the zealous deputy inspector. Is he just such a rule-follower that he can't bear to *not* follow through, or is his ambition spurring him on, thinking that solving this case will help him rise in the ranks? He seems to be wound like 300% tighter than anyone else he works with.

It's weird, but I want that guy defeated and brought down more than I wanted to see Darth Vader or the Emperor defeated. I will be so disappointed if he doesn't get a massive comeuppance. I think it's because villains like Vader or the Emperor are larger than life, not like people I've ever had to deal with, but Star Wars Dwight Schrute (credit to absnow54) is a kind of person I've run into way too many times. He's the hall monitor with delusions of grandeur, the cop on a power trip who tickets people for jaywalking when there's no traffic. I want this dude to suffer.

What I've liked about the TV series, and this one in particular, is that they give more texture to the Star Wars universe. In the original films, we didn't really see what the Empire was about. We knew they were bad because of the blowing up planets thing, but had no sense of day-to-day life for people. We're getting to see more of what life was like, getting to see that there are varieties of cultures among the humans (humans have pretty much been generic in this universe).

It's interesting that this series is backstory, and in the flashbacks we're getting backstory to the backstory. And there seems to be still more backstory there to explain how the kids came to be in that situation, where there don't look to be any adults present.

[Ottis]

30 minutes ago, Shanna Marie said:

What I've liked about the TV series, and this one in particular, is that they give more texture to the Star Wars universe. In the original films, we didn't really see what the Empire was about. We knew they were bad because of the blowing up planets thing, but had no sense of day-to-day life for people. We're getting to see more of what life was like, getting to see that there are varieties of cultures among the humans (humans have pretty much been generic in this universe).

For me, and YMMV, this is what is wrong with all these shows. They bring nothing new to the table. They show more of what we have already seen. And they do it with an emphasis on selling toys. The one SW movie about how exactly the Death Star plans got to Leia, and the sacrifice involved, was well done and served nicely as a gap filler. But ALL of these shows don't have to have the same purpose.

[Ilovepie]

18 hours ago, Ottis said:

For me, and YMMV, this is what is wrong with all these shows. They bring nothing new to the table. They show more of what we have already seen. And they do it with an emphasis on selling toys. The one SW movie about how exactly the Death Star plans got to Leia, and the sacrifice involved, was well done and served nicely as a gap filler. But ALL of these shows don't have to have the same purpose.

If you don't like them, why do you keep watching?

I am loving all of these shows. Are they perfect? No. But I love this universe and these characters and I enjoy exploring them in more depth.  I have loved Grogu and Mando, I loved baby Leia, and B2EMO is an awesome addition. I am only hoping my #1 favorite droid makes an appearance in this show - K2 where are you????? As far as this show, Cassian Andor is a great character from arguably the best star wars movie, so I am excited to see where they go with this. Plus, Diego Luna is pretty to look at ;-p

I am a grown woman and I don't buy toys, but Disney already got my money for my baby yoda hat, t-shirt and bag and I am totally fine with it.

[Ottis]

58 minutes ago, Ilovepie said:

If you don't like them, why do you keep watching?

I love sci-fi. Good sci-fi is amazing. And I was a kid when the original Star Wars movies came out and they were wonderful. So I always have hope that these SW shows will be good.

But I don't always keep watching them. Several I quit after anywhere from 4-8 episodes. It's maddening that this franchise has an interesting universe and some great characters, and it just sort of half-asses fan-service over and over and inserts merch. The Mandalorian came closest to being good sci-fi - until Grogu (buy now!) became the focus. 

The thing about Andor so far is the merchandise stuff is fairly minimal for Star Wars. It's just kind of boring. But I always watch at least 4 eps before deciding. There's still hope ... maybe A New Hope?

[wanderingstar]

I always give series premieres a lot of latitude because they have to do so much setup and exposition. But with this series I was hooked in the first few minutes. When the episode ended, I was surprised it was over already.

I have not seen Rogue One, and at best I can only be called a casual Star Wars fan, but I always say if you give me compelling characters and story, I'm in. Getting to see Cassian's life - his various hustles, his friends, his ex - was cool. I feel like the writers really gave me a character and not just an archetype.

Bix seems cool. Her boyfriend not so much.

B2emo (that name!) is adorable.

Digging this so far.

[MJ Frog]

So strange that this show seems like the one where they really brought their 'A' game, as opposed to Obi Wan Kenobi. If only that show had looked this good, and benefitted from this level of direction, writing and acting.

I am definitely on board.

[Bill1978]

I confess that I'm one of those Star Wars fans that mainly just wants to see adventures with Skywalkers and Jedis. I've never been a fan of the bounty hunter aspects of the universe - learnt that with the Solo movie and I have not checked out Mandalorian or Boba Fett cause the trailers did nothing for me and I'm one of the few Star Wars fans that doesn't think Boba Fett is the bee knees of the universe.

So in theory, I should skip this as well, but, this series has the benefit of being linked to the Rogue One story which I thoroughly loved. So I was happy to give this a go and it has me intrigued with the story. Even if I can't remember anything about Cassian cause it has been years since I watched Rogue One.

At the moment, I think this movie is doing a better job of showing what it's like to live during the reign of the Empire that the Solo movie did. For a while I thought Cassian's BF co-worker was the same guy that was the boyfriend of his female friend. Had to hop on to Wikipedia during the viewing to confirm they were different people.

[wanderingstar]

The seediness of the Pre-Ox Morlana Leisure Zone was definitely giving me The Expanse vibes.

[tessaray]

I haven't seen The Expanse (it's on my to-watch list tho) so this episode was giving me the same feeling I got with the bootleg video of Serenity, the pilot that floated around before Firefly debuted. Okay, no trademarked Whedon smartassery but lots of texture and world building that drew me in and made me want to see more. 

[Ilovepie]

On 9/25/2022 at 6:11 AM, Gillian Rosh said:

The seediness of the Pre-Ox Morlana Leisure Zone was definitely giving me The Expanse vibes.

My mind immediately went to Blade Runner, but Expanse is also true! @tessaray, if you like sci-fi, you should check out Expanse!

On 9/24/2022 at 8:12 PM, MJ Frog said:

So strange that this show seems like the one where they really brought their 'A' game, as opposed to Obi Wan Kenobi.

There were things I liked about Obi Wan (baby Leia, the final fight) but it just wasn't necessary, and some things didn't even make sense (how Obi got away after their first fight. What?!). I do love Ewan though, so I am really torn on that one. This show definitely feels a lot different than all of the other D+ Star Wars shows. Maybe because we know what happens to Cassian? Or maybe because it's written by Tony Gilroy and not from the Favreau/Filoni team? Either way, I like it!

[Ottis]

On 9/26/2022 at 12:14 PM, Ilovepie said:

This show definitely feels a lot different than all of the other D+ Star Wars shows.

Agree with that. And as a huge Blade Runner fan, I dig the feel of Andor. I just would like more to happen. And, as with all these Star Wars shows, more originality and less filling in existing white space.

I find myself looking at the dwellings these characters live in, and their furnishings, and lives. And wondering if this is all there is on that colony. And how hard that would be. Never even considered thoughts like that in the other SW shows.

[tkc]

On 9/21/2022 at 7:55 AM, angora said:

Intrigued by the zealous deputy inspector. Is he just such a rule-follower that he can't bear to *not* follow through, or is his ambition spurring him on, thinking that solving this case will help him rise in the ranks? He seems to be wound like 300% tighter than anyone else he works with.

Maybe he'll be revealed to be General Hux's dad? 😁

Edited September 28, 2022 by tkc

[Camera One]

"Rogue One" was so long ago that I remember very little about it, except I liked it when I watch it.  I don't even remember the Cassian character other than he was on the poster.  I was debating whether I should rewatch first so I can catch all the call-backs, which seem to be the main goal of prequels.  But that also makes it boring sometimes since you know what's going to happen beforehand, so I decided not to rewatch "Rogue One" for now.

I though the first episode was solid.  Much more engaging and interesting than the first episode of "Obi Wan", though that isn't saying much.  The main character seems like he just uses people and doesn't have much of a moral compass, but the actor is charismatic enough to pull it off, and the flashbacks were effective enough to show he has a possible good reason for it.

I too thought his best friend at the beginning outside the factory was the same guy as Bix's boyfriend.  I was also a bit confused by Cassian's whole conversation with Bix, about what he needed.  The geography of where everything is was also unclear since I don't know the Star Wars universe too well.

At first, I thought the deputy inspector guy was a good guy since he actually wanted to serve the murder vs. the corrupt superior only worrying about how the crime rate would look to the higher-ups.  But the deputy is clearly a bossy tyrant, so I hope the underlings will undermine him so Cassian's identity is not found for awhile.  Of course, it will inevitably happen so that aspect is kind of predictable and not too much of a draw.

[jeansheridan]

On 9/21/2022 at 12:12 PM, thuganomics85 said:

Cassian's junk android is already a contender to join all of the other awesome droids in the Star Wars universe!

I am endlessly impressed how they can keep creating new and charming droids.