Tag Archives: Disney

Dec 6 2025

The Impact Of Netflix Buying Warner Bros.

In the biggest cinematic and media earthquake since the Walt Disney Company acquired 21st Century Fox and many of its assets, Netflix announced that it will purchase Warner Bros. for $82.7 billion. This is one of the most important events to happen with film, TV, videos, comics, and other media and it will have long-lasting repercussions throughout the media industry.

Up for Sale

Warner Bros. had been up for sale for some time and several major companies expressed interest in buying it, especially Paramount Skydance. Many expected Paramount to purchase Warner Bros. given their public and aggressive efforts to purchase the company but in the end the streaming giant Netflix beat out Paramount and will acquire the film and HBO segments of Warner Bros. as it chose not to purchase the cable TV channels that were part of Warner Bros. Discovery. This acquisition will give Netflix access and ownership to an impressive film and television library and major IPs, including DC, Looney Tunes, Hanna-Barbera, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, The Matrix, Game of Thrones, Mad Max and more.

Many have watched the bidding war with caution and were concerned with a possible ownership by Paramount, mostly because its CEO, David Ellison, has openly expressed fealty to the Trump Administration to the point that a Rush Hour 4 has been greenlit simply because Trump expressed interest in such a film. This meant that the government has influence on what media entertainment gets released, which leads to First Amendment questions. Imagine if Paramount bought Netflix and the government had a hand in deciding the direction of DC films, TV or comics. A film like Superman, which openly criticized America’s current immigration policies, would never be allowed by Ellison. On the other hand, the purchase by Netflix has opened up another can of worms that has the film industry reeling because of the implications.

Streaming Influence

One possibility of the purchase is that it could lead to the death of cinemas since the majority, if not all, Warner Bros. films could be released straight to streaming. This would create a domino effect with other film studios copying the release model, which would hasten the demise of the theater-going experience.

This has been a growing problem in recent years that was accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic which caused many film and TV studios to lean heavily on streaming to provide content to consumers. Netflix has upended the conventional model of film releases where films normally had theatrical lives of a few months before being available on digital or for streaming. This has conditioned viewers to skip going to theaters and just wait for a film to appear on a streaming app a short while after its release. Now it is becoming the norm that films would be released on streaming weeks after a theatrical release and even the same day the film premieres in theaters. Many have speculated that Superman might have had a larger box office haul if it was not announced roughly a month after its initial film release that it would be available for home viewing. While short theatrical runs is convenient and deceptively cheaper for consumers (the idea that they will see the film for free on streaming is silly since they still have to pay for the service), this practice is a major issue with theaters with lost revenue and content.

Another supposed plus for Netflix subscribers is that the service will have an even more exhaustive library of content, but now with prestige content. One problem for the streaming company was that recently it did not have easy access to popular content as film and TV companies created their own streaming services. Netflix has been criticized for having a glut of inferior films and TV shows that are just placed on the streaming app with little promotion. It’s true that Netflix has many quality and popular TV and films like Stranger Things, Wednesday, Squid Game, The Witcher, Black Mirror, and KPop Demon Hunters, with the glut of content dumped on the platform a lot of quality product has gotten lost in the overwhelming mixture. How will prestige films and TV shows from HBO and Warner Bros. stand out from the low-budget dreck flooding Netflix’s landing page?

One possibility is that Warner Bros. and HBO could have their own pages or remain as separate streaming services as we see now with Hulu, which is owned by Disney but is its own streaming service that subscribers of Disney+ could access by purchasing a bundle service. This would allow Netflix to have its own prestige platform to stream high-end quality products that stand out in the crowded streaming service.

But do not be surprised when the monthly subscription rate for Netflix increases dramatically to help pay for the $82 billion purchase. Expect to pay up to $50 and more monthly in a few years.

Impact on DC & Other Popular IP

Now the big question genre fans have is what impact will the purchase have on DC Studios and the DC Universe (DCU) and other popular genre IP? For now nothing. There are contracts that have to be honored so projects in production should be safe, so no worries about Man of Tomorrow, Clayface, or Supergirl. However, the head of DC Studios, James Gunn, might get pressured to favor some popular characters like Batman over obscure ones that he favors such as Booster Gold. Let’s hope that Netflix executives learned a lesson from Disney and Marvel Studios, where in the early 2020s the Disney executives forced the film studio to quickly churn out a lot of TV shows and films to fill out content on Disney+ and to announce projects before they were ready. What happened was that a lot of mediocre films and TV shows were released which damaged the reputation of Marvel Studios’ films and TV shows and led to the recent reduced box office haul for some of their films. Sure, Marvel Studios is taking steps to course correct, but they’re still recovering from this misstep.

Getting back to DCU and all things DC, it’s possible Netflix may force Gunn to step up the output of DC films and TV shows since again Netflix wants a return for their investment. Thankfully, The Batman, Part II is about to enter production, which may keep the streaming company off Gunn’s back. On the other, the company might pressure him to make a decision on the DCU version of Batman soon, and casting some of the more popular DC characters in order to greenlight productions already. Despite rumors about Gunn leaving DC Studios, which were rampant when Paramount was actively looking to purchase Warner Bros., it has been reported that Gunn will stay put. Even though there hasn’t been a lot of DCU projects released to date, Superman, Peacemaker and Creature Commandos have been well received and Netflix is not foolish enough to scrap the DCU and go through the trouble to launch another reboot at this time.

One thing to consider is that while the more obscure DC characters may not get the big-screen treatment, they could wind up as straight-to-streaming projects that could be a proving ground for the characters. The main thing is to just let Gunn alone to produce quality product and all should be fine. In fact, this should be the case for all of the film and TV projects.

While it’s very possible that Netflix will greenlight a lot of DC animated films there won’t be a revival of the Snyderverse. After the dismal failure of the Rebel Moon films, Netflix has been moving away from filmmaker Zack Snyder and it is doubtful that the company will approve a revival of his brand of DC films. The slimmest of hope for diehard Snyderverse bros is that some kind of Elseworlds animated film will be made.

Oh yes, expect Stranger Things and DC to have a crossover in the comics, along with comic books featuring Harry Potter and other popular Warner Bros. IP.

As for other IPs like Mad Max, It and related Stephen King works, and Harry Potter, there has not been any word yet about them. But it’s expected that Netflix will take full advantage of their newly acquired IP. Announced projects like the reboot of Harry Potter, more TV shows based on Game of Thrones, and the second season of It: Welcome to Derry will proceed as scheduled and if HBO is kept as a separate streaming platform those prestige projects will stream there first before migrating to Netflix years later. Will we ever see shelved projects like Batgirl or genre TV shows that were removed from HBO Max such as Westworld or Raised By Wolves? It’s anyone’s guess, but consider this: these projects were removed to save on paying residuals or for tax write offs by Warner Bros. Without these burdens and with the need to put out recognizable content, it is possible that these projects may have a second life on Netflix.

Of course, there are a lot of hurdles for Netflix such as government approval so it will be at least two years before we see any impact. For now, the company indicated they will leave things alone, and supposedly commit to theatrical releases for Warner Bros. films, which would be to their and everyone’s benefit.

Nov 22 2025

Toy Story: The Animated Masterpiece That Changed Animated Films

Thirty years ago, Toy Story was released in theaters by Pixar, which at that time was its own independent company owned by Steve Jobs. The animated masterpiece instantly caught everyone’s attention with its revolutionary 3D animation that changed animated films forever.

3D or computer animation existed before Toy Story, of course, but the film about toys that come to life whenever their owners are not around, was the first feature-length film to exclusively use this kind of animation. The use of computers in animated films had been going on for years since the 1980s and 1990s. Disney used computers on a wider scale with its traditional animated classics like Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast, but those films were still two-dimensional and by the mid-90s that kind of animation had reached its peak in what could be done with it as an art form. The world of animation was ripe for new approaches.

Enter John Lasseter, the creative genius behind Pixar. Working with a team of innovative artists and computer technicians, Lasseter experimented with 3D animated film shorts that caught the eyes of many film studios, especially Disney. Some of the films like Tin Toy, Knick Knack and Luxo, Jr. stood out with the pioneering use of 3D animation. In fact, Tin Toy won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film, the first 3D-animated film to do so. As Pixar created and released these shorts, they prepared themselves to produce a full-length animated film, which turned out to be Toy Story. At this time, Disney was eager to work with Lasseter and proposed that he create a feature-length film that Disney would distribute, to which Pixar agreed.

At first, Pixar’s first animated film was supposed to be a sequel to Tin Toy and would have featured the title character and his dummy companiion trying to find their way into the hands of children. But Disney was not happy with the script and after much retooling, the Tin Toy characters were replaced with the original creations Woody the cowboy doll and Buzz Lightyear the high-tech electronic doll. They had clashing personalities which generated genuine laughs, but had to work together to find their way to their child owner.

Turning Toy Story into an animated buddy film with two completely different characters sparring with each other then becoming great friends was an inspired decision. This development injected a lot of heart and humor into the script and gave the two lead characters distinct personalities that most viewers could relate to. For instance, Woody was the leader of the toys owned by the child, Andy. His status is threatened with the arrival of Buzz Lightyear, the new hot toy on the block that quickly becomes Andy’s favorite toy. Woody is jealous and resentful towards Buzz as he lost his status and his actions cause both he and Buzz to be lost and the two have to find a way back to Andy’s home. What also helped tremendously was the casting of vocal actors Tom Hanks and Tim Allen to play Woody and Buzz. Both actors had great vocal chemistry with each other and comedic timing that rivaled many classic comedy duos.

The film featured many other memorable characters voiced by great actors that embedded the toys with a lot of personalities. Take for instance the legendary comedian Don Rickles who played Mr. Potato Head or R. Lee Ermey as Sargeant, the no-nonsense military leader of the tiny green plastic army men. Seeing many classic and real-world toys appearing in the film was a hysterical and brought back many memories for adults and joy to children. A large part of the film’s appeal was that both adults and children could equally enjoy it, and this became one of Pixar’s strongest selling points with their future films.

Toy Story was an instant hit and a bonafide classic when it was released in theaters on November 22, 1995 as it caught the imagination of viewers. While the computer animation was a distinct selling point, what made the film so beloved was its script, direction and characters who are still relevant to this day. There is even a Toy Story 5 that will be released next year. That is fortunate because while the 3D animation was revolutionary for its time, some of the animation does look a bit dated, especially when it came to depictions of humans.

Of course, the success of Toy Story inspired many film studios to rush out with their own computer animated films to varying degrees of success. Some like Dreamworks and Illumination produced their own classic films but few could capture the magic and whimsy of Toy Story. Still, regardless of quality, the early computer animated films crowded out traditional 2D-animated films and even Disney jumped on the bandwagon with their own 3D-animated films. But it would take Disney some time to create their own films that rivaled Pixar’s in terms of quality. Unfortunately, the success of Toy Story spelled the end of traditional 2D-animated films, at least with American films. The last traditional animated film that Disney released was The Princes and the Frog in 2009. It’s true that there are many advantages with 3D animation, but it is a mistake to completely discard two-dimensional animation. What these studios have failed to realized is that the success of Toy Story and other quality Pixar films, including the Toy Story sequels, was not solely due to its animated technique but because of the story and characters. Hopefully one day, a visionary creator at a major studio will be able to produce a quality two-dimensional animated feature length film that will be successful.

Much like Snow White and the Seven Dwarves was revolutionary in its day and changed films by introducing the concept of full-length animated films, so did Toy Story. It is not an exaggeration to say that Toy Story revolutionized animated films when it premiered 30 years ago as we are still feeling the impact of the classic film that is just as enjoyable as when it was released 30 years ago.

Aug 17 2025

Phase Five Of The MCU Ranked

Now that Ironheart has been released on streaming, Phase Five of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has concluded, and the films and TV shows of Phase Five can now be ranked. On the whole, this phase suffered for many reasons, some of which were beyond the control of Disney and Marvel Studios, and included entertainment strikes, the conviction of actor Jonathan Majors (who played the would-be MCU big baddie, Kang), and rushed productions without completed scripts. However, there were certainly some projects that are considered as some of the MCU’s best and should be lauded. As we move on to Phase Six, let’s rank all the Phase Five MCU films and TV shows. Just note that X-Men ’97 is not included because officially the animated series is not considered part of the MCU, but if it was it would be placed in sixth place.

15. Secret Invasion

Not only is this limp, would-be spy thriller about alien Skrulls infiltrating our civilization the weakest entry of Phase Five, but it is the worst MCU project ever produced. The goal of the Skrulls was moronic, as was the execution of the pedestrian scripts that failed to live up to the premise of the comic book event this limited series was based on. For a supposed paranoid thriller, Secret Invasion lacked any tension, drama, suspense or sense.

14. I Am Groot (season two)

Eh, the animation was well done, and the stories were cute, but as with the first season, the animated shorts were strictly for the kids. One segment, however, was buoyed by the appearance of the enigmatic Watcher and it was rather humorous.

13. Echo

It is clear that this TV show was a leftover from the Bob Chapek era of Disney were anything and everything was rushed into production whether it deserved to or not. The former gangster Echo was one of the dullest characters from Hawkeye, yet somehow, she was given her own TV show which largely came off as a standard and dull crime drama. The appearance by Daredevil and later Wilson Fisk livened things up, but that was about it.

12. What If…? (seasons two and three)

The animated series that explored the Multiverse was a mixed bag with an average second season and a disappointing third season. There were many great premises that could have been explored in the third season, but sadly that never happened. Instead, we got Howard the Duck and his girlfriend protecting their egg in a painfully unfunny episode. But there were a couple of gems featuring Agatha, Winter Solider and Red Guardian. The second season was definitely the stronger of the two as it further explored the more interesting variant characters from the first season like Captain Carter and Stephen Strange. But overall, the Multiverse animated show did not live up to the promise of the first season or the comic books.  

11. The Marvels

The semi-sequel to Captain Marvel is not bad, but it is not good either. There are some interesting character developments that are only glossed over, like Ms. Marvel’s hero worship of Captain Marvel vs. reality or Photon’s abandonment issues with Captain Marvel. But the villain was completely forgettable, and the film felt very rushed. What did not help were some Godawful moments like the alien cats swallowing people as “Memory” played in the soundtrack, or the planet populated by singing people. The introduction of the X-Men into the Multiverse Saga in the post-credits scene was great and nearly salvaged the film, but it was not enough.

10. Ironheart

Here’s another case of a TV show starring an unpopular MCU character. This time it’s Riri Williams from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. However, Ironheart does a good job presenting Riri Williams/Ironheart. She is a painfully flawed person trying to do what is best but some of her decisions are questionable, as are her associates. The effects were surprisingly good despite the reputation MCU TV shows gained over the years, and many characters were interesting. Not the greatest MCU TV show ever, but it’s still worth watching.

9. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania

The third Ant-Man film gets a lot of unwarranted hate from fans who were disappointed by the introduction of Kang, the would-be big baddie of the MCU and the Multiverse Saga. Many fans who expected another caper heist film instead were treated to a loopy sci-fi adventure in another dimension featuring giant ants and weird creatures like the floating head MODOK. It did not help that some of the special effects were sketchy. Still, the film was fun in its own way and had some solid performances and was a decent entry into the Multiverse Saga, although its importance has diminished since Kang has been sidelined.

8. Agatha All Along

This sequel to WandaVision was unexpectedly effective thanks to an inspired performance by Kathryn Hahn as the anti-hero sorceress, Agatha Harkness, as she traverses the mystical Witch’s Road with a ragtag coven of eccentric witches. The character development of Agatha was surprisingly effective and made her more of a sympathetic character with a rather tragic backstory. Agatha All Along is a solid entry into the darker and more mystical part of the MCU and a worthwhile middle part of the Scarlett Witch saga that will be conclued with the upcoming Vision Quest.

7. Captain America: Brave New World

In this mishmash of a film there are elements that could have made it a truly great political thriller. But constant reshoots and rewrites of the script noticeably impaired it, although the fourth Captain America film tries very hard and has many memorable elements. For instance, it has great performances by Anthony Mackie and Harrison Ford and many action scenes are well shot and choreographed. A couple of these feature a terrific battle of Captain America fighting the Red Hulk and an intense segment where Captain America and his partner take to the skies to prevent a major war over the ocean. What ultimately harmed the film were the clumsy exposition dumps and haphazard editing that could not quite salvage the film.

6. Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man

This animated series was one of the best surprises in Phase Five of the MCU. At the same time, this exploration of the high school years of Peter Parker/Spider-Man was quite refreshing with its poignant coming-of-age storyline and genuine. The highlight of the series was not the fight scenes or appearances of superheroes like Doctor Strange or Daredevil but the exploration of Peter’s angst and his complicated relationships, especially with Norman Osborn. We know Osborn will become his greatest foe, but in the show, he serves as his hardened mentor who teaches him lessons about having “great power”.

5. Daredevil: Born Again

Charlie Cox and Vincent D’Onofrio make their triumphant returns as Matt Murdock/Daredevil and Wilson Fisk in this sequel to the original Netflix series. As a loose adaptation of the storyline in the comics where the criminal Fisk becomes mayor of New York City, the series was quite engrossing, especially the early and final episodes. It soon became clear that the middle episodes were produced by a different team when it came to their quality. These middle episodes were fine but were wildly outclassed by the early and final episodes, which were nearly perfect works of television art that thankfully we will see more of in the second season.

4. Deadpool & Wolverine

Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman return to their iconic superhero/mercenary roles that were the highlights of the Fox-era X-Men films. Teaming up for the first time, the two have a wild multidimensional romp as they encounter classic and forgotten characters from the pre-MCU Marvel films ranging from the X-Men to Blade. Some may criticize the film for just being a collection of callbacks to previous films and the script did quite have the wit and energy of the first two Deadpool films. Still, Deadpool & Wolverine was a hysterical, gross and action-packed tribute to the pre-MCU era of Marvel films.

3. Loki (season two)

The second and final season of Loki was a time-traveling and mystical marvel (pardon the pun) that was highlighted by the title character’s transformation. The episodes were witty and inventive as Loki worked with his allies to keep time from unraveling. Loki also featured wonderful acting, not just from Tom Hiddleston as Loki, but from Ke Huy Quan, Jonathan Majors and Owen Wilson. The best part of the show, however, was seeing Loki’s emotional journey as he grew into someone much more noble and magnificent as he made the ultimate sacrifice to save the Multiverse and achieve his “Glorious Purpose.”

2. Thunderbolts*

Or The New Avengers as marketing both in the film and IRL would rather you call this misfit team of mercenaries. The film was unexpectedly engaging and full of emotion as it focused on the characters’ inner turmoil. Even though we’ve seen this before: a bunch of losers form a dysfunctional team and actually become heroes, it was done splendidly. After a few misfires during Phase Five, Thunderbolts* signaled that Marvel Studios finally got its act together and went out of its way to present a winning MCU film. While it’s regrettable that the film had disappointing box office returns, this almost does not matter because of the film’s quality. Here’s hoping that the film resonates later on with home viewings.

1. Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 3

James Gunn sends of the beloved Guardians of the Galaxy with a masterful finale that hit all the right emotional spots. Focusing on the team’s soul, Rocket (later Rocket Raccoon), Gunn gave us a painful and traumatizing origin story that doubles as an animal rights tale that deserves to be told. Everyone involved was on point and beyond with Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 3, as it was the last hurrah for our favorite cosmic superhero team of misfits. This was classic Guardians at its best with goofy moments, perfect needle drops, wild visuals, a terrifying villain and exciting fight scenes. Gunn’s final film for the MCU is to be cherished because now that he has moved on to Warner Bros. to lead their superhero films, he is already sorely missed by MCU fans.

José Soto

Jun 1 2025

After Andor What’s Next For Star Wars?

The Disney + Star Wars TV series Andor concluded to much deserved acclaim, and it did something that seemed improbable given the state of the Star Wars franchise. Andor has helped create renewed enthusiasm for Star Wars as it showed how versatile and mature the franchise can be.

Ever since Disney acquired Star Wars from its creator George Lucas, the projects the company and Lucasfilm put out have received mixed reactions. At first, the franchise received a lot of renewed enthusiasm after the releases of Disney’s first two Star Wars films, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.

But the reception to the following films, Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi, Solo: A Star Wars Story and Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker, was a lot less muted as many fans soured against the Disney films. As a result, the box office returns were not quite as high as the early films and in fact, Solo did not perform well in theaters.

This Was the Way

The Star Wars franchise recovered significantly when the first Disney + Star Wars TV show, The Mandalorian, debuted on the streaming app in 2019. For a couple of years, Mandalorian fever gripped fans and the larger public as Grogu, the infant Yoda-like co-star of the show captured the public’s hearts and imagination. It seemed as if the TV show single-handedly rescued the franchise and injected new life into it. However, many of the other Star Wars TV shows were not as popular or had the level of quality as The Mandalorian, except for Andor. In fact, although Andor did not have the high viewership numbers that The Mandalorian enjoyed, it was a massive critical hit as it presented a fresh and adult take on Star Wars with its grounded look at how the Rebellion began in earnest against the Galactic Empire.

Still, despite Andor’s critical success, Star Wars on the whole was floundering as inferior TV shows like The Book of Boba Fett and Ahsoka disappointed fans and emboldened toxic trolls to attack Star Wars. Then there was the fact that the film franchise was essentially dead as many announced films never went into production, except for next year’s The Mandalorian and Grogu. Even recently, The Mandalorian fell out of favor with many fans because of its third season, which was not as well received as its first two seasons.

New Heights of Quality Star Wars Television

When the second season of Andor first streamed fans and critics applauded the show’s mature, sweeping and complex nature with its nuanced and well-developed characters that quickly generated memes and online discussion about the nature of defiance, sacrifice and societies.

What truly captured the hearts of fans were its story arcs devoted to the Ghorman Massacre and the final arc that wrapped up the story lines of many characters including Cassian Andor himself. The last time we see him, he was departing for what would be his final mission in Rogue One. A mission he never returned from. What made his final on screen moments so heartbreaking was the revelation in Andor’s final scene that he fathered a child that he would never know. And no, this child is not Poe Dameron from the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy.

What made Andor so great and unique was that it had no connection to the Jedi, the Sith, or the larger Star Wars/Skywalker saga. It instead focused on random, everyday people living regular lives and how the Empire affected them to either join the cause or support the Empire through simple acts that cascaded into mass movements that affected the galaxy.

It should be noted that Andor was not the only TV show to break out of the traditional Star Wars mold. Others like Skeleton Crew and The Acolyte gave us different stories that took place at different time periods and had little to do with the Skywalker Saga. However, they were not as regarded as highly as Andor.

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May 18 2025

Season Two Of Andor Proves It Is The Greatest Star Wars TV Show Of All

Andor just completed its second and final season on Disney + and it proved beyond question that it is the greatest Star Wars TV show ever presented. Some fans may complain that it is too slow or too adult or too unlike Star Wars, but they are missing the point. Andor demonstrates that Star Wars can be much more than action-oriented, near fantasy stories that are supposedly geared more to children. The IP is much more than that and Andor shows us the potential of what Star Wars can be.

The second season of Andor is broken up into three-episode arcs, with each arc taking place a year apart as the overall narrative counts down to the original Star Wars and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. As each arc progresses, we get to see how the complex characters develop and grow.

Among the great things about Andor are its rich characters starting with the title character himself, Cassian Andor (Diego Luna), a spy for the burgeoning Rebel Alliance. In the early years of the rebellion against the Galactic Empire, Andor travels through many worlds on spy missions to undermine the Empire. But in his heart, even though he detests the Empire, he wants to retire to a quiet life with his girlfriend, Bix Caleen (Adria Arjona), who is suffering from PTSD after being tortured by the Empire in the first season. Sadly, as anyone who has seen Rogue One knows, that is not to be for Cassian. Knowing Andor’s ultimate fate and the impact he will unknowingly have in the fight against the Empire makes his personal growth so compelling. We see that he has grown as a character since the first season. Back then, he largely looked out for himself and only through tragedies did he join the Rebellion. When we see him throughout the second season, Andor is now a polished spy who could blend into several environments as he pulls off capers like stealing advanced Imperial TIE fighters or doing reconnaissance in the tragic world of Ghorman, as it becomes a hotbed for unrest against the Empire.

It turned out that the storyline in Ghorman, which continued through two arcs, was the centerpiece of Andor. We get to see a rich culture that seemed vaguely European and an obvious stand-in for France during World War II with amateur spies and rebels facing a hopeless situation against the Empire. What made matters worse was that the unrest on Ghorman was orchestrated by the Empire just to create a media narrative that the populace was full of terrorists just so the planet could be mined for a mineral needed for the Death Star battle station. The entire storyline was an unsettling mirror and a damning commentary for our current situation where people blindly believe whatever narrative government officials tell them and the misuse of media.

The two-part story arc of Ghorman culminated in the so-called Ghorman massacre in the seventh episode as many brewing subplots came to a head. Several characters had cathartic encounters with each other, notably the Imperial bureaucrat Syril Karn (Kyle Soller), who was obsessed with finding and arresting Andor that was like Inspector Javert chasing after Jean Valjean. While Syril is a sniveling and insecure man, his storyline is quite captivating and is a grounded look at how civilians live in the age of the Galactic Empire. He was basically a nobody who was needled by his mother and only wanted to move up in middle management. What made his story interesting was that we see that he slowly began to sympathize with the Ghormans and that he was being manipulated by his girlfriend Dedra Meero (Denise Gough), an Imperial operative who was equally ambitious.

Deedra herself was obsessed with learning the identity of who she considered to be the mastermind behind the Rebellion: a person she called Axis. This turned out to be none other than Andor’s recruiter and mentor Luthen Rael (Stellan Skarsgard), a master spy who runs an antique shop in the Imperial capital world Coruscant and helped fund and coordinate the intelligence network for the Rebellion. Skarsgard gave what is probably the performance of his career as Luthen, a morally complex and mysterious operative who has no boundaries and will use anyone and any means to defeat the Empire. That is incredible considering how perfect the performances are from the other cast members, starting with Luna.

Getting back to the Ghorman Massacre, the incident in the episode “Who Are You?” was very disturbing and hammers home how evil the Empire is; they really are space Nazis who should not be admired. This incident turned out to be a turning point not just with the Galactic Civil War but with the destinies of many characters including Andor. As mentioned before, Andor played a critical role in the early days of the Rebellion. In the second season his most important contribution was when he went to Coruscant and extracted Mon Mothma (Genevieve O’Reilly), one of the few senators who spoke out against the Empire after the massacre and ended up becoming the leader of the Rebellion. The episode “Welcome to the Rebellion” is where Andor extracts her from Coruscant and it was very intense and rousing, especially in the scenes where she gives her speech to denounce the Empire and afterwards when Andor has to get her to safety. What made everything so heartbreaking for Andor was how everything ended for him personally after he succeeded. These developments helped set him up for his situation when we saw him in Rogue One.

A remarkable thing the second season of Andor did was seamlessly connect to Rogue One. The final episode of the series “Jedha, Kyber, Erso” felt like a countdown as many story arcs concluded and featured characters that would show up in the film. The entire series helps us look at the film in a new way when it comes to Andor as we now understand the strife he went through in life and the level of sacrifice he made for the cause. One story line that was never resolved was that of Cassian looking for his little sister. As shown in the first season, the two siblings were separated as children and his search for her when he was an adult set in place his involvement with the Rebellion and his destiny. In one tragic sequence, in the last moments of the last episode, Andor is still dreaming about her, and he never will find out what happened to his sister. That is how life goes unfortunately.

Grounded moments like Andor’s bitter memories, the tragic deaths of beloved characters, the bitter sacrifices made by most characters, and how characters weave in and out of each other’s lives are what set Andor apart from most television shows. It’s a miracle that the show’s creators like Tony Gilroy were given the freedom and the budget to present this masterpiece. It is also unfortunate that we only got two seasons of Andor as it was originally planned for five seasons, one can only wonder how much greater the series would have been.

But perhaps it is for the best that Gilroy decided to conclude the series as it probably helped him, and the other creators to focus on the complex stories and had the budget to develop these impressive worlds with rich cultures. Yes, the entire production was of movie quality and captivating. It is not known if Lucasfilm will ever greenlight a TV series like Andor again, but it should. It would be great to see other series focusing on other Rogue One characters like Chirrut and Baze or even Bodhi. But we are fortunate that at least we had Andor, which is not only the best Star Wars TV show of all time but one of the greatest TV shows of all time.

José Soto