Star Wars in the Disney era has been inconsistent most of the time. It’s hit highs such as the first two seasons of the Mandaloria. It’s sunk to terrible lows such as the Rise of Skywalker. I’m an old school fan. I love the Original Trilogy and mostly like the Prequel Trilogy, although it’s a bit clunky. And I despise the mess that was made of the Sequel Trilogy and the wasted potential. The Empire Strikes Back has been my favorite Star Wars production since I first saw it in the 1980s. The depth of character and nuance of story come together to tell something dark and brooding, yet full of hope.

“Rebellions are built on hope.”

In December 2016, just after Trump’s first electoral victory, Disney and Lucasfilm released their second Star Wars movie. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story tied into the larger events of the Star Wars universe, but it focused on new characters and featured a story only hinted at in the opening crawl of 1977’s Star Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope. There were a few legacy characters along for the ride, but they were mostly supporting and cameo roles. This was not part of the Skywalker Saga. It wasn’t wholly original, but it dared to be different.

Rogue One includes references to the Jedi and the Force, but you will find no lightsaber-wielding space wizard here. This is not the tale of the leaders of the Rebellion, Senators and Generals and Jedi Knights. This is a story of the ground-level resistance that saved the galaxy with blood and sacrifice. Captain Cassian Andor is the closest thing we have to a big-wig in the Rebellion, and even he takes his orders from superiors at Rebel Intelligence. In fact, Cassian might be the best new character in the Star Wars franchise since Ahsoka in the Clone Wars cartoon. Possibly better.

In fact, Cassian is such a good character, and the mystery surrounding his past is so compelling, that Disney and Lucasfilm saw fit to create a prequel series for Disney+, headed up by the man who many argue saved Rogue One from mediocrity, Tony Gilroy. Gilroy and Cassian actor Diego Luna have brought us Andor, the story of the beginnings of the Rebellion. We follow Cassian, his friends, Senator Mon Mothma of Chandrila, and several members of Imperial Intelligence across the galaxy as their stories weave in and out of one another. Andor, like Rogue One, is tense and exciting, in part because you know all of these characters have a fate to meet. This show is a compelling spy story set against the backdrop of galactic politics.

And as much as I enjoyed the political ideas bandied about in the Prequel Trilogy, what we get in Andor is much more subtle and sublime. Where the Prequels used politics like a sledgehammer to make a point, Andor is an iron fist wrapped in a velvet glove. It can be hard at times, but this show – and the original movie – has a lot to say about resisting fascism, even when it’s uncomfortable. It’s something with which I struggle now as I see my fellow Americans losing their rights and their lives before my eyes. I speak out, but will it be enough.

I often wonder.

I’ll talk more about Andor once the season wraps in a couple week. Go watch it and Rogue One, and May the 4th Be With You.