WARNING: The following contains SPOILERS for Andor Season 1, Episode 4.
Andor returned with a bang this week, and a fan favorite character seems to have made a cameo.
Episode 4 follows Luthen Rael, played by Stellan Skarsgård, as he returns to his double-life on Coruscant. When he isn’t running operations for the Rebellion, we discover that Rael is running a store of historical artifacts as a front for is clandestine operations.
This is where we are first introduced to Mon Mothma in this series. The Senator is there under the guise of picking out a gift for her husband. While the two are walking around, we get a peak at several different easter eggs. However, there is one that stood out among the rest.
In the background, there is a set of armor that will look very familiar to Legends fans. Galen Marek, or Starkiller, was the main character of The Force Unleashed series of video games. Marek was the son of a Jedi killed during the Purge, and he was raised as a secret apprentice to Darth Vader. Galen ended up dying (multiple times) and was foundational in the creation of the Rebel Alliance in Legends.
The character was voice acted by, and modeled after, Sam Witwer. In addition to his role in these games, he is also well-known by Star Wars fans for his rendition of Darth Maul in the various animated series. Witwer also recently narrated the audiobook for the Legends novel Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter.
Although the helmet in Andor was identical to his in the game, the rest of the armor differed slightly. It had a shoulder pauldron that resembled that worn by Clone ARC troopers.
Although Marek has not appeared officially in canon, his role in the Empire is similar to that of the Inquisitors featured in Rebels and Obi-Wan Kenobi. It remains to be seen whether he will appear in canon, or if this was just a nod to the fans. The vast majority of the first game takes place around 2 BBY, which is 3 years after Andor currently.
Even if it is just an easter egg, it is very fitting to have an inspiration for the Legends Rebels be featured in a show about the early days of the movement in canon. Cassian himself, and the rest of the Rogue One crew, serve a similar role after their sacrifice on Scarif. It will be exciting to see what other prominent easter eggs we see throughout the series.
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