After 12 episodes, Disney Plus’ Cassian Andor series has come to a close and there’s a lot to talk about. The season finale ends with a post-credit scene, and we’re here to break it down.
WARNING: This article contains spoilers from Andor.
After Cassian Andor’s imprisonment on Narkina 5 and the subsequent revelation that the prisoners were making hundreds of parts for an unknown Imperial project, Andor’s post-credit scene has finally revealed that these parts will become part of the Death Star. Some might think this is just a nice Easter egg reference back to the events of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, but this connection to the Death Star has implications for not only Andor season 2 but also the Star Wars galaxy as a whole.
How does Andor’s post-credit scene impact the Star Wars Galaxy?
The Death Star was the original big bad in the Star Wars galaxy and with good reason. We see its destructive magnitude released on multiple occasions that created a cascading wave of fear that almost stopped the Rebellion cold. But the use of prisoner labor, and especially prisoners that are going to be kept in prison infinitely, gives us an insight into the limitations of such an overwhelming project.
While most inside the empire, including the emperor himself and Grand Moff Tarkin, were key supporters of the project, it was not without its detractors. Grand Adrimal Thrawn was one of the few to be outspoken in his critiques of the project, primarily because of the resources that it pulled away from his TIE Defender project.
The use of prisoner labor and these massive facilities show a level of production that is unprecedented anywhere else in the current Star Wars canon (yep, that means the Star Forge is out). But the choice to use prisoners is a key indicator of the empire’s desperation. As Nemik said in his manifesto, “tyranny requires constant effort.” This constant effort from everyone involved caused many of the delays that we heard Vader critique Director Krennic so harshly for in Rogue One. Given the massive size of the project, and the desperate use of prison labor the design flaws inherent to the Death Star seem much more plausible for the skeptics of Galen Erso.
What could the post-credit scene mean for Andor season 2?
Andor season 2 is currently filming, and a sizable amount of information is already known because of interviews with Tony Gilroy. Even with what we know, it is easy to see that a project the size of the Death Star would not escape Luthen very long.
At the beginning of Rogue One, we can clearly see Cassian looking for answers about this big project. As much as the audience of the show wants to know about those mysterious parts, wouldn’t Luthen and Andor want to know as well? Given the time jump that is set to happen between seasons 1 and 2, it will be interesting to see just how much Luthen and Cassain find out about Project Stardust, and how much they will be able to uncover with Andor’s previous experience in Narkina 5.
Andor is now streaming exclusively on Disney+. Be sure to check out all of our coverage of the series, including episode recaps, reviews, and more.