Andor Season 1 Finale Credit Scene Explained: A Big, Direct Star Wars Connection
The time has come for us to say goodbye to "Andor," at least for now. Indeed, after 12 blisteringly gritty episodes of "Star Wars" television, the first season is in the books and a great many of us are already impatiently counting the days until season 2 arrives. In the meantime, that season 1 finale left us with much to discuss, helping to set the table for what's to come when the show returns. Specifically, we need to talk about that post-credits scene and what that means for you, dear viewer, in the future. And yes, there is a little post-credits scene, so those who may have missed it would do well to go back and watch it right now. So buckle up, because we're taking a trip to spoiler town.
Warning: major spoilers ahead for the "Andor" season 1 finale. Proceed with caution.
Coming right out and saying it
Much of the first season of "Andor" avoided overt familiarity in terms of the larger "Star Wars" universe. Aside from our lead character, Diego Luna's Cassian Andor, who we first met in "Rogue One," and Mon Mothma, a somewhat minor character who has been around in some capacity since the original trilogy, it's been new territory. New characters, new planets, new looks at the Rebellion and Empire. It's not a show for cameos or Easter eggs. It's a "Star Wars" show, but not one that feels the need to remind us of the past all that often. That is, until that post-credits scene rolls around.
The scene in question kicks off with little droids doing work on massive machinery. It's only when the camera pans out that we realize just how massive that machinery is. When we pull out a bit further, we come to find that it's actually the gigantic main cannon being built for the Death Star, which we get a look at as well. The main structure of the Empire's big, secret weapon looks mostly complete, with its greatest weapon well underway. The big thing that started it all in 1977 when "A New Hope" was released has once again returned to a galaxy far, far away.
While "Andor" played its connections to the larger galaxy with subtlety, fans did connect some dots. It very much seemed like the prison that Cassian was in for the middle of the season prior to the breakout in "One Way Out" was having the prisoners work on parts for the Death Star. They didn't come out and say it, but it felt like that when reading between the lines. Well, now they have come right out to say it. This is the Empire's big project, and this is why all of those prisoners were so necessary.
All roads lead to Rogue One
So, what does all of this mean? What impact does that season have on "Andor" season 2? While the Death Star may be in the past for most of us, it's very much a part of the future in this show's timeline. The entirety of "Rogue One" is centered on the Rebels discovering the Death Star and hatching a plan to destroy it, which, in turn, tees up the ball for "A New Hope."
Luckily, I recently had the good future of speaking with showrunner Tony Gilroy following the season 1 finale. As such, I got to ask him about the post-credits scene and to what degree that will impact the events of season 2. So, straight from the man in charge, here we go:
"Well, where is [Cassian] going? By the end, the first scene of "Rogue [One]" is him going off to go to the Rings of Kafrene to try to chase down the rumor about this thing. What does Tivik say to him, man? 'There's a weapon.' They're building a weapon. What kind of weapon? A planet killer. All roads lead to that scene. Now, that's not entirely what our show is going to be about. People don't know the existence of it, do they? Some people do. Krennic does. The people in the ISB. Very few of them might. But all roads are ultimately leading to 'Rogue One.'"
Now, did this show absolutely need to show us the Death Star? Might it have been better to have left this dangling rather than stated explicitly? That's really more up to the individual to decide but, as Gilroy puts it, this is all building up to "Rogue One" and, as it exists, that means all roads lead to the Death Star.
"Andor" season 1 is now streaming on Disney+.