Though it's only three episodes deep at the time of writing, Star Wars: Andor has done quite a lot to differentiate itself from the other Disney+ Star Wars shows. In some ways, this is rather small, such as the style of dialogue being a little more mature. However, there are other areas in which the difference is much more noticeable, like how the series seems to be entirely self-contained in a way that The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett sometimes weren't.
Either way, Andor is shaping up to be one of the more unique Star Wars projects to appear on Disney Plus. It's rather fitting considering that Rogue One is itself often touted by fans as being one of the standout movies in the franchise for one reason or another. Here are a few of the things that make Andor stand out from other Star Wars shows.
6 Zero Use of The Volume
Unlike every other Disney Plus Star Wars show thus far, Andor does not make use of the famous Volume stage. For those that are still (amazingly) unaware, the volume is a large LED screen that shows the environment of whatever scene is being filmed, using the Unreal Engine. For Star Wars, this is important because it's set on alien planets much of the time.
So, for example, if a Star Wars show had a scene set on Mustafar, rather than have the actors work in front of a blank green or blue screen, the actors would instead be working in front of a screen showing the planet Mustafar on it. Series creator Tony Gilroy, however, has intentionally opted out of using this technology. This means that the show instead relies on mostly practical sets and a bit of green screen.
5 Gritty Direction
Andor is looking like a much dirtier show than the other Star Wars series on Disney Plus. Not just in its set design (which is positively filthy in all the right ways), the shot composition, performances, and action sequences are arguably at their most down-to-earth as they've ever been in Star Wars.
The Mandalorian is the closest comparison, but even it had the occasional crazy stunt or CGI action sequence (not that these are bad things). However, Andor is extremely no-nonsense by comparison. The fighting has weight, blasters and explosions are impactful, and performances aren't particularly over the top. All of this contributes toward making the show feel more unique.
4 Lack of Fan Service
While all three of the previous Star Wars shows were somewhat heavy on fan service, the makers of Andor have decided to tone things back. In fact, Cassian himself is the only returning character. Everyone else is a new character made specifically for the show. Even many (if not all) of the aliens are new. Ironically this has the effect of making the universe feel bigger, by not tying the show into something that people have seen before.
Seeing Luke Skywalker or Ashoka Tano is certainly cool, although, at a certain point it makes the universe feel smaller than it should. Seeing the same group of characters over and over again wastes the potential that such a wide universe has. Thankfully, Star Wars: Andor is choosing to embrace this wider universe rather than attempt to emulate its predecessors.
3 The Language Filter
Star Wars is not known for having a lot of swearing from its characters. In fact, between the nine movies only two real swear words can be heard, and they're both uttered in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Now to be fair, there are tons of made-up swear words in the shows and movies that function as substitutes for real-world profanity. However, they obviously don't carry the same weight.
Andor flips the script on this and introduces some pretty heavy swearing from some of its characters. It isn't quite The Boys level of profanity, but it's definitely significant for a Star Wars show. It's possible this was done in order to help ground the characters and the show to make it feel a little more adult-oriented than the franchise normally leans.
2 Musical Score
Star Wars: Andor noticeably lacks that classic musical style that is associated with the franchise. Granted, The Mandalorian was the first to deviate from this style with its own western-infused score, but Andor takes a different approach. This time the music is more somber but with an underlying tension that fits the espionage angle.
It lacks the bombast that Star Wars is known for even during its most action-heavy moments and instead builds toward emotional crescendos to give key scenes that extra punch. Even when compared to Rogue One, Andor's music goes the extra mile in differentiating itself from Star Wars' traditional sound.
1 No Skywalker Connection
Pretty much every Star Wars show thus far has been connected to the Skywalker family in some way. Not Star Wars: Andor, though. Both The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett saw Luke Skywalker himself make an appearance as a Jedi master, while Kenobi featured both him and his twin sister, Leia, as children.
Andor, on the other hand, has not and is not anticipated to include any references to these characters at all. While some fans may be lamenting this, many have cited their "Skywalker fatigue," arguing that Star Wars instead ought to move on from their story and expand the scope of the universe. It seems extremely likely that Star Wars: Andor will be taking this feedback to heart.
Andor airs new episodes every Wednesday on Disney Plus.