I binge-watched Andor seasons 1 and 2 and then watched Rogue One the next day.
It is absolutely AWESOME TV. Rogue One is actually a better movie after watching Andor. Mission accomplished, Melshi.
It’s the most engaging and impactful Star Wars I’ve ever seen, and shows how the non-space wizards fought to grow the Rebellion. (Not to disparage space wizards, but regular people are interesting too.)
The writing, acting, cinematography, special effects, score, and costumes are all fantastic. The grittiness and mature themes of the show are unlike anything else in Star Wars. They make a planning session at the ISB an incredibly interesting thing to watch. (To be fair, they were discussing how to pacify a planet so they could mine it for a mineral needed to complete the Death Star. They settled on a combination of mass murder and propaganda.)
I think Luthen Rael is the most interesting character in all of Star Wars. I didn’t think a member of the Rebellion could be so cold and calculating. In season 2 we get to see what he meant by “I’m condemned to use the tools of my enemy, to defeat them.” Stellan Skarsgard knocks it out of the park.
The rest of the cast (and it’s a huge cast) all do excellent work.
There’s a ton of interesting characters, but I especially enjoyed Kleya, Luthen’s assistant, Mon Mothma, Senator turned Rebel leader, and Syril, the galaxy’s best useful idiot.
The only bad thing about Andor is that it’s only 24 episodes (and a movie). Somehow I doubt Disney will make anything else like it.
I see why they “aired” season 2 in 3-episode blocks, as after each block they jump ahead one year. The final episode takes place hours before the main story of Rogue One starts.