Hopefully by now you’ve been on the cosmic conflict ride that is season 1 of “Andor.” This is NOT your typical “Star Wars” fare, and that’s what makes it so damn special. Taking it’s cues from “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” “Andor” really sets the tinder for the fire of the Rebellion. Led by Diego Luna returning as Cassian Andor, the series from showrunner Tony Gilroy absolutely surpassed all expectations.
Yes, it’s political. Yes, it’s dark and at times depressing. But it has to be to get us to the next step in the saga.
One standout scene everyone is talking about comes from the finale. Fiona Shaw‘s wonderful character Maarva, Cassian’s adoptive mother and rebel instigator, has passed away. A funeral procession for her is held through the streets of Ferrix. It’s a moment that borrows, one could argue, from the history of Irish rebels and the spectacle of those funerals.
A hologram is displayed, sharing Maarva’s final words with the assembled musicians (those were real, playable instruments by the way) and mourners. A true rallying cry, the end of the speech includes the words “Fight the Empire.” But apparently, that ISN’T what Maarva originally said.
According to Denise Gough, who plays Imperial Security Bureau Officer Dedra Meero, Fiona Shaw originally uttered “FUCK the Empire.” (Tony Gilroy also confirmed this.) For obvious *cough* Disney *cough* reasons, the line was changed.
“At the end, she didn’t say, ‘Fight the Empire!’ She said, ‘Fuck the Empire!’ Which we were all really excited about. But we weren’t allowed to keep it, obviously,” Gough told Empire Magazine.
We’re kind of torn. Sure, using a word of that magnitude would again really drive home the fervor of Maarva, ‘fuck’ isn’t “Star Wars.” On the other hand, in “Andor,” we hear the absolutely not galaxy far, far away word ‘shit’ several times. So why NOT just go that extra level?
Regardless, it’s a powerful sequence. We can’t wait to see what Gilroy et all have in store for us in season 2 of “Andor,” which is filming now. Catch season 1 on Disney+ now.
