Thanks in large part to the high-profile video game adaptation of the hit RPG that boldly borrowed its name, cyberpunk science fiction has been hugely popular in recent years. As the general quality of life on Earth seems to continue its precipitous downfall, many people seem to dream of replacing their arms with guns and taking the fight to the corporations at fault.
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When the first five minutes of Andor take place in a rainy city, lit only by vibrant neon, it reminds the viewer of something. When the main character is chased into a dark alley by a pair of cops who he is forced to kill, the comparison comes into focus a little more. It’s really made clear when people start busting out the term “corpos” in spoken dialogue. A distinct future metropolis with oppressive authority figures in the villain role and private corporations as the overarching threat sure sounds like the go-to cyberpunk setting. The story, tone, and aesthetic frequently feels pulled from that unique subgenre. In a way that no other Star Wars project has ever embraced, Andor is taking some major notes from the world of cyberpunk fiction, and it isn’t hiding its influences.
The overwhelming majority of Star Wars projects are most comfortable in the world of science fantasy. The emphasis is on classic folkloric storytelling and the more militaristic aspects are in the setting and background. All the talk about wizards and destiny makes it tough to classify it as hard science fiction. There are exceptions. The Mandalorian forewent most of the magic in favor of a gritty space western vibe. It feels distinct and different from the tone of the larger franchise. This also applies to a show like The Bad Batch, which plays with more classic sci-fi ideas. However, these are the exceptions that prove the rule. Star Wars has always featured an evil empire and a daring rebellion. It’s always taken place in a world with robots, cyborgs, and highly advanced artificial intelligence. But, it’s never wandered quite as close to cyberpunk as Andor has.
The biggest argument against Andor as a work of cyberpunk science fiction is its conspicuous lack of actual cybernetic enhancements. Cassian appears to be 100% organic, as does pretty much every main character of the show. There are only three or four characters with any form of noticeable artificial parts. Saw Gerrera has a cybernetic leg and reinforced lungs, there’s an alien doctor named Quadpaw who has a robotic headset, and a pair of aliens require robotic breathing apparatuses. Beyond those mostly cybernetic parts, there’s very little cybernetic representation. No one is using built-in weapons or modifying their own bodies. However, cyberpunk is about more than cool robot limbs. Andor may not have all the hallmarks, but it definitely feels at home in the subgenre.
Cyberpunk is the melding of low life and high tech. It’s about people struggling to survive, using everything they have to oppose the monstrous systems that keep them underfoot. That opposition usually takes the form of hacking and violence, but it doesn’t have to. The heroes of Andor don’t hack into the Empire’s servers to steal their payroll, as they might in a William Gibson novel, but they still oppose the authority despite impossible odds. The nightmarish prison that Andor finds himself trapped in might not perform surgery on its victims, but it’s still a technocratic panoptic factory that turns humans into functions. They may not use the same methods as a cyberpunk protagonist, but they come from the same places and pursue the same goals. The spirit is alive in the structure of the story. It’s the ethos of cyberpunk delivered through the used future aesthetic that Star Wars is known for.
Andor could still show off some robotic limbs, neural implants, or an equivalent interconnected Netscape, but it really doesn’t have to. It may be light on cybernetics, but it’s as punk as Star Wars may ever get. The show places the never-ending war between the Rebels and the Empire in the context it deserves. The power of cyberpunk is in its message. Andor communicates its action in much the same way, even though its characters don’t use the same methods. Through obvious inspiration and tonal similarities, Andor earns a spot among the very limited ranks of cyberpunk TV shows. This development for the Star Wars franchise is both a natural evolution for the ongoing story and a shocking new horizon that no one could have seen coming.
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