Wow, I think this is a first.

Watching Andor before Rogue One simultaneously enriches the experience but also makes the film pale in comparison.

Enriches because suddenly you actually care about these people, which ittedly was always a weakness with Rogue One. I cheered when Cassian called out Melshi. The slight smile Mon Mothma makes when she finds out that iral Raddus took a fleet out to Scarif is magnified x 1000 knowing everything she's been through. Everything K2SO says gets louder laughs. Krennic getting force choked by Vader is so much more satisfying after everything he did to Partagaz and Dedra. Cassian actually feels like he shares this movie with Jyn now. REBELLIONS ARE BUILT ON HOPE means so much more now because it came from the Ghorman bellhop! Even Saw Gerrera's demise made me a little sad, and I hate Forest Whitaker's performance in this movie!

Pales because without Andor's ideology, this is pretty much another Star Wars shoot-em-up movie. The tragedy, the complicated ways rebellions work, the underlining of "what are we fighting for" are absent in this film. In fact, it works better if you look at this as a two-hour epic finale to the series, a la Game of Thrones, because then it feels all of that is one with this. Props to Gareth Edwards though because this shit is incredibly shot (also because he worked with Gilroy on reshoots, putting his ego aside).

I watched this again because of Andor, and now I want to continue on to A New Hope. Times like these I am reminded of how much I truly loved that Galaxy Far, Far Away; how it built worlds I would want to revisit again and again with characters I genuinely cared about. I haven’t felt that since… A Long Time Ago.