https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oD2_T1Ad0uY

Beautiful music. Especially the part that starts at 2:25.

I'm gonna bump this because no one has mentioned it.  I started playing the game about a month ago and it's been a long, long time since I played a game that was this much fun.  It took me back to my childhood and I had the dumbest grin on my face the whole time.  The story wasn't anything particularly special, but it wasn't bad either.  The combat and gameplay work well and the unforgivable curses were an unexpected surprise.  I think Sebastian's missions were the best part, story wise.  I( really enjoy flying around on my hippogriff and the graphorn was a lot more fun than I thought it would be for a ground mount.  All in all, a great game.  I

I dunno, I'm starting to think new Star Wars just isn't for me. I keep finding the writing really weak, especially if legacy characters are involved, and Ahsoka is no exception. I really wish they'd stop splitting their storylines up between shows, I keep being confused and then a friend says "oh yeah, that changed in episode 5 of the Boba Fett show". I mean, the Season 2 finale of Mandalorian and the Season 3 premiere are so disjointed that they literally don't function as a cohesive narrative going from one to the other back to back. (I can't really go into detail without spoiling, but they are flagrantly contradictory.)

Sorry, I know I'm supposed to be talking about Ahsoka. I only watched the pilot, but the new Sith pair were the most generic villains I've seen in years. Protagonists make moronic decisions to keep the plot moving, the morals are paper-thin (after seeing Andor spend its whole season analyzing the nuanced nature of loyalty, bureaucracy, propaganda, raised values, and the complexity of human motivations and mentality, seeing Ahsoka try their hand with "How can they still be loyal to the Empire?" "It's not loyalty...it's greed" was like pivoting from F. Scott Fitzgerald to a 5th-grade remedial essay.) I also didn't watch Rebels back in the day so any references or plots carried forward from that show mean nothing to me.

This show was kinda the final straw, I'm probably not going to watch any new Star Wars stuff going forward unless there's a very generous factor in its favor.

Baylan and Shin aren't Sith.  They actually have complex motivations and histories that are expanded upon in the later episodes.  Frankly, I wish they, along with Thrawn, had been the villains of the sequel trilogy.  They're among the most interesting and complex characters we've gotten from Disney Star Wars.  Baylan in particular reminds me a lot of Count Dooku.  The villains in this show make the First Order look like a bunch of chumps.  At this point, I'm more invested in them than the heroes of the show. 

My thoughts on Star Wars content from the last decade:  And this is gonna contain spoilers so be warned. 

Clone Wars: Some episodes were hit or miss, but overall the quality was incredible.  This show made me love characters that I couldn't stand in the Prequel Trilogy.  Of particular note are the "Mortis" arch, the "Order 66" arc, the return of a certain sith lord, the "Mandalor" arc and the last few episodes of Season 7.

Rebels: While a lot more "kid friendly" and lighthearted, this was still a good show.  I particularly loved Kana Jarrus and his character development.  He's become one of my favorite Jedi characters.

The Bad Batch: I love this shows.  It shows an atypical family who still very much think of each other as family.  While it can be goofy at times, it still has a lot of heart and the members of the Bad Batch all have a lot of personality.  I look forward to Season 2 in January.

The Mandalorian: This is some of the best live-action content we've gotten from Disney.  The relationship between Din and Grogu is amazing and heartwarming and the show has a lot of good action and set pieces.  Of particular note is the episode "The Believer".  Bill Burr, despite being a controversial comedian, gave a heartfelt performance as a traumatized war veteran haunted by his past that added a great deal of depth to his character.  I just wish Ahsoka had been given a better introduction in the show.  I watched it with my dad and had to explain who Ahsoka was. 

The Book of Boba Fett: Ironically, the show I was looking forward to the most turned out to be the least good.  While I didn't hate the show, and even enjoyed a lot of it, it was a hot mess.  Boba being relegated to a side character in his own series didn't help either.  It wasn't bad.  It just wasn't very good.

Obi Wan Kenobi: Another one I was hyped for only to be let down by.  Again, there were aspects of the show I really liked, and it was great to see Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christenson reprise their roles, but this show could have been SOOO much better.  I classic waste of wasted potential.  It feels more like a fan film than an actual canon entry. 

The Sequel Trilogy: What sequel trilogy?

Rogue One: This is hands-down the best Star Wars movie we've gotten from Disney.  K2 is the best droid in any Star Wars movie, the movie's theme of sacrifice and hope, and one of the best Darth Vader scenes ever, make this a worthy entry in the Star Wars lore. 

Solo: I don't feel like this movie deserves the hate that it gets.  While it may be the prequel no one asked for, it was still a decent movie.  I feel like a lot of the flak it got was backdraft from "The Last Jedi".  It certainly isn't great, but it's not horrible and I had fun watching it. 

This all brings us to Andor:  I'm just gonna come out and say it.  This is the best Star Wars work we've gotten from Disney in terms of quality.  Yes, it even surpasses "The Mandalorian".  This show doesn't rely on fan service.  We don't need space wizards with laser swords for this show to work and that's why it's special. 

As I previously stated, this probably isn't a show that children would enjoy, but it's very mature and well-crafted nature put it right up there with "Game of Thrones" imo.  Of note is the lack of filler.  Even "The Mandalorian" had filler episodes.  Every episode of "Andor" is important to the overall plot. 

While the show is slow-paced and has a lot of talking (which is still quite good) there are also some big payoffs.  The Aldhani heist, prison break and Ferrix riot were all great action scenes. 

The show really delves into the totalitarian nature of the Empire and the consequences it has for the common citizen.  We see Cassian being arrested by a power-tripping stormtrooper just for being in the wrong place at the wrong time, for which he is basically sentenced to a lifetime of slavery in a penal colony. 

Nemik's manifesto about freedom being a pure ideal and how attempts to stifle it naturally lead to rebellion, and totalitarian regimes being fragile rings true even in real life.  As do Cassian's words about how "power doesn't panic".  I could point out any number of examples of that in real life but I'm not going to. 

Maarva's recorded speech at her funeral was powerful and moving.  As was the riot that followed.  Brasso clocking an Imperial in the head with the brick made from Maarva's ashes was both awesome and hilarious, as was the Time Grappler Sparta-punting a stormtrooper off his tower. 

I feel like Disney didn't expect Andor to be successful, so they kept their hands off of it and as a result we got a much more sincere product without the executive meddling.  I eagerly look forward to season 2.

Season finale is coming up here soon.

Also I heard the season finale is gonna be nearly an hour long.

Another commission I got from Arven92 featuring Windstrider and his son looking out over Grand Teton National Park.  Windstrider always gave off "Mufasa" vibes, hence the Lion King inspired picture.
 

I don't need my childhood to be raped by this.  How is this even being made?  I thought Disney owned the movie rights.

I totally missed my own birthday.  Meh. 

It's an incredibly powerful scene that makes up for every shortcoming that the show had, IMO.  I enjoyed the show as a whole but it did have its faults.  Still, that one scene made it all worth it.  One thing to note is that it absolves Obi Wan of his guilt and grants him peace.  Obi Wan really did try his best for Anakin and it wasn't his fault that Anakin went down the path that he did.  It is only after Obi Wan finds peace within himself and lets go of his negative feelings that he is able to talk to Qui-Gon because he is now a true Jedi again.   

It adds a lot of context to some lines from the original trilogy.

"He's more machine now than man: twisted and evil." Obi Wan to Luke.

"Obi Wan once thought as you did." Darth Vader to Luke.

Obi Wan calls Vader "Darth" in A New Hope because he's accepted that Anakin is dead.