I truly never thought that Star Wars movies and TV shows, in large part because it pulled none of its punches. On the contrary, Andor season 2, even more so than Andor season 1, represented the true brutalities of oppression and the sacrifices that are required during a revolution.
This was far from the first time Star Wars had depicted such things. In fact, war, oppression, and rebellion have been key themes from the very beginning, and that has persisted throughout nearly all eras of Star Wars' best TV shows, if not the single best. It was compelling to finally see realistic, boots-on-the-ground representations of rebellion and the threat of the Empire—but that shockingly also led to a moment even darker than Order 66 on the Star Wars screen.
Order 66 Used To Be Star Wars' Most Gruesome Event
Star Wars Has Increasingly Added To The Horror Of This Attack
When Order 66 was first shown in Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, it was truly shocking. It was evident that some major catastrophe happened to the Jedi between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope, given so few Jedi remained in the original trilogy, but the extent of the violence was jarring. It would have been bad enough to see so many full-fledged Jedi cut down, but seeing even the younglings murdered (some of whom were killed by Anakin Skywalker himself) was another level.
Star Wars has since made this even worse with shows like Star Wars: The Bad Batch, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and especially Obi-Wan Kenobi, which all showed the horrible massacre in even greater detail—including a closer look at Anakin cutting down the younglings. Given how horrific this mass killing was, and how much worse it's gotten over the years, it seemed doubtful Star Wars would ever depict something worse and more gruesome than this. However, one event from Andor season 2 somehow managed to be even more horrifying than Order 66.
Star Wars: Every Jedi Who Survived Order 66 (In Canon)
Clone Protocol Order 66 caused once-loyal Clone troopers in Star Wars to wipe out the Jedi, but a handful managed to survive this initial purge.
The Ghorman Massacre Was So Much More Horrifying
Watching Peaceful Innocents Gunned Down Was Absolutely Brutal
Image via Disney+
Although Order 66 remains one of the most horrible events in Star Wars, Andor season 2's Ghorman Massacre proved even more horrifying. During this event, peaceful protesters on Ghorman were effectively mass executed by stormtroopers, droids, and Imperials. The scenes depicting this event also showed in gruesome detail just how brutal these killings were. In addition to being gunned down by blasters, several people were simply picked up and thrown down or thrown at walls by droids, dying on impact.
The scenes depicting this event also showed in gruesome detail just how brutal these killings were.
What made this all the more disturbing was the fact that, when the attack began, the Ghor had switched from chanting to simply singing a song that was meaningful to their people and to their culture. This juxtaposition of the peaceful protest and the beautiful song with the ruthless violence of the Empire was shocking. Yes, seeing the Jedi, especially the younglings, killed during Order 66 was horrible, but seeing the innocent people of Ghorman killed off for no reason other than the Empire needing resources from their planet (particularly in this level of detail) was so much worse.
It Was Crucial For This Massacre To Be This Horrific
We Had To See The Ugliest Truths Of The Empire
Ultimately, it was critical for Star Wars to represent the Ghorman Massacre in this way. From the beginning of Star Wars, it's of course been clear that the Empire was evil. That was evident enough in their willingness to blow up the entire planet of Alderaan in the blink of an eye. Yet, Andor was particularly focused on showing the real impact on everyday people and the violence and cruelty toward even citizens who were not overtly part of the Rebel Alliance.
To fully deliver this message, Andor had to show this violence in a way that the original Star Wars trilogy never did (including with the destruction of Alderaan in A New Hope, as that happened from a distance). In the end, Andor more than pulled this off, proving just how heartless, insidious, and cruel the Empire was through this massacre. Although Order 66 will always be among Star Wars' darkest moments, Andor did what seemingly seemed to be the impossible and presented an event even more disturbing.
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