Disney just released brand-new footage of upcoming Disney, Star Wars, and Marvel TV shows, including never-before-seen clips from Andor season 2 that feature an incredible TIE Avenger. Andor is largely considered one of Star Wars’ best shows, and Andor season 2 is among the most highly anticipated projects of Star Wars’ upcoming TV shows. Although details about Andor season 2 have been kept under wraps for the most part, these new clips from Disney reveal some of the exciting updates to come in the show’s second season.
One of the most exciting clips of those Disney just released includes Cassian Andor sitting in the cockpit of a TIE Avenger, a model of TIE fighter that was curiously discontinued in Star Wars. The video, posted to Star Wars’ official Instagram, shows Cassian’s friend Bix Caleen telling Cassian they need a pilot and cuts to Cassian in the Avenger, ready to take off. Although the exact plan Cassian and Bix have for this TIE Avenger is unclear, the appearance of the starfighter alone has fascinating implications for Andor season 2—and for the Empire.
The TIE Avenger Is Unlike Any TIE To Date
The TIE Avenger’s Features Make It So Much More Powerful
Although the TIE Avenger is not entirely new in Star Wars, this appearance in Andor season 2 marks the TIE Avenger’s on-screen introduction in Star Wars canon. The TIE Avenger did play a role in Legends, but in canon, it was only ever a prototype, and it hadn’t yet been shown in Star Wars movies and TV shows. In addition to this being an exciting update for the starfighter, it has major implications for Star Wars and raises some fascinating questions.
The TIE Avenger’s design is closest to Darth Vader’s TIE fighter, in that it is equipped with both shields and hyperdrive.
The TIE Avenger’s design is closest to Darth Vader’s TIE fighter, in that it is equipped with both shields and hyperdrive. These distinctions make the TIE Avenger much more difficult to destroy, which would have been incredibly helpful to the Empire. Not only did the TIE fighters’ lack of shields and hyperdrive give Imperial pilots a massive disadvantage compared to the Rebel fighters, but this design also meant that pilots would die rather than learn when in battle.
Despite the clear advantages of the TIE Avenger, the model was discontinued in Star Wars for unknown reasons. While certain elements of the design went on to influence other starfighters, such as Thrawn’s TIE Defender, the model itself was seemingly abandoned. This makes the Avenger’s appearance in the Andor season 2 footage all the more intriguing and exciting.
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The TIE Avenger’s Legends Origin
The TIE Avengers Played A Much More Significant Role In Legends
The TIE Avenger has a much more extensive history in Star Wars Legends, which reveals more about the intentions behind the Empire’s Avenger design in canon and offers some exciting hints about what could be to come in Andor season 2 regarding Cassian’s acquisition of the TIE Avenger. In Legends, the Avenger was created as a shift away from the Empire’s initial approach to TIE fighters. At first, the Empire prioritized making as many starfighters as possible rather than focusing on durability or overall quality.
This model of TIE fighter therefore represents an entirely new military strategy by the Empire—one that recognizes that brute force isn’t going to be enough to win. This no doubt became clearer to the Empire over time, as the Rebellion proved to be more than just a nuisance. Ultimately, even in Legends, the TIE Avenger was superseded by yet another of the TIE fighter variants, the TIE Defender.
Will Andor Explain Why The Empire Never Made A Fleet Of TIE Avengers?
Given The Abilities Of This TIE, It’s Odd They Weren’t Used
In addition to presumably giving Cassian a major leg up in his fight against the Empire, the inclusion of the TIE Avenger in Andor season 2 could finally answer a major Star Wars question: why didn’t the Empire make an entire fleet of TIE Avengers? Clearly, the Avenger’s design had a number of significant advantages, many of which the Empire desperately needed. Throughout the original Star Wars trilogy, the Empire’s lack of shields and general inability to defend itself were revealed to be weak points.
In light of that, it would make sense for a TIE model like the Avenger to be a priority, as it would have meant much better defenses for the pilots and therefore for the Empire more broadly. Possibly, Andor season 2 will reveal what precisely went wrong with the TIE Avengers (including, perhaps, Cassian stealing this one). Even if Star Wars leaves that question a mystery for now, though, it is genuinely exciting to know that a TIE Avenger is coming in Andor season 2.
Source: starwars
Diego Luna stars as Cassian Andor in Andor, a Disney+ exclusive series set five years before Rogue One. The series follows the titular character as he transitions from a humble thief to a revolutionary icon of the rebellion against the empire. Cassian, a man who tries to keep himself out of confrontations post the destruction of his world, is shoved into the central conflict as he naturally slots into the role of leader. Andor will explore the rebellion’s burgeoning days and highlight pivotal events in the Star Wars Franchise before the construction of the Death Star.
- Release Date
- September 21, 2022
- Seasons
- 1
- Writers
- Tony Gilroy , Dan Gilroy , Beau Willimon , Stephen Schiff
- Showrunner
- Tony Gilroy
- Filming Locations
- United Kingdom
- Number of Episodes
- 12