It’s A Miracle Star Wars’ Rebellion Existed, And Saw Gerrera Proves It
Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for Andor episode 8Because of extremist leaders like Saw Gerrera (played by Forest Whitaker in Andor and Rogue One), it’s a true miracle that the Rebel Alliance ever formed in the Star Wars galaxy at all. As seen in Andor, Luthen Rael (Stellan Skarsgård) does his best to convince Saw to join forces with another resistance group, but Saw has zero interest. Instead, Saw confirms how many individual groups and various pockets of rebellion exist in the galaxy, fighting but lacking any kind of unity. As such, leaders like Saw prove just how much of a critical figure Luthen will continue to become in his mission to make the Alliance a reality.
In Andor episode 8, Saw believes only he has the clarity of purpose to achieve victory over the Empire, even though his lack of vision for a long-term goal proves why the odds were stacked against the Rebellion from the start. Although they want to hurt the Empire any way they can, Saw and his Partisans are not nearly strong enough to end the entire Empire altogether like Luthen hopes to achieve. However, Gerrera confirms just how many obstacles exist before an Alliance can fully form. Because of pride and differing philosophies, it’s implied Saw isn’t the only resistance leader resisting the idea of a true Rebel Alliance.
Following Luthen’s prompting that Saw join with another leader named Anto Kreegyr to take down another Imperial facility neither could destroy alone, Gerrera wishes to remain independent. He also doesn’t have a very high opinion of Kreegyr who is a known Separatist. He then gives several other names of resistance cells in the galaxy: « Maya Pei’s a Neo-Republican, the Ghorman Front, the Partisan Alliance! Sectorists? Human cultists? Galaxy partionists! They’re lost! They’re all lost! » In Saw’s view of things, these various groups and their differing ideologies prove an Alliance will never be possible.
While Saw points out the challenge of unifying so many groups who all have different tactics and perspectives on what should come after the Empire, none are big enough to actually make an Empire-free galaxy a reality. On top of that, not every group should be allied with in the first place simply because they hate the Empire. Ironically, Saw Gerrera and his Partisans are the perfect examples. Their tactics will prove to be incredibly effective as the Alliance starts to find its footing (presuming Luthen persuades Saw to cooperate). However, Rogue One reveals that Saw and the Alliance will eventually part ways due to his extreme tactics such as torture and endangering civilian settlements. It’s not just about finding people willing to fight, hence the miracle that the Alliance ever formed and/or didn’t fall apart once it did.
While he might be an enigma to leaders like Saw, Andor episode 8 proves through Gerrera that Luthen Rael will become a massively critical figure responsible for birthing the Alliance itself. Whether it’s motivating political figures like Senator Mon Mothma for funding, installing spies and networks across the galaxy to contact various cells and initiate raids, or doing all he can to foster unity between rebel cells, it’s all in the service of winning the war, not just winning individual battles like Saw. Luthen believes « oppression breeds rebellion », standing by his hope that he can convince enough leaders to join forces for the Galactic Civil War he’s actively trying to start. By all accounts, the Rebel Alliance had the odds stacked against it and shouldn’t have existed, though Andor’s Luthen will seemingly be the man who makes it happen anyway as the Star Wars series continues.
New episodes of Andor release on Wednesdays on Disney+.
