Warning! This text comprises spoilers for Andor episode 4.
Andor breaks a Star Wars franchise pattern by displaying the extra frequent components of the Imperial army and largely eschewing the long-lasting Stormtroopers. Given their prominence within the authentic Star Wars trilogy, it’s affordable to understand Stormtroopers because the Empire’s normal foot troopers, however the lore of each Star Wars canon and Legends clarifies that they’re an elite and specialised unit who’re deployed on the Empire’s most crucial battlefronts. Andor’s smaller scale and emphasis on the extra mundane components of each the Rebels and the Empire signifies that different Imperial army items are, appropriately, proven extra usually than Stormtroopers.
Whereas Stormtroopers are elite troopers who instantly implement the need of Emperor Palpatine, the Empire’s primary foot troopers are Imperial Army Troopers. In Star Wars Legends, the Imperial Army and Stormtrooper Corps are separate army branches, however in canon the Stormtrooper Corps is a specialised department of the Imperial Army, sustaining the separation of the 2 sorts of troopers. Whereas Imperial Army Troopers are extra frequent all through the Empire’s territory than Stormtroopers, they’re not often proven within the Star Wars films themselves, with solely Return of the Jedi and Solo: A Star Wars Story that includes them on Endor and Mimban, respectively.
Andor episode 4, “Aldhani,” is the Star Wars franchise’s newest story to incorporate Imperial Army Troopers within the type of Lieutenant Gorn, a member of Vel Sartha’s group of Rebels and a mole inside Aldhani’s Imperial garrison who’s launched sporting an Imperial Army Trooper uniform. This means that the Imperial garrison on Aldhani is populated by Army Troopers reasonably than Stormtroopers, which is becoming, given the planet’s relative obscurity and the Empire’s complacency. Stormtroopers are, each in-universe and within the minds of Star Wars viewers, the final word visible signifiers of an Imperial army presence, however they aren’t all the time applicable when a narrative can use Imperial Army Troopers or native company safety forces as an alternative.
Why Imperial Army Troopers In Andor Make Extra Sense Than Stormtroopers
The Imperial Army is current in most authentic trilogy-era Star Wars materials, offering Stormtroopers with armored assist (usually by way of walkers), making the Imperial Army Troopers themselves scarce. Contemplating the sheer significance of the battles proven in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and the unique trilogy, having Stormtroopers be essentially the most distinguished power is smart. The Imperial garrison on Aldhani is solely guarding a provide depot for the Empire in a comparatively distant location, and whereas it’s protected within the air by the Empire’s elite Starfighter Corps, its foot troopers solely must be primary Army Troopers.
Using Imperial Army Troopers as an alternative of Stormtroopers is smart in-universe nevertheless it additionally aligns with the general tone of Andor. The collection units out to point out the extra peculiar sides of the Empire and the rising Insurgent motion, with its first three episodes notably utilizing Corpos (company safety) instead of true Imperials. Whereas Imperial Army Troopers will probably be the primary Imperial foot troopers encountered by Cassian and his teammates in following episodes of Andor, the collection might step by step begin incorporating the long-lasting Stormtroopers into its narrative by the top, displaying the development of each the Insurgent and Imperial forces.
New episodes of Andor launch on Wednesdays on Disney+.
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