This article contains spoilers for Andor episode 1.Andor episode 1 introduces viewers to the Corporate Zone, a sector of space that hasn't been properly explored before in the films and TV shows. Lucasfilm has successfully transformed Sar Wars into a transmedia franchise, with a particular focus on tremendously successful Disney+ TV shows. Andor is set during the Dark Times of the Empire's reign and serves as a prequel to Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
Andor feels very different to anything seen before in the Star Wars franchise. It's set just five years before the events of the first Star Wars film, at a time when precious few Jedi were active. There's not even a mention of the Force, likely because the Empire has done its best to erase all knowledge of the Jedi and their existence. More surprising, though, is the fact there's not even a glimpse of a stormtrooper in the first three episodes. The shadow of the Empire may loom large in Andor episode 1, but the threat feels rather more indirect.
The nebulous nature of this threat is because Andor is set in a part of the Star Wars galaxy that has only been explored once before on-screen. It's in the Corporate Zone (sometimes called the Corporate Sector or "CorpSec"), a sector of space governed by the independent Corporate Sector Authority. Established during the dying days of the Republic, the Corporate Zone became a place where galactic companies could dictate the laws rather more effectively than they could in the Senate. The governments of the Corporate Zone aligned themselves with the Separatists during the Clone Wars, and remained independent even after the fall of the Empire - although the Empire regularly conducted missions to remind the Corporate Zone its independence was at the Emperor's pleasure, and could be revoked at any time.
The Corporate Zone's Place In Star Wars
The Corporate Zone will outlive the Empire, and in fact one prominent world in this sector appears in Star Wars: The Last Jedi - Cantonica, the planet on which Canto Bight is situated. Finn and Rose traveled to Canto Bight, and learned it was a haven for war profiteers who backed both the First Order and the Resistance. George Lucas himself had attempted to introduce themes of war profiteering in Star Wars: The Clone Wars, revealing there were shadowy cabals who took advantage of the conflict, but these themes weren't always picked up by viewers; Star Wars: The Last Jedi brought these notions to the forefront, and it's telling that the war profiteers flourished in the Corporate Zone.
Still, Andor episodes 1-3 make it clear the Corporate Zone's survival was far from guaranteed. It's strongly implied any crimes could serve as a pretext for the Empire to try to gain control of the Corporate Zone. The Empire sought to control the entire galaxy, after all, and this independence will surely be viewed as purely temporary. It will be interesting to see whether the events of Andor episodes 1-3 lead to the Empire trying to push a direct presence in the Corporate Zone - and, if so, what the repercussions will be for galactic politics.
New episodes of Andor release on Wednesdays on Disney+.
Want more Andor articles? Check out our essential content below...