Andor felt like the most realistic Star Wars TV show ever created. Tony Gilroy’s series deliberately moved away from the franchise’s typically lighter tone, offering a complex and gritty exploration of rebellion and character. Many consider it the best Star Wars show to date, largely because of its enduring quality. Interestingly, some storylines seemed to foreshadow real-world events, something the creator, Tony Gilroy, has acknowledged.
George Lucas first envisioned Star Wars as entertainment for children, but the series Andor successfully moved away from that approach, demonstrating that Star Wars can tell a variety of stories. Surprisingly, Andor has now included a character originally created for kids – Jar Jar Binks.
Jar Jar Binks Discovered the Technology Behind Luthen’s Fractal Radio
As a critic, I was really intrigued by the rebel group Andor presented – a cell operating somewhat on the fringes of the established Rebel Alliance and with a complicated relationship with figures like Mon Mothma. We met Luthen Rael, who seemed to be in charge, but the real work was being done by his incredibly capable assistant, Kleya Marki. They relied on a cool new communication device called a ‘fractal radio’ – something we hadn’t seen before in Star Wars. Initially, it felt like Luthen had discovered this technology through some ancient research, but the show cleverly revealed its origins actually lie much closer to home, dating all the way back to the Clone Wars. It’s a smart piece of world-building that adds layers to the universe.
The Jar Jar #1 comic is special because it features artwork from Michael Atiyeh, Laura Braga, and Kieran McKeown, and is co-written by Marc Guggenheim and Ahmed Best, the actor who played Jar Jar Binks. The story shows Jar Jar and Jedi Master Kelleran Beq teaming up during the Clone Wars, both worried about Chancellor Palpatine and the extra power Jar Jar had originally requested for him. Together, they found special crystals on the planet Urubai and started building a secret communication system – a “fractal radio” – to stay in contact without Palpatine knowing.
The comic book suggests this is how Grogu escaped Order 66: Kelleran Beq, another character created by the same author, rescued him from the Jedi Temple and put him on a Naboo spaceship that was waiting nearby. Additionally, it’s likely that Jar Jar Binks was the original source of the secret communication network, passing it on to the group known as Axis. There’s even a small clue in Season 2 of Andor that suggests Jar Jar and Axis might have a closer connection than previously thought.
Andor Seaosn 2 Returned to Naboo
From the start, the show Andor hinted at a link to the planet Naboo. The character Luthen, while posing as an antique dealer on Coruscant, clearly collected Naboo artifacts, even items related to the planet’s royal family and the Gungans. This connection became stronger in Season 2 when a flashback showed Luthen testing Kleya’s loyalty on Naboo with a dangerous bombing scenario – an event that marked the beginning of his spy network. We initially thought this was important because Naboo is the home world of Palpatine, but now a surprising connection to Jar Jar Binks has also emerged.
It’s strange that the Axis network originated on Jar Jar Binks’ home planet, using technology only he and Kelleran Beq knew about. Could Jar Jar Binks actually have been the one who started the Axis network, providing Luthen with the radios he needed to build a larger rebellion? Jar Jar had access to both the royal palaces and ancient Gungan technology, and might have even been secretly supplying Luthen’s shop on Coruscant.
What makes Star Wars so special is how everything within the franchise connects, often in surprising ways. No one ever expected a story link between Jar Jar Binks and Luthen Rael, but it now appears there is one. This might actually mean Jar Jar Binks has been given a new, positive role in Star Wars history.
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2026-02-14 03:40