Before Hard NOC Life goes off the air for a few weeks, Keith and Dominic have a few more Andor takes to share. Not only did the final episodes rekindle a love for Star Wars for our hosts, it will forever change how they watch the franchise going forward.
The final episodes of Andor Season 2 no doubt will lead many to rewatch Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, because Andor adds so much meaning and context to its 2016 predecessor. Rogue One’s story begins a matter of days after Andor S2 concludes. Those in full completist binge mode may then feel compelled to watch Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (a.k.a. The First One), because its story starts about five minutes after the end of Rogue One.
Continue reading “‘Andor’ and the Asian Soul Within ‘Star Wars’ and ‘Rogue One’”
Of all the untold stories in the Star Wars universe, the theft of the Death Star plans stands out as one of the most compelling. Rogue One brought that story to life, following Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) and his crew on their fateful mission. The film’s impact sparked the creation of Andor, led by Rogue One writer Tony Gilroy, with Luna returning as the thief-turned-rebel leader.
Continue reading “‘Andor’ Stars on Their Season 2 Character Journeys and Telling Stories without Agendas”
Disney has released a new trailer for the second and final season of Andor. Set during the events leading up to Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, the series follows Cassian (Diego Luna) as he becomes a key player in the Rebel Alliance.
Continue reading “‘Andor’ Season 2 Trailer: Welcome to the Rebellion”
This week, Britney returns! They talk about the latest Andor and their anticipation for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. But be sure to stay tuned to the end to hear Dominic and Keith argue about the midterm elections. One thing is clear, though: DON’T VOTE FOR REPUBLICANS.
This week, Britney is still out but Dominic and Keith are here to discuss the fallout from the gigantic news that James Gunn and Peter Safran are the co-heads of the new DC Studios. What does that mean for the Distinguished Competition going forward? Also, they break down the trailers for the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special (coincidentally announced the same day as Gunn’s DC takeover), Quantumania, and how to pronounce “Namor.” They also catch up on the latest episodes of Andor.
This week, Britney and Dominic are out, so Keith brought in his brother Raymond to review Dwayne Johnson’s first foray into superhero films, Black Adam and incorporate as many WWF Attitude-era Rock catchphrases as possible. They also talk about Henry Cavill’s future as Superman… for some reason.
With Britney out this week, it’s up to Keith and Dominic to cover a week even an A.I. Kevin Feige couldn’t predict, such as the fallout from the latest MCU schedule shuffle, as well as She-Hulk lampshading Marvel’s greatest flaws.
This week, Britney, Keith, and Dominic are joined by Friend of the NOC, Catrina Dennis to break down the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever trailer, and marvel at Diego Luna and Gael Garcia Bernal’s ascension up the Disney ranks with Andor and Werewolf By Night, respectively. They also geek out over Daredevil’s appearance in She-Hulk and share what’s nerd poppin’ from Star Trek: Picard to Hocus Pocus 2 and “Super” Black Adam rumors.
This episode was recorded before Marvel dropped the Wakanda Forever trailer so tune in next week for thoughts on that! In the meantime, Britney, Keith, and Dominic weigh in on Hugh Jackman’s return as Wolverine in Deadpool III, reported trouble on the Blade set, and the latest She-Hulk and Andor episodes.
The three-episode premiere of Andor is finally here, and Britney, Keith, and Dominic have thoughts! They break down everything they love about the latest, and potentially greatest, Star Wars property — including the everyone’s favorite Emo droid –and why it’s nice to finally have a Star War that f*cks. Later, Keith interviews Friend of the NOC Marc Bernardin about his various projects and his 10-year podcasting adventure and friendship with Kevin Smith.
Andor provides us with a brand new perspective of the Star Wars universe. It’s one that doesn’t concern itself so much with the battle between Jedi and Sith, but more so the political angst as well as life under authoritarian oppression.
Continue reading “‘Andor’ Cast Reflects on Finding Human Stories in a Star Wars Universe”
The D23 Expo is currently underway, which means we are getting a first hand look at some of the new content that will appear in film or on Disney+. After yesterday’s animation, live-action, and Pixar panel, Disney shared a few sneak peeks at Lucasfilm. And they started things off with Andor, the highly anticipated prequel series to Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Set five years before the events of Rogue One, the series follows Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) who joins the Rebel Alliance as a spy fed up with the Galactic Empire.
Continue reading “D23Expo: ‘Andor’ Teases A Dark and Gritty ‘Star Wars’ Spy Thriller”
Yesterday, Star Wars fans got a new trailer for the upcoming live-action series, Andor. Starring Diego Luna returning as Cassian Andor from Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, the show begins five years prior, as we see him at the beginning of his journey in both making a difference in the galaxy, as well as getting involved in the burgeoning Rebellion against the Galactic Empire.
Continue reading “New Looks and Release Date for ‘Andor’”
During Star Wars Celebration’s LucasFilm Studio panel, the cast and creatives behind the upcoming Disney+ series Andor released a teaser trailer. The series, which was revealed to consist of 12 episodes — and 12 other episodes for the second season, launches exclusively on Disney+ on August 31.
Continue reading “Disney+ Releases ‘Andor’ Trailer and Key Art at Star Wars Celebration”
We’re excited to have Meg Humphrey of Rogue Podron on to discuss Star Wars: Visions, the new anime anthology on Disney+ that breathes fresh life into this franchise with Japanese creators, crafting stories in a universe that was *heavily* inspired by their own culture.
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 32: The Promise of ‘Star Wars: Visions’”
During today’s Hasbro livestream celebrating the forthcoming “I Am Your Father’s Day” event, the Star Wars team revealed several new items from their Black Series and Vintage Collection, including multiple Rogue One figures and repaints collectors have been clamoring for since the line debuted in 2016.
Continue reading “Hasbro Reveals New and Updated ‘Rogue One’ Black Series Figures and More”
With Rise of Skywalker and the end of the Skywalker Saga at the end of the month to look forward to, Hard NOC Life is going to be a Star Wars podcast for the month of December. Because there aren’t enough Star Wars podcasts on the internet! Each week, Dominic and Keith will be breaking down a different trilogy that make up the beloved Star Wars franchise.
Continue reading “Hard NOC Life: The Last Rogue Force Awakens One Solo Jedi”
Well, that was unexpected.
In a conference call with reporters, Disney CEO Bob Iger revealed a second live action Star Wars series will be coming to Disney’s long-anticipated streaming service. Rogue One star Diego Luna will be reprising the role of Cassian Andor in a series set before the events (obviously) of the Star Wars Story that grossed over a billion dollars in 2016. The series follows The Mandalorian from Jon Favreau as Lucasfilm looks to expand the Galaxy Far, Far Away to (live action) television.
Continue reading “Diego Luna to Reprise Role in Cassian Andor Series for Disney+”
The month of May holds a special place in the hearts of Asian American and Pacific Islander Star Wars fans. For starters, May has been AAPI Heritage Month since 1990, though it originally began as “Asian Pacific Heritage Week” when it was proposed in Congress by Representatives Frank Horton and Norman Y. Mineta in 1977. That’s right, 1977. You know what else debuted in May 1977?
Continue reading “Go Asians: A History of AAPI Representation in ‘Star Wars’”
Much has already been written about Rogue One: A Star Wars Story — how it has added new context to the existing Star Wars franchise, how it is a movie ultimately about war.
Rogue One is also a movie that features three men of Asian descent — two East Asian and one South Asian — and, far from relying on stereotypes of “Asian Masculinity,” in fact subverts those stereotypes in a way that feels revolutionary for Western media. (Needless to say: spoilers.)
Continue reading “Rogue One Subverts Asian Male Stereotypes — and That’s Important”
Rouge One is the biggest movie on the planet, and we finally devote a whole show to talk about the most diverse (or is it?) Star Wars ever filmed. Joining in on the fun is Tosche-Station.net writer, and Star Wars superfan, Bria LaVorgna and Black Girl Nerds’ movie reviewer, and occasional NOC contributor, Valerie Complex. [Spoilers throughout!]
This film could best be described as Katniss Everdeen In Space. While this prequel is light years (and a galaxy far away) of an improvement over the New Hope reboot aka The Force Awakens, it is not the second coming of Christ fanboys are making it out to be.
Katniss Everdeen in Space is not so much a good movie as it is a good Star Wars movie by Star Wars standards.
