Ever since Disney acquired the Star Wars franchise, along with Lucasfilm as a whole, in October 2012, the House of Mouse’s stewardship of the beloved sci-fi franchise has been under heavy scrutiny. Unlike Disney’s incredible success with the Marvel Cinematic Universe — especially during the later phases of the Infinity Saga — they have struggled to consistently deliver with Star Wars across the realms of film and television.

For every hit like 2017’s “The Force Awakens” and the first two seasons of “The Mandalorian,” there are clunkers such as 2019’s “The Rise of Skywalker” and the first — and now only — season of “The Acolyte.”

Even the nearly untouchable “Mandalorian” faced stern criticism from critics and fans alike during its third season.

Also, Disney’s penchant to announce projects so far in advance with little insurance that they’ll ever come to fruition — see the long-gestating “Rogue Squadron” movie from director Patty Jenkins (“Wonder Woman,” 2017), and David Benioff and D.B.

Weiss’s (showrunners of HBO’s “Game of Thrones”) scrapped movie trilogy — has left fans with, reasonably, little to no enthusiasm for the franchise’s future.

A bright spot during this troubled time was the first season of “Andor.” From “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story”

(2016) writer Tony Gilroy, “Andor” followed the titular Cassian Andor (Diego Luna, “Narcos: Mexico”) as he began his journey to become a Rebel hero five years prior to the events of “Rogue One.”

Lauded for its gritty tone, grounded story and heavy use of practical effects, “Andor’s” first season went on to receive universal praise and multiple Emmy nominations. Despite low viewership upon its initial release, the buzz surrounding “Andor” eventually led to it becoming 2022’s ninth-moststreamed series on Disney+, according to streaming analytics firm FlixPatrol.

Now just over two years later, “Andor” is back for its second and final season. Making its debut Tuesday, April 22, on Disney+, this season sees Cassian become an increasingly important player in the Rebel Alliance as war with the Empire draws ever closer.

As portrayed in abundance through calls of “the Empire cannot win,” warnings that “the monster will come from us all” and a menacing shot of a near-finished Death Star during the latest trailer, a sense of desperation permeates this new season. While many know where the Galactic Rebellion eventually leads, how exactly it gets to the events of “Rogue One” and beyond is currently uncharted territory.

According to Variety, Season 2 will consist of 12 episodes broken into four three-episode chapters, with each of these chapters covering a year in Cassian’s life leading up to the events of “Rogue One.” Each chapter is handled by a different writer, starting with showrunner Gilroy, before handing things off to Beau Willimon (“The Ides of March,” 2011), Dan Gilroy (“Nightcrawler,” 2014) and Tom Bissell (“The Disaster Artist,” 2017), respectively.

Directing duties aren’t split as evenly, as Ariel Kleiman (“Partisan,”

2015) directs the first six episodes while Janus Metz (“Borg vs. McEnroe,” 2017) and Alonso Ruizpalacios (“La Cocina,” 2024) handle the back half of the season.