The Andor series is available on Disney+. It is being praised for its complexity and plot. As a veteran of the intelligence business, it was clear to me that it depicted the role and execution of espionage. The spy genre and political thrillers are popular among the author. There are some things to keep in mind before you read this.
I was struck by the fact that the writers got the dynamics of conflict between an authoritarian state and an insurgency correct, as well as the use of espionage in the real world. Andor incorporated spycraft into the story better and more subtly than many spy shows I have seen, paying attention to both the quotidian day-to-day of spy work as well as examining espionage's big moral and ethical issues.
When you are involved in a conflict like this, you are always watched. There are people watching everything. There is a new spy every day at the Senate as well as at the bank where she is trying to discreetly move funds to the rebellion according to Senator Mon Mothma. Volunteers and free agents are roaming the streets of Ferrix, hoping to find information that will help them sell something. Luthen, the architect of the rebellion, has created a huge network of spies. When Saw, leader of a partisan group, learns that Luthen has a spy within his own ranks, it is almost comical.
The Isb does not seem to have its own network of assets. There is no evidence that the ISB have embedded assets, despite the fact that they will use walk-ins. It could be that the writers chose not to feature the spy network because of the arrogance of the ISB, or it could be that they do have one. In the third episode, the salesman sidled up to Luthen on the shuttle.
Covcomm is important to running a spy network because it allows you to communicate securely with your assets without the risks of meeting in person. Bix is seen shimmying up a hidden tower to send broadcasts to the handler on a special transmitter, which he hides from the Empire. Luthen and Kleya are in the backroom of the antiques shop listening to messages from agents all over the world.
Operations officers have to wear disguises in order to get to a meeting. This is more about getting past the watchers than it is about fooling the observer. We didn't see a lot of disguises in Andor except for Luthen and it was like something out of The Americans. For the rest of the series, a hood is all they have to hide their faces because the rebels used uniforms to pass as Imperial soldiers.
Good discipline is practiced by the spies of Andor, from not carrying commercial communications equipment to always having an exit strategy.
The atmosphere and culture of a Gestapo-like security bureaucracy was depicted brilliantly by Andor's writers. Management often misses-in-action, out of design rather than incompetence, because it is eat-or-be-eater. You don't get rewarded for pointing out problems or rocking the boat. Under the supervision of ruthless supervisors who are afraid of being eaten alive by their underlings, officers compete for turf and move up the ladder, all under their watch.
Luthen's plan to be successful was enabled by the mix of fear and smiliness depicted in Andor's writers. Dedra Meero was able to pursue her suspicions because she was able to maneuver around her colleagues who were trying to derail her and her supervisor. Sergeant Mosk can only guess at the machinations he imagines, but he doesn't have the means to prove it.
The protection of assets is one of the most difficult parts of espionage. Do you leave him in place to continue receiving intel or do you pull him out for his own safety? How do you protect that asset?
There is a plan to attack a facility in Andor. Luthen was told by Lonni Jung that their man would walk into a trap. If the rebels warn the man off, there will be a mole in their midst. Luthen decided to allow their man and his entire squad to be killed by the ISB rather than exposing their asset. The writers of Andor did a great job showing the calculations spymasters have to make. The sub-plot reveals a lot about Luthen, but it also leaves Lonni with the knowledge that 30 men died to protect him, a sacrifice he didn't ask for.
I can't wait to see where Andor goes.
The author of historical horror novels including The Fervor and the Red Widow spy novels is a former employee of the CIA and the National Security Agency. You can pre-order a copy of Red London here.
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