– Spoiler Review –
Every action has consequences, from the ones we can see to the ones we can’t, and Andor “Episode 7 – Announcement” explores the many which arise from the heist on Aldhani, showing all our characters and the galaxy how they can’t carry on as they used to, making for an intimate, thrilling, and expertly acted episode.
The theme of consequences and of staying stagnant despite the galaxy moving around you reverberate across the latest Andor, a stunning, tense episode without a single blaster shot fired but plenty of revelations hoisted on many of the characters of the new reality born forth from the Aldhani mission. From Cassian’s desire to run from everything, hide away from the larger fight, to Mon Mothma’s realization of how far they’ll have to go to make a difference, and even Inspector Dedra’s righteous beliefs in her theory come up against the galaxy changing in the wake of the proto-rebellion’s actions, for better and worse. Seeing the Empire react via the ISB, tightening security and increasing sentences, reacting not to the wound, only the symptoms, allows Andor to run parallels to our world again, parroting the US response to any and all changes those in power fear, like the reaction to a diversifying country is to try to paint the “others” as delinquents and something to fear, increasing the ways to keep them subdued and for people to blame the “others” for the tightening restrictions in their lives. The political currents in the franchise run strong and deep, but Andor has been one of the most prescient for on-screen content since Disney took over and it only enhances the story the show is trying to tell.
With Cassian, as I suspected last episode, he returns to Ferrix, though he finds it and the people there have completely changed in his absence. Cassian hasn’t changed yet, still thinking he can just needs enough credits to keep one step ahead of the Empire, so since he has the credits, he can take those he cares about with him and keep running. But Ferrix, from the town itself to Maarva and Bix, can’t keep running, having to deal with the consequences of Cassian’s actions with the Empire swooping in and worsening their lives, his fight with the corporate security their reasoning for clamping down on the town. What was once a place where they’d bang pots and pans to alert one another, to rally to one another’s side in the face of threats is now a place of fear and suspicion, where they’d rather turn Cassian in then stand up for him. The Imperial machine and the fear they inject in communities and planets can be effective, both in the way they hope and in the way they don’t.
While the town might be dark and empty, the vibrant streets even at night only patrolled by stormtroopers (please tell me the Time Grappler guy still does his thing though?!), and fear rippling through it, Cassian’s adoptive mother Maarva is anything but. When Cassian first shows up, she and B2EMO (who provides some great laughs in his much awaited return) are excited to see him, though she’s quick to point out he shouldn’t be back, but it’s not the reason we think she might have. He leaves her to talk to Bix so she can sleep on his proposal to leave with him to someplace nice, but when he comes back the truth awaits. Maarva’s not overcome by his offer because she’s too rooted to her home and possessions out of nostalgia, but rather because she’s now willing to stand up and fight for them, to fight for her freedoms again. Clem (the real one) and his death paralyzed her with fear, as he died trying to prevent others from starting a fight they weren’t ready for yet with the newly anointed Empire as we see in flashbacks, but the Aldhani heist and the way it has the Empire scrambling has empowered her to stop hiding, to stop caring what happens to her if it means freedom for those she loves. Cassian only thought of himself and what his short-term gains would be with the Aldhani mission and Maarva’s resolve surprises him, the realization he caused this means he can’t bring himself to tell her he was involved. He doesn’t want to leave her because his peace on some distant planet would be disturbed by his love for her, always wondering how she’s doing, but it’s her love for him that makes her want to stay and fight, to make the world better for him because she simply cares for him more than he can imagine. To further twist in the reality she’s willing to do whatever it takes, as he makes his leave per her wishes, she tells him to stop searching for his sister, that it’s a fool’s errand, something she likely wouldn’t have been able to tell him before but has no compunction now they may never see one another again. It was a damn delight to have Fiona Shaw back in the show, who was just really getting started in her role of Maarva last we left her and “Episode 7 – Announcement” gave her a giant opportunity and she took every ounce, the emotional goodbye where they hide their tears hits even more with her performance and Diego Luna’s soft, angry, and mournful response to her choices.
A similar situation plays out when Cassian goes to visit Bix, but whereas Maarva is empowered, she’s defeated, the town’s claustrophobic environment and Imperial rule not helping matters, and she’s angry Cassian left her again. Cassian comes to take her away but she doesn’t want anything to do with him, as he left her behind and she had to make due without him and without Timm. She’s a little angry at herself since she facilitated the meeting between Cassian and Luthen, while keeping Timm at arm’s length over Cassian only made him suspicious, and now she’s shouldering some blame for what happened. She wants him as far away from Ferrix as possible, but she doesn’t want to do it with him, and now it’s the second person he cares about on Ferrix who tells him he should go. He’s still so fixated on this idea of running away will solve everything, will make it all go away, he asks her for information on Luthen before he heeds her demands to leave, though she’s short on details. But Bix knows running won’t change want happened, won’t make the pain of Timm’s loss (but like, good riddance, girl!) or her bruise go away, it’ll just give her time to let something heal over it, though it seems clear that’s not what she wants. This certainly won’t be the last we see of Ferrix, Maarva, or Bix, but they all believe it’s the last they’ll see of Cassian.
The episode picks up with him on Niamos, a beach resort-like planet, where he seems to be enjoying its many distractions. Cassian is living out his dreams, seemingly in a place without fear of Imperials and free from concerns. Going out for more partying goods, Cassian sees a group running from the Imperial presence there and he immediately resorts to old behaviors, looking over his shoulder and concerned they are after him, finally catching up to him and his role in Aldhani. Another unintended consequence of his quest for credits and for this freedom away from worries is the Empire’s increased security and suspicion of every citizen, so when a shoretrooper stops him and he’s too twitchy for the trooper’s liking, his usual smooth talking not enough, he finds himself at the mercy of a KX-series droid (yes, the same type as K-2SO!!). His sentencing, unfair and one-sided, sees a usual 6 month verdict become a 6 year verdict, being whisked away to jail! As much as Maarva and Bix tried to tell him in their own way, and the Aldhani rebels as well with their rhetoric about the cause, everything’s changed and he can’t carry on like he used to, flitting from place to place, wheeling and dealing, thinking only of himself. There’s no going back, there’s no running away, Luthen’s words about the Empire choking them so slowly they aren’t noticing anymore from early in the episode ringing clear literally and figuratively when we see the KX droid choking Cassian before they cart him away for sentencing. A little time in prison, and an eventual breakout, could help him see he needs to fight for more than himself and the little group he cares about…and I’ll be curious if someone with kill orders for him will be part of how he escapes (but will talk about who that is later!).
As for Mon Mothma, her part of “Announcement” might be my favorite. She arrives at Luthen’s, immediately questioning him if the Aldhani mission was his doing, the two doing their play acting dance as her driver watches from outside. She’s mad at him, angered and hurt by the loss of life and the repercussions to the locals, not yet ready for what their rebellion truly meant and would need to do if it hoped to affect change. Luthen’s mad in his own way, mad she’s still not ready to accept the truth of their group’s future, determined to help her see they need to understand there’s no going back and there’s no way it won’t come to sacrificing people to get where they ultimately want to be. She knew there would be consequences to what they started, and maybe one day these things would come, but she didn’t expect it so quickly. Already in motion, but now almost in spite of Luthen’s actions, Mon carries on with the expansion of their circle during a big party at her home. After wining and dining a few other patrons, Mon comes to Tay Kolma (Ben Miles), a childhood friend and banker on Chandrila, and begins to test his loyalty to the her and the Empire in hopes of dropping the reality of her work. What follows is one helluva scene by Genevieve O’Reilly, who flutters from totally serious and grave to beaming and happy in the blink of an eye, putting on and dropping Mon’s mask to the public like a 5-star chef wielding a knife, making you feel how nervous Mon is to make the leap and reveal her secret, but yet how confident and excited she grows as the conversation goes her way. Before she begins to reveal things, Tay gives her the opening she needs, admitting he’s grown even less favorable to the Empire than before, believing he’s the one looking to do some good and her locked in her ivory tower with an enemy as a guest and friend. As she reveals the mask she wears, how her charitable actions are a front for something else, the Empire is watching her and those groups because they’re an annoyance, Tay comes to learn he’s no where near to Mon’s level of commitment to doing something about the Empire. He grows more silent as it goes on, her constantly having to remind him to smile, the act of revealing herself emboldening her and her path forward. She’s ready to move forward, to take the next step knowing people could get hurt, because she knows the cause is worth it, going from asking for Tay’s help but demanding it instead. Tay’s flustered and wants to know more but she won’t tell him the full story, for his sake, just that she needs to start accessing her funds again and he agrees. We know she means business and so does he when Perrin begins to approach, who can be seen in the background watching her and Tay during the entire scene, and Mon tells Tay her husband knows none of this and isn’t to be trusted, his flabbergasted look changed by Mon’s reminder to smile. It’s some wickedly good acting on O’Reilly’s part throughout, turning a conversation into a nerve-wracking scene of admission, while it helps show how isolated Mon feels and yet why she keeps her daughter and husband away from it, unable to trust one and protecting the other. Will this change how she is to them going forward? Will Perrin let this go? Is he working for the ISB now, like their driver, or is that what she’s concerned about? Regardless, more Mon operating at this level of duplicity and masks, please and thank you!
Speaking of the ISB, they get a very special visit by none other than Colonel Yularen (whose been in A New Hope, The Clone Wars, and Star Wars Rebels!), who’s there to inform them Emperor Palpatine himself told him the ISB would have even more resources at their command to help root out criminals, but only Supervision Dedra Meero (Denise Gough) seems disappointed with Yularen’s rhetoric and revelations of the increased security and sentencing. To her these measures play into the rebellion’s hands, as Luthen so excellently displays when speaking with Mon and feeling triumphant since he knows they’re leaving an impression, so she carries on with her work in hopes of finding a pattern to find the rebels. Her request for records across every sector doesn’t go unnoticed, the discretion promised to her broken, as Inspector Blevin decides to tattle on her in front of the entire group. Major Partagaz allows her to explain herself and, as executive producer Tony Gilroy hoped, I’m suddenly rooting for Dedra as she overcomes the male-heavy environment, admirably explaining herself and her actions, taking full responsibility and promising to show she actually has a discernible, connected pattern. Blevin still thinks because she accessed the stuff outside of the proper channels she’s still going to get in trouble, but Partagaz is a man of results, overlooking often how one gets to their conclusion and instead of chastising or reprimanding her, he hopes everyone else takes her initiative and gives her Blevin’s sector, which includes Ferrix. Partagaz leaves her with a warning though, to watch her back, as she’s quickly making enemies amongst her own ranks. For her to be so competent while the rest aren’t, and for her to be so right with her theories on the rebels, she looks to be a real thorn in our heroes’ sides going forward, which is why as much as I like her and sort of root for her, I’m ready to love to hate her soon.
While the ISB won’t be Cassian’s problem yet, Imperial prison seems like a more pressing concern, but so too does an assassin coming his way. After Mon and Luthen’s conversation, Luthen’s aide Kleya Marki (Elizabeth Dulau) heads out, in disguise of sorts, into the streets of Coruscant. It’s a beautiful, almost haunting yet fitting look at the planet, where everything looks glamorous from afar but the brutalist design makes it feel almost as stuffy and oppressive as the lower levels could be. Plus, it was just neat to see Coruscant from the walkways, the hustle and bustle of civilian life something no visit to Coruscant on-screen has had the time or place to show us, and it gives the impression of a planet and galaxy so large, that while Aldhani’s repercussion are bringing pain or opportunity to the various characters in the show, the rest of the galaxy seem so carry on regardless, showing the rebellion hasn’t struck hard enough yet. As we follow Kleya, she comes to find a woman standing alone, and when she approaches we see it’s someone we already know: Vel! We’ve seen Kleya be more than just Luthen’s concierge, but we here see the full depth of her commitment and ruthlessness, being short and curt with Vel who is obviously still recovering from their losses, and she doesn’t even telling her what Cinta is up. She claims Cinta is doing what she needs to, which we see is packing up and heading out from Aldhani potentially in a few scenes, but her fate and goals are still unknown. Then Kleya gives the battered rebel a new mission: tying up the loose end that is Cassian! When Bix and Cassian spoke, he told her to pass on the message to Luthen to forget about him, but I don’t think even if she does, it’ll stop this from happening, though like I said earlier, maybe in Vel’s course of taking him out she ends up helping him escape prison.
Speaking of prisons, Cassian isn’t the only one who ends up in one of their own making. Content to sit at home, stare up at the higher levels of Coruscant, Syril Karn has no other option than to take his uncle Harlo’s opportunity for a position. In his interview, which is less an interview and more a reminder of how lucky Syril is his uncle pulled this favor for him, we see the facility he’ll be working in, a giant room with hundreds of space cubicles, on multiple floors, each person mindlessly looking into screens, individuality lost amongst the masses. By not taking any initiative, besides tailoring his brown suit, Syril’s looking for what he expects to have, what he believes he is privileged to have come sweep him off his feet, yet instead he sat around and let the consequences of his actions rule him. Cassian runs away and ends up in prison, but staying put and not doing anything can led to the same outcome, just in a different, more soul-sucking way, and the juxtaposition between the two speaks volumes to dealing with a oppressive regime and their tactics to keep their citizens docile. Mama Karn is proud her boy has a job, but she doesn’t realize the cost. How and if he’ll get out of this remains to be seen, but I find it harder and harder every episode to believe it’ll happen (even though we know it’ll happen due to footage from some of the trailers).
Here’s one other thing:
- I wouldn’t think the appearance of the KX-series droids means K-2SO will be part of season one, as they’ve stated multiple times Alan Tudyk isn’t in it, so it was certainly a nice tease of his eventual appearance on the show! But…look at Andrew Garfield and how he denied being in the latest Spider-Man film and it turns out he was, so yes, they could’ve pulled that to keep the surprise, though only time will tell!
- Composer Nicholas Britell has crafted quite the soundtrack, an often atmospheric, tension-building, and spy-like set of tunes, giving the impression of working in the shadows. The latest variation of the show’s theme might be my favorite yet, while the poppin’ new tune for Niamos needs to be on my playlists, and pronto!! We won’t have to wait too much longer for music from the show, Vol. 1, which covers Eps. 1-4, will be out Friday, Britell promised.
Andor‘s “Episode 7 – Announcement” is my favorite yet, as the show’s reliance on its actors and an excellent script, always remaining focused on these characters, allows an episode like this to flourish, where the consequences come clear to all those involved in the growing scramble of the rebellion against the Empire.
+ Mon Mothma revealing the truth and liking it (and Genevieve O’Reilly’s performance!)
+ Maarva’s reaction to Cassian’s actions
+ Dedra making strides…and enemies
+ Political underpinnings
+ Reality coming to bite Cassian
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him on Twitter @BrushYourTeeth. You can follow the website on Twitter @MynockManor and Instagram @mynockmanor.
ANDOR SERIES REVIEWS:
Season One Premiere “Episodes 1-3” | Ep. 4 “Aldhani” | Ep. 5 “The Axe Forgets”