“When was the last time you spoke to Cassian Andor?” Meero asks. Bix is silent. As a result, she’s left with Dr Gorst, who begins his torture. It doesn’t take long and Bix does talk.
Andor, the leader of the group, starts to lead the team and work with them all. He helps Ulaf who is struggling and hides his injuries. Now, Andor has been slowly cutting into a metal pipe around the corner from their workstation. He deliberates over whether they could take out the guards by force.
Andor bides his time and speaks to Kino about the guards and how they’re giving too much credit to the empire. They don’t care about low-level grunts but Kino refuses to tell him how many are on each level.
Rumours are swirling that the Empire has made a move, frying an entire bridge worth of people. That’s close to one hundred able-bodied men! For now, Kino tells them all to keep their mouths shut and keep working until they know exactly what’s going on. However, Kino looks rattled. ..
Meanwhile, Mon’s cousin Vel has arrived. She’s been travelling for six months and she’s determined to be part of the rebellion. She tells Mon that things are happening but the latter is worried. It’s only a flying visit though and after dinner, she’s off on her way, telling Mon that she’s determined to make something of her life. ..
Senator Mon is struggling to get through to any of the other Senators and needs a loan. Tay may have the solution. He deduces that Mon needs to meet with a Chandrilan banker sporting treasury relationships and a “book of business incomprehensibly huge.” Davo Sculdun is the man. He’s the wealthiest thug out there and a good solution but Mon doesn’t think it’s a wise idea. However, time is of the essence.
Syril thanks Meero for the promotion and points out that being with her, and realizing her sense of justice, is just what he needs. Meero brushes past him though and tells him to stay away, promising a cage on the Outer Rim if he continues.
When Meero enters her office, she learns from her subordinate that they’ve captured a rebel pilot. He’s using a stolen Imperial unit and it hasn’t taken long for him to squeal. That same Imperial masking device is working an absolute charm for them. ..
A rebel group has learned that a raid is planned on a power station in Spellhaus. The man who knows about the raid is currently missing, and so the rebels are likely to search for him. ..
Meero has determined that the ship they are using to transport their pilot is being used by the enemy in order to stage a fake crash. She believes that they can use this opportunity to track down the ship and take them down.
Meanwhile, on Narkina 5, Ulaf’s condition continues to deteriorate. He’s hanging on by a thread and Andor manages to hide his condition from the others. On the bridge though, he collapses and needs a doctor. Kino looks out for him and tells him to hang in, knowing Ulaf only has a few shifts left.
Ulaf has had a massive stroke and is unlikely to recover. In order to hasten his death, the doctor administers something to help him pass peacefully. ..
Level 2 was mistakenly released a man who had just finished his shifts on Level 4. This caused word to get out and then the Level 2 inmates were killed. This means that the man was released, completed his shift, and then was killed again. Kino realizes this and tells Andor that there are only 12 guards per level. ..
The Episode Review
Last episode’s plot development was slow and laborious, which made the episode feel sluggish. Here, though, there’s a consistent feeling of momentum and progression, making the episode one of the better episodes of the whole show.
Andor is a show with a lot of momentum that swings back and forth between being slow and building up to something bigger. I think Andor would work well as a binge-watch, and this reviewer will probably rewatch the entire show again before writing up a full season review! ..
As far as this episode goes, Andor does a great job ramping up the tension and learning the inner-workings of Narkina 5 while simultaneously progressing the story, as well as peppering in those scenes with Meero and the Imperials, getting closer to the truth about Andor, which is a great touch. That ending seems to hint that we’re gearing up for a prison break, and you know what? It should be an absolute cracker!
