SPOILER Andor Ep. 4 Discussion

Ep. 4 - Aldhani - 9/10

This episode is a great improvement on the previous three. It has nerve, it has tension, it has threat, and it has scope.

The ISB scenes are great, Coruscant looks better than it ever has before, Luthen & Mon Mothma's desperation underlines everything magnificently, and the Rebel cell on Aldhani is interesting.

Some thoughts:
--I wonder who Mon Mothma's proposed new ally is? Saw? Bail?
--Why on Earth did Mon Mothma marry her fool husband? Very funny stuff.
--Anton Lesser, as Major Partagaz, is fantastic. (And, he always is)
--Luthen: "You'll ulitmately die fighting these bastards..." Well, he's not wrong
--For whatever reason, I got an immediate hunch that the youngest Rebel in the cell - the kid who likes Andor, is an Imperial spy. Don't know why....
--I really like the storytelling/writing here. Things are allowed to breathe and nothing is over-explained. Every scene serves several purposed and all of it is done really well. The rather complex, mani-faceted story is clear and effortlessly told, and, IMHO, for its scale this episode ranks among the best written SW content. In shot, exellent episode, this.

 

I got the impression that the kid was Force sensitive because of the way the rest of the cell respected his "feeling." I suspect that either way, or for another reason neither of us thought of, the Rebel heist is going to succeed or fail because of him.

 

Oh, that's a good point! I just didn't even consider Force Sensitivity here, 'cause this is such a non-Force* show. Interesting idea, mate
*Well, there's the Rakata War crystal thingymajig

I'd buy that. That character exists for a reason, for sure, and by the end of it we're either going to love or hate him. (Also, I predict that the entire Aldhani Rebel cell, apart from Andor, are going to die).

 

True. I think maybe that's the level of Force stuff we're going to get--vague hints!

I would not be surprised. Ouch.

 

Another excellent episode. I got a kick out of the fact that Cassian's first mission with the nascent Rebellion turns out to be a straight-up heist, given that Rogue One was so heavily based on heist films. I don't feel like things will end particularly well for this rebel cell.

Great to finally see Mon Mothma's storyline begin, especially showing her under mounting political pressure. That dinner at her home clearly isn't going to go well. Interesting that she quite obviously hasn't confided in her husband about her extracurricular activities - I'm surprised his halfwittedness hasn't already gotten her locked up or worse. I wonder if they'll tie her story here in with her public denunciation of the Emperor and subsequent departure from the Senate as seen in the Secret Cargo episode of SW: Rebels?

An unexpected turn for Deputy Inspector Karn's path. "Home to the arms of mother..." it almost seems like ISB agent Meero has picked up Karn's tale of reckless ambition. The first act of her storyline echoes that of Karn very strongly, right down to the warning she receives from her superior officer. Something tells me that she will prove more capable than Karn did.

Is it next Wednesday yet?

 

Indeed. But why him? He doesn't come of as any kind of resource to Mon Mothma, so I'm very curious about what the story was there. Perhaps they were young sweethearts who have grown appart through the years, one going hard-core political and the other just dilettanting their way through life. In any case, WTF is going on there?

 

I loved the design of Mon Mothma's home--so beautiful! I am always fascinated with the contrast SW presents between the opulence of the political upper crust of Coruscant and...pretty much anywhere else normal beings live. But in this episode the contrast was with the barren hills and basic survival supplies of the rebel camp.

 

Seeing Coruscant again was Maclunkey awesome, just the nostalgia of the car noises alone. Have to say, it's nice not having action in every episode.

 

I agree. I was impressed by how quickly the show was able to establish the characters in the group over the course of one episode. Well done!

An 'Amen' to that, my lady! What a great actor playing a great character!

 

It's The Wire in space.

I dig it.

 

I think Karn seems more likely to turn because ultimately he was trying to do the right thing. I do think he'll link up with her somehow.

Really loved this episode. This is so different for Star Wars, but it's just so refreshing. Also, so great to see Coruscant. That was a huge failure for the sequel trilogy, but it's good to see it again in live action.

Also, kind of off topic, but I'm already tired of the "this is why they shouldn't use the volume" takes on the internet. It's a dull as it is predictable.

 

Folks I am way behind but finally binge watched all episodes tonight and HOLEEEE CRAP. This series delivers for me! Everything I want to see is being portrayed right before my eyes. Remember a series is a marathon, not a sprint. Love how they are building the tension as the series progresses. The building of Cassian's character is so well done, we get to see what drives him and how he became what we saw in R1.

Ship geek moments so far: Luthen's ship is SHARP. Would love to live in there and blast around the Galaxy. And Mon Mothma's "Retro Cadillac" was SWEET.

 

Right now, I can say that this series is solid. But I'm not blown away by it. Not yet. I think it's too early to judge it as the best Star Wars production from DisneyPlus. Right now, my main problem with "Andor" is the way each episode has ended. With the exception of the third episode, I've found the other episode endings - including the fourth one - a bit anti-climactic and flat. Did anyone else recognize Anton Lesser from "Game of Thrones"?

 

But it's also true. The SW makers just need to learn how to use that technology properly. IMO 'The Batman' showed how to use the volume correctly.


This episode was another great watch. The story buildng, acting and visuals are just top notch.

I think they should have released three episodes weekly. I really dig this show's concept of a three episodic story telling. The forth episode pretty much felt like act one of a movie.

 

Yep. At times in Andor you can see how it was the correct choice. But for me it also highlights why the volume was the correct choice for the shows it where it has been employed.

At times in the first three episodes I thought to myself that it might as well have been shot in the volume. Even the landscapes were obviously caked in CGI. (Not a criticism) Episode 4 on the other hand had beautiful unadorned shots of our Scottish highlands (heart emoji, heart emoji, heart emoji).

I must admit that unlike with the previous Disney+ shows, it does occur to me that "This is not Star Wars". Except it is. I mean it isn't. But not in the sense that people use it when their fan fiction projection and sensibilities are ignored in favour of the story the writers felt compelled to tell. What I mean is that it's definitively no longer a case of "Star Wars is this". But a case of "Star Wars can be this".

It's taken a huge step away from fairy tale genre realm that the Saga operates in. And also from Rogue One. I know a lot of people are calling this the vindication of Rogue One being the direction that "Star Wars" needed to have taken all along. But from my perspective, Andor is capitalising on the best parts of Rogue One rather than validating that movie as a whole (which I feel is somewhat overrated). Perhaps that's just systematically appropriate as Rogue One will eventually serve as a bridge form this series into the Saga.

What Andor is doing, in my opinion, is not establishing the new aesthetic direction for Star Wars, but, along with Mando, Boba, OWK, and even Bad Batch, Clone Wars et al, it's validating "Star Wars", the GFFA if you like (and "Disney Star Wars" whether you like that term or not) as a genre in itself that can accommodate different forms of the conventional genre types we have grown accustomed to over the past hundred years.

In short there should be no further debate over the propriety of future Star Wars projects other than the perceived success at achieving what they set out to do individually, in terms of style, tone and aesthetic. I sincerely hope that the success of Andor does not prompt future LFL/Disney execs to say "Just do that again".

Like it or not. The diversity in riches that are forthcoming from the franchise, is a product of the diversity in authorship of the sequel trilogy. Despite what some fans wish the narrative to be, the numbers on those movies, critically and commercially, including Rogue One, showed that it was a creatively sound policy.

It's just unfortunate what happened with Solo as it's even better than Rogue One in my opinion.