Andor - Episode 7 - Review

With the heist now completed and Cassian off doing something else, there was always going to be a moment of exhaling in this episode. What I did not expect was that the exhale would be long and drawn out, getting the next lot of people in position for the next phase of the story. The result of all that action made the episode feel like a reset at times, which was a little out of place.

With how the last episode ended, Cassian fleeing on his own and the heist being broadcast across the galaxy, there was always going to be something big to happen, however that didn’t occur. Instead everything that happened story wise, was more akin to everyone being reset and taking up new positions for the next story arch, something that we don’t normally see in a Disney+ show. This reset allowed Cassian to get some closure on some parts of his life, things he really didn’t get a chance to do before fleeing Ferix, but it also set things up for whats next. The problem with Cassian’s trip down history lane was that there wasn’t a solid ending to it, again, instead he just left and I get why, his mother didn’t want to go and his ex-girlfriend basically wanted nothing to do with him. Either situation would have been ok, had Cassian been a character that was worth caring about, but he hasn’t had any growth in his absence, which makes his return a little pointless.

Outside of Cassian, we finally got to learn some more about Luthen, Mon and their plans that they have been working on, the problem is that the information we got was half delivered, referring back to a conversation that we don’t know anything about. Seeing Mon host a dinner party and confide in her friend that she was not the senator that everyone thought she was, finally felt like she was getting some movement in her character development, but that was so shrouded in double-speak, it made for some interesting dissection. Getting more of a glimpse into the ISB and what they are looking at, post the heist, was interesting but it still has the same issue that it had when they first showed up, no one cares what the bad guys are doing. The same can be said for Mr By-the-book, who has been wallowing around for a few episodes, since he was fired after having caused the problem on Ferix in the first place and while I hope they have a really strong plan for him, right now each time he appears on screen, I question if its going to be worth watching.

The problem with resetting the characters isn’t them undoing any growth, but rather it removes any reason to care about the events they just went through. Seeing Vel out of her sherpa clothes and into some nice ones, was interesting if only because it showed that Luthen wasn’t someone that you can trust, but given the conversation that he had with Mon, that was clear. The problem is that Vel’s arc was done, seeing her now undermines the events that lead up to Cassian leaving her on that planet. The same can be said for that random series of shots of Cinta back on the planet, though that shot of the Star Destroyer flying in atmo was pretty amazing. The entire story felt like the chapter after a massive battle in a book, characters are not really doing anything, and it feels a little weird to see their lives in that state.

It was great to see more of the galaxy though, both through story beats and the references to various planets, in addition to Cassian actually heading to another planet. Visually the episode was perhaps the most diverse yet, if only because it had a great pallet of colours, with the brown and orange of Ferix, the white and grey of Coruscant and then the tan and blue of Niamos, that’s the beach planet. The music also worked with it, the shot of Mr By-the-book in his little cubical had some very interesting music to hear while the camera kept panning back.

The problem with this episode is that while some interesting story moments did take place, they were often bookended by conversations that were riddled with subterfuge or worse, required past conversations to be known. Every character that we got to see, all felt like they were attempting to get into position for the next story arch and it wasn’t that exciting to watch. While I do appreciate Cassian finally seeing some consequences, the fact that it was due to his inability to not watch things happening, rather than his history catching up with him. The entire episode felt more like a filler, rather than a meal and while I can understand it, the show has been moving slow enough already, that after an action-packed episode, taking a step back and going slow once more, is not the right direction that it needed to be going in.

The Score

6.5

The Pros

+Finally getting some information on the grander scheme that Luthen and Mon are cooking up

+Visually the episode featured quite a number of interesting locations and colour schemes

The Cons

-The entire episode felt like it was filler and was just there to get folks into position for the next arc

-Cassian seeing some consequences was nice, but it would have been more impactful if they were related to his actions, rather than the Empire being a dictatorship