Every time an episode of Star Wars: Andor lands, Fantha Tracks will be giving their responses, and here are our initial gut feelings, deep dives and thoughts on episode seven of season one, ‘Announcement’. Beware of spoilerific elements in here.
Becca Benjamin
Andor is now past the halfway point of season one, and things are heating up! Episode 7: Announcement‘ is literally just that. The Rebellion is coming, and the Empire has no idea how ready the Alliance is.
‘Announcement‘ gives us a plethora of character development and performance from many characters like Dedra, Syril, Vel, Maarva, Andor, Colonel Yularen, Luthen, and last but not least, Mon Mothma.
The theme of ‘Announcement‘ seems to follow a specific moment from Star Wars: ‘A New Hope,’ driven by Princess Leia’s message for Tarkin, “the more you tighten your grip, Tarkin, the more star systems will slip through your fingers.”
Throughout the entire episode, we see the Empire doing just that. They’re raising taxes, invoking the P.O.R.D, upping their search and seizure, re-evaluating existing prison sentences, etc., the list goes on and on. Even Maarva knows what’s coming and does her best to warn Andor by using Galen Erso’s line to a young Jyn from Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, “Say you understand.” Sadly, Cassian doesn’t comprehend how much the Empire has upped its ante at this point and can only express how much he worries about his mother. Maarva explains that it’s just love, and there’s nothing you can do about that.
It seems only Dedra from the I.S.B. and Mon Mothma realize the extent of what’s about to happen, and there’s no turning back. So much so that Mon Mothma reveals herself to an old friend (Tay Kolma) with one of the best lines and delivery in any Star Wars to date! “I show you the stone in my hand. You miss the knife at your throat.”
At the end of episode seven, ‘Announcement‘ with Cassian under arrest and sentenced to six years in an Imperial prison for being in the wrong place at the wrong time, “I’m just a tourist.” This moment reminded me of Kevin Smith’s ‘Clerks,’ “I’m not even supposed to be here today.” I can’t wait to see how he gets out of this one in episode eight!
Jen Sopchockchai Bankard
Announcement checks in with nearly every character we’ve met so far, spreading the story across many plot lines. It deals with the aftermath of the Aldhani heist and what each character’s next move might be. Cassian goes back to Ferrix to try to get his mother, Maarva, to start a new life with his earnings from then heist. Syril Carn bickers with his mother and goes on an interview at the Bureau of Standards, courtesy of his mysterious “Uncle Harlo.” Dedra gets the data she needs and impresses Partagaz, who reassigns Ferrix to her. Mon Mothma and Luthen have a spat over the events on Aldhani. Mon Mothma uses the cover of a Coruscant cocktail party to recruit a childhood friend to the cause. Kleya meets with Vel and orders her to tie up loose ends (a.k.a. kill Cassian). Everyone is a part of a bigger system and individual actions ricochet off one another so that no one is ever living on a vacuum. In some ways, that’s why Cassian’s dream of taking his credits and running was never going to work. Even as a “tourist” on a wayward beach party planet, he cannot escape Imperial tyranny.
More specifically, the Empire in Andor, as highlighted in this episode, is a mechanized system that devours people and strips them of their individuality. When Syril’s mother hassles him the morning of his interview, for example, she’s not just smothering him with overbearing parenting. She’s worried that her son’s appearance will stand out too much. She says, “Is that what you’re wearing?” in a stereotypically naggy way, but then, immediately afterwards, she makes a much more revealing comment: “What makes you think the Bureau of Standards is in the market for individuals?” It doesn’t matter how unremarkable the suit is; the fact that he customized it in any way is bad because it goes against Imperial values. His mother thinks the higher collar is a cry for attention and a lack of confidence, and she comes to that conclusion because falling in line and doing your part makes the Empire go round.
We may not agree with what he’s doing, but the fact that what he is doing breaks rules makes him more like the Rebels than we’d like to admit. Even though he may think outside the box more than most pro-Empire people, the match cut we get from a shot of Syril — his contentious collar prominently displayed — to a shot of a gray ISB suit jacket hanging — collar also prominently displayed — implies that maybe Syril just wants to be more like an Imperial officer. That he’s trying to actualize the career he wants by modifying the clothes he wears.
Since this next scene quickly reveals Dedra suiting up before a meeting, I would say that the cut also links the two characters in a way that makes it more and more likely that Syril and Dedra’s paths will cross. Even though I think Dedra is way cooler than Syril, I’m still guessing that they will see each other as like-minded individuals, committed to a mission even if it goes against protocol or the status quo. Dedra, after all, takes advantage of the Empire’s equivalent of the Patriot Act to get the information she needs. Her supervisor does reward her for going out of bounds or being more creative, but he also tells her after the meeting to “watch your back,” implying that there may yet be punishment for her flouting.
I fear that by the end of the season, regardless of whatever victories they enjoy along the way, the Dedras and the Syrils will eventually be punished rather than rewarded. Notice that I said “fear” just now. I am still flabbergasted by how much I am rooting for these characters who are so clearly on the wrong side of history. The show gives us a window into their interiority and the challenges they face such that we can’t help but want them to succeed, even if that means they are opposed to the good guys. Or perhaps, according to Tony Gilroy, there are no good guys, as we see Andor hurts those he loves even though he will ultimately become a rebel and be one of the “good guys.”
Part of me worries that “Kafkaesque” has become a cliche that writers reach for too often, but it’s what I thought of when I witnessed Cassian’s arrest and hearing on what the Internet has lovingly dubbed “space Florida,” Niamos. (Allow me a brief digression to shoutout the music in this episode, especially once we arrive on Niamos. I never knew I needed beach synth in my life, but now I can’t live without it.) It just fits so perfectly. When the Shoretrooper initially approaches Cassian, he asks, “Are you a part of it?” Cassian’s response is, “A part of what?” because he genuinely doesn’t seem to know why those other people were running. The Shoretrooper uses a tautological argument to implicate him; when Cassian says, “Why would I be running?” the trooper simply replies, “Because you’re a part of it.” And he says he’s a part of it because he looks like he’s been running. All Cassian can do is repeat, “A part of what?” The Empire holds him and, if the full courtroom is any indication, countless others accountable for rules that they’ve never been told. Rules that change by the minute, paradoxically in flux. There’s a nightmarish absurdity to it all.
I liked Mon Mothma from the get-go, but this episode affords the Senator everyone underestimates a chance to show us just how deep undercover she is. The idea that she pretends to be a “polite, sometimes indecisive Senator” just so that no one suspects her of funding a rebellion is absolutely riveting. Her saying that she learned from Emperor Palpatine that if “I show you the stone in my hand, you miss the knife at your throat” reveals a cunning that we didn’t know about before.
Smiling is her deadliest weapon here; that’s not only a brilliant concept for a character, but it sets up such a stark contrast to Luthen and the other Rebels, who rely more on brute force and making a commotion. Their whole plan for the Aldhani heist, we learn, was to draw attention to themselves — to make, as Dedra says, an “announcement.” Mon Mothma, on the other hand, fights on a very different front, using her aristocratic, opulent, Empire-adjacent lifestyle — including her immaculate, fierce fits — as a shield as she operates in the shadows. Mothma and Luthen clash over what a rebellion must involve. She hates the idea of innocent people suffering after the Empire tightens its fist in response to the incident on Aldhani, but Luthen thinks it’s necessary for liberation. I can’t wait to see how throwing extremist Saw Gerrera into the mix will affect this dynamic. What it will infuse into the dialectic.
(This is condensed and edited – with permission – from Jen’s The Long Take review, which you can subscribe to here)
Ross Hollebon
“Some of us, well, most of us—we’ve all done terrible things on behalf of the Rebellion. Spies, saboteurs, assassins.” This is Cassian Andor prior to the attack on Scarif. He is volunteering himself and a small band of comrades to attack because they believe in the Rebellion and have committed atrocities in its name to counteract the Empire.
Announcement (Ep. 7) shows how necessarily cutthroat the fledgling Rebellion is. After completing the mission on Aldhani, Cassian is considered a “loose end” by Luthen, leading Kleya to order Vel to find and assassinate him. Cassian has deemed himself just a mercenary, making him expendable to the bigger picture of the Rebel network. This is who Cassian becomes leading into Rogue One and the harsh reality of an underground movement of those same spies, saboteurs, and assassins—as well as politicians.
Senator Mon Mothma doesn’t agree with the tactics Luthen has adopted to activate swaths of the galaxy against the Empire. After noting that Palpatine will not hesitate to act she shares her concern that “people will suffer.” The artifacts dealer doesn’t miss a beat in replying, “that’s the plan.” This early iteration of the Rebellion appears much more embedded with the violence and chaos of Saw Gerrera and his partisans to rattle the Empire into swift retribution—all in hopes of trading the suffering of innocent people in order to activate them against those in power.
The ISB is the weapon of those in power. According to Admiral Wullf Yularen, who makes appearances and impacts Star Wars through various stories and mediums, Emperor Palpatine has assured him the ISB will now lead the charge against anyone deemed a threat to the Empire. This means Dedra is another step closer to having nothing in her way to uncover the burgeoning rebel activity—especially after Major Partagaz gives her control over the territory including Ferrix.
The same Ferrix that Cassian returns to only to be shunned by his family and friends. Maarva tells him he can’t stay there but she won’t leave with him because she is ready to fight against the Empire. Bix lets him know that most of his friends or acquaintances there blame him for the Imperial occupation and that he must leave. He bitterly heeds their warning, escaping to a beach location with his newfound wealth. But even there, as a tourist with ample credits, he can’t escape the tightening fist of the Empire. For no legitimate reason, he is arrested and sentenced to six years in prison. He again sees that it’s not enough to just not look up. He’s alone, in captivity, and unknowingly being hunted by the “good guys,” some of whom have done terrible things on behalf of the Rebellion.
Eric Onkenhout
Before Andor began, Tony Gilroy stated that every three episodes would be a new story arc. With episode 7, Announcement, the third of four arcs has started. And the beginning of each arc is evident as they start slow, and by the third episode, the tension has climaxed. This episode was back to a slower pace. Because of this, Andor is beginning to feel like a roller coaster ride, where it’s worth the lulls to get to the peaks.
Announcement begins with Siryl still at his mother’s home. He is dressed and ready to go for a job interview. While eating his cereal, his mother continues to badger him about various things, including his raised collar. Siryl’s mother has been nothing but a nagging nuisance since he came back home. It’s easy to imagine Siryl’s desire to be the best he can be at his former job to prove his worth to his overbearing mother, who is never happy with anything he does. And it was nice to hear Siryl give it back to her a little. Siryl is better off without her and doesn’t need to prove himself to anyone.
Admiral Yularen appeared in Announcement, which wasn’t a given but makes complete sense as he transitioned from the Republic to the Empire. Yularen is an intriguing figure as he was a noble Republic military leader working side by side with the Jedi during the Clone Wars, and now he works for the ISB hunting rebel cells for the Empire. Alexandre Dumas once said, “The difference between treason and patriotism is only a matter of dates.” Yularen is clearly a fan of order and supports whatever side promotes that ideal. Besides the actor looking somewhat like Yularen from The Clone Wars and A New Hope, it’s just as important that they got the voice close as well.
The ISB has basically deemed breathing illegal, and anyone violating the law will be tossed in jail for an exorbitant about of time. “The more you tighten your grip Tarkin; the more star systems will slip through your fingers.” Dedra knows this. She knows the rebels are drawing out the Empire and forcing them to show their hand.
Meanwhile, Luthen listens to a message about Aldahni from a distorted voice over a comm. Ahsoka’s voice sounded similarly distorted when she reported Imperial happenings. Just saying. It’s probably not Ahsoka, but it could be another Fulcrum. Luthen has to hang up as Mon Mothma arrives unexpectedly. Mon is unhappy about what happened on Aldahni because Mon’s way of fighting the Empire has a different tact than Luthen or Saw Gerrera’s. She is afraid that direct fighting will draw too much attention to her and the rebellion, which would end it before it begins. Mon has to think differently. She comes from a privileged background and has a different inner circle of associates close to the Emperor. Mon has to work subtly by delaying proposed laws in the Senate. As Vel said, everyone fights their own rebellion. Some use blasters. Some use words.
On Coruscant, Kleya secretly meets with Vel and tells her Cassian needs to be removed because he cannot be left alone with the knowledge about Luthen. That will probably be explored during the next arc. At a dinner party, Mon spends some time with an old friend called Tay Kolma, a banker from Chandrila. In an episode full of speaking scenes, Mon hints at her activities with Tay, who supports her idealism but is reluctant to get too involved. Mon is looking for financial support from Tay’s bank, much like San Hill supported the Separatist during the Clone Wars.
Cassian returns to Ferrix Bix to pay her off and convince Maarva to leave with him now that Cassian got paid. Fiona Shaw is brilliant as Maarva! Maarva tells Cassian that she is also joining the rebellion. The emotion in this scene is palpable, and it’s refreshing to see a healthy parental relationship in Star Wars. Yes, they butt heads but they love each other in the end.
It’s an interesting contrast in the parenteral/child relationship as Maarva is passionate about her feelings about joining the rebellion while Cassian thinks she cracked. And Mon Mothma is doing her thing, while her daughter, Leida, disagrees. In both instances, the parent is the rebel. In another display of brilliant acting and writing, Denise Gough, Ben Bailey Smith, and Anton Lesser slay as Meero, Blevin, and Major Partagaz.
At the end of the episode, Cassian gets arrested for “breathing” and is held captive by a K2 security droid. Maybe this is K2-SO version one? There is a rumor that B2EMO will be rebuilt as K2-SO, but in the words of George Harrison, “it’s just a rumor.” Announcement was a bit of a restart for Andor but is sure to change gears next week as it inches closer to Rogue One and Saw Gerrera.
Daniel Lo
“How can you be so obtuse?” Warden Sam Norton’s demeanor immediately changed after Andy Dufresne spoke those words to him in The Shawshank Redemption. What started as an attempt to clear his name based on new evidence quickly escalated into a month of solitary confinement. Talk about a harsh punishment that doesn’t fit the crime. However, it also wouldn’t be too long before Andy escapes in one of the most satisfying endings in cinema.
Likewise, Cassian finds himself in a similar situation at the end of the latest episode of Andor. In fact, he is given a harsher sentence for doing much less. He appears to be legitimately going about his own business on Niamos when he is stopped by a Shoretrooper. After nearly getting choked out by a KX security droid, Cassian is given a six year sentence by a vaguely bored, space pistachios-eating judge. The charges are civil disruption, anti-Imperial speech, fleeing the scene of anti-Imperial activity, and attempted damage to Imperial property. None of them are remotely true on this day. Fortunately, just like Andy, we can safely conclude from the known timeline of both Star Wars canon and the show that it likely won’t be long before Cassian makes an escape of his own.
Of course, the irony is Cassian is indeed guilty of all the aforementioned charges, and to a far greater capacity than anyone in the courtroom could possibly guess. On top of that, it is the exact event he participated in that serves as the reason for the unusually harsh sentence. We have Colonel Yularen to thank for this, who also threatens a “permanent revocation of Imperial tolerance“. Surely no one talks like that in real life, but boy does it sound good. His mention of Palpatine also gave me goosebumps.
Speaking of the Imperials, Dedra once again deserves MVP honors. She continues to have a profound understanding of her opponents that her colleagues and superiors lack, thinks outside the box (and Imperial boundaries), and isn’t afraid to do what it takes to put the Rebels in their place. She is in full on villain mode in this episode, with a subtle but ever-present scowl on her face except for when she’s smirking at defeated colleagues. When Partagaz tells her to “watch your back“, was that advice or a threat? I couldn’t tell.
One huge highlight of this episode is how much screen time Coruscant gets. This includes Vel and Kleya’s secret meeting, which is introduced by a long walk through many previously unseen parts of the city. The first time we see “the good guys” plotting to dispatch one of their own is in Rogue One when General Draven secretly instructs Cassian to kill Galen Erso instead of extracting him. This time, Cassian is on the wrong end of that stick. Kleya doxes Cassian and instructs Vel to kill him. Cassian did not exactly part ways with her on the best of terms, although Vel does not seem completely sold on the idea of offing him either. It will be interesting to see whether Cassian will have one more enemy or ally upon his inevitable escape. In the same meeting we also learn that Cinta still being on Aldhani appears to be part of the plan, although her next steps remain unclear.
It is worth noting that at this point, Cassian is clearly still not a Rebel yet despite having contributed to what seems like a major turning point against the Empire. While part of his payment is likely for keeping his mouth shut, he also appears genuinely set on not letting Maarva or Bix know about his involvement. Or B2EMO, whose return also means we get some light comic relief again. He is mainly set on skipping town with Maarva and B2EMO, even after Maarva clearly expresses the inspiration she draws from the heist.
We also get some more flashbacks again, this time set on Ferrix. The presence of clone troopers in the show trailer now makes a little more sense. We also now know that Cassian’s dad was basically an innocent bystander caught standing in the wrong place and at the wrong time, ironically in a mild defense of the Empire. The other flashback is much less clear to me: Who is the boy charging a group of troopers with a stick? If that is a younger Cassian, that means Clem is still around. More questions.
My favorite scenes in this episode are the ones involving Mon Mothma. Her uneasy visit to the gallery is a compelling performance, with Luthen’s demeanor flip flopping based on whether or not he is facing the entrance where the senator’s driver (now known to be an ISB plant) is waiting. The exchange offers the latest glimpse into the levels of mistrust within the Rebellion. What does Kleya mean when she says “I hope she’s worth it“? Bonus points for including a Gungan shield. Later at home, Mon Mothma has another interesting conversation with her old friend Tay Kolma. The build up and verbal dancing around is realistically portrayed, culminating in a mutual understanding that could potentially free up a financial bottleneck for the Rebellion. As for the brief scene with Leida, as a former adolescent I can confirm that her exchange is convincing as well.
The one major character I have yet to mention is Syril. The episode starts and ends with him. In the beginning, he is berated by his mom again until a news report on Aldhani captures his attention. Then, with the help of his uncle, he lands a job with the Bureau of Standards with relative ease. This will obviously not happen, but how funny would it be if that final shot of the cubicles is the last we’d ever see of him? Hired as an office drone, and never to make an impact again. On a more serious note, Syril still does not strike me as a villain, but rather as someone who is simply focused on doing what he perceives to be right. And really, how can anyone argue? From his perspective, two co-workers were killed, he attempted to uphold the law and failed, and then got fired in a humiliating fashion. It’s nearly impossible to fault anyone in his position. I am not saying this will happen, but he comes across as someone who can potentially be recruited into the Rebellion under the proper circumstances. We have yet to see him have any outright “villain moments” that I can recall, but the show does go to great lengths to put his insecurities on display. Whatever sense of fulfilment he is after, I just can’t see him finding it on this side of the Empire.
As mentioned last time out, this week’s installment has a one-off combination of writer and director credits. As such, the transitional nature of this episode makes perfect sense. It feels like a checkpoint of sorts, reviewing and responding to the events that have occurred so far while launching the story even further into the unknown. Both the Empire and Rebellion are poised to make their next moves, and Cassian is now caught in the middle.
Mark Newbold and Mark Mulcaster discuss episode 7 on Making Tracks Reaction Chats.
Brian Cameron and Mark Newbold discuss episode 7 on Good Morning Tatooine.
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