Put on your best Ghorman finery and let’s go hit the bodegas of Coruscant, as we get ready for the penultimate arc of Andor.
Andor season 2 is being dropped in three-episode arcs over the next several weeks, with each arc making a year time jump, leading right up to Rogue One.
Mark your calendars.
Andor returns for its final season. Don’t miss the three-episode premiere streaming April 22, only on @DisneyPlus. pic.twitter.com/dilaKJkrvk
— Star Wars (@starwars) April 8, 2025
Last week’s three-episode arc saw wins and losses for almost all of our characters and the pieces continue to move on the chessboard as we get closer and closer to Project Stardust becoming a reality.
Timing notes
The second three-episode arc of Andor season 2 was very consistent when it came to timing. All three episodes clocked in between 56 and 57 minutes, which is in line with the first three-episode arc of the season, which had two of its three episodes come in above 53 minutes. At this point, I think it’s fair to assume we’ll be in that low-to-mid 50-minute runtime going forward. I think having three-episode arcs representing one full year in story helps provide structure that helps prevent excess and keeps the episodes tight.
Notes
(Warning: Spoilers for the second three-episode arc of Andor season 2 ahead.)
- We pick up with Cassian and Bix living in a safehouse on Coruscant. They’re both dealing with a form of PTSD — Bix still has nightmares about Dr. Gorst, while Cassian will do whatever it takes to protect Bix from experiencing what she experienced at the hotel on Ferrix ever again (even if that means murdering a soldier in cold blood because he saw Bix’s face). Despite the heaviness of all this worry living right under the Empire’s nose, we do see moments of domestic bliss between the two, including shopping for groceries and making dinner (which is apparently surprisingly good). Cassian struggles with the idea of leaving Bix behind on an assessment mission to Ghorman for Luthen, while Bix struggles with drug use in a bid to help her deal with the nightmares she continues to have. Luthen is aware of it all, noting that neither Cassian or Bix are living up to his expectations. Luthen clearly is only concerned about the Rebellion and he is willing to sacrifice anyone and anything, as evidenced by his discussion with Cassian about the potential to support the Ghorman Front even if it is a strategic loss. In the end, Cassian and Bix have what they hope is a win as Bix gives Gorst a taste of his own medicine before blowing up the building. Will this stop the nightmares and get Bix back on the straight and narrow? Or was it only a temporary and fleeting high with lasting consequences considering how the Empire wanted to expand Gorst’s work? Only time will tell, but my guess is there will be consequences (similar to how the Aldhani heist led to the PORD in season 1) which Bix and Cassian had not considered.
- Getting back to Ghorman, we learn that Syril has been promoted to head of the Bureau of Standards field office on Ghorman, which his mother is none too pleased about. If Eedy is an example, the Empire’s propaganda campaign against Ghorman is taking hold, even if Syril appears to show some concern about it. However, all is not what it seems. The Ghorman Front is listening in on Syril’s calls and Syril knows it. In fact, he appears to be on Ghorman as something of a double agent on orders from Dedra and Major Partagaz. The bugged calls and the raid on Syril’s office help convince the Ghorman Front he could be of us to them, and they make contact. Syril plays along and helps set the Ghorman Front up to be the tool Dedra told Director Krennic in the first three-episode arc was needed to help really turn the galaxy against Ghorman. As Cassian is arriving to assess the state of the Ghorman Front, Syril is heading back to Coruscant to meet with Dedra and Partagaz and get his marching orders. Syril is thrilled to be back working as a cop of sorts and is gleeful to get a scrap of attention and praise from Partagaz. But, from this win comes a loss — from his lone hour with Dedra to her keeping him out of the loop on what is really behind the effort against Ghorman, we get further evidence that no matter what feelings she may have for Syril, they pale in comparison to how she feels for the Empire. Work will always come first for Dedra, and one wonders if Syril will eventually come to realize that he’s always going to be in second place and grow to resent it.
- Back on Ghorman, we continue to see the evolution of Cassian as a rebel. He takes on the task of stepping into someone else’s shoes, playing the role of a fashion designer, Varian Skye, looking to take in Ghorman’s famed fabrics for himself. It’s clear from the beginning, however, that he is not impressed with the Ghorman Front, chastising one of their members right away for nearly blowing his cover. Ultimately, he can see their eagerness to get into the fight against the Empire, but doesn’t think they’re worth the risk and tells Luthen so. Luthen disagrees and goes to Plan B — he sends in Vel and Cinta to assist the Ghorman Front with their weapons heist in a bid to prove the Empire is building an armory and build their own armory. Vel and Cinta are finally reunited and agree that from now on they want to be together. Which, of course, foreshadows Cinta’s demise. Ultimately, Andor is proven right in a way as during the heist a member of the Ghorman Front is confronted by an angry Ghorman citizen who had been critical of leadership at a town hall meeting and in their scuffle, he accidentally shoots and kills Cinta. Vel is beside herself, and despite ultimately achieving their goal Cinta’s loss will hang over both Vel and the man who shot her.
- Meanwhile, after the walls felt like they were closing in on Mon Mothma in the season’s first arc, this arc has them closing in on Luthen and Kleya. Their web of listening devices is spinning out of control to the point where Luthen admits that even he can’t keep track of things. Their consternation grows when Kleya learns that one of Davo Sculdun’s pieces he’s showing off is a fake and he’s having everything reassessed. The problem? Doing so will likely result in Sculdun finding their listening device they’ve placed in a piece they sold to him. Thus, the duo has to go to a party crawling with Imperials, including Krennic, to get back the device. Thankfully for them, double agent ISB Inspector Lonnie is at the party and Kleya uses him to help her high-risk bid to remove the bug … with Krennic in the room. Despite some tense moments, they are ultimately successful, but are things getting too close for comfort and will it all begin to take a toll on Luthen? Will it all lead to his downfall?
- Poor Wilmon also has wins and losses in this arc. Win: He successfully does his job for Saw. Loss: He has to spend additional time with Saw and is eventually radicalized by Saw, it appears. Ultimately, hitching his wagon to Saw’s band of reckless rebels probably won’t end well for Wilmon. At least he’ll always have the memories of his forbidden love on Mina-Rau.
- We still haven’t seen the re-introduction of the fan favorite K-2SO. Gilroy previously said K-2SO presented story problems, so it’s not entirely surprising that we’re halfway through this season without seeing the reprogrammed droid. However, I do hope we see him so Gilroy and crew can start to build the foundation of the Andor-K2 relationship we saw in Rogue One.
- Finally, I can’t leave this arc behind without talking about Bail Organa. Since the character’s live-action inception on the big and small screen, Organa has been played by the legendary Jimmy Smits. From Revenge of the Sith to Rogue One to Obi-Wan Kenobi, the senator from Alderaan and Leia’s adoptive father has been played by the NYPD Blue alum. However, in “What A Festive Evening,” Bail looks different and he should — he’s being played by Law & Order alum Benjamin Bratt. Now, I have no problem with Bratt, and I understand when Tony Gilroy says they would have loved to have Smits back but his schedule wouldn’t allow for it. That being said, was Organa really necessary for this story? Gilroy says this was just an appetizer to get people used to Bratt’s Bail before he plays a larger role in future arcs, but personally, I would have been fine with another senator being used here. It’s a bit of whiplash to go from Smits in Sith and Kenobi to Bratt here and then back to Smits in Rogue One. It just takes me out of the story a little bit. But maybe that’s just me since I’m just a big fan of the one-time President Matthew Santos on The West Wing.
One cool development in our world was the appearance of Diego Luna at Disneyland to help celebrate May the 4th this past weekend. Scenes like shine a spotlight on the “light side” of Star Wars fandom, which has taken some hits in recent years for its less-than-welcoming attitudes toward actors such as John Boyega, Kelly Marie Tran and Moses Ingram. Moments like this remind us why we love the galaxy far, far away.
So, everyone is beginning to feel the heat in Andor. How much more will our rebel friends flirt with danger? Will Gorst’s death be the end of Bix’s nightmares (and drug problems)? How much more can Mon and Luthen take before they begin to crack? How much is Dedra willing to sell out Syril in the name of the Empire? We’ll start to get more of those answers on Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET. May the Force be with you!
