*Premise spoilers.*
Oh my god. All this waiting, and it’s finally here! I am vibrating. This season, they’re dropping three episodes per week. Rather than get behind with my Y tu Luna también reviews, I’ll be posting each week’s episode reviews on consecutive days. I’m doing these write-ups after watching each episode, so as of this writing, I don’t know anything about episodes 2 and 3 yet, but episode 1 is a certified banger. We are so back!!!
One year after the events of the season 1 finale, Cassian is firmly entrenched in the Rebellion. When a mission to steal an Imperial test ship goes south, he’s left trying to figure out how to salvage it—and stay alive. Mon Mothma is wearing a smile while somberly bracing herself for her daughter’s arranged marriage, and she didn’t expect Luthen to show up for the festivities. Director Krennic has assembled a top-secret meeting with key Imperial officers to discuss Ghorman, a planet the Empire needs to control for the sake of its future plans.
I imagine that every post-time-jump episode this season will need to do some amount of table setting to show us where the characters are now, but this one does that fairly succinctly. There are still a lot of details left unsaid for the moment, but the things that are left out are compelling—I can follow the present action while still being curious about certain in-between stuff. We’ll see if the next two episodes in the arc give us any more hints about what went down in the interim.
Despite the necessity of establishing new status quos for several plotlines, though, the episode contains plenty of actual story. We catch up with the Ferrix crew who fled at the end of season 1. I like that Bix is still deeply affected by the torture she suffered under ISB, but that it isn’t a 24/7 thing for her. She wakes up screaming from nightmares, but she also sets her mind to mechanical work and enjoys teasing Wilmon. There are good moments and bad moments—while reminders of her trauma and fears of an uncertain future can creep in at any time, she’s been gradually making her way back to herself.
It feels like there’s the most table-setting in the Mon Mothma plot. The wedding is something we knew was coming at the end of last season, and I’m dreading it as much as Mon is. I’m definitely intrigued by Luthen’s presence (along with Kleya!) and the hints of some sort of rumblings beneath the surface. I also like seeing Chandrila and what the planet is like.
The Krennic plot is introduced so well here. It has exactly the sort of scenes that Andor excels at, taking what’s essentially an authoritarian business meeting and making it into something gripping. I’m fascinated by seeing Major Partagaz as more of a tempering presence in the room, and the dialogue from members of the “Ministry of Enlightenment” is positively chilling. One of them, speaking pleasantly, begins, “Some of what you’re thinking about Ghormans at this very moment exists because we put it there,” and then he and his colleague demonstrate how they’ve done just that. I look forward to seeing more of Krennic—Ben Mendelsohn was great in Rogue One! And of course, Dedra is up to her usual practice of trying to solve the Empire’s problems as if they’re ruthless brain teasers.
All that, and then we get Cassian too! I am obsessed with what we’ve seen of him so far. He’s definitely come the furthest with the time jump. I just love seeing him as a Rebel. At this point, he is all the way in. It’s wonderful to see his warmth and encouragement to a nervous Imperial defector, telling her it’s all right to be sad about everything she’s sacrificing and reminde her how brave she is. “You’re coming home to yourself,” he tells her. “You’ve become more than your fear. Let that protect you.” Gaaahhhhhhh, so good!!!
I love that he’s 100% steady and calm with her, giving her exactly what she needs in that moment, but he’s not “Cassian Andor: Super-Rebel.” When he first climbs into the test ship, his nerves and disorientation are palpable, and he repeatedly mutters to himself, “You’ve got this.” Throughout the mission, he demonstrates quick thinking and incredible skill, and he’s also pretty much shitting himself the whole time. I love that.
I just cannot say enough about how excellent Diego Luna is in this role. He makes you feel everything from Cassian. You see his wheels constantly turning. You see his conviction, his fear, his annoyance, his craftiness. You see him scrambling to get his bearings in a hostile situation, feeling out which buttons to press and how far to test the limits without getting himself in worse trouble.
I’m already sad that we got twelve episodes with BBY5 Cassian and we’re only going to get three episodes with him in BBY4. I’m also champing at the bit to see what else Luna does with his performance as we get closer and closer to the events of Rogue One, but it would’ve been just wonderful to get a full season with Cassian on this phase of his journey. Still, I have no doubt that Luna will take full advantage of every moment. Episode 1 has already given me a veritable feast of character moments to dissect!
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