*Spoilers for episode 4*
I thought this was a strong episode. Things are heating up, and Cassian gets more to do—always a positive in my book. Very curious to see how it all turns out in episode 6!
Syril is being courted by members of the Ghorman Front, but unbeknownst to them, he’s baited them at Dedra’s behest. Cassian has also arrived in Ghorman, meeting with the rebel leadership and assessing their operation. Meanwhile, Kleya discovers a vulnerability in her surveillance and Wilmon, who was sent to Saw Gerrera’s camp to instruct them in a new skill, finds himself unable to leave.
While the Ghorman Front thinks Syril is their man on the inside, giving them Imperial intel, he’s actually Dedra’s. He’s taken to his work as a double agent quite well, pulling off better acting skills than I would’ve guessed he was capable of. Since Syril is a zealot who’s desperate to prove himself, I’ve been wondering if prolonged contact with the rebels might start to confuse his loyalties, but so far, he’s looking to be an eager Imperial lapdog. He’s over the moon at the thought of pleasing Dedra and Major Partagaz.
I’ve always been interested in the relationship between Luthen and Kleya. Despite his hard edges and ruthlessness, not to mention her official position as his assistant at the gallery, we’ve seen her clash with him before over tactics. Here, he’s furious that what he views as her overreach has left them vulnerable, but while Kleya is nervous about the situation too, her primary focus is on solutions. She doesn’t have time for Luthen’s tantrums.
I know that Saw has appeared in some of the animated shows too, but I only know him from Rogue One and his brief appearances in season 1 of Andor. It’s interesting to get more of a look at him here, already extremely paranoid about spies and not viewing anyone in his team as above betraying him. “You think I’m crazy?” he demands. “Yes, I am. Revolution is not for the sane.” I’m worried about what’s going to happen to Wilmon in his camp.
We’ve seen Cassian use aliases before, but in Ghorman, we’re getting our first look at him taking on a genuine false persona. Ghorman’s chief industry is textiles, so he comes to meet the rebels posing as a designer. The contrast between his cover identity and his real one isn’t as flashy and dramatic as the difference we see in Luthen when he plays the part of the antiquities dealer, but he’s still visibly “not Cassian” here, and we can see him turn it on and turn it off.
I’m a little reminded of Cassian’s time in Aldhani, where he was sent to round out a Rebel cell with more dedication than experience/knowhow. The Rebels in Ghorman have a lot of fervor, understandably so—the Empire is increasingly putting the screws to their planet—but they’re itching to pull off a big move that Cassian doesn’t necessarily think they’re ready for.
As such, Cassian is there to get a sense of their operation and report back to Luthen, but he’s also there to advise and caution them. When a rebel approaches him in an unscheduled contact, he chides her for her recklessness: “Maybe I’m a snitch, and you’re my payday. Or maybe I’m ISB. Maybe you just put everyone you care about into a cell.”
He’s again in the position of showing eager rebels how much they don’t know, but it feels different than it did on Aldhani. This time, Cassian is a bonafide Rebel himself, though his pragmatic approach has the Ghorman Front questioning his dedication. But he is on the same side as these people, believes in the same things they do, and he has even more advice to offer them this time around. Mission logistics, yes, but also the nuts and bolts of running a rebel operation. He’s connected now in a way he wasn’t before—but if the Aldhani Rebels thought he was just a mercenary without conviction, the Ghormans think he’s too slick and corporate for their tastes, without the stomach for what needs to be done.
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