The first three episodes of “Andor” revolved around Cassian’s (Diego Luna) efforts to sell an NS-9 Starpath unit to Bix’s (Adria Arjona) secret buyer, Luthen Rael (Stellan Skarsgård). But it turned out that Rael hadn’t traveled all the way to Ferrix to buy what Cassian was selling. Instead, he was there to recruit him for a mission to truly fight the Empire. Since this is “Star Wars,” things obviously didn’t go smoothly as Bix’s jilted boyfriend, Timm (James McArdle), informed the Pre-Mor authorities about Cassian’s whereabouts. That led to a full-on battle between the town of Ferrix and the “army” of Pre-Mor soldiers helmed by one Syril Karn (Kyle Soller). Given Syril’s ineptitude, Cassian managed to get out of Ferrix with Rael, thereby stepping into the next chapter of his life.
Spoilers Ahead
Luthen Rael Introduces Cassian To Vel Sartha
While traveling at Lightspeed, Rael lays out what he wants from Cassian. He says that he wants Cassian to help him steal something of importance from the Empire. Cassian says that he’d rather take the option of being dropped off at an undisclosed location and live out the rest of his days than risk his life doing something substantial. He backs up his urge for survival by telling Rael about the time he fought in Mimban at the age of 16 and was one of the 50 who made it out of there alive. And at the end of the day, they found out that they were only fighting against their own. Rael corrects his story by saying that Cassian was on the ground on Mimban for just six months (not two years). He didn’t arrive there as a prisoner but as a cook. Also, Cassian didn’t survive due to his superior fighting skills. It’s because he ran away. That solidifies how far Cassian has to go in order to be honest with himself and about himself; thereby making it a great character moment.
Rael says that Cassian is right about how the Empire makes ordinary people fight amongst themselves and profits off of it. So, he understands Cassian’s rage. But he insists that he should fight for a cause that’ll have an impact instead of wasting his life on missions that’ll amount to nothing. As Cassian starts to show interest in Rael’s mission, he reveals that he has to dedicate five days of his life to it. He says that the stakes are high and dangerous, but the team is prepared, and the plan is good. If Cassian survives that, Rael is going to give him 200,000 credits. What’ll they be stealing, you (and Cassian) ask? Well, Rael says that the McGuffin is the quarterly payroll for an Imperial sector. However, the truth here is a little bit more complicated than it looks like. Back at Coruscant, we are introduced to Supervisor Dedra (Denise Gough) as she attends an Imperial meeting headed by Major Partagaz (Anton Lesser), where everyone learns about the incident at Ferrix. While Dedra takes an interest in it, the scene ends with a passing mention of Scarif (the place where the final battle of “Rogue One” happens).
Rael and Cassian finally arrive on Aldhani. Rael says that he’s going to hand him over to Vel Sartha (Faye Marsay). But before doing so, he needs to have a chat with her because, apparently, Cassian isn’t a part of the plan. Rael hands over a blue Kyber crystal (probably the same ones used in lightsabers) to Cassian and tells him to treat it as a down payment because it costs around 50,000 credits. He says that Cassian needs to give it back to him once the mission is over. Rael also makes a reference to the Rakatan invasion. He’s likely talking about the time the Rakatan Infinite Empire invaded the Tython system to regain their Force powers by capturing something called the Infinity Gate. However, they were repelled by the Je’daii Order, and that crystal symbolizes that rebellion. On that note, Rael departs the ship to go meet Vel and explain Cassian’s presence (who is going by Clem, i.e., Maarva’s husband’s name). Vel protests against this last-minute change but welcomes Cassian when Rael tells her that she can either cancel the whole plan or integrate Cassian into the team.
Mon Mothma Is Secretly Funding Luthen Rael And The Rebels
On Morlana, Lt. Supervisor Blevin (Ben Bailey Smith) confronts Deputy Inspector Syril Karn, Chief Hyne (Rupert Vansittart), and Sgt. Linus Mosk (Alex Ferns) regarding the debacle on Ferrix. The trio is ordered to relinquish any and all comlinks, weapons, and scandocs. They are asked to basically leave their job and go home because the Morlana system is under permanent Imperial authority now. Back on Aldhani, while hiking to the Rebel camp, Cassian starts asking questions about Rael’s involvement in this whole plan. Vel says that he doesn’t need to know too much about Rael, and when they get to the camp, he needs to pretend all this is her doing. This means that the Rebels won’t be happy to know that Vel is working with Rael. But that’s not the most startling revelation. It’s actually a fact that the “payroll” that Rael was talking about is the armory at the Aldhani Garrison. Cassian asks how many of them are on the team. Vel says that now that Cassian is here, they are a group of seven. Cassian is understandably shocked by it but is forced to table the conversation due to a passing TIE fighter.
Dedra finds out about the missing Starpath unit and realizes that the Ferrix incident falls under her jurisdiction. So, she tells her subordinate to inform Blevin about handing over that case to her. While approaching Coruscant, we see Rael undergoing a massive makeover as he puts on a wig, changes into something that’s more regal in nature, wears rings, and reconstructs his overall demeanor. Vel gives Cassian a little history lesson about Aldhani and how the Empire drove its people South and why it’s a good spot for anyone who is looking to take over the galaxy. Cassian asks that if there aren’t supposed to be any Aldhanis in the Northern regions, what are they disguising as? Vel says that they are mingling with the “nature lovers, mystics, and dead-enders” who live up there. Is that a synonym for a Jedi hiding there? Probably not, because “Andor” does seem to be shifting Star Wars’ focus away from that. However, Rael did show that Kyber crystal, which is in Cassian’s pocket now. So, who knows?
Dedra gets into a big tiff with Blevin since he refuses to give over the Ferrix case to her. When Blevin doesn’t budge, she says that she’s going to raise the issue to Major Partagaz. Meanwhile, we are introduced to Vel’s whole team, which includes Cinta Kaz, Taramyn Barcona, Arvel Skeen, and Karis Nemik. All of them are visibly surprised to see Vel bringing Cassian/Clem into the team. They try to question her about him, but she just sticks to the facts and tells them that his arrival was the plan all along. They are only getting to know about it now because she herself wasn’t very sure that “Clem” was going to show up. We briefly see Syril arriving at his mother’s doorstep (Kathryn Hunter as Eedy Karn) before going to Coruscant and learning that Rael’s front is that of an antique seller, which is co-handled by Kleya (Elizabeth Dulau), and he is in touch with Mon Mothma (Genevieve O’Reilly). While Kleya keeps Mothma’s driver busy, Rael takes her to the backroom to talk about funds. Mothma suggests that she has found someone to help them with the rebellion. However, Rael makes it clear that they need funds, not more people.
‘Andor’ Episode 4: Ending Explained – What Is The Rebels’ Gameplan?
Lt. Gorn (Sule Rimi), someone who works at the Garrison, shows up at the Rebel base and throws a fit after knowing that the team has a new member. Almost everyone backs Vel up in order to assure Gorn that Cassian/Clem is an important addition. Taramyn orders Cassian to go help Nemik after seeing that things are getting heated between him and Gorn, while Gorn explains that an Imperial Engineer from Coruscant is coming to Aldhani. Hence, all the TIE fighters are patrolling the area. But since the focus is going to shift to the Lowlands, Gorn says that his visits to the Rebel base won’t be as frequent as they are now. Back in Coruscant, Mon Mothma returns home only to see that her husband, Perrin (Alastair Mackenzie), is making elaborate preparations for his birthday dinner, all without consulting her. When she learns that his guest list includes all those who hate her, she reminds Perrin that the people he has gleefully invited are starving people in the galaxy just because they can.
Finally, Vel begins to talk about the heist, which is going to take place around the Akti Amaugh, the Valley of Caves. In this area lies the air base Alkenzi (50 klicks west of the Rebel base), which was “liberated” by the Empire 13 years ago. That’s also when the Empire discovered the storage capabilities of the caverns, claimed them for the Emperor, and dammed up Nasma Klain, i.e., the sacred river. She further states that this Aldhani Garrison is a depot for supplies, weapons, and the payroll for the entire Imperial sector. The singular pathway that leads to the underground flight deck of a single Max-7 Rono freighter is apparently heavily guarded. Cassian confirms that he can fly such a freighter. Vel says that there’s a vault behind the flight deck. That’s what they are going to hit and extract crates of payroll out of there and then escape through the runway tunnel in the freighter. Cassian protests by saying that it’s impossible to outrun TIE fighters on a freighter and that there’s no chance of them making it out of there alive.
This is where Gorn jumps in to explain that once every three years, the Aldhanis gather at the sacred temple near the Garrison to attend a celestial ceremony called “Mak-ani bray Dhani.” What’s the celestial ceremony exactly? According to Gorn, it’s like 50 meteor showers happening at once, with the motion being that of a curtain getting pulled across the sky until the Eye (of Aldhani), which is the window to the galaxy, forms over the horizon. Nemik corrects Gorn by saying that it’s not actually a meteor shower but a recurrent band of crystallized, noctilucent micro densities. These billions of crystals are very heavy but small and unstable, and as the planet passes through that belt, they swarm the atmosphere, heat up, and explode. So, from the ground, it looks like something heavenly, but while traveling through it in the sky, it’s utter chaos. And the Rebels plan to traverse through those explosions and escape just before the Eye closes. Hence, speed isn’t the issue. Cassian only has to focus on driving accurately for 9 minutes from the Garrison and to the Eye.
The episode concludes with Major Partagaz showing Dedra her place by telling her to focus on the sectors that are in her jurisdiction, instead of trying to wrestle some away from Blevin. Cassian learns the gravity of the mission when he’s ordered to eat, get his wound checked by Cinta, and learn the entire Aldhani phrase book, all before sunrise.
