S01.E08: Narkina 5

[formerlyfreedom]

Quote

The Empire catches up to Cassian, but are as yet are unaware of identity or past.

Dropping Wednesday, October 26, 2022.

[absnow54]

Wow. The prison they've built really captures that 1970s sci fi horror vibe. It's really interesting to see all of the stories start to intersect. I don't see how they can conclude this current arc in three episodes, like they have with the first two, but I don't mind the change in format. It feels like there's real momentum now.

I enjoyed the talk between Saw and Luthen about all the opposition factions being unwilling to work together. A major criticism of the Prequel Trilogy was that all the politics were heavy handed and boring, but I think Andor has done an exquisite job of taking politics and social commentary to the forefront and making it relevant and interesting.

And for the last time. They never should have named the actress who looks exactly like Leia, Cleya. If I didn't watch the show with subtitles, I would be so confused!

[wanderingstar]

Andy Serkis! I was so excited when I saw him. Kino is terrifying.

I was distressed every time they cut back to the prison. Cassian's fear when he first arrived was palpable. All the talk about inmates being "fried" if messed up in some way was chilling. I sincerely salute the production design team for this show. That prison was scary af.

So, we got the meeting between Karn and Meero. Karn is so desperate to catch Andor and maintain order, and he was basically saying "hire me!" but Meero's entire disposition around him said "Boy, don't get ideas above your station."

Bix trying desperately to contact Luthen was painful to watch. And now the Imperials have snatched her up. I shudder to think what she'll be subjected to by Meero.

I'm fearing for Mon Mothma and her friend Tay.

We got to see Saw Gerrera! Fantastic scene between him and Luthen. 

This show is so damn good. 

Edited October 26, 2022 by Gillian Rosh

[Tachi Rocinante]

So good.

• Mon and her friend are feeling the vise close, and her husband isn't stupid. The quick scene with her daughter was odd.
• I guess Cinta's plot armor got her out safe, but Vel doesn't seem happy (is she the spoiled rich girl?)
• Poor Bix.  I was hoping Cinta would help out.
• The prison scenes were well done, just enough.
• Saw is too stubborn and suspicious for his own good.  His aging didn't look quite right.
• The music had a very distinct Tangerine Dream/Michael Mann 80's vibe and it worked well.

[angora]

Oh man, and I thought "The Eye" was tense. Such a good episode, but so stressful!

It was so effective to see Cassian in that awful prison. After his sentencing, he was still trying to do anything he could to stop was was happening, still shouting that he was just a tourist, but the second he got onto the transport, all the fight was knocked out of him. He was still freaking out, but it was all internal.

It's so powerful. He doesn't come in all cocky, mouthing off to the guards and taking his first opportunity to put up a fight and escape. This isn't a prison romp--this is *prison*. He doesn't say anything, he doesn't look at anybody funny, he observes everything but keeps his head down. His shell-shocked expression at the end of his first shift (presumably after his table had been "fried") was heartbreaking. And then, there's no quick fix. A month later, he's still there, and he's melded into the routine, while outside *everyone* is wondering where he went.

Seriously, everyone is looking for Cassian. Syril is still obsessed with him, Dedra thinks he's the key to finding Luthen, Luthen and the rebels know he's a dangerous loose end, and his friends back home are worrying as they try to look after Maarva. No one knows the Empire already dropped him down a hole and left him there.

So many great scenes. I liked seeing Syril and Dedra finally meet--even though she's on his side in recognizing the complacency with how the Ferrix incident was handled, she has *zero* time for his pestering about Cassian and begging for a job. Such a loaded conversation between Vel and Cinta. I loved the line, "The struggle will always come first, we take what's left." Really interesting back-and-forth between Luthen and Saw over the many disparate rebel groups. And everything on Ferrix was just so well done.

2 hours ago, absnow54 said:

It's really interesting to see all of the stories start to intersect. I don't see how they can conclude this current arc in three episodes, like they have with the first two, but I don't mind the change in format. It feels like there's real momentum now.

I wonder if the main plot of these three episodes is "Cassian disappears." He tries to do it himself in episode 7 but gets far more than he bargained for when he's arrested on Niamos. Maybe episode 9 will end with one or more of these groups discovering that he's on Narkina 5, and the last three will be about seeing which group will get to him first.

[thuganomics85]

Saw Gerrera finally arrives!  Great seeing him again and I loved his scene with Luthen.  I like how they continue to show how the rebellion is currently divided into numerous factions and there is a struggle to get everyone on the same page, which is needed to even have a shot at taking down the Empire.  Luthen in particular, continues to be a fascinating character.  He clearly knows that his actions will likely lead to a lot of deaths; many of them innocent; but rightly or wrongly, he really does believe that this is needed to truly show how evil the Empire can be and have more people rise up against it.  They've really done an excellent job with all of this.

That truly was one of the brightest, cleanest looking prisons, but it really was just as scary, if not more, than the normal ones.  The build up to everything and seeing it through Cassian's eyes was perfection.  Definitely been said before, but Diego Luna can do so much without uttering a word.  Just the way he looked around, reacted, and emoted with his eyes and facial expressions said so much.  Obviously, I know he will get out of this eventually, but I'm wondering how this will all change him.

Andy Serkis double dipping into the Star Wars universe!  Always help when one of your character was CGI, so you can just show up in human form for the next one!  Always a treat to get Human Andy Serkis, heh.

Enjoyed more of Mon Mothma politicking and seeing how its strangely similar to real life politics at times ("Not a huge fan of everything Palpatine does, but...")  I do think her husband is getting suspicious though.  Not sure if he knows she's actually plotting something or simply thinks she might be having an affair with her banker/childhood friend.

Dedra and Karn cross paths temporary.  Looks like Karn is already getting sent back to office duty since he was less than impressive with her, but I suspect he won't be giving up so easily.

Poor Bix!  Hope she gets out of this in one piece.  Suspect Maarva is being setup for some kind of sacrifice.

Another excellent episode!

[paigow]

Cassian has to go all Targaryen... choosing an alias that is nearly identical to Greef Karga

[AimingforYoko]

Even though he's still in shock at what has happened, Cassian still notices everything. It's one of the things that will make him an effective spy.

One thing about fascists, they are incredibly efficient. Setting the prisoners against each other increases productivity and cuts down on organized dissent.

[paigow]

1 hour ago, AimingforYoko said:

One thing about fascists, they are incredibly efficient.

Professor John Gill of Starfleet Academy tried to only keep the good parts of Nazi Germany for his Prime Directive violation....

[jacehan]

2 hours ago, AimingforYoko said:

One thing about fascists, they are incredibly efficient.

That's actually just fascist propaganda. The trains didn't actually run on time.

[jcin617]

I’m still not sure why the Empire would need prison labor to build... something… when droids or simple machinery would do it non-stop with no productivity issues.  Although it would be something if the job of another floor was to disassemble the gizmo this floor put together, creating a never-ending pointless loop.

Edited October 27, 2022 by jcin617

[Ms.Moon]

I am not worried about Mon Mothma because I know she makes it further into the timeline of the rebellion but I am worried about her friend because it looks like her husband is jealous and if he’s jealous it might be dangerous for her friend.  I don’t trust her husband at all and it seems like he might have said something about her and her friend to their daughter based on how she reacted when she saw her them talking.  

[WritinMan]

Such a great show. Andor does tension very well. We've never really seen the Empire so up close and personal in their full oppression mode. It's chilling.

I was picking up some serious THX-1138 vibes from the prison. (That's George Lucas' first movie for those who have not heard of it. Very good. Check it out if you haven't seen it.)

[Athena5217]

19 minutes ago, jcin617 said:

I’m still not sure why the Empire would use prison labor to build... something… when droids will do it non-stop with no productivity issues.

I had the same thought. I briefly wondered if making the prisoners build the same thing all the time was just another way to torture them.

I am very curious about what that thing they keep assembling is for. I am guessing it’s either part of a TIE fighter (because it looks like the right shape) or part of the Death Star (because it is always about the Death Star).

Interesting that all of the prisoners seemed human and male. There are some reasons for same-sex prisons, but why only humans? I don’t think it’s language because Star Wars characters have a long history of being able to understand each other’s languages with no explanation.

I was amused that the prisoners had to take their shoes off before flying just like we do with airplane travel in our world. 

Edited October 27, 2022 by Athena5217

[formerlyfreedom]

I’m interested in what Cassian’s fellow prisoner was signaling to another wing - maybe it was  just ‘another shitty day over her in 5D2’ or is there more going on?

Also - it really sucks that after all Cassian DIDN’T get caught doing, he really truly WAS arrested, tried, and convicted for being a tourist. That is some absolute bullshit there!

[dwmarch]

12 hours ago, Tachi Rocinante said:

Vel doesn't seem happy (is she the spoiled rich girl?)

I find myself wondering if she's another daughter of Mon Mothma. She left home/ran away and her little sister is perpetually miserable because she's stuck there.

12 hours ago, angora said:

No one knows the Empire already dropped him down a hole and left him there.

I remember news stories years ago from Iraq and Afghanistan that were basically "we're on the hunt for the leader of Big Bad Terrorist Group Number One because we had no idea who he was when we let him out of jail last week." It's too bad Karn got stuck in fuel processing rather than updating the Empire's facial recognition database.

Having said that, mad props to Karn for successfully weaponizing bureaucracy! The dude works in the back office of the Empire's gas station and he's managed to file paperwork that has the Empire's version of the CIA hunting down his enemy.

54 minutes ago, jcin617 said:

I’m still not sure why the Empire would need prison labor to build... something… when droids or simple machinery would do it non-stop with no productivity issues.

Keeps the prisoners too busy and too tired to rebel. Conditions them to follow orders. The products they are creating may be of some marginal value as well. Maybe this is where that big fleet in The Rise of Skywalker came from.

This show has had great music so far but the music was sparse in this episode and I think that was effective, especially in the prison scenes.

[MrWhyt]

1 hour ago, jcin617 said:

Although it would be something if the job of another floor was to disassemble the gizmo this floor put together, creating a never-ending pointless loop.

I had the same thought.

[Sbeetle]

3 hours ago, MrWhyt said:

4 hours ago, jcin617 said:

Although it would be something if the job of another floor was to disassemble the gizmo this floor put together, creating a never-ending pointless loop.

I had the same thought.

Me too! I also had another theory. They remind me of the Czech Hedgehogs used on Normandy Beach

[angora]

10 hours ago, Athena5217 said:

Interesting that all of the prisoners seemed human and male. There are some reasons for same-sex prisons, but why only humans? I don’t think it’s language because Star Wars characters have a long history of being able to understand each other’s languages with no explanation.

Maybe it was because the main form of punishment/control was the electrified floor, and it was calibrated for human physiology. Yes, there's still going to be a range of human bodies who will be affected differently, but a level 1 setting would probably kill a Jawa, and it might not slow down a Wookiee determined to rip your arms off.

[paigow]

The Empire has a bad track record developing effective droids - e.g. Battle Droids circa Prequel Trilogy- so using slaves is likely creating better results. The guy who fell behind in Death Star 1.0 construction said he needed more men [not droids] before Vader terminated him. 

[Ohiopirate02]

11 hours ago, Athena5217 said:

Interesting that all of the prisoners seemed human and male. There are some reasons for same-sex prisons, but why only humans? I don’t think it’s language because Star Wars characters have a long history of being able to understand each other’s languages with no explanation.

This whole show has been very human focused.  Almost all of the extras on Ferrix and Mon's parties on Coruscant have been human.  Cassian's fellow prisoners being humans does not really surprise me at this point.  

[raven]

I was getting Oompa Loompa vibes from the prison uniforms.

Another great episode.  I was intrigued by Dedra and Karn possibly working together but he got tossed aside.  I'm changing my previous opinion and going with he is really pissed off.  He's still going to be making trouble somehow.

I hope they go all in as Dedra being bad (torture; treating Karn as she was treated by her superiors).  PLEASE stop with the redemption stuff - it doesn't always work and isn't always necessary.   The focus on the bureaucracy is interesting - at the meeting, Head Guy in Charge appeared to be falling asleep while reading? Dedra's report (until he got to the extra costs!), until Dedra's Supervisor chimed in that he thought she was on to something. 

1 hour ago, angora said:

Maybe it was because the main form of punishment/control was the electrified floor, and it was calibrated for human physiology.

This is what I thought as well about the prisoners all being human. 

Aw Bix, you should know better than to hang around when you're known to associate with a wanted criminal. 

Also, Andy Serkis!  I have a feeling he's not going to make it to day 250.

I like how they how are moving time along on this show. 

[KeithJ]

I'm curious why the Empire has humans assembling whatever they are assembling.  The Geonosians built automated factories for their battle droids so automation exists in the universe.  What the inmates are assembling looks like can be done much quicker by automation.

[tennisgurl]

That prison really hits that retro futuristic 70s aesthetic, its cleanliness and constant brightness makes it even more horrifying than a dark dingy prison. Its such an awful place, especially knowing how easy it is to get in there for no reason and how much they have quickly increased sentencing, it seems like most people have just resigned themselves to being there forever. Poor Cassian just looked like he was in utter shock the entire time, he was brought in still fighting and yelling but the second he ended up in the prison it was like the fight drained out of him leaving him in a sort of numb despair. Cassian always looks a bit like a cornered animal but now he seems like he's on the verge of gnawing an arm off. Even then though, he's still observing everyone and taking notice of other people and how the prison works, he just cant turn that part of him off, which is really going to serve him well in his future career as a spy. 

We finally get to see Saw! I really liked seeing him and his talk with Luthen was really interesting. The early rebellion is not at all a unified organization, its a hodgepodge of random collections of people, many of which have different goals and have previously been enemies, all only united by a hatred of the Empire. It feels like a very real thing that would happen in this kind of situation, I continue to love how the show continues to show the full reality of a rebellion, its not all cool space ship fights and battles against evil armies, a lot of it is pain in the ass politics, making tough dirty calls, hanging out in caves, and trying to get people who hate each other to play nice. I also thought this was a really good episode for Luthen, he's such an interesting character. He truly does want to bring down the Empire, but is willing to do rather terrible things, even hurting his own allies, in the name of freedom. He also showed a rare bit of vulnerability with Saw, admitting that he worries that the Empire if getting too big to fight and that everything he has done will end up being for nothing. Interestingly, we can see a bit of future Cassian in him, a man fully dedicated to the rebel cause and will do very questionable things, including killing, to bring down the Empire. 

You know what's worse than hiding in caves plotting murder for the greater good? Awkward dinner parties for the greater good! I like seeing this side of life in the Empire, people chatting about Palpetine and how they feel about his polices at parties, people with differing opinions on what is or isn't going too far when it comes to safety, Mon trying to raise support subtly over drinks, it gives you more of a feeling of what life in this world is like beyond Stormtroopers beating up people on the streets. I know that Mon will be alright, but I am concerned about her banker friend.

Its a bit hilarious that Syril is still obsessed with arresting Cassian, even though Cassian has already been arrested for unrelated fake charges. He did at least get fellow obsessive rule follower Dedra to look into Cassian, even if all he got is a condescending "thank you for your service peon" before getting sent back to his desk. Poor Bix, she has just not been having a good time of it.

Edited October 27, 2022 by tennisgurl

[Ilovepie]

3 hours ago, paigow said:

The Empire has a bad track record developing effective droids - e.g. Battle Droids circa Prequel Trilogy- so using slaves is likely creating better results. The guy who fell behind in Death Star 1.0 construction said he needed more men [not droids] before Vader terminated him. 

Roger Roger!

13 hours ago, dwmarch said:

This show has had great music so far but the music was sparse in this episode and I think that was effective, especially in the prison scenes.

Chilling is the word that comes to mind. The humming of that floor would give me nightmares.

22 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

Dedra and Karn cross paths temporary.  Looks like Karn is already getting sent back to office duty since he was less than impressive with her, but I suspect he won't be giving up so easily.

I cannot wait to see what happens with him! Kyle Soller plays petulant sad sack so well! I loved that exchange. Dedra is so awesome - I love that she has read him right and is putting that weasel in his place. But still, it will be fun finding out what said weasel manages to do from this point!

I cannot say how much I love this show - everything and every character is working for me. I wasn't that excited before it started knowing how Rogue One ends, but it sucked me in completely. Diego Luna is fantastic. He barely spoke this episode, yet is body language and facial expressions said everything. I loved watching him watch everything - the boots, the sign language. Can't wait for the prison break when it comes.

Sadly, I think something bad is coming for Marva and/or Bix and that will be the catalyst for pushing Cassian into full rebel mode.

[Tachi Rocinante]

3 hours ago, raven said:

I was intrigued by Dedra and Karn possibly working together but he got tossed aside.  I'm changing my previous opinion and going with he is really pissed off.  He's still going to be making trouble somehow. 

She should be smart enough to realize that he is just like her, just much more socially awkward.  Her hypocrisy in treating him like that seems misplaced. We shall see.

[Sarah 103]

23 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

I do think her husband is getting suspicious though.  Not sure if he knows she's actually plotting something or simply thinks she might be having an affair with her banker/childhood friend.

I think he suspects something is up as well, but probably thinks it is an affair with the banker. Maybe he hires a private investigator, and in the noir tradition, what starts out as a simple investigation quickly turns into a much larger criminal conspiracy from the empire's point of view. (This could work as a spin-off movie).

56 minutes ago, Ilovepie said:

Can't wait for the prison break when it comes.

Same here. The way Cassian was looking, observing, and taking everything in gave me serious Steve McQueen in The Great Escape vibes.

The first hallway we saw in the prison reminded me of 2001.

This episode felt like table setting (here is where all of the characters are and what they are doing), but also makes me excited to see what is going to happen next. 

[dwmarch]

30 minutes ago, Tachi Rocinante said:

She should be smart enough to realize that he is just like her, just much more socially awkward.  Her hypocrisy in treating him like that seems misplaced. We shall see.

I feel like this show is brave enough to have Karn just fail over and over again, relegated to a life as a squeaky wheel in a giant, uncaring bureaucracy. It would fit with the theme that the Empire is their own worst enemy. Plus it could set up a scene where we cut to many years later where Karn is stewing in his office. He's now working for the ISB and he's vowed to find that son of a bitch Cassian if it's the last thing he does. And then we pull back to an outside view where we see his office is on the top floor of the archives... on Scarif.

[wanderingstar]

One other thing I liked in this episode was Bix and Brasso coming to check on Maarva. This show does a good job of showing people being in community with each other.

[Sbeetle]

This line stopped me in its tracks with how cold it was. 

"I'm a mirror, Val. You love me because I show you what you need to see." I had to rewind it twice to absorb it. 

[Shanna Marie]

On 10/26/2022 at 2:14 PM, thuganomics85 said:

Definitely been said before, but Diego Luna can do so much without uttering a word.  Just the way he looked around, reacted, and emoted with his eyes and facial expressions said so much. 

If he doesn't get an Emmy nomination from this, there's no justice. He said so much with almost no dialogue. The sheer shocked terror at first, where you could see he was utterly overwhelmed to the point of being numb, and then there was a subtle but distinct difference later when he'd become resigned.

18 hours ago, Athena5217 said:

Interesting that all of the prisoners seemed human and male. There are some reasons for same-sex prisons, but why only humans?

My guess is that it's uniformity of biological needs. If all the prisoners are the same species, then they have the same temperature requirements, same atmosphere requirements, same nutritional needs, have approximately the same sleep/wake cycle, need the same sleeping and toilet facilities, and use the same kinds of tools. They're basically biological assembly-line robots, so having them be as uniform as possible is more efficient. They can pump the same food into all the cells, have the same kind/size beds, the same toilets, the same air, and they can work at the same workstations.

Imagine a Wookiee trying to fit into one of those cells or work at a workstation with humans. He'd have to bend and stoop and would probably be less productive.

Though I'm surprised they don't have any kind of biometrics to have found who Cassian really is, especially since he has a record. I guess they need the slave labor enough that they don't care who they have in their system once they have them in their system.

Now that Meero's story arc is intersecting some of our other characters, my allegiances are shifting. She was the protagonist of the ISB storyline, but now that she's actually hurting people, she's flipped to the villain column for me. I still think Karn is a bit of a dweeb who's got an inflated sense of his own worth. I don't recall him doing any particularly brilliant investigation to find Cassian. He just put out a description and got a tip. And then he was utterly incompetent in doing anything with the info he got. That's hardly ISB material.

[Jeddah]

I thought this was a very good episode, just very unpleasant to watch. I could just feel the fear from everyone.

I am fascinated by all the characters who agree in theory, but not in practice. I keep going back and forth about whose strategy I agree with too. Luthen’s heist was amazing and a great move to scare the Empire. But Mon Motha was right about how many people will get hurt by this, like everyone’s prison sentence doubling.

So Mon Motha and her husband got married at 15. No wonder they seem like they have nothing in common as adults.

[absnow54]

I don't know that this counts as a spoiler, but someone pointed out that:

Spoiler

Melshi from Cassian's prison group is one of the rebels we later see on Scarif in Rogue One (same actor credited as the same character for both.) So I wonder if this is Sergeant Melshi's origin story, or if he'll play a part in the inevitable prison break. 

Edited October 28, 2022 by absnow54

[paigow]

3 hours ago, Jeddah said:

So Mon Motha and her husband got married at 15...

Hey! Who changed the channel to Game Of Thrones???

[Ms.Moon]

4 hours ago, Jeddah said:

I thought this was a very good episode, just very unpleasant to watch. I could just feel the fear from everyone.

I am fascinated by all the characters who agree in theory, but not in practice. I keep going back and forth about whose strategy I agree with too. Luthen’s heist was amazing and a great move to scare the Empire. But Mon Motha was right about how many people will get hurt by this, like everyone’s prison sentence doubling.

So Mon Motha and her husband got married at 15. No wonder they seem like they have nothing in common as adults.

I believe that Mon Mothma and her husband are pretty well off.  Their marriage might be an arranged marriage set up by both families to cement an alliance or bring together a business venture or some such thing.  They could have been friends that agreed to that sort of marriage at fifteen because don’t we know everything when we are fifteen.  Now that it’s many years later and they have different priorities their marriage is not the same.  I just hope she has insured him well because she can use every cent she can lay her hands on to support the rebellion and her husband’s interest in her business might make him another loose ends to tie up.  

[Jeddah]

3 hours ago, absnow54 said:

I don't know that this counts as a spoiler, but someone pointed out that:

  Hide contents

Melshi from Cassian's prison group is one of the rebels we later see on Scarif in Rogue One (same actor credited as the same character for both.) So I wonder if this is Sergeant Melshi's origin story, or if he'll play a part in the inevitable prison break. 

That’s really cool, and it’s something I never would have caught on my own. I can’t wait to see how that storyline develops.

[Cthulhudrew]

This episode has a real late 70s/early 80s feel to it, from the synthesizer soundtrack to the THX1138 style prison. 

Edited October 29, 2022 by Cthulhudrew

[Cthulhudrew]

On 10/26/2022 at 8:24 AM, Tachi Rocinante said:

So good.

• Mon and her friend are feeling the vise close, and her husband isn't stupid. The quick scene with her daughter was odd.

I got definite "Mon Mothma's daughter is having an affair with her mother's older friend" vibes, but I'm not really sure how/if that fits into the show at all. Just my gut reaction to that scene.

On 10/26/2022 at 8:26 AM, angora said:

A month later, he's still there, and he's melded into the routine, while outside *everyone* is wondering where he went.

Is it a month? They said "30 shifts later" but earlier said a shift is 12 hours, so I was thinking it was only a little over 2 weeks.

On 10/27/2022 at 2:58 PM, Shanna Marie said:

Though I'm surprised they don't have any kind of biometrics to have found who Cassian really is, especially since he has a record.

There may be biometrics, but it doesn't necessarily mean every institution shares/has access to those records. I'm just thinking of the difficulties that US Federal Agencies have sharing intel between them, let alone between State, Local, Tribal, and Territorial US Agencies and/or International Agencies. Even among the Empire, when we're talking Interplanetary Agencies that exist hundreds or thousands of light years apart, I could easily see how someone could slip through the cracks. And we already know from just this series that there is interagency squabbling and non-cooperation in the Empire.

10 hours ago, absnow54 said:

I don't know that this counts as a spoiler, but someone pointed out that:

That is a really cool detail.

I thought that guy looked familiar, but couldn't place him. And I just rewatched Rogue One a few weeks ago.

[angora]

8 hours ago, Cthulhudrew said:

Is it a month? They said "30 shifts later" but earlier said a shift is 12 hours, so I was thinking it was only a little over 2 weeks.

I assumed that was 30 of Cassian's work shifts rather than counting his on and off times separately. 12 hours of work, 12 hours off, would be one day.

On 10/27/2022 at 11:47 AM, tennisgurl said:

Poor Cassian just looked like he was in utter shock the entire time, he was brought in still fighting and yelling but the second he ended up in the prison it was like the fight drained out of him leaving him in a sort of numb despair. Cassian always looks a bit like a cornered animal but now he seems like he's on the verge of gnawing an arm off. Even then though, he's still observing everyone and taking notice of other people and how the prison works, he just cant turn that part of him off, which is really going to serve him well in his future career as a spy. 

On 10/27/2022 at 12:47 PM, Ilovepie said:

Diego Luna is fantastic. He barely spoke this episode, yet is body language and facial expressions said everything. I loved watching him watch everything - the boots, the sign language. Can't wait for the prison break when it comes.

On 10/27/2022 at 4:58 PM, Shanna Marie said:

If he doesn't get an Emmy nomination from this, there's no justice. He said so much with almost no dialogue. The sheer shocked terror at first, where you could see he was utterly overwhelmed to the point of being numb, and then there was a subtle but distinct difference later when he'd become resigned.

Yes to ALL of this. I've liked Diego Luna as an actor for many years and loved him for a little while now. He's an actor who really rewards you for your attention, because he tells you so much in the little things. Of all the Disney+ Star Wars actors, he's the one I'm most rooting for come awards season.

[Shanna Marie]

On 10/27/2022 at 1:48 PM, Sarah 103 said:

The way Cassian was looking, observing, and taking everything in gave me serious Steve McQueen in The Great Escape vibes.

And I'm sure we were supposed to notice him noticing everything since the camera tracked his sightline to show us what he was noticing. He spotted the rack of boots, took note of the number of guards, when they came on duty, and how they were armed.

And then that was juxtaposed by Karn telling Meero how useful he could be to her, then answering essentially, "I dunno, I guess he was old" when she asked him for a description of "Axis," since he was the only one to have seen him.

14 hours ago, Cthulhudrew said:

This episode has a real late 70s/early 80s feel to it, from the synthesizer soundtrack to the THX1138 style prison. 

And there was the look of Karn's workstation with those old CRT monitors. I think they're doing a good job of picking up the aesthetic from the original movie. In that movie, it was futuristic for the time, but now looks dated if it's supposed to be futuristic and space age. They're doing interesting stuff in this series of keeping the same aesthetic and making it sort of retro-futuristic. If "steampunk" is a future as envisioned by Victorians and "dieselpunk" is the 20s-30s version of futuristic, would the 70s version of retro-futuristic be "discopunk"?

Adding the "A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away ..." tag might have been the smartest thing Lucas did in the first movie because it meant he wasn't strictly depicting our future, and that means the saga can have a timeless quality. We don't laugh at how outdated their technology looks now because it's another place/time and a particular aesthetic rather than a wrong guess at the future.

[Fool to cry]

I think those could be Death Star parts they're building.

Again the production design continues to be incredible.

I knew Forrest Whitaker was coming back as Saw Gerrera from the trailer. Seeing Andy Serkis was a great surprise. 

I think Mon Mothma's daughter will mistake her and her old friend are having an affair and that will screw up their plans concerning the Rebellion.

It's funny to see people online amazed that the show is getting away with making "anti prison" and "anti police" sentiments. Science fiction stories with political commentary hidden behind aliens and spaceships from Wells to Serling. I guess because it's Disney people are surprised.

[isalicat]

3 hours ago, Fool to cry said:

I think those could be Death Star parts they're building.

Again the production design continues to be incredible.

I knew Forrest Whitaker was coming back as Saw Gerrera from the trailer. Seeing Andy Serkis was a great surprise. 

I think Mon Mothma's daughter will mistake her and her old friend are having an affair and that will screw up their plans concerning the Rebellion.

It's funny to see people online amazed that the show is getting away with making "anti prison" and "anti police" sentiments. Science fiction stories with political commentary hidden behind aliens and spaceships from Wells to Serling. I guess because it's Disney people are surprised.

I agree that sci fi has provided both moral and political commentary from the first (H.G. Welles "The Time Machine" being a great example). But I think Andor is more in the Star Wars 'verse of anti-totalitarianism than anti-prison or police. Narkina 5 is a concentration camp, basically, not really a prison (its obvious no one ever finishes their sentence, right?). So if people are slamming Disney for being somehow advancing an anti- police agenda here, they have never really seen a Star Wars centric production.

Now, Star Trek (and its subsequent spin offs) and lots of Rod Serling stuff as you said were much more overt in being focused on specifically U.S. centric political issues of the time.

[tkc]

On 10/26/2022 at 5:59 AM, absnow54 said:

Wow. The prison they've built really captures that 1970s sci fi horror vibe.

Narkina 5:

Galactic Starcruiser hotel in Walt Disney World:

[Camera One]

This episode was still interesting, but a bit too depressing to be enjoyable, with the forced labour camp and the torture of Bix' friend.  On the bright side, it didn't entice me to watch another one right away, which is usually too tempting!

Dedra's ugliness is showing.  It was predictable that she would speak to Karn, who will no doubt join the quest to hunt down Cassian in the future.  

What Luthen needs is a spy in the security division.  He thinks the danger comes from Cassian but he's the one who was careless.  I still don't get why they left the box sitting out in the middle of nowhere when Luthen knew people were coming after them.  

I liked how Cassian was observing the prison and where everything was on his way in.  I was a little surprised he was so shell shocked later once he entered the factory floor.  Hopefully he will be able to help out some of his fellow tablemates.  I liked that guy who was telling him the truth that they will never get out.  

Edited December 13, 2022 by Camera One