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S02.E06: What a Festive Evening

Mr. Sparkle

By Mr. Sparkle
in Andor

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dwmarch

dwmarch

(edited)
4 hours ago, Spartan Girl said:

Well, I see the Bury Your Gays trope is still alive and well in Star Wars. RIP Cinta.

Yeah, couldn't help but notice those boxes they were stealing were about the size of a fridge. I'm not sure how Cinta got shot. She just caught a stray? I didn't see her running in to break up that fight.

I wish we could have overheard more of the conversation between Krennic and Mon Mothma.

Kleya needs more than one outfit. Even her nice party dress was just a variation of her shopkeeper outfit.

Dr. Ghorst keeps a torture chair in his apartment? I wouldn't put it past him but still, kinda weird that everything Bix needed to give him a taste of his own medicine was right there.

Edit: I just remembered another thing. Cinta said she got messed up in an accident. Was that how she killed Tay? She just drove the car into a mountainside or something. I guess we'll never find out now, unless Mon Mothma brings it up.

Edited by dwmarch
  • Like 3
thuganomics85

thuganomics85

Should have known that they would bring back Cintra and have her reunite with Vel, only to kill her off.  We may be in a galaxy far, far away, but the "Bury Your Gays" trope will never go out of style.  To be fair, I still won't be surprised if every non-Rogue One character ends up biting it when it is all said and done.  I do wonder if the guy who accidentally killed her will end up redeeming himself or will the guilt actually make him fall apart even more?

Despite all of that, the heist went off without a hitch, but that's mainly because Syril/Dedra/Partagaz wanted it to go that way.  I guess it's part of the whole "building them up and then making them crumble" concept that was brought up before.  I wonder if they also put in a tracking device or something.

Bail Organa is looking a little different!  Nothing against Benjamin Bratt who is generally a good actor, but Jimmy Smits is such an icon and I just know it will be hard to get use to him not in the role.  Was he just not available?  Because he's reprised him in the past.

Could have watch an entire episode of Mon Mothma and Krennic snarking on one another.  Mon has to put up with a lot of bullshit and deal with some vary unsavory characters, but you can tell that Krennic seems to be someone who is inspiring some "Kendrick Lamar vs. Drake" level hate in her heart.

I guess the mission for Cassian and Bix was to take out the doctor who terrorized her.  Glad she got her revenge, but we'll see if she can every be the same again: especially since she's still sneaking some drugs.

Been a while since we got a nice big Cassian/Luthen morality debate, so that was fun.  Luthen might be on the side of good, but he really does see everyone as expendable and think any sacrifice is worth bring down the Empire.  A slippery slope that can get very scary real quick.  Honestly though, I can easily see him willing to sacrifice himself if he deemed it necessary, so he's at least consistent with how he views the world.

  • Like 6
lovett1979

lovett1979

(edited)
9 hours ago, dwmarch said:

Dr. Ghorst keeps a torture chair in his apartment? I wouldn't put it past him but still, kinda weird that everything Bix needed to give him a taste of his own medicine was right there.

I don't think that's his apartment, I'm pretty sure it's an office. We see him walk through that huge empty room, then up an elevator, then into the torture room. As she leaves, we pan back to see an observation room on the other side of the glass. Then when she's walking out through that same huge empty room, an Imperial-uniformed person tells her she's not allowed there and she shoots them. Also, assuming that's the same building that Cassian then blows up, it does not make sense that they'd destroy and apartment building, but an Imperial office building is a much more likely hit.

 

7 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

Bail Organa is looking a little different!  Nothing against Benjamin Bratt who is generally a good actor, but Jimmy Smits is such an icon and I just know it will be hard to get use to him not in the role.  Was he just not available?  Because he's reprised him in the past.

Google confirms it was just an availability re-cast. Which is a little disappointing. I was wracking my brain trying to figure it out. I thought maybe he was a "young" Bail Organa (but that makes no sense in the timeline, and Bratt is only 8 years younger than Smitts), or a brother who had taken the seat or something. In any case casting them as the same person (or if they had been family) is inspired.

Edited by lovett1979
  • Like 7
Sarah 103

Sarah 103

(edited)
19 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

To be fair, I still won't be surprised if every non-Rogue One character ends up biting it when it is all said and done. 

This brings up an interesting question. Aside from Bail, Cassian and Mon Mothma, who has franchise immunity (at least until Rogue One)? 

I love that Kleya was able to retrieve the listening device. In the VIP room, I thought it was cool the way you had Mon Mothma and Krennic with their followers/supporters behind them. It felt very West Side Story to me (and I mean that in a good way). 

Cassian and Bix walking away while they blew up the building may have been unrealistic or unlikely, but it was a totally awesome moment that looked good. They both got the absolute win they needed/deserved. 

For me, one of the best lines/short speeches of the episode was Luthen's speech about thinking like a leader instead of a soldier. Luthen sees Cassian as a leader even though Cassian does not think of himself that way yet. 

It's strange; despite the one year time jump every three episodes, this season feels more cohesive/coherent than the last one. Last season it felt like the genre almost completely shifted every three or so episodes. It was fun watching the end of a story arc and wonder what the next genre would be. This season feels like we are solidly in a political/espionage thriller with some other genres thrown in as well. 

Edited by Sarah 103
  • Like 4
angora

angora

26 minutes ago, Sarah 103 said:

This brings up an interesting question. Aside from Bail, Cassian and Mon Mothma, who has franchise immunity (at least until Rogue One)? 

Saw, Tubes, and Krennic are also safe.

Spoiler

For future episodes, so are Melshi and K-2SO.

Kleya had me *so tense* at that party. She was such a boss, oof! Poor Lonni, roped into helping her. The Mon-Krennic scenes were dynamite too. I loved this exchange between them:

KRENNIC: “Oh yes, I’ve been a guest at her committee on several occasions.”

MON: “How pleasant, to see you free of the witness stand.”

It definitely felt shady to reunite Vel and Cinta after so long apart, have them make a breakthrough in their relationship, and show their first onscreen kiss, then almost immediately kill one of them. I accept that most of these characters are at risk of the chopping block at any moment, but I think losing Cinta at a later point in the season would've felt less shady. That said, their scenes together were wonderful, and both Faye Marsay and Varada Sethu were excellent throughout. "She was a miracle," damn near killed me, my god!

I loved Cassian and Bix flirting over his fashion designer alias, then blowing up Dr. Gorst together. Adored the confrontation scenes between Cassian and Luthen. All that dialogue was so, so good! We already knew Luthen was like this, but hearing the whole "And if it burns?" "It will burn very brightly" thing from the trailer was chilling.

  • Like 4
MJ Frog

MJ Frog

Man, Cinta died in a way that was so stupid and felt so manipulative that I wasn't sad but angry. It really took me out of the show. It seemed like one of the few real missteps they've made in this series.

In other news, the sets continue to amaze. Whatever combination of practical and CGI effects they were using for the exterior of the Big Art Party Place (BAPP for short) was completely convincing.

  • Like 2
KeithJ

KeithJ

5 hours ago, MJ Frog said:

Man, Cinta died in a way that was so stupid and felt so manipulative that I wasn't sad but angry. It really took me out of the show. It seemed like one of the few real missteps they've made in this series.

I know that almost everyone needs to die but this really bothered me as well.  For her to die from a random blaster shot from someone that wasn't even supposed to have a blaster was stupid. Then the random guy that just shows up is the one that carries Cinta to the transport? We didn't even get the "see what happens when you don't follow orders" speech.

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Featherhat

Featherhat

I'm so embarrassed. I knew Bail Organa looked different but it wasn't until I checked that I knew for certain it was BB and not a strange attempt at having a stand in. Goof to see the character though.

MM continues to hold the prize for "blink and you miss her character introduced nearly 50 years ago who has become an unexpected pleasure." 

I can't say I root for Syril or Dedra exactly but their acting is also fully believable for them. 

I first came across Anton Lesser as Marcus Didus Falco on the radio. I then ordered the first two books in that series so it's always amused me that he has so often been cast in roles that are the complete anthesis of that character in every way. 

There's no reason why everyone who is not in other stories further on in the timeline have to die, although I guess they are fair game. But they'd be silly to let so many awesome characters/actors go completely.  

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Fool to cry

Fool to cry

(edited)
3 hours ago, KeithJ said:

I know that almost everyone needs to die but this really bothered me as well.  For her to die from a random blaster shot from someone that wasn't even supposed to have a blaster was stupid. Then the random guy that just shows up is the one that carries Cinta to the transport? We didn't even get the "see what happens when you don't follow orders" speech.

It wasn't a random guy. He was at the town meeting in the previous episode. The angry Ghorman citizen making a fiery speech. I've seen enough French movies where the pissed off Provencal townsman is familiar archetype to me. Also he looks a lot like John Rhys-Davies(Sallah from the Indiana Jones movies).

I think the way Cinta died was to show that Cassian was right in his assessment. The Ghorman front are too inexperienced and people got hurt.

Luthen and Krennic both see a resistance on Ghorman as helping their goals. Krennic wants an excuse to have the Empire completely control the planet to get the material he needs for the Death Star. Luthen wants whatever violence the Empire inflicts on a peaceful planet as a rallying cry for the galaxy and grow the Rebellion.

Edited by Fool to cry
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lovett1979

lovett1979

4 minutes ago, Fool to cry said:

I think the way Cinta died was to show that Cassian was right in his assessment. The Ghorman front are too inexperienced and people got hurt.

Luthen and Krennic both see a resistance on Ghorman as helping their goals. Krennic wants an excuse to have the Empire completely control the planet to get the material he needs for the Death Star. Luthen wants the Empire going hard on a peaceful planet to outrage more neutral people in the galaxy and join the cause of Rebellion.

Exactly. I think this show is fascinating with the different factions of rebellion and how they try to work together and apart. Last week's group on Yavin were too directionless and too focused on in-fighting that Cassian almost got killed (at the very least, his mission was compromised and delayed). The Ghorman Front are organized and passionate, but are too focused on their little corner of the galaxy and the 1 way they can kind of throw a wrench in the Empire's plans. But what then? Even if their operation had been successful (and they hadn't been unwitting fools in a greater Imperial plan), how is this little heist going to stop anything? But Luthen wanted to encourage their passion, so he ok'ed it, sent 2 of his best people, and now one of them is dead. The Rebellion is now in a lesser state than if they had listened to Cassian.

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Shanna Marie

Shanna Marie

11 hours ago, Fool to cry said:

I think the way Cinta died was to show that Cassian was right in his assessment. The Ghorman front are too inexperienced and people got hurt.

Yeah, I don't think it's fair to call this "bury your gays" just because a gay character was killed. Lots of characters have died and will die in this series, and there was very much a plot purpose here. One of Luthen's operatives had to die in order to drive home the fact that Cassian was right and to make it hurt for Luthen that he made the wrong call. Vel and Cinta were the ones assigned, so one of them had to die for the story to work.

It would be ironic if this death ended up ruining Dedra's plan or made her have to come up with something else, if the fact that their group screwing up got someone on their side killed by their own people made them back down and realize they weren't ready for prime time so that they couldn't be counted on to do the wrong thing and play into the Empire's hands. Since it's another year before we check in on everyone again, it would seem that they're not going to jump too quickly into escalating.

It was also interesting that Syril seemed to be horrified by what happened. Flashing back to Ferrix and getting his men killed while he played soldier/cop?

14 hours ago, KeithJ said:

For her to die from a random blaster shot from someone that wasn't even supposed to have a blaster was stupid.

The point was that it was stupid and pointless, that the guy had disobeyed orders and brought a blaster, and he lost control of it so that one of their own people died from a wild shot. That was proof that these people aren't ready to play with the big boys.

14 hours ago, KeithJ said:

We didn't even get the "see what happens when you don't follow orders" speech.

That was very much implied in the speech Vel did give him. She didn't have to tell him this was because he hadn't followed orders. He knew very well. She made sure he knew he'd carry this screwup with him for the rest of his life and made sure he knew what he'd destroyed with his foolishness.

  • Like 5
jacehan

jacehan

10 hours ago, Shanna Marie said:

Yeah, I don't think it's fair to call this "bury your gays" just because a gay character was killed.

I can see that argument, and had a similar thought, but a key part of the Bury Your Gays trope is that the death is a "punishment" for attempts at queer joy. In particular, it always happens immediately after the first gay kiss or first time they have sex, etc. Which is what happened here.

  • Like 2
Shanna Marie

Shanna Marie

1 hour ago, jacehan said:

I can see that argument, and had a similar thought, but a key part of the Bury Your Gays trope is that the death is a "punishment" for attempts at queer joy. In particular, it always happens immediately after the first gay kiss or first time they have sex, etc. Which is what happened here.

But it wasn't their first kiss. It may have been the first one we saw, but they were already an established couple when we met them in season one. They weren't just discovering joy or queerness. There was no sense that they were being punished for finding joy, and I'm not sure they really had. They were likely to have to go their separate ways after this mission if the cause demanded it. The death was more about punishing Luthen for being so ruthless and punishing the rebels for being idiots. Luthen was okay with the rebels getting wiped out because that would just draw attention to the Empire's ruthlessness. But him losing one of his people because he disregarded Cassian's assessment will hit him, and there weren't a lot of options for who could die because Luthen's team that we know of consists of Cassian and Bix, Cinta, Vel, and Kleya. Kleya had to be at the party to get the listening device (and I suspect she'd have called off the operation once she saw the rebels questioning her advice, or else she'd have just shot that guy during the planning meeting as soon as he started questioning). Cassian said no, and with no Cassian there's no Bix. So it was either Cinta or Vel, and the death had to be pointless, caused not by the might of the Empire but because of the amateur hour of the rebels, which Cassian had accurately assessed.

It's also not limited to the gays. Brasso had a girlfriend (wife?) and was settled and happy, and he got killed. I suspect we'll lose a character with each arc, and probably always after something good happens for them because that makes it hurt worse for the audience.

It seems like things might have thawed a bit between Mon and Perrin. When they were going over the schedule and she told him he'd work it out because he always did, it sounded like a genuine compliment, not the kind of passive-aggressive snarking we saw in season one, and they seemed to have a bit of warmth when they arrived at the party. He even looked amused at her taking on Krennic.

We know she lives, so does this mean he's marked for death? At the very least, I suspect any apparent reconciliation is going to be followed by a betrayal.

  • Like 2
Raja

Raja

On 4/30/2025 at 12:26 AM, thuganomics85 said:

Despite all of that, the heist went off without a hitch, but that's mainly because Syril/Dedra/Partagaz wanted it to go that way.  I guess it's part of the whole "building them up and then making them crumble" concept that was brought up before.  I wonder if they also put in a tracking device or something.

I think the ISB is playing a longer game. They want the local rebels to get to the point that the Empire responds with overkill power. They even got an unknown to them bonus that a professional SOE/OSS type got taken out in the rebel's mission. But since they can't let that secret out it would be dangerous or take special timing to reveal Syril and a 5th column working on Ghorman.

On 5/1/2025 at 5:01 AM, KeithJ said:

I know that almost everyone needs to die but this really bothered me as well.  For her to die from a random blaster shot from someone that wasn't even supposed to have a blaster was stupid. Then the random guy that just shows up is the one that carries Cinta to the transport? We didn't even get the "see what happens when you don't follow orders" speech.

As an more adult alternative show sometimes even James Bond catches a stray bullet. No amount of skill and special training will save you if the machinegun has your position targeted, but we are used to seeing that somehow folks get out. Just like some officers given the power we have seen displayed will "grape" and others get orgasmic pleasure out of using a shock floor on prisoners

wanderingstar

wanderingstar

“How pleasant to see you free of the witness stand.” Have I mentioned how much I adore Mon Mothma? I could watch her throwing verbal jabs at Krennic all day.

 

I loved Vel and Cinta’s reunion. Loved that Cinta finally realized that it was ok for her to be happy. Plus, that kiss was HOT!  Then of, course, Cinta unceremoniously catches a bullet. That hurt my feelings. I don’t think she had to die to give this story stakes. I know that like 95% of the characters in this show don’t appear in Rogue One, but it’s still possible to send some of them off to other parts of the Rebellion in the galaxy. This would leave open the possibility for other stories to be told with those characters. Missed opportunity and just a tough look ,IMO.

 

I was white-knuckle gripping one of my couch pillows when Kleya was trying to retrieve that bug. Poor Lonni. He shows up to what he thinks will be a boring party and instead gets pulled into an op against his will.

 

Of COURSE Luthen thinks the best way to get Bix back on track is to give her an opportunity for revenge. Very on brand for him.

 

I’m wondering where the Ghorman Front will be in a year, specifically, if they’ll finally realize they’re being duped by Syril and the ISB.

  • Like 2
Raja

Raja

21 minutes ago, wanderingstar said:

I’m wondering where the Ghorman Front will be in a year, specifically, if they’ll finally realize they’re being duped by Syril and the ISB.

The Death Star was completed. When the hammer drops, I don't think they will realize that the ISB was on to them before the beginning and they did the bidding of the Empire.

Shanna Marie

Shanna Marie

1 hour ago, wanderingstar said:

I don’t think she had to die to give this story stakes. I know that like 95% of the characters in this show don’t appear in Rogue One, but it’s still possible to send some of them off to other parts of the Rebellion in the galaxy.

This death wasn't about story stakes, letting us know no one is safe. It was setting up a rift in the Axis group.

We have Cassian telling Luthen that the Ghorman Front is a bunch of idiots that aren't going to accomplish anything and will get people killed and Axis should stay out of it.

Luthen says that's what he wants, that if the Empire does something awful to the Ghormans it will make the Empire look bad so more people will turn against the Empire, so he sends Vel and Cinta to help the Ghormans with an operation.

The Ghormans are idiots and one of their people who was ordered not to have a blaster accidentally shoots Cinta.

So, now imagine what Vel is going to think about this if she learns what Cassian advised Luthen, that she and Cinta never should have been there. And Mon Mothma is her cousin, so there could be some influence there. What will Cassian think if he learns what happened to Cinta after Luthen disregarded his advice? This may be why there's no hint of Luthen in Rogue One (aside from the fact that he hadn't been created yet) and why Cassian in Rogue One is working with/for Mon Mothma, not in one of the cells or factions. Is this what tears Luthen's operation apart? Cassian and Bix were already unhappy with him even before this.

  • Like 2
SeanBug

SeanBug

On 4/30/2025 at 3:26 AM, thuganomics85 said:

Should have known that they would bring back Cintra and have her reunite with Vel, only to kill her off.  We may be in a galaxy far, far away, but the "Bury Your Gays" trope will never go out of style.  To be fair, I still won't be surprised if every non-Rogue One character ends up biting it when it is all said and done.  I do wonder if the guy who accidentally killed her will end up redeeming himself or will the guilt actually make him fall apart even more?

Despite all of that, the heist went off without a hitch, but that's mainly because Syril/Dedra/Partagaz wanted it to go that way.  I guess it's part of the whole "building them up and then making them crumble" concept that was brought up before.  I wonder if they also put in a tracking device or something.

Bail Organa is looking a little different!  Nothing against Benjamin Bratt who is generally a good actor, but Jimmy Smits is such an icon and I just know it will be hard to get use to him not in the role.  Was he just not available?  Because he's reprised him in the past.

Could have watch an entire episode of Mon Mothma and Krennic snarking on one another.  Mon has to put up with a lot of bullshit and deal with some vary unsavory characters, but you can tell that Krennic seems to be someone who is inspiring some "Kendrick Lamar vs. Drake" level hate in her heart.

I guess the mission for Cassian and Bix was to take out the doctor who terrorized her.  Glad she got her revenge, but we'll see if she can every be the same again: especially since she's still sneaking some drugs.

Been a while since we got a nice big Cassian/Luthen morality debate, so that was fun.  Luthen might be on the side of good, but he really does see everyone as expendable and think any sacrifice is worth bring down the Empire.  A slippery slope that can get very scary real quick.  Honestly though, I can easily see him willing to sacrifice himself if he deemed it necessary, so he's at least consistent with how he views the world.

Smits wasn't available. He was filming a tv show in NYC, and couldn't get away during the time frame they needed him. 

 

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SeanBug

SeanBug

On 4/30/2025 at 12:08 AM, paigow said:

So Bix hooks up the torture device... 5 minutes later,  Cassian blows the dude up...

Saw  and his crew are glue / gas sniffing junkies... Bix is an addict... the movie should have been called Rogue Rehab One

Now we know what Saw was using the mask for in Rogue One. It's the rhydonium gas.  Just saw an interview where Gilroy mentions Beau Willimon suggested it. Having him write these three episodes was a brilliant idea, as he's such a great political thriller writer. (Faragut North/Ides of March, House of Cards). 

Was blowing up the building a mission, or something to get Bix's groove back?  Good for her.  Every time she takes more drops of the drug, I worry she's going to overdose.  Since we know she isn't in Rogue One, I'm going to hate to see her go if she dies. Or maybe Cassian leaves and tells her he'll be back, and we know he won't. (just my ideas, no spoilers) Two more weeks til the end. 😭

LOVE seeing Ben Mendelsohn back. Wondering who else from Rogue One we'll get to see.  I know who's been revealed, but wonder if there are any surprises. 

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Shanna Marie

Shanna Marie

1 hour ago, SeanBug said:

Every time she takes more drops of the drug, I worry she's going to overdose.  Since we know she isn't in Rogue One, I'm going to hate to see her go if she dies. Or maybe Cassian leaves and tells her he'll be back, and we know he won't.

I'm seeing a "break up with her for her own good" coming, based on his conversations with Luthen and with her about keeping her safe. I could also see her going full-on terrorist revolutionary, while Cassian thinks of himself as a soldier, and they split over the difference, with him being more strategic while she's just in "blow it all up" territory.

KimberStormer

KimberStormer

The "cool kids don't look back at explosions" bit was definitely less realistic than a lot of this show, but I do like it as a mission specifically to re-empower Bix.  And Lonni perhaps told Luthen that Dr. Ghorst was going to be a lot more trouble in the future, if he taught the whole army how to torture his way.

I loved Mon Mothma vs Krennic but again I'm going to wish there was a little more there -- if she had said afterwards "next time get your people to work faster" to Luthen, and made it clear she was arguing in order to give Kleya cover, for instance.

Syril is such a weirdo, I can't tell what he was thinking during the attack.  In other "guy who sucks but is still a human" news, I like Perrin as first lady, juggling the social schedule for the Mothmas.  He must have to do some social soothing when Mon gets in her high dudgeon mode, like at this party.

If I remember correctly Cassian works for Mon Mothma in Rogue One, obviously not for Luthen but also specifically for the Mon Mothma-led rebels, right?

Sarah 103

Sarah 103

33 minutes ago, KimberStormer said:

I loved Mon Mothma vs Krennic but again I'm going to wish there was a little more there -- if she had said afterwards "next time get your people to work faster" to Luthen, and made it clear she was arguing in order to give Kleya cover, for instance.

I'm not sure that was the case. I think the argument was genuine and unconnected to the bug removal. Luthen does not like to let people know more than they need to so I don't think he told Mon Mothma about the bug removal.  

33 minutes ago, KimberStormer said:

In other "guy who sucks but is still a human" news, I like Perrin as first lady, juggling the social schedule for the Mothmas.  He must have to do some social soothing when Mon gets in her high dudgeon mode, like at this party.

In things I didn't realize I needed to see: Perrin smoothing things over after Mon goes a bit too far. I'll bet he has almost everyone's interests and gift preferences memorized. 

It's first gentleman or first spouse if it's a governor or the president, but is there a term for a senator's husband?  

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