‘Welcome to the Rebellion’ – ryan

Elder

WELCOME TO THE REBELLION

Season 2

Episode 9

Editor’s rating

5 Stars

Photo: Hayley Benoit/Lucasfilm Ltd.

The Galactic Senate Has a Fair Amount of Screen Time in Star Wars: Revenge of the Sithwhich recently Completed a sucesssphal weeklong theatrical reerelease celebration Its upcoming 20th Anniversary. It ‘s, as a lawsuit amidala laments, “Liberty dies … with thunderous applause.” IT LATER GETS HALF-TASHED IN A FIGHT BETWEEN YODA AND THE NEWLY SELF-APPOINTED EMPEROR PALPATINE (The Vast Dome Structure with Its Endless Fielding of Hovering is too big for the past formidable force to really destroy it), and following it rebertive, it hasn’t been seen too in the past 20 years of post-Sith Star Wars Stuff. There are glimps in the Shows, Including Elderbut it’s not a primary focus for the time covered by the sequel trilogy or the various series. But it ‘the focus of this terrific episode of Andor Which Takes Place Far in and Around the Building, Right from the Evocative First Shot of the Episode, Where A Shimmering Puddle Image of the Structure at Warped and Rendered UnreCognisable by A Downpour of Rain. Okay, maybe it’s not subtle, but it gets the message acroSs.

The cut to the senate atrium follows bail organs as he meets up with Mon Mothma, Witnesssing the Senator from Ghorman Getting Haled Away by Empire Goons. The Bail/Mon Conversation Lays Out The Episode’s Central Dilemma: Mon Mothma Needs to Speak Out Against The Ghorman Massacre, while Bail Organs Can’t In Full-Throated Support of the Rebels, Becausee “Yavin Isn’t Ready” Good, They’ll Need to Flee to the Rebel Base, Leaving the Imperial Senate for Good. Listening Devices are everywhere; SHAPPEING TO MAKE A Speech, at this point, is tantamount to showing up and waving a blaster on the Senate Floor. On top of which, Luthen Insists that bail organa’s team, the one who will escort Mon to yavin after her speech makes continuing in the senate impossible, is “Corruumed. SO MOST OF THE EPISODE FOCUSES ON WHATER MON MOTHMA CAN GO THROUGH WITH HER PLANNED SPEECH, and How She’ll the Senate AFTERWARD. In the contained, not-aquite-bottled parameters of the episode and its focus on the symbol power of rhetoric, the it’s a little bit like a life-or deat, galactic version of The West WingOnly these co-workhers don’t like each other enough to do banter.

To that end, Luthen has enlisted Cassian to disguise Himself as a non -instalist (Ronnie Gujah, of the “Mid Network”) and escort Monp her speech all the way to yavin. Kleya Preps Him, while Also Assuming Luthen’s Job of Viciously Brating Anyone Who Even Thinks of Curtailing Their Dedication to the Rebellion. These aren’t the most dramatically satfying scens, in part Because they have recall exchanges from Other Episodes, and in Part Because Cassian dosesn’t seem particularly convinced that he realy or needs to leave the rebellion – not Fully, anyway. He repeatedly professses a desire to “make His Own Decisions,” and what that that is to do (severing ties with luthen, or with all of the rebels?) Is never articulated to anymore of Him.

AFTER MUCH HAND-WRINGING Over Which Team Will Take Custody of Mon Mothma, at Just About the Halfway Point of the Episode She Delivers Her Speech, and I This by Paint We All Undershod That It Waould Beyond The Fictional WORLD of the Galactic Empire in Bbye 2. Yet it’s stirring all the good to hear it Said directly, eloquently, and forceful, a worry sequel to the Death of the Senate Floor, this Addresssed with the Full Force of Everyone with Microphone’s Reach: Has Become an Abys. ” Beyond taching at trump-era lies-which, after all, extend back to 2016 or earlier at this point-there’s something pointed, with the show and outside of it, in mon uses her voice to decrovoked genocide, at a time a student. Not even cause for revocation of a visa out in the real world.

IT FOLLOWS, THEN, THAT Mon’s Speech is eventually shut down by the empire. But she says what needs saying, and cassian intercepts her before the corrupt organ team. A Tense, Winding Pursuit Through the Halls of the Senate Building Ensser, the Antiseptic Emptiness of Some of Hallways Emphassing How the Venue Has Become for Show Than a Part of Living, Breathing Governance. After Quick Shooting from Cassian, Shocking Mon Mothma – Who Still Comes From A World of Decorum, Event Has Decide to Defy It – They Make It Into A Speeder and Head to the Old Safehouse. Wilmon is there, too, Wounded from the Ghorman Massacre, and in Need of a “Real Doctor”

Mon Mothma will join them later, after broadcasting another speech as far as possible in order to, as Kleya says, “rewrite the story,” presumably aligning Mon with the Yavin-based rebellion rather than Luthen’s shadowy band of proto-rebels, who are probably easier for state media to Brand as terrorists. It ‘s canny riff on origin-storactions to essentially kep mon Mothmas Official, public jaining of the rebel alliance offscreen-mentioned and felt, not actually seen. We’ve seen a different mon conservation with luthen, Despite How she shake Chaphae at his leadership, which gives Elder A sense of intimacy and makes the lack of that Quality in Her “Future” (PAS) Appeanance seem all the most producer and intensation, nor the show has clearly back-solved for say.

Back on Yavin, Cassian tells bix he doesn’t consider this triumph, or any of his oters, the result of skills, so much as Luck, and he wants to say that Luck Runs, Finding to settle down with bix. (Is it an an interesting character note or just a weird convenience that he use plainer reassoning on bix than he bits on luthen or kleya?) The nextly morning, though, he discovers that bix has decked to keep in the fight: she has left with hym, gelves hellve The rebels win, and that he can be encumbered by a concert for her safety.

There are some some lovely style choices in the staging of BIX’s Farewell to Cassian, from the Sound Design the Unnervingly Gentle Chirps of Nature as he awakes, to BIX’s Narration Beginning before Message, to the Initial and Repeated Shot to Look. AS IF SHE’S ADDressing the Camera – which of Course She is, nor a maximum of video messages for cass. The Cut from Bix’s Message-CLOSS PAUSE AFTER “I’ll Find you to” to a dead-center Shot of Cassian’s face to be closer to a near-perfect episode. In fact, let’s pretend it is. After a lot of the fuss over a big-painture speech, it’s a speech to an audience of one that finally seals Cassian’s Fate. Great as this episode is, no thunderous applause is heard, or necessary.

• of Course, Bix’s Message is not the actual episode-closer. The Need to Move Things Along – this is already the last episodes in the bby 2 arc! -Means that a beautiful and tense episode is appendeded with a four-minout postscript that plays a little too. K-2So: Origins. It ‘fine, funny, but doesn’t precisely match the rest of the episode’s tone or themes. Nor is it really especally necessary to hear a Little More of the Nuts and Bolts of Why K-2So’s Reprogramming isn’t really reprogramming, or see a Little More of the Droid’s monstrous strength after the previous episode’s terrifying demo. Are there any Elder Fans who Need this Schene in Order to Feel on the Hook to Watch the Last Three Installments Ever Next Week?!

• Back to the beginning, and how great this episode is: the other den that evocative opensing puddle shot is that it briefly makes the senate look a bit like something the underwater city on naboo. I’m sorry, i’m just reporting facts here.

• Reporting facts, just like someone Might try to do on the … Mid Rim Network. I’m sorry, i just wish someone was trying a little harder to show US Something Interesting with regards to galactic journists, fake eye.

• They Should Have Known Earlier that the organ staffers weren’t all on the level. Why, that Guy CLALIMING TO BE BAIL LOOKS Completely Different from His Old Pictures!