Mon Mothma and Vel Sartha have a surprising connection (Picture: Lucasfilm Ltd/Disney Plus)
Warning: spoilers ahead for Andor episode 9.
Ever since Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) was handed a six-year prison sentence, fans of the Star Wars series on Disney Plus have been wondering how on earth he’s going to escape – given we know that the events of the 2016 film Rogue One take place five years later.
In episode 9, he begins to hatch his plan from inside Narkina 5 and initially struggles to get his boss Kino Loy (Andy Serkis) involved… but everything changes when tragedy strikes the unit.
The latest instalment finally delves into the mystery of Vel Sartha’s (Faye Marsay) backstory, revealing her surprising link to Senator Mon Mothma (Genevieve O’Reilly).
Meanwhile, Dedra Meero (Denise Gough) inflicts her unadulterated cruelty on Cassian’s ally Bix (Adria Arjona), while also facing unwarranted advances from her biggest admirer, Syril Karn (Kyle Soller).
Bix faces unbearable torture at Dedra Meero’s hands
After being captured by the Imperial authorities, Bix is forced to undergo cruel torture at the hands of sadistic ISB (Imperial Security Bureau) supervisor Dedra Meero.
Bix remarks that Dedra seems to be ‘enjoying’ threatening her with torture… and she isn’t wrong (Picture: Lucasfilm Ltd/Disney Plus)
Dedra not only wants to know where Cassian is – a fact that Bix cannot tell her – but also all of the Imperial equipment that has been making its way through the commercial hub of Ferrix and sold on through Bix’s shop.
After realising that Dedra isn’t going to believe any confession she might make, Bix faces cruel torment at the hands of a creepy man called Doctor Gorst (Joshua James), who explains that the Empire managed to capture the sounds of creatures screaming as they died, a sound that is now used as a torture method.
Bix is kept as captive after her torture, during which she did reveal the Imperial equipment that had passed hands in Ferrix, and is left in an extremely sapped state… not that Dedra cares whatsoever.
Mon Mothma’s cousin revealed to be none other than Vel
Following the mission carried out on Aldhani to rob the quarterly payroll for an entire Imperial sector, it was revealed that Vel is actually a rich woman hiding from her family in order to do her bit for the Rebellion.
Vel was previously seen secretly meeting up with Luthen’s assistant, Kleya (Picture: Lucasfilm Ltd/Disney Plus)
Mon meets again with her old friend Tay Kolma, who suggests she meets with a man called Davos Caldan for money – but the Senator labels Davos a ‘thug’ (Picture: Lucasfilm Ltd/Disney Plus)
In episode nine, viewers finally discover that Vel’s family links are of great consequence, as she’s the cousin of none other than Senator Mon Mothma.
Vel buys a gold dress for Mon’s teenage daughter, before the cousins secretly discuss the latest goings-on of their covert activities.
It appears that Mon has been left in the dark regarding exactly what Luthen (Stellan Skarsgård) is having Vel do in the name of the Rebellion, as she expresses worry for her brave cousin.
Mass murder at Cassian’s prison causes ripples
Over in Narkina 5, word is spreading that something has gone awfully wrong on level two.
Unrest is spreading across the prison (Picture: Lucasfilm Ltd/Disney Plus)
After Kino initially tries to calm all of the prisoners down, imploring them to ignore the whispers, it’s uncovered that apparently, all of the men on level two were ‘fried’, meaning that the floor was turned hot, killing them all.
Kino clearly looks conflicted by the rumours, but still remains resistant when Cassian tries to find out how many guards are on each level to help with his escape plot.
Nonetheless, Kino’s approach changes by the end of the episode, following a tragic event and a horrifying discovery about the truth of their sentences.
Syril and Dedra are a match made in Imperial heaven
Ever since Syril was interrogated by Dedra about Cassian and Luthen’s escape on Ferrix, fans have been rooting for the two undeniably equally Empire-loving individuals to get together.
Honestly, the chemistry between these two… (Picture: Lucasfilm Ltd/Disney Plus)
In episode nine, it seems as though Syril is ready to pledge his love and allegiance to Dedra, admitting that he hasn’t been able to stop thinking about her passion for justice when he confronts her outside her workplace.
Dedra threatens to have Syril thrown in jail, after he thanks her for helping him receive a promotion and breaks protocol by grabbing her arm.
However, we sense this isn’t the end of these two, and we reckon The Imperial March could be playing at their wedding in no time.
Has Cassian convinced Kin Loy to join prison break plan after Ulaf’s death?
Ulaf (Christopher Fairbank), an elderly man working in Cassian’s unit, has been struggling for some time with the manual work, revealing he’s suffering pain in his hands.
Is Kino about to join the fight? (Picture: Lucasfilm Ltd/Disney Plus)
In this episode, he actually collapses when the inmates are supposed to be ‘on programme’ with their hands on their heads while standing at their workstations, with Cassian and more workers helping to carry Ulaf into the corridor.
When a medic comes to inspect Ulaf, he informs Casssian and Kino that the elderly man has suffered a stroke and there’s nothing he can do for him, and so decides to give him a painless death by injecting him with something.
That’s not all, as the medic also tells the pair that the incident on level two occurred because a man on level four who was supposed to be released, having reached the end of his prison sentence, had actually been transferred to level two instead.
Word spread within level two, and so to keep the men quiet, the Imperial officers in charge fried and killed them all.
As Kino and Cassian walk away, Cassian yet again asks his superior how many guards are on each level – and Kino tells him never more than 12, clearly having been left utterly shaken by the revelation that their sentences mean absolutely nothing, and they’re apparently never going to be allowed to leave.
Does this mean Kino has finally joined Cassian’s side, and could help him create a scheme to escape the prison for good?
Andor is available to watch on Disney Plus with new episodes released on Wednesdays.
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Unrest is spreading across Cassian’s prison.
