‘Andor’ Episode Seven Recap: “The Announcement”

*Warning: the following article contains spoilers for episode seven of Andor*

Nicholas Britell. That’s it. That’s the recap. Jokes aside, his score for Andor is the best Star Wars has been, musically, in a long time. It’s superior than what Ludwig Göransson is working on with The Mandalorian. Moreover, it is a far better representation of the different worlds the show has been exploring in its seven episodes.

As Andor cuts to Niamos, a Daft Punk-like theme fills the speakers, and it’s some of the most vibrant and original Star Wars music in a long time. You immediately associate the world with something upbeat, odd, and lively. And it is a strange, punk-like planet that our protagonist (Diego Luna) hides in after the Aldhani heist. He tries to convince his adoptive mother, Maarva (Fiona Shaw), to leave with him when he returns to Ferrix, but no avail. She is determined to stay and resist to the Empire after being inspired by the Aldhani heist, without knowing that Andor was a part of it.

The episode contains plenty of riveting dialogue scenes, but the most impactful is Andor’s conversation with Maarva. Fiona Shaw continues to excel as Cassian’s adoptive mother, even if she is woefully underused. But the conversation she has with him is the episode’s highlight, signaling a change in how she reacted to the Empire’s rise as they took over Ferris to when Cassian robbed payroll in Aldhani. You’d think Cassian would want to tell Maarva what he did, but he keeps him to himself, which adds a bit of tension to the scene.

There are also sequences with Mon Mothma (Genevieve O’Reilly) that are equally as thrilling. When she finds out Luthen Rael (Stellan Skarsgård) orchestrated the heist, an expression of fear overshadows her face, as she believes the Empire will become more vigilant throughout Coruscant, with the political climate already unstable after the fall of the Jedi. But the most riveting sequence with Mothma is a conversation she holds with Tay Kolma (Ben Miles), a former childhood friend of hers whom she confides herself to. I don’t know in which direction this arc will end up, but it’s not bound to end well, especially if she fears her husband (Alastair Mackenzie), who seems to be tied closely to the Empire.

Now, things are going to become a lot more exciting as of next week. The tables have been set – Rael tells Mothma they’re ready for a revolution, and silently puts a hit on Andor so he doesn’t reveal his identity. Then, on Niamos, Andor is arrested by the coolest-looking stormtrooper on this side of the galaxy for minor offenses (that he didn’t even do) and is sentenced to six years in prison. What will happen next? It’s unclear, but Vel (Faye Marsay) is currently looking for him for the hit, Syril Karn (Kyle Soller) is now employed at the Bureau of Standards with something lurking in the back of his head, and Rael wants to take out the loose ends to start a revolution.

But the “loose end” already has more than one trick up his sleeve. Rael will likely bite the dust this season, or the next, as his personality screams “double-crosser.” It’s unclear what Cinta (Varada Sethu) is still doing in Aldhani, but everyone is on a different path now. Andor is in a heap of trouble, but he’s likely to come after Rael on Coruscant. What about Karn and Dedra Meero (Denise Gough)? I have no theories for now and would like to see it play out independently. It’s far more exciting than what could happen.

The seventh episode of Andor is now available to stream on Disney+.