Star Wars Andor Episode 10 Review and Breakdown

Ok, this is the third time that I’ve said it but this has been my favorite Andor episode so far, the wait and build-up of two episodes have proven to be great. Andor Episode 10: One way out was exciting, nerve-wracking, satisfying, and sad!

I got really invested in the story and the characters, more than I’ve been with the previous arcs, a lot of people are calling this the best episode so far and I agree with that statement one hundred percent.

This review contains heavy spoilers.

Andor recap: The story so far

Cassian Andor and Kino Loy discover that one man was supposed to be released but instead he was moved to another level, word got out and then one hundred men were killed.

Mon Motha is running out of options, Tay Kolma suggests that they ask for help from a man named Davo Sculdun, the Senator considers him a thug and not someone she’d like to be associated with.

Dedra Meero is persistent and capable, she’s quickly tracking Andor’s footsteps and everyone in the middle might end up like Bix, or worse.

No more counting shifts

After learning what happened at level two, Kino and Cassian confirmed their worst fears, no one is getting out alive. It takes a couple of minutes for Kino to accept it, he proceeds to tell the other inmates what happened and his intention to leave this living hell.

It was so cool to see the exact moment when Kino Loy realizes that there was only one way to get out and how he switched from being reluctant to the idea to the leader of the escape, Andy Serkis’ performance reminded me of that iconic scene in The Lord of the Rings where Gollum speaks with his other self.

Everyone’s working like a normal day, Ulaf’s replacement is arriving and there must be zero suspicion about what’s going to happen. The new prisoner arrives, and the stress is palpable, I don’t think I got this nervous in the Aldhani heist which was already a very tense episode.

Cassian has now witnessed how the Empire is destroying people’s lives; I’m pretty sure most of the other prisoners had a similar about how they ended in Narkina 5. It looked like this factory has been running for many years, who knows how many people have already died?

I believe that this is what leads Cassian Andor to join the movement that eventually becomes the Rebel Alliance. He’s finally going to understand what Luthen Rael meant about fighting for the cause. This was just a glimpse of Imperial brutality, and I’d even dare to say that compared to other Imperial labor camps this is a walk in the park.

Chandrilan customs

Davo Sculdun visits Mon Mothma, the Senator doesn’t want this man on her property for too long so she makes clear that there’s no room for small talk, she wants to get done with this as soon as possible.

He wants to enjoy the moment, it’s not often that an Imperial Senator needs the services of someone whose viewed as a suited criminal. Sculdun might be a shallow man but, he’s far from being stupid, he didn’t become a successful banker with just intimidation and greed, the man knows his game and knows how to play his cards.

Andor Episode 10 - Mon Mothma and her guest

When asked about the fee he refuses one, Mothma makes sure to be perfectly clear; she doesn’t want to owe him any type of favor. Her words have little to no effect on the banker, in exchange for the trouble, he wants to introduce his son to Mothma’s daughter Leida.

Chandrilans have a tradition of pre-arranged marriages, Mon Mothma and her husband Perrin got married because of this tradition. The Senator is offended by the idea of exchanging her daughter in order to make business with someone like Davo.

She even insinuates that she’s not in favor of pre-arranged marriage, which isn’t so hard to believe considering how useless Perrin has proved to be so far. Davo is dismissed by Mothma, I think this is the first time that we’ve seen her so upset that even she struggles to hide it.

It appears that Davo Sculdun has found the Senator’s weakness, I seriously doubt that she’s going to accept the offer, doing so would betray everything she stands for. On the other hand, the Empire is relentless and time is running out, she won’t be able to play by her rules forever if she wants to stand a chance. Is this going to be her breaking point?

One way out

The moment of truth, where they get out or die trying. The guards have no idea what is about to happen, they checked the room before going in and everything appears to be ok. Cassian positions himself in a place that will allow him to remain out of sight of the three guards, in a split second he sabotages the lift, the guards panic, and the prisoners do their move.

In the first episode of this arc, I thought that the inmates were going to be very different. I expected them to be divided into groups and fight for some kind of power, like in many other prisons. This was completely different, despite the fact that they “play” against each other there is a sense of companionship, and all of them know that there’s only one enemy.

Andor Episode 10 - a scene of one of the rooms with workers in the prison

Having two slow episodes where we got to know a little more about the other inmates allowed me to care for most of them. I really wanted them all to escape, every death was important to me and that’s not something that happens too often in Star Wars, making us care about secondary characters and killing them after a couple of episodes is something that this series has done several times, and I love it.

Unit 5-2-D, led by Kino Loy and Cassian Andor successfully overpower the few guards at their level. If the escape is to be successful, they have to be quick and precise. The water pipe that Andor sabotaged proved to be vital to disable the electrified floor.

With the threat of getting fried eliminated, nothing can stop them from escaping and killing the guards. Kino and Cassian head all the way to the eighth level, where the command center is located, while the other inmates go to the other levels to set the other prisoners free.

Eventually, they get there, the announcer tries to play dumb but Kino shoots one of the other two men to prove that he’s not messing around. The remaining announcers are very scared and comply immediately, it was so funny when Cassian yelled “on program” to them.

Cassian knows that Kino is the most indicated person to give a message to the other shifts, he’s a natural leader and someone that other prisoners might look up to. His message is inspiring and powerful; it’s time to get out of this miserable place, guards are outmatched and leave no one behind.

One of the most satisfying things about this episode was watching the Imperial guards hide and fear for their lives; this is a great example of how a few individuals can exert power over big groups but once the mass realizes how to turn the tables there’s little the oppressors can do about an uprising.

Everything is going according to plan, all prisoners are free and it’s just a matter of time before everyone leaves the installation, or that’s what I thought. Cassian is about to jump off the platform when he notices something in Kino’s expression, he asks what’s wrong and three devastating words come out of Kino Loy’s mouth; “I can’t swim”.

Andor Episode 10 - the "Can't swim" moment

It looks like Cassian is trying to figure out a way to get his new ally out of there but he’s pushed by accident and we don’t get to see what happened with Kino Loy. Considering how good of a character he is I doubt that the showrunners won’t use him again in the future, I certainly hope to see him again in a more favorable situation.

Later, we see that Cassian and Melshi managed to escape, I find it very odd that out of the five thousand men that escaped the installation we only see two. Those too old or weak probably didn’t make it out of the water, others went took a different direction, and perhaps some were captured or killed by the Imperials, an escape of this magnitude wouldn’t go unnoticed for too long.

Andor Episode 10 - Andor and Melshi running together scene

It might not be of interest to some but I really want to know what happened to the rest of the prisoners, and more importantly, the consequences that this prison break is going to have.

The two announcers that Cassian left alive are going to identify him and the ISB won’t take too long to connect the dots. If Cassian Andor was already a man of interest for the Empire, after Narkina 5 he’s going to become one of the most wanted on their list.

The price of freedom

We learned that Supervisor Lonni is part of the spy network, for six years he has been leaking information and climbing the ranks of the ISB. He tells Luthen about Dedra Meero, the pilot and the ISB plans to ambush Kreegyr but Luthen asks him about the real reason why the encounter.

Basically, Lonni wants out, he’s now a father and doesn’t want to continue, it’s something most people would find reasonable but Luthen Rael isn’t a reasonable man. He threatens Lonni’s family and remembers him of the vow they took, just like he did with Mon Mothma.

Reluctantly, Lonni asks him about what has he sacrificed and Luthen gives the most sincere answer; his ideals, values, love, goodness, and anything valuable to him. He has become so obsessed with defeating the Empire that he’ll betray, lie, kill and sacrifice anyone to achieve his goal.

At this point, there’s almost nothing that differentiates him from the enemy that he hates so much. The things he has done are terrible and cruel, nothing that someone like Mon Mothma would ever agree with; a necessary evil that must exist if they plan to defeat the Empire. Luthen understands that there’s only one ending for the path he chose, and he’s going to embrace it until his final moments.

Episode 10 Easter Eggs

This episode was heavy on emotions and actions, but it still provided a handful of note-worthy easter eggs, references and hidden details for us to discover and discuss!

The Imperial Crest

This shot shows prisoners from all levels escaping, it’s my favorite scene of the episode. Not only because of the visual aspect but because I realized that the entire structure is very similar to the iconic Imperial Crest.

Galactic Starcruiser

I don’t know if this was made intentionally or not, but the cells look incredibly similar to some of the rooms available in the Galactic Starcruiser, the Star Wars-themed luxury hotel located at Disney World.

Image source: Allen J.Schaben/Los Angeles Times

Sneaky easter eggs

In a recent interview, Tony Gilroy, the showrunner of Andor was asked about some of the easter eggs that made us go crazy (like the Sith Stalker armor) and he confessed that sometimes the art department will sneak stuff into Luthen’s gallery.

It’s so funny to learn that the people working on the series are giving us material to make some crazy fan theories without the director knowing.

We’re done with the three-episode arcs, there are only two episodes left and I doubt we’re returning to the slow-paced episodes. Everything is slowly connecting and a confrontation between the protagonists of both sides is inevitable.

Luthen is more dangerous than I thought, for his allies and enemies. Hopefully, he’s heavily involved in the last two episodes. I just wonder if he’ll last enough for us to see him in the second season.

Star Wars Andor Season 1 Episode Reviews and Breakdown

This is a collection of individual reviews and a breakdown of all events, secrets, references and easter eggs in the first season of the Star Wars series Andor available on Disney Plus. Adrian goes beep behind the plots of each episode to discover what the world od Star Wars was like when the Rebellion was born!

Please note that every single one of the reviews contains heavy spoilers from the episode it analyzes. It's better to watch the episode and then read the articles.

Also, each review starts with a recap of the events leading up to this episode, so you will never be lost with where things pick up from last week.