Star Wars Andor Episode 12 Review and Breakdown

This is an in-depth review and breakdown of the season finale of Star Wars Andor. Episode 12, titled “Rix Road” comes after almost three months of slow episodes, very tense moments, deep characters to care about, heartbreaking scenes, and incredible action sequences.

I thought that fifty-four minutes were a lot but now I take it back, I wish it’d lasted longer. There’s so much to digest and reflect on about this episode.

Andor recap: The story so far

Bix was captured and tortured to reveal any information about Cassian and Luthen’s connection.

The Empire is now occupying Ferrix, they established a curfew, all transmissions are intercepted and no one is free of suspicion.

Davo Sculdun’s condition to help Mon Mothma with her “financial problems” was to introduce his son to the Senator’s daughter. Hoping that this would lead to an eventual marriage between the two teenagers like the Chandrilan costume dictates.

Luthen Rael sent Anto Kreegyr on a mission to attack an Imperial facility, Saw Gerrera was going to help him but Luthen revealed that the mission was compromised, and both of them agreed to sacrifice Kreegyr in order to make the ISB gain fake confidence that they’d later exploit.

Maarva Andor has passed away, as a prominent member of Ferrix, a big funeral is going to be held in her honor. Dedra Meero sees this as an opportunity to lure Cassian Andor out and capture him.

This review contains heavy spoilers.

Everything leads to this: Going back to Ferrix

Everything has led to this moment; the Aldhani heist, escaping from Narkina 5, Dedra Meero’s search for Andor, and Luthen’s need to silence the one man that can link him to everything.

Cassian wasn’t able to see his mother one more time, but the funeral is taking place and everyone knows what this means, the big fish is coming home and everyone has an interest in finding him, this opportunity is too big to let it pass.

There’s something in the air, but it’s more than just tension; uncertainty, fear (from both sides), anticipation, and nervousness. The people of Ferrix, Imperials, Luthen, Vel, Dedra Meero, all but one individual. Cassian Andor is calm, focused, and determined to come on top of the situation.

We knew that he’d return for Maarva’s funeral, to do what I’m not exactly sure but whatever his objective was, it changed as soon as he find out about Bix being captive. The Cassian that we met in the first half of the season has ceased to exist, what he experienced at Narkina 5 had a tremendous impact, he witnessed firsthand the cruelty and brutality of the Empire.

An enemy that doesn’t rest, sleep or eat. Always watching, always thinking of ways to subdue anyone that commits the crime of looking too suspicious. This evil doesn’t discriminate by age, gender, or race.

Everyone is a potential “worker” in one of the Imperial factories, having your enemies build the weapons of their own destruction is something that the Empire is proud of, he wasn’t gonna let Bix end up in a place like that.

I think that after everything he has recently experienced, Cassian Andor has a new idea of the things that truly matter. He came back not to attack the Empire but to ensure that his loved ones remain safe.

The importance of outsmarting the enemy

Being one step ahead of your opponent is fundamental in any type of confrontation; Luthen knows this, the ISB knows this and certainly, Mon Mothma does. She picks up Perrin from a party and immediately asks for privacy, Kloris pretends to obey her orders but he’s an ISB spy so he continues to listen to their conversation.

Mothma seems to be very angry about something, Perrin asks what’s going on and the Senator confronts her husband about his gambling addiction. He swears that he’s kept his promise and that someone is trying to get to her by discrediting Perrin.

As strange as this might sound, I believe Perrin is saying the truth. Mothma knows that the ISB is watching her and she’s under extreme pressure to hide the activity of her bank accounts. It’s vital to keep a low profile before finding a way to deal with the missing money.

This is a perfect way to do it, Perrin is less than an ideal husband and I’m sure many people know this, saying that he has a gambling problem makes sense especially when he has a record of doing it in the past.

I don’t like Perrin and I doubt that’s gonna change, but the fact that Mothma is willing to use him as a scapegoat is very surprising. She’s known for being a selfless person and this is contrary to her nature, but she’s also agreed to introduce Leida to Davo Sculdun’s son.

To be fair it’s not like she has many options, Mothma doesn’t have the same tools that Luthen possesses, and the only way she has to defend herself is through politics; deception, lying, and manipulation can be more powerful than most weapons, it’s time for her to use them.

If she plays her cards well then there’s a small chance that everything goes according to plan; Leida doesn’t marry Sculdun’s son, she doesn’t raise any suspicions and the funding of the Rebellion continues, but what if none of this happens what is she going to do?

Is she going to betray her ideals for the greater good, just like Luthen?

Lift by the dead: The side characters that shaped Andor

Throughout the series, we’ve met characters that have made an impact on us and most certainly on Cassian Andor. Nemik wrote his ideas about war, freedom, oppression, and rebellion.

Andor has been listening to them for some time, even if he’s more a man of action I’m sure that listening to Nemik is going to shape his vision of the galaxy, the Empire and the reasons why people fight against tyranny, I have no doubt that his manifesto is going to have a big impact on the foundations of the Rebel Alliance.

Cassian’s father, Clem, taught him about scavenging, recovering things from places people overlook, cleaning them, and increasing the value of something that others deemed worthless.

He was a lonely smuggler who couldn’t trust anyone, always running, lying, and hiding, causing pain and suffering to those that are close to him, but after everything he has lived, Andor’s been “cleaned up” from the rust.

I think he was a man that didn’t think much of himself, a tiny ant fighting alone against a monster, but now he knows that with proper resources and strategies making a real difference is possible, and because of this realization he’s going to dedicate his remaining days to fight the Empire, just like his mother would do.

Maarva Carassi Andor, a daughter of Ferrix, adoptive mother of Cassian Andor, and a rebel by nature. Her figure is a symbol of resilience and revolt, the people of Ferrix know how much she’s suffered and everything Maarva had to endure after the Galactic Empire was formed.

Clem was made an example and an officer had him hung, Cassian was imprisoned for years; the two most important people in her life were taken away from her by the Galactic Empire. Her resentment only grew stronger as the years passed and she witnessed how everything that is touched by the Empire inevitably decays and eventually perishes.

The people of Ferrix are very close to each other, in dark times only they could lift each other up, this also means that any losses were deeply felt by an entire community and not just the relatives. Without knowing, the Empire has grown the seeds of their own downfall, we’re just witnessing what happens in a small community, but events like this are going to happen all over the galaxy “There are whole armies, battalions that have no idea that they’ve already enlisted in the cause.”

Maarva’s speech is probably my favorite scene of this episode and probably the entire season. She recalls how her life has been, living in Ferrix with such a strong sense of community is probably the only thing that gave her strength in the darkest times, it’s also a good reminder of what’s really important.

Peace, war, poverty, richness, disease, or health, what helps us get through our highest highs and lowest lows are the people around us.

For Ferrix it’s been a lot of lows since the Clone Wars, they were able to withstand everything regardless of how painful it was, but in the process, they turned a blind eye to the shadow that was growing on the horizon, and now this shadow is knocking their doors, and it’s not going away anytime soon.

But that changes now, the fuel was already there, the incident with Andor only speed things up and now, it’s Maarva’s message the spark that ignites people’s hearts so that they finally oppose this terrifying and invincible enemy, because it’s the right thing to do, because it’s the only thing to do.

Fight the Empire!

The crowd remains steady but they know what’s about to happen, Captain Tigo gets tired of waiting and flips B2EMO, I’m not sure what he thought would happen after that.

There’s no coming back, the time for the people of Ferrix to stand up is now; Brasso is the first one to hit back, a well-placed kick in Tigo’s chest sent him to the ground, the rest of the crow hit the Imperial soldiers that were next to them, it was so cool to see Brasso use Maarva’s brick to knock down a soldier.

Wilmon Paak is eager for revenge, after his father suffered the same faith as Cassian’s dad, he turned his fear into anger and used it against the Empire by detonating a device that he made.

This disables one light armor vehicle and also creates a chain of explosions with the grenades that were nearby. The Stormtroopers start shooting the civilians, but this does nothing to stop the enraged multitude, in fact, I think this only increases their anger.

Dedra Meero ends up in the middle of everything, her Death Troopers were taken down and now she’s completely vulnerable. The ISB Supervisor tries to fight back but it’s useless, the enraged civilians hit her and gather around her; ISB personnel is far from the action, they give orders without actually knowing how it is to be in a situation like this.

Her life is at risk, for the first time since the series started, she’s going to die and there’s nothing Dedra can do about it. Fortunately for her, Syril has been watching the entire time and saves her in the last second.

Dedra’s shaking in fear and can barely talk to Syril. Syril Karn has now proven his worth and I’m sure this is the beginning of a close professional (and maybe personal) relationship between the two of them.

I have no doubt that the Ferrix uprising is going to change Meero’s perspective about the rebellion, she has experienced the fury of the people oppressed by the Empire in her own flesh. If I had to guess I’d say that she’ll be even more ruthless with her methods used on her enemies, inside and outside of the ISB.

I’d like to quickly point out how Cinta dispatched Corv, she was quick, precise, and deathly. She’s certainly not an amateur, it was so cold that I felt uncomfortable because of how real it felt. Now more than ever I think that she really got rid of the hostages on Aldhani. I’m glad that she’s not in the Imperial ranks, Cinta is a very capable and scary woman.

The chaos and confusion allow Brasso, Wilmon, Jezzi, and Pegla to escape. Cassian and Bix are right behind them, she’s nowhere near being in good condition but she’ll be fine. Cassian decides to stay behind, I can’t help but wonder if what happened with Maarva is going to repeat, what if this is the last time he sees his friends?

Joining the cause

Luthen Rael has gotten used to being a spectator, and this was not the exception. He always stayed away from the events, and even when things got out of control he retired to a safer location. I wonder if Maarva’s speech had any effect on him and his idea of what must be done to fight the Empire.

He’s someone that tries to be one step ahead of everyone else but this time Cassian Andor outsmarted him. When Luthen got to his Fondor Haulcraft, Andor was already waiting for him. He gave him two choices; “kill me or take me in”.

After all the events that have happened, Cassian now understands the titanic labor of facing the Empire. He’s learned that if many people join efforts there’s a small chance of making a change for good. As I mentioned in a previous paragraph, the Galactic Empire is a monster, but even monsters can bleed.

The next time we see Cassian Andor, he’s going to be “officially” working for Luthen, the risks are going to be higher but that also applies to the rewards. He has proved multiple times what he can do on his own, who knows the things he can accomplish with proper resources and intel? I have no doubt that he’s going to be one of the best operatives the Rebel Alliance has to offer.

His enemies will also be more prepared and eager to meet him, Dedra Meero and Syril Karn will are going to be some terrifying enemies to face. And they’re not the only ones, the Empire has people that are more powerful and dangerous than an ISB Supervisor, I can’t wait to see new faces on both sides and their roles in this conflict.

This was an incredible episode, there are some things that weren’t solved but it totally makes sense to leave questions open for the next season. What do you think about the last episode of the first season of Andor?

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.