“Andor” - Episode 5 Review

Story posted October 11, 2022 in CommRadio, Arts & Entertainment by Maclain Young

Planning, plotting and hanging out with mom, “Andor” Episode 5 “The Axe Forgets” does not deliver a ton of plot, but some interesting character development.

While the visuals and sound design are impressive so far in the show, the intricacies of the characters stole the show in this episode.

“What makes a rebellion?” is the real thesis of this episode as we see heads and different ideologies clash. This is not a simple battle between light and dark or good and evil.

Each member of the small rebellion has their ideologies put on display and Cassian Andor is backed into a corner when his fellow teammates discover the valuable crystal he has been carrying.

From revenge to wanting to overthrow a tyrannical government each member has their own motivation for the mission they are preparing to embark on.

The team is thrown into a bit of a frenzy when Cassian finally reveals to them that he is only there because he is being paid.

This generates some powerful character moments especially with Arvel Skeen, who was suspicious of Andor’s motivations the entire time they were together.

He shares an emotional story of how the Empire killed his brother and how this is more than revenge for him.

This makes the dynamic of the crew interesting as they prepare to start their big mission, they are getting to know each other real fast.

Something that stood out to me this episode was the humanization of a lot of the imperial characters. From ISB agent Dedra Meero in her quest to solve the random rebel activity or Syril Karn dealing with his humiliation from the opening episodes.

These characters are likable and as an audience member you are almost rooting for them. Deedra is working so hard to crack the case while her superiors look down on her.

Although she is part of the “bad” side, you want her to prove her superiors wrong and have success for all the hard work she puts in.

For Syril, you feel bad for him. His mother humiliates him and makes him feel so small.

You can tell by his room and his actions that he has a lot of passion that was misplaced. I wonder where that passion will be directed at, because Syril felt like a character we would not see again after the first three episodes.

Admittedly, not much happens in this episode in terms of plot, but slowing down and spending time with the characters works.

In a limited six-episode series like “Obi-Wan Kenobi,” this definitely does not fly. But in a 12-episode grounded show like “Andor” it is welcomed and appreciated.

While not an action packed or super memorable episode of Star Wars TV, “Andor” Episode 5 delivers characters like many great television series.

Maclain Young is a third-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email macyoung21@gmail.com.