FIRST TIME WATCHING: Andor S1E6

Just wanted to share, LOVING the reactions. But also, the TIEs we see are really weak and have no extra shielding [to keep costs down because they're all expendable to the Empire]. Their pilots are lovingly referred to as "Coffin Jockeys".

If Cassian didn’t kill Skeen Skeen would have killed him. He showed his cards-Andor just thought the situation through more quickly.

Skeen showed his intention to betray the crew and steal the money. His mistake was thinking Cassian was as duplicitous as him. I love that Cassian didn't hesitate to do what had to be done cause the moment he let on that he wasn't interested in Skeen's plan Skeen would have killed him. The thing that I like about Cassian as a character is that he doesn't play nice or fair, but is still a good person with noble goals.

41:57 - it is indeed a trope. One of the oldest that we know off. Older than writing. It's from the early bronze age. Natural copper has a tendency to contain arsenic which the smiths would have to process. Over time this would poison them causing nerve damage. So the elder, wise, smiths would tend to become crippled. Arsenic poisoning also damage genetic material - giving their offspring increased risk of dwarfism. So here we are - four thousand years later - and the tropes of dwarves being master craftsmen, and brilliant inventors being cripple, are alive and well.

Just as the clearing of the Aldani Highlands is a reference to the historical Scottish Highland clearances, this robbery is directly influenced by the 1907 Tiflis Robbery. I love that this show pulls directly from history all the time.

I don't know if you notice, but Vel was the Waif in GoT. The one who was beating blind Arya.

This is the episode that hooked me first time around, I wasn’t set on the show before but seeing Nemik get fuckin SLAMMED by the payload was rough! And I forgot about Skeen until we were in that moment. Also noticing how Andor consistently highlights the Empire’s effects on the people and worlds that they occupy and subjugate, destroying local cultures for monetary and imperial gain. I’m appreciating this rewatch

Saying they had plot armor getting through the Eye, they literally had a flight path lol

Vel can actually fly the freighter, what she didn't know was how to get the freighter to launch from the runway rail thing when it was in that loading dock. Personally I don't think Cinta killed the hostages. I'm not saying Cinta wouldn't do it, she's cold, but in the 2 years since season 1 came out no writer or actor from Andor has ever mentioned anything about this Cinta theory. I would argue that Cinta has that sad expression on her face because her and Vel have to split up for the mission and they probably won't see each other for a while. Also we see the hostages alone in that room watching the eye. If Cinta is still in the room at that point why is she out of frame? Finally, even if Cinta kills the hostages Vel wasn't going to execute the Imperials in the loading bay who loading the money, so what's the point of Cinta killing some hostages while Vel leaves some alive? That's just sloppy planning. I feel like the Cinta thing is a fan theory at this point.

Cassian shooting Skeen was pretty extreme but it was the only logical thing to do at that point. If he rejected the offer he knew Skeen would likely kill him instead and he doesn't fully trust Val either. So best to take matters in his own hands, take the money and gtfo.

So the general consensus is that Cinta killed the hostages. As you pointed out, they were witnesses and, for the greater purpose of the Rebellion (Luthen talks about this perspective next episode), killing them served a purpose. That’s why they left “stone cold” Cinta to do it instead of like Skeen or Taramind. She did the dirty work

If you layer the intro pieces on top of each other, it works as a giant ensemble.

I still maintain this is the best episode of the show across the 2 seasons. The stakes, the tension, the suspense, the amazing visuals of The Eye, the drama, the music, the uncertainty of what the heck might to happen . A++ television.