Andor – Season 2 Episode 9 'Welcome to the Rebellion' Recap & Review

The Review Geek

07-05-2025

Welcome to the Rebellion
Episode 9 of Andor season 2 starts with Senator Oran arrested after the slaughter in Ghorman. The Empire are tightening the nooses and Mon is reeling, believing she could be next. Mon is scheduled to give a speech the following day and wants to speak out about these atrocities with an unfiltered Imperial lens. If they don't, things could get worse. But of course we know that they will get a lot worse before it gets better (and then perhaps gets worse again with the Disney sequel trilogy!)
There are listening devices being planted across the Senate offices, including inside Mon's room, and she's warned to be careful. Mon can't really practice her speech with so many ears and eyes on her, and it doesn't take long before she finds the tracker. Mon smashes the one in her room, immediately alerting the Imperials to what she's doing.
Mon is a marked woman, as evidenced by Luthen's next mission. Kleya briefs Andor on this, giving him a pep-talk and reminding the guy that he needs to save Mon no matter what, given she's putting a voice to the atrocity and is their best shot at broadcasting their message far and wide.
Mon heads outside and meets with Luthen that evening. He has intel for her, which includes the fact that Bail Organa's team have been corrupted. This is the team that's taking her to Yavin Rebel Base. Mon doesn't want to believe it, bringing up the Tay situation earlier in the season and how unsavoury that whole affair was. Luthen explains that he's just trying to do right by her and is sending an agent to keep a close eye on Mon. This agent, of course, being Andor.
The Empire have tightened their security detail and it seems they're keeping tabs on everyone. The only listening device to go dead is Mon's and it flags up with the Imperials who are listening in from their consoles. This is, naturally, reported to the supervisors who take a closer look at Mon Mothma.
Organa's team intend to get Mon onboard the ship before executing a 'quick and quiet extraction', and while things seem to be legit for a while, Luthen's intel is found to be correct as one of the team, Beska, is working with the Empire.
Despite the best efforts from those within to silence those criticizing the Imperials, Bail Organa finds a loop-hole which allows Mon to give her speech freely without interruption on the floor. Supervisor Lagret, the one overseeing communications in the office, intends to shut down the Senate feed before she can speak though.
However, when his lackey shows up to do so, he finds the doors are locked and the Imperials are delayed in shutting down the broadcast as a result. Just as they cut the feed, Mon manages to reveal that the real monster here is Emperor Palpatine.
Andor waits for Mon and urges her to come with him, using the code-word 'I have friends everywhere' to encourage her to join. However, Beska shows up and a tense stand-off ensues, until she's shot dead that is. Erskin buys time for the pair, as Andor and Mon leave the Senate and make it back to the safehouse.
Wil is there too with Dreena, while Kleya and a returning Erskin are here too. Luthen isn't though, although he's apparently safe for the time being.
Mon and Andor make it to Yavin, where they want Mon to give a speech, broadcast as far and wide as possible to try and pick up the rebellion efforts to fight back – properly. Andor returns to Bix and intends to leave with her to live out their days in peace. He's turning away from the rebellion and believes he's overplayed his hand already, chalking up his past successes to luck rather than skill.
In the morning, Bix is gone. She leaves a video message confirming that she needs to leave and that's because she can't be the sole reason why Andor is giving up on the rebellion. She believes the rebellion is more important than her and has chosen for the both of them. Only when it's all said and done will she return and the pair can be reunited.
The KX unit droid has also been fixed up too, and as they turn it on, it begins speaking.
The Episode Review
Another solid episode rounds out this week's triple bill of Andor as we see the full extent of sacrifice needed to make this rebellion a reality. Mon's speech before the Senate is a good one and rather ironically could be attributed to any time period about the dangers of supressing speech and turning the other cheek during authoritarian rule.
It's still a little baffling as to why she destroyed the listening device though. Wouldn't the better solution be to move the listening device to a different room? Plant false intel to the Imperials about some random raid or incident that's designed to deflect attention?
The episode does do well though to explain how Bix isn't part of Rogue One, but it also highlights how her character has been criminally under-utilized across this season. She's done nothing for 3 episodes and the pacing for her killing Doctor Gorst in episode 6 felt very sudden rather than a dramatic beat built-up over numerous episodes.
The thrilling escape from the Senate is a definite highlight of this second season though and these sequences are incredibly well shot. The cinematography in this show has been great but tellingly, we've seen nothing from Dedra, so it'll be interesting to see what's happened to them.
Either way, everything here is geared up for a dramatic final three episodes to round out this season!
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