Eric Geller

Eric Geller @ericgeller

The fact that Syril and Mosk are so eager to see Cassian brought to justice that they’re content to just hang out on the perimeter of the action and watch what goes down really speaks to the intensity of their passion for what they consider justice. It makes them so relatable. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Speaking of Syril, I love how this show balances humanizing and mocking him. The finale found a way to inject a bit of humor with the scene of Syril and Sergeant Mosk wordlessly switching hats and donning them. There’s something so funny about their lingering camaraderie. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Just when you think it's over for Dedra...Syril saves the day! I do love this, to be honest. It gives him a chance to prove his worth to her. Dedra, normally calm and composed, is now panicked and disoriented, and Syril is something familiar that she can latch onto. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

But ISB authority doesn't matter much in a melee. It's actually kind of scary to watch as Dedra's knocked off balance, disarmed, and set upon by a mob. Dedra's not a soldier, so she’s not used to seeing combat, and we’re not used to seeing her overwhelmed and not in control. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

We’ve seen Dedra jostling w/ colleagues & torturing rebels, but finally we see her really flexing her authority by bossing around subordinates. As you watch her overseeing preparations for Maarva’s funeral, you get a real sense of the power that she wields as an ISB inspector. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

While in her element, Dedra repeatedly warns her officers that she wants Cassian alive. It's a reminder of her strategic vision. The others are just focused on suppressing discontent on Ferrix, but she's thinking about the bigger picture. She knows that “Axis” is the real prize. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

No one has higher highs and lower lows in this episode than Dedra. For eight episodes, we’ve watched her in positions of either contentious equality or supreme command. The show primed us perfectly for the jarring experience of watching her wind up in a very different position. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Things are bleak for Bix. She recalls Cassian's previous visit as a dream, suggesting reality has blurred for her in confinement. And when Cassian tries to get her to leave, she fearfully says that the Imperials will "get angry." She's been thoroughly conditioned to fear them. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Maarva called Cassian "the first spark of the fire" in describing the inevitability of Imperial occupation. But she also recognized that Cassian had the potential to light his own spark of rebellion by combining his knowledge of how to rebel with a latent emotional motivation. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Of *course* Maarva knew what Cassian would say when he found out she’d died. She knew him better than he realized. “I love him more than anything he could ever do wrong.” That’s just heartbreakingly beautiful. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Nurchi betraying Cassian was interesting. Cassian paid him back, so it couldn't be about the money. Was he just pissed that Cassian brought the Empire to their town? If so, what a great bit of world-building that shows another way in which oppression ruins communities. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

There’s a dead look in Wilmon’s eyes that makes his actions even more chilling and sad. You can tell his father’s execution has broken him, hardening his heart and sapping his joy. This is the on-the-ground cost of oppression that we so rarely see in Star Wars. Here, it's vivid. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Also, the way the episode only gives you glimpses of Wilmon’s activities over the course of several scenes, never explicitly revealing that he’s making a bomb (until he throws it) but heavily implying it, really heightens the dramatic tension in a wonderful way. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

The finale gives a beautiful spotlight to several Ferrix residents. I love Wilmon calmly making his bomb while a hologram of his dead father watches him. It’s a great parallel to real-life examples of radicalization. You really understand why people rise up against the Empire. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Once Luthen sees that Cassian’s all in — that he’s so angry that he’s willing to die if he can't fight back — Luthen realizes that he’s just been given a hugely valuable asset. Stellan Skarsgård masterfully plays Luthen’s dawning realization, culminating in a proud, sly smile. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

By the end of the season, Cassian is tired of running. He’s ready to fight back. He’s so confident that Luthen — who previously praised his skills — will recruit him instead of killing him that he offers him the choice. And his instincts prove correct. What an incredible scene. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

By the time Cassian meets up with Brasso, something inside him has changed. When Brasso tells him to be careful, he responds, “It’s too late for that.” He can't elude the ISB forever even if he tries, but for once, he's *not* trying to save his skin. He's fighting for others. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

The Clem flashback shows us that Cassian's adopted father taught him to pay attention to seemingly insignificant things — to look past the rust and see something’s potential. Cassian's family did this with B2, and season 1 is bookended by examples of Luthen doing it w/ Cassian. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Speaking of Cassian, there’s something indescribably wonderful about his first appearance in this episode. His quiet, understated presence contrasts perfectly with his critical status as the focal point of everyone else’s actions. He's right in their midst, but still unseen. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Cassian promises his friends that he'll find them, but as we later learn, he has a different mission in mind. I wonder if he actually intends to ever find them, or if he worries that, with what he's about to do, a reunion would only put them in more danger. I hope they reunite. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Bix smiles as she says that Cassian will find them after they escape. Despite everything he’s put her and the others through, she’s always known she could count on him when it mattered. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

"I’m counting on you." "You always say that." "And you always come through." MY HEART. I appreciate that Cassian & B2 got to have this sweet moment together. B2 is proud of being so dependable, and the moment reminds us that Cassian and B2 have been through so much together. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Until Cassian shows up in the shipyard, it feels like the Empire might catch our Ferrix friends as they scramble to escape. Their mad rush to fuel up their ship is incredibly tense. Even at this late moment, the show does a great job of making you worry about these characters. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Shoutout to the anvil-gong guy for just casually kicking that stormtrooper out of the bell tower. You do NOT interrupt that guy while he's anvil-gonging. Guess you could say that stormtrooper is a gonger. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

The show really makes you feel the brutal impact of every Imperial blaster bolt that strikes a Ferrix resident. The combination of acting, visual effects, and sound design makes each death resonate, even if you don’t know who any of the victims are. That's great storytelling. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Wilmon's IED takes the fight to a new level. Nurchi dies a karmic death, Syril races to protect Dedra, Cassian and Bix seize the chance to escape, and the Empire finally begins shooting. If your pulse isn't pounding by now, you're probably as dead as brave Xanwan (RIP). — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

I love that the inciting incident for the uprising is the Imperial officer flipping B2 over. The people of Ferrix will not tolerate B2 disrespect! They will protect their king! The ensuing battle is chaotic, gripping, and brutal. You can feel the frenzy and fear and excitement. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Maarva's final words — that while it might be too late to stop the Empire, it's still worth trying with all your might — would have impressed Nemik. In the end, all you can do is try. And as the episode shifts into high gear, that's exactly what the fed-up people of Ferrix do. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

In keeping with this show’s consistent depiction of the Empire as a terrifyingly efficient organization, the Imperial soldiers on Ferrix display remarkable restraint in holding their fire until ordered to shoot. This isn’t the Empire we’re used to seeing. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

While a tired Bix visibly takes solace in Maarva’s words, the Imperials bristle restlessly. They can’t act yet, b/c the marchers haven’t done anything to justify it, but they know conflict's inevitable. The show does such a great job of making us *feel* that inevitability here. — PolitiTweet.org