Andor Episode 10 ending explained

If your heart rate has finally settled after Andor Episode 10, let’s go back and explain what happened by its ending, and what it means for the show going forward.

Andor Episode 10 might be the best 45 minutes of Star Wars produced since the original trilogy. It’s a big claim, but there’s not one misfire in the whole episode – it’s cathartic, thrilling, emotional, and unlike anything the franchise has produced before.

Episode 9 was incredibly bleak, putting Cassian and co. under a tremendous amount of strain, whether it’s the labor of the Narkina 5 prison, Mon Mothma’s loneliness, or Bix Caleen being tortured by Dedra Meero’s twisted doctor.

This week, the prisoners stage their escape, Mon Mothma meets a “thug”, and Luthen meets his double agent. Let’s break it down.

Spoilers for Andor Episode 10 to follow…

Andor Episode 10 ending explained

By the end of Episode 10, we’ve seen Cassian and the other prisoners come together to overpower the prison guards and escape.

However, there’s a cruel twist: they all reach the door to the ocean, and Kino is afraid to jump. “I can’t swim,” he says to Cassian as he’s pushed off into the water. We’ll maybe never know if Kino ever jumped, or if he just accepted death on his own terms.

The episode ends with Cassian and Melshi running under the pale moonlights, free at last but with nowhere to go. Narkina 5 is a small water moon, so it’s unclear where exactly they are, and how they’ll travel elsewhere – we can expect the final two episodes to bring them into contact with the other Rebels again.

What about Luthen (Stellan Skarsgård)? Well, he meets with his mole in the Empire: Lonni Jung (Robert Emms). He reports on any big breaks in cases and keeps his ear to the ground where nobody can see him. However, Lonni wants out – he has a child now, and his vow to the Rebellion is becoming too dangerous.

Luthen says he’s an “epic” investment he can’t lose, and Lonni asks him what he’s sacrificed for the cause. “Calm, kindness, kinship, love, no inner peace,” he replies. “I share my dreams with ghosts… I yearn to be a savior against injustice without contemplating the cost.”

It seems unlikely Luthen will live until the end of the series – whether he dies at the end of Season 1, prompting Cassian to take the Rebellion more seriously, or he dies at the end of Season 2, remains to be seen.

Andor Episode 11 will be available to stream on November 17. You can sign up for Disney+ here.