Spoilers Star Wars: Andor season 2

[J.Quondam]

She wasn't having a panic attack because of Syril, though. I don't think she would have known he was dead by that point. She was freaking out because she'd been tricked into participating in an engineered massacre.

Not just tricked into participating, I think, but tricked (or at least cornered) into giving the actual order.

 

[pukunui]

Not just participating, I think, but taking responsibility for giving the order.

Good point. She knew she'd been set up to take the fall if it all went south (although ironically her downfall was because of something else).

 

[chuckdee]

She wasn't having a panic attack because of Syril, though. I don't think she would have known he was dead by that point. She was freaking out because she'd been tricked into participating in an engineered massacre.

And still, there was no strand connecting that to where she was in the next jump. Nothing. Whether it was syril or not. When I say syril, I mean at that point he was out of her careful control. That breakdown was in my opinion a breakdown of her carefully crafted life, both professional and personal. There should have been something from that... If not growth then some revelation or layer of protection or something. But there was nothing. It might as well not have happened.

 

[pukunui]

And still, there was no strand connecting that to where she was in the next jump. Nothing. Whether it was syril or not. When I say syril, I mean at that point he was out of her careful control. That breakdown was in my opinion a breakdown of her carefully crafted life, both professional and personal. There should have been something from that... If not growth then some revelation or layer of protection or something. But there was nothing. It might as well not have happened.

I mean, we're talking a 1-year time jump here. Each three-episode arc was essentially a standalone TV movie. There didn't need to be connective tissue between each one.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Whereas Cassian and Bix relationship not only drove Cassian's motivation, it was also a source of conflict for him and caused changes in his decision making.

Which again is the point. The difference between good and evil is good cares about other people ahead of themselves, whereas evil only cares about themselves. Evil still has relationships, but they are in them for their own benefit, not the other person’s.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

That breakdown was in my opinion a breakdown of her carefully crafted life, both professional and personal. There should have been something from that

No. You pull yourself together and a carry on as if nothing had happened. Stiff upper lip. That’s why Imperials are British. She is not someone who lets herself fall apart, and if her control cracks she pulls herself back together and stops being silly and emotional.

Fist clenching - that’s someone trying to suppress their emotions.

 

[chuckdee]

I mean, we're talking a 1-year time jump here. Each three-episode arc was essentially a standalone TV movie. There didn't need to be connective tissue between each one.

No. You pull yourself together and a carry on as if nothing had happened. Stiff upper lip. That’s why Imperials are British. She is not someone who lets herself fall apart, and if her control cracks she pulls herself back together and stops being silly and emotional.

Fist clenching - that’s someone trying to suppress their emotions.

I guess we just differ in our expectations. In each case, in each time jump, they seemed to layer on top of each other. And in Cassian's case, there was mention and or consequences of things that happened. By the end of section one, there's no mention of a key detail - that the ship that he stole was not what he was trained on. But it was brought back up later. There was also other connective tissue - loose enough so that each stood alone as a vignette or movie, but enough so that they were linked. Even in Dedra's case- though she was not on Axis and was taken off in part 1, it was brought up again later, and piqued her interest.

But this... there was nothing. And it stood out to me.

 

[Epic Meepo]

And still, there was no strand connecting that to where she was in the next jump. Nothing. Whether it was syril or not. When I say syril, I mean at that point he was out of her careful control. That breakdown was in my opinion a breakdown of her carefully crafted life, both professional and personal. There should have been something from that... If not growth then some revelation or layer of protection or something. But there was nothing. It might as well not have happened.

But Dedra did change as a direct result of her experience on Ghorman. Dramatically so.

Prior to Ghorman, Dedra did everything by the book. She trusted in the Imperial system. She worked hard to get her superiors to sign off on her inquiries into Axis, because she was convinced she was in a meritocracy. She was sure she would succeed in the end, because she was sure her competence would be rewarded.

Then Ghorman happened. Dedra realized she wasn't in control of anything. The Empire was using her as a pawn, the same way she was using Syril as a pawn. When she realized this, she figurative choked on the constraints placed upon her by her position as a loyal servant of the Empire, as represented by her uniform's collar. (This was shortly after Dedra was physically choked by Syril in the final act of their relationship, a parallel event which established the relevant metaphor: being choked by someone or something represents no longer being in control of that person or thing.)

Fast forward to Krennick's interrogation of Dedra. We discover that, in the year since Ghorman, Dedra has become a "scavenger." She's no longer asking permission to investigate Axis. She's gathering information outside the normal chain of command. As a result, she discovers classified information about the Death Star, none of which is intended for her.

Dedra's experience on Ghorman changed her in a way that ultimately lead to the revelation of the Death Star.

 

[Stalker0]

But Dedra did change as a direct result of her experience on Ghorman. Dramatically so.

Prior to Ghorman, Dedra did everything by the book. She trusted in the Imperial system. She worked hard to get her superiors to sign off on her inquiries into Axis, because she was convinced she was in a meritocracy. She was sure she would succeed in the end, because she was sure her competence would be rewarded.

Then Ghorman happened. Dedra realized she wasn't in control of anything. The Empire was using her as a pawn, the same way she was using Syril as a pawn. When she realized this, she figurative choked on the constraints placed upon her by her position as a loyal servant of the Empire, as represented by her uniform's collar. (This was shortly after Dedra was physically choked by Syril in the final act of their relationship, a parallel event which established the relevant metaphor: being choked by someone or something represents no longer being in control of that person or thing.)

Fast forward to Krennick's interrogation of Dedra. We discover that, in the year since Ghorman, Dedra has become a "scavenger." She's no longer asking permission to investigate Axis. She's gathering information outside the normal chain of command. As a result, she discovers classified information about the Death Star, none of which is intended for her.

Dedra's experience on Ghorman changed her in a way that ultimately lead to the revelation of the Death Star.

I guess in my head I had long though of Dedra as a "hothead" who believes she is only one that is competent, and so often takes matters into her own hands outside of the core chain of command.

But perhaps I need to rewatch season 1....I do think you have brought up an excellent point here and it will likely change my perspective on the subject.

 

[Celebrim]

She wasn't having a panic attack because of Syril, though. I don't think she would have known he was dead by that point. She was freaking out because she'd been tricked into participating in an engineered massacre.

I think that's ridiculous. This was just realization of the advice she gave to Krennic. She knew what the end game was the whole time. She fell apart because Syril fell apart and didn't accept her rationalization of her behavior. Syril, not Deedra, actually believed in the work he was doing, and actually believed in law and order and justice and that he was on the right side. He actually believed that it was just a small number of malcontents and agitators who were the problem and who needed to be drawn out.

That Syril was not given a monologue the response of which was, "Who are you?" is I think a shame. I would have loved Syril challenging Andor as to whether he had been part of the plan all along, and whether he was really an agent of the Empire, or if he wasn't then perhaps he had been just as tricked as himself and played for a fool by his own boss. Heck, even that Syril just fell apart and walked out to be killed just felt out of character for him. Syril might do something stupid and rash, but he doesn't generally act without a plan. He's in D&D terms "Lawful". It would have been more in character for him IMO to violently switch sides and fight with the Ghor than for him to just do nothing with no apparent motive. As it is, his story felt so irrelevant that it felt like the time spent on his story was a waste and could have been more profitably spent elsewhere.