Andor episode 4 easter eggs: Star Wars just canonized some Legends lore
This article contains spoilers for the fourth episode of Andor, “Aldhani.”
Episode 4 of Andor was jam packed with connective world-building material. From the Legends Knights of the Old Republic game series, all the way to fan-favorite animated series Rebels, this episode proves that the story group isn’t holding back when it comes to connectivity.
I’ll do my best to just give you the good stuff and avoid plot spoilers, but consider this your big spoiler warning if you’d rather go in completely fresh.
Did Andor episode 4 just canonize the oldest known conflict in the galaxy?
Looks like it. Near the beginning of the episode, Luthen Rael hands Cassian a pendant and tells him that it’s a “Kuati Signet” made from blue kyber. He goes on to explain that the trinket was made in celebration of the uprising against the Rakatan invaders.
In Legends, the Rakatan people were the first to develop a form a hyperspace travel. 25,000 years before Andor, they used their technological advancements and their deep connection to the dark side of the Force to enslave and conquer the galaxy, and they became known as the Rakatan Infinite Empire. Back in 2016, sharp-eyed fans freaked out when a few generic alien characters in the Marvel comics were mistaken for Rakatans—but now those fans can rest easy with a resounding confirmation that the species (and some of their complex history) exist in canon.
Pull up the star chart!
There were several significant planet name-drops in episode 4. Here are six that we noticed, along with some trivia:
1) Mimban
Cassian mentions that he served the Empire on Mimban when he was 16. Mimban was depicted in Solo: A Star Wars Story—it’s the muddy, war-ravaged planet where Han meets Beckett’s crew. This means that it’s possible that Cassian crossed paths with both Han Solo and Marvel’s Bounty Hunters comic series star Beilert Valance, as both fought on Mimban towards the end of their Imperial careers.
2) Arvala
In the Imperial roundtable scene, ISB officer Lagret discusses his headaches with the planet Arvala-Six. This is technically a new planet to add to our records, but we can logically assume that it’s in the same system as Arvala-Seven: the planet where Din Djarin meets Grogu for the first time.
3) Ryloth
This Twi’lek homeworld has produced many significant stories and characters across Star Wars canon, but ISB officer Grandi has the distinct pleasure of naming Ryloth for the first time in a live-action project
4) Scarif
In the same scene, an officer mentions that construction shipments to Scarif are in need of tighter security. Yes, Scarif’s Imperial Data Vault is home to the Death Star plans—but this specific bit of dialogue refers to the fact that the Death Star was actually moved to orbit Scarif as it neared completion.
5) Chandrila
This episode marks the first time that the planet Chandrila is referred to in live action. Mon Mothma is famously from the temperate planet. Her husband also mentions that they’ll be hosting a dinner for the governor of Hanna, which is Chandrila’s capital city.
6) Ghorman
During that same conversation with her husband, Mon Mothma mentions that her political enemies have recently cut off shipping lanes to Ghorman. This act of political oppression lays the ground work for the Ghorman Massacre—the tragic slaughter of peaceful protestors perpetrated by the Empire—which was first mentioned in S3, Ep 18 of Rebels.
A literal gallery of easter eggs
Despite being such a massive lore drop, that earlier reference to the Infinite Empire seems… not so infinite once stacked up against the massive pile of the easter eggs that is Luthen’s gallery. Here are all the connective references we noticed! See if you can comb through and find them all.
- An unpainted Mandalorian beskar chest-plate and pauldrons
- Pieces of a mural depicting the hand gestures of The Ones of Mortis
- A Jedi and Sith holocron, side by side (look in the background when Mothma and Luthen have their private conversation)
- Plo Koon’s respiratory mask
- A Twi’lek kalikori heirloom
- A Gungan energy shield
- Wait—was that Starkiller’s Sith Stalker armor?!
- And… Indiana Jones’s whip? Yep; the whip can be spotted in the back room, frozen in carbonite—a very clever touch.
MORE. MORE!!!
Yep, that’s still not all for connections and easter eggs.
Luthen’s Fondor droid ship modification was voiced by David Collins, who also voiced the droid PROXY from The Force Unleashed games!
While Syril Karn mopes about the Coruscant spaceport, a massive transport waits in the bay. This is a yet unnamed Corellian passenger transport that was created for Solo: A Star Wars Story, but never used until now. In this same scene, the intercom announces transport to Hosnian Prime, the New Republic capital planet during the time of the sequel trilogy.
Also—those names on Perrin’s dinner guest list are no small players. The Grand Vizier Mas Ameda, administrator Sly Moore, and advisor Ars Dangor are about as close to Emperor Palpatine as you can get without being Darth Vader. Here’s to hoping we see them on-screen next week!
That’s all I’ve got for now. What an episode! Take a look at the Dork Side homepage for more Andor analysis, reviews, and theories. See you next week for easter eggs from episode 5!