Star Wars: Andor never tries to hide the fact that it takes place not long after the prequel trilogy. It's all about the Empire's efforts to try to hold its power in the galaxy, which includes building the Death Star, a superweapon that appears briefly at the end of Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith. But Andor likes to make its Easter eggs as subtle as possible to avoid distracting from the story it's telling. That's why it's easy to miss the Loth cat in the final arc and all of the goodies in Luthen Rael's shop. However, one callback that's nearly impossible to miss comes in Season 2, Episode 10, "Make It Stop."
The first episode of the final arc of Andor focuses on Kleya's mission to kill her boss, Luthen, so the Empire can't torture him for information. While killing stormtroopers and infiltrating restricted areas, she remembers her childhood when she and Luthen traveled around the world gathering information and causing problems for the Empire. They even traveled to a location important to Emperor Palpatine at one point to raise hell.
Luthen struggles with his role as an Imperial following the fall of the Republic. The cause he's dedicating his life to is going down a path he can't follow, so he has a crisis of faith. During a particularly nasty battle, he sits on a ship and wishes for it all to end. Luthen only doesn't go off the deep end completely because he finds a stowaway in need of help. He abandons his post and gives the young girl the name "Kleya." The two of them spend the next couple of years amassing resources by selling antiquities, waiting for the right moment to strike against the Empire.
They find an opportunity while visiting Naboo, the homeworld of both Padmé Amidala and, more importantly, Sheev Palpatine. Kleya and Luthen have lunch in a cafe while a group of Imperials work on a bridge in the distance. Kleya thinks she's ready to blow the structure to smithereens, but Luthen tells his young friend to exercise patience because firing the first shot isn't something to take lightly. Luthen pulls the trigger himself and gives Kleya another lesson about blending in before they depart. The attack on Naboo marks Luthen's initial strike in a long war that sees him give everything to defeat the Empire.
Years after attacking the Imperials on Naboo, Luthen still fights against the Empire; the only difference in his tactics is that other people do the dirty work for him. He lives a relatively quiet life on Coruscant, posing as an antique shop owner who supplies high rollers with nice-looking relics. However, he continues to hold back despite interacting with some of the most important Imperials. He even comes face-to-face with Director Orson Krennic, who's always up to no good, and shows restraint. Sadly, Luthen doesn't get to live out his days in peace because the Empire comes calling after a while.
Following the Ghorman Massacre, ISB agent Deedra Meero turns her attention to the Axis rebel network, which Luthen leads. It takes her a few years, but she's able to track down the mastermind and confronts him at his store. Before attempting to take his own life, Luthen lets Deedra know just how much he hates the Empire and that everything she stands for will come crashing down soon enough. And what he warns her about comes to pass because her failure to capture Luthen and keep the details of the Death Star under wraps lands her in jail, unable to witness the "chaos" that the Rebel Alliance spreads across the galaxy.
Luthen knows he'll never get the credit that Mon Mothma and Bail Organa do, but he makes peace with that early on. He chooses to operate in the shadows until the sun shines a light on his actions, and with that being the case, he never misses an opportunity to go big, such as hitting Palpatine right where it hurts.
Andor Season 2 is streaming on Disney+.
Did you notice Naboo in Andor Season 2? Are you happy with the conclusion of Luthen Rael's story in the Disney+ series? Let us know in the comments below!