I look like a broken record at this point, but Andor is really the best thing star wars gave us – because of how this show destroyed the Empire and the horrors of it. For a few episodes, we have seen what happens to those who are judged “less” than by the Empire. We have witnessed the Empire’s eagerness to assert its power and show everyone in the Galaxy that it is ready to throw down somebody in jail for fun.
As Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) served his sentence on Narkina 5, he slowly began to realize he couldn’t stay there. In episode 9, things came to a head when the whole prison hears a rumor that one floor has been killed. Throughout the episode, Cassian keeps asking Kino how many officers are on each floor, as he tries to find a way for them all to escape.
Kino Loy (Andy Serkis) is nearly done with his sentence so he doesn’t want to disrupt the process, but as the episode progresses and Cassian canned by asking, we can see just how much faith Kino has in the system he has dedicated his time to breaking. Slowly he begins to see how he was lied to and what is going on around him.
So at the end of the episode, when Cassian asks him one last time how many officers there are in the midst of everything falling apart around them, Kino responds with “Never more than 12” and let me tell you, I applauded.
As more and more fans watch the episode, it’s clear that many, many of us have become obsessed with how this line hits.
Never more than 12
The line is something that works thanks to Cassian’s understanding of the situation the prisoners find themselves in, mixed with Serkis’ exceptional delivery. We see two men desperate to find a way out. Kino’s plan was to simply serve his time and leave and Cassian knew that was not going to be an option for him. So when Kino is ultimately on Cassian’s side and we finally hear it come to fruition with “Never more than 12”? That’s how we know things are going to get interesting for both of them.
What’s been so great about this particular line online is that a lot of us have had the same kind of reaction. The general vibe is that the minute Kino responded to Cassian, we all started cheering. There wasn’t really a big chunk of action or the typical media fanfare trying to achieve a “moment”. But there was just Something about delivering “never more than 12” and the whole build of the episode working so incredibly well.
Did I clap on my couch first thing in the morning when it happened? Yes, yes I did. Because come on, it ruled! Not only do we have the real Andy Serkis in his human form in Andor but now he has one of the best lines in recent times star wars? What a time to be a fan of this franchise.
(picture: Lucasfilm)
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