With antagonists like Meero and Karn, Andor highlights human complacency, and sometimes, even their unbridled support of the fascist Empire—which compels the fans to question who the real enemy is.
On those lines, Andor Ep 8 and 9 introduce Dr. Gorst, another character you should be quite wary of. Let’s look into who exactly he is and what role he will play in Andor.
First appearing in Andor Ep 8, Dr. Gorst is a human doctor working for the Empire. He has devised a torture method that uses the sound of children being slaughtered to inflict pain on the listeners.
To set the scene, Bix has been captured by Dedra Meero, who wants to extract information from her through any means possible. Meero is cold and cruel, apparent by how she enjoys watching Bix squirm during the interrogation.
However, none of her threats break Bix, so she calls in the handy Dr. Gorst, who has a sure way of cracking even the toughest nut.
As he walks into the room, Gorst’s smile and waving hand spell out nothing but friendly. Even when setting up his devices, he’s super polite to Bix. But don’t let the farce fool you!
He even does us the courtesy of explaining how he created his torture method: A massacre on an Outer Rim moon caused the total annihilation of the Dizon Fray species. With the whole thing being recorded, Gorst got his hands on sound clips of the people screaming in pain as they were dying.
He found that the screams of the Dizonite children in particular could cause listeners pain. This is what Bix is subjected to when they force a pair of headphones on her.
As if the entire ordeal was not bad enough, the gleeful Gorst explains it as if he’s talking about rainbows and cupcakes.
This directly contrasts with the pain that Bix is going through. While we cannot hear the sound, Bix’s screams are enough to convey the severity of the torture.
Paying another tribute to the Star Wars trilogy, Bix’s torture scene replicates Leia’s in A New Hope. Have a look here:
While Bix doesn’t give out any vital information, Meero realizes that Cassian must have been involved in the Aldhani mission. Thankfully, she doesn’t learn of Luthen’s connection to the Rebels, nor does she know that Cassian has been imprisoned under an alias.
Getting back to Gorst, while he will continue appearing on the show, I don’t think he’ll have a major role. Although his methods of torture are beyond disturbing, he is more of a sidekick than a proper antagonist, like Meero or Karn.
But there is certainly something to be said about how a character like Gorst can deliver some truly frightening moments, without even being a Sith Lord!
About Andor
Andor is an American television series created by Tony Gilroy for the streaming service Disney+. It is a prequel to the Star Wars film Rogue One (2016), following the character Cassian Andor five years before the events of the film.
Set five years before Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Andor will see Cassian in his formative years as he becomes the charismatic Rebel and espionage master.
Diego Luna, Alan Tudyk, Stellan Skarsgaard, Adria Arjona, Fiona Shaw, and others star in the show. The series premiered on Disney+ on September 21, 2022, with the first three episodes.
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