Spoiler alert! Proceed with caution if you’re yet to watch Andor season 2 episodes 4, 5 and 6

Few characters in this Rogue One: A Star Wars Story prequel series have been through quite as much hardship as Bix Caleen. In Andor season 2 episode 6, she finally gets to strike back against the Empire.

Andor has long set out its stall as Star Wars for grown-ups, and Bix’s storyline is a case in point. Along the way she’s been the victim of torture, assault and the Empire invading her homeworld, Ferrix, in what’s evolved into a very human and highly emotional story from a galaxy far, far away. In Andor season 2 episode 6, however, she finally gets some much-needed catharsis – here’s why her surprise appointment with Dr Gorst is such a big deal…

Who is Bix Caleen?

Bix Caleen (played by Good Omens and Hit Man star Adria Arjona in the Andor season 2 cast) is a skilled mechanic on Ferrix, and Cassian Andor (Diego Luna)’s childhood friend and on/off love interest.

They were most definitely off at the start of the show, when Bix was in a relationship with Timm Karlo. Nonetheless, Cassian came to her for help when he needed to move a stolen Imperial Starpath Unit, knowing that she had an off-world contact (Rebel spymaster Luthen Rael) who dealt with such things.

Unfortunately, when over-ambitious cop Syril Karn came to Ferrix looking to arrest Cassian for double murder on Morlana One, Timm betrayed Cassian to the authorities, letting slip that he (like their prime suspect) was born on Kenari. Timm was killed during Karn’s botched attempt to apprehend Cassian, while Cassian himself escaped with Luthen. Bix, meanwhile, stayed behind on Ferrix, keeping an eye on Cassian’s ailing mum, Maarva, while the Empire increased its presence on her homeworld.

As ambitious Imperial Security Bureau (ISB) supervisor Dedra Meero ramped up her investigation into the mysterious Axis (aka Luthen) and Cassian, Bix became a person of interest in her own right. She’s eventually arrested and taken in for questioning under extreme torture, subjected to the screams of dying Dizonite children to “persuade” her to divulge what she knows about Axis and Cassian’s location. She’s ultimately rescued by Cassian but left deeply traumatised by the experience.

What’s happened to Bix so far in Andor season 2?

Cassian gets Bix to a spacecraft that will carry her (along with Brasso (Joplin Sibtain), Wilmon Paak (Muhannad Bhaier) and droid B2EMO (Dave Chapman)) off world. When the Andor season 2 story gets underway a year or so later, she’s working as a mechanic on the farm planet of Mina-Rau, but still having vivid nightmares about Dr Gorst (Joshua James), her torturer on Ferrix.

When the Empire arrives for an unexpected Imperial Supply Census while Cassian is offworld, she, Brasso and Wilmon are understandably concerned about their lack of official documentation, and they a plan to be a long way from home when the Empire carries out its checks. Unfortunately, it turns out there’s another traitor in their midst, as general store owner Kellen (Ryan Pope) reveals their illegal status to the investigating Imperials. In the meantime, Lieutenant Krole (Alex Waldman) attempts to rape Bix, but she’s able to fight him off and eventually kills him. Cassian is able to rescue Bix and Wilmon in the prototype TIE Fighter he’s stolen from the Empire, but Brasso is killed trying to escape.

What’s the state of play for Bix in Andor season 2 episode 6?

A year on from the events on Mina-Rau, Bix is living with Cassian in a safe house in the Blade Runner-esque surroundings Coruscant, a location neither considers home. Cassian has become particularly protective of her – we hear that he killed a boy because the kid seen Bix’s face – and is reluctant to go on missions if it means leaving her alone, much to Luthen’s frustration.

The nightmares of Dr Gorst have also continued, and she’s taking medication to help her to sleep. But as Luthen – keen for her to return to his payroll – tells her, “It works for a while but the dreams come back worse when you stop.”

Despite Cassian’s misgivings, however, Bix is keen to get back into to the fight.

What’s so important about her mission at the end of Andor season 2 episode 6?

With the Empire planning on spreading the patented Dr Gorst torture technique among the Imperial ranks, there’s clearly an operational reason for making a strike on his facility. But much more important is the opportunity for Bix to inflict some extremely cathartic revenge on the man who tormented her back on Ferrix.

She’s ready and waiting with a blaster when he shows up for work, and straps him into his chair with headphones playing those Dizonite screams for “entertainment”. She then strides out of the building, shooting a guard who tries to intercept her before meeting up with Cassian who blows up the building as the backdrop to a majestic exit. Bix even gets close to breaking a smile in one of the few examples of an Andor episode finishing on a positive note – a true moment of catharsis.

What’s in store for Bix over the rest of Andor season 2?

Unlike Cassian, Saw Gerrera or Mon Mothma (whose daughter has just got married at Chandrila’s wedding of the year), Bix Caleen doesn’t feature in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, so her ultimate fate remains unknown — we don’t even know yet if she’ll make it to the famous Rebel base on Yavin IV. It has already been confirmed, however, that there won’t be a third season of Andor, so expect some kind of resolution for Bix during the second half of the season.

New Andor season 2 episodes debut on Disney+ on Wednesdays.