diff --git a/lib/models/plex/plex_video_playback_data.dart b/lib/models/plex/plex_video_playback_data.dart
index 587fb1f3..255c6976 100644
--- a/lib/models/plex/plex_video_playback_data.dart
+++ b/lib/models/plex/plex_video_playback_data.dart
@@ -10,8 +10,6 @@ class PlexVideoPlaybackData {
 
   final List<MediaVersion> availableVersions;
 
-  final List<MediaMarker> markers;
-
   final int selectedMediaIndex;
 
   final int selectedPartIndex;
@@ -20,7 +18,6 @@ class PlexVideoPlaybackData {
     required this.videoUrl,
     required this.mediaInfo,
     required this.availableVersions,
-    this.markers = const [],
     this.selectedMediaIndex = 0,
     this.selectedPartIndex = 0,
   });
diff --git a/lib/services/plex_client.dart b/lib/services/plex_client.dart
index a83ef337..c2375350 100644
--- a/lib/services/plex_client.dart
+++ b/lib/services/plex_client.dart
@@ -1665,8 +1665,23 @@ class PlexClient
     }
   }
 
-  /// Get chapters and markers from cached metadata or fetch if needed
-  /// Uses same cache key as other metadata methods for consistency
+  /// Chapters and markers for [ratingKey], from the shared
+  /// `/library/metadata/{id}` cache row.
+  ///
+  /// Cache-first is safe here because of an ordering contract, not because
+  /// markers are static: in the normal online player flow
+  /// [getPlaybackInitialization] runs [getVideoPlaybackData] — a
+  /// network-first read of this same cache key with a superset of the query
+  /// params — before the controls mount and load extras, so the row this
+  /// serves was refreshed seconds earlier. Offline, and when that read fell
+  /// back to cache, the row is as old as the cache; a caller that needs the
+  /// current server state (e.g. after a PMS intro-detection pass finished)
+  /// must pass [forceRefresh].
+  ///
+  /// The network call here deliberately stays lean (no `checkFiles` /
+  /// `includeStreams`) and runs only on a cache miss or [forceRefresh], so it
+  /// rarely overwrites the shared row with a payload thin enough to force the
+  /// re-fetch in [_fetchFileInfo].
   Future<PlaybackExtras> getPlaybackExtras(
     String ratingKey, {
     String? introPattern,
diff --git a/lib/services/plex_playback_mapper.dart b/lib/services/plex_playback_mapper.dart
index d68bb4f6..93951951 100644
--- a/lib/services/plex_playback_mapper.dart
+++ b/lib/services/plex_playback_mapper.dart
@@ -74,7 +74,6 @@ PlexVideoPlaybackData parsePlexVideoPlaybackDataFromJson(
   List<MediaVersion> availableVersions = [];
   var selectedMediaIndex = 0;
   var selectedPartIndex = 0;
-  final markers = plexMarkersFromCacheJson(metadataJson);
 
   if (metadataJson != null) {
     final mediaList = _mapList(metadataJson['Media']);
@@ -148,7 +147,6 @@ PlexVideoPlaybackData parsePlexVideoPlaybackDataFromJson(
     videoUrl: videoUrl,
     mediaInfo: mediaInfo,
     availableVersions: availableVersions,
-    markers: markers,
     selectedMediaIndex: selectedMediaIndex,
     selectedPartIndex: selectedPartIndex,
   );
diff --git a/lib/widgets/video_controls/playback_extras_loader.dart b/lib/widgets/video_controls/playback_extras_loader.dart
index d732305e..535f2961 100644
--- a/lib/widgets/video_controls/playback_extras_loader.dart
+++ b/lib/widgets/video_controls/playback_extras_loader.dart
@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ class VideoControlsPlaybackExtrasLoader {
         forceChapterFallback: settings.read(SettingsService.forceSkipMarkerFallback),
         forceRefresh: forceRefresh,
       );
-      appLogger.d('_loadPlaybackExtras: got ${extras.chapters.length} chapters');
+      appLogger.d('_loadPlaybackExtras: got ${_describe(extras)}');
       return extras;
     } catch (e, stack) {
       appLogger.d('_loadPlaybackExtras: network path failed, trying cache fallback');
@@ -43,7 +43,7 @@ class VideoControlsPlaybackExtrasLoader {
           forceChapterFallback: settings.read(SettingsService.forceSkipMarkerFallback),
         );
         if (extras != null) {
-          appLogger.d('_loadPlaybackExtras: loaded ${extras.chapters.length} chapters from cache');
+          appLogger.d('_loadPlaybackExtras: loaded ${_describe(extras)} from cache');
           return extras;
         }
       } catch (cacheError) {
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ class VideoControlsPlaybackExtrasLoader {
     }
     try {
       final settings = await SettingsService.getInstance();
-      return CachedPlaybackMetadataService.fetchPlaybackExtras(
+      final extras = await CachedPlaybackMetadataService.fetchPlaybackExtras(
         backend: metadata.backend,
         cacheServerId: cacheServerId,
         itemId: metadata.id,
@@ -69,12 +69,27 @@ class VideoControlsPlaybackExtrasLoader {
         creditsPattern: settings.read(SettingsService.creditsPattern),
         forceChapterFallback: settings.read(SettingsService.forceSkipMarkerFallback),
       );
+      appLogger.d(
+        extras == null
+            ? '_loadPlaybackExtras: no cached extras for ${metadata.id}'
+            : '_loadPlaybackExtras: cache-only ${_describe(extras)}',
+      );
+      return extras;
     } catch (e) {
       appLogger.d('_loadPlaybackExtras: cache-only path failed', error: e);
       return null;
     }
   }
 
+  /// Marker counts are the difference between "the server has no intro data"
+  /// and "auto-skip never fired", which is otherwise indistinguishable in a
+  /// user-supplied log.
+  static String _describe(PlaybackExtras extras) {
+    final markerTypes = extras.markers.map((m) => m.type).join(',');
+    return '${extras.chapters.length} chapters, ${extras.markers.length} markers'
+        '${markerTypes.isEmpty ? '' : ' ($markerTypes)'}';
+  }
+
   Future<String?> _resolveCacheServerId() async {
     final serverId = metadata.serverId;
     if (serverId == null) return null;