Relationship Spotlight: Seymour Birkhoff & Nikita Mears (Nikita)

I knew I’d like Nikita’s relationship with Birkhoff as far back as the pilot.  When she abducts him for mission-related reasons, I love that he still calls her “Niki.”  True, Birkhoff is a bit of a nicknamer in general – he often calls Michael “Mikey” – but “Niki” has such a ring of endearment to it.  Although they’re on opposing sides at the time, there’s clearly affection between them.  They don’t have much screentime together in season 1, since Nikita’s war against Division mostly happens during field operations and Birkhoff doesn’t get topside often, but the interactions they do have are stuffed with potential that more than pays off later.  (Since Nikita’s arcs are so dynamic, any discussion of a series-long element comes with spoilers.)

At the outset, it’s clear that neither wants any real harm to come to the other, despite the fact that they’re technically enemies.  Birkhoff doesn’t hide his admiration for Nikita’s skills when she foils Division operations, and whenever he comes into direct contact with her, she usually lets him off (relatively) unscathed.  The really good stuff, however, doesn’t start until Birkhoff joins the resistance in season 2, so I’ll skip ahead.

It’s an interesting, opposites-attract sort of friendship.  Nikita’s all action and lethal efficiency, driven by a need for justice.  She wrestles frequently with her demons, and the years she regrets are never far from the surface.  Birkhoff, on the other hand, is essential to most operations but usually avoids the fray, preferring to stay behind his computer.  He doesn’t have many moral qualms, and when it comes to his motivations, self-preservation, personal gain, and a strong sense of superiority are major players.  Even his decision to join Nikita and Michael is as much about 1) saving his own skin, 2) boredom, and 3) sticking it to Division, as it is anything nobler.  He’s not a crusader like Nikita – he starts doing good long before he starts being good, if that makes sense, and this gives Nikita plenty of reasons to clash with him, to bolster him when he’s skittish about the risks, and to smack some priorities into him when he’s too opportunistic.

Lest we make Nikita the saint to Birkhoff’s sinner, I should note that theirs is definitely a two-way street.  Nikita’s flaws are numerous, and Birkhoff doesn’t keep quiet when he feels she’s in the wrong (which she sometimes is.)  She can be reckless, obsessive, and stubborn, and she tends to shut people out.  Birkhoff’s not the only person who confronts her on these fronts, but he’s usually the most effective.  With Michael and Alex, the ties are too deep, too complicated, and it’s easy for emotions to run too high on both sides.  Birkhoff, though, can reach her.  I’d love know what their relationship was like before Nikita escaped Division, because they both know and understand each other remarkably well.  I wonder how they got that way.

Much of the time, they have a bit of a big sister-kid brother dynamic.  They squabble, they hang out, and they rib each other – it’s a lot of fun, and a nice chance for Nikita to unwind a little.  As I said, however, this also allows for more serious interactions – honest arguments, sympathetic advice, and shared personal moments.  I love that, when Nikita gets back in touch with the group after going off on her own at the end of season 3, Birkhoff has it out with her over the comms, emphasizing that he has just as much right as Michael to be upset about her leaving.  And, when things get intense, you see just how much they mean to one another.  Nikita first beats herself up and then goes on the warpath when her actions lead to Birkhoff being endangered, and though he doesn’t always see eye to eye with her, there’s no question he’d follow her into hell.