*Nemik-related spoilers.*
Every mini arc on Andor seems to level up from the one before it. I already loved the opening Ferrix arc on the show, but then the Aldhani arc knocked it clean out of the park. One of the many things I adored about it was how well it rolled out and introduced its characters. Aside from all the additional characters in other plots—like Dedra and the ISB, Mon Mothma’s family, Kleya, and Syril’s mom—Cassian is placed with a band of six rebels for the Aldhani mission, four of which we only see in this three-episode arc. And yet, three episodes was enough to get to know and feel an emotional reaction toward all of them. It’s an impressive achievement of television, and I tip my hat to Tony Gilroy and the writers for doing this so effectively.
One of those rebels, of course, is Nemik. The group, organized from the outside by Luthen, is made up of individuals from different backgrounds with different motivations—as Vel says, “Everyone has their own rebellion.” In Nemik’s case, he might not seem like an obvious first choice for a mission like this. He’s intellectual and a little mousy, and he gives off the air of someone who might fall apart in the heat of the moment. He’s not particularly tough or intimidating, and he doesn’t have the steel of someone like Cassian.
Nemik isn’t useless, though—far from it. He wouldn’t have been assigned to the mission if he was. He’s instrumental in the planning phase, building a model of the garrison with meticulous attention to detail based on his own surveillance. And his knowledge of navigation and celestial phenomena is the key to their escape post-heist, guiding Cassian through the chaos of the Eye to safely get away from Aldhani. He has important skills that the team needs.
But more than that, Nemik’s drive and devotion are what puts him here. Most of the team is dedicated to the rebel cause—minus Skeen, who’s planning to rob them, and Cassian, who’s being paid by Luthen—but Nemik is the truest believer among them. He has the sensibility of an old-school revolutionary philosopher, and while Skeen jokes about the manifesto he’s writing, Nemik speaks with eloquence and intensity about the state of their oppression under the Empire.
As such, we can’t talk about Nemik without including a few of his absolute bangers:
· “We've grown reliant on Imperial tech, and we've made ourselves vulnerable. There's a growing list of things we've known and forgotten, things they've pushed us to forget. Things like freedom.”
· “The pace of repression outstrips our ability to understand it. And that is the real trick of the Imperial thought machine. It's easier to hide behind 40 atrocities than a single incident.”
· “Remember this. Freedom is a pure idea. It occurs spontaneously and without instruction. Random acts of insurrection are occurring constantly throughout the galaxy. There are whole armies, battalions that have no idea that they've already enlisted in the cause.”
· “The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that.”
Stunning lines, one and all. And of course, we can’t forget about one much simpler line: “Climb.” Besides its resonance with Rogue One, this is an important moment because Nemik is already dying, crushed by a heavy pallet as the team took off from the garrison. He’s in incredible pain and fading fast, but he still has the wherewithal to instruct Cassian, to give him a flightpath and tell him where to go. His manifesto will end up inspiring Cassian after his death, but here, in his final moments, he fights for the Rebellion to the last.
No comments:
Post a Comment