The Expanse “Redoubt” and the Importance of Agency
Naomi and Holden will always be among the strongest romantic pairs on television because they continue talking things through. And where Holden understood last week that Naomi needed to keep busy, this week it’s critical to note that both parties realize where they’re wrong
Holden’s big on preaching that everything needs to go through him, but sometimes, he needs to take his own advice. While his choice is entirely understandable (and honorable), he shouldn’t have taken agency away from the rest of the team even though the moment demanded it. By choosing not to confide in Naomi before making his decision, Holden inadvertently takes away her agency, and simultaneously, everyone else’s. And though it’s significant to note that the spur of the moment makes it difficult, it’s still worth noting what it represents.
It’s also essential that the conversation leads to both confronting what’s necessary about their characteristics and how they mesh together. Naomi vocalizes that he needs to stop treating her like she is broken, but Holden states that she needs to stop running away from her feeling. And it’s a moment of great importance to showcase what strength looks like.
Because ultimately, what this moment solidifies is the fact that brokenness doesn’t equate to weakness, and admitting to pain doesn’t equate to a loss of strength. Naomi Nagata is one of the strongest women in the galaxy because she continued to do the right thing even after the pain tried to break her. However, she is still very much a human being with feelings capable of governing her. And the immense trauma she lived through, plus confronting those feelings matters. More than anything, Holden wants her to understand that he sees so much of what she attempts to conceal. And her feelings matter especially to him because he knows that losing Filip is a cross she will always carry with her. It’s not a form of pain that will ever truly leave her.
In hindsight, it’s a terrible situation for both of them to be in, but as two people who’ve decided they’re going to be partners through life, these details matter tremendously for their future. Naomi’s strength is something Holden has always valued, but more than that, it’s been her heart through everything—the emotions that have made her who she is and the compassion she’s full of. Those emotions are part of the bigger picture. Filip is a part of Naomi, and thus, Filip is a part of Holden even with so much of Marco in him.
The entirety of The Expanse’s “Redoubt” essentially orbits around the fact that teamwork equates to having difficult conversations, but more importantly, it’s about cementing the essence of agency, which means that sometimes, before people can get to that understanding, they’re going to make mistakes. Holden’s mistake might be his decision-making, but it isn’t one he should regret. Because this decision, no matter what it leads to, at the very least, allows Filip to understand that someone’s looking out for him still. After everything he did, someone in the world believes his life is worth sparing
