omg i need to rant about Abby and Lev neooooow
I’ve seen so many people on TikTok say that Lev isn’t important or that his role felt forced. Honestly, it makes me wonder how much of that is rooted in transphobia, even if people don’t say it outright.
What people seem to forget is that saving Yara and Lev is the first decision Abby makes entirely for herself. It’s the first time she chooses something without expecting backup, approval, or anyone else putting their life on the line with her.
Yes, Mel helps with the surgery, and Abby eventually brings them to Owen. But before that, Abby makes a completely different choice than she would have earlier in the story. The old Abby would have woken Owen up and asked for help. Instead, she goes back for them alone. She knowingly walks into danger. She fights Seraphites and infected. She does this without hesitation, without complaint, and without anyone beside her.
Before this, Abby always relied on a group. She surrounded herself with people when making decisions, especially big ones. Even when she went after Joel, yes it was a deeply personal choice, but she didn’t do it alone. She brought an entire crew and even sought Isaac’s approval before leaving.
When she says to Owen, “We’re doing this together, right?” she doesn’t just ask it...she waits. She needs to hear him say yes.
And Owen, still blinded by how much he loves her, gives it to her without hesitation. “Of course.”
That entire scene is Abby searching for confirmation. She isn’t just sharing a plan. She’s trying to secure his support, trying to anchor herself in someone else before she acts.
Because if Owen had said no… if he had hesitated, or pushed back… I really don’t think she would have gone through with it.
Hell, if Owen had never shown her Jackson at all on that cliff, she might have never found Joel in the first place.
That's why Lev and Yara matter so much. They mark the moment Abby stops living as just a soldier following structure and routine. Because when we meet her, her entire life is built on that routine. It keeps her functioning. It keeps her numb. She even takes extra patrols just so she can sleep at night.
But with Lev and Yara, something shifts. Abby chooses on her own. She doesn’t involve anyone else. She doesn’t spread the risk. She walks into it fully aware she could die, and she does it anyway. Not because she was ordered to, not because it benefits the WLF, but because it’s what she feels she has to do.
Lev isn’t forced into the story. He’s essential. He represents Abby’s turning point, the moment she starts becoming something more than just the person shaped by her trauma.
We see this most clearly in Abby’s confrontation with Isaac. He still believes he has complete control over her. You can see it in the way he orders the soldiers to lower their guns, as if his authority alone is enough to keep her in line. He assumes that the fear he instilled in her is still there, buried beneath everything else.
But it isn’t stronger than her love for Lev. Not anymore.
I know some people argue that going after Owen was Abby’s first independent choice, but I don’t agree. Even then, she is still moving within Isaac’s approval. She doesn’t outright defy him. She circles around it, waiting, almost subconsciously, for permission. And Isaac gives it to her without realizing it.
When he says, “If he turns up, then fine, I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt,” that’s the moment Abby takes as her opening. If he had not said that, I truly don’t think she would have gone after Owen at all. Even Manny reinforces it. He walks her out, silently supporting her decision, offering to come with her. She is still surrounded by approval, still cushioned by others.
But with Lev and Yara, that safety is gone.
I do think that if Abby had never gone after Owen, if she had encountered Lev and Yara in a less organic way, she might not have had the courage to go back for them. That growth had to build.
Because up until that point, Abby is a “yes” person. She follows. First her father, then Owen, then Isaac. Her life is shaped by other people’s expectations and authority.
Even in her relationship with Owen, you can see it in the dynamic. He initiates everything. He leads. Abby responds.
In the boat scene, Owen kisses her first. He pulls her shirt off first. He pulls her pants off. He bends her over. He pulls her hips towards him, and she looks back at him unsure but as soon as his hands plant on her hips she faces forward again allowing him to control the situation. Giving the lead to someone else.
Her entire life is reactive.
That’s the turning point. That’s when something shifts inside her, and for the first time, she chooses something on her own, without permission, without support, and without structure to fall back on.
And that’s why her choice to go back for Lev matters so much.
Truthfully, you can see this shift again when Owen tries to convince her to go to Santa Barbara. She hesitates.
Before this, she would have followed him without question. If Owen wanted something, she went along with it.
But here, she pauses. She doesn’t immediately fall in line. For the first time, she actually stops and considers the reality of her situation, instead of letting someone else decide it for her.
God… Abby is such a complex, beautiful character. I love you my complex sweet princess.
and i love her and lev... so so so much
I could also go on about how she only makes amends with Mel because of Manny. That moment reinforces her growing regret over how often she has followed orders without question.
It shows that even her attempts to fix things are still influenced by others, and that realization is part of what pushes her to finally start making choices for herself.
