May 7, 2021
The Secrets of Amelia True’s Past
*Spoilers ahead for The Nevers*
The newest episode of The Nevers picked up right where the last left off with the murder of Mary. The plot raced ahead in “Undertaking.” Mundi captured Maladie, Lord Massen finally showed his hand, and we learned that Lucy, one of Amelia’s closest confidants, was a traitor.
But what we learned about Amelia was the most interesting part of all. Amelia’s past has remained a mystery throughout the show. In the pilot, the only glimpse we caught of her life before the story’s events suggested that she was a servant. Episode 4 raises intriguing questions about Amelia’s past and even her humanity.
Amelia references this herself, saying throughout the episode that she was “left behind.” This fits with the mysterious past. The only person from her past Amelia has mentioned is Maladie herself, a connection that still hasn’t been explored. It seems that Amelia had a family before the orphanage, but we never learn about them.
The conversation with Lucy in Massen’s warehouse only deepens the mystery. Amelia has referenced in previous episodes that she’s a soldier. That she’s been to war and back again, and you see it in her demeanor. She fights with brutal efficiency, and her first thought to dealing with threats often involves a bullet.
Lucy raises doubt about Amelia’s past, saying that Amelia never talks about which war. Where has she fought? It raises an interesting question for the times. Sexism is woven into the fabric of Victorian London, which the show makes no effort to conceal. Thus, it’s unlikely Amelia found a station fighting on the frontlines of the British Empire. So where did she fight? Where did she come from?
The episode ends with a revelation about Mary. The young Touched died before she could finish her song in the previous episode, but Myrtle translated it with Harriet’s help. The song, it turns out, was a message for Amelia. It was hidden so deeply in Mary’s song that even Amelia didn’t understand but Amelia bursts into tears upon hearing the words.
The hopeful song contradicted what Amelia said throughout the episode when she often said she had been left behind. The song assured her this was never the case, that somebody was waiting for her “below.” Harriet realized at the very end that it was never Mary’s words coming through the song. Somebody was using her as a magical mouthpiece to connect with Amelia, which raises a question: Who, or more accurately, what?
The most logical answer seems to be the spaceship. We learned in the pilot that the Touched were created by particles that descended from a spaceship. Later episodes revealed that it’s now buried below London. The origins of the ship are unknown, but aliens seem the most likely answer. The purpose for which it created the Touched is unknown. It could have been a freak accident, human DNA melding with alien radiation.
This episode suggests this may not be the case. Mary at the very least was born to reach out to Amelia. Amelia also seems to know more than she’s letting on, leading to the very real possibility that Amelia is not human. She seems to have a relationship with whatever lays beneath London, leading to the conclusion that Amelia is an alien as well, that she was never human, and that the Touched still have a greater purpose to serve.
