One thing about Iron Lung that confused me on first viewing was the discrepancy between the crossing the wires message, and Ava’s seemingly very GENUINE indignation about the idea they would want him dead.
I know a lot of people simply think she’s lying at that point, but I don’t think so. The tone of “WHY WOULD WE WANT TO KILL YOU—“ followed by a groan, implies the sort of frustrated outburst that doesn’t have the thought behind it to be intentionally manipulative.
Going off the belief everything is written intentionally, it’s a very strange contradiction. That said! I believe I have the reason & it’s something I don’t think anyone has talked about yet:
There has been a fundamental misinterpretation of culture in Eden VS the COI
The COI is an unbelievably utilitarian faction. They’re all just “cogs in the machine” as David said. Everyone has a specific, dedicated role and wasting resources is considered unthinkable.
Ava’s tug ship is a small, 4-5 person skeleton crewed vessel out in a remote part of space. The resources required to send them someone new is not insignificant.
Simon IS their submarine pilot. They’re not getting a regular supply of them.
The Consolidation’s idea of freedom is membership and a job (a Deeply Undesirable job, but still just. a job). It’s basically like, oh you killed a bunch of people in faction warfare, but you surrendered? We’ll let you join us, but you’ve forfeited your right to choose which assignments you get.
It’s true Simon is treated as disposable, but the level to which the fandom has interpreted this is like?? unrealistic cartoon villain levels of evil
The fish grabbing him is treated like a uniquely bad event, to the degree the COI cancels all future dives because of the risk involved. At the stage when they were going to pull him up after getting the sample, he has two full bars of oxygen left.
It’s a bad, horrible horrible job, but there is some level of risk assessment being done. Based on the things Simon was doing and the crew’s reactions, I think it’s stupid to assume there’s been “countless” convicts before him. I think there’s been maybe 5, and some of them even got reassigned.
The COI views life, all life, as a resource. From the beginning, Ava does not want Simon dead.
She doesn’t LIKE him, from her perspective he’s a serial killer. But she doesn’t think the tasks she’s sending him on will be lethal.
That said, there’s a level of vindictiveness to the punishment which is what I think led to the lack of training. He destroyed a station: they want him freaked out, and they certainly don’t want to be his friend.
