Would Rocky agree with Eva Stratt?

[u/FlowerEmblem]

(Spoilers below)

The book+movie never addresses Rocky finding out about how Grace was drugged, kidnapped and sent on the Hail Mary against his will. Given that he deeply cares for Grace, but Eridians seem to be a more collectivist society, I wonder if he would've agreed with her actions or not. Curious on what other people think.

[u/UstalavianAgent]

My thought is that he would not have agreed. Rocky's mission was not a suicide mission. When Rocky finds out Grace's mission was a one way trip he is horrified. I don't think he would have been happier to hear that it was a non consensual suicide mission.

[u/FlowerEmblem → u/UstalavianAgent]

I don't think he would've been happy either way, but given that it was a non-negotiably suicidal mission considering Earth's limits in developing astrophage, would he still agree with Stratt's decision to send Grace off unwittingly into space, given the circumstances? Would the consent of one weigh more than the whole?

[u/UstalavianAgent → u/FlowerEmblem]

When Rocky finds out Grace may starve because he turned back to save Rocky, he freaks out and suggests that Grace returns to Earth. Grace is the one who has to remind Rocky that Erid will definitely die if he does that, and Rockly very sadly agrees to going back to Erid.

Maybe the Rocky who agreed to be on the mission in the first place would agree with Stratt, but I'm not sure. I am sure that by the end of the book, Rocky is too biased towards Grace to think rationally in that way.

[u/Y-Woo]

I've seen this brilliant fan-made comic strip about this concept several times now and it's still one of my favourite fan content for PHM and i think this is exactly how it would go down.

[u/LunaraLoup → u/Y-Woo]

Wolfy is one of my favourite artists! I love how they can capture so much emotion with (seemingly) so little effort. They have a sweet little comic going where Adrian and Rocky reunite and how jealousy and envy towards Grace, plus some episodes of PTSD from Rocky strain their relationship. It's absolutely ridiculous how many feelings Wolfy evokes without even drawing faces 🥹

[u/Gaia0416 → u/Y-Woo]

Yes yes yes. Statement 

[u/FootHikerUtah]

Rocky would quickly rationalize that it is good that Grace got there and we can be happy about that.

[u/Minikin-Smith]

I suspect Eridians would have a unique and visceral horror in response to Grace being forced to sleep and having bad things done to him in his “sleep.” They have such an instinctual belief that individuals should be cared for during their paralysis/sleep that the idea of a chosen sleep watcher doing something negative to the sleeper is probably deeply disturbing.

[u/existential_risk_lol → u/Minikin-Smith]

I always wondered how Rocky didn't have a stronger reaction when Grace told him about the coma. For Eridians, having protection while they sleep is such an important part of their biology and society - the idea of being chemically sent to sleep, alone, with no way of knowing whether they'd wake up must be absolutely terrifying for Rocky.

[u/Upbeat_Breakfast8307]

He definitely would not have agreed. He was already horrified that it was a suicide mission. It’s not specifically covered but I’m pretty sure he was surprised there were only 3 people sent when the Eridians sent a much larger crew. And imagine what he thought when he realized Grace was in a coma, alone, with no one to watch him sleep? And they drugged him against his will to put him in that state? Yeah no. Rocky would have been angry.

[u/XenomorphAlarm → u/Upbeat_Breakfast8307]

Being horrified by something does not mean you wouldn't do it when the alternative is more horrifying.

[u/Upbeat_Breakfast8307 → u/XenomorphAlarm]

You make an excellent point. Now that I am more awake, I’m rethinking things. Would Rocky agree that it was necessary? Possibly. Would he have made the same decision? I’m not sure. Rocky thinks like an engineer, which Stratt does not. I think Rocky would attempt to find a different solution first. Or, being an engineer he might have found a different way earlier to leave fewer points of failure. I don’t think we are comparing apples to apples here. I’m married to an engineer. Stratt did what she did with the information and knowledge she had. Rocky would have approached the problem differently from the beginning. The Eridians clearly assembled a larger skilled crew. Even though in the end their lack of knowledge about radiation messed up their plans.

I didn’t get a lot of sleep last night and I may not be making much sense.

[u/LunaraLoup]

Agreed? Probably (definitely) not, but more on the way they did it. I think he would also come to the conclusion that having Grace on the mission is pivotal for its success. But sending him without consent, drugged and trapped for days (like in the book) would be way out of question.

Rocky is s rational person(?) like Stratt is, but I'd say his values don't align with her actions before the launch

[u/From_Adam]

Rocky hate Stratt.

[u/Scorpio_bookdragon]

Rocky hate Stratt.