I've been pondering this a lot over the past week. Why Andy? Why was he chosen to meet with the Fireman?
I know there has been a lot of talk about him being pure of heart and whatnot. But was he chosen for this or because he was the one touching Naido or was it an eeny meeny miney mo thing? Or perhaps he was chosen because of his placement next to the well?
In my recollection, it was never predetermined that he would be there like it was predetermined by Briggs that Bobby, Hawk, and Truman would arrive at the Briggs house inquiring about certain things. Or am I forgetting something?
What do you all think?
Thinking similar things to you: someone else pointed out in reference to a similar conversation that scene in Buckhorn, SD when we first saw a vortex. Cole was the only one who could see it. Albert has residual effects and doesn't seem to remember much aside from what he recorded by photograph. It takes them a while to even recall seeing the "hobo" wandering about.
Perhaps precise placement plays very highly into vortex visibilities and journeys. Not to discredit this theory already, but incidentally, this vortex has a light center, and the one in SD has black swirling at the center. Andy is so true in everything, and really loves Lucy. It could have been that among the fellows in the spot that Andy's inner light shone the brightest.
I suspect because he was holding her hand to comfort her.
So, I would like to think about this (perhaps appropriately) backwards.
As observed elsewhere, my first reaction to it being Andy was joy and surprise, and a sense of "oh, how prefect". I don't think zi was alone in that.
So, then I step back and ask "why?. Is it just the glee I take in the delicious irony of it, and the pleasure I take in DL messing with my head (again)? I do take said glee, but there is more to it.
Yes, he was holding her hand. But he was also the one to reach out to her, to make sure she was OK, and who was there when she sqeezed his hand so hard. And, really? And accident of
So, IS it that he is pure of heart? Certainly, the next time we see him, it it THAT that is reinforced, as we are reminded of the sweetness of his relationship with Lucy, a tenderness that has not faded with the tears.
Could it be that Andy is a naif? Is he the vessel most ready to be filled? It is certainly the DIFFERENCE in him when he emerges that is so notable, a difference that would not seem to profound if it was Hawk of Bobby.
Other thoughts?
I seriously doubt we are going to get anything like an answer to the question of "why Andy?". But it feels like such a great payoff for a character who needed one, a payoff perhaps presaged by his gunplay at the arrest of Jacque Renault.
It feels like the culmination of a long game.
Why not Andy?
Oh come on, someone had to say it.
When my partner and I watched the episode, she was shocked to see him disappear. She was very worried that he might get hurt.
I saw it that he waa chosen because he was pure of heart and only had the best of intentions.
Andy because he is driven by heart, his faith is simple and uncorrupted. I was never for a moment surprised by this choice, i think none of us Dostoevskij's lovers was surprised actually. This was a very Dostoevskijan choice
Remember the sandwiches. Andy chose the meat-free sandwich that set him apart from the others. Is it about the sandwiches?
In the secret history Hawk says that Andy has a black belt in gossip and has a great talent for people telling him things that they wouldn't tell anyone else.
I think Andy was there, in part, because the Log Lady's message to Hawk said something about counting on the people he can trust. Hawk must have felt that Andy was trustworthy.
Andy isn't a very complex thinker. He is very literal and patient, and has a strong sense of self. His compassion and understanding make him the right guy for the job.
With regard to the plot, I think each one of those characters will have a contribution. Bobby already had his (opening the container, Jack Rabbit's Palace). Frank doesn't know all the Laura Palmer history so he isn't the best choice for this particular task. Hawk may be the man for 10/2. We'll have to see.
I like the other observations about his naivety, purity, right location, that he was first to touch Naido and comforted her, and even that he had only cheese sandwich.
He also was the one that remembered to grab some dirt. If you look at what Hawk and Truman do, it looked more like they grabbed a pinch of pine needles and Bobby was sifting some stuff out of what he grabbed as he switched it from hand to hand.
However, based on the way the scenes play out, I think he is the Fireman has 2 missions: rescue Naido and keep her safe and use Lucy to identify the 2 Coopers to assist the non-perceptive folks.
Anyone there could've brought Naido to the jail, but only he can escort Lucy to identify the Coopers. I don't think Truman, Bobby, or Hawk would be able to exert the same kind of reassuring coaxing that would be necessary for her.
I also like how he was imbued with confident authority after the meeting and that no one doubted him when he took the lead.
Two other things. In the beginning he holds her left hand with his right hand, but during a scene cut, it switches to the left [guessing editorial mistake]. But there's also a scene around 24 minutes in where he appears to fiddle with an invisible ring on her ring finger [his left hand makes an uncharacteristic gesture like it's opening or pulling something off, and his right hand thumb and index stay far enough apart over her ring finger to look conspicuous].
Rewatching this scene I noted that Andy was holding some weird looking object in his hands when the Fireman was showing him the scenes on the monitor. Then, at the end of the scene before Andy disappears, a cloud of vapor goes into that object and apparently into Andy. Note the way his stomach jumps/moves at this time. So, I think the Fireman was feeding Andy all these images for some future need or reference.
Rewatching this scene I noted that Andy was holding some weird looking object in his hands when the Fireman was showing him the scenes on the monitor. Then, at the end of the scene before Andy disappears, a cloud of vapor goes into that object and apparently into Andy. Note the way his stomach jumps/moves at this time. So, I think the Fireman was feeding Andy all these images for some future need or reference.
I did notice his stomach twitching, but didn't occur to me that the object went into him. Very interesting...
Maybe Andy is the new vehicle for the giant instead of the old porter who works at the hotel and him breathing in the smoke was him accepting him
Fire walk with