Diksha Sundriyal
Starring Joey King, Netflix’s ‘Uglies’ transports the audience to a world where, to become Pretty, 16-year-olds have to go through a transformation surgery. Without the surgery, they are called Uglies because they don’t conform to the world’s beauty standards and are considered outcasts. The story focuses on the journey of a girl named Tally who is desperately waiting for her sixteenth birthday so that she, too, can receive the surgery and become Pretty. Her desperation for the procedure increases tenfold when her best friend, Peris, aka Nose, receives his surgery and leaves for the City to start his brand new life. While Tally had envisioned her and Peris to live happily ever after, their stories take a completely different turn by the end of the film, especially for Peris, whose future is left uncertain. SPOILERS AHEAD
Peris’ Special Surgery Becomes a Pivotal Point in His Story
All Peris and Tally wanted was to become Pretty and be each other’s best friends for the rest of their lives in the City (though Peris may have wanted a bit more than that). Because Peris’ birthday comes first, he gets the surgery about two months earlier, and this brings a profound change in him. Tally witnesses it when he misses their rendezvous, and she sneaks into the City to find him. However, he returns later to convince her to find Shay and bring her back, which is also when he confesses to Dr. Cable that reuniting with Tally brought out the feelings in him that he thought were gone since his surgery.
What Peris doesn’t know is that Cable has different plans for him. She tells him that he has been chosen to get another surgery, which would be a huge level up for him. This surgery would put him in league with the Specials, an elite unit that has been genetically enhanced to become super soldiers. Following the Special surgery, Peris becomes stronger and faster, but it also makes him more subdued. He doesn’t have a mind of his own anymore, and he is just a machine following orders. This puts him at odds with Tally, who has joined the rebels by the time they meet again.
With Tally’s unwitting help, Cable figures out the location of the Smoke, has the rebels rounded up and makes Peris kill David’s father. To save their friends, David and Peris have to go back to the City, especially for Shay, who is the first one to be thrown into surgery. Despite being cornered by Cable’s forces, the rebels put up a good fight, and they succeed in escaping, but not before they face Peris.
Peris Has Yet to Play a Part in Tally’s Journey
Tally, David, and his mother find Peris standing in their path, and knowing that he is superpowered now makes the situation a bit tricky. Despite all the changes in his brain chemistry due to the surgeries, Tally believes that her best friend is still in there somewhere, and she decides to talk to him and make him understand. She almost succeeds in sparking his emotions, but her standing so close to him reminds David of his father’s death. He is triggered and attacks Peris. The fight between them ends with Peris hanging off the ledge.
What makes things interesting is by now, Tally knows that this is his best friend who remembers her very well. While she was talking to him, she noticed that he had a cut on his palm, much similar to the cut they got together when they were young to mark their friendship. He had gotten rid of the cut when he turned Pretty, but his having it again, even if by accident, shows that the memories of their friendship aren’t completely erased from his brain.
The situation becomes all the more tragic when, before letting go and falling into oblivion, Peris calls Tally Squint, the nickname he used as a mark of their friendship. This confirms that he is not just a braindead soldier, which prompts Tally to want to save him even more. But then, he lets go and falls, seemingly to his death. Tally doesn’t have much time to mourn as she escapes with the rebels, but there is a good chance that this isn’t the last she has seen of her friend.
By now, we know exactly how powerful the Specials are. They wade through the burning orchid field without a hitch when it would have been impossible for a normal human to survive. This means that the fall might not be enough to kill Peris, and the powers from his Special surgery might be the very thing that saves him. It will be interesting to see how he comes back into the picture, which is confirmed after Tally gives herself up to the surgery and becomes Pretty. The rebels will need to break into the City to get her out, which is where Peris might come into the picture. All in all, it is clear that the story still has some use for Peris and his powers, and we will see him again.
Read More: Uglies: What are the White Tiger Orchids? What do They Do?
