Nemesis Line-by-Line

[Rush Limborg]

Picard: What happened?

 

[LeadHead]

Shinzon: As happens frequently on Romulus, a new government came to power. They decided to abandon the plan. They were afraid I might be discovered and that it would lead to war. Not quite the face you remember.

 

[Rush Limborg]

Picard: ...Not quite.

 

[LeadHead]

Shinzon: A lifetime of violence will do that. They broke my nose... my jaw... but so much is the same. The eyes, surely you must recognize the eyes.

 

[Rush Limborg]

Picard: Oh yes....

 

[LeadHead]

Shinzon: Our eyes reflect our lives don't they? And yours, so confident!

 

[Rush Limborg]

Picard: ...So...I'm not as tall...as you expected...?

 

[Mrs. Spock]

Shinzon: Well, I had always hoped I might hit two meters.

 

[Rush Limborg]

Picard: As had I....

(Note: The novelization--and apparently, the original script--had Picard say, "With a head full of hair...", to which Shinzon nods and replies, "There is always that....")

...How did you end up on Remus?

 

[Mrs. Spock]

Shinzon: They sent me there to die. How could a mere human survive the dilithium mines? Not that it mattered, as I was no longer part of their plans against the federation. In those terrible depths lived only the damned. Together with the Reman slaves, I was condemned to an existence of unceasing labor and starvation under the brutal heel of the Romulan guards. Only the very strongest had any hope of survival. I was only a child when they took me. Then I didn't see the sun or stars again for nearly ten years. The only thing the Romulan guards hated more than the Remans was me. But one man took pity on me, the man that became my viceroy. He protected me from the cruelty of the guards and taught me how to survive. And in that dark place where there was nothing of myself, I found my Reman brothers. They showed me the only true kindness I have ever known.

 

[Rush Limborg]

Picard: You're doing this...to liberate the Remans....

 

[Mrs. Spock]

Shinzon: That is the single thought behind everything I have done - from building the Scimitar at a secret base, to assembling my army, finally coming to Romulus in force. I knew they would never give us our freedom. I would have to take it.

 

[Rush Limborg]

Picard: And how many Romulans...died for your "freedom"...?

 

[LeadHead]

Shinzon: Too many. But the point is that the empire is finally realizing that there is a better way... and that way is peace. You don't trust me.

 

[Mrs. Spock]

Picard: I have no reason to.

 

[Leandar]

Shinzon: You have every reason. If you had lived my life and experienced the suffering of my people, you’d be standing where I am.

 

[Mrs. Spock]

Picard: And if you had lived my life, you would understand my responsibility to the federation. I cannot allow my personal feelings to unduly influence my decisions.

 

[Leandar]

Shinzon: All I have are my personal feelings! I want to know what it means to be human! The Remans have given me a future. You can tell me about my past.

 

[Mrs. Spock]

Picard: I can tell you about my past.

 

[Leandar]

Shinzon: Were we Picards always warriors?