Miles "Spider" Socorro

**Miles "Spider" Socorro** is a sixteen-year-old boy who was born in Hell's Gate as the child of Colonel Miles Quaritch and Paz Socorro. After the death of his parents, Miles remained on Pandora and was adopted by Jake and Neytiri. Miles was enamored by Jake Sully's family and spent a considerable amount of his time with them. To feel more adapted to them, he has grown his hair in Na'vi-style braids and paints his body with Spartan fruit dye to mimic the Na'vi's body stripes.

He was introduced in the comic *Avatar: The High Ground* and has a major role in the film *Avatar: The Way of Water*.

## Family Information

### Family

Jake Sully (adoptive father), Neytiri (adoptive mother), Lo'ak (adoptive brother), Neteyam (adoptive brother), Tuktirey (adoptive sister), Kiri (adoptive sister), Miles Quaritch (father), Paz Socorro (mother, deceased)

## Affiliations

### Loyalties

Na'vi, Omatikaya Clan, Metkayina Clan Sully Family, Uzumaki Family

## Biography

### Early life

Miles was born on Pandora in 2154, in the Resources Development Administration's colony base, Hell's Gate, to Paz Socorro and Miles Quaritch. His mother was later killed during the assault on the Tree of Souls, just as his father was killed at the hands of Neytiri. After the Na'vi's victory over the RDA, Miles was too small to be sent back to Earth with his fellow humans and was therefore taken in by McCosker other RDA personnel who were allowed to remain on Pandora. Despite having a foster mother, Miles wishes his real mother was still alive and he keeps a photograph of her near his bed in his room. He received the nickname "Spider" due to his natural climbing ability even as a young child, although the low gravity of Pandora has also aided in this.

Despite being a human, Miles always felt like a Na'vi at heart, preferring to spend his time in the Pandoran jungle while donning an exopack. This has frustrated his foster family who have attempted to spend more time with the humans to little avail. He was enamored of the Sully family, considering Lo'ak, Kiri, and Tuktirey his true family, although he was not as close to Neteyam. Neytiri, however, always saw Miles as one of the people who destroyed her home and thus acts distant with respect to him. Likewise, Miles did not fully consider Jake and Neytiri his adoptive parents, referring to them as "Mr. and Mrs. Sully". Miles grew especially close to Kiri, the adopted daughter of the family, and she gave him the nickname "Monkey Boy".

### Capture by the Recombinants (*Avatar: The Way of Water*)

In 2170, after the Sullys attack a Mag-Lev, Spider, Kiri, and Lo'ak visit the link station, where Grace Augustine's avatar is located. Kiri wanted to visit her mother and see her video records, which Spider watched with a mixture of sympathy and envy. An argument ensued among the boys over who Kiri's father was, unanimously, if jokingly, pointing to Norm. After a while, Spider became serious and said that sometimes it's better not to know his father's identity, to which Kiri assured him that he was not the same as his father. They mean Miles Quaritch.

While exploring the forest with his siblings with the exception of Neteyam, Miles is captured by the Recombinant squad. Quaritch's Recom identifies Miles as the son of his human counterpart. Quaritch is surprised that he was not sent back to Earth, to which he replies that babies can not be put in cryosleep. When Jake and Neytiri attempt to rescue their children, Miles accidentally trips and falls down where he is abducted by the squad.

He is soon psychologically tortured by Frances Ardmore using a machine which can analyze his thoughts, in order to find out where the Sullys are, but he is able to withstand it. While in a cell, Miles is approached by the Quaritch Recombinant who tries to act like a fatherly figure towards him. Although uncooperative, and unaware of Quaritch's assassination mission, Miles does grudgingly agree to assist Quaritch. With Miles' goading, Quaritch and his remaining Recom squad are able to successfully bond with ikran mounts. Quaritch also gives the position of being the Na'vi translator to Miles.

At the village of the Ta'unui clan, Quaritch begins to forcefully question the local clans about Jake's location. Quaritch threatens to kill the Tsahik but Miles pleads for Quaritch to spare her. The clan claims they have no knowledge of Jake's location, prompting Quaritch to order the burning of the village instead. Miles tells the people that he is incredibly sorry before being forced to leave. After, Quaritch orders the whaling crew to wantonly hunt and kill tulkuns in order to draw Jake out. Miles is disgusted with the RDA's brutality and Quaritch's complicity.

Miles is taken aboard the S-76 SeaDragon when Quaritch convinces Ian Garvin and Mick Scoresby to go tulkun hunting. He witnesses the RDA kill Roa and he weeps as he watches a broadcast of it. When they extract amrita, he asks the whalers about their practices.

## Personality

Miles is a kind boy who harbors guilt due to what the humans have done over a decade ago. Having been raised by the Na'vi, he has developed empathy for them and has always looked up to them, both literally and figuratively, going so far as to paint himself blue in order to be more like them. He enjoys nature which gives him and Kiri a common interest to bond over. Because he is not as big and fast as the Na'vi, Miles is put into a position where he must persevere and exert himself in order to keep up with the Sully family. He is very loyal to the Na'vi, doing whatever he can to buy them time and mislead the Recombinants away from them, while also wanting them turn away from the RDA and reform them by teaching them about the ways of the Na'vi. He is one of the few humans who developed a deep connection with the world of Pandora, trying to learn about the traditions and culture of the Na'vi (similar to Grace or Jake).

Miles also exhibits deep compassion for other living beings such as the tulkuns, and weeps upon watching a live broadcast of them being slaughtered by humans. He is dismayed that the rest of the Cet-Ops don't seem to care about their lives, viewing them only as beings to be harvested, and he is particularly annoyed when the RDA only extracts their amrita and does not bother to at least use the most of their bodies for resources after. Miles can also have quite the temper and attitude when agitated, using language like "dipshit".

## Relationships

### Family

#### Miles Quaritch

The two have a rather complex relationship. Miles only ever saw a certain side of Quaritch, as he was only an infant in 2154 when the human Quaritch was at his worst, so he did not witness Quaritch's actions during events such as the Pandoran War. However, he had learned of all Quaritch's deeds against the Na'vi as he grew up which led him to be disgusted with his deceased father.

Miles first meets Quaritch's recom in the forest. When Miles pleads for the Recombinant not to hurt his siblings, Miles notices how Quaritch is merciful enough to keep them alive. Miles is also aware that his parents attacked the Recombinants first, the latter were only fighting back in self-defense. Later, Quaritch frees Miles from the RDA's torture, making Miles begin to trust and empathize for him. He is also told by Quaritch's recom that him and the human Quaritch are technically two separate people. Their bond begins to grow as they explore Pandora together, and Miles notices how innocent and/or amusing some aspects of Quaritch actually are, from his lack of knowledge of Ikrans to his rough Na'vi language, while also hoping to reform the Colonel and the other Recoms by teaching them about their ways.

When Quaritch and his Recombinants interrogate one of the reef clans, Miles is horrified by Quaritch's ruthlessness and disgusted by the act, pleading with Quaritch not to kill the Tsahik of the Ta'unui clan. While Quaritch still ends up shooting an animal and setting fire to their home, Miles notices how Quaritch listened to his pleading and did not actually kill the Tsahik. When Quaritch holds Kiri hostage, Miles begs Quaritch not to kill her and Neytiri holds him at knifepoint, Miles notices how Quaritch agrees to let Kiri go. He realizes that Quaritch truly cares about his welfare to a degree, and how Quaritch can be influenced away from killing. Although Quaritch threatens to kill the Sully family, Miles also sees how Jake is the one who attempts to kill Quaritch first, making Quaritch's fighting here another instance of self-defense.

Eventually, Miles sees how Quaritch has apparently lost the fight and is on the verge of drowning. All of Miles' interactions with Quaritch come into play here, seeing how Quaritch truly cares about his welfare and that Quaritch has the potential to be better and can be influenced away from unnecessary killing through talking, as was the case with the Tsahik and Kiri. This is probably one of the reasons that would explain why Miles decided to save Quaritch's life, wishing to desperately believe in Quaritch's redemption because to Spider, the Recombinant has not done anything so far to actually deserve death. Spider also feels that leaving him to die would be akin to murder. Quaritch and Miles find themselves alive and Quaritch calls Miles his 'son'. Although Quaritch tells Miles he should "come along", Miles hisses at him, and returns with the Sully family.

#### Paz Socorro

Although Miles's mother died shortly after his birth, she seemed to be very fond of her son, whom she used to hug and hold close to her. It is evident that Spider misses her greatly as he carries a picture of his mother with him, usually seeing the picture to remember her.

### Friends and Allies

#### Kiri

Spider has a very close and special relationship with Kiri. She compares him to being like "the brother she never had", despite having two already. Both seem to like spending time together, for example when she helps him apply blue paint to his skin. They enjoy having common activities and constantly try to protect each other. She gave him the nickname of "Monkey Boy", using it particularly in the moments when they both joke around. Kiri makes several attempts to include Spider as part of the family, but this just ends up irritating Neytiri. It was during the events of Avatar: The High Ground that it was shown how strong their bond is, as they both risked their lives for each other on multiple occasions.

When Spider was abducted by SecOps, Kiri felt emotionally distressed and was clearly worried for his safety, even crying desperately after this. When he managed to return with the Sullys after the battle, Kiri was visibly surprised and pleased to see him safe and sound, placing her hand on his chest as they exchanged glances and smiled.

#### Lo'ak

The two seemed to have a good relationship as they played together a lot when they were younger. They are seen together many times along the film; they seem to have a pretty good relationship as teenagers, with both usually making jokes or commenting about their surroundings, for example, when Kiri, Tuk, Spider and Lo'ak were spying on the SecOps in the 'old shack', with Spider telling Lo'ak that the place was in fact, where Quaritch and Jake fought years ago. He is the one that insisted in saving Spider during the Skirmish at the Three Brothers events. He (alongside his brother Neteyam) risked their lives trying save Miles. Though they managed set Spider free, in the end, this would prove to be a fatal rescue for their brother, Neteyam. After the battle, both are embraced by their father, Jake.

#### Jake Sully

Despite not being his biological son and certainly being rejected by Neytiri, Miles has always held great respect for Jake, following his orders and learning from his teachings. Similar to Jake, young Miles has also learned to commit to the family and protect it at all costs. His loyalty is demonstrated when in the end, instead of returning with his biological father, Quaritch, he decides to return to the Sullys.

#### Neytiri

Miles has a strained relationship with Neytiri and refers to her as "Mrs. Sully". Neytiri views him as trouble and believes that he belongs among his own kind. She does not like Kiri being around him, later on trying to forbid the two from any interaction. Later, when Neytiri slaughters the humans on the SeaDragon in rage, Miles fearfully hides from her, possibly thinking she might kill him as well. Despite Neytiri's rejection of him, Miles has never let it influence his commitment and loyalty to those he considers family. Even after she nearly killed him, he returned to the Sully family, knowing that Neytiri would not welcome him with open arms.

#### Neteyam

While their relationship isn’t shown in great detail, Miles is much closer to Neteyam's younger siblings. Miles leaves out Neteyam's name when he lists the "family" he has left. When Miles was caught on the ship, Neteyam felt the risk was too great to bother saving him, and it was only when Lo'ak insisted that Neteyam agreed to the rescue. Neteyam is also seen doing an annoyed growl at the idea.

#### Tuktirey

While their relationship is hardly shown, he does seem to care about her a great deal and seems to enjoy having her around. He feels visibly bad about almost accidentally killing her and Kiri when he and Lo'ak nearly caused a Samson to fall. He also mentions Tuk among the ones he consider to be "his family", alongside Lo'ak and Kiri.

### Naruto Uzumaki

Miles shows great respect towards Naruto as Hokage and is extremely close with him

### Boruto Uzumaki

He seems to care for Boruto a great deal and seems to enjoy having him around.

### Himawari Uzumaki

Miles seems to care for Himawari a great deal and seems to enjoy having her around

### Sasuke Uchiha

Miles is close with Sasuke and his family after being introduced to them by Naruto

### Kisame Hoshigaki

Miles is not at all intimidated or frightened by Kisame and his family he respects and is close with them and their children.

## Trivia

* "Socorro" means "help", "aid" or "relief" in Spanish and Portuguese. It is also a real Hispanic/Latino surname with geographic roots in the Canary Islands.
* He is nicknamed "Spider" due to his natural climbing skills.
* According to his actor, Miles has spent months with Recom Quaritch throughout *The Way of Water* which only shows the more important scenes. This is one of the main reasons why Miles saves Quaritch, as he has been building up his relationship with his father figure for months instead of days.
* He was previously known as "Javier Socorro" during production. At some point, his first name was changed to "Miles" which was confirmed in *The High Ground*.
* Miles seems to be skilled with the bow, apparently being his weapon of choice.
	+ There is also almost a running gag of sorts with Spider using fire extinguishers. He uses a fire extinguisher to break his way out of his cell in *The High Ground*, then he uses a fire extinguisher to bash Ward unconscious in *The Way of Water*.