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Television

Nemesis

A morbidly fascinating ABC docuseries
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
by •
ABR Arts • 15 February 2024
Television

Nemesis

A morbidly fascinating ABC docuseries
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
by •
ABR Arts • 15 February 2024
Malcolm Turnbull in Nemesis (courtesy of Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
Malcolm Turnbull in Nemesis (courtesy of Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Each episode of Nemesis, the ABC’s morbidly fascinating three-part retrospective series on the Abbott-Turnbull-Morrison governments of 2013-22, begins with a word association game. The ensemble of parliamentarians and former ministers is asked to describe the three featured prime ministers in a single word. Tony Abbott is called, among other things, ‘strong’, ‘negative’, ‘clever’, ‘dishonest’, ‘aggressive’, and ‘disciplined’, and, in the words of former deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce, ‘pugilistic and [someone who is] also willing to] give you a hug’. Malcolm Turnbull is dubbed ‘incredibly intelligent’, ‘ruthless’, ‘flawed’, ‘urbane’, ‘superficial’, ‘visionary’, and ‘disappointing’. After much hesitation, Scott Morrison is labelled ‘genuine’, ‘divisive’, ‘determined, full-throttle’, ‘slippery’, ‘misunderstood’, ‘driven’, ‘controlling’, ‘smug’, and ‘disappointing’.

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Joshua Black

Joshua Black is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at The Australia Institute. His PhD thesis, completed at ANU in 2023, offered a history of political memoirs in Australia.

Leave a comment
Joshua Black

Joshua Black is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at The Australia Institute. His PhD thesis, completed at ANU in 2023, offered a history of political memoirs in Australia.

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Comments (2)

  • Few Australians step up and actually join a political party, trudge along to the monthly meeting and chat to their local MP and help steer the ship. The jostling among the leadership makes for amusing theatre, but has little to do with the direction of the country.
    Posted by Patrick Hockey
    21 February 2024
  • Thanks for an excellent review. This is exactly what I felt when watching 'Nemesis'. It too readily accepted the narrow terms of reference of its subjects, which serves them well and the viewer rather more poorly. The real context is not who had it in for whom, but what was at stake for Australians. And that involves addressing policy with more seriousness than these former politicians could muster.
    Posted by Misha Ketchell
    15 February 2024