"The 4400" Discussion/Appreciation

[queen_hathor]

I should probably have a look for them on ebay or something... needs to be cheap for me atm too!

Edit: not asking for storyline, but is Garrity featured?

[the fifth man]

I wouldn't mind some book spoilers. Put in spoiler tags, of course.

[DigiFluid]

Edit: not asking for storyline, but is Garrity featured?

I'm about halfway through the first book and he's been mentioned, but hasn't yet appeared. If he shows up, I'll reply again

I wouldn't mind some book spoilers. Put in spoiler tags, of course.

Like I said above, I'm about halfway through. So here's a half-book synopsis

Welcome to Promise City

Spoiler:

The book opens a couple months after The Great Leap Forward, which is referred to as such by Collier's followers. Victims and non-P-positives call it "fifty/fifty". At this point, Seattle/Promise City is effectively blockaded from the outside world by military checkpoints checking the IDs of everyone coming and going from the city. But within the confines of the blockade, Jordan Collier and the Movement are firmly in control.

Quite early on, a group of P-positives breaks into a federal detention facility and springs Richard Tyler from incarceration. Once free, they return to Promise City and bring Richard to Jordan Collier. Collier informs Richard of the circumstances surrounding Isabelle's death at the hands of the Marked, and Collier turns the list of known Marked individuals over to Richard--suggesting, but not saying outright (plausible deniability!) that Richard might want revenge for his daughter's murder.

We also very quickly find out (by flashback) that Tom did not take the shot that Kyle gave him in the last episode of the show, feeling that the magnitude of what had just happened was too much to throw a promicin-injection on top of all that. Flash back to the present and Tom is leaving Promise City for a quick and quiet meeting with Dennis Ryland, who 'suggests' (in the way that Dennis does) that certain people may be attempting to weaponize promicin a la Danny Farrell and suggests that Tom should find out if it really is Danny in his grave.

Overseas in Rome, a Cardinal of the Vatican is enjoying a meal at one of his favourite restaurants. We find out via internal monologue that said Cardinal is one of the surviving seven Marked individuals in key positions around the world. Some aspects of the future are hinted at, but this is abruptly interrupted by the appearance of Richard Tyler. With the restored use of his telekinetic abilities, he and another P-positive cause a major incident in the streets of Rome in order to kill this Marked individual

Back in Promise City, Danny's grave is exhumed. And it seems it does not contain Danny's body; it's some older fellow's, who has been dead for quite some time. A visit to the funeral home responsible for the burial quickly reveals that the owner is one of Collier's adherents. Tom and Diana search the premises and find not one but four Danny Farrell corpses.

In the aftermath of the series finale, NTAC has adopted a "don't ask, don't tell" policy regarding supernatural abilities as a result of the crisis--since most of its personnel were based in Seattle at the time of the 'outbreak'. One of these agents is called in to the mortuary, who can identify DNA traits simply by feel, and informs Tom and Diana that the bodies are not all Danny. Rather, it appears that someone's been attempting to graft copies of Danny's DNA onto existing bodies.

Tom and Diana head to the Haspel Corporation HQ building--abandoned by Haspel and re-occupied by Collier following The Great Leap Forward--seeking answers about the Danny Farrell situation. Collier of course denies any involvement in desecrating the corpse of a martyr to the 4400 cause, but as is usually the case with Collier, it's not immediately clear how truthful he's being.

Tom asks for a moment alone with Collier, who consents and orders his guards out. Tom also asks Diana to wait outside. Tom wants to know about Collier's involvement in the recent murder of the Vatican Cardinal (since Tom was the one who gave Collier the list of Marked names in the first place). Collier denies any involvement, Tom accuses him of 'plausible deniability bs', while Collier quite rightly points out that Tom gave him the list of Marked names--he knew full well that things may not proceed in legality.

Where I am right now, the story 'scene' has changed to a meeting between the six surviving Marked as they try to decide what to do now. We learn that the trip of the Marked was one-way; that they can never go home again, and that most of them left behind families and friends.

Some of them feel that triple-hit of The Great Leap Forward, the death of Rebecca Parrish, and the betrayal and death of Isabelle Tyler were the deathblow to their entire efforts. Several of them feel that there is no possible way that their future can be salvaged now, and would like to simply use the money and influence of their positions to live out the remainder of their lives in peace.

But one of them steps forward to rally the rest into continuing their mission, and continuing to try to save their future.

[queen_hathor]

Thanks! Gotta love Garrity! Though I suppose he was never really a main character. Poor Kavan Oh well, at least he

Spoiler:

didn't die, which usually happens with stuff he's in!

I rembered not to quote so I didn't see what's under the spoilers... first time in ages!

[Sp!der]

I loved that show!

[Gen. Chris]

Well I sort of resurrected the Dead Zone thread...Shall I give this one a try or is this dead too?

Quite possibly one of my favorite shows ever. I was heartbroken when I learned it had been cancelled...I learned months after everyone else did because I didn't expect it to get cancelled so I didn't pay attention online.

Sad I will never know what happens...

[LtColCarter]

Well I sort of resurrected the Dead Zone thread...Shall I give this one a try or is this dead too?

Quite possibly one of my favorite shows ever. I was heartbroken when I learned it had been cancelled...I learned months after everyone else did because I didn't expect it to get cancelled so I didn't pay attention online.

Sad I will never know what happens...

Same here. I would've liked so sort of wrap up to the series.

[Gen. Chris]

Same here. I would've liked so sort of wrap up to the series.

USA really screwed the show over...From a series to a miniseries to back to a series, it was incredibly mismanaged...

[LtColCarter]

USA really screwed the show over...From a series to a miniseries to back to a series, it was incredibly mismanaged...

I agree with you there....

[Gen. Chris]

Did you know that the revelation at the end of the first season (the 5th episode) wasn't supposed to occur until the end of the planned 5th season?

[LtColCarter]

Did you know that the revelation at the end of the first season (the 5th episode) wasn't supposed to occur until the end of the planned 5th season?

No, I didn't know that?

[Gen. Chris]

No, I didn't know that?

Yeah the revelation that

Spoiler:

the 4400 was taken by the future

was supposed to take place at the end of a planned 5 seasons...Can you imagine if the show had still only gotten 4 seasons and we never found out who had taken them?

[LtColCarter]

That would've hacked me off...

[Gen. Chris]

Me too...

At least it had a resolution of sorts...But definitely not the resolution we wanted. And then for NBC to market and produce a similar, higher budget, though inferior, show (Heroes), which only lasted 4 seasons as well. And now SyFy has Alphas, which I am told is fairly similar to both Heroes and 4400. How many times does NBC and its subsidiaries have to try? Lol

[DigiFluid]

There are a pair of novels to finish off the series. I own both but haven't finished either of them