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NEW YORK, NEW YORK - Miss Parker and Sydney find they had just missed Jarod helping a tanker ship in Alaska. Jarod is now posing as a doctor to uncover the truth behind an operation that resulted in a boy becoming paraplegic. Jarod also befriends a sicilian woman who has trouble with (ahem) bowel movements.
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Director:
Rick Wallace
Writer:
Steven Long Mitchell, Craig Van Sickle
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Broadcast: 1996-09-19
Production No.: 03101
Episode Overall No.: 1
Episode Type: Regular Episode
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Episode Notes -  |
The Centre, first seen here and will appear in nearly every episode, is actually the R.C. Harris Filtration Plant, located in Toronto, Canada.
At the end of this episode, Miss Parker shows a photo of Jarod to two Coast Guards at the dock. The one with the mustache, Mark Dodson, at the time was a physical therapist and a lawyer (pretender in training). Mark went on to become a writer and producer on the series, scribing eight episodes including "Quallupilluit" and "Corn Man".
Since this was the pilot, this episode doesn't have the opening title sequence. Also, Miss Parker utilizes a room filled with computers and technical experts which you never see in the show again. They're probably all replaced and represented by Broots. Jarod's room is also a miniature palace, but later in the series his room is a cell.
In this episode, the young Jarod is played by Jeffrey Shepard instead of series regular Ryan Merriman.
Quotes:
Sydney(to the camera): This one has only been with us for thirty-six hours and he's already demonstrating more talent than any of our others. (to Jarod) Hi, Jarod. I'm Sydney. I'll be taking care of you for a while.
Younger Jarod: Why? Where's my mom and dad?
Mrs. Nykos: Are you a doctor?
Jarod: I am today.
Younger Jarod: Cree craw toad's foot...geese walk barefoot...
Sydney: You were such a happy little girl. What happened to you?
Miss Parker: I grew up, Syd. So should you.
Miss Parker: Make up your mind, Sydney! Be a scientist or a mommy. You can't be both.
Andy(pointing to x-ray film): Any special reason you're looking at those?
Jarod: Any special reason you're in here half-naked?
Miss Parker: Your little monster need his teddy bear, huh, Sydney?
Sydney: Jarod is not a monster.
Miss Parker: Call him what you want, Dr. Frankenstein. Just tell me where he is! (edit)
Jarod: And, by the way, ice cream is good.
Miss Parker: Hell of an environment you keep him in, Syd. With input like this maybe we'll find him masquerading as a postal worker.
Sydney: The Centre wants him alive.
Miss Parker: Preferably.
Trivia:
Jarod's Pretends: Tanker captain, doctor, Wall Street broker, fireman, airplane pilot (edit)
The Pretender was inspired by the life of Ferdinand Demara Jr., a genius with an eidetic memory, who could master any skill just by reading a book about it.
DSAs
DSAs--Digital Simulation Archives--are the compact cd-roms that Jarod carries around with him everywhere and contain, apparently, a record of his entire life at the Centre. The archives can be retrieved by a playback computer contained in a silver Halliburton case he also carries. Although Jarod's shown to possess an eiditic, photographic memory, he'll often refer to a DSA record for inspiration or past sim knowledge. The Centre is as keen to retrieve the DSAs as they are to recapture Jarod since those are the only records of 30 years worth of their most gifted Pretender's simulations.
PEZ candy dispensers
Jarod shows a distinct fetish for PEZ candy throughout the series and he'll often carry around a dispenser that matches the theme of his current sting or discovery. PEZ is an abbreviation of the German word for peppermint--phefferminz--and was invented in Vienna, Austria in 1927. The candy is most known for its unque toy-like dispenser that pops out one candy tablet at a time when the cartoon head is pulled back. There are over 300 varieties of PEZ dispensers available with six candy flavors in the US and many more distributed worldwide.
Jarod's Discoveries:
PEZ candy, ice cream, Wheel of Fortune
Allusions:
Jarod's surname: Russell (referencing Steven Jay Russell, famous real-life imposter and "pretender")
Wheel of Fortune
Jarod discovers "Wheel" when he and a homeless man are watching TVs through a store window. He solves the puzzle with only a few letters showing. The puzzle was "THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH." |
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The Pretender (1996) - 1x01 - Pilot