The Sting

[Agent Pat (Agentpat)]

At the beginning of "Reunion," the Three Amigos are closing in on MacArthur at the Sea Breeze Hospice in St Petersburg, FL. While Van Patten has MacArthur in his sight in the hallway outside Constance's room, LeRue and Wilcox silently signal to each other outside the building. Their rather familiar index finger to nose swipe was made famous by Paul Newman and Robert Redford in the 1973 film, "The Sting." Okay, no biggie - until one realizes that the director of Reunion, Tony Bill, was also the producer of the Academy Award winning film. Inside joke? Yeah, looks like it. ;o)

[Sheri Gordon (Sheri)]

If anyone ever doubted why we call you "Agent" Pat, this would make them a believer. ;) <BR> <BR>Thanks for the interesting tidbit!

[Agent Pat (Agentpat)]

Thanks Sher. [big grin] <BR> <BR>Hey, if you like that one, think about the hidden significance of the episode's title itself. As Dean once noted, Tony Bill also directed 1980's "My Bodyguard," which starred Adam Baldwin and Dean himself in a minor role. It must have been some "reunion" working with friends again after 17 years. ;o)

[kefla]

Index finger to nose from The Sting - wow. Impressive catch, Agent Pat! Even more so when you consider how long we've been at this and you STILL find something new. <BR> <BR>Watching the eps half asleep this morning (the marathon started at 8 am), I was again impressed with the complexity of the plot - the little details that keep the characters coming and going, meeting or just missing each other. whew! <BR> <BR>Now, why would Michael O'Ryan show up at the house in North Carolina where Charlie Dalton just moved in? He's pursuing Adam. He comes in and murders a woman - but what did he accomplish there? Why would he imagine that finding Charlie would lead him to Adam? Didn't he have a more sophisticated way of tracking AM? Adam suggested (in Caged) that O'Ryan could have built another key. So couldn't he construct a locator device to find his man? Questions, questions. . . <BR> <BR>Finding a logical reason for moving these characters around is one of the toughest things about trying Visitor fan fiction, too.

[Agent Pat (Agentpat)]

Oh Kefla, we could ask questions all day. In "Remember," Wilcox tells Lawson that they believe MacArthur is a "highly trained assassin." Now what ever gave him that idea? The FBI's own wanted poster says he's wanted for "unlawful flight to avoid prosecution, hijacking and domestic terrorism." While the poster lists him as being armed, it doesn't say anything about murder (prior to the discovery of Charlie's dead roommate, that is.)

[kefla]

When the 3 amigos first discussed the case with Grushaw, they suggested the possibility that MacArthur was some highly trained assassin gone awol - and they conjectured that the NSA might be trying to retrieve him without having any other agency become any wiser about him. They were operating under the assumption that the use of the long dead pilot's name was NSA dis-information. <BR> <BR>More trivia. In Tnacht, the Reagan and Nixon masks worn by the sheriff each had one eye closed. <BR>Wonder what was up with that? <BR> <BR>MacArthur's statement to the person in the suit (O'Ryan) ". . . . I have made a terrible mistake to come back here. But I *had* to do something ..." I do wonder how much of MacArthur's mission was pre-planned, logical, a conscious choice - and how much was his mission motivated by compulsion, desperation. Did Adam, on any level, feel that his actions on earth were "a terrible mistake" as he stated to the would-be elder? <BR> <BR>Your point, AP, is well taken. We could ask these questions all day. (But wondering about them is part of the fun, for me.)

[Agent Pat (Agentpat)]

Ah yes, okay. Still funny that they would identify him that way though, verses what they actually "knew" about him at the time. <BR> <BR>Regarding the age old theoretical discussion of the Elder in the robes, it finally became clear to me that Adam was indeed familiar with the suit - he knew how to deactivate it and where to find the "switch." ;o)

[kefla]

Yep, I agree it's odd for the FBI to continue with the assassin description when there was no evidence of that. <BR> <BR>Re: the suit. Uh huh - very good point about him knowing how to deactivate it. We also could assume Adam had seen the Elders by the way in which he answered Donna and Carlo's questions "Do they look like this? Do they look like that?" with definite "No"s.

[Sheri Gordon (Sheri)]

*munch munch munch* <BR> <BR>Carry on. Don't mind me. I'm enjoyin this. *giggle* <BR> <BR>*continues to munch popcorn*

[Agent Pat (Agentpat)]

How 'bout the Washington mask? Did he have one eye closed too? <BR> <BR>I LOVE the comment "The eyes are a nice touch." Makes ya wonder. <BR> <BR>There was an interesting scene that tapped into personal perspective in "Remember." After the cult members dub MacArthur their extraterrestrial sign sent from the Mothership, they kneel and bow before him. Adam is left speechless. His astonished reaction to their unexpected display was accentuated by camera angels - his view of them lowering and their view of him rising. The forced perspective and camera movement made for a subliminally very interesting scene. Michael Bay would be proud. ;o)

[kefla]

Mmmm. Popcorn. Pass some over this way. <BR>:-) <BR> <BR>I'd have to look back - don't recall the eyes on the Washington mask. <BR> <BR>The scene where Thomas proclaims Adam the messenger *was* amusing in a subtle way - hadn't realized how the camera angles worked. <BR> <BR>What I *did* notice was in Reunion (sorry to belabor an old topic) how the camera focused on O'Ryan's outstretched hand and then on the hand shake between he and Charlie in the parking lot. The music also changed to a darker tone at that moment. I still believe O'Ryan used some special influence to convince Charlie to accept a ride with him. <BR> <BR>Ya know, I hadn't watched The Visitor (that is, to sit down and watch eps all the way through) in a long while. Today was such a treat.

[Agent Pat (Agentpat)]

I thought about the handshake scene too. Hard to tell. <BR>Due to lack of additional evidence, I'd say it's as good a theory as any. <BR> <BR>I like the understatedness of the abductee's abilities. One moment we see MacArthur confused over the operation of a can opener, and the next he's levitating over spilled sugar in a basement. <BR> <BR>By extension, we see that MacArthur and O'Ryan have the ability to "lend" and "remove" life energy from other living things. Since we've only seen these abilities used on people, animals and plants that are already in a weakened state, one wonders what would happen to a healthy individual. <BR> <BR>Did O'Ryan kill Charlie's roommate simply by brute force, or did he employ additional powers to remove her life energy? Is he more dangerous than previously assumed? And what would happen to an individual that MacArthur chose to share energy with who was in otherwise fine condition? Adrenaline rush? Or would the mind just be effected? Or both? <BR> <BR>Ah, questions, questions. Next?

[kefla]

Ah yes, great topics. :-) <BR> <BR>In the past, I had assumed O'Ryan used brute force to kill Charlie's friend. Today, I kept my eyes open through the scene, LOL. The last thing I saw was O'Ryan with both his hands on her face - not the best position for breaking her neck. Maybe he *did* use exceptional means for the murder. <BR> <BR>As to what would happen if MacArthur shared energy with a healthy person - there's Nadine to consider. We didn't see an energy transfer between Adam and Nadine but could assume something happened in the hopital ER between them. Nadine ended up with that "glow" thing going for her which she shared with Tyler afterwards. <BR> <BR>In Connections (excuse me for bringing fan fiction into this), I had David West feeling unusually energized after his prolonged, close contact with Adam in the raft. Again, just how such a transfer took place is left unstated. <BR> <BR>Hey Sheri, any more popcorn?

[Agent Pat (Agentpat)]

Skip the popcorn, how 'bout some caffeine? LOL <BR> <BR>Regarding the energy transfer stuff, I was thinking specifically of instances where MacArthur did his life-saving thing - Duncan the dog, Nadine's plants, Missy, Laura, Faraday, and of course, Constance. <BR> <BR>But maybe there's multiple energies at work here. A "life" energy that would apply to the above, and a form of "communicative" energy where an actual ability is transferred, i.e. Nadine and Tyler, and Proctor and Elaine. <BR> <BR>Then there's the non-invasive energy transfer where information and/or knowledge appears to bridge in various directions, i.e. Burton, Magnolia, Lawson, Magnolia, and of course Van Patten. <BR> <BR>MacArthur is indeed, multifaceted. ;o) <BR>(Pat puts a pot of coffee on for the masses)

[kefla]

Good - you discriminated between the apples and oranges (and the rest of the fruit, hehehe). Nice idea, there were many variations on energy transfer. The lifesaving sort bordered on over use, IMO. <BR> <BR>I like the way you talk about an ability being transfered. Adam talked about how he had been "taught" to see more, but when he shared an ability, it seemed to be instantaneous. We didn't see a learning curve with Nadine, Elaine or Faraday. <BR> <BR>The exchange of information: add Joe to the list - I love the memory-sharing technique that enabled Joe to see Betty. There were times, IMO, when Adam collected information from others through some means. Example: card trick at the birthday party; Adam's opening remarks to Vise about his friends on the colony (Vise seemed shocked "What are you talking about?") Somehow Adam gathered the thoughts that were driving Vise at that moment. <BR> <BR>Oh, just think of the subtle variations that could have been explored in this on-going series.

[Agent Pat (Agentpat)]

Maybe the Elders couldn't transfer but *had* to teach their subjects instead. Adam, being human, can transfer his knowledge and energy through a form of directed osmoses since he shares a common biology with the people he connects with. But the Elders might not be able to do this since they are a different species and likely share a completely different evolutionary heritage with us. Just a theory. <BR> <BR>I never got tired of the life-saving bit. It was a defining aspect of the show and the character for me. Without it, it would have been like watching Steve Austin *not* use his bionics after the first season of the Six Million Dollar Man LOL. Yeah, I liked Adam, the hero, just the way he was. ;o) <BR> <BR>The information collection is what I was thinking about in my third set of examples in my last post above. You came up with a few additional ones that definitely fit the mold. Adam didn't *have* to come into contact with folks in order to collect information from them. Sarah Lawson and Vise experienced this first hand. <BR> <BR>[Anybody else thinking about that Snickers commercial - "Not going anywhere for a while...?"]

[Kefla (Kefla)]

Starting to feel sleepy from all the popcorn and snickers <BR> <BR>An interesting theory you have about why the Elders "taught" the abductees but Adam transfered abilities to other humans. There's something else to consider, too. As the Sci Fi channel managed to broadcast in their little sound bites between episodes today - Adam was *changed*. We know that some of the change was physical - based on his lab results when he returned to earth. Whatever was changed in the abductees, they may have required instruction to address the changes. The non-abducted humans Adam encountered, though, had no such trauma to adapt to. <BR> <BR>Is this really reaching for an explanation? Maybe we should sleep on it, LOL.

[Agent Pat (Agentpat)]

Maybe the physical change is part of what was required in order to "teach" the abductees - some needed addition in order for the Elders to interface with other organisms. The alterations/adaptions are obviously painful. But Adam doesn't need to do that to other humans since he is one himself. He speaks our "language." <BR> <BR>Of course, this begs the question as to why the Elders didn't get the other abductees to teach and train the new recruits. Under the above theory, you'd only need one translator/interpreter in order to talk to the rest. <BR> <BR>Then again, maybe they were perfecting the interfaces. Adam did say we were specimens - and specimens are experimented on. <BR> <BR>Or, maybe the change doesn't have anything to do with his abilities at all. Maybe the change (whatever it is) was just a "tag" the Elders implanted, or an alteration that was necessary in order to allow the abductees to survive on the colony. <BR> <BR>Someone break out the toothpicks; I need a few fresh ones at this point. ;o)

[Kefla (Kefla)]

Hehehe. I'm expecting a moderator to arrive and chase us out at any moment. They'll be wanting to sweep up and lock the doors.

[Agent Pat (Agentpat)]

Yeah, there's a lot of spilled popcorn and candy wrappers in here. <BR> <BR>Nighters Kefla. We'll continue this one tomorrow. ;o)

[Emma (Emma)]

Wow! Agent Pat and Kefla, you sure made my morning! It's funny - although I subscribe to several other BBS's, this is the ONLY one I keep up with (mostly in lurk mode). <BR> <BR>I love it when you two get started. It always makes me want to go back and watch the episode being discussed again. It also makes me feel like I was half-asleep when I watched it the first time! How could I miss so much? <BR> <BR>Someone PLEASE archive this conference! It would make a great addition to The Visitor section of JC.com! :o) <BR> <BR>How about it Pat? - a "Comments About The Visitor" page that would contain the fan's discussions about the series. In your spare time, of course. J/K <BR> <BR>Emma

[Agent Pat (Agentpat)]

Spare time? Wazzat? ;o) <BR>Ya know Emma, I've thought about archiving the BBS posts many times, but the nature of jc.com would require that I do that with other boards I have discovered where such in-depth character discussion ensues. There are quite a few. Knowing when, and deciding on what to archive, can be rather difficult. I've always wanted the site to have a general informational feel, which could be compromised by a display of *selected* opinions. <BR> <BR>Having said that however, I think giving fans a platform to voice their opinion is a very cool thing. I've been tossing around the idea of offering a BBS on jc.com for a while now (just ask Sher.) That will probably happen... eventually. For now though, if Fungus doesn't mind continuing being the archivist, I think centropoholics.com is a fine place to store all of our more "historic" threads. (Still can't believe the Giant Leap thread actually made Yahoo!)

[Emma (Emma)]

Sounds like a plan. Just want to be sure these great, in-depth posts don't disappear into cyberspace. ;o) <BR> <BR>Emma

[Chris Ceraolo (Chris)]

Okay, to add some fried eggs to this... <BR> <BR>I think that Adam was physically changed. The nightmares he had point to it. I think all the abductees were changed, but-the choice of how to use the power is what made Adam different. <BR> <BR>Chris <BR>the FOX plant