The 4400
| The 4400 | |
|---|---|
| File:The 4400 - intro.jpg The 4400's intertitle | |
| Created by | René Echevarria Scott Peters |
| Starring | see below |
| Opening theme | "A Place in Time" |
| Country of origin | Canada United Kingdom United States |
| No. of episodes | 32 (to date) (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Running time | approx. 42 minutes |
| Original release | |
| Network | USA Network |
| Release | July 11, 2004 – present |
The 4400 is a science fiction television program produced by the USA Network and Sky One. It was created and written by Scott Peters and René Echevarria, starring Joel Gretsch and Jacqueline McKenzie. The 4400 is produced by CBS Paramount Network Television (known as Paramount Network Television during season 2, and Viacom Productions during season 1 until that was folded into Paramount Network Television in 2005), in association with Sky Television for Sky One, Renegade 83, and American Zoetrope for USA Network.[1] The series is filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.[2]
In the pilot, what is originally thought to be a comet deposits a group of exactly four thousand, four hundred people at Highland Beach, in the Cascade Range foothills near Mount Rainier, Washington. All of the 4400 had disappeared at various points starting from 1946[3] in a beam of white light. After their return, none have aged, all are disoriented, and remember nothing between the time of their disappearance and their return.
The theme song of the show is "A Place in Time", written by Robert Phillips & Tim Paruskewitz, performed by Amanda Abizaid.[4]
Cast
Synopsis
The National Threat Assessment Command (NTAC), a division of the Department of Homeland Security, is in charge of dealing with the return of the 4400. There is a multitude of agents assigned to the cases of investigating the 4400. The series primarily follows two of them, Tom Baldwin and Diana Skouris, as well as their immediate superior, Dennis Ryland in season one and Nina Jarvis in seasons two and three and theory room consultant Marco Pacella.
Many of the returnees have trouble trying to get their lives back on track after being separated from their world for years. More significantly, a small number of the returnees begin to manifest paranormal abilities, such as telekinesis, telepathy, precognition, as well as other "gifts", for example in the pilot episode Shawn Farrell manifests an ability to bring a dead bird back to life again. In addition, one of the 4400 (Lily Moore) had become pregnant between her disappearance and return.
The first season finale, "White Light" reveals that the 4400 were abducted, not by aliens, but by Humans from the Earth's future, and that Kyle Baldwin was to be their "messenger", and that they were returned to avert a catastrophe.
By the second season, it is revealed that all 4400 had a new neurotransmitter called promicin in their brains; it was this which gave them their powers. The government, afraid of what this large group would do with such power, secretly dosed all 4400 with a promicin-inhibitor which worked on most of the 4400, but not those who were later seen with powers. The inhibitor caused a potentially fatal immune deficiency as a side effect in the returnees. It was ultimately removed from the 4400 by an antibody developed by Kevin Burkhoff from the blood of the infant Isabelle, who was never given the inhibitor.
At the beginning of the third season, the Nova Group, a terrorist faction made up of 4400s, has made itself known. Originally formed as a "defensive" group in the aftermath of the promicin-inhibitor scandal, the Nova Group eventually went rogue and carried out numerous terrorist attacks against the government and NTAC. The group is responsible for many terrorist attacks including the assassination of the men involved with the promicin-inhibitor conspiracy, the attempted assassination of Ryland, framing Tom Baldwin for murder, and making Shawn go temporarily insane.
Ripple effect
Early in the first season, the "masterminds" at NTAC suspected that the 4400s had been placed in the timeline with their enhanced abilities for a purpose, to effect some change that could propagate and change the course of history.[5]
An example of this effect at work came during the third season episode "Gone, Part II", in which five 4400 children are once again abducted by the future and "seeded" back into history at different time periods. Some of the "advances" accomplished by this feat included the development of artificial petroleum and composite materials used in the first lunar colonies, according to background conversations "overheard" at NTAC. These advances are negated (restoring the original timeline) in exchange for Tom Baldwin agreeing to do whatever the future asks of him, to help prevent the "disaster" to come — which he learns is an order to kill Isabelle Tyler.[6]
Episodes
| Season | Start date | End date |
|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | July 11 2004 | August 8 2004 |
| Season 2 | June 5 2005 | August 28 2005 |
| Season 3 | June 11 2006 | August 27 2006 |
| Season 4[7] | Mid 2007 | — |
The first season is presented as a miniseries of six episodes,[8] which aired weekly from July 11 to August 8, 2004. Seasons two and three are made up of thirteen 42 minute (approx.) episodes,[8] and season four will also be comprised of 13 episodes.[7]
On the DVD's for season 1 there are only 5 episodes ending with "White Light". Season 2 DVD's only have 12 episodes ending with "Mommy's Bosses"
A special episode, "The 4400: Unlocking the Secrets", aired between seasons two and three, on June 4, 2006, originally on NBC.
Production of a third season was shot in Vancouver until July 26, 2006.[9] The third season premièred June 11, 2006, with 4.2 million viewers tuning in.[10]
Executive Producer Ira Steven Behr said that season three "is going to be bigger and more mythic. It feels like 26 episodes instead of 13 because we're cramming so much stuff in." He also stated that Billy Campbell will return as Jordan Collier in the second half of the season. Campbell's first appearance of the season was at the end of episode 10.
Production of a season 4, with a 13 episode order, is scheduled to begin in early 2007 for a mid-year première.[7]
Soundtrack
Elliot Lurie, the music producer for The 4400, has announced that a soundtrack for the series will be released by the beginning of the fourth season.[11][12]
Season four
Billy Campbell, the actor who plays Collier, took most of season three off to sail around the world,[13] but will return in season four as a series regular, differing from being a guest star in previous seasons.[14]
Filming locations
Even though the show is set in Seattle, it is filmed in the Vancouver metropolitan area in British Columbia. All the cars have fake Washington license plates, the 4400 Center is actually the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts at the University of British Columbia, and Capilano Lake stands in for Highland Beach.
There is a nod to the filming location in the opening credits — the vintage car in the opening titles has "Beautiful British Columbia" license plates.
Gallery
-
The Chan Centre
(The 4400 Center) -
Capilano Lake
(Highland Beach) -
-
Direction sign to filming location
DVD releases
| DVD cover | Season | Episodes | Discs | DVD release date | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Region 1 | Region 2 | Region 4 | |||||||
| File:DVD Cover - The 4400 S01.jpg | 1 | 5 | 2 | December 21, 2004 | January 10, 2005 | June 10, 2005 | |||
| A two disc set containing all five episodes of the first season presented in widescreen, with closed-captions, the DVD does not contain any special features. The American Region 1 release of the DVD is presented in a dual DVD case with a green-on-black cover showing the characters Tom, Diana and Dennis.[15] | |||||||||
| File:DVD Cover - The 4400 S02.jpg | 2 | 12 | 4 | May 23, 2006 | June 5, 2006 | May 23, 2006 | |||
| A four disc set containing all twelve episodes of the second season. Bonus features include featurettes and commentary from cast members. | |||||||||
| File:DVD Cover - The 4400 S03.jpg | 3 | 13 | 4 | May 8 2007 | June 4, 2007 | June 7, 2007 | |||
| A four disc set containing all thirteen episodes of the third season and an introduction by one of the series creator, special features include featurettes, audio commentaries and a gag reel.[16] | |||||||||
References
- ^ "The 4400 - Production information". NBC Universal.
- ^ "The 4400 Resumes Production in Vancouver". NBC Universal.
- ^ ""USA Network | The 4400 - Character Profile: Maia Skouris"". NBC Universal.
The first of the known abductees, she disappeared in 1946
- ^ Lurie, Elliot. "Song List from The 4400".
- ^ "Becoming". The 4400.
- ^ "Gone". The 4400.
- ^ a b c ""The 4400" returns for season four". USA Network. 2006-08-22.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ a b Scott Peters (2005). Return of The 4000 (DVD special feature).
{{cite AV media}}: Check date values in:|year=(help)CS1 maint: year (link) - ^ Lee, Patrick (2006-03-07). "4400 Changes Unveiled". Sci Fi.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ "Development Update: June 12-16 (Weekly Round-Up)". The Futon Critic. 2006-06-13.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Elliot Lurie. "Might there be a 4400 soundtrack?". USA Network.
- ^ Elliot Lurie. "Help create The 4400 soundtrack". USA Network.
- ^ MSNBC: The 4400's power-hungry tycoon returns
- ^ "Billy Campbell Set To Return as Series Regular in Emmy-Nominated Hit Series "The 4400"".
- ^ Amazon - Season 1 DVD
- ^ tvshowsondvd.com - The 4400, Season 3 Date & Extras
External links
