Report on the 4400: "Try the Pie"

To be perfectly honest, I wasn't able to devote 100% of my attention to the episode this week. I'm actually watching it again right now to make up for the fact that a good portion of my attention all night has went to following the World Series of Poker updates, hoping that Poughkeepsie's own Hevad Khan is able to make the final table.

But, I do have one enormous bad taste in my mouth over what I did see. What it comes down to is, you don't show Tom Baldwin getting shot with a needle of supposedly Promicin, and then wait 10 minutes to reveal that he wasn't shot with Promicin, but rather a sedative.

They showed Tom getting injected, and quickly went to break. My jaw dropped. As I said, I would not have been surprised if these writers had the balls to give Tom the shot, but still, when it "happened" I was FLOORED. And all I could think was, "you know, that could have just been a sedative."

But then they didn't say it was. They gave no hint that it wasn't promicin. I actually started to buy that they had given him the shot -- and you know what? I was really liking the idea.

But still, I would have been fine with it being a sedative if they just said it was immediately! I know, I know, they tried to create drama by revealing that Kyle could not pull the trigger, but it just didn't work for me. It felt like a cheap way of suddenly pulling back from the edge, and ruined what was previously a BRILLIANT episode.

I mean, a whole secret town full of shot-takers? BRILL-I-ANT! And I love how the town manages to not only convince Tom they aren't a threat, but also, they convinced the viewers that, hey, maybe Jordan for once isn't working an angle here. And at the last moment -BAM- There's the catch there, Tom (and, again, US) is reminded why the shot is bad. Death.

And we get another great performance out of the new and improved Shawn Farrell. Remember how I was saying that, this time, Shawn would be a stellar leader because he is choosing to be, rather than forced to be? Well confronting your enemy on his home turf and getting into his head is a piece of terrific leading. Playing the game on your own terms, without really becoming a bad guy (like if he were to have just off-ed him).

Anyway, let's get to everyone's favorite, the Random Thoughts:

1) Finally a use for Maia! Let's have her say nothing and just use her for her ability, while she is hardly ever seen!

2) Why would Jordan allow the, Let's call it Promicin Harvesting, to happen in the house while Baldwin was there? OF COURSE Tom is gonna smell something is up!

3) I'm loving how they are using Heather Tobey. She's the best.

4) Is it just me, or was this Jordan Collier a VERY different character than we've seen in the past? I can't put my finger on it, just feel like Billy Campbell is suddenly playing him differently...

5) I don't think Maia is having visions. I don't care what we're being led to believe, the fact that she saw the politician's face the night after she had just saw him on TV tells me she was simply incorporating him into a dream. Plus, they badly need to have one time that she's wrong.

6) I wish my shrink gave me a rock at the end of each session...

7) Come to think of it, I wish my shrink looked like that actress!

8) Now everyone is going to think I go to a shrink. I may need one, but I don't actually go to one.

9) I would love to see what other countries think of this whole Promicin thing. I mean, being in the state of Washington already, could all these 4400's just go to Canada and be free? Canada isn't so bad, I mean, they have all the Curling you can watch, all the pancakes you can eat, that sounds sweet to me!

10) My whole "People get the power they most desire when they take the shot" theory my have been proven false in this episode. I mean, unless that little boy wished to be able to scream, and that guy who's fingers are like a cigarette lighter really likes to smoke.