Gone (The 4400 episodes)

The 4400 episode
Title = Gone
Season = 3
Episode = 04/05
Airdate = June 25, 2006 July 2, 2006
Writer = Bruce Miller (Part 1) Darcy Meyers (Part 2)
Director = Morgan Beggs (Part 1) Scott Peters (Part 2)
Prev = Being Tom Baldwin
Next = Graduation Day
IMDb_id = 0814804"Gone" (parts one and two) are episodes of the science fiction television series "The 4400".

Synopsis

Young 4400s are being targeted by an unknown person. Maia is kidnapped by a woman from the future claiming to be her sister, Sarah. Shawn receives a threat from the Nova Group and Isabelle begins publicly demonstrating her power.

Plot

Part one

Shawn and Isabelle embrace and kiss in Shawn’s bed when Shawn receives a knock on the door. Answering it he finds Richard standing there. Richard tells Shawn that before his wife Lily died she asked Richard to take over her job at the foundation. Richard has been trying to decipher the financial reports, and has uncovered significant unaccounted-for cash payments. He asks Shawn if he remembers what the payments were for. Shawn replies that he does not. After Richard leaves and Shawn shuts the door, Isabelle suggests that “Maybe we should tell him”. Shawn replies “No, no, don’t think so.. We just gotta be more careful.”

Maia and her mother Diana, preparing to go out on a day trip, pack their items into their car and converse about Maia’s friend Amy. Maia realizes she forgot her jumper and goes back upstairs to retrieve it, and as she walks away, she comes to a standstill with a shocked face. “You’re gonna forget me,” – Maia tells her mother. Maia says she saw it in her visions, and that it is not Diana’s fault. She then heads back into the apartment. After waiting a short period and becoming impatient, Diana returns upstairs to find a woman with Maia: Sarah Rutledge, Maia’s sister.

Maia and Sarah reminisce about the past and how Maia’s parents missed her. Diana asks Maia to give Sarah and her a moment and the adults speak in Diana’s kitchen. Diana explains to Sarah how she had spent years trying to track down Maia's sister. Sarah explains how she just wants to know Maia.

At a hospital, several ill children and reporters surround Richard. He explains that they have not tried a healing so large before, but they believe they will all be happy with the results. Richard explains that his late wife, Lily, started the foundation and he is proud to be carrying on her work. Richard introduces Shawn, who tells them that the healing process will not hurt. He asks the children that when they leave the hospital – and they will be healed – they tell anybody who asks that a 4400 healed them. Shawn asks the children, "Ready to get started?", but a man dressed in a nurse's uniform shouts “Traitor! Traitor to your own kind!“ and throws a cup of red paint over Shawn.

Maia plays a game of badminton with her friend and fellow 4400, Amy Paspalis. Shortly into the game Sarah appears and in a soft raised voice utters "Maia." At NTAC Tom rushes to Diana’s desk and explains that the DNA test has returned negative, Sarah is "not" Maia’s sister.

At NTAC Marco reviews Maia’s journal, questioning her thoughts and a specific “doodle.” Marco reveals that her diary also discloses how he will die; "it's quite cool." Reviewing a certain page Marco reads “Mommy's coming to pick me up from Miss Paspalis' house but I’m already gone. I’m in a circle with Tyler Downing.” Diana visits the Downing house with Tom and questions Tyler, but he knows nothing of Maia's whereabouts.

Maia listens to Billie Holiday music at Sarah’s home, in her new bedroom, an exact replica of her bedroom before her abduction. Maia shouts to Sarah but receives no reply. Leaving the room she heads down the hallway and attempts to open the door – it is, however, locked. Up the hallway a door opens and a young girl, Lindsay, leaves the room. She explains that Sarah will not come, and that Maia is part of Sarah's “collection,” with several other children. The door at the end of the hall opens, and the children rush back to their rooms. Maia leaves her door slightly ajar, and sees Sarah and an old man walking up the hallway with Tyler Downing.

Standing at their doors the children tell one another their abilities, and what they can do, Lindsay states she is going to try to find a way to get them out of there, but they all rush and shut their doors when the door at the bottom of the hallway begins to be unlocked. A man walks into Maia’s room and puts down some green clothing, while outside Lindsay begins screaming “Let me go!” and is pulled through the bottom door.

Lindsay is returned to her room with a dazed thoughtless appearance. Maia goes to her door and opens it, standing in front of Lindsay, who asks “Who are you?” The landing door opens and Sarah asks Maia “Do you want to come with me sweetie?” Maia is pulled away by the non-speaking man, screaming, when she refuses. In the kitchen, Sarah offers Maia a dusky white drink, telling Maia that it will make her feel better. Maia tearfully refuses – “No”– but begins to reach for the glass after looking at the quiet man. However, the lights begin to flicker, and Maia states “They're doing it, they’re helping”. The quiet man collapses and Sarah’s body begins to liquefy. Outside, Diana shouts to Tom to stop the car. The butterflies on the gate to a house are in Maia’s diary. Tom and Diana break into the house and find it empty except for a real estate agent showing the house. Maia escapes through a door into a dark room with several dimly lit compartments (seen before in the episode “Life Interrupted”). Sarah explains that they had to bring her here, to the future, because they need her help.

At the 4400 Center Shawn signs equal power over to Richard. They shake hands; Richard states it is an honor. Matthew congratulates Isabelle on a job well done, awarding her with a present, Isabelle states to him she used to be scared of him, but she now doesn’t think he has any power over her. She raises her hand, and Matthew is forced into a choking upward position. Isabelle allows him to drop to the ground, deciding that she did not think Matthew had control of her, and that she will do her own shopping now.

Sarah explains to Maia they are ready to begin, and that Maia and the other children are special. They are sending Maia back earlier, much earlier, because they had calculated wrong last time and they have to try again as there is no other hope for humanity. Maia tells her she does not care, she wants to stay with her mom. Sarah says she can make the pain go away, they will make her forget her mother, and everyone around her will forget her as well.

“All hope we have rests with you.”

A bright light flashes down on Maia and she disappears. Scenes of the current time are shown, with all references to Maia vanishing from it.

Part two

Marco visits Diana’s apartment with a bouquet of flowers to have dinner with Diana. Meanwhile, in one of Alana's fantasy worlds, Tom and Alana and are driving down a wooded highway at high speeds when they suddenly hit a young child. They immediately stop and search for the child, discover her walking away, and turn her around. She has no face.

Tom sits at his desk attempting to draw a head on paper when Nina interrupts him asking where Diana is. Tom tells Nina she is late, Nina tells Tom that a 4400, Christopher Dubov, was attacked outside his home the previous night and that she would like to know if they are looking at a hate crime.

Tom and Diana visit 4400 Christopher Dubov who reveals to them that his son had attacked him due to him and his mother splitting up. Christopher reveals that he introduced his ex-wife to Bob, her new husband, as he knew they belonged together; he could “smell it” from his ability developed after coming off the promicin-inhibitor. After leaving Christopher’s office Diana breaks into tears in her car.

At the 4400 Center Shawn and Richard talk about Isabelle. Richard shouts at Shawn asking what is going on between Shawn and his daughter, and Shawn tells Richard that they never planned it at all, that “it just kinda happened.” Richard tells him that Isabelle is emotionally immature and that their relationship was not supposed to progress past friendship.

Alana and Tom visit another fantasy world and prepare to eat a meal with Kyle. Tom walks to the hallway to call upstairs for Kyle, but on the stairs he views the girl he had hit with the car, sans the missing face, she reveals herself to be Maia. Tom asks if they have met before. “Don’t be silly,” she replies. Tom tells her that he does not remember, but she tells him to think harder – she is there because he brought her there. The fantasy world ends, and Alana and Tom discuss the young girl.

Diana visits Tom and Alana’s house to visit a fantasy reality with Alana; they decide to try to go to Diana’s apartment but upon entering the fantasy world they are outside the office of a judge (seen in the season two episode "Wake Up Call"). The door to the judge’s chambers opens and out walks the young girl. Diana exclaims “You’re Maia?” Maia leads Diana into the judge’s chambers, who tells her the adoption is all legal. Diana signs the adoption papers and passes them back to the judge who tells them both that “You know some of us have to look far and wide to find the people we’ll call family. You two had to look clear across time. Diana, let me introduce you to your daughter, Maia. Maia, say hello to mommy.”

Tom and Diana visit Nina about Maia and other children, but Nina tells them that none of those children are on the list of 4400s. Marco comes to Nina’s office to tell them he has found “their kids.” Marco tells them the history of what the children did in the past. Some invented artificial petroleum, some helped design technology used in the moon colony, but Maia died at 25 due to smallpox.

Diana visits Tom and Alana’s house in the hopes of visiting and seeing her daughter again, Alana takes her into her fantasy world. A little while later Tom arrives to find Alana and Diana on the floor separated. Alana, groggy but conscious, tells Tom she thinks Diana is still in the fantasy. Normally, when someone leaves the fantasy world they let go, but Diana does not wish to let go. Diana is unconscious, and is sent to an Intensive Care Unit. Tom and Alana visit Diana in her fantasy world, and Diana estimates she has at least 3 to four weeks to spend in her fantasy before she would die, but that could be a lifetime in there.

In the ICU, Tom tells Diana that he has a plan that might be the stupidest thing he has ever done, and he wishes she was there to stop him. Tom visits a bridge above a river and ties a hangman’s knot around his neck. Standing on the bridge rails and prepared to jump, he kicks off and begins to fall, but mid-air he is encompassed in a bright flash and appears in the dark room. He speaks to the woman who claimed to be Sarah; she tells him that they underestimated the bonds the children had made. Tom tells her to “either return the children or put that knot back around my neck, as I’m done.” She tells him that she needs to show him something and nods to a cubicle which lights up with a child inside it. The woman tells Tom that they have enemies who want the 4400 to fail in their mission, and that sending the children further back in the timeline was an attempt to combat “evil.” If they return the children all the good they have done will be negated. Tom asks if there is another way to combat the evil. There is, but it is a burden the people from the future had hoped to avoid placing on him. He agrees with her, the deal "is" something he will come to regret, and in a flash of light Tom is returned to the empty house Sarah brought Maia to, in his own time.

Walking into the house, Tom calls out so see if anyone is there, and notices an envelope addressed to him on a fireplace mantle. Walking up the stairs he notices Maia peeking out the door. Tom calls to her and she runs to him and cuddles him. The other kidnapped children joyfully leave their rooms asking if they can see their families.

Daniel Armand, working for the Nova Group, sits in his car when his mobile phone rings. “Has he arrived yet?" asks Daniel. “Then he’s made my choice for me.” The man sits there and closes his eyes as if concentrating. Inside the 4400 Center Shawn, paranoid, has begun destroying his apartment in an attempt to find a bug, believing it to be under his skin. He uses a razor blade knife to cut into his arm.

Still in her fantasy world in the intensive care unit, Diana prepares to put Maia to bed. She sits down on the bed and Maia asks her to close her eyes. Maia speaks the words “I’m here mommy.” Maia stands at Diana’s bedside in the real world talking to her in an attempt to get her to wake up. In a groggy state Diana slowly awakens. Outside the room Tom opens his envelope which contains a small box; he opens the box and finds a hypodermic needle and a piece of paper containing the words “Kill Isabelle.”

Significance

The episode marks a large intervention by the "future people," telling more about the 4400 than was revealed in the season one finale in which the first information about the 4400 was revealed to Tom. [cite episode | title = White Light| series = The 4400] The "future people" reveal an "evil" of their enemies who Tom must now kill in order to bring back the children to the present.

This episode also reinforces the "ripple effect" first contemplated in "Becoming", in that the five 4400 children "seeded" back into history contributed to significant scientific advances, including the development of artificial petroleum and the composite materials used in the first lunar colonies. These advances are negated, restoring the original timeline, in exchange for Tom's agreement to do whatever the future asks of him.

Trivia

*The 4400 are still referred to as such by the cast for the duration of these episodes, despite the fact that five of them have been removed from the timeline. This would effectively make them the 4395.

Cast

* Tom Baldwin — Joel Gretsch
* Diana Skouris — Jacqueline McKenzie
* Richard Tyler — Mahershalalhashbaz Ali
* Shawn Farrell — Patrick Flueger
* Isabelle Tyler — Megalyn Echikunwoke
* Nina Jarvis — Samantha Ferris
* Alana Mareva — Karina Lombard; Recurring
* Matthew Ross — Garret Dillahunt; Guest stars
* Sarah Rutledge — Alice Krige
* Heather Tobey — Kathryn Gordon
* Lindsey Hammond — Alexia Fast

Featured music

* "Cheek to Cheek" by Billie Holidaycite web| url = http://www.usanetwork.com/series/the4400/blogs/lurie04.html| title = "Back to the Beginning With Billie"| last = Lurie| first = Elliot| authorlink = Elliot Lurie]
* "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" by K.T. Tunstallcite web| url = http://www.usanetwork.com/series/the4400/blogs/lurie05.html| title = "Tom is No Fortunate Son"| last = Lurie| first = Elliot| authorlink = Elliot Lurie]

References

External links

* [http://www.the4400wiki.org/Episode:Gone "Gone"] at The 4400 wiki.; Part One
* [http://www.usanetwork.com/series/the4400/theshow/episodeguide/episodes/s3_goneone/index.html "Gone, part one"] at the official 4400 website provided by USA Network.
*; Part Two
* [http://www.usanetwork.com/series/the4400/theshow/episodeguide/episodes/s3_gonetwo/index.html "Gone, part two"] at the official 4400 website provided by USA Network.
*