Point Pleasant (TV series)

infobox Television
show_name = Point Pleasant


caption = Series title card
format = Teen drama
Noir
Mystery
camera =
picture_format = 480i (SDTV)
720p (HDTV)
runtime = 60 min. with commercials
creator =
developer =
executive_producer = Marti Noxon
starring = "see Cast"
narrated =
opentheme =
endtheme =
country = United States
network = FOX
first_aired = January 19, 2005
last_aired = October 25, 2005
num_episodes = 13
list_episodes = List of Point Pleasant episodes
website =
imdb_id = 0435576
tv_com_id = 24350

"Point Pleasant" was a television series that first aired on the Fox Network in January 2005. It was cancelled in March 2005 due to poor ratings.

"Point Pleasant" boasted many of the same crew behind the scenes as Fox's other shortly withdrawn series, "Tru Calling". In fact, "Point Pleasant" received the greenlight just three days after production ceased on "Tru Calling". 13 episodes were filmed, but due to poor ratings, Fox only aired episodes 1-8 in the United States. Episodes 9-11 aired in Sweden, all episodes appeared in New Zealand on back to back weekdays in mid 2007, all episodes aired in The Netherlands in 2008 and the last two episodes are included on the DVD release.

Much of the music featured in the series was replaced for the DVD release due to licensing issues.

The show's executive producer was Marti Noxon, who worked closely with Joss Whedon for several seasons on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer". For this reason, "Point Pleasant" initially drew in many of that show's fans, but "Point Pleasant" had a distinct "soapy" flavor, more in the vein of shows like "Melrose Place" or "The O.C." than "Buffy". The resulting drop in viewership eventually led to the show's cancellation. Advocates of the show, however, point to its gothic tone, its tempered, surprisingly subtle use of special effects, and the potential of the overall plotline as solid reasons the show should have stayed on the air. The plots were surprisingly sophisticated, and emphasized humanity's cruelty to one another, as primal reasons for evil.

ynopsis

A young girl named Christina washes up on the shore near Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey during a violent storm. After being resuscitated by lifeguard Jesse Parker, the girl is taken in by the family of a local doctor, the Kramers, and quickly befriends their teenage daughter, Judy. The show follows Christina's attempts to discover who she really is, and to learn what happened to her mother, who disappeared shortly after Christina was born.

It soon becomes apparent that Christina's presence has a strange, profound effect on the people around her. Emotions are heightened, repressed feelings and secret desires awakened, and inhibitions weakened, turning what once were friendly competitions into bitter rivalries, romantic rivals into violent enemies, and so on. And if that wasn't enough, freakish 'accidents' have a way of befalling those with whom Christina becomes angry.

Meanwhile, sinister forces have their eye on Christina, believing it is the girl's destiny, as the "child of darkness," to "bring [the world] to its knees." Christina is the child of Satan. The resulting tension between the good and evil aspects of the girl's nature, with the viewer always left in doubt as to which side she will ultimately choose, provides the basis for much of the show's conflict and suspense.

Christina is plagued by terrifying visions of death and destruction, glimpses of the dark future she seems destined to help bring about. Meanwhile, a handsome, charming stranger named Lucas Boyd arrives in town, determined to help guide Christina toward her destiny, and Jesse Parker, who has become romantically involved with Christina, discovers that he may be the only one who can prevent the girl from ushering in Armageddon. Ironically, as the 13 episodes closed, it was the continual betrayal of people who Christina cared about, and plain human cruelty, that brought out the darkness in her. If Christina "fell" into darkness, she did it not because of the evil influences around her nor her Satanic bloodline, but the supposedly good ones who betrayed her so bitterly.

Cast

*Elisabeth Harnois — Christina Nickson
*Grant Show — Lucas Boyd
*Samuel Page — Jesse Parker
*Aubrey Dollar — Judy Kramer
*Dina Meyer — Amber Hargrove
*Cameron Richardson — Paula Hargrove
*Clare Carey — Sarah Parker
*Brent Weber — Terry Burke
*Susan Walters — Meg Kramer
*Richard Burgi — Ben Kramer
*Alex Carter — Sheriff Logan Parker
*Ned Schmidtke — Father Matthew
*John Diehl — David Burke
*Adam Busch — Wesley Feist aka Wes
*Elizabeth Ann Bennett — Holly
*Marcus Coloma — Father Tomas
*Audrey Marie Anderson — Isabelle Kramer
*James Morrison — Kingston Nickson
*Aaron Paul — Mark Owens
*Matt Lanter — Nick
*Dana Davis — Lucinda
*Steven Brand — Graham
*Aaron Norvell — Deputy Atkins
*Randy Oglesby — Father David
*Jon Hamm — Dr. George Forrester
*Wyatt Alvarez — Young Jesse Parker
*Lisa Zane — Anne Gibson
*Peter Allas — Dr. Evett

Names in Point Pleasant

Many of the names in Point Pleasant, through serendipity or planning, are Biblical in nature or otherwise allude to religious themes.

Other names that have a Biblical or religious connection:
*Lucinda
*Matthew
*Paula
*Sarah
*Tomas
*Isabelle (means "Devoted to God")
*Mark
*Nick

This constitutes half of the named characters listed on the IMDB page. Nine of the fourteen characters appearing in half or more of the episodes have this sort of name.

Trivia

*The fictional Point Pleasant, New Jersey bore little resemblance to any real town in New Jersey. The town as depicted was a mashup of Point Pleasant, New Jersey, the neighboring town of Point Pleasant Beach, the town of Seaside Heights, which is nearly 17 miles south, and the neighboring town of Bay Head with liberal doses of the OC. This was a point of contention with many local residents who protested the series both for not accurately representing the local community and for associating the towns with such a dark subject. The creators of the series missed a prime opportunity by not making the series more like the actual surroundings. The real towns have an interesting mix of long-time Barnegat Bay descendants and sophisticated New York transplants. Interestingly, the several Main Street shots showing sidewalk cafes, shops, and even a local trolley line were actually scenes filmed in downtown La Mesa, a suburb of San Diego.

*Executive Producer and Co-Creator Marti Noxon allowed several connections to "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", including bringing in Adam Busch to play Wes. The two had previously worked together on "Buffy", where she was a writer and producer, and he played Warren Mears, one of the sixth-season villains.

* It was reported that Marti Noxon hoped to enlist both James Marsters and Amber Benson to guest star in the show.Fact|date=February 2007

*The 9th episode "Waking the Dead" was meant to be the last episode to air on Thursday, March 24, 2005 at 9:00 PM ET. Due to the "American Idol" "wrong number" incident, "American Idol" was shown instead. The episode was never shown on FOX, making the 8th episode "Swimming With Boyd" the last episode to air.

Episodes