1.13: Trouble with Harry

[Dave]

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[Dave]

This episode is a fan favourite, probably because of the humour. They haven’t done an episode with this much humour before, but in amongst that, we were given a tremendous amount of new information on the Sentients.

A Synthetic climbs out of a “growing tank†in a synthetics lab and escapes followed by ‘Men in Black’. He picks up a phone, and uses the weird noise, first heard in ‘Flux’, to knock them out.

Angela meets Enrico Penya (a Baseball player), someone she turned down last time around, but this time agrees to let him call her for a date.

Later the Synthetic (now some clumsy, nerdy guy with glasses) follows her. She dismisses him, until he begins giving the code words they agreed upon in ‘Kitten’ (Siegfried and Roy, Tova) He asks to meet everyone, and also knows about ‘Kit-10’, but they laugh when he calls himself Harry Mudd. Kurt introduces himself as Dr. Leonard McCoy. Neil notices that he has no fingerprints or lines on his hands and they realise that he is a Synthetic.

Two MIBs with sunglasses spot them and they think the set-up is a trap. They leave in Chuck’s car, pursued by the MIBs in a car, and Harry running (accompanied by ‘Six Million Dollar Man’ noises. He climbs in the car, and tells them the MIBs are after him, not them. He stole the body from another Synthetic who wants it back, and he is clumsy because his neural net is incomplete. He calls the MIBs on a mobile phone and uses the weird noise again. The pursuing vehicle crashes, but Harry says they will adapt to it. To help them trust him, Harry shows how using his phone, they can take him on or off line.

The MIBs are synthetic, because they can jump about 12 feet in the air to avoid Chuck's car.

The next part is classic:

Harry: “Sentients are really just beings that suck up data and code from the Internet. The more useful and complex the data, the more powerful the Sentients become. Except not all Sentients take up useful data, some feed on what might be considered junk; conspiracy theories, pornography, Internet sites about cancelled TV shows and comic books.â€

Neil: “Bottom feeders!â€

Harry: “Wow! Judgemental isn’t he?â€

He goes on to tell them about Phadera, a clinically insane Sentient that wants to destroy the world using Strangelets – theoretical subatomic particles. We also learn that Sentients have seven different genders, and that a Sentients personality is dependent upon what they feed on. (It appears that Harry has downloaded the whole of his sentient self into this stolen body, which seems unlikely from what we have previously discussed.) He claims to have all the knowledge of three Internet chefs and proceeds to set fire to Chuck’s kitchen.

Kurt theorises how strange Quarks (Strangelets) could destroy the world. Most of the gang visit an atomic physics super-collider lab. Negatively charged Strangelets, attracted to positively charged nuclei, in normal matter, are apparently dangerous, consuming the nuclei and then producing more Strangelets in a chain reaction. Strangelets cannot consume the world however; because the evidence shows equal numbers of positive and negative Strangelets will be made. They find that Phadera has accessed the data of the super-collider experiments, and altered the results. The next experiment will destroy the world!!!!

Somehow, I think not! These experiments only work because atomic nuclei are rammed together at incredible speeds using more power than a small city. If you could produce Strangelets, you would still need them to interact with the nuclei of other atoms. This wouldn’t work like an atomic bomb. They are confusing atomic reactions with sub-atomic reactions, I think? (Is there a physicist in the house?) I think there is something called ‘the weak force’ that would prevent this.

Meanwhile, Harry and Neil watch Star Trek and rubbish the idea of transporters. While Kurt sleeps, Harry reads his “impressive collection of pornographyâ€. By this point the episode is quite funny. Harry invites two of Kurt’s female companions round and discovers sex.

Showing how the password Phadera will access the data (not a valid password) they manage to convince the lab director of their theory. The super-collider powers up. It can’t be shut down. Harry interfaces with the computer but can’t stop it. He talks to Phadera. She is heartsick and depressed because an enemy Sentient absorbed her companion Sentient. She finds that the more she learns, the more questions remain unanswered and she wants to end it all.

Harry teaches Phadera about art, music and… LOVE… and she agrees to merge with him.

Everyone thinks about Love.

 

[RangerOne SG13 SOR]

A great episode.

We learnt so much from it.

We know for sure that they duplicate/replicate. Harry said there was 7 genders of sentients.

They are aggressive to each other, and they combining powers. If Harry seeked out the group then there must be others who are beniegn and pose no threat to the Earth.

The real dangers are from sentients who seek to control all and those whos personalities are twisted or chaotic.

Some sentients have ammased a lot of power as well as soldiers. Now we know that sentients can take a physical form (in a synths body) only problem is once out of teh net they are cut off from the source of knowledge (this is what they feed on)

The polt with pheadra and the atomics lab, the experiment result of "stranglets" being formed (anti matter that eats matter) was that a red herring or THE way the Earth is destroyed.

The results were pretty much the same except im sure they said the Earth would Implode where as the Earth Exploded in the timeline.

Shame we wont see Harry again but maybe we will see others? He had a real impact on the group who at first mistrusted him on finding he was a sentient.

Favourite moments was in the Car with the mobile as an on and off button LOL that was great and the scene at Kurts flat. Wasnt he a gentleman not to turn those 2 nice ladies away.

Again what a cool episode.


Ranger

 

[Dave]

Originally posted by RangerOne SG13 SOR
The plot with pheadra and the atomics lab, the experiment result of "stranglets" being formed (anti matter that eats matter) was that a red herring or THE way the Earth is destroyed.

The results were pretty much the same except im sure they said the Earth would Implode where as the Earth Exploded in the timeline.

My sub atomic Physics isn't so good. I'm sure that what they said can't happen. But I think that if we are to believe the tale spun here, about the production of strange particles being the cause, then what was seen in the pilot episode is how it might look.

The Earth didn't really 'explode' outwards in the opening sequences, there was a definate change that took place, starting at one side and moving forward in a front across the planet, affecting all matter, even clouds in the atmosphere. It seemed to be a change in the form of the matter, resulting in some brown gaseous product. It didn't 'implode' either, but that wasn't a scientific description -- I can't remember who said that.

 

[Brit Chick]

does anyone know if Sky repeat these eps (like they do on Saturdays with SG1) I'd been out to an xmas lunch that ended at about 8.p.m !!!! I remember watching up about as far as the scene in the car where they were swtiching him on and off - very funny - next thing I remember is 'The TV Years'

 

[Krystal]

This was a great episode, I love specially Ted Raimi's acting in it, make me remember his character of Joxer in this one. As always he sure knows how to make one laugh. All the story about Harry with Phaedra at the end was very cool. It was a cool episode.

Krystal

 

[Tabitha]

*trying not to read the above posts*


I MISSED this episode...
My flatmate was very kind to stick in the video, but somehow managed to tape black screen instead of actual tv.
Goodness knows when it will be repeated. Any UK folks that would be interested in helping me out on this one, I would be very grateful. PM me or something...

 

[Tabitha]

Originally posted by Brit Chick
does anyone know if Sky repeat these eps (like they do on Saturdays with SG1) I'd been out to an xmas lunch that ended at about 8.p.m !!!! I remember watching up about as far as the scene in the car where they were swtiching him on and off - very funny - next thing I remember is 'The TV Years'

If you have SKy Digital, I think they repeat them on "Sky Mix", I have cable digital, and as far as I can tell we can't get that particular channel.

Let me think back to the bad old days of first and second year uni physics. It seems very unlikely that these strangelets could become involved in a chain reaction - I think that nuclei of atoms are relatively very far apart, and unless the charge on the strangelets was very very strong, I can't see how they could be attracted to a neutron at a great distance... Mind you, my knowledge kinda stops just short of quarks, never mind strangelets...

This was possibly my favouritest episode of Odyssey 5 yet. Ted Raimi is always a pleasure (well, apart from when he is in Seaquest ) and he has a wonderful role in this episode. My only worry is that he will never get to come back, as the body is now 'dead' and buried in the ground, so even if Harry is able to download himself once more, he will have to be in another body. If his is able to extricate himself from Phaedra.

Yet again the reality of the characters shine through - if you had a geek's on/off switch, wouldn't you toggle it a few times?
While the downloaded Sentient was reminiscent of characters such as Jeff Bridges' Starman, and the chatting with Phaedra scene reminded me of the tension of persuading HAL that human life was more important than his own consciousness in 2010, I still loved how the O5 gang dealt with these events.

Harry: “Sentients are really just beings that suck up data and code from the Internet. The more useful and complex the data, the more powerful the Sentients become. Except not all Sentients take up useful data, some feed on what might be considered junk; conspiracy theories, pornography, Internet sites about cancelled TV shows and comic books.â€

Neil: “Bottom feeders!â€

This made me laugh out loud, but in a strange way. Are they poking fun at us in the same way that they are poking fun at the entire SF genre in this ep, or did this feel a little cruel? The first thing that came to mind is how close the show seems to be to cancellation, and how this statement seems to have a little more resonance than it ought to.

I think my favourite part of the episode is the scene in which Harry and Neil are watching classic trek and debating over the possibilities of teleportation. Interesting that Neil would be having that kind of debate, while at the same time deriding trek fans as bottom feeders
I found the scene kind of touching, actually, when Neil admits to liking having someone around to have those sorts of conversations with...


I have more to say, but think I will ration it for a bit - don't want to spend ALL of Xmas eve chained to my 'puter

 

[Kitty]

i loved this episode especially when Neil was turning Harry off and on.

i think Kurt was really cool in this episode too. and the way he is portrayed as a bit of a playboy just cracks me up.

 

[Tabitha]

OK I changed my mind

Two MIBs with sunglasses spot them and they think the set-up is a trap. They leave in Chuck’s car, pursued by the MIBs in a car, and Harry running (accompanied by ‘Six Million Dollar Man’ noises.

THAT part is my favourite. Oh I laughed my legs off when that that 6M$ Man reference happened

 

[Dave]

Another quote from Harry Mudd was "Well, as a rock and roll scientist once said, wherever you go, there you are."

That is a quote from 'The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzi Across the Eighth Dimension'. In another life, Peter Weller once played the 'rock-n-roll scientist', Buckaroo Banzi