Isabelle Tyler is a fictional character on the
USA NetworkUSA Network is an American cable television channel launched in 1977. The channel shows a variety of original and second-run programming, from syndicated TV series to edited movies...
science fictionScience fiction is a genre of fiction. It differs from fantasy in that, within the context of the story, its imaginary elements are largely possible within scientifically-established or scientifically-postulated laws of nature...
televisionTelevision is a widely used telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images, either monochromatic or color, usually accompanied by sound. "Television" may also refer specifically to a television set, television programming or television transmission...
series
The 4400The 4400 is a science fiction TV series produced by CBS Paramount Network Television in association with Sky Television, Renegade 83 and American Zoetrope for USA Network. The show was created and written by Scott Peters and René Echevarria, and it stars Joel Gretsch and Jacqueline McKenzie...
.
Background
The daughter of
Richard TylerRichard Tyler is a fictional character in the USA Network science fiction television series The 4400.- Character :One of the first 4400s to be shown, Richard is Lily Tyler's husband, and is the father of her second daughter, Isabelle Tyler....
and
Lily MooreLily Tyler is a fictional character in the USA Network science fiction television series The 4400.- Background :...
, Isabelle is technically not a 4400; she was born after the 4400 were returned, after the first season of the show.
Season 1
Lily discovers quickly after her return she is pregnant. The baby inside her is capable of communicating with her, making Lily feel unwell if there is danger- or, in the case when Lily sees her daughter, Heidi, when the baby is jealous. Lily knows early on that the baby will be a girl.
When
Jordan CollierJordan Collier is a fictional character on the USA Network science fiction television series The 4400. He is portrayed by American actor Billy Campbell.- Character Profile :...
attempts to stop Lily and Richard from leaving his complex, he touches Lily's stomach. The fetus inflicts severe injuries on him, that even
Shawn FarrellShawn Farrell is a fictional character in the USA Network science fiction television series The 4400.- Season One :Shawn was born December 12, 1983, and disappeared April 22, 2001 from Highland Beach near Seattle, Washington, while with his cousin Kyle Baldwin...
cannot fully heal months later.
As Lily is being driven to the hospital in labour, the trees lining the road actually bend down towards the car as it passes.
Season 2
After Isabelle's birth, Lily, Richard and Isabelle went on the run from NTAC and Jordan Collier, with Isabelle using several powers to aid the family in their situation. As they were being chased by a deranged family of 4400-haters, she first made fruit grow on plants and later forced the armed men to shoot themselves. The family were eventually persuaded to return to the
4400 CenterThe 4400 Center is a fictional building in the science fiction TV series The 4400. According to a postcard in the Season 3 episode "Gone", the fictional location of the center is 6265 Crescent Road, Seattle, WA...
, in large part as Isabelle seemed to trust Jordan Collier's sincerity. She also apparently healed the remaining damage she had inflicted on him.
However, Isabelle still sensed that Collier was dangerous and greedy. When his death was predicted in a vision of
Maia SkourisMaia Skouris is a fictional character on the USA Network science fiction TV show The 4400.- Season One :...
', Collier asked Isabelle for advice. The baby Isabelle showed Collier a vision of what she knew he wanted to see - prestige and glory. This vision persuaded Collier that he was safe but he was assassinated shortly after.
As the 4400 became ill as a result of the
promicinPromicin is a fictional neurotransmitter in the USA Network science fiction television series The 4400.- Background :The human body produces neurotransmitters that control and regulate bodily functions. In The 4400, every 4400 produces a fictitious neurotransmitter called promicin that enables him...
inhibitor, Dr
Kevin BurkhoffKevin Burkhoff is a fictional character on the USA Network science fiction tv show, The 4400.-Season Two:Kevin first appeared in the season two premiere episode "Wake Up Call," in which he was a patient in a psychiatric hospital. Kevin suffered from paranoid personality disorder and had not...
stated he could develop a cure using uncontaminated blood that contained promicin. Isabelle had not been treated with the inhibitor, as her parents had gone on the run from NTAC before her birth, so her blood was used to heal Shawn Farrell and consequently all 4400s, unbinding their abilities. At the end of
Mommy's Bosses"Mommy's Bosses" is an episode of the science fiction television series The 4400.- Synopsis :Tom and Diana discover the source of the plague afflicting the 4400 — a discovery that will change their lives.- Plot :...
she aged to adulthood, and walks into Shawn's office, naked.
Season 3
Dr Burkhoff finds a link between Isabelle's aging and Lily's sudden aging to that of an elderly woman. As Isabelle's body grows stronger, Lily's becomes more frail, inflicting diabetes, arthritis, and other diseases on her. Burkhoff believes the only way to save Lily would be for Isabelle to actually die; Isabelle tries to commit suicide by jumping from the roof of the 4400 Center, but is unharmed. She is chastised by Matthew Ross, who informs her that she is indestructible and of vital importance to the future. Lily finally dies of old age, after giving Isabelle her own grandmother's ring.
According to Ross, her purpose is to eliminate all of the 4400, as not everyone in the future believed they are a beneficial thing. This was confirmed later in season 4, when Isabelle was described by 4400 Curtis Peck as being the "ultimate weapon" of the anti-4400 faction in the future. Isabelle refused to believe it, saying that (as described by
Shawn FarrellShawn Farrell is a fictional character in the USA Network science fiction television series The 4400.- Season One :Shawn was born December 12, 1983, and disappeared April 22, 2001 from Highland Beach near Seattle, Washington, while with his cousin Kyle Baldwin...
) being good or evil was a matter of choice.
Isabelle is still, however, a dangerous mixture of youthful innocence and deadly power. On Ross' advice, she begins a sexual relationship with Shawn, one that her father strongly objects to. She finally rejects Ross' influence, and plans to marry Shawn, despite his clear statement that he wants to end the relationship. Isabelle responds with a veiled threat, stating that they were the two most powerful people on the planet- and that, without his "good" influence, she may do terrible things.
Isabelle begins secretly working with
Dennis RylandDennis Ryland is a fictional character on the USA Network science fiction The 4400 portrayed by Peter Coyote.The original supervisor and director of NTAC during season one....
, to ensure "the balance of power" between 4400s and non-4400s is maintained. Promicin is extracted from her blood, and used in Ryland's super-soldier program. Still engaged to Shawn, her intense concern for his well-being leads her to torture and kill several members of the Nova Group in an attempt to track down Daniel Armand, who afflicted Shawn with paranoid schizophrenia. She is detained by NTAC but there is no evidence to tie Isabelle to the murders, forcing her to be released.
After the resurrected Jordan Collier bars her from the 4400 Center, leaving her marriage plans in ruins, Isabelle openly allies herself with Dennis Ryland. When Isabelle and Ryland find what is apparently the storehouse of stolen promicin, Boyd Gelder detonates a suicide bomb. This attempt to kill Isabelle enrages her, and she goes on the rampage, killing 4400s at the Center in an attempt to lure Collier to her. As she is about to murder
Maia SkourisMaia Skouris is a fictional character on the USA Network science fiction TV show The 4400.- Season One :...
, her father manages to inject her with the serum sent from the future; instead of killing her (as everyone expected), it strips her of her abilities. She is then wounded by Tom Baldwin and taken into custody.
Season 4
In prison for her crimes, Isabelle is visited by Tom Baldwin, seeking information on his wife's whereabouts. Isabelle directs him to an art gallery, where a picture of Alana hangs- painted in 1885. How Isabelle knew this is unclear; it is implied that her connection to the future may have somehow been responsible, but is also likely that she saw the painting in one of the many books she read after growing to adulthood, and remembered it after the timeline was altered by Alana's re-abduction.
Isabelle is offered the chance to move to a less secure facility. She gives a blood sample, and is later told that the serum given to her by Richard also induced a fatal allergy to promicin; she will never regain her abilities. However, the transport that takes Isabelle to the facility crashes in a car accident.
Kyle BaldwinKyle Baldwin is a fictional character in the USA Network science fiction television series The 4400.- Season One :Kyle is Tom and Linda Baldwin's son and Shawn Farrell's cousin. The two were drinking beer at Highland beach in 2001 when Shawn was abducted. After Shawn's abduction, Kyle is shown...
, at the scene because of his ability, helps Isabelle escape and takes her to his family's rural cabin.
In
The Truth and Nothing But the Truth"The Truth and Nothing But the Truth" is the fourth episode of season four of the science fiction television series The 4400. The episode aired July 8, 2007 on the USA Network.- Synopsis :...
, Isabelle reveals that despite the fact she no longer has her powers, she has kept her massive intelligence and memory. Due to her knowledge of
numerologyNumerology is any of many systems, traditions or beliefs in a mystical or esoteric relationship between numbers and physical objects or living things....
and
cryptographyCryptography is the practice and study of hiding information. Modern cryptography intersects the disciplines of mathematics, computer science, and engineering...
, Isabelle helps Kyle decode the White Light "bible", revealing essential information about the future of Collier's movement and a list of people who must take promicin. Kyle and Isabelle later meet Collier, and form an alliance with him. Isabelle reveals the reason she wants to help Collier is to give her life meaning, and seek redemption for her past atrocities. Collier warns her that at the slightest sign of making him "nervous" her invitation will be terminated, presumably with her life.
After the movement journeys to Seattle, Kyle brings Shawn to meet Collier, and Isabelle tells Shawn that she knows he will never forgive her- but she needed him to know how sorry she was for her past acts. When
Maia SkourisMaia Skouris is a fictional character on the USA Network science fiction TV show The 4400.- Season One :...
enters
Promise CityPromise City is a fictional location in the science fiction television series The 4400.- History :Promise City was founded by Jordan Collier with the guidance of Kyle Baldwin. It is created as a safe haven for people who are promicin-positive , and also serves as the base of Collier's movement to...
to warn Collier his life is in danger, Isabelle tells Maia that she's sorry for hurting people Maia cares about. Maia scornfully responds that some things are so bad, saying "sorry" isn't enough.
When Isabelle's father Richard Tyler returned and met her at Promise City, he mentioned how sorry he was that he was unable to teach her right from wrong. He used his ability of telekenesis to stop the flow of blood to her brain to render her unconscious. He then gave her water that later caused her to regress until she was a toddler. Unknown to Isabelle the water had been influenced by a 4400 with the special ability to reverse aging.
In
One of Us"One of Us" is the tenth episode of season four of the science fiction television series The 4400. The episode aired on August 19, 2007 on the USA Network.- Synopsis :Tom and Diana look for Richard, but Tom is distracted by his dreams about the future...
, after returning to the developmental stage of approximately two years old she resumes life as a contented and happy toddler with no memory of her adult life. Richard, her father, is happy. However, her mother
Lily TylerLily Tyler is a fictional character in the USA Network science fiction television series The 4400.- Background :...
reappears in Isabelle's and Richard's lives. While she doesn't know how she got there she is unhappy about how Richard took away Isabelle's life as a young adult and all she had learned. Lily is really a projection into his mind by another 4400, Byron Lillibridge who vanished on February 28, 1966 and
Kyle BaldwinKyle Baldwin is a fictional character in the USA Network science fiction television series The 4400.- Season One :Kyle is Tom and Linda Baldwin's son and Shawn Farrell's cousin. The two were drinking beer at Highland beach in 2001 when Shawn was abducted. After Shawn's abduction, Kyle is shown...
in Promise City, although she appears and feels real both to herself and to Richard. She soon is returned to whence she came. Richard, realizing it was wrong to take away Isabelle's adult life reverses the youth process with the help of another 4400, Cora Tomkins who disappeared on November 2, 1950 (making her a contemporary of Richard who disappeared seven months later in May 1951). She was the one who produced the water like substance that reverses the aging process. She also has the ability to restore the person to the age that person was before and returns her to her early 20's age. She and her father are soon captured by Tom Baldwin, who is really under the influence of an enigmatic anti-4400 faction from the future known as the "Marked" (which Matthew Ross was a member of). After regaining her powers and being strong-armed into helping the Marked, she resumes her bloody campaign against the 4400 and kidnaps Collier, but ultimately rebels once again, sacrificing herself to free Collier and freed Tom, who had come to Collier's aid beforehand.
Abilities
Isabelle possesses several paranormal abilities, though they were temporarily removed by an injection sent by the people from the future:
- Illusions
- Limited-Precognition
Precognition , also called Future Sight, refers to perception that involves the acquisition of future information that cannot be deduced from presently available and normally acquired sense-based information...
- Control over other 4400 powers
- Tissue regeneration
- Increased Learning
- Telekinesis
- Telepathy
Telepathy is supposed to be the transfer of information on thoughts or feelings between individuals by means other than the five senses . The term was coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Fredric W. H...
- Psychopyresis
She was not affected by Shawn Farrell's ability to drain someone's life-force. Note that many of these powers duplicate those from among the 4400.
She had worked with
Haspel CorporationHaspel Corporation is fictional company from the science fiction television series The 4400.- History :A private defense contracting company of which Dennis Ryland is an executive, Haspel Corporation is the only known manufacturer of promicin which they had been getting by filtering the blood from...
and was the source of the promicin they used in attempts to induce 4400 mutations in people who were never abducted. She left after HaspelCorp's team was destroyed by Boyd Gelder's suicide bomb. Afterwards, she moved to attack the 4400 Center but ended up losing her abilities when her father used his telekinesis to inject her with a serum given to Tom Baldwin by the people from the future. She was shot by Baldwin, but survived, and was held in custody. In the fourth season premiere, she was visited in prison by Baldwin, who was looking for information on his missing girlfriend, Alana, believing Isabelle would have the closest connection to the people from the future.
During the episode Fear Itself, it is revealed by a prison official that Isabelle has contracted a promicin allergy and would die if she takes the promicin shot, made available by
Jordan CollierJordan Collier is a fictional character on the USA Network science fiction television series The 4400. He is portrayed by American actor Billy Campbell.- Character Profile :...
to try and regain her abilities.
During the episode
One of Us"One of Us" is the tenth episode of season four of the science fiction television series The 4400. The episode aired on August 19, 2007 on the USA Network.- Synopsis :Tom and Diana look for Richard, but Tom is distracted by his dreams about the future...
it is revealed that the agent from the future who is possessing Tom Baldwin intends to restore Isabelle's powers, via complete blood transfusion, and in the episode
Tiny Machines"Tiny Machines" is the twelfth episode of season four of the science fiction television series The 4400. The episode aired on September 9, 2007 on the USA Network.- Synopsis :...
she is seen using her powers on Jordan Collier's body guards.