The Starzl Mutation (The 4400 episode)
Encyclopedia
"The Starzl Mutation" is an episode of the science fiction
television series The 4400
.
, who asks Shawn if he knows who he is.
Back at the 4400 Center, Shawn
is meeting with a well wisher before he and Isabelle
's wedding. He is given a special cigar from one of the 4400, Claudio Borghi
, who says that when Shawn smokes it he will see his future.
Tom Baldwin and Diana Skouris
are in the woods investigating the death of a hustler. When Tom asks why NTAC was called it is revealed that the young man was mummified. A note with the number 27 is pinned to his chest. Back at NTAC Diana and Tim are told that all the cells in the hustler's body have oxidized overnight. Since there is no disease which can do this Tom and Diana are left to figure that a 4400 did it. Tom and Diana discuss Shawn's impending marriage to Isabelle, and Tom asks Diana to go with him. It is revealed that Tom is not such a fan of the marriage, and is going to talk to Shawn about it.
Shawn tells Tom that he must marry Isabelle, that its what's best for everyone.
The killer shows back up again, this time killing a lawyer working late. She is left in the stairway of the building with an 11 pinned to her. They find a partial print on the wedding band.
Back at the 4400 center Shawn decides to smoke the cigar, he has a vision of himself killing Richard
.
The print they found on the lawyer gives them a match, a man called Daren Piersal. He is not a 4400, he was an army ranger
. According to records he's been dead for a year. Tom and Diane decide to visit Daren's father, Daren wrote home to say he'd been transferred to a super special unit. He was told his son died in a six person helicopter
, but his father looked up the type of helicopter, it can only take four people. As they're leaving Tom gets another call, another body has been found. This one has the note pinned to her chest which says "92". Marco figures out that they all have the same mutation of same chromosome (11). Its called the Starzl Mutation. He explains what this means.
At a pre-wedding family dinner Shawn's brother Danny Farrell makes a speech, and congratulates the happy couple. Richard speaks, and says nothing good about Isabelle. Shawn decides that the only way to avoid the future he saw is to leave. After leaving Shawn smokes more of the cigar. This time he sees the city as a war zone and Tom is dying. When he tries to save him Tom blames himself and says its because he talked Shawn out of marrying Isabelle.
Tom and Diana go to the hospital where the bad radiation machine was to retrieve the list of paid people from the litigation years earlier. He says that someone came in a few days prior looking for the same list saying it was needed for the military for the war on terror. The numbers on the bodies are the same as their location on the list.
Shawn decides to go through with the wedding after all, and it is revealed that his earlier vision of Richard, Richard is the cause of the war he sees in both visions.
machine to treat their cancer
patients. The microswitches that controlled the machine weren't working right, so the doses were wrong. This went on for just under five years. Once the hospital figured out what they were doing they tested everyone who had ever been exposed to it and in some cases the radiation induced a small mutation
. This mutation is a slight alteration of the eleventh
chromosome
. It was named the Starzl mutation, after the company that made the bad machine. The mutation is replicable, meaning people that got it passed it onto their children. The Starzl mutation is both harmless and conserved in those offspring, they live normal healthy lives. While the offspring of a returnee normally do not retain the ability to generate promicin, a second-hand report from John Shaffner (an ex-special ops
soldier
) suggested that the offspring of a 4400 and a Starzl mutant will be "promicin-positive", meaning they will have abilities. This is believed by Tom Baldwin and Diana Skouris to be the reason why the abductees were returned to the Seattle area - it is the only place they are likely to encounter individuals who possess the Starzl mutation and therefore the only place they are likely to produce children with 4400 abilities.
This and other facts in his possession suggest Dennis Ryland has access to a source of information not generally available even to NTAC. Ryland will only say that such things happen far above his security clearance.
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
television series The 4400
The 4400
The 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...
.
Synopsis
A former Army Ranger who was recruited for a secret government program contacts NTAC when an experiment giving him and his workmates 4400 abilities goes wrong, causing one patient to go on a killing spree. The wedding of Isabelle and Shawn is interrupted by a returned Jordan CollierJordan Collier
Jordan 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:...
, who asks Shawn if he knows who he is.
Plot
The episode begins with a man picking up a male hooker on a dock. After they drive to a remote location in the woods the hooker says to his client "It'll be 40 bucks to start". The John then turns to him and says "do you know how special you are?" to which the hooker again asks for money. The John then tells him that he could change everything, and must therefore die.Back at the 4400 Center, Shawn
Shawn Farrell
Shawn 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...
is meeting with a well wisher before he and Isabelle
Isabelle Tyler
Isabelle Tyler is a fictional character on the USA Network science fiction television series The 4400.-Background:The daughter of Richard Tyler and Lily Moore, Isabelle is technically not a 4400; she was born after the 4400 were returned, after the first season of the show.- Season 1 :Lily...
's wedding. He is given a special cigar from one of the 4400, Claudio Borghi
Claudio Borghi
Claudio Daniel Borghi Bidos, , nicknamed Bichi, is an Argentine former footballer and current football manager of Chile.-Club:Borghi started his career as an Attacking midfielder for Argentinos Juniors in the early 1980s...
, who says that when Shawn smokes it he will see his future.
Tom Baldwin and Diana Skouris
Diana Skouris
Diana Skouris is a fictional character in the USA Network science fiction television series The 4400.-Season One :Initially portrayed as somewhat cold and removed, Diana Skouris was partnered with Tom Baldwin in the pilot episode to investigate the 4400 returnees. She expresses displeasure at being...
are in the woods investigating the death of a hustler. When Tom asks why NTAC was called it is revealed that the young man was mummified. A note with the number 27 is pinned to his chest. Back at NTAC Diana and Tim are told that all the cells in the hustler's body have oxidized overnight. Since there is no disease which can do this Tom and Diana are left to figure that a 4400 did it. Tom and Diana discuss Shawn's impending marriage to Isabelle, and Tom asks Diana to go with him. It is revealed that Tom is not such a fan of the marriage, and is going to talk to Shawn about it.
Shawn tells Tom that he must marry Isabelle, that its what's best for everyone.
The killer shows back up again, this time killing a lawyer working late. She is left in the stairway of the building with an 11 pinned to her. They find a partial print on the wedding band.
Back at the 4400 center Shawn decides to smoke the cigar, he has a vision of himself killing Richard
Richard Tyler
Richard 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....
.
The print they found on the lawyer gives them a match, a man called Daren Piersal. He is not a 4400, he was an army ranger
United States Army Rangers
United States Army Rangers are elite members of the United States Army. Rangers have served in recognized U.S. Army Ranger units or have graduated from the U.S. Army's Ranger School...
. According to records he's been dead for a year. Tom and Diane decide to visit Daren's father, Daren wrote home to say he'd been transferred to a super special unit. He was told his son died in a six person helicopter
Helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
, but his father looked up the type of helicopter, it can only take four people. As they're leaving Tom gets another call, another body has been found. This one has the note pinned to her chest which says "92". Marco figures out that they all have the same mutation of same chromosome (11). Its called the Starzl Mutation. He explains what this means.
At a pre-wedding family dinner Shawn's brother Danny Farrell makes a speech, and congratulates the happy couple. Richard speaks, and says nothing good about Isabelle. Shawn decides that the only way to avoid the future he saw is to leave. After leaving Shawn smokes more of the cigar. This time he sees the city as a war zone and Tom is dying. When he tries to save him Tom blames himself and says its because he talked Shawn out of marrying Isabelle.
Tom and Diana go to the hospital where the bad radiation machine was to retrieve the list of paid people from the litigation years earlier. He says that someone came in a few days prior looking for the same list saying it was needed for the military for the war on terror. The numbers on the bodies are the same as their location on the list.
Shawn decides to go through with the wedding after all, and it is revealed that his earlier vision of Richard, Richard is the cause of the war he sees in both visions.
The mutation
Starting in 1969, Seattle Presbyterian Hospital used a flawed radiationRadiation
In physics, radiation is a process in which energetic particles or energetic waves travel through a medium or space. There are two distinct types of radiation; ionizing and non-ionizing...
machine to treat their cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
patients. The microswitches that controlled the machine weren't working right, so the doses were wrong. This went on for just under five years. Once the hospital figured out what they were doing they tested everyone who had ever been exposed to it and in some cases the radiation induced a small mutation
Mutation
In molecular biology and genetics, mutations are changes in a genomic sequence: the DNA sequence of a cell's genome or the DNA or RNA sequence of a virus. They can be defined as sudden and spontaneous changes in the cell. Mutations are caused by radiation, viruses, transposons and mutagenic...
. This mutation is a slight alteration of the eleventh
Chromosome 11 (human)
thumb|right|Chromosome 11 ChartChromosome 11 is one of the 23 pairs of chromosomes in humans. Humans normally have two copies of this chromosome. Chromosome 11 spans about 134.5 million base pairs and represents between 4 and 4.5 percent of the total DNA in cells...
chromosome
Chromosome
A chromosome is an organized structure of DNA and protein found in cells. It is a single piece of coiled DNA containing many genes, regulatory elements and other nucleotide sequences. Chromosomes also contain DNA-bound proteins, which serve to package the DNA and control its functions.Chromosomes...
. It was named the Starzl mutation, after the company that made the bad machine. The mutation is replicable, meaning people that got it passed it onto their children. The Starzl mutation is both harmless and conserved in those offspring, they live normal healthy lives. While the offspring of a returnee normally do not retain the ability to generate promicin, a second-hand report from John Shaffner (an ex-special ops
Special operations
Special operations are military operations that are considered "special" .Special operations are typically performed independently or in conjunction with conventional military operations. The primary goal is to achieve a political or military objective where a conventional force requirement does...
soldier
Soldier
A soldier is a member of the land component of national armed forces; whereas a soldier hired for service in a foreign army would be termed a mercenary...
) suggested that the offspring of a 4400 and a Starzl mutant will be "promicin-positive", meaning they will have abilities. This is believed by Tom Baldwin and Diana Skouris to be the reason why the abductees were returned to the Seattle area - it is the only place they are likely to encounter individuals who possess the Starzl mutation and therefore the only place they are likely to produce children with 4400 abilities.
This and other facts in his possession suggest Dennis Ryland has access to a source of information not generally available even to NTAC. Ryland will only say that such things happen far above his security clearance.