Now and Again (1999) s01e10 Episode Script

1
NARRATOR: An ordinary man,
insurance executive, 45 years old,
stumbles to his death
on a subway platform
in New York City.
Or does he?
Unbeknownst to his wife or child,
his brain is rescued
from the accident scene
by a secret branch
of the United States government,
and put into the body of an
artificially-produced 26-year-old man
who has the strength of Superman,
the speed of Michael Jordan,
and the grace of Fred Astaire.
The only catch,
under penalty of death,
he can never let anyone from his past
know he is still alive.
And that, my friends, is a problem.
For this man is desperately in love
with his wife, his daughter,
and his former life.
[GROANS]
MORRIS [SINGING]: Oh, child
Things are gonna get easier ♪
Oh, child, things will get brighter ♪
Oh, no. I'm having a nightmare about
that mad scientist Don Cornelius.
Oh, child
Things are gonna get easier ♪
Oh, child, things will get brighter ♪
Some day now we'll put it together
And we'll get it all done ♪
Some day
When your head is much lighter ♪
Lighter? My head's removable.
Some day now, we'll walk
In the rays of a beautiful sun ♪
Some day
When the world is much brighter ♪
[IN NORMAL VOICE]
Everybody.
[SINGING] Oh, child
Things are gonna get easier ♪
Why can't I at least pick my own song
to sing in the shower?
La, la, la, Ia, Ia, Ia, la, la ♪
[CHUCKLES]
[IN NORMAL VOICE]
Good morning, Mr. Wiseman.
Says you.
And to what do we owe
this burst of good cheer?
I'm dying from the monotony, doc.
Every morning it's the same thing.
Six a.m., the shutters open,
the sun comes in, you serenade me.
And then you feed me gruel,
and you exercise me
till it's afternoon.
And then it's some kind
of vegetable swill for lunch.
More exercise, dinner and bed.
Every day.
Day in and day out.
Haven't you heard?
Variety is the spice of life.
Wake me up at 7:17 sometime.
Go wild, put some raisins
in my bran,
Bosco in my milk.
I need a change, doc.
And a change you shall have.
You're kidding?
I kid you not.
Tomorrow we're going on a trip
to the mountains.
A trip to the mountains?
For survival training.
Survival training?
Sure. You're gonna love it.
We drop you from a plane
smack in the middle
of the Adirondacks
without food, water or a compass,
and see if you can find your way back
to civilization.
Boy, you do know fun.
And to keep things interesting,
my entire staff
will be out there stalking you.
- Stalking me?
- Mm-hm.
With these.
Really, you spoil me.
Now, forgive me for telling you
something you already know,
but I think it bears reiterating.
I'm not bulletproof.
Really?
You sure?
[YELLS]
My God.
You survived.
And that was
the really tough weather-duty paint.
HEATHER:
Mom.
Mom. Mom.
It's starting.
Mom, my 35-year-old ex-convict
boyfriend is here to take me away,
but he wanted to meet you
before we take off for the state line.
Would that be okay?
Hi, honey.
Mom, I've been calling you
for, like, five minutes.
It's about to start.
I-- I really-- I have to keep at it.
Go ahead and watch it without me.
But it's an award show, Mom.
You can't watch it alone.
You need somebody
to mock the proceedings with.
I know, I know, I know,
but my test is tomorrow night.
Relax. How hard could it be?
I mean, Jenny's mom,
she passed her real estate test
on the first try,
and she thinks Wheel of Fortune
is educational television.
Look, I think I hear
the opening number. I gotta go.
[GROANS]
Hello?
Hello?
Anybody out there listening?
Hey, Big Brother.
Aren't we taking a class trip
to the mountains today?
Okay, play hard to get,
but I'm getting hungry,
and I'm getting lonely,
and I'm getting bored.
Mom? I need you
to sign my geometry
and I need you to give me money
for my class pictures,
and remember,
you have to bake cookies
for the orchestra bake sale.
[ALARM WAILING]
[GROANS]
LISA:
What is there to be afraid of?
There's nothing to be afraid of.
It's just a multiple choice test.
And life is a multiple choice test
all by itself,
if you're lucky enough
to live in a free country.
For instance,
the question of the moment is:
Should I, Lisa Wiseman, A,
go upstairs and shower and dress,
B, drink some coffee
or, C, lay back down?
Good answer.
[ALARM WAILING]
Excuse me.
Uh
Excuse me!
- You live here?
- Hi.
Oh, thank goodness.
You work with Dr. Morris?
I don't work with anybody.
I live next door.
Do you live here or are you--?
You seem very, uh,
casual for a robber.
No, I live here.
Oh, good,
because your front door is wide open.
You can hear the alarm
for three blocks away.
Yeah, I know.
So, then,
can I ask you a question?
Sure.
Why don't you shut off the alarm?
Don't know how.
You forget the code?
You know how it is.
Okay.
Any idea why the alarm company
hasn't shown up?
Nope. But I would think somebody
would come by pretty soon.
Well, I hope so.
Well, your place is very, um, unique.
Thank you.
I appreciate you being so cool
about this.
Yeah, well, if it doesn't stop
within half an hour,
I'm calling the police.
Right.
Mrs. Wiseman?
Perhaps. I'm sorry, your name?
Isley.
Forgive me for ringing your bell
so early in the morning.
Actually, I'm here
to try and locate Mr. Wiseman.
Michael Wiseman?
Oh, well, I don't know who you are
or what you want,
but my husband passed away
ten months ago.
I know that, Mrs. Wiseman.
But I also know he's sought you out
from time to time since then.
All I'm asking is,
if he should stop by,
would you please give me a call?
[ALARM WAILING]
[GRUNTS]
[ALARM STOPS]
Doc?
[DOOR OPENS]
MAN:
Mr. Wiseman?
Mr. Wiseman.
Your friend Dr. Morris sent us here.
He asked us to bring you.
Bring me? Bring me where,
the mountains?
And aren't you guys carrying
this Lyme disease thing a little far?
MAN: He told us to come here,
shut off the alarm, and bring you.
Please come with us.
All right.
But do me a couple of favors.
One, lower the guns
till we get outside.
We don't wanna get any paint
in the pool.
Two, radio ahead
and let them know I'm hungry.
Real hungry.
And angry. Really angry.
But nothing a little chocolate cake
couldn't fix.
Look, I'm not expecting miracles.
Just take your best shot.
Even if all I get are extra croutons
on my salad, it's worth it to me.
All right, show me your wheels,
boys.
Let's get this show on the road.
If we're headed to the mountains,
how come we're still in the city
and headed south?
Say, listen, back to the food thing
for a minute.
How about we stop and grab a couple
of breakfast sandwiches?
You know, a couple of slices
of highly processed bread
with eggs, sausages,
some fried potatoes on there?
We can even pick one up
for the doc.
He'd like that, don't you think?
MAN 1:
Yeah, sounds good.
That's what I thought.
[MAN 2 GRUNTS]
Let's see what kind of paint
you're packing.
Who are you?
Dr. Morris didn't send you.
Where is Dr. Morris?
I'll tell you. I'll tell you.
[TOILET FLUSHES]
Pardon me.
Sorry to be so gruff, Mr. Bender,
but I'm on a very tight schedule.
The organization I'm working for
has reason to believe
that since his untimely passing,
you've had intermittent contact
with Michael Wiseman.
My people are prepared
to pay $1 million
if you can facilitate a meeting
between us
and the gentleman in question.
But--
But the gentleman in question
is dead.
A million-five is as high
as I'm authorized to go.
MICHAEL [OVER PHONE]:
Hello? I'd like to report a kidnapping.
No, I'm not the subject's parent.
We're talking about an adult male,
Dr. Theodore Mo--
Yes, I'll slow down. Sorry. Uh
Morris.
M-O-R-R-I-S.
Of course I'm sure he was kidnapped.
He didn't show up for work today.
Well, no, I haven't called his home.
I don't have that number.
Yes, I consider myself
a close friend.
My name? My name is--
Forget it.
[GROANS]
MAN:
Taxi! Taxi!
WOMAN [OVER PHONE]: Welcome
to National Information Assistance.
- What city?
- New York.
WOMAN:- What state?
- New York.
WOMAN:- What listing?
- Dr. Theodore Morris.
WOMAN: We show six listings
for your request. First listing
Six listings?
WOMAN:
Area code, 212-555-0195
Wait a second, I don't have a pencil.
I'll call you back.
Excuse me, uh, do you have a pencil
I could borrow for, like, five minutes?
WOMAN:- Sixty-three cents.
- No, I meant to borrow.
Sixty-three cents.
You don't understand,
I just want to borro--
Sixty-three cents. Man.
Sixty-three cents. Sixty-three cents.
Forget that. I want a pen.
You sure? Dollar ninety-eight.
Sure, I'm sure. I'm loaded.
And a pad.
Gee, are those peanut butter cups
you got back there?
Hi, I'm looking
for a Dr. Theodore Morris.
You don't have a doctor?
Just a Ted.
All right, thank you anyway.
[PHONE RINGING]
HEATHER [ON RECORDING]: Hello.
This is the Wiseman residence.
We can't come to the phone
right now,
so please leave a message
at the beep.
[HORNS HONKING OVER PHONE]
[DIAL TONE]
First right, then a left,
another right, second door.
Talk to the officer on duty.
Next.
- Hi. I've got two things.
- First thing?
Well, I'd like to report
a missing person.
- Name?
- The missing man's name
is Dr. Theodore Morris.
- And you are?
- Unimportant.
Unimportant?
Look, I've already tried calling this in
and you people
keep getting hung up on who I am
instead of who the missing person is.
I'm not missing.
Dr. Theodore Morris is.
And he's a very important guy.
A very important guy?
Very. He works for the government
doing top-secret work.
I don't know who you call
to check those things out,
but I'm sure you do,
and you should call and check.
Dr. Theodore Morris,
he's missing and it's bad.
This, uh, Dr. Morris,
he wouldn't be your doctor, would he?
We are involved
in a highly sensitive project, yes.
But I really can't say more than that.
I had a hunch.
Let's move on to the second thing.
- Excuse me?
- You said there were two things.
Oh, yeah. Uh
Would it be all right
if I just hung around here for a while?
Well, we generally don't encourage
that kind of thing. No.
The reason I ask is--
It's hard to explain,
but if I stay
in one place long enough,
the people who keep tabs on me
will eventually track me down.
I see. And you want that?
Can't they track you down outside?
Oh, sure they could.
Of course they could.
But I've also got these other fellows
after me.
I'm gonna guess. Bad fellows.
Yeah. And I just figured
that if I stayed in here,
the good guys could find me,
but the bad guys would stay away.
Well, that's sound thinking,
my friend.
But, unfortunately,
the only people allowed in here
are people who are reporting crimes
or people who have committed crimes
and are under arrest.
Now, what I'm gonna do is this.
I'm gonna ask one
of the officers upstairs
make some calls
and see if there really is a Dr. Morris.
Because, frankly, you sound to me like
you could use a doctor of some sort.
- Thank you.
- Take a seat over there.
Give me a couple of minutes.
[RINGS]
HEATHER [ON RECORDING]: Hello.
This is the Wiseman residence.
We can't come to the phone
right now,
so please leave a message
at the beep.
ROGER: Lisa, it's Roger.
I just got your message.
I should be at the office.
Roger. I'm here.
I'm just screening my calls.
Thank you so much
for getting back to me.
ROGER:
Oh, no, no, my pleasure.
Uh, so today is the big day, huh?
Uh, when is test time?
LISA:
It's not until 7:30.
That's not why I called.
I had a very odd experience
this morning that--
A man with a business card
asked you about Michael.
How did you know?
Mom?
There's some guy out front,
and it felt like he was watching me
the whole time I walked up the walk.
Lock the door.
I'm coming right over.
MAN 1:
Sir. Sir.
The fellows upstairs
made a couple of calls.
You wouldn't be Mr. Wiseman,
would you?
What if I were?
Then you've been straight with me
all along.
Turns out your friend
is an important fellow.
And apparently, he knows a lot
of other important fellows
- and they've been looking for you.
- Well, I figured they had to be.
Come on. Let's go upstairs,
talk to some people,
see if we can't get this whole thing
straightened out.
Oh, you're a very popular guy.
- And from what I hear, very special.
- It's nothing, really.
I just happened to be
in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Well, I think these guys
will be able to help you, Mr. Wiseman.
MAN 2:
Don't damage him.
[HORN HONKING]
It's Uncle Roger.
I wonder what he's honking about.
Why doesn't he get out of the car
and come to the door?
Why doesn't he come in?
[PHONE RINGING]
HEATHER [ON RECORDING]: Hello.
This is the Wiseman residence.
We can't come to the phone
right now,
so please leave a message
at the beep.
ROGER:
Lisa, it's Roger.
Listen, I'm sure you're gonna think
I'm being paranoid,
but I think someone followed me
over here.
So, uh, maybe
rather than my coming in,
it might make more sense
if you came out and got into my car.
Roger, I have this test in three hours
that I have been trying to study for
all day.
[OVER PHONE] Don't you think
it might be possible--?
I believe we may all be in danger.
I'll get the coats.
I'll grab your books.
- He gave me this.
- He gave me this.
- Where are we going?
- Wow, he found you too.
What does it mean?
Well, I-- I fear
it's all some hideous terrible mistake.
The man to whom I spoke
seemed unwilling
or incapable of accepting the idea
that Michael is gone.
Isn't the point of having a car
to move?
I mean, if some guy
is following us, trailing us,
I mean,
you're making his job a lot easier
by just sitting here in the driveway.
Heather. But wait a second.
I'm starting to think
that maybe we're overreacting.
I mean,
a strange man came to my door,
he didn't hurt me,
he didn't threaten me.
Yeah, he spooked me a little, sure,
but he also gave me
his phone number.
Now, if he was up to no good,
he wouldn't give me
his phone number, would he?
You got a point there.
Why don't we call him?
And tell him what?
You can begin by telling him
where Mr. Wiseman is.
There's nothing to be afraid of.
I just need some information.
Once I have it, I'll be on my way.
May I join you?
Heather, get out of the car.
Go to Gretchen's and stay there.
Don't come home till I call you.
May I just ask a question?
Who is it you're protecting?
Your government?
How do you think the organization
I work for heard of your husband
if not through someone in your
government who was forced or bribed
or just sought to impress
by sharing this deep secret?
What secret?
I don't know
what you're talking about.
My husband sold insurance.
He had nothing to do
with the government.
He voted, he paid taxes, that's it.
We're just regular people.
I have a little girl.
I'm supposed to take my realtor's test
in three hours.
Winter is coming, so I have
to rummage through the basement
and find the snow tires,
and I don't know
what a snow tire looks like.
That's it. That's who I am.
And I'm even less.
Wanna see where he lives?
Where your husband has lived
since he died?
Well?
MAN:
Go fish.
[LAUGHING]
- I'm sorry.
- What is so humorous?
No, nothing. It is not humorous.
It's sad or it's sick.
I just can't think of anything else to do
but laugh.
This is it?
This is where my husband
has been living?
So we've been led to believe. Yes.
Ever since his death
ten months ago.
Pardon me,
but did you hear what you just said?
I mean, listen to yourself.
You're not making any sense.
This is unbelievable.
Do you know who lives here?
I do.
A man by the name of Newman.
Not Wiseman, Newman.
No, Wiseman.
No, Newman.
MICHAEL:
Dr. Morris. Doc.
Wow.
Doc, you lying bastard,
you do watch me.
[LISA LAUGHS ON MONITOR]
LISA:
Oh, this is hysterical.
You have obviously confused
my late husband with Mr. Newman.
Mrs. Wiseman--
If you knew how completely different
they were.
Michael is--
Was so solid.
And Mr. Newman is--
Well, is like this place.
Strange.
And he works for the government.
ISLEY:- Yes, I know.
ROGER:- The IRS.
ISLEY:- No.
ROGER:- Yes.
I even helped him with an investigation
at the firm I work for.
Although, I'd appreciate it
if you kept that strictly
between thee and me.
And, uh,
what's with the space suits?
We were led to believe Mr. Wiseman
might be biologically volatile.
That he might carry some disease
or pestilence.
Right.
Look, once and for all,
Mr. Wiseman isn't carrying much
of anything these days.
And if he were, trust me,
that woman would be dead.
She's kissed him.
I am leaving now.
Roger, my test starts
in an hour and ten minutes
and I am not missing it.
And as for you,
you are obviously the victim of a hoax,
no doubt perpetrated
by Mr. Newman.
Perhaps relating to his IRS work.
I don't know.
That's not my problem.
My problem is, that I don't like
strangers coming to my door
and frightening me
and my daughter.
And I don't like men
parked in front of my house,
watching my comings and goings.
And I don't appreciate people
sullying the memory of my husband
with nonsensical stories about
where he lives now that he's dead.
So as soon as I get home,
I am calling the police
and I am going to give them
your phone number
and I will be providing them
with your description.
Roger, come on.
Isn't she great?
Do you know
a Dr. Theodore Morris?
Dr. Morris is a scientist
who committed his life
to building an artificial man.
Your government financed him
to the tune of billions of dollars.
And apparently,
sometime late last year, he succeeded
save for one small thing.
He could not synthesize a brain.
That, he needed to transplant
from a living human being.
Oh, my God.
I'll bet you watch lots of shows
that aren't listed in the TV Guide.
I'm deadly serious, Mrs. Wiseman.
There was one problem
Dr. Morris couldn't solve,
- one obstacle he couldn't overcome.
- Don't tell her.
And it forced him
into an ethical dilemma
- that threatened to derail the project.
- No.
ISLEY [ON MONITOR]: All of his work
was about to go down the drain.
Without a mind, the beautiful body
he built would never live.
His salvation, Mrs. Wiseman,
was none other than--
[YELLING]
Yes.
[PHONE RINGS]
LISA:- Roger!
ISLEY:- Yes?
ROGER:- Come on.
- Yes--? Yes, sir?
Um, no, sir,
they're not being very cooperative.
Um, uh, yes, sir, I understand.
- Yeah. Yes, Mr. Leflin.
- Leflin?
I'll meet you over at 78th Street.
Three million dollars
is my final offer.
Three million dollars?
- Come on, Roger.
- All right.
It's a $1200 suit.
Least they could do
is pay for the dry-cleaning.
LISA:
Fine. Sure.
78th and 2nd.
WOMAN:
Yes, sir?
Yes. I'm here for Mr. Leflin.
Yes, sir.
The memorial is on the second floor.
The memorial?
Do you wanna sign the guest book
or did you do that at the funeral
yesterday morning?
Yesterday, funeral. Thank you.
Excuse me.
Pardon me.
Thank you.
Sorry.
Hi there. Friend of the bride's?
I believe you've been looking for me.
Michael Wiseman.
I'm sorry. I would've worn a suit
and one of the those
Toxic Avenger costumes,
but I didn't know I was coming
till the last minute.
Oh, look, it's about to start.
A shame.
So here's the deal.
If you don't take me
to Dr. Morris right now,
I'm gonna stand up
and tell all these nice people
I heard you talking to their dead friend
on the phone today.
I'd be happy to.
This is insane.
Makes no sense.
My hair is wet.
I've wasted the last couple of hours
on nonsense.
I haven't had anything to eat.
I'm gonna fail.
I'm just setting myself up to fail.
Maybe you should just take me home
and I'll take the test
the next time they offer it.
No.
- What did you say?
- I said, no.
I'm not participating in this little game
that you're playing with yourself.
I'm taking you to the test.
I'm gonna wait outside
until you finish the test.
Now, if you wanna go inside and hide
in the bathroom, that's your business.
But I'm doing my job as your friend
in getting you there.
Roger, I don't think I like your tone.
Well, you don't have to like it,
you just have to listen to it.
I know you're scared.
Scared is where I live.
But do you really wanna go home
and tell Heather
that you just couldn't get it together
to take this test?
I mean,
that would be like failing two tests.
And that is not the Lisa that I know.
She would rather go home
and tell her daughter that she failed
than tell her daughter
that she ran away.
You play very dirty, Mr. Bender.
When I have to.
Hey.
[GRUNTS]
ISLEY: Okay, I think
that's quite enough, Mr. Wiseman.
Step away from the chair.
Dr. Morris,
if you'll swivel around in your chair,
you'll see that I have a gun
trained on your creation.
And I'm prepared to use it.
And while I know it won't kill him,
we both know it'll do some damage.
So perhaps you'd like
to take a moment
and reconsider our proposition.
Let me be clear.
This is not my creation.
I have no creation.
And as for your proposition,
I won't accept because I can't accept.
I am completely unfamiliar
with the procedure
you're asking me to perform.
You leave me no choice.
I'd like to suggest a choice.
As a courtesy before you shoot me,
could somebody tell me
what's going on here?
I'm giving you three to reconsider,
Dr. Morris.
- One--
- What's going on here
is an attempt
at a misguided business proposition.
Mr. Leflin here
is under the mistaken impression
that I've transplanted a human brain
into a man-made superman.
- Two--
- What do you mean, Mr. Leflin?
He's not Mr. Leflin. In fact, I heard him
speaking to the late Mr. Leflin
not more than an hour ago.
- Three--
LEFLIN:- Wait!
I've been listening.
The doctor's right.
There's no need
to add a charge of murder
on top of everything else.
It seems we've been misinformed, son.
Hand me the gun.
I'm sorry, Father.
You two are father and son?
Okay, now I'm completely confused.
Not nearly as confused
as we have been, apparently.
The woman that I was led to believe
is your wife, apparently is not.
A man that was supposed to be
your closest friend
knows very little about you.
And this biological threat
you supposedly represent,
clearly groundless.
A man of my age and experience
should know better
than believe stories told to him
by his friends in the government.
But when you're one
of the richest men in the world
and you hear whispers,
rumors,
that there exists a man
who could give you
what no money can buy.
A new life.
When you wake up in the morning
racked with pain,
wherein every breath you draw
is a chore,
well, you are determined
to find this man
and convince him
to do this extraordinary thing for you.
First, you offer him money.
Billions.
When that doesn't work,
you find
what you think he values most
and you threaten to destroy it.
That's why you sent your men
after me.
LEFLIN:
You even stage your own death,
arrange your own funeral
to facilitate the operation
you know the doctor will perform.
It was a good plan
had there actually been such a man
who could do such a thing.
But, clearly, on so many levels,
we were profoundly misinformed.
Let our optimism get the best of us,
son.
Well
Son, I think it's time
to send our friends home.
Time for you to go back downstairs
to the ceremony.
Time for me
to contemplate what's next.
It's not going to be as simple as that.
I was kidnapped.
My colleague here stalked,
people were hurt.
I will be going to the authorities
as soon as I leave here.
Well, we all have to do
what we all have to do.
Nevertheless,
our business is concluded.
There's nothing more to talk about.
I suppose
I'll have to find another way
to solve my problem.
Can you believe the arrogance
of that?
Just because
he's one of wealthiest men,
he thinks he can get away
with this thing.
He doesn't even care
if you go to the cops.
By the way, can you go to the cops?
I don't see how.
Our work is supposed
to be top secret.
You're not even supposed to exist.
So that's it. They get off scot-free.
ISLEY:
Excuse me.
Dr. Morris.
I completely understand
your anger and outrage,
but before you call the authorities,
I was wondering if we couldn't sit down
and see if there wasn't some way
we could compensate you.
Compensate both of you
for any inconvenience
you may have suffered.
[BODY THUDS]
Dad. What have you done?
I guess the awful truth is,
no one ever gets through this life
scot-free.
You call an ambulance.
Let me see
if there's anything I can do.
- Hi.
- Hi.
Are you just getting home?
Well, I had to take my test.
Oh, I thought you might chicken out.
What are you talking about?
I would never chicken out.
In fact, I think I aced it.
- No kidding?
- No kidding.
[CHUCKLES]
Actually,
Uncle Roger helped me get ready.
Uncle Roger? I didn't think
he could help anybody with anything.
Oh, yeah.
Actually, he can be quite helpful
when he has to be.