Reflections

Zak: Right mass. Right solar distance. Just might sustain life.

Yuna: I'm still betting it isn't worth the stop.

Reb: You're only saying that 'cuz I discovered it first.

[Yuna swivels around in her chair to give him an annoyed look. Reb makes a challenging gesture to her, grinning from ear to ear.]

Reb: Lise, got that atmospheric analysis?

Lise: Hydrogen, methane...and some lethal sulfuric compounds. Sorry everyone, it's a dead planet.

Gret: Reb, there's another spacecraft orbiting this planet.

[Everyone snaps into 'Battle Mode'. Reb stops pacing.]

Bren: Raising shields.

Reb: Let's see it.

[Another Deepwater in orbit shows up on the screen.]

Lise: What do you know. It's the same as ours.

Reb: How it that possible? Gen?

Gen: The General Systems J Series of Multipurpose Hyperspace Craft was quite common circa 2150. Many vessels similar to Deepwater were built.

Gret: The other ship is hailing us.

Bren: Let's keep our heads down 'til we know what's up.

Reb: All right, show us who it is, but don't answer.

[On the screen is a shabbier, older Reb--his hair is brown with tinges of white and gray, he has a two-week-old beard on his face, and except for those things, is identical to Reb. (From this point on, the Reb we know will be Reb 2, and the older Reb will be Reb 1. You'll find out why later on.)]

Reb1: Hey, anybody home over there?

Zak: I can't believe it. It's you, Reb.

Reb1: Anybody home over there? Unidentified ship, this is Reb Anderson, commanding the Deepwater.

Reb1: Repeat, please respond. This is Reb Anderson commanding the Deepwater.

Reb2: It's me.

Bren: It looks like you. It could be a trick.

Zak: It has to be. There aren't any other Deepwaters, are there, Gen?

Gen: Not to my knowledge.

Reb1: It's no use playing dead over there, guys--scanners see warm bodies, six of them. And what's this? Huge amounts of biometrics in cold storage? Take a scan of my ship and compare.

Yuna: Gen, do it.

Gen: Scanning... cryogenic sleep modules found. The cargo bay has been modified to contain a genetic vault. The configuration is identical to ours.

Lise: It is another Deepwater.

Gret: Shouldn't surprise us. I mean, if they can clone us once, they can clone us twice, and same with the DNA matrixes. The second ship makes good sense.

Reb1: Come on, guys! I'm on your side. And even if I weren't, my weapons are gone, I'm no threat. Check if you don't believe me.

Bren: I will. [scans] Seems he's telling the truth.

Lise: And another thing. He's hurt.

[Yuna looks at Reb 1 and doesn't see anything.]

Yuna: What makes you say that?

Lise: Well, look at him--he can't even move his left arm. He's in pain.

[Reb sits back down at his seat and fiddles with the slinky for a moment.]

Reb2: All right, let's talk to him.

Gret: Come in, Deepwater. Do you read?

[Reb 1 looks up at the screen and sees Reb 2.]

Reb1: My god. So they did launch a second Deepwater.

Gret: Stand by, Deepwater 1; we're sending a shuttle.

[A shuttle launches from Deepwater towards the tattered-looking damaged one. Inside the shuttle, we see that Yuna and Lise are in it.]

Yuna: That ship has taken a huge beating.

Lise: At least its tractor beam is still working.

[The shuttle is tractored into the shuttle bay.]

[The shuttle door opens. There are broken wires flailing around everywhere. Reb 1 is leaning against a wall. Lise gets out a scanner and starts toward him.]

Reb1: Sorry you had to come...

[Reb 1 sees Yuna and stops talking. He stares at her intensely, almost awed. She swallows, taken aback by the attention. He still has his eyes glued to her, even as he speaks.]

Reb1: ...to come get me. Both my shuttles are out of commission.

Lise: No apology necessary. [Starts scanning his left arm.] OK, lots of scar tissue, a bit of nerve damage. We'll have to get you to our sick bay.

Reb1: After I talk with your crew.

[On the Command Deck, Gret's console shows Shuttle Alpha being scanned.]

Gret: Shuttle Alpha's back aboard.

Reb2: Let's go.

[Reb gets up and opens the Command Deck Hatch. Bren snaps on his weapons belt. Gret walks up to him.]

Gret: Is that necessary?

Bren: Sure hope not. But it stays.

Gret: Ooh, I feel safer already.

Zak: Give him a break. After all, we don't know the man.

Gret: Don't be such a skeptic--of course we know who the man is.

[In the the Habitat, a viewscreen shows a schematic of the ship and the alien ship that attacked them. The crew and Reb 1 are there except for Lise.]

Reb2: That's where we got hit...and that's who hit us.

[Bren comes in with a drink and hands it to him. Reb 1 accepts it and takes a sip before speaking (slowly).]

Reb1: Same sector. Same game. Different ship...

Yuna: And they ambushed you, like they did us.

Reb1: One minute, I was in cryosleep. And the next, alarms are screaming and I'm being thawed out.

Bren: What happened to the rest of the crew?

Reb1: We were hit too hard and too fast and both the computer and the cryosystems were blown out before they could be fully revived.

Bren: You had to fight off the attack alone?

Yuna: With no computer?

Reb1: Before they could finish us off, they figured out a way to shut all power to my last working gun. One shot...and I made it count. They ran off...but they crippled the Deepwater. Only hyperdrive lasted long enough to make it to this star system...and then it failed too.

Yuna: Well, you can thank the Deepwater designers for sending out a 'backup' ship...

Bren: Yeah. Guess that makes us Deepwater 2...

Gret: There may have been more than two.

Reb1: It's possible.

Reb2: OK, that's enough. [Everybody's eyebrows arch in surprise.] Our gene bank is still intact, so the mission goes as planned.

Reb1: Are you crazy kid? Forget the gene bank, forget about reaching Earth. Let's just get out of this sector and find a habitable planet before those butchers track us down. We're outmatched in these flying coffins.

Reb2: Maybe. Maybe not. But we're not quitting.

Reb1: You're a stubborn kid, aren't you?

Reb2: Who're you calling a kid, old man?

Reb1: All right, Hot Shot. If you're game, so am I. Let's go see what we can do with my ship. There may be something we can salvage. [Raises his elbow off the table but winces in pain.]

Reb2: You're staying here. Salvage--hell, I'll get it running again.

Lise (comm.): Reb, where's my patient?

Reb2: He's on his way to sickbay. [Gestures Reb 1 to go]

[Yuna, Gret, Zak and Reb are on the Command Deck of Deepwater 1. There are torn wires everywhere and the entire thing looks like a bomb went off in it.]

Reb2: The engines aren't responding at all. I'll go take a look at it. [Walks over to Zak, who is studying something in the ceiling] What're you doing?

Zak: Some of this memory's clean--I bet I can retrieve the ship's log.

Reb2: Why bother? We know what happened, and besides, there are more important things to fix.

Yuna: He's right, Zak. Why don't you take a look at the helm?

[Reb walks away.]

Zak: What's the matter with the helm?

Yuna: Nothing. Just dodging an argument. Keep doing what you're doing. You're not the only one who wants to see that log.

[Lise is putting a device on Reb's arm in the sick bay of Deepwater 2.]

Lise: It's going to take a few days for the strength to come back.

Reb1: Well, no complaints here. Matter of fact, as far as I'm concerned, you deserve a medal--you all do.

Lise: For what?

Reb1: For surviving, keeping the faith...getting along.

Lise: Well, you should see us on a bad day.

Reb1: I didn't even get to know my crew. What are they like, your ship mates?

Lise: You really wanna know?

Reb1: Yeah.

Lise: I hardly know where to begin.

Reb1: Well, start with...Yuna. [Looks at Lise expectantly.]

[Back on to Deepwater 1. Zak is sitting at the computer console, with Yuna and Gret waiting for him to finish.]

Zak: That's got it...I think.

[A slightly distorted image comes up on the screen. On it, Reb 1 is at the computer console...and a Yuna with a different hairdo sits at the pilot's chair. Reb slaps the console in frustration.]

Reb: Starboard guns are down!

Yuna: I'll bring us around! Aft shields are failing...

Reb: Gimme one more shot of their aft generators.

Yuna: Hang on...now or never.

[Reb leaves the computer station and goes toward the engineering console. Wires are shorting out all over the place and sparks are literally flying. Yuna looks up and sees that one of them is right in front of the two of them and pushes Reb back. The shock hits Yuna, who is shocked twice before being thrown onto the side of Weapons Control.]

Reb: Yuna! Yuna. [He goes to her and cradles her head gently, hugging her slightly. He looks to the viewscreen.] I'LL FIND YOU! [Back to Yuna. Out of breath, he holds her a little more tightly now, and is whispering to her.] I'll find them and I'll kill them. I promise.

[Back in the sickbay, Lise is at the medical console, her back turned to Reb.]

Lise: That's it. A bit of exercise, and then good as new. But, just don't overdo it, OK?

[Reb picks up a device and turns it on. Putting his arm around her neck, he grabs her from behind and uses it on her shoulder, and her eyes loll back--she's unconscious. He grabs her communicator.]

Reb1: Somebody help her! The doctor's been hurt!

[Back to Deepwater 1. The image of Reb holding Yuna is frozen on the screen.]

Yuna: Why didn't he tell us--she was there.

Gret: Maybe he didn't want to let us in on his real agenda.

Yuna [shaking her head]: Damn.

[Bren comes running into the sickbay. Lise is on the floor and Reb is "tending" to her.]

Reb1: That neuro gizmo shorted out; help me get her on the table.

[Bren hesitates.]

Reb1: Come on!

[Bren does it. As he's putting Lise on the table, Reb grabs his gun from the belt. Bren reacts quickly and slams Reb's face into the wall. But Reb punches him Bren and he's on the floor and Reb goes after him again. Bren flips him over and Reb is down too. The two get up at the same time. Bren makes a punch but Reb blocks it and punches him twice, and Bren is sent flailing to the wall and is knocked unconscious. Reb goes over to Lise and checks her pulse and lets go after a few seconds.]

Reb1: Gen, voice verification--who am I?

[Gen materializes]

Gen: You are Reb Anderson.

Reb1: In command of the Deepwater, correct?

Gen: Correct.

Reb1: Very well. Maintain radio silence, power up the hyperdrive, and prepare to leave orbit.

[Reb powers up Shuttle Beta, Lise and Bren, still unconscious, strapped into the two seats. The shuttle goes to Deepwater 1.]

[Voiceover] Zak: Yuna, take a look at this--there's a shuttle launching from Deepwater 2.

[Reb 1 is in the pilot's console and is typing in his access code--it works. Reb takes the helm and pulls Deepwater out of orbit.]

Zak: He's hijacking our ship!

[Yuna is strapping into her shuttle.]

Gret: Deepwater 2's leaving orbit.

Yuna: I'm going after her.

Gret: How's that again?

[Yuna goes, full throttle.]

[Command Deck of Deepwater 2.]

Gen: Shuttle Alpha has launched from Deepwater 1 and is in pursuit.

[He looks angry for a moment.]

Reb1: Open a channel.

Gen: Channel open.

Reb1: Ahoy, Shuttle Alpha. Turn back.

Yuna: Not a chance. Give back my ship.

Review

[I couldn't find anywhere else to stick this: the Ranch-or-Italian look was a term made up by Ghostpuppy (of the Sci-Fi Channel MG Forum) when Plague aired--it refers to that intense, eye-brow arching look that Reb does when he feels pressured, or is having a hard time with something. It came to be when Ghostpuppy jokingly said, "I'm still waiting for Reb to make that look when he can't decide between Ranch or Italian dressing." It happens so often that I just have to call it something, so, Ranch-or-Italian look it is! =D]

This is one of my favorite episodes! And for some odd reason, I can only conjure up one reason! The interaction between Reb, Older Reb, and Yuna was impeccable. Especially with that last scene. They had excellent body language throughout the entire thing, Gordon was great with scenes (especially with playing the two Rebs), and everyone was great but I thought the older Reb and Yuna thing was the best thing, and I was sorta glad they decided to focus on them instead of the two Rebs--I'm a Sliders fan, and I've seen the twin-doubles thing done many many times. This was a refreshing change.

Even though it didn't unearth a big chunk of background on the characters, I really did feel that this was major development for them. Like I said, character interactions was great throughout the entire thing. That beginning scene was sorta cute--"You're only saying that 'cuz I discovered it first." =D

This is really MG/DWB at its best. I'm not sure, but I think this has been done before--not just the concept of meeting an alternate version of yourself, but an older version with feelings for one whom you don't quite realize (it was a Sliders fanfic, I believe). But the way it was acted out just made it completely unique.

Another piece of the ep that I loved--Reb's "ignorance"! Some said that Reb, in fact, knew what his double was talking about, and was just lying either because it didn't quite sink in or because he didn't want it to affect him and Yuna. But it was a nice touch. You're wondering what his reaction to the other Reb's words will be over the commercial break, but you don't get to know because he pretends it was something else! It really got to me the first time I saw it. And the second time. And the third time. And all the times I've seen this episode since. =D

One note, if you're reading this and haven't seen it--you have REALLY got to make a point of seeing this in the rerun or something, because my descriptions don't even scratch the surface. You cannot truly perceive the huge amount of emotion in a few of those scenes (Yuna getting the ship back, the last scene, and even when Yuna and Reb were walking to the shuttle bay) without actually seeing it.

Pictures