“This is where our story begins, Washington DC, present day capital of the free world. Here in the city that never sleeps, scientific decisions are being formulated that will affect not only our lives but our children and their children to come.”
Oh for the love of God, I have things to do today. Can’t I get through five seconds of this show without pausing it?
- I’ll be charitable and assume that “present-day” crack was to establish the temporal setting of the episode (this is Sci-Fi, after all), and not giddy gleeful anticipation that the USA will not be #1 forever (this is Hollywood, after all).
- When was DC ever “the city that never sleeps”? Sorry SFT, that’s New York City.
- “not only our lives but our children and their children to come“: “lives” is the subject, so “children” should have been possessive. Or better, say “the lives of our children . . .” [1]
Dr. Joel Kerwin and Mrs. Dr. Joel Kerwin are getting into formal wear to attend a reception with the vice-president. SFT, much like President Eisenhower, does not mention Nixon’s name. Kerwin’s boss, Dr. Matthews, calls and asks Kerwin to come to Room 246 to discuss some problems with his new scientific formula. He suggests their wives should go on ahead.
Dr. Matthews smokin’ hot wife Wilma stops by to pick up Mary. She tells Wilma that her husband just called and said they should go ahead. Mary asks, “Didn’t he tell you?” Wilma says, “No, I haven’t seen him all day. He’s all wrapped up in a new theory.” So why did Wilma come to the Kerwins’ room alone? And if Matthews is staying in Room 246, how did Wilma not see her husband? Did she get dressed in the hall?
At 12:30, Mary Kerwin returns to their room alone after the reception. The narrator says, “Mrs. Kerwin was no more than normally annoyed by the fact that her husband did not show up at all.” Dr. Kerwin is also not in the room. No wonder he’s avoiding her; the narrator seems to say she has a normal baseline of perpetual annoyance. I feel your pain, doc. She assumes the two scientists just lost track of time.
After 3 am, Mary begins to get worried. She calls Room 246 but there is no answer. Then she has the operator ring “Tom Matthews’ room.” OK, so I guess 246 is just a workroom. Wilma suggests having the house dick look for them. Here’s an idea, you’re in 312; walk your ass down one floor and knock on the door.
A little later, Dr. Matthews finally comes home — hey, they are in 314, right next door to the Kerwins. Seconds after he arrives, Agent Randall knocks on his door. Dr. Kerwin was found murdered in Room 246. Matthews says the last time he saw Kerwin was at lunch. He claims he did not make the call that Mary received.
Well, that’s about the first 7 minutes. The remainder is trying to figure out how various voices were electronically duplicated in phone calls. Unfortunately, the murder mystery is hardly mind-blowing, and the tech is as about as futuristic as a Las Vegas lounge act.
Footnotes:
- [1] In the light of day, this seems OK and less egregious than my use of the word egregious.