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Summary:
A
fundamentalist Jewish group abducts a pregnant woman, intending to fulfill biblical prophecy by raising
the unborn child in the priesthood such that he may
lead the second
coming of the Messiah at the yet-to-be Third Temple in Jerusalem. Emma
Hollis suspects Millennium Group involvement in these events and is shocked
when Peter Watts reaches out to her to help close the investigation.
Season Three on DVD
Synopsis:
In Brooklyn, New York, a group of masked, hooded figures
incapacitate cardiologist Daniel Borenstine with a stun gun and proceed to kidnap his pregnant wife,
Jeanie, by placing a chloroform-soaked cloth over her mouth.
Frank and Emma are assigned to investigate
the case. Emma discovers that Daniel’s office nurse, Rachel Levinson, left
the previous month with the intention of moving out of the country. A short
time later, Frank discovers an imprint on the doorframe of the Borenstine’s
townhouse. The shape of the imprint indicates that it was a mezuzah — a small
ornament containing text from the Torah (the object is attached to the door jam
of many Jewish homes). A technician dusts the place where the mezuzah had been,
and discovers a "fingerprint" without the usual swirl pattern.
Emma and Frank search through Rachel
Levinson’s empty apartment. They uncover a partially painted piece of a broken
pot that contains symbols of a bleeding sword and a sacrificial scene. It also
becomes clear that a group of interwoven figure-eights is, in actuality, a
series of ouroboros. Frank tells Emma that the symbol is quite ancient and not
necessarily connected to the Millennium Group. He accesses the FBI’s research
library for more information on the symbols. It turns out that the iconography
is pre-Christian and relates to the First and Second temples. The temples were
destroyed and to this day fanatics wish to rebuild a Third temple on the same
spot. According to prophecy, once the Temple is rebuilt, the Messiah will
appear. Doing so, however, might trigger a war, as a group of mosques occupy the
land.
Meanwhile, inside an abandoned Russian
bathhouse, Moses Gourevitch and his acolyte, Rachel Levinson, prepare to
deliver Jeanie’s baby. The pair speak in Hebrew, peppered with an occasional
word in English. They lower Rachel into a mineral bath, and she gives birth
to a healthy child. Despite Jeanie’s pleas, Gourevitch ushers the baby
away. Later, Gourevitch instructs Rachel to quiet Jeanie. Rachel injects
Jeanie with a sedative. Her unconscious form is later found on the porch
of the Borenstine’s townhouse.
Jeanie is transported to the hospital,
where it is positively determined that Rachel is one of the kidnappers.
During the discussion, Daniel reveals that he was approached by someone
from the Millennium Group. Frank reviews the hospital’s video surveillance
footage and realizes the visitor was Peter Watts. When Emma learns of
this, she concludes that Watts participated in the kidnapping. Frank warns
her not to jump to conclusions. Meanwhile, back at the bathhouse, Gourevitch
accuses Rachel of letting Jeanie escape. Rachel denies this is so. Gourevitch
then asks to see Rachel’s vestment.
Emma and Frank research some of the
clues in the case. The unusual fingerprint pattern turns out to be artificial
skin developed in Israel to treat burn victims (used by the kidnappers
to hide their fingerprints). They also examine photographs of radical groups,
and discover Temple symbols (the sword, the sacrifices, the ouroboros)
on the shoulder of one member. That man is identified as Moses Gourevitch.
A short time later, Frank realizes that Jeanie’s maiden name was Cohen,
a descendant of the Kohain tribe, a people who were traditional priests.
Frank concludes that the radicals will raise the child to become a priest
who will serve in the third Temple — and where he will welcome the Messiah.
Later, he tells Jeanie and Daniel that the baby was birthed in water to
keep him unpolluted (as the earth holds the dead). Jeanie then recalls
some of the English words spoken by cult members: "sandwich," "mirror"
and "subway."
Rachel decides to go to the FBI. But
before she can enter the Bureau’s building, she is abducted by cult members
and taken to Mount Moriah Park. There, she is found guilty of betraying
her cause. Tribunal members stone her to death.
Watts assures Emma that the Millennium
Group wants the child found just as much as she does. He tells her that
in order to stop the cult, she must think like they do. Watts tells her
to read a passage from the Book of Revelation. Upon doing so, Emma encounters
a description of images identical to a pattern on the robe that Jeanie
was found wearing.
Using the English words Jeanie supplied,
and aided by an internal vision, Frank pinpoints Mount Moriah Park. He
and two other agents rush to the area, where they discover Rachel’s bloodied,
lifeless body.
Frank and Emma meet with McClaren and
a group of other agents. They conclude that Rachel was executed for bringing
Jeanie Borenstine home. Shortly thereafter, Emma reveals that the robe
Jeanie was wearing when she was found was manufactured in Brooklyn. She
has also discovered that a hot spring runs beneath Brooklyn, one accessed
by an old Russian bathhouse that closed in 1948. FBI agents storm the Russian
bathhouse. Emma finds the baby in a crib. But before she can take action, Gourevitch pushes a gun to her head. He scoops the child into his arms
and orders Emma to walk onto the roof. Gourevitch attempts to make a getaway
by helicopter, but he loses his footing and slides down a slanted part
of the roof, baby still in hand. At the last moment, Gourevitch makes a
decision: he hands Emma the baby. He then falls to his death. The baby
is reunited with his parents. Later, Frank tells Emma that it was Watts
who sent Jeanie home in the robe knowing that it would later condemn Rachel
Levinson to death. |
Photographs:
- Jeanie's newborn child is baptized
- Frank Black researches the case
- Security footage reveals Peter's presence
- Gourevitch clutches the
child on a rooftop
- A sample of the sect's guiding texts
- Jeanie Borenstine
gives birth in water
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Abyss Rating:
(4/5)
Trivia:
Writer Marjorie David, who has written
scripts for shows including Hill Street Blues and Chicago
Hope, had previously worked with one-time Millennium
executive producer Michael Duggan on the short-lived ABC drama series
C-16: FBI. She would also contribute to "Via Dolorosa," the
first installment of the two-part series finale.
Andreas Katsulas, who guest stars in "Forcing the End" as cult leader
Moses Gourevitch, may be familiar to fans of science fiction
television. In addition to starring in the sci-fi drama Babylon 5,
Katsulas has guest starred repeatedly on Star Trek: The Next
Generation and on Star Trek: Enterprise. He also portrayed
Dr. Richard Kimble's memorable nemesis, the infamous one-armed man, in
the motion picture version of The Fugitive.
Likewise, some viewers might recognize
guest star
Juliet Landau
—
the daughter of screen stars Martin Landau and Barbara Bain
—
from her recurring role on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its
spin-off, Angel. Her mother had appeared in the previous
Millennium installment, "Matryoshka."
Death Toll:
2
Title:
In Judaism, as this episode
explains, the construction of the Third Temple in Jerusalem is
prophesied as a Messianic
sign. Some Jews endorse the construction of the Third Temple.
Others believe, however,
that only the Messiah can build the Temple and that no steps should be
taken to reclaim the Temple Mount, that any effort to hasten the
coming of the Messiah is tantamount to man pushing the end times. In
Hebrew faith this concept has long been
referred to as "forcing the end."
Starring:
Lance Henriksen as Frank Black
Terry O'Quinn as Peter Watts
Klea Scott as Emma Hollis
Guest Starring:
Andreas Katsulas as Moses Gourevitch
Juliet Landau as Jeanie Bronstein
Shae Popovich as Rachel Levinson
Peter Wilds as Daniel Bronstein
Willy Rose as Agent Forest
Jason Emanuel as Cult Member
Klodyne Rodney as the Security Guard
Anthony Santiago as the Print Tech
Production
Credits:
Production #6C15
Music by Mark Snow
Production Designer Mark Freeborn
Director of Photography Robert McLachlan
Associate Producer Jon-Michael Preece
Co-Producer Robert Moresco
Co-Producer Paul Rabwin
Producer Thomas J. Wright
Co-Executive Producer Ken Horton
Co-Executive Producer John Peter Kousakis
Executive Producer Chip Johannessen
Executive Producer Chris Carter
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