What makes this series so hard to pass up is the way the writers manage to weave a few subplots into the main plot without turning the show into a tangled mess.
Isabelle Tyler's father, a "4400" has managed to get into Promise City and has kidnapped his daughter. Because he had allegedly attempted to kill his daughter (on an earlier episode), everybody is worried. Why has he refused to stay in Promise City, where he is revered as a hero? And why has he kidnapped his own daughter? And where are they? This is one question that has put both the 4400 and NTAC on the same side, for now.
Meanwhile, on the other side of town, another 4400, Tess Doerner, who was abducted on April 3, 1955, is having her Sweet 16 party at some diner, the way any normal teenager of the 1950s would want it, as a Sock Hop! The selections on that jukebox included the following: ROCKIN' ROBIN by Bobby Day (peaking at Number 2 in 1958), SH-BOOM by the Chords (1954), NADINE by Chuck Berry (peaking at number 23 in 1964), SINCERELY by the Moonglows (peaking at number 20 in 1955), SINCE I DON'T HAVE YOU by the Skyliners (peaking at number 12 in 1959), NO PARTICULAR POLACE TO GO by Chuck Berry (peaking at number 10 in 1964) and MAYBE by the Chantels (peaking at number 15 in 1958).
The problem with this little sock hop is that Tess, who has the power to control people, is also a schizophrenic. And with her power, her guests are her guests, whether they want to be or not! Nobody can leave and everybody is forced to dance and have fun, whether they want to or not, while the juke box continues to crank out great '50s music. This subplot has left me glued to the screen mainly because I love the music! And happy to say, not only are these the original versions of the original hits by the original artists, but they have also been included (for now) on the DVD! There are some goofs on this subplot, though. How could Tess squeal "Oh, that's my favorite song!" to NO PARTICULAR PLACE TO GO, a hit from 1964 when she disappeared in 1955? She might had heard MAYBELLENE before she was abducted and she was returned to the present with no memories of what had happened during her absence. And when she returned, she was diagnosed as schizophrenic and institutionalized before she was discovered and taken to the 4400 Center (on an earlier episode). As the dates of these selections reveal, she shouldn't be familiar with any more than two or three of the selections on the juke box. Still, these selections were a joy to hear and made me want to watch this particular episode over and over again.
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