#565008
Dreams
Written by: Deborah Pratt
Directed by: Anita W. Addison
Leap Date: February 28, 1979
Original Air Date: November 13, 1991
This time: Sam leaps into Jack Stone, a cop, investigating a home with his partner, Pamela Roselli. He finds a grisly murder scene. He hears a voice and finds two small children in hiding. The victim is Paula Decaro and her ex-husband, Peter, wants to talk to her before he kills himself. Sam talks him down to calmness and backup arrives for the arrest.
Sam’s attention is drawn to a door which seems to trigger a flashback to another door with a different victim. Al arrives but does not have much since all they can determine is that he is to save Peter, which he did. Sam and Al talking attracts the attention of Roselli who, along with Al, expresses concern for an aloof Sam.
On the drive home, Al says that Peter will get the chair for murder but not the murder of Paula, the murder of Jack Stone in two days. Sam believes he will die after getting a vision. That night, Sam dreams about running into a bloodied version of himself. To Al, he remembers when they switched places in the season premiere and ruminates that some part of Stone is in him. He tasks Al and Dr. Beeks to find out what is going on with Stone, though that can take days.
At the scene, Roselli and Sam try to piece things together. The victim’s heart is missing for one and Peter is seeing Mason Crane, noted psychologist. Apparently, Peter called for Dr. Crane before his lawyer. Sam meets with Dr. Crane making an appointment but not mentioning he is a cop. He breaks into Dr. Crane’s office at Al’s urging unknowingly under the watch of the departing Dr. Crane. They discover that Dr. Crane was seeing both Paula and Peter at the same time.
In session with Dr. Crane, it is quickly revealed that Sam is a cop. Also, Paula was planning on leaving Peter. Dr. Crane then puts Sam under a slight hypnosis where Sam mentions his issue with the door. Al interrupts the session saying that Jack was the one having an affair with Paula, proved by phone records between the two. Not sure who the murderer is, Sam goes back to the boy, though all he gets is gloves.
Back at the house, Dr. Crane helps Sam remember the details of Stone’s past. Sam recalls a young Stone coming home to find his mother dead. Young Stone walked in on the autopsy, causing some trauma. Sam figures out that Dr. Crane murdered Paula. Dr. Crane confesses and tries to convince Sam to commit suicide. Sam snaps out of it and shoots Dr. Crane. Sam leaps …
… into a car going into West Bend, Texas. As Billy Beaumont he is returning to his hometown to end a drought and make it rain.
Stop talking to yourself: Mustering up the courage to confront a killer, Sam takes a few moments to adjust. This is memorable because Bakula says it while he is onscreen. Usually it is in an act/scene break over a wide ore stablishing shot.
Only Sam can see and hear: Al is a stalwart friend in this making sure that Sam keeps mental distance from Stone.
Mirror images that were not his own: Shortly after getting his bearings, Sam gets a look at Stone in the hallway mirror.
Something or someone: For all the grief I give this series about Sam sticking around for no real good reason whatsoever, Sam leaps almost immediately after shooting Dr. Crane.
It’s a science project: The missing heart is not in the original coroner’s report. Which is a really big omission.
Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow: Stone is pretty regular in the Waiting Room.
Let’s up the rating: Roselli and Jack/Sam have a dinner together. She is in a stunning dress and lets her hair down but is not overly flirtatious.
One more time: “Hello, Sam. What channel are you tuned into. … Oh, Jeez Louise!”
Al wondering why Sam seems so out of it, then finding out why.
The Rainbow Treknection: Alan Scarfe was on The Next Generation twice as Dr. Mendak and Tokath, both Romulans unlike the human Dr. Crane. He may be familiar to some as Dr. Talmadge from the U.PN. series Seven Days.
Trivial Matter: A psychologist named Dr. Crane in the nineties? That has to be a Cheers/Fraiser reference.
Put right what once went wrong: “The little boy is in shock. She’s scared to death.” There are several messes in this episode, not way around it. The biggest offense is one that they try and write their way around, forcing Sam to have the psychology of his leapee. This has not happened in the over sixty stories we have seen. They try and handwave that inconvenience with reminding us that Sam got a bit of Al in the season premiere, but that does not really cut it since those were extenuating circumstances.
That is not the only problem. The coroner omitting the missing heart is beyond reprehensible. It is also an amazing coincidence that Dr. Crane killed Stone’s mother and Paula. This is decades later; did he murder no one else in the interim? We are led to believe that Dr. Crane is a high-profile psychologist, but Sam can easily sneak into his office. The sneaking is under the watchful eye of Dr. Crane who just drives off for some reason. Plus, seeing the husband and wife separately without the other knowing violates several rules and ethics. The script keeps mentioning Peter Decaro but he is seen just in the opening.
Even the acting cannot save this episode. Bakula goes into nine-year-old boy mode which does not work on a audio-visual level. I get that he is reliving trauma, but it is not a good look. Trauma is a real thing that can cause someone to regress, even a fully grown normally adjusted adult but this does not really translate to the screen or make for compelling viewing while slowing things down to a crawl.
Joycelyn O'Brien fills in a similar role to Al as Roselli and while there are some touching scenes with her partner, she is pretty bland. Alan Scarfe has played roles with nobility, but here, he is more distant than anything as Dr. Crane though he does portray a certain menacing calmness.
A rare misfire for Deborah Pratt. The direction of Anita Addison goes for a Twin Peaks vibe, particularly with the flashbacks, but ends up missing the mark.
Written by: Deborah Pratt
Directed by: Anita W. Addison
Leap Date: February 28, 1979
Original Air Date: November 13, 1991
This time: Sam leaps into Jack Stone, a cop, investigating a home with his partner, Pamela Roselli. He finds a grisly murder scene. He hears a voice and finds two small children in hiding. The victim is Paula Decaro and her ex-husband, Peter, wants to talk to her before he kills himself. Sam talks him down to calmness and backup arrives for the arrest.
Sam’s attention is drawn to a door which seems to trigger a flashback to another door with a different victim. Al arrives but does not have much since all they can determine is that he is to save Peter, which he did. Sam and Al talking attracts the attention of Roselli who, along with Al, expresses concern for an aloof Sam.
On the drive home, Al says that Peter will get the chair for murder but not the murder of Paula, the murder of Jack Stone in two days. Sam believes he will die after getting a vision. That night, Sam dreams about running into a bloodied version of himself. To Al, he remembers when they switched places in the season premiere and ruminates that some part of Stone is in him. He tasks Al and Dr. Beeks to find out what is going on with Stone, though that can take days.
At the scene, Roselli and Sam try to piece things together. The victim’s heart is missing for one and Peter is seeing Mason Crane, noted psychologist. Apparently, Peter called for Dr. Crane before his lawyer. Sam meets with Dr. Crane making an appointment but not mentioning he is a cop. He breaks into Dr. Crane’s office at Al’s urging unknowingly under the watch of the departing Dr. Crane. They discover that Dr. Crane was seeing both Paula and Peter at the same time.
In session with Dr. Crane, it is quickly revealed that Sam is a cop. Also, Paula was planning on leaving Peter. Dr. Crane then puts Sam under a slight hypnosis where Sam mentions his issue with the door. Al interrupts the session saying that Jack was the one having an affair with Paula, proved by phone records between the two. Not sure who the murderer is, Sam goes back to the boy, though all he gets is gloves.
Back at the house, Dr. Crane helps Sam remember the details of Stone’s past. Sam recalls a young Stone coming home to find his mother dead. Young Stone walked in on the autopsy, causing some trauma. Sam figures out that Dr. Crane murdered Paula. Dr. Crane confesses and tries to convince Sam to commit suicide. Sam snaps out of it and shoots Dr. Crane. Sam leaps …
… into a car going into West Bend, Texas. As Billy Beaumont he is returning to his hometown to end a drought and make it rain.
Stop talking to yourself: Mustering up the courage to confront a killer, Sam takes a few moments to adjust. This is memorable because Bakula says it while he is onscreen. Usually it is in an act/scene break over a wide ore stablishing shot.
Only Sam can see and hear: Al is a stalwart friend in this making sure that Sam keeps mental distance from Stone.
Mirror images that were not his own: Shortly after getting his bearings, Sam gets a look at Stone in the hallway mirror.
Something or someone: For all the grief I give this series about Sam sticking around for no real good reason whatsoever, Sam leaps almost immediately after shooting Dr. Crane.
It’s a science project: The missing heart is not in the original coroner’s report. Which is a really big omission.
Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow: Stone is pretty regular in the Waiting Room.
Let’s up the rating: Roselli and Jack/Sam have a dinner together. She is in a stunning dress and lets her hair down but is not overly flirtatious.
One more time: “Hello, Sam. What channel are you tuned into. … Oh, Jeez Louise!”
Al wondering why Sam seems so out of it, then finding out why.
The Rainbow Treknection: Alan Scarfe was on The Next Generation twice as Dr. Mendak and Tokath, both Romulans unlike the human Dr. Crane. He may be familiar to some as Dr. Talmadge from the U.PN. series Seven Days.
Trivial Matter: A psychologist named Dr. Crane in the nineties? That has to be a Cheers/Fraiser reference.
Put right what once went wrong: “The little boy is in shock. She’s scared to death.” There are several messes in this episode, not way around it. The biggest offense is one that they try and write their way around, forcing Sam to have the psychology of his leapee. This has not happened in the over sixty stories we have seen. They try and handwave that inconvenience with reminding us that Sam got a bit of Al in the season premiere, but that does not really cut it since those were extenuating circumstances.
That is not the only problem. The coroner omitting the missing heart is beyond reprehensible. It is also an amazing coincidence that Dr. Crane killed Stone’s mother and Paula. This is decades later; did he murder no one else in the interim? We are led to believe that Dr. Crane is a high-profile psychologist, but Sam can easily sneak into his office. The sneaking is under the watchful eye of Dr. Crane who just drives off for some reason. Plus, seeing the husband and wife separately without the other knowing violates several rules and ethics. The script keeps mentioning Peter Decaro but he is seen just in the opening.
Even the acting cannot save this episode. Bakula goes into nine-year-old boy mode which does not work on a audio-visual level. I get that he is reliving trauma, but it is not a good look. Trauma is a real thing that can cause someone to regress, even a fully grown normally adjusted adult but this does not really translate to the screen or make for compelling viewing while slowing things down to a crawl.
Joycelyn O'Brien fills in a similar role to Al as Roselli and while there are some touching scenes with her partner, she is pretty bland. Alan Scarfe has played roles with nobility, but here, he is more distant than anything as Dr. Crane though he does portray a certain menacing calmness.
A rare misfire for Deborah Pratt. The direction of Anita Addison goes for a Twin Peaks vibe, particularly with the flashbacks, but ends up missing the mark.
New places for old(er) keywords: Continuing Mission
Cardassians and Federation posturing it out: Showdown: Four Lights
Cardassians and Federation posturing it out: Showdown: Four Lights