This is a repost of a meditation on the late 1990s TV show, The Pretender. Do enjoy!
-- Subspace Meditator
There are Pretenders among us.
Geniuses with the ability to become anyone they want to be.
In 1963, a corporation known as the Centre isolated a
young Pretender named Jarod and exploited his genius
for their research.
Then one day, their Pretender ran away...
From 1996-2000, these were the opening theme words for the belated NBC TV series The Pretender. This TV program chronicled the exploits of a genius named Jarod who was taken from his parents as a child. Over the course of four years, the adult Jarod remembered and sought answers to who he was and where he came from. Simultaneously, the viewing audience was granted a unique look inside the world of a storied mastermind who could assume any identity, any personality, any skill set he chose within a matter of hours or days. Literally! From doctor to race car driver to insurance salesman to astronaut, Jarod used his innate gifts honed at the Centre to defend the weak and defenseless, and to empower the powerless.
For one hour every Friday, Jarod so completely became a fake personality that he was able to convince everyone from a restaurant cook to an FBI section chief that he was who he claimed to be. His talent represented a kind of total immersion into the new identity's world and environment, a total immersion that has been thought on by psychologists and others who are pushing the boundaries of what we know about the human brain and its capability.
In other words, though actor Michael T. Weiss' Pretender may have been nothing more than a fantastic character, there is science behind the fiction. Further, there may in truth have been (or be) factual personalities behind the imaginary one. And it is these investigations, and those real personas, and what they all together could mean for further unlocking human potential, which is the subject of this meditation.
The Fictional Pretender and His Equals
Let's begin with a profile of The Pretender program's fictional representations of this extraordinary talent.
As stated, Jarod is the series hero and its primary
focus. His abilities as a true, natural Pretender are portrayed over
and over and consist of two distinct but very different aspects. The
first is broken down into two parts. Part A of aspect one is Jarod's
unique ability to eidetically
remember every detail he's exposed to. This, in effect, refers to
Jarod's capability to photographically recall places, events, sounds,
smells, etc, with near-total recollection as he chooses them necessary to complete his task. Part B of the first aspect is Jarod's fantastic working memory,
which refers to his ability to hold multiple transitory (or temporary)
pieces of information in his mind for later manipulation and use.
The second aspect is Jarod's ability to mimic the skill sets and personality types of any kind of profession or work environment he chooses to infiltrate. As in our introduction, this gives Jarod the ability to act and talk (and most importantly to assume the skills and mentality of) a doctor, engineer, teacher, lawyer, mobster, race car driver, professional chef, FBI agent, etc. He's even become an astronaut! And all of these skills are assumed without Jarod setting foot in a classroom or learning from a professor. Jarod learns the skills he requires to accomplish a "pretend" through a process of total immersion into his target environment by setting up what the series calls "simulations." In the TV program, a simulation is a recreation (whether whole or partial) of an environment into which a Pretender wishes to submerge himself. Jarod often used such simulations to teach himself what he needed to know about a place or situation in which he'd never been before so as to prepare himself for the numerous possibilities that would eventually arise from his interaction within said situation. Additionally, it was clear from the TV series that Jarod used his simulations to prepare for what could not be prepared for - that is, those unanticipated variables that arise as a result of the human equation in any circumstance. Though it was rare, Jarod did encounter what the Meditator calls sub-situations of the main situation for which he was not ready. And it was at such times that Jarod's ability to "pretend" was most effectively seen, for this amounted to his ability to think on his feet, rather than merely pre-anticipating and pre-planning for every event. These scenarios were most often observed when, at the end of most episodes, Jarod had to escape, unrehearsed, from the relentless pursuit of his main nemesis, Miss Parker.
As we come to learn, these functions of Jarod's brain are governed by a unique genetic sequence which allows him to access such amazing capabilities and naturally become the kind of person he is. Fundamentally, then, genetics (conjoined with training and certain psychological manipulative techniques) are also the basis for much of the other Pretenders' capabilities we see over the course of the TV program.
Jarod, as a character, is unique in other ways too. During his time outside The Centre we come to learn that, as a result of his deprived childhood, Jarod is deficient in certain fundamental "growing up" experiences. He's never eaten cotton candy, had a stick of chewing gum. He's never gone to a carnival, played with coloring books, or for that matter had a toy set. Through these experiences and so many more, the viewer comes to learn that Jarod's innocence and naivete is the rationale for his actions. And from these the viewer gets, in a way, to recreate his or her own childhood through Jarod's eyes. And this makes Jarod both a sympathetic and empathetic character, not only to children, but to others who are not as strong and resilient as he. Further, they highlight Jarod's desire to defend the weak and abused as being motivated by his time at The Centre where he learned that the simulations he performed as a child were often used to bring harm and suffering to innocent people. Once he escaped captivity his every pretend was to "make amends" by using his great ability to balance the scales of justice for those who could not find it on their own, and to bring justice to those who deemed themselves so powerful or so cunning as to be above it. Moreover, Jarod's strong sense of morality, despite all efforts to relieve him of it at The Centre, make within him a courageous personality who does not succumb to using negative means to gain his ends. In each of his pretends, Jarod always takes the high ground of action, never disobeying or breaking the law, even to bring others under the heel of its justice or to win it for those whom he has decided to help.
We are introduced to Alex in the made-for-TV movie, "The Pretender, 2001." This is the third Pretender program
in which a gifted personality other than Jarod and Kyle is portrayed.
However, unlike Jarod, the Pretender whom we come to know only as Alex
is another sociopath with a vendetta against The Centre and society as a
whole. Unlike Jarod - who is trained as a child by Sydney
- and Kyle - who is trained as a child by Mr. Raines - we do not know
if Alex was kidnapped and imprisoned by The Centre as a boy nor by whom
he was instructed while there. We do know that Alex attempted to escape
The Centre with Jarod and a fourth Pretender named Edward many years
later in adulthood. Alex's escaped failed and he was recaptured
and thereafter tortured and then assigned to an organization called the Triumvirate,
a superior group to The Centre with whom the latter has intricate ties.
Alex first comes to Jarod's attention when a series of taunting
messages arrives from a villain identifying himself only as the
Chameleon. Within these messages are coded statements ultimately
revealing the Chameleon's true identity. Of course, the Chameleon's
purpose is for only Jarod to understand their real meaning: revenge for
what he believes was his abandonment at The Centre during their escape
attempt many years prior. However, simultaneously, a string of odd
murders also occur that leave behind clues which lead Jarod to suspect
that the Chameleon exhibits superior adaptive skills which suggest
Pretender traits. He goes on the hunt for the Chameleon disguised as an
FBI agent. However, the Chameleon fights back, attempting to frame Jarod
by using his own Pretender skills as the bait and switch. Ultimately
Jarod finds and confronts Alex as the Chameleon, but not before Alex
manages to kill their fellow Pretender, Eddie Ballinger. The startling
factor in Jarod's pursuit of Alex is not his chase and cornering of
Alex, but in the revelation Alex makes at Jarod's almost successful
apprehension just prior to Alex's "suicide" at a water plant. He tells
Jarod that The Centre has not been chasing him all over the country just
because he's their prize Pretender; it's much deeper than that.
Further, Alex tells Jarod that he will not give him the answers. If
Jarod really wants to know the answers to all the secrets then Mr. Parker
is the one to seek out. Alex then falls to his "death" in a watery
grave dozens of feet below. But his body is never recovered, leaving the
viewer to wonder whether - in true Pretender fashion - if Alex actually
escaped alive.
From
what we know, the Pretender named Edward (Eddie) was taken from his
parents, just as Jarod, when he was a small boy. However, according to
Mr. Raines, Eddie, unlike Jarod, Kyle, or Alex, was not a natural
Pretender. He was a "sub-Pretender" who was trained in the Pretender
talent, but possessing obvious gaps and flaws in his abilities to
pretend. This made Eddie less important to the work of The Centre, and
when he escaped, the corporation did not pursue his recapture as it did
that of Jarod, Alex, and Kyle. Eddie went on to make a life for himself
as an NSA agent and family man, free to interact with society as he
chose. He continued this life until his untimely reunion with Jarod
years later, which ultimately led to his death at the hands of fellow
Pretender, "The Chameleon," Alex.
Now that we've covered some of the special personalities that made up the fiction of The Pretender series, in our next look at this unique program, we shall turn our attention to the science behind the fiction in an effort to understand whether there is actually any reality to the show itself.
I believe the answers we find will indeed amaze us.
Until next time...
To the upward reach of man.
-- Subspace Meditator
There are Pretenders among us.
Geniuses with the ability to become anyone they want to be.
In 1963, a corporation known as the Centre isolated a
young Pretender named Jarod and exploited his genius
for their research.
Then one day, their Pretender ran away...
From 1996-2000, these were the opening theme words for the belated NBC TV series The Pretender. This TV program chronicled the exploits of a genius named Jarod who was taken from his parents as a child. Over the course of four years, the adult Jarod remembered and sought answers to who he was and where he came from. Simultaneously, the viewing audience was granted a unique look inside the world of a storied mastermind who could assume any identity, any personality, any skill set he chose within a matter of hours or days. Literally! From doctor to race car driver to insurance salesman to astronaut, Jarod used his innate gifts honed at the Centre to defend the weak and defenseless, and to empower the powerless.
For one hour every Friday, Jarod so completely became a fake personality that he was able to convince everyone from a restaurant cook to an FBI section chief that he was who he claimed to be. His talent represented a kind of total immersion into the new identity's world and environment, a total immersion that has been thought on by psychologists and others who are pushing the boundaries of what we know about the human brain and its capability.
In other words, though actor Michael T. Weiss' Pretender may have been nothing more than a fantastic character, there is science behind the fiction. Further, there may in truth have been (or be) factual personalities behind the imaginary one. And it is these investigations, and those real personas, and what they all together could mean for further unlocking human potential, which is the subject of this meditation.
The Fictional Pretender and His Equals
Let's begin with a profile of The Pretender program's fictional representations of this extraordinary talent.
Profile 1: Jarod
Life's a gift.
-- Jarod
 |
| Jarod |
The second aspect is Jarod's ability to mimic the skill sets and personality types of any kind of profession or work environment he chooses to infiltrate. As in our introduction, this gives Jarod the ability to act and talk (and most importantly to assume the skills and mentality of) a doctor, engineer, teacher, lawyer, mobster, race car driver, professional chef, FBI agent, etc. He's even become an astronaut! And all of these skills are assumed without Jarod setting foot in a classroom or learning from a professor. Jarod learns the skills he requires to accomplish a "pretend" through a process of total immersion into his target environment by setting up what the series calls "simulations." In the TV program, a simulation is a recreation (whether whole or partial) of an environment into which a Pretender wishes to submerge himself. Jarod often used such simulations to teach himself what he needed to know about a place or situation in which he'd never been before so as to prepare himself for the numerous possibilities that would eventually arise from his interaction within said situation. Additionally, it was clear from the TV series that Jarod used his simulations to prepare for what could not be prepared for - that is, those unanticipated variables that arise as a result of the human equation in any circumstance. Though it was rare, Jarod did encounter what the Meditator calls sub-situations of the main situation for which he was not ready. And it was at such times that Jarod's ability to "pretend" was most effectively seen, for this amounted to his ability to think on his feet, rather than merely pre-anticipating and pre-planning for every event. These scenarios were most often observed when, at the end of most episodes, Jarod had to escape, unrehearsed, from the relentless pursuit of his main nemesis, Miss Parker.
As we come to learn, these functions of Jarod's brain are governed by a unique genetic sequence which allows him to access such amazing capabilities and naturally become the kind of person he is. Fundamentally, then, genetics (conjoined with training and certain psychological manipulative techniques) are also the basis for much of the other Pretenders' capabilities we see over the course of the TV program.
Jarod, as a character, is unique in other ways too. During his time outside The Centre we come to learn that, as a result of his deprived childhood, Jarod is deficient in certain fundamental "growing up" experiences. He's never eaten cotton candy, had a stick of chewing gum. He's never gone to a carnival, played with coloring books, or for that matter had a toy set. Through these experiences and so many more, the viewer comes to learn that Jarod's innocence and naivete is the rationale for his actions. And from these the viewer gets, in a way, to recreate his or her own childhood through Jarod's eyes. And this makes Jarod both a sympathetic and empathetic character, not only to children, but to others who are not as strong and resilient as he. Further, they highlight Jarod's desire to defend the weak and abused as being motivated by his time at The Centre where he learned that the simulations he performed as a child were often used to bring harm and suffering to innocent people. Once he escaped captivity his every pretend was to "make amends" by using his great ability to balance the scales of justice for those who could not find it on their own, and to bring justice to those who deemed themselves so powerful or so cunning as to be above it. Moreover, Jarod's strong sense of morality, despite all efforts to relieve him of it at The Centre, make within him a courageous personality who does not succumb to using negative means to gain his ends. In each of his pretends, Jarod always takes the high ground of action, never disobeying or breaking the law, even to bring others under the heel of its justice or to win it for those whom he has decided to help.
Profile 2: Kyle, the sociopathic Pretender
I decide who lives or dies.
-- the childhood Kyle in a session with Mr. Raines
 |
Shockingly, we come to
learn that Kyle is Jarod's younger brother also kidnapped by The Centre
when they were just children. Raised separately at the facility, Kyle's
training takes a very divergent path from that of his brother. Abused
and tortured by the deranged psychologist, Mr. Raines,
Kyle is trained to use his Pretender talent for selfish, manipulative,
and destructive ends. When we first meet Kyle, we learn that he has
escaped from a maximum security prison and even while inside was using
his ability of mimickry to "talk like a doctor, a lawyer," and even to
get a prison guard a sizable amount of money on his tax return.
Ultimately, however, Kyle is trying to find those responsible for his
kidnapping and imprisonment at The Centre, and to punish those he
believes responsible for his mistreatment while there. This leads Kyle
to finding Jarod after the latter discovers him free and on the loose in the real world working as an assassin.
As a Pretender what is interesting about Kyle is in fact his sociopathic indoctrination by Mr. Raines. Kyle's abilities to pretend are quite similar to Jarod's. In fact, it could be argued that there is qualitatively very little (if any) difference in their overall talent. However, as a pupil/subject of Mr. Raines, Kyle is trained to leave behind all traces of morality and empathy and to exercise his talents to pretend with complete and cold objectivity. The series demonstrates this in flashbacks to Jarod and Kyle's time at The Centre when both young Pretenders are using their skills in various assorted joint simulations. Kyle chooses to ignore the moral implications of the simulations while Jarod chooses to incorporate, or at least raise the moral angles. The choice to ignore the moral angles makes Kyle a much more dangerous target because - unlike Jarod, who chooses not to exercise his great mental gifts to harm others - Kyle has no compulsion against destroying that which he deems unworthy of his sympathy. If he had remained alive and free, it seems quite clear that he could have indeed taken a very serious fight to The Centre and those whom he believed personally responsible for his torment while there. The unfortunate loss, however, of Kyle was a heart-wrenching blow to Jarod - who was in a constant search for clues and ties to his past - and, the Meditator believes, a blow to the series in that Kyle as a Pretender, especially one without moral and ethical boundaries, would have made a great counterbalance to Jarod in his quest to bring justice to The Centre, its creators and allies.
As a Pretender what is interesting about Kyle is in fact his sociopathic indoctrination by Mr. Raines. Kyle's abilities to pretend are quite similar to Jarod's. In fact, it could be argued that there is qualitatively very little (if any) difference in their overall talent. However, as a pupil/subject of Mr. Raines, Kyle is trained to leave behind all traces of morality and empathy and to exercise his talents to pretend with complete and cold objectivity. The series demonstrates this in flashbacks to Jarod and Kyle's time at The Centre when both young Pretenders are using their skills in various assorted joint simulations. Kyle chooses to ignore the moral implications of the simulations while Jarod chooses to incorporate, or at least raise the moral angles. The choice to ignore the moral angles makes Kyle a much more dangerous target because - unlike Jarod, who chooses not to exercise his great mental gifts to harm others - Kyle has no compulsion against destroying that which he deems unworthy of his sympathy. If he had remained alive and free, it seems quite clear that he could have indeed taken a very serious fight to The Centre and those whom he believed personally responsible for his torment while there. The unfortunate loss, however, of Kyle was a heart-wrenching blow to Jarod - who was in a constant search for clues and ties to his past - and, the Meditator believes, a blow to the series in that Kyle as a Pretender, especially one without moral and ethical boundaries, would have made a great counterbalance to Jarod in his quest to bring justice to The Centre, its creators and allies.
Profile 3: "The Chameleon" Pretender, Alex
We are introduced to Alex in the made-for-TV movie, "The Pretender, 2001." This is the third Pretender program
in which a gifted personality other than Jarod and Kyle is portrayed.
However, unlike Jarod, the Pretender whom we come to know only as Alex
is another sociopath with a vendetta against The Centre and society as a
whole. Unlike Jarod - who is trained as a child by Sydney
- and Kyle - who is trained as a child by Mr. Raines - we do not know
if Alex was kidnapped and imprisoned by The Centre as a boy nor by whom
he was instructed while there. We do know that Alex attempted to escape
The Centre with Jarod and a fourth Pretender named Edward many years
later in adulthood. Alex's escaped failed and he was recaptured
and thereafter tortured and then assigned to an organization called the Triumvirate,
a superior group to The Centre with whom the latter has intricate ties.
Alex first comes to Jarod's attention when a series of taunting
messages arrives from a villain identifying himself only as the
Chameleon. Within these messages are coded statements ultimately
revealing the Chameleon's true identity. Of course, the Chameleon's
purpose is for only Jarod to understand their real meaning: revenge for
what he believes was his abandonment at The Centre during their escape
attempt many years prior. However, simultaneously, a string of odd
murders also occur that leave behind clues which lead Jarod to suspect
that the Chameleon exhibits superior adaptive skills which suggest
Pretender traits. He goes on the hunt for the Chameleon disguised as an
FBI agent. However, the Chameleon fights back, attempting to frame Jarod
by using his own Pretender skills as the bait and switch. Ultimately
Jarod finds and confronts Alex as the Chameleon, but not before Alex
manages to kill their fellow Pretender, Eddie Ballinger. The startling
factor in Jarod's pursuit of Alex is not his chase and cornering of
Alex, but in the revelation Alex makes at Jarod's almost successful
apprehension just prior to Alex's "suicide" at a water plant. He tells
Jarod that The Centre has not been chasing him all over the country just
because he's their prize Pretender; it's much deeper than that.
Further, Alex tells Jarod that he will not give him the answers. If
Jarod really wants to know the answers to all the secrets then Mr. Parker
is the one to seek out. Alex then falls to his "death" in a watery
grave dozens of feet below. But his body is never recovered, leaving the
viewer to wonder whether - in true Pretender fashion - if Alex actually
escaped alive.Profile 4: The sub-Pretender, Eddie Ballinger
From
what we know, the Pretender named Edward (Eddie) was taken from his
parents, just as Jarod, when he was a small boy. However, according to
Mr. Raines, Eddie, unlike Jarod, Kyle, or Alex, was not a natural
Pretender. He was a "sub-Pretender" who was trained in the Pretender
talent, but possessing obvious gaps and flaws in his abilities to
pretend. This made Eddie less important to the work of The Centre, and
when he escaped, the corporation did not pursue his recapture as it did
that of Jarod, Alex, and Kyle. Eddie went on to make a life for himself
as an NSA agent and family man, free to interact with society as he
chose. He continued this life until his untimely reunion with Jarod
years later, which ultimately led to his death at the hands of fellow
Pretender, "The Chameleon," Alex.Profile 5: the savant, Angelo
Angelo
is not a Pretender, but a supernormal empath, created by Mr. Raines,
who is capable of "absorbing" other individuals' personalities and
feelings. Angelo was Mr. Raines' failed attempt to artificially create a
Pretender from a subject lacking the natural talent to become
one. Angelo's subsequent creation as a savant empath, however, was
accomplished by first breaking down his real personality via
electroshock treatment and drugs and then by "rebirthing" a new
personality in the shredded mind of the old one. This combination of
torture and drug abuse on the part of Raines somehow brought to life a
personality within Angelo that allows him to literally absorb the
emotional state of mind of an individual simply by looking at a
possession of the target subject- such as something they wrote, drew, or
even a long-held personal possession, like a watch. Angelo has used
this ability to help The Centre track Jarod's location several times,
but also, unknown to Centre personnel, has used his talent to secretly
assist Jarod in eluding Centre capture by misleading them.
Now that we've covered some of the special personalities that made up the fiction of The Pretender series, in our next look at this unique program, we shall turn our attention to the science behind the fiction in an effort to understand whether there is actually any reality to the show itself.
I believe the answers we find will indeed amaze us.
Until next time...
To the upward reach of man.
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