The Outer Limits (1995–2002): Season 2, Episode 3 - Unnatural Selection - full transcript

Come on out, kid!

I know you're here,

I followed you,

Come on, boy,

Come on out,

Nobody's going
to hurt you,

I know you didn't mean
to hurt that man,

It's not your fault
you're messed up,

It's your parents' fault,

no! No! No!

No! No!



No! No!

Hi,

John arkelian, Howard,

Howard Sharp,

Come in,

This is my wife,

Joanne, it's a pleasure
meeting you in person,

You too, doctor,

I don't want you
getting the wrong impression,

It isn't "doctor",

I left after my third year
of medical school,

I would call myself
a highly skilled technician,

So, are you hoping
for a boy or a girl?

You know?



Of course I know,

I analyzed the genetic material
we took from Joanne,

You want to know?

Well... yes,

Before I tell you,
I want us to be absolutely clear

on what you're asking me to do,

Mainly we want
to assure

that our child's intelligent,

And handsome,

athletic,

If it's a girl,
we want her to be beautiful,

You don't understand,

I must hear
exactly what

you want me to do,

It's a legal thing,
You understand,

Well, we haven't
exactly decided to do it yet,

You want us to say it

to ensure
we're not law enforcement?

Okay, then,

we want you to genetically
engineer our unborn child,

There is Nothing wrong
with your television,

Do not attempt to adjust
the picture,

We are now controlling
the transmission,

We control the horizontal,

and the vertical,

We can deluge you
with a thousand channels

or expand ONE single image
to crystal clarity...

and beyond,

We can shape your vision

to anything our imagination
can conceive,

For the next hour,

we will control
all that you see and hear,

You are about to experience
the awe and mystery

which reaches from
the deepest inner mind

to
the outer limits,

Justin,
over here!

Justin,
I'm open!

What will become of us

when we take a hand

in our own creation?

In trying to create the new man,
will we condemn the old?

That's our boy?

After Enhancement
at eight months,

every shortcoming smoothed over,
every flaw repaired,

In a word... perfect,

He's beautiful,

Could you show us

what he would look like
without the enhancement?

I don't have to, do I?

He's going to look
like you, Howard,

Excuse me?

Average looks,

average intelligence,

a slightly below average
imagination... average,

You wait a minute,

I'm saying what
Howard already knows,

Brilliant, athletic

attractive people

don't require
my services,

Their children
inherit those qualities

nature was kind enough
to bestow,

You, on
the other hand,

want to ensure

your children will grow up
with the same benefits...

As people like you?

You're wondering
if I'm one of them?

Are you?

Would it change
your opinion of me?

I'll put it
this way, Howard,

I was born this way,

Your son
can be too,

Before saying another word,

we should find out
how much this will to cost,

Yes,

We can
provide financing,

if necessary,

is there any way
of lowering this?

Well, intelligence is

the most costly part
of the Gene package,

I suppose we could...

No,

There would be no point
in doing this otherwise,

Mr, Arkelian,
we'll get back to you,

Of course,

One more thing,

What about g, R, S,?

There's a risk,

In 1 in 10,000 cases,

an enhanced child
will develop g, R, S,

I've seen
the victims on the news,

It scares me,

Yes, it's
a frightening thing,

Genetic rejection syndrome
is arguably why

enhancing engineering
is Still illegal

30 years after
it was developed,

I think it's worth the risk,

I have customers
lining out the door

who would agree with me,

Well...?

We'll be
in touch,

Yes, I heard these sounds
and looked out and saw... it,

It was running away
down the street,

Mommy, mommy,

Shh,

- You're sure it was
one of them? - Positive.

Who else would do this

except for
one of those G.R.S. Kids?

This will scar
my daughter for life,

Ma'am, we'll catch the kid,

You should track them down,

Go there
and look

at what that thing did,

Yeah, well, they're going
to find out eventually,

Their own son
was just killed

in an accident,
Howard,

It's been eight months now,

It would have been

Timmy's birthday
a week saturday,

How would
you feel?

No, I don't want
to hurt Fran,

What's going to hurt Fran

is when you're out to here,
and you still haven't told her,

hi,

I'm sorry
we're late,

But the traffic
was terrible,

You need a new joke,

I know,

Yeah,

We'd have
a pie-Eating contest,

Well,
we already did,

You haveto tie

your hands
behind your back,

What we should do

is drive to the beach
and watch the sunset,

Whoops,
a little late for that, jo,

We'll have to go later
and watch it rise,

I'm in,

We've only
got about

nine hours
to kill,

God, we used to do

this stuff
all the time,

Remember going
to the mountains?

We left the dishes
and drove all night,

And all day back,

My leg
was asleep

for a week,

I didn't move
coming back,

because Timmy
was sleeping on my lap,

He was always
so comfortable with you,

I'm sorry,

Can I get
anyone anything?

Yeah, grab another bottle
of wine from the fridge,

It's all gone,

you okay?

Yeah, I...

everything reminds me...

I know,

I mean, when I wake up
in the morning,

I think I'm supposed
to make him breakfast,

or I'm supposed
to drive him to school,

How's Tony handling it?

He's fine,

Is he?

I've heard, Fran,

almost
every night,

Heard what?

Arguing,
things breaking,

I've been waiting for you
to come to me,

He's been drinking,

Tony's not a drinker,

He's on his second bottle
of wine, starting his third,

Or haven't you noticed?

Fran, you need help,

Let me help you,

No,

No, I don't,

It's all right,

If you let us, we can help you,

We understand the pain...

Don't!

Don't say you understand,
because you can't,

I loved him too,

Well, I was Timmy's mother,
not some Nice lady next door,

His mother!

God, I'm sorry,

Don't be,

You've heard the arguments,

You think he's beating her?

No,
Tony?

Come on,
we've known

these people
for years,

The clock was smashed,

Well, maybe he's
beating the clock,

That is not even remotely funny,

Look,
jo, honey,

Tony is not
abusing Fran, okay?

He's drinking,
I would too,

They lost
their only son,

They're having
screaming matches,

It's a strain
on their marriage,

Short of
losing you,

I can't imagine

what that
feels like,

I just wish I could talk to her,

About the baby you mean?

Yes, about the baby,
about everything,

You will,

But when you tell Fran,

you cannot
say what

we're thinking
about doing,

Even ask her opinion?

No,

Why?
Because
you can't,

It's just not done,

It carries a five-Year
prison sentence,

If we're doing this,
keep it to yourself,

I will,

Well, the ultrasound went fine,

Your child takes a good picture,

Did you do a p, G, S,?

You'll be happy to know
the prenatal genetic SCREEN

showed no hemophilia,
anaemia or genetic mutations,

You're going
to have

a healthy, happy baby,

Want to know
if it's

a boy or girl?

We want to be surprised,

don't we,
sweetheart?

Absolutely,

I can keep
a secret,

We'll schedule another
ultrasound in three months,

Was there
anything

in the p, G... whatever it is

that could indicate

how tall he's going to be?

How tall
he'll
be?

Mr, Sharp, I cannot and will
not discuss genetic alteration...

No, no, no,

I'm just asking,

I can repair
major genetic defects that would

seriously impair the quality
of your child's life,

Whether he'll be
a football star,

I cannot guarantee,

I was just wondering

if there's
some legal procedure...

No, not a legal one,

Well, thank you
for your time, doctor,

Don't do it, people,

I'm sorry,

Don't do what?

Half the people who come here

intend to have
their child enhanced,

as if life
wasn't Miracle enough,

I tell them all
the same thing,

Genetic engineering
is Illegal for good reason,

It can lead to g, R, S,

Nobody can fix

another genetic Engineer's code,

If you change your mind...

We weren't considering it,

I'll finish,
just in case,

Have you ever seen what g, R, S,
Can do to the human body?

We think the proteins
that bond to the altered d, N, A,

Break down after Several Hundred
cell regenerations,

It can cause

deformities
and mutations,

That's... horrible,

They're
already responsible

for 3% of
reported crimes,

That's going up,

Their capacity for violence

grows with
their physical deformities,

There's no end to it,

They keep changing until they
aren't recognizable as people,

But the odds,

10,000 to 1...
That's almost astronomical,

Maybe,

But how can you
trust those stats

when nobody admits
to having done the procedure?

How could they be accurate?

What happens to these people?

They're usually
caught by the authorities

before they reach
the final stages,

After they're caught,
what happens then?

It's not generally known,

but law requires that
g, R, S, Victims be destroyed,

Rathbone and Phillips brokerage,

How may I help you?

I'll be right
with you,

No, I see, but, mrs, Parkinson,

these limited partnerships
are virtually guaranteed

to return 17% after taxes
with a minimum amount of risk,

And the projected earnings
are... um... just a moment,

I had them right here,
Wait a minute,

Let me tell you,

I'm buying shares
in this,

It should
return 17%

a, P, R,
After taxes,

The p, N, E, Is 14,

It's a money-Maker,

Mrs, Parkinson?

It's me,
Want to go shopping?

I don't
think that...

Fran, you're bleeding,

Are you
all right?

Yeah, yeah, it's fine,

It looks worse
than it is,

What happened?

I was in the kitchen,
and I was opening the cupboard...

Did Tony do this?

Joanne,

You said yourself
that Tony's been drinking,

Joanne, this happened
while you were knocking,

I should put
ice on it,

You go ahead,
and I'll call you later,

No, Fran...

No, really,

I can't stress enough

what a great opportunity
this issue is,

You said that
last time,

I know I said that,

There was no way to predict
they'd lose the lawsuit,

I can however predict

that this company isn't
involved in litigation,

With research,
you would have seen

that they were
going down,

Mr, James, think about it,

All right, fine,

Think about it,

I'll call you back,

Got a second?

Yeah,

Have a seat,

So, Howie...

No,

Don't,

Don't what?

You can't fire me,

My wife found out
she's pregnant,

Geez, Howard,
calm down,

You're way ahead of me,

Well, am I right?
Am I?

Yeah,

My numbers are too Good,

Used to be,
They haven't
changed,

I know, Howard,
but they've changed,

They've blown the curve,

These kids,
they're 25, 23, for god's sakes,

You should see
the volume they turn over,

I'll bring 'em up,

I'll work
some more hours,

Give me the chance to try,

It's not my decision,

I didn't decide this,

car!

Game on!

Game on!

Hi,

Hi,
How are you doing?

I'm okay,

I'm okay,

Are you hungry?

Dinner's
almost ready,

No,

ICING!

Icing!

Icing,

We got to do it, jo,

We don't have any other choice,

Are you sure?

I mean, you just
lost your job, Howard,

That's
why I'm sure,

If I'm obsolete,
what will happen to our son?

Unless we go
through with this thing,

he'll be
a second-Class citizen,

You are not obsolete,

Joanne, it's not because
I didn't work hard enough

or because I messed up,

I got let go
because I wasn't good enough,

Somewhere
along the line

it happened
without our knowing it,

What happened?

There's two kinds
of people in the world now,

It's a matter of evolution,

and we're
about to become extinct,

Howard, you're upset,

Maybe we should wait,

Wait until it's too late
to save our son?

We've been assuming
that we can't have

a wonderful, healthy,
happy child on our own,

Who's to say we can't?

You're the one
that wanted this,

Well... What about g, R, S,?

The fact is our son
has a 1 in 10,000 chance

of turning into a monster
if we go through with this...

and no chance at a future
if we don't,

We have to,

No, Howard, we don't have to,

We might be able
to have a wonderful,

handsome child
without altering it,

No, look at us, at who we are,

- I'm not ashamed of who we are.
- I am.

I am ashamed,
Joanne,

I can't keep up,

Everywhere I look,
there's one of them,

Let me tell you,
I am inferior to them,

It's just a fact,

I don't want my son to be,

I say we call arkelian,

What do you say?

Now, Joanne,

I want you
to breathe deeply

and stay perfectly still,

This is will hurt a tiny bit,

And then
it's over,

All I'm doing
is introducing

the retro-viruses
that carry

the engineered
genetic material

into
the amniotic fluid,

It'll be over
before you know it,

Howard!

Shh, it's okay,

There,

All done,

That's it?

That's it,

The lion's share
of my work is

in the assembly
of the Gene package,

Mother nature will
take care of the rest,

So, um, is
there anything else

we should know?

Nothing at all,

I just want you

to put this room,
this procedure

out of your mind
from this day forward,

Thank you, Mr, Arkelian,

We're going to have
a beautiful baby boy,

Yes, we are,

Believe me,
you won't regret this,

But if you do happen
to change your mind,

the procedure's
Only reversible for 21 days,

Why would we
change our minds?

Exactly, why would you?

Take your time,
There's no rush,

When you want to leave, knock,

Mr, Stark will show you out,

All right,

My god, Howard,
what was that?

Was that
Tony shouting?

We should
call the police,

I'm not calling
the police

because Tony's
raising his voice,

Howard,
you didn't see her,

She had a big gash
across her face,

I'm won't let him
do that to her,

Shh, wait,

It stopped,

We should still
go over there,

It's none
of our business,

They're
our best friends,

Which is exactly
why I don't think

Tony Would
physically hurt Fran,

Come on,
you know him,

Yeah, I guess,

I got an early
meeting tomorrow,

I think
we should

get some sleep,
okay?

You've reached
Fran and Tony,

We can't take
your call now,

Leave your name
and number...

FRAN!

Fran!

Is something wrong?

Fran?

Fran?

Timmy?

My god,

Joanne,

it's impossible,

It was him,

There was no accident,

He developed g, R, S,

The eyes...
they were in so much pain,

It was Timmy, I know it,

We went
to his funeral,

We stood
over his casket,

We never saw the body, Howard,

What?

Listen,

They were supposed
to go on vacation with us,

They insisted that we go alone,

So they could fake
their son's death?

We attended his service,
laid him in the ground,

They bribed the funeral home,

Listen to yourself,

They couldn't tell us,

They couldn't tell anyone,

Honey, you're pregnant,

Your hormones are

all over
the place,

For god's sakes,

Just go over there,

Okay,

Okay,

If it'll make you
feel better, I'll go,

No, I want you to stay,

He recognized me,

Jo, I want you...

I want
to see him,

Fran!

Tony!

Who is it?

It's us, Howard and jo,

Can we come in?

Now isn't a good time,

Let us in,
or we'll call the police,

Fran...

I know it's none
of our business,

but it sounded like
hell here last night,

What are
you and Tony

arguing
about so much?

Fran?

What are they doing in here?

I thought we were friends,

If you're my friend,
stay out of this,

For god's sake,
Tony,

we're worried about you,

Howard,
How did
this happen?

I...

I tipped it over,

We're having
trouble, Howard,

I was drinking,

Ever since Timmy...

I want to see him,

What are you talking about?

Timmy, I want to see him,

Timmy is gone,
Joanne,

That isn't funny,
No, it's not,

You'D both better leave,

Now!

I saw him,
I'll throw
you out,

I saw him in the basement,

I know he's in the house
and has G.R.S.

Don't lie to me,

We won't say anything,

No,

Please,

I just want
to see him.

Go home, Howard.

Please,

Um...

Could you just tell him
that I...

Mom?

Mom?

I heard auntie jo,

She has to go now,
sweetheart,

Auntie jo?

I'm here, Timmy,

Why'd you move away?

We didn't want to,

We had to,

You didn't say goodbye,

I'm so sorry,
We wanted to,

Don't
go near him,

It's okay, honey,

I got him,

I got him,

Auntie jo?

Timmy,
stay here,

no, no, no,

Timmy, Timmy,

let's go downstairs, love, okay?

I'll spend time with you,

Okay?

No,

Come back,

I'll try,

Come on,
sweetheart,

But I really miss her,

Mom,

I know,
I know, sweetheart,

But auntie jo
has to go,

Please...

if they find out...

Arkelian's not answering,

Keep trying,

We've got
to do it tonight,

I don't want to see anybody,

Okay,

It's Fran,

Come in,

Joanne,

Forgive me,

I have to hear you say
you won't tell anyone,

Try again,

Howard,

We just didn't know
what else to do,

You know what
they do to g, R, S, Victims,

don't you?

They destroy them...

like animals,

What are you going to do?

I don't know,

We keep hoping

that it won't get any worse,

At first, we managed,

You should have told me,

Joanne, I know,

You really cared for Timmy,

No,

That's not why
you should have told me,

I'm pregnant,

Timmy?

Timmy?

Timmy?

This has got
to stop, son,

You can't
keep going out

and hurting
people,

Timmy,

you come out
right now

and listen to me,

Leave me alone,

I don't want
to lock you here,

but I will
if I must,

Go away,

You listen to me,

You lied to me
about auntie jo,

Sometimes grown-Ups do things
that don't make sense,

Liars!

Liar!

We didn't want
to get your feelings hurt,

Liar!

Why don't you just come out

from wherever you're hiding,

We'll talk about it,

You didn't do it... did you?

Joanne,

please tell me you didn't
make the same mistake

as Tony and I did,

Mr, Arkelian?

Thank god,

Hi, it's Howard sharp,

Listen, we need you
to undo

the procedure
right now,

I don't care
if you've a dinner date,

We want
the procedure undone now!

I'm sorry,

Mr, Arkelian, please,

Yes, we're certain,

We'll be there in 15 minutes,

He'll take us right now,

for god's sakes,
Howard,

drive!

Mr, Arkelian is expecting us,

We're doing the right thing, jo,

He did it,

He's the only one
who can undo it,

Mrs, Sharp,
your husband

tells me you want to...

Reverse it, stop it, yes,

But why?

It cost you a fortune
having it done,

It doesn't matter,
Just do it,

I can't wait any longer,

All right,
You get undressed,

I'll be back in a moment,

it can be reversed
quite easily in fact,

This solution
undoes the bonds

in the altered d, N, A,

You realize I must charge you
for this procedure as well,

We understand,
Do it,

This is going to hurt
more than the last time,

Ready?

Leave her alone!
Security,
get in here!

Timmy,

I didn't want him hurting you,

No!

here he is,

Your boy
is back

from his very
first bath,

You must
be so proud,

Look at him,
He's just perfect,

Yes, he is,

What are children

But an extension
of our own selves...

a reflection of who we are...

...and what we want to become.