Last updated: March 11, 2001.
Nikita continues to show evidence of the "reprogramming", including ordering the elimination of a captured Section operative and endangering the lives of children during a mission, and taking part in the beatings of a captive. But Michael is determined to reverse Nikita's reprogramming, and he soon determines that the former Section operative who came up with the "reprogramming" process, Ross Gelman (Colin Fox), may be the key. Meanwhile, Operations couldn't be more proud of the "new" Nikita, but Madeline is still worried. Eventually, Operations concludes that Michael's attempts at restoring Nikita have gone too far, and takes extreme measures. Mick Schtoppel: Carlo Rota. Davenport: Lawrence Bayne. Part 1 of 4.
Michael continues to evade the hit teams out to get him, but Operations and Madeline anticipate that Michael will contact Nikita and so they order Nikita to cancel Michael herself (a task she willingly accepts). The kicker? On Nikita's mission to eliminate Michael, Michael tricks all of Section and sneaks back in! Inside Section, Michael works with Birkoff to get the original subject of Gelman's "reprogramming" out of Section and into Michael's control. Who's the original subject? None other than Adrian (Siân Phillips) herself! Meanwhile, Madeline dumps new recruit, Dori (Jennifer Finnigan), on Birkoff, who tries to talk her out of her determination to escape, but the girl is determined to find out if there is an exit from Section on 'Level 20' (the only 'Clearance One' level of Section!). Mick Schtoppel: Carlo Rota. Davenport: Lawrence Bayne. Part 2 of 4.
Madeline and Operations figure out from Michael's message from Adrian (Siân Phillips) that she doesn't remember anything, but how much does she remember? Regardless, Adrian's mental faculties continue to deteriorate, so Michael must move fast before Adrian degenerates into a state of dementia. So Michael has two tasks: 1) he sets out to capture Nikita so that he and Adrian can attempt to "deprogram" her; and 2) he attempts to contact George from Oversight (David Hemblin) to let George know that Adrian is still alive. But this causes Operations to panic, and he orders that George be assassinated. Can Michael prevent the assassination, let George know that Adrian is still alive, and deprogram Nikita before it's too late?... Part 3 of 4.
After Michael receives a belated message from Adrian (Siân Phillips) (recorded before her mind deteriorated) on how to "deprogram" Nikita, Michael pulls out all the stops to save her. And he needs to do it fast because her "reprogramming" will become permanent in less than a week. While Operations and Madeline try to pin down Michael's time in an undercover mission against terrorist Allesandro Terragamo (Martin Randez), Michael arranges for Nikita's mission to go sour. With a "hit team" after her, Operations puts Nikita into hiding (and, thus, out of his immediate watching), allowing Michael to kidnap her. Now with the proper "deprogramming" method from Adrian, Michael sets about to restore Nikita to her former self. Meanwhile, Michael asks Birkoff to fill in for him on the Terragamo mission, which Birkoff does (with an assist from Walter!). Part 4 of 4.
Section's newest target is the son of a wealthy industrialist, by the name of Helmut Volker (Maxwell Caulfield), who is supplying drugs at his parties when not funneling arms to Red Cell. The twist? Operations and Madeline have figured out that Michael has "restored" Nikita, so Operations uses this operation to once again drive a wedge between Michael and Nikita. How? Helmut Volker must marry if he is ever to inherit hit father's business, so Operations orders Nikita to marry Helmut when he proposes! Meanwhile, Michael does everything he can to prevent that from happening. Davenport: Lawrence Bayne. Part 1 of 2.
A nice "compare and contrast" in this episode, as we learn that Helmut Volker (Maxwell Caulfield) is, in fact, an agent for Interpol! who has been assigned to try and foil Red Cell's planned terrorist attack. The catch? Section is really after Red Cell's "leading strategist", Eric Callstrom, and letting the attack go forward is a key component of this strategy. So when Operations leans on Interpol to block Helmut from stopping that attack, Helmut insists upon doing the right thing, namely preventing the attack himself. (And Nikita is impressed!) Meanwhile, Nikita tries to navigate the family politics of the Volker clan, as patriarch Wolfgang declares his disapproval of Helmut's (apparent) playboy life style, while "white sheep" (and Wolfgang favorite) brother Christof may be up to no-good. Davenport: Lawrence Bayne. Part 2 of 2.
Operation calls Michael and Nikita out on a "favor": he orders them to protect a Vietnam vet by the name of Willie Cain (Stephen McHattie), a man who is now little more than a drifter and a bum, from the thugs who are out to get him in a deal gone bad. Why? Operations believes that he would not have survived capture (and torture) in Vietnam without Willie's help. What Nikita and Michael don't know is that they are embarking on a mission that will mix them up with Operation's Vietnamese torturer Fan Van Lin, Carlo Bonaventure (James Purcell) the head of a Mafia crime family, and a twist involving Willie, Operations, and (of all people!) Walter. Meanwhile, Birkoff develops a sudden interest in how he became part of Section (a place he has been in all his life), an interest that leads him to the discovery of an unknown twin brother, and a duplicitous history involving Walter.
The unbelievable happens! Nikita is called before Operations and Madeline and is given fantastic news: she's free! As part of a "pilot program", Nikita is granted her freedom (and a normal life), as long as she never contacts anyone from Section again, and as long as she agrees to be regularly evaluated. Nikita is skeptical at first, but after 6 weeks on "the outside", she starts to believe that maybe this is for-real. But, sure enough, George from Oversight (David Hemblin) shows up with the "strings": in exchange for her freedom, Nikita must do one thing: return to Section One (hopefully temporarily) to kill Operations! the man whom George claims killed Nikita's real father.Will Nikita do it? (Who wouldn't?!)
Another "incursion" takes place in Section One, this time in the form of a virus that is making Section One's members sick, one by one. Taking matters into his own hands, George from Oversight (David Hemblin) orders in his own Bio Team to treat Section's members. But Operations suspects George has an ulterior motive. Sure enough, when Section's people (starting with Walter, followed by Nikita) go in for their "examination" with George's Bio Team, they come out vegetables. It seems George's team is "mind wiping" (i.e. downloading the contents of the brains) of Section's members (a process that causes them to relive their lives, before leaving them vegetables). Can Michael and Birkoff stop George's team before everyone in Section One gets their brain "sucked"?! [Partly a "clip" show.]
Seeking a lost "command clone" (a computer-like device that apparently allows the user to command a Section without outside aid) that was apparently captured by Red Cell and then stolen by another terrorist group, George and Oversight orders Section one to work together with an agent from Section Four to search for the missing "command clone". What is Section Four? Apparently, it's the Section where people/agents with "extrasensory" abilities are developed. So, who is the agent from Section Four? None other than a 12-year old boy by the name of Gerome (Michael Cera). Of course, with his "extrasensory" abilities, Gerome soon overwhelms the ability of Madeline and Operations to control him. Can Nikita bring Gerome under control before he destroys Section One (or escapes out into the world)?
Operations gives Michael and Nikita an almost impossible task: they must get five absolutely, brand spankin' new recruits (Aaron Ashmore, Clé Bennett, Kira Clavell, Megan Fahlenbock, Brian Poth) up to full, field-level operatives, in a very short amount of time! to go up against new terrorist group, Crystal Sky (who recently did a number on Section Eight). Nikita doesn't think it can be done. Is this another of Operation's gambits, in which the five new recruits are 'cannon fodder' for some mission? If so, can Michael and Nikita save them from this fate? And, if these recruits aren't ready by the time of the mission, could their inexperience also put Michael and Nikita themselves in peril? Davenport: Lawrence Bayne.
Section One is (finally!) moving hard against Red Cell. Their objective? The capture Chief Strategist (and thus Madeline's opposite) in Red Cell, a man code-named Leon (Colm Feore). Once captured, Leon and Madeline begin a dangerous game of mental and emotional 'cat and mouse'. But is Madeline actually developing an emotional attachment to Leon that is interfering with her objective? And what is with the incision that Birkoff discovers behind Madeline's ear? Meanwhile, Birkoff is giving Walter the cold shoulder, and continues to investigate the whereabouts of his twin brother, Jason Crawford (see episode 4.07, "Sympathy For The Devil").
Michael is keeping track of Elena (Samia Shoaib) and Adam (Evan Caravela) (see episodes 3.01-3.03), and he becomes concerned when a new man enters their life. Sure enough, the man turns out to be a Secion One "Valentine Operative" by the name of Robert Corliss (Jospeh Scoren) whom Operations has sent into to get Elena's Uncle, Stefan Vacek (Chuck Shamata). It seems Uncle Stefan is taking over Elena's father's old terrorist business. Can Michael protect Elena and Adam once again without being exposed as still being alive? And can Corliss be trusted with Elana and Adam?
Birkoff may have stumbled on Section One's biggest coups yet: a chance to nab a top Red Cell operative by the name of "The Cardinal", who has eluded Section One for more than 15 years. Unfortunately, Birkoff's archnemesis Greg Hillinger (Kris Lemche) is convinced that Birkoff is wrong, and Hillinger convinces George (David Hemblin) that Operations and Section One are walking into a trap. Based on Hillinger's intel., George moves against Operations on the assumption that the operation against The Cardinal is bogus. But is Brikoff right after all? And if Birkoff is wrong, is this the end of Operations, and Birkoff too? Mick Schtoppel: Carlo Rota. [Editor's Note: The revelation about Mick Schtoppel in this episode is a doozy!]
Birkoff creates an artificial intelligence (A.I.) program to serve as his replacement, when he's away. In fact, Birkoff is up for a large batch of downtime, when a critical situation arises and Operations cancels Birkoff's downtime. But Birkoff's A.I. program, which is maybe just a little too attached to old Seymour, doesn't take this news well, and proceeds to take matters into its own hands. The A.I.'s solution to Birkoff's predicerment? Kill everyone in Section One, except Nikita, so Birkoff can escape (with Nikita as his companion!). Can Birkoff save Section One before his A.I. program carries out its insane plan?
An important "Center" satellite named Comstat Alpha crashes near a small town in Kentucky by the name of Dingman's Hollow. Michael and Nikita are then sent on a mission to retrieve it (the first mission with Birkoff's replacement, Corman), and the data it carries, before it falls into the wrong hands. But when Michael and Nikita get to Dingman's Hollow, they discover that the satellite is missing from its crash location. Soon enough, Nikita discovers that strange things are afoot in the town of Dingman's Hollow. It turns out that the entire town is a "Sleeper Base" for the Black Storm terrorist group (based out of Chechnya), making Michael and Nikita's mission that much more difficult. Meanwhile, Naomi, the girlfriend of Birkoff's brother, Jason Crawford, is taking him to Aruba: can Section One be far behind? Davenport: Lawrence Bayne.
After a substation is destroyed and Section's own self-destruct sequence is activated, the initial evidence points to Red Cell. But when Birkoff's newest replacement, Kate Quinn (Cindy Dolenc), examines the data further, she concludes that a third party is playing Section and Red Cell off one another. So Operations convinces the head of Red Cell, The Director (Conrad Dunn), to a 'cease fire' with a twist: to guarantee the 'cease fire', the two sides agree to swap their Second-in-Commands: Madeline goes to Red Cell, and Red Cell sends their #2, Satin Tate (Emily Hampshire), a young, pretty former CIA operative. Needless to say, both have ulterior motives: Madeline is at Red Cell to gather intel., while Satin Tate's mission seems to be to try and 'turn' Michael. All the while, both sides are looking for the 'third party' that caused this whole mess in the first place. Meanwhile, Jason Crawford is installed as Kate Quinn's #2.
During a mission against terrorist group Bright Star (the mission involves getting the terrorist group's database), Nikita (who successfully obtains the database) is shot, and then disappears. While Operations mounts further missions to recover the lost database, Michael tells Operations that he is taking the 15 days-off promised to him (and Nikita, back in episode 4.07, "Sympathy For The Devil") to try and find Nikita (whom Operations and Section have listed as "KIA"). Operations agrees, but only if no Section resources are used by Michael during his search for Nikita. Michael, of course, ignores that. So, after he makes progress in his search, Michael attempts to obtain further help from Kate Quinn (Cindy Dolenc), who refuses to help him. Luckily for Michael, Jason Crawford is much more willing. Meanwhile, Nikita is help captive by Henry Paul Collins (Robert Knepper), a very disturbed man who lives with his mother (Dawn Greenhalgh). Davenport: Lawrence Bayne.
Whilst first appearing to lose her sanity in the opening teaser, we quickly discover that Nikita has been sent on a mission. Her mission? Enter a Zurich mental hospital to get close to David French (Kelly Harms). David is the son of Crystal French, a woman armsdealer who is about to supply a deadly anthrax-based toxin called Drakium A.S. to the terrorist group, the Freedom League. Operations hopes to get Nikita close enough to David French to determine the location of the toxin, Crystal French, or both. But can Michael, Jason and Madeline get through to the disturbed Nikita and convince her to take the antidote to the psychosis-inducing drug she took so that she can resume her mission? Or will Nikita's time in this mental hospital drive her irrecoverably over the edge? Dr. Lukas: Michael Sarrazin. Kate Quinn: Cindy Dolenc. Davenport: Lawrence Bayne.
This week's mission? To assassinate Maurice Grenet (Lawrence Dane), the man who has replaced "The Cardinal" at Red Cell, at his daughter's wedding; Nikita is to be the shooter. But things go terribly wrong during the mission, Nikita is shot, and Grenet escapes unharmed. When Michael follows up on things, he determines that Nikita shot herself during the mission, and that she is having rendezvous with Grenet herself. Has Red Cell compromised Nikita? Or does Nikita have her own agenda? Meanwhile, Madeline employs "leverage" on Jason to keep him in line in his stint as "Birkoff" while working at Center: she uses Section to capture Jason's girlfriend, Naomi. But is Naomi for real, or is she just another Section operative stringing Jason along so that Madeline and Operations get what they want? Kate Quinn: Cindy Dolenc. Mick Schtoppel: Carlo Rota. Part 1 of 3.
Nikita's daring escape from Section with the help of Maurice Grenet (Lawrence Dane) of Red Cell has all of Section, and especially Operations, on edge. Further, Nikita's plastic sugery at the hands of Red Cell's man, Dr. Henry Kraft, has made her virtually untraceable, despite Operations' demands that Nikita be found no matter what. Will Nikita attempt to get Michael out of Section as well? Or is Nikita finally free, and gone for good? While this is going on, Operations and Madeline use Jason's tour in Center to get the dirt on George (David Hemblin) from Oversight, dirt that Operations will use to cancel George. Kate Quinn: Cindy Dolenc. Davenport: Lawrence Bayne. Part 2 of 3.
Operations is outraged by Michael and Nikita's escape from Section and he turns the screws to Madeline to find them. Soon enough, Madeline, with help from Stokes (who's filling in for Kate Quinn) and his team (which includes Naomi), does track Michael and Nikita down, and they are brough back to Section. Operations and Madeline debate which of the two to cancel (to permanently break them up, and teach the survivor a lesson), and end up choosing Nikita to be cancelled. But just before Nikita is cancelled, Mr. Jones (aka. Mick Schtoppel: Carlo Rota) calls up Operations with two bits of stunning news: 1) he is coming to Section One to "evalutate" Section from top to bottom, and 2) he's had an "inside" agent in Section the whole time. Mr. Jones' "plant"? None other than Nikita herself! What will this mean for the continued survival of Operations, Madeline, Michael, Walter and Section One itself? Is this the end of all of them? Meanwhile, Walter lets Jason know that Naomi is a Section One agent, and Jason doesn't take the news too well. Part 3 of 3.
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