4400 3.6: "Graduation Day"

Written by Craig Sweeny
Directed by Aaron Lipstadt


The third season has been ripping along at a fast pace, and I couldn’t be happier. The producers are keeping their promise by focusing on the big picture, and I think it makes for a more interesting and layered story. For some shows, it might have taken the rest of the season for Tom and Isabelle to have a confrontation, but the writers seem to have a far more interesting agenda.

If “Gone” started the process of showing Isabelle sliding into darkness, then this episode is the logical next step. As per the visual cues, Isabelle is mostly in darker colors (though not a ravishing red, sad to say), but there’s still that hint of green in her wardrobe. Sure, it may be reading into things a little bit, but I see that as a sign that Isabelle has a choice. She may have been engineered for destructive purpose, but she has the ability to choose her own path.

Eliminating Matthew (who wasted little time in showing his true colors) was a step long-foreshadowed, and it came at just the right time. Now there’s a different question to consider in the whole “time paradox” debate: was the introduction of Isabelle by the “evil” faction of the “future humanity” the cause of the catastrophe that the 4400 was sent back to prevent? Time travel is such a tricky business in storytelling, because it should all fit together like a puzzle, with cause and effect being somewhat relative.

The recent revelations make sense of a short scene in “The New World”, where Matthew seems to be plotting the death of Jordan Collier, who remains in hiding. I thought I misunderstood the scene, but in fact, it seems that Isabelle was meant to kill Jordan and leave the 4400 in disarray, thus explaining why Matthew stepped in when he did. It all hangs together very well, even though some elements were clearly worked out after the fact.

Isabelle was being manipulated into her role as the destroyer of the 4400 by Matthew and her creators, but her feelings for Shawn overrode the programming. Shawn could be the one person to change Isabelle in a positive way, which may be one reason that Tom was willing to postpone the execution. But now that Shawn has seen Isabelle’s true colors, will he still be willing to stay with her? If not, it could be the final straw towards something very, very bad. (And Isabelle’s decision to meet with Ryland is equally troubling, since she could be forging an alliance against the 4400 and their allies within NTAC.)

Tom’s decision to let Isabelle live could be one of those moments destined for future regret. I have a feeling the audience will be thinking back to the moment when Tom could have taken action, before Isabelle become too powerful. Tom’s decision comes very close to the mid-point of the season (which is technically halfway through the next episode), so this could be seen as a turning point.

Alana’s subplot is a nice bit of counterpoint. For all that Isabelle decides to act on information without consideration of consequences, Alana seeks a measure of revenge without thinking of what might follow. The audience is left to consider whether or not Isabelle is programmed to do evil, or whether that capacity exists within every human being. Of course, the difference is that Isabelle had no moral development, which could simply make Alana’s choices more damning.

(As a sidenote: I also have a podcast associated with my various reviews called “Dispatches from Tuzenor”. Recent episodes cover the “The 4400”, so it might be something of interest. Go to http://entil2001.libsyn.com if you want to listen!)

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4

Final Rating: 8/10