| Phoenix Rising | |
|---|---|
| |
| Air date | July 10, 2007 |
| Written by | Jaime Paglia |
| Directed by | Mike Rohl |
| Episode guide | |
| Preceded by "Once in a Lifetime" |
Followed by "Try, Try Again" |
| Cast | Transcript | |
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| Season 2 | ||||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
| 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | |
| Season 1 | Season 3 | |||||
"Phoenix Rising" is the first episode of the second season of Eureka.
Synopsis[]
Following the restoration of the timeline, Carter and Henry must adjust, while Allison gets Nathan's job, and some citizens of Eureka start to spontaneously combust.
Plot[]
A series of sudden deaths, in which the victims spontaneously combust, has the residents of Eureka entertaining all manner of bizarre theories including Taggart's theory that solar flares caused by the eclipse, or the 'Phoenix Effect', or even Vincent's 5 alarm chili are to blame. When Jack discovers that a blast of radiation from the artifact had penetrated the wall of the chamber and is to blame for the spontaneous combustion, it becomes a race against time to save the other two people exposed. The first to combust is Wayne Kwan, Kevin's occupational therapist. When told of Kwan's death, Kevin asks if he will still get to see "the man downstairs". A question that deeply disturbs Allison.
Meanwhile, Henry and Jack are attempting to re-acclimate to the present day and the restored timeline following the events of "Once in a Lifetime". Jack is sure that things will play out exactly as they did 'originally', and that he and Allison will inevitably wind up together. Henry is more skeptical, cautioning him that small changes early on will cause larger changes as time passes, and that nothing is inevitable.
As a result of Stark's obsession with The Artifact and Kim's death, Stark is relieved of his position as head of Global Dynamics and Allison is promoted in his place. Meanwhile, Jack keeps slipping up with Allison due to their relationship in the alternate timeline.
Stark happens to be one of the victims of the radiation that killed Kim and is causing everyone in the lab to spontaneously combust. He starts to develop symptoms of the combustion and as he is staring at some sort of huge thing in The Artifact room that looks like a large collection of giant neurons (as would be found inside a brain), he collapses, and Henry arrives just in time to save him. However, we see Henry look at the large collection of giant neurons as if his interest has been piqued. As Stark is propped up in a cryobed of sorts, he is heard mumbling "I was so close, so close to understanding."
Jack helps save Stark by suggesting that they try to fix the broken part of Nathan's "electrical system". Henry takes it a huge step further and uses electric shock therapy to save Nathan.
Ironically, Nathan almost dying due to the timeline being fixed seems to have a rekindling effect on Allison and Nathan's relationship which causes Jack distress. In the hospital, Allison asks Stark if he knew why Kevin's therapist was in Section 5, and he replied that he didn't know, but we don't know if that is the truth.
Henry has an answer for Carter's confusion caused by remembering things that haven't happened yet and may not ever happen: a long-term memory neutralizer which he says will help him and Jack forget about everything that has happened. This way he won't remember him and Allison together and the baby they're no longer going to have. When Henry continues, he also states that he blames Jack for Kim's death. He angrily berates Jack, saying that he can't even look at him without knowing that he's the one who took Kim away from him.
Jack tells him that he wished there was another way and Henry tells him he knows that. Still unsure, Jack asks who would go first. Henry says he'll make it easy and then uses it on him without preparing him. Jack suddenly has a headache but sees a sonnet book that was important to him and Allison in the other life. He asks if he can borrow it, to which Henry says he can. Jack leaves without his memory and Henry destroys the memory neutralizer, saying angrily that he will never forget. Afterwards Henry goes to Global Dynamics and asks Allison for a job.
Beverly gets in a limousine with a representative of the Consortium, the congressman who heads up the oversight committee for Global Dynamics. She states that the artifact appears to be dead, and he says that's impossible, a statement that Beverly agrees with. This implies some further knowledge of the Artifact and possibly the previous universe from which the artifact originated.
Kevin is molding some clay in his room, and he is obviously disturbed by it. Allison calls him for dinner, and as he leaves, we see the clay in the shape of the dead artifact that Stark and Henry both observed.
Memorable Quotes[]
- Jo: Maybe it was just a one-time thing. You know. Adrenaline. Heat of the moment.
- Zoe: Making out with Taggart? More like a moment of insanity.
- Jo: Not so loud. Look, I really need some outside perspective here. Please?
- Zoe: You want perspective?
- Jo: Uh-huh.
- Zoe: You hooked up with a guy whose age difference with you is the same as me and my dad.
- Jo: (Looks over at Taggart. Taggart waves. Jo waves back.) That did it.
- Henry: There's not much tissue left but I can run a DNA sample and get an ID.
- Carter: Nah, I know who it is. It's, ah, fat, sweaty Asian guy.
- Vincent: What?!
- Allison: Carter!
- Carter: I'm being descriptive - if I knew his name, I'd use it!
- Carter: Taggart said the combustion was caused by meson particles coming from a solar flare. I'm no astrophysicist but I don't think there are a lot of solar flares inside a house.
- Henry: He's right.
- Jo: Really?
- Carter: Could you not act so surprised?
Notes[]
- Henry should have the memories of the timeline where Kim died and he successfully rose in Global Dynamics while Jack should have the memories where she lived, but they both seem to have the memories from the same timeline, when Kim lived.
- The only time they ever show SARAH as having a hypersonic pulse shower is in this episode and the previous episode. For some unknown reason, sometime after this episode, the shower is replaced with a regular shower. The regular shower is shown to have been installed by the episode "Many Happy Returns".