jarod

A Pretender is so intelligent that he can read a book about heart surgery in the morning... and perform a perfect bypass that afternoon. Human? Of course. Brilliant? Naturally. Essentially, Pretenders--people like Jarod (from the television show The Pretender), Anabelle (from A Second Angel), and Darwin (soon to appear in Mockingbird)--can become masters at any profession, or become anyone they please, in minutes.

In 1963, a corporation known as The Centre kidnapped a young Pretender named Jarod and exploited his incredible genius for their research. Sydney, a Centre psychiatrist, was given the task of raising Jarod and honing his Pretenter skills. Four year old Jarod quickly forgot his parents and his home, and adjusted to his new reality: world-problem simulations in the Simlab (guess who brought back Apollo 13), daily meals of Nutritional Supplement, and creating inventions (from the microchip and Velcro to Magic Eye games) that have drastically affected the lives of every human being.

Jarod's childhood friends included Miss Parker, the Chairman's daughter. When Jarod and Miss Parker were approximately ten years old, Miss Parker's mother was shot to death in an elevator, an apparent suicide. Miss Parker followed in her father's footsteps and rose to the mid-level positions of cleaner (think evidence clean-up), head of Centre security, and eventually to the Centre's corporate offices.

Other Centre children included Angleo, the strange and scattered psychic empath, able to imprint other people's personalities (different from a Pretender), and Kyle, another kidnapped Pretender child. A lonely Jarod refused to take part in any simulations until he could meet and befriend Kyle, which he did. Together the boys worked out a system of speaking to each other in Morse code, until Jarod unknowingly injured Kyle in a conspiracy to end their friendship, and the other boy was taken away by the mysterious psychiatist then-Dr. Raines. Raines abused and tortured Kyle until the boy grew into a sociopath, the polar opposite of altruistic Jarod.

Meanwhile, Jarod spent the next thirty years in captivity and isolation, a brilliant innocent under the thumb of a massive, silent organization called the Centre.

Until one day, the Pretender ran away. . .

The financial losses and security risks for the Centre prove too great to allow Jarod to remain free. Disturbed and concerned, the Tower, or ruling body of the Centre develops a team whose entire focus is to return Jarod to the Centre. Included:

Sydney, Jarod's childhood guide, therapist, and nurturer. His through knowlege of Jarod's psyche and coping mechanisms keeps Jarod functioning in the daunting outside world, and the "emotional umbilical" between Jarod and Sydney is the only tie remaining between the Pretender and the Centre. It is thought that if Sydney disappeared, so would Jarod--forever.

The grown Miss Parker, tough, sharp-tongued, and angular. Her shoot first, ask questions later attitude, Centre-bred all or nothing policy, and security team care and resourcefulness provide a much needed contrast to Sydney's quiet and distanced personality. She also represents security for the Tower; it is Parker, they believe, who will ferret out any secret alliances between Jarod and his former psychiatrist. However, something keeps Miss Parker suspicious. Her mother's tragic suicide. . .may not have been a suicide at all.

Broots, a bona fide genius from the Centre tech room. From his mismatched socks, to his classic nonconfrontational attitude, Broots is in every way the traditional geek. He's no Jarod, but the Centre is intrested in him all the same, for Broots is the only one on the team with absoultely no connection with Jarod before the search begins. For him, this is just another job. Broots offers the team another advantage. His incredible computer hacking skills give the team access to Centre files designated classified, and his morals make him willing to use those skills for the greater good.

On the outside, Jarod launches a despearate search for his parents, at the same time skipping across the country, just beyond the Centre's grasp. After learning that his simulations are being twisted and sold--that he may have, unknowingly, killed or harmed countless people--he also begins helping people, one by one, by solving crimes, healing emotional wounds, freeing innocents from prison, and saving lives. While the dark and shadowy forces of the Centre pursue him, Jarod is making ripples.

The good kind.

The Pretender airs on TNT every weeknight at 7:00 P.M.