| Beyond the Pale | |||||
| La Femme Nikita | |||||
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| Episode no. |
Season 3 Episode 13 |
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| Directed by | René Bonnière | ||||
| Written by | Lawrence Hertzog | ||||
| Production code | 313 | ||||
| Original air date | June 13, 1999 | ||||
| Episode guide | |||||
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"Beyond the Pale" is the thirteenth episode of the third season of La Femme Nikita.
Summary[]
When Michael loses a much coveted promotion to another Section operative, Zalman, he escapes Section with Nikita. Stolen Section technology keeps Zalman from locating them at first, but eventually Michael is captured. Zalman stops at nothing to torture Nikita's location out of Michael, but Zalman's real motives have nothing to do with locating a rouge operative.
Plot[]
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Over breakfast, Operations compliments Madeline on the report she submitted to him. He tells her that he has two men and one job. "Head strategist is a significant promotion," he says. "Michael is more qualified," Madeline points out. "In terms of time served, yes, but even looking at your report, Zalman might be better suited for it," Operations replies. "I wouldn't underestimate Michael's reaction to this," she tells him. "Michael's a team player," Operations asserts. "Maybe, but he wants this post and he knows he deserves it. He may not show it, but he will be resentful," Madeline counsels. Operations hits the intercom and instructs that Michael meet Operations at his office. Operations thanks Madeline for her input and departs.
In the Perch, Michael arrives as summoned. Operations comments on the progress that Michael has made on the Vincent Tomas mission. Michael believes that they've located the nucleus of his operation. "Michael, I know you expected the promotion to head strategist and over the years I indicated that job may someone be yours, but you're a field man. The best I've have. The head strategist position, I believe it would be a mistake, for both us." Michael asks if that will be all. "This isn't personal, Michael," Operations tells him. "Of course," Michael replies and he leaves the Perch.
It's nighttime and Nikita is asleep in bed. Her eyes open when she hears a noise in the apartment. She cautiously reaches under her pillow and pulls out her gun. After a few moments, she turns in bed and takes aim at the intruder. Michaels stands calmly by her bed. Relieved, she puts down her gun. Given how unusual it is for Michael to show up like this, she asks him what's wrong. "We're getting out," Michael tells her. "How? It's impossible," Nikita asks. "I'll explain. Get dressed." He walks away to let her get dressed. Nikita swings her legs off the bed and stares after him in contemplation.
Act 1[]
Operations begins a mission briefing by informing those gathered that in the last six months there's been an increase in Red Cell activity. They believe that Vincent Tomas has taken the helm in Europe and is responsible for the escalation. He's operating as he once did in Asia. Tactically, they have to strike all substations to keep one from informing the other. He introduces Zalman as their new head strategist and his responsibility to coordination the strikes from Section. Michael will lead the cell team in the field. "Any further questions will be directed to Zalman," Operations says in parting. Everyone rises at the end of the briefing. Zalman calls out to Michael before he leaves. "I just want you to know that I've studied all your files and I have nothing but respect for the work that you've done here. I'm really looking forward to having you as my point man." Michael listens to him talk "My team will be ready," Michael tells him. "Oh, I know that," Zalman responds before Michael walks away.
At Munitions, Walter is letting Nikita know his opinion on the decision to promote Zalman to head strategist. "Everyone around here respects Michael. He's a leader. I don't know what Zalman does besides fit in." As he vents Nikita replaces her panel while Walter's back is turned but she also removes and conceals another piece of equipment. Nikita tells him not to worry. Walter wonders if Michael has said anything to Nikita. "You know Michael. It's the job. You do it." Walter turns to log out Nikita's equipment when Michael approaches Munitions and walks straight into the department's storage area. Confused, Walter calls out after him. "You know I can't let you back here," he tells Michael. While Walter is distracted with Michael in the back, Nikita checks out a field router from its storage place and stashes it in her bag. "I need a note from Zalman is that it?" Michael questions Walter. He sympathetic but only so far. "Nobody's with Operations on this one but it didn't happen for you and you can't change the rules." Walter leads Michael back out of the storage area. When Michael passes Nikita, he informs her that they're going out in one hour. "You're gonna have a swell time," Walter remarks given Michael's attitude. She tells him that they'll be okay. "Watch your flank. Maybe you better watch his too." As she's finishing up her prep, Nikita keeps looking at Walter and he takes note of her attention. "Just the best part of my day," she compliments. He's charmed. "Keep on talking like that and I'll forget how old I am." Nikita walks away with a smile that eventually turns somber.
Nikita drives a large box truck with Michael as her passenger. Both are dressed for the cold, snowy weather as civilians rather than the standard issued mission gear. He reaches for the field router Nikita stole and she asks him how long it will be before Section realizes that they have it. "Once we use it, they'll know," he tells her. "Michael are you running away because you lost a post to Zalman?" Nikita asks. "In Section you either move up or move out," he answers. "I understand that Michael. I just don't understand why you need me." Michael looks at Nikita seriously. "I don't need you. I want you," he tells her honestly.
Operations is following the progress of the mission from the breakfast meeting room. Zalman asks Birkoff for a status "Seven teams deployed. Team one will make target. They'll have two minutes to secure the nucleus station, shut down communications and acquire Tomas before the satellite teams hit." He adds that Michael's team is entering the perimeter.
Nikita parks the truck and several armed operatives exit the back and spread out at the location--a secluded home. Michael exits from the passenger side armed and he leads the team inside the target site. Nikita exits the vehicle and waits. Michael slowly opens the front door and with part of his team he slowly makes his way through the empty and abandoned house. Zalman wants to know if the team has retrieved Tomas. "Condition blue. The location is clear," Michael answers. Zalman is surprised. Michael informs him that it looks like Tomas pulled out within the last twenty four hours. Michael walks back to the entrance and looks out the window towards where Nikita stands. Seeing him, Nikita heads towards the house. He lets her in through a side door and instructs her to follow him. They both exit the house through a back door. Zalman reaches out to Michael and asks if he noticed any indication that Tomas had advanced warning. "Yes they knew. End of report," Michael tells him succinctly and he activates the field router.
At Comm, all of their signals are jammed. Zalman continues to reach Michael but he has no luck. Birkoff reports that he needs to shift op frequencies to try and get Comm back. Operations, turns of the monitor he'd been observing the mission on in frustration.
Back at the mission site, Michael indicates for Nikita to follow him and the two of them head into the snow covered woods by the house.
Birkoff tells Zalman to try again and he tries to reach out to Michael unsuccessfully. "Can anyone hear me?" He questions. The team that had been inside the house emerges outside and responds. "This is Team 2, Fredricks." Relieved, Zalman wants to know where Michael is but Fredricks tells him that they don't exactly know. "He's missing, sir. Nikita, too." Birkoff looks surprised at the news. Fredricks tells him that he has personnel out in teams combing the area. In frustration, Zalman toss his Comm piece onto the table. "How in the Hell did this happen?" He questions Birkoff, who gives the scenario some thought. "Somehow they got their hands on a Section field router," he concludes. "it's programmed with all of Section's codes and frequencies."
After hearing Birkoff's conclusion, he heads towards Munitions and bellows out Walter's name. Once Walter emerges from the back. Zalman demands that Walter check his inventory for a field router. He pulls out a panel and inserts it into a nearby storage unit. He scans it to unlock and pulls out a drawer with a single field router. This surprises him and he scans another drawer, but it's empty. "You're right. One's missing." He's lost in thought. "Someone must have taken it." Seething, Zalman threatens Walter. "Just so you fully understand how I work here, I do not tolerate mistakes." Walter bristles at Zalman's words. "Then don't make one bigger than you already have," he responds quietly. Walter's intercom with Operations demanding to see Zalamn in his office immediately. Zalman responds with courtesy. "To be continued, Walter," Zalman says in departure.
Operations waits for Zalman in the Perch. "You are aware as head strategist that any mission failure is your responsibility." Zalman tells him that he is aware of that. "You're also aware that any failure on your part is my responsibility." Zalman tries to interrupt but Operations stops him. "Listen to me. I put you in charge of this mission," Operations reminds him. "I won't let you down," Zalman asserts. "You already have make no mistake about that." Zalman tells Operations that he will find out what happened. "Oh I'll tell you what happened. Michael left because I passed him over for you and he took Nikita with him. You should have anticipated that variable." Zalman once again insists that they'll find them. "Not standing in here you won't," Operations tells him in dismissal.
A lone truck pulls up to the side of the road. Michael and Nikita exit the vehicle and give their thanks to the driver in French. With their packs they walk away an isolated dirt road that's surrounded by snow covered forest.
Act 2[]
Michael and Nikita arrive at the end of the road they were on. It has lead them to a stone cottage. As they walk alongside the exterior of the building, Michael opens several of the shutters covering the windows. He opens a door and escorts Nikita inside. Nikita glances around the simple furnishings while Michael positions himself at a wood burning stove. Nikita asks about the owner and Michael informs her that he's the owner. This surprises her. Michael shares that he saw the property once while doing aerial reconnaissance. He bought it and the land around it--100 hectares. Nikita tells him that she likes it. While looking around, she opens a side door to reveal a new truck in a garage. Nikita crouches down at a record player and selects a record to play. Michael busies himself at the kitchen counter with some vegetables and a knife. Nikita notices this and tells him that she wasn't aware of his talents in the kitchen. "There's a lot you don't know about me. Maybe it's time you learned," he tells her.
Later that evening, night has fallen and Nikita sits on the couch with her eyes closed. Michael enters with an armful of firewood and he starts feeding the oven for warmth. "How long to you think we'll stay here?" Nikita asks him. "Not long enough," Michael answers after he's finished, Michael takes a seat on the other end of the couch. Nikita lays down with her head across Michael's thigh. "I'm so glad you brought me here. I wish we could stay," she tells him. "Let's not think about the future. Let's just enjoy this while it lasts," he advises. Nikita points out that she couldn't get one of the windows closed and she shivers slightly. He tells her that he'll go into tomorrow into town to pick up a few things and he'll pick up a new latch as well. "So we'll be cold tonight then?" Nikita asks. Michael takes the quilt that is over the back of the couch and places it around Nikita. She laughs in gratitude at his gesture. He hesitantly rests his hand on Nikita's shoulder.
Operations walks into Madeline's office and takes a seat. She explains that she's reviewed both Michael and Nikita's psych files. "I'm not convinced they're renegade." Operations reminds her that they took the field router to escape. "Maybe this was motivated externally," she suggests. "Extortion?" Operations questions. Madeline's instincts tell her that this was not a collaboration. "Michael's up to something." Operations asks for her suggestions. "If their actions are being controlled, let's find out who it is before we walk into a trap." Operations thanks Madeline for her input and leaves her office.
At Comm, Birkoff tells Zalman that the closest he can place Michael and Nikita is that they're still in Belgium, southeast of Brussels.
Zalman crosses paths with Madeline outside of Systems.
Madeline visits Walter in Medical. She explains that she couldn't interfere with his interrogation. "What is happening to this place? This would have never happened back then. We all had our jobs, we did them. We were a team. We respected each other," he points out. "We didn't change, Walter, the world did," she tells him.
Together, Michael and Nikita walk up the stairs to the lofted bedroom of the cabin where a single bed awaits them. They each carry a candle and sit down on opposite sides of the bed. Michael begins to remove his shoes but Nikita looks conflicted about the whole situation. "How's this gonna work?" She asks him. "We can be careful, take things slowly," Michael answers. "There's another option, I mean, we could live today like it's our last," she suggests with a wistful smile. Michael turns to her. "It very well could be," he tells her somberly. Nikita turns to him in response to his words. Clearly bothered by the seriousness of his words, Nikita lies back in bed but turns her face away from Michael.
Act 3[]
In the cabin's bedroom, Nikita awakens in the morning alone in bed. She reaches over and affectionately touches the empty space where Michael slept. His absence finally hits her and she rises in a panic while she calls his name. Nikita continues to call out to him while she pulls on her pants and heads downstairs. She grabs her gun from her pack and heads towards the window. She then notices a note on the countertop. "Went to town. Be back by noon," it reads.
In town, Michael walks out of a joint epicerie and boulangerie with two grocery bags. He catches the eye of a man in a nearby car who aims a gun at him. Michael drops his bags and runs for cover behind a car when the other man shoots. He's been hit with a tranquilizer dart and falls onto the snow. Two men pick Michael up and carry him away.
Zalman approaches Van Access while Operations, Madeline and Walter approach from the opposite direction. Fully restrained, Michael is led out of Van Access by a pair of operatives. "You know what's going to happen. Tell us where the route is, Michael," Operations tells him but Michael says nothing. Zalman orders that Michael be taken to Containment.
Zalman approaches Birkoff at Comm and asks about Nikita. He tells him that they haven't found her but Zalman says that she must be close. "The terrain is difficult. The roads are rural. She could be anywhere," Birkoff tells him but he isn't receptive. Birkoff with try to see if they have any helicopters in the area.
At the farmhouse, Nikita notices a vehicle approaching. It's not Michael. Nikita grabs the packs she and Michael brought with them and he hides in a cellar beneath the floor boards. She forgets to grab the field router, which is nearby. When the vehicle comes to a stop, two armed men step outside and carefully make their way to the farmhouse. They make their way inside and search for Nikita. One of the men tells the other to look for the router. Nikita overhears them and realizes that she forgot to grab it. She carefully opens the cellar door and reaches out for the router where Michael had initially placed it. Nikita activates it and sends a decoy signal that fools the men into believing that she's not at that location. They leave and Nikita is alone once more.
In the White Room, Michael is seated and being subjected to torture by Zalman. He grimaces in pain but doesn't utter a word. Zalman pauses and questions Nikita's worthiness. "Is she really worth all this, Michael? I mean would she even do half as much for you?" Zalman is entirely dismissive of Michael's commitment to keeping Nikita's location a secret. "You know, they uh, they briefed me about the two of you. Michael and Nikita. Nikita and Michael, but having read your files, I must tell you. I'm surprised," Zalman taunts. "To go this far and for what? Love? You?" He scoffs at the idea. "I find that very hard to believe." The door opens and the two devos enter. "Either, I severely misread you or this is all about something else. Where is she?" Zalman demands but Michael still says nothing. "Make it extremely unpleasant," Zalman tells the devos before he walks out. They both turn away from Michael and place their suitcases on the table.
In Comm Walter watches of video feed of the devos approaching Michael. "Oh I don't need to see this," he tells Birkoff. Birkoff turns towards the Perch and sees Operations pacing slowly. Zalman approaches him. Operations asks Zalman about the progress of his interrogation of Michael. "Well, you were right he's very resistant, sir, but I think one more session should do it," Zalman tells him confidently. "No. I know him. He'll die first," Operations confides. Zalman wonders if he's being asked to stop. Operations tells Zalman that he'd like for him to try a different approach with Michael.
In the White Room, an exhausted looking Michael sits in the chair. The door opens and a subtly gleeful Zalman walks in. He orders the devos to leave. He compliments Michael on his ability to withstand torture. " You know in the long run they probably should have offered the promotion to you," he smugly confides. "And all of this for some second rate blonde whore," Zalman mocks. He tells Michael that there so many other important things in the world worth dying for. He turns to the video screen in the room an activates to show footage of Adam playing with a soccer ball. "You know, as thorough as I thought I'd been. I had no idea until about an hour ago that you had a son." Michael slowly turns his head towards the screen and sees Adam. "Now that is something worth dying for," Zalman tells him before stopping the footage. "I know you hate me, Michael." Zalman tells him that he tries not to be concerned about what other people think. "So hate me, until your dying breath if you must, but you might not wanna take that dying breathe until you're absolutely sure that your son is safe from the likes of me." Michael is visibly battling with himself. Zalman asks Michael where Nikita is. Tired, Michael tells him. "She's at the farmhouse. Five kilometers southwest of town." Armed with that information, Zalman leaves Michael alone.
Act 4[]
Michael is interrogated by Zalman
Tag[]
In Nikita's apartment, she and Michael have finished dinner. Like at the cabin, the music of Françoise Hardy is playing in the background. They are sitting in the living room while he pours them each some wine. "Dinner was wonderful, thank you," Michael compliments as he hands her a glass. Nikita smiles but remarks that she doesn't think that it was as good as what he prepared at the cabin. "I liked it there," he confesses. Nikita nods her head in agreement. A wave of sadness comes over her. "You know it can't be casual between you and me. I can't do that," Nikita tells him sadly. Michael looks at her for a long time before he tells her that he knows. Michael hold up his wine glass in a toast. Nikita does the same thing. Michael drinks, but Nikita continues to hold her out, twirling the contents sadly. Tears glisten in her eyes.
Cast[]
Main Cast[] |
Special Guest Stars[]
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Episode Quotes[]
- Michael: "I don't need you. I want you."
- Walter: "What is happening to this place? This would have never happened back then. We all had our jobs, we did them. We were a team. We respected each other."
Madeline: "We didn't change, Walter, the world did."
- Zalman: ""You know, they uh, they briefed me about the two of you. Michael and Nikita. Nikita and Michael, but having read your files, I must tell you. I'm surprised. To go this far and for what? Love? You?" (He scoffs) "I find that very hard to believe."
- Nikita: "You know it can't be casual between you and me. I can't do that."
Michael: "I know."
Music[]
Ma jeunesse fout le camp | Françoise Hardy
Video[]
La Femme Nikita- "Ma Jeunesse Fout le Camp" - Françoise Hardy
Nikita plays a record in Michael's cabin.
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