Talk:Nikita (TV series)

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Im wondering if this needs more, since the series no longer airs maybe an episode guide or more in depth plot outline to catch people up? --Seth Turner 18:43, 25 January 2006 (UTC)

Some brief character descriptions might also be good. I'm thinking a paragraph for each, not enough to warrant everybody getting an individual page. BobThePirate 16:14, 26 January 2006 (UTC)

Agreed to both counts. At least an episode list if nothing else. 23skidoo 20:44, 27 January 2006 (UTC)

I roughed up descriptions for the main characters. I'll put them here so people can smooth the edges before they go onto the main page. I don't think we need a great deal of extra detail here, the point is not to list every thing that's ever happened to each person, but maybe another couple of lines per person would be fine... BobThePirate 21:52, 27 January 2006 (UTC)

Michael Samuelle : A Level 5 member of Section One, Michael is almost the perfect operative. He was a member of a terrorist group in his youth before being brought into Section. He has spent so long burying his feelings that he virtually never expresses any emotion, and will give nothing more than monosyllabic responses to most questions. Michael trained Nikita when she was brought into section, and the two developed a highly complex relationship which forms the backbone of the series. Although they are in love with one another Michael's position rarely allows him to be more than professional with her.

Paul Wolfe, Operations : The leader of Section One, Operations is a ruthless man who will stop at nothing to achieve his goals. He has proven to be master manipulator, both of his subordinates and occasionally his superiors. In his youth Operations was a prisoner of war for a prolonged period during Vietnam. He held the rest of the prisoners together, inspiring them to resist interrogation. As punishment he was not released with the others at the end of the war. Although usually professional, Operations does on occasion allow his emotions to over-rule his judgement.

Madeline : Deputy leader of Section One, Madeline is just as committed to the goals of Section as Operations is. She presents a slightly more approachable front than Operations, and Nikita often consults her regarding Section policy and even personal problems. However, Madeline is completely ruthless when necessary, for instance she is the head interrogator of Section One and frequently tortures prisoners to get information.

Walter : One of the longest standing members of Section One, Walter is in charge of the armoury. Unlike most Section members he is gregarious and cheerful to his co-workers. His philosophy is to extract whatever joy as possible from life despite the hardships imposed by Section membership. He is especially fond of Nikita, and has bent the rules to help her or Michael on several occasions. He has a deep dislike of Operations, and is one of the few Section operatives who dares to be openly rude to him on occasion.

Birkoff : A computer genius, Birkoff is one of the youngest members of Section One. Early in the series he was almost completely immersed in his work, to the extent that he lived in Section One and as of early in the show had not left in years. Nikita encouraged him to be a little more outgoing, and the two have something of a friendship. Birkoff and Walter are good friends.

Nikita : A relatively young Section One operative, Nikita is one of the few in Section who manages to maintain her sense of morality. Early on she struggles to cope with the demands Section places on her, and at one point she contemplates suicide. Although she never truly accepts the moral compromises Operations and Madeline make, Nikita does manage to live with her new life and becomes an efficient and occasionally coldblooded killer.

The following discussion is an archived debate of the proposal. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. No further edits should be made to this section.

The result of the debate was move. —Nightst a llion (?) 08:50, 1 February 2006 (UTC)

1 Request to move
2 Language?
3 Life sentence?
4 Reverting page move
5 Great Wallpaper

[edit] Request to move

I propose this article be moved to Nikita (TV series) for two reasons. 1. The proper, original title for this series in its originating country was Nikita, not La Femme Nikita which was used for US rebroadcasts and the later DVD release. 2. The generally accepted format for TV show titles is either 'Nikita (TV series) or Nikita (television series). If no one objects to this proposal I'm willing to do the move myself but I wanted to gauge opinion first. 23skidoo 20:44, 27 January 2006 (UTC)

I certainly do not disagree that this should be moved to a title containing (TV series) or (television series) (in case anyone isn't aware, there is currently a poll to decided which: Wikipedia:Naming conventions (television)/poll). However, looking up the series on IMDB [1] heralds La Femme Nikita, with the note that the Canadian title was Nikita. I appreciate that the series was produced in Canada, so while though I believe more users will be familiar with La Femme Nikita, I can't really object to your proposal! Perhaps you could wait a little longer to see if any other opinions arise? --Lox (t,c) 08:50, 28 January 2006 (UTC)

That's why I put the request in rather than just going ahead. At one point this article was called Nikita but it was moved without this process. IMDb did at one point have the show listed as Nikita as its primary title but I think things got confused when the DVD came out. The general rule of thumb I've seen on Wikipedia has been to use the originating country's title (including foreign language titles) and the place the appropriate redirects at the alternate titles. Had Nikita aired in the US first there might be an argument for using the US title since it was the first to be made public, however I recall Nikita was airing in Canada for at least half a year before USA Network began showing it. 23skidoo 16:36, 28 January 2006 (UTC)

Well, in case no one else replies, I'd like to make it clear to any admin that I support this move. And I really like your handle, 23skidoo! --Lox (t,c) 22:04, 30 January 2006 (UTC)

Actually any editor can make the move since the target does not exist. Vegaswikian 07:28, 1 February 2006 (UTC)

The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on this talk page. No further edits should be made to this section.

[edit] Language?

Was this show originally made in French (like the movie) or in English? If it's the latter, it would be a rare spin-off in a different language than the source film. Either way, the production language needs to be mentioned in the article. ProhibitOnions ^(T) 21:22, 12 June 2006 (UTC)

The show was made in English. S Sepp 21:43, 12 June 2006 (UTC)

Thanks. Were the characters supposed to be French or French-speaking Canadians, or was the location changed from the film? ProhibitOnions ^(T) 23:06, 12 June 2006 (UTC)

The show was filmed in Toronto and except for the actor who played Michael (who is French Canadian) and the actress who played Nikita (who is either Australian or Papua New Guinean - I forget which) the cast consisted primarily of Anglo-Canadians and/or actors playing Anglophones. Although I don't recall if the series definitively indicated where it was set it was likely somewhere in the United States so they definitely changed the setting from the movie. 23skidoo 23:45, 12 June 2006 (UTC)

Actually although they kept the setting vague, when the original Section One HQ was destroyed it was revealed that it was in Paris. Many - probably most - of the missions were set in European locations. They very rarely went anywhere near America. BobThePirate 15:43, 13 June 2006 (UTC)
- That's news to me. I remember one episode that quite clearly takes place in Toronto (actually two -- you can clearly see Toronto landmarks in the opening of the first episode before Nikita's run-in with the cop) and actually suggested that Section 1 was based there (although as you say it was vague). Which episode has the Paris revelation? I'd like to check that for myself. 23skidoo 19:02, 24 July 2006 (UTC)

3rd season epsiode, "I Remember Paris". Section One's location is revealed and so they abandon it and trigger a self-destruct. The last shot shows them walking out of Section One onto a street with the Eiffel Tower in the background. BobThePirate 13:27, 10 August 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Life sentence?

I just noticed that it's stated in the article that Nikita is sentenced to life imprisonment for allegedly killing the cop. But I thought one of the main points of the pilot is that Nikita was given a choice of working for Section or being sent back to jail and execution. Can anyone confirm which is correct? 23skidoo 19:02, 24 July 2006 (UTC)

Nikita was sentenced to death. She was taken out of a death row cell by Section 1. They never threatened to return her to jail, even death row; disobedience was met with summary execution.

That's incorrect. The pilot episode "Nikita" makes it clear in the pre-credits sequence that Nikita is sentenced to life in prison. When waking up in Section One's White Room, Michael gives her the choice of either working for them, or 'cancellation', which means that Section One would eliminate her, not the authorities.

--TARDIS 19:39, 25 August 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Reverting page move

This article should not have been moved back to La Femme Nikita without attempting to get consensus. As discussed above, Nikita was the original production title of this series and it was agreed that's where it should be. I am undoing the move now and I have invited the user to made the move to start a discussion thread here in order to gain consensus on whether to put the article back to La Femme Nikita (TV series). 23skidoo 00:55, 24 August 2006 (UTC)