Caught in the Act (The Outer Limits)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| “Caught in the Act” | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Outer Limits episode | |||||||
| Episode no. | Season 1 Episode 17 |
||||||
| Written by | Grant Rosenberg | ||||||
| Directed by | Mario Azzopardi | ||||||
| Guest stars | Alyssa Milano as Hannah Valesic Stephen Fanning as Karl Jason London as Jay Saul Rubinek as Professor Hugaro Sarah Strange as Lisa Kavan Smith as Quarterback Larry Musser as Clerk Tammy Isbell as Judy Hudson Veena Sood as Dr. Katzman |
||||||
| Production no. | 17 | ||||||
| Original airdate | 1 July 1995 | ||||||
|
|||||||
| List of The Outer Limits episodes | |||||||
"Caught in the Act"' is an episode of The Outer Limits television show. It first aired on 1 July 1995 during the first season.
Contents |
[edit] Introduction
A strange object crashes through the roof of a chaste college student and is absorbed into her body.
[edit] Opening narration
"Humankind has long tried to tame the forces of nature, to harness their power for our needs. But what if the very needs that drive us are the greatest power of all? Will we be able to control ourselves?"
[edit] Plot
Jay (Jason London) and Hannah (Alyssa Milano) are madly in love, so much so that he respects her chaste request to wait until marriage to make love. But one night, a strange object falls into Hannah's room, and emits a mysterious violet glow, enveloping her and embedding itself into her body. Hannah is now possessed. She craves sex, and to feed the alien presence within her, she must prey upon willing males who morph into her body while making love. Hannah first approaches Jay, of course, who cannot believe this was the same girl who steadfastly denied him just the night before. And indeed, she isn't the same girl. When Hannah seduces the star Quarterback, Jay follows them in disbelief. He finds Hannah alone and notices the hole in the ceiling where the alien object entered her room. Realizing that Jay is in danger while in her presence, Hannah forces him to leave, but Jay steals back to her room later and discovers the remains of the object and the Quarterback's jacket. Investigating the disappearance of the Quarterback, the police trace Jay to the scene, and he becomes the prime suspect. Jay turns the object over to his professor, who determines its origin, and researches similar occurrences. As more men vanish, the police pursue Hannah, who is then "caught in the act" devouring a convenience store clerk. A cop shoots Hannah, and to his utter horror, the undevoured top half of the clerk drops to the ground to die. He then watches as the violet light emanates from the bullet hole in her stomach. Hannah is rushed to the hospital and doctors watch in awe as the wound heals itself. The professor is able to substantiate Jay's outrageous claims, and when the police release him, he rushes to the hospital to be with Hannah. Desperate for fresh victims, Hannah attacks her doctor, who refuses to give in to her obsession. Certain that his love is more powerful than the force within her, Jay risks his life to try to cure Hannah. Fearing for Jay's safety, Hannah tries to resist him and the craving within her, and ultimately, the purity and power of their love forces the alien presence from her system.
[edit] Closing Narration
"The urge to hunt and kill -- the need to mate and multiply -- these are our most primitive human drives. But they pale in comparison to the most powerful human drive of all... the need for love."
[edit] Trivia
- This is the first episode of The Outer Limits to address the issue of homosexuality, albeit very briefly. The issue would again be briefly addressed in "Tribunal".
- When The Outer Limits was aired in the UK, this episode was used as a pilot.
- A similar storyline is present in episode Day One of the sci-fi series Torchwood, where a gaseous alien possesses a girl to have sex with human males, who are turned to dust during their orgasm and absorbed by the creature.
