BIRDS OF PREY
1X02: SLICK
PROD #175451
ORIGINAL AIR DATE ON WB: 10/16/2002
TRANSCRIBED FROM WB
Story by: LAETA KALOGRIDIS & MELISSA ROSENBERG
Teleplay by: LAETA KALOGRIDIS
Directed by: MICHAEL KATELMAN
Transcript by Intrepid
Courtesy of http://www.webphilia.com/~anthology/wnp.html
Please do not archive this transcript without permission from the
Transcriptionist.
RATING: TV-14-LSV
==========================
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==========================
SUMMARY: A Meta-Human who can change into water is killing good cops, the ones
who can't be bought or broken ... and he's set his sights on Reese.
==========================
BIRDS OF PREY
1X02: SLICK
==========================
COLD OPEN:
INTRODUCTION
[EXT. FULL MOON -- NIGHT]
(The image of a bat flies by the light of the moon, turns and heads directly to
the camera.)
SMASH CUT TO
INTRODUCTION:
[EXT. NEW GOTHAM CITY (STOCK) - NIGHT]
(Camera cruises up high above the buildings, weaving in and out between them.)
(Dissolve to: BATMAN lands on a rooftop, his cape billowing behind him.)
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: (v.o.) Legend tells of a caped crusader ...
DISSOLVE INTO:
[CLOSE UP: BATMAN]
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: (v.o.) ... Batman, guardian of New Gotham, ...
(Dissolve to: Camera cruises up high above the buildings, weaving in and out
between them.)
DISSOVE TO:
[EXT. ALLEYWAY - NIGHT]
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: (v.o.) ... and his one true love ...
(CATWOMAN lands feet first on the ground and tilts her head to look quizzically
in front of her.)
(Dissolve to: Close up of Catwoman's mask.)
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: (v.o.) ... Catwoman -
(Cut to: BATMAN pushes his cape aside as CATWOMAN leaps in front of him. She
swings and he grabs her wrist, pulling her close to him.)
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: (v.o.) ... The Queen of the criminal underworld.
DISSOLVE TO:
(Dissolve to: Camera cruises up high above the buildings, weaving in and out
between them.)
DISSOLVE TO:
[CLOSE UP: HELENA KYLE]
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: Their passion left behind something extraordinary ...
(Dissolve to: HUNTRESS pushes aside the curtain and walks inside the room.)
(Camera zooms in for an extreme close up of The HUNTRESS' left eye. THE
HUNTRESS' pupils contract and change into convexo-convex shaped disks like those
of a cat's. Her eyes change from brown to blue.)
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: ... a daughter -- Huntress.
[Scene from 1X01: Pilot.]
[EXT. ALLEYWAY - NIGHT]
(The HUNTRESS fights JERRY. She does a couple of flips forward toward JERRY who
is against the wall.)
(Dissolve to: The HUNTRESS crouches down low ready to pounce. She lifts her
head and looks directly at her prey.)
DISSOLVE TO:
[INT. APARTMENT - BALCONY -- NIGHT]
(The HUNTRESS turns and spreads her arms. She jumps off the balcony in a
beautiful swan dive. She falls to the building rooftops far below ... )
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: (v.o.) Half meta-human ... She has taken up her father's
mantle ...
(Camera cruises up high above the buildings, weaving in and out between them.)
DISSOLVE TO:
[EXT. WAREHOUSE - NIGHT]
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: (v.o.) ... and under cover of the night, fights to protect
the innocent and helpless.
[Scene from 1X02: Slick]
(HELENA and another MAN fight in the warehouse, the back doors of the van he was
unloading wide open.)
(HELENA crouches down low and looks up at the MAN.)
DISSOLVE TO:
[INT. GIBSON'S BAR - NIGHT]
[Scene from 1X03: Prey for the Huntress]
(The door slides open and BARBARA is sitting in her wheelchair.)
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: Joining her in this struggle ...
DISSOLVE TO:
[INT. THE CLOCKTOWER - DAY]
(Camera close up of BARBARA GORDON.)
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: (v.o.) Oracle -
[Scene from 1X01: Pilot]
(Dissolve to: THE CLOCKTOWER. The camera pulls back and twists completely over
where we find BARBARA GORDON sitting in front of the computer monitors working.)
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: (v.o.) ... who was once Batman's protégée, Batgirl.
[CLOSE UP: BATGIRL]
[Scene from 1X01: Pilot]
(Inside the Dockyard's Warehouse, BATGIRL fights the thugs in the hallway.)
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: (v.o.) She was caught in the crossfire of the war between
Batman and Joker.
[INT. APARTMENT - NIGHT]
(BARBARA GORDON opens her apartment door and looks up in surprise.)
(Cut to: The JOKER raises his gun, aims and fires.)
(Cut to: The top of BARBARA GORDON'S head.)
(Cut to: BARBARA'S surprised look.)
(Dissolve to: The bullet hits BARBARA and she flies backward.)
(Dissolve to: Camera close up of the empty casing.)
DISSOLVE TO:
[INT. THE CLOCKTOWER - NIGHT]
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: Now she fights crime a different way -- master of the cyber
realms,
[Scene from 1X01: Pilot]
(BARBARA sits in her wheelchair in the center of her computer center. A circle
of green light rises from the floor and surrounds BARBARA in what appears to be
a 360 degree 3-D grid that places her at the center of what DINAH sees in front
of her.)
CUT TO:
[Scene from 1X01: Pilot]
[INT. KETTERLY'S RESIDENCE - LIBRARY -- NIGHT]
(Sitting in her wheelchair, BARBARA appears in the doorway and throws the
circular batarang with ease and skill at Ketterly.)
[Scene from 1X02: Slick]
(The batarang flies across the clocktower.)
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: (v.o.) ... a mentor and trainer to heroes.
(Cut to: [Scene from 1X02: Slick] BARBARA smiles, a circular batarang in her
hand.)
(Cut to: [Scene from 1X01: Pilot] BARBARA and HELENA talk. They both turn to
look at the camera.)
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: Together, they have taken in a young runaway ...
[INT. GIBSON'S BAR - NIGHT]
(Cut to: [Scene from 1X03: Prey for the Huntress] DINAH is at the pool table
holding a cue stick. She stands up and turns around to look at the camera.)
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: (v.o.) ... Dinah -- a meta-human herself, ...
(Cut to: [Scenes from 1X01: Pilot] DINAH reaches out and grabs HELENA'S wrist.
She has a vision.)
(Cut to: The CLOCKTOWER. The man dying grabbing her own hand. Flash to
another vision. DINAH in front of the Bus Terminal. Flashes of the vision of
the man on the bench.)
(Cut to: A hand presses against a wall. It glows and opens a secret door.
DINAH finishes her vision with HELENA.)
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: (v.o.) ... with powers to open hidden doors to the mind,
powers that she is only beginning to explore.
(Dissolve to: DINAH.)
(Dissolve to DINAH opening the cob-webbed warehouse door at the dockyards.)
(Dissolve to: DINAH in the machine getting her brain scanned.)
(Dissolve to: DINAH and BARBARA dressed as BATGIRL in HELENA'S mind. BARBARA
stands up and moves toward DINAH. They grasp each other's wrists.)
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: (v.o.) Together, these three are the protectors of New
Gotham ...
(HELENA walks up to them and puts her hand over theirs.)
(The three stand together.)
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: (v.o.) ... the "Birds of Prey."
WHITE FLASH TO:
[EXT. NEW GOTHAM CITY (STOCK) - NIGHT]
DISSOLVE IN TITLE LOGO with flying bird
END OF INTRODUCTION
DISSOLVE IN:
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: (v.o.) My name is Alfred Pennyworth, and this is their
story.
[EXT. DR. QUINZEL'S OFFICE -- HALLWAY - DAY]
(Camera opens with a floor-angled view of the front office door. It reads:
DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL
DOCTOR OF PSYCHIATRY
(Camera moves forward and under the door inside the office where we see HELENA
and DR. QUINZEL having a session.)
[INT. DR. QUINZEL'S OFFICE - DAY - CONTINUOUS]
DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL: Helena?
HELENA: It's hard for me to come here.
DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL: Why?
HELENA: I don't trust people.
DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL: Luckily for you, this is your last court-mandated session.
HELENA: Then I must be officially sane. What a relief.
DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL: (leans forward) You don't have to come back ... unless
you want to. I know you think you can't trust anyone, but ... I'd like to help
you, if you'd let me.
(HELENA shakes her head.)
DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL: Why is it so difficult for you to let people in, Helena?
(She's quiet for a moment, the inhales sharply.)
HELENA: After mom was killed, I found out about my dad -- who he was.
DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL: Most people would be excited to discover that a
billionaire philanthropist like Bruce Wayne was their father.
HELENA: I only wanted one thing from him ... that he find the man that killed
my mother.
DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL: And then?
HELENA: And then I wanted that man dead.
(This intrigues DR. QUINZEL. She puts a hand against her temple and fixes
HELENA with a look.)
DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL: We can't just go around killing people, Helena.
HELENA: (chuckles) Yeah, that's what I hear.
(She shakes her head and scoffs.)
HELENA: All I wanted from him was revenge. If it had been the other way
around, mom would've done it. They hadn't been together in years. She would've
killed for him. And that's when I learned ... what my mom always knew -- rely
on no one but yourself.
CUT TO:
[EXT. NEW GOTHAM CITY (STOCK) - NIGHT]
(Camera cruises up high above the buildings, weaving in and out between them.
Camera stops directly in front of the building with the blue neon sign: NEW
GOTHAM POLICE.)
[INT. POLICE STATION - HALLWAY -- NIGHT]
(SLICK is being accompanied by DET. JESSE REESE, GRACE TANNER, and JACK
BARNSTONE. They walk through the police department hallways.)
SLICK: What is wrong with you people? I'm talking about real money here.
JACK BARNSTONE: (chuckles) Ooh. Real money, guys.
REESE: What's real money to you, slick?
SLICK: More than your pension cash, I'll tell you that.
GRACE TANNER: I don't know. I've got some years in. My pension's looking
sweet. How about you, Reese?
REESE: I need money, I hit the casino.
GRACE TANNER: Hmm ... that ever work for you?
REESE: Mmm, not yet.
SLICK: I'm not talking "jackpot" cash here, okay? I'm talking "lottery" cash -
-$20 million.
GRACE TANNER: Five million!
SLICK: Split it however you want.
SLICK: Okay, Okay. Thirty -- okay?
(GRACE TANNER uncuffs SLICK, pushes him down to the seat along the hallway wall
and re-cuffs him to it.)
SLICK: Come on!
(REESE steps forward and looks down at SLICK.)
REESE: I'll tell you what, Slick ... I'm a simple guy. So I'm gonna do you a
favor.
(REESE leans down.)
REESE: I'm gonna leave this thing at robbery. And I'm gonna forget all about
the generous, although misguided, attempt to bribe three good cops. Okay? So
...
(REESE pats SLICK'S cheek.)
REESE: Why don't you sit tight while we get you processed, huh?
(REESE steps back. The three cops leave the hallway, muttering amongst
themselves.)
GRACE TANNER: If I had a nickel for every time a perp's offered me drugs ...
JACK BARNSTONE: Or 'real' money.
(GRACE TANNER laughs.)
(SLICK sits on the chair for a moment. He looks around. Seeing only one other
perp hands cuffed and sitting in the bench next to him, SLICK glances about then
turns completely into water. He splashes to the hallway floor in a big puddle.
The puddle then crosses the hallway floor and escapes through the floor vent.)
(The PERP in the next hallway chair stares aghast.)
CUT TO:
[INT. SHOWER - NIGHT]
(Camera close up of water falling from a showerhead. Camera pans downward and
we find that we're in DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL'S shower.)
(She lathers up the soap in her hand, letting the water run down her body. The
water slips down the drain.)
(But this water starts to glow bluish and starts to build upward into a figure.
It solidifies into SLICK.)
(Dr. QUINZEL turns her head and looks at SLICK, not surprised to see him
standing naked in her shower at all.)
DR. HARLEY QUINZEL: If you're looking for your paycheck, forget it. I don't
reward failure.
SLICK: Excuse me, beautiful. I did my job. I got on the truck. You didn't
say anything about cops.
DR. HARLEY QUINZEL: I asked you to hijack one armored truck -- a job you
assured me you could do in your sleep. You got caught.
(She runs her hand across and around his chest in an absent caress. She
chuckles as her hand travels lower and off screen.)
DR. HARLEY QUINZEL: People who work for Harley Quinn ... don't ... get ...
caught.
(She grabs him. He gasps.)
SLICK: Oh, calm down, baby. Nobody has to lose any body parts here.
DR. HARLEY QUINZEL: (laughs lustily) Don't be so sure. I know. I've only
been in New Gotham for a few months, and maybe this kind of pathetic screw-up
passes for crime in this town?
(She inhales sharply and continues to caress SLICK'S chest.)
DR. HARLEY QUINZEL: But ... things are gonna change. New Gotham ran the Joker
out on a rail. Now he's locked up in a prison far away from here. (sighs)
This city is gonna pay for what they did to my sweet Mr. "J."
(Suddenly, she grabs SLICK and pushes him against the wall. She moves fast and
stands in front of him. SLICK is sufficiently surprised again.)
DR. HARLEY QUINZEL: (menacingly) I will have a vengeance that will be spoken
of in terrified whispers for generations to come. Do you understand?
SLICK: N-not exactly, no.
DR. HARLEY QUINZEL: (sighs) I'm gonna take over New Gotham, you idiot.
SLICK: You really ought to see someone about those mood swings.
DR. HARLEY QUINZEL: I've decided to give you one more chance, Slick. I know
you won't let me down.
(DR. HARLEY QUINZEL smiles.)
CUT TO
END OF TEASER.
ROLL TITLE CREDITS.
(COMMERCIAL SET)
FADE IN.
[EXT. NEW GOTHAM CITY (STOCK) - DAY]
(Camera heads straight for The CLOCKTOWER. It reads: 4:00.)
[INT. THE CLOCKTOWER - DAY - CONTINUOUS]
(Camera goes through the window and pulls back.)
(ALFRED carries a tray full of food to the table where BARBARA is sitting, forms
spread out in front of her.)
BARBARA: (loudly) We only have a week before you start classes. We need to
finish filling these ...
(A whirring sound is heard. Both BARBARA and ALFRED watch as a circular
batarang flies out from nowhere, curves around and heads for them. It swipes
the railing and heads for the table where it clips and breaks the glass pitcher
full of orange juice and glasses on the tray. It swooshes past both BARBARA and
ALFRED and embeds itself into the wall behind them.)
(BARBARA turns to look at DINAH.)
BARBARA: ... Out.
DINAH: (EMBARRASSED) Oh. Sorry!
(ALFRED holds the batarang in his hand, looking down at it admiringly.)
ALFRED PENNYWORTH: Quite a nice throw, actually. Excellent velocity.
(ALFRED gives the batarang to BARBARA who flips it over and looks at it.)
BARBARA: Uh, this isn't the batarang I gave you for practice.
(DINAH walks up the spiral staircase up to the second floor.)
DINAH: I know. But this one has three times the range of the regular ones,
plus all the automated stuff. It's way cooler.
BARBARA: I know. I designed it. Dinah, your training is meant to prepare you
in stages. You need to learn one step before moving on to the next ... which
means mastering the basic weapons before you get to use the ones with the bells
and whistles ... and target-seeking capabilities.
(HELENA walks into the room.)
HELENA: Greetings, Superfriends.
BARBARA: Ah, good morning.
(HELENA takes off her jacket and walks into the kitchen. DINAH follows her into
the kitchen.)
DINAH: How was your sweep?
HELENA: Slow night. Two muggers to a robbery -- hardly worth the effort.
BARBARA: (mutters looking at the forms) How can they need this much
information just to let one girl into public school?
DINAH: I want to show you something.
(DINAH takes out an outfit and holds it against herself.)
DINAH: What do you think of this for my first-day-of-school outfit?
(HELENA looks at the outfit and doesn't say anything.)
DINAH: What?
HELENA: Kind of a "draft me for the chess club" thing going on.
(DINAH glances down at the clothes.)
BARBARA: I'll need to get your basic information -- birth certificate, social
security, that sort of thing.
(DINAH puts the clothes down and takes a step toward BARBARA.)
DINAH: There isn't any.
(BARBARA and ALFRED both look at DINAH. Even HELENA turns around from perusing
the refrigerator to look at DINAH.)
BARBARA: Sorry?
DINAH: Uh ... information. There isn't any. There was a fire at the county
courthouse, and all the records burned.
BARBARA: Well, I'll at least need to get your transcripts.
DINAH: They burned, too.
HELENA: Your transcripts would be at the school, not the courthouse.
DINAH: (obviously lying) Well, it was a really big ... fire.
(DINAH sighs.)
BARBARA: Well, what about your parents?
DINAH: They're dead. Um, I'm gonna go practice in the training room, okay?
(DINAH high-tails it out of here. ALFRED takes the tray away.)
BARBARA: Poor kid.
HELENA: You can't mean to tell me you actually bought that?
BARBARA: Have a heart, Helena. I took you in at the same age.
HELENA: Yeah, and I used to lie to you all the time -- only I was better at it.
(BARBARA turns and looks at HELENA to correct her.)
BARBARA: Uhh, not that much better. Okay, fine. I'll do a background check on
her. But I'm telling you, there's no reason to panic.
HELENA: Something panic worthy always happens right after you say that.
BARBARA: Okay, look. She's not just a runaway. She's a meta-human like you.
Now, you know better than I do how hard the world is for kids like that.
HELENA: (sighs) Okay.
CUT TO:
[EXT. NEW GOTHAM CITY (STOCK) - DAY]
(Camera cruises up high above the buildings, weaving in and out between them.
Camera stops directly in front of the building: NEW GOTHAM HIGH SCHOOL.)
[INT. CLASSROOM - DAY]
(BARBARA is behind her desk going through her papers. She sighs. WADE walks by
the door, looks inside and sees her. He knocks on the door to get her
attention.)
WADE BRIXTON: Hey!
BARBARA: Wade, hi!
(WADE walks into the room.)
WADE BRIXTON: Hi.
BARBARA: Hi.
WADE BRIXTON: How are the lesson plans coming?
BARBARA: (sighs) Uh, you know ... school is always so much more peaceful
before the kids get here.
WADE BRIXTON: They do kind of clutter the place up.
(They laugh. After a pause, they both talk at the same time.)
BARBARA: Maybe we should ...
WADE BRIXTON: So about --
(They stop and laugh.)
WADE BRIXTON: Go ahead. I'm sorry.
BARBARA: Um, no, please.
WADE BRIXTON: Well, I was just gonna say ... should we make plans?
BARBARA: I thought you forgot.
WADE BRIXTON: Well, actually, I thought you forgot.
(He chuckles.)
BARBARA: Oh, no, no, no. Uh, the other day I -- I was just in the midst of a -
- well, kind of an emergency.
WADE BRIXTON: Is everything all right?
BARBARA: Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Everything's fine. Uh, it's just this business I
have with my friend Helena.
WADE BRIXTON: What kind of business?
BARBARA: Gourmet baking. Custom fudge and muffin tops. We sell them online.
It's sort of a moonlighting, hobby sort of thing.
WADE BRIXTON: Emergencies in the baking world.
BARBARA: We take our culinary responsibilities very seriously.
WADE BRIXTON: Well, you're just gonna have to trust me with the plans. Uh, I
promise they will be silly and absolutely ... mindless.
(BARBARA smiles.)
CUT TO:
[EXT. THE CLOCKTOWER (STOCK) - DAY]
(Camera travels toward the CLOCKTOWER.)
[INT. THE CLOCKTOWER - DAY - CONTINUOUS]
(BARBARA drives her wheelchair across the room carrying her cup in her hand.
She stops in front of HELENA who sits on the computer table.)
BARBARA: So I said, "yes."
HELENA: Good. It's about damn time. All this crime fighting without a social
life is making you grouchy.
BARBARA: I'm not grouchy. I'm just realistic. All of my relationships come
with an expiration date. I mean, the moment he asks, "so, hey, hey, why can't
you just blow off this late-night baking gig?"
(HELENA chuckles.)
HELENA: (grimaces) The muffin top cover story? Possibly the lamest thing
you've ever come up with.
BARBARA: You just get to a point where you can't lie anymore.
HELENA: Never been there. You have to tell me what it's like. Speaking of
lying --about Dinah.
BARBARA: Oh, I ran a background check.
HELENA: You did? What'd you find?
BARBARA: (sighs) Nothing.
HELENA: So I guess I should be relieved she's not an ax murderer?
BARBARA: No. I-I mean nothing. No records at all, as if she didn't exist.
She gave us a false name.
HELENA: (sharply) And you're just getting around to mentioning this now?
BARBARA: I thought you might overreact.
HELENA: I'm not overreacting. I'm very calmly pointing out that we have no
idea who this girl is.
BARBARA: Actually, we do.
(BARBARA works on the computer. It beeps.)
BARBARA: I ran a facial-recognition auto search on yearbook photos from
Missouri going back five years.
(A picture of "DINAH REDMOND" pops up on the monitor.)
BARBARA: Meet Dinah Redmond of Opal, Missouri -- population 2,541. Some
truancy -- she had run away a few times. She's been living with her foster
family. Her parents gave her up. Anyway, the point is, now we know she really
is a runaway and not some criminal mastermind.
HELENA: Known by other aliases as --oh, the truth.
BARBARA: She'll tell us when she's ready.
HELENA: And until then, you're just gonna trust her ... with all this top-
secret, super-classified intel around? She could get into anything.
DINAH: (v.o.) Hey, guys.
(They look up and see DINAH smiling down at them from the second floor landing.
She's wearing a sleek new outfit. HELENA takes one look at it and recognizes it
instantly.)
HELENA: (surges to her feet) That's my sweater.
DINAH: You said I should dress better.
HELENA: Not in my clothes.
(CAMERA CLOSE UP of HELENA'S eyes as they transform and tap into her meta-human
abilities. DINAH sees this and takes a step backward. BARBARA puts a hand on
HELENA'S arm.)
BARBARA: Hey, hey! Time out. There will be absolutely no use of superpowers
to settle domestic disagreements. (to DINAH) You, get changed. (to HELENA)
You ... come with me.
(DINAH pouts and turns to change her clothes.)
CUT TO:
[EXT. STREET - DAY]
(BARBARA and HELENA walk along the sidewalk.)
HELENA: (still sort-of perturbed) That was my favorite sweater. I'm beginning
to think she's evil. You think she could be evil?
BARBARA: (calmly) If you would just take your clothes home once in a while
instead of leaving them draped over the clocktower, she wouldn't have found your
sweater to begin with. Y-you know what? This is not about clothing, and you
know it.
HELENA: Easy for you to say. She's not poaching your daywear.
BARBARA: Her parents didn't even report her missing. Sounds like she had a
reason to run away.
HELENA: We still don't know what that was.
BARBARA: She's got incredible potential. I just have this gut feeling -
HELENA: So do I ... like I'm about to get sucker-punched.
BARBARA: Helena, think about how we learned -- how we all learned -- Dick
Grayson, Tim Drake, Jason Todd. Even you. It's more than a tradition. It's a
legacy. Take in those like us, mentor and train them. Never turn away someone
with a hunger to become what we are. That's what your father would've done.
HELENA: (shakes her head) Batman was your role model, not mine.
(HELENA continues to walk down the sidewalk.)
BARBARA: Yeah, you keep saying that.
(BARBARA turns and follows her.)
CUT TO:
[INT. THE CLOCKTOWER]
(The alarm blares. On the monitor, a message box reads: "DELPHI / Has
Information Download?".)
(DINAH stands in front of the monitor holding the microphone close to her mouth
trying to get someone on the other end.)
DINAH: Barbara?
(There's some static. She continues to talk into the microphone.)
DINAH: Helena? Hello? Are you guys there?
BARBARA: (from mic) What is it, Dinah?
(Relieved that someone answered, DINAH looks up at the monitor in front of her.)
DINAH: Oh! Okay. There's a big red light flashing on the Delphi Monitor
System. What do I do?
(DINAH looks around and sees something on the other end of the room. She runs
toward it.)
DINAH: Oh, there's the download button.
(But before she can press it, BARBARA stops her.)
BARBARA: Don't touch anything. We're on our way back.
DINAH: (sighs) Okay.
[EXT. NEW GOTHAM CITY (STOCK) - DAY]
(Camera cruises up high above the buildings, weaving in and out between them.)
[INT. - DAY]
(Scene opens on a dead male body. It's JACK BARNSTONE from earlier. The
coroner, JESSE REESE, DET. McNALLY and a couple of other OFFICERS stand above
and around him.)
CORONER: Deceased is male, mid-30s.
REESE: He's 36,and the deceased has a name -- Jack Barnstone. He's a cop.
CORONER: Cause of death is consistent with asphyxiation, but they're no
ligature marks, no external abrasions or bruising, and no sign of anything
lodged internally that could've caused the blockage. But that's not the weird
thing.
McNALLY: Great, a weird thing.
CORONER: Look at this -- skin discoloration, pink foam around the lips. These
are all signs consistent with drowning, but there's no water found anywhere near
the victim, and no signs that the body's been moved. So drowning's pretty much
impossible.
REESE: (shakes his head) No. It's not impossible.
(REESE stands up.)
WHITE CAMERA FLASH TO:
[INT. THE CLOCKTOWER - DAY]
(Scene opens on the monitor with a photograph of JACK BARNSTONE dead in the
morgue on the coroner's table.)
BARBARA: The Delphi Protocol is a database program I created. It automatically
tracks and sorts all crimes reported in New Gotham and alerts us to anything
unusual.
DINAH: The freakadelic stuff.
HELENA: Yep.
BARBARA: I'm piggybacked onto the New Gotham P.D. Computers, so we get
information simultaneously with the police.
DINAH: Is that legal?
HELENA: Nope.
BARBARA: The coroner finished the autopsy. They're listing cause of death as
heart failure.
DINAH: So?
BARBARA: So, of course his heart stopped. The question is why? (to HELENA) I
need some lung tissue.
HELENA: (reluctant) Come on. It's Friday night.
(BARBARA and DINAH look at HELENA. She caves.)
HELENA: What's a weekend without lung tissue?
(HELENA nods and leaves to get the lung tissue.)
CUT TO:
[EXT. NEW GOTHAM CITY (STOCK) - NIGHT]
(Camera cruises up high above the buildings, weaving in and out between them.
Camera stops directly in front of the building with the blue neon sign: NEW
GOTHAM POLICE.)
[INT. POLICE STATION - NIGHT - CONTINUOUS]
(GRACE TANNER stands on the side of the hallway. An OFFICER approaches her from
behind. In the front of the hallway, the water cooler drips.)
COP: (looking at his watch) It's late, Grace. Are you gonna be okay to get
home?
GRACE TANNER: Yeah, fine. I'll see you guys in the morning.
COP: Grace, we're all gonna miss Jack.
GRACE TANNER: Yeah.
COP: Come on.
(GRACE turns to get a cup of water from the water cooler. She steps in the
puddle of water on the floor.)
GRACE TANNER: Damn it.
(She walks away. The puddle of water starts to move and floor GRACE into the
next room. It moves fast along the floor as it catches up with GRACE.)
(The camera rises from the ground away from the moving puddle of water and we
hear the sound of the water solidifying. The camera stops on GRACE'S back.)
(She turns around and comes face to face with SLICK.)
GRACE TANNER: You? What the hell re you doing here?
SLICK: Miss me?
(SLICK reaches out his hand which morphs into water and blasts a column of water
steadily at GRACE TANNER'S nose and mouth. She struggles for a while, but the
force of the blast keeps her standing. SLICK finally morphs completely into
water and wraps himself completely around her till the last of him blasts into
her ... drowning her. She falls to the floor. Dead.
FADE TO BLACK.
(COMMERCIAL SET)
FADE IN.
[INT. THE CLOCKTOWER -- NIGHT
[MAGNIFYING GLASS POV]
(BARBARA has gotten her lung tissue sample. Although she's dressed to go out,
she's testing the tissue. DINAH leans over the table looking at the stuff.
BARBARA moves over to the scope.)
DINAH: So, how's the lung tissue?
(BARBARA takes the slide and puts it under the scope. DINAH follows her to the
other table.)
BARBARA: Alveolar distention clearly indicates drowning. Yet ... there is no
excess of fluid in the cells. Do I look all right?
(DINAH hands BARBARA her lipstick.)
DINAH: Beautiful. Go on your date. Relax. I'll mind the fort.
(BARBARA goes back to the other table to apply her lipstick.)
BARBARA: Okay. But you see what I'm saying about the lung-cell distortions,
right?
DINAH: Yep.
(BARBARA takes off her glasses and looks at DINAH.)
BARBARA: (nervous) Really ... how do I look?
(DINAH grabs the make-up out of BARBARA'S hands and puts them on the table.)
DINAH: Like you need to leave.
BARBARA: Right -- leaving, okay. There's pizza in the freezer, and Alfred's
number's on the fridge.
(BARBARA'S chair moves backwards. DINAH interrupts BARBARA and stops her.)
DINAH: Okay, you know what? I got to ask -- even though it risks delaying your
long overdue departure even further -- but how are you doing that?
(DINAH points to the chair.)
BARBARA: Doing what?
DINAH: That thing with your chair -- that steering-with-no-hands thing.
BARBARA: Ah, it's pretty cool, huh? Yeah, I've been, uh, tinkering. It's a
transponder strapped to my spine -- a sub-neural response net that interfaces
directly with the chair's computerized motor controls.
DINAH: (confused) You're techno-babbling.
BARBARA: I think, therefore the chair moves.
DINAH: Hey, but if it's plugged into your spine, could you - uhm ...
BARBARA: (following the thought, she nods) Maybe use the technology to get out
of the chair sometime? Anything's possible.
DINAH: Do you think it's possible that you might leave for your date any time
soon?
BARBARA: Okay, okay, I'm going. I'm going. Be good.
(BARBARA heads out past DINAH.)
DINAH: Mm, I'll try.
(DINAH watches her go and sighs.)
CUT TO:
[EXT. NEW GOTHAM CITY (STOCK) - NIGHT]
(Camera cruises up high above the buildings, weaving out backward from the
CLOCKTOWER and focuses on the starry sky above.)
VERTICAL PAGE SWIPE TO:
BARBARA: (v.o.) I-I don't usually let people push me.
[EXT. PARK - NIGHT]
WADE BRIXTON: Since this requires you to close your eyes, you're gonna have to
let me drive. You can look ...
(WADE pushes BARBARA through the park, her eyes closed. He positions her
chair.)
WADE BRIXTON: ... now.
(BARBARA opens her eyes and sees an elegant table set for two in the park.)
BARBARA: Oh, Wade, it's beautiful.
WADE BRIXTON: I thought it might beat out dinner and a movie.
(BARBARA looks at WADE and laughs.)
CUT TO:
[EXT. NEW GOTHAM CITY (STOCK) - NIGHT]
(Camera cruises up high above the buildings, weaving in and out between them.)
[INT. DARK HORSE BAR - NIGHT]
(HELENA'S at work. She carries a couple of drinks to the customer behind the
bar. He steps aside and DINAH steps up to the counter.)
HELENA: How did you get in here?
DINAH: I said I was your sister.
HELENA: Great. Another relative with a creative relationship with the truth.
DINAH: Well, I thought this way, I might actually get you to talk to me.
HELENA: So talk.
(DINAH sighs.)
DINAH: You don't want me here, do you?
(HELENA looks at DINAH.)
CUT TO:
[EXT. PARK - NIGHT]
BARBARA: It seems like all I ever look at is the skyline in New Gotham ...
never the sky.
(WADE finishes pouring them wine.)
WADE BRIXTON: Ah, so I'm broadening your horizons. (He sets the bottle aside.)
(chuckles) Day job, night job. You know, it sounds to me like you spend way
too much time on work. What about your heart?
BARBARA: I think it's still in there somewhere.
WADE BRIXTON: I'm sure it is.
(He reaches for her hand and holds it. BARBARA'S pager beeps. She checks it.
It reads: DELPHI ALERT.)
WADE BRIXTON: Who is it?
(BARBARA turns to WADE and smiles.)
BARBARA: It's just an automated system. Ignore it.
(She chuckles. But the pager beeping resumes. She checks the pager again. It
reads: DEPHI ALERT URGENT!!!)
(She sighs.)
BARBARA: Wade, I'm sorry. I have to go.
WADE BRIXTON: Oh.
BARBARA: I'll make it up to you. I promise.
(He chuckles.)
CUT TO:
[INT. DARK HORSE BAR - NIGHT]
(HELENA takes down a glass as she talks to DINAH.)
HELENA: What we do is dangerous. I've been out in the field on my own for a
very long time, and that's the way I like it.
DINAH: I came here to be like you. I want this more than I've ever wanted
anything. (She sighs.) I thought if I told you how important this was to me
that you'd understand.
HELENA: So why can't you just tell me the truth?
DINAH: That is The Truth.
HELENA: Your parents aren't dead, are they?
DINAH: It's not that easy. It's complicated.
HELENA: You're 16.How complicated can it be?
DINAH: (scoffs) Yeah. And when you were 16, life was really simple and
straightforward.
HELENA: Okay, that's totally different and completely besides the point. Trust
isn't something that you can just be given. It has to be earned.
DINAH: Then let me earn it. If you would just give me a chance, I know I can
prove it to you.
HELENA: When -- when we're out in the field and it's full-on kill-or-be-killed
combat? I need to be completely sure that someone's got my back. There's only
one person I can count on for that.
BARBARA: (v.o.) It's me. Have you seen Dinah?
HELENA: Yeah, she's here.
BARBARA: Oh, good. I was worried. But if she's with you, then I -- I'm
suddenly realizing I'm still worried.
INTERCUT WITH:
[INT. THE CLOCKTOWER]
HELENA: Why are you home? It's not even eleven yet. How was your date?
BARBARA: Interrupted. Another cop's dead, same circumstances as Barnstone --
drowned on dry land.
CUT TO:
[INT. DR. QUINZEL'S OFFICE - NIGHT]
(Camera opens on the NEW GOTHAM GAZETTE with the headline: "Man Kills Ex-
Girlfriend, Then Himself" on the front page.)
(DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL picks up the paper and looks at it. Though we can't see
it, we hear water sloshing and can hear it solidifying.)
(The camera moves over and we see SLICK standing to DR. QUINZEL'S right. She
barely glances at him.)
SLICK: Catching upon current events? (reading) "Man kills ex-girlfriend, then
himself." Nice.
DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL: I have a professional interest. George was a patient.
SLICK: (shrugs) Guess the therapy didn't take.
DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL: Oh? I wouldn't say that. I was the one who told him the
key to his mental well-being was to express his rage. That's not bad work for
an amateur.
(She throws the newspaper aside. It lands on the floor with a thud.)
SLICK: Why do you waste your time? I mean, a day job for a supervillain --
it's so ... bourgeois.
DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL: George and my other patients aren't work. They're...
hobbies -- you know, like golf -- recreational? You ever heard of the Greek
Goddess Eris? The Romans called her "discord" -- Sower of Strife. She started
everything from petty arguments to cataclysmic wars while she just sat back and
watched ... untouched. Now, there was a girl who knew how to delegate.
SLICK: You lost me, babe.
DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL: Yeah, well, that's what happens when you regularly turn
your brain to water. (gasps) Aren't you late for your appointment with the
good detective? I do need all three cops out of the picture this time. I just
can't bear the idea of you screwing up my hijacking plan again.
SLICK: Don't worry. It's as good as done.
DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL: Take care of the cop ... and go get my truck ... Slick.
Don't fail me again.
CUT TO:
[INT. THE CLOCKTOWER - NIGHT]
(The front door opens; DINAH and HELENA walk in. BARBARA is working furiously
at the computer.)
BARBARA: We've got a link --the two cops who died were connected by a case a
few weeks ago. They stopped the hijacking of an armored truck by a guy named
Silas Waters, A.K.A. "Slick." The truck was carrying military ordnance. We're
talking major-league weaponry -- missiles, launchers, grenades, C-4.
HELENA: All the fun toys. Let me guess -- Slick's out on bail.
(BARBARA turns and heads for another computer.)
BARBARA: Not exactly. Police booked him and locked him up. The next time
someone looked in his cell, he'd vanished.
DINAH: A meta-human?
BARBARA: Someone who can transform into some kind of fluid thin enough to go
down a drain.
DINAH: We could call him "liquid guy."
(She laughs. HELENA looks at her and doesn't crack a smile. DINAH'S smile
dies.)
DINAH: Um ... just ... trying to ... contribute.
BARBARA: The police report said Slick tried to bribe them with a cut. The
weapons had a black-market value of $30 million. The cops said no.
HELENA: No to $30 million? What kind of idiot says no to $30 million?!
CUT TO:
[INT. POOL - NIGHT]
(REESE stands at the edge of the pool, his body reflected in the water. He
dives in and starts his laps. He makes it across the pool and finds HELENA
standing on the side waiting for him.)
REESE: You again. Can I help you?
HELENA: Actually, I'm here to help you. (crouches down) There's not a lot of
time. Somebody's trying to kill you.
REESE: Mind if I get my clothes?
(REESE stands up and pulls himself out of the pool. He heads for his clothes.)
REESE: And by the way, who are you?
(HELENA follows him.)
HELENA: Grace Tanner's dead.
REESE: What? When?
HELENA: About an hour ago.
REESE: (thinks about it and realizes) Slick Waters.
HELENA: Has to be.
(REESE grabs his towel and starts drying himself. He turns around and heads
back.)
REESE: So now you think the guy's coming after me, huh? Well, I appreciate the
heads-up, but I can take care of myself.
(HELENA follows.)
HELENA: Look, you don't understand what you're dealing with. Waters is no
ordinary criminal. He can liquefy. Wherever water can go, he can, too.
REESE: "Liquefy?"
(He scoffs at the thought.)
HELENA: Like -- like a "Liquid Guy".
REESE: Is this a joke?
HELENA: Your friends drowned on dry land. Waters escapes through a drain. Do
you have a better explanation?
REESE: Is there actually a worse one?
INTERCUT WITH:
BARBARA: (v.o.) Congratulations. You've managed to convince him you're
totally insane.
(HELENA stops and puts a hand to her microphone.)
HELENA: (to radio) Do you mind? I am trying to have a conversation here.
(REESE stops and turns around. He watches HELENA talk to herself.)
REESE: Oh, right, right -- the "invisible friend". I almost forgot about that
part.
HELENA: Look, I am just trying to help you.
(REESE puts on his shirt.)
REESE: Lady, you look -- I know a lot of strange things may happen in New
Gotham, but a guy made out of water? Come on. That's just ridiculous.
(No sooner said than done, a column of water shoots out from the center of the
pool. HELENA sees it and pushes REESE aside. He crashes into the metal railing
and falls to the floor.)
(HELENA has her eye on the water.)
HELENA: (to radio) Uhh! Oracle, he's here.
(The column of water shoots up, turns and heads straight for HELENA. It shoots
directly into her face, covering her nose and mouth.)
BARBARA (ORACLE): Huntress? Huntress, can you read me?
(REESE raises himself and looks up. He watches as HELENA struggles to get free
from the water drowning her.)
BARBARA (ORACLE): Huntress?!
(REESE stares, jaw open as HELENA drowns in front of his eyes.)
BARBARA (ORACLE): Huntress?!
HARD CUT TO BLACK.
(COMMERCIAL SET)
FADE IN.
[INT. POOL - NIGHT]
(The column of water continues to slam into HELENA. She struggles to get away
from the water, but SLICK has wrapped himself around her and continues to spray
the water directly into her face.)
INTERCUT WITH:
BARBARA: (from mic) Huntress? Is there a fire extinguisher near you?
(HELENA turns and looks around. Through the watery haze, she sees the fire
extinguisher hanging on the wall.)
BARBARA: Listen to me -- get the fire extinguisher and spray him.
(HELENA heads for the fire extinguisher. She bumps into the stack of mats in
front of it. She pushes them aside and breaks the glass. REESE watches her.
HELENA turns the fire extinguishes on herself and sprays. SLICK lets her go and
solidifies in front of her.)
(SLICK swings to hit HELENA, but she blocks his arm. She uses the fire
extinguisher and hits SLICK a couple of times. She kicks him in the gut.)
(REESE watches from the side as HELENA and SLICK fight.
(SLICK rushes for her. She side-steps him and kicks him in the face. She turns
him around and continues to push forward. She continues to kick him until he
takes a step backward and falls over the failing. HELENA jumps over the railing
to continue the fight, but SLICK steps out of her way and jumps back over the
railing himself. She swings all the way around over the railing and steps over
him.)
(HELENA turns around to face SLICK just in time to block his kick. Using her
arms and legs, she hits him and kicks him till he falls down to the concrete
face first.)
(She walks over to him; SLICK gets up and jumps into the pool.)
(REESE scrambles to his feet.)
INTERCUT WITH:
BARBARA: Huntress, can you hear me? Are you all right?
HELENA: Once I had an actual ass to kick, I was fine. How'd you know the
extinguisher would work?
BARBARA: I figured slick had to reach a certain active molecular state to be
able to shift from solid to liquid.
HELENA: (v.o.) Speak English. Please.
BARBARA: (grunts) Cool him down, he's "solid guy." It's a temperature thing.
(HELENA and REESE stand at the edge of the pool looking down into the water.
REESE is still stunned by what he just witnessed.)
REESE: Th-that was --I mean, he was -- is -- is he still in there?
HELENA: I don't know.
BARBARA: (v.o.) Just get out of there.
HELENA: We gotta go.
REESE: Wait a minute. There's a murder suspect in there - um ... uh, possibly.
HELENA: You gonna arrest him? With what? A bucket? Assuming he hasn't
already gone down the drain.
(In his liquid form, SLICK rises out of the pool, arms outstretched, and hurls
himself at them.)
HELENA: Go!
BARBARA: Huntress? Talk to me.
CUT TO:
[INT. SAUNA - NIGHT - CONTINUOUS]
(HELENA opens the sauna door and steps inside, REESE is closely behind her. He
reaches to close the door as we see SLICK turn the corner after them.)
HELENA: I'm kind a busy right now. (to REESE) Keep it closed!
(The lock on the door engages. HELENA goes to the panel against the wall and
switches the sauna heat on. The room temperature immediately starts to rise.)
(REESE takes a step back from the door and watches as SLICK, in his water form,
tries to get into the heated room through the huge crack under the door. Liquid
filters into the room and SLICK tries to rise up and solidify. Only, because of
the hot temperature, he immediately starts to evaporate.)
REESE: Oh, my --
(They watch as the puddle of water under the door disappears.)
REESE: What the --
HELENA: (to REESE) (smiling smugly) It's a temperature thing. (over radio)
Oracle, it's hot. How long are we gonna have to stay in here?
BARBARA: (v.o.) I need to come up with a way to disable this guy. Won't be
long.
HELENA: It better not be, or I'm gonna melt.
(Inside the sauna, REESE and HELENA start sweating.)
REESE: All right, so what --we're trapped in here now? We go out there, and he
gets us?
HELENA: On the positive side, if he comes in, he's air freshener.
REESE: (laughs) All right, um ... what the hell is going on? I mean, for all
I know, you had something to do with Jack and Grace's deaths.
HELENA: You don't believe that.
REESE: I don't know what to believe right now -- not about you -- about any of
this. What I just saw at that pool -- that's not possible.
HELENA: Funny -- you strike me as the kind of guy that believes in the
impossible.
REESE: Well, it's a little hard not to when you're standing here talking to it.
Aren't you worried that I might tell somebody? I mean, why are you letting me
see you?
HELENA: Because it was the only way I could save your life.
CUT TO:
[INT. THE CLOCKTOWER - NIGHT - CONTINUOUS]
(DINAH walks around as she listens to BARBARA talk with HELENA.)
BARBARA: (o.s.) Stay put. You can't go out there until we know that he's not
out there. We're working on a way to get you out of there.
(She walks up to ALFRED and sighs.)
DINAH: She's really worried. Is Helena okay?
ALFRED: Oh, miss Helena is remarkably capable. She can take care of herself.
(ALFRED continues to polish the silver.)
DINAH: Alfred ...
ALFRED: Mm-hmm?
(DINAH picks up a piece of silver and a cloth.)
DINAH: My whole life, I've grown up thinking that there was no one like me --
you know, that I was all alone. Then I come here ... and I finally meet someone
who's like me, someone who I can admire and look up to. It seems like all I can
do is piss her off.
ALFRED: Well, if I were you, I would be more concerned if Miss Helena weren't
upset with you.
DINAH: Why?
ALFRED: I've always found that how much someone cares about you is directly
proportional to how much you can piss them off, as it were.
DINAH: This slick guy -- what if Barbara can't find a way for Helena to fight
him?
ALFRED: They're superheroes, Miss Dinah. They're familiar with tight
situations.
CUT TO:
[INT. SAUNA - NIGHT -- CONTINUOUS]
(HELENA and REESE sit on opposite benches in the hot sauna. They've each
reduced their clothing to the minimum as they're careful to keep the temperature
hot inside.)
HELENA: Why is it so important to you to know what goes on in New Gotham after
nightfall? Most people would do anything to convince themselves the world is a
safe, sane, and normal place. But not you. You're actually chasing the
madness.
REESE: I got my reasons.
HELENA: I'm wondering what they are.
REESE: (laughs and leans forward) You know, you're not exactly the poster girl
for full disclosure.
HELENA: (leans forward) What's that supposed to mean?
REESE: It means you're gonna have to keep wondering.
(They look at each other for a moment. Finally REESE gets to his feet.)
REESE: Look, I gotta get out of here. I'm supposed to be on assignment
tonight.
(REESE kneels down to looks under the door.)
HELENA: I don't think Slick gives a damn about our work schedule.
(HELENA takes a moment and appreciate the view of his muscular back.)
HELENA: Someone can replace you. You can't be the only honest cop in New
Gotham.
REESE: No, I'm the only one left on tonight's detail. The other two are dead.
HELENA: Wait a minute. Barnstone and Tanner were on tonight's detail with you?
REESE: (realizes) Yeah.
HELENA: (sighs) Where are you supposed to be?
CUT TO:
[INT. THE LAIR - NIGHT - CONTINUOUS]
BARBARA: Reese was on a detail scheduled to escort another transport of
military weapons tonight. Same deal as that attempted hijacking a few weeks
ago. Cargo's hard-core stuff --surface-to-air missiles, flamethrowers, plastic
explosives -- enough firepower to start your own little war.
(Standing up above her, DINAH listens carefully to BARBARA as she talks to
HELENA.)
BARBARA: Looks like Slick wasn't in it for revenge after all.
HELENA: (over radio) If at first you don't succeed...
BARBARA: This time, they're killing the cops that can't be bought. We have to
assume whoever's taking Barnstone, Tanner, and Reese's place is in Slick's
pocket.
HELENA: Cops -- what's the going rate?
BARBARA: The police cruiser assigned to guard the truck has a standard-issue
Gotham PD GPS locator. It's been stationary the last five minutes.
(HELENA looks around and finally rests on the car keys on the table in front of
her. She carefully picks up the keys and heads out.)
BARBARA: Looks like that's our location. We still don't know how to stop
Slick, Helena. Be careful.
CUT TO:
[INT. SAUNA - NIGHT - CONTINUOUS]
(HELENA reaches for the wooden door lock and removes it.)
HELENA: Well, I know one thing --if he's off robbing a truck, he's not outside
this door.
REESE: That would stand to reason.
(She tries the door.)
HELENA: It's stuck.
(REESE gives her a hand.)
REESE: He must have wedged it shut from the outside.
(REESE and HELENA take a step back. They look at each other and nod. They both
kick the door open.)
CUT TO:
[EXT. NEW GOTHAM CITY (STOCK) - NIGHT]
(Camera cruises up high above the buildings, weaving in and out between them.)
[INT. WAREHOUSE -- NIGHT
(The warehouse doors open and the large truck pulls in.)
MAN: All right guys! Let's get these weapons out of the truck. Let's move!
(The truck door opens and the guard spills out onto the floor. SLICK steps out
from behind.)
SLICK: Bulletproof, bombproof, fireproof ... but not waterproof.
(He hops to the floor.)
CUT TO:
[INT. THE CLOCKTOWER - NIGHT - CONTINUOUS]
BARBARA: Huntress, what's your status?
HELENA: We're in position. It looks like we got here just in time to crash the
party.
BARBARA: Crash?
CUT TO:
[INT. WAREHOUSE - NIGHT - CONTINUOUS]
(From the glasstop of the warehouse skylight, HELENA crashes through the glass
to the floor below. She lands on her feet and looks at the thugs in front of
her.)
HELENA: Hi, boys. Can I play?
(She takes out the two men in business suits in front of her. A second man
standing off to the side carrying a weapon watches. REESE approaches him from
behind. The two fight.)
(REESE throws him against the stack of containers. Another man grabs REESE from
behind. REESE slams him backward into the stack of containers.)
(Meanwhile, HELENA is busy fighting with two thugs in front of the open van
doors.)
(REESE throws the second thug over the stacked shelving, he lands on the floor
with a thud. The first thug gets back on his feet and attacks REESE. But REESE
is on a roll. He elbows him in his face, hits him and head butts him. He grabs
him and tosses him to the side, then chases after him to continue the fight.)
(HELENA crouches down low and looks at the two thugs in front of her. She kicks
them low in the legs and takes one out. The second thug she kicks back against
the van.)
(REESE runs across the warehouse, jumps over the car and tackles the remaining
thug. He hits him in the face.)
(REESE looks up and sees SLICK standing over him. REESE gets to his feet, takes
a step forward and throws a punch at SLICK'S face.)
(His hand goes right through SLICK with a splash. REESE stares in shock. He
pulls his fist back.)
SLICK: Was it good for you? 'Cause it sure is for me.
(SLICK throws his own punch. A column of water slams into REESE'S face,
covering his nose and mouth.)
REESE: Uhh!
(The water continues to choke REESE.)
(HELENA looks up and sees REESE. She also hears two weapons cocking. Two
thugs, one on each side of her, has a flame-thrower aimed at her. She glances
at each of them.)
(In front of her, the column of water called SLICK has wrapped himself around
REESE and continues to drown him. REESE struggles to breathe. He cranes his
neck and glances over at HELENA.)
FADE TO BLACK.
(COMMERCIAL SET)
FADE IN.
[INT. WAREHOUSE - NIGHT]
(We continue where we left off. HELENA is trapped between two thugs carrying
flame-throwers. She looks from one to the other. REESE continues to choke as
SLICK drowns him in water.)
(REESE falls to the ground, struggling to breathe.)
(HELENA looks from one thug to the other.)
(Suddenly, from nowhere, DINAH appears behind the big thug and hits him on the
head with the batarang in her hand, knocking him out. HELENA turns her complete
attention to the last remaining thug. He fires.)
(DINAH steps out of the way. HELENA springs into action. Grabbing the flame-
thrower and using it as leverage, she jumps completely over the thug and lands
on her feet on the other side of him. She hits him in the face a couple of
times repeatedly.)
(On the floor in front of her, REESE still struggles with SLICK.)
(HELENA aims the flame thrower at the water puddle on the floor just above
REESE'S head and fires.)
(The heat from the fire evaporates the water till finally SLICK leaves REESE
alone. REESE coughs and gasps trying to breathe.)
(HELENA continues to flame SLICK. The image of SLICK appearing in front of them
in water form. He screams. HELENA doesn't let up. Finally, SLICK is gone.)
(HELENA turns the flame-thrower off. She looks at REESE on the floor gasping
for air. She turns and looks over at DINAH, who is just getting to her feet.
She heads for DINAH. DINAH stands up and stares at the big, bulky thug she just
knocked out. She walks over to HELENA.)
HELENA: You okay, kid?
DINAH: Yeah. Yeah.
(HELENA reports back to BARBARA.)
HELENA: (to radio) Um ... I found Dinah.
BARBARA: (v.o.) What, there? Is she okay?
HELENA: She's fine. She's ... (she looks at DINAH and smiles) ... really
great.
(DINAH smiles widely at HELENA.)
(BARBARA sighs with relief.)
BARBARA: Well, then, tell her she's grounded.
DINAH: (quietly) I guess this means I'm grounded.
(HELENA nods and motions to the car.)
HELENA: Take the car back. I'll catch up.
DINAH: (smiles) Okay.
(DINAH leaves.)
(HELENA walks over to REESE who is on his knees on the floor coughing and
wheezing.)
HELENA: You all right?
(He gets to his feet.)
REESE: With which part ... hmm? Getting drowned by liquid guy ... not knowing
what's real anymore? ... or getting dehydrated from five hours in a sauna?
HELENA: Slow night.
REESE: (sighs) What the hell am I supposed to do with what I've just seen?
What, just --just forget about it?
HELENA: If you talk, nobody's gonna believe you.
REESE: They will if you come with me.
HELENA: I can't do that, Reese. That's your world, not mine.
REESE: So, then, we're right back where we started.
HELENA: You don't trust me?
REESE: You won't tell me who you are or why you do...what you do.
HELENA: Right now, you're asking for more than I can give.
REESE: You saved my life, and I'm grateful. But gratitude is not the same as
trust. Can't you just tell me -- who are you?
HELENA: It's ... (sighs) ... Complicated.
(REESE sighs.)
HELENA: Look, Reese ... sometimes you just have to make the leap ... let go ...
and believe.
REESE: (shakes his head) I wish I could.
CUT TO:
[EXT. NEW GOTHAM CITY (STOCK) - NIGHT]
(Camera pushes slowly forward toward the CLOCKTOWER.)
[INT. CLOCKTOWER - NIGHT]
(BARBARA, HELENA and DINAH sit in the living room.)
BARBARA: Well?
HELENA (BOTH): Dinah, I want -
DINAH (BOTH): Helena --
(They stop.)
HELENA: Let me go first. I told you trust had to be earned, and I was wrong.
(DINAH looks at HELENA, surprised.) Trust is a gift. You were there for me
when it mattered -- for both of us. And as for the rest of it, it's an act of
faith, believing in someone. I believe in you ... whatever your name is.
DINAH: (touched) Redmond. My name is Dinah Redmond. (Turns to look at
BARBARA.) And I have been lying to you about everything. My mother left me
with foster parents when I was six. And they taught me to be ashamed of what I
was, never to tell anyone ... to hide it. Then when I couldn't hide it
anymore, they were gonna take me somewhere -- somewhere to make my powers stop.
And I thought if I told you my real name that you'd call them and they'd take me
away.
BARBARA: Dinah, don't you ever want to go home?
DINAH: Being here with you ... it is the only place I have ever, ever felt at
home in my entire life.
(DINAH looks from BARBARA, who smiles back at her, to HELENA.)
(HELENA motions with her head.)
HELENA: (smiles) Come on, kid. Let's see what Alfred left us for dinner.
(DINAH smiles, relieved. She laughs. They stand up.)
BARBARA: You're still grounded.
HELENA: Absolutely.
(BARBARA looks down at the batarang in her hand and smiles.)
CUT TO:
[INT. HIGH SCHOOL - HALLWAY/CLASSROOM - DAY]
(WADE BRIXTON walks across the hallway. He walks past BARBARA GORDON'S
classroom and more out of reflex, he glances in as he passes the open door.)
(He stops at what he sees inside.)
(On her table, BARBARA set up a romantic candlelit meal. Table cloth, food,
decorations ... BARBARA adds the finishing touch by lighting the candles.)
(WADE steps into the classroom.)
WADE BRIXTON: Barbara, what ...
BARBARA: I promised I'd make it up to you.
(BARBARA laughs. WADE walks around the table and stands close to BARBARA.)
BARBARA: I-I know it's not nearly as romantic, but ... I thought it might do as
an apology.
WADE BRIXTON: (accepts) Definitely.
(They laugh.)
CUT TO:
[EXT. CLOCKTOWER (STOCK)]
(Camera close up of the CLOCKTOWER face. It reads 9:13. BARBARA and HELENA are
out on the balcony, talking and looking out at the setting sun.)
HELENA: It was weird, fighting side by side with Reese.
BARBARA: What was it like?
HELENA: Kind of like a ... first date.
BARBARA: Hmm, yeah, I'd buy that, considering every time you get next to him,
you can't shut up! (scoffs) "Invisible friend." (she snickers) He's really
gotten under your skin, hasn't he?
HELENA: You know guys don't get to me. Besides, who has time for a real
relationship, anyway?
BARBARA: Yeah.
(HELENA glances over at BARBARA.)
BARBARA: I still can't figure it out -- what did slick want with all that
firepower?
HELENA: You said it yourself -- it's worth a fortune on the black market.
BARBARA: But so area lot of things, and for Slick, most of them are easier to
steal.
HELENA: So you think Slick was just a frontman? For who?
CUE SOUND: (PRELAP) KNOCKING
CUT TO:
[INT. DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL'S OFFICE]
(DR. QUINZEL looks out the window and turns around. HELENA opens the door and
walks inside.)
DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL: Helena. What can I do for you?
HELENA: I've been rethinking this whole "Do everything by myself" thing, and
... I've decided I want to continue therapy, even though I don't have to. Maybe
a little help sometimes isn't ... so bad.
DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL: Please -- come in.
(HELENA steps inside and takes a seat. DR. QUINZEL closes the door and
follows.)
HELENA: I met a guy.
DR. HARLEEN QUINZEL: Why don't you tell me about him?
(DR. QUINZEL takes the seat opposite HELENA. The two start her session.)
(Cue up the music, fade out sound.)
(Focused on the two women inside, the camera slowly pulls backward out the
office window. It's raining outside.)
(The camera speeds up and pulls completely out and off of the building. We turn
around toward the rest of the city. The camera pushes forward above the
buildings and toward the horizon where it slows down.)
FADE TO BLACK.
==========================
THE END
==========================
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Contact the Transcriptionist at (intrepidly002@yahoo.com)
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Transcriptionist.
==========================
TITLE/OPENING CREDITS
==========================
BIRDS OF PREY
1X02: SLICK
PROD #175451
ORIGINAL AIR DATE ON WB: 10/16/2002
TRANSCRIBED FROM WB
Starring:
ASHLEY SCOTT as Helena Kyle (The Huntress)
DINA MEYER as Barbara Gordon (Oracle)
RACHEL SKARSTEN as Dinah Lance
SHEMAR MOORE as Detective Jesse Reese
IAN ABERCROMBIE as Alfred Pennyworth
and
MIA SARA as Dr. Harleen Quinzel
Developed for Television by LAETA KALOGRIDIS
Guest Starring
SHAWN CHRISTIAN as Wade Brixton
SILAS WEIR MITCHELL as Slick
BRIAN TAHASH as Det. Kelly
BRENT SEXTON as Det. McNally
Consulting Producer: MELISSA ROSENBERG
Producer: EDWARD KITSIS
Producer: ADAM HOROWITZ
Co-Executive Producer: LAETA KALOGRIDIS
Co-Executive Producer: HANS TOBEASON
Co-Executive Producer: MICHAEL KATLEMAN
Produced by: PETER GIULIANO
Executive Producer: RON KOSLOW
Story by: LAETA KALOGRIDIS & MELISSA ROSENBERG
Teleplay by: LAETA KALOGRIDIS
Directed by: MICHAEL KATELMAN
==========================
END CREDITS
==========================
Executive Producer: MIKE TOLLIN
Executive Producer: BRIAN ROBBINS
Executive Producer: JOE DAVOLA
Music in this episode:
* Aimee Allen, I'd Start a Revolution if I Could get up in the Morning,
Promotional Consideration furnished by Elektra Entertainment Group
* Porcupine Tree, in absentia, Promotional Consideration furnished by Lava
Records
* Kim Richey, rise, promotional consideration furnished by Lost Highway
* Maroon 5, songs about jane, promotional consideration furnished by Octone
Records
TRP Tollin / Robbins Productions
Warner Bros. Television - An AOL Time Warner Company (www.warnerbros.com)
Associate Producer: HAYLI HALPER
Director of Photography: CHRIS FALOONA
Production Designer: MICHAEL HELMY
Editor: STEPHEN MARK, A.C.E.
Music by MARK SNOW
Unit Production Manager: BOB WILSON
First Assistant Director: DIRK CRAFT
Second Assistant Director: ELENIE MANSALIS
Visual Effects Supervisor: ELAN SOLTES
Casting by DEEDEE BRADLEY, C.S.A.
Co-Starring
LISE SIMMS as Det. Grace Tanner
PHIL ABRAMS as Coroner
Costumes by: SARA MARKOWITZ SAMUELS DANA LOATS
Set Decorator: BRENDA MEYERS-BALLARD
Property Master: RICHARD HOBAICA
Make-up: MICHELLE VITTONE-McNEIL JULIE KRISTY
Hairstylist: KELLY KLINE
Hairstylist: STEVEN MACK
Music Supervisors: MADONNA WADE-REED and JENNIFER PYKEN
Sound Mixer: TIM COONEY
Re-Recording Mixers: TODD GRACE / LIZ SROKA
Music Editor: CHRIS McGEARY
Supervising Sound Editor: BOB REDPATH
Based on DC COMICS CHARACTERS
Color by IMAGE LAB
This motion picture is protected under the laws of the United States and other
countries, and its unauthorized duplications, distribution or exhibition may
result in civil liability and criminal prosecution.
The characters and events depicted in this motion picture are fictional. Any
similarity to any actual person, living or dead, or to any actual events, firms
and institutions or other entities is coincidental and unintentional.
AOL Keyword: The WB
TheWB.com
Copyright (c) 2002 Warner Bros. Television. All Rights Reserved.
#175451
Country of First publication United States of America. Warner Bros. Television
is the author of this film/motion picture for the purpose of the article 15(2)
of the Berne Convention and all National Laws Giving Effect Thereto.
Dated: 10/16/03, 07/04/2003~lky
http://www.webphilia.com/~anthology/wnp.html