These are scenes from the February 2, 1996 first revision draft of the script for the episode Invasion written by Tracy Tormé. These scenes did not make it into the final episode due to time and story considerations.
One of our first missing bits is a missing Arturoism...
ARTURO
Look at this, Quinn... it appears
to be some kind of *organic
metal*!
QUINN
So this ship is... in essence... a
living machine. *Fantastic.*
ARTURO
Fantastic indeed. An alien ship
at our fingertips!
(shaken)
And I thought UFO's were space age
myths.
MAN'S VOICE (O.S.)
But it's not *from* outer space.
And we all know who that man was...the escaped mental patient. In the script, his name is Mr. Clarke.
And shortly after, there are some missing parts from the conversation with the mental patient. Just after the two women have walked off and he has exclaimed they are his daughters...
WADE
You're... their father?
CLARKE
Can't you see the resemblance? I
have forty two daughters in all...
(sadly)
... but I'm still waiting for my
first boy.
THE SLIDERS don't know what to make of this man now - all except Wade look deeply puzzled - she has been noticing the GATE HAVEN lettering on his shirt.
CLARKE
(to women)
Come along now girls... we don't
want to be here when the vengeful
masters arrive.
(bows to Sliders)
Good day to you all. May your
punishment be relatively painless.
They turn to go - Quinn moves to stop them, as so many questions remain unanswered, but Wade intervenes.
WADE
Don't. Let them go.
(solemn)
Did you see the lettering on his
shirt? My uncle used to work at a
place called Gatehaven - in our
San Francisco, it's a mental
institution.
QUINN
(thoughtful)
Gatehaven, right. I'll bet when
the invasion began, the inmates
were released, as their keepers
fled the city.
REMBRANDT
So we've been listening to a
fruitcake tell us what's what?
ARTURO
Fruitcake? Not the most
politically correct of terms but I
catch your drift. Who's to say
however, where that gentleman's
sanity ends and his madness
begins?
Then, Arturo turns to explore the vessel...much to the protest of Wade and Remmy.
One of the larger missing portions of the episode concerned the adventure Wade and Remmy was to have while Quinn and Arturo were inside the ship...
REMBRANDT
(near tears)
-- An innocent man, a *normal*
man, trying to live a quiet life
as a beloved celebrity. Until a
*scientist* came along, and kicked
me in the --
WADE
Rembrandt, we've been through all
this --
She cuts off as she hears the sound of CAREFREE LAUGHTER AND CONVERSATION (O.S.) unexpectedly coming from beyond the open doors of an abandoned department store.
REMBRANDT
Hey, now that's a sweet sound.
A *normal* sound - *people*.
WADE
Yeah, but what kind of people?
They could be more escapees from
the home.
They look at one another... curiousity wins out. With a healthy dose of caution, they head inside.
INT. DEPARTMENT STORE - DAY - WADE AND REMBRANDT
have cautiously entered the large, abandoned store. They pasa a lifesize cardboard ad for a Ginsu knife set, featuring a smiling O.J. Simpson, wearing a chef's hat, knife in hand, cutting steak at a barbecue. "Never needs sharpening."
The Sliders leave O.J. behind and quickly discover the source of the merry laughter.
THREE WELL-DRESSED WOMEN
in wide-brimmed hats, can be seen from a distance. Their backs to us, they are shopping in a carefree, breezy manner, moving through the abandoned aisles.
THE WOMEN are trying on hats and scarves, and brazenly pulling lipsticks and cosmetics from display cases.
REMBRANDT
I'll bet they're looters, pure and
simple.
WADE
Pretty well-dressed for looters.
REMBRANDT
So? They probably stole what
they're wearing.
INT. MANTA SHIP/CONTROL ROOM - BACK TO QUINN AND ARTURO
standing beside the alien pilot in the control chair. Its grotesque head is sagging down at a severe angle.
QUINN
(ill at ease)
It looks like its neck is broken.
I killed it, Professor.
ARTURO
And you're a hero if you did.
This is an invading soldier, Mr.
Mallory, not a social worker. You
did the right thing.
Arturo is attracted to a strange watch-like object on the pilot's wrist. It is triangular in shape and features the same odd three-handed face as the smashed clock on the control panel.
Bathed in the strobing light, Arturo reaches down... and carefully removes it. The instant it clears the pilot's fingertips
A KLAXON (O.S.)
startles the two Sliders.
INT. DEPARTMENT STORE - DAY - THE WOMEN
reacting to the blaring horn, jerk their heads in the Sliders' direction - Wade lets out a SHRIEK of surprise - the women's faces are the same gruesome mix of man and monkey. *They are all Kromaggs!*
THE KROMAGG WOMEN seem just as startled as the Sliders. But surprise quickly turns to anger and revulsion as the tallest of them points a hairy finger at Wade and Rembrandt...
KROMAGG WOMAN
Irrsshh-eeray-dackkk-Huuman!!!
Upon hearing the word "human" another of the Kromagg women acts without hesitation - pulling out a wicked looking pistol-like device and firing it at the stunned Sliders. A red laser beam that sears a hole in the wall above their heads, convinces the Sliders that this is another bad place to be. With reckless abandon, they bolt for the door, as another deadly beam nearly clips Rembrandt.
EXT. STREET/NEAR DOWNED SHIP - DAY - WADE AND REMBRANDT
race into the street, finding Quinn and Arturo, who have just exited the ship. THE KLAXON combined with their frantic companions, have Quinn and Arturo frozen in their tracks.
REMBRANDT
Don't just stand there! *Run*!!
ARTURO
*Why*?
Then Arturo sees THE FIRST OF THE KROMAGG WOMEN exit the store - she takes dead aim on him and fires a red laser blast that whizzes just past his left shoulder.
ARTURO needs no further explanations - he and his fellow Sliders are at a full gallop in no time.
QUINN
This way --!
As they head down --
EXT. DIFFERENT CITY STREET - DAY - THE SLIDERS
are in flight, pursued by the armed Kromagg women. Quinn spots an alley and beckons the others to duck in behind him. They do so, and, panting, out of breath, they hear their three pursuers race by, angrily SHOUTING threats in their aggressive, unknown language.
QUINN
They'll double back when they
don't find us.
(Checks timer)
We slide in twenty six seconds,
let's pray the gate doesn't
attract them before it's fully
formed.
(deep sigh)
This is one world I wanna leave
*far* behind.
Tormé also originally intended to cover a long standing Sliders nitpick in "Invasion". The original scene at the restuarant was to end with Arturo saying "Wait until he sees my tip". The next we were to hear about the meal at the French restaurant was with this Wade comment...
WADE
Cheer up, Professor. It was only
a watch, and it beats washing
dishes.
ARTURO
Only a watch? Woman, that
timepiece was worth more than the
gross national product of
*Paraguay!*
HIS COMPANIONS
look at one another, trying to suppress their laughter.
ARTURO
Why someone didn't realize our
money would be worthless here, is
beyond me.
Arturo is looking around and going off, there's no stopping him now...
ARTURO
(muttering)
Stupid French planet... Shifty,
backstabbing, croissant sniffing
nitwits!
The others can't take it - they all burst out laughing.
Arturo also had a slightly different comment when Quinn condemned him for taking the Kromagg "watch"...
QUINN
You took that? You shouldn't
have, we have no right --
ARTURO
-- That's a foolish attitude -
and one that reminds me that
technically, you are still my
student.
(indicates watch)
Should we ever make it back home,
this item is the only tangible
proof we have of the Kromaggs
existence.
When first talking with our Sliders, Mary was also supposed to have a Flashback sequence based on her memory...
MARY
I was selected. Chosen. When I
was a little girl.
ANGLE - MARY
as her mind reels back in time -
MARY
It began when they announced their
presence to the world... on a
foggy San Francisco morning.
SMASH CUT TO:
MARY'S FLASHBACK - BLACK AND WHITE
jerky, hand-held, fuzzy images, seen through the eyes of a little girl.
MARY (O.S.)
TV... radio... all channels...
suddenly... they were everywhere.
MARY'S PARENTS
are excited and enthused, pointing out the window toward the sky. On the TV in the b.g., a happy newscaster is announcing the Kromaggs arrival.
MARY (O.S.
I was only six years old, but I'll
never forget the wonderful
excitement we all felt. A
superior form of life had entered
our lives.
END FLASHBACK:
INT. MANTA SCOUT SHIP - MARY
is almost in a dreamlike state.
MARY
The Kromaggs brought us new ways,
new ideas. We accepted them as
our superiors and they blessed our
world a thousand fold. I'll spend
the rest of my life striving to
repay them for all they've done.
Mary sounds uncomfortably like a Jesus freak waxing on about Jesus. The spell is broken when the Kromagg looks her way and seemingly sends a telepathic message...
MARY
You will be debriefed on Earth
one-one-three. Your willingness
to cooperate will determine your
fate.
And Remmy had a missing line just before we cut to Wade's interrogation...
ARTURO
I was just speaking to you, but
you were never really here.
Rembrandt catches his drift... and it worries him greatly.
ARTURO
I shudder to think of the others,
at the mercy of such powerful
deception.
REMBRANDT
Quinn's a pretty tough cookie...
But I'm worried about little Wade.
SMASH CUT TO:
INT. INTERROGATION ROOM - NIGHT - WADE
Also, a second flashback sequence was meant to be shown when Mary tells Quinn the truth in the garden...
MARY
When you questioned me about my
past... and then displayed such
resolute defiance against the
Kromaggs... I had some kind of...
breakthrough. I can't really
explain it, but... I didn't
believe my kind was capable of
such resistance.
(emotional pause)
For some reason... I thought about
my parents... and for the first
time, I remembered the way things
really happened --
MARY'S FLASHBACK - BLACK AND WHITE
This is the mirror image of the previous flashback - the same day, the same place and people. But the easy-going tranquility of a welcomed Kromagg arrival has been flipped on its ear.
Mary's parents are again pointing up to the sky - but this time they are panicked and scared out of their wits.
On the TV, in the background, even the newscaster looks badly flustered and frightened.
MARY'S MOTHER
is crying now... Her husband holds her, and together they both look down at us (Mary) with a hopeless look of desperation.
Outside the window, horns are honking and glass is breaking somewhere in the city.
A woman is SCREAMING, her terror palpable. The screamer is coming closer and closer, getting louder and louder - suddenly, there is a KROMAGG SOLDIER at the window!
SMASHCUT BACK TO:
EXT. GARDEN - MARY
is sobbing, and Quinn is deeply empathetic.
MARY
They abducted me that day. Now
I'm like their child... their
ugly, experimental child. They've
raised me to serve them... and to
understand my hideous face and
inferior genes.
Quinn embraces her, gently speaking in her ear...
QUINN
They've brainwashed you, Mary.
About us, about everything. I
want to *fight* them - if you
could bring me my timer, maybe we
could get away, and you could come
with us --
Another important difference later in the conversation is how Quinn gets the key. Originally, Quinn steals it...
MARY
(averting her eyes)
I'm powerless... And I'm truly
sorry.
(sad pause)
I brought you here to say
good-bye.
Emotionally exhausted, she leans forward and Quinn takes her in his arms. He glances down the side of her body... and sees something on her belt, shining in the sun. Quietly...covertly... he reaches for it.
One last thing. It has been a point of contention with some fans that the Kromaggs talking in the English at the end of the episode may have been a production error. It was not. This portion of the last part of the story tells the tale...
MALE VOICE (O.S.)
We will be waiting... and
watching... ready to attack when
the time is right.
And the identity of the woman in white is --
MARY
very much alive and struggling to remain emotionless.
ANGLE - TWO KROMAGG WATCHERS
seated behind an elevated desk, not unlike the bench of a federal judge. They are looking down at Mary - one of them is speaking... *perfect English.*
MALE VOICE/KROMAGG WATCHER
You have done well, Mary. You may
have an hour of freedom in the
garden, before you go back to your
cage.
Mary swallows hard... and bows to them in the way she has been taught since childhood.
MARY
Thank you, Master.
She turns to walk back the way she came... a single tear rolling down her cheek.
FADE TO BLACK.
THE END
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