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"Behind the Script of Blood and Water" by Dan Owen
"Blood & Water" was the first episode written for VS4, having started life as my first attempt at a fan-fiction story set in season 3 and originally starring Emma Hollis instead of Ryan Frost.
For years I always thought Millennium should tackle stigmata, since it's such a well-known and scary phenomenon. Even The X-Files has only ever touched on it very lightly, so it just seemed like a very good premise for a script.
This script remains one of my personal favorites because it has a lot of layers and is factually very correct. I've enjoyed Millennium episodes that stray from the usual grisly-looking cities, and so I based "Blood & Water" in a mountain holiday resort. It brings a certain cold and remote feel to the story, since the serial killer has such a large area to hide out in.
In my original breakdown of this script this episode would have returned to the Owls and Roosters subplot never seen since season 2's "Roosters". But this was soon excised in favor of a less cluttered story. The only remnant of this idea is the rooster on the weather vane that Frank sees. I also toyed with the idea of bringing back Lara Means at one stage!
In some ways this script has similarities to "19:19", and is literally overflowing with trivia and fact-based snippets (read below). In fact, "Blood & Water" could very easily have formed 2 scripts since it covers a lot of premises and binds them altogether. There's the "Grand Cross" planetary alignment, the Lost Civilization of Atlantis and stigmata.
The reason for such a mass of central story-points was because of the strange connection I found between such wildly different ideas. Stigmatics believe they carry the wounds of Jesus Christ's crucifixion on their bodies, and there is an obvious connection to the plantary "cross" formation on July 9, 1999, which was a cosmic alignment some believe caused a Pole Shift - which wiped out Atlantis.
The research involved to figure this out was - including some startling mathematical revelations: 1999 (the date of the Grand Cross alignment) - 777 (the height of the mountain where Jesus was crucified) = 1222 (the date the first stigmatic bled). It all seemed very freaky to me, and I just HAD to write a story based on that!
"Blood & Water", I concede, is a story based on PLOT and not character, primarily. In most regards it's a typical serial-killer exercise harking back to season 1, but I hope the emotional turmoil of the stigmatics showed through.
The Fellowship themselves were an amalgamation of The Stelle Group - a community of people who believe in a Pole Shift apocalypse. The Fellowship's trailer park was based on them, mixed with the idea that worldwide sufferers of the stigmata may believe they have to sacrifice themselves to save humanity - as Jesus did almost 2000 years ago.
I think this is a good script, very tight, and easily my most visual. Free from the constraints of deadlines when I wrote it, "Blood & Water" went through a lot of rewrites and each scene tailored to appeal visually. As such it's as near to perfect as I could get it. I'm very pleased with it.
TRIVIA:
- The title "Blood and Water" was chosen because the story features two liquids very prominently: water (as in floods due to a Polar Shift) and blood (as in the effects of stigmata). It's a simple title, but seemed the most relevant. Other working titles turned down were "The Fellowship," "Stigmata" and "Grand Cross."
- Jarod Kinley's last words - "Eloi, Eloi, sabacathani?" is a quote from from Psalm 22. It is the fourth cry of Jesus Christ when he was nailed to the cross and means - "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?"
- All elements in the story are NOT fictional: the Grand Cross alignment on July 9th is a proven scientific fact, stigmata is a recognized phenomenon, as is the blood disorder hermatidrosis, and the mysticism behind Atlantis.
- Tom Langton's quote "Not my will, but thine be done." comes from Mark 14:35, spoken by Jesus as he prays before his death by crucifixion.
- Many unseen characters were named after Millennium fans! The trailer park guests were Rodney Smith, Jason Dorough and Robert Sago (wonder who was in trailer 6...) Jarod Kinley's first victim was Brian Little, while Lake Sheridan was named after Mandi Sheridan.
- A roaring lion was envisaged by Jarod throughout the story because, as stated in Psalm 22: 12-13: "Many bulls surround me; strong bulls of Bashan encircle me. Roaring lions tearing their prey open their mouths wide against me."
- The people of Bashan worshipped demon spirits (associated with Baal) within the cattle. In 1 Pet 5:8, Satan is described as "a roaring lion... seeking those who he may devour" These verses are thus suggestive of the spiritual activity of Satan and his demons, celebrating as Jesus was suffering on the cross. And likewise Jarod Kinley's suffering of his stigmata.
- The first recorded stigamtist WAS Stephen Langton in 1222 - although some sources claim St. Francis of Assisi to be the first. He wasn't - he was just the first "prominent" victim.
- Why did Ryan see a rainbow in the final scene? Well, after the Great Flood that Noah survived, he made a covenant with God that never again shall the world be destroyed through flooding. God supposedly kept this promise to Noah and reminds mankind of this covenant through the creation of the rainbow.
- Why were there 10 members of The Fellowship, and mostly female? It's a proven fact that most stigmatics are women... and it's also proclaimed that there will only ever be 12 stigmatics on Earth at the same time - after the Twelve Apostles. Of course, the 11th and 12th members were Deputy Bryant and Jarod Kinley.
- The idea of "The Fellowship" was influenced by "The Stelle Group"; a small town of fanatical believers of an imminent Pole Shift. Of course, The Fellowship have the added facet of all being stigmatics with intense religious beliefs.
- Jarod's quote to Glenda Curtis - "For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?" - comes from Revelation 6:17
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