This week Val and Rachel discuss The Pretender, which aired from 1996 to 2000 on NBC's Saturday night Thrillogy lineup and starred a bunch of actors you have never heard of.

From Wikipedia: "The series follows Jarod, a young man who is a "Pretender", a genius impostor able to quickly master the complex skill sets necessary to impersonate a member of any profession. Being kidnapped as a child by The Centre, a sinister think located in the fictional Blue Cove, Delaware, who exploited his Pretender abilities; Jarod escapes as an adult, and goes on the run. He is chased by a trio of Centre agents: Miss Parker, the daughter of a pivotal figure within The Centre; Sydney, a Centre psychologist who raised Jarod; and Broots, a Centre computer expert. In each episode, Jarod assumes a new professional identity (e.g., doctor, lawyer, soldier) to investigate a crime framed on someone else, and deliver justice to the actual culprits. In the meanwhile, Jarod searches for his origins." 

Hot topics include: 1.) Val cleans house on her NBC Blackout theme error from last week 2.) We dig in to NBC Thrillogy history 3.) Rachel makes up facts about Pretenders, con men and grifters. 4.) We try to sound smart by discussing "plot structure" 5.) More beeper plot lines 6.) New segment unveiled: The Most 90s Thing! 7.) Jarod's caesar haircut: its origins, meaning and symbolism.

 

Wikipedia entry:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pretender_(TV_series)

 

For next week, we will be discussing Picket Fences (Season 1, Episode 17: Be My Valentine) with Special Guest Bennett Madison.