Summaries

Synopsis

As Cheryl is on her way home after making out with her boyfriend, she is accosted by a strange man who mentally immobilizes her, burnsout her eyes with his stare, and drains her blood with a transfusiondevice that he keeps in a briefcase. The next morning, a strange mandressed in black and wearing dark sunglasses, walks into the DurkeeTesting Laboratory and asks to see Dr Rochelle. Paul Johnson [Michael York] seems very weak and claims "my blood is ill." Nurse Amanda Sayles [Elizabeth Barondes] attempts to drawsome of his blood for lab tests, but Johnson refuses on the grounds thathe requires "input of blood, not depletion." When Dr Rochelle [Mason Adams] explainsthat he can't treat him without a blood test, Mr Johnson cuts his own armwith a scalpel, dabs up what little blood emerges with a cotton ball, andhands it to Dr Rochelle. Johnson then directs the doctor mentally toimmediately do the tests himself and then to prescribe a transfusion.

After receiving a quart of blood, Mr Johnson is feeling and lookingbetter. Deciding to employ Amanda as a live-in nurse who can give himdaily transfusions, he mentally orders Dr Rochelle to support Amanda's jobchange. Rochelle obligingly diagnoses Johnson with a rare form ofhemophilia and advises Amanda to take the job. Amanda escorts Johnson tohis car, only to find her officer friend Jack Sherbourne [Parker Stevenson] in the process ofwriting Johnson a ticket for parking in a handicapped spot. Amanda talksJack out of it on the chance that she will someday accept a date with him.

Later that afternoon, Amanda moves into Mr Johnson's home, animpressive and expensively-decorated mansion that he shares with only oneother person -- ex-con chauffeur/butler/gardener/nutritionist/cook, JeremyPallin [Richard Belzer], whom Amanda immediately puts in his place. Johnson shows Amandaaround the house, the only place being off-limits is the basement where,Jeremy explains, Johnson has a workshop or something. Actually, thebasement consists of a refrigerator where he stores his collected bloodsamples and a blast furnace where he disposes of the occasionaldoorbell-ringing evangelist after exsanguinating him. In Johnson's "restroom" (bedroom) is where Amanda will "feed" him blood. It also contains ahidden communicator that Johnson uses to contact his home planet ofDavanna. Johnson, or Sidal-2 as he is known on Davanna, has been sent toEarth to seek human blood as a cure for a disease that is killing hispeople. His mission is to find a cure and transmit human blood fortransfusions and research. If human blood proves to be suitable, theultimate goal is, of course, to take over the Earth.

One day, as he is on his way to the library, Mr Johnson notices anumber of homeless people lined up along a fence. He instructs Jeremy toinvite three of them home for dinner that evening. As Johnson is leavingthe library, he notices a Davannan female from E-13 Brood crossing thestreet. Surprised because he thought he was the only Davannan sent toEarth, Johnson communicates telepathically and discovers that hissuperiors have been lying to him. Back at the mansion, Amanda has beensunning herself beside the pool. After returning to the house and feelinghot and sweaty, she notices that the thermostat is set over 90 degrees Fand goes into the basement to check the furnace, which is blasting away.Just as she makes note of the vast array of specimen jars on the shelves,she hears a car in the driveway and goes back upstairs. Unfortunately, sheleaves her sunglasses on one of the shelves.

Dr Rochelle and off-duty Officer Jack drive up, quickly followed byJohnson and Jeremy. While Amanda and Jack share an iced drink and Amandafinally consents to a date with Jack, Rochelle gives Johnson the resultsof his lab tests. Johnson's blood contains an airborne virus that existson an extremely rare element found only in Johnson's blood. Rochelleconcludes that Johnson is one in a trillion or he is not of this earth. MrJohnson mentally instructs Rochelle to research the virus and find a cure,even if it means not sleeping.

That evening, while Amanda is away on her date with Jack, Jeremybrings home three homeless people. Mr Johnson takes them in the basementto see his "cellar for wine." He kills them with his glance, exsanguinatesthem, and tosses their bodies into the furnace. He sends back their bloodduring his next communique with Davanna. During this transmission, Johnsonis asked to send a human female for further investigation and analysis. Heis also warned of Davannan defectors and ordered to immediately terminatethem should he see one on Earth. When Johnson asks about his own brood onDavanna, he is told that they have all perished.

The next day, while walking down the street, Johnson is accosted byfour gang members demanding that he hand over his briefcase. Johnsonrefuses and fights them off. One of the members is a girl, so he mentallydemands that she accompany him. That evening, he sends her through thetransporter to Davanna. The next morning after breakfast, Amanda asksJeremy about the food being eaten by Mr Johnson. Oddly enough, he eatsnothing and leaves only a glass filled with a dark, nasty-smelling liquid.Amanda suggests that they have the liquid analyzed by Dr Rochelle. Jeremyalso tells her about seeing the three homeless people and a street girlenter the house last night and swears that he never saw them leave. Wheredid they go? she wonders. "I think he eats them," Jeremy concludes.

Firm in his duty to serve the hive, Mr Johnson contacts E-13 mentallyand they meet in an antique store. E-13 [Athena Stensland] tells Johnson that the people onDavanna are eating each other and that the leaders are consuming the bloodand specimens that Johnson has been sending them. When he sees that E-13is weak and in need of blood, he takes her to the Durkee Lab for a secrettransfusion. Unfortunately, the unit of blood he selects is infected withrabies. After the transfusion, Johnson gives E-13 a pile of money and thengoes off in search of another female specimen. He finds a woman andmentally orders her into his car just as someone drives up and honks hishorn. The noise from the horn causes excruciating pain to Johnson's ears,and he loses control of the woman, who tries to run away. Johnson followsher and, using his eyes, causes her to burst into flames.

Dr Rochelle joins Amanda and Jack at the restaurant where they arehaving dinner. He brings along the analysis from the liquid that Amandagave him. Amino acids, proteins, hemoglobin, bile, and a bunch ofcomponents he can't identify, a "crazy gastric bouillabaisse", he callsit. Meanwhile, E-13 is getting sicker, throwing up black goop. She headsback into the Durkee Lab and collapses on the floor. Dr Rochelle issummoned, and he and Jack hurry to the Lab. In front of their eyes, theywatch E-13 turn black, convulse, and expire. Under her dark sunglasses,which are the exact same type as Mr Johnson's, they see only white eyes.Jack calls Amanda, who has just returned to Johnson's house, and tells herabout E-13. He orders her to get out of the house.

Jeremy catches Amanda packing her bags and suggests that they firsttake a look around the house, since Johnson is not there. They search hisbedroom, finding a strange, pulsing, spidery thing which Jeremy squasheswith his foot. Poking at some buttons on the wall, Amanda opens thetransporter or, as Jeremy calls it, the "intergalactic cable." Jeremy hashad enough and leaves the room, but Amanda continues to poke around. Whenthe phone rings, Amanda answers it. It is Dr Rochelle calling to tell herabout E-13. He also informs her that his work on the virus has shown thatit can be wiped out by exposing it to radiation. Unbeknown to both Amandaand Rochelle, Mr Johnson has returned and is listening in on theirconversation. After Rochelle hangs up, Johnson tells Amanda that he'scoming for her.

Amanda panics and tries to get out, but Johnson is already coming upthe stairs to his rest room. Jeremy appears with a gun and orders Johnsonto stop, but Johnson turns him into a fireball. Amanda races back intoJohnson's room and tries to hide in the closet but finds herself next to anasty blob that starts waving its tentacles at her. She runs out on theterrace and down the steps into the yard. Johnson pursues, mentallytelling her to stop, turn around, and look at his eyes. Amanda keepsrunning.

Mr Johnson returns to his briefcase and summons a flyingstingray/jellyfish to destroy Dr Rochelle and all evidence of Johnson'spresence. Then he goes after Amanda, intending to return to Davanna withher as his breeder. Together, they will use the cure and start a new hive.Although she can hear Johnson in her mind calling to her, Amanda continuesto flee. She gets as far as Griffith Park and finds a telephone booth. Shecalls Jack and asks for his help, but Johnson is bearing down on her inhis car. Amanda continues to run, and Johnson continues to follow. When hecatches up with her, he forces her to stop. He commands her to return tothe house and wait by the transportation device.

Amanda begins to walk back to the house. Jack drives up on hismotorcycle and, seeing that she is okay, he goes after Johnson. Jack pullsup alongside Johnson's car and fires a shot at him, causing Johnson todrive off a cliff and the car to burst into flames. Amanda does as she istold -- returns to the house, opens the transporter, and stands in frontof it. As Mr Johnson lies dying, he calls out Amanda's name and uses hiseyes to shut down the transporter.

Epilogue: Amanda and Jack stand before Mr Johnson's grave. It reads:Here lies a being who was not of this earth. As they walk away from thegrave, another man wearing sunglasses and carrying a briefcase gets out ofa car and approaches the grave. [Original Synopsis by bj_kuehl.]