Just before they slide, Diana tells the others that the time will soon be right to be able to send them all back to their own worlds. Rembrandt is wistful, wishing he could go home with something to help battle the Kromaggs. They arrive on the steps of an old courthouse, and are met by a cheering mob carrying welcome signs. Claire LeBeau steps forward to greet them with her father, Marc, also known as the Seer. In Marc’s home, the walls are covered with uncannily accurate paintings of the Sliders in their various adventures. Claire explains that Marc is clairvoyant, and was able to follow the Sliders as they traveled from world to world. That’s how he knew they were coming, and it’s also how he was able to paint the lifelike pictures of them. Claire also says that they managed to defeat the Kromaggs in their world with a synthetic virus created by their scientists, and Diana is anxious to get the formula so that she can help Rembrandt do the same. Marc warns them that the next slide they take will be their last, and advises them to stay on this world permanently. They are unnerved. At the Chandler Hotel, they are appalled to see a television show about themselves, and begin to realize they are the heroes of some sort of cult. Nevertheless, they decide to play along with the adulation in order to get their hands on the anti-Kromagg virus. Rembrandt volunteers to take the slide alone. That way, if he dies, the others will be safe on a world that will always take care of them.
They go to a ballroom where an elaborate reception in their honor is taking place. As a young college student, Vernon is introduced to them, the room falls into a hush. A woman in her fifties walks in and fixes her gaze on Mallory. Maggie recognizes her. She is Mrs. Mallory , his mother. Mallory is confused by her obsession with him, since she is the original Quinn’s mother, not his, but Maggie believes the woman can see part of her son that is still inside Mallory. Marc addresses the crowd, and they realize the fanaticism is actually a religion called Slidology. Uncomfortable with it all, they leave and go back to the Chandler. Mrs. Mallory comes to their room and asks if Quinn is still alive. Maggie gently explains to her how Quinn was absorbed into the new Mallory. The time to slide arrives, and the vortex opens. When they try to leap, though, they bounce off of it as if it is made of rubber. Diana says that someone has managed to cap the wormhole, and now the timer has been reset for three days. Rembrandt thinks Marc had something to do with it. They got to his house and tell him to break his psychic connection with them so they can leave, but he denies having done anything to stop them. He also confesses that he’s going to die soon, because his heart is weak. His goal is to create the final phase of Slidology before he dies. Most disturbingly, they learn that Claire has been lying to him all long, saying the Sliders were going to stay of their own free will, so she becomes their primary suspect.
Rembrandt and Maggie go to see the student, Vernon, in hopes that he can recreate the anti-Kromagg virus. He puts a syringe in his arm and withdraws a vial of blood, explaining that all the people on this world carry it in their bloodstreams harmlessly. It’s only to deadly to Kromaggs. At the Chandler, Mallory sees two attendants trying to kidnap Mrs. Mallory and fights them. One of them picks up a lamp and smashes the timer. They run out, leaving the device in pieces. Mallory recognizes them as employees of Claire. Mrs. Mallory explains that she and Claire worked for the Kromagg garrison during the occupation, and when the Kromaggs were driven out, Claire hoarded some of the equipment they left. It’s possible she has devices to stop the Sliders from leaving.
Mrs. Mallory leads the others to Claire’s storage facility, and the Seer watches their progress in his mind. They find the device that capped the vortex, and Diana turns it off. Claire suddenly arrives with armed attendants at her side. She is determined to prevent them from leaving, as she doesn’t want to lose the income she is deriving from the cult of Slidology. Threatening to kill them if they try to leave, she admits that she has Kromagg technology to prevent them from doing so. Marc arrives to stop his daughter, and the men are able to disarm the attendants and restrain Claire. Suddenly, Marc is stricken by a heart attack. The security forces are on their way, and Diana tries to use a Kromagg interdimensional transport device to open the vortex. It appears, but is only big enough for one of them to go through. Rembrandt makes good on his oath. He injects himself with the anti-Kromagg virus and leaps inside. Diana anxiously looks to Marc for his help in tracking Rembrandt’s progress, but the man has died.
Pork Soda WorldBetween that and giraffe burgers, it’s a safe bet the people of this world have no taste. |
Seer WorldA man with a heart attack has been chronicling the Sliders exploits for years, turning their adventures into a religion called Slidology and a television show called, you guessed it, The Sliders. |
Several years ago, Marc LeBeau had a heart attack. Normal enough, except in this case LeBeau began seeing visions of the adventures of Quinn, Rembrandt, Wade and Professor Arturo — the Sliders. As the years progressed, LeBeau came to know Maggie, Colin, Mallory and Diana as well, and became known to all as The Seer.
The Seer shared his visions with the world, and the adventures of the Sliders were embraced as a cultural phenomenon. Books, a television series and now a religious institution have been built around the courageous aspects that the Sliders envelop. The Sliders television series recently aired “The Return of Arturo” at the prompting of a massive letter-writing campaign. Rembrandt and Maggie’s doubles cash in on appearances and Alt-Diana appears on the television series, though it’s clear her acting talent doesn’t surpass her physics knowledge.
In fact, Sliders has become such a part of this world that when the Kromaggs invaded, the citizens rallied behind its ideology and defeated them with a biological weapon that kills the Kromaggs instantaneously. During the hasty retreat, the Kromaggs left behind an enormous cache of technology, including sliding devices. The Seer’s daughter Claire acquired a large amount of Kromagg technology before the government was able to re-establish control.
With the recent appearance of the Sliders, Slidology is about to head towards mainstream religious acceptance.
With all indications that the fifth season was the last, why promote a cliffhanger?
In an online chat, Story Editor Keith Damron talked about a big-budget Kromagg battle royale that would use Geiger’s combine technology to boot the Kromaggs off Earth Prime. It never came to be, and “The Seer” was produced in its place.
According to the Dimension of Continuity, the cliffhanger was predicated by production and by executive producer Bill Dial in particular to make cancelling the show harder — because the Sci-Fi Channel essentially ignored production.
The cliffhanger was the result of a production team attempting to fight back for having complete creative freedom over their stories, something Tracy Tormé had been fighting for since the beginning of the show.
Cleavant Derricks wished to keep the show going and pushed for a cliffhanger himself. “I never think it should end with any kind of closure,” he insists. “I think one or all of us will go on to slide. The thing about sliding — in all of our imaginations — is that once you start it is difficult to stop. I don’t care what your goals may have been along the line, but once you start it’s very hard to give up.”