Pilot (Jericho)
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"Pilot" (titled some places as "Pilot: The First Seventeen Hours") is the first episode of the first season and the
pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...
for the apocalyptic drama
television series A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...
''
Jericho Jericho ( ; , ) is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, and the capital of the Jericho Governorate. Jericho is located in the Jordan Valley, with the Jordan River to the east and Jerusalem to the west. It had a population of 20,907 in 2017. F ...
''. The episode was broadcast by
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
on September 20, 2006 to approximately 11.66 million viewers. The pilot episode was filmed on location in
Fillmore, California Fillmore is a small city in Ventura County, California, United States, in the Santa Clara River Valley. In an agricultural area with rich, fertile soil, Fillmore has a historic downtown that was established when the Southern Pacific built the ...
, while the standing sets for the town of Jericho were built at Calvert Studios in
Van Nuys, California Van Nuys ( ) is a neighborhood in the central San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. Home to Van Nuys Airport and the Van Nuys City Hall, Valley Municipal Building, it is the most populous neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley ...
.


Plot

Thirty-two-year-old Jake Green returns for a short visit to his small hometown of
Jericho Jericho ( ; , ) is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, and the capital of the Jericho Governorate. Jericho is located in the Jordan Valley, with the Jordan River to the east and Jerusalem to the west. It had a population of 20,907 in 2017. F ...
in northern Kansas following a mysterious five-year absence. While he was away, Jake had no contact with any of his family or friends, except possibly his mother
Gail Gail may refer to: People * Gail (given name), list of notable people with the given name Surname * Jean-Baptiste Gail (1755–1829), French Hellenist scholar * Max Gail (born 1943), American actor * Sophie Gail (1775–1819), French singer ...
. Jake is evasive about his absence; he is asked where he has been by various Jericho residents and he gives different answers – including claims to have been playing
minor league baseball Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National Le ...
and serving in both the
Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...
and
Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...
. Jake's mother,
Gail Gail may refer to: People * Gail (given name), list of notable people with the given name Surname * Jean-Baptiste Gail (1755–1829), French Hellenist scholar * Max Gail (born 1943), American actor * Sophie Gail (1775–1819), French singer ...
, who apparently knows where Jake has been, is very happy and relieved to see him. Jake discusses with his father, Mayor Johnston Green, the inheritance Jake's grandfather left him. Johnston refuses to release the money to Jake until Jake leads what Johnston calls "a more productive life". Afterwards, Jake goes to visit his grandfather's grave. Despite his mother's objections. Jake leaves Jericho that same day, telling his mother that he must return to
San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...
. As Jake leaves town, the
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
addresses a
joint session of the United States Congress A joint session of the United States Congress is a gathering of members of the two chambers of the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States: the Senate and the House of Representatives. Joint sessions can be held on ...
about a rise in global violence. Simultaneously, all the television and radio stations and telephone communication go dead. At the same time, some residents of the town see a
mushroom cloud A mushroom cloud is a distinctive mushroom-shaped flammagenitus cloud of debris, smoke, and usually condensed water vapour resulting from a large explosion. The effect is most commonly associated with a nuclear explosion, but any sufficiently e ...
on the horizon, in the direction of
Denver, Colorado Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...
over a mountain range. On the highway, another driver, distracted by the cloud, drifts into the opposing lane, where Jake is driving, also distracted. The cars collide, killing the occupants of the other car and knocking Jake unconscious. Meanwhile, a school bus is returning from a field trip, late because it had to stop for repairs, with the elementary-school-aged children of Jericho.
Heather Lisinski This is a list of characters from the television series ''Jericho'', which premiered in 2006 on CBS in the United States. Main characters Jake Green * Portrayed by Skeet Ulrich * Appears in: ''Season 1'', ''Season 2'' * Status: Alive Johnst ...
, the teacher accompanying them, notices the mushroom cloud. The children are watching a deer running next to the bus for a few seconds; it then crosses in front of the bus and is hit, causing the bus to swerve off the road. On the highway, Jake regains consciousness and finds that he has a leg injury. He finds the passengers in the other vehicle dead. He begins walking back toward town, and shortly afterwards encounters two children who have ventured from the bus in search of help. Jake makes it to the bus, where he finds the driver dead and Heather with a broken leg. Only one of the children is injured, but she is having significant difficulty breathing and is in mortal danger. Jake performs an emergency
tracheotomy Tracheotomy (, ), or tracheostomy, is a surgical airway management procedure which consists of making an incision on the front of the neck to open a direct airway to the trachea. The resulting stoma (hole) can serve independently as an airway ...
using straws from the children's juice boxes and band-aids to create a temporary airway. He then drives the bus back to town. While searching for the children, Sheriff Dawes and Deputy Riley find a prison bus that has crashed. They mistake it for the school bus and are both shot while investigating. In town, Dale Turner discovers a message from his mother on his answering machine. The end of the message is interrupted by a large explosion heard in the background. Dale later plays the message for a group of adults at the Greens' house. Gail offers condolences to Dale, saying that she hadn't known Dale's mother was visiting Denver. Dale tells the group that his mother wasn't visiting Denver but rather was in
Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...
. Earlier, Mayor Green had tried to calm citizens by speculating that the Denver incident was isolated and possibly a military accident instead of a widespread enemy attack. Shortly after, Gail informs the mayor about the second explosion in Atlanta. Residents swarm the gas station to fill up their cars and trucks. Electrical power fails. The situation comes close to a riot before Mayor Green arrives and calms the crowd, temporarily. The townspeople press the mayor for answers, and at one point he reveals that there was another explosion in Atlanta. The situation almost escalates again, but calms down when the school bus arrives with the children. Jake tells the crowd to help the children, and informs his brother that he drove past a prison bus that had crashed. With no means of communication and no power, Jerichoans are isolated from the outside world, not knowing what is left of that world, or how many others are still alive and must find means of survival in the midst of panic and chaos. The episode ends with Emily Sullivan, an old friend of Jake who is seemingly unaware of the day's events, driving on an isolated rural road. She is on her way to the airport to meet with her fiancé, who is returning from a trip. Feeling bumps in the road, she stops the car and gets out to see what the problem is. The road is covered with dead birds that seemingly just dropped from the sky.


Reception

The
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
airing of the pilot received 11.66 million viewers, and was second place for its time spot on the networks. The episode received 25% more viewers in the 18–49 age group for its time on CBS than the previous year.


Music

*
The Killers The Killers are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Las Vegas, Nevada, in 2001 by Brandon Flowers (lead vocals, keyboards, bass) and Dave Keuning (lead guitar, backing vocals). After the band went through a number of short-term bas ...
– "
All These Things That I've Done "All These Things That I've Done" is a song by American Rock music, rock band the Killers. The song was released as the third single from the band's debut studio album, ''Hot Fuss'' (2004), on August 30, 2004. It was written by frontman Brandon F ...
" *
Rascal Flatts Rascal Flatts is an American Country music, country music band formed in 1999 in Nashville, Tennessee. The band consists of Gary LeVox (lead vocals), Jay DeMarcus (bass guitar, background vocals), and Joe Don Rooney (lead guitar, background voc ...
– "Pieces" *
Bon Jovi Bon Jovi is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Sayreville, New Jersey in 1983. The band consists of singer Jon Bon Jovi, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres, guitarists John Shanks and Phil X, percussionist Everett Bradley ...
– "
Who Says You Can't Go Home "Who Says You Can't Go Home" is a song that was written by Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora for American rock band Bon Jovi's ninth album, '' Have a Nice Day'' (2005). The song was produced by John Shanks, Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora. A due ...
" *
Goo Goo Dolls The Goo Goo Dolls are an American rock band based in Buffalo, New York, composed of lead vocalist and guitarist John Rzeznik, bassist and vocalist Robby Takac, as well as several rotating members since its formation in 1986. After starting ...
– " Better Days" *
Snow Patrol Snow Patrol are a Northern Irish–Scottish Rock music, rock band formed in 1994 in Dundee, Scotland, consisting of Gary Lightbody (vocals, guitar), Nathan Connolly (guitar, backing vocals), and Johnny McDaid (piano, guitar, keyboards, backi ...
– "
Run Run(s) or RUN may refer to: Places * Run (island), one of the Banda Islands in Indonesia * Run (stream), a stream in the Dutch province of North Brabant People * Run (rapper), Joseph Simmons, now known as "Reverend Run", from the hip-hop group ...
" * John Powell – "Nach Deutschland"


References


External links

*
"The Pilot" at CBS.com

"Pilot: The First 17 Hours"
original script. {{Jericho (2006 TV series) 2006 American television episodes American television series premieres Jericho (2006 TV series) episodes