Obsession

// K0808 · Originally aired May 24, 1996

When the Sliders land in a world dominated by psychics, Wade encounters the man of her dreams, a powerful seer who may have loved Wade in a different life.

Teleplay // Jon Povill
Story // Jon Povill and Steve Brown
Director // Colin Bucksey
Music // Stephen Graziano

Reviews

// Earth Prime

“Obsession” is the sleeper hit of the season. It simply doesn’t get its due. It not only features strong character development for both Quinn and Wade; it also has one of the most complex and well-developed plots of the series.

// Think of a Roulette Wheel

We’re starting to notice the beginnings of the ‘downward spiral of guilt’ that defines Quinn Mallory’s character arc.

// External Reviews

Worlds Visited

India World

Cows, over-indulgent concierges, early morning vendors — it’s all part of a San Francisco where India sailed east and colonized North America.

Psychic World

This America’s Abraham Lincoln was warned of his assassination by a psychic; Lincoln’s gratitude was to elevate the man to a post higher than the Presidency. What a guy!

Details

Wade’s alarm wakes her up for the slide 4:09 a.m.
Was has a copy of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” on the nightstand.
In the hit-and-run accident, Rembrandt suffers a slight bruise at the base of the fifth metatarsal bone in his left ankle and a slight strain on his internal annular ligament.
Pixel sign reads: “Predicted Gold Deposits Found On Moon.”
The Prime Oracle’s license plate is “ORACLE 1.”
The hospital magazines include:
- News Monthly: JFK Dead at 78: a close-up look at the Man and his Times.
- Viewpoint: Where We’re Going In The Next 25 Years
- Tempo (a magazine that also had Rembrandt on the Cover in The King is Back.)
A poster on a door adjacent to the examining room curiously reads “Discover The World of Words.”
Rembrandt was taken to hospital wing “East 2A.”
The dress shop where Wade buys her dress reads “Calico Cat” on the awning but the window reads “The Fashion Oracle,” which is run by the psychic Anna, who knew what dress Wade wanted before she came in the store.
The room across the hall from the Sliders’ in the Dominion Hotel is 307.
The messenger in the dream/past life sequence instructs Kate to ride to Hampstead.
The ambulance license plate is 3LAY495

Character Information

As a boy, Rembrandt suffered a compound fracture of the leg.
Wade’s name in the dream/past life sequence is Kate, a derivative of Wade’s middle name, Kathleen.
As a girl, Wade had a blue stuffed teddy bear named Mugsy.

Notable Quotes

“The name is Bond, Derek Bond. Heh, heh, it’s kind of hard to resist saying it that way.”—Derek, introducing himself to the Sliders.
“It’s easy: just tell him ‘here’s your ring back’… no, no, no don’t hang up! “—Quinn smooth-talking Wade over the phone about her situation.
“I’m the ‘Crying Man,’ you think that just happens?”—Rembrandt, in response to Quinn’s question about whether he’s qualified to give advice on women.
“Don’t you guys know anything about women?! Once they put the rock on the finger, it’s all over!”—Rembrandt on Wade’s situation.
“Love?! She had to kill herself to get away from you and you call that love?!… No matter how much power you have, you can’t make people love you. Not even God can do that.”—Quinn to an apologetic Derek.
“You scared the crap outta me!”—Quinn, to a recovering Wade.
“Come along, Mr. Brown, new worlds await.”—Arturo.

Arturoisms

“Exasperating ninny!”—to the overly thankful hotel clerk.
“Blistering idiot!”—to the cop during the arrest in the hotel.

Money Matters

The Sliders are able to pay for their hotel on India World.
Rembrandt’s medical bill is taken care of somehow.
Arturo buys that multiversal all-knowing almanac that talks about the parallel world in question in such a way that it could only have been written for an off-worlder.
The Sliders pay for their hotel room on Psychic World as well.
Wade buys a dress for her dinner with Derek Bond.
Rembrandt, Quinn and Arturo all have a few drinks at least in the Lamplighter.
Arturo and Rembrandt are able to purchase the narcotic that knocks out Wade, or else Monique stole it from the hospital.

Nitpicks and Errors

On Friday afternoon, the Prime Oracle says that by this time tomorrow (Saturday) he will die of a cerebral hemorrhage. Well, the Prime Oracle was wrong! Here’s the reasoning: at the beginning, Derek says he’ll pick up Wade at 7 p.m. that day for their date. Later, at the restaurant, Wade can’t believe it’s so empty for a Friday night. During that same date, the death of the Prime Oracle is announced. So the Prime Oracle died on Friday night just hours after saying that he would die on Saturday. What does this say about the Oracle’s prediction ability?

Neatpicks

Wade’s mention of the Lottery Winner’s Ball references first season’s The Luck of the Draw, also written by Jon Povill.
Genius boy wonder Quinn Mallory seems to be having trouble completing a Rubik’s Cube.
In Post Traumatic Slide SyndromePost Traumatic Slide SyndromeObsession, Bernie Massey’s blue Pontiac bears the exact same plate number as the ambulance, proving that even the DMV changes on alternate worlds.

Guest Starring

James Patrick Stuart as Derek Bond
Heather Hanson as Dominique [Reynolds, M.D.]
Isaac Hayes as Prime Oracle

With

Malcolm Stewart¹ as Regent [Douglas Hagen]
Sandra P. Grant² as Melanie [Wallace]
Paul McGillion as First Officer
Hiro Kanagawa as Henry
Gillian Carfra as Young Woman

Unaccredited

Derek’s other servant.
The President of the United States.

Malcolm Stewart played Alan Fontaine in Last Days.
Sandra P. Grant portrays a Social Worker in San Francisco Maximum Security Penitentiary in El Sid.

Script Archive

Click on the links below to download rare scripts, outlines, and memos associated with this episode.

The Inside Slide

“To me ‘Obsession’ is middle-of-the-road,” says Tracy Tormé. “We really hadn’t done any strong Sabrina Lloyd shows and wanted a very powerful story. It was fun seeing Isaac Hayes in it, and I thought the ending was clever, the way we got out of the whole situation. The show was really more for our female fans; a romance novel-type show. Not one of my personal favorites, but solid.”

· · ·

Originally, Tormé was going to cast his father, Mel Tormé, in the role of the Prime Oracle. “I thought that was kind of dull. I thought ‘if we’re going to use him, let’s really use him.” As a result, the Velvet Fog made hisSliders debut in Greatfellas.