I Write. You Read.

Imagine there is a crisis facing the earth that threatens to wipe out millions and millions of people unless something is done to stop it RIGHT NOW. Suppose the governments of the world are too mired in politics and the drowning weight of bureaucracy to discover, much less implement, an effective solution. Consider the idea that there is a person that monitors everything that’s going on, and that person is committed to saving the world at any cost. Now, finally, imagine that person, that global watchdog, calls you on your cell phone and asks for your help, explaining that only you know the key information, or know the key person, or possess the key skills that will prevent the deaths of millions. If you can picture all of that, you know what it’s like to be on the Global Frequency.

Based upon a limited-run comic book series of the same name, Global Frequency is the best TV pilot that you’ve never seen. Pretty much nobody has seen it, actually, because it was never picked up by a network. Produced last year with the hope that it would be picked up for the 2005-2006 season, this high-concept science fiction story sprang from the mind of Warren Ellis, an author with a knack for mashing together all manner of trends, technologies and speculation into something that entertains without making you feel stupid. While the pilot never ran on television, it’s spreading all over the internets and I tracked it down so I could see it for myself.

The story, thankfully, starts at the beginning. At least, the beginning for our proxy in the Global Frequency world, Detective Sean Flynn. He’s enjoying what appears to be some sort of celebration in San Francisco’s Chinatown, when a noise and flash of light from an alleyway draw his attention. He goes to investigate, and we are suddenly thrust into a world we don’t know or understand. Expecting maybe to find a wino or perhaps the victim of a mugging that needs a hand, we are instead confronted with a fresh corpse that was the victim of…sudden catastrophic weight loss. To say any more would give it away.

In the fast-moving chain of events that follows we are introduced to the Global Frequency. An organization founded by Miranda Zero, apparently an ex-government agent with apparently bottomless resources, the Frequency is devoted to saving the world by any means necessary. From a central HQ that exists somewhere indeterminate, she and her operator, Aleph, are able to contact anyone on the Frequency at any time via their hi-tech cell phones. People on the Frequency are experts in their field, the absolute cream of the crop. If a crisis required help with theoretical quantum physics, no doubt Stephen Hawking would be on the Frequency within moments. The idea is that no central organization or database would be able to cope with every conceivable situation, so it’s more effective to just call up the guy that knows his stuff.

The Frequency’s mechanism for finding information first comes into play in the story when it is discovered that the crisis centers around a Cold War-era Russian sleeper agent, and they need to know more about him. Within moments, Aleph has contacted a multitude of experts (”Mr. Smith, you are on the Global Frequency.”) and tracked down a Russian scientist who might have the information they need. The whole sequence plays out as a montage of dialogue snippets, outlining a hi-tech version of Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon until they find their man. (If you’ve ever read the Three Investigators series of children’s mystery books, it’s also kind of like the Ghost-to-Ghost Hookup.)

It just so happens that this Russian scientist is in a top-secret, maximum-security NSA lock-up, so Miranda Zero must break in and get the information they need before time runs out and San Francisco gets wiped off the face of the Earth. This sets up a sequence that fills the quota for super-spy action and cements Ms. Zero as a bad-ass, in case you still need that assurance at this point in the story.

The rest of the plot plays out in a straightforward manner, without any really big surprises, but in my opinion the star of this pilot is not the story but the concept. What we’re supposed to focus on is not the novelty of the rather stereotypical sci-fi-meets-James-Bond plot points but the idea that there is a group of people out there that is committed to saving the world one crisis at a time, regardless of borders, governments or other affiliations. No price is too high (in fact, one gets the idea that giving one’s life for the cause is a rather common event) and no expert is out of reach if they have information that can help. In the event that someone isn’t already on the Frequency, “civilians” are pulled in on an as-needed basis to fill in the gaps. Need a gymnast? Hit the roster of Berkeley’s athletic department to track one down and drag her out of bed in the middle of the night.

Ultimately, I think the Global Frequency pilot shows a lot of potential that should be picked up by someone to develop further. Based on this initial offering, I know I would keep tuning in. Unfortunately, someone passed on it and it’s just floating around out there. I still have hope. If they can bring The Family Guy back on the air, anything is possible.

In the meantime, if Miranda Zero calls, I’ll be ready.