"Pilot"
Disclaimer
[All we see is white.]
EMMA'S VOICE-OVER: I have this dream.
[We see trees with snow on them and then we see Emma, experiencing the dream she's describing in slow motion. After each sentence, there is a brief pause.]
EMMA'S VOICE-OVER: [cont'd.] I'm running through the woods and it's snowing. I don't know if I'm running to something or from something. I'm just running.
[Emma takes in and lets out several breaths. Then, she looks around above her head.]
MALE VOICE: Ladies and gentlemen, we're on our final approach to Heathrow. Please stow all your belongings, lock your tray tables and put your seats in their full and upright position. Thank you.
[Cut to Emma sleeping on an airplane in a secluded room with a TV. There's a ding. {Personal Note: You know, the ding that lets passengers know that they have to remain in their seats until the airplane lands.} Emma opens her eyes, looks at her watch, turns off the TV, and gasps.]
MALE VOICE: [cont'd.] Flight attendants, take your seats for landing.
[There are several knocks at the door.]
FEMALE VOICE: Miss.
[A pause and several more knocks follow.]
FEMALE VOICE: [cont'd.] Miss, you have to take your seat now.
[The words "Dear Jules" appear in the middle of the screen.]
EMMA'S VOICE-OVER: Dear Jules...
[Airplane Emma checks her watch.]
EMMA'S VOICE-OVER: [cont'd.] Some sisterly advice.
[Cut to Emma on her bed, typing on a laptop.]
EMMA'S VOICE-OVER: [cont'd.] There's a direct correlation between temptation, humiliation, and self-doubt. More on that later. Here's what you need to know now.
[Cut to an airplane landing. The word "London" appears on the bottom of the screen.]
EMMA'S VOICE-OVER: [cont'd.] I'm in London.
[Cut to Emma standing at Heathrow Airport's baggage claim, waiting for her luggage.]
EMMA'S VOICE-OVER: [cont'd.] My luggage isn't.
[Cut to Emma talking an official at Heathrow Airport.]
EMMA: New Delhi?
[Cut back to Emma typing.]
EMMA'S VOICE-OVER: Have you recovered from Mom and Dad's sit-down strike at the airport? I haven’t.
MOM: You're running away!
[Cut to a flashback of Emma and her family (an overprotective mother, a firefighter father, and a younger sister named Jules) at a parking lot. Emma is getting ready to leave for London.]
MOM: [cont'd.] From us, from law school, from a relationship.
[Emma stands up, overtowering her mother.]
EMMA: He cheated on me, Mother!
JULES: He's a dog.
MOM: And so, she has get her life in Timbuktu?
JULES: London. The U.S. Embassy in London.
DAD: We gotta go, Em. Leave her in the car. [to Jules] Come on, Jules.
EMMA: This is a fresh start. It's a chance for me to do something in the world. I need you to be excited - Can you be excited for me, please?
MOM: Everything you have is here. You'll see. You're my good girl.
[Mom kisses Emma's forehead and then smiles. Mom's lipstick is implanted on Emma's forehead because of the kiss.]
EMMA'S VOICE-OVER: How can one woman say so little to create so much guilt and self-doubt?
EMMA: I'll write.
[Cut to Emma in her seat on the airplane. She's between two old guys.]
EMMA'S VOICE-OVER: But I couldn't. I can't. It's, like, I have the Mom-writing circuit disconnected in my brain. So I did the only thing I could. Swallowed ???? and went Z.
["went Z...." appears on the screen. Fade to black.]
[Cut to Emma sleeping on the left shoulder of a younger, handsomer guy (Doug Roach, we'll soon find out to be his name) than there was originally. The lipstick is still on Emma's forehead.]
[Emma wakes up and lifts her head from the guy's shoulder.]
EMMA: Excuse me. Sorry.
DOUG: It's OK.
[Awkward silence ensues.]
EMMA: It seems to me. You weren't here. Before.
DOUG: Should I take it personally that you can't tell the difference between me and a three-hundred-pound bald man?
EMMA: Possibly.
DOUG: Doug Roach.
[Doug offers his hand. Emma accepts.]
EMMA: Emma [simultaneously] Brody.
DOUG: [simultaneously] Brody. New vice cousul, merit scholar, Ohio State pre-law, smothering mother, and a lot better looking than the picture in your file.
EMMA: Oh. I hate that picture. What are you? State department?
DOUG: Embassy courier pigeon. I heard that you were on the flight so I came back to say hi. Hi!
EMMA'S VOICE-OVER: This guy was cute, Jules.
EMMA: Hi.
EMMA'S VOICE-OVER: Really cute.
EMMA: Business or first?
DOUG: Three-A. It's [points to something tied around his wrist] for the message. Not the messenger.
EMMA: If you were a real gentleman, you would have offered me your seat.
DOUG: Who said I was a gentleman?
EMMA: I thought you said you could use a glass of champange.
DOUG: What? Are you celebrating?
EMMA: No. Not exactly. So what you got in there?
DOUG: Well, I could tell you but then, I'd have to kill you. So let's talk about you.
EMMA: OK. Question. The smothering mother part. Tell me it's not a part of my file.
DOUG: It's on your forehead.
[Emma doesn't think Doug is serious but Doug nods to show that he is.]
EMMA: Oh my God. Is it bad?
DOUG: Define bad. Here, let me.
[Doug starts rubbing Emma's forehead with a cloth. Emma looks at his hand.]
DOUG: [cont'd.] No, not married. You?
EMMA: No.
DOUG: Engaged?
EMMA: What?
DOUG: Boyfriend?
EMMA: Are you hitting on me?
DOUG: Isn't it obvious?
EMMA'S VOICE-OVER: Oh God, Jules. I was in trouble.
EMMA: Well, then maybe I better go use the mirror.
[Emma gets up and goes to the plane lavatory. Doug follows.]
[Cut to bathroom with Emma in it. Doug puts his hand in.]
EMMA: Doug.
DOUG: Emma.
[Cut to Emma typing on her laptop in her room.]
EMMA'S VOICE-OVER: Help. Let's start with the fact that romance between embassy personnel is completely forbidden.
[Cut to Doug and Emma making out in the plane lavatory. Emma makes a squeamish sort of noise.]
[Cut back to Emma typing.]
EMMA'S VOICE-OVER: And forget that the guy might have the fate of the free world strapped to his wrist.
[Cut to Doug and Emma making out in the plane lavatory. Emma pushes Doug away.]
DOUG: Woah!
EMMA: OK, one of us is going to have to do the right thing here.
DOUG: OK. Who's it gonna be?
[Cut to Emma typing in her room.]
EMMA'S VOICE-OVER: But why, on my first day, would I ever go looking for this much trouble?
[Cut to Doug and Emma in the plane lavatory. Emma kisses Doug and they start making out. Doug tries to get the thing strapped to his wrist out of the way. Emma pushes Doug away again.]
EMMA: OK. That's it. It's me. I'll do it. Get out. I mean it. Out.
[Emma has pushed Doug out of the plane's lavatory. Doug chuckles.]
[Cut to two people waiting in line to use the lavatory. They are not amused by Doug and Emma.]
[Cut back to Doug and Emma. Doug walks back to his seat. Emma is embarrassed by her actions as well.]
EMMA'S VOICE-OVER: And there it is. The first 11 hours. Temptation, humilation, and self-doubt. The holy trinity of personal loathing.
[Emma puts one finger up, to signal that she'll be out in one minute. We see three shots of Emma in the lavatory, thinking about her embarrassing, spontaneous act of passion with Doug.]
[Cut to Emma in a cab in London. We see several shots of famous sites in London and Emma looking at those sites.]
EMMA'S VOICE-OVER: And the nagging part remains. Is there any wisdom to be getting in an airplane bathroom at 30 thousand feet? I mean, could Mom actually be right? Am I just escaping from a bad relationship [Emma is outside the cab by this point and is walking along a street.] and just running from my real life? Of course not. It was the altitude. My feet are firmly planted on the ground.
[There is a sign underneath Emma's feet that says "Look right-->". A bus beeps and Emma screams and frantically goes back on the sidewalk. Two guards across the street look at Emma. Across the street, is the United States Embassy. Emma crosses the street after all the motor vehicles have passed.]
EMMA'S VOICE-OVER: [cont'd.] I think. I'll shake it off. [Emma is now pass the guards and walking towards the U.S. Embassy.] Am I going let that and little backward-traffic and ah, an inspiring grancher intimidate me? Please. I am a vice consul at the United States Embassy. I've trained for this job. Then why do I feel like such an impostor, Jules? Might as well call myself a brain surgeon. More later. Oh, did Mom ever call you her "good girl"? [The words "good girl" appear on the screen while Emma is standing in front of the United States Embassy.] Just asking. Emma out.
[Fade to black and then we see the opening credits.]
[We see London sites from above and then we are in the U.S. Embassy.]
[Emma walks up to a desk.]
EMMA: Hi.
MAN AT DESK: Hey.
EMMA: [showing her identification badge] Um. I'm Emma Brody, new vice consul here at the Embassy.
[There is a man in the lobby and he's taking off his shoes as Emma is given directions as to where to go.]
MAN AT DESK: Consul Services is up the stairs and third door on the right.
EMMA: OK, thanks.
[Emma collects her things and looks at the man taking off his shoes and socks as she goes to Consul Services. The man then takes off his jacket.]
[Cut to Emma in Consul Services, looking curiously around, while a song plays with the lyrics "I wanna be the one you talk about." Everyone else is busy working.]
ELQUE: [carrying a football in his hands] OK, people, listen up. Mercury goes into ? grade at 1 pm. I want visa requests and case progress reports on my desk by noon. Briefing in 2. That's 120 seconds. [Elque has made his away over to Emma by now.] Ms. Brody. Elque Polk, consul general.
[Elque and Emma shake hands. Elque keeps on walking.]
EMMA: Uh, sir, there's the strangest man down in the lobby taking off his shoes.
ELQUE: You want to make great, be here by 8.
EMMA: I'm sorry. The airline lost my bag.
MOLLY: Let me guess. New Delhi.
EMMA: As a matter of fact...
MOLLY: I hope you like wearing that suit.
ELQUE: Everyone, say hello to Emma Brody.
EVERYONE: Hi, Emma.
ELQUE: Toledo, Ohio State, and a Cancer so I'm confident she'll be more proving than her predecessor.
MOLLY: [in a gossip sort of tone] A Scorpio who got caught necking boots with our ex-?'s wife. [Molly starts walking and Emma follows.] Molly Pierce. Boston, UCLA, and Sagittarius.
EMMA: Should I start reading my horoscope?
[Elque stops playing the CD that's in the CD player.]
ELQUE: Who's got music today?
DREW: [British accent] Yo.
[Drew snaps his fingers.]
ELQUE: Brickman?
DREW: Well, they ???? and ???? New Jersey.
ELQUE: Technicality, Drew. American soil, American music.
MOLLY: You know, he says that now but just try playing something by the Backstreet Boys.
[Elque rolls his eyes like he's thinking "Please."]
[Everyone is heading into a conference room.]
[Cut to the interior of the conference room.]
[Emma is standing in front of the entrance to the room.]
ELQUE: OK, people. [Elque bumps into Emma. Emma mumbles that she's sorry.] OK, people, listen up. Janet Westerman, our new Deputy Chief of Mission, being honored with a reception on Thursday night. I worked with Ms. Westerman in ?. She's a class act. You are now worthy and you will attend. ?
THE END
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