Nowhere Man: The Complete Series

By John Sinnott     October 06, 2006

In 1995 the young UPN network was looking to add some strong shows to its lineup. Attempting to cash in on the X-FILES phenomenon that was happening over at Fox, they gave the green light to a show that was created by Lawrence Hertzog: NOWHERE MAN. Concerning a man who had his identity erased by an unknown organization this show took the paranoia of the X-FILES one step further and made a show that is easy to get into. Unfortunately, the program only lasted for a single season but now those 25 episodes are available in a nine disc DVD set that lets fans sift through the program at their leisure looking for clues as to what's really going on.

Thomas Veil (Bruce Greenwood) is a photographer who has traveled to the world's hot spots and recorded the events that he's found there. The night he opens his first gallery exhibition, Tom goes out to a nice restaurant to celebrate with his wife Alyson (Megan Gallagher), but things take a bizarre turn. Returning from the bathroom, Thomas finds his wife gone, and no one recalls seeing her. His telephone number is disconnected, his bank cards are invalid and the locks on the doors to his studio and house have been changed.

Things get worse when he knocks on the door to his home. Alyson answers but doesn't know him. Neither does his dog, nor the man who claims to be Alyson's husband. Breaking into his studio, he finds one of his pictures, appropriately entitled "Hidden Agenda," missing. The picture, taken in a jungle somewhere, shows a group of hanged men with some US soldiers looking on. Could this be the reason that his identity was erased?



While attempting to talk to his wife the next day, Thomas gets arrested and put in a psychiatric hospital. They try to convince him that he's crazy, but Tom knows who he really is. Overpowering a guard, he takes his psychiatrist hostage and goes back to his studio. There the doctor finally reveals a piece of what has been going on. There is an organization after him, more powerful than he can imagine, and they want the negative to his picture (which he has carefully hidden.)

So starts the journey of Thomas Veil. Who is after him? Why do they want his negative? Is that what they really want? Is his wife involved in this? How could they have so completely erased his existence? Who can he turn to, and who can he trust? Over the next 25 episodes Thomas looks for answers, and for ends up finding more questions than answers.



This show was heavily influenced by THE PRISONER, especially the episode where he ends up in a village of other "disenfranchised" people that is impossible to escape from. Like that cult classic, NOWHERE MAN does some things right but gets a few things wrong too. The show has a wonderful claustrophobic feel to it, and after watching an episode or two it is easy to get into Thomas' head and feel his (justified) paranoia. As he goes from town to town looking for answers the conspiracy against him seems to grow and grow.

Just about all of the episodes deal with the overall plot in at least some fashion, and there are possible clues sprinkled throughout them that are fun to try to discover. The story gets a little complex in parts, but that's a good thing too.

There is also a paranormal thread to the mystery that pops up early on and is hinted at a few times though the course of the show. Could aliens be responsible for his disappearance? The show also asks some interesting philosophical questions too: What is a person, fundamentally? Are they the sum total of their friends and possessions, and if so how do they change if all that is taken away? These are played up in some shows more than others, but it adds to the unsettling feeling that permeates the program.

The individual episodes are a mixed bag. While there are more enjoyable episodes than stinkers, there are several that fall into the latter category. FOREVER JUNG, where Thomas discovers the Organization is making people younger, for a price, was pretty stupid. A Rough Whimper Of Insanity, where Veil meets up with a reclusive computer hacker also lacked the drama and suspense that the better episodes had.

The biggest problem with this show though is the ending. The show was cancelled after its first season, and the last two episodes serve as a hurried finale. Holding out hope for a last minute reprieve, the series is open ended, and the final story asks more questions than it answers. Like TWON PEAKS or THE PRISONER, the conclusion wasn't satisfying and really leaves a bad taste in your mouth. The journey was fun, but the destination wasn't what I was hoping for.