EPI-LOG ARTICLE on Beauty and the Beast
review by Nina Johnson. Click here for contents.

Episode 10 (Season 1, Episode 10)

A Children' Story

A Children's Story  (airdate: Dec. 4, 1987).  A little boy is running through the city because two men are chasing him.  The boy darts into a small entranceway of a warehouse. He runs straight into Kipper.  The boy quickly explains that he has just run from the Ridley Hall children's shelter because they are beat and treated bad.  He also fears that he might be one of the children who just disappear at night.  Kipper tells the boy he will find him a safe place.  As they start to leave the warehouse, the men are outside waiting.  The men drag the boy away and Kipper runs to tell Vincent and Father.  Catherine comes home from work with an armload of files.  She drops them, then walks out to the balcony where she finds a red rose and a note. The note from Vincent asks her to meet him that night at 11 o'clock.  Later, Catherine goes through the park to the main tunnel entrance to meet Vincent.  She expresses some concern over not having seen him for awhile.  But he says that they must enjoy the time they do share.  Vincent then tells Catherine about the Ridley Hall rumor of Kipper's.  Catherine is obviously shocked because the children's shelter has a good reputation. She agrees to look into it and the next day convinces Joe that she will be able to investigate it and keep up with her other work.  Catherine leaves the office to visit Ridley and the center directory, Richard Barnes, greets her and shows her around.  The children play and attend class but they are not very vocal.  Catherine asks a little girl playing with a doll if her doll likes Ridley, but the little girl replies that she is not allowed to speak to strangers.  Catherine then spies a little boy with huge glasses who is trying to talk with her.  She sees him later on and asks his name, which is Eric.  Eric tells her that a little boy was abducted that night from the shelter.  As she starts to asks more questions a little girl comes by and takes Eric away.  Catherine and a date go that night to the opera where she talks with an old friend.  The lady wants to know if the man she is seeing is serious but Catherine replies that he is just a friend.  The woman asks where have all the good men gone to which Catherine replies "Underground?"  That night at home Catherine sits alone on her balcony staring over the city while Vincent sits at a footbridge over the Abyss, also alone.  The next day Catherine manages to receive a transfer order for custody of Eric.  When she goes to Ridley to get him, Barnes informs her that Ellie, Eric's sister has run away and Eric has been transferred.  When she asks where, he won't tell her because of confidentiality rules.  He says he has lodged a missing children report about Ellie and Catherine calls the Child Protection Services Agency to verify his story which they confirm.  But this mysterious transfer makes Catherine all the more wary of the situation.  Catherine leaves the shelter and Ellie and Eric are split up.  Eric is sent to a foster home and Ellie is sold to Noj, a street thief and child-seller.  Catherine asks Edie if she can track Eric down but the computer denies Edie access to the records.  Catherine walks home that night among all the young children who are homeless and begging.  Vincent sensing her despair is waiting for her on her balcony.  He encourages her to keep fighting to protect the little ones who are helpless.

The next day Catherine and Edie have a plan to get access to the records.  During lunch Edie talks with the clerk and Catherine sneaks into the file room.  Eric's file says that he has been sent to a foster facility.  She drives to the home and ask some boys if they know of Eric.  They tell her yes and the he is being held in seclusion.  Catherine races up the stairs to the room.  She calls out to Eric to let him know she is there.  The head of the home confronts Catherine but Catherine manages to take the keys away from her and release Eric.  She instructs him to run to her care while she overcomes the watchman.  She and Eric take off in the car.  They go to the safety of tunnels.  Catherine meets Vincent there and is reluctant to wake Eric up fearing that Vincent may scare him.  But she does and Eric expresses only curiosity about Vincent.  Meanwhile, Ellie has been sold as a member of a gang.  The leader trains them to be pickpockets or to engage in petty theft.  She tries to refuse but he beats her into submission.  Kipper has passed the word along the streets about the men who abducted the children.  The tunnel children scout the streets and they spot the members and their leader.  The children tell Vincent who, in turn, tells Catherine that Ellie was sold into the street gang.  Vincent is hesitant to tell Catherine where the gang is located but he finally relents and leads her to the building.  Catherine enters and find Ellie tied to a chair.  Catherine releases her and tells her that she is going to take her to a safe place.  As they start to leave Ellie sees the older girl whom she had confided in.  Ellie begs her not to tell anyone that she is leaving, they even offer to taker her with them, but the girl screams and the leader comes rushing in.  He threatens Catherine and she breaks his nose.  The other gang members start on her but Vincent comes into the room with a roar.  The staff of Ridley Hall, along with Richard Barnes are arrested and Ellie and Eric are reunited.  Vincent gives Catherine words of praise for helping the children even though she was in danger.  She thanks him for all of his and the other tunnel dwellers' help.  They embrace and then turn to leave, each back to their own world.

Guest Cast: Richard Herd [V] as Richard Barnes, Richard Portnow as Noj, Vito D'Ambrosio as the custodian, Nike Doukas as Margaret, Kamie Harper as Ellie, Hoshua Rudoy as Eric, Elisabeth Harnios as little girl, Rachel Resnikoff as Deb, Roz Bosley as the matron, Dani Capri, Josh C. Williams as the runaway boy, Matthew Newmark and E'lon as the little boys, Frederick Killensmith, Laura Mellenkamp, Steve Zettler.

Writer: B.F. Barnett

Director: Gabrielle Beaumont