Just a Fanboy

Just a Fanboy is the second episode of the Prime Video series Utopia. It, along with the other episodes of the series, were released on September 25, 2020.

Synopsis
A huge discovery by our young fans is interrupted when they are thrust into the dangerous world of Jessica Hyde. Meanwhile, two doctors with very different career trajectories are both pulled into the path of a deadly flu.

Wilson's first sleepover
Jessica Hyde raids the penthouse of Phillip Carson, determined to find the Utopia manuscript, but coming up empty. She finds the card left behind by Grant and realizes that he must have the comic. She does some work on her face to make herself look beat up with the aid of the penthouse's mirror and then visits the hotel guard, asking him if he's ever been cheated on. She tells him that she and her fiance are staying at the penthouse and he cheated on her with some girl. She begs him to look at the security footage, telling him he'd be changing the course of her life. He gives in and they watch him going into the room with the girl. She takes a picture of Grant exiting the room and leaves. He tells her that she knows where to find him, going back to his snack and completely missing the continued footage of Arby and Rod entering the room. A woman from hotel maintenance then discovers the blood from the death of one of their victims dripping into a room below and screams.

Wilson Wilson arrives back home with his guests from Fringecon - Becky Todd, Ian Ackerman and Samantha J., in tow. He introduces them as his friends to his family and when his father asks if he had fun, he agrees. "Wilson's first sleepover," he calls it. They all agree that his father looks exactly like him and he shows them to his underground bunker. Samantha finds herself quickly in awe of his giant wall display of pages from Dystopia, with various Post-it notes. Ian says that he's starved and asks to open some of the cans of food that he has, but Wilson tells him to never touch the store. Ian ignores him and claims a can of peaches. They talk about the idea of the end of the world, Ian saying that each generation always thinks the end of the world is on the corner. He wants to know what Wilson thinks makes them so special. "Everything I've seen in Dystopia," he replies. He tells them that he think he found something new, a symbol in Mr. Rabbit's eye. Becky recognizes it as being the Diels virus, which causes a degenerative syndrome in the nervous system. She says it appeared two years before the first real case appeared. Ian continues to sound skeptical and they wonder if he really believes. He throws them off by revealing that he took a photo on his smartphone of one of the pages from Utopia. The group immediately begins studying it, but Samantha says there's no way they can figure things out from just one page and they need all of Utopia. However, there's a drop of rain in the photo that looks like a virus. "This is our undoing" reads a message hidden in the comic. They agree that it's up to them to figure out what's going on. Samantha proposes a toast and they all drink.

Dr. Kevin Christie rides a bike, arriving to work at the headquarters of his mega-corporation, ChristieBio. He joins some co-workers and begins discussing an upcoming interview regarding his new product, Simpro, with a reporter named Hailey Alvez. They agree she's been vetted, so it should be okay. They tell him not to sound scary or political. The interview begins, with him calling his product "the future of food." She asks it is that they're famous for vaccines, but now miracle meat. She says that his detractors are claiming shortcuts, but he says he's a dedicated scientist. He says that they're introducing it in schools and she asks if they're testing it on poor children. He tells her that he even feeds it to his own family. She mentions several schools where the product was introduced and where the communities are now suffering a major flu epidemic. He tells her that flu doesn't travel through meat and she points out that he himself said it isn't actually meat. She asks if he can guarantee Simpro did not kill the kids. He stammers and when she tries to press him, he leaves the interview. His son, Thomas, gripes that his father just made sure the story will lead every broadcast.

Not really a gas leak
Grant travels on a bus, Utopia manuscript in tow. He compares something in the comic to a local landmark. Samantha tells Becky to text Olivia, saying they can't wait for Grant any longer and to tell her they have the money. Police arrive at Fringecon as Jessica takes the text on Olivia's phone. Grant's fake ID in hand, she texts back, asking if Grant is there. Samantha has them text back that he is. They're all excited about her coming, but Wilson puts cold water on it, shouting at them that he has no bank accounts, credit cards or driver's license. He calls them all naive for revealing his location and refuses an offer of coffee, calling it a CIA interrogation tool. He tells them that he's prepared for torture, that he can hold his breath for 180 seconds, live for a week off his own urine and dislocate both of his thumbs and his shoulder to escape handcuffs and/or binding. Hearing this, they all just stare at him. Finally, he tells them that there's a Dunkin' Donuts one block west. Ian tells him they'll get him a bear claw and he shoots back that he's not a pawn of Big Sugar, but thanks him anyway. Outside, Ian tells Becky that the peaches got him. Samantha shouts at them to wait.

Arby and Rod pull up to the house. They agree to pretend to be representatives from the local gas company. They knock on the door and say there's a report of a toxic gas leak. They then enter the home and begin killing the members of Wilson's family with toxic gas one-by-one. When they find Wilson's father, he asks if it's about his research and Arby agrees, telling him that he knows too much. "His research," Rod asks incredulously and Arby replies that there's "no harm in a happy death." They find Wilson in his underground bunker, telling him they need to speak with him. He raises a bottle, telling them to stay back, but they knock him down and handcuff him to a chair. Arby sits in front of him, asking where Utopia is. He replies that he doesn't know. He asks where Becky is and he says they partied and she left. "Where is the boy?" he asks and he says he has no idea what he's talking about. He asks where Jessica Hyde is and Wilson replies that she's on his wall. At this, Arby picks up a spoon. He gets up and Wilson pleads for them to tell him what's going on. Rather than doing so, Arby brings over a box of salt and a container of bleach. He tells him he has three tries. He'll start with the salt, then use the bleach, and finally the spoon. Wilson brings struggling with the handcuffs, telling him he's just a fanboy. Arby holds up a photo they printed from Utopia and he replies that he only has the one page. Rod holds him down and Arby pours salt in one of his eyes. Arby sits down again, asking him the questions again. He pleads that he doesn't know and they use the bleach. He retches, pants and screams, but still cannot answer the questions. "I'm just a fanboy, please," he squeals. Arby spoons out his eye.

"I think he's just a fanboy," comments Rod. Arby agrees, telling Rod to clean up while he calls Home. He goes outside and starts to do so, then discovers a woman arriving at the house. Back in the bunker, Rod calls Wilson unimaginative, saying he has no idea what the end of the world is really going to bring and that French-cut string beans won't save anybody. Outside, the girl, Monika, is killed by Arby. In the bunker, Rod continues to mock Wilson, who gets up, having freed himself from the chair, and picks up a gun. He tries to shoot Rod, but his vision is so impaired that he can only fire wildly. Rod toys with him, moving about, then Jessica Hyde arrives and kills him with an ax to the head. Wilson shouts, asking who's there. "Where is Utopia?" asks Jessica Hyde. "Where is the boy?" He asks who she is. She takes the gun and presses him against the wall. "I'm Jessica Hyde," she tells him. He laughs out loud and she presses him again, cutting him off. "Okay, okay," he agrees. He tells her that there's a guy outside looking for her. He points at his eye-hole, asking she got his message. She pulls him away.

Your place in this crowded world
Arby returns to the bunker, only to find the dead Rod and that Wilson is gone. "Where is Jessica Hyde?" he wonders. Becky, Ian and Jessica arrive back with food from Dunkin', when they hear Wilson shouting. A car pulls up, taking out a trash can, and shouts for them to get in. "Utopia is real!" he tells them. "Get in!!!!" They do so and he peels away, Jessica at at the wheel. Wilson starts shouting at them about what's happening and Jessica demands he shut up. He tries to take the wheel and she bites him, insisting again the others shut him up. She gives him in an injection to knock him out. She then tells the others that she is very real and so are the people who are after them. They can never go home and will need to become new people. She tells them she's the only one who can help them. "Shut up and do what I say," she demands, telling them she's only willing to help them so long as they're useful. She warns she will cut them loose if they cry, whine or complain. They arrive at a house and she tells them to lose their phones, wallets and everything else. They turn them over and she burns them. She then leaves, telling them she's going to the Goodwill.

A man, Dr. Michael Stearns, arrives at Chicago City College. He listens to a news broadcast about warm weather ruining crops and fills out a requisition order, trying to get some equipment, though his message "So I can do some science!" doesn't seem entirely serious. He speaks with a colleague, Brian, who tells him point-blank that there's nothing in the budget for him, that he's simply been forgotten. Back with the group, Ian suggests that they all just go. Samantha wonders how they could possibly abandon Wilson, who is lying passed out on a couch. He says that they should call the police, but Samantha tells him that it could all be real. Ian says that Jessica Hyde doesn't look like the Jessica Hyde they know and that Artemis should be with her. Becky tells them to hush and they see a news broadcast about a flu that is killing children. They then hear about a massacre at Fringecon. Jessica Hyde returns with a bag of clothes. They ask her about the news broadcast and she replies that "they" did it - that they kill and cover. She explains that Wilson's family is dead, telling them to take their pick of the clothing and cut or die their hair.

The scientist, Michael, is now at home, doing some yardwork outside, when he is called inside by his wife, Colleen. He asks what's going on and she puts on the news broadcast of the flu. She points out an unusual rash on one of the victims, which reminds her of a flu that he once discovered. He thinks it unlikely, but she says that if it is his, it could be as deadly as the Spanish Flu. She suggests he ask for a sample, but he doesn't think he could get anywhere near it. She points out that he's an award-winning scientist and despite his skepticism, manages to finally convince him to just ask for a sample. So he returns to the office and submits a form for a blood sample of one of the infected children. Meanwhile, Kevin Christie watches a news report on the flu during a family dinner. His interview comes on, and he calls it a massacre and turns it off, saying that their real dad is there. They then have dinner and he asks each one of them in a turn a question - "What did you do today to earn your place in this crowded world?"

A new world
Back with the group, everyone has changed into their new clothes and changed their hairstyles. Ian demands answers, but she tells them all to sit. Samantha promises she has their full attention. Wilson wakes up and sees everyone's new looks. He is surprised to see Jessica Hyde still there, thinking she maybe was a hallucination. He asks about his family and she lies that they're all safe. He groans about his eye and she offers some pills. He starts to complain that he doesn't want anything from Big Pharma in him, but she insists that he needs antibiotics. She then reveals to the group that Grant has Utopia and he's only a child. They remember how Grant always used a lot of exclamation points in his messages. She asks how they contact him and then demands that they do so. They ask Jessica why the people from before are after her. She explains a bit of her history, that she grew up as depicted in Dystopia. Her father was a brilliant scientist, a genius who was held hostage and her used for leverage. He tried to resist, but loved her too much. She says that she needs Utopia to find and save her dad. They send the message to Grant.

Grant steals some food growing in a garden and is a caught by a young girl, Alice. She shouts at him that it's private property and he runs, trying to climb a fence, but she pulls him off. She takes the Utopia manuscript, saying he ate her blackberries. He pleads with her to give it back, and she asks if he's hungry, inviting him in. Inside, he eats hungrily. Alice's mother asks if he has family. She asks if he's in the system and he starts to take off. She tells him to slow down, saying that there's nothing wrong with being in the system if it works for him. She says it's how she and Alice found each other and there's no shame in leaving it if it fails you, that it's failed lots of kids. He asks for more blackberries, but Alice says that they're hers. The mother invites him in, laying out her rules. Alice continues to look over Utopia. He tells her again that it's his and the mother calls for her to give him back his comic. Back with the group, Samantha tries to use the computer, but Jessica tells her they're not to use it unless she's watching. She says they'll check again for Grant's message in three hours and if there's no message, he's probably dead. Ian calls it all insane, saying there's no Jessica Hyde. Jessica says that she is, in fact, Jessica Hyde, revealing a mark on her arm that's the same as one seen in the comic, her starburst.

Wilson picks up the photo of the page from Utopia, saying that maybe she could help them figure out the new virus. He indicates a cross, but Samantha says that it isn't one. It's a T-shaped rash on the child's face, just like the one in the flu seen on the news. "This is our undoing!" she declares." "Now we know what we're fighting!" Jessica tells them that she doesn't care about the end of the world, only about finding her father. Ian calls it all ridiculous, saying that "Jessica" could have given herself the scar and he's going to the police. He pleads with them to join him, saying he knows they want this to be real. Jessica pulls a gun on him, telling him to sit down and that she'd rather not waste a bullet. He says she's not Jessica Hyde. Samantha tells him to sit down. He's changed his clothes and traded in his phone, so on some level, he has to believe. Jessica warns him there will be consequences if he doesn't listen. Samantha tells her to listen to him, that they have a chance to solve it. "Stop listening to her and listen to me," Jessica tells him. Ian tells her to pull the trigger if she wants, but he's going. Samantha promises him it will be okay, telling him to please stay. He finally sits down... and Jessica turns the gun and shoots Samantha in the head. "You murdered her," says Ian, shocked. She replies that one group can't have two leaders and she did the math. She warns them to listen to her, that they're in a new world, hers. They sit, shocked, as Samantha bleeds out.

Trivia

 * Wilson's display in his bunker features a Post-it note with the message "Call Dennis K." Dennis Kelly was the creator of the original British version of Utopia and is also credited as an executive producer for the remake.

Starring

 * John Cusack as Dr. Kevin Christie
 * Ashleigh LaThrop as Becky Todd
 * Dan Byrd as Ian Ackerman
 * Desmin Borges as Wilson Wilson
 * Jessica Rothe as Samantha J.
 * Christopher Denham as Arby
 * Javon "Wanna" Walton as Grant Bishop
 * Farrah Mackenzie as Alice
 * Cory Michael Smith as Thomas Christie
 * Jeanine Serralles as Colleen

with


 * Rainn Wilson as Michael Stearns

and


 * Sasha Lane as Jessica Hyde

Guest starring

 * Fiona Dourif as Cara Frostfield
 * Crystal Fox as Kim
 * Josh Bywater as Phillip Carson
 * Michael B. Woods as Rod
 * Felisha Terrell as Hailey Alvez
 * Rebecca Spence as Laura Christie

Co-starring

 * Richard Cotovsky as Wilson's Dad
 * England Karam as Monika
 * Aida Delaz as Wilson's Cousin
 * Sharon Dalla Costa as Wilson's Aunt
 * Mark David Kaplan as Wilson's Uncle
 * Ronald L. Conner as Hotel Security Guard
 * Alyson Wong as Rachel Christie
 * Morgan Mueller as Jonas Christie
 * Jaqueline Dasilva as Paulanne Christie
 * Raquel Campbell as Pearl Christie
 * Kerri Rose as Fringebabe
 * Sean Bradley as Brian
 * Bernard Gilbert as Steve/Christie Minion #1
 * Denzel Tsopnang as Christie Minion #2
 * Brandon Mazzucca as Antlerman/Bill Schiffman
 * Beatriz Jamaica as Maid
 * Ashley Pomplin as Unicorn Cosplayer
 * Demetrios Troy as National Anchor #3
 * Meg Warner as National Anchor #4
 * Richard Gomez as Stoner