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Skyone is hijacked by Max Amato, who plans to fly the plane to Cuba and sell it on the black market.
Commentary:
This installment is one of the better storylines of the first season. The entire episode takes place aboard SkyOne and has the team utilizing the secret corridors throughout the plane. SkyOne is incredibly expensive and is apparently dangerous enough in the wrong hands to warrant being shot down before being taken outside U.S. airspace. Dante makes a comment that he doesn’t trust Dennis. This is no doubt foreshadowing the episode
“Et Tu Dante,” in which Dennis is revealed to be a traitor. Notes:
Clayton, the SkyOne chef, makes his first appearance in the series. He is played by Executive Producer Rick Copp. Clayton would reappear again in “The Iron Maiden,” “Out of the Past,” “The 392
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Return of Megaman,” “Angels in Chains,” “The Blonde Woman,”
and “Apocalypse Maybe.”
Jim Piddock returns as Max Amato in “Legion of Doom;” Lowell Dean is back in “The Bad Seed,” as is Jim Fyfe in “Et Tu Dante” and
“EMP.”
The Iron Maiden
Episode: 09
PROD. #VO512
Original Airdate: Week of December 1, 1997
Writer: Steven Kriozere
Director: Spiro Razatos
Guest Cast: Rainer Grant (Elizabeth “Starr” Starowicz), Brent Jasmer (Brad Feller), David McCallum (Mobius), Cosie Costa (Highland Employee), Roland Kickinger (Roland Laschewsky), Simone Montalvi (Dawn), David Ruprecht (Jasper Killian), Steve Sheridan (Dr. Felson) Three high tech suits are stolen during an auction and the team works to retrieve them.
Commentary:
Viewers are introduced to Elizabeth Starowicz (Starr) and her butler, Roland. It is revealed at the episode’s conclusion that she is working for Mobius. Writer Steven Kriozere on the Exo-trooper suits: “The suits were found in a Universal Studios warehouse—they were not built for the episode. I originally wrote them as each having a specific function—one could turn invisible, one had super strength, and one had super speed.”
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Notes:
Once Duke puts on the exo-trooper suit, Trek comments they have their very own “Knight Rider in Shining Armor.”
Dr. Felson, the SkyOne doctor, makes his first appearance here. Rainer Grant, who portrays Starr here, returns in “Angels in Chains”
and “Legion of Doom.” Her butler, played by Roland Laschewsky, also returns in the series’ finale. Steve Sheridan makes an appearance in “The Blonde Woman.”
The building used as F.L.A.G. headquarters here is the same one used as Tanika’s office in the Knight Rider episode “Knight of the Rising Sun.”
Oil & Water
Episode: 10
PROD. #VO510
Original Airdate: Week of December 8, 1997
Rerun #1: Week of April 13, 1998
Writers: Matthew Ball & Mark Greenhalgh
Director: John Weidner
Guest Cast: Andrew Steel (Otto Brookheimer), Tom Virtue (Gage Weigert), Steven Barr (Husband), Christal Chacon (Security Chief), Jeanette Schwaba (Wife), Charo Toledo (Guard), David Avram Goodman (Engineer)
Jenny sells Domino to an eccentric car lover in order to discover why anything with gasoline is mysteriously exploding. Commentary:
The Realife Natural Beverages Company sure has some bad luck with their delivery trucks. In this episode, Dante crashes through the side of the 394
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truck and is covered in Kiwi Strawberry juice. In “Angels in Chains,”
another driver has a head-on collision with the overturned prison bus. Nonetheless, “Oil & Water” is one of the series’ better adventures. Notes:
Brixton Karnes on an accident on the set: “One of the two stunt men, Danny Pierce, was on top of a car called the Hydro 2000 that was going 45 miles per hour during the stunt and fell off. He was injured and had to be brought to the hospital. He ended up recovering, but these guys do an amazing job. I can’t emphasize my respect for them enough.”
The engineer that Kyle goes to see at a receiving station in Wadsworth Valley is played by series co-creator David Goodman. Et Tu Dante
Working Title #1: “Hal, Open the Car Doors, Please...”
Working Title #2: “Et Tu Brute”
Episode: 11
PROD. #VO507
Original Airdate: Week of January 5, 1998
Rerun #1: Week of April 20, 1998
Writer: Marcus Miller
Director: William Warren
Guest Cast: Jim Fyfe (Dennis the Mechanic), David McCallum (Mobius), Rick Copp (Clayton, the SkyOne Chef), Odalys Nanin (Tour Guide), Mark Kryski (Voice of WTN Newscaster)
The team is alarmed to find out that the cars have been reprogrammed by one of their own to kill.
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Commentary:
Up until now, Mobius has been very careful to work through others to achieve his objectives. But, in this episode, he took care of just about everything personally, from planting the phone relay to slipping the bomb in Trek’s pocket. The writers seemed to put a lot of references to other shows and movies in this episode. Kyle called Jenny “Xena” ( Xena: Warrior Princess was also produced by Universal) when she wouldn’t follow orders and she later did a Xena-type flip to gain access to Domino. Also, Mobius’
statement, “And you have to much faith in him,” sounded a lot like Darth Vader in Star Wars. Mobius tricked Trek and Kyle into thinking a bomb was in Archie Bunker’s chair, a nod to All in the Family. Notes:
Reporter Pepsi Johnson covers the destruction of the Washington Monument. She will return in “Angels in Chains” to report the prison bus accident.
The Bad Seed
Episode: 12
PROD. #VO515
Original Airdate: Week of January 12, 1998
Rerun #1: Week of May 25, 1998
Writers: Regge Bulman & Clay Eide
Director: William Warren
Guest Cast: Kevin West (Dr. Adam Toma), Caroline Leedom (Missy), Laurie Carrasco (Beautiful Woman #1), Elan Carter (Beautiful Woman
#2), Lowell Dean (Captain J.P. Wyatt), Chris Faulk (Co-Pilot), Kim Gagliano (Blonde Woman), Lucy Goncalves (Security Officer), Elizabeth Hobgood (Bather #1), Jim Meskimen (Ned), Alison Moreno (Bather #2), 396
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Marc Silver (Dan), Tracy Stockwell (Beautiful Woman #4), Vince Waldron (Gil the Mechanic)
A sinister doctor lures a group of beautiful women to his island with the intentions of killing the rest of the world with a lethal baterial. Commentary:
Duke and Trek get an unexpected vacation when they accidentally fall out of SkyOne during the laser strike. “The Bad Seed” is the only episode where TKR literally has to save the world as Dr. Toma’s plan was to kill everyone on Earth except himself and the one hundred women. We learn a bit more about Kyle’s CIA past in this installment due to his conversations with SkyOne pilot Captain Wyatt. He apparently has a history with Kyle during that time, possibly joining TKR with Kyle.
Notes:
Vince Waldron makes his first appearance as the new mechanic, Gil. He returns in “Out of the Past,” “The Return of Megaman,” “The Blonde Woman,” and “Legion of Doom.”
Out of the Past
Episode: 13
PROD. #VO518
Original Airdate: Week of January 19, 1998
Rerun #1: Week of June 1, 1998
Writer: Marilyn Webber
Director: Scott McAboy
Guest Cast: Gladys Jimenez (Pilar Pontillet), Rand McClain (Paolo Calderone), Armando Garza (Soldier), Lawrence Lowe (Soldier), Yomary Connoly (Beautiful Woman), Rick Copp (Clayton, the SkyOne Chef), TEAM KNIGHT RIDER EPISODE GUIDE •
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Scott Lusby (Guard), Sonya Maddox (Minion #2), Gus Ruelas (Second Guar
d), Vince Waldron (Gil the Mechanic)
It appears that Kyle has turned criminal when a surveillance tape shows him stealing a rare crystal from a wealthy businessman’s estate. Commentary:
“Out of the Past” is one of the less enjoyable episodes during TKR’s first season. We do learn a bit more about Kyle’s past as well as get to see Jenny take over the team while Kyle is missing. Jenny, as Kyle’s second in command, knows all of his code words. She uses “Emergency cancellation Archimedes” in order to extract information from Dante concerning Kyle’s whereabouts.
Notes:
Trek makes a reference to “Choctaw L-9” when he says that Kyle recommended Jenny to take over TKR after he was suspended. This episode, along with “Angels in Chains” and “Out of the Past,”
are David Goodman’s favorite episodes.
The Return of Megaman
Episode: 14
PROD. #VO514
Original Airdate: Week of January 26, 1998
Rerun #1: Week of June 8, 1998
Writers: Rick Copp & David A. Goodman
Director: Gil Wadsworth
Guest Cast: George Stanford Brown (General William Simonson), Richard Kulhman (Ken Savage), George Lazenby (Nigel Davies), Katie Brewer (Daughter), Rick Copp (Clayton, the SkyOne Chef), Carlos Del 398
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Olmo (Soldier), Chris Dollard (Randy), Michael Lexx (Scott the Mechanic), Huck Liggett (Farmer), Lex Medlin (Bud), Vince Waldron (Gil the Mechanic)
TKR brings ex-F.L.A.G. employee Ken Savage out of retirement to battle a ticking timebomb known as the 5XE.
Commentary:
Seeing the entire team race against time to stop the 5XE, as well as watching Ken Savage come out of retirement to stop it makes this a fun installment. This episode is also noted for being the only time where viewers see Erica truly care about a man and how she reacts when she loses him. “The Return of Megaman” came from an unsold Copp and Goodman pilot for a new CBS series. While the pilot script had many more references to the bionic series of the 1970’s, this episode manages to incorporate a few references as well. Plato shows a file on Ken’s former partner. Her full name was “Summer Lyndsay James.” Actress Lyndsey Wagner played Jamie Summers, The Bionic Woman. The file also mentions Dr. Martin Brooks. Martin A. Brooks played Dr. Rudy Wells in The Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Woman.
Notes:
Michael Lexx guest stars in “Apocalypse Maybe.”
Angels in Chains
Episode: 15
PROD. #VO519
Original Airdate: Week of February 2, 1998
Rerun #1: Week of June 15, 1998
Story By: John Rozum
Teleplay By: John Rozum & Marcus Miller
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Director: Gil Wadsworth
Guest Cast: Fran Bennett (Miss Barrett), David McCallum (Mobius), Newell Alexander (F.L.A.G. Officer), Roxane Barbat (Prisoner #2), Rick Copp (Clayton, the SkyOne Chef), Steve Forrest (Shadow), D’wayne Gardner (Man in Black #1), Rainer Grant (Elizabeth “Starr” Starowicz), Paul Keith (Dr. Greenhulch), Russel Alexander Orozco (Targ), Troy Vincent (Ed), Miranda Wolfe (Prisoner #1)
Jenny is caught trying to access a top secret file on Michael Knight, leading the Foundation board to believe that she has also been leaking information to Mobius. Commentary:
Starr and Mobius return in what is one of the most interesting episodes of the series. The reason behind Jenny joining the Foundation is revealed here—she is searching for her father, Michael Long. This is the first episode aired in the U.S. that showed the new motorcycle bodies for Kat and Plato, though the episode order had been altered causing future shows to switch between the two different bike bodies. At the end of the episode, Kyle gives Jenny an apology from F.L.A.G.—printouts of all the Foundation files on Michael Long. Notes:
Brixton Karnes on Christine Steel: “’Angels In Chains’ would have opened up a good plot for the second season for Jenny and how she became a F.L.A.G. agent, and to discover who her father was.”
Many fans wrote in to express their dislike of the combo car. Universal responded by giving it an overhaul.
The file that Kyle gives Jenny at the end of the episode is actually a Knight Rider third season episode guide.
Christine Steel: “When my dad saw ‘Angels in Chains’, he said,
‘Does she cry?’ I said, ‘I don’t think so.’ He responded, ‘Thank God Beast saved you!’”
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Kathy Trageser on her character’s growth seen here: “It showed that Erica would do anything, even risk her job, to save Jenny.”
Erica is working on a case report for the Galbraith mission, a reference to “Inside Traitor.”
The Blonde Woman
Episode: 16
PROD. #VO517
Original Airdate: Week of February 9, 1998
Rerun #1: Week of June 22, 1998
Writer: Steven Kriozere
Director: Gil Wadsworth
Guest Cast: Victor Bevine (Marcus), Tamara Clatterbuch (Andrea Drago), Kabir Bedi (Aristotle Drago), Juan Carlos Cantu (Croupier), Rick Copp (Clayton, the SkyOne Chef), Kate Frisina (Dealer), Michael Irpino (David), Sonny Marinelli (Constantine), Steve Sheridan (Dr. Felson), Shannon Stone (Blonde Woman), Vince Waldron (Gil the Mechanic) The team frantically searches for an assassin that is a master of disguise. Commentary:
In this episode, Duke appears to know the annoying cruise director David (Michael Irpino). Viewers would later find out that he met David in the episode “EMP,” which aired much later in the season. Writer Steven Kriozere on this episode: “I really enjoyed this episode—it was filmed on the Queen Mary. Copp and Goodman told me they had the boat for one episode, but it was hard to figure out how to create a story around it since the cars couldn’t exactly board the boat. I really liked how the cars worked together in the episode.”
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Notes:
This episode premieres a different opening theme. It would be used for all future episodes and reruns.
The Ixtafa Affair
Episode: 17
PROD. #VO520
Original Airdate: Week of February 16, 1998
Rerun #1: Week of June 29, 1998
Writer: Marcus Miller
Director: Gil Wadsworth
Guest Cast: Drew Pillsbury (Matthew Foster), Susie Singer Carter (Krista), Kristopher Lindquist (Scotty), Robert Bu (Guard), Randy Hall (Smith), Tonyo Melendez (General Navarro), Elizabeth Weber (Jillian Foster), Scott Rogers (Frankie), Herby Wilson (Max Foster) Jenny is reunited with a man she almost married and is forced to help a group of terrorists free a dangerous dictator from prison. Commentary:
This installment delves into Jenny’s past before she joined TKR. She was proposed to (in 1992) by Matthew Foster before joining F.L.A.G. but turned her suitor down. It is amusing to watch the rest of the team stake out the house of Foster’s wife in order to subdue her captors; Duke disguises himself as a plumber while Erica pretends to be a nosey next door neighbor. Beast is decorated to look like a plumber’s truck with a sign that reads “J. Webster Plumbing—Let me fix your pipe!”
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Notes:
This episode features the new bike bodies again, possibly the second episode they were filmed in considering Erica’s comment about Kat’s new body.
Home Away From Home
Episode: 18
PROD. #VO516
Original Airdate: Week of February 23, 1998
Rerun #1: Week of July 6, 1998
Writer: Rick Husky & Marcus Miller
Director: Jacques Haitkin
Guest Cast: Sadie Kratzig (Corky Flemming), Michelle Joyner (Holly Statton), Janelle Ginestra (Precocious Girl), Thomas Gold (Russian Mobster), Roz McHenry (Librarian), Aaron Nelms (Christopher), David Povall (Computer Guy), Kim Robillard (Sh
eriff Burt Cassidy), Krikor Satamian (Drozhdov), Gherman Sinitzyn (Alexi Markov), George Tasudis (Yuri), Jack Tate (Ward Cleaver Type), Greg Trock (Bobby Statton), John Wheeler (Barber)
Kyle and the rest of TKR infiltrate a small town in Iowa that hides a large group of KGB agents.
Commentary:
“Home Away From Home” is a very intriguing story dealing with the KGB and a secret “spy town” in Iowa. We learn a bit more about Kyle’s father—he apparently sold classified government information to the Russians, yet turned on them as well later on. From the way Kyle referred to his father, he would appear to still be alive.
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Notes:
Richard Copp began using Rick as his first name as a result of writer Rick Husky, who worked on Charlie’s Angels and this episode. During the opening teaser, Corky has an image of Kat’s new body on her computer screen, yet the old body was still in use during filming.
EMP
Episode: 19
PROD. #VO504
Original Airdate: Week of April 27, 1998
Rerun #1: Week of July 13, 1998
Writer: John Ridley
Director: Spiro Razatos
Guest Cast: Marta Martin (Kaila Gordon), Jim Fyfe (Dennis the Mechanic), Jim Hudson (Security Guard #1), Michael Irpino (David), Hap Lawrence (Melvin), Xavier Montalvo (Carlos Adulce), Drew O’Connell (Jay), Dick Warlock (Chuck)
When the components to an Electromagnetic Pulse Gun are stolen, the team tries to track down who is responsible.
Commentary:
This episode was one of the first episodes to be filmed—Dennis the mechanic is still seen, as well as Kat and Plato’s old body. Jenny makes a point of describing the Foundation as a private security organization that works in concert with the United States intelligence community. During the climax, Jenny places Domino in ski mode—a classic Knight Rider favorite—for the first and only time.
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Notes:
Original Knight Rider stuntman Jack Gill lends his talents to this episode.
Apocalypse Maybe
Episode: 20
PROD. #VO513
Original Airdate: Week of May 4, 1998
Rerun #1: Week of July 20, 1998
Story By: Bill Dial