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In the American action drama, sci-fi TV series The Pretender (1996-2000), Jarod, the pretender, a child prodigy stolen from his parents when he was 4 years old, is kept isolated inside the Centre, a sinister think tank located in the fictional Blue Cove, Delaware, who exploited his Pretender abilities. As a part of their research, the Centre presents to Jarod a large number of complexes 'sims'; simulated hypothetical situations designed to exploit the young genius' intellect for real life nefarious purposes.

During the entry credits of each episode, it can be seen a black and white scene -very briefly- with Jarod laying inside a bubble or a transparent sphere with Sidney, Jarod's mentor and coach, walking around.

Along the series, there are few flashbacks where Jarod together with the bubble recur. I have watched most of the episodes, but I haven't been able to know why the Centre kept Jarod inside a bubble. Was that part of a simulation?

By the way, there is a track from the original score of the TV show entitled "In the bubble" by Velton Ray but the lyrics doesn't appear to be related to Jarod and the bubble.

Still image of The Pretender

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    Rule of cool would be my guess and to show how isolated they kept him.
    – Paulie_D
    Mar 1, 2022 at 14:45
  • @Paulie_D - I really believe the flashback scene exist but it can be easily missed in the twinkling of an eye in any of those 86 episodes.
    – Bingo Mehndra
    Mar 1, 2022 at 15:54
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    FWIW, he's shown in the bubble during the second episode, but I don't think it expands on why.
    – FuzzyBoots
    Mar 1, 2022 at 16:16
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    A wild guess would suggest that is to keep him focused: he can't move (yet he is not restrained), there are no other stimuli. It looks like a bit like a sensory deprivation chamber with only his "minder" as a source of data to external world
    – Yasskier
    Mar 1, 2022 at 20:18
  • @Yasskier - Thats an interesting POV but it could be, also, just the contrary. There is a flashback scene (S01E14) with Jarod in the sphere (I think) during a simulation called Apollo One, where tongues of fire surround him while suffering from apparent extreme temperatures. I mean, the pod could serve as a mean to expose Jarod to whatever stimuli the Centre want.
    – Bingo Mehndra
    Mar 1, 2022 at 20:39

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