Jeremiah is an American television series starring Luke Perry and Malcolm-Jamal Warner that ran on the Showtime network from 2002 to 2004. The series takes place in a post-apocalyptic future where most of the adult population has been wiped out by a deadly virus.

Developed by Babylon 5 creator J. Michael Straczynski and executive produced by Straczynski and Sam Egan, the series is loosely based on Belgian writer Hermann Huppen's comic book series, Jeremiah. Aside from the names of the two main characters, the general personality of the protagonist, and the post-apocalyptic setting, there are no other similarities between the comics and the series.

The series ended production in 2003 after creative differences emerged between MGM and Straczynski. Episodes for the final half of the second season did not begin airing in the United States until September 3, 2004.

The series was filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

Premise

The year is 2021, 15 years after a plague has killed nearly everyone over the age of puberty (both the event and the virus itself are referred to as "The Big Death"). The children who survived are now grown, and find themselves faced with two choices: either continue to scavenge off the diminishing remains of the old world, or begin trying to rebuild.

Synopsis

The eponymous Jeremiah is a semi-loner who has spent the last 15 years travelling back and forth across the United States, ekeing out a living and looking for a place called "Valhalla Sector," which his father—a viral researcher—had mentioned to Jeremiah as a possible refuge shortly before disappearing into the chaos of "the Big Death." A stop in the trading town of Clarefield, Colorado results in Jeremiah teaming up with another lone traveller named Kurdy, before being imprisoned by the town's warlord in a cell with a man named Simon, who wants to recruit Jeremiah for a vague and mysterious organization. With Kurdy's help, Jeremiah and Kurdy escape, but Simon is fatally wounded in the process.

Following the instructions given to them by the dying Simon, Jeremiah and Kurdy take Simon's jeep back to "Thunder Mountain," the remains of the NORAD complex, where they discover a well organized and equipped group operating out of the base, led by the former child prodigy Marcus Alexander. Marcus chooses to employ Jeremiah and Kurdy as a recon team to replace the now dead Simon and his partner, sending the two men back outside to gather information in preparation for the time when the mountain will need to start rebuilding the world.

Over the course of the first season, the group increasingly encounters threats originating from Valhalla Sector, which they discover to be a sealed and heavily armed bunker complex in West Virginia, used to house the remains of the US government and military leadership during the Big Death. The survivors there plan to rebuild the world in an authoritarian mold, combining their military power with attempts to control the "Big Death" virus itself in order to wipe out resistance by slaughtering non-compliant populations. The second half of Season 1 primarily deals with the efforts of Jeremiah and Thunder Mountain to stop Valhalla Sector.

After the final defeat of Valhalla Sector in the opening episodes of Season 2, a new threat emerges in the form of a crusading army from the East, led by a mysterious prophetic figure known as Daniel. Season 2 deals with the impending conflict between the unifying survivor communities under Thunder Mountain, and the advancing Army of Daniel.

Although a third season was considered, series creator J. Michael Straczynski made it clear that if the show ran a further season he would have nothing to do with it. The show concluded with the end of the second season resolving most plot threads.

Characters

Most of the characters are survivors of the virus who are now in their late twenties or younger.

Character	Actor	Description
Jeremiah	Luke Perry	While roaming the country on a quest to locate a mysterious place called Valhalla Sector, which his father claimed might hold some hope for the survivors of the big death, Jeremiah comes in contact with a group who not only has information on Valhalla Sector, but also the resources to rebuild the world. In Season Two Jeremiah is put in charge of rebuilding the town Millhaven.
Kurdy Malloy	Malcolm-Jamal Warner	Jeremiah's partner, a tough and cynical man, yet also passionate. He and Jeremiah discover the secrets of Thunder Mountain.
Markus Alexander	Peter Stebbings	The leader of Thunder Mountain, a colony located inside the former NORAD headquarters in Cheyenne Mountain. He seeks to form alliances with other survivors and to forge a new world.
Mister Smith	Sean Astin	This quirky, colorful character partners with Kurdy in Season Two. He claims to be a messenger from God.
Erin	Ingrid Kavelaars	Markus' second-in-command at Thunder Mountain.
Lee Chen	Byron Lawson	The humorless and paranoid head of security at Thunder Mountain. His loyalties may lie elsewhere.
Meaghan Lee Rose	Suzy Joachim	Meaghan is a survivor of "The Big Death" and a carrier of the plague. She lives in a biohazard containment room in Thunder Mountain.
Ezekiel	Alex Zahara	A mysterious figure who gives Jeremiah cryptic prophecies about his future and protects him from danger.
Theodora "Theo" Coleridge	Kim Hawthorne	Theo rules Clarefield, Colorado as a ruthless warlord, until her reign is overthrown. However, she will still become a strong voice in the new world.
Elizabeth Munroe	Kandyse McClure	Elizabeth is a resident of Thunder Mountain, and Jeremiah and Kurdy first arrived there to bring news of her boyfriend Simon's death. Kurdy becomes attracted to her after comforting her in her grief over Simon's death.
Devon	Robert Wisden	Jeremiah's father and a resident of Valhalla Sector. Jeremiah thought he died in the Big Death, but he was taken to Valhalla Sector and survived. He is a scientist who understands the Big Death and may hold the key to its cure.
Liberty "Libby" Kaufman	Joanne Kelly	Libby is Devon's assistant in Valhalla Sector and appears to fall in love with Jeremiah. Her loyalty to the Western Alliance, however, is questionable.

Episodes

Video release

On January 1, 2004, MGM Home Entertainment released Season 1 of Jeremiah on DVD. Season 2 has not been released on DVD, although it is currently available on Apple's iTunes and Netflix's "Watch Instantly."

Locations in Jeremiah

Name	Locations	Group
Thunder Mountain	Cheyenne Mountain in Colorado	New America Alliance (Western Alliance)
Valhalla Sector	Virginia or West Virginia	United States of America, remnants of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Executive Branch
Milhaven	Colorado	Valhalla Sector, later Western Alliance
Clarefield	Colorado	New America Alliance (Western Alliance)

See also

• Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction
• Other post-apocalypse fiction based on the death of all adults:
  • Star Trek: The Original Series (October 27, 1966), Episode 08: "Miri". The Enterprise discovers an exact duplicate of Earth, where the only survivors of a deadly plague are the planet's prepubescent children.
  • Logan's Run (1967), The book and its sequels (Logan's World & Logan's Search depict a world where 'The Little War' has killed all the adults and suicide is mandated at age 21
  • The Girl Who Owned a City (1975), young adult novel set in Chicago, USA
  • Logan's Run (1976), The movie and its derivative television series (1977-1978) depict a post-apocalyptic City of Domes where murder, in the guise of a 'Renewal' ritual, is mandated at age 30
  • Empty World (1977), young adult novel set in England
  • The Odyssey (1992–1995), television series filmed in Canada
  • The Tribe (1999–2003), television series filmed in New Zealand
  • 2030 CE (2002–2003), television series filmed in Canada
  • Gas-s-s-s (1971), movie set in the United States
  • Shade's Children (1997), an award-winning young adult novel by Garth Nix

References

External links

• JMS briefly comments on Jeremiah on Republibot