After hours, in a darkened classroom, Evan Lewis sits at a school computer...
Next morning, his twin brother Simon and younger sister Suzanne get ready for school. In revenge for an egg left in his shoe, Simon sneakily intercepts Evan’s bike. For extra revenge, he’s also switched the locks for their lockers.
As Evan fumbles with his locker, Sonya arrives. Evan nervously begins to ask her to the game on Saturday. She’s already arranged to go with Simon, who smirks.
Later, Simon apologises. Evan tells him to forget it, and excitedly announces science teacher Mr Poe to have finished working on his homemade computer game.
In his office, Mr Poe excitedly directs the boys to his computer. This game, he enthuses, requires minimal knowledge of computers. He places a visored helmet onto Simon's head. On the computer screen, he presents to Simon a selection of illustrated scenario options: a voyage to Saturn, Arthurian knighthood, or dinosaurs.
Simon decides to become a knight. He lowers the visor, and Mr Poe starts the programme. Simon suddenly perceives himself to be standing and rapidly spinning. With a shocked yell, he then finds himself back in bed, with the alarm clock buzzing for half past seven. He supposes the affair to have been a dream, and flings a small, soft ball to his bedroom basketball hoop. With a crash, the ball breaks the window.
Downstairs, with the breakfast table fully laid, no one is in sight. Suddenly, the echoing, disembodied voices of his family are heard to ponder his absence. At the table, in a blur of airborne pixels, respective images of his parents and sister blur and fade from view.
On the landing, Evan’s bike independently rides across the floor. The voice of Mr Lewis then calls Simon to his father’s study. Simon opens the door. He approaches the backwards-facing swivel chair, which swings around.
In it, in place of Mr Lewis, sits a man dressed in a black, hardware-adorned jumpsuit. His metallically silver skin, huge, exposed brain, red-rimmed eyes and mechanically hissing voice give Simon quite a fright.
The Computer Virus explains Simon still to be in the game, which the Virus has now corrupted. At the desk’s computer, the Virus frantically types, with a view to destruction on a grander scale than that of most computer viruses: once he gets out of the game, he’ll invade Simon’s brain.
The skin of Simon's palm is blistered, and impregnated with a plastic socket. The Virus turns around the computer monitor, which counts ten minutes to the start of the new programme. He mockingly wishes Simon luck, and sends him spinning back to Mr Poe’s office.
Mr Poe excitedly asks how it was. Simon fretfully reports a virus. Mr Poe laughingly dismisses the idea. When Simon persists, Mr Poe angrily orders him out.
Outside Mr Poe’s office, Simon sees his own helmeted body, reclining in the chair, while Evan watches the monitor screen.
Simon then finds himself surrounded by a reverse procession of students, who, reverse-followed by Mr Smith, back into a classroom. When Simon approaches the doorway, Mr Smith, with a smile similar to that of the Virus, announces the most important test of Simon’s life, and quizzes the class as to the equation of two plus two. A boy suggests five. A girl then suggests six - six minutes left.
Simon suggests four - and finds himself stood in only his underwear. From the scornful laughter, he runs back to the corridor, and finds himself once more fully dressed. Seated atop a display, the Virus announces Simon to have five minutes left. Outside, Simon finds Evan’s bike to be immobilised by an enormous padlock.
Back in the simulation of his dad’s study, the computer displays the face of Evan, who gloatingly claims to have planted a virus. In exchange for Simon’s release, he demands apology.
Outside, at the door, the Virus presses the doorbell, and, astride Evan’s bike, rides into the hall...
Simon shows his augmented palm. A suddenly very worried Evan tries to enter the abort code, but has been frozen out. Simon can abort from within the game, but needs the code.
The Virus nears the study door...
Evan's face suddenly vanishes.
As the Virus knocks on the barricaded door, Simon prepares to enter a code. Several failed attempts prompt a mocking message of Simon to have forgotten his combo. Simon remembers his locker prank.
The door opens. In struts the Virus.
Simon enters the correct code, and is invited to press any key. Around him, wires fly into place, binding him to the chair.
The Virus pulls off his glove, which reveals, in place of a hand, a plastic stump, set with a connection lead. He leans forward. In desperation, Simon lunges forth, and presses a key. With a yell of despair, the Virus fades in a blaze of pixels.
Back in Mr Poe’s office, Mr Poe worriedly asks if Simon is alright. He can’t see how a virus could have gotten in there…
Tucker stresses his appreciation for the story’s message of brotherly leniency. Gary, however, enjoyed how the Virus survived - and its next target might just be Tucker’s computer!
This episode provides examples of:
- The Ace: Simon is renowned for general excellence.
- Body Horror:
- The Virus’s brain is visible.
- The plastic socket instantaneously embedded in Simon’s palm.
- Call-Back: In Simon’s exploration of his ominously empty house, the incidental score recalls that used for a comparable scene in "The Tale of the Super Specs".
- Digital Horror: A teenager enters a VR simulation as part of an experiment, and a sapient computer virus begins to hound him through the simulation, intending to download himself into the boy's brain.
- Evil Gloating: The Virus revels in reminding Simon of his impending doom.
- Evil Laugh: The maniacal guffaw of the Virus.
- Genki Guy: The Virus is maniacally excitable.
- Ironic Nickname: The Virus mocks Simon’s intellect by addressing him as Einstein.
- "Not Wearing Pants" Dream: Not technically a dream, but in the bad simulation there's a scene where the teacher asks what 2+2 equals. A bunch of students give various wrong answers, only for the teacher to say they are all correct. When he calls on Simon, he timidly responds with "4?", at which point the teacher says "and what formula did you use to come to that answer?", at which point we zoom out and see that Simon is in his underpants and all the other students laugh at him.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: The digital version of Mr Poe, initially indistinguishable from the real thing, on Simon’s suggestion of a malfunction in the computer, angrily orders him out.
- Sci-Fi Horror: On connection to a virtual reality simulator, Simon’s brain is hijacked by a suddenly sapient computer virus.
- Sibling Rivalry: Of a relatively friendly sort; while on playful terms, Simon and Evan keenly pursue one-upmanship, often in the form of pranks. While Evan gloats over Simon’s confounding by the Virus, a hint of his brother to be in danger instantly persuades him to help.
- Slasher Smile: The Virus sports a vicious, gloating leer.
