The Schizoid Man - Recap

Number Six is at his cottage with Number 24, Alison. She’s asked him to help perfect her ESP for an upcoming Village festival. They two of them appear to share a mild psychic link which Number Six test with Zener cards. After a near-perfect score, Alison comes over to take a photo of Number Six for the festival and accidentally knocks a bottle onto his hand, bruising one finger at the base of a nail. She takes two photos and leaves and Number Six goes to bed.



Number Two is monitoring Number Six and uses a device to put him into a deeper sleep so that medical technicians can drug him and take him to a laboratory. They put a rubber glove on his left hand and use an electrical prod on his right hand.



Number Six wakes up in a different cottage. The calendar says it’s the next day but he discovers that he’s grown a mustache. His pennyfarthing badge identifies him as Number Twelve. He receives a call from Number Two, who refers to him as Number Twelve and invites him to breakfast at the Green Dome. Number Six goes through the streets and everyone refers to him as Number Twelve and say he’s always been Number Twelve. Number Six meets with Number Two, who offers him a breakfast of flapjacks. Number Two believes that Number Six is Number Twelve as well and says that they’re old friends. He’s brought in Number Six to break “Number Six” based on his physical resemblance. Number Six plays along, but is confused to discover that he is instinctively left-handed and enjoys the flapjacks. Number Two has Number Six’s mustache trimmed and hair styled, so that he now looks like… Number Six.



Number Two leaves Number Six at his own cottage, giving him the password “Gemini” to identify himself. “Number Six” (Number Twelve pretending to be Number Six) arrives wearing a white jacket and the two men verbally spar. Number Twelve offers Number Six a cigar but the latter finds he can’t smoke them without coughing. Number Twelve refuses to be taken in by this ploy and notes that Number Six is left-handed while he is right-handed. They decide to settle matters through physical conflict. Number Twelve outshoots and outfences Number Six thanks to the latter’s awkwardness with his left hand and inability to use his right. Number Twelve throws a few punches at Number Six, who is unable to defend himself.



Number Two sends a guardian sphere to collect both men and bring them to the Green Dome. Number Twelve is tortured and interrogated about what his “plan” was to infiltrate the village disguised as Number Six. Number Twelve insists he’s Number Six. Number Two then offers a fake fingerprint machine to prove Number Twelve isn’t who he says he is. Number Six, watching from the side, sees that number Twelve’s fingerprints match the real Number Six’s, while his don’t. Number Two fakes the “proof” that Number Twelve’s fingerprints aren’t the correct ones. Confused, Number Six calls for a human test to settle matters, and calls in Alison. She arrives but another test with Zener cards only show her mental link is with Number Twelve. An increasingly frustrated Number Six tries to reveal he has a mole, only to discover that it’s gone and Number Twelve has the mole. Number Twelve leaves with Alison while Number Two complains that Number Six has ruined the whole thing by calling in Alison, and the technicians failed to give Number Six the fake mole necessary to prove himself.



That night, Number Six is dreaming of people turning against him and accusing him of being someone else. Number Two is satisfied that Number Six will soon crack as he loses his grip on his own identity. However, Number Six wakes up and notices the bruise on his fingernail has grown out with the nail. He compares it to the photograph Alison took after she bruised his fingernail, with the calendar in the background. Number Six realizes that he has been tricked into believing only a day has passed when it’s actually been several weeks, long enough for the bruise to grow out. Looking in a mirror, he concentrates and remembers what happened: he was conditioned to become left-handed, like flapjacks, and dislike smoking cigars.



Number Six is still awkward with his left-handedness, but breaks the conditioning by briefly electrocuting himself using a lamp. Now back to his old self, he goes outside and makes his way through the Village, dodging a guardian sphere. He confronts two Guardians and tries to bluff his way past pretending to be Number Twelve. However, they attack him when he gives the password “Gemini.” He knocks them out and goes to Number Twelve’s cottage. The enemy doppelganger is armed with a nerve gas gun and Number Six fakes mental fatigue and stress. When he starts to talk about why he resigned, Number Twelve suggests they go to see Number Two. Number Six gets close enough to disarm and defeat his duplicate and forces the real password out of him: “Schizoid Man.”



Number Two discovers that Number Six is missing and sounds the alarm. In the cottage, Number Twelve run outside and finds himself confronting a guardian sphere. Number Six arrives and they both give the password, confusing the automated guardian. Number Twelve loses his nerve and runs. The guardian sphere assumes he’s Number Six and kills him.



Number Two is furious at Number Six since their plan has led to his apparent death. They meet and Number Six continues his charade of being Number Twelve. He makes a few small slips and Number Two is suspicious. He orders Number Six to talk to Alison and see if she has any insights into Number Six’s state of mind. Number Six talks to her and she soon realizes they still have the mental link. Number Six then prepares to leave and finds a photo of Susan, a wife or girlfriend, in Number Twelve’s coat pocket. He goes to the helicopter with Number Two, who mentions Susan and still senses something is wrong. At the helicopter, Alison is waiting and notes that if Number Six were still alive, she’d apologize to him. She doesn’t give Number Six away and he prepares to leave. Number Two asks him to give his regards to Susan and Number Six agrees. The helicopter lifts off… and then lands again. Number Two confronts the Prisoner, and notes that Susan died over a year ago.



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