Abra Cadaver story
Years ago, Carl Fairbanks and his brother Martin were medical students. Carl played a prank on Martin which unexpectedly gave him a stroke and paralyzed one of his hands. In the present day, Carl becomes a successful surgeon whereas Martin's paralysis limits him to a medical research job. Martin gets his revenge by injecting Carl with an experimental serum that stops Carl's heart but keeps his brain alive, essentially trapping Carl in his own body. Note: Based on the story "Dead Right!" renamed for television Directed by: Stephen Hopkins. Story by: Jim Birge.
16 total · 1 choice · 8 major · 7 minor
| Theme | Level | Motivation |
|---|---|---|
| practical joking | choice | The title alludes to two ill-considered practical jokes that the Fairbanks brothers carried out on each other in turns, and that each ended up causing the other heart attacks. Martin tricked Carl (Martin's brother) into thinking that Carl was trapped inside his own paralyzed body and about to be autopsied. This morbid prank was Martin's way of getting back at Carl for his having pulled a prank on Martin back in their medical school days that left Martin partially paralyzed, costing him a career as a surgeon. |
| brother and brother | major | The plot turns on Martin carrying out a morbid prank on his bother Carl to get back at him for having inadvertently cost Martin a career as a surgeon many years prior. |
| coming to terms with having to give up on a dream | major | Martin dreamed of becoming a surgeon, but on the eve of graduation his hopes were suddenly dashed by his brother's ill-considered practical joke. |
| medical occupation | major | Carl and Martin were both physicians in the present (medical students in the first few scenes). |
| mobility impairment | major | Martin becoming partially paralyzed on the left side of his body, most notably his hand, cost him a career as a surgeon. |
| resentment | major | The medical researcher Martin resented his brother, Carl, for having become a successful surgeon. Carl having played a prank on Martin back in their medical school days that cost Martin a career as a surgeon made the pill particularly hard for Martin to swallow. |
| the desire for vengeance | major | The plot turns on Martin carrying out a morbid prank on his bother Carl to get back at him for having inadvertently cost Martin a career as a surgeon many years prior. |
| what if I fell into the clutches of a homicidal maniac | major | To Carl, and the viewer, it undoubtedly appeared that Martin had gone insane with pent up resentment and was now sadistically homicidal towards his brother. |
| what if I were in a coma-like state | major | Much of the story was seen from the perspective of Carl as he was in a paralyzed state, yet somehow conscious. The title of the story alludes to Carl's active brain being trapped inside his all but dead body as an apparent result of some voodoo magic. |
| fear | minor | A zombie themed practical joke left Marty with the bejesus scared out of him, to say the least. |