Mentally Divergent

"" is the second episode of Season 1 and the second episode overall of 12 Monkeys. It first aired at 9:00 p.m. on January 23, 2015 on Syfy.

Synopsis
The trail of a mysterious organization called the "Army of the 12 Monkeys" leads Cole to a mental institution in 2015, where a patient holds the key to the plague that destroys the world. Meanwhile, despite warnings that her involvement may disrupt the course of history, Dr. Railly risks her life to help him.

Plot
In 2043, Katarina Jones and her staff listen to Cassandra Railly's recorded message. They realize for the first time that the message contains a reference to the Army of the 12 Monkeys. Jones decides to send Cole and Ramse to investigate a mental institution where the symbol of the Army appeared. They fight off scavengers and find the monkey symbol drawn by Jennifer Goines in 2015.

Cole prepares to splinter to 2015 to gather information about the Army of the 12 Monkeys from Jennifer. Cole is told that Jennifer is in the mental hospital for the murder of several of her coworkers back in 2011. Jones reminds Cole that Cassandra is no longer the mission, and should not be tied into the plan more, and assures Cole that he will surely be sent to 2015 this time. However, Cole winds up in North Korea in 2006. He is tied to a chair and interrogated, when the soldiers find a sticky note that has the address of the psychiatric hospital that he is supposed to find.

Jones and the Project: Splinter crew slingshot Cole remotely to 2015 when they find Cole's signature in North Korea, 2006.

Cole arrives in 2015, and pretends to be mentally ill to get closer to Jennifer Goines. He finds Jennifer. Elsewhere, Railly hides as Cole told her to, in her parents' old bookstore. Aaron warns Cassie about Cole, showing her information spied from North Korea identifying Cole's presence there in 2006, as well as the address of the institution from Cole's note.

At the J. D. Peoples Mental Hospital, Jennifer ties Cole to her bed and when questioned by Cole, tells him that she used to work for her father, and that she is only one of two people left who knows the location of the secret lab owned by Goines known as the Night Room, but she only tells him by saying "one got away." She then calls the hospital workers and says that Cole tried to hurt her, prompting them to remove him from her room. Cassandra then arrives at the hospital having gotten the address from Aaron. She gets Cole out of the hospital using her now expired doctor's badge, and Jennifer is kidnapped by a tall, pallid man, who knows Cole's name. Cole and Cassie try to stop him, but he successfully kidnaps Jennifer. During her kidnapping, it is revealed that Jennifer was not the one who killed the workers of the Night Room, but it was her current kidnapper, the Pallid Man, who killed them, and that she was framed for the murders by him.

Back at Cassie's temporary home, the bookstore, Cole and Cassie look at papers about Jennifer and her ties to the Night Room. They realize that Jennifer saying that "one got away" meant that someone else who worked at the Night Room escaped. Cole then splinters away.

In 2043, Cole tells Jones about Jennifer's kidnapping, the Pallid Man, and the Night Room. Jones also shows him papers that prove that Cassie helped him at the mental institution, directly against Jones' orders. Cole reassures her that Cassie was a big help, and that she came for him, not the other way around.

In 2015, the Pallid Man brews Jennifer a tea that causes her to hallucinate. She sees an unidentified figure wearing a plague doctor mask.

2006
Cole winds up in North Korea in 2006. He is tied to a chair and interrogated, when the soldiers find a sticky note that has the address of the psychiatric hospital that he is supposed to find.

2011
Through flashbacks, it is revealed that in 2011, Jennifer was not the one who killed the workers of the Night Room, but it was her current kidnapper, the Pallid Man, who killed them, and that she was framed for the murders by him.

2015
Cole arrives in 2015, and pretends to be mentally ill to get closer to Jennifer Goines. He finds Jennifer. Elsewhere, Railly hides as Cole told her to, in her parents' old bookstore. Aaron warns Cassie about Cole, showing her information spied from North Korea identifying Cole's presence there in 2006, as well as the address of the institution from Cole's note.

At the J. D. Peoples Mental Hospital, Jennifer ties Cole to her bed and when questioned by Cole, tells him that she used to work for her father, and that she is only one of two people left who knows the location of the secret lab owned by Goines known as the Night Room, but she only tells him by saying "one got away." She then calls the hospital workers and says that Cole tried to hurt her, prompting them to remove him from her room. Cassandra then arrives at the hospital having gotten the address from Aaron. She gets Cole out of the hospital using her now expired doctor's badge, and Jennifer is kidnapped by a tall, pallid man, who knows Cole's name. Cole and Cassie try to stop him, but he successfully kidnaps Jennifer. During her kidnapping, it is revealed that Jennifer was not the one who killed the workers of the Night Room, but it was her current kidnapper, the Pallid Man, who killed them, and that she was framed for the murders by him.

Back at Cassie's temporary home, the bookstore, Cole and Cassie look at papers about Jennifer and her ties to the Night Room. They realize that Jennifer saying that "one got away" meant that someone else who worked at the Night Room escaped. Cole then splinters away.

2043
Katarina Jones and her staff listen to Cassandra Railly's recorded message. They realize for the first time that the message contains a reference to the Army of the 12 Monkeys. Jones decides to send Cole and Ramse to investigate a mental institution where the symbol of the Army appeared. They fight off scavengers and find the monkey symbol drawn by Jennifer Goines in 2015. When he and Ramse return, Cole prepares to splinter to 2015 to gather information about the Army of the 12 Monkeys from Jennifer. Cole is told that Jennifer is in the mental hospital for the murder of several of her coworkers back in 2011. Jones reminds Cole that Cassandra is no longer the mission, and should not be tied into the plan more, and assures Cole that he will surely be sent to 2015 this time.

After Cole splinters away, Jones and the Project: Splinter crew slingshot Cole remotely to 2015 after they find Cole's signature in North Korea, 2006.

When Cole returns, he tells Jones about Jennifer's kidnapping, the Pallid Man, and the Night Room. Jones also shows him papers that prove that Cassie helped him at the mental institution, directly against Jones' orders. Cole reassures her that Cassie was a big help, and that she came for him, not the other way around.

Trivia

 * The title is a reference to a character in the 1995 film, a psychiatric patient who tells James Cole that he is "mentally divergent", able to go to imaginary worlds in his mind. In the movie, the patient asks Cole, "Are you divergent too, friend?"
 * Jennifer is wearing a yellow shirt with red stripes, nearly identical to her counterpart in the 1995 film, Jeffrey Goines.
 * Jones tells Cole that the splinter machine is sending him to 2015 "right on the money" this time, stating the same thing as Jones' counterpart in the 1995 film. In the film, Jones turns out to be wrong, with the machine accidentally first sending Cole to World War I, before being redirected to the originally planned destination of 1996. In the episode, Jones accidentally sends Cole to North Korea in 2006, showing a connection between the film and the show.

Quotes

 * Katarina Jones: "Time is cruel Mr. Cole. We are risking everything by toying with it, taunting it. Believe me, I’ve learned enough about time to fear it and so should you."
 * Katarina Jones: "Mr. Cole's name was on a recording from 30 years go. Fate gave your friend this mission. You, Mr. Ramse, are here only because he insists on it. Do you understand the difference? Your future is not pre-ordained."