Pilot

Pilot is the first episode of Nikita, and the first episode of the first season. It premiered to American audiences on September 9, 2010 at 3.57 million viewers.

Synopsis
Nikita is introduced to the show and she narrates that she was recruited by a secret government that turned her into a killer and that she is going to do everything to stop. The show kicks off with a robbery at a pharmacy and two people with rabbit masks clear off the shelves. One of the robbers keeps looking back that their partner and a clerk grabs the gun that the robber is holding. He is about to shoot one of them but is shot in the back before he could do it. They rush out and one of the robbers trips and the drugs go everywhere. The police arrive and uncover the mask. It is a girl, Alex from Detroit, Michigan. Later the guards escort her to her cell and she starts fighting. A man watches from behind the jail cell. Alex wakes up in a room and a man tells that she is no longer in the prison and that her death was faked along with the remains. He tells that his name is Michael and tells that they are going to give her a second chance. He tells that she killed the guy that they have been trying to catch for years. She tells that Ronnie killed the guy and Michael tells that Ronnie was found dead of a drug overdose. He tells that she is going to have to learn how to walk, talk, sit and act right and learn how to serve her country and not herself.

Meanwhile, at a pool party, a man sees Nikita and asks why she is there. She tells that a friend told her about the party. The man tells that she needs to have a drink with him and she asks to go to the bar. But he tells that she is going to have to get wet since it is a pool party. She walks over to him and says now killing the bodyguard is going to be harder now. She snaps the man's neck and kills two bodyguards along the way. She gets on the communicator and radios that the target is down and needs to get out. But Michael tells that extraction is impossible and she could never get out. He is behind her and points the gun and pulls the trigger. Nikita wakes up in Roselle Park from the nightmare and starts her car with pliers.

She visits Gary and she tells that he is not going to buy anything. She takes off her sunglasses and calls Gary "Daddy". He recognizes her as a daughter Nikita. She grabs his throat and throws him. She tells that after she ran away, she got in a tough crowd and that she got into drugs. Then she got arrested for killing a cop and was sentenced to death. But she tells that her life was spared by a secret division of the government called "The Division". She was trained as an assassin and tells that she broke their only rule. She fell in love with a civilian named Daniel. She tells that she knows that he keeps tabs on Division and that she wants them to know that she is coming. She tells that she is going to strike deep and make them pay for what they did.

Michael meets with Percy and talks about a new mission. Percy gets a phone call and tells that he has a new mission for Michael. It is Nikita and he tells that he needs to confirm the kill this time. Alex sits down at a table and a girl sees her and sits next to her. She asks what she wants and she tells that she is going to die. Alex throws her food at the girl and puts a fork to her throat. A boy runs over and grabs the girl and introduces himself as Tom and the girl as Jade. He tells that Jade is still new and is getting used to the rules. She tells that Tom is excited because he is going on his first mission. Tom tells that he has been almost a year and that they need to stick together if they are going to get through training. A man tells that Amanda wants to see Alex now.

Michael gets to Gary's and she tells that the FBI is paying for everything he asks what was Nikita's tone and he tells that he doesn't remember. The other assassin gets tired of hearing Gary and kills him. He tells that Nikita knows what they were going to have to do. Nikita walks up to Daniel's gravesite and flashbacks to her time with Daniel. He gives her an engagement ring and she tells that he needs to promise her that it's not a dream. Back at the gravesite, Nikita takes off the ring and places the ring on the gravestone. At Division, Birkhoff tells Percy that they got Nikita on camera at the gravesite.

Alex meets Amanda and she tells that she will show her how to use her beauty and Alex tells that she is not going to smear makeup on her face. Amanda tells that it is not the first time she had to reinvent herself and recognizes that Alex is from the Ukraine and has worked on getting the American accent. Amanda tells that they can help Alex get her to be useful for herself and not a waste of space. Meanwhile, Birkhoff and a team go to the gravesite and they see Nikita at the grave still. They open fire but it is only a mannequin. Birkhoff tells that she is on the move up North and Nikita shows up in the back seat of the car. Birkhoff asks what she is going to do and she says that he will see. She smacks him on the head and steals the truck. She takes him back to a hidden place and she tells that she wants access to Division's network. He tells her to kill him because Percy will kill him. He asks what she wants

At Division, they track Birkhoff and move on to a park. He tells that Nikita is long gone and he is tied to a kid's playground equipment. Back at the training ground, Alex sees what they are getting into and Jade tells that Tom is just stressed over the mission. She tells that she is jealous that she is not going to be able to kill someone yet. Jaden tries to get Tom to talk about the "Black Arrow" mission and he tells that he can't tell. Alex looks surprised when Jaden tells that she wants to kill someone too and Jaden laughs. Alex asks what they are in there for anyways. Jaden tells that they are being trained to be a killer and if they don't kill, they are killed instead. In Percy's office, Birkhoff tells that Nikita told that she has other people but thinks that she is alone. Michael is not sure to believe Birkhoff, but Percy does. Percy tells that he has to go to a meeting and instructs that "Black Arrow" is still a go. Back at Nikita's hideout, Nikita gets ready for the "Black Arrow" even at the hotel and gets her weaponry ready.

At the Wyckland Hotel, 3 men are in a hotel room and they radio to Guardia downstairs to get the car ready. He tells that it is ready. A hotel worker grabs Guardia's water and puts something in it without anyone looking. This cases Guardia to rush to the bathroom and is met by Tom dressed as a doorman too. Tom puts Guardia asleep and tells that it is going to be easy. But Nikita walks into the bathroom and fights with the two assassins and knocks them unconscious. She goes upstairs and shoots the Billionaire with a taser gun. She loads him up on a serving cart and cover him with a blanket. The same many that killed Gary from earlier is there and he is met by the Billionaire's body guards. The man slices their throats and Nikita runs for it with the Billionaire with her. She makes it in the car and drives to the United Nations and tells that a government group named Division tried to kill him and that she wants to see them shut down. She leaves.

Back with Alex and Amanda and she asks for her help. She points scissors at her throat and tells that she is going to get her out of there. She tells that she doesn't want to be a killer and she tells that they are only there to protect their own. Meanwhile at the Centennial Foundation, Percy meets with John and he tells that he has had some arguments of illegal kidnapping and Percy tells that he and his team will handle it. Percy walks up to Michael and talks about Nikita and how "Black Arrow" was blown. He wishes that she would show her face and suddenly Nikita walks in. She has a Senator on her arm and tells that it was her meal ticket in. Percy tells that he didn't come alone and he asks her if she wants to take the easy way or the hard way. She grabs a guy's gun and shoots out Percy's cover and runs off. Michael catches up to her and points his gun on her. She tells that he needs to give her a head start sot that she could take Division down. He tells that they are too powerful. She tells that she can handle it. She shoots him in the shoulder and tells that they will think that he fought to get her.

Back at Division, Nikita gets moved to the top of their objectives and everyone is going to be on the case. Meanwhile, Nikita chats with someone online and they tell that they are working Division from the inside and she tells the other person to log off. The other person is Alex. Nikita tells that she has to log off and do what they have trained her to do. Michael walks up and Alex closes the chat box and tells that she is never going to pass the little test. Michael tells that he knew a girl that said the same thing and she eventually learned it. Nikita logs off the computer and the camera shows that Nikita has the other mask from the pharmaceutical robbery from the beginning of the episode.

Memorable Quotes
Alex: What do I gotta do? Michael: Learn...how not to sound like a teen meth-whore for starters. Learn to stand up straight. Learn how to walk right. Learn how to talk right. Learn how to serve your country, instead of just yourself. Birkhoff': No. Honestly, I think it's a bluff. I think she's on her own. I mean, you should have seen her, she was a wreck. I was able to turn the tables on her easy. Michael: Yeah, was that before or after she duct-taped you to that springy rocking horse? Gary: No frickin' way. Nikita: Trust me, you'll want to save your 'no frickin' way' for the next part...where my execution was faked by a secret unit of the government called Division. They told me they were giving me a second chance. They told me they I'd be serving my country. What they didn't tell me is they were training me to be an assassin.
 * Nikita: [voiceover] My name is Nikita. Six years ago I was taken out of prison and forced by a covert unit of the government to be an assassin. Three years ago I escaped and have been hunted ever since. I was the first recruit to get out. I'm going to make certain I'm not the last.
 * Nikita: I was the first recruit to get out, and I'm going to make certain I'm not the last.
 * Michael: Your life is over, Alex. I'm here to offer you a new one. But you have to be willing to earn it.
 * Percy: [about Nikita] Did she say who she was working for?
 * Nikita: They told me I killed a cop. I don't remember...I've tried to. I'd just turned eighteen, so they were able to charge me with murder one. I was sentenced to die by lethal injection.

Music

 * The Enemy - "Elephant Song"
 * Bomba Estereo - "Fuego"
 * The Duke Spirit - "The Step and The Walk"
 * 8MM - "No Way Back"

Main Cast

 * Maggie Q as Nikita


 * Shane West as Michael


 * Lyndsy Fonseca as Alex


 * Aaron Stanford as Seymour Birkhoff


 * Melinda Clarke as Amanda


 * Xander Berkeley as Percy


 * Ashton Holmes as Thom


 * Tiffany Hines as Jaden

Guest cast

 * Rob Stewart as Roan


 * Sebastien Roberts as Daniel Monroe


 * David Ferry as Gary


 * Paul Anthony Hardy as Ronnie


 * Chris Gillettas as Senator Markus


 * Rothaford Gray as General Safwani

Reception
The general reception of Nikita as a TV series has been positive, with a large fanbase forming early in the first season. As of July 9, 2010,Metacritic reports that most early reviews of the pilot place the series in the "Has Potential" category. Comparisons were made to Joss Whedon's Dollhouse. Critics had praise for Maggie Q in the lead role, the look of the show, solid action sequences, and an intriguing twist at the end, but note that the dialogue needs some humor.