7 classic paranormal TV series with gifted characters

I always loved watching television shows that feature extraordinary characters. Recently, a wave of nostalgia hit me, and I ended up watching some old paranormal shows I love. Here are some 90s and 2000s shows with 'gifted' characters.

The Sentinel (1996-1999)

“In all tribal cultures, every village had a sentinel. Now, a sentinel is chosen because of a genetic advantage—a sensory awareness that can be developed beyond normal humans. Your time spent in Peru has got to be connected with what’s happening to you now. I’ve got hundreds of documented cases of one or two hyperactive senses, but not one single subject with all five. You could be the real thing.”

— Blair Sandburg

This classic buddy cop show from the late 1990s starred Richard Burgi as Detective Jim Ellison. The Sentinel had super-heightened senses and a genetic predisposition to protect his tribe—in his case, the people of Cascade, Washington. In a unique arrangement, Blair Sandburg (Garett Maggart), an anthropology doctoral student specializing in ancient culture, guided Ellison in honing his senses.

At first glance, Jim and Blair couldn’t be more different. One is a stoic cop and the other a free-spirited son of a hippie mother. Their differences forged a remarkable bond between Sentinel and Guide.

The science fiction, shamanistic, and spiritual elements added intriguing twists to the crime-solving show.

Millennium (1996-1999)

The grim saga revolved around Frank Black (Lance Henriksen). For the Millennium Group, a covert organization of former law enforcement professionals, the retired FBI profiler hunted (serial) killers and other criminals. Frank’s talent for seeing through the eyes of serial killers and connecting with them created chilling imagery and scenes.

Series creator Chris Carter clarified Frank was not a psychic but possessed what he termed “a gift.” However, akin to Nathaniel Colt, my main character of The Empath Series, Frank viewed his ability as a “curse”.

The story smoothly blended supernatural elements with dark science fiction. Although there was no direct crossover, Millennium inhabited the same universe as Carter’s more renowned creation, The X-Files. But it had a much darker, unsettling feeling that made the shows apart.

The Pretender (1996-1999)

“There are pretenders among us, geniuses with the ability to become anyone they want to be… In 1963, a Corporation known as “The Center” isolated a young pretender named Jarod, and exploited his genius for their research. Then one day, their pretender ran away…”

— The show’s intro

Pretender showed Michael T. Weiss as Jarod, a chameleon-like genius who could inhabit any identity and master any career. The child prodigy was raised in “The Centre”, a secret facility built for experimenting on special children and adults, in fictional Blue Cove, Delaware. Jarod ran away after he found out they were using his work for nefarious reasons. While he searched for his family, he used his amazing skills to help people, fight injustice, and make the world better.

At the same time, Jarod had to evade the operatives sent to recapture him: Miss Parker, the daughter of the head of The Centre, (Andrea Parker), Sydney, the psychologist who raised Jarod, (Patrick Bauchau), and Broots, the tech expert (Jon Gries).

Jarod’s quest for his family, and his childlike innocence, made him a lovable character who brought a touch of hope to a dark tale.

Profiler (1996-2000)

Profiler followed the exploits of the FBI’s fictional Violent Crimes Task Force based in Atlanta, Georgia. The first three seasons of this grim paranormal mystery show starred Ally Walker as forensic profiler Dr. Samantha “Sam” Waters, a borderline-empathic criminal profiler. In her mind, she could ‘See’ a crime through the eyes of both victim and killer.

As one of the first police shows, Profiler had a series-wide arc that involved “Jack of All Trades”, an elusive serial killer fixated on Sam (he killed her husband pre-show). In season four, Jamie Luner took the lead as Dr. Rachel Burke, who possessed a similar gift as Sam. Her central antagonist was the elusive crime kingpin named Damian Kennasas.

Drawing inspiration from The Silence of the Lambs, Profiler profoundly influenced subsequent shows. I consider it the predecessor of modern police dramas, especially Criminal Minds, with its characters chasing serial killers.

For several episodes, Profiler crossed over with The Pretender.

The Dead Zone (2002-2007)

The paranormal suspense and science fiction series was “based on characters” from Stephen King's 1979 novel of the same title. The plot revolved around the life of Johnny Smith (Anthony Michael Hall), a high-school science teacher, who woke up after a six-year coma, and possessed psychic abilities.

Upon contact with people or objects, he experienced visions of both past and future events—a phenomenon known as psychoscopy or psychometry. His visions were made possible by his brain working around the damaged areas, referred to as the “dead zone”.

Johnny used his powers to help solve criminal (mostly murder) cases. However, an overarching arc within the series was Johnny’s battle against politician Gregory “Greg” Ammas Stillson (Sean Patrick Flanery). Johnny had foreseen that the future President of the United States would start a nuclear war.

Missing (2003-2006)

Originally titled 1-800-Missing, the show drew its inspiration from the book series 1-800-WHERE-R-YOU by Meg Cabot. The show followed Jess Mastriani (Caterina Scorsone), a young woman whose life changed after lightning struck and gave her psychic abilities.

At first, Jess used the clues from her visions to consult with a special FBI Task Force to find missing people. Over time, she received formal training and became an agent in her own right. The series initially starred Gloria Reuben as Brooke Haslett, Jess's skeptical partner. Vivica A. Fox as Nicole Scott replaced Reuben after the latter left at the end of the first season.

Medium (2005-2011)

Medium was based on the real Allison DuBois bestseller Don't Kiss Them Good-Bye. Patricia Arquette played the lead role, who worked in the District Attorney’s office. Allison could communicate with dead people, witness past events, or foresee events within her dreams. She used her natural intuition about people and her gift of interacting with the dead to help solve crimes.

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