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Time Trax is an American/Australian co-produced science fiction television series that first aired in 1993. A police officer, sent through time into the past, has to track down and return convicted criminals who have escaped prison in the future. This was the last new production from Lorimar Television.

Premise: 

In the year 2193, over a hundred criminals became fugitives of law enforcement by travelling back in time two hundred years, using a time machine called Trax. Darien Lambert (Dale Midkiff) was a police detective of that period who was sent back to 1993 in order to apprehend as many of the fugitives as possible. He was assisted by the Specified Encapsulated Limitless Memory Archive, or SELMA (Elizabeth Alexander), an extremely small but very powerful computer (described as equivalent to a mainframe) disguised for the mission as an AT&T MasterCard and communicated through a holographic interface which took the visual form of a prim British nanny.

Lambert was also equipped with an MPPT (Micro-Pellet Projection Tube) disguised as a keyless car alarm remote, which could stun the target or engulf the target in an energy field, rendering her or him transportable to the future. This process, executed by SELMA, incorporated a transmission sequence to send the criminal on his way. Lambert's biggest enemy was Dr. Mordecai Sahmbi (Peter Donat), who was responsible for sending the fugitives to 1993, and who tried several times to kill him.

Captain Lambert, fearing the possible consequences of altering the timeline, did not actively attempt to interfere with the natural flow of history, although he frequently left messages for his colleagues in 2193 (via the 'personals' sections of assorted newspapers). The series made occasional allusions to a theory of parallel timelines as a way of skirting the issue of temporal paradox, implying that the time travellers went into an alternate past so that their actions there had no effect on the 2193 "present". However, there was no overt evidence that this was the case; indeed, the fact that Lambert was able to leave messages for his coworkers to find in 2193 would seem to indicate otherwise.

Opening Narration:

Season 1: 

"It began in the future. A scientist turning to evil, a time machine called TRAX, criminals who vanish and a lawman with a mission. He has one weapon and a computer named SELMA."

SELMA: Good Morning, Captain Lambert.

"With them he will travel to a time more innocent than his own. Now he is among us. A special breed of man, a hunter, travelling through our world searching for fugitives from his own, knowing he can not go home until he has found them all. His name is Darien Lambert and this is his story."

Season 2: "It began in the future. A time machine called TRAX, criminals who vanish, and a lawman who must pursue into the past. Now he is among us, a special breed of man. He has one weapon and a computer called Selma. With her, he will travel through our world, searching for fugitives from his own, knowing he cannot go home until he has found them all. His name is Darien Lambert and this is his story."

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Time Trax is een science fiction serie, een Amerikaans/Australische co-productie uit 1993. Een politie agent die wordt teruggestuurd naar het verleden om veroordeelde criminelen op te sporen die in de toekomst zijn ontsnapt uit de gevangenis. Dit was de laatste nieuwe productue van Lorimar Television.

In 2193 ontsnappen honderd criminelen en middels een tijd machine vluchten zijn 200 jaar terug in de tijd. De tijd machine heet Time Trax. Darien Lambert [Dale Midkiff] was een detective uit die periode [2193] en krijgt de opdracht ook terug te keren naar 1993 om de 100 voortvluchtige op te sporen. Hij werd geassisteerd door Specified Encapsulated Limitless Memory, oftewel SELMA [Elizabeth Alexander], een heel klein maar zeer krachtige computer [te vergelijken met een mainframe], die zich voor de missie voordoet als een AT&T Mastercard. Ze communiceert door middel van een holografische interface en heeft de visuele vorm aangenomen van een preutse Britse nanny.

Lambert is ook nog uitgerust met een MPPT [Micro-Pellet Projection Tube], vermomd als een auto alarm afstandbediening, zonder sleutels, die zijn doelwit kan verlammen of het doelwit met energie kan overvloeden wat ervoor zorgt dat deze personen weer naar de toekomst kunnen worden getransporteerd. Dit process wordt door SELMA, in haar is een transmissie reeks verwerkt wat haar mogelijk maakt de criminelen weer terug te sturen. Lambert grootste vijand was Dr. Mordecai Sahmbi [Peter Donat], hij is er verantwoordelijk voor dat de criminelen zijn teruggestuurd naar 1993. Hij heeft ook meerdere malen geprobeerd Lambert te vermoorden.

Captain Lambert was bang dat de toekomst die hij kende zou veranderen. Hij probeerde zich dan ook niet te bemoeien met de natuurlijke flow van de geschiedenis maar hij liet wel geregeld boodschappen achter voor zijn collega's uit 2193 [via de persoonlijke secties van verschillende dagbladen]. Er werd in de serie gesuggereerd dat de criminelen die terug in de tijd zijn gegaan, in een alternatieve universum terecht zijn gekomen zodat het dus geen effect had op de tijd die "we" kennen in 2193. Daar was echter geen hard bewijs voor maar het feit dat Lambert boodschappen kon sturen naar zijn collega's in te toekomst [en dat die ook aankwamen bij hen] lijkt erop te duiden dat dit wel het geval is.

Opening narration:

Season 1: "It began in the future. A scientist turning to evil, a time machine called TRAX, criminals who vanish and a lawman with a mission. He has one weapon and a computer named SELMA." SELMA: Good Morning, Captain Lambert.

"With them he will travel to a time more innocent than his own. Now he is among us. A special breed of man, a hunter, travelling through our world searching for fugitives from his own, knowing he can not go home until he has found them all. His name is Darien Lambert and this is his story."

Season 2: "It began in the future. A time machine called TRAX, criminals who vanish, and a lawman who must pursue into the past. Now he is among us, a special breed of man. He has one weapon and a computer called Selma. With her, he will travel through our world, searching for fugitives from his own, knowing he cannot go home until he has found them all. His name is Darien Lambert and this is his story."