The Agency (episode)

The Agency is episode 36 of Shadows, written by Justin K. Rivers and Jay Fuller.

Plot
FBI agent Lauren Clay has seen something she can't believe. A werewolf has killed her husband. Her bosses don't believe her, and she loses her job.

A mysterious man visits her, and tells her about The Agency. Lauren Clay has a memorable job interview...

Cast

 * Lauren Clay - Marcela Sapone
 * Jack Flynn - David N. Rogers
 * Jay Markiss - Joe Maddens
 * Jakob Resh - Justin K. Rivers
 * Wilbur - John McGuinness
 * Spencer - Jordan Forman
 * FBI Bosses - Jason Colouris, Jared Casey
 * Policeman - Sam Rosenthal
 * Receptionist - Meghan O'Keefe
 * Agents - David Runkle, Alexandra Peterson

Crew

 * Crew - Julie Snider, Kendal Stavros, Emily Richmond
 * Music - Jay Fuller
 * Handyman - Marcus Whitby
 * Edited by Justin K. Rivers
 * Written by Justin K. Rivers and Jay Fuller
 * Story by Justin K. Rivers, Jay Fuller, and Sam Rosenthal
 * Produced by Alexandra Peterson
 * Executive Producer - Justin K. Rivers
 * Directed by Sam Rosenthal

Production
Shot primarily on location.

Lauren Clay's apartment was Alex Peterson's Student Village flat. Myles Standish Hall provided several basement corridors and the BU Castle served as the exterior for The Agency.

Street locations were nearby in the Kenmore Square area. The subterranean lair of the werewolf was an unusual sub-basement structure in director Sam Rosenthal's apartment building.

Two uncredited cameos - producer Alexandra Peterson and crew member David Runkle appear as agents in the hallway scene.

The "Agency re-boot" derived largely from the technical problems experienced in shooting a college-based TV show. Namely, the relentless turnover of actors. This chronic problem hit the production team especially hard the semester before, and they therefore decided to try to make the series as modular as possible. A suggestion to turn the series into an anthology like The Twilight Zone was rejected in 2004, and the decision was made to move forward with a new structure. The new format would take the production away from studio shoots (on account of the deteriorating sets and inflexible studio cameras) while at the same time would highlight the natural location strengths of Boston, namely the dilapidated, spooky urban dwellings.

Continuity

 * First on-screen appearance of The Agency.
 * Jakob and Spencer establish that The Agency has a network of spies and supporters hidden within other institutions, echoing Alex Finch's position a few years later.
 * First (and only) appearance of Wilbur, the agency gadget guy.
 * First appearance of werewolves.
 * The relationship between Jakob and Jack Flynn is a dynamic echoed more than once in the series - Jakob seems to consistently have a strong right hand.