Plot summary
Annie, Owen, and test subject 5 are removed from the group for questioning after the "A" pill test. Annie's results showed prior experience with the pills, and Owen's indicated he did not take the pill at all. Outside project director Dr. Muramoto's office, Owen confides to Annie that he refrained in case she needed to activate him, and Annie confesses that she lied about being his contact. Muramoto has Owen recount his core trauma during the session. Insisting he ingested a pill, Owen describes a family gathering that led to his attempted suicide.
Muramoto disbelieves Owen and forces him to take an "A" pill. Later while questioning Annie, Muramoto falls forward and dies abruptly. Fearing dismissal, Annie and Owen remove negative indicators from their files and leave Muramoto at his desk. Owen tells Annie his actual trauma experience: a "BLIP" (psychotic break) and meeting Grimsson for the first time. After Muramoto is found dead, Dr. Fujita reenlists Dr. James Mantleray to lead the project. Mantleray created the drug but was removed due to personal issues. Mantleray informs GRTA, the super computer controlling the experiment, that Muramoto has died, and GRTA's reaction causes a hardware malfunction that links Annie and Owen during the next phase of "B" pill testing.
Credits
Adapted from Wikipedia contributors, Maniac (miniseries). Series, exact episode number and English title matched. Paragraphs formatted; references and illustrations omitted.