Tess Harding
Encyclopedia
Tess Harding is a fictional character
created by Jason Katims
for the 1999-2002 American
science fiction
television series Roswell
. She was portrayed by actress Emilie de Ravin
.
with the other alien
-human
hybrids, Max Evans
, Isabel Evans
and Michael Guerin
, but left her pod after they left theirs. They are clones of dead royalty, known as the Royal Four, from the planet Antar. She was raised by another alien, Nasedo
, who had apparently been sent to Earth to protect them. However, he had made a deal with Kivar (the enemy of the Royal Four) 40 years before: return home with Max's son (with Tess' help) and deliver Max, Michael and Isabel to Kivar, who would have killed them. Eventually, Tess is the one who completes part of the deal, as Nasedo dies at the beginning of season two.
When first introduced in the series, Tess appears to be obsessed with Max and fulfilling her destiny by being with him. However, at the end of season two, her true goal and purpose is revealed: to return to Antar pregnant with Max's child.
Her main power is to "mindwarp" people, making them see things that are not real. She can temporarily create illusions by manipulating the actual reality people are seeing.
The first time she uses this power is in the episode Tess, Lies and Videotape against Max. She is also capable of achieving a certain level of mind control with it or as Kyle calls it "brainwashing".
At a certain point, her powers grew so strong she was able to bring her illusion into reality, when she kills the Skins with fire, and possibly how she blew up the FBI building.
Tess uses this power at various times throughout the series, the most notable being when she mindwarps Alex Whitman for months in order to make him translate the destiny book she needs to use to return home, as established by Nasedo's deal with Kivar. It also should be noted that excessive use of mindwarping on one person can be damaging to the brain or fatal as when she killed Alex Whitman by repeatedly mindwarping him for months not allowing his brain to heal.
It should also be noticed that she was able to suppress (but not erase) Kyles memory of her killing Alex or him carrying his dead body.
She is also able to change the molecular structure of items, as can the rest of the hybrids.
and his son, Kyle
. Kyle and Tess are, at first, quite attracted to each other, but eventually become more like brother and sister, with Kyle even once referring to her as his sister when one of his friends speaks about her sexually.
, who is also in love with Max and in return he loves her. However, in the season three episode "Four Aliens and a Baby" Liz is the only person Tess trusts when she needs help with her major sacrifice.
Tess later goes to Isabel and Max's house, where she meets Max and Michael. Isabel quickly explains that Tess is her friend and new at school. This does not stop Max and Michael from being suspicious.
Tess is quick to point out Alex's crush on Isabel, and when asked if there is anyone she has her eye on, she admits that she is disappointed that Max is unavailable. Isabel tells her that she has no chance, that Max is a total goner. However, Max begins to have explicit hallucination
s about Tess. Max talks to Michael about it, and Michael goes around to her house, discovering that there is not a single thing in it. He quickly hides when the Army shows up.
He later tells Max and Isabel about this. Isabel defends Tess, while Max is worried because he cannot control his fantasies about her and does not understand what is happening to him.
Isabel goes to Tess' house, where she meets her father, Ed, who appears to work for the Army. Tess explains the house being empty was due to the movers arriving late. Tess tries to avoid letting Isabel help with moving her stuff, saying that she is her guest and should not being doing any heavy lifting. Isabel gets suspicious, and she, Max and Michael start to wonder who Tess really is. They think that Tess is Nasedo, the man River Dog talked about, whom Michael was searching for in the other episodes.
Later, Michael finds a hidden camera in his apartment and with Liz's help they use it to spy on Tess and her father. Eventually, they discover that Tess is just like them, an alien-human hybrid, and that she was housed in the pod chamber with them. Even though Max, Michael and Isabel didn't remember who she was for 10 years, they suddenly remember her when this is explained to them.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
created by Jason Katims
Jason Katims
Jason Katims is an American television writer, producer, and playwright. He is best known for Relativity, which he created and wrote for; Roswell, which he developed, produced, and wrote for; Boston Public, which he co-wrote; Pepper Dennis, a short-lived dramedy starring Rebecca Romijn on The WB;...
for the 1999-2002 American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
television series Roswell
Roswell (TV series)
Roswell is an American science fiction television series developed, produced, and co-written by Jason Katims. The series debuted on October 6, 1999 on The WB and moved to UPN for the third season. The last episode aired May 14, 2002...
. She was portrayed by actress Emilie de Ravin
Emilie de Ravin
Emilie de Ravin born 27 December 1981)is an Australian actress. She is commonly associated with her roles as Tess Harding on Roswell and Claire Littleton on the ABC drama Lost....
.
Fictional character summary
Tess came to EarthEarth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
with the other alien
Extraterrestrial life in popular culture
In popular cultures, "extraterrestrials" are life forms — especially intelligent life forms— that are of extraterrestrial origin .-Historical ideas:-Pre-modern:...
-human
Human
Humans are the only living species in the Homo genus...
hybrids, Max Evans
Max Evans
Maxwell "Max" Evans is a fictional character created by Melinda Metz for the young adults book series Roswell High and adapted by Jason Katims for the 1999-2002 American science fiction television series Roswell...
, Isabel Evans
Isabel Evans
Isabel Evans is a fictional character created by Melinda Metz for the young adults book series Roswell High and adapted by Jason Katims for the 1999-2002 American science fiction television series Roswell...
and Michael Guerin
Michael Guerin
Michael Guerin is a fictional character created by Melinda Metz for the young adults book series Roswell High and adapted by Jason Katims for the 1999-2002 American science fiction television series Roswell...
, but left her pod after they left theirs. They are clones of dead royalty, known as the Royal Four, from the planet Antar. She was raised by another alien, Nasedo
Nasedo
Nasedo aka Edward "Ed" M. Harding is a fictional character from the television series Roswell, portrayed mainly by actor Jim Ortlieb, although also by many others whose form he "shapeshifts" to.-Biography:...
, who had apparently been sent to Earth to protect them. However, he had made a deal with Kivar (the enemy of the Royal Four) 40 years before: return home with Max's son (with Tess' help) and deliver Max, Michael and Isabel to Kivar, who would have killed them. Eventually, Tess is the one who completes part of the deal, as Nasedo dies at the beginning of season two.
When first introduced in the series, Tess appears to be obsessed with Max and fulfilling her destiny by being with him. However, at the end of season two, her true goal and purpose is revealed: to return to Antar pregnant with Max's child.
Previous life
In her previous life, Tess was known as Ava. She was the queen of Antar, married to Zan (Max's former self). She appears to be the only one of the four hybrids with any memory of their previous lives, although this is not made clear.Powers
Tess is the most powerful of the Royal Four because she has used her powers from the beginning, and with Nasedo's help, she improves her abilities. She tries to teach the other hybrids how to use their own powers.Her main power is to "mindwarp" people, making them see things that are not real. She can temporarily create illusions by manipulating the actual reality people are seeing.
The first time she uses this power is in the episode Tess, Lies and Videotape against Max. She is also capable of achieving a certain level of mind control with it or as Kyle calls it "brainwashing".
At a certain point, her powers grew so strong she was able to bring her illusion into reality, when she kills the Skins with fire, and possibly how she blew up the FBI building.
Tess uses this power at various times throughout the series, the most notable being when she mindwarps Alex Whitman for months in order to make him translate the destiny book she needs to use to return home, as established by Nasedo's deal with Kivar. It also should be noted that excessive use of mindwarping on one person can be damaging to the brain or fatal as when she killed Alex Whitman by repeatedly mindwarping him for months not allowing his brain to heal.
It should also be noticed that she was able to suppress (but not erase) Kyles memory of her killing Alex or him carrying his dead body.
She is also able to change the molecular structure of items, as can the rest of the hybrids.
Sheriff Jim Valenti and Kyle Valenti
Tess lives with Sheriff ValentiSheriff Jim Valenti
Sheriff James "Jim" Valenti, Jr is a fictional character created by Melinda Metz for the young adults book series Roswell High and adapted by Jason Katims for the 1999-2002 American science fiction television series Roswell...
and his son, Kyle
Kyle Valenti
Kyle Valenti is a fictional character created by Melinda Metz for the young adults book series Roswell High and adapted by Jason Katims for the 1999-2002 American science fiction television series Roswell. He was portrayed by actor Nick Wechsler in the television series.- Fictional character...
. Kyle and Tess are, at first, quite attracted to each other, but eventually become more like brother and sister, with Kyle even once referring to her as his sister when one of his friends speaks about her sexually.
Liz Parker
Tess' main rival in the series is Liz ParkerLiz Parker
Liz Parker is a fictional character and the protagonist of the Roswell High book series and Roswell T.V. series, which ran from 1999 to 2002. The character was portrayed by Shiri Appleby....
, who is also in love with Max and in return he loves her. However, in the season three episode "Four Aliens and a Baby" Liz is the only person Tess trusts when she needs help with her major sacrifice.
Season one
Tess first appears late in season one, in the episode "Crazy", as the new girl at fictional West Roswell High School. She almost immediately makes friends with Isabel, who notes that Tess puts sugar on her yogurt, something Isabel herself admits she is prone to do.Tess later goes to Isabel and Max's house, where she meets Max and Michael. Isabel quickly explains that Tess is her friend and new at school. This does not stop Max and Michael from being suspicious.
Tess is quick to point out Alex's crush on Isabel, and when asked if there is anyone she has her eye on, she admits that she is disappointed that Max is unavailable. Isabel tells her that she has no chance, that Max is a total goner. However, Max begins to have explicit hallucination
Hallucination
A hallucination, in the broadest sense of the word, is a perception in the absence of a stimulus. In a stricter sense, hallucinations are defined as perceptions in a conscious and awake state in the absence of external stimuli which have qualities of real perception, in that they are vivid,...
s about Tess. Max talks to Michael about it, and Michael goes around to her house, discovering that there is not a single thing in it. He quickly hides when the Army shows up.
He later tells Max and Isabel about this. Isabel defends Tess, while Max is worried because he cannot control his fantasies about her and does not understand what is happening to him.
Isabel goes to Tess' house, where she meets her father, Ed, who appears to work for the Army. Tess explains the house being empty was due to the movers arriving late. Tess tries to avoid letting Isabel help with moving her stuff, saying that she is her guest and should not being doing any heavy lifting. Isabel gets suspicious, and she, Max and Michael start to wonder who Tess really is. They think that Tess is Nasedo, the man River Dog talked about, whom Michael was searching for in the other episodes.
Later, Michael finds a hidden camera in his apartment and with Liz's help they use it to spy on Tess and her father. Eventually, they discover that Tess is just like them, an alien-human hybrid, and that she was housed in the pod chamber with them. Even though Max, Michael and Isabel didn't remember who she was for 10 years, they suddenly remember her when this is explained to them.