MID-SEASON MARATHONS FOR SPY-THRILLER SERIES "XIII"

The First Five Episodes Will Air Back-to-Back on Saturday, August 4th Starting at 2pm ET/ 11am PT

(Albuquerque, NM) Wednesday, August 1st, 2012 - ReelzChannel - TV About Movies(R) today announced a mid-season marathon featuring the first five episodes of the spy-thriller series XIII airing back-to-back on Saturday, August 4th, 2012 starting at 2pm ET/ 11am PT. Viewers have a second chance to see the action series from the beginning the following day on Sunday, August 5th, 2012 when the first five episodes air back-to-back starting at 10am ET/ 7am PT. In XIII, starring Stuart Townsend and Aisha Tyler, XIII (Townsend) is a former secret operative who has been stripped of his memory. He does not know who he is, what he is trained to be or whom he serves. Hunted by a dark anti-government organization, XIII searches for clues that will uncover the secret that makes him so valuable - and so potentially dangerous. Jones (Tyler) is a government agent and XIII's most loyal ally. She is also under Presidential orders to discover what, if anything, XIII knows.

The first five episodes air back-to-back on Saturday, August 4th, 2012

Episode 1 - "Pilot" at 2pm ET/ 11am PT Having been unjustly locked down in a brutal rendition camp for two years by NSA Director Amos (Greg Bryk), XIII is sprung in a daring escape by mysterious allies. These allies turn out to be former President Sheridan (Ted Atherton) and psychotic freelance killer Irina Svetlanova (Virginie Ledoyen).

Episode 2 - "Green Falls" at 3pm ET/ 12pm PT XIII and Sam (Caterina Murino) follow a clue from Sheridan (Ted Atherton) to Green Falls, a small town where XIII may have grown up. As XIII begins to ask questions about himself and his father, who is a local reporter, XIII stirs up old secrets and modern-day violence. In the end, XIII learns his boyhood name, but also is driven to solve the murder of the father he never knew and a corporate scheme to hide the deaths of hundreds of workers. XIII also learns that he was conscripted into a CIA training program when he was away at college. The more answers he gets, the more mysterious his past seems to be.

Episode 3 - "Lockdown" at 4pm ET/1pm PT Chasing another lead from Sheridan, XIII gets himself thrown into a brutal Venezuelan prison in search of a prisoner who might have worked with XIII when he was a CIA operative. The problem is getting to this prisoner - Sanchez - a powerful personality who inspired the prisoners to fight for their rights. He's been declared insane and locked away in a high-security area. XIII must fight off attacks from both prisoners and guards as he attempts to sneak into the secure medical ward and get the information he needs.

Episode 4 - "The Irish Job" at 5pm ET/ 2pm PT XIII follows the piece of information he learned from Sanchez in the Venezuelan prison. It leads him to Ireland in search of Seamus O'Neal, an ex-IRA operative who was inducted into the CIA at the same time XIII was. In Seamus' home town, XIII begins to ask questions about Seamus and opens up old hostilities... and a possible connection between Seamus and a new breed of IRA killers. XIII must fight to find out what Seamus was involved in... and the secrets of what it has to do with XIII's own life.

Episode 5 - "Bitterroot" at 6pm ET/ 3pm PT XIII follows the trail of his identity to a paramilitary training camp in the Pacific Northwest named Bitterroot where he supposedly trained. As XIII tries to discover the nature of the secret mission he was being trained for, he runs afoul of the camp's owner, Rech. It's all XIII can do to stay alive though the vicious training regime... . and the ever-present danger of being discovered and executed as a spy. In the end, XIII finds some of the information he was looking for, but at a deadly cost.

The first five episodes air back-to-back again on Sunday, August 5th, 2012

Episode 1 - "Pilot" at 10am ET/ 7am PT

Episode 2 - "Green Falls" at 11am ET/ 8am PT

Episode 3 - "Lockdown" at 12pm PT/ 9am PT

Episode 4 - "The Irish Job" at 1pm ET/ 10am PT

Episode 5 - "Bitterroot" at 2pm ET/ 11am PT

XIII was developed and produced by Jay Firestone's Prodigy Pictures and Luc Besson's French production company EuropaCorp Television (La Femme Nikita). The series is based on Jean Van Hamme's adrenaline-fueled graphic novels, which have sold more than 16 million copies worldwide since the first volume was published 25 years ago. XIII has already been recognized by the Canadian Society of Cinematographers with its 2012 Award for Excellence for TV Series Cinematography.

XIII stars Aisha Tyler (24, CSI, The Talk) as Jones, a top CIA operator, Virginie Ledoyen (The Beach) as Irina, a mercenary hired by the former U.S. President to track XIII, and Bond Girl, Caterina Murino (Casino Royale) as Sam, XIII's trustworthy ally and love interest. Also starring in XIII is Greg Bryk (Immortals, Saw 3D: The Final Chapter) as Amos, a national security officer, Stephen McHattie (Immortals, 2012) as President Carrington and Ted Atherton (Max Payne, The Border) as Wally Sheridan, the former U.S. President and a possible traitor. Tom Berenger (Inception, Training Day) guest stars as Gerhardt, a mysterious European industrialist who wields power from the shadows.

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