continued to pop up throughout the season in visions, flashbacks, and even briefly as a ghost. Bruce Lewis (played by John L. Adams)—A physiotherapist who helps Johnny regain his strength after his coma. Bruce is an open-minded spiritual junkie as a result of a religious upbringing by his pastor father. He is Johnny's best friend and frequently his voice of reason, and may very well be the reason for the divergence in this series when compared to the novel or 1983 movie (Johnny never tried to kill Greg Stillson before the election). An episode in season 2 even featured a vision of an alternate reality where instead of being a physical therapist, Bruce was a reverend who never met Johnny after waking up from his coma. And thus, with the absence of his guidance, this version of Johnny became unstable, deranged, and driven mad by his abilities. Rev. Gene Purdy (played by David Ogden Stiers)—Another original character in the series, a religious leader and head of a prestigious university and foundations funded by Vera Smith, Johnny's mother. Johnny always speculated that Purdy's interest in Vera was for financial gain; however, his powers allowed him to discover that Purdy had been in love with Vera for more than 35 years. Upon Vera's suicide over the grief of the loss of her son, Purdy covered up the incident and made everyone believe she died of a heart attack, thus preserving her dignity in the public eye. Purdy has long been involved with somewhat shady dealings, but is always in the constant service of God. His devotion sometimes clouds his judgment, and he has even gone as far as to cover up a murder to protect better interests. At the end of the season 6 premiere "Heritage", Purdy leaves Cleaves Mills after being involved in a fire that kills Walt Bannerman and Malcolm Janus at the Faith Heritage Chapel. Dana Bright (played by Kristen Dalton)—A journalist for the Bangor Daily News. Dana covered much of Johnny's early work, and later became romantically linked with him; she was also in a relationship with Gene Purdy. She left the show for some time, and her absence was not explained until the season 5 episode "Articles of Faith." Because of her coverage of Johnny, Dana was able to move on up to reporting for a Boston television station, choosing her career ambitions above her increasingly complex