Millennium - Series 2 (Box Set) (DVD)

Author's product rating:   

Did you enjoy it?	Loved it
Story	Outstanding
Characters / Performances	Outstanding
Special Effects	Good
How does it compare to similar films?	Outstanding

Advantages:	Gritty, Well Written, Great Cast
Disadvantages:	Sometimes Overly Disturbing

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

I think I may have a hard time convincing you that Millennium is superior to Chris Carter's X-Files, but read on and I may convince you.

Millennium lasted 3 fantastic series before being axed by Fox. It had critical acclaim, but again low ratings... Which is such a shame because the show was cancelled before the year 2000, which the series was building up to. But enough of the history, onto the show!

Millennium's premise revolves around demons and prophecies becoming reality as the Millennium approached. It is an adult show, far too gritty, scary, grim for children. It deals a lot with the deadly sins and people committing them - for a TV show, it's disturbing imagery at times rivals the movie Seven. The main character is Frank Black ( played by Lance Henrikson of Aliens fame) who is a former FBI agent recruited by the Millennium Group because of his ability to profile and see things others don't (especially at crime scenes where he will often get flashes of the crime being committed in his mind). The Millennium Group he works for sends him on many assignments where evil has manifested itself. He also has a family, which plays an integral role in Season 2. It may sound like science fiction, but it is not written at all like a science fiction show. It tries very hard not to be, and succeeds.

Frank Black is written darkly - he is not a traditional hero. He is flawed, and bad things do happen to him. His work brings danger to his family, and as a result you will see his family life falling apart completely. It's very realistic, and written so well that you completely understand the thoughts and motivations of the characters as they deal with the horrible things that happen this season. This season also delves deeper into the mysterious "Millennium Group" which is led by Peter Watts (played by Terry O'Quinn of X-Files fame). The group starts to fray in this season in a great two part episode.

The highlights of this season are the following episodes:
- The Beginning and the End (Season Premiere)
- Sense and Anti-Sense
- Monster
- The Hand of Saint Sebastian
- Owls
- The Pest House
- In Arcadia Ego
- Somehow, Satan Go Behind Me
- The Fourth Horseman
- The Time is Now

Many of the episodes are relevant to real life. "Monster' deals with child abuse, and the last two episodes deal with a plague breaking out and ends with the death of a character. This show is not about happy endings or making you feel good after watching it. It's disturbing, it makes you think, it makes you wonder "what if"...

The DVD's themselves have good video quality, but could benefit from some more special features. But since the show wasn't exactly a hit, I can see why Fox did not invest more in the DVDs.

You will enjoy this show if you enjoy complexity, depth, mystery, and vivid detail of crimes and murders. The acting and writing are far beyond anything the X-Files had, and the show does not dumb itself down to pander to the audience. There are no aliens or spaceships - the strength in this show is that what happens is far more realistic and that evil manifests itself in the world that exists around us. I know that this show has remained a personal favorite since it originally aired - give it a rent or buy it as I think it will hook and entertain you for all three series.