I was an on again, off again fan of “The X-files” for all of its nine seasons. I watched it every time I had a chance and enjoyed the series’ not-so-great’ episodes as much as it’s classic ones. I often wondered if the mind of Chris Carter was a dark place, because the series often went to places that were less than comfortable, the most memorable being the episode known simply as “Home.” I don’t think I need to remind anyone that episode dealt with family inbreeding and all the horrors thereof. I honestly don’t know what was more disturbing, very thought of the possibility of people really living this way (which creeps me out even more because I live in Texas), or the use of the Johnny Mathis song “Wonderful Wonderful” that was used when the ‘boys’ were on the move.

As much as I enjoyed “The X-Files”, I was an even bigger fan of some of Carter’s other series. My favorite had to be “Millennium”, which lasted only a scant three seasons. In terms of what could be done on television at the time, this series took the very idea of darkness to levels even I hadn’t imagined.

“Millennium” stars Lance Henrikson (“Aliens”) as Frank Black, an ex-FBI profiler. If you’ve never heard of a profiler, basically what they do is set up a ‘profile’ or description of a killer, by allowing themselves to get into the mindset of the perpetrator. (This type of work was also featured in the excellent series, “The Profiler”, which I highly recommend checking out if you get a chance.) Black left the FBI after suffering a mental breakdown brought on by his work. He uproots his family from Washington DC and decides to settle down in Seattle, thinking that they would all be much safer there. Unknown to his wife Catherine (Meghan Gallagher), they also left because he started receiving photographs in the mail of his family that were taken by person, or persons, unknown.

After leaving the FBI, Black joined an agency known as The Millennium Group, whose soul purpose is to help law enforcement agencies investigate especially brutal crimes. However, the possibility that there are other motives to the group’s benevolent nature soon rise to the surface, causing Black to question just whom to trust.

As I mentioned, the series itself is isn’t just dark. It is pitch black. The killers that Black goes after are amongst the sickest and most perverse I think I’ve ever seen on network television. I don’t think I was able to watch a single episode without squirming. You have people that set fire to priests, dismember their victims, and even in some cases, microwave them. That last one might sound a little funny, but trust me, its not. Working on these cases really takes its toll on Black, not so much because of the viciousness of the crimes, but more so because over time he has developed an almost supernatural ability to ‘see’ what the killers ‘sees.’ I cannot begin to imagine what that would do to a person’s mind.

What really makes the series work for me, aside from the great scripting, has to be Lance Henrikson’s take on the character of Frank Black. I’ve long been a fan of Henrikson’s work, but here he is allowed to develop his character further than he has others. He presents Black as a loving family man, totally devoted to protecting them. Yet there is a haunted look that takes over and completely envelopes the character, and in an instant he is able to take him back into the dark place.

When the series ended its run I was very disappointed. Granted it had taken a turn in directions I didn’t want to see it go, but these simply added to both the reality and the fantasy of the overall story arc. I won’t get into these changes here in case you are new to the series.

On the bright side, Fox released the 1st season of “Millennium” on DVD in July of 2004 and was thankful because the series was certainly deserving of the audience it could gain that it wasn’t given the chance to before. When the 6-disc set showed up, I couldn’t get the first one into the player quick enough. It had been years since I had seen the series, and my wife hadn’t seen it at all. She was shocked by the overall tone of the series, so much so that we decided to wait until after our newborn baby girl went to sleep before watching it. We knew she would have no concrete idea what she was seeing, but some of the imagery was so intense that I felt that she might still pick up some of its abstract elements.

This 1st season set was very well put together, both in terms of the looks of the transfers, packaging and extra features. The transfers were something of a wonder. Again I mention this is a dark show. Not just psychologically, but visually. A good portion of the events take place at night so there is always the possibility of losing some of the imagery by the picture being too murky. However, I never had any problems with being able to see all the details, at least the ones we were meant to, in any of the scenes. Though I will say there were times I wish I couldn’t see them as clearly.

Fox also did away with the foldout disc holders that they used for “The X-Files” and chose instead to use the individual super slim cases housed in a single slipcover. These are much easier to handle, and the individual cases look great.

They followed up this release with the 2nd season, which I find as a good sign that they would eventually release the 3rd. The 2nd season was, for better or worse, quite different from the freshman season. The overall tone of the series remained the same, but instead of there being a killer of the week for Black to track, we began to learn that the “Millennium Group” may have had an agenda far darker than the forces they claimed to oppose. Black began to question its purpose and so started a multi-part story arc that steered the series into new directions.

The 2nd season also saw the estrangement of Black’s wife as well as the addition of a partner, in the form of Lara Means (Kristin Cloke). We also were given glimpses into Black’s history, which included an episode where we saw him as a child. These pieces of the puzzle, as it were, helped to give a deeper feeling of understanding of the things that make Black tick.

Recognizing that the bleak tone of the series made it a little difficult for people to keep tuning in, Carter and company opted to infuse a little bit more humor into it. Most of the humor was still dark to be sure, but it was a spoonful of sugar that kept the series from being a complete downer. Two episodes in particular pretty much went totally against the grain by being almost wholly comedic. In “Jose Chung’s Doomsday Defense”, we were re-introduced to the popular character created by Charles Nelson Reilly back on “The X-Files.” Considered to be a pulp novelist, here he found himself on a possible ‘hit list’ and became mixed up in a murder case that Black is on. Later in the season we were introduced to what was probably the most unorthodox episode of the entire run, with “Somehow, Satan got Behind Me.” In it, we met four demons who gathered every morning at a coffee shop to discuss just how bad the world has become, as well as all the mischief they’ve been up to. To the human eye, they appeared to be four old codgers, yet somehow Frank Black was able to see through their façade. It is a darkly hysterical episode and the highlight of the season.

Now that Fox is finally releasing the 3rd season of “Millennium”, viewers are able to see how the series was eventually concluded. In keeping with the tone, Carter opted to bring the series into even darker depths. Without giving away too much spoiler information, I will only say that the Millennium Group was able to move forward with some of their apocalyptic plans. As if he hasn’t suffered enough, Black is now a widower (thanks to the Group) and single father. Armed with the information he now has, he rejoins the FBI and gets yet another new partner, Special Agent Emma Hollis (Klea Scott). Together they work to bring down the Millennium Group once and for all. This final season was the best of the entire show, and really made me wish for an extended run. If for no other reason than to see the eventual outcome of Black’s war. But this was not to be as the series was summarily cancelled.

If there was to be any closure to the series, it came in the form of an “X-Files” episode from that show’s 7th Season. Entitled “Millennium”, it pits Mulder and Scully against a member of the Millennium Group who is planning on bringing about the end of the world. They enlist the aid of Frank Black, whom they know has more answers than they would care to believe. In a great move by Fox, they opted to include the episode in this 3rd season set.

Of course, that’s not all they added. There is a commentary on the season premiere by Henrikson and Klea Scott, as well as one on the episode “Collateral Damage” by director Thomas J. Wright. Both commentaries are well worth listening to, but the first is the best as the actors get into how they developed their characters. There is also a featurette that focuses on The Academy Group, which is the basis for the Millennium Group. You’ll also find a “Making of” featurette about season 3, where you here from most of the cast and creative team about the series. You really get a feel that there was a period where they didn’t really know what direction to go, and by the time they got their bearings, the series was cancelled. It’s a very open and honest featurette.

“Millennium” was a much underrated series in its time. Looking back, I really wish it had lasted more than three seasons, but that’s sometimes just the way of things. At least I can be content in the fact I’ll be able to revisit some of my darkest nightmares with the release of this series on DVD. (Kind of a twisted sentiment, don’t you think?)

Episodes:
The Innocents, Part 1
Exegesis, Part 2
Teotwawki
Closure
…Thirteen Years Later
Skull and Bones
Through a Glass, Darkly
Human Essence
Omerta
Borrowed Time
Collateral Damage
The Sound of Snow
Antipas
Matryoshka
Forcing the End
Saturn Dreaming of Mercury
Darwin’s Eye
Bardo Thodol
Seven and One
Nostalgia
Via Dolorosa, Part 1
Goodbye to All That, Part 2

Starring: Lance Henrikson, Terry O’Quinn, Brittany Tiplady
Extras: Commentary by Lance Henriksen and Klea Scott on The Innocents, Commentary by director Thomas J. Wright on Collateral Damage, Bonus episode: The X-Files season 7 episode "Millennium", "End Game: Making Millennium Season 3" documentary, "Between the Lines" featurette
Specifications: Full Screen, English Dolby Surround
Studio: Fox
Release Date: 9/6/2005
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website

We'll give Millennium: Season 3 an A.