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Millennium is a grim, suspenseful television series, produced by the creators of The X-Files and set during the run-up to the new millennium, premiering in 1996, but ultimately cancelled in 1999 (see below).

It featured actor Lance Henriksen as investigator Frank Black. Black has the ability to "put himself in the killer's mind" and imagine himself as the killer, though he is not a psychic.

The series was filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

Some episodes of Millennium were released on VHS, some packaged with X-Files episodes, and all three seasons have since become available on DVD. There were also two books based on the episodes written - "The Frenchman" (based on the Pilot episode) by Elizabeth Hand and "Gehenna" by Lewis Gannett.

Origins

Template:Spoiler Chris Carter's original idea for Millennium was a series that would present a more mature point of view of the world from the perspective of a law enforcement officer than offered in his companion series The X-Files. To this end, the character of Frank Black (named after Frank Black, lead singer of the Pixies), was envisaged to be portrayed by an older actor than David Duchovny. Carter favoured Lance Henriksen in the lead role and pushed studio executives at 20th Century Fox to approve Henriksen's casting. Carter also pursued Henriksen personally and finally persuaded the actor to take the role of Frank Black by leaving a copy of the pilot script outside of his hotel room. Henriksen signed up on the strength of the writing.

Carter pitched Millennium to Fox as Seven set in Seattle. The mise en scène of a dark, rain-soaked city and a world-weary detective's hunt for a religiously-inspired serial killer have clear parallels with the pilot episode. The pilot served to introduce the Black family, consisting of Frank, wife Catherine (Megan Gallagher) and daughter Jordan (Brittany Tiplady). The family was depicted returning to Seattle where Frank was born and raised because Frank wanted to protect his family from the evil with which his job as a criminal profiler with the FBI brought him in to daily contact. The end of the episode saw Frank receiving a series of Polaroid photographs of his wife and daughter in an envelope with no return address, setting up a stalking thread that would be resolved in the second season. It is often misconstrued that Frank is "psychic", but Chris Carter has reiterated in commentaries on the Millennium Season One DVD that Frank simply had "a gift", which Frank also stated was "a curse"; there was no tie to being a psychic.

The Millennium Group's symbol is the Ouroboros.

The Millennium Group

Template:Spoiler Frank's initial encounter with the Millennium Group came in the person of Peter Watts, played by Terry O'Quinn. The Group was depicted in this and other season one episodes as being an association of former law-enforcement professionals who were called in to consult on crimes by law-enforcement agencies. The Group recognised that Frank had a unique gift for profiling, as he was able to see into the mind of the perpetrator and deduce motive and psychological make-up from crime scene evidence. Frank's gift was presented on-screen as a series of rough-cut cine-film inserts shot from the perpetrator's point-of-view. When Frank began to understand the mind of the perpetrator, he also began to see the world as if through the eyes of the killer. The debate about whether Frank was actually seeing these visions or that they were a visual shorthand and storytelling device by the producers was resolved in the second season, where Frank confirmed that he sees the visions. This was later carried on with a storyline involving Jordan Black, who was also able to see visions, showing that Frank's gift had continued down the Black family line, one that he inherited from his mother.

The Millennium Group was presented as being a complex multi-facted entity in the second season. Carter had left the day-to-day production in the hands of Glen Morgan and James Wong, a writer/producer team who had previously worked on The X-Files and Space: Above and Beyond. Morgan and Wong took the underlying religious themes of the first season and made them explicit in the origin and nature of the Group. It was divided into two opposing factions, the Owls and the Roosters. The Owls believed in a secular Millennium, where Mankind could be guided through the potential disasters of 2000 and prepared for an astronomical event that was due to occur in the 2060's. The Roosters believed in the Biblical End Time foretold in the Revelation of St. John the Divine. They believed that Mankind could not avoid the destruction that was due at the dawn of the Millennium. Instead, they sought to control the End Time through the release of a modified Marburg virus to which they had an antidote that was given to selected members and their families. The Roosters' plan was implied as negotiating themselves in to a position of control and influence through the status of their members and acquisition of controlled knowledge and religious artifacts such as a piece of the True Cross and the Hand of Saint Sebastian. The motives of Frank's patron, Peter Watts, were also called into question, as it was later shown that he had received protection for his family from the viral contagion but had not helped to protect Catherine and Jordan Black.

End of the series

The final season showed Frank returning to Washington and to profiling work at the FBI. This season had more control by Chris Carter and as such downplayed the religious elements of season two in order to concentrate on spree-killers and other perpetrators. This season also displayed elements of The X-Files' success such as remote viewing and the interplay of psychic and demonic forces. Frank is joined by a young, black female partner, Emma Hollis. The Millennium Group is shown at a distance as Frank is alienated from Peter Watts. The episode "Skull and Bones" depicted a mass grave in the path of a new freeway that contained the bodies of former members of the Group. Later in the season, in the episode "Seven and One", the demonic entity fans have dubbed Legion assumes the form of one of the Group's security men. The implication is that the Group have become corrupted by the very evil it was intended to fight against. Despite Frank's warnings and the evidence of her own eyes, Emma makes a commitment at a moment of personal weakness that sees her isolated from all non-Group assistance and Frank is last seen escaping from Washington having taken Jordan from school.

The series ended not with a bang but a whimper. Episode 7#05 of The X-Files, entitled "Millennium", saw Lance Henriksen and Brittany Tiplady (in a cameo appearance) reprise their roles as Frank and Jordan alongside Mulder and Scully in a tale of necromancy and zombification of former Millennium Group members on the cusp of 1999/2000. Fans have panned the episode's attempt to wrap up the loose threads of the series, criticisms that Henriksen has outspokenly shared in interviews.

"Jumping the shark"

Despite a brief three year run, many believe the series jumped the shark. The season 2 finale The Time is Now is often considered the shark jumping moment for the following reasons:

• Use of bizarre surrealism.
• A major character is killed off.
• The Millennium Group suddenly becoming evil, after having been previously portrayed as morally ambiguous, but ultimately honorable.
• A denouement which painted the writers into a corner.
• The succeeding episode featured what many considered to be a weak resolution to said denouement, as well as a change in setting.

It may be worth noting that these changes were accompanied by behind the scenes turbulence. Writers Glen Morgan and James Wong took over day-to-day production in season two, but chose not to renew their contracts for season 3. At that time Chip Johannesen became executive producer. Carter, meanwhile, was preoccupied with the X-Files movie and Harsh Realm.

Characters

Frank Black -- (seasons 1-3) A criminal profiler with an expert ability to see into the mindset of evildoers. Frank has seen the worst humanity has to offer and stands alone against the rising tide of violent crime.

Catherine Black -- (seasons 1-3) Frank's wife. As a social worker, Catherine is no stranger to the darker side of humanity. Though she was initially supportive of her husband's work, she eventually came to resent the Millennium Group for their secrecy.

Jordan Black -- (seasons 1-3) Frank and Catherine's daughter who has inherited her father's gift.

Peter Watts -- (seasons 1-3) Initially Frank's partner and good friend. A full fledged member of the group, Peter realizes too late that the group has spun out of control due to the demonic influence(s) of "Legion". Initially seen as one of Frank's enemies in season 3 - Frank holds the group, and by extension Peter, responsible for the death of his wife in the rather melodramatic last episode of season 2 - it is revealed later in season 3 that he has, in fact, been protecting Frank and Jordan from the group, which now had designs on Frank's daughter as well due to her early maturity of her own "gift".

Emma Hollis -- (season 3) Emma is a young FBI agent who becomes Frank's protege after he returns to Washington. She struggles to understand the criminal mind, as her sister was murdered by a man with no motive.

Lara Means -- (season 2) A Millennium Group member who shares visions similar to Frank's, but in the forms of angels, which were bringers of warning of imminent danger. She works with Frank on several cases.

Lt. Robert Bletcher -- (season 1) A homicide detective for the Seattle police. Best friend of Frank's and often enlisted him to consult on cases.

Det. Bob Giebelhouse -- (seasons 1-3) Seattle detective with a sarcastic sense of humor and a cynical view of humanity. Initially Bletcher's partner, he becomes the head of Homicide in Season 2.

Andy McClaren -- (season 3) An FBI Assistant Director who worked with Frank when he was an agent. He makes contact with Frank during season 3.

Barry Baldwin -- (season 3) An FBI agent who works on the Critical Incidents Response team. Approaches every case with a smarmy, ex-captain of the football team bravado.

Legion -- (seasons 1-3) An embodiment of pure evil capable of assuming multiple forms. Its standard form was most memorably embodied in the character of Lucy Butler. It killed Lieutenant Bletcher, Millennium Group member Mike Atkins, and Frank's FBI therapist.

Lucy Butler -- (seasons 1-3) Another of Frank's supernatural opponents, Lucy is described as "The Devil's liege" by a terrified serial killer. It is unclear whether or not Lucy Butler is just another manifestation of Legion

Brian Roedecker -- (season 2) Computer specialist for the Millennium Group. Roedecker had a quirky sense of humor and was a big science fiction fan. He was fired from the Group when they started to become more cultic.

Doug Scaife -- (season 3) This character replaces Roedecker. An FBI computer specialist, Scaife appears throughout season 3, becoming especially prominent during the final few episodes.

Mabius -- (season 3) Seen working for the Millennium Group in season three in a variety of evil roles. In his final appearance it is implied that he is a mainfestation of Legion.

Polaroid Man -- Though he only actually appears in a two-part episode, the pilot episode established that this mysterious figure had been stalking Frank for several years, by taking Polaroids of his family. All that was known about the Polaroid Man was that he served in the military, and that he was a former Millennium Group member.

Episodes

Season one

Season two

Season three

External links

• Fox's Millennium website
• The Millennial Abyss
• The Rogue's Eye View
• Morgan & Wong Online
• This Is Who We Are - Millennium Message Board
• MillenniuM Desktop UK
• Sarah-Jane Redmond.com
• Sci Fi Wire: Star Angles For Millennium
• Extensive Review of the entire show (German)

• Science fiction television series
• Drama television series
• Fox network shows
• 1990s TV shows in the United States