Millennium-Season 2: Part 2 (1996)

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General		Extras
Category	Mystery	Main Menu Introduction Main Menu Audio Audio Commentary-Michael R. Perry (Writer) - The Mikado Featurette-Making Of-The Turn Of The Tide: Making Of Season Two Featurette-Academy Group: Victimology
Rating
Year Of Production	1996
Running Time	476:53
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Layered Multi Disc Set (3)	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	4	Directed By	Cliff Bole Jim Charleston Allen Coulter Kenneth Fink
Studio Distributor	Twentieth Century Fox	Starring	Lance Henriksen Brittany Tiplady Megan Gallagher Klea Scott Terry O'Quinn Stephen J. Lang Stephen E. Miller Bill Smitrovich Kristen Cloke Peter Outerbridge
Case	?
RPI	$44.95	Music	Mark Snow

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English Dolby Digital 2.0 (192Kb/s) English Audio Commentary Dolby Digital 2.0 (192Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	1.78:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	1.33:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	English for the Hearing Impaired English Audio Commentary	Smoking	Yes
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

    The downward spiral continues on and on in Part Two of the Morgan and Wong take on Millennium.

    A few standout moments hinting at what could have been make the second half of Season Two much more palatable than the first half. Lucy Butler makes a welcome second appearance in a very creepy effort, A Room With No View and Somehow, Satan Got Behind Me is highly enjoyable, although about as far removed from Chris Carter's original vision as possible. The Millennium Group takes centre stage and the connected episodes Owls and Roosters and the final double hitter The Fourth Horseman and The Time is Now offer some interesting twists and turns and even some dramatic tension.

    Sadly, though, it's too little, far too late. The series is still overwrought and clichéd and Lara Means (Kristen Cloke) continues to pout around dark corridors, adding gradual insanity to her curriculum vitae. And the less said about the ridiculous MTV-esque attempt at art (starring Cloke) in the final episode the better. Pleasingly, Lara Means (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) vanishes from Millennium after Season Two and all for the best.

    As Frank Black, Lance Henriksen still puts in a valiant effort but he's not given a lot to work with. Will he get his family back and return to the yellow house? Or will the Millennium Group force Frank to sacrifice those he loves for a higher cause? The answers are pretty obvious as the series progresses and the final resolution marks what can only be called a very serious misstep in Millennium's development.

    Season Two just doesn't cut it and cannot be recommended to any but the converted. Can Millennium pull it together in Season Three? Perhaps its apocalyptic end has already passed by . . .

    Disc Four

    13. Mikado (43:44) - A sadistic killer broadcasts the live execution of his victims over the internet. When the number of users accessing the site reaches a predetermined level, the victim is murdered. Is the killer Frank's old nemesis, Avatar?

    14. The Pest House (43:41) - A series of killings patterned on urban legends brings Frank and Peter to a Psychiatric Hospital.

    15. Owls (43:40) - A fragment of the crucifixion cross pits the two Millennium Group factions, the Owls and the Roosters, against each other. Both sides attempt to gain the trust of Frank and Lara.

    16. Roosters (42:18) - The sinister Nazi group, Odessa, are revealed to be manipulating the factional fighting within the Millennium Group. The Old Man comes down from the mountains to sort out his flock.

    Disc Five

    17. Siren (43:42) - A beautiful woman rescued from the ocean offers Frank visions of a life without the Millennium Group.

    18. In Arcadia Ego (43:40) - Two women escape from a correctional facility believing that one of them is pregnant with God's child.

    19. Anamnesis (43:41) - A schoolgirl's visions of Mary Magdalene divides her community. The Millennium Group sees greater world implications.

    20. A Room With No View (43:40) - Lucy Butler returns in a creepy and top-notch episode. Teenagers are being kidnapped and shown a special kind of "blue" love.

    Disc Six

    21. Somehow, Satan Got Behind Me (43:43) - Four demons recount their methods of temptation in a donut shop and realize that they have all encountered the same man, Frank Black.

    22. The Fourth Horseman (43:22) - A deadly virus (spread by birds) threatens to bring about the end of the world. The Millennium Group know more than they should and Frank threatens to defect to another group, the Trust.

    23. The Time is Now (42:42) - The end of the world is upon us. The apocalyptic virus starts to spread rapidly. Lara Means goes insane and gets a music video. Frank, Catherine, and Jordan retreat to the mountains to sit out the plague. Will they survive?

Video

    The video quality for Season Two Part Two remains equal to Part One. The series is presented at an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, 16x9 enhanced. Originally shown in full frame 1.33:1, Fox have dropped their game a little with this version. Framing doesn't appear to have been affected adversely, but as I noted in Part One, why switch from the original aspect ratio?

    Sharpness and shadow detail are still variable. Season Two spends less time in the dark compared with Season One and tends toward brighter colours. As a result, the image seems a little sharper than Season One, but not dramatically so. Low level noise and grain are an issue for this release also. Pixelization is plentiful and limited detail is often worsened by posterization. Moire effect is visible on computer screens and aliasing is present in every episode, though not as obviously as Season One. Edge enhancement is plentiful. Film artefacts are practically absent.

    Subtitles are a solid effort and well presented in a white font.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    Part Two's audio transfer continues the good work started in Part One. Millennium is presented with an English Dolby Digital 2.0 track, surround encoded.

    Dialogue is clear and audible, but includes a little crackle. Audio sync is accurate.

    Mark Snow continues his work on the score. His music usually blends seamlessly with onscreen action but does draw attention to itself at times. Keep an ear out for a dark use of Paul Mauriat's classic 60s track Love is Blue: it will never sound the same again.

    Surround activity doesn't draw attention to itself but provides a good level of ambience. There was enough bass information to give my subwoofer some minor work.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Main Menu Introduction

Main Menu Audio

Audio Commentary

Featurette-Making Of - The Turning of the Tide (32:12) - 16x9 enhanced.

    Focuses on the change in direction taken by Morgan and Wong. Writers and directors talk about their ideas, but everyone seems convinced that Season Two was just about a complete success.

Featurette - Academy Group: Victimology (23:25) - 4x3.

    Further insight (see Season One) into the Millennium Group's real life inspiration, the Academy Group. Real life is apparently as bizarre as anything in Millennium.

    The Region 1 release of Millennium presents Season Two in one package. Our release is split in two but is otherwise identical.

    Millennium picks up a little for the close of Season Two but still wallows in cliché.

    Audio and video are good but far from stellar.

    Extras are interesting and informative.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall