Millennium was a critically acclaimed, award winning hour-long apocalyptic drama series which was produced by the Fox Television Network in the United States between 1996 and 1999. It was based on an original idea by Chris Carter, who also created The X-Files and is produced by his Ten-Thirteen Productions.

Millennium aired in the USA from the fall of 1996 (winning the People's Choice Award for Best New Drama in 1997) to the spring of 1999. Three full seasons of the series were produced, a total of 67 individual episodes. Each season of the series had its own distinct style and unique elements as a result of the regularly shifting executive producers who supervised its creative process. Chris Carter oversaw production of the first season, writer/producers Glen Morgan and James Wong were promoted to supervise the second season after already contributing first season material, and Chris Carter returned alongside writer Chip Johannessen to guide the show's third and final year on the air.

Millennium starred Lance Henriksen as Frank Black, a retired FBI criminal profiler who struggled against the increasing presence of evil in our society at the brink of the year 2000. To protect his family, Frank Black left the Bureau and moved with his wife Catherine (Megan Gallagher) and daughter Jordan (Brittany Tiplady) from Washington, D.C. back to his hometown of Seattle. Frank was approached by a mysterious and powerful organization known as The Millennium Group, a collective of elite and specialist ex-law enforcement personnel working to fight the force of evil that was increasing as we approached the forthcoming Millennium.

Actor Lance Henriksen brought an incredible depth of character to the pained Frank Black, earning both himself and the character he portrayed a special place in the hearts of Millennium fans forever. With Lance's craggy looks, the role was perfectly cast, indeed the show and its lead character were conceived by Chris Carter with Lance in mind. Many have identified with Frank Black, his moral code and dedication to his family.

Incredibly dark and with often terrifying violence for the confined realms of network television at the time, the show is appealing to many for these exact reasons and also for its amazing imagery, atmosphere and mythology. It requires an intelligent mind to appreciate its more subtle qualities, background information and trivia. And then of course, there is composer Mark Snow's beautiful soundtrack, which many consider to be his best to date. After a long wait, Millennium is finally available to buy on DVD and should not be missed.

Millennium Season One

"wait ... worry ... who cares?"

Millennium is without a doubt one of the most powerful and unique drama series of all time. Season One contained 22 episodes exploring the darkest depths of the human soul and the most sickening portions of the human mind whilst introducing us to Frank Black and terrifying serial killers such as Richard Alan Hance, characters such as The Judge, The Polaroid Stalker and evil personified Lucy Butler. It also introduced the mythology of 'Legion', a controlling supernatural range of the most evil characters and their instruments upon the physical world perhaps working for Satan himself.

Millennium Season Two

"this is who we are ... the time is near..."

Whilst Chris Carter left Millennium to deliver the X-Files Movie, Executive Producer's Glen Morgan and James Wong took over for Season Two's 23 episodes and introduced us to a world of Demons, Angels, mythology and the conflict between Science and Religion. Morgan and Wong wanted to let the viewer see more of Frank Black's character and to open up the mysterious Millennium Group and explain its history after Season One was criticized for being too dark and violent (for many its appeal).

Darin Morgan occasionally delved into a twisted, black sense of humor bringing some light to the perpetual darkness of Millennium. Kristen Cloke's outstanding portrayal of the confused and tormented Lara Means brought speculation as to the relationship between herself, Frank and Catherine Black. Meanwhile as Frank and Lara were initiated into the Group, internal struggles and long standing issues were brought to closure, but not without causalities.

Due to falling ratings caused by almost nonexistent promotional spending, Morgan and Wong understood the series was to conclude at the end of Season 2 as their one season contract matured and so Darin Morgan made the suggestion to end the world.

Millennium Season Three

"wait ... worry ... the time is near"

For Season Three's 22 episodes, Chris Carter returned to bring the series back to its original premise whilst Frank & Jordan Black returned to Washington, D.C. However Frank's friend Peter Watts and the Millennium Group became chilling, darker and evil as Frank Black grew more determined to make them accountable for their actions, something which disappointed many fans.

The show quickly downplayed the viral outbreak conclusion of Season Two and featured an open-ended conclusion leaving more unanswered questions and a need for closure. This was attempted in the X-Files / Millennium Crossover episode but for most fans it simply offended the ideas and premise of the original Millennium series and characters with many choosing to ignore its events entirely and to treat the final episode of Season Three as the series actual conclusion. Season Three however, contained many outstanding episodes and saw the return of many characters, sadly missed.