The Fourth Horseman - Millennium Episode Profile

#MLM-222 The Fourth Horseman

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Episode Summary

As Lara Means disappears under strange circumstances, Frank Black and Peter Watts come to investigate a horrible death that looks so gruesome they assume it was a foul murder. Medical science states otherwise, tossing the two into a strict quarantine procedure to investigate their exposure to a horrific doomsday virus. Frank demands answers from Peter regarding the Millennium Group's knowledge of these events and considers joining an opposing group, The Trust, to get to the truth of the matter.

Main Crew

Written by Glen Morgan & James Wong
Directed by Dwight Little
Edited by Jim Thomson

Main Cast

Lance Henriksen as Frank Black
Megan Gallagher as Catherine Black

Guest Stars

Bill Dow as Dr. Schroeder
Glenn Morshower as Richard Gilbert
Kristen Cloke as Lara Means

Supporting Cast

Anna Hagen as Mom
Boyan Vukelic as Greg Davis
Curtis Bechdholt as Tim Davis
David Longworth as Farmer Duffy Deaver
Eileen Pedde as Dr. Miriam Greenwald
Fred Henderson as Agent Russell
Leslie Hopps as Jennifer Davis
Lindsay Bourne as Physician No. 1
Terence Kelly as Dad

Uncredited Cast

Clayton Watmough as Millennium Group Member (III)
Max Wyman as Group Member

View full credits

Quotation/Proverb

"So I looked, and behold, a pale horse. And the name of him who sat on it was death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given to them over the fourth of the Earth, to kill with sword, with hunger, with death... and by the beasts of the earth." - Revelation 6:8

"How long, Lord - how long will the wicked triumph?" - Psalms 94:3

Seasonal Episode Tagline

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

Biblical Reference

Revelation

6:2 And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.

6:4 And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword.

6:5 And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand.

6:8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.

Synopsis

In Wisconsin, in 1986, a farmer discovers thousands of dead birds inside his chicken coup warehouse, pools of blood encircling each cage. The farmer races for a phone, but collapses on his hands and knees, black papules having grown over his lymph nodes.

In the current day, Frank receives a visit from Richard Gilbert, an ex-FBI agent. Richard offers Frank the opportunity to join his "security dream team," which is nicknamed The Trust. Their conversation is interrupted by news that Frank's father has passed away. Frank, Catherine and Jordan attend the funeral, where Jordan asks questions about death. When Frank returns home, he attempts to contact Lara, but his messages go unanswered.

The body of a thirty-two year old man, Jason Molgilny, is discovered on the shore of a remote lake. Six pints of blood have spilled from the body, but there is no evidence of foul play. A pathologist, Dr. Schroeder, determines that the victim drowned in his own blood, possibly from a viral infection that overtook his body in a matter of minutes. The pathologist orders everyone who came in contact with the victim, including Frank and Watts, to be quarantined pending blood and cell sample analysis.

Sitting in his quarantine cell, Frank phones Watts and accuses him--and the Millennium Group--of knowing what caused the victim's death. During the conversation, Watts begins reciting passages from the Book of Revelation with an almost psychotic fervor. A short time later, a team of physicians wearing hazmat suits enters Frank's cell. Frank notices something peculiar about the men, but isn't quite able to pinpoint the cause for his concern. A physician wearing a plain lab coat enters the cell. He explains that both Frank and Watts appear to be normal, and no known infectious agent could be located in their blood. When Frank is released, he tells Richard he is prepared to accept his offer and join The Trust. But he explains that he cannot leave the Group without "rescuing" his friends.

As the Davis family enjoys a chicken barbecue, family members are suddenly overcome by seizures. One by one they drop to the ground, seemingly sweating blood.

Catherine tells Frank that Jordan has been experiencing recurring nightmares in which a group of "bad men" enter a jungle. Shortly thereafter, angry monkeys, covered with blood, emerge from the trees. Eventually, within the dream, Jordan sees no one else in the world other than her parents, who are in a cabin in the woods. Catherine is at a loss to explain how a six-year-old girl could concoct such imagery. Frank considers the dream... then asks Catherine to find a doctor she can trust, one willing to perform some secret tests. When Catherine protests that the tests would aid the Group, Frank agrees that the Group is, in all likelihood, a cult. Unwilling to allow Jordan to grow up without a father, Frank promises Catherine he will quit the Group and return to the yellow house, where they will live as a family... as soon as he finishes one last task. Catherine arranges for Frank to meet with a doctor. He instructs the physician to perform some tests and keep the results a secret.

Richard performs some surveillance work, and learns that Watts has been in contact with Lara Means. Frank drives to a remote location where Lara is believed to be living. After overcoming a security man, Frank secretly makes his way through a wooded area, and observes a scene through binoculars. He discovers Watts presiding over a ceremony, one in which Lara is being inducted into the Millennium Group.

Frank buys Jordan a parakeet, believing it will help her deal with her feelings. He also asks her about the dreams. Jordan tells him, "we should leave the monkeys in the trees."

Eventually, Frank makes contact with Watts. He tells him that the mysterious team wearing the hazmat suits injected them both with a vaccine while they were in quarantine. He also tells Watts that the Group is an illusion, one not interested in the end of the world, but in controlling it. Watts admits the Group is not who he is... but came to him at a moment in his life when he was most vulnerable (when he discovered the body of a decapitated boy floating in a cooler on a lake). Frank encourages Watts to help him investigate the Group. Watts responds by stating that if he should do so, and his motives are discovered, he will be killed. He also predicts the exact moment an earthquake will strike. He tells Frank that if his prediction should come true, he must accept the offering to become a full member of the Group, with "no more questions or doubts."

As the clock strikes 4:13 a.m., Frank receives a phone call from Lara. She tells him that there is no need to doubt the Group or its intentions. The connection suddenly goes dead... and seconds later, as Watts had predicted, an earthquake rattles the city. As Frank moves through his house, he notices the parakeet, dead in its cage.

TO BE CONTINUED

Background Information and References

There is no background information or references relating to this episode of Millennium.

Episode Trivia

Morgan and Wong chose a genetically engineered variant of the Marbug virus as their apocalyptic initiator. Similar in its effects to Ebola virus, the Marbug virus existed as a part of the Russian bio-weapon arsenal, just as Peter Watts notes in the following episode. The Centers for Disease Control explain, "Marburg virus was first recognized in 1967, when outbreaks of hemorrhagic fever occurred simultaneously in laboratories in Marburg and Frankfurt, Germany and in Belgrade, Yugoslavia (now Serbia). A total of 37 people became ill; they included laboratory workers as well as several medical personnel and family members who had cared for them. The first people infected had been exposed to African green monkeys or their tissues. In Marburg, the monkeys had been imported for research and to prepare polio vaccine."

When discussing the corporate security group known as the Trust, Richard Gilbert drops the names of several agents involved in the organization. "The rest of us you know from the old Bureau days," Gilbert comments. "Duncan, Vitaris, Brian Dixon." Each of these names corresponds to a prominent fan active in following the television work of Glen Morgan and James Wong. Kate Duncan is a dedicated follower of Morgan and Wong's sci-fi drama Space: Above and Beyond. Paula Vitaris, a freelance writer for such magazines as Cinefantastique and Starlog, regularly penned magazine articles regarding Morgan and Wong's work in television.

Brian A. Dixon is the webmaster of the Millennial Abyss.

Credit: Brian Dixon, The Millennial Abyss

Original Fox Promotional Episode Stills

View the 13 available original 1996 Fox Millennium Episode Guide images for this episode of Millennium here.

Mortality Count: 

0 Deaths

(Comprised of 0 murders + 0 kills in self defence + 0 justifiable homicides + 0 suicides.)

Violence Markers

• Millennium Group Member was responsible for the attempted murder of Frank Black during this episode of Millennium (The Fourth Horseman).

(View Millennium's Violence - Deaths, Killers, Victims and Criminality Analysis)