Millennium (TV Show)

Starring: Lance Henriksen, Megan Gallagher, Terry O'Quinn, & Brittney Tiplady

Rating: 2 1/2 out of 5 stars

Following the initially success of the X-Files in 1996, creator Chris Carter introduced Millennium as his next big project, and after initial success, it looked like it could be the next big thing, but soon after it fell flat on it's face. 

Frank Black (Lance Henriksen) was the best homicide detective the Seattle P.D. had ever seen. He has this special ability to think like the killer, to get inside their head, and to see their actions. For this, his colleagues often thought of his as more of a suspect instead of an investigator, and it's hard to write on a police report about how he solved a crime by walking in the killers shoes, so he left the force and began working for the mysterious Millennium group. An agency that recruits people with abilities like his to track down and catch serial killers.

The premise behind this show is fantastic, and I loved the whole genre behind it. The show was very dark, set in the always grey and rainy Seattle Washington, it was methodical and creepy, but what I didn't like was the casting. Frank has this great ability, this beautiful young wife, a young daughter, is starting this new career, and he's played by a guy who is fifty-five years old! Lance Henriksen can't chase bad guys and protect his family anymore, he's not the action hero he once was, the lead character doesn't fit the role, and it was a glaring problem! 

Second, the show was left to fend for itself before it had any kind of following. Originally it was paired with the X-Files and did really well, but the rating for X-Files started dropping and Fox immediately put it back on Sunday nights, leaving Millennium all by itself after only ten episodes. The ratings starting to drop and before you know it, it's was on Friday nights and only on the air to keep Chris Carter happy. 

If this show was paired with X-Files and had it featured some young, hunky action star with eye appeal as well as these fantastic abilities, I think this show really could have been something, but having a guy who is nearly a senior citizen, running around with a hot wife and a little girl, trying to solve crimes like he's Mulder, just didn't work out. Chris Carter is a fantastic writer and very imaginative, but in this case he let the network destroy an idea with a lot of potential.