This week we take a look at Millennium’s eleventh episode, “Weeds”, with exclusive comments from writer and co-producer Frank Spotnitz. Find out what he had to say after the jump.
- X-Files regular and executive producer Frank Spotnitz takes the reigns this week for his first Millennium episode.
- Chris approached Frank Spotnitz about working on the show after writing the pilot episode of Millennium; he thought it was “one of the best things Chris had ever written”.
- Frank Spotnitz was asked to work alongside Chris “on both season four of The X-Files and season one of Millennium”.
- Directing is Michael Pattinson. This is his first and only time working within the Carter-verse.
- Supernatural fans, take a close face at young Josh’s unimpressed face! That’s A.J. Buckley AKA Ed from the Ghostfacers! He also appeared in "War of the Coprophages"; he was the kid who saw cockroaches burrowing into his arms.
- Speaking of unimpressed faces, the look on the mother’s face right now could curdle milk.
- Another Bible quotation to start us off, we’ve been seeing a lot of those lately. Frank Spotnitz notes that he “was looking for a biblical motivation for the killer, and the idea of the sins of the fathers being visited upon their sons interested me.”
- Frank Spotnitz also comments that shifting between writing for Millennium and The X-Files was "brutal". He adds that "one year we did full seasons of The X-Files and Millennium and the X-Files feature film. I had never worked harder in my life!"
- Despite the differences between the two shows, Frank Spotnitz says that his writing process was "identical".
- The tall gates and perfect houses remind me of "Arcadia". The Carter-verse likes to show us the darkness behind these kinds of picture perfect settings; in fact we saw something similar only two-episodes ago in “Wide Open”.
- Sheriff Gerlach is played by Ryan Cutrona. He played the Captain in "Nothing Important Happened Today" Part Two.
- John Tasini is played by Andrew Johnson, an X-Files regular. He’s appeared in "Deep Throat", "Colony", "End Game", & "Demons".
- The lady demanding answers is played by Karin Konaval & she knows a thing about being a mother: she played the Peacock’s mother in "Home". She also played Madame Zelma in "Clyde Bruckman’s Final Repose". We’ll see her twice more in Millennium.
- Bob is played by Terry David Mulligan, he played the Mission Controller in "Space".
- Frank Black delivers quite a profile considering how little there is to go on so far. Of course as is so often the case in Millennium, there is more to this than we initially see.
- Frank Black was one of Frank Spotnitz's favorite characters to write on Millennium. Other included Peter Watts whom we have already met, Lucy Butler, and Emma Watts who will both arrive much later on in the show.
- Charlie is watching Land of The Giants. This is 1997 and he has a computer in his bedroom. That would have been quite a rarity back then and serves to highlight that this is a wealthy neighbourhood full of people who have paid to seclude themselves and their famiies away from danger.
- Great to see Cheryl (C.C.H. Pounder) back again. Her presence always adds much-needed diversity to the cast. Her comment about being "stopped twice since I entered the gates", combined with her sideways glance toward the Sheriff, also suggests something deeper underlying. Would she have been stopped had she been a white woman?
- Any sign of Mulder in his red Speedo?
- “I just wanna let him know I’m paying attention.” - Frank Black is always paying attention, even when he seems distracted.
- The Priest is played by Paul Batten; he played Brother Wilton in "GenderBender" and Dr. Seizer in "Piper Maru". I wonder how many hours the makeup team had to put in for those few seconds of flashing visions?
- More than halfway through the episode before we reach the Yellow House and our own place of "safety".
- Way to go Jack, give poor Frank Black a heart attack!
- Oh look, it’s a couple of wannabe cops with a gun- this can only end well. I don't think any of us are suprised that this situation ends with an unconcious kid.
- There’s a similar theme here to the pilot episode, the connection between blood and purification. It's a theme often revisited in religious texts.
- The lawyer is played by Fred Henderson, he appeared in "Beyond the Sea" and "Duane Barry" as Agents Thomas and Rich.
- “Let’s split up.” I’m going to assume these people have never watched a horror movie?
- “Follow the sound of my voice,” *immediately stops speaking*.
- Frank Spotnitz doesn't recall precisely why he chose to end this episode with Bob's suicide. I like to think it is the reverse of the "sins of the father" concept he mentioned earlier, instead Bob's decision to kill himself protects his son from his own death.
Some screencaps courtesy of Chris Nu.