This week on Millennium, Frank Black visits North Dakota in an attempt to prevent the birth of a psychosexual killer who has been mutilating horses. Read our recap of "Broken World" after the jump.
- This week’s episode is co-written by Robert Moresco (his second & final credit) & Patrick Harbinson (his first of five for the show).
- Directing is Winrich Kolbe for the fourth and final time.
- It’s worth mentioning from the outset that this episode focuses heavily on animal cruelty. It received a Genesis Award from the Humane Society of the United States, an award given for “raising public awareness of animal issues”.
- This opening always makes me wonder if I put my Little House on the Prairie DVD in by accident.
- This week’s quote comes from Nietzche. The same quote featured in Madonna’s “Living For Love” music video released earlier this year.
- Pulling Frank over just to talk to him seems unnecessarily pushy on the Sheriff’s part. Couldn’t it have waited until they arrived?
- Peter Dumont is played by Donnelly Rhodes, he appeared as Jim Parker in "Shapes" and was also in "Musings of a Cigarette Smoking Man".
- "What would he want with that?"
"He fantasizes using it on her."
"Now, you listen to me, mister! People may get up for that kind of thing in Los Angeles or San Francisco or wherever you come from, but not around here!"
There’s always an element of “these things can’t happen here” in any small community, and it’s why people are so shocked when it does. I would say that Frank maybe should have kept that little fact to himself though, no need for the husband to hear it.
- “No offense, mister, I mean, but, this is a hell of a fuss over a misdemeanor.”
“Would you prefer to wait until he’s killed someone?”
The deputy is played by J.B. Bivens; he also appeared in The X-Files Pilot, “End Game”, and “The Pine Bluff Variant”.
- Could they have possibly created a more stereotypical bar?
- The song playing in the background during this scene is “My Horse is a Harley” by Ron Keel.
- The guy reading aloud at the bar is played by Tom Bougers. He also appeared in “Travelers”.
- Again with the squealing pigs. I'm getting conditioned to associate that noise with horror thanks to the Carter-verse.
- "Now, with no disrespect here, gentlemen -- it was a man that was killed, not a woman; these are hogs, not horses."
"I think it's the same man. He didn't plan this attack. He killed the driver out of rage, not sexual gratification."
This is a fairly big leap even for Frank.
- Franks looks oddly comfortable sitting at that bar. It’s not somewhere we’ve seen him before but I doubt it’s his first time.
- The girl with the horse - Mary Ann - is played by Gillian Carfra. She played Christine Ranford in “Tooms”.
- "Is that my fault? If you're as smart as you say you are, if you know my mind, then tell me, Frank: Where to? What next?"
As we saw last week in “Powers, Principalities, Thrones, and Dominions”, Frank is a popular guy among the unhinged!
- "Where are they headed?"
"Slaughterhouse."
"Foals?"
"Yeah. They're from the P.M.U. farms. We're the only state that still has them."
P.M.U. (pregnant mare's urine) farming has declined since this episode aired due to research that showed an increase in some cancer risk amongst women taking drugs derived from P.M.U. However P.M.U. farms are still in existence in the US and Canada & the Humane Society continues to campaign against them.
- “Maybe I need to see a doctor.”
Is there a medical doctor on this show? I know another show that definitely has one...
- The quotation on Claudia’s wall comes from “Auguries of Innocence” by William Blake. An augury is a sign or an omen.
- Fantastic camera sweep from the cars pulling up outside through the room as the men enter.
- There’s very little communication going on between the team members during this raid. They need to go build a tower of furniture together.
- “You're not going to make any marks on this earth. You don't even rate a footnote.”
- This ending is fairly predictable right from the beginning of the episode.
- No Frank you can’t have a pony…
- Is it weird that I kind of ship these two? If Frank weren’t married, I could totally see them getting together.
- "You ride?"
"Yeah."
"Thought so."
A little insight into Frank to finish up the episode; he’s a horse rider.
Screencaps courtesy of Chris Nu.