I can't believe I just started a review with an excuse, with an apology, but that is the only way to explain this series. It was the 60s.(A smart reviewer would end the review after that simple 3-word sentence, but I can't, IMDb has minimums, and you don't mess with their rules.) The spy thing had more or less peaked by 67, but McGoohan's street cred was still amazingly high. Of all the spy guys, he was the only one that had insisted (Danger Man) that violence be kept to a minimum and guile to a maximum; he was the only one to have achieved such a strong international demand that a UK production actually was being repackaged (with a new name and theme song) for American audiences (Avengers notwithstanding, save that for another review!); and he even snagged a middling role in an international movie entirely on the basis of his spy "persona" -- ICE STATION ZEBRA. Well, against this backdrop of success (and, I repeat, IT WAS THE 60s!) Patrick pulled a "Tom Cruise" and put together his own production, based on on his own idea, and starring (surprise!) himself. It was quite successful. Never mind that no one completely understood whether the story was to be taken literally or allegorically - the last episode ended with the head of the village revealed to be a simian! -- and never mind that it was PAINFULLY obvious from day #1 that he was never going to escape (otherwise, what is the point?), the series snagged both a mainstream AND a cult following (wow) and remains both popular and enigmatic to this day. Now, if you have read my other reviews, you know that this is the point in the review where I usually explain why a series like this was so oddly successful, in spite of the terminal gloominess, the repetitive plot arcs, and the fact that even McGoohan's charisma has its limits...? Three 3 word answer? It was the 60s.
Review of The Prisoner
