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Entering a pivotal second year, the face of Millennium would be dramatically altered with major changes in the writing staff and direction of the show. Series creator Chris Carter handed the reigns over to the veteran writing tandem of Glen Morgan and James Wong, who would waste no time in adding their distinctive touch to the series. They quickly abandoned the often-routine ‘serial killer of the week’ format, and replaced it with a fresh assortment of storylines that took the show on a radical, visionary course.

Season two picks up immediately where the first season left off, with the main protagonist Frank Black (Lance Henriksen) frantically searching for his kidnapped wife. Frank’s old nemesis, the shadowy Polaroid Stalker, finally reveals himself in the nerve-racking premiere. Subsequent episodes focus on the aftermath of the two adversaries’ violent confrontation, where Frank appears to lose all sense of control with a brutal attack on the Polaroid Man. Catherine Black (Megan Gallagher) decides to separate herself from her husband after watching the ensuing carnage, and seeing for the first time a different, less stable side of Frank. Their gleaming yellow house, a symbol of the strength of the Black family in the first season, now grows dark with Frank moving out. However, Frank’s emotional realization that his family is slowly disintegrating in front of his eyes is only half the battle in season two.

Much of the show’s focus this year would be on the enigmatic Millennium Group, the organization that employs Frank. When he discovers that the group knew more than they were letting on about his wife’s abduction, Frank becomes enraged and skeptical of the group’s real motives. As time passes, we’re given more insight into the ranks and beliefs of the group in several standout episodes. The sensational midseason two-parter Owls and Roosters sees the pent-up animosity within the group finally explode as a deadly division emerges between its members, when a piece of the cross Jesus was crucified on is unearthed. The group’s members, an assortment of ex-law enforcement agents with beliefs tied into the looming millennium, gradually become more paranoid and hostile as the season forges on.

Season two is a very difficult year to assess, mainly because it veers wildly from taut, ferociously enrapturing episodes to a string of hollow, lethargic duds and back again. After the premiere, things go south in a hurry. The writing swiftly implodes, and episodes become as compelling as watching paint dry. Even as flaccid installments like A Single Blade of Grass and 19: 19 threaten to drown the season in a pool of banality, a sudden and unexpected improvement in the writing breaks through and manages to save the season. Kicking off with The Hand of St. Sebastian, which follows Frank and his partner Peter Watts (Terry O’Quinn) as they travel to Germany to hunt down a mysterious and valuable artifact, the season slowly returns to the knockout traditions of season one. Millennium goes into overdrive with a heart-stopping two-part season finale, when a virulent plague is unleashed and Frank soon realizes that the people he cares for may not be safe from infection.

With a show as dark and gloomy as Millennium, the acting must of the highest caliber in order to keep the audience’s attention, because they sure didn’t come for the scenery or humor. It should come as no surprise then, that the cast is among the best ever assembled for a network program. Henriksen, who was astonishingly snubbed of an Emmy nomination, plays the tortured Frank Black with a methodical, haunting conviction. This year, the audience will see Frank at his worst, with his family dilemmas and a grounded suspiciousness of the group, and Henriksen pulls it off admirably. There are few actors I enjoy watching more than Henriksen, with his deep, gravelly voice and somber demeanor. O’Quinn’s role expands this year, and the increased screen time is definitely a plus for this quiet, observant character. Gallagher, arguably, gets pushed to the sidelines in season two. Save for a couple key performances in the latter half of the year, she is almost wholly absent in the first ten or so episodes. As a whole, you would be hard pressed to find a more talented cast in any TV show, past or present.

This six-disc DVD set is on par with the season one package, in terms of extra features. There are two commentaries, the first with writer Michael R. Perry discussing the outstanding Internet serial killer episode, The Mikado. Perry is easy to listen to, and provides a nice collection of tidbits of information, as well as the real life events that lead to him developing the story. Next up is director Thomas J. Wright for the episode The Hand of St. Sebastian , who is blunt and open about his opinions on the show’s new direction. He praises and criticizes the second season equally, but still provides an informative and appealing commentary track. At half an hour, the making-of featurette is a bit shorter than that of season one, but still covers all the important challenges the show was faced with. Most of the cast and crew are here, (with the obvious exception of Morgan and Wong, who declined to participate) and they discuss the highlights and lowlights of the second year. Rounding out the extras is a tepid documentary of the Academy Group, the organization from which the Millennium Group is based. These men talk about their roles as criminal profilers, which sounds fairly interesting, but their delivery needs work, as I almost nodded off on several occasions. Overall, an acceptable, although by no means extraordinary set of extra features.

While Millennium’s second season would never match the visceral terror and mind-blowing suspense of the show’s first season, the new path the writers chose this year broke the frequently stale serial killer mold and stretched out the group’s mythology. It wasn’t always a success, as this year had more than it’s share of stinkers, but in general, it still could mesmerize at will with a handful of crisp, viciously engaging storylines and top-tier acting. The consistently moody tone and violent imagery would be scaled back only slightly, but the show managed to thrill no less when the writing was on its mark. Although not for everyone, Millennium: The Complete Second Season is an addictive, emotionally potent drama that belongs among the very best television shows of the last decade.

Recommended: Yes