TVSquad

(S01E14) If you can believe it, this particular episode is perhaps the strangest of the entire series. It arguably is one of the most famous as well, because it is so different from the rest.

When watching it, you might be interested to know that CBS did not air it originally back in the late sixties, apparently due to some anti-war sentiment expressed by the episode. Whether this is actually true or not is open to debate, but just the same, it makes for interesting viewing.

(S01E09) This particular episode is excellent at playing with your emotions. You already have a good idea of what is going to happen at the end, but you still somehow continue to root for Number 6 to successfully escape from The Village and get back to his normal life.

(S01E08) This time around we get to see what lengths the powers-that-be at The Village will go through to get Number 6 to tell them why he resigned. After engaging in a mind-reading exercise with an attractive fellow resident, Number 6 is removed from his quarters while asleep. We then see him wake up with a moustache and darker hair--or, at least we think that's Number 6. It appears that the new Number 2 is leading a plot whereby an exact replica of Number 6 (Number 12) has been surgically altered to look like our hero Number 6. Got that so far?

(S01E04) "Checkmate" is probably my favorite single episode of The Prisoner. It's a very tight story about how Number 6 thinks he has gained the upper hand on his captors in the Village but ends up being double-crossed by those he thought he could trust.

The chess game using humans as pieces with instructions being shouted out by "the masters" carries with it quite a few allegories, doesn't it? I guess that if you don't have the power, you're just a pawn in their game. (Listen to Bob Dylan's song for that.)

Number 6 still is planning his escape from the Village, and he is on the prowl searching for others to join him. After being persuaded to function as a pawn in the giant chess game, he makes contact with the Queen who, in response to his questions, attempts to steer him to concentrate on the game. Afterwards, they both discuss escape, but he doesn't seem to trust her.

Later on we see the Rook being "treated" at the hospital and he and Number 6 make plans for their escape. The Rook is an electronics expert, so he would be a a natural ally for Number 6. However, as one might have suspected, the Queen is hypnotized to fall in love with Number 6 and is given a locket that also serves as a tracking device.

Do not adjust your web browser. You are now entering the Retro Squad, where we are reviewing past episodes of your favorite shows, in order, every week.

(S01E01) "I am not a number. I am a free man!"

You can't get much more "retro" than The Prisoner, which first appeared on British television in the fall of 1967 and then in the U.S. about a year later. It starred Patrick McGoohan, who also served as the 17-episode show's executive producer. (You may remember him as the warden of Alcatraz in Escape from Alcatraz starring Clint Eastwood.)

When you watch this show, it seems other-worldly. Granted, it's nearly 40 years old, but it also was ahead of it's time, especially in the blending of technology into the stories. (Dig those cool cordless phones!) It also has influenced many television shows and movies (just do a Google search and you'll see what I mean). It's very difficult to talk about a show you've seen many times and have enjoyed for just as long without giving away too much, but let me set you up with the basic premise and take off from there.