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Summary:
A man who calls himself the Judge is the
mastermind behind a number of bizarre murders involving dismemberment,
leading aimless young men to kill those he commands must die. His purpose is
the meting out of personal justice and his interests come to
lie in the unique drive and talent of Frank Black.
Season One on DVD
Full Transcript Available
Quote:
"...the visible world seems formed in love, the invisible
spheres were formed in fright." —H. Melville (1819-1891)
Synopsis:
The cafe in a
Seattle bowling alley. An ex-con, Carl Nearman, stares fixedly at a beefy middle-aged man putting away a healthy
slice of pie. After following him into the parking lot, Nearman knocks
the man unconscious with a bowling ball, and whips out a knife.
A severed human tongue is mailed anonymously to
Mrs. Annie Tisman, a middle-aged widow. Why would anyone send such an item
to someone so ordinary? Bletcher tells Frank that over the last four years,
three people have received severed body parts. Police have found no connection
between any of the recipients, and worse, no bodies.
Frank, sensing an unusual element of mindfulness
associated with the violence, sends for expert forensic pathologist, Cheryl
Andrews. She detects a pattern change in the latest crime: for the first
time, the body part was removed after the victim's death.
Bardale, a violent habitual offender just out of
the penitentiary, is approached in a bar by the mastermind behind the series
of murders, a man who calls himself the Judge. The Judge offers Bardale
a chance to "serve a higher purpose" — the meting out of personal justice. Bardale's first job for his new employer is the execution of his predecessor,
Carl Nearman.
The body of the man in the bowling alley is discovered
and identified as Detective Mellen, a retired Seattle cop. Frank realizes
Nearman could never have plotted such intricate crimes. Someone of sharp
intelligence must be orchestrating the murders. When Frank discovers that
Mellen's false testimony had sent Mrs. Tisman's late husband to jail, he
grasps the killer's motive. The killer is righting wrongs; employing men
already prone to rough and violent justice to do his dirty work.
The Judge delivers his next sentence on Biggs,
a landlord whose negligence caused the death of an elderly tenant. As executioner, Bardale is to amputate Biggs' leg below the knee while Biggs is still alive
and conscious. Biggs' foot is found by a postal worker in a package. Forensic
evidence leads the cops to where Biggs is hidden but it's too late to save
his life.
Frank and Bletcher deduce that the killer must
be another ex-con and are able to track down Bardale who leads them to
the Judge. They take the Judge in for questioning who arrogantly offers
Frank a job. He's certain he'll get away with it, and he's right. The cops
have no tangible evidence, and must release him.
Though he eluded the authorities, the Judge didn't
reckon with Bardale. On learning that the Judge manipulated conventional
law to escape arrest, Bardale passes his own death sentence on the Judge for
hypocrisy. Frank finds Bardale alone in the farmhouse kitchen, who tells
Frank that the Judge was no Judge - he was a pig. Frank finds what's left
of the Judge half-buried in the hog pen.
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Photographs:
- The hooded figure of the Judge
- Frank Black looks closely at a corpse
- Bardale prepares to execute Nearman
- Frank and Catherine discuss the situation
- Frank Black in his basement office
- Frank examines the latest body
- Cheryl Andrews performs an autopsy
- Frank and Penseyres consider the case
- Bletcher assists Frank with evidence
Abyss Rating:
(3/5)
Media Review:
"At
their best the stand-alone, moral tale structure of these episodes —
O. Henry by way of Flannery O’Connor — capture a distinct feeling of
millennial unease, the sense that the violence perpetrated is a direct
result of impending apocalyptic events to which Frank and his family
are inextricably attached." —Keith
Uhlich, Slant Magazine
Trivia:
This episode marks the third and final
appearance of guest star Chris Ellis in the role of Millennium Group
member Jim Penseyres. While it would seem from watching early
episodes of Millennium that Penseyres was being established as one of Frank Black's
primary advisors, the character would never appear on the series
again.
Seen alongside Ellis is renowned actress CCH Pounder, appearing for the first time as Millennium Group forensic
pathologist Cheryl Andrews. The character would hold a minor
but pivotal recurring role on the series, appearing five times over the course of
the show's three seasons.
It is the Judge who first calls the
attention of Frank Black and Millennium fans everywhere to
Mark 5:1-19, the biblical verses
which identify Legion as the name chosen by evil demons who inhabit
the bodies of men. He comments, "My name is Legion." Although the name would not be used again directly on the series, fans
began to use this reference as a means of labeling the recurring evil
forces on the show, identifying the demonic manifestations Frank Black
would come to repeatedly encounter as Legion.
"The Judge" also contains the first of
three noteworthy deals offered to Frank Black on behalf of dark forces
or evil individuals. "How would you like to work for me?" the
Judge asks. Frank refuses, of course, but the offer would come
to be repeated in "Powers, Principalities, Thrones and Dominions."
Death Toll:
3
Title:
The
episode's title is simply the name of its unique antagonist, the
vigilante who calls himself the Judge. The evasive character's
proper name is never revealed during the course of the episode.
Soundtrack:
"Danger" by Steve Goodman
"Short End of the Stick" by Donnie Fritz
"Ten Foot Pole" by Donnie Fritz
Starring:
Lance Henriksen as Frank Black
Megan Gallagher as Catherine Black
Brittany Tiplady as Jordan Black
Bill Smitrovich as Lt. Bob Bletcher
Guest Starring:
Marshall Bell as the Judge
John Hawkes as Mike Bardale
Chris Ellis as Jim Penseyres
Stephen James Lang as Det. Giebelhouse
Brian Markinson as Det. Teeple
Michael Puttonen as Pathologist Massey
David Fredericks as Jonathan Mellen
Kirsten Williamson as Mail Room Worker
J.R. Bourne as Carl Nearman
Donna White as Annie Tisman
Eva deViveiros as Assistant DA Aquila
Kate Robbins as Marilyn
Beverly Elliot as Terry
Gabe Khouth as Parcel Service Employee
Production
Credits:
Production #4C04
Music by Mark Snow
Production Designer Sheila Haley
Director of Photography Robert McLachlan
Associate Producer Jon-Michael Preece
Consulting Producer Ted Mann
Consulting Producer James Wong
Consulting Producer Glen Morgan
Co-Producer Ken Dennis
Co-Producer Chip Johannessen
Co-Producer Frank Spotnitz
Co-Executive Producer Jorge Zamacona
Co-Executive Producer Ken Horton
Co-Executive Producer John Peter Kousakis
Executive Producer Chris Carter
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