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Summary:
When murder and mayhem become frequent at the estate of the Wisconsin
Attorney General, Frank Black snatches the case from Emma Hollis in
order to pursue the woman he knows to be the source of such evils: his
demonic nemesis, Lucy Butler. Now posing as a nanny, Lucy seemingly
has a vested interest in the politician's daughter. Frank's
investigation becomes dangerously personal when he is once more
reminded of the influence Lucy wields over his life.
Season Three on DVD
Synopsis:
John Saxum, a State Attorney General, resides in an old stately manor house
in Madison, Wisconsin with his wife, Una, and fragile daughter, Divina.
Una tells her husband that, although he is under pressure to announce his
candidacy, she doubts she is ready to become the governor's wife. She believes
their daughter's health is of greater importance. The Saxums realize that
Divina has disappeared into the gardens on their property. Believing Divina
is playing a game of hide and seek, John and Uma search through a hedgerow
maze. Unbeknownst to them, their daughter has been swallowed whole by a
huge python snake slithering around the maze. The Saxums eventually find
Divina, seemingly safe and sound, in the company of her nanny, Lucy Butler.
Meanwhile, Emma Hollis, standing
in front of a slide screen, reviews a particularly troublesome case with
her fellow agents. The victim was a federal prosecutor, who was stabbed
to death in a Pittsburgh motel room. As Emma advances the slides, Frank
takes interest in an image depicting a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania phone book
sitting on a nightstand. The word "saint" is jotted in ballpoint pen over
the letters "PA." Frank rearranges the letters in a series of anagrams
until he hits upon "antipas." After the meeting concludes, McClaren transfers
Emma off the case and assigns it to Frank. Emma is shocked.
Back at the manor, Lucy lays
the groundwork to drive a wedge between John and his wife, prompting Una
to believe that Lucy is having an affair with her husband. An elderly gardener
watches with suspicion as Lucy leads Divina into the hedgerow maze. He
attempts to follow the pair, only to be mauled by Doberman pinschers.
Frank uses his computer to access
Lucy Butler's file. Surprisingly, no current information is available.
He then researches the word "antipas," which leads him to a newspaper story
on the dog attack of the gardener, which transpired in Antipas Gardens.
An angry Emma interrupts Frank's work. Frank tells her that Antipas is
an allusion to Satan. He then shows her Lucy's photograph. Emma counters
that the suspect in the motel murder is a male. Later, Frank pays John
Saxum a visit. He warns him about Lucy Butler, insisting she is responsible
for the death of a Seattle police detective as well as her own child. John
counters that Lucy has been a godsend, and credits her with his daughter'
miraculous turnaround. He threatens to have Frank investigated. As Frank
leaves the manor, he encounters Lucy. He warns her to leave the Saxum family
alone.
When Frank returns to his motel
room, he uses his computer to research "antipas." He finds crime scene
photos of killings in which the victims were all connected to the legal
processing of murders. Later that night, Frank awakens to find Lucy writhing
atop him in a state of sexual ecstasy. As Frank recoils, Lucy transforms
into a demon. When Frank wakes up, there is no one there. Suddenly, there
is a pounding at the door. When Frank answers, he finds Emma standing outside.
Emma reminds him that he called her about the murder of Una Saxum. Frank
tells her he made no such phone call. Realizing what is happening, Frank
scrambles to get dressed. He instructs Emma to have the police dispatched
to Antipas Manor. Meanwhile, Divina lures Una towards the pond in the gardens.
Una sees her daughter's image beneath the shallow water and is suddenly
pulled downward. When Frank and Emma arrive at the scene, they discover Una's body beneath the water, her face having been pecked away by geese.
Frank convinces Emma to arrest
and detain Lucy for as long as possible. In the meantime, he performs research
at the hospital where Divina was born. He discovers a perfect match exists
between Divina's footprint and that of Lucy Butler's dead child. Meanwhile,
Lucy's attorney, Selwyn Wassenaar, demands the release of his client. He
claims to possess evidence that Lucy was the victim of rape. When Frank
telephones Emma with the news of the footprint match, he is informed that
Lucy was set free. Emma explains that Wassenaar has demanded a paternity
test from Frank.
Frank confronts Wassenaar at
the police station. He tells the attorney that he represents the devil.
McClaren assures Wassenaar that Frank will submit to the paternity test.
Meanwhile, John Saxum makes plans to leave the manor, as he is convinced
that something evil is trying to kill him. He drags a screaming Divina
into his car. But when he turns back towards the house, he sees the Long-Haired
Man.
When Frank learns that Emma is
on her way to the manor to interview John Saxum, he jumps into a car and
heads off to find her. In the meantime, Emma finds Divina still sitting
in the backseat of her father's car. She notices the Long-Haired Man and
gives chase. But when she rounds the corner of the mansion, she finds John
Saxum hanging from a noose. The Long-Haired Man lures Emma into the hedgerow
maze. There, she encounters the python, which begins to wrap itself around
her feet. Emma pulls herself loose and runs off, only to encounter a snarling
dog. Frank pulls Emma through the hedge, and the pair make their way to
the car. The Long-Haired Man steps in the path of the car, and is run over.
Frank and Emma exit the vehicle and find Lucy Butler lying motionless on the
ground.
Later, at a hospital, Lucy tells Frank that
they lost "their" baby. Frank assures Lucy that he isn't afraid of her. Lucy,
however, asks if he is afraid for Jordan. |
Photographs:
- Frank attempts to warn the Saxums
- Lucy, as she appears in Frank's nightmare
- Lucy speaks to the silent
Divina
- A troubled Frank Black
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Abyss Rating:
(4/5)
Trivia:
In "Antipas,"
Sarah-Jane Redmond guest stars for the third time as Frank Black's
arch-nemesis Lucy Butler. The episode was co-written by series creator
Chris Carter, the writer who created the character for the pivotal
first season episode "Lamentation."
The unsettling sequence in which Lucy
torments Frank in a sexually explicit dream plays off the
medieval legend of the succubus, a female demon said to descend upon
and have sexual intercourse with a man while he sleeps.
Millennium fans may find it
difficult to forget
Rachel Victoria's turn as the downright disconcerting Una Saxum.
Ten-Thirteen Productions made good use of the young actress' chilling
demeanor by featuring her in a similar role in an installment of
Millennium's successor Harsh Realm, "Three Percenters,"
also written by Frank Spotnitz.
Death Toll:
4
Title:
Biblically, the bishop
Antipas is known as the martyr of Pergamos, one of the seven churches
of Asia named in Revelation.
The Biblical name, often used as an
apocalyptic designation, means "against all" and is a contraction of
the term Antipapas, literally "against the pope" or "opposed to the
holy father."
The
episode's title also links Lucy Butler's activities to Herod Antipas,
the frivolous and vain prince known for
many infamous crimes who faced Jesus Christ before his crucifixion.
Starring:
Lance Henriksen as Frank Black
Klea Scott as Emma Hollis
Stephen E. Miller as Andy McClaren
Guest Starring:
Sarah-Jane Redmond as Lucy Butler
Art Hindle as John Saxum
Rachel Victoria as Divina Saxum
Susan Hogan as Una Saxum
Lloyd Berry as the Gardener
Jay Brazeau as Selwyn Wassenaar
Scott Heindl as the Long-Haired Man
Fulvio Cecere as Detective
Nancy Sivak as the Nurse
John Harris as Agent
Brian Drummond as Agent #2
Production
Credits:
Production #6C13
Music by Mark Snow
Production Designer Mark Freeborn
Director of Photography Robert McLachlan
Associate Producer Jon-Michael Preece
Co-Producer Robert Moresco
Co-Producer Paul Rabwin
Producer Thomas J. Wright
Co-Executive Producer Ken Horton
Co-Executive Producer John Peter Kousakis
Executive Producer Chip Johannessen
Executive Producer Chris Carter
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