I treated myself to watching "The Prisoner" back-to-back on DVD over the last couple of weeks. I had only the vaguest of memories of it all. Reportedly, Patrick McGoohan's initial desire was that the series comprise just six episodes, and candidly that would have been about right. Although there is much debate about the correct sequence for all but the first episode and the last two (of 17 that were eventually produced), there are out of those perhaps ten that are tight, interesting and at least deserving of a McGoohanesque smirk. After a while, a lot of the episodes become so obtuse as to be almost unwatchable. In some respects, it reminds me of "Twin Peaks", another of my favorite series of all time, which gradually descends into self-absorption. Still, at times its originality and brilliance are unmistakable.
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