The Prisoner - The Complete Series: 40th Anniversary Collector's Edition (10DVD)

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Product Details

Format : Box set, Collector's Edition, Limited Edition, NTSC, Original recording remastered
Aspect Ratio : 1.33:1
Binding : DVD
EAN : 0733961758580
Product Group : DVD
Release Date : 2006-07-25
Studio : A&E Home Video
UPC : 733961758580

ASIN : B000FOQ03C

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Editorial Reviews

From Amazon.com

If a top-level spy decided he didn't want to be a spy anymore, could he just walk into HQ and hand in his resignation? With all that classified knowledge in his head, would he be allowed to become a civilian again, free to go about his life? The answer, according to the stylish, brilliantly conceived 1960s British TV series The Prisoner, is a resounding no. In fact, instead of receiving a gold watch for his years of faithful service, our hero (played by Patrick McGoohan) is followed home to his London flat and knocked unconscious. When he awakens, he finds himself in a picturesque village where everyone is known by a number. Where is it? Why was he brought here? And, most important, how does he leave?

As we learn in Episode 1, Number 6 can't leave. The Village's "citizens" might dress colorfully and stroll around its manicured gardens while a band plays bouncy Strauss marches, but the place is actually a prison. Surveillance is near total, and if all else fails, there's always the large, mysterious white ball that subdues potential escapees by temporarily smothering them. Who runs the Village? An ever-changing Number 2, who wants to know why Number 6 resigned. If he'd only cooperate, he's told, life can be made very pleasant. "I've resigned," he fumes. "I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed, or numbered. My life is my own." So sets the stage for the ultimate battle of wills: Number 6's struggle to retain his privacy, sanity, and individuality against the array of psychological and physical methods the Village uses to break him.

So does he ever escape? And does he ever find out who Number 1 is? "Questions are a burden to others," the Village saying goes. "Answers, a prison for oneself." Within this complete 17-episode set (which contains the entire series), all is revealed. Or is it? --Steve Landau

Amazon.com Essential Video

If a top-level spy decided he didn't want to be a spy anymore, could he just walk into HQ and hand in his resignation? With all that classified knowledge in his head, would he be allowed to become a civilian again, free to go about his life? The answer, according to the stylish, brilliantly conceived 1960s British TV series The Prisoner, is a resounding no. In fact, instead of receiving a gold watch for his years of faithful service, our hero (played by Patrick McGoohan) is followed home to his London flat and knocked unconscious. When he awakens, he finds himself in a picturesque village where everyone is known by a number. Where is it? Why was he brought here? And, most important, how does he leave?

Customer Reviews

Even dressing is an act of defiance! (2007-06-19)

So says the new number Two in an early episode of The Prisoner while watching him getting ready for a new day in the Village.By the way the following review is for the 40th Anniversary Collectors Edition of The Prisoner.This 10 DVD set contains many extras and they include the following:-Rare 8mm and 16mm colour footage of The Prisoner on location in 1966-A 50 minute special "The Prisoner Video Companion"-the alternate version of "Chimes of Big Ben"-rare foreign file cabinet and intro and outro footage-all the production and series trailers-picture galleries for all eps and for the /67 press conference-interactive map of The Village-lots of trivia-a fold out map of The Village-a wonderful interview with the production manager for the series-and a 60 page illustrated booklet containing synopses of all the episodes plus many other bits of Prisoner patterThe only thing missing are interviews with any of the cast including Mr.McGoohan who is conspicuous by his absence but there are many quotes both visually and in print from him.Each of the ten discs come in a slim slipcase with annotated info on each ep,behind the scene factoids and some info on the "order" debate.With regards to the latter I would rather have had this series been released in the original order it was back in /67 than in the more fan friendly version it is in in this set(which is by no means perfect).Now,as in /67 when I first saw this series,I just considered it like a giant jigsaw puzzle.All the pieces were scattered on the table but all one had to do was put them all together and in time the picture would reveal itself.I would like to think Mr.McGoohan himself had a reason for releasing them in the manner he did.However at least they are all here for us to enjoy in any way we feel like seeing them!The picture quality is slightly weaker on the earlier eps than in the later ones with more defects and what I like to call digital shimmering in evidence.In fact the alternate "Chimes" ep is not in good condition at all ....dirty,blemished,colour faded and a terrible sound variance.I suspect little was done to this one but it's at least fortunate that we still have it with us today for comparison purposes,if nothing else.The show itself,as you all probably know by now,is about an agent(arguably John Drake,aka Danger/Secret Agent man) who is kidnapped and taken to a place called The Village.Here he daily undergoes physical and especially mental travails from his captors in order to extract the reason(s) for his resignation and any other pertinent information thereof.The show delves into just about every conceivable discipline which concerns human beings in this world and their condition be it past,present or future.It was a series produced and conceived by the fertile and wonderful mind of its' star Patrick McGoohan and astoundingly much of it was filmed on the fly and brilliantly executed with his talented crew and cast members.It's like a good book which you cannot put down for a second lest you miss some little juicy tidbit of information or special nuance or subtle sub-text.Through it all you come to question your own condition and all one takes for granted in their lives.Freedom...Reality....what are they? Who,if anyone,is working in my best interests? Who is the real enemy ?All these questions and so many,many more are touched on throughout this rollercoaster ride with the protagonist.His search is our search and as many questions as he raises,they spawn many more.I could go on and on but if you have not seen this series I will leave its' interpretations to you......because yours is as valid as any others.And this is what Patrick McGoohan had in mind I suspect right from the start.And this is what makes this arguably the best and smartest show ever to grace the TV airwaves.It may have debuted 40 years ago this year but it has lost NONE of its' impact or appeal.In fact I daresay it has MORE to say to us than ever before.

Who is Number Six? Answer is in The Bible/Hebrew Numerology (2006-06-21)

This is not so much a review of the series itself, which I find to be excellent, but on a bit of symbolism. In virtually every episode, the main character insists "I am not a number. I am a free man!" Why, then, does the main character never say his name? And why is he called "Number Six," and not some other number?I suspect part of the answer goes back to the medieval character of "Everyman," who represents an individual person apart from his or her society. Not specifying a name may be because the character represents all of us. Certainly this theme is commonly identified with the series, and has been discussed many times before.But what I have yet to see discussed is the biblical connection. In Jewish and Christian scripture, the number six represents the sixth day of creation when God created Man, male and female. The number six is thus recognized in Hebrew numerology and Christian apocalyptic prophecy as "the number of Man." Thus, calling the main character Number Six may be saying, "you are Man." I believe that is why he is called "Number Six." As Everyman and as Number Six, he represents us all.

all-time great series, box set lacking... (2004-06-16)

i want to say first off that i'm a huge prisoner fan. i loved the series from beginning to end for all that it is. this review will be only of the dvd box set.ok, the audio and video quality are fantastic. but here's my gripe: 10 discs for a 17 episode series? talk about being greedy! they could have easily had 4 episodes to a disc. even if it were 3 episodes per disc leaving the final disc chock full of extras that would nearly cut this set's size in half. speaking of which the extras in this set are nothing special. theres not even an interview with patrick mcgoohan!i'm lucky i got mine at a bargain or else i never would have bothered.

The Archetype Prevails (2004-06-02)

There are no greater television shows than "The Prisoner". Not ever. Perhaps shows such as "MASH" or "Twin Peaks" rise high enough to catch a glimpse of Patrick McGoohan's Big Idea racing off into the distance but they will never catch up. "The Prisoner" is one of the few works of art in the twentieth century that actually deserve to be called revolutionary. But, Patrick McGoohan, the show's creator and star, has no time whatsoever to rebel against things that lesser figures and would-be rebels wish to rebel against -stoking up the fires of their tiny egos. McGoohan means business and his series, "The Prisoner" rushes up to all of the Big Questions and grabs them by the neck. "The Prisoner" is a declared war against tyranny in all of its forms: sexual attraction, the lure of comfort, the facade of democratic politics, science, fundamentalist anti-science, conservatism, cheap liberal progressivism, group-think in any form at all including "individualism" (which is just another form of group-think),the ultimate prison which is one's self, and more. Number Six, played by Patrick McGoohan himself, is absolutely relentless on his assault upon the Village which would keep him there against his will. And he desires to leave no matter what wholesome blandishments are offered to him. In that way, Number Six is a greater human being than most of us. He is more than a common human individual living out his life. He is an archetype. He can never quite escape but the octopoidal snares of the Village can never quite hold him. In that way, his story resembles the myth of Sisyphus. And yet Number Six is more than Sisyphus. I will not give the end of the series away but I will say that at the end Number Six comes to a true understanding of himself. The only good true understanding of one's self is if that understanding destroys the cycles. The strangest idea at the base of "The Prisoner" is the idea that morality itself, at its most secret heart, is the ultimate form of rebellion. Number Six has a devotion to pure justice, profound freedom, actual compassion ( as opposed to its sentimental counterfeits), and rigorous truth telling that is so extreme - more extreme even than the great Jewish prophets in the Bible - that he actually is an archetype, and not merely a single human being. Number One is the secret Archon that rules the Village. The Village is, of course, demon possessed, though the demons mostly reveal themselves as Angels of Light. Under Number One is paraded a grand series of Number Two's. They come and they go. Each one of them is yet one more attempt to seduce or brutalize Number Six into giving up his freedom. One of the strangest things about this series is that Patrick McGoohan's idea of freedom rejects both the dionysian and the apollonian as categories of human thought and endeavour. McGoohan believes there is a third way that carves its own path, disdainful of the sharp and controlled, fascist geometries of the apollonian and compassionately rejectfull of the oblivion and disintegration offered by the dionysian. No better show exists. I don't think the fifth grade schoolboy bullies who dominate Hollywood or the television studios could allow such a great work to be made or shown on television today. But that is both their fault and their impotence. The Number Two's come and go but the Archetype prevails.

The Girl Who Was... Death (2004-05-10)

Fans of the Prisoner should know that a very stellar band from Slovenia made an epic song totaling over 40min completely devoted to the themes of the show. The band is called Devil Doll. It's something that has to be heard to be believed. "Devil Doll is a musical maelstrom that has defied every modern convention applied to music and has somehow created something that will last forever, spreading like a virus and intensifying with age". They have five albums: The Girl Who Was... Death, Eliogabalus (2 tracks original far longer), Sacrilegium, The Sacrilege of Fatal Arms (original soundtrack, reworking of Sacrilegium), and Dies Irae. Each one of those albums is a single song with the exception of Eliogabalus but it still only has two.

About the set it's a wonderful series. Unfortunate that it's so overlooked here in North America.

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