Never mind how it was done! Whether it was the drink of not. It seems strange to my mind that "they" would kill {presuming it was the drink and not simply a spasm, or heart attack} a No.2 who had just succeeded where his predecessors had failed. In that No.2 during 'Once Upon A Time,' had managed extract the reason behind the Prisoner's resignation. Even if he originally would have taken that secret with him to the grave!
I say originally, because do not forget that 'Once Upon A time' was to have been the last episode of the first series of 'the Prisoner,' and not to have been used as a prequel to 'Fall Out.' So in that respect, it's inexplicable as to why a man had to die when he had succeeded in his task, in discovering why the Prisoner resigned! But having another thought, No.6 was in possession of very important information, the Prisoner having resigned for peace of mind, because too many people know too much. Is that why No.2 had to die? Because he was now in possession of that information, which originally he would have taken to the grave! But even then with the commencement of a second series of 'the Prisoner,' the television viewers, at least, would have known the reason why the Prisoner resigned, and so too the Butler!
I'll be seeing you
"...inexplicable as to why a man had to die when he had succeeded in his task, in discovering why the Prisoner resigned." Did No. 2 really discover the reason behind No. 6s resignation? Personally I don't think that any of No. 2s superiors would have been satisfied with the answer "For peace of mind." I wouldn't. And No. 2 was clearly showing signs of weakness because during the "Degree Absolute" procedure he was defeated. I believe the Village wasn't really prepared for this kind of outcome.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand there's something ambiguous about all this touching upon the question whether it was planned right from the start by the Village or those behind it, that there was something in No. 2s wine leaving him apparently dead. The question whether he was perhaps knowingly enduring this state of "half life" until he would be reanimated. His reaction after being awake again, however, speaks differently. And certainly nobody expected the havoc caused later on, the destruction of the whole Village (as far as we know) and the ultimate escape attempt. Quote Neil Young: "More to the picture than meets the eye." - BCNU!
Hello Arno,
DeleteThat's a fair comment. Well No.2 did extract the reason why the Prisoner resigned, even though there might have been more behind it than that. Certainly this No.2 extracted more from No.6 than any of his predecessors had! To me "I resigned for peace of mind" means that the Prisoner had become unhappy with the kind of work he was doing, perhaps even disillusioned. I know I was, and that's why I resigned, twice!
Poor old No.2. It's no wonder he was defeated. He got off to a bad start, having been up half the night before reciting nursery rhymes to the slumbering No.6, regressing his mind back to his childhood, back to the age of 5 years of age.
I'm quite sure that the Village administration didn't expect the result they got, the defeat of No.2. Was No.2's poisoning, if it really was the drink, pre-planned? If it was, then the Administration must have given the butler the instruction before he went into the embryo room, which was time sealed for one week. It might be said that the butler knew of another door to the Embryo Room, or could communicate with those outside. But that's going too far I think. As a friend of mine once said to me "The Prisoner' is what it is."
One thing did stick out in your comment "The destruction of the whole Village {as far as we know}" A friend with whom I correspond in letters, wrote to me about 'Fall Out.' He said that the entire Village was destroyed at the end of the episode. I wrote back asking where he saw that? Had he got an "Alternative" 'Fall Out?' He said that the rocket had a nuclear warhead, which destroyed the Village, hence the title 'Fall Out.' What utter rot I wrote back. Where in 'Fall Out' do we see the Village destroyed? And how did he know that the rocket had a nuclear warhead? I wrote saying he had put the wrong interpretation on 'Fall Out.' If it had been fallout from a nuclear explosion it would have been one word, not two 'Fall Out,' simply meaning that there had been a falling out amongst those in the episode.
I agree there is more to the picture than meets the eye. But sometimes people see more than there actually is. But at other times, 'the Prisoner' is what it is, despite what we want to make it! For example, if No.2 had died, by the time it took for him to be resuscitated, it would have been more likely that No.2 would have suffered brain damage! But he didn't, it is what it is!
Very kind regards
David
BCNU