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I've wanted to pick up the complete series of "The Prisoner" on DVD ever since it was released. I haven't seen a single episode but the premise sounds great. The only thing that keeps me from buying the set is the price. It's hard to justify spending $70 or $80 on something I might not like.

Today I read on AICN that some British channel is remaking "The Prisoner." It just reminded me, yet again, that I want to see the original show. Has anyone here seen it from beginning to end? Is it any good?

I never saw all the episodes but from I have seen I really enjoyed it( PBS used to have it late night oddly enough). Its  surreal.

I want to get the DVDs myself mayb for  X-mas.


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Most of all I hate dancing then work, exercise, people,stupid people

The Prisoner is great.  I only really properly found out about it this year actually, with my only other exposure to it being in an episode of the Simpsons.

Yes it is surreal, but it's also pretty interesting.  Not sure about the cost for the dvds, but I borrowed a few from the library at uni and enjoyed them, but perhaps not enough to fork out $100 on a box set.  But yes, it's a very cool show and I enjoyed it alot!  

There's something about a giant bouncing ball and people being used as chess pieces that really fires the imagination!

I hate this new fad of taking shows that coudl easily be on 3 discs and putting them on 6 to up the price.

They did the same thing with Freaks and Geeks

I watched the whole thing, beginning to end, first-run, on American television.  I have never forgotten it.  
I rented some episodes on VHS a few years back, just to see if it still held up.  It does.  It has the same feel/visual style as the Diana Rigg/Emma Peel episodes of The Avengers.
No, it really is amazing TV -- you can easily watch the episodes over and over again, & if you want to jettison it after viewing, I'm certain you can recover most of your money.
"Who is Number 1?"
"I am Number 2.  You are Number 6 . . .".
It's like a Samuel Beckett play.  One of the single most adventurous and daring things ever shown on commercial TV.  Hell, it's even further out there than most of what you can see on cable, and it's 40 years old(!!).
peter johnson/denny crane

I saw it on late-night TV in the early 90s, but had heard about it long before that. Everything Peter says is true. Freaky, suspenseful, funny, clever - an extremely well written show. I especially enjoyed the two-part finale.

And I still find little things from the show stick with me to this day. Whenever I cook pancakes, I find myself saying "Flapjacks are my favourite dish...Flapjacks, very good dish." Nobody yet has even recognized it as a quote, much less placed it.

Actually, if you want obscure references nobody can place, it's hard to beat the Prisoner. A couple of times, when some long-standing employee at work has complained about not being able to find a better job and move on, I've suggested that when they finally do, a big, white balloon will bring them back. Got me a weird look once and a polite chuckle the next time. I'm surprised nobody gets this one, since Rover was parodied on the Simpsons twice.

I have the entire set on DVD.  I like the show, but it is definitely not for all tastes.  Its is very surreal and political, reminiscent of George Orwell's "1984."  Plus, it's pretty dated and has a very "1960's" look to it.  You might want to rent or borrow one volume to see if you like it before you invest money in the entire series.  But I give it the "thumbs up."

They were running it on BBC America earlier this year on Friday nights along with the Avengers and the Saint.

One of my all-time favorites as far as tv shows go. I've caught several random episodes over the years (I saw a whole slew of them as a child), and I have seen the final episode... I'm curious to see what anybody else thought of that one (if you thought the other episodes were trippy, this one beats them all hands down). I always liked the "bubble"... it kind of reminded me of the blob, bleached and inflated :P

"What do you want?"
"Information.....information.....information."
"You won't get it."
"By hook or by crook we will."

"I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed or numbered."

An excellent series.  Supposedly a spin-off of Patrick McGoohan's John Drake role in 'Danger man/Secret Agent' (although the Prisoner's name is never revealed so you never know for certain).  McGoohan, who wrote the series as well as starring in it, has given vague answers when asked that question, neither confirming nor denying it.  It is known that they didn't use the name because it would have cost too much to for the rights to use it.

I watched this series in reruns as a kid along with the Avengers (gotta love Diana Rigg!) and the Man From UNCLE and have fond memories of them.

And, according to my book on Cult TV, the Village that features so prominently in the series is actually the grounds of the Hotel Portmeirion in North Wales.  They host a number of Prisoner fan conventions....

I have all the episodes on DVD. It is a masterpiece.