Rating: 
Summary: In general a good release.
Review: In general this is a good release. This set is slightly mis-named. You get the following episodes : Arrival/ Free for All/ Dance of the Dead plus Chimes of Big Ben (alternative version). All episodes of The Prisoner are of excellent quality with the alternative version of the Chimes of Big Ben being the major exception. It appears to be taken from a low quality print, the print is scratchy, and the color is off.The set does come with some supplimental material on the DVD. A very challenging quiz, photos, and the trailers for each episode. Overall this was was enjoyable, the quality of the Chimes of Big Ben alternative version was notably less than all others. I would have given this a five, but the no explanation behind the alternative version was something I found distracting, as well as no indication if we would see the other version of the Chimes of Big Ben later in this series was frustrating.
Rating: 
Summary: An odd selection of exceptional inspiration ...
Review: 'The Prisoner' is a one in a million sort of TV production. Not only was it the creation and main task of Patrick McGoohan to flesh out this 17 episode series, but he also starred in it and produced much of it as well. The unique and unconventional material along with its underlying essays about the world, authority, communities and group psychology makes it a work that could only come from one or perhaps two individuals maintaining a firm grasp on the creative side of the project. Made in 1968 it has some rather dated characteristics, yet is far more consuming then anything made these days. Why the DVD contains 3 episodes out of order in the series is a puzzle, although they are 3 very good episodes. People who love good spy action will love this series instantly. Those who like twisted puzzles and strange situations dealing with outer torment and inner rage will really get into 'The Prisoner'. As will those who love good acting, writting, production value and film work. In my book, this series is perhaps the top valued piece of television entertainment ever produced. With so much expression and skill behind a unique creation I doubt many would have room to argue. Sadly this series is a cult classic, and not recognized as more.
Rating:
Summary: DVD release is the BEST order
Review: Can't wait for the release of all The Prisoner episodes on DVD. Something has been made here that the episodes are being released out of order. It may not be that of the original broadcast order, but the release is actually re-ordered to better reflect the original order of the show as McGoohan wanted it. For example, the new order has 'Free For All' second, which makes sense when you see how No.6 acts. He trusts the captors and even says "I'm new here". The original broadcast had this episode 4th. This order has a better progression of No.6's stay in The Village, from confused, trusting captive to rebelling, scheming, untrusting and disharmonious (sp?). This release is being done with consultation with Six of One - The Prisoner Appreciation Society, with the trivia sets by the American Co-ordinator Bruce Clark. The best order of episodes (which the 2 DVDs have followed so far) is: Arrival/Free For All/Dance Of The Dead/Checkmate/The Chimes Of Big Ben/A, B and C/The General/The Schizoid Man/Many Happy Returns/It's Your Funeral/A Change Of Mind/Hammer Into Anvil/Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling/Living In Harmony/The Girl Who Was Death/Once Upon A Time/Fall Out. Enjoy the most fascinating show and a television classic on DVD, I certainly will. be seeing you...
Rating:
Summary: A must see
Review: With The Avengers and Star Trek, this serie almost complete my collection of 60's series. A top quality show who blew my mind when I've watched it for the first time in the 70's (in black and white!). I've just bought the entire serie on DVD in England (17 episodes + extras in the right order) and it's nice to see The Prisoner in full color and with a decent sound.
Rating:
Summary: This is what the 60's were all about...
Review: I'll make this review short. Basically, you need to immediately buy all 17 of the episodes that are being released on these DVDs. You can read why in all the other reviews. One caveat though, the episodes on each DVD are not in sequential order. That probably doesn't matter after the first two or three episodes, but you should try to view them in the correct order if at all possible. In terms of content by episode, yes there were two or three duds that were huge misfires as far as I'm concerned, including the very last episode that doesn't really explain anything at all! But, virtually any of the other remaining shows were absolute classics in their own right. Patrick McGoohan was a genius to have thought all of this up and then so successfully transferred that vision to film. Amazing stuff, don't let this pass you by! If you missed the sixties, this is what it was really all about - "what is freedom?"
Rating:
Summary: simply brilliant
Review: Ah, the prisoner.The ultimate summer replacement television show{it replaced the jackie gleason show for the summer]. Tremendously demanding,infuriating and satisfying. The plot is well known. A top level MI5 agent{how top level?Who IS #1] resigns, then is transported[ingeniously] into a bizzare village,where nothing is as it seems{.Geroge Markstein,a novelsit and co-writer on some episodes,swears he was told of just such"villages" populated with ex-spies after the colkd war began}. The Main character, #6{no nmaes,only numbers are given} is left to fight for his life,sanity and freedom is this dark, brilliant,at times silly drama.Philosophy,religion,politics,mass media,technology are all brought into play,often and well. McGoohan seems often to be saying that we do not have the moral structure inherent to deal with the explosion of technology about us{among many other things.} prophetic,and damn good fun.One of the VERY VERY few masterpieces ever done for televiosion, and i would hazzard,the most demanding series {of its viewers}ever produced.
Rating:
Summary: Original and enthralling.
Review: "The Prisoner" remains to this day to be one of televisions most original series. Through it's short run, in England and then on CBS in the USA, this series captivated with it's mind-bending array of unanswered questions. And, the eerie feeling that this kind of thing could happen to you. If a well trained Secret Agent Man can't escape, what hope would you have? Patrick McGoohan, who also co-created the series, stars as Number 6 a former government agent who won't reveal to anyone why he abruptly quit his position with the agency. Number 2 will stop at nothing to get his answers. Number 6 will stop at nothing to beat the bubble. (You'll have to see it.)
Rating:
Summary: An underexposed, underappreciated groundbreaker...
Review: It is a pity that THE PRISONER is not better known. Then again, it should hardly be surprising, because this series is probably one of the most mind-blowingly subversive ideas ever to reach television screens. THE PRISONER was clearly a labour of love on the part of Patrick MacGoohan, hot of the success of the much more conventional SECRET AGENT and DANGERMAN. Great entertainment AND great food-for-thought, THE PRISONER goes beyond the quirky idiosyncracies of more recent 'groundbreakers' like David Lynch's TWIN PEAKS, delivering a consistent and cohesive message about individuality and the strength of the human spirit, as personified in the nearly-superhumanly strong-willed Number Six. Welcome to The Village, where you are a number, not a free man...
Rating:
Summary: The Most Profound and Enthralling Television Series Ever
Review: One must experience The Prisoner on one's own terms in order to appreciate the sublime genius of the acting, the writing, and the production of the most profound and enthralling television series ever produced. No description or critique of the show, and indeed there have been many attempted since its creation over thirty years ago, can ever compare with seeing and hearing the seventeen episodes oneself. If you possess an exploratory imagination, and if you believe that an individual deserves the right to be an individual no matter what the price, The Prisoner is for you. If, however, you prefer to sit in a cube and spend most of your waking hours in traffic on both the electronic and the asphalt highway, you might want to avoid being confronted by The Prisoner and being presented with the option to be free.
Rating:
Summary: A revolutionary science fiction show
Review: The Prisoner is one of the most, if not the most, revolutionary science fiction show ever. Produced in the milestone year of 1968, this brief English series (17 episodes) discussed with unique boldness themes like information control, torture and brainwash procedures in authoritarian governments. Esthetically, the show mingles influences so diverse as Franz Kafka's The Trial, Orwell's 1984, Ingmar Bergman's Hour of the Wolf, and the James Bond movies. The show was sold to ITC as a non-official sequel to the most popular "Secret Agent/Danger Man" series, starred by Patrick McGoohan. This time, McGoohan acted too as creator and producer, and used his freedom to talk about the role of the individual in a increasing oppressing society. He is an anonymous secret agent who resign his position. But he knows too much; doped by a mysterious figure, he awakens in what seemingly is a luxurious resort in a paradise island. But this place is no spa: is a prison in the open, where no one knows what are the others prisoners names, and in whom can trust. They even don't know who really are their captors: are they from "their" side or from the "other" side? They don't know and the viewer don't knows too. The agent himself receives a code, Number Six. "I am no number! I am a free man!", claims he repeatedly. But he will not be a free man till he succeeds in escape from the island. In the meantime, he have other important task in hand: maintains his sanity and individuality in a ambient where all of his movements are monitored, and where he frequently suffers torture and brainwash. The DVD release is great news. The three episodes are an excelent introduction to the series. "Arrival" is the very first one, where Number Six arrives to the island and meets for the first time the Number Two (the chief warder, a role assumed by a different actor/actress in each episode). "Free for All" is a parody to the election process. "Dance o the Dead" is the first of the "enigmatic" episodes in the show, with a plot that defies understanding. The Prisoner is rich in colors and sounds, that will be more appreciated digitally. The extras are very welcome, too. This series don't have the popularity that deserves, and, consequently, the material about it is very rare.
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