It's not the end of the "Millennium," after all

The TV series may have been canceled by Fox, but fans are producing a new season online.

By Howard Wen

Sep 9, 1999 | In the last episode of the Fox series "Millennium," we saw Frank Black and his 6-year-old daughter, Jordan, literally drive off into the sunset. They had survived their latest life-threatening ordeal and were escaping to a hopeful, though uncertain, future.

That future remains uncertain -- because "Millennium" won't return when the fall season starts this month. The TV series was canceled in May after three lackluster seasons.

But an unofficial fourth season of "Millennium" is well into its eighth episode on the Net. The virtual season on the Millennium Compendium fan site is currently "airing" the "Twilight Years" episode, in which Frank Black searches for a gruesome killer, and promises to premiere "Acolyte" on Friday. This virtual season represents the handiwork of 11 fans who are determined to keep the network failure alive, at least until the new year.

"Personally, I always considered the goal for 'Millennium' was to provide an epic introduction to the real millennium through the eyes of Frank Black," says Dan Owen, a 20-year-old salesman at an office furniture company and self-styled executive producer of the "Millennium" virtual season. "So, we're aiming to release the virtual season finale on Dec. 24, 1999. The virtual season seemed the best going-away present we could give the show's memory -- to make sure it reached 2000 in some form."

Owen and Matt Asendorf, an 18-year-old college student and the virtual season's other executive producer, plan to "produce" 22 episodes (including the eight already posted online), matching the usual requirements of a full network TV season. Their job is a bit easier than that of a real show's producers, however, since the "Millennium" virtual season consists entirely of teleplay scripts; they have no plans to try to film the virtual season. The scripts are rich with detail and direction, though, allowing readers to imagine how a filmed version would look. Following the style of the show these fans adored, most of the scripts are self-contained stories, with some continuing the complex story arcs that developed across three seasons on the air.

Why are these guys doing this? They both say they may pursue careers as scriptwriters someday, but that they aren't looking for the "Millennium" virtual season to help them break into the business. It seems Asendorf and Owen are just a couple of dedicated fans who have gotten a little carried away. "Our only rewards are the satisfaction we get from the project and the feedback from the readers," says Asendorf.

Next Page: What is Frank Black up to now?

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