Reviewed: 522666

Contributor: David

MillenniuM - KABOOM

In the Pilot episode of MillenniuM Frank Black informed investigating officers that the killer saw the world “Differently”. It's a single word that could so easily be dismissed as a throw away, non-committal comment with no significance, however in truth it is the foundation of all that MillenniuM stands for. During each episode we were reminded that our perception of the world differs from others and that once their perception is understood evil suddenly becomes rational-perhaps its most frightening guise. Remember - the holocaust was an act of reason.

Elsewhere it has been argued that there is no such thing as an irrational being. When understood in the context of their inner world, everyone's' actions are perfectly rational and our perception of them being evil is ultimately down to us seeing the world “differently” from them. In MLM-105_KABOOM, this exploration of difference and this rationalizing of evil left a sense of regret that he bomber died.

In the course of coming to know him we could see he was simply an example of unbridled sexual energy combined with a deep need to be seen as a hero and accepted by the world. Sexual energy and the need for acceptance are deep rooted human traits common to many cultures hence the bomber here is not an a-bomb-ination of nature, he is nature minus restraint. Had that restraint been available to him, his death could have been avoided-he did not need to die.

This understanding in no way excuses the bomber. As the Sartrerian Quote at the beginning said "I am responsible for everything” but what if, as the quote implied, responsibility is missing? What if the capacity to restrain one's self will is absent? Is it a just society that condemns a citizen for being born without the capacity for self control or having that control removed by years of social conditioning?

Since KABOOM aired bombings by individuals conditioned to replace responsibility with sexual and acceptance-oriented motivations have increased, hence in reviewing KABOOM it is prudent to reflect upon the fact that once again MillenniuM took a subject that could so easily have been reduced to good guys and bad guys out-witting one another.

Instead it takes us on a journey, courtesy of the human, refracting, camera lens (Frank Black) into the heart of darkness and shows us that by taking the time to see the differences we often see the heart breaking similarities. All that separates us is our own capacity to restrain ourselves. Yet how secure is that restraint? How deep does our responsibility lie and do we actually have any?

It reminds me of a haunting proverb I heard concerning the success of our lives:

It depends not upon what we do, but upon what we do not do.

First class stuff this MillenniuM ‐ Or do I just see the world differently