I'm presently contributing after doing research on and becoming increasingly fascinated with "The Prisoner" series. To date, I'm heavily immersing myself in the late-night Friday showings of each episode on Channel 13.
The indiscernible warden-prisoner concept used in this episode is the foundation for an upcoming movie's (Das Experiment) premise. Just FYI.
Once again in this episode the Villagers become immobile when Rover passes by. However, in "Dance of the Dead", they don't. (Of course, that the Villagers do stop is a central plot point to this ep.)
Number 14 ("The Man With the Stick", the White chessplayer) comments that Number 6 "must be new here." This makes this episode another early one.
Wonder where Number 6 got the newspaper in which he marks whether a Villager is a pawn or one of TVPTB? If look carefully, you can see that one of the papers' articles has something to do with "Drivers" and "the police". As not many people drive in the Village and there are no policemen in the Village, it must come from an outside source.
Given that there are over 200 Villagers, how could that one little chess box, Number 6 marks off, help him make a list of who is a Pawn and who isn't? There's definitely not enough space there.
Number 6, when talking to the Rook, refers to himself as a Prisoner. This is the second time in the series that word has been used to decribe 6.
During the word association with the Second Psychiatrist, Number 39, there is a bit of an in-joke. Number 39 says, "Free". And Number 6 responds, "For all."
When describing the experiment to be performed on the Queen (Number 8. Yeah, strange that I've chosen that number for my username on The Prisoner boards.), the Lead Psychiatrist, Number 23, stands behind the Queen's wheelchair. The camera has a shot from in front of the wheelchair and Number 23 stands slightly to one side. She tilts her head to look at the Queen. The next shot is from behind the wheelchair and Number 23's position and posture is completely different.
Hm. The phone Control uses to call Number 2 is yellow. The phone with which Number 2 answers Control is red. Shouldn't the phones be the same color?
The road down which Number 6 drives Number 53, the Rook, is the same road seen in "Arrival". It's the road from the Hospital which had a cow in the pasture.
Control loses track of Number 6 and the Rook. Number 56, the Supervisor, suggests that they might find the two prisoners on the monitors. However, only one monitor (Camera 34) is used. And that's the very monitor the Rook deactivates. When he does, he raises and tilts the camera to get at its inner workings. You'd think Control would have noticed such an odd view change.
Patrick McGoohan's publicity photo once again is used in this ep. This time it appears in the Queen's locket.
Wonder why the Queen didn't think it was strange that her locket had wiring in it? She knew it had 6's picture in it, therefore she has seen the insides of the locket. So why didn't she notice the wiring?
Isn't fortunate that the Queen's locket contains all the circuitry that the Rook needs to complete his project?
Interesting that when Control uses radar to search for the troubled "airplane", they at first try a 12 mile radius, then a 6 mile radius. Twelve, of course, is 2x6.
The ending is a bit chilling: the Butler takes the pawn that represents Number 6 and replaces it on the chessboard.
In "Dance of the Dead", Number 6 learns to "never trust women..." This episode shows how well he's learned that lesson as he refuses to believe that the Queen could in any way be sincere in her affection for him.
In "Arrival", the Ex-Admiral, Number 66, informs Number 9, "We're all pawns here, ma'am." This episode brings home and amplifies that theme. In a decidedly literal way.
It should also be mentioned that this is probably the most iconic episode of The Prisoner. Images from this ep are often used for various ads, books and articles for the series.
The original title of "Checkmate" was "The Queen's Pawn". It was changed at the last minute.
Be seeing you.
In "Dance of the Dead", Number 6 learns to "never trust women..." This episode shows how well he's learned that lesson as he refuses to believe that the Queen could in any way be sincere in her affection for him.
I figgured that Number 6 knew that it was some kind of plot because Number 8 was acting like they had been an item for a while. Obviously, he knew that they had only recently met.
Yes, I would also seem a bit put off and suspicious if a woman I had just met started acting as if we were an intimate couple.
...Although there could be an advantage to it, if you think about it.
During the opening credits when No. 2 and No. 6 are having their usual question & answer sequence, it sounds like another No. 2 (maybe Colin Gordon) and then switches to Peter Wyngarde (the one in this episode).
No. 6 and the Rook are watching a chess match and discussing their escape plans. No. 2 (or the Supervisor) switches on the audio and suddenly they are talking about the chess match. Then when the audio is turned off, they're back to talking about their plans. How did they know when the audio was on or off? And if they know somehow, wouldn't that make it hard for the Village to eavesdrop on people?
Patrick McGoohan's publicity photo once again is used in this ep. This time it appears in the Queen's locket. - Benn
It wasn't his publicity photo, it was some other picture, maybe a still from another episode or from Danger Man.
Wonder why the Queen didn't think it was strange that her locket had wiring in it? She knew it had 6's picture in it, therefore she has seen the insides of the locket. So why didn't she notice the wiring?
Well, if she was hypnotized to think she was in love with Six, she could be made to overlook the wiring.