Once Upon A Time (The Prisoner) - Plot Summary

Plot Summary

The Number Two from the episode "The Chimes of Big Ben" (Leo McKern) returns to undertake "Degree Absolute" in a final attempt to break Number Six.

At night, Number Six is brainwashed with one of the "pulsator lamps", and when he wakes up, his mind has regressed back to childhood. With The Butler (Angelo Muscat), they descend to the "Embryo Room" located deep underneath The Green Dome. The doors are locked from the outside, a timer is set, and from this point on the three of them cannot leave the room for a week.

Number Two conducts psychological tests representing William Shakespeare's Seven ages of man (except the age of the lover) to discover why Number Six resigned. They go through the different stages of Number Six's life, with Number Two playing the roles of various authority figures (parent, teacher, coach, employer, judge, officer) while Number Six plays the corresponding subordinate roles (son, student, athlete, employee, defendant, soldier). Throughout the tests, Number Two starts asking "Why did you resign?" every time he detects a weakness. During these sessions, Number Two discovers that his charge has developed a mental block that prevents him from speaking the number "Six". Slowly, Number Two also starts developing a fondness for the prisoner. "I'm beginning to like him," he says after yet another failed attempt to break Number Six.

As the week goes by, Number Six gains strength. A final attempt at interrogation (with Number Two in the role of a jailer and Number Six as a prisoner of war) ends with Number Six appearing to snap, begging Number Two to kill him, stating that his resignation was "A matter of conscience ... too many people knew too much ... I know too much ... I know too much about you!" (a statement Number Two rejects), and finally calling his tormentor a "fool" and "an idiot". Then, suddenly, Number Six speaks the word "six", and counts down to zero, by which time he's his normal self again.

It is left ambiguous as to whether Number Six had been play-acting the entire time, or whether the brainwashing had simply unraveled at some point. As a shell-shocked Number Two lies on a table, Number Six states that Degree Absolute, while a recognized technique in psychiatry, carries risks, particularly if the person conducting the session "has his own problems". This intrigues Number Two, who joyfully explains the entire ruse to Number Six, giving him a tour of the Embryo Room, culminating with the timer - which shows that there are only a few minutes remaining before the end of the session.

Panicking, Number Two pleads with Number Six to tell him why he resigned, and ultimately finds himself crawling in supplication to the prisoner. This ends in a room that looks like a large cage, Number Two explaining that it is stocked with provisions. Number Two pours a glass of wine for each of them and desperately drinks his. Suddenly, Number Six closes the door to the cage, locking Number Two inside. The Butler, who has switched allegiances, takes the key. Number Two paces back and forth like a caged animal; a voice (never explained, possibly Number Six, possibly Number Two himself, perhaps even Number One) taunts "Die!" over and over as the timer runs down. Number Two collapses, apparently dead, as a somewhat regretful Number Six turns to leave. The door slides open and the Supervisor (Peter Swanwick) enters the chamber.

Supervisor: "What do you desire?"

Number Six: "Number One."

Supervisor: "I'll take you."