Special Assignment (''Captain Scarlet'')

"Special Assignment"
Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons episode
Episode no. Episode 10
Directed by Robert Lynn
Written by Tony Barwick
Cinematography by Julien Lugrin
Editing by Harry MacDonald
Production code 20
Original air date 1 December 1967
Guest appearance(s)

Voices of:
Gary Files as
Kramer
Casino Croupier
Nuclear City Security Chief
Martin King as
Steele
Garage Attendant
Shane Rimmer (uncredited) as
Mason[1]
Jeremy Wilkin as
Arizona Bartender

"Special Assignment" is the tenth episode of Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, a 1960s British Supermarionation television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and produced by their company Century 21 Productions. Written by Tony Barwick and directed by Robert Lynn, it was first broadcast on 1 December 1967 on ATV Midlands.

In this episode, after the Mysterons threaten to destroy North America, Captain Scarlet appears to betray Spectrum.

Plot

Driving a car, Captain Black (voiced by Donald Gray) pulls into a filling station and murders the attendant, Mason, by running him over. The Mysterons create a replica of Mason under their control. Later, con artists Kramer and Steele arrive requesting maintenance. Instead of topping up their car's brake fluid, Mason's reconstruction drains it. Back on the road, Kramer and Steele are unable to stop at a cliff edge and are killed when their car crashes onto the slope below. They are then replicated by the Mysterons, who transmit a message to Earth in which they vow to destroy the whole of North America.

Colonel White (voiced by Donald Gray) dismisses Captain Scarlet (voiced by Francis Matthews) from Spectrum for gambling on duty. Broke, and owing $5,000 to a casino, Scarlet moves into an Arizona hotel. He is soon approached by the reconstructions of Steele and Kramer, who offer to write off his debt in exchange for a Spectrum Pursuit Vehicle. Agreeing, Scarlet learns that the men intend to use the SPV to attack Nuclear City, Nevada. Their aim is to detonate a nuclear device within the city, creating a chain reaction powerful enough to obliterate the North American continent.

Puzzled by Scarlet's recent behaviour, Captain Blue (voiced by Ed Bishop) has left Cloudbase to track down his friend. When Blue arrives at the desert ranch house where Kramer, Steele and a hidden Black are unveiling their plan to Scarlet, Scarlet shoots Blue to reassure the Mysteron agents that he is on their side. However, Blue is hit only with a tranquiliser dart and regains consciousness after the others leave to steal an SPV from a nearby garage. He is contacted by a furious White, who informs him that Scarlet has been working undercover to infiltrate the Mysteron plot.

From a map left at the ranch house, Blue learns of the threat to Nuclear City and relays this information to White. The Angels are launched and intercept Scarlet, Kramer and Steele as they speed to Nuclear City in the SPV. Scarlet activates a smoke signal to direct the Angels to attack the vehicle. Realising this betrayal, Steele fatally shoots Scarlet, but the officer safely ejects before the SPV is hit and explodes, killing Kramer and Steele. Later, the recovered Scarlet, joined by Blue, White and Lieutenant Green (voiced by Cy Grant) enjoys an off-duty evening at the casino.

Production

Several changes were made during the transition from original script to final edit. In the earliest version of the script, the episode was to have opened with Scarlet losing at the casino.[1][2] This was later changed with the addition of the scene in which Kramer and Steele are killed and reconstructed by the Mysterons.[1] For the completed episode, scenes depicting the earlier murder of Mason, followed by his reconstruction's sabotage of Kramer and Steele's car, were also added.[1]

All music in "Special Assignment" is re-used from earlier episodes.[3] One of the recycled tracks is "White as Snow",[1] which was originally composed for the episode of the same name and is heard during the scene of Mason's murder.

"Special Assignment" is one of only a few episodes of Captain Scarlet in which Colonel White is seen away Cloudbase, as he joins Scarlet, Blue and Lieutenant Green for the final scene set at the casino. The only other episodes in which he is shown to leave the base are "White as Snow", "Spectrum Strikes Back" and "Flight to Atlantica".

As Blue arrives at the ranch house, he is shown to be driving an unmarked car in long shot which changes to a Spectrum Patrol Car in the following close-up. While the Steele and Kramer reconstructions are destroyed at the end of the episode, the fate of the reconstructed Mason is not shown.

Reception

Chris Drake and Graeme Bassett note this episode's unusual plot, writing that it "contains more than one red herring".[4]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Bentley, Chris (2008) [2001]. The Complete Gerry Anderson: The Authorised Episode Guide (4th ed.). London, UK: Reynolds & Hearn. p. 130. ISBN 978-1-905287-74-1.
  2. ↑ Bentley, Chris (2001). The Complete Book of Captain Scarlet. London, UK: Carlton Books. p. 72. ISBN 978-1-842224-05-2.
  3. ↑ de Klerk, Theo (25 December 2003). "Complete Studio-Recording List of Barry Gray". tvcentury21.com. Archived from the original on 13 December 2009. Retrieved 20 March 2010.
  4. ↑ Drake, Chris; Bassett, Graeme (1993). Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons. London, UK: Boxtree. p. 58. ISBN 978-1-852834-03-6.
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