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Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons
CaptainScarletAndTheMysterons
Production
Released by ATV
Producers Gerry Anderson
John Read
Reg Hill
Creators Gerry Anderson
Sylvia Anderson
Directors Desmond Saunders
Alan Perry
Leo Eaton
Ken Turner
Peter Anderson
Others
Music Director Barry Gray
Special Effects Derek Meddings
Details
Medium Colour
Episodes 32
Duration 25 Minutes (less adverts)
Original Air Date 29th September 1967-14th May 1968
Series Guide
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Thunderbirds Joe 90


For the more recent re-tool, see New Captain Scarlet. For other uses, see Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons (Disambiguation).

"Captain Scarlet is indestructible - you are not. Remember this. Do not try to imitate him" - Colonel White

Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons was a British science-fiction television series, comprising 32 episodes (one series/season), originally broadcast on ITV during 1967–1968. It was the sixth Gerry Anderson show to be Filmed in Supermarionation.



Plot synopsis[]

In the year 2068 A.D., a Zero-X mission has successfully reached and landed on Mars; its mission: to discover the source of strange signals that had been monitored on Earth. An MEV (Martian Exploration Vehicle) sets out to explore the surface, with its 3-man crew: Lieutenant Dean, Navigator Conway and mission commander Captain Black - a top officer of the worldwide peace-keeping armed force and security service known as Spectrum...

After much searching, they discover a mysterious complex owned by a race of unseen beings known as the Mysterons. Pleased to have company, they prepare to welcome their visitors, moving their scanning camera to get a better view. However, Black and his crewmates - mistaking the camera for a weapon - panic, believing they're about to be attacked! Black orders Dean to fire missiles at the complex, completely destroying it...

...or, is it? The alien metropolis slowly shimmers back into existence...and the now-hostile Mysterons ominously vow revenge for the crew's "act of aggression," threatening to destroy all life on Earth. Having discovered the process of "retro-metabolism" - an unearthly secret of reversing matter - they've demonstrated its use to recreate their city and restore it to its former self. Now, they will utilize it as their weapon against their enemies - re-creating any object or person, for their purposes!

The horror begins with Black himself - having given the destroy-order, he's singled out for punishment, as the Mysterons take control of him and send him back to Earth, as their primary agent and spy...

It now falls to Spectrum - under the command of Colonel White - to lead the fight against the Mysterons' ongoing "war of nerves." Headquartered aboard the flying aircraft carrier known as Cloudbase, Spectrum uses all its available resources to thwart the Mysterons' threats, including amazing vehicles and equipment - as well as a team of agents whose identities are protected by code-names drawn from the colours of the rainbow.

One of Spectrum’s top agents is Captain Scarlet - once under Mysteron control himself, he managed to break free and gained the ability of retro-metabolism, making him virtually indestructible, becoming Spectrum's greatest asset in the fight against the Mysterons.

Scarletv

Description[]

Unlike Anderson's previous series (Supercar, Fireball XL5, Stingray and Thunderbirds), Captain Scarlet presented as a more straightforward drama - with a darker, more mature plot and storyline and a far-more-terrifying threat, in the form of the formless Mysterons. This has caused it to be interpreted as an allegory for the Cold War, with Soviet-style communism having its analogue in the Mysterons.

Main Characters[]


Regular Equipment[]

Episodes[]


Other Media Sorties[]

Film[]

  • Captain Scarlet Vs The Mysterons was a compilation of the episodes The Mysterons, Winged Assassin, Seek And Destroy, and Attack On Cloudbase.
  • Revenge Of The Mysterons From Mars was a compilation of the installments Shadow of Fear, Lunarville 7, Crater 101 and Dangerous Rendezvous, with the second, third, and fourth of those comprising the "Lunarville Trilogy" of episodes.

Audio Books[]

Behind the Scenes Info[]

  • Microgramma Bold Extended font was used for the programme's episode titles; Microgramma Medium Extended was used for the credits.
  • Unlike its immediate predecessor, Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet returned to the half-hour episode format typlcal of most Supermarionation series before and after it (Joe 90, The Secret Service).
  • The series also featured next-generation Supermarionation puppets, created with more human-proportioned bodies and heads. But the solenoids used to project the voices through the puppets were not only smaller but also lighter. This rendered the puppets more difficult to control, and hence, the puppets were kept almost motionless.
  • Spectrum's international crew included more prominent female (notably the Angels) and black characters (notably Lieutenant Green and Melody Angel); this last was a first for an Anderson production, and something Anderson himself had wanted to do since Supercar.
  • Richard Conway and Stephen J. Mattick, who wrote the episode "Operation Time," had previously worked on Thunderbirds as special effects technicians.
  • Francis Matthews provided the voice of Captain Scarlet in imitation of Cary Grant, long considered one of the models for the Supermarionation puppet, as was Matthews himself. Executive Producer Gerry Anderson "came close to moving heaven and Earth" to get Matthews to just that end, because of Matthews's uncanny ability to imitate Grant; before Captain Scarlet, Matthews had been either unintestered or unavailable. During the Captain Scarlet recording sessions, Anderson convinced Matthews to divide his time between them and onstage appearances in Noel Coward's play Private Lives.
  • Donald Gray, who died in 1978, provided the voice of Colonel White as well as those of both the Mysterons and Captain Black as a Mysteron agent. For both of the latter two voices, he recorded their respective lines normally, using recording equipment that had been accelerated; upon playback at normal speed, his voice sounded deeper and slower, and hence more ominous and threatening. Having fallen victim to typecasting in live-action programmes, he was relying upon his work in what were considered children's programmes to keep earning a living.
  • Captain Scarlet is unique among Supermarionation series for having multiple variant opening and closing titles sequences.
    • At least four opening variants are known:
      • "The finger is on the trigger..." (unique to the first episode)
      • "The Mysterons. Sworn enemies of Earth..." (most common)
      • "One man. A man who is different...."
      • On some episodes, the title sequence ends with Colonel White's voice admonishing viewers: "Captain Scarlet is indestructible - you are not. Remember this. Do not try to imitate him"
    • Two different closing themes were used: one a mostly instrumental version of the theme with Barry Gray intoning the name "Captain Scarlet;" and later episodes featured a version with lyrics performed by the musical group The Spectrum. (Their name was a coincidence; their formation had actually predated the beginning of production on the TV series.)

Remake[]

The series was remade by Anderson in 2005 with CGI technology, called "Hypermarionation," as New Captain Scarlet.

Puppet Gallery[]

v - e - d
CaptainScarlet Logo
Characters
Spectrum
Spectrum Officers: Captain ScarletCaptain BlueColonel WhiteLieutenant GreenCaptain BlackCaptain BrownCaptain GreyCaptain OchreCaptain MagentaDoctor FawnCaptain Indigo
The Angels: Destiny AngelSymphony AngelRhapsody AngelMelody AngelHarmony Angel
Other Staff: Spectrum Guards
Other Characters: The Mysterons
Revamp Puppets: World President YoungerLieutenant DeanNavigator ConwayDirector-General Xian YohDelta Garage AttendantDT19 PilotDT19 Co-PilotAirport ChiefAirport OperatorDirector-General ImpersonatorSpectrum Agent 042AssassinMacey1st London Police Officer2nd London Police Officer3rd London Police Officer4th London Police Officer5th London Police Officer6th London Police OfficerWoman DriverHarris (Manhunt)Security Chief RichardsGeiger OperatorDelta Garage MechanicCulver Guard 1Culver Guard 2General WardEddieSergeant MarshallLieutenant BurroughsTrapperRed Deer Sentry JoeCariboo SentryBig Bear SentryDead BodyBob LynnTVR-17 ControllerHelijet PilotUSS Panther II CaptainLieutenant BelmontSoamesDavidsonClarkCommodore GoddardCaptain HoltMortonDistillery AttendantDr. Theodore MagnusGeneral TiempoDr. Turner1st Medical Student2nd Medical StudentPorter BensonRadiographerNurse (Operation Time)MorganDoctor (Operation Time)General PetersonDoctor Giadello1st Warden (Post 14)2nd Warden (Post 28)MasonSteeleKramerDice Club CroupierBarmanNuclear City Security ChiefAttendant Delta garageKrugerDoigCarlFire WardenLunar ControllerOrsonS.I.DShuttle PilotSupreme Commander of Earth ForcesColonel StormMajor BrooksGeneral CopeCaptain HasselPeteMCA Tanker Driver's MateArabAndre VerdainHelgaGabrielleCasino commissionaireModelFairfieldJacksonFire ChiefMajor StoneJoe JohnsonPhil MachinMajor ReevesLinda NolanFrazerShroederDoctor BreckDoctor CarterDoctor AngeliniDoctor KurnitzDoctor Kurnitz' SecretaryKinleyCharlie HansenJason SmithMajor GravenerDoctor BaxterDoctor MitchellNurse (Treble Cross)Harris (Treble Cross)Doctor ConradBill WilliamsNewspaper ReporterJoe (Flight 104)Airport AnnouncerDoctor DentonJudith ChapmanAirport MechanicGeneral RebusNeilsonRhodesCaptain (Expo 2068)Doctor SommersDriver (Expo 2068)Seneca PilotLumberjack (Expo 2068)RaynorMervin BrandPresident RobertsVice PresidentVice-president's WifeProfessor Gabriel CarneyPresident Conrad OlafsonPresident John L. HendersonSKR4 CaptainSKR4 NavigatorMajor MoranSergeant (Inferno)Commander WilliamsMaxwell Airbase SergeantColganMysteron Agent (The Inquisition)
TV Series Episodes
The MysteronsWinged AssassinBig Ben Strikes AgainManhuntAvalancheWhite as SnowThe TrapOperation TimeSpectrum Strikes BackSpecial AssignmentThe Heart Of New YorkLunarville 7Point 783Model SpySeek and DestroyTraitorRenegade RocketCrater 101Shadow Of FearDangerous RendezvousFire at Rig 15Treble CrossFlight 104Place of AngelsNoose of IceExpo 2068The LaunchingCodename EuropaInfernoFlight to AtlanticaAttack on CloudbaseThe Inquisition
Audio Adventures
Introducing Captain ScarletCaptain Scarlet and the MysteronsCaptain Scarlet is IndestructibleCaptain Scarlet of SpectrumCaptain Scarlet versus Captain Black
Compilation films
Captain Scarlet Vs. The MysteronsRevenge of the Mysterons from Mars
Books
Young CorgiThe Vault
Vehicles and Craft
Spectrum Saloon CarSpectrum Pursuit VehicleMaximum Security VehicleAngel InterceptorSpectrum Passenger JetSpectrum HelicopterSpectrum HovercraftSpectrum Radar VanMagnacopterZero-X


Supermarionation:
About Supermarionation: What is it? | Who makes it? | The marionettes | the legacy
The Series: Four Feather Falls |Supercar | Fireball XL5 | Stingray | Thunderbirds | Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons | Joe 90 | The Secret Service
The Films: Thunderbirds Are Go | Thunderbird 6
Other Uses: Calling Elvis | The Investigator
Imitators and tributes: Paul starr | Team America World Police | Interster | X-Bomber (Star Fleet) | Superthunderstingcar | Thunderbirds F.A.B. | Misc. Parodies and references
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