Traitor (Captain Scarlet episode)

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“Traitor”
Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons episode
Episode no. Season 1
Episode 29
Written by Tony Barwick
Directed by Alan Perry
Original airdate 23 April 1968
Episode chronology
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"Inferno" "Flight to Atlantica"
List of Captain Scarlet episodes

"Traitor" is the 29th episode of the Supermarionation television series Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons. It was the 24th episode to be produced. Its original UK air date was 23 April 1968 on ATV Midlands. It was written by Tony Barwick and directed by Alan Perry.

Contents

[edit] Synopsis

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

The Mysterons announce that there is a traitor in Spectrum. Investigating a series of hovercraft accidents in the Australian outback, Captain Scarlet himself falls suspect. Will the double agent reveal himself before further danger is caused?

[edit] Plot

Two Spectrum cadets, Johnson and Machin, are completing a routine hovercraft patrol in the Australian outback. While returning to Koala Base, the craft malfunctions and the motors overheat. Calling from base control, Major Stone demands technical readouts, but the craft is out of control and Machin urges that they jump before Johnson can respond. As Stone loses radio contact, the vehicle crashes into an outcropping and explodes. Transmitting to Earth, the Mysterons warn Spectrum that there is a traitor in their midst.

The Cloudbase personnel are shocked by the Mysterons’ claim. Colonel White reminds them of the need for mutual trust and gives Captains Scarlet and Blue a secret mission. The Colonel feels sure that the traitor is at Koala Base, Australia.

Having abandoned the hovercraft before the crash, Johnson and Machin discuss the accident with Major Stone. Machin points out that it was the third craft to go out of control inside a week and Stone decides to suspend the programme until further notice. Once Machin has left the control room, Stone tells Johnson that he thinks that the cadet cut him off on the radio only to prevent the cause of the overheating being revealed. Stone orders Johnson to report to him personally, unaware that Machin is listening at the door.

Scarlet and Blue arrive at Koala Base ostensibly to host a series of lectures, though Scarlet hints to Major Stone that there is also an ulterior purpose. After giving a talk, Machin asks if Scarlet would describe the assassination attempt on the World President ("The Mysterons"). Being under Mysteron control at the time, Scarlet has no recollection of the events and Blue narrates the story from his point of view.

That night, Machin is obsessed with the thought that Captain Scarlet may still be under Mysteron control. He refuses Johnson’s calls to go to bed and opts to take a late-night walk. Meanwhile, in Scarlet and Blue’s room, an article of clothing seems to have been deliberately set on fire. As the flames spread, the Spectrum officers manage to wake up and escape before they are overcome by the smoke.

Major Stone promises a full investigation into the incident and suspects arson. Electing to resume the hovercraft exercises to expose the obvious traitor, Stone announces that Johnson and Machin will take a patrol with Scarlet and Blue, but Machin still has a worrying opinion on Scarlet. Meanwhile, in new accommodation, Blue admits his suspicions of the Major and his belief that recommencing the exercises is a way of looking for trouble. Johnson confesses his doubts on Machin and believes that he started the fire while supposedly on his walk. Stone is furious that Machin suspects a man as loyal as Scarlet and suggests that he will show his hand while on patrol.

The four men set off from Koala Base and pass the wreckage from another crash, in which the crew was killed. Scarlet is concerned by the high external temperature but Johnson, at the controls, dismisses it as normal. Suddenly, the hovercraft loses control and sways alarmingly. Johnson cannot activate the emergency boost and Machin, declaring Scarlet the traitor, threatens the captain with a gun. However, the craft is knocked by the uneven terrain and the firearm is jogged out of his hand. Blue takes Johnson and Machin to the escape door while Scarlet unplugs a control unit so that the source of the overheating can be identified. He manages to jump through the door just before the hovercraft ploughs into a sand dune and explodes.

Back on Cloudbase, Colonel White presents the traitor - a single valve in the hovercrafts' electrical system caused all the trouble. Furthermore, metallurgists cannot explain why the valve’s molecular structure appears to have been altered. Scarlet states determinedly that all Spectrum can do is remain vigilant.

Spoilers end here.

[edit] Cast

[edit] Regular Voice Cast

[edit] Guest Voice Cast

[edit] External links

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