| Captain Black | |
|---|---|
| Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons character | |
Captain Black's appearance radically changes as the Mysterons seize control of his mind |
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| First appearance | "The Mysterons" |
| Created by | Gerry Anderson |
| Voiced by | Jeremy Wilkin Donald Gray (Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons) Nigel Plaskitt (Gerry Anderson's New Captain Scarlet) |
| Information | |
| Aliases | Conrad Turner (Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons) Conrad Lefkon (Gerry Anderson's New Captain Scarlet) |
| Species | Human (originally) Mysteron duplicate |
| Gender | Male |
| Occupation | Spectrum officer |
| Title | Captain |
| Nationality | British (Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons) American (Gerry Anderson's New Captain Scarlet) |
Captain Black is the fictional nemesis of Captain Scarlet and recurring Mysteron agent in the 1960s British supermarionation science fiction television series Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons and its CGI remake Gerry Anderson's New Captain Scarlet. "Captain Black" is a code name; his real name is never revealed in the series, although subsequent publications have given this as Conrad Turner.[1] His transformation from human to Mysteron agent occurs on Mars in the first episodes of both the original and new series; "The Mysterons" and "Instrument of Destruction Part 1" respectively.[2][3][4]
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While discussing his approach to writing episodes in a 1986 interview, he drew parallels between the premise and characters of Captain Scarlet and those of Thunderbirds, suggesting, for example, that the Spectrum Organisation was similar to International Rescue and that the character of Captain Black was like the earlier recurring villain from Thunderbirds, The Hood.[5]
Black was seconded to lead a Zero-X mission to Mars, in order to investigate mysterious radio signals detected by Spectrum.[2] Until then, planet earth was aware only of rock snakes (featured in Thunderbirds Are GO) inhabiting the planet. Consequently, Black was shocked to find an alien city on the Martian plains. When the complex turned scanning apparatus onto his Martian Exploration Vehicle (MEV), Black misinterpreted this as a weapons system and, believing the city to be hostile, ordered his subordinates to launch an attack on the complex. When the Mysterons reconstructed their city and threatened to assassinate the World President, they seized control over Black's mind. After Zero X returns to Earth, he disappears, and thereafter is the instrument of the Mysterons' campaign of vengeance against Earth for what they saw as unwarranted aggression.
Through Captain Black, the Mysterons relay instructions to other agents on Earth and compel him to undertake acts of terrorism and murder through their disembodied voice. However, even under the influence of the Mysterons, Black is not completely devoid of humanity. For example, after becoming a radioactive hotspot in the episode "Manhunt", he captures Symphony Angel while hiding from Spectrum and subjects her to lethal radiation inside an atomic centre, but desists before she is killed and allows her to escape. While Spectrum agents chase after an SPV, which they believe contains Black but is actually being driven (badly) by Symphony, he decontaminates himself inside the atomic plant and thus avoids Spectrum's attempts to detain him.
Text features in TV Century 21 and related publications stated that Black, as Conrad Turner, was born in Manchester (though he had a North American accent in the show) and lost his parents as an infant during a limited nuclear war. He was raised by distant relatives who provided little emotional support, causing him to be cold and reclusive. He joined the Royal Air Force and fought in a British civil war at age 19, and after the country joined the World Government he became famous for his work in the World Army/Air Force and later as a Fireball XL3 pilot in the World Space Patrol. He was Spectrum's first agent and oversaw Cloudbase's construction.[6]
In the episode "Treble Cross", an Air Force test pilot unexpectedly survives an assassination attempt by the Mysterons and helps Spectrum in another effort to catch Captain Black. However, he is not deceived when the human pilot replaces his own Mysteron duplicate and evades Spectrum for a second time, suggesting that the Mysterons have equipped him with a "sixth sense" which can warn him of danger.
Black can also teleport if under threat of capture. This occurs in the episodes "The Heart of New York", "Model Spy" and "Inferno".
The character is only seen wearing his Spectrum uniform in the pilot episode "The Mysterons" and in the second opening sequence for each episode thereafter, symbolically standing in a graveyard at night. In all other episodes that Black appears, he is wearing civilian clothing.
There are several differences between the original Captain Black and that of the new series. For example, his last name is Lefkon, as shown on his gravestone in the first episode. Before his Mysteronisation he is shown as a much more sympathetic character, and his destruction of the Mysteron city now seems far more reasonable as his vehicle's equipment actually identifies the Mysteron probe as a weapon. In contrast, after Mysteronisation he is an almost stereotypical villain, taking pleasure in the acts of murder that he commits. At one point, he even leaves Captain Scarlet chained up in front of his latest doomsday device, complete with digital countdown. However, on occasions (for example in the episode 'Best of Enemies') Scarlet has been able to educe Black's original personality, and may have been close to being able to break the Mysteron conditioning.
In 'Dominion', the final episode of the series, Black is knocked unconscious in an attempt to destroy a nuclear facility. When he regains consciousness, he claims to have escaped the Mysterons control, and asks Scarlet to return with him to Mars to launch an attack on the Mysteron city. Although the attack is successful, the Mysterons regain control of Black. The final image of the series is of Black looking at Scarlet's departing ship, then walking away. Two green rings follow him, catch up and Black vanishes.
The voice of the new Black is the same as before Mysteronisation, save when the Mysterons take direct control of his body.
Promotional materials said Conrad Lefkon was born in Brooklyn and was the son of a local crimelord, and joined the army to escape the "family business". However, in the show he had an English accent.
During its repeat run in the UK in 1993, Captain Scarlet became involved in the black-and-white dualism debate for its use of the codenames "White" to designate the head of Spectrum, Colonel White, and "Black" in reference to the villainous Captain Black.[7][8] Gerry Anderson defended his series against the accusations of racism and political incorrectness by reminding critics that Lieutenant Green, Melody Angel and Harmony Angel are heroic characters despite being of either African or Asian descent.[7]
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