# Counterstrike (1990 TV series)

Counterstrike is a Canadian-French crime-fighting, espionage, action-adventure television series. The series premiered in Canada on CTV, in France on TF1, and in the United States on the USA Network, on July 1, 1990. It ran for three seasons, airing 66 hour-long episodes in total.

## Plot

After his wife is kidnapped by terrorists, international industrialist Alexander Addington assembles a clandestine team of troubleshooters to help combat terrorism around the world. He recruits Peter Sinclair from Scotland Yard to lead the team. They set up a French con artist and art/jewelry thief named Nicole Beaumont and blackmail her into joining because of her valuable criminal connections. The third team member is Luke Brenner, an American mercenary whom they rescue from a Mexican jail. The series' other recurring characters are Bennett and J.J., Alexander's valet and pilot, respectively.
In the second season's second episode Peter and Alexander encounter a French reporter named Gabrielle Germont whom they recruit into the team to prevent her from publishing a story about them. In the season's third episode Peter and Gabrielle rescue Hector Stone, an American CIA-operative and former Navy SEAL whose cover has been blown, and invite him to join the team.
The character of Alexander's daughter Suzanne Addington, who designed the team's computer systems, was also written out of the series at the beginning of the second season. Suzanne appears in one third season episode, although played by a different actress. In her stead Alexander gets a secretary/confidante named Hélène Previn.

## Cast

* Christopher Plummer as Alexander Addington (1990–1993)
* Simon MacCorkindale as Peter Sinclair (1990–1993)
* Cyrielle Clair as Nicole Beaumont (1990–1991)
* Stephen Shellen as Luke Brenner (1990–1991)
* Laurence Ashley-Taboulet as Suzanne Addington (1990–1991)
* Sophie Michaud as Gabrielle Germont (1991–1993)
* James Purcell as Hector Stone (1991–1993)
* Patricia Cartier as Hélène Previn (1991–1993)
* Andre Mayers as J.J. (1990–1993)
* Tom Kneebone as Bennett (1990–1993)

## Episodes
### Season 1 (1990–91)

| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
| 1 | 1 | "Dealbreaker" | Mario Azzopardi | Richard Oleksiak | July 1, 1990 (1990-07-01) |
| 2 | 2 | "Dead in the Air" | Jorge Montesi | Tim Dunphy | July 8, 1990 (1990-07-08) |
| 3 | 3 | "Now and at the Hour of Our Death" | Mario Azzopardi | Tony DiFranco | July 15, 1990 (1990-07-15) |
| 4 | 4 | "Art for Art's Sake" | Jorge Montesi | Jim Henshaw | July 22, 1990 (1990-07-22) |
| 5 | 5 | "Power Play" | Mario Azzopardi | Angelo Stea, Peter Lauterman | July 29, 1990 (1990-07-29) |
| 6 | 6 | "A Little Purity" | George Mendeluk | David Rotenberg | August 5, 1990 (1990-08-05) |
| 7 | 7 | "Son with a Gun" | Paolo Barzman | Christian Watton | August 19, 1990 (1990-08-19) |
| 8 | 8 | "The Lady of the Rhine" | Paolo Barzman | Eric Watton | August 26, 1990 (1990-08-26) |
| 9 | 9 | "Knights of Aram" | Jean-Pierre Prévost | Richard Oleksiak | September 9, 1990 (1990-09-09) |
| 10 | 10 | "Extreme Measures" | Michael Shock | Michael Zettler, Shelly Altman | September 16, 1990 (1990-09-16) |
| 11 | 11 | "Thanos" | Doug Jackson | Christian Watton | October 7, 1990 (1990-10-07) |
| 12 | 12 | "Siege" | Bernard Dumont | Peter Mohan | October 14, 1990 (1990-10-14) |
| 13 | 13 | "Escape Route" | Paolo Barzman | Chantal Renaud | October 28, 1990 (1990-10-28) |
| 14 | 14 | "The Beginning" | Allan Eastman | Landen Parker | November 10, 1990 (1990-11-10) |
| 15 | 15 | "Cry of the Children" | Mario Azzopardi | Tony DiFranco | November 17, 1990 (1990-11-17) |
| 16 | 16 | "Masks" | Donald Shebib | Christian Watton | November 24, 1990 (1990-11-24) |
| 17 | 17 | "Mindbender" | Allan Eastman | Richard Oleksiak | December 1, 1990 (1990-12-01) |
| 18 | 18 | "Regal Connection" | William Fruet | Tony DiFranco | December 15, 1990 (1990-12-15) |
| 19 | 19 | "Cinema Verité" | René Bonnière | Eric Watton | December 22, 1990 (1990-12-22) |
| 20 | 20 | "Verathion" | Donald Shebib | Chantal Renaud | January 12, 1991 (1991-01-12) |
| 21 | 21 | "The Millerton Papers" | George Mendeluk | Eric Watton | January 19, 1991 (1991-01-19) |
| 22 | 22 | "The Dilemma" | Jean-Pierre Prévost | Richard Oleksiak | February 2, 1991 (1991-02-02) |

### Season 2 (1991–92)

| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
| 23 | 1 | "Tie a Yellow Ribbon" | Allan Eastman | Richard Oleksiak | September 21, 1991 (1991-09-21) |
| 24 | 2 | "Hidden Assets" | René Bonnière | Tony DiFranco | September 28, 1991 (1991-09-28) |
| 25 | 3 | "Fall From Grace" | Allan Eastman | Richard Oleksiak | October 5, 1991 (1991-10-05) |
| 26 | 4 | "It's All in the Game" | Gilbert M. Shilton | Michael Leo Donovan | October 12, 1991 (1991-10-12) |
| 27 | 5 | "Hide and Seek" | George Mendeluk | Richard Oleksiak | October 19, 1991 (1991-10-19) |
| 28 | 6 | "Native Warriors" | Alan Simmonds | Ann MacNaughton | October 26, 1991 (1991-10-26) |
| 29 | 7 | "Breaking Point" | George Mendeluk | Stephen Alix | November 2, 1991 (1991-11-02) |
| 30 | 8 | "Going Home" | Jorge Montesi | Richard Oleksiak | November 9, 1991 (1991-11-09) |
| 31 | 9 | "Survival Instinct" | Mario Azzopardi | Karen Janigan | November 16, 1991 (1991-11-16) |
| 32 | 10 | "Night of the Black Moon" | Miklós Lente | Tony DiFranco | November 23, 1991 (1991-11-23) |
| 33 | 11 | "Fire in the Streets" | Allan Eastman | Tony DiFranco | November 30, 1991 (1991-11-30) |
| 34 | 12 | "In the Blood" | René Bonnière | Michael Leo Donovan | December 7, 1991 (1991-12-07) |
| 35 | 13 | "Village of the Damned" | Allan Eastman | Ian Sutherland | December 14, 1991 (1991-12-14) |
| 36 | 14 | "Prize Package" | Jorge Montesi | Richard Oleksiak, Tony DiFranco | January 4, 1992 (1992-01-04) |
| 37 | 15 | "The Three Tramps" | William Fruet | Richard Oleksiak, Tony DiFranco | January 11, 1992 (1992-01-11) |
| 38 | 16 | "Behind Bars" | Bruno Gantillon | Elizabeth Baxter | March 14, 1992 (1992-03-14) |
| 39 | 17 | "Cherchez la Femme" | Jean-Pierre Prévost | Jean-Vincent Fournier | March 21, 1992 (1992-03-21) |
| 40 | 18 | "Dead Heat" | Jean-Pierre Prévost | Marc Eisenchteter | April 4, 1992 (1992-04-04) |
| 41 | 19 | "La Belle Dame Monique" | Dennis Berry | Martin Brossollet | April 11, 1992 (1992-04-11) |
| 42 | 20 | "Ripped from the Grave" | Bruno Gantillon | Elizabeth Baxter | April 18, 1992 (1992-04-18) |
| 43 | 21 | "Trigger Finger" | Daniel Moosmann | Tony DiFranco, Richard Oleksiak | May 2, 1992 (1992-05-02) |
| 44 | 22 | "The Circus Ring" | Robin Davis | Fabrice Ziolkowski | May 9, 1992 (1992-05-09) |

### Season 3 (1992–93)

| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
| 45 | 1 | "I Remember It Well" | Robin Davis | Jean-Vincent Fournier | September 26, 1992 (1992-09-26) |
| 46 | 2 | "The Sting" | René Bonnière | Richard Oleksiak | October 3, 1992 (1992-10-03) |
| 47 | 3 | "Till Death Do Us Part" | Bruno Gantillon | Michael Leo Donovan | October 10, 1992 (1992-10-10) |
| 48 | 4 | "Bastille Day Terror" | Bruno Gantillon | Tony DiFranco | October 17, 1992 (1992-10-17) |
| 49 | 5 | "No Honour Among Thieves" | Jean-Pierre Prévost | Martin Lager | October 24, 1992 (1992-10-24) |
| 50 | 6 | "Skin Deep" | Robin Davis | Vincent Lambert | October 31, 1992 (1992-10-31) |
| 51 | 7 | "The Curse of the Amber Chamber" | Jorge Montesi | Jean-Vincent Fournier | November 7, 1992 (1992-11-07) |
| 52 | 8 | "Death S.E.A.L." | Allan Eastman | Fabrice Ziolkowski | November 14, 1992 (1992-11-14) |
| 53 | 9 | "Cyborg" | William Fruet | Richard Oleksiak | November 21, 1992 (1992-11-21) |
| 54 | 10 | "D.O.A." | Allan Eastman | John Sheppard | December 5, 1992 (1992-12-05) |
| 55 | 11 | "Cat in the Cradle" | Alan Simmonds | Stephen Alix | December 11, 1992 (1992-12-11) |
| 56 | 12 | "Bosnian Connection" | Alan Simmonds | Elizabeth Baxter | December 20, 1992 (1992-12-20) |
| 57 | 13 | "Betrayed" | René Bonnière | Tony DiFranco | January 9, 1993 (1993-01-09) |
| 58 | 14 | "Clear Cut" | Donald Shebib | Jean-Vincent Fournier | February 7, 1993 (1993-02-07) |
| 59 | 15 | "Free to Kill" | Jean-Pierre Prévost | Tony DiFranco | February 14, 1993 (1993-02-14) |
| 60 | 16 | "The Hit" | William Fruet | Jean-Vincent Fournier | February 28, 1993 (1993-02-28) |
| 61 | 17 | "French Twist" | Jean-Pierre Prévost | Richard Oleksiak | March 21, 1993 (1993-03-21) |
| 62 | 18 | "The Contender" | Allan Eastman | Jean-Vincent Fournier | March 28, 1993 (1993-03-28) |
| 63 | 19 | "The Raw Truth" | William Fruet | Richard Oleksiak, Tony DiFranco | April 11, 1993 (1993-04-11) |
| 64 | 20 | "Peacemaker" | George Mendeluk | Richard Oleksiak | April 18, 1993 (1993-04-18) |
| 65 | 21 | "Muerta" | Allan Eastman | R.B. Carney | May 2, 1993 (1993-05-02) |
| 66 | 22 | "Bad Guys" | George Mendeluk | Richard Oleksiak, Tony DiFranco | May 9, 1993 (1993-05-09) |

## Awards and nominations

* 1992 Gemini Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role (Simon MacCorkindale) – Nominated
* 1992 Gemini Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role (Christopher Plummer) – Nominated
* 1994 Gemini Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role (Sophie Michaud) – Nominated
* 1994 Gemini Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role (James Purcell) – WON

## Broadcast

Counterstrike premiered in Canada on CTV and in France (as Force de frappe) on TF1 on July 1, 1990. It premiered in the United States on the USA Network on July 1, 1990.
Reruns aired in Canada on Showcase and TVtropolis.