Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons

Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons is a UK VHS release by Carlton Home Entertainment on 15th April 1998 and re-released by Carlton on 6th September 2000 and 5th February 2001.

## Description

The series begins in 2068. In the first episode, the crew of the *Zero-X* spacecraft are investigating the surface of Mars after mysterious radio signals are found to be coming from the planet. The source is discovered to be an alien city, which the astronauts destroy in a missile attack after mistaking a harmless surveillance device for a weapon. The city's inhabitants, the Mysterons, are a collective of sentient computers that possess partial control over matter and communicate in a deep, echoing voice. After using their power of "reversing matter" to rebuild their city, they swear revenge for humanity's unwarranted aggression and declare war on Earth.

Also called "retrometabolism", reversing matter enables the Mysterons to re-create people and objects as facsimiles that they can control. This ability is used to wage a "war of nerves" against Earth in which the Mysterons issue threats against specific targets (from world leaders and military installations to entire cities and continents) and then destroy and reconstruct whatever instruments are needed (whether human beings or objects) to carry out their plans. The presence of the Mysterons is indicated by twin rings of green light that are projected onto scenes of destruction and reconstruction. Although the aliens are able to influence events from Mars, their actions on Earth are usually performed by their replicated intermediaries.

*Zero-X* mission leader Captain Black becomes the Mysterons' primary agent when they seize control of his mind. Prior to the events of the series, Black was an officer in Spectrum, a worldwide security organisation that mobilises its personnel, vehicles and other resources to counter the threat posed by the Mysterons. Spectrum's most senior agents hold military ranks and colour codenames and are posted to the organisation's headquarters, Cloudbase – an airborne aircraft carrier stationed 40,000 feet (7.6 mi; 12 km) above the Earth's surface – where they answer to its commander-in-chief, Colonel White. Cloudbase is defended by Angel Interceptor fighters flown by an all-female team of pilots headed by Destiny Angel, while the base's computer systems are operated by White's assistant, Lieutenant Green. Spectrum also incorporates a fleet of armoured Spectrum Pursuit Vehicles (SPV), which are hidden in secret locations around the world, as well as patrol cars, maximum-security transports, passenger jet aircraft and machine gun-equipped helicopters.

Captain Scarlet becomes Spectrum's main asset in its fight against the Mysterons after the events of the first episode, in which the Mysterons attempt to assassinate the World President as their first act of retaliation. The original Scarlet is killed in a car accident engineered by the Mysterons and replaced with a reconstruction. However, after being shot by Spectrum's Captain Blue and falling to his death from the top of a tower, the reconstruction returns to life with the consciousness of the original Scarlet restored and is thereafter free of Mysteron control. With his new Mysteron body, Scarlet possesses two extraordinary abilities: he can sense other reconstructions nearby, and if injured or killed, his retrometabolism will restore him to full health, making him virtually "indestructible". As hostilities with Mars continue, Scarlet repeatedly sacrifices himself to thwart the Mysterons, safe in the knowledge that he will always return to face them again.

Over the course of the series, it is found that Mysteron reconstructions are especially vulnerable to electricity and can be identified through X-rays, which cannot penetrate their alien biology. These discoveries allow Spectrum to develop two anti-Mysteron devices: the "Mysteron Gun" and "Mysteron Detector". A three-episode story arc focuses on the discovery of a Mysteron outpost on the Moon, its destruction by Spectrum, and Spectrum's efforts to negotiate with the Mysterons after converting the base's salvaged power source into an interplanetary communication device. A failed attempt to survey Mars from space, aborted military conferences and the sabotaged construction of a new Earth space fleet hinder Spectrum's progress in taking the fight to the Mysterons, and the organisation twice fails to capture Captain Black. In the penultimate episode, the Mysterons destroy Cloudbase itself, but this is later revealed to be a nightmare dreamt by one of the Angels. The final episode is a clip show that leaves the conflict between Earth and Mars unresolved.

## Opening (Original 1998 release)

1. European Captioning Institute Warning Screen (1995-2005)
2. Carlton Warning Screen (1994-2004)
3. Carlton Home Entertainment children's trailer from 1997 [announced by Martin Jarvis]

## Closing (Original 1998 release)

1. Carlton Home Entertainment logo (1997-1999)

## Opening (September 2000 re-release)

1. European Captioning Institute Warning Screen (1995-2005)
2. Carlton Warning Screen (1994-2004)
3. Children's Videos from Carlton trailer from 1999 [announced by Nick Mercer and Jade Chaston]

## Opening (February 2001 re-release)

1. Carlton Warning Screen (1994-2004)
2. Carlton Video "Bring the Magic Home" children's trailer from 2000 [announced by Justin Fletcher]

## Trailers and info

### Original 1998 release

* Carlton Home Entertainment children's trailer from 1997 with clips of "Tots TV", "Rosie and Jim", "Starla and the Jewel Riders", "Bananas in Pyjamas", "Beatrix Potter", "Old Bear and Friends" and "The Willows in Winter".

### September 2000 re-release

* Children's Videos from Carlton trailer from 1999 with clips of "Jellikins", "The Fairies", "Dream Street", "Kingdom Of Rhymes: Incy Wincy Spider", "The Big Garage", "Beatrix Potter", "Tots TV", "The Wind in the Willows", "The Willows in Winter", "Bananas in Pyjamas", "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: The Movie" and "Annabelle's Wish".

### February 2001 re-release

* Carlton Video "Bring the Magic Home" children's trailer from 2000 with clips of "A Monkey's Tale", "Thunderbirds", "Beatrix Potter", "Jellikins", "Tots TV", "Dream Street", "Bananas in Pyjamas", "Annabelle's Wish", "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: The Movie" and "Casper's Haunted Christmas".