Inferno (Captain Scarlet episode)

Infobox Television episode
Title = Inferno
Series = Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons
Season = 1
Episode = 28
Airdate = April 16, 1968
Production = 32
Writer = Tony Barwick
Shane Rimmer
Director = Alan Perry
Episode list = List of "Captain Scarlet" episodes
Prev = Codename Europa
Next = Traitor

"Inferno" is the 28th episode of the Supermarionation television series "Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons". It was the 32nd and final episode to be produced. Its original UK air date was April 16, 1968 on ATV Midlands. It was written by Tony Barwick and Shane Rimmer and directed by Alan Perry.

Synopsis

The Mysterons destroy and reconstruct a spacecraft to attack the Najama desalinisation plant in the Andes Mountains. Guarding the complex from a nearby Aztec temple, will Captains Scarlet and Blue locate the transmitting device guiding the SKR4 to its target before total destruction is caused?

Plot

On Earth, Major Moran and a sergeant of the Euro Tracker station coordinate an SKR4 recovery vehicle about to rendezvous with a malfunctioning rocket in orbit. On board the spacecraft, the pilot and navigator prepare to enter transfer trajectory. However, they are unable to avoid a space rock and the SKR4 is destroyed in the collision. The Mysteron rings pan over the hull of a second craft and the cockpit is empty. The navigator's disembodied voice tells the sergeant that their starboard thruster is faulty and that they are abandoning their mission and returning to Earth. As the SKR4 changes course, the sergeant is curious why the audio link was cut off. Moran reminds him that the crew are bound to be distracted in view of the amount of explosives on board.

Transmitting to Earth, the Mysterons threaten to destroy the desalinisation plant at Najama, at the foothill of the Andes Mountains. On Cloudbase, Colonel White informs Spectrum officers that the plant processes seawater to irrigate the interior of South America and that thousands of square miles would revert to wasteland if it were destroyed. Though automated, the complex has a skeleton service team, but even these personnel will be evacuated. Spectrum will set up observation points to wait for the first sign of an attack: Captains Ochre and Magenta will be based at the north and south entrances to the valley, while Scarlet and Blue will be stationed in an old Aztec temple overlooking the plant.

At their location, Scarlet and Blue search for the balcony from which they will observe the complex. A weak statue collapses, but Scarlet is able to push Blue out of the way before it crushes them. Meanwhile, Captain Black is in the valley, spying on the temple through binoculars.

Scarlet and Blue reach the balcony and erect a telescope. Looking at the plant, Scarlet points out the vulnerable liquid oxygen tanks. It will be dark in half an hour, and he suggests that Blue take some rest inside the temple. That night, while Scarlet is on watch, Black enters the building and spots Blue in a sleeping bag in front of the statue of the Sun God. Carefully scaling the structure, he places a device inside the god's mouth. However, Black's scrabbling rouses Blue and he calls for Scarlet. Black vanishes with a whooshing sound.

At Euro Tracker, the sergeant is disturbed by the change in the SKR4 crew's voices. Morning breaks at the temple, and Scarlet dismisses the noise that Blue heard as a loose stone. Meanwhile, the SKR4 crew is not answering the sergeant's calls and Moran decides to notify Spectrum. Responding, Colonel White is worried by the mention of explosives on board and asks for the craft's landing area. Moran begins to state that it is just off the Canary Islands, but the sergeant detects a strong radio transmission altering the re-entry course of the SKR4. Lieutenant Green reveals that the signal is emanating from the Najama area and White deduces that the spacecraft will be guided to crash into the valley. He orders for all three Angel craft to be launched. At Euro Tracker, Moran and the sergeant follow the SKR4's descent through Earth's atmosphere.

The Colonel warns Scarlet and Blue of the threat and advises them to get a bearing on the source from Ochre and Magenta. With only a few minutes to go before impact, Blue plots the exact position and discovers that it is somewhere in the temple. As Black's concealed device continues to signal, Scarlet is aware that there is not enough time to search for the transmitter and orders Destiny Angel to attack the building. Scarlet and Blue clear the area in their SPV and observe as the Angels open fire. Eventually, only the Sun God is still standing and Scarlet realises that this is the source. The Angels demolish the structure at Scarlet's command, but it is too late and the SKR4 crashes into the charred remains of the temple.

The explosion causes a landslide. Scarlet and Blue are powerless as the rockfall moves down the valley and hits the liquid oxygen tanks. Najama is annihilated in a series of huge explosions and Blue dubs the scene an inferno. Scarlet is relieved that the complex was deserted but accepts that the Mysterons have succeeded in their threat. However, the fight will continue.

Cast

Regular voice cast

*Captain Scarlet — Francis Matthews
*Captain Blue — Ed Bishop
*Colonel White — Donald Gray
*Lieutenant Green — Cy Grant
*Captain Ochre — Jeremy Wilkin
*Destiny Angel — Liz Morgan
*Rhapsody Angel — Liz Morgan
*Voice of the Mysterons — Donald Gray

Guest voice cast

In speaking order:

*Sergeant — Gary Files
*Major Moran — David Healy
*Pilot — Shane Rimmer
*Navigator — Martin King

Notes

*A number of incidental music tracks from "Thunderbirds" and "Supercar" are used in this episode.
*This is the third time the Mysteron's vanishing power is seen. It was previously seen in The Heart of New York and Model Spy.

External links

* [http://www.fanderson.org.uk/epguides/scarleteg3.html#Episode%20Thirty%20Two Fanderson.org.uk: "Captain Scarlet" Episode Guide: "Inferno"]
* [http://www.clivebanks.co.uk/Capt%20Scarlet%20Timeline.htm# Clivebanks.co.uk: "Captain Scarlet" Episode Guide]