The fan theory about Captain Black being aware of his Mysteron influence but can't fight it, a punishment from the Mysterons, adds a layer of haunting from the character.
Having Captain Black as the corporeal agent was a major part in why it worked as a series IMHO. It gave the viewer a physical “baddie” to have around so we (the viewer) were that one step ahead of the characters because we knew something bad was about to happen before Spectrum.
Captain Black really added to the series. As children when we saw him, we knew something bad was going to happen and Spectrum had to stop him. Him not talking made him even more menacing because you know evil is just around the corner if not closer. He is the "Face" of the Mysterons.
The character of Capt Black is what made the show so great imo. His look, the music, that deep voice, the various scenes where he would be hiding in the shadows, was just chilling. I have said this many times before, but the first face of Capt Black that you see with his colleagues on the Zero-X mission, and then the mysteronised face was just pure 'genius' in creating that 'look'. I'm glad he remained in the series.
Keeping Captain Black around helps to suggest that the Mysterons need a physical presence to latch on to. Remember, in Winged Assassin and Big Ben Strikes Again, the DT19 and Transporter only get taken over when he’s around, and often his only function in an episode is to kill off the person who gets reconstructed.
I have Peter Wragg's copy of the script for the second episode Winged Assassin ('Ammended [sic] Version') and Captain Black's appearance on the observation point is scene 61. It was during the filming for this episode that the 'secondary titles' were shot, and again, Captain Black's appearance in that sequence is in the script. The observation point scene and secondary title shots also appear in the shooting order list. So either the decision to retain Black was made very quickly (before shooting started on the second episode) or Christine misremembered. The fact that Black's scene is numbered 61 and not 61A seems to me to indicate that it was part of the original script.
I think not having Captain Black as the main villain, the show wouldn't have lasted as long because there wouldn't be someone for Captain Scarlet to fight every week and Spectrum wouldn't have anyone to actually go after. His presence was a huge difference maker because it made the war against the Mysterons with Black as their main agent feel a lot more personal. What i loved about Captain Black was he never talked much, he always hid in the shadows and silently either took out his targets or in violent fashion so they would be recreated to do the bidding of the Mysterons. He also had a great look as well, the pale skin, unshaved apperance and dark eyes which almost looked like holes with the deep voice made him feel like a zombie. Whenever you saw Captain Black and you heard that creepy music, you knew something bad was going to happen, the image of him standing in the graveyard in the full Spectrum is one of the most iconic shots ever. He was the perfect villain and my all time favourite from the Gerry Anderson shows.
Way back in the mid 70's one of my local neighbours was a lad called Stephen White. His dad was the spitting image of Captain Black, even down to the unshaven stubble. I was always on the lookout for Mysterons 😉
We know someone like that, the eyes, gaunt look, black hair etc… When we see him around I’ll tell my wife ‘There’s Captain Black’ even though his name is Neil 😂
Two points here. Firstly, the original series was made for children of all ages so having a recognisable villain makes sense, particularly for younger viewers. Secondly, I didn't know that the voice artist was the same (for Black and White) so having this dualist link is interesting, particulary with the both dead and alive Scarlet in between.
For sure the pair of Polo mints were pretty scary, but having that utterly evil-looking Captain Black lurking around every corner was genius. Even as a kid I recognised that Colonel White had the same voice as Captain Black. But I'd never thought about the fact that the voice actor's surname was Gray ... nor indeed that Col White's real name was Charles Grey. 50 shades of hidden meaning going on here I suspect!
It's an interesting point. I've always thought Cpt Black's fate was the Mysterons' punishment for starting the Mars/Earth conflict in the first place, and then deciding to use his recreation as their main coordinating agent since they're disembodied and this makes it easier for them. This cruelty to Black on an ongoing basis reinforces the unforgiving aspect of their alien nature: Black will be their agent/puppet indefinitely until they decide his body can die (is his human personality trapped inside his body and forced to watch what they make his body do?). Interestingly, Scarlet was another Mysteron attempt at creating an agent, but that failed and backfired due (presumably) to a unique series of things that happened to him after recreation which then brought back his original personality, returning him to humanity's side, with a bonus of being hard/impossible to kill. if Spectum had been able to analyse what happened to Scarlet that brought him back and recreated it, they could perhaps have rescued others converted by the Mysterons, and even built an army of unkillable agents. From a writer's perspective, though, it opens far more dramatic possibilities if everyone other than Scarlet who's recreated is considered beyond help.
Personally, I think Scarlet breaking free was more so because he, along with Brown, was the first time the mysterons reconstructed people and didn't fully understand the human mind just yet. They made a mistake there, and not one they had any plans of making again.
Captain Scarlet was my favourite show in the 60s. When they made the CGI version I didn't know about it but have watched a couple of episodes but to me it just wasn't the same. The one thing I would love to see is a full length film with live actors but they would have to be like they were in the original series.
It was a series with dark tones, more suitable for adults. Black's character is superb in the series, it is fairly certain from his change in appearance in the first episode that he has been taken over not killed. Would have been interesting had an episode ever been made showing the control over him being broken
It's obvious that Captain Black is possessed by the Mysterons; we have no death and replacement scene. But how more horrific would it be if they did kill him repeatedly, only to resurrect (not recreate) him, fully aware of what was happening and unable to excape.
It would probably make more sense as a television series as there's a LOT of backstory to get through, never mind the Earth-Mysteron conflict itself. It would also be very violent and morally ambiguous - I mean, deliberate murder of innocent civilians to have them be re-metabolised as killer zombies? I would love it to happen, but unless I win the Eurolottery, can't see it being done.
The font on the 'Mysteron Agent Captain Black' caption on the titles looks subtly different to the other captions to my eyes - slightly thinner I'd say. So probably filmed at a different time and set-up. Which would make sense if it were a later addition after the character was retained. Cheers, Phil Young
No Captain Black, we would have had to have a series of evil Spectrum Captains, taken over by the Mysterons, Captain Tangerine, Captain Silver and the truly terrifying Captain Rainbow
Captain Black’s credit in the OP is somehow one of the most chilling images in a nominally children’s program ever! I like to think that the ultimate fate of Black was that Scarlet was able to… what, rescue? revive? break him free of control somehow. But Black WAS needed as the physical face of the Mysterons. Just the Voice and the Green Rings wasn’t enough. Having Black appear gave a very easy ‘hook’ to the events. I won’t go on with the inherent problem of the show, how there really was no way for Spectrum to fight and win against what was essentially magic (any science advanced enough and all that ), all they could hope for was some kind of stalemate at best. There needed to be some kind of limitation on the Mysterons, a recharge time maybe, or every use of retro metabolism cost them something irreplaceable, shortened their collective lives or something. I mean, replacing and controlling a giant airliner should have SOME downside, shouldn’t it?
I liked the ending put forward by one of the VHS compilations. Essentially reframing symphony's dream as reality so the Mysteron's attack on cloud base is a success - they win the war of nerves (dun dun dun!). But true to their claim of being peaceful beings, cloud base is restored by the Mysterons. Pretty solid ending IMO. The bad guys win (for once!) But no one has to die ...anymore.
I agree, he scared the shit out of me as a kid having nightmares. The whole theatrics of the fog filled graveyard was very emotion evoking doing exactly what it set out to do, also having him hardly ever speak is a classic bit of horror movie mindplay that works well for a kids show without the need for overt exposition.
The tough thing about the series was that the Mysterons couldn’t lose.Even if they failed in the episode,all they lost were their dead copies of people.
I certainly noticed that in a lot of episodes, Captain Black doesn't do much at all, except watch his enemies or fellow Mystery agents through his binoculars. I think it is indeed highly likely he wasn't intended as a regular character. It's the fact that he looks so scary that ensured his longevity! 😱
I think keeping captain black around gave the series an interesting and powerful adversary for captain scarlet to deal with, wouldn't it be wild if one of the angels had been turned into a mysteron?
In watching your vid and explanation, one thing did crop up in my mind about the scenario you outline as being plausible is this, wasn’t Captain Brown turned into a bomb by the Mysterons after him and Captain Scarlet were killed. This, it could be argued, laid the foundation for the main protagonists ‘killing off’ their minions after their usefulness ended which is what happened to Captain Black at the end of the first episode. All they had to do after that was what did anyway, re-create what they wanted.
You are correct Captain Black suddenly disappears and then was later, just reappears playing bit parts.Suspected that Captain Black was written out and then they decided to recycle the character( for budget reasons he was voiced by the actor who played Col White ).
I’d like to know why dead Spectrum agents, like Black, Brown and Indigo were never replaced. Seems like they were missing quite a few colours from their spectrum by the end.
He was in the car with Scarlet when it crashed, he was recreated and used as a bomb in the Mysteron's first attempt on the world President's life. @@paulturner1363
I wish that is was a way for the Mysterons to know that Captain Black misunderstood the Mysteron's optical sensor for a weapon and then free Captain Black from their control so they could make a Captain Black series in which he tried to redeem himself.
Something fascinating about Black. A deeply layered character. A Scarlet fansite of fanfic had a few great stories about him. I did my bit. The enigma that is Captain Black.
The first episode of Captain Scarlet is tremendous but I don’t think the episodes are long enough to explore the premise of the show in any depth. One might expect that the voyage home from Mars with Black was pretty creepy but we never get to see that. What happened to his companions? No idea. Why did the Mysterons bother controlling him? No idea.
The thing that always bothered me is we never see any other agents with the 'Black' codename. My paranoia got worse when I learned according to canon Colonel White's desk has colour coded buttons that (radio) connect him to any Spectrum Agent. But there's no black buttons... could it be there is a darker invisible spectrum pulling the strings that we have been blind to?
Never noticed this, going to have to watch closer and have a think about it. Perhaps it is a clear one that simply flashes black, but that is a stretch. One wonders in universe what happened.....
Doesn't Captain Black nearly get killed off in one of the album stories, but a hasty radio message saying "Oh, no Black escaped!" comes up near the end?
Who do people think would have been the villan in Man Hunt, Spectrum Strikes Back, Heart of New York (to leave the 3 safe blowers trapped) and Model Spy??
Capt. Black is Capt. Scarlet's equal in every way and the fact Scarlet who no longer under the mysterons control but can only sense Capt Black when he's in the area says something about way the two are always trying to stop the other.
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta looks so like him. Child of the Mysterons perhaps?. Is the character in the blue shirt behind Black in Winged Assassin, the same character that was dropped from the pilot episode who was on the Zero-X mission (original Lt Dean) when they found his face and uniform looked too similar to Captain Scarlet? Some similarity. Perhaps an apology for dropping him in the pilot?
It's funny you should say that, everytime i see Arteta on the telly i always say out loud the the music they play in between scenes . Dun dun, dun, dun dun dun dun. 😂😂
Captain Scarlet was always the best for me and stingray i was a bit young for ufo on a Saturday morning but loved all the action sequences and had an interceptor for xmas
I can totally see the original version of The Mysterons having Captain Black in the Helicopter as during the scene where he telepathically talks to Scarlet he says "WE will pick the President up from the Sky Park," so it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to think that he'd be flying the Helicopter in the first place. Mind you, he could possibly be using the "Royal We" to refer to The Mysterons controlling Scarlet/Black/A42 at the same time. The show wouldn't be worse with Black being killed off in the first episode, but having him around for the entire series doesn't hurt either. Many a good moment from him stylistically trying to differentiate CS&TM from previous Anderson shows (quite successfully, may I add?)
On top of that, there's the whole way the Mysterons first try to assassinate the World President, but then Captain Black has a line about needing him alive. Without that line, the unexplained change of plans would be much less obvious, though once Scarlet has him it would be a bit of a 'Why don't you just kill him then?' moment.
I was always of the opinion that all " Mysteron Agent's" were some sort of clone akin to Klaato in "The Day The Earth Stood Still " but somehow retained some of their previous Being! Capt Scarlet the more so . But as Mum would say " you know it's not real " As a side to this my Father was briefly a Security guard at the studios nights and I was meant to get a show around but in the end stayed in Sussex .
If Captain black ended up dead at the end of the first episode well with out Captain black around who aside from the people that the mysterons killed off and made clones of who will help the mysterons along in their plans
I never understood why the captains (and other ranks) had to wear different colors while the Angels all wore white. It's pretty on a color TV, but ours was B&W till 1975. And it's a bit obvious that black is the evil one.
They did. They used him as a bomb in the Spectrum Security building. I guess that they can only do it once for some reason when someone is blown to pieces or has already been used.
Depends on your criteria doesn't it? Let's suppose for the moment that the greatest villain is the one directly responsible for the most deaths. On that basis you may be surprised to learn that the Anderverse's ultimate baddie is... Joe McClaine - a *nine year old*! And in second place is none other than Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward... clearly a nasty piece of work not to be messed with, and all of a sudden the casting of her voice makes perfect sense!
I’m thinking that Captain Black was an awesome addition to the show,.. a preferred that he wasn’t Captain Scarlet’s main antagonist and they kept having to chase him. Not a fan of NCS rendition of Black and I hated his voice
FAB Facts: Was Captain Black Supposed to be Killed Off in Captain Scarlet? 1941pm 16.1.23 ...the rank water they suddenly pump into the pipes after they discover yer back home... that said; the only mistake i made and it could have snow balled into various other issues arising was my listening to the song: cary grant's wedding - as a child. and then thinking said cary grant was the guy who voiced captain scarlet characters... gerry anderson skits can be seen on the itv website channel: out of this world. at which point the mysterons will attempt to scupper said channel. no doubt?
In the first show Captain Scarlet and Captain Brown were both killed in a car crash arranged by the Mysterons. Both ended up being Mysteron villains. Captain Brown was used as a bomb at first and Captain Scarlet was then used in an attempt to kidnap the World President. Captain Scarlet fails and is killed by Captain Blue in the end. But then Captain Scarlet survives his ordeal and is no longer under the control of the Mysterons. A very good episode if you haven't already seen it.
The fan theory about Captain Black being aware of his Mysteron influence but can't fight it, a punishment from the Mysterons, adds a layer of haunting from the character.
Having Captain Black as the corporeal agent was a major part in why it worked as a series IMHO. It gave the viewer a physical “baddie” to have around so we (the viewer) were that one step ahead of the characters because we knew something bad was about to happen before Spectrum.
Plus he really was creepy as fuck
Yes, totally.
Captain Black really added to the series. As children when we saw him, we knew something bad was going to happen and Spectrum had to stop him. Him not talking made him even more menacing because you know evil is just around the corner if not closer. He is the "Face" of the Mysterons.
The character of Capt Black is what made the show so great imo. His look, the music, that deep voice, the various scenes where he would be hiding in the shadows, was just chilling. I have said this many times before, but the first face of Capt Black that you see with his colleagues on the Zero-X mission, and then the mysteronised face was just pure 'genius' in creating that 'look'. I'm glad he remained in the series.
Keeping Captain Black around helps to suggest that the Mysterons need a physical presence to latch on to. Remember, in Winged Assassin and Big Ben Strikes Again, the DT19 and Transporter only get taken over when he’s around, and often his only function in an episode is to kill off the person who gets reconstructed.
I have Peter Wragg's copy of the script for the second episode Winged Assassin ('Ammended [sic] Version') and Captain Black's appearance on the observation point is scene 61. It was during the filming for this episode that the 'secondary titles' were shot, and again, Captain Black's appearance in that sequence is in the script. The observation point scene and secondary title shots also appear in the shooting order list. So either the decision to retain Black was made very quickly (before shooting started on the second episode) or Christine misremembered. The fact that Black's scene is numbered 61 and not 61A seems to me to indicate that it was part of the original script.
I think not having Captain Black as the main villain, the show wouldn't have lasted as long because there wouldn't be someone for Captain Scarlet to fight every week and Spectrum wouldn't have anyone to actually go after. His presence was a huge difference maker because it made the war against the Mysterons with Black as their main agent feel a lot more personal. What i loved about Captain Black was he never talked much, he always hid in the shadows and silently either took out his targets or in violent fashion so they would be recreated to do the bidding of the Mysterons. He also had a great look as well, the pale skin, unshaved apperance and dark eyes which almost looked like holes with the deep voice made him feel like a zombie. Whenever you saw Captain Black and you heard that creepy music, you knew something bad was going to happen, the image of him standing in the graveyard in the full Spectrum is one of the most iconic shots ever. He was the perfect villain and my all time favourite from the Gerry Anderson shows.
Way back in the mid 70's one of my local neighbours was a lad called Stephen White. His dad was the spitting image of Captain Black, even down to the unshaven stubble. I was always on the lookout for Mysterons 😉
Maybe distant ancestors? :)
He chose his surname to mislead people.
@@FiveLiver There was always a sinister feeling whenever I was at their house 🤔 Has to be said though, Captain Black had an awesome model railway 🤣
We know someone like that, the eyes, gaunt look, black hair etc… When we see him around I’ll tell my wife ‘There’s Captain Black’ even though his name is Neil 😂
Two points here. Firstly, the original series was made for children of all ages so having a recognisable villain makes sense, particularly for younger viewers. Secondly, I didn't know that the voice artist was the same (for Black and White) so having this dualist link is interesting, particulary with the both dead and alive Scarlet in between.
If I had a Halloween costume, it would definitely be Captain Black's uniform! One of THE BEST Anderson Villains EVER!
Me, too.
For sure the pair of Polo mints were pretty scary, but having that utterly evil-looking Captain Black lurking around every corner was genius. Even as a kid I recognised that Colonel White had the same voice as Captain Black. But I'd never thought about the fact that the voice actor's surname was Gray ... nor indeed that Col White's real name was Charles Grey. 50 shades of hidden meaning going on here I suspect!
Yeah, coz when you mix black and white you get gray 😁
Scary polo mints tho 🤣🤣🤣
That was not a bad captain black voice Jamie!
That was a fantastic Mysteron voice Jamie! I got chills
It's an interesting point. I've always thought Cpt Black's fate was the Mysterons' punishment for starting the Mars/Earth conflict in the first place, and then deciding to use his recreation as their main coordinating agent since they're disembodied and this makes it easier for them. This cruelty to Black on an ongoing basis reinforces the unforgiving aspect of their alien nature: Black will be their agent/puppet indefinitely until they decide his body can die (is his human personality trapped inside his body and forced to watch what they make his body do?). Interestingly, Scarlet was another Mysteron attempt at creating an agent, but that failed and backfired due (presumably) to a unique series of things that happened to him after recreation which then brought back his original personality, returning him to humanity's side, with a bonus of being hard/impossible to kill. if Spectum had been able to analyse what happened to Scarlet that brought him back and recreated it, they could perhaps have rescued others converted by the Mysterons, and even built an army of unkillable agents. From a writer's perspective, though, it opens far more dramatic possibilities if everyone other than Scarlet who's recreated is considered beyond help.
Personally, I think Scarlet breaking free was more so because he, along with Brown, was the first time the mysterons reconstructed people and didn't fully understand the human mind just yet. They made a mistake there, and not one they had any plans of making again.
I did notice that in the episodes on earth Captain Black is nowhere to be seen in the episodes “Avalanche, The Trap & Shadow of Fear”
Captain Black is possibly one of my favourite villains ever. So tragic though
Captain Scarlet was my favourite show in the 60s. When they made the CGI version I didn't know about it but have watched a couple of episodes but to me it just wasn't the same. The one thing I would love to see is a full length film with live actors but they would have to be like they were in the original series.
It was a series with dark tones, more suitable for adults. Black's character is superb in the series, it is fairly certain from his change in appearance in the first episode that he has been taken over not killed. Would have been interesting had an episode ever been made showing the control over him being broken
How do we know Captain Black wasn't killed off from time to time and just recreated repeatedly by the Mysterons...?
It's obvious that Captain Black is possessed by the Mysterons; we have no death and replacement scene. But how more horrific would it be if they did kill him repeatedly, only to resurrect (not recreate) him, fully aware of what was happening and unable to excape.
Isn't it about time that someone made a live action Captain Scarlet movie? & I don't mean a kids version like that Thunderbird debacle.
It would probably make more sense as a television series as there's a LOT of backstory to get through, never mind the Earth-Mysteron conflict itself. It would also be very violent and morally ambiguous - I mean, deliberate murder of innocent civilians to have them be re-metabolised as killer zombies?
I would love it to happen, but unless I win the Eurolottery, can't see it being done.
Captain Black was definitely a tough villain, conniving, merciless, unforgiving and clever, under the power of the Mysterons.
The show is richer for Captain Black's presence. I couldn't help but feel bad for him.
One of my favourite T shirts has an image of Captain Black with the words "Black is back." In addition, the smoke from his gun forms two Os.
The font on the 'Mysteron Agent Captain Black' caption on the titles looks subtly different to the other captions to my eyes - slightly thinner I'd say. So probably filmed at a different time and set-up. Which would make sense if it were a later addition after the character was retained.
Cheers,
Phil Young
No Captain Black, we would have had to have a series of evil Spectrum Captains, taken over by the Mysterons, Captain Tangerine, Captain Silver and the truly terrifying Captain Rainbow
Captain Black’s credit in the OP is somehow one of the most chilling images in a nominally children’s program ever!
I like to think that the ultimate fate of Black was that Scarlet was able to… what, rescue? revive? break him free of control somehow.
But Black WAS needed as the physical face of the Mysterons. Just the Voice and the Green Rings wasn’t enough. Having Black appear gave a very easy ‘hook’ to the events.
I won’t go on with the inherent problem of the show, how there really was no way for Spectrum to fight and win against what was essentially magic (any science advanced enough and all that ), all they could hope for was some kind of stalemate at best. There needed to be some kind of limitation on the Mysterons, a recharge time maybe, or every use of retro metabolism cost them something irreplaceable, shortened their collective lives or something.
I mean, replacing and controlling a giant airliner should have SOME downside, shouldn’t it?
I liked the ending put forward by one of the VHS compilations. Essentially reframing symphony's dream as reality so the Mysteron's attack on cloud base is a success - they win the war of nerves (dun dun dun!). But true to their claim of being peaceful beings, cloud base is restored by the Mysterons.
Pretty solid ending IMO. The bad guys win (for once!) But no one has to die ...anymore.
I agree, he scared the shit out of me as a kid having nightmares. The whole theatrics of the fog filled graveyard was very emotion evoking doing exactly what it set out to do, also having him hardly ever speak is a classic bit of horror movie mindplay that works well for a kids show without the need for overt exposition.
I still watch Captain Scarlet on Tubi.
The tough thing about the series was that the Mysterons couldn’t lose.Even if they failed in the episode,all they lost were their dead copies of people.
I certainly noticed that in a lot of episodes, Captain Black doesn't do much at all, except watch his enemies or fellow Mystery agents through his binoculars. I think it is indeed highly likely he wasn't intended as a regular character. It's the fact that he looks so scary that ensured his longevity! 😱
I think keeping captain black around gave the series an interesting and powerful adversary for captain scarlet to deal with, wouldn't it be wild if one of the angels had been turned into a mysteron?
Aint NOTHING MORE SCARIER than meeting Captain Black in a graveyard. Brrrrrrr!
Captain Black wasn't killed off. He has been reincarnated in the form of Mikel Arteta
In watching your vid and explanation, one thing did crop up in my mind about the scenario you outline as being plausible is this, wasn’t Captain Brown turned into a bomb by the Mysterons after him and Captain Scarlet were killed. This, it could be argued, laid the foundation for the main protagonists ‘killing off’ their minions after their usefulness ended which is what happened to Captain Black at the end of the first episode.
All they had to do after that was what did anyway, re-create what they wanted.
I didn't realise/remember that Black wasn't Scarlet's antagonist in the way I remember him being.
You are correct Captain Black suddenly disappears and then was later, just reappears playing bit parts.Suspected that Captain Black was written out and then they decided to recycle the character( for budget reasons he was voiced by the actor who played Col White ).
Since it is Halloween, I could say that Captain Black could be the original Michael Myers.
I always felt certain that there was some kind of link between Captains Black and Scarlet.
I’d like to know why dead Spectrum agents, like Black, Brown and Indigo were never replaced. Seems like they were missing quite a few colours from their spectrum by the end.
They didn't reincarnate captain Brown
@@paulturner1363 they did as this was a plot point in the pilot when his original body was found.
He was in the car with Scarlet when it crashed, he was recreated and used as a bomb in the Mysteron's first attempt on the world President's life. @@paulturner1363
The Hood was a great bad guy, but Space 1999 had two memorable villains: Simmonds and Mentor.
I have one of Captain Black's pistol replicas in my cabinet. #6 of 50. What a memorable villain!
I wish that is was a way for the Mysterons to know that Captain Black misunderstood the Mysteron's optical sensor for a weapon and then free Captain Black from their control so they could make a Captain Black series in which he tried to redeem himself.
What about Titan?
Now I want to hear Jamie voice Captain Black as a regular
There is a episode where “CAPTAIN BLACK” has captured a damsel in distress and states: “even the MYSTERIOUN KNOW COMPASSIONS” and he released her!
Something fascinating about Black. A deeply layered character. A Scarlet fansite of fanfic had a few great stories about him. I did my bit. The enigma that is Captain Black.
The monster from Dragon's Domain?
The first episode of Captain Scarlet is tremendous but I don’t think the episodes are long enough to explore the premise of the show in any depth. One might expect that the voyage home from Mars with Black was pretty creepy but we never get to see that. What happened to his companions? No idea. Why did the Mysterons bother controlling him? No idea.
Could Black have been at one point intended to die in place of Brown?
I can’t even remember that he had any significant role in the first episode.
The thing that always bothered me is we never see any other agents with the 'Black' codename. My paranoia got worse when I learned according to canon Colonel White's desk has colour coded buttons that (radio) connect him to any Spectrum Agent.
But there's no black buttons... could it be there is a darker invisible spectrum pulling the strings that we have been blind to?
Never noticed this, going to have to watch closer and have a think about it. Perhaps it is a clear one that simply flashes black, but that is a stretch. One wonders in universe what happened.....
"Retrometabolised!"
Captain Black is my nickname at work and I'm proud to be the bad boy of spectrum
Some of these stills make me wonder if The Terminator took some cues from Captain Black.
Doesn't Captain Black nearly get killed off in one of the album stories, but a hasty radio message saying "Oh, no Black escaped!" comes up near the end?
Who do people think would have been the villan in Man Hunt, Spectrum Strikes Back, Heart of New York (to leave the 3 safe blowers trapped) and Model Spy??
good 1967 fact, look forward to 229 podcast.
I’d like to know how Captain Black became Arsenal Head Coach?
Capt. Black is Capt. Scarlet's equal in every way and the fact Scarlet who no longer under the mysterons control but can only sense Capt Black when he's in the area says something about way the two are always trying to stop the other.
2:30 Capt. Black's hands are looking pretty rosy for a dead man...
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta looks so like him. Child of the Mysterons perhaps?. Is the character in the blue shirt behind Black in Winged Assassin, the same character that was dropped from the pilot episode who was on the Zero-X mission (original Lt Dean) when they found his face and uniform looked too similar to Captain Scarlet? Some similarity. Perhaps an apology for dropping him in the pilot?
It's funny you should say that, everytime i see Arteta on the telly i always say out loud the the music they play in between scenes .
Dun dun, dun, dun dun dun dun. 😂😂
Captain Black was a fantastic villain from both series of Captain Scarlet.
Captain Black is alive and well and masquerading as the Arsenal football manager Mikel Arteta!!! You heard it here first!
I have no idea what he looks like, be right back................ Oh my God, you're right!
Doppelganger.
Captain Scarlet was always the best for me and stingray i was a bit young for ufo on a Saturday morning but loved all the action sequences and had an interceptor for xmas
I can totally see the original version of The Mysterons having Captain Black in the Helicopter as during the scene where he telepathically talks to Scarlet he says "WE will pick the President up from the Sky Park," so it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to think that he'd be flying the Helicopter in the first place. Mind you, he could possibly be using the "Royal We" to refer to The Mysterons controlling Scarlet/Black/A42 at the same time.
The show wouldn't be worse with Black being killed off in the first episode, but having him around for the entire series doesn't hurt either. Many a good moment from him stylistically trying to differentiate CS&TM from previous Anderson shows (quite successfully, may I add?)
On top of that, there's the whole way the Mysterons first try to assassinate the World President, but then Captain Black has a line about needing him alive. Without that line, the unexplained change of plans would be much less obvious, though once Scarlet has him it would be a bit of a 'Why don't you just kill him then?' moment.
Captin black alone is your true fear.
Voice alone brings shivers upon the soul.
Best nightmare ever. 😮
The word is "retrometabolism" IIRC. It is refered to in Heart of New York, as well as others, I suspect.
I was always of the opinion that all " Mysteron Agent's" were some sort of clone akin to Klaato in "The Day The Earth Stood Still " but somehow retained some of their previous Being! Capt Scarlet the more so . But as Mum would say " you know it's not real " As a side to this my Father was briefly a Security guard at the studios nights and I was meant to get a show around but in the end stayed in Sussex .
He was modelled on Cary Grant, how could he not be the co-star?
you don't need to add subtitles when youtube can do it for you.. It's not uncommon for voice actors to do more than one voice on a show.
If Captain black ended up dead at the end of the first episode well with out Captain black around who aside from the people that the mysterons killed off and made clones of who will help the mysterons along in their plans
What is, Mick Lynch, doing in this show?
He didn't get much sleep with those dark rings around his eyes
We need captain black merchandise. 😎
Greatest bad guy... Obviously Captain Black
I never understood why the captains (and other ranks) had to wear different colors while the Angels all wore white. It's pretty on a color TV, but ours was B&W till 1975. And it's a bit obvious that black is the evil one.
I think Captain Black added quite a bit to the show. And personally? If I were Anderson and saw the puppet, I'd want to keep him around.
Captain Black is just one of my many reasons why I love the colour black. 🖤🖤🖤
So Jamie now has a job on the next Scarlet CD stories, sooo if the Mysterons need to destroy their victims how was Black killed?
Why didn't the mysterons use Captain Brown aswell when he got killed off by them.
They did. They used him as a bomb in the Spectrum Security building. I guess that they can only do it once for some reason when someone is blown to pieces or has already been used.
Depends on your criteria doesn't it? Let's suppose for the moment that the greatest villain is the one directly responsible for the most deaths. On that basis you may be surprised to learn that the Anderverse's ultimate baddie is... Joe McClaine - a *nine year old*! And in second place is none other than Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward... clearly a nasty piece of work not to be messed with, and all of a sudden the casting of her voice makes perfect sense!
To be honest guys captain Scarlett would make a good film like a live action film not unlike the bond films of today
I may be a bit twisted but i always liked the character of Captain Black. Ok maybe more than a little bit twisted lol
Zelda or Black. I think the baddies from Terrahawks are the top ten alone.
If SPECTRUM was up and running/long established BEFORE The Mysterons were discovered on Mars,what was its purpose ?.
You’ve got ONE version to choose from 😂
Remember, the humans bombed the Mysterons' home FIRST, so everything the Mysterons did after were retalitory revenge. So, who's the REAL villains?
I’m thinking that Captain Black was an awesome addition to the show,.. a preferred that he wasn’t Captain Scarlet’s main antagonist and they kept having to chase him. Not a fan of NCS rendition of Black and I hated his voice
So Black an White were voiced by the sam person? Makes sense to me.
FAB Facts: Was Captain Black Supposed to be Killed Off in Captain Scarlet? 1941pm 16.1.23 ...the rank water they suddenly pump into the pipes after they discover yer back home... that said; the only mistake i made and it could have snow balled into various other issues arising was my listening to the song: cary grant's wedding - as a child. and then thinking said cary grant was the guy who voiced captain scarlet characters... gerry anderson skits can be seen on the itv website channel: out of this world. at which point the mysterons will attempt to scupper said channel. no doubt?
Poor Captain Black. He always looks like he's got flu like Dave at work.
Captain black was the best villain when I was growing up .s.i.g
💛awesome
good
conrad turner is innocent the earth men fired the first shot shame on you terrans
Was Captain Scarlet a secret badie!
In the first show Captain Scarlet and Captain Brown were both killed in a car crash arranged by the Mysterons. Both ended up being Mysteron villains. Captain Brown was used as a bomb at first and Captain Scarlet was then used in an attempt to kidnap the World President. Captain Scarlet fails and is killed by Captain Blue in the end. But then Captain Scarlet survives his ordeal and is no longer under the control of the Mysterons. A very good episode if you haven't already seen it.
🎉Andy sirkis would have made a good cpt black
I LOVE THE 1967 CAPTAIN BLACK, AND HATE THE 2005 CGI CAPTAIN BLACK, HE TALKS TOO MUCH AND TELLS STUPID JOKES, I HATE HIM!!!!
No tan on his face and yet he has a clear peak on his hat... hmm...
Captain Black now manages Arsenal
@GerryAndersonTV >>> 👍👍