New Captain Scarlet's Greatest Episodes: Best of Enemies

In celebration of New Captain Scarlet's 20th anniversary and forthcoming release of its definitive Blu-ray release, we're examining some of our all-time favourite episodes of Gerry Anderson's last television series. In Best of Enemies, the violent dynamic between Captain Scarlet and Captain Black is put to the ultimate test when the pair become trapped underwater...

Compared to the classic Supermarionation series which it reinvents, New Captain Scarlet reframes Captain Scarlet and Captain Black's antagonistic relationship to become far more explicitly confrontational than it ever was in 1967. Throughout Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, Scarlet and Black only ever came face to face twice. Even then, that's not entirely correct; during Special Assignment and Dangerous Rendezvous, Black always made sure he was the other side of the door when Scarlet would enter the room.

Throughout New Captain Scarlet, the opposing agents regularly fought each other, Spectrum keen to arrest Captain Black, the Mysterons equally keen to bring Captain Scarlet back into the Mysteron fold. The pair's previous friendship prior to the War of Nerves makes their volatile dynamic resurfaces in Best of Enemies, which pulls the genius move of entrapping Scarlet and Black in an environment neither Spectrum or the Mysterons can penetrate. With no outside influence to call on for help within the submerged Rhino which they're trapped in, the pair are forced to cooperate to save themselves.

John Brown's fourth and final script for New Captain Scarlet is a tensely coiled beast that savours character dynamics accumulated from the course of the series against a bleak backdrop of harsh environments and global cold war. The episode's setting within bleak icy Russia makes for a visually riveting backdrop that speaks to the series' compellingly mature production design. The episode is also bold enough to acknowledge very real global hostilities with Black's attempted theft of a Russian Navy weapon.

Scarlet and Black's pursuit and eventual falling into the treacherously icy waters is a brilliantly composed action sequence, capturing the series' ambitions in functioning with the same high-octane legitimacy of a blockbuster action flick instead of a children's television series. Similarly, the Russian Navy limpet explosive and the Rhino's screen-heavy technology are great examples of how New Captain Scarlet updates the hardware of the world of Spectrum for a 21st century audience.

So often, Scarlet and Black's confrontations descend into surprisingly robust violent outbursts for what would become a series shunted into a Saturday morning block. Entrapped in a tightly compacted location following Black's failed getaway and subsequently forced to work together to effect an escape, Best of Enemies savvily bypasses prolonged outbursts of violence between the pair if either of them have any chance of escaping their underwater entombment. The episode's production qualities sparkle in these tense moments; where the exterior scenes command sickly greens and frozen whites, underwater moments showcases steely oceanic blues, while the interior of the Rhino fizzles in hot red tension, the characters illuminated by the electronic surrounding them that risks becoming their mechanical coffin. Best of Enemies champions the production characteristics of New Captain Scarlet, showcasing how the episode isn't strictly defined by its insightfully dramatic interactions between its two leads.

But it's certainly those interactions that inject the episode with welcome pathos. Conrad's malicious attitude softens when realising he's in need of Paul's assistance, delivered with brilliant subtlety by Nigel Plaskitt. Wayne Forester's defensive stance as Paul gradually sways into something more supportive towards his former ally, reaching a quiet peak when Conrad inexplicably asks after Destiny Angel's wellbeing. This emotional breakthrough gives pause to question just how deep the Mysterons have their claws in Conrad, casting him in a tragic, sympathetic light. 

This is increased when the pair succeed in utilising Black's stolen Russian Navy technology to blast their way to freedom from their aquatic icy tomb. Only when Conrad reaches the surface does he fall under his Mysteron masters once more, leaving Scarlet to fend for himself before slinking off into the all-encompassing blizzard. His parting shot greatly suggests that this really was Conrad, not Captain Black, Mysteron Operative, who Paul was helping earlier. Just how else might the Mysterons exude their vulnerability in how their stranglehold on Conrad can, on occasion, be only skin deep?

Best of Enemies wins as New Captain Scarlet's most tragic and mature offerings. It dares to ask where does Captain Black end and Conrad Lefkon begin, capturing the man in a desperately sympathetic light. This is far from the first time that the series portrays Mysteron agents as concealing their human souls; we saw a glimpse of this psychological push'n'pull in Mercury Falling. However, Best of Enemies extrapolates the scarily dramatic potential of this juxtaposing dynamic to its most riveting extreme. Conrad being allowed the final world of the episode, leaving Paul stranded yet safe above the icy waters, pleading with Captain Scarlet that he should remember Conrad to Destiny, ends the episode on a perverse note - the very real, very human Captain Black is alive and well, but remains smothered by his Mysteron doppelganger.

Prepare to experience the war of nerves like never before with the forthcoming release of our New Captain Scarlet Collectors Edition Blu-ray, available now to pre-order! You can also discover the secrets of how New Captain Scarlet was performed with our recent interview with Nigel Plaskitt on The Gerry Anderson Podcast!