Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons (series)

Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons
Otherwise called:	Captain Scarlet
Publisher:	City Magazines
Type:	TV series Comic series
Release date:	29 September 1967

Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, later renamed in comic form to simply Captain Scarlet, was a science fiction series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson. Originally running as a televised puppet series, Captain Scarlet was also spun off into comics published in TV Century 21.

The original run of the series on television spanned September 1967 to May 1968. In the chronology of Anderson-produced series filmed in supermarionation, Captain Scarlet was preceded by Thunderbirds and succeeded by Joe 90.

The comic run of the series in TV21 was designed to commence simultaneously with the programme's premiere broadcast on television, surviving until the publication's merger with Joe 90 Top Secret in September 1969. As part of the promotion for the new TV series, Captain Scarlet also took over TV21's letters and competition page, with the personnel of Spectrum taking over from Agent Twenty One and the Universal Secret Service. Around this time, the Shades of Opinion series was launched, in which readers' perspectives on a range of topics were requested and subsequently printed.

Crossovers with the DWU

As the conceit of TV Century 21 was that all its series took place in a single universe, several Captain Scarlet stories crossed over freely with elements from the Doctor Who universe.

In the comic strip, this largely consisted of references to or appearances from Unity City, the capital of the World Government which was first introduced in The Daleks comic strip. However, Traitor Black Gives In! also featured the planet Astra, originally created by David Whitaker for the First Doctor television story The Rescue. Meanwhile, the Captain Scarlet short stories also occasionally referenced Unity City but were most notable for furthering the story of the 2060s Dalek invasion of Earth, with Daleks on the Move? constituting the closest anything until 1997 came to resolving the series-ending cliffhanger of The Daleks, doing so in a manner which promised a direct confrontation between Dalek forces and those of Spectrum.

The following Captain Scarlet stories involved DWU elements and are thus covered on this Wiki:

Comic stories

Title	Issue	Released
We Will Destroy Unity City	TV21 141-149	30 September - 25 November 1967
We Will Destroy Earth's Communications	TV21 155-157	6 - 20 January 1968
Martian Menace	TV21 164-166	9 - 23 March 1968
Indestructible Army!	TV21 172-173	4 - 11 May 1968
Traitor Black Gives In!	TV21 196-198	19 October - 2 November 1968
A New Threat!	TV21 201-204	23 November - 14 December 1968
Mysteron Threat to Destroy World Leaders — Spectrum Red Alert!	TV21 217	15 March 1969
Spectrum Top Security File No. CZ6PA	TV21 222-223	19 - 26 April 1969
Captain Scarlet	TV21 230-231	14 - 21 June 1969
Collision Course Threat!	TV21 232-233	28 June - 5 July 1969
Spectrum News Flash: Scarlet in Pursuit of Mysteron Agent	TV21 243	October 2014

Short stories

Title	Issue	Released
Shade Report	TV21 142	7 October 1967
Comic Shades	TV21 181	6 July 1968
Brainwave	TV21 189	31 August 1968
Daleks on the Move?	TV21 196	19 October 1968
TV21 — Almost Perfect!	TV21 205	21 December 1968
We, the Mysterons, will cause a germ war throughout Earth!	Captain Scarlet Annual 1968	1968
We, the Mysterons, Will Destroy the Centre of Hope!	Captain Scarlet and Thunderbirds Annual	1969
We, the Mysterons, Will Destroy the World Government
Shades Calling Cloudbase...	TV21 243	October 2014

Other features

Title	Issue	Released
Spectrum Promotion Examination Green 3	TV21 180	29 June 1968

Behind-the-scenes connections

The transmitter on the top of the Third Doctor's sonic screwdriver first seen in Colony in Space was recycled from a communicator featured in the Captain Scarlet episode Model Spy. The body of the device was also reused from a supermarionation production, having previously appeared in the Thunderbirds film Thunderbirds are Go.

The blurry effect on the Mysteron City as seen in the first episode The Mysterons was achieved by smearing Vaseline on a glass sheet placed over the camera, a technique the Captain Scarlet production crew "borrowed" from the Doctor Who story The Web Planet.

Shane Rimmer, who played Seth Harper in The Gunfighters, wrote three of the thirty-two episodes in the series. Barry Gray, who worked on Dr. Who and the Daleks and Daleks' Invasion Earth 2150 A.D., composed and conducted the theme song and all the music for Captain Scarlet. Visual effects supervisor Derek Meddings and lighting cameraman Harry Oakes would both later work on Doctor Who in uncredited capacities.

Jeremy Wilkin, who played Kellman in Revenge of the Cybermen, had a main role in the series as the voice of Captain Ochre. He also voiced Captain Black prior to his Mysteronisation in the first episode as well as several other guest characters. The aforementioned Shane Rimmer had uncredited voice roles in a small number of episodes.

A fan of the series, John Barrowman has stated that one thrill of playing the immortal Jack Harkness was that he was able to realise his dream of playing Captain Scarlet.