The Beginning

DVD, The Champions (The Beginning)

My exposure to this series came in the mid-Nineties when it was shown on BBC2 on Friday evenings in the days when that channel was the place to go for sci-fi TV of the past and present on weekday evenings. I always enjoyed it, not in the same way I was enthralled by the vast and unfolding universe of the Trek series', nor other more modern science fiction TV, but it was in the same league as 'The New Avengers' and 'Randall & Hopkirk Deceased.' In the early 2000s I was given the first two DVDs when they were releasing two to four episodes a disc, but it wasn't until I was presented with 'The Complete Series' boxed set, thirty episodes across eight discs, that I really wholly embraced the series. Just as importantly as getting all the episodes for a completist like myself was the fact that it was my first boxed set of an entire series, something I've revelled in for many that have come out in that format and still embrace to this day as the best way to watch something in its entirety. The volume was a nice, slim box, all the discs neatly laid out with attractive design to the packaging and it was a revelation. But that was all in the previous decade: I'd planned for a few years to revisit the series for my blog reviews on the fiftieth anniversary year of 2018, and so here I am.

I wasn't sure if this silly sixties spy-fi would hold up so many years later without any watching of it in between and the viewing of so many other TV shows in the interim to alter my palette, but I enjoyed the premiere episode as much as ever, a new experience to watch with an analytical eye, paying close attention and keeping track of as much of everything as I could. I'd previously reviewed some of the final episodes when I first started my blog, but that was way back in 2009 when I was going for the most rudimentary of overviews, a few thoughts and little else, whereas now I generally tend to put as much as I can into reviews. A fact I always found interesting (from the useful, though dry collector's booklet that accompanied the later, Special Edition release of the series), was that this first episode was not the first to be produced, something unexpected even for TV of that day I think. There is a certain kind of logic to letting the actors merge with their roles more fully with a few episodes to get their teeth into before tackling the most essential story in selling the series (very important for the makers at the time), so 'The Dark Island' was actually the first to be shot, this one coming a few weeks into the production schedule. Although it makes sense from one side, on the other you're still going to have actors performing in a slightly off-key or unsettled way, only it will be in an episode that comes later and could be more jarring, but I don't remember how they came across in 'The Dark Island' so I'll reserve judgement.

The Sixties was truly the decade for spytgeist, with the Cold War in full flow and these international men of mystery captured the imaginations of the general audience, much like superheroes do today. You had the James Bond film series in full flow, 'The Avengers' had been on for years in 1967 when the series was created, and 'Mission: Impossible' was doing it for America. Actually, I'm surprised there's never been any revival of this particular brand as we've had pretty much everything else come back, from 'Dr. Who' to 'Randall & Hopkirk,' 'Mission: Impossible' to 'Starsky & Hutch,' and the unique approach of this particular spy series was that the main characters were endowed with superhuman powers making them ideal candidates for the current market - there was talk of a film version quite a few years ago that never came to fruition, and I have to say, as much as I was for it at the time, it probably wouldn't have turned out that well. How many of these nostalgic properties have really been resurrected successfully? I'd say very few, such as 'Mission: Impossible,' and even that has degenerated into a samey, unexplosive parody of itself, losing the verve it showed in its first two or three films. But back in the Sixties, spy stuff was the thing to do and continued into the Seventies with other ITC productions such as 'Department S' and 'Jason King,' a format often recurring of two men and a lady, taken to its height when Brian Clemens (of 'The Avengers' as well as contributor to this series), had his name attached to a retro, yet higher tech remoulding of the concept in 'BUGS' which did for my childhood what 'The Champions' did for children of the Sixties.

As with a lot of old TV shows, this one could look a little sloppy and cheap when viewed through more modern eyes, simply because TV budgets have been allowed room to expand exponentially from what they were back then. In those days they had to make do with reusing sets as much as possible, of trying every trick in the book to keep costs down, and of course they didn't have access to as much money-saving technology to curb costs and increase bang per buck-age. Even so, the first episode clearly had a bit of work put into it as the important introductory instalment, and one of very few to have continuity running into the rest of the series, something that is obvious as it's meant to set up the premise. I can only think of one other that really showed development of the concept, when Craig was held under suspicion in 'The Interrogation,' one of the best episodes of the series. I was surprised that we get as much backstory and character development in this episode as we did, and that's basically just Sharron making it clear to the audience this is her first mission for Nemesis, that she's a brilliant mind that has taken just about every specialist course there is, all to fill the void left by the death of her husband. Considering how young she is that adds immediate tragedy to her position and it's always nice to see the first meeting of characters, even if we don't quite see that here, but even the first time Craig, Sharron and Richard work together is something.

I don't think her husband's death was ever mentioned again, but that was all par for the course in those days of entirely episodic, formulaic TV: people had limited leisure time, they wanted to sit down and see what they expected to see, and if they missed an episode they didn't want to feel like they'd lost out on important information, that's as the logic went, anyway. Now you'd have all kinds of internal angst and behind the scenes troubles to keep people coming back week to week, but there's something to be said for keeping it simple and having a clearcut mission and just seeing these people interacting and working together. There's an inherent charm in that, and while I like a mix of episodic and serial in my drama, this was the way things were. There are a lot of things I liked about this opening episode, not least the way the characters operate in silence for most of the opening part of the mission to retrieve a sample of deadly bacteria worth more than ten plagues of locusts from some kind of military research joint in China, Sharron along as the expert in bugs to collect samples of the creatures for return to the West. The mission is all well shot, whether in camera moves or lighting (though I can't help thinking the artistic merit of the scene where they escape by running along the skyline of a ridge, was undermined by the bad judgement in making them seen to the pursuers, but when reality or drama fight it usually has to be drama that wins out!), and it's certainly not slow or dull in any way.

As I mentioned before, the mix of techniques to create what was necessary for the story could sometimes make episodes look a bit scrappy, but 'The Beginning' (if not the most original title), used its resources better than most: you get a little back-projection, I think when they were driving in the Jeep, there's some good model work for the plane they escape in and are forced to crash, the indoor and outdoor sets are very good, especially the ripped apart plane, and although the snowy landscape is continuously used for different areas, it's shot well enough to disguise the fact for the most part, and the falling snow was very impressive indeed, helping to mask the relatively small area they'd built - the trouble with fake snow is that it looks like rice or sugar when on the ground, having no cohesiveness, but when falling it looked terrific and helped give the series more of a feature production look for the time. There's also some stock footage and even static photos used, one of which was out of place when we see a closeup of Richard holding the Tibetan medallion - later on when he decides to keep faith with the 'Old Man' as he's credited, and discard the proof of this civilisation's existence, we see the same closeup only this time it's actual moving footage so I don't know why they'd use an obviously static shot earlier. Minor quibbles that you have to expect with this series aside, it is a dramatic story.

The desperation with which the agents treat their impending crash shows their characters greatly - they say that the real you doesn't show itself until under duress, and I think this was the case, with Richard keeping calm as he hurls anything and everything out of the plane's exit, while Craig with grim set jaw tries his best to keep the nose level, and Sharron gets all whiny. Okay, so it wasn't the best scene for her, but in her defence it was her first mission and she is a bit younger than the men. Plus she doesn't have the confidence she'd gain from the mystical powers given to her very soon after. Richard Barrett is very much the English gentleman - he's a calm presence and reassuring to Sharron Macready, while Craig Sterling is much more blunt and hard-nosed, despite the soft voice. The leader was obviously cast American to appeal to the US market, so it shows that even in those distant decades marketing decisions were very important to the success and perception of a series. In any case the three made a good mix of personalities and types and they all have their roles in the group. Nemesis is, and always remained a bit mysterious with not that much explained about it as was the way in those days, but Tremayne, their boss back at Geneva HQ puts a human face on proceedings and helps to provide perspective on their escapade as he deals with a couple of foreign dignitaries demanding quick followup action (an American and either French or Swiss I would imagine). It's clear that he's in control of his domain and isn't going to be bullied by anyone in authority.

Tremayne's a funny character. We don't really find out that much about him over the course of the series and he doesn't get out of the office much, like most desk-bound bosses. But you get a sense of the scope of his operation from the huge map that dominates his spacious office and would be a big part of setting the scene of the many locations in as simple a way as possible. There's also the introduction of his suspicious cap to the episode where he just can't work out how they managed to survive and complete the mission safely, yet have no explanation other than 'luck,' something an experienced operator such as he must be to have reached the peak of this organisation, can smell isn't right. This would often be the way episodes finished, with Tremayne getting stumped, but always reminding his young agents who's really in charge when they have to wait for him to remotely open the door to let them out. It's a nice interplay that is there right from this episode, and if only it could have been developed more (though 'The Interrogation' did a good job as a one-off). One thing I wasn't sure about regarding Tremayne was why he was keen to stall on making a decision on what to do next. I'm not sure what twenty-four hours would have bought him (and neither were the dignitaries!). If they'd crashed as he suspected it wouldn't make any difference since he wasn't willing to send in more agents.

The enemy is ably filled by the Chinese military, a common foe in those Communist-fearing times, but a good touch to have a contact within the organisation, even if he proved himself brave, but sloppy. It's clear the pressure is really on this guy, which makes him seem much braver when he grabs one of the soldier's rifles and jumps in the troop lorry to go along and see that the agents escape. I'm not sure what he would have done if they'd been captured or shot, but it added something to a simple character that he wanted to remain involved instead of cowering in a corner waiting for instructions. The problem is, he wasn't circumspect, and the camp commander (played by an uncredited Anthony Chinn according to the booklet, later to appear in 'BUGS'), spies him grinning in delight when the plane gets clear away, putting him under grave suspicion, which must have led to him being watched so that when he calls in to update HQ he's caught by his own people and gives in to their threats to tell on its destination. But he redeems himself by taking another chance and grabbing the commander's pistol off the desk, only, once again he's sloppy, turning his back on the door and getting a blast of gunfire to the back. So ended an inauspicious informant's career, but I like that there was more to him than just a guy.

What works best in this episode is the dawning of the mystical situation the agents come into. The tinkling of bells from when Sharron first glimpses the city below, to the Old Man explaining how things are to Richard, all add an ethereal layer to a straight-up spy story. The Old Man, played by character actor Felix Aylmer, has all the benevolent kindness and simple love of life that we'd hope from some parallel civilisation that had diverged from our own for who knows how long, their choice to follow a different path - he shows his lack of understanding in their society by admitting he finds the way they divide their lands to be strange, as if it's obvious that all men should live in peace. He's such a fascinating and delightful character I wish he could have been in other episodes, perhaps appearing to guide them at opportune moments, but the fantastical side pretty much begins and ends here in the mountains, just a vehicle through which the main characters become gifted, their transformation improving mind, senses and faculties. The Old Man goes into quite a bit of detail in this regard, mentioning strength and sharpening of reason, not just more fantastical aspects of the deal. He also says that some are born with gifts and they are merely able to use all these gifts, but it's as much about improving what they had already, as implanting superhuman power within them. It adds to the magical nature of the conversation, and I like that he wasn't ambiguous or furtive in the answering of questions, just open and simple.

He warns Richard that they aren't infallible or immortal (so there goes my suggestion that the series may have been part of the inspiration for the 'Highlander' franchise, what with the special sound they hear when other Immortals are nearby, similar to the tinkling noise that occurs whenever the agents are having a moment of sixth sense!). It's also important to his character and the people he's representing that he trusts the judgement of those that have been gifted. It's not like they planned to make these people special and send them back, it was about saving their lives, they just improved the efficiency of everything while they were at it. They must know what they've done, and it would be nice to think that it was part of some grander scheme to spread their goodness into all the world, but it really was as simple as keeping them from death. Because they could. He asks that they use their gifts as they think their benefactors would want them to, a good guide to life, though if they'd been bad-hearted they could have twisted that to their own desires. In a way it might have been interesting to see what would have happened if there was a fourth member of the team who refused to do what was asked and became a recurring villain, like Captain Black in 'Captain Scarlet,' but it's all just speculation and not original, so no loss.

Richard at first plays devil's advocate and asks why they're trusted not to return home and bring others to search out this secret civilisation, but the Old Man has no doubts of their character, a great compliment. It's all very special and magical, reminding me of 'Santa Claus: The Movie' when the man who would become Father Christmas discovers this hidden land of wonder and beauty, and though the budget didn't stretch to showing any wonders, the music and the words of the Old Man paint the picture in imagination. He's even self-deprecating in the way he says that who he is isn't important, nor would taking Richard to the city prove anything. It's true to the story and would be true for the series, because I don't think there's ever a reference back to these people again, it's just these three agents that take on the mantle of these powers and use them to enhance the roles they already had in Nemesis. Richard shows his good faith by throwing away the only proof and they decide not to tell even Tremayne, as what could they tell him? Richard's the first to realise that what's happened to them is important and what happened there comes first, above the mission, which is why he's the one to go back and search out some answers, while Craig and Sharron are more intent on finishing the mission. It shows Richard to be more thoughtful and curious, while Craig is set and determined, and Sharron too.

The mystical civilisation must be a whole community because we see in the flashbacks to Craig being brought in on a stretcher that there's a young woman attending as well as the Old Man, so it wasn't just some group of ancient monks. I like that Craig awakes from his ordeal, which is very much presented as an operation, though from his point of view, well rested and invigorated until he realises what he's just been through. It's further room to wonder when they realise they've been out for two days, and there were the seeds for Craig at least to be sceptical of his senses when he finds that a bullet that grazed his side was actually stopped by the metal compass in his coat rather than bulletproof skin which would have made them too powerful and inhuman. But they don't go down the route of anyone disbelieving what's happened or really questioning it, they're shown to be too professional for that, keen to finish the job and anyway, they soon find enough evidence for the abilities: the telepathic knowledge of danger, awareness of one of the other's predicament was portrayed best, with Craig suddenly losing balance as if falling and hugging a nearby rock because Richard fell when climbing. It also demonstrates the Old Man's words that they will need to learn how to use these abilities, it won't come instantly. Again, this could have presented the opportunity for them to discover each new power on an episodic basis (a bit like 'Smallville' which held a few of Clark Kent's abilities back at first), but they throw them all in.

I'm not sure if the quick healing was actually a power as Craig wasn't really that injured, but they can certainly take more punishment than a normal human as evidenced by Richard's fall of 'twenty or thirty feet,' as well as the pair of them leaping from height to take down the enemy (and there's no stunning the enemy, they're quite happy mowing down the soldiers!). They display accuracy when Craig throws a rock to knock a gun barrel away, and super strength when Richard lifts a monstrous rock. They can even leap tall rocks with a single bound! Sharron doesn't really get involved, but they do demonstrate the ability to speak from a distance and be heard by each other, though it's not clear if it's telepathy or advanced hearing. In any case we hear the debut of the twinkly sixth sense music, as well as the eye closeup and the picture turning to a negative image, all devices to be used multiple times on the series. My only question would be if Tremayne was so suspicious then his first thoughts must have been towards them being double agents. But though Chinese assistance would explain their survival, they all seemed so normal and upbeat and had succeeded at the mission, throwing such a theory into doubt. Lastly, the smart suits for the men and Sixties fashions for Sharron mark out the sartorial taste of the series, showcased in the striking opening credits montage and its booming music that was never going to be as memorable a theme as a 'Star Trek' or 'Mission: Impossible,' but still spread a warm glow of nostalgia through me. It's also worth noting the arty end credits with stills from scenes shown in a stylised manner. A good beginning for the series that sets its potential up nicely.

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