History Series / CaptainScarletAndTheMysterons

** Captain Scarlet, [[CaptainObvious obviously]].

For the 2005 CGI [[TheRemake Remake]], see ''WesternAnimation/GerryAndersonsNewCaptainScarlet''.

** Spectrums final victory took place in the comics after the series ended.

* BraggingThemeTune: The [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXvfNJIOzxg ending theme]].

Leading the fight, one man [[PhlebotinumRebel fate has made indestructible]]. His name: [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bV8YbLvGrb0 Captain Scarlet]]."''

%% TheOtherDarrin is trivia.

* NiceJobBreakingItVillain: In the episode ''Spectrum Strikes Back'', all the Mysterons accomplish trying to interfere with the presentation of new anti-Mysteron equipment is provide a spectacularly successful field demonstration of those gadgets.

'''''Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons''''', set TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture, tells the story of a "war of nerves" between humanity and a race of Martians called the Mysterons.

* FiveManBand:
** TheHero -- Captain Scarlet
** TheLancer -- Captain Blue
** TheSmartGuy -- Lieutenant Green
** TheChick -- Destiny Angel (moreso in the 2005 reboot)

* AtrociousNickname: [[Film/ReservoirDogs Why I gotta be Captain Magenta?]]

* FailOSuckyname: [[Film/ReservoirDogs Why I gotta be Captain Magenta?]]

* SoMuchForStealth: In the opening titles, the viewpoint character stalking Scarlet startles a cat which fatally alerts Scarlet to his presence.

* Fridge Logic: It seems counter-productive in the extreme for the Mysterons to announce their plans to Spectrum every single time, often giving them the chance to form a successful counter-attack. However, remember that the whole war started because the Mysterons suffered an unprovoked attack from Captain Black. Just that was enough to make them want to destroy humanity entirely. It seems that their culture, if one could call it that, considers unprovoked attacks of any kind, even in the middle of a war, to be absolutely unacceptable to whatever code of honour to which they subscribe.

* DisproportionateRetribution: The Mysterons have reason to be angry since Captain Black destroyed their city, but since they could instantly rebuild it and there's no hint any Mysterons died, they seem to be rather irrational in their desire to destroy all life on Earth in retribution. When Spectrum apologises on behalf of mankind and asks for peace, the Mysterons [[spoiler:pretend to be ready to negotiate so they can set a trap but actually never even consider making peace]].

* VillainBall: Possibly averted. The Mysterons announce their plans in advance, albeit in riddles. However, there's some [[AlternateCharacterInterpretation speculation]] that they do this because they just enjoy tormenting the humans. At least once, the Mysterons stated point-blank that they were engaged in a "war of nerves" with Earth. They wanted to terrify us into self-destructive paranoia. A reason once mentioned was that the Mysteron Martian complex is an entertainment device (like the Shoreleave World of ''Star Trek), b''ut for aliens with other priorities. Occasionally the clues were a XanatosGambit, where SPECTRUM winning turned out to further the Mysterons' plan.

* AwesomeMccoolName

* AllThereInTheManual

** A sharp-eyed viewer will notice there's a window in the shots that shows scenery moving past in the "wrong" direction, making it obvious that the SPV crew are seated in the rear and facing away from the front of the vehicle (presumably for safety reasons). The ejector seat is also used during "The Winged Assassin". Or more accurately, Captain Blue's ejector is forcibly triggered by Captain Scarlet, so the latter can try to be a {{Big Damn Hero|es}}.
** This was mentioned in the first episode.

** There are also several occasions where they open the doors showing the seats face backwards. And of course the toys showcased the feature.

* CatchPhrase

* DisproportionateRetribution: The Mysterons have reason to be angry since Captain Black destroyed their city, but since they could instantly rebuild it and there's no hint any Mysterons died, they seem to be rather irrational in their desire to destroy all life on Earth in retribution.
** When Spectrum apologises on behalf of mankind and asks for peace, the Mysterons [[spoiler:pretend to be ready to negotiate so they can set a trap but actually never even consider making peace]].

* FiveManBand

* TheOtherDarrin: Harmony Angel is voiced by Liz Morgan except for "The Launching," where she's voiced by Lian-Shin. [[UnfortunateImplications While it's not her last episode, it's the last episode where the series' only Asian character has any dialogue.]]

* ThirteenIsUnlucky

* TheBadGuysWin: [[spoiler: In "Winged Assassin," "Inferno" and "The Heart Of New York."]]

->''THIS IS THE VOICE OF THE MYSTERONS...\\
WE KNOW YOU CAN HEAR US, EARTHMEN...''

->''The Mysterons. Sworn enemies of Earth. Possessing the ability to recreate [[ParanoiaFuel an exact likeness of an object or person]]. But first, [[KillAndReplace they must destroy...]]\\
Leading the fight, one man [[PhlebotinumRebel fate has made indestructible]]. His name: [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bV8YbLvGrb0 Captain Scarlet]].''

Like the earlier ''Series/{{Thunderbirds}}'', ''Captain Scarlet'' was produced by animatronics expert Gerry Anderson. The difference here is that the puppeteers used an upgraded design that places the internal mechanisms in the chest area of the puppets as opposed to the head. This change allowed the creation of puppets to forgo the characteristic oversized heads of previous super-marionettes for more realistic proportions. As a result, the show looks a bit like the old 12" ''Franchise/GiJoe'' action figures have come to life, which Anderson later noted made them feel [[UncannyValley less lifelike]] as a result.

A CGI [[TheRemake Remake]], '''''Gerry Anderson's New Captain Scarlet''''', appeared in 2005. The new series lasted two seasons (the original only lasted for one), but remains lesser-known than the original due to being ScrewedByTheNetwork.

!!''Gerry Anderson's New Captain Scarlet'' provides examples of the following tropes:

* TenMinuteRetirement: Destiny gets one in episode 2.
* AchillesHeel: In the 2005 version, duplicates can be detected with a DNA scan. Scarlet's "allergy" to them is also retained, though not consistently applied. The revival shows duplicates' eyes glowing green as well, but the series never makes clear whether this is actually seen "in-universe" or is simply for the viewer's benefit.
* AirborneAircraftCarrier: The Skybase.
* AloneWithThePsycho: Most of the episode "Best of Enemies" has this with [[spoiler:Scarlet and Black trapped at the bottom of a lake in a Spectrum Rhino]].
* AscendedExtra
** The female Captain Ochre makes a brief debut appearance at the end of season 1, a couple of brief walk-ons at the start of season 2, but by the end of the season had graduated to leading an entire episode ("Grey Skulls") by herself -- the only Captain other than Scarlet to do so; even Blue never gets to lead an episode. Several fan sites have suggested that Ochre would likely have graduated to major character status had the series continued.
** The trope can also be applied to Lt. Green, who in the revival is a more active character than the original version who hardly ever left Skybase, and even to an extent Destiny Angel, who becomes the female action lead and plays a major role in many episodes of the CGI version.
* BlessedWithSuck: To the revival's credit, Scarlet's indestructibility is only called into play in a minority of episodes. It also establishes early on that he is ''virtually'' indestructible, emphasis on the "virtually".
* CloningBlues: Mostly averted too in the revival. However, Captain Blue takes longer to warm to Scarlet, and several episodes do reflect on Scarlet's angst at being a "human-Mysteron hybrid" as he is described by [[spoiler:a friendly Mysteron]] in the episode "The Achilles Messenger".
* CodeName: Unlike the original series, which only on rare occasions (maybe no more than once or twice) referred to the characters by their real names, the revival uses the color codes and real names interchangeably. In one episode Scarlet activates an identity scan that clearly [=IDs=] him as "Paul Metcalfe, Captain Scarlet". The original series suggests the real names are usually kept secret, but not so in the revival.
* CoolBike: The Spectrum Raid Bike. So much so, an entire episode ("Grey Skulls") is basically built around how cool it is.
* CriminalMindGames: Averted in the revival as such announcements were, for the most part, done away with.
* DarkerAndEdgier: If it's possible, the 2005 version is even moreso than the original, especially once the series establishes that [[spoiler:the original victim's memories and personality still exist within the duplicate and can, under some circumstances, be revived.]] Yet that doesn't stop them from being shot on sight, thrown off cliffs, etc.
* DatingCatwoman: While it doesn't quite get as far as a "date", Scarlet and Astrid Winters ([[spoiler:a friendly Mysteron replicant trying to stop the war, but who shows clear attraction to Scarlet]]) are headed down this road in the episode "The Achilles Messenger".
* DieHardOnAnX: Destiny Angel vs. a group of Mysteron-controlled pirates in the episode "Fallen Angels". Bad-assery kicked UptoEleven by the fact she actually isn't aware she's offing Mysterons.
* DoNotTryThisAtHome: Interestingly, the 2005 revival has no such disclaimer. Maybe today's kids know better than to jump out of a flying aircraft hangar at 60,000 feet without a parachute?
* EvilBrit: In the revival Captain Black is said to be from Brooklyn -- yet he stil speaks with a British accent (which becomes more pronounced when he's being really evil). Might be a MythologyGag.
* FamilyUnfriendlyDeath: One character is shot in the head by Captain Black at point blank, another is crushed by falling rock, and Scarlet performs a NeckSnap on another!
* FauxActionGirl: Destiny Angel, at least in the first season; "Fallen Angels" was probably written in response to people complaining about it.
* FrickinLaserBeams: Spectrum-issue firearms appear to be this. An unusual case where FamilyFriendlyFirearms is definitely not in play; the sidearms at least can act as a StaticStunGun, but they have an explicitly-marked "Kill" setting that gets used, often.
* GenderFlip
** The male Lieutenant Green from the original puppet series becomes female in ''New Captain Scarlet'', but remains the TokenMinority in both.
** Captain Ochre also became female, but unusually the gender flip occurred mid-series as a male Ochre appears in the first episode, but by the end of the first season Ochre is a woman.
** One episode introduces a male pilot who is training to become an Angel [[spoiler:before the Mysterons get him]].
* GlamorFailure: The remake [[ScienceMarchesOn replaced the opacity to X-rays]] with a DNA test.
* HeelFaceTurn
** [[spoiler:Captain Black's original human personality -- that of Scarlet's best friend and Destiny's boyfriend -- resurfaces on several occasions, most notably in "Best of Enemies" when being submerged in a sunken Rhino causes the Mysterons to briefly lose control over Black, and definitely in the finale "Dominion" in which Black is manipulated by the Mysterons and led to believe he's thrown off their influence for good.]]
** The episode "The Achilles Messenger" [[spoiler:introduce a faction of Mysteron society who are opposed to the war and are willing to help the humans]]. Unfortunately the series never develops this beyond a couple of episodes.
* HeroicWillpower: Somewhat negated in the revival when it's revealed [[spoiler:most Mysteron duplicates retain the original personalities of the victims; however Scarlet is able to retain control for longer.]]
* LatexSpaceSuit: The Angels' flying suits. Skin-tight and ''shiny!''
* MythologyGag
** The remake is billed as being "filmed in Hypermarionation" in the opening credits.
** The Mercury Shuttle has a markedly similar launch sequence to ''Series/{{Fireball XL5}}''.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: The war starts the same way in the remake, except the co-pilot is Scarlet -- but only Black overreacts.
* RecurringRiff: Sadly the makers of the remake either couldn't or wouldn't license Barry Gray's original music, so a new drumbeat, arguably less effective, is used for the transitions.
* ToTheBatpole: Averted and eliminated utterly in the CG remake. If anything the characters sometimes move around ''too'' much in the early episodes.

* AirborneAircraftCarrier: The Cloudbase/Skybase.

** In the episode where Scarlet gets fired, the reason as to why was because he lost all his money whilst playing roulette, his last act being to put it all on red -- the ball lands on 13 (black). FridgeBrilliance: Scarlet was [[spoiler:trying to loose money as part of an undercover op, so he put it all on his lucky number.]]

* CodeName: Unlike the original series, which only on rare occasions (maybe no more than once or twice) referred to the characters by their real names, the revival uses the color codes and real names interchangeably. In one episode Scarlet activates an identity scan that clearly IDs him as "Paul Metcalfe, Captain Scarlet". The original series suggests the real names are usually kept secret, but not so in the revival.

* TenMinuteRetirement: Destiny gets one in episode 2 of the remake.

* AloneWithThePsycho: Most of the episode "Best of Enemies" has this with [[spoiler:Scarlet and Black trapped at the bottom of a lake in a Spectrum Rhino]].