In order to rescue a fellow agent, West and Gordon infiltrate the prison on Devil's Island, West by taking the place of a prisoner and Gordon by gaining employment as a guard. The prison's commandant is Gustave Mauvais, a cruel, vindictive man whose beautiful wife, Camille, is desperate to escape from his clutches.
Disguises used by Artie: Pierre Gaspard, Former Legionnaire turned Prison Guard
(21:40) then new outfit at (28:25)
Tropes present in this episode:
- The Alcatraz: An island prison where the worst criminals go? Sounds about right.
- Distant Duet: Jim and Artie, one in the pit and the other in the commandant's waiting room, are shown simultaneously singing "Old Master Jip," a folk song which ends up being used as an identification code throughout the episode.
- Hellhole Prison: Devil's Island's reputation is so brutal that prisoners don't expect to return alive regardless of the length of their sentences. Mauvais chooses his guards based on how many dishonorable acts they've committed in other jobs and he makes them fight each other as the primary method of selecting candidates.
- Identical Stranger: In the tag scene the Girl of the Week introduces our heroes to her fiancé, who is played by Theodore Marcuse, the same actor who played the episode's Big Bad/her husband and was last seen sinking in quicksand.
- Leaning on the Fourth Wall: In one scene Artie whistles along with the background music, which is a tune featured in previous episodes as part of the series' library, but never diegetically. Which implies that Artie can somehow hear the soundtrack.
- Obfuscating Insanity: Le Fou, whom the agents believe is insane from prolonged captivity and talk freely around. Turns out he's a spy in the commandant's employ.
- Quicksand Sucks: How Mauvais meets his doom.
- Shave And A Haircut: This is how Artie signals his readiness to exit the Chamber of Togetherness. The background music chimes in when he gets to the final two beats.
- Spy Speak: The various agents identify themselves to each other by singing "Old Master Jip." Additionally, Artie carries a watch which plays the tune, as does the agents' ally on the island; contact is made by using them as sign/countersign.
- Trojan Prisoner: A slightly more convoluted version than normal, with Jim impersonating an actual convict in order to get inside the prison without arousing suspicion and Artie getting himself hired as a guard rather than just posing as one.
