"The Superlative Seven" | |
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The Avengers episode | |
Episode no. | Season 5 Episode 12 |
Directed by | Sidney Hayers |
Written by | Brian Clemens |
Featured music | Laurie Johnson |
Original air dates |
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Guest appearances | |
"The Superlative Seven" is the twelfth episode of the fifth series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series The Avengers , starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg, and guest starring Charlotte Rampling, Brian Blessed, Donald Sutherland, and James Maxwell. [1] It was first broadcast in the Southern and Tyne Tees regions of the ITV network on Wednesday 5 April 1967. ABC Weekend Television, who commissioned the show for ITV, broadcast it in its own regions three days later on Saturday 8 April. [2] The episode was written by Brian Clemens, and directed by Sidney Hayers.
Kanwitch, a crime boss looking for assassins, analyses the performances of men and women trained by Jessel, who boasts of the prowess of his work. Before agreeing to hire Jessel's assassins, Kanwitch requests one final, definitive ‘test’ of their abilities.
John Steed receives an invitation from Sir George Robertson, a famed explorer, to attend a fancy dress party he is hosting on an aeroplane. When Steed boards the following day, he is greeted by his fellow guests - fencing school owner Max Hardy, bullfighter Joe Smith, game hunter Jason Wade, marksman Hana Wilde, strongman Freddy Richards and controversial ex-military officer Major Mark Dayton.
After the plane takes off, the guests realise they have all been invited by different people and that none of their supposed hosts is on board. The plane is also remote-controlled rather than piloted by a human. Jessel broadcasts into the cabin, announcing that the guests are being taken to an undisclosed location for a ‘party’. Whilst awaiting their arrival, Steed theorises that each guest has been chosen for their prowess in a particular field of armed or unarmed combat.
The plane lands on an isolated island, and the guests disembark. They soon find an old, dilapidated mansion. The dining room includes ample weaponry for all seven, alongside coffins for six persons. Observing the guests through hidden cameras, Jessel and Kanwitch announce to the guests they are analysing the performance of their assassin in combat against the others. Jessel has invented a type of mental conditioning that can make humans impervious to normal physical and mental restraints, thus enhancing their skills and making them the perfect killing machine. The two men conclude by revealing that the assassin is one of the seven among them.
The guests decide to split up and search the island. Freddy is the first to be attacked by the assailant, and he is killed when his back is broken. The group hears Freddy's cries of pain but cannot find him. They return to the house to find his body placed into one of the coffins. Joe becomes the second victim when he is impaled with a pitchfork after avoiding a falling wagon, and Max is fatally stabbed after losing a fencing duel with the assailant.
Steed, Mark and Hana discover Joe and Max's bodies, making Mark suspicious of Steed's behaviour. Jason is missing, so the three split up to find him. Hana and Mark soon find Jason dead from a tiger trap, leading them to conclude Steed is the killer. They capture him and leave for the plane, intending to leave the island. Steed manages to free himself, whilst the assailant kills Mark.
Jason reveals himself as alive and admits to being the assailant. Steed and Jason fight, with Steed emerging victorious and seemingly killing him. However, Jason quickly disappears. Hana refuses to believe Steed's version of events and incapacitates him. She is lured into the woods by Jason but is rescued by Mrs Peel before Jason can kill her. Peel had followed Steed as backup given Steed had suspected his invitation was a fake all along.
Peel fights Jason to save the still incapacitated Steed. She wins and discovers two versions of Jason - identical twins. An enraged Kanwich berates Jessel for his deception about the prowess of ‘Jason’, leading Jessel to kill him. Hana prevents Jessel from killing Peel and Steed in turn incapacitates him. [3]
The Avengers is a British espionage television series, created in 1961, that ran for 161 episodes until 1969. It initially focused on David Keel, aided by John Steed. Ian Hendry left after the first series; Steed then became the main character, partnered with a succession of assistants. His most famous assistants were intelligent, stylish, and assertive women: Cathy Gale, Emma Peel, and Tara King. Dresses and suits for the series were made by Pierre Cardin.
Emma Peel is a fictional character played by Diana Rigg in the British 1960s adventure television series The Avengers, and by Uma Thurman in the 1998 film version. She was born Emma Knight, the daughter of an industrialist, Sir John Knight. She is the crime-fighting partner of John Steed.
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Dr. Catherine "Cathy" Gale is a fictional character played by Honor Blackman, on the 1960s British series The Avengers. She was the first regular female partner of John Steed, following the departure of Steed's original male co-star, Dr David Keel. She made her first appearance at the start of the series' second season in 1962.
Major The Hon. John Wickham Gascoyne Beresford Steed usually known as John Steed, is a fictional character and the central protagonist on the 1960s British spy series The Avengers and its 1970s sequel The New Avengers, played by Patrick Macnee in both; by Donald Monat in the South-African radio series adaptation of The Avengers; by Ralph Fiennes in the 1998 film of the same name and by Julian Wadham in various audio adventures from Big Finish Productions.
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"The Town of No Return" is the first episode of the fourth series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series The Avengers, starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg in her Avengers debut, and guest starring Alan MacNaughton, Patrick Newell, Terence Alexander. It was first broadcast on ABC Weekend TV on 28 September 1965. The episode was written by Philip Levene, directed by Sidney Hayers, and produced by Brian Clemens.
"Death's Door" is the eighteenth episode of the fifth series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series The Avengers, starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg, and guest starring Clifford Evans, Allan Cuthbertson, William Lucas, and Marne Maitland. It was first broadcast in the Grampian region of the ITV network on Wednesday 4 October 1967. ABC Weekend Television, who commissioned the show for ITV, broadcast it in its own regions three days later on Saturday 7 October. The episode was directed by Sidney Hayers, and written by Philip Levene.
"What the Butler Saw" is the twenty-second episode of the fourth series of the 1960s British spy-fi television series The Avengers, starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg. It was first broadcast by Scottish Television on Tuesday 22 February 1966. ABC Weekend Television, who commissioned the show, broadcast it in its own regions four days later on Saturday 26 February. The episode was directed by Bill Bain and written by Philip Levene.
"Dressed to Kill" is the fourteenth episode of the third series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series The Avengers, starring Patrick Macnee and Honor Blackman. It originally aired on ABC on 28 December 1963. The episode was directed by Bill Bain and written by Brian Clemens.
"The Fear Merchants" is the second episode of the fifth series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series The Avengers, starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg, and guest starring Patrick Cargill, Brian Wilde, Annette Carell, and Garfield Morgan. It was first broadcast in the Southern region of the ITV network on Monday 16 January 1967. ABC Weekend Television, who commissioned the show for ITV, broadcast it in its own regions five days later on Saturday 21 January. The episode was directed by Gordon Flemyng, and written by Philip Levene.
"Escape in Time" is the third episode of the fifth series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series The Avengers, starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg, and guest starring Peter Bowles, Geoffrey Bayldon, Judy Parfitt, and Imogen Hassall. It was first broadcast in the Southern region of the ITV network on Monday 23 January 1967. ABC Weekend Television, who commissioned the show for ITV, broadcast it in its own regions five days later on Saturday 28 January. The episode was directed by John Krish, and written by Philip Levene.
"The Bird Who Knew Too Much" is the fifth episode of the fifth series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series The Avengers, starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg, and guest starring Ron Moody, Ilona Rodgers, Kenneth Cope, and Michael Coles. It was first broadcast in the Southern and Tyne Tees regions of the ITV network on Wednesday 8 February 1967. ABC Weekend Television, who commissioned the show for ITV, broadcast it in its own regions three days later on Saturday 11 February. The episode was directed by Roy Rossotti, and written by Brian Clemens.
"The Winged Avenger" is the sixth episode of the fifth series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series The Avengers, starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg, and guest starring Nigel Green, Colin Jeavons, Jack MacGowran, and Neil Hallett. It was first broadcast in the Southern and Tyne Tees regions of the ITV network on Wednesday 15 February 1967. ABC Weekend Television, who commissioned the show for ITV, broadcast it in its own regions three days later on Saturday 18 February. The episode was written by Richard Harris, and directed by Gordon Flemyng & Peter Duffell.
"The Living Dead" is the seventh episode of the fifth series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series The Avengers, starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg, and guest starring Julian Glover, Pamela Ann Davy, Howard Marion-Crawford, and Jack Woolgar. It was first broadcast in the Southern and Tyne Tees regions of the ITV network on Wednesday 22 February 1967. ABC Weekend Television, who commissioned the show for ITV, broadcast it in its own regions three days later on Saturday 25 February. The episode was directed by John Krish, and written by Brian Clemens.
"The Correct Way to Kill" is the ninth episode of the fifth series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series The Avengers, starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg, and guest starring Anna Quayle, Michael Gough, Philip Madoc, and Terence Alexander. It was first broadcast in the Southern and Tyne Tees regions of the ITV network on Wednesday 8 March 1967. ABC Weekend Television, who commissioned the show for ITV, broadcast it in its own regions three days later on Saturday 11 March. The episode was directed by Charles Crichton, and written by Brian Clemens.
"The Forget-Me-Knot" is the first episode of the sixth series of the 1960s cult British spy-fi television series The Avengers, starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg, and introducing Linda Thorson as Tara King. Its first broadcast was on the US ABC network on 20 March 1968. Its first UK broadcast was on 25 September 1968 by Thames Television, who commissioned this series of the show for the ITV network. The episode was directed by James Hill, and written by Brian Clemens.