The
Avengers
2.25: Six
Hands Across a Table
Following
Steed as a focus for assassination in Conspiracy
of Silence, now Cathy knows the suspected parties in Reed De Rouen’s second
and final script for the series. There have been a few fairly astute tales set
in the business world during this season, and Six Hands Across a Table is by no means bad, but it’s definitely a
case of the cast injecting life into the material.
Philip
Madoc is back after The Decapod, and he
yet again emerges from the proceedings in one piece (this definitely isn’t Doctor Who). His role is that of the
classically suspicious type, a valued can-do man for the trio of shipbuilders agreeing
dodgy deeds to remain on top of their game, but then joining the opposition and,
if not exactly the hero, coming through with cynical and calculating
credibility. A master manipulator, at one point he is asked “Ah, Mr Seabrook. Have you any idea when the
strike might finish? Or haven’t you quite decided”.
Guy Doleman
(the first Number Two in The Prisoner’s
Arrival, and of course, Colonel Ross
in Harry Palmer’s ‘60s endeavours) is Oliver Waldner, the mastermind of the bad
seeds. He romances Cathy in an at least somewhat mutual thing; they exchange meaningful
looks in their nightwear as she searches for a book to read (read, taking a
snoop around) and responds “I’m not sure”
when asked about her inclinations towards Waldner.
Stanley: What do
we want the French for?
The other
hands belong to George Stanley (Campbell Singer, Sergeant Rugg, Joey the Clown
and the King of Hearts in The Celestial
Toymaker) and reluctant Sir Charles Reniston (John Wentworth), while assuming
the opposition is Brian Collier (Edward de Souza, Marc Cory in Mission to the Unknown), whose dad was
bumped off by the trio as a result of his unpopular wish to work with the
French (the trio have sat around with their heads in the clouds beating a
patriotic drum, as it turns out). Their recipe for success has been arranging
lightning strikes and buying up their competitors when share prices subsequently
fell, at which point the strikes would suddenly stop. I’m not sure what this is
supposed to suggest about the malleability of unions, but it doesn’t seem very
positive.
Cathy: What
are you doing here? Go out and come through the front door like a civilised
human being.
Steed’s
rather enjoying himself taking the rise out of Cathy’s flirtations (“Your Hampton Harry may be up to his neck”,
referring to the unseemly methods of “Your
boyfriend”), and takes to using the upstairs window to visit her. But,
while he remains chirpy, he isn’t crowing come the final scene as Mrs Gale
looks rather lost (“He was quite a
powerful gentleman” is the closest Steed comes to consoling her, before
asking for her a lift and receiving a smile in return). Not a bad episode by
any means, but the character interplay definitely surpasses the plot
machinations.
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