Space Precinct – 20. Deathwatch

It’s the episode so good nobody wanted it to end. I went into Deathwatch well aware of its reputation as one of the strongest episodes of Space Precinct, but I was also wary of the novel way in which this story accidentally became a two-part adventure. If you’re not familiar, Deathwatch was written and filmed as a single installment that just so happened to have a very ambiguous ending. Only when filming was finished was the decision taken to tie up the loose ends by writing an extra episode – Deathwatch Conclusion. This is why Deathwatch is episode 20 in the series’ production order, while Deathwatch Conclusion doesn’t come until number 24. Conclusion was filmed over a month later with a script penned by a different writer. In the Security Hazard tradition, I will be strictly following the production order so that I can chart the development of the series as it went before the cameras. So, at the time of writing this, I haven’t actually seen Deathwatch Conclusion, and have a few other episodes to review before I return to it. But you’ll be pleased to know that I came out of Deathwatch positively excited to see what Deathwatch Conclusion adds. While Deathwatch is certainly a triumph in isolation, my gut reaction is that there’s too much good material in there to leave unexplored. It’s always a good sign when I finish an episode wanting more.

After a successful first outing with the episode Hate Street, Piers Haggard is back to direct Deathwatch. With the simplest of flourishes, Haggard does a terrific job of making Space Precinct actually look like the expensive show that it was always supposed to be. The script for the episode was written by Michael Berlin and Eric Estrin – their one and only Space Precinct contribution. Berlin and Estrin were experienced writers in American television with other credits including Miami Vice, Cagney & Lacey, MacGyver, Earth 2, and The Outer Limits. With both crime drama and science fiction clearly within the pair’s wheelhouse, it makes sense that Deathwatch succeeds in finding the right balance between all-out sci-fi epic and gritty police procedural. And yes, that’s exactly what Space Precinct should have been aiming for this whole time.

Errr… this guy is in the impressive alien slot of the opening titles this week and I… don’t know who they are. Haven’t got a clue. Yungstar from Terrahawks after a horrific accident? I’m going to guess this guy turns up in a future episode and the post-production workflow was a little out of sequence when these titles were being put together.

To confuse me even further there are moments from Deathwatch Conclusion included in the ‘This Episode’ montage for Deathwatch! That’s a bit cheeky!

Deathwatch was written and filmed with the title ‘Graveyard’ until it was renamed in post-production. What does it mean? Not sure, but it sounds cool.

A hole in the fabric of space opens up and spits out a meteoroid. Already we’re into new territory for Space Precinct here. The series doesn’t normally deal in such heavy sci-fi concepts as alternate universes and tears in reality. We had a smattering of time travel in Time To Kill and that was about it. Space Precinct has been primarily focused on giving us New York in space and nothing more audacious than that. This sequence is also noteworthy for being the first in the series composed entirely of computer generated animation. There have been CG elements incorporated with live action and model shots in the past, but this is on another level. It’s impressive stuff for 1995 and an immediate indication that the production team want to make this episode something special.

Here’s a very unusual setting for Space Precinct. Far removed from Demeter City, we find ourselves high above the clouds atop a snowy mountain. Are we even on Altor? It’s ruddy mysterious. This incredible tracking station, akin to the K14 observatory from the Captain Scarlet episode Shadow of Fear, was the work of model makers Steve Howarth and Chris Trice. They adapted a cargo pod from the rear of the Talon Princess spaceship from The Snake – the front of which was used last week as Zann’s ship in Smelter Skelter. To make the interior of the building appear populated, a discarded reel of film was backlit to form windows – the film in question was Roy Chubby Brown’s 1993 sci-fi comedy UFO… complete with scantily clad “feminist aliens.”

Even the interior set of the observatory looks great because the Director of Photography, Tony Spratling, sensibly kept the lights turned down low. The darkness makes the tech look impressive and keeps the atmosphere moody and tense. The control console has been seen in prior episodes like Enforcer, The Power, and Two Against The Rock, but I don’t think it’s ever looked as important and fancy as it does here. Speaking of important and fancy, Wayne Forester has been allowed to make another appearance in the series without a mask on! Last week, in Smelter Skelter, he was a lowly security guard who was zapped into oblivion. This week, he’s a lowly radar technician zapping his lungs into oblivion with a cheeky cigarette. The smoking stops as soon as his superiors step into the room looking very serious indeed.

If you hadn’t already guessed, they’re tracking the space object and estimate that the fragments are going to enter the atmosphere and crash on the eastern edge of the bay and the ocean beyond. This all feels very far removed from Demeter City and the DCPD, and I couldn’t be more thrilled. I’m so ready to get out of the city after so many episodes seeing nothing but skyscrapers and alleyways.

With most of the mysterious object due to burn up in the atmosphere, Captain Tara Weldon still isn’t in the mood for taking risks. Everything is super-duper serious and by thunder does it set the episode up for some great tension. Weldon is played by British actress Cecilia Noble. I was surprised to learn that this was one of her first television roles because she certainly plays the character with authority beyond her years.

Weldon’s colleague, Major Graffa, is played by series regular, Andy Dawson. Taking a three-eyed Tarn character and giving them an eye patch is a stroke of genius and almost certainly inspired by the likes of Emilio Largo from Thunderball and Snake Plissken from Escape from New York.

When the flaming meteor arrives in Altor’s atmosphere it’s become a model rather than CGI. The flames against the dark sky and ominous clouds look incredible.

The model team must have relished the opportunity to create settings and vehicles outside of Demeter City. This sparsely lit rural scene with a pickup truck gliding through looks great. It’s very familiar and Earth-like, but little touches like the advanced wind turbine and harsh floodlights on the building just give it that extra nudge towards something futuristic.

Again, it’s unusual for us to see the lives of everyday folk from outside of the big city so this is quite a treat for the series. Randall Butler is congratulating his friend Enro Skyles on falling in love. Skyles is your average Space Precinct alien brought to life by Rob Thirtle, while Butler is a human played by guest actor, Kenneth Farrington. A familiar face on British television, Farrington’s most recognised role was that of Billy Walker in Coronation Street, whom he played on and off for 23 years between 1961 and 1984. It must be said that his American accent in the role of Butler is also a bit of an on and off affair.

It’s a truly spectacular moment when the rock explodes into fragments that sprinkle their way across Butler’s farm in a blaze of destruction. Butler welcomes them as fireworks to celebrate Skyles’ new romance, rather than an omen of terror tearing through his property. It’s good to have a positive outlook.

Space Precinct has never looked this epic! Piers Haggard and the production crew have really succeeded in making the studio backlot look like vast pseudo-American countryside. The great plumes of smoke and burning hay bales look just as good in live action as they did on the miniature set. Normally the live action material feels small and restricted compared to the model work, but there’s a real sense of scale and spectacle to this scene. It looks like a slice of classic cinema has been dropped into the middle of Space Precinct. A far cry from the soap opera aesthetic some of those early episodes were stuck with.

While Skyles battles in vain to put the fire out, Butler is curious about the glowing lump of space rock that’s dropped on his doorstep. Should he touch it? What do you think, boys and girls?

Well, obviously that was a bad idea. Of course you don’t touch the mysterious alien object. But isn’t it such a joy to see Space Precinct happily playing with every sci-fi movie trope they can think of? There’s a certain amount of viewing pleasure to be gained from knowing exactly what’s about to happen in a given situation. It’s predictable but in a fun way. The writers and director trust the audience to recognise this exact situation from countless other films and shows, so none of it needs excessive exposition to set it up. We can just get on with the action.

Skyles rushes to help his boss. Butler suddenly wakes up and grips his colleague’s leg in exactly the zombie-like manner you would expect. We know instantly that something strange has happened to the man. Ken Farrington is now wearing some unusual contact lenses, but the nature of his possession isn’t laboured beyond that. No clunky exposition required – at least not yet.

While Skyles has his back turned to admire the pretty rock, Butler caves his friend’s head in with a shovel, eyes a-glowing with alien menace. We’re really getting down to business this week!

What could this rock be up to? You’re gonna have to wait a while to find out.

Well, we had to get back to Demeter City eventually, I suppose. The initial establishing shot is borrowed straight from last week’s episode, Smelter Skelter, with the Jewelry Center prominent in the skyline. In a crummy old apartment building, two neighbours are saying hello. It’s a much more familiar setting for a Space Precinct episode.

Bertha has brought her friend Virginia some… dinner? You really shouldn’t have.

Virginia, played by Alexa Rosewood, accepts the dish with the minimal level of gratitude it deserves. The conversation quickly shifts to the Gushens – some neighbours who have moved out recently. It would seem that these are the types of old ladies who get a kick out of despairing about the state of their community. So, you won’t catch Bertha Fluss moving out of her home any time soon. It’s not exactly the high octane alien meteorite action that we opened the episode with, but I promise it’s going somewhere.

In exchange for the meal, Virginia gifts Bertha a plant. I think we all know who got the better end of that deal. Virginia suggests that Bertha could do with some colour in her life… which is a polite way of telling her friend she’s a boring mare. Bertha ignores the insult and happily accepts the present. Anne Kristen puts in a terrific performance as Bertha for this episode. Space Precinct was one of the actor’s last roles before she died in 1996, but she had previously enjoyed a long career with recurring roles in Hamish Macbeth, Casualty, King’s Royal, and Wings.

After all the frostiness from last week, it’s such a relief to find Brogan and Haldane pootling along in their cruiser making harmless small talk once again. Today, Haldane is concerned about someone called Peter, and the box of chocolates that’s mysteriously appeared on a certain colleague’s desk. Yes, Haldane and Castle’s relationship appears to be in turmoil again with the introduction of an unknown third party. Is it a big misunderstanding? Well yes, obviously. But before Haldane can figure that out, we need to have some fun along the way.

Meanwhile, a couple of Tarns named Skid and Gullis (Rob Thirtle and Wayne Forester), attempt to discuss the origins of the phrase “man’s inhumanity to man.” The task is a bit beyond them. Far from appreciating the poetry of Robert Burns, they seem better qualified for attending monster truck rallies and spitting in the street.

Before parting ways, Virginia and Bertha gossip about the apartment building’s new landlord. He’s been making persistent and generous offers to move all his tenants into new accommodation and empty the building. Bertha won’t budge and Virginia agrees to stay put in her home too. It’s another great bit of exposition that doesn’t feel too forced.

It’s not a shock to learn that Skid and Gullis are actually a pair of muggers. They take great pleasure in trying to scare Bertha by smashing her new plant on the floor. That’s just not on.

Bertha is all too willing to stand up for herself, but it’s not a fight she can win. Virginia overhears the commotion but makes the wise choice to stay out of the way for the moment. Bertha manages to flee the attackers and heads for the roof. Skid and Gullis speculate as to whether she can fly. They seem quite fond of making tasteless jokes, just in case you needed more convincing that they are indeed unpleasant characters. Fun fact – Skid’s shiny black jacket originally belonged to Space Precinct editor Matthew Glen (son of director, John Glen). There’s a roller coaster story behind how the jacket ended up on the show, but you’ll have to turn to page 121 of Space Precinct Unmasked to get the full scoop. I swear Richard James is not paying me to promote his book, it’s just really good!

Virginia has already called the DCPD and Fredo wastes no time dispatching Brogan and Haldane to dish out some cold, hard justice!

Bertha arrives on the roof and does… something… to her arm. She snags her cardigan on a trellis but the moment fails to come across dramatically on camera. The trellis doesn’t look very capable of causing harm given that Bertha toddles into it at half a mile an hour.

Brogan and Haldane arrive in the nick of time. That building in the foreground looks suspiciously like a regular skyscraper that’s been laid down on its side so that the windows are on the roof.

Now this is neat. Live action footage of Bertha, Skid, and Gullis have been superimposed onto a model replica of the rooftop set – a composite shot which has then been plopped in front of the live action police cruiser set on green screen. Layers upon layers of 1995 post-production wizardry.

They can’t land the cruiser safely on the roof. So, Brogan suggests that Haldane jumps. He asks ever so politely, like he’s offering the man the rest of his sandwich.

“Just get me in close.” Good ol’ Jack Haldane could never abandon a lady in distress.

The baddies clear off as soon as they figure out what’s going on, but we won’t rob Haldane of his special moment. “Break a leg!” yells his colleague, and off he goes. You can barely even tell that it’s a stunt man doing the jump. This is some top notch telly.

Bertha barely allows the officer a moment to recover from his death-defying stunt before she orders him to get on with the job and chase the bad guys. “Yes ma’am,” smiles Haldane, immediately taking a shine to Bertha. Rob Youngblood understands the assignment.

The thugs rush to the elevator and blast at a couple of lights… for some reason. I would argue that if you’re trying to escape the police, it’s generally not a good idea to make a loud noise that will attract everybody’s attention.

Brogan managed to find parking on the ground and is making his way upstairs. This gives us ample time to enjoy Haldane strutting around with his gun like a badass and building some tension.

He nearly blows Bertha’s head off. That certainly would’ve put a different spin on the episode…

And then he nearly blows Brogan’s head off. That would’ve put a different spin on the entire series.

Brogan’s out of puff after taking the stairs all the way up to the twelfth floor. The crooks were at least smart enough to take the elevator. But then we get a shaky point-of-view shot from someone else who seems to be roaming the dilapidated corridors. Well, who could that be?

How did walking into a trellis give her that particular injury?

Bertha objects to being fussed over or talked down to, which makes her quite a match for Haldane. Those stairs have really gotten the better of Brogan. Poor guy can barely get a sentence out.

Bertha tells the “sergeant” that she’s never seen the muggers before. Yeah, that’s right, she calls Brogan a sergeant rather than a lieutenant. He doesn’t like that…

… but Haldane does.

A mysterious figure watches Bertha, Haldane, and the “sergeant” hop in the elevator. We’re not supposed to recognise the man just yet, but you can probably figure out who it is.

Back at the station house, Officer Orrin is fuming about his living arrangements with a certain lady. Before Romek can hand out too much advice about women, we’re promptly reminded that it’s his mother’s house rules that Orrin is objecting too – rather than a wife or girlfriend. The idea that Orrin still lives with his mother was adopted by the writers upon Richard James’ suggestion, having originally devised the back story to add a touch of prissiness to his performance.

Romek’s recommendation of handling all women by being forceful and direct goes right out the window when the bumbling officer spots Bertha Fluss from across the room and cowers in terror. Bertha used to teach Astronomics 101 at Romek’s high school and apparently went by the nickname “the Beast.” It’s a glorious extra detail for the character. Bertha has gained more character development in the last five minutes than poor Sally Brogan has scraped together across the series so far.

The multi-talented Officer Carson has rotated occupations again and today he’s back to operating as the station’s medical advisor. He instructs Bertha on changing her dressing like she’s an imbecile, and she bites back with, “Is that all they teach you at medical school these days?” Haldane gets yet more pleasure from watching Bertha take chunks out of his respected colleagues. Personally, I doubt Carson even went to medical school.

But Bertha’s not done roasting the DCPD just yet. She recognises Romek from his poor posture and remarks on what a novelty it is to see him in a police station on the other side of the jail bars. I hope Carson’s medical training extends to treating first degree buuurns.

Haldane escorts his new best friend away to get a memory-fit (see Seek and Destroy, The Witness, and Smelter Skelter) before she can do any more damage to the men of the DCPD.

“Wimp!” declares Orrin. And all poor Romek can do is sulk. Everyone’s on fine form this week.

Alas, there’s no room in this episode for a decent Brogan family subplot, so Liz makes a quick cameo to complain about studying for her midterms. Papa Patrick says Matt needs to help her study or else. And that neatly gets him out of his fatherly duties for the rest of the episode.

One neatly executed camera movement gets us from Bertha’s memory-fit into our chief subplot for the episode. Officers Castle and Took have received a visit from Anza Valentine (Alexa Rosewood), who is looking for her missing fiancé, Enro Skyles. Remember the guy who got his head mashed with a shovel at the beginning of the episode? Well, she doesn’t know about that yet.

Castle and Took have to tell a tearful Anza that there’s nothing the police can do, suggesting that the man has simply gotten cold feet over the prospect of marriage. Yikes. That’s a bit harsh.

Anza storms out. Took, who’s always the one to do the actual work and make herself useful, plans to call the coroner again to double check if Skyles has turned up. The altered Butler was presumably smart enough not to report his own act of homicide to the coroner. As Castle studies the photo again, the final few frames of the scene are noticeably slowed down, as if the original take didn’t quite last for long enough.

Night has fallen in Demeter City and Haldane and Brogan are giving Bertha a ride home. It’s probably a lucky coincidence, but I like the detail that most of the lights inside the apartment building are switched off to indicate that the place is mostly empty. It also appears that the model building has twelve floors, just as the interior sets and dialogue indicated earlier. Buildings in TV shows rarely have the right number of floors when seen from outside so you’d better believe I’m the sort of person who checks whenever there’s an opportunity.

Mysterious-ish man is still prowling about the place. He’s conveniently checking out that bit of wall so that his face is turned away from the camera.

We learn that Bertha’s memory-fit was unsuccessful, and didn’t produce a satisfactory image of the attackers. I would assume that was a deleted scene we’ve just missed.

As they enter the building, Bertha and the officers are being watched by someone in a vehicle across the street. Unusually for a Space Precinct car, it actually has wheels… although I’m guessing it’s probably not supposed to. Rather than straight up using an existing I.A.D. concept car as we’ve seen so many times throughout the series, it looks like this vehicle is a creation of Space Precinct’s own design team. It’s probably a shell thrown over a real vehicle, but I have to say it looks pretty decent.

The camera nudges in so that we just about get enough time to recognise the eye patch of Major Graffa from the very start of the episode. Oh my, what shenanigans could this allude to?

Bertha complains about the state of the building just in time for the new landlord, Randall Borden, to emerge from the shadows. Correctly addressing Brogan as a lieutenant this time, she introduces the unimpressed officers as the mysterious man steps forward…

And would you believe it – Randall Butler and Randall Borden are the same man! Nobody asks the guy why his eyes look so peculiar. No, the real mystery is why a farmer possessed by a glowing meteorite is now impersonating an apartment landlord. Silly as it may sound, it’s actually quite an intriguing puzzle by Space Precinct’s standards.

After the commercial break, Borden is seen exiting the apartment building under the watchful eye of Captain Weldon. Are they aware that Butler/Borden/whoever is under alien control? If so, why aren’t they doing anything about it?

Walden and Graffa’s little surveillance van somehow has access to the security cameras inside the building. They sit back and watch the arrival of the muggers, Skid and Gullis, once again.

Captain Weldon has got a bit of a sweat on, but don’t worry because there’s a tiny desk fan spinning away next to her.

Having moved on from the poetry of Robert Burns, Skid and Gullis are now debating the high-falutin topic of proper language use in general, all while casually letting themselves into an apartment. There’s a level of ironic, Tarantino-esque humour to all this that doesn’t quite have a place in Space Precinct. I appreciate the writers giving it a try though.

Meanwhile, Bertha is taking a quiet moment to contemplate the day’s events with her robot housekeeper, Rocky. Confusingly, the name printed on his side says ‘BORIS’, but he definitely answers to Rocky. He’s essentially a lower-budget version of Slomo wearing a culturally questionable hat. The production may have even re-skinned the main Slomo prop to create Rocky, rather than building a whole new robot. Bertha seems to consider the chatty robot a decent substitute for her late husband, Dixon Fluss. Rocky specifically states “companionship is my function.” They’re keen to paint Bertha as quite a lonely figure despite her ballsy attitude.

Rocky indicates that Bertha has some unexpected company. Before we get to that though, I want to take a quick moment for the prosthetic make-up that’s been applied to Anne Kristen for this episode. It’s not exactly one of Space Precinct‘s more interesting alien designs. It’s barely an alien design at all. She just looks like a human with an especially saggy face. I’m not really sure why it was necessary to make Bertha an alien instead of a human. The relatively minimal design does at least allow for the nuances of Anne Kristen’s performance to come through, but I’d argue that it would be even better with no prosthetic at all.

Yes, Skid and Gullis have come to visit Bertha. Did they steal her key card during the struggle earlier? Surely she would have noticed if her own key was missing since she’d have been unable to re-enter the building herself. Do the lads have their own key that lets them go anywhere they please? Are they in the employ of Borden and/or the military observers?

Trying to keep her cool, Bertha instructs the muggers to take whatever they want. They elect to smash up her kitchen in a vicious manner. Okay, it’s an ugly kitchen, but I’d still say that’s a bit harsh.

Skid eyes up Bertha’s collection of kitchen knives and uses his telekinetic Tarn powers to launch a particularly sharp blade across the room. Bertha appears unharmed, but I’d argue it’s a moment that maybe takes the violence a little too far.

Beheading a robot with a broomstick is probably a more appropriate level of family-friendly violence for Space Precinct. Don’t ask me what the rules are, I can’t explain my moral compass.

Skid switches off Rocky with a remote control, and he has a good laugh with Gullis about all the fun they’re having terrorising this old lady. For a couple of poets, they really aren’t very nice people.

Bertha chucks her hot cocoa directly in Skid’s face. That won’t be good for the electronics inside the mask.

Bertha uses the opportunity to escape her apartment. Instead of attempting to outrun the attackers, she clocks the closet for the trash chute. She’s safe for a moment, but the crooks soon realise where she is, turn off the lights, and lock her in. Bertha has no way out. Could she escape down the trash chute? Don’t be silly.

Weldon and Graffa are watching all this unfold from their surveillance van. Apparently they’re not inclined to help poor Bertha out. That can’t be good. “They’re on their way,” says Weldon. “Send in the unit,” responds Graffa. What are they talking about? No idea, but I don’t trust ’em.

Dawn comes around, and so does Jack Haldane with a special gift for Bertha. He’s such a nice boy.

He also has good hearing and a strong right foot, so makes swift work of rescuing an inconsolable Bertha from the closet where she’s spent the night. It’s a heartbreaking performance from Anne Kristen.

Without saying a word, it’s clear that Weldon and Graffa are wary of Haldane’s involvement in whatever this actually is. But do they feel a twinge of guilt for abandoning Bertha? Or is this all part of the plan?

Back in Bertha’s apartment, things are getting even weirder. Everything in the kitchen is where it should be. The knives are hanging on the wall rather than embedded in it. And Rocky is back in full working order. Haldane is now a little skeptical.

According to Rocky’s account, there was no attack, but Bertha went upstairs to visit her neighbour and never came back. This is all intensely baffling in the best possible way. What is reality anymore? That’s where we’re at now. Of course, without saying it, Haldane expresses his doubts about Bertha’s mental state.

Fortunately, Bertha doesn’t need to say much to convince Haldane that she can’t have imagined everything about last night. He admits that something weird is going on. It’s so refreshing to have characters that can level with each other and have a reasonable discussion. Normally there’s a lot of unnecessary arguing in order to avoid anyone figuring out the plot too soon. Fortunately, the concept of the military rearranging Bertha’s life to throw her off the scent is so mad that nobody could guess it.

Bertha is quick to assert herself and refuses to leave her home.

“Okay. What do you want to do?” asks Jack. It’s a very mellow, very sweet, and very mature side of Haldane that we see here. Patience is not normally one of Haldane’s virtues – see his stinking bedside manner at the beginning of Hate Street. But he’s built up a great rapport with Bertha over the course of the episode so far, and the result is this lovely little bit of character development. Rob Youngblood is clearly relishing the opportunity to show a different side to the character.

Bertha demands some protection, citing her generous tax payments as justification. What’s key here is that she’s not saying it in an obnoxious way. She’s just desperate for help. Haldane presents his gift as indication that he’s on her side. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, Jack Haldane is a very nice boy. Who could possibly disagree with me on that?

Yeah, Captain Podly has something to say about it. He begins to explain rather forcefully that with all evidence of the attack gone, the police have no grounds for offering protection. Podly is venturing into the belief that Bertha is making it up in order to combat her loneliness. Brogan tries to chip in and defend the older lady, but Podly is having none of it. As far as he’s concerned, this is a job for social services.

What’s nice about this is that Podly does make a reasonable attempt to hear Haldane out, only to receive nothing back from the officer because the circumstances defy explanation. It’s a little harsh, but you can just about understand Podly’s point of view. Everyone’s being so logical and reasonable this week. It’s quite a treat compared to what we put up with in Smelter Skelter last week.

An attractive bunch of flowers have joined the box of chocolates on Castle’s desk. Took is just getting off the phone with the coroner, who is named ‘Dando’ after one of the series’ First Assistant Directors – Christopher Dando. Despite the namecheck, I should probably point out that Marcia Gay is the 1st A.D. on this particular episode, not Christopher Dando. Anyway, Castle is starting to suspect that there is something a little odd about Erno Skyles’ disappearance. Took decides to put Slomo on the case because even she can’t be bothered to work on it right now.

On their way down the stairs, Brogan assures Haldane that they’ll keep an eye on Bertha with a few extra stops during their patrols. Brogan isn’t quite ready to believe Bertha just yet, but he very reasonably offers to run a background check on her new landlord. Is Brogan being extra nice this week to make up for how ruddy awful he was in Smelter Skelter?

Castle doesn’t seem to mind stringing Haldane along a little bit. She teases him about “seeing an older woman” and is happy to let Haldane speculate over Peter’s identity when he inspects the flowers. It’s just a little bit of fun, and under normal circumstances Jack would be all over Jane’s mind games like a rash. But today, his thoughts and feelings are elsewhere because he’s such a nice boy.

Except the nice boy suddenly doesn’t feel so nice when Romek starts to make fun of Haldane’s friendship with Bertha. Don’t worry, Brogan’s already clocked it.

Daddy steps in and breaks up the fight before it can start. The commotion even has Jane’s attention at the very back of the room. After all the relative nicety and professionalism, I feel like we’ve earned a moment for the tension to break and for the more emotional side of Haldane to burst through. The performances are pitched just right by Rob Youngblood and Lou Hirsch.

Haldane exits and Romek sits down for a sulk while Slomo enters to deliver the next part of Took and Castle’s subplot. Piers Haggard has developed a great knack for transitioning smoothly from one bit of business to another in the vast station house set. Slomo has checked every conceivable record and announces that Enro Skyles does not appear to exist. More intrigue! Castle decides that this now requires some proper police investigation and suggests they go and talk to Randall Butler. Oh boy. Someone needs to get her up to speed on this week’s plot…

Randall Butler/Borden/whoever has his purple eyes set on getting Bertha’s friend Virginia out of her apartment. But the old dear has just backed out of the landlord’s latest offer to move somewhere new and insists on staying in her home. It’s quite the inconvenience for Borden. He’s keen to highlight the recent crime wave as an incentive to get out. We still don’t know his reasoning for emptying the place, but it’s looking more and more like Skid and Gullis’ all-access key to the building was Borden’s doing.

Now this is unexpectedly gorgeous. Who knew that beyond the grime and squalor of Demeter City there were beautiful green hills and a crystal blue river? Other than an unpleasant visit to the Rock in Two Against The Rock, this is the furthest the DCPD have ever ventured out of Demeter or its immediate orbit. After all this time, you’d be forgiven for thinking that the planet Altor was just one city surrounded by water. I guess the writers are finally keen to demonstrate that there’s more to it.

Once again Took is doing the actual work of flying the police cruiser with her hands on the controls while Castle folds her arms and daydreams about living in the countryside with a certain someone. First time out of the city and she can already taste the freedom.

The officers arrive at Butler’s farm to discover the trail of destruction left by the meteorite and a vast dome erected at the end of it surrounded by dark green buildings and vehicles. Again, we’ve all seen sci-fi movies about alien crash landings, so we know what this is shorthand for.

Two ships, the like of which we’ve never seen before in Space Precinct, emerge from the dazzling sunlight.

The ships are clearly armed to the teeth and ready to do some damage. Great design. No notes. One of the unseen fighter pilots broadcasts a message to Took and Castle informing them that they have entered restricted military airspace and must leave immediately.

Castle and Took attempt to stand their ground and ask to conduct their police business, but the fighter jets are slowly nudging them out of the area. It’s a pretty epic standoff. Just the fact that we’re getting special effects shots that are different from the normal flying-around-the-city stuff was thrilling enough, but these ultra high stakes make it even better! Our police heroes have come up against an authority higher than their own! And they have ruddy cool planes to show off!

We fade to black for a commercial break, but then for some reason hard cut back into the next shot of the station house, rather than fading in from black as we typically would. It’s also worth noting that this is a fairly standard stock shot of a cruiser arriving at the station house except that the action has been sped up quite a bit. Some voice-over instructs Took and Castle to head for Captain Podly’s office upon their arrival. My guess would be that an alternate, much longer scene was cut for timing and this shot was hastily wedged in place during editing with some ADR to bridge the gap, and no time for a proper fade-in either.

Castle and Took are understandably concerned about the military presence at Butler’s farm, but Captain Podly is keen to stay out of it. No surprises there. He’s more concerned that his police officers are all turning into social workers. I suppose from his perspective it’s a fair criticism. Why is Haldane so invested in one old lady? Why are Castle and Took so interested in a low-priority missing persons case? As the rest of the series has showcased, Demeter City has many far more pressing issues for the police to tackle.

Castle is getting awfully shouty with her superior officer, so Podly shouts straight back. It’s a nice little bit of symmetry to have both Jane and Jack taking similarly heated stances with their cases. The warring lovebirds are more alike than they appear. And, of course, we all know that Podly’s objections are only going to add fuel to the bonfire rather than extinguishing it. This just injects even more tension into the mix so that we’re positively swimming in it.

Castle and Took leave the exasperated Podly to ponder what has gotten into his police force today… or perhaps to speculate for himself what the military are up to…

Newsflash – I’m now counting 13 floors total on the apartment building. Now, that does still work but we do have to distinguish between the way Americans and Brits count floors. In the lobby earlier there was a sign on the wall that clearly labeled it as the ‘ground floor’, which would therefore allow for 12 floors above it and bring the total to 13 as we can see from the outside. The only wrinkle comes when you consider that Americans typically refer to the ground floor of a building as the first floor, while Brits would consider the first floor to be upstairs above the ground floor. Since Demeter City is essentially written and designed to be New York in space, you’d expect the floors of a building to be counted in the American way – meaning that Virginia lives on what should be labeled as floor 13 rather than 12. Why am I obsessing over this? Because I’m a frustrated Brit who’s lived in the United States for nearly 10 years and I still get confused every time I step in a lift… or elevator… oh bother.

Captain Weldon still has eyes on the inside of the building and we get a creepy P.O.V. shot of someone approaching apartment 5C… or should that be 6C… grumble, grumble.

Bertha and her resurrected Rocky are playing the unusual chess-like game that was previously seen in Two Against The Rock.

There’s a knock at the door so Bertha grabs a knife. Rocky suspects that her caffeine levels are too high. For a robot, he’s pretty thick.

But the visitor is none other than that nice boy, Jack Haldane. He’s on the fifth floor. The sign says so. The fifth floor. Yes, I’m okay, stop asking.

Captain Weldon is thoroughly put out by the police presence and worries about Haldane getting in their way. Major Graffa wants to push on and “keep an eye on our boy”… no, not that nice boy Jack Haldane, but instead…

… Randall Butler/Borden/whoever. It’s now clear that he is indeed connected with Weldon and Graffa. And, in turn, Skid and Gullis are working on behalf of Butler/Borden/whoever. No clunky exposition is necessary to unravel all of this – we just watch it play out and are trusted to keep up.

Charming as he may be, Randall has officially lost patience with Virginia. He’s ready to evict the resident of apartment 12B by force and brings in Skid and Gullis to drag the tenant out. Nasty.

Elsewhere, Jack is sharing tales of his frustrating love life with Bertha. True to form, she encourages the nice boy to tackle the problem head on and to ask Jane directly about Peter. We get a delightful moment of vulnerability from Haldane as he confesses to being afraid of the answer he’ll get. And let’s be clear, he’s not just afraid of wounding his pride or looking a fool. The true depth of his feelings are clear. He’s afraid of having his heart broken. Can someone pass me a tissue?

This tender moment is oh-so-delicately juxtaposed with a screaming old woman getting chucked off the roof. That is so Space Precinct.

As you’d probably expect, Virginia’s fall was cut out of the BBC2 6 o’clock screening of Deathwatch. I’m not sure how much or how little was actually shown in the censored version, but it’s fair to say that the uncut episode gets as close as it possibly can to showing the complete descent without actually presenting us with the messy splat on the ground.

If the camera were tilted a couple of inches lower we’d see that dummy shatter on the tarmac.

Weldon and Graffa are mildly disturbed but basically unmoved by the development. There’s a look between them that suggests they’ve probably gone too far, but that they’re not likely to stop now. Stop what exactly? Well, we still don’t know. How is any of this connected with the meteorite they were tracking at the beginning of the episode? Apart from Randall Butler/Borden/whoever’s ambiguous involvement, the connection is still a tasty, tasty mystery.

Demeter City at dawn. Gorgeous stuff.

The street outside of the apartment looks like any other street in Demeter. That pillar with the lights on it crops up everywhere. Piers Haggard tries to make it look as big as possible, but there’s no getting away from the fact that this is a studio interior.

That nice boy, Jack Haldane, is there to listen to Bertha as she grieves and explains how she used to take her friend dinner every day. Yes, Virginia would eat that muck on a regular basis.

Borden isn’t particularly subtle as he offers his fake condolences and suggests that Virginia’s death was a case of suicide. Bertha objects and Haldane is immediately onto the little weasel.

Haldane begins to lay out his suspicions that Borden is responsible for the recent thuggery in the apartment building. Daddy Brogan steps in before the conversation can get too heated and sends the landlord on his way.

Now seems as good a time as any to discuss the findings of Brogan’s background check on Borden. Does it reveal that he’s not a real person? Nope. With no allusion to Borden’s former life as Butler the farmer, the records suggest that Borden bought the building good and proper last month. Does that mean there’s been a whole month between the meteor crash at the beginning of the episode and now? More likely that Weldon and Graffa have fudged the records. But the intriguing news is that Borden has filed a permit to demolish the apartment block and build absolutely nothing in its place. Well, now we know why he’s been evicting tenants, although the desperate measures he’s taking to conduct those evictions are not so easily explained. And we’re still left wondering what Weldon and Graffa’s involvement is in all this.

A paramedic steps forward with an object retrieved from Virginia’s hand. Is it a matter for forensics? Nah, everyone just has a ball getting their grubby fingerprints all over the evidence. Top notch police work there.

Bertha recognises the item as a button from the jacket of one of her attackers. Which one? No idea. I just went back and checked the jackets of both Skid and Gullis and couldn’t spot any distinctive buttons like that. I’m not saying Bertha’s a liar. She just has much better eyes for buttons than me… which is odd considering she couldn’t even remember their attackers faces earlier.

Brogan is hatching a new plan, and Bertha confirms that she’ll definitely be able to remember the faces this time around. That button really jogged her memory, I guess.

Borden overhears and expresses his concern through the medium of bright red lights in his eyes. Well, that’s a development. Definitely something alien going on there. So does he work for the military, or the alien rock, or both?

And just like that, Romek and Orrin have apprehended Skid and Gullis at the spaceport before they were able to jump on an interplanetary shuttle. I feel like we’ve skipped something here, but it’s easy enough to catch up. Romek says, “Two minutes later and they’d have been nothing more than a memory-fit.” This suggests that off-screen Bertha was indeed able to give the officers a more accurate memory-fit image of the crooks this time. How Romek and Orrin then tracked them down to the spaceport is a complete unknown. My guess is there were some scenes deleted here. It’s a little bit jarring but with so much to squeeze in I’m not surprised such cuts were necessary.

Fredo explains that Brogan and Haldane are “very hungry” to conduct a spirited interrogation with the two attackers. Romek suggests that Orrin will make it home in time for his mother’s strict curfew. Again, I’m guessing there was intended to be more of a comedy subplot constructed around Romek teasing Orrin for his living situation that was then trimmed to a minimum at some stage.

The camera pushes in through the cage to reveal the obscured image of Weldon and Graffa coming down the stairs from Podly’s office with eyes on Skid and Gullis. Previously operating remotely from their dark and dingy van, the Captain and the Major are now getting their hands dirty and interacting with the police directly. That means things are either going very well for them, or very badly.

Brogan and Haldane couldn’t be happier now that they have the opportunity to be thoroughly unpleasant to Bertha’s attackers. They’re practically bounding down the corridor with glee. Daddy and that nice boy, Jack Haldane, are about to get nasty.

So, the lads are understandably put out when they learn from Fredo, Orrin, and Romek that the military have snatched Skid and Gullis from police custody. Brogan and Haldane are having none of it and take off after them. They want to deliver some gosh darn justice already.

Weldon and Graffa are just hopping in the elevator with the prisoners when Brogan and Haldane catch up to them. But negotiations don’t end well. Captain Weldon reveals that this is a matter for the MIA (Military Intelligence Agency) and that the police are to have no further involvement – even if there’s a murder case to solve. As far as the DCPD are concerned, none of this ever happened. “This isn’t over,” insists Brogan. Quite right too.

“It’s over, Brogan!” demands Podly. Nice transition.

This time it’s Brogan getting a hot head while Haldane stands back and observes. Brogan wants to know why the prisoners were handed over to the military, but Podly makes it clear that he had no choice. It’s revealed that military intelligence have actually interfered with Podly’s command twice already. But while the Captain is indeed hacked off about it, he’s more interested in maintaining order, following the chain of command, and therefore letting the military do as they please. Again, it’s a harsh but fair stance for someone in Podly’s position to take. Brogan wants to know where the line is, clearly intent on pushing back. That’s Brogan’s sense of fair play kicking in again.

Over in the break room, Brogan and Haldane get to work right away. They ask Took and Castle about their encounter with the military planes during their farm visit. The photograph from the Skyles investigation reveals that landlord Borden and farmer Butler are the same person. Now that’s a development! I’m impressed that the writers have held off on letting our heroes make that discovery for this long, and they’ve managed to pull it off without the whole thing feeling contrived. It’s all very neatly structured.

And it’s time for some more revelations. Weldon’s back in front of the apartments. A single light is still on inside coming from the fifth floor – indicating that Bertha is the only resident left. A simple establishing shot reveals that a lump of the alien rock from the beginning of the episode is hidden under the building and somehow linked with Borden’s eyes. Things are about to step up a notch.

Borden is getting ready to set fire to the building. Watching on their cameras, it would seem that Captain Weldon is surprised by the chosen method, but Major Graffa understands and accepts the plan to demolish the building. So, that tells us that although the military are aware of Borden’s intentions, he’s not working under their instructions as we might have originally inferred. The MIA have simply been observing Borden while he’s been acting under the influence of the alien rock. How did the rock get under the building? Well, that’s still a mystery. But it’s clear that’s what he’s trying to get to, and the military seem perfectly okay with letting Borden burn down the building and killing Bertha in order to achieve that goal. “Collateral damage,” Graffa reminds his colleague, “there’s a lot at stake here Weldon. We can’t interfere with Butler. He’s all we’ve got.” Blimey.

Right on cue, Brogan and Haldane show up to start some trouble. They could probably smell the whiff of injustice (or petrol) from miles away.

Military cronies step out from every shadow to surround Brogan and Haldane who have simply come to pay Bertha a visit. Crispin Merrell is working wonders adding some extra military pomp to the soundtrack. Major Graffa gives the order to shoot the police officers if they don’t comply with instructions to naff off.

Graffa indicates to the officers that they’re too late to help Bertha…

And that nice boy, Jack Haldane, needs no further motivation to run for Bertha’s apartment and risk getting shot in the process. Captain Weldon warns off her big, face-tattooed brute, claiming “it won’t make any difference.” I’d like to think that this is a small crumb of Weldon’s conscience shining through, as if she’s hopeful that Haldane can save Bertha’s life after all.

Butler/Borden/whoever has a zappy device in his pocket to get the fire started. It’s carefully filmed to make it look nice and dangerous without putting the actor, Ken Farrington, in harm’s way. Well, at least I hope they made some effort to keep him vaguely safe.

Yeah, vaguely safe sounds about right. Let’s just hope the cheap paint used on the set isn’t too toxic.

Luckily, Haldane is already upstairs and ready to rescue Bertha. She wants to go back and get Rocky the robot. Yeah there’s no way that useless lump of metal is making it down the stairs. I’m not exactly sad to see him go.

Brogan has somehow managed to slip away from the military goons and reports to his colleague that the building is indeed on fire. Haldane thanks Brogan for pointing out the bleedin’ obvious and suggests that the lieutenant do something useful like putting the fire out. All the while, Crispin Merrell is doing some sort of ruddy epic variant on the Space Precinct main theme that just adds to making this one of the coolest action climaxes that we’ve ever had for an episode.

For no particular reason, Haldane decides that he needs to give Bertha a fireman’s lift. This results in poor Anne Kristen getting her face dangled directly over the scorching hot fire. Just what you need when there’s flammable glue and rubber stuck to your face.

Ted Shackelford looks good with a fire extinguisher. I don’t think that comes as much of a surprise.

Brogan bursts through a door with stairs leading down… from the ground floor. I’m going to assume they lead to an underground basement because otherwise all my praise for the accurate layout of the building goes out the window.

From out of nowhere, Brogan gets tackled by Butler/Borden/whoever. All the fire, fast cutting, and rousing music really makes this showdown look epic. The fight appears to be done for real by Ted Shackelford and Ken Farrington rather than stunt performers.

Haldane has found some stairs that aren’t on fire and manages to carry Bertha with relative ease. I’m guessing that isn’t Rob Youngblood or Anne Kristen.

Things really don’t look good for the heroic Brogan as the fire downstairs intensifies. Clearly Butler/Borden/whoever isn’t going to let this go.

With no choice left, Brogan is forced to chuck his attacker down the stairs and into the flames. The tortured scream is chilling. Piers Haggard manages to make the fall look real and haunting, despite the fact that Ken Farrington is probably just slowly walking backwards into the smoke. Ted Shackelford’s horrified reaction really sells it.

From upstairs, the real Anne Kristen is being carried with her rubber face pointing dangerously close to the flames.

With smoke filling the air and sirens wailing, I’m sure our military friends are beginning to wonder whether their covert operation is going to remain a secret for much longer. Captain Weldon is keen to watch the moment when Brogan and Haldane recover Bertha from the inferno. Poor Bertha is inconsolable about leaving Rocky behind. Don’t worry everyone, the officers aren’t going to risk their lives saving the stupid robot. Jack Haldane may be a nice boy, but he’s not an idiot.

With all the people either safely out of the building or roasting in the basement with their alien overlords, the special effects team can start doing what they do best…

… And blow the place to smithereens. Great as this is, there is one shot that doesn’t quite work for me. Weldon awkwardly leading Major Graffa away by the wrist before the lobby explodes in his face just looks weird. Does the eye patch impact his depth perception so badly that the poor Major doesn’t know how close he’s standing to a burning building? Everything else looks spectacular though.

Bertha’s lost everything, but Haldane sweetly assures her that, “home is where the heart is,” and that she’ll find somewhere else to live. It’s not much comfort, but what else can he say?

One more nice big bang to remind us all that this is a Gerry Anderson production where sentimentality can’t get in the way of total destruction.

Major Graffa condemns Brogan for letting Butler/Borden/whoever die, with Captain Weldon giving away that they’ve been watching everything… yes, everything. The penny drops for Lieutenant Brogan and he’s not a happy bunny.

Brogan demands to know whether there’s something under the building that the military wants. I’m not quite sure how he figured that part out to be honest, but I suppose it’s a lucky guess based on everything else he’s learned about Borden’s demolition permit.

Brogan is outraged when he realises that the military have been allowing innocent people to die. It’s the ultimate transgression of his sense of fair play. Major Graffa tries to justify it as a worthwhile sacrifice for the billion lives that will be saved as a result of their actions. Yes, it would seem that they’ve been covering up some kind of impending danger for the whole planet. Brogan accepts that premise remarkably quickly, but he insists that it’s only fair for the public to know about the unknown menace…

Graffa has nothing to say to that. The unknown menace is just that… unknown.

Brogan twigs that the military have no idea what the alien force is that’s hidden under the building. And we were never ever meant to find out. The original intention for Deathwatch was to leave all of that a complete mystery as a lingering, omnipresent force of evil. Maybe if Space Precinct had run to a second season we’d have learned more in later episodes. But in the end, the decision was taken to bring forth the revelations as soon as possible. More on that in a bit…

To start wrapping up the episode, Took has to start by telling Anza that her fiancé, Enro Skyles is almost certainly dead. There’s no dialogue and we don’t linger on this moment because there’s not much to actually cover here. It’s simply a case of catching an incidental character up on a part of the plot that unfolded nearly 40 minutes ago.

The camera sweeps over to Romek and Orrin to resolve their micro subplot about Orrin’s restrictive living situation. Romek has found a place for his partner to live on his own, but Orrin doesn’t want to leave his mother because she depends on him.

“Who would clean out the compactor?” Orrin reasons.

“That’s what Dad’s for, Orrin,” Haldane throws in.

And that’s that wrapped up nicely. Sometimes the comedy really doesn’t have to be laboured more than that.

Romek moves right along to apologise to Haldane about the earlier altercation, suggesting he overinflated certain aspects of Jack and Bertha’s relationship. Haldane can’t resist winding up his colleague a little further and says that Bertha claims she was 100% honest in her account of Romek’s school days. Romek doesn’t appreciate having his apology thrown back at him but the matter is basically settled. No harm, no foul. Again, it’s an efficient way to wrap all that up.

Next up on the episode’s checklist, Haldane has some personal matters to attend to.

Took takes a moment away from her work, consoling a grieving citizen, to give Castle a withering look. Jane takes the hint and begins to explain to Jack what the score is…

But Jack interrupts and faces his fears, just as Bertha advised. He drops the bravado and tells Jane that he really cares about her. She smiles and confesses the same. We’ve been here before a couple of times now, but maybe this time it’ll stick. It’s not like we have that many episodes left.

And Peter? Well, he’s Jane’s brother. I think we all knew that was coming. A moment that was scripted but never filmed for the episode would have featured Peter Castle in person. The actor Christopher Brand was cast for the role but his scenes were dropped before filming started. According to Brand’s account in Space Precinct Unmasked, his agent ensured that the production still paid him in full for the loss of work. Again, with such a crowded episode it’s not surprising that the Peter/Jane/Jack subplot was slimmed down to an absolute minimum.

But before Castle and Haldane can get too deliriously happy about their blossoming romance, Brogan interrupts with the gravest of expressions. Ah well, it was nice while it lasted.

As they cross the office, Brogan explains that Podly’s keeping schtum, the fire is being written off as accidental, Butler’s body won’t be autopsied, and the whole thing is getting zero media attention. Well, none of that sounds very fair, does it?

Brogan can’t resist a conspiracy and tries calling up the Military Intelligence Agency. Yes, apparently you can just phone them up. He asks for Captain Weldon… only for the surprisingly chipper operator to declare that there is no Captain Weldon, and there never was. “D’you believe in ghosts?” concludes Brogan. And that’s probably where the episode would have ended originally. The conspiracy lingers but the whole thing is essentially wrapped as just being one of those things. I think it would have been a fine ending for the story if left hanging. It wouldn’t be the first time that Space Precinct has left some dangling threads. Body & Soul is a great example of an episode that ended quite ambiguously with Alden Humes’ ghost returning without any further explanation. I don’t think a viewer would feel too cheated if the mysterious element of the story remained mysterious. So, if Deathwatch had remained an isolated, single episode, I wouldn’t have been too outraged by all the unanswered questions. That being said…

… I am thoroughly intrigued by what could come next. This ‘To Be Continued’ scene showing the military recovery of the rock was likely filmed during the production of Deathwatch Conclusion, and I think it makes a great teaser for the end of today’s episode. And boy do I want to know what that alien rock is all about. I want to know what impending danger to the whole of Altor would drive the military to allow innocent people to die as collateral. I want to know how the meteor tore open a hole in the fabric of space and how all that is related to the lump of rock under the apartment building. And I’m excited to see how Brogan and the gang get mixed up in the whole thing all over again.

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Despite knowing that the story isn’t quite over yet, I really want to praise the first part of Deathwatch on its own merits since that’s how it was originally conceived. At the end of the day, I’m sure the main reason for rushing a sequel into production was that the producers recognised what an incredibly good episode they’d just been making. The alien rock crashing into the countryside is a simple premise but the writers, Michael Berlin & Eric Estrin, do a superb job tangling that into a mysterious narrative which Piers Haggard directs with great flair. The balance of alien menace, crime drama, and military conspiracy is just right and ultimately tells a story that’s just so Space Precinct.

Bertha Fluss is a terrific guest character beautifully played by Anne Kristen. Rob Youngblood knocks it out of the park and offers up that endearing side of Haldane that we can enjoy just as much as his brash and heroic side. Every character finds a way of keeping the mystery hanging for the full length of the episode, without acting in strange, illogical ways for the benefit of the plot. Brogan is sympathetic towards Bertha, but only really gets invested in the issue when it’s clear that injustice – his least favourite thing – is at play. Podly tries to maintain discipline, truly believing that he’s doing the right thing by letting his superiors in the military handle the situation. Castle and Took follow their instincts on the missing persons case when the facts don’t add up. Orrin sticks by his mother and Romek owns up to being a jerk towards Haldane! For goodness sake, the writers finally have these characters figured out! Oh yeah, Fredo and Carson were there too. The Brogan family were almost entirely absent. Okay, the writers finally have some of these characters figured out.

In the interest of following the production order, I’ll be reviewing Deathwatch Conclusion in a few weeks time. First, we have to divert towards a completely different two-part story – The Fire Within. Only on a show as mad as Space Precinct would production start on a new two-part adventure before finishing the previous one…