Space Precinict – 22. The Fire Within (Part Two)

I left Part One of The Fire Within feeling like there probably wasn’t another 45-minutes-worth of story to get out of it. Sure, the mystery of Jack Haldane appearing to change sides was engaging, but I didn’t feel like that alone was enough to sustain my interest in the crooked cult of Pyrism. I needed Part Two to come along and bring something bold to the table. I’m pleased to say that it does do something pretty spectacular… but not until the final act. So there’s about a half hour or so of beige corridors and padding to wade through first. If you liked Part One and want more of the same then you’ll be very happy with Part Two. If, like me, you expected something bigger and bolder from a two-part, feature-length Space Precinct adventure, then you’ll have to be patient. So, let’s pick up from where we left off and see if Part Two of The Fire Within has that special spark.

This week, we dispense with a ‘This Episode’ teaser and the opening titles cut off rather suddenly for a ‘Previously on Space Precinct’ montage which recaps Part One. The key plot points from the last episode are covered fairly efficiently. The Captain’s daughter, Officer Samina Podly, and everyone’s favourite scoundrel, Officer Jack Haldane, went undercover to investigate the flame-worshipping cult of Pyrism where two priests have died under suspiciously fiery circumstances. Haldane gets smoochy with Sister Nevik Brok, blows his cover, and chucks Samina off a cliff to win the cult’s approval. It’s not a bad summary, but there are some finer details from Part One that we’ll definitely need to revisit when it comes to fully appreciating Part Two.

As with the title caption on the previous installment, Part Two of The Fire Within isn’t named as such on-screen. The last episode was The Fire Within, and so is this episode. Or, more accurately, this is more of the same episode. However, there has been a small time jump. It’s now the morning after Haldane and Samina paid an unfortunate visit to the cliffs and three police cruisers are making use of the Pyrist temple’s ample parking facilities.

The bowl of lava and eternal flame in the middle of the temple are re-established for any viewers who missed the fact that fire is the Pyrists’ whole thing. Officers and forensic specialists swarm the place on the off-chance they missed something last time. Orrin and Romek compare the temple to “a damn roach motel” on account of all the deaths and disappearances. I’m sure the beds aren’t up to much either.

Sister Nevik, Brother Kalamandro, and the illustrious Icar Vedra, are all in a bit of a huff with Captain Podly – who’s visiting the temple for the first time now that the case has turned personal. It turns out the Pyrists were the ones who reported Samina Podly’s disappearance, but now they object to the temple being investigated all over again. They wave the flag of religious freedom as a bit of a threat to Podly. Obviously, it’s all trickery and mock outrage because Nevik and Kalamandro are well aware of what actually happened last night. And while the Icar Vedra is none the wiser, he also doesn’t seem prepared to admit that something profoundly dodgy is going on that would necessitate so much police attention, undercover or otherwise.

Castle has news that Samina was last spotted during evening prayers. As for Haldane? Oh, we’ll have to hang tight for that special reunion.

Brother Kem, who’s also in on the act, is making up some poppycock for Lieutenant Brogan. Apparently Samina had said something about going to see a “sound and light show.” Back in Hate Street (also written by Steve Brown), Sally Brogan and the kids had been to see something called “Light and Motion” which sounded like the futuristic Altorian version of a movie. So, Kem is probably referring to something along those lines… or at least he would be if he wasn’t making it all up. He then adds that, “Sister Kilmer, or whoever she was, seemed like a good person.” Oh yeah, I’d forgotten that Kilmer was Samina’s undercover name. She didn’t use it much because nobody actually talked to her during her time at the temple.

Brogan gets all sheepish and Podly complains about Kem referring to Samina in the past tense. Just so you know, Podly being irritable isn’t going to stop any time soon so get used to it.

But Officer Castle knows trouble when she sees it…

… and he’s just walked in. Well, this young man certainly has some explaining to do. A couple of weeks ago he was befriending nice old ladies. Now he’s setting fire to trusted colleagues. It’s quite the character arc.

Podly is the first to sink his teeth in. He bubbles with rage but just about maintains some hush and an air of professionalism.

Haldane speaks in his detached, brainwashed manner and his colleagues are immediately horrified. Who is this weirdo?

Ted Shackelford’s eyebrows carry the scene.

Simone Bendix offers a more subtle performance… so subtle you could mistake her for a statue.

Jerome Willis only has his mouth exposed to the air so critiquing his acting choices is a bit tougher. He seems to be doing good though.

So, to the dismay of his former colleagues, Jack Haldane resigns from the police force to commit himself to a life of Pyrism. No more police cruiser hot dogs. No more inappropriate thumping of suspects. No more sexual harassment of criminals and fellow officers alike. The DCPD have lost a real one-of-a-kind officer.

Stunned silence from Orrin, Romek, Brogan, Podly, and Castle. Just remember that while these fools stand around gawping, Officer Took is once again left to do all the real work by herself.

Back at the station house, Castle and Took are taking a call with our old friend Zipload… the world’s worst police informant. Surprise, surprise, he doesn’t have any information about Samina’s whereabouts. In fact, the grubby underbelly of Demeter City is far more interested in Haldane’s unexpected spiritual pursuits. This is Zipload’s fourth and final appearance in the series. I definitely think it was smart to give the DCPD a recurring criminal chum on the outside. Sure, it would have been nice if he was more useful, but seeing a familiar face adds a nice splash of realism. Had Space Precinct continued to a second series, I definitely would have invited a Zipload-centric episode revolving around whatever criminal enterprise he was actually involved with for a day job.

Slomo’s been busy doing his Slomo thing and so far there’s no trace of Samina Podly anywhere. Ted Shackelford really has perfected the art of looking like he’s listening to what the blinky-clunky-prop in front of him is saying.

Brogan, Castle, and Took are drawing blanks. Jane believes that Jack might still be on their side but doing a really good job of hiding it. As a viewer this seems quite bewildering because we literally saw him set fire to a police officer. How could we possibly believe he’s still a good guy? Sure, Castle might convince her colleagues, but it’s going to take more than that to convince us. Unless, of course, last week’s cliffhanger wasn’t all that it seemed.

Brogan has the swell idea of sending Took down to the temple with her mind-reading powers to find out what’s going on in Haldane’s head. She’s a wee bit tired of having her status as a Pyrist seeker exploited, but the plot has moved past using that status for anything more useful so she just rolls with it again.

The lieutenant then explains that Orrin and Romek have a lead. Yeah, I know, it must be Christmas. Apparently, “a space cap at the shuttle station thinks he may have helped Samina load some luggage.” Well, that seems a bit unlikely. She was travelling light the last time we saw her… or should that be *alight*?

The lads come in and it’s not good news. It turns out the lead was a load of twaddle. Thrilling stuff.

Captain Podly understandably regrets partnering his daughter up with “that cowboy” Haldane. Yee-haw. Brogan, like Castle, somehow still has hope that all is not what it seems. But when Brogan suggests sharing a picture of Samina with the press, Podly is hesitant to do so. He still hasn’t told his wife about the undercover operation or their daughter’s disappearance. It turns out Podly’s massive character flaw is that he doesn’t want to upset or disappoint his wife. Frustrating as this may be, I do like how it adds a bit of depth to Podly’s character. As the fearless authoritarian of the office who usually makes firm but fair decisions, it’s an interesting twist to have Podly now under some personal pressure that drives him to make some totally illogical calls. Captain Podly’s family priorities are all muddled – choosing to protect his wife over increasing the chances of finding his daughter. Obviously that’s a bit messed up. But then, crucially, he ends the scene by yelling at Brogan to work harder at finding Samina. In Podly’s mind, he can overcompensate for not releasing Samina’s picture by working himself and his police force harder to find her themselves. That’s a very Podly way of thinking.

If there’s one thing Gerry Anderson shows love to explore, it’s flawed leaders with conflicting duties. It may not be so polished and hard-hitting as earlier examples, but there’s an attempt here to line Captain Podly up with the likes of Ed Straker from UFO or Sam Shore from Stingray.

Back at the temple, the car park is full and the Icar Vedra is trying to get his followers back on track. He explains that, sure, people have died and that’s sad, but hey, they died for the eternal flame so that’s not so bad. As long as it can be tied back to fire, the Pyrists can be happy. Fire’s their whole thing.

Took arrives for the service with the intention of giving Haldane a cheeky telepathic reading. Once we know what Jack’s really thinking we can wrap up the plot and all go home early. What could possibly go wrong?

Oh gosh darn it. Someone left their triple-headed snake in the eternal flame. What a bore.

Everyone’s pretty convinced that this is the worst thing that could possibly happen. While the crowd are in hysterics, Haldane closes his eyes in prayer. Nevik and Kalamandro maintain their composure because… well… obviously they did it.

The little baby monster retreats back into its egg, clearly disinterested in being looked after by a bunch of weirdos. It’s a great puppet… but I’m just not sure what they’re all so ruddy terrified of.

Remember the blonde lady that Jack was ever so keen on making friends with in last week’s episode? Well, she checks out. One slimy little creep too many, I guess.

Kalamandro takes it upon himself to put a biblical spin on the event. “Fire serpents!” he declares. Well, they are serpents in a fire. He’s right so far.

For Took’s benefit, Haldane quotes the Daskell: “The fire turned to serpents. The earth ruptured. And so the people knew the world would be cleansed.” Yup, it’s an omen for doomsday. We’re now dealing with a cult that thinks the world is about to end. How original. All the while, Took is trying to read Haldane’s mind – a fact which he seems perfectly aware of. What is she discovering in Jack’s head… if anything?

After all that brown-nosing, Sister Nevik finally has a falling out with the Icar Vedra. He calls out the twelve tons of nonsense that she and Kalamandro are clearly serving up which all just so happens to very literally match the poetic prophecies of the Daskell. The Icar recalls a visit that Kalamandro recently paid to Megalon 7 – home planet of the bag lady from Double Duty, and also home to deadly triple-headed Tridra serpents which die on contact with Altor’s atmosphere. The Icar suggests that Kalamandro and Sister Nevik have been trying to discredit him. She denies it… and then immediately calls him a senile old fool who’s no longer fit to lead in the same breath. Great cover.

“Only the flame can decide the true leader,” the Icar declares. And with that evil grin plastered across her face, I think it’s fair to say we know what Sister Nevik’s next fiery magic trick will entail.

Over at the Brogan residence, Patrick is trying to catch up on paperwork but also lost in thought over the Haldane problem. Sally hadn’t originally been privy to the undercover operation but she’s all clued up now.

But Podly’s wife, Fama, is still in the dark and Sally doesn’t like that one bit. She asks Patrick whether he would keep quiet if either of their kids went missing. “Yeah, of course,” he offers with minimal conviction. Sally would have preferred an answer with a bit more confidence. I think that’s a bit rich considering Zil, the family pet, has been missing for months and nobody’s batted an eyelid.

I’m just saying that for such a well-used car park next to your brand new temple, you’d think they’d have tarmac and painted lines.

John Glen is very keen on making sure you see this particular extra in all of the congregation scenes… for reasons that are only vaguely touched upon later.

If I was an average Pyrist, I’d be getting pretty sick of being called back to the temple every night for yet another ceremony of some description. What if I wanted to take up tennis lessons or something? It’s all just a bit demanding. Anyway, to cut a long story short, Sister Nevik and the reigning Icar Vedra are going to have a leadership contest that involves… well… you can probably guess at this point. It’s their whole thing.

Nevik gets her scabby feet out again (which are once again absent of any scabs) and hops across the lava and flames like it’s nothing. She announces, “the flames are fine,” like she’s inviting the Icar for a swim in the sea.

The Icar Vedra is a bit more hesitant, but still has a grand old time burning his feet. As the most senior Pyrist, you’d expect him to have the gnarliest feet of them all. Nope. The make-up department really weren’t as committed to that whole bit as they should have been.

On yet another conveniently positioned security camera, Kalamandro gives a signal to Kem. Chin stroking really isn’t a subtle way of asking to have someone murdered. In a room full of suspects, I’d argue that the first person you’d call out was the one malevolently stroking their chin at the time of the assassination.

Haldane is the first to get up and try to do something while the Icar is having a bit of a wobble.

Stunt performer Glenn Marks steps in to be set on fire once again. It’s quite a big one this time. What a cool dude.

Yeah, that’s a pretty appropriate way to react to spontaneous combustion… even if you may or may not know it’s coming.

How do I feel after reviewing Space Precinct for 22 consecutive weeks with more still to go? Fine. Why do you ask?

Sister Nevik faints directly into Haldane’s arms because she’s totally innocent, honest.

Remember that peep hole that Brogan found last week that would be perfect for zapping microwaves at someone’s heart if only you had a machine capable of such a deed? Well, this is that. It’s an impressive bit of kit and probably cost more than the car park.

It’s concealed in the wall, which is why the police never found it the first time around. Glad someone thought that through.

The congregation are pretty okay with watching yet another person burn to death in their church. At this point it’s basically like any other Tuesday.

Sister Nevik recovers from her dizzy spell just in time for Kalamandro to decree that she is the new Icar Vedra. It’s still possible that Nevik really didn’t anticipate all this nastiness, and that Kalamandro is the sole mastermind behind the so-called omens. But, y’know, she did still stand by and watch Samina plunge off a cliff, so she’s certainly not all-good either.

Rob Youngblood is trying to find the perfect blend of suspicion and brainwashing to etch across his face. I’m not quite sure he gets there. It’s close enough though.

Back in Captain Podly’s office, Officer Took is feeling conflicted between her Pyrist faith and her police duties. She wants to be taken off the case, but Podly won’t allow it. I think we’re all just curious to know what she read in Haldane’s mind. For some reason that’s never actually brought up again and I’m not really sure why. Maybe she was unsuccessful in forming a telepathic link? But if that was so, why not mention it in passing so that we can wrap up that little thread properly? Right now it just feels like the writers forgot about it.

Downstairs, a judge is refusing to give Brogan the right to close the Pyrist temple. The judge, named in the script as Lasik Zorine, is played by Rob Thirtle – but the mask was previously worn by Andy Dawson as the unnamed judge hearing Gershom’s case in Protect and Survive. Does that make it the same character? Don’t ask me. More importantly, this judge believes that after multiple unsuccessful police searches of the premises, and with the Icar Vedra having chosen to step into the flame of his own accord, any police-mandated shutdown of the temple would look like a blatant attack on the Pyrists’ right to religious freedom. Brogan’s thoroughly cheesed off by this outcome, but I must say I like the added detail of this red tape. So often in police shows, the cops seem to have the right to waltz in anywhere they like. Search warrants might as well be written on toilet paper. Sure, the same is true for 99% of the investigations across the Space Precinct series – but at least having this one acknowledgment of the correct procedure is more than you’d get in a lot of crime dramas.

Up at the front desk, Slomo is incorrectly delivering memos to Sergeant Fredo. Is this a plot point or a bit of random Slomo goofiness? Intriguing.

Of all the weird and wonderful alien characters that have been dragged up to Fredo’s desk throughout the series, apparently this is one of the strangest he’s seen. You may recognise the one-eyed Dorek Kyyster from the climax of last week’s episode. His last name is spelt ‘Kyyster’ in the script, but ‘Kyster’ in the end credits. He was the only other witness to Haldane’s terrible crime. Zipload, our hapless informant from earlier, finally came good and connected Dorek with Orrin and Romek.

Wayne Forester puts in a terrific performance for the interrogation scene. He’s essentially catching the officers up on everything the audience already knows so you’d think this scene would be a bit of a dud. But his petulant behaviour, alcohol dependency, and colourful description of the incident on the cliff all add up to a scene that’s both entertaining and dramatic. The illusion is ever-so-slightly shattered when Brogan produces perfectly posed publicity photographs from the episode to help Dorek identify those involved. Rough and ready snapshots would have been more appropriate. Otherwise, it’s faultless. Orrin blindly pumping the witness with booze; Dorek being cooperative but not too cooperative; Podly and Brogan losing their cool a little – it all works great!

With Podly now very well aware of Samina’s fiery plunge to the bottom of Demeter Bay, he gives the order for divers to start searching the water and to get a warrant for Haldane’s arrest. Brogan tries to encourage reason and caution by suggesting that Dorek isn’t a reliable witness, but let’s be honest, it’s about time the plot got moving so we should really just run with it. Not to mention, Dorek was probably more descriptive and helpful than most of the sober witnesses that have given evidence in previous episodes.

Stunned expressions all around! Haldane’s about to get locked up, and it’s not for the myriad of reasons he probably should have been from earlier in the series!

So, here’s a newsflash. The temple is situated right on the edge of the cliff… so, why did Nevik, Kalamandro, Haldane, and Samina bother to fly out there in a car at the end of last week’s episode when this shot shows it’s just a short walk away? Also, where’s the car park gone?

Kalamandro, or “Brother K” as Haldane rather informally refers to him, shows Brother Jack to a secret underground bunker. Yeah, it’s a doomsday cult so there’s obviously an underground bunker. Before the Day of Immolation, Special K invites Haldane to lay low in the so-called “Cave of Winds” to dodge getting arrested by his former colleagues. Like most Space Precinct sets, it’s not a particularly impressive room and it certainly isn’t very homey.

Brother Jack is curious about the air supply situation. Great question, I’m glad you asked. Special K relishes the opportunity to explain that the bunker is made of “buccimium” which is activated by surface water filtering through and separating hydrogen from oxygen to produce air. “Buccimium” shouldn’t be confused with the sea mollusc known as ‘buccinum’, or the ‘bucium’ alphorn from Romania. Nope, “buccimium” is a made up thing all on its own. That probably isn’t even how you spell it. But if any of you out there do know of any real-life rocks that can filter water to make air, do us all a favour and keep it to yourself.

Police sirens wail from outside, indicating that it’s time for Brother Jack to be shut away. Haldane being shut in a room with only himself for company is probably one of his deepest held fantasies.

Well, no actually. Brother Jack shrugs off his piety and immediately goes wandering. This combined with casually shortening Kalamandro’s name does seem to suggest that the young man isn’t as brainwashed as he first appeared.

Trees in the car park. There are trees in the car park. Oh dear.

John Glen manages to masterfully shoot the same police cruiser set three different ways to hopefully convince the audience that these are three different cruisers. That being said, the teddy bear mascot that normally distinguishes Castle and Took’s cruiser is missing from the dashboard. More on that in a moment.

You’d better believe the production is still getting mileage out of those tubular corridors originally built for The Snake and rebuilt multiple times for any tunnel-based antics across the series.

Haldane has definitely dropped the slow monotone and is sounding more like himself. Is the brainwashing wearing off? Was he ever brainwashed? Yeah, thankfully there’s a little more to that mystery for us to get into soon enough. For now, Haldane emerges from the tunnel and happens to find himself right outside one of the police cruisers. I think we’ve already established the place has quite a big car park so Haldane could be miles away from the temple by now.

While Podly waits for his officers to hunt down Haldane, the high and mighty new Icar Vedra, Sister Nevik, tries to therapise Podly. “You must be under a lot of stress, Captain. I can understand the burden you’re carrying.” Oof she’s a right piece of work, isn’t she? The cheek of it!

Next to the suspiciously huge fuel tanks, Brogan finds something outside the Cave of Winds. Always good to see some decent police work happening.

Brogan makes a point of being deliciously rude to the new Icar Vedra and calling her “Miss Nevik” in just the same manner she objected to during her interview in Part One. You get her, Brogan.

Special K has left some dusty footprints on the ground after demonstrating the miracle buccimium rock to Haldane. Busted! Nevik insists that Kalamandro opens the chamber to reveal that they have nothing to hide. I still can’t be 100% sure whether she believes that or not. It would be a strange bluff so maybe she really does believe in the impending Day of Immolation and that Kalamandro is a good boy. But c’mon, she’s so clearly evil! When Special K opens the door, Haldane is nowhere to be seen. For a cave intended for living in during the apocalypse, you would think they’d have more chairs.

Some little traffic cones have been put out to ensure nobody uses the spacious parking facilities during the investigation.

Castle and Took are chatting, and Jane shares her belief that Jack would never ever do any murdering. Awww. That’s nice.

Committing grand theft auto is a little more Haldane though, and he steals the police cruiser parked opposite. Lovely blend of live action and model work here.

Podly gives the order to chase after Orrin and Romek’s stolen cruiser. Simone Bendix has a go at some “take-off” acting. It’s not bad. Mary Woodvine sticks to pressing buttons though.

With the officers leaving to give chase, Nevik is free to suggest that the Day of Immolation should be brought forward. Aha! So, she is in on the scam! That’s a relief.

The chase is on and Haldane can hear everything that Podly and the other officers are saying over the radio. It must have been weird for Rob Youngblood to climb into what would normally be Ted Shackelford’s seat on the police cruiser set.

Lost without their own vehicle, Orrin and Romek are forced into the backseat of Podly and Brogan’s cruiser. Needless to say, the hapless duo don’t have an explanation for leaving their craft unlocked. It’s a short and swift moment of humour in what has otherwise been quite a serious episode.

As the boys’ cruiser takes off, the girls are swooshing around in the clouds trying to keep up with Haldane through the thick fog. Definitely no teddy bear mascot on Castle and Took’s dashboard…

… but definitely a brand new teddy bear mascot sitting on the backseat. The old one was a different size, colour, and never wore a jacket. Why the change? I’m guessing the old bear was fired from the police force for gross misconduct.

The map shows Haldane roughly following the coastline. Podly informs Took that the boys’ cruiser will approach from the east. With Haldane listening in to all of this strategic chatter, he knows exactly how to deceive them. The lad may have abandoned the cult, but he doesn’t seem to be back on the goodies’ side just yet.

The gang encounter an impressive transport ship blocking their path. The model is essentially the enormous dirigible from the episode Deadline with some bits stuck on it. It’s polished up nicely, but definitely looked more impressive when dwarfing the skyscrapers of the big city.

Took and Castle lose track of Haldane, but Podly isn’t prepared to give up. I had to rewind this bit several times because I couldn’t quite believe my ears when Podly ended his order by shouting, “Bastard!” Well, that’s not something you hear every day in a Gerry Anderson production. I can’t imagine the BBC2 censors were too pleased about that. I appreciate Podly is facing exceptionally difficult circumstances right now, and his dialect leans towards Irish rather than American so “damn” or “shoot” might not have cut the mustard. But swearing in an Anderson show? It just doesn’t work. Now don’t get me wrong, I flippin’ love a flippin’ good swear. But even I flippin’ well accept that there’s a flippin’ time and a flippin’ place for it.

The tracker presumably lost Haldane because he’s parked directly on top of the tanker and it’s causing interference. But why no visual contact? They look pretty close to me.

Just as Haldane thinks he’s given his former colleagues the slip, Brogan announces that they’re going to break off the chase. Cheeky Haldane seems to be really enjoying this. It’s all a bit weird, isn’t it?

Captain “Bastard” Podly doesn’t take kindly to Brogan countermanding his orders, but the lieutenant explains that it’s all a bluff to lure Haldane out of his hiding place. He even says all this with the radio firmly switched off so that Haldane can’t overhear it. Very clever stuff.

But Haldane works out the scheme all on his own. We’ve seen enough standard-issue Space Precinct chase sequences to know that Brogan doesn’t give up that easily. It’s a smart deduction from Haldane… something definitely isn’t right with his brain today.

And so, the chase resumes! The model work is great with all the police cruisers zooming around on wires. I wouldn’t have minded a bit more going on visually though. A chase sequence surrounded by nothing but dark clouds can only entice for so long.

Podly arms those rarely seen laser cannons. No stop motion animation like we had in Takeover to show them slotting into position – just sound effects. Brogan questions whether his superior is in the right frame of mind to be blasting disgraced officers out of the sky. I think we can all agree that potty mouth Podly has been going a bit far today.

The lads take their cruisers on a lap of the tanker. The model team have essentially replaced the advertising billboards on the sides of the original Deadline dirigible with shipping containers. It’s a bit of a weird configuration for a transporter ship, but I imagine the model workshop had limited time and funds and couldn’t do much else.

Haldane and Brogan race each other through the blast of a propulsion turbine while Podly works on getting the laser locked on target. He’s really quite serious about blowing up a former colleague.

After one more trip around the tanker ship, Haldane is able to increase speed and pull away from his pursuers. Brogan believes that their cruiser is too heavy to keep up. Podly eagerly highlights that they’re carrying some dead weight in the backseat. Yikes. He’s not being very nice today.

Haldane is feeling terribly pleased with himself while Podly finally agrees to give up the chase and do some moping. No more swearing, shooting, or fat-shaming from Cap’n Podders for today.

Romek takes the opportunity to make a quip about asking their grumpy superior for a pay rise. It’s not one of his best jokes, but I admire him for trying.

Later, a hopper arrives in Brogan’s garage. It’s yellow. Brogan’s green hopper was toasted during last week’s episode so one assumes this is the replacement. Substituting your green car for a yellow one has to be the ultimate crime against motoring.

That is the face of a man who does not need any more nasty surprises after a grizzly day at work hunting down his best friend…

Cheery Jack Haldane spectacularly fails to read the room, as usual. Drinking beer in your cult robes is quite the flex.

Brogan knows his duty and immediately gets to arresting Haldane without a moment’s thought as to why the wanted criminal would do something as dumb as running to the home of a police officer who’s trying to catch him.

Sally emerges from the bathroom and suggests that Patrick should avoid shooting his best friend for the moment. For you see, dear reader, there is a twist…

Samina Podly is alive. And she’s not even singed.

Oh come on, Brogan. We all knew that cliffhanger was going to be a bit of a cop-out.

Alas, burning and drowning to death has done nothing for Samina’s dress sense. Why is she wearing a hospital pillow case?

After the commercial break the issue is dealt with swiftly, like ripping off a band-aid. Samina’s death was staged deliberately by her and Haldane. How did Samina survive catching fire? They used flame retardant pinched from Sister Nevik. How did Samina survive falling off a cliff? Well, apparently that college athletics scholarship that was referenced in Part One was actually mentioned for a reason. We’re given as little information as possible and the writers just hope we don’t question it too hard. But my main issue is that we’ve never actually been told that Sister Nevik uses flame retardant, so it doesn’t feel particularly clever that Haldane managed to steal some. ‘Oh that thing we haven’t referenced before – yeah that was the key to whole thing.’ Bit lame. My only thought is that the bottles Kalamandro had stashed in his cupboard in Part One may not have been fuel as I originally imagined, but flame retardant. If that was the case, they needed to spell that out a bit more clearly. Everything else holds together okay as long as you accept that Samina checked very carefully ahead of time that the water below the cliff was deep enough for her to survive.

As for Haldane, we’re left to assume that he hasn’t been brainwashed at all. The whole thing was a very, very convincing act. I must admit that I was fooled, but only because so, so much stuff had been set up ahead of time to make us think otherwise. In Part One, Carson stated that the T.I.M.E. technology used to patch Pyrism into Haldane’s brain had a history of causing brain wave anomalies. So, I assumed that Haldane was suffering such an anomaly and that we’d probably spend the rest of the episode trying to deprogram him without wiping his mind completely. Not unlike the episode, The Power, I suppose. Alternatively, I might have assumed that Sister Nevik was using some other trickery to brainwash Haldane, and again, the rest of the plot would revolve around defeating her and getting Haldane back to normal. But no, Jack’s been fine the whole time and deliberately messing everyone around for reasons that will be vaguely explained momentarily. Brogan’s pleased to have his buddy back so that’s the main thing.

Haldane asks to be dropped off at the temple, “not too close.” Don’t worry, Jack, it looks like all the good parking spaces have been taken already.

Icar Vedra Nevik has swapped her tired, old, blue robes for splendid, new, white robes. The congregation have gathered yet again to hear her first service on the topic of the Day of Immolation. “Bring unto your Icar those symbols of greed which you have mistaken for riches.” Yeah, the end of the world conveniently involves everyone bringing their possessions to Nevik so that they can be saved. It wouldn’t do to give away your valuables to charity or something. The Daskell is very specific about giving all your stuff to the Icar Vedra. It’s a standard-issue scam, and not a particularly rewarding plot twist considering we’ve already had one-and-a-half episodes to set the darn thing up.

Nevik encourages her flock to bring as many suckers along as possible to pay up and join them in the Cave of Winds. Those who do will get a chance at survival in the “new, purified world.” Haldane can’t resist a coy smile at all the twaddle.

The congregation rush out to the car park, knowing full well that they’ll be back again at the same time tomorrow for a baptism or a tombola or something.

Haldane is rather flirty with Nevik, forgetting to get back into the full “Brother Jack” persona. She seems pleased to have her toy boy back. Now that we know Haldane wasn’t in the least bit brainwashed, we also therefore know that he had all his faculties when he kissed Nevik and cheated on Castle in the line of police duty. Tut tut.

You’d better believe that Special K is thoroughly suspicious of the new and improved Brother Jack.

Back at the Brogan household, Patrick is heading to the office and Sally is ready for bed. We’re back in the phase of the series where Sally hangs around at home and complains a lot, rather than going to work and making meaningful contributions to the plot. She firmly believes that Captain Podly should be told that his daughter’s alive. But Patrick dumps a whole new aspect of the plan on us from out of nowhere. Apparently they’re now looking for a spy in the DCPD. What spy? When was there a spy? Who said anything about a flippin’ spy?! I’ve got to assume that even with the extended running time of a two-part story, there are chunks of the script that have been cut out and it means the finished episodes have these huge leaps in logic that the audience just has to get onboard with. Patrick explains that even though Podly probably isn’t the spy, they need to keep him in the dark in case his change in demeanor jeopardises Haldane and gives the game away to the real spy… the spy we’ve only just learned about who doesn’t seem to have had any impact on the story so far. Sally concludes that, “There’s something wrong if you’ve got to be a lousy person to be a good cop.” Yeah, yeah, we’ll figure out the moral of the story later, Sally. Right now there’s a spy to catch… I think… I’m still not convinced on that one.

Brogan’s yellow hopper heads for the station house. Seriously, did it have to be yellow?

Is that random extra sitting at her desk the spy? Might as well be.

Brogan doesn’t acknowledge anyone on the team on his way into the office. Saying hello to a potential spy would be so unbecoming. Podly announces Nevik’s plan to pinch the possessions of the Pyrists, but says they can’t do anything except search every vehicle that leaves the temple’s generously sized car park. It’s not much of a plan, but it’s something.

Fredo quietly delivers a piece of paper to Podly that sours his mood. It’s news that the divers have failed to find Samina’s body in Demeter Bay. Brogan cracks immediately and follows Podly to his office. So much for keeping a secret and being Sally’s definition of a lousy person.

Orrin and Romek think that now would be an excellent time to lighten the mood with some more fire puns. The writers really didn’t know what else to do with these two today. Orrin says the Pyrists are having a “fire sale” while Romek quips that the Pyrist followers are the ones “getting burned.” They’re not even that funny. Castle tries to encourage some sensitivity, but Took freely admits that she was burned by the Pyrists too. Yup, her days of saying prayers at the Pyrist temple are over. We don’t know the exact moment that the penny dropped for her, because Took’s subplot has been largely ignored in the wider context of the story – a shame because it had great potential.

Brogan arrives in his superior’s office to find a tearful Podly clutching a picture of his daughter and sobbing. The tears on the mask look a bit fake unfortunately, but Jerome Willis is acting his heart out. You really feel that the man’s heart is broken by the sheer weight of having let his family down. It’s a standout moment from the epismeloode.

Damn the plan – Brogan has to tell Podly the good news. How could he not?

The pair immediately adjourn to Brogan’s home study to consult the duty rosters and figure out who the spy might be. Apparently it would need to be someone who didn’t know about the undercover operation but did know about “the search warrant.” Which search warrant? Well, the only time that the Pyrists have had a genuine leg up on police activity was when Kalamandro knew Haldane was about to be arrested for murder and hid him in the bunker. Was that information really worth planting a spy for? Anyway, when Podly’s wife, Fama, calls up to check on him, the Captain is in an invigorated and cheery mood. He still hasn’t told her what actually happened to their daughter, so the moral about always telling the truth to loved ones remains a bit muddy.

We’ve seen this photograph before, but I always enjoy when the video calls end and we get a look at the Brogan family snaps with random members of the production crew.

With the entire roster of DCPD personnel checked, Brogan and Podly can’t seem to figure out who the spy would be… until it miraculously clicks for Brogan that it might not be a person at all. That’s convenient.

The spy is Slomo. Sort of. It’s actually a recording device that’s been planted inside Slomo. Remember when Slomo was feeling funky and handed Fredo the wrong memo earlier? I guess that was a clue. But let’s rewind all the way back to Part One for a moment…

Remember this incredibly brief shot from Part One, shown just as Haldane returned to the office from his vacation? You had to really be paying attention to take this one in. And who is the technician? Certainly not a member of the DCPD that I recognise…

I reckon it’s this generic alien lady who’s been popping up in as many Pyrist crowd scenes as they could squeeze her into. For a Space Precinct plot twist, they’ve wildly underplayed this one! I really had to search to figure this one out! I admit it’s not that important in the grand scheme of things, but Space Precinct is rarely restrained enough to hide when they’re doing a clever setup. We don’t even get a black-and-white flashback for the benefit of the viewers at home! You either go back and look, like I’ve done for the benefit of this review, or you miss it completely. Anyway, back to the episode proper…

At the temple, Nevik is happily taking delivery of cash and gold tat in exchange for a place in the Cave of Winds. Haldane is taking inventory – smart for police purposes, and for brown-nosing his new Icar Vedra girlfriend.

Special K is being a good host and showing the clueless worshippers to their tomb.

There she is! That’s Slomo’s pretend technician! Right there!

The car park’s full again, obviously. Is trading in your car part of the deal for a spot in the Cave of Winds?

Took and Castle are monitoring the area and catch on to the fact that the Day of Immolation is here. Brogan’s got a nasty theory for what’s actually going to happen. Fuel from the suspiciously large tanks plus the oxygen supply from the miracle buccimium rock equals quite the impressive underground barbecue. Jerome Willis does his best to despair and seriously deliver the line, “All those people!” with conviction. Alas, it’s one of those cheesy lines that writers love to ruin actors with.

To wake up the audience, Podly decides he’s going to be a badass and swap his usual weapon for some extra shiny and extra chunky blasters that he keeps in a special presentation box. Brogan is stunned by the awesomeness. “They tried to kill my daughter,” Podly declares. Ummm… did they? I mean, I guess so because Nevik and Kalamandro were the ones testing Haldane, but I thought Haldane and Samina came up with the plan in order to prompt the test that would force Haldane into the Pyrists’ confidence. Are you saying that Nevik and Kalamandro dreamed up the test for Haldane to kill Samina and then the undercover officers came up with a way out of it? Flippin’ quick thinking on their part if so!

Strap in! We’re heading for the story’s climax! About time too…

Can’t believe no-one thought to bring a chair to the end of the world.

“The flock has been fleeced,” quips Special K. The man just can’t help but be a bit evil at any given opportunity.

Nevik is having a lovely time strutting about in her robes and getting ready for the big moment. She’s not in the least bit concerned by the imminent arrival of the police and whips out her wonky yellow control stick with flair. Haldane even gets a smooch just for being her clueless toy boy. That’s not very Icar Vedra behaviour.

By pressing buttons and playing a few sumptuous notes on the organ, Nevik shuts off the not-so-eternal flame, de-lavas the lava, and everyone is prompted to get into position on the benches. Any last traces of Pyrism as a bona fide religion are stamped out.

The police cruisers try to find parking spaces but not before the main entrance to the temple – which we see for the first time here – is sealed off.

“Blast it! We’re too late!” Captain Podly bellows like a man who really, really wanted to shoot some crooked cult leaders this evening.

I’m sorry, but am I the only one who thinks Nevik playing jaunty melodies on the organ to make things happen is a bit silly? Sure, it’s a clever way to hide a control system in a church setting, but actually hearing the music come out at the same time is very distracting.

That particular tune moved the control panel away from the wall for no particular reason. It’s like being back in a Supermarionation show all of a sudden.

The special effects team finally get to have some fun with the temple as the support columns blast away from the main structure in the manner of a traditional Gerry Anderson rocket launch. “It’s about time,” Castle says… very much reflecting the mood of the audience at home.

Crispin Merrell tries to counteract the silliness of the organ playing by really kicking off some ominous rocket launch music on the soundtrack. It’s fair to say this wasn’t the turn I was expecting the episode to take. I figured the plan was to kill all the initiates eventually, but not in such a dramatic fashion! It’s a nice, bombastic surprise!

Orrin is getting a wee bit nervous, but Podly reckons now is the perfect time for a quick joke about not having a plan. Brogan steps in as the adult and orders everyone to enter through the back door. Presumably Haldane told his partner about that escape route off-screen.

A couple of the brothers strap themselves to the benches as if that’s an adequate safety measure when blasting off in a space rocket. Nevik grasps her big, yellow nobbly thing and fires the directional thrusters. It’s a church with directional thrusters – deal with it.

It’s delightfully easy to get swept up in the action as the rocket motors shake the ground and cause a panic in the underground bunker. All the while, Podly’s police force are a bunch of fully qualified action heroes coming down the ladder while fire rages above their heads.

The epic situation is only marred slightly by Mary Woodvine having to help Jerome Willis as he stumbles in the tubular corridor, completely unaware of where his feet are. I assume that moment wasn’t scripted.

Haldane’s now got a plan that doesn’t involve smooching Nevik or faking a colleague’s death.

As the ground crumbles above their heads there are many Pyrists who leave the cave with the police officers perfectly willingly. Others are more skeptical and try to consult their Daskell first. Captain Podly can be heard insisting that people be carried out if necessary. He’s pretty tired of religious freedom.

Haldane tries to open up the door to the cave from the other side. Alas, someone was anticipating such a move…

Special K strikes again!

The Fuller’s Earth dropping from the ceiling, along with the flickering lights and shaky camera movement, really sell the effect that a whacking great rocket is blasting off above their heads. As with so many Space Precinct scenes, no expense was spared cramming the room with supporting artists to make the place look chaotic. One idiot can be spotted trying to take their luggage with them. Brogan should have put a stop to that.

The next part of the plan is to blow the roof of the cave off with grenades. Fighting fire with fire, I suppose.

Special K decides to dispose of that meddlesome kid once and for all by chucking Haldane into the cave. Poor Kalamandro is only momentarily fazed by the fact all of the congregation have swanned off and been replaced by police officers. So much for that evil plan.

Haldane manages to reach the door before it closes, but doesn’t succeed in leaving it open for his colleagues who are trapped with the grenades.

That’s okay though because Haldane’s first order of business is giving Special K the smack across the face he’s been asking for from the word go. It’s so easy to forget that Kalamandro and the lovable Sergeant Fredo are played by the same person – David Quilter.

Haldane gets the door open again so that Brogan, Castle, and Podly can escape. Presumably Took, Orrin, and Romek are somewhere down the tunnel. The countdown reaches zero after what I’m sure you’ll agree felt like a long fifteen seconds.

A couple of lovely big kerblams. Some of the Pyrists are still in the tunnel but are just far enough along to be safe. That’s jolly lucky.

Nevik isn’t really playing the organ any more – just slamming her fingers down on the high notes and making a horrible noise in the process.

The combined force of the explosion from underground and the rocket boosters really makes for an epic take-off. Who’d have thought that pointy temple would turn out to be a spaceship? It seems so obvious now but I was genuinely fooled.

The men strapped to the benches look a bit silly, but otherwise it’s an incredible sequence.

The few Space Precinct actors with skin exposed to the air are subjected to a heavy wind blast to create the illusion of g-force. Rob Youngblood seems to be loving it, but Simone Bendix would clearly rather not have her face flapping about on television. Jerome Willis gets to preserve some dignity because such high wind would probably rip his mask off.

What’s left of the temple on the ground appears to be a bit on fire. Not sure what happened to the car park but I assume it’s fine.

The mysterious woman who interfered with Slomo has to get her face on-camera one last time as Romek declares that everyone is safe. Well, that’s one problem solved.

As the rocket zips up into the stratosphere, everyone recovers from the g-force remarkably quickly and Haldane grabs Kalamandro’s gun so he can join his colleagues for a fight. But Special K can’t be crunched so easily…

Podly barrels into the control room with his ridiculous willy extensions drawn and no clue what to do with them.

The Captain immediately gets shot in the arm. He definitely wasn’t combat-ready. Brogan returns fire but Nevik steers the whole ship erratically in order to knock the officers to the ground. Ted Shackelford’s goofy face as he falls over is preserved for history.

Meanwhile, Castle gets terribly upset when a man tries to shoot at Haldane and has no problem blasting them into oblivion. “They said you didn’t care,” Jack quips to Jane. Yeah, she’ll probably stop caring when you tell her all about the smooching you’ve been doing with the randy nun. I wouldn’t get cocky if I were you, Haldane.

Meanwhile, Slomo’s having a lovely day at the police station. He takes a break from his regular duties, probably feeling a lot better now that he’s not an unintentional spy. Stargazing sure is a relaxing pastime…

“I wasn’t aware of any intergalactic launches today.” Oh you cutie, Slomo.

Back on the rocket, Special K has one more devilish scheme at the bottom of the cereal box. The microwave gun is portable. Of course it is.

Nevik is still having fun with the whacky steering which sends the officers flailing about all over the place. Brogan manages to shoot one more stunt man despite the tumultuous buffeting.

With a characteristic “uh-oh,” Slomo realises that the rocket ship is heading straight for the station house and politely asks Fredo to come and assess the “odd” situation. Really delightfully underplayed.

Brother Kem isn’t very excited by the prospect of needlessly crashing into a police station. But Nevik is ready for a touch of suicidal revenge because it turns out she’s a bit crazy. Shocking, I know.

Kem doesn’t get to protest for very long before Nevik shoots him dead. He seemed like a nice guy. Well, nicer than the other murderous cult leaders anyway.

Special K is fed up of Nevik and zaps her. Now we’ll never learn exactly how she pretended to get possessed and turn her eyes blue. Remember that from the beginning of Part One? That was neat, wasn’t it?

Kalamandro turns his weapon on Castle, who is stuck on the floor looking after the wounded Podly. So far, the police aren’t doing very well in this gunfight.

“NOT THIS TIME, BROTHER K!” Is Rob Youngblood is chewing gum? I bet he insisted on that to try and look even cooler when playing with his shotgun blaster – continuity be damned.

Special K gets it straight in the face. Serves you right, you rotter.

Nevik has just about survived getting blasted by the microwave gun and insists on continuing to steer the ship like a maniac.

Of course, Kalamandro has to die with maximum dramatic effect by sliding down the wall and leaving a great big smear of blood. The effect was achieved simply by sticking a bloody sponge to David Quilter’s back as he slumped to the floor. Another one to get the BBC2 censors fretting.

Over at the station house, Fredo, Slomo, and the hordes of supporting artists are beginning to worry. Officer Carson is conspicuous by his absence. As an in-demand theatre actor, Joseph Mydell’s talents probably had to be used quite selectively on the series to fit around his schedule. If a scene didn’t strictly need Carson he was fairly easy to leave out. It’s not like the character had much to contribute anyway.

Brogan has managed to get to his feet in order to be the hero. Haldane encourages his colleague to operate the yellow lever which is still in the cold, dying hands of Nevik. The station house is overcome by a harsh blue light to suggest that the rocket ship is right on top of them. In true Gerry Anderson style, it’s getting right down to the wire!

These insert shots of Brogan’s hands operating the lever were actually the last live action material to be filmed for all of Space Precinct. They were picked up on the last day of filming for Deathwatch Conclusion on Friday 28th April 1995. A photo from the day shows the three stand-ins, John Baker, David Oliver and Janet Aspinall, taking the place of Rob Thirtle, Ted Shackelford, and Lisa Orgolini. The shots were directed by the film editor of The Fire Within, Jason Krasucki. You can picture him in the editing suite suddenly realising there are shots missing and quickly asking for a few minutes to get what he needed at the end of the day. What a typically chaotic and Space Precinct way of wrapping up a 12-month film shoot. That’s show business!

Will Brogan and his big, strong, filmed-at-the-last-minute hands be able to save the rocket and the station house?!

There may be some scratches to the paintwork, but basically it’s a resounding yes. Another lovely mix of live action and model work as Fredo and the others gawp out of the window.

Everyone’s relieved. Fredo reckons he’ll take the rest of the night off. Nice for some.

Haldane takes a moment to watch his mad ex-girlfriend die. “Guess the party’s over.” Charming. I guess there was never much chance of Nevik redeeming herself.

Castle’s left to stand in the background and not ask too many inconvenient questions about the nature of Haldane and Nevik’s relationship.

“Er, anyone think they know how to fly this thing?!” Brogan jests.

“Well, I’ve never flown a temple but I’ve always had an ear for music.” Haldane quips right back at him.

Yeah, it’s back to business as usual for these two.

One commercial break later, and Haldane has successfully landed the temple. It’s a little bit wonky but we’ve all had dodgy parking jobs. Speaking of which, you’ll be relieved to find there’s no car park at the chosen landing site for me to comment on. What a tragedy.

The two punsters, Orrin and Romek, are standing around making jokes about songs you might fly a rocket with, while everyone else is busy doing all the work. Podly’s had his arm patched up, which leaves Took and Castle to carry in the cargo of stolen valuables.

Took gets just a fleeting moment to weigh in on the spiritual implications of Nevik’s heinous crime. She may not have gotten away with stealing possessions, but she succeeded in robbing the Pyrists of their faith. It’s a nice, thoughtful moment befitting of Took’s character, but perhaps a little po-faced after that spectacular rocket ship finale. Such meaningful questions need space to breathe and this just isn’t the right time for it.

Here’s the heartwarming reunion we’ve been waiting for! Haldane brings Samina in to see her father. The key takeaway is a simple “like father, like daughter” hug. They’re both badass cops and family obligations are just always going to come second to the police work in their household. How sweet. The real moral of the story is don’t be Fama Podly because your husband and daughter will always lie to you.

Speaking of family obligation, I guess we need to wrap up whatever this Brogan family subplot was supposed to be. Matt goes to bed with a full plate consisting of cookies, a donut, and very, very sad-looking sausage. “Let it be so, prime elders,” Matt declares, mocking the catchphrase of the Pyrists. All that talk in Part One about respecting religious beliefs didn’t really land.

With Liz happily snoozing away on her dad’s arm, Sally brings the conclusion of the episode back around to the question we’ve all had since the beginning… What does Lieutenant Brogan believe in? Yup. I know I’ve been gagging to find that out. What about y’all at home? What do you think the universe’s most pragmatic man believes in? Frankly, I’ve never looked at Patrick Brogan and wondered what makes him tick spiritually. He’s not a Star Trek captain or a Jedi. He’s just a regular cop. That, I think, is part of Space Precinct’s unique appeal. Patrick Brogan is a down to earth guy in an out of this world situation. That makes him, and by extension the whole show, great for action and relatable characters, but not so hot on deep, meaningful stuff. So, pondering about Patrick Brogan’s faith just seems like a bit of a dead end to me.

If you’re still interested, he says he believes in Sally and he believes in a higher power when he looks at his kids. That’s what he says to keep Sally quiet anyway, and that’s good enough for me.

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Ultimately, I’m not sure The Fire Within needed to be a two-parter. Maybe from a budgetary point of view it made sense, but the actual story is dreadfully slow. And yet, despite the additional running time, there are weird gaps where crucial steps in logic have been cut out. I suspect balancing the drama between both episodes was a challenge and meant that some material from Part Two had to be trimmed, while Part One was left to drag. But in terms of complexity, I don’t think The Fire Within has more to offer than any other single-part Space Precinct episode. I don’t think the cliffhanger to Part One was resolved in a particularly clever way in Part Two. Essentially just saying, “Oh, he didn’t go rogue, and he didn’t kill her,” isn’t a satisfying solution to Haldane very much appearing to go rogue and kill a police officer. I also don’t think the Pyrists ended up being anything special. Destabilizing an entire religion, building a whacking great spaceship, and executing an entire congregation… just to steal a bit of cash? Even if they had succeeded I bet they wouldn’t have made their money back after such an audacious plan. I feel a little more creativity was needed to turn the Pyrists into something more than your stereotypical death cult.

Although the Pyrists’ motives were a bit naff, I certainly did enjoy the rocket ship business at the end. Landing our favourite characters in the middle of a rollicking action-hero situation is always a good laugh, and putting the station house itself in jeopardy was a nice touch. As always, the special effects were terrific and Crispin Merrell’s music was magnificent. Part Two really needed something spectacular to boost the story for me and I think the rocket launch delivered that. But otherwise, I’m afraid The Fire Within did little to light a fire within me. The few nice character moments and the bombastic ending didn’t quite add up to the feature film experience I was hoping for. Particularly after the first installment of Deathwatch, the two-part status of The Fire Within probably raised my expectations too high. Don’t worry, I’ll just go into next week with minimal expectations so I can’t possibly be disappointed…