A top secret, high security, ministry office is an unlikely place for an assassination but that is exactly what happens in the opening scene of the episode. Seconds after getting a phone call asking for 'Boris', Harry Mercer picks up a gun and shoots a fellow employee. Moments later he has no recollection of the event and believes he has merely discovered the body. The only clue is the document he had been writing at the time; the handwriting suddenly changed from that of a dependable man to that of a psychopath. Steed and Tara start to investigate and a suspect emerges; Boris Kartovski
the only problem is that Steed shot him through the heart five years previously. Further investigation leads to a hospital where Mercer had been treated recently. After Steed asks a few questions Mercer is killed in a similar manner by Lord Barnes, who had also attended the hospital. Soon the villains are looking to create another 'Boris'; this time they plan to infuse his personality into a woman's mind... Tara's!
This is an enjoyable early 'Tara King' episode although her character doesn't have much to do until near the end when she is captured. The plot is pure 'Avengers'; a nice mix of espionage and sci-fi. The way the assumed dead Boris can take over the minds of others is rather fun; there are no 'mind swaps' or possessions; instead his character is 'infused' into theirs in a way that can be done to any number of victims without effecting the real Boris. We can always tell when the 'Boris' persona is in charge as the victim holds their left hand like a claw. There is a reasonable amount of action, involving both Steed and Tara. The guest cast do a decent job, most notably Nigel Davenport as Lord Barnes, Christopher Benjamin who plays the handwriting expert, Swinton; and Julian Glover who plays Major Rooke; the scene where his character struggles internally with the Boris persona is particularly fine.
This is an enjoyable early 'Tara King' episode although her character doesn't have much to do until near the end when she is captured. The plot is pure 'Avengers'; a nice mix of espionage and sci-fi. The way the assumed dead Boris can take over the minds of others is rather fun; there are no 'mind swaps' or possessions; instead his character is 'infused' into theirs in a way that can be done to any number of victims without effecting the real Boris. We can always tell when the 'Boris' persona is in charge as the victim holds their left hand like a claw. There is a reasonable amount of action, involving both Steed and Tara. The guest cast do a decent job, most notably Nigel Davenport as Lord Barnes, Christopher Benjamin who plays the handwriting expert, Swinton; and Julian Glover who plays Major Rooke; the scene where his character struggles internally with the Boris persona is particularly fine.