Clever ep, Merlin strikes you as a possible returning character although it means we have Tara knocked out for virtually the whole ep to let us have the Steed/Merlin double act. And of course a young Brian Blessed as the fake army sergeant. A storyline reused to marginally lesser effect in a New Avengers story.
shareYes, I like idea of Merlin as a recurring character. Steed and he had a good chemistry. Merlin is different in that he is a friendly villain, but really means no harm. It is unfortunate that Tara sleeps her way through this one, literally. I would have liked the story reworked to have Tara play a greater role other than sleeping. I can't imagine Brian Clemens writing an episode in which Mrs. Peel is asleep the whole time! After having Tara on holiday in Killer and then asleep here, her absence is more felt, and I can't help but think she was being underutilized.
The episode is another well done one. No other show was as effective for me in regards to a deserted setting. It was brilliantly used in The Hour That Never Was, and again it is effective here. The use of location filming really added to the atmosphere and gave a mysterious element. When the plot is revealed it is quite clever. (As you mentioned, a similar concept would be used in The New Avengers episode Sleeper, which I really enjoyed.) I also like the female news reporter in this episode.
As an episode it is great, as a Tara episode, it is not as she really does nothing and could have been written out completely. The female partner in The Avengers always is an important aspect to the series. It bothers me how disposable Tara was becoming in certain episodes.
As a side note, Steed is watching Rowan and Martins Laugh In, at the end of the episode when he says Sock It To Me. This was the program that was blamed in the US for The Avengers eventual cancellation!
Interesting that Steed thinks Merlin so formidable he actually packs a gun, as Tara observes "That's not like you".
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