The Korven (TV story)

The Korven was the third episode of K9. It was written by Tim Pye, directed by Karl Zwicky and featured John Leeson as K9 Mark 2, Keegan Joyce as Starkey, Philippa Coulthard as Jorjie Turner, Daniel Webber as Darius Pike and Robert Moloney as Alistair Gryffen.

It introduced the Korven and revealed the danger they would pose to Earth in the future.

Synopsis
Starkey is homeless so K9 and Jorjie try to help. Meanwhile, the Korven kidnaps Professor Gryffen. Darius, K9, Starkey and Jorjie must try to save him.

Plot
K9 and Starkey hide from the Department's surveillance. They go over a fence when K9 senses the police. K9 detects an invisible camo vehicle. They hide and it goes past them.

At Gryffen House, Darius prepares a lunch while Gryffen works on the STM. Once Gryffen has it working at full capacity, he will travel through space and time and see his family again. Unknown to them the STM activates, and an alien creature appears. Gryffen asks Darius if he was to go back to any point in history, where would he go? Darius says he'd go back 10 days and find out who stole his wallet. The alien sneaks up on Gryffen and when Darius turns around, his friend is nowhere to be seen.

June and Jorjie return from shopping. June will be home by midnight, and she expects Jorjie to be in bed. Back at the mansion, Darius searches for the professor. Jorjie finds Starkey who asks her what she's doing there. He had told her about his three hiding places and she's already checked two of them.

Darius alerts them to Gryffen's disappearance. When Darius returns, Jorjie asks if he has any news. K9 detects phosphane gas, a cooling agent that won't be invented for three hundred years. K9 accesses the STM and contacts a human soldier from the year 2618, Senior Lieutenant Medowin of Special Operations Commando, Global Command. He tells them the Korven threat must be stopped at all costs. K9 tells the team that the Korven are due to invade Earth in the year 2480. Medowin says the Korven are sending an operative through time to find the scientists who created a system to cool the Earth, which was abused before 2050. Gryffen is one of those scientists. If the Korven get their data, they will cool the Earth and destroy humanity. Before he can reveal the Korvens' weakness, his transmission stops.

K9 knows the Korven's weakness: during the leeching process, their entire being is focused on their victim. This is the only time they are vulnerable. K9 follows the trail of phosphane gas with Darius accompanying him. As the Korven brings Gryffen to a deserted iceworks, Gryffen begs him not to take him outside and demands he be taken home.

At the Department Mobile HQ, June sends Jorjie a message saying she assumes the reason she isn't responding is she's busy doing homework. Drake interrupts her, requesting an update on the recent alien activity. She declines as she is Head of the Alien Activity Section and Drake is Head of Security and she doesn't report to him. When Drake asks her about information-sharing, she says it works on a need to know basis. When she feels he needs to know something, she'll share it with him. Drake tells her he will do the same. They're "one big happy Department".

As the team go to the entrance of the iceworks, K9 detects more phosphane. Gryffen is strapped to a table by an immobilising force field. He asks what the Korven is going to do to him. It uses a device which mutes Gryffen and takes out its phosphane tank. As the team move on, K9 detects the phosphane is becoming uncommon but still present. Darius and Jorjie go one way while K9 and Starkey go the other.

Starkey notices it's getting colder. They're getting closer. K9's thought and energy levels are being affected by the phosphane. Starkey sees the Korven start the leeching process. He turns to see K9 on the floor; the Korven sneaks behind Starkey and captures him.

Starkey is forced to the table by the immobilising force field as well. Starkey calls out for K9, but is muted by the Korven as well. The Korven restarts the leeching. Darius and Jorjie find K9 on the floor. Seeing the Korven leeching Gryffen, they try to get K9 to help. He tries to focus but engages his self-protection protocol and shuts down. Gryffen has flashbacks of his lost family and cries out. Darius gets angry and decides to help Gryffen. He destroys the phosphane tank and gets the Korven's attention. The Korven prepares to shoot Darius, but K9 overrides his self-protection protocol and shoots the Korven. K9 shuts down. Darius wakes Gryffen, who recognises him. The Korven gets back up. Darius grabs the Korven's arm before it can shoot him, but can't hold on. Jorjie tells K9 to fire but K9 interprets this as a warning that there's a fire. Starkey tells K9 to fire his Photon Beam. K9 interprets this as "Baked beans?". Starkey shouts out, "Baked beans". K9 shoots the Korven with the temperature required to make baked beans edible, killing it.

Back at the mansion, Gryffen works on K9. Starkey asks if he will be okay. Gryffen says his power activation module was damaged by the phosphane, but with a few minor repairs and a recharge he should be fine. Gryffen accesses the Department's computer and reprogrammes it so that Starkey is no longer a wanted dissident; he may not even exist. Jorjie says he'll never have to sleep behind a fence. Starkey says not until he finds a place to live. Jorjie tells Gryffen that Darius says there's a spare room. Gryffen calls it a splendid idea, saying Darius and he could use some company. K9 and Starkey go to bed. They bid each other good night as K9 emits the remainder of the phosphane gas in a manner similar to flatulence.

Cast

 * K9 Mark 2 - John Leeson
 * Starkey - Keegan Joyce
 * Jorjie Turner - Philippa Coulthard
 * Darius Pike - Daniel Webber
 * Professor Alistair Gryffen - Robert Moloney
 * June Turner - Robyn Moore
 * Drake - Connor Van Vuuren
 * Medowin - Todd Levi
 * Korven - Matthew Reimer
 * CCPC - Josh Norbido
 * CCPC - Jason McNamara
 * CCPC - Edgen Bekafigo
 * CCPC - Dane Paltman

Crew

 * Writer - Tim Pye
 * Director - Karl Zwicky
 * Producers - Penny Wall, Richard Stewart, Simon Barnes
 * Executive producers - Jim Howell, Grant Bradley, Steve Robbins
 * Associate producers - Bob Baker, Paul Tams
 * Supervising producer - Dale Bradley
 * Co-Executive producers - Mark Blythe, Sam Tromans
 * Line producer - Pam Collis
 * VFX Director - David Napier
 * Series Production Designer - Jon Dowding
 * Episodic Designer - Adam Head
 * New K9 Design by - Paul Tams, Alex Kubalsky
 * Series Director of Photography - Ben Nott
 * Episodic Director of Photography - Tony O'Loughlan
 * Music by - Christopher Elves
 * K9 theme music by - Michael Lira
 * Editor - Russell Maggs
 * Casting - Faith Martin and associates
 * Episodic casting - Lisa Maloney
 * Drama/Dialogue coach - Peter Kent
 * Story Producer - Greg Walters
 * Script Editor - Anthony Morris
 * Script Adaption - Michaeley O'Brien
 * Production Accountant - Pru Donovan
 * 1st Assistant Director - Peter McLennan
 * Script Supervisor - Sue Ketchington
 * Costume Designer - Joanne Thompson
 * Makeup Designer - Sharon Robbins
 * Puppeteer - David Pawsey
 * Location Manager - Charles Boyle
 * Sound Recordist - Ian Grant
 * B Camera Operator - Dan Maxwell
 * Gaffer - Steve Monk
 * Key Grip - Billy Harmer
 * Special thanks to - Space Furniture, Shredox, J. Barbour & Sons Ltd, Heath Williams at Firefly Lighting, Videopro
 * Safety Supervisor/Stunt Coordinator - Danny Baldwin
 * Transport Manager - Alister Ward
 * Unit Manager - Graeme Suhr
 * Post Production Facility - Cutting Edge Australia
 * Head of Post Production - John Lee
 * Sound Design - Warren Pearson
 * Sound Mix - Ben Vlad
 * K9 Theme Music Recorded - Supersonic
 * The Postworks - Bob Blasdall
 * Marshalls and Dent Lawyers - Shaun Miller, Bryce Menzies
 * Completion Guarantor - First Australian Completion Bond Company Pty Ltd
 * Executive producer Network Ten Australia - Cherrie Bottger

Story notes

 * Although it was reported that Regeneration would be rebroadcast on 3 April 2010, The Korven was aired instead and therefore aired on the same day as the start of Series 5 of Doctor Who, The Eleventh Hour, with Matt Smith as the Eleventh Doctor.
 * This story marked the first appearance of the Korven. They become a recurring villain throughout the series.

Production errors

 * Stephen Sourkis is credited as a Department Technician but wouldn't appear until Curse of Anubis.

Continuity

 * The disaster mentioned by Medowin is named the Great Cataclysm. (TV: Sirens of Ceres, Aeolian)

Home video releases
This episode is featured in the following DVD sets:
 * Series One complete box set, released in Australia on 29 September 2010.
 * A "vanilla" DVD called The Bounty Hunter, containing Regeneration, Liberation, The Korven, The Bounty Hunter, Sirens of Ceres and Fear Itself, released in Australia on 29 September 2010.
 * K9: Series 1: Volume 1, containing episodes 1–12, released in the UK on 31 January 2011 and in the US on 30 March 2011. ,
 * K9: Ultimate Collectors Edition, containing the full first series, scheduled for release in the UK on 11 June 2012.