Curse of Anubis (TV story)

Curse of Anubis was the tenth episode of K9. It was written by Jim Noble, 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 revealed more events from K9's past.

Synopsis
K9 meets the Anubians, a race he helped in his forgotten past. Once peaceful, these creatures have now become warmongers. They trick K9 by worshipping him as their saviour. They unleash control devices and take over Gryffen, who banishes Darius from the mansion. Starkey opens up the Anubian Book of Deliverance and discovers their true plans. It is left to Darius to release K9 from Anubian control and thwart an alien invasion.

Plot
At the Department Mobile HQ, an officer detects a pyramid-like alien ship entering Earth air space. Inspector Drake prepares to lock orbital missiles. June tells him to stop as it hasn't been fully analysed. Drake doesn't tolerate trespassers. When June asks if they come in peace he replies, "Then they leave in pieces". The ship disappears, apparently burning up in the atmosphere.

K9, Starkey and Jorjie spot a shooting star as two CCPCs interrupt their stargazing. Jorjie spots the pyramid spaceship uncloaking. K9 goes to have a look and bumps off it. Two aliens arrive and knock out the CCPCs. As the aliens turn their attention to Starkey and Jorjie, K9 comes to their rescue. The aliens hail K9 as their "Great Liberator" and bow.

The aliens arrive at the Mansion and call K9 "Great One". They identify themselves as Nehetka and Geb and tell the team that K9 liberated them in their distant past from the Huducts.

The Anubians show the team their history book and tell them of their oppression for generations and liberation by K9. When Darius insults the old K9, Nehetka is offended. Gryffen says it would be best if Darius left, which he does. As Gryffen admires the Anubian ship, they tell him they must hide from the Department, whom they call K9's enemies. Gryffen disputes this, but Nehetka insists they are enemies.

In the garage, Darius wakes to find Geb decorating Mariah. Darius goes to Gryffen, only to find he is finishing a throne room. Nehetka has suggested this may jog K9's memory banks. Darius activates K9. The Anubians are outraged at Darius' dog whistle and the idea of him giving commands to K9, who taught the Anubians that "freedom's everything". Gryffen accepts their request to banish Darius from the house and never return. Geb makes Jorjie and Starkey give them their dog whistles.

Starkey thinks Gryffen has fallen victim to mind control, but Jorjie doubts that K9, being a robot, would be affected. She wonders about the old K9, but Starkey insists K9 means well. At the mansion, Gryffen presents Starkey and Jorjie to K9, who is preoccupied with restoring his memory banks. K9 informs Starkey he intends to liberate London from the Department. K9 notices something in his memory banks, Tenklept. Nehetka tell him legends say K9 saved Tenklept the Glomb from being eaten by a Yakoclaw.

That night Starkey and Jorjie go to the mansion to take the book while the Anubians are sleeping. They read it in Starkey's room. It has a drawing of K9 leaving the Anubian homeworld with their oppressors now their slaves, wearing the same headband worn by Gryffen. They read further and see a drawing of Anubians holding hands with an alien and on the next page attacking the same species. They see many races attacked by the Anubians. They decide to show K9 this but are met by the Anubians, who put the headbands on them.

Darius returns to the mansion to find Gryffen, Jorjie and Starkey hypnotised. Darius wakes K9 and tells him there is something wrong. The Anubians have replaced his friends with robots, pod people or clones. K9 scans Gryffen and determines he is human. When Darius leaves, Nehetka says a slight attitude adjustment and he'd make a fine court jester. He tells Geb to see to it.

Geb follows Darius into the garage. Geb moves towards Darius with his arm outstretched. Mariah opens a car door hitting Geb and knocking him out. Darius removes the ankh from the front of Geb's breastplate.

June arrives. She tells Gryffen she is looking for Jorjie and is shocked when she sees Gryffen and Jorjie in Anubian dress. A struggle ensues. Nehetka takes action against the Department and begins the world's liberation. Hypnotic headbands materialise on all Department officers. Drake initiates code red but falls victim to the Anubians as well.

K9 witnesses the Nehetka hypnotise June. He recognises the headbands as the ones used by the Huduct to control the Anubians. Nehetka reveals they made the Huduct their slaves instead of reconciling. K9 decides to take action, but is attacked by Nehetka, who deactivates him. Suddenly the Anubian ship uncloaks and Darius contacts Nehetka, revealing he has taken control of their ship with the ankh. Darius threatens to crash the Anubian ship into the mansion. K9 reactivates and knocks out Nehetka with his photon beam.

The Anubians are taken away by CCPCs. Darius teleports back and K9 apologises to the team. Gryffen decides K9 will do the redecorating. When Starkey asks where the Anubians' ship is, Darius tells him he parked it somewhere but cheerfully states, "It's invisible", as he walks off with Gryffen and laughs. Starkey and Jorjie chuckle at him.

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
 * Nehetka (voice) - Todd Levi
 * Nehetka (body) - Micheal Tuahine
 * Geb - Matthew Reimer
 * CCPC - Josh Norbido
 * CCPC - Jason McNamara
 * CCPC - Edgen Bekafigo
 * CCPC - Dane Paltman
 * Department Technician - Stephen Sourkis

Crew

 * Writer - Jim Noble
 * 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 producer - Mark Blythe
 * With special thanks - 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 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

Story notes

 * This episode aired on the same day as the Doctor Who episode The Time of Angels.
 * On this episode's broadcast on Disney XD, the beginning of the stargazing scene, where K9 identifies a star to Jorjie as the Quilian system, home to the Incessant Song Talkers of Mool, is cut off. Instead, the scene starts with Starkey recounting K9 telling them about Montoon's ocean of brains.
 * The green aliens which appear in the Anubian Book of Deliverance bear a resemblence to the Mekon, archenemy of comic book hero Dan Dare.

Ratings
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Myths
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Filming locations
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Production errors
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Continuity

 * The Anubians resemble the Osirans. (TV: Pyramids of Mars)
 * This was the first episode since Regeneration to feature the Mark I design, albeit in drawings only.
 * In the Anubian book, there are drawings of an Anubian holding hands with an alien and on the next page attacking the same race. The unknown, green-skinned species betrayed by the Anubians resembles the Moxx of Balhoon. (TV: The End of the World)
 * There are also drawings resembling a Sea Devil, (TV: The Sea Devils) a Jixen, (TV: Regeneration, et al.) a Mandrel (TV: Nightmare of Eden) and an Alpha Centauran (TV: The Curse of Peladon) in a gallery of races invaded by the Anubians.
 * A drawing of an Aeolian appears as well. This species later appears in TV: Aeolian.
 * Two aliens pretending to be friends to the team, teleporting to meet with them and telling the team about their species is reminiscent of the Slitheen-Blathereen in TV: The Gift.
 * The Eleventh Doctor once took a stop-off in the Montoon system to perform his TARDIS' annual maintenance and a vortex repair, resulting in him picking up Amy Pond and Rory Williams late. (COMIC: Bus Replacement TARDIS)

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 Alien Avatar, containing The Fall of the House of Gryffen, Jaws of Orthrus, Dream-Eaters, Curse of Anubis, Oroborus and Alien Avatar, released in Australia on 1 December 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 2011.