Spectrum (organisation)

Spectrum, occasionally styled SPECTRUM, was a Earth security organisation active in either the 2060s (PROSE: Capt. Black Mars Expedition Lost! et al.) or the 2080s. (PROSE: Captain Scarlet in Death Crash! et al.) Headed by Colonel White, each officer was given a colour-oriented codename, with a division of female pilots called the Angels also existing. (COMIC: Traitor Black Gives In!)

The organisation initially operated in secret, (PROSE: Capt. Black Mars Expedition Lost!) before being unveiled to the world when it was announced they would be taking over the commitments of the Universal Secret Service on Earth. (PROSE: SPECTRUM is Green) This soon fell by the wayside for the most part, however, and Spectrum instead became the planet's main defence against the Mysterons after the outbreak of the Mysteron War. (COMIC: Traitor Black Gives In!, PROSE: They Watch the World et al.)

Junior members of the organisation were called Spectrum Shades and were each responsible for a colour-coded section of the United Kingdom, for example Area Pink. (PROSE: Comic Shades)

Beginnings
Spectrum was either founded in 2067 (COMIC: SPECTRUM) or during the 2080s (PROSE: Captain Scarlet in Death Crash!) no later than 2086. (PROSE: Rogues Gallery) Charles Grey, second-in-command of the Universal Secret Service, was chosen to lead the organisation, becoming Colonel White, (PROSE: SPECTRUM is Green) while Conrad Turner was recruited as its first field agent, becoming Captain Black. (PROSE: Rogues Gallery) According to one account, Spectrum quickly became a "pet project" of World President Melchior after it saved his life. (PROSE: They Watch the World)

In either June of 2067 (PROSE: Capt. Black Mars Expedition Lost!) or 2087, (PROSE: Rogues Gallery) Black commanded a Zero X expedition to Mars in order to investigate the "strange radio signals" (PROSE: Capt. Black Mars Expedition Lost!, 'Jinx Ship' Blasts Off For Mars) received from the Rock Snake Hills area over the previous year. (PROSE: Capt. Black Mars Expedition Lost!) Upon reaching the planet, Black proceeded to investigate the Mysteron City. In a moment of panic, he opened fire on the city, (PROSE: Rogues Gallery) thus beginning the Mysteron War. (PROSE: 'Jinx Ship' Blasts Off For Mars, Rogues Gallery)

The apparent loss of Black's expedition was reported by TV 21 on 2 September 2067. By this time, the secret organisation he belonged to was a matter of serious speculation, with the publication mentioning that it seemingly had World Government backing and also noting the similarities between the symbol on Black's hat and the symbol spotted on a mysterious aircraft carrier which had seemingly been spotted over Nice. European newspaper reporters flocked to the city but were prevented from arranging chartered flights to get a closer look by the World Air Force. (PROSE: Capt. Black Mars Expedition Lost!)

TV 21 reporters Pete Tracker and Lens Sharpe were also sent to Nice and were likewise denied access. However, they were crucially able to follow and track Destiny Angel to her destination of Glenn Field upon noticing her take-off. On 23 September, once at Glenn Field, Tracker and Sharpe's craft collided with Zero X, carrying Captain Black on return from Mars despite previous reports of his death. In the confusion, Black exited Zero X and left the base in a car, vanishing without trace. Although a full-scale search was ordered by Colonel White, all reports proved to be negative. White first suspected Tracker and Sharpe of orchestrating some kind of plot but his fears were allayed and they were eventually able to convince him to take part in an interview. (COMIC: SPECTRUM)

Tracker's article, which appeared on the front page of TV 21, unveiled Spectrum as Earth's newest security organisation and announced that they would be taking over all duties of the USS on Earth, a task Tracker was confident they could handle. A photograph of Cloudbase also accompanied the article, as did a list of Spectrum personnel which included Captains Blue, Fawn, Magenta, and Scarlet, and Lieutenant Green. (PROSE: SPECTRUM is Green)

Early days
Spectrum file CM/M/1/67 detailed Captain Scarlet's "first brush" with the Mysterons which came when he was killed in a motor accident. Scarlet was brought back to life (PROSE: Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons) and made indestructible through the process of Mysteronisation. (COMIC: Traitor Black Gives In!) Under the control of the Mysterons, Scarlet attempted to assassinate the World President, (PROSE: Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons) leading to a confrontation with Spectrum forces atop London Car-Vue (PROSE: Scarlet Kidnapped!, Marineville Ablaze) during which Scarlet was fatally shot by Captain Blue, (COMIC: ) causing him to fall eight hundred feet. (PROSE: Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, COMIC: ) Scarlet fully recovered after this incident, with the fall breaking the Mysteron spell and putting him back under Spectrum's control while allowing him to retain his indestructibility. (PROSE: Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, COMIC: )

In 2067, Spectrum responded to a Mysteron threat on London, with Captain Scarlet saving the city by ensuring the H-bomb they had planted detonated harmlessly off the coast of Land's End.

Soon afterwards, they were responsible for securing Unity City in the wake of a new Mysteron threat. Colonel White launched three Angels to provide air support while Captain Blue was assigned field commander for the mission. One of the Angels was Mysteronised and turned back to Cloudbase. Although Scarlet was able to destroy the craft, White determined the Mysterons intended to use a Mysteronised Cloudbase to carry out their threat and ordered for a new course to be set in the direction of Canberra. (COMIC: ) In the wake of Cloudbase's unexplained disappearance, on 21 October TV Century 21 speculated on their front page that the Mysterons had suceeded and the Spectrum organisation was "no more". (PROSE: Mysterons Destroy Cloudbase?) On the front page of their 28 October edition, TV21 reported the World President had called a top-level conference at midnight the previous night in the wake of the news, with several of the top Spectrum agents stationed on Earth among the dozens of officials in attendance. The World Government Security Press Council said it would not issue a statement on the matter. (PROSE: 4 Hours to Live!) Rumours circulating in the World Government that Captain Scarlet had perished persisted, as noted by TV21's special correspondent in Unity City for its 4 November front page. (PROSE: Is Scarlet Dead?)

In fact, Captain Black had incapacitated the Cloudbase's personnel by spraying D17 poison gas into the surrounding clouds while Scarlet had pursued Black to a Fijian island where they had both become trapped by a group of fishermen. After Black radioed Cloudbase to ask for help, (COMIC: as conveyed through "unofficial reports" on the TV21 front page on 18 November, (PROSE: Thunderbirds Fail) Spectrum launched the Angels to rescue them, though Black soon escaped into the sea with a captive Scarlet. Colonel White first contacted Commander Shore at Marineville to guarantee the assistance of the World Aquanaut Security Patrol. When a general contacted Cloudbase to inform Spectrum Black had blasted off in the Alpha Centauri Space Probe, Lieutenant Green put White in touch with the World Space Patrol so he could ask a similar favour of them, with the crew of Fireball XL2 successfully recovering Captain Scarlet and destroying the Probe. (COMIC: )

In 2068, Spectrum Shade Gregory Kaser conducted a mission on Venus for the Planetary Exploration Organisation during which he discovered a crashed Dalek ship and a Dalek heading in the direction of the Earth colony on the Magnax continent. Upon his return, Kaser reported his findings to Spectrum, asking if it signified the start of their invasion of Earth. Colonel White stated in response that the implications of the Daleks' visit to Venus were unknown but that Spectrum would investigate. He also assured Kaser there was not yet any cause for anxiety. (PROSE: Daleks on the Move?)

Spectrum disbanded
Later in 2068, Spectrum arranged a search for Lim-Po, the Mysteron controlling Chinese agents, with Scarlet eventually tracking him down after several weeks of investigation. However, Lim-Po had circled around and was poised to kill Scarlet until he himself was shot and killed by Caprain Black. Scarlet questioned why Black had saved his life after he amicably revealed himself, asking whether the Mysterons had finished with him. Instead of answering, Black accused Scarlet of speaking in riddles, though agreed to return to Cloudbase so that Doctor Fawn could run some tests. The conclusion of these tests was that Black was free of any Mysteron influence, had no memory of them and was otherwise fit to return to active service. Once Fawn reported this to Colonel White, he held a meeting with Scarlet and Captain Blue on how best to take advantage of the Mysterons' apparent loss of power. Scarlet's plan to destroy the Mysteron City with an electrode cannon mounted on a spaceship was approved and was carried out successfully by him alone.

Six months past with no sign of Mysteron activity, prompting World President T.J. Younger to disband Spectrum at the final celebration of humanity's victory. The Angels and their craft were reassigned to the World Army-Air Force while the World Army took the S.P.V.s and the Universal Secret Service got the Spectrum saloons. The former Captains Scarlet and Blue joined the World Space Patrol while Black retired and White eventually became the ambassador for Astra. Sometime later, it became clear the Mysterons' defeat was a clever ruse and that they posed an imminent threat to Earth. Almost immediately, the World Security Council took the decision to recall Spectrum's former personnel from their posts and reform the organisation. (COMIC: Traitor Black Gives In!)

2069
On 27 September 2069, Colonel White sent out a personal message to all members of Spectrum which stated they had all been tricked by the Mysterons. He elaborated that the whole world breathed a sigh of relief for several weeks as they believed the Martian threat had gone, unaware as they went about their business that the "deadliest Mysteron attack" was merely days away. He finished his message by proclaiming that Spectrum was once more in a "bitter struggle" and was relying on its agents to play their part and report any and all suspicious activity without delay. (PROSE: Stingray Strikes Back!)

Around this time, the Mysteron agent Tansi Trefoil attempted to destroy the Unity City games but was foiled by Captain Scarlet. She later escaped from Cloudbase in a stolen SPJ. On 4 October, it was reported that Spectrum forces all around the world were continuing to search without success for Scarlet, who had failed to contact Cloudbase following his disappearance while pursuing Trefoil. She was the first Mysteron agent known to have retro-metabolised after the failure of their mission, spawning fears that he might have also reverted to Mysteron control. (PROSE: Zodiac Death Sentence!)

On a later occasion, White assured reporters there would be "no repeat of history" as Spectrum officers prepared to oversee security arrangements at the opening of London's rebuilt Car-Vu, which was to be attended by the World President. (PROSE: Thunderbirds Film for Sale!)

The 2080s and beyond
According to the accounts which dated Spectrum's creation and the beginning of the Mysteron War to the 2080s, the first Mysteron threat to Unity City occurred much later in the conflict (PROSE: Rogues Gallery) when compared to the 2060s accounts, which presented it as one of the first acts. (PROSE: SPECTRUM is Green, Captain Scarlet Our Only Hope et al.) These accounts instead posited that the attempted destruction of Unity City happened around a year or two into the War. (PROSE: Thunderbirds Ready for Action!, Send For Stingray!)

In an account dated to August 2088, World President Lhomel returned to Unity City following the recent Mysteron threat there, despite Spectrum's requests not to do so. Also, Kylie Walker reported that Captain Scarlet had been involved in a "spectacular" mid-air crash "which left no chance of survivors" when his jet made a deliberate turn into an Angel aircraft. (PROSE: Captain Scarlet in Death Crash!) Despite this, his survival was later confirmed. (PROSE: Zero X: Four Crew Missing)

In January 2089, (PROSE: Sniper!) members of the World Senate were keen to know why Spectrum had not responded to the assassination of the Astran Kaplan in Unity City and were angered to learn that Cloudbase was heading away from Bermuda, over the Pacific. Action 21 speculated that this had something to do with Colonel White being against holding peace talks in Unity City on security grounds. (PROSE: Get the Gunman!) In February, Lieutenant Green broke Spectrum's silence, revealing they had been attacked by knock-out gas but were now fully recovered. He promised that agents would be sent to Unity City as soon as an "internal security matter" was cleared up on Cloudbase. (PROSE: Zero X Beats Space Curse!) Due to his position as head of Spectrum, Colonel White was a member of the World Security Council and thus took part in the Kaplan Commission. (PROSE: They Watch the World)

In March, a local news service in Australia picked up a signal from Cloudbase to Captain Black in which Spectrum agreed to send Angel aircraft to a location chosen by him. This started rumours that Black and the Mysterons might have surrendered. (PROSE: Captain Black Surrenders) In July, Spectrum announced that they wanted help to locate Captain Scarlet, who was being held prisoner by the Mysterons beneath the South Pacific. (PROSE: Send For Stingray)

In August, the Mysterons announced the Earth Observatory Network as their next target after their failure to destroy Unity City. Spectrum promptly moved into position to foil their plan. (PROSE: Showdown in Space!)

Behind the scenes

 * Spectrum were the protagonists in Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, a TV series created by Sylvia and Gerry Anderson and produced by Century 21 Productions. The Indestructible Man has a number of pastiche versions of Gerry Anderson characters, with Spectrum being represented as PRISM.