Gerry Anderson Primer: New Captain Scarlet 

Now, play nice boys and girls... New Captain Scarlet and classic Captain Scarlet can both co-exist. But we'd love to know your thoughts on this 2005 show!

Amazing to think that the new captain scarlet looked more lifelike and believable than the presenters of Ministry of Mayhem

The comedic timing of "New Captain Scarlet also included a new male character aiming to fly an angel fighter.... he died" is just perfect!

Worth reminding everyone (again) what “Supermarionation” was all about: it was an electromechanical technique for triggering the puppets’ mouths automatically from the prerecorded audio track, rather than having the puppeteers manually handle the mouth movements as well as all the other movements they had to deal with. In the earlier series, the mechanism was built into the puppets’ heads. There was a limit to how small this mechanism could be made, which is why the characters in _Thunderbirds_ , for example, had such large heads. And you thought it was some kind of deliberate design motif? Then, they later got the bright idea of building the mechanism (or most of it) into the torsos of the puppets rather than the heads. This meant the heads could be shrunk down to be more in proportion with the rest of the bodies. The first series made this way was the original _Captain Scarlet_ . So now you know. (If you didn’t already.)

As far as I'm concerned, this series not only needs a proper re-airing in its own timeslot, unedited and given proper ballyhoo and new merch, but another season or two should be produced, to expand the Mysteron Civil War subplot, let the members of Spectrum grow as characters, and perhaps even let these characters have lives outside of Spectrum, adult relationships, and perhaps ( gasp!) even have children. There is so much you could still do with NEW CAPTAIN SCARLET; it deserves to be far, far more than what those 26 episodes allowed. Perhaps , it could be expanded to an hour long series akin to DOCTOR WHO, and let that new breathing room give it the chance to really challenge audiences.

“While some fans found this a difficult change to take” - cuts to Captain Brown about to explode 🤣👌🏻

If you are wondering why ITV treated New Captain Scarlet so terribly then here's the reason why. I found this out on IMDB: Gerry Anderson was informed that New Captain Scarlet would be aired in a Saturday evening timeslot (same as the BBC did with the new series of Doctor Who which premiered a month after New Captain Scarlet) and it was expected to do very well in that slot. However at the last moment ITV, who had invested a lot of money in New Captain Scarlet, went to Gerry and asked him to replace the New Captain Scarlet theme tune with an updated version of the original Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons theme tune, sung by The Spectrum, using a popular band/singer of that year. ITV wanted to cash in on the popularity of Busted's Thunderbirds Are Go! song from the soundtrack of the 2004 Thunderbirds movie. The cost would've been enormous and it would've been met by Gerry rather than ITV so he refused, knowing there would be consequences, and so ITV ordered the airing date be brought forward before Gerry could go back and make any adjustments and changes that the series needed, such as re-animating the first two episodes so that they matched the rest of the series visually and recutting the opening titles to incorporate footage from the rest of the series. Then ITV went and buried New Captain Scarlet in a Saturday morning slot within the Ministry of Mayhem show, splitting each episode in two and providing very little publicity.

This is probably the best "primer" that I have seen.. Thank you.. In Australia we were fortunate enough to have seen all of the series presented on the ABC network, as it should have been shown in the UK. It was compelling and greatly admired by Anderson fans here.. The re-imagining caused a few raised eyebrows, but was accepted as a great new version of the old favourite.. It certainly was appreciated by all for Gerry's final series to be made..

I was the perfect age for New Captain Scarlet and will forever be gutted with the way it was broadcast, I remember watching repeats a couple years later in the evenings on CITV and just loving it. I remember starkly the episode where a woman could see only zombies and she fell out of Skybase, at least that's how I remembered it for years until re-watching it. My memory had clouded a few bits and it wasn't quite as dark as I remembered but for a 6 year it was just the right amount of scary and it stuck with me for years, much like the original must have done for children of the sixties.

Spectrum is Green with this new series! Spectrum will always be in the Green! I missed the original showing of New Captain Scarlet back in the day. Thank you for showing it on RU-vid. This series deserves to be streamed on Netflix!!! That way, it might achieve the cult status it so richly deserves! New Captain Scarlet was a good series, and rather very deep indeed! The CGI brought the characters to life as entirely believable humans - and even though I was born in 1960 and this is 2020, it bears up very well! Thank you Gerry Anderson 😊👍

I've Used To Love Watching Gerry Anderson's New Captain Scarlet AKA The New Adventures Of Captain Scarlet On CITV When I Was A Kid. Thanks Mate. X

I’m glad I got the complete series on DVD this is an underrated remake

I love both series, "new" scarlet is a really under rated and under appreciated show. Been looking for a dvd box set of it for ages and not having much luck finding one.

"although sometimes unfairly dismissed by some Anderson fans simply for being made in CGI - as if a CGI series somehow requires no work to create" THANK YOU, Well pointed out, that's been one criticism I never understood of this or Thunderbirds Are Go, that it "Lacks the Art and Creativity/is done the 'lazy' way" or some such. CGI still needs modelling work doing, scripts still need writing etc etc. To me, CGI allows you to do things that puppets and models can't, but there's things that don't fit CGI too. I thought TAG got the blend of CGI augmenting practical just right and I hope Firestorm gives us similar (even if the blend is more skewed toward the practical in that).

Once again, another brilliant video about an incredible series. Always loved Captain Scarlet since I was a kid; Captain Black was a source of my nightmares!! S.I.G!!

Both Captain Scarlet series never aired in USA, but they have gained a great fandom over here thru DVD and bluray. I own both in these formats. Love them!

While I really liked this version it did have one major problem compaired to the original and that was the fact that Spectrum always won in it. I liked the fact that in the original they sometines lost or when they won it was a hollow victory like in Avalanche.

I'm a big big fan of the remake, but I can't deny that the voice performances on the original series were superior - Francis Matthews, with his fabulous and distinctive voice, was never going to be beaten. He absolutely is Captain Scarlet. (PS I think they should also have kept Lt. Green's accent, and the English way Col. White pronounces "Lieutenant".)

Would absolutely love a continuation of this series. Still one of my favourites to this day

Admittedly, I didn't get to watch the classic Captain Scarlett as a child in Nigeria; I find that having watched both as an adult, I can understand the nostalgia element! And I must say I like the ability to have greater physical interaction between characters that one sees in the new series. As well as the redesign and naming of the vehicles.

I was not aware of the level of mocap and face capture they used on the show. I really want to watch more of it now.

Not fair it didn't get a proper airing, he was a amazing person, with great shows that where so advance for there time's, and great memories 👍🏾👍🏾

*This is the voice of the Mysterons* *We know that you can hear us Earth men* *You were presented with a fantastic television series. Yet you greatly misjudged your gift, and in turn, did not allow it to gain the attention it deserved* *For this unprovoked act of negligence, we will ensure no more Anderson original series are ever presented through your channel again* *Do you hear, Earth men?* *You will no longer have the privilege of presenting Gerry Anderson works through your network again*

A Super Incredible CGI Animated Adventure Ever!

I was 13 when this first aired. I always liked it, thought it was a great remake, glad I got it on DVD to see the episodes uncut. Thought some episodes were darker than the original, wish there was another series & more episodes. I still have a cut out from a newspaper that my Granda gave me, it was about Gerry wanting to remake Thunderbirds & how he had a story in mind. Always wondered what his version of the new Thunderbirds would be like.

I love both series. I watched the original every week as a kid and binge-watched The New Captain Scarlet last year. Thanks Gerry and everyone involved in making some of the most imaginative TV shows I'VE EVER SEEN.

I watched the whole series with my daughter and she loved it! I cant believe how ITV murdered the show and hope that streaming services allow audiences to find for themselves just how damn good New Captain Scarlet really is. There is room aplenty for continuance of this great concept. Thanks for putting this background piece together!!

Ironically, this is the first Captain Scarlet I ever saw

I'm just gonna be completely honest here. This show is a rare instance where a remake comes out superior. It was so refreshing to see Captain Scarlet again and actually able to make convincing movement and see his dangerous exploits play out. It not only stayed true to the original, but I truly think it built on it and is a worthy successor. Absolutely no disrespect to the original whatsoever, but if one series needed a remake it was this one. I'll always be a fan of both this and the original, but this was literally the perfect update to a classic in every way, from the aesthetic to giving far more characterization to the Mysterons. I would love to see it come back in some way eventually.

This was awesome, thank you! Everything scene perfectly timed and brilliantly matched to the narrative.

The CGI version of Thunderbirds didn't seem to suffer from ITVism. When the original Scarlet came out my nephew was a nipper and used to sing Scaptain Scarlet along to the theme music.

I really miss this show, and Anderson. He gave me and many others an excellent childhood. I watched Captain Scarlet every morning on CITV before school (It was a morning repeat I think around 7am). It was an excellent re-telling, and could teach a lot of bigger companies how to revitalise and or reboot legacy properties, despite it's appalling treatment.

Outstanding! Scarlet was a fitting tribute to Anderson's amazing skills as a producer. In mY top 5 Anderson Shows.

New Captain Scarlet went places the old Supermarionation couldn't, like up a stairs 🤣🤣🤣

I thought this was vastly underrated. I feel like the Doctor Who comparison is apt - the writing was intelligent enough to appeal to adults and children. I'd still love to see the Mysteron dissent concept explored. (also the Rhino was cool)

I remember watching it on CITV when it was shown in 2005.

I do love the note that being a CGI show doesn't mean that there weren't people who worked hard to make it and the many cheeky asides. Also good to remember that even from the original series it was intended to represent a progressive vision of the future. I will definitely have to check this show out!

Loved all the Anderson shows since my youth and this new edition is by far my favorite thanks for sharing

Another great Primer. Brilliant work, thank you!

I quite enjoyed the new Captain Scarlet on DVD and it never bothered me that some of the characters had changed gender as I saw the code names were just handed down to the next person in line for that position.

Both iterations of Captain Scarlet were superb.

"frequently involved in hand to hand combat, something their super marionation predecessors usually struggled with " ohhh so that explains captain kirks fight with the gorn

*sigh* I so wish this were an hour or 2 later so I can watch the premiere itself in full...

I love New Captain Scarlet. The witing was intelligent and the CGI was far superior to anything in a kids programme of the time. It's a shame that some (expletive deleted) at ITV decided on scheduling it in half-episode chunks at random times during its dire Tiswas rip-off show on a Saturday Morning.

brilliant remake. thank you Mr. A

Shame Gerry never got to see what would become of Thunderbirds are go, I feel like that really lived up to its predecessor

I'm a big Captain Scarlet fan and didn't even know this existed until now. Itv is run by mysterons.

14:27 Anderson himself initially saw his having to work with puppets as a humiliation. He made the best of it, and produced some quality work, within the limitations of the medium. In later years, he made no secret of the fact that he would have used CGI if it had been available.

Absolutely adoring the absolute litany of digs in this!

This premiered on my birthday. What a lovely surprise.

Shame it wasn’t a 4-5 season run not just 26 episodes

Oh my god, my childhood! Just looking at all those CITV clips from the early 2000’s makes me so nostalgic! Sometimes, I wish it never changed

Thank you for this ; had no idea there was a new series but Amazon Prime subscribers luck out, they carry both included with Prime and they look and sound fantastic! 👍🏽

new captain scarlet is awesome I loved all the new vehicles and locations plus it was nice to have the characters act like people (physically and emotionally)

I am french and I hope to see the new version. I love the old version when I was young and all series signed by Gerry Anderson. They are the best tv memories. Thanks for that .

I never got into Doctor Who, but I thought Captain Scarlet was a masterpiece. It is a shame that the new Captain Scarlet never got the recognition and respect that it deserved.

I love how Captain Scarlet falls through the energy beam in episode 1, giving us a reason why he was freed from Mysteron control. Subtle, but adding depth to the story. Now I wonder how a CGI Space 1999 reboot would do...

I grew up with repeats of classic captain scarlet but I liked the 2005 version because it got my younger cousin into the tv series! Was nice to pass on my toys and annuals to someone who would enjoy them as much as I did!

This should have been a live action show. It would make a great big screen live action movie too

Willoughby as an Angel just made my day!

I really didn’t expect to see a Doctor Who clip here.

I first saw this,in,I believe,2006 December of,on my mom”s computer.I found it very interesting to watch!And,yeah!We did grow up

Captain Scarlet next generation. I'm all for him and need to include him on my channel guide. Thanks

I loved it it was very good update without changing the look and feel of the classic show wish they made more

ITV's actions were criminal. Terrestrial TV in general is dire. Let us, the fans, support Anderson's dream, make it huge on RU-vid & attain the throne it deserves!

I had no idea this existed. It's really fun

Loved this show, adored fleshing-out the Mysterons... 👍🏻👌🏻👽➿

I didn't even know about this series, at the time. though I feel it might have been better received if it was made the same way the current Thunderbirds is. I must admit this animation style while technically advanced does sit in that uncanny valley which might have been what put ITV off

Dun dun dun...dun dun dun DUN!!

Hi I'm from Indonesia, and thanks for this Primer episode. I began digging more and more towards Anderson's works because whatever he and the late Sylvia had made, has inspired some other TV shows in the Far East. And without Anderson's works, probably those shows won't grow much.

Wish the CGI Dan Dare would get a DVD / Bluray / ANYTHING release. There's a tiny bit on RU-vid and it looks pretty good.

There must be a way to keep his dream alive, people! Let's make it happen!

I absolutely loved the original Captain Scarlet and had heard about the updated remake but I’ve never seen one episode. After watching this, I’m going to give it a go. Great video.

The music of the original. Just amazing. I still think about it today... and the scene cuts. The remake was very well done, but the audio of the original was stunning and I was born long after it originally aired

Been waiting for you guys to get to this primer! well done. Loved the original series and liked the New Captain Scarlet series as well. All i'm waiting for now is one for the Thunderbirds CGI series and Firestorm! Thumbs up and cheers.

Captain Scarlet in any form ROCKS!!! Thank you Mr. Anderson for keeping the series starring one of the coolest heroes ever created alive!!

Never seen any of this new one but it looks GOOD thank you for the video. :)

I really enjoyed new captain scarlet! Super stuff! 🐯

Good to see Captain Scarlet again

I loved this show on dvd

i loved that show

Loved it as a child and enjoyed the changes. And I’m sure Gerry would had loved the Thunderbirds are Go series.

I wasn't even aware of the new captain scarlet was even made I would luv to see it so I do hope they will show it again on tv

“New Captain Scarlet holds up, even 15 years later”...I’ll Say! I’ve just discovered it this year (2020) and was surprised that it was made back in ‘05. Good production, great stories!

I love the GCI Captain Scarlett and it's a shame it was only 26 episodes I love it and still watch them over and over 🛐♾️✝️❤️ LOL

With all those puppet show”s!(Like Thunderbirds).The old UFO show of Gerry Anderson”s still is a personal favorite!

Absolutely, love New Captain Scarlet. I am currently watching it on Amazon Video. It has incredible writting and the production design is outstanding. I've always been of fan the original and new adoption extends the legacy.

Could never get into Doctor Who old or new but grew up with Thunderbirds, Stingray and Captain Scarlet and did see the New Captain Scarlet. The sad fact about both shows is that they never got a proper ending.

I remember recording one episode "Heist" from Season 1, and it was quite annoying that ITV decided to broadcast it on Ministry Of Mayhem, and even break the episodes into two-ten minute segments. However, I watched the entire series on DVD, and I admit that this series is quite impressive. The motion capture really brought the characters to life, and I respect that Lieutenant Green and Captain Orche are female. As mentioned in this video, there is more focus on the Spectrum characters in this series and even their real names are used much more compared to the classic series. S.I.G. :)

Love this show have it on DVD.

To be honest I only recall one episode but it was great! The one where there was a clone of one of the angel's. I think New captain scarlet was my first time seeing him. But the supermarionation is definitely closer to my heart

Loved it my favourite show when I was a child and now it's remade in cgi even better more please 💋💋

A friend of mine worked on the series, he is listed in the end credits on six episodes. Not showing credits at the end of shows on TV is an annoyance to those in the trade and getting in the credits is still a major thing for peoples industry CV and is written into contracts. Sometimes on shows or films that had a lower budget, appearing in the credits was in lieu of a higher salary. He worked on one film where the credits for FX workers were missed in post production and to compensate for the omission and avoid litigation they were offered to have their credit included in a completely different film they never worked on. This was considered an acceptable solution. My friend considers it a career highlight to have worked on the show and to have had Gerry Shake his hand.

I loved the original Captain Scarlet, did not know it had been remade, since I grew up...wow.😁👍

This is the perfect style to bring Gold Key Comics' Space Family Robinson to life.

my brother and i loved the original captain scarlet and we loved the new one just as much. but we both hated how it always seemed to air on ministry of mayhem at slightly different times each week and cut back to mom halfway through each episode. thank god it’s now on amazon prime here in the uk so it can be seen how it deserved to be in the first place 🙌

Despite discovering and falling in love with Thunderbirds and Stingray during the 90s reruns, I was never able to find/experience the original Captain Scarlet. It was only a few years ago I found a DVD copy of this new series, but I wasn’t sure whether I should pick it up. Having seen this, next time I can, I will.

For me, I loved knowing that the visuals,were,real minitures. CGI isn't the same

They really blew the marketing and presentation of the new show. The few eps that I saw were pretty cool. But, being a fan of the original, what was missing was the novelty of watching live action puppets and miniatures that made the classics so fun to watch. It's a bit like all effects of today being done in CGI as opposed to practical effects. Something organic is missing. Not to mention, in the new Captain Scarlets, the late, great Ed Bishop. 😉

I remember trying to watch it on MOM it was frustrating with not having a proper time slot and then having the ad break and faff between the 2 parts. I never got to see the second half at the time of airing as there was no way of looking it up. I was never a fan of the redesigned vehicles but I did enjoy the characters and story’s.