Naive Avengersthon - 124. Killer

Agents are being lured to a factory, then efficiently killed and dumped. It's completely obvious what's going on and exactly who 'Remak' is, the fun is in the way the exact details are explained. And the principal villains are great: William Franklyn from Silent Dust in a vicious check jacket, and Grant Taylor as a hefty businessman. There's a wonderful scene in the pub that they use in the operation where they calmly take tea as their latest victim is taken away. 'Sandwich?' asks Taylor politely.

Harry 'McDermott in Terror of the Autons' Towb does the agent-luring for them; very appropriately because not only is the factory a plastics factory, but there's a coach-load of plastic dummies involved in the story too. (Though I couldn't work out exactly what the purpose of this was).

There are also various similarities in the Remak scenes to the City sequence in Death to the Daleks - particularly in the way that some of the agents survive the first attack only to perish in the second, and only our hero is clever enough to get all the way through.

One thing is still puzzling me though, why did Grant Taylor spend all that cash on an elaborate killing mechanism? They could just have lured people to the factory and shot them, then dumped the corpses in the same way, and it would have been a lot cheaper. Wouldn't make such a good story of course.

Very little Tara in this, and agent Lady Diana Forbes-Blakeney takes over as companion of the week. I was hoping she was Caroline Blakiston again, but it wasn't her.

Previously and also seen: John 'Edward Waterfield' Bailey in his third appearance, James 'Security Chief' Bree from Immortal Clay, Anthony 'Baron von Gruner' Valentine from The Bird Who Knew Too Much.

Also seen: Michael 'Moberley in Seeds of Doom' McStay.

Previously seen: Jonathan Elsom from The See-Through Man.

Naive Avengersthon - 123. Wish You Were Here

In Prisoner territory here with a hotel who offer a special service: the indefinite detention of inconvenient people. They'd have gotten away with it too if they hadn't branched out into murdering them too. It's largely played for laughs - the means of detention are inventive but polite and non-fatal, and the permanent guests have the best food and wine. But it still recalls the superficially civilised atmosphere of the Village and the suggestion of a corresponding threat somewhere below the surface.

Helping convey this threat is Derek 'Greg Sutton' Newark in his third appearance. This is an actor who can give a distinct air of menace just by eating breakfast.

Steed's scenes are largely confined to a brainstorming session with 'Mother' where, surrounded by cardboard cutouts of various agents, they're trying to work out which one is a traitor. 'Mother''s nephew Basil - can't work out who this is but he seems familiar - is despatched to assist Tara at the hotel. I love the disdain Patrick Newell puts into his 'dear boy' line here.

Basil isn't a lot of help, but fortunately Tara is more than capable of devising a plan. Wonderful scene where she and her confederates barricade themselves in the hotel kitchen, then calmly proceed to cook and serve themselves a gourmet meal while the staff attempt to break down the door. A bit like the 'dinner party under fire' scene in Khyber.

Previously and also seen: David 'Solicitor Grey' Garth in his third appearance. Dudley 'Maurice Caven' Foster in his third appearance

Also seen: Louise 'Gia Kelly' Pajo - I see she ended up in Pris btw. John Cazabon, who I think is the man with the umbrella who Number Six disconcerts in an unconvincing studio 'exterior' scene in Once Upon A Time

Previously seen: Liam Redmond returning from Small Game For Big Hunters, Robert Urquhart from Castle DeAth, Gary Watson in his fourth appearance, Richard Caldicot from A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Station.

Naive Avengersthon - 122. They Keep Killing Steed

Arcos (Ray McAnally returning from The Positive-Negative Man) has a plan to blow up a peace conference. And his operative will have a perfect disguise in the form of Steed's face. The whole face-changing thing is excellent - the bulbous transformation masks are very sinister and we're satisfyingly shown on two occasions what happens when the process goes wrong.

Steed's improvised counter-plan is very clever, an example of 'If the system is big enough to break you, try helping it on its way.'

Lots of running about for Tara, but because she doesn't really know what's going on at any stage, she doesn't really drive the plot much. She just gets to visit 'Mother''s riverbottom base, and ponce around with the pretty Baron von Curt, the companion of the week. He may look like Jason Donovan's effeminate brother but he's an effective fencer.

A very good episode with lots of style - a further example in the way that Arcos' secret evil base is entered through the doors of a burnt-out van in a quarry.

Ray McAnally is a real thoughtful villain, his chess-playing scene with the captive Steed is a delight. Norman 'Hieronymous' Jones as his henchman.

Previously and also seen: Bernard Horsfall (third appearance).

Also seen: Reg 'Krail' Whitehead, and, very briefly, Angharad Rees.

Naive Avengersthon - 121. Legacy of Death

Intriguing opening with Farrer (Richard Hurndall) giving last-minute instructions to his butler Zoltan (!) (John 'Sondergaard' Hollis in his fourth appearance) before climbing into his coffin. Not long later, Zoltan arrives at Steed's flat to present him with his legacy of a jade dagger.

Such is the value of the dagger that several competing gangs of grotesques are ready to murder their way to it. Stratford 'Monarch' Johns, returning all the way from The Frighteners, as Sidney Street, is the best of them.

The climactic reveal of Farrer's intentions makes a good scene, though of course we don't really expect anyone to get their hands on the treasure and we aren't surprised. Street displays a sort of nobility at the end, it's rather good.

Also seen: Tutte Lemkow (Cyclops in The Myth Makers). The wonderful Peter 'The Supervisor' Swanwick. Michael 'Collins in Pyramids' Bilton.

Previously seen: Ronald Lacey from The Joker. Kynaston Reeves from What The Butler Saw.

Naive Avengersthon - 120. Noon Doomsday

I watched this one in a rage because I was waiting for a parcel that didn't come, so it's a wonder that I saw anything good in it at all. Steed is recuperating from an injury at the fantastically-secure 'Department S' - unfortunately it becomes a trap for him and Tara when assassin Gerald Kafka (!) comes looking for revenge.

Amusing array of unhelpful responses from the other patients - one (Peter 'Packer' Halliday) would help, but is too selfish; one is crippled by anxiety; another is afflicted by a combination of lust for Tara and cowardice. The only one brave enough to help is immobilised in plaster, but insists Tara wheels him to the window so he can keep lookout. This gallant man is played by one Anthony Ainley...

Tara takes on all three assassins, but isn't quite good enough to beat Kafka. Luckily Steed has a surprise up his sleeve, or pretty close to his sleeve anyway.

Ray 'Robbie Box' Brooks rather good as one of Kafka's assistants. T.P. 'Captain Cook' McKenna (third appearance) as the other.

Previously seen: Lyndon Brook from The Hidden Tiger, John Glyn-Jones from A Sense of History, David Glover from The See-through Man.

Naive Avengersthon - 119. False Witness

Not really keen on this one - the idea of a drug that makes people lie is interesting enough, but the execution is silly. Putting it in milk deliveries seems a hit-and-miss way of doing it, and why does it make the first two victims believe the lies they're telling (convincingly enough for a lie-detector in one case), but leave Tara aware that they're false?

'Mother' has a mobile HQ on a double-decker bus on this one, an image iconic enough for me to have heard of it before I started this 'thon.

Previously and also seen: John 'Chang' Bennett returning from Mission to Montreal, Rio 'Harker' Fanning from Dead Man's Treasure.

Also seen: Simon 'Zadek' Lack, Jimmy 'Idmon' Gardner.

Previously seen: Barry Warren from Too Many Christmas Trees, Tony Steedman from The Little Wonders, William Job from Man-eater of Surrey Green and Arthur Pentelow from Trojan Horse.

Naive Avengersthon - 118. Game

A good episode. Monte Bristow (Peter 'Count Grendel' Jeffrey in his third appearance) has made it big in the games business after his unfortunate wartime court-martial for black-markeetering. And he's out for revenge by making his enemies play for their lives in occupationally-themed games.

Steed is last on the list, and he's lured to the games room by clues in the form of jigsaw pieces. Not so much for Tara to do in this ep other than assemble the jigsaw and protectively build a barricade of furniture to safeguard Steed in his flat.

Bristow is a great villain - I particularly like the way that he's basically cheated in making the games unwinnable, and his consequent chagrin when Steed starts winning. His butler (Garfield 'Haskins' Morgan from The Fear Merchants) politely insists at this point that Steed gets his fair rewards.

Some of the games are very well realised, particularly the stock market and wargame ones chosen for the two investor and soldier victims respectively. Unfortunately I didn't think Steed's game of 'Secret Agent' was one of them, it was more a series of fights. Steed's ingenious gamesmanship in the doors puzzle is great though.

Also seen: Aubrey 'Prof Parry' Richards, again as a professor; Brian 'Adam in The Dinosaur Invasion' Badcoe.

Previously seen: Anthony Newlands from Dial A Deadly Number, Alex Scott from Too Many Christmas Trees.