Occasionally you'll come across that phrase: "...like Marmite, you either love it or hate it...."

Some Supermarionation characters seem to inspire strong views in either direction, so I thought that I'd create a category for the characters themselves.


Scott, in particular, comes in for a lot of it. Either you see him as an heroic leading character, or else as lazy, arrogant, self-centered, etc, etc, etc...

Personally, I like Scott. As the eldest, it's natural for him to be put in charge of things. (SOMEONE'S got to do it, after all.) His brothers don't seem to have a problem with it. For that matter, when Virgil was put in charge during "Lord Parker's 'Oliday", Scott accepted it without a blink. I don't see him as arrogant at all. How can you call a man willing to milk cows arrogant? He is deeply concerned for other people's welfare. I liked his reactions in "Terror in New York City" when Virgil was hit. In "The Imposters" when Jeff forbade them to try and save the missing astronaut, Scott took it harder than anyone.

Alan...I hate to admit it, but he actually has more character depth than his brothers. I enjoy him for his flaws; they make him seem more human (and make his brothers look that much more mature!) You'll notice that he never lets personal feelings get in the way of a rescue.

May I say something vaguely heretical? I really don't like Lady Penelope all that much. I realize that she was one of the all-time favorite characters of the show, and that she was one of the pioneers of the strong, cool woman character, but...but. She's awfully prone to violence, blasting men off the road, and using her gun to threaten, not the bad guys, but the good guys, such as Bondson and Jim Lucas. As I've said elsewhere, her behavior in "The Imposters" and "The Man from MI5" was utterly unconscionable. In "The Imposters" she comes across as a glory grabber, wanting all the credit for saving International Rescue. (And she gets it, too; Jeff never mentions Jeremiah's contribution at the end of the episode.) And in "The Man from MI5"...! By today's standards, I think that she'd be considered one of those people who deliberately court danger because they're addicted to the adrenaline rush. She more or less admits that to Scott, telling him that danger and uncertainty add interest to life. (Never mind that she put the entire world at risk by doing so.)

How about Jeff Tracy? Creator of International Rescue, strong, dedicated, and wise...most of the time. His behavior to Scott in "Atlantic Inferno" was inexcusable. A commander cannot let anger deafen him to hearing all the circumstances. And I really didn't like the way he allowed his older sons to get in their teasing digs at Alan, then told them to shut up as soon as Alan started defending himself. (I didn't blame Alan in the slightest for laughing at his father a short time later.)