Wednesday 12 August 2015

Crooked Dice Games Spectrum Angels

There is a woman behind most great men, and behind every organisation there are great women who fight for success - to prove their equality in a world of men. Here, I review five exceptional women who belong to the global security organisation known as Spectrum. Following on from my previous post that reviewed twelve Crooked Dice Games not-Captain Scarlet figures I now turn the spotlight on the five ace pilots of Spectrum, known as the Angels. They fly the deadly Angel Interceptor jet fighter with extreme skill and courage. Note that the figures of the Angels are supplied headless. You get to choose which head to attach to which body.
At the far left of my first two photos is Destiny, leader of the Angels. Juliette Pontoin was born in Paris, France in 2038. Upon graduating from Rome University with degrees in telecommunications and weather control she joined the World Army Air Force. She worked in the Intelligence Corps, where she really excelled. The W.A.A.F. promoted her to Commanding Officer of the Women's Fighter Squadron and she soon became their ace pilot. When Spectrum heard of her faultless military career, they offered her the job of flying one of the Angel Interceptors. She accepted happily and quickly proved to be a totally efficient member of the Spectrum organisation. For my figure of Destiny I used the head with the twin ponytails to represent the blonde-haired Angel.
28-year old Symphony Angel was born in Iowa, USA as Karen Wainwright. She graduated to Yale University when she was 16 and attained the title "Student of the Year", before leaving with seven degrees. She was contacted by the Universal Secret Service and passed their comprehensive training course to become one of their top agents. For one particular U.S.S. mission she trained to become a pilot and discovered her true vocation. With five years active service under her belt she quit the U.S.S. and joined an airline company where she proved to be an outstanding pilot. Spectrum recognised she was just the type of person who would be a valuable asset to them. Signing onto Spectrum, Symphony became a happy and well-loved member. She normally keeps her long, light brown hair free but in the absence of a suitable head, I used the head with a pigtail for her figure. It is still a good match for her.
Born on a cotton farm in Atlanta, Georgia, Magnolia Jones, later to be known as Melody Angel, was the tomboy of her family. She was a rebellious youth and got expelled from school. After discovering a passion for flying she enrolled with the W.A.A.F. Achievement followed achievement and due to her iron nerve, she became the organisation's best test pilot. When she eventually left the W.A.A.F., she set up a luxury flying taxi service. Her amazing stamina and flying ability was soon noted by Spectrum. They asked her to become an Angel, a decision neither have had cause to regret. Melody's close cropped black hair was a perfect match for the short-haired head I used on her figure. However, I was not too keen on her holding a wrench, so I clipped the offending hand and tool off and replaced it with a hand holding a pistol.
Moving on to the helmeted pilots, I start with Harmony Angel. Chan Kwan, the only daughter of a wealthy flying-taxi owner was born in Tokyo, Japan in 2042. Educated in London then Tokyo University, she realised her only ambition was to fly. She spent all her spare time at the Tokyo Flying Club. She bought a second hand single-seater jet, which she redesigned and converted to her own requirements. Her goal was to fly solo around the world. Her first attempt ended in failure but six months later, she succeeded. When her father died later that year he left his flying-taxi business to her. She developed it into the fastest flying-taxi service in the world. Spectrum recognised that with her skill, courage and determination she'd make a first class Angel pilot. I chose the Daredevil Pilot Head wearing glasses for Harmony's head. Note that I have re-positioned her left arm.
Born in Chelsea, London, Dianne Simms is the daughter of Lord Robert Simms, one of the World Government's officials. When she left London University, she was thrust into the world of the débutante. This soon bored her, so when she met Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward, she gladly accepted her offer to join the Federal Agents Bureau. Dianne and Lady Penelope became close friends. When Lady Penelope joined International Rescue, Dianne took over supreme command of F.A.B., a post she handled highly efficiently. When F.A.B. was forced to close, Dianne joined the Euro Charter Airline Company as Chief Security Officer. Spectrum realised her potential and invited her to join the Angels as Rhapsody Angel. I used another of the Daredevil Pilot Heads for Rhapsody but added Milliput to lengthen her long red hair.
Crooked Dice Games sell the Angels (they are actually called Daredevil Pilots) for £3.50 each or a set of three different bodies for just £9.00. They all come with separate heads, all bare-headed. A set of three Daredevil Pilot Heads wearing helmets are available for £1.60. So, I bought two sets of three figures along with the helmeted heads. This, of course, leaves one figure spare. What to do with her? Essentially, you have two options - invent her as the sixth, previously unseen Angel, or use her as a non-Angel. I chose the second option. I named her Katarina Dare (from the CDG website) and will most likely use her as a Mysteron agent. I used the third of the three helmeted heads on her figure.
I love the Angels and the Angel Interceptor is such a cool design (see the painting below). It is common amongst fans of Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons to have a favourite Angel. Mine was (and still is) Rhapsody Angel - a true English rose.
Two Angel Interceptors take off from Cloudbase at dusk.

14 comments:

  1. SIG. Captain Scarlet without the angels is like a mouth without teeth. Good job on these.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Clint. The Angels were an essential ingredient of the TV series.

      Delete
  2. Very nicely done Bryan. I need to pull my finger out and paint my own!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Cheers, Simon. They were very easy to paint.

      Delete
  3. Bryan, haven't a clue about any of these characters you mention but they look good and sound very interesting indeed; especially as my DVD has arrived and I'm looking forward to a Captain Scarlet Weekend as a result ;-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Have no fear, Simon. Watch the DVDs and all will become clear. I'm very envious of you watching so many episodes at once. I really have no idea why I haven't bought the DVD boxed set yet. I should. It'd be nice to wallow in nostalgia and relive my childhood.

      Delete
  4. Lovely Angels Bryan! Great paintjobs and some nice background info. Very cool Dude!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Many thanks, Bob. Because I kept all of my Captain Scarlet books from the 1960's I have some great source material for the series.

      Delete
  5. I love all of these models. The trick will be to find ways to use them in a game and still remain faithful to the original Captain Scarlet show, I think. The Angels were almost never in situations where they might encounter an enemy face-to-face.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I agree, Hugh. I'm still thinking about what rules set to use for my upcoming Captain Scarlet scenario.
      I can remember that Symphony Angel once got kidnapped by Captain Black but most of the action they saw was in the air.

      Delete
  6. Lovely work, Bryan. Whilst I had the plastic model kit of the Angel Interceptor, I don't recall watching the show. Thunderbirds, Stingray, Joe 90, even Terrahawks (although that was a bit later), but not Captain Scarlet for some reason. So all the background detail is appreciated. Curious as to see what's going to be in the final post on this topic. Regards Jez

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Good to hear that you're learning something from my Captain Scarlet posts, Jez.

      The third of my three Captain Scarlet posts will feature three of the Spectrum ground vehicles. I also had the Airfix Angel Interceptor model but I have no idea where it is, assuming I still have it.

      Delete