Hi-jacked
Encyclopedia
"Hi-jacked" is the fourth episode
of the Supermarionation
television series Joe 90
. It was the second episode to be produced. Its original UK
air date was 20 October 1968 on ATV Midlands
. It was written
by Tony Barwick
and directed
by Alan Perry.
investigating a lethal arms runner
is shot and left for dead in a street. Joe is equipped with his brain pattern to infiltrate the hideout of Mario Colletti, but can he stop his adversary after losing his special glasses?
. Urgently telephoning the McClaine cottage, Sam asks Professor McClaine and Joe to come to the hospital with a portable transmitter, enabling them to record Johnson's brain pattern and relay it from the operating theatre to the BIG RAT. Johnson's last message on his secret audio recorder reveals that Mario Colletti, a notorious gunrunner, is in Britain and intends to hi-jack a shipment of submachine gun
s about one hour from now. Having concluded that Johnson must have been shot and left for dead after his investigations became too intrusive, Sam assigns Joe to infiltrate Colletti's base of operations and report the location to WIN.
With the brain pattern upload complete, Joe is driven from the cottage to the Hudson Armaments Factory and stows away inside one of the weapons crates that is to be shipped out of the compound by lorry. Colletti's associates have set up an ambush on a country lane and the police escort car loses control after being shot at with a mounted machine gun. The lorry driver crashes when he sees that vans have blocked the road ahead. With the contents of the shipment transferred to the vans, the criminals, oblivious to Joe's presence, drive to a barn that conceals the entrance to Colletti's underground complex. Leaving his hiding place, Joe inadvertently trips a motion sensor and is pursued through the corridors by two henchmen, Gregson and Davis. After a shootout, Joe is captured and, having lost his BIG RAT glasses, is brought before Colletti.
At first, the gunrunner seems to be nothing more than amused to find that a child has penetrated the base, telling Gregson to drive the boy home. Locked inside the boot of a car, Joe is unaware that Gregson in fact has orders to kill him. He switches on his transceiver to radio Mac and Sam, who are using a homing device to track his movements from the cottage. Shortly after, Gregson stops his vehicle on a ridge and puts it in drive, watching as it leaves the road and crashes and explodes at the foot of the hill. Mac and Sam arrive at Joe's last known position, only to be told by police that no bodies have been found in the car wreckage.
Unknown to them, Joe managed to open the boot from the inside and has returned to Colletti's hideout, armed with his gun, to retrieve his glasses. Colletti is alerted to the presence of his unexpected guest and goes after the WIN agent. Loose in the complex, Colletti and Joe fight to the death. Joe loses his weapon, but stumbles across a box of grenade
s and hurls one at Colletti. The gunrunner is killed in the blast, which starts a fire that soon leaves the whole base in flames. Joe is overcome by the smoke, but not before he activates the control for the barn door, allowing an anxious Mac and Sam to enter the underground complex and rescue him. The three of them escape in Mac's car seconds before the base is ripped apart in a series of explosions. At dawn, Sam announces that all of Colletti's henchmen have been arrested. Mac briefs Joe on his next mission: to have a bath and then go to bed.
story information book, which provides detailed synopses for each episode of Joe 90
, it is stated that Ed Johnson is "murdered while investigating a ruthless and dangerous gunrunner and smuggler named Colletti." However, Johnson cannot not have died in "Hi-jacked", because his death would have made it impossible for WIN to record his brain pattern. The incidental music
for the episode was recorded on 16 February 1968 at CTS Studios in London from 2 pm to 6 pm.
. However, when the main characters reflect on the events of the episode in the clip show
episode "The Birthday", it is stated that the encounter with Colletti was Joe's first mission as a WIN agent. Footage from "Hi-jacked" appears in the form of a flashback
in this later episode.
Episode
An episode is a part of a dramatic work such as a serial television or radio program. An episode is a part of a sequence of a body of work, akin to a chapter of a book. The term sometimes applies to works based on other forms of mass media as well, as in Star Wars...
of the Supermarionation
Supermarionation
Supermarionation is a puppetry technique devised in the 1960s by British production company AP Films. It was used extensively in the company's numerous Gerry and Sylvia Anderson-produced action-adventure series, the most famous of which was Thunderbirds...
television series Joe 90
Joe 90
Joe 90 is a late-1960s British science-fiction television series documenting the exploits of a nine-year-old boy, Joe McClaine, who embarks on a double life as a schoolboy turned spy when his scientist father invents a pioneering machine capable of duplicating and transferring expert knowledge and...
. It was the second episode to be produced. Its original UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
air date was 20 October 1968 on ATV Midlands
Associated TeleVision
Associated Television, often referred to as ATV, was a British television company, holder of various licences to broadcast on the ITV network from 24 September 1955 until 00:34 on 1 January 1982...
. It was written
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
by Tony Barwick
Tony Barwick
Tony Barwick was a British television scriptwriter who worked extensively on series created and produced by Gerry Anderson....
and directed
Television director
A television director directs the activities involved in making a television program and is part of a television crew.-Duties:The duties of a television director vary depending on whether the production is live or recorded to video tape or video server .In both types of productions, the...
by Alan Perry.
Synopsis
An agentEspionage
Espionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
investigating a lethal arms runner
Gunrunning
Arms trafficking, also known as gunrunning, is the illegal trafficking or smuggling of contraband weapons or ammunition.The 1997 Report of the UN Panel of Governmental Experts on Small Arms provides a more refined and precise definition, which has become internationally accepted...
is shot and left for dead in a street. Joe is equipped with his brain pattern to infiltrate the hideout of Mario Colletti, but can he stop his adversary after losing his special glasses?
Plot
At night, unconscious WIN agent Ed Johnson is discovered by his superior, Sam Loover, in a backstreet. An ambulance arrives and Johnson is rushed to Northfield Hospital for emergency treatment to his gunshot woundBallistic trauma
The term ballistic trauma refers to a form of physical trauma sustained from the discharge of arms or munitions. The most common forms of ballistic trauma stem from firearms used in armed conflicts, civilian sporting and recreational pursuits, and criminal activity.-Destructive effects:The degree...
. Urgently telephoning the McClaine cottage, Sam asks Professor McClaine and Joe to come to the hospital with a portable transmitter, enabling them to record Johnson's brain pattern and relay it from the operating theatre to the BIG RAT. Johnson's last message on his secret audio recorder reveals that Mario Colletti, a notorious gunrunner, is in Britain and intends to hi-jack a shipment of submachine gun
Submachine gun
A submachine gun is an automatic carbine, designed to fire pistol cartridges. It combines the automatic fire of a machine gun with the cartridge of a pistol. The submachine gun was invented during World War I , but the apex of its use was during World War II when millions of the weapon type were...
s about one hour from now. Having concluded that Johnson must have been shot and left for dead after his investigations became too intrusive, Sam assigns Joe to infiltrate Colletti's base of operations and report the location to WIN.
With the brain pattern upload complete, Joe is driven from the cottage to the Hudson Armaments Factory and stows away inside one of the weapons crates that is to be shipped out of the compound by lorry. Colletti's associates have set up an ambush on a country lane and the police escort car loses control after being shot at with a mounted machine gun. The lorry driver crashes when he sees that vans have blocked the road ahead. With the contents of the shipment transferred to the vans, the criminals, oblivious to Joe's presence, drive to a barn that conceals the entrance to Colletti's underground complex. Leaving his hiding place, Joe inadvertently trips a motion sensor and is pursued through the corridors by two henchmen, Gregson and Davis. After a shootout, Joe is captured and, having lost his BIG RAT glasses, is brought before Colletti.
At first, the gunrunner seems to be nothing more than amused to find that a child has penetrated the base, telling Gregson to drive the boy home. Locked inside the boot of a car, Joe is unaware that Gregson in fact has orders to kill him. He switches on his transceiver to radio Mac and Sam, who are using a homing device to track his movements from the cottage. Shortly after, Gregson stops his vehicle on a ridge and puts it in drive, watching as it leaves the road and crashes and explodes at the foot of the hill. Mac and Sam arrive at Joe's last known position, only to be told by police that no bodies have been found in the car wreckage.
Unknown to them, Joe managed to open the boot from the inside and has returned to Colletti's hideout, armed with his gun, to retrieve his glasses. Colletti is alerted to the presence of his unexpected guest and goes after the WIN agent. Loose in the complex, Colletti and Joe fight to the death. Joe loses his weapon, but stumbles across a box of grenade
Grenade
A grenade is a small explosive device that is projected a safe distance away by its user. Soldiers called grenadiers specialize in the use of grenades. The term hand grenade refers any grenade designed to be hand thrown. Grenade Launchers are firearms designed to fire explosive projectile grenades...
s and hurls one at Colletti. The gunrunner is killed in the blast, which starts a fire that soon leaves the whole base in flames. Joe is overcome by the smoke, but not before he activates the control for the barn door, allowing an anxious Mac and Sam to enter the underground complex and rescue him. The three of them escape in Mac's car seconds before the base is ripped apart in a series of explosions. At dawn, Sam announces that all of Colletti's henchmen have been arrested. Mac briefs Joe on his next mission: to have a bath and then go to bed.
Production
In the ITCITC Entertainment
The Incorporated Television Company was a British television company largely involved in production and distribution. It was founded by Lew Grade.-History:...
story information book, which provides detailed synopses for each episode of Joe 90
Joe 90
Joe 90 is a late-1960s British science-fiction television series documenting the exploits of a nine-year-old boy, Joe McClaine, who embarks on a double life as a schoolboy turned spy when his scientist father invents a pioneering machine capable of duplicating and transferring expert knowledge and...
, it is stated that Ed Johnson is "murdered while investigating a ruthless and dangerous gunrunner and smuggler named Colletti." However, Johnson cannot not have died in "Hi-jacked", because his death would have made it impossible for WIN to record his brain pattern. The incidental music
Incidental music
Incidental music is music in a play, television program, radio program, video game, film or some other form not primarily musical. The term is less frequently applied to film music, with such music being referred to instead as the "film score" or "soundtrack"....
for the episode was recorded on 16 February 1968 at CTS Studios in London from 2 pm to 6 pm.
Broadcast
"Hi-jacked" was broadcast as the fourth episode for the original ATV Midlands transmissions of Joe 90Joe 90
Joe 90 is a late-1960s British science-fiction television series documenting the exploits of a nine-year-old boy, Joe McClaine, who embarks on a double life as a schoolboy turned spy when his scientist father invents a pioneering machine capable of duplicating and transferring expert knowledge and...
. However, when the main characters reflect on the events of the episode in the clip show
Clip show
A clip show is an episode of a television series that consists primarily of excerpts from previous episodes. Most clip shows feature the format of a frame story in which cast members recall past events from past installments of the show, depicted with a clip of the event presented as a flashback. ...
episode "The Birthday", it is stated that the encounter with Colletti was Joe's first mission as a WIN agent. Footage from "Hi-jacked" appears in the form of a flashback
Flashback (narrative)
Flashback is an interjected scene that takes the narrative back in time from the current point the story has reached. Flashbacks are often used to recount events that happened before the story’s primary sequence of events or to fill in crucial backstory...
in this later episode.