The 1960s were a time of secret agent series such as The Avengers (1961) or The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (1964) (which has a tone similar to this one), but also of sitcoms involving supernatural powers in ordinary daily life, such as Bewitched (1964) or I Dream of Jeannie (1965). This British series produced for private television combines the two ideas by equipping three secret agents of Geneva-based UN organization NEMESIS with superhuman powers which they must hide even from their organization. Although not among the very best and never too original beyond the basic premise, this is a solid entry in the genre.
In the first episode, Richard Barrett, Sharron Macready and Craig Stirling crash land in the Himalayas, where they mysteriously acquire their superpowers. No doubt it is no accident that similar to James Hilton's novel "Lost Horizon" and the film based on it (Lost Horizon (1937)), this happens while they are fleeing from China. The mysterious culture they meet, which may consist of aliens or of a secret parallel civilization, must be identical with the famous Shangri-La.
There is tendency for the plots to involve submarines and/or nuclear bombs, but apart from that they are as diverse as one would hope. After a typical assignment our three heroes return to Geneva where they make a detailed report to Tremayne, the head of NEMESIS. As a running gag, Tremayne gets frustrated because the report implies some superhuman power that they cannot convincingly explain.
Only one season of 30 episodes was produced. The series was essentially followed by Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) (1969), a detective series with a similar cross-over concept and a slightly more humorous tone. Episode 25 is very weak. I think the last 5 episodes contain some allusions to earlier The Avengers and The Man from UNCLE, fleshing NEMESIS out a bit more.
In the first episode, Richard Barrett, Sharron Macready and Craig Stirling crash land in the Himalayas, where they mysteriously acquire their superpowers. No doubt it is no accident that similar to James Hilton's novel "Lost Horizon" and the film based on it (Lost Horizon (1937)), this happens while they are fleeing from China. The mysterious culture they meet, which may consist of aliens or of a secret parallel civilization, must be identical with the famous Shangri-La.
There is tendency for the plots to involve submarines and/or nuclear bombs, but apart from that they are as diverse as one would hope. After a typical assignment our three heroes return to Geneva where they make a detailed report to Tremayne, the head of NEMESIS. As a running gag, Tremayne gets frustrated because the report implies some superhuman power that they cannot convincingly explain.
Only one season of 30 episodes was produced. The series was essentially followed by Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) (1969), a detective series with a similar cross-over concept and a slightly more humorous tone. Episode 25 is very weak. I think the last 5 episodes contain some allusions to earlier The Avengers and The Man from UNCLE, fleshing NEMESIS out a bit more.