Ah, this is more fun. A clever premise, tightly plotted and directed, centring on the deliberately artificial but highly atmospheric shooting range (it’s a mix of home counties architecture and the American wild west). There’s a good guest turn from Keith Baron. And Gambit blows up the TARDIS (well, okay, a police call box).

Yes, I have some niggles. How come the only agents that are represented as models are Steed, Purdey and Gambit? (I realise they’re the only one’s the viewer would recognise, but still, I’m getting a bit sick of them being so damn special). And Steed gets a call from an agent in trouble AT HOME AGAIN. Yes, don’t call HQ or a secure & staffed line – just call your chum Steed and hope he’s in… Oh, and there’s a howling continuity error – we see Myers is shot in the back, but the doc finds three pin pricks on his arm.

But, as ever with The New Avengers, it’s the relationships that are the core of the story. Not just between are main protagonists (I enjoyed the  familiarity shown when Gambit decides to ‘play a jape on old Brad’ because ‘you backroom boys are always thinking up tests for us’).

But yes, between our heroes…

“Steed. If she dies.”

“I know. I feel the same.”

That’s the heart of The New Avengers right there. There’d never be an expression of emotion like that in The Avengers. The Avengers were too cool.