Bodie and Doyle are assigned to protect a middle-eastern leader who's in England to sign a vital treaty at a country mansion - unaware that the leader's enemies also have two agents of their own in situ, assigned to kill him.
This is an intriguing idea for a story as we get to see Bodie and Doyle's counterparts as real people with hopes and dreams of their own - whilst obeying orders for the opposite reasons as CI5.
There's some amusing scenes at the start of the episode as Cowley sends his deadly duo on a CI5 crash-course class in combat - they get taken to task by a couple of musclebound trainers who enjoy putting them through their paces in some torturous routines!
At the same time, their counterpart agents are also being briefed likewise nearby.
Thr night before the big hit, unbeknownst to each to other, both sets of agents are quietly holed-up in the mansion venue, reflecting on their own lives and mortality, in what are very poignant and touching scenes.
But there can only be one winner - will it be Bodie and Doyle - or will the enemy duo be clever enough to outwit them?
This is a thoughtful and well-structured episode that certainly does something a bit different, especially as we grow to have genuine sympathy for Bodie and Doyle's antagonists, and maybe hope they can escape unscathed.
Lots of great location work too around the long-demolished Southall gasworks and its White Lion pub.
Look out too for an appearance too from The Bill's DC Carver (Mark Wingett) in a small role as 'Big Punk'!
This is an intriguing idea for a story as we get to see Bodie and Doyle's counterparts as real people with hopes and dreams of their own - whilst obeying orders for the opposite reasons as CI5.
There's some amusing scenes at the start of the episode as Cowley sends his deadly duo on a CI5 crash-course class in combat - they get taken to task by a couple of musclebound trainers who enjoy putting them through their paces in some torturous routines!
At the same time, their counterpart agents are also being briefed likewise nearby.
Thr night before the big hit, unbeknownst to each to other, both sets of agents are quietly holed-up in the mansion venue, reflecting on their own lives and mortality, in what are very poignant and touching scenes.
But there can only be one winner - will it be Bodie and Doyle - or will the enemy duo be clever enough to outwit them?
This is a thoughtful and well-structured episode that certainly does something a bit different, especially as we grow to have genuine sympathy for Bodie and Doyle's antagonists, and maybe hope they can escape unscathed.
Lots of great location work too around the long-demolished Southall gasworks and its White Lion pub.
Look out too for an appearance too from The Bill's DC Carver (Mark Wingett) in a small role as 'Big Punk'!