by Mark Murton

Original Air Date: April 7, 1977

Directed by: Victor French

Cat Out of the Bag Alert! This review contains spoilers for this episode!

Synopsis: The travellers encounter a computer-controlled city known as The Complex where women are subservient to male authority. The women mutiny by reprogramming the computer and imprison the men, but the male-programmed Complex starts trying to correct its programming putting everyone in danger.

Cat Burglar (Scene Stealer): The travellers materialise in a new time zone with Liana (Katie Saylor) actually holding Sil-L for a change. Liana tells Varian (Jared Martin) she is going to take Sil-L for a walk so he can stretch his legs.

Sil-L runs off ahead of her. By the time Liana catches up with him he is happily playing with something (which looks suspiciously like a dead mouse on a string!).

Their revelry is interrupted by the arrival of a group of men, one of whom tries to grab hold of Liana. Liana runs off as Sil-L watches.

Liana is soon surrounded and the men imprison her in a cage. As she is taken away, Liana screams for help and Sil-L hurries back to the group, arriving at the feet of Willaway (Roddy McDowall).

Willaway scoops him up as they ponder why Sil-L would have left Liana.

Willaway places Sil-L back on the ground and he immediately runs back to where Liana was captured as the others struggle to keep up.

Sil-L leads them to the complex where Liana was taken and is seemingly forgotten as the travellers are invited inside. But after the women enact their mutiny Sil-L is seen sitting on a nearby table while Liana and some of the women try to figure out a way to disable the Complex’s robot “watchers”.

SIL-L settles down, seemingly content.

But then one of the robot watchers enters, attracting Sil-L’s attention. Sil-L meows a warning to the machine.

Liana deals with the danger and Sil-L isn’t seen again until the end of the episode as Scott (Ike Eisenmann) stands holding Sil-L who Liana strokes as they wait for the others to join them.

And that’s the last time Sil-L or Liana are seen in the series, reportedly due to Katie Saylor falling ill. Their absence from the next episode is explained by Liana supposedly remaining behind in Coriel to help sort out the new order of government (even though she and Sil-L were seen disappearing in the usual ball of blue light at the end of this episode).

Both Liana and Sil-L do continue to feature in the opening titles of the two remaining episodes as the producers planned for them to return in the second season if commissioned. Katie Saylor seems to have retired from acting after this. We’re not sure if The Felix Team have any other credits.

Final Mewsings: Science fiction series need more cats!

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