The Prime minister of Svardia, Fernec Laryra, is a decent man, who is trying to bring freedom to his country. But he is dying of an incurable heart ailment. He is grooming his protégé, Pavel to succeed him, thinking that Pavel shares his style of leadership. However, Pavel is NOT like Laryra, and has plans to turn the country into a dictatorship, and eliminate anyone opposing , or even speaking out against him if he takes power. Several jails are full of "dissidents" which Laryra wants pardoned, but Pavel has plans for "another way" to "empty" the jails. However, Laryra trusts Pavel implicitly...and will not believe he would be a butcher if he assumed power.
The mission is to see to it that Pavel " sees for himself" the REAL plans of Pavel, so that a true follower of Laryra's beliefs can be appointed.
To pull this one off...first, the IMF must convince The PM that he may just have a chance at treatment...and then, have him "travel" to another country for that treatment. Cinnamon, and a doctor working with the IMF, fakes an X--ray, showing that perhaps there IS a chance of treatment. However, this treatment must be done in another land. So, a train is prepared to take Laryra, Pavel, the doctor, his nurse, and some associates to another location for treatment of the Prime Minister.
After a bit of confusion, and a usual "fly in the ointment" of the IMF plan, Rollin, posing as a security chief, orders that the last car be prepared for the PM and his entourage. The train is then connected to a locomotive and prepared for "departuare". Sunlight being flashed into the window irritates the PM, and so Cinnamon, posing as a nurse, closes the blinds. Now, the car is unhooked from all others...and driven by Barney into a warehouse, which has been sealed off under the guise of fumigation.
Once in the warehouse, a large number of IMF operatives quickly attach a rocker assembly to the car, and place a projection system around the windows of the car. "Train sounds" are also created to insure the coming illusion. A couple of minutes later..all is prepared and the rocker cylinders begin shaking the car back and forth enough to simulate movement..while the projection system simulates outside scenery, including a passing train. The wheel and track sounds, gate bells and train whistles are created while all of this is going on. In the train car..all are convinced of a real train voyage.
The "journey" continues for a while unheeded, when one more "glitch" occurs. A large selenium rectifier, part of the power supply for Barneys sound system, begins to smoke, signaling impending failure...which would KILL ALL sound effects..and spoil the mission. Barney quickly realizes this..and "hot swaps" a new one in place, then, after the new one is patched in, cuts out the old one... and the sound effects continue unaffected.
Some time later--the "speed" of the train "picks up" and a scraping sound is heard by the riders. Rollin--posing as the conductor, tells an aide that the "brakes are gone" and the "train" is heading for a "crash". During this time, the PM has been sedated by Cinnamon, and knows nothing of the events. The "Doctor" DEMANDS that Pavel help him "protect" the PM from the imminent "Crash", and as the train car shakes violently, and "flips upside down"(in the projection scenes), Pavel is rendered unconscious by a slap-needle, and things go black for him--and the audience.
Pavel awakes in the "hospital", with a broken leg. A picture of Laryra is at his bedside, along with some "sympathy messages" for him and Pavel. Pavel's aide, with him in the "hospital" also "comes to" and learns of Laryras death from "nurse Cinnamon". Pavel then begins to discuss what" has to be done now" with his aide. He takes the "oath of office" from his aide, and assumes power.
Pavels FIRST order is that the funeral be quick and simple."The old way died with the old man. There are to be no monuments, no memories, no mementos. They will soon forget the old fool ever existed". He tells all of this to his aide. He also tells him to "empty" the jails of those "individuals that he so detests". Pavel's aide then replies, "their executions will proceed at once", and picks up a telephone to give the order.
All the while--the whole "hospital room" is an IMF mock-up....and standing behind a "two-way mirror", the PM oversees and hears ALL of this. Standing with Laryra, Cinnamon explains that they hated to do this, but there "was no other way to show him the truth". Then, the false hospital wall is rolled back...and Laryra faces down Pavel..who is is speechless... "I accept your resignation, Pavel", the PM tells him. He then asks if he can really be treated, and Cinnamon tells him she is sorry, but he cant. Laryra then thanks the IMF for "letting him see beyond his own death"...and says he now has to pick a worthy successor, as the mission is accomplished.
This is the first of a number of "false voyage" missions that would be created, to fool someone into thinking they had traveled somewhere, when in fact..they had not. Later on, "planes" "submarines", "Trucks" and such would be simulated. But in this case, the viewer is given a behind-the-scenes view of the complex machinery used to simulate the voyage. This makes this a VERY good example of this M.O., and a great mission overall. One of the best first season episodes, and a great one overall--MUCH better than the pilot, IMHO. VERY HIGHLY recommended!!
The mission is to see to it that Pavel " sees for himself" the REAL plans of Pavel, so that a true follower of Laryra's beliefs can be appointed.
To pull this one off...first, the IMF must convince The PM that he may just have a chance at treatment...and then, have him "travel" to another country for that treatment. Cinnamon, and a doctor working with the IMF, fakes an X--ray, showing that perhaps there IS a chance of treatment. However, this treatment must be done in another land. So, a train is prepared to take Laryra, Pavel, the doctor, his nurse, and some associates to another location for treatment of the Prime Minister.
After a bit of confusion, and a usual "fly in the ointment" of the IMF plan, Rollin, posing as a security chief, orders that the last car be prepared for the PM and his entourage. The train is then connected to a locomotive and prepared for "departuare". Sunlight being flashed into the window irritates the PM, and so Cinnamon, posing as a nurse, closes the blinds. Now, the car is unhooked from all others...and driven by Barney into a warehouse, which has been sealed off under the guise of fumigation.
Once in the warehouse, a large number of IMF operatives quickly attach a rocker assembly to the car, and place a projection system around the windows of the car. "Train sounds" are also created to insure the coming illusion. A couple of minutes later..all is prepared and the rocker cylinders begin shaking the car back and forth enough to simulate movement..while the projection system simulates outside scenery, including a passing train. The wheel and track sounds, gate bells and train whistles are created while all of this is going on. In the train car..all are convinced of a real train voyage.
The "journey" continues for a while unheeded, when one more "glitch" occurs. A large selenium rectifier, part of the power supply for Barneys sound system, begins to smoke, signaling impending failure...which would KILL ALL sound effects..and spoil the mission. Barney quickly realizes this..and "hot swaps" a new one in place, then, after the new one is patched in, cuts out the old one... and the sound effects continue unaffected.
Some time later--the "speed" of the train "picks up" and a scraping sound is heard by the riders. Rollin--posing as the conductor, tells an aide that the "brakes are gone" and the "train" is heading for a "crash". During this time, the PM has been sedated by Cinnamon, and knows nothing of the events. The "Doctor" DEMANDS that Pavel help him "protect" the PM from the imminent "Crash", and as the train car shakes violently, and "flips upside down"(in the projection scenes), Pavel is rendered unconscious by a slap-needle, and things go black for him--and the audience.
Pavel awakes in the "hospital", with a broken leg. A picture of Laryra is at his bedside, along with some "sympathy messages" for him and Pavel. Pavel's aide, with him in the "hospital" also "comes to" and learns of Laryras death from "nurse Cinnamon". Pavel then begins to discuss what" has to be done now" with his aide. He takes the "oath of office" from his aide, and assumes power.
Pavels FIRST order is that the funeral be quick and simple."The old way died with the old man. There are to be no monuments, no memories, no mementos. They will soon forget the old fool ever existed". He tells all of this to his aide. He also tells him to "empty" the jails of those "individuals that he so detests". Pavel's aide then replies, "their executions will proceed at once", and picks up a telephone to give the order.
All the while--the whole "hospital room" is an IMF mock-up....and standing behind a "two-way mirror", the PM oversees and hears ALL of this. Standing with Laryra, Cinnamon explains that they hated to do this, but there "was no other way to show him the truth". Then, the false hospital wall is rolled back...and Laryra faces down Pavel..who is is speechless... "I accept your resignation, Pavel", the PM tells him. He then asks if he can really be treated, and Cinnamon tells him she is sorry, but he cant. Laryra then thanks the IMF for "letting him see beyond his own death"...and says he now has to pick a worthy successor, as the mission is accomplished.
This is the first of a number of "false voyage" missions that would be created, to fool someone into thinking they had traveled somewhere, when in fact..they had not. Later on, "planes" "submarines", "Trucks" and such would be simulated. But in this case, the viewer is given a behind-the-scenes view of the complex machinery used to simulate the voyage. This makes this a VERY good example of this M.O., and a great mission overall. One of the best first season episodes, and a great one overall--MUCH better than the pilot, IMHO. VERY HIGHLY recommended!!