When a poachers is found drowned in field it is clear that something strange is going on; it happened in a normally dry part of the country and there were no indications that the body had merely been dumped there. When Steed and Mrs Peel arrive at the scene the man's brother is convinced that it is a case of divine retribution for the man's sinful ways
most notably his breaking into the local winery to sample their wares. He isn't the only person in the village fearing the wrath of God; another, Jonah Barnard, is convinced that there will be a second flood and is building his own ark. Posing as a wine buyer, Steed heads to the winery and starts asking questions; they are evasive
clearly they have something to hide but exactly what they are doing and why remains a mystery but it is likely that it has something to do with the strange black cloud that stays above the winery.
This is solid episode with a nice mix of science fiction, eccentric characters, dramatic moments and humour. For once it isn't the villains who are wildly eccentric; most notable is the aforementioned Jonah, played Noel Purcell in a way that some will find amusing and others will find a bit irritating. We also have Talfryn Thomas's Eli Barker; the devout Welshman who also believes God is behind the strange weather. The main drama comes when Mrs Peel is placed in a wine press and looks set to get crushed this also provides some humour after Steed rescues her and demonstrates that his operation of the machine was skill rather than luck then crushes his bowler! The artificial rain looks good for the most part although once or twice it was noticeable that it wasn't covering the whole scene. There is some accidental humour too; we have people who can manipulate the weather but their winery makes wine out of just about anything but grapes clearly making traditional wine in England in 1965 was considered too far-fetched even for 'The Avengers'!
This is solid episode with a nice mix of science fiction, eccentric characters, dramatic moments and humour. For once it isn't the villains who are wildly eccentric; most notable is the aforementioned Jonah, played Noel Purcell in a way that some will find amusing and others will find a bit irritating. We also have Talfryn Thomas's Eli Barker; the devout Welshman who also believes God is behind the strange weather. The main drama comes when Mrs Peel is placed in a wine press and looks set to get crushed this also provides some humour after Steed rescues her and demonstrates that his operation of the machine was skill rather than luck then crushes his bowler! The artificial rain looks good for the most part although once or twice it was noticeable that it wasn't covering the whole scene. There is some accidental humour too; we have people who can manipulate the weather but their winery makes wine out of just about anything but grapes clearly making traditional wine in England in 1965 was considered too far-fetched even for 'The Avengers'!