4-10. The Contract.

Callan goes undercover as a hit man.

Air Date: May 3, 1972. Written by: Bill Craig. Directed by: Reginald Collin. Produced by: Reginald Collin.


THE PLOT:

Callan and Meres are assigned to bring in Major Harcourt (Robert Uquhart), a former British officer turned hit man. Harcourt has a new contract, to assassinate the leader of an authoritarian regime. Hunter wants the hit stopped - but just as crucially, he wants to know who issued the contract and why.

A bit of bad luck results in Harcourt's escape... but not before Callan learns where and when the assassin planned to contact his client. So the agents switch to Plan B: Callan impersonates Harcourt, taking on the contract himself.

There are only two complications: First, the contact - fanatical amateur Kristina (Jane Lapotaire) - insists that Callan work with a partner, the hotheaded Lafarge (Michael Pennington). Second, Harcourt himself is still on the loose, and he is unwilling to surrender his assignment so easily...

Hunter berates Callan and Meres after Harcourt escapes.

CHARACTERS:

Callan: "I've got one thing that you haven't... judgement!" Callan spends the last part of the episode holed up with assassin Lafarge. The only guns on hand are the sniper rifle, which is loaded with only a single bullet, and the ones in Lafarge's possession, leaving Callan with only the weapon honed by long, bitter experience: his wits. He goes to work planting seeds of doubt in the younger man. At times, their interactions are reminiscent of the Callan/Cross relationship, with Lafarge initially sneering about Callan being "over the hill," but gradually coming to listen to each of Callan's observations and conclusions.

Hunter: Is only briefly seen in this episode, just long enough to establish that for this particular mission, he will accept no excuses for failure.

Meres: This may be a light episode for Hunter (and also Lonely, who's relegated to being "an extra pair of hands"), but it's a terrific one for Meres. By this point, he and Callan have firmly settled back into their Series Two partnership, fully in sync and watching each other's backs even as they trade disdainful barbs. Midway through, a single piece of information elicits amusement from Meres.  This is fully - and entertainingly - paid off in the final scene.

An unarmed Callan uses his wits to plant doubts in
hotheaded hitman Lafarge (Michael Pennington).

THOUGHTS:

On a production level, The Contract all but screams "filler episode."  There are only a few significant guest characters, and most of the sets are barren and shaky-looking. If this wasn't the season cheapie, then it does an excellent job of impersonating it.

None of which matters, because Bill Craig's script hits the mark, and the performances of both regulars and guest actors are fully on point.

Like most of Series Four's offerings, the story is well-paced, moving nicely from one plot point to the next. The first Act follows Callan and Meres in their botched attempt to capture Harcourt. It's clear from the first that the situation is not ideal, with Harcourt inside an apartment building with no way to know which of the flats is his. The agents are left to improvise, and it's a testament to how well they work together that they come very close to succeeding.

Midway through, the script switches gears, focusing on Callan's impersonation of Harcourt. This refreshes the story, and it also clears the way for the well-scripted Callan/Lafarge conversations. The very last part of the episode almost resembles the ending of a Poirot story, with Callan working out exactly what the assassins' mysterious employer is up to and laying it out for the benefit of all the different parties in the room, each of whom has a different reaction. Edward Woodward is particularly good here, with Callan literally talking for his life.

The dialogue is sharp, and the script even manages a couple of surprises. As a bonus, there's a lot of focus on the always-interesting Callan/Meres dynamic. As a result, and despite a bit of production cheapness, Callan's final standalone ends up being a thoroughly enjoyable one.


Overall Rating: 8/10.

Previous Episode: The Carrier
Next Episode: The Richmond File - Call Me Enemy

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