The vicar of a Norman church asks the Avengers' help when a team of archaeologists excavating a site underneath the church are all killed and their bodies rendered completely devoid of any energy. This is due to a little black box which sends out deadly charges of electricity. Furthermore its charges are nurturing a race of thingumajigs, pure energy creatures which will eat anything and must be stopped before they do great harm. Archaeologists are investigating a series of tunnels under a Norman church but they aren't alone down there. As one of them waits above, where the lights start to flicker and the organ starts to play another, down in the tunnels, dies in a flash of light. The only clue is the dead man's burnt torch and strange tracks in the sand in the tunnels. Steed leaves Tara to talk to an electronics expert while he investigates the scene. Back on the site more of the archaeologists go into the tunnels and another is killed. While this is going on around the church all the fish in a nearby pond are found dead; Steed ordered the dredging of the pond and one of the things discovered in a strange black box; which he sends to Tara. It turns out this box is one of two that has been lost by the villain; they are designed to seek out electricity to charge then use that charge to kill!<br/><br/>It is not surprising that this episode came from the pen of Terry Nation given its delightful mix of science fiction and family friendly horror. The boxes may be of a very basic design but that is what makes them a little creepy. The villains as interesting as some that have featured in the series but this is made up for by the autonomous killer boxesÂ… especially when one of them attacks Tara in her home and is only stopped when soaked in champagne. It was unusually to have Tara and Steed separated for much of the story and reminded me just how good the character's chemistry is when they work together. The ever sneezing expert, Professor Harvey Truman, got a little bit tedious after a while although not enough to spoil this enjoyable episode. "Thingumajig," like "Fog," is an underrated horror entry, adding a dash of science fiction. An archaeological excavation beneath a 12th century church yields a number of corpses, and the mystery grows when a nearby pond offers up a bevy of dead fish. An atmospheric hybrid with an electrifying climax. The youthful Jeremy Lloyd ("From Venus with Love") is clearly miscast as the Reverend, and would soon join the enemy in America as both writer and performer on LAUGH-IN, whose ratings success put an end to THE AVENGERS. Also featuring Willoughby Goddard ("The Frighteners"), Hugh Manning ("The Thirteenth Hole" and "The Superlative Seven"), John Horsley ("Mr Teddy Bear"), Edward Burnham ("The Fear Merchants"), Vernon Dobtcheff ("Room Without a View" and "The Living Dead"), Russell Waters ("Castle De'ath"), John Moore ("The Hidden Tiger"), and Harry Shacklock ("A Change of Bait," "The Mauritius Penny," "Man-Eater of Surrey Green").
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