Project Blue Book: Star people and the effects of swamp gas

Project Blue Book examines a possible Close Encounter of the Second Kind in Bowling Green, Ohio. While Captain Quinn faces off against a threat to the United States, Dr. J. Allen Hynek ponders the myth of the Star People. Have we been visited before?

Project Blue Book is a thoroughly entertaining blend of history and entertainment. A combination that many productions attempt but so few succeed. This week’s episode, The Scoutmaster resurrects a case from 1952 in Florida.

Warning! Spoilers Ahead

Nothing Good Ever Happens in the Woods

A Boy Scout troop is enjoying a fun night in the woods when all hell breaks loose. Red and white flashing lights from the sky appear and Scoutmaster Sonny DesVergers goes to investigate the commotion. He is missing for a few hours only to awaken suddenly with his lungs aching and the skin on his forearms singed.

While the United States Air Force determined this was a hoax, there was no proof only conjecture that it was indeed a manufactured encounter. In Project Blue Book’s version of events, (which are “inspired”by the real account) the same sighting occurs except the location has been changed to Bowling Green, Ohio and there is a blink or you will miss it moment when an alien can be seen.

This time Dr. J. Allen Hynek shows up on the scene four hours later without Captain Quinn. As it turns out, Michael is on an “assignment” so he won’t be able to join his partner. Sheriff Donnelly, other law enforcement members and Scoutmaster Emmett York’s troop lead Hynek to the site.

Immediately, the professor senses something isn’t right. It appears to be a controlled burn and then he finds York’s hat and camera. Emmett has gone missing. Allen takes the camera and leaves the scene to develop the film.

Project Blue Book – Nothing Good ever Happens in the Woods – Courtesy of Eduardo Araquel and the History Channel

What he finds is startling. A close-up of York’s terrified face but looming in the background is a UFO.

The Art of Interrogation

Project Blue Book – The Art of Interrogation – Courtesy of Eduardo Araquel and the History Channel

Quinn and General Harding are sitting in a car outside of a house in the middle of a downtown area having a rather serious conversation. Edward Rizzuto, the Soviet spy from White Forest is holed up in his apartment. Harding wants Quinn to use his specific set of interrogation skills to extract some information from their target.

At first, Michael is puzzled as to why they let him walk away. The General explains that if they did that, they would have a better chance of locating his contacts. Being the good soldier that he is, Quinn doesn’t question anything.

Rizzuto supposedly stole valuable information from a highly classified project. Quinn is tasked with recovering it. In reality what this actually means is that he will “strong arm” the spy and use whatever tactics and methods are suitable to meet the objective.

We pretty much know how things are going to progress when Michael knocks on the door and just as Rizzuto answers he bulldozes his way in and knocks the spy out. Rizzuto wakes up bloodied on his bed to the smell of breakfast cooking in his kitchen.

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Quinn has prepared eggs, bacon, toast and coffee. While it looks well meaning, you know that what will ensue is a game of cat and mouse or the art of interrogation.

Let’s just say a game of Russian Roulette starts, things get stabby (Quinn actually impales Rizzuto’s hand with a fork) and the spy and the Captain almost duke it out. However, what does come to light is that Rizzuto has been turned and is now a double agent.

Harding enlisted him at White Forest. They were testing Michael to see if he stole the sensitive material from the base and the top-secret project. Needless to say, Quinn is angered that he was subjected to that treatment but now he is beginning to think that Hynek had something to do with the missing item.