Spectre’s title strongly implies the return of the evil organisation’s leader, James Bond’s most classic villian, Ernst Blofeld. To mark the legendary kitten-stroker’s possible re-emergence, I cited the best and the stinkest Bond villains for my Herald blog.

Although it arguably paved the way for the “shared” universe trend currently permeating the blockbuster world, the Bond franchise has rarely shown much interest in establishing tangible connections between each individual film.

In something of a concession to modern blockbuster protocol, the new entry Spectre taps into some long-dormant Bond mythology with…