Thunderbirds: The Complete Collection [DVD] [2015]

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This original story, written to introduce the series' premise, is about Lady Penelope's first visit to Tracy Island and serves as a prequel to " Trapped in the Sky". [10] Although the series featured the adventures of the Thunderbirds machines of International Rescue, it did not make any mention of the Tracy family or any other familiar element of the Supermarionation original – beyond a very occasional cry of “Thunderbirds are Go!”. Instead, the International Rescue of Thunderbirds 2086 was a far larger organisation which operated out of a vast city known as the Arcology, built upon a manmade island. Although the organisation apparently employs hundreds of people, the main cast of heroes was limited to seven characters. The Thunderbirds machines would be manned by a group of captains (despite being called cadets during the opening titles narration) under the command of Doctor Warren Simpson, 2086’s equivalent of Jeff Tracy. The Thunderbird 1 space shuttle was piloted by daring young hotshot Dylan Beyda, while the hypersonic transport Thunderbird 2 was co-piloted by would-be space cowboy Jesse Rigel and Jonathan ‘Little John’ Jordan, Jnr. Thunderbird 3, a multi-purpose ground vehicle, would be commanded by Gran Hanson – who also served as the team’s leader for most missions. Thunderbirds 1 2 and 3 could also combine to ensure maximum preparedness for any emergency situation. The sole female member of the team, Kallan James, was in charge of International Rescue’s primary underwater craft, Thunderbird 4. Rounding out the regular cast – whether you liked it or not – was Commander Simpson’s seven-year-old nephew ‘Skipper’. Doctor Simpson briefs the Thunderbirds team. L-R; Dylan Beyda, Kallan James, Jesse Rigel, ‘Little John’ and Gran Hanson.

Thunderbirds 2086 made greater use of science fiction concepts and space travel in general than the original Supermarionation series, although its vehicles were designed with more of a functional appearance than those seen there. By and large the English redub followed the stories of the original Japanese episodes but its tone was often very tongue-in-cheek, and it wasn’t afraid to make references to other television shows and films. This was a world where evil computers would claim to control “the horizontal and the vertical”, where a convicted man would yell “I am not a number, I am a free man!” upon being sentenced, where a cynical astronaut would announce “I’ve never seen anything to make me believe there’s some mystical energy controlling my destiny!” short before encountering said Force (and then crying “I do believe in ghosts, I do believe in ghosts!”), and where absolutely all engineers were Scottish. The humour threatens to finally break the fourth wall completely at the start of the final episode, UFO, where the captain of a sailing vessel gets excited about his first appearance on television;Features an original song, "The Abominable Snowman", composed by Barry Gray and sung by Sylvia Anderson and David Graham. [11] Two feature film sequels to the TV series were released in 1966 and 1968, followed by three made-for-TV compilation films in the early 1980s. In 2015, a mini-series based on the three original audio stories was produced to mark the series' 50th anniversary. A series of unexplained Fireflash airliner disappearances sees Thunderbird 4 being called to rescue a crew stranded on the ocean floor. International Rescue then volunteer its services in helping to diagnose the cause of the mechanical fault. Unfortunately, the series was not a hit in Japan when it first aired in 1982, with only eighteen of its twenty-four episodes being broadcast. However, it was to find an afterlife thanks to Uemura’s connections at ITC. Presented with a ready-made series featuring various futuristic craft saving the day with the letters ‘TB’ (for Technoboyager) on their hulls, it was obvious that an English language dub could be produced that would capitalise on the already-established Thunderbirds name – so obvious in fact that it may always have been Uemura’s plan to try to adapt the series in this way!

a b " Thunderbirds Episode Guide". fanderson.org.uk. Bradford, UK: Fanderson. Archived from the original on 30 October 2013. World Navy tests of a nuclear torpedo inadvertently threaten the offshore rig Seascape. Jeff, having been invited by Lady Penelope to join her on holiday in Australia, places Scott in charge of International Rescue, with Alan substituting for Scott at the helm of Thunderbird 1. Jeff though is angered when Scott launches a rescue effort to the mid-ocean rig. Of the original stories, voice actors Peter Dyneley, David Graham and Sylvia Anderson featured in all three, Ray Barrett in two and Shane Rimmer in one. [10] [11] Two of the stories– F.A.B. and The Stately Homes Robberies–were told from the point of view of Lady Penelope and Parker, and featured original music by Barry Gray. [12] In 2015, the stories were adapted as screen episodes to mark Thunderbirds ' 50th anniversary. [13]

A 500-ton U.S. Army walker, Sidewinder, falls into a pit during testing and International Rescue are called to save the crew trapped inside. A gang of criminals masquerade as International Rescue to conceal their theft of top-secret military plans. The ensuing worldwide manhunt for International Rescue leaves the organisation powerless to operate in a rescue situation until its name is vindicated, just as a member of a manned reconnaissance satellite is suddenly trapped in space while trying to repair the station. Century 21, Slough will be released in Japan as a standalone and as part of a boxset accompanying the 2 Thunderbirds feature films. In addition to Century 21, Slough the release will also include Designing the Future - an interview with Mike Trim, and a short entitled Excitement is Go which we produced in 2015.