The Tag: Almost all the episodes have short and usually funny scene at the very end, after the rescue has taken place, often involving the secrecy of International Rescue. (See the Recaps for individual examples.) Character Voices: John Belucci, Earl Hammond, Keith Mandell, Alexander Marshall, Lucy Martin [episodes 1-24]; Laura Dean [episodes 8, 15]; Maia Danziger [episodes 16, 18, 19, 20, 21] Thunderbird 2: a green supersonic carrier aircraft that transports supporting rescue vehicles and equipment in detachable capsules called "pods". Piloted by Virgil. [13] Special mention to Thunderbird 3 which flew from Earth to so-close-to-the-Sun-that-it-was-on-the-verge-of-melting in the time it took Thunderbird 2 to fly from the South Pacific to the Himalayas. Parental Bonus: As a true "all ages" program, episode plots and characters were very well written, particularly after the episodes were lengthened to an hour.

General Starcrusher's spies have infiltrated the top secret X-15 project hidden behind Niagara Falls, with intent to lure IRO to the scene and steal their fabulous Thunderbird craft.General Starcrusher and the Shadow Axis have chosen their next target; the USS Thunderbolt, a mile long airbase in the clouds. Their plot is successful, and the Thunderbolt plummets on a direct course to Tokyo. How can the Thunderbird team save a ship that was never designed to land? There's more than meets the eye with Herman Grody. He may appear to be the new squeaky-clean head of Carillion Mining Corporation, but is actually an agent of the Shadow Axis. Swayed to their side with dreams of power, Grody plots to steal The Federation of all its Cryolite, giving the Shadow Axis the precious resources required to conquer his planet once and for all. A relaxing weekend vacation for the Thunderbird team is put on hold when the destruction of a Weather Control Satellite results in the deadliest typhoon on record. Its first target is Babalu Island, where Skipper and his family are staying. Cigarette of Anxiety: During times of anxious waiting, characters are often seen with a cigarette between their fingers. Even the heroic members of International Rescue do this when their family members are in danger. This was filmed in the 60s, after all.

Since it was necessary for the art department's interior sets to conform to the special effects department's exterior plans, each team closely monitored the other's work. [104] According to Sylvia Anderson, Bell's challenge was to produce complex interiors on a limited budget while resisting the effects department's push for "more extravagant" design. [104] This task was complicated by the unnatural proportions of the puppets: Bell struggled to decide whether the sets should be built to a scale proportionate to their bodies or their oversized heads and hands. [105] He used the example of FAB 1 to illustrate the problem: "As soon as we positioned [the puppets] standing alongside [the model], they looked ridiculous, as the car towered over them." [106] He ultimately adopted a "mix-and-match" approach, in which smaller items, such as tableware, were scaled to their hands and furniture to their bodies. [105] Spinoff: The presence of Zero-X in the first movie seems to make it double up as the pilot of the following series, Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons. However, it isn't really confirmed in-series as the Thunderbirds never showed up in Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons. The same goes for specific details surrounding the Thunderbird vehicles and other machines, like their dimensions, speed and other technical data. Writers Cannot Do Math: The Fireflash's stated top speed is Mach 6, but it evidently cruises at a much lower speed as it still takes several hours to get anywhere. Rule of Drama, perhaps, but Mach 6 is approximately 4,000 mph.The second part, accompanied by composer Barry Gray's "The Thunderbirds March", features portraits of the main puppet cast superimposed on various vehicles and settings. [50] Peel describes this as "ostensibly a return to the 'series stars' concept long known in TV", while Garland considers such imagery demonstrative of Anderson's commitment to "incremental realism" through a convergence of human and puppet characteristics. [183] [184] Essayist Jonathan Bignell suggests that the use of portraits conveys Anderson's partiality to "visual revelation of machines and physical action". [185]

Jeff Evans, author of The Penguin TV Companion, argues that the series' 50-minute format allows for stronger character development and "tension-building". [235] O'Brien is less positive in his appraisal of the writing, asserting that the plots are often "formulaic" and are sometimes "stretched to snapping point" by the extended running time. [6] Cornel Recycled In Space: A lot of concepts were Ripped from the Headlines sixties tropes given a futuristic spin. For example, pirate radio ships being anchored outside national waters became pirate radio spaceships outside Earth orbit, and Concorde became Fireflash.Peter Dyneley, Shane Rimmer, Sylvia Anderson, David Holliday, Matt Zimmerman, David Graham, Ray Barrett, Christine Finn, John Tate Thunderbirds Merchandise Abandoned Area: A few show up over the series. They make for pretty believable rescue locations, after all. Fun with Acronyms: "F.A.B.", the Tracy boys' catchphrase, essentially meaning "understood." Anderson himself has said that it wasn't really intended to stand for anything other than " fab" — even though it takes longer to say. Fanon sometimes has this as standing for " Fully Advised and Briefed." The comic album was rewritten in Dutch text and published in 1994 by "Big Balloon" and titled "Special 2".