''Thunderbirds 2086'' is the English
dubbed version of the Japanese anime series , loosely inspired by the original
Gerry Anderson
Gerald Alexander Anderson (; 14 April 1929 – 26 December 2012) was an English television and film producer, director, writer and occasional voice artist. He remains famous for his futuristic television programmes, especially his 1960s produ ...
Supermarionation
Supermarionation (a portmanteau of the words "super", "marionette" and " animation")La Rivière 2009, p. 67. is a style of television and film production employed by British company AP Films (later Century 21 Productions) in its puppet T ...
series ''
Thunderbirds''. The English dub was produced by
ITC Entertainment
The Incorporated Television Company (ITC), or ITC Entertainment as it was referred to in the United States, was a British company involved in production and distribution of television programmes.
History Incorporated Television Programme Compan ...
, the original production company for ''Thunderbirds,'' although it is not officially recognized as
canon
Canon or Canons may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base
* Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture
** Western can ...
because Gerry Anderson and
Sylvia Anderson
Sylvia Beatrice Anderson (; 25 March 1927 – 15 March 2016) was an English television and film producer, writer, voice actress and costume designer, best known for her collaborations with Gerry Anderson, her husband between 1960 and 1981. In a ...
were not involved.
The series includes music and sound effects from ''Thunderbirds'' and Anderson's other series, ''
Stingray
Stingrays are a group of sea rays, which are cartilaginous fish related to sharks. They are classified in the suborder Myliobatoidei of the order Myliobatiformes and consist of eight families: Hexatrygonidae (sixgill stingray), Plesiobatidae ( ...
'', ''
Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons
''Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons'', often shortened to ''Captain Scarlet'', is a British science fiction television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and filmed by their production company Century 21 Productions for distributor I ...
'', ''
Joe 90
''Joe 90'' is a 1968–1969 British science-fiction television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and filmed by their production company, Century 21, for ITC Entertainment. It follows the exploits of nine-year-old schoolboy Joe McC ...
'', ''
UFO
An unidentified flying object (UFO), more recently renamed by US officials as a UAP (unidentified aerial phenomenon), is any perceived aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. On investigation, most UFOs are id ...
,'' and ''
Space: 1999''.
[''The Complete Gerry Anderson - The Authorised Episode Guide'', Chris Bentley, (Reynolds and Hearn, 2005, 2006 and 2008 editions)] A total of 24 episodes were produced, but only 18 were broadcast on Fuji TV in 1982.
Background
The series takes place in 2086 and chronicles the adventures of TechnoBoyager (a
portmanteau
A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of words[United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...](_blank)
. Although the English version is called ''Thunderbirds 2086'', the Tracy family, who ran International Rescue in the original series, is not mentioned. In the English version, the Thunderbirds name is used to refer to the team, while in the original series, the name merely refers to their vehicles. The animated series otherwise has notable similarities to the original, with most episodes revolving around a natural or man-made disaster that the TechnoBoyager/Thunderbirds team must investigate and help resolve.
Unlike the original series, ''Thunderbirds 2086'' also has an ongoing
story arc
A story arc (also narrative arc) is the chronological construction of plot in a novel or story. It can also mean an extended or continuing storyline in episodic storytelling media such as television, comic books, comic strips, board games, vide ...
revolving around a breakaway independence group known as the Shadow Axis, led by the mysterious Star Crusher. There is a strong suggestion in the series that Star Crusher is not human and may be some kind of alien.
Voice cast
Japanese voice cast
* Hiroko Maruyama as Pawl
* Junichi Takeoka as Hidaka Raiji
*
Kei Tomiyama
, better known by his stage name , was a Japanese actor, voice actor, and narrator born in Anshan, Manchukuo. Tomiyama was affiliated with Aoni Production and Production Baobab.
Tomiyama is best known for his roles in ''Tiger Mask'' (Naoto Date/ ...
as Eric Joans
*
Kiyoshi Kobayashi
Kiyoshi, (きよし or キヨシ), is a Japanese given name, also spelled Kyoshi.
Possible meanings
*'' Kyōshi'', a form of Japanese poetry
*Kyōshi, a Japanese honorific
Possible writings
*清, "cleanse"
*淳, "pure"
*潔, "undefiled"
*清志, ...
as Gerald Simpson
* Manami Ito as Catharine Hayward
*
Ryusei Nakao as Sammy Edkins Jr.
*
Takeshi Aono
was a Japanese actor, voice actor and narrator from Asahikawa, Hokkaidō. He was attached to Aoni Production at the time of his death. He graduated from Hokkaidō Asahikawa Higashi High School.
Career
Aono was most known for the roles of Shiro ...
as Gran Hansen
English voice cast
* Alexander Marshall
*
Earl Hammond
Erwin Saul Hamburger (June 17, 1921 – May 19, 2002), known professionally as Earl Hammond, was an American actor, who has appeared in several films and television series.
Career
Earl Hammond began acting in radio at the age of 7, and continued ...
* Eleanor Kearney
* Henry Mandell
* Joan Audiberti
* John Bellucci
* Keith Mandell
* Lucy Martin
* Maia Danziger
* Paolo Audiberti
*
Peter Fernandez
Peter Fernandez (January 29, 1927 – July 15, 2010) was an American actor, voice director, and writer. Despite a career extending from the 1930s, he is probably best known for his roles in the 1967 anime ''Speed Racer''. Fernandez co-wrote the ...
Base
Similar to the original show, the team's headquarters is an island in the Pacific. Its main building is a huge pyramid containing an entire city inside. It is known as
Arcology
Arcology, a portmanteau of "architecture" and "ecology",. is a field of creating architectural design principles for very densely populated and ecologically low-impact human habitats.
The term was coined in 1969 by architect Paolo Soleri, who be ...
. Like the original International Rescue, a space station in orbit is maintained to monitor mayday calls. TB-6 is the space station in this series, similar in concept to Thunderbird 5. Both Arcology and TB6 are home to thousands of people.
Vehicles and characters
There are 17 vehicles, each with a different purpose and characteristics. The craft's name contains abbreviated designations "TB" such as TB-1, TB-2, etc. In the original series, TB was an abbreviation for "TechnoBoyager." In the English version, it stands for "Thunderbird."
Oddly, the introductory dialogue in the English version describes the characters as cadets, while all of the episodes rank them as captains. Grant Hanson is the senior captain in charge of the whole group.
The vehicles are described to a party of school children visiting Arcology in the episode "Child's Play"(except TB-8, 11, 14 (Mentioned Only), 15, and 16). The remaining vehicles are shown in the 1983 Annual.
* TB-1/Thunderbird 1 is an aircraft similar in design to the
Space Shuttle
The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. Its official program na ...
. It can fly in space and join Thunderbirds 2 and 3 to form a larger vessel. It is piloted by Captain Dylan Beyda (who is from
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
).
* TB-2/Thunderbird 2 is a large cargo hauler identical in purpose to the
original series' Thunderbird 2. Although, it is more blue rather than the green colour and stores the smaller interchangeable vehicles inside its cargo bay rather than through the use of hangar pods. Pods are used for large vehicles (Notably TB-5) and are carried at the rear of the vehicle between the engines, with TB-2 landing vertically when carrying a pod. TB-2 has space flight capabilities and is piloted by Captain Jesse Eric Rigel Jones (who is from
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
) and Captain Jonathon Samuel Jordan Edkins Jr. (who is from
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
and of
Jamaica
Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...
n descent).
* TB-3/Thunderbird 3 is an
APC-like mobile command center used to monitor situations on the ground. It can split in half and merge with TB-1 and TB-2 for transportation to remote parts of the world and is capable of short rocket hops. It is piloted by Captain Grant Hanson (the same name in the Japanese version, but without the "t"), the oldest and most senior-ranking of the Thunderbirds (who is from
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
).
* TB-4/Thunderbird 4 is a yellow submarine-like its
original series counterpart but much larger. It is too large to be carried by TB-2 and usually makes its way to the disaster area after being directly launched from the Arcology. It is piloted by Captain Catherine Kallan Heyward James, the only female crew member of the Thunderbirds team.
* TB-5/Thunderbird 5 is a large ground-tunneling vehicle reminiscent of the original series' pod vehicle known as the
Mole
Mole (or Molé) may refer to:
Animals
* Mole (animal) or "true mole", mammals in the family Talpidae, found in Eurasia and North America
* Golden moles, southern African mammals in the family Chrysochloridae, similar to but unrelated to Talpida ...
. However, TB-5 is much larger. It is carried into missions by TB-2.
* TB-6/Thunderbird 6 is the largest Thunderbird, a massive space station that serves a similar purpose to the
original series' Thunderbird 5. TB-6 is manned by hundreds if not thousands of IRO personnel and is described as a floating city.
* TB-7/Thunderbird 7 is a one-man fast interceptor aircraft that can be stored either inside TB-1 or TB-2 and used as a drone when required.
* TB-8/Thunderbird 8 is only seen in one episode and is shown carried inside TB-1 and capable of drone operation. The 1983 Annual lists it as Computer Controlled Air Transport, stored on TB-1, unmanned, and used for disposal of dangerous materials.
* TB-9/Thunderbird 9 is a walker-robot used for repair and upgrade work. It is always carried by another craft.
* TB-10/Thunderbird 10 is an exceptionally fast spacecraft that can reach speeds of over
Mach 176 and is used for rapid travel from Earth to other planets.
* TB-11/Thunderbird 11 is an armored high-speed ground vehicle carried aboard TB-3. Although never shown or referenced in the show, it is shown in the 1983 ''Thunderbirds 2086''
annual
Annual may refer to:
* Annual publication, periodical publications appearing regularly once per year
**Yearbook
** Literary annual
* Annual plant
* Annual report
* Annual giving
* Annual, Morocco, a settlement in northeastern Morocco
* Annuals (b ...
. It is listed as being 5 meters long, weighing one ton, and capable of 370 km/h equipped with computer-controlled sensors and an array of weapons.
* TB-12/Thunderbird 12 is a bulldozer-like vehicle that can move hefty weights with an extending platform, similar in design to the original series of elevator cars. It is also capable of operating underwater.
* TB-13/Thunderbird 13 is a smaller submarine that is carried inside TB-4 and deployed to reach places too small for TB-4 to travel. It is capable of 60 knots in the water. Although never shown on screen it is stated in "Child's Play" to be capable of flying at speeds of up to Mach 1.
* TB-14/Thunderbird 14 never appears but is referenced in "Child's Play". It is a deep-water
bathyscaphe
A bathyscaphe ( or ) is a free-diving self-propelled deep-sea submersible, consisting of a crew cabin similar to a bathysphere, but suspended below a float rather than from a surface cable, as in the classic bathysphere design.
The float is fi ...
capable of travelling far below crush depth, carried aboard TB-4.
* TB-15/Thunderbird 15 is a small tracked vehicle stored inside TB-3 or TB-5 and capable of drone operation. It is listed in the 1983 Annual as a Mobile Computer and can be manned or unmanned as required.
* TB-16/Thunderbird 16 is The Mole, carried aboard TB-3 or TB-5 as required and virtually identical to the original series vehicle. The only difference is that TB-16 is unmanned (according to the 1983 Annual) and capable of operating underwater.
* TB-17/Thunderbird 17 is a huge spacecraft that is bigger than any other Thunderbird bar only TB-6, where it spends most of its time docked. TB-17 is used for extended operations away from Earth and can store all of the other Thunderbirds (apart from TB-6) inside it.
Commander Jared Simpson (same name in the original) is the commanding officer of the team and gives the heroes their missions. He is the "
Jeff Tracy
Jeff Tracy is a fictional character from Gerry and Sylvia Anderson's Supermarionation television show '' Thunderbirds'' and the subsequent films '' Thunderbirds Are GO'' and ''Thunderbird 6''. The voice for the character in these shows was suppl ...
" figure of the animated series. He has a nephew, Skipper Simpson (Paul in the Japanese original), a young boy who idolizes the Thunderbirds and hopes to one day join their ranks.
Episodes
The original run of Thunderbirds 2086 in Japan was cancelled after only eighteen of its twenty-four episodes aired in 1982. The remaining six episodes were finally aired during a 2008 rerun of the show on the Home Drama Channel.
In total, only three countries broadcast the show in its entirety: the United States in 1983, Australia in 1984, and Malaysia in 1985. The 1986 broadcast in the United Kingdom fared worse than the original Japanese broadcast, being cancelled after only thirteen episodes aired. Around 1985, Spain aired Spanish dubs of four episodes under the title ''Pájaros Trueno 2086''.
See also
* ''
X-Bomber'' – previous Gerry Anderson-inspired production by Kimio Ikeda and Jin Productions. Created by
Go Nagai
, better known by the pen name , is a Japanese manga artist and a prolific author of science fiction, fantasy, horror and erotica. He made his professional debut in 1967 with ''Meakashi Polikichi'', but is best known for creating popular 1970s ...
.
* ''
Firestorm
A firestorm is a conflagration which attains such intensity that it creates and sustains its own wind system. It is most commonly a natural phenomenon, created during some of the largest bushfires and wildfires. Although the term has been used ...
'' – Japanese anime co-created by Gerry Anderson
References
External links
*
*
{{Showtime Network programming
1982 anime television series debuts
Japanese children's animated action television series
Japanese children's animated space adventure television series
Japanese children's animated science fiction television series
Action anime and manga
Adventure anime and manga
Aviation television series
Fuji TV original programming
ITV children's television shows
Science fiction anime and manga
Showtime (TV network) original programming
Television series by ITC Entertainment
Animated television series reboots
Television series set in the 2080s
Television series set in the future
Works based on Thunderbirds (TV series)
English-language television shows