''Thunderbirds Are Go'' is a computer-animated science fiction television programme produced by ITV Studios and Pukeko Pictures. It is a

reboot In computing, rebooting is the process by which a running computer system is restarted, either intentionally or unintentionally. Reboots can be either a cold reboot (alternatively known as a hard reboot) in which the power to the system is phys ...

of the series '' Thunderbirds'' created by

Gerry Gerry is both a surname and a masculine or feminine given name. As a given name, it is often a short form ( hypocorism) of Gerard, Gerald or Geraldine. Notable people with the name include: Surname *Elbridge Gerry (1744–1814), fifth US vice pre ...

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 ...

which follows the exploits of International Rescue (IR), a rescue organisation run by the Tracy family out of their secret island base in the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the conti ...

. They use technologically-advanced craft for land, sea, air and space rescues in their operations, the most important of which are a set of vehicles called the '' Thunderbirds'', piloted by the five Tracy brothers. The programme premiered on 4 April 2015 and concluded on 22 February 2020, running for 78 episodes across three series. It was well-received by critics and fans of the original series, and has spawned several branches of merchandising since its broadcast.

Background

A revival of the 1960s science fiction

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 TV ...

television series '' Thunderbirds'' was approved by co-creator Gerry Anderson when Richard Taylor, the founder of Weta Workshop, visited him at

Pinewood Studios Pinewood Studios is a British film and television studio located in the village of Iver Heath, England. It is approximately west of central London. The studio has been the base for many productions over the years from large-scale films to t ...

while he was working on '' New Captain Scarlet''. On 4 February 2013, ITV Global Entertainment and Pukeko Pictures officially announced the revival under the title ''Thunderbirds Are Go!'' Production began in June 2013 at Weta Workshop, while the principal voice cast was announced on 30 September 2014. Each series consists of 26 episodes with transmission split into multiple parts. Series 1 was broadcast between 4 April–20 June 2015 and 31 October 2015–23 January 2016. A second series was green-lit on 18 December 2014 and aired between 22 October 2016 – 7 January 2017 and 30 September–16 December 2017. A third and final series was confirmed on 5 May 2016 and was broadcast between 31 March–26 May 2018, 18 May–13 July 2019 and 4 January–22 February 2020.

Premise

Set in the year 2060, ''Thunderbirds Are Go'' follows the exploits of the Tracy brothers - Scott,

Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: th ...

Alan Alan may refer to: People *Alan (surname), an English and Turkish surname *Alan (given name), an English given name ** List of people with given name Alan ''Following are people commonly referred to solely by "Alan" or by a homonymous name.'' * ...

, Gordon, and

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

- who form the backbone of International Rescue (IR): a life-saving organisation that operates from a hidden base in the Southern

, and who save people from disasters and dangerous situations using technologically advanced crafts for land, sea, air and space rescue, the most prominent of these being five vehicles called " Thunderbirds", each one operated by one of the brothers. In addition to the brothers, IR also includes additional members who offer assistance and support: Chief of Security Tanusha "Kayo" Kyrano, who conducts covert and security operations through the use of a specialised Thunderbird with stealth capabilities; engineer

Brains A brain is an organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. It is located in the head, usually close to the sensory organs for senses such as vision. It is the most complex organ in a ve ...

, who provides technological and mechanical support both at the base and in the field; Grandma Tracy, the brothers' maternal support who tends to their home needs; and London operatives Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward, an English aristocrat, and Aloysius "Nosey" Parker, a chauffeur and former thief, who conduct investigative and espionage work when required. Although most rescues involve contending with disaster caused by unforeseen incidents or the actions of criminals, a number are orchestrated by IR's main adversary known only as "The Hood" - a British criminal mastermind who despises the organisation and seeks to often steal their technology while conducting crimes to make him wealthy. Prior to the premiere episode of the programme, the Hood is known to IR and is responsible for the loss of the brothers' father, Jeff Tracy, the founder of IR and a close friend of Colonel Casey, the head of the Global Defence Force (GDF). In the second series, the programme introduced a second villain called "The Mechanic," who causes havoc and eventually helps to break out the Hood, after he is arrested by the GDF at the end of the first series, only to later turn on him in order to break free from his control, whereupon he later surrenders, on condition that Brains helps him secure his freedom. In the third series, a pair of villains called the "Chaos Crew" - formed of siblings Havoc and Fuse - join with the Hood to cause world-wide chaos, and become a considerable problem for both the GDF and IR. Much of the episodes focus on rescue operations, many of which include elements from the original series - an example includes a remake of the original series premiere episode with a modern take on its plot. Although all episodes mainly include unique characters who have only one appearance, several created for ''Thunderbirds Are Go'' make reoccurring appearances, often with them being put into new situations they need rescuing from, though overarching storylines for each series focused mainly on the prominent villains for that series and the actions they undertake. Throughout the programme, the loss of Jeff to his sons plays a key element in a number of stories, both in relics found by the brothers, the various lessons they recall him teaching them, and the people who knew him best. The third and final series eventually included a final story arc focused on Jeff, in which IR discover him to be alive, rather than dead as presumed, but trapped in deep space. Amid a few standard rescues, the next few episodes focused on the Tracy family developing the means to reach and rescue him, culminating in the brothers eventually bringing him home in the 'Zero-XL', a spacecraft literally assembled around the five main Thunderbirds.

Cast

Main

Rasmus Hardiker Rasmus Hardiker (born 31 January 1985) is a British actor, best known for voicing Scott and Alan Tracy in the reboot animated television series '' Thunderbirds Are Go''. He played Raymond in Steve Coogan's sitcom ''Saxondale'' and Ben in the ...

Scott Tracy Scott Tracy is a fictional character in Gerry Anderson's 1960s Supermarionation television series '' Thunderbirds'', the subsequent films '' Thunderbirds Are Go'' (1966) and '' Thunderbird 6'' (1968) and the TV remake '' Thunderbirds Are Go!''. ...

and Alan Tracy *

David Menkin David Menkin is a Norwegian actor. His best known for his voice roles as Porter and Jack in the US dub of ''Thomas & Friends'' (2013–present) and as Virgil and Gordon Tracy in the 2015 reboot series '' Thunderbirds Are Go'' (2015–2020). Hi ...

Virgil Tracy Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: th ...

and

Gordon Tracy Gordon Tracy is a fictional character from Gerry Anderson's Supermarionation television show '' Thunderbirds'', the subsequent films '' Thunderbirds Are Go'' and '' Thunderbird 6'' as well as the remake TV series '' Thunderbirds Are Go''. The ch ...

Thomas Brodie-Sangster Thomas Brodie-Sangster (born 16 May 1990), also credited as Thomas Sangster, is an English actor. He is known for playing Sam in ''Love Actually'' (2003), Simon in '' Nanny McPhee'' (2005), Ferb in ''Phineas and Ferb'' (2007–2015), Jojen Ree ...

as John Tracy * Angel Coulby as Kayo Kyrano *

Kayvan Novak Kayvan Novak ( fa, کیوان نواک; born 23 November 1977) is a British actor and comedian.Kadivar, DariuSyriana breaks Iranian stereotypes, ''Persian Mirror''. Retrieved 3 August 2007. He co-created and starred in the comedy series ''Fone ...

* Rosamund Pike as Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward * David Graham as Parker

Recurring

* Sandra Dickinson as Grandma Tracy * Andres Williams as The Hood * Adjoa Andoh as Colonel Casey *

Teresa Gallagher Teresa Gallagher is an American-born British actress. Career Gallagher is known for her role as Ellen Smith in ''The Bill'', for her appearances on radio in '' No Commitments'', '' Salem's Lot'', and '' Memorials to the Missing''. She pl ...

as EOS *

Chris Jarman Chris Jarman is a British stage and television actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, rad ...

as The Mechanic *

Aimee-Ffion Edwards Aimee-Ffion Edwards (born 21 November 1987) is a Welsh actress and singer. She is known for playing Sketch in '' Skins'', Esme Shelby in '' Peaky Blinders'', Sophie in ''Detectorists'' and Abi in '' Loaded''. She also had a starring voice role ...

as Havoc * Craig Stein as Fuse * Marc Silk as Captain Wayne Rigby *

as Ned Tedford * Rhys Darby as Langstrom Fishler *

Jack Whitehall Jack Peter Benedict Whitehall (born 7 July 1988) is an English comedian, actor, presenter and writer. He is known for starring as JP in the series '' Fresh Meat'' (2011–2016) and Alfie Wickers in the series '' Bad Education'' (2012–2014, 20 ...

as Francois Lemaire * Taj Atwal as Madeline Lemaire *

as Professor Moffat *

Rich Hall Richard Travis Hall (born June 10, 1954) is an American comedian, writer, documentary maker and musician, first coming to prominence as a sketch comedian in the 1980s. He wrote and performed for a range of American networks, in series such as ...

as Captain Lee Taylor ;Notes *Kayvan Novak, Rosamund Pike and Teresa Gallagher also voice various guest characters. *Archive audio of

Peter Dyneley Peter Dyneley (13 April 1921 – 19 August 1977) was a British actor. Although he appeared in many smaller roles in both film and television, he is best remembered for supplying the voice of Jeff Tracy for the 1960s "Supermarionation" TV series ...

(voice actor of

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 sup ...

in the original ''Thunderbirds'' series) announcing the 5–1 countdown from the programme's title sequence is featured in the remake's titles and during the ''Thunderbirds launch sequences. *David Graham also voiced Parker in the original ''Thunderbirds'' series.

Production

By 2000, Jem Roberts held an interview with Gerry Anderson about an potential upcoming revival of the Thunderbirds series. Anderson anticipated that computer graphics would better capture realism. Around this time, a video game adaptation for

Game Boy Color The (commonly abbreviated as GBC) is a handheld game console, manufactured by Nintendo, which was released in Japan on October 21, 1998 and to international markets that November. It is the successor to the Game Boy and is part of the Game ...

was in development. All

scale model A scale model is a physical model which is geometrically similar to an object (known as the prototype). Scale models are generally smaller than large prototypes such as vehicles, buildings, or people; but may be larger than small prototypes ...

miniature effect A miniature effect is a special effect created for motion pictures and television programs using scale models. Scale models are often combined with high speed photography or matte shots to make gravitational and other effects appear convincin ...

s and CGI for the series was produced at Weta Workshop in New Zealand. The series was executive produced by Estelle Hughes, Giles Ridge, Richard Taylor and Andrew Smith, while David Scott and Theo Baynton act as series director and episode director, respectively. The head writer is Rob Hoegee, while Anthony Cox serves as a film editor and Ben Milsom a production designer. The production of each episode started with a physical set creation. The sets were created using methods similar to those used in the original series, including the use of household objects as components. A film crew would devise camera setups for scenes to match with the movement and positions of CGI-created characters and crafts that were to be imposed later upon the footage. This also included special effects used on set, such as smoke and air. All CGI sequences were storyboarded before being superimposed onto the live-action footage of the miniatures. Each set was then individually scanned as a 3D print to provide reference for the CGI elements so they could be accurately registered in the environments. Details were then introduced, including textures, craft setup, atmospheric particles and flying debris. The UK-based company Milk VFX was responsible for the final composition. The music score was composed by brothers Ben and Nick Foster. The revived series's opening theme and certain cues remained faithful to Barry Gray's score for the original series, albeit with a contemporary orchestral style.

Episodes

Reception

Fans and critics reacted very positively to the new series. ITV started to air episodes at 8 am (other than the pilot, which aired at 5 pm). Series 2, however, has been airing the show at 4pm on ITV and repeat it the following day at 8:30am on CITV. From the episode Volcano on 30 September 2017, it aired on CITV's Scrambled on Saturday at 8:30am, with it being repeated on ITV the same day at 3:30pm, although this varied throughout the run, with the repeat often airing as early as 12pm. The afternoon repeat was dropped for Series 3.

Accolades

International broadcasts

On 16 June 2014, ITV Studios Global Entertainment sold the rights in a deal with Australia's free-to-air

Nine Network The Nine Network (stylised 9Network, commonly known as Channel Nine or simply Nine) is an Australian commercial free-to-air television network. It is owned by parent company Nine Entertainment and is one of five main free-to-air television ne ...

(

9Go! 9Go! is an Australian free-to-air digital television multichannel, which was launched by the Nine Network on 9 August 2009, replacing Nine Guide. It is a youthful channel that offers a mix of comedy, reality, general entertainment, movies, ani ...

), who broadcast both the first series, and the second series. The third series was bought by ABC, who premiered it on

ABC Me ABC Me (stylised as ABC ME) is an Australian English language children's free-to-air television channel owned by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. It was officially launched by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd on 4 December 2009 as ABC3. Hist ...

from 2 June 2018. On 28 April 2015, Tohokushinsha Film Corporation acquired the television and licensing rights for ''Thunderbirds Are Go''. The Japan broadcast for the first series was premiered on NHK (

NHK General TV , abbreviated on-screen as NHK G, is the main television service of NHK, the Japanese public broadcaster. Its programming includes news, drama, quiz/variety shows, music, sports, anime, and specials which compete directly with the output of it ...

) on 2016-08-05 (as ''サンダーバード ARE GO''), and all three series were premiered on Super! drama TV later. French broadcasts were premiered in September 2015 on

Canal J Canal J (stylised as canal J) is a French pay public television channel dedicated to children's programming. It is aimed at children aged seven to fourteen. On 1 February 2019, M6 Group entered negotiations to acquire the television unit o ...

(as ''Thunderbirds''), followed by

Gulli Gulli (; stylised as gulli) is a French free-to-air television channel focused on kids programming for those aged 3 to 14. It was created as a result of a partnership between Lagardère Active and state-owned broadcaster France Télévisions ...

later this year (as ''Thunderbirds''), with

Nelvana Nelvana Enterprises, Inc. (; previously known as Nelvana Limited, sometimes known as Nelvana Animation and simply Nelvana or Nelvana Communications) is a Canadian animation studio and entertainment company owned by Corus Entertainment. Founded ...

as French licensing agent. On 10 February 2016, ITV Studios Global Entertainment announced 13 episodes of ''Thunderbirds Are Go'' (series 1, split up) would premiere in the United States on

Amazon Video Amazon Prime Video, also known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming and rental service of Amazon offered as a standalone service or as part of Amazon's Prime subscription. The service pr ...

on 22 April 2016. The premiere of the second series at Prime Video was also announced. Currently, Series 3 has yet to debut on the service as of 2021. Canadian broadcasts premiered on CHRGD and Family Channel in April 2016. Taiwan broadcast was premiered in PTS Taiwan on 14 September 2016 (as ''新雷鳥神機隊''). In Brazil, the show has broadcast on Gloob since 4 July 2016. The Nordic broadcasts were premiered in SVT ( SVT Barnkanalen) in Sweden (as ''Thunderbirds'') since 2015, NRK Super in Norway (as ''Thunderbirds'') since 2015, DR (Ramasjang and Ultra) in Denmark (as ''Thunderbirds Are Go'') since 2015, MTV Juniori in Finland (as ''Thunderbirds'') since 2016, with Alicom appointed as the Nordic licensing agent. The series was also premiered in

TVNZ , type = Crown entity , industry = Broadcast television , num_locations = New Zealand , location = Auckland, New Zealand , area_served = Nationally (New Zealand) and some Pacific Island nations such as the Cook Islands, Fiji, and the Sol ...

( TVNZ 2) in New Zealand, Noga in Israel (with LDI as the agent), MBC ( MBC3) in pan-Arab (as ''ثندربيردز انطلق''),, Amazon Prime in Poland, NPO Zapp in Netherlands, teleTOON+,

HBO GO HBO Go is a partly-inactive authenticated video on demand of the pay television service HBO. The service allowed subscribers to HBO via television providers to access its programming on-demand via the HBO website, mobile apps, and digital med ...

, and Amazon Prime in Poland, Télé-Québec in Canada (as ''Thunderbirds : Les sentinelles de l'air''), ABC in Australia, Ketnet in Flemish Belgium (with License Connection appointed as the agent for Benelux) (as ''Thunderbirds''), Minika TV in Turkey, Gloob in Brazil. The Noga premiere began in summer 2015 on Kids Channel. The TVNZ premiere began on 12 April 2015 on TV2. China's broadcast was premiered on CCTV-14, starting with the first series on 15 May 2017.

Marketing

Since 2016, ITV Studios Global Entertainment (ITVS GE) is launching consumer products programs for ''Thunderbirds Are Go'' at France, Benelux and the Nordics. Since 2016, Bernard Matthews has released a range of Thunderbird craft shaped turkey. As part of the second series launch in the UK, a fleet of five ThunderCabs taxis with Thunderbirds vehicle themes (including Thunderbirds 1-4, FAB 1) could be booked between 22 and 23 October 2016 between 9am and 5pm via the now-defunct Karhoo app, with rides costing a flat rate of £1 for any journey within central London. All proceeds were donated to The Children's Trust, the UK's leading charity for children with brain injury.

Toys

On 13 May 2015, ITV Studios Global Entertainment announced its appointment of Vivid as its master toy partner in Europe, Australia and New Zealand. As of Licensing Expo 2014, Vivid Imaginations had master toy licensee with worldwide rights, excluding US and Asia. There are many toys available in the range, including villains, heroes and the mighty Thunderbirds themselves. On 24 April 2015, ITV Studios Global Entertainment announced that Global Licensing (NZ) Ltd had been appointed as licensing agent for ''Thunderbirds Are Go'' in New Zealand. As part of the new deal, Global worked with Vivid Imaginations, the master toy partner for ''Thunderbirds Are Go'', to appoint Planet Fun as the local distributor in New Zealand, which was expected to see toys roll out across the territory from S/S 2015. The ''Thunderbirds Are Go'' master toy line from Vivid Imaginations and distributed by HeadStart was launched in Australia in June 2015. Additional toy rights went to Vivid France and Vivid Holland in respective regions, with Takara Tomy as Japan distributor. The toy launches in France, Benelux and the Nordics began in September 2016, with TOPTOY as pan-Nordic distributor from late summer 2016.

App

An official ''Thunderbirds'' app was launched in October 2015 to accompany the second half of season 1. An official app was also released on 20 May 2015 as an add-on to the features on the website. This free app is available on both Google Play and Apple's App Store. Behind the Story developed the app. As of 2015, ITV Studios Global Entertainment and Miniclip planned the release of a ''Thunderbirds Are Go'' mobile game(as ''Thunderbirds Are Go: Team Rush'').

Magazine

An official magazine was published by D. C. Thomson & Co. on 15 October 2015. It features comics, facts, puzzles and more. Each issue includes a free gift. The first six issues had small plastic replicas of Thunderbirds 1–5 and Thunderbird S. After that the gifts were generic front-of-magazine gifts with ''Thunderbirds Are Go'' branding, such as notebooks and 'invisible ink' pens. License Connection became a representative for the brand in the Benelux territories and signed Meis & Maas as master publishing partner to launch a range of books and magazine formats in 2017.

Home media

Digital releases

All episodes are available to purchase digitally in full 1080p HD on Amazon Video and iTunes.

DVD releases

Blu-ray releases

Soundtrack releases

References

External links

*ITV Studios Limited page
EnglishJapaneseNHK page
*
Official YouTube channelWeta Workshop pageMilk VFX page

Thunderbirds Are Go Series 1
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Amazon
{{Thunderbirds 2015 British television series debuts 2020 British television series endings 2015 New Zealand television series debuts 2020 New Zealand television series endings 2010s British animated television series 2020s British animated television series Amazon Prime Video children's programming Amazon Prime Video original programming Animated television series about brothers Animated television series reboots Aviation television series British children's animated action television series British children's animated adventure television series British children's animated science fiction television series British computer-animated television series British television series with live action and animation English-language television shows ITV children's television shows New Zealand children's animated action television series New Zealand children's animated adventure television series New Zealand children's animated science fiction television series Television series by ITV Studios Works based on Thunderbirds (TV series)