There is much that is unsaid or downright odd about Danger At Ocean Deep. Firstly, it has nothing to do with the Cliff Richard song, Ocean Deep, from 1983. That much is clear. Secondly, nothing actually takes place deep in the ocean as the title suggests. Thirdly, and probably most importantly, most of the plot is held together by the thinnest of threads that don’t make any sense. The thing is though, the story carries on with such conviction that you may struggle to notice what it is about the episode that doesn’t make any sense. My mind was somewhat blown when I sat down to watch this one again and I realised that I had been fooled for all these years into thinking this was a pretty solid episode with some interesting features. Maybe it still is, so let’s dive in…
Tag Archives: Thunderbirds
Thunderbirds – 21. Cry Wolf
On the surface, Cry Wolf doesn’t have a lot going for it. It’s fundamentally a lighter story about teaching a couple of children a lesson which ends up going a bit wrong. There’s not much impressive machinery or seriously large scale disasters going on. The premise is a little more warm and fluffy in comparison to other episodes, at least to start with anyway. But is there more to this episode than just being ‘that one with the kids’?
Thunderbirds – 20. The Man From MI.5
The Man From MI.5 attempts to break the usual Thunderbirds mold by providing us with a story of spies and subterfuge rather than flat out rescuing. Comparing this episode to a James Bond movie is nothing new, but while there are obvious links in the form of the Bondson character, he’s very much pushed off to the side and Penelope is at the centre of this story. This week, she’s the bold, cool, and slightly eccentric version of the character that we all prefer to remember rather than the whiny and a bit useless Penelope we saw last week. So is this her greatest adventure yet?
Thunderbirds – 19. The Impostors
The fundamental premise of The Impostors is a work of sheer original brilliance. It takes the world of Thunderbirds and turns it upside down in a way that remains true to the original formula of the show. The episode is packed full of action, intrigue, and memorable guest characters to tell the story of International Rescue’s fall from grace as their global reputation is called into question. The Impostors turns away from the optimistic and heroic attitude of the series which simply marvels at incredible engineering and bravery, instead showing us the skeptics and the criminals who try to turn any situation to their advantage.
Thunderbirds – 18. 30 Minutes After Noon
30 Minutes After Noon is quite an oddity. It distinctly features two very different rescue missions, an awful lot of live action hand inserts and unusual camera angles, and some robots which… well we’ll come to those later. It couldn’t be clearer that this script originally started life as a half hour story but needed to be extended before production started. Yet despite being linked by the bracelet plot, the two halves of the episode feel like two completely separate stories that have been glued together afterwards. David Elliott directs the episode (or at least the second half of it) with flare and quirkiness, inspired as he was by the film The Ipcress File.
The Gerry Anderson Christmas Quiz
‘Tis the season to put on your favourite festive Gerry Anderson shows! Our gift to you this year is a Christmas quiz to sink your teeth into with a hot mince pie and a glass of whatever takes your fancy. Good luck and let us know how you did. There’s some tricky ones in there!
Thunderbirds – 17. Desperate Intruder
Brains is placed firmly in the centre of the action in this week’s episode as he becomes the only member of International Rescue to meet The Hood one on one. When an attempt was made to give him a prominent role in Day of Disaster he ended up being sidelined as the comic relief. Here the focus is only deadly danger and some of the most disturbing moments ever seen in Thunderbirds. There’s no question that The Hood is back to the level of nasty last seen way back in Trapped In The Sky.
Gerry Anderson Vehicles in Kerbal Space Program
This week the Security Hazard blog has put together a video where we build and fly some classic vehicles from the Gerry Anderson canon in a game called Kerbal Space Program. In true Thunderbirds style, some of them crash and explode a bit too…
Thunderbirds – 16. Edge of Impact
Edge of Impact was one of the first episodes I saw as a kid, sitting as it did on a Channel 5 VHS alongside Day of Disaster. One thing, however, often stopped me from watching it – my irrational fear of The Hood. That’s right, he’s back, and on this occasion he has no interest at all in International Rescue, and instead just wants to put the Red Arrow project out of action in exchange for a box of treasure. Let’s see how he does!
Thunderbirds – 15. Day Of Disaster
Day Of Disaster demonstrates that when the ambitious Americans of the Thunderbirds world are daring enough to try and send a rocket to Mars, one pompous Brit in love with his rusty old suspension bridge is enough to bring the project to a grinding halt. Yes, the British don’t always come out on top in Thunderbirds and appear to fundamentally lack common sense a lot of the time – such as Lord Silton being driven all the way to the bank in Vault of Death only to have forgotten his key, or Sir Jeremy Hodge in The Perils of Penelope standing at a locked door yelling about how British he is but not actually trying to fix the problem. Day Of Disaster is the next in a line of episodes which shows us how ineffective, yet loveable, us Brits are in Gerry & Sylvia Anderson’s vision of the future… to say nothing of the amazing sequence when the rocket falls off the bridge.
Security Hazard 