Petition for a new Thunderbirds - with Gerry

[chrisbishop]

The following email was received in one of the Spectrum Headquarters' website email boxes:

I was shocked to read that ITV have turned down Gerry Andersons request to Remake his classic Thunderbirds.

As an Anderson “Child” Thunderbirds, Stingray, Fireball XL5 and Supercar painted a Future that was fantastic and I have many happy memories of times spent watching and indeed playing with C21 toys.

I thought that if I could repay Gerry for all he has given ME in any way it would be to start a petition.

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE sign it, ask you friends to sign it.

Lets see Thunderbirds remade By Gerry Anderson.

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/remakethunderbirds?e

Please Sign

John Bird

I already did my duty and signed (by mistake, twice, but as I'm familiar with these kinds of petitions, I'm pretty sure John will be able to remove my second entry!)

Once you have entered your signature, you'll be taken to a PayPal donation page for ePetition. Be careful if you don't want to give anything, as there's already a default chosen amount! Don't click the next button, but simply close the page.

We certainly would need a good Thunderbirds movie - live action, animated, or whatever... The best thing about the last one was Lady Penelope and Parker. I did enjoy it some because of them, but unfortunately, the scenario was not much to anything.

Good luck with this petition, John!

[Marion]

Given what he did to Captain Scarlet when he reimagined it and made NCS, I don't think I will sign it. I prefer to remember my Thunderbirds as they were - faults and all.

[chrisbishop]

I think producers aiming to make a remake and/or adaptation should remember what might be considered as THE CARDINAL RULE of remakes:

"Be a fan of the original stuff."

Sam Raimi: fan of Spider-Man. See the first two movies, that he produced.

Peter Jackson: fan of "Lord of the Rings". See the entire trilogy.

Jonathan Frakes:

...


I rest my case.

[Skybase Girl]

I would certainly consider signing this, Chris, but two thoughts occur to me....

One, why on earth would Gerry be asking ITV for permission to make ANYTHING, after he has been treated so badly by them? Did he learn nothing from the fiasco of NCS ? Surely another newtwork would be interested. Even if ITV have some kind ol legal ownership, one would think there would be ways round that.

Two, even if I don't necessarily agree with Marion's opinion about the NCS remake of Scarlet, I am beginning to think maybe Gerry is a little too old to remake something like Thunderbirds. What we need, as Chris points out, is someone with love and respect for the original, but with energy and enthusiasm to bring a fresh approach to it.

[hazel]

I signed it, because, NCS notwithstanding, I believe that the Thunderbirds film would have been far more like Thunderbirds if Gerry had been on board. Executive Producer, perhaps - a consultancy position, working with people who respect him and the material.

[Skybase Girl]

Okay, Hazel, you've convinced me....

[Marion]

Given that Gerry Anderson consistently says he despised the puppets and didn't want to work with them, but no one would give him anything else to do - I still don't like the idea of him being involved with any remake.
As Chris says, a knowledgable fan who liked the series, might be the best way round it, if they want to remake it. Considering that the great Supermarionation shows of the 60s, were a team effort - Sylvia Anderson is always credited with character development and things like that, and Derek Meddings with the special effects - if you can't have the old team, having someone who appreciated their work in its entirety and for what it was, is probably the next best thing.
The Thunderbirds movie was awful and it missed the point by miles; I really hope they don't try anything like that again. But what would we want to see?
With NCS we got gymnastic characters with no personality - or no MORE personality than the originals - super-whizzo machinery and car chases that are 10 a penny in modern films and shows. Where was the originality in that?
Sadly, I expect that any Supermarionation show remake might be squarely aimed at the '4-9 year old boys' audience again - and in my mind, at least, the characters have matured into those more suitable for an adult or 'youth' audience.
I acknowledge that in the intervening 40 odd years, my tastes have changed but my enjoyment of the shows hasn't diminished, even if I can now watch 'Trapped in the Sky' with a bunch of friends and giggle at the plot holes and the incongruity of some of it.
A complete overhaul worked with 'Battleship Galactica' - or so they tell me - but would it work with 'Thunderbirds'? The essence of the shows was the rescues, not the characters, although they did loom large in my enjoyment of it. Modern shows are more character-driven than those of the 60s - or so it seems to me, although I admit to being neither a great TV watcher, nor a film-goer, but could that approach work on 'Thunderbirds'? Of all of the shows, that one depended most on the gadgets and machinery.
I have to admit that, by and large, I have a growing feeling that reviving old shows is not such a good idea after all.

[Kambei]

I have to admit that, by and large, I have a growing feeling that reviving old shows is not such a good idea after all. [/color]

I have to agree with you. There have been some dire attempts to revive franchises, especially from the 1960s.

The Addams Family: The films worked really well, IMO, especially the second one. When they tried to put it on the small screen again, they badly miscast and all of the quirkiness, dark humour and magic that had been in the original was sadly lacking. Even the canned laughter track seemed forced.

Lost In Space: The series was not perfect by any means, but I would take it over the modern film any day. The series had some originality. The film was two hours of special effects and very bad acting.

OCS/NCS: Read Marion's comments above. I couldn't put it better.

The Avengers: The series was magnificent, with plenty of dark humour and action in perfect proportions. The movie was just confused.

Mission Impossible: The original series was as close to perfection as you could want. One of the best pieces of American Television from the 1960s, IMHO. They made a new series in the late 80s. Not brilliant, but there were some very good stories, and it remained close to the original concept, if brought up to date. It also had Jane Badler (Yum!) The movies were about as far away from the concept as it was possible to get, but then Tom Cruise was involved....
And speaking of Jane Badler :

V: The advantage the original V had was that it was aired before the real advent of the Internet, and magazines like Starlog and Starburst were few and far between. Hardly any plot leaks, and few publicity photos, so when the human mask got ripped off to reveal the lizard skin below, it came as a big shock to most people. I have only seen the trailer for the new series so far, but from what I can see, it looks a little bland. The problem I have with it is that it is a 'remake'. We already know, more or less, what is coming. The internet, sci-fi magazines and the original series has seen to that.

Before anyone asks, I am a Trekkie. A Kirk-era Trekkie. I won't go into what I think of Next Generation and beyond because it would take all day. I do like the Ferengi, though. Same for Doctor Who. I am a classic series fan.

So. Take a 1960s franchise. Remake it with political correctness and modern sensibilities. Give it a big budget and make it ooze special effects. Give the scripts to trendy writers who have only ever read a Writer's Guide. Instantly you lose all the magic, bad sets, terrible writing, bad jokes and lousy acting that actually made the original so special.

Just my opinions.

[Elentari]

I agree with Marion's first post and most of the second except for the bit about the remake of Battlestar Gallactica working. I'm not convinced it did as I don't think was a huge success here. (Actually I thought it was ghastly).

I can think of ONE remake that worked very well - the movie version of the old TV series 'The Fugitive'. I thought it was great.

[Kambei]

I agree with Marion's first post and most of the second except for the bit about the remake of Battlestar Gallactica working. I'm not convinced it did as I don't think was a huge success here. (Actually I thought it was ghastly).

I can think of ONE remake that worked very well - the movie version of the old TV series 'The Fugitive'. I thought it was great.

Thanks goodness there is someone else who does not worship the new version of BSG. I made it through to the end of season one and gave up. The 'metaphysical visions' that Baltar was getting of Number Six were done far better in Farscape with Scorpius in Chricton's mind. Far more humorous too.

[LadyP]

One is always delighted to see the homage paid to the efforts one makes to help one's friends - naturally - and I thought young Miss Myles was excellent - but do they really think I would ever part with my Rolls Royce?
I suppose the people with the cheque books were Americans, who couldn't possibly understand...

Parker thought the actor who portrayed him did a splendid job too - but that he simply wasn't handsome enough... dear Parker.