Thunderbirds 1965 - New official episodes!!!

[chrisbishop]

Forgot myself so much I was happy!

As you all know, the pledging for the Kickstarter project has ended... What you may not know is that it ended with 3 378 contributors, pledging a total of 218 412 £, making it a complete success! Even considering that a handful of pledges might not go through the complete process, it means - and it was confirmed by Stephen Lariviere, creator of the project - that we will indeed have three new episodes of the Classic Thunderbirds series, made with puppets, miniature sets and props, just like in the old days! That's a very nice way indeed to celebrate the show's 50th anniversary!

In the coming days, the team will collect the pledges, and filming will begin, so that those who contributed will hopefully receive their DVD/blu-ray and rewards in December.

There's a forum on the Kickstarter website for contributors only, but if you are not a contributor, and there is a question you have about this project, you can ask it here and I will check if this is possible to forward this to the creators of the project. I cannot make any promises, as I know that Stephen, along with the production team, will be very busy in the coming weeks, but I certainly can try to see if I can get some answers. At least, since Stephen is keeping us updated with what's going on in a fairly regular basis, I will be able to keep you all posted on new developments.

[Animikii]

Now that the Thunderbirds 1965 Kickstarter campaign has ended and surpased its goal, the wait begins. The updates sent out since the campaign ended have held my interest and show that these three new episodes will be worth the wait.

[Matt Crowther]

they've moved into the old studios in Slough where it all happened fifty years ago. A shame Derek Meddings is no longer with us, I imagine he'd have loved to be involved somehow.

[hazel]

I received my Blu-ray copy yesterday, and watched all three episodes back to back. Stephen la Riviere has done something he can be immensely proud of. There are a couple of tiny things - TB1 wobbles slightly as it moves down into launch position, and in overhead shots FAB2 looks like a toy boat instead of Lady P's ocean-going yacht - but teeny-tiny quibbles aside, the TB 1965 team have nailed it.

There are a few shots from the original series: the opening titles and the panning shot over to TB5, but the rest is entirely new. The production team used the same techniques as the original Supermarionation team did, with excellent results. I really felt that I was watching episodes made in the 60s that somehow missed being shown back then.

10/10!

[Skybase Girl]

I got my DVD last weekend too. What impressed me most was the colour; so 1960s yet with a depth that wasn't available then. Lady P's shade of lipstick was most fetching, must watch out for it in Boots. The sets were marvellous and the costumes deserve a special mention. It would have been nice to see the appearance of TinTin, Kyrano and Grandma Tracy, but obviously they didn't feature in the audio adventures on which the new episodes were based.

That fact is the only minor criticism of the whole thing. Because the original stories were audio only, a lot had to be explained via the characters' dialogue. There were times when that got rather tedious in the filmed versions. A lot of time was wasted commenting on things that were perfectly obvious if you had visuals. Still, I suppose there was no way of recording different dialogue if the voice actors are no longer with us, so all in all, I'd say it's been a marvellous achievement all round.

I know Stephen and co have said there is no chance of repeating this, but the Captain Scarlet audio adventures are out there, and next year will be the 50th anniversary of our beloved show. So come on, guys, think about it. Take a break, have a rest and then consider the possibilities. We'll back you all the way!

[hazel]

Too right, we will!