Customer Reviews

Thunderbirds - Set 1 [VHS]

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

For all you Gerry Anderson fans out there take note: this is the classic Thunderbirds TV series that is immensely popular everywhere in the world but the U.S. it seems. If you have never seen this, watch it and you will understand why it's so popular. The model effects are amazing and the vehicles/spacecraft are the coolest around! The series was recently remastered and broadcast on television in England. My understanding is that this should be the remastered series. Amazon, wake up and label this--people can't buy it if they can't find it!

I am 43 years old and this is my Christmas present. Folks this is the one you cannot miss out on. Back in the 60's this was the coolest, most far advanced show for all ages. For years I have been waiting for this release. Hopefully we can purchase all 32 episodes. Once you meet the "Tracy Family" you will never see anything like them. Your kids will love this series. And this will bring back your childhood memories. F.A.B.

At my local video store I rented something that purported itself to be "Thunderbirds." It turned out to be horribly edited and the voices had been overdubbed. I was appalled. Now, the REAL Thunderbirds episodes are available in the USA and this country is in for a unique treat. Okay, many of you won't understand the allure of this mid-60's English puppet sci-fi program. But for anyone in their late 30's/early 40's who grew up in England, this was an essential part of our TV culture.

The visual effects director, by the way, was Derek Meddings who did many of the special effects for the early James Bond movies. Now, A&E, how about "Captain Scarlet"???

As a child in England I would race home from school, eat my food and settle down in front of the television set for the latest Gerry Anderson epic production whether it was Torchy the battery boy, Fireball XL5. or in later years UFO and Space 1999. Forget the sixties music, what about the sixties science fiction.

Thunderbirds to me is the pivotal Gerry Anderson production. Whatever was to come later from "SUPERMARIONATION" albeit Joe 90 or Captain Scarlet (always a personal favourite), or involving real people Thunderbirds marked the turning point.

Until that time the shows involved single setting stories but with Thunderbirds it was clear that this was a much more ambitious project. Not only was the scope of Anderson's concept much grander but the concept itself was transformed into something much more sophisticated than a simple battle between good and evil. The two dimensional characters assumed a greater depth and complexity. The future as seen by Anderson was no longer purely technologically advanced but was darker and more threatening than any future he had previosly painted. The need for secrecy and the repeating them of being in disguise postulated a society threatened by potential terrorists epitomised by the Hood, of unmistaken Asian origin.

From here, following Thunderbirds success both on television and on the big screen, the Andersons went on to develop their creations in a much bigger way. While the shows were state of the art puppeteering, the stories were better and ran for an hour rather than thirty minutes, the machines were once pure fantasy and yet...

Thunderbirds on DVD is a great idea. Perhaps running them on television would be a better one. Perhaps running a number of the Anderson creations a better one still. Gerry Anderson, like Arthur C. Clarke before him, is another of those prescient men for whom their time has come.

P.S. They are fun to watch too

Finally! The UK gets all of the good stuff first, while we here in the States get crumbs. It's about time we'll be getting some Supermarionation on DVD. Let's hope sales for this will inspire the full release of Supercar, Fireball XL5, Stingray, Captain Scarlet, and UFO too. And let's hope the MPEG compression on these DVDs is excellent.

Money well spent, definitely. This DVD set is very impressive on all counts and truly packed (over 5 hours of entertainment!). Back in the mid 60's, THUNDERBIRDS were huge on Brazilian prime time television. I used to sit in the living-room with my father and younger brother, hypnotized by the show, although at the time we only had black and white TV in my country. Now, over thirty-five years later, I can't help but wonder at the cool perfection of the whole enterprise, the complete devotion and seriousness of the producing team -- so much care and talent in every little detail. Make no mistake, this is no nostalgia lure, it is still really thrilling and magical with that kind of pure Zen pleasure in its optimistic display of futuristic technology and gadgetry without a trace of the cynicism and irony that prevail lately. In fact, these remarkable puppets look and act far better than many a real-life actor today. The soundtrack and music score are also of the highest standards, the picture quality a delight.

I have been waiting for the American market to get with it and realize what the Brits have known all along -- this show rocks! All right, so our heroes display occasional moral lapses in killing villains (shouldn't Scott be a little bothered with what happens to the Zombites in "The Uninvited," even if they did shoot down TB1?). Still, the subtext of slow-paced geeky technology used pretty methodically to save people's lives is great. And everything looks and sounds wonderful with the new remastering. This show was certainly ahead of its time and absolutely indispensible to those of us who grew up with it. In addition to all of the fun of seeing these episodes again, it's pretty interesting to see where technology has advanced farther than in the Thunderbirds' world and where it still lags far behind. Keep releasing these sets, Carlton and A&E. They're FAB!

From the bold, exciting music, to the coolest rockets, jets, and every other kind of vehicle to ever grace the screen, Thunderbirds was a show I dearly loved as a kid (here in the States, no less). While the scripting is -- well, let's face it, it *was* a kiddy show, so the scripting is a bit juvenile, but man, even with occasional wobbles and visible strings, the various vehicles *still* have a modern look to them, nearly (gasp) 40 years later. The Andersons went on from this to live action shows, and I do have a soft spot as well for both _Stingray_ and _Fireball XL-5_ before this, and _UFO_ and _Space: 1999_ after, but _Thunderbirds_ remains at the top of the heap. I have no idea how this will hold up for folks who don't have that nostalgic gleam in their eye, but I enjoyed the first set enough that I'm going for the second. Thunderbirds are Go!

A must have series for any child of the Space Race years! The special effects were way ahead of their time. The attention to detail of things like movement of vehicles and their workings right down to the articles of clothing will blow you away! Remember G.I. Joes and Major Matt Mason from the same era? This series goes hand in hand with that type of thing. The Tracy boys were even named after 5 of the original Mercury Astronauts. Lets hope that all 32 episodes and the two movies become available in the near future as well as some of the other excellent Gerry Anderson works in cluding Stingray and Fireball XL5.

I have been a big fan of this U.K. television series from the 1960's for years, and I spent a considerable sum of money just to get the original episodes on VHS imported to the U.S. Some of the prints used for these videos were in bad shape, but I didn't care since this was the only way for me to see them. Not anymore! I got this set (along with a DVD player) as a gift and I must say that I am impressed with the quality of these DVDs (two in the set). The image quality is very crisp and clear and the colors are very vibrant. I have read some reviews where people wished they had digitally removed the puppet strings but I didn't find this to be a major issue. The special features such as the "Making of Thunderbirds" featurette and the gallery of productions stills are great, but I wish there had been some audio commentary and/or video interviews with Gerry Anderson, whom I consider to be the British version of George Lucas. As for the re-mastered soundtrack, you definitely feel the effect of the explosions, but they stand out too much from the rest of the audio (i.e. the volume is really LOUD compared to the other audio elements). I would have preferred hearing the original sound mix, or at least having the option to choose the original sound or the remastered version. Overall, I think Thunderbirds fans will be happy with this set. Hopefully, all of the episodes will be released on DVD in the near future. THUNDERBIRDS ARE GO!