ATLANTIC INFERNO Jeff leaves Scott in charge and he gets involved in an situation at an oil rig. Later an additional problem from the rig causes more problems.
PATH OF DESTRUCTION A crablogger (atomic powered logger) goes out of control and destroys a town on its way to destroy a dam.
ALIAS MR. HACKENBACKER Brain (Mr. Hackenbacker) invents a plane safety device. While on its maiden flight, the plane is hijacked.
LORD PARKER’S ‘OLIDAY Parker is on vacation at a Mediterranean resort that is soon threatened when a giant solar reflector is dislodged and point straight at the resort.
RICOCHET A rocket damages a orbiting TV station and the crew needs to be evacuated.
GIVE OR TAKE A MILLION 2 crooks committing a robbery at Christmas time end up in a rocket full of toys going to a children’s hospital.
TRAPPED IN THE SKY
Hood, an criminal mastermind plants a bomb aboard the new atomic powered airplane, Fireflash. This leads International Rescue to their first mission, helping the crippled vehicle to land.
THE PERILS OF PENELOPE
Lady Penelope is tried to the railroad tracks by Dr. Godber. The evil scientist is trying to get a secret fuel formula from Penelope’s friend, Sir Jeremy Hodge.
TERROR IN NEW YORK CITY
A TV reporter and cameraman are trapped in an underground river when a building collapses above them.
EDGE OF IMPACT
The Hood is back and he sabotages another aircraft, causing a crash into a manned relay station. The structure is about to collapse and International Rescue needs to save the 2 station operators.
DAY OF DISASTER
A Martian probe rocket is being taken across a bridge when it causes the bridge to collapse, sending the rocket into the rover. The crash triggers the countdown and the technicians inside the rocket must be rescued before it explodes.
30 MINUTES AFTER NOON
A British secret agent is trapped inside a vault filled with explosives. He needs to be rescued and the explosives prevented from causing a massive explosion.
DESPERATE INTRUDER
Brain and Tin-Tin (family friend of the Tracy’s) go searching for treasure in Lake Anasta. The Hood finds out and tries to get the treasure first.
END OF THE ROAD
International Rescue must save Eddie Houseman from a high ledge. The problem is that Houseman knows the Tracy’s and this might imperil their secret identities.
THE UNINVITED
Thunderbird 1 is conducting a rescue in the Sahara of 2 scientists who stumbled upon an underground race called Zombites.
SUN PROBE
A spaceship is on a mission to collect particles from the sun when it loses control. They have to save it from crashing into the sun.
OPERATION CRASH DIVE
A series of mysterious crashes of Frieflash airplanes leads to International Rescue investigating the situation. They soon find sabotage.
VAULT OF DEATH
A Bank of England employee is trapped in the new vault. Parker is able to save the day.
THE MIGHTY ATOM
The Hood steals a robot mouse and uses it to try and take pictures of International Rescue.
CITY OF FIRE
A fire is out of control in the underground parking of a large mall. A family is trapped and needs rescue.
THE IMPOSTERS
2 men are posing as International Rescue to steal some secret papers. Jeff Tracy doesn’t want to launch any more rescues until their names are cleared, but someone needs help.
THE MAN FROM MI5
Lady Penelope is in France trying to track down some criminals when she is kidnapped and tied up in a boat with a bomb in it.
CRY WOLF
2 boys in Australia are playing International Rescue when they are overheard and International Rescue races to the scene.
DANGER AT OCEAN DEEP
The Tracys try to save the crew of an ocean tanker who are in danger from a possible explosion of the fuel on board.
MOVE AND YOU’RE DEAD
Alan and his grandmother are trapped on a bridge with a bomb that will explode if they move.
THE DUCHESS ASSIGNMENT
A friend of Penelope’s is kidnapped and placed in a house that catches fire.
BRINK OF DISASTER
Jeff, Tin-Tin and Brain are on a monorail that is in danger from a broken section of track.
ATTACK OF THE ALLIGATORS
Some people are trapped in the Amazon by alligators that have grown enormously after drinking water containing a growth drug.
MARTIAN INVASION
2 actors are trapped in a cave during a film shoot. The Hood uses the situation to film International Rescue.
THE CHAM-CHAM
The singing group the Cass Carnaby 5 are suspects in the crash of American rockets.
SECURITY HAZARD
A boy stows away on Thunderbird 2 during a rescue and makes it to the Tracy’s island.
Thunderbirds is a classic children’s science fiction/adventure series. The series created by Gerry Anderson was his most popular. It debuted in 1965 and was the fourth Anderson series that used the Supermarionation process of puppetry. His earlier shows were Supercar, Fireball XL5 and Stingray, they had all been half hour shows but Anderson’s network insisted that the new series be one hour long. The series lasted 2 seasons and is still extremely popular today.
International Rescue is a secret organization started by Jeff Tracy. He is a former astronaut who uses his large fortune to start up IR and his 5 sons do the rescues. The headquarters is at the Tracy private island in the Pacific. Each of the sons has their own rescue vehicle able to go anywhere in or above the world to rescue people in danger.
THUNDERBIRD 1
This plane goes 700 MPH and is based under the pool on the Tracy’s island compound. Scott Tracy, the oldest son, is in charge of this vehicle. Scott is usually in charge of the rescues. THUNDERBIRD 2
This giant freight plane is designed to carry rescue equipment which is organized into different cargo pods that the plane can quickly pick up and move to the rescue area. Virgil Tracy is the pilot. This plane is also based underground on the Tracy’s island. THUNDERBIRD 3
This orange spacecraft is piloted by Alan, who is a little more reckless than his older brothers and the family heartthrob. His craft is also based on the island. It comes out from under the balcony of the family home. THUNDERBIRD 4
An underwater craft, it is in a cargo pod carried to rescues by Thunderbird 2. Gordon pilots the submarine for water rescues. Gordon is the family joker. THUNDERBIRD FIVE
This is a satellite orbiting the Earth. It keeps an eye on the Earth and transmit data back to the island headquarters. John Tracy is the son who is perpetually stuck on the station relaying information on rescues back to his brothers, who do the actual rescuing. Sometimes International Rescue is contacted directly, but usually John is the one who hears a distress call and calls his father for help. He monitors all communications from his station and only occasionally gets back home.
The Tracy family doesn’t work alone. Lady Penelope is in charge of International Rescue’s England base. She drives a pink Rolls Royce equipped with gadgets that James Bond would envy, including a machine gun behind the front grill. Lady Penelope is driven by loyal chauffeur, Parker, who tries to help in the rescues with limited success.
Brain is the resident engineer who designs all the craft, gadgets and rescue equipment that International Rescues uses on their adventures. He is an amiable and eccentric scientist, devoted to Jeff Tracy and his family.
METAMORPH
An alien named Mentor threatens to drain the brains of the moonbase crew. He needs their energy to repair his biological computer. His daughter ,Maya, helps the crew to escape and goes with them.
THE EXILES
The Alphans find 2 aliens inside a cylinder orbiting the moon. They revive the aliens who respond by kidnapping 2 of the crew.
JOURNEY TO WHERE
The moonbase gets a message from a future Earth, offering to return them to Earth, which they do, but they are transplanted to Scotland in the 1300's, during a plague outbreak.
ONE MOMENT OF HUMANITY
Dr Russell and Tony are kidnapped by aliens who want to use them to teach their androids how to kill.
BRIAN AND BRAIN
A robot kidnaps the commander and the doctor, Maya uses her shape shifting powers to rescue them.
NEW ADAM NEW EVE
Magus appears before the Alphans offering them a new home.He wants the commander, doctor, Tony and Maya as his new Adam and Eves.
THE MARK OF ARCHANON
2 aliens are discovered in suspended animation below the Moon's surface.
THE RULES OF LUTON
Koenig and Maya are on an alien planet and pick some plants. They are accused by some trees of murder.
ALL THAT GLITTTERS
The Aplans meet living rocks on an alien planet.
THE TAYBOR
A space trader visits the moon and offers to get them back to Earth, in exchange for Maya.
SEEDS OF DESTRUCTION
An astroid is draining power from the moonbase.
THE A B CHRYSALIS
An energy beam come from an planet and rocks the station. They investigate and find a computer protecting a humanoid population.
CATACOMBS OF THE MOON
Dr Russell tries to save a patient, whose husband is having visions of the station's destruction.
SPACE WARP
The moon goes into a space warp, moving 5 light years. But not everyone is on the moon, some are stranded in a space ship trying to get back to the moonbase.
A MATTER OF BALANCE
Vindrus, an anti matter alien, tries to take over the moonbase.
THE BETA CLOUD
An illness strikes the station and a space creature attacks the station.
THE LAMBDA FACTOR
The moon passes by a gas cloud which gives a crew member paranormal powers.
THE BRINGERS OF WONDER
A ship from Earth arrives and promises to get the crew home. But Koenig sees through the illusion to the aliens behind it.
THE SÉANCE SPECTRE
Some of the crew hold a seance to find out that a recently seen planet will be a good home.
DORZAK
A spaceship arrives on the moon with a prisoner from Maya's home planet.
DEVIL’S PLANET
The Alphans respond to a distress signal from a penal colony.
THE IMMUNITY SYNDROME
Koenig goes exploring an Earth-like planet where is finds a being whose attempts to communicate can drive people insane.
THE DORCONS
A Dorcan spaceship demands that Maya be handed over.
FORCE OF LIFE Crewman is possessed by a heat-craving alien.
COLLISION COURSE Moon on collision course with planet. Alien Queen believes the collision is her people's destiny.
WAR GAMES Moonbase seems to be under attack and most of the crew dies, but all is not what it seems.
DEATH’S OTHER DOMINION An ice planet is discovered that is populated with people from Earth.
VOYAGER’S RETURN The old Voyager space probe is encountered by the survivors. The probe is now dangerous, leaking deadly nuetrons.
ALPHA CHILD The first child is born on the base and the child grows very quickly.
DRAGON’S DOMAIN Tony Cellini, a survivor of a deep space mission tells the crew of story of a monster inhabiting the area that the Moonbase has drifted into.
MISSION OF THE DARIANS The crew of the moonbase respond to a distress call and find a ship that has been drifting for 900 years.
BLACK SUN The moon gets drawn into a black sun with little chance of survival.
GUARDIAN OF PIRI The crew is offered a new life on the planet Prir, but Koenig is suspicious.
END OF ETERNITY Koenig frees a immortal killer from its prison.
MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH Dr. Russell's husband, believed to be dead, reappears warning them not to land on the planet, Terra Nova.
EARTHBOUND An alien ship visits the moon and announces they are on the way to Earth.
THE FULL CIRCLEE A moonbase ship returns from exploring with no crew aboard, only a dead caveman.
ANOTHER TIME, ANOTHER PLACE The moon and the base's personnel are duplicated and they find themselves orbiting Earth, but it is just a duplicate.
THE LAST SUNSET Probes from an alien intelligence land on the moon and start to change its atmosphere, making it oxygen rich.
THE INFERNAL MACHINE A living machine lands of the planet and its living companion soon dies. It wants Koenig and Dr. Russell to be his new companions.
RING AROUND THE MOON A probe from planet Triton takes over the moonbase.
MISSING LINK Koenig is injured and taken to the planet Zenno to be studied.
SPACE BRAIN A strange phenomenon in space destroys one of the moonbase's ships and takes over the mind of a crewman.
THE TROUBLED SPIRIT Scientist Mateo is trying to communicate with plants and is haunted by his own ghost.
THE TESTAMENT OF ARKADIA The moon stops traveling through space, held by the planet Arkadia. They land of the planet and find evidence that life on Earth originated on that planet.
THE LAST ENEMY The moon drifts into the middle of a war and Koenig must negotiate a cease fire.
This British series was the last collaboration from the married team of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson. They had previous success with science fiction shows using their process of supermarionation. The series were made with marionettes and had wonderful special effects and exciting story lines.
Now the team turned to science fiction using human actors. For their time, the special effects and models were wonderful. Now, of course, they look very dated. The computers were huge and the décor is awful. But in 1975, when the show debuted, this was considered an exciting show.
The series, unlike the Anderson’s earlier efforts, was meant to be a serious sci fi series for adults. It took 2 years for the series to be ready to air and was very expensive. The show was first show in Great Britain, but immediately it was syndicated in other countries, where it was an immediate success. The series was less successful in England and during the show, the creators ended their marriage. This lead to the cancellation of the show, which was going downhill in terms of quality, anyway. But some of the early episodes were very good and the series is worth a second look.
Moonbase Alpha is a thriving station on the moon with over 300 inhabitants. It has various uses, including serving as a base for space exploration and as a dumping ground for nuclear waste. As the pilot opens, there is a problem, some members of the crew are dying. The nuclear waste doesn’t appear to be the problem, but the doctor isn’t so sure.
Commander Koenig has just returned to take command of the station. Earth Command is only interested in getting an explorer ship off the base in time, but Koenig is worried about the deaths and investigates.
By the end of the episode the nuclear waste has exploded and torn the moon out of Earth’s orbit. The station is still intact, but the moon is travelling through space, cut off from Earth. Koenig doesn’t try to get back to Earth, believing there is not a realistic chance of them making it back alive. Moonbase Alpha is now on their own, off to new adventures and dangers and encounters with alien life.
CAST
Martin Landau as Commander John Koenig
Barbara Bain as Dr. Helena Russell
Barry Morse as Professor Victor Bergman
Nick Tate as Alan Carter
Zienia Merton as Sandra Benes
Prentis Hancock as Paul Morrow
Anoton Phillips as Dr. Bob Mathias
Clifton Jones as David Kano
Catherine Schell as Maya
Tony Anholt as Tony Verdeschi
Commander Koenig ran the station, Dr. Russell was head of the medical team and Bergman was the onboard scientist. My favorite character was Maya, who was introduced in the second season. She was an alien with the ability to shapeshift into any living creature.
