The more we lose ourselves in this digital age where we expect all forms of entertainment to be readily available to us, the more incredulous we’ll become about how people acquired their films, television shows, and comic books. Even more disbelieving will be the generations after us who will try to ascertain how people entertained themselves before the internet.
For young people in the 1960s, going to the pictures was perhaps seen as something of a luxury compared to how we devour the cinema nowadays, and television was still in its infancy, which left the comic book medium as a key source of enjoyment for kids. A great many classic titles emerged from post-war Britain, and none was perhaps more popular than TV21, born as TV Century 21, the official comic book spin-off from the worlds of Supermarionation master Gerry Anderson.
Where a large handful of British comics were indulging in producing strips based on the two World Wars, such as the various Picture Libraries from Fleetway, TV21 instantly took things further with its first issue in 1965. Snatching the retro-futuristic tales of adventure in Stingray, Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, Thunderbirds, and more, and securing them in the bright, vibrant form of a comic book made the title immensely popular, at its peak shifting a million copies a week.
Unrestricted by the Supermarionation character’s lack of convincing movement, TV21 took the Anderson shows in frighteningly adventurous directions in terms of plot, action, and scope. More than 50 years since the first issue blasted off, and in no particular order of favouritism, let’s countdown 10 of TV21‘s greatest stories!
10. “Escape from Aquatraz” – Stingray
For some bizarre reason, Stingray always drew the short straw when it came to quality adventures. Whilst the strip’s artwork, produced by Ron Embleton, gave the strip a warm appearance, the many plots found in the Stingray strips were often without enthusiasm found in other TV21 strips, some felt more like leftover television scripts. Nevertheless, Stingray found its footing somewhat with the two-part adventure “Escape from Aquatraz”.
Essentially two stories tied together by a driving finale, the story saw Stingray villain Titan hatch a devious and complex plan involving capturing an atomic-powered submarine and harnessing its power to create an unstoppable army of Terror Fish. The sub in question just so happens to contain a distinguished general in the care of the W.A.S.P., and once Titan captures the sub, the general wastes no time in causing panic in Marineville over what he sees as Troy and the Stingray crew failing in their job to protect him.
“Escape from Aquatraz” may still suffer from a general feeling of dullness, particularly in its first half, but it’s still the best Stingray strip we ever got out of TV21. A cleverly thought-out plot mixing high drama and explosive action, not to mention painting the ever-camp Titan in a truly villainous manner, made this a thrilling tale to read.
9. “Mr. Steelman” – Lady Penelope: Elegance, Charm, and Deadly Danger
Lady Penelope and Parker made their debut long before Thunderbirds actual appeared on television. They first appeared in TV21‘s first issue in January 1965, a whole eight months before “Trapped in the Sky” blasted off. Their debut in the comic was also their first time meeting each other, as “Mr. Steelman” introduces readers to Penelope recruiting Parker from a life of petty crime to become her butler.
What follows may not exactly be the most riveting of TV21 strips, but a story that personifies 1960’s camp,and is a pleasantly low-key spy-fi ramble in its own right. Having joined forces before the strip’s first instalment reaches its end, the duo embark on a mission to destroy the blueprints for a hydromic device which, in the wrong hands, could destroy the world. In true 1960s fashion, we’ve got a villain after the exact same plans – the brutish robot Mr. Steelman!
While “Mr. Steelman” may lack any genuine conviction or sense of threat, it makes up for these things in its easy-going nature. It also stands as a high-point of the forward-thinking nature of TV21 editor Alan Fennell and the Anderson team in getting the most out of their creations as much as possible.
8. “Chain Reaction” – Thunderbirds
Rightly hailed as the last great Thunderbirds story in TV21, “Chain Reaction” gave International Rescue a genuinely world-threatening adventure, as a crashed space freighter threatens to trigger volcanic activity in the South Pacific that could spread to nearby San Francisco, but not before endangering an island inhabited by tribesmen oblivious to the creeping danger.
The use of such a victim in need of rescuing may not be the most politically correct by today’s standards, but it’s harmless enough, and lends the strip a strong vintage flavour. Across it’s eight well-paced instalments, it’s a heart-stopping fiasco for the Tracy family, as all five Thunderbird vehicles scramble to stop nature take its course.
Sadly though, this would prove to be the final great adventure for Thunderbirds. The dwindling interest in Supermarionation and lowering editorial standards of TV21 meant the comic would only last a few more months after “Chain Reaction” before merging with the dull-as-dishwater comic Joe 90 (having already joined up with TV Tornado the year before), spun-off from the Anderson show of the same name. It wouldn’t be until 1971 that TV21 would finally call it quits, with those last two years being a slow, painful death indeed.
7. “Secret Mission” – Captain Scarlet
This dark, brutal strip has a spry skip that conflicts wildly with the Gothic nature of Captain Scarlet, but it’s a compelling story with some cracking world-building. “Secret Mission” sees Scarlet unwittingly become a pawn in the Mysterons’ plan to assassinate the president of Bereznik, the warring nation that often clashed with the otherwise utopian World Government of TV21.
At a mere three chapters, it’s a highly brief affair, but still make for riveting reading as each chapter sees victory within arms reach for the Mysterons. All-out action, superb artwork courtesy of Mike Noble, and a grim-faced political backdrop makes “Secret Mission” a far more potent example of how things got far darker in the Anderson land of pulp sci-fi puppetry once Thunderbirds had come and gone.
It’s a crying shame things never got this political in the TV show itself, but then again, that makes this strip all the more vital a read.
6. “Solar Danger” – Thunderbirds
This story is so epic, I mean, so humongous epic, it makes Marvel’s plans for the remainder of their cinematic universe look like boyscouts making a Deadpool fan film with nothing more than a second-hand DSLR and a bit of string.. It ran for nearly half a year, and remains a high point for Thunderbirds as a comic strip. The 16-part adventure sees International Rescue attempting to save the Earth from a runaway meteorite created by the sun’s volatile nature, only to end up in need of rescuing themselves when their efforts send them crashing onto the planet Venus, where horrifying creatures become disturbed at their presence.
The dizzying ambition of this story dwarfs its TV counterpart, often content with seeing its heroes safely ensconced in their ever-winning Thunderbird craft, saving the day as always, and home in time for tea. “Solar Danger” pits the Tracy boys against two antagonists rarely seen in the show itself – nature and aliens, and they don’t exactly come out of it smelling entirely of roses.
Artist Frank Bellamy uses “Solar Danger” to execute some truly spell-binding artwork. His depictions of space, solar flares, and alien monsters are a testament to his artistic skills, and shows how much fun he had when TV21 editor/mastermind Alan Fenell took Thunderbirds in unique, exciting directions. A regular addition to many TV21 reprint collections over the years, “Solar Danger” remains the greatest Thunderbirds story we never saw on TV.
5. “Electrode 909” – Fireball XL5
Although a strong evolution away from the primitive nature of Supercar, Fireball XL5 can’t quite get in on the action of the golden trilogy of Stingray, Thunderbirds and Captain Scarlet. Its black-and-white production values confine the show to its own era, and its free-wheeling take on science fiction hasn’t aged as well as later Anderson shows. Thank the heavens then for TV21.
In comic book form, Fireball XL5 went from being a light-hearted, child-friendly, action-adventure show with some Cold War overtones into a something with almost a Punk rock snarl to it. When leaping from the screen to the illustrated page, Fireball XL5 gained a real bite, with the Cold War overtones brought to the forefront, and the action-adventure element being turned up to 11. “Electrode 909” embodies that evolution.
The strip sees a young World Space Patrol trainee hatch a villainous plot to ruin Steve Zodiac’s reputation as the W.S.P.’s finest pilot, but as his plan unfolds, murder blinds his ambitions, and soon he stops at nothing to get what he wants. Compared to your average episode of Fireball XL5, “Electrode 909” crackles with tension and danger that’s well-paced and drawn out to full effect. If you think Fireball XL5 hasn’t aged well, stick to the comics, specifically, this one.
4. “Unity City” – Captain Scarlet
Debuting just in time for Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons‘ TV launch, “Unity City” is giddy with its own excitement, but never forgets to tell an epic story featuring crossovers from Fireball XL5‘s World Space Patrol and Stingray‘s World Aquanaut Security Patrol. Supposedly set in the early days of the war between Spectrum and the Mysterons, the omnipotent aliens set their sights on The World Government Headquarters nestled in Unity City.
What follows is an action-packed showcase for Captain Scarlet going up against former ally turned Mysteron agent Captain Black, but also finds room to showcase characters and vehicles of the show that would go on to make it so popular with viewers. The story itself isn’t necessarily complex, but still twists and turns with every page. Spectrum are pushed to the limits as the Mysterons attempt to use Cloudbase itself as the weapon with which to destroy Unity City. The strip climaxes with the Mysterons keen to reclaim Scarlet as one of their own, and ends in a nail-biting finish for both sides.
“Unity City”‘s all-encompassing scope was perhaps there to tease readers into watching Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons on TV, but it still stands as an adrenaline-charged entry in TV21, one that also highlights how close the Mysterons often were to achieving their victory.
3. “How the Mysterious and Beautiful Marina May Never Speak Again” – Marina, Girl of the Sea
It speaks volumes that one of the best comic stories from TV21 didn’t exactly come from TV21 itself, but rather its sister spin-off, Lady Penelope. Designed to capitalize on the popularity of the Thunderbirds character, the comic focused on appealing to the female market, and did so by featuring comic strips based on the female characters in the Anderson world, including Stingray‘s Marina.
Her first appearance in the comic turned out to be a spell-binding, 23-part epic that explained her backstory about how she came to be the mute slave girl of the treacherous undersea ruler Titan. This story, armed with a mouthful of a title, is the polar opposite to what one might expect from a Century 21 story. There’s no retro-futuristic vehicles that tale the star role, and no square-jawed, all-American hero to save the day.
Instead, what we have is a strong, resourceful character leading her people through thick and thin to try and escape the clutches of Titan. As we already know what becomes of Marina, there’s a tragic undercutting to this story that give it an emotional drive, something not often found in a TV21 story. Artist Rab Hamilton illustrates Marina’s story gorgeously, creating swirling, underwater landscapes and civilisations.
The end result is a stirring tale of lost innocence and grand adventure, TV21 never quite got this tear-jerking again!
2. “Return to the Red Planet”/”Prisoners of the Star” – Zero-X
You know you’ve made a crummy film when the best thing about 1966’s Thunderbirds Are Go isn’t the Thunderbirds, but rather the guest star, the space exploration ship Zero-X. Unwilling to let the film’s failure define their efforts, the Andersons found a new home for Zero-X in TV21, and this two-part adventure makes far better use of the craft than the film ever did.
This two-part saga sees the Zero-X crew jetting off on another ill-fated mission to Mars before being tasked with becoming guinea pigs for a new, experimental engine. However, when a prisoner convicted of murder stows away on-board the craft (who’s intentions may or may not be hostile), the whole affair transforms into a multi-layered space opera, full of treachery, deceit, and aliens plotting to destroy the entire planet. All in a day’s work for TV21!
Although its opening act is somewhat inconsequential, the real meat of the story grabs the reader by the neck and ever lets go until the final page, and cemented Zero-X‘s future as one of the better latter-day TV21 strips.
1. “The Revolution” – Thunderbirds
As mentioned previously, politics became a favourite tool of Fennell in crafting intriguing stories for our Century 21 heroes, and he wastes no time in setting one of International Rescue’s most daring missions against a politically tense backdrop. “The Revolution” sees Thunderbirds 1 and 2 rescuing an atomic cruiseliner after a group of Nicaraguan rebels cause an uproar that goes horridly wrong.
“The Revolution” is a fine enough adventure, with Frank Bellamy‘s stunning artwork and Fennell’s complex script as he gets the most out of the Thunderbird craft and characters as they attempt a particularly volatile rescue. However, “The Revolution” is also an intriguing comment on the technological utopia that the Andersons created with their shows. “The Revolution” highlights how the world of 2065, with its emphasis on technology benefiting all mankind, was actually a rather sour ideology. As this strip demonstrates, there are still those who 2065 have forgotten, and that this utopia really only benefits those with the power, status and influence.
It’s made all the more resonant when the Nicaraguan rebels, although unwittingly cause the disaster that traps the atomic liner, lend a vital hand in solving the situation, more so than the Nicaraguan army, who view International Rescue as the enemy, and attempt to scupper their efforts in saving the liner.
It’s easy enough to find solid Thunderbirds adventures in TV21, but “The Revolution”‘s unique political flavour resonates even today, making it one of the best adventures International Rescue ever had with their strings cut.
Did you agree with this list? Are there any classic TV21 adventures we missed out? Let us know in the comments section below, or send us a Tweet! You can read in-depth review of nearly all these comic strips, and more, via Fred’s TV21 blog, Operation Megaventures!