‘EDGE OF IMPACT’
Please feel free to comment on my review.
This is a compelling ‘Thunderbirds’ episode where the Hood sabotages the efforts of the Red Arrow aircraft programme. In this episode, the Hood is working for General Bron (voiced by David Graham).
In the first trial run of the Red Arrow aircraft, it crashes at London International Airport. In the second attempt, it crashes into the British Telecom Tower in England where two men are inside it. 😐
Soon, it’s up to International Rescue to save the two men inside. It’ll be a challenge for International Rescue to save them with the tower swaying precariously in the windy conditions of a full-on gale. 😐
This episode introduces us to an old friend of Jeff Tracy’s, which happens to be Colonel Tim Casey (voiced by David Graham). Casey happens to be the man behind the Red Arrow aircraft programme.
He visits Tracy Island after his first attempt for the Red Arrow aircraft failed. It was quite funny how Casey arrived at Tracy Island with his aircraft having the banner of GREETINGS JEFF TRACY tailed to it. 🙂
Jeff is happy to see his old friend Colonel Casey, though things get complicated when International Rescue have to go out and rescue the two men in the British Telecom Tower. Casey mustn’t know. 😐
Thankfully, Tin-Tin distracts Casey by taking him to some underwater caves as they scuba-dive around Tracy Island. Fortunately Casey is unaware of the Thunderbirds taking off from the island. 😀
Thunderbird 1 and Thunderbird 2 are sent to the danger zone with Scott, Virgil and Alan taking part in the mission. The pod vehicle used for the mission happens to be the Booster Mortar from Pod 3. 🙂
They use the Booster Mortar to fire low-altitude escape harnesses for the two men inside the tower – Jim (voiced by David Graham) and Stan (voiced by Ray Barrett) – in order to escape, which they do.
By the way, what is Braman (Brains’ robot) doing in the episode? Aren’t we supposed to be meeting him later on in the episode called ‘Sun Probe’? Not that Braman speaks in the episode, but it’s weird.
Because we return to London International Airport, we have the return of Commander Norman (voiced by Peter Dyneley) who was in ‘Trapped In The Sky’. It’s nice he pops back in now and again. 🙂
The two pilots for the Red Arrow project include Race (voiced by David Graham) for Red Arrow 1 and Goddard (voiced by Matt Zimmerman) for Red Arrow 2. Goddard is also the pilot for Casey’s aircraft.
This is when he pilots Casey to Tracy Island. Goddard manages to survive ejecting from Red Arrow 2 with his parachute, unlike Race who sadly gets killed when Red Arrow 1 crashed into London airport.
It was funny when the Hood, dressed up as a maintenance man, was being chased by the police and he end up going over a broken bridge into a valley below. The Hood often runs into these accidents.
It was interesting how it’s revealed the Hood managed to sabotage the efforts of the Red Arrow aircraft programme. Apparently he placed homing devices to lure the Red Arrow aircrafts off course.
It was weird when the Hood’s eyes lit up twice for no apparent reason in the episode. Maybe he was excited by the gold being provided for him by General Bron. Perhaps he tried to hypnotise the gold. 😀
At least it is clear General Bron is immune to the Hood’s hypnotic effect. I don’t know how the Hood worked for General Bron in the first place. We don’t see General Bron again for a future episode. 😐
John Tracy only ‘appears’ in this episode via the flashing ocular lights in his ‘Operation: Cover-up’ portrait. Apparently the show’s creator Gerry Anderson didn’t like John very much as a character here. 😐
So any opportunity to have John stay aboard Thunderbird 5 and not be used much in the series was taken. It’s a pity really as John could have had been given some character development in the series.
At least Ray Barrett wasn’t out of a job voicing other characters. 😀 The episode concludes with Colonel Casey happy that the Red Arrow sabotage has been discovered and he leaves Tracy Island. 🙂
The banner to Casey’s aircraft says THANKS JEFF TRACY as he leaves. In conclusion, ‘Edge of Impact’ is another enjoyable ‘Thunderbirds’ episode! I like how the Red Arrow sabotage mystery was solved. 🙂
‘Edge of Impact’ rating – 8/10
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