Television Review: Thunderbirds Are Go, Series 2, Part 2

 

Synopsis: Prepare as Thunderbirds are Go returns as international Rescue again answers the call. This series picks up a few months after Kayo’s secret was revealed and the notorious Hood was brought to justice.

 

 

Programme: Thunderbirds Are Go, Series 2, Volume 2

Company: ITV

Date: 2016

I didn’t originally plan to review this next series of Thunderbirds Are Go. There are some children’s shows you can watch as an adult and read loads of subtext into. This isn’t one of them. It makes it tricky to write a review – the focus isn’t on character development or plot pacing. It’s on the drama of each episode at a time.

After being initially unsure about previous series, however, I wanted to give credit where credit is due. I thoroughly enjoyed this series.

 

To be this into context: I am a massive Thunderbirds fan. I watch the originals quite a lot and I am a fanfiction writer for the original series. I’ve met some great friends doing it! But that means, to my mind, the characters are developed far more than you ever see in the show – whether Thunderbirds Are Go or the originals. I have their bonds, their character traits, their flaws etc in my head when I’m watching these new episodes.

 

There were certain episodes in this series where I think they got it spot on. I know from discussions that I am not the only originals’ fan that enjoyed the way the characters were portrayed this series. It honestly felt like the creators had seen what it was the fans wanted, and delivered it. The banter between the brothers was done right and the characters themselves actually touched upon the ones in my head.

I think, to a certain extent, there was some character development as well, at least from the previous series. For example, on more than one occasion, Scott delivers a motivational speech that I, personally, think really worked to enforce his position as the Field Commander of International Rescue: this is the guy you want saving you when you are trapped in a rock slide.

That being said, you cannot forget this has been created for a younger audience that do not have the originals as their background. There were some very far-fetched moments and the situations that the characters ended up in were often implausible and done simply because they would appeal to that audience. There isn’t anything wrong with that, but I do think it kept the viewers restricted to the exact target audience rather than potentially including other ages.

Most of the time, the far-fetched moments were based whenever the Hood or the Mechanic (a new villain) turned up. The best episodes were when the brothers worked together to rectify a problem rather than trying their chances against their enemies – mainly because the situation they would end up in was just implausible and irritated me.

I’m writing this review, however, because I liked it. If you are a fan of the originals, there might be something in this latest series that will work for you, even if it is just the banter between the characters. There are silly moments, but it’s aimed for children – you wouldn’t expect anything less.

Overall, this was better than I anticipated, hence writing the review.

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