Thunderbirds are Go: Review: Series 1 Episode 6: Unplugged

When London is blacked out, Virgil must use his brains rather than Brains’ gear…

Unusually, John Tracy gets the week off, with the focus completely on two separate International Rescue teams in London – Lady Penelope and Parker, and Virgil and Grandma Tracy. After a fun opening sequence as TB2 loses power and has to land in central London (and that machine must be like a flying brick!) two plotlines run in parallel, as Virgil tries to help a young woman trapped in the cab of a crane and then find the source of the power-loss, while Penny and Parker fortuitously run into the (very small) group responsible. Bonus points to the writers for explaining for once why the streets were deserted once the teams start investigating!

There are some enjoyable moments throughout the episode, with some family history sketched in for the Tracy family (I wonder if we are going to learn more about Jeff’s father), alongside regular reminders from Grandma that just because you’re old, it doesn’t mean you’re useless (as Parker proves more by actions than words throughout the story). I did wonder if we were heading for a Die Hard-lite type of story at one point, but the plot swerved in a slightly different direction, and gave Parker a nice moment in the spotlight.

Verdict: A solid episode. 7/10

Paul Simpson