Thunderbirds 2086 facts for kids

Thunderbirds 2086
Thunderbirds 2086 title card
Quick facts for kids 科学救助隊テクノボイジャー (Kagaku Ninja-tai TekunoBoijā)
Genre	Action, Science fiction
Anime television series
Directed by	Kimio Ikeda
Produced by	Shinji Nakagawa Tokizō Tsuchiya Banjiro Uemura
Music by	Kentarō Haneda Kouji Makaino
Studio	Jin Productions
Licensed by	UK ITC Entertainment
Network	Fuji Television
English network	UK BBC 1 US Showtime
Original run	17 April 1982 – 11 September 1982
Episodes	24 (List of episodes)

Thunderbirds 2086 is an exciting Japanese anime TV show. It's the English version of a series called Scientific Rescue Team Techno Voyager. This show was inspired by the classic Thunderbirds puppet show created by Gerry Anderson.

The company that made the original Thunderbirds, ITC Entertainment, also created the English version of Thunderbirds 2086. However, this anime is not officially part of the original Thunderbirds story. This is because Gerry Anderson and Sylvia Anderson, who were key to the original, were not involved.

The English version of the show uses music and sounds from other famous Anderson series. These include Stingray, Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, Joe 90, UFO, and Space: 1999. A total of 24 episodes were made. But only 18 were first shown in Japan in 1982.

What's the Story?

The story of Thunderbirds 2086 happens in the year 2086. It follows the adventures of TechnoBoyager, a special rescue team. In the English version, they are known as the "Thunderbirds." They work for the International Rescue Organisation. In the Japanese version, the team and the organization are the same thing.

The original International Rescue was a small, family-run group. But TechnoBoyager is a huge organization. It has many different parts and is watched over by the Federation. This Federation is like the United Nations in this future world.

Even though the English show is called Thunderbirds 2086, the Tracy family is not in it. The Tracy family ran the original International Rescue. In this show, "Thunderbirds" refers to the whole team. In the original series, it only referred to their amazing vehicles.

The animated series is still very similar to the original. Most episodes are about a big problem, like a natural disaster or something caused by humans. The TechnoBoyager/Thunderbirds team must investigate and help fix it.

Unlike the original show, Thunderbirds 2086 also has a continuous story. This is common in Japanese anime. The main ongoing plot is about a group called the Shadow Axis. They want to break away and be independent. Their leader is a mysterious character called Star Crusher. The show hints that Star Crusher might not even be human, possibly an alien!

Who Are the Voices?

Japanese Voice Actors

• Hiroko Maruyama as Pawl
• Junichi Takeoka as Hidaka Raiji
• Kei Tomiyama as Eric Joans
• Kiyoshi Kobayashi as Gerald Simpson
• Manami Ito as Catharine Hayward
• Ryusei Nakao as Sammy Edkins Jr.
• Takeshi Aono as Gran Hansen

English Voice Actors

• Alexander Marshall
• Earl Hammond
• Eleanor Kearney
• HENRY & KEITH MANDELL
• Joan Audiberti
• John Bellucci
• Keith Mandell
• Lucy Martin
• Maia Danziger
• Paolo Audiberti
• Peter Fernandez

The Main Base

Just like in the original show, the team's main base is on an island in the Pacific Ocean. Their main building is a giant pyramid. It's so big that it has an entire city inside! This amazing place is called the Arcology.

The team also has a space station in orbit. It's used to listen for emergency calls from all over the world. This space station is called TB-6. It's similar to Thunderbird 5 from the original series. Both the Arcology and TB-6 are home to thousands of people.

Vehicles and Characters

There are 17 different vehicles in the show. Each one has a special purpose. The vehicles are called by short names like "TB-1," "TB-2," and so on. "TB" originally stood for "TechnoBoyager," but in the English version, it means "Thunderbird."

The show's introduction calls the characters "cadets." But in the episodes, they are all called "Captain." Grant Hanson is the oldest and most senior captain in the group.

Most of the vehicles are shown to school children visiting the Arcology in an episode called "Child's Play." Other vehicles are shown in the 1983 Annual book.

• TB-1/Thunderbird 1 is a fast aircraft. It looks like a space shuttle. It can fly into space. It can also connect with Thunderbirds 2 and 3 to make a bigger ship. Captain Dylan Beyda, who is from Japan, flies it.
• TB-2/Thunderbird 2 is a huge cargo plane. It's used for carrying other vehicles, just like the original Thunderbird 2. But this one is blue, not green. It carries smaller vehicles inside its cargo bay. It can also carry large pods at the back. TB-2 can fly in space. It's flown by Captain Jesse Eric Rigel Jones from Texas and Captain Jonathon Samuel Jordan Edkins Jr. from New York.
• TB-3/Thunderbird 3 is a mobile command center that looks like an armored vehicle. It's used to keep an eye on situations on the ground. It can split in half and join with TB-1 and TB-2 for long trips. It can also make short rocket jumps. Captain Grant Hanson, the oldest and most experienced Thunderbird, pilots it. He is from Germany.
• TB-4/Thunderbird 4 is a yellow submarine. Like its original version, it's used underwater. But this one is much bigger. It's too big for TB-2 to carry. It usually launches directly from the Arcology. Captain Catherine Kallan Heyward James, the only female team member, pilots it.
• TB-5/Thunderbird 5 is a large vehicle that digs tunnels underground. It reminds people of the "Mole" vehicle from the original series. TB-5 is much bigger and is carried to missions by TB-2.
• TB-6/Thunderbird 6 is the biggest Thunderbird. It's a huge space station. It works like the original Thunderbird 5. TB-6 has hundreds, maybe thousands, of people working on it. It's described as a floating city.
• TB-7/Thunderbird 7 is a small, fast interceptor aircraft for one person. It can be stored inside TB-1 or TB-2. It can also be used as a drone.
• TB-8/Thunderbird 8 is seen in only one episode. It's carried inside TB-1 and can be operated as a drone. The 1983 Annual says it's a computer-controlled air transport for dangerous materials.
• TB-9/Thunderbird 9 is a robot that walks. It's used for repairs and upgrades. Another vehicle always carries it.
• TB-10/Thunderbird 10 is a super-fast spacecraft. It can fly at speeds over 176 times the speed of sound! It's used for quick trips from Earth to other planets.
• TB-11/Thunderbird 11 is an armored, high-speed ground vehicle. It's carried by TB-3. It was never shown in the TV show, but it's in the 1983 Thunderbirds 2086 annual. It's described as being 5 meters long and very fast.
• TB-12/Thunderbird 12 is like a bulldozer. It can move very heavy things with an extending platform. It can also work underwater.
• TB-13/Thunderbird 13 is a smaller submarine. It's carried inside TB-4 and used to reach places that are too small for TB-4. It can also fly at the speed of sound.
• TB-14/Thunderbird 14 is never seen but is mentioned. It's a deep-water bathyscaphe that can go very deep underwater. TB-4 carries it.
• TB-15/Thunderbird 15 is a small tracked vehicle. It's stored inside TB-3 or TB-5. It can be controlled as a drone.
• TB-16/Thunderbird 16 is "The Mole." It's carried by TB-3 or TB-5. It's almost the same as the original series vehicle. The only difference is that TB-16 is unmanned and can work underwater.
• TB-17/Thunderbird 17 is a huge spacecraft. It's bigger than any other Thunderbird except TB-6. It usually stays docked with TB-6. TB-17 is used for long missions away from Earth. It can carry all the other Thunderbirds (except TB-6) inside it.

Commander Jared Simpson is the leader of the team. He gives the heroes their missions. He's like the Jeff Tracy character from the original series. He has a nephew named Skipper Simpson, a young boy who looks up to the Thunderbirds and hopes to join them one day.

Episode Guide

The original run of Thunderbirds 2086 in Japan stopped after only 18 of its 24 episodes aired in 1982. The remaining six episodes were finally shown during a rerun in 2008.

Only three countries have shown all the episodes: the USA in 1983, Australia in 1984, and Malaysia in 1985. The UK broadcast in 1986 was also cut short, with only 13 episodes aired. Around 1985, Spain showed four episodes in Spanish, called Pájaros Trueno 2086.