Thunderbirds Trapped in the Sky review

Here's what you need to know; the brand new Fireflash has taken off from London International Airport with a bomb in it's landing gear. Unable to land, and with time running out, International Rescue step in to try and save the doomed aircraft, but unwittingly fall right into the Hood's trap.
This episode aired 50 years ago today, so now let's look at the adventure that started it all.

Trapped in the sky tells a very cool story, it's the story of a plane that can't land, but more so it's the origins of International Rescue, and the mission that made them famous, in that there are a few things that this episode needs to do. Interestingly the Thunderbirds don't actually show up until the last 3rd or so, in the meantime we have characters, who are all decently interesting, and far more importantly, something the new series has failed to do until this point, make the danger feel more real. The episode spends a lot of time with air traffic control and the pilots aboard Fireflash as they try to think up a way to survive, these scenes really add to the gravity and the tension of the situation, as do the various rescue attempts before the Thunderbirds show up, the main one with the tow plane is some nail biting stuff. The episode also does a good job of making you care about the people involved, the Tracy brothers, the crew of Fireflash, etc, and it does a great job of introducing them, especially Lady Penelope and Parker, and their awesome Rolls Royce. This is Thunderbirds, so you know that at some point I'll start talking about the Thunderbirds, yeah, they are absolutely awesome, they are instantly endearing from the second you see them, they're just so damn cool, the shot of Thunderbird 2 coming in to land is a thing of beauty, as is just their design in general. The fact that they are all puppets and models only makes it more cool, because there's something physical there, so when things go boom, you really feel them going boom, and there are plenty of explosions. Finally, Trapped in the Sky's finale is some of the most intense shit supermarionation has ever achieved, it's truly nail biting when Fireflash comes in for it's final approach, what works is that it's not a flawless rescue, things go wrong, this sows the seed, in your mind you know that they will ultimately succeed, but the seed is there, there is just enough doubt to really make shit intense, this is something I gave the revision of this episode in Thunderbirds Are Go a bit of credit for, but when compared to the original, it's not even close, and it and the rest of the episode is perfectly accompanied by Barry Gary's incredible and iconic music.

If you were doubtful that I would call this episode a masterpiece, I'm sorry, but you just aren't paying attention, Trapped in the Sky cemented itself in television history for a good reason, and it is absolutely a masterpiece, and an absolute must watch.