Daleks, Thunderbirds, and Lady Penelope: A TV Century 21 Comics Thread

Yes, the Daleks said at the end of the last story that Solturis is a human planet they plan to invade next, and the World Government is the ruling body in the Anderson stories, so I feel it’s all tied together pretty well now.

Short of an actual Dalek appearance or specific mention within a Fireball XL-5, Stingray, or Thunderbirds story, or vice versa, I think we have just about everything else we could need to declare these all connected. Then again, I’m not the final arbiter here, though I’ll definitely post any other intriguing pieces of info.

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Which series is Solturis from?

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Oh, sorry, they haven’t specifically mentioned Solturis within one of the other stories yet - I misspoke there. I meant the connection here (so far) is the World Government. But I’ll certainly let everyone know If I spot it!

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Hmmm

As the guy who got Blake’s 7 added to the Guide, I’m probably being seen as a HUGE hypocrite here but I’m still not seeing the connection beyond these rather nebulous news reports and references to a World Government.

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Maybe. I don’t actually know what the connection to Blake’s 7 is, to be honest. :rofl:

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Deep breath…:smiley:

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That was a very informative article!

Oh, here’s confirmation that the Space News Agency reports both the Daleks and Fireball XL-5:

image

This is from the story, by the way - not the front page.

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I’ll be getting back into these this weekend (or possibly even today). So far, here are my ratings:

Mr. Steelman (Thunderbirds) - 7.75/10
Genesis of Evil (Daleks) - 6.75/10
The Man from MI.5 (Thunderbirds) - 7.5/10
Power Play (Daleks) - 7/10
Curse of the Crustavons (Stingray) - 5.75/10
Duel of the Daleks (Daleks) - 7.5/10
On the Trail of the Kaplan’s Killer (Thunderbirds) - 6.25/10
The Atlanta Kidnap Affair (Stingray) - 6/10
Stingray (Stingray) - 5.5/10
The Amaryll Challenge (Daleks) - 7.75/10

I’ve read issues #1 - #26, plus the 1965 Stingray Special and the 1965 Summer Extra, which puts me in the second half of July 1965 right around the end of Season Two.

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I’ve read issues #27 - #30, and while the stories are still ongoing, so there are no new ratings to report, I did find this in issue #31 that connects the 21 stories to the rest of the shared universe:

Space City is where Fireball XL-5 is based, and 21 is set in the year 2046, so 19 years before Thunderbirds, Stingray, and Fireball XL-5.

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Ooh, Steve’s father, perhaps?

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I’ve now read issues #31 - #34, which means I’ve finished more stories! The ratings are:

The Penta Ray Factor - 6.75/10
The Return of Mr. Steelman (Lady Penelope) - 7.25/10

Both series occupy the 6.75/10 to 7.75/10 range, as opposed to the Stingray stories, which have been 5.5/10 to 6/10 thus far. I would probably place the Fireball XL-5 stories between these, say 6/10 to 7/10 generally.

Now it’s time to turn my attention back to John and Gillian for a few stories!

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It’s been a while, but I’ve now read issues #35 - #39, along with the 1965 International Extra from October 1965! Story ratings:

Door of Danger (Stingray) - 5.5/10
Plague of Death (Daleks) - 7/10

I have 11 more issues published in 1965, plus the first 1966 issue because it ends both a Dalek and a Thunderbirds story, to go before moving fully into 1966, so I may read those over the next week or so.

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Ooh, look what I found in issue #47 just now:

That’s World President Nikita Bandranaik to whom the call was addressed, by the way.

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This week I read issues #40 - #51, which takes us to 8 January 1966, and encompasses the following stories:

The Menace of the Monstrons (Daleks) - 6.25/10
The Vanishing Ray (Lady Penelope) - 7.25/10
Eve of War (Daleks) - 6.5/10

This really does feel like a shared universe, with different characters and agencies on Earth crossing over into each other’s stories, reacting to what’s happening with the Daleks, weighing whether or not to send help, time travel shenanigans, etc. The only titles that seem unconnected thus far are the ones set in the present day of the 1960s (Burke’s Law, My Favourite Martian, and Supercar), although with time travel a thing via Fireball XL-5, that could change for one or more of those lines - we shall see. Everything else (Lady Penelope/Thunderbirds, Daleks, Stingray, Fireball XL-5, and 21) connects in some way, shape, or form, which is neat, with the Lady Penelope stories being good enough to pique my interest in reading that separate comic now that it’s spinning off with the conclusion of The Vanishing Ray.

All in all, these are better than I expected them to be.

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The TV Century 21 comics are an absolute treat! I can only speak on the Dalek content but they’re such a fun time. They’re something of a time capsule of the 1960s, offering a real insight into what Dalekmania produced and still exercising a level of charm that I can’t help but be won over by.

I won’t give away the specifics, but there’s a lovely acknowledgement of those comics as a part of Doctor Who media in Liberation of the Daleks with the Fourteenth Doctor—a fantastic story by its own merits, by the way.

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That’s fantastic! Most of the Dalek stories are good and, as you say, have a certain charm to them. I like them as much as, or nearly so, the Lady Penelope story in any given issue, with Fireball XL-5 and 21 in a close race for third. The Stingray stories are usually decent, too, and sometimes Burke’s Law is okay. My least favourite story in each issue is usually either Supercar or My Favourite Martian.

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I didn’t really bother with the Burke’s Law strip because I couldn’t stand the TV series. I think it improved a little when it transmogrified into Amos Burke, Secret Agent to cash in on the 1960s spy craze, but not by much.

I wasn’t terribly keen on the Supercar strip either. They were still repeating Supercar when I was a boy, but it wasn’t a patch on Fireball XL5 or the then-current Thunderbirds.

I always enjoyed My Favourite Martian because I was fond of the TV series the strip was based on. It was a comedy in the same vein as Bewitched and I Dream of Jeannie, but with a sci-fi slant to explain the ‘magic’. Divorced from the TV series, though, the strip possibly fails to convey the charm of the show itself.

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Growing up in the '70s, I saw a few reruns of my Favourite Martian, but enjoyed reruns of Bewitched and I Dream of Jeannie far more, and could see why they were on TV much more often. I’m not saying Martian was a bad show, just not really my thing. Amos Burke, Secret Agent sounds like a better show…then again, I love '60s spy stuff.

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Just finished the Daleks TV Century 21 comics, some really good stuff in there! Some bad too, but the good ones were surprisingly good. I loved the artwork especially, some great imagery especially the flower infested Dalek!

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Yes, much like the Annuals I’ve read so far, the artwork is often the best part! :hugs:

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