Fireball XL5 (1962)
Review by HTQ4
Film:
DVD:

Written by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson, Ala Fennell, Anthony Marriott, and Dennis Spooner
Directed by Alan Pattillo, David Elliott, John Kelly, Bill Harris, and Desmond Saunders
Starring the Voices of Paul Maxwell, Gerry Anderson, Sylvia Anderson, John Bluthal, and David Graham

Features:

• Running audio Commentary on "The Doomed Planet" by voice artist David Graham
  
• Running audio Commentary on "Space City Special" by director Alan Pattillo
  
• Expanded Gerry Anderson Biography
• Featurette on the Comic Strip Art of TV 21: "The Noble Art of Fireball XL5" with Comic Strip Artist Mike Noble
  
• Photo Galleries
  

Released by: A&E
Rating: NR
Region: 1
Anamorphic: N/A; it appears in its original 1.33:1 format

My Advice: Own it if you are a fan of Anderson's SuperMarionation; otherwise rent it.

Colonel Steve Zodiac (voiced by Maxwell) is the hotshot pilot of the Fireball XL5. He, along with his crew--Venus, Professor Matt Mattic, and Robert the Robot (voiced by Sylvia Anderson, Graham and Gerry Anderson, respectively)--monitor Sector 25 for the World Space Fleet; his job is to protect the Earth from the myriad alien attacks that seem to happen with regularity in the year 2063.

This is a oldie but a goodie. If you are a fan of late 50s/early 60s science fiction television programs, you will not be disappointed by this series. And, for those of you who grew up on this show, you will not be disappointed by this DVD set either.

A ground breaking technology during its time, Supermarionation took the age-old art of marionette puppets and brought them into the 20th century. Gerry Anderson had a vision of putting these puppets on film while trying to create as realistic a world as possible. He used filming techniques for miniatures along with his puppets to bring his world to life. And even though, to today's young audiences, it might appear cheesy and trite, it's important to keep in mind that the work that was done on this show paved the way for the technologies that make modern movies and television possible (yes, even the digital stuff). The stories are very simple and some of the physics of their worlds don't work, but that's why it's called science fiction and anyone who would take away from the importance of this show for that reason should be flogged with a wet noodle.

This DVD set is very well done. First of all, let me point out the most important part: the two audio commentary tracks that you can find. First is with voice artist David Graham. It's wonderful that they got him to record this track, and he does not disappoint. He talks about the voices and his recollections of working on the production with Gerry Anderson--not just on this series, but also on Thunderbirds as well.

The other commentary track is with Director Alan Pattillo. Pattillo talks about directing the Supermarionation shows in general and his thoughts on working with the Andersons on their projects...and it's great stuff. If this DVD set is watched for nothing else but these commentary tracks, the producers should feel very good about themselves.

But wait, there's more. There's "The Noble Art of Fireball XL5" featurette. This focuses on the comic strips that were spinoffs of the television series, which appeared in a publication called "TV Century 21"; most importantly Mike Noble provided artwork for these strips. Noble is here for the featurette and goes into detail about the process of putting the finished work together and talks about where the ideas came from. This, too, is a wonderful addition to the DVD package and is great for posterity.

The Gerry Anderson biography is several text-on-screen slides that take you through his most of his professional life, but the question that pops in my head is why couldn't they get Anderson to sit down and record a commentary track or an interview or something? After all, the gentleman is past seventy--and none of us is on this Earth forever. It would be great for future generations to be able to listen to his thoughts on filmmaking. The photo galleries are almost a waste of space on the DVD since they are nothing but screen captures from the actual shows themselves, rather than nifty behind-the-scenes bits or even promo art.

So, if you are a fan of these old science fiction television shows, you will want to add this one to your collection. But you should definitely rent it even if you're not that big a fan, but are interested in the history of television and/or the art of working with marionettes.