Thunderbird 2: Man and Machine

Because i'm really great at doing things in order.

Continuing the set of :  and a companion piece to:  .

I ave grown to like the new TB2 quite a bit, yes she is blocky and may not win as many beauty contests as her older sisters, but using the familiar silhouette and applying different shapes helps to rediscover the design in a different way.

Seeing her come out of the clouds at the start of "Ring of fire" sent shivers up my spine and I cant help but think people would have been more accepting of her if that was how she was revealed. (as opposed to the turntables that where released that really didn't do the designs justice).

I am quite taken with the way the craft can now be remote controlled by the individual Tracy bro's uniform (hence the title of this piece) It helps make the ship feel more like an extension of the character.

The thing that has been causing the most controversy on the forum I run (i've actually had to ban like 5 people for fighting) has been the special effects of the new show, particularly the decision to give the fx a deliberate model look. ( decreasing the depth of field and adding wobbles to the cg elements).

I must confess while I found it jarring to begin with but I don't mind it now. Looking back on classic Thunderbirds, the fx was exciting, imaginative and told the story but was never quite realistic, but no one cared because it didn't have to be. If I wanted realistic Thunderbirds i'd use my imagination. I'n todays era of photorealistic special effects, people have grown rather desensitised to seeing fantastical things and just pass it off as "bad CGI" (even when it's a model).  Thunderbirds are go's technique is engaging and it gives me a chance to use my imagination again which can be no bad thing.

Made on and off over a week long run of "Sister Act" to keep me sane.

Made in, Blender, Vue 10 Photoshop