The 1960s TV show Thunderbirds fascinated me as a child. Though it first aired long before I was born, and I have long since grown up, Thunderbirds still resonates with me in a way other sci-fi shows do not. There are many reasons: the machines, music, suspense, heroism, special effects. But above all this, it is Thunderbirds’ optimism for the future of humanity and its endorsement of an ambitious pursuit of technological progress that distinguishes it from sci-fi of recent decades and imbues it with a lasting appeal that persists to this day.
