Fireball XL5 was the second of legendary Gerry Anderson's to go out under the iconic banner "Filmed In SUPERMARIONATION". Set between the years 2062 and 2063, the series told the heroic adventures of Colonel Steve Zodiac and the crew of Fireball XL5...
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Ian Fryer has come to describe Fireball XL5 as being a western in disguise in a way (see Chapter 35). Much like Star Trek when it was sold to its network NBC, it was referred to as "Wagon Train To The Stars". Fireball XL5's sales pitch mentions that the Earth had overgrown its population and humanity was spreading further out into the universe. Although little is made out of this idea in the series, it may be understandable, if say Earth's population was migrating into space, as to why the aliens in the series dislike Earthmen so much. Because of the successful American network sale of the series to NBC, we could in some ways regard Fireball XL5 to be one of Anderson's most successful shows. Obviosuly, the technical achievements AP Films made and developed on to continue their success from Fireball XL5 is highly critical to make even bigger and better productions. The series was seen on Saturday mornings from 1963 up until September 1965 in children's broadcasting. The success of this meant that Fireball XL5 was seen regularly on both sides of the Atlantic, and helped to establish a popular fanbase for the show across the world. From the success of the series' network sales, ITC New York would see the SUPERMARIONATION series as an important commodity to the company. Fireball XL5 was even able to generate its own comic in the US in 1963! It is therefore a series that is able to generate a strong fanbase from both sides of the Atlantic and remain one of Anderson's most popular shows.
FLIGHT TO DANGER;
Written by Alan Fennell
Directed by David Elliott
Original UK Airdate: 24th February 1963 (ATV London and Ulster)
Additional Voice Cast:
Technician Paul Maxwell
Lieutenant 90's training implies that this episode must take place before The Forbidden Planet and Drama At Space City. Matt's dialogue confirms that Space City's location is the Pacific Ocean. We see Fireball XL1 take a prominent role in this story, and Lieutenant Ninety at the centre of it too. It's nice to get to see him out on missions flying with Zodiac and seeing him learn how to fly the spaceships. This is an episode that stands out as one of my favourites for its variation of storytelling. The visual effects are once again outstanding, and we get to learn more about the WSP and Space City set up. The superficial elements I believe are key to the success of the Anderson shows, and the set up of such an organisation in its design and the ships and gadgets' designs, as seen here in this episode in detail, help set fire the science-fiction imagination of children and adults.
