Countdown, later named TV Action, was a British comics magazine published by Polystyle Productions weekly from 1971 to 1973. It was a sister publication to Polystyle's long-running title TV Comic, aimed at a slightly older audience.
In many ways Countdown was a successor to TV Century 21, which had been primarily dedicated to the properties of AP Films/Century 21 Productions, featuring original comic strips based on every programme the company produced from Supercar to Joe 90 over its lifetime. TV21 was still running by the time of Countdown's launch but had lost its final Century 21 connection with the discontinuation of the Thunderbirds strip in June 1970. Countdown was similarly dedicated to the Century 21 properties at its inception, with the first issue acknowledging it was not easy to fit all of Gerry Anderson's series into one comic which was why they would be spread out over many issues. Every Century 21 series from Fireball XL5 would be represented in new stories, including the two newest The Secret Service and UFO which had never appeared in TV21, as well as the Thunderbirds spin-offs Lady Penelope and Zero X. Some reprints from TV21 also appeared.
From a behind-the-scenes perspective, this marked a return for Polystyle to the AP Films comics license, having previously published Four Feather Falls, Supercar and Fireball XL5 strips in TV Comic prior to the creation of TV21. Dennis Hooper was to be Countdown editor, having previously worked as art editor on TV21. Additionally, all three artists which Hooper namedropped in his introductory message from issue 1 (Gerry Haylock, Harry Lindfield and John Burns) had previously contributed material to a Century 21 Publishing magazine, though Burns had been the only one to deal directly with Thunderbirds-related material.
Countdown also published two annuals featuring Thunderbirds content, while Polystyle was responsible for the the dedicated Thunderbirds Annual in 1971. The publication ran for 132 issues, ending in August 1973 by which time the Thunderbirds-related strips had long been discontinued. UFO and the recently-started The Protectors were the only Anderson strips to survive until the end but neither continued following the merger with TV Comic.
Thunderbirds-Related Content[]
Thunderbirds Comic Strip[]
- Main article: Thunderbirds (Countdown)
The Thunderbirds comic strip from Countdown first appeared in issue 1 and enjoyed a continuous run (save for a one issue break between "Story 2" and Pressure Point) of seven stories until a reprint of Mission to Africa ended in issue 30. The second stint was shorter and comprised just two stories, lasting from issue 45 to issue 60. Following another extended break, a reprint of Blazing Danger marked the final Thunderbirds comic to be printed in the regular magazine. In-keeping with the mission statement to include as many Century 21 comics as possible, the presentation of the strip fluctuated with "Story 2" and The Amazon Affair being completed in just one issue and the rest being serialised over multiple instalments.
Don Harley was the strip's illustrator, his prior Thunderbirds credentials made up of a six-week period substituting for Frank Bellamy during the TV Century 21 story Solar Danger, as well as various 'extra' stories like Sands of Terror. Harley also worked on Terror at Torreba, the Thunderbirds comic featured in the 1972 Countdown Annual, while Ron Turner tackled The Collector for the 1973 Annual.
Lady Penelope Comic Strip[]
- Main article: Lady Penelope (comic)
The Lady Penelope comic strip was a more disjointed affair, appearing in issues 4, 10 and 18 for three new stories, each one completed over the course of a single instalment.
The artist for the strip was Michael Strand, who had prior Thunderbirds experience in the Stingray crossover comic A Trip to England for TV21, as well as having taken on the prior Lady Penelope story The Assassination Threat.
Zero X Comic Strip[]
- Main article: Zero X (comic)
The Zero X strip was also non-serialised during its time in Countdown, with two new stories each completed in their entirety over the course of issues 12 and 27. However, Zero X would appear again much later in issue 83, beginning a serialised run of two TV21 reprints which ended in issue 99. The two stories republished were the first two printed in TV21, namely Return to the Red Planet and Prisoners of the Star.
Keith Watson was the artist for the first story while Malcolm Stokes illustrated the second, Master of the Worlds!. Watson had previously worked on the Captain Scarlet strip for TV21.
Other Features with TB-Content[]
- The back cover of issue 5 was dedicated to a feature entitled TV Stars on Strings which examined the "pioneering techniques" utilised by the puppeteers on supermarionation productions. Behind-the-scenes pictures accompanied the piece, depicting Lady Penelope in her hard hat from Atlantic Inferno, Creighton-Ward Mansion, and the creation of two scenes from Thunderbirds Are Go. Additionally, the front cover featured a photograph of David Lane on the Space Exploration Center set from that film.
- Various versions of a joint advert for the year's Thunderbirds and Countdown Annuals (which contained some Thunderbirds content) were printed in issues 33, 34, 38, 39, 42, 44 and 45. They were hailed as "two great annuals of space and adventure" and described as "on sale now" beginning with issue 34.
- At the request of a reader, a picture of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson was printed in issue 109. Models of Thunderbird 1 and Thunderbird 4 sat on the desk in front of them and Gerry held an issue of Lady Penelope.