"Return to the Red Planet" is the first Zero X story, originally published as a five-part comic between issues 105 and 109 of TV Century 21, January 21st to February 18th, 1967.
The story acted as a bridging link between the Thunderbirds Are Go film and the rest of the Zero X series proper, which saw the "Mark III" Zero X craft journeying throughout the solar system - here, the craft returns to the somewhat familiar planet of Mars. Not surviving the transition from film to comic was Tony Grant, with his role usually being filled by a "guest scientist" on a per-story basis.
The final part ends on a "cliffhanger" of sorts, with the Zero-X team being ordered to divert to an orbital fuelling station instead of Earth, in order to pick up secret instructions for their next mission. This leads directly into the next story of the series, Prisoners of the Star. While the original printing in TV Century 21 made no clear distinction between the two stories, most reprints separate them between issues 109 and 110.
Synopsis[]
The Zero X crew reassemble for the third time in order make a journey back to Mars, in order to document and learn about the Rock Snakes found on their last mission to the red planet. Accompanying them is Carlson, a scientist wishing to study the alien creatures first-hand. However, on its the descent to the surface the MEV strikes a dust storm and its radio transmitters get knocked out of action. Remaining in Zero X is Brad Newman, with instructions to leave the planet if he goes more than twelve hours without hearing from the ground crew. What should be a simple repair goes astray after Carlson decides to get up close and personal with his own Rock Snake, causing the team to come under fire from their old foes. Will they make it out in time, or will Brad have to make the hard decision to leave his friends on Mars?
Characters[]
(in order of appearance)
- Central control
- Paul Travers
- Brad Newman
- Greg Martin
- Conrad Carlson
- Ray Pierce
- Rock Snakes
Cover Tie-Ins[]
Reprint History[]
Return to the Red Planet was translated into Dutch and reprinted in Prins Valiant for its thirteenth and fourteenth issues.
For an English-speaking audience, the story would next appear (still untitled) in TV Action & Countdown issues 83 to 87, in late 1972. It would appear again in 1988 in the short-lived Action 21, from its first to fifth issue.
Through the "90s resurgence", the Zero X strip would be retroactively moved from the Thunderbirds continuity and into the Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons one, due to the title vehicle's appearance in the opening episode. As such, the story would make an appearance in Fleetway's Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons magazine, also between its first and fifth issues. It was here where the strip would be named for the first time, twice: part one would be titled The Red Planet and the remainder of the story was called The Rock Snakes of Mars.
As for comic collections, the story would be christened Lost on Mars for Signum Book's 2011 Century 21: Menace from Space release. In 2014, Egmont would release the story in Gerry Anderson: The Comic Collection, under the title of Return to the Red Planet.