Cry Wolf (Thunderbirds)
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Cry Wolf is the eighteenth episode of the first season of the Supermarionation television series Thunderbirds. Its original air date on ATV in the United Kingdom was 27 January 1966. It was written by Dennis Spooner and directed by David Elliott.
[edit] Plot synopsis
Deep in the Australian outback, a young boy has fallen over a cliff edge and injured his leg. Calling International Rescue for help, his message is picked up by John Tracy, space monitor onboard Thunderbird 5. Alerting Tracy Island, John says that he has managed to trace the source of the transmission to within a mile even though the boy failed to mention his location. Jeff Tracy assigns Scott to rescue the child.
Arriving on the scene in Thunderbird 1, Scott quickly sights the caller and lands, only to witness another boy hoist him to safety. Realising that the emergency call was part of a children’s prank, Scott takes the troublemakers back to their home at Charity Springs for an explanation. Their father, Mr Williams, apologises, explaining that International Rescue are Tony and Bob’s heroes and the subject of all their games. He built their walkie-talkies after the death of their mother so that they could play while he was busy at his job of running a nearby weather station.
Pitying the boys, Scott takes them back to Tracy Island with him so they can see the trouble false alarms can cause. Tony and Bob are treated to a first-class tour of the base before returning home onboard Thunderbird 2.
At his palace in the Malaysian jungle, criminal mastermind the Hood reads a World News article on the story and vows to pay the family a visit. Believing there is more to Mr Williams’ "weather station" than meets the eye, he is determined to use the invaluable data that it might contain for his own evil ends. Unknown to Tony and Bob, the station is actually Dunsley Tracker, where their father collaborates with Satellite HQ to photograph earthbound enemy installations from space. Working from his mysterious "Dark Room", he has received his latest batch of secret photographs from Space Observatory 3.
A few days later, Tony and Bob are once again playing International Rescue. Masquerading as a government surveyor, the Hood deceives Tony into hiding in the hazardous Charity Springs Tin Mine. After Bob ventures in to "rescue" him, the Hood explodes a bomb at the entrance to keep the boys out of the way. He then drives to their home in his desert jeep to steal Williams’ photographs. Williams remonstrates with the Hood when he spots him on a TV monitor, but falls victim to his hypnotic stare and just manages to switch off the screen before he is impelled to open the Dark Room door. Terrified, he radios his superiors for help, but is told that no assistance can be given due to his remote location.
Meanwhile, Tony and Bob have survived the explosion but are trapped under a wooden beam, with the mine roof about to collapse on top of them. Thinking that the boys are again playing games, International Rescue ignore their distress call. However, they are spurred into action when they link the transmission to a call from Colonel Jameson at Satellite HQ, calling for the Tracy brothers to come to Williams' aid. Scott blasts off in Thunderbird 1 to help Williams; Virgil and Alan fly out in Thunderbird 2 to rescue the boys.
Back at the house, the Hood has burned through the Dark Room door. The hypnotised Williams is unable to burn the photographs before he falls to the floor unconscious. Landing in Thunderbird 1, Scott chases the Hood on his hoverjet as he drives away with his prize. In his desperation to escape, the Hood falls off a ridge and his jeep plummets onto a riverbank below. Caught in a branch, he utters a final curse before the wood snaps and he plunges into the water. Scott, assuming that the mystery assailant is dead, recovers the photographs.
Virgil and Alan land next to the mine and go down a shaft, searching for Tony and Bob. They locate the boys and pull them out from under the beam seconds before the roof caves in.
With the Williams family safe, the secret photographs returned and the Hood’s latest scheme foiled, the episode ends humorously with Scott’s disastrous first experience on Tony and Bob’s Thunderbird 2 go-cart.
