As many of you will know Gerry Anderson devised and directed an unaired pilot called The Investigator.
Shot in 1973, it was another uneasy mix of puppets and live action. The daft premise involved two teenagers, John and Julie (Voiced by Shane Rimmer and Sylvia Anderson) encountering a mysterious disembodied alien in a cave (Voiced by Peter Dyneley). The alien, after observing Earth from a million light years away feels the need to help mankind through John and Julie. Through the alien they receive special powers which they use to fight international crime and corruption! I understand it's since been released on DVD but I recall watching a rare screening of it years ago at a convention and finding it quite bizarre.
John and Julie had two modes of transport in the episode, an eight wheeled car and a jet boat. The puppet size boat looked okay racing over waves, but the sight of the puppets driving their puppet size car on real roads just didn't help a willing suspension of disbelief!
Dinky Toys would have marketed diecast models of these two vehicles if the pilot had been sold.
A quick rethink and Dinky came up with an Armoured Command Car released in 1975, and a Coastguard Amphibious Missile Launch available the following year.
The Missile Launch box simply incorporated it as part of it’s boat range.
While my opinion of The Investigator is fairly negative , I’m with Dinky in that I think these two diecasts were certainly good enough designs to stand alone.
No comments:
Post a Comment