- "You know how important it is to keep going on, we cannot stop, this is far too important."
Doctor Peck is a character appearing in Breakdown, and one of the three people who needed rescuing.
He is a scientist who has studied Cheevers disease throughout his career, a disease which his daughter, ironically, ended up suffering from. Becoming even more desperate to find a cure, he discovers that an ancient bacterium within an ice shelf in the Arctic Circle, Bacterium C Platensis, may be able to cure the illness. Doctor Peck led a dangerous drilling operation alongside Professor Goncharov to pick up a sample of the bacterium, but the drilling machine ended up breaking down.
Biography[]
Doctor Peck was incredibly determined and desperate to finish his science project, regardless of the fact that the glacier was minutes from being completely destroyed. He was thus very rude and impatient with Virgil Tracy.
When Virgil showed up to evacuate Peck and Goncharov from the melting ice shelf, Peck told Virgil to fix the drilling machine instead, insisting it was "non-negotiable". The machine got buried in collapsed ice moments after Virgil fixed it, leading Peck to try and explore the glacier on foot. Virgil stopped him and insisted on rescuing him, saying it was "non-negotiable".
Doctor Peck hastily insisted Virgil get Goncharov out first, as he could only evacuate one of them at a time. As Virgil left, Peck ran off deeper into the glacier. Virgil eventually caught up with him, finding him with his legs trapped under fallen ice. Virgil, believing him to be crazy, ended up carrying him by force.
To make Virgil unhand him, Peck exclaimed "It's a matter of life and death!". Virgil was willing to listen, and Peck told him all about his project to cure Cheevers disease for the sake of his daughter. Virgil, considering this project to be a rescue mission, asked Peck why he didn't reveal this earlier. Peck revealed that the owners of the drill didn't authorize its use, and that he was worried in case International Rescue would shut him down for it; Virgil told Peck that he had no authority to do such a thing. After telling John Tracy that they would be a little while longer, Virgil searched for a sample of the bacterium with Peck.
Doctor Peck became much more polite to Virgil, and they were able to find a large enough sample of the bacterium, with very little time to escape. On their way up out of the icy depths in The Explorer, Peck worryingly thought they spent too much time down there because of him, but Virgil happily told him he was feeling lucky as it was his birthday, and engaged the booster, cheering as peck screamed. They made it to Thunderbird 2 just in time, and Peck was dropped off at Mercy Hospital to begin his research in the bacterium.
Research Aftermath[]
After several hours of study on the Bacterium C Platensis, a cure looked incredibly promising. Doctor Peck sent Virgil on Tracy Island as the day ended, informing him of the success. His daughter interrupted the call, and Peck had to go, but not before thanking Virgil and wishing him a happy birthday.
Trivia[]
- Peck has an English accent, but his daughter spoke with an American accent, meaning he may live in America or he may have an American wife. Or both, of course.