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"International Rescue, we have a situation."

John Tracy is a character from the Thunderbirds Are Go! television series. He is the space monitor of Thunderbird 5, and serves as a communicator for International Rescue. He is the third oldest of Jeff Tracy's sons and is the younger brother of Scott and Virgil as well as the elder brother of Gordon and Alan, making him the middle child. He is also the adoptive brother of Kayo.

John’s signature colour for his iR uniform is brown.

Personality and Traits[]

"Fitting with his role of traffic and dispatch from above the planet, John is constantly in motion. While usually not part of International Rescue's various missions, his personality is often described as a high-key whirlwind. Whenever John's briefed on a situation, he calls it as he sees it."

John is one of the more sensible and level-headed of the Tracy clan - which, given his role in communications, is the perfect fit for the man who inhabits the satellite of Thunderbird 5 that orbits around the Earth, picking up distress calls from all over the world and coordinating rescue efforts. John is a computer wiz, being able to program and hack data on the fly as well as provide his brothers with valuable information about the situations they are about to launch themselves into; and as a member of International Rescue, he is a extremely-valuable asset to the team, being so far the only character to be in almost every single episode who is able to assist or help direct a mission.

When it comes to being quick on the pulse with coding, John is rather fast with tinkering computer algorithms (Runaway & Relic), and is able to multi-task and perform various jobs in succession from his post aboard Thunderbird 5 (most notably in Touch And Go).

John has also performed a rescue himself while being onboard Thunderbird 5, being the only person who could rescue CIR.R.U.S. after his siblings' failed attempts (Skyhook). However, he also does perform rescues in space on occasion; during one of which he saved Captain Ridley O'Bannon, after she had been shot out into the vacuum of space from the derelict EDEN Generation Ship (Ghost Ship). John saves Captain Ridley O'Bannon a second time when a comet was on a collision course for the Space Station - The Global One Space Station in which she was in command of (Impact).

While serious most of the time and having jokes either fly over his head (Runaway) or fall flat on his own deaf ears (EOS), John has a very interesting sense of humour: it can either be rather blunt (Space Race) or can be similar to his brother Gordon’s, which just isn’t that funny (Ghost Ship). He's also a little bit of a klutz when outside his comfort zone of Thunderbird 5, but that doesn’t stop him being able to perform the tasks that he puts ahead of him. He may also come off as emotionally deadpan to others despite his comforting looks and tone of voice - he was at a loss for what to do when they lost contact with Alan and Kayo, when they were hit by a solar flare, even coming down to the Island to deliver the news in person that they may have lost them for good (Slingshot). The truth is however, he is just as emotionally-sensitive as any average human; he just tend not to display them often.

John may be a bit of a loner, enjoying a lot of his time in space, and uses ‘Gravity’ as an excuse when he needs time alone to think (Skyhook). As such, he actually enjoys being on Thunderbird 5 so much that he is hardly seen on the ground. He does, however, seem to enjoy the company of others - whether or not he truly does when it comes to his younger brother Alan, who can annoy him from time to time - even befriending an AI that tried to remove him from Thunderbird 5 in fear that he might shut it down (EOS).

Besides his alone-time and floating around in space, John enjoys stargazing, playing games (like chess and arcade machines) and being able to help people in their time of need or emergency.

Duties[]

John Tracy is primarily Thunderbird 5's space monitor, which allows him to be International Rescue's head of space command, communications and dispatch. Though when he is physically taking part in rescues, John has often had to act as Thunderbird 3's co-pilot (as shown in EOS, Ghost Ship, and Crash Course). When required, John also acts as the lookout for the Zero-XL (as shown in The Long Reach Part 1 and Part 2). When the Zero-XL took Thunderbird 2 into space, John acted as the craft's co-pilot, with him presumably able to act as the co-pilot when the craft is earthbound.

Along with his roles in the Thunderbirds and the Zero-XL, John can operate Thunderbird 5’s Space Pod (Legacy).

Equipment[]

Whenever he is in Thunderbird 5 or on a rescue mission, John wears a specialised pressure and thermal space suit that is blue in colour and has a Thunderbird 5 badge on the right shoulder. The space suit contains integrated bio-circuitry and a holographic display control on the left wrist. Along with the space suit, John wears a pair of blue boots. John’s suit also contains a brown sash containing circuitry spares and a data tether. The sash also has a secure channel mobile communications device connected to a communications and logistics module. The communications and logistics module has small jets at the top controlled by the space suit’s integrated bio-circuitry that allow John to manoeuvre in space. When John needs to leave Thunderbird 5, he can suit up in the Exopod. The Exopod is a space flight and rescue exosuit, covering the majority of John’s body and allowing to fly and carry out rescues in space. To protect his head and give him safe air to breathe, John wears a blue and brown helmet, with an ‘iR’ on the left and a ‘5’ on the right, both in white.

Suit Up Sequence[]

John runs to the launch bay of the Space Elevator, which is lowered from Thunderbird 5 and towards Tracy Island and lands on the launch bay with its mooring claw holding onto the dock. Upon entering, John is already wearing his space suit, boots and sash as he sits down in the elevator and the doors close behind him.

Launch Sequence[]

Notable Episodes[]

Main article: /Missions

Despite his appearance in almost every episode, there are a few worthy of note where John really comes into his own:

EOS[]

  • When a rogue AI calling itself EOS takes over Thunderbird 5, John tries to regain control of the satellite. In the end he befriends EOS, making her a companion on board the satellite.

Skyhook[]

  • After his brothers' attempts at trying to bring CIR.R.U.S. back down to earth safely fail, John uses the elevator claw of Thunderbird 5 to reel them into orbit. It's also the first time another craft, outside of Thunderbird 3, has docked with the satellite, and also the first time that non-International Rescue members board Thunderbird 5.

Ghost Ship[]

  • After receiving a distress call from Captain Ridley O'Bannon, John suits up in an exopod and flies out into space to rescue her. After he discovers what she's doing out there in the void of space, both John and O'Bannon investigate the strange goings-on aboard the derelict EDEN generation ship.

Gallery[]

Promotional Images[]

Trivia[]

  • So far, John has appeared in more episodes than the rest of the cast - a stark contrast to his underused classic counterpart. He is seen more as an integral part of the communications network between the brothers themselves and Tracy Island.
  • Also, unlike his classic counterpart, John has been able to assist or perform his own missions and rescues - either remotely or in person. He can control devices on Tracy Island, temporarily control other Thunderbirds remotely, as well as hack into systems and re-program code from space, as seen in various episodes.
  • His favorite TV show is Stingray - another AP Films production, created before the original Thunderbirds.
  • Outside of Thunderbird 5, John was seen onboard Thunderbird 3 three times (1, 2, 3) and Thunderbird 2 once. This is identical to his classic counterpart, who also appears onboard Thunderbird 3 three times (1, 2, 3), as well as a passenger onboard Thunderbird 2 once.
    • However, he was once seen entering Thunderbird 2 in Home on the Range. He wasn't actually seen onboard, nor did Thunderbird 2 go anywhere.
    • It can also be noted that he may have travelled onboard Thunderbird 1 during the near-end of The Man From TB5 as he tells Scott not to put him down on the balcony at the party.

Foreign Names[]

  • Japanese: ジョン・トレーシー (Jon Torēshī)
  • Chinese: 約翰·崔西 (Yuēhàn Cuīxī)


International Rescue
Ir2015-logo

Primary Operatives:
Jeff TracyScott TracyJohn TracyVirgil TracyGordon TracyAlan TracyBrainsMAXKayoMr. Kyrano (retired)• Grandma Tracy

Field Agents:
Lady Penelope Creighton-WardAloysius ParkerCaptain Lee TaylorColonel Casey

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