Tin-Tin Kyrano
Tin-Tin Kyrano is a fictional character introduced in the 1960s British Supermarionation puppet television series Thunderbirds. In the original TV series and its film sequels, the voice of Tin-Tin was provided by actress Christine Finn. In the live-action film adaptation, the character was played by Vanessa Hudgens, while in the remake series, she was voiced by Angel Coulby.
Due to copyright problems with Hergé's The Adventures of Tintin, for the remake, the character's name was changed to Tanusha "Kayo" Kyrano.
''Thunderbirds'' (1965–66)
Background
, Thunderbirds co-producer and character co-creator, writes that Tin-Tin was conceived mainly to "redress the balance" of the "male-dominated" primary puppet cast. The character's name was derived from the Malaysian term for "sweet". The Supermarionation puppet was sculpted by Christine Glanville. Anderson regrets that the backstories that she had devised for Tin-Tin and her father mostly progressed no further than the script, and that the pair's on-screen visibility was limited, in her view, to a series of cameo appearances.Character biography
Born on 20 June 2004 or 2043, Tin-Tin is the daughter of Kyrano – an old friend of, and manservant to, International Rescue founder Jeff Tracy. She joins the organisation shortly after it starts operations, having inadvertently become involved in IR's first mission when the maiden flight of Fireflash, in which she is travelling from London to Tokyo, is sabotaged by her villainous half-uncle The Hood. Her further education, specialising in mathematics and engineering, was fully paid for by Jeff in gratitude for her father's service to him.Tin-Tin performs a variety of roles on Tracy Island, IR's base of operations. They range from a secretary to Jeff, to a laboratory assistant to the scientist and engineer Brains to active participation in missions, most notably the rescue of the Sun Probe spaceship. She is also known to accompany Lady Penelope on espionage missions and is a qualified pilot. Tin-Tin is romantically involved with Alan Tracy, although their relationship is briefly strained when Tin-Tin's ex-boyfriend, Eddie Houseman, visits the island.
Broadcasts of TV series in Japan typically include subtitles introducing the names of characters when they first appear on-screen. Thunderbirds episode introduce Tin-Tin as "Min-Min". Since there is no character for "ti" in Japanese, "chi" is usually substituted; however, chin-chin is a Japanese colloquialism for the male phallus.
Reception
Sylvia Anderson remembers the character as being "mostly house-bound" and less of an adventurer than Lady Penelope, although she "had her followers" and was a "decorative sidekick to her macho boss". Commentators are divided on the subject of Tin-Tin's significance to the narrative of Thunderbirds. Jack Hagerty and Jon C. Rogers argue that prior to her sizeable role in Thunderbird 6, and despite her status as a series regular, the character is "usually nothing more than window-dressing, with her actual contributions being a bit vague". David Ryan of the website DVD Verdict characterises Tin-Tin as "part hanger-around-the-house, part local-squeeze-for-Alan's-pleasure, and 99 percent useless".Stephen La Rivière, author of the book Filmed in Supermarionation, is less critical, asserting that over the course of the series, the character shifted "from being the submissive hired help to a more assertive, independent role"; he concedes, however, that this development was overshadowed by the outings of Lady Penelope. Science-fiction writer John Peel offers a similar assessment, criticising the character's first appearance in the series opener, "Trapped in the Sky", but praising her higher and more active profile in "Sun Probe" and "The Cham-Cham". Peel argues that, in contrast with other Anderson series, Thunderbirds gives its minority of female characters considerably more opportunities to prove their bravery and worth. Daniel O'Brien describes Tin-Tin, as well as Penelope and the third female regular, Grandma Tracy, as "intelligent" and "independent-minded", praising Thunderbirds for its progressive attitude to characterisation.
Cultural historian Nicholas J. Cull, on the subject of the rejection of ethno-national stereotyping, cites as an example Tin-Tin's Malaysian nationality, combined with her status as a "positive, non-white character"; this contrasts directly with her relative, the Hood, whose evil is intrinsic to his Oriental appearance and manner. Glenn Erickson of DVD Talk presents an opposing view, arguing that stereotypes are common but "handled with some sensitivity – all except for Tin-Tin, a literal China doll". Kate Hunt of the University of Glasgow, author of a study of the series' presentation of tobacco smoking, observes that in marked contrast with prolific smokers such as Penelope, Tin-Tin is "incongruously" and "inconsistently" seen with a cigarette in only one episode. She writes that the character occupies a socially-ambiguous position within her home environment, appearing variously as "adopted daughter, secretary, and occasional member of the International Rescue team".
''Thunderbirds'' (2004)
In the 2004 live-action film, Thunderbirds, in which Tin-Tin plays a significant role, the character is portrayed by Vanessa Hudgens. In addition to being younger than in the TV series, Tin-Tin is no longer Malaysian but depicted as being of Indian descent. Her mother, Onaha, also lives on Tracy Island. She possesses telekinesis and mind control powers similar to those of her half-uncle, the Hood.Reception
' live-action portrayal of the character has also polarised opinion. DVD Verdict's Dennis Prince comments that the re-imagined, younger Tin-Tin is "full of spunk and plenty of girl-power attitude ", and a "rather thinly stretched adaptation" of the original. James Gray of the website The Digital Fix considers the character "not too bad, although she does spend the entire time smiling her head off, even in scenes where it really isn't that appropriate". Alex Hewison, commenting for the same website, is dismissive, judging the character a victim of gender tokenism and "superfluity" as regards her "hyper-chaste love subplot" with Alan. Erickson writes positively of the decision to have Tin-Tin inherit the Hood's "inscrutable Oriental wizardry", use of which is indicated on-screen by her eyes becoming "cat-like, vertical slits – a nice touch". Critics have written of perceived similarities between the live-action Tin-Tin and the fictional characters Carmen Cortez and Hermione Granger.''Thunderbirds Are Go'' (2015–2020)
For the 2010s remake, Thunderbirds Are Go, Tin-Tin was re-named Tanusha "Kayo" Kyrano due to potential copyright issues in respect of the Hergé comic book character Tintin. Kayo is Tracy Island's head of security and often serves as Alan's co-pilot on board Thunderbird 3. At the conclusion of the pilot episode, she is confirmed to be the Hood's niece, but it would appear that only Jeff and Grandma Tracy are aware of her ties to the villain, with the Hood taunting her about her keeping that information secret from the Tracy brothers. The Hood reveals this relationship to the brothers during the final episode of the first season, and Kayo later tells them that Jeff had decided to keep it a secret from them. At the end of the pilot, she is given her own Thunderbird vehicle: Thunderbird Shadow.Commenting that the remake brings Tin-Tin "up to date", Carolyn Percy of Wales Arts Review praises how Kayo's character development is no longer devoted entirely to "potential love interests". She also applauds the storylines for probing the character's relationship with The Hood in greater detail than the "vague references" of the original series, stating that this produces a "suspenseful subplot".