Supermarionation "Thunderbirds", who closely resembled Sylvia Anderson, and Captain Blue in "Captain Scarlet", who looked like Ed Bishop (the similarity was reportedly coincidental). Other characters were based on well-known film actors: Troy Tempest of "Stingray" was based on James Garner, Scott Tracy of "Thunderbirds" on Sean Connery and Captain Scarlet on Cary Grant. "Stingray" also featured the only non-speaking Supermarionation puppet: the water-breathing woman Marina. Occasionally, close-ups of a live actor's hand would be inserted to show actions such as turning keys and pressing buttons. This was affectionately parodied in the 2004 live-action feature film "Thunderbirds", with a brief shot of
Stingray (1964 TV series) everything which passed its periscope." Sangster and Condon argue that while elements such as the animal character, Oink, mean that "Stingray" is aimed primarily at children, it is the first Anderson series in which the "sophistication of the production" creates appeal for adults. They regard "Stingray" as "much less po-faced" than "Thunderbirds", with episodes that are "mercifully shorter, leading to tighter plotting and an engaging simplicity". Peel suggests that the "tongue-in-cheek humour that [Gerry] Anderson favoured probably reached its peak with "Stingray"." Media historian Nicholas J. Cull observes that through its depiction of the World Aquanaut Security Patrol (WASP), "Stingray"