La Rivière notes the intimacy of the premise and the predominantly male characters, suggesting that "Joe 90" is "very much a "Boy's Own" adventure." Of the 30 episodes, only ten feature female characters, a fact that La Rivière attributes to Century 21's pre-occupation with "Thunderbird 6" and "Doppelgänger". Peel suggests that the absence of women makes "Joe 90", along with several other Anderson productions, inferior to "Thunderbirds". Grouping "Joe 90" with "Supercar" and "The Secret Service", Peel concludes that it is "hardly coincidental that these tend to be the least-loved of [Anderson's] series; he had, after all, ignored half of his potential audience." He also questions comparisons to the "James Bond" films, arguing that "being a somewhat nerdy kid with glasses and brain implants was not really thrilling."