Series synopsis
ThunderCats is an American animation sci-fi & fantasy action & adventure kids television series that premiered on Syndication on January 23, 1985. It ended on September 29, 1989. It was created by Theodore Walter Wolf. It stars Larry Kenney, Peter Newman, Earle Hyman and Lynne Lipton.
The inhabitants of the planet Thundera evacuate just before it is destroyed. They were pursued by a band of mutants. All but one of their escape ships was destroyed. Only a small group of Thunderians (Thundercats) remained. With only half engine power, the group, which was led by Jaga, had to set a course for the nearest planet. Jaga commanded their ship while the other seven were in their stasis tubes. Jaga died on their journey to Third Earth and their ship crashed there. Soon they made friend ...
Premise
The inhabitants of the planet Thundera evacuate just before it is destroyed. They were pursued by a band of mutants. All but one of their escape ships was destroyed. Only a small group of Thunderians (Thundercats) remained. With only half engine power, the group, which was led by Jaga, had to set a course for the nearest planet. Jaga commanded their ship while the other seven were in their stasis tubes. Jaga died on their journey to Third Earth and their ship crashed there. Soon they made friends with various groups in the area and they designed a fortress. Mumm-Ra the centuries-old embodiment of evil, along with the mutants that destroyed the rest of the Thunderians are a constant threat. But Lion-O, the new leader of the Thundercats, with his weapon the "Sword of Omens" will help the Thundercats to have a standing chance.
Cast and characters
Leading cast
- Larry Kenney as Lion-O / Jackalman (voice)
- Peter Newman as Tygra / WilyKat / Monkian (voice)
- Earle Hyman as Panthro (voice)
- Lynne Lipton as Cheetara / WilyKit (voice)
- Earl Hammond as Mumm-Ra / Jaga / Vultureman (voice)
- Bob McFadden as Snarf / Slithe (voice)
- Gerrianne Raphael as Pumyra (voice)
- Doug Preis as Alluro (voice)
Episodes
This series spans 5 seasons with 135 episodes.
| Season | Episodes | First aired | Last aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 0 | 5 | December 6, 2011 | |
| Season 1 | 65 | January 23, 1985 | December 20, 1985 |
| Season 2 | 25 | September 8, 1986 | October 2, 1987 |
| Season 3 | 20 | September 5, 1988 | September 30, 1988 |
| Season 4 | 20 | September 4, 1989 | September 29, 1989 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Thundercats - Ho! The Movie Recurring nightmares of Thunderians killed on Thundera as he fled to safety with Jaga and the other ThunderCats awaken Lion-O. Jaga comes to tell him that they in fact survived and are living on Third Earth. Lion-O and the ThunderCats set out to find the Thunderians, but so does Mumm-Ra and his followers. |
December 6, 2011 |
| 2 | ThunderCats Ho! Creating a Pop-Culture Phenomenon | |
| 3 | Feel the Magic, Hear the Roar: ThunderCats Fans Speak Out! |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Exodus With their home planet, Thundera, about to explode, the Thunderians flee to a distant galaxy. Before they can make the long journey the Mutants sweep in and destroy most of the fleet in an attempt to capture the Eye of Thundera. Due to the attack, the Thundercats find themselves on a distant planet. A grown-up Lion-O must save his Thundercats from the Mutants on Third Earth. |
January 23, 1985 |
| 2 |
The Unholy Alliance The Mutants, who have also reached Third Earth, encounter an old pyramid. It turns out to be the home of Mumm-Ra the Ever-Living, and they join forces to capture the Sword of Omens. Both the Mutants and Mumm-Ra attempt to attack Lion-O to possess the Sword, but miserably fail. |
January 23, 1985 |
| 3 |
Berbils The Ro-Bear Berbils are a friendly group of robot bears that live on Third Earth. Lion-O and Snarf don't know this, and end up getting caught in a Ro-Bear trap. The Berbils free them however, and they form an alliance. Mumm-ra attacks the Berbil village, but the Thundercats save it. In return, the Ro-Bears help the Thundercats to build Cats' Lair, a new base for the Thundercats. |
September 11, 1985 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
ThunderCats Ho! (1) Recurring nightmares of Thunderians killed on Thundera as he fled to safety with Jaga and the other ThunderCats awaken Lion-O. Jaga comes to tell him that they in fact survived and are living on Third Earth. After meeting with the other ThunderCats, they decide to begin searching for them but Mumm-Ra has plans as well. |
September 8, 1986 |
| 2 |
ThunderCats Ho! (2) Lion-O's rescue attempt fails and the captured Thunderians are taken to Fire Rock Mountain after another failed attempt on their part to break free from their captors. |
September 9, 1986 |
| 3 |
ThunderCats Ho! (3) Lion-O loses the Sword of Omens in an avalanche. Panthro battles the Fist-Pounder with the ThunderTank. The Mutants arrive at Fire Rock Mountain to take control of the prisoners. |
September 10, 1986 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
ThunderCubs (1) Mumm-Ra learns about the Treasure of Thundera and the Sword of Plundarr (Jaga had beaten Ratilla, who owned the Sword, and then buried the sword deep underground), and he and Ma-Mutt ""travel back in time and space"" to explore the debris of Thundera and look for the sword, which causes the planet to reform. The Thundercats find out about this and must make the journey to New Thundera to stop Mumm-Ra. Lynx-O and the Thunderkittens are left at the tower while the other Thundercats at the Lair are preparing the Feliner for the trip to New Thundera. Vultureman notices that the tower is only guarded by 3 Thundercats and goes to Sky Tomb and tells Luna. Luna then sends Red Eye and Tug Mug to attack the Tower, and they capture Lynx-O and the Thunderkittens. |
September 5, 1988 |
| 2 |
ThunderCubs (2) Lion-O and the other Thundercats arrive and save Lynx-o and the Thunderkittens from Red Eye and Tug Mug. The Thundercats learn more about New Thundera, especially the dangerous places affected by the moons of Plundarr where the Lunataks come from. The Thundercats must develop special equipment and clothing to counter those dangers. Also, they learn that all the snarfs have been turned into slaves and Snarf and Snarfer want to rescue them no matter what the cost. Vultureman learns of the Thundercats plan, so he abandons the other Mutants and takes the Rat-Star. But Slithe has snuck aboard. Right after the Feliner takes off, the Rat-star ambushes them and it seems all over for the Thundercats aboard the Feliner. Lion-O uses the sword to free everyone and along with Ben-Gali and Wilykit on the HoverCat, go after the Ratstar and it crashes on Hook Mt. The Thundercats leave Third Earth's atmosphere and Lynx-O tells him that Mumm-Ra has already located the Sword of Plundarr. |
September 6, 1988 |
| 3 |
ThunderCubs (3) Mumm-Ra retrieves the Sword of Plundarr and the Thundercats arrive on New Thundera. While the Thundercats want to get the Sword and treasure, Snarf and Snarfer want to free their fellow snarfs. While the Thundercats sleep, Snarf and Snarfer sneak away, but are discovered and captured by Mumm-Ra. He disguises himself as Snarfer and he leads the Thundercats to where the treasure is located, but it can only be freed by the Sword of Omens. Once the treasure is freed, Mumm-Ra reveals himself and defeats the Thundercats with the Sword of Plundarr. Now Mumm-Ra possesses the Sword of Plundarr and the Treasure of Thundera |
September 7, 1988 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Return to Thundera (1) The Ancient Spirits of Evil give new life to Mumm-Ra and Ma-Mutt, send them to New Thundera, and build a new Pyramid for Mumm-Ra. The Thundercats say goodbye to Third Earth and depart for Thundera, leaving Tygra and Pumyra behind to watch Cat's Lair and the Tower of Omens. The Thundercats soon arrive and begin plans to build a new lair. Mumm-Ra meanwhile learns that the planet's gravity is controled by the Gyroscope under the Churning Rocks at the center of the planet. The Gyroscope is guarded by Jaguara, an ancient Thundercat sorceress. Mumm-Ra disguises himself as Jaga and puts Jaguara under a spell, making her change the rotation of the Gyroscope to throw the Thundercats clear off the planet. As the Thundercats are floating away, Lion-O calls on the Eye of Thundera to help him, and it breaks Mumm-Ra's spell... but not before Mumm-Ra takes part of the Gyroscope's regulator. Without those controls, the planet will be destroyed within 2 hours... |
September 4, 1989 |
| 2 |
Return to Thundera (2) More and more earthquakes are ocurring because of the malfunctioning Gyroscope. Meanwhile Lion-O recieves a distress signal from Thunderian refugees, and he, Cheetara, and Snarf go to find them. Mumm-Ra resurrects Grune the Destroyer, and Grune seeks out Lion-O and Cheetara. Grune finds and fights them, breaks the Sword of Omens, and then he chains them up on the Churning Rocks. Snarf, who was hiding, gathers the pieces of the Sword to take back to Bengali to be fixed. Snarf gets captured by Char, a theif who wants the Sword for himself. Snarf tricks him into reforging the Sword, and when it is as good as new, Lion-O begins to sense it, and so he calls it. The Sword goes to him, he escapes, and then he defeats Grune. But Mumm-Ra still has the Gyroscope's regulator... |
September 5, 1989 |
| 3 |
Return to Thundera (3) Lion-O, Panthro, and the Thunderkittens take the Whisker, a new flying vehicle, to the Churning Rocks to rescue the Thunderian refugees who had called from there. The Thundercats get captured by Two-Time, a robot with 2 heads. Two-Time takes them aboard his spaceship, Dome-Down, and the Thundercats see that he has also captured the refugees. Lion-O defeats Two-Time and the refugees are freed. Meanwhile, Lynx-O, Cheetara, and Bengali spot Mumm-Ra near the Churning Rocks, and inform Lion-O of this. Lion-O, Panthro, and the Thundekittens head to the Churning Rocks and confront Mumm-Ra, who is in the form of Jaga again. They break Mumm-Ra's spell (again) over Jaguara, who had temporarily repaired the Gyroscope. Lion-O defeats Mumm-Ra, but Mumm-Ra reminds them all that eventually the planet will be destroyed without the real controls, which he still has... |
September 6, 1989 |
Production
Release
| Original network/platform | Syndication |
|---|---|
| First aired | January 23, 1985 |
| Last aired | September 29, 1989 |
| Runtime | 22 minutes |
| Status | ended |
| Schedule | Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday |