Sword In A Hole

"Wilycub, post: 124133, member: 25043" said:

Spot on! He said so himself. R/B insisted on that. So Starr had to pretty much craft the story around these new action figures and vehicles. That's why the Berserkers just pop out of nowhere with a new look and so does the Fistpounder.

Having many years of experience writing comics, Starr usually never wrote anything that didn't have a purpose or a backstory or a reason for being in the story. So being forced to ignore continuity as well as logic and write in all these new characters was something he very much disliked. He was not at all happy with "ThunderCats HO!". I've always felt bad for the raw deal that Starr got. To me, he was the true creator of ThunderCats.

Amen to that.

"Wilycub, post: 124133, member: 25043" said:

Spot on! He said so himself. R/B insisted on that. So Starr had to pretty much craft the story around these new action figures and vehicles. That's why the Berserkers just pop out of nowhere with a new look and so does the Fistpounder.

Having many years of experience writing comics, Starr usually never wrote anything that didn't have a purpose or a backstory or a reason for being in the story. So being forced to ignore continuity as well as logic and write in all these new characters was something he very much disliked. He was not at all happy with "ThunderCats HO!". I've always felt bad for the raw deal that Starr got. To me, he was the true creator of ThunderCats.

Maybe it’s rose-coloured glasses and 30 years of watching it more than any other episodes, but I think Tcats Ho! is great, imagine your 7 and all these amazing characters feature at the same time, if LS was having a headache writing it, it didn’t show. I don’t think there’s any harm in showcasing the toy line, as I wanted the toys. lol

Basically, the Thundercats writing team are a bit like the 70s rock band Styx. Leonard Starr is Dennis DeYoung and Peter Lawrence is Tommy Shaw. When Styx got rid of Dennis in 2000 they just shot themselves in the foot creatively and their all their subsequent albums, without the benefit of their main songwriting talent, just don't cut it.

"Captain Shiner, post: 124140, member: 25266" said:

Maybe it’s rose-coloured glasses and 30 years of watching it more than any other episodes, but I think Tcats Ho! is great, imagine your 7 and all these amazing characters feature at the same time, if LS was having a headache writing it, it didn’t show. I don’t think there’s any harm in showcasing the toy line, as I wanted the toys. lol

Absolutely! I watched ThunderCats HO! when I was around 9 and I loved it! I still enjoy it very much. I don't consider it a bad episode by any stretch of the imagination. It may not be Starr's greatest work but even without his full enthusiasm, he still created a great 5 parter.

There are many TCats episodes however that I absolutely abhor!

"Wilycub, post: 124151, member: 25043" said:

There are many TCats episodes however that I absolutely abhor!

I demand a list!:)

"Wilycub, post: 124151, member: 25043" said:

Absolutely! I watched ThunderCats HO! when I was around 9 and I loved it! I still enjoy it very much. I don't consider it a bad episode by any stretch of the imagination. It may not be Starr's greatest work but even without his full enthusiasm, he still created a great 5 parter.

There are many TCats episodes however that I absolutely abhor!

Easily the best of the 5-parters in my view.

Yes, I'd like to see a worst episodes list to which I would happily contribute.

Worst episode list?

The Circus Train and The Jade Dragon for starters!

Dometone, Side Swipe, Swan Song, ScrewLoose...

I loved Thundercats Ho. I remember renting and getting the video copied when I was about 5 years old. I watched that VHS until the quality really deteriorated.

"Booshman, post: 124152, member: 25641" said:

I demand a list!:)

Aye aye, cap'n! :biggrin In no particular order, these are episodes that I just can't stand:

Ma-Mutt's Confusion
The Heritage
The Formula
Exile Isle
Sideswipe

Hell yeah, Exile Isle has to be one of the dodgiest uses of the catchphrase ever. Along with Locket Of Lies, which just typified what the writers were doing with Jaga - so much of his season 3-4 appearances were just to tell Lion-O to use the catchphrase!

I really must re-watch season 2-4. Most of the episodes I have only seen once.

"LiamABC, post: 124168, member: 25438" said:

Hell yeah, Exile Isle has to be one of the dodgiest uses of the catchphrase ever. Along with Locket Of Lies, which just typified what the writers were doing with Jaga - so much of his season 3-4 appearances were just to tell Lion-O to use the catchphrase!

To me most of these episodes that I mentioned here, just don't feel ThunderCat-y. "Exile Isle" for example, seems so far detached from the TCats mythos. Also I think it was totally ridiculous that Lion-O chose to go the Exile Isle alone and leave behind the Sword of Omens, fearing that it my be lost forever if the Xlam gas exploded, AND YET once there he himself calls it to him. :confused::mad:00

My point exactly. He uses the catchphrase when it's light years away.

"Captain Shiner, post: 124106, member: 25266" said:

Plus the fact that the fire rocks only affected the thunderians when the Vertas opened air vents, negating the entire needs for the forest of mists and Lynx-O Braille board in later seasons.

The whole Lynx-O and his braille board being the only way for the Thundercats into Darkside was so dodgy from the start. In the same five-parter that they introduce the concept, they immediately negate it with Panthro inventing the special fog lamps (that then never get mentioned again). Then in "Sideswipe", they act like Lynx-O needs to go with Mandora because he is the only way to get her into Darkside. Except Mandora is not a Thunderian, and she could just use the easy route of going through Fire Rock Mountain, right? Then we have episodes like "Time Switch" where the Thundercats get to Darkside without Lynx-O at all. In that episode, we're not even shown how they got there, actually. We just know Lynx-O was not with them.