ThunderCats (comics) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids ThunderCats
Issue #1 of Thundercats, December 1985.
Publication information
Publisher	Marvel Comics Wildstorm Comics
Schedule	Monthly
Format	Limited series
Genre	Sword and planet

The ThunderCats comic book series brings the adventures of the ThunderCats to life on paper! These comics are based on the popular TV show of the same name. They were first published by Marvel Comics through their Star Comics brand in 1985. This first series ran for three years and had 24 issues.

At the same time, Marvel UK also published a new series with 129 issues, which also lasted for three years. Later, starting in 2002, Wildstorm Productions took over publishing ThunderCats comics. They released five mini-series and several one-shot comics, which are single comic issues that tell a complete story.

The History of ThunderCats Comics

Early Adventures: Marvel and Star Comics

The very first ThunderCats comic book from Star Comics came out in December 1985. For the first eight issues, new comics were released every two months. After that, they switched to a monthly schedule until the series ended in June 1988.

While Star Comics was publishing their series, Marvel UK started their own ThunderCats comics in March 1987. Unlike Star Comics, Marvel UK released their issues every week! This continued until issue #84, when they started publishing every two weeks. Later, from issue #95 to #105, they became monthly. Then, they went back to a biweekly schedule until the final issue, #129, in January 1991. Marvel UK also created special holiday comics, collected editions, and hardcover annual books.

New Stories: Wildstorm Comics Era

In 2002, DC Comics began publishing new ThunderCats stories through their Wildstorm brand. DC Comics is part of Warner Bros., which gained the rights to the ThunderCats because they bought the company that owned them in 1989.

The first mini-series was called Reclaiming Thundera. It came out between 2002 and 2003. This series showed Lion-O still fighting against Mumm-Ra and The Mutants. A big part of the story was how Mumm-Ra slowly tricked WilyKat, which became important later. After another battle, Lion-O went into the Book of Omens to train. But Mumm-Ra used a powerful spell to trap Lion-O in the book for many years in the real world. This allowed Mumm-Ra to take control of Thundera.

In the next mini-series, The Return, published in 2003, Lion-O finally came back to Thundera. He found that Mumm-Ra had taken over and enslaved everyone. Many of the ThunderCats were scattered. Panthro was forced to work as a slave. Tygra and Cheetara were prisoners, and Wilykit and Wilykat were Mumm-Ra's personal servants. WilyKat realized he had made a mistake and ran away. In the end, Lion-O and the ThunderCats defeated Mumm-Ra once more.

By the third mini-series, The Dogs of War, also from 2003, many years had passed. Thundera was doing very well. Lion-O was now older and a skilled leader. When Dogstar forces invaded, Lion-O even had to team up with Mumm-Ra! During this adventure, WilyKit found love, and WilyKat made up for his past actions. The story ended with Mumm-Ra offering Lion-O a special drink to make him young again, so their fight could continue.

Two other mini-series were set during the time of the original animated TV show. These were Hammerhand's Revenge (2003-2004) and Enemy's Pride (2004).

Wildstorm also published several one-shot comics between 2003 and 2004. These included two crossovers with Battle of the Planets and one crossover with Superman. There was also a Sourcebook and two "Origins" issues that told the back-story of some main characters. It's important to know that most of the Wildstorm ThunderCats comics are not considered part of the main story. This is because their plots sometimes don't quite fit with the original TV show.

In 2012, Panini Comics started a new series in the UK. This series, called ThunderCats Magazine, was connected to the 2011 TV series. The first issue featured a comic strip called 'Safe Haven'.

In 2016, DC Comics created a special crossover comic called He-Man/Thundercats, where the ThunderCats met He-Man!

Collected Editions

Many of the ThunderCats comic series have been collected into larger books called trade paperbacks. These are great ways to read a whole story arc at once!

• ThunderCats: Reclaiming Thundera (144 pages, Titan Books, August 2003, ISBN: 1-84023-732-5, Wildstorm, July 2003, ISBN: 1-4012-0036-2)
• ThunderCats: The Return (128 pages, Wildstorm, February 2004, ISBN: 1-4012-0273-X)
• ThunderCats: Dogs of War (128 pages, Wildstorm, July 2004, ISBN: 1-4012-0287-X)
• ThunderCats: Hammer Hand's Revenge (144 pages, Wildstorm, October 2004, ISBN: 1-4012-0297-7)
• ThunderCats: Enemy's Pride (128 pages, Wildstorm, June 2005, ISBN: 1-4012-0617-4)