When it comes to everything except the crown,
you're always going to be second place.
Agh!
[GASPS]
In an age where every piece of media from generations past
is being rebooted, remade, or retooled, most of them
feel completely unnecessary.
However, in 2011, one of the seminal children's animated
franchises was rebooted with an eye toward maturity,
complexity, and artistry--
ThunderCats.
And yet, despite being arguably the best
version of the feline heroes of Third Earth ever to exist,
it failed.
The ThunderCats was created by Theodore Walter "Tobin" Wolf.
Yes, the man had a ton of names.
Based on an idea his daughter had,
Ted Wolf was able to sell the concept of a team of cat people
in a sword and sorcery setting to LJN and Rankin-Bass.
From there, the idea was developed by comic book writers
Bob Haney and Leonard Star and turned
into an animated show, toy line, and transmedia experience.
Produced in a co-production model with the Japanese studio
Pacific Animation Company, the property
was exploited in much the same way
as Masters of the Universe and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
Lasting over 130 episodes and airing from 1985 to 1989,
ThunderCats became a fan favorite with a cult following,
even to this day.
However, after the show was canceled,
the franchise ostensibly laid dormant for over 20 years.
While rumors of live action adaptations and reboots
would crop up semi-consistently, they never
manifested into anything tangible.
Until in 2011, Cartoon Network brought the show back
for a prestige animated reboot.
This new incarnation of the ThunderCats world
was developed by Ethan Spaulding and Michael Jelenic.
They set out to make a high stakes adventure
show that would lovingly mix the characters and aesthetics
of the old show with contemporary storytelling
techniques and animation styles.
They were attempting to fuse The Lion King and Star Wars.
Their approach to ThunderCats is a perfect
updating to the old show.
In the original program, we follow the last surviving
members of Thundera as they attempt
to survive on their new home world, dubbed Third Earth.
However, in an accident during cryo sleep,
the young Prince Lion-O's chamber
was damaged, allowing his body to age in real time,
thus Lion-O, now the leader of the ThunderCats,
must balance the struggles of being
an adult man with the mind and maturity of a small child.
It's kind of a Captain Marvel being-an-adult-is-fun type
of wish fulfillment idea.
However, the 2011 reboot does away with almost all of that.
It would focus on the more serious take on the characters.
We followed the ThunderCats royal family,
who have lived on Third Earth for generations,
as they attempt to protect the kingdom of Thundera.
The cats are led by Claudus, a wise and just ruler.
His two sons, Tygra and Lion-O, are both
vying to be the heir of the throne.
The kingdom is attacked by the evil sorcerer Mumm-Ra one day,
and Claudus is killed.
The majority of the citizens are enslaved
and a small band of ThunderCats set out
to find the Book of Omens, a magical book that
will purportedly help them to eventually defeat
Mumm-Ra and free their friends.
In an interesting twist on the dynamics of the original show,
Tygra and Lion-O are brothers, and Claudus originally
intends Tygra to take the Sword of Omens
and lead the ThunderCats.
However, the sword chooses Lion-O.
There's also a bit of a love triangle established
between Tygra, Lion-O, and Cheetara.
You know we're going to have to settle this eventually.
May the best cat win.
Additionally, the spirit of Lion-O's
young-person-in-over-their-head character type is represented
by him being the younger brother and not quite ready
for leadership.
The show is intended to have a 52-episode first season,
with the season being constructed
by four 13-episode arcs.
Much like the original show, this reboot
would be an East meets West co-production.
Warner Bros.
Animation and the Japanese Studio 4C.
Usually these Japanese and American co-productions
don't go very smoothly.
However, with ThunderCats, everything is pitch perfect.
From the contemporary costume updates
to the animation style to the action sequences,
the show hits all the marks perfectly.
4C would rebrand the aesthetic of the cats
and make them applicable to a contemporary audience
with a mature, yet stylistic, approachable aesthetic.
Most of the cats now look functional and cool,
but not overly grounded.
You can look at any of them and instantly tell
the type of world they live in.
Much of the visual aesthetic of the show
is directly in line with the show's East meets West theme.
European knights and medieval garb
complement Chinese- and Japanese-influenced outfits.
Specific attention is paid to making sure
that certain elements of the character's costume
reflect their personalities and their previous versions.
However, despite all the brilliant decisions
being made behind the scenes by Spaulding and Jelenic,
the ThunderCats reboot did not get off to an easy start.
You see, right as the first season of the show
was going into production, the Fukushima nuclear facility
disaster happened in Japan, causing
the US dollar to plummet.
Overnight, the per episode budget skyrocketed.
The show went from $325,000 per episode to roughly $550,000
per episode.
Despite this hardship, Warner Bros.
gave Cartoon Network the OK to forge ahead,
giving the team the green light to produce the show.
When asked about the divergences from the original show,
Michael Jelenic said, "The old show felt more
like a Saturday morning animated series,
and this feels more like a movie.
This is definitely darker, but we've put a lot more focus
on the characters and the arc.
And because of that, we might have a few more sophisticated
themes going on in this."
When it premiered, despite hardcore retro fans being
resistant to the new costumes, character backstory
changes, and continuity, the show
pulled in over 2.4 million viewers.
Critics also praised the show, saying
that it brought a maturity, depth, and gravitas
to the source material that had never been seen in the property
previously.
However, unlike today when companies roll out multiple
versions of a beloved IP in order to mitigate fan backlash,
just look at what they did to the most recent He-Man reboot--
two separate shows, one for little kids and one for adults.
The hardcore ThunderCats fans did not
respond well to the show when it was airing.
And partially because of this, the ratings did not last.
Despite positive critical chatter,
the ratings declined and the show
was canceled after 26 episodes, roughly halfway
through the proposed 52-episode run.
Ultimately, there were multiple contributing factors
to the cancellation of the show, the first being it
was really hard to find.
Yes, it was on Cartoon Network, but the 2010s
were the rise of streaming and the beginning of the end
for traditional cable.
Because of that, the show felt strangely
invisible to its core audience of viewers, primarily
younger people, who were rapidly relying on streaming more
and more.
Additionally, an older contingent
of fans who were set in their ways at the time,
saw the new designs for the ThunderCats
and immediately wrote it off, even
though it's exactly what they'd been asking for for decades--
a mature, dark, and complex show about the ThunderCats.
And to make things even more complex,
the ThunderCats reboot's toys didn't sell
as well as everyone was hoping.
Could this have been because of the darker
tone of the story, a lack of interest from younger fans?
Possibly.
However, the show actually wasn't immediately canceled.
It was put on hiatus in an effort
to get a better idea of the true rating numbers and the toy
sales.
And, unfortunately, when they came together,
they just weren't enough.
My ancestor defeated you with the Sword of Omens.
I will do the same.
The show just didn't connect with an audience
with enough gusto to justify the financial expenditure
that Warner's and Cartoon Network were putting into it.
In the decade plus since its release,
ThunderCats has developed quite a reputation for itself.
And those toxic fans who disowned it
upon its initial release?
Many of them have been its most ardent supporters now.
But it's too little too late, which
sucks because it was a thematic evolution on top
of the existing show.
It could have been one of the best shows Cartoon Network ever
produced, if it was given a chance.
But the extra pricey per episode cost
ensured that wasn't going to happen.
Today, many fans point to the episode
titled "Legacy" as one of the best ThunderCats episodes ever.
The episode, like any good distant past
or distant future story, gives a greater context
to the world of the ThunderCats, their relationship
with Mumm-Ra, and the ever-raging battle
for Third Earth.
To put it simply, for ThunderCats fans,
this is basically "Days of Future Past."
And it's so painful to think about all
the other great ThunderCats stories
we could have gotten if things had gone better.
Well, that's it for this episode of Nerdstalgic.
Do you think we'll ever get that proposed big budget ThunderCats
movie from Adam Wingard?
Let us in the comments below.
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