Tuesday, June 2, 2009

Forgotten Toons: Thundarr the Barbarian

In a way, I am sad that I am younger than I am. In part, I wish I could have seen some of the crazy films from the 1970s and 80s when they were fresh and from this perspective. That also applies to the cartoons of this era. One show that I have learned to love through the advent of cable is...
It is hard to explain the concept of this show in any logical manner, but that won't stop me. Logic and I are not good friends, but we can give it a shot!
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In the future (read: 1994), a major disaster has ravaged the world. Man, how many cartoon shows start out with that?!? In the wake of this, people reverted back to the old ways of magic and swords. Not everyone got the memo, however, and many people use advanced technology instead. In a world of wizards, monsters and cyborgs, only our titular hero can save the day.
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The cast of this show is interesting, to say the least. Our hero is a man in the mold of Yor, Conan and Kamandi. He wields his famous 'Sun Sword,' which is basically a light saber. His first companion is Ariel- not to be confused with the mermaid- the sorceress. She does not have much back story, but she can pretty much make anything out of yellow energy a la Sinestro and can be a walking deus ex machina at times. Lastly, there is Ookla the Mok, who is a weird alien/Wookie thing. They never go all that in-depth on the guy, which might be the point. Then again, if the show had been given more than 21 episodes, they might have as well.
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To be honest, the show is a little stock at times when it comes to plot. Thundarr and company go somewhere, come across a problem and try to save the day. Where it sells you is the strange characters and visuals. A robot wizard with a rotating face and personality? Check. (A side note- this character debuted three years before Man-E-Faces) If you want to see monsters fight robots and a wizard, this is your show. If you can't make sense of it all, just go along for the ride.
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Do you like zombies and Joe Piscopo? Well weirdo, I have something for you. Stay tuned...

1 comment:

  1. This was one of my fave cartoon as a little kid! Loved this show.

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