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Revision as of 02:38, 2 June 2004 by Ihcoyc (talk | contribs) (Expanding a bit)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)Thundarr the Barbarian was a Saturday morning animated cartoon show, produced by Ruby-Spears Productions. It was broadcast during the early 1980s. Comic book writer-artist Jack Kirby worked on the production design for the show. 21 half-hour episodes were produced from October, 1980 to September, 1982, when the show went off the air.
The show was set in a post-apocalyptic wasteland whose ruins typically featured recognisable geographical features from the United States, such as Mount Rushmore, New York City, or Washington, DC. Through this setting, Thundarr and his companions Princess Ariel and the Wookiee-like Ookla the Mok battled evil wizards who combined magical spells with technologies from the pre-catastrophe world. Bob Ridgely was Thundarr's voice actor; Princess Ariel was played by Nellie Bellflower.
While many people believe that Kirby was the primary designer of the show (mainly due to his similarly themed Kamandi: The Last Boy On Earth), the job actually went to fellow comic book writer-artist Alex Toth, the same man who designed the popular character Space Ghost for Saturday morning television. The show itself was actually the creation of comic writer Steve Gerber, creator of Marvel Comics' Howard the Duck.
The opening narration to the show is as follows:
The year: 1994. From out of space comes a runaway planet, hurtling between the Earth and the Moon, unleashing cosmic destruction! Man's civilization is cast in ruin!
Two thousand years later, Earth is reborn...
A strange new world rises from the old: a world of savagery, super science, and sorcery. But one man bursts his bonds to fight for justice! With his companions Ookla the Mok and Princess Ariel, he pits his strength, his courage, and his fabulous Sunsword against the forces of evil.
He is Thundarr, the Barbarian!