In the first episode, our heroes watch as their home planet of Thundera blows up. Jaga (Earl Hammond), Lion-O (Larry Kenney), Cheetara (Lynne Lipton), Pathro (Earle Hyman), Tygra (Peter Newman), Wilykat (Peter Newman) and Wilykit (Lynne Lipton), and Snarf (Robert McFadden) have all survived to carry on the traditions. On board their ship is The Eye of Thundera, which is part of the Sword of Omens and is Lion-O's legacy to wield, as Lord of the ThunderCats (when he grows up a bit). Jaga gives them all clothes and weapons because they will need them on their new world whereas before, they didn't. They are quickly attacked by the mutants (Jackalman, Monkian, and Slithe) from the planet Plundar. Because of the damage to their ship, they can't get where they were supposed to go so they have to settle for a planet that is mostly compatible and one they can get to, Third Earth. Jaga stays awake to pilot the ship while the rest go into suspended animation. He does say that some aging will take place, which explains why Lion-O is a young adult when he wakes up. I'm guessing that he was older than Wilykit and Wilykat anyway because they're still children. Since Jaga dies before the ship lands, it makes a rather rough crash landing and is more or less ruined. To make matters even worse, the mutants have followed them to this planet still determined to find the eye of Thundera! Since Lion-O and Snarf are the only two out of their capsules, they have to fight off the mutants alone, well mostly alone, because Jaga's ghost is still there with them. Lion-O wakes up the rest of the ThunderCats with the Sword of Omens and they all fight together, but the mutants won't be gone forever.
Lion-O declares that they need to build and establish their new empire here on Third Earth. Of course, Lion-O missed a lot of the growing up years, so he wants to wander off on his own and explore while the rest work on building a residence. Lion-O is learning that his actions have consequences and the sword can only be used to fight evil, not just for what he wants to do. While this is going on, the mutants are about to meet Mumm-Ra (Earl Hammond), the current ruler of the planet. Mumm-Ra is very deadly. He destroys the mutant ship so that they're stuck there and have no choice but to work with him from now on. They see him as a dried-up mummy, but he has a lot more power than they know. He transports them to attack Lion-O, but they fail as usual. Lion-O once again goes off on his own to look for Cheetara and Tygra, but refuses to call for the other ThunderCats when he runs into Mumm-Ra the Ever-Living this time. He's going to have to learn how to grow up and work with others a bit better. Luckily, he finds that Mumm-Ra can be banished by fear of his own reflection.
Panthro's pretty good at building stuff, so he's always salvaging parts from the wreckage and making new equipment. Snarf and Lion-O meet some other of the planet's inhabitants, the Robear Burbles. They're like electronic koalas, but they have fur too. Maybe they're half-robotic? They're cute and fun though. They are basically gardeners who get attacked from savages sometimes, but they're pacifists so they don't want to hurt anyone. Lion-O runs off the savages without hurting them, but that just makes things worse when those higher up the food chain come down. The ThuderCats are going to have to help the Burbles and see if they can make things right. Apparently, this planet is a lot more complex and populated than they first thought! The ThunderCats are going to have to help the current planet inhabitants when the mutants try to enslave or attack them.
Basically there's a formula to the ThunderCats episodes. To start off, something bad happens, usually having to do with either the mutants or Mumm-Ra or both and the ThunderCats have to fix it before things get even worse. They usually win without actually hurting anyone though, because violence is bad and you should only fight in defense of yourself or others. Most 80's cartoons had some kind of lesson to be learned from every episode. They even have the requisite "drugs are bad" episode when Tigra gets addicted to magic sparkling power, but really, I like their lessons. They're not overt and as a kid, I never even noticed that we were supposed to learn something as well. The cartoons were just fun and the lessons just got absorbed in.
There is only one special feature on the DVD. In it, Wil Wheaton and some other "superfans" talk about the ThunderCats. It is interesting to say the least. As a child I loved the ThunderCats. I was worried that over the years, the show wouldn't have held up, but I still enjoyed watching it again. Even though the shows tend to have a formula, they're still very entertaining to watch. This is a series that you can watch as an adult or a child. It's perfect for family time, so introduce your family and re-live the magic of the ThunderCats today!
