Thundercracker

Thundercracker is the name of several fictional characters in the Transformers series.

1984 The Transformers

Thundercracker is one of the original Decepticon Seekers from the first year of the series. He is a warrior who usually turns into a jet. He sometimes helps form the Sky Reign combiner.

Marvel Comics

Template:Unreferenced section In the Marvel comics series, Thundercracker was depicted as one of Starscream's lieutenants, along with fellow Seeker Skywarp. (This point was driven home by the fact that while Thundercracker's colors were noticeably different from both Starscream and Skywarp, in the comics he was colored a dark, almost black shade of blue with only the colors of their wing stripes—when drawn in—made the two look different.) Frequently in the early issues, Thundercracker is seen fighting alongside Skywarp, although Thundercracker was shown to be a smarter fighter.

One of the original ten Decepticons that fell to Earth in the Ark. Thundercracker was reactivated and given the Earth mode of an F-15 jet. He would participate in many of the early battles against the Autobots - until a disastrous raid by Megatron led to Thundercracker, along with Starscream, Skywarp, Buzzsaw, Rumble, and Frenzy, getting deactivated by Omega Supreme. In the U.S. continuity Thundercracker was eventually rescued along with the other captive Decepticons, by Ratbat's forces, although he returned much earlier in the UK comics, where he was displaced to a limbo dimension by the arrival of future Autobots alongside Frenzy and Shockwave, where they had to work with Optimus Prime, Prowl and Ratchet to survive. He would then participate in the battles against Scorponok's Decepticons and then against the Autobots using their united force. None realized, however, that it was all a ruse by Starscream to gain the power of the Underbase for himself. The Autobots and Decepticons would then unite to stop him, but Starscream's power was too great, and Thundercracker was one of those deactivated by his former wingmate. He was not seen again until the G2 comic, where he seemingly took command of the Decepticon aerial contingent against the forces of Jhiaxus.

According to his expanded Transformers Universe biography, Thundercracker is unique among his fellow Decepticons in that he has a certain amount of pity for the humans they continually endanger or kill. He does not see the point of killing humans just to kill them, although he is very careful not to reveal this. No matter what small amount of sympathy Thundercracker feels for humans, his sense of self-preservation (and fear of what Megatron would do if he found out) outweighs it.

Animated series

Thundercracker was one of the first Decepticons to awaken on Earth in 1984. After laying dormant for four million years, he shared the same Earthen appearance as Starscream and Skywarp and is usually allied with them during attacks.

Despite being one of the original Decepticons and appearing in many battles during 1984 and 1985, Thundercracker had few prominent roles.

Often chafing under Starscream's self-importance and glory-seeking, he seemed to dislike Starscream and exploited reasons to undermine his authority, such as letting the Autobot Skyfire destroy one of their secret weapons merely so Starscream would get the blame.

In the year 2005, Thundercracker was present during the battle for Autobot City, and was gunned down by Optimus Prime and earlier Kup. With the subsequent defeat of their leader, Megatron, the Decepticons were forced to retreat. However, there were too many Decepticons aboard Astrotrain (who served as an impromptu escape vehicle), and Thundercracker was among those few Decepticons too weakened to put up a fight to stay on board. Being cast out into space, the damaged Decepticons drifted into the path of Unicron, and Thundercracker's body was used to create Scourge, one of Galvatron's new warriors.

In the season 3 episode, "Starscream's Ghost", Thundercracker appears to have a grave—or at least a commemorative marker—in the Decepticon crypt.

Thundercracker made a cameo in the pilot of the Transformers: Animated television series on a historical video being viewed by Optimus Prime. This historical video was stock footage from the original animated series.

Books

Thundercracker appeared in the 1984 sticker and story book Return to Cybertron written by Suzanne Weyn and published by Marvel Books.

Thundercracker appeared in the 1984 sticker and story book The Revenge of the Decepticons written by Suzanne Weyn and published by Marvel Books.

Thundercracker was featured in the 1985 Find Your Fate Junior book called Battle Drive by Barbara Siegel and Scott Siegel.

Dreamwave Productions

Thundercracker could always fly, even before joining the Decepticons. He was recruited as a Decepticon under the leadership of Megatron in his war against the Autobots on the planet Cybertron. Thundercracker became a member of the elite Seekers under Aerospace Commander Starscream. He often worked with fellow Seeker Skywarp.

Skywarp and Thundercracker launched an attack against the city of Altihex, where they killed the Autobot named Overhaul and routed Grimlock and his group of Autobots. Later, Starscream, Skywarp, and Thundercracker attacked the city of Protihex under the orders of Megatron, but this time Grimlock launched a successful counterattack. If not for Skywarp's ability to teleport to safety, the Decepticons may have not escaped alive. After Megatron's disappearance, Thundercracker remained loyal to the Decepticons.

Because he was part of Megatron's loyal inner circle, Thundercracker was chosen as a member of the crew of the Nemesis when Megatron launched it to attack the Ark, an Autobot ship. Both ships fought, and after the Decepticons boarded the Ark, it crashed on the planet Earth. All on board were placed in emergency stasis lock for millions of years.

In the Earth year 1984, a volcanic explosion awakened the Ark. The ArkTemplate:'s computer, Teletran One, reformatted all on board to be able to assume the forms of Earth machines. Thundercracker, like Starscream and Skywarp, was given the form of an F-15 fighter jet. Eventually the combined forces of the Autobots on Earth, and their human allies were able to capture the Decepticons. A ship called the Ark II was built to take the Cybertonians back to Cybertron, along with some human companions, but the ship exploded shortly after takeoff. The human allies were killed, but the Cybertonians were lost in the ocean, again in stasis lock.

After being awoken again Thundercracker and the other Decepticons on Earth returned to Cybertron with Shockwave, but he later returned to Earth under the command of Starscream. He was captured along with Soundwave and Skywarp by the Autobots and locked in cells on board the Ark. They escaped when the Ark was attacked by Bruticus (Transformers: Generation One III #1).

Devil's Due Publishing

In this re-imagining of the Transformers: Generation One story, the Autobot ship Ark was discovered by the terrorist Cobra organization. All the Transformers inside were formatted into Cobra vehicles and were to be remotely controlled by the Televipers, Cobra soldiers proficient in communication systems. Thundercraker, who in this continuity, transformed into a Cobra Rattler, was going to be piloted by Major Bludd during an Autobot invasion. Thundercracker had ideas of his own. Changing into robot mode, Bludd is crushed to death inside his cockpit. Thundercracker made no further appearances.

IDW Publishing

After Dreamwave's closure, the rights to the Transformers comics were awarded to IDW Publishing. The rebooted Generation One continuity borrowed from many previous sources, included the animated series, as well as the Marvel and Dreamwave comic books, but also featured many new and unexplored ideas and origins. Chronologically, Thundercracker made his first appearance in The Transformers: Megatron Origin, joining the criminal gladiator, Megatron. He, along with his fellow Seekers, played a role in Megatron's plan to cause a rash of terror throughout Cybertron. Thundercracker soon became a member of the Decepticons. Much later, chronologically, in The Transformers: Infiltration, Starscream is in command of a small group of Decepticons on Earth consisting of Skywarp, Thundercracker, Astrotrain, Blitzwing, and the Battlechargers Runabout and Runamuck. Starscream had discovered an Energon ore on Earth that was the Transformer equivalent of steroids, making him bold enough to advance their infiltration phase ahead of schedule. However, humans somehow obtained evidence of the Transformers' existence, derailing Starscream's plans. Thundercracker has so far been seen chasing Ratchet to kill several humans who discovered the Decepticons' presence on Earth. When Megatron finally arrived at the Decepticons' base on Earth to destroy Starscream, Thundercracker was one of the four Decepticons (along with Runabout, Runamuck, and Astrotrain) who stood between Megatron and Starscream—and who promptly surrendered to him without a fight.

Thundercracker reappeared in The Transformers: Escalation, warned by Megatron that no further treachery would be tolerated. Thundercracker then accompanied a repaired Skywarp on a bombing mission to stir up trouble between the humans. Later, he returned to Brasnya with Skywarp after his wingmate had been damaged by Autobots, damaging Hot Rod severely. However, they were forced to flee when Megatron called for pickup after his Ore-13 was expended. His alternate mode here is that of an F-22 Raptor, the successor to his original Generation One F-15 Eagle alternate jet mode.

The Transformers: All Hail Megatron

The 16-part series follows on from Escalation. In the latter half of this series the Seekers' alternate mode once again becomes an F-15 Eagle, and their robot modes resemble their counterparts in the Transformers Masterpiece toy series by Takara.

In the last edition of this series Thundercracker is seen betraying the Decepticons. He saves the North American Eastern Seaboard from a nuclear attack by flying the bomb into space and destroying it. The Autobots are seen rejoicing at Thundercracker's act. Thundercracker did not believe that there was any honor in allowing the humans to die for the sake of it. He believed that a Decepticon was forged by combat, not slaughter. Upon discovery of what he had done, Skywarp shot Thundercracker in the face at point blank range.

Eventually Thundercracker was found by other Decepticons left behind and was rebuilt. None of those left behind were aware of Thundercracker's apparent betrayal, and looked to him to lead them. However, Thundercracker sought solitude instead. For a time he sat alone and watched television, learning about humanity and life on Earth. In time, he came to respect the beauty of life and human culture. While the Autobots went on to seek out other Cybertronians on Earth together with the United States Government, Thundercracker was recruited by Autobot leader Bumblebee to assist in bringing in the Combaticons (allied with North Korea and Predacons (allied with China).

The Transformers: Evolutions: Hearts of Steel

Thundercracker and the other Seekers also appeared in the mini-series The Transformers: Evolutions: Hearts of Steel. In this alternate reality tale, Thundercracker served as Starscream's right-hand 'bot. He was presumably destroyed when Bumblebee and John Henry managed to send the entire Decepticon rail convoy into a chasm. Like his fellow Seekers, Thundercracker originally had a beast alternate mode and was later reformatted to an 18th Century flying machine.

Fun Publications

Thundercracker is rebuilt on Earth by Megatron to serve as one of his troops. In the Transformers: Timelines story "Games of Deception" Thundercracker appears among Megatron's troops.

Thundercracker appears among Megatron's troops in the story "At Fight's End" by Fun Publications.

Thundercracker also makes an unusual cameo in "Wreckers: Finale Part II". In the story the Quintessons invade the recently reformatted technorganic Cybertron. Several mechs claiming to be former Decepticons whose sparks were liberated when Optimus Primal reformatted Cybertron live in one of the few technological cites on the planet. These mechs defend the city from the Quintesson Overseer Rexian and his troops. Several of these mechs claim to formerly be the Decepticon warrior Thundercracker, now in a new body. In order to settle their dispute as to which is the real Thundercracker they decide that the one of them that destroys the most Sharkticons can claim the name Thundercracker, and the runner-up can be Dirge.

Thundercracker was among Megatron's troops when Megatron attacked Iacon with his new weapon, Devastator.

Other Media

Thundercracker appeared in the Robot Chicken episode "Junk in the Trunk". He was seen with the other Decepticons using a dam to stock-pile energon cubes until the Autobots attacked.

Toys

Illustration of the patent for the toy that became Starscream and his many repaints

• Generation 1 Jet Thundercracker (1984)

The original Thundercracker toy was originally part of the Japanese Diaclone toyline, and was imported to become part of the Transformers toyline by Hasbro in 1984. In jet mode, the toy is 21cm long. In what is considered to be a major drawback to the toy, the majority of its parts have to be removed for transformation, and it is rare to find a totally complete one, since no single mode can hold all the parts.

• Generation 1 Action Master Thundercracker (1991)

A repaint of Action Master Starscream with new accessories, this toy was only released in Europe. The color scheme does not resemble the original. Thundercracker comes with a jet which he can ride or wear as armor when it is transformed. This version of Thundercracker does not appear in any official Transformers fiction. His bio was much the same as the original toy bio, portraying him as a vicious flyer who enjoys taking his enemies apart by causing them to crash - either by shooting them down, or by nosediving and pulling up at the last second, letting his foes slam into the ground.

• Machine Wars Thundercracker (1997)

A basic sized flip changer. Sharing the same mold as fellow Decepticon Skywarp, Thundercracker was a "flip-changer" jet where if the toy's nosecone was pressed down, the toy would automatically transform to robot mode. It is difficult to determine where the Machine Wars characters are placed within the overall Transformers storyline as there was no fictional material other than their tech specs. Machine Wars characters are usually considered future or alternate reality versions of the main G1/G2 characters which was never expanded upon.

His tech spec was similar to his original G1 bio in that Thundercracker believed in the Decepticon cause, still possessed of a fierce independent streak. Believing himself superior to anything that cannot fly Thundercracker uses terror-causing tactics and his traditional sonic boom attack to destroy his enemies.

• Smallest Transformers Thundercracker (2004)

This blue redeco of Smallest Transformers Starscream was only released as a chase item (one in a case of 48) in the line's final wave. Despite the small size (roughly 2 inches in robot height), the toy is virtually faithful to the original G1 toy's design and transformation.: This toy was also released in high numbers by third party toy makes in a variety of variants, such as metallic, clear and glow-in-the-dark.

• Robot Masters Thundercracker (2005)

Thundercracker is a repaint of Robot Masters Starscream and was released in a package with Robot Masters Skywarp. Apart from his new chest missiles, he is the exact same character as his original appearance, only with a red stripe in his abdomen and more black in jet mode. Thundercracker did not appear in any Robot Masters fiction.

• Titanium 6 inch War Within Thundercracker (2006)

A new 6" Thundercracker toy based on his 'The War Within' design. A day later the pictures were taken down at the request of Hasbro. This version of Thundercracker seems to be based on his appearance in the Dreamwave War Within comics series.

This toy was later repainted as a War Within Starscream.

• Titanium 3 inch Thundercracker (2006)

A second Titanium Thundercracker, a 3 inch one based on his Generation 1 form was released. This one is a repaint of the 3 inch Starscream.

• Timelines Deluxe Thundercracker (2007)

A BotCon 2007 exclusive Thundercracker figure was announced and released at the end of June 2007 along with four other figures (including two additional Seekers, Dirge and Thrust). Thundercracker is a straight redeco of Classics Starscream and Skywarp. Thundercracker is in his G1 cartoon colors, which is a slightly lighter blue than the G1 Thundercracker toy.

• Henkei! Henkei! Deluxe Thundercracker (2008)

A blue redeco of Classics Deluxe Starscream by Takara Tomy in Japan, sold as a Toy Hobby Market and Ganbo Store exclusive. The packaging used a black and white picture of the Starscream figure in front and reused Henkei Starscream's card for the back. The paint scheme is close to the original G1 toy, but differs from the Timelines version.

• Masterpiece MP-07 Thundercracker (2008)

A repaint of Masterpiece Starscream, Masterpiece Thundercracker was released at the end of 2008. Number MP-07 in the Masterpiece series, it is based on his G1-animation deco, albeit designed to look a lot more realistic. A common problem on most, if not all, Masterpiece Thundercracker is that in production the two chest thrusters were switched around. This mistake has no effects on transformation, however.

• Generations Deluxe Thundercracker (2011)

A recoloration of the Classics Starscream, very similar to the Timelines Thundercracker sold at Botcon 2007.

• Alternity Mitsuoka Orochi featuring Thundercracker (2010)

A redeco of the Alternity Mitsuoka Orochi, which is also used for Banzai-Tron, Starscream, and Skywarp.

Transformers: Armada

Thundercracker, only mentioned off-screen in Transformers: Armada, finally made his appearance on screen in Transformers: Cybertron. Originally released alone, Thundercracker was later packaged with a Mini-Con partner as a Wal-Mart-exclusive but is unable to powerlinx with the Mini-Con. Although Armada Thundercracker did appear in the Dreamwave comics, he was portrayed very differently from the Cybertron character.

As a character, Thundercracker is a Deception highly distinguished for his love of battle. He speaks with a distinctive southern "drawl" accent. This excessive blood-lust affects the entire Decepticon group. What he lacks in skills, Megatron recognizes Thundercracker's talent for encouraging the troop's fighting spirit. He always has his sights on target in either robot or jet mode. Unfortunately, he cannot concentrate on a target, and accuracy is not his style. He also comes up with special attacks that prove ineffective against his foes, most particularly Jetfire in a battle for sky supremacy, but when reinforcements arrive, he is usually the first to be defeated.

Thundercracker's tech specs by both Hasbro and Takara revealed more about him. The Takara bio noted that he was excessively eager to go into battle, in turn inspiring the Decepticons who fought with him—which is why Megatron keeps him around. His Hasbro bio is indicates that, like the original G1 Thundercracker, his main power is his ability to create deafening sonic booms in combat. Rather oddly, the unlockable content on Hasbro's website indicates he is also somewhat of a practical joker. The non-flying Decepticons often ride on him.

The Wal-Mart-exclusive Mini-Con pack would explain how Thundercracker got his Mini-Con partner Downshift, snatching him from under the Autobot's noses in one of his trademark fear causing missions. What he did not realize was that Downshift was as dedicated to creating chaos as him, and the two formed an alliance to terrorize the Autobots on Earth.

2007 Transformers

Thundercracker lives on fear. Special materials in his vehicle body allow him to emit controlled sonic detonations that can be heard 200 miles away. Cruising along at Mach 6, he wants his enemies to hear him before they see him. He wants them to know he's coming, and cower in fear at their impending doom.

Thundercracker's design is also the basis for a series of Decepticon drones.

2008 Shattered Glass

A mirror-universe version of Thundercracker appeared in the Transformers: Timelines fiction. He is one of the heroic Decepticons. Thundercracker has the ability to completely deaden all sound in an area with his engines. He is painted in his Generation 1 Action Master toy colors.

Fictional biography

A founding member of Colonel Deathsaurus' Mayhem Suppression Squad, Thundercracker abandoned his civilian post to oppose the Autobots as a resistance fighter. Jovial and friendly, he is the squad's "morale mechanism". He pities anything that cannot fly, though he uses mango-clamps to take friends flying whether they like it or not. He can create 50-meter wide zones of pure silence but prefers to fight using his cryonic blaster and drone rockets. Recently, during a routine surveillance mission, Thundercracker picked up a signal coming from the prison at Paradron. He couldn't be sure, but could it be that some type of jailbreak was in progress?

Fun Publications

Thundercracker appears in the 2008 April Fool's comic Shattered Expectations by Fun Publications as part of the Mayhem Suppression Squad called in by the Decepticons against the Autobots Goldbug, Grimlock and Jazz.

Thundercracker also appears in the fiction Dungeons & Dinobots, a text based story from Fun Publications. In the story, he defends the Arch-Ayr fuel dump from an Autobot attack.

Thundercracker appears in the 2012 BotCon Invasion lithograph by Casey Coller and Josh Perez.

Toys

• Hasbro Transformers Timelines Deluxe Shattered Glass Thundercracker (2011)

A BotCon 2011 exclusive red/purple/green redeco of the Deluxe Starscream figure. Bundled with Timelines Voyager Galvatron.

Transformers Animated

In Transformers Animated, Thundercracker is a clone of Starscream, and embodies the egomaniacal side of his personality.

Animated series

Using the Allspark fragment embedded in his forehead, Starscream brought life to numerous clones, who took distinct aspects of his personality. Thundercracker received the egomaniac side of Starscream and thus is extremely prideful in his abilities and refuses to acknowledge that he has limits. He participated in the clones' assault on Megatron's stronghold, but was caught up in Mixmaster's cement along with Skywarp and Blurr and ended up being sent through the space bridge, to a unknown destination where Thundercracker managed to break Skywarp and Blurr out of their confinement, only to unsuccessfully attack the latter. Blurr managed to escape, humiliating Thundercracker by using him as a springboard to race his way across the galaxy. Thundercracker's ultimate fate is unknown, as the series ended without him appearing again. He, Skywarp, Swindle, and Team Chaar are the remaining Decepticons in space.

Thundercracker was never called by name in the run of the animated series.

Toys

• Hasbro Transformers Animated Activators Thundercracker (2008)

A dark blue redeco of Animated Activators Starscream.

Aligned Continuity

Books

Thundercracker appears in the novel Transformers: Exodus.

Games

Thundercracker is a playable Decepticon character in the 2010 video game Transformers: War for Cybertron. In the Decepticon campaign, he is a part of the Decepticons' flying squad known as the "Seekers" - Alongside Starscream and Skywarp. Thundercracker despises those that cannot take flight and views himself as being superior to those that cannot. He sometimes questions the Decepticon cause, but a fear of Megatron's wrath quiets his discontent.

Toys

• Arms Micron Deluxe Thundercracker