Thundarr the Barbarian

Thundarr the Barbarian is a Saturday morning animated television series which ran for twenty-one episodes over two seasons between 1980 and 1982. Directly inspired by comic books, with the likes of R.E. Howard's Conan the Barbarian and Flash Gordon, Thundarr the Barbarian is set in a future (A.D. 3994) post-apocalyptic wasteland divided into kingdoms or territories—the majority of which are ruled by wizards—and whose ruins typically feature recognizable geographical features from the United States, starting in New York City and working itself to Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Mount Rushmore, San Francisco or Washington, D.C.

The hero Thundarr, a muscular warrior, was meant to be strongly akin to the comic book characters Thor the God of Thunder and Conan The Barbarian. In this setting, Thundarr and his companions Princess Ariel, a formidable young sorceress, and the Wookiee-like Ookla the Mok traveled the world on horseback, battling evil wizards who combine magical spells with technologies from the pre-catastrophe world.

Listen to the audio portion of each episode below.

Thundarr 01 Secret of the Black Pearl
Thundarr 02 Harvest of Doom
Thundarr 03 Mindok the Mind Menace
Thundarr 04 Raiders of the Abyss
Thundarr 05 Treasure of the Moks
Thundarr 06 Attack of the Amazon Women
Thundarr 07 The Brotherhood of Night
Thundarr 08 Challenge of the Wizards
Thundarr 09 Valley of the Man Apes
Thundarr 10 Stalker from the Stars
Thundarr 11 Portal Into Time
Thundarr 12 Battle of the Barbarians
Thundarr 13 Den of the Sleeping Demon
Thundarr 14 Wizard Wars
Thundarr 15 City of Evil
Thundarr 16 Island of the Body Snatchers
Thundarr 17 Last Train to Doomsday
Thundarr 18 Prophecy of Peril
Thundarr 19 Fortress of Fear
Thundarr 20 Master of the Stolen Sunsword
Thundarr 21 Trial by Terror

Directly inspired by comic books, with the likes of R.E. Howard's Conan the Barbarian and Flash Gordon, Thundarr the Barbarian is set in a future (A.D. 3994) post-apocalyptic wasteland divided into kingdoms or territories—the majority of which are ruled by wizards—and whose ruins typically feature recognizable geographical features from the United States, starting in New York City and working itself to Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Mount Rushmore, San Francisco or Washington, D.C.

Other episodes with recognizable settings are located in Central America, while one is in London. Another notable feature of this future Earth is that the Moon was broken in two pieces, but the gravity of the pieces drew them back together, orbiting at roughly the same height as the intact Moon once did. The shattered moon and the ruins of the former human civilization were caused by the passage of a runaway planet (more resembling a comet) between the Earth and the Moon in 1994, which, from scenes shown in the opening sequence, caused radical changes in the Earth's climate, geography and tidal effects. However, by the time period in which the series is set (2,000 years later), the Earth and Moon seem to have settled into a new balance.

The hero Thundarr (voiced by Robert Ridgely), a muscular warrior, was meant to be strongly akin to the comic book characters Thor the God of Thunder and Conan The Barbarian. In this setting, Thundarr and his companions Princess Ariel, a formidable young sorceress, and the Wookiee-like Ookla the Mok traveled the world on horseback, battling evil wizards who combine magical spells with technologies from the pre-catastrophe world.