Thunderwing
Encyclopedia
Thunderwing is the name of several fictional character
s from the Transformers
series. Introduced in 1989, he was a major villain in the Marvel Comics
Transformers series. Although Thunderwing was created after the US Transformers television series ended, the character of Black Shadow did appear in the Japanese Transformers series, who was based on the same design as Thunderwing. In later years other characters have carried on the name Thunderwing in the Transformers line, including two Mini-Cons and a mirror-universe version of the original character, who was a law enforcement officer. In 2010 Hasbro released a new Thunderwing toy based on the original character.
Mega Pretender
. He is cruel and power hungry.
's Transformers comic book as a Decepticon warlord, first appearing in #60 of the US comic.
Thunderwing had several appearances in the UK comics which predate his appearance in US #60, showing how Thunderwing rose from being a young, promising warlord to leader of the Decepticons. His first chronological appearance was in a text story called "The Magnificent Six", where flashbacks revealed he had once been a lieutenant of the sadistic Decepticon leader Megadeath. At this point, before Prime and Megatron were marooned on Earth, Thunderwing already had his Pretender shell. Later, his trial for leadership, set by a council of Decepticon elders, consisted of hunting down and exterminating several Autobot
prisoners released on Earth but due to the intervention of Nightbeat
& Siren, Thunderwing was taken offline. He later reactivated and went on a rampage before a Decepticon squad arrived to take him back to Cybertron
; he beat the squad into obeying him and then launched a doomed five-man attack on the Ark
in revenge for what Nightbeat did to him. While this attack was a failure, the drive and ambition he'd shown impressed the Decepticon elders and they promoted him to Decepticon commander.
In his first US appearance, he was concerned with the Autobot Pretender Classics
bringing hope to the Autobot resistance and increasing the number of attacks on Decepticon bases. He sent a team of Decepticon assassin
s, led by Bludgeon
, to crush the Pretenders and the entire resistance cell led by Emirate Xaaron. The assassin group followed the Autobot Pretender Classics down to the center of Cybertron, where they accidentally woke up the god Primus
, causing the events that led to the Matrix Quest
.
Obsessed with acquiring the power of the Creation Matrix, Thunderwing followed the various Autobot squads, intending to steal the Matrix once they located it for him. During the mission, he was able to capture and severely wound Nightbeat's squad and fought the Classic Pretenders to a standstill before finally reaching the Matrix. However, the Matrix had already begun to become corrupted and wanting to better understand the nature of evil, it bonded with Thunderwing and became far more corrupt. The warlord become possessed by the Matrix, depriving him of his free will and unleashing him on the Ark.
The possessed Thunderwing was defeated by a joint effort between the Autobots and the Decepticons. Still holding the Matrix, he was hurled to an unknown planetoid, where he remained inactive until the corrupted Matrix revived him and used him to attack the dark god Unicron
. However, the attack failed, killing Thunderwing and causing Optimus Prime to capture and revert the Matrix to its original state.
comic, but his Generation One counterpart. In this world, the incarnation of Thunderwing was one of the heralds of Unicron, from a different dimension
, sent to cause destruction prior to Unicron
's arrival alongside his fellow heralds, Scourge
, Dirge
, Bludgeon
and their leader Galvatron
(all characters from the Generation 1 universe, though their names are not mentioned and are not the versions from the Generation One Dreamwave comics).
While Galvatron attacked Megatron on Earth the other Heralds attacked the Decepticon base on Cybertron. Activating the Spacebridge links and leaving Bludgeon behind to guard them, Thunderwing, Scourge and Dirge journeyed to the Decepticon base on Earth, unaware they were being watched by the Mini-Cons. Finding and beating the luckless Thrust to a pulp, they then detected anomalies within the Spacebridge network and returned to Cybertron - only to be destroyed on their arrival by a cache of explosives set by Jetfire
.
debut in their Stormbringer
miniseries in 2006. Thunderwing was the first Transformer scientist to realize that the war was killing Cybertron, and that it was too late to stop the deterioration. He tried to find a way of ensuring Transformers could survive it by the invention of the bio-cybernetic grafting technology
, where protective outer shells would be created from "bodily tissue" extracted from living Transformers. Showing it to Megatron, the Decepticon leader rejected it as an abomination and stripped Thunderwing of his rank; desperate, Thunderwing tested the grafting process on himself. The result was a disaster. Thunderwing was transformed into a supremely powerful, but completely insane being, and went on a rampage that devastated even more of the planet before facing a combined Autobot-Decepticon force at Thunderhead Pass. This was the final event that saw Cybertron made uninhabitable and forced the Transformers to abandon it, while Thunderwing ended up in the bowels of the planet with his sentience burnt out.
In 2006, Jetfire
and the Technobots
investigated an energy spike at Thunderhead Pass and discovered a small cult, led by Bludgeon
and consisting of several other Decepticons (all of whom were amongst the Pretender toys). Worshiping Thunderwing, they reactivated him with Ultra Energon, hacked into his mind and gave it rudimentary commands to attack & destroy whole planets, believing this to be a form of mass sacrifice that would lead to the rejuvenation of Cybertron. Acting on these commands, Thunderwing launched an attack on Nebulos. By the first page of Stormbringer #3, a large swathe of Nebulos had been destroyed and even the intervention of the local Decepticon garrison couldn't hold him back. With the destruction of the device Bludgeon used to control him, Thunderwing abruptly returned to Cybertron only to be confronted by the Wreckers
, a Predacon-led Decepticon party and Optimus Prime himself. After a massive battle Jetfire discovered his weakness: the Ultra Energon used to power Thunderwing burnt itself out quicker the more he exerted himself. A final all-out attack by Prime caused Thunderwing to simply shut down.
Thunderwing's fate was eventually revealed in the Spotlight issue on Galvatron
, where it was discovered that Hound
's unit had been dispatched to guard his inert corpse. Galvatron arrived and easily defeated them, taking Thunderwing's body back to the Dead Universe. When Cyclonus
activated the Nega-Core central to the Expansion, it was revealed that Thunderwing was its guardian, easily driving off Ultra Magnus
' Autobots.(Spotlight: Cyclonus
)
In this continuity Thunderwing's shell had a much larger secondary "Ultra" robot mode, which involved his wings wrapping around his main Pretender body as an extra layer of armor, his legs extending, and his wing-mounted engines becoming giant clawed arms. This mode was likely highly energy-consumptive, and possibly contributed to Thunderwing's second defeat.
stories Onslaught told Metalhawk
the story of how his Elite Guard team captured Thunderwing. Metalhawk then told Onslaught about how his team captured Blue Bacchus.
.
line, Thunderwing is an Autobot allied Mini-Con who turns into a F-14 Tomcat
jet fighter. He is a member of the Clear Skies Team along with Nightscream
and Steel Wind.
The toy of Classic Thunderwing is identical to that of Cybertrons Nightscream (packaged with Cybertron/Primus
as an end-of-series bonus).
Thunderwing enjoys aerial combat and is hyperactive.
According to the author Thunderwing's personality is based on that of Joe Friday
, but he comments that RoboCop
and Judge Dredd
also seem to fit Thunderwing.
where he is traveling in space in pursuit the criminal known as Beta. He intercepts a radio signal from Earth which mentions the Decepticon Soundwave
. Finding Soundwave is wanted for a minor offense from long ago he heads to Earth. He finds Soundwave involved in a battle the Autobot Blaster
for the possession of the malfunctinging Decepticon Blitzwing
. Although not interested in the dispute, Soundwave convinces Thunderwing that Soundwave cannot leave Earth for trial on Cybertron until his commanding officer can be notified, and the only way to get Starscream online it to rescue Blitzwing. Thunderwing is still unwilling to takes sides in the battle against Blaster, merely following the Decepticon, but Soundwave tricks Blaster into mentioning a crime he committed on Cybertron while Thunderwing is in nearby. Thunderwing immediately goes into arrest mode and tries to capture Blaster, but Blaster escapes in a malfunctioning Stellar Spanner. With Starscream back online Soundwave confesses to his minor crimes and Thunderwing passes a sentence of community service on him.
"Unit designate Soundwave. By order of Decepticon law, you are under arrest. Scrapped or online, you’re coming with me.”" - Thunderwing always gets his mech.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
s from the Transformers
Transformers (toy line)
The is a line of toys produced by the American toy company Hasbro. The Transformers toyline was created from toy molds mostly produced by Japanese company Takara in the toylines Diaclone and Microman. Other toy molds from other companies such as Bandai were used as well...
series. Introduced in 1989, he was a major villain in the Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
Transformers series. Although Thunderwing was created after the US Transformers television series ended, the character of Black Shadow did appear in the Japanese Transformers series, who was based on the same design as Thunderwing. In later years other characters have carried on the name Thunderwing in the Transformers line, including two Mini-Cons and a mirror-universe version of the original character, who was a law enforcement officer. In 2010 Hasbro released a new Thunderwing toy based on the original character.
Transformers: Generation 1
Thunderwing is a DecepticonDecepticon
The Decepticons are usually depicted as the antagonists in the fictional universes of the Transformers stoyline and related comics and cartoons, and the enemies of the Autobots and the University of California Davis Aggies...
Mega Pretender
Pretender
A pretender is one who claims entitlement to an unavailable position of honour or rank. Most often it refers to a former monarch, or descendant thereof, whose throne is occupied or claimed by a rival, or has been abolished....
. He is cruel and power hungry.
Reception
Thunderwing was voted the 7th top Transformer who was bad ass in the comics by Topless Robots.Marvel Comics
Thunderwing had a prominent role in MarvelMarvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
's Transformers comic book as a Decepticon warlord, first appearing in #60 of the US comic.
Thunderwing had several appearances in the UK comics which predate his appearance in US #60, showing how Thunderwing rose from being a young, promising warlord to leader of the Decepticons. His first chronological appearance was in a text story called "The Magnificent Six", where flashbacks revealed he had once been a lieutenant of the sadistic Decepticon leader Megadeath. At this point, before Prime and Megatron were marooned on Earth, Thunderwing already had his Pretender shell. Later, his trial for leadership, set by a council of Decepticon elders, consisted of hunting down and exterminating several Autobot
Autobot
Autobot, a faction of sentient robots from the planet Cybertron, are usually the main protagonists in the fictional universe of the Transformers, a collection of various toys, graphic novels, paperback books, cartoons and movies first introduced in 1984. In all but one Transformer story, the...
prisoners released on Earth but due to the intervention of Nightbeat
Nightbeat (Transformers)
-Transformers: Generation 1:Nightbeat is described as a tough, street-hardened detective who is not above resorting to dirty tricks in order to further his investigations...
& Siren, Thunderwing was taken offline. He later reactivated and went on a rampage before a Decepticon squad arrived to take him back to Cybertron
Cybertron
Cybertron is a fictional planet, the homeworld of the Transformers in the various fictional incarnations of the metaseries and toyline by Hasbro. In the Japanese series, the planet is referred to as "Cybertron" pronounced as セイバートロン Seibātoron...
; he beat the squad into obeying him and then launched a doomed five-man attack on the Ark
Ark (Transformers)
The Ark is an Autobot spacecraft in the Transformers Universe. It has appeared as a central fixture of the Transformers storyline ever since its creation, as the Autobots main method of transport to Earth and as a base once they arrive....
in revenge for what Nightbeat did to him. While this attack was a failure, the drive and ambition he'd shown impressed the Decepticon elders and they promoted him to Decepticon commander.
In his first US appearance, he was concerned with the Autobot Pretender Classics
Pretenders (Transformers)
Pretenders is a subline within the Transformers toy line, introduced in 1988. The concept behind the toy was that the Transformers were capable of disguising their robotic forms through the use of synthetic organic outer shells.-Cloudburst:...
bringing hope to the Autobot resistance and increasing the number of attacks on Decepticon bases. He sent a team of Decepticon assassin
Assassination
To carry out an assassination is "to murder by a sudden and/or secret attack, often for political reasons." Alternatively, assassination may be defined as "the act of deliberately killing someone, especially a public figure, usually for hire or for political reasons."An assassination may be...
s, led by Bludgeon
Bludgeon (Transformers)
Bludgeon is the name of several fictional characters in the Transformers universes. For trademark reasons, he is now marketed by Hasbro as Decepticon Bludgeon. They are all Decepticon warriors who turn into tanks.-Transformers: Generation 1:...
, to crush the Pretenders and the entire resistance cell led by Emirate Xaaron. The assassin group followed the Autobot Pretender Classics down to the center of Cybertron, where they accidentally woke up the god Primus
Primus (Transformers)
Primus is the "benevolent" godlike entity in the fictional Transformers comic universe who fought against the Chaos-Bringer Unicron. The Lord of the Light, Primus is the being who created the Transformers to help him defeat Unicron.-Primus and Unicron:...
, causing the events that led to the Matrix Quest
Matrix Quest
The Matrix Quest is the official collective name for issues #62 through #66 in Marvel's Transformers comics, written by UK writer Simon Furman. Each chapter of the story pays homage to a classic movie or book....
.
Obsessed with acquiring the power of the Creation Matrix, Thunderwing followed the various Autobot squads, intending to steal the Matrix once they located it for him. During the mission, he was able to capture and severely wound Nightbeat's squad and fought the Classic Pretenders to a standstill before finally reaching the Matrix. However, the Matrix had already begun to become corrupted and wanting to better understand the nature of evil, it bonded with Thunderwing and became far more corrupt. The warlord become possessed by the Matrix, depriving him of his free will and unleashing him on the Ark.
The possessed Thunderwing was defeated by a joint effort between the Autobots and the Decepticons. Still holding the Matrix, he was hurled to an unknown planetoid, where he remained inactive until the corrupted Matrix revived him and used him to attack the dark god Unicron
Unicron
Unicron is a fictional character from the Transformers universe and toyline. Created by Floro Dery, he was introduced in the 1986 animated film The Transformers: The Movie as the film's main antagonist. Unicron is a prodigiously large robot whose scale reaches planetary proportions, and he is also...
. However, the attack failed, killing Thunderwing and causing Optimus Prime to capture and revert the Matrix to its original state.
Dreamwave Productions
In the 21st century release of new Transformers comics by Dreamwave Productions, it would not be the Armada version of Thunderwing that would appear in the Transformers: ArmadaTransformers: Armada
Transformers: Armada, known in Japan as , is a Transformers animated series, comic series and toy line which ran from 2002–2003. It was originally scheduled for 2001, however was delayed until early-2002...
comic, but his Generation One counterpart. In this world, the incarnation of Thunderwing was one of the heralds of Unicron, from a different dimension
Dimension
In physics and mathematics, the dimension of a space or object is informally defined as the minimum number of coordinates needed to specify any point within it. Thus a line has a dimension of one because only one coordinate is needed to specify a point on it...
, sent to cause destruction prior to Unicron
Unicron
Unicron is a fictional character from the Transformers universe and toyline. Created by Floro Dery, he was introduced in the 1986 animated film The Transformers: The Movie as the film's main antagonist. Unicron is a prodigiously large robot whose scale reaches planetary proportions, and he is also...
's arrival alongside his fellow heralds, Scourge
Scourge (Transformers)
Scourge is the name of several fictional characters from the Transformers series. He first appeared as one of the central villains in the 1986 film The Transformers, voiced by Stan Jones. He also regularly appeared in the animated Transformers series and Transformers comic books. Since then other...
, Dirge
Dirge (Transformers)
Dirge is the name of several different fictional characters from the Transformers series. He was first introduced in 1985 as a villain in the Transformers series, appearing in the comic book by Marvel Comics and voiced by Bud Davis in the animated television series. Since then the name Dirge was...
, Bludgeon
Bludgeon (Transformers)
Bludgeon is the name of several fictional characters in the Transformers universes. For trademark reasons, he is now marketed by Hasbro as Decepticon Bludgeon. They are all Decepticon warriors who turn into tanks.-Transformers: Generation 1:...
and their leader Galvatron
Galvatron
Galvatron is the name of several fictional Transformers, most often the recreated version of Megatron, the Decepticon leader. He was voiced by Leonard Nimoy in the 1986 Transformers movie, and then by Frank Welker in season 3 and 4 of the animated television series. Since then, other Transformers...
(all characters from the Generation 1 universe, though their names are not mentioned and are not the versions from the Generation One Dreamwave comics).
While Galvatron attacked Megatron on Earth the other Heralds attacked the Decepticon base on Cybertron. Activating the Spacebridge links and leaving Bludgeon behind to guard them, Thunderwing, Scourge and Dirge journeyed to the Decepticon base on Earth, unaware they were being watched by the Mini-Cons. Finding and beating the luckless Thrust to a pulp, they then detected anomalies within the Spacebridge network and returned to Cybertron - only to be destroyed on their arrival by a cache of explosives set by Jetfire
Jetfire
Jetfire is the name of several fictional characters from the Transformers universes. He is nearly always depicted as an Autobot with jet or space shuttle alternate mode.-Transformers: Generation 1:...
.
IDW Publishing
Thunderwing made his IDW PublishingIDW Publishing
IDW Publishing, also known as Idea + Design Works, LLC and IDW, is an American publisher of comic books and comic strip collections. The company was founded in 1999 and has been awarded the title "Publisher of the Year Under 5% Market Share" for the years 2004, 2005 and 2006 by Diamond Comic...
debut in their Stormbringer
The Transformers: Stormbringer
The Transformers: Stormbringer is a comic book mini-series, published by IDW Publishing.The series debuted in July, 2006 and is set during the same time frame as The Transformers: Infiltration...
miniseries in 2006. Thunderwing was the first Transformer scientist to realize that the war was killing Cybertron, and that it was too late to stop the deterioration. He tried to find a way of ensuring Transformers could survive it by the invention of the bio-cybernetic grafting technology
Pretenders (Transformers)
Pretenders is a subline within the Transformers toy line, introduced in 1988. The concept behind the toy was that the Transformers were capable of disguising their robotic forms through the use of synthetic organic outer shells.-Cloudburst:...
, where protective outer shells would be created from "bodily tissue" extracted from living Transformers. Showing it to Megatron, the Decepticon leader rejected it as an abomination and stripped Thunderwing of his rank; desperate, Thunderwing tested the grafting process on himself. The result was a disaster. Thunderwing was transformed into a supremely powerful, but completely insane being, and went on a rampage that devastated even more of the planet before facing a combined Autobot-Decepticon force at Thunderhead Pass. This was the final event that saw Cybertron made uninhabitable and forced the Transformers to abandon it, while Thunderwing ended up in the bowels of the planet with his sentience burnt out.
In 2006, Jetfire
Jetfire
Jetfire is the name of several fictional characters from the Transformers universes. He is nearly always depicted as an Autobot with jet or space shuttle alternate mode.-Transformers: Generation 1:...
and the Technobots
Technobots
The Technobots are a subgroup of five Autobots that transform into futuristic vehicles in the Transformers universe. Their counterparts are the Terrorcons.-Transformers: Generation 1:The five Technobots combine into Computron....
investigated an energy spike at Thunderhead Pass and discovered a small cult, led by Bludgeon
Bludgeon (Transformers)
Bludgeon is the name of several fictional characters in the Transformers universes. For trademark reasons, he is now marketed by Hasbro as Decepticon Bludgeon. They are all Decepticon warriors who turn into tanks.-Transformers: Generation 1:...
and consisting of several other Decepticons (all of whom were amongst the Pretender toys). Worshiping Thunderwing, they reactivated him with Ultra Energon, hacked into his mind and gave it rudimentary commands to attack & destroy whole planets, believing this to be a form of mass sacrifice that would lead to the rejuvenation of Cybertron. Acting on these commands, Thunderwing launched an attack on Nebulos. By the first page of Stormbringer #3, a large swathe of Nebulos had been destroyed and even the intervention of the local Decepticon garrison couldn't hold him back. With the destruction of the device Bludgeon used to control him, Thunderwing abruptly returned to Cybertron only to be confronted by the Wreckers
Wreckers (Transformers)
The Wreckers are a sub-team of Autobots in the fictional Transformers universe, functioning essentially as a commando unit. They are not derived from the Transformers toyline but rather are the creation of Marvel UK writer Simon Furman, who introduces the Wreckers in the story arc Target:2006...
, a Predacon-led Decepticon party and Optimus Prime himself. After a massive battle Jetfire discovered his weakness: the Ultra Energon used to power Thunderwing burnt itself out quicker the more he exerted himself. A final all-out attack by Prime caused Thunderwing to simply shut down.
Thunderwing's fate was eventually revealed in the Spotlight issue on Galvatron
Galvatron
Galvatron is the name of several fictional Transformers, most often the recreated version of Megatron, the Decepticon leader. He was voiced by Leonard Nimoy in the 1986 Transformers movie, and then by Frank Welker in season 3 and 4 of the animated television series. Since then, other Transformers...
, where it was discovered that Hound
Hound (Transformers)
Hound is the name of several fictional characters from the various Transformers universes. He is sometimes referred to as Autobot Hound for trademark purposes.-Transformers: Generation 1:...
's unit had been dispatched to guard his inert corpse. Galvatron arrived and easily defeated them, taking Thunderwing's body back to the Dead Universe. When Cyclonus
Cyclonus
Cyclonus is the name of several fictional characters from the various Transformers universes.-Transformers: Generation 1:The tech spec from the box art of the Cyclonus toy describes him as a compassionless Decepticon air warrior and saboteur...
activated the Nega-Core central to the Expansion, it was revealed that Thunderwing was its guardian, easily driving off Ultra Magnus
Ultra Magnus
Ultra Magnus is the name of several fictional characters from the various Transformers storylines.-Transformers: Generation 1:The greatest Transformer of them all. A commander could want no finer a soldier than Ultra Magnus...
' Autobots.(Spotlight: Cyclonus
The Transformers: Revelation
The Transformers: Revelation is a comic book miniseries, published by IDW Publishing, based on the Generation One Transformers and following on from The Transformers: Devastation...
)
In this continuity Thunderwing's shell had a much larger secondary "Ultra" robot mode, which involved his wings wrapping around his main Pretender body as an extra layer of armor, his legs extending, and his wing-mounted engines becoming giant clawed arms. This mode was likely highly energy-consumptive, and possibly contributed to Thunderwing's second defeat.
Fun Publications
In the Fun PublicationsFun Publications
Fun Publications is a publishing company that runs the Transformers Collectors Club and G.I. Joe Collectors Club under licensefrom Hasbro. Besides releasing comics, Fun Publications releases exclusive toys and runs conventions for their clubs....
stories Onslaught told Metalhawk
Metalhawk
Metalhawk is a fictional character, a Transformer robot in the Japanese Masterforce series.-Transformers: Generation 1:Metalhawk transforms into a jet, and has a human Pretender shell. In robot mode his left hand could retract and launch knock-out gas. His weapons include a Jet Rifle, Titanium...
the story of how his Elite Guard team captured Thunderwing. Metalhawk then told Onslaught about how his team captured Blue Bacchus.
Toys
- Generation 1 Pretender Thunderwing (1989)
- Thunderwing transforms into an jet aircraftJet aircraftA jet aircraft is an aircraft propelled by jet engines. Jet aircraft generally fly much faster than propeller-powered aircraft and at higher altitudes – as high as . At these altitudes, jet engines achieve maximum efficiency over long distances. The engines in propeller-powered aircraft...
. His Pretender shell transforms into an interstellar jet and is able to combine with his vehicle form. Although his tech spec profile is quite generic, describing him as an untrustworthy, yet ambitious spy, his persona in the US & UK Marvel comics drove his toy into meteoric popularity, despite the small number of Thunderwings produced. - This toy was remolded into Black Shadow in Japan.
- Generations Deluxe Thunderwing (2010)
- A new mold announced at BotCon 2010.
Transformers: Armada
Thunderwing is a member of the Air Military Mini-Con Team. He is very serious and business minded. He is the quietest of his unit and a specialist in stealth attacks and surveillance. He is also the weakest of his team.Animated series
Thunderwing appeared in episode #49, called "Alliance". He is among the Mini-Cons assisting the Autobots and Decepticons evacuating from Cybertron when it was attacked by Unicron.Dreamwave Productions
Thunderwing had a biography printed in issue #1 of the Armada More Than Meets The Eye series by Dreamwave ProductionsDreamwave Productions
Dreamwave Productions was a Canadian art design studio and comic book publisher founded in 1996 and is best known for their multiple Transformers comic book series...
.
Fun Publications
The first Universe Thunderwing appears as one of the Mini-Con partners of Ramjet.Toys
- Armada Mini-Con Thunderwing
- Armada Thunderwing was repainted into Armada SeekerSeekers (Transformers)Seekers is a term in the Transformers universe usually used to describe certain Decepticon warriors with jet transformations. For the character named Seeker see Seeker .-Origin of the term:...
, Twirl and Cybertron Razorclaw.- Universe Mini-Con Thunderwing
- Thunderwing had two toys in Universe. The first was part of a "Spring Value Pack", a Toys R Us exclusive which included the Air Military Mini-Con Team, RamjetRamjet (Transformers)Ramjet is the name of several fictional characters in the various Transformers universes. All have been Decepticon aligned characters who turn into jets, usually white.-Transformers: Generation 1:...
(repainted from Armada SkywarpSkywarpSkywarp is the name of several fictional characters in the Transformers toy line. He is usually depicted as a black or purple Decepticon jet with teleportation powers.-Transformers: Generation 1:...
) and his Mini-Con Thunderclash. The pack was criticised by many, especially the Mini-Cons for having a similar color scheme to their original releases.- Universe Mini-Con Thunderwing
- Armada Thunderwing was recolored again for the Transformers: UniverseTransformers: UniverseTransformers: Universe is a line of toys that consists of re-painted and re-released toys from various Transformers lines of toys. For the comic book series see Transformers Universe .- Toy line :...
line and packaged with FireflightFireflight (Transformers)Fireflight is the name of several fictional characters in the Transformers franchise. They are all Autobots who turn into jets.-Transformers: Generation 1:Fireflight first appeared as a member of the Aerialbots...
and Firebot.
Transformers: Classics
One of the new Mini-Con Molds released for the Transformers ClassicsTransformers Classics
Transformers Classics is a line of Transformers toys based on and resembling the first generation characters introduced in the 1980s. The toy line was created to fill the gap in Transformers product releases between the end of the Transformers: Cybertron series and the start of 2007 live-action...
line, Thunderwing is an Autobot allied Mini-Con who turns into a F-14 Tomcat
F-14 Tomcat
The Grumman F-14 Tomcat is a supersonic, twin-engine, two-seat, variable-sweep wing fighter aircraft. The Tomcat was developed for the United States Navy's Naval Fighter Experimental program following the collapse of the F-111B project...
jet fighter. He is a member of the Clear Skies Team along with Nightscream
Nightscream
Nightscream is the name of several fictional characters from the various Transformers universes.-Beast Machines:Nightscream is a young Maximal and a member of the cast of Beast Machines. He turns into a bat....
and Steel Wind.
The toy of Classic Thunderwing is identical to that of Cybertrons Nightscream (packaged with Cybertron/Primus
Primus (Transformers)
Primus is the "benevolent" godlike entity in the fictional Transformers comic universe who fought against the Chaos-Bringer Unicron. The Lord of the Light, Primus is the being who created the Transformers to help him defeat Unicron.-Primus and Unicron:...
as an end-of-series bonus).
Thunderwing enjoys aerial combat and is hyperactive.
Toys
- Classic Mini-Con Thunderwing
- This toy was later redecoed as a Takara exclusive Mini-Con Noise Effect.
Transformers: Timelines
This Thunderwing is a mirror universe version of the Generation 1 character. He is a law officer from before the Great War. He is a stickler for "by the book" procedure. His only concern is violations of Cybertronian law within his jurisdiction, and will let major crimes go unpunished if they are not in his realm of enforcement, while pursuing minor infractions vorns old to get his mech.According to the author Thunderwing's personality is based on that of Joe Friday
Joe Friday
Detective Sergeant Joe Friday is a fictional detective of the LAPD.-Original Series:The Joe Friday character was created and played by American actor, television producer, and writer Jack Webb on Dragnet...
, but he comments that RoboCop
RoboCop
RoboCop is a 1987 American science fiction-action film directed by Paul Verhoeven. Set in a crime-ridden Detroit, Michigan in the near future, RoboCop centers on a police officer who is brutally murdered and subsequently re-created as a super-human cyborg known as "RoboCop"...
and Judge Dredd
Judge Dredd
Judge Joseph Dredd is a comics character whose strip in the British science fiction anthology 2000 AD is the magazine's longest running . Dredd is an American law enforcement officer in a violent city of the future where uniformed Judges combine the powers of police, judge, jury and executioner...
also seem to fit Thunderwing.
Fun Publications
Thunderwing first appears and is spotlighted in the story Blitzwing Bop by Fun PublicationsFun Publications
Fun Publications is a publishing company that runs the Transformers Collectors Club and G.I. Joe Collectors Club under licensefrom Hasbro. Besides releasing comics, Fun Publications releases exclusive toys and runs conventions for their clubs....
where he is traveling in space in pursuit the criminal known as Beta. He intercepts a radio signal from Earth which mentions the Decepticon Soundwave
Soundwave (Transformers)
Soundwave is the name of several characters in the various series Transformers series. His most famous disguise is that of a microcassette recorder and has an iconic voice done by a vocoder.-Transformers: Generation 1:...
. Finding Soundwave is wanted for a minor offense from long ago he heads to Earth. He finds Soundwave involved in a battle the Autobot Blaster
Blaster (Transformers)
Blaster is the name of several fictional characters in the Transformers television and comic series based on the popular toy line produced by Takara Tomy and Hasbro. Due to trademark reasons, he is sometimes called Autobot Blaster...
for the possession of the malfunctinging Decepticon Blitzwing
Blitzwing
Blitzwing is the name of several fictional characters in the various Transformers series. He is always depicted as a Decepticon with two alternate forms, that of a jet and that of a tank...
. Although not interested in the dispute, Soundwave convinces Thunderwing that Soundwave cannot leave Earth for trial on Cybertron until his commanding officer can be notified, and the only way to get Starscream online it to rescue Blitzwing. Thunderwing is still unwilling to takes sides in the battle against Blaster, merely following the Decepticon, but Soundwave tricks Blaster into mentioning a crime he committed on Cybertron while Thunderwing is in nearby. Thunderwing immediately goes into arrest mode and tries to capture Blaster, but Blaster escapes in a malfunctioning Stellar Spanner. With Starscream back online Soundwave confesses to his minor crimes and Thunderwing passes a sentence of community service on him.
"Unit designate Soundwave. By order of Decepticon law, you are under arrest. Scrapped or online, you’re coming with me.”" - Thunderwing always gets his mech.