The Stinger Appears
One of the last characters to be produced by toy company LJN as part of their ThunderCats toyline, the Stinger is one of the rarest ThunderCats characters, having never appeared in the animated series. The creative team at Marvel Comics UK decided to make use of the character with a story they created for the 1989 ThunderCats UK Annual, and although the Stinger’s appearance was relatively brief, it provided more background on the character’s origins than ever seen before! In the story “Past Perils Times Two!”, Lion-O and Cheetara are transported back in time to Third Earth’s distant past, where Cheetara meets two children who are being chased by a Stinger. Cheetara saves them, but in so doing attracts the attention of the creature’s mother – for, in Marvel UK’s continuity, there are a whole race of Stingers!
 As a note of trivia, as well as appearing in the UK hardcover Annual, this story was also reprinted in one of the last known issues of ThunderCats to be produced in the UK, a holiday special printed for Easter 1994!  |