★ COLLECTING · MAKERS · BANDAI · 2011

Bandai ThunderCats.

Bandai America's toy line for the 2011 Warner Bros. Animation series. 42 figures, vehicles, playsets, and roleplay toys across the 4-inch ThunderLynx line, the 6-inch line, and the ThunderCats Classics deco, plus the Latin America tail produced under license after the US line was discontinued in 2014.

6-Inch Line · 5 releases
2011 · Larger scale, more articulation & detail
ThunderCats Classics · 6 releases
1985-style deco, incl. SDCC/STGCC exclusives
Roleplay Toys · 3 releases
Sword of Omens, Claw Shield, Nunchucks
Super Deformed · 28 releases
Chibi-style figures

About the line

On the 29th of July, 2011, Warner Bros. Animation launched the all new ThunderCats series. To accompany the animated series, Bandai America Incorporated and Warner Bros. Consumer Products teamed up to bring a new line of toys based on the re-imagined ThunderCats universe.

Right out of the gate, Bandai produced a large line of action figures, vehicles, a playset, roleplay toys, and much more. Two waves of regular and deluxe action figures were released, as well as a 6-inch line and a ThunderCats Classics line. The 4-inch scale figures and vehicles have a feature called ThunderLynx: magnets embedded in the figures and vehicles unlock and activate features like sound and lights. The 6-inch line features a selection of figures from the 4-inch line with more articulation and a more detailed sculpt and paint job. The Classics line gave fans the first ThunderCats action figures based on their appearance in the classic 1985 animated series.

In 2012, when Bandai did not show any new items at the New York Toy Fair, rumours started spreading that the line was cancelled. As of fall 2014 Bandai America no longer produces ThunderCats merchandise, but the licensing agreement with Warner Bros. is still standing in Latin America, where the Brazilian company SUNNY produced a number of ThunderCats figures under license, basically the same as the Bandai America releases but with far fewer points of articulation and less deco.