HALL OF OMENS: THUNDER-VERSE!

Article by: Kevin Maplebowe

The Unofficial Ultimate Collector’s Guide to ThunderCats, SilverHawks & TigerSharks

ThunderCats was only the beginning.

The Hall of Omens has opened once again, and this time it’s bringing the entire Thunder-Verse with it.

Hall of Omens: Thunder-Verse!

The Unofficial Ultimate Collector’s Guide to ThunderCats, SilverHawks & TigerSharks is a massive celebration of three legendary Rankin/Bass properties, bringing together decades of toys, merchandise, prototypes, production history and behind-the-scenes stories in one enormous volume.

More than 800 full-color pages
Over 4,500 photographs
Extensive coverage of the classic ThunderCats lines, SilverHawks, TigerSharks and the 2011 Bandai ThunderCats toy line
International releases, rare variants and merchandise from around the world
Prototypes, pre-production pieces and items rarely seen by the public
Interviews and stories from the people who helped create these legendary shows
Two collectible covers, including an exclusive cover by Kyle Lambert, the illustrator behind the iconic Stranger Things poster artwork
Glow-in-the-dark dust jackets

And collectors responded quickly: the entire first printing sold out within just one week of becoming available.

So… What Exactly Is in This Thing?

The better question might be: What isn’t?

Hall of Omens: Thunder-Verse takes the concept behind the original Hall of Omens and blows the doors off it.

A fully expanded and improved second edition of the classic LJN ThunderCats line is extensively documented with figures, vehicles, playsets, accessories, packaging, prototypes, variations, and new articles.

Then come the SilverHawks.

Then the TigerSharks.

International releases. Store displays. Food premiums. Clothing. Games. Comics. Original artwork. Production pieces. Prototypes. Merchandise most fans never knew existed.

Then the often-overlooked 2011 Bandai ThunderCats toy line is here too, including its figures, vehicles and playsets.

It’s the kind of book where you can open it looking for one particular figure and, 30 pages later, find yourself staring at something and wondering:

“Wait… they actually made THAT?”

For collectors, that’s half the fun.

More Than a Toy Guide

The toys and merchandise are only part of the story.

Thunder-Verse also goes behind the scenes with the people who actually helped create these worlds. The book features interviews, memories and stories involving Larry Kenney, Jim Meskimen, Peter Lawrence, Bobby Moynihan, Chris Trengove, Dennis J. Woodyard, Maggie Wheeler, Pete Cannarozzi, Shelton Benjamin, MegaRan and many more.

Writers share stories from inside the production of the cartoons. Voice actors look back at bringing memorable characters to life. Artists and designers provide insight into how these worlds were created.

Combined with prototypes, pre-production material, original artwork and other developmental pieces, Thunder-Verse becomes more than a catalog of collectibles. It’s also a visual archive of the history behind them.

More Than 25 Years in the Making

Author Sean “Buddha” McKeone has spent more than 25 years collecting ThunderCats toys and merchandise.

The original Hall of Omens: The Unofficial Ultimate Guide to ThunderCats Toys and Beyond brought much of that research together for the first time, but Thunder-Verse goes considerably further.

Rather than simply adding a few pages and calling it an update, material from the original book has been reworked and greatly expanded, while hundreds of pages of new material bring SilverHawks and TigerSharks into the Hall of Omens alongside ThunderCats.

The result is part collector’s guide, part visual archive and part behind-the-scenes history of three unforgettable Rankin/Bass worlds.

Even the Covers Are Collectibles

Thunder-Verse is available with two different covers, including an exclusive cover by Kyle Lambert, the illustrator behind the iconic Stranger Things poster artwork, as well as work for The Boys, One Piece and more.

And surrounding it all is one particularly appropriate finishing touch: a glow-in-the-dark dust jacket.

Because if you’re going to make an 800-plus-page book about ThunderCats, SilverHawks and TigerSharks, subtlety was probably never really an option.

Whether you owned these toys as a kid, discovered ThunderCats through the 2011 series, have spent decades hunting down obscure international pieces or simply want to see how deep these worlds really go, there is something waiting inside the Hall of Omens.

The first printing disappeared in only one week.