Official Exodus Episode Talkback Thread

[Mark_Grizzlor]

Update: We may use some of the posts in our revised episode guide, so just be aware you may be quoted!!

Episode: 001 – Exodus
Written By: Leonard Starr

Quick Summary:

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The first episode, Exodus, essentially told the story of how the remaining Thundercats escaped the destruction of Thundera, survived an outer space battle with the Mutants, and saw Lion-O go from a young cub to the unexperienced leader of the Thundercats. Of course, seeing as this was the first ever episode of the series, there are a lot of firsts. Most notably, it was the first time Lion-O used the Eye of Thundera and it was the first and last time we see Jaga in living form.

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Exodus was shown in two versions: once as a movie version (Exodus and Unholy Alliance), and the second as a stand alone episode.

For a more in-depth description, please visit our (still under construction) episode guide.

Feel free to share your thoughts and opinion on this episode. How did this episode fare as the series opener? Did you like it? Dislike it? Why?

Discuss!!

[optimusprime]

well exodus was the episode that started it all for the thundercats and even though it expained the thundercats reason for leaving thundera it really didnt go into the reason why they had to leave other than the explosion*till season 2.

the charachters were introduced pretty well and they recieved there weaponary as well as clothes. they also introduced us to the mystic sword of omens which is the source of the thundercats power.
all in all its a great start to the series i give it a 7 out of 10

[kzlambert]

1. Exodus

I feel Exodus was the better of the few introduction episodes. I think is sums up what makes Thundercats, for me, miles above any of it’s peers.. a context. If the series began with them on Third Earth, I don’t think it would have given the series the depth to develop as it did.

I also like the fact that not all is explained. As the series progresses a more detailed account is learnt in Thundercats Ho, which I really enjoyed. Then further down the line more is explained about the cause of the explosion of Thundera.

I wish we could have seen more of Jaga alive, because excluding flashbacks this is the only time he is ever alive. One thing I noticed as well is that Jaga is the only death on the Thundercats, and even then they don’t say die, they say perish!

Anyway, overall good episode, not the best but a great start to a great program. 4*

[kzlambert]

Quick question about this episode. Is the reason for Liono’s increase in age in contrast to that of the thunderkittens ever explained? Or do we presume the suspension capsual malfunctioned during the journey. This is just something I have always wanted to know.

Cheers Guys

[voice_guy]

[QUOTE=kzlambert]
Quick question about this episode. Is the reason for Liono’s increase in age in contrast to that of the thunderkittens ever explained? Or do we presume the suspension capsual malfunctioned during the journey. This is just something I have always wanted to know.

Cheers Guys
[/QUOTE]

The thunderKittens are wild cats. Wildcats by nature are small, and don’t really grow in size when they reach adulthood. It could be said that they did age, but didn’t show it. as for Lion-O, some think he was mystically aged a bit further. Lions on the other hand, especially males do grow in size from cubs to adults.

[system]

Chris here…

I love “Exodus”, it’s right up there with my favourite ThunderCats episodes - I think one of the things that makes it special is that it does set the scene so well for everything that follows, but also it is completely and utterly different from all the episodes that follow! Think of “Exodus” and then think of “The Book of Omens” (episode 130), the difference in scenery, tone, and characters between those two episodes is pretty drastic! This is also what makes ThunderCats special, it’s an evolving story.

[QUOTE=kzlambert]
II wish we could have seen more of Jaga alive, because excluding flashbacks this is the only time he is ever alive. One thing I noticed as well is that Jaga is the only death on the Thundercats, and even then they don’t say die, they say perish!
[/QUOTE]

Actually, in many ways “Exodus” is one of the more mature (though not “adult”) episodes of ThunderCats, as they do actually use the word “die” - specifically, Panthro tells Jaga that “without suspension you’ll die”. Otherwise, I agree, the word “perish(ed)” was used a lot throughout the series as a substitute for the words “die”, “dead” or “death”!

Also, another thing that makes “Exodus” slightly darker than an ordinary episode of ThunderCats is the fact that, albeit done in a very kid-sensitive way, we do actually see the Thunderian race seemingly wiped out when the Mutants attack the Thunderian fleet - this really establishes the ThunderCats as the last of their kind and sets the context for the series. I think one of the reasons I’m not so keen on the reformation of Thundera (a.k.a. “New Thundera”) in season 2 is that it takes some of the drama out of this when suddenly all these Thunderian characters begin to make their way back to New Thundera!

[QUOTE=voice_guy]
The thunderKittens are wild cats. Wildcats by nature are small, and don’t really grow in size when they reach adulthood. It could be said that they did age, but didn’t show it. as for Lion-O, some think he was mystically aged a bit further. Lions on the other hand, especially males do grow in size from cubs to adults.
[/QUOTE]

Funnily enough, this was the answer given by Marvel in one of the US ThunderCats comics - I reference this in one of my comic reviews. This leads for an interesting discussion in and of itself - if that theory is true, are WilyKit and WilyKat’s child-like natures a genetic trait of their “breed” (for want of a better term) of ThunderCat? Will they, in fact, never grow into adult ThunderCats?

I personally subscribe to the theory that Jaga knew the ThunderCats would need a leader on Third Earth, and so rigged Lion-O’s suspension capsule to allow him to age more than the others. You could ask why Jaga did this, given that Lion-O would lack the wisdom and experience of the others - but, I think the answer for this is that Lion-O’s bloodline was clearly one of natural leadership, remembering that Claud-Us was Lion-O’s father. Clearly both Claud-Us and Lion-O had a commanding prescence and charisma that allowed them to be natural leaders and figureheads, which the ThunderCats would need in a potentially hostile new environment (in this case, Third Earth). So, that’s my theory!

Take care…

[shigsy2003]

Howdy

YAY I can get involved with these. As a first timer to all but one Thundercats episode I found Exodus to be a very good starter for the series. I to was a little confused about how Lion-O aged when the others especially the Thunderkittens seemingly didn’t do so but the above responses helped.

Exodus explains quite well as to not to leave many questions unanswered and even then any questions that are left will be answered in Unholy Alliance.

Very good starter episode but there are many later episodes that I feel are much better but as far as openers to a series go this is one of the best.

Chris M

[voice_guy]

Leonard Starr, is by far one of my top five favorite television writers of
all time, and for a good reason.

Exodus was one of the most well written animated pilots I have
ever watched, even He-Man’s pilot was a stinker, and I also enjoyed
that series as well.

As a child, I enjoyed ThunderCats from day one, my first experience
watching it came in the form of a VHS copy of the movie (Exodus, and
Unholy Alliance together), prior to seeing it on TV. I then learned their
were toys from the series after visiting a local k-Mart, and then Toys R Us.
After that, came the folders, pajamas, puzzles, pencil case, and so forth.
Then my parents sold everything, and dragged me with them to Ohio.

Back to the subject of Exodus. I had very fond memories, the first was
then initial take off of the ship. I remember Lion-O wanting to rescue the
survivors, and Panthro advising of them not to save them. I wasn’t even
eight years old, yet I understood the harshness of that, and it stuck with
me. It was the first cartoon I watched, where i though they were flat out
going to kill someone. Even G.I. Joe, had people parachuting out of burning planes.

From there, I was happy with a perfect blend of story, and action.
Includding a topless Chetara, which my Brother felt obligated to point
out to me. From that, I remember the scene where Jaga gathers the
ThunderCats, and gives them clothes, and says their names with titles,
and then giving them weapons. I remember the first time Lion-O held
the Sword of Omens, and the Mutans of Plundarr retreating back to
their ships.

It only seemed to have gotten better as the epiode progressed.
I was sadden to see Jaga just vanish. Even knowing the fact they
he would not make the journey.

I will admit as a child, I was also unsure of the malfunction on
Lion-O’s capsule. At first I thought it was damaged, but part
of me felt Jaga had used the Sword of Omens to mystically age
him. Then as I grew older, and became educated in school on
animal growth, I learned that lions age quicker in relative to their
body size, and that the Thunder Kittens were based on wild cats,
and that real wildcats remain small in size even as adults.

By the end of Exodus, I was left with a magical feeling inside.
like a warm fuzzy blanket on a cold day, I felt comfort having
watched it.

[system]

Chris here…

[QUOTE=voice_guy]
Back to the subject of Exodus. I had very fond memories, the first was
then initial take off of the ship. I remember Lion-O wanting to rescue the
survivors, and Panthro advising of them not to save them.
[/QUOTE]

That scene is actually shown in “ThunderCats Ho! Part 1”, the survivors being Ben-Gali, Lynx-O and Pumyra who we first meet in that episode. The first shot of “Exodus” is the ThunderCats’ ship flying away from the dying Thundera.

Take care…

[shigsy2003]

[QUOTE=He-Fan]
Chris here…

That scene is actually shown in “ThunderCats Ho! Part 1”, the survivors being Ben-Gali, Lynx-O and Pumyra who we first meet in that episode. The first shot of “Exodus” is the ThunderCats’ ship flying away from the dying Thundera.

Take care…
[/QUOTE]

Howdy

Which brings in some continutiy problems but I suppose it is gonna happen.

Chris M

[system]

Chris here…

[QUOTE=shigsy2003]
Which brings in some continutiy problems but I suppose it is gonna happen.
[/QUOTE]

Yeah, probably the biggest flaw with “ThunderCats Ho!” is that flashback scene with Lion-O spying the Thunderians, but the flagship taking off before they can rescue them - thinking logically, what happens next is that Lion-O goes to bed, is awoken by Cheetara to watch Thundera explode, and seems shocked to learn that the dying planet he just fled earlier was actually Thundera, despite the fact that there were Thunderians on it that they failed to save!!

I think the best way of explaining that one away is that Lion-O’s flashback was in a dream, and in dreams things can get a bit muddled. I 100% don’t think that’s the way it was written, but that’s a way it can sort-of be explained away!

Take care…

[Tygra]

The Thundercats are loose! Exodus is probably one of the best introduction episodes for any series. This episode allowed the series to start off with a bang and truly represents what the show is all about. I always found it interesting how a main character dies during the first episode. The only problem with Exodus for me is that the transition from young Lion-O to old Lion-O could have used a bit more explanation.

When all is said and done Exodus is still a terrific episode. 4 symbols out of 5.
http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c277/SensesTied82/4o5.png

[Thundercutter]

I did not have many episodes of Thundercats until recently. One of the episodes I did have was Exodus. It was therefore watched on a regular basis. I think that it is a great episode. It provides a brief background, which still leaves questions as you have already mentioned. This was important to give the writers material to develop in the rest of the series.

On thr video I had, they combined the first 4 episodes into Exodus the full length film. I like it this way because the first 4 are all basically an introduction to most of the things we are going to see in the rest of the series. But Episode One will always be a classic, a must see for anyone new to Thundercats.

I agree with Tygra, I think that 4 stars is about right.

[system]

Exodus Cuts

Hey did anyone notice the scenes/clips they cut between the original Exodus and the Dvd version. I just noticed the other day when I was watching it again, they cut the scene/clip where wilykit says “When in doubt chicken out” just before wilykat backs her into a suspension capsule. They also cut wilykit’s line “You are always right Jaga”, when she is crying and puts her hands on the capsule window. And they cut the end clip of Jaga put his arm across his chest just before the thundercats go into suspension. I haven’t watched the rest but I’m surprised to see these cuts. Its sucks.

[system]

Chris here…

@aewsmith

Hey did anyone notice the scenes/clips they cut between the original Exodus and the Dvd version. I just noticed the other day when I was watching it again, they cut the scene/clip where wilykit says “When in doubt chicken out” just before wilykat backs her into a suspension capsule. They also cut wilykit’s line “You are always right Jaga”, when she is crying and puts her hands on the capsule window. And they cut the end clip of Jaga put his arm across his chest just before the thundercats go into suspension. I haven’t watched the rest but I’m surprised to see these cuts. Its sucks.

Actually, those scenes you mention are from the “movie” version of “Exodus” that was released to home video - to my knowledge, they have always been absent from the stand-alone episode version of “Exodus” that WB released to DVD. I too feel that some of the missing scenes are really good ones, but had they been included in the stand-alone episode version of “Exodus”, the episode would have run over its standard time.

Take care…

[Mark_Grizzlor]

@aewsmith

Hey did anyone notice the scenes/clips they cut between the original Exodus and the Dvd version. I just noticed the other day when I was watching it again, they cut the scene/clip where wilykit says “When in doubt chicken out” just before wilykat backs her into a suspension capsule. They also cut wilykit’s line “You are always right Jaga”, when she is crying and puts her hands on the capsule window. And they cut the end clip of Jaga put his arm across his chest just before the thundercats go into suspension. I haven’t watched the rest but I’m surprised to see these cuts. Its sucks.

You can see the movie scenes in the download section of the site.

[blackiecats]

[QUOTE=He-Fan]
Chris here…

Actually, those scenes you mention are from the “movie” version of “Exodus” that was released to home video - to my knowledge, they have always been absent from the stand-alone episode version of “Exodus” that WB released to DVD. I too feel that some of the missing scenes are really good ones, but had they been included in the stand-alone episode version of “Exodus”, the episode would have run over its standard time.

Take care…
[/QUOTE]

Not just the VHS version Chris. I’m sure when Thundercats debuted on BBC1, they aired Exodus uncut because I know for certain I saw Wilykit’s line “Whatever you say Jaga, you are always right” when it first aired. That emotional line always stood out for me ever since it first aired.

But I agree that the version that went into syndication would be the exact same version contained on the DVD releases. WB were just too lazy to dig up the uncut feature length version :roll:

Like Manny says, all the cut scenes from the DVD version are online in our downloads section

[system]

Chris here…

@blackiecats

Not just the VHS version Chris. I’m sure when Thundercats debuted on BBC1, they aired Exodus uncut because I know for certain I saw Wilykit’s line “Whatever you say Jaga, you are always right” when it first aired. That emotional line always stood out for me ever since it first aired.

But I agree that the version that went into syndication would be the exact same version contained on the DVD releases. WB were just too lazy to dig up the uncut feature length version :roll:

Like Manny says, all the cut scenes from the DVD version are online in our downloads section

Hmmm, I find myself wondering whether BBC1 aired the other version of “Exodus” that I believe exists, which was “Exodus” and “The Unholy Alliance” cut together? I believe this was also how ThunderCats debuted on US TV…?

The reason I say that is because the version of “Exodus” I have on VHS was the version aired just before Going Live! (as opposed to part of Going Live!) in 1989, and that is basically identical to the version released on DVD. Also, although I don’t know this for 100% certain, I’m reasonably sure that if you were to watch the footage from the “Exodus” portion of the “Exodus” movie, that clocks up at longer than the standard episode length.

Take care…

[blackiecats]

[QUOTE=He-Fan]
Chris here…

Hmmm, I find myself wondering whether BBC1 aired the other version of “Exodus” that I believe exists, which was “Exodus” and “The Unholy Alliance” cut together? I believe this was also how ThunderCats debuted on US TV…?

The reason I say that is because the version of “Exodus” I have on VHS was the version aired just before Going Live! (as opposed to part of Going Live!) in 1989, and that is basically identical to the version released on DVD. Also, although I don’t know this for 100% certain, I’m reasonably sure that if you were to watch the footage from the “Exodus” portion of the “Exodus” movie, that clocks up at longer than the standard episode length.

Take care…
[/QUOTE]

As far as I can remember it was a special to launch Thundercats. It was not a regular 22-25 minute slot as part of CBBC or anything, so I’m thinking your correct Chris.

Actually looking at the air dates I got from the BBC a while back, Exodus and The Unholy Alliance did air together on the 2nd January 1987! OMG, that was the showing I saw for certain because my Dad wasn’t at work because it was he who saw it in the TV guide of the newspaper and suggested me and my brother watch it! My Dad wasn’t at work because it was the day after News Years day! Now I’m 100% certain that was the airing I’m thinking of!

…Also I never knew of The Unholy Alliance title because I never saw the title card for that episode ever, until 2000 when I came on the internet! So Chris, thinking about it your absolutely correct in thinking that the version I saw was Exodus and The Unholy Alliance cut together! Just wonder who did it though, Telepictures or the BBC? I’m guessing the BBC and that’s why WB don’t seem to have a copy of that version.

Perhaps this should be in the Unholy Alliance talkback thread, but just to point out, the version on the DVD of that epsiode is UNCUT! The version on the Video Collection VHS release has scenes cut out!

So the best copy to own of Exodus is on the VCI VHS and the best version of The Unholy Alliance is on the WB DVD’s! :lol: (well depending on if you have the corrected disc! lol)