While watching an episode of the original “He-Man and the Masters of the Universe” (MOTU) cartoon, I realized how Skeletor’s henchmen each had their own special abilities/powers/weapons that made them somewhat formidable. e.g:
Beast-Man - could control and communicate with animals
Mer-Man - could control sea life
Evil Lynn - magical powers
Tri-Klops - variety of visions
Looking at the ThunderCats, Mumm-Ra’s first henchmen, the Mutants are rather “powerless”. Ratar-O was probably the only really formidable Mutant, thanks to his Sais. Vultureman was an evil genius, but without his gadgets, he was rather useless. Same goes for Slithe, Monkian and Jackalman. They lacked any kind of special skills or powers to make them worthy of being “employed” by Mumm-Ra. If they had, they would have been able to mount a decent fight against the ThunderCats.
So what powers would you have liked to have seen given to the four Mutants? (Slithe, Monkian, Jackalman, Vultureman)
Yes I do agree having the mutants be a bit more unique with special abilities would have improved them greatly.
I would have had Monkian the same as Beastman, very strong and agile also.
Jackalman I would have had as a tracker/hunter/bounty hunter with powerful smell and made him devious plotting to take control ala Starscream.
Ssslithe I would have given under water fighting skills and like Mer-Man the ability to cominicate with sea creatures.
Vutlureman should have had wings and been able to fly.
Ratar-O could have been a martial artist and master of stealth as an opponent for Panthro.
I too always equated Monkian to Beast-Man and felt that he would have been the perfect candidate to have the power over animals. Considering how many weird and wonderful creatures there were in the ThunderCats cartoons, it would have been something to watch Monkian turn seemingly gentle animals against the ThunderCats, who wouldn’t be able to fight them knowing very well that they are not evil.
Your idea for Jackalman is very good! Since he does not have the brawn nor the stupidity of Monkian, he should have been more wily. And Slithe, being a reptilian would easily fit into he role of an amphibious controller of creatures. He could also have had some control over water itself, like Frog-Man had. It would also be apt seeing that he often used the NoseDiver underwater!
A flying Vultureman (like the 2011 cartoon) would have been a tougher opponent and Ratar-O was a perfect candidate for being a martial artists. He could have used more of a sumo wrestler fighting style.
Great post, Wily! Gives a lot top think and discuss.
I always thought of the Mutants being siomilar to Skeletor’s minions (maybe they were made powerless precisely to avoid comparisons and establish each show as unique), so making a parallel between them, I’d say it was something like this:
[ul]
[li]Mumm-Ra (I know he’s not a Mutant) - Skeletor[/li]
[li]Slithe - Mer-Man[/li][li]Vultureman - Trap-Jaw (80s version) / Tri-Klops (2002 version)[/li]
[li]Monkian - Beast-Man[/li][li]Jackalman - Mmmm… not sure (Skeletor’s first and main minions -the one most people remember- were Beast-Man, Mer-Man, Trap-Jaw, Tri-Klops and Evil-Lyn, but Jackalman has nothing to do with her). [/li][/ul]
I kind of agree with Mark here.
[ul]
[li]I always considered Monkian a kind of Beast-Man from MOTU, so I think him being able to control some creatures would fit the character, but it’d have made a copy of, precisely, Beast-Man. Maybe he could have got that limited to ape-like or ape-related creatures. [/li]
[li]Jackalman would have made a great tracker. I liked that in the 2011 version he hed a keen sense of smell. Maybe the 80s version could have got that along with a great audition as well. He might have been a good scavenger and explorer too. [/li]
[li]Also agree with Vultureman being able to fly (like he did with his superpower potion) and keep his wit and ability as an inventor. [/li]
[li]I like the idea of a martial artist Ratar-O, didn’t think of that but sounds great. [/li]
[li]I wouldn’t have given Slithe the ability to communicate with sea creatures though. I think with one Mutant being able to communicate with creatures would eb enough; besides, that would have made him similar to Mer-Man (and that, added to Monkian being “paralleled” with Beast-Man would have been too much IMO). Maybe give Slithe some reptilian properties like chamaleonic (like that Reptilian in the 2011 version) or spitting some kind of toxin (like Kobra Khan from MOTU), and having a stronger, more useful tail. [/li][/ul]
A Slithe that could change colors like a chameleon and blend with his environment would have been something! A sort of pseudo-invisibility. He would have been the Tygra equivalent of the Mutants. He could also have, like you said, a more stronger tail with perhaps venomous spikes at the tip, making it a dangerous and poisonous weapon! That might have been a better route than having him spit toxin, which might gross out kids! :biggrin
Some very nice ideas here. I find it interesting how many times the 2011 ideas were brought up. Despite its flaws there were some great concepts there.
Yes, I think the 2011 series had some great things and ideas, like how the Mutants came to work together, and the whole Cats organization. I also liked having Thundera as part of Third Earth.
I think Jackalman should have gotten the ability to run real fast. I mean he’s a coward and all involves a lot of running. I mean that running thing could have made him an evil rival for cheetara…
That’s what I too first thought would be a good skill for Jackalman. But then I felt that perhaps it would be too similar to Cheetara’s. Then again, there’s no reason why it can’t work. In the Justice League, Superman, Flash, Jon Jonnz, and Wonder Woman all have super speed.
Interesting thoughts. It is at times like the Thundercats have powers we associate with their feline namesakes, but the Mutants don’t, which is a little unfair.
Slithe would be the natural choice for certain stealthy/chameleonic powers, akin to Reekon in Visionaries (his totem was a lizard). That would make him more naturally the arch-rival of Tygra, one character on either side with invisibility of some sort.
Monkian able to communicate with animals sounds good, I think we’re all agreed on that already. I think it would also have made more sense for him to be the brawniest of the three main ones, and therefore the arch-rival to Panthro.
Yes, Jackalman being essentially canine would be a natural tracker - in the 2011 version, he is able to sniff out an invisible Tygra. Also he’s the most agile, so some speed capabilities would flesh him out as an arch-rival for Cheetara.
Vultureman, yes, he should have had the ability to fly. The clue is in the name.
Ratar-O . . . tougher to say, as he only appeared in “Feliner” and “Thundercats HO!” - I think the 2011 version of the Ratilla backstory fits in with the rats’ nature better, make him an expert scavenger, able to see the potential in the most unlikely situations. Perhaps some of Vultureman’s scientific and technical savvy would have been better suited to him.
And of course, give them better names. They didn’t have to think very hard to rename Vultureman “Vultaire” in the 2011 series, and that’s a good one. Monkian could perhaps have been called Simio (as in Simian).
And for the sake of balance, make one of them female, either Jackalman (Jackalia?) or Ratar-O (Ratar-A).
Maybe he could be really fast, not as fast as Cheetara but faster than everyone else.