Thundarr the Barbarian Comc Book

 It's still pretty early in the year but I think I can safely say Thundarr the Barbarian from Dynamite is my most anticipated comic of the year!

 

As far as Saturday morning cartoons go, Thundarr is at the top of my list and was likely a factor in my picking up the D&D Basic rule set at that age. If, for some reason, Thundarr isn't known to you, check out the show's intro. A post-apocalyptic world combining sci-fi and fanatasy? Doesn't get much better than that! 

 

 

 Like many comics these days, Thundarr has multiple cover variants. The above one is my favorite since Jack Kirby himself worked on the show's production design including most of the villains, which are all memorable in their own way. Not only is in done in a very Kirdy-esque style but there's a not so subtle Kirby tribute on the cover.

 

 The comic hooked me from the first few pages. Obviously, I'm an easy mark but even in the opening scene, they bring back a few of the bad guys Thundarr crossed paths with in the show. Being an 80s Saturday morning show, Thundarr was pretty episodic and usually dealt with a new threat each week. To see some of them pop up from the get go, told me these folks are really paying attention to the source.

 

 If you watched the intro, you might recognize the guy on the left that appears for maybe 2 seconds. 

 

The comic tells two stories simultaneously: The main story takes place in the present of 3994 and has Thundarr going under cover to break up a human trafficking/slavery ring. The other story is told through flashback and follows Thundarr's life as a gladiator slave leading up to him meeting Ookla and Ariel.

 

 Despite how much I was looking forward to this, the first issue snuck by me and I only found the second issue just released a few weeks ago. This issue spends a little more time in the flashback, you get to see how Ariel ties into things, and Thundarr faces his toughest arena fight yet: Ookla the Mok!

 

Meanwhile, in the present day, the gang confront the Council of Wizards who are involved in the human slave trade. In classic comic tradition, these wizards have all been bested by Thundarr over the show's run and are now gathered together to bring him down! One of them activates a time portal and sends our heroes back to 1994 just moments before the runaway planet passes between the Earth and the moon, kick starting the global apocalypse from the intro!

 

 

Another thing I love about the series so far is they perfectly capture the characters, including Ariel's commentary on Thundarr's recklessness.

 If you're a fan of sci-fi/fantasy that's just being introduced to Thundarr from this post, you'd probably enjoy the comic. But if you're someone that's been craving more Thundarr adventures since the 80s, I think you'll absolutely love this and find it a worthy successor to the show.

 

Monthly Media Recap - February 2026

 The country (world?) may be going to hell in a hand basket but I'm still here to bring the Monthly Media Recap! As usual, linked titles will take you to a trailer.

 

 

Gatchaman Progress

Only squeezed in 3 this month. Currently up to 72.

  

Streaming

 

His & Hers (2026, Netflix)

Two estranged spouses — one a detective, the other a news reporter — vie to solve a murder in which each believes the other is a prime suspect. Excellent murder mystery! And you can't go wrong with Jon Bernthal and Tessa Thompson as the leads, great performances.

 

The Muppet Show (2026, Disney+)

If this doesn't get a series order, people should be rioting! Not only did the reproduce the original Muppet theater but they also captured the essence of the original show. I think more than ever, the world needs the Muppet Show!

 

Movies

 

Uncanny Annie (2019, Hulu)

Part of Hulu's holiday horror series Into the Dark. This one has a bunch of teens playing a haunted board game on Halloween night. There's some drama among the friend group but I didn't really care. I didn't like any of them and was pretty much waiting for the body count to rise. The kills aren't anything memorable but they're okay. 

 

Rating: 5/10

 

 

The Jester 2 (2025, Shudder)

I'm torn on this series so far. On one hand, they have some creative kills inspired by magic tricks. On the other, they keep doing something to make me not like it as much as I want. In this one, they redesigned the Jester's look (probably to get away from Art the Clown) and it just looks like a mask on a mask. At least the plot in this one is more straightforward and it falls an oddly specific sub-genre that I enjoy: kids getting roped into working with the evil.

 

Rating: 5/10

 

 

10/31, Part IV (2024, Tubi or watch it on YouTube)

Another entry in the Halloween horror anthology series. I went back to see what I thought of the rest and found I've only seen the first! Of the four stories, the first, Ejectdead, is my favorite. Imagine The Ring but instead of Samara, you get a Jason like slasher. There's one other tale that's memorable even if the way they carried it out didn't make a lot of sense. Overall, not bad for an indie anthology.

 

Rating: 4/10

 

The Wrecking Crew (2026, Prime)

This feels like it could be in the Fast & Furious-verse: it's loud, dumb, about family, has lots of action and for some reason I really enjoyed it. Bautista and Momoa play off each other really well, milking the "at odds buddy cop" trope for all it's worth. My two biggest issues were some sequences with painfully obvious blue screen and the unbelievable civilian collateral casualties they cause with no mention.

 

Rating: 7/10

 

Predator: Badlands (2025, Disney+/Hulu)

Some people won't like this because a Predator is the main character and it removes some of the mystery around them. Me? I've been waiting for this movie since the original AvP comics came out. Having a young Predator protagonist allows you to see there's more to them as a species. Elle Fanning is great and has a lot of lifting to do as she's the only "human" in most of the movie. Between this, Prey, and Killer of Killers, we've been blessed with some of the best Predator content since the original.

 

Rating: 8/10

 

 

Mrs Dex found the Six Million Dollar Man on Peacock and we're doing a series watch. I can't really call it a rewatch because there's no way I caught a lot of these when they aired. Being Gen X kids, we both have nostalgia for the show so it's interesting to go back and watch it now, especially with the gratuitous use of stock footage. Prior to the show proper, there were three made for TV movies to get Col. Austin off the ground.

  

The Six Million Dollar Man (1973)

I've read this is a good adaptation of the original novel Cyborg by Martin Caidin. I haven't read the book but I'm not sure how anyone saw this and said "Yes, we need more!" Steve has mental trauma from his accident and replacement parts which is understandable and is a great theme for a book. But here he's very dour and the show just isn't that much fun. The fan-made season one trailer above gives a little peek at how serious the pilot can be.

 

Rating: 3/10 

 

Wine, Women, and War (1973) &The Solid Gold Kidnapping (1973)

I'm lumping these together as there's not a lot to differentiate them. They basically turned Austin into James Bond with bionics. He's got a sense of humor and even drops a couple double entendre! They're dated, as anything from the 70s will be, but they're a lot more fun to watch than the pilot. They haven't got around to using the iconic sound effects yet so it's a little weird seeing him in action without them.

 

Rating: 4/10 & 5/10

 

This Month

New: 8   Rewatch: 0

Year to Date

New: 14   Rewatch: 0

Sid & Marty Krofft Figural Bag Clips

 Mrs. Dex got me a couple of these with my Valentine's goodies.

 

 Some people hate the whole blind package thing but we love it here. I don't usually try to go for complete sets so picking up a few rarely results in duplicates.

  

But sometimes you do get ones you're not as excited for. I don't remember much about the Bigfoot & Wildboy show other than it existed. I actually thought this might be Chaka from Land of the Lost when I pulled him out. Bigfoot was huge in the 70s but I'm guessing when you talk about him and TV most people are going to think of when he was on The Six Million Dollar Man.

 

 On the other hand, ElectraWoman and DynaGirl was probably my second favorite of the Krofft shows (just behind Land of the Lost naturally). Live action superheroes on Saturday morning weren't a rarity but unlike the other shows, EW & DG were usually squaring off against costumed villains. Plus they had those cool Electracomp bracelets and a flying car.

 

Other shows represented in this series are Land of the Lost (gotta get that Sleestak!), Wonder Bug, Lidsville, The Bugaloos, The Lost Saucer, and Sigmund and the Sea Monsters (which got a whole other series of these).

 

I'm hoping there's a series two to give us Fi (Ruth Buzzi) from The Lost Saucer and maybe a Doctor Shrinker.