Thundercracker is a Decepticon in the Armada and Cybertron portions of the Unicron Trilogy.
Thundercracker suffered from low self-esteem and longed for approval from authority figures to validate his existence. He was willing to work as hard as necessary to gain attention and praise from Megatron, but when all his efforts were ignored or taken for granted, he grew frustrated. Thundercracker felt the need to engage in ever more risky and reckless behavior in an attempt to gain Megatron's notice. Many predicted this would lead to his destruction.
When next we see Thundercracker it is over ten years later, loyally serving under Starscream during the search for the Cyber Planet Keys. In the intervening years he became something of a jokester and goofball. This has often gained him the attention that he craves. Though frequently, especially when Megatron is the brunt of the joke, it is far from positive attention. Thundercracker doesn't seem mature enough to tell the difference, but he does know when to get the smelt out of Decepticon HQ before Megatron looks for someone to pummel.
(Note: the Dreamwave More Than Meets The Eye bio compilation for the Aramda series portrays Thundercracker very differently, as a former Decepticon who left the army centuries ago. However, this does not seem to mesh with the glimpses of unreleased Energon comic issues where Thundercracker, along with several other Armada-series characters, show up in the present day.)
Fiction
Animated Continuity
Armada
The character "Thundercracker" is never seen in the Armada cartoon. When Starscream gains his Powerlinx coloration, however, he happens to look just like Thundercracker. In Armada (although not Micron Legend) he specifically says "I look like Thundercracker," with a clear tone of distaste, proving that, although he is not seen, Armada Thundercracker must exist in this continuity as well.
Cybertron
Dreamwave Continuity
Information not yet added.
Toys
Armada
Thundercracker is a redeco of Aramda Starscream, transforming into a Cybertronic fighter jet. He is something of a rarity in the Armada line, in that he is a redeco that is a new, separate character rather than a "Powerlinx" upgrade of an existing character. He came with the Mini-Con Zapmaster, who was specially designed to fit between his flip-out cannons, and could also be stored on the underside of Thundercracker's nosecone in jet mode.
This mold was retooled to make Armada Skywarp and Universe Ramjet.
(Note: In Japan, Thundercracker's toy is simply a "powered up" version of Starscream.)
For the Built to Rule line, Thundercracker was once again a redeco, a new-color version of the BTR Starscream toy. He was one of the last of the Transformers BTR toys released at wide retail.
Cybertron
This mold is also used by Cybertron Skywarp.
A much smaller (sub-Basic), simplified version of this toy was released in the fourth wasve of the Legends of Cybertron line (not released at the time of this writing).
External Links
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