Designed and built by Vekoma, the roller coaster originally debuted in 1998 as Serial Thriller at Geauga Lake in Aurora, Ohio.

After Geauga Lake's permanent closure in 2007, Thunderhawk was dismantled and moved to Michigan's Adventure, where it reopened in 2008.

Serial Thriller was kept in operation following the park's ownership changes over the years involving Six Flags and Cedar Fair.

[5] During construction of Thunderhawk, the roller coaster was repainted with red track and the supports remained yellow.

Its padding and restraints on the trains were replaced as well in accordance with the new color scheme, as well as to improve the ride experience.

Next, the train travels through a banked hill and into a sidewinder, followed by a 270 degree downward helix into a double inline twist that features multiple footchopper effects.