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Blackout (Movie)

2008-04-13T19:13:21Z

172.206.27.235: /* Voyager Class toys */

{{disambig3|Blackout}}

:''Blackout is a [[Decepticon]] from the [[Movie (franchise)|Movie]] [[continuity family]]. He is also known as N.B.E. 23''

[[Image:MovieBlackout_promorender.jpg|right|thumb|350px|Hike the ball already!]]

The massive '''Blackout''' has been described as the "hound" of [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]]. In better days he was always to be found looming powerful and silent behind his leader's right shoulder. When given a target he hunts it down with fierce determination. Blackout is not happy with the progress [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]] is making towards finding the missing Decepticon leader. He suspects (quite rightly) that Starscream would prefer Megatron to stay lost. Blackout is openly mutinous and will challenge Starscream's leadership at any opportunity, not for his own sake, but to better serve his ultimate goal of finding his lost master. Blackout has a sneaky side and uses his symbiotic companion [[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok]]'s small size to great advantage.
{{quote|[[Inferno (BW)|All hail Megatron]]!|Blackout|[[Transformers (2007)|Transformers]]}}

:''Working names:'' '''Soundwave''', '''Grimlock''', '''Devastator'''<ref>[http://www.benprocter.com/SITEv2/HTML/ZOOM_Trans/ZOOM_32.html "Devastator" concept art at Ben Procter Online Portfolio]</ref>, '''Vortex'''<ref>[http://www.donmurphy.net/board/showthread.php?p=1120447#post1120447 Unformatted script sample from first draft naming the Decepticon helicopter "Vortex" posted by Roberto Orci on Don Murphy's message board]</ref>, '''Incinerator'''<ref>[http://www.benprocter.com/SITEv2/HTML/ZOOM_Trans/ZOOM_34.html "Incinerator" pre-production render at Ben Procter Online Portfolio]</ref>
:''Hungarian name:'' '''Kisülés''' ("Discharge"... or "Backseat" depending on how you interpret the compound)
:''Chinese name (Taiwan):'' '''Hei Mo''' ("Black Demon")

==Fiction==

===Titan Magazines===

Blackout prefers to sow confusion and disarray before he attacks rather than engage in direct confrontation & risk being killed. He'll only go into ground battles under cover of loud noise and pyrotechnics (which he himself causes with his devastating sonic shriek emitters).

Unfortunately for him, he keeps getting stuck leading the first wave of attacks. To protect himself, he uses an army of drone troopers (presumably [[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponoks]]) to draw enemy fire. On Cybertron, these drones were called "the swarm" and Blackout deliberately encouraged rumours about them so their arrival would strike fear into the hearts of enemies. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4}}

Half an hour after his death and before his body was dumped in the sea (in the film), Blackout was briefly turned into a rampaging zombie by [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]]. {{Storylink|Transformers Comic issue 7}}

===''Ghosts of Yesterday'' novel===

Blackout has spent thousands of years searching for Megatron and the All Spark under Starscream aboard the ''[[Nemesis (Movie)|Nemesis]]''. While Starscream is hoping not to find Megatron, Blackout is working against him in hopes of restoring the former leader. Upon discovering [[Ghost One|a vessel similar to Megatron's alternate mode]], Blackout became convinced that Megatron was nearby. However, the Autobots arrived in the ''[[Ark (Movie)|Ark]]'' to investigate the ship, and Starscream's orders the Decepticons to wait while he investigates the alien ship. Growing impatient, Blackout convinced [[Frenzy (Movie)|Frenzy]] and [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]] to join him in an attack on the Autobots. Blackout, Scorponok, and Frenzy ganged up on [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]], but he managed to defeat them, forcing Blackout to call for a retreat. After Prime heads to investigate [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]]'s disappearance, Starscream orders them to attack, and Bonecrusher is given command. Blackout, however, is able to sneak Scorponok on board the ''Ark''.

After Starscream returns, Blackout demands answers. Starscream claims that Prime and Bumblebee were killed by indigenous worms, while the alien ship was destroyed when it fell into a cavern. Blackout, unconvinced, challenges Starscream, but is seriously damaged, and had to be taken back to the ''Nemesis''. However, Prime, Bumblebee, and the ship appeared soon after. When Starscream ordered the Decepticons to destroy the ship, Blackout demanded answers, which Bonecrusher and Barricade agreed to. However, [[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]] was able to force Scorponok off the ''Ark'', and Blackout, still healing, sped to his rescue. What a pal. {{storylink|Transformers: Ghosts of Yesterday}}

===''Prime Directives'' prequel comic===

[[Image:Movie_Blackout_IDWprequel_camoflageenabled.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Apparently the crew of military helicopters don't count as 'witnesses']]

The Decepticon infiltration unit under the command of Starscream, including Blackout and [[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]], landed on [[Mars]], hot on the trail of the Autobot [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]]. There, they destroyed a primitive human rover scout. {{Storylink|Prime Directives issue 3}}

The unit arrived on [[Earth]] in the year 2003. Blackout scanned a USAF [[Wikipedia:MH-53 Pave Low|MH-53 Pave Low]] helicopter, but apparently was not detected by the humans, nor caused any casualties, in contrast to his two comrades. When Starscream tells the Decepticons that their mission is to find the All Spark, Blackout reminds Starscream that they must also find Megatron.

Later, after being lured into a trap intended for [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]] set by a group of impressively equipped humans, Blackout attacked the organisation's bunker and attempted to hack into their main server, but failed after they disconnected their local systems. The only lead he got was a name...[[Sector Seven]]. {{Storylink|Prime Directives issue 4}}

{{-}}

===''Transformers'' Movie Prequel (Target)===
[[Image:Movie_BlackoutStarscream_protoforms.jpg|thumb|right|150px|An ominous rumble is Blackout's only response...]]

On [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], Blackout fought alongside Megatron, until his master ordered 'this loyal hound' to assist Starscream's unit in keeping Optimus Prime's forces busy, while Megatron pursued his destiny. Arriving soon after [[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl]] delivered news of Megatron's location, Blackout and Starscream witnessed the successful Autobot launch of the All Spark. Blackout restrained Starscream from going after it, the pair nearly coming to blows when Blackout launched Scorponok from his chest. Fortunately, Starscream calmed down, and after witnessing Megatron leave the planet himself, the group took on protoform transition forms and followed.

[[Image:Movie_Blackout_TargetPrequel_continuityheadache.jpg|thumb|left|150px|Beware, Qatar! Beware! Muhahahahahaha!]]

Making planetfall on Earth in Afghanistan many years later, Blackout attracted the attention of a military vehicle of the local creatures. Witnessing the ease in which [[Wreckage (Movie)|Wreckage]] destroyed the carrier, Starscream pondered that Megatron would have been able to subjugate these beings if he was able to. Blackout replied that they needed to find out why he hadn't yet. Starscream's unit then attacked the nearby air base where Blackout scanned and adopted the form of an MH-53J 'Pave Low' helicopter, then easily hacked into the files of the human computers. Inside, he found files on something called 'Project: Iceman', which he suspected was related to Megatron. After the base's destruction, Blackout headed towards [[Qatar]], intent on attacking a similar military base there to access the information they needed. {{Storylink|Transformers Movie Prequel (Target) Volume 2}}

'''Note:''' ''This story contradicts both issue 4 of IDW's own Prime Directives movie prequel as well as the movie with regards to where the Decepticons arrived on Earth (they landed in the United States in the other comic) and when did they arrive. In this story, Blackout immediately leaves for Qatar after the attack, whereas in the Movie itself, he assumed the form three months before attacking SOCCENT Qatar.''

{{-}}

===''Transformers: Beginnings''===
:''Voice actor:'' [[Brian Stepanek]]
{{charstubfiction}}

===''Transformers'' (2007) film===

[[Image:Movie_Blackout_Raptors.jpg|right|thumb|201px|I will let them order me now so I can shoot them later.]]

Blackout flew into the airspace of [[United States Military|US]] [[SOCCENT Forward Operations Base]] in [[Qatar]] and refused to identify himself, prompting base commander [[Colonel Sharp]] to dispatch two [[Wikipedia:F-22 Raptor|F-22 Raptor]]s to escort the Decepticon into their base. One of the Raptors reported that Blackout had the registry number of 4500X on his vertical stabilizer, the number of the helicopter Blackout had scanned and destroyed three months earlier in Afghanistan.

[[Image:Movie_Blackout_SOCCENTAttack1.jpg|left|thumb|200px|All your base are belong to [[Decepticon|us]].]]

Once landed, Blackout was surrounded by the soldiers stationed at the base and ordered to power down and disembark his crew, or deadly force would be used. Seeing no reason to hide himself any further, Blackout transformed under a hail of automatic weapons fire from the shocked humans. Activating his heavy machine guns and rocket launchers, Blackout made quick work of the soldiers closest to him, then unleashed a massive shock wave that killed the rest of the troops and shattered their vehicles and the windows of the operations control tower. Blackout made his way around the base, tossing tanks aside, crushing soldiers underfoot and blowing up aircraft. Eventually, he reached the operations bunker and tore off the roof to link up with their server and download its files in an attempt to find information on [[Megatron (Movie)|Project: Ice Man]]. Unfortunately, the base commander intervened, cutting the physical hard line of the server, severing Blackout's connection and thwarting the primary objective of his mission.

[[Image:Movie_Blackout_holoavatar.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Watch me twirl my [[Mustache Man|mustache]] as I contemplate the destruction of Earth.]]

Still, Blackout carried out his second objective - the destruction of the human base. As he proceeded, [[Robert Epps|a human soldier]] was nearly crushed. Instinctively, the soldier recorded images of Blackout, the Decepticon indulging this brief moment of curiosity by looking straight back at the human. Blackout then activated a chest-mounted laser cannon to put the fleshling out of its misery, but before he could do so, he was struck by a grenade fired by [[Jorge Figueroa|another soldier]], and the human made his escape. Enraged, Blackout fired flare countermeasures into the sky to confuse any other attempts to attack him, then ejected Scorponok from his back and sent his minion to track the [[William Lennox|fleeing]] [[Sergeant Donnelly|soldiers]]. Blackout then turned his attention and his weapons back to the rest of the base, eventually destroying it, leaving no survivors.

Evidently, after the attack, Blackout flew back to the [[United States of America|United States]], as he was in the vicinity when [[Frenzy (Movie)|Frenzy]] reported the discovery of All Spark's location and Starscream ordered their forces to mobilize. Blackout was the last to acknowledge the order, then rallied in Megatron's name, perhaps to remind Starscream who his master was.

[[Image:Blackout is going to kill you.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Point that thing someplace else!]]

Blackout arrived at [[Mission City]] just as the final battle was getting underway. Megatron's order of "Decepticons attack" must have been music to his ears, and he followed his master's commands whole heartedly. He attempted to block [[Sam Witwicky|ladiesman217]]'s path as the boy was trying to get away with the All Spark, before he was attacked by [[Ironhide (Movie)|Ironhide]]. The Autobot threw a car at Blackout, who fired his laser cannon to destroy the vehicle and knock Ironhide over. He flew ahead of ladiesman217, attempting to use his rotor weapon to kill him, but the human managed to dodge this attack.

[[Image:Blackout movie dead.JPG|thumb|left|200px|Oh, [[Primus|God]], I hope that stuff leaking out is [[Energon]].]]
Blackout withdrew from the battle for a few moments, but returned as [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] and Megatron fought. Seeing his master under attack, Blackout came to the defense of his lord by activating his hand-held rotor weapon, but soldiers—including survivors of the SOCCENT base attack—attempted to stop him by painting him with targeting lasers for friendly F-22 Raptors to fire upon. As Blackout activated his cannon, he noticed the lasers targeted on him. Underestimating the fighting spirit and desire for vengeance of the humans, Blackout tried to finish them off until Captain Lennox, using an abandoned motorcycle, charged at him and fired a sabot round into his crotch (ouch), as F-22s pounded the Decepticon with missiles, extinguishing his [[spark]].

His remains were dumped in the (second) deepest part of the ocean along with his fellow dead Decepticons. {{Storylink|Transformers (2007)}}

:''('''Note:''' The possible period of time that Blackout acquired his vehicle mode in the movie appears to contradict the origin of his vehicle mode in both IDW's ''Prime Directives'' prequel and the Target exclusive prequel comic. See Trivia section below.)''

===''Transformers'' The Game (console)===
====Autobot campaign====
In the Autobot campaign he suffers a humiliating defeat from [[Jazz (Movie)|Jazz]], even though Blackout had [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]]'s help. That's got be the most humiliating thing for any of the characters in the videogame, losing to somebody a third of his size.

====Decepticon campaign====
Blackout and Scorponok were sent to the SOCCENT Base to destroy the human military installation there and download information from the military servers on the location of the [[All Spark (Movie)|All Spark]]. The pair were successful, though Blackout's escape was briefly interrupted by the arrival of a squad of human jet fighters. After blasting them to tiny bits, he made good his escape.

Blackout arrived at [[Hoover Dam]], where his scans failed to detect the energy signatures of Megatron or the All Spark. Starscream ordered him to break the dam piece by piece. Blackout fired a pair of missiles and fought off a squad of [[Swindle (Movie)|Autobot sports car drones]] that were defending the installation. As Megatron emerged, he bowed before his lord. He then followed the newly-revived Megatron to [[Mission City]], where he engaged in a final showdown with [[Ironhide (Movie)|Ironhide]], who had just punted Scorponok. The Autobot warhorse certainly gave the massive Decepticon a run for his money. The huge number of Autobot drones backing Ironhide up didn't make things any easier.

During Megatron's battle with Optimus Prime, Blackout attempted to assist his master by charging Prime. Prime punched the massive Decepticon, sending him flying. How embarrassing.

===''Transformers: Autobots''===

Blackout shows up during [[Jazz (Movie)|Jazz's]] mission to retrieve several [[Sector Seven]] vehicles for scanning. Arriving at an abandoned power station after fighting off hordes of human authorities for stealing, Jazz had to fight Blackout with significant damage taken from the primitive weapons.

Jazz STILL won. This is even more humiliating than before.

Deciding that discretion was the better part of valor, and that cowardice was the better part of discretion, Blackout valiantly flew off, appearing much later to pester an already pissed-off [[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]]. He didn't fare too well this time, either.

===''Transformers: Decepticons''===

First arriving under the command of [[Create-A-Bot (Decepticon)|a low-ranking soldier]], Blackout was sent out to destroy the communications arrays in the Qatar SOCCENT military base. Once completed, he returns for more orders.

Soon after, Blackout encounters [[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]], who appears at the base to stop you from blowing the [[Pit|hell]] out of everything. Once defeated, Blackout disappears until the other Decepticons arrive at Hoover Dam.

Dropping off some bombs for Brawl to set, the Decepticons attempt to blow up the Dam to simultaneously release Megatron and thaw him out, but are thwarted by Jazz and his drone clones. Their heroic attempts are for naught, as Megatron escapes anyway, while Blackout and Barricade retrieve his weapon chip. Once in hand, they meet before their leader and reactivate his weapons. After a charismatic speech, they set out to Tranquility to capture the All Spark and defeat the Autobots once and for all.

Blackout arrives just in time to be blasted to [[slag (slang)|slag]] by an All Spark powered Starscream with a single blast. That's still slightly less embarrassing as being beaten by a half-dead Jazz.

==Toys==
===Transformers===
====Legends Class toys====

*'''Blackout''' (Legends, 2007)

[[Image:Movie_Blackout_Legends_toy.jpg|thumb|right|I have no fingers? ''You'' did this, Starscream!]]

:A much smaller and highly simplified version of the character, Legends Blackout features limited articulation and detail, with the helicopter mode not being a particularly faithful recreation of an MH-53 Pave Low (the placement of the fuel tanks, in particular). Even though the robot mode sports an attempt to emulate the movie character's chest design, this does not involve the use of obvious fake elements of the helicopter mode's cockpit, unlike other Legends Class toys of movie characters. Curiously, the instructions on the back of the card show how to transform him from his alt-mode to his robot mode, which is the reverse of the rest of the Legends Class packaging.

{{-}}

*'''Ironhide vs. Desert Blackout''' (Legends Allspark Battles two-pack, 2007)

: Desert Blackout is a tan redeco of the previously released Legends Blackout toy. He comes with an all-new Legends Class Ironhide.

{{-}}

====Voyager Class toys====

*'''Blackout''' (Voyager Class, 2007)
:''Japanese ID Number:'' '''MD-01'''

[[Image:Movie_Voyager_Blackout_toy.jpg|thumb|left|250px|The largest Transformer in the film. Ironically, the second smallest Voyager-class figure ''ever''.]]

: Blackout transforms into a reasonably accurate [[Wikipedia:MH-53 Pave Low|Sikorsky MH-53 Pave Low]] heavy-lift helicopter, though his slate gray color scheme is noticeably darker and more blueish than the Gunship Gray (FS 36118) color used on the actual helicopter in the movie and similar ones in USAF service. An aft "cage" compartment can be opened to release a small PVC figurine of his partner, [[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok]]. A button on the very end of his tail can be pressed in a geared action to rotate his rotor blades, but this feature really comes into play when the user attaches the Deluxe-class Scorponok figure to the bottom of Blackout's helicopter mode via two pegs. A geared shaft linked to the rotor mechanism connects to a geared peg on Scorponok's back. Thus, pressing the button on Blackout's tail not only rotates his blades, but also rotates Scorponok's pincers, though this gimmick is actually easier to activate by rotating the geared wheel on Scorponok's undercarriage.

: During transformation, Blackout's (mind-numbingly delicate) [[Automorph]]ing gimmick is activated when the user swings down his legs, which in turn flips the gray chest section his head is mounted upon up and into position. A better way to activate this feature is to push the tail down, which automorphs the legs and head without breaking the figure. Another, less impressive automorph is in his legs - If you pull his knees down, his shin armor pops out a bit.

: In robot mode, Blackout is not quite as accurate to his final CGI design as some of the other Movie toys are. Instead, it appears that his design is closer to that of his ''original'' concept art, back when he was called "Incinerator". Oddly, he's much more accurate to his depiction in the ''Transformers'' Nintendo DS games. Still, as is expected with the mainline movie toys, he features excellent articulation, with multi-ratcheting joints in his shoulders, elbows, hips and knees. The entire rotor assembly on his back can be removed and converted into a gigantic fan weapon, to ''vaguely'' represent the hand-held rotor-blade weapon he wields in the film, also seen on the ''Titanium'' figurine (see below). Because of the size of his rotor assembly, Blackout is also much smaller than most Voyager-class figures, barely larger than a Deluxe figure (particularly [[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]], only about a head taller). But one thing that is really odd is that, at head height, he is the same height as [[Dreadwing (Movie)|Overcast or Dreadwing]].

: There are a couple significant flaws in Blackout's design: Firstly, the pegs that hold the fuselage (his robot legs) to the rotor/tail assembly do not provide enough friction to withstand the weight of the fuselage itself, causing it to detach from the body of the helicopter and droop down. Secondly, the gears in the cockpit's (his chest's) Automorphing gimmick can misalign themselves during transformation back in to vehicle mode, enough so that the chest/head section refuses to align with the cockpit halves. Another possible problem is that aligning the three thirds of the cockpit may move the rear of the helicopter down and so can be aided by a rubber band.

: An interesting side note is that the two hard points located on Blackout's shoulders, intended to support his abominably large weapon, are actually the same size as the Mini-Con hardpoints on most post-''Armada'' figures. This basically means he is the only Decepticon from the movie continuity who can [[Powerlinx]]. Though, considering how far-removed both continuities are, this is most likely something of an accident, as there is a lack of Powerlinx port details at the base of these hardpoints.

: This mold was retooled and redecoed into [[Evac (Movie)|Evac]] for the ''AllSpark Power'' refresh of the Movie toyline.

*'''Decepticon Desert Attack''' (Toys'R'Us exclusive two-pack, 2007)

[[Image:Movie_DecepticonDesertAttack_2pack.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Ignoring the vast difference in scale between Scorponok's two figures while linked to Blackout takes some imagination.]]

: This package, based on their first appearance in the film, features an unchanged Voyager Blackout packaged with an unchanged Deluxe Scorponok, which was exclusively available at Toys "R" Us stores. Since Voyager Blackout was gang-molded with the miniature Scorponok figure the single release came with, this means that the set contains two Scorponok toys in different sizes.

{{-}}

*'''Blackout Ver. 4500X''' (Lawson exclusive Voyager Class, Japan 2007)

: This Voyager class Blackout repaint is exclusive to the Lawson Japan convenience store chain, with the purchase of the movie DVD. He is redecoed in a more realistic color scheme for vehicle mode, 4500X markings and a drastically changed plastic color scheme in robot mode (many parts once black are now silver or the same colour as his helicopter hull). Additionally, the mini-Scorponok figurine has been repainted in metallic colours and detailed to resemble the deluxe-class toy (and the movie CG design, of course).

:Also included a set of two brass Autobot and Decepticon insignia pins.

{{-}}

*'''Blackout''' ("Premium Series" Voyager Class, USA 2008)

[[Image:Movie_Blackout_PremiumVoyager_toy.jpg|thumb|left|200px|NOW the size is perfect.]]

: This redeco of the Voyager Class Blackout toy appears to be based on the same plastic color layout and paint mask as the Japanese Lawson exclusive "Version 4500X" redeco of Voyager Blackout, down to the improved paint on the Scorponok mini-figure. As a matter of fact, both toys might turn out to be outright ''identical'', packging aside.

: Unlike some of the early "Premium Series" toys, Blackout is slated for a mass release.

====Fast Action Battlers====

*'''Gyro Blade Blackout''' (Fast Action Battler, 2007)

[[Image:Movie_FAB_Blackout.jpg|thumb|right|200px|... ''Brown''out?]]

:A simplified version of Blackout, designed for smaller children. His rotor blade can be detached and inserted into his left hand to represent the hand-held rotor blade seen in the film, just like the Voyager class version. He also features a chest cannon which can be flipped up from his back. Oddly, you can only see one-fourth of Blackout's head from a 90-degree angle. Even less of it is visible when his chest cannon is flipped up. He features a firing missile.

{{-}}

===Titanium Series===
*'''Blackout''' (3" Robot Masters, 2007)

[[Image:Movie_TitaniumRM_Blackout.jpg|thumb|left|140px|Scorponok! I can't move! Quick, drag me away!]]

: This three-inch figurine, as with all Titaniums, is partially made of die-cast metal and plastic, sculpted holding his rotor-blades as a hand weapon. Interestingly, Blackout has a more unique sculpt to him; the weapon is sculpted as it was briefly seen in the movie, but on the wrong hand. Blackout ''himself'' has an altered leg & foot design as well as having the main rotor-blades on his back excluded, matching it up more with the fact that instead of using his tail rotor, he uses his ''main'' rotor as a multi-purpose melee weapon, echoing the game render. His articulation is limited to his shoulders, head and waist, and he comes packaged with a movie-style Decepticon symbol display base.

{{-}}

==Merchandise==
===Robot Heroes===
*'''Optimus Prime vs. Blackout''' (2007)

== Trivia ==
[[Image:EarlyMovieBlackout.jpg|thumb|200px|Blackoutwave lives in constant fear of pterodactyls.]]

* Blackout was originally conceived as [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]], hence his symbiotic relationship with Scorponok, who was originally conceived as [[Ravage]]. Though this obviously changed, his portrayal in the ''Ghosts of Yesterday'' novel is rather Soundwave-esque. Likewise, in the IDW prequel comic, Blackout is the only Decepticon to land on Earth and acquire his alternate mode without ''any'' witnesses, whereas Starscream and Barricade had to kill existing witnesses. In the film ''itself'', Blackout's only speaking role has him quickly reporting to Starscream's call... in Cybertronian, with he alone both hailing Megatron upon the All Spark's discovery and attempting to aid him in battle against Prime. What's more, all this "Soundwave-ness" is further enhanced by Hasbro's official bio, calling Blackout "his leader's hound".

* Blackout wins the award for being the Transformers character from the 2007 movie that has gone through the most number of working names: Aside from "Soundwave", he was also supposed to be named "Grimlock", "Vortex", "Devastator" and "Incinerator" at different stages of the pre-production process. The name "Incinerator" was later used for a [[Incinerator (Movie)|different toy]] from the Movie toyline.

* Blackout's working name "Incinerator" is also accounted for in the aforementioned Hasbro bio, noting how Blackout will "fill the air with fire and burn the land clear to take his revenge".

* The period of time that Blackout acquired his vehicle mode in the film, three months prior to the unfolding events, appears to contradict the origin of his vehicle mode in IDW's ''Prime Directives'' prequel comics, with him apparently having scanned and destroyed the MH-53 Pave Low all the way back in 2003. It's maaaaybe possible that he just kept on destroying ''different'' Pave Lows over time to maintain his covert status (with the U.S. government covering it up) until he finally realized how close he was to a military network access point.

* Technically, [[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok's]] scorpion mode is his ''robot mode'', whereas his "alternate mode" is actually a part of Blackout's engine: The center of his body appears to be made of a [[Wikipedia:General Electric T64|General Electric T64]] turboshaft engine, whereas according to his transformation/separation sequence in the movie, his forearms are made up of part of the side thrusters' exhausts, and therefore ''also'' consist of parts of T64 engines (how this is possible, considering an MH-53 Pave Low only features ''two'' T64 engines, is up to anyone's guess). Meanwhile, the various markings found on the CGI model's design, the life-sized props and Hasbro's Deluxe toy are taken from all kinds of places of Blackout's helicopter mode, most prominently the cockpit and the tail.<ref name="pavelow">[http://www.clubhyper.com/reference/mh53jreferencefr_1.htm Detail close-up photos of a real MH-53 Pave Low]</ref> Some of those markings can also be found on props used for the scene which features the US Navy dumping the Decepticons' remains into the ocean.<ref>[http://transformerslive.blogspot.com/2006/10/pics-from-uss-shoup-of-transformer.html Behind the scenes photos taken aboard the USS Shoup, depicting props from the movie used for the screne which features the US Navy dumping the Decepticons' remains into the ocean]</ref> Considering Blackout didn't appear to be missing any integral parts of his alternate mode when answering [[Frenzy (Movie)|Frenzy's]] call or during the final battle in [[Mission City]], one would suspect that either Scorponok reattached himself to Blackout after he escaped the US Air Force's counter-attack in Qatar (and was therefore part of Blackout during the final battle), or Blackout somehow magically regrew the parts that were previously made up by Scorponok. Furthermore, this raises the question whether Scorponok is actually supposed to be a fully-fledged character, or merely a "drone". In the feature "From Script to Sand: The Skorponok Desert Attack" on the movie's bonus DVD, production designer [[Jeff Mann]] suggested that Scorponok was "birthed" from Blackout, thus suggesting that he might be more of an autonomous extension of Blackout himself, similar to [[Roller]].

* Blackout is never actually seen using his chest cannon in the film, even though he unfurls it quite emphatically on two separate occasions.

* During a transmission from Burger King's website, Optimus Prime has decreed that we are not to ride ''this'' helicopter. The current ridability of ''other'' helicopters the world over is unknown. Stand by for further updates as they become available.

*Blackout uses a [[mouthplate]] in the movie, seen in a brief shot of the side of his face before Epps takes his photo; presumably he retracted it to smile.

==Footnotes==
<references />

[[Category: Decepticons]]
[[Category: Movie characters]]
[[Category: Robot Heroes]]
[[Category: Titanium Series]]<div id="wikia-credits"> From [http://transformers.wikia.com Teletraan I: The Transformers Wiki], a [http://www.wikia.com Wikia] wiki.</div>

The Elite Guard

2008-04-13T11:46:58Z

172.206.27.235: /* Continuity errors */

{{disambig2|the '''Transformers Animated''' episode|the Autobot military team featured in this episode|Cybertron Elite Guard}}

{{episodenav|animated|17|season=2|prev=Megatron Rising - Part 2|next=Return of the Headmaster}}

[[Image:Eliteguardleaveshuttle.jpg|right|300px|thumb|The cool kids always arrive fashionably late.]]
'''The Cybertron Elite Guard arrives on Earth to retrieve the All Spark and relieve Prime and his crew of their post, but they prove less than adept at blending in with the human world.'''

==Summary==
On the extensive highway system of [[Detroit]], the [[Autobot]]s are aiding in the repair efforts after their titanic battle with the [[Decepticon]]s. Unfortunately the residents of the city don't seem to ''understand'' that the road system was blown to rubble by the battle, and are upset that the Autobots are holding up traffic. Optimus Prime heads over to address their concerns, and they flee in fear. Bulkhead comments that he liked it better when they were heroes, to which Ratchet retorts that they still are. All of them wonder what the heck has happened that Bumblebee isn't there helping them.

[[Image:Super secretary.jpg|left|thumb|200px|Sure thing, doll face!]]

There's no reason for them to be jealous though, as the little yellow bot has been pressed into service as Sari's secretary at [[Sumdac Tower]]. The little girl realizes that there's a lot of pressure in running a business, and feels sorry for her father's having had to deal with this. Porter C. Powell is less patient, and expresses a fairly cold attitude towards her "wasting" company funds on locating the genius who designs all the company's myriad robotic technologies. Sari is unable to address his concerns though, as an unidentified flying object is spotted in Detroit's skies.

[[Image:Elite ship.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Those [[Cybertron Elite Guard|Elite guys]] always got ships that could actually land.]]

Spotting it, the Autobots speed to the scene, only to be met with some justified resentment by Captain Fanzone. However they are allowed to pass once the ship is revealed to be crewed by Autobots. Sentinel Prime, Jazz, and Ultra Magnus steps out of the ship, while Optimus Prime and company walk up the gangplank, giving Magnus a salute. The [[Supreme Commander]] orders a force field thrown up to quarantine the entire area from organics. Jazz is interested in interacting with the locals, but quickly loses his interest when Sentinel Prime warns that they'll spit slime that will melt him down.

Sentinel is assigned to decontaminating the long lost Autobot crew, a task he takes to with relish until he is interrupted by Jazz for overdoing it. Released, the Autobots are informed that the [[Cybertron Elite Guard|Elite Guard]] have come to retrieve the [[AllSpark (Animated)|AllSpark]]. Optimus explains that it was dispersed in the battle with the Decepticons, a fact that Sentinel accuses him of lying about, saying there is no evidence of the Decepticons being on the planet. Ratchet says that Optimus is a hero for keeping the AllSpark out of Megatron's hands, while Bulkhead nearly comes to blows with Sentinel after the out of line guardsman says that Optimus is anything but a hero. Ultra Magnus orders the Autobots to calm down, and tells Optimus to take him and and Sentinel to where the AllSpark was dispersed, and that Optimus Prime's crew would remain with Jazz until they return. The two Elite Guardsmen have some very unsubtle [[alternate mode]]s (Magnus is a military transport and Sentinel is a monster truck with a snow plow) and damage some cars near the ship as they [[roll out]]. Optimus tries to instruct them on the finer points of traffic laws, but Sentinel rams him aside without any regards for driver safety. He pays for this by driving off a damaged bridge and crashing into the ground below.

[[Image:Lair.jpg|left|thumb|200px|Meanwhile, in the evil lair...]]

Elsewhere, the Decepticons have holed themselves up in an underground mine with carbon deposits to hide them from the Autobots' sensors. Lugnut wants to go topside and fight, but Megatron has other priorities: the conquest of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. Megatron says that the reason they lost the [[Great War]]s were due to the AllSpark and the Autobots' [[space bridge]], but Megatron was able to download a partial schematic from the ''[[Ark (Animated)|Ark]]'' before his defeat. A completed space bridge would allow the Decepticons to teleport into Cybertron and conquer the planet from the inside. The rest of the space bridge's schematics, however, would have to be reverse-engineered by Isaac Sumdac, still the Decepticons' prisoner. Sumdac says that he doesn't know anything about teleportation, but a malfunctioning service drone gets him to shut up. Megatron blasts the drone, and discovers that a piece of the AllSpark is embedded into its circuitry. This gives Megatron hope that the AllSpark was not entirely destroyed, and could still be salvaged...

[[Image:Freaked jazz-1.jpg|right|thumb|200px|eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!]]

At a Sumdac Systems manufacturing plant, an assembly line building police drones has been embedded with a piece of the AllSpark,and the drones begin to go haywire. Powell tells Sari what is happening, but refuses to do anything about it. Sari decides to free the Autobots, using [[Sari Sumdac's key|her key]] to move through the shield and get onto the ship. Tripping an alarm, Jazz confronts Sari, trying not to provoke her, but lead her out of the ship. Realizing Jazz is afraid of her, Sari scares the [[slag (slang)|slag]] out of poor Jazz. As the Autobots arrive, they explain that Sari is harmless. Sari tells them what's going on at the plant, but Jazz says they need to stay with him. Bumblebee says that Magnus didn't specify where, and Jazz, wanting to try out his stylish alternate mode, goes with them to the plant.

On [[Dinobot Island (Animated)|Dinobot Island]], Optimus warns Sentinel and Magnus about the [[Dinobot (Animated)|Dinobot]]s, who take that moment to jump out, but Sentinel is unworried. Grimlock's [[Transformation|transformation]] and [[energo-sword]] are a little more impressive, especially as they manage to force back Sentinel Prime, even through his shield. Ultra Magnus uses his hammer to call down lightning and scare away the Dinobots, while Sentinel appears to have learned nothing.

[[Image:Prowl surprise.jpg|left|thumb|200px|[[Dull surprise]]!]]

Arriving at the plant, the police drones attack the Autobots. Jazz shows off his [[Metallikato]] skills, and Bulkhead smashes and smashes, but there is just no end to the drones. Magnus and the Primes arrive to provide backup, but Sentinel thinks that they should abort rather than risk organic contamination. Optimus, Prowl, and Jazz force their way into the plant, and get Sari to a control console which she places her key into, shutting down the assembly line, and Magnus uses his hammer to destroy the rest of the drones. Unfortunately, the key is stuck. Sentinel Prime says that he'll see Optimus tried for insubordination and high treason for destroying the AllSpark, but Optimus finally tells Sentinel to shove it in his hard drive, saying they are of equal [[Prime (rank)|rank]]. Using his axe, Prime destroys the console, and discovers that the key was attached to a piece of the AllSpark. Examining it, Ultra Magnus accepts Optimus Prime's story. Sentinel still tries to bad mouth Optimus, saying he's a liar, but Ultra Magnus finally puts Sentinel in his place, saying Optimus has strategic thinking, determination, and loyalty towards his comrades{{m-}}all qualities that Sentinel Prime could use.

[[Image:dramatic change in plot.jpg|right|180px|thumb|See that, [[Pat Lee]]? It's called an ''expression''!]]

Heading home, Sari and Bumblebee find that she has been locked out of her office. Powell says that he's been elected CEO and Chairman of the Board, and is now head of Sumdac Systems. Sari still insists that it's her family's company, but Powell reveals that there is no will or adoption papers from Isaac Sumdac, nor does Sari have birth certificate or social security number. As Sari realizes that she has no way to prove that she is Sumdac's daughter, Powell puts it even blunter{{m-}}there's no evidence to prove that she legally exists...

==Stats==

*'''Written by:''' [[Rich Fogel]]
*'''Directed by:''' [[Matt Youngberg]], [[Irineo Maramba]], & [[Yutaka Kagawa]]
*'''Original airdate:''' April 12, 2008
*'''Animation company:''' [[Mook]]

{{-}}
===Featured characters===
(''Numbers indicate order of appearance.)''
{|border=5 cellpadding=5 cellspacing=5 align=center style="border:#800000"

! style="background:#FFEEEE" | [[Autobot]]s
! style="background:#EEEEFE" | [[Decepticon]]s
! style="background:antiquewhite" | [[Human]]s
|-
| style="background:#FFEEEE" valign="top" |

*[[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus Prime]] (1)
*[[Bulkhead (Animated)|Bulkhead]] (2)
*[[Ratchet (Animated)|Ratchet]] (3)
*[[Prowl (Animated)|Prowl]] (4)
*[[Bumblebee (Animated)|Bumblebee]] (5)
*[[Sentinel Prime (Animated)|Sentinel Prime]] (9)
*[[Jazz (Animated)|Jazz]] (10)
*[[Ultra Magnus (Animated)|Ultra Magnus]] (11)
*[[Grimlock (Animated)|Grimlock]] (16)
*[[Swoop (Animated)|Swoop]] (17)
*[[Snarl (Animated)|Snarl]] (18)

| style="background:#EEEEFE" valign="top" |
*[[Lugnut|Lugnut]] (12)
*[[Blitzwing (Animated)|Blitzwing]] (13)
*[[Megatron (Animated)|Megatron]] (14)
| style="background:antiquewhite" valign="top" |

*[[Sari Sumdac]] (6)
*[[Porter C. Powell]] (7)
*[[Captain Fanzone]] (8)
*[[Isaac Sumdac]] (15)

|}

==Quotes==
'''Optimus''': This is completely unnecessary, Sentinel! 
'''Sentinel''': Can't risk an infestation, "old buddy". Take it like a real bot. 
''[Jazz shuts down the decontamination system]'' 
'''Jazz''': Cool it, Sentinel. Whatever went down between you and Optimus, you don't need to hassle his crew.
:{{m-}}'''Optimus Prime''' and '''Jazz''' are reminded that '''Sentinel Prime''' is a jerk.

"Man, that was some funky blinkin' colored light show! What'd you call those things again?" 
"Traffic lights?" 
"Traffic lights. Solid." 
:{{m-}}'''Jazz''' discovers the wonderful world of commuting with the help of '''Bulkhead'''. 

'''Bulkhead''': It's no good! These things are rolling off the assembly line faster than I can smash 'em! 
'''Jazz''': Is it always like this on this crazy planet? 
'''Prowl''': Pretty much. 
:{{m-}}'''Jazz''' learns that Prime's crew has anything but a quiet life.

'''Sentinel''': I think you've done enough, Optimus! I'll make sure you're tried for high treason for destroying the Allspark! Now come with me! 
'''Optimus''': No! 
''[Shoves Sentinel aside]'' 
'''Sentinel''': That wasn't a request. That's a DIRECT ORDER, Optimus! 
'''Optimus''': It's Optimus PRIME. I may be an Elite Guard washout and a glitched detail flunky, but last time I checked, you and I still had equal rank. SO, Sentinel PRIME, take your order AND your condescending attitude and STICK IT IN YOUR HARD DRIVE! You're on MY TURF now! 
:{{m-}}'''Optimus Prime''' is officially sick of '''Sentinel Prime's''' crap.

"Definetely appears to be a fragment of the AllSpark. Apparently, your story about dispersing it may not be so far fetched after all." 
"But sir, you can't honestly believe that. He's a lying, insubordinate crank shaft." 
"He may be a little rough around the edges, but in the heat of battle, Optimus Prime exhibited the qualities of a true leader: strategic thinking, determination, and above all, loyalty. Something ''you'' could stand to learn a thing or two about, Sentinel Prime." 
:{{m-}}'''Ultra Magnus''' praises '''Optimus Prime''' while letting '''Sentinel Prime''' know how much of an Auto-Ass he is.

[[Image:No Sari Sumdac.jpg|right|thumb|200px|To show what type of guy he is, Powell forced a little girl out of her missing father's company, then mockingly told her that she didn't exist. If there's karma in ''Animated'', one of the Autobots will step on him.]]

"Hey, why is my office locked?" 
"Miss Sumdac, I regret to inform you that your services will no longer be required. The board has unanimously elected me to take over as CEO of [[Sumdac Systems]]." 
"You can't do that! It's still my family's company!" 
"Is it? I took the liberty of doing some research into your claim. It might interest you to know that there is no will, no birth certificate, no adoption papers, social security number, or any kind of record whatsoever for a 'Sari Sumdac'." 
"Are you saying I can't prove I'm Isaac Sumdac's daughter?" 
"I'm saying you can't even prove you exist." 
:{{m-}}'''Sari''' and '''Porter C. Powell''' create a drastic change in plot.

{{-}}

==Other notes==
===Continuity errors===
*If Sari doesn't exist, why is her picture on the paper?
*Captain Fanzone is STILL driving the car that was crushed! Guess the mechanic he goes to can fix cars MEGA quick?

===Transformers references===
* This episode reveals that both Jazz and Prowl are practitioners of the Cybertronian martial art of [[Metallikato]], originally used by the Generation 1 character [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]].

===Real-world references===
* Ultra Magnus' Hammer appears to have been modeled after [[Wikipedia:Thor|Thor]]'s hammer [[Wikipedia:Mjolnir|Mjolnir]].
* Captain Fanzone homages the ''[[Wikipedia:Indiana Jones|Indiana Jones]]'' line, "Snakes, why did it have to be snakes?", replacing snakes with robots.

===Miscellaneous trivia===
* Megatron is evidently fully repaired now, while his subordinates are having trouble keeping their arms from falling off. Guy's got priorities, certainly.

* We don't know what's happened to Starscream's body ("alive" or dead). Presumably he's either crawled off somewhere or been retrieved by Megatron, since it doesn't seem to have occurred to Optimus to use him as evidence of Decepticon activity.

* When they're being "decontaminated", Bulkhead remarks that Sentinel doesn't remember them, to which Bumblebee replies that he wants it that way. Could they have met him before and don't want him to remember? Or is it a reference to their little video chat when they found the AllSpark?

* In the ''Animated'' universe, "Prime" seems to be a military rank, as Optimus forcefully reminds Sentinel.

* It remains unclear if either part of Ultra Magnus's name is a rank, particularly since he's commonly addressed as "Commander".

* So, what ''is'' the deal with Sari, anyway?

{{DEFAULTSORT:Elite Guard}}
[[Category:Animated episodes]]<div id="wikia-credits"> From [http://transformers.wikia.com Teletraan I: The Transformers Wiki], a [http://www.wikia.com Wikia] wiki.</div>