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Optimus Primal (BW)

2009-07-24T23:27:42Z

68.104.167.97:

{{factions|maximal|maximalbm|autobot}}
{{disambig3|Optimus}}
{{disambig3|Primal}}
:''Optimus Primal is a [[Maximal]] and an [[Autobot]] in the [[Beast Era]] portion of the [[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]] [[continuity family]] and an Autobot-aligned Maximal from the future in the [[Robots in Disguise (franchise)|Robots in Disguise]] continuity family. He is also sometimes known as '''Optimal Optimus''' (not to mention Boss Monkey, Bigbot, Fearless Leader, etc.).''

[[Image:Optimusprimalbw.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Next one of you says "[[trukk not munky]]" gets it in the FACE.]]
Young and untested, '''Optimus Primal''' was a mere captain of an exploration ship when he and his crew were diverted off-course to pursue a stolen Predacon ship under the leadership of some crook named [[Megatron (BW)|Megatron]]. The rest, they say, is (literally) history.

Though he does have a penchant for stuffy speeches, Optimus Primal is much more down-to-cybertron than his legendary [[Optimus Prime (G1)|namesake]]. He is committed to the Maximal codes of honor and moral judgment, but he does view them with some irreverence, and is not above finding loopholes or administering unorthodox solutions if necessary. ("Sometimes, crazy works," he says.) He is eternally loyal to his friends and respectful to his enemies. He is brave and selfless in battle. However, he is so committed to helping others that he can withdraw into a deep depression when he feels he has let them down. This is the only time he is self-absorbed.

Optimus Primal is extraordinary for not only being able to distinguish himself despite living in the shadow of Optimus Prime, but for perhaps even surpassing him, seeing as he [[Optimal Situation|saved the life of his namesake]] and ushered in a new [[technorganic]] [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. It is possible Optimus Primal is the greatest Cybertronian hero who has ever lived.

{{quote|Come on, let's hear it, the usual destiny and honor speech.|Megatron|"[[Nemesis Part 2]]"}}
{{quote|Speech this!|Optimus as he punches Megatron in the face|"[[Nemesis Part 2]]"}}

:''Japanese name (Beast Wars):'' '''Convoy''', '''Convobat''' (bat), '''Metals Convoy''' (Transmetal), '''Powered Convoy''' (Optimal Optimus)
:''Japanese name (Robot Masters):'' '''Beast Convoy'''
:''Japanese joke name (Beast Machines)'''Yvonco''' (イボンコ, ''Ibonko'')<ref>This joke name is first seen in the intro part from Japanese dub version of the episode "[[Fallout]]". "Yvonco" (イボンコ) is the reverse of "Convoy" (コンボイ).</ref>
:''European name:'' '''Black Jack'''
:''Italian name:'' '''Black Jack''', '''Metal Gorilla''' (Transmetal), '''Optimus Primal''' (Optimal Optimus)
:''Polish name:'' '''Optimus Naczelny''' ("Optimus Primal")
:''Chinese name (Taiwan):'' '''Jīn-gāng Wáng''' (金剛王, "King [[Wikipedia:King Kong|King Kong]]" or "King [[Wikipedia:Vajra|Vajra]]")
:''Russian name (first Beast Wars dub):'' '''King Kong'''
:''Russian name (second Beast Wars dub):'' '''Optimus Comandeer''' ("Optimus the Commander")
:''Cantonese name:'' '''Odim''' (奧狄武 ''Ou Dik Mou'')

==Fiction==
===Optimus Primal vs Megatron!===
Under the eerie shadows of a full moon Optimus Primal, a gigantic bat, [[Cheetor (BW)|Cheetor]], a swift-stalking cheetah, and [[Razorbeast]], a fearsome wild boar, hunt purposely through the depths of a jungle. Soon Optimus detects the thermal emissions and fusion activity from a building, which mean they've found their target. His motion sensors register what appears to be a harmless [[Earth]] creature below.

Before Optimus realizes his mistake the alligator lashes out with as smashing swipe of its tail, knocking Optimus into the swampy waters. The beast transforms and [[Megatron (BW)|Megatron]] towers above him. The building ahead is the Predacons' genetics lab and he'll never let Optimus reach the secrets inside. He orders his troops to attack and everyone transforms to robot mode. The gigantic arthropods Tarantulas and Waspinator engage Razorbeast and Cheetor respectively while Optimus and Megatron face off.

Optimus brags that the Maximal "[[bio-genetic morphing process]] has allowed us to create the perfect fusion of organic musculature and Transformers technology!" Megatron responds that his side did all that too, so nan-neh, but used the DNA of Earth's most vicious predators. When Optimus notes that the Maximals seem to be getting the upper hand, Megatron immediately detonates the lab and escapes, vowing to return with new forms and new plans when the Maximals least expect it. The Beast Wars have just begun! {{storylink|Optimus Primal vs Megatron!|Optimus Primal vs Megatron!}}

{{note|This comic, along with the on-package [[Bio|bios]] of the first wave of Beast Wars toys, predate the development of the Beast Wars cartoon and its backstory. Instead they seem to present the characters as a direct continuation of the previous Autobot/Decepticon conflict, with Optimus Primal actually being a new form of Optimus Prime and Megatron being his Generation 1 counterpart, and their battles taking place on present day, [[human]]-inhabited Earth, rather than in the distant past. Once the cartoon launched, the toyline adjusted itself to match that continuity instead, relegating this one to an aborted [[micro-continuity]].}}

===Cartoon continuity===
====Dawn of Future's Past====
[[Image:Optimusprimalbwtimelines.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Pre-fur Primal, Maximal nobody.]]
Optimus Primal is a veteran of the last [[Great War (G1)|Great War]], one waged between the Maximals and the Predacons. He is a distinguished graduate of the [[Maximal Military Academy]], where he was a diligent student of the accomplishments of past generations, both militaristic and scientific.<ref>Optimus Primal's profile in the Diamond Comics-exclusive edition of [[Dawn of Future's Past]].</ref>

Captain of the ship ''[[Axalon (BW)|Axalon]]'', Optimus Primal and his crew had been stuck on a space station for weeks while awaiting [[Rampage (BW)|additional cargo]]. Finally, they were leaving and ready to return to embarking on their mission of exploration, but the [[Maximal Defense Command Center]] had a different idea. The [[Golden Disk (Voyager)|Golden Disk]] had been stolen by [[Megatron (BW)|Megatron]] and a group of rogue [[Predacon (BW)|Predacons]], and Optimus Primal's ship was closest to intercept.

They closed in on Megatron's stolen ship, the ''[[Darksyde]]'', and shots were fired back and forth. Suddenly, not one but two ships joined their battle. One was sent by the [[Tripredacus Council]] and was commandeered by secret operatives [[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]] and [[Buzzsaw (G1)|Buzzsaw]]. Another, the ''[[Chromia 10]]'' was crewed by its [[Airazor (BW)|Maximal owner]] and [[Tigatron|Unit 2]], a member of the [[Maximal Command Security Force]]. Both of these ships were ultimately destroyed, but Primal ordered the Maximals on board the ''Chromia-10'' be downloaded into blank [[Stasis pod|stasis pods]] to save their lives.

Via transmission, Megatron taunted Optimus Primal and his crew. The ''Darksyde'' opened a [[transwarp]] portal and jumped through. The ''Axalon'' followed. {{storylink|Dawn of Future's Past|Dawn of Future's Past}}

====''Beast Wars'' cartoon====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Garry Chalk]] (English), [[Takehito Koyasu]] (Japanese), [[Guilherme Lope]] (Portuguese), [[Ben Hecker]] (German)

[[Image:OptimusPrimal BW1.jpg|left|250px|thumb|Shadows?! I don't need no stinkin' shadows!]]
Optimus Primal was the captain of the exploration ship ''[[Axalon (BW)|Axalon]]''. When his crew got word that the [[Predacon (BW)|Predacon]] criminal [[Megatron (BW)|Megatron]] had stolen the [[Golden Disk (Voyager)|Golden Disk]] and a [[Darksyde|ship]] with [[transwarp]] capabilities, Primal's ship was the closest vessel that also possessed a transwarp drive, so ''Axalon'' was sent to chase Megatron's crew.

Primal followed the Predacons through a transwarp portal and appeared above a mysterious planet, but both ships were damaged in the ensuing space battle, and before both ships crashed into the planet's surface below, Primal ordered that the [[Stasis pod|stasis pods]] carrying the rest of his crew to be ejected into orbit.

The planet was rich with [[Energon (fuel)|energon]] â€” so much so that prolonged exposure would short out their bodies, so the Maximals and Predacons were forced to take organic forms from the local creatures. Primal took the form of a silverback gorilla. Primal remarked that his new form was "interesting" upon exit from the [[CR chamber]]. Estranged from his comrades, the Predacon [[Dinobot (BW)|Dinobot]] challenged Primal to a duel soon after their arrival, seeking command of the Maximals so he could, in turn, defeat Megatron. However, the Predacons saw the duel and tried to kill them both. Dinobot joined the Maximals after Optimus risked his life to stop him from dropping to his death. Dinobot later repaid him by saving him from a missile fired at him by Megatron. (That did cause the energon-laced mountain where they were to explode, but nobody got killed). Optimus earned Dinobot's respect, but the ex-Predacon would never admit to respecting him out loud. {{storylink|Beast Wars (Part 1)|Beast Wars (Part 1)}} {{storylink|Beast Wars (Part 2)|Beast Wars (Part 2)}}

Both sides entrenched themselves on their new world, and the "[[Beast Wars (event)|Beast Wars]]" began. Strange unnatural sites and artifacts were discovered, leading Primal and the others to believe that aliens had seeded the primitive planet with experiments and traps. One such trap, the [[Standing Stones]], ensnared Primal's body for a short time, during which the Maximals scrambled to ascertain their chain of command. In his absence, the Maximals squabbled and fought over leadership, until finally his core consciousness was able to speak to them and name [[Rattrap]] as his replacement. Primal's body was subsequently retrieved from the Standing Stones, and he resumed command.

[[Image:OptimusPrimal Transmetal.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Transmetal Rippedimus Primal.]]
When [[Inferno (BW)|Inferno]] discovered evidence of the [[Vok]]'s imminent arrival, Megatron called a truce, to which Primal reluctantly agreed. While investigating a newly-created Vok installation, Primal was tortured and captured by the aliens, who spoke to him (in the form of [[Unicron]]) and told him of their plans to "sterilize" the planet. Barely escaping the Vok base, Primal returned to the ''Axalon'' to find it overrun by [[Tarantulas]] and [[Blackarachnia (BW)|Blackarachnia]], who had turned a space stasis pod into an escape ship in order to flee the doomed planet. As the planet's second moon was converted into a [[Planet Buster]], Primal took the ship to do battle with the superweapon, against the objections of his crew. Primal planned to detonate the ship's [[transwarp cell]] when in range of the weapon, after ejecting to safety. The plan workedâ€”with the exception of the "ejecting" part. Megatron remotely seized control of the vessel, overriding Primal's ejection commands. The Predacon commander taunted Primal as he futilely beat his fists against the pod, until the detonation obliterated the pod, the Planet Buster, and Primal, reducing them all to so much space junk. {{storylink|Other Voices, Part 2|Other Voices, Part 2}}

[[Image:OptimalOptimus Opsituation feralscream1.jpg|left|150px|thumb|Trukk and munky...and playne.]]
Primal's [[Spark]] journeyed to the [[Allspark|Matrix]], where it was soon recovered by [[Rhinox (BW)|Rhinox]] and placed in a [[blank]] [[protoform]], which became his new [[Transmetal]] body. Primal now transformed into a mechanical gorilla with a gorilla-on-a-hoverboard third mode, which he used to kick the crap out of the Predacons. {{storylink|Coming of the Fuzors (Part 2)|Coming of the Fuzors (Part 2)}}

[[Image:OptimusPrimal OpSit Matrixspark.jpg|right|150px|thumb|Continuity error!]]
Later on, Primal was captured and imprisoned in [[Metal Hunter|yet another Vok base]], this one controlled by his archnemesis Megatron. During a daring rescue attempt by the Maximals and Tarantulas, Optimus engaged in a furious battle with Megatron, destroying both the Metal Hunter and the alien disc. The Maximals then suffered a number of setbacks, including the death of Dinobot, the destruction of [[Transmutate]], and Megatron's acquisition of the deadly [[Rampage (BW)|Rampage]]. However, the Maximals were soon greeted with good news: the realization that the [[transwarp wavefront]] created by the destruction of the Planet Buster would lead Cybertron to them, making a rescue operation possible. Help arrived soon enough, but in the unexpected form of the rebuilt [[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]], who had come to arrest Megatron for his crimes against the [[Pax Cybertronia]]. In the midst of this, Primal was forced to chastise new recruit [[Silverbolt (BW)|Silverbolt]] for his dangerous relationship with Blackarachnia. Primal assisted Ravage in arresting Megatron, but was soon betrayed by the ex-[[Decepticon]], allowing Megatron to escape and reach the [[Ark (G1)|Ark]] in an attempt to assassinate [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]]. {{storylink|The Agenda (Part III)|The Agenda (Part III)}}

Primal was forced to take the great Autobot's spark inside himself to keep it protected. This caused his body to grow larger and stronger, gaining ground and air vehicle modes along with his previous gorilla form. Megatron sardonically dubbed him "Optimal Optimus" (ironically, no one else ever used that name). In his new form, he successfully protected Prime's spark until it could be returned to his repaired body, thus saving history and the future from destruction.

With the location of the Ark revealed and Megatron now desperate to end the war at any cost, Primal was forced to move his Maximals into the volcano where the Ark's hull lay. {{storylink|Optimal Situation|Optimal Situation}} This new, defensive war was much more difficult to fight, and disadvantaged the Maximals severely, even with his new four-mode body and enhanced firepower. With the loss of their defense system, [[Sentinel (BW)|Sentinel]], {{storylink|Changing of the Guard|Changing of the Guard}} the arrival of the rebellious and embittered [[Depth Charge]], {{storylink|Deep Metal|Deep Metal}} the awkward and violent maturation of Cheetor, {{storylink|Feral Scream Part 2|Feral Scream Part 2}} proto-humans to guard, {{storylink|Cutting Edge|Cutting Edge}} the theft of the original Megatron's spark and the ensuing mutation of the Beast Wars' Megatron, {{storylink|Master Blaster|Master Blaster}} the introduction of the previously treacherous and morally ambiguous Blackarachnia into their ranks and her imminent Transmetallization, {{storylink|Crossing the Rubicon|Crossing the Rubicon}} Optimus Primal had more than his share of problems to deal with.

The tide was finally turned when the Vok resurrected and combined [[Airazor (BW)|Airazor]] and [[Tigatron]] into the mighty [[Tigerhawk]], who obliterated the Predacon base. {{storylink|Other Victories|Other Victories}} In the end, Primal's forces defeated Megatron's, and with the captured Predacon leader strapped to the roof of a borrowed Autobot shuttle, the Maximals at last headed home. Leaving the planet and memorializing his fallen comrades, Optimus Primal declared that the Beast Wars were over. {{storylink|Nemesis Part 2|Nemesis Part 2}}

====Japanese cartoon continuity====
=====''Beast Wars II'' cartoon=====
[[Image:Burningconvoy.jpg|right|180px|thumb|All these compliments are making me blush.]]
Optimus Primal was summoned across time by [[Lio Junior]] to help [[Lio Convoy]] destroy [[Majin Zarak]]. Optimus Primal became '''Burning Convoy''' by joining the power of his matrix with Lio Convoy's.

After Majin Zarak's destruction, Optimus Primal returned to ancient [[Earth]]. {{storylink|Lio Convoy in Imminent Danger|Lio Convoy in Imminent Danger}}

{{note|It's not clear when during the Beast Wars Optimus Primal was taken.}}

=====''Robot Masters''=====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Yuto Kazama]] (Japanese)

Optimus Primal chased Megatron in yet another time warp into the Generation 1 era. There, he met and joined forces with [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]]. Together, their special attack was a massive energon tornado called Double Convoy Tornado. {{storylink|Fight! The Group of the Strongest Commanders!|Fight! The Group of the Strongest Commanders!}}

The Double Convoy Tornado would come to be countered by [[Megatron (BW)|Beast Megatron]]'s and [[Megatron (G1)|Rebirth Megatron]]'s Double Megatron Tornado, but emerge victorious with the addition of Lio Convoy's Lio Typhoon Arrow, creating Triple Convoy Tornado Link attack. {{storylink|The Lio Convoy Typhoon Enters (episode)|The Lio Convoy Typhoon Enters}}

He also had a temporary virus-induced Black Body form.

{{note|Since both were known as simply "Convoy" in their respective Japanese series, Optimus Prime was designated "G1 Convoy" while Optimus Primal was designated "Beast Convoy".}}

=====''Beast Wars Reborn''=====

{{note|This story takes place after the events of Beast Machines.}}
[[Image:BeastWarsRebornMegatronArtwork1.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Rebirth control.]]
Both Megatron and Optimus Primal awoke inside a bizare temple-like spaceship which was hurtling through space. Neither had any memory of who they were or how they got there, only their own names and a feeling of discomfort between one another. The pair went about investigating the ship in search of answers. While Megatron's memory was lost, his personality remained mostly intact: he was more concerned with seizing control of the ship before Primal did in order to gain the upper hand.

They eventually found a data log and discovered that their sparks had been taken and they were reborn into new bodies (unbeknownst to them, bodies identical to their original forms). However, their memories were intentionally not uploaded into their new bodies. While searching the log they discovered that the ship's main power source was a [[Golden Disk]] lodged within a giant pillar. Megatron immediately raced to obtain the Disk and Primal followed him. The closer they got to the disk the more the ship attempted to thwart their advance by manipulating its atmosphere conditions.

Once they reached the chamber, the ship's environment suddenly morphed to that of a decaying planet littered with the corpses of robots. The corpses came to life and began shambling toward them, intent on eating their sparks. They made short work of the zombies, leaving Megatron to obtain the Golden Disk and Primal with a feeling that he shouldn't entirely trust Megatron.

From another dimension beyond time and space, [[Primus]] recognized that something was amiss and sent one of his messengers to meet Primal and Megatron within the spaceship. {{storylink|The Mysterious Temple in Space|The Mysterious Temple in Space}}

====''Binaltech''====
Optimus Primal sent his spark back in time and took over [[Doctor Arkeville|Dr. Arkeville]]'s recently completed [[Nemesis Prime (G1)|Nemesis Prime]] body frame. The black Optimus Prime clone, imbued with the good spark of Primal, then warped out and set about rescuing the collapsing Binaltech timeline by splitting it from and restoring [[The Transformers: The Movie|the original timeline]].

When questioned by the Autobots, "Black Optimus" revealed only that the "Protector" was responsible for ensuring the continuation of the Binaltech universe, a universe that was the key to the [[Alternity (species)|Alternity]]. Primal's spark was [[Kiss Player|summarily ejected]], and the clone to his original evil programming, then quickly escaped.

As the Autobots sought to shut down the rogue Binaltech projects happening around the world, Optimus Prime faced off against Nemesis Prime. The battle looked to be short-lived, as Prime found himself outmatched by Nemesis Prime's [[Unicron|power]]. However Optimus Primal's spark merged with Optimus Prime—something Prime [[Optimal Situation|had vague memories of experiencing previously]]. The power resulting from this fusion enabled Optimus Prime to deflect Nemesis Prime's attack, ultimately destroying the clone.

{{note|Optimus Primal is not named in the ''Binaltech'' story. The identity of the Protector was originally speculated to be [[Hot Rod (G1)|Rodimus Prime]] due to his function (detailed on his tech spec card) and future leadership role. However, in addition to Optimus Prime's memory of spark fusion, the Protector's words to him, spark-to-spark, about the "seeds of the future" clearly establish the Protector to be Optimus Primal.}}

{{charstubfiction}}

====''Beast Machines'' cartoon====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Garry Chalk]] (English), [[Takehito Koyasu]] (Japanese), [[Guilherme Briggs]] (Portuguese), [[Tilo Schmitz]] (German)

[[Image:Optimusprimalbm.jpg|left|250px|thumb|Release the warrior! Also, um, the jetpack.]]
Seemingly minutes after the shuttle departed for transwarp space, Optimus Primal suddenly found himself back in his original, organic gorilla body and thrust into a dangerous situation on an eerily deserted [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], unfamiliar with how he arrived there and pursued by an army of [[Tank Drone|tank drones]]. Cornered by the mechanical terrors, Primal attempted to Maximize, but his parts only shifted painfully and his body was tortured by electric shocks. Using his ape-mode body's agility, he swung out of reach, and suddenly received a vision of a monorail-vehicle nearby. Swinging into the train car, he found [[Rattrap]], afflicted by the same [[Transformation virus|transformation lock virus]] as Primal. Rattrap suggested "taking off these fur suits", but there was not time, for another squadron of tank drones caught them. It would have been the end for Primal and Rattrap, had the timely arrival of [[Cheetor (BW)|Cheetor]] not saved them. Once again, Primal received a vision, showing a pit. Heading (well, falling) into the hole, he and his companions were caught on a familiar spiderweb, courtesy of [[Blackarachnia (BW)|Blackarachnia]], who was back in her Season 1 spider form and severely weakened. Heading underground, Primal led the weakened Maximals to the depths of ancient Cybertron on Blackarachnia's webs. Falling into darkness, Primal threw a piece of scrap metal and discovered what appeared to be a wall of fire. He had, in reality, awakened the powerful and legendary [[Vector Sigma|Oracle]]. As the other three Maximals watched, Primal entered into the bowels of the computer, within which he was granted visions he could not yet comprehend, including the prophetic statement that "the seeds of the future lie buried in the past." The Oracle then began to "[[Reformatting|reformat]]" Primal. Primal emerged in a new, [[technorganic]] beast mode and urged the other dying Maximals to complete their "reformatting" as well. Shortly after this was achieved, the group was attacked by an underground army of Cycle Drones. During the ensuing fight, Primal was the first to master the "art" of transformation as he plunged into a deep pit. Flying out, Primal grabbed the nearest drone and demanded answers, but lost his concentration, causing him to revert to beast mode. {{storylink|The Reformatting|The Reformatting}}

Primal began to teach the three other Maximals the lost art of transformation, which was mastered by achieving an inner calmness and finding their spiritual centers. Though Cheetor and Blackarachnia were successful off the bat, [[Rattrap]] badgered him just to "give us the command codes." Primal and the others were attacked by a [[Vehicon Mole|Mole Drone]], which broke their concentration and caused them to revert to their beast modes, so they fled. Primal also had to save Cheetor and Blackarachnia from a squadron of Aero-drones shortly after. {{storylink|Master of the House|Master of the House}} Eventually, Primal and his allies learned that Megatron had broken free during their transwarp flight home and so arrived on Cybertron before them. Megatron had then conquered the planet and laid a trap for Primal's crew and any other Transformers returning to Cybertron.

[[Image:Thereformattingmaximalsmaximize.jpg|right|350px|thumb|We Animal Mechanical can!]]
A short time later, Primal's crew came across the bat-mode Cybertronian [[Nightscream (BM)|Nightscream]], who seemed to suffer from the same transformation lock virus that Primal had upon arrival. Nightscream led them to an underground tree, where Primal, Rattrap, and Blackarachnia ate the fruit and began to revert to their animal instincts. When Nightscream was injured in a Vehicon attack, Primal showed a new talent granted by the Oracle, reformatting the youth into a new, techno-organic body. However, Optimus was critically weakened by this and requested the over-eager Cheetor to take command in his absence. {{storylink|Forbidden Fruit|Forbidden Fruit}}. No longer the inexperienced scientist of his youth, Primal was constantly haunted by the losses of [[Rhinox (BW)|Rhinox]] and [[Silverbolt (BW)|Silverbolt]], and many of Rattrap's quips would send him into despair. During the events that followed, Optimus Primal came to be much more in touch with his spiritual side than he ever was before, due to an almost mystical connection to the Oracle. This granted him visions and intuitions, guiding him to complete its designs, though he had some trouble at first comprehending just what the Oracle wanted and how to go about it. Misinterpreting the Oracle's intentions led Primal into extremism, believing that he was meant to purge the technological from Cybertron, turning it into a fully organic world. Such was Primal's obsession with his "mission", that he was even ready to reformat an unwilling Megatron. However, Rhinox/Tankor took advantage of his reliance on the Oracle's visions, cutting him off from them, leaving Primal both confused and uncertain.

Optimus Primal and the Maximals began to probe deeper into Cybertron and discovered a chamber of fossils and a strange, organic liquid. As the liquid flowed through the chamber, palm-like plants sprang up, revealing Cybertron's organic roots. When Tankor gained control of the Key to Vector Sigma, he infected the verdant orchard, transforming it and Nightscream into "technomatter". While Blackarachnia kept Nightscream under control, the others searched for a mole drone to drill deeper into the core and produce enough liquid to reverse the transformation. {{storylink|The Key|The Key}}

Primal later found the [[Plasma energy|Plasma Energy Chamber]], a device lethal to technological beings. While Megatron readied the planetwide pulse of Vector energy, Primal began to harness the energies of the Chamber to destroy all technological life on Cybertron. As the two forces clashed, Primal's spirit was transported into the Matrix, the Transformers' afterlife. {{storylink|End of the Line|End of the Line}} As he and Megatron fought in the void, he pondered if this was his destiny, to fight his nemesis for eternity. Before him, he saw the faces of his comrades, the Maximals, berate him for his poor leadership and near-genocidal behavior. He then found himself back on prehistoric Earth, where a red-eyed copy of Primal attacked him, scolding him for his fanatical behavior. Finding himself back in space, he saw the collective sparks of Cybertron.

[[Image:Optimalmegatronoptimusprimal.jpg|right|150px|thumb|"Yesss, I've skinned you and I'm wearing your head as a hat."]]Meanwhile, the other Maximals journeyed downwards once more, speaking to Primal via the Oracle. Although Primal originally refused to lead the Maximals, he relented and returned. Around him, a forest of techorganic trees sprang up as he realized that his mission was not to destroy technology, but to create a balance, in the same way the Oracle had done for him.
As the [[Battle for the Spark|Battle for the Sparks]] continued, the Maximals cultivated an orchard around the Oracle, but the plants fared poorly and began to wither. Worried, Primal wondered if the orchard was to be in vain. When an extraterrestrial shuttle crashed into Cybertron, it was Primal who led the Maximals toward the site. Discovering organic matter inside, the team was attacked by a strange plant-creature. Pursuing the beast towards the Oracle, Optimus reformatted the creature into a techno-organic plant. The plant introduced itself as [[Botanica]], a fellow Maximal scientist, and tended to the dying orchard, restoring it to vigorous life.

In the ultimate conflict between Primal and Megatron, Optimus sacrificed his life, plunging with Megatron into the heart of Cybertron and ushering in the reformatting that returned the deactivated population to life and gave birth to the new, technorganic Cybertron. As the surviving Maximals looked out over their new home, Primal and the Oracle spoke to [[Cheetor (BW)|Cheetor]], and Primal departed with the words "Transform, and Transcend", as his Spark joined the Matrix. {{storylink|Endgame Pt. III: Seeds of the Future}}
{{-}}

====''Universe'' comic====
[[Image:Csoptimusprimalu2.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Look, up in the sky! It's... an ape?]]
:''Voice actor:'' [[Garry Chalk]] (English, script reading)

As the denizens of post-Vehicon [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] just began to settle into their peaceful, [[technorganic]] world that Optimus Primal had given his life to create, [[Unicron]] unexpectedly struck from afar. He teleported several [[Transformer|Transformers]] into himself, a handful of the countless victims across the [[Continuity|multiverse]] whom he pitted against each other in order to harvest their [[energon radiation]] and, eventually, [[Spark|sparks]]. Decimated in some unknown battle and trapped between dimensions, Unicron sought to revitalize himself in this fashion.

Deep within Cybertron, [[Primus]] and [[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]] summoned Optimus Primal back from the dead and sent him on a raid to free Unicron's captives. {{storylink|Abduction|Abduction}} Once inside the Chaos-Bringer, he found allies in the form of a [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]] and even a [[Megatron (Armada)|Megatron]] from variant timelines. {{storylink|OTFCC Live-Action Drama|OTFCC Live-Action Drama}} But he also found himself discolored by sinister [[Unicron virus|radiation]] that threatened not only his body, but also his spark. Nevertheless, he was quite successful in his mission, battling Unicron's [[Minion of Unicron|Minions]] until he had freed dozens of abductees. Then, still within Unicron, he sent them back to their home dimensions by the power of prayer.

Returning to Cybertron, Primal was glad for his victory, but he wondered if his own resurrection could bring about Megatron's return as well. {{storylink|Escape (issue)|Escape}} More pressingly, Primal was unable to convince the [[Maximal High Council]] that any of this was actually ''happening,'' so he ended up turning to the dead for new troops. Primus gave him a selection of fallen warriors to choose from, and he picked [[Rhinox (BW)|Rhinox]] and [[Depth Charge]]. They were to launch more raids within Unicron while an orbital defense platform was being constructed above Cybertron. But Depth Charge refused to take part in more violence, so Alpha Trion took a cue from Unicron and transported [[Omega Prime]] into their dimension to fight in his place. {{storylink|Homecoming (issue)|Homecoming}}

{{note|The tale of the Universe war was halted here for a time, as [[Hasbro]] had revoked [[3H Productions|3H]]'s license to the ''Transformers'' property. But the story would be continued in [[Fun Publications]]' [[Balancing Act (issue)|''Cybertron'' comic'']]''.}}

====''Cybertron'' comic====
[[Image:Primal_FPUnivBio.jpg|thumb|left|175px|"Did I say ''Matrix'' of Purification? I meant Fist."]]

Optimus Primal took Omega Prime and others on raids within Unicron's internal "prison cities," freeing more captives. Primal then embarked on an even more proactive venture, leading teams to other dimensions in anticipation of Unicron's strikes and setting up defensive measures before the Chaos-Bringer could gather more victims. Despite gaining more followers in this process, Primal and other veterans were being worn down by Unicron's corruptive influence. Certainly those who had been abducted and reformatted by Unicron were affected, but some (such as Primal himself) who had been exposed to Unicron's nanotech virus and its accompanying radiation were also suffering. In order to avert madness and death, Primus [[Reformatting|reformatted]] Primal and several of his comrades. Not only was his [[Optimus Primal/toys#Beast Wars 10th Anniversary|new form]] immune to the virus and radiation, but it also possessed the [[Matrix of Purification]], which could heal others of Unicronian corruption.

[[Image:Optimusprimaluniverseend.jpg|right|200px|thumb|It's 11:00pm. Do you know where your Beast Wars cast is?]]

Months passed as the competing armies grew, their battles raging on a level comparable to the [[Cybertronian Civil Wars|Great Wars]]. Cybertron itself remained stable, but only for a time. The planet fell victim to a massive invasion, later called "the Culling," in which Unicron's Minions swept across the globe in a killing frenzy, the sparks of their victims feeding the Chaos-Bringer. Primal's army fended the invaders off, but in the chaotic aftermath, Primal's earlier fears were realized as [[Megatron (BW)|Megatron]] returned to lead the [[Predacon (BW)|Predacon]]s back to glory. He initially fought Primal, but he eventually called a truce to better face their common foe.<ref>Optimus Primal's bio in the [[Revelations Part 3|Transformers Collectors' Club comic #9]]</ref>

Continued raids saved many more captives and brought the Minions to near-defeat. Then as one raiding party including Primal and Omega Prime battled their way out, Unicron suddenly began to disappear. The raiders rapidly teleported away, but Omega Prime did not materialize with the rest. He was pulled in mid-teleport by [[Over-Run (Armada)|Over-Run]] into the Cybertron of the [[Unicron Singularity]], which had been the cause of the Unicron-war Unicron's disappearance. Presumably Optimus Primal made it back to his own dimension safely, but this is unconfirmed. {{storylink|Revelations Part 1}} {{storylink|Revelations Part 2}}
{{-}}

===Manga continuity===
====''Beast Wars II'' comic====
When Lio Convoy goes nuts and grows to giant proportions, wreaking havoc across the landscape, Optimus Primal is summoned across time by the power of the Matrix to heal him.

====''Beast Wars Metals'' comic====
[[Image:DevilGorilla-sk.jpg|right|300px|thumb|It's on like a reanimated cyborg Donkey Kong!]]
Following the [[Quantum surge]], Primal was left dead. Within [[Transwarp space]], he found himself being dragged into the afterlife by a horde of monsters. Suddenly, [[Rhinox (BW)|Rhinox]] arrived and attempted to return him to life. Primal at first refused, saying he wished to move on. Rhinox then smacked some sense into him, reminding him of his duty to his Maximals. Brought back to his senses, Primal left Transwarp space, his spark being blasted from a laser cannon of Rhinox's design.

Over at the [[Predacon (BW)|Predacon]] base, the ''[[Hindenburg]]'', [[Megatron (BW)|Megatron]] had recovered Primal's sparkless, rampaging body and imprisoned it in shackles. Using a voodoo ceremony of [[Tarantulas]]'s design, Megatron intended to turn Primal's body into a Predacon slave. Before he could apply his mutant blood and finish the ceremony, Primal's spark reunited with his body and upgraded into a [[Transmetal]].

None too pleased, Primal proceeded to make short work of Tarantulas, [[Terrorsaur (BW)|Terrorsaur]] and Megatron's army of drones. He then defeated Megatron and escaped the ''Hindenburg'', rescuing an injured [[Airazor (BW)|Airazor]] in the process. {{storylink|Raise the Curtain for Beast Wars Metals!!|Raise the Curtain for Beast Wars Metals!!}}

In another adventure, he fed his head to Rampage. (Don't worry, he had a spare; the head that was eaten had a bomb in its mouth, anyway.) Later, he ate Optimus Prime's spark in order to become Optimal Optimus.

===''Robots in Disguise'' toy bio===
When a spirit guide was needed to counsel an [[Optimus Prime (RID)|Optimus Prime]] of [[Robots in Disguise (franchise)|the past]], Optimus Primal rose to the task.

===''Universe'' CD-ROM===
[[Image:UnivCDROM Autobots.jpg|left|180px|thumb|"Pardon me, just passing through."]]
On some alternate Cybertron, that universe's Optimus Primal was leading the Autobots [[Snarl (BM)|Snarl]], [[Silverbolt (BW)|Silverbolt]], and [[Striker]] against [[Reptilion|Reptillion]], [[Obsidian (BM)|Obsidian]], [[Tankor (BM)|Tankor]], [[Razorclaw (Universe)|Razorclaw]], and [[Blackarachnia (BW)|Blackarachnia]] in the most intense day of fighting that year. Just as the combatants were really starting to beat the slag out of each other, they were interrupted by a mysterious spaceship that swooped down, sucked the [[Decepticon|Decepticons]] up on beams of light, and flew away. Primal and his troops were left dumbfounded, unaware that the ship had been a tool of [[Unicron]] in his quest to build [[Minion of Unicron|an army]] for a [[Universe war|grand war]]. {{storylink|Universe CD-ROM|Universe CD-ROM}}

{{note|This comic shows no signs of being intended to mesh with any other ''[[Universe (2003 franchise)|Universe]]'' fiction. Given that ''Universe'' is entirely ABOUT alternate dimensions, it could still be a side note to the [[Universe war|greater storyline]]... but no matter how you look at it, there's no way that this Primal can be the same Primal in the main ''Universe'' comic.}}

===Devil's Due ''G.I. Joe vs. Transformers'' comics continuity===
When [[Serpentor|Serpent O.R.]] plugged himself into [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]]'s deactivated head to download information on the history of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], he skimmed past some facts on Optimus Primal. {{storylink|The Art of War issue 1}}

===3D Battle-Card Game===
Optimus Primal leads a motley crew of Autobots from (potentially) disparate timelines against the forces of Megatron. He is probably getting tired of having to do this.

==Toys==
[[Image:Optimus Primal toys.jpg|right|250px|thumb|There's a lot more where these came from!]]
{{main|Optimus Primal/toys}}

==Merchandise==
{{main|Optimus Primal/toys}}

{{-}}

==Notes==
* The design of Optimus Primal's bat form is an [[homage]] to Batman, an action figure license also held at the time by [[Kenner]].<ref>Page 78, Toy database section in ''[[Beast Wars Universe]]''</ref>

* Primal's gorilla mode, paired against [[Megatron (BW)|Megatron]]'s t-rex mode, was inspired by the showdown in [[wikipedia:King_Kong|King Kong]].

* Indeed, gorilla Primal's original tech specs (which belong to the [[micro-continuity]] that takes place on modern-day Earth) seems to strongly imply that Primal is a building-scaling ape of Kong-like stature. As speculated in the ''Beast Wars'' volume of the ''[[Cybertronian: The Unofficial Transformers Recognition Guide|Cybertronian]]'' action figure guide, this may have been intended to explain why he is [[Scale|in the same scale]] as Megatron, a Tyrannosaurus Rex. This would also make somewhat greater sense in the context of the toyline itself, wherein the leader characters were of a much larger "Ultra" size-class than their minions, unlike their eventually much smaller depictions in [[Beast Wars (cartoon)|the CG cartoon]].

* According to a guide book published in conjunction with the ''[[Beast Wars II (franchise)|Beast Wars II]]'' theatrical film, Optimus Primal's original body had the following technical specifications. The veracity of these numbers in relation to anything actually featuring Primal, of course, is questionable.

:Height: 2.8m (9.19 feet).
:Weight: 2 tons.
:Running Speed: 60km (37.28 mph, beast mode), 50km (31.07 mph, robot mode).
:Airspeed: Mach 7.
:Maximum Power Output: 1,000,000 horsepower.

* According to his [[Robots in Disguise (franchise)|Robots in Disguise]] [[bio]], Optimus Primal is from "the future", suggesting the events of Robots in Disguise are somehow part of the [[Beast Era]]'s past.

* According to his bio in the end of the comic "[[Dawn of Future's Past]]", Optimus Primal graduated near the top of his class at the Maximal Military Academy.

* In his Transmetal form, Optimus Primal's spark chamber is on a hinge in his chest to swing down to the opening in his abdomen. In his Optimal Optimus form, he stored Prime's spark in his vehicle mode [[cockpit]].

* "Powered Convoy", Optimal Optimus' Japanese name, is Ultra Magnus' [[pre-Transformer]] name in the [[Diaclone]] toyline.

* According to the control art of Optimus Primal's toy, his chest originally seemed to be a kind of launcher instead of being an homage to the [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]].<ref>Page 50, Toy database section in ''[[Beast Wars Universe]]''</ref>

* According to the diagram of Optimus Primal on the catalog packed with "TM-SP DX Convoy", his spark chamber is [[Energon Matrix|Matrix]]-shaped. ''[[Optimal Situation|Oh lord]].''

==Reference==
<references />

==External links==
*[http://www.tfu.info/1996/Maximal/OptimusPrimal/optimusprimal.htm Optimus Primal at TFU.info]

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[[Category:Universe (2008)]]

Sideswipe (G1)

2009-06-26T17:43:09Z

68.104.167.97: added chinese name

{{factions|autobot|autobotg2}}
{{disambig3|Sideswipe}}
:''Sideswipe is an [[Autobot]] from the [[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]] [[Continuity family|continuity family]]. His name is also sometimes parsed '''Side Swipe'''.''

[[Image:G1Sideswipe MTMTE.jpg|right|250px|thumb|I've never done anything important, but people love me anyway! Sweet!]]
'''Sideswipe''' is not nearly as much of a sociopath as his [[Relatives|brother]] [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]], but he is every bit as skillful. He's more into battle for the sport of it. A bit of a jock, Sideswipe most craves a glorious fight to the finish as a test of his mettle.

There is a reckless edge to Sideswipe's tactics. He makes rash decisions that may endanger him, all in the name of possible victory. Cheating is also not out of the question. When everything is on the line, for Sideswipe, nothing is out of the question. Over time, his reckless attitude has not changed; however, his cause has—once in it solely for the glory, now he's driven by the desire to defend freedom and the innocent.

:''Japanese name:'' '''[[Wikipedia:Lamborghini|Lambor]]''' (ランボル ''Ranboru'')
:''French-Canadian name:'' '''Frérot''' (Bro)
:''Hungarian name'': '''Csatár''' ("Striker")
:''Italian name:'' '''Freccia''' ("Arrow")
:''Portuguese name (Portugal comic):'' '''Esgalhador'''
:''Chinese name (Taiwan):'' '''Tsè Sǎu''' (側掃, "Side Swipe")
:''Chinese name (China):'' '''Heng Pao''' (横炮. "Horizontal Cannon")
:''Cantonese name:'' '''Swipe''' (斯韋伯 ''Si Wai Baak'', literally "This Soft-leather Elder")
:''Portuguese name (Brazil comic):'' '''Surrupio'''

==Fiction==
===Marvel Comics continuity===
====Generation 1====
{{noteukonly}}
Sideswipe, along with his brother Sunstreaker, was part of the original crew of Optimus Prime's ''Ark''. When the Decepticons attacked the ship it crashed on Earth and Sideswipe, along with the rest of the combatants, lay dormant for 4 million years. When the volcano that housed the ''Ark'' erupted, the ''Ark'''s internal mechanisms revived all Transformers, making no distinction between [[Autobot]] and [[Decepticon]]. Sideswipe was alive again. {{storylink|The Transformers (issue)|The Transformers}}

When the Autobots went to retrieve their fallen comrade [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] from [[Sparkplug Witwicky]]'s garage, they were attacked by Decepticons. Against his brother's better judgment, Sideswipe employed his energon-gobbling rocket pack to take the fight right to the Decepticon jets. The 'Cons were driven off, but without a source of fuel to recharge on, several Autobots, including Sideswipe, were left virtually empty after the battle, and were sidelined. {{storylink|Power Play!}} ''Though he could not go on missions, Sideswipe was still able to defend the ''Ark'' from invasion when the Decepticons came right to his doorstep. He was confronted by that junk-punk [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]]'s earthquake-making ability and turned the tables on him, overpowering Rumble with his pile-driver punches. {{storylink|Raiders of the Last Ark}}''

Sideswipe's inactivity continued even longer after [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] took over the ''Ark'' and deactivated all the Autobots in the ship. After [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] regained control of the ''Ark'' for the Autobots, he was able to revive Sideswipe to full functionality in short order, and their new deal for fuel with [[G.B. Blackrock]] kept them energized. ''During the Dinobot Hunt, Sideswipe traveled to [[Doonstown]] with [[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]] and [[Bluestreak]] on a mission to capture the feral [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]]. It... didn't go so well, and the various gnawed-upon pieces of Sideswipe were not seen again for some time. {{storylink|Dinobot Hunt!}}''

Sideswipe would eventually be seen again at the feud fight between [[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]] and Grimlock on Earth's [[Moon (moon)|Moon]]. {{storylink|Totaled!}}

====''Generation 2''====
Sideswipe was part of Grimlock's firestormers, a group of Autobots unable to stand the peace and who searched for new wars to fight. With them, he worked as a raider against territories controlled by [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]]'s [[Cybertronian (faction)|Cybertronians]] and operation to cyberform inhabited worlds. He now sported a black paintjob, and stated happily that he loved his job (i.e. gunning people down by the dozen). {{storylink|War Without End!}}

He had a more prominent role in subsequent events than he had had in the past. Sideswipe was present for the last battle against the [[Swarm (G2)|Swarm]], but his final fate is uncertain. {{storylink|A Rage in Heaven!}}

====''Generation 2'' (UK)====
Sideswipe was part of [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]]'s Special Commando Unit, summoned to Earth along with Optimus Prime by Grimlock when [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]] began open war on the humans.

===Cartoon continuity===
:''Voice actor:'' [[Michael Bell]] (English), [[Kōki Kataoka]] (Japanese)

{{charstubfiction}}
[[Image:Sideswipejetpack.jpg|left|150px|thumb|"Oh, you want my rocket pack? The one that I've never had until just now?"]]
Sideswipe was part of the initial crew of Autobots aboard the ''[[Ark (G1)|Ark]]'' when it crash-landed on [[Earth]] four million years ago. He awoke along with his fellow Transformers in 1984, with both he and brother being reformatted into Lamborghini sports cars. {{storylink|More than Meets the Eye, Part 1}}

{{storylink|More than Meets the Eye, Part 2}}

Sideswipe loaned [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] the use of his rocket pack when the Decepticons nearly escaped from Earth with a starship full of [[Energon (fuel)|Energon]]. {{storylink|More than Meets the Eye, Part 3}}

[[Image:Sideswipe FakeBreakdown.jpg|right|150px|thumb|Maybe someday [[E-Hobby|there]] will be a Sideswipe toy [[Redeco|redeco]] with [[Breakdown (G1)|Breakdown]]'s color scheme.]]
{{storylink|Transport to Oblivion}}

Sideswipe and Sunstreaker often operated together. When [[antimatter]]-fueled [[Decepticon|Decepticons]] attacked the ''Ark'' on one occasion, Sideswipe and Sunstreaker took to the air to battle with the incoming [[Seeker]] jets, in a rambunctious, if ultimately ineffective, display of "[[jet judo]]". {{storylink|Roll for It}}

{{storylink|Divide and Conquer}}

When investigating tremors that were shaking the [[Ark (G1)|Autobot base]], [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]]'s scanner found some interesting objects inside a rock wall. Sideswipe, using his piston-like arms, helped [[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] remove the rock wall and found a cave full of dinosaur bones, the discovery of which would lead to the development of the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]]. {{storylink|S.O.S. Dinobots}}

{{storylink|Fire on the Mountain}} {{storylink|War of the Dinobots}} {{storylink|The Ultimate Doom, Part 1}} {{storylink|The Ultimate Doom, Part 2}} {{storylink|Countdown to Extinction (episode)|Countdown to Extinction}} {{storylink|A Plague of Insecticons}} {{storylink|Heavy Metal War}} {{storylink|Autobot Spike}} {{storylink|Changing Gears}} {{storylink|City of Steel}} {{storylink|Attack of the Autobots}}

Sideswipe seemed to have a penchant for wrestling jets to the ground. {{storylink|City of Steel}} {{storylink|The Immobilizer}}

{{storylink|The Autobot Run}} {{storylink|Atlantis, Arise!}} {{storylink|Day of the Machines}} {{storylink|Enter the Nightbird}} {{storylink|A Prime Problem}} {{storylink|The Core}} {{storylink|Dinobot Island, Part 1}} {{storylink|Dinobot Island, Part 2}} {{storylink|Megatron's Master Plan, Part 2}} {{storylink|Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 2}} {{storylink|Blaster Blues}} {{storylink|The Golden Lagoon}} {{storylink|Make Tracks}} {{storylink|Child's Play (episode)|Child's Play}} {{storylink|The Secret of Omega Supreme}} {{storylink|Kremzeek!}} {{storylink|Trans-Europe Express}} {{storylink|Cosmic Rust (episode)|Cosmic Rust}} {{storylink|The Revenge of Bruticus}}

Sideswipe once disguised himself as [[Breakdown (G1)|Breakdown]] in order to stop [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]]'s evil plan, along [[Windcharger (G1)|with]] [[Jazz (G1)|four]] [[Mirage (G1)|other]] [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Autobots]]. {{storylink|Masquerade}}

===3H comics===
Sideswipe, Sunstreaker, [[Trailbreaker (G1)|Trailbreaker]], [[Roulette]] and [[Shadow Striker]] returned to the [[technorganic]] [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] after a prolonged journey and were welcomed by the [[Maximal|Maximals]]. [[Unicron]] abducted these newly-returned Transformers, in addition to many others from different times and universes, to start a final confrontation against [[Primus]]. Sideswipe and Sunstreaker were rebuilt into new forms, corrupted by Unicron's influence, and set against one another in the [[Cauldron]]. Before either brother could land a killing blow, however, the fight was broken up by [[Optimus Primal]]. Sideswipe then fought his way out of Unicron alongside many other Transformers rescued by Primal and returned to Cybertron.

===Dreamwave comics continuity===
{{note|Events from the [[Keepers Trilogy]] novels are in italics.}}
Sideswipe was one of the few Autobots to continue operating under that title during the [[Dreamwave timeline#The Dark Ages|Dark Ages]] of Cybertron. Sideswipe was one of the elite warriors serving under [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] and as such was chosen for the mission that sent him against the newly constructed Decepticon battle station, [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]]. Of course the mission was a failure, but that isn't likely to have discouraged Sideswipe. {{storylink|The War Within: The Dark Ages}}

[[Image:DWPrimeDirective2 SunstreakerSideswipe.jpg|left|300px|thumb|"This is what [[Jetfire (G1)|Skyfire]] was whining about? Pansy."]]
Sideswipe was part of Operation Liberation in 1998, a joint human-Autobot effort to defeat the Earth-bounded Decepticons. At the end it was a success, and the captured Decepticons along with the Autobots and a human crew departed Earth en route to Cybertron in the ''[[Ark II]]''. The ship, however, was sabotaged and exploded upon liftoff.

A few years later, Megatron and other Transformers, including Autobots, were seen causing havoc. It was discovered that [[Lazarus]], a scientist who participated in the ''Ark II'' project, was responsible for the sabotage of the ship and the resurrection of several Transformers under his control via technological tampering. {{storylink|Prime Directive issue 1}}

[[Robert Hallo|General Hallo]] of the [[United States Military|US Military]] contacted [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] to ask him if he could do something to help them reactivate Optimus Prime, whom they had recovered locked in a state of stasis. Spike managed to reactivate Optimus with a portion of the [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]] that Optimus had given him prior the ill-fated journey of the ''Ark II''. Optimus subsequently went to the Arctic and used the Matrix to reactivate several Transformers, including Sideswipe. {{storylink|Prime Directive issue 2}}

[[Image:DWPrimeDirective5 SideswipeSunstreaker Devastator.jpg|right|250px|thumb|We're trying to look dynamic, but all these [[Pat Lee|puffy proportions]] are putting a stop to that.]]
Sideswipe accepted the new task at hand and fought alongside his brother when the Autobots faced the Decepticons at Lazarus' ruined base (punching Starscream in the face for attacking Wheeljack) before Hallo betrayed the Autobots by attempting to destroy both factions with a nuclear weapon. {{storylink|Prime Directive issue 3}} The Autobots survived when Megatron's technovirus absorbed the blast, and Sideswipe helped his comrades recover the captive Autobots imprisoned inside the base. {{storylink|Prime Directive issue 4}}

As Jazz's unit worked on Megatron's virus, Sideswipe followed Optimus Prime to [[San Francisco]] for the last battle against Megatron and his Decepticons. When [[Superion (G1)|Superion]] was taken down, Sideswipe and Sunstreaker heroically (though foolishly) charged at [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]], and they were smashed between the giant Constructicon's palms for their trouble. After Optimus Prime brought Devastator down with a blast to the head, Sideswipe was restrained by the surviving Decepticons. {{storylink|Prime Directive issue 5}} However, through [[human]] intervention, Optimus Prime freed his Autobots and the battle was rejoined. Sideswipe tag-teamed with his brother to pummel [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]], though the Decepticons eventually escaped when Superion sacrificed his life to save the city from General Hallo's unauthorized nuclear missile launch. {{storylink|Prime Directive issue 6}}

''Months later, after Optimus Prime, Megatron, and an assortment of other Transformers and humans vanished in a flash of light from Tokyo, Japan, the world went on high alert. When the U.S. military detected [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] in the Nevada canyons, Sideswipe accompanied a flight of jets in confronting the Decepticon. Their battle led down a tight box canyon, and Sideswipe had some difficulty chasing Starscream while also coordinating with his military wingmen, as he tried to limit the human casualties. Eventually, Sideswipe was led straight into Devastator, who had been hiding in the canyon on Starscream's order. The combined surprise firepower of Starscream's arsenal and a near-pointblank blast from Devastator's solar energy rifle left Sideswipe in several charred pieces. {{storylink|Hardwired}}''

''Sideswipe was eventually repaired by [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]], and returned to duty just in time to fight in Nevada once more. This time, the Autobots and Decepticons had joined forces against an ambush arranged by the President of the United States, who hoped to rid his country of the Transformers. Sideswipe waded through General [[Michelle Grajkowski]]'s troops, heavily routing her Delta Team, but the [[deconstructionite]] weapons being used by the U.S. Armed Forces were too much of a surprise for the Cybertronians -- they were clearly on the losing end of the battle as many of their number fell before the severity of the weaponized nanites became evident. Sideswipe and Prowl helped load the injured Autobots into Prime's trailer as they made their getaway. {{storylink|Fusion (novel)|Fusion}}''

[[Image:G1 Sideswipe Sunstreaker DWissue7.jpg|left|150px|thumb|Hi, I'm a jock.]]
When agents from the united Cybertron arrived on Earth, Optimus Prime split his forces in order to ensure Earth would not be left undefended. As Prime and many other Autobots travelled back to Cybertron with Shockwave, [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] and their crew, Sideswipe and Sunstreaker remained on Earth with several other Autobots under Jazz's command. {{storylink|Brothers' Burden}} Sideswipe was deactivated in battle with [[Bruticus (G1)|Bruticus]] when Starscream and his followers returned to Earth, and was left to rust at the bottom of a lake. {{storylink|Night of the Combaticons}} [[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]] and [[Bumper (G1)|Bumper]] later dredged him and the others up, only to be taken into custody by [[Earth Defense Command]]. Jazz, Sideswipe, and Sunstreaker were reactivated to help [[Marissa Faireborn]] and her team in investigating an outbreak of [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticons]] in small-town America. {{storylink|Infestation}} After routing and capturing the Decepticons, Sideswipe and the other Autobots joined up with the returning team from Cybertron under Prowl's command, and began construction of [[Autobot City]]. {{storylink|The Route of All Evil}}

{{-}}

===IDW comics continuity===
{{ongoing}}
[[Image:MegsOrigin3 Sunstreak Sideswipe glory.jpg|right|350px|thumb|Sideswipe's feeling small standing under [[Nova Prime]]'s crotch. [[Sunstreaker (G1)#Dreamwave_comics_continuity|Sunstreaker, on the other hand, seems strangely excited]].]]
[[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]] was Sideswipe's P-3 Training Officer and strike partner, and constantly looked down on him as the rookie. Nothing Sideswipe did was seen as good enough, and he was left under Sunstreaker's shadow, something that left a deep mark on him. He's forever been resentful and wanting to be seen by others as a skilled, notable warrior. {{storylink|Spotlight: Sideswipe}}

Before the war, the two of them attended illegal underground arena [[Gladiatorial combat|deathmatches]] and witnessed [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]]'s 54th victory. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 2}} When Sunstreaker wanted to join Megatron's underground fighting team, Sideswipe went along to try and talk him out of it. Whether they stuck around and were caught up in the Autobot security raid is unknown. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3}}

Later, as war engulfed [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], Sideswipe was one of the many Autobots trained by [[Kup (G1)|Kup]]. {{storylink|Spotlight: Kup}}

[[Image:SpotlightGalvatron Sideswipe rocketfist.jpg|left|250px|thumb|This hand of mine glows with an awesome power!]]
Much to his dismay, Sideswipe was stationed at [[Thunderhead Pass]] on Cybertron to guard [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]]'s remains. Sideswipe wanted action, something he wasn't going to get standing guard over comatose Decepticons. His desire to "bust some heads" became even stronger after Sunstreaker was apparently kidnapped during his duties on [[Earth]], and Sideswipe began actively disregarding his squadron leader, [[Hound (G1)|Hound]], to routinely contact High Command and demand a transfer; unknown to everyone else, this wasn't down to brothers-in-arms loyalty, this was down to him wanting to save Sunstreaker so his former strike partner would have to recognise his skills. {{storylink|Spotlight: Sideswipe}}

His need for action was alleviated, however, when [[Galvatron (G1)|a mysterious and powerful Transformer]] attacked Cybertron. Sideswipe blew off part of the being's head, but he recovered almost immediately and knocked Sideswipe and the rest of the Autobots offline, then stole Thunderwing away. {{storylink|Spotlight: Galvatron}}

Soon after, [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] apparently caved in to Sideswipe's pleading and put [[Jetfire (G1)|Jetfire]] in charge of Thunderhead Pass, transferring Hound's entire team, including Sideswipe, to Earth once Megatron began breaking [[Infiltration protocol]]. {{storylink|Devastation issue 1}} However, once word of the break-in at [[Garrus-9]] reached his audio sensors, Prime directed his team and Hound's to head there instead of Earth. {{storylink|Devastation issue 6}}

Sideswipe took the reassignment pretty harshly, and had pushed Hound well to the edge of his tolerance. He got a minor diversion from worrying about Sunstreaker when another mysterious and powerful Transformer, [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]] attacked their ship.

Surprisingly, he wanted to find out who Cyclonus was, but Hound felt that time was a factor and hit Cyclonus with a full volley. It was enough to slow him down, but not enough to stop him. [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]]' arrival forced a retreat, and the two Autobot ships followed. When they caught up to Cyclonus, Sideswipe goaded him into battle, and made no apologies for it. {{storylink|Spotlight: Cyclonus}}

[[Image:SideswipeVGrindcore.jpg|right|150px|thumb|He can punch ''and'' angst at the same time!]]
When his unit finally reached Earth, he personally took on both [[Grindcore (G1)|Grindcore]] ''and'' [[Straxus (G1)|Straxus]] so the others could reach the Space Bridge. This earned him recognition and an apology from Hound, and the battle against superior foes gave Sideswipe the chance to prove to ''himself'' that he was better than Sunstreaker thought. This exorcised, he realised he didn't actually care if Sunstreaker was alive or dead, and turned away from his obsession without looking back. {{storylink|Spotlight: Sideswipe}}

One year later, the Decepticons ambushed the Autobots in a crippling assault, during which Skywarp ripped off Sideswipe's arm. Later, on Cybertron, Sideswipe tried to talk to Sunstreaker, only to learn of the horrors of the Machination. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7}} Later, after Sunstreaker sacrificed himself, Sideswipe declared that all the Autobots deserved to die for carrying on the senseless war. His speech was interrupted by the return of Optimus Prime. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 9}}

===''Hearts of Steel''===
Sideswipe participated in the pursuit of [[Astrotrain (G1)|Astrotrain]], and partially transformed from artillery boxcar mode to robot mode in order to shoot down [[Scourge (G1)|Scourge]]. He stated, "The name is Sideswipe." {{storylink|Hearts of Steel issue 4}}

{{note|For unclear reasons, in the original comic book issue, the Autobot who shoots down Scourge identifies himself as [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]], not Sideswipe. Sideswipe only appears in the trade paperback collection.}}

==Commercial appearances==
Sideswipe appeared in the following [[commercial]]s:
* The very first Transformers animation, advertising the Marvel comic book. He drives out of a base alongside Jazz and Prowl; the three arrive at a power plant and counter-attack the Decepticons.

* Again alongside Jazz and Prowl, he transforms and takes off, on what appears to be Cybertron, in a commercial for Soundwave.

* He can be glimpsed trying to stop Astrotrain from escaping, in a 1985 commercial for the Decepticon Triple Changers.

* He is briefly visible driving alongside Jazz in a CGI ''Generation 2'' commercial for the Decepticon jets and Autobot cars.

==Toys==
===Generation 1===
[[Image:G1sideswipe.jpg|right|200px|thumb|He had the look before it was [[Spy Changer|trendy]].]]
*'''Sideswipe''' (Autobot Car, 1984/1985, 2001/2002/2003)
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''04''', '''TFC-07'''
**''Accessories:'' "Laser gun", rocket launcher, 3 rockets

: Originally a ''[[Diaclone]]'' "New [[Popular Earth vehicle alternate modes#Lamborghini_Countach|Countach LP500S]]", Sideswipe transforms... well, into that. In robot mode he is armed with a white rifle and a missile launcher that can clip onto either of his shoulders. The launcher can fire one of three included white missiles, in theory, as the springs were weakened for the US release [[for safety reasons]]. The original 1984 US release did not have the [[Rubsign|rubsign]] found on later releases.

: In 2001, Sideswipe was re-released by [[Takara]], bundled with the mold-sharing [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]], as a show-[[exclusive]] set, but his license plate decal was changed from the infringing "COUNTACH" to "CAR MACHINE". Sideswipe and Red Alert were re-re-released together in 2002 as an [[E-Hobby|e-Hobby]] "New Year" set, with several factory-applied decals replaced with [[Paint application|paint applications]], the "CAR MACHINE" plate-decal now blank, plus an additional recolored alternate sticker sheet for each one. This version, minus the extra decal sheet, was re-re-''re''-released as part of the [[Transformers Collection]] "book-box series". Finally, this version, albeit with its spring-loaded launcher de-sprung [[for safety reasons]], was released in the US as part of [[Hasbro]]'s [[Commemorative Series]] VIII line, one of the last American reissues. In fact, despite the Commemorative Series' exclusivity to Toys "R" Us stores, Commemorative Series Sideswipe ultimately ended up at Kay-Bee stores, and at heavy discount.

: This mold was also used to make [[Clamp Down]], [[Deep Cover]] and [[Tigertrack]].


[[Image:ActionmasterSideswipe toy.jpg|right|200px|thumb|I have a hat!]]
*'''Sideswipe w/ Vanguard''' (Action Master, 1991)
**''Accessories:'' "Photon laser" rifle

: A non-transforming action figure that combines elements form both his original toy and his [[Character model|animation model]], [[Action Master]] Sideswipe is compatible with any other Action Master weapon or vehicle. His partner-unit [[Vanguard]] forms a backpack and battle helmet, and complements Sideswipe's color scheme quite well.

:Action Master Sideswipe was only available in [[Generation 1 Europe (toyline)|European]] (and certain Australian) markets.

{{-}}
===Generation 2===
[[Image:G2Sideswipe toy.jpg|right|200px|thumb|He got dressed in the dark and accidentally put his colors on backwards.]]
*'''Sideswipe''' (Autobot Heroic, 1993)
**''Accessories:'' Gun, missile launcher, 1 missile

: Part of the first assortment of Autobot cars, Sideswipe's original toy had his colors re-arranged to a black car mode with red and white robot parts, plus new [[Neon|neon]] green "racing" decals were added to the mix. His original rocket launcher was removed, and replaced with a large spring-loaded launcher that could be hand-held or mounted on his [[Retool|retooled]] car-mode roof.

:His new spring-loaded missile launcher was taken from [http://www.yojoe.com/action/91/snowserpent2.shtml Snow Serpent] from the ''[[G.I. Joe]]'' toyline.


[[Image:G2GobotSideswipe.jpg|right|150px|thumb|Then he shrank and faded in the wash.]]
*'''Sideswipe''' (Go-Bot, 1995)
**''Accessories:'' Gun

: A redeco of [[Go-Bot (G2)|Go-Bot]] [[Firecracker]], Sideswipe transforms into a blue [[Popular Earth vehicle alternate modes#Lamborghini_Diablo|Lamborghini Diablo]] with through-axle construction for super-fast rolling on smooth surfaces in car mode. He is compatible with many "Hot Wheels" and "Matchbox"-brand racetrack sets.

: This mold was also used to make Go-Bot Optimus Prime and ''[[Robots in Disguise (toyline)|Robots in Disguise]]'' [[R.E.V.]].

{{-}}
===Universe===
[[Image:UniverseSideswipe toy.jpg|right|200px|thumb|I should've had a [[Wheeljack (Armada)|Wheeljack]] retool!]]
*'''Sideswipe''' (Deluxe, 2003)
**''Accessories:'' 2 launchers (left & right), 2 flame missiles

: One of several [[Exclusive|exclusives]] to [[OTFCC 2003]], ''[[Universe (2003 franchise)|Universe]]'' Side Swipe is a redeco of the ''[[Robots in Disguise (franchise)|Robots in Disguise]]'' [[Prowl (RID)|Prowl]] mold, once again transforming into a Lamborghini Diablo. A pair of add-on thrusters become arm-mounted launchers for robot mode; each one being a pressure-launch missile launcher.

: It is notable that the part that connects the toy's windshield to the main body uses a red decal rather than paint, as that part is made out of [[Unpaintable plastic|unpaintable plastic]]. The police lights from the original mold were removed, leaving this area bare.

: This mold was also used to make ''Universe'' [[Inferno (BW)|Inferno]] and Sunstreaker.

{{note|While the toy's name was spelled "Sideswipe" (one word) on its own packaging, the cross-sell on the packaging for the OTFCC 2003 [[Shadow Striker]]/[[Roulette]] two-pack spelled it "Side Swipe" (two words) instead. See Trivia for more.}}

===Smallest Transforming Transformers===
[[Image:STFLambor.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Yet another release Sunstreaker just wasn't cool enough for.]]
*'''Lambor''' (2003)
**''Japanese ID number'': '''GTF-02'''

: ''[[Smallest Transforming Transformers]]'' Lambor is a very small-scale, extensively simplified replica of the original Sideswipe toy. He has very little articulation, he has no weapons, and his vehicle mode wheels cannot roll.

: This mold was [[Retool|retooled]] to make ''Smallest Transforming Transformers'' [[Red Alert (G1)|Alert]].

{{-}}
===Alternators===
[[Image:AlternatorsSide Swipe toy.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Just think, he was [[#Trivia|almost Tracks]].]]
*'''Side Swipe''' (2003, 2004)
**''Alternator ID number:'' '''2'''
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''BT-02'''
**''Accessories:'' Dodge Viper Engine/gun

: The second ''[[Alternators]]'' toy released, Side Swipe transforms into a licensed 1:24 scale [[Popular Earth vehicle alternate modes#Dodge_Viper_.28Chrysler.29|Dodge Viper]] featuring opening doors, a detailed interior, and a hood that opens to reveal an engine bay holding a replica Viper V-10 engine. The vehicle mode also features movable steering and rubber tires with vacuum-metalized wheels. His removable engine becomes a blaster.

: The main difference between the American ''Alternators'' and the Japanese ''Binaltech'' releases is that the Japanese version has die-cast metal parts for most of the car's outer body shell, with the exception of the rear end, and the entire red exterior of the car is fully painted, unlike the ''Alternator's'' flat red plastic.

: This mold was [[Retool|retooled]] to make [[Dead End (G1)|Dead End]] and [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]].

===Titanium Series===
[[Image:TitaniumRM Side Swipe.jpg|right|150px|thumb|Sideswipe turns small a lot.]]
*'''Side Swipe''' (Robot Master, 2006)
**''Accessories:'' Engine blaster

:''[[Titanium Series]]'' Side Swipe is based upon Sideswipe's ''Alternators'' toy. Constructed partially of die cast metal, Side Swipe has limited articulation located in his shoulders and neck. He comes with a removable engine blaster and an Autobot symbol display stand.

: This mold was going to be redecoed to be ''Titanium'' Sunstreaker, but that release was canceled.

{{-}}
===Universe (2008)===
[[Image:Universe2008 SideSwipe toy.jpg|right|200px|thumb|This is the best we could find in terms of stock photography for this guy. Seriously.]]
*'''Sideswipe''' (Deluxe, 2008)
**''Accessories:'' "Flare Launcher", engine supercharger intakes

:Sideswipe is a [[Retool|retool]] of ''[[Universe (2008 franchise)|Universe]]'' Sunstreaker. He not only features a new head sculpt, but he has a slightly altered transformation scheme and assembly; his upper body, from the neck to the hips, is rotated 180 degrees from Sunstreaker's, giving him the "classic" hood-chest. His fists are also "backwards" from Sunstreaker's to keep them in the right places in robot mode. He transforms into a modified [[wikipedia:Lamborghini_Gallardo|Lamborghini Gallardo]]. Though the car is mostly based upon the Gallardo, to avoid legal problems, it also incorporates details from other cars such as the rear end of the [[wikipedia:Lamborghini_Diablo|Lamborghini Diablo]]. Sideswipe also comes with the same roof-mounted engine assembly as Sunstreaker.

: His Flare Launcher (essentially just a redeco of Sunstreaker's Electron Pulse Blaster) can be combined with the removable engine assembly and mounted in either of the holes on his shoulders to simulate Sideswipe's ''Generation 1'' missile launcher. Of course, this leaves him without a hand-held weapon. The engine can also be mounted on Sideswipe's back as his jet pack.

: Sideswipe's online PDF instructions as well as the final printed instructions incorrectly give him Sunstreaker's transformation and head, despite the picture above the instructions showing him with the hood as the chest and a new head.<ref>[http://hasbro.com/common/instruct/83685.pdf Official Universe Sideswipe instructions PDF file on Hasbro.com]</ref> Unfortunately, Hasbro's own stock photography for distribution to websites retains this incorrect transformation, and throws in some additional mistakes as well. Oy.

{{-}}
===Henkei! Henkei!===
[[Image:Henkei Lambor toy.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Whoever does Takara's photography seriously needs to be outsourced to Hasbro.]]
*'''Lambor''' (Deluxe, 2008)
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''C-09'''
**''Accessories:'' "Flare Launcher", engine supercharger intakes

:The Japanese version of ''Universe'' Sideswipe has [[Vacuum metallizing|vacuum metallized]] silver on his flare launcher and his spoiler, but does not come with the dual-engine backpack that Henkei Sunstreaker and ''Universe'' Sunstreaker/Sideswipe included. He also has correct, personalised instructions that aren't just Sunstreaker's. Like Sunstreaker, the Japanese version's hood is a much closer match to the red colored plastic. The Japanese version also features a glossier black paint and the white has yellow tint compared the white plastic used for Hasbro version. His license plate says "LAMBOR" rather than "SWIPE".

{{-}}

==Merchandise==
===Attacktix===
*'''Sideswipe''' (2007)

: ''[[Attacktix]]'' Sideswipe was to be a missile-firing "blaster" style playing piece, presumably part of a third wave of "Booster" packs. He was revealed at the [[Star Wars]] "Celebration IV" convention alongside many other ''Attacktix'' pieces that would ultimately never see release.

{{canceledtoy}}
{{-}}
==Trivia==
* Sideswipe's Japanese name, "Lambor" is derived from the name of his vehicle mode, a Lamborghini. It may also be a word play on the Japanese word "Ranbou", which means "reckless, violent, rough". Wouldn't be the [[Autrooper|last]] [[Nine Great Demon Generals|time]] Takara's done such [[Romanization|word puns]]. By the way, it's ''Lambor'', not ''[[wikipedia:Rambo|Rambo]]''.

* Sideswipe's [[Transformers Universe (Marvel comic)|TFU]] bio text describes features of Sunstreaker's toy, leading many to believe Sideswipe's original toy was supposed to be created from Sunstreaker's mold and vice-versa, with the colors swapped between the molds. The [[Diaclone]] Sunstreaker toy was available in red<ref>http://diaclone.net/orid/dia036/index.html "Countach-LP500S/Super Tuning" at Diaclone.net (Japanese site)]</ref> and police <ref>[http://diaclone.net/orid/dia038/index.html "Countach-LP500S/Super Tuning Policecar Type" at Diaclone.net (Japanese site)]</ref> versions, but not yellow (hence the red shoulder stickers on an otherwise yellow car). The mold used for Sideswipe, on the other hand, was released in ''Diaclone'' in both red and yellow decos.<ref>[http://diaclone.net/orid/dia050/index.html " New Countach-LP500S" at Diaclone.net (Japanese site)]</ref>

* During the 1990s, another company held the "Sideswipe" trademark in the "toys" field, even though Hasbro still released two toys using that name as part of the [[Generation 2 (toyline)|Generation 2]] line (it's unclear if this resulted in any legal repercussions for Hasbro). When Hasbro finally managed to reclaim the name for the [[Robots in Disguise (toyline)|Robots in Disguise]] line, the name was now parsed as "[[Side Swipe (RID)|Side Swipe]]", in two words, for whatever reason. The only two toys since then to spell "Sideswipe" as one word again were the [[OTFCC 2003]] [[Exclusive|exclusive]] and the [[Side Swipe (Armada)|Armada Super-Con]]. However, the former was referred to as "Side Swipe" when featured as a cross-sell on the packaging for the OTFCC 2003 [[Shadow Striker]]/[[Roulette]] two-pack, whereas a packaging variant for the latter released as part of the "[[The Unicron Battles|Unicron Battles]]" refresh of the [[Armada (toyline)|''Armada'']] line also saw the name changed to "Side Swipe". Finally, the ''[[Universe (2008 franchise)|Universe]]'' Deluxe toy appears to hail the return of "Sideswipe" (as one word).

* The ''Alternators'' Dodge Viper mold was originally designed to be a new body for [[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]] after the first attempt to secure the Corvette license had fallen through. Eventually, though, Chevrolet had a change of mind and granted Hasbro and Takara the license for the Corvette design after all. As a result, the Viper mold was slightly redesigned, was given a new head sculpt and released as Sideswipe (or "Side Swipe") instead. This explains why, unlike most of the early Alternators toys, Side Swipe's robot mode bears little resemblance to his G1 self. The most noticeable redesign from the "Tracks" design was the vehicle mode's doors being moved from the "backpack" [[Kibble|kibble]] (where they would have resembled the G1 Tracks toy's wings) to the sides of the arms, thus being the most obvious visual cue taken from the G1 Sideswipe toy. The doors are, however, still splayed out to the sides in the Alternators box art and can be moved to match Tracks' wing configuration, which implies that the redesign may have been done before the switch from Tracks to Sideswipe was made.

*Sideswipe has the dubious distinction of being the only one of the European Autobot Classic Heroes range not to feature in Marvel UK's [[Earthforce]] stories, not even making a late appearance like fellow 1991 addition Tracks.

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.tfu.info/1984/Autobot/Sideswipe/sideswipe.htm Sideswipe at TFU.info]
* [http://www.ntfa.net/universe/english/index.php?act=view&char=Sideswipe Sideswipe's Universe profile at NTFA.net]

[[Category:Action Masters]]
[[Category:Alternators]]
[[Category:Attacktix]]
[[Category:Autobots]]
[[Category:Convention exclusives]]
[[Category:E-Hobby]]
[[Category:Generation 1 characters]]
[[Category:Generation 2 characters]]
[[Category:Headmasters characters]]
[[Category: Henkei! Henkei! characters]]
[[Category:Go-Bots]]
[[Category:MyClone]]
[[Category:Titanium Series]]
[[Category:Toys "R" Us exclusives]]
[[Category:Universe characters]]

Hot Rod (G1)

2009-06-17T17:19:06Z

68.104.167.97: added chinese names

{{factions|autobot|autobotg2|wreckers}}
{{disambig3|Rodimus}}
{{disambig3|Hot Rod}}

:''Hot Rod is an [[Autobot]] from the [[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]] [[continuity family]]. He has also been known as '''Rodimus Prime''', '''Rodimus''', and '''Rodimus Major'''.''

[[Image:DVDbox3d1.jpg|right|301px|thumb|Opening the Matrix gives you wrinkles.]]

'''Hot Rod''' is brash and headstrong, with an overwhelming self-confidence that borders on arrogance. [[Kup (G1)|Kup]] has assumed the role of mentor and advisor to the impetuous young Hot Rod, offering him wisdom and advice when he needs it (though Hot Rod rarely feels that he does, much to Kup's annoyance). [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] also serves as a calming influence on Hot Rod, and tends to either worry about him when he is not around, or deride and tease him when he is. Their relationship is antagonistic, but friendly. Exactly how deep Hot Rod's feelings for Arcee might run is unknown, whether they be friendly, romantic, or otherwise.

In contrast, his '''Rodimus Prime''' persona—while still headstrong and stubborn—seems to suffer from a severe lack of confidence, often doubting his own decisions and expressing distress over his position as an [[Prime (rank)|Autobot leader]]. Of course, much of this comes from having immediately succeeded [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] as commander—and let's face it, shoes-to-be-filled just don't ''get'' much bigger than that.

One thing that both sides of this Autobot's identity have in common is their impatience—neither Hot Rod nor Rodimus Prime can stand to wait around when they could be doing something instead. He is also very self-reliant, rarely sending others to do anything when he could be doing it himself. His [[Targetmaster]] partner is [[Firebolt]].

{{bigquote|I ''knew'' you had potential, lad.|[[Kup (G1)|Kup]] on Hot Rod's transformation into Rodimus Prime|''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]''}}

:''Japanese name (Hot Rod):'' '''Hot Rodimus''', except for "The Rebirth"
:''Japanese name (Rodimus Prime):'' '''Rodimus Convoy'''
:''French-Canadian names (Hot Rod):'' '''Météorite''' ("Meteorite")
:''French-Canadian names (Rodimus Prime):'' '''Rodimus Primo''' ("Rodimus First", official toy name)
:''French-Canadian names (Rodimus Prime):'' '''Rodimus Primus''' (official dub name)
:''Italian names:'' '''Folgore''', '''Captain''' 
:''Hungarian names (Hot Rod):'' '''Nagyágyú''' ("Hot Shot")
:''Hungarian names (Hot Rod, The Movie):'' '''Peca''' ("[[:Image:HotRodFishing1.jpg|Fisher]]"?) in the first dub of the film, 'cause he deals with marine life throughout the film, you see.
:''Hungarian names (Rodimus Prime):'' '''Rodimusz Fővezér''' ("Prime Commander Rodimus")
:''Chinese names (Hot Rod, Taiwan):'' '''Rod''' / '''Rhode''' (羅德 ''Lúo Dé'')
:''Chinese names (Rodimus Prime, Taiwan):'' '''Rhodie Jr-tsūn''' (羅迪至尊, "Rodimus Prime")
:''Chinese names (Hot Rod, China):'' '''Re Po''' (热破, Heated Break)
:''Chinese names (Rodimus Prime, China):'' '''Bu Tian Shi''' (补天士, Soldier who repairs the skies)
:''English-maylay Headmasters name (Hot rod):'' '''Roadimus Prime''' (yes. ROAD-imus.)
:''Russian TV dub name (Hot Rod):'' '''Patron''' ("Cartridge")
:''Russian TV dub name (Rodimus Prime):'' '''Rodomes Prime'''

==Fiction==
{{picsneeded|Cartoon, G2 comic, DW comic, a few other minor continuities.}}
===Cartoon continuity===
====Madman ''The Transformers'' comic====
[[Image:Madman comic HotRod sigh.jpg|left|150px|thumb|"You're gonna be the death of that guy, you know?"]]

In the year 2001, Hot Rod was on guard duty at the construction site of [[Autobot City]] on [[Earth]] while the main Autobot forces were evacuating from the Decepticon-conquered [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. As he was complained about his boring assignment to [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], the Decepticon [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] struck, intent on stealing the [[Matrix of Leadership|Autobot Matrix of Leadership]] which Optimus Prime had secreted in a bunker at the building site. When he reclaimed the Matrix, Hot Rod received a vision of the future where he fought [[Galvatron (G1)|a powerful Decepticon]]. After returning the Matrix to Optimus Prime, the Autobot leader considered that perhaps Hot Rod's destiny was greater than any of them realized. Kup thought differently, however. {{storylink|The Transformers (Madman)|The Transformers}}
{{-}}

====Generation 1 cartoon====
:''Voice actors:'' [[Judd Nelson]] → [[Ted Schwartz]] → [[Dick Gautier]] (English), [[Hiroya Ishimaru]] (Japanese)

[[Image:HotRodFishing1.jpg|right|200px|thumb|"I'm tellin' you, Daniel, you HAD to kiss me to activate my fishing rod. STOP crying! And, uh, don't tell your dad or Optimus."]]
In 2005, Hot Rod was one of the many Autobots based in the completed Autobot City. He was close friends with the young human [[Daniel Witwicky (G1)|Daniel Witwicky]], and seemed to have a reputation for being something of a trouble-maker, judging from a few of Kup's comments to him at the time. Realizing that the Decepticons were invading, Hot Rod opened fire on their stolen shuttle and exposed their ruse before Megatron could enter the city. Although this did give the rest of the Autobots time to begin transforming Autobot City and raising their defenses, it also left Hot Rod trapped outside with Kup and Daniel. After defeating the Decepticons [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] and [[Shrapnel (G1)|Shrapnel]] with some help from Kup, Hot Rod managed to find a way inside the fortress city and took part in its defense. During [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime's]] battle with [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]], Hot Rod intervened in an attempt to help, but succeeded only in giving Megatron the chance he needed to mortally wound the Autobot leader.

After Prime's death, Autobot City was attacked again—by [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]]. While escaping, Hot Rod and Kup (and the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]]) were separated from the rest of the Autobots and crashed on the planet [[Quintessa]]. There, Hot Rod met the Quintessons, an enemy who would haunt him for some time to come. After escaping their sadistic trial and attempted execution (as well as meeting [[Wheelie (G1)|Wheelie]]), Hot Rod went on to the planet [[Junkion (planet)|Junk]], where he was just in time to stop [[Wreck-Gar (G1)|Wreck-Gar]] from destroying the rest of the Autobot City refugees with a timely use of the [[Universal greeting]]. Together, they all traveled to [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] to stop [[Unicron]] before he could eat more than just its moons.

[[Image:RodimusPrimeMovie1.jpg|left|200px|thumb|"Stop putting in captions that are just blatantly not funny!"]]
Inside of Unicron, Hot Rod was separated from the rest of his team when their ship crashed (something which happens to Hot Rod a lot). Alone, he found himself facing Galvatron in a battle to the death over the Autobot Matrix of Leadership. Claiming the Matrix, Hot Rod [[Renaming|evolved into]] "Rodimus Prime", an older, larger, and more powerful version of himself. After overpowering Galvatron and hurling him through Unicron's hide, into the void of space, he opened the Matrix and destroyed Unicron from within. {{storylink|The Transformers: The Movie}}

{{cleanup|May 2009|Five Faces of Darkness are five seperate episodes. Why are the lumped into a single paragraph here with only one storylink?}}

Peace reigned on Cybertron for at least long enough to put up some of the more important buildings, and Rodimus Prime began to ease into his role as the new Autobot leader. When [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] and Spike Witwicky were kidnapped during a [[Galactic Olympics]], it was Rodimus who spied on the Decepticons with [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]] to determine if they were the ones who had done it. The way Rodimus had it figured, the Decepticons were usually behind everything anyway, so they seemed like a good enough place to start. After getting caught and severely beaten by the Decepticons (who were innocent of the kidnapping, but not really fans of his anyway), Rodimus was able to interface with the Matrix and learned about the origins of the Transformer race. He also learned that his old enemies, the Quintessons, were back and looking to destroy every Transformer in existence. Making things worse, Galvatron soon returned as well, and the war that everyone had assumed was safely over quickly started up again. {{storylink|Five Faces of Darkness}}

Throughout 2006, Rodimus Prime's greatest achievements both revolved around his predecessor, Optimus Prime. While fleeing from a Decepticon attack, Rodimus and several other Autobots took refuge in a massive [[Autobot Mausoleum]] and discovered that their former leader seemed to have returned to life. Perhaps a little too trusting of Optimus (and possibly eager to relieve himself of the burden of leadership), Rodimus quickly passed the Matrix back to Optimus and, much to his glee, reverted back into Hot Rod. His happiness was short-lived, however, as Optimus was quickly revealed to be nothing more than a puppet of the Quintessons, sent to trick the Autobots into an ambush from which none of them would escape. With no other choice, Hot Rod was forced to do battle with Optimus Prime for the fate of the Autobots. Although their duel was clearly in the favor of the more powerful Optimus, Hot Rod was able to re-awaken the true spirit of his leader. Returning the Matrix to Rodimus, Optimus then piloted his ship into the heart of the ambush and sacrificed himself to save them all. {{storylink|Dark Awakening}}

Soon after Perceptor left on a standard research mission to a nearby asteroid belt, Rodimus Prime and the Autobots received a distress call from the survey group. They arrived to find the asteroid infested with Quintessons, and managed to drive off the tentacled freaks and their Sharkticon shock troops. Perceptor was near deactivation due to injuries, however, and the rest of the Autobots were nowhere to be seen. The Quints attempted to retake the asteroid but, after failing, were soon desperate enough to tell the truth: their technology on the rock was a [[Time Window]], and leaving it open was risking the fates of all time and space. With the help of the Quintesson scientist, and a [[Alpha Trion (G1)|mysterious stranger with a devilish moustache]], Rodimus Prime retrieved his lost Autobots and shut down the time window. {{storylink|Forever Is a Long Time Coming}}

The Autobots learned of a lost Cybertronian colony known as [[Paradron]] after one of its citizens, [[Sandstorm (G1)|Sandstorm]], arrived on Cybertron begging for help. It seemed that Galvatron and the Decepticons had seized control over the planet and its vast energon reserves. Rodimus Prime and the Autobots staged a tactical infiltration, but the escalation of violence between the two forces led to total devastation. Rodimus gave the pacifistic Autobots of Paradron his impassioned "Move it or lose it!" speech before hustling them off-world so that Ultra Magnus could blow up their home. As Sandstorm sat there mourning the loss of his world, Rodimus Prime gave him some solemn advice.
{{bigquote|Well, no need to get all mushy. Cybertron's a better place anyway—not so...perfect.|}}
{{storylink|Fight or Flee}}

Rodimus and the Autobots were stumped when someone carried off [[Fort Knox]] in the middle of the night. Seriously -- they detected [[Dinosaur transform static]] at the scene, found a small pile of [[Energon cube|energon cubes]], and had just been informed by [[Teletraan II]] that Trypticon was still alive. It was a head-scratcher all right. They eventually figured it out, though, and sieged the occupied nation of [[Socialist Democratic Federated Republic of Carbombya|Carbombya]] to chase the Decepticons away, and recovered Fort Knox and the other monuments Trypticon had stolen. {{storylink|Thief in the Night}}

When the freelance agent named [[Octane]] was being kidnapped right off of Cybertron's surface by Cyclonus and the Sweeps, Rodimus Prime and the Autobots stormed out to save their associate. Things were more complicated than they looked, as when Rodimus confronted Cyclonus, the Decepticon lieutenant spoke with [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]]'s voice! For some reason, learning Starscream was involved made Rodimus willing to let the Decepticons go. Crazy as it sounds, though, it worked -- Starscream and Octane managed to lure Galvatron into an Autobot ambush. Rodimus Prime gave a friendly wave at Starscream for a job well done as he departed. ''Zuh''? {{storylink|Starscream's Ghost}}

While preparing for the first annual Cybertron peace conference, Rodimus Prime got together with [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] to prepare a surprise party for Danny. They were interrupted by a [[Combaticon (G1)|Combaticon]] attack, as the Decepticons wanted to prevent the conference from occurring. The Combaticons were driven off, however, and only minor damage was done. {{storylink|Surprise Party}}

During a diplomatic function, Rodimus Prime was forced to play statesman and deal with Ambassador [[Ynara]] and the other delegates. Curiously, when Daniel Witwicky went missing and Rodimus had an excuse to duck out of the "festivities", he chose to delegate the search mission to Ultra Magnus and Blaster. Perhaps the normally action-hungry Rodimus Prime was actually becoming more accepting of his leadership duties. {{storylink|Madman's Paradise}}

{{charstubfiction}}

{{storylink|Nightmare Planet}}

Cybertron was put on high alert after [[Scourge (G1)|Scourge]] broke into Metroplex on Earth, stealing his eyes and blowing up a bomb in his brain. Rodimus and the Autobots were eventually able to suss out that Scourge was working with the ghost of Starscream, and they in turn were acquiring those eyes for Unicron. Rodimus put together a strike team and sent Ultra Magnus, Springer, [[Hot Spot (G1)|Hot Spot]] and [[Groove (G1)|Groove]] to Unicron to investigate, but they were repulsed by the Chaos-Bringer's defenses. Their second mission was more successful, detonating a series of explosives underneath Unicron once he came down to Cybertron, intent on connecting himself to the planet and turning it into his new body. After Unicron was successfully blasted back into orbit, Rodimus congratulated his men on a job well done. As a joke, he told Magnus and the others their next mission would be to return to the head of their Living Devil and retrieve his stolen eyes. That Roddy -- he's hilarious. {{storylink|Ghost in the Machine}}

{{storylink|The Big Broadcast of 2006}}

At a galactic peace conference, Rodimus and Ultra Magnus attempted to end the centuries of war between the planets of [[Xetaxxis]] and [[Lanarq]]. They might as well have asked Galvatron "Why you so ''crazy''?" Every attempt at straight talk and reasonable discourse broke out into a brawl, fist-fighting and eventually laser fire. The two worlds only reached an accord once Blaster and Sky Lynx arrived with a Quintesson journal, detailing how the entire war between the two planets was a "case study" in escalation manipulated by the Quints to sell bigger and better armaments to both sides. {{storylink|The Quintesson Journal}}

{{storylink|The Dweller in the Depths}}

{{storylink|Only Human}}

Rodimus Prime began to struggle with the burden of leadership again during a skirmish in Europe, where the Decepticons were working in conjunction with human terrorists. The pacifistic [[First Aid (G1)|First Aid]] chose to leave the Autobots after his refusal to fight cost Metroplex his transforming cog, and Rodimus chided himself for not having the words to convince the medic to stay. He was also unsettled by Galvatron's crowing about a new "[[Ultimate Weapon]]" which would bring the Autobots to their knees. Regardless of his internal strife, Rodimus continued the fight. He came up with a plan where Spike and Daniel Witwicky posed as part of the (evil?) human repair crews working on Trypticon, and liberated the Decepticon city-bot's transforming cog just as the 'Cons had taken Metroplex's. Rodimus and Ultra Magnus had to fight off Galvatron and [[Stunticon|Stunticons]] in order to stall for time so that the Witwickys could complete their mission. Fortunately, the Stunticons had been off the shelves for awhile by this point, and so were utterly demolished off-screen by the two Autobots. Eventually, First Aid returned to the Autobots to finish repair work on the cog, and Rodimus ultimately called Galvatron's bluff and uncovered his "Ultimate Weapon" as the sham it was. These victories renewed Rodimus's confidence in his leadership abilities...until next time. {{storylink|The Ultimate Weapon}}

{{storylink|The Face of the Nijika}}

At the unveiling of the new power generator, Rodimus Prime got frustrated at Grimlock's gross stupidity. Things only got worse when the Autobots discovered [[Anti-electron|anti-electrons]] being beamed out of the power generator, and needed to negotiate the tunnels beneath Cybertron to reach the generator core...and Grimlock broke their only map. Luckily for Rodimus's sanity, Grimlock spontaneously developed super-intelligence after biting through the cables connecting the anti-electrons to the power generator. The Autobots then went on a mission to Unicron's head to prevent the Decepticons from recovering any more anti-electrons to use against them. They were nearly overwhelmed by the animalistic [[Terrorcon (G1)|Terrorcons]], but Grimlock constructed [[Computron (G1)|Computron]] and the [[Technobot (G1)|Technobots]] as a counter-force against the bestial Decepticons. Rodimus and the others drove off the remaining Decepticons, and restabilized the power generator for Cybertron's use. {{storylink|Grimlock's New Brain}}

On Earth's [[Moon (moon)|Moon]], Rodimus Prime and the Autobots were engaged in trench warfare with the Decepticon for some vague but no doubt important reason. Rodimus demonstrated his keen tactical brilliance when the Decepticons attacked and he suggested the Autobots do the unexpected...and counter-attack. No, really -- Galvatron seemed utterly amazed when they did that. However, the non-beastial Transformers on both sides were rendered lifeless when the energy-draining creature known as [[Tornedron]] attacked them while en-route to Earth. When the threat was eliminated by Grimlock, Rodimus and the others came back to life, without realising that anything had happened. {{storylink|Call of the Primitives}}

After a particularly strenuous series of Decepticon attacks on Japan, Rodimus Prime was in no mood to be chewed out by the Japanese government for "not helping enough". When [[Marissa Faireborn]] stopped by at just the wrong time with yet another problem, Rodimus blew her off and went racing on the backroads to let off some exhaust. Unfortunately, he was spotted by the Stunticons [[Dead End (G1)|Dead End]] and [[Wildrider]], who knocked him for a loop and (surprisingly) shook the Matrix of Leadership loose from his chest cavity. After the Stunticons made off with the Matrix, Rodimus woke up as Hot Rod. Shockingly to Springer and Ultra Magnus, Roddy was in no hurry to go after the thieves and recover the Matrix. His ''giri'' had become too burdensome, and Hot Rod was hardly interested in reclaiming the burden so soon. He returned to a dojo that had been upset by [[Bruticus (G1)|Bruticus]] during the earlier attacks, and observed the sensei and his pupils. After finding his center again, Hot Rod returned to the city, where the huntsman known as Scourge had been mis-using the Matrix as a source of raw power to destroy everything around him. After a brief fight, Hot Rod reclaimed the Matrix from Scourge and became Rodimus Prime once more, accepting his path in life. Oh, and Kup was nodding sagely on the sidelines this entire time. Apparently that helped, somehow {{storylink|The Burden Hardest to Bear}}

[[Image:HotRodReturnOfOptimusPrime1.jpg|right|200px|thumb|"Does my thumb look infected to you?"]]

As it turned out, far from being destroyed, Optimus Prime had been retrieved by a team of human scientists who were hoping to use him (again) as a weapon against the Autobots—this time as the bearer of a malignant "[[Hate Plague]]" that would cause them to destroy each other. When he learned of this, Rodimus swiftly formed a rescue party and led them to retrieve Optimus's body so that their former leader could rest in peace. When all of the rest of the Autobots with him were exposed to the Hate Plague, only Rodimus was able to escape unharmed—and with the still uninfected body of Optimus. Returning to Autobot City, Rodimus ordered [[Sky Lynx (G1)|Sky-Lynx]] to find a Quintesson to repair Optimus, then risked his life to shut down [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] before the Plague could spread to it. Attacked by Ultra Magnus and Wreck-Gar in the process, he succumbed to the plague and became infected with hate. {{storylink|The Return of Optimus Prime, Part 1}} In order to stop the Plague, the resurrected Optimus had to defeat the crazed Rodimus and forcibly extract the Matrix from him, changing him back into Hot Rod once more. This time, as Optimus had decided to stick around, the change was a permanent one. {{storylink|The Return of Optimus Prime, Part 2}}

Even after losing his position as Autobot leader, Hot Rod was not the sort to rest on his laurels. In 2007, he was among a group of Autobots who were caught in a blast from the [[Plasma energy|Plasma Energy Chamber]] and shot across the galaxy to the planet [[Nebulos]]. {{storylink|The Rebirth, Part 1}} There, the Autobots fell in with a group of native rebels and aided them in opposing the tyrannical rule of the dictatorial [[Hive (G1)|Hive]]—a partnership that ultimately evolved into [[binary bonding]], the fusion of Transformer and Nebulan into [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmasters]] and [[Targetmaster|Targetmasters]]. {{storylink|The Rebirth, Part 2}} Hot Rod was linked to the Nebulan sharpshooter Firebolt, and went on to aid in the defence of Cybertron as Galvatron attempted to use the Plasma Energy Chamber to destroy it. {{storylink|The Rebirth, Part 3}}

====Japanese cartoon continuity====
{{note|The events of the Generation 1 cartoon occur in Japanese animated continuity as described above, except that the events of "The Rebirth" do not occur. Additionally, this continuity moves the events of 2006 forward to 2010, and inserts several additional events into the newly-created intervening years.}}

=====''Kiss Players''=====
:''Voice actors:'' [[Ryōtarō Okiayu]] (Japanese)

When Rodimus Prime hurled Galvatron into space at the conclusion of their battle within Unicron, he could not have predicted the tragic result of this action. Galvatron crash-landed on Earth, on top of [[Tokyo]], [[Japan]], devastating the city and sparking off a massive anti-Transformer movement spearheaded by the [[Earth Defense Command]]. Horrified by what his actions had wrought, Rodimus gave up the Matrix to Ultra Magnus, reverted to Hot Rod once more, and returned to the human homeworld.

[[Image:HotRodKP.jpg|left|180px|thumb|Flames on his arms and a naked girl in his tummy.]]
As he descended to Earth, Hot Rod was badly damaged by the [[anti-electron]] field that the E.D.C. had set up around the planet. Arriving at the E.D.C. headquarters, Hot Rod interrupted a grotesque experiment in a basement laboratory involving the severed heads of various [[Legion]] (monstrous creatures created by Galvatron's scattered cells) and former E.D.C. operative [[Shaoshao Li]]. The Legion attacked Hot Rod and began to [[ParasiTech|fuse]] with him, but a [[kiss]] from Shaoshao—one of the E.D.C.'s [[Kiss Player]] operatives, also given fusing powers by Galvatron's cells—saved him, reformatting him into a Ford GT body. Now partnered with Shaoshao, he traveled around [[Japan]] battling the E.D.C., Legion, and the resurrected Optimus Prime.

Hot Rod was cocky and confident in his speed and sharpshooting skills, and often weathered his human partner's complaints that he was slacking off on his hand-to-hand combat training. He much preferred to practice kissing, the resulting fusion granting him Shao's considerable martial arts skills as well as the ability to wield his firearms as [[wikipedia:tonfa|tonfas]]. In return, he stole [[Marissa Faireborn]]'s underwear for her.

He continued to enjoy fishing and carried a customized rod that he could convert into a forearm-mounted weapon called the "Exhaust Eliminator". Shaoshao didn't like working with him after a fishing trip due to the smell, but she secretly wished that he would take her with him anyway. Hot Rod was very suspicious of Optimus Prime, claiming that he was not the ''real'' Optimus, presumably because he still believed his former commander to be dead following the Battle of Autobot City.

Hot Rod had the distinction of being the only known robot with a Kiss Player partner to have lips. This might have contributed to Shao's feelings of excitement when she kissed him, though the rest of the time she acted outraged that a robot would have the audacity to talk to her like a real person.

After numerous battles, Hot Rod and his human partner settled their differences with Prime. Together, they teamed up with the E.D.C. Kiss Player [[Atari Hitotonari]] and her [[Autrooper]] and entered the secret "Genital System" facility hidden beneath E.D.C. headquarters in Tokyo. There, they discovered Galvatron's headless body and realized that the only way to end the current crisis was to allow the Unicron-empowered Decepticon's cells to return to his body. When Hot Rod did so, he was restored to his original body. {{storylink|Kiss Players (manga)|Kiss Players}}

Hot Rod went on his way, but did not take back the Matrix and leadership of the Autobots until the year 2010. It is unknown whether he ever discovered that the true cause of the Tokyo incident was temporal interference by the [[Sparkbot|Sparkbots]].

=====''The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers''=====
{{note|The events of this manga occur concurrently with the events of Generation 1 cartoon, as described above.}}
Rodimus Prime faced numerous bizarre challenges in the year 2010. In one instance, Rodimus and his troops were taken under siege by a horde of Megatron clones calling themselves the [[Megatron Military]]. The Megatron Military made short work of Rodimus, leaving him to wonder how he could defeat a whole horde of the baddie, when Optimus Prime could barely deal with ''one''. Rodimus eventually realized that Galvatron was secretly controlling the clones and singled him out. With Galvatron defeated, the Megatron Military ceased to function. {{storylink|The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers issue 2|The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers issue 2}}

During another battle, he was forced to team with his arch-nemesis, Galvatron, to defeat the all-powerful [[Guiltaur]]. Guiltaur was a creation built by the [[Quintesson|Quintessons]] utilizing the powers of both Optimus Prime and Megatron. Together, Rodimus and Galvatron defeated their foe (who it turned out was being controlled by the ghost of [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]]) and called off the truce. {{storylink|The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers issue 4|The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers issue 4}}

=====''The Headmasters'' cartoon=====
[[Image:DoubleConvoy1.jpg|left|200px|thumb|"Race ya to the Matrix!" "Yer on!"]]
One year after the Hate Plague affair and the resurrection of Optimus Prime, Hot Rod maintained a high-level position among the Autobots as well as a new sense of duty and responsibility. Hot Rod was stationed on [[Athenia]] when the Decepticons, bolstered with the addition of new Headmaster warriors, attacked Cybertron in an attempt to take control of [[Vector Sigma]], which had become destabilized as a result of the Matrix's energy being released. {{storylink|Four Warriors Come out of the Sky|Four Warriors Come out of the Sky}} When a group of Autobot Headmasters arrived to help, Optimus Prime broke off from the battle and ventured into Cybertron's depths, hoping to find a way to stabilize Vector Sigma. This, however, would require the sacrifice of his own life if attempted without the Matrix, which was hidden somewhere on Earth, recharging. {{storylink|The Mystery of Planet Master|The Mystery of Planet Master}} Hot Rod and the Autobot Headmasters searched the Matrix out and returned to Cybertron with it, where the spirit of [[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]] recharged its empty shell, transforming Hot Rod back into Rodimus Prime. Optimus and Rodimus defeated the Decepticons together, but Optimus still wound up sacrificing himself to stabilize Vector Sigma, leaving Rodimus Prime in command of the Autobots once again. {{storylink|Birth of the Fantastic Double Prime|Birth of the Fantastic Double Prime}}

Not long thereafter, a plot by Decepticon leader [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]] resulted in a massive planetary explosion devastating Cybertron, leaving it a burnt-out husk. Deciding that his time was over, and that newer, younger Transformers should take over, Rodimus passed leadership of the Autobots to [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress]], and departed for space with Kup and [[Blurr (G1)|Blurr]] to search for a new planet that the Transformers could make their own. Arcee asked if she could go, too, but Rodimus instructed her to stay behind to look after Daniel and Wheelie. {{storylink|Cybertron Is in Grave Danger, Part 2|Cybertron Is in Grave Danger, Part 2}}

=====''The Headmasters'' comic=====
[[Image:Ep14.jpg|right|100px|thumb|He's so dreeeaaaaamyyyy.]]
On his journey through space, Rodimus faced many dangers and hardships, but was supported by the wisdom of the Matrix and the energy of the Earth that now coursed within it. Learning a new admiration for the human race and the planet Earth, he returned to Earth in the wake of the defeat of Scorponok, and reunited with the Autobots. {{storylink|The Headmasters issue 8|The Headmasters issue 8}}

=====''The Battlestars''=====
It would be many years before Rodimus resurfaced. He eventually returned at the same time as Optimus Prime was resurrected as [[Optimus Prime (G1)#The Battlestars story pages and comic|Star Convoy]], and was shown to have reverted back into Hot Rod, and been converted into a [[Micromaster]]. As a Micromaster, Hot Rod took up residence in Star Convoy's chest, boosting his Supreme Commander's power.

=====''15 Go! Go!''=====
[[Image:Hotrod-micro.jpg|left|150px|thumb|Well, at least this girl has clothes on.]]
During her travels through time and space, [[Teletraan 15]] encountered Micromaster Hot Rod, who rescued her from a strange mechanical monster, a [[Novaroid]]. Teletraan 15 noted that Hot Rod was considerably smaller than she remembered him.

Hot Rod asked if she was the one responsible for all the [[Transwarp]] travel and blamed her for the wormholes that were opening everywhere. Spotting a large wormhole opening, he transformed to vehicle mode and told her to climb inside, saying that something big was coming.

[[Optimus Prime (G1)#The Battlestars story pages and comic|Star Convoy]] appeared and requested Hot Rod's assistance, telling him that [[Megatron (G1)|Ultra Megatron]] was fusing with [[Dark Nova]].

As Hot Rod said his farewells to Teletraan 15, he was suddenly struck by an immense blast from the wormhole overhead. The shadowy form of [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]] descended from the rip in the sky.

15 leaped in front of Hot Rod to protect him, and was rewarded for her heroism by seeing her right arm torn off by the Decepticon's power. The severed arm gripped in his teeth, Galvatron throttled the much smaller Hot Rod. As [[Safety]] and [[Fly-Up]] of the [[Guard City]] team raced toward her, Teletraan 15 faded into unconsciousness, leaving Hot Rod's fate and the outcome of the battle unknown. {{storylink|15 Go! Go!}}

===Marvel Comics continuity===
====Generation 1====
{{noteukonly}}
''Several hundred years ago, [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]] dispatched Hot Rod and [[Blurr (G1)|Blurr]] to search for habitable worlds. During this mission, the pair ran afoul of the [[Tyroxian|Tyroxians]] — unpleasant [[Alien|aliens]] who captured Blurr and pursued Hot Rod through space. While fleeing, Hot Rod crossed paths with the Autobot war veteran, Kup, living a nomadic existence wandering through space at the time, and the youth's bravado in attacking [[Tyroxia]] single-handed re-ignited Kup's fighting spirit. After saving Hot Rod and helping him to rescue Blurr, Kup joined the pair in returning to Cybertron.'' {{storylink|Kup's Story!}}

Hot Rod was among the contingent of Transformers who ultimately accompanied Fortress Maximus in abandoning the war on Cybertron for a new world, Nebulos. The Autobots' arrival on the planet immediately stirred civil unrest, however, which led to the Decepticons being brought to the planet, and the war continuing on a smaller scale. Technological advancements developed during the conflict saw Nebulans being bio-engineered into [[Binary bonding|partnerships]] with the Transformers. Hot Rod became a Targetmaster, and was bonded to the Nebulan sharpshooter, Firebolt (aka Sparks), who transformed into his gun. Eventually, the Autobots determined to move their war away from Nebulos, and followed a signal sent by [[Bumblebee (G1)|Goldbug]], received by Hot Rod, to the planet [[Earth]]. {{storylink|Brothers in Armor!!}}

Hot Rod and the other Autobots of Nebulos were soon incorporated into the larger Autobot force on Earth, under the command of Optimus Prime. On one occasion, Hot Rod and several Autobots accompanied Prime on what appeared to be a simple mission to stop some Decepticon [[Micromaster|Micromasters]] from attacking MacDill Air Force Base. {{storylink|Back from the Dead}} In fact, the attack was part of a much larger scheme by the deposed Decepticon leader [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]], luring Prime and his forces away from the [[Ark (G1)|Ark]] and setting them against his rival for Decepticon leadership, the mighty [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]]. Once Prime realized the greater threat at issue, he ordered his troops to immediately take the [[Ark shuttlecraft|shuttle]] back to the Ark, but Hot Rod recklessly chose to stay behind at Optimus's side to face the Decepticons. {{storylink|All the Familiar Faces!}} He was therefore on-hand when the newly resurrected [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] arrived, and began tearing through all Transformers present, in the name of Megatron. He managed to take a shot at Starscream's new [[Pretender]] shell, causing enough neural feedback to temporarily weaken the Decepticon, and give Scorponok time to strike and end the threat. {{storylink|Skin Deep}}

The cost was still high, though, as Optimus Prime returned to the Ark and learned that his good friend, [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]], had sacrificed himself to help stop Megatron's schemes. This sent the Autobot leader into a depression, and Hot Rod took it upon himself to snap Optimus out of it. He had the crazy scheme of creating a mock threat with a [[Guardian (Marvel)|Guardian Mark V battle droid]], with predictable results. The robot proceeded to ''actually'' malfunction and endanger the Autobots, but Hot Rod's plan worked when Prime eventually snapped out of his funk and defeated the droid to save the day. Hot Rod needed to find a replacement hand after the Guardian snapped it off, but hey, all's well that ends well. {{storylink|Yesterday's Heroes!}}

Hot Rod continued to operate with Earth's Autobot forces aboard the Ark, and was present during [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]]'s rampage through the shuttle bay. He took some damage, but remained functional enough to continue on, and was later seen speeding into the battle with Unicron himself on a [[hoverscooter]], {{storylink|On the Edge of Extinction!}} He was also one of many Autobots destroyed by the Decepticons on [[Klo]], only to be revived by the [[Last Autobot]]. {{storylink|End of the Road! (US)|End of the Road!}}

[[Image:GalvatrondeadrodimusUS67.jpg|left|200px|thumb|"Do you expect me to talk?" "No, Mr Prime, I expect you to die!"]]
In an alternate future timeline, Hot Rod arose to become Rodimus Prime. However, the planet-eater known as Unicron managed to destroy Cybertron, leaving Rodimus to lead a failed Autobot/human defense of Earth when [[Galvatron II|that timeline's Galvatron]] attacked and eventually conquered it. Rodimus perished during the conflict, and his body was strung up between the ruined towers of the World Trade Center. In the year 2009, Galvatron returned to Manhattan to survey its devastated landscape, and fired upon Rodimus's corpse, demanding to know how many times he would have to kill him to erase his legacy. {{storylink|Rhythms of Darkness!}}

{{-}}
=====Marvel UK future timelines=====
[[Image:M1988 rodimusprime runlikehell.jpg|right|250px|thumb|I'M KID FRIENDLY, DAMN IT!]]
''Hot Rod rose to greater prominence in the alternate future timeline of [[Earth-120185]]. In 1990, he, Kup and Blurr were captured by Megatron; although rescued by a double-agent named [[Warmonger]], Hot Rod was recaptured and bore witness first hand to Megatron's mercilessness when he executed Warmonger. Then, in 1991, he was part of a unit that escorted the captive [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]], only to lose the Decepticon leader when forced to defend a human settlement against an attack by the [[Air Strike Patrol]].'' {{storylink|Aspects of Evil!}} ''On another occasion in 1995, Hot Rod was present when Optimus Prime first unveiled the female Autobot, Arcee, to a dubious crowd of human feminists. Hot Rod was more than a little flustered by Arcee's presence on the battlefield.'' {{storylink|Prime's Rib!}} ''In 2003, he and Blurr were given "Ark duty," assigned to stand guard over the [[Ark (G1)|Autobots' spaceship]] while construction on [[Autobot City]] began. Kup was apparently instructed to deliver the plans of the city to the American government, and when Hot Rod saw him being jumped by the [[Stunticon|Stunticons]], he disobeyed orders and sped out to the rescue. The Stunticons brutally beat on Hot Rod and took the plans, but Hot Rod learned a hard lesson when Kup informed him that it was meant to happen that way because the plans were a fake.'' {{storylink|Ark Duty}} ''When the city was completed in 2004, [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] attacked it on its opening day, and Hot Rod repelled him by attacking in a wildly illogical manner, tackling him down a mountain repeatedly.'' {{storylink|Aspects of Evil!}} ''Also, at some unknown point in the past, Hot Rod's Targetmaster partner Firebolt was killed in action. {{storylink|Headhunt}}''

''In the year 2006, when the new Decepticon leader [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]] travelled back in time to 1986 as part of a plan to free himself from the control of Unicron, the chaos-bringer used his mental powers to plant knowledge of Galvatron's plan into the minds of Hot Rod, Kup and Blurr and transported them to Cybertron, where they used Galvatron's equipment to follow him into the past. There, with help from the present-day incarnation of Ultra Magnus, they were able to convince Galvatron that he had, in fact, traveled back in time to a parallel universe, where his actions would have no effect on the future. Believing this, Galvatron returned to his own time, and after setting any remaining wrongs to rights, the trio of Autobots also returned to 2006.'' {{storylink|Target: 2006}} ''Back in his native timeline, Hot Rod was subsequently involved in a battle with Galvatron inside Unicron's body, during which he opened the sacred Autobot talisman, the [[Matrix of Leadership|Creation Matrix]], and was transformed into Rodimus Prime. With this new strength, he hurled Galvatron through Unicron's hide and opened the Matrix, destroying the planet-eater.'' {{storylink|The Transformers: The Movie}}

''It's believed that [[Primus]] ''deliberately'' caused Hot Rod's Prime form to resemble him. What an ego!'' {{storylink|Salvage!|#160's Grim Grams}}

[[Image:Rodimusprimerequestdenied.jpg|left|300px|thumb|Rodimus learned the wrong lesson from Optimus's death.]]
''As the new Autobot leader, Rodimus became paranoid about Galvatron's eventual return, since no body was ever recovered from space. He led the Autobot forces high and low searching the universe for the Decepticon leader, neglecting Cybertron in the process. As a result, Shockwave arose as the new Decepticon leader, and total war broke out on Cybertron once again. Unable to take the time to find Galvatron himself anymore, Rodimus rashly placed a bounty on the Decepticon's head. What Rodimus did not realize, however, was that Galvatron had time-jumped again, traveling back to 1987.'' {{storylink|Wanted:Galvatron — Dead or Alive!}} ''In 2007, when the freelance peace-keeping agent [[Death's Head]] pursued Galvatron back to the '80s, Rodimus was informed of this fact by an Autobot double-agent named [[Nautilus]], and, dismayed at the danger he had unleashed on the past, promptly headed back in time himself to stop the dual threats.'' {{storylink|Burning Sky!}} ''Once again teaming up with the present-day Ultra Magnus, Rodimus and his team of Kup, Blurr and [[Wreck-Gar (G1)|Wreck-Gar]] tracked Galvatron down to [[Mount Verona]], where he was attempting to harness the volcano's molten energy. While arguing with Death's Head, Rodimus and the bounty hunter were both attacked, but when Ultra Magnus opened fire on his power siphon, Galvatron was distracted long enough for Rodimus to escape.'' {{storylink|Hunters}} ''Rodimus then arranged a plan that saw the Autobots capture Galvatron's time-jump mechanism, in order to have Wreck-Gar re-engineer it to return all the time-travelers to their point of origin. Rodimus engaged Galvatron in a protracted battle to buy Wreck-Gar time, but when the device was activated, Rodimus, Death's Head and the other Autobots were returned to 2007. Galvatron was left behind.'' {{storylink|Fire on High!}}

''Some time later, a disgruntled Death's Head accepted a contract from the Decepticons on Rodimus Prime's head, and ambushed him while he was inspecting Autobot lines. Their battle subsequently went underground, where [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]] and [[Scourge (G1)|Scourge]] intervened, downing Death's Head in hopes of being the ones to defeat Rodimus, in order to reclaim their lost standing in the Decepticons' ranks. Rodimus was able to lead Death's Head through the underground tunnels, right into the heart of the Autobot camp, where he offered him advance payment for a different contract—on Cyclonus and Scourge.'' {{storylink|Headhunt}} ''Death's Head proceeded to track the two Decepticons for the remainder of the year, until the three of them fell under the mental control of Unicron when they discovered his disembodied head on the planet of [[Junkion (planet)|Junk]] in the early days of 2008. Under his control, they assassinated Decepticon leader Shockwave and reignited the stalemated Cybertronian civil war in order to keep the Autobots busy while Unicron worked on rebuilding his body. Rodimus, however, learned of the situation thanks to [[Smokescreen (G1)|Smokescreen]], and led a small Autobot force to Junk, where Death's Head fought against Unicron's control long enough to project Rodimus's mind into a battle with the demi-god on the astral plane. During the battle, explosives planted by Wreck-Gar destroyed Unicron's head, and his mind was sealed within the Matrix.'' {{storylink|The Legacy of Unicron!}}

[[Image:Targetmaster-nomore.jpg|right|180px|thumb|"I'm not being melodramatic, you're being insensitive!"]]
''Later in 2008, the alien Quintessons targeted Cybertron for colonization, and attacked the Autobots with a two-pronged assault on both Cybertron and Earth. When [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] shirked her guard duty at Autobot City, the Quintessons were given an opening that allowed them to take over the city, and when she returned, they gunned her down as bait for a trap for Rodimus Prime. Arriving at the city, Rodimus discovered the injured Arcee and opened his chest compartment to heal her with the Matrix, only to have it yanked from his grasp by the Quintesson general, [[General Ghyrik|Ghyrik]], causing him to revert to Hot Rod. Liberating [[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]]'s cassettes for back-up, Hot Rod and Arcee proceeded to fight their way through the Quintessons to Autobot City's control room, where Hot Rod activated [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] to smash the alien threat. In battle with Ghyrik, Hot Rod duped the Quintessons with a bit of amateur ventriloquism and reclaimed the Matrix; transformed back into Rodimus Prime again, he routed the Quintessons.'' {{storylink|Space Pirates!}}

''Unbeknownst to Rodimus, the Quintessons had sought to colonize Cybertron because their own homeworld was being destroyed by a rift in space and time caused by the Transformers' repeated time-travel. The rift continued to grow in size until it threatened both Earth and Cybertron at the beginning of both 2009 and 1989. To put an end to the threat, Rodimus and a squad of Autobots traveled back to 1989, only to wind up mass-displacing Optimus Prime (since the Matrix could not exist in two time periods at once) and a group of other Autobots to [[limbo]], leading to a brief but violent misunderstanding with the present-day Autobots. Optimus Prime was able to stabilize the situation by communicating with all involved through the power of the Matrix. Subsequently, Autobots and Decepticons from both the present and future teamed up to battle Galvatron and [[Straxus (G1)|Megatron]], but one by one they fell, until Optimus Prime used the Matrix to return himself to reality for a final showdown. After absorbing Galvatron, Cyclonus and Scourge, however, the rift was sealed by Shockwave, and Rodimus and the other future Autobots returned to 2009, vowing to destroy their time machines to prevent this from ever happening again.'' {{storylink|Time Wars}}

''As it transpired, however, things would not be that easy. In the wake of the massive chronal damage caused by the rift, time had attempted to heal its wounds, but reality was no longer as it had been. The future that Rodimus and the other Autobots came from no longer existed—in its place was a world where Galvatron had never traveled back in time, and had conquered Cybertron after Unicron's destruction. Rodimus quickly established a rebellion, but when Galvatron tracked down their headquarters, he killed Blurr and all others present, goading Rodimus into a ferocious battle in hopes of corrupting the Matrix within him. Rodimus realized what he was doing, however, and ended the fight before more damage could be done.'' {{storylink|Aspects of Evil!}}

''Rodimus and the Autobots escaped to Earth via hyperspace, only to find that their craft's guidance systems had been damaged. During the flight, Rodimus Prime vanished'' {{storylink|The Void! (UK)|The Void!}}, ''and Kup discovered that he was the saboteur,'' {{storylink|Edge of Impact}} ''deducing that he had been corrupted by an evil force from within the Matrix.'' {{storylink|Shadow of Evil}} ''Inside the Matrix, Rodimus battled with the essence of Unicron, trapped there since the events of 2008, until Kup wrenched the Matrix from his chest, freeing him from the chaos-bringer's influence. But now, Rodimus knew that the evil of Unicron would be waiting for him within it...'' {{storylink|White Fire}} ''...and in 2010, Unicron's essence succeeded in taking over Rodimus's body, transforming it into a duplicate of his own and attacking Cybertron once more, until Rodimus was able to defeat him from within and re-seal him within the Matrix.'' {{storylink|Aspects of Evil!}}

''Centuries later, in the year 2356, Rodimus, his body withered and weakened from the continuous harmful influence of Unicron from within the Matrix, lectured a young Autobot [[student]] on the nature of evil, unwittingly setting the youth on the path towards villainy himself.'' {{storylink|Aspects of Evil!}}

''In an unidentified timeline in the year 2510, a healthy Rodimus Prime was overjoyed to announce that the Cybertronian war was finally over, and planned to step down as leader to allow [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] to take over. The sole remaining Decepticon, a double-agent named [[Triton]], spoke out against the decision to cause dissension, and succeeded—as Rodimus could only watch in dismay, arguments escalated into conflict, and the war was born again as [[Technobot (G1)|Technobot]] fought [[Wrecker]], and the Autobot Civil War began.'' {{storylink|Peace}}

====Generation 2====
After the defeat of the Decepticons on [[Klo]], the Autobots' forces scattered throughout the galaxy as virtually independent splinter cells. A small group under Optimus Prime's command encountered Bludgeon and his soldiers on a desolate world, both sides looking for new weapons or technology, and were in danger of being overrun. Prime sent Hot Rod into a nearby mausoleum building in the hopes that he could conjure up some form of "graven image" to distract the superstitious Decepticon leader. Hot Rod emerged empty-handed from the ruins, only to find that just such a graven image had conjured ''itself'', chased off the trespassing Decepticons, and was now prepared to do the same to the Autobots. They managed a dignified, if rushed, scramble to safety. {{storylink|All or Nothing!|Ghosts}}

Sometime after, Hot Rod was operating somewhere in the universe with Optimus Prime and Kup when Grimlock summoned them to deal with the threat of [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]] and his Cybertronians. Together, they formed the initial Autobot resistance to the Liege Centuro. {{storylink|War Without End!}} Once Optimus's visions convinced him there was a much greater threat at work in the universe, however, he took the Autobots into hiding until they were ready to deal with the bigger picture. Stuck on a distant asteroid base, Hot Rod amused himself by running training with the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]], [[Aerialbot (G1)|Aerialbots]], and other soldiers as the army slowly regrouped and reorganized, but chafed at the lack of real action. {{storylink|The Power and the Glory}} Luckily, the Autobots soon joined forces with the old Decepticons, the fight ramped up to epic proportions... and Hot Rod proceeded to do nothing of import for the rest of the war.

===S.T.A.R.S. pack-in flyers===
Rodimus Prime remembered the Transformers' [[Digital Doom on the Highway to Destruction|greatest battle on Earth]]. {{storylink|Rodimus Prime remembers the Transformers greatest battle on Earth.|Rodimus Prime remembers the Transformers greatest battle on Earth.}}

===Ladybird Books continuity===
Hot Rod was one of several troops stationed on Earth when [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] was in charge and the Transformers' war was still a secret one. He got along well with [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], the two spending their downtime looking at car magazines together, and was quite pleased to receive some snazzy gold wheel-trims from the boy. {{storylink|Decepticon Hideout|Decepticon Hideout}}

In the time following this campaign, Hot Rod would mature into a more sensible warrior and even a team leader. During the early stages of the war on [[Nebulos]], Hot Rod was Autobot commander against [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus']] Decepticons before the return of Optimus Prime. At one point, he prevented the Decepticons causing Nebulos' destruction via cosmic radiation. {{storylink|Decepticons at the Pole|Decepticons at the Pole}}

===Dreamwave comics continuity===
Hot Rod joined an underground Autobot cell led by [[Kup (G1)|Kup]] after [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave's]] takeover of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. Among the members of the cell was [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]], who Hot Rod became attached to. From the [[Wastelands]], Hot Rod, [[Blurr (G1)|Blurr]], and [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] observed an incoming Decepticon shuttle carrying the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]]. {{storylink|Cold War|Cold War}} Shortly afterward, the cell rescued [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] from [[Runamuck (G1)|Runamuck]] and [[Runabout]], and took him to their base. After awakening, Prime attacked [[Gnaw]], Blurr, and [[Wheelie (G1)|Wheelie]], forcing Hot Rod (who didn't recognize him) to hold the Autobot leader at gunpoint. After being <strike>bitch slapped</strike> admonished by Kup, Hot Rod apologized. {{storylink|Passive Aggression|Passive Aggression}}

After Shockwave unleashed the [[Guardian robot]]s on [[Iacon]], Prime organized the resistance cell and other Autobot forces on the planet in an assault on Shockwave's citadel. Fighting alongside the Autobot leader, Hot Rod was amazed that the stories Kup had told him about Prime's courage and heroism had all been true. As an injured Prime breached the citadel, Hot Rod, Ironhide and [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] provided cover fire, taking down a number of Guardians in the process. Along with the rest of Iacon, they witnessed the divine light of the [[Matrix of Leadership|Autobot Matrix of Leadership]] when Shockwave activated it. {{storylink|Countdown to Extinction (issue)|Countdown to Extinction}}

As Prime and [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] battled Shockwave within the citadel, Hot Rod and [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]] took down [[Astrotrain (G1)|Astrotrain]] and [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]]. Immediately afterward, they were confronted with the looming threat of a remaining Guardian robot—a threat that was soon neutralized by the arrival of the [[Wrecker|Wreckers]], the [[Autobot High Council]], and [[Defensor (G1)|Defensor]]. The unified Autobot group soon breached the citadel. {{storylink|Revelation (War and Peace)|Revelation}}

Some time later, Hot Rod ran a simulation combat scenario against Kup, and won using tactics that, in Kup's opinion, would have killed them both had it been real. Only after his victory did Hot Rod remember that he'd promised to take Arcee to see an [[Earth]]-bound shuttle launch—a duty Springer was happy to relieve him of. {{storylink|Lost and Found (issue)|Lost and Found}} Soon afterward, he was assigned to perimeter guard duty at [[Autobase (G1)|Autobase]] with Gnaw and Wheelie, separating him from Arcee. {{storylink|The Route of All Evil|The Route of All Evil}}

===''Universe: The Wreckers''===
[[Image:Hotrodg1.jpg|left|150px|thumb|Undergoing the Maximal Upgrade mostly involves applying your stickers.]]
A few months after the destruction of [[Unicron]] in 2005, Rodimus Prime spearheaded an effort to establish multiple recon posts to watch for advancing threats... even though some of his scientists said he shouldn't. When only two of the five launched ships were ever heard from again, Rodimus felt like a schmuck. Guy can't catch a break. {{storylink|Betrayal|Betrayal}}

After the Great Wars ended and the [[Pax Cybertronia]] was signed, he changed his name to simply "Rodimus" and decided to check out the new "[[Maximal]] upgrade". His relationship with [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] effectively ended shortly after, as the latter went through dark gripping emo depression over the death of [[Daniel Witwicky (G1)|Daniel Witwicky]] and vanished.

Rodimus joined the [[Wrecker|Wreckers]] at some undetermined point afterward. After [[Megatron (BW)|Megatron]] took over Cybertron with his [[Vehicon (BM)|Vehicon drones]], Wrecker leader [[Apelinq]] got stranded on prehistoric [[Earth]], leaving Rodimus in charge. True to form, he ditched leadership duties to [[Primal Prime]] as soon as possible.

After Primal Prime got his marching orders from the [[Vector Sigma|Oracle]], he met Rodimus deep inside Cybertron's caverns, where an even more gothy-emo Arcee—in a new Maximal body—lurked and stewed in her depression. Realizing he couldn't convince her to give a damn about anything, he left, rejoining the main Wrecker force in battle. Making it onto an ancient Autobot shuttle, the Wreckers blasted off... with late-arrival Arcee. {{storylink|Departure|Departure}}

Rodimus recognized the homing beacon emitting from [[Akalo|Archa Nine]] as one of those missing exploration parties mentioned before. When the shuttle landed, Rodimus stayed behind to help repair the damage the ship had suffered. The entire Wrecker team later gathered in an [[Akalouthan]] village, where Rodimus was reunited with [[Glyph (G1)|Glyph]], who took them to see the artifact known as the [[Divine Light]]. The Wreckers' analysis of the item was cut short, as it was stolen by the traitor [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]]. Rodimus saw the back-in-his-old-body [[Devcon (G1)|Devcon]] off, who was sent to chase after Cyclonus, while the Wreckers made for their next destination... even though several of them were now leery of the visions Primal Prime had been getting. Because they'd really done ''so well'' by the Wreckers so far. {{storylink|Betrayal|Betrayal}}

Upon landing on the frozen planet, Rodimus was part of the search party immediately dispatched to look for... something. Primal Prime wasn't too specific. They came across [[Al-Badur]], an exiled [[Quintesson]], who gave them a little history lesson. They were then promptly attacked by a school of [[Sharkticon (G1)|Sharkticons]], but the Wreckers made short work of them. They made their way back to the ship, with Al-Badur in tow, and made for their next destination... {{storylink|Disclosure|Disclosure}}

{{charstubfiction}}

{{storylink|Wreckers: Finale Part II|Wreckers: Finale Part II}}

===''G.I. Joe vs. Transformers''===
[[Image:GIJoeTFHotRod70s.jpg|right|200px|thumb|"That bumperchest really doesn't feel right. How do Prowl and Jazz live with it?"]]
When [[Teletran 3]] malfunctioned and sent many Cybertronians into different Earth eras, Hot Rod ended up in the 1970s, mode-locked as a hot rodded muscle car. When some young punk hotwired him, [[Lady Jaye]] challenged the driver to a race inside [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] to lure him someplace isolated to reactivate him. In the end they raced all the way to a hangar where a drug bust took place around a [[Blitzwing (G1)|large cargo plane]]. Hot Rod was promptly reactivated, but had little time to gain his bearings as the plane, who turned out to be a Decepticon, was reactivated. Before any battle could begin, they all traveled back to their own timeline. {{storylink|G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II issue 1|G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II issue 1}}
{{charstubfiction}}
{{-}}
===IDW comics continuity===
{{ongoing}}
[[Image:SpotlightHotRod rush.jpg|right|180px|thumb|WHEEEEEEE! AWESOME! TUBULAR! COWABUNGA! REAGANOMICS!]]
Years ago, Hot Rod was put in charge of a mission to the planet [[Ki-Aleta]] to obtain a powerful artifact named the [[Magnificence]] so as to keep it out of the hands of the Decepticons. The mission started off smoothly enough, with [[Gizmo]] using a [[holomatter]] generator to distract the defense systems while the rest of the team went after the Magnificence. Unfortunately, after that everything that could go wrong did go wrong. First, the generator malfunctioned, then [[Download]] tripped the security lasers around the Magnificence itself. Gizmo, Download, and [[Backbeat]] were destroyed by the security systems while Hot Rod and [[Doubledealer|Dealer]] fled. Hot Rod, nearing the exit tunnels they had previously drilled, got a call from Dealer—he had been ambushed by a Decepticon attack squad and needed help. Unfortunately, Hot Rod had been given his own, top secret orders: the Magnificence was to be the top priority of the mission, and placed before all else. With a heavy heart, Hot Rod abandoned Dealer to his fate as he left Ki-Aleta with the Magnificence.

Years later, Hot Rod learned that Dealer had not died that day; he was being held prisoner at the Decepticon penal colony known as [[Styx]]. Hot Rod stealthily infiltrated the prison complex, using a holomatter generator to disguise himself as a guard and then short-circuiting the power grid to cause all the cell doors to unlock. During the chaos he snuck in, extracted Dealer, and took off while the Decepticons were busy getting the prisoners under control. {{storylink|Spotlight: Hot Rod}}

[[Image:Escalation6 HotRod Koska.jpg|left|170px|thumb|Mine!]]
Recently, Hot Rod was called to [[Earth]] to aid the crew of the ''[[Ark-19]]'' in procuring a Decepticon [[Facsimile Construct]] from [[Brasnya]], a former Soviet state in eastern Europe. {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}} He and [[Hardhead (G1)|Hardhead]] went down to Earth from the ''[[Ark-32]]'' against [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]]'s wishes, and proceeded to join the battle unannounced. As Hardhead went to support the main battle, Hot Rod went after the facsimile... which led to him colliding with [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] as they both tried to stop the [[Georgi Koska]] facsimile from letting himself get gunned down by Soviet soldiers. {{storylink|Escalation issue 4|Escalation #4}} Prowl and Hot Rod managed to defuse the situation and secure the facsimile in the end {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}}, but before he could return to his ship he was attacked by [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]], unable to defend himself because he had to keep the facsimile alive. After returning to the ''Ark-32'', he had to be put in a [[CR chamber]] to recover. His injuries were for nothing, as the facsimile melted during the bounce. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}}

[[Image:Devastation6 HotRod Hardhead.jpg|right|170px|thumb|Hardhead, I'm with Arcee now. Let it go.]]
After Hot Rod was repaired and reformatted into a Dodge Viper, his "friend" Dealer tried to convince him to pull some strings to get him to Earth, but Hot Rod and [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] had the more important task of rescuing [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]]. {{storylink|Devastation issue 1|Devastation #1}} They ran into a bit of trouble with the [[Machination]]'s [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmasters]]. {{storylink|Devastation issue 2|Devastation #2}} They managed to escape temporarily, but were found and Wheeljack was incapacitated. Hot Rod easily held his own with the Headmasters {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}}, and noted that for [[Sunstreaker (G1)|some]] [[Hunter O'Nion|reason]] they had lost their "edge". He received a little help from Hardhead, who was mainly there to take Hot Rod and the others back to the ''Ark-32'' for evacuation to [[Garrus-9]]. Hot Rod refused to go, wanting to see the Headmaster mystery through to the end. Hardhead reluctantly let him go. {{storylink|Devastation issue 6|Devastation #6}}

[[Image:SPDHotRodM.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Oh, Magic 8-Ball, will I ever be Prime in this continuity?]]
Hot Rod's search was interrupted by Dealer's arrival on Earth, with orders for Hot Rod: find the Magnificence and use it to learn what they could about the Expansion. Hot Rod took Dealer to his hiding spot, which turned out to be the planet where they first found the device. As Dealer and Hot Rod closed on the Magnificence, he went over his first visit to the planet in his mind, and how things could have gone so wrong. Eventually he began to have suspicions, and upon locating the Magnificence, asked it the question that haunted him: had Dealer betrayed him? Sadly, it revealed the truth, and Hot Rod was forced to kill Dealer as the traitor attacked. Looking down on his remains, Hot Rod realized the truth had been staring him in the face, he just hadn't wanted to accept it. He then used the Magnificence to find out all he could about the Expansion, and relayed the information to the Autobots. {{storylink|Spotlight: Doubledealer}}

[[Image:HotRodMaxDino02.jpg|right|200px|thumb|You're not fooling anyone, [[Judd Nelson| Bender]]. The next screw that falls out will be YOU.]]

Returning to Earth to continue his search, Hot Rod arrived at the gates of the Machination's complex, and Scorponok prepared himself to deal with the intruder. {{storylink|Maximum Dinobots issue 1}} Unfortunately, Hot Rod found himself fighting well out of his weight class as he was man handled by Scorponok, who cheerfully bashed his face in, put out one of his optics and snapped his leg. The Headmasters dragged him into Scorponok's control room where, with absolutely no prompting, the big man explained his entire plan for the Dynobots, Skywatch and the Machination. {{storylink|Maximum Dinobots issue 2}}

Hot Rod seemed less than impressed with this rather mundane approach, which ticked Scorponok off enough for him to point out that it was obviously just the first stage in his master plan. He was also warned to remained awed or he'd be of no further interest. When the Dynobots and newly-arrived [[Monsterbot]]s seemed to turn Scorponok's plan on its head, Hot Rod burst out laughing, at which point, Scorponok ordered him taken out and shot. In the lift to the surface, Hot Rod suddenly erupted in flames, killing his captors, but draining his power supply. Weakened and with a crippled leg, he collapsed on the floor. {{storylink|Maximum Dinobots issue 3}}

He made it out of the building and ran into the real Sunstreaker, who blasted the 2 clones following Hot Rod. Sunstreaker ignored Hot Rod's warning about Scorponok's army and stormed into the building so Hot Rod painfully wired himself to send a distress signal. When Sunstreaker's real head was later disabled by Hunter, the Headmaster clones shut down, which Hot Rod explained to [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]]. The group was surprised by the arrival of [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]], but [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] had heard Hot Rod's distress call and was on his way to Earth. {{storylink|Maximum Dinobots issue 4}}

After Scorponok knocked out [[Sludge (G1)|Sludge]] and Grimlock tended to him, the remaining Dynobots offered Hot Rod a lift aboard the Monsterbots' ship. He refused though, and made it back into Machination HQ to take care of something "personal". He eventually found Scorponok's real head (and remarked how ugly it was). Hunter also showed up and let Hot Rod know how to disable it, but before he could do so, Scorponok grabbed him. Before Scorponok could crush Hot Rod's head, the Dynobots showed up and began to battle Scorponok. Hot Rod told [[Swoop (G1)|Swoop]] which wires to sever, and he did just that, reducing Scorponok to a catatonic state. Ultra Magnus arrived took everyone back aboard his ship, which later docked with the ''Ark-32''. Within 3 days, Hot Rod was fully repaired, with a new body form design. {{storylink|Maximum Dinobots issue 5}}

[[Image:Ironhide punches Hot Rod.jpg|left|250px|thumb|Ironhide has waited twenty-two years to pay Hot Rod back for [[The Transformers: The Movie|shooting down his shuttle]].]]

When the Decepticons' galaxy-wide assault hit, Hot Rod and a group of other Autobots were shot down over Cybertron. Hot Rod sent out a distress signal and was ecstatic when he ran into some other Autobots. They must've come specifically to save his team and... wait, why do you all look surprised about my signal and appear beaten up and resourceless and... ''oh arsebiscuits''! {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 4}}

Hot Rod was taken back to base and relayed the story of how he and his other crew-mates from the ''[[Trion]]'' arrived on Cybertron, having been diverted there by Decepticon ships and forced to crash land. Once on the surface, Hot Rod sent out his distress signal and was ''so'' sure someone heard it. Kup arrives with the rest of the ''Trion'''s crew at that point, just in time to tell Hot Rod ''of course'' no one heard his message. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 5}}

After the Autobots narrowly avoided the [[Insecticon Swarm|Insecticon swarm]] and Sunstreaker sacrificed himself, Hot Rod jumped to [[Drift (G1)|Drift]]'s defense when he was being insulted by [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]]. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 9}}
{{-}}

==Toys==
{{main|Hot Rod (G1)/toys}}

==Notes==
* In ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]'', Hot Rod does not transform the same way twice.

*Voice actor Ted Schwartz was originally cast to succeed Judd Nelson as the voice of Rodimus Prime for the third season of the animated series, but was subsequently replaced by [[Dick Gautier]]. Before his replacement, however, Schwartz recorded Rodimus's lines for several episodes (most likely all five parts of "[[Five Faces of Darkness]]"), and although Gautier re-recorded the dialogue, technical oversight led to some of Schwartz's readings making it into the finished episodes. He can be heard delivering all of Rodimus's lines in the recap for [[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 1|part 1]] that plays at the beginning of [[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 2|part 2]], and speaking one line during the scene on [[Goo]] in [[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 3|part 3]].

* Hot Rod might be the ''Transformers'' character with the most names in the US. From "Hot Rod" to "Rodimus Prime", to "Rodimus Major" to just plain "Rodimus". Varieties of "Rodimus" appear to be how he will be for a while, as Hasbro appears to be unable to secure the [[trademark]] on "Hot Rod".

* [[Side Burn (RID)|Side Burn]]'s powered up form has a color scheme which resembles Hot Rod's.

* Aside from the ''[[Energon (franchise)|Energon]]'' [[Rodimus (Energon)|namesake character]], Hot Rod has also been [[Homage|homaged]] twice (or possibly thrice depending on how you look at it) in the [[Unicron Trilogy]]. For ''[[Armada (franchise)|Armada]]'', the "[[Powerlinx]]" upgrade of [[Hot Shot (Armada)|Hot Shot]] was given a very Hot-Rod-inspired deco. In ''[[Cybertron (franchise)|Cybertron]]'', [[TakaraTomy|Takara]] made a redeco of Hot Shot (well, "Exillion"), who already had some Hot Rod homage elements in his toy design, with Hot Rod deco as a DVD-pack-in [[exclusive]]. [[Hasbro]] then took this deco, altered it, and released it in the US line at mass retail as the new character [[Excellion]].

* One of the first concepts for Classics Rodimus was based around the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pagani_Zonda Pagani Zonda] super car, before the [http://www.supercarnet.jp/File/File-Japan/File-Dome.htm Dome Zero] design was decided upon.

* At [[BotCon 2002]], Dick Gautier "confirmed", jokingly, that Rodimus Prime is gay.

==External links==
* [http://www.tfu.info/1986/Autobot/HotRod/hotrod.htm Hot Rod at TFU.info]

* [http://www.ntfa.net/universe/english/index.php?act=view&char=Hot_Rod Hot Rod's Universe profile at NTFA.net]

* [http://www.ntfa.net/universe/english/index.php?act=view&char=Rodimus_Prime Rodimus Prime's profile at NTFA.net]

[[Category:Autobot leaders]]
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[[Category:Targetmasters]]
[[Category:Universe characters]]
[[Category:Wreckers]]
[[Category:Primus]]
[[Category:Rulers of Cybertron]]

Piston (mechanic)

2009-06-07T03:58:30Z

68.104.167.97:

{{factions|autobot}}
:''Piston is an [[Autobot]] from the [[IDW]] portion of the [[Generation 1]] [[continuity family]].''

[[Image:Piston spotlight blurr.jpg|right|250px|thumb|If he spent more time socialising, and less playing his Nintendo DS, Blurr might remember his name...]]
'''Piston''' is a member of [[Blurr (G1)|Blurr]]'s pit team, though his hard work is often overlooked by his supercilious boss who prefers to hang out with [[Fasttrack (IDW)|other racers]]. Despite the fact that Blurr can't even remember his name (which might be a good thing, seeing how it's an [[anatomic euphemism]]), Piston remains cheerful and upbeat.

{{quote|Friend of yours?|[[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]]}}
{{quote|His name was Piston|[[Blurr (G1)|Blurr]]|''[[Spotlight: Blurr]]''}}

==Fiction==
===IDW comics continuity===
[[Image:Piston dead spotlight blurr.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Piston broke.]]
Piston and his colleagues helped Blurr to the top of every championship of the [[Cybertronian sport|Cybertronian races]], though they received little credit when Blurr celebrated without them at [[The Circle]]. Shortly afterwards, the racetrack was destroyed and [[Zeta Prime]] called an end to the races, so Piston signed up to join the [[Autobot|Autobots]]. He tried to persuade Blurr to come with him, but the racer was more interested in partying.

Piston was part of an Autobot squad that included [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]], [[Kup (G1)|Kup]] and [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus]], sent to intercept [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]]'s [[Decepticon|Decepticons]] intent on assassinating Zeta Prime. Sadly, Piston was killed in the subsequent battle. {{storylink|Spotlight: Blurr|Spotlight: Blurr}}

==Trivia==
*He has one very unfortunate name. No, really.

*His [[deco]] is probably based off of the checkered racing flags waved at the beginning and end of car races.

{{-}}
[[Category:Autobots]]
[[Category:Comic-only characters]]
[[Category:Generation 1 characters]]

Piston (mechanic)

2009-06-07T03:56:45Z

68.104.167.97: added interesting trivia

{{factions|autobot}}
:''Piston is an [[Autobot]] from the [[IDW]] portion of the [[Generation 1]] [[continuity family]].''

[[Image:Piston spotlight blurr.jpg|right|250px|thumb|If he spent more time socialising, and less playing his Nintendo DS, Blurr might remember his name...]]
'''Piston''' is a member of [[Blurr (G1)|Blurr]]'s pit team, though his hard work is often overlooked by his supercilious boss who prefers to hang out with [[Fasttrack (IDW)|other racers]]. Despite the fact that Blurr can't even remember his name (which might be a good thing, seeing how it's an anatomical euphemism), Piston remains cheerful and upbeat.

{{quote|Friend of yours?|[[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]]}}
{{quote|His name was Piston|[[Blurr (G1)|Blurr]]|''[[Spotlight: Blurr]]''}}

==Fiction==
===IDW comics continuity===
[[Image:Piston dead spotlight blurr.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Piston broke.]]
Piston and his colleagues helped Blurr to the top of every championship of the [[Cybertronian sport|Cybertronian races]], though they received little credit when Blurr celebrated without them at [[The Circle]]. Shortly afterwards, the racetrack was destroyed and [[Zeta Prime]] called an end to the races, so Piston signed up to join the [[Autobot|Autobots]]. He tried to persuade Blurr to come with him, but the racer was more interested in partying.

Piston was part of an Autobot squad that included [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]], [[Kup (G1)|Kup]] and [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus]], sent to intercept [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]]'s [[Decepticon|Decepticons]] intent on assassinating Zeta Prime. Sadly, Piston was killed in the subsequent battle. {{storylink|Spotlight: Blurr|Spotlight: Blurr}}

==Trivia==
*He has one very unfortunate name. No, really.

{{-}}
[[Category:Autobots]]
[[Category:Comic-only characters]]
[[Category:Generation 1 characters]]

Ricochet (SG)

2009-06-06T18:17:16Z

68.104.167.97:

{{factions|sgAutobot}}
{{disambig3|Ricochet}}
:''Ricochet is an evil [[Autobot]] from the "[[Shattered Glass (franchise)|Shattered Glass]]" universe.''

[[Image:SG-Ricochet-bio.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Can you tell that I'm planning prevenge? Read my mind, yes, I'm planning prevenge.]]

'''Ricochet''' and his twin brother [[Jazz (Shattered Glass)|Jazz]] are the elite bodyguards of the evil [[Optimus Prime (Shattered Glass)|Optimus Prime]]. But where Jazz is cool and cruel, Ricochet is manic and malicious. He's famous for brutal battlefield slaughters that have left few Decepticons alive to take prisoner. His wild shooting sprees are the mark of a dangerously unhinged being, the exact image Ricochet ''wants'' to project.

Though he puts on such displays primarily as an act, the "crazy" thing isn't actually all ''that'' far from the truth. Ricochet is both afraid of betrayal within his own ranks by those who covet his high position to the point of paranoia, and is also haunted by the knowledge that his brother is Prime's favorite of the two. His rampages serve to both increase his kill-count to look good in Prime's eyes, as well as "accidentally" take care of any would-be usurpers... and who knows, maybe one day Jazz might "accidentally" end up a casualty... that ''would'' be such a pity.

==Fiction==
===Shattered Glass===
Ricochet and Jazz were overseeing the [[smelting pool]] when Optimus Prime and [[Rodimus (Shattered Glass)|Rodimus]] brought [[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] to [[Iacon]]. He laughed with the other Autobots when the strangely-behaving Cliffjumper was blasted by Prime for objecting to the execution of [[Rumble (Shattered Glass)|Rumble]] like a weak [[Decepticon]]. Later, during the Decepticon attack on the [[Ark (Shattered Glass)|Ark]], he was felled by an unknown assailant. {{storylink|Shattered Glass (comic)|Shattered Glass}}
{{charstubfiction}}
{{storylink|Do Over}}

==Toys==
===Timelines===
[[Image:Ricochetshatteredglasstoy.jpg|right|180px|thumb|Actually, I'm the evil version of [[Zoom-Zoom]].]]
*'''Shattered Glass''' (BotCon attendee figure, 2008)
**''Accessories'': Spoiler/projectile launcher, flame-shaped projectile, key

: The free attendee figure addition to [[BotCon 2008]]'s [[exclusive]] box set, Ricochet is a [[redeco]] of the set's [[Jazz (Shattered Glass)|Autobot Jazz]], who himself was a [[retool]] of ''[[Cybertron (toyline)|Cybertron]]'' [[Crosswise (Cybertron)|Crosswise]] with a new head sculpt based on [[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]] [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]]. Ricochet transforms into a [[wikipedia:Bugatti_Veyron|Bugatti Veyron]] mid-engine sports car. His spoiler/rear thruster is a spring-loaded missile launcher that fires a flame-shaped projectile; this becomes his hand-held rifle in robot mode. Plugging a [[Cyber Key]] (his is a black-bordered [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]-Autobot-style key) into his tailgate makes a pair of non-firing missile racks pop up from the engine bay and flip over onto his roof, or over his shoulders in robot mode. His car mode's rear panels and running boards can swing forward to become hip-mounted non-firing blasters.

: Ricochet was initially only available to [[BotCon 2008]] attendees who purchased the full "Primus Package" set of six toys, along with [[Optimus Prime (Shattered Glass)|Optimus Prime]], [[Grimlock (Shattered Glass)|Grimlock]], Autobot Jazz, [[Goldbug (Shattered Glass)|Goldbug]], [[Razorclaw (Shattered Glass)|Razorclaw]] and [[Starscream (Shattered Glass)|Starscream]]. Since the boxed sets sold out in record time, they immediately decided to come up with an alternative package: re-releasing the [[BotCon 2005]] boxed set, at a lower cost no less, and announcing that Ricochet would still be available for those who purchase it.

: The original version of this mold was also used to make ''Cybertron'' [[Smokescreen (Cybertron)|Smokescreen]] and the [[Movie (franchise)|live-action movie-continuity]] [[Dead End (Movie)|Jolt]].

::*''[http://www.tfu.info/2008/Autobot/BCRicochet/ricochet.htm More information on Ricochet at TFU.info]''

{{-}}
==Trivia==
* Ever notice how every year's [[Flamewar|free]] [[Tigatron#Timelines|convention exclusive]] [[Mirage (G1)|thus far]] gets slagged by the end of the story?

* Shattered Glass Ricochet's color scheme may be based on [[Artfire]], a teammate of this Ricochet's [[Ricochet (G1 Autobot)|alternate-universe doppelganger]].
**Or possibly [[Zoom-Zoom]], given his status as Jazz's "brother" and all.

[[Category:Autobots]]
[[Category:Convention exclusives]]
[[Category:Shattered Glass characters]]
[[category: Targetmasters]]

Ricochet (SG)

2009-06-06T18:10:56Z

68.104.167.97: edited trivia

{{factions|sgAutobot}}
{{disambig3|Ricochet}}
:''Ricochet is an evil [[Autobot]] from the "[[Shattered Glass (franchise)|Shattered Glass]]" universe.''

[[Image:SG-Ricochet-bio.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Can you tell that I'm planning prevenge? Read my mind, yes, I'm planning prevenge.]]

'''Ricochet''' and his twin brother [[Jazz (Shattered Glass)|Jazz]] are the elite bodyguards of the evil [[Optimus Prime (Shattered Glass)|Optimus Prime]]. But where Jazz is cool and cruel, Ricochet is manic and malicious. He's famous for brutal battlefield slaughters that have left few Decepticons alive to take prisoner. His wild shooting sprees are the mark of a dangerously unhinged being, the exact image Ricochet ''wants'' to project.

Though he puts on such displays primarily as an act, the "crazy" thing isn't actually all ''that'' far from the truth. Ricochet is both afraid of betrayal within his own ranks by those who covet his high position to the point of paranoia, and is also haunted by the knowledge that his brother is Prime's favorite of the two. His rampages serve to both increase his kill-count to look good in Prime's eyes, as well as "accidentally" take care of any would-be usurpers... and who knows, maybe one day Jazz might "accidentally" end up a casualty... that ''would'' be such a pity.

==Fiction==
===Shattered Glass===
Ricochet and Jazz were overseeing the [[smelting pool]] when Optimus Prime and [[Rodimus (Shattered Glass)|Rodimus]] brought [[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] to [[Iacon]]. He laughed with the other Autobots when the strangely-behaving Cliffjumper was blasted by Prime for objecting to the execution of [[Rumble (Shattered Glass)|Rumble]] like a weak [[Decepticon]]. Later, during the Decepticon attack on the [[Ark (Shattered Glass)|Ark]], he was felled by an unknown assailant. {{storylink|Shattered Glass (comic)|Shattered Glass}}
{{charstubfiction}}
{{storylink|Do Over}}

==Toys==
===Timelines===
[[Image:Ricochetshatteredglasstoy.jpg|right|180px|thumb|Actually, I'm the evil version of [[Zoom-Zoom]].]]
*'''Shattered Glass''' (BotCon attendee figure, 2008)
**''Accessories'': Spoiler/projectile launcher, flame-shaped projectile, key

: The free attendee figure addition to [[BotCon 2008]]'s [[exclusive]] box set, Ricochet is a [[redeco]] of the set's [[Jazz (Shattered Glass)|Autobot Jazz]], who himself was a [[retool]] of ''[[Cybertron (toyline)|Cybertron]]'' [[Crosswise (Cybertron)|Crosswise]] with a new head sculpt based on [[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]] [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]]. Ricochet transforms into a [[wikipedia:Bugatti_Veyron|Bugatti Veyron]] mid-engine sports car. His spoiler/rear thruster is a spring-loaded missile launcher that fires a flame-shaped projectile; this becomes his hand-held rifle in robot mode. Plugging a [[Cyber Key]] (his is a black-bordered [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]-Autobot-style key) into his tailgate makes a pair of non-firing missile racks pop up from the engine bay and flip over onto his roof, or over his shoulders in robot mode. His car mode's rear panels and running boards can swing forward to become hip-mounted non-firing blasters.

: Ricochet was initially only available to [[BotCon 2008]] attendees who purchased the full "Primus Package" set of six toys, along with [[Optimus Prime (Shattered Glass)|Optimus Prime]], [[Grimlock (Shattered Glass)|Grimlock]], Autobot Jazz, [[Goldbug (Shattered Glass)|Goldbug]], [[Razorclaw (Shattered Glass)|Razorclaw]] and [[Starscream (Shattered Glass)|Starscream]]. Since the boxed sets sold out in record time, they immediately decided to come up with an alternative package: re-releasing the [[BotCon 2005]] boxed set, at a lower cost no less, and announcing that Ricochet would still be available for those who purchase it.

: The original version of this mold was also used to make ''Cybertron'' [[Smokescreen (Cybertron)|Smokescreen]] and the [[Movie (franchise)|live-action movie-continuity]] [[Dead End (Movie)|Jolt]].

::*''[http://www.tfu.info/2008/Autobot/BCRicochet/ricochet.htm More information on Ricochet at TFU.info]''

{{-}}
==Trivia==
* Ever notice how every year's [[Flamewar|free]] [[Tigatron#Timelines|convention exclusive]] [[Mirage (G1)|thus far]] gets slagged by the end of the story?

* Shattered Glass Ricochet's color scheme may be based on [[Artfire]], a teammate of this Ricochet's [[Ricochet (G1 Autobot)|alternate-universe doppelganger]].
**Or possibly [Zoom-Zoom], given his status as Jazz's "brother" and all.

[[Category:Autobots]]
[[Category:Convention exclusives]]
[[Category:Shattered Glass characters]]
[[category: Targetmasters]]