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Grimlock (G1)

2006-05-21T16:27:43Z

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'''Grimlock''' ('''La Menace''' in [[France]], '''Tiran''' in [[Italy]]) is the name of various fictional characters in the [[Transformers Universes]].

{| class="toccolours" style="float:right; margin:0 0 0.5em 1em; width:20em;"
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|colspan=2 style="text-align:center;" | '''Transformers character'''
|-
|colspan=2 style="text-align:center;" | [[Image:Grimlock_toy.jpg|center|240px|G1 Grimlock toy boxart]]
|-
!colspan=2 style="font-size: larger; background-color:red; color:white;" | '''Grimlock'''
|-
|'''Allegiance''' || [[Autobot]] (Cybertron)
|-
|'''Sub-Group''' || Dinobots/Pretenders/Action Masters
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|'''Function''' || Dinobot Commander
|-
|'''Motto''' || "''Among the winners, there is no room for the weak.''"
|-
|'''Alternate mode(s)''' || Mechanical T-Rex (Cybertronian Tank in War Within)
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|'''Series''' || [[The Transformers (animated series)|G1 cartoon]], [[Marvel Comics]], [[Dreamwave|Dreamwave Comics]], Devil's Due Comics''
|-
|'''Voiced by''' || [[Gregg Berger]] (English)<BR> [[Takuro Kitagawa]] (Japanese)
|}

==Generation 1==
The most fearsome and powerful of the [[Dinobots]], Grimlock is never happier than in battle. Grimlock can be cold, merciless and contemptuous of those he considers beneath him, such as human beings, and at times, even Autobot leader [[Optimus Prime]] himself, who Grimlock would gladly supplant as Autobot leader if he were able. Nevertheless, he is a valiant warrior whose actions command respect from all who are witness to them, both friend and foe. One of his most distinguishing features is his famous speech impediment, which leads him to shorten sentences and refer to himself constantly as "Me," never "I" - the reason for this varies from depiction to depiction, with some making it the result of true mental limitations, and others a ruse Grimlock perpetrates to allow others to think of him as less intelligent than he actually is.

Grimlock is among the strongest of the Transformers, possibly an equal to [[Optimus Prime]] and [[Megatron]]. In [[Tyrannosaurus Rex]] mode, his powerful jaws can snap virtually anything that comes between them - from steel cables to a Decepticon limb. In robot mode, Grimlock wields an energo-sword, whose blade is sheathed in crackling [[Energon (power source)|Energon]] and can slice a two-foot thick concrete wall in one slash. He also uses a double-barrelled, self-propelled rocket launcher.

===Animated Series===
[[Image:Grimlock.jpg|thumb|left|Animated series Grimlock in robot mode.]]
The original character profiles (and the tech specs derived from them) written by [[Bob Budiansky]] indicate that Grimlock and the Dinobots were intended to come from Cybertron to Earth like the vast majority of other Transformers. However, the cartoon would diverge wildly from this when it introduced the reptillian robots.

The discovery of fossilised dinosaur bones in a cavern in their volcano base set the Earthbound Autobots on the track to creating the Dinobots. Intrigued by the creatures, and with additional knowledge supplied by Spike, [[Wheeljack]] and [[Ratchet (Transformers)|Ratchet]] created three "Dinobots" - Grimlock, [[Slag (Transformer)|Slag]] and [[Sludge (Transformer)|Sludge]]. Unfortunately, their design specs proved to be a little ''too'' accurate to the creatures they were modelled on, as their primitive brains went out of control, and Grimlock almost destroyed [[Teletraan I]], before the trio was stopped. [[Optimus Prime]] deemed them too dangerous to use again, and had them sealed back up in the cavern, but when the majority of the Autobot force was captured by the Decepticons, Wheeljack freed them to go to their rescue. Equipped with new devices that enhanced their brainpower to functional, yet still impaired, levels (resulting in slow thought processes and simple, clipped speech), the three Dinobots successfully rescued their Autobot comrades, and Optimus Prime admitted his error.
[[Image:Grimlock2.jpg|thumb|right|Animated series Grimlock in Tyrannosaurus mode.]]

In his private thoughts, however, Grimlock considered Optimus Prime too weak to lead, seeking the position for himself. When [[Soundwave (Transformers)|Soundwave]] read his mind and learned of this animosity, [[Megatron]] was able to trick Grimlock and the Dinobots into switching sides, attacking and capturing Optimus Prime. To stop the turncoat Dinobots, two new ones were created: [[Snarl (Transformer)|Snarl]] and [[Swoop (Transformer)|Swoop]]. Ultimately, it was when Optimus Prime threw himself into harm's way to save Grimlock from an explosion that he accepted his mistake and rejoined the Autobots.

Although content for the moment to remain a soldier, rather than a leader, Grimlock still had trouble accepting orders, only agreeing to help stem the tide of natural disasters ravaging Earth due to [[Cybertron]] being pulled into it's orbit when he realised he'd die if he didn't. Grimlock and the Dinobots were semi-regularly called into action when the Autobots were faced with challenges that required extra strength, such as the Sub-Atlantican invasion of [[Washington]], or the Decepticons' control of the TORQ III supercomputer; with every piece of help he and his troops gave, Grimlock was never slow to add a scathing remark about the inabilities of the Autobots. That said, he was not unwilling to admit the failings of his own troops, either, and willingly took them to the time-displaced "Dinobot Island," where they trained in the wilderness and helped stop a Decepticon raid on the prehistoric paradise.

The final straw for Grimlock came when he and the Dinobots were injured in a Decepticon trap at an airfield. Enraged, Grimlock refused to take orders from Optimus Prime any more, and led the Dinobots away from the Ark. When the Autobots began to suffer from Cybertonium deficiency, Spike Witwicky and his girlfriend Carly attempted to persuade the Dinobots - who continued to function perfectly, as they had been built on Earth without Cybertonium - to steal some of the mineral from a Decepticon shipment coming in from Cybertron. Grimlock instead opted to lead the Dinobots to Cybertron itself, where they were captured by [[Shockwave (Transformers)|Shockwave]] and put to work in the Cybertonium mines, until Spike and Carly rescued them. Brought back to Earth, the Dinobots agreed to follow Prime's order again - until such time as Grimlock didn't feel like it.

By the Earth year [[2005]], it seemed apparent that Grimlock had undergone some degree of a personality change, becoming more childish and petulant, rather than brutish and stubborn. Throughtout [[2006]], he regularly participated in missions with his fellow Autobots rather than the other Dinobots, battling on the planets of [[Chaar]], Goo, Dredd and Eurythma. He and [[Daniel Witwicky]] were transported to the sorcerous other-dimensional realm of Menonia, where Grimlock was duped into fighting on the side of the tyrannical [[Quintesson]], the Red Wizard, and later, he helped to sniff out the "dinosaur transform static" that implicated [[Trypticon]] in the theft of world monuments. Later in the year, when Decepticon leader [[Galvatron]] had Cybertron infused with function-inverting anti-electrons, a dose of the particles gave Grimlock super-intelligence. During a mission to [[Unicron]]'s disembodied head, where the Autobots were outmatched by the new Decepticon [[Terrorcons]], Grimlock used components of Unicron's head to construct the [[Technobots]] to battle them. Combined as Computron, the Technobots felt they could not match the Terrorcons, until Grimlock transferred his super-intelligence into Computron, reverting to his old self and allowing the Technobots to claim victory.

Grimlock's greatest victory came when he and a large number of other Transformers with animal transformations were summoned to a world at the centre of the galaxy by the ex-assistant of the ancient genius, [[Primacron]], creator of Unicron. The assistant had assembled these "Primitive" Transformers in the hope that their simple instincts could defeat Primacron's newest creation, [[Tornedron]], but one by one they fell to him, with Grimlock apparently crushed under [[Trypticon]]. Grimlock survived, however, and followed Tornedron back to Primacron's lab. When Tornedron turned on his master, like his predecessor, Primacron's complicated plans and equations could not find a way to stop him; Grimlock, on the other hand, randomly flicked a switch which reversed Tornedron's energy polarity, undoing the damage he and done and dissipating. Dancing around over his successful saving of the universe, Grimlock decimated Primacron's lab, dubbing it the smartest thing he'd ever done.

Grimlock was voiced by [[Gregg Berger]] in the [[United States|US]] and by [[Takurō Kitagawa]] in Japan.

===Marvel Comics===
[[Image:Grimlock_comic.jpg|left|thumb|Grimlock's Marvel Comics appearance]]Since [[Marvel Comics]]' ''Transformers'' series were primarily written by Bob Budiansky in its early years, the writer was able to present his origin for the Dinobots as he had originally conceived it. Hence, when [[The Ark (Transformers)|the Ark]] crashed on Earth four million years ago, it was followed down to the planet by the Decepticon [[Shockwave (Transformers)|Shockwave]], who touched down in the prehistoric region of [[Antarctica]] known as the [[Savage Land]]. The Ark's computer detected his presence on the planet, and its scans of the Savage Land led it to believe that dinosaurs were the dominant life form. Thus, it reconstructed Grimlock and his troops into dinosaur forms, in order to battle Shockwave. Unfortunately, they were no match for him, and were trapped in a tar pit. With their final strike, they made him fall in the pit along with them, buried under a rockslide.

In [[1984]], when Shockwave was accidentally reactivated by an Autobot probe and took command of the Decepticons from Megatron, Autobot medic Ratchet entered into an uneasy alliance with the deposed Decepticon leader, agreeing to recover the Dinobots so that they might defeat Shockwave again. Ratchet pulled a double-cross, however, and had the Dinobots attack Megatron instead, resulting in a battle that ended with Megatron's disappearance.

Grimlock steadily grew more and more displeased with Optimus Prime's leadership, and eventually broke his Dinobots away from the main Autobot faction. After a prolonged period living in self-imposed exile, the news of Optimus Prime's death brought Grimlock back to the Autobots. After proving his worth by defeating the Decepticon [[Trypticon]], Grimlock was elected leader of the Autobots.

It soon proved that absolute power corrupts absolutely. Grimlock transformed into a tyrannical ruler who led the Autobots with an iron fist. His policy towards Earth and its inhabitants were vastly different from Optimus Prime's – instead of viewing them as objects of protection, Grimlock expressed a disdain for humanity, viewing them as an inferior species unworthy of their protection. Under Grimlock’s leadership, the Ark, was repaired and made spaceworthy again, but [[Blaster (Transformers)|Blaster]] and [[Bumblebee (Transformers)|Goldbug]] could not endure Grimlock's leadership any more, and set out on their own, only to have Grimlock mark them as traitors. Blaster was hunted down by the Protectobots and later the Dinobots themselves, and placed under imprisonment and torture.

When the Autobot [[Headmasters]] and [[Targetmasters]] arrived from [[Nebulos]], Grimlock refused to recognize the authority of Fortress Maximus and failed to establish an allegiance with his group. This proved to be the last straw for the Autobots under Grimlock's command, who collectively conspired to overthrow him, arranging for Blaster to challenge Grimlock for leadership. During their battle on the moon, the Decepticons took advantage of this weakness in the Autobot ranks and interrupted the duel with an all-out assault. With all Autobots now under attack from their mortal enemies, Grimlock and Blaster put their differences aside and fought alongside each other against the Decepticon horde. Subsequently, Fortress Maximus orchestrated the recreation of Optimus Prime as a [[Powermaster]], and Grimlock stepped down as leader.

[[image:248pretenderclassics.jpg|right|thumb|Autobot Pretenders Jazz, Bumblebee and Grimlock attack Megatron.]]
Grimlock and the Dinobots were destroyed during the battle against [[Starscream]] while the villain was super-powered by the Underbase. After a short time, Grimlock (along with [[Jazz (Transformer)|Jazz]] and Bumblebee) was rebuilt by Ratchet as a [[Pretenders (Transformers)|Pretender]]. [[Ratchet (Transformers)|Ratchet]] shortly after was lost in a transport incident while taking out [[Megatron]], and was thus unable to continue his work restoring other Autobots in stasis lock (Ratchet later returned, physically merged with Megatron). Grimlock swore to one day find a way to revive his Dinobots.

Under the leadership of Powermaster Optimus Prime, Grimlock proved to be a loyal and powerful Autobot, daring even to battle the Matrix-powered Decepticon Thunderwing during the Matrix Quest. However, he was still obsessed with quickly reviving the Dinobots, a goal which put him at odds with Optimus Prime, who advocated patience in the search for a way to rebuild the fallen Autobots. Grimlock finally lost patience, stole the bodies of the Dinobots and a shuttle from the Ark, and piloted it to the planet Hydrus Four, where scientists had developed a new fuel called [[Nucleon (Transformers)|Nucleon]]. It was more powerful than Energon and capable of bringing dead Transformers back to life, but it was unstable and could have unforeseen consequences. Grimlock was unwilling to subject his Dinobots to anything he would not go through himself, and thus decided to test the fuel on himself first. When no ill effects were apparent, he used it to revive the Dinobots, and brought enough back to revive the remaining fallen Autobots.

[[Image:GrimlockGeneration12.jpg|thumb|left|Grimlock on Hydrus Four]]The Dinobots returned to Cybertron with the Nucleon, and arrived in time for the battle with [[Unicron]]. Their arrival, and their reviving the fallen Autobots with Nucleon, was an important part of Transformer victory that day, but Optimus Prime once again lost his life, sacrificing himself to destroy Unicron, and once again naming Grimlock as his successor with his dying breath.

Before Grimlock could celebrate his new position, however, the Nucleon's effect on Transformers became apparent. Grimlock began to experience brief bursts of immobility, his joints locking, which reached a peak when he became completely paralysed in Cybertron's wastelands while he and the Dinobots were under attack by monstrous creatures from beneath Cybertron's surface. Realizing that Grimlock had become trapped in a "chrysalis" stage, Prime's Powermaster partner, Hi-Q, tapped into and accelerated the process, completing Grimlock's evolution into a more powerful "Actionmaster" – but the enhanced power came with a price: Grimlock was now no longer able to transform into dinosaur mode.

At that point, Cybertron was believed to be dying as a result of the battle with Unicron, and the Autobots and Decepticons were co-operating to evacuate. However, the Decepticons had a hidden motive: to escape, and leave the Autobots marooned on the dying planet. Grimlock and the Dinobots were the only ones among the Autobots who saw through the Decepticons’ false pretense of peaceful co-existence and suspected the plan of mass betrayal. When the Decepticons sabotaged the Autobots' ships and fled the planet, Grimlock saved the Autobots. He revealed that he had captured Decepticon ships after a strike against them before the voyage to Earth, and had hidden them away. Thanks to those ships, the Autobots were able to flee Cybertron and follow the Decepticons to the planet Klo for a final showdown.

====Earthforce====
While the monthly ''Transformers'' comic was published in the [[United States]], its sister title in the [[United Kingdom]] reprinted its stories, and included many of its own original tales, interspliced with the running American narrative. The author of these stories, [[Simon Furman]], was particularly fond of Grimlock, often using him for his original stories, and even using the character for responses on the readers' letters page. Furman truly transformed Grimlock, from the brutish tyrant of the early American comics into a noble anti-hero.

Towards the end of the series, however, the UK comics began a break-away storyline that branched off from the continuity of the American stories and began telling its own tales, beginning with Grimlock's decision to once again break his Dinobots away from the main Autobot force. Tired of Prime's pacifistic approach to protecting Earth, Grimlock was joined by several older Autobots like Prowl and Wheeljack, who had just recently been reactivated, and longed for the older, simpler days. Under Grimlock's command, they formed the Earthforce, a pro-active Autobot group based in [[Canada]] who regularly battled the two Decepticon forces under the commands of Megatron and Shockwave.

There was no specific ending for the Earthforce crew, but the issue of Nucleon was resolved in a one-shot text story contained in the final ''Transformers'' annual (a hardback book containing new material released each year). Of the Dinobots, only Slag retained the ability to transform, until the discovery of new Nucleon allowed all the Transformers previously empowered by it to regain their transforming abilities. The place in continuity of this tale is hard to determine. It followed on from the events at the conclusion of the American series, yet cannot fit in with American continuity as it puts Megatron in a situation he cannot possibly be in.

====Generation 2====
[[Image:GrimlockGeneration22.jpg|thumb|150px|right|Robot mode Grimlock from the ''G2'' comic]] A few years after the conclusion of the original ''Transformers'' comic, the line was given a shot in the arm with the release of the new ''[[Transformers: Generation 2]]'' toyline and an accompanying comic. Grimlock's toy was re-released for the ''G2'' toyline in several colors including blue, but he continued to appear in his original grey color scheme for his appearances in the ''G2'' comic.

[[Image:GrimlockGeneration21.jpg|thumb|left|120px|Tyrannosaurus mode ''G2'' Grimlock.]]With his transformation capabilities restored (the explanation for which was not offered in the American series), Grimlock was Optimus Prime's second in command in the ''Generation 2'' series, aiding in the Autobots' war against the "second generation" of Cybertronians led by [[Jhiaxus]]. However, he remained as rebellious and aggressive as ever, though it proved to be a mixed blessing - at one point his urge to combat Jhiaxus's forces led him and his troops right into a trap, while at another time, his willingless to defy Optimus Prime's orders and launch an all-out attack saved Prime from certain death at the hands of Megatron. When the Autobots and Decepticons united against Jhiaxus and the threat of the Swarm - a destructive by-product of Transformer reproduction - Grimlock was the joint leader of the ground troops as Prime and Megatron fought on other fronts, and survived the brutal conflict.

Years later, writer Simon Furman offered an "unofficial" conclusion to the ''Generation 2'' storyline with "Alignment," a text story available exclusively through the British Transformers convention, Transforce, in 2001 and 2002. In the story, Grimlock is killed while trying to distract the Leige Maximo.

===Dreamwave Comics===
[[Image:Grimlock_dw.jpg|left|thumb|Grimlock by Dreamwave]]The 21st century re-imagining of the Generation One universe by [[Dreamwave Productions]] chose to depict Grimlock in a manner similar to Marvel Comics - a powerful, cunning warrior who values strength of body and character. Through ''The War Within'', the company shaped a background on Cybertron for Grimlock which showed that he had participated in the planet's underground gladiatorial game in order to unleash the rage and anger he had always overflowed with. When Megatron began using the games to identify suitable soldiers for his burgeoning Decepticon army, Grimlock was recruited by him and initially fought on his side, befriending Starscream and perhaps the scientist, [[Jetfire]], before defecting to the Autobots - not out of any particular fondness for them and their ideals, but rather out of sheer hatred of Megatron and his. He still bears a particularly fierce grudge against Jetfire over an unspecified incident with a cerebro-shell.

[[Image:GrimlockWarWithin2.jpg|thumb|right|''War Within'' Grimlock in robot mode.]][[Image:GrimlockWarWithin1.jpg|thumb|right|''War Within'' Grimlock in tank mode.]]
Grimlock was an established, respected member of the Autobots at the time Autobot leader [[Sentinel Prime]] was killed, but was suitably unimpressed by the new leader, Optimus Prime, questioning his strength and resenting his opening decision to depart Cybertron and leave it for the Decepticons. Witnessing and aiding him in battle with Megatron deep beneath Cybertron, however, Grimlock came to respect Prime as time passed. When Prime and Megatron disappeared in an early test of the experimental spacebridge transport system, disarray struck the Autobot and Decepticon ranks and they splintered off into numerous smaller factions - Grimlock founded the Lightning Strike Coalition to fight the battles he considered the most important.

As the "Dark Ages" came to an end, Starscream's Preadcon faction attacked an attempted peace treaty between the Autobots, the Decepticons and [[Ratbat]]'s Ultracons. As Grimlock leapt to [[Ultra Magnus]]'s defence, he apparently perished - naturally, we know he later returned to life, but unfortunately, due to Dreamwave's closure, this story was never resolved, and Grimlock's restoration to life was not explained.

What is known of the remainder of his time on Cybertron, however, is that he, Slag, Sludge, Snarl and Swoop formed a team known as the "Dynobots." The [[Dynobots]] remained on Cybertron when [[Optimus Prime]] left on the [[Ark]], pursued by Megatron. When Optimus Prime and [[Megatron]]'s troops vanished four million years ago, they pursued the Decepticons known as the [[Insecticons]], who had set off in search of the missing leaders. The two teams battled on prehistoric Earth, and the battle ended with both sides trapped in stasis. The eventual awakening of Prime and Megatron's forces in 1984 was followed by the Autobots' discovery and reactivation of the Dynobots, now rechristened the "Dinobots" for their new dinosaur alternate modes.

[[image:Csbumblebee3.jpg|right|thumb|Grimlock, Bumblebee and Soundwave attack the Smitco oil refinery in Dreamwave comics.]]
When the Transformers were all believed destroyed in the explosion of the ship that was taking them back to [[Cybertron]], several of them, including Grimlock, were recovered by a rogue military faction and reprogrammed so that they could be operating as killing machines. [[Bumblebee (Transformers)|Bumblebee]], [[Frenzy (Transformers)|Frenzy]], [[Grimlock]], [[Laserbeak]], [[Prowl]], [[Ravage]], [[Soundwave (Transformers)|Soundwave]] and [[Starscream]] were forced at attack the Smitco oil refinery in the Arctic to display their power for sale to the highest bidder (Transformer: Generation One #2).

[[image:Csgrimlockpretendershell.jpg|left|thumb|Although Grimlock's Pretender form made it into the Dreamwave Comics More Than Meets The Eye series, the company closed before he could become a Pretender.]]
When Megatron liberated himself and several others from this control, he forced Grimlock to serve him by holding the Dinobots hostage. As part of the charade, Grimlock made it appear to the Autobots that he had become disenfranchised with their cause, ripping off his insignia and joining in the Decepticon attack on [[San Francisco]], during which he was dispatched from behind by [[Trailbreaker]]. Left behind by the fleeing Decepticons, he subsequently located and liberated the other Dinobots, and headed for Cybertron. In the four-million-year interim, the planet had been unified by [[Shockwave]] for his own sinister ends, but once there, Grimlock lead an assault on Iacon, providing enough chaos and unrest for Optimus Prime's Autobot underground to overthrow Shockwave's rule of Cybertron. Grimlock successfully hauled Optimus Prime and [[Ultra Magnus]] to safety when Shockwave's citadel exploded.

Dreamwave's closure meant that they would tell no further stories of their Grimlock, although his "War Within"-era design did appear in the ''[[Transformers: Universe]]'' comic book exclusive to [[BotCon]].

===Devil's Due Comics===
[[image:Gijoe-transformers.jpg|right|thumb|Transformers [[Perceptor]], [[Bumblebee (Transformers)|Bumblebee]], Grimlock and [[Arcee]] meet [[G.I. Joe]] in the pages of Devil's Due comics crossover between the two popular series.]]
In 2004 Grimlock was among the Autobots under the leadership Optimus Prime who attempted to take back the planet Cybertron from the Decepticon tyrant [[Shockwave (Transformers)|Shockwave]]. After an accident with the teleportational systems of the supercomputer [[Teletran-3]], Grimlock found himself sent back in time and on the planet Earth. He was reformatted in the form of an Earth [[dinosaur]] with several other Autobots. A group of humans were able to bring the new Dinobots back to Cybertron and they helped overcome Shockwave (G.I. Joe vs. The Transformers II #4).

Grimlock returned in the Devil's Due third series of G.I. Joe vs. The Transformers. Grimlock, Arcee, Bumblebee and Perceptor were sent to Earth to aid G.I. Joe in removing the influence of Cybertronian technology on the planet. When Cobra attached the base, the Autobots helped repel the Cobra Battle Android Trooper armies.
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===Transformers: Alternators===
[[Image:Alt_grimlock.jpg|right|thumb|''Binaltech/Alternators'' Grimlock]] Grimlock staged a comeback in 2005 as part of the ''[[Alternators|Transformers: Alternators]]'' toyline, known in Japan as "Binaltech." Although the American toys offer no supporting fiction, the ''Binaltech'' series tells the story of how Grimlock was reborn in his new form.

While the Autobots on Earth were decimated by Cosmic Rust and restored in new "Binaltech" bodies through a joint partnership with human automotive corporations, Grimlock and the Dinobots were a part of the larger war raging in space. Unfortunately, Megatron struck at their primitive minds with telepathic alien lifeforms known as "Unleashers," which drove them to attack their fellow Autobots; with no other options, the Autobots were forced to counterattack, taking the Dinobots out of commission. Grimlock regained consciousness and vowed to do anything to return to the battle, and was consequently transported to Earth and had his spark was implanted into the Autobots' newest Binaltech bodies, which combined all the aspects of the previous bodies. Now able to transform into a [[Ford Mustang GT]], Grimlock immediately resented his new, non-traditional body, but came to make the best of it. He remains armed with his energo-sword, and also wields a stun laser.

==[[Beast Wars]]==
[[image:Magmatron-grimlock.jpg|right|130px|thumb|Grimlock vs. [[Magmatron]] from IDW]]
In 1997, the second year of the ''Beast Wars'' toyline, a black and white redeco of the [[Dinobot (Beast Wars)|Dinobot]] figure named Grimlock was released. While it was perfectly common for ''Beast Wars'' toys to share names with Generation One characters, but bear no other relation to them, Grimlock was one of the exceptions, as his toy's bio card presented him to be the original Grimlock in a new form. Now able to transform into a [[velociraptor]] (although in truth, the toy is much more reminiscent of a [[deinonychus]] or [[utahraptor]]), Grimlock still enters battle with a blade in his hand, except now he wields a spinning "slasher sword," concealed within his tail in beast mode.

A second, grey-and-red version of the Grimlock figure was also released for the "Dinobots" sub-line in [[2003]], packaged with a [[Terrorsaur]] redeco named both Swoop and "Terranotron."

Currently, [[IDW Publishing]] is releasing a comic book series which takes place during the ''Beast Wars'' animated series, but features the toys and characters who did not appear in the show itself. The ''Beast Wars'' incarnation of Grimlock will be appearing in the pages of the comic - no surprise, given that the writer is Simon Furman. Grimlock appeared as a gigantic raptor-type dinosaur. He fought valiantly against the evil [[Magmatron]], but was no match for the Predacon's triple form.

During the run of the comic series it was revealed that Grimlock was among those in protoform stasis on the Axelon, and like the others was launched into space in the series pilot.

The Predacon [[Magmatron]] and his troops arrived on Earth on a mission following up [[Ravage]]. Magmatron had his own agenda to convert many of the unused [[protoform]]s in stasis pods into Predacon soldiers under his command, but the Maximal under cover agent [[Razorbeast]] sabotaged him, resulting in many of the protoforms emerging as Maximals. Magmatron also recovered the remains of Ravage and used a blank protoform to bring him back as a [[transmetal]] 2. Being displaced slightly chronogically Magmatron and Razorbeast's troops battled without the others noticing. At one point Megatron was captured by Magmatron to be sent back to [[Cybertron]]. Due to the intervention of Razorbeast, [[Optimus Minor]] and [[Grimlock]], Magmatron was sent back to Cybertron instead. Razorbeast left the unconscious Megatron on Earth, fearing altering the time stream if he captured him (Beast Wars: The Gathering #1-4 by IDW comics).
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==Transformers: Robots in Disguise==
[[Image:Rid_grimlock.jpg|right|thumb|''Robots in Disguise'' Grimlock]]The first completely different character to bear the name of Grimlock was one inhabiting the alternate universe of the [[2001]] ''Transformers'' toyline, ''[[Transformers: Robots in Disguise]]'' Grimlock (originally named '''Build Hurricane''' in the original Japanese version of the series, ''Car Robots'') was a co-leader of the Autobot Build Team, able to transform into a steam shovel. Despite his harsh appearance, Grimlock is a seasoned, upbeat warrior. He judges any situation in a composed, calm manner, and dispenses accurate advice based on his many past experiences in battle to others, particularly his leader, Wedge. He can combine with his fellow Build Team members to create Landfill, able to form either a leg or a pair of arms.

Grimlock is voiced by [[Hiroki Takahashi]] (''Car Robots'') and [[Tom Wyner]] (''Robots in Disguise''). A yellow and grey version of the toy was released as part of a set of the four team members exclusive to [[Wal-Mart]] in 2003.

==[[Transformers: Universe]]==
[[image:Tsgrimlockww.jpg|right|thumb|War Within Grimlock appears in Transformers: Universe #2]]
===War Within Grimlock===
Generation One Grimlock (in War Within form) appeared in the 2003 Botcon voice actor play, as well as issues 1 and 2 of the Transformers: Universe comic.

The Autobots returning to Cybertron along with Blackarachnia and Silverbolt were then abducted via teleportation beams and taken to Unicron. Tap-Out, Transformers: Armada Megatron, Brawn, War Within Grimlock and Snarl were also abducted from various timelines (Transformers: Universe #1).

War Within Grimlock, Armada Megatron and Universe Optimus Primal are each transported to the Unicron world, where they eventually team up and fight Striker and Reptilion. Note, there is a small continuity error in that this story ends with Grimlock, Megatron and Primal standing over Reptilion, but issue #2 of the comic starts with them standing over Striker (2003 Botcon Voice Actor Play).

After the events of the Botcon 2003 voice actor play, Optimus Primal is able to use his spark telepathy to free Striker from Unicron's influence. Optimus Primal, Megatron and Grimlock help break free the slaves from various timelines which are held there and gets them to Cybertron (Transformers: Universe #2).

===Robots in Disguise Grimlock===
Robots in Disguise Grimlock (in Warmart yellow repaint colors) appeared in the 2004 Botcon voice actor play.

''Play Synopsis'': [[Rhinox]] has built a device to deflect Unicron's attempts to pull victims from other dimensions with his tractor beam. The Autobots deflect two attempts and the victims end up on a frozen planetoid instead of with Unicron. [[Maximals]] [[Rattrap]] and [[Silverbolt]] and the [[Predacon]] [[Waspinator]] are sent to help the victims, but [[Reptilion]], [[Thrust (Transformers)|Thrust]], [[Ruination]] and [[Perceptor]] are sent to get them for [[Unicron]]. As a side effect of the device Rhinox built, a [[vortex]] opens which sucks in an Autobot shuttle from the past piloted by [[Bumblebee (Transformers)|Bumblebee]], [[Tracks (Transformers)|Tracks]] and [[Cosmos (Transformers)|Cosmos]]. Thrust attacks the Maximal ship, but they are saved by being transported to the Autobot shuttle. The Autobots and Maximals then go to the planet where they save the victims from the Decepticons. On the planet are two groups of Autobots. One is from the ''Robots in Disguise'' story, with Landfill (Walmart recolor), [[Side Burn]] (Universe recolor) and Prowl (Universe recolor). The other is from another parallel world with [[Spychanger]] Optimus Prime, Ultra Magnus, Prowl and Ironhide. They all fight off the Decepticons. The Autobot shuttle is sent back to its own time.

The mold used for RiD Grimlock was repainted purple and released as the Target Exclusive Decepticon Scavenger in 2006, one of the latest (and possibly last) toys in the Transformers: Universe line.

==Transformers: Energon==
[[2005]] saw another alternate-universe incarnation of Grimlock enter the fray. Grimlock's toy – packaged with the similarly-redesigned Swoop – was a modern updating of his original figure. It still transformed into a tyrannosaurus rex, but had one major change: Grimlock and Swoop could now combine to form a larger robot named "Mega-Dinobot". The characters' joint biography clearly draws on the cartoon incarnation of the original characters, presenting them as Autobots who are simple in speech and thought, but who make up for it in raw strength. Decepticons have been known to flee in fear when faced with the two Dinobots, as Swoop uses his aerial abilities to confuse and distract them, while Grimlock attacks from behind and stomps them flat before they know what hit them. Though heavily armed, the duo's preferred weaponry is their teeth and talons.

It comes as no surprise that longtime Grimlock fan Simon Furman intended to feature the characters in Dreamwave's ''Energon'' comic book, but the company's closure prevented this.

==Remolds & Redecos==

At several points in time throughout the numerous ''Transformers'' toylines, various Grimlock toys have been recolored and/or remolded to become new, non-Grimlock characters.

*''Beast Wars'' Grimlock (himself a recolor of ''Beast Wars'' Dinobot) was remolded in silver and orange to appear more cybernetic as '''Thrustor''' for the Japanese-exclusive ''Beast Wars Second'' line. Later, for ''Beast Wars Neo'', the toy was remolded to become a '''Hardhead''', a blue and purple [[pachycephalosaurus]], and this version of the figure was redecoed in yellow, black and green and released in the ''Beast Machines'' Dinobots subline as '''Dinotron'''. After being released under the Grimlock name again in 2003, the original version of the mold returned to its roots when it was redecoed into the 10th Anniversary edition figure of ''Beast Wars'' Dinobot.
*''Robots in Disguise'' Grimlock and the rest of the Build Team were redecoed for ''Transformers: Universe'' as the [[Constructicons]], in the characters' traditional purple and green color scheme. Grimlock became '''[[Scavenger (Transformers)|Scavenger]]''', packaged with '''Hightower'''.
*''Alternators'' Grimlock was redecoed in white and blue as '''[[Wheeljack]]''', complete with a new head designed in the image of the classic character.

==Other usages==
* In the [[role playing game]] [[Dungeons and Dragons]], there are subterranean creatures called [[Grimlocks]] which can serve as an antagonist to the [[player character]]s.
* In the [[Table-top]] [[wargame]] [[Warhammer Fantasy Battle]], the [[Lizardman]] hero Kroq-Gar rides a [[Carnosaur]] named Grymloq (a slightly [[Aztec]]-inspired respelling).
* In the MMORPG World of Warcraft, there is a large Trogg named Grimlok who resides in the Uldaman instance. When engaged, he yells "Me, Grimlok, King!" This is likely a nod to the Transformers movie, which at one point features Grimlock proclaiming "Me, Grimlock, not kisser! Me, Grimlock, king!"

[[Category:Action Masters]]
[[Category:Autobots]]
[[Category:Dinobots]]
[[Category:Maximals]]
[[Category:Transformers Pretenders]]
[[Category:Transformers Primitives]]<div id="wikia-credits"><br /><br /><small>From [http://transformers.wikia.com Teletraan I: The Transformers Wiki], a [http://www.wikia.com Wikia] wiki.</small></div>

Dreamwave Productions

2006-05-21T16:24:56Z

88.107.133.226:

'''Dreamwave Productions''' is a [[Canada|Canadian]] art design studio and [[comic book]] publisher, best known for their multiple ''[[Transformers (toyline)|Transformers]]'' comic book series. After bankruptcy in 2005 it was purchased by Canadian [[entrepreneur]] [[Christian Dery]] with plans to relaunch its core properties (excluding former licenses such as ''Transformers'').

== History ==
In 1996, brothers Pat and [[Roger Lee]] founded Dreamwave Productions in Toronto, Canada, as an imprint under [[Image Comics]] and published their first miniseries, ''[[Darkminds]]''. Pat Lee, a self-trained graphic artist having only a high-school education, maintained artistic control while his older brother managed the business's operations. They quickly made their [[manga]]-influenced style a trademark, merging the look of an [[animated film]] with [[sequential art]].

In 2002, Dreamwave spun off from Image and became an independent publishing company after acquiring the license for the popular [[Hasbro]] toyline ''Transformers''. The first miniseries, based on the classic Transformers "[[Transformers series|G1]]" characters and featuring art by Pat Lee and writing by [[Chris Sarracini]] was the top-selling book on the sales charts for its entire run. More series followed, expanding their G1 stories to shape a brand new universe, covering the current ''[[Transformers: Armada]]'' toyline. Famed Transformers scribe [[Simon Furman]] came on board to produce ''[[Transformers_(comic)#Transformers:_The_War_Within|Transformers: The War Within]]'', a series detailing previously-undocumented aspects of the Transformers' past. Many artistic members of the fan community, such as [[Don Figueroa]] and [[Guido Guidi]], were hired by the company, entering the professional world of comics via their hobby.

Three years later, signs of trouble began to appear when G1 writers [[James McDonough]] and [[Adam Patyk]] left the company over pay disputes. Despite plans for their replacement, it was subsequently announced that Dreamwave had gone out of business. They cited ''"the shrinking comic book market combined with a weak U.S. dollar"'' as the cause of the closure on [[January 4]] [[2005]], although a month of rumours and speculation had all but made this a forgone conclusion amongst readers. The final Dreamwave comic was published in December 2004, leaving incomplete both limited series and multiple ongoing storylines.

As Dreamwave's website was shut down, a new site, [[Dreamengine]], registered by Roger Lee, was launched.

== Controversy ==
One of the most common complaints about ''Dreamwave'' productions had to do with the nature of the series sets of their comics. Most of their series were a single story arc 6-8 issues long. When that story arc was finished, it would start anew, sometimes with the same characters in a different situation in time. Exemplars are [[Warlands: Altregis]] and [[Warlands: Age of Ice]].

Though this might be said to have become a standard practice in the comic book industry, Pat Lee, whose signature art work predominated almost all of Dreamwave's comics, would draw the first several issues of the series generating large amounts of hype by means of the branding slogan 'Pat Lee drawn'. Lee would subsequently abandon the series several issues before its conclusion to begin another project, leaving the series in control of another artist and digital colourist who could not necessarily match the quality of Lee's visuals. The generated hype would eventually collapse and the series would become reduced to mediocrity. This even occurred with his most successful series [[Warlands]]: Age of Ice, and [[Transformers (comics)|Transformers]].

However, most of the controversy surrounding ''Dreamwave'' eventually became public in its closing days, when it became apparent that the company had been neglecting its payroll obligations. When a list of the company's debts surfaced online, it became apparent that ''Dreamwave''s liabilities exceeded CAN$1 M. Most telling was that two of the very few items on the list marked "secured" were Pat and Roger's [[BMW]]s. Several artists, including Figueroa and Guidi, having previously remained genial on the matter, came forward and aired their grievances, which as of April 2005, included having to pay [[FedEx]] for shipping work for which they never received compensation. As the company failed, Pat Lee maintained ownership of his [[Porsche]] sports car and acquired a luxurious apartment in Canada.

== Relaunch ==
On [[August 2]] [[2005]] [[Christian Dery]] purchased all of the companies assets in a bankruptcy auction. Dery stated he had intended to enter into comic book publishing and the opportunity to begin with "a catalogue of such strong existing titles was too good to pass up." The Transformers license and similar third-party properties were not included, but along with all marks and logos the purchase included ''Warlands'', ''Neon Cyber'', ''Shidima'', ''Fate of the Blade'', ''Garden of Blades'', ''Limbo City'', ''[[Brandon M. Easton|Arkanium]]'', ''Necrowar'', ''Dark Minds'', ''Capsoul'', and ''Sandscape'' properties. Now holder of the "Dreamwave" trademark, Dery intends to relaunch the properties under the [[Dreamwave Entertainment]] label in 2006. Several former Dreamwave Productions employees and creators are participating to this new venture.

==List of Dreamwave comics==

===Mini-series===
* ''Fate of the Blade''
* ''Arkanium''
* ''Sandscape''
* ''Shidima''
* ''Banished Knights''
* ''NecroWar''
* ''Neon Cyber''
* ''Echo''
* ''Darkminds Volume 1: Paradox''
* ''Darkminds Volume 2''
* ''Darkminds Volume 3: Macropolis''
* ''Devil May Cry''
* ''Megaman''
* ''Transformers: Generation 1''
* ''Transformers: Generation 1 volume II: War and Peace''
* ''Transformers: The War Within''
* ''Transformers: The War Within volume II: The Dark Ages''
* ''Transformers: The War Within volume III: The Age of Wrath'' (cancelled after issue #3)
* ''Transformers: Micromasters''
* ''Transformers/G.I.Joe''
* ''Transformers/G.I.Joe II: Divided Front'' (cancelled after issue #1)
* ''Transformers: More than meets the eye'' (character profile series)
* ''Transformers: Summer Special'' (was to be an irregular mini-series, only one issue was published)
* ''Warlands Volume 1a: Darklyte''
* ''Warlands Volume 1b: Atrelegis'' (Disputedly, volume 2)
* ''Warlands Volume 2: Age of Ice'' (Disputedly, volume 3)
* ''Warlands Special Three Stories''
* ''Warlands: Warlords Chronicles, Volume 1''
* ''Warlands Volume 3: Dark Tide Rising'' (6 issues)
* ''Xevoz''

===Ongoing series===
* ''Transformers: Generation 1'' (cancelled after issue #10)
* ''Transformers: Armada'', later ''Transformers: Energon'' (cancelled after issue #30)
* ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' (cancelled after issue #7)
* ''Duel Masters'' (cancelled after issue #8)

==External links==
*[http://www.comicbookresources.com/columns/index.cgi?column=litg&article=2102 Dreamwave's financial debts]
*[http://www.newsarama.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=24565 Newsarama -- "Dreamwave closes shop?"]
*[http://www.dreamwave.ca/ Dreamwave Entertainment]
*[http://www.dreamengine.ca/ Dreamengine] (not affiliated with Dreamwave)
*[http://www.patleeart.com/ PatLeeArt.com] (not affiliated with Dreamwave)
*[[http://www.angelfire.com/pa/infrarred/ Pat Lee personal site]

[[Category:Comic book publishing companies]]<div id="wikia-credits"><br /><br /><small>From [http://transformers.wikia.com Teletraan I: The Transformers Wiki], a [http://www.wikia.com Wikia] wiki.</small></div>

Shockwave (G1)

2006-05-21T16:23:14Z

88.107.133.226:

{{disambig3|Shockwave}}
{{disambig2|the Generation 1 Decepticon Shockwave/Shockblast|the Energon Decepticon|Shockblast (UT)}}

''Shockwave is a [[Decepticon]] in the [[Generation One]] universe. He was also briefly known as '''Shockblast'''.''

[[Image:Shockwavearealldead.jpg||thumb|right|Shockwave]]

'''Shockwave''' has been referred to as "a computer on legs." This is not far from the truth. Logic rules Shockwave's thought processes and is the source of his every inspiration. He sees emotions as a weakness and a distraction. His cold and calculating ''modus operandi'' is supported by his frightening and exceptionally powerful form.

Shockwave is possibly even more powerful than [[Megatron_(G1)|Megatron]], who he appears to be loyal to. However, perhaps logic dictates that the time to replace Megatron's flawed, emotion-fueled rule has yet to occur.

''Japanese name: '''Laserwave''' ''<br>
''French-Canadian name: '''Onde de Choc''' ''

==Fiction==
===Generation 1 Cartoon===
'''Voice Actor:''' [[Corey Burton]] (US), (Japan)

Shockwave was a highly ranked Decepticon during the G1 era. His alternate form was a large, ''flying'' laser gun. His alternate form is thought to be even stronger than [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]]'s. Despite what his toy-bio says, he is also fanatically loyal to Megatron.

He typically oversees all the Decepticon activity on Cybertron, rarely leaving the planet. His keen scientific mind resulted in several incredible devices, including the [[Space Bridge]] and a time machine.

In his first apearance Shockwave had 2 hands, although this could be an animation error, some fans speculate that Shockwave lost his hand in a battle.

He may have survived the battle against Unicron but, if so, apparently lost face with Galvatron for losing Cyberton to the Autobots during the battle. He can be spotted in group shots in season three, but these shots are notorious for animation errors such as depicting combiner robots alongside component robots. Shockwave's post-season three status is up for speculation.

===Marvel Comic===
The [[Marvel Comics|Marvel]] comic book series, on the other hand, took Shockwave's original profile and ran with it, making him a force to be reckoned with. Here, Shockwave was part of the Decepticon unit that pursued the Ark, but he held back from actually attacking the craft, remaining on the Decepticons' own space cruiser and following the Ark down to [[prehistoric Earth]] when it crashed. His guidance systems disrupted by his travel through Earth's atmosphere, Shockwave touched down in [[Antarctica]], specifically, in the [[Savage Land]], whose dinosaur inhabitants the Ark used as a basis to reconstruct five Autobots to battle Shockwave. These "[[Dinobots]]" engaged Shockwave, but he overpowered them, trapping them in a [[tarpit]]. A last strike by the Dinobots before sinking into the pit saw them bury Shockwave under a landslide, where he remained for four million years.

In 1984, Shockwave was reawakened by an Autobot probe and quickly struck the weakened Autobots, who had just defeated Megatron's forces. Deactivating them all and stringing them up in the Ark, which he took for his own base, Shockwave brought the Decepticons back online to serve him, and was soon challenged for leadership by a wounded Megatron, who he soundly defeated and brought under his heel. As Decepticon commander, Shockwave commandeered the Blackrock Aerospace Plant, using its resources to construct new Transformers, which he then gave life using the [[Autobot Matrix of Leadership|Creation Matrix]], siphoned from Optimus Prime. However, Prime was able to transfer the Matrix into [[Witwicky Family|Buster Witwicky]]'s mind, preventing Shockwave from giving life to his newest creation, [[Jetfire]]. Shockwave instead programmed Jetfire to acquire Buster, but Buster was able to reprogram and give life to Jetfire and took Shockwave out of the game long enough to recover Optimus Prime's severed head. Prime then battled Shockwave and hurled him into a swamp.

Shockwave was able to extricate himself in short order, and attempted a series of failed plans, such as draining sonic energy from a rock concert and attempting to control Bumblebee. When Megatron resurfaced, he and Shockwave clashed again, but settled into a brief period of shared leadership until Shockwave fell victim to an Autobot trap, and saw the logic in Megatron's accusations of failure, ceding command to him. When Megatron began to descend into paranoid insanity after the death of Optimus Prime, Shockwave attempted to take advantage of the situation by arranging a staged attack by the [[Predacons]]. Megatron defeated them, but when Shockwave revealed that he had duplicated his mind to disc to guide the Predacons during their hunt, Megatron's deranged mind (accurately) began to believe that this was how Optimus Prime had survived. Desperate and insane, Megatron apparently killed himself by blowing up the spacebridge while he was on it, once again allowing Shockwave to take leadership. However, he soon faced various objections courtesy of [[Ratbat]], the local Decepticon commander on Cybertron, who criticised his operations for being too fuel-inefficient. Arriving on Earth to oversee Shockwave's work, Ratbat encountered Buster Witwicky, who he captured and brought to the Decepticons' mobile island base. With the Autobot [[Headmasters]] in pursuit, Shockwave transformed the island into its rocket mode and blasted off, but in a space-bound battle with [[Fortress Maximus]], Shockwave was defeated and sent hurtling into Earth's atmosphere, where he seemingly burned up.

Although this would be all that the US comics would see of Shockwave for some time, this was not the case for its sister title, the UK-based ''Transformers'' comic, which reprinted the American stories with their own original material intertwined. In previous UK stories, Shockwave had run afoul of the future Decepticon leader, [[Galvatron]], who was attempting to disrupt his leadership in the present to ensure the loyalty of his army in the future. After his battle with Fortress Maximus, Shockwave was revealed to have survived his fall back to Earth and returned to the Decepticons' original castle base, where he had the [[Seacons]] acquire the body of what was apparently Megatron (but would, in actuality, be later revealed as a clone), which he brainwashed into doing his bidding in order to pit him against Galvatron. When he was visited by the other future Decepticons, [[Cyclonus]] and [[Scourge (Transformers)|Scourge]] and learned that in their future, they would kill him, he unleashed Megatron upon them, who killed Cyclonus. Shockwave then turned Megatron upon Galvatron, but rather than destroy him, he saw a potential partner in Galvatron, and they teamed up to battle Autobots and Decepticons from both the present and future in the "Time Wars", as a rift in the space-time continuum bore down on them. Shockwave, however, had become a prisoner of his own logic - to seal the rift it was necessary to return Cyclonus's body to it, thereby saving everyone, including himself. A logical action. However, to do so would be to condemn himself to death in the future by Cyclonus and Scourge's hands. Illogical. Unable to cope with the paradox, Shockwave went insane, but was saved by Ravage, who pointed out that, equipped with knowledge of his death, he could prevent it. His mind restored, Shockwave returned Cyclonus's body to the rift, after Galvatron and Scourge were consumed by it, and sealed it shut with an [[X-ray]] blast. The day had been saved, but Optimus Prime promised him that the next time they met, it would be as enemies.

A short time later, Shockwave went on to make his return to the pages of the US comic, as he established a small splinter cell of Decepticons, consisting of himself, Starscream, Mindwipe, Triggerhappy, Ravage and Runamuck. Declaring civil war against the current Decepticon Earth commander, [[Scorponok]], Shockwave battled him in [[New Jersey]], only for the conflict to be interrupted when all the Transformers were transported back to Cybertron by their deity, [[Primus (Transformers)|Primus]] to battle [[Unicron]]. Awestruck by the chaos-bringer, even Shockwave's vast data-grid could not compute a logical course of action, and he and Starscream hijacked the Ark and fled the planet shortly after Unicron's defeat. However, the Dinobots had previously treated the Transformers stored in the Ark's stasis pods with the life-restoring fuel, [[Nucleon (Power Source)|Nucleon]] - and among those Transformers was the true Megatron, who battled with Galvatron, who had also stowed away on board the craft. In an attempt to break the cycle of violence that seemingly bound him and Megatron, Autobot medic Ratchet crashed the Ark into Earth. Shockwave was last seen in pain as Megatron and Galvatron advanced on him just before the ship crashed. His fate remains unknown, but as everyone save for Megatron was deactivated or destroyed in the crash, it is unlikely Shockwave survived.

===Dreamwave Generation 1 Comic===
Shockwave was a major character in the [[Dreamwave]] Productions' [[21st Century]] reimagining of G1. As a major player in the Decepticon army in Cybertron's past, he led the main attack on the Autobots' stronghold shortly after the appointment of Optimus Prime, and personally destroyed two [[guardian robots]] with one blast in spacegun mode. There was also tension between him and [[Starscream]] about who would lead the Decepticons after Megatron's supposed death, which eventually led to the creation of multiple splinter factions within both the Autobots and Decepticons. While Starscream created his own faction, the "Predacons," Shockwave led the Decepticons through the "Dark Ages" of Cybertron, during which his logic allowed him to put aside differences with [[Jetfire]] and the Autobots in order to defeat the greater evil of The Fallen. As the Dark Ages came to an end, Shockwave was ready to sign a peace treaty with Ratbat's Ultracons and the Autobots, but the return of Megatron trampled the plan, though the [[Quintesson]]-created clones he brought back to the planet with him greatly intrigued Shockwave.

Shockwave was left behind on Cybertron while Megatron's forces pursued Optimus Prime and were subsequently lost on Earth for four million years, and became Decepticon leader on the planet. He began experimenting with cloning, and through studies of [[Astrotrain]] and [[Blitzwing]], began to conceive the idea of a Transformer with multiple alternate modes. Eventually, however, Shockwave and all the other Transformers on Cybertron succumbed to stasis as the planet's energy ran out, and it entered a hibernation phase known as the "Great Shutdown." During this period of inactivity, 3000 years ago, Unicron's herald Scourge located the planet, and reactivated Shockwave for study purposes. However, when Shockwave was attacked by a swarm of [[Sharkticons]], Scourge intervened, and after saving him, was shot by Shockwave, who then proceeded to study him, learning much of the function and purpose of Transformers and Cybertron from the secrets within Scourge.

Shockwave steadily worked to restore Cybertron, reactivating it's population and solving their energy needs, ending the war and unifying the planet. He also continued his experiments into multiple transformations, yielding the unstable [[Duocons]], and then successfully mastering the process with [[Triple Changers]]. Capturing [[Alpha Trion]], Shockwave sought to unlock the full secrets of [[Vector Sigma]], having already learned of the mysterious signifcance of Earth to the Transformer race. In preparation for the invasion of the planet, Shockwave subliminally influenced the population of Cybertron to become more violent, and prevented the return of Optimus Prime and Megatron aboard the Ark II by having a human agent blow it up.

In [[2003]], Shockwave made his move, heading to Earth with his Triple Changer troops and capturing Megatron and Optimus's forcing, planning to try the two leaders as war criminals. Megatron was jettisoned into space by Starscream, while Prime's escape from his clutches led him to fall in with a rebel group, and then to confront Shockwave himself, only to be defeated by the Decepticon, who ripped the Matrix from him. Using the Matrix to activate Vector Sigma, Shockwave downloaded the compressed contents of the mega-computer into his network, but before he had an opportunity to view the data, he was pulled into a battle with [[Ultra Magnus]]. In the course of the fight, the fuel line to his cannon was severed, and the resulting explosion destroyed his citadel and knocked him into a chasm.

While the rest of Cybertron believed Shockwave to be deceased, he had actually survived the explosion and gone underground in the wastelands of Cybertron with Astrotrain and Blitzwing, continuing his experimentation, resulting in [[Sixshot]]. Soon after, however, Megatron returned to Cybertron and bested Shockwave, taking him to Earth where he did the same to Starscream. But now, the three players were assembled, each knowing certain dark secrets of Cybertron's past... but unfortunately, Dreamwave's bankruptcy and subsequently closure at the start of [[2005]] means that currently, this story remains unresolved.

==External Links==
[[Category:Action Masters]]
[[Category: Alternators]]
[[Category:Decepticons]]
[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Generation 1]]<div id="wikia-credits"><br /><br /><small>From [http://transformers.wikia.com Teletraan I: The Transformers Wiki], a [http://www.wikia.com Wikia] wiki.</small></div>

Shockwave (G1)

2006-05-21T16:21:53Z

88.107.133.226: /* Dreamwave Generation 1 Comic */

{{disambig3|Shockwave}}
{{disambig2|the Generation 1 Decepticon Shockwave/Shockblast|the Energon Decepticon|Shockblast (UT)}}

''Shockwave is a [[Decepticon]] in the [[Generation One]] universe. He was also briefly known as '''Shockblast'''.''

[[Image:Shockwavearealldead.jpg||thumb|right|Shockwave]]

'''Shockwave''' has been referred to as "a computer on legs." This is not far from the truth. Logic rules Shockwave's thought processes and is the source of his every inspiration. He sees emotions as a weakness and a distraction. His cold and calculating ''modus operandi'' is supported by his frightening and exceptionally powerful form.

Shockwave is possibly even more powerful than [[Megatron_(G1)|Megatron]], who he appears to be loyal to. However, perhaps logic dictates that the time to replace Megatron's flawed, emotion-fueled rule has yet to occur.

''Japanese name: '''Laserwave''' ''<br>
''French-Canadian name: '''Onde de Choc''' ''

==Fiction==
===Generation 1 Cartoon===
'''Voice Actor:''' [[Corey Burton]] (US), (Japan)

Shockwave was a highly ranked Decepticon during the G1 era. His alternate form was a large, ''flying'' laser gun. His alternate form is thought to be even stronger than [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]]'s. Despite what his toy-bio says, he is also fanatically loyal to Megatron.

He typically oversees all the Decepticon activity on Cybertron, rarely leaving the planet. His keen scientific mind resulted in several incredible devices, including the [[Space Bridge]] and a time machine.

In his first apearance Shockwave had 2 hands, although this could be an animation error, some fans speculate that Shockwave lost his hand in a battle.

He may have survived the battle against Unicron but, if so, apparently lost face with Galvatron for losing Cyberton to the Autobots during the battle. He can be spotted in group shots in season three, but these shots are notorious for animation errors such as depicting combiner robots alongside component robots. Shockwave's post-season three status is up for speculation.

===Marvel Comic===
The [[Marvel Comics|Marvel]] comic book series, on the other hand, took Shockwave's original profile and ran with it, making him a force to be reckoned with. Here, Shockwave was part of the Decepticon unit that pursued the Ark, but he held back from actually attacking the craft, remaining on the Decepticons' own space cruiser and following the Ark down to [[prehistoric Earth]] when it crashed. His guidance systems disrupted by his travel through Earth's atmosphere, Shockwave touched down in [[Antarctica]], specifically, in the [[Savage Land]], whose dinosaur inhabitants the Ark used as a basis to reconstruct five Autobots to battle Shockwave. These "[[Dinobots]]" engaged Shockwave, but he overpowered them, trapping them in a [[tarpit]]. A last strike by the Dinobots before sinking into the pit saw them bury Shockwave under a landslide, where he remained for four million years.

In 1984, Shockwave was reawakened by an Autobot probe and quickly struck the weakened Autobots, who had just defeated Megatron's forces. Deactivating them all and stringing them up in the Ark, which he took for his own base, Shockwave brought the Decepticons back online to serve him, and was soon challenged for leadership by a wounded Megatron, who he soundly defeated and brought under his heel. As Decepticon commander, Shockwave commandeered the Blackrock Aerospace Plant, using its resources to construct new Transformers, which he then gave life using the [[Autobot Matrix of Leadership|Creation Matrix]], siphoned from Optimus Prime. However, Prime was able to transfer the Matrix into [[Witwicky Family|Buster Witwicky]]'s mind, preventing Shockwave from giving life to his newest creation, [[Jetfire]]. Shockwave instead programmed Jetfire to acquire Buster, but Buster was able to reprogram and give life to Jetfire and took Shockwave out of the game long enough to recover Optimus Prime's severed head. Prime then battled Shockwave and hurled him into a swamp.

Shockwave was able to extricate himself in short order, and attempted a series of failed plans, such as draining sonic energy from a rock concert and attempting to control Bumblebee. When Megatron resurfaced, he and Shockwave clashed again, but settled into a brief period of shared leadership until Shockwave fell victim to an Autobot trap, and saw the logic in Megatron's accusations of failure, ceding command to him. When Megatron began to descend into paranoid insanity after the death of Optimus Prime, Shockwave attempted to take advantage of the situation by arranging a staged attack by the [[Predacons]]. Megatron defeated them, but when Shockwave revealed that he had duplicated his mind to disc to guide the Predacons during their hunt, Megatron's deranged mind (accurately) began to believe that this was how Optimus Prime had survived. Desperate and insane, Megatron apparently killed himself by blowing up the spacebridge while he was on it, once again allowing Shockwave to take leadership. However, he soon faced various objections courtesy of [[Ratbat]], the local Decepticon commander on Cybertron, who criticised his operations for being too fuel-inefficient. Arriving on Earth to oversee Shockwave's work, Ratbat encountered Buster Witwicky, who he captured and brought to the Decepticons' mobile island base. With the Autobot [[Headmasters]] in pursuit, Shockwave transformed the island into its rocket mode and blasted off, but in a space-bound battle with [[Fortress Maximus]], Shockwave was defeated and sent hurtling into Earth's atmosphere, where he seemingly burned up.

Although this would be all that the US comics would see of Shockwave for some time, this was not the case for its sister title, the UK-based ''Transformers'' comic, which reprinted the American stories with their own original material intertwined. In previous UK stories, Shockwave had run afoul of the future Decepticon leader, [[Galvatron]], who was attempting to disrupt his leadership in the present to ensure the loyalty of his army in the future. After his battle with Fortress Maximus, Shockwave was revealed to have survived his fall back to Earth and returned to the Decepticons' original castle base, where he had the [[Seacons]] acquire the body of what was apparently Megatron (but would, in actuality, be later revealed as a clone), which he brainwashed into doing his bidding in order to pit him against Galvatron. When he was visited by the other future Decepticons, [[Cyclonus]] and [[Scourge (Transformers)|Scourge]] and learned that in their future, they would kill him, he unleashed Megatron upon them, who killed Cyclonus. Shockwave then turned Megatron upon Galvatron, but rather than destroy him, he saw a potential partner in Galvatron, and they teamed up to battle Autobots and Decepticons from both the present and future in the "Time Wars", as a rift in the space-time continuum bore down on them. Shockwave, however, had become a prisoner of his own logic - to seal the rift it was necessary to return Cyclonus's body to it, thereby saving everyone, including himself. A logical action. However, to do so would be to condemn himself to death in the future by Cyclonus and Scourge's hands. Illogical. Unable to cope with the paradox, Shockwave went insane, but was saved by Ravage, who pointed out that, equipped with knowledge of his death, he could prevent it. His mind restored, Shockwave returned Cyclonus's body to the rift, after Galvatron and Scourge were consumed by it, and sealed it shut with an [[X-ray]] blast. The day had been saved, but Optimus Prime promised him that the next time they met, it would be as enemies.

A short time later, Shockwave went on to make his return to the pages of the US comic, as he established a small splinter cell of Decepticons, consisting of himself, Starscream, Mindwipe, Triggerhappy, Ravage and Runamuck. Declaring civil war against the current Decepticon Earth commander, [[Scorponok]], Shockwave battled him in [[New Jersey]], only for the conflict to be interrupted when all the Transformers were transported back to Cybertron by their deity, [[Primus (Transformers)|Primus]] to battle [[Unicron]]. Awestruck by the chaos-bringer, even Shockwave's vast data-grid could not compute a logical course of action, and he and Starscream hijacked the Ark and fled the planet shortly after Unicron's defeat. However, the Dinobots had previously treated the Transformers stored in the Ark's stasis pods with the life-restoring fuel, [[Nucleon (Power Source)|Nucleon]] - and among those Transformers was the true Megatron, who battled with Galvatron, who had also stowed away on board the craft. In an attempt to break the cycle of violence that seemingly bound him and Megatron, Autobot medic Ratchet crashed the Ark into Earth. Shockwave was last seen in pain as Megatron and Galvatron advanced on him just before the ship crashed. His fate remains unknown, but as everyone save for Megatron was deactivated or destroyed in the crash, it is unlikely Shockwave survived.

===Dreamwave Generation 1 Comic===
Shockwave was a major character in the [[Dreamwave]] Productions' [[21st Century]] reimagining of G1. As a major player in the Decepticon army in Cybertron's past, he led the main attack on the Autobots' stronghold shortly after the appointment of Optimus Prime, and personally destroyed two [[guardian robots]] with one blast in spacegun mode. There was also tension between him and [[Starscream]] about who would lead the Decepticons after Megatron's supposed death, which eventually led to the creation of multiple splinter factions within both the Autobots and Decepticons. While Starscream created his own faction, the "Predacons," Shockwave led the Decepticons through the "Dark Ages" of Cybertron, during which his logic allowed him to put aside differences with [[Jetfire]] and the Autobots in order to defeat the greater evil of The Fallen. As the Dark Ages came to an end, Shockwave was ready to sign a peace treaty with Ratbat's Ultracons and the Autobots, but the return of Megatron trampled the plan, though the [[Quintesson]]-created clones he brought back to the planet with him greatly intrigued Shockwave.

Shockwave was left behind on Cybertron while Megatron's forces pursued Optimus Prime and were subsequently lost on Earth for four million years, and became Decepticon leader on the planet. He began experimenting with cloning, and through studies of [[Astrotrain]] and [[Blitzwing]], began to conceive the idea of a Transformer with multiple alternate modes. Eventually, however, Shockwave and all the other Transformers on Cybertron succumbed to stasis as the planet's energy ran out, and it entered a hibernation phase known as the "Great Shutdown." During this period of inactivity, 3000 years ago, Unicron's herald Scourge located the planet, and reactivated Shockwave for study purposes. However, when Shockwave was attacked by a swarm of [[Sharkticons]], Scourge intervened, and after saving him, was shot by Shockwave, who then proceeded to study him, learning much of the function and purpose of Transformers and Cybertron from the secrets within Scourge.

Shockwave steadily worked to restore Cybertron, reactivating it's population and solving their energy needs, ending the war and unifying the planet. He also continued his experiments into multiple transformations, yielding the unstable [[Duocons]], and then successfully mastering the process with [[Triple Changers]]. Capturing [[Alpha Trion]], Shockwave sought to unlock the full secrets of [[Vector Sigma]], having already learned of the mysterious signifcance of Earth to the Transformer race. In preparation for the invasion of the planet, Shockwave subliminally influenced the population of Cybertron to become more violent, and prevented the return of Optimus Prime and Megatron aboard the Ark II by having a human agent blow it up.

In [[2003]], Shockwave made his move, heading to Earth with his Triple Changer troops and capturing Megatron and Optimus's forcing, planning to try the two leaders as war criminals. Megatron was jettisoned into space by Starscream, while Prime's escape from his clutches led him to fall in with a rebel group, and then to confront Shockwave himself, only to be defeated by the Decepticon, who ripped the Matrix from him. Using the Matrix to activate Vector Sigma, Shockwave downloaded the compressed contents of the mega-computer into his network, but before he had an opportunity to view the data, he was pulled into a battle with [[Ultra Magnus]]. In the course of the fight, the fuel line to his cannon was severed, and the resulting explosion destroyed his citadel and knocked him into a chasm.

While the rest of Cybertron believed Shockwave to be deceased, he had actually survived the explosion and gone underground in the wastelands of Cybertron with Astrotrain and Blitzwing, continuing his experimentation, resulting in [[Sixshot]]. Soon after, however, Megatron returned to Cybertron and bested Shockwave, taking him to Earth where he did the same to Starscream. But now, the three players were assembled, each knowing certain dark secrets of Cybertron's past... but unfortunately, Dreamwave's bankruptcy and subsequently closure at the start of [[2005]] means that currently, this story remains unresolved.

===Devil's Due G.I. Joe vs. Transformers Comic===

==Toys==

==External Links==

{{Stub}}

[[Category:Action Masters]]
[[Category: Alternators]]
[[Category:Decepticons]]
[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Generation 1]]<div id="wikia-credits"><br /><br /><small>From [http://transformers.wikia.com Teletraan I: The Transformers Wiki], a [http://www.wikia.com Wikia] wiki.</small></div>

Shockwave (G1)

2006-05-21T16:21:06Z

88.107.133.226: /* Marvel Comic */

Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2001 franchise)

2006-05-21T16:15:29Z

88.107.133.226:

''When [[Megatron (riD)|Megatron]] and his [[Predacon (RiD)|Predacons]] arrive on [[Earth]], they meet an unexpected resistance: [[Optimus Prime (RiD)|Optimus Prime]], who leads a special team of [[Autobot]] defenders who have remained hidden for years! But Megatron is after more than just energy... on Earth lies an ancient power that could make the Predacons the rulers of the universe!''

The '''''Robots in Disguise / Car Robots''''' series brought modern-Earth vehicular Transoformers back into the limelight, and began the "reboot" tactic that would be employed by later lines.

In the US, ''Robots in Disguise'' was intended as a low-cost, minimal-work "filler" line that would allow Hasbro and [[Takara]] the time needed to completely shift gears from previous series and begin the process of working together on a level they had not previously for the next line, and re-thinking their design and play-pattern aims for the toys as well. This turned out to be a boon; ''Robots in Disguise'' did remarkably well for Hasbro (''Car Robots'' for Takara... not so much), and the following line did even better.

=Toyline=
===Car Robots===
After the last several [[Beast Era]] lines were received poorly in Japan, [[Takara]] decided to make a fresh start in 2000 with '''''Car Robots''''', a combination of "traditional" Earth vehicles and beasts, as well as a near-even mix of newly-created molds and those originally developed for other lines, presumably to keep development costs down. The line had a ''heavy'' bias towards the Cybertrons (Autobots); of the ??? toys in the line, only 11 were Destrongers (Predacons/Decepticons)

To this day, many people still refer to the ''Car Robots'' line as ''Transformers 2000''. However, the series was never officially named as such; it's ''possible'' this was a working title at one point, but proof has yet to be found of this.

==Characters==
===Autobots ''(Cybertrons)''===
[[Image:oprime.jpg|thumb|200px|Optimus (Fire Convoy), leader of the Autobots.]]
*'''[[Optimus Prime]]''' ''(Fire Convoy)''
Leader of the Autobots, bearer of the Matrix and brother to Ultra Magnus, Optimus Prime transforms into a fire engine. The forward portion of the truck transforms into Prime himself, while the rear portion can form a mobile weapons platform/communications array/recharging station, or combine with Prime as additional armour and weapons (Super Mode).
*'''[[X-Brawn]]''' ''(Wildride)''
[[Image:Xbrawn.jpg|left|thumb|X-Brawn full-body shot]]
The eldest of the three Autobot Brothers. X-Brawn loves extremes and can handle any type of environment, from desert to blizzard, and can traverse some of the toughest terrain. He lives for the thrill, and can often be found climbing the tallest towers in the city in car mode, using his winch to pull himself up the buildings. He is a martial arts master, and has enormous strength in his left arm, which he uses to execute lariats (a pro-wrestling maneuver) on his Predacon opposition. X-Brawn is a bot of few words, but is very reliable.

When Optimus Prime's brother, Ultra Magnus, came to Earth and forced Prime into a combination that allowed him to share the power of the Matrix, Magnus's link to the Matrix resulted in him inadvertantly channelling its energy in the midst of a battle. That energy involved Prowl, Side Burn and X-Brawn, "supercharging" them into newly-coloured, more powerful bodies. After a brief amount of training, Prowl and the others were soon able to control this new ability, shifting to "Supercharge Mode" when an extra power boost was needed in battle. Their supercharged modes afforded them no advantage in their final battle with Galvatron, however, as they were strung up and had their energy drained by the villain, until Optimus Prime and Ultra Magnus challenged him to a final battle at the Earth's core, and defeated the villain.
*'''[[Prowl (Transformers)|Prowl]]''' ''(Mach Alert)''
[[Image:Prowl_rid.JPG|right|thumb|240px|Prowl fires his boosters in robot mode]]
The middle sibling of the three Autobot Brothers. Competent and loyal, Prowl is Optimus Prime's trusted right-hand man. He possesses a sharp, tactical mind which makes him very quick to assess situations. Prowl is equipped with jet boosters in car mode, which allows him to give chase with remarkable speed; the boosters can also be used as weapons when in robot mode. Prowl takes his role as an enforced of the law seriously, and is very conscientious about rules and regulations -- something that his fellow Autobots often experience. Prowl can use his electronic systems to jam raidios or hack into systems, and his ultra-sensetive scanners can detect the hum of an enemy circuit from clear across a city, and he won't give up until he's got his man. In his role posing as an ordinary human police car, Prowl has become a model officer dedicated to the preservation of law and order - even when it occasionally conflicts with his duties as an Autobot.He's constantly on Side Burn's back for his habit of stalking red sports cars, and he thinks that the veteran X-Brawn should try to set a better example for their younger teammate.

With the appearance of Megatron's forces on Earth, Prowl was forced to emerge from hiding alongside his brothers, X-Brawn and Side Burn, to engage the villains in a series of battles. As the most level-headed of the Autobot Brothers due to his police training, he was the one who rarely got himself involved in solo battles, instead fighting as part of a team for maximum effect. Prowl's authoritarian attitude shapes much of who he is and what he does - he spent a lot of time keeping Side Burn in line, often catching him breaking the rules of the road in his pursuits of red sports cars, and imparted those same rules to Tow-Line, who followed them with even greater zeal than Prowl himself. So entrenched in his role as a police car, Prowl at one point was even unwilling to disguise his "uniform" so that he could save Side Burn from a Decepticon trap.

[[Image:superprowl.JPG|left|thumb|Super Prowl]]
When Optimus Prime's brother, Ultra Magnus, came to Earth and forced Prime into a combination that allowed him to share the power of the Matrix, Magnus's link to the Matrix resulted in him inadvertantly channelling its energy in the midst of a battle. That energy involved Prowl, Side Burn and X-Brawn, "supercharging" them into newly-coloured, more powerful bodies. After a brief amount of training, Prowl and the others were soon able to control this new ability, shifting to "Supercharge Mode" when an extra power boost was needed in battle. Their supercharged modes afforded them no advantage in their final battle with Galvatron, however, as they were strung up and had their energy drained by the villain, until Optimus Prime and Ultra Magnus challenged him to a final battle at the Earth's core, and defeated the villain.
*'''[[Side Burn]]''' ''(Speedbreaker)''
[[Image:sideburn.jpg|right|thumb|Side Burn full-body shot]]
The youngest and fastest of the Autobot Brothers, Side Burn rockets down highways in his Dodge Viper mode for fun, in pursuit of an enemy - or chasing after his latest flame. Because that's Side Burn's greatest weakness: the ladies. Every time he sees a little red sports car, he's falls in love all over again, but can't seem to comprehend that Earth cars aren't alive. Despite his flaws, he is a courageous and sympathetic Autobot, always ready to defend those whom he cares about. He also displays a sense of humour, something he thinks his older siblings lack.

When Optimus Prime's brother, Ultra Magnus, came to Earth and forced Prime into a combination that allowed him to share the power of the Matrix, Magnus's link to the Matrix resulted in him inadvertantly channelling its energy in the midst of a battle. That energy involved Prowl, Side Burn and X-Brawn, "supercharging" them into newly-coloured, more powerful bodies. After a brief amount of training, Prowl and the others were soon able to control this new ability, shifting to "Supercharge Mode" when an extra power boost was needed in battle. Their supercharged modes afforded them no advantage in their final battle with Galvatron, however, as they were strung up and had their energy drained by the villain, until Optimus Prime and Ultra Magnus challenged him to a final battle at the Earth's core, and defeated the villain.
*'''Skid-Z''' ''(Indy Heat)''
When this eager soldier arrived from Cybertron, he selected the race car of the late Augie Cahnay to be his vehicle mode, but also wound up absorbing Cahnay's psychotropic energy, which had saturated the vehicle, leaving him compelled to enter any race he could find.

*'''Tow-Line''' ''(Wrecker Hook)''
Working undercover as a tow truck, Tow-Line has learned the rules of the road, and now lives by them, punishing any infraction, large or small, and even if a fellow Autobot responsible is responsible. He is well known for the phrase "No parking means no parking!" He's responsible for traffic riot control, and can use his powerful hook to lift and carry anything from a car to a bullet train.

[[Image:magnus9.jpg|thumb|200px|Ultra Magnus (God Magnus) close-up.]]
[[image:Rid_magnus.jpg|thumb|200px|Full body view]]
*'''[[Ultra Magnus]]''' ''(God Magnus)''
The first new character to bear the name of Ultra Magnus since the G1 original was known as '''God Magnus''' in the Japanese 2000 line, ''Transformers: Car Robots''. God Magnus owed his name and alternate mode to Ultra Magnus (and also to [[Ginrai|Godbomber]], an earlier character who disassembled to form armour for his Prime-styled partner), so when the series was translated for release in the West in 2001 as ''Transformers: Robots in Disguise'', the name change was obvious, and Ultra Magnus returned to TV screens for the first time since the G1 series. Ultra Magnus transforms into a car carrier capable of transporting other Autobots such as the Autobot Brothers. In addition to his remarakable strength and fighting ability, he is armed with the "Blue Bolts" - a variable-configuration weapon of immense destructive power. His back-mounted jetpack allows for periods of flight.

When his brother, Optimus Prime, was chosen to carry the Matrix, Magnus felt passed over, and was left carrying a grudge against his brother that eventually exploded into violence when he arrived on Earth with the intention of taking what he believed was rightfully his- by force, if necessary. Severely injuring Prime, who refused to fight back, Magnus tracked him to a desert island, where he pretended to offer him the hand of friendship, only to attempt to absorb the Matrix for himself, forcing the brothers into the combined form of '''Omega Prime''' ''(God Fire Convoy)''. Through this link, Magnus was also able to channel the power of the Matrix, which he used to supercharge the Autobot Brothers into newly-coloured forms. Although Magnus remained a free agent, refusing to take orders from his brother, his animosity dwindled and he frequently helped the Autobots by combining with Prime to battle the Predacons and Decepticons. Despite being present in the battle against Galvatron at Earth's core, it is never officially stated what happens to him after Omega Prime triumphs, though it wouldn't be unreasonable to surmise that he accompanied Fortress Maximus in shipping the detained Predacons and Decepticons to an asteroid prison colony.

Note that in ''Car Robots'', there is not one singular Matrix, but multiple ones, each held by high-ranking Autobot commanders. Magnus already possesses a Matrix, and simply seeks to steal the power of Fire Convoy's to increase his own (the overspill resulting in the supercharging of the Autobot Brothers).

*'''[[Fortress Maximus]]''' ''(Brave Maximus)''
[[Image:bravemax.jpg|right|thumb|200px|''Robots in Disguise'' Fortress Maximus]]
Fortress Maximus was hidden on Earth in order to protect the planet --it is often assumed that he was sent to prevent the potent energy within burgeoning mankind from falling into twisted hands-- slumbered beneath its surface, with the assorted keys to his re-awakening scattered across the globe - the component pieces known as the O-Parts were concealed within ancient structures, the Orb of Sigma within a subterranean pyramid, and Cerebros, the power key of Maximus, within a South American temple, all presumably done with the aid of the early civilisations responsible for the constructions. At some undefined point, a group of six Autobots were sent to Earth to reactivate him, but when their ship crashed, they joined Maximus in stasis, until the emergence of [[Megatron (Robots in Disguise)|Megatron]] and [[Optimus Prime]]'s forces. His Headmaster component is known simply as '''The Emissary''' ''(Brave in Japan)'', while Cerebros is here the name of the Emissary's Headmaster ''(known as Plasma in Japan)'', the smallest component of the toy. Interestingly, rather than being portrayed as human/Nebulon-sized in the animated series, Cerebros was the size of a normal Transformer, making Brave Maximus far, far larger than his American predecessors.

Although he kept his agenda secret, Megatron had actually come to Earth in order to reactivate Fortress Maximus, and to that end, he kidnapped noted archaeologist Doctor Kenneth Onishi, who had detected energy emanations from Maximus beneath his city, and had mapped the location of the O-Parts. Kept comatose, a resistant Onishi's mind was read by Megatron in hopes of learning the location of the O-Parts, while the Autobots had a microchip gifted to Onishi's son, Koji, to guide them. The first of the O-Parts was located within the Cave of the Dragon, and a second was later found.

Some time later, when the hapless Predacon Sky-Byte held a tower of humans hostage, he was able to bluff the Autobots into suggesting their O-Parts as ransom, completely unaware as to what the components truly were. The plan resulted in failure, and soon after, the Autobots discovered Fortress Maximus's body buried beneath the city, bringing it to the surface and hiding it from their enemies. With the help of the liberated Doctor Onishi, the remaining five O-Parts were quickly recovered by the Autobots despite Predacon and Decepticon interference. United, the seven O-Parts formed a map that led to the Orb of Sigma, which then merged with the O-Parts to lead the Autobots to Cerebros. Unfortunately, the Decepticons successfully captured Cerebros, and [[Scourge (Transformers)|Scourge]] was able to use the part of his programming that was Optimus Prime's to command him to activate Fortress Maximus. Summoning forth the city's transforming master computer, the Emissary, Cerebros became its head, then it in turn became Maximus's head, but the giant Transformer immediately began rampaging out of Scourge's control until Koji commanded it to stop, and Maximus once again disappeared beaneath the Earth, leaving behind Cerebros in Decepticon hands.

It soon became apparent that, in his assignment as protector of Earth, Maximus had been harmonically keyed to obey commands from human beings, specifically pure, innocent ones such as children. With this information, Scourge used the part of his bio-signature that was human to briefly control Maximus until a mass of human children overrode his control. The Decepticons then kidnapped Koji's friend, Carl, and used him to control Maximus, but the plan failed when Scourge then turned Maximus on [[Galvatron]] (an upgraded incarnation of Megatron). With Cerebros finally in Autobot hands and the way to control Fortress Maximus fully understood, the Autobots countered an attack by the Decepticons by activating Maximus, who engaged Galvatron in battle and almost had him defeated, until he used his power-draining abilities to sap Maximus's strength, using it to boost his own. While Omega Prime (Optimus Prime and Ultra Magnus combined) challenged the empowered Galvatron to a battle at the Earth's core, Koji had children all around the world send their hope and energy to Fortress Maximus, who channelled it to Omega Prime in the form of the mighty Matrix Blade, with which Prime defeated Galvatron. Maximus, along with Ultra Magnus, subsequently transported Galvatron and his troops away from Earth for imprisonment.

[[Image:Railracer.jpg|thumb|150px|Midnight Express (J4).]]

=='''Team Bullet Train''' ''(Team Shinkasen)''==
This trio of Autobots is comprised of cheerful junior member, '''Midnight Express''' ''(J4)'', battle-ready '''Rapid Run''' ''(J7)'', and their courteous commander, '''Railspike''' ''(J5)''. There's not a lot they can't handle on their own, but when the situation demands extra firepower, the team can combine into the mighty '''Rail Racer''' ''(JRX)''.

*'''Railspike''' (''J5'')

Railspike is the grizzled leader of the Team Bullet Train. He is courageous and polite, and his intelligence makes him akin to any battlefield situation. He tends to act as a peacekeeper when tempers get out of hand. Despite his apparent age, Railspike is still able to take on his enemies with incredible efficiency and skill. Railspike transforms to a Shinkansen Series 500 Nozomi bullet train engine. He is equipped with rocket launchers in his shoulders, and is capable of generating ultrasonic waves, powerful enough to take down his targets in one hit. He forms the upper body, arms and head of Rail Racer.

*'''Rapid Run''' (''J-7'')

Rapid Run is eager, enthusiastic, and proud. He is a remarkable warrior, often taking on multiple foes with unrelenting courage (though this could be attributed to his hot-headed attitude). He is very competitive and likes to think of Team Bullet Train as the Autobot's elite force, and of himself as the fastest of all the Autobots. Rapid Run can change to a Shinkansen Series 700 Rail Star bullet train engine. He is armed with a grenade launcher, and can fire large, powerful missiles from his shield. He forms the lower body and back of Rail Racer.

*'''Midnight Express''' (''J-4'')

Midnight Express is the youngest of the three members in the bullet train team. He is cheerful, friendly and eternally upbeat in the company of his friends, but harsh in the presence of enemies. Midnight Express transforms to an Shinkansen Series E-4 bullet train engine. He is equipped with high temperature missiles, and his shoulders can generate shearing blades of solid light, capable of slicing giant icebergs in two. He has high strength and endurance in cold weather, but is less efficient in warmer environments. He transforms into the legs of Rail Racer.

*'''Railracer''' (''JRX'')

Railracer is the powerful gestalt formed of Team Bullet Train. As a super-robot, his mind is a union of the thoughts of the three Autobots who comprise him (oddly, he refers to himself as "we" as opposed to first-person). Railracer is not at all as unwieldy and lumbering as the super robots of the original Transformers series - he's equipped with built-in accelerators that greatly improve his speed and mobility. He wields a giant gun which is a combination of Railspike's beam gun and Midnight Express' rifle.

=='''[[Spychangers]]'''==
A team of six Autobot espionage specialists. The team can drive over any surface, even water, in defiance of gravity, and have optical camouflage powers that render them invisible at will. Despite their radically different personalities, the Spychangers are a perfectly functioning unit, often relying heavily on teamwork tactics.

*'''Hot Shot''' (''Artfire'')

Hot Shot is the leader of the Spychangers. He comes across as gruff, almost rude, in his role as commander, but this is really a result of his strong concern for his subordinates. He is a personal friend of Optimus Prime, whom he has served under for millions of years.Hot Shot is armed with an adjustable fire blaster gun, which can be focused to a narrow beam or spray fire in a wide angle. An interesting point of trivia; in Car Robots, Artfire is referred to as a relative of Fire Convoy.

*'''R.E.V''' (''Eagle Killer'')

R.E.V. is the Spychanger's tactical officer, and Hot Shot's right-hand man. Given his voice, he is the oldest of the Spychangers, but this does not seem to impede his performance in any way. R.E.V. has excellent jumping prowess, and can spring from building to building in urbanized areas. He's armed with a shotgun. (R.E.V. stands for Race Exertion Vehicle, he is often simply called "Rev")

*'''Crosswise''' (''X-Car'')

Crosswise is the Autobots' science officer. His specialty is space engineering, but he also has a hand in developing new machinery, and often helps out with the maintenance of his teammates. Crosswise is armed with an anti-gravity gun, which causes the targets it hits to rise in the air.

*'''W.A.R.S.''' (''Wars'')

W.A.R.S. is one of the few pro-war Autobots, a bold and daring warrior whose violent actions frighten and appal friend and enemy alike. He is equipped with heavy armor and a machine gun, which he's firing all but constantly. (W.A.R.S. stands for Wicked Attack Recon Sportscar)

*'''Ironhide''' (''Ox'')

Ironhide is one of the younger members of the Spychangers, yet is a battlefield veteran with incredible strength. He's normally very peaceful, but can be incredibly irascible at times, he often takes out his frustration on Predacons or Decepticons. He doesn't like to be told what to do. Ironhide is a transports expert and wields a shockwave rifle.
*'''Mirage''' (''Counter Arrow'')
Mirage is one of the most unenthusiastic Autobots - he's unsure of the Autobot cause, and can't be fully trusted. But despite his doubts, Mirage is a very valuable soldier - he carries out various functions, from bodyguard duty to espionage, all of them with excellent results. Mirage is the fastest of the Spychangers, and an excellent marksman. He is armed with a laser sniper rifle.

=='''Build Team''' ''(Build Masters)''==
As the engineers who built the Global Spacebridge tunnel system that transports the Autobots around Earth, the Build Team always wanted to see action on the front lines, and thanks to Optimus Prime, they got their chance. The team is capable of combining into Landfill (Build King) in various configurations.

*'''Wedge''' (''Build Boy'')

Wedge is the young leader of the Build Team. Unrefined and reckless, he sometimes makes mistakes owing to his youth, but with the help of his friends and the acquisition of plenty of experience, he is maturing into a capable leader. Wedge appears to have an almost limitless energy reserve. He wields a double-barrelled beam gun.

*'''Heavy Load''' (''Build Typhoon'')

Heavyload has the greatest strength and the thickest armor of the Build Team. Being well versed in all sorts of fighting techniques, he is also Wedge's martial arts instructor. He acts as Wedge's personal aide, and is prepared to lay down his life to follow his leader's orders.

*'''Hightower''' (''Build Cyclone'')

An expert marksman, Hightower is second to none when it comes to using firearms. He acts as Wedge's personal bodyguard. Wedge's recklessness can leave him at a loss, but he dispenses frank advice even while staunchly supporting his leader. Hightower has deep trust from his teammates.

*'''Grimlock''' (''Build Hurricane'')

Grimlock, the Build Team's second-in-command, has a really sunny disposition. Calmly and coolly, he judges the progress of a battle, then provides appropriate advice to Wedge and his other teammates. Grimlock is often deep in thoughts, pondering how best to pass on to Wedge his experience on numerous battlefields.

==Predacons & Decepticons ''(Destrongers)''==
The Predacons are an elite group of cyber-animal Transformers of unknown origins who are in search for the ultimate power. To bolster their forces, they converted six Autobot Protoforms into Decepticons to help them in their goal.

[[image:ridmegs.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Robots in Disguise Megatron]]
'''Megatron''' (known as '''Gigatron''' in Japan) was the merciless leader of the [[Predacons]], including Sky-Byte, Slapper, Nightscream and Gas Skunk, in ''[[Transformers: Robots in Disguise]]''. Having wrought destruction across most of the universe, Megatron has now turned his attention to Earth and the energy it is rich in, as well as having a hidden agenda - to obtain the power of Fortress Maximus. To this end, he kidnaps energy expert Doctor Kenneth Onishi, who had previously uncovered many of the keys to unlocking Maximus's power.

Megatron's own great power is evidenced by his six-mode transformation - robot, bat ''(Gigabat)'', twin-headed dragon ''(GigaDragon)'', jet ''(GigaJet)'', car ''(GigaFormula)'' and claw ''(GigaHand)''. Whispered rumours say that Megatron and his Predacons may have come from another place... another time... but whatever his origins, Megatron's goal is clear - ultimate power will be his.

Megatron is a Six-Changer, powerful enough to transform into five additional modes besides his robot form - twin-headed dragon, gargoyle, race car, jet and claw (GigaDragon, GigaBat, GigaFormula, GigaJet and GigaHand in Japanese). Each form has its own different frightening capabilities, making Megatron a very unstable and unpredictable fighter. ''(In Car Robots, each mode has its own personality)''

Some time into the campaign on Earth, Megatron sought to bolster his forces, locating six Autobot protoforms in a crashed Cybertronian spaceship, bestowing them with military vehicle modes and corrupting them with his own Spark energy, creating the Decepticons. However, their leader, Scourge, happened to scan Optimus Prime along with the tanker that would form his alternate mode, and as a result became something of an "evil clone" of Prime, whose cruelty and cunning eventually extended to plotting against Megatron.

[[Image:megatron003.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Megatron (Gigatron), the Predacon leader.]]
In the pursuit of his greater agenda, Megatron began seeking the mysterious O-Parts, which led to the Orb of Sigma, in a subterranean pyramid. The orb would lead to Cerebros, the power key to the huge Autobot battle station, [[Fortress Maximus]], who, it was revealed, he had actually come to Earth to obtain. When Megatron was buried in the ruins of the pyramid following a failed attempt to steal the orb from the Autobots, he underwent his most startling transformation of all, as the energies of the pyramid resurrected him as the vampiric '''[[Galvatron]]''' ('''Devil Gigatron'''), able to enhance his own strength by draining the life energy from others. In addition to retaining his original six transformations ''(now redubbed DevilBat, DevilDragon, DevilJet, DevilFormula and DevilHand)'', Galvatron can now assume four new modes - a pteranodon ''(Devilnodon)'', a gryphon ''(DevilSaurer)'', a mammoth ''(DevilMammoth)'' and a hydrofoil ''(DevilCruiser)''. Now considering himself reborn, Galvatron possessed the ability to drain energy from other beings - Slapper, Darkscream and Gas Skunk were his first victims, but Fortress Maximus, Earth's children and Omega Prime would soon feel this deadly power too. Towards the end of his final battle against the Autobots, Galvatron absorbed energy from children all around the world in order to recharge himself, in doing so, he discovered that the energy source within humans could be used to his advantage. Thus he turned his attention to using said energry to conquer all in his path- combined with the added power of Fortress Maximus, he would be unstoppable. Thankfully, Prime was able to defeat him with the gathered energy of Earth's children, courtesy of Fortress Maximus, and he was sent back to Cybertron for imprisonment.

[[Image:Sky_byte.jpg|thumb|150px|Sky-Byte (Gelshark).]]
*'''Sky-Byte''' ''(Gelshark)''
In some ways, Sky-Byte is one of the central characters on the show. All he wants is for Megatron to see him as the loyal and dependable warrior that he really is, and he goes to great lengths to prove his resourcefulness to him. Although heralded as one of the mightiest Predacon warriors, Sky-Byte has summarily failed to live up to his hype during Megatron's campaign on Earth. Unfortunately for Sky-Byte, things seldom turn out as he has planned them - if it isn't the Autobots who thwart his plans, it is the three fools he has under him. And then there's the new threat, that ingratiating newcomer who tries to assume his place as Megatron's second-in-command...

In spite of the disgraces he has to endure in the cartoon, Sky-Byte is one of the most feared and respected Predacon warriors. He's a merciless warrior in battle - his powerful jaws can tear through an armored tank, and the anchor arm on his left side can crush even the thickest, strongest wall like a microchip in the jaws of a shark.

His fierce outer appearance aside, there is also a softer side to Sky-Byte - he's an intellectual with great love of poetry. The toy is a repaint of transmetal 2 Cybershark from Beast Wars.

*'''Predacon Trio:'''
The three members of the Predacon ground force are specialised for combat in water, air and on land, and they can't cut it in any of them. They try their best, but their most admirable quality is that they're good for a laugh. Each member of the team fires the Right, Left and Centre Lasers (respectively) to combine into one mighty attack. The toys are repaints of Beast Wars Spittor, Stink Bomb and Nightglider (respectively).

*'''Slapper''' (''Gildo'')
Slapper is one of the Predacon foot soldiers under Sky-Byte's command and, although its not saying much, is probably the most competant of the Predacon Trio. In beast mode, Slapper can leap remarkable distances in a single bound. He can use his long tongue like a whip, dextrously wrapping it around his enemies' weapons to snatch them away. In robot mode, the tongue detaches to be wielded as a weapon. He also has a camouflaged extendable grabber claw which can tear through the hull of a battleship. Slapper has also proven himself to be a supremely competant hacker, able to infiltrate even heavily protected systems. Slapper has a tendency to speak his mind without thinking, often earning his superiors' disapproval.

*'''Gas Skunk''' (''Gaskunk'')
Gas Skunk is one of the three foot soldiers under Sky-Byte's command. He is snobbish and conceited, traits that are possibly a response to others' treatment of him - being a skunk, most individuals tend to keep a distance from him. Gas Skunk is an expert in demolitions operations and is also something of a technical specialist; able to cobble together intricate devices from the barest of essentials. He can fire time bombs from his right shoulder and emit a gas from his mouth that, if inhaled, causes uncontrollable laughter. He relies on his serrated tail for close range combat.

*'''Darkscream''' (''Gushar'')
Darkscream is one of the Predacon soldiers under Sky-Byte's command. Rather flamboyant, he loves to show off his fencing skills. He has an all-absorbant fascination with samurai and swashbuckler dramas. Darkscream is a fairly competant swordsman (though he often boasts his expertise) and can slice through most alloys with one stroke of the serrated Energon sword hidden in his tail. Nocturnal by nature, he has no trouble with all-night missions. Can virtually escape detection - he emits an electromagnetic cloaking field, is soundless in flight, and disappears in subdued light and shadows. His "Centre laser" also has freezing properties.

*'''Scourge''' (''Black Convoy'')
[[image:Blackconvoy.jpg|left|thumb|''Robots in Disguise'' Scourge]]
The third character to bear the name of Scourge, known simply as '''Black Convoy''' in Japan, due to the fact that he is an "evil" redeco of the Generation 2 Laser [[Optimus Prime]] toy, sans the electronics it originally possessed.

Scourge, as he came to be named, was one of a crew of six [[Autobot]]s sent to Earth to reactivate the legendary Autobot battle fortress, [[Fortress Maximus]]. As leader, Scourge was equipped with the ability to detect the unique energy signatures of the O-Parts, the Cybertronian components that held the key to Maximus's awakening - but he was never given the opportunity to use that ability in the service of the Autobots. With all six members of the crew held in stasis pods in [[protoform]] state through the long journey, their craft malfunctioned and crashed on Earth in the mid-20th century, and the [[Autobot]]s joined Maximus in slumber.

In the present time, archaeologist and energy expert Doctor Kenneth Onishi's research eventually led him to the various links in the chain of [[Fortress Maximus]] - he located the fortress itself beneath Earth's surface, mapped the location of the O-Parts, and discovered the location of the crashed Autobot spaceship. However, when the evil [[Megatron (Robots in Disguise)|Megatron]] came to Earth with the intent of harnessing Maximus's power, he capturing Onishi, and through mental scans, discerned the location of the Autobots' ship. Stealing the six protoforms, [[Megatron]] took them to a nearby military base to scan vehicle modes for them, infusing them with a part of his own spark energy to turn them to the side of evil. The first five became the [[Combaticons|Commandos]], but when [[Megatron]] targeted a tanker truck to scan as the alternate mode of the final protoform, [[Optimus Prime]] leapt into action in order to save the truck's human driver, and as a result, the tanker, Prime ''and'' the human were all scanned. With an infusion of [[Megatron]]'s spark energy to complete the concoction, Scourge was born, emerging from his pod as a dark twin of [[Optimus Prime]], who proved that [[Megatron]]'s programming had over-ridden any Autobot goodness within him. Appointed leader of the new "[[Decepticon]]s," he quickly established himself as a force to be reckoned with.

[[Image:scourgebc.jpg|thumb|150px|Scourge (Black Convoy), leader of the Decepticons]]
As per the alternate mode scanned for him, Scourge transforms into a tanker truck - the cab portion transforms into Scourge himself, armed with his deadly Sword of Fury, while the tanker portion unfolds into a heavily-armed battle station with numerous projectile launchers. After leading a series of missions that were brutal but unsuccessful, and constantly but vainly urged by [[Optimus Prime]] to search for the true Autobot nature within himself, Scourge developed a fierce independent streak, steadily growing more and more revolted at being in the service of [[Megatron]]. When [[Fortress Maximus]] was discovered buried beneath Metro City, exposure to his energies began to reawaken memories the original mission Scourge had been programmed with, and as the race began to locate the O-Parts, Scourge rediscovered his ability to sense them. Holding one in his hand, his mission was now clear to Scourge - but unfortunately, Megatron's reprogamming added a distinctly [[Decepticon]] bent to it, as Scourge now sought to active [[Fortress Maximus]] and use it himself to conquer the galaxy.

Successfully capturing Cerebros, the power key to Fortress Maximus, Scourge used the part of his programming that was Optimus Prime's to dupe the robot into activating Maximus, but the giant robot ran amok until the Autobots' human ally, Koji was able to stop it. Realising that humans could control Maximus, Scourge then amplified the human part of his bio-signature and succeeded in taking control of him, until he was overridden by a large group of human children. Seeking to use Koji himself for the process, a case of mistaken identity resulted in the Decepticons capturing his best friend, Karl, instead, but when Karl proved able to activate [[Fortress Maximus]], Scourge dropped his facade of loyalty and ordered Maximus to destroy Galvatron (Megatron's new form). The failure of this plan brought about a punishment most severe - Scourge and the [[Decepticon]]s had their autonomy stripped by Galvatron, turned once again into loyal servants so dedicated to Galvatron that they continued to do his will even after he attempted to kill them as a belated punishment. With Galvatron's defeat, Scourge was captured and taken back to Cybertron for imprisonment with the other villains.

Scourge was voiced by [[Barry Stigler]] (RIP) in the United States and [[Taiten Kusunoki]] in Japan. The popularity of his now-famous black, grey and teal colour scheme spawned a series of other "evil Prime" figures that were repaints of other Optimus Prime toys, beginning with a new incarnation of Scourge himself, a redecoed version of the [[1994]] "Hero Optimus Prime" figure. Other similar repaints have since been given the name [[Nemesis Prime]], although the first, from ''[[Transformers: Armada]]'' was indeed named Scourge in Japan.

=='''[[Combaticons|Commandos]]''' ''(Combatrons)''== [[Image:Commandos.jpg|right|thumb|350px|Movor, Rollar, Ro-Tor, Mega Octane and Armourhide]]
This team comprised the rest of the Autobot mission sent to reactivate Fortress Maximus. Together, they possess the ability to combine into one mighty robot, '''Ruination''', with each of the four smaller members able to form any limb, rather than assuming the fixed configuration of the animated and comic book incarnations G1 predecessor. Movor and Ro-Tor can form arms to give Ruination flight powers, while Armorhide and Rollbar give extra physical power in the role. Ruination's weapons are a combination of all the team's individual guns, and can level a city with their power.

These five robots actually began life as Autobots, sent to Earth along with a six to lead them in a mission to reactivate the legendary Autobot battle station known as [[Fortress Maximus#Robots in Disguise|Fortress Maximus]]. However, their craft malfunctioned and crashed, and the six Autobots were entombed in [[protoform]] state, joining Fortress Maximus in slumber until their ship was unearthed by [[Megatron (Robots in Disguise)|Megatron]] and his [[Predacons]]. Absconding with the Autobot protoforms right under Optimus Prime's nose, Megatron took them to a nearby military base, intending to scan alternate modes for them. Mega-Octane was the first to be reactivated, infused with a portion of Megatron's own spark energy to create the first of a new breed of Transformer that Megatron dubbed the "Decepticons." The other four members of the team followed, and eventually the sixth, [[Scourge (Transformers)#Robots in Disguise|Scourge]], who took leadership of the team from Mega-Octane with a show of force.

The '''Commandos''', as they were named ''(maintaing the team's original name of the Combatrons in'' Car Robots '')'', soon demonstrated their skills by blowing up dams across the country, debuting their combining abilities against Rail Racer and later attempting to harness the energies of a volcano on Montrose Island. As part of a string of failed attempts to locate the Autobots' hidden base, Movor was launched into orbit to track Side Burn from space, and the Decepticons then pretended to have reverted to their original Autobot selves in an effort to make the Autobots take them in. Later, Decepticon corruption of the Autobots' global spacebridge led Ruination into conflict with Landfill.

It soon became apparent that Scourge sought to overthrow Megatron's leadership, and the discovery of Fortress Maximus, buried beneath the Earth's surface accelerated the process as exposure to his energies, and those of the O-Parts - the keys to Maximus's resurrection - awoke memories of Scourge's original mission. His new Decepticon programming turned it on its head, however, as he now wished to command Maximus's power for his own, and soon had the Commandos thinking the same way, conspiring with Mega-Octane to get Cerebros, the power key of Fortress Maximus, under his control. As a series of chases to acquire control of Maximus began, Scourge eventually revealed his treachery by trying to have the giant attack Galvatron (Megatron, in a new form), only for the plan to fail. In retribution, Galvatron again brainwashed the Decepticons, turning them back into his loyal servants, who followed him so completely that they were even willing to take his orders after he attempted to killed them as a belated punishment. With Galvatron's defeat, the Decepticons and Predacons were all taken back to Cybertron for imprisonment.

*'''Mega-Octane''' (''Dorailer'')
Mega-Octane is the cool, calculating leader of the Combiners. He is cruel and unfair, and uses his four subordinates as if they were his own limbs - he expects them to carry out his orders without question, and he has no tolerance with delays or mistakes. He is somewhat envious of Scourge, who snatched leadership of the Commandos directly from him. In missile trailer mode, Mega-Octane can launch missiles with a range of 65 miles. In robot mode, he carries a laser rifle. He can also transform into a combat station and perform maintenance on his teammates. He forms the torso and head of Ruination.

*'''Armourhide''' (''Dungar'')
Armourhide specializes in desert warfare, and his body camouflage can fool most Autobots' photorecptors. Unfortunately, his loud boasting and eagerness to scrap Autobots often reveal his position. Armourhide isn't too bright, he is described as a "Half-track mind" by fellow Commandos. In tank mode, Armorhide can reach speeds of 45 mph and has a range of 600 miles. His turret-mounted gun shoots a shell up to a distance of 3.5 miles with powerful force. Armourhide combines with his fellow Combiners to form the giant robot Ruination.

*'''Movor''' (''Shuttler'')
Movor transforms into a combat space-shuttle, and is capable of achieving planetary orbit under his own power. He carries detection equipment so he can search for Autobots from orbit, and is equipped with a powerful, long-range x-ray laser that allows him to attack them from that distance. He is somewhat pompous about his abilities, something which irritates his teamates. Movor has excellent heat-resistance. He combines with his fellow Combiners to form the giant robot Ruination.

*'''Rollbar''' (''Greenjeeber'')
Rollbar specializes in hand-to-hand combat. He is a skilled practiser of Crystalocution - the Cybertronic martial art of defeating an opponent by attacking his metal fracture points. He's also very interested in Earthen martial arts. Although described as "All-terrain terror", Rollbar prefers arctic environments, and likes fighting on rainy days. He combines with his fellow Combiners to form the giant robot Ruination. Rollbar has a sarcastic sense of humour, which often shines through both amongst his team and when facing Autobots.

*'''Ro-Tor''' (''Heptor'')
Ro-Tor is responsible for reconnaissance. He isn't particularly fast in helicopter mode, but he has a tight turning radius and fantastic manoeuvrability. In addition he's almost soundless in flight, which allows him to sneak up on hapless Autobots and attack them from above. Ro-Tor likes to practice acrobatic flying in his free time. Ro-Tor combines with his fellow Combiners to form the giant robot Ruination.

*'''Ruination''' (''Valdigus'')
[[Image:Ruination.jpg|left|thumb|Ruination]]

''The Commados are a redeco of the original 1986 '''Combaticons''' figures.''

==Others==
[[Image:koji002.jpg|thumb|150px|Koji (Yuki) and T-AI (Ai).]]
*'''Koji Onishi''' ''(Yuki Onishi)''
Son of Doctor Kenneth Onishi ''(Daichi Onishi)'', Koji allied himself with the Autobots after his father was kidnapped by Megatron, offering them advice and knowledge about Earth. A bright child, Koji has learned a lot about archaeology from his father, though he possesses no special powers, beyond a startling knack for being right where he needs to be, in the middle of coincidental Predacon attacks. When Dr. Onishi was freed from Megatron's clutches, it seemed Koji's role in the Transformer war was over, until he found himself able to control Fortress Maximus.

*'''T-Ai''' ''(Ai)''
T-Ai - her name being an abbreviated form of "Tactical Artificial Intelligence" - is the sentient computer program which runs the day-to-day operations of the Autobots' base, manning and directing the Global Spacebridge and activating Battle Protocols, selecting suitable members for the mission at hand. She is reportedly the "daughter" of the [[Teletraan I]] computer system of the RiD universe. What exactly this means is unknown. She keeps tabs on events across Earth, coordinates Autobot forces across the globe, maintains the elaboate [[Space Bridge]] network, and generally keeps things running smoothly at the base (or as smoothly as possible considering the variety of odd personalities that make up the Autobot ranks). To interact with other beings, T-Ai manifests herself as a holographic avatar resembling a young human girl in a maroon uniform, similar to that of a Japanese policewoman, which seems have caught the eye of Koji (who, in the Japanese version, is the only character to affectionately refer to her as "Ai-Chan"). She is an incredibly advanced computer that displays distinct emotions, self-awareness, a sense of humor, and -perhaps most notably- the ability to lose her patience. She is quick to verbally berate any Autobot found shirking their duties.

*'''Kelly''' ''(Junko)
This hapless young woman doesn't get involved in the Transformers' battles on purpose - she just always seems to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. In addition to owning the disguised X-Brawn, she's also had her nerves frayed through Side Burn's constant pursuit of her red sports cars, and frequently goes off on vacations in an attempt to relax, only to have the Transformers wreck those, as well. Kelly was in the tanker truck that was scanned by Scourge to form his alternate mode, and consequently, her human bio-signature was incorporated into Scourge's own. He was later able to use this bio-signature to control Fortress Maximus.
*'''Carl''' ''(Kenta)''
Koji's best friend, briefly captured by the Decepticons in a case of mistaken identity, who tried to use him to control Fortress Maximus.
*'''Jenny''' ''(Miki)''
Another of Koji's friends.
*'''Dorie Dutton''' ''(Reporter)''
A female news reporter who frequently covers the Transformers' battles.

===Robots in Disguise===

Hasbro also added a significant number of toys to ''Robots In Disguise'' that had not been part of ''Car Robots'', although they also left out the toy incarnation of [[Brave Maximus]] (due to failure to pass [[safety test]]ing), who in the dubbed cartoon was named [[Fortress Maximus (RID)|Fortress Maximus]].

*[[Robots in Disguise (toyline)|Expanded information on the ''Robots in Disguise'' toyline]]

=Fictions=
Unlike previous toylines, there was no ''Car Robots'' manga. The only Hasbro-endorsed comic for ''Robots in Disguise'' came in the form of a short story in the "[[Dreamwave]] Summer Special" comic released in 2004. Dreamwave held a vote in 2004 to see which series fans wanted to be the focus of a mini-series, ''[[Beast Wars]]'' or ''Robots in Disguise''; ''Beast Wars'' was the winner by a wide margin. (Though Dreamwave filed for bankruptcy and closed its door before the ''Beast Wars'' comic was made.)

*[[Robots in Disguise (cartoon)|Expanded information on the ''Robots in Disguise'' cartoon series]]

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[[Category: Franchises]]
[[Category: Robots in Disguise| ]]<div id="wikia-credits"><br /><br /><small>From [http://transformers.wikia.com Teletraan I: The Transformers Wiki], a [http://www.wikia.com Wikia] wiki.</small></div>

Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2001 franchise)

2006-05-21T16:10:00Z

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