MediaWiki - User contributions [en]

The Web

2011-08-13T19:13:39Z

91.147.254.51: /* Technical/animation errors */

{{episode
|series=BWtoon
|ep=3
|image=The Web Cheetorinweb.jpg
|caption=Cheetor trains to be a traffic warden.
|title="The Web"
|production company=[[Mainframe Entertainment]]
|airdate=[[September 18]], [[1996]]
|written by=[[Larry DiTillio]]
|directed by=[[C. Michael Easton]]
|animation studio=[[Mainframe Entertainment]]
|continuity=[[Beast Wars continuity]]
|packaged with=[[Rhinox (BW)#Beast Wars Telemocha Series|Rhinox]]
}}
'''While testing a new communications device, [[Cheetor (BW)|Cheetor]] runs into trouble.'''

:''French title:'' '''La Toile''' ("The Web")
:''French-Canadian title:'' '''La Toile'''
:''Japanese title:'' チータスの危機 (''Cheetus no Kiki'', "Cheetus's Crisis")
:''Polish title:'' '''W sieci'''
:''Portuguese title:'' '''A Teia'''
:''Spanish title:'' '''La telaraña'''
:''Latin-American title:'' '''La Telaraña'''
:''Italian title:'' '''La ragnatela''' ("The spiderweb")

==Synopsis==
At the [[Maximal]] base, [[Cheetor (BW)|Cheetor]] enthusiastically volunteers to field test a new comlink [[Rhinox (BW)|Rhinox]] has developed to aid long range communication. Cheetor is instructed to take care of the device and not engage any [[Predacon (BW)|Predacons]]. After Cheetor bolts out of the room, Rhinox expresses a bit of doubt, but [[Optimus Primal|Optimus]] is confident that he'll do fine.

[[Image:The Web Cheetor commsdevice.jpg|left|200px|thumb|The WWF likes to keep track of their animals.]]
Five [[units of length|microquads]] away, Cheetor hears an explosion, caused by [[Scorponok (BW)|Scorponok]] trying to recover a mega-cannon from one of the two ships. He radios a report to Optimus and heads off to investigate, openly defying his orders of avoiding any trouble. Primal leaves to recover Cheetor before something bad happens. Cheetor finds Scorponok and radios to Rhinox that he's going to take immediate action. He holds Scorponok at gunpoint, but [[Tarantulas (BW)|Tarantulas]] surprises Cheetor, giving Scorponok the time he needs to take him out with a missile. By the time Optimus arrives, the two Predacons are gone and Cheetor is left heavily damaged. As he lays unconscious, he dreams...

[[Image:The Web Cheetordream.jpg|right|200px|thumb|This would be so much cooler with a tight rope.]]
:''On [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], [[Megatron (BW)|Megatron]], [[Waspinator (BW)|Waspinator]], and [[Terrorsaur (BW)|Terrorsaur]] all open fire on Cheetor, who merely laughs at his attackers and blasts them away with ease. But from the darkness within an empty water tower, the glowing eyes of Tarantulas taunt Cheetor. He opens fire again, this time finding his accuracy sorely diminished. Suddenly Scorponok transforms and attacks, and out of the blue Rattrap appears for a split second. With his blaster exhausted, Cheetor is unable to do anything but watch as a missile from Scorponok closes in.''

Cheetor reawakens on the ''[[Axalon (BW)|Axalon]]'', having been repaired by Rhinox. Cheetor tries to explain to the Maximals gathered around him that he had to take immediate action to stop Scorponok's recovery of the cannon, but Optimus and the others are still disappointed in him for losing both the communicator and the cannon because of his impulsive actions. Once Primal leaves, [[Rattrap]] gives Cheetor a hard time, causing the cat bot to snarl back and rush out of the room again. Rhinox makes Rattrap face up to what Cheetor is surely going to do, so Rattrap relents and agrees to go after him.

In Predacon territory, Terrorsaur and Scorponok install the newly recovered mega-cannon. Cheetor tries to sneak past them, but is so focused on waiting for the correct moment that he doesn't notice Tarantulas emerge from the ground behind him, and is quickly ensnared.

[[Image:The Web Cheetor Tarantulas.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Hey, aren't you supposed to buy me dinner first?]]
Cheetor awakens in a dark cavern, stuck to an energy web that restricts his movement. Tarantulas explains to him that the [[stasis web]] is draining his energy slowly, leaving the delicious body ripe for consumption. Tarantulas crawls over his captive's body and laughs with delight at the thought of his meal.

In the ''Axalon'''s control room, Optimus, Rhinox, and [[Dinobot (BW)|Dinobot]] look over a holo-map of the [[Darksyde|crashed Predacon ship]]. Primal prepares to send Rattrap on a scouting mission, but Rhinox covers for his friend and says that the rat is talking to Cheetor.

Unknown to Optimus, Rattrap is already in Predacon territory, following Cheetor's trail. Rattrap finds Tarantulas's lair, and engages his Predacon nemesis. While the two battle, Tarantulas increases the rate at which the web drains energy from Cheetor. Tarantulas hunts Rattrap through the cavern with a thermal scan, but Rattrap fools him with a "hot box" and blasts the unfortunate spider.

[[Image:The Web Rattrap rescue.jpg|right|200px|thumb|You realise this means we're married?]]
After destroying the energy web, Rattrap grabs Cheetor and gets ready to leave, but one last blast from Tarantulas forces Rattrap to make his exit by diving away from a large explosion... which causes the cavern to collapse upon Tarantulas.

Back at the base, Rattrap lies to Optimus and claims he and Cheetor were just hanging out together. The act spares Cheetor from Primal's anger. In private, Rattrap emphasizes to Cheetor that he was only lying to cover his own hide... but Cheetor is still grateful to his pal.

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|h1=[[Maximal]]s|c1=
* [[Optimus Primal]] (1)
* [[Rhinox (BW)|Rhinox]] (2)
* [[Cheetor (BW)|Cheetor]] (3)
* [[Rattrap]] (9)
* [[Dinobot (BW)|Dinobot]] (10)

|h2=[[Predacon (BW)|Predacons]]|c2=
* [[Scorponok (BW)|Scorponok]] (4)
* [[Tarantulas (BW)|Tarantulas]] (5)
* [[Megatron (BW)|Megatron]] (6)
* [[Terrorsaur (BW)|Terrorsaur]] (7)
* [[Waspinator (BW)|Waspinator]] (8)
}}

==Quotes==
"You know, that is why you mess up, kiddo. You don't have the sense to BE afraid." 
"OH, YEAH? I'll show you what I have the sense to do, motorhead! You and Big Bot!"
:—'''Rattrap''' and '''Cheetor''' trade manly quips.

"I don’t have any real blood, just mech fluid." 
"Oh, my filters will adjust. It is the act I enjoy more than the nourishment."
:—'''Cheetor''' finds out '''Tarantulas''' is one sick puppy.

"I hate that rat."
:—'''Tarantulas'''

==Notes==
===Technical/animation errors===
* Being an early episode, Cheetor and the other characters pretty distinctly pronounce his name as "Cheater".
* Also as an early episode, the Maximals and Predacons both also still use human time unit here and there. Their own [[units of time]] would not become more firmly established until later.
* There also seems to be a great deal of confusion as to what color Scorponok's eyes are supposed to be, changing between red and yellow intermittently.
* During Cheetor's first dream, as Megatron rapid-fires his purple lasers, the laser's own animation for leaving the gun don't appear, making it seem as if the gun's jammed.
* As Cheetor is held captive by Tarantulas, his energy readout clearly drops to dangerous levels, yet in the next few subsequent shots, the levels are at maximum.
** Compounding on this problem, in the shot ''directly after'' Tarantulas turns the energy web to full power, it's shown at half power again. Whoops.
* When Tarantulas gets blasted away by Rattrap, he's apparently missing a considerable chunk of his chest, because you can clearly see his exposed inner joints, and some weird distorted pieces around the them. It is as though his left breast turned inside out. Strangely, once he's done falling to the ground, his chest is normal again.
** Also in this shot, Tarantulas' gun clips though his left arm.
* In a similar case to Scorponok's eye color dilemma, Cheetor's eyes also very briefly turn reddish-brownish as he turns away from the others at the very end of the episode.

===Continuity errors/notes===
* Cheetor wakes up after having been repaired by Rhinox, when generally the characters just emerge from a [[CR chamber]]. Based on this and the Maximals talking about the need for internal repairs in [[Beast Wars (Part 1)|the opening episode]], it appears they haven't got the Chambers working yet.
* The Maximals have been stranded for at least a month (the time it took Rhinox to make the comlink). Either way, it becomes somewhat of a moot point in later episodes as the Maximals manage to communicate through interfaces on their bodies (Presumably, Rhinox upgraded them to compensate for the lost comlink.)
* The incredibly dangerous "mega-cannon" that is the focus of the early part of the episode is never mentioned again and the Maximals never seem to destroy it or even delay its installation.
*Optimus mentions that Rhinox doesn't have the parts to build another comlink. Even if it did work, he wouldn't have been able to make any more for the rest of the team.
* The first time Scorponok transforms to robot mode, right before he fires at the rock, his eyes are red instead of their usual yellow.
** Also, Scorponok's voice sounds extremely less childish in this episode than in the preceding one. This is the first of many more 'mature' voice changes throughout the series, intentional or otherwise.
* Rattrap calls Tarantulas "eight eyes" even though his beast mode has nine.
* Tarantulas makes the first reference to the 'Inferno' (the Transformers version of Hell) in this episode. It's possible he was just talking about the subsequent Energy Web explosion, but unlikely.

===Transformers references===
* In Cheetor's dream, you can see [[Starscream (G1)| Starscream]] in his Earth vehicle mode flying over Cybertron for a few seconds: the [[Decepticon]] [[Insignia|sigil]] on his wing is the first direct Beast Wars reference to either the [[Autobot]]s or Decepticons.

* Cheetor's dream also contains a brief vision of Rattrap's rescue attempt before it actually happens. This is the first of several dreams, precognitive and otherwise, that Cheetor would have through the series.

*When Cheetor is knocked unconscious by Scorponok, his face bears a striking resemblance to his toy's, rather than his animation model's.

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;VHS
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1997 — ''Beast Wars: Super Lifeform Transformers'' — Cheetus' Crisis ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2001 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — The Beginning: Vol. 1 ([[Universal]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — Volume 1 ([[Rhino Entertainment|Rhinomation]])
;Laserdisc
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 1998 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — Maximal Edition ([[Geneon Universal Entertainment|Pioneer LDC]]) — English and Japanese audio.
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2000 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — DVD Box (Pioneer LDC) — English and Japanese audio. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2002 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — Volume 1 ([[Rhino Entertainment|Rhinomation]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2003 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — The Complete First Season (Rhinomation) 
[[Image:Flag of Canada.png|20px|Canada]] 2005 — ''Beast Wars'' — Classic Episodes — Where the Beasties Began! ([[Alliance Atlantis]]) — English and French audio. 
[[Image:Flag of Canada.png|20px|Canada]] 2005 — ''Beast Wars'' — The Complete First Season (Alliance Atlantis) — English and French audio. 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2006 — ''Beast Wars: Transformers'' — Season 1 ([[Madman Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2009 — ''The Transformers: Beast Wars'' — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Web}}
[[Category:Beast Wars episodes]]
[[category:Beast Wars Telemocha Series]]
[[Category:Pack-in material]]

Jungle

2011-08-13T14:53:43Z

91.147.254.51: /* Animation and/or technical glitches */

{{episode|
|series=Armada
|ep=6
|prev=Soldier (episode)
|next=Carnival
|title="Jungle"
|japanese=保護 (まもり) - jungle
|romaji=Hogo [Mamori]
|translation=Safeguard (Protection)
|image=Jungle-Forest.jpg
|caption=Gaze in awe at the majesty of the tropical jungle. *snrk*
|production code=TF: A-06
|production company=[[TV Tokyo]], [[Nihon Ad Systems|NAS]]
|writer=[[Isao Shizuya]]
|director=[[Shin'ichirō Aoki]]
|animation studio=[[Actas Inc.]]
|airdate=[[October 4]], [[2002]] (English) [[February 14|14 February]] [[2003]] (Japanese)
|continuity=[[Unicron Trilogy]]
}}

'''Another Mini-Con is located in a forest, where the battle causes a fire to threaten the local flora and fauna.'''

:''Polish title'': "'''Dżungla'''"

==Synopsis==
[[Starscream (Armada)|Starscream]], [[Demolishor (Armada)|Demolishor]] and [[Cyclonus (Armada)|Cyclonus]] exchange fire with the [[Autobot|Autobots]] in a rocky area, while discussing which tactics they should use. While the other two move around to the sides, Starscream takes to the air and attacks, but is promptly shot down by [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]] and crashes into Demolishor. Dismissing it as a lucky shot, Starscream looks up to see Optimus towering over him. The Autobot prepares to make the final shot, right to his forehead... when [[Megatron (Armada)|Megatron]] halts the training simulator, haranguing his men, particularly his "right-hand man". The [[Decepticon|Decepticons]] begin blaming each other. Starscream promises Megatron to fight more effectively if the latter gives him a [[Mini-Con]]. The conversation is interrupted by the detection of a new Mini-Con; all the Decepticons leave for Earth.

[[Image:Jungle-Butterfingers.jpg|left|200px|thumb|We are ready… Sure, we are ready… We need only an ice-box… and, maybe, a little sewing machine…]]
Meanwhile, on a suburban street, [[Alexis Thi Dang|Alexis]] and [[Carlos Lopez|Carlos]] are waiting patiently for [[Rad White|Rad]] to arrive. He turns up carrying three backpacks stuffed with camping supplies, and the trio continue on to the Autobot base, where the Autobots are still trying to activate the [[Mini-Con storage panel|Mini-Con panel]] they found in [[Antarctica]]. As Hot Shot notes with amusement the amount of equipment the kids have brought, the alarm goes off to notify them that another Mini-Con has been detected. The kids accompany the Autobots to a forest. Hot Shot sends Jolt up to take a look around, and the Mini-Con soon spots a glint of light in the distance. Optimus orders that they move out, and Hot Shot transforms to vehicle mode, but, as Red Alert points out, they're going to have to walk. Optimus leaves his [[trailer]] behind with [[Sparkplug (Armada)|Sparkplug]] in charge.

[[Image:Jungle-Slapstick.jpg|right|200px|thumb|"Mind that tree." "What tree?" *thwack*]]
Soon the Autobots are trudging through the forest with Hot Shot complaining loudly. He breaks out a buzzsaw to cut his way through, which earns a scolding from his companions. Carlos alerts them to a path ahead and, sure enough, there's a wide path where the trees have been cleared. As they drive along, Rad tells the others that the path has been cut by illegal loggers and delivers a lecture on the importance of plants to Earth's biosphere.

Elsewhere the Decepticons are also heading towards the Mini-Con, and, of course, bickering. Starscream is determined to get the Mini-Con himself, having missed out on the one in Antarctica.

[[Image:Jungle-Forest Fire.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Spoiler Alert: BAMBI'S MOTHER DIES!!]]
The Autobots abruptly halt as a tree falls across their path and they find themselves face-to-face with the Decepticons. Although the Decepticons open fire, Optimus is concerned for the welfare of the trees and orders his men not to fire back unless they have a clear shot. Starscream and Cyclonus transform for an aerial attack and end up getting in each other's way. Cyclonus's missile then touches down amongst the trees, where it starts a fire. The alarmed kids begin shooing forest animals away from the blaze and are only saved from a falling tree by Optimus. At Rad's urging, Optimus orders the Autobots to fall back to contain the fire. The surprised Decepticons resume their search for the Mini-Con.

The Autobots fight the fire, but the kids observe that it's a losing battle and they really need water to put it out. Rad sends Laserbeak out, and the tiny Autobot soon locates a nearby lake. Red Alert says they can use Prime's trailer, so Optimus contacts Sparkplug and gets the Mini-Con to bring the trailer to them.

Meanwhile the Decepticons have located the Mini-Con panel in a huge old tree. Although Starscream asks for it, Megatron denies his request and claims it himself. Starscream doesn't dare to argue further, but he has a plan of his own...

[[Image:Jungle-Null Ray Cannon.jpg|right|200px|thumb|An airborne Decepticon attacks! Tr-r-remble ever-r-rybody-y-y!]]
Having hooked up the pipes, the Mini-Cons begin putting out the fire, and Rad lets Optimus know the Autobots can go on and stop the Decepticons. The three Autobots interrupt their foe attempting to cut down the tree the Mini-Con is perched in, and both sides clash. Starscream winds up with no enemy to fight, and seizes his chance. While the other three Decepticons are occupied, Starscream slices the tree with his sword and snatches the Mini-Con panel. Hurrah! He has a partner at last! Megatron only grits his teeth as Starscream gloats over his acquisition, revealing the Mini-Con [[Swindle (Armada)|Swindle]].

After zipping among the trees, Swindle merges with Starscream, unlocking two Null laser cannons on his shoulders. Starscream decides to demonstrate his new extraordinary power immediately. The single blast from the cannons sends both the Autobots and Decepticons flying and creates a huge crater. Promising Starscream will pay, a none-too-pleased Megatron orders a retreat. Before following his chief to warp gate, Starscream warns the 'Bots that they must not to take their eyes off him from now on. Optimus Prime figures he's right.

While the Autobots are standing around shell-shocked, the kids run up with the news that they've put the fire out. Although Rad suggests perhaps they should have left the fire and helped the Autobots obtain the Mini-Con, Optimus assured him that they did the right thing.

Back on the Moon, the Decepticons try their training simulation again, and Starscream uses his new laser cannons to obliterate the Autobot forces completely. He begins to wonder if he's stronger than Megatron himself. Megatron has a rather different opinion on the matter.
{{-}}

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Hot Shot (Armada)|Hot Shot]] (1)
*[[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]] (2)
*[[Red Alert (Armada)|Red Alert]] (3)
*[[Laserbeak (Armada)|Laserbeak]] (17)

|c2=
*[[Demolishor (Armada)|Demolishor]] (4)
*[[Starscream (Armada)|Starscream]] (5)
*[[Cyclonus (Armada)|Cyclonus]] (6)
*[[Megatron (Armada)|Megatron]] (7)

|c3=
*[[Alexis Thi Dang|Alexis]] (8)
*[[Carlos Lopez|Carlos]] (9)
*[[Rad White|Rad]] (12)

|h4=[[Mini-Con|Mini-Cons]]|c4=
*[[Grindor (Armada)|Grindor]] (10)
*[[Sureshock (Armada)|Sureshock]] (11)
*[[High Wire (Armada)|High Wire]] (13)
*[[Jolt (Armada)|Jolt]] (14)
*[[Sparkplug (Armada)|Sparkplug]] (15)
*[[Blackout (Armada)|Blackout]] (16)
*[[Swindle (Armada)|Swindle]] (17)
}}

==Quotes==

[[Image:Jungle-Not quite fist bump.jpg|right|200px|thumb|"Get away, you rusty hell-'e-copped-'er!"]]
"Megatron, please! I promise to do better if you let me have the next Mini-con!" 
"I think he's gonna start to cry! Hahahaha!"

:—'''Starscream''' and '''Cyclonus''' bickering like schoolchildren.

"You know, I really wish people would understand that the future of the human race depends on what we do to protect the environment today."

:—'''Rad''' auditions for a new series of ''Captain Planet''.

"Nothing, I was just talking to myself." 
"Keep talkin', cause no one else is listening to you any more."

:—'''Starscream''' and '''Demolisher''' bickering like schoolchildren.

"We came for the Mini-Con." 
"Not if you're going to use it for evil purposes!"

:—'''Demolisher''' and '''Optimus''', raising the question, "What if the Decepticons promised to use it strictly for good purposes?"

"I'll show them how it's done!" 
"Outta my way!" 
"Cyclonus!" 
"You're out of your league! Stand back and let a pro show you how to do some real destruction!" 
"You're blocking my target!"

:—'''Starscream''' and '''Cyclonus''' ''still'' bickering.

[[Image:Jungle-Minicon Got.jpg|right|200px|thumb|"Well, beware, you mad metal woodpecker!"]]
"Oh my, it's so easy! I must be the most powerful Decepticon in the universe! Even more powerful than Megatron! Hahahahaha!" 
"Oh, we'll just see about that, Starscream."

:—'''Starscream''', with delusions of grandeur, and '''Megatron'''.
{{-}}

==Notes==
===Differences with ''Micron Legend''===
===Animation and/or technical glitches===
*Optimus calls his Mini-con "Leader-1" again, but finally gets it right when he contacts Sparkplug to bring the trailer to them (and then Red Alert promptly refers to him as Leader-1 again).
*In the Hungarian dubbing, in the above described scene, Prime once refers to Sparkplug by Grindor's name (Daráló).

===Trivia===
*This episode totally should be named "Forest".

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2003 — ''Transformers: Micron Legend'' — Volume 2 ([[Columbia Music Entertainment]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2003 — ''Transformers: Armada'' — Vol:02 ([[Universal]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Australia.png|20px|Australia]] 2003 — ''Transformers: Armada'' — Vol:02 ([[Warner Bros.|Warner Music Video]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2004 — ''Transformers: Armada'' — Power of the Mini-Cons ([[Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2004 — ''Transformers: Armada'' — Season One: Part One (Rhino Entertainment) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2005 — ''Transformers: Armada'' — Triple Collection (Universal) 
[[Image:Flag of UK.png|20px|United Kingdom]] 2008 — ''Transformers: Armada'' — Bumper Double DVD Collection (Universal) 
[[Image:Flag of Germany.png|20px|Germany]] 2008 — ''Transformers: Armada'' — Volume One ([[New KSM]]) — English and German audio.

[[Category:Armada episodes]]

Puppet

2011-08-13T14:50:03Z

91.147.254.51: /* Animation and/or technical glitches */

{{picsneeded}}

{{episode|
|series=Armada
|ep=43
|prev=Miracle
|next=Uprising
|title="Puppet"
|japanese=怪物 (にせもの) - puppet
|romaji=Kaibutsu [Nisemono]
|translation=Monster (Counterfeit)
|image=
|caption=
|production code=TF: A-43
|production company=[[TV Tokyo]], [[Nihon Ad Systems|NAS]]
|writer=[[Ryō Motohira]]
|director=[[Masayuki Motsumoto]]
|animation studio=[[Actas Inc.]]
|airdate=[[September 19]], [[2003]] (English) [[October 24|24 October]] [[2003]] (Japanese)
|continuity=[[Unicron Trilogy]]
}}

'''Autobots and Decepticons land on a mysterious planet where there's an evil version of Optimus.'''

==Synopsis==
On the bridge of [[Hydra Cannon|his ship]], Megatron blogs to himself about how happy he is that Optimus is alive again, which confuses his minions.

On top of the hull of the ''[[Axalon (Armada)|Axalon]]'', Optimus gets reintroduced to his crew, and the [[Mini-Con]]s escorting the ship. But the welcoming party is cut short by an electrical space anomaly that suddenly appeared in the ship's path. Hot Shot and Red Alert are pulled into the hole, which fades away.

On a strange alien landscape, Hot Shot and Red Alert reawaken. Red Alert quickly acts responsibly and sends a beacon to the Autobot ship. Next, the two survey the irregular terrain they arrived in. A dark copy of Optimus Prime assaults and chases the two.

Elsewhere, the [[Decepticon]]s begin their hunt on the planet for their enemies. Their attention is brought to the noise of the Autobots' fight. The three Decepticons transform to assist the black scourge who introduces himself as Nemesis Prime. Using an amazing ability to alter his own shape, Nemesis Prime turns on Megatron, holding the Decepticon leader in the air.

The Decepticons and Autobots both fight against Nemesis Prime, but the battle quickly comes down to Megatron resorting to the use of the [[Requiem Blaster]]. The resulting explosion destroys the Prime-doppleganger and damages the Autobots.

In space, the Mini-Cons guide the Autobot ship to the planet with their two missing friends.

Megatron prepares to finish off both Autobots. Starscream interjects, suggesting using the Autobots as captives. Megatron buys Starscream's disguised compassion. Nemesis Prime re-forms from fragments on the ground and battles the Decepticons again, this time with [[Vorpal Saber|a sword]], but the arrival of Mini-Cons takes the menace down. Before they leave again, the Mini-Cons bathe the gathered bulks in energy, repairing them and giving the large Transformers as well as themselves [[spontaneous recoloration|new colors]] and a boost in power.

The ''Axalon'' arrives over the planet, dropping Optimus and Overload onto the surface. A giant Nemesis Prime emerges from the ground for a third attempt at destroying the Transformers. When Optimus and Megatron combine their ordnance, the creature finally dies, revealing a brief transparent image of [[Sideways (RID)|Sideways]] before vanishing. With Nemesis Prime destroyed, the planet begins to disintegrate, and so the Autobots and Decepticons return to their ships and continue on their voyage to [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]].

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]] (3)
*[[Scavenger (Armada)|Scavenger]] (4)
*[[Red Alert (Armada)|Red Alert]] (5)
*[[Hot Shot (Armada)|Hot Shot]] (14)
*[[Blurr (Armada)|Blurr]] (15)
*[[Side Swipe (Armada)|Sideswipe]] (16)
*[[Smokescreen (Armada)|Hoist]] (17)
*[[Jetfire (Armada)|Jetfire]] (28)
*[[Overload (Armada)|Overload]] (29)

|c2=
*[[Thrust (Armada)|Thrust]] (6)
*[[Megatron (Armada)|Megatron/Galvatron]] (7)
*[[Cyclonus (Armada)|Cyclonus]] (12)
*[[Demolishor (Armada)|Demolishor]] (13)
*[[Starscream (Armada)|Starscream]] (21)
*[[Tidal Wave (Armada)|Tidal Wave]] (22)

|c3=
*[[Carlos Lopez]] (8)
*[[Fred (Armada)|Fred]] (9)
*[[Alexis Thi Dang|Alexis]] (10)
*[[Rad White]] (11)
*[[Billy (Armada)|Billy]] (18)

|h4=[[Mini-Con]]s|c4=
*[[Sparkplug (Armada)|Sparkplug]] (1)
*[[Perceptor (Armada)|Perceptor]] (2)
*[[Blackout (Armada)|Blackout]] (23)
*[[Jolt (Armada)|Jolt]] (24)
*[[Longarm (Armada)|Longarm]] (25)
*[[Leader-1 (Armada)|Leader-1]] (26)
*[[Swindle (Armada)|Swindle]] (27)

|c5=
*[[Nemesis Prime (Armada)|Nemesis Prime]] (20)
*[[Sideways (RID)|Sideways]] (30)
}}

==Quotes==
"I got kinda banged up and it looks like I sustained some collateral damage."
:—'''Red Alert''' gives Hot Shot an enigmatic damage report.

"Nemesis Prime will... destroy!"
:—'''Nemesis Prime'''

"This fighting must end."
:—'''Longarm'''

"I look like.... Thundercracker."
:—'''Starscream'''

"As Galvatron, I have even more power!"
:—'''Meg-err, Galvatron'''

==Notes==
===Differences with ''Micron Legend''===

*Starscream, upon gaining his super mode, just wonders what is up with the different colours on his mode. He makes no references to Thundercracker.

===Animation and/or technical glitches===
*Due to its use of stock footage, Tidal Wave's sudden appearance to combine with Megatron depicts blue (ie: Earth) skies behind him rather than the green skies of the strange planet.
*Nemesis Prime cuts Demolishor's blasters with his Sword, but when he turns around to confront Starscream, Demolishor's blasters are intact.
*In the scene where we get a full view of Optimus and Overload, Optimus has the tracks of his trailer painted as if they were tires.
*In the Hungarian dub, the narrator mistakenly refers to Sparkplug by Incinerator's name. Later, when Hot Shot recognizes the form of Sideways rising from Nemsis Prime, he gasps Side Swipe's name.

===Continuity errors===
* None known.

===Real-world references===
* None known.

===Trivia===
*The English version of "Puppet" aired in Canada first. It aired in the United States on [[November 7]], [[2003]].
*Jetfire only appears in a single wide shot of the bridge that is reused several times throughout the episode. He has no dialogue.
*The intro to the episode has a unique narration that mentions the kids, which flows into a recap of [[Miracle|the last episode]].
*Nemesis Prime has a trailer in the animation, the toy does not.
*Why couldn't Prime have arrived on the planet seconds before the Mini-Con and received his [[Powerlinx]] colors like the rest of the Transformers with Powerlinx colors? Only Stephen Colbert knows, and he's not telling.
*Overload's sudden appearance was on the "to-do" list of things to be explained in the [[Linkage (comic)|Linkage]] series, but there was never time for it. So all we can infer is that it's a big weapon set that for whatever reason Prime was unable to bring to battle before.

==Home video releases==
{{homevidnote}}
;DVD
[[Image:Flag of Japan.png|20px|Japan]] 2004 — ''Transformers: Micron Legend'' — Volume 11 ([[Columbia Music Entertainment]]) — Japanese audio only. 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2004 — ''Transformers: Armada'' — Best Of The Decepticons ([[Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of USA.png|20px|United States of America]] 2006 — ''Transformers: Armada'' — Season One: Part Two ([[Rhino Entertainment]]) 
[[Image:Flag of Germany.png|20px|Germany]] 2009 — ''Transformers: Armada'' — Volume Two ([[New KSM]]) — English and German audio.

[[Category:Armada episodes]]

Circuit Breaker (G1)

2011-08-13T14:14:53Z

91.147.254.51: /* Foreign names */

{{disambig2|a girl who hates machines|a girl who loves machines|Sephie Beller}}
:''Circuit Breaker is a [[human]] from the [[Marvel Comics]] portion of the [[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]] [[continuity family]].''

[[Image:Circuitbreaker.jpg|right|250px|thumb|When giant space robots aren't enough to bring in readers, you throw in some tin-foil-covered T&A.]]
'''Circuit Breaker''' is a villain whose pathological hatred of robots knows no bounds. She refuses to make the distinction between [[Autobot]] and [[Decepticon]], blaming the Transformer race as a whole for the attack which left her crippled. As such, she is more likely to do harm to the Autobot cause than to be of assistance.

Circuit Breaker was genius '''Josie Beller'''. Hired by [[Blackrock Industries]] only a few years out of high school, she was responsible for designing the most advanced oil-drilling platform in the world. Despite her well-publicized technological achievements, Beller was humble; to her, it was merely part of her job. She continues to be extremely devoted to her employer, [[G.B. Blackrock]].

But after being paralyzed during a Decepticon attack on the platform, she invented a uniform to enable her to walk again. Her computerized suit not only allows her to move, but grants her the power to shoot electricity, disrupt circuitry, and fly. This costume does not cover much of her body, but having the power to manipulate electricity gives you a good defense against inappropriate catcalls.

{{quote|You see, I don't call myself Circuit Breaker for nothing... '''it's what I do!'''|Circuit Breaker|"[[The Human Factor!]]"}}

==Fiction==
===Marvel Comics continuity===
{{noteukonly}}
[[Image:Josiebeller.jpg|left|200px|thumb|She used to be ''adorable''.]]
After Josie Beller appeared on the news {{storylink|The New Order|The New Order}}, her life took a tragic turn when the Decepticon [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] attacked the oil-drilling platform that the news report was showcasing. Beller, who was operating the defense systems, fired harpoons at Shockwave. As Shockwave reeled in pain, he yanked away from the rig, ripping out the harpoon launchers, which, as a chain reaction of debris fell through the construct, caused the electrical systems to malfunction. Josie Beller was electrocuted. This paralyzed her entirely from the neck down, other than the ability to use her right arm. {{storylink|The Worse of Two Evils!}}

[[Image:WorseofTwoEvils-frrrzzz.jpg|right|thumb|200px|You will see this panel redrawn in every single one of her appearances.]]

Hospitalized, Beller blamed herself. She told Blackrock that she had failed him, and swore she would make it up to him. Blackrock tried to explain that Beller owed him nothing, but she would not listen to him. Her devotion was, perhaps, pathological. She hated robots, she hated what they did to Blackrock Industries, and she hated them for paralyzing her.

Blackrock sought to equip himself better against attacks from the Transformers. Soon, he planned to unveil a new secret weapon to the press, the [[Anti-Robot Photonic Multi-Cannon]]. Josie Beller broke into Blackrock's office and disrobed, revealing an electrical costume which allowed her to move again. She declared her name to now be Circuit Breaker. The next day, when Blackrock unveiled the Anti-Robot Photonic Multi-Cannon to the press, it had been sabotaged by Circuit Breaker. She wished for Blackrock to introduce her as the real weapon he had intended to announce all along. But then, the Decepticons [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] and [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] arrived, intent on stealing the cannon, while [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] and [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] arrived to stop them. Circuit Breaker's hatred did not distinguish between Autobot and Decepticon and attacked both. However, as the Autobots refused to attack humans, both Jazz and Wheeljack suffered heavily from her electrical attacks. Blackrock pleaded to her, demanding she realize that not all robots were her enemy. She again refused to listen. In need of a recharge, she left, vowing to return to finish the job she started. {{storylink|DIS-Integrated Circuits!}}

''Still fuming and wanting revenge on all Transformers, Circuit Breaker witnessed a girl playing with her friends fall through the ice. She used her power over electricity to melt the ice to get her out, but her heart had stopped. She defibrillated her heart using her powers, saving her life. But the adult present was unappreciative, calling her a freak and telling her to leave. This made her even more angry at the Transformers for causing her injuries. As she was flying away, she witnessed Jazz loose control on the icy roads which caused Buster to fall in the snow. Circuit Breaker thought Jazz was attacking Buster and came to his aid, destroying Jazz's gun and getting ready to finish him off. Buster pleaded with her to spare him since they were friends. Just then the clock struck twelve. Since it was now Christmas day, Circuit Breaker gave Jazz his second reprieve and flew off.'' {{storylink|Christmas Breaker!}}

[[Image:AerialbotsoverAmerica-soswearsCircuitBreaker.jpg|left|thumb|250px|You're jealous. Admit it.]]
The anti-Transformers military task force, [[Rapid Anti-robot Assault Team|RAAT]], hired Circuit Breaker to head their agency. Their first triumph was capturing seven Autobots who had found themselves recently stranded on Earth. Circuit Breaker ordered their faces mounted on the walls of RAAT headquarters. {{storylink|Aerialbots over America!}} She analyzed footage of RAAT's victory with [[Walter Barnett]], who praised her efficiency, but expressed doubts about the Transformers' intentions. As Barnett handed her a bonus check, Circuit Breaker refused, reminding him that she didn't do this for the money, but for revenge.

Later, Barnett showed her the news, which was reporting that a robot had lifted power lines off of the road to save humans. He hoped this would impress on her, but she refused to even consider the evidence; all this meant was that there was another robot to hunt. She and a team of RAAT helicopters found the target robot, an Autobot named [[Skids (G1)|Skids]], on the run from the [[Stunticon (G1)|Stunticons]]. The Stunticons made short work of the helicopters, but Circuit Breaker was able to divert some of them with her electrical powers. [[Motormaster (G1)|Motormaster]], however, was able to knock her out of the air by throwing a truck cab at her. Skids' human companion, [[Donny Finkleberg]], ran to see if she was okay, but she pleaded for him to leave the battlefield lest he be hurt. When the [[Aerialbot (G1)|Aerialbot]]s arrived, and they and the Stunticons battled as the super robots [[Superion (G1)|Superion]] and [[Menasor (G1)|Menasor]], Circuit Breaker made her move. Despite Finkleberg's pleas that Superion was one of the good guys, Circuit Breaker fried Superion, putting him out of commission. Skids, Finkleberg, and the Stunticons fled, while RAAT took custody of their prize. {{storylink|Heavy Traffic!}}

Though Finkleberg liked the Autobots, he liked money more, and he turned Skids in to RAAT for a hefty $50,000 reward. Circuit Breaker dissected and examined the robots in her care in order to learn more about how to destroy them. By then, she had amassed thirteen robots, and she continued to hang their faces on her wall. Soon, Walter Barnett came to Circuit Breaker's lab to inform her of a wave of vandalism perpetrated by a pair of Decepticon [[Battlecharger]]s. She, Finkleberg, and RAAT arrived at Washington Monument, in [[Washington, D.C.]], moments after it was vandalized, and she questioned a family there that believed that their son's actions had inspired the Decepticons. Suspecting that the Decepticons were following the family, she accompanied them to their next vacation spot, Independence Hall in [[Philadelphia]], [[Pennsylvania]]. Her suspicions were correct, they encountered the Battlechargers there. Unfortunately, RAAT was forced to retreat due to the large number of people, and Circuit Breaker herself was hurt badly while protecting the vandalizing boy from falling debris.

[[Image:MarvelUS23 Autobot suit.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Great, she just voided the Aerialbots' warranties.]]
Suffering a cracked rib and a mild concussion, Circuit Breaker was ordered to rest, but when she refused to listen, she was temporarily stripped of her command. Finkleberg, who was feeling guilty for having turned in Skids, convinced Circuit Breaker that the only way to stop the wave of vandalism was to team up with the captured Autobots. In exchange for their freedom, she assembled the thirteen Autobots into a [[Circuit Breaker's Autobot suit|mega robot]] which she controlled. Circuit Breaker and her robot suit fought the Battlechargers next to the [[Statue of Liberty]] in [[New York City]], resulting in the Decepticons' defeat. (Though she wondered why her robot suit would use its arms to deflect shots away from her.) True to her word, she freed the thirteen Autobots, though this resulted in RAAT firing her. Once again she swore she would make the robots pay. {{storylink|Decepticon Graffiti!}}

[[Image:MonsterconfromMars-CircuitBreaker.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Nice, um, crew cut?]]
Left to her own devices, Circuit Breaker silently stalked the Transformers from behind the scenes. Instead of parading around in her near-naked costume 24/7, she devised a wheelchair that housed her suit until it was necessary, and took to wearing a trenchcoat over her (presumably) naked body. From afar, she watched [[Sky Lynx (G1)|Sky Lynx]] return children to their parents, but the risk to civilians there was too high to get involved. Meanwhile, she had also taken an interest in [[Skullgrin]], a ram-headed monster who had become a B-movie sensation. In order to learn more about the creature, she befriended actress [[Carissa Carr]]. She succeeded in putting on a sympathetic face and fell into the actress's confidence, and Carr permitted Circuit Breaker to intrude on the filming of her movies with Skullgrin. While filming a the [[Grand Canyon]], Circuit Breaker observed Skullgrin revealing to Carr that he was actually a Decepticon robot, confirming Circuit Breaker's suspicions. She attacked Skullgrin, while the camera crew filmed the encounter. Skullgrin believed that Carr had betrayed his location to his attacker. Circuit Breaker was able to override Skullgrin's command over his own Pretender shell, turning it on him, but this resulted in Carr being in danger. As the cliffside collapsed under Carr, Circuit Breaker realized that if she continued fighting the Transformer and allowed Carr to die, she'd be no better than the Transformer who crippled her. Instead, she implored Skullgrin to save the actress, telling him that Carr had never betrayed his friendship. Despite this moment, Circuit Breaker quickly turned her powers back on Skullgrin once Carr was safe. Fortunately for everyone else, this battle had drained her powers, and she fled, but not before destroying the film crew's footage. {{storylink|Monstercon from Mars!}}

[[Image:HumanFactor-CircuitBreaker.jpg|right|thumb|300px|"I am Circuit Breaker! I am only good for one thing... '''CLEAVAGE!'''"]]
Circuit-Breaker approached [[Dynamo|Hector Dialonzo (AKA Dynamo)]], a superhuman with the power to draw energy from the Earth, after he wiped out the [[Air Strike Patrol]]; she hoped he would join her in a campaign against robots. By this point her mental state had deteriorated further, to the point she referred to Josie Beller as being "dead" and that she had been "built for" the task of destroying robots. She battled Starscream and clashed with Blackrock and [[Thunderpunch|his]] [[Rapture|superhumans]] before Dialonzo decided he'd rather go with Blackrock than her. Blackrock then offered her a place on the team, guilty that he'd never truly reached out to her before and telling her she was becoming more emotionless than the robots. Rattled by the thought, she went off with them. {{storylink|The Human Factor!}}

[[Image:Neo-knights.jpg|left|thumb|250px|"I'm the Wolverine!" "No, I'm the Wolverine!" "I had firsties!"]]
When a Decepticon Civil War broke out in [[New Jersey (Earth)|New Jersey]] and threatened to spread out into a place that actually mattered, [[New York City]], the [[President of the United States]] called on Blackrock's "[[Neo-Knights]]" to quell the insurrection. {{storylink|...All This and Civil War 2}} At first [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]] laughed at the efforts of these super-powered humans, but he quickly found himself overwhelmed first by Dynamo, then Rapture, and finally by Circuit Breaker herself. But as Scorponok was very important to [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Optimus Prime]]'s attempts at reaching an Autobot/Decepticon alliance, he had assigned Nightbeat to keep the Decepticon leader safe. Nightbeat yelled at Circuit Breaker to stop killing Scorponok, and, as luck would have it, that happened just as Shockwave shot Circuit Breaker in the back. Though Nightbeat disavowed the blame, Circuit Breaker turned on him, believing again that there were no good robots or bad robots... just dead robots! After leaving a fried Nightbeat collapsed on the ground, she turned her efforts towards Optimus Prime. Blackrock's pleas for her to direct her rage elsewhere were useless, until he recognized Shockwave as the robot who had paralyzed Circuit Breaker in the first place. And, after he redirected her attention, so did Circuit Breaker. She hit Shockwave with everything she had and, out of power and out of consciousness, fell from the sky. {{storylink|Out of Time!}}

Thunderpunch carried her comatose body into the helicopter that brought them there, but before they could leave, the Neo-Knights and all Earthbound Transformers were all transported to the planet [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] by their creator [[Primus]]. This was a mistake, as their helicopter was in contact with Nightbeat's body, inadvertantly bringing them along for the ride. They stood and watched Primus speak to the Transformers about their cosmological history and how they must unite and defeat the Chaos-Bringer, [[Unicron]]. {{storylink|The Void! (US)|The Void!}}

[[Image:Circuitbreakervsunicron.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Who needs the Matrix when you got Scary Angry Chick?]]
Sure enough, Unicron arrived shortly thereafter, and the Neo-Knights fled best they could in the face of the planet-sized robot. Thunderpunch, who was carrying Circuit Breaker, noted that running wasn't solving anything. Instead, he felt they should be helping Circuit Breaker, who was having something of a nervous breakdown due to not only being on a planet full of robots but also up against one as large as Unicron. Thunderpunch believed that they would be best served helping Circuit Breaker to face her fears and redirect them properly.

As the Neo-Knights tried their best against Unicron, G.B. Blackrock tried to talk Circuit Breaker back into sanity, but instead she cried, whimpering that Unicron was "too big" and there were "too many." Having run out of other options, Blackrock slapped her across her face and told her the robots were ''laughing'' at her, hoping to make her lash out. Thankfully, it worked, and an enraged (more than usual) Circuit Breaker used her powers to ''set Unicron's circuits on fire''. While the Dark God was distracted, Blackrock implored Optimus Prime to use this moment to end their nemesis once and for all: he'd just bought the Autobots a chance with Josie's sanity. As Optimus Prime reclaimed the [[Creation Matrix]], Circuit Breaker's sanity and will gave out, and she fell comatose. {{storylink|On the Edge of Extinction!}}

Though Unicron was destroyed, the damage he inflicted on Cybertron was too great, and the Transformers readied transports to leave the planet. The Neo-Knights were put inside a storage box for shipping back home. Here, Blackrock did his best to apologize to Circuit Breaker for what he had done to her. {{storylink|Exodus!}} While the Neo-Knights would go on to have a quest for the [[Last Autobot]] alongside Optimus (stuck in the form of the [[Nebulan]] [[Hi-Q]]) and both saved the planet {{storylink|Vicious Circle!}} {{storylink|The Last Autobot?}} and helped in the [[Klo]] battle, Circuit-Breaker remained in a catatonic state.

And never recovered. The end! {{storylink|End of the Road! (US)|End of the Road!}}

==Notes==
[[Image:SecretWarsII-Circuitbreaker.jpg|right|thumb|300px|"I sense you are a petty human with petty desires!"]]
* As well as single-handedly distracting Unicron, thus allowing Optimus Prime to save the day, Circuit Breaker is also directly and solely responsible for saving the entire Marvel universe from the Beyonder, in ''[[wikipedia:Secret Wars II|Secret Wars II]]''. At the request of [[Bob Budiansky]], she was published in that book before her debut in ''Transformers'' solely so Marvel Comics could claim ownership of the character[http://bwtf.com/interviews/bb204/]... or at least, she appeared as ''Circuit Breaker'' in ''Secret Wars II'' before ''Transformers'', as Josie Beller she'd already turned up. "Circuit Breaker" is the trademark, so this probably makes sense for lawyers, but it gives ''us'' a headache.
* Writer [[Bob Budiansky]] is responsible for designing Circuit Breaker's costume. His original character design for her is published in [[Titan Books|Titan]]'s ''[[Maximum Force]]'' collection. (The character design's circuitry pattern is very closely copied in the image at the top of this article.) It suggests either red or blue for her circuitry patterns and some kind of yellowish hair. She has blue eyes.
* Jay Jay Jackson was used as a visual reference[http://www.jimshooter.com/2011/06/few-video-anecdotes.html] for Circuit Breaker, including the hair[http://flic.kr/p/9QjBGD].
* Colorist [[Nel Yomtov]]'s trouble keeping Josie's hair color consistent might be due to Budiansky's flexible character art notation. She starts out with bright red hair, changes to orange, then later appears platinum blonde, then back to orange!
* Somehow, Josie was going to have her mind fixed and become part of the [[Simon Furman|Furman]]/[[Andrew Wildman|Wildman]]''Techno-X'' series, a reworked Neo-Knights in the early 90s. The series fell through, however.
* [[Titan Books]] earlier reprints had been able to use Circuit Breaker for a small fee, as nobody at Marvel was bothered at the time: after all, who'd want to read old Transformers comics, eh? Years later, Marvel figured out "many people" and it wasn't until [[Classic Transformers Volume 5]] that [[IDW Publishing|IDW]] had the rights to reprint issues with Circuit Breaker in: before then, all stories featuring Circuit Breaker were replaced with text summaries.
* [[Shattered Glass (franchise)|Shattered Glass]] has a technology-loving [[Sephie Beller|''Sephie'' Beller]]. Don't tell Marvel!

===Foreign names===
*''Hungarian:'' '''Áramkör-szaggató''' ("Circuit-tearer")
*''Portuguese:'' '''Disjuntora''' (Portugal comics), '''Rompe-Circuitos''' (Brazil comics)

==External links==
* [http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix/circuitb.htm Circuit Breaker] at the (unofficial) [http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix/ Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe]

[[Category:Comic-only characters]]
[[Category:Generation 1 humans]]
[[Category:Marvel properties]]
[[Category:Superheroes]]
[[Category:Supervillains]]

Longarm (Movie)

2011-08-12T20:53:25Z

91.147.254.51: Added the word "carefully" to the mis-assembly repair's description. When I tried it, the hook's hinge broke to bits.

{{factions|autobotfilm|decepticonfilm|NEST}}
{{disambig3|Longarm}}
:''Longarm is an [[Autobot]] and a mass-produced drone-unit from the [[Movie (franchise)|2007 movie franchise]] of the [[Live-action film series|live-action film]] [[continuity family]].''

[[Image:Longarm-gamedrone.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Stop draggin' my, stop draggin' my, stop draggin' my car arouuuund!]]
'''Longarm''' is a chummy, nice, all around guy. "It never hurts to help" is his creed, and he enjoys working on protecting, repairing, and saving. After all, that's why he's an Autobot. He's almost too nice... he just can't figure out [[Decepticon|Decepticons]] at all. To be that [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|angry]], [[Dreadwing (Movie)|mean]], [[Starscream (Movie)|treacherous]], [[Megatron (Movie)|destructive]], or [[Dropkick|emo]], it all just seems like a huge waste of energy and time. But so long as he can protect his friends, and make them smile, then he can smile right back.

There's also units of drones that convert into tow-trucks of the same name. Both the Autobot and Decepticon armies make use of these drones, which are solid, dependable fighters, and can be particularly dangerous.

==Fiction==
===Titan Magazines ''Transformers'' movie comics===
{{note|The following events occur in an alternate timeline/continuity where Megatron won the battle of Mission City.}}
In an alternate reality where the Decepticons conquered Earth, Longarm was part of the Autobot reinforcements. He understandably thought they were a wee bit doomed, unsure of how they were expected to defeat the vast Decepticon legions. {{storylink|Twilight's Last Gleaming, Part: 1}} Nevertheless, he joined the others in landing on Earth, but in the battle at Savannah, Georgia, he was gunned down by the [[Payload (Movie)|drone hordes]]. {{storylink|Twilight's Last Gleaming, Part: 4}} His unmoving body had to be removed from the Decepticon facility by Ironhide. {{storylink|Twilight's Last Gleaming, Part: 5}}

Once repaired, he joined the other Autobots in constant defensive actions against the Decepticons, including protecting San Diego alongside Ironhide. {{storylink|Dark Spark}}

When the Autobots were fully mobilized to Cybertron to secure [[Nucleon]], Longarm showed he'd developed heavy pessimism after his series of ordeals, grimly stating that it was likely the Nucleon was used up by the Decepticons and Earth was doomed. He was made pilot of the ''[[Straxus (Movie)|Straxus]]'', and found out Earth ''was'' doomed when [[Unicron]] teleported into the solar system and shot the Straxus down... {{storylink|Return to Cybertron: Part 3}}

After Earth was not-doomed, Longarm was briefly seen entering the Autobot ship as they were ordered off Earth. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 23|Revolution Part 1}}

===IDW ''Transformers'' movie comics===
Following the destruction of [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]] and the [[AllSpark]] in [[Mission City]], [[Sector Seven]] took custody of the inactive Longarm and [[Salvage (Movie)|Salvage]] during cleanup operations. {{Storylink|Alliance issue 1|Alliance #1}} They were taken to a secret base in the [[Nevada]] desert. {{storylink|The Reign of Starscream issue 3|The Reign of Starscream #3}}

===''The Veiled Threat'' prequel novel===
{{Note|The events of ''The Veiled Threat'' take place during [[IDW Publishing]]'s ''[[Alliance (comic)|Alliance]]'' comic.}}
Longarm was a grizzled old veteran from Cybertron who joined the [[Earth]]-bound Autobots and was mentored in integrating with Earthen ways by [[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]]. He enjoyed some time outside in his robot mode while hanging out with [[Kaminari Ishihara]] on a [[Diego Garcia]] beach. Left out of the [[Zambia]] mission, Longarm and [[Knock Out (ROTF)|Knockout]] hung out in a parking area, and Longarm tried to cool his younger companion's irritation at being denied action, while using his headlights to play with a feral cat.

The pair got their chance at action later, when they were sent to [[Peru]] with [[Robert Epps|Epps]] and [[Petr Andronov]] to investigate some Decepticon activity. On arrival, Longarm had to physically restrain Knockout while Epps persuaded the smaller Autobot that his choice of holoavatar was inappropriate for the time period. When local [[NEST]] contact [[Pierre Morales]] was worried [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]] might be around somewhere, Longarm assured him it was unlikely.

The next day, the NEST team went on the road out of Cuzco and through the Andes, with Longarm taking the rear. Knockout raced ahead briefly and returned with Decepticons in pursuit. Longarm was almost blasted off the side of the mountain, only just catching the side with his finger tips and clambering back up. After saving Epps from a similar fall, he delivered a slap to Knockout and told him off for racing ahead. They were soon set upon by [[Ruination (ROTF)|Ruination]]. Longarm jumped on the larger Decepticon's back and pummeled him, while the rest of the team found themselves fighting [[Blademaster]]. After Blademaster sustained a critical amount of damage and plunged to the ground far below, Ruination threw Longarm against the cliff face and moved in to finish him off, but was stopped by Knockout. Ruination retreated, and Longarm thanked Knockout and apologized for striking him earlier. Knockout, for his part, agreed racing ahead had been a mistake and said it wouldn't happen again. With the two Autobots damaged and the Decepticons unlikely to return, the NEST team drove back to Cuzco.

Longarm was later on the NEST mission to [[Rome]], but didn't take part in any combat, perhaps due to the damage he'd sustained in Peru. {{storylink|The Veiled Threat}}

===Toy bios===
{{notemoviebio}}
Longarm was brought to life by the [[AllSpark]] during the battle of [[Mission City]]. Just minutes old, Longarm, driven by [[Mikaela Banes]], came to the aid of [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]] who was injured and lost the use of his legs. He drove Bumblebee down the streets of Mission City while Bumblebee continued the battle against the Decepticons. {{storylink|#FinalStand|Final Stand toy bio}}

As one of the "two newest Autobot recruits on Earth", Longarm joined [[Breakaway (ROTF)|Breakaway]] in hunting down [[Sideways (ROTF)|Sideways]] and [[Rampage (ROTF)|Rampage]]. While Breakaway fought Rampage, Longarm went after Sideways, chasing him through the streets in vehicle mode. The result of this battle is unknown. {{storylink|#StrikeMission|Autobot Strike Mission toy bio}}

===IDW ''Dark of the Moon'' comics===
Salvage and Longarm, both now sapient Transformers, were on a covert [[NEST]] patrol in [[China]] and broke cover to save lives... only to get killed by the arriving [[Shockwave (Movie)|Shockwave]]. {{storylink|Rising Storm issue 1}}

==Games==
===''Battle for the Allspark'' online game===
[[Image:Longarm head.jpg|left|125px|thumb|Longarm units can be either Autobot (top) or Decepticon (bottom)]]
Longarm units have good Attack & Defense capabilities, but little on speed. The two sides' drones are differentiated by little more than the make of their noggins; Autobot versions use a facemask-with-optics model, while Decepticons have a lens-head version. {{Storylink|Battle for the Allspark}}

===''Transformers: The Game''===
Longarms are particularly dangerous foes that appear many times against both Autobot and Decepticon. They are capable of swinging the tow-arms on their backs in a wide circle, extending their wrecker-hooks, which results in a devastating slam attack that can send even the larger Transformers sprawling. Since they are also shielded against ''most'' artillery in robot mode, this attack can only be interrupted by hurling something at them.

Aside from the previously mentioned facial differences, Autobot Longarms are white with blue detailing while Decepticon versions are white with yellow detailing. {{Storylink|Transformers The Game (console)|Transformers The Game}}

{{-}}

==Toys==
===Transformers (2007)===
[[Image:Movie_Deluxe_Longarm.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Destined to be done in green and orange.]]
*'''Longarm''' (Deluxe, 2007)
**''Japanese ID number'': '''MA-15'''
**''Accessories:'' Missile

: Longarm transforms into a Ford F-350 tow truck, capable of towing another toy thanks to his hook-arm. This arm becomes a hand-held "quagma cannon" spring-loaded missile launcher in robot mode that is affixed to his right hand via a screw. The missile launcher can also be used in vehicle mode, as a notch is cut out of the front bumper, presumably for making surprise attacks (since [[Swindle (Movie)|other]] drone characters have similar weapons). There is a single, nigh-insignificant [[automorph]] feature; the emergency lights on top of the gun/tow rig are geared to fold simultaneously. This makes [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout's]] knees almost look interesting.

: Unlike all of the other "drone" toys in the line, Longarm's robot mode is totally different from the CG design developed for the game; even his head resembles neither the Autobot or Decepticon drone heads. And by "totally different," we mean "has ''[[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]]'' [[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]]'s head." Longarm's designer, [[Alex Kubalsky]], was forced to make up his own transformation scheme and robot design since Activision's reference materials had not arrived in time. When it eventually did, he altered the chest and arms of his toy design to more closely match the game design. Obviously, he left the head alone.

:The gun is not meant to be removable, but is easily unscrewed. The loose gun won't fit on the right hand without the screw, but will peg into the left hand via the connection used to hold the gun/crane steady in vehicle mode. The figure is still capable of full transformation and the loose crane fits tightly in vehicle mode. It is however difficult to transform him while keeping the loose gun attached to his left hand.

: Longarm features a minor mis-assembly problem, in that the strut between the crane section and the hook itself is reversed. It is easily fixed by carefully popping off the hook and turning it around, then unscrewing the crane part and flipping the strut. This allows the gun to fit together much better, as depicted on the packaging.

:This mold was redecoed into ''[[Revenge of the Fallen (toyline)|Revenge of the Fallen]]'' [[Hoist (Movie)|Hoist]].

{{-}}
{{anchor|TowedToSafety}}
[[Image:Movie TowedtoSafety toys.jpg|300px|thumb|Even if you're an Autobot, [[Tow-Line (RID)|no parking means no parking]].]]
*'''Towed to Safety''' (Multi-pack, UK 2007)
**''Accessories:'' Missile

: This set, available in the UK in 2007, features an unaltered Deluxe class Longarm figure and a Deluxe class 1976 Camaro [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]] figure. The window box features a diorama background of the battle in [[Mission City]] that was also used in the Bumblebee Vs. [[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]] pack.

{{-}}
{{anchor|FinalStand}}
[[Image:Movie ScreenBattles FinalStand1.jpg|right|300px|thumb|I'll shoot, you drive!]]
*'''Final Stand''' (Screen Battles, 2007)
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''SB-02'''
**''Accessories:'' Missile

: This ''Screen Battles'' pack comes with a Longarm figure redecoed in the same paint job as the tow truck [[Mikaela Banes]] uses to tow Bumblebee to safety. The "Orson's Towing" markings have been replaced by the "Mike's Towing" markings seen on the actual truck used in the movie. Longarm's interior features a non-removable figurine of Mikaela where the driver's seat would be, plugged into one of the screw holes in the dashboard piece. The pack comes with a battle-damaged posable Bumblebee figure similar to the Robot Replicas toy.

:This set comes in a special window box featuring a diorama background of the battle in [[Mission City]].

{{-}}

===Revenge of the Fallen===
{{anchor|StrikeMission}}
[[Image:ROTFAutobotStrikeMission.jpg|thumb|300px]]
*'''Autobot Strike Mission''' (Deluxe class figure multipack, 2009)
**''Accessories:'' Missile

:Available as a [[Sam's Club]]-[[exclusive]], Longarm was packed with ''Revenge of the Fallen'' [[Breakaway (ROTF)|Breakaway]], [[Rampage (ROTF)|Rampage]] and a "battle damaged" version of [[Sideways (ROTF)|Sideways]].

{{-}}

==Merchandise==
===3D Battle-Card Game===
[[Image:3DBattleCard_Longarm.jpg|thumb|right|250px|]]
* '''Longarm''' (3D Battle Card, 2007)
**''Card number:''

: In the [[3D Battle-Card Game]], the Longarm is on the Autobot side, but features the Decepticon-style head. Pieces punched out from two different cards can be assembled to form a tow-truck or a robot, while a third double-sided card gives its stats and attacks for each mode. He uses the same piece layout as [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]], just turned around in vehicle mode so the extension is in the back. This layout was also used for [[Bonecrusher (G1)|Classic Bonecrusher]] and [[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] in the "Energon Wars" expansion.

{{-}}
==Notes==
* Artist [[Ken Christiansen]] designed Longarm, along with the other new characters in the ''[[Transformers The Game]]'' and ''[[Revenge of the Fallen (video games)|Revenge of the Fallen]]'' video games. Christiansen says [http://badflipblog.blogspot.com/2009/10/tf1-tow-truck-drone-01.html on his blog] that at the time, he didn't know the tow truck character he was designing for the video game was going to become a toy, and apologises to [[TakaraTomy]] designer [[Alex Kubalsky]], who designed the Longarm toy without any reference images from [[Activision]], the publisher of the ''Transformers'' movie video games.

[[Image:Longarm movie similar.jpg|right|150px|thumb|Do I look familiar?]]
* Longarm's vehicle mode is modeled after the tow truck [[Mikaela Banes]] uses in the movie to carry the damaged Bumblebee into battle. While the markings and paint job are similar, the truck in the film is of GMC make (specifically, an older model of Topkick, similar to Ironhide's alternate mode), while the toy is modeled on a Ford F-350.

* While the movie tow truck has "Mike's Towing" on the doors, the game model and carded release of the Deluxe-class toy have "Orson's Towing" instead, a reference to ''Transformers'' design director [[Aaron Archer]]'s old screen name "ORSON" on the [http://www.tfw2005.com TFW2005.com boards], as confirmed at a [[BotCon]] panel. The Screen Battles multi-pack version returns to "Mike's" markings, however.

*Longarm's first appearance in official fiction (or a bot matching the appearance of his toy) was actually in the [[Movie Prequel issue 2|second issue]] of the ''[[Movie Prequel]]'' comics, which had him fighting in one of the flashback war scenes. Only in this brief cameo, he seemed to be a Decepticon.

*In the [[Rising Storm issue 1|first issue of ''Rising Storm'']], Longarm's head appears to be based on [[Shockwave (Animated)|''Animated'' Longarm's]]. How "ironic" that he was then killed by Shockwave a mere panels later.

==External links==
* [http://badflipblog.blogspot.com/2009/10/tf1-tow-truck-drone-01.html Longarm concepts] and [http://badflipblog.blogspot.com/2009/10/tf1-tow-truck-drone-02.html final rendering], on Ken Christiansen's blog.
* [http://www.tfu.info/2007/Autobot/Longarm/longarm.htm Longarm at TFU.info]
* [http://www.wizards.com/transformers/ 3D Battle Card Game at Wizards of the Coast]

[[Category:3D Battle-Cards]]
[[Category:AllSpark Mutations]]
[[Category:Drones]]
[[Category:Sam's Club exclusives]]
[[Category:Mass-produced Transformers]]
[[Category:Movie Autobots]]
[[Category:Movie Decepticons]]
[[Category:NEST]]
[[Category:Pilots]]
[[Category:Revenge of the Fallen Autobots]]
[[Category:Revenge of the Fallen Decepticons]]