MediaWiki - User contributions [en]

Shockwave (G1)

2011-10-17T23:20:39Z

93.75.235.114: /* Foreign names */

{{factions|decepticon|decepticong2}}
{{disambig3|Shockwave}}{{suite}}
:''Shockwave is a [[Decepticon]] from the [[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]] portion of the [[Generation 1 continuity family|continuity family of the same name]]. He was also briefly known as '''Shockblast'''.''

[[Image:Shockwavearealldead.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Transformers images don't GET much more awesome than this. Or [[The Reign of Starscream issue 1|imitated]].]]

'''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 emotion 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]]. Perhaps logic may one day dictate that the time to replace Megatron's flawed, emotion-fueled rule is at hand. After all, the only logical choice for [[Decepticon leader]] would be Shockwave himself.

As an [[Action Master]], he is [[Action Master partner|partnered]] with [[Fistfight (G1)|Fistfight]].

{{bigquote|Ultimately, I serve only one master... pure logic.|Shockwave on his true loyalties|''[[Spotlight: Shockwave]]''}}

==Fiction==
===Marvel Comics continuity===
====Generation 1====
{{noteukonly}}

''Millions of years ago, on the troubled planet Cybertron, Shockwave was the military ruler of the city-state of [[Tarn]]. Following a botched attempt by [[Vos]] to ignite war between [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] and Tarn, Tarn went to war with Vos, and both cities were destroyed by an exchange of [[Photon missile|photon missiles]]. The survivors of both cities—presumably including Shockwave—were gathered together by the ex-gladiator [[Megatron (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Megatron]], who used their bitterness towards Iacon to unite them under his control as the Decepticons.'' {{storylink|State Games}}

[[Image:Laststand-autobotsarenomore.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Shockwave shot the mini out of miniseries.]]

As Military Commander, Shockwave planned the strategy of the Decepticon assault on the [[Ark (G1)|Ark]]. After the Autobots had successfully destroyed the asteroids threatening [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], Megatron and the other Decepticons attacked the ship while Shockwave remained behind on [[Nemesis (G1)|their ship]] to pilot it and act as a potential backup. When the Ark subsequently crashed on [[Earth]], deactivating all those within, Shockwave followed the ship down, but the planet's magnetic fields caused a malfunction in his guidance systems, resulting in him landing half a world away, in the tropical Antarctic jungle known as the [[Savage Land]].

The Ark's dying computer detected Shockwave's presence on the planet, and reactivated five Autobots to combat him, rebuilding them in the shapes of the Savage Land's native dinosaurs. {{storylink|The Last Stand}} These "[[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]]" battled Shockwave, a battle that ended in permanent stalemate when [[Snarl (G1)|Snarl]] brought down the mountain that Shockwave stood upon, knocking all the combatants into a tar pit. {{storylink|Repeat Performance!}}

[[Image:Megatrong1marvelhumiliation.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Early on, Shockwave establishes the pecking order.]]

In 1984, when the rest of the Transformers aboard the Ark were awakened by a volcanic eruption, the Autobots attempted to track down their five missing comrades. A sensor drone tracked them to the Savage Land, but inadvertently wound up reactivating Shockwave, who headed straight for [[Oregon]]. He arrived just as the Autobots had claimed victory over the Decepticons, and his explosive entry saw all the weakened combatants knocked off-line. {{storylink|The Last Stand}}

Rounding up the bodies, Shockwave took control of the Ark, strung up the Autobots for spare parts, decapitated [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Optimus Prime]] and restored his fellow Decepticons back to health. This came as something of a rude shock to Megatron, who awoke to find that Shockwave had decided it was only logical for him to take over leadership of the Decepticons in light of Megatron's failure. After declaring his leadership and the superiority of Decepticons over humans, he flew off to begin his conquests. {{storylink|The New Order}}

Shockwave's first attack was on the new offshore oil-drilling platform of tycoon [[G.B. Blackrock]]. Tearing his way through the rig's defenses, he quickly secured it for use as a secondary base of operations. Unbeknownst to Shockwave, the violent attack crippled the human Josie Beller, leading to her transformation into [[Circuit Breaker]]. When Shockwave returned to the Ark, a weakened Megatron engaged him in combat for leadership. Despite his power, Megatron was soundly defeated. Shockwave dumped Megatron's broken body before the troops he had once commanded, and demanded that they vow to serve Shockwave alone. They didn't argue. Megatron grudgingly swore his fealty as well. {{storylink|The Worse of Two Evils!}}

[[Image:Repeatperformance-preparedtheprisoner.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Dammit, woman! Where's my supper?!]]

Shockwave's next attack came through [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] and [[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]], who took control of the [[Blackrock Aerospace Assembly Plant Number One]]. After Soundwave reported his success, Shockwave traveled from the oil platform to the Ark, checking in with Megatron and reminding him again of where he stood. From the Ark, he transported Optimus Prime's head to the Aerospace Plant. Shockwave effortlessly blasted his way past the Army cordon surrounding the plant, all the while lecturing the foolish humans about the raw strength of his armor. {{storylink|Repeat Performance!}}

Shockwave quickly began setting up the Aerospace Plant's facilities to carry out his plans; however, this was rather boring work for Decepticon warriors, leading to some diminished morale; Shockwave had to sic [[Buzzsaw (G1)|Buzzsaw]] on [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] when the latter started throwing a temper tantrum over threats from the human G.B. Blackrock. Still, accepting Starscream's argument that morale could use a boost, Shockwave granted permission for Starscream and Frenzy to destroy Blackrock's weapon. {{storylink|DIS-Integrated Circuits!}}

[[Image:Buzzsawyikes1.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Speaking of "pecking order"...]]

After some time, the plant was ready, and Shockwave used it to create the bodies of the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]], whose brain modules had already been brought to life with the power of the [[Matrix of Leadership|Creation Matrix]] drained from Prime's head. Shockwave then began work on his next project, the superjet [[Jetfire (G1)|Jetfire]], but was startled to find that he could not bring him to life. {{storylink|The Next Best Thing to Being There!}}

Shockwave had the plant's captive workers begin construction of a hundred jet warriors; meanwhile, he tried yet again to bring Jetfire to life. When the process failed, he deduced that Optimus Prime must have hidden the Matrix somewhere. Scanning the memory banks of [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]], he discovered that Optimus had transferred the Matrix into the mind of the human, [[Buster Witwicky (G1)|Buster Witwicky]]. Shockwave programmed Jetfire to capture Buster, but the boy was able to use the power of the Matrix to bring the robot under his own control. {{storylink|Brainstorm!}}

[[Image:Brainstorm-welcomeboost.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Hasbro probably sold a LOT of Shockwave toys just from this panel.]]

Buster used Jetfire to travel to the Aerospace Plant, intending to free Optimus Prime. Jetfire's pre-programmed response to an Air Force attack, however, meant that Buster was knocked unconscious and delivered to Shockwave as a captive.

The Autobots' attempts to keep Buster away from the Decepticons led Shockwave to suspect that his headquarters was bugged. Soundwave soon ferreted out a telephone link that was allowing the Autobots to listen in on their plans. Shockwave used the link to manipulate the Autobots into bringing their leader's body with them to a nearby swamp, where his head was to be deposited, there to corrode away forever. The head that actually arrived there, however, was a false one constructed by Shockwave, which attacked the Autobots once it was joined with Optimus Prime's body.

Shockwave had reckoned without Buster's fighting back, however; as Jetfire was about to take the real head of Optimus Prime and pitch it into the swamp, the captive human used his Matrix powers to take control of Jetfire and knock out Shockwave. Shockwave awoke to find both Optimus Prime and the human workers gone; he quickly deduced what had happened, and flew to the battle site. There he engaged the newly-whole Optimus in a one-on-one battle which ended when the Decepticon leader was tossed into a swamp. {{storylink|Prime Time!}}

''Finally extricating himself from the swamp after being trapped for several months,'' Shockwave returned to leadership of the Decepticons with some new ill-fated plans involving stealing sonic energy from a rock concert {{storylink|Rock and Roll-Out!}} and attempting to exploit [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] as a weak link in the Autobot forces. {{storylink|Plight of the Bumblebee!}}

[[Image:ShockwaveSecondGeneration1.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Uh...you're on your own, kid. See ya!]]

''When [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] and [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] built Buster a [[Buster's battlesuit|mechanoid battlesuit]], the human test-drove it by attacking [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]]. Shockwave responded to the attack, only to be briefly blinded when a desperate Buster flung a handful of sand into his optic sensor. The darkness this brought about revived memories of his four-million-year burial and his humiliating swamp submergence, and an enraged, barely-sane Shockwave disregarded logic in a desire for revenge that saw him pursue Buster throughout the night. As the new day dawned, Buster made one final attack with all the suit's power, which destroyed it but merely injured Shockwave. Seizing the boy in his hand, Shockwave was about to crush the life from him when the Autobot forces arrived to rescue him.'' {{storylink|Robot Buster!}} ''His rationality returning, Shockwave realized that Buster could potentially be a powerful tool to use against the Autobots, and had the Constructicons attempt to abduct him, but during the battle, [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] discovered that the Matrix had planted in Buster's mind a vision for the future of the Transformer race.'' {{storylink|Devastation Derby!}} ''Shockwave watched intently as Soundwave tapped into Buster's dreams, and witnessed a vision of [[combiner]] Transformers battling. Little did he know that Soundwave was also beaming the vision to Megatron (now operating independently of Shockwave), who decided that it was time for him to retake Decepticon leadership. Shockwave and Megatron battled once more, but with Megatron at full health, the fight was much more evenly matched and drawn-out, and was even televised by the Decepticons' unwilling human ally, [[Donny Finkleberg|Robot Master]]. To prevent the Decepticons from being made to look like fools, Soundwave demanded they cease fighting and consent to a joint leadership. Begrudgingly, both agreed.'' {{storylink|Second Generation!}}

This joint leadership did not last long. Leaving Shockwave in charge of the Decepticons' [[Wyoming base]], Megatron led a team of Decepticons to attack the Autobot base, only for the majority of their number to be deactivated and captured by [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]]. At the same time, however, the Autobots attacked the Decepticon base to draw out [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]], to learn more about the combiner process. With the day having firmly been won by the Autobots on both fronts, Megatron argued that although he may have charged into a trap, Shockwave had been ineffective enough to do nothing, and had allowed a trap to spring up around him. Bowing to the logic of this argument, Shockwave stepped down and allowed Megatron to resume sole command. {{storylink|Command Performances!}}

''Shockwave's movements were unknown for the brief time that followed this embarrassment. He was absent from the Decepticons' base when the time-traveling future Decepticon [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]] arrived from 2006 and temporarily disposed of Megatron, but returned not long thereafter. Wondering where everyone was, he was met by [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] and Frenzy, who had escaped their confinement in the Autobot base, but then, abruptly, all three were mass-displaced into [[limbo]] when three future Autobots traveled back in time to thwart Galvatron's plans.'' {{storylink|Target: 2006}} ''In limbo, Shockwave and his two companions battled alongside the similarly-displaced Optimus Prime, [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] and Ratchet against the deadly illusions created by the dimension's [[Limbo parasite|native lifeforms]], before returning to their natural place in space and time when the time-travellers returned to their point of origin.'' {{storylink|Distant Thunder!}}

''It was not long before Shockwave began scheming to return to the position of leader, and when Megatron summoned the Decepticon hunters the [[Predacon (G1)|Predacons]] to Earth to stalk Optimus Prime, he saw his opportunity. Conspiring with them, Shockwave arranged for the team to turn on Megatron during the hunt, depriving him of his weapons, expecting that he would have no chance against Prime one-on-one.'' {{storylink|Prey!}} ''When Megatron did not return, Shockwave believed him dead, but in truth, he had escaped to Cybertron—though this was of little concern to the cyclopean schemer, who took up the mantle of leadership in his absence again. It was not long after this that Galvatron returned, having traveled back from the future once more, and now dancing dangerously on the edge of sanity. Fearing the threat Galvatron might pose to his own leadership, Shockwave had the Decepticons aid the Dinobots in battling him, and Galvatron departed rather than fight his own future troops.'' {{storylink|Fallen Angel (issue)|Fallen Angel}} ''Shortly thereafter, Megatron returned from Cybertron with a case of amnesia, sparing Shockwave any retribution for his actions.'' {{storylink|Resurrection!}}

Not long afterwards, Optimus Prime perished in a video game duel with Megatron, but the Decepticon leader grew progressively more paranoid, fearing his foe had survived. Apparently attempting to shock Megatron back to his senses, Shockwave had the Predacons come to Earth and force him into a combat situation, implanting a copy of his personality program in the team so that he could "be part" of the battle from a safe distance. Events culminated in Megatron's apparent death when, having fully plunged into insanity, he blew the space bridge up while standing on it. Once again, Shockwave was leader. {{storylink|Gone but Not Forgotten!}}

Shockwave established regular contact with Cybertron Decepticon commander [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]], {{storylink|King of the Hill!}} ''and had the [[Seacon (G1)|Seacons]] sent from Cybertron so that they could use their aquatic abilities to help fortify the Decepticons' new artificial mobile island base. It was while they were performing this task that Galvatron returned, advancing on the island, much to Shockwave's distress. He ordered the Seacons to attack, but Galvatron tore through both them and the base walls—he had, he claimed, come in peace, but Shockwave's attack had made an enemy of him, putting all Decepticons in danger. This of course, was a complete lie, but it turned the Decepticons against Shockwave, thereby disrupting the one-eyed warrior's command.'' {{storylink|Enemy Action!}}

[[Image:Shockwaveburnsup.jpg|thumb|250px|Shockwave's mistake was whittling [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]] down to the story-protected [[human]] center.]]

After interfering in a scheme of Ratbat's, Buster Witwicky was captured by the Decepticons and brought to their island, which Shockwave then transformed into spaceship mode and took to the fringes of Earth's atmosphere. Autobot [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]] leader [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]] pursued the craft and battled Shockwave in the void of space, where he defeated him and sent him tumbling back through Earth's atmosphere in free-fall. {{storylink|The Desert Island of Space!}} ''Although thought dead by many, Shockwave in actuality survived and returned to the Decepticons' original fortress base, where he concentrated on resolving the threat posed by Galvatron. Seeking to use the missing Megatron as a weapon against him, Shockwave had the small number of Decepticons still under his control recover a [[Straxus (G1)|clone of the departed leader]] from the Thames river, which he and [[Snaptrap (G1)|Snaptrap]] repaired and brainwashed using the [[psycho-probe]].'' {{storylink|Salvage!}} ''Around the same time, Galvatron's fellow time-travelers [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]] and [[Scourge (G1)|Scourge]] had joined up with Shockwave's Decepticons, but, chafing in his service, Cyclonus wound up accidentally blurting out that they would be responsible for killing him in the future of 2008. Seeking to preserve his continued existence, Shockwave unleashed the Megatron clone upon them, resulting in the death of Cyclonus. Satisfied with the clone's performance, he dispatched him against Galvatron.'' {{storylink|Dry Run!}} ''The battle had an unexpected conclusion, however, when "Megatron" found a kindred spirit in Galvatron and actually joined forces with him.'' {{storylink|Altered Image!}}

[[Image:Shockwavetimewars.jpg|thumb|left|250px|It's okay, [[Time Wars (issue)|Time Wars]] didn't make sense to any of us, either.]]

''This unfortunate chain of events led to Shockwave losing his grip on sanity. Unable to logically fathom the situation, he slipped into despondency, stringing up the remains of Cyclonus on the walls of his castle as a twisted trophy. What Shockwave did not realize, however, was that the repeated time-travel and the death of Cyclonus had caused a rift in space-time that threatened the stability of reality. Hoping to restore the balance by returning all time-travelers to their proper place in time, Scourge attempted to reclaim Cyclonus's body, but was shot down by Shockwave for his trouble. At Scourge's urging, [[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]] was able to present events logically enough to Shockwave to restore some semblance of coherency to his thoughts, and Shockwave himself deposited Cyclonus's remains in the rift, and sealed it with an x-ray blast.'' {{storylink|Time Wars (issue)|Time Wars}}

[[Image:Shockwavefightmoretalkless.jpg|thumb|250px|Hypothesis: Shockwave should internalize his thought process.]]

It would be some time before Shockwave next resurfaced, emerging from the sea on the coast of Blackpool, England, and killing a human who had seen him. {{storylink|Dark Creation}} Seeking to establish his own faction of Decepticons, he saved [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] from Circuit Breaker, {{storylink|The Human Factor!}} and the pair, along with Ravage, recruited those who had grown disenfranchised with the leadership of the current Decepticon Earth commander, [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]]. {{storylink|Eye of the Storm}} The small group staged an attack on Scorponok's [[New Jersey (Earth)|New Jersey]] base, and Scorponok and Shockwave battled in the waters around Manhattan before being interrupted by the super-team, the [[Neo-Knights]]. {{storylink|...All This and Civil War 2}} Shockwave used the ensuing confusion to implicate the Autobots in an attack on the human team, but was later recognized by Circuit Breaker as the robot responsible for crippling her, and was blown out of the sky by her powers. {{storylink|Out of Time!}} Abruptly, the battle was ended when the Transformers were all teleported to Cybertron to face the threat of [[Unicron]], but even Shockwave's data grid could not compute the vastness of the threat the chaos-bringer posed. {{storylink|On the Edge of Extinction!}}

After Unicron was destroyed, Shockwave teamed up with Starscream once more to find the remains of the Autobots' Ark, which had crashed during the battle. {{storylink|Still Life!}} The pair succeeded in getting the craft airborne again, but were unaware that the numerous damaged Transformers in the ship's stasis pods had been reactivated with [[nucleon]]—Megatron among them—and that an alternate future version of [[Galvatron II|Galvatron]] was also on board. {{storylink|Exodus!}} Conflict erupted when Megatron and Galvatron met, but the sight of Shockwave saw the two Decepticons team up against him. To put an end to things once and for all, the revived Ratchet sent the Ark crashing to Earth. {{storylink|A Savage Circle}} There was no indication that Shockwave survived, suggesting that his evil had once and for all been put to rest.

=====Marvel UK future timelines=====
''In the alternate future timeline of [[Earth-120185]], Shockwave attacked the unveiling of the first female Autobot [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] in 1995 with [[Fangry]], [[Squeezeplay]] and [[Horri-Bull]]. When Arcee quickly disabled his men, though, Shockwave took off and left them to fend for themselves.'' {{storylink|Prime's Rib!}} ''Years later, in 2004, he staged an attack on the opening day of [[Autobot City]], but was defeated by the extremely illogical actions of [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]], who threw him down a mountain, and jumped along with him for the ride.'' {{storylink|Aspects of Evil!}}

''After Decepticon commander [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]] disappeared following Unicron's attack on Cybertron in 2006, the new Autobot leader [[Hot Rod (G1)|Rodimus Prime]] devoted his forces to searching the galaxy and making sure the Decepticon was truly dead. This diverted attention allowed Shockwave to assume leadership of the Decepticons in the chaos that followed, and he consolidated them into a strong force on Cybertron that ultimately resulted in a stalemate between the factions by 2008.'' {{storylink|Wanted: Galvatron — Dead or Alive!}} ''Knowing that the freelance peacekeeping agent named [[Death's Head (G1)|Death's Head]] had a grudge against Rodimus Prime, Shockwave had [[Blot (G1)|Blot]] hire him for 10,000 [[shanix]] to hunt down and exterminate the Autobot, providing him with secret entry into Cybertron and information about Prime's movements. At the same time, Shockwave allowed Scourge and Cyclonus, Galvatron's former top two lackeys, to brazenly go after Rodimus Prime themselves. Seeing the powerful duo as a potential threat to his position, Shockwave hoped that by tossing these various parties into the mix together, at least some of his problems would turn out dead.'' {{storylink|Headhunt}}

''Unfortunately for Shockwave's plans, it was then that Unicron's influence was felt again, as he mind-controlled Cyclonus, Scourge and Death's Head into trying to assassinate Shockwave. Death's Head used the supposedly deactivated bodies of the duo to gain access to Shockwave's audience chamber, and then left his "comrades" to seal the doors while he chased down the Decepticon leader. After a hard-fought battle, Shockwave was ultimately destroyed, his body blown to pieces and his memory module crushed between Death's Head's fingers, ensuring that he could never return. Still, the hunter was sickened by being forced to kill against his will, and Death's Head promised Shockwave's corpse that he would eventually avenge them both. ''{{storylink|The Legacy of Unicron!}}

=====Earthforce=====
{{earthforcefiction}}

''Reality unfolds in many ways, across many dimensions. In one such dimension, it was not Scorponok that Shockwave challenged for leadership in the [[Decepticon Civil War]], but a returning Megatron, and the two of them built their armies up for a renewed battle for control over the Earth. Upon hearing that [[Grimlock (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Grimlock]] had somehow restored his Dinobots to life without the Creation Matrix, Shockwave and his soldiers attempted to force the secret out of the Dinobots. They failed, miserably.'' {{storylink|Two Steps Back!}}

''Unable to gain an advantage over Megatron, Shockwave was forced to suggest an [[Enclave]], a truce whereby the Decepticons could meet and hopefully overcome their differences as they had in the past, for the mutual goal of destruction of the Autobots. Certainly, the Autobots had something to say about that, and they rigged a scenario so that Megatron was tricked into thinking Shockwave had sent an assassin sniper to kill him during the meeting. A brawl broke out, and any chance at peace was chucked out the window, along with several dismembered body parts.'' {{storylink|The Bad Guy's Ball!}}

[[Image:Triple changers shockwave secrets.jpg|left|200px|thumb|]]
''Thanks to a [[Soundwave (G1)|secret informer]] inside Megatron's camp, Shockwave was able to surprise his rival at the site of an energon delivery, and he and the [[Triple Changer|Triple Changers]] overpowered Megatron and tossed him over a cliff, claiming his energon as their own.'' {{storylink|Secrets}} ''Turnabout's fair play, however, and Shockwave's own lieutenant Starscream tipped off Megatron about when Shockwave would be alone and open for attack. What's worse, Starscream and Soundwave took advantage of their leaders' absence to stage a coup, and so Shockwave and Megatron were left on the run from [[Earthforce]] while their troops abandoned them to their fates.'' {{storylink|Internal Affairs!}}

''Shockwave and Megatron subsequently organized a hit on Starscream, using a [[Louisiana bounty hunters|series of cheap assassins]] to trick Starscream into assuming Soundwave wanted to wipe him out and assume sole command of the Decepticons. '' {{storylink|Assassins}} ''They then attacked their betrayers personally when it didn't go to plan, but were countered by the Earthforce, who needed Starscream alive to help heal [[Snarl (G1)|Snarl]], afflicted with [[Corrodia Gravis]]. Even with the help of [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]]'s [[Mayhem Attack Squad]], Megatron and Shockwave were forced to retreat.'' {{storylink|The Lesser Evil!}}

====''Transformers Comic-Magazin''====
{{TransformersComicMagazin}}

Shockwave served as joint leader with his rival [[Megatron (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Megatron]]. Together, they worked out that hijacking the oil reserves of [[Alaska]] would make more sense than hitting oil refineries, and battled the Autobots to seize the Alaskan oil. They were driven off by[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Optimus Prime]] and the Autobots. {{storylink|Transformers Comic-Magazin issue 2|Transformers in Action: Attack at Dawn}}

He was present when Megatron made peaceful gestures to Humanity in [[New York City]] and gave a speech about how Megatron was an "intergalactic diplomat", who managed by "the greastest possible personal investment" to reconcile "such different citizens of the galaxy as TRANSFORMERS and humans". He then gave a "statue" of [[Snaptrap (G1)|Snaptrap]] as a gift to the city. Unsurprisingly, once Humanity was off-guard, the Decepticons struck, and the Autobots barely stopped them. {{storylink|Transformers Comic-Magazin issue 4#Transformers in Action: The Troy Principle|Transformers in Action: The Troy Principle}}

Shockwave aided Megatron in capturing an oil tanker, and then using it as a distraction to launch a series of raids. He helped Megatron to battle a squad of Autobot Pretenders aboard the tanker, but was eventually defeated. {{storylink|Transformers Comic-Magazin issue 6|Transformers in the Battle for Peace: A Big Day for Powermaster Optimus Prime}}

Later, he was present when the Decepticons unleashed a robotic hell-beast known as 'King Con' on New York and helped Megatron and Soundwave to set up a mine belt around the harbor. However Optimus Prime rented a helicopter to fly a banner announcing huge raw oil deposit finds in the Rocky Mountains. After a short hesitation, the Decepticons retreated to pursue these findings. {{storylink|Transformers Comic-Magazin issue 7|Transformers — Transforming Robots in Action: New York — A City Sinking in Terror}}

====''Classics''====
[[Image:Timelines shockwave - alex milne.jpg|thumb|200px|right]]
Megatron decided to keep Shockwave alive in spite of past betrayals because of the use of his logical skills. However, he decided to prevent further betrayals by keeping him only as a head hooked to some sort of life support. Megatron queried him on information regarding [[Bug Bite (G1)|Bug Bite]] and Shockwave told him all he knew, but when he requested computer access for more information, Megatron refused and closed up the chamber. {{storylink|Games of Deception}}
{{-}}

===Generation 1 cartoon continuity===
====''The Transformers'' cartoon====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Corey Burton]] (English), [[Yū Shimaka|Yutaka Shimaka]] (Japanese), [[Peter Musäus]] (German; Generation 1), [[Claus Brockmeyer]] (German; The Movie & Generation 2 Season One), [[Vladimiro Conti]] (Italian, second dub), [[Georges Atlas]] (French), [[Jorge García]] (Latin American)

{{note|Shockwave’s cartoon portrayal is highly inconsistent with his appearances in all other fictional media. Instead of a coldly logical, power hungry rival to Megatron, in the cartoon Shockwave is consistently loyal and subservient. In a [[Shout! Factory|2009 retrospective documentary about the brand]], [[Hasbro]] staff said this disparity was a simple — though extreme — result of there not having been enough time during the production of the G1 cartoon and comic to get all the story basics firmly and consistently established from the outset. The character descriptions in the cartoon's [[production bible]] are mostly abridged versions of [[Bob Budiansky]]'s original character writeups, which went on to become the toys' [[Tech Spec|tech specs]]... yet Shockwave's show bible description is entirely different from his tech spec [[bio]].}}

[[Image:ShockwaveUltimateDoom3.jpg|thumb|Sorry, but you kids are going to have to play somewhere else.]]

Shockwave was a highly ranked and staunchly loyal Decepticon, and with Soundwave, apparently one of the first at [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]]'s side. {{storylink|War Dawn}} Certainly he was one of Megatron's more favored troops, in that Megatron's constant praise of him seemed to annoy Starscream to no end. {{storylink|Starscream's Brigade}}

Shockwave was entrusted with the [[Cybertron Guard|stewardship of Cybertron]] by Megatron when the latter left to intercept an Autobot mission surveying for new forms of energy. Neither Decepticon suspected that Megatron's absence (and Shockwave's command) would last four million years. Little changed on Cybertron during those years, although Shockwave apparently lost his left hand and replaced it with a laser cannon. {{storylink|More than Meets the Eye, Part 1}}

He oversaw all Decepticon activity on the evidently near-empty Cybertron. His keen scientific mind resulted in several incredible devices, including the [[space bridge]]. Although he was able to keep Cybertron functional for the extended length of time, he continued to try to contact Megatron in hopes of finding an energy source to revitalize the planet. In 1984, he finally reestablished contact with the Decepticon leader. The two coordinated the refinement of the space bridge, first to send [[energon cube]]s, and eventually as an easy method of transport for Decepticons. {{storylink|Transport to Oblivion}} {{storylink|Roll for It}} However, Autobots would also occasionally hijack use of the bridge, and Shockwave found himself having to repel stowaways on more than one occasion. {{storylink|Divide and Conquer}}

Eventually, Megatron and Shockwave developed a space bridge powerful enough to transport Cybertron itself to Earth. {{storylink|The Ultimate Doom, Part 1}} The close proximity of the two worlds caused horrible weather disturbances that the Decepticons were able to utilize as sources of energy which could easily be shipped back to their homeworld. It was during this affair that Shockwave and his men had to stop an attempt by several Autobots and [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] to rescue [[Sparkplug Witwicky|Spike's father]], who was being held on Cybertron as a slave. The Autobots were eventually able to escape with both Sparkplug and the data for [[Doctor Arkeville]]’s mind-control hypno chips. {{storylink|The Ultimate Doom, Part 3}}

Even though he partook in the near-destruction of the Earth, he could also be credited with helping save it shortly after. With Megatron presumed dead following an explosion on his star cruiser, Starscream assumed command on Cybertron. He rigged Dr. Arkeville's exponential generator to blow up the Earth so the Decepticons could harvest the release of energy. Despite Starscream's orders, Shockwave continued to make communications to Earth, finally reaching Megatron, who wasn’t dead after all, and warning him in time to disable the generator. {{storylink|Countdown to Extinction (episode)|Countdown to Extinction}}

He once came to Earth, but only for a short time. {{storylink|The Autobot Run}}

[[Image:ShockwaveDesertionOfTheDinobots1.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Shockwave bought himself on eBay!]]

When all the Earthbound Transformers began to malfunction due to the deterioration of the essential element [[Cybertonium]] in their bodies, Shockwave was tasked with having more mined from Cybertron to send to the Decepticons. The Autobots sent the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]] to attack the space bridge and snatch some Cybertonium for them. Instead, the rebellious Dinobots used the space bridge to travel to Cybertron, where they intended to stay. {{storylink|Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 1}} They were captured by Shockwave’s sentinels, rewired, and put to work in the Cybertonium mines. Spike and [[Carly]] were also captured when they attempted to rescue them, but Shockwave underestimated the two humans. Once they were put in the mines, Spike and Carly were able to fix [[Grimlock (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Grimlock]] and the others. The Dinobots broke free and were able to escape Shockwave with enough Cybertonium to repair the Autobots. {{storylink|Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 2}}

[[Image:SearchforAlphaTrion Shockwave gun mode.jpg|thumb|right|200px|"I will not be manhandled by you, Starscream!"]]
Though he'd believed them to be extinct, Shockwave discovered a small group of [[Female Autobots]] when they attempted to raid his energon stockroom. Although they got away with some supplies, he was able to track them to their hidden hideout. He alerted Megatron, who devised the plan of kidnapping their leader, [[Elita One]]. Megatron knew she had a relationship with [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]]. Sure enough, after her capture, Optimus raced to Cybertron to rescue her, only to be captured himself by Starscream. Thanks to Elita's special power, she and Optimus were able to escape. Meanwhile, Shockwave, Starscream, and the other Decepticons had to contend with Ironhide leading a small group of Autobots who had followed Optimus Prime. With the help of the Female Autobots team, they eventually cornered the Decepticons, until Shockwave blasted them off the bridge with his gun mode. He would’ve been able to finish them off had Prime and One not intervened at the last moment to save their comrades, send Starscream and the others running off, and blast Shockwave down into the pits of Cybertron. {{storylink|The Search for Alpha Trion}}

He wasn’t out of action for long. After Megatron built his new combiner team, the [[Stunticon (G1)|Stunticons]], Shockwave helped locate the key to [[Vector Sigma]], the computer that gave life to all Transformers. {{storylink|The Key to Vector Sigma, Part 1}} He later learned and reported to Megatron that the key had other unknown properties on other worlds, which Megatron discovered meant turning organic matter into metal. Unfortunately for Megatron, [[Silverbolt (G1)|Silverbolt]] was able to score a precise shot, blowing apart the key before Megatron could get away with it. {{storylink|The Key to Vector Sigma, Part 2}}

Another device built by Shockwave was the [[Kronosphere]], a time machine that was used to dispose of the [[Aerialbot (G1)|Aerialbots]]. When the Autobots were able to drive the Decepticons out of their hideout, Shockwave helped Megatron reactivate a fallen [[Guardian robot]] to try to take back the base. In the end, the Autobots were able to bring the Aerialbots back to the present, and with their help, drove the Decepticons away for good. {{storylink|War Dawn}}

Later, Shockwave alerted Megatron to the theft of five personality components from the [[Decepticon Detention Center]] on Cybertron. These were stolen by Starscream to build his own force to defeat Megatron, the [[Combaticon (G1)|Combaticons]]. {{storylink|Starscream's Brigade}}

[[Image:RevengeOfBruticus Shockwave on Starscream.jpg|200px|thumb|left|No caption is needed for this image.]]

This coup failed, and Starscream and the Combaticons were exiled to deep space. While Starscream went off on his own, the Combaticons instead made their way back to Cybertron, where they attacked Shockwave and his sentinels and succeeded in taking over Decepticon headquarters. Shockwave ran into Starscream, and the two teamed up to stop the Combaticons and their plan to use the space bridge to push the Earth into the Sun. However, Starscream saw an opportunity to assert power over Megatron, who was still on Earth. He turned against Shockwave, the two fought each other, and they were captured by the Combaticons. They were both eventually freed when Megatron and Optimus Prime came to Cybertron to defeat the Combaticons themselves. {{storylink|The Revenge of Bruticus}}

[[Image:Shockwave5Faces.jpg|150px|thumb|right|Shockwave didn't die. He just got a new [[Six Shot|paint job]].]]

By 2005, Megatron had returned to Cybertron and completely conquered the planet, leading Shockwave to rejoin Megatron's inner circle. He participated in the [[Battle of Autobot City]] and was present for both Starscream's coronation and his subsequent destruction by [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]], the reformatted version of Megatron. With Galvatron indisposed, Shockwave commanded the Decepticon forces during [[Unicron]]'s attack on Cybertron, but for some reason was never seen again. {{storylink|The Transformers: The Movie}}

{{note|Even though Shockwave's death was written into the movie's script, it did not even show on the released film. However, IDW's [[Transformers: The Animated Movie#4|20th Anniversary comic adaptation]] did include Shockwave's death. Shockwave's model did show up in season 3, utilized for several [[generic]]s. Specifically, a yellow version appears at the start of the [[Title sequence|"Five Faces of Darkness" title sequence]], a green version shows up in "[[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 3]]" and two Constructicon-colored guys are present among the Decepticon troops in "[[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4]]".}}

====''Story of Binaltech''====
[[Image:Binaltech shockwave.jpg|left|thumb|225px|It doesn't get happy; it doesn't get sad; it doesn't laugh at your jokes; it ''just runs programs''!]]

In 2004, as the battle for control of Cybertron was reaching fever pitch, Shockwave was among the casualities of war, his body destroyed but his personality component intact. Around this time, the time-tossed Decepticon [[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]] took control of the Kronosphere, seeking to use it to alter the course of history. Ravage used the Kronosphere to teleport Megatron and the majority of the Decepticons outside of time, knowing that this would leave the Autobots to face the looming threat of Unicron alone. To keep the remaining Decepticons organized until then, Ravage realized they would need a leader, and Shockwave was elected for the task; his personality component implanted into a vehicle outfitted with molecular-manipulating [[Transmuter (G1)|Transmuter]] technology, Shockwave was reborn in a powerful Binaltech body and rallied the Decepticons under his command. {{storylink|Changing Lanes}}

Although they were forced off of Earth by the Autobots there, Shockwave's Decepticons continued to operate within the [[solar system]], and were discovered in the vicinity of [[Saturn]]'s rings by a [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]]. Alas, Prowl did not make it back to Earth after making his discovery: Shockwave led an attack on his shuttle and Prowl's [[spark]] was lost when he attempted to transfer it to safety through [[subspace]]. {{storylink|Prowl & Chase}}

Through the efforts of the mysterious time- and space-bending entity known as the [[Optimus Primal|Protector]], the changes Ravage wrought upon the timeline were undone, and history was corrected. The altered version of the timeline, however, was also preserved as a parallel dimension (colloquially known as the "BT World"), and in that alternate dimension, the Autobots were successul in defeating Unicron alone. In accordance with Ravage's plan, however, Megatron and his forces then returned from beyond time, immediately launching a ferocious attack upon the weary Autobots.

The Autobots' total defeat was only delayed by Megatron's encounter with [[Nemesis Prime (G1)|Nemesis Prime]], an Earth-made robot which had taken the side of the Decepticons, who challenged Megatron during an attack on the [[Earth Defense Command]] base on [[Mars (planet)|Mars]] for ownership of Earth's solar system. While Megatron and Nemesis Prime battled, across the galaxy, [[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] ventured into the depths of Cybertron and activated the [[Quintesson]]s' [[large switch|killswitch]], deactivating all non-Binaltech Transformers throughout the universe. With Megatron deactivated right in front of him, Nemesis Prime declared himself Decepticon leader, and summoned Shockwave to his side, instructing him to gather up as many fallen Decepticon as he could before the humans' took possession of them. Shockwave hesitated momentarily, but quickly acquiesced to the logic of the plan and complied. {{storylink|Kill Switch}}

===Grandreams ''Generation 2'' comics===
Shockwave participated in the Decepticons' attack to capture a crashed spaceship from the Autobots atop [[Table Mountain]], blasting Optimus Prime with a laser. Alas, the "spaceship" was an Autobot trap that fired Shockwave and the other Decepticons randomly into space. {{storylink|Day of the Decepticons}}

===Dreamwave ''Generation One'' continuity===
[[Image:Shockwavedwtww1.jpg|thumb|left|Dreamwave is all his fault.]]

As a major player in the Decepticon army in Cybertron's past, Shockwave led the main attack on the Autobots' stronghold shortly after the appointment of [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]], and personally destroyed two [[Guardian robot|guardian robots]] with one blast in space gun mode. {{storylink|The War Within}}

After Megatron's apparent death in an early space bridge test, the Decepticon faction splintered, with [[Air Commander]] [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] creating the [[Predacon (War Within)|Predacons]] and High Auditor [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]] the [[Ultracon|Ultracons]], while Shockwave led the Decepticons through the [[Dark Ages]] of Cybertron. During this period, his logic allowed him to put aside differences with Jetfire and the Autobots in order to defeat the greater evil of [[The Fallen]]. Meeting up with Jetfire to discuss the upsurge in violence, the two were attacked by the [[Chaos Trinity]], and Shockwave was taken down. Recovered by the newly built [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]], Shockwave organized a counter strike against the three mystics that included Trypticon, [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]], [[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]], the [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticons]], and the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seekers]]. Exactly how logic dictated that Shockwave bring an entire army to deal with three rogue Decepticons is unknown. Grimlock's [[Lightning Strike Coalition]] arrived, saying that they had a stake in this, and Shockwave agreed to a temporary ceasefire. After the Fallen was defeated, Shockwave and [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] agreed to seal the [[Well of All Sparks]] with six coded barriers for each faction. They were to remain in place until Cybertron was united. Or, as Shockwave put it, [['Til all are one|until all are one]]. {{storylink|War Within: The Dark Ages}} 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 derailed the plan. Shockwave was tasked with reverse engineering the [[Quintesson]]-created clones he brought back to the planet with him, which suffered difficulties due to Megatron's refusal to divulge their origin, but greatly intrigued Shockwave. {{storylink|War Within: The Age of Wrath}}

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 (G1)|Astrotrain]] and [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]], began to conceive the idea of a Transformer with multiple alternate modes. Cybertron, however, was steadily growing lower and lower on energy, and in an attempt to create new energy-conservative Transformers, Shockwave allied with the Autobots for a pooling of resources that created the [[Micromaster]]s. {{storylink|Destined for Nothing}} This came back to bite him, however, when the Decepticon Micromaster [[Skystalker (G1)|Skystalker]] attempted to overthrow his command, knocking him offline and decapitating him to use in a grotesque puppet show, giving orders to the other Decepticons by holding Shockwave's severed noggin up to a video screen. {{storylink|Victims of the Revolution}} When Skystalker was defeated, Shockwave was repaired, but eventually, he 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]]".

3000 years ago, Unicron's herald [[Scourge (G1)|Scourge]] located the dead planet, and reactivated Shockwave for study purposes. {{storylink|Generation One issue 0|Generation One #0}} However, when Shockwave was attacked by a swarm of [[Sharkticon (G1)|Sharkticons]], Scourge intervened and saved him, {{storylink|Cold War (issue)|Cold War}} only to be shot in the back by the Decepticon and captured. Dissecting and studying Scourge, Shockwave learned many secrets about the function and purpose of Transformers and Cybertron from the secrets hidden within him. Using that knowledge, Shockwave steadily worked to restore Cybertron, reactivating its population and solving their energy needs, ending the war and unifying the planet. He also continued his experiments into multiple transformations, yielding the unstable [[Duocon]]s, and then successfully mastering the process with [[Triple Changer]]s. Capturing [[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]], Shockwave sought to unlock the full secrets of [[Vector Sigma]], having already learned of the mysterious significance of Earth to the Transformer race. {{storylink|Revelation (War and Peace)|Revelation}} In preparation for the invasion of the planet, Shockwave subliminally influenced the population of Cybertron to become more violent, {{storylink|Passive Aggression}} and prevented the return of Optimus Prime and Megatron aboard the ''[[Ark II]]'' by having a [[Robert Hallo|human agent]] blow it up. {{storylink|Revelation (War and Peace)|Revelation}}

{{note|The [[Keepers Trilogy]] novel "[[Hardwired]]" made a brief reference to Shockwave being part of the Decepticons on Earth, but having been incommunicado for months prior to the disappearance of Megatron in [[Tokyo]]. This statement is at odds with Dreamwave continuity established after the novels.}}

[[Image:Shockwavedwwarandpeace.jpg|thumb|250px|Deja vu all over again.]]

In 2003, Shockwave made his move, heading to Earth with his Triple Changer troops and capturing Megatron and Optimus's forces, planning to try the two leaders as war criminals. Megatron was jettisoned into space by Starscream, {{storylink|New World Order}} while Prime escaped from his clutches and fell in with a rebel group. {{storylink|Cold War (issue)|Cold War}} Mobilizing the planet's Autobots, Prime led an attack on [[Shockwave's Tower]], and confronted 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 (G1)|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. {{storylink|Revelation (War and Peace)|Revelation}}

While the rest of Cybertron believed Shockwave to be deceased, he had actually survived the explosion and gone underground in the wastelands of Cybertron. {{storylink|Lost and Found (issue)|Lost and Found}} In addition to re-establishing communications with the [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticons]] on Earth (who had been operating there as an advance squad preparing the way for his invasion), {{storylink|Extermination}} Shockwave continued his experimentation, resulting in the creation of [[Sixshot]]. Soon after, however, Megatron returned to Cybertron and bested Shockwave, {{storylink|Lost and Found (issue)|Lost and Found}} 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... {{storylink|The Route of All Evil}}

{{note|...and then Dreamwave went out of business. Dag, yo.}}

===''G.I. Joe vs. Transformers''===
[[Image:Shockwave-ddp2-2b1.jpg|thumb|left|There are so many ways to make him look awesome.]]

In the absence of Megatron, Shockwave had assumed command of the Decepticons on Cybertron, and had successfully driven the Autobots into an underground resistance movement. When a number of [[G.I. Joe (team)|G.I. Joe]] and [[Cobra]] troops, along with the captive Starscream, accidentally arrived on Cybertron via an overloaded wormhole gate, Shockwave and his troops immediately surrounded them. The same wormhole malfunction blasted a number of Transformers off of Cybertron and into random points of Earth's past, a temporal anomaly that threatened to scour the Earth's face with fire if the Transformers were not brought back.

Ultra Magnus and Perceptor arrived and were able to hold off the Decepticons for a time with a force field, while teams of humans were time-ported away to retrieve the missing Transformers and end the anomaly. {{storylink|G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II issue 1|G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II #1}} Magnus's force field power ran out before all the teams had returned, and Shockwave had his troops capture the Autobots. He took personal pleasure in blasting Ratchet when he was returned through the gate.

Revealing that he had intended all along for the humans to discover the wormhole gate technology, Shockwave set the gate to continue operating but blocked the last remaining group from returning—thus condemning Earth to destruction, easy pickings for conquest. {{storylink|G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II issue 3|G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II #3}} Fortunately for Earth, two members of the G.I. Joe team were able to reactivate the gate, allowing the newly-created Dinobots to return to Cybertron. The Dinobots' power quickly drove Shockwave's Decepticons into retreat.

Regrouping on the other side of the planet, Shockwave had the long-missing Starscream brought before him. As Starscream attempted to explain his way out of being seen as a traitor, a recording of Cobra Commander's voice suddenly began to play, explaining that he had lined Starscream's hull with explosives. Shockwave leapt to try and stop the process, but the entire building exploded, apparently taking the two Decepticons with it. {{storylink|G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II issue 4|G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II #4}}

With Shockwave's defeat, peace returned to Cybertron, and the Decepticons were driven back to a region known as the [[Gladiator Zone]]. {{storylink|The Art of War issue 1|The Art of War #1}} One of the mish-mash of robot parts known as the [[cannibalizer]]s was seen with Shockwave's blaster hand grafted onto its arm. {{storylink|The Art of War issue 3|The Art of War #3}}

===''Transformers/G.I. Joe''===
[[Image:Shockwavetfjoetrenches.jpg|thumb|100px|First guy to call him "Big Bertha" gets it in the face.]]
As one of the Decepticons who crashed to [[Earth]] in the ''[[Ark (G1)|Ark]]'' millions of years ago, Shockwave was retrieved by [[Cobra]] and pressed into service, taking on the alternate form of a massive artillery cannon. Chafing under the leadership of [[Cobra Commander]], he was ordered to transform and destroy the [[Autobot]] [[Superion (G1)|Superion]]. {{storylink|Trenches}} Although he did so, he was forced to fire sixteen consecutive times, despite needing to repair himself after every shot. The resulting strain on his structure irrevocably damaged him, and Cobra Commander refused to allow [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] to use the power of the [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]] to restore him. {{storylink|The Iron Fist}}

{{-}}
===''Transformers Legends''===
During a gladiatorial match in the depths of Cybertron, Shockwave detected incoming security forces and raised the alarm. When Megatron mused that perhaps it was time to start their rebellion by destroying the incoming forces, Shockwave suggested they wait and build up their numbers. Megatron agreed and the pair departed. {{storylink|Parts}}

===IDW Generation 1 comics===
{{ongoing}}

Long before the war, Shockwave was an understudy of some sort for the mad scientist [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]]. {{storylink|Spotlight: Doubledealer}}
[[Image:Shockwave Regenesis.jpg‎|200px|thumb|left|IDW is mostly his fault.]]
Six hundred thousand [[Units of time|meta-cycles]] ago, he had become a Decepticon scientist. He predicted the eventual destruction of Cybertron as a result of the [[Great War (G1)|Great War]], driving the combatants out across the galaxy. Knowing that control of resources in this period would be crucial, Shockwave decided to create his own secret network of energon sources on scattered planets, a tool he could use to ensure his own domination. Calling the project "[[Regenesis]]", Shockwave covertly launched rockets from Cybertron to several worlds with specific geological properties. The rockets contained a distilled form of energon that would act as a catalyst in their target planets, sparking chain reactions that, if properly regulated, would create seams of an extremely potent [[Ultra-Energon|energon ore]]. One of these planets was Earth, and after a long period (possibly millions of years), the energon reaction reached a critical point. Shockwave needed to plant global dampers to prevent the reaction from spiraling out of control, so he traveled to Earth and found it at the end of its [[Wikipedia:Pleistocene|most recent ice age]]. As he went about his business, he was unaware of a threat that had shadowed him.

Before departing Cybertron, Shockwave had been dispatched to "tidy up" after an energon raid by the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dynobots]], following the team of misfits back to Autobot territory and blowing up their stolen fuel. The Dynobots had vowed revenge, and after their explosion-inflicted injuries had been repaired, they tracked Shockwave to Earth. While Shockwave was busy on the planet, the Dynobots either destroyed or disabled his ship and then altered their own bodies to withstand the energon-rich atmosphere.

[[Image:Shockwaveg1idw.jpg|200px|thumb|right|Shockwave began to have second thoughts over his choice of manicurists.]]
As Shockwave finished planting the dampers and was preparing to visit other Regenesis worlds, the Dynobots teleported upon him. The attack threw Shockwave off-kilter with both its ferocity and its unexpectedness, as he had anticipated a stab in the back from Megatron but had failed to consider the simple vengeance of the Dynobots. Mentally and physically confounded by the assault, Shockwave deactivated his higher reasoning and allowed a subroutine simulating rage to take over. This brutal, violent Shockwave decimated the Dynobots, burning off the organic coating shielding them from the planet's high energon fields and forcing them into [[stasis lock]]. As the battle concluded, Shockwave restored his full neural operations and logged the emotional experience for further study. But, as his logic center churned away once more, it again failed to anticipate his enemies' chaotic nature. Specifically, Grimlock had set a dead-man's switch on [[Skyfire (ship)|the Dynobots' ship]], and before Shockwave could act upon his own victory, the ship shot an energy beam into a nearby volcano, causing it to erupt and consume all of the combatants.

Megatron became suspicious of Shockwave's absence and assigned [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]] to search through Shockwave's files. {{storylink|Spotlight: Shockwave}} Bludgeon discovered the Regenesis project but kept the information to himself and his close-knit team. Some time after the [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]] catastrophe but before Cybertron had been declared off-limits, Bludgeon's team set upon the goal of bringing Thunderwing back to life using Shockwave's seeded Ultra-Energon. To this end, they covertly restored Shockwave's old subterranean laboratory and recovered Thunderwing's body, staying on Cybertron long after the planet was officially evacuated and quarantined. After lengthy preparations, the group headed to Earth and became the first beneficiaries of Shockwave's labor, harvesting all the energon ore they needed in a base inside [[Mount St. Helens]]. They were briefly interrupted in the year [[1984]] by [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]], who had been spying on them all along and sought to both secure the ore for himself and prevent Thunderwing's return. But Bludgeon's swordsmanship made short work of Soundwave's [[Decepticon Mini-Cassette|cassette]]s [[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]] and [[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]], and [[Iguanus (G1)|Iguanus]] took Soundwave down with a weapon from Shockwave's lab, an energy gun that forced Soundwave into his [[alternate mode|alt-mode]] and locked him in that form. As Bludgeon's group left with their bounty, they induced a volcanic eruption, burying their opponents. {{storylink|Spotlight: Soundwave}} A little over twenty years later, Bludgeon finally completed his task and resurrected Thunderwing. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 2|Stormbringer #2}}

[[Image:Shockwave Agent Red.jpg‎|200px|thumb|left|[[Transformers (2007)|Call him NBE-1]].]]
Coindentally, around the same time ([[2006]], to be precise), a [[Goring|human archaeological team]] uncovered Shockwave's body. {{storylink|Spotlight: Shockwave}} As the dig continued and the Dynobots also began to be unearthed, a government organization swept in and took the operation over. {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} This organization, [[Skywatch]], had also recovered Ravage and Laserbeak back in 1985. {{storylink|Spotlight: Soundwave}}

Skywatch repaired and attempted to control their captives through neural inhibitors, but the results were consistently disastrous. As the Dynobots and cassettes wreaked havoc (due to the [[Machination]]'s interference) or otherwise pursued unknown agendas (due to Soundwave's interference), Skywatch commander [[Joshua Red]] decided to use a less sophisticated method on their last remaining subject. Bringing Shockwave online in their [[Salt Lake City]] base, Red told him there was a bomb in his head set to detonate in 24 hours if Skywatch didn't transmit a reset code. Shockwave's task was to take down the rogue [[Transformer]]s in that time. Shockwave casually asked if they knew how much damage he could do in 24 hours, then he made a beeline for Soundwave, who was active but still mode-locked in a [[Portland]], [[Oregon]] child's possession. {{storylink|Maximum Dinobots issue 3|Maximum Dinobots #3}}

[[Image:Shockwave V Scorponok MD.jpg‎‎|200px|thumb|right|Hypothesis: [[...All This and Civil War 2|Turnabout is fair play]].]]
At the same time, Soundwave was using his broadcast abilities to block Skywatch's control over Ravage and Laserbeak, who retrieved Soundwave from his human captivity. The three returned to Mt. St. Helens, where Shockwave joined them and struck a deal. {{storylink|Maximum Dinobots issue 4|Maximum Dinobots #4}} Deducing that his own weapon had mode-locked Soundwave, Shockwave offered to undo its effects, but only after they helped him thwart Skywatch's threat to himself. They agreed, and the first step of the plan was for the cassettes to help Shockwave feign obedience to Skywatch. Shockwave told Skywatch where to find the cassettes, and indeed Ravage and Laserbeak allowed themselves to be recaptured without a fight.

[[Image:Shockwave V Dynos.jpg‎|250px|thumb|left|"And we'll KEEP dancing until we get it RIGHT!"]]
Meanwhile, Shockwave played out his own part by seeking the Dynobots. But he found them already engaged with [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]] and the Machination, whom Shockwave decided to attack first so he could destroy the Dynobots himself. Observing the battle, Joshua Red ordered the explosives detonated only if Shockwave ''succeeded,'' since it would guarantee a "clean sweep" of all the combatants and their bodies. If Shockwave was still in battle when the 24 hours were up, Red wanted the reset code sent instead, presumably because he feared anyone but Shockwave walking away alive and unsubdued. It is unclear if Shockwave had deduced this, but his actions produced the effect he desired. By the time Shockwave beat Scorponok, only 12 minutes remained, and Grimlock proved to have more than 12 minutes' worth of fight left in him. On the 30-second mark, the two were still grappling in a Machination arms bunker, so Red ordered the reset code sent. The code was intercepted and decrypted by Soundwave, who transmitted the information to Shockwave, who in return sent him instructions to mentally disable the mode-lock. Soundwave transformed, his cassettes attacked their would-be captors, and Shockwave abruptly walked away from his fight, declaring an end to the "charade." But Grimlock would not be denied his revenge, so before Shockwave could leave, he detonated a grenade that blew the arms bunker sky-high. The two were soon recovered, still functioning, by [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]], who took both Shockwave and Scorponok into custody. {{storylink|Maximum Dinobots issue 5|Maximum Dinobots #5}}

During Shockwave's time in Skywatch captivity, the researchers had gathered enough information about him to design a weapon based on his technology. According to [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Cmdr. Spike Witwicky]], the first working prototypes were the size of a house, but with some unspecified "outside help," they were able to condense it to a size small enough for hand-held use by a human. It was stored in a secret [[New York City]] facility, and when the city was overrun by Megatron's forces, Spike was sent in with a military squad to retrieve it and use it to kill Megatron. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 9|All Hail Megatron #9}} Though his team perished, Spike survived, got the weapon, and successfully shot Megatron in the head, ending the Decepticon occupation. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 12|All Hail Megatron #12}}

[[Image:LastStandoftheWreckers3 - Shockwave.jpg|150px|thumb|right|So do we blame Shockwave for letting Overlord off his leash, or Overlord for unleashing the one-eyed purple people eater again?]]
The Autobots imprisoned Shockwave at [[Garrus-9]], separating his head from his body in the process. However, one year after [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]]'s arrival in Garrus-9, he revived Shockwave. In exchange for his freedom and a hand-picked crew, Overlord wanted Shockwave to remove a virus Megatron had implanted in him prior to his rebellion. Shockwave agreed to the terms as they served his own purposes, however he was quick to comment that Overlord's actions on Garrus-9 were less about the former general's gratification and more about attracting Megatron's attention. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 3|Last Stand of the Wreckers #3}}

Shockwave eventually wound up on the same asteroid where many Decepticons had set up camp after escaping from Earth. He claimed to be working on rebuilding the [[space bridge]]. However, no one had bothered to observe his work, and even if they had, none of them had the knowledge to understand what he might be doing. {{storylink|All His Engines}}

Shockwave later assisted Soundwave in building a new body for Megatron after the shot to his head had left his old one beyond repair. Together they rebuilt their leader and used his old body to make tiny replicas of his gun form, with plans to distribute them amongst the population of Earth in order to create chaos amongst both the humans and Autobots. Starscream, who had taken up leadership after the fall of Megatron, was furious that Shockwave had squandered their resources on something like that rather than build a space bridge, only for Shockwave to reveal that he had integrated space bridge technology into Megatron's new body. He then carefully calculated that [[Quetzaltenango]], [[Mexico]] was the most appropriate location to deposit the Megatron guns, and stood by Megatron as he sent the weapons through the space bridge to Earth. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon}}

Four months later, the Decepticons themselves traveled to Earth, where Soundwave was heavily injured in a confrontation with Optimus Prime. When ordered to repair him, Shockwave protested that he no longer had the resources he had used to rebuild Megatron, but when pressed, affirmed that he could in fact save Soundwave's life. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 5: Enemy Mine}}

Later, [[Jetfire (G1)|Jetfire]] reflected on an event he called "Shockwave's resurgence." It is unclear exactly what this was or when this happened. {{storylink|Spotlight: Sideswipe}}

{{-}}

===''Hearts of Steel''===
{{charstubfiction}}
After awakening in 19th century America, Shockwave took on the form of an ironclad warship and recruited inventor [[Tobias Muldoon]] to the Decepticon side (by pretending to be a friend to humanity). {{storylink|Hearts of Steel issue 1|Hearts of Steel #1}} He took Muldoon to his Decepticon comrades underwater, where he was questioned by [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]]. {{storylink|Hearts of Steel issue 2|Hearts of Steel #2}} As a huge ship, he did not participate in the [[Astrotrain (G1)|Astrotrain]]'s attempted attack on New York, and thus may have survived the story unharmed. Clever bot.

{{-}}
===''Wings of Honor''===
When the [[Decepticon Warlord]]s formed a war council to discuss ways to eliminate the [[Cybertron Elite Guard]], [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] sent Shockwave along to the meetings as his spokescon. When [[Trannis]] reacted to footage of Megatron's men being destroyed by the Elite Guard by dismissing it, Shockwave agreed with [[Straxus (G1)|Straxus]] in that the Elite Guard did not discriminate between Decepticon factions. Shockwave's real reason for being at the meetings was not to share information, but to gather information on the other Warlords. The information was subsequently used to persuade [[Hook (G1)|Hook]] and [[Reflector (G1)|Reflector]] to amalgamate their armies with Megatron's. Shockwave didn't attend the following meeting, which was just as well for him, since [[Deathsaurus (Victory)|Deathsaurus]] blew it up, killing everyone present. {{storylink|A Team Effort}}

==Games==
===''The Transformers'' (PS2)===
{{bigquote|Megatron's personal watchdog. With the ability to transform into a laser gun, Shockwave boasts a powerful attack!|The [[narrator]]|"[[The Transformers (PS2)]]"}}
:''Voice actor'': [[Barry Gjerde]]
[[Image:Ps2tatakai shockwave1.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Absolute Power, etc., etc.]]

In an alternate future, the Shockwave of that time grew frustrated with [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]]'s increasingly abusive leadership, and when he discovered the [[Zel Quartz]], which could vastly boost the power of a Transformer, he implanted it into himself and staged a one-robot mutiny. Unfortunately, the power proved too much for Shockwave's systems and he ran wild. Neither the Autobots nor the Decepticons could stop him and they took massive casualties in the attempt. Shockwave eventually destroyed Cybertron, then set out on a quest to destroy all planets with life. Elite teams of Autobots and Decepticons traveled to the past to prevent these events by either destroying or seizing the Zel Quartz years before Shockwave would find it.

In the Autobot story, the present-day Shockwave was the main boss in the geothermal power plant, protecting the main turbine of the plant. When Optimus Prime and his team reached the main turbine, Shockwave slowly descended from the ceiling in his alternate form. He then changed to his robot form and dropped to the floor, announcing that he was collecting energy for Megatron. He warned the Autobots that anyone who stood in his way should not expect any mercy from him. When Optimus Prime stated that the Autobots were going to stop the Decepticon's plundering of [[Zel Samine]]'s energy, Shockwave suggested that they should settle this feud, by fighting. Eventually, the Autobots over-powered the Decepticon, and a battered Shockwave warned Optimus that he would remember the outcome of the fight before disengaging and fleeing the power plant. Later, Shockwave appeared in the valley where the Autobots detected an SOS signal and had a rematch with the Autobots, but was defeated again.

During the Decepticon storyline, Shockwave was a member of a team that Megatron sent to investigate a mysterious UFO that was spotted in the area of Zel Samine. Something caused the team to lose contact with the main Decepticon forces, and they found out that they could not leave the planet, as Zel's sun, Paradius, emitted electromagnetic rays that was harmful to them. Unable to contact Megatron and with no way to leave the planet safely, Shockwave and the others scattered across Zel, with Shockwave himself eventually finding his way to the Atalstan gem mine. When the Galvatron of the alternate timeline told the Megatron of the present the "truth" about the Zel Quartz, he asked his past self if Shockwave was around before telling it.

Once the main Decepticon forces arrived at the Atalstan gem mine and found the giant ore that they suspected to be the Zel Quartz, Shockwave analyzed the group and when he concluded that they were Decepticons. He hovered downward in his handgun mode. Transforming into robot mode, he made a short drop to the floor and announced that he had finally achieved rendezvous with his fellow warriors. When Megatron expressed partial surprise in the fact that Shockwave had survived, Shockwave confirmed him and announced that he was awaiting Megatron's orders.

For the remainder of the game, Shockwave remained ignorant of the circumstances that prompted their arrival. What's more, despite which side won, [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] accidentally negated the quartz's powers, and Shockwave's reign of terror in the future was averted. {{storylink|The Transformers (PS2)|The Transformers}}

===Transformers G1: Awakening===
{{storylink|Transformers G1: Awakening}}
{{charstubfiction}}

==Toys==
{{main|Shockwave (G1)/toys}}

==Merchandise==
{{main|Shockwave (G1)/toys#Merchandise}}

==Notes==
* [[Bob Budiansky]] said Shockwave was "my attempt to take [[Spock]] from ''Star Trek'' and make him into a Decepticon".<ref>[http://rustingcarcass.yuku.com/topic/954/t/Bob-Budiansky.html Rusting Carcass interview]</ref>
[[Image:StudioOxCybertronBattleCons.jpg|250px|thumb|It's not easy being grey. It seems you blend in with so many other ordinary things.]]
* According to early drafts of the script for the series' pilot episode, Shockwave was at one point to be called "Flash Beam".
* A Cybertronian battle scene in ''[[TV Magazine]]'' (reprinted in ''[[Transformers Generations]]'' and ''[[Transformers Visualworks]]'') depicts Shockwave not in purple, but in the original grey color scheme of the Astro Magnum/Galactic Man toy.
* Shockwave has been periodically drawn with two hands in various media. He first shows up this way in [[More than Meets the Eye, Part 1]], and the condition briefly reappears in [[Divide and Conquer]]. He also wound up this way on the cover of ''[[Ashes, Ashes...|G.I. Joe and the Transformers]]'' #3.
* Voice actor Corey Burton based Shockwave's voice on that of actor [[wikipedia:David Warner (actor)|David Warner]], specifically his role as evil computer thingy [[wikipedia:Sark (Tron)|Sark]] in ''[[wikipedia:Tron (film)|Tron]]''.<ref>[http://cybertronchronicle.freewebspace.com/60-astrominutes/corey-burton/corey_burton_1.html Corey Burton interview on the Cybertron Chronicle]</ref> Burton even provided the voice of Sark in the video game ''[[wikipedia:Kingdom Hearts II|Kingdom Hearts II]]''.
* In contrast to Megatron, when Shockwave transforms, he does not [[Size changing|change size]]. He can also fly, aim, and fire himself in gun mode. [[Combiner|Combiners]] are large enough to wield him. {{storylink|The Revenge of Bruticus}}
* In the Japanese dub of the Generation 1 cartoon, Shockwave's personality was altered from the American interpretation—he was presented like a grizzled old man with a loud, raspy voice and a very short temper.
* Shockwave is, of course, the basis for the ''[[Energon (franchise)|Energon]]'' Decepticon [[homage]] [[character]] [[Shockblast]].
* A company named Lanard Toys held the "Shockwave" [[trademark]] in the "toys" field for several years. For that reason, the ''Energon'' toy/character mentioned above was given the substitute name "Shockblast". The same name was later given to the ''[[Alternators]]'' version of G1 Shockwave for the same reason. However, by that point Lanard had abandoned their "Shockwave" trademark, making it available to Hasbro again. Unfortunately, the packaging for ''Alternators'' Shockwave had already been printed by that point, so Hasbro decided to go with the substitute name. They then slapped the name "Shockwave" onto the [[Shockwave (Cybertron)|next available]] [[Mini-Con]] just so they could reclaim the trademark. Subsequently, all new toys of the G1 Shockwave character, as well as [[Shockwave (Animated)|homage]] [[Shockwave (Movie)|characters]], were released under the name "Shockwave" again. (Ironically, [[Hasbro]] later used the name "[http://www.yojoe.com/action/08/shockblast.shtml Shockblast]" for new toys of a ''[[G.I. Joe (franchise)|G.I.Joe]]'' character originally also named "[http://www.yojoe.com/action/88/shockwave.shtml Shockwave]", possibly in order to avoid brand confusion; apparently, Hasbro view the name "Shockwave" as more iconic for the Transformers character than his G.I. Joe namesake.)

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Laserwave''' (レーザーウェーブ ''Rēzāwēbu'')
*''French:'' '''Onde de Choc''' (Canada, "Shockwave")
*''Hungarian:'' '''Sokkoló''' ("Shocker")
*''Italian:'' '''Brutal'''
*''Mandarin:'' '''Jèn-pō''' (Taiwan, 震波, "Shock Wave")
*''Portuguese:'' '''Onda-Choque''' (Portugal comic, "Shock-Wave"), '''Onda de Choque''' (Brazil comic, "Shock Wave")
*''Ukranian:'' '''Shokun''' (Шокун, "Shocker")
*''Russian:'' '''Vzrivala''' (Взрывала, "Blaster")

==References==
<references/>

==External links==
* [http://www.tfu.info/1985/Decepticon/Shockwave/shockwave.htm Shockwave at TFU.info]
* [http://www.ntfa.net/universe/english/index.php?act=view&char=Shockwave Shockwave's Universe profile at NTFA.net]

[[Category:Action Masters]]
[[Category:Alternators Decepticons]]
[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Decoys]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Decepticons]]
[[Category:Generation 2 Decepticons]]
[[Category:Matrix bearers]]
[[Category:Rulers of Cybertron]]
[[Category:Scientists]]
[[Category:Strategists]]
[[Category:Timelines characters]]

Overload (Armada)

2011-10-06T16:36:52Z

93.75.235.114: /* Foreign names */

{{factions|autobot}}
{{disambig3|Overload}}
:''Overload is an [[Autobot]] from the [[Unicron Trilogy]] [[continuity family]].''

[[Image:Overload-armada-cardart.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Hey guys, I'm totally in ''[[Armada (cartoon)|Armada]]'', seriously!]]
'''Overload''' is an Autobot powerhouse. On his own, he's strong, massive, and covered with guns and artillery. On top of this, he can combine with [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]], forming an enormously powerful set of cannons for the Autobot leader.

Just ''who'' Overload is depends on which universe one is in. Sometimes "Overload" is simply the name used by the [[Mini-Con]] [[Rollout (Armada)|Rollout]] when he combines with his armored trailer. And sometimes the trailer itself is Overload, a separate living entity... who uses someone else to form his robot-mode chest and head.

==Fiction==
===Toy pack-in comics===
[[Image:Armada V4 Rollout Overload.jpg|thumb|Stop talking to yourself!]]
When [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]] defeated [[Megatron (Armada)|Galvatron]] on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], Overload and Rollout accompanied Optimus in transporting Galvatron to prison. [[Tidal Wave (Armada)|Tidal Wave]] attacked the duo, rescuing Galvatron. The two [[Decepticon]]s combined, and Overload in robot mode was set to battle him, but then transformed into a battle platform manned by Rollout. His firepower was of little concern to Galvatron, who swatted the two away. Overload transformed into robot mode just in time to see [[Unicron]] take over the sky. {{Storylink|Armada Volume 4}}
{{-}}

===Dreamwave comics continuity===
====Dreamwave ''Armada'' comic====
[[Image:Jetfireblurrsideswiperhinoxoverload.jpg|left|300px|thumb|I'm in the background a lot.]]
Overload was an Autobot under [[Jetfire (Armada)|Jetfire]] on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. When the Autobots detected multiple [[space bridge]]s opening at [[Decepticon Command Headquarters|Decepticon Command HQ]], causing disruptions in dimensional space, Jetfire led a team of Autobots to the Decepticon base to investigate. When they got there, they found carnage: All of the Decepticon inhabitants had been butchered and mutilated. As they wandered around the base, Overload questioned if they were going the right way, but they were soon attacked by [[Bludgeon (G1)|the mysterious killer]]. Overload pulled the injured Jetfire out of further harm's way before being ordered to transform into vehicle mode to light up the cavernous base (as well as their attacker). After Jetfire emptied his weapons bays, Overload asked Jetfire if they got him, but the situation was bad, as they'd only succeeded in destroying the creature's outer shell. {{storylink|Worlds Collide, Part 3 of 4}}

Once they were in the Master Space-Bridge Nexus of the Decepticon base, the Autobots began setting detonation charges, intending to stop the damage to the fabric of space-time by destroying the Nexus. However, they were attacked, and Overload reported that it might have been their previous assailant, though it was difficult to know what was inside of that shell. Overload was glad to pull out when ordered, as all of his firepower was having little effect their opponent. He was pleased when the Nexus blowed up real good, until they noticed Jetfire was missing. However, both Jetfire and [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]] returned in spiffy new colours with spiffy new powers. {{storylink|Worlds Collide, Part 4 of 4}}

Overload was in the command center of [[Autobase|Autobase: Cybertron]] as the Autobots readied their defenses against [[Unicron]]. {{storylink|The End}}

====''Energon'' comic====
[[Image:Overloadmultiplicity.jpg|right|300px|thumb|]]

Ten years later, during the worldwide [[Terrorcon (Energon)|Terrorcon]] assault on [[Earth]], Overload, [[Dropshot (Armada)|Dropshot]], and [[Ironhide (Energon)|Ironhide]] were stationed at [[Base Site One]] in [[Canada]]'s [[Yukon Territory]], where their equipment included a planetary shield generator. Base Site 1 had lost contact with [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], which would put the Autobots' countermeasures in jeopardy. While Overload suspected the Terrorcons may have something to do with their problem, Dropshot noted it could just as easily be an equipment malfunction. {{storylink|Multiplicity, Pt. 3}}

The arrival of [[Scorponok (Energon)|Scorponok]] confirmed Overload's theory. Overload and Dropshot were quickly put out of commission, leaving Ironhide alone to face Scorponok... and [[Megatron (Armada)|Megatron]]! {{storylink|No Exit}}
{{-}}

===Cartoon continuity===
====''Armada'' cartoon====
[[Image:ArmOverloadToon01.jpg|left|180px|thumb|Hey! Over here! Behind the geek and the undead guy!]]
[[Image:ArmOverloadToon02.jpg|right|300px|thumb|]]
Overload's origin is unknown.

Overload suddenly appeared as a trailer attached to the rear of Optimus Prime's container as the Autobot leader launched himself from the ''[[Axalon (Armada)|Axalon]]''. Faced with the powerful [[Sideways (RID)|Sideways]]-possessed clone [[Nemesis Prime (Armada)|Nemesis Prime]], Overload powerlinked with Optimus's super mode to form a pair of massive, shoulder-mounted cannons. Together, Optimus and [[Megatron (Armada)|Galvatron]] destroyed the monstrous marionette. {{storylink|Puppet}}

Later on Cybertron, realizing the threat of Unicron, Optimus Prime attempted to reach out to Galvatron and forge an alliance against the Chaos Bringer. As expected, the Decepticon leader refused, forcing Optimus to powerlink with both Jetfire and Overload to form Jet Magna Convoy. However, in this form he did not engage in battle with the similarly powerlinked Galvatron, instead using his power to lead the Decepticon away from battle. {{storylink|Cramp}}

After the formation of an alliance between the Autobots and Decepticons, Overload, in robot mode, stood behind [[Side Swipe (Armada)|Side Swipe]] and [[Smokescreen (Armada)|Hoist]] during the mission briefing. {{storylink|Alliance}}
{{-}}

====Linkage====
[[Image:LinkageOverload.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Cheesebot Spam-a-lot.]]
Overload, flanked by [[Tidal Wave (Armada)|Tidal Wave]] (who happens to form extra artillery for the [[Megatron (Armada)|Decepticon leader]]), engaged the forces of [[Unicron]] with some heavy [[Powerlinx]] artillery, using [[Prowl (Armada)|Prowl]] and [[Kingbolt]] in their pistol modes, plus [[Quench]] in his missile launcher mode. {{storylink|Linkage Part 13}}
{{--}}

====''Universe'' toy bio====

Overload used to be a partner to Optimus Prime himself. But those days are past: he left Cybertron years over. With his origins and past a mystery, even to ''Overload'', he hunts for the answers to his past on the lost Cybertronian colony worlds.

==Toys==
===Armada===
[[Image:ArmadaOverload toy.jpg|right|300px|thumb|"I'm not really sure ''what'' I transform into, but it's good... right?"]]
*'''Overload with Mini-Con Rollout''' (Max-Con, 2003)
**''Japanese ID number'': '''MC-14'''
**''Accessories:'' 2 missiles

: Overload is a red and black carrier truck capable of carrying [[Jetfire (Armada)|Jetfire]] in his vehicle mode. His robot mode, in which his [[Mini-Con]], [[Rollout (Armada)|Rollout]], acts as his [[Headmaster (technology)|head]], is a heavily armed robot with a vague resemblance to [[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]]'s [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] (thus the Japanese name) such as the [[gimmick]] of his shoulders, though it actually (according to [[Joe Kyde|the designer]]) has more details from the [[Action Master]] [[Rollout (G1)|Rollout]].

:Overload can be pulled by Rollout in his altmode, [[Optimus Prime (Armada)/toys|Optimus Prime]]'s cab, or attached to Optimus's trailer to form a double trailer. Overload can also transform into a dual spring-loaded missile-firing cannon pack for Optimus Prime's Super Mode (forming '''Optimus Prime Megaweapon'''), and can also attach to Prime's trailer in its "base" mode. He can also attach to the trailer for an undocumented Super Mode, by detaching the lower half of Overload's legs and plugging the trailer-legs into the sockets on his thighs.

: Inserting Rollout into his chest cavity and pushing it into position to form his chest/head will press against a button, activating the ''Generation 1'' transformation sound effect.

: The Japanese version features slightly more intricate paint applications and a silver face. This version also replaced some of the red plastic with maroon plastic.

: The Overload mold was reused for ''Energon'' [[Ultra Magnus (Energon)|Ultra Magnus]], and was retooled for [[OTFCC 2004]]'s ''[[Universe (2003 toyline)|Universe]]'' [[Sentinel Maximus]] with a new head mold.

{{-}}{{anchor|MagnaConvoy}}
[[Image:Armada MagnaConvoyDX1.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Some day I'll be more than an accessory!]]
*'''Magna Convoy DX Set''' (Multi-pack, [[November 11]] 2003)
**''Accessories:'' 2 missiles

: Overload and Rollout were cast in colored-clear plastics (dubbed "'''Ultra Magnus Special Clear Version'''"), and made available only in a Japanese [[Toys"R"Us|ToysЯUs]] [[exclusive]] multi-pack, coming with Optimus Prime in his "Final Battle Color Version" (aka [[Powerlinx]] colors), [[Sparkplug (Armada)|Corona Sparkplug]], and an [[X-Dimension Mini-Cons|X-Dimension]] [[redeco]] of the [[Street Action Mini-Con Team (Armada)|Street Action Mini-Con Team]].

{{-}}{{anchor|Blue}}
*'''Special Ultra Magnus''' (Max-Con, 2003)
**''Accessories:'' 2 missiles

: 100 samples of this "sky blue" redeco of Overload and Rollout were given away as prizes in a contest from the Japanese ''Tele-V Magazine'' in October 2003.

===Energon===
[[Image:Energon Costco OptimusPrimeOverload.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Not yet, but someday! I swear it!]]
*'''Optimus Prime with Mini-Con Corona Sparkplug & Overload with Mini-Con Rollout''' (Multi-pack, 2004)

: For this [[Costco]]-[[exclusive]] set, Overload (and Rollout) was redecoed into a predominantly yellow scheme with burgundy accents. He came with a new-deco version of ''Armada'' Optimus Prime and [[Sparkplug (Armada)|Sparkplug]] (who, despite his larger partner's new duds, remained pretty much the same).
{{-}}

===Universe (2008)===
[[Image:Overloaduniverse2009.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Autonomy at last!]]
*'''Overload''' (Voyager, 2009)
**''Accessories'': 2 missiles, rifle, Cyber Key

: Part of the fifth wave of ''[[Universe (2008 toyline)|Universe]]'' Voyagers, "Cybertron Series" Overload is a [[redeco]] of [[Scattorshot (Cybertron)#CybDef|Cybertron Defense Scattorshot]], transforming into a vehicle resembling a multiple-launch rocket system which looks a bit like a [[wikipedia:TOS-1|TOS-1 Buratino]] (but not enough to be one) with a color scheme heavily based on that of the Generation 1 Micromaster [[Flak (G1)|Flak]]. The halves of the (non-firing) launcher end up on his arms in robot mode. In either mode, inserting a [[Cyber Key]] in each half reveals a new weapon: one side has a pull-out double spring-loaded missile launcher, while the other has a flip-out non-firing blaster barrel. He also comes with an extra long hand-held rifle that can be mounted in tank mode thanks to his [[Mini-Con]]-compatible [[Powerlinx]] plugs.

: This mold was also used to make ''Universe'' [[Dropshot (Universe)|Dropshot]] and ''[[Timelines (toyline)|Timelines]]'' Flak.
{{--}}

==Notes==
* Overload's entry in Dreamwave's ''[[More Than Meets The Eye (Armada)|Armada: More Than Meets The Eye]]'' profile series claims that his combination with [[Rollout (Armada)|Rollout]] uses "[[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster technology]]". The [[Armada Fleer card series|Fleer card]] for Rollout also makes mention of this.
* According to [[Hirofumi Ichikawa]], he intended to have a sub-plot explaining just where the hell Overload came from in the [[Linkage (comic)|''Linkage'' comic]], but didn't have the space to do so, so he dropped it in favor of focusing on the A-plot and cramming in what DVD-exclusive-character moments he could.
* Overload's whole "appearing out of nowhere without explanation" deal from the cartoon got a slight ribbing in the [[bio]] for his 2008 ''Universe'' toy, which established that he was now on a quest to discover the mystery of his origins.
* The character's American name of Overload makes sense in a roundabout way. The original Overload was coloured like the Diaclone Powered Convoy, which would be redecoed to become Generation 1 Ultra Magnus, and this character is named Ultra Magnus in Japan.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Ultra Magnus''' (ウルトラマグナス ''Urutora Magunasu'')
*''Hungarian:'' '''Túltöltés'''
*''Ukranian:'' '''Peregriv''' (Перегрів ''Overload'')

==External links==
* [http://www.tfu.info/2003/Autobot/Overload/overload.htm Overload at TFU.info]

[[Category:Armada Autobots]]
[[Category:Combiners]]
[[Category:Costco exclusives]]
[[Category:Energon Autobots]]
[[Category:Headmasters]]
[[Category:Toys "R" Us exclusives]]
[[Category:Universe (2008)]]

Overload (Armada)

2011-10-06T16:36:35Z

93.75.235.114: /* Foreign names */

{{factions|autobot}}
{{disambig3|Overload}}
:''Overload is an [[Autobot]] from the [[Unicron Trilogy]] [[continuity family]].''

[[Image:Overload-armada-cardart.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Hey guys, I'm totally in ''[[Armada (cartoon)|Armada]]'', seriously!]]
'''Overload''' is an Autobot powerhouse. On his own, he's strong, massive, and covered with guns and artillery. On top of this, he can combine with [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]], forming an enormously powerful set of cannons for the Autobot leader.

Just ''who'' Overload is depends on which universe one is in. Sometimes "Overload" is simply the name used by the [[Mini-Con]] [[Rollout (Armada)|Rollout]] when he combines with his armored trailer. And sometimes the trailer itself is Overload, a separate living entity... who uses someone else to form his robot-mode chest and head.

==Fiction==
===Toy pack-in comics===
[[Image:Armada V4 Rollout Overload.jpg|thumb|Stop talking to yourself!]]
When [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]] defeated [[Megatron (Armada)|Galvatron]] on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], Overload and Rollout accompanied Optimus in transporting Galvatron to prison. [[Tidal Wave (Armada)|Tidal Wave]] attacked the duo, rescuing Galvatron. The two [[Decepticon]]s combined, and Overload in robot mode was set to battle him, but then transformed into a battle platform manned by Rollout. His firepower was of little concern to Galvatron, who swatted the two away. Overload transformed into robot mode just in time to see [[Unicron]] take over the sky. {{Storylink|Armada Volume 4}}
{{-}}

===Dreamwave comics continuity===
====Dreamwave ''Armada'' comic====
[[Image:Jetfireblurrsideswiperhinoxoverload.jpg|left|300px|thumb|I'm in the background a lot.]]
Overload was an Autobot under [[Jetfire (Armada)|Jetfire]] on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. When the Autobots detected multiple [[space bridge]]s opening at [[Decepticon Command Headquarters|Decepticon Command HQ]], causing disruptions in dimensional space, Jetfire led a team of Autobots to the Decepticon base to investigate. When they got there, they found carnage: All of the Decepticon inhabitants had been butchered and mutilated. As they wandered around the base, Overload questioned if they were going the right way, but they were soon attacked by [[Bludgeon (G1)|the mysterious killer]]. Overload pulled the injured Jetfire out of further harm's way before being ordered to transform into vehicle mode to light up the cavernous base (as well as their attacker). After Jetfire emptied his weapons bays, Overload asked Jetfire if they got him, but the situation was bad, as they'd only succeeded in destroying the creature's outer shell. {{storylink|Worlds Collide, Part 3 of 4}}

Once they were in the Master Space-Bridge Nexus of the Decepticon base, the Autobots began setting detonation charges, intending to stop the damage to the fabric of space-time by destroying the Nexus. However, they were attacked, and Overload reported that it might have been their previous assailant, though it was difficult to know what was inside of that shell. Overload was glad to pull out when ordered, as all of his firepower was having little effect their opponent. He was pleased when the Nexus blowed up real good, until they noticed Jetfire was missing. However, both Jetfire and [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]] returned in spiffy new colours with spiffy new powers. {{storylink|Worlds Collide, Part 4 of 4}}

Overload was in the command center of [[Autobase|Autobase: Cybertron]] as the Autobots readied their defenses against [[Unicron]]. {{storylink|The End}}

====''Energon'' comic====
[[Image:Overloadmultiplicity.jpg|right|300px|thumb|]]

Ten years later, during the worldwide [[Terrorcon (Energon)|Terrorcon]] assault on [[Earth]], Overload, [[Dropshot (Armada)|Dropshot]], and [[Ironhide (Energon)|Ironhide]] were stationed at [[Base Site One]] in [[Canada]]'s [[Yukon Territory]], where their equipment included a planetary shield generator. Base Site 1 had lost contact with [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], which would put the Autobots' countermeasures in jeopardy. While Overload suspected the Terrorcons may have something to do with their problem, Dropshot noted it could just as easily be an equipment malfunction. {{storylink|Multiplicity, Pt. 3}}

The arrival of [[Scorponok (Energon)|Scorponok]] confirmed Overload's theory. Overload and Dropshot were quickly put out of commission, leaving Ironhide alone to face Scorponok... and [[Megatron (Armada)|Megatron]]! {{storylink|No Exit}}
{{-}}

===Cartoon continuity===
====''Armada'' cartoon====
[[Image:ArmOverloadToon01.jpg|left|180px|thumb|Hey! Over here! Behind the geek and the undead guy!]]
[[Image:ArmOverloadToon02.jpg|right|300px|thumb|]]
Overload's origin is unknown.

Overload suddenly appeared as a trailer attached to the rear of Optimus Prime's container as the Autobot leader launched himself from the ''[[Axalon (Armada)|Axalon]]''. Faced with the powerful [[Sideways (RID)|Sideways]]-possessed clone [[Nemesis Prime (Armada)|Nemesis Prime]], Overload powerlinked with Optimus's super mode to form a pair of massive, shoulder-mounted cannons. Together, Optimus and [[Megatron (Armada)|Galvatron]] destroyed the monstrous marionette. {{storylink|Puppet}}

Later on Cybertron, realizing the threat of Unicron, Optimus Prime attempted to reach out to Galvatron and forge an alliance against the Chaos Bringer. As expected, the Decepticon leader refused, forcing Optimus to powerlink with both Jetfire and Overload to form Jet Magna Convoy. However, in this form he did not engage in battle with the similarly powerlinked Galvatron, instead using his power to lead the Decepticon away from battle. {{storylink|Cramp}}

After the formation of an alliance between the Autobots and Decepticons, Overload, in robot mode, stood behind [[Side Swipe (Armada)|Side Swipe]] and [[Smokescreen (Armada)|Hoist]] during the mission briefing. {{storylink|Alliance}}
{{-}}

====Linkage====
[[Image:LinkageOverload.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Cheesebot Spam-a-lot.]]
Overload, flanked by [[Tidal Wave (Armada)|Tidal Wave]] (who happens to form extra artillery for the [[Megatron (Armada)|Decepticon leader]]), engaged the forces of [[Unicron]] with some heavy [[Powerlinx]] artillery, using [[Prowl (Armada)|Prowl]] and [[Kingbolt]] in their pistol modes, plus [[Quench]] in his missile launcher mode. {{storylink|Linkage Part 13}}
{{--}}

====''Universe'' toy bio====

Overload used to be a partner to Optimus Prime himself. But those days are past: he left Cybertron years over. With his origins and past a mystery, even to ''Overload'', he hunts for the answers to his past on the lost Cybertronian colony worlds.

==Toys==
===Armada===
[[Image:ArmadaOverload toy.jpg|right|300px|thumb|"I'm not really sure ''what'' I transform into, but it's good... right?"]]
*'''Overload with Mini-Con Rollout''' (Max-Con, 2003)
**''Japanese ID number'': '''MC-14'''
**''Accessories:'' 2 missiles

: Overload is a red and black carrier truck capable of carrying [[Jetfire (Armada)|Jetfire]] in his vehicle mode. His robot mode, in which his [[Mini-Con]], [[Rollout (Armada)|Rollout]], acts as his [[Headmaster (technology)|head]], is a heavily armed robot with a vague resemblance to [[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]]'s [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] (thus the Japanese name) such as the [[gimmick]] of his shoulders, though it actually (according to [[Joe Kyde|the designer]]) has more details from the [[Action Master]] [[Rollout (G1)|Rollout]].

:Overload can be pulled by Rollout in his altmode, [[Optimus Prime (Armada)/toys|Optimus Prime]]'s cab, or attached to Optimus's trailer to form a double trailer. Overload can also transform into a dual spring-loaded missile-firing cannon pack for Optimus Prime's Super Mode (forming '''Optimus Prime Megaweapon'''), and can also attach to Prime's trailer in its "base" mode. He can also attach to the trailer for an undocumented Super Mode, by detaching the lower half of Overload's legs and plugging the trailer-legs into the sockets on his thighs.

: Inserting Rollout into his chest cavity and pushing it into position to form his chest/head will press against a button, activating the ''Generation 1'' transformation sound effect.

: The Japanese version features slightly more intricate paint applications and a silver face. This version also replaced some of the red plastic with maroon plastic.

: The Overload mold was reused for ''Energon'' [[Ultra Magnus (Energon)|Ultra Magnus]], and was retooled for [[OTFCC 2004]]'s ''[[Universe (2003 toyline)|Universe]]'' [[Sentinel Maximus]] with a new head mold.

{{-}}{{anchor|MagnaConvoy}}
[[Image:Armada MagnaConvoyDX1.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Some day I'll be more than an accessory!]]
*'''Magna Convoy DX Set''' (Multi-pack, [[November 11]] 2003)
**''Accessories:'' 2 missiles

: Overload and Rollout were cast in colored-clear plastics (dubbed "'''Ultra Magnus Special Clear Version'''"), and made available only in a Japanese [[Toys"R"Us|ToysЯUs]] [[exclusive]] multi-pack, coming with Optimus Prime in his "Final Battle Color Version" (aka [[Powerlinx]] colors), [[Sparkplug (Armada)|Corona Sparkplug]], and an [[X-Dimension Mini-Cons|X-Dimension]] [[redeco]] of the [[Street Action Mini-Con Team (Armada)|Street Action Mini-Con Team]].

{{-}}{{anchor|Blue}}
*'''Special Ultra Magnus''' (Max-Con, 2003)
**''Accessories:'' 2 missiles

: 100 samples of this "sky blue" redeco of Overload and Rollout were given away as prizes in a contest from the Japanese ''Tele-V Magazine'' in October 2003.

===Energon===
[[Image:Energon Costco OptimusPrimeOverload.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Not yet, but someday! I swear it!]]
*'''Optimus Prime with Mini-Con Corona Sparkplug & Overload with Mini-Con Rollout''' (Multi-pack, 2004)

: For this [[Costco]]-[[exclusive]] set, Overload (and Rollout) was redecoed into a predominantly yellow scheme with burgundy accents. He came with a new-deco version of ''Armada'' Optimus Prime and [[Sparkplug (Armada)|Sparkplug]] (who, despite his larger partner's new duds, remained pretty much the same).
{{-}}

===Universe (2008)===
[[Image:Overloaduniverse2009.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Autonomy at last!]]
*'''Overload''' (Voyager, 2009)
**''Accessories'': 2 missiles, rifle, Cyber Key

: Part of the fifth wave of ''[[Universe (2008 toyline)|Universe]]'' Voyagers, "Cybertron Series" Overload is a [[redeco]] of [[Scattorshot (Cybertron)#CybDef|Cybertron Defense Scattorshot]], transforming into a vehicle resembling a multiple-launch rocket system which looks a bit like a [[wikipedia:TOS-1|TOS-1 Buratino]] (but not enough to be one) with a color scheme heavily based on that of the Generation 1 Micromaster [[Flak (G1)|Flak]]. The halves of the (non-firing) launcher end up on his arms in robot mode. In either mode, inserting a [[Cyber Key]] in each half reveals a new weapon: one side has a pull-out double spring-loaded missile launcher, while the other has a flip-out non-firing blaster barrel. He also comes with an extra long hand-held rifle that can be mounted in tank mode thanks to his [[Mini-Con]]-compatible [[Powerlinx]] plugs.

: This mold was also used to make ''Universe'' [[Dropshot (Universe)|Dropshot]] and ''[[Timelines (toyline)|Timelines]]'' Flak.
{{--}}

==Notes==
* Overload's entry in Dreamwave's ''[[More Than Meets The Eye (Armada)|Armada: More Than Meets The Eye]]'' profile series claims that his combination with [[Rollout (Armada)|Rollout]] uses "[[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster technology]]". The [[Armada Fleer card series|Fleer card]] for Rollout also makes mention of this.
* According to [[Hirofumi Ichikawa]], he intended to have a sub-plot explaining just where the hell Overload came from in the [[Linkage (comic)|''Linkage'' comic]], but didn't have the space to do so, so he dropped it in favor of focusing on the A-plot and cramming in what DVD-exclusive-character moments he could.
* Overload's whole "appearing out of nowhere without explanation" deal from the cartoon got a slight ribbing in the [[bio]] for his 2008 ''Universe'' toy, which established that he was now on a quest to discover the mystery of his origins.
* The character's American name of Overload makes sense in a roundabout way. The original Overload was coloured like the Diaclone Powered Convoy, which would be redecoed to become Generation 1 Ultra Magnus, and this character is named Ultra Magnus in Japan.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Ultra Magnus''' (ウルトラマグナス ''Urutora Magunasu'')
*''Hungarian:'' '''Túltöltés'''
*''Ukranian:'' '''Peregriv''' (Перегрів''Overload'')

==External links==
* [http://www.tfu.info/2003/Autobot/Overload/overload.htm Overload at TFU.info]

[[Category:Armada Autobots]]
[[Category:Combiners]]
[[Category:Costco exclusives]]
[[Category:Energon Autobots]]
[[Category:Headmasters]]
[[Category:Toys "R" Us exclusives]]
[[Category:Universe (2008)]]

Tidal Wave (Armada)

2011-10-06T16:29:18Z

93.75.235.114: /* Foreign names */

{{picsneeded|Fictional appearances.}}

{{factions|decepticon}}
{{disambig3|Tidal Wave}}

:''Tidal Wave is a [[Decepticon]] from the [[Unicron Trilogy]] [[continuity family]].''

[[Image:Tidal wave looms ps2.jpg|right|400px|thumb|Like a vast predatory <s>bird</s> fish...]]
'''Tidal Wave''' is a colossal powerhouse, one of the largest Decepticons under [[Megatron (Armada)|Megatron]]'s command. His power is backed up by a brain that doesn't exactly run at optimal speeds; he's not so much stupid as he is single-minded and easily frustrated, although [[Pokeformers|his tendency to shout his own name repeatedly as a sort of battle cry]] doesn't do much to refute his reputation as a knucklehead. In battle he is merciless, an unyielding engine of destruction.

He is unquestionably loyal to Megatron and his ideals and will quickly sign up with anyone that promises power to the Decepticon cause. He may or may not have a [[Deathsaurus (Victory)|soft spot for children]].<ref>One of the ''Super Link'' [[Commercial bumper|commercial bumpers]] features Mirage introducing himself, then telling the good little children out there that it's nice to meet them.</ref>

Tidal Wave's [[Mini-Con]] partner is [[Ramjet (Armada)|Ramjet]]. Tidal Wave takes on the name '''Mirage''' when upgrading to a new body.

{{quote|Tidal Wave...Tidal Wave...|Tidal Wave, too many times to properly source}}

==Fiction==
===Toy pack-in comics===
[[Image:Armada V3 Tidal Wave.jpg|thumb|]]
On [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], Tidal Wave rescued [[Megatron (Armada)|Galvatron]] when the [[Decepticon]] leader was being transported to prison. The two combined, and their power was too much for [[Overload (Armada)|Overload]] and [[Rollout (Armada)|Rollout]] to handle. Their battle was cut short when Ramjet pointed out the gigantic form of [[Unicron]] in the sky. {{Storylink|Armada Volume 4}}

[[Image:Energon V4 Decepticons.jpg|thumb|left]]

As part of [[Eclipse-Team]], Tidal Wave, now in a new body as Mirage, was assigned to patrol the exterior of an Autobot [[energon]] refinery plant while his team-mates [[Sharkticon (Energon)|Sharkticon]] and [[Slugslinger (Energon)|Slugslinger]] plundered the ressources within. The plan quickly went awry and when Slugslinger called in Mirage for reinforcement, Mirage was swatted by [[Omega Supreme (Energon)|Omega Supreme]] for his troubles. The mission was a complete failure. {{Storylink|Energon Volume 3}}

In another battle, Mirage, along with [[Demolishor (Armada)|Demolishor]], [[Cyclonus (Armada)|Snow Cat]], and [[Shockblast]], were sicced on a weakened [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]], but were blasted away by [[Wing Saber (Energon)|Wing Saber]]. {{storylink|Energon Volume 4}}
{{-}}

===Unicron Trilogy cartoon continuity===
====''Armada'' cartoon====
:''Voice actor'' [[Doug Parker]] (English), [[Jin Yamanoi]] (Japanese)

Tidal Wave was brought to [[Earth]] by the Decepticon strategist [[Thrust (Armada)|Thrust]] in an attempt to bolster the Decepticon forces so that they could obtain the [[Requiem Blaster]]. Thrust's claims of Tidal Wave's prowess initially conflicted with the newcomer's... lack of grace. This was exemplified when [[Hot Shot (Armada)|Hot Shot]] and [[Blurr (Armada)|Blurr]] capsized the huge warship and sent it to the bottom of the deep. However, Tidal Wave quickly recovered by transforming into his massively powerful robot mode and quickly sent the Autobots scrambling for cover. {{storylink|Awakening}}

Pounding the Autobots with firepower, Thrust called out to Tidal Wave to initiate his party piece. Tidal Wave transformed and split into three component vehicle sections (which somehow shrank in size), headed for Megatron and Powerlinxed with him, forming a combination known as ''Burning Megatron''. Megatron declared that "The Power is Mine!" before setting off in pursuit of Jet Optimus. Tidal Wave gave Megatron flight capability and an overwhelming amount of firepower which kept Jet Optimus at bay long enough for Megatron to slice the connection point between Optimus Prime and [[Jetfire (Armada)|Jetfire]] with the Star Saber. However, Optimus Prime managed to obtain the [[Requiem Blaster]] and used it to injure both Tidal Wave and Megatron, forcing the Decepticons to retreat {{storylink|Desperate}} to the [[Moon (moon)|Moon]] for repairs. {{storylink|Runaway}}

Tidal Wave later participated in the Decepticons' operation to steal the Blaster, during which [[Starscream (Armada)|Starscream]] decided to defect. {{storylink|Sacrifice}} After Starscream cracked and attacked Megatron, Tidal Wave was sent after him to Earth when the rogue Decepticon jet escaped their moon base with the Star Saber in his possession. The Autobots initially assumed both Decepticons were part of a combined attack, but eventually came to Starscream's assistance against Tidal Wave when the Decepticon shot him down. Hot Shot nailed Tidal Wave in the eye with his axle cannon but the powerful Tidal Wave recovered quickly and caused problems for Jet Optimus, who couldn't so much as scratch him. This prompted Starscream to toss the Star Saber to the Autobot leader which he used to slice off one of Tidal Wave's chest guns and forced the Decepticon to retreat again. {{storylink|Regeneration}}

He was present when Starscream led the Autobots into the heart of the Decepticon base to liberate the captive Mini-Cons. He handily took down Side Swipe, then moved to the chamber where the [[Hydra Cannon]] was under construction to prevent the Mini-Cons from being lost to the Autobots. On the way, he encountered [[Perceptor (Armada)|Perceptor]] and Hot Shot, the latter of whom distracted him long enough for the former to penetrate deeper into the Decepticon base.

Though Hot Shot fought hard, Tidal Wave was simply too big and powerful for the young 'bot to defeat alone, so he fled to the construction room with Tidal Wave in hot pursuit. Tidal Wave arrived just in time to see the Mini-Cons flee with Perceptor. [[Smokescreen (Armada)|Smokescreen]] then arrived and the two fought for a while before the Autobots retreated, their objectives achieved. {{storylink|Rescue}}

Megatron then sent Tidal Wave to [[Mars (planet)|Mars]] as part of a trap for Starscream and Jetfire. He beat up Starscream in the sky, which sent him crashing to the surface. He encountered both the Autobots, as well as their Mini-Cons, shortly thereafter in the asteroid belt where they had located [[Firebot (Armada)|Firebot]]. Megatron and Thrust arrived to help him at this point, but all three were forced back when the Autobots unlocked the power of [[burning justice]] in the Star Saber and [[Skyboom (Armada)|Skyboom]] shield. {{storylink|Mars (episode)|Mars}}

Tidal Wave participated in the attack during which Starscream returned to the Decepticons, bringing the Star Saber and Skyboom Shield with him. Once again, he fought Hot Shot. {{storylink|Crack (episode)|Crack}} He also fought against Optimus Prime and Jetfire atop the Hydra Cannon, {{storylink|Crisis}} combined with Megatron to defeat Side Swipe, {{storylink|Miracle}} and again when they found themselves on [[Nemesis Prime (Armada)|Nemesis Prime]]'s world. {{storylink|Puppet}} He presumably took part in Galvatron's conquest of Cybertron {{storylink|Uprising}} and later tried, with only partial success, to prevent Hot Shot from getting close to Galvatron. {{storylink|Dash (episode)|Dash}}

After that, he was assigned a squad to Decepticons and sent to clear an area of Autobots. He engaged Jetfire during this time, calling the Autobot a "show-off". {{storylink|Portent}} He again combined with Megatron when the Decepticon leader decided to approach Optimus Prime for some... aggressive negotiations. Somehow, Jetfire managed to defeat single-handedly during this time. {{storylink|Cramp}}

Tidal Wave attended the meeting during which the Autobots and Decepticons formed a temporary truce to combat the menace of [[Unicron]], notably shaking hands with Jetfire. {{storylink|Alliance}} After this, he combined with Galvatron in order to kill the traitorous Thrust, save Demolishor, and then, with the similarly combined Optimus Prime and Jetfire, penetrate deep into the core of Unicron. {{storylink|Union}} He detached from his master for a final time to allow the two Transformer leaders to settle their final differences and accompanied the rest of the Transformers, where he then fled the scene. {{storylink|Mortal Combat}}

====''Energon'' cartoon====
:''Voice actor'' [[Doug Parker]] (English), [[Jin Yamanoi]] (Japanese), [[Anders Öjebo]] (Swedish)
{{noteslonly}}

''Before he came to Earth, Tidal Wave was in charge of a [[Decepticon]] platoon on [[Dabola]] which included [[Shockblast]] and [[Six Shot]]. After a series of battles, they eliminated the Autobots on the planet but Shockblast and Six Shot grew bored and started lashing out at their Decepticon allies. Tidal Wave eventually managed to drive them away and subsequently garnered an everlasting hatred for Shockblast. {{storylink|Alpha Q: Identity}}''

After the end of the Unicron Battles, Tidal Wave loyally followed Galvatron's last request—that the Decepticons remain at peace with the Autobots. During the ten year period that followed, Tidal Wave somewhere along the line changed not only his color palette but also his occupation—instead of being a warrior, he was now a guardian of the [[energon]] mines in the Solar System's asteroid belt.

Tidal Wave's post was one of the first targets of the [[Terrorcon (Energon)|Terrorcon]] hordes. {{storylink|Cybertron City (episode)|Cybertron City}} After being attacked and abducted, he was brought to [[Scorponok (Energon)|Scorponok]] and [[Alpha Quintesson]]'s base of operations where they convinced him to side with them by promising to revive Megatron, a deal which Tidal Wave eagerly agreed to despite clearly disliking Scorponok. He began by attacking an energon-mining facility on Mars and managed to obtain a large amount of energon before being driven back by the Autobots. {{storylink|Scorpinok}} At some point thereafter, he met up with Cyclonus somewhere in space and gave him a quick run-down on the situation. Cyclonus liked the idea of reviving Megatron, but was skeptical that this goal could actually be achieved.

After that, Tidal Wave led a force of Terrorcons to attack [[Mars City]] and steal its energon. Due to the city's weak defenses, he was able to grab all its energon and slaughter most of its guards and inhabitants before leaving.

Fresh from this success, he led an attack on [[Plains City]] alongside Scorponok where he faced off against his old allies Cyclonus and Demolishor. They were again repelled after a fierce battle against the Autobots, but this time Cyclonus came with them, having seen that Scorponok possessed [[Energon Sword|Megatron's sword]] and thus concluding that Megatron could be brought back to life with reasonable effort {{storylink|Megatron's Sword}}.

Tidal Wave, Cyclonus, and Scorponok returned to Unicron's body where Tidal Wave showed Megatron's corpse to Cyclonus. After Cyclonus hitting the corpse failed to resurrect it, he and Tidal Wave tried to persuade Scorponok to bring back their old leader, only to be ordered to go get more energon. They tried to raid a recently-discovered energon vein in the [[Arctic]], but were driven away when [[Cybertron City (city)|Cybertron City]] arrived. {{Storylink|The New Cybertron City}}

After this, the Autobots upgraded all their defenses around their energon sources, leading to a series of defeats for the Decepticons under Alpha Q's control. In frustration, Cyclonus kicked Megatron's corpse a few times in proxy revenge for all the times he'd mistreated them. Tidal Wave begged him not to do that and verbally defended Megatron when their leader's disembodied voice demanded that they treat him with more respect.

Seeing that Megatron's spark was causing trouble, Scorponok attempted to kill him outright but only succeeded in resurrecting him in a new body; at this, Tidal Wave was overjoyed and gleefully helped Megatron take control of Unicron's body from Alpha Q. He then followed Megatron in another attack on Plains City, during which Hot Shot lost an arm. {{storylink|Megatron Resurrected}} After this, they returned to their base where Tidal Wave was assigned to guard the recently inducted Scorponok. Scorponok wondered why Megatron didn't kill Optimus Prime in their last sortie and Tidal Wave told him to figure it out - in the event that he did, the rest of the Decepticons would start to trust him.

Tidal Wave later took part in the Decepticon mission to [[Ocean City]], during which Demolishor returned to their ranks {{storylink|Megatron Raid}} for another raid on [[Moon (moon)|Earth's moon]]. {{storylink|Starscream the Mysterious Mercenary}} He also accompanied the Decepticons in their next attack on Ocean City, attacking from beneath the water but was like everyone else, repelled by the [[energon tower]]'s ''Autobot-flavored'' energon. {{storylink|Energon Tower}} He was present when Megatron, for the first and only time, used the powers he gained from Unicron to restore Starscream's loyalty to the Decepticons. {{storylink|The Legend of Rodimus}}

After this, he observed a force of Alpha Q's Terrorcons investigating [[Jungle City]], and reasoned that there was probably energon to be had. The Decepticons attacked and made off with as much energon as they could, during which Tidal Wave attempted to destroy the energon tower. On this occasion, most of their efforts went to waste when the Autobots exploded the city to prevent the Decepticons from getting the energon, but the 'Cons still came out ahead. {{storylink|Crisis in Jungle City}}

He also took part in an attempt to capture [[Kicker Jones|Kicker]]. {{storylink|Kicker Beware!}} When this failed, Megatron got the idea that chucking some giant comet-shaped lumps of Unicron at Earth would obliterate the Autobots and assigned Tidal Wave to lead the efforts in pushing them across the gulf of space. Tidal Wave explained to Scorponok that this slow procession would scare the humans much more than having the projectiles appear near their planet without warning.

However, Megatron's grand plan just gave the humans and Autobots time to prepare and so the plan failed miserably. All the Decepticons fled back to Unicron. {{storylink|Energon Grid}} Following this, Megatron ordered them to find Alpha Q, who would have a lot of energon. Demolishor and Tidal Wave protested that this would be nigh impossible - after all, space is really big - but Megatron would have none of it.

Just before trying to track him down, Tidal Wave and Starscream were responsible for seeing that Scorponok took all his energon back to Megatron and didn't try to skim any off the top for Alpha Q. {{storylink|Rodimus Friend or Foe?}}

He later took part in a plan to lure out Alpha Q, using Scorponok as bait. However, it was [[Rodimus (Energon)|Rodimus]] who came to Scorponok's rescue. All the Decepticons present, Tidal Wave among them, exchanged fire with Rodimus's team and retreated when Megatron was injured. {{storylink|Go for Unicron!}} Some time after this battle, he received a message from Snow Cat that he had found energon on an icy planet and so the Decepticons set off in pursuit. He attacked the ''[[Miranda II]]'' alongside Megatron and, after making some initial gains, the two were forced back by Alpha Q's new [[Cruellock]] drones.

Still, this event ended well for Tidal Wave and the Decepticons. The Autobot's used the ''Miranda II's'' [[Energon Ring]] to destroy the Terrorcons, allowing the Decepticons to take all the planet's energon. {{storylink|The Return of Demolishor}} After that, he took part in a rather half-hearted attack on the ''Miranda II'' in deep space, and was again driven off. {{storylink|A Tale of Two Heros}} After that, the Autobots under Optimus Prime decided to attack Unicron and so the Decepticons went to defend their base, Tidal Wave paying particular attention to Optimus Prime. {{storylink|Battle Stations}} After fighting for a while, both Unicron and the ''Miranda II'' arrived at Cybertron where both sides fell back to regroup.

With the arrival of Unicron, Cybertron erupted into chaos. Megatron decided to recruit the unstable and dangerous Shockblast, ''who had been imprisoned by the Autobot/Decepticon coalition since Tidal Wave had last seen him''. Due to their previous enmity, Tidal Wave vehemently opposed this plan, but to no avail. {{storylink|Alpha Q: Identity}} Shockblast [[radio]]ed Megatron regarding a cache of energon big enough to revive Unicron, and thus despite his objections to trusting Shockblast, Tidal Wave was assigned to lead a team to this location.

As soon as they met, Shockblast immediately took charge of the operation, sending the Decepticons to smash various towers. Tidal Wave, ''being familiar with Shockblast'', refused to obey him and the two began squabbling with Shockblast actually using Tidal Wave as a flying surfboard from which to shoot down Autobots. Megatron ordered the Decepticons to bring Shockblast to him and, his loyalty to Megatron being greater than his hatred of Shockblast, Tidal Wave reluctantly did so. {{storylink|Shockblast: Rampage}}

Tidal Wave kept up his dislike and distrust of Shockblast, even going so far as to blame him for Unicron's highly destructive pangs of hunger. {{storylink|Survival Instincts}} When Unicron had been sated, Megatron sent the surviving Decepticons to destroy Cybertron's energy grid with Shockblast in command; Tidal Wave chafed at this, but still obeyed his commander. Shockblast ended up getting in over his head and so Tidal Wave tried to rescue him, getting hit by a falling energon tower in the process. {{storylink|Each One Fights...}} After this, Megatron rebuilt him as Mirage.

Mirage's first mission in his new body was to lead a large force of Terrorcons down to Cybertron as a distraction to allow Shockblast to sneak in with the main force. The plan worked and, despite Shockblast's incompetence, Unicron was restored to functionality. {{storylink|Unicron Unleashed}} The Autobots attacked and Mirage helped defend Unicron. {{storylink|Open Fire!}} In the aftermath he helped Starscream save Megatron from Shockblast's attempted coup and then followed Megatron into the rift in space that had opened up in the meantime. {{storylink|Ripped Up Space}}

Mirage followed Megatron when he destroyed the first of Alpha Q's planets and also when they took a large amount of energon from [[Iron Planet]] while deliberately not helping the imprisoned Shockblast. {{storylink|Protection}} He then accompanied Megatron on his secret mission to Iron Planet. There, Mirage advised Megatron not to release Shockblast; Megatron agreed, threatening to 'rewire' the traitor which inspired Shockblast to offer to capture an Autobot as proof of his loyalty. Megatron did release Shockblast at this, above Mirage's objections; Mirage's fears on this particular occasion proves groundless as Shockblast did indeed capture [[Inferno (Energon)|Inferno]], allowing Megatron to forcibly turn him into a Decepticon. {{storylink|Imprisoned Inferno}}

When Scorponok went to harvest the energon from [[Jungle Planet (Energon)|Jungle Planet]], Mirage was among those who distracted the Autobots from this mission. {{storylink|Jungle Planet (episode)|Jungle Planet}}

Some time later, he took part in the attack on the Autobot base on Ocean Planet, approaching the base of the energon tower from underwater and destroying it. He also took part in the attempted recruitment of Inferno and got shot at. {{storylink|Farewell Inferno}} ''When [[Planet Q]] was restored, Mirage was one of those sent to guard the palace in case Scorponok should get in and regain his memories, but was smashed out of the way by [[Ironhide (Energon)|Ironhide]]. As it turned out, however, they needn't have bothered. {{storylink|Return! Our Scorponok}}''

He later took part in another defense of Unicron against the Autobots, and was this time defeated by the presence of [[Omega Supreme (Energon)|Omega Supreme]] and the timely arrival of Inferno, now rebuilt as Roadblock, with a huge number of energon towers {{storylink|Omega Supreme (episode)|Omega Supreme}}. He remained with Unicron and again fought to defend the chaos bringer's body from those who would destroy it {{storylink|A Heroic Battle}}.

Around this time, he started forming a comedy trio with Snow Cat and Demolishor. During a subsequent stage of the Autobots' attack, Mirage and Snow Cat formed a combat duo with Mirage flying around while towing Snow Cat behind him in a manner not unlike water skiing, except in space. {{storylink|The Power of Unicron}} Despite, or perhaps because of, this wonderful new tactic, the two were overwhelmed by the Autobots' superior numbers and had to be rescued by Starscream. {{storylink|Optimus Supreme}} Meanwhile, Megatron successfully merged his [[spark]] with Unicron; when that happened, he trapped all the other Decepticons with tentacles and tried to devour Demolishor, but Mirage saved him. {{storylink|Unicron Perishes}}

When Unicron was destroyed, it seemed that Mirage, Snow Cat, and Demolishor were the only survivors. They were summarily rounded up by the Autobots and put in prison where they shared a block with Six Shot. ''Oddly enough, given their history'', Mirage didn't seem to bear Six Shot any of the hatred he had for his brother. As it turned out, the other Decepticons had survived as well and the four in prison were released by Starscream. {{storylink|Ambition}} During the jailbreak, Mirage was separated from the others, but soon found them again. Not seeing any Autobots around, they just decided to blow up whatever was convenient. After a while, the others left him to attend to various tasks, leaving Mirage and Snow Cat to carry on creating chaos. {{storylink|Wishes}}

After Six Shot collapsed the energon towers and flooded Cybertron with ''Decepticon-flavored'' energon gas, Mirage and Snow Cat rejoined the rest of the Decepticons in their commandeered control room, where they along with Demolishor were ready and willing to rub Six Shot's face in it when he activated the base defenses to fire on the ''Miranda II'' without Galvatron's express permission. {{storylink|Galvatron!}}

After taking part in another battle, {{storylink|Break Through}} Mirage, Demolishor, and Snow Cat followed Rad and [[Brian Jones (Energon)|Dr. Jones]] to the energon core, having been misdirected by Starscream into thinking this was the location of the Super Energon pool. Dr. Jones led Snow Cat and Demolishor off to find the actual pool, leaving Mirage to guard Rad. {{storylink|The Omega Train}} After a while, for some reason, [[Arcee (Energon)|Arcee]] and Kicker arrived on a rescue mission. Arcee fired an [[energon star]] at [[Primus]], temporarily re-energising the deity and causing it to drive Mirage out {{storylink|Ironhide Team}}. He then rejoined the Decepticons and returned to shooting Autobots on the surface. {{storylink|Formidable}}

Following this battle, the Decepticons retreated and Mirage, along with Demolishor and Snow Cat, was assigned to guard the unreliable Six Shot. Having apparently become stupider since his upgrade, Mirage and friends took seriously Six Shot's suggestion that they go and claim some super energon for themselves, and so they ran off and let their prisoner escape.

Six Shot managed to trap them and they were once again rescued by Starscream. The four blasted their way into the control room, only to find Six Shot was long gone. Then, thanks to [[Sally Jones|Sally]]'s meddling, the Autobots arrived, which led to a shoot-out. Mirage despaired at how Galvatron had left them to their own devices in a distinctly soap operatic manner. {{storylink|Galvatron Terror}} He was impressed when Galvatron became a giant and later joined in chasing Rodimus and Landmine before Optimus Prime arrived with reinforcements. {{storylink|Destructive Power}}

He followed Galvatron when he towed Cybertron into Alpha Q's universe. {{storylink|Spark (episode)|Spark}} When Galvatron flung himself into the energon sun to destroy Unicron's spark, ''Mirage loyally followed after him and seemingly ended his life''. {{storylink|The Sun}}

{{note|In Japan, after becoming Mirage, Tidal Wave became straight-up Gay For Galvatron. The dub dodged the issue as best it could (although honestly, that was probably more due to the fact that the English writers didn't seem to know what was going on in the show at the best of times), with Mirage's love-struck remarks being replaced with simple cheering for his leader or something else entirely—but it couldn't do anything about his repeated coquetteish gestures, doe-eyed expressions, or that one time he pirouetted and struck a pose while surrounded by a glowing pink heart. Maybe Tidal Wave couldn't properly articulate his love in his Armada form?}}
<div class="center">[[Image:Gayforgalvatron.jpg|none|750px|thumb|center|<div class="center">''Pretty Soldier Sailor <s>Tidal Wave''</s> Mirage.</div>]]</div>
{{-}}

===Dreamwave comics continuity===
====''Armada'' comic====
Tidal Wave was among the Decepticon troops allied with the Autobots and Mini-Cons during the battle against Unicron. He clutched his head in agony when the Chaos Bringer appeared and declared that this reality would be consumed. {{storylink|The End}}

====''Energon'' comic====
Millions of years ago, Tidal Wave captured [[Ironhide (Energon)|Ironhide]] and coerced him into building [[seismic-shock warhead]]s for the Decepticons, which Megatron would use as a last resort to destroy the planet should he lose the war. Whenever Ironhide refused, an Autobot prisoner of war was executed. {{storylink|Aftershock (issue)|Aftershock}}

In the present, Tidal Wave was recruited by [[Scorponok (Energon)|Scorponok]], joining the [[Terrorcon (Energon)|Terrorcons]]. {{storylink|This Evil Reborn}} While he went on several raids and missions with the Terrorcons, it became clear to him that he wasn't the most respected of the team. {{storylink|What Lies Beneath, Part Four}}

Tidal Wave attacked Ironhide and [[Cliffjumper (Energon)|Cliffjumper]] while they were overseeing the construction of a new base on Cybertron. Using Cliffjumper's life as leverage, he forced Ironhide to reactivate the seismic-shock warheads for Scorponok's scheme to use on Earth. Ironhide foiled Tidal Wave when he armed the doomsday weapon, with the cold threat of destroying Cybertron rather than allowing the Decepticons destroy Earth. Tidal Wave panicked and left through a space bridge. {{storylink|Aftershock (issue)|Aftershock}}

While the other Decepticons and Terrorcons thought little of Tidal Wave, [[Alpha Quintesson]], however, saw something in him, and reformatted him into Mirage, noting as he did so that Scorponok had fallen out of [[Unicron]]'s favor. {{storylink|Multiplicity, Pt. 2}}

{{note|Due to the bankruptcy of [[Dreamwave Productions]], this storyline was left unresolved.}}

==Games==
===''Transformers'' (PS2)===
[[Image:Tidalwave pushup.gif|left|180px|thumb|Megatron might be a jerk, but he cares for his troops' physical fitness.]]
Tidal Wave, in his combined battleship mode, was stationed as a relay and refuel point off a small chain of islands in the Mid-Atlantic. The [[Autobot]]s made their way inside him to take out the [[Decepticlone]] platoons inside and destroy him, but discovered that Tidal Wave wasn't merely a transport. They escaped just in time to avoid being crushed as Tidal Wave transformed into his titanic robot mode.

Tidal Wave walked around the island chain in the deep waters, unloading volleys of missiles, lasers, and the occasional [[Jet Laser]] on the tiny-by-comparison Autobots. Despite his impressive size, firepower, and nigh-impenetrable armor, the Autobots managed to do enough damage to Tidal Wave's one weak point—his face—to cause a chain reaction that caused multiple explosions inside him, sending him falling face-first to the ocean floor.

The Autobots were able to extract information from Tidal Wave's computer that the Decepticons' main base was located in Northern Alaska, but the information was planted there by Megatron to lead the Autobots into a trap.

Tidal Wave was later seen still on Earth and has survived from his battle with the Autobots, but is now taking exercises with the survived [[Decepticlone]] army. {{storylink|Transformers (PS2)|Transformers}}
{{--}}

==Toys==
===Armada===
[[Image:Armada Tidal Wave toy.jpg|right|300px|thumb|"TCS Tiger's Claw, Transform!"]]
*'''Tidal Wave with Ramjet''' (Giga-Con, 2003)
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''MD-06'''
**''Accessories:'' Ramjet Mini-Con partner, 2 missiles

: Tidal Wave is a robot that is made up of three different aquatic vehicles; an aircraft carrier, a double-bowed battleship, and a troop-landing craft. All three can combine to form a single gigantic warship, which from there can transform to robot mode ''without'' having to separate. Each smaller craft has its own gimmick; the carrier has a working storage elevator for Tidal Wave's [[Mini-Con]] partner [[Ramjet (Armada)|Ramjet]], the battleship has Mini-Con [[Powerlinx]]-activated swiveling cannons (also usable in robot mode), and the landing craft opens up to reveal seats for Mini-Cons to sit on.

[[Image:Micron Shockwave toy.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Alleged Decepticon Military Genius.]]
: Tidal Wave can also combine with Megatron (and the Galvatron redeco), with Tidal Wave's aircraft carrier and battleship clipping onto Megatron's arms and his troop transport clipping onto Megatron's back (after the turret has been positioned in Full Blast Mode configuration) as a jetpack. His arms, as their plugs are identical to Leobreaker's, can also be attached to the later ''Cybertron'' Megatron toy, using the same ports that allow for Dark Claw Mode. These arms can also be attached to the Leader class Optimus Prime toy. Conversely, one may connect any character or characters using the Leobreaker mold to Tidal Wave in lieu of one or both of his arms.

: The [[Takara]] and [[Hasbro]] versions are considerably different. Takara's "Shockwave" replaces all the green plastic with purple, darker grays, and several of the paint colors are altered. These differences were made to align the toy more closely to the cartoon's appearance, though they're not completely accurate. Hasbro's original color scheme for Tidal Wave was supposed to match the animation more closely, but the Hasbro design team thought there was too much purple between the Decepticons currently on the store shelves, changing some of Tidal Wave's colors around.

::*''[http://www.tfu.info/2003/Decepticon/TidalWave/tidalwave.htm More information on Tidal Wave at TFU.info]''
{{-}}

===Energon===
[[Image:Energon Tidal Wave toy.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Tidal Wave...Tidal Wave...Tidal Wave...]]
*'''Tidal Wave with Ramjet''' (Ultra, 2004)
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''SD-04'''
**''Accessories:'' Ramjet Mini-Con partner, 2 missiles

:Tidal Wave's ''Armada'' toy was [[Redeco|redecoed]] for the early part of ''Energon'', with "energy" patterns resembling stylized lightning bolts painted across it. Several portions of his body were also cast in transparent green plastic. This was the result of his body being infused with Decepticon-energy [[energon]], as in the series, he did not have his lightning "scars" until after he touched (and was injured) by raw energon.

:The toy has also been very slightly retooled—the notches on the inside of his body that were originally designed to prevent the missiles from firing by giving the triggers a place to rest have been made larger so they now actually fulfill their original purpose.

:Tidal Wave retains his ability to combine with ''Armada'' Megatron/Galvatron, as well as ''[[Transformers: Universe (2003 toyline)|Universe]]'' [[Megazarak (Universe)|Megazarak]].

::*''[http://www.tfu.info/2004/Decepticon/TidalWave/tidalwave.htm More information on ''Energon'' Tidal Wave at TFU.info]''
{{-}}
[[Image:Energon Mirage toy.jpg|right|300px|thumb|He went from a boat to a fairy.]]
*'''Mirage''' (Mega, 2004)
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''SD-15'''
**''Accessories:'' 4 missiles
{{note|Mirage was [[repurposing|repurposed]] from a separate character named [[Mirage (Energon)|Mirage]].}}
: Mirage is an upgraded body for Tidal Wave, transforming into a sleek assault speedboat with multiple spring-loaded missile launchers as well as fold-out wings for his "Hyper Mode". As something of a shellformer, Mirage's transformation sequence is one of the most complex for the ''Energon'' toy line and as a side effect, he ends up with some obnoxiously large vehicle mode shell [[kibble]]. Some bad design and excessively tight knee joints means his lower legs will often detach from the upper thighs whenever one tries to bend his knees.

:The initial releases of Mirage were one-per-case, and was part of a wave that saw limited distribution due to [[Shelfwarmer|a glut of early product on the shelves]]. However, Mirage was later put into "Mega-Buy" multi-packs at a buy-one-get-one-free price at numerous chains, including Toys 'R' Us and Wal-Mart, relieving much of the demand for the item.

: This mold was also [[redeco]]ed into ''Energon'' [[Dreadwing (Energon)|Dreadwing]] and [[BotCon 2009]] [[Banzai-Tron (G1)|Banzai-Tron]].

::*''[http://www.tfu.info/2004/Decepticon/Mirage/mirage.htm More information on Mirage at TFU.info]''
{{-}}

==Notes==
* Tidal Wave's use of his own name as a battle cry is not exclusive to the English stories; he likewise chants "Shock, Shock, Shock waaaaaaave" as he fights in ''Super Link''. When he upgrades to Mirage ("Shockfleet" in Japan), his battle cry becomes "ShockShockShock!"

* In the English dub of the ''Armada'' cartoon, Tidal Wave is called by his Japanese name, Shockwave, several times. Of course, the English dub was notorious for [[Sparkplug (Armada)|not]] [[High Wire (Armada)|keeping]] [[Sureshock (Armada)|names]] [[Grindor (Armada)|straight]].

* An easter egg on the Playstation 2 game of Transformers is that, when he's in vehicle mode, you can enter a cavity where his robot mode head is stored. You can walk all over it and a glitch enables you to walk inside his head. He doesn't seem to mind.<ref>[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8hcHAW3YiY Gameplay video showing the Tidal Wave's head Easter egg.]</ref>

* Mirage may have been originally intended as a separate character. [[Hasbro]] appears to have implied this is the case, saying that designing the toys before the show was completed led to "some characters not aligning together in the animation and toy expressions".<ref>[[Hasbro Q&A/August 2009: Answers]]</ref>

*''[[Transformers Vault]]'' mistakenly calls him '''Tidalwave''', lacking the spacing.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Shockwave''' (ショックウェーブ ''Shokkuwēbu''), '''Shockfleet''' (Mirage, ショックフリート ''Shokkufurīto'')
*''Hungarian:'' '''Hullámsír''' (''Armada'', "Watery Grave"), '''Szökőár''' (''Energon'', "Tidal Wave"), '''Árhullám''' ("[[Optimus Prime vs Megatron: The Ultimate Battle]]"), '''Délibáb''' (Mirage, "Mirage")
*''Ukranian:'' '''Hvylya''' ("Wave")
*''Polish:'' '''Falotron''' ("Wavetron"), '''Falomiot''' (Mirage, "Waveblaster")

==References==
<references />

[[Category:Armada Decepticons]]
[[Category:Combiners]]
[[Category:Energon Terrorcons]]
[[Category:Repurposed toys]]
[[Category:Sea specialists]]
[[Category:Unicron-related characters]]

Hot Shot (Armada)

2011-10-06T16:20:53Z

93.75.235.114: /* Foreign names */

{{factions|autobot|{{factions/icons|custom=Energon Powerlinx Silver symbol.png|cLink=Powerlinx}}|velocitron}}
{{disambig3|Hot Shot}}{{suite}}
:''Hot Shot is an [[Autobot]] from the [[Unicron Trilogy]] [[continuity family]].''

[[Image:Hotshotut.jpg|thumb|350px|I'm Optimus Prime's choice for successor. Scary what goes through the big guy's head, huh?]]
'''Hot Shot''' is the quintessential young hero. He's been around long enough to earn a name for himself and a place in [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime's]] entourage, but he's still too young to know when he's in over his head. In other words, he's blunt, overconfident, naïve, and more than just a little annoying, yet brave, honorable, loyal to his friends, and willing to risk his life to stop the [[Decepticon]]s and help the Autobots. With time and experience, Prime believes, he could make an excellent leader, and Prime has appointed him to his command structure accordingly. Hot Shot's got the goods, but he just needs to pay attention for more than five seconds. Until that day, Hot Shot's likely response to most anything is, "Yeah yeah, like, whatever."

Hot Shot's [[Mini-Con]] partner is [[Jolt (Armada)|Jolt]], though he has been known to moonlight with [[Mirage (Armada)|Mirage]]. Hot Shot also proclaims a love for a strange substance called [[JaAm]], but none of his Autobot peers can figure out what it is.

==Fiction==
===Toy pack-in mini-comics===
[[Image:Hotshotarmadaminicomic.jpg|thumb|left|200px|How dumb can he be? He's fluent in three languages!]]
[[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]] chose Hot Shot to stop a Decepticon plot to drain power from the city, but Hot Shot balked when Prime picked [[Jolt (Armada)|Jolt]] to be his partner. After speeding off to complete the mission alone, Hot Shot found himself overwhelmed by [[Cyclonus (Armada)|Cyclonus]] and his partner [[Crumplezone (Armada)|Crumplezone]]. Thankfully, Jolt arrived and gave Hot Shot a hand, and Cyclonus and Crumplezone were defeated. Hot Shot had learned a valuable lesson about teamwork. {{storylink|Armada Volume 1}}

Optimus Prime later contacted Hot Shot from [[Autobot Headquarters (Armada)|Autobot Headquarters]]. {{storylink|Armada Volume 3}}

On [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], Hot Shot, [[Red Alert (Armada)|Red Alert]], [[Smokescreen (Armada)|Smokescreen]] were present for [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]]'s defeat of [[Megatron (Armada)|Galvatron]]. They didn't, however, see his smile upon his capture. {{storylink|Armada Volume 4}}

[[Image:HotShotEnergonminicomic.jpg|thumb|200px|He's so polite.]]
After Hot Shot and [[Strongarm (Energon)|Strongarm]] found a pool of [[Energon (fuel)|Energon]], they were attacked by [[Battle Ravage]]s. When the situation was bleakened further by the arrival of [[Scorponok (Energon)|Scorponok]], Strongarm fashioned an [[Energon weapon]] for Hot Shot, and the [[Terrorcon (Energon)|Terrorcons]] were driven away. With the Energon secured, Hot Shot and Strongarm were relieved that they had faced a formidable foe and come out on top. {{storylink|Energon Volume 1}}

Some time after, Hot Shot was seen alongside [[Skyblast (Energon)|Skyblast]] and Optimus Prime battling Scorponok and his Terrorcons. {{storylink|Energon Volume 2}}

Optimus Prime and Hot Shot (powerlinked with Inferno) found themselves alone and outmatched in a battle with Megatron, [[Shockblast]], [[Cyclonus (Armada)|Snow Cat]], [[Demolishor (Armada)|Demolishor]] and [[Tidal Wave (Armada)|Mirage]]. As the Decepticons closed in on Optimus, he warned Powerlinx Hot Shot to stay away, for he was too damaged. But at the last minute, [[Wing Saber (Energon)|Wing Saber]] arrived, combined with Prime, and drove the Decepticons away! {{storylink|Energon Volume 4}}
{{-}}

===Dreamwave comics continuity===
====Dreamwave ''Armada'' comic====
[[Image:Hotshotraizeyes.jpg|thumb|left|Hot Shot watches in horror as [[Demolishor (Armada)|Demolishor]] buys the last can of [[jaAm]].]]
One million years ago, Hot Shot was a member of the Autobots, the guardians of [[Cyber City]]. Soon, news of a warlike faction called [[Decepticon]]s, led by the power-hungry [[Megatron (Armada)|Megatron]], reached Cyber City via a dying [[Mini-Con]] Hot Shot found. The Mini-Con handed him a video disc, and with his dying breath, demanded Hot Shot take it to Optimus Prime. Optimus Prime played the disc, a distress signal from [[Leader-1 (Armada)|Leader-1]], head of [[Mini-Con Sector|Mini-Con village D10]], who begged the Autobots for help.

The Decepticons themselves soon arrived in Cyber City, armed with Mini-Cons they had captured and reconfigured to bestow incredible power when [[Powerlinx]]ed. Outclassed and near total defeat, Optimus Prime called his troops into retreat, and after the majority of Mini-Cons escaped [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] to parts unknown, the Autobots lost much of the planet to the Mini-Con-powered Decepticons.

[[Image:Hotshotfreecomicbookday.jpg|thumb|300px|Hot Shot, stop stealing Jolt's gun!]]
In the present day, both the Autobots and Decepticons received a signal of the Mini-Cons' activation on the planet [[Earth]]. Hot Shot and his colleagues [[Scavenger (Armada)|Scavenger]], [[Red Alert (Armada)|Red Alert]], and [[Smokescreen (Armada)|Smokescreen]] were led by Optimus Prime to the planet, where they met the Decepticons in battle. But this time, with the help of the estranged Mini-Cons, the Autobots regained the edge they'd lost against the Decepticons one million years prior. An uneasy alliance was formed, and Hot Shot was partnered with the Mini-Con [[Jolt (Armada)|Jolt]]. {{storylink|Armada (Dreamwave comic)#Volume 1: First Contact|First Contact}}

When their human friends [[Rad White|Rad]], [[Carlos Lopez|Carlos]], and [[Alexis Thi Dang|Alexis]] befriended a Mini-Con named [[Swindle (Armada)|Swindle]], they soon attracted the attention of the Decepticons, and Hot Rod and the other Autobots weren't far behind. With the arrival of Megatron, however, the Autobots were quickly defeated and restrained, and the children were shocked to learn that Swindle had been working with the Decepticons all this time! Swindle found himself conflicted, as he genuinely liked the human children, and so he eventually had a small change of heart. Grabbing Hot Shot's gun, he was able to disable the Autobots' restraints, and the Decepticons retreated... though with Swindle. {{storylink|Armada Free Comic Book Day}}

[[Image:Hotshotdwissue6.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Wait, Jolt attaches ''where?'']]
After their initial battles on Earth, Megatron was quick to capture the [[Air Defense Mini-Con Team (Armada)|Air Defense Mini-Con Team]] and forge them into the [[Star Saber (Armada)|Star Saber]]. Optimus Prime led Hot Shot and Red Alert against the Decepticons again, despite being at a strategic disadvantage while the Mini-Cons were missing, a point Hot Shot belabored. Thankfully, the Autobot-allied Mini-Cons arrived just in time to Powerlinx with Hot Shot and the other Autobots, fend off Megatron, and rescue the Air Defense Mini-Cons from the Decepticon leader's clutches.

[[Image:Hotshotguido.jpg|thumb|"Well, let's go!"]]
Soon, a Mini-Con beacon tower was erected in [[Tranquility, Kansas|Tranquility]], [[Kansas]] drawing all Earth-bound Mini-Cons to it. Hot Shot and the rest of the Autobots again met the Decepticons in battle at the location when the tower's effect was discovered. However, they were too busy fighting to notice the beacon tower blasting off toward the Earth's [[Moon (moon)|moon]]. Hot Shot and Red Alert secreted Optimus Prime into the Decepticon base for the use of their space bridge, so that the Autobot leader could ask for reinforcements from [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. {{storylink|Armada (Dreamwave comic)#Volume 2: Fortress|Fortress}}

After the Mini-Cons were evacuated from the Moon, five did not return home safely and sent a distress signal from northern Alaska. When the [[Adventure Mini-Con Team]] failed to retrieve them, Hot Shot and the other Autobots arrived in full force, though they were kept in check by Cyclonus, who was suffering from a Mini-Con overdose. Though they were successful, Optimus Prime disappeared before their eyes, and when Hot Shot returned to Autobase, he found [[Optimus Prime (Worlds Collide)|another Optimus Prime]], dying, sent from a different timeline to warn of [[Unicron]]'s coming. Learning of the "real" Optimus Prime's disappearance, Megatron and his Decepticons stormed Autobase, nearly killing Smokescreen and heavily injuring Hot Shot, Red Alert, and Scavenger.

Optimus Prime was returned to them and insisted on teaming up with the Decepticons to battle the arriving Unicron. Hot Shot excused himself from this alliance, as Smokescreen's critical condition due to the Decepticons' recent attack still weighed heavily in his mind. So when Megatron stole away during the battle with Unicron to strike a deal with the Dark God, Hot Shot, Scavenger, and Red Alert ambushed him, leaving him to die as Unicron was seemingly destroyed by the [[Mini-Con Matrix]]. {{storylink|Armada (Dreamwave comic)#Volume 3: Worlds Collide|Worlds Collide}}

{{-}}
====''Energon'' comic====
[[Image:Hotshotironhidedw.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Sorry, Hot Shot, you've been replaced.]]
Ten years later, at the beginning of the Energon Era, Hot Shot accompanied Optimus Prime, who was skeptical and restless about the new peacetime, on his visit with the High Council in Cyber City. Prime's demands for vigilance were denied, so Hot Shot later followed him to a special [[uplink platform]] that [[Over-Run (Armada)|Over-Run]] had directed them to. This trip was a first outing for the rookie Autobot [[Ironhide (Energon)|Ironhide]], who fawned over Hot Shot. Hot Shot met this with difficulty. Learning of the continued existence of [[Unicron]], {{storylink|This Evil Reborn}} Prime once again returned to the High Council, again accompanied by Hot Shot. But this time, Cyber City was attacked by [[Cheetor (Armada)|Cheetor]], [[Rhinox (Armada)|Rhinox]], [[Airazor (Armada)|Airazor]], and [[Terrorsaur (Armada)|Terrorsaur]], who were presumed dead during [[The Unicron Battles]], but in fact were transformed into [[Unicron's Four Horsemen]]. {{storylink|What Lies Beneath}} The Four Horsemen overwhelmed Hot Shot and the other Autobots, and they were saved from destruction only by the timely arrival of the [[Omnicon]]s. Hot Shot, Optimus Prime, and the others were granted the [[Spark of Combination]] by [[Alpha Trion (Energon)|Sig-Omega]], and thanks partly to the combined powerlinked form of Hot Shot and [[Inferno (Energon)|Inferno]], the Horsemen were deterred. {{storylink|What Lies Beneath, Part Two}}

Hot Shot, along with Inferno, Ironhide, and [[Jetfire (Armada)|Jetfire]], followed Prime to Earth after the Autobots received a distress signal. They regrettably arrived four hours later than the signal was sent, and Hot Shot boggled at how much damage could have been done in that time. Indeed, [[Scorponok (Energon)|Scorponok]] and his [[Terrorcon (Energon)|Terrorcons]] had caused massive devastation while chasing after a young boy named [[Kicker Jones|Kicker]] who could detect [[Energon (fuel)|Energon]]. The Terrorcons outclassed the Autobots upon arrival, however, and left only when their Energon-mining gear was destroyed...but not without taking Kicker. {{storylink|What Lies Beneath, Part Three}} After the Autobots reunited with [[Carlos Lopez|Carlos]], [[Rad White|Rad]], and [[Alexis Thi Dang|Alexis]], Hot Shot and the Omnicon [[Strongarm (Energon)|Strongarm]] were able to pursue the Terrorcons and deliver a special suit to Kicker that his father, [[Brian Jones (Energon)|Dr. Brian Jones]], had made for him. With Kicker's help, the Terrorcons were defeated and returned to Unicron. {{storylink|What Lies Beneath, Part Four}}

Hot Shot, along with Optimus Prime and Inferno, attended a public meeting with the [[United Nations]] in [[New York City]] after the ratification of the [[Cybercord Treaty]]. {{storylink|Multiplicity}}

[[Image:Hotshotomni-potent.jpg|thumb|300px|Wait, ''Hot Shot'' has wisdom?]]
After the Terrorcons attacked an [[energon tower]] in [[Chicago]], Hot Shot was put in charge of the unruly Omnicons and sent to [[Base Site One]] in [[Yukon Territory]]. Immediately upon arrival, Strongarm crashed into the base site's intrathermal uplink assembly and subsurface transference grid, frustrating Ironhide. This was the final straw for Hot Shot. After telling them to get lost, he was darkly amused that this was the first order he'd given that they actually followed to the letter. An hour later, Hot Shot had a change of heart, and he and Kicker left to track them down. Their search abruptly ended when [[Cyclonus (Armada)|Snow Cat]] was dropped in their laps, defeated during the Omnicons' solo adventure. Eight days later, Hot Shot had returned to Optimus, who tasked him with protecting the Autobots' growing Energon-gathering installations on Earth. However, Prime soon disappeared into a portal, his whereabouts completely unknown. {{storylink|Omni-Potent}}

When Terrorcons orchestrated an attack on four major Earth cities, Hot Shot (leading a team consisting of [[Thrust (Armada)|Thrust]], [[Rodimus (Energon)|Rodimus]], [[Red Alert (Armada)|Red Alert]], [[Beachcomber (Energon)|Beachcomber]], and [[Smokescreen (Armada)|Hoist]]) was sent to repel [[Divebomb (Energon)|Divebomb]] drones in [[Toronto]]. Badly outnumbered and confined, Rodimus suggested the group split up. Hot Shot agreed, sending him and Red Alert elsewhere. Hot Shot contacted Jetfire in [[Los Angeles]], telling him it was only a matter of time before they were overwhelmed and the battle was lost, but he interrupted his transmission to witness a spectacle above. {{storylink|Multiplicity, Pt. 3}} [[Megatron (Armada)|Megatron]] had arrived in a new body, and he was dramatically tearing through the Divebomb drones. After Megatron cleared away enough of the Terrorcons in Toronto to give Hot Shot's team a fighting chance, he moved on to the concurrent battle in [[Tokyo]]. {{storylink|Multiplicity, Pt. 4}}

===Cartoon continuity===
====''Armada'' cartoon====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Brent Miller]] (English), [[Kōsuke Okano]] (Japanese), [[Alexandre Moreno]] (Portuguese), [[Martin Halm]] (German), [[Ola Norman]] (Swedish)

[[Image:Past Part 1 Hot Shot flashback.jpg|thumb|left|200px|I'll be back to save you, Wheeljack, right after 4:20.]]
An indeterminate number of years ago on Cybertron, Hot Shot was appointed the supervisor of a young Autobot named [[Wheeljack (Armada)|Wheeljack]]. Wheeljack strongly looked up to Hot Shot as a potential mentor and as a friend, but after a blazing battle, Wheeljack was incapacitated under some debris. Hot Shot left him behind as the flames closed in, promising to get help. However, when Hot Shot reached the other Autobots, his [[Arrogant Autobot officer|commander]] would not let him endanger his own life by returning to help his friend. Hot Shot ignored this order, running back into the battle to find Wheeljack, but he was overwhelmed by the heat and passed out. Instead, Wheeljack was rescued by [[Megatron (Armada)|Megatron]]. Thinking he had been abandoned by Hot Shot, Wheeljack swore vengeance against him and the Autobots. {{storylink|Past}} {{storylink|Past II}}

[[Image:Metamorphosis Hot Shot Red Alert arrive.jpg|thumb|200px|Wave 1 all accounted for, sir!]]
When [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]] received a distress signal from the long-lost [[Mini-Con]]s, Hot Shot was one of two soldiers he brought with him to Earth to investigate. When they arrived, Hot Shot was quick to block [[Starscream (Armada)|Starscream]] from attacking some human children who had stumbled upon the [[Street Action Mini-Con Team (Armada)|Street Action Mini-Con Team]], and before long, the Decepticons warped away. Hot Shot suggested that the Decepticons' base must be within sight if they were able to use short-warp teleportation; [[Red Alert (Armada)|Red Alert]] correctly assumed this base was on Earth's [[Moon (moon)|moon]]. Hot Shot and the other two Autobots returned when the humans and the Mini-Cons once again found themselves under attack from the Decepticons. {{storylink|Metamorphosis}} Hot Shot and Red Alert used their bodies to shield the human kids from the Decepticons' firepower. During the battle, Hot Shot and Red Alert recovered two [[Mini-Con storage panel]]s, and [[Jolt (Armada)|Jolt]] was one of two Mini-Cons who materialized when the panels were activated. Hot Shot partnered with this Mini-Con, and together with Red Alert and Mini-Con [[Longarm (Armada)|Longarm]], their combined firepower was able to drive the Decepticons away. The Autobots then returned to their Earth base with the human children and the Mini-Cons, and the nature of their war over the Mini-Cons was explained. Hot Shot and the other Autobots also learned the Earth custom of fist-bumping to signify friendship. {{storylink|Base}}

[[Image:Soldier Hot Shot axelzooka.jpg|thumb|left|200px|This is exactly why his shoulders hurt.]]
Immediately thereafter, the Autobots' computer systems warned them of a detected Mini-Con, and so Hot Shot and the others made plans to travel to [[Grand Canyon|Big Canyon]] to find it. In their rush, [[Rad White]] was left behind, but [[Alexis Thi Dang|Alexis]] and Hot Shot returned soon enough to pick him up. Alexis apologized, for Hot Shot's sleek power excited her so much that she'd forgotten about Rad. As they left for the Big Canyon once again, Hot Shot's driving was extremely rough, yet despite the children's complaints, he increased his speed—so much so that upon arrival, Hot Shot nearly drove into the canyon itself. After Hot Shot followed [[Laserbeak (Armada)|Laserbeak]] into the canyon, [[Cyclonus (Armada)|Cyclonus]] warped into the area and attacked him. Ultimately, the Autobots won, and everyone returned to base after having retrieved the Mini-Con [[Sparkplug (Armada)|Sparkplug]]. {{storylink|Comrade}}

The hotheaded Hot Shot often found himself at odds with Red Alert, including one incident when he was playing tag with the three children instead of doing work. He resented being chastised by the Autobot medic, who didn't even have a personality, as far as he was concerned. Soon after this, the Autobots, Mini-Cons, and the human children ventured to [[Antarctica]] to uncover another Mini-Con, and Hot Shot was paired with [[Carlos Lopez]]. When the two came across the Decepticons, Hot Shot continued to battle them despite having Carlos inside him. Finally, he ejected Carlos over a gorge, leaving Jolt to catch him. Hot Shot soon found himself outnumbered, and it took Red Alert's skills to rescue him from the grip of the Decepticons. Hot Shot learned some respect for Red Alert that day, even if he claimed to save Hot Shot not out of friendship, but merely because it was his job. {{storylink|Soldier (episode)|Soldier}}

[[Image:Hotshotarmada.jpg|thumb|200px|He grins because he's too stupid to be sad.]]
Hot Shot also accompanied the others on a Mini-Con rescue mission in a jungle, where they learned to respect the Earth's environment. {{storylink|Jungle}} Later, as the children wondered why the Mini-Con panel they'd uncovered in Antarctica hadn't opened yet, Hot Shot asked them to pass him a spanner too heavy for them to lift because he thought it would be funny. A bored Carlos and Rad then ran off with some Mini-Cons to a local carnival, where they got into trouble. Alexis, Hot Shot, and [[Sureshock (Armada)|Sureshock]] followed Laserbeak to the carnival, and after some mischief, Hot Shot was able to avert disaster. {{storylink|Carnival}} When the Autobots followed the Decepticons into the desert in pursuit of more Mini-Cons, Hot Shot was frustrated with his tires' incompatibility with the terrain. Unfortunately, he was unable to prevent [[Demolishor (Armada)|Demolishor]] from acquiring the Mini-Con [[Bonecrusher (Armada)|Bonecrusher]] from within an ancient desert temple. {{storylink|Palace}}

[[Image:Underground merchandising.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Hey, [[Ruined FOREVER|they're right]]! Hot Shot's car mode DOES look like a [[Playskool]] toy!]]
When the Decepticons held the children hostage in a ghost town, Hot Shot and the other Autobots grappled with them, reluctant to hand over their Mini-Cons to get the children returned unharmed. Eventually, after some close calls, Hot Shot was able to kick Rad out of Megatron's hand, the tide was turned, and things were restored to the status quo. {{storylink|Confrontation (episode)|Confrontation}} While working in the underground ruins of half of the crashed Mini-Con ship, Hot Shot was called by Optimus to join them in another Mini-Con search. The Mini-Con was deep within the subway system of a local city, and the Autobots' presence in vehicle mode caused some stir. Here they met up with another Autobot, [[Smokescreen (Armada)|Smokescreen]], though they lost the Mini-Con to the Decepticons. {{storylink|Underground}} Smokescreen joined Hot Shot and the others when they journeyed underwater to the lost city of [[Atlantis]], where, despite their efforts, they lost yet another Mini-Con to the Decepticons. Worse still, this one could combine with two others to form the mighty [[Star Saber (Armada)|Star Saber sword]]. {{storylink|Ruin}} As compensation, Hot Shot and the Autobots found another of the three Star Saber Mini-Cons within a volcano. {{storylink|Prehistory}}

Megatron and his Decepticons soon attacked the Autobot base, hoping to steal the two Mini-Cons they needed to complete the Star Saber sword. While Optimus Prime hid the Mini-Con panels, Hot Shot confronted Megatron directly. Hot Shot was defeated by Megatron's prehensile antlers, which tossed him to the ground like a doll. During another skirmish with Megatron, the Mini-Con panels activated, and Megatron was able to grasp the powerful Star Saber sword! His victory was short-lived, as Optimus was able to knock it out of his hands and into Hot Shot's. With the Star Saber sword, Hot Shot was able to ward off the Decepticons and force them to retreat. {{storylink|Swoop (episode)|Swoop}}

[[Image:Hotshotstarsaber.jpg|thumb|200px|He loves his Star Saber sword. It's so bad.]]
Optimus assigned the three Star Saber Mini-Cons to Hot Shot. The Autobot was young, inexperienced, and hotheaded, so the great advantage the Star Saber granted him went straight to his ego. With the sword, he was nearly unbeatable on the battlefield, which enraged the Decepticons. Then an enigmatic Decepticon named [[Scavenger (Armada)|Scavenger]] appeared at a battle, mocking Hot Shot's skill. Hot Shot was angered when Scavenger told him that he was nothing without the sword, so he rushed the Decepticon, but was knocked aside. Hot Shot learned the hard way that power without skill is useless against an experienced opponent. {{storylink|Overmatch}} Scavenger confronted Hot Shot again on an unfinished stretch of a highway overpass, while a mysterious motorcycle observed. After exchanging a few blows, Scavenger left Hot Shot again, promising to prove his incompetence another day. The motorcycle introduced himself as the Autobot [[Sideways (RID)|Sideways]], and Red Alert and Hot Shot wondered if they could truly trust this stranger. {{storylink|Gale}}

[[Image:Overmatch Scavenger-HotShotbeatdown.jpg|thumb|left|300px|And later, he gets [[:Image:Credulous Hot Shot beatdown.jpg|curb-stomped]].]]
During another battle with the Decepticons for a Mini-Con, Sideways and Hot Shot were accidentally warped away with Megatron to their base on Earth's Moon. With Sideways's guidance, Hot Shot was able to fight his way through an army of holographic Autobots, only to have Megatron capture Sideways and demand the Star Saber sword in return. Hot Shot reluctantly relinquished it, but once Megatron released Sideways, Hot Shot called for its Mini-Con components to return to him. At this moment, Sideways betrayed Hot Shot, knocking the Star Saber sword away from him and towards Starscream. Helpless without his powerful weapon, Hot Shot was brutally beaten by the humiliated Decepticons and dropped back at the Autobots' base. {{storylink|Credulous}}

[[Image:Conspiracy faces.jpg|thumb|150px|Like all future Autobot leaders, Hot Shot is amused easily.]]
Hot Shot was understandably in a dour mood following this fall from grace, so the kids made faces at him to cheer him up. Because this was Hot Shot, it worked. During the next battle, Hot Shot targeted the traitor, Sideways, and was once again bested by Scavenger. Hot Shot was surprised to discover later that Scavenger was actually an Autobot working undercover as a Decepticon. {{storylink|Conspiracy}} With Scavenger now with the Autobots again, he began personally training Hot Shot. {{storylink|Trust (Armada)|Trust}} Hot Shot and the others were later caught by local television news journalists while they were rescuing some young children who were lost near a dam, but footage of them was destroyed. {{storylink|Vacation}} When a new recruit, [[Blurr (Armada)|Blurr]], joined the team, Hot Shot at first had trouble getting along with him. However, after working together to retrieve a Mini-Con, they were able to make peace. {{storylink|Reinforcement}}

With both the [[Skyboom (Armada)|Skyboom]] shield and the Star Saber sword in his possession, Megatron issued a challenge to Optimus Prime and the other Autobots. When the two factions met on a stretch of rocky desert, Hot Shot was disappointed to discover that none of his firepower could penetrate Megatron's shield. His weapons useless against the Decepticon leader, Hot Shot joined Blurr in running interference during the battle between Megatron and Optimus. The tide was turned when the Skyboom shield fell into Autobot hands. {{storylink|Decisive Battle}} For a while, Hot Shot and the other Autobots wouldn't allow their human friends to enter the base. {{storylink|Vow}} While Hot Shot and the others were away, the kids traveled into a digital realm and met with an [[Unicron|evil force]]. {{storylink|Chase (episode)|Chase}} Optimus Prime led Hot Shot and the others into battle in a gully, but it was actually a trap conceived by the Decepticons' new tactician, [[Thrust (Armada)|Thrust]]. To the Decepticons' surprise, the Autobots had an incoming addition of their own, and Prime's second-in-command, [[Jetfire (Armada)|Jetfire]], arrived and saved the Autobots. {{storylink|Tactician}} However, Optimus Prime was badly damaged in the fight, so Jetfire took over as leader. Hot Shot didn't like this, as he thought Jetfire was nothing more than a braggart. Jetfire led Hot Shot and the Autobots to another battle for a Mini-Con on a distant island, and Optimus Prime arrived, repaired, just in time to combine with Jetfire and save the day. {{storylink|Linkup}}

[[Image:Desperate Tidal Wave blocked.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Yes, punch my tiny shield!]]
After Hot Shot and the other Autobots sparred with one another at their base, their morale boosted by Jetfire's arrival, Hot Shot wondered openly about the nature of Sideways, and whether he was really in either faction at all. They left for yet another battle, but this time, the Decepticons had a secret weapon: The gigantic warrior known as [[Tidal Wave (Armada)|Tidal Wave]] had arrived. {{storylink|Detection}} The Autobots barely held up against Tidal Wave. {{storylink|Awakening}} Hot Shot attempted to block Tidal Wave's mighty blows with the Skyboom shield, and with help, the Autobots were finally able to topple the titan. The battle ended with the awakening of the three Mini-Cons which formed the [[Requiem Blaster]]. {{storylink|Desperate}}

When the kids ran off with the Mini-Cons, fearful that they would be used as objects by either faction, Hot Shot and the others had to hunt them down. To reassure the kids, Hot Shot decided that the Autobots would only work with the Mini-Cons as a team! {{storylink|Runaway}}

[[Image:Past Part 2 Wheeljack Hot Shot fight.jpg|thumb|300px|"I won't fight you, I won't! Well, maybe just a little."]]
Wheeljack returned to Hot Shot's life, seeking revenge for abandoning him on the battlefield all those years ago. Unfortunately, Hot Shot was training a new Autobot recruit, [[Side Swipe (Armada)|Side Swipe]], when Wheeljack returned, and the young Autobot found himself caught up in Wheeljack's vendetta as well. {{storylink|Past}} When Wheeljack explained to Hot Shot that it was Megatron who'd rescued him and saved his life, Hot Shot couldn't believe it. Hot Shot refused to fight his former friend, yet Wheeljack Shot him, leaving him on the road. Side Swipe dragged Hot Shot's body back to base, where he was placed in intensive care, but Hot Shot's memories still haunted him. Events seemed to repeat themselves when Wheeljack confronted Hot Shot once again within an abandoned human facility. When Side Swipe showed up to help Hot Shot, the area was caught in flames, and Hot Shot was forced once again to save the young Autobot under his care. Wheeljack had chained up Side Swipe within the facility, and he told his captive not to expect rescue from Hot Shot. Regardless, Hot Shot threw himself through the fire and saved Side Swipe, despite the latter's pleas to keep away lest the place blow up with both of them inside. Wheeljack was deterred, but promised he'd be around later to revisit his ill will. {{storylink|Past II}}

[[Image:Rescue Megatron vs Hot Shot.jpg|thumb|left|250px|[[Gunbarrel (Armada)|Gunbarrel]] wants to know why mommy and daddy are fighting!]]

When the Autobots were informed by a mysterious source to meet the Decepticons in battle within a forest, Hot Shot wondered why they didn't bring the Requiem Blaster with them. He was told to shut up, and soon the Decepticons arrived to fight them, as promised. Megatron noticed the absence of the Requiem Blaster and realized it was back at the Autobots' base, where Smokescreen was guarding it, alone. Hot Shot and the Autobots returned to their base too late to assist Smokescreen, who nearly died valiantly trying to protect the Mini-Cons. Despite his sacrifice, Megatron took the Requiem Blaster and retreated. {{storylink|Sacrifice}} Hot Shot was among the Autobots who watched Red Alert begin to repair Smokescreen. Hot Shot then took Side Swipe with him to investigate the appearance of Starscream on Earth, who had left the Decepticons with the Star Saber sword after an argument with Megatron. After a fight with Tidal Wave, Starscream returned with the Autobots to their base, despite Hot Shot's objections. He didn't trust Starscream and believed this was a trick, citing the treachery of Sideways. And worse, Starscream was partly to blame for Smokescreen's condition! Outside, Hot Shot picked a fight with Starscream as their Mini-Cons watched. Their battle, which lasted until dusk, was interrupted by a strange Transformer, whom Hot Shot yelled at for interrupting the avenging of his friend. The fight was stopped when Hot Shot realized this Transformer was Smokescreen, rebuilt in a new body. {{storylink|Regeneration}}

Using coordinates given by Starscream, the Autobots were able to warp themselves directly into the Decepticons' base. Hot Shot confronted Wheeljack again, telling the "creep" to get out of his way. With Starscream's help, the Autobots were able to locate where the Decepticons were keeping their captured Mini-Cons, and Hot Shot fought Megatron, giving the Mini-Cons a chance to escape. Starscream interfered, saving Hot Shot's life, and after the two teamed up against the Decepticon leader, they returned to the Autobot base with the rescued Mini-Cons. {{storylink|Rescue}} Hot Shot stayed home while Jetfire and Starscream journeyed to [[Mars (planet)|Mars]] to retrieve another Mini-Con. {{storylink|Mars (episode)|Mars}} Hot Shot was frustrated with Starscream's apathy, and his original suspicions were confirmed when Starscream had a change of heart in the midst of a battle, bringing the Skyboom shield and the Star Saber sword to Megatron, giving him control of all three weapons. {{storylink|Crack}}

[[Image:Crisis Hot Shot Matrix.jpg|thumb|300px|Awww, ''hell'' naw.]]
When Megatron harnessed the power of the three weapons to power the [[Hydra Cannon]], a starship powerful enough to destroy Earth in one blast, Hot Shot and the others worked to build a starship of their own. {{storylink|Threaten}} Hot Shot blamed everything on Starscream's betrayal and angrily accused Optimus Prime for letting Starscream join their team and beginning this series of events. This had some effect on the Autobot leader, as Optimus Prime later offered the [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix of the Commander]] to Hot Shot. Hot Shot refused, saying he couldn't take such an important thing from Optimus. Optimus Prime put the Matrix back in his chest, warped into space, and blocked the Hydra Cannon's Earth-shattering shot with his own body. The Autobot leader disintegrated before their eyes. {{storylink|Crisis}}

[[Image:Remorse democracy.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Scavenger, you're fired.]]
The death of Optimus hit Hot Shot hard. After starting fights with everyone, he left the Autobots and ran out on his own, only to face Scavenger. Scavenger assaulted Hot Shot, revealing that the former Decepticon had left their team for the Autobots because of him. As the two beat on each other, Side Swipe arrived with a small group of Mini-Cons, and they all pleaded for Hot Shot to stop fighting with everyone. Hot Shot realized he was being selfish, that he needed his teammates just as much as they needed him, and he promised to stop treating his friends as if they were enemies. The rest of the Autobots arrived, and they were pleased with Hot Shot's discovery. Jetfire nominated Hot Shot to lead the Autobots because it was what Optimus would have wanted. Scavenger went to hit Hot Shot one more time, but Hot Shot didn't move. Proving he was without fear, Hot Shot became leader of the Autobots. As a stipulation, Hot Shot stated that he would only be leader until they return to Cybertron, and that they should put the Matrix of the Commander someplace safe, as he didn't feel he should carry it. {{storylink|Remorse}}

Hot Shot oversaw the completion of their starship, the [[Axalon (Armada)|''Axalon'']], and asked the Mini-Cons if they wanted to come or not. They unanimously decided to accompany the Autobots to Cybertron. He initially forbade the kids from coming, but the Mini-Cons convinced him to change his mind. {{storylink|Depart}} As the ''Axalon'' left Earth, Hot Shot said some final words in memory of Optimus Prime. Their starship caught up with the Decepticons', and soon there was a huge battle between the two factions. Hot Shot battled Megatron in space, but it was a one-sided battle. Hot Shot placed himself between Megatron's Requiem Blaster and the ''Axalon'', hoping to spare his friends, but then a miracle occurred. The Mini-Con Sparkplug was able to resurrect Optimus Prime from within the Matrix, and the formerly-deceased Autobot Leader reappeared in a blinding flash of green light. Optimus turned the tide, {{storylink|Miracle}} and he reintroduced himself to a very grateful Hot Shot and the rest of the crew. But before anything else could happen, Hot Shot and Red Alert were pulled through a strange hole to an alien landscape. Here they met a [[Nemesis Prime (Armada)|strange dark version of Optimus Prime]] who battled them. It was discovered that Megatron, Starscream, and Demolishor were on this strange planet, too, and despite their combined numbers, the Prime doppelganger overwhelms them. Arriving Mini-Cons bathe the planet in a strange light, and when the larger Transformers woke up, they were completely repaired, yet in strange new colors. Ultimately, their battle caused the planet itself to disintegrate, and both factions were forced to retreat. {{storylink|Puppet}}

[[Image:Dash Hot Shot crouch.jpg|thumb|250px|Twenty episodes ago, he cooed like a baby if you made faces at him.]]
By the time the Autobots had repaired the ''Axalon'' and arrived over Cybertron, the Decepticons had managed to take over the planet. Hot Shot and Blurr fought through Decepticons on the planet's surface, while a strange phenomenon appeared in the sky. {{storylink|Uprising}} [[Unicron]], the Chaos Bringer, was looming over their planet, but [[Megatron (Armada)|Galvatron]] (previously Megatron) would not listen to Optimus Prime's pleas to unite their two factions against him. Hot Shot decided to take matters into his own hands and fought his way through the Decepticon base and countless Decepticon warriors to reach Galvatron and reason with him. If not for Wheeljack's intervention, he might not have survived. Wheeljack's hatred for Hot Shot seemed to have softened, and Hot Shot's former friend joined him in pleading to Galvatron to stop the war so that the two factions could unite against Unicron. Galvatron was unconvinced, but Thrust, a secret pawn of Unicron, panicked and ran away with the Requiem Blaster and the Skyboom shield. Hot Shot and Wheeljack took off after him. {{storylink|Dash (episode)|Dash}}

Hot Shot continued to hunt Thrust down, while the true nature of the Mini-Cons was revealed; they were created by Unicron long ago. {{storylink|Drift (episode)|Drift}} Hot Shot and Wheeljack aided Starscream against Sideways within the surprisingly organic-looking caverns of Cybertron. But when Unicron formed out of Cybertron's moon, the battle dissipated as each side readied for the final battle. {{storylink|Portent}} Despite Hot Shot's intentions to convince Galvatron himself, the Decepticon leader did not change his mind until Starscream sacrificed himself to Unicron. {{storylink|Cramp}} After a formal alliance between Autobots and Decepticons was formed, Hot Shot was part of a unified team sent to Unicron's surface. However, once the team arrived, the Decepticons abandoned Hot Shot and the other Autobots. Later, Demolishor made up for this by begrudgingly catching Side Swipe before could fall to his doom. In return, Hot Shot had found Demolishor's Mini-Con partner, [[Blackout (Armada)|Blackout]]. They agreed to work together from then on. {{storylink|Alliance}} Optimus Prime and Megatron traveled together to the core of Unicron, leaving both armies under the command of Hot Shot. {{storylink|Union}} No matter how much damage Hot Shot's teams inflicted on Unicron, Unicron could repair himself. Their massive opponent was fed by the negative energies of the battle. Ordering a cease fire, Unicron stood motionless, seemingly defeated. {{storylink|Origin}}

[[Image:Mortal Combat Hot Shot Jetfire.jpg|thumb|left|250px|When we come back, we'll be terrible cel-shaded CGI!]]
Hot Shot told both armies to begin rebuilding Cybertron while he went to Unicron to find Optimus, but Jetfire demanded he go instead. Inside, after a fight between Optimus Prime and Megatron, Megatron sacrificed himself to Unicron so that their negative energies would not revive him. But Optimus Prime felt he had failed as Autobot Leader, and with the end of the conflict between the two factions, he exiled himself to parts unknown. Hot Shot and [[Jetfire (Armada)|Jetfire]] were left in charge of the Transformers. {{storylink|Mortal Combat}}

{{-}}
====''Energon'' cartoon====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Brent Miller]] (English), [[Kōsuke Toriumi]] (Japanese)

[[Image:E1 titlecard.jpg|thumb|300px|Hot Shot always forgets he's not supposed to shoot at the humans.]]
10 years after the events of [[Armada (cartoon)|Armada]], Hot Shot was stationed on Earth as the commander of [[Ocean City]] while Optimus Prime trained new soldiers on Cybertron. He faced administrative challenges such as [[Demolishor (Armada)|surly former adversaries]] and teenaged angst from the resident teenaged angster, [[Kicker Jones]]. Hot Shot had proved himself up to the task of being "city commander," and was seen with fanboy-like adoration by younger Autobots such as [[Ironhide (Energon)|Ironhide]]. Ironhide in particular wished he could advance further in rank just so he could combine with Hot Shot.

Kicker seemed to have a certain clairvoyance when it came to trouble (and [[Energon (fuel)|Energon]]!), though Hot Shot would often dismiss Kicker's warnings. But one day, like most days, Kicker was right. Mysterious bestial Transformers, the [[Terrorcon (Energon)|Terrorcons]], suddenly attacked Ocean City, forcing Hot Shot, Kicker, Ironhide, and the others to go on the defensive. When Optimus Prime arrived, Hot Shot and Inferno were granted the [[Spark of Combination]], which allowed the two to combine into a single super robot. With everyone working together, the last of that batch of Terrorcons were defeated. {{storylink|Cybertron City (episode)|Cybertron City}}

When [[Mars City]] on Mars was destroyed by more Terrorcons, Hot Shot was among those assembled to hear the news. The Terrorcons' next target was Earth's [[Moon (moon)|moon]], so after Ocean City was raised, Hot Shot and the others, including the [[Omnicon|Omnicons]], used the [[space bridge]] to warp there. But despite their efforts, the Terrorcons were able to flee with much stolen Energon. {{storylink|Energon Stars}} Later, Hot Shot headed up a strikeforce to [[Desert City]] to fortify it against possible Terrorcon assault. While there he flirted with jailbait super-scientist [[Misha Miramond]] and filled her ear with what a dork her not-my-boyfriend (Kicker) was back at Ocean City. When Terrorcons invaded the city, Hot Shot and his troops performed a holding action at the entrance to the Energon Mine, but their position was overrun, and Hot Shot was the only survivor. Though battered, Hot Shot commended [[Ironhide (Energon)|Ironhide]]'s decision to leave him behind and rescue the humans, resulting in the other Autobot being awarded his own Combination Spark. Finally, Ironhide could combine with Hot Shot, just as he'd always wanted! {{storylink|Scorpinok}}

As part of [[Prime Squad]], Hot Shot prepared to travel to Mars before the mission was canceled, and took part in the defense of [[Plains City]], again tasked with securing the Energon supply. He was the first to feel the wrath of [[Scorponok (Energon)|Scorponok]]'s [[Energon Sword|Megatron Sword]], and later battled [[Cyclonus (Armada)|Cyclonus]] while attempting to shore up [[Demolishor (Armada)|Demolishor]]'s flagging confidence in the Autobot cause. {{storylink|Megatron's Sword}} Hot Shot also led a recon team searching for a [[Energon point]] in the mountains, the future location of [[Blizzard City]]. He ordered Ironhide and Demolishor to team up for their mutual benefit. While trying to rescue Kicker, Hot Shot was buried in an avalanche by Cyclonus. He evacuated his team before they could be crushed by the emergency deployment of a new [[Cybertron City (city)|Cybertron City]] via [[space bridge]]. {{storylink|The New Cybertron City}}

[[Image:E07 hotshotarm.gif|thumb|left|Ironhide kept it as a souvenir for his [[User:ItsWalky|Hot Shot shrine]].]]

Hot Shot and his crew were still at Plains City when the newly-resurrected [[Megatron (Armada)|Megatron]] attacked. He was defeated in battle by Megatron and 'dis-armed' as an object lesson to Optimus. {{storylink|Megatron Resurrected}} Optimus retreated to Ocean City with the injured Hot Shot and left the Plains City Energon supply to the Decepticons. Hot Shot's injury awakened a protective streak in Optimus Prime, who briefly forbade Kicker from accompanying the Autobots on missions. At Ocean City Hot Shot underwent medical treatment, submerged in liquefied Energon while his damaged exostructure re-grew. When the base was breached, Hot Shot broke out of his medical unit to defend Inferno from Terrorcons and, armed with a clone of the Megatron Sword, he helped kick the visiting Decepticons back out. {{storylink|Megatron Raid}}

[[Image:Energon Tower groupshot.jpg|thumb|300px|Why even take multiple screencaps? He always looks the same.]]
Hot Shot organized a covert surveillance of Optimus Prime while he was targeted by a [[Starscream (Armada)|Mysterious Mercenary]]. Unfortunately, his large shoulder armor made it impossible to hide behind objects and Optimus discovered him. When Optimus fought Starscream on the [[Moon (moon)|moon]], Hot Shot placed Inferno in temporary command of Ocean City so he could bring a supply of Energon Stars to [[Lunar City]]. {{storylink|Starscream the Mysterious Mercenary}} When the Autobots encountered the [[Mobile Fortress]] near [[Asteroid City]], Hot Shot panicked, momentarily believing it was Unicron himself, and [[Brainstorm#Marvel Comics continuity|fired blindly and ineffectually into it]] using a hand weapon. {{storylink|Battle of the Asteroid Belt}} During the construction of an [[energon tower]] that would help protect their cities from attack, the Terrorcons chose the moment to strike. After Inferno combined with Hot Shot to form Powerlinx Inferno, the tower was finally activated and the Terrorcons fled. {{storylink|Energon Tower}}

Hot Shot wandered over when he heard Ironhide telling Kicker to 'lose the attitude', but was unable to wholly endorse Ironhide's statement that Kicker should automatically look up to [[Brian Jones (Energon)|his father]]. Instead he gently suggested that Kicker might want to seek a ''different'' hero to look up to, and told Ironhide that he'd looked up to [[Rodimus (Energon)|Rodimus]] since he was a young Autobot. {{storylink|The Legend of Rodimus}} Hot Shot later supervised the project to construct the second energon tower at [[Jungle City]]. Ironhide was placed in co-command when the larger Autobot contingent arrived for the final stage, and when the city was attacked and put to siege they split duties, with Hot Shot taking Aerial defense. As the siege wore on, Hot Shot had to be the one to confront Optimus Prime and force him to admit that this battle was unwinnable. They destroyed Jungle City rather than letting it fall to the Decepticons. {{storylink|Crisis in Jungle City}}

[[Image:Energon-HotShot-Hand-Drawn.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Eeeyeaagh!]]

Hot Shot accompanied the rescue mission to [[Lunar City]]. {{storylink|Kicker Beware!}} When Earth was threatened by artificial cometary impacts, he was part of the orbital team sent to intercept them as they approached Earth's atmosphere. Forced to wait as other teams tried to slow the comets, Hot Shot occupied himself by aggravating [[Jetfire (Armada)|Jetfire]], who eventually just told him to be quiet. He, Jetfire and Optimus Prime supercharged themselves with Energon to push against the comets, delaying their approach long enough for the [[energon grid]] to come online. {{storylink|Energon Grid}}

On Earth, Hot Shot was shocked when [[Rodimus (Energon)|Rodimus]], a transformer he idolized in his youth, broke in on a communication with [[Carlos Lopez|Carlos]] and demanded a secret meeting. He traveled to [[Mars (planet)|Mars]], where he discovered Scorponok had reactivated the destroyed Energon mines. Rodimus appeared to head off a fight between the two of them. He attempted to recruit Hot Shot as a double agent for the secret agenda that he, Scorponok and [[Alpha Quintesson|Alpha Q]] shared—the revival of Unicron! Hot Shot refused to betray Optimus Prime, and pulled a gun on Rodimus... but he was unable to fire on his one-time idol. Rodimus had no such compunctions, and he shot Hot Shot, but Kicker and Ironhide intervened to save him. {{storylink|Rodimus Friend or Foe?}}

Hot Shot attended the launch of the ''[[Miranda II]]'' Autobot-human spacecraft. He joined the crew and was part of a space battle in the [[Asteroid belt]] to defend the [[Energon Ring]] before their journey could begin. {{storylink|Go for Unicron!}}

After Rodimus saved Hot Shot's life, he regretted his quick judgment. The relationship between Hot Shot and Rodimus was eventually restored and they become Powerlink partners.

[[Image:Energon-Autobot-Redecos.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Yes, everyone follow Hot Shot. He'll know what to do.]]

Hot Shot continued to serve under Optimus Prime, surviving many battles on Cybertron and other worlds. Along with several other Autobots, Hot Shot was injured when the reborn Unicron destroyed a fledgling planet in the reformed Q-system. Hot Shot was reformatted into a slick silver body along with his Autobot comrades.

Hot Shot warned Sally not to go spy on the Decepticons, but she got away from him by wiggling disturbingly through a human-size passageway. He was suitably impressed when she captured the control room the Decepticons had been using all by herself. {{storylink|Galvatron Terror}} He watched in horror as Galvatron grew to enormous size using Super Energon, and led Cliffjumper and Downshift onto the battlefield. He powerlinxed with Downshift to try and rescue Optimus from Galvatron, but they were engaged by Starscream instead. {{storylink|Destructive Power}} He eventually merged his [[spark]] with that of [[Optimus Supreme]] and his partners in the final battle with [[Megatron (Armada)|Galvatron]]. {{storylink|The Sun}}

{{charstubfiction}}

====''Cybertron'' cartoon====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Kirby Morrow]] (English), [[Daisuke Hirakawa]] (Japanese)
[[Image:Hotshotcybertron.jpg|thumb|250px|He knows kung-fu.]]
Hot Shot thought that the new [[Earth]]-based [[alternate mode]] provided to him by [[Jetfire (Armada)|Jetfire]] was "so him," but couldn't believe they were abandoning [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. When the Decepticons attacked, he battled [[Starscream (Armada)|Starscream]]. He was unable to stop the Decepticons from stealing the map, and accompanied [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]] to Earth. {{storylink|Fallen (episode)|Fallen}} Once there, he assisted in helping build the new Autobot base. When the Decepticons attacked, Hot Shot battled Starscream to stop them from detecting the base. {{storylink|Haven}} When [[Red Alert (Armada)|Red Alert]] attempted to close the [[Unicron Singularity|black hole]], Hot Shot viewed from Earth. He then arrived as backup when Optimus Prime battled [[Megatron (Armada)|Megatron]]. {{storylink|Hidden}} Hot Shot was racing on a speedway. Optimus Prime arrived and gave him a lecture about their need to stay hidden on Earth. So when they decided to split up to search for the [[Omega Lock]], Hot Shot went with Red Alert to the [[Velocitron|Speed Planet]]. When they arrived he marveled at the open roads and took to enjoying himself. He was then surprised at something faster than him. {{storylink|Landmine (episode)|Landmine}}

[[Image:Cyb ep7 hotshot cyberkey.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Slag yeah, ladies. I bring those ''blue'' sparks.]]
Hot Shot thought the Speed Planet was his type of place, but was adamant he wouldn't disobey Optimus Prime's orders. From a distance he watched [[Dirt Boss (Cybertron)|Dirt Boss]] utilize his [[Cyber Key]], then saw [[Ransack (Cybertron)|two]] [[Crumplezone (Cybertron)|bullies]] terrorizing [[Brakedown (Cybertron)|some]] [[Clocker (Cybertron)|locals]]. He argued with Red Alert about interfering. At first he said he wasn't going to interfere but eventually when things looked bad he saved them. {{storylink|Space}} Hot Shot was then attacked by Ransack and Crumplezone. He transformed and drove off. When driving between them he caused them to blast each other. Red Alert then berated him for breaking cover against Prime's orders, but Hot Shot was still excited over every little part of Speed Planet. Upon seeing a race between [[Override (Cybertron)|Override]] and Megatron he joined in. He would have won the race if Crumplezone's missiles hadn't upset him. {{storylink|Rush}} Afterward Hot Shot trained to get into peak performance for his next race against Override. He removed his entire self analysis system to lighten his weight. During the race he felt a need for more speed and was able to summer Cyber Key Power. With this burst of speed, though, he broke and was thrown off the track. {{storylink|Speed}}

Hot Shot readied himself for another race while Red Alert accused him of no longer caring for his mission. Hot Shot was ready to hit Red Alert when Brakedown stepped in. Later while testing out his racing skills he went too fast and almost crashed into a wall, but was saved by Clocker. Reflecting on this, he decided that he was too lightweight. {{storylink|Time (episode)|Time}} Hot Shot still felt he needed to win his race despite being injured. Ransack tricked him into racing [[Dirt Boss (Cybertron)|Dirt Boss]] by telling him the winner would race Override again 1-on-1. He was damaged by Dirt Boss's [[Cyber Key]] attack, but kept racing. Later he was shot at by Ransack but fired back and caused a landslide, burying himself. After being unburied by Landmine, he apologized to a newly arrived [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]] for disobeying his orders and possibly failing his mission. He then collapsed. While in an unconscious state Red Alert repaired the damage he had been putting on himself. Landmine berated him to snap him out of the rut his mind was in. He took it hard and for a bit felt like he wasn't part of the team until Clocker convinced him otherwise. Optimus Prime later decided to use Hot Shot's original plan. Then he raced along with the other Autobots for interference. {{storylink|Hero (episode)|Hero}}
[[Image:Cyb_ep13_hotshot_injured.jpg|thumb|right|250px|This seem familiar?]]
At the start of the race, Hot Shot took the lead, but was again passed by Override and Dirt Boss. Crumplezone and Ransack spun him in circles, but he quickly recovered and continued to purse Override. The duo later cut away the bridge, but Hot Shot jumped the gap by leapfrogging off of Optimus Prime. He was not able to win the race, but placed second place. {{storylink|Race}} Hot Shot then raced in the next race. Seeing the twisting course up ahead, he attempted to take the lead early in the race and passed Override. He went the wrong direction when Ransack switched over the course. When hearing the fact that he was on the wrong course he shared the information with Override to beat her fair and square. Later after an avalanche he helped out a buried Override rather than continue to race. Once again he came in second place due to Dirt Boss passing him while he was busy helping Override. {{storylink|Detour (episode)|Detour}} Hot Shot continued to train with the rest of the Autobots to be ready for the next race while Optimus Prime and [[Vector Prime]] went to find another planet key. He then listened to Red Alert's lecture about the Cyber Keys and then lined up for the next race. {{storylink|Savage}}
[[Image:Cyb_ep18_champion.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Hot Shot receives a gold trophy from Star Cup]]
After qualifying for the next race, Hot Shot initially took the lead through the desert. He then realized he couldn't get much in the way of traction in the sands, causing him to fall way behind Dirt Boss. To complicate matters, he also fell into a quicksand vortex. Brakedown began to pulling him out of the vortex but they targeted by Dirt Boss. They were saved when [[Jolt (Cybertron)|Jolt]] jumped in the way and reflected the shots. After continuing the race, Hot Shot stopped as Brakedown broke down, but after listening to the old bot, finished the race. After the race he requested that [[Coby Hansen|Coby]] remain on [[Velocitron]] to help him through the final race. {{storylink|Sand}} Hot Shot was chosen by the Planet Cup for the final race. At the Autobot base he found out that his damage would cause him to be unfamiliar with his vehicle mode. The Autobots decided that Coby would sit in Hot Shot's cockpit to have the continuous ability to modify his circuits. The race began and he started out with an early lead. When Ransack and Crumplezone attempted to steal the Planet Cup, he warded them off with the help of Override. Then they continued the race. As Hot Shot's system links kept breaking down, Coby was able to rewire him in order for him to keep pace with Override. It wasn't enough, as his circuits were still having trouble holding, so he used Cyber Key Power to help finish up a loop. After a photo finish with Override, he was declared the winner of the race and was going to take the Planet Cup, but Megatron showed up out of nowhere to take it. In vehicle mode Hot Shot knocked over Megatron, giving Optimus Prime and Leobreaker an opportunity to take Megatron down. Afterward Hot Shot attended the victory celebration in his own honor. Returning to Earth, he was also present when Override added the Cyber Planet Key to the [[Omega Lock]]. {{storylink|Champion}}

Following coordinates provided by the Omega Lock, Hot Shot was part of a team of Autobots that headed to the north pole. He was able to respond to a Mini-Con distress signal to save a frozen [[Scattorshot (Cybertron)|Scattorshot]]. {{storylink|Ice}} After sustaining damage, he was fixed up by Red Alert and Coby {{storylink|Honor}} and then followed the Autobots to Jungle Planet {{storylink|Primal}}. After the Autobots received Jungle Planet's Cyber Planet Key, Hot Shot heard the incoming Decepticons attempting to win it back. He was able to take cover as they strafed. After leaving the temple with a diversionary box that may have contained the key, he was knocked over by Crumplezone when he turned to fight Ransack. Later he saw a space bridge and headed toward it, joining the Autobots in surrounding Megatron. {{storylink|Trust (Cybertron)|Trust}}

Hot Shot readied equipment with Scattorshot back on Earth. He chose to follow Red Alert to the north pole to back up Optimus Prime's team. {{storylink|Trap}} Surprisingly, he was the voice of caution and told Jetfire not to blast ice debris that trapped Optimus Prime. It would cause a collapse. After Jetfire freeing Optimus Prime using his engines, the Autobots were attacked by Decepticons and human drone planes. He was going to attack the drone planes, but was stopped by Optimus Prime. {{storylink|Invasion}}

[[Image:Retreat-HotShotholomatteravatar.jpg|thumb|left|200px|JaAm executive.]]
When the Autobots realized the kids and Mini-Cons were missing, Hot Shot was sent out to investigate. While on his route he ran into [[Tim Hansen]] and assured him that his younger brothers would be okay. After finding the kids who escaped from [[Mikey Franklin|Colonel Franklin]], Hot Shot began retreating to [[Velocitron]] via the space bridge. Starscream attacked to steal away the [[Omega Lock]] and Hot Shot was one of the first to fall in battle. {{storylink|Retreat}}

[[Image:Cyb ep27 parts delivery.jpg|thumb|right|200px|We're surrounded by all these military vehicles, but, man, I'm so tired, let's just get new bodies from Primus instead.]]

Later, Hot Shot, Red Alert and Scattorshot faced Megatron alone when the Decepticon leader returned to Earth thirsting for revenge against the treacherous Starscream. Humiliating the Decepticon in combat, they enraged Megatron, who used his new Omega Lock-powered Death Machine Gun on the three Autobots, crippling them beyond repair. {{storylink|Revelation (episode)|Revelation}} Fortunately, the powers of Primus acting through the Omega Lock bathed the trio in the creator's holy light, repairing and reformatting the young Autobot into Cybertron Defense Hot Shot. Along with his newly
reformatted friends, the [[Cybertron Defense Team]] arrived on the battlefield and easily defeated the Decepticons Scourge and Megatron. {{storylink|Critical}}

{{note|The "power of Primus/Omega Lock" explanation was added for the English-language dub of the show. In the original ''Galaxy Force'' version, the upgrade was simply a result of [[burning justice]].}}

[[Image:Cyb ep27 cyb def team.jpg|left|thumb|300px|Excuse me, we're here to be the most awesome toys ever.]]

Hot Shot continued to battle Megatron and his forces. After Megatron retreated, Hot Shot followed to aid Optimus Prime at the volcanic island. He helped fight off Scourge with the rest of the Cybertron Defense Team. Later, when questioning [[Wing Saber (Energon)|Wing Saber]]'s "orders," he was shot and forced to dance to avoid being blasted. After the altercation Optimus Prime sent him and the rest of Cybertron Defense Team to [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] in an attempt to slow down the [[Unicron Singularity|black hole]]. {{storylink|Assault}} En route to the planet, however, his team encountered a meteor shower. He began blasting his way through, but in doing so got goop all over his windshield, obscuring his vision. [[Coby Hansen|Coby]] then took over his movements via [[synchro-control]]. Later he countered [[Scattorshot (Cybertron)|Scattorshot]]'s claim in who had the most points by blowing up the most asteroids, saying he had shot at least 2 to every one of Scattorshot's. Upon arrival at Cybertron and finding it swarming with [[Scrapmetal (race)|Scrapmetal]], he led the assault to cleanse the planet. {{storylink|Starscream (episode)|Starscream}} They fought their way through legions of the robotic pests. {{storylink|United}}

[[Image:CDHotShot fists.jpg|250px|thumb|right|Now we know why his shoulders hurt]]
Hot Shot continued fighting off Scrapmetals until all in the vicinity were destroyed. Upon Megatron's arrival, Hot Shot immediately attacked. After Megatron's apparent defeat, Hot Shot helped give a tour of Cybertron to the kids and other offworlders. He was then present when Optimus Prime presented the Omega Lock which caused Cybertron to apparently break apart. He then drove via the space bridge to Cybertron's moon to witness the full transformation of [[Primus]]. {{storylink|Cybertron (episode)|Cybertron}} Hot Shot was first awed by Primus, then confused when he found out that [[Jolt (Cybertron)|Jolt]] was originally from [[Gigantion]]. He attacked Starscream after the Decepticon's arrival and continued fighting Decepticons until [[Megatron (Armada)|something]] appeared in the sky. {{storylink|Balance}}

Hot Shot was attacked by the newly powered up Crumplezone once he was raised from mortal wounds by Megatron. He wasn't much tougher than before and Hot Shot was able to defeat his rival. {{storylink|Darkness (episode)|Darkness}} He later chased after the Decepticons attempting to steal the Omega Lock. {{storylink|Memory}}

When the Autobots reached [[Gigantion]], he split off into a group to explore the planet. Later, in an altercation with the Decepticons, he fired at [[Thunderblast (Decepticon)|Thunderblast]]. Hot Shot unloaded the ship for the Autobots to be able to use the Omega Lock. He and the rest of the Cybertron Defense team were taken out by a newly powered up [[Megatron (Armada)|Galvatron]]. {{storylink|Fury}}

Hot Shot watched as Optimus battled [[Sideways (RID)|Sideways]], then joined the rest of the Cybertron Defense Force as team three when the Autobots split up. {{storylink|City}} He later ran into Sideways and [[Soundwave (Cybertron)|Soundwave]] while searching for the Cyber Planet Key. He listened to Soundwave's story of [[Planet X (Cybertron)|Planet X]]. He was then surrounded by [[Laserbeak (Cybertron)|Laserbeak]]'s smoke and accidentally hit Scattorshot believing he was Sideways. When Scattorshot cleared the smoke Hot Shot powered up his Cyber Key and helped the rest of his squad blast a pillar upon Soundwave and Sideways. {{storylink|Challenge}}

[[Image:Cyb ep45 save the universe.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Come back from the dead and all I get are these lousy group shots.]]

Hot Shot and his team looked for a downward passage when they ran into Galvatron and [[Menasor (Cybertron)|Menasor]]. After a brief skirmish, they utilized the [[triangle formation|triangle attack]] to take Menasor down. Then they battled Galvatron at full strength, but were once again beaten down. {{storylink|Scourge (episode)|Scourge}} He slowly got to his feet, recovered, and made his way down to the inner part of Gigantion to join the rest of the Autobots in shooting Galvatron. {{storylink|Optimus (episode)|Optimus}}

Hot Shot watched as [[Vector Prime]] inserted the final Cyber Planet Key into the [[Omega Lock]]. when Galvatron arrived, Hot Shot was defeated with the rest of the Autobots. While Optimus Prime and the other flying Autobots were intercepted by Soundwave and Sideways, Hot Shot opened fire from the ground. {{storylink|Showdown (episode)|Showdown}} When the new space bridge opened and the denizens from Planet X were coming through, Hot Shot began firing. Afterward, with the help of Vector Prime, he was able to leave Gigantion with the rest of the Autobots. {{storylink|Guardian (episode)|Guardian}} After returning to [[Primus]], the Decepticons attacked. Hot Shot quickly counterattacked, {{storylink|Homecoming (episode)|Homecoming}} battling Thundercracker while the Decepticon taunted Optimus Prime {{storylink|End}}

[[Image:CybertronKicker.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Kicker needs to update his contact information.]]

Hot Shot ran to assist the Autobots in sending [[Jungle Planet (Cybertron)|Jungle Planet]] back to orbit. When Galvatron entered the Autobot base, he wanted to attack the Decepticon leader until Optimus said it was his fight solely. So instead he ran out to save Jungle Planet. After helping put out fires, Hot Shot lent his strength to push the rocket to adjust the planet's trajectory. After the planet was saved, he joined the rest of the Autobots in assisting Optimus Prime. {{storylink|Unfinished}} With Galvatron finally defeated, Override resigned from leadership of Velocitron in order to travel to new worlds, and Hot Shot won the race to determine who would be her successor, despite his bulky new body. {{storylink|Beginning}}

{{-}}

===Panini ''Armada'' comic===
[[Image:DevicesandDesires-yourownsize.jpg|left|thumb|300px|Well, gee, Hot Shot, when you put it that way, it doesn't sound fair anymore.]]
As the Autobot-Decepticon war was in its early stages, Hot Shot was stationed at the main [[Autobot Command HQ]] on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. Upon detecting four Decepticon battalions heading towards them, he reported this to [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]] and raced into battle. He and the other Autobots were eventually forced to abandon their base when it turned out to be rigged with explosives. {{storylink|Panini Armada issue 9|Counter-Strike!}} After the Mini-Cons left Cybertron, he was seen dispensing firepower and sarcasm during another clash with the Decepticon forces. {{storylink|First Encounter!}}

Hot Shot and [[Red Alert (Armada)|Red Alert]] were later summoned to [[Earth]] when the Mini-Cons were found to have awakened there. The Mini-Con [[Jolt (Armada)|Jolt]] grudgingly power-linked with Hot Shot, allowing him to fly through the air and ram [[Cyclonus (Armada)|Cyclonus]]. {{storylink|Panini Armada issue 2|Friends and Foes!}} Following the battle, he stood guard outside a small cave while the Mini-Cons and their [[human]] friends made their way inside. {{storylink|Panini Armada issue 3|Deep Trouble!}} When the Autobots decided to keep the Mini-Cons safe by sending them back to Cybertron, Hot Shot stood watch, and soon reported that the Decepticons were going on the offensive again. In the ensuing battle, the Mini-Cons decided to stay on Earth, and Jolt power-linked with Hot Shot and helped him drive the Decepticons away. {{storylink|Panini Armada issue 4|No Way Back!}}

Alongside Optimus Prime and Red Alert, Hot Shot later saved the [[Air Defense Mini-Con Team (Armada)|Air Defense Team]] from getting captured by [[Starscream (Armada)|Starscream]]. {{storylink|Panini Armada issue 5|Devices and Desires!}} After the Air Defense Team revealed that the [[Land Military Mini-Con Team|Land Military Team]] had been captured by humans, Hot Shot piloted an Autobot shuttle to the [[Nevada]] desert and helped liberate them. {{storylink|Panini Armada issue 7|Sale of the Century!}} Next, the Autobots learned that the Decepticons were planning to nuke them from the [[Moon (moon)|Moon]], and their [[space bridge]] was too busted up for them to do anything about it. Hot Shot was tasked with repairing the device and use it to warp the incoming warheads elsewhere, and he succeeded at the last second. {{storylink|Panini Armada issue 8|Earthshaker!}}

===Lonesome Diesel===
Hot Shot was part of the Autobot forces during a battle in [[Yellowstone National Park]], and seconded Optimus's warning that the area was too geologically unstable to battle in. Megatron ignored their advice. {{storylink|Lonesome Diesel}}

===3H comics===
Hot Shot was one of several Transformers from across the [[multiverse]] suggested by [[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]] for [[Optimus Primal]] to recruit into his [[Child of Primus|Children of Primus]]. Optimus Primal decided to pluck [[Rhinox (BW)|Rhinox]] and [[Depth Charge (BW)|Depth Charge]] back from death instead. {{storylink|Homecoming (issue)|Homecoming}}

===Bendon ''Armada'' books===

Hot Shot and Optimus Prime were forced to defend the Autobot base from a surprise attack. When the attack accidentally triggered a landslide, Hot Shot rushed in to save the kids. {{storylink|Cave Catastrophe}}

Hot Shot would once again rush in to save the kids after they left themselves out in the open, ramming Demolishor hard enough to flip him over. {{storylink|Race to Disaster}}

==Games==
===The Energon Within===
As Optimus and Hot Shot prepare to escort a truckload of energon away from a mine, the Decepticons launch a full scale assault. Their objective is to steal 100 energon cubes. Though they eventually succeed, the cost is high and the mine remains in Autobot hands.{{storylink|Transformers Armada: The Energon Within}}

As Optimus and Hot Shot prepare to escort a truckload of energon away from a mine, the Decepticons launch a full scale assault. Their objective is to steal 100 energon cubes. Before they can succeed, Hot Shot inadvertently blows up the mine. {{storylink|Transformers Armada: The Energon Within}}

===''Transformers''===
:''Voice actor:'' [[Dublin James]] (English)
[[Image:BalanceOfPower-Autobots.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Hot Shot has particular skills?]]
Shortly after Hot Shot was brought online, he and Red Alert were sent deep into Decepticon territory to uncover an [[Data-Con|ancient relic]] that would tell them how to find the long-lost race of [[Mini-Con|Mini-Cons]]. The two were discovered by passing [[Dropship|Dropships]] and the [[Spider Tank|Spider Tanks]] they carried, and so they quickly dodged for cover. But there was nowhere to run; the Decepticons had created a massive army of [[Decepticlone|Decepticlones]]. After sending out an auto-distress signal, Optimus Prime arrived to bolster their firepower. This caught the attention of Megatron, and the two leaders grappled while Hot Shot and Red Alert continued to evade the Decepticlones. Meanwhile, Starscream had managed to find the relic, and a portal was opened in front of them. Hot Shot, Red Alert, and Optimus Prime followed the Decepticons through the portal to [[Earth]]. The search for the Mini-Cons began! {{storylink|The Balance of Power}}

[[Image:PS2game-HotShotDecepticlones.jpg|thumb|200px|He's the best there is at what he does! (We don't like to say what he does...)]]

Hot Shot found himself in the sweeping jungles that surrounded abandoned Aztec ruins. After failing to find Mini-Cons under a rock, he managed to pair up with the Mini-Con Jolt, and when he reached the top of the ruins, he faced Cyclonus. The following battles took him many places, such as a frozen wasteland, the interior of a battleship (which eventually revealed itself as the gigantic Tidal Wave), and ultimately Hot Shot battled Unicron himself.

Hot Shot, having collected all the Mini-Cons on Earth, was able to wield the legendary [[Matrix Cannon]], which he used to fire a deadly Shot into the core of the Planet Eater. {{storylink|Transformers (PS2)|Transformers}}

{{note|The events of the game listed above are exactly the same for when players choose to take Red Alert or Optimus Prime into battle instead of Hot Shot... except for the rock thing. That's all Hot Shot, baby.}}
{{--}}

==Toys==
{{main|Hot Shot (Armada)/toys }}

==Merchandise==
{{main|Hot Shot (Armada)/toys#Merchandise}}

==Notes==
[[Image:HotShotisBumblebee.jpg|right|thumb|300px|YELLOW KID APPEAL SINGULARITY]]
* In an early ''Armada'' series bible, Hot Shot was originally called "Bumblebee". His character description says that he is the youngest of the Autobots at "about 16 years of age". The Autobots' teen-aged human allies would have teased him for not being old enough to have a driver's license. It further notes that "Everything about him is fast- including his speech," which definitely wasn't taken to heart. The rest of his personality was as you would expect, being young and brash yet showing leadership potential, and his Mini-Con was still called Jolt.
* According to the [[Transformers (PS2)|''Armada'' Playstation 2 game]] instruction booklet, Hot Shot's ''Armada'' body has the following statistics:
:*Mass: 3,109 lbs
:*Robot height: 16' 5"
:*Robot top speed: 50 mph
:*Vehicle height: 5' 11"
:*Vehicle top speed: 186 mph
:*Vehicle power: 400 hp @ 8000 rpm

* For a while, ''Galaxy Force'' was treated by [[Takara]] as a separate universe from ''Micron Legend'' and ''Super Link'', which would have made Exillion (Hot Shot's Japanese name in ''Galaxy Force'') a different guy, even though the character's head design and [[control art]] labeled him "Hot Shot" in English. ''Galaxy Force''<nowiki>'s</nowiki> later reintegration into the [[Unicron Trilogy]] likely made this original distinction irrelevant.

* A character looking quite similar to Hot Shot showed up to die in "[[Drift issue 2|Drift #2]]" because someone convinced artist [[Alex Milne]] to draw him as a casualty. This in order to spite longtime fan [[David Willis]], who wuvs Hot Shot. Milne drew him into the story based on his dislike of ''Armada'' and reasoning that the character would not be one used again in the continuity.<ref>[http://forum.idwpublishing.com/viewtopic.php?p=204657#204657 markerguru's post in "Transformers Drift #1: Reactions, Reviews, Spoilers" from the IDW Publishing Forums]</ref> Because it is a Generation 1-based story, however, the incident is documented on [[Hot Rod (Henkei!)|"Generation 1" character Hot Rod]]'s page, rather than here.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Hot Rod''' (ホットロッド ''Hotto Roddo''), '''Hot Shot''' (''Super Link'', ホットショット ''Hotto Shotto''), '''Exillion''' (''Galaxy Force'', エクシリオン ''Ekushirion''), '''Exigeyser''' (Vanguard Team, エクシゲイザー ''Ekushigeizā'')
*''Hungarian:'' '''Nagymenő''', '''Tűzgolyó''' (''Energon'', ''Cybertron'', "Fireball"), '''Nagyágyú''' ("[[Optimus Prime vs Megatron: The Ultimate Battle]]")
*''Polish:'' '''Piorunus''' (''Armada'', "Thunderboltus")
*''Romanian:'' '''Șmecherul'''
*''Ukranian:'' '''Garyachkun''' (''Гарячкун'', Hot Head)

==External links==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Armada Autobots]]
[[Category:Autobot leaders]]
[[Category:Cybertron Autobots]]
[[Category:Energon Autobots]]
[[Category:Letters page answerers]]
[[Category:Universe Autobots]]
[[Category:Velocitron]]

Hot Shot (Armada)

2011-10-06T16:20:24Z

93.75.235.114: /* Foreign names */

{{factions|autobot|{{factions/icons|custom=Energon Powerlinx Silver symbol.png|cLink=Powerlinx}}|velocitron}}
{{disambig3|Hot Shot}}{{suite}}
:''Hot Shot is an [[Autobot]] from the [[Unicron Trilogy]] [[continuity family]].''

[[Image:Hotshotut.jpg|thumb|350px|I'm Optimus Prime's choice for successor. Scary what goes through the big guy's head, huh?]]
'''Hot Shot''' is the quintessential young hero. He's been around long enough to earn a name for himself and a place in [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime's]] entourage, but he's still too young to know when he's in over his head. In other words, he's blunt, overconfident, naïve, and more than just a little annoying, yet brave, honorable, loyal to his friends, and willing to risk his life to stop the [[Decepticon]]s and help the Autobots. With time and experience, Prime believes, he could make an excellent leader, and Prime has appointed him to his command structure accordingly. Hot Shot's got the goods, but he just needs to pay attention for more than five seconds. Until that day, Hot Shot's likely response to most anything is, "Yeah yeah, like, whatever."

Hot Shot's [[Mini-Con]] partner is [[Jolt (Armada)|Jolt]], though he has been known to moonlight with [[Mirage (Armada)|Mirage]]. Hot Shot also proclaims a love for a strange substance called [[JaAm]], but none of his Autobot peers can figure out what it is.

==Fiction==
===Toy pack-in mini-comics===
[[Image:Hotshotarmadaminicomic.jpg|thumb|left|200px|How dumb can he be? He's fluent in three languages!]]
[[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]] chose Hot Shot to stop a Decepticon plot to drain power from the city, but Hot Shot balked when Prime picked [[Jolt (Armada)|Jolt]] to be his partner. After speeding off to complete the mission alone, Hot Shot found himself overwhelmed by [[Cyclonus (Armada)|Cyclonus]] and his partner [[Crumplezone (Armada)|Crumplezone]]. Thankfully, Jolt arrived and gave Hot Shot a hand, and Cyclonus and Crumplezone were defeated. Hot Shot had learned a valuable lesson about teamwork. {{storylink|Armada Volume 1}}

Optimus Prime later contacted Hot Shot from [[Autobot Headquarters (Armada)|Autobot Headquarters]]. {{storylink|Armada Volume 3}}

On [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], Hot Shot, [[Red Alert (Armada)|Red Alert]], [[Smokescreen (Armada)|Smokescreen]] were present for [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]]'s defeat of [[Megatron (Armada)|Galvatron]]. They didn't, however, see his smile upon his capture. {{storylink|Armada Volume 4}}

[[Image:HotShotEnergonminicomic.jpg|thumb|200px|He's so polite.]]
After Hot Shot and [[Strongarm (Energon)|Strongarm]] found a pool of [[Energon (fuel)|Energon]], they were attacked by [[Battle Ravage]]s. When the situation was bleakened further by the arrival of [[Scorponok (Energon)|Scorponok]], Strongarm fashioned an [[Energon weapon]] for Hot Shot, and the [[Terrorcon (Energon)|Terrorcons]] were driven away. With the Energon secured, Hot Shot and Strongarm were relieved that they had faced a formidable foe and come out on top. {{storylink|Energon Volume 1}}

Some time after, Hot Shot was seen alongside [[Skyblast (Energon)|Skyblast]] and Optimus Prime battling Scorponok and his Terrorcons. {{storylink|Energon Volume 2}}

Optimus Prime and Hot Shot (powerlinked with Inferno) found themselves alone and outmatched in a battle with Megatron, [[Shockblast]], [[Cyclonus (Armada)|Snow Cat]], [[Demolishor (Armada)|Demolishor]] and [[Tidal Wave (Armada)|Mirage]]. As the Decepticons closed in on Optimus, he warned Powerlinx Hot Shot to stay away, for he was too damaged. But at the last minute, [[Wing Saber (Energon)|Wing Saber]] arrived, combined with Prime, and drove the Decepticons away! {{storylink|Energon Volume 4}}
{{-}}

===Dreamwave comics continuity===
====Dreamwave ''Armada'' comic====
[[Image:Hotshotraizeyes.jpg|thumb|left|Hot Shot watches in horror as [[Demolishor (Armada)|Demolishor]] buys the last can of [[jaAm]].]]
One million years ago, Hot Shot was a member of the Autobots, the guardians of [[Cyber City]]. Soon, news of a warlike faction called [[Decepticon]]s, led by the power-hungry [[Megatron (Armada)|Megatron]], reached Cyber City via a dying [[Mini-Con]] Hot Shot found. The Mini-Con handed him a video disc, and with his dying breath, demanded Hot Shot take it to Optimus Prime. Optimus Prime played the disc, a distress signal from [[Leader-1 (Armada)|Leader-1]], head of [[Mini-Con Sector|Mini-Con village D10]], who begged the Autobots for help.

The Decepticons themselves soon arrived in Cyber City, armed with Mini-Cons they had captured and reconfigured to bestow incredible power when [[Powerlinx]]ed. Outclassed and near total defeat, Optimus Prime called his troops into retreat, and after the majority of Mini-Cons escaped [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] to parts unknown, the Autobots lost much of the planet to the Mini-Con-powered Decepticons.

[[Image:Hotshotfreecomicbookday.jpg|thumb|300px|Hot Shot, stop stealing Jolt's gun!]]
In the present day, both the Autobots and Decepticons received a signal of the Mini-Cons' activation on the planet [[Earth]]. Hot Shot and his colleagues [[Scavenger (Armada)|Scavenger]], [[Red Alert (Armada)|Red Alert]], and [[Smokescreen (Armada)|Smokescreen]] were led by Optimus Prime to the planet, where they met the Decepticons in battle. But this time, with the help of the estranged Mini-Cons, the Autobots regained the edge they'd lost against the Decepticons one million years prior. An uneasy alliance was formed, and Hot Shot was partnered with the Mini-Con [[Jolt (Armada)|Jolt]]. {{storylink|Armada (Dreamwave comic)#Volume 1: First Contact|First Contact}}

When their human friends [[Rad White|Rad]], [[Carlos Lopez|Carlos]], and [[Alexis Thi Dang|Alexis]] befriended a Mini-Con named [[Swindle (Armada)|Swindle]], they soon attracted the attention of the Decepticons, and Hot Rod and the other Autobots weren't far behind. With the arrival of Megatron, however, the Autobots were quickly defeated and restrained, and the children were shocked to learn that Swindle had been working with the Decepticons all this time! Swindle found himself conflicted, as he genuinely liked the human children, and so he eventually had a small change of heart. Grabbing Hot Shot's gun, he was able to disable the Autobots' restraints, and the Decepticons retreated... though with Swindle. {{storylink|Armada Free Comic Book Day}}

[[Image:Hotshotdwissue6.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Wait, Jolt attaches ''where?'']]
After their initial battles on Earth, Megatron was quick to capture the [[Air Defense Mini-Con Team (Armada)|Air Defense Mini-Con Team]] and forge them into the [[Star Saber (Armada)|Star Saber]]. Optimus Prime led Hot Shot and Red Alert against the Decepticons again, despite being at a strategic disadvantage while the Mini-Cons were missing, a point Hot Shot belabored. Thankfully, the Autobot-allied Mini-Cons arrived just in time to Powerlinx with Hot Shot and the other Autobots, fend off Megatron, and rescue the Air Defense Mini-Cons from the Decepticon leader's clutches.

[[Image:Hotshotguido.jpg|thumb|"Well, let's go!"]]
Soon, a Mini-Con beacon tower was erected in [[Tranquility, Kansas|Tranquility]], [[Kansas]] drawing all Earth-bound Mini-Cons to it. Hot Shot and the rest of the Autobots again met the Decepticons in battle at the location when the tower's effect was discovered. However, they were too busy fighting to notice the beacon tower blasting off toward the Earth's [[Moon (moon)|moon]]. Hot Shot and Red Alert secreted Optimus Prime into the Decepticon base for the use of their space bridge, so that the Autobot leader could ask for reinforcements from [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. {{storylink|Armada (Dreamwave comic)#Volume 2: Fortress|Fortress}}

After the Mini-Cons were evacuated from the Moon, five did not return home safely and sent a distress signal from northern Alaska. When the [[Adventure Mini-Con Team]] failed to retrieve them, Hot Shot and the other Autobots arrived in full force, though they were kept in check by Cyclonus, who was suffering from a Mini-Con overdose. Though they were successful, Optimus Prime disappeared before their eyes, and when Hot Shot returned to Autobase, he found [[Optimus Prime (Worlds Collide)|another Optimus Prime]], dying, sent from a different timeline to warn of [[Unicron]]'s coming. Learning of the "real" Optimus Prime's disappearance, Megatron and his Decepticons stormed Autobase, nearly killing Smokescreen and heavily injuring Hot Shot, Red Alert, and Scavenger.

Optimus Prime was returned to them and insisted on teaming up with the Decepticons to battle the arriving Unicron. Hot Shot excused himself from this alliance, as Smokescreen's critical condition due to the Decepticons' recent attack still weighed heavily in his mind. So when Megatron stole away during the battle with Unicron to strike a deal with the Dark God, Hot Shot, Scavenger, and Red Alert ambushed him, leaving him to die as Unicron was seemingly destroyed by the [[Mini-Con Matrix]]. {{storylink|Armada (Dreamwave comic)#Volume 3: Worlds Collide|Worlds Collide}}

{{-}}
====''Energon'' comic====
[[Image:Hotshotironhidedw.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Sorry, Hot Shot, you've been replaced.]]
Ten years later, at the beginning of the Energon Era, Hot Shot accompanied Optimus Prime, who was skeptical and restless about the new peacetime, on his visit with the High Council in Cyber City. Prime's demands for vigilance were denied, so Hot Shot later followed him to a special [[uplink platform]] that [[Over-Run (Armada)|Over-Run]] had directed them to. This trip was a first outing for the rookie Autobot [[Ironhide (Energon)|Ironhide]], who fawned over Hot Shot. Hot Shot met this with difficulty. Learning of the continued existence of [[Unicron]], {{storylink|This Evil Reborn}} Prime once again returned to the High Council, again accompanied by Hot Shot. But this time, Cyber City was attacked by [[Cheetor (Armada)|Cheetor]], [[Rhinox (Armada)|Rhinox]], [[Airazor (Armada)|Airazor]], and [[Terrorsaur (Armada)|Terrorsaur]], who were presumed dead during [[The Unicron Battles]], but in fact were transformed into [[Unicron's Four Horsemen]]. {{storylink|What Lies Beneath}} The Four Horsemen overwhelmed Hot Shot and the other Autobots, and they were saved from destruction only by the timely arrival of the [[Omnicon]]s. Hot Shot, Optimus Prime, and the others were granted the [[Spark of Combination]] by [[Alpha Trion (Energon)|Sig-Omega]], and thanks partly to the combined powerlinked form of Hot Shot and [[Inferno (Energon)|Inferno]], the Horsemen were deterred. {{storylink|What Lies Beneath, Part Two}}

Hot Shot, along with Inferno, Ironhide, and [[Jetfire (Armada)|Jetfire]], followed Prime to Earth after the Autobots received a distress signal. They regrettably arrived four hours later than the signal was sent, and Hot Shot boggled at how much damage could have been done in that time. Indeed, [[Scorponok (Energon)|Scorponok]] and his [[Terrorcon (Energon)|Terrorcons]] had caused massive devastation while chasing after a young boy named [[Kicker Jones|Kicker]] who could detect [[Energon (fuel)|Energon]]. The Terrorcons outclassed the Autobots upon arrival, however, and left only when their Energon-mining gear was destroyed...but not without taking Kicker. {{storylink|What Lies Beneath, Part Three}} After the Autobots reunited with [[Carlos Lopez|Carlos]], [[Rad White|Rad]], and [[Alexis Thi Dang|Alexis]], Hot Shot and the Omnicon [[Strongarm (Energon)|Strongarm]] were able to pursue the Terrorcons and deliver a special suit to Kicker that his father, [[Brian Jones (Energon)|Dr. Brian Jones]], had made for him. With Kicker's help, the Terrorcons were defeated and returned to Unicron. {{storylink|What Lies Beneath, Part Four}}

Hot Shot, along with Optimus Prime and Inferno, attended a public meeting with the [[United Nations]] in [[New York City]] after the ratification of the [[Cybercord Treaty]]. {{storylink|Multiplicity}}

[[Image:Hotshotomni-potent.jpg|thumb|300px|Wait, ''Hot Shot'' has wisdom?]]
After the Terrorcons attacked an [[energon tower]] in [[Chicago]], Hot Shot was put in charge of the unruly Omnicons and sent to [[Base Site One]] in [[Yukon Territory]]. Immediately upon arrival, Strongarm crashed into the base site's intrathermal uplink assembly and subsurface transference grid, frustrating Ironhide. This was the final straw for Hot Shot. After telling them to get lost, he was darkly amused that this was the first order he'd given that they actually followed to the letter. An hour later, Hot Shot had a change of heart, and he and Kicker left to track them down. Their search abruptly ended when [[Cyclonus (Armada)|Snow Cat]] was dropped in their laps, defeated during the Omnicons' solo adventure. Eight days later, Hot Shot had returned to Optimus, who tasked him with protecting the Autobots' growing Energon-gathering installations on Earth. However, Prime soon disappeared into a portal, his whereabouts completely unknown. {{storylink|Omni-Potent}}

When Terrorcons orchestrated an attack on four major Earth cities, Hot Shot (leading a team consisting of [[Thrust (Armada)|Thrust]], [[Rodimus (Energon)|Rodimus]], [[Red Alert (Armada)|Red Alert]], [[Beachcomber (Energon)|Beachcomber]], and [[Smokescreen (Armada)|Hoist]]) was sent to repel [[Divebomb (Energon)|Divebomb]] drones in [[Toronto]]. Badly outnumbered and confined, Rodimus suggested the group split up. Hot Shot agreed, sending him and Red Alert elsewhere. Hot Shot contacted Jetfire in [[Los Angeles]], telling him it was only a matter of time before they were overwhelmed and the battle was lost, but he interrupted his transmission to witness a spectacle above. {{storylink|Multiplicity, Pt. 3}} [[Megatron (Armada)|Megatron]] had arrived in a new body, and he was dramatically tearing through the Divebomb drones. After Megatron cleared away enough of the Terrorcons in Toronto to give Hot Shot's team a fighting chance, he moved on to the concurrent battle in [[Tokyo]]. {{storylink|Multiplicity, Pt. 4}}

===Cartoon continuity===
====''Armada'' cartoon====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Brent Miller]] (English), [[Kōsuke Okano]] (Japanese), [[Alexandre Moreno]] (Portuguese), [[Martin Halm]] (German), [[Ola Norman]] (Swedish)

[[Image:Past Part 1 Hot Shot flashback.jpg|thumb|left|200px|I'll be back to save you, Wheeljack, right after 4:20.]]
An indeterminate number of years ago on Cybertron, Hot Shot was appointed the supervisor of a young Autobot named [[Wheeljack (Armada)|Wheeljack]]. Wheeljack strongly looked up to Hot Shot as a potential mentor and as a friend, but after a blazing battle, Wheeljack was incapacitated under some debris. Hot Shot left him behind as the flames closed in, promising to get help. However, when Hot Shot reached the other Autobots, his [[Arrogant Autobot officer|commander]] would not let him endanger his own life by returning to help his friend. Hot Shot ignored this order, running back into the battle to find Wheeljack, but he was overwhelmed by the heat and passed out. Instead, Wheeljack was rescued by [[Megatron (Armada)|Megatron]]. Thinking he had been abandoned by Hot Shot, Wheeljack swore vengeance against him and the Autobots. {{storylink|Past}} {{storylink|Past II}}

[[Image:Metamorphosis Hot Shot Red Alert arrive.jpg|thumb|200px|Wave 1 all accounted for, sir!]]
When [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]] received a distress signal from the long-lost [[Mini-Con]]s, Hot Shot was one of two soldiers he brought with him to Earth to investigate. When they arrived, Hot Shot was quick to block [[Starscream (Armada)|Starscream]] from attacking some human children who had stumbled upon the [[Street Action Mini-Con Team (Armada)|Street Action Mini-Con Team]], and before long, the Decepticons warped away. Hot Shot suggested that the Decepticons' base must be within sight if they were able to use short-warp teleportation; [[Red Alert (Armada)|Red Alert]] correctly assumed this base was on Earth's [[Moon (moon)|moon]]. Hot Shot and the other two Autobots returned when the humans and the Mini-Cons once again found themselves under attack from the Decepticons. {{storylink|Metamorphosis}} Hot Shot and Red Alert used their bodies to shield the human kids from the Decepticons' firepower. During the battle, Hot Shot and Red Alert recovered two [[Mini-Con storage panel]]s, and [[Jolt (Armada)|Jolt]] was one of two Mini-Cons who materialized when the panels were activated. Hot Shot partnered with this Mini-Con, and together with Red Alert and Mini-Con [[Longarm (Armada)|Longarm]], their combined firepower was able to drive the Decepticons away. The Autobots then returned to their Earth base with the human children and the Mini-Cons, and the nature of their war over the Mini-Cons was explained. Hot Shot and the other Autobots also learned the Earth custom of fist-bumping to signify friendship. {{storylink|Base}}

[[Image:Soldier Hot Shot axelzooka.jpg|thumb|left|200px|This is exactly why his shoulders hurt.]]
Immediately thereafter, the Autobots' computer systems warned them of a detected Mini-Con, and so Hot Shot and the others made plans to travel to [[Grand Canyon|Big Canyon]] to find it. In their rush, [[Rad White]] was left behind, but [[Alexis Thi Dang|Alexis]] and Hot Shot returned soon enough to pick him up. Alexis apologized, for Hot Shot's sleek power excited her so much that she'd forgotten about Rad. As they left for the Big Canyon once again, Hot Shot's driving was extremely rough, yet despite the children's complaints, he increased his speed—so much so that upon arrival, Hot Shot nearly drove into the canyon itself. After Hot Shot followed [[Laserbeak (Armada)|Laserbeak]] into the canyon, [[Cyclonus (Armada)|Cyclonus]] warped into the area and attacked him. Ultimately, the Autobots won, and everyone returned to base after having retrieved the Mini-Con [[Sparkplug (Armada)|Sparkplug]]. {{storylink|Comrade}}

The hotheaded Hot Shot often found himself at odds with Red Alert, including one incident when he was playing tag with the three children instead of doing work. He resented being chastised by the Autobot medic, who didn't even have a personality, as far as he was concerned. Soon after this, the Autobots, Mini-Cons, and the human children ventured to [[Antarctica]] to uncover another Mini-Con, and Hot Shot was paired with [[Carlos Lopez]]. When the two came across the Decepticons, Hot Shot continued to battle them despite having Carlos inside him. Finally, he ejected Carlos over a gorge, leaving Jolt to catch him. Hot Shot soon found himself outnumbered, and it took Red Alert's skills to rescue him from the grip of the Decepticons. Hot Shot learned some respect for Red Alert that day, even if he claimed to save Hot Shot not out of friendship, but merely because it was his job. {{storylink|Soldier (episode)|Soldier}}

[[Image:Hotshotarmada.jpg|thumb|200px|He grins because he's too stupid to be sad.]]
Hot Shot also accompanied the others on a Mini-Con rescue mission in a jungle, where they learned to respect the Earth's environment. {{storylink|Jungle}} Later, as the children wondered why the Mini-Con panel they'd uncovered in Antarctica hadn't opened yet, Hot Shot asked them to pass him a spanner too heavy for them to lift because he thought it would be funny. A bored Carlos and Rad then ran off with some Mini-Cons to a local carnival, where they got into trouble. Alexis, Hot Shot, and [[Sureshock (Armada)|Sureshock]] followed Laserbeak to the carnival, and after some mischief, Hot Shot was able to avert disaster. {{storylink|Carnival}} When the Autobots followed the Decepticons into the desert in pursuit of more Mini-Cons, Hot Shot was frustrated with his tires' incompatibility with the terrain. Unfortunately, he was unable to prevent [[Demolishor (Armada)|Demolishor]] from acquiring the Mini-Con [[Bonecrusher (Armada)|Bonecrusher]] from within an ancient desert temple. {{storylink|Palace}}

[[Image:Underground merchandising.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Hey, [[Ruined FOREVER|they're right]]! Hot Shot's car mode DOES look like a [[Playskool]] toy!]]
When the Decepticons held the children hostage in a ghost town, Hot Shot and the other Autobots grappled with them, reluctant to hand over their Mini-Cons to get the children returned unharmed. Eventually, after some close calls, Hot Shot was able to kick Rad out of Megatron's hand, the tide was turned, and things were restored to the status quo. {{storylink|Confrontation (episode)|Confrontation}} While working in the underground ruins of half of the crashed Mini-Con ship, Hot Shot was called by Optimus to join them in another Mini-Con search. The Mini-Con was deep within the subway system of a local city, and the Autobots' presence in vehicle mode caused some stir. Here they met up with another Autobot, [[Smokescreen (Armada)|Smokescreen]], though they lost the Mini-Con to the Decepticons. {{storylink|Underground}} Smokescreen joined Hot Shot and the others when they journeyed underwater to the lost city of [[Atlantis]], where, despite their efforts, they lost yet another Mini-Con to the Decepticons. Worse still, this one could combine with two others to form the mighty [[Star Saber (Armada)|Star Saber sword]]. {{storylink|Ruin}} As compensation, Hot Shot and the Autobots found another of the three Star Saber Mini-Cons within a volcano. {{storylink|Prehistory}}

Megatron and his Decepticons soon attacked the Autobot base, hoping to steal the two Mini-Cons they needed to complete the Star Saber sword. While Optimus Prime hid the Mini-Con panels, Hot Shot confronted Megatron directly. Hot Shot was defeated by Megatron's prehensile antlers, which tossed him to the ground like a doll. During another skirmish with Megatron, the Mini-Con panels activated, and Megatron was able to grasp the powerful Star Saber sword! His victory was short-lived, as Optimus was able to knock it out of his hands and into Hot Shot's. With the Star Saber sword, Hot Shot was able to ward off the Decepticons and force them to retreat. {{storylink|Swoop (episode)|Swoop}}

[[Image:Hotshotstarsaber.jpg|thumb|200px|He loves his Star Saber sword. It's so bad.]]
Optimus assigned the three Star Saber Mini-Cons to Hot Shot. The Autobot was young, inexperienced, and hotheaded, so the great advantage the Star Saber granted him went straight to his ego. With the sword, he was nearly unbeatable on the battlefield, which enraged the Decepticons. Then an enigmatic Decepticon named [[Scavenger (Armada)|Scavenger]] appeared at a battle, mocking Hot Shot's skill. Hot Shot was angered when Scavenger told him that he was nothing without the sword, so he rushed the Decepticon, but was knocked aside. Hot Shot learned the hard way that power without skill is useless against an experienced opponent. {{storylink|Overmatch}} Scavenger confronted Hot Shot again on an unfinished stretch of a highway overpass, while a mysterious motorcycle observed. After exchanging a few blows, Scavenger left Hot Shot again, promising to prove his incompetence another day. The motorcycle introduced himself as the Autobot [[Sideways (RID)|Sideways]], and Red Alert and Hot Shot wondered if they could truly trust this stranger. {{storylink|Gale}}

[[Image:Overmatch Scavenger-HotShotbeatdown.jpg|thumb|left|300px|And later, he gets [[:Image:Credulous Hot Shot beatdown.jpg|curb-stomped]].]]
During another battle with the Decepticons for a Mini-Con, Sideways and Hot Shot were accidentally warped away with Megatron to their base on Earth's Moon. With Sideways's guidance, Hot Shot was able to fight his way through an army of holographic Autobots, only to have Megatron capture Sideways and demand the Star Saber sword in return. Hot Shot reluctantly relinquished it, but once Megatron released Sideways, Hot Shot called for its Mini-Con components to return to him. At this moment, Sideways betrayed Hot Shot, knocking the Star Saber sword away from him and towards Starscream. Helpless without his powerful weapon, Hot Shot was brutally beaten by the humiliated Decepticons and dropped back at the Autobots' base. {{storylink|Credulous}}

[[Image:Conspiracy faces.jpg|thumb|150px|Like all future Autobot leaders, Hot Shot is amused easily.]]
Hot Shot was understandably in a dour mood following this fall from grace, so the kids made faces at him to cheer him up. Because this was Hot Shot, it worked. During the next battle, Hot Shot targeted the traitor, Sideways, and was once again bested by Scavenger. Hot Shot was surprised to discover later that Scavenger was actually an Autobot working undercover as a Decepticon. {{storylink|Conspiracy}} With Scavenger now with the Autobots again, he began personally training Hot Shot. {{storylink|Trust (Armada)|Trust}} Hot Shot and the others were later caught by local television news journalists while they were rescuing some young children who were lost near a dam, but footage of them was destroyed. {{storylink|Vacation}} When a new recruit, [[Blurr (Armada)|Blurr]], joined the team, Hot Shot at first had trouble getting along with him. However, after working together to retrieve a Mini-Con, they were able to make peace. {{storylink|Reinforcement}}

With both the [[Skyboom (Armada)|Skyboom]] shield and the Star Saber sword in his possession, Megatron issued a challenge to Optimus Prime and the other Autobots. When the two factions met on a stretch of rocky desert, Hot Shot was disappointed to discover that none of his firepower could penetrate Megatron's shield. His weapons useless against the Decepticon leader, Hot Shot joined Blurr in running interference during the battle between Megatron and Optimus. The tide was turned when the Skyboom shield fell into Autobot hands. {{storylink|Decisive Battle}} For a while, Hot Shot and the other Autobots wouldn't allow their human friends to enter the base. {{storylink|Vow}} While Hot Shot and the others were away, the kids traveled into a digital realm and met with an [[Unicron|evil force]]. {{storylink|Chase (episode)|Chase}} Optimus Prime led Hot Shot and the others into battle in a gully, but it was actually a trap conceived by the Decepticons' new tactician, [[Thrust (Armada)|Thrust]]. To the Decepticons' surprise, the Autobots had an incoming addition of their own, and Prime's second-in-command, [[Jetfire (Armada)|Jetfire]], arrived and saved the Autobots. {{storylink|Tactician}} However, Optimus Prime was badly damaged in the fight, so Jetfire took over as leader. Hot Shot didn't like this, as he thought Jetfire was nothing more than a braggart. Jetfire led Hot Shot and the Autobots to another battle for a Mini-Con on a distant island, and Optimus Prime arrived, repaired, just in time to combine with Jetfire and save the day. {{storylink|Linkup}}

[[Image:Desperate Tidal Wave blocked.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Yes, punch my tiny shield!]]
After Hot Shot and the other Autobots sparred with one another at their base, their morale boosted by Jetfire's arrival, Hot Shot wondered openly about the nature of Sideways, and whether he was really in either faction at all. They left for yet another battle, but this time, the Decepticons had a secret weapon: The gigantic warrior known as [[Tidal Wave (Armada)|Tidal Wave]] had arrived. {{storylink|Detection}} The Autobots barely held up against Tidal Wave. {{storylink|Awakening}} Hot Shot attempted to block Tidal Wave's mighty blows with the Skyboom shield, and with help, the Autobots were finally able to topple the titan. The battle ended with the awakening of the three Mini-Cons which formed the [[Requiem Blaster]]. {{storylink|Desperate}}

When the kids ran off with the Mini-Cons, fearful that they would be used as objects by either faction, Hot Shot and the others had to hunt them down. To reassure the kids, Hot Shot decided that the Autobots would only work with the Mini-Cons as a team! {{storylink|Runaway}}

[[Image:Past Part 2 Wheeljack Hot Shot fight.jpg|thumb|300px|"I won't fight you, I won't! Well, maybe just a little."]]
Wheeljack returned to Hot Shot's life, seeking revenge for abandoning him on the battlefield all those years ago. Unfortunately, Hot Shot was training a new Autobot recruit, [[Side Swipe (Armada)|Side Swipe]], when Wheeljack returned, and the young Autobot found himself caught up in Wheeljack's vendetta as well. {{storylink|Past}} When Wheeljack explained to Hot Shot that it was Megatron who'd rescued him and saved his life, Hot Shot couldn't believe it. Hot Shot refused to fight his former friend, yet Wheeljack Shot him, leaving him on the road. Side Swipe dragged Hot Shot's body back to base, where he was placed in intensive care, but Hot Shot's memories still haunted him. Events seemed to repeat themselves when Wheeljack confronted Hot Shot once again within an abandoned human facility. When Side Swipe showed up to help Hot Shot, the area was caught in flames, and Hot Shot was forced once again to save the young Autobot under his care. Wheeljack had chained up Side Swipe within the facility, and he told his captive not to expect rescue from Hot Shot. Regardless, Hot Shot threw himself through the fire and saved Side Swipe, despite the latter's pleas to keep away lest the place blow up with both of them inside. Wheeljack was deterred, but promised he'd be around later to revisit his ill will. {{storylink|Past II}}

[[Image:Rescue Megatron vs Hot Shot.jpg|thumb|left|250px|[[Gunbarrel (Armada)|Gunbarrel]] wants to know why mommy and daddy are fighting!]]

When the Autobots were informed by a mysterious source to meet the Decepticons in battle within a forest, Hot Shot wondered why they didn't bring the Requiem Blaster with them. He was told to shut up, and soon the Decepticons arrived to fight them, as promised. Megatron noticed the absence of the Requiem Blaster and realized it was back at the Autobots' base, where Smokescreen was guarding it, alone. Hot Shot and the Autobots returned to their base too late to assist Smokescreen, who nearly died valiantly trying to protect the Mini-Cons. Despite his sacrifice, Megatron took the Requiem Blaster and retreated. {{storylink|Sacrifice}} Hot Shot was among the Autobots who watched Red Alert begin to repair Smokescreen. Hot Shot then took Side Swipe with him to investigate the appearance of Starscream on Earth, who had left the Decepticons with the Star Saber sword after an argument with Megatron. After a fight with Tidal Wave, Starscream returned with the Autobots to their base, despite Hot Shot's objections. He didn't trust Starscream and believed this was a trick, citing the treachery of Sideways. And worse, Starscream was partly to blame for Smokescreen's condition! Outside, Hot Shot picked a fight with Starscream as their Mini-Cons watched. Their battle, which lasted until dusk, was interrupted by a strange Transformer, whom Hot Shot yelled at for interrupting the avenging of his friend. The fight was stopped when Hot Shot realized this Transformer was Smokescreen, rebuilt in a new body. {{storylink|Regeneration}}

Using coordinates given by Starscream, the Autobots were able to warp themselves directly into the Decepticons' base. Hot Shot confronted Wheeljack again, telling the "creep" to get out of his way. With Starscream's help, the Autobots were able to locate where the Decepticons were keeping their captured Mini-Cons, and Hot Shot fought Megatron, giving the Mini-Cons a chance to escape. Starscream interfered, saving Hot Shot's life, and after the two teamed up against the Decepticon leader, they returned to the Autobot base with the rescued Mini-Cons. {{storylink|Rescue}} Hot Shot stayed home while Jetfire and Starscream journeyed to [[Mars (planet)|Mars]] to retrieve another Mini-Con. {{storylink|Mars (episode)|Mars}} Hot Shot was frustrated with Starscream's apathy, and his original suspicions were confirmed when Starscream had a change of heart in the midst of a battle, bringing the Skyboom shield and the Star Saber sword to Megatron, giving him control of all three weapons. {{storylink|Crack}}

[[Image:Crisis Hot Shot Matrix.jpg|thumb|300px|Awww, ''hell'' naw.]]
When Megatron harnessed the power of the three weapons to power the [[Hydra Cannon]], a starship powerful enough to destroy Earth in one blast, Hot Shot and the others worked to build a starship of their own. {{storylink|Threaten}} Hot Shot blamed everything on Starscream's betrayal and angrily accused Optimus Prime for letting Starscream join their team and beginning this series of events. This had some effect on the Autobot leader, as Optimus Prime later offered the [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix of the Commander]] to Hot Shot. Hot Shot refused, saying he couldn't take such an important thing from Optimus. Optimus Prime put the Matrix back in his chest, warped into space, and blocked the Hydra Cannon's Earth-shattering shot with his own body. The Autobot leader disintegrated before their eyes. {{storylink|Crisis}}

[[Image:Remorse democracy.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Scavenger, you're fired.]]
The death of Optimus hit Hot Shot hard. After starting fights with everyone, he left the Autobots and ran out on his own, only to face Scavenger. Scavenger assaulted Hot Shot, revealing that the former Decepticon had left their team for the Autobots because of him. As the two beat on each other, Side Swipe arrived with a small group of Mini-Cons, and they all pleaded for Hot Shot to stop fighting with everyone. Hot Shot realized he was being selfish, that he needed his teammates just as much as they needed him, and he promised to stop treating his friends as if they were enemies. The rest of the Autobots arrived, and they were pleased with Hot Shot's discovery. Jetfire nominated Hot Shot to lead the Autobots because it was what Optimus would have wanted. Scavenger went to hit Hot Shot one more time, but Hot Shot didn't move. Proving he was without fear, Hot Shot became leader of the Autobots. As a stipulation, Hot Shot stated that he would only be leader until they return to Cybertron, and that they should put the Matrix of the Commander someplace safe, as he didn't feel he should carry it. {{storylink|Remorse}}

Hot Shot oversaw the completion of their starship, the [[Axalon (Armada)|''Axalon'']], and asked the Mini-Cons if they wanted to come or not. They unanimously decided to accompany the Autobots to Cybertron. He initially forbade the kids from coming, but the Mini-Cons convinced him to change his mind. {{storylink|Depart}} As the ''Axalon'' left Earth, Hot Shot said some final words in memory of Optimus Prime. Their starship caught up with the Decepticons', and soon there was a huge battle between the two factions. Hot Shot battled Megatron in space, but it was a one-sided battle. Hot Shot placed himself between Megatron's Requiem Blaster and the ''Axalon'', hoping to spare his friends, but then a miracle occurred. The Mini-Con Sparkplug was able to resurrect Optimus Prime from within the Matrix, and the formerly-deceased Autobot Leader reappeared in a blinding flash of green light. Optimus turned the tide, {{storylink|Miracle}} and he reintroduced himself to a very grateful Hot Shot and the rest of the crew. But before anything else could happen, Hot Shot and Red Alert were pulled through a strange hole to an alien landscape. Here they met a [[Nemesis Prime (Armada)|strange dark version of Optimus Prime]] who battled them. It was discovered that Megatron, Starscream, and Demolishor were on this strange planet, too, and despite their combined numbers, the Prime doppelganger overwhelms them. Arriving Mini-Cons bathe the planet in a strange light, and when the larger Transformers woke up, they were completely repaired, yet in strange new colors. Ultimately, their battle caused the planet itself to disintegrate, and both factions were forced to retreat. {{storylink|Puppet}}

[[Image:Dash Hot Shot crouch.jpg|thumb|250px|Twenty episodes ago, he cooed like a baby if you made faces at him.]]
By the time the Autobots had repaired the ''Axalon'' and arrived over Cybertron, the Decepticons had managed to take over the planet. Hot Shot and Blurr fought through Decepticons on the planet's surface, while a strange phenomenon appeared in the sky. {{storylink|Uprising}} [[Unicron]], the Chaos Bringer, was looming over their planet, but [[Megatron (Armada)|Galvatron]] (previously Megatron) would not listen to Optimus Prime's pleas to unite their two factions against him. Hot Shot decided to take matters into his own hands and fought his way through the Decepticon base and countless Decepticon warriors to reach Galvatron and reason with him. If not for Wheeljack's intervention, he might not have survived. Wheeljack's hatred for Hot Shot seemed to have softened, and Hot Shot's former friend joined him in pleading to Galvatron to stop the war so that the two factions could unite against Unicron. Galvatron was unconvinced, but Thrust, a secret pawn of Unicron, panicked and ran away with the Requiem Blaster and the Skyboom shield. Hot Shot and Wheeljack took off after him. {{storylink|Dash (episode)|Dash}}

Hot Shot continued to hunt Thrust down, while the true nature of the Mini-Cons was revealed; they were created by Unicron long ago. {{storylink|Drift (episode)|Drift}} Hot Shot and Wheeljack aided Starscream against Sideways within the surprisingly organic-looking caverns of Cybertron. But when Unicron formed out of Cybertron's moon, the battle dissipated as each side readied for the final battle. {{storylink|Portent}} Despite Hot Shot's intentions to convince Galvatron himself, the Decepticon leader did not change his mind until Starscream sacrificed himself to Unicron. {{storylink|Cramp}} After a formal alliance between Autobots and Decepticons was formed, Hot Shot was part of a unified team sent to Unicron's surface. However, once the team arrived, the Decepticons abandoned Hot Shot and the other Autobots. Later, Demolishor made up for this by begrudgingly catching Side Swipe before could fall to his doom. In return, Hot Shot had found Demolishor's Mini-Con partner, [[Blackout (Armada)|Blackout]]. They agreed to work together from then on. {{storylink|Alliance}} Optimus Prime and Megatron traveled together to the core of Unicron, leaving both armies under the command of Hot Shot. {{storylink|Union}} No matter how much damage Hot Shot's teams inflicted on Unicron, Unicron could repair himself. Their massive opponent was fed by the negative energies of the battle. Ordering a cease fire, Unicron stood motionless, seemingly defeated. {{storylink|Origin}}

[[Image:Mortal Combat Hot Shot Jetfire.jpg|thumb|left|250px|When we come back, we'll be terrible cel-shaded CGI!]]
Hot Shot told both armies to begin rebuilding Cybertron while he went to Unicron to find Optimus, but Jetfire demanded he go instead. Inside, after a fight between Optimus Prime and Megatron, Megatron sacrificed himself to Unicron so that their negative energies would not revive him. But Optimus Prime felt he had failed as Autobot Leader, and with the end of the conflict between the two factions, he exiled himself to parts unknown. Hot Shot and [[Jetfire (Armada)|Jetfire]] were left in charge of the Transformers. {{storylink|Mortal Combat}}

{{-}}
====''Energon'' cartoon====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Brent Miller]] (English), [[Kōsuke Toriumi]] (Japanese)

[[Image:E1 titlecard.jpg|thumb|300px|Hot Shot always forgets he's not supposed to shoot at the humans.]]
10 years after the events of [[Armada (cartoon)|Armada]], Hot Shot was stationed on Earth as the commander of [[Ocean City]] while Optimus Prime trained new soldiers on Cybertron. He faced administrative challenges such as [[Demolishor (Armada)|surly former adversaries]] and teenaged angst from the resident teenaged angster, [[Kicker Jones]]. Hot Shot had proved himself up to the task of being "city commander," and was seen with fanboy-like adoration by younger Autobots such as [[Ironhide (Energon)|Ironhide]]. Ironhide in particular wished he could advance further in rank just so he could combine with Hot Shot.

Kicker seemed to have a certain clairvoyance when it came to trouble (and [[Energon (fuel)|Energon]]!), though Hot Shot would often dismiss Kicker's warnings. But one day, like most days, Kicker was right. Mysterious bestial Transformers, the [[Terrorcon (Energon)|Terrorcons]], suddenly attacked Ocean City, forcing Hot Shot, Kicker, Ironhide, and the others to go on the defensive. When Optimus Prime arrived, Hot Shot and Inferno were granted the [[Spark of Combination]], which allowed the two to combine into a single super robot. With everyone working together, the last of that batch of Terrorcons were defeated. {{storylink|Cybertron City (episode)|Cybertron City}}

When [[Mars City]] on Mars was destroyed by more Terrorcons, Hot Shot was among those assembled to hear the news. The Terrorcons' next target was Earth's [[Moon (moon)|moon]], so after Ocean City was raised, Hot Shot and the others, including the [[Omnicon|Omnicons]], used the [[space bridge]] to warp there. But despite their efforts, the Terrorcons were able to flee with much stolen Energon. {{storylink|Energon Stars}} Later, Hot Shot headed up a strikeforce to [[Desert City]] to fortify it against possible Terrorcon assault. While there he flirted with jailbait super-scientist [[Misha Miramond]] and filled her ear with what a dork her not-my-boyfriend (Kicker) was back at Ocean City. When Terrorcons invaded the city, Hot Shot and his troops performed a holding action at the entrance to the Energon Mine, but their position was overrun, and Hot Shot was the only survivor. Though battered, Hot Shot commended [[Ironhide (Energon)|Ironhide]]'s decision to leave him behind and rescue the humans, resulting in the other Autobot being awarded his own Combination Spark. Finally, Ironhide could combine with Hot Shot, just as he'd always wanted! {{storylink|Scorpinok}}

As part of [[Prime Squad]], Hot Shot prepared to travel to Mars before the mission was canceled, and took part in the defense of [[Plains City]], again tasked with securing the Energon supply. He was the first to feel the wrath of [[Scorponok (Energon)|Scorponok]]'s [[Energon Sword|Megatron Sword]], and later battled [[Cyclonus (Armada)|Cyclonus]] while attempting to shore up [[Demolishor (Armada)|Demolishor]]'s flagging confidence in the Autobot cause. {{storylink|Megatron's Sword}} Hot Shot also led a recon team searching for a [[Energon point]] in the mountains, the future location of [[Blizzard City]]. He ordered Ironhide and Demolishor to team up for their mutual benefit. While trying to rescue Kicker, Hot Shot was buried in an avalanche by Cyclonus. He evacuated his team before they could be crushed by the emergency deployment of a new [[Cybertron City (city)|Cybertron City]] via [[space bridge]]. {{storylink|The New Cybertron City}}

[[Image:E07 hotshotarm.gif|thumb|left|Ironhide kept it as a souvenir for his [[User:ItsWalky|Hot Shot shrine]].]]

Hot Shot and his crew were still at Plains City when the newly-resurrected [[Megatron (Armada)|Megatron]] attacked. He was defeated in battle by Megatron and 'dis-armed' as an object lesson to Optimus. {{storylink|Megatron Resurrected}} Optimus retreated to Ocean City with the injured Hot Shot and left the Plains City Energon supply to the Decepticons. Hot Shot's injury awakened a protective streak in Optimus Prime, who briefly forbade Kicker from accompanying the Autobots on missions. At Ocean City Hot Shot underwent medical treatment, submerged in liquefied Energon while his damaged exostructure re-grew. When the base was breached, Hot Shot broke out of his medical unit to defend Inferno from Terrorcons and, armed with a clone of the Megatron Sword, he helped kick the visiting Decepticons back out. {{storylink|Megatron Raid}}

[[Image:Energon Tower groupshot.jpg|thumb|300px|Why even take multiple screencaps? He always looks the same.]]
Hot Shot organized a covert surveillance of Optimus Prime while he was targeted by a [[Starscream (Armada)|Mysterious Mercenary]]. Unfortunately, his large shoulder armor made it impossible to hide behind objects and Optimus discovered him. When Optimus fought Starscream on the [[Moon (moon)|moon]], Hot Shot placed Inferno in temporary command of Ocean City so he could bring a supply of Energon Stars to [[Lunar City]]. {{storylink|Starscream the Mysterious Mercenary}} When the Autobots encountered the [[Mobile Fortress]] near [[Asteroid City]], Hot Shot panicked, momentarily believing it was Unicron himself, and [[Brainstorm#Marvel Comics continuity|fired blindly and ineffectually into it]] using a hand weapon. {{storylink|Battle of the Asteroid Belt}} During the construction of an [[energon tower]] that would help protect their cities from attack, the Terrorcons chose the moment to strike. After Inferno combined with Hot Shot to form Powerlinx Inferno, the tower was finally activated and the Terrorcons fled. {{storylink|Energon Tower}}

Hot Shot wandered over when he heard Ironhide telling Kicker to 'lose the attitude', but was unable to wholly endorse Ironhide's statement that Kicker should automatically look up to [[Brian Jones (Energon)|his father]]. Instead he gently suggested that Kicker might want to seek a ''different'' hero to look up to, and told Ironhide that he'd looked up to [[Rodimus (Energon)|Rodimus]] since he was a young Autobot. {{storylink|The Legend of Rodimus}} Hot Shot later supervised the project to construct the second energon tower at [[Jungle City]]. Ironhide was placed in co-command when the larger Autobot contingent arrived for the final stage, and when the city was attacked and put to siege they split duties, with Hot Shot taking Aerial defense. As the siege wore on, Hot Shot had to be the one to confront Optimus Prime and force him to admit that this battle was unwinnable. They destroyed Jungle City rather than letting it fall to the Decepticons. {{storylink|Crisis in Jungle City}}

[[Image:Energon-HotShot-Hand-Drawn.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Eeeyeaagh!]]

Hot Shot accompanied the rescue mission to [[Lunar City]]. {{storylink|Kicker Beware!}} When Earth was threatened by artificial cometary impacts, he was part of the orbital team sent to intercept them as they approached Earth's atmosphere. Forced to wait as other teams tried to slow the comets, Hot Shot occupied himself by aggravating [[Jetfire (Armada)|Jetfire]], who eventually just told him to be quiet. He, Jetfire and Optimus Prime supercharged themselves with Energon to push against the comets, delaying their approach long enough for the [[energon grid]] to come online. {{storylink|Energon Grid}}

On Earth, Hot Shot was shocked when [[Rodimus (Energon)|Rodimus]], a transformer he idolized in his youth, broke in on a communication with [[Carlos Lopez|Carlos]] and demanded a secret meeting. He traveled to [[Mars (planet)|Mars]], where he discovered Scorponok had reactivated the destroyed Energon mines. Rodimus appeared to head off a fight between the two of them. He attempted to recruit Hot Shot as a double agent for the secret agenda that he, Scorponok and [[Alpha Quintesson|Alpha Q]] shared—the revival of Unicron! Hot Shot refused to betray Optimus Prime, and pulled a gun on Rodimus... but he was unable to fire on his one-time idol. Rodimus had no such compunctions, and he shot Hot Shot, but Kicker and Ironhide intervened to save him. {{storylink|Rodimus Friend or Foe?}}

Hot Shot attended the launch of the ''[[Miranda II]]'' Autobot-human spacecraft. He joined the crew and was part of a space battle in the [[Asteroid belt]] to defend the [[Energon Ring]] before their journey could begin. {{storylink|Go for Unicron!}}

After Rodimus saved Hot Shot's life, he regretted his quick judgment. The relationship between Hot Shot and Rodimus was eventually restored and they become Powerlink partners.

[[Image:Energon-Autobot-Redecos.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Yes, everyone follow Hot Shot. He'll know what to do.]]

Hot Shot continued to serve under Optimus Prime, surviving many battles on Cybertron and other worlds. Along with several other Autobots, Hot Shot was injured when the reborn Unicron destroyed a fledgling planet in the reformed Q-system. Hot Shot was reformatted into a slick silver body along with his Autobot comrades.

Hot Shot warned Sally not to go spy on the Decepticons, but she got away from him by wiggling disturbingly through a human-size passageway. He was suitably impressed when she captured the control room the Decepticons had been using all by herself. {{storylink|Galvatron Terror}} He watched in horror as Galvatron grew to enormous size using Super Energon, and led Cliffjumper and Downshift onto the battlefield. He powerlinxed with Downshift to try and rescue Optimus from Galvatron, but they were engaged by Starscream instead. {{storylink|Destructive Power}} He eventually merged his [[spark]] with that of [[Optimus Supreme]] and his partners in the final battle with [[Megatron (Armada)|Galvatron]]. {{storylink|The Sun}}

{{charstubfiction}}

====''Cybertron'' cartoon====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Kirby Morrow]] (English), [[Daisuke Hirakawa]] (Japanese)
[[Image:Hotshotcybertron.jpg|thumb|250px|He knows kung-fu.]]
Hot Shot thought that the new [[Earth]]-based [[alternate mode]] provided to him by [[Jetfire (Armada)|Jetfire]] was "so him," but couldn't believe they were abandoning [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. When the Decepticons attacked, he battled [[Starscream (Armada)|Starscream]]. He was unable to stop the Decepticons from stealing the map, and accompanied [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]] to Earth. {{storylink|Fallen (episode)|Fallen}} Once there, he assisted in helping build the new Autobot base. When the Decepticons attacked, Hot Shot battled Starscream to stop them from detecting the base. {{storylink|Haven}} When [[Red Alert (Armada)|Red Alert]] attempted to close the [[Unicron Singularity|black hole]], Hot Shot viewed from Earth. He then arrived as backup when Optimus Prime battled [[Megatron (Armada)|Megatron]]. {{storylink|Hidden}} Hot Shot was racing on a speedway. Optimus Prime arrived and gave him a lecture about their need to stay hidden on Earth. So when they decided to split up to search for the [[Omega Lock]], Hot Shot went with Red Alert to the [[Velocitron|Speed Planet]]. When they arrived he marveled at the open roads and took to enjoying himself. He was then surprised at something faster than him. {{storylink|Landmine (episode)|Landmine}}

[[Image:Cyb ep7 hotshot cyberkey.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Slag yeah, ladies. I bring those ''blue'' sparks.]]
Hot Shot thought the Speed Planet was his type of place, but was adamant he wouldn't disobey Optimus Prime's orders. From a distance he watched [[Dirt Boss (Cybertron)|Dirt Boss]] utilize his [[Cyber Key]], then saw [[Ransack (Cybertron)|two]] [[Crumplezone (Cybertron)|bullies]] terrorizing [[Brakedown (Cybertron)|some]] [[Clocker (Cybertron)|locals]]. He argued with Red Alert about interfering. At first he said he wasn't going to interfere but eventually when things looked bad he saved them. {{storylink|Space}} Hot Shot was then attacked by Ransack and Crumplezone. He transformed and drove off. When driving between them he caused them to blast each other. Red Alert then berated him for breaking cover against Prime's orders, but Hot Shot was still excited over every little part of Speed Planet. Upon seeing a race between [[Override (Cybertron)|Override]] and Megatron he joined in. He would have won the race if Crumplezone's missiles hadn't upset him. {{storylink|Rush}} Afterward Hot Shot trained to get into peak performance for his next race against Override. He removed his entire self analysis system to lighten his weight. During the race he felt a need for more speed and was able to summer Cyber Key Power. With this burst of speed, though, he broke and was thrown off the track. {{storylink|Speed}}

Hot Shot readied himself for another race while Red Alert accused him of no longer caring for his mission. Hot Shot was ready to hit Red Alert when Brakedown stepped in. Later while testing out his racing skills he went too fast and almost crashed into a wall, but was saved by Clocker. Reflecting on this, he decided that he was too lightweight. {{storylink|Time (episode)|Time}} Hot Shot still felt he needed to win his race despite being injured. Ransack tricked him into racing [[Dirt Boss (Cybertron)|Dirt Boss]] by telling him the winner would race Override again 1-on-1. He was damaged by Dirt Boss's [[Cyber Key]] attack, but kept racing. Later he was shot at by Ransack but fired back and caused a landslide, burying himself. After being unburied by Landmine, he apologized to a newly arrived [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]] for disobeying his orders and possibly failing his mission. He then collapsed. While in an unconscious state Red Alert repaired the damage he had been putting on himself. Landmine berated him to snap him out of the rut his mind was in. He took it hard and for a bit felt like he wasn't part of the team until Clocker convinced him otherwise. Optimus Prime later decided to use Hot Shot's original plan. Then he raced along with the other Autobots for interference. {{storylink|Hero (episode)|Hero}}
[[Image:Cyb_ep13_hotshot_injured.jpg|thumb|right|250px|This seem familiar?]]
At the start of the race, Hot Shot took the lead, but was again passed by Override and Dirt Boss. Crumplezone and Ransack spun him in circles, but he quickly recovered and continued to purse Override. The duo later cut away the bridge, but Hot Shot jumped the gap by leapfrogging off of Optimus Prime. He was not able to win the race, but placed second place. {{storylink|Race}} Hot Shot then raced in the next race. Seeing the twisting course up ahead, he attempted to take the lead early in the race and passed Override. He went the wrong direction when Ransack switched over the course. When hearing the fact that he was on the wrong course he shared the information with Override to beat her fair and square. Later after an avalanche he helped out a buried Override rather than continue to race. Once again he came in second place due to Dirt Boss passing him while he was busy helping Override. {{storylink|Detour (episode)|Detour}} Hot Shot continued to train with the rest of the Autobots to be ready for the next race while Optimus Prime and [[Vector Prime]] went to find another planet key. He then listened to Red Alert's lecture about the Cyber Keys and then lined up for the next race. {{storylink|Savage}}
[[Image:Cyb_ep18_champion.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Hot Shot receives a gold trophy from Star Cup]]
After qualifying for the next race, Hot Shot initially took the lead through the desert. He then realized he couldn't get much in the way of traction in the sands, causing him to fall way behind Dirt Boss. To complicate matters, he also fell into a quicksand vortex. Brakedown began to pulling him out of the vortex but they targeted by Dirt Boss. They were saved when [[Jolt (Cybertron)|Jolt]] jumped in the way and reflected the shots. After continuing the race, Hot Shot stopped as Brakedown broke down, but after listening to the old bot, finished the race. After the race he requested that [[Coby Hansen|Coby]] remain on [[Velocitron]] to help him through the final race. {{storylink|Sand}} Hot Shot was chosen by the Planet Cup for the final race. At the Autobot base he found out that his damage would cause him to be unfamiliar with his vehicle mode. The Autobots decided that Coby would sit in Hot Shot's cockpit to have the continuous ability to modify his circuits. The race began and he started out with an early lead. When Ransack and Crumplezone attempted to steal the Planet Cup, he warded them off with the help of Override. Then they continued the race. As Hot Shot's system links kept breaking down, Coby was able to rewire him in order for him to keep pace with Override. It wasn't enough, as his circuits were still having trouble holding, so he used Cyber Key Power to help finish up a loop. After a photo finish with Override, he was declared the winner of the race and was going to take the Planet Cup, but Megatron showed up out of nowhere to take it. In vehicle mode Hot Shot knocked over Megatron, giving Optimus Prime and Leobreaker an opportunity to take Megatron down. Afterward Hot Shot attended the victory celebration in his own honor. Returning to Earth, he was also present when Override added the Cyber Planet Key to the [[Omega Lock]]. {{storylink|Champion}}

Following coordinates provided by the Omega Lock, Hot Shot was part of a team of Autobots that headed to the north pole. He was able to respond to a Mini-Con distress signal to save a frozen [[Scattorshot (Cybertron)|Scattorshot]]. {{storylink|Ice}} After sustaining damage, he was fixed up by Red Alert and Coby {{storylink|Honor}} and then followed the Autobots to Jungle Planet {{storylink|Primal}}. After the Autobots received Jungle Planet's Cyber Planet Key, Hot Shot heard the incoming Decepticons attempting to win it back. He was able to take cover as they strafed. After leaving the temple with a diversionary box that may have contained the key, he was knocked over by Crumplezone when he turned to fight Ransack. Later he saw a space bridge and headed toward it, joining the Autobots in surrounding Megatron. {{storylink|Trust (Cybertron)|Trust}}

Hot Shot readied equipment with Scattorshot back on Earth. He chose to follow Red Alert to the north pole to back up Optimus Prime's team. {{storylink|Trap}} Surprisingly, he was the voice of caution and told Jetfire not to blast ice debris that trapped Optimus Prime. It would cause a collapse. After Jetfire freeing Optimus Prime using his engines, the Autobots were attacked by Decepticons and human drone planes. He was going to attack the drone planes, but was stopped by Optimus Prime. {{storylink|Invasion}}

[[Image:Retreat-HotShotholomatteravatar.jpg|thumb|left|200px|JaAm executive.]]
When the Autobots realized the kids and Mini-Cons were missing, Hot Shot was sent out to investigate. While on his route he ran into [[Tim Hansen]] and assured him that his younger brothers would be okay. After finding the kids who escaped from [[Mikey Franklin|Colonel Franklin]], Hot Shot began retreating to [[Velocitron]] via the space bridge. Starscream attacked to steal away the [[Omega Lock]] and Hot Shot was one of the first to fall in battle. {{storylink|Retreat}}

[[Image:Cyb ep27 parts delivery.jpg|thumb|right|200px|We're surrounded by all these military vehicles, but, man, I'm so tired, let's just get new bodies from Primus instead.]]

Later, Hot Shot, Red Alert and Scattorshot faced Megatron alone when the Decepticon leader returned to Earth thirsting for revenge against the treacherous Starscream. Humiliating the Decepticon in combat, they enraged Megatron, who used his new Omega Lock-powered Death Machine Gun on the three Autobots, crippling them beyond repair. {{storylink|Revelation (episode)|Revelation}} Fortunately, the powers of Primus acting through the Omega Lock bathed the trio in the creator's holy light, repairing and reformatting the young Autobot into Cybertron Defense Hot Shot. Along with his newly
reformatted friends, the [[Cybertron Defense Team]] arrived on the battlefield and easily defeated the Decepticons Scourge and Megatron. {{storylink|Critical}}

{{note|The "power of Primus/Omega Lock" explanation was added for the English-language dub of the show. In the original ''Galaxy Force'' version, the upgrade was simply a result of [[burning justice]].}}

[[Image:Cyb ep27 cyb def team.jpg|left|thumb|300px|Excuse me, we're here to be the most awesome toys ever.]]

Hot Shot continued to battle Megatron and his forces. After Megatron retreated, Hot Shot followed to aid Optimus Prime at the volcanic island. He helped fight off Scourge with the rest of the Cybertron Defense Team. Later, when questioning [[Wing Saber (Energon)|Wing Saber]]'s "orders," he was shot and forced to dance to avoid being blasted. After the altercation Optimus Prime sent him and the rest of Cybertron Defense Team to [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] in an attempt to slow down the [[Unicron Singularity|black hole]]. {{storylink|Assault}} En route to the planet, however, his team encountered a meteor shower. He began blasting his way through, but in doing so got goop all over his windshield, obscuring his vision. [[Coby Hansen|Coby]] then took over his movements via [[synchro-control]]. Later he countered [[Scattorshot (Cybertron)|Scattorshot]]'s claim in who had the most points by blowing up the most asteroids, saying he had shot at least 2 to every one of Scattorshot's. Upon arrival at Cybertron and finding it swarming with [[Scrapmetal (race)|Scrapmetal]], he led the assault to cleanse the planet. {{storylink|Starscream (episode)|Starscream}} They fought their way through legions of the robotic pests. {{storylink|United}}

[[Image:CDHotShot fists.jpg|250px|thumb|right|Now we know why his shoulders hurt]]
Hot Shot continued fighting off Scrapmetals until all in the vicinity were destroyed. Upon Megatron's arrival, Hot Shot immediately attacked. After Megatron's apparent defeat, Hot Shot helped give a tour of Cybertron to the kids and other offworlders. He was then present when Optimus Prime presented the Omega Lock which caused Cybertron to apparently break apart. He then drove via the space bridge to Cybertron's moon to witness the full transformation of [[Primus]]. {{storylink|Cybertron (episode)|Cybertron}} Hot Shot was first awed by Primus, then confused when he found out that [[Jolt (Cybertron)|Jolt]] was originally from [[Gigantion]]. He attacked Starscream after the Decepticon's arrival and continued fighting Decepticons until [[Megatron (Armada)|something]] appeared in the sky. {{storylink|Balance}}

Hot Shot was attacked by the newly powered up Crumplezone once he was raised from mortal wounds by Megatron. He wasn't much tougher than before and Hot Shot was able to defeat his rival. {{storylink|Darkness (episode)|Darkness}} He later chased after the Decepticons attempting to steal the Omega Lock. {{storylink|Memory}}

When the Autobots reached [[Gigantion]], he split off into a group to explore the planet. Later, in an altercation with the Decepticons, he fired at [[Thunderblast (Decepticon)|Thunderblast]]. Hot Shot unloaded the ship for the Autobots to be able to use the Omega Lock. He and the rest of the Cybertron Defense team were taken out by a newly powered up [[Megatron (Armada)|Galvatron]]. {{storylink|Fury}}

Hot Shot watched as Optimus battled [[Sideways (RID)|Sideways]], then joined the rest of the Cybertron Defense Force as team three when the Autobots split up. {{storylink|City}} He later ran into Sideways and [[Soundwave (Cybertron)|Soundwave]] while searching for the Cyber Planet Key. He listened to Soundwave's story of [[Planet X (Cybertron)|Planet X]]. He was then surrounded by [[Laserbeak (Cybertron)|Laserbeak]]'s smoke and accidentally hit Scattorshot believing he was Sideways. When Scattorshot cleared the smoke Hot Shot powered up his Cyber Key and helped the rest of his squad blast a pillar upon Soundwave and Sideways. {{storylink|Challenge}}

[[Image:Cyb ep45 save the universe.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Come back from the dead and all I get are these lousy group shots.]]

Hot Shot and his team looked for a downward passage when they ran into Galvatron and [[Menasor (Cybertron)|Menasor]]. After a brief skirmish, they utilized the [[triangle formation|triangle attack]] to take Menasor down. Then they battled Galvatron at full strength, but were once again beaten down. {{storylink|Scourge (episode)|Scourge}} He slowly got to his feet, recovered, and made his way down to the inner part of Gigantion to join the rest of the Autobots in shooting Galvatron. {{storylink|Optimus (episode)|Optimus}}

Hot Shot watched as [[Vector Prime]] inserted the final Cyber Planet Key into the [[Omega Lock]]. when Galvatron arrived, Hot Shot was defeated with the rest of the Autobots. While Optimus Prime and the other flying Autobots were intercepted by Soundwave and Sideways, Hot Shot opened fire from the ground. {{storylink|Showdown (episode)|Showdown}} When the new space bridge opened and the denizens from Planet X were coming through, Hot Shot began firing. Afterward, with the help of Vector Prime, he was able to leave Gigantion with the rest of the Autobots. {{storylink|Guardian (episode)|Guardian}} After returning to [[Primus]], the Decepticons attacked. Hot Shot quickly counterattacked, {{storylink|Homecoming (episode)|Homecoming}} battling Thundercracker while the Decepticon taunted Optimus Prime {{storylink|End}}

[[Image:CybertronKicker.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Kicker needs to update his contact information.]]

Hot Shot ran to assist the Autobots in sending [[Jungle Planet (Cybertron)|Jungle Planet]] back to orbit. When Galvatron entered the Autobot base, he wanted to attack the Decepticon leader until Optimus said it was his fight solely. So instead he ran out to save Jungle Planet. After helping put out fires, Hot Shot lent his strength to push the rocket to adjust the planet's trajectory. After the planet was saved, he joined the rest of the Autobots in assisting Optimus Prime. {{storylink|Unfinished}} With Galvatron finally defeated, Override resigned from leadership of Velocitron in order to travel to new worlds, and Hot Shot won the race to determine who would be her successor, despite his bulky new body. {{storylink|Beginning}}

{{-}}

===Panini ''Armada'' comic===
[[Image:DevicesandDesires-yourownsize.jpg|left|thumb|300px|Well, gee, Hot Shot, when you put it that way, it doesn't sound fair anymore.]]
As the Autobot-Decepticon war was in its early stages, Hot Shot was stationed at the main [[Autobot Command HQ]] on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. Upon detecting four Decepticon battalions heading towards them, he reported this to [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]] and raced into battle. He and the other Autobots were eventually forced to abandon their base when it turned out to be rigged with explosives. {{storylink|Panini Armada issue 9|Counter-Strike!}} After the Mini-Cons left Cybertron, he was seen dispensing firepower and sarcasm during another clash with the Decepticon forces. {{storylink|First Encounter!}}

Hot Shot and [[Red Alert (Armada)|Red Alert]] were later summoned to [[Earth]] when the Mini-Cons were found to have awakened there. The Mini-Con [[Jolt (Armada)|Jolt]] grudgingly power-linked with Hot Shot, allowing him to fly through the air and ram [[Cyclonus (Armada)|Cyclonus]]. {{storylink|Panini Armada issue 2|Friends and Foes!}} Following the battle, he stood guard outside a small cave while the Mini-Cons and their [[human]] friends made their way inside. {{storylink|Panini Armada issue 3|Deep Trouble!}} When the Autobots decided to keep the Mini-Cons safe by sending them back to Cybertron, Hot Shot stood watch, and soon reported that the Decepticons were going on the offensive again. In the ensuing battle, the Mini-Cons decided to stay on Earth, and Jolt power-linked with Hot Shot and helped him drive the Decepticons away. {{storylink|Panini Armada issue 4|No Way Back!}}

Alongside Optimus Prime and Red Alert, Hot Shot later saved the [[Air Defense Mini-Con Team (Armada)|Air Defense Team]] from getting captured by [[Starscream (Armada)|Starscream]]. {{storylink|Panini Armada issue 5|Devices and Desires!}} After the Air Defense Team revealed that the [[Land Military Mini-Con Team|Land Military Team]] had been captured by humans, Hot Shot piloted an Autobot shuttle to the [[Nevada]] desert and helped liberate them. {{storylink|Panini Armada issue 7|Sale of the Century!}} Next, the Autobots learned that the Decepticons were planning to nuke them from the [[Moon (moon)|Moon]], and their [[space bridge]] was too busted up for them to do anything about it. Hot Shot was tasked with repairing the device and use it to warp the incoming warheads elsewhere, and he succeeded at the last second. {{storylink|Panini Armada issue 8|Earthshaker!}}

===Lonesome Diesel===
Hot Shot was part of the Autobot forces during a battle in [[Yellowstone National Park]], and seconded Optimus's warning that the area was too geologically unstable to battle in. Megatron ignored their advice. {{storylink|Lonesome Diesel}}

===3H comics===
Hot Shot was one of several Transformers from across the [[multiverse]] suggested by [[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]] for [[Optimus Primal]] to recruit into his [[Child of Primus|Children of Primus]]. Optimus Primal decided to pluck [[Rhinox (BW)|Rhinox]] and [[Depth Charge (BW)|Depth Charge]] back from death instead. {{storylink|Homecoming (issue)|Homecoming}}

===Bendon ''Armada'' books===

Hot Shot and Optimus Prime were forced to defend the Autobot base from a surprise attack. When the attack accidentally triggered a landslide, Hot Shot rushed in to save the kids. {{storylink|Cave Catastrophe}}

Hot Shot would once again rush in to save the kids after they left themselves out in the open, ramming Demolishor hard enough to flip him over. {{storylink|Race to Disaster}}

==Games==
===The Energon Within===
As Optimus and Hot Shot prepare to escort a truckload of energon away from a mine, the Decepticons launch a full scale assault. Their objective is to steal 100 energon cubes. Though they eventually succeed, the cost is high and the mine remains in Autobot hands.{{storylink|Transformers Armada: The Energon Within}}

As Optimus and Hot Shot prepare to escort a truckload of energon away from a mine, the Decepticons launch a full scale assault. Their objective is to steal 100 energon cubes. Before they can succeed, Hot Shot inadvertently blows up the mine. {{storylink|Transformers Armada: The Energon Within}}

===''Transformers''===
:''Voice actor:'' [[Dublin James]] (English)
[[Image:BalanceOfPower-Autobots.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Hot Shot has particular skills?]]
Shortly after Hot Shot was brought online, he and Red Alert were sent deep into Decepticon territory to uncover an [[Data-Con|ancient relic]] that would tell them how to find the long-lost race of [[Mini-Con|Mini-Cons]]. The two were discovered by passing [[Dropship|Dropships]] and the [[Spider Tank|Spider Tanks]] they carried, and so they quickly dodged for cover. But there was nowhere to run; the Decepticons had created a massive army of [[Decepticlone|Decepticlones]]. After sending out an auto-distress signal, Optimus Prime arrived to bolster their firepower. This caught the attention of Megatron, and the two leaders grappled while Hot Shot and Red Alert continued to evade the Decepticlones. Meanwhile, Starscream had managed to find the relic, and a portal was opened in front of them. Hot Shot, Red Alert, and Optimus Prime followed the Decepticons through the portal to [[Earth]]. The search for the Mini-Cons began! {{storylink|The Balance of Power}}

[[Image:PS2game-HotShotDecepticlones.jpg|thumb|200px|He's the best there is at what he does! (We don't like to say what he does...)]]

Hot Shot found himself in the sweeping jungles that surrounded abandoned Aztec ruins. After failing to find Mini-Cons under a rock, he managed to pair up with the Mini-Con Jolt, and when he reached the top of the ruins, he faced Cyclonus. The following battles took him many places, such as a frozen wasteland, the interior of a battleship (which eventually revealed itself as the gigantic Tidal Wave), and ultimately Hot Shot battled Unicron himself.

Hot Shot, having collected all the Mini-Cons on Earth, was able to wield the legendary [[Matrix Cannon]], which he used to fire a deadly Shot into the core of the Planet Eater. {{storylink|Transformers (PS2)|Transformers}}

{{note|The events of the game listed above are exactly the same for when players choose to take Red Alert or Optimus Prime into battle instead of Hot Shot... except for the rock thing. That's all Hot Shot, baby.}}
{{--}}

==Toys==
{{main|Hot Shot (Armada)/toys }}

==Merchandise==
{{main|Hot Shot (Armada)/toys#Merchandise}}

==Notes==
[[Image:HotShotisBumblebee.jpg|right|thumb|300px|YELLOW KID APPEAL SINGULARITY]]
* In an early ''Armada'' series bible, Hot Shot was originally called "Bumblebee". His character description says that he is the youngest of the Autobots at "about 16 years of age". The Autobots' teen-aged human allies would have teased him for not being old enough to have a driver's license. It further notes that "Everything about him is fast- including his speech," which definitely wasn't taken to heart. The rest of his personality was as you would expect, being young and brash yet showing leadership potential, and his Mini-Con was still called Jolt.
* According to the [[Transformers (PS2)|''Armada'' Playstation 2 game]] instruction booklet, Hot Shot's ''Armada'' body has the following statistics:
:*Mass: 3,109 lbs
:*Robot height: 16' 5"
:*Robot top speed: 50 mph
:*Vehicle height: 5' 11"
:*Vehicle top speed: 186 mph
:*Vehicle power: 400 hp @ 8000 rpm

* For a while, ''Galaxy Force'' was treated by [[Takara]] as a separate universe from ''Micron Legend'' and ''Super Link'', which would have made Exillion (Hot Shot's Japanese name in ''Galaxy Force'') a different guy, even though the character's head design and [[control art]] labeled him "Hot Shot" in English. ''Galaxy Force''<nowiki>'s</nowiki> later reintegration into the [[Unicron Trilogy]] likely made this original distinction irrelevant.

* A character looking quite similar to Hot Shot showed up to die in "[[Drift issue 2|Drift #2]]" because someone convinced artist [[Alex Milne]] to draw him as a casualty. This in order to spite longtime fan [[David Willis]], who wuvs Hot Shot. Milne drew him into the story based on his dislike of ''Armada'' and reasoning that the character would not be one used again in the continuity.<ref>[http://forum.idwpublishing.com/viewtopic.php?p=204657#204657 markerguru's post in "Transformers Drift #1: Reactions, Reviews, Spoilers" from the IDW Publishing Forums]</ref> Because it is a Generation 1-based story, however, the incident is documented on [[Hot Rod (Henkei!)|"Generation 1" character Hot Rod]]'s page, rather than here.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Hot Rod''' (ホットロッド ''Hotto Roddo''), '''Hot Shot''' (''Super Link'', ホットショット ''Hotto Shotto''), '''Exillion''' (''Galaxy Force'', エクシリオン ''Ekushirion''), '''Exigeyser''' (Vanguard Team, エクシゲイザー ''Ekushigeizā'')
*''Hungarian:'' '''Nagymenő''', '''Tűzgolyó''' (''Energon'', ''Cybertron'', "Fireball"), '''Nagyágyú''' ("[[Optimus Prime vs Megatron: The Ultimate Battle]]")
*''Polish:'' '''Piorunus''' (''Armada'', "Thunderboltus")
*''Romanian:'' '''Șmecherul'''
*''Ukranian:'' '''Garyachkun''' (''Гарячкун'', Hot head)

==External links==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Armada Autobots]]
[[Category:Autobot leaders]]
[[Category:Cybertron Autobots]]
[[Category:Energon Autobots]]
[[Category:Letters page answerers]]
[[Category:Universe Autobots]]
[[Category:Velocitron]]

Deathsaurus (G1)

2011-10-04T17:48:56Z

93.75.235.114: /* Foreign names */

{{factions|decepticon}}
{{featured}}
{{disambig3|Deathsaurus}}

:''Deathsaurus is a [[Decepticon]] from the [[Victory (franchise)|Victory]] portion of the [[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]] [[continuity family]].''

[[Image:Deathsaurus1.jpg|right|325px|thumb|Spell it right or you're kickbanned, buster.]]

'''Deathsaurus''' began terrorizing the galaxy long before ascending to the position of Decepticon [[Emperor of Destruction]]. For thousands of years, this savage and cruel dictator has spread terror throughout the universe, and has now set his sights upon the Earth as a source of energy to power his terrifying superweapon, the [[Planet-Destroying Fortress]]. And if [[Star Saber (Victory)|Star Saber]] should get in his way, so much the better: Deathsaurus bears the Autobot [[Supreme Commander]] a bitter grudge, and relishes any opportunity to destroy him that presents itself.

Deathsaurus is a [[Breastforce]] warrior, partnered with two transforming chestplates that become the [[Breast Animal]]s [[Tigerbreast]] and [[Eaglebreast]]. He wields a deadly spiked flail, and the [[Living-Metal-Destroying Cannon]], which erodes the living metallic cells of super-robot lifeforms. The bladed wings of his creature mode absorb sunlight, converting it into dark energy, and he can then launch these energized blades at his opponents in an attack known as his "Death Wing". Despite all of these terrifying powers, however, Deathsaurus is a surprisingly "hands off" leader, who is perfectly happy to allow his subordinates to formulate their own plans and schemes to gather energy for him—but if they should fail, he'll always be there to berate and brutalize them. Even when the plans are his own, Deathsaurus is content to watch and command from a distance, rather than dirty his own hands—but he'll rarely waste a chance to engage Star Saber on the battlefield, and if that occurs, woe betide anyone who gets in Deathsaurus's way.

Curiously, Deathsaurus permits himself one distinctive, unusual foible: although he despises most humans, he has a surprising soft spot for children.

{{quote|I will not forgive this, Star Saber! I swear! I swear I will crush you with my bare hands! I swear, you worm! With my bare hands!|Deathsaurus tells you all you'll ever need to know about him|"[[Resurrection!? The Decepticon Fortress]]"}}

==Fiction==
===Cartoon continuity===
====''Super-God Masterforce'' cartoon====
Clips of Deathsaurus were seen when [[Shūta Gō |Shūta]] and [[Grand Maximus]] were talking about the new [[Supreme Commander]] [[Star Saber (Victory)|Star Saber]]. {{storylink |Shūta and Grand's Masterforce Super-Secrets!}}

====''Victory'' cartoon====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Takeshi Aono]] (Japanese)

[[Image:Deathsaurus_fortress.jpg|left|thumb|225px|By the power of Grayskull!]]

500,000 years ago, striving to become the Decepticons' new Emperor of Destruction, Deathsaurus created a gigantic battle fortress capable of destroying planets, but an attack by the young Autobot commander Star Saber saw the fortress de-powered and trapped in a gravity cell at the heart of the region of space known as [[Dark Nebula]]. This began the enmity between Star Saber and Deathsaurus, and as both combatants rose through the ranks of their respective armies, Deathsaurus vowed to eventually liberate his fortress and use it to destroy Star Saber. {{storylink|Resurrection!? The Decepticon Fortress}}

Some years prior to 2025, after the conclusion of the [[Masterforce War]] on Earth, Deathsaurus succeeded [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]] as Decepticon leader and achieved his dream of becoming Emperor of Destruction. {{storylink|#Toys|Deszaras's ''Victory'' toy bio}} Under his command, the Decepticons began seeking a planet that they could call their own and invaded worlds all across the galaxy. To counteract Deathsaurus's campaign of terror, the Autobots—now with Star Saber serving as their Supreme Commander—and many other sentient races formed the [[Galactic Peace Alliance]], and struck back at the Decepticons with their [[Galactic Defense Force]]. As time passed and this conflict continued, Deathsaurus began focusing his attacks on "Sector One" of the galaxy, containing the planet Earth, until 2025, when the severity and frequency of the attacks forced Star Saber to take command of the Defense Force unit in that area himself. {{storylink|The Brave Hero of the Universe - Star Saber}}

[[Image:Deathsaurus starsaber moonbattle.jpg|right|thumb|225px|Parry on regardless.]]

When Deathsaurus's [[Dinoforce]] attacked the [[Lunar Base (Victory)|Lunar Base]] on Earth's [[Moon (moon)|moon]], Star Saber raced to aid his fellow [[Brainmaster]]s in battle there, only to find his way barred by Deathsaurus. Hoping to distract Star Saber long enough for the Dinoforce to finish their job, Deathsaurus engaged his old foe in battle, but Star Saber broke off the fight as quickly as he could and headed on toward the moon with Deathsaurus hot on his heels. After Star Saber defeated the Dinoforce, Deathsaurus caught up to him and unleashed his Breast Animals upon the Autobot in both beast and weapon forms. Star Saber eventually won out, defeating both the creatures and besting Deathsaurus in a swordfight, forcing the Decepticon leader to summon up his craft, the ''[[Thunder Arrow]],'' and flee aboard it. {{storylink|The Brave Hero of the Universe - Star Saber}}

[[Image:Deathsaurus_throne.jpg|left|thumb|225px|THRONE'D!]]

Recognizing the Earth as a rich source of energy that he could use to power up his Planet-Destroying Fortress, Deathsaurus centered most of his subsequent attacks on the planet, summoning the Breastforce to aid in the campaign. {{storylink|Sneak Attack! Dinoking}} {{storylink|Attack! Leozack}} {{storylink|Unite!! Multiforce}} Deathsaurus was entirely aware of the fact that the Breastforce's leader [[Leozack]] had designs on leadership of the Decepticons for himself, {{storylink|Move Out! Rescue Team}} but he was amused enough by it to let him slide by, allowing Leozack to believe that he was oblivious to his schemes. Residing on the Thunder Arrow as it hopscotched around the planet and solar system, Deathsaurus was content to watch as his troops staged numerous attacks on Earth. {{storylink|Infiltration... The Uranium Mine}} {{storylink|Explosion!! The Energy Base}}

[[Image:Deathsaurus_beastmode.jpg|right|thumb|225px|Not to be confused with the Adult Swim show.]]

Deathsaurus finally decided to join his troops on a mission when the Decepticon began draining electrical energy from an American subway system. While the Breastforce snuck through the subway tunnels, Deathsaurus himself targeted the power distribution center, where he was confronted by Star Saber. The true cunning of Deathsaurus's scheme was revealed when he let loose his Breast Animals, and Star Saber proved no match for the creatures in the small confines of the underground complex. Unfortunately for Deathsaurus, he had overlooked the fact that with both Breast Animals deployed, his own chest was left unprotected, leaving it open to an attack from Star Saber's Saber Blade. Wounded, Deathsaurus recalled his Breast Animals and fled, but not without successfully taking the energy he had managed to steal beforehand. {{storylink|Big City - Underground Terror}}

When the Breastforce were joined by [[Hellbat (Victory)|Hellbat]], the newcomer also adopted designs on the Decepticon throne. {{storylink|The New Warrior - Hellbat}} Deathsaurus was even less concerned with Hellbat's ambitions than he was with Leozack's, though, since the two would-be traitors were always too busy fighting with each other to pose a serious threat to him. In their constant games of one-upmanship, Leozack and Hellbat crafted numerous failed schemes of their own, eventually forcing Deathsaurus to step in and give his minions a mission of his own devising. Deathsaurus had the Decepticons hide in the asteroid belt and capture human shuttlecraft in order to use drain their energy and use them to create an energy alloy. Star Saber soon got wise to the villains' evildoings and arrived to put a stop to them, but again, Deathsaurus successfully escaped with his amassed energy. {{storylink|A Fierce Battle!! The Asteroid}}

[[Image:Starsaber living metal destroying cannon.jpg|left|thumb|Say hello to my little friend...]]

While the Breastforce were busy on planet [[Micro]], Deathsaurus and the Dinoforce took the Thunder Arrow into the Dark Nebula, where Deathsaurus emptied his stockpile of energy into his inactive fortress. The giant structure briefly flared back to life, but soon shut down once more; Deathsaurus was unfazed, having only sought to confirm whether or not the fortress could even be reactivated. On the trip back to Earth, the Decepticons crossed paths with Star Saber and the [[Rescue Patrol Team]], and Deathsaurus engaged Star Saber in battle with his Living-Metal-Destroying Cannon. Although Deathsaurus was actually able to pull the trigger on what would have been a fatal blast, he discovered that he had expended too much of his energy supply reactivating his fortress, and his weapons systems shut down before he could end Star Saber's life, necessitating his tactical withdrawal. {{storylink|Resurrection!? The Decepticon Fortress}}

[[Image:Deathsaurus vs leozack.jpg|right|thumb|Tell me, what was the color of Napoleon's White horse?]]

Deathsaurus next clashed with Star Saber in Antarctica, only stepping onto the battlefield after the Breastforce, combined as [[Liokaiser]], had severely weakened Star Saber. Deathsaurus took over the fight, intent on being the one to deliver the final blow, but Star Saber was able to turn the battle around, and forced Deathsaurus into retreat. {{storylink|Fight to the Death!! Antarctic Battle}} In a later battle atop the Thunder Arrow, deep in the desert, Star Saber again humbled Deathsaurus, this time with the aid of [[Greatshot]], but the fight left both the Supreme Commander and [[Blacker]] badly wounded. {{storylink|Crisis! Ambush in the Desert}} Capitalizing on the Autobots' reduced manpower, Deathsaurus stepped up the Decepticons' attacks across the planet, and removed another annoyance by finally calling Leozack out on his treachery. Easily besting the traitorous Breastforcer in combat, Deathsaurus forced him to swear total loyalty to him, or face death. Leozack made the logical choice, and then, combined with his fellow Breastforcers as Liokaiser, joined with his leader in staging an ambush for Star Saber in a subterranean cave in Asia. Disguising himself as a Terracotta Army-esque statue, Deathsaurus was able to get the drop on Star Saber when Liokaiser lured him into the cave, and again unleashed the Living-Metal-Destroying Cannon on his enemy. Once more, Deathsaurus stood poised to kill Star Saber with the weapon, until the last-minute arrival of [[Ginrai|God Ginrai]], who took the fatal shot. Liokaiser had to persuade the incensed Deathsaurus to retreat as more Autobots arrived, {{storylink|A Deadly Battle}} but the Decepticon leader soon clashed with Star Saber once more in a later battle at a solar power station. Deathsaurus emerged victorious in that fight when Star Saber was forced to flee upon receiving news of Ginrai's deteriorating condition. {{storylink|Ginrai Dies!!}} Ginrai's life was saved, however, when he was rebuilt into the powerful new warror, [[Victory Leo]]. {{storylink|Fight!! Victory Leo}}

Next, Deathsaurus began bombarding the Earth with missiles from an orbital weapons platform, as a means of staying the Autobots' hands while his forces gathered energy across the planet. Star Saber and Victory Leo were able to thwart his plan by combining into the mighty Victory Saber; Deathsaurus's missile launch system had been programmed based on Star Saber's speed, but with the added power of Victory Leo, the Autobot hero was able to outrace the missiles, destroy the launcher and defeat Deathsaurus in an outer space battle. {{storylink|The Tide Is Turned! The Ultimate Weapon, the Victory Unification}}

[[Image:Victory37 finalblow.jpg|left|thumb|Who says robots don't bleed?]]

Following an attempt to destroy the Autobots with the metal-eating [[Doriya]] insects, {{storylink|The Death-Bringing Space Insects!!}} Deathsaurus was informed by Hellbat that he had discovered the location of the sunken continent of [[Atlantis]], which could provide the raw energy to reactivate his fortress. Deathsaurus risked all or nothing to obtain Atlantis's energy, using up the Thunder Arrow's entire energy stockpile to raise the continent, but the plan proved a success, as the Autobots were too busy dealing with the devastating tidal waves caused by the rise of Atlantis to stop him from absconding with enough energy to bring his fortress back online. {{storylink|The Terror of the Giant Tidal Waves}} Having no further use for the bumbling Dinoforce, Deathsaurus abandoned them on Earth and headed back to the Dark Nebula with the Breastforce, where he successfully re-energized his fortress and began moving it towards Earth. {{storylink|The Wrath of the Resurrected Giant Fortress!}}

[[Image:Victory37_deadsaurus.jpg|right|thumb|With my last breath, I curse Zoidberg!]]

Intent on learning from the failures of all past Decepticon leaders, Deathsaurus chose not to conquer Earth, but to utterly destroy the planet, eradicting from Decepticon history the humiliating stain of defeat the planet represented. As the fortress rained destruction down upon Earth with meteor bombs, even Victory Saber could not stand up to its power. Soon, however, a resentful Dinoforce supplied information on the fortress's weak spot to Star Saber's adopted human son, [[Jean Minakaze|Jean]], who then used his own [[Illumina II|personal mech]] to enter the fortress and strike at this vulnerability. As he did so, Deathsaurus and Star Saber engaged in a vicious final battle, during which Deathsaurus lost an eye, and was eventually stopped when Star Saber broke his sword off in the villain's chest. Gushing fuel and fluid, Deathsaurus vowed to have the last laugh as he set the crippled fortress on a collision course with Earth and blew himself out an airlock, vowing to return again and again. But, as his body drifted off into space, no sign of life was visible from the conquered emperor. Victory Saber was able to subsequently destroy the fortress before it collided with Earth, but Deathsaurus was not heard from again. {{storylink|Showdown! The Fortress vs the Victory Unification}}
{{-}}

====''Zone'' catalog====
[[Image:DarkEmperorDeathsaurusZone01.jpg|right|thumb|150px|]]

Through means unknown, Deathsaurus was resurrected as the "[[Emperor of Destruction|Dark Emperor]]" and once again lead the Decepticons in an attack on the Autobots. This time, it was a full-on assault on planet [[Zone (planet)|Zone]] in an attempt to seize the Micro Zone's [[Energon Z]]. The [[Micromaster]]s repeled his attack and sent Deathsaurus into retreat. What became of him afterward is unknown. {{storylink|Zone (story page)#Catalogue story page 1|Zone Project Story}}

{{-}}

===''Victory'' comic===
[[Image:MangaYoungDeathyStarSaber.jpg|left|thumb|225px|"Come back here and help me put some sense in this image!"]]
Deathsaurus and Star Saber's rivalry began 500,000 years ago when they were both children, and according to Star Saber, "argued all the time". {{storylink|The Star of Friendship, Jean and Star Saber!}} In his "adult" years, Deathsaurus took [[Esmeral (Victory)|Esmeral]] as his wife, and in order to keep both her and the families of his fellow Decepticons safe aboard his "Space Stronghold", Deathsaurus began attacking Earth, in order to obtain the planet's energy and use it to keep the stronghold fully powered-up. {{storylink|Heroic! The Victory War}}

During one of his early attacks on Earth, Deathsaurus took pity on an infant human named [[Solon Kitakaze (Victory)|Solon Kitakaze]], whose parents had died in the assault. Deathsaurus "adopted" Solon and turned him into a cyborg, raising him as his own son, just as Star Saber did with the human child Jean Minakaze. As Star Saber and Deathsaurus had been rivals in their youth, so too would Solon and Jean become rivals when, in 2025, Deathsaurus's campaign against Earth intensified.

Deathsaurus and Star Saber's first major battle in this campaign was a brief one, with Deathsaurus being felled by a single swipe of Star Saber's Saber Blade, {{storylink|Magnificent! Our Friend, Star Saber!}} but the Emperor of Destruction had a better showing in their next clash, during which he absorbed enough energy from a forest fire to best Star Saber, Road Caesar and Landcross all together. Deathsaurus's unusual compassion for children proved to be his downfall in this battle when he was distracted by the sight of Solon, gripping Jean in a hold that threatened the boy's life. While Deathsaurus's attention was occupied with striking Solon as punishment, Star Saber blindsided and defeated him with a Super Saber Meteor Spin. {{storylink|Great Turn-Around! Star Saber}}

Deathsaurus later sent Solon to study in school on Earth, in order to learn more about humans, thereby making it easier to conquer them. {{storylink|Leozack Rumbles Violently!}} While Solon was on Earth, he and Jean were approached by former Autobot human allies [[Shūta Gō]] and [[Cab]], {{storylink|Warrior of Love, Star Saber!}} and with Jean, they formed the "Autobot Boy Team" known as the [[Victories]]. Seeking to counter this group with a team of his own, Deathsaurus had [[Yokuryū]] capture Jean and bring him to the ''Thunder Arrow'', where he attempted to bribe the boy into joining the Decepticons' group with toys, Famicom, candy and cash. When an enraged Star Saber soon came tearing into the ''Thunder Arrow'', Deathsaurus crossed swords with the Autobot leader, but was then distracted by Jean distracting who exploited the Decepticon's bizarre fear of caterpillars by dangling one in his face. The cowering Deathsaurus was promptly bested in dramatically explosive fashion by Star Saber's "Planetary Impulse Sword" technique, and realised with hindsight that Solon was the only kid he needed. {{storylink|Watch Out, Jean! Hurry, Star Saber!}} Deathsaurus was apparently left so badly injured by this clash that he couldn't participate in the next battle, given that he was only seen lying in bed, coughing, with Solon resting a giant ice-pack on his head. {{storylink|The Star of Friendship, Jean and Star Saber!}}

[[Image:Kingsaurus.jpg|right|thumb|250px|The mighty King Zaras. Mighty.]]

Rested and healthy again, Deathsaururs joined with [[Dinoking]] and Liokaiser in going up against Star Saber together, and perhaps not entirely surprisingly, the badly outnumbered Autobot was defeated by the three Decepticons. Before they could deliver the killing stroke, however, Star Saber was saved by the sudden arrival of Victory Leo, with whom he combined to form Victory Saber. The merged pair defeated the trio of Decepticons in one blast of their "Flash Victory" attack. {{storylink|The Strongest Partners, the Combination of Victory!}} Deathsaurus immediately sought out away to combat Star Saber's new power, and developed a Transformer-sized mech for Solon named "King Solon," with which he could combine to form "King Zaras". In this new form, Deathsaurus battled Victory Saber on the planet [[Guard]], with neither combatant getting the upper hand in other three hours of fighting. When [[Patty Minakaze]]'s mentioned the word "mother", however, something of Solon's past was stirred in the boy's mind, and he was distracted long enough for Victory Saber to destroy the King Solon mech components with his Victory. The burning Solon tumbled to the ground, where Patty tended his wounds despite his protestations. Perhaps wary of Solon's confused emotional state, Deathsaurus reminded him that while he was a human child, he was a Decepticon's son by fate. {{storylink|Mighty! Victory Saber}}

[[Image:Starsaber deathsaurus truce.jpg|left|225px|thumb|"So, we both agree that the childhood friendship thingie made no sense at all?" "Yes! Oh, what a glorious day!"]]

As it turned out, Deathsaurus was right to be wary—in the midst of a later battle with Star Saber and Road Caesar, Solon turned against Deathsaurus and sided with the Victories, opening fire on his "father" and declaring that he would fight to protect the Earth, instead of destroy it. Now with Solon on their side, the Victories were able to channel their power into the Autobots, and the Decepticons were sent fleeing by the "Five Stars of Victory" attack. {{storylink|Shine! The Five Stars of Victory}} Deathsaurus led the Decepticons back to the Space Stronghold and began bombarding the Earth with meteor bombs, prompting the Autobots to attack it. Deathsaurus left the Breastforce to man the fortress while he engaged Star Saber in a final battle in the void of space, but had not reckoned with the treachery of Leozack, who fired on his emperor with the fortress's main cannon. To save himself, Deathsaurus was forced to return fire on the fortress, and Star Saber followed suite, smashing into the fortress's control chamber and taking Leozack down. As Leozack begged the Autobots not to destroy the fortress, the wounded Deathsaurus arrived and revealed to the Autobots the presence of the Decepticons' families aboard the vessel. Realizing that the Decepticons' had only done what they had in the name of their families' safety, Star Saber decided that it was time for the two leaders to follow the example set by their sons and lay down their arms. Deathsaurus and Star Saber shook hands, and the war came to an end, bringing peace to everyone—the truest victory of all! {{storylink|Heroic! The Victory War}}
{{-}}
===''Transformers PD Type'' comic===
[[Image:PDType Deathsaurus blackball.jpg|thumb|right|250px]]
Out of ammo, the Autobots started throwing things at Deathsaurus, including a [[Blackball]]! Gloating, Deathsaurus began to plan his conquest of the galaxy, only to become so annoyed at the rocks bouncing off his head that in frustration he threw the Blackball at the Autobots. {{storylink|Transformers PD Type##4 "Good Job! Deathsaurus!!"|Good Job! Deathsaurus!!}} Right when Star Saber was ready to finish him, Deathsaurus brought in Liokaiser. The two Decepticons were soon hunting for their enemy as he frantically tried to contact Victory Leo. {{storylink|Transformers PD Type##5 "Don't Lose! Star Saber!!"|Don't Lose! Star Saber!!}}

Deathsaurus and [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] were pounced on by Victory Leo until Megatron was able to distract the lion with a huge ball of yarn, allowing the Decepticons to escape. {{storylink|Transformers PD Type##6 "Tough as Nails! Victory Leo!"|Tough as Nails! Victory Leo!}} After a lengthy mid-air battle with Star Saber, Deathsaurus fell from the sky and ended up with [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]] chewing on his head. {{storylink|Transformers PD Type##8 "Me Strongest! Me Grimlock!"|Me Strongest! Me Grimlock!}}
{{--}}

===Dreamwave comics continuity===
[[Image:Deathsaurus_dreamwave.jpg|left|thumb|125px|Polish Me!]]
Deathsaurus was an [[Destron (G1)|ancient Transformer]] from Cybertron's lost past. While searching for clues about the planet's history, Megatron stumbled across a hidden chamber beneath the planet's surface containing two massive statues of Deathsaurus and [[Dai Atlas (Zone)|Dai Atlas]], holding a [[Golden Disk (ancient)|golden disk]] between them. This chamber apparently told of a vast Cybertronian Empire that ended prior to recorded history. {{storylink|The Route of All Evil}}
{{-}}

===Descent into Evil===
[[Image:Deathsaurustimelines.jpg|right|thumb|Deathsaurus orchestrates the rise of a New Decepticon Empire, or NAMBLA.]]

Using a clone lab on [[Ceti Alpha Seven]], Deathsaurus wished to revive the fading [[Decepticon Empire]] with a vast [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticon]] army. After the first batch of [[Virulent Clone|clones]] was completed, his operation was interrupted by a team of [[Autobot]] commandos under the command of [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]]. Deathsaurus overpowered and captured the first wave himself, and soon faced Ironhide one-on-one, while [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] attempted to rescue the fallen Autobots. Due to the assistance of Tripredacus Agent [[Flamewar]], these two were defeated and captured as well.

They woke up bound inside Deathsaurus's clone lab. The Emperor of Destruction appeared on a television screen, declaring that his use for the lab was completed and was prepared to detonate it remotely with the Autobots inside. Unfortunately for Deathsaurus, the Autobot espionage agent [[Ricochet (Timelines)|Ricochet]] not only freed the Autobots before the explosion occurred, but also seeded the remaining clones with a virus, leaving Deathsaurus with nothing to show for his work. {{storylink|Descent into Evil}}

Years later, towards the end of the Great War, the [[Predacon (BW)|Predacon]] [[Cryotek (RID)|Cryotek]] worked under Deathsaurus as a supply manager. When the final defeat of the Decepticons at last came, Cryotek led his fellow Predacon workers in a rebellion against Deathsaurus, and used the materials he stole from his depot to begin his own criminal empire. {{storylink|Transformers Collectors' Club|Cryotek's "Theft of the Golden Disk" profile}}

===Wings of Honor===
Deathsaurus's origins are unknown, but he quickly rose within the ranks of the Decepticons after the uprisings began. He established himself as one of the fourteen leading [[Decepticon Warlord|Warlord]]s in the Decepticon cause and gathered a small inner circle of followers including [[Lyzack]], [[Falcon (G1)|Falcon]] and [[Vanquish (G1)|Vanquish]]. Deathsaurus preferred to lead from his throne room, directing others to carry out his strategies from a distance. He accumulated a great deal of ill-gotten wealth from his forces' assaults on high-ranking generals and aristocrats in the Autobot hierarchy, while carrying on his own experiments into the areas of [[Triple Changer|multiple alternate modes]] and [[Combiner|combination technology]]. {{storylink|Hasbro Transformers Collectors' Club issue 34|Deathsaurus's Wings of Honor profile}}

Following a raid against the Autobot general [[Traachon]], Deathsaurus sat in his throne room enjoying the fruit of his labors, and the finest oil reserves from the good general's private stash. He updated himself on [[Rage]]'s final fate at [[Median]] thanks to his deep cover source, [[Flip Sides (G1)|Flip Sides]]. Reviewing the details of the conflict with the [[Elite Guard]], a plan began to form in his diabolical processor regarding the reported victors, the [[Combaticon (G1)|Combaticon]]s. {{storylink|Flames of Yesterday}}

[[Image:TheComingStorm4-LordDeathsaurus.jpg|left|thumb|300px|He wasn't quite sure whether he was hiring [[Leozack]] or [[Lyzack]] to serve him drinks.]]

Seeing the possibility of swaying the Combaticons to his cause, Deathsaurus had [[Onslaught (G1)|Onslaught]] and his men captured and brought to his headquarters. In his throne room Deathsaurus wove a complicated web of deceit, half-truths, and temptations to bring the Elite Guardsmen under his control. [[Swindle (G1)|Swindle]] and [[Vortex (G1)|Vortex]] were easy, as their respective greed and love of fine oil was easy to satisfy. To earn their trust, Deathsaurus offered to fix up the Combaticons' armor due to the "mistaken" injuries they suffered at the hands of his soldiers, and he also offered to upgrade them in the process. The lonely [[Blast Off (G1)|Blast Off]] was quick to jump at the idea of having both land and space modes, letting him remain active and useful on the ground. [[Brawl (G1)|Brawl]]'s anger could not be easily cooled, so Deathsaurus merely redirected it, suggesting the Combaticons could not fight properly without the Elite Guard backing them up. After that comment, Brawl was more than willing to fight the Elite Guard to prove he was tougher.

Onslaught was the most difficult to manipulate, and so Deathsaurus appealed to his pride, intimating that Onslaught's strategic skill had waned since his days at the top of [[Omnihelix Academy]]. Instead, Deathsaurus posited that Onslaught could reach his full potential once freed from the shackles of the Elite Guard. By defeating the Guard, the Combaticons could prove they were better than Autobot and Decepticon alike, and become a new symbol of power on post-war Cybertron. Unwilling to appear weak, and lured by the notion of personal power and recognition, Onslaught relented. At this point, the Combaticons were all suitably mollified, ready to follow Deathsaurus's commands while still believing it was ''their'' decision to do so. Deathsaurus sealed the deal with his newly completed combiner technology blueprints, and left Onslaught to plan his attack. {{storylink|The Coming Storm: Part 4}}

As the Combaticons prepared for an attack against their former allies, Deathsaurus turned his attention to other matters. Although he had a seat on the Decepticon War Council, Deathsaurus rarely if ever chose to attend the meetings. Instead, he sent his spokesman, Falcon in his place. With the Council in disarray after the capture of [[Gutcruncher (G1)|Gutcruncher]] and the merger of the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicon]]s and [[Photon]]s with Megatron's forces, Deathsaurus decided it was time to act. He sent the unwitting Falcon to the council meeting with a bomb and detonated it, killing his faithful lieutenant and five of the remaining Warlords. With one well-timed explosion, Deathsaurus ensured that only he and [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] remained as Decepticon Warlords and rivals for power. Deathsaurus then turned to continue planning with Falcon's replacement, his newly appointed lieutenant and head of the [[Seeker (body-type)|Skyraider-Seeker Brigade]].

His name was [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]]. {{storylink|A Team Effort}}

Starscream was happy to report to Deathsaurus that the Combaticons, in their new combined form of [[Bruticus (G1)|Bruticus]], had successfully vanquished the Elite Guard, and that the turncoats were on their way back to Deathsaurus' lair. Despite their victory, Starscream chafed at his commander's plan to welcome them into the Decepticons proper. Starscream feared that the Combaticons were not true Decepticons, but instead using their new allegiance to further their own quest for power. Deathsaurus countered that was what made them the perfect Decepticons, and reminded his new lieutenant that ambition is what separates the Decepticons from the stagnation and complacency of the Autobots. Starscream acquiesced and was ordered by Deathsaurus to help Lyzack prepare the medical bay for the arriving Combaticons. {{storylink|Battle Lines, Part 1}}

Deathsaurus observed as the Combaticons were repaired, and ordered Constructicons to concentrate on repairing them to the point that they could form Bruticus at Deathsaurus's will. After Bruticus proved to wild to control and was shut down, Starscream admired Deathsaurus's forethought in adding an override to the Combiner. He also warned the Warlord of an Elite Guard squad approaching their base. Deathsaurus ordered Starscream to call the troops to arms. {{storylink|Battle Lines, Part 2}} He himself took part in the fight, exchanging blows with [[Magnum]] and informing the Autobot that he had done nothing to the Combaticons' minds other than convince them they would be better served by the Decepticon cause. Outraged, Magnum renewed his attack on the self-proclaimed emperor. {{storylink|Battle Lines, Part 3}}

The Warlord pointed out mockingly that Magnum's backup appeared to be falling flat, at which point the Autobot blasted him in the chest. Magnum took a battering from Lyzack, and Deathsaurus picked himself up to find Magnum and [[Thunder Clash|Thunderclash]] right where he could finish them off. Unfortunately that was when [[Sprocket (G1)|Sprocket]] jumped on him, demanding a [[zap-pony]] ride, and then shot him in his already damaged chest. Deathsaurus ordered a retreat, however the greatest indignity was still to come, as when he got home, he found his throne had been claimed by Megatron. {{storylink|Battle Lines, Part 4}}

{{--}}

==Toys==
===Victory===
[[Image:Deathsaurus_g1toy.jpg|right|thumb|300px|"Aaawrk! Deathy shouldn't be!"]]
* '''Deszaras''' (Large Breastforce, 1989)
**''Japanese ID number'': '''D-336'''
**''Accessories'': Tail/shield, rifle, Tigerbreast & Eaglebreast "Breast Animals"
:Deszaras transforms into a blue and grey dragon-like monster styled after traditional Japanese "kaijū"--though he also looks somewhat like a giant mutant space chicken, and in fact the animators would play up the bird-like features significantly more than the reptilian aspects in the actual cartoon. Unusual for late Generation 1 toys, he has [[die-cast]]-metal feet in beast mode.

:Deszaras comes packaged with his Breast Animal partners, Tigerbreast and Eaglebreast, which transform from creatures into hand-held weapons for Deszaras, and a pair of breastplates which lock into a spring-loaded socket on the toy's body to form elaborate torso armor for the Deszaras's robot mode. Eaglebreast is inserted first, then Tigerbreast fits on top, concealing it; the figures can also be attached while Deszaras is in beast mode, which leaves them on his creature-mode's back. Deszaras comes with armament in addition to his Breast Animals, including a light blue laser rifle—which, despite what the boxart and cartoon would have you believe, does not have a removable flail—that can be wielded by both an ordinary handle, and a second peg on its butt that allows it to be brandished like a staff or blade of some kind, and his "Death Tailer" shield, which mounts on either of his biceps, and transforms into his beast mode tail.

::*''[http://www.tfu.info/1989/Destron/Deathsaurus/deathsaurus.htm More information on Deszaras at TFU.info]''
{{-}}

===Timelines===
[[Image:Deathsaurusbotcontoy.jpg|right|300px|thumb|If you squint, he could still be [[Megatron (RID)|Megatron]].]]
* '''Descent into Evil''' (multi-pack, 2005)
**''Accessories'': 2 launchers, 2 Energon blade missiles

: Part of the [[BotCon 2005]] "Descent into Evil" boxset, Deathsaurus is a blue and black [[retool]] of ''[[Robots in Disguise (toyline)|Robots in Disguise]]'' [[Megatron (RID)|Megatron/Galvatron]]. He comes with a pair of swords that can launch their blade-missiles through a pressure-launch mechanism, as well as combine at their bottom ends to form a large double-blade weapon. The blade-missiles are rounded off [[for safety reasons]] like the other [[Hasbro]] uses of the mold. His head is a new sculpt based on Deathsaurus's appearance in the ''Victory'' anime (though Deathsaurus's face seems to be copied from Megatron's).

:Deathsaurus's mold was originally a ten-changer, though the "gargoyle"/bat mode was neutered for this release due to the dropping of the bat snout piece, required to give his new head enough space inside his chest cavity for other modes. He still retains the other nine modes (robot, dragster, jet, two-headed dragon, hand, mammoth, hydrofoil, one-headed dragon, and winged griffin). His instructions, however, assign him the six modes of the original RID Megatron, ''including'' the gargoyle and omitting the boat, griffin, mammoth and flying dragon. His tail-piece was removed for in-box storage, but easily popped back on since it's on a ball-and-socket joint.

::*''[http://www.tfu.info/2005/Decepticon/BCDeathsaurus/deathsaurus.htm More information on BotCon Deathsaurus at TFU.info]''
{{--}}

==Merchandise==
===Transformers Gum===
[[Image:Tfgum deszaras.jpg|right|thumb|250px|]]
* '''Deszaras''' (1989)
** ''Accessories:'' Tail/shield, rifle

:Part of the twelfth wave of [[Kabaya]]'s ''[[Transformers Gum]]'' series of [[candy toy]]s, this Deathsaurus figure is a snap-together model kit cast in blue, red and grey plastic. Although lacking in any paint applications, the figure feature stickers for detail, and retains most of the accessories and features of the actual Deathsaurus toy, though not his Breast Animal partners. It comes with a stick of something that might be gum.
{{-}}

===Parody Deformed===
[[Image:Deathsaurus pd model.jpg|right|thumb|150px]]
* '''Deszaras''' (1990)

:A small, blue, white and red, non-transforming [[super deformed]] model kit of Deszaras was available as part of [[Kabaya]]'s "[[Parody Deformed]]" line of candy toys. The fourth figure in the series, he came with a "[[Transformers PD Type]]" comic about himself, "Good Job! Deszaras!!", and more of that alleged "gum".
{{-}}

===Super Figure Collection===
[[Image:Deathsaurus scfs.jpg|right|thumb|250px|Take it all off!]]
* '''Deszaras''' (2002)
:A PVC figurine of Deathsaurus was released in the seventh Victory-centric "act" of Takara's ''[[Super Collection Figure]].'' Deathsaururs was available in both standard full-color version and metallic silver "pewter" versions; the pewter version came packaged with the wings of Victory Saber, one of several extra pieces packed with the various figures from the wave which could combine with the act's Star Saber figure to turn it into Victory Saber. The wings were available in both standard full color (at a rate of eight out of every ten cases) and rare pewter (only two in every ten).

* '''Deszaras with Eaglebreast''' (2002)
:Also available in the seventh wave was a rare "chase" version of the Deathsaurus PVC, available at a rate of one in every ten cases, featuring the character with his inner Breast Animal partner, Eaglebreast, on display, rather than the normal version's Tigerbreast.
{{-}}
===Timelines===
[[Image:Deathsauruspin.jpg|thumb|75px|Deathstickus]]

* '''Deathsaurus pin''' (2005)

: The first 100 BotCon 2005 Primus-package preregistrants received an exclusive Deathsaurus pin as part of their registration package.
{{--}}
===Robot Heroes===
[[Image:Robot Heroes Victory Saber Dessaras.jpg|right|thumb|300px]]
*'''Victory Saber''' / '''Dessaras''' (unreleased)

:A surprise entry in the ''[[Robot Heroes (toyline)|Robot Heroes]]'' series, this [[super deformed]] figurine of Deathsaurus also sports a name variant that hearkens back to his original Japanese moniker, only missing the spelling by one letter. Originally discovered amongst [[Wal-Mart]] store computer listings in mid-2008, he would have come packaged with an equally-adorable Victory Saber, but alas, the two-pack failed to materialize before the ''Robot Heroes'' line was canceled.
{{canceledtoy}}

==Notes==
[[Image:DeathsaurusAndRedGeist.jpg|right|thumb|250px|Definitely not toy-accurate, but definitely awesome.]]

* Deathsaurus's name is the source of a long-lasting argument. The phonetic Japanese reading of the name is: "De-su-za-ra-su". This is represented in English on his toy packaging and tech specs as "Deszaras." English-speaking fans would long debate the "proper" [[romanization]] of the name, interpreting it as Deszaras, Deathzaras, Deathsaurus, Death Czarus, Def Zarce, Deaths 'Я' Us, Debt Source, Darth Sass, Death's Arse and god knows what else. "Deathsaurus" had a tendency to be the most popular and well-known (on account of it actually ''meaning'' something), which led to it being used on the character's first official Western toy, making it his official American name. However, it is unlikely that this was supposed to be the actual name for the character—were his name intended to be read as "saurus", then it would be rendered as "sa-u-ru-su" or "za-u-ru-su" in Japanese (as had already been done with [[Trypticon (G1)|Dinosaurer]] and [[Saur]]), rather than "za-ra-su". As such, it appears that his name was genuinely intended to be the nonsense word, "Deszaras" (which resembles the pattern for naming of [[Wikipedia:Kaiju|Kaiju]] monsters, discussed below) and the character appears with this name on the [[Metrodome]] and [[Madman Entertainment]] DVD boxsets of the ''Victory'' cartoon. Hasbro appeared to be trying to steer things back in that direction with the cancelled [[Robot Heroes (toyline)|Robot Heroes]] figure, named "Dessaras". Only one letter out, there, guys!

* While often called a dragon or occasionally a griffin, and hilariously, a "bigbird" on his original Japanese [[bio]] card, Deathsaurus is most likely styled after traditional Japanese "kaiju", such as [[Godzilla]] or Rodan. Hence, the Kaiju-esque name, "Deszaras".

* The original Deathsaurus mold was redecoed into the non-living "Red Geist" (レッドガイスト ''Reddo Gaisuto'') mech for [[TakaraTomy|Takara]]'s ''[[Brave (franchise)|Brave of Legend Da Garn]]'' toyline, which lacked the Eaglebreast partner. Although the character design in the television show for the line was significantly modified from that of Deathsaurus (see image at right), including replacing Tigerbreast's tiger mode with a jet mode, the Red Geist toy itself was not retooled. [http://tfbaka.de-blog.jp/1dai/2008/08/post_6871.html More on Red Geist at a Japanese toy photoblog.]
{{--}}

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Deszaras''' (デスザラス ''Desuzarasu'')
*''Arabic:'' '''Deathsandar''' (دثساندر ''Dithsāndar'')
*''English:'' '''Deathsanras''' ([[Omni Productions]] dub)
*''Ukranian:'' '''Smertelnyi Sanraz''' (Смертельний Санраз)
*''Russian:'' '''Smertonosets''' (Смертоносец)
*''Spanish:'' '''Zan Rás''' (America)

==External links==
* [http://www.tfu.info/1989/Destron/Deathsaurus/deathsaurus.htm Deathsaurus on TFU.info]

[[Category:Beast Wars Decepticons]]
[[Category:Breastforce]]
[[Category:Convention exclusives]]
[[Category:Candy toys]]
[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Emperors]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Decepticons]]
[[Category:Timelines characters]]

Spike Witwicky (G1)

2011-09-08T16:20:56Z

93.75.235.114: /* Foreign names */

{{factions|{{factions/icons|custom=Symbol autobot reg.png|cLink=Honorary Autobot}}|autobot|autobotg2|gijoe|{{factions/icons|custom=Skywatch Logo.png|cSize=30px|cLink=Skywatch|cPretty=Skywatch}}}}

{{disambig3|Spike Witwicky}}

:''Spike [[Witwicky]] is an [[Autobot|Autobot]]-allied [[human]] and [[Autobot]] [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]] from the [[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]] [[continuity family]].''

[[Image:Spikewitwickyg1.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Wait till you see my sweet future jumpsuit!]]
'''Spike Witwicky''' is the oldest (and sometimes only) son of [[Sparkplug Witwicky]].

Spike, like most Witwickys, has a tendency to form close bonds to the Autobots and become one of their main human allies. 'Cause let's face it, there are advantages when your best friend is [[Bumblebee (G1)|a car]].

==Fiction==
===Generation 1 cartoon continuity===
====''The Transformers'' cartoon====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Corey Burton]] (English), [[Show Hayami]] (Japanese, ''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform''), [[Masashi Ebara]] (Japanese, ''The Movie'', ''Transformers 2010''), [[Kōji Ochiai]] (Japanese, ''The Rebirth''), [[Wolfgang Mascher]] (German; Generation 1), [[Dirk Meyer]] (German; ''Generation 2''), [[Crock Krumbiegel]] (German; ''The Movie''), [[Olivier Destrez]] then [[François Leccia]] (French), [[Nada Blam]] (Serbian)

[[Image:Mtmte2_witiwickys_saved.jpg|left|thumb|220px|This isn't what they meant by "bodyboarding", Prime...]]

In 1984, the fourteen-year-old Spike was working on an oil rig with his father [[Sparkplug Witwicky|Sparkplug]] when his life was turned upside-down by the arrival of the [[Decepticon]]s. The evil robots began attacking the rig and terrorizing the workers; when Spike tried vainly to save his father from the clutches of [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]], he was swatted away by the Decepticon and fell in the ocean. Sparkplug broke free from Rumble's grip a second later and leapt in after him, and as the two Witwickys floated in the brine, the [[Autobot]]s arrived to stop the Decepticons' evildoing. To cover the villains' escape, [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] collapsed the oil rig, imprisoning Spike and Sparkplug beneath a metal lattice with fire creeping towards them. {{storylink|More than Meets the Eye, Part 1}} Autobot leader [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] freed the two humans and brought them to safety, and in reciprocation, Spike and his father offered to serve as the Autobots' guides to [[Earth]] and allies in the fight against the Decepticons.

[[Image:Mtmte2 spike finds soundwave.jpg|right|thumb|220px|I don't see anyone else around. I guess this must be mine. Result!]]

While returning to the Autobots' base after writing the latest entry in [[Spike's diary|his journal]], Spike stumbled across a sweet discarded cassette player, which he brought back to the base with him. After quizzing [[Trailbreaker (G1)|Trailbreaker]], [[Hound (G1)|Hound]] and [[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] on the Autobots' various special abilities, Spike took Hound up on his offer for a joyride through the desert, leaving the tape player behind. When he returned, however, he was horrified to discover that the device had been the Decepticon [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] in disguise, and that he had downloaded much secret information from [[Teletraan I (G1)|Teletraan I]]. Using that information, the Decepticons soon struck [[Sherman Dam]], and when the Autobots tried to stop them, Hound was buried under a pile of rocks, deep in the river, by Rumble. Spike dived in to save him, but once he had done so, he then had to be saved by Hound, who gave him CPR.

[[Image:Mtmte2 witwickys and trailbreaker.jpg|left|thumb|220px|They never miss the game]]

While out scanning for Decepticon transmissions with Trailbreaker, Spike and his father learned that Megatron was planning to hit the [[ruby crystal mines of Burma]], and the Autobots mobilized to confront them. {{storylink|More than Meets the Eye, Part 2}} Soon after, when the Autobots learned that the Decepticons were poised to return to Cybertron, Spike and Sparkplug volunteered to stop them before they could depart aboard [[Victory (G1)|their space cruiser]]. During the subsequent battle, Spike threw a rock that dislodged [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]]'s [[null-ray]]. Eventually, the threat of the Decepticons was believed ended when their space cruiser crashed in the ocean. {{storylink|More than Meets the Eye, Part 3}}

[[Image:Transporttooblivion captive spike.jpg|right|thumb|220px|All we need is [[Chewbacca|Chewie]] and we'll be all set!]]

Several months later, the Decepticons resurfaced with a plan to create an intergalactic transportation system known as a "[[space bridge]]". Spike was chilling with [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] when the villains struck a solar power plant, knocking out power across the city. When Optimus Prime charged [[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] with spying on the Decepticons to learn their plan, Spike requested that he be allowed to accompany the small Autobot, beginning a long-standing friendship between the two. Unfortunately, this first mission together did not go very well, as Spike was captured by the Decepticons and almost used as a guinea pig for the first test run of the space bridge, but was thankfully saved at the last second by Optimus Prime and Bumblebee. {{storylink|Transport to Oblivion}}

Spike's friend [[Chip Chase]] brought Spike and Bumblebee on a visit to the laboratory of [[Alcazar|Doctor Alcazar]], with whom he was working on an [[antimatter]] formula. [[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]] attacked the trio as they were leaving the lab, and although they were able to escape, the Decepticons returned to capture Chip in his home. Spike, Bumblebee, Hound and Mirage teamed up to rescue Chip, but the Decepticons were still able to acquire the antimatter formula. In the battle that resulted, [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] was wielding the antimatter-powered Megatron when Spike bravely attacked his leg with a pneumatic drill. Skywarp seized the boy, but this gave Chip the distraction he needed to plant an override device on the Decepticon's leg, allowing [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] to control Skywarp's motor relays remotely, tipping the scales of the battle in the Autobots' favor. {{storylink|Roll for It}}

[[Image:Divideandconquer spike grabs gun.jpg|left|thumb|220px]]

Spike was helping Optimus Prime search for the newest location of the Decepticons' space bridge when a distress call from Chip summoned them to a munitions plant under Decepticon attack. Prime was fatally wounded in the subsequent battle, forcing Chip and a team of Autobots to head to Cybertron to recover a replacement [[cosmitron]] for his systems. In their absence, the Decepticons attacked Autobot Headquarters, and the leaderless Autobots could not muster the courage to fight. Claiming that this was not what Prime would have wanted, Spike seized Jazz's pistol and announced that he would fight the battle himself if he had to, his bravery galvanizing the other Autobots into action. During the fight, the Cybertron team returned with the cosmitron, restoring Prime, who defeated Megatron and won the day. {{storylink|Divide and Conquer}}

A freak snowstorm in the desert around Autobot Headquarters gave Spike cause for celebration, as he introduced the Autobots to the wonders of a snowball fight. When the unnatural weather was discovered to be the product of a Decepticon plot at the North Pole, Spike and his father headed to the Arctic Circle with the Autobots. There, the two humans were captured by the Decepticons' newest recruit [[Jetfire (G1)|Skyfire]], but they could see that his heart wasn't in the evil robots' scheme, and he soon switched sides. {{storylink|Fire in the Sky}}

[[Image:Fireonthemountain spike and luisa.jpg|right|thumb|220px|It's the pink interior that makes Spike such a [[Ladiesman217|Ladiesman]].]]

When the Autobots discovered a cavern full of [[dinosaur]] bones behind their Headquarters, Spike educated them on the ancient reptiles, and helped design the robotic "[[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]]" that Optimus Prime decided to have created based on Spike's stories. {{storylink|S.O.S. Dinobots}} Later, he and Bumblebee headed to South America to investigate a Decepticon scheme in Peru, where he got cosy with a native girl named [[Luisa]] after he saved her life. Luisa led them to the temple the Decepticons were using as a base, where Spike discovered and repaired the captive Skyfire. {{storylink|Fire on the Mountain}}

After he and Chip helped the Autobots create two more Dinobots, {{storylink|War of the Dinobots}} Spike faced his greatest challenge yet when he saw his father abducted by the Decepticons. The Autobots quickly enacted a rescue plan, but Spike soon realized that his father was not in his right mind when he discovered that he was responsible for sabotaging Teletraan I and the Autobots' weapons. In truth, a [[hypno-chip]] had transformed Sparkplug into a mind-controlled Decepticon slave! {{storylink|The Ultimate Doom, Part 1}}

[[Image:Tud hypnochipped sparkplug.jpg|left|thumb|220px|Nothing like a friendly family game of Russian Roulette, eh, Spike?]]

Concurrently, the Decepticons activated a massive space bridge that teleported the entire planet [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] into Earth's orbit, causing massive natural disasters that Spike and the Autobots were also forced to contend with. Discovering that his father had been taken to Cybertron, Spike insisted that Optimus Prime allow him and a team of Autobots to go to the planet and find him. Navigating traps and ventilation shafts, Spike, Bumblebee and [[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] made their way to [[Decepticon Headquarters (G1 Cybertron)|Decepticon Headquarters]], where Spike confronted his father in hopes of bringing him to his sense. {{storylink|The Ultimate Doom, Part 2}} Unfortunately, Sparkplug instead triggered an alarm that brought the Decepticons running, forcing Spike and the Autobots to flee and take refuge in [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]]'s old laboratory. There, Wheeljack analyzed a computer disk stolen from Decepticon Headquarters by Bumblebee and created a device to undo the hypno-chips' effects. Spike served as bait to lure the Decepticons and Sparkplug out so that the device could be tested, and although he was nearly shot by his brainwashed father, Wheeljack's counter-weapon succeeded, freeing Sparkplug from Decepticon control. The Autobots and Witwickys headed back to Earth, where Spike hit on the idea to blow up the Decepticons' stockpile of [[energon cube]]s in order to blast Cybertron out of Earth orbit. {{storylink|The Ultimate Doom, Part 3}}

[[Image:AutobotSpike-AutobotXTabled.jpg|right|thumb|220px|Well, you can call him "Junkbot"!]]

Spike traveled with the Autobots to [[Bali]] to battle the newest Decepticons, the [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticons]], and was the one who came up with the idea to use Trailbreaker's forcefield to block [[Shrapnel (G1)|Shrapnel]]'s clone beams. {{storylink|A Plague of Insecticons}} Soon after, Spike was among the spectators of a mighty one-on-one battle between Optimus Prime and Megatron, which ended with Prime's defeat. When Megatron was revealed to have cheated by combining all the powers of the Decepticons together, the Autobots overturned the result of the fight and sent the Decepticons tumbling into a river of lava. Spike wondered if this was truly the end of the Transformers' war, but Optimus Prime was uncertain. {{storylink|Heavy Metal War}}

[[Image:Autobotspike spike and bee.jpg|left|thumb|220px]]

When Spike was grievously injured by Megatron in a Decepticon attack, the Autobots had to figure out a way to remove his mind from his body so that life-saving surgery could be performed. The process was carried out using [[Autobot X]], a [[Frankenstein's monster|Frankenstein]]-like robot created by Sparkplug from various Autobot spare parts, but the unstable robot body clouded Spike's mind. He began rampaging, and eventually fled Autobot Headquarters, at which point he was approached by Megatron, who manipulated him into allying with the Decepticons against his friends. Only after nearly killing his father did Spike come to his senses, and turned on the Decepticons, after which his mind was subsequently transferred back into his body. {{storylink|Autobot Spike}}

Spike was instrumental in saving [[New York City]] from Decepticon domination when he and Bumblebee infiltrated Megatron's command post and goaded him into destroying his own weapons control console, {{storylink|City of Steel}} after which he had to fight against his friends when the Autobots fell under the influence of a Decepticon [[personality destabilizer device]]. {{storylink|Attack of the Autobots}}

[[Image:Arcade Hahaha.jpg|right|thumb|220px|Bumblebee comforts Carly after a sudden tiff]]

While on a run to pick up a [[polarizer]] for Wheeljack's new [[Wheeljack Instant Immobilizer|Immobilizer]] invention, Spike and Bumblebee stopped off at the [[Robots Video Arcade]], where Spike was approached by an older girl named [[Carly]]. When it turned out that all she wanted was to be introduced to Bumblebee, however, Spike excused himself and his Autobot buddy, and they had an eventful journey back to the base, enduring a policeman who questioned Spike's driving age and a surprise attack by [[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]]. Carly trailed them back, and then helped them out in their mission to reclaim the stolen Immobilizer from the Decepticons. At the adventure's end, Spike invited Carly out for a chocolate soda, beginning a romance between the two teens. {{storylink|The Immobilizer}}

When Spike and Chip came up with the idea of the Autobots racing for charity, they could never have predicted that the Decepticons would use it as an opportunity to trap the heroic robots in their vehicle modes with their new [[Transfixatron]]. Wheeljack and [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] managed to escape the paralyzing device's influence and created a [[Anti-transfixation grenade|grenade]] to undo its effects, and Chip and Spike outran Soundwave and his cassettes to detonate it in the Autobots' midst and save them. {{storylink|The Autobot Run}}

[[Image:Spike SemiNude.jpg|left|150px|thumb|We have hereby filled our beefcake quota for this Wiki. Move along.]]

After a lesson in how to play football, Spike went with a team of Autobots to investigate the underwater city of [[Sub-Atlantica]], and told them of the legend of [[Atlantis]] that was potentially inspired by it. {{storylink|Atlantis, Arise!}} Later, while investigating a Decepticon oil pumping platform, Spike was captured alongside Skyfire and Hound, but was able to effect their release by incapacitating their Decepticon guards with an electro-magnet. {{storylink|Day of the Machines}} Later still, Spike told the Autobots about ninjas when he attended the unveiling of [[Nightbird (G1)|Nightbird]]. {{storylink|Enter the Nightbird}}

When a mysterious second [[Optimus Prime clone|Optimus Prime]] appeared while the Autobots were investigating a crevice of [[korlonium crystal]]s, Spike proposed a series of tests to determine which was the real one. The tests failed, but the impostor Prime was revealed when he displayed no concern for Spike after the boy was captured by Megatron. His deception revealed, Megatron hurled Spike from his [[Incredibly tall rocket|rocket base]] to cover his retreat, but he was safely rescued by [[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]]. {{storylink|A Prime Problem}} Soon after, Spike joined the Autobots in battling the super-powered Insecticons, and bravely climbed Shrapnel's body to deliver by hand the antidote that stopped his over-charged frame from exploding. {{storylink|The Insecticon Syndrome}}

[[Image:Dinobotisland_ham_on_his_eggs.jpg|right|thumb|220px]]

The Autobots' discovery of a mysterious prehistoric island where dinosaurs still lived was a dream come true for Spike, and he christened the lost world "[[Dinobot Island (G1)|Dinobot Island]]" when Powerglide and the Dinobots took him there. After some perilous encounters with the local wildlife, however, Spike decided he would limit his dinosaur experiences to reading about them in [[Ere Cenozoique Periode Tertiaire|books]]. Powerglide returned Spike home, but while he and Bumblebee headed to the library, the Decepticons arrived on Dinobot Island and began draining its many sources of energy. This caused a series of time warps to open all over the world, including one that disgorged barbarians and woolly mammoths right into Spike and Bumblebee's path! The time-tossed creatures collapsed a building on top of the duo, {{storylink|Dinobot Island, Part 1}} but Bumblebee shielded Spike with his body, and the other Autobots soon arrived to dig them out and send the unwelcome visitors back through the time warp. {{storylink|Dinobot Island, Part 2}} A little later, Spike taught Optimus Prime how to play basketball. {{storylink|The Master Builders}}

[[Image:Masterplan_spike_cornered.jpg|left|thumb|220px]]

Spike believed it was "about time" when the mayor of [[Central City (Earth)|Central City]] decided to honor the Autobots with a holiday dedicated to them, but he was horrified when mayoral rival [[Shawn Berger]] interrupted the ceremony with a tape given to him by Megatron that framed the Autobots for energy theft. Naturally, Spike, his father and Chip were not fooled by the bogus footage, but unfortunately, they were about the only humans who stood by the Autobots. When the heroic robots went to trial, Spike left in the middle of the proceedings to try and locate some evidence to prove their innocence. He was successful, discovering more footage on the tape that revealed the "Autobots" on display as disguised Decepticons, but was then confronted by Ravage. {{storylink|Megatron's Master Plan, Part 1}} Escaping, Spike presented his evidence to the mayor, but it came too late: the Autobots had already been exiled from Earth, and the world was now celebrating the Decepticons. Megatron did not allow his pantomime to last long, however, announcing in a press conference his dominion over Central City. Spike was captured and put to work in a slave camp along with the rest of the city's population, but thankfully, before long, the Autobots returned to Earth to clear their names and rout the Decepticons. {{storylink|Megatron's Master Plan, Part 2}}

[[Image:Dotd_spike_carly_swoop.jpg|right|thumb|220px]]

Spike and Carly were enjoying themselves at an [[Fun A Rama Park|amusement park]] with Bumblebee, but the merriment had to come to an end so they could go to the airport and pick up Sparkplug. The airfield became a battlefield, however, when a [[Hangar|Decepticon base was discovered in a nearby hangar]] and the Dinobots were ordered in to attack. Badly damaged by the fight, the Dinobots decided to finally secede from the Autobots, but this could not have come at a worse time: no sooner had they left than the Autobots began to malfunction due to [[cybertonium]] deterioration. {{storylink|Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 1}} Spike and Carly volunteered to go to Cybertron to recover a fresh supply, but as soon as they had arrived, they fell afoul of Shockwave, and were forced to flee into the tiny tunnels honeycombing the planet. Heading for Wheeljack's lab, Spike and Carly encountered [[Swoop (G1)|Swoop]], who had come to Cybertron with the other Dinobots, but had been the only member of the team to avoid capture. With Swoop to help them, Spike and Carly navigated the ancient traps in the bowels of the planet, and even found a historical video records room that relayed for them the history of the Transformers' war. While watching the video, they were ambushed by Shockwave's [[Sentinel (G1)|sentinels]] and taken to join the other Dinobots in the cybertonium pits. The Dinobots had had their memory circuits bypassed to ensure their compliance, but Carly soon put their systems right, and they worked with the two humans to escape the pits, defeat their captors and return to Earth with enough cybertonium to repair all the Autobots. For their bravery, Spike and Carly were appointed [[Honorary Autobot]]s. {{storylink|Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 2}}

[[Image:Spike gets kissed.jpg|left|thumb|220px|Spike valiantly resists the princess' advances]]

Spike and Carly got to travel to the [[moon (moon)|moon]] when the Decepticons threatened the world with the [[Voltronic Galaxer]], {{storylink|Blaster Blues}} after which Spike went on an even greater journey: into the past! Along with [[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]] and [[Warpath (G1)|Warpath]], Spike followed a group of Decepticons through a relic called the [[Dragon Mound]], which transported them to 543 AD. There, Spike took an immediate liking to [[Nimue]], the daughter of a local nobleman, and tried to single-handedly rescue her when she was kidnapped by the Decepticons and their local ally, Sir [[Wigend du Blackthorne]]. Unfortunately, by the time Spike had scaled the tower Nimue was being held in (which was in and of itself a challenge thanks to the heavy suit of armor Hoist had made for him), she and Wigend had fallen in love and become engaged! Spike subsequently returned to the present with the Transformers, where we can only assume he didn't tell Carly about the hot medieval chick. {{storylink|A Decepticon Raider in King Arthur's Court}}

When several Autobots and Decepticons were lost in a space bridge accident, Spike was among those who huddled around Teletraan I as Chip tried to use the computer to locate them. {{storylink|Child's Play (episode)|Child's Play}} After the lost Transformers returned, Spike, Bumblebee and [[Cosmos (G1)|Cosmos]] were sent to the planet [[Floron III]] to recover [[robotic insecticide]] that would help deal with the threat of the Insecticons. Unfortunately, they also inadvertently brought back one of the planet's native lifeforms, the [[Morphobot]]s. {{storylink|Quest for Survival}}

[[Image:Gwlp_spike_and_astoria.jpg|right|thumb|220px]]

Spike was washed away in a flash flood caused by [[Astrotrain (G1)|Astrotrain]] and [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] when they started fighting for Decepticon leadership, but was rescued by Optimus Prime and carried to safety by Powerglide. {{storylink|Triple Takeover}} Later, Spike was working in his father's automotive garage when Powerglide dropped in with [[Astoria Carlton-Ritz]], a flighty heiress he had rescued from the Decepticons. Spike began hitting on Astoria when they were left along, but when he found that all she wanted to talk about was Powerglide, he grumpily returned to his work...at which point all his equipment started malfunctioning thanks to Astoria's tendency to jinx up machinery around her. We bet Spike didn't tell Carly about her, either. {{storylink|The Girl Who Loved Powerglide}}

[[Image:Hoisthollywoodflesheatinglava.jpg|left|thumb|From this angle, it looks like they're STANDING on the lava...|220px]]

When Hoist, Spike and Carly accidentally stumbled into the middle of a movie shoot, the movie's [[director]] decided to hire Hoist and some other Autobots on to star in his movie, and Spike and Carly were given free passes to the studio lot. While there, they discovered the Decepticons were also hiding out on the lot, searching for footage a film crew had accidentally taken of a secret cargo they were transporting. Spike and Carly were able to get hold of the negative the Decepticons were looking for, and fled (with some difficulty) through the myriad movie sets decorating the lot. Eventually, the Decepticons were tricked into believing the negative was destroyed when Hoist pretended to be evil and dropped it, Spike and Carly in a vat of lava... but of course, it was only movie magic. {{storylink|Hoist Goes Hollywood}}

Spike, Carly and Sparkplug were in the audience when [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] received the [[National Scientific Achievement]] award for his newest invention, [[Corrostop]]. {{storylink|Cosmic Rust (episode)|Cosmic Rust}} Later, when the [[Combaticon (G1)|Combaticons]] tried to plunge the Earth into the sun using the space bridge, Spike helped the Autobots find the missing space bridge control panel, and convinced Megatron to join forces with them to stop the Combaticons' plan. {{storylink|The Revenge of Bruticus}} For his final recorded adventure in the 20th century, Spike aided the Autobots in apprehending the [[Stunticon (G1)|Stunticons]], reacting with some distress to the sight of Optimus Prime playing "chicken" with [[Motormaster (G1)|Motormaster]]. {{storylink|Masquerade}}

[[Image:Spike ospit.jpg|right|220px|thumb|Oh, bother. How do you propose we solve our predicament at this moment?]]

Over the course of the next twenty years, Spike and Carly married and had a son named [[Daniel Witwicky (G1)|Daniel]]. Spike was even able to take a more active hand in the Transformers' battles, as he was given a transforming [[exosuit]]. In the course of these twenty years, the Decepticons finally conquered Cybertron, forcing the Autobots to relocate to their newly-built [[Autobot City]] on Earth, and to bases on two of Cybertron's moon. In the year 2005, the thirty-five-year-old Spike was stationed on [[Moonbase Two]] with Bumblebee when the Autobots decided to make their big push against the Decepticons, and he requested that [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] tell Daniel, on Earth, that he would be home soon.

[[Image:Tftm_spike_acid_drop.jpg|left|thumb|275px|And now he doesn't feel like swearing]]

Spike could never have predicted what would happen next. As he and Bumblebee watched, the monstrous planet [[Unicron]] appeared from the depths of space and consumed Moonbase One, with Moonbase Two next on the menu. Acting quickly, Spike and Bumblebee set a stockpile of explosives to blow up the moon right in Unicron's mouth as they escaped on a shuttlecraft. When the smoke cleared, however, they found that Unicron was completely uninjured, and a frustrated Spike expressed his discontent in a distinctly PG manner. Their craft was then caught in the suction from Unicron's mouth, and they were pulled in to the behemoth's digestive system, where they hung from a conveyor, waiting to be dropped into an acid pit. Thankfully, they were saved from his messy fate by Daniel, wearing an older version of Spike's exosuit, who shot the pit cover down just as they were dropped. Spike and his son escaped Unicron's body along with the other Autobots who had entered it, as the chaos-bringer exploded thanks to the power of the Autobot [[Matrix of Leadership]]. {{storylink|The Transformers: The Movie}}

Under their new leader, [[Hot Rod (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Rodimus Prime]], the Autobots subsequently forced the Decepticons off Cybertron and retook the planet. With Cybertron established as a force for good in the universe once more, Spike was appointed Earth's official ambassador to the planet. {{storylink|Madman's Paradise}}

[[Image:Ffod2_spike_wrestles_deliberata.jpg|right|thumb|220px]]

While attending the first [[Galactic Olympics]], Spike, [[Ultra Magnus (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Ultra Magnus]] and [[Kup (G1)|Kup]] were captured by a strike team of [[Sharkticon (G1)|Sharkticons]] that attacked the event. {{storylink|Five Faces of Darkness, Part 1}} They were taken to the planet [[Quintessa]], where the native [[Quintesson]]s questioned them, and then intended to put them to death. The trio tried rushing the aliens and taking [[Deliberata|one of their number]] captive, but the other Quintessons simply sentenced their comrade to death along with them, and they were all dropped into the Sharkticon pit together. At the last moment, a team of Autobots arrive to pluck them from the jaws of death, but the Quintessons then detonated a [[core bomb]] that blew up their planet and sent the Autobots and Spike hurtling through space. {{storylink|Five Faces of Darkness, Part 2}} They eventually landed on the planet [[Goo 8739B]], where they came under attack from the Decepticons, now allied with the Quintessons, {{storylink|Five Faces of Darkness, Part 3}} but they were soon rescued by the [[Junkion (species)|Junkions]]. {{storylink|Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4}} They returned to Cybertron, but the Decepticons and Quintessons pursued them, and ultimately, the aliens betrayed their allies when they activated a [[large switch]] that shut down Transformers all across the galaxy. Unfortunately for them, the Quintessons had not reckoned with Spike, who used the paralyzed Rodimus Prime's gun to destroy the switch, undoing its effects. {{storylink|Five Faces of Darkness, Part 5}}

[[Image:Madmansparadise_witwicky_future_duds.jpg|left|thumb|220px]]

In 2006, while fleeing from a Decepticon attack, Spike, Daniel and a team of Autobots took refuge in the colossal [[Autobot Mausoleum|mausoleum]] the Autobots had built to hold the bodies of their fallen warriors. There, they discovered that Optimus Prime was apparently not dead after all, as he appeared to see the Decepticons off. Rodimus quickly returned the Matrix to his old leader, at which point Optimus was revealed to simply be a re-animated Quintesson pawn who activated the mausoleum's self-destruct sequence and left Spike and the others to die in the mausoleum. Luckily, they were able to hastily construct an improvised craft to get themselves to safety. {{storylink|Dark Awakening}}

Despite preparations for the first major peace conference on Cybertron taking up most of his time, Spike was still able to organize a surprise party for Daniel's birthday. This gave Daniel the idea to have a party for Ultra Magnus, however, and he proceeded to get in a lot of trouble trying to find out the Autobot's birthday. Once Daniel had been rescued from the Decepticons' clutches, Spike decided that they would just appoint that day as Ultra Magnus's birthday. {{storylink|Surprise Party}} Later, he welcomed the ambassador from [[Odessix]], [[Ynara]], to Cybertron, and had to make a few apologies for the bored Daniel's brusque behavior. Daniel subsequently went missing (in actuality, he was transported to the other-dimensional world of [[Menonia]]), but Carly told Spike to stay at the party while she and [[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]] went looking. {{storylink|Madman's Paradise}}

[[Image:Ultimateweapon_spike_steals_cog.jpg|right|thumb|220px]]

When Daniel began suffering nightmares, Spike and Carly called on Rodimus Prime to help ease the boy's troubles. {{storylink|Nightmare Planet}} A little later, Spike accompanied Kup on a security inspection of [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]], during which Starscream's ghost and [[Scourge (G1)|Scourge]] tried to steal the giant Autobot's eyes. Spike and Bumblebee teamed up to investigate, and caught the villains in the act. {{storylink|Ghost in the Machine}} Spike also helped Rodimus Prime moderate peace talks between the planets [[Xetaxxis]] and [[Lanarq]], {{storylink|The Quintesson Journal}} after which he and Daniel helped the Autobots by posing as human repairmen to sneak inside [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]] and steal his [[transforming cog]]. {{storylink|The Ultimate Weapon}}

[[Image:Rebirth_1_Autobot_heads.JPG|left|thumb|220px|Guess which one the marble is under?]]

In 2007, Spike was on Cybertron when the Decepticons launched a massive attack on the planet with the intention of taking control of the legendary [[Plasma energy|Plasma Energy Chamber]]. Together with a team of Autobots, Spike pursued Scourge deep into the planet, where a blast of energy from the Plasma Energy Chamber struck their craft and overloaded its engines, sending them careening across the galaxy, wildly out of control. They eventually crashed on the planet [[Nebulos]], where they ran afoul of a cell of rebel Nebulans who were fighting against the [[Hive (G1)|Hive]], the tyrannical rulers of their planet, and mistook the Autobots for their robot servants. Spike tried to talk the Nebulans out of destroying the captured Autobots, but it took the arrival of the Decepticons for the Nebulans to risk releasing their prisoners to help them fight back. During the battle, several Autobots were captured, forcing the Autobots and Nebulans to take a drastic step: to fight back against the Decepticons and the Hive, four Nebulans and four Autobots volunteered to undergo a process developed by [[Brainstorm]] that would merge them together into [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmasters]]. {{storylink|The Rebirth, Part 1}} Spike carried out the biotechnological modifications, following Brainstorm's design, and in addition to the Nebulans, also bonded Daniel to [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] at her request in order to save his life. The Decepticons subsequently emulated the Autobots' Headmaster process with members of the Hive, and also modified the process to create [[Targetmaster]]s. The Autobots didn't rest on their laurels, and Spike again helped modify six of the rebel sharpshooters to become Autobot Targetmasters themselves. {{storylink|The Rebirth, Part 2}}

[[Image:SpikeHeadmasterRebirth1.jpg|right|thumb]]

To battle against [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]], the gigantic robot created by Hive leader Lord [[Zarak (G1)|Zarak]] from the Hive's own subterranean city, Spike had the pacifistic Autobot [[Cerebros (G1)|Cerebros]] lead him to the Hive's old, abandoned surface city, which he had previously discovered while wandering the planet. There, Spike used the city's old machines to reconstruct it, Cerebros and himself, bonding them all together into the mighty [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]]. Spike flew his new creation to Cybertron (which the Decepticons have moved into the vicinity of Earth with a giant rocket engine in his absence), where he battled and defeated Scorponok and rescued Daniel and the captive Autobots within the giant robot's city banks. The Decepticons, however, had already opened the Plasma Energy Chamber, which threatened to drive the [[Sun]] nova and destroy Earth, Cybertron and the entire [[solar system]]. As they were organic and unaffected by the chamber's energy, Spike and the Nebulons were able to act quickly to save the planet by shutting the chamber down and reversing the Decepticons' rocket to draw off the excess solar energy. This energy was funnelled into [[Vector Sigma]], revitalizing Cybetron and bringing about a new [[Golden Age]]. Despite all of this, Cerebros was insistent that Spike deactivate him so that he would never have to fight again...but quickly changed his tune when Spike transformed back into his head so that he could see the beauty of the restored planet. Optimus Prime subsequently appointed Cerebros as guardian of Nebulos, where he and the other Autobot Headmasters would root out and destroy the lingering influence of the Hive, after which Cerebros would live on the planet as its guardian. What this meant for Spike, however, was never revealed. {{storylink|The Rebirth, Part 3}}
{{--}}

====Madman ''The Transformers'' comic====
[[Image:Madman comic Spike AutobotCity.jpg|thumb|left|200px|]]
In the year 2001, Spike Witwicky was overseeing the construction of [[Autobot City]] when his friend [[Hot Rod (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Hot Rod]] complained about the fact he was stuck on guard duty while the rest of the Autobots forces were fighting a rearguard action during the evacuation of Cybertron. Spike tries to cheer him up, assuring the young Autobot that his time is coming, and for now, just to enjoy the view of the future Autobot City. While Hot Rod rambled on about Optimus Prime bravely fighting off Decepticons single-handedly, Spike spotted [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] and his minions up to no good on the dig site, and Hot Rod sprang into action. The young Autobot prevented the Decepticons from stealing the Autobot Matrix of Leadership, and during the struggle, the Autobot artifact spoke to him with Spike's own words of encouragement. {{Storylink|The Transformers (Madman)|The Transformers}}

{{-}}
====Japanese cartoon continuity====
{{note|The events of the American animated series occur in Japanese continuity as noted above, except that the events of Season 3, which took place in 2006 in America, were moved back to 2010, and the events of "The Rebirth" do not occur. Japanese animated continuity inserts several additional stories into the timeline, as detailed below.}}

=====Scramble City: Mobilization=====
[[Image:Scramblecity spike and bee.jpg|right|thumb|220px]]

In the late 1980s, the Autobots began work on a mobile battle fortress dubbed "[[Metroplex (G1)|Scramble City]]", and began construction of the massive structure in a subterranean cavern. Spike helped the Autobots work on the project along with [[Carly]], [[Sparkplug Witwicky|his father]] and [[Chip Chase|Chip]], and while welding a section of machinery, he was approached by Bumblebee with the prospect of taking a quick break from the labor. {{storylink|Scramble City: Mobilization}}
{{--}}
=====''The Great Transformer War'' comic=====
[[Image:Greattfwar spike in exosuit.jpg|left|thumb|220px]]

After the [[Terrorcon (G1)|Terrorcons]] brainwashed [[Computron (G1)|Computron]] into becoming a [[Decepticon]] with [[Cohesive Control Liquid]], Spike donned a modified [[exosuit]] and lasergun to save his Autobot friends. Daniel initially asked to go, but Spike forbid him, as the mission was too dangerous. Dodging Computron's laserfire, Spike burned the control liquid off with his lasergun, freeing Computron from the Terrorcons's hold. Computron immediately defeated the Decepticons and sent them fleeing. {{storylink|The Great Transformer War issue 2|The Great Transformer War #2}}
{{--}}
=====''The Headmasters'' cartoon=====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Masashi Ebara]] (Japanese)

[[Image:Hm1 tea with witwickys.jpg|right|thumb|220px]]

In the year that followed the resurrection of Optimus Prime, Spike spent most of his time on Cybertron, actively working as a liaison between the Autobots and humanity to develop new sources of energy. In 2011, Spike was enjoying a cup of tea with Carly in [[Great Dome|Autobot Base]] on Cybertron when the Decepticons suddenly launched a massive offensive against the planet, backed up with the added power of their new Headmaster warriors. Spike quickly contacted Optimus Prime at the Autobots' secondary command post on the planet [[Athenia]], and then withdrew to the safety of Athenia himself once reinforcements arrived on Cybertron. {{storylink|Four Warriors Come out of the Sky}} Optimus Prime himself was among the Autobots who went to Cybertron, intending to stabilize Vector Sigma, which had begun to run out of control. Spike had researched the computer and claimed there was no way to stop it without the Matrix, which was precisely what Prime didn't have. Daniel was concerned for Prime, but Spike assured him he would be fine. {{storylink|The Mystery of Planet Master}} He wasn't, though. He died. Again. {{storylink|Birth of the Fantastic Double Prime}}

[[Image:Hm6 unexplained injuries.jpg|left|thumb|220px]]

When Spike next appeared, he had sustained some serious injuries through unexplained means. Although he was on the mend, it meant he was not fit for a mission that required a human agent: the disabling of a [[Metamorphose|metal-warping meteor]] that the Decepticons had set on collison course with Athenia. Daniel volunteered to go in his place, and Spike, impressed with his bravery, allowed it. {{storylink|Approach of the Demon Meteorite}}

After Cybertron was destroyed thanks to the machinations of Decepticon Headmaster leader [[Scorponok (G1)#Japanese cartoon continuity|Scorponok]], Spike moved his family and his research to Athenia. Soon after this, Spike supervised the launch of the [[Sol 1]] satellite, a solar energy satellite built by both humans and Transformers that served as a symbol of unity between their two planets. Unfortunately, the Decepticons stole it. {{storylink|The Shadow Emperor, Scorponok}} Later, Spike went with the Autobots to help evacuate the residents of a South American village that was threatened by a volcanic eruption, {{storylink|The Dormant Volcano Mysteriously Erupts}} and was menaced on Athenia by [[buridanka|an ambulatory monster-plant]] from [[Darhos]]. {{storylink|Head On!! Fortress Maximus}}

[[Image:Hm14 mars survey.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]

While conducting a geographic survey on [[Mars (planet)|Mars]] with a view to terraforming the planet, Spike, Daniel, [[Wheelie (G1)|Wheelie]] and the [[Trainbot]]s discovered a Decepticon plot to destroy the red planet with plasma energy bombs. The Autobot Headmasters were called in while Spike, Daniel and Wheelie returned to Athenia, {{storylink|Explosion on Mars!! Maximus Is in Danger}} but alas, the four young heroes were not able to stop Mars from being blown up. {{storylink|Explosion on Mars!! MegaZarak Appears}} Spike subsequently scanned the remains of the planet with Arcee and [[Broadside (G1)|Broadside]], and they concluded that the gravimetric balance of the solar system had been badly damaged. Spike feared that the destruction of another planet by the Decepticons would utterly destroy the whole system. {{storylink|Return of the Immortal Emperor}}

When the Autobots received an distress signal from the planet [[Sandra (planet)|Sandra]] in a parallel dimension, which was running critically low on energy, Spike was unsure whether or not they should risk giving up any of their own carefully-managed energy supply. He was eventually convinced that it was the right way to proceed, and even allowed Daniel and Wheelie to travel to Sandra with him and the Headmasters on the basis that it would be a good experience for them. Spike got very philosophical once they were on Sandra, remarking that all resources tend to run out eventually, and lamenting that Earth could face the same fate as Sandra if they weren't careful. {{storylink|SOS from Planet Sandra}}

[[Image:Hm18 negotiating with galvatron.jpg|left|thumb|220px|We aren't negotiating in good faith? We went through a lot of trouble to make a wicker chair that would support your weight.]]

His fears for the safety of the universe growing since the destruction of Mars, Spike stunned the Autobots when he announced his intention to negotiate with Galvatron the possibility of the Autobots and Decepticons allying to create a joint energy development programme. Even more surprising was that Galvatron ''agreed'', on the condition that Spike bring Carly and Daniel with him, that the Decepticons might hold them hostage so that the negotiations could be held in "good faith". Negotiations proceeded badly, with Galvatron accusing Spike of arguing from a non-neutral position, given that he lived with the Autobots on Athenia, instead of his native Earth. Galvatron instructed Spike to leave his "most precious thing" on Earth to prove his neutrality: his son, Daniel! Daniel reluctantly agreed to stay on Earth, and Carly decided to stay with him, meaning that Spike would be separated from his whole family in the pursuit of peace. As it turned out, however, Spike wasn't actually negotiating with Galvatron at all: a transmission from [[Chaar]] by the Autobot spy [[Punch (G1)|Punch]] revealed that the real Galvatron was still there, and that Spike was conversing with a disguised [[Sixshot]]! The Decepticons were using the peace talks as a cover to embark on an interplanetary energy quest, and the Autobots were left in the dust as a consequence. As the Autobots prepared to follow the villains, Daniel insisted that he be allowed to go to defend his family honor, and Spike and Carly were silently proud of their determined son. {{storylink|Daniel Faces His Biggest Crisis Ever!!}}

[[Image:Hm26 telekinetic operation.jpg|right|thumb|220px]]

The Autobots' return to Earth some time later heralded a great loss, as Ultra Magnus soon died in battle with Sixshot, and Spike wept at his funeral. {{storylink|Ultra Magnus Dies!!}} Decepticon attacks continued with increased ferocity around the globe, angering Spike, {{storylink|The Emperor of Destruction Vanishes on an Iceberg}} but he did not let these tragedies deter him from his work. While attending a summit on Earth to discuss using the planet's volcanoes for power, he realized that the Decepticons' recent activities had been focused on the [[Pacific Ring of Fire]]. When he returned to Autobot City to present his findings, however, the city came under attack by Trypticon and Sixshot, and Spike was wounded by a stray laser blast. With all of the Headmasters' technology unable to remove a large chunk of shrapnel embedded in one of his arteries, Spike told Daniel to remain strong even in the face of his death, and to take his place as Earth's envoy to the Autobots. Luckily, this wasn't necessary: in a drastic step that used up all of his energy, [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress]] used his telekinetic powers to dissolve the shrapnel and save Spike's life. {{storylink|I Risk My Life for Earth}}

In a major subsequent battle, the Autobots were able to force the Decepticons to withdraw from Earth, seemingly for good. Fortress appointed Spike head of the clean-up operation to remove all traces of the villains' memory from Earth, and Spike started by organizing an Autobot wrecking crew to destroy the Decepticons' desert Earth headquarters. {{storylink|Miraculous Warriors, Targetmasters (Part 1)}} News soon reached the Autobots on Earth that the Decepticons had returned to the Headmasters' home planet, [[Master (planet)|Master]], and Daniel petitioned Spike to be allowed to accompany the Headmasters there. Carly was unwilling to let him go, but Spike decided it'd be good for his character, and asked Fortress to let Daniel go with them. {{storylink|Miraculous Warriors, Targetmasters (Part 2)}} Spike watched as the worried Carly cooked up some [[space ration]]s for Daniel to take with him. {{storylink|My Friend Sixshot!}}

[[Image:Hm35 witwickys goodbye.jpg|left|thumb|220px]]

Unfortunately for the Earth, the Decepticons would eventually return, just as Earth's restoration programme was entering a critical phase. With Fortress and the other Headmasters not yet back from Master, Spike was left to co-ordinate the Autobot counter-attack to the Decepticons' renewed offensive, and headed to Santiago, [[Chile]] with Carly to investigate the emergence of a strange metal tower there. On the way, his plane was forced to make an emergency landing in the Andes, where Carly and several other passengers fell into a crevasse. Simultaneously, Fortress's team returned to Earth, and Daniel immediately set out to help his parents. Spike attempted to descend into the crevice himself despite his injuries, and was surprised when Daniel stopped him and insisted that he rescue his mother personally. Daniel performed the task admirably, and Spike could see that his boy had grown into a man. {{storylink|The Final Showdown on Earth (Part 1)}} When the message came in for the Autobots to gather for the final battle with the Decepticons, Spike told Daniel that he would look after Carly so that he could join his friends in the fight.

Following the Decepticons' ultimate defeat in a colossal battle royal at the North Pole, which saw the evil robots at last forced off Earth, the Autobots prepared to depart the planet as well. Spike, Carly and Daniel gathered to bid farewell to their long-time friends, and Spike was determined that the goodbye should be a happy one, since, while the Transformers were leaving, the peace they had brought to the planet was there to stay. {{storylink|The Final Showdown on Earth (Part 2)}}

=====''The Headmasters'' comic=====

[[Image:Hm_manga8_spike_vs_slugfest.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]

After the Decepticons' defeat at the North Pole, but shortly before the Autobots' departure from Earth, Spike was out walking with Carly, Daniel, Wheelie and Chromedome when they were attacked by [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundblaster]]. [[Slugfest (G1)|Slugfest]] charged at Daniel, but Spike leapt into his path and was injured, driving Daniel furious. The youth leapt onto Slugfest and covered his eyes, tricking him into blasting [[Overkill (G1)|Overkill]] and freeing up Chromedome to take Soundblaster down.

A little later, after the Autobots had left, Spike, Daniel and Carly were seen happily running along a beach. {{storylink|The Headmasters issue 8}}
{{--}}

===Marvel Comics continuity===
====Generation 1====
{{noteukonly}}

Spike Witwicky was away at college for the first few years of the Autobot/Decepticon war on Earth until he returned home to find his younger brother [[Buster Witwicky (G1)|Buster]] kidnapped by the Decepticons. Spike soon became the binary-bond partner to the [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]] [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]], after Fortress Maximus' first partner, [[Galen|Galen]], was killed in a battle with the Decepticon [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]]. {{storylink|Trial by Fire!}}

Thereafter he struggled with balancing his responsibilities to his family with those to the Autobots. Once Buster was rescued, and with [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Optimus Prime]] returned to life to take his place as Autobot leader, Spike went into retirement, mothballing poor Max. This retirement wouldn't last however as it was interrupted, first by a pair of Decepticon [[Pretender|Pretenders]], {{storylink|The Man in the Machine!}} then by the crash of the [[Ark (G1)|Ark]] and a raving [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]]. {{storylink|The Last Autobot?}} Through the course of these conflicts Spike learned that the [[Binary bonding|binary bonding]] he had undergone with Maximus was far deeper and more permanent than he'd believed. Fortress Maximus was always there with him in his head, always a part of him. After his battle with Galvatron he seemed to have made peace with his connection to Fortress Maximus and his role as (perhaps) the last Autobot protector of Earth.

[[Image:Spikewitwicky2009.jpg|right|150px|thumb|In 2009, jheri curls return with a vengeance. Just you wait.]]

[[Image:Spikewitwickytimewars.jpg|left|150px|thumb|White jumpsuits were so 2006.]]

''In an alternate timeline in the year 2009, Decepticons had built a machine to destroy Earth while a space-time anomaly was eating entire planets. After [[Hot Rod (G1)|Rodimus Prime]] orchestrated a plan to travel twenty years back in time to the source of the anomaly, Spike Witwicky and his son Daniel accused Rodimus of shirking his responsibilities towards Earth and guilted Rodimus into allotting more troops to help destroy the Decepticons' machine. {{storylink|Time Wars (issue)|Time Wars}}''

In another alternate timeline in the year 2009, Spike Witwicky was part of a very small Autobot/human resistance movement in a world where [[Galvatron II|Galvatron II]]'s Decepticons controlled North America. The handful of Autobots who remained alive despaired and were on the cusp of giving up, but Spike and [[Lisa]] (who shared growing feelings for each other) guilted them into one last suicidal attack on Decepticon headquarters in New York before the rest of the world could unleash a nuclear holocaust onto America at midnight. Though there were several casualties, Spike managed to hoist an American flag on the Decepticon stronghold on live television, a symbolic measure which prompted the end of the planned nuclear strike. Before Galvatron II could respond, the Decepticon despot was abducted by [[Hook, Line, and Sinker|Hook, Line, and Sinker]] into another timeline. {{storylink|Rhythms of Darkness!}}
{{-}}

====''Generation 2''====
[[Image:Spikewitwickyg2.jpg|left|100px|thumb|Now the jumpsuit's in BROWN?]]
Spike followed up on the now [[Megatron (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Megatron]]-controlled Ark, which he'd apparently stuffed Fortress Maximus aboard and then abandoned after his battle with Galvatron (great job protecting Earth there, "Last Autobot").

He reunited with Maximus and together they... um, sort of stopped Megatron (well, delayed him a little... maybe) by throwing themselves into the ship's [[antimatter]] core.

He blowed up '''real''' good. {{storylink|All or Nothing!}}
{{-}}

===Dreamwave comics continuity===
It's to be assumed that Spike and his father, Sparkplug, met the Autobots early on in their time on Earth (in a similar fashion as Spike and Sparkplug did in the cartoon, or Buster and Sparkplug did in the Marvel Comics). Spike definitely had a younger brother named Buster (as in the Marvel comics), yet it was Spike who formed a close friendship with Bumblebee (as in the cartoon, rather than missing out on the first few years of the Witwicky family's interaction with the Transformers while engaging in drinking orgies at college, as he did in the Marvel comics). The exact details of the Witwickys' early years as the Autobots' human associates are therefore not known.

Somewhere in the time after 1984, Spike married Carly, who then gave birth to Spike's son, Daniel. After the explosion of the ''[[Ark II]]'' in 1999, which caused the death of Spike's father Sparkplug, Spike tried to leave his involvement with the Transformers behind and settled down with his wife and son in Cleveland, Ohio, trying to live a new life as a normal family. The newfound peace wouldn't last for long, though, as Spike was soon recruited by a shady military official named [[Robert Hallo|General Hallo]] seeking his help in reviving Optimus Prime, whose body his men had recently found in the Arctic. Spike, who had been entrusted by Prime with a fragment of the Matrix, used that fragment to bring Prime back to life. {{storylink|Prime Directive issue 1|Prime Directive #1}} {{storylink|Prime Directive issue 2|Prime Directive #2}}

Prime subsequently used the Matrix to revive and assemble a group of his Autobots, which he would then lead against Megatron's Decepticons. Meanwhile, Spike was imprisoned by General Hallo, who had double motives behind reviving the Autobots and even tried to kill them by bombing them. With the help of [[Larry|Larry, the World's Most Resourceful Janitor]], Spike was able to escape his cell and uncover Hallo's sinister schemes, but not in time to stop him from launching a nuclear strike against the Autobots which was ultimately averted when [[Superion (G1)|Superion]] sacrificed his life in order to make it detonate before it could reach its target. {{storylink|Prime Directive issue 5|Prime Directive #5}} {{storylink|Prime Directive issue 6|Prime Directive #6}}

Following these events, Spike once again returned to his family and tried to leave his past with the Transformers behind. A few months later, though, his old friend Bumblebee, who had just decided to quit the Autobot army following a fierce battle against [[Sunstorm (G1)|Sunstorm]], showed up by his house. Spike, frustrated that the Autobots refused to leave him alone, hurled a few nasty insults against his old buddy before changing his mind and joining him on a men's night out in the city, where they stopped a mugging. {{storylink|Lost and Found (issue)|Lost and Found}} The follow-up scene of Carly shouting at Spike singing drinking songs with Bumblebee was never published due to the untimely faltering of Dreamwave. It also means we will never know if Spike and Bumblebee formed a crime fighting duo.

===''G.I. Joe vs the Transformers''===
In response to the forming of the terrorist organization [[Cobra|Cobra]] and its commandeered Transformers, the United States government assembled a strike team dubbed [[G.I. Joe (team)|G.I. Joe]]. Spike Witwicky (codename Spike) was listed on the roster, but was never seen. {{storylink|G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers issue 2|G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers #2}}

===''Transformers Legends''===
Spike was out driving with Bumblebee and Hound when, to their surprise, they stumbled on a badly-damaged Starscream. Though Spike was all in favor of leaving the Decepticon there, Bumblebee insisted they take Starscream back to the [[Ark (G1)|Ark]] with them. {{storylink|Redemption Center}}

Bumblebee gave Spike a ride to his high school, but while Spike was in class, his Autobot pal got carjacked. When Spike emerged, he found a smug Bumblebee sitting in the carpark with two wet seats. {{storylink|Joyride (story)|Joyride}}

===IDW comics continuity===
[[Image:Spikewitwickybuttonflies.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Hey, remember above, when we said we filled the beefcake quota for the wiki? We lied!]]In the wake of the Decepticons' devastating attack on Earth, Commander Spike Witwicky met his dad, Colonel "Sparkplug" Witwicky, inside a secret bunker where the remnants of the United States military had gathered to mount a desperate counteroffensive. Regrettably, Sparkplug had selected Spike for a mission to assassinate the leader of the Decepticons, Megatron, even though he feared his son would not make it back. It was a suicide mission, but Spike was the most qualified. Spike accepted, despite the consequences, but ignored his father's pleas for him to call his worried mother first.

During the night, he and a team snuck into [[New York City]] by boat, but they were discovered by [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]]. With one dive, the boat and its occupants were dashed to bits under the water, and Spike's signal was destroyed. Learning his son was dead, Sparkplug, in shock, believed it was he who had not only sent his son to die, but had inspired Spike to join the military in the first place. But unknown to Sparkplug, his son surfaced on the shore of New York, perfectly alive... {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 5|All Hail Megatron #5}}

Stealing new pants from an abandoned [[Gloomingdales]], Spike ran into the leaders of the underground human resistance movement, who were looking for supplies. Spike took [[Bridge]] and [[Sarah]] into an abandoned office building to discuss gathering the resistance and assassinating Megatron. But first, Spike took them into a disguised military facility where he retrieved a weapon created from studying [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]]'s gun arm. Their quick escape was cut short, since [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] was causing a ruckus outside. Telling the others to run for cover, Spike ducked into a building and then reappeared when he drove a motorcycle through an upstairs window, firing a small pistol. This distracted Rumble long enough for [[Charles (G1)|Charles]] to shoot him right in the face. Rumble's defeat was followed by a overcoming sonic screech, and as Soundwave arrived to sadly take Rumble's body away, it seemed the city's electronic blackout was over. Phones were working again, and so Spike called his father. He learned not only that his father thought he was dead, but that there was nothing they could do to prevent other nations from unleashing a nuclear onslaught across North America. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 9|All Hail Megatron #9}}

Later, Spike, Sarah, Bridge and Charles ran out of a half-demolished building, passing [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]], who was slagging the [[European Union]] jets. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 11|All Hail Megatron #11}}

He and his party set up a better sniper position in a nearby building, where they watched [[Megatron (G1)|two]] [[Optimus Prime (G1)|robots]] fight each other. When Megatron eventually bested Optimus, Spike decided it was time to intervene. He charged the weapon and blasted Megatron's face, allowing Optimus to defeat him. Later, [[Hound (G1)|Hound]] found him and brought him to Optimus Prime. Prime offered to help Spike and the rest of the humans rebuild their planet. Spike thanked Prime for his thought, but said that there was no chance of the Transformers and the humans reconciling. As he put it, Optimus' "kind" caused all the destruction, and that any chance of an alliance was gone. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 12|All Hail Megatron #12}}

[[Image:SpikeWitwickyG1-ManofSteel.jpg|right|thumb|200px|"All right, guys, who ordered me the strippers?"]]

After the Decepticons' defeat, they abandoned Earth, leaving Ravage and others behind. Spike Witwicky headed a military regiment to hunt down surviving Transformers and found Ravage in an abandoned building. Ravage attacked Spike but got blasted for his efforts. At least he put Spike in the hospital, though. Sparkplug became the new head of [[Skywatch]] and requested Spike join his task force of ridding the planet of Transformers. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 16|The Man of Steel}}

[[Image:Ongoing Issue 2 Spike one night stand.jpg|left|thumb|200px|[[Andy Schmidt|"Our new Transformers ongoing is totally kid-friendly! Honest!"]] ]]

Two years after the events of ''AHM'', Spike was still part of the Transformer-hunting team. With his amazing [[Crash suit]], he quickly contained the Decepticon [[Breakdown (G1)|Breakdown]] which subsequently drew the watching [[Prowl (G1)#IDW comics continuity|Prowl]] out of hiding. Then he drove away in the contained Breakdown {{storylink|...For All Mankind}} for a one-night stand with a [[Spike's booty call|local stripper]]. He came back to the Skywatch HQ after being alerted to Optimus' surrender. His father reprimanded him for being offsite for Prowl's liberation and Optimus' surrender, so to prove himself, Spike went to interrogate Optimus. {{storylink|New Arrivals, Old Encounters}}

{{charstubfiction}}
{{storylink|A Rude Awakening}}
{{storylink|Seasons in Flight}}
{{storylink|Enemies of the System}}
{{storylink|Earthworks}}
{{storylink|All His Engines}}
{{storylink|Scrapper (issue)|Scrapper}}
{{storylink|International Incident Part 1: "The Land Ironclads"}}
{{storylink|International Incident Part 2: "Ranks of Bronze"}}
{{--}}

==Toys==
===Generation 1===
[[Image:Spikeheadmastertoy.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Finally, your favorite Transformers character!]]
* '''Fortress Maximus''' (Headmaster, 1987)

:Spike was a [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]] figure who came with [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]]. Gray and blue, he transformed into [[Cerebros (G1)|Cerebros]]' head, who then in turn became Fortress Maximus' head. Although the on-package [[Bio|bio]] referred to 'the Nebulan leader, Spike', most assume it was supposed to represent the character from TV, making this the first Transformers toy of an Earth human.

:This toy was [[Repurposing|repurposed]] as [[Galen]], and [[Redeco|redecoed]] as [[Gran]], ''[[Robots in Disguise (toyline)|Robots in Disguise]]'' [[Cerebros (RID)|Cerebros]] and ''[[Robot Masters (franchise)|Robot Masters]]'' [[Master (RM)|Master]].
::*''[http://www.tfu.info/1987/Autobot/FortressMaximus/fortressmaximus.htm More information on Spike (with Fortress Maximus) at TFU.info]''

{{--}}

==Merchandise==
===Super Collection Figure===

[[Image:SCF-Bumblebee-Spike.JPG|right|200px|thumb|Spike says "How."]]
*'''Bumble and Spike''' (Act 3, 2001)
**''Japanese ID Number'': '''5''' (painted) '''6''' (clear)

:[[Plastic|PVC]] figurines of Spike and [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] were sold together in the third act of [[TakaraTomy|Takara]]'s [[Super Collection Figure]] series. Like all the figures in the wave, the pair were available as both regular full-color figures and clear plastic versions, one of each of which was available in a standard case of twelve [[blindpacking|blindpacked]] figures. The full-color version of the set came packaged with the torso piece of the wave's Fortress Maximus "build-a-figure".

===Heroes of Cybertron===
*'''Autobot Espionage Team''' (2003)

:''Super Collection Figure'' Spike and Bumblebee were later released by [[Hasbro]] as part of their ''[[Heroes of Cybertron]]'' line, sold under the name "Autobot Espionage Team," as Hasbro did not have the trademark rights to Bumblebee's name at this point in time. Unlike the blindpacked Japanese version, they were sold on an individual blister card, and came packaged with the right leg of the Fortress Maximus figure.
{{--}}

==Notes==
*Spike and Buster were both derived from the same "young male human friend" character in early backstory material. For more on the name variation see [[Butch Witwicky (G1)|Butch Witwicky]].
* Apparently Spike Witwicky is named after a person in real life! According to the [[BotCon 2010]] panel hosted by [[Bob Budiansky]], [[Jim Shooter]] (editor in-chief at [[Marvel Comics|Marvel]] at the time) chose the name based on one of his real life friends. The name Witwicky had previously showed up in Marvel's ''Dazzler'' comics, as co-plotted by Shooter.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Spike Witwicky''' (スパイク・ウィトウィッキー ''Supaiku Witowikkī'')
*''English:'' '''Sparkle''' ([[Omni Productions]] dub)
*''French:'' '''La Flèche''' (Canada, "The Arrow")
*''Hungarian:'' '''Csuka''' (''The Movie'', "Pike")
*''Ukrainian:'' '''Spys''' ("Spear")

==External links==
*[http://www.ntfa.net/universe/english/index.php?act=view&char=Fortress_Maximus Fortress Maximus's ''Universe'' profile (with Spike) at NFTA.net]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Witwicky, Spike (G1)}}
[[Category:G.I. Joe]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Autobots]]
[[Category:Generation 1 humans]]
[[Category:Generation 2 humans]]
[[Category:Headmasters]]
[[Category:Scientists]]
[[Category:Skywatch]]
[[Category:The Headmasters humans]]
[[Category:United States military officers]]
[[Category:Witwicky family|Spike Witwicky (G1)]]

Lightfoot (G1)

2011-06-28T11:51:57Z

93.75.235.114: /* Foreign names */

{{factions|{{factions/icons|custom=Red_maple_leaf.png|cSize=27x30px|cLink=Canada}}|autobot}}
{{disambig2|the Canadian Godmaster from Masterforce|the Autobot Rotor Force member from G2|Leadfoot (G2)|Leadfoot}}
:''Lightfoot is a [[human]] and [[Autobot]] [[Godmaster]] from the [[Super-God Masterforce (franchise)|Super-God Masterforce]] portion of the [[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]] [[continuity family]].''

[[Image:Lightfoot human.jpg|right|320px|thumb|With all their beady little eyes, and flappin' heads so full of lies.]]
'''Lightfoot''' (ライトフット ''Raitofutto'') was born in [[United Kingdom|England]] and raised in [[Canada]], and at seventeen years old, is heir to the prestigious [[British Motors]] automotive company founded by his father, [[Leftfoot]]. Although positively ''rolling'' in money and prestige, Lightfoot has been raised to never forget his humble beginnings, and has grown up to be a gentle, polite, well-spoken man who only ever puts his position to use if it will help one of his friends. His desire to protect his fellow man makes him a natural Autobot, but there ''are'' times when he's entirely ''too'' willing to sacrifice himself for the sake of someone else.

As an [[Autobot]] [[Godmaster]], Lightfoot is bonded to a [[Transtector]] from the [[G Nebula 89|G Nebula]] which takes the form of a sports car able to attain speeds of Mach 10. Like all Godmasters, he is endowed with the ability to manipulate [[Chōkon Power]], with his specialty being the control of water. This power is epitomized in his “Land Waterfall” attack, which allows him to strike his enemies down with high-pressure jets of water summoned up from beneath the earth.

==Fiction==
===Cartoon continuity===
====''Super-God Masterforce'' cartoon====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Tsutomu Kashiwakura]] (Japan)

[[Image:Lightfoot baby.jpg|left|180px|thumb|Barely out of the womb, and he's in a toque.]]
When Lightfoot was born, his father, Leftfoot, was working in a run-down automotive repair shop in England with dreams of designing and building cars himself. Moving the family to Canada in pursuit of his dream, Leftfoot toiled to create the prototype for his first car design, even mining his own ore. Leftfoot finally completed his prototype on the night of Lightfoot's second birthday, but as the family slept that night, the car erupted with iridescent light, which shone through the windows of their house and bathed the infant Lightfoot in its glow. It would be years before the truth was ever known, but Lightfoot's father had, in fact, discovered one of the [[Transtector]]s hidden on [[Earth]] by the evil alien [[Devil Z]], and mined this strange black rock as ore that he used in the construction of his car. The car proved to be a monumental success, and ultimately led to Leftfoot founding his own engineering company, British Motors. {{storylink|Lightfoot: A Dramatic Encounter}}

[[Image:Lightfoot armor.jpg|right|210px|thumb|So excited, all six of his nipples are tingling.]]
Fifteen years later, Leftfoot gifted the original car to Lightfoot for his seventeenth birthday, but after driving it for the first time, Lightfoot found his dreams plagued by visions of a giant robot. Soon after, Lightfoot happened to see the Autobot named [[Ginrai]] appearing on television as part of an attempt to locate the other Godmasters scattered across the world, and with nothing to lose, sent Ginrai a letter, including a drawing of the robot from his dreams. Intrigued by the drawing, Ginrai headed for Canada and met with Lightfoot, hearing his life story and seeing the famous car. Lightfoot allowed him to drive the car, which only served to increase Ginrai's suspicions, at which point he handed Lightfoot a pair of [[Master-Brace]]s. When Lightfoot donned the bracelets, his body was immediately enveloped in a suit of armor, proving that he was, indeed, the next Autobot Godmaster, and that his car was his Transtector. Following Ginrai's directions, Lightfoot combined with his car, transforming into the robot from his own dreams, only to be suddenly attacked by the three [[Decepticon]] [[Pretender|Pretenders]]. Fleeing back to the British Motors factory, Lightfoot battled with [[Blood]] while Ginrai tangled with [[King Poseidon]]. When the [[Seacon (Masterforce)|Seacon]] [[combiner]] was defeated, the Pretenders fled, and Lightfoot requested that Ginrai continue to teach him. {{storylink|Lightfoot: A Dramatic Encounter}}

[[Image:Lightfoot robotmode.jpg|left|220px|thumb|The warrior of the ''Edmund Fitzgerald.'']]
Ginrai brought Lightfoot to the [[Ocean Research Institute of California]], where he was introduced to the other Autobot Pretenders and [[Headmaster Junior|Headmaster Juniors]] and suggested that they continue their search for the next Godmaster in the Rocky Mountains, where his father found the ore used in his Transtector. Although the mine itself yielded no results, the group encountered a forest patrolman named [[Ranger]], who proved to be the third Autobot Godmaster. {{storylink|An Enemy? The Third Godmaster, Ranger}}

Taking a break from the search for the Godmasters, Lightfoot invited the Headmaster Juniors to accompany him to the Rouen Circuit in [[France]], where British Motors were competing in the F1 World Grand Prix. Lightfoot admitted that they didn't have much chance against the reigning champ [[Road King]], but happily introduced [[Shūta Gō|Shūta]] and [[Cab]] to the racer so they could get autographs from him. The race had an unexpected ending, however, when Road King proved to be the fourth Autobot Godmaster! {{storylink|Assemble! The Four Godmaster Gunmen}} With all three Godmasters located, Lightfoot went with the rest of the team on a mission to rescue doctors held captive on [[Atlan Island]] by the [[Decepticon]]s, tackling [[Gilmer]] and using his Land Waterfall attack on a swarm of Seacons. {{storylink|Save the Little Girl! The Chōjin Warriors, the Godmasters}}

[[Image:Lightfoot kicksblood.jpg|right|180px|thumb|DIS-ARMED!]]
Lightfoot soon found himself targeted by the Decepticon Godmasters [[Hydra (Masterforce)|Hydra]] and [[Buster (Masterforce)|Buster]], who had decided to divide and conquer the Autobots, with Lightfoot being the unlucky first choice. While filming a commercial for British Motors with Road King, Lightfoot received word from a panicked secretary that Leftfoot had been kidnapped, and immediately raced to the factory building where the evil brothers were holding his father. Unable to make a move, Lightfoot nearly had his Master-Braces (and hands!) cut off by Hydra, but the other Autobot Godmasters arrived just in time to help. The heroes successfully routed the brothers, and in gratitude, Leftfoot allowed the Autobots to use the British Motors factory to construct their new [[Godbomber]] drone. {{storylink|Life? Death? The Desperate Lightfoot}} The factory soon came under attack by Decepticons seeking to destroy Godbomber, but Lightfoot was able to take down Blood and [[Dauros]] while Road King led Hydra and Buster away into the forest. With their Pretender foes dispatched, Lightfoot and Ranger pursued Road King and the Decepticon brothers into the wilderness, and the three Autobots thrashed the Decepticon duo into retreat. {{storylink|Will the Bomber Project Be Destroyed!?}} The construction of Godbomber was subsequently completed, and its power allowed Ginrai to travel into space to battle [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]] and [[Scorponok (G1)|BlackZarak]]. {{storylink|God Ginrai - Into the Sky!!}} Lightfoot and the other Autobots could do nothing but watch the battle from Earth, but Ginrai ultimately emerged victorious. {{storylink|God Ginrai - Showdown on the Surface of the Moon}}

[[Image:Lightfoot pwned.jpg|left|215px|thumb|You need to be "corrected", boy!]]
When Decepticon construction on the ocean floor off the coast of [[Australia]] caused an earthquake in Sydney, Lightfoot headed beneath the waves to investigate, discovering that the villains had reawakened a dormant underwater volcano. Lightfoot was attacked by a swarm of Seacons and sent tumbling into a sub-sea chasm, and when Ginrai arrived to rescue him, the pair were buried in an avalanche by King Poseidon. The volcano erupted as they attempted to dig themselves out, and Lightfoot, desperate to save his commander from the magma flow, attempted to self-destruct and blow up the rock wall. Ginrai was forced to punch some sense into Lightfoot, and fortunately for both of them, Godbomber arrived to break them free. Together, Ginrai and Lightfoot took out the Seacons and King Poseidon, and fled the scene as the eruption's cooling lava formed a small island. {{storylink|Escape!! The Underwater Volcano Erupts}}

Luck seemed to be on the Autobots' side when they were joined by the final Godmaster, [[Clouder]], but in truth, he was a Decepticon double agent sent to infiltrate their base. When Clouder's true identity was revealed, Lightfoot joined in the battle to take him down, but was soon called away from the base alongside Ginrai and the other Godmasters to deal with an attack by Hydra and Buster on a nearby city. {{storylink|Secret Orders! Destroy the Autobot Base!!|Secret Orders! Destroy the Autobot Base!!}} Alas, Lightfoot and the Godmasters were unaware that this was merely a distraction to keep them occupied while the other Decepticons used Clouder's inside information to attack and destroy the Autobot base. {{storylink|Disaster! The Autobot Base Explodes|Disaster! The Autobot Base Explodes}} As if losing their headquarters wasn't bad enough, things soon got even worse for the Autobots when BlackZarak returned {{storylink|BlackZarak - Destroyer from Space|BlackZarak - Destroyer from Space}} and Lightfoot the Autobots had to head into space to stop him from using the unholy [[Death Para-Machine]] against the Earth. {{storylink|Crisis! The Day of Human Extinction}}

[[Image:Autobot godmasters climb.jpg|right|180px|thumb|'''Lightfoot''': By Primus! He's climbing!<br>'''Ranger:''' Inconceivable!<br>'''Road King:''' You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.]]
As Decepticon attacks across the Earth increased, Lightfoot went up against Overlord in Southern Europe {{storylink|God Ginrai - Save Cancer!?}} and Hydra and Buster in West [[Germany]] {{storylink|God Ginrai: Showdown at the Decepticon Base}} and then joined in an all-out Autobot attack on the Decepticon headquarters, during which Devil Z and BlackZarak fused together. {{storylink|The Ultimate Combination!! BlackZarak, the New Lifeform}} With the Decepticons on the run, the Autobots pursued them to the [[Grand Canyon]], where the team of Lightfoot and Road King came under attack from the Decepticon Pretenders, and were then trapped in a cave by Hydra and Buster. The pair were not able to extricate themselves until the battle was done and the Decepticons had escaped, {{storylink|Autobots! Desperate Attack!!}} but the Autobots quickly tracked the villains down to the Alps, where Lightfoot, Ranger and Road King were promptly buried under an avalanche by the merged BlackZarak/Devil Z entity. Ginrai and Grand Maximus dug the three heroes out, but Ginrai requested that they stay back so that he could make the first strike on BlackZarak himself. {{storylink|Malevolent and Inhuman! The True Form of Devil Z}} While Ginrai engaged BlackZarak in battle, Lightfoot and the other Godmasters battled the weakened Hydra and Buster, and then the Transtectors of Clouder, [[Wilder]], [[Cancer]] and [[Bullhorn]], which had been brought to life by the power of Devil Z. Overhead, Ginrai and the Headmaster Juniors united their powers to destroy BlackZarak and Devil Z for good, prompting the Decepticons to break off the battle and flee into space. As Lightfoot and the rest of the heroes watched them go, the Autobots were all enveloped in bright light, and when it faded, found that the death of Devil Z had caused them to be separated from their Transtectors. The Transtectors themselves continued to live on as true super-robot lifeforms, and Lightfoot's Transtector joined with the others in pursuing the Decepticons and continuing the Transformers' war out in space. {{storylink|A Battle... and Then...}}
{{--}}

====''Victory'' cartoon====
[[Image:Battle in the g nebula.jpg|right|150px|thumb|]]
[[Image:Autobots in the g nebula.jpg|left|150px|thumb|]]

Lightfoot's living Transtector, having taken its partner's name for its own, was among the Autobots serving under Ginrai's command, often battling the Decepticons led by Overlord in the [[G Nebula]]. {{storylink|Planet Micro - The Mysterious Warrior}}

====''Zone'' cartoon====
Lightfoot was among the Autobots standing onstage when the injured [[Star Saber (Victory)|Victory Saber]] passed the mantle of [[Supreme Commander]] to [[Dai Atlas (Zone)|Dai Atlas]]. {{storylink|Enter the New Supreme Commander, Dai Atlas!}}
{{--}}

===''Super-God Masterforce'' comic===
[[Image:Lightfoot manga.jpg|left|180px|thumb|]]
Lightfoot made his dramatic entrance alongside Ranger and Road King, arriving in the midst of a battle between the other Autobots and a legion of legendary Decepticons with a trailer for Ginrai in tow. At Lightfoot's instruction, Ginrai combined with the trailer and wiped out the Decepticons with a blast of Chōkon Power, revealing that they were simply holograms. {{storylink|Burn, Super Soul! The New Commander Super Ginrai!}}

Lightfoot traveled with the other Autobots to the planet [[Athenia]] to attend Ginrai's coronation as [[Supreme Commander]] {{storylink|The Battle Begins! The United Earth-Space Troops}} and later battled Overlord on Earth {{storylink|God Ginrai's Amazing Super-God Combination!}} and BlackZarak and [[Darkwings]] in space. {{storylink|The Earth Family of Good and Evil}}

[[Image:Lightfoot manga bracegone.jpg|right|170px|thumb|]]
When BlackZarak and Overlord attacked Tokyo, Lightfoot and the Godmasters held off BlackZarak while Ginrai unleashed the new Autobot weapon, [[VX Bomb]], against Overlord. {{storylink|Live? Die?! The Desperate Super-God Combination}} The Godmasters also joined Ginrai in defending a city where [[Cancer]] went to against BlackZarak and the [[Sparkdash]], during which battle Lightfoot teamed with Road King to take down [[Sizzle (Masterforce)|Sizzle]]. {{storylink|Great Turn-Around! Autobots}}

During the final battle, Devil Z possessed BlackZarak and turned on the other Decepticons, intending to absorb their Jinchōkon in order to become the ultimate lifeform. Saved by Ginrai and the Pretenders, the Decepticons turned on their former leader, and joined with Lightfoot and all the other Autobots in uniting their energies into the "Perfect Transform Attack", destroying Devil Z and BlackZarak once and for all. As the light from the explosion faded, Lightfoot was the first to notice that the humans' Master-Braces had vanished from their wrists, and more shocks were to follow as it turned out that all the Autobots and Decepticons' Transtectors had come to life as true super-robot lifeforms. The Transtectors departed for space to carry on their war away from Earth, leaving Lightfoot and the others to return to their lives. {{storylink|The Birth of the Super Lifeforms}}
{{--}}

==Toys==
===Super-God Masterforce===
[[Image:G1 Getaway toy.jpg|right|250px|thumb|As the big sports cars go, he was bigger than most.]]
*'''Lightfoot''' (Autobot Godmaster, 1988)
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''C-304'''
**''Accessories:'' Godmaster Transtector, Electromagnetic Rifle

:Lightfoot's Transtector transforms into a modified white Mazda RX-7 FC3S sports car, to the roof of which the figure's Electromagnetic Rifle can be attached. As a Godmaster, Lightfoot is unable to transform to robot mode until the Lightfoot Godmaster figure is transformed into engine mode and snapped in place on the car's hood, unlocking the figure for transformation (although one can unlock the transformation simply by pressing down on the panel). Lightfoot's robot mode is mostly static for a relatively large toy, with articulation restricted to its arms.

:This toy was sold concurrently in [[Hasbro]] markets without changes as [[Getaway]] and [[Rev]]. In Japan, the Godmaster engine was [[redeco]]ed into [[Zetca]].

::*[http://www.tfu.info/1988/Autobot/Getaway/getaway.htm More information on Lightfoot/Getaway at TFU.info]
{{--}}

==Notes==
[[Image:Light Foot letter.jpg|thumb|]]
*According to Lightfoot's supplementary [[bio]] card, he is 17 years old. The card also adds to the confusion of his heritage by stating he is an American.

*According to the letter sent by Lightfoot to Ginrai in "[[Lightfoot: A Dramatic Encounter]]", the character's name is parsed "Light Foot". With his father's name being "Leftfoot" (or possibly "Left Foot"), it would seem to imply that their family name is actually... "Foot".

===Foreign names===
*''English:'' '''Getaway''' ([[Omni Productions]] dub)
*''Spanish:'' '''Crac''' (America)
*''Ukranian:'' '''Getkalo''' (Гетькало, Getaway)

[[Category:Godmasters]]
[[Category:Super-God Masterforce Autobots]]
[[Category:Super-God Masterforce humans]]
[[Category:Victory Autobots]]
[[Category:Zone Autobots]]

Fortress Maximus (G1)

2011-06-21T23:18:20Z

93.75.235.114: /* Foreign names */

{{factions|autobot|autobotg2}}
{{disambig3|Fortress Maximus}}
:''Fortress Maximus is an [[Autobot]] [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]] [[City-bot]] from the [[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]] [[continuity family]].''

[[Image:FortMax1.jpg|right|300px|thumb|[[Nobuyuki Hiyama|Link]] called. He wants the [[Master Sword]] back.]]
Despite his great power, size, and rank, '''Fortress Maximus''' is a weary and reluctant warrior. Fighting is against his pacifist nature, even for the most noble of causes. Over time, the endless conflict on Cybertron has worn him down, to the point that he's willing to walk away from the war entirely to preserve himself and his ideals.

Fortress Maximus is big. ''How'' big generally depends on the universe, but often as not he's binary-bonded to a smaller robot named [[Cerebros (G1)|Cerebros]] who forms his head; Cerebros's own head is formed by [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike]].

{{note|Fortress Maximus is one of those fun characters whose English comic, English cartoon and Japanese cartoon incarnations were very different. See individual fiction entries below for continuity specific profiles.}}

==Fiction==
===Marvel Comics continuity===
====Generation 1====
{{noteukonly}}
[[Image:Ringofhate-evilstain.jpg|right|250px|thumb|He is mad as hell and he's not gonna take it anymore!]]
Fortress Maximus was an architect in his early career, designing and even constructing many works on Cybertron. When the war came, he reluctantly turned his talents to fighting. {{storylink|Transformers Universe (Marvel comic)|Transformers Universe profile}}

During the long absence of [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Optimus Prime]], [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]], and their respective troops from [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], unit commander Fortress Maximus established a headquarters in the [[Manganese Mountains]] and continued the fight against Scorponok's Decepticon contingent.

One fine day on Cybertron, Fortress Maximus's troops staged an ambush on Scorponok's Decepticons, who had just leveled an Autobot city and were marching their prisoners toward the [[Smelting pool|smelting pools]]. Maximus's troops cut a swath through the Decepticon ranks, quickly driving them into retreat.

{{bigquote|Whether I am a hero or a coward is ''not'' the issue! I am ''weary!'' My joints creak from the corrosion of ''war without end!'' I... cannot break this ring of hate that surrounds us all -- but I can remove myself from it. No matter what you decide... I am leaving.|Fortress Maximus announces his decision to quit the war|"[[Ring of Hate!]]"}}

[[Image:Ringofhate-pangalactic.jpg|left|200px|thumb|"...And that, prospective investors, is why GoogleSaturn will make a million dollars per month."]]
Though his troops were jubilant at their victory, the battle was the last straw for Fortress Maximus. He had become so sick of the war that he decided to leave it. He didn't care if it made him a coward or not, he simply believed that the war would go on regardless of whether or not he was in it. Maximus declared that no matter what the others decided, he was leaving for the planet of [[Nebulos]], a world he had long studied and which seemed to be at peace. His stunned troops agreed, and together constructed a starship dubbed the ''[[Steelhaven (G1)|Steelhaven]]'' to propel them across the void.

Fortress Maximus immediately sent [[Highbrow (G1)|Highbrow]] as an messenger to the Nebulan natives; however, an accident made it appear that the giant robots from outer space came with hostile intent. Some of the more reactionary elements among the Nebulan leadership conspired to make Fortress Maximus's envoy [[Blurr (G1)|Blurr]] also appear to have hostile intent, and thus were able to incite their fellow Nebulans to arms.

[[Image:Fortmaxgiveshead.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Dibs on the off-color jokes!]]
Fortress Maximus and his troops thus found themselves under a full attack from the Nebulans. Max ordered his troops to not fight back, despite complaints from the likes of [[Kup (G1)|Kup]], and covered them as they retreated into the woods.

Faced with a newly hostile enemy, Fortress Maximus resolved to wage peace, not war. Gathering ten of his followers, he marched up to the Nebulan capital of [[Koraja]], begged to be heard out, and had his group discard their weapons. When that didn't work, he did the next logical thing and pulled his head off. Four other Autobots also resorted to this grotesque stunt before [[Galen]], head of the Nebulan [[World Watchers]], was convinced they weren't a threat. {{storylink|Ring of Hate!}}

[[Image:Brokenglass-autobotstorage.jpg|left|200px|thumb|My honey my baby, don't put my head upon no shelf.]]
The five Autobots' heads were stored in a warehouse, and Galen occasionally consulted with Fortress Maximus, keeping him up to date on outside events as anti-robot protests rocked the capital city.

Soon after, a horde of the Autobots' Decepticon foes appeared before the city gates. Max advised Galen that turning the Autobots over to Scorponok would not prevent him from attacking, and under the Autobot-Nebulan peace agreement, Galen could not simply restore the five Autobots to their bodies. But together with [[Arcana]], the pair came up with another plan. Five volunteer Nebulans were bio-engineered to combine with special armor, and transform into likenesses of the Autobots heads, connecting with and controlling them through the [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster process]]. Galen himself became Fortress Maximus's new partner. Fortress Maximus led his newly-enhanced troops against Scorponok, and soundly defeated his numerically superior squad. {{storylink|Broken Glass!}}

[[Image:Loveandsteel-runfortmaxrun.jpg|right|250px|thumb|I'm just a-runnin' down the road, trying to loosen my load, got a world of troubles on my mind.]]
Fortress Maximus remained inert while Galen performed his various duties. He came back online to lead the Headmasters to the [[Grax Communications Facility]], where a number of Nebulan leaders were apparently being held hostage by the Decepticons. It turned out to be a trap, however, as the Decepticons had also become Headmasters, with Galen's rival Zarak now bonded to Scorponok himself. Using several Nebulans as a distraction, Scorponok's troops overpowered Fortress Maximus and the others, taking them hostage. {{storylink|Love and Steel!}}

Max remained out of commission until Zarak, briefly overcoming Scorponok's influence on his mind, freed Galen and the other Autobot-allied Nebulans. Fortress Maximus and company smashed their way out of the holding facility, then ran straight into the newly-formed Decepticon Targetmasters. Max briefly led his troops against the Decepticons, but opted to retreat rather than fight it out. To spare Koraja the carnage of a full-scale fight to the finish, he covered their retreat with the time-honored technique of smashing his enemies with Koraja's metal sculpture of the planet Nebulos. {{storylink|Brothers in Armor!!}}

''Scorponok and Zarak challenged Fortress Maximus and Galen (here called "Kord") to a duel to settle their differences. Kord/Maximus won by cheating, but it didn't matter because the duel was a ruse to distract the Autobots while [[Slugslinger (G1)|Slugslinger]] stole Autobot fuel converters. The Deceptions had bugged the Autobot base and learned of Earth. They needed the converters to travel there. The Decepticons left for Earth and the Autobots followed.'' {{storylink|The Final Conflict}}

{{note|The events in this UK story differ in significant ways to the [[Headmasters (comic)|Headmasters]] mini-series.}}

Returning to the Autobot camp, Max/Galen decided to lead the troops away from Nebulos, knowing that Scorponok would follow. {{storylink|Brothers in Armor!!}}

[[Image:Trialbyfire-fortmax-disassemble.jpg|left|200px|thumb|He does seem to have trouble staying in one piece, doesn't he?]]
During their voyage to Earth, Fortress Maximus underwent a radical reconstruction to alter his size considerably, increasing himself from a slightly tall dude to a ''very'' tall dude, about twice the height of the average Transformer. Of course, with his larger scale, Fortress Maximus needed a new head (Galen still being stuck at roughly human size). For this reason, another Autobot, [[Cerebros (G1)|Cerebros]], was added to serve as a secondary stage between Galen and Maximus. As the head of Cerebros, Galen could transform Cerebros into the larger head of Fortress Maximus.

Arriving on Earth, Fortress Maximus led his fellow Headmasters to [[Mount St. Hilary]], source of the Autobot distress call that had drawn them to Earth. After recovering the damaged [[Bumblebee (G1)|Goldbug]], the group encountered [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike]], who had come in search of his missing younger brother [[Buster Witwicky (G1)|Buster Witwicky]]. Spike asked for the Autobots' help in finding his brother, but Fortress Maximus was more interested in their primary mission of locating the Autobots of Earth, and he led his troops off to follow the fuel trail of the missing [[Ark (G1)|Ark]].

[[Image:Fortressmaximus-trialbyfire-rollout.jpg|right|250px|thumb|The usage of "roll out" gets stranger and stranger.]]
Scorponok's crew soon followed Maximus to Earth, however, and to the same cave. When Spike replayed Goldbug's distress message, Fortress Maximus and company returned to the cave, apologizing to Spike for his failure to consider the danger he had brought to Earth's natives by leading the Decepticons there.

In the ensuing battle, Spike retreated further into the volcano's caves to seek shelter. Scorponok followed, seeking a hostage, and Fortress Maximus pursued him. As the caves narrowed down, Maximus was forced to send Cerebros onward, and eventually Galen himself had to leave Cerebros to cross a fragile rock bridge. Scorponok used the distraction to blast rocks down on Galen, killing him. As the Decepticon leader left, laughing, Galen passed on his control helmet to Spike, allowing the Earthling to assume control of Fortress Maximus and drive the Decepticons off. {{storylink|Trial by Fire!}}

Spike soon underwent the full binary bonding process and became the leader of the ''Steelhaven'''s crew of Autobots. With his new partner, Fortress Maximus led the Autobot [[Targetmaster]]s in an effort to locate Buster, first visiting his father at a shady motel, then heading to a spot in the tropics where the Decepticons had set up an island base.

[[Image:Clubconpalmtreespear.jpg|left|300px|thumb|The purpose of Club Con is to flip out and spear people.]]
With Kup worried about the inexperience of Fortress Maximus's new partner, Max held back while the Targetmasters landed on the island. They were driven back by automated defenses, however, and the island revealed itself to be a rocket ship, launching into the atmosphere with Buster still aboard. Maximus resolved to take matters into his own hands, and took off after the rocket (who knew he could fly?) Unfortunately, once in space, the ship's defenses made shishkabob out of him, forcing Spike to resort to using Cerebros instead. Cerebros was likewise trashed by an attack from [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]], though Spike was able to use Maximus's guns to send Shockwave falling to his apparent demise. Maximus and his partners were subsequently rescued by the Targetmasters, and for his gusto, Spike was welcomed as the group's new leader. {{storylink|The Desert Island of Space!}}

As Fortress Maximus underwent repairs, his crew caught wind of a [[floppy disk]] in possession of one [[Ethan Zachary]], which contained the memories and personality of Optimus Prime. With the aid of a computer-generated version of Prime, Fortress Maximus gathered a lot of data from Scorponok's [[Pretender]] experiments and gave that ability to some of his own crew. {{storylink|Pretender to the Throne!}}

With the disk in their possession, Fortress Maximus oversaw efforts to build a new body for Optimus Prime's mind. However, the ''Steelhaven'''s resources were depleted after creating the Pretenders, causing the effort to fail explosively. Thus when [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]] located the Ark nearby, Fortress Maximus was eager to contact its Autobots and forge an alliance.

[[Image:Fortressmaximus-totalled-worthlesshuman.jpg|right|200px|thumb|It begs the question of why Grimlock didn't just step on him.]]
Unfortunately, [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]] developed an immediate dislike for Fortress Maximus, partially because he was a possible threat to Grimlock's leadership, partially because he was part human, and partially because he had a fugitive (Goldbug). He challenged "Fruitloop Multipuck" to a duel for leadership on the [[Moon (moon)|moon]]. Faced with the prospect of a divided Autobot force, Fortress Maximus agreed, though his unhealed injuries made victory an unlikely prospect. Luckily for Max, the imprisoned [[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]] agreed to fill in for him.

[[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]] led a Decepticon assault on the Autobots during the duel. While fighting off the attackers, Fortress Maximus ordered Goldbug, [[Joyride (Autobot)|Joyride]], [[Getaway]], and [[Slapdash (G1)|Slapdash]] to take the disk to Nebulos to restore Optimus Prime. {{storylink|Totaled!}}

With Optimus Prime restored, Maximus accepted a subordinate role in the Autobot ranks. ''He was among those Autobots present as Optimus Prime briefed the troops about the threat of the time-displaced [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]]. When Optimus and five other Autobots spontaneously and explosively vanished into thin air, only to be replaced by six Transformers claiming to be Autobots from the future, Fortress Maximus immediately assumed command, freaked out, and ordered his troops to destroy the "imposters". (Apparently, his memory was a little rusty, since said "imposters" included his own present-day troops Kup and Blurr.) Maximus sparred with Rodimus Prime until the words of Goldbug, as well as a Matrix-linked Optimus Prime, convinced him that Rodimus was telling the truth when he claimed to be a future Autobot leader. Maximus participated in the subsequent battle against Megatron and Galvatron; he attacked Megatron alongside Grimlock and Swoop, but was quickly put down by the battle-crazed Decepticon.'' {{storylink|Time Wars (issue)|Time Wars}}

[[Image:Fortmaxboat.jpg|left|250px|thumb|Contrary to what's advertised here, the toy will sink if you put it in the bathtub.]]
Fortress Maximus provided a floating search platform for Optimus and Blaster as they searched the ocean for the Decepticons' [[Club Con]] base. Spike expressed frustration that they still had not located his brother, though Optimus vowed to keep searching. {{storylink|Cold War!}}

Fortress Maximus was among the many Autobots who responded to an Autobot emergency signal in the Arctic... which turned out to be sent by none other than Buster Witwicky, who was dying of hypothermia. Maximus took his human sibling into a special thermal compartment, restoring his body temperature to normal.

When the Decepticons attacked soon after, Maximus came under attack from the [[Horrorcon]]s, followed by [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]], who clung to him tenaciously and eventually caused Buster to spill out of the warming compartment. This turned out to be a lucky break, as Buster reminded Ratbat that the battle was nothing but a ruse engineered by Starscream. Ratbat and Maximus together called for all the combatants to lay down their arms.

[[Image:Fortressmaximus-maninthemachine1.jpg|right|125px|thumb|Cast in the name of God, Ye not guilty]]
After Starscream seized the power of the [[Underbase]], Fortress Maximus and Soundwave led a team to [[Buenos Aires]] to try and stop him. As their troops fell en masse, Maximus attacked Starscream, only to receive a debilitating energy blast in return. His organic component, however, allowed him to survive the first attack. Omega Supreme intervened just then, preventing Maximus from being crushed by a monument hurled by Starscream. Starscream disposed of Omega, and was on the verge of finishing off Maximus, when he was lured away by a radio signal from Buster aboard the Ark. {{storylink|Dark Star (issue)|Dark Star}}

[[Image:Fortressmaximus-maninthemachine2.jpg|left|200px|thumb|So why couldn't he have just kept Cerebros attached to him and gone on with his life?]]
With Buster rescued and the threat of Starscream removed, Spike and Fortress Maximus's tumultuous relationship came to light. Feeling his work with the Autobots was done, Spike tried to go his own way and resume his life, going so far as to pitch his control helmet into a junkyard, but his binary bond could not be left behind so easily. Strange nightmares plagued him, visions of falling into a void. Nor would the Decepticons relent; while on a skiing expedition, he found himself hunted by Carnivac and Snarler. Turning inwards, he found his link to Fortress Maximus remained even without the control helmet and that he could summon the giant warrior from afar. Max left his storage space aboard the Ark and descended to Earth. Despite Carnivac's dirty fighting, Fortress Maximus easily disposed of the two attackers and their Pretender shells, once he and Spike physically recombined. With the battle over, Spike sent Fortress Maximus back to the Ark. {{storylink|The Man in the Machine!}}

Despite Spike's reconciliation, Fortress Maximus was subsequently out of action for many months or even years. He was still stored aboard the Ark just before the great battle with Unicron, when Grimlock and his Dinobots had returned from [[Hydrus Four]]. They had come looking for the rest of the Autobots, but the Ark's scanners were only picking up one Transformer. Weirder still, this Transformer was in ''two'' parts! {{storylink|The Void! (US)|The Void!}}

{{note|It's kind of odd that [[Primus]] didn't warp Fortress Maximus with every other Transformer on Earth, but it's implied that it's because half of him was on the Ark. Odder still is that the Dinobots didn't notice or mention that half of this Transformer was on the Ark with them.}}

[[Image:Fortressmaximus-thelastautobot1.jpg|right|125px|thumb|]]
After Unicron was defeated, the Ark plummeted to Earth and crashed in the northern tundra of Canada. When [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]] emerged from the wreckage to wreak havoc, it fell to Fortress Maximus to stop him. He called to Spike, who came. He and Spike went through some mental wrangling before Max convinced Spike to reunite with him once more. Anxious and desperate after so long out of the war, Maximus immediately suppressed his hesitating partner and took full control upon regaining his head. This proved not to be such a wise idea. Fortress Maximus alone wasn't quite ready to deal with the totally insane Galvatron, who started smashing and biting(!) him to pieces. Realizing the power of their combined strength, Spike and Fortress Maximus managed to unite in thought and deed, and defeated the crazed Decepticon. Fortress Maximus stood alone at the battle's end, the last Autobot, guardian of Earth. {{storylink|The Last Autobot?}}

{{-}}
====Generation 2====
[[Image:Fortressmaximus-allornothing2.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Let me demonstrate just how much you don't have a [[To sell toys|toy on the shelves]] anymore.]]
It was ultimately [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] who would prove to be the undoing of this giant warrior. The reborn and reconditioned Decepticon leader stole the Ark from its crash site in Canada, and used it as his personal flagship. {{storylink|Realignments}} While establishing control over the ship, Megatron found and disabled Fortress Maximus's dormant form. Spike sneaked aboard the ship and rejoined with Maximus, but the damage inflicted by Megatron meant they had virtually no chance to win.

Brutally beaten in combat with an upgraded and super-charged Megatron, the pair dragged themselves to the heart of the ship and threw themselves into the anti-matter containment unit at the core of its power supply, killing them both and causing the Ark to explode. {{storylink|All or Nothing!}}

Though it kept the Ark out of Megatron's hands, and nearly derailed his plans entirely, their effort was ultimately not successful: Megatron escaped aboard a shuttle and lived to fight again, and even had time to take the convalescent Starscream with him. {{storylink|New Dawn}} {{storylink|Devices and Desires! (Marvel)|Devices and Desires!}}

{{-}}
===''The Transformers'' cartoon===
:''Voice actor:'' [[Stephen Keener]] (English), [[Kunihiko Yasui]] (Japanese)

[[Image:Fortressmaximusg1rebirth.jpg|right|250px|thumb|]]

When a battle for possession of the [[key to the Plasma Energy Chamber]] led a group of Autobots and Decepticons to be stranded on the planet [[Nebulos]], partnership between the Transformers and the native Nebulans led to the development of Headmaster and Targetmaster technology. The planet's evil ruling council, the [[Hive (G1)|Hive]], took the technology to its most powerful extreme when its leader [[Zarak (Nebulan)|Zarak]] created the massive city-sized Scorponok to serve as his Headmaster partner and used his power to steal back the chamber key. The Decepticons departed for Cybertron, and the Autobots were poised to give chase when Spike Witwicky announced that he and the pacifistic Cerebros would be staying behind. While the other Autobots left in pursuit, Spike had Cerebros lead him to the ruins of the Hive's original city, which they had lived in before moving underground. Taking control of the various abandoned machines there, Spike rebuilt the city, Cerebros and even himself into a Headmaster robot that could stand up to Scorponok's power: Fortress Maximus!

[[Image:Rebirth3_fortmax_battlestation.jpg|left|250px|thumb]]

The completed Fortress Maximus quickly flew to Cybertron and made a dramatic entrance, setting down in city mode and then transforming to battle station mode to bombard Scorponok and the Decepticons with a hail of weaponsfire. When Zarak transformed Scorponok to robot mode, Spike did likewise with Fortress Maximus, and the two titans battled, with Maximus on the losing end until Zarak threatened the life of Spike's son, Daniel. With a burst of strength, Fortress Maximus took Scorponok down, causing him to collapse with such force that he transformed back to city mode. Spike and Cerebros then disconnected from Maximus and headed inside Scorponok to recover the captive Daniel and [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]], leaving Maximus to keep the other Decepticons at bay with his many weapons. The Decepticons were able to get through Maximus's firestorm and got Scorponok airborne, but not before Spike succeeded in his rescue.

Subsequently, with the Plasma Energy Chamber back under Autobot control, Fortress Maximus flew the Autobot Headmasters and Targetmasters back to Nebulos. There, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] announced that after they had eradciated the Hive's evil from the planet, Cerebros would live on the planet as its guardian, presumably meaning that Fortress Maximus would be staying there too. {{storylink|The Rebirth, Part 3}}

{{note|It is unclear if Fortress Maximus had any sentience of his own; he did speak once in his own voice, but for the most part, even Cerebros's will seemed to be pushed aside so Spike could run the whole thing himself.}}

===Japanese animated continuity===
{{note|In Japan, Fortress Maximus's mental functions are housed in a small robot who transforms into a head and connects to a larger, lifeless Transtector body. This larger body in turn becomes the head of a ''giant'' Transtector, forming the robot known as Fortress Maximus. The ''Headmasters'' toyline referred to the smallest robot as '''Cerebros''', who formed the head of the intermediate robot '''Fortress''', but this distinction was never actually made in fiction, and the character was always referred to as "Fortress" regardless of whether he was in small or intermediate form.}}

====''The Great Transformer War'' comic====
[[Image:Hmmanga battered headmasters.jpg|right|thumb|300px]]

In the year 2010, while significant Transformer battles were being waged throughout space and on Earth, Fortress was active on the planet [[Master (planet)|Master]]. After the younger Headmaster warriors under his command were defeated in battle by [[Sixshot]] and the Decepticon Headmasters, Fortress quickly roused his fallen comrades and ordered them to board his battleship, the Maximus, so that they could pursue the villains. Their destination: Cybertron! {{storylink|The Great Transformer War issue 3|The Great Transformer War #3}}

====''The Headmasters'' cartoon====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Ikuya Sawaki]]

[[Image:Hm7 fortress small bot.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]

Four million years ago, Fortress was a [[Cyberdroid|diminutive Cybertronian]] who had not yet mastered the art of transformation, and was a friend of [[Kup (G1)|Kup]]'s. He was among the many Transformers that fled Cybertron in an attempt to escape the corrosion of war without end, and led a group of his fellow small Cybertronians in search of a new peaceful world they could call home. {{storylink|The Mystery of Planet Master}} Alas, engine trouble caused their ship to crash on the inhospitable world of planet Master, whose hazardous environmental conditions began threatening the lives of Fortress and his men almost as soon as they departed the wreckage of their ship and began trekking through a desert of shifting sands. The need for survival fostered many technological and mental advancements, however, and Fortress and his people endured.

[[Image:Hm1_battleship_maximus.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]

Fortress was responsible for many of the technological quantum leaps, the most significant of which was the invention of "[[Transtector]]s": larger, lifeless Transformer bodies to which the small Cybertronians could connect as heads. After a rigorous physical and mental training program that allowed them to finally master transformation and even instilled powerful telepathic and telekinetic powers in them, Fortress and nine other warriors bonded with these Transtectors to become "Headmasters". {{storylink|The Four-Million-Year-Old Veil of Mystery}} Fortress even took the process one step further, and with the aid of other Master scientists like [[Jack (Headmasters)|Jack]], created a ''huge'' Transtector that could transform into the battleship, Maximus. Fortress's own Transtector was engineered to also transform into a head, which could control the many functions of the Maximus from a special docking bay on the battleship's bridge, {{storylink|Rebellion on Planet Beast}} and which could form the head for the battleship's own colossal robot mode, known as "Fortress Maximus". Fortress also created the powerful [[Master Sword]] for himself, and tied the Maximus's transformation into it; in order to convert the battleship to robot mode, Fortress had to draw a small version of the blade from a sheath beneath his command console, but this feat could only be accomplished when his physical and mental energies were in perfect synchronization. {{storylink|Explosion on Mars!! Maximus Is in Danger}}

Unfortunately, half of the Headmasters eventually rebelled against Fortress's leadership, siding with a traitor named Scorponok against him. The traitors were defeated by Fortress and his comrades and exiled from Master, but eventually, they came to ally themselves with the Decepticons under the command of [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]]. {{storylink|The Mystery of Planet Master}}

{{note|The events of the ''Great Transformer War'' manga occur at this point.}}

[[Image:Hm2_kup_and_fortress.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]

In the year 2011, when Galvatron launched his latest attack on Cybertron with the added power of his new Decepticon Headmasters, Fortress Maximus brought the Autobot Headmasters back to their homeworld aboard the Maximus. {{storylink|Four Warriors Come out of the Sky}} Even the mightiest of the Decepticons' [[combiner]]s could not stand against Battleship Maximus's firepower, and the evil robots were forced into retreat. This task complete, Fortress set the Maximus down at the Autobots' secondary headquarters on the planet [[Athenia]], where he introduced himself and his comrades and explained their origins, and was reunited with Kup. After being filled in by the Autobots on the current crisis—[[Vector Sigma]] had become destabilized, putting the planet at risk—Fortress deduced that the [[Matrix of Leadership]] was necessary to bring the computer back under control. {{storylink|The Mystery of Planet Master}} Unfortunately, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] had already ventured into the depths of Cybertron without the Matrix, willing to sacrifice his own life to stabilize Vector Sigma, so Fortress headed into the planet's catacombs after him while the other Headmasters helped [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]] search for the Matrix, hidden somewhere on [[Earth]]. Though Fortress was not able to catch up to Prime before he reached Vector Sigma's chamber, he was able to use his telepathic powers to contact Prime's companion, the spirit of [[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]], helping to guide him safely through the maze of tunnels. It turned out that [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]] and [[Scourge (G1)|Scourge]] had made it to the chamber ahead of Prime, however, and Fortress raced through the remainder of the tunnels to aid Prime against the two Decepticons. Hot Rod soon arrived with the Matrix, which he used to become Rodimus Prime again, but before he could use it to bring Vector Sigma back under control, Optimus Prime merged with the computer to stabilize it, giving up his life in the process. {{storylink|Birth of the Fantastic Double Prime}} Prime was not the only casualty of the crisis: [[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]] also lost his life in the search for the Matrix. Luckily, Fortress was able to use the advanced technology of Master to rebuild and resurrect him, as Twincast. {{storylink|The Great Cassette Operation}}

[[Image:Hm5_fortmax_headmode.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]

While patrolling space for Decepticon activity aboard the Maximus, the Autobot Headmasters discovered [[Daniel Witwicky (G1)|Daniel Witwicky]] and [[Wheelie (G1)|Wheelie]] stowed away on board. After explaining the function of his Head Mode to the shocked youngsters, Fortress agreed to let the pair join them on the patrol. Soon after, the Autobots came upon two stranded [[Beastformer]]s from the planet [[Beast (planet)|Beast]], and learned that the Decepticons had invaded their planet; the infuriated Fortress made for the planet with all due speed, after sending a report to Rodimus Prime on Athenia. The Autobot Headmasters helped the native Beastformers liberate their planet from Decepticon control, but Fortress was concerned with a blueprint recovered from an underground factory that indicated the Decepticons were building something. {{storylink|Rebellion on Planet Beast}}

[[Image:Hm6_fortmax_funnyfaces.jpg|left|thumb|225px|:D]]

When the Decepticons launched a [[Metamorpho|metal-warping meteor]] at Athenia, Fortress and his battleship were powerless to do anything, for fear of being destroyed by the meteor's gravity sensors. It fell to Daniel Witwicky to destroy the meteor, so Fortress transported him as close to it as he was able. Daniel lost his nerve at the last minute, so Fortress calmed him down by making some silly faces. Dignified! {{storylink|Approach of the Demon Meteorite}} Later, a phoney distress call lured Fortress and the Autobot Headmasters into a trap on the planet [[Praum]] set by their old foe, Scorponok. Despite being trapped in a subterranean chamber with the endless desert sands pouring in on top of him, Fortress kept his head and reminded his young allies of the similar hardships they had suffered on Master and the training they had undergone to overcome them. With the skills they had learned back then, they were able to escape. {{storylink|The Four-Million-Year-Old Veil of Mystery}}

[[Image:Hm10_fortress_appointed_commander.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]

When Galvatron launched an attack on Cybertron in an attempt to steal a new alloy developed by Vector Sigma named [[cybertonuron]], Fortress advised Rodimus Prime against striking back in full force, preferring to find another way to stop the Decepticons than putting all their warriors in danger. Rodimus refused, and Fortress quietly acquiesced to his commander's wishes, ferrying him to Cybertron on Battleship Maximus. {{storylink|Cybertron Is in Grave Danger, Part 1}} The battle ended catastrophically, however, when treachery on the part of Scorponok led to the detonation of a collection of bombs in Vector Sigma's chamber, devastating Cybertron and rendering it uninhabitable, and apparently killing Galvatron in the process. Realizing with deep regret that Fortress's caution had been warranted, Rodimus Prime decided that the era of his generation of Transformers was over, and vowed to search the universe for a new planet the Transformers could call home. He passed the title of [[Supreme Commander]] of the Autobots (though not the Matrix of Leadership) to Fortress, who was visibly uncomfortable with the appointment, but accepted it graciously, telling himself not to contest it because it was his destiny. {{storylink|Cybertron Is in Grave Danger, Part 2}}

[[Image:G1FortressMaximus HMstockfootage.jpg|left|225px|thumb|"...But it's the pelvic thruuuuuust / that really drives you in-sa-a-a-ane..."]]

Fortress's tenure as leader got off to a strong start with the successful completion of the [[Solar 1]] satellite, a joint venture between the Autobots and humanity to gather solar energy. Unfortunately, the satellite was stolen by the Decepticons, forcing the Autobot Headmasters to destroy it to keep it out of their hands. Before being destroyed, however, the satellite's energy was beamed by the villains to the planet [[Zarak (planet)|Zarak]]. {{storylink|The Shadow Emperor, Scorponok}} Fortress attempted to study Zarak from afar in hopes of deducing what the Decepticons were up to, but the planet's gaseous shroud prevented remote observation of its surface, and the Decepticons began staging concentrated attacks on Earth to keep the Autobots' attentions divided. {{storylink|The Dormant Volcano Mysteriously Erupts}} One such attack saw the Decepticons unleash a carnivorous, ambulatory plant upon [[San Francisco]], which Fortress identified as a lifeform from the planet [[Darhos]]. When the Autobot Headmasters responded, Battleship Maximus was caught in the plant-monster's vines, and Fortress's lack of focus left him unable to draw the Master Sword and transform. Galvanized by the cries of the other Headmasters, however, his energies soon came into alignment, and for what was apparently the first time (given everyone else's surprise when it happened) Fortress transformed the Maximus and combined with it to form Fortress Maximus. With the power of the Master Sword, he easily dispatched the giant plant. {{storylink|Head On!! Fortress Maximus}}

[[Image:Hm14 fortress draws mastersword.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]

Weakened by the great energy demands of his transformation, Fortress sent the Autobot Headmasters to [[Mars (planet)|Mars]] without him when news of Decepticon movement on the planet reached the Autobots. When the Headmasters discovered that the Decepticons were planning to blow up Mars, however, Fortress went into action, only to be struck with a [[plasma energy]] bomb by the Decepticons Headmasters just as he was in the middle of transforming into Fortress Maximus. {{storylink|Explosion on Mars!! Maximus Is in Danger}} Although Fortress survived the blast, his energies were severely drained, and the powerless Maximus was unable to depart Mars as the countdown to the Decepticons' planet-destroying explosion continued. Even worse, into the middle of this crisis stepped Scorponok, now outfitted with a gigantic Transtector of his own: the end result of the mysterious construction operations on planets Beast and Zarak. Scorponok pummelled the paralyzed Maximus, then pulled out just before the chain of explosion began. Fortress told the Headmasters to leave him and the Maximus to their fate, but luckily, at the last minute, the battleship began absorbing the energy released by the early stages of the explosion. Fortress was able to use this energy to transform into Fortress Maximus, and escaped the destruction of Mars, slashing Scorponok with the Master Sword as he came bursting from the conflagration. {{storylink|Explosion on Mars!! MegaZarak Appears}}

[[Image:Hm17_maximus_vs_scorponok.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]

While Fortress and the Headmasters were patrolling the edges of Decepticon space to keep an eye on their enemies' activities, Scorponok attacked the Maximus, only for the fight to be broken up by a strange UFO. Back on Athenia, Fortress met with the Autobots' deep cover spy, [[Punch (G1)|Punch]], and learned that Scorponok was holding a coronation ceremony for himself on Earth's [[moon (moon)|moon]]. The Autobots attacked the ceremony, during which Fortress again pitted his battleship against Scorponok, but the fighting was brought to an end when the UFO returned, and was revealed to belong to Galvatron, who had survived Cybertron's destruction. {{storylink|Return of the Immortal Emperor}} Fortress fought Scorponok again soon after, when the Autobots tried to provide energy relief to the other-dimensional planet [[Sandra (planet)|Sandra]]. {{storylink|SOS from Planet Sandra}}

[[Image:Hm23_fortmax_sword_slash.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]

When the Decepticons embarked on an interplanetary energy quest, the Autobots determined to follow them aboard Fortress's battleship; Fortress had to be convinced to allow Daniel to come with them. {{storylink|Daniel Faces His Biggest Crisis Ever!!}} Their first port of call was the planet [[Hachi no Susei]], but before the Maximus could set down, they were attacked by the planet's force. Fortress was intent on a show of non-resistance and would not fire back, while [[Chromedome (G1)|Chromedome]] went down to the planet's surface and proved the Autobots' good intentions to Susei's [[Queen Bee]]. The Autobots joined forces with the natives to fend off the Decepticons; Fortress disconnected the Maximus's "Master Shot" cannon so the Headmasters could wield it, then transformed into Fortress Maximus to send Scorponok packing with the Master Sword. {{storylink|Fight to the Death on Hachi no Susei!!}} Fortress then used the Maximus to fly the Autobots to [[Twin Star]], where he dealt with Scorponok by hauling him into the air and dropping him, {{storylink|Battle for Defense of the False Planet}} and [[Daros]], where he used the Maximus's internal defense systems to stop [[Curl|a gang of prisoners]] from taking control of the battleship. {{storylink|Find MegaZarak's Weak Spot!!}} The battleship needed some repairs before it could take the Autobots to [[Paradise]], which Fortress had Chromedome and [[Hardhead (G1)|Hardhead]] perform. {{storylink|Head Formation of Friendship}} Fortress again transformed to Fortress Maximus on the final planet of their journey, [[Pirate Planet]], taking Scorponok out with a Master Sword-slash to the chest. {{storylink|Mystery of the Space Pirate Ship}}

[[Image:Hm25_fortress_cradles_magnus.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]

After returning to Athenia, Fortress and the Headmasters received news of a Decepticon attack on Earth and headed there with all due haste, but they were not in time to stop [[Sixshot]] from mortally wounding [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]]. Fortress held Magnus as he died, then carried his body aboard the Maximus for burial along an Earth coastline. {{storylink|Ultra Magnus Dies!!}} Soon after, with Decepticon attacks intensifying, Fortress had to talk [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] out of risking his own life in the pursuit of revenge against Sixshot. When word came through from Punch that Galvatron intended to use the gathered energy to fuse himself with the Earth itself, Fortress and the Headmasters immediately departed to confront the Decepticon leader in [[Alaska]]. The Headmasters were able to use Punch's information to finally end the threat of Galvatron with their [[Head Formation]], burying him in the Arctic ice. {{storylink|The Emperor of Destruction Vanishes on an Iceberg}}

[[Image:Hm26_weak_spot.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]

Galvatron's demise left a power vacuum that Scorponok immediately filled, and once appointed leader again, he immediately put into motion a plan to destroy the Earth by simultaneously erupting every volcano on the [[Pacific Ring of Fire]]. [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] deduced his plan, but a Decepticon attack on [[Autobot City]] left Spike fatally wounded, with a chunk of shrapnel embedded in one of his arteries. Medical science could do nothing for Spike, so Fortress used his telekinetic powers to dissolve the shrapnel, saving Spike, but draining all of Fortress's energy. Even in his weakened state, unable to transform, Fortress still attempted to stop Scorponok from initiating his plan on the Kamchatka Peninsula, but Scorponok simply hurled the Maximus into a volcano. As it turned out, this allowed Fortress to absorb the geothermal energy of the volcano's magma, restoring his power and ability to transform. Following information decoded by Chromedome, Fortress Maximus was able to puncture Scorponok's weak spot, the Decepticon symbol on his chest, forcing the villain and his followers to flee the planet. {{storylink|I Risk My Life for Earth}}

[[Image:Hm28_fortress_examines_targetmaster.jpg|left|thumb]]

With Earth finally free of the Decepticons, the Autobots set about removing every trace of their evil from the planet. Fortress co-ordinated the effort, but just as he was meeting with three new Autobot arrivals—[[Pointblank]], [[Crosshairs (G1)|Crosshairs]] and [[Sureshot (G1)|Sureshot]]—a report came through from Chromedome that one of the plasma energy bombs he had been tasked with gathering up had become active. Fortress quickly picked up the bombs in Battleship Maximus, intending to transport them into space so they could detonate harmlessly, but as the ship departed the atmosphere, it crossed paths with another vessel containing refugees from Master. While the Autobots held off the Decepticons pursuing the Master vessel, Fortress and Twincast welcomed the refugees on board, and learned from them that Scorponok's Decepticons had attacked Master. The refugees then helped get the plasma bombs off Battleship Maximus, but they proceeded to detonate before everyone could get clear, and the explosion fused the refugees to the arms of the Autobots and Decepticons. {{storylink|Miraculous Warriors, Targetmasters (Part 1)}} Fortress used his scientific know-how to remove the refugees from the Autobots' arms, but a strange link remained between the warriors. With these "[[Targetmaster]]s" added to their ranks, Fortress piloted Battleship Maximus to Master to stop Scorponok's evildoings there. {{storylink|Miraculous Warriors, Targetmasters (Part 2)}}

[[Image:MasterSwordDanger Floppydisk.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]

Seeking to forge a weapon to counter Fortress's Master Sword, Scorponok arranged for the kidnap of Wheelie so that he could be ransom for information on the sword. Fortress agonized over what to do, but the decision was made for him when Chromedome and Daniel snuck away to rescue Wheelie themselves. Learning of their insubordination, Fortress played along, keeping the Decepticons' attentions on his battleship and preparing a data disk to "hand over". Unfortunately, when the Decepticons learned that Wheelie had been rescued, a fight broke out over the disk and it was snatched from Fortress's grasp. {{storylink|The Master Sword Is in Danger!!}} The Decepticons retreated underground, but Fortress was able to track them down by equipping the Master Sword with sensors that would allow the Maximus to track any surges of the energy needed to create it, which Scorponok was sure to require to forge his own weapon. Unfortunately, [[Weirdwolf]] was able to sneak aboard the Maximus, and although Fortress repelled him, he had secretly planted bombs on the battleship that covered the Decepticons' escape when they went off. {{storylink|The Zarak Shield Turns the Tide}}

[[Image:Hm31_fortmax_defeated.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]

As Battleship Maximus was repaired, Fortress debated strategy with the Autobots, eventually agreeing with the Targetmasters' plan to lure the Decepticons into space to avoid collateral damage to Master. Unfortunately, the hot-headed Chromedome disagreed, and staged his own attack on the Decepticons with the aid of the young warriors of Master. Chromedome's strategy went sour, forcing Fortress Maximus to go into action, but when the Master Sword clashed with Scorponok's newly-forged "[[Zarak Shield]]", it was the Zarak Shield that emerged triumphant! Defeated, Fortress Maximus could only watch as Scorponok departed for Earth, intending to destroy it once and for all. {{storylink|Operation: Destroy the Decepticons}}

The Autobots gave chase in the Maximus, but during the space battle that resulted, Daniel was set adrift when the Maximus's Laser Block unit was damaged and jettisoned. Fortress was forced to divert to rescue the boy, allowing the Decepticons a substantial lead in the race back to Earth. {{storylink|My Friend Sixshot!}} Their lead was lost when they were forced to set down on the asteroid [[Pallas]] for repairs, and the Maximus set down on [[Ceres]] in order to attack. During the fight, Sixshot challenged Chromedome to a one-on-one duel, and Fortress's pleas that he not accept the challenge fell on deaf ears. Even as Scorponok took off for Earth again, Fortress concluded that he and the other Autobots would have to leave Chromedome to his duel and carry on the chase. As it happened, the duel was interrupted by an explosion courtesy of bombs Scorponok had planted on the battlefield, so Chromedome was able to rejoin Maximus not long after. {{storylink|Duel on the Asteroid}}

[[Image:Hm35 master sword zappped.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]

As the Maximus entered the final stretch back to Earth, reports began coming in from the Autobots down on the planet of Decepticon attacks, accompanied by the emergence of strange towers at specific points around the globe. Once back on Earth, Fortress met with Punch, who unfortunately had to report that Scorponok had disappeared into the Mediterranean Ocean. {{storylink|The Final Showdown on Earth (Part 1)}} The Autobots soon realized that the "Death Towers" were composed of energy-amplifying [[crysmag metal]], and were creating a field of energy that was surrounding the Earth. Following Punch's lead, Fortress led the Autobots to Egypt, where Scorponok was outfitting a Death Tower with an induction booster to magnify the amount of energy it was projecting. The Master Sword played the unfortunate role of lightning rod in the presence of the Death Tower, attracting bolts of the tower's energy and stunning Fortress, preventing him from stopping Scorponok. As Scorponok fled, he told Fortress to meet him at the North Pole, where even he would have a role to play in his scheme.

[[Image:Hm35_final_battle.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]

With no other choices, Fortress followed his enemy's instructions, and the entire Autobot and Decepticon armies clashed in battle in the frozen north. There, Scorponok lured Fortress Maximus onto a crysmag dais, at which point, an orbiting Decepticon satellite that had been gathering the energies projected by the Death Towers activated, beaming the collected energy down to the dais. Scorponok disconnected from his Transtector, and left the paralyzed Fortress Maximus trapped in the satellite's beam, part of a deadly circuit of energy that threatened to tear the Earth apart. The four Headmasters joined in Head Formation and tried to channel their energy into Fortress Maximus in hopes of giving him the strength to break free, but their own power was not enough. At Daniel's suggestion, all the other Autobots linked up as part of the chain, and together combined in "Final Formation", they infused Maximus with enough energy to deflect the satellite's beam with the Master Sword, destroying it. With one mighty slash, Fortress Maximus bisected Scorponok's Transtector, finally ending the Decepticon threat.

The Decepticons subsequently fled Earth, and the Autobots gathered to pursue them. Fortress told the tearful Daniel that it was necessary in order to continue defend peace throughout the universe, but promised the boy that they would meet again. Together, the Autobots all boarded Fortress's battleship, and took off into the setting sun. {{storylink|The Final Showdown on Earth (Part 2)}}

====''Kiss Players/15 Go! Go!''====
[[Image:KPBraveMax.jpg|right|thumb|115px]]
{{note|Fortress's cameo appearance in ''Kiss Players'' is set shortly after his arrival on Master.}}

Slumped miserably on the barren surface of Master in their smallest robot forms, Fortress, Chromedome and Highbrow's attention was caught when a [[Fortress Maximus (RID)|time-travelling spaceship]] materialized over their heads and crashed nearby. {{storylink|Sparkbots Volume 1}} By studying and reverse-engineering the technology found in this spaceship, Fortress and the scientists of Master invented Transtectors and the Headmaster process. {{storylink|Kiss Players (radio drama)|Kiss Players radio drama #48}}/{{storylink|Sparkbots Volume 3}}

====''The Headmasters'' comic====
{{note|The events of the Headmasters manga take place concurrently with the Headmasters cartoon.}}

[[Image:Manga fort max.jpg|left|thumb|275px]]

Soon after Optimus Prime died stabilizing Vector Sigma, the Decepticons staged an attack on Athenia, and Fortress and the Autobot Headmasters quickly took off in Battleship Maximus to intercept them as they approached the planet. Daniel opined that the Decepticons were "a lot like parasites", to which Fortress murmured an agreement. At that point, the Decepticons appeared in front of them, and the Autobots realized that they had played into the villains' hands: they intended to destroy Fortress's battleship with a bomb. Luckily, Chromedome moved quickly enough to snatch the bomb away and save the Maximus. {{storylink|The Headmasters issue 1|The Headmasters #1}}

Responding to an SOS from their Beastformer comrades, Fortress escorted the Autobot Headmasters to planet Beast to investigate. No sooner had the young warriors left Battleship Maximus to search, Rodimus Prime radioed Fortress for an update. Fortress didn't have anything to tell him, but assured Rodimus that the Headmasters would get to the bottom of the mystery. {{storylink|Great Decisive Battle of Planet Beast!}} Later, once they were back on Earth, Fortress sent the Headmasters on their next mission, to respond to a Decepticon attack on an Alaskan energy plant. {{storylink|The Headmasters issue 2|The Headmasters #2}}

When a fire tore through [[Shinjuku]], Chromedome, [[Ricochet (Headmasters)|Ricochet]] and [[Artfire (Headmasters)|Artfire]] responded, but their rescue effort was impeded by the Decepticon Targetmaters. Luckily, Fortress soon arrived to extinguish the fire by dumping a massive amount of water on it from above using Battleship Maximus, freeing up the others to deal with the Decepticons. {{storylink|The Headmasters issue 7|The Headmasters #7}}

{{-}}
====TV Magazine ''Master File''====
Following the expulsion of the Decepticons from Earth after the battle at the North Pole, the Transformers' war shifted into a series of space-based exchanges between Athenia and Chaar known as the [[Master Wars]]. With the space bridge destroyed, interstellar transportation was severely limited, and it fell to Fortress and the Maximus to patrol space for the Decepticons. While on one such patrol, Fortress received a transmission from Sixshot alerting him to the existence of a [[Devil Z|new shadowy puppet master]] who had taken control of the Decepticons. This news came at the same time as a report from the Trainbots which indicated that Scorponok had constructed a new Transtector for himself, and so Fortress had no choice but to focus on dealing with this mystery. With access to the ever-important Earth now greatly reduced and his attentions now focused elsewhere, Fortress left guardianship of the planet in the hands of [[Metalhawk]] and his [[Pretender]]s.<ref>[http://www.allspark.com/content/view/730/37/ Master File #1]</ref>

{{note|Following the end of the ''Headmasters'' franchise, Japanese cartoon continuity branches off in two separate directions. One version of the story is told through the [[Super-God Masterforce (cartoon)|''Super-God Masterforce'' cartoon]], the other is told through the [[Super-God Masterforce (manga)|''Masterforce'' manga]]. Fortress plays much the same role in both, but gets up to a bit more in the manga.}}

====''Super-God Masterforce'' cartoon====
[[Image:Masterforce ep23 FuzzyFortress.JPG|right|thumb]]
:''Voice actor:'' [[Ikuya Sawaki]] (Japanese)

Following the commands of Devil Z, the space-based Decepticon forces orchestrated the bombardment of Earth with meteors. Although they were able to carry out this assault without the direct knowledge of Fortress's Autobots, Fortress did become suspicious when he observed that the Decepticons had broken their usual formation. Worried, Fortress sent a message to Metalhawk's Autobots on Earth, but alas, by the time the distorted missive arrived, the meteors had already struck the planet and caused massive collateral damage. {{storylink|Expose the Decepticons' Dark Trap!}}

Soon after, Fortress's younger brother, [[Grand Maximus|Grand]], travelled to Earth to aid the Autobots there against the approaching threat of [[Scorponok (G1)|BlackZarak]]. Grand was physically identical to his big bro, save for his coloration, and even piloted a smaller Maximus-style battleship of his own. {{storylink|Life? Death? The Desperate Lightfoot}}

{{-}}
====''Super-God Masterforce'' comic====
[[Image:Mfmanga fortress meets ginrai.jpg|left|thumb]]

When a new and powerful Autobot warrior named [[Ginrai]] rose to prominence on Earth, he distinguished himself to the point that Fortress decided to step down as Supreme Commander and appoint Ginrai in his place. The Trainbots brought Ginrai and his [[Headmaster Junior]] allies to Athenia, where Fortress formally handed over leadership, then departed to take care of some business on Master. In his absence, the united forces of the Earth- and space-based Decepticons attacked Athenia, but Ginrai was able to repel them. Fortress arrived back just as the Decepticons were pulling out, and announced that the Autobots must pool their resources as their enemies had, uniting their forces on Earth and space to commence the [[Godbomber|Bomber Project]]. {{storylink|The Battle Begins! The United Earth-Space Troops}}
{{-}}

===''Transformers in 3-D''===
Fortress Maximus served as transport when Ultra Magnus lead a mission to a small asteroid in search of a new source of [[Energon (fuel)|Energon]]. The Autobots discovered a [[Observer|small alien]], and [[Lightspeed (G1 Technobot)|Lightspeed]] utilized Maximus's laboratory to determine that the creature turned its food into Energon. A later fracas with the Decepticons resulted in Fortress Maximus getting involved, leading to a fight with Scorponok. {{storylink|The Test (issue)|The Test}}

===''Transformers PD Type''===
[[Image:Pdtype_fortmax_manga.jpg|right|thumb|275px]]
While casually minding his own business one day, Fortress Maximus was suddenly shocked to see a wave of Decepticons led by Galvatron bearing down on him. He immediately transformed into robot mode... but he had completely forgotten that he had been in city mode, leaving all the poor Autobots who had been inside him squished and thinking there had been an earthquake. {{storylink|Transformers PD Type##12 "Bigger than Life! Fortress Maximus!"|Bigger Than Life! Fortress Maximus!}}

Fortress Maximus later met Scorponok in battle, vowing to never surrender. All the other Transformers would probably have preferred that he ''did'' surrender, though, since the battle put them ''all'' in danger when the two towering titans toppled over, threatening to accidentally crush them all! {{storylink|Transformers PD Type##14 "Watch Out! Mega Zarak!"|Watch Out! MegaZarak!}}

{{-}}
===Dreamwave comics continuity===
A normal-sized Fortress Maximus was a co-leader of the Autobot forces on Cybertron, along with [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]]. As Cybertron's resources ran low, they struggled to hold the Autobot army together. {{storylink|Destined for Nothing}} The war continued despite their best efforts, and after a fruitless and disastrous skirmish with the Micromaster [[Skystalker (G1)|Skystalker]] and the Decepticons, Fortress Maximus gave up on the war. He left the Autobot army in order to seek a new path. {{Storylink|Victims of the Revolution}}

A gargantuan Fortress Maximus was also seen in a [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]]-induced vision of future [[Nebulos]] by Optimus Prime and Megatron. {{Storylink|The War Within issue 4|The War Within #4}}

===Devil's Due ''G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers'' comics===
[[Image:Ironclaw artofwar.jpg|right|150px|thumb|]]
While imbued with the wisdom of the [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]], [[Hawk (G.I. Joe)|Hawk]] had a vision of Fortress Maximus and [[Sgt. Savage]] fighting against [[Iron Klaw]] and [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]]. {{storylink|The Art of War issue 5|The Art of War #5}}

{{-}}
===IDW comics continuity===
{{ongoing}}
[[Image:SpotlightArcee FortressMaximus.jpg|left|300px|thumb|You wanna argue with him?]]
A somewhat less pacifistic Fortress Maximus (Seriously, he repeatedly threatened to kill his prisoners or otherwise "strip them down to their spark cores") was the warden in charge of [[Garrus-9]], an Autobot-run penitentiary where both Autobot and Decepticon prisoners were kept in containment. As the ultimate imprisonment, most inmates were reduced down to their [[spark]] and [[laser core]] alone, held inanimate in a storage center known as "The Rig" until such a time as Fortress Maximus deemed to rebuild and release them, if ever. Astoundingly, this method was deemed too "merciful" for at least one [[Impactor|prisoner]].

Fortress Maximus was one of many Autobots across the galaxy who watched a news report heralding the miraculous return of [[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]]. {{storylink|Spotlight: Blaster}}

After [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] encountered the [[Monstructor (G1)|Monstructor]] [[Combiner|combiners]] on [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]]'s asteroid bunker, he sent them to Garrus-9 with [[Jetfire (G1)|Jetfire]] and the [[Technobot (G1)|Technobots]], hoping the science team could help the six recover from [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]]'s experimentations. Fortress Maximus was dubious of the possible results, but allowed Jetfire and his team to run their tests at Garrus-9. Things changed for the worse, however, once word of the gestalt technology got out, and agents of the [[Decepticon Secret Service]] came to claim the remarkable new tech for themselves. Faced with an incredible amount of orbital bombardment and ground warfare, Fortress Maximus and his defensive crew were at serious risk of being overrun.

In order to maintain control of his base, Max reactivated the only Autobot inmate classified as Threat Level-9: [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]]. Knowing Arcee had strong feelings about Jhiaxus and his work from personal experience, Fortress Maximus felt confident she would do anything to prevent the Decepticons from laying claim to the "[[Pretender Monster|Monstructor Six]]." In case he was wrong, though, Fortress Maximus made it clear to Arcee she was lowjacked with synchronized G-forces that would crush her spark if she stepped out of line. Despite Arcee's help, the [[Combaticon (G1)|Combaticons]] still managed to make off with the gestalt robots. Against his better judgment, Fortress Maximus allowed Jetfire to convince him that Arcee was the best available to track and intercept the Secret Service ships and retrieve or destroy the gestalt robots. {{storylink|Spotlight: Arcee}}

When Optimus Prime and [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] met with Fortress Maximus and Jetfire on Garrus-9 to discuss the prisoners' breakout, also mentioned was that a surviving Decepticon had been tortured. Maximus and Jetfire exchanged guilty glances. Prime left Maximus in charge and returned with Prowl and Jetfire to the ''[[Ark-32]]''. {{storylink|Spotlight: Cyclonus}}

With the death of [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]], [[Nova Prime|Nemesis Prime]] was forced to enter the living universe and confront Optimus Prime at Garrus-9. Fortress Maximus and the other Autobots were hunkered down in The Last Resort, the best-defended, highest-security section of the penitentiary, and he believed that not even a [[Cortynivian Shadow Worm]] could get in. He was wrong, as Nemesis effortlessly forced his way in, killed [[Manta Ray (G2)|Manta Ray]] and [[Drench (G2)|Drench]] and shrugged off all Autobot weapons fire. Maximus called in reinforcements until Optimus convinced him that conventional tactics would not work with the undead Prime and went to deal with Nemesis Prime himself. {{storylink|Spotlight: Doubledealer}}

During Megatron's massive push against the Autobots, an annoyed Maximus led the defense of the prison against the [[Predator (subgroup)|Predator]] forces. However, when the sociopathic [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]] took control of the Decepticon forces, the prison was overrun and Fortress Maximus beaten down by the monster. And then, to keep the liberated prisoners on his side, Overlord tossed them their former warden to have some fun... so long as they kept him alive. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 1|Last Stand of the Wreckers #1}}

[[Image:LastStandoftheWreckers3-Fort Max the cabbage.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Hope you weren't going to bed after reading this page!]]
The inmates apparently followed Overlord's instructions, as one half of the [[Wrecker]]s eventually came across Maximus's barely-alive body. Rendered comatose and with his optics and limbs pulled off, he had been plugged into the lock of the door to [[Aequitas]]'s chamber, and put to use entering in code after code in a Decepticon attempt to break in. [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] removed Maximus's connection to the lock, then [[Topspin (G1)|Topspin]] and [[Pyro]] pulled his body from the door to carry him. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 3|Last Stand of the Wreckers #3}}

When the Decepticons broke into the Aequitas chamber, [[Ironfist (G1)|Ironfist]] carried Fortress Maximus to safety. Eventually, the Wreckers succeeded in defeating Overlord and saving Garrus-9, and Maximus was placed on life support alongside [[Springer (G1)|Springer]]. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 5|Last Stand of the Wreckers #5}}

{{note|Though thickly built, Fortress Maximus is a normal-sized Transformer in [[IDW Generation 1 continuity|IDW continuity]], about the same size as Jetfire. He also has tank-treads on his back, indicating a vehicular [[altmode]].}}

{{-}}

==Games==
===''Transformers: The Headmasters''===
When the Decepticons struck out at four planets, including Cybertron and Earth, Fortress Maximus was joined by [[Hot Rod (G1)|Rodimus Prime]] and the Headmasters of Justice to save the final planet from [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]]. {{storylink|Transformers: The Headmasters (video game)|Transformers: The Headmasters}}

==Toys==
===Generation 1===
[[Image:G1FortressMaximus toy.jpg|right|300px|thumb|If I hear somebody ask "how's the weather up there" one more time, Primus help them...]]
*'''Fortress Maximus''' (Headmaster Base, 1987)
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''C-114'''
**''Accessories:'' Spike Headmaster unit, Cerebros large Headmaster unit, [[Cog (G1)|Gasket]], [[Cog (G1)|Grommet]], Photon Rifle, Dual Laser Cannon, Cerebros's Mini Laser Rifle, [[Cog (G1)|Cog]]'s Laser rifle, Radar Scope, Master Sword (Japanese release only), Cerebros's sword (Japanese release only)

: Fortress Maximus is, by far, the largest Transformers toy ever produced. In robot mode it stands 22" (or 56 cm) tall, nearly 8" (20 cm) taller than its in-fiction rival Scorponok. The original retail price was over $100USD. Taking into account ongoing trends in toy pricing and retail shelf space jockeying, it is highly doubtful any other Transformers even close to this size will ever be made again.

: The toy has multiple alt mode configurations, transforming into a relatively compact "city" mode, and also a secondary mode described in the US instruction as a "battle station." That mode was rebranded as a starship for the Japanese instructions, and is the "default" mode for Fortress Maximus in the ''Headmasters'' animated series. Additionally, the 1987 Hasbro toy catalog features a mis-transformed Fortress Maximus in a mode referred to as an "impenetrable fortress," essentially consisting of his city mode with the legs splayed outwards.

: In all modes, Maximus has a wide array of pop-out (non-firing) guns and gimmicks. Its left leg hides a small prison cell, plus has a swing-out cannon/helipad. Its right leg has a small storage compartment. Its torso has a gear-activated spinner for the detachable radar array accessory, a "control socket" for [[Cerebros (G1)|Cerebros]]' "communications tower" mode, and a working elevator that can lift small toys up to its central ramp to be launched in its altmodes. (The crank for this elevator ends up in a very unfortunate position in robot mode.) Each arm had a long ramp on the back with sliding launchers for small vehicles.

: Its robot-mode head is formed by Cerebros, who does not actually need Spike to attach to the upper body. It came with both Headmaster units, plus the Gasket and Grommet mini-vehicles.

:Suposedly, Megahead Megatron's spider-head mode (with a few alterations)can fit into Fortress Maximus' head socket.

: The Japanese release of Fortress Maximus came with a pair of [[Master Sword]]s; one for Fortress, a ''large'' one for Maximus. It is currently unknown if the swords were originally planned for the [[Hasbro]] version but dropped for price or [[For safety reasons|safety concerns]], or if they were a [[Takara]]-initiated addition to their release of the toy.

: This mold was used to make ''[[Super-God Masterforce (toyline)|Super-God Masterforce]]'' [[Grand Maximus]], ''[[Robots in Disguise (toyline)|Car Robots]]'' [[Fortress Maximus (RID)|Brave Maximus]], and ''[[Robot Masters (franchise)|Robot Masters]]'' "[[Fortress Maximus (RID)|Cybertron Base]]".
::*''[http://www.tfu.info/1987/Autobot/FortressMaximus/fortressmaximus.htm More information on Fortress Maximus at TFU.info]

{{-}}

===Transform Jr===
[[Image:G1 FortressMaximus Jnr toy.jpg|right|300px|thumb|We represent the Lollybot guild]]
* '''Fortress Maximus''' (1987)
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''C-114'''
**''Accessories:'' Fortress Headmaster unit, Photon Rifle

: ''[[Transform Jr]]'' Fortress Maximus is a smaller rendering of the character, scaled down to regular Transformer size, and with only one head. Fortress Maximus could only transform from his starship mode to his robot mode, as his legs lack the joints to fold into city mode. Much of his detail and accessories have been simplified into stickers, such as his shin cannons. He comes with only one weapon, his large blue photon rifle.

:This toy was also available in a leaders three-pack with [[Chromedome (G1)|Chromedome]] and [[Optimus Prime (G1)/toys|Convoy]]

::*''[http://www.cliffbee.com/reviews/fortmaxjr.php More information of Transform Jr Fortress Maximus at Cliffbee.com]''
{{-}}

==Merchandise==
===Transformers Gum===
[[Image:Tfgum_fortmax.jpg|right|thumb|300px]]
*'''Fortress Maximus''' (1987)
**''Accessories:'' Head, Photon Rifle, Dual Laser Blaster
:Released in the seventh wave of [[Kabaya]]'s ''[[Transformers Gum]]'' line of snap-together "[[candy toy]]" model kits, this version of Fortress stands at about four inches tall and is cast in grey, white and blue plastic. Unlike the Headmaster figures from the previous ''Transformers Gum'' wave, this version of Fortress Maximus does away with his Headmaster gimmick, and by sheer necessity of size, also lacks the guns in his forearms and fists and the prison cell in his left leg. He does include both of his hand-held weapons and swing-out waist cannons, however, and he can still transform into both starship and city modes. As a ''Transformers Gum'' kit, he featured no paint applications, but came with stickers for detail, and a piece of terrible gum.

::*''[http://bowbowdaijin.blog96.fc2.com/blog-entry-27.html More information on Transformer Gum Fortress Maximus at a Japanese fansite]''
{{--}}

===Parody Deformed===
[[Image:Pdtype_fortmax.jpg|right|thumb|]]
*'''Fortress Maximus''' (1990)
**''Accessories:'' Master Sword

:A small, blue and white non-transforming [[super deformed]] model kit of Fortress Maximus was available as part of Kabaya's "[[Parody Deformed]]" line of candy toys. The twelfth figure in the series, he came with a "Transformers PD Type" comic about himself, "Bigger Than Life! Fortress Maximus!", and more of that alleged "gum".
{{--}}
===Super Collection Figure/Heroes of Cybertron===
[[Image:Fortmax_scf_hoc.jpg|right|thumb|300px]]
*'''Fortress Maximus''' (2001)

:Fortress Maximus was the collectible "Build-A-Figure" from the third ''Headmasters''-centric wave of [[TakaraTomy|Takara]]'s line of ''[[Super Collection Figure]]'' PVC figurines. He was divided into six parts, each one packaged with one of the other six figurines in the line: His head and sword came with [[Raiden]], his torso with [[Bumblebee (G1)/toys|Bumblebee]] and [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike]], his left arm with [[Chromedome (G1)|Chromedome]], his right arm with [[Soundwave (G1)/toys|Soundwave]], his left leg with [[Ironhide (G1)/toys|Ironhide]] and his right leg with [[Sixshot]].

:As the first collectible figure from the line, Fortress Maximus was much rarer than those that would come later, with his parts only coming in two out of every ten cases. Like all the other figures in the wave, his parts were available in two color schemes; of the two cases he was available in, one contained a full-color figure, while the other contained a colorless translucent version.

*'''Fortress''' (2002)

:A standard 3" PVC figurine of Fortress was available in the eighth and final ''SCF'' wave line. Like all the figures in the wave, it was available as both a standard full color figure and a metallic silver "pewter" version, one of each of which was available in a standard case of twelve [[blindpacking|blindpacked]] figures. Additionally, in eight out of every ten cases, the pewter version of Fortress came packaged with head and torso of the wave's collectible [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]] figure.

*'''Fortress Maximus''' (2003)

: The Fortress Maximus PVC was later revisited by [[Hasbro]] for their domestic release of the ''Super Collection Figure'' series, ''[[Heroes of Cybertron]]''. Like all the ''Heroes of Cybertron'' figures, this version of Fortress Maximus was cast entirely in clear-blue plastic and then painted over, save a small spot on his head to give him a "light-pipe" glowing-eyes effect. He remained available only as a collectible pack-in, one part in each of the six releases in the line's fourth wave. His head and sword came with [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]], his torso with [[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]], his left arm with [[Powermaster]] [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Gigatron]], his right arm with [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]], his left leg with [[Jazz (G1)/toys|Autobot Jazz]] and his right leg with the Autobot Espionage Team ([[Bumblebee (G1)/toys|Bumblebee]] and [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike]]).

==Notes==
* "Fortress Maximus" was an early name for the characters that eventually became [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]] and [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]]. The [[Marvel Comics|Marvel]] [[Transformers: The Movie (Marvel Comics)|comic adaptation]] of the [[The Transformers: The Movie|1986 Movie]] even refers to [[Autobot City]] as "Fortress Maximus" in a caption.

* Fortress Maximus was the first toy to be released with a bona-fide Earthling figure. All of the other Headmasters' companions were from Nebulos. (Although Maximus's on-package [[bio]] refers to "the Nebulan leader, Spike", the general consensus is that it was supposed to be the popular figure from TV and other media, who is almost certainly an Earthling.)

* Both Scorponok and Fortress Maximus suffer from the writers struggling to reconcile the characters' high rank with their size. In their comic appearances, they are portrayed as commanders in some capacity but are shrunk down to interact with other Transformers, and their city modes pretty much don't exist. Conversely, the cartoons have opted to portray them as giant city Transformers, though they seem to be merely extensions of the smaller beings that bond with them, with no real life or will of their own.

[[Image:FortMaxReds.jpg|thumb|250px]]

*Fortress Maximus appeared in an unusual red-accented color scheme on the cover of Marvel's [[Ring of Hate!|''The Headmasters'' #1]]. This color scheme was repeated in the corner box for [[Love and Steel!|''The Headmasters'' #3]] and on the cover of [[The Man in the Machine!|''The Transformers'' #51]]. Its origin is unknown.

* The Battleship ''Maximus'' bears a slight resemblance to the [[Wikipedia:White Base|White Base]], a battleship from the [[Wikipedia:Gundam|''Gundam'' franchise]].

* When Spike transforms to join Fortress Maximus for the last time in the ''Generation 2'' book, Cerebros is not shown, and Spike transforms directly into Fortress Maximus's head. Maximus is shown to be no larger than Megatron. In real-life terms, it's an obvious series of art errors; in the context of the story, one might wonder if Maximus was reduced back to his original, smaller, size. It seems improbable, considering that Spike had been retired for years by that point.

* Fortress Maximus has the distinction of having one of the most well known Transformers [[Knockoff|bootleg]] versions in existence. While Cerebros has been omitted, the Spike figure is the same, and the body has been scaled down to match, effectively making the body compatible with any other Headmaster head. It also fetches absurd prices for a bootleg.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Cerebros''' (セレブロス ''Sereburosu''), '''Fortress''' (フォートレス ''Fōtoresu''), '''Fortress Maximus''' (フォートレスマキシマス ''Fōtoresu Makishimasu'')
*''English:'' '''Spaceship Bruce''' ([[Omni Productions]] dub starship mode)
*''French:'' '''Forteresse Maximus''' (Canada)
*''Mandarin:'' '''Ford''' (Taiwan, 福特 ''Fú Tè''), '''Furmon''' (Taiwan [[Omni Productions]] dub, 福蒙 ''Fú Méng''), '''Fortry''' (Taiwan [[Omni Productions]] dub, 福崔 ''Fú Tsūei'')
*''Ukranian:'' '''Fortecya Maxima''' (''Фортеця Максима'', "Fortress Maxima")
*''Russian:'' '''Krepysh Maximus''' (''Крепыш Максимус'', "Sturdy Fellow Maximus")

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.ntfa.net/universe/english/index.php?act=view&char=Fortress_Maximus Fortress Maximus's Universe profile at NTFA.net]

[[Category:Autobot bases]]
[[Category:Autobot leaders]]
[[Category:Autobot starships]]
[[Category:City Transformers]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Autobots]]
[[Category:Generation 1 locations]]
[[Category:Generation 1 starships]]
[[Category:Headmasters]]
[[Category:Multi-component Transformers]]
[[Category:Super-God Masterforce Autobots]]
[[Category:The Headmasters Autobots]]
[[Category:Transformers with three modes]]

Fortress Maximus (G1)

2011-06-21T23:17:05Z

93.75.235.114: /* Foreign names */

{{factions|autobot|autobotg2}}
{{disambig3|Fortress Maximus}}
:''Fortress Maximus is an [[Autobot]] [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]] [[City-bot]] from the [[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]] [[continuity family]].''

[[Image:FortMax1.jpg|right|300px|thumb|[[Nobuyuki Hiyama|Link]] called. He wants the [[Master Sword]] back.]]
Despite his great power, size, and rank, '''Fortress Maximus''' is a weary and reluctant warrior. Fighting is against his pacifist nature, even for the most noble of causes. Over time, the endless conflict on Cybertron has worn him down, to the point that he's willing to walk away from the war entirely to preserve himself and his ideals.

Fortress Maximus is big. ''How'' big generally depends on the universe, but often as not he's binary-bonded to a smaller robot named [[Cerebros (G1)|Cerebros]] who forms his head; Cerebros's own head is formed by [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike]].

{{note|Fortress Maximus is one of those fun characters whose English comic, English cartoon and Japanese cartoon incarnations were very different. See individual fiction entries below for continuity specific profiles.}}

==Fiction==
===Marvel Comics continuity===
====Generation 1====
{{noteukonly}}
[[Image:Ringofhate-evilstain.jpg|right|250px|thumb|He is mad as hell and he's not gonna take it anymore!]]
Fortress Maximus was an architect in his early career, designing and even constructing many works on Cybertron. When the war came, he reluctantly turned his talents to fighting. {{storylink|Transformers Universe (Marvel comic)|Transformers Universe profile}}

During the long absence of [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Optimus Prime]], [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]], and their respective troops from [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], unit commander Fortress Maximus established a headquarters in the [[Manganese Mountains]] and continued the fight against Scorponok's Decepticon contingent.

One fine day on Cybertron, Fortress Maximus's troops staged an ambush on Scorponok's Decepticons, who had just leveled an Autobot city and were marching their prisoners toward the [[Smelting pool|smelting pools]]. Maximus's troops cut a swath through the Decepticon ranks, quickly driving them into retreat.

{{bigquote|Whether I am a hero or a coward is ''not'' the issue! I am ''weary!'' My joints creak from the corrosion of ''war without end!'' I... cannot break this ring of hate that surrounds us all -- but I can remove myself from it. No matter what you decide... I am leaving.|Fortress Maximus announces his decision to quit the war|"[[Ring of Hate!]]"}}

[[Image:Ringofhate-pangalactic.jpg|left|200px|thumb|"...And that, prospective investors, is why GoogleSaturn will make a million dollars per month."]]
Though his troops were jubilant at their victory, the battle was the last straw for Fortress Maximus. He had become so sick of the war that he decided to leave it. He didn't care if it made him a coward or not, he simply believed that the war would go on regardless of whether or not he was in it. Maximus declared that no matter what the others decided, he was leaving for the planet of [[Nebulos]], a world he had long studied and which seemed to be at peace. His stunned troops agreed, and together constructed a starship dubbed the ''[[Steelhaven (G1)|Steelhaven]]'' to propel them across the void.

Fortress Maximus immediately sent [[Highbrow (G1)|Highbrow]] as an messenger to the Nebulan natives; however, an accident made it appear that the giant robots from outer space came with hostile intent. Some of the more reactionary elements among the Nebulan leadership conspired to make Fortress Maximus's envoy [[Blurr (G1)|Blurr]] also appear to have hostile intent, and thus were able to incite their fellow Nebulans to arms.

[[Image:Fortmaxgiveshead.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Dibs on the off-color jokes!]]
Fortress Maximus and his troops thus found themselves under a full attack from the Nebulans. Max ordered his troops to not fight back, despite complaints from the likes of [[Kup (G1)|Kup]], and covered them as they retreated into the woods.

Faced with a newly hostile enemy, Fortress Maximus resolved to wage peace, not war. Gathering ten of his followers, he marched up to the Nebulan capital of [[Koraja]], begged to be heard out, and had his group discard their weapons. When that didn't work, he did the next logical thing and pulled his head off. Four other Autobots also resorted to this grotesque stunt before [[Galen]], head of the Nebulan [[World Watchers]], was convinced they weren't a threat. {{storylink|Ring of Hate!}}

[[Image:Brokenglass-autobotstorage.jpg|left|200px|thumb|My honey my baby, don't put my head upon no shelf.]]
The five Autobots' heads were stored in a warehouse, and Galen occasionally consulted with Fortress Maximus, keeping him up to date on outside events as anti-robot protests rocked the capital city.

Soon after, a horde of the Autobots' Decepticon foes appeared before the city gates. Max advised Galen that turning the Autobots over to Scorponok would not prevent him from attacking, and under the Autobot-Nebulan peace agreement, Galen could not simply restore the five Autobots to their bodies. But together with [[Arcana]], the pair came up with another plan. Five volunteer Nebulans were bio-engineered to combine with special armor, and transform into likenesses of the Autobots heads, connecting with and controlling them through the [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster process]]. Galen himself became Fortress Maximus's new partner. Fortress Maximus led his newly-enhanced troops against Scorponok, and soundly defeated his numerically superior squad. {{storylink|Broken Glass!}}

[[Image:Loveandsteel-runfortmaxrun.jpg|right|250px|thumb|I'm just a-runnin' down the road, trying to loosen my load, got a world of troubles on my mind.]]
Fortress Maximus remained inert while Galen performed his various duties. He came back online to lead the Headmasters to the [[Grax Communications Facility]], where a number of Nebulan leaders were apparently being held hostage by the Decepticons. It turned out to be a trap, however, as the Decepticons had also become Headmasters, with Galen's rival Zarak now bonded to Scorponok himself. Using several Nebulans as a distraction, Scorponok's troops overpowered Fortress Maximus and the others, taking them hostage. {{storylink|Love and Steel!}}

Max remained out of commission until Zarak, briefly overcoming Scorponok's influence on his mind, freed Galen and the other Autobot-allied Nebulans. Fortress Maximus and company smashed their way out of the holding facility, then ran straight into the newly-formed Decepticon Targetmasters. Max briefly led his troops against the Decepticons, but opted to retreat rather than fight it out. To spare Koraja the carnage of a full-scale fight to the finish, he covered their retreat with the time-honored technique of smashing his enemies with Koraja's metal sculpture of the planet Nebulos. {{storylink|Brothers in Armor!!}}

''Scorponok and Zarak challenged Fortress Maximus and Galen (here called "Kord") to a duel to settle their differences. Kord/Maximus won by cheating, but it didn't matter because the duel was a ruse to distract the Autobots while [[Slugslinger (G1)|Slugslinger]] stole Autobot fuel converters. The Deceptions had bugged the Autobot base and learned of Earth. They needed the converters to travel there. The Decepticons left for Earth and the Autobots followed.'' {{storylink|The Final Conflict}}

{{note|The events in this UK story differ in significant ways to the [[Headmasters (comic)|Headmasters]] mini-series.}}

Returning to the Autobot camp, Max/Galen decided to lead the troops away from Nebulos, knowing that Scorponok would follow. {{storylink|Brothers in Armor!!}}

[[Image:Trialbyfire-fortmax-disassemble.jpg|left|200px|thumb|He does seem to have trouble staying in one piece, doesn't he?]]
During their voyage to Earth, Fortress Maximus underwent a radical reconstruction to alter his size considerably, increasing himself from a slightly tall dude to a ''very'' tall dude, about twice the height of the average Transformer. Of course, with his larger scale, Fortress Maximus needed a new head (Galen still being stuck at roughly human size). For this reason, another Autobot, [[Cerebros (G1)|Cerebros]], was added to serve as a secondary stage between Galen and Maximus. As the head of Cerebros, Galen could transform Cerebros into the larger head of Fortress Maximus.

Arriving on Earth, Fortress Maximus led his fellow Headmasters to [[Mount St. Hilary]], source of the Autobot distress call that had drawn them to Earth. After recovering the damaged [[Bumblebee (G1)|Goldbug]], the group encountered [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike]], who had come in search of his missing younger brother [[Buster Witwicky (G1)|Buster Witwicky]]. Spike asked for the Autobots' help in finding his brother, but Fortress Maximus was more interested in their primary mission of locating the Autobots of Earth, and he led his troops off to follow the fuel trail of the missing [[Ark (G1)|Ark]].

[[Image:Fortressmaximus-trialbyfire-rollout.jpg|right|250px|thumb|The usage of "roll out" gets stranger and stranger.]]
Scorponok's crew soon followed Maximus to Earth, however, and to the same cave. When Spike replayed Goldbug's distress message, Fortress Maximus and company returned to the cave, apologizing to Spike for his failure to consider the danger he had brought to Earth's natives by leading the Decepticons there.

In the ensuing battle, Spike retreated further into the volcano's caves to seek shelter. Scorponok followed, seeking a hostage, and Fortress Maximus pursued him. As the caves narrowed down, Maximus was forced to send Cerebros onward, and eventually Galen himself had to leave Cerebros to cross a fragile rock bridge. Scorponok used the distraction to blast rocks down on Galen, killing him. As the Decepticon leader left, laughing, Galen passed on his control helmet to Spike, allowing the Earthling to assume control of Fortress Maximus and drive the Decepticons off. {{storylink|Trial by Fire!}}

Spike soon underwent the full binary bonding process and became the leader of the ''Steelhaven'''s crew of Autobots. With his new partner, Fortress Maximus led the Autobot [[Targetmaster]]s in an effort to locate Buster, first visiting his father at a shady motel, then heading to a spot in the tropics where the Decepticons had set up an island base.

[[Image:Clubconpalmtreespear.jpg|left|300px|thumb|The purpose of Club Con is to flip out and spear people.]]
With Kup worried about the inexperience of Fortress Maximus's new partner, Max held back while the Targetmasters landed on the island. They were driven back by automated defenses, however, and the island revealed itself to be a rocket ship, launching into the atmosphere with Buster still aboard. Maximus resolved to take matters into his own hands, and took off after the rocket (who knew he could fly?) Unfortunately, once in space, the ship's defenses made shishkabob out of him, forcing Spike to resort to using Cerebros instead. Cerebros was likewise trashed by an attack from [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]], though Spike was able to use Maximus's guns to send Shockwave falling to his apparent demise. Maximus and his partners were subsequently rescued by the Targetmasters, and for his gusto, Spike was welcomed as the group's new leader. {{storylink|The Desert Island of Space!}}

As Fortress Maximus underwent repairs, his crew caught wind of a [[floppy disk]] in possession of one [[Ethan Zachary]], which contained the memories and personality of Optimus Prime. With the aid of a computer-generated version of Prime, Fortress Maximus gathered a lot of data from Scorponok's [[Pretender]] experiments and gave that ability to some of his own crew. {{storylink|Pretender to the Throne!}}

With the disk in their possession, Fortress Maximus oversaw efforts to build a new body for Optimus Prime's mind. However, the ''Steelhaven'''s resources were depleted after creating the Pretenders, causing the effort to fail explosively. Thus when [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]] located the Ark nearby, Fortress Maximus was eager to contact its Autobots and forge an alliance.

[[Image:Fortressmaximus-totalled-worthlesshuman.jpg|right|200px|thumb|It begs the question of why Grimlock didn't just step on him.]]
Unfortunately, [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]] developed an immediate dislike for Fortress Maximus, partially because he was a possible threat to Grimlock's leadership, partially because he was part human, and partially because he had a fugitive (Goldbug). He challenged "Fruitloop Multipuck" to a duel for leadership on the [[Moon (moon)|moon]]. Faced with the prospect of a divided Autobot force, Fortress Maximus agreed, though his unhealed injuries made victory an unlikely prospect. Luckily for Max, the imprisoned [[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]] agreed to fill in for him.

[[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]] led a Decepticon assault on the Autobots during the duel. While fighting off the attackers, Fortress Maximus ordered Goldbug, [[Joyride (Autobot)|Joyride]], [[Getaway]], and [[Slapdash (G1)|Slapdash]] to take the disk to Nebulos to restore Optimus Prime. {{storylink|Totaled!}}

With Optimus Prime restored, Maximus accepted a subordinate role in the Autobot ranks. ''He was among those Autobots present as Optimus Prime briefed the troops about the threat of the time-displaced [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]]. When Optimus and five other Autobots spontaneously and explosively vanished into thin air, only to be replaced by six Transformers claiming to be Autobots from the future, Fortress Maximus immediately assumed command, freaked out, and ordered his troops to destroy the "imposters". (Apparently, his memory was a little rusty, since said "imposters" included his own present-day troops Kup and Blurr.) Maximus sparred with Rodimus Prime until the words of Goldbug, as well as a Matrix-linked Optimus Prime, convinced him that Rodimus was telling the truth when he claimed to be a future Autobot leader. Maximus participated in the subsequent battle against Megatron and Galvatron; he attacked Megatron alongside Grimlock and Swoop, but was quickly put down by the battle-crazed Decepticon.'' {{storylink|Time Wars (issue)|Time Wars}}

[[Image:Fortmaxboat.jpg|left|250px|thumb|Contrary to what's advertised here, the toy will sink if you put it in the bathtub.]]
Fortress Maximus provided a floating search platform for Optimus and Blaster as they searched the ocean for the Decepticons' [[Club Con]] base. Spike expressed frustration that they still had not located his brother, though Optimus vowed to keep searching. {{storylink|Cold War!}}

Fortress Maximus was among the many Autobots who responded to an Autobot emergency signal in the Arctic... which turned out to be sent by none other than Buster Witwicky, who was dying of hypothermia. Maximus took his human sibling into a special thermal compartment, restoring his body temperature to normal.

When the Decepticons attacked soon after, Maximus came under attack from the [[Horrorcon]]s, followed by [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]], who clung to him tenaciously and eventually caused Buster to spill out of the warming compartment. This turned out to be a lucky break, as Buster reminded Ratbat that the battle was nothing but a ruse engineered by Starscream. Ratbat and Maximus together called for all the combatants to lay down their arms.

[[Image:Fortressmaximus-maninthemachine1.jpg|right|125px|thumb|Cast in the name of God, Ye not guilty]]
After Starscream seized the power of the [[Underbase]], Fortress Maximus and Soundwave led a team to [[Buenos Aires]] to try and stop him. As their troops fell en masse, Maximus attacked Starscream, only to receive a debilitating energy blast in return. His organic component, however, allowed him to survive the first attack. Omega Supreme intervened just then, preventing Maximus from being crushed by a monument hurled by Starscream. Starscream disposed of Omega, and was on the verge of finishing off Maximus, when he was lured away by a radio signal from Buster aboard the Ark. {{storylink|Dark Star (issue)|Dark Star}}

[[Image:Fortressmaximus-maninthemachine2.jpg|left|200px|thumb|So why couldn't he have just kept Cerebros attached to him and gone on with his life?]]
With Buster rescued and the threat of Starscream removed, Spike and Fortress Maximus's tumultuous relationship came to light. Feeling his work with the Autobots was done, Spike tried to go his own way and resume his life, going so far as to pitch his control helmet into a junkyard, but his binary bond could not be left behind so easily. Strange nightmares plagued him, visions of falling into a void. Nor would the Decepticons relent; while on a skiing expedition, he found himself hunted by Carnivac and Snarler. Turning inwards, he found his link to Fortress Maximus remained even without the control helmet and that he could summon the giant warrior from afar. Max left his storage space aboard the Ark and descended to Earth. Despite Carnivac's dirty fighting, Fortress Maximus easily disposed of the two attackers and their Pretender shells, once he and Spike physically recombined. With the battle over, Spike sent Fortress Maximus back to the Ark. {{storylink|The Man in the Machine!}}

Despite Spike's reconciliation, Fortress Maximus was subsequently out of action for many months or even years. He was still stored aboard the Ark just before the great battle with Unicron, when Grimlock and his Dinobots had returned from [[Hydrus Four]]. They had come looking for the rest of the Autobots, but the Ark's scanners were only picking up one Transformer. Weirder still, this Transformer was in ''two'' parts! {{storylink|The Void! (US)|The Void!}}

{{note|It's kind of odd that [[Primus]] didn't warp Fortress Maximus with every other Transformer on Earth, but it's implied that it's because half of him was on the Ark. Odder still is that the Dinobots didn't notice or mention that half of this Transformer was on the Ark with them.}}

[[Image:Fortressmaximus-thelastautobot1.jpg|right|125px|thumb|]]
After Unicron was defeated, the Ark plummeted to Earth and crashed in the northern tundra of Canada. When [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]] emerged from the wreckage to wreak havoc, it fell to Fortress Maximus to stop him. He called to Spike, who came. He and Spike went through some mental wrangling before Max convinced Spike to reunite with him once more. Anxious and desperate after so long out of the war, Maximus immediately suppressed his hesitating partner and took full control upon regaining his head. This proved not to be such a wise idea. Fortress Maximus alone wasn't quite ready to deal with the totally insane Galvatron, who started smashing and biting(!) him to pieces. Realizing the power of their combined strength, Spike and Fortress Maximus managed to unite in thought and deed, and defeated the crazed Decepticon. Fortress Maximus stood alone at the battle's end, the last Autobot, guardian of Earth. {{storylink|The Last Autobot?}}

{{-}}
====Generation 2====
[[Image:Fortressmaximus-allornothing2.jpg|left|200px|thumb|Let me demonstrate just how much you don't have a [[To sell toys|toy on the shelves]] anymore.]]
It was ultimately [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] who would prove to be the undoing of this giant warrior. The reborn and reconditioned Decepticon leader stole the Ark from its crash site in Canada, and used it as his personal flagship. {{storylink|Realignments}} While establishing control over the ship, Megatron found and disabled Fortress Maximus's dormant form. Spike sneaked aboard the ship and rejoined with Maximus, but the damage inflicted by Megatron meant they had virtually no chance to win.

Brutally beaten in combat with an upgraded and super-charged Megatron, the pair dragged themselves to the heart of the ship and threw themselves into the anti-matter containment unit at the core of its power supply, killing them both and causing the Ark to explode. {{storylink|All or Nothing!}}

Though it kept the Ark out of Megatron's hands, and nearly derailed his plans entirely, their effort was ultimately not successful: Megatron escaped aboard a shuttle and lived to fight again, and even had time to take the convalescent Starscream with him. {{storylink|New Dawn}} {{storylink|Devices and Desires! (Marvel)|Devices and Desires!}}

{{-}}
===''The Transformers'' cartoon===
:''Voice actor:'' [[Stephen Keener]] (English), [[Kunihiko Yasui]] (Japanese)

[[Image:Fortressmaximusg1rebirth.jpg|right|250px|thumb|]]

When a battle for possession of the [[key to the Plasma Energy Chamber]] led a group of Autobots and Decepticons to be stranded on the planet [[Nebulos]], partnership between the Transformers and the native Nebulans led to the development of Headmaster and Targetmaster technology. The planet's evil ruling council, the [[Hive (G1)|Hive]], took the technology to its most powerful extreme when its leader [[Zarak (Nebulan)|Zarak]] created the massive city-sized Scorponok to serve as his Headmaster partner and used his power to steal back the chamber key. The Decepticons departed for Cybertron, and the Autobots were poised to give chase when Spike Witwicky announced that he and the pacifistic Cerebros would be staying behind. While the other Autobots left in pursuit, Spike had Cerebros lead him to the ruins of the Hive's original city, which they had lived in before moving underground. Taking control of the various abandoned machines there, Spike rebuilt the city, Cerebros and even himself into a Headmaster robot that could stand up to Scorponok's power: Fortress Maximus!

[[Image:Rebirth3_fortmax_battlestation.jpg|left|250px|thumb]]

The completed Fortress Maximus quickly flew to Cybertron and made a dramatic entrance, setting down in city mode and then transforming to battle station mode to bombard Scorponok and the Decepticons with a hail of weaponsfire. When Zarak transformed Scorponok to robot mode, Spike did likewise with Fortress Maximus, and the two titans battled, with Maximus on the losing end until Zarak threatened the life of Spike's son, Daniel. With a burst of strength, Fortress Maximus took Scorponok down, causing him to collapse with such force that he transformed back to city mode. Spike and Cerebros then disconnected from Maximus and headed inside Scorponok to recover the captive Daniel and [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]], leaving Maximus to keep the other Decepticons at bay with his many weapons. The Decepticons were able to get through Maximus's firestorm and got Scorponok airborne, but not before Spike succeeded in his rescue.

Subsequently, with the Plasma Energy Chamber back under Autobot control, Fortress Maximus flew the Autobot Headmasters and Targetmasters back to Nebulos. There, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] announced that after they had eradciated the Hive's evil from the planet, Cerebros would live on the planet as its guardian, presumably meaning that Fortress Maximus would be staying there too. {{storylink|The Rebirth, Part 3}}

{{note|It is unclear if Fortress Maximus had any sentience of his own; he did speak once in his own voice, but for the most part, even Cerebros's will seemed to be pushed aside so Spike could run the whole thing himself.}}

===Japanese animated continuity===
{{note|In Japan, Fortress Maximus's mental functions are housed in a small robot who transforms into a head and connects to a larger, lifeless Transtector body. This larger body in turn becomes the head of a ''giant'' Transtector, forming the robot known as Fortress Maximus. The ''Headmasters'' toyline referred to the smallest robot as '''Cerebros''', who formed the head of the intermediate robot '''Fortress''', but this distinction was never actually made in fiction, and the character was always referred to as "Fortress" regardless of whether he was in small or intermediate form.}}

====''The Great Transformer War'' comic====
[[Image:Hmmanga battered headmasters.jpg|right|thumb|300px]]

In the year 2010, while significant Transformer battles were being waged throughout space and on Earth, Fortress was active on the planet [[Master (planet)|Master]]. After the younger Headmaster warriors under his command were defeated in battle by [[Sixshot]] and the Decepticon Headmasters, Fortress quickly roused his fallen comrades and ordered them to board his battleship, the Maximus, so that they could pursue the villains. Their destination: Cybertron! {{storylink|The Great Transformer War issue 3|The Great Transformer War #3}}

====''The Headmasters'' cartoon====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Ikuya Sawaki]]

[[Image:Hm7 fortress small bot.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]

Four million years ago, Fortress was a [[Cyberdroid|diminutive Cybertronian]] who had not yet mastered the art of transformation, and was a friend of [[Kup (G1)|Kup]]'s. He was among the many Transformers that fled Cybertron in an attempt to escape the corrosion of war without end, and led a group of his fellow small Cybertronians in search of a new peaceful world they could call home. {{storylink|The Mystery of Planet Master}} Alas, engine trouble caused their ship to crash on the inhospitable world of planet Master, whose hazardous environmental conditions began threatening the lives of Fortress and his men almost as soon as they departed the wreckage of their ship and began trekking through a desert of shifting sands. The need for survival fostered many technological and mental advancements, however, and Fortress and his people endured.

[[Image:Hm1_battleship_maximus.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]

Fortress was responsible for many of the technological quantum leaps, the most significant of which was the invention of "[[Transtector]]s": larger, lifeless Transformer bodies to which the small Cybertronians could connect as heads. After a rigorous physical and mental training program that allowed them to finally master transformation and even instilled powerful telepathic and telekinetic powers in them, Fortress and nine other warriors bonded with these Transtectors to become "Headmasters". {{storylink|The Four-Million-Year-Old Veil of Mystery}} Fortress even took the process one step further, and with the aid of other Master scientists like [[Jack (Headmasters)|Jack]], created a ''huge'' Transtector that could transform into the battleship, Maximus. Fortress's own Transtector was engineered to also transform into a head, which could control the many functions of the Maximus from a special docking bay on the battleship's bridge, {{storylink|Rebellion on Planet Beast}} and which could form the head for the battleship's own colossal robot mode, known as "Fortress Maximus". Fortress also created the powerful [[Master Sword]] for himself, and tied the Maximus's transformation into it; in order to convert the battleship to robot mode, Fortress had to draw a small version of the blade from a sheath beneath his command console, but this feat could only be accomplished when his physical and mental energies were in perfect synchronization. {{storylink|Explosion on Mars!! Maximus Is in Danger}}

Unfortunately, half of the Headmasters eventually rebelled against Fortress's leadership, siding with a traitor named Scorponok against him. The traitors were defeated by Fortress and his comrades and exiled from Master, but eventually, they came to ally themselves with the Decepticons under the command of [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]]. {{storylink|The Mystery of Planet Master}}

{{note|The events of the ''Great Transformer War'' manga occur at this point.}}

[[Image:Hm2_kup_and_fortress.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]

In the year 2011, when Galvatron launched his latest attack on Cybertron with the added power of his new Decepticon Headmasters, Fortress Maximus brought the Autobot Headmasters back to their homeworld aboard the Maximus. {{storylink|Four Warriors Come out of the Sky}} Even the mightiest of the Decepticons' [[combiner]]s could not stand against Battleship Maximus's firepower, and the evil robots were forced into retreat. This task complete, Fortress set the Maximus down at the Autobots' secondary headquarters on the planet [[Athenia]], where he introduced himself and his comrades and explained their origins, and was reunited with Kup. After being filled in by the Autobots on the current crisis—[[Vector Sigma]] had become destabilized, putting the planet at risk—Fortress deduced that the [[Matrix of Leadership]] was necessary to bring the computer back under control. {{storylink|The Mystery of Planet Master}} Unfortunately, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] had already ventured into the depths of Cybertron without the Matrix, willing to sacrifice his own life to stabilize Vector Sigma, so Fortress headed into the planet's catacombs after him while the other Headmasters helped [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]] search for the Matrix, hidden somewhere on [[Earth]]. Though Fortress was not able to catch up to Prime before he reached Vector Sigma's chamber, he was able to use his telepathic powers to contact Prime's companion, the spirit of [[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]], helping to guide him safely through the maze of tunnels. It turned out that [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]] and [[Scourge (G1)|Scourge]] had made it to the chamber ahead of Prime, however, and Fortress raced through the remainder of the tunnels to aid Prime against the two Decepticons. Hot Rod soon arrived with the Matrix, which he used to become Rodimus Prime again, but before he could use it to bring Vector Sigma back under control, Optimus Prime merged with the computer to stabilize it, giving up his life in the process. {{storylink|Birth of the Fantastic Double Prime}} Prime was not the only casualty of the crisis: [[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]] also lost his life in the search for the Matrix. Luckily, Fortress was able to use the advanced technology of Master to rebuild and resurrect him, as Twincast. {{storylink|The Great Cassette Operation}}

[[Image:Hm5_fortmax_headmode.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]

While patrolling space for Decepticon activity aboard the Maximus, the Autobot Headmasters discovered [[Daniel Witwicky (G1)|Daniel Witwicky]] and [[Wheelie (G1)|Wheelie]] stowed away on board. After explaining the function of his Head Mode to the shocked youngsters, Fortress agreed to let the pair join them on the patrol. Soon after, the Autobots came upon two stranded [[Beastformer]]s from the planet [[Beast (planet)|Beast]], and learned that the Decepticons had invaded their planet; the infuriated Fortress made for the planet with all due speed, after sending a report to Rodimus Prime on Athenia. The Autobot Headmasters helped the native Beastformers liberate their planet from Decepticon control, but Fortress was concerned with a blueprint recovered from an underground factory that indicated the Decepticons were building something. {{storylink|Rebellion on Planet Beast}}

[[Image:Hm6_fortmax_funnyfaces.jpg|left|thumb|225px|:D]]

When the Decepticons launched a [[Metamorpho|metal-warping meteor]] at Athenia, Fortress and his battleship were powerless to do anything, for fear of being destroyed by the meteor's gravity sensors. It fell to Daniel Witwicky to destroy the meteor, so Fortress transported him as close to it as he was able. Daniel lost his nerve at the last minute, so Fortress calmed him down by making some silly faces. Dignified! {{storylink|Approach of the Demon Meteorite}} Later, a phoney distress call lured Fortress and the Autobot Headmasters into a trap on the planet [[Praum]] set by their old foe, Scorponok. Despite being trapped in a subterranean chamber with the endless desert sands pouring in on top of him, Fortress kept his head and reminded his young allies of the similar hardships they had suffered on Master and the training they had undergone to overcome them. With the skills they had learned back then, they were able to escape. {{storylink|The Four-Million-Year-Old Veil of Mystery}}

[[Image:Hm10_fortress_appointed_commander.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]

When Galvatron launched an attack on Cybertron in an attempt to steal a new alloy developed by Vector Sigma named [[cybertonuron]], Fortress advised Rodimus Prime against striking back in full force, preferring to find another way to stop the Decepticons than putting all their warriors in danger. Rodimus refused, and Fortress quietly acquiesced to his commander's wishes, ferrying him to Cybertron on Battleship Maximus. {{storylink|Cybertron Is in Grave Danger, Part 1}} The battle ended catastrophically, however, when treachery on the part of Scorponok led to the detonation of a collection of bombs in Vector Sigma's chamber, devastating Cybertron and rendering it uninhabitable, and apparently killing Galvatron in the process. Realizing with deep regret that Fortress's caution had been warranted, Rodimus Prime decided that the era of his generation of Transformers was over, and vowed to search the universe for a new planet the Transformers could call home. He passed the title of [[Supreme Commander]] of the Autobots (though not the Matrix of Leadership) to Fortress, who was visibly uncomfortable with the appointment, but accepted it graciously, telling himself not to contest it because it was his destiny. {{storylink|Cybertron Is in Grave Danger, Part 2}}

[[Image:G1FortressMaximus HMstockfootage.jpg|left|225px|thumb|"...But it's the pelvic thruuuuuust / that really drives you in-sa-a-a-ane..."]]

Fortress's tenure as leader got off to a strong start with the successful completion of the [[Solar 1]] satellite, a joint venture between the Autobots and humanity to gather solar energy. Unfortunately, the satellite was stolen by the Decepticons, forcing the Autobot Headmasters to destroy it to keep it out of their hands. Before being destroyed, however, the satellite's energy was beamed by the villains to the planet [[Zarak (planet)|Zarak]]. {{storylink|The Shadow Emperor, Scorponok}} Fortress attempted to study Zarak from afar in hopes of deducing what the Decepticons were up to, but the planet's gaseous shroud prevented remote observation of its surface, and the Decepticons began staging concentrated attacks on Earth to keep the Autobots' attentions divided. {{storylink|The Dormant Volcano Mysteriously Erupts}} One such attack saw the Decepticons unleash a carnivorous, ambulatory plant upon [[San Francisco]], which Fortress identified as a lifeform from the planet [[Darhos]]. When the Autobot Headmasters responded, Battleship Maximus was caught in the plant-monster's vines, and Fortress's lack of focus left him unable to draw the Master Sword and transform. Galvanized by the cries of the other Headmasters, however, his energies soon came into alignment, and for what was apparently the first time (given everyone else's surprise when it happened) Fortress transformed the Maximus and combined with it to form Fortress Maximus. With the power of the Master Sword, he easily dispatched the giant plant. {{storylink|Head On!! Fortress Maximus}}

[[Image:Hm14 fortress draws mastersword.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]

Weakened by the great energy demands of his transformation, Fortress sent the Autobot Headmasters to [[Mars (planet)|Mars]] without him when news of Decepticon movement on the planet reached the Autobots. When the Headmasters discovered that the Decepticons were planning to blow up Mars, however, Fortress went into action, only to be struck with a [[plasma energy]] bomb by the Decepticons Headmasters just as he was in the middle of transforming into Fortress Maximus. {{storylink|Explosion on Mars!! Maximus Is in Danger}} Although Fortress survived the blast, his energies were severely drained, and the powerless Maximus was unable to depart Mars as the countdown to the Decepticons' planet-destroying explosion continued. Even worse, into the middle of this crisis stepped Scorponok, now outfitted with a gigantic Transtector of his own: the end result of the mysterious construction operations on planets Beast and Zarak. Scorponok pummelled the paralyzed Maximus, then pulled out just before the chain of explosion began. Fortress told the Headmasters to leave him and the Maximus to their fate, but luckily, at the last minute, the battleship began absorbing the energy released by the early stages of the explosion. Fortress was able to use this energy to transform into Fortress Maximus, and escaped the destruction of Mars, slashing Scorponok with the Master Sword as he came bursting from the conflagration. {{storylink|Explosion on Mars!! MegaZarak Appears}}

[[Image:Hm17_maximus_vs_scorponok.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]

While Fortress and the Headmasters were patrolling the edges of Decepticon space to keep an eye on their enemies' activities, Scorponok attacked the Maximus, only for the fight to be broken up by a strange UFO. Back on Athenia, Fortress met with the Autobots' deep cover spy, [[Punch (G1)|Punch]], and learned that Scorponok was holding a coronation ceremony for himself on Earth's [[moon (moon)|moon]]. The Autobots attacked the ceremony, during which Fortress again pitted his battleship against Scorponok, but the fighting was brought to an end when the UFO returned, and was revealed to belong to Galvatron, who had survived Cybertron's destruction. {{storylink|Return of the Immortal Emperor}} Fortress fought Scorponok again soon after, when the Autobots tried to provide energy relief to the other-dimensional planet [[Sandra (planet)|Sandra]]. {{storylink|SOS from Planet Sandra}}

[[Image:Hm23_fortmax_sword_slash.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]

When the Decepticons embarked on an interplanetary energy quest, the Autobots determined to follow them aboard Fortress's battleship; Fortress had to be convinced to allow Daniel to come with them. {{storylink|Daniel Faces His Biggest Crisis Ever!!}} Their first port of call was the planet [[Hachi no Susei]], but before the Maximus could set down, they were attacked by the planet's force. Fortress was intent on a show of non-resistance and would not fire back, while [[Chromedome (G1)|Chromedome]] went down to the planet's surface and proved the Autobots' good intentions to Susei's [[Queen Bee]]. The Autobots joined forces with the natives to fend off the Decepticons; Fortress disconnected the Maximus's "Master Shot" cannon so the Headmasters could wield it, then transformed into Fortress Maximus to send Scorponok packing with the Master Sword. {{storylink|Fight to the Death on Hachi no Susei!!}} Fortress then used the Maximus to fly the Autobots to [[Twin Star]], where he dealt with Scorponok by hauling him into the air and dropping him, {{storylink|Battle for Defense of the False Planet}} and [[Daros]], where he used the Maximus's internal defense systems to stop [[Curl|a gang of prisoners]] from taking control of the battleship. {{storylink|Find MegaZarak's Weak Spot!!}} The battleship needed some repairs before it could take the Autobots to [[Paradise]], which Fortress had Chromedome and [[Hardhead (G1)|Hardhead]] perform. {{storylink|Head Formation of Friendship}} Fortress again transformed to Fortress Maximus on the final planet of their journey, [[Pirate Planet]], taking Scorponok out with a Master Sword-slash to the chest. {{storylink|Mystery of the Space Pirate Ship}}

[[Image:Hm25_fortress_cradles_magnus.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]

After returning to Athenia, Fortress and the Headmasters received news of a Decepticon attack on Earth and headed there with all due haste, but they were not in time to stop [[Sixshot]] from mortally wounding [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]]. Fortress held Magnus as he died, then carried his body aboard the Maximus for burial along an Earth coastline. {{storylink|Ultra Magnus Dies!!}} Soon after, with Decepticon attacks intensifying, Fortress had to talk [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] out of risking his own life in the pursuit of revenge against Sixshot. When word came through from Punch that Galvatron intended to use the gathered energy to fuse himself with the Earth itself, Fortress and the Headmasters immediately departed to confront the Decepticon leader in [[Alaska]]. The Headmasters were able to use Punch's information to finally end the threat of Galvatron with their [[Head Formation]], burying him in the Arctic ice. {{storylink|The Emperor of Destruction Vanishes on an Iceberg}}

[[Image:Hm26_weak_spot.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]

Galvatron's demise left a power vacuum that Scorponok immediately filled, and once appointed leader again, he immediately put into motion a plan to destroy the Earth by simultaneously erupting every volcano on the [[Pacific Ring of Fire]]. [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] deduced his plan, but a Decepticon attack on [[Autobot City]] left Spike fatally wounded, with a chunk of shrapnel embedded in one of his arteries. Medical science could do nothing for Spike, so Fortress used his telekinetic powers to dissolve the shrapnel, saving Spike, but draining all of Fortress's energy. Even in his weakened state, unable to transform, Fortress still attempted to stop Scorponok from initiating his plan on the Kamchatka Peninsula, but Scorponok simply hurled the Maximus into a volcano. As it turned out, this allowed Fortress to absorb the geothermal energy of the volcano's magma, restoring his power and ability to transform. Following information decoded by Chromedome, Fortress Maximus was able to puncture Scorponok's weak spot, the Decepticon symbol on his chest, forcing the villain and his followers to flee the planet. {{storylink|I Risk My Life for Earth}}

[[Image:Hm28_fortress_examines_targetmaster.jpg|left|thumb]]

With Earth finally free of the Decepticons, the Autobots set about removing every trace of their evil from the planet. Fortress co-ordinated the effort, but just as he was meeting with three new Autobot arrivals—[[Pointblank]], [[Crosshairs (G1)|Crosshairs]] and [[Sureshot (G1)|Sureshot]]—a report came through from Chromedome that one of the plasma energy bombs he had been tasked with gathering up had become active. Fortress quickly picked up the bombs in Battleship Maximus, intending to transport them into space so they could detonate harmlessly, but as the ship departed the atmosphere, it crossed paths with another vessel containing refugees from Master. While the Autobots held off the Decepticons pursuing the Master vessel, Fortress and Twincast welcomed the refugees on board, and learned from them that Scorponok's Decepticons had attacked Master. The refugees then helped get the plasma bombs off Battleship Maximus, but they proceeded to detonate before everyone could get clear, and the explosion fused the refugees to the arms of the Autobots and Decepticons. {{storylink|Miraculous Warriors, Targetmasters (Part 1)}} Fortress used his scientific know-how to remove the refugees from the Autobots' arms, but a strange link remained between the warriors. With these "[[Targetmaster]]s" added to their ranks, Fortress piloted Battleship Maximus to Master to stop Scorponok's evildoings there. {{storylink|Miraculous Warriors, Targetmasters (Part 2)}}

[[Image:MasterSwordDanger Floppydisk.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]

Seeking to forge a weapon to counter Fortress's Master Sword, Scorponok arranged for the kidnap of Wheelie so that he could be ransom for information on the sword. Fortress agonized over what to do, but the decision was made for him when Chromedome and Daniel snuck away to rescue Wheelie themselves. Learning of their insubordination, Fortress played along, keeping the Decepticons' attentions on his battleship and preparing a data disk to "hand over". Unfortunately, when the Decepticons learned that Wheelie had been rescued, a fight broke out over the disk and it was snatched from Fortress's grasp. {{storylink|The Master Sword Is in Danger!!}} The Decepticons retreated underground, but Fortress was able to track them down by equipping the Master Sword with sensors that would allow the Maximus to track any surges of the energy needed to create it, which Scorponok was sure to require to forge his own weapon. Unfortunately, [[Weirdwolf]] was able to sneak aboard the Maximus, and although Fortress repelled him, he had secretly planted bombs on the battleship that covered the Decepticons' escape when they went off. {{storylink|The Zarak Shield Turns the Tide}}

[[Image:Hm31_fortmax_defeated.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]

As Battleship Maximus was repaired, Fortress debated strategy with the Autobots, eventually agreeing with the Targetmasters' plan to lure the Decepticons into space to avoid collateral damage to Master. Unfortunately, the hot-headed Chromedome disagreed, and staged his own attack on the Decepticons with the aid of the young warriors of Master. Chromedome's strategy went sour, forcing Fortress Maximus to go into action, but when the Master Sword clashed with Scorponok's newly-forged "[[Zarak Shield]]", it was the Zarak Shield that emerged triumphant! Defeated, Fortress Maximus could only watch as Scorponok departed for Earth, intending to destroy it once and for all. {{storylink|Operation: Destroy the Decepticons}}

The Autobots gave chase in the Maximus, but during the space battle that resulted, Daniel was set adrift when the Maximus's Laser Block unit was damaged and jettisoned. Fortress was forced to divert to rescue the boy, allowing the Decepticons a substantial lead in the race back to Earth. {{storylink|My Friend Sixshot!}} Their lead was lost when they were forced to set down on the asteroid [[Pallas]] for repairs, and the Maximus set down on [[Ceres]] in order to attack. During the fight, Sixshot challenged Chromedome to a one-on-one duel, and Fortress's pleas that he not accept the challenge fell on deaf ears. Even as Scorponok took off for Earth again, Fortress concluded that he and the other Autobots would have to leave Chromedome to his duel and carry on the chase. As it happened, the duel was interrupted by an explosion courtesy of bombs Scorponok had planted on the battlefield, so Chromedome was able to rejoin Maximus not long after. {{storylink|Duel on the Asteroid}}

[[Image:Hm35 master sword zappped.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]

As the Maximus entered the final stretch back to Earth, reports began coming in from the Autobots down on the planet of Decepticon attacks, accompanied by the emergence of strange towers at specific points around the globe. Once back on Earth, Fortress met with Punch, who unfortunately had to report that Scorponok had disappeared into the Mediterranean Ocean. {{storylink|The Final Showdown on Earth (Part 1)}} The Autobots soon realized that the "Death Towers" were composed of energy-amplifying [[crysmag metal]], and were creating a field of energy that was surrounding the Earth. Following Punch's lead, Fortress led the Autobots to Egypt, where Scorponok was outfitting a Death Tower with an induction booster to magnify the amount of energy it was projecting. The Master Sword played the unfortunate role of lightning rod in the presence of the Death Tower, attracting bolts of the tower's energy and stunning Fortress, preventing him from stopping Scorponok. As Scorponok fled, he told Fortress to meet him at the North Pole, where even he would have a role to play in his scheme.

[[Image:Hm35_final_battle.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]

With no other choices, Fortress followed his enemy's instructions, and the entire Autobot and Decepticon armies clashed in battle in the frozen north. There, Scorponok lured Fortress Maximus onto a crysmag dais, at which point, an orbiting Decepticon satellite that had been gathering the energies projected by the Death Towers activated, beaming the collected energy down to the dais. Scorponok disconnected from his Transtector, and left the paralyzed Fortress Maximus trapped in the satellite's beam, part of a deadly circuit of energy that threatened to tear the Earth apart. The four Headmasters joined in Head Formation and tried to channel their energy into Fortress Maximus in hopes of giving him the strength to break free, but their own power was not enough. At Daniel's suggestion, all the other Autobots linked up as part of the chain, and together combined in "Final Formation", they infused Maximus with enough energy to deflect the satellite's beam with the Master Sword, destroying it. With one mighty slash, Fortress Maximus bisected Scorponok's Transtector, finally ending the Decepticon threat.

The Decepticons subsequently fled Earth, and the Autobots gathered to pursue them. Fortress told the tearful Daniel that it was necessary in order to continue defend peace throughout the universe, but promised the boy that they would meet again. Together, the Autobots all boarded Fortress's battleship, and took off into the setting sun. {{storylink|The Final Showdown on Earth (Part 2)}}

====''Kiss Players/15 Go! Go!''====
[[Image:KPBraveMax.jpg|right|thumb|115px]]
{{note|Fortress's cameo appearance in ''Kiss Players'' is set shortly after his arrival on Master.}}

Slumped miserably on the barren surface of Master in their smallest robot forms, Fortress, Chromedome and Highbrow's attention was caught when a [[Fortress Maximus (RID)|time-travelling spaceship]] materialized over their heads and crashed nearby. {{storylink|Sparkbots Volume 1}} By studying and reverse-engineering the technology found in this spaceship, Fortress and the scientists of Master invented Transtectors and the Headmaster process. {{storylink|Kiss Players (radio drama)|Kiss Players radio drama #48}}/{{storylink|Sparkbots Volume 3}}

====''The Headmasters'' comic====
{{note|The events of the Headmasters manga take place concurrently with the Headmasters cartoon.}}

[[Image:Manga fort max.jpg|left|thumb|275px]]

Soon after Optimus Prime died stabilizing Vector Sigma, the Decepticons staged an attack on Athenia, and Fortress and the Autobot Headmasters quickly took off in Battleship Maximus to intercept them as they approached the planet. Daniel opined that the Decepticons were "a lot like parasites", to which Fortress murmured an agreement. At that point, the Decepticons appeared in front of them, and the Autobots realized that they had played into the villains' hands: they intended to destroy Fortress's battleship with a bomb. Luckily, Chromedome moved quickly enough to snatch the bomb away and save the Maximus. {{storylink|The Headmasters issue 1|The Headmasters #1}}

Responding to an SOS from their Beastformer comrades, Fortress escorted the Autobot Headmasters to planet Beast to investigate. No sooner had the young warriors left Battleship Maximus to search, Rodimus Prime radioed Fortress for an update. Fortress didn't have anything to tell him, but assured Rodimus that the Headmasters would get to the bottom of the mystery. {{storylink|Great Decisive Battle of Planet Beast!}} Later, once they were back on Earth, Fortress sent the Headmasters on their next mission, to respond to a Decepticon attack on an Alaskan energy plant. {{storylink|The Headmasters issue 2|The Headmasters #2}}

When a fire tore through [[Shinjuku]], Chromedome, [[Ricochet (Headmasters)|Ricochet]] and [[Artfire (Headmasters)|Artfire]] responded, but their rescue effort was impeded by the Decepticon Targetmaters. Luckily, Fortress soon arrived to extinguish the fire by dumping a massive amount of water on it from above using Battleship Maximus, freeing up the others to deal with the Decepticons. {{storylink|The Headmasters issue 7|The Headmasters #7}}

{{-}}
====TV Magazine ''Master File''====
Following the expulsion of the Decepticons from Earth after the battle at the North Pole, the Transformers' war shifted into a series of space-based exchanges between Athenia and Chaar known as the [[Master Wars]]. With the space bridge destroyed, interstellar transportation was severely limited, and it fell to Fortress and the Maximus to patrol space for the Decepticons. While on one such patrol, Fortress received a transmission from Sixshot alerting him to the existence of a [[Devil Z|new shadowy puppet master]] who had taken control of the Decepticons. This news came at the same time as a report from the Trainbots which indicated that Scorponok had constructed a new Transtector for himself, and so Fortress had no choice but to focus on dealing with this mystery. With access to the ever-important Earth now greatly reduced and his attentions now focused elsewhere, Fortress left guardianship of the planet in the hands of [[Metalhawk]] and his [[Pretender]]s.<ref>[http://www.allspark.com/content/view/730/37/ Master File #1]</ref>

{{note|Following the end of the ''Headmasters'' franchise, Japanese cartoon continuity branches off in two separate directions. One version of the story is told through the [[Super-God Masterforce (cartoon)|''Super-God Masterforce'' cartoon]], the other is told through the [[Super-God Masterforce (manga)|''Masterforce'' manga]]. Fortress plays much the same role in both, but gets up to a bit more in the manga.}}

====''Super-God Masterforce'' cartoon====
[[Image:Masterforce ep23 FuzzyFortress.JPG|right|thumb]]
:''Voice actor:'' [[Ikuya Sawaki]] (Japanese)

Following the commands of Devil Z, the space-based Decepticon forces orchestrated the bombardment of Earth with meteors. Although they were able to carry out this assault without the direct knowledge of Fortress's Autobots, Fortress did become suspicious when he observed that the Decepticons had broken their usual formation. Worried, Fortress sent a message to Metalhawk's Autobots on Earth, but alas, by the time the distorted missive arrived, the meteors had already struck the planet and caused massive collateral damage. {{storylink|Expose the Decepticons' Dark Trap!}}

Soon after, Fortress's younger brother, [[Grand Maximus|Grand]], travelled to Earth to aid the Autobots there against the approaching threat of [[Scorponok (G1)|BlackZarak]]. Grand was physically identical to his big bro, save for his coloration, and even piloted a smaller Maximus-style battleship of his own. {{storylink|Life? Death? The Desperate Lightfoot}}

{{-}}
====''Super-God Masterforce'' comic====
[[Image:Mfmanga fortress meets ginrai.jpg|left|thumb]]

When a new and powerful Autobot warrior named [[Ginrai]] rose to prominence on Earth, he distinguished himself to the point that Fortress decided to step down as Supreme Commander and appoint Ginrai in his place. The Trainbots brought Ginrai and his [[Headmaster Junior]] allies to Athenia, where Fortress formally handed over leadership, then departed to take care of some business on Master. In his absence, the united forces of the Earth- and space-based Decepticons attacked Athenia, but Ginrai was able to repel them. Fortress arrived back just as the Decepticons were pulling out, and announced that the Autobots must pool their resources as their enemies had, uniting their forces on Earth and space to commence the [[Godbomber|Bomber Project]]. {{storylink|The Battle Begins! The United Earth-Space Troops}}
{{-}}

===''Transformers in 3-D''===
Fortress Maximus served as transport when Ultra Magnus lead a mission to a small asteroid in search of a new source of [[Energon (fuel)|Energon]]. The Autobots discovered a [[Observer|small alien]], and [[Lightspeed (G1 Technobot)|Lightspeed]] utilized Maximus's laboratory to determine that the creature turned its food into Energon. A later fracas with the Decepticons resulted in Fortress Maximus getting involved, leading to a fight with Scorponok. {{storylink|The Test (issue)|The Test}}

===''Transformers PD Type''===
[[Image:Pdtype_fortmax_manga.jpg|right|thumb|275px]]
While casually minding his own business one day, Fortress Maximus was suddenly shocked to see a wave of Decepticons led by Galvatron bearing down on him. He immediately transformed into robot mode... but he had completely forgotten that he had been in city mode, leaving all the poor Autobots who had been inside him squished and thinking there had been an earthquake. {{storylink|Transformers PD Type##12 "Bigger than Life! Fortress Maximus!"|Bigger Than Life! Fortress Maximus!}}

Fortress Maximus later met Scorponok in battle, vowing to never surrender. All the other Transformers would probably have preferred that he ''did'' surrender, though, since the battle put them ''all'' in danger when the two towering titans toppled over, threatening to accidentally crush them all! {{storylink|Transformers PD Type##14 "Watch Out! Mega Zarak!"|Watch Out! MegaZarak!}}

{{-}}
===Dreamwave comics continuity===
A normal-sized Fortress Maximus was a co-leader of the Autobot forces on Cybertron, along with [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]]. As Cybertron's resources ran low, they struggled to hold the Autobot army together. {{storylink|Destined for Nothing}} The war continued despite their best efforts, and after a fruitless and disastrous skirmish with the Micromaster [[Skystalker (G1)|Skystalker]] and the Decepticons, Fortress Maximus gave up on the war. He left the Autobot army in order to seek a new path. {{Storylink|Victims of the Revolution}}

A gargantuan Fortress Maximus was also seen in a [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]]-induced vision of future [[Nebulos]] by Optimus Prime and Megatron. {{Storylink|The War Within issue 4|The War Within #4}}

===Devil's Due ''G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers'' comics===
[[Image:Ironclaw artofwar.jpg|right|150px|thumb|]]
While imbued with the wisdom of the [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]], [[Hawk (G.I. Joe)|Hawk]] had a vision of Fortress Maximus and [[Sgt. Savage]] fighting against [[Iron Klaw]] and [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]]. {{storylink|The Art of War issue 5|The Art of War #5}}

{{-}}
===IDW comics continuity===
{{ongoing}}
[[Image:SpotlightArcee FortressMaximus.jpg|left|300px|thumb|You wanna argue with him?]]
A somewhat less pacifistic Fortress Maximus (Seriously, he repeatedly threatened to kill his prisoners or otherwise "strip them down to their spark cores") was the warden in charge of [[Garrus-9]], an Autobot-run penitentiary where both Autobot and Decepticon prisoners were kept in containment. As the ultimate imprisonment, most inmates were reduced down to their [[spark]] and [[laser core]] alone, held inanimate in a storage center known as "The Rig" until such a time as Fortress Maximus deemed to rebuild and release them, if ever. Astoundingly, this method was deemed too "merciful" for at least one [[Impactor|prisoner]].

Fortress Maximus was one of many Autobots across the galaxy who watched a news report heralding the miraculous return of [[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]]. {{storylink|Spotlight: Blaster}}

After [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] encountered the [[Monstructor (G1)|Monstructor]] [[Combiner|combiners]] on [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]]'s asteroid bunker, he sent them to Garrus-9 with [[Jetfire (G1)|Jetfire]] and the [[Technobot (G1)|Technobots]], hoping the science team could help the six recover from [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]]'s experimentations. Fortress Maximus was dubious of the possible results, but allowed Jetfire and his team to run their tests at Garrus-9. Things changed for the worse, however, once word of the gestalt technology got out, and agents of the [[Decepticon Secret Service]] came to claim the remarkable new tech for themselves. Faced with an incredible amount of orbital bombardment and ground warfare, Fortress Maximus and his defensive crew were at serious risk of being overrun.

In order to maintain control of his base, Max reactivated the only Autobot inmate classified as Threat Level-9: [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]]. Knowing Arcee had strong feelings about Jhiaxus and his work from personal experience, Fortress Maximus felt confident she would do anything to prevent the Decepticons from laying claim to the "[[Pretender Monster|Monstructor Six]]." In case he was wrong, though, Fortress Maximus made it clear to Arcee she was lowjacked with synchronized G-forces that would crush her spark if she stepped out of line. Despite Arcee's help, the [[Combaticon (G1)|Combaticons]] still managed to make off with the gestalt robots. Against his better judgment, Fortress Maximus allowed Jetfire to convince him that Arcee was the best available to track and intercept the Secret Service ships and retrieve or destroy the gestalt robots. {{storylink|Spotlight: Arcee}}

When Optimus Prime and [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] met with Fortress Maximus and Jetfire on Garrus-9 to discuss the prisoners' breakout, also mentioned was that a surviving Decepticon had been tortured. Maximus and Jetfire exchanged guilty glances. Prime left Maximus in charge and returned with Prowl and Jetfire to the ''[[Ark-32]]''. {{storylink|Spotlight: Cyclonus}}

With the death of [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]], [[Nova Prime|Nemesis Prime]] was forced to enter the living universe and confront Optimus Prime at Garrus-9. Fortress Maximus and the other Autobots were hunkered down in The Last Resort, the best-defended, highest-security section of the penitentiary, and he believed that not even a [[Cortynivian Shadow Worm]] could get in. He was wrong, as Nemesis effortlessly forced his way in, killed [[Manta Ray (G2)|Manta Ray]] and [[Drench (G2)|Drench]] and shrugged off all Autobot weapons fire. Maximus called in reinforcements until Optimus convinced him that conventional tactics would not work with the undead Prime and went to deal with Nemesis Prime himself. {{storylink|Spotlight: Doubledealer}}

During Megatron's massive push against the Autobots, an annoyed Maximus led the defense of the prison against the [[Predator (subgroup)|Predator]] forces. However, when the sociopathic [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]] took control of the Decepticon forces, the prison was overrun and Fortress Maximus beaten down by the monster. And then, to keep the liberated prisoners on his side, Overlord tossed them their former warden to have some fun... so long as they kept him alive. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 1|Last Stand of the Wreckers #1}}

[[Image:LastStandoftheWreckers3-Fort Max the cabbage.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Hope you weren't going to bed after reading this page!]]
The inmates apparently followed Overlord's instructions, as one half of the [[Wrecker]]s eventually came across Maximus's barely-alive body. Rendered comatose and with his optics and limbs pulled off, he had been plugged into the lock of the door to [[Aequitas]]'s chamber, and put to use entering in code after code in a Decepticon attempt to break in. [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] removed Maximus's connection to the lock, then [[Topspin (G1)|Topspin]] and [[Pyro]] pulled his body from the door to carry him. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 3|Last Stand of the Wreckers #3}}

When the Decepticons broke into the Aequitas chamber, [[Ironfist (G1)|Ironfist]] carried Fortress Maximus to safety. Eventually, the Wreckers succeeded in defeating Overlord and saving Garrus-9, and Maximus was placed on life support alongside [[Springer (G1)|Springer]]. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 5|Last Stand of the Wreckers #5}}

{{note|Though thickly built, Fortress Maximus is a normal-sized Transformer in [[IDW Generation 1 continuity|IDW continuity]], about the same size as Jetfire. He also has tank-treads on his back, indicating a vehicular [[altmode]].}}

{{-}}

==Games==
===''Transformers: The Headmasters''===
When the Decepticons struck out at four planets, including Cybertron and Earth, Fortress Maximus was joined by [[Hot Rod (G1)|Rodimus Prime]] and the Headmasters of Justice to save the final planet from [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]]. {{storylink|Transformers: The Headmasters (video game)|Transformers: The Headmasters}}

==Toys==
===Generation 1===
[[Image:G1FortressMaximus toy.jpg|right|300px|thumb|If I hear somebody ask "how's the weather up there" one more time, Primus help them...]]
*'''Fortress Maximus''' (Headmaster Base, 1987)
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''C-114'''
**''Accessories:'' Spike Headmaster unit, Cerebros large Headmaster unit, [[Cog (G1)|Gasket]], [[Cog (G1)|Grommet]], Photon Rifle, Dual Laser Cannon, Cerebros's Mini Laser Rifle, [[Cog (G1)|Cog]]'s Laser rifle, Radar Scope, Master Sword (Japanese release only), Cerebros's sword (Japanese release only)

: Fortress Maximus is, by far, the largest Transformers toy ever produced. In robot mode it stands 22" (or 56 cm) tall, nearly 8" (20 cm) taller than its in-fiction rival Scorponok. The original retail price was over $100USD. Taking into account ongoing trends in toy pricing and retail shelf space jockeying, it is highly doubtful any other Transformers even close to this size will ever be made again.

: The toy has multiple alt mode configurations, transforming into a relatively compact "city" mode, and also a secondary mode described in the US instruction as a "battle station." That mode was rebranded as a starship for the Japanese instructions, and is the "default" mode for Fortress Maximus in the ''Headmasters'' animated series. Additionally, the 1987 Hasbro toy catalog features a mis-transformed Fortress Maximus in a mode referred to as an "impenetrable fortress," essentially consisting of his city mode with the legs splayed outwards.

: In all modes, Maximus has a wide array of pop-out (non-firing) guns and gimmicks. Its left leg hides a small prison cell, plus has a swing-out cannon/helipad. Its right leg has a small storage compartment. Its torso has a gear-activated spinner for the detachable radar array accessory, a "control socket" for [[Cerebros (G1)|Cerebros]]' "communications tower" mode, and a working elevator that can lift small toys up to its central ramp to be launched in its altmodes. (The crank for this elevator ends up in a very unfortunate position in robot mode.) Each arm had a long ramp on the back with sliding launchers for small vehicles.

: Its robot-mode head is formed by Cerebros, who does not actually need Spike to attach to the upper body. It came with both Headmaster units, plus the Gasket and Grommet mini-vehicles.

:Suposedly, Megahead Megatron's spider-head mode (with a few alterations)can fit into Fortress Maximus' head socket.

: The Japanese release of Fortress Maximus came with a pair of [[Master Sword]]s; one for Fortress, a ''large'' one for Maximus. It is currently unknown if the swords were originally planned for the [[Hasbro]] version but dropped for price or [[For safety reasons|safety concerns]], or if they were a [[Takara]]-initiated addition to their release of the toy.

: This mold was used to make ''[[Super-God Masterforce (toyline)|Super-God Masterforce]]'' [[Grand Maximus]], ''[[Robots in Disguise (toyline)|Car Robots]]'' [[Fortress Maximus (RID)|Brave Maximus]], and ''[[Robot Masters (franchise)|Robot Masters]]'' "[[Fortress Maximus (RID)|Cybertron Base]]".
::*''[http://www.tfu.info/1987/Autobot/FortressMaximus/fortressmaximus.htm More information on Fortress Maximus at TFU.info]

{{-}}

===Transform Jr===
[[Image:G1 FortressMaximus Jnr toy.jpg|right|300px|thumb|We represent the Lollybot guild]]
* '''Fortress Maximus''' (1987)
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''C-114'''
**''Accessories:'' Fortress Headmaster unit, Photon Rifle

: ''[[Transform Jr]]'' Fortress Maximus is a smaller rendering of the character, scaled down to regular Transformer size, and with only one head. Fortress Maximus could only transform from his starship mode to his robot mode, as his legs lack the joints to fold into city mode. Much of his detail and accessories have been simplified into stickers, such as his shin cannons. He comes with only one weapon, his large blue photon rifle.

:This toy was also available in a leaders three-pack with [[Chromedome (G1)|Chromedome]] and [[Optimus Prime (G1)/toys|Convoy]]

::*''[http://www.cliffbee.com/reviews/fortmaxjr.php More information of Transform Jr Fortress Maximus at Cliffbee.com]''
{{-}}

==Merchandise==
===Transformers Gum===
[[Image:Tfgum_fortmax.jpg|right|thumb|300px]]
*'''Fortress Maximus''' (1987)
**''Accessories:'' Head, Photon Rifle, Dual Laser Blaster
:Released in the seventh wave of [[Kabaya]]'s ''[[Transformers Gum]]'' line of snap-together "[[candy toy]]" model kits, this version of Fortress stands at about four inches tall and is cast in grey, white and blue plastic. Unlike the Headmaster figures from the previous ''Transformers Gum'' wave, this version of Fortress Maximus does away with his Headmaster gimmick, and by sheer necessity of size, also lacks the guns in his forearms and fists and the prison cell in his left leg. He does include both of his hand-held weapons and swing-out waist cannons, however, and he can still transform into both starship and city modes. As a ''Transformers Gum'' kit, he featured no paint applications, but came with stickers for detail, and a piece of terrible gum.

::*''[http://bowbowdaijin.blog96.fc2.com/blog-entry-27.html More information on Transformer Gum Fortress Maximus at a Japanese fansite]''
{{--}}

===Parody Deformed===
[[Image:Pdtype_fortmax.jpg|right|thumb|]]
*'''Fortress Maximus''' (1990)
**''Accessories:'' Master Sword

:A small, blue and white non-transforming [[super deformed]] model kit of Fortress Maximus was available as part of Kabaya's "[[Parody Deformed]]" line of candy toys. The twelfth figure in the series, he came with a "Transformers PD Type" comic about himself, "Bigger Than Life! Fortress Maximus!", and more of that alleged "gum".
{{--}}
===Super Collection Figure/Heroes of Cybertron===
[[Image:Fortmax_scf_hoc.jpg|right|thumb|300px]]
*'''Fortress Maximus''' (2001)

:Fortress Maximus was the collectible "Build-A-Figure" from the third ''Headmasters''-centric wave of [[TakaraTomy|Takara]]'s line of ''[[Super Collection Figure]]'' PVC figurines. He was divided into six parts, each one packaged with one of the other six figurines in the line: His head and sword came with [[Raiden]], his torso with [[Bumblebee (G1)/toys|Bumblebee]] and [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike]], his left arm with [[Chromedome (G1)|Chromedome]], his right arm with [[Soundwave (G1)/toys|Soundwave]], his left leg with [[Ironhide (G1)/toys|Ironhide]] and his right leg with [[Sixshot]].

:As the first collectible figure from the line, Fortress Maximus was much rarer than those that would come later, with his parts only coming in two out of every ten cases. Like all the other figures in the wave, his parts were available in two color schemes; of the two cases he was available in, one contained a full-color figure, while the other contained a colorless translucent version.

*'''Fortress''' (2002)

:A standard 3" PVC figurine of Fortress was available in the eighth and final ''SCF'' wave line. Like all the figures in the wave, it was available as both a standard full color figure and a metallic silver "pewter" version, one of each of which was available in a standard case of twelve [[blindpacking|blindpacked]] figures. Additionally, in eight out of every ten cases, the pewter version of Fortress came packaged with head and torso of the wave's collectible [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]] figure.

*'''Fortress Maximus''' (2003)

: The Fortress Maximus PVC was later revisited by [[Hasbro]] for their domestic release of the ''Super Collection Figure'' series, ''[[Heroes of Cybertron]]''. Like all the ''Heroes of Cybertron'' figures, this version of Fortress Maximus was cast entirely in clear-blue plastic and then painted over, save a small spot on his head to give him a "light-pipe" glowing-eyes effect. He remained available only as a collectible pack-in, one part in each of the six releases in the line's fourth wave. His head and sword came with [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]], his torso with [[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]], his left arm with [[Powermaster]] [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Gigatron]], his right arm with [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]], his left leg with [[Jazz (G1)/toys|Autobot Jazz]] and his right leg with the Autobot Espionage Team ([[Bumblebee (G1)/toys|Bumblebee]] and [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike]]).

==Notes==
* "Fortress Maximus" was an early name for the characters that eventually became [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]] and [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]]. The [[Marvel Comics|Marvel]] [[Transformers: The Movie (Marvel Comics)|comic adaptation]] of the [[The Transformers: The Movie|1986 Movie]] even refers to [[Autobot City]] as "Fortress Maximus" in a caption.

* Fortress Maximus was the first toy to be released with a bona-fide Earthling figure. All of the other Headmasters' companions were from Nebulos. (Although Maximus's on-package [[bio]] refers to "the Nebulan leader, Spike", the general consensus is that it was supposed to be the popular figure from TV and other media, who is almost certainly an Earthling.)

* Both Scorponok and Fortress Maximus suffer from the writers struggling to reconcile the characters' high rank with their size. In their comic appearances, they are portrayed as commanders in some capacity but are shrunk down to interact with other Transformers, and their city modes pretty much don't exist. Conversely, the cartoons have opted to portray them as giant city Transformers, though they seem to be merely extensions of the smaller beings that bond with them, with no real life or will of their own.

[[Image:FortMaxReds.jpg|thumb|250px]]

*Fortress Maximus appeared in an unusual red-accented color scheme on the cover of Marvel's [[Ring of Hate!|''The Headmasters'' #1]]. This color scheme was repeated in the corner box for [[Love and Steel!|''The Headmasters'' #3]] and on the cover of [[The Man in the Machine!|''The Transformers'' #51]]. Its origin is unknown.

* The Battleship ''Maximus'' bears a slight resemblance to the [[Wikipedia:White Base|White Base]], a battleship from the [[Wikipedia:Gundam|''Gundam'' franchise]].

* When Spike transforms to join Fortress Maximus for the last time in the ''Generation 2'' book, Cerebros is not shown, and Spike transforms directly into Fortress Maximus's head. Maximus is shown to be no larger than Megatron. In real-life terms, it's an obvious series of art errors; in the context of the story, one might wonder if Maximus was reduced back to his original, smaller, size. It seems improbable, considering that Spike had been retired for years by that point.

* Fortress Maximus has the distinction of having one of the most well known Transformers [[Knockoff|bootleg]] versions in existence. While Cerebros has been omitted, the Spike figure is the same, and the body has been scaled down to match, effectively making the body compatible with any other Headmaster head. It also fetches absurd prices for a bootleg.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Cerebros''' (セレブロス ''Sereburosu''), '''Fortress''' (フォートレス ''Fōtoresu''), '''Fortress Maximus''' (フォートレスマキシマス ''Fōtoresu Makishimasu'')
*''English:'' '''Spaceship Bruce''' ([[Omni Productions]] dub starship mode)
*''French:'' '''Forteresse Maximus''' (Canada)
*''Mandarin:'' '''Ford''' (Taiwan, 福特 ''Fú Tè''), '''Furmon''' (Taiwan [[Omni Productions]] dub, 福蒙 ''Fú Méng''), '''Fortry''' (Taiwan [[Omni Productions]] dub, 福崔 ''Fú Tsūei'')
*''Ukranian:'' '''Fortecya Maxima''' (''Фортеця Максима'', "Fortress Maximus")
*''Russian:'' '''Krepysh Maximus''' (''Крепыш Максимус'', "Sturdy Fellow Maximus")

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.ntfa.net/universe/english/index.php?act=view&char=Fortress_Maximus Fortress Maximus's Universe profile at NTFA.net]

[[Category:Autobot bases]]
[[Category:Autobot leaders]]
[[Category:Autobot starships]]
[[Category:City Transformers]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Autobots]]
[[Category:Generation 1 locations]]
[[Category:Generation 1 starships]]
[[Category:Headmasters]]
[[Category:Multi-component Transformers]]
[[Category:Super-God Masterforce Autobots]]
[[Category:The Headmasters Autobots]]
[[Category:Transformers with three modes]]

Scorponok (G1)

2011-06-21T23:07:37Z

93.75.235.114: /* Foreign names */

{{factions|decepticon|{{factions/icons|custom=Machination_logo.png|cSize=45x30px|cLink=Machination}}}}
{{disambig3|Scorponok}}
:''Scorponok is a [[Decepticon]] [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]] from the [[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]] [[continuity family]].''

[[Image:Scorponok-Annual.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Scorponok's American look… taken from a British publication.]]
'''Scorponok''' is frequently in a position of Decepticon leadership and is usually the arch-foe of [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]]. He is often partnered in some way with a being named [[Zarak (Nebulan)|Zarak]].

In some universes, he becomes '''BlackZarak''' (ブラックザラック ''Burakkuzarakku'').

{{note|Other than these base facts, much about him differs by continuity; from personality to [[Scale|size]]. See separate character notes in the sections below.}}

==Fiction==
===Marvel Comics continuity===
{{noteukonly}}
Scorponok was a Decepticon commander on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], and was a rival of the [[Autobot]] [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]]. ''Some time in the past, [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]] and [[Scourge (G1)|Scourge]] were displaced from the year 2008 and fell under his command. {{storylink|The Legacy of Unicron!}}'' In the modern day, Scorponok led his troops in a raid on an Autobot city on Cybertron, leveling the city and leaving its remnants in flaming ruins. A long line of captives was taken from the battle; as they marched to their doom in the [[smelting pool]], Scorponok took a sadistic glee in ordering them to move faster or feel his sting. He wasn't so gleeful when Fortress Maximus led an ambush on his squadron; his troops were overwhelmed by the Autobots' righteous fury, and Scorponok ordered a retreat so that they might live to fight another day. {{storylink|Ring of Hate!}}

Soon after, Fortress Maximus and his followers quit the war and left for the planet [[Nebulos]]. Scorponok invaded the Autobots' abandoned base, but found nothing, not even the obligatory trap that Scorponok expected. They did receive a communication from [[Zarak (Nebulan)|Lord Zarak]] on Nebulos, who informed them of the Autobots' arrival there and requested their help. Scorponok happily led his troops there, vowing to conquer the new planet.

[[Image:Loveandsteel-scorponokispissedoff.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Not having a good day here.]]
Upon reaching Nebulos, Scorponok immediately confronted Zarak and obtained the location of Fortress Maximus, learning that he had surrendered himself and four of his followers to ensure peace for the Autobots. Scorponok decided to attack there first, ignoring Zarak's protests. Scorponok and his troops laid siege to the capital city of [[Koraja]], demanding the surrender of the Autobots and blasting away at its newly erected defensive walls when they were refused. It seemed the Decepticons would capture the city, until the gates opened to reveal the Autobots. They had not come to surrender, but to fight. With their newly enhanced [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]] powers, they easily overwhelmed the more numerous Decepticons; Brainstorm and Chromedome effortlessly penetrated Scorponok's defenses, blasting him. Faced with this unexpected development, Scorponok ordered a rather ignominious retreat.

Scorponok and his troops began investigating ways to dispose cleanly of the Nebulans, such as dumping them into space inside anti-gravity-powered [[polymer alloy]] bubbles. In the midst of this research, Apeface and Snapdragon returned from a failed mission, defeated by two of the Autobot Headmasters, and Scorponok gave them a good smacking around. When the captive Lord Zarak suggested that there might be something to this whole "working with fleshlings" thing, Scorponok nearly smacked ''him'' around too, before conceding that perhaps sharing his power might indeed be in his best interest.

And so, Scorponok underwent the Headmaster process, along with five of his troops; Zarak became his binary-bond partner. Using Zarak's daughter [[Llyra]] as bait, the Decepticons lured the Autobots into a trap. During the ensuing battle, the Decepticons trapped a group of Nebulans inside the floating polymer bubbles. When Scorponok noticed Llyra was inside one of the bubbles, he found himself conflicted, his feelings as Zarak the father battling against his legacy as Scorponok the Decepticon. The Decepticon won out, and plan went forward: While the Autobots were busy saving the nebulans, Scorponok and his troops defeated them and took them captive. {{storylink|Love and Steel!}}

[[Image:Terrorcons-rollout1.jpg|left|250px|thumb|The Terrorcons are too dumb to notice that they're hanging out with a headless dude.]]
Scorponok continued to dominate Zarak's personality more and more, driving him to a battle lust at the [[Mercury Gardens of Melanossus]], and again at [[The Nursery]]. Zarak broke free of Scorponok's influence long enough to free the captive Autobots, but the Nebulan was soon back atop his partner, urging his troops onward to destruction. {{storylink|Brothers in Armor!!}}

''Scorponok and Zarak challenged Fortress Maximus and Galen (here called "Kord") to a duel to settle their differences. Kord/Maximus won by cheating, but it didn't matter because the duel was a ruse to distract the Autobots while [[Slugslinger (G1)|Slugslinger]] stole Autobot fuel converters. The Deceptions had bugged the Autobot base and learned of Earth. They needed the converters to travel there. The Decepticons left for Earth and the Autobots followed.'' {{storylink|The Final Conflict}}

{{note|The events in this UK story differ in significant ways to the [[Headmasters (comic)|Headmasters]] mini-series.}}

When [[Galen]] decided to leave Nebulos for [[Earth]], Scorponok and his forces again followed, leaving the war-torn Nebulos behind. {{storylink|Brothers in Armor!!}}

Scorponok's first action upon arriving on Earth was to track down the signal that had led Fortress Maximus's crew there. At first, he found only an [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|impudent fleshling]], but soon Fortress Maximus and the Autobots returned to the cave from which the signal had been sent. In the ensuing battle, Scorponok nearly took the human hostage, and he used him as a tool to kill Zarak's old nemesis, Galen. At first, he thought this would leave Fortress Maximus helpless, but the human took Galen's place, and Fortress Maximus drove the Decepticons into retreat. {{storylink|Trial by Fire!}}

[[Image:Scorponokpretendertothethrone.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Nya ha ha!]]
Scorponok took his time establishing a beachhead on Earth. First, he covertly seized a genetics lab and created the Decepticon [[Pretender|Pretenders]], hoping to disguise his troops' robotic natures. It was during this operation that he first crossed paths with Optimus Prime, within a computer-simulated world. {{storylink|Pretender to the Throne!}} Scorponok then sent [[Skullgrin]] to the planet to establish a fuel depot for the Decepticons' eventual landing. {{storylink|Monstercon from Mars!}} Scorponok used his human component to head up a covert operation by the [[Z Foundation]], in an effort to get humans to destroy the Autobots for him. When the plan failed, Scorponok himself attacked [[Roadjammers|some of the same humans]] in a brutal battle in a parking garage. {{storylink|Ca$h and Car-nage!}}

''When Scorponok sought to have [[Mindwipe (G1)|Mindwipe]] brainwash the Autobot [[Highbrow (G1)|Highbrow]], his plans couldn't have gone more wrong. Mindwipe neglected to hypnotise Highbrow's partner [[Gort]], and the Nebulan managed to regain enough control of Highbrow's body to rip Scorponok's head clean off his shoulders. The sudden separation without any mental command caused both Scorponok and Zarak to black out, and Highbrow returned to base with Scorponok's head in his grip.'' {{storylink|All in the Minds!}} ''Highbrow found himself unable to kill Scorponok in cold blood despite his desire to end the threat he posed, but as he ruminated on the matter outside the Autobot base, he was attacked by a group of Decepticons who had come to reclaim the head of their leader. The chronal crisis known as the "Time Wars" soon erupted, during which Scorponok was reunited with his head and reactivated, at which point he joined with the various Transformers of two worlds, two factions and two eras against the fighting-mad [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]].'' {{storylink|Time Wars (issue)|Time Wars}}

Not long afterwards, Scorponok was contacted by Starscream, representative of another faction of Decepticons operating on Earth under the command of [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]]. Scorponok immediately brought his ship to this group's location in the [[Arctic]], only to find his vessel under attack by [[Piranacon (G1)|Piranacon]]. Starscream soon arrived to smooth things over before any damage could be done, but relations were off to a rocky start. Things got worse when Scorponok revealed his partially fleshling nature to Ratbat's group, worse still as a tour of Ratbat's base seemed to be a pointless delaying tactic, and even worse when he learned of Ratbat's plan to seize the legendary power source known as the [[Underbase]]. Furious that Ratbat had clearly never intended to cooperate with his group, Scorponok attempted to lead his troops away, only to find his path barred by the [[Predacon (G1)|Predacons]]. Seeing their leader besieged, the rest of Scorponok's troops stormed to the attack. A battle soon erupted between the two sides, with Scorponok mercilessly ripping, tearing, smashing and blasting his way through Ratbat's soldiers. Only the sight of Starscream stealing his ship in the midst of the battle caused him to call a cease-fire. {{storylink|Cold War!}}

The arrival of the Autobots caused another battle to break out, this time with the Decepticons united against a common foe. But Ratbat and Fortress Maximus called for a cease-fire so they could unite against Starscream. The group was unable to stop Starscream from uniting with the Underbase, and he destroyed Scorponok's ship. Optimus Prime saved the allied groups, bringing them all aboard the [[Ark (G1)|Ark]]. Scorponok found the proposed alliance "detestable" and was eager to take action against the traitor; he was disgusted by Optimus Prime's apparent cowardice in refusing to join the attack teams against Starscream on Earth.

[[Image:Ratbatdarkstardeath.jpg|left|250px|thumb|Sorry, no, I'm a $40 toy. I am NOT getting upstaged by a cassette.]]
Scorponok was co-commander of an attack team in [[Tokyo]], where an offhand comment by Grimlock caused him to realize what Optimus Prime must be up to. Abandoning the fight, Scorponok returned to the Ark aboard the Autobot shuttle that had ferried him to Earth. He found that Ratbat had the same idea; the two confronted Optimus Prime, who had just launched a rocket into space to bring the Underbase to Earth. Seeing the Autobot leader's apparent treachery, Scorponok blasted him. When Ratbat stated his intention to take the Underbase himself, Scorponok blasted him, too, taking him out of the picture permanently. Rocketing into space, Scorponok was nearly in range of the Underbase, when Optimus Prime—now recovered and with his [[Powermaster]] partner back in place—pushed them both out of its way. The two leaders watched in horrified fascination as Starscream arrived, absorbed the entire Underbase, and promptly self-destructed.

Impressed by Prime's actions, Scorponok agreed to a temporary truce, long enough for both sides to gather up their fallen. With Ratbat and Starscream out of the way, Scorponok's command of the Decepticons on Earth was assured. {{storylink|Dark Star (issue)|Dark Star}}

The truce at an end, Scorponok attempted to assassinate his old foe, Fortress Maximus, by having [[Carnivac (G1)|Carnivac]] and [[Snarler]] kill his human partner, [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]]. {{storylink|The Man in the Machine!}} ''In return, Scorponok granted Pretender shells to the pair.'' {{storylink|Survivors!}}

Scorponok finally made a permanent landing on Earth, establishing [[New Jersey base|a base in New Jersey]] as part of a plan to gather energy. The plan failed, but Scorponok kept his base there. {{storylink|King Con!}}

Zarak continued to function as a covert human for Scorponok, allowing the Decepticons to counter the growing popularity of [[Roadhandler (G1)|Roadhandler]] in [[New York City]]. {{storylink|The Interplanetary Wrestling Championship!}}

Scorponok found himself drawn into a battle at [[MacDill Air Force Base]] by his newest recruits, the [[Air Strike Patrol]]. Announcing his arrival in no uncertain terms, he attacked the Autobots who were harassing his troops, only to have those same troops cut and run. Optimus Prime, meanwhile, tried talking to him about alliance and cooperation, of them both being manipulated by some unknown player. Scorponok wasn't very interested in listening, but his memories of Prime's selfless actions during the [[Underbase Saga]] finally got the better of him. Just as he was ready to compare notes, the [[Classic Pretender|Pretender-enhanced]] Starscream arrived. {{storylink|All the Familiar Faces!}} The Autobots and Decepticons eventually overpowered him, and Starscream begged Scorponok to take him back. {{storylink|Skin Deep|Skin Deep}} Badly in need of additional troops and firepower, Scorponok agreed, but this decision proved to be very unpopular with his troops. {{storylink|Primal Scream (issue)|Primal Scream}} It eventually cost him the loyalty of [[Triggerhappy]] and [[Mindwipe (G1)|Mindwipe]], who deserted him after Starscream went missing again. {{storylink|Eye of the Storm}}

In 1991, Scorponok made Decepticon history as [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] formally offered his surrender in hopes of making a new force to combat the Dark God [[Unicron]]. Scorponok initially planned to betray Prime's trust to bolster his own leadership position, but Prime eventually convinced him of the Chaos-Bringer's threat and persuaded him to unite their forces—just as a contingent of rebel Decepticons under Shockwave's command attacked Scorponok's base. {{storylink|Surrender!}}

[[Image:Allthisandcivilwar-arethey.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Wildman and Baskerville, pretty well summed up in one panel.]]

Scorponok arose from the wreckage of his base and quickly put down most of the rebels. He then went mano-a-mano with Shockwave, in a protracted battle which spilled into New York Harbor and across the river into the city's Battery Park. Optimus Prime and Nightbeat interrupted the fight, as did the arrival of the human mutant squad the [[Neo-Knights]]. {{storylink|...All This and Civil War 2}} Though initially scornful of the humans' efforts, Scorponok was downed by two of them and was nearly killed by [[Circuit Breaker]]. The battle came to a conclusive end when Circuit Breaker used all her power to knock out Shockwave, and Scorponok agreed to stop fighting.

In a sign of the growing alliance, Scorponok was actually inquiring as to Prime's well-being, when they, along with every other Transformer on Earth, were transported by Primus to Cybertron. {{storylink|Out of Time!}}

Faced with Armageddon, Scorponok confessed his fears of dying to Optimus Prime, who reassured him that there was no shame in it. Scorponok vowed that he would be proud to go down fighting alongside Optimus... which he nearly did, when the two came under attack from a group of [[Unicron cultist|Unicron cultists]]. Though Scorponok had the option of leaving Prime to his fate, the Decepticon portion of him wouldn't hear of it, and he attacked the cultists in a rage. With the battle won, Scorponok spared one of the cultists at Optimus Prime's behest. {{storylink|The Void! (US)|The Void!}}

Unicron arrived at Cybertron mere seconds later, and the final battle began. Scorponok was at first paralyzed by the sheer size of their foe, and later further terrified when Optimus Prime was batted aside with ease. But he rose to the challenge, calling on his Decepticon heritage, and attacked Unicron viciously. While he was tearing into the giant's foot, Unicron blasted him with a stream of fire, mortally wounding him. Optimus Prime knelt over him as him as he lay dying, providing solace in the final moments of his life. {{storylink|On the Edge of Extinction!}}

====Marvel UK future timelines====
''In an alternate 1991, near the end of the Decepticon Civil War between the forces of Scorponok, [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]], and [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]], Scorponok found himself separated from his troops and hounded by Megatron's [[Air Strike Patrol]]. He attracted the attention of the Autobots by rampaging through a human settlement, and immediately surrendered to [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]], leader of the Autobot unit. As Autobot ethics require the protection of prisoners, Scorponok had maneuvered Hot Rod's team into fighting his battle for him. With the frustrated Autobots and Megatron's Decepticons focused on each other, Scorponok was free to walk away. {{storylink|Aspects of Evil!}}''

====''Transformers Comic-Magazin''====
{{TransformersComicMagazin}}
Scorponok was present when the Decepticons unleashed a robotic hell-beast known as 'King Con' on New York; however Optimus Prime rented a helicopter to fly a banner announcing huge raw oil deposit finds in the Rocky Mountains. After a short hesitation, the Decepticons retreated to pursue these findings{{storylink|Transformers Comic-Magazin issue 7|Transformers — Transforming Robots in Action: New York — A City Sinking in Terror}}

===''Classics''===
{{note|The ''[[Classics (2006)|Classics]]'' story takes place in a post-Marvel Generation 1 comics universe where neither [[Generation 2 (franchise)|Generation 2]] nor the Marvel UK material happened.}}
Scorponok and Zarak's remains on Cybertron were discovered and studied by the [[Mini-Con]] [[Broadside (Classics)|Broadside]]. {{storylink|The New World}}

===''The Transformers'' cartoon===
:''Voice actor:'' [[Stephen Keener]] (English), [[Eiji Itō]] (Japanese)

Scorponok was a gigantic Headmaster robot built from scratch by Lord Zarak, the secret ruler of Nebulos, upon learning of the Transformers. Working from the Headmaster process designed by the Autobot [[Brainstorm]] and later applied to his allies in the [[Hive (G1)|Hive]] and the Decepticons, Zarak used his mental powers to reconstruct the Hive's entire city into a robotic body for him to binary bond with. {{storylink|The Rebirth, Part 2}} With Scorponok under his command, Zarak was able to retrieve the key to the Plasma Energy Chamber from the Autobots and carry the Decepticon forces back to Cybertron to reunite with Galvatron. In the end, a bolt of [[plasma energy]] zapped Scorponok in his city mode, launching the massive Headmaster (and the collected Decepticons inside) far out into space. {{storylink|The Rebirth, Part 3}}

{{Note|Like Fortress Maximus, it is unclear if Scorponok has a life of his own or is simply a large machine that Zarak can control. There is no explanation of how Zarak could've brought him to life and his one line of "Autobot Die!" isn't exactly the most sophisticated of expressions.}}

===Japanese cartoon continuity===
{{note|In this continuity, in a reverse of the standard western naming, Scorponok is the name of the being who becomes the ''head'' of the giant robot, taking the place of Lord Zarak in Japanese fiction. The giant robot's name is '''MegaZarak''', but it's simply a lifeless [[Transtector]] that serves as a larger body for Scorponok. Scorponok's size varies over the series, from human-sized to full Transformer-sized.}}
====''The Headmasters'' cartoon====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Banjō Ginga]] (Japanese)

[[Image:Scorponok headmasters shadows.jpg|right|225px|thumb|Well-manicured eeeeevil.]]
Scorponok was one of a group of diminutive Transformers who left Cybertron four million years ago to escape the Great War and took up residence on the planet [[Master (planet)|Master]]. To survive the harsh environmental conditions on Master, the Transformers built large, lifeless robotic bodies called [[Transtector|Transtectors]], to which they could connect as heads, increasing their size and power. Scorponok underwent the training to become one of these "Headmasters," but he chafed under the leadership of [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress]], and he led several like-minded Headmaster warriors in a rebellion that ultimately ended with their defeat and exile from Master. {{storylink|The Mystery of Planet Master}}

By the year 2011, Scorponok had teamed up with Galvatron and the Decepticons, and his three minions, [[Weirdwolf]], Mindwipe and [[Skullcruncher]], joined Galvatron's forces in an attack on Cybertron in 2011. {{storylink|Four Warriors Come out of the Sky}} Scorponok himself, on the other hand, refrained from making appearances on the battlefield, sticking to the shadows (in the most preposterously literal way imaginable) and emerging only to lure the Autobot Headmasters into a trap on the planet [[Praum]]. {{storylink|The Four-Million-Year-Old Veil of Mystery}} Not long thereafter, when Galvatron discovered that [[Vector Sigma]] was in the midst of developing a powerful [[Cybertonuron|new alloy]], Scorponok advised against attacking the planet, suggesting instead that they destroy the alloy, rather than risk the Autobots gaining control of it. {{storylink|Cybertron Is in Grave Danger, Part 1}} In truth, Scorponok was more concerned about ''Galvatron'' obtaining the alloy's power, and determined to stop anyone from acquiring it by taking out Cybertron itself. He had Mindwipe plant powerful bombs in Vector Sigma's chamber, which went off and devastated the planet, ostensibly taking Galvatron with it. {{storylink|Cybertron Is in Grave Danger, Part 2}}

[[Image:Scorponok headmasters smallrobot.jpg|left|225px|thumb|"Mine is an evil laugh! Moo hoo ha ha!"]]
Scorponok subsequently took control of the Decepticons, falsely claiming that Galvatron was alive and commanding him from afar. He immediately put a series of far-reaching plans into action, starting with the creation of a massive Transtector for himself, which would put him on equal footing with Fortress and his Transtector-cum-battleship, the ''Maximus''. Enslaved [[Beastformer|Beastformers]] were put to work on the planet [[Zarak (planet)|Zarak]] to construct this Transtector, and to provide it with power, Scorponok had the Decepticons steal the [[Solar 1]], a human solar-energy-gathering satellite, which beamed its power reserves to Zarak. {{storylink|The Shadow Emperor, Scorponok}} While the construction was going on, meanwhile, Scorponok focused his attention on harnessing the power of the [[plasma energy]] released in the destruction of Cybertron. Seeking to generate even more of the energy for his plans of universal conquest, Scorponok used the energy he had already obtained to create bombs that were planted beneath the surface of [[Mars (planet)|Mars]], which would rip the planet apart. {{storylink|Explosion on Mars!! Maximus Is in Danger}} While the Autobots were busy fighting the Decepticon contingent on Mars to prevent the planet's destruction, Scorponok unveiled his completed Transtector to the rest of the Decepticons on [[Chaar]], stepping from the shadows for the first time as he brought all his troops aboard his new battleship-body and flew to Mars. Once there, he transformed into robot mode and spitefully attacked the immobile Maximus before fleeing into space just before his plasma bombs detonated and blew Mars to cosmic rubble. The Maximus was able to absorb some of the energy released in the initial stages of the explosion, and Fortress was able to transform into Fortress Maximus and escape the blast. Fortress Maximus cleaved Scorponok's shoulder with his [[Master Sword]], forcing the Decepticons to retreat. {{storylink|Explosion on Mars!! MegaZarak Appears}}

[[Image:Scorponok headmasters megazarak.jpg|right|225px|thumb|"Hello? My visor seems to have fallen down over my face. Little help?"]]
Believing that his deeds had cemented his position of power, Scorponok arranged to be coronated the new Decepticon emperor on Earth's moon, but in the midst of the ceremony , Galvatron returned alive and well and retook leadership. {{storylink|Return of the Immortal Emperor}} Galvatron's return saw Scorponok relegated to the insulting position of interplanetary short bus as the Decepticons traveled from world to world, pillaging copious amounts of energy. Scorponok transformed to robot mode only once on the journey, to battle Fortress Maximus on [[Hachi no Susei]]. {{storylink|Fight to the Death on Hachi no Susei!!}} When the Decepticons returned to Earth, diminishing Scorponok's immediate usefulness to Galvatron, the wicked Headmaster returned to this own schemes, ignoring Galvatron's orders {{storylink|Ultra Magnus Dies!!}} and planting more plasma energy bombs along the [[Pacific Ring of Fire]]. {{storylink|The Emperor of Destruction Vanishes on an Iceberg}}

Everything turned around for Scorponok when Galvatron faced the Autobot Headmasters alone in a battle in Alaska, and was finally destroyed when they collapsed an iceberg on top of him. {{storylink|The Emperor of Destruction Vanishes on an Iceberg}} This allowed Scorponok to once again seize leadership of the Decepticons, appointing himself the "Emperor of Terror" and resuming his plan for the destruction of Earth by attempting the detonation of his plasma bombs. During the previous interplanetary quest, the Autobots had made contact with [[Tekna]], one of the Beastformers who had worked on the construction of Scorponok's Transtector, and he was able to provide them with encrypted data that pinpointed the location of the Transtector's weak spot. After [[Chromedome (G1)|Chromedome]] decoded the data, he raced to Earth where the battle was already in progress and gave Fortress Maximus the information, allowing the Autobot leader to perforate Scorponok's weak spot, and send the critically wounded Decepticon fleeing off into space. {{storylink|I Risk My Life for Earth}}

[[Image:Scorponok headmasters scorpionmode.jpg|left|225px|thumb|Claws...check. Stinger...check. Multiple gun turrets...check. Giant, vulnerable weak spot dead center on the chest...check mate.]]
Moving his attentions away from Earth for the time being, Scorponok led the Decepticons back to planet Master in search of a weapon to counter the power of Fortress's Master Sword. The Autobots pursued them, which unfortunately resulted in [[Wheelie (G1)|Wheelie]] being captured by the villains and ransomed for the secrets of the Master Sword. {{storylink|The Master Sword Is in Danger!!}} Using this information, Scorponok forged the [[Zarak Shield]] out of [[G-Metal]], and when the two weapons clashed, the Zarak Shield emerged triumphant. {{storylink|Operation: Destroy the Decepticons}} Emboldened by this victory, Scorponok led the charge back to Earth, intending to finally destroy it, pausing only in the asteroid belt to effect repairs on his Transtector, and to betray and dispose of [[Sixshot]], whom he had never trusted. {{storylink|Duel on the Asteroid}}

Upon his return to Earth, Scorponok promptly had the Decepticon launch an energy-gathering satellite into orbit, and then withdrew to the sunken continent of [[Lemuria (G1)|Lemuria]], where already had numerous Decepticons working to mine the legendary [[crysmag metal]]. Scorponok raised "Death Towers" of this metal in five strategic location all over Earth all, which proceeded to generate waves of energy that were gathered by the satellite. {{storylink|The Final Showdown on Earth (Part 1)}} For the final part of his plan, Scorponok lured the Autobots to the North Pole, where he clashed with Fortress Maximus for the last time atop a sixth dais of crysmag metal. As soon as the two combatants were upon the dais, Scorponok had the satellite beam its stored energy down into his Transtector, and through it into the dais, creating an exponential loop that threatened to tear the Earth apart. Scorponok disconnected from his Transtector and retreated into space with the Decepticons to watch the Earth's destruction, only for Fortress Maximus—supercharged with the combined energy of the Autobot army united in a [[Head Formation]]—to destroy his Transtector, breaking the circuit and saving the Earth. {{storylink|The Final Showdown on Earth (Part 2)}}

====''The Headmasters''/''Super-God Masterforce'' intermezzo====
{{note|Following ''The Headmasters'', Japanese continuity branches off in two similar but distinct directions: one is depicted in the ''Super-God Masterforce'' animated series, leading into the ''Zone'' cartoon, while the other is told through the ''Super-God Masterforce'' manga, which leads into the ''Zone'' manga and story pages. However, Scorponok's activities ''between'' the end of ''The Headmasters'' and the beginning of ''Super-God Masterforce'', told through his own packaging [[bio]] and [[TV Magazine]] articles, apply to both continuities.}}
With the Decepticons at last forced off of Earth, the Autobots also left the planet, and Transformers' war transitioned into a series of space-based exchanges between Chaar and [[Athenia]], which became known as the [[Master Wars]]. To rejoin the fight, Scorponok had a new Transtector constructed, much smaller than his old one (comparatively speaking – it was still taller than a [[combiner]]), but outfitted with hyper-dense armor. Before he could connect with this new body, Scorponok was captured by the mysterious alien entity [[Devil Z]], who had been in hibernation on Earth until recently, and saw a use for Scorponok in his plan to create the ultimate lifeform. Devil Z brainwashed Scorponok, placing him, and by extension the entire Decepticon army, under his control, and then allowed him to link up with his new Transtector. Rather than forming the head for his Transtector, however, Scorponok controlled it from it within its chest cavity, wired directly into its systems from there, with a new "decoy" head placed between its shoulders. Now, Scorponok was '''BlackZarak'''.

The former Decepticon ninja, [[Sixshot]], learned what had befallen Scorponok, and alerted the Autobots to the existence of Devil Z on Earth. The news of this shadowy controller reached the Autobots just as the [[Trainbot|Trainbots]] reported the first sighting of BlackZarak in the shadows of a meteor cluster, and the concerned Autobots decided to send a collection of Transtectors to the small Autobot group under the command of [[Metalhawk]] that was still on Earth, which he used to transform human beings into Autobot warriors to aid in the battle against Devil Z's forces.

====''Super-God Masterforce'' cartoon continuity====
=====''Super-God Masterforce'' cartoon=====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Banjō Ginga]] (Japanese), [[Hidekatsu Shibata]] (Japanese, when merged with Devil Z)

[[Image:Blackzarak robotmode.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Also known as "African-American" Zarak.]]
After numerous failures by Devil Z's forces on Earth resulted in multiple [[Godmaster]] warriors joining the Autobot ranks instead of the Decepticons, the incensed alien summoned BlackZarak to Earth. Observing BlackZarak's activities, Fortress Maximus's younger brother, [[Grand Maximus]], raced to Earth ahead of him and warned the Autobots of his coming. In preparation for BlackZarak's arrival, the Autobots worked to construct a power-up drone named [[Godbomber]] for their most powerful member, [[Ginrai]]. {{storylink|Life? Death? The Desperate Lightfoot}} While they worked, the approaching BlackZarak bombarded the Earth with meteors as part of a complicated scheme by Devil Z's ambassadors, [[Giga]] and [[Mega]] to publicly discredit the Autobots, which was ultimately foiled. {{storylink|Expose the Decepticons' Dark Trap!}}

Giga and Mega combined into their robot form of [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]] and headed to Earth's moon to rendezvous with BlackZarak, but before BlackZarak arrived, Ginrai merged with the completed Godbomber, and pursued him into space. BlackZarak showed up in the midst of their battle, and promptly impaled Ginrai with his Tyrant Spear, sending him crashing to the moon's surface. {{storylink|God Ginrai - Into the Sky!!}} BlackZarak and Overlord followed him down to the moon, and hunted the wounded Autobot, who was in dire straits until the timely arrival of Grand Maximus. With the sides now more evenly matched, the two Decepticons attempted to break off the battle and head for Earth, but Ginrai and Grand brought them back down to the moon with a bump. BlackZarak instructed the damaged Overlord to flee the battle, and although he was furious at being ordered around by this newcomer, Overlord could do little to argue, and left BlackZarak to face the two Autobots alone. Grand and Ginrai double-teamed BlackZarak, and eventually, Ginrai was able to decapitate the Decepticon with his God Fire Guts attack. Although Ginrai thought his opponent was done for, BlackZarak's headless body hauled itself back up, and retreated off into space, with Grand Maximus hot on his tail. {{storylink|God Ginrai - Showdown on the Surface of the Moon}}

[[Image:Blackzarak scorpion mode.jpg|left|215px|thumb|The scorched remains of two fans who wouldn't stop asking why Devil Z made so many Autobot Transtectors.]]
During this extended stay in space, BlackZarak mastered localized gravity manipulation and gained the ability to open black holes, which he could use to teleport himself across the galaxy at will. After trapping Grand Maximus inside one of these singularities in order to keep him out of the way, BlackZarak teleported directly to Earth and immediately tore through [[New York City]] as part of Devil Z's "Operation M-1". He proceeded to attack [[Tokyo]] alongside Overlord, but was foiled when Ginrai freed Grand Maximus, and the two Autobots stopped the villains by tricking them into blasting each other. {{storylink|BlackZarak - Destroyer from Space}} With the failure of this scheme, Devil Z initiated "Operation M-2" and had BlackZarak withdraw to the far side of the moon, where he would unleash the atmosphere-destroying [[Death Para-Machine]] against the Earth. Thankfully, BlackZarak was only able to get off one shot from the deadly weapon before Ginrai destroyed it with his God Fire Guts attack. {{storylink|Crisis! The Day of Human Extinction}}

[[Image:Blackzarak dakatsu mode.jpg|right|215px|thumb|A dog chasing its own tail has nothing on Hydra Mode.]]
BlackZarak returned to attacking cities around the globe, and soon struck in a city where [[Cancer]] went to, with a trio of [[Sparkdash]] drones to back him up. Luckily, Autobot Godmaster [[Road King]] was on patrol in the area, and soon called him Ginrai to help him take BlackZarak down. {{storylink|God Ginrai - Save Cancer!?}} Later, after battling Grand Maximus in [[Moscow]], BlackZarak was present at the Decepticon base when the Autobots attacked it. During this clash, Devil Z took his brainwashing to the next level, and actually merged his consciousness with BlackZarak, entering his body and taking control of it himself. For his first act in BlackZarak's body, Devil Z collapsed the Decepticon base in a failed attempt to destroy the Autobots {{storylink|The Ultimate Combination!! BlackZarak, the New Lifeform}} and then led the Decepticons in an attack on North America, bombarding the country with his [[Devil Power]] from a strategic staging point in the heart of the [[Grand Canyon]]. {{storylink|Battle to the Death!! God Ginrai VS Darkwings Reborn}}

Devil Z next took the Decepticons to the peak of the Matterhorn, where he unleashed his Devil Power upon Europe until God Ginrai arrived to challenge him. The battle was fierce, and Ginrai thought he had won when he once again cleaved BlackZarak's head from his shoulders, but the decapitation of his host meant little to Devil Z, who simply transformed BlackZarak's body into a new, twin-headed serpent form, and kept the fight going. Uniting his Chōkon Power with that of the [[Headmaster Junior|Headmaster Juniors]], Ginrai unleashed his most powerful God Fire Guts yet and dove through BlackZarak's body, finally destroying the giant Decepticon in a huge explosion that left only ash and shrapnel. Although Devil Z survived the blast, he now no longer had BlackZarak's body to enclose him, and was wide open for Ginrai's finishing move: the Final Fire Guts, which utterly obliterated the evil alien. {{storylink|A Battle... and Then...}}
{{-}}

=====''Zone'' cartoon=====
:''Voice actor:'' [[Hirohiko Kakegawa]] (Japanese)

[[Image:ZarakZone1.jpg|left|180px|thumb|Aye aye aye—sharpen your boot, and bludgeon your eye]]
Several years after the conclusion of the [[Masterforce War]], when the supernatural entity [[Violen Jiger]] seized control of the Decepticons, one of his first actions was to recruit "[[Nine Great Demon Generals]]" from Decepticon history. Using his mysterious powers, Violen Jiger resurrected BlackZarak to serve as his "Evil Spirit General," and outfitted him with new armor and weapons to make him more deadly that ever before. It was never explicitly stated if he possessed the consciousness of Scorponok or Devil Z, but he seemed to have a serious ''pirate''-vibe going on, now sporting a hook for a hand and an eye-patch.

[[Image:Zone blackzarak.jpg|right|150px|thumb|Aye aye aye—the blarney stone brings a tear to me eye]]
BlackZarak was part of the team of generals who attacked planet [[Micro|Zone]] in order to steal its precious [[Energon Z]] for Violen Jiger's schemes, but BlackZarak refrained from participating in the assault, hanging back on the fringes of the planet's atmosphere to cover his allies' rear. As his fellow generals made good their escape with the Energon Z in hand, BlackZarak barred the way of the [[Super Car Patrol Team]] and [[Battle Patrol]] as they attempted to pursue in the [[Rocket Base|Galaxy Rocket]]. The Demon General managed to trap the rocket in a crackling field of electricity, and then departed to rejoin his fellow Decepticons, leaving the electric net to slowly destroy the rocket. Luckily for the Autobots, the [[Jet Patrol Team]] arrived to destroy the net, and [[Sunrunner]] proceeded to use his radar to track BlackZarak back to the other Decepticons. {{storylink|Enter the New Supreme Commander, Dai Atlas!}}
{{-}}

====''Super-God Masterforce'' comic continuity====
=====''Super-God Masterforce'' comic=====
[[Image:Blackzarak manga.jpg|left|180px|thumb|Black-and-WhiteZarak]]
When it became apparent that the small force under his command on Earth lacked the manpower to handle the Autobots, Devil Z chose to unite them with the Decepticons in space, and ordered the combined army to attack Athenia. Ginrai (who was on the planet at the time to be appointed Supreme Commander of the Autobots) was able to win the battle by defeating [[Scramble 7]], but after the fight, BlackZarak made his first appearance before the Autobots, carrying Hydra, Buster and the Decepticon Headmasters, who announced that they were returning to Earth. {{storylink|The Battle Begins! The United Earth-Space Troops}}

BlackZarak joined the Decepticons in travelling to Earth, battling [[Raiden]] and the Autobot Headmasters outside the planet's atmosphere while Ginrai confronted Overlord for the first time down on its surface. After defeating his opponents, BlackZarak turned towards Earth, only to find Ginrai streaking towards him, with Overlord in close pursuit. At the last moment, Ginrai spun out of the way, causing the two Decepticons to accidentally strike each other, and damage one another quite badly. While the wounded Overlord returned to Earth, BlackZarak limped back off into space. {{storylink|God Ginrai's Amazing Super-God Combination!}}

BlackZarak later battled Grand Maximus and the Autobot Godmasters in space, with the aid of [[Darkwings]], {{storylink|The Earth Family of Good and Evil}} after which Devil Z spirited him away to carry out some upgrades. {{storylink|Decepticons' Great Counterattack!}} These upgrades complete, BlackZarak was soon returned to Earth, and joined Overlord in attacking another city, where he wound up battling Grand Maximus and the Autobots Godmasters once more. {{storylink|Live? Die?! The Desperate Super-God Combination}} Later, BlackZarak attacked China with a trio of [[Sparkdash|Sparkdash drones]]. Decepticon Headmaster Junior [[Cancer]] happened to be in the city at the time, and when the Autobots arrived to battle BlackZarak, he displayed his disdain for humans—even comrades—by seizing Cancer and using him as a shield to keep the Autobots at bay. It was then that Overlord arrived, and surprised everyone by viciously attacking BlackZarak, disgusted by his treatment of Cancer. While the two Decepticons were fighting, the Autobots exploited their conflict to attack and force them to retreat. {{storylink|Great Turn-Around! Autobots}}

[[Image:Devilz head on%21.jpg|right|180px|thumb|Head? I don't need a head. Heads are for wimps!]]
Overlord's betrayal proved to be the last straw for Devil Z, and he took matters into his own hands by connecting himself to BlackZarak's Transtector as a new head of sorts. Now in control of the Decepticon's body and mind, he transformed BlackZarak into a new serpentine form, and attacked Overlord, the Headmaster Juniors and Ginrai, intending to absorb their [[Chōkon Power|Jinchōkon]], in order to transform himself into the ultimate lifeform. His Jinchōkon-absorbing beam was blocked by the wholly-robotic Autobot [[Pretender|Pretenders]], and the Autobots and Decepticons united to destroy Devil Z and BlackZarak for good. Uniting their powers in the "Perfect Transform Attack", all the Autobots and Decepticons boarded Grand Maximus, who collided with BlackZarak, destroying the Decepticon and his alien passenger in an explosion of pure Chōkon Power. {{storylink|The Birth of the Super Lifeforms}}
{{-}}

=====''Zone'' comic and story pages=====
[[Image:Blackzarak zone manga.jpg|left|180px|thumb|]]

Years after the end of the Masterforce War on Earth, the creature known as [[Violen Jiger]] took control of the Decepticon forces and created an elite fighting force by recruiting "[[Nine Great Demon Generals]]" from throughout Transformer history. BlackZarak was selected to be one of these generals, and Violen Jiger used his strange, supernatural powers to bring the Decepticon back from the dead, dubbing him his "Evil Spirit General" and increasing his strength with new armor and weaponry. {{storylink|Zone (story page)|Zone Part 1}}

BlackZarak was part of the contingent of generals sent to planet Zone to steal its super-energy, Energon Z, for Violen Jiger. After his fellow Decepticons succeeded in purloining the Energon Z, BlackZarak covered their escape, seizing the Galaxy Rocket carrying the pursuing Autobots in an unbreakable grip. He proceeded to coat the rocket in a cocoon of strange energy webbing and then departed to join his fellow generals, but fortunately for the Autobots, the Jet Patrol Team arrived to cut them free before they lost BlackZarak's trail. {{storylink|Zone (manga)|Transformers: Zone}}

BlackZarak later attacked Earth, and met resistance in the form of [[Landshaker]] and [[Sky Hyper]]. BlackZarak seized Landshaker, easily shrugging off Skyhyper's blasts, but was suddenly stunned by a barrage from [[Sonic Bomber]], as he and Dai Atlas came swooping onto the battlefield. Exploiting the opening, Dai Atlas fired on BlackZarak, proving once again that the Autobots' desire to save their comrades would always best the Decepticons' evil. {{storylink|Zone (story page)|Zone Part 5}}

Along with the other Generals, BlackZarak schooled [[Metrotitan (Zone)|Metrotitan]] and the [[Metrosquad]] in the ways of evil, making them formidable oponents for the [[Powered Master]]s. {{storylink|Zone (story page)|Zone Part 7}}

===Ladybird Books continuity===
[[Image:Decepticonsatthepole.jpg|right|150px|thumb|"Put me on the Naughty List, will you?!"]]
Scorponok was originally a large, mobile Decepticon base on [[Nebulos]]. {{storylink|Decepticons at the Pole}} Through means unknown, he became a Transformer, as well as smaller and sentient, and took command of the Decepticon forces from [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]].

He matched wits with Optimus Prime himself, at one point trying to lure him into surrendering in exchange for a hostage's life. {{storylink|Autobot Hostage}} Eventually, the Autobots became too big a nuisance, and Scorponok had the Decepticons move en masse to a secret underground city in the Nebulos Triangle, but this backfired when the Autobots sealed him and his army underground for good. {{storylink|Decepticons Underground}}
{{-}}
===''Transformers in 3-D''===
Seeking a new [[Energon (fuel)|Energon]] source, the Decepticons flew Scorponok to an out-of-the-way asteroid, where he served as a base of operations. When a fight inevitably broke out, Scorponok flew to the battle scene. After he pucked up [[Blurr (G1)|Blurr]] and tossed the Autobot into the distance, [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]] angrily bodyslammed him, and the pair began grappling. {{storylink|The Test (issue)|The Test}}

Scorponok, accompanied by [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]] and [[Octane]], intercepted [[Cosmos (G1)|Cosmos]], as the Autobot was heading for [[Andellor]]. Scorponok threatened to destroy the Autobot unless he revealed where he was headed. Cosmos complied, but Scorponok was keen on destroying him anyway. Cyclonus insisted they investigate, and recalled the history of Andellor. Scorponok realised that the [[Prism of Power]] which Cosmos sought was the only thing that could stop the Decepticon's new weapon, the [[suspension-ray beam]]. Down on the planet, the three Decepticons ventured into a cave and were attacked, first by some tentacles from a pool, and finally by [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]]. Ironhide shrugged off Scorponok's mightiest blast, and defeated both him and Cyclonus. {{storylink|Transformers in 3-D issue 2|Transformers in 3-D #2}}

After the [[Clone (subgroup)|Clone]]s failed to obtain the coordinates to [[Metascan Alpha]], Zarak mocked Galvatron's skills and, combining with Scorponok, reasserted that he was leader of the Decepticons now. While the pair were still in disagreement, [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] broke into their base with the intention of destroying Galvatron's [[Nullification Cannon]]. During the battle, Scorponok took a swing at Prime which accidentally connected with the Cannon, causing it to explode. {{storylink|The War Against the Destructons, Chapter 1 of 3}}

===Transformers PD Type===
Scorponok and Fortress Maximus met in battle, with Scorponok vowing to crush Maximus with his bare hands. Unfortunately the two giant Transformers, engrossed in their fight, began to topple over, sending their smaller comrades fleeing for their lives. {{storylink|Transformers PD Type##14 "Watch Out! Mega Zarak!"|Watch Out! Mega Zarak!}}

===Dreamwave comics continuity===
[[Image:DestinedforNothing_Scorponok.jpg|left|200px|thumb|]]
Shortly before the [[Great Shutdown]], Scorponok attended a teleconference with [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]] and [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]], where he criticized the latter for "thinking like a calculator instead of a warrior". {{storylink|Destined for Nothing}}

{{-}}
===IDW comics continuity===
[[Image:SpotlightUltraMagnus Scorponok.jpg|right|300px|thumb|If you insist on sticking your olfactory sensors where they don't belong, I'm just going to have to take them from you!]]
Long ago, Scorponok once robbed an installation that the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dynobots]] were guarding—it was something [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]] wouldn't forget. {{storylink|Spotlight: Grimlock}}

After the destruction of Cybertron, Scorponok became a criminal known for his flagrant violations of the [[Code of Interplanetary Conflict]]. His traditional modus operandi was to make contact with ambitious non-Cybertronians on a developing world, work with his contacts to develop advanced weaponry using Cybertronian technology, then eliminate his partners when he had what he wanted. [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] had been seeking him for some time.

On the planet Nebulos, Scorponok was in league with [[Zarak (Nebulan)|Mo Zarak]], head of the [[Zarak Consortium]], a cabal of really smart scientists. Presumably with input from Scorponok, the Cranium had created hybrid Nebulan/Cybertronian beings. Unfortunately for Scorponok, Ultra Magnus had tracked him down. Claiming to be on the verge of something "breathtaking", Scorponok proceeded to beat the snot out of Ultra Magnus, before transforming into beast mode to finish him off. Unfortunately, Zarak ran out, begging Scorponok not to fire, or risk destroying what they had built. Unable to abort his shot, Scorponok killed Zarak (revealing to Magnus that the Nebulan had also been infused with Cybertronian technology). Shocked at his actions, a furious Scorponok turned to Ultra Magnus, and Magnus shot Scorponok in the head. However, Scorponok managed to escape through an artificial wormhole generator. {{storylink|Spotlight: Ultra Magnus}}

Shortly after the [[Brasnya]] conflict, Ultra Magnus contacted Optimus Prime, saying that he had a new lead on Scorponok's whereabouts, but he did not elaborate on the specifics. {{storylink|Spotlight: Optimus Prime}}

At some point over the last twenty years, Scorponok chose [[Earth]] as the location to continue his experiments. Making contact with a man named [[Abraham Dante]], Scorponok established an underground organization of human agents known as the [[Machination]], based out of [[Tampa, Florida]]. With their assistance, Scorponok began further developing the [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]] technology he had begun on Nebulos, designing the means for cybernetically-enhanced humans to bond with mechanoid bodies. This technology now had great personal value to Scorponok, as he had been reduced to little more than a disconnected head without a body, apparently due to the head shot Ultra Magnus gave him in their last encounter.

{{note|It is unclear whether Scorponok pre-dated the Decepticon infiltration unit on Earth or not.}}
[[Image:Devastation6 Scorponok liveagain.jpg|left|200px|thumb|That must have been one hell of a stag night]]
The Headmaster process was completed shortly before [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] initiated Phase Two on Earth—all it needed was a test subject. To accommodate this, Scorponok and Dante sent agents out into the field to locate the Autobot and Decepticon bases, and conceived tactical scenarios for forcibly acquiring a Transformer as a "guinea pig" before Scorponok underwent the process himself. When the discovery of [[Ultra-Energon|Ore-13]] accelerated the conflict on Earth, the Machination accelerated their plans as well. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 4|Infiltration #4}}

When the Autobots [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] and [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]] next left the ''[[Ark-19]]'' in [[Lake Michigan]], Machination agents surprised them on the highway and kidnapped Sunstreaker, leaving behind a heavily-scrapped replica to throw any pursuers temporarily off the scent. As a bonus, they picked up Sunstreaker's passenger as well, [[Hunter O'Nion]]. {{storylink|Escalation issue 1|Escalation #1}} Taking advantage of the situation, Scorponok and Dante attempted to have Hunter brainwashed and subjected him to the same bio-mechanical engineering as their own agents, creating a small squad of [[Sunstreaker clone|Sunstreaker clones]], each with their own human cyborg controller modified to act as the head in robot mode. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}}

With the Headmaster process a success, Scorponok proceeded to the next stage: revitalizing himself. Abraham Dante underwent the Headmaster process and donned an exo-carapace of his own. The two of them binary bonded just in time to test-drive their union against Hunter O'Nion, who had managed to shake off their brainwashing attempt and was trying to escape the Machination compound. Despite his renewed size and power, Scorponok failed to prevent Hunter from binary-bonding with one of the Sunstreaker drones, and escaping the Machination. {{storylink|Devastation issue 6|Devastation #6}}

[[Image:SpotlightGrimlock punch KLUNG.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Oh come on, I just got this head!]]
The Dante/Scorponok merge went well; even Dante considered them one being. He planted a mole named [[Kloss]] into [[Skywatch]], who planted a virus into Grimlock, freeing him from Skywatch's control. When Grimlock escaped, Scorponok met Grimlock with an offer of an alliance for world conquest. Grimlock refused and they battled, with Grimlock losing. Before he could be killed, Grimlock teleported to his still-functional ship. Dante/Scorponok later planned to take control of the other Dynobots and use them to destroy Grimlock. {{storylink|Spotlight: Grimlock}}

While continuing his search for the real Sunstreaker, Hot Rod came upon a wrecked Sunstreaker clone; he deduced that its destruction was "the price of failure". {{storylink|Spotlight: Doubledealer}}

[[Image:ScorponokHotRodMaxDino02.jpg|left|200px|thumb|No, Mr. Bond, I expect you to listen.]]
Following his bonding with Dante, he became a lot chattier and willing—nay, ''desperate''—to monologue his evil schemes.

Once his agents had ensured Skywatch had reprogrammed the Dynobots (reprogramming ''he'' could remotely control) and an army of Sunstreaker clones had been built, Scorponok arranged for Grimlock to be orbital-bounced to [[Fallon]], [[Nevada]]. {{storylink|Maximum Dinobots issue 1|Maximum Dinobots #1}}

When Skywatch turned up with the Dynobots, he ensured a massive, destructive fight took place, all a set-up so Skywatch would be discredited and his Headmasters could "save the day"... intending his puppet companies would get all the lucrative anti-Transformer defense contracts from a panicked US government. While his attempt to exploit the Dynobots' internal divides failed, he ''did'' get to beat Hot Rod half to death and yell a lot. {{storylink|Maximum Dinobots issue 2|Maximum Dinobots #2}}

When Scorponok's control of the Dynobots was lost, he sent in an army of Headmasters to annihilate everyone. They might have succeeded if not for the timely arrival of the [[Monsterbot]]s. This bemused Hot Rod, and Scorponok ordered him terminated, but Hot Rod managed to set his guards ablaze and escape the compound. {{storylink|Maximum Dinobots issue 3|Maximum Dinobots #3}}

As Hot Rod broke out, Sunstreaker broke in to find his real head. Scorponok caught him and blasted him through the chest, but Hunter was able to escape. Before Scorponok could find Hunter, the Monsterbots began blasting the compound, taking out the defenses. Scorponok ordered a recall of all Headmasters to attack the Dynobots, but Hunter was able to sever the connection to Sunstreaker's head, disabling all the Headmasters. A furious Scorponok began to take revenge but was thrown into battle with [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]], who wanted the same thing. {{storylink|Maximum Dinobots issue 4|Maximum Dinobots #4}}

Shockwave eventually gained the upper hand but allowed Scorponok to retreat gracefully. Scorponok caught Hot Rod trying to sever the connection with his real head, so he thought he'd take out his frustrations by squeezing the life out of Hot Rod. The timely arrival of the Dynobots prevented that, and Swoop severed the connection himself, rendering Scorponok helpless. Just then, Ultra Magnus arrived, responding to an S.O.S. from Hot Rod. He wouldn't allow Scorponok to be killed, but took him into custody. He also ordered the Machination stripped and all technology removed. {{storylink|Maximum Dinobots issue 5|Maximum Dinobots #5}}
{{--}}

==Commercial appearances==
[[Image:Scorponok-Rebirth.jpg|right|180px|thumb|"Not Elton John."]]
Scorponok has an odd history of [[Commercial|television commercial]] appearances:

* Like any proper flagship toy, he appears in a 1987 commercial largely devoted to him. As Galvatron narrates, the Technobots attack his base mode, prompting him to transform and counterattack, bashing Computron with a boulder. Notably, the commercial identifies Scorponok as Galvatron's "[[Triple Changer]] Headmaster base". Some of the animation was recycled for the Season 4 cartoon opening.

* In 1989, a [[Giant Decepticon Soldier|Frankenstein Decepticon]] appeared in one of the first Micromaster commercials, getting swarmed and overwhelmed by hordes of Micromasters. While not using the same character model, this character was partially based on Scorponok's appearance, including his distinctive head antennae and some of his color palette.

* In 1990, a Scorponok toy painted white and gray appeared in the stop-motion animated toy segment of a commercial advertising the [[Hot Rod Patrol]] and [[Construction Patrol]]. Like his cel animated counterpart, he gets overwhelmed by his smaller foes, who blow up a bridge beneath him, sending him tumbling into a ravine with an amusingly unthreatening cry of "RAWRRR."

==Games==
===''Transformers: The Headmasters''===
As the Decepticons rampaged over Earth, Cybertron, and some place called "Jail", Scorponok waited on the Last planet (seriously, THE last planet) for Fortress Maximus to show up and challenge him. And Fortress did. And he won. Yay. {{storylink|Transformers: The Headmasters (video game)|Transformers: The Headmasters}}

==Toys==
===Generation 1===
[[Image:G1 Scorponok toy.jpg|right|300px|thumb|If a camel is a horse designed by committee, then Scorponok is… er…]]
* '''Scorponok''' (Headmaster, 1987)
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''D-93'''
**''Accessories:'' Lord Zarak Headmaster unit, helmet, Scorponok's rifle, rifle cover, Scorponok's shield, [[Fasttrack (Scorponok)|Fasttrack]], Fasttrack's 2 guns, 2 ramps, 4 double cannons, 4 antenna, 2 leg shields, 1 claw arm, 1 side gun arm and 1 elevator.

: The largest Decepticon toy in Generation 1, Scorponok's beast mode is a robotic purple, green and orange scorpion. The pincers have multiple points of articulation, and the ratcheting joints are strong enough to grasp a smaller Transformer. His eight legs are also independently jointed. There are two wheels with rubber grips underneath Scorponok's beast mode body, and pushing him along will cause the scorpion legs to move, simulating the motion of walking. Lord Zarak can sit inside the scorpion head/cockpit while in robot form, or he can be stored inside the chest compartment.

:Like many large Generation 1 Transformers, Scorponok has a base mode, with various ramps and towers for smaller Transformer toys to interact with, though it is quite out of [[scale]] for larger toys, such as his fellow Decepticon Headmasters. The central ramp (formed out of his beast tail) is designed with Fasttrack in mind and features a minor gimmick — placing Fasttrack on the orange panel and pressing the small black button will cause the back of the orange panel to rise, sending Fasttrack rolling down the ramp.

:Scorponok's robot mode is impressively large, and still remains one of the largest Decepticon toys in the ''Transformers'' franchise. As with all Headmasters, Scorponok has a flip-down panel on his chest which covers a spring-loaded mini-[[Tech Spec|Tech-Spec]]-meter which gives readings for Speed, Strength and Intelligence. The tumblers are activated when Lord Zarak (or any other Headmaster unit) is plugged into his neck socket while in head mode. As Lord Zarak is about the same size as the Headmaster units of smaller Headmaster toys, Scorponok would thus have a pretty small noggin if not for the large helmet (that was the beast mode scorpion head) that is placed over the Headmaster. The helmet also features a flip-down visor, which was homaged in ''Energon'' [[Scorponok (Energon)|Scorponok]]. The 2-part rifle and shield plug into Scorponok's pincers.

:Also, he has a [[die-cast]] ass.

:Fasttrack transforms into a small six-wheeled attack vehicle. He comes with two small, easily lost orange guns.

::*[http://www.tfu.info/1987/Decepticon/Scorponok/scorponok.htm More information on Scorponok at TFU.info]
{{-}}

===Super-God Masterforce===
[[Image:Blackzarak toy.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Stingin' and blingin']]
*'''BlackZarak''' (Headmaster, 1988)
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''D-311'''
**''Accessories:'' Scorponok Headmaster unit, face cover, two-piece "Tyrant Spear", "Black Hole Cannon", cannon cover, "Shield Tower"/"Plantium Shield", four "Blacking Cannons", two "Combat Ramps", two "Maintenance Arms", four "Radar Sensors", elevator, [[Fasttrack (Scorponok)|Black Roritchi]], Black Roritchi's two lasers

:This Japanese-exclusive [[retool]] of the original Scorponok figure [[Redeco|redecoes]] the figure in black, gold and red, and equips the figure with a new helmet/scorpion head that features a better-proportioned face sculpted directly into it. As such, it's not really necessary to plug the Scorponok Headmaster unit between the shoulders, since the new helmet-head conceals it completely, but it does fit. The figure includes a small red visor-like mask that clips over the robot mode face, hiding it from view for scorpion mode.

:BlackZarak comes with one major new accessory—his red, two-piece "Tyrant Spear", which he can hold in robot mode—and also includes all of Scorponok's original accessories, appropriately redecoed, including a gold redeco of [[Fasttrack (Scorponok)|Fasttrack]] named "Black Roritchi". BlackZarak is notoriously difficult to find complete, due to many of his accessories, and even body parts, suffering from [[Gold Plastic Syndrome]]. Even sealed box samples have horrified owners who opened the toys for the first time to discover broken parts on their previously-untouched toys.

:Like [[Sixshot]] and Overlord, with their respective "Wingwolf" and "space jet" alternate modes, BlackZarak's instructions do not feature the additional two-headed serpent mode, created as it was by the production staff after fiddling around with the toy and dubbed the "dakatsu" mode. As such, it's entirely possible to transform the toy into this form, but if you try, be aware that it was seriously streamlined for animation, and doesn't look nearly as good in plastic as it does on the screen or comic page. (Also, if the toy hasn't shattered yet due to GPS, putting the toy into dakatsu mode will probably finish the job.)

::*[http://www.tfu.info/1988/Destron/BlackZarak/blackzarak.htm More information on BlackZarak at TFU.info]
{{--}}

==Merchandise==
===Parody Deformed===
[[Image:Scorponok pd model.jpg|right|125px|thumb|Sets a new standard for "mega"]]
*'''MegaZarak''' (1990)

:A small white and red, non-transforming [[super deformed]] model kit of Scorponok was available as part of [[Kabaya]]'s "[[Parody Deformed]]" line of [[Candy toy|candy toys]]. The fourteenth figure in the series, he came with a "[[Transformers PD Type]]" comic about himself, "Watch Out! MegaZarak!", and something that could charitably be described as "gum".
{{--}}

===Super Collection Figure===
*'''BlackZarak''' (2001)

[[Image:Scorponok scf.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Me and myself]]
:BlackZarak was the "Build-A-Figure" from the fifth, ''Masterforce''-centric wave of [[TakaraTomy|Takara]]'s line of ''[[Super Collection Figure]]'' PVC figurines, available in eight out of every ten cases. He was divided into six parts, each one packaged with one of the silver metallic "pewter" versions of the other six figurines in the line (the regular, color versions of the figures didn't come with BlackZarak parts): his head and torso came with Ginrai, his left arm with [[Shūta Gō|Goshooter]], his right arm with Metalhawk and [[Minerva (Masterforce)|Minerva]], his waist and tail with [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]], his left leg with [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]] and his right leg with Overlord. BlackZarak's part were available in both full-color and smokey translucent plastic (in an equal ratio of 4 out of every 10 cases each), meaning that there were two versions of the figure to collect.

*'''MegaZarak''' (2002)

:Like BlackZarak before him, this version of Scorponok was the Build-A-Figurine from the line's eighth wave. His six components were packaged with the regular color versions of the other figurines in the line: his head and torso came with Fortress, his left arm with Dai Atlas, his right arm with Star Convoy, his pelvis with [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]], his left leg with [[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]] and his right leg with [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]]. Like BlackZarak, there was both a regular full-color figure to collect (available in 6 out of every 10 cases) as well as a rarer variant version, this time in metallic silver (available in 4 out of every 10 cases).

==Notes==
[[Image:Rebirth3-legdoor.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Have fun crawling through the joints.]]
* Both Scorponok and Fortress Maximus suffer from the writers struggling to reconcile the characters' high rank with their size. In their comic appearances, they are portrayed as commanders in some capacity but are shrunk down to interact with other Transformers, and their city modes pretty much don't exist. Conversely, the cartoons have opted to portray them as giant city Transformers, though they seem to be merely extensions of the smaller beings that bond with them, with no real life or will of their own.

* When Scorponok prepares to leave [[Nebulos]] in "[[The Rebirth, Part 3]]," he opens a ramp for the other Decepticons to board him. Curiously, the ramp leads up into one of his scorpion-mode legs.

[[Image:Zazorigun.jpg|thumb|300px|"Zazori" is Japanese for "scorpion", so his name is about as clever as his progenitor's.]]

* The [[Action Master Elite]] [[Double Punch]]'s mold looks just like an [[Action Master]] version of BlackZarak, right down to the molded details, including the head. The coloring (black/red/purple) is similar to BlackZarak's coloring (black/red/gold) as well. This is very strange, considering that Japan never got Action Masters, and Europe never got BlackZarak.

*Scorponok served as the basis for the evil "Zazorigun" (ザゾリガン ''Zazorigan'') mecha in [[TakaraTomy|Takara]]'s ''[[Brave (franchise)|Brave of Gold Goldran]]'' series. Unlike fellow ''Goldran'' baddie Deathgarrygun (who was derived from [[Sky Garry (ROC)|Sky Garry]]), no toy or merchandise of Zazorigun was ever released. At least one enterprising Japanese fan, though, has [http://mamao2.cside.com/contents/toys/gd/zazorigan.html created a custom one] for himself.

* The Latin American dub of ''The Headmasters'' displayed some inconsistencies with Scorponok's name. On his first appearance, Galvatron calls him "'''Lok'''". Later, Skullcruncher calls him '''"Gronko"''' (episode 7 only), later in the series, he's named "'''Scorponok'''", and during the space travel event, he's called "'''Chandler'''", the last two names being the most used during the ''Headmasters'' series. It should be noted that no name makes a distinction between Scorponok and his Transtector.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Scorponok''' (スコルポノック ''Sukoruponokku''), '''MegaZarak''' (メガザラック ''Megazarakku''), '''Zarak''' (ザラック ''Zarakku'', see above), '''Scorpion''' (スコーピオン ''Sukōpion'', "The Rebirth")
*''Italian:'' '''Skorpion'''
*''Ukrainian:'' '''Skorpiy''' (cartoon, Скорпій, "Skorpiy")
*''Russian:'' '''Skorponog''' (cartoon, Скорпоног, "Scorpoleg")
*''Spanish:'' '''Lok''', '''Gronko''', '''Chandler''', '''Scorponok''' (all America, see above)

[[Category:Decepticon bases]]
[[Category:City Transformers]]
[[Category:Multi-component Transformers]]
[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Emperors]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Decepticons]]
[[Category:Generation 1 locations]]
[[Category:Headmasters]]
[[Category:Machination]]
[[Category:Super-God Masterforce Decepticons]]
[[Category:The Headmasters Decepticons]]
[[Category:Triple Changers]]
[[Category:Zone Decepticons]]
[[Category:Zombies]]