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Transformers One (film)

2025-04-25T00:40:28Z

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{{movie|
|seriess=Transformers One
|prev=
|next=
|title=''Transformers One''
|image=Transformers One New Theatrical Poster.jpg
|caption=The motion picture you are about to see is an adaptation of the [[Transformers: Exodus|Exodus]] story. While artistic and historical license has been taken, we believe that this film is true to the essence, values, and integrity of a story that is a cornerstone of faith for [[fandom|millions of people worldwide]].
|production companies=[[Hasbro Entertainment]] [[Lorenzo di Bonaventura|di Bonaventura Pictures]] Bayhem Films [[Paramount Animation]] New Republic Pictures
|distributor=[[Paramount Pictures]]
|executive producer=[[Steven Spielberg]] [[Zev Foreman]] [[Olivier Dumont]] [[Brian Oliver]] [[B.J. Farmer]] [[Matt Quigg]] [[Greg Moordain]]
|producer=[[Lorenzo di Bonaventura]] [[Tom DeSanto]] [[Don Murphy]] [[Michael Bay]] [[Mark Vahradian]] [[Aaron Dem]]
|story by=[[Andrew Barrer]] [[Gabriel Ferrari]]
|screenplay by=[[Eric Pearson]] Andrew Barrer Gabriel Ferrari
|directed by=[[Josh Cooley]]
|cinematography by=
|edited by=
|music by= [[Brian Tyler]]
|release date=[[September 20]], [[2024]]
|runtime=104 minutes
|budget= $75 million
|box office=$129 million<ref>https://the-numbers.com/movie/Transformers-One-(2024)#tab=summary</ref>
|credits=Transformers One (film)/credits
}}
'''''Transformers One''''' is an animated film released on [[September 20]], [[2024]]. It is written by [[Eric Pearson]], [[Andrew Barrer]], and [[Gabriel Ferrari]] from a story by Barrer and Ferrari,<ref name="deadlinereveal">[https://deadline.com/2015/09/transformers-writers-room-akiva-goldsman-transformers-5-1201531918/ 'Transformers' Writers Room Wraps] on Deadline</ref> and directed by [[Josh Cooley]].<ref name="cooleyreveal">[https://deadline.com/2020/04/transformers-animated-movie-paramount-hasbro-toy-story-4-director-josh-cooley-1202921100/ Animated 'Transformers' Prequel Activated; 'Toy Story 4's Josh Cooley To Direct For Hasbro/eOne & Paramount]</ref> The movie is an origin story set on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] three billion years ago<ref name="collidercinemacon">[https://collider.com/transformers-one-animated-movie-title/ New ‘Transformers’ Animated Movie Rolls Out a New Title at CinemaCon] on Collider</ref><ref name="screenrantsandiegocomiccon">[https://screenrant.com/transformers-one-timeline-setting-takes-place// When Transformers One Takes Place In The Franchise Timeline] on Screen Rant</ref> in the days before the Autobot-Decepticon war, and focuses on [[Optimus Prime (One)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Megatron (One)|Megatron]] as they go from brothers-in-arms to enemies.<ref name="cooleyreveal" />

{{bigquote|The line between friend and enemy is not as clear as I once believed. Once it's crossed, there is no going back. Because some transformations... are permanent.|[[Optimus Prime (One)|Optimus Prime]]}}

==Synopsis==
Long ago, the benevolent [[Primus]] sacrificed his life essence to become the planet [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], and created the [[Thirteen|first generation of Transformers]], the [[Prime (rank)|Prime]]s. Through the power of the [[Matrix of Leadership]], [[energon]] flowed freely from the planet's core, and the Primes ruled justly for a time. However, when the alien [[Quintesson]]s began a long war of invasion, the Primes were eventually slain, and the Matrix of Leadership was lost, leaving only [[Sentinel Prime (One)|Sentinel Prime]] to rule the planet in their absence after the Cybertronians relocated to massive underground cities, abandoning the dangerous surface.

[[File:TFOne Orion caught.jpg|left|thumb|300px|She's exhausted from the day's work. Uh, not that it was too much! We-we quite enjoyed it!]]
Fifty cycles after the war, Cybertronian society now relies on an [[Cogless|underclass]] of manual laborers born without [[transformation cog]]s, including a caste of miners who physically extract what few veins of usable energon remain from the tunnels beneath the subterranean [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] City, while Sentinel Prime makes periodic journeys to the surface in search of the missing Matrix. One impulsive miner named [[Optimus Prime (One)|Orion Pax]] has been searching for information regarding the Matrix, in the hopes that finding the artifact will restore Cybertron to prosperity and allow him and his fellow miners to choose their own path in life. Unfortunately, this search for information has led him to repeatedly break into the city's data archives without authorization. His latest attempt draws the unwanted attention of two [[Guard (One)|guards]] who have caught him several times in the past already, leading to a wild (and nearly lethal) chase through the skyways, through buildings, and eventually into the ground-level public transport station. Though the guards eventually catch up to Orion, the miner's friend [[Megatron (One)|D-16]] provides a distraction and sends the guards off on a wild goose chase. On the train to work, the pair discuss Orion's latest life-endangering adventure, and Orion, knowing that his friend idolizes the strongest Prime, gifts D-16 a rare first-edition decal of [[The Fallen|Megatronus Prime]]'s helmet he'd found.

[[File:TFOne Mine Explosion.jpg|right|thumb|300px|We're trying to get the funny man out of the well!]]
In the mines, D-16 and Orion work under the supervision of their go-getting captain [[Elita-1 (One)|Elita-1]], using [[jet pack]]s and deployable support poles to keep Cybertron's shifting geology stable long enough for them to extract raw energon. However, [[Wheeljack (One)|Wheeljack]] accidentally hits a vein of unstable energon, and the ensuing explosions trap [[Jazz (One)|Jazz]] under a rockfall. Orion and D-16 defy protocol and use a jet pack to save their coworker, but the chaos ends up damaging and destroying a lot of mine equipment. One of the mine's guards, [[Darkwing (One)|Darkwing]], blames Elita for the disaster, and informs her she's been demoted to waste management duty, despite Orion sticking up for her and taking the blame.

That evening, Sentinel Prime returns to Iacon to announce that he still has not found the Matrix; to take the blow off this bad news, Sentinel declares that the prestigious [[Iacon 5000]] race will be held the next day. Orion tries to persuade D-16 to join him in the race, hoping that they can prove to the rest of Cybertron that mining bots deserve respect, but D-16 has no interest in the idea. On the day of the race, Orion discreetly leads D-16 to the maintenance area inside the giant starting signal above the race's starting line; while D-16 is initially excited to watch from a perfect vantage point, Orion reveals his true intention as he straps jet packs to the two just as the race begins and they're dropped into the thick of a throng of racing robots. Using their jet packs and some quick thinking to compensate for their inability to transform, the two dodge the numerous traps and obstacles and briefly manage to take the lead, sending bots across the city into a frenzy, especially their fellow cogless miners. The pair are just about to limp across the finish line and take first place, but end up being run down by [[Chromia (One)|Chromia]], who snags victory for herself. The pair figure they can still be proud of second place... until several dozen other racers whip by them in vehicle mode.

[[File:TFOne Sentinel visits.jpg|left|thumb|300px|I seek to build an empire, and your only goal is to amuse yourselves by tearing it down. Have I taught you nothing?]]
In Iacon's medical center, where many, many racers have ultimately ended up, Sentinel Prime meets with Orion and D-16; the pair are immediately certain they are in ''massive'' trouble, especially when they're scanned by Sentinel's creepy aide [[Airachnid (One)|Airachnid]] before his arrival, but it turns out it's quite the opposite. Sentinel ''loved'' their little stunt, and tells them that the miners' productivity after that showing was already at 150%. Sentinel offers them a chance to tour the mines and help inspire their comrades to work harder, with promises of some pampering along the way, and the pair quickly agree. However, Darkwing arrives before Airachnid can escort them to Sentinel's private quarters; infuriated that he nearly lost the race to the pair after they humiliated him, he drags them to the planet's fiftieth sub-level (ten levels below what they ''thought'' was the lowest level of the planet) and locks them in a trash incineration station.

The two bots soon meet the eccentric and exceptionally talkative [[Bumblebee (One)|B-127]], who has been trapped at the job of "look at garbage and take anything of value out before it's burned" for years, with only garbage statues for "company". When one of B's pals "[[Steve (One)|Steve]]" utters some electronic gibberish, Orion accidentally beheads the "bot", but discovers within the wreckage an old beacon from the Quintesson war, still broadcasting a set of coordinates located somewhere on the planet's surface. Orion, B-127, and D-16 decide to investigate, escaping the only way they can: by climbing up the dump chute. Ew. The trio stow away aboard an automated surface-bound garbage train but coincidentally encounter Elita-1, who now works the refuse line. She handily clobbers the three but ends up locked in the train with them as it departs. She heads for the front, intending to report them to security, a mad dash that gets all the harder as the train starts moving vertically towards its destination. She manages to pop a hatch and make it out of the train, and the trio gives chase, but all four are stopped cold as they're enveloped in light and they find themselves traveling along Cybertron's surface.

The four are stunned by the planet's natural beauty, only to become horrified as said natural beauty starts violently heaving upwards behind them, tearing up the self-building rail and scattering train cars. They run for it but are thrown off, waking in just enough time to completely miss another train, the rail un-building behind it. Elita is furious, but agrees to join Orion's search for the Matrix, on the conditions that 1) she's in command, 2) she holds the map, and 3) if the quest turns out to be a wild goose chase, then the other three will turn themselves in for their idiotic plan and paint her in a very positive light to the authorities. Orion very quickly agrees, and the four head off, confused by the weird not-metal life growing on the surface. They spy a group of [[Robo-deer|robotic quadrupedal lifeforms]], which suddenly snap to attention and run for it as the ground begins to tremble. It's soon apparent the cause of their panic: a massive Quintesson spaceship! As the ship scans for any lifeforms (obliterating one of the Cybertronian fauna with a massive cannon blast when it ends up in the tracking beams), the four barely evade detection and the ship moves on.

[[File:TransformersOne-AlphaTrionTransformationCogs.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.66|Take the staff in your hand, Moses. With it, you shall do My wonders.]]
Soon they find themselves at the end of the map's trail, a [[Mouth of Unicron|hidden and extremely creepy cave]]. Inside they find a scene of absolute horror: the spot where the ancient Primes made their final stand against the Quintessons, their bodies lying broken and covered in overgrowth. Although the Matrix is nowhere to be found, Orion discovers that [[Alpha Trion (One)|Alpha Trion]]'s spark still pulses and uses an [[energon cube]] provided by B to revive him. The four attempt to bring Trion up to speed on recent events, but their mention of "Sentinel Prime" causes Trion to reveal the terrible truth: Sentinel is an imposter, a traitorous aide who led the Primes into a Quintesson ambush in exchange for "ruling" Cybertron under the invaders' command. However, when Sentinel tried to claim the Matrix after prying it from [[Zeta Prime (One)|Zeta Prime]]'s corpse, the artifact judged him unworthy and disappeared. To appease his new masters, Sentinel has deliberately stolen transformation cogs from newborn Transformers to keep them producing energon in the mines; at Trion's urging, the four emerge from the cave to witness Sentinel pledging servitude to the [[Quintesson High Commander]] and learn the city's garbage trains are actually transporting Cybertron's dwindling energon supplies to Quintesson ships, leaving barely enough for the people of Cybertron. These revelations leave the bots horrified, but D-16 takes it the worst of all, having also looked up to Sentinel for years. Alpha Trion decides to give the team hope by gifting them the transformation cogs from four of the fallen Primes, as well as a recording of Sentinel's treachery. However, Airachnid spotted the four when they were watching Sentinel's meeting with the Quintessons, and a squad of Sentinel's [[Tracker]]s arrive. Despite his disrepair, Alpha Trion uses his leonine alternate mode to wipe out the squad, allowing Orion and the others to escape, but is quickly incapacitated by Airachnid.

The four bots have a very rocky time learning to transform in the middle of fleeing a squad of Trackers, tumbling downhill with only ''parts'' of them shifting into their new vehicle modes, but desperation forces them to adapt ''very'' quickly. Each one finds new abilities and an aptitude for combat, and soon they're able to destroy their pursuers. Overjoyed at their victory, they make the plan to use the incriminating information Trion gave them by returning to Iacon and exposing Sentinel as a traitor. In their excitement, they fail to notice a Tracker about to shoot them from behind until D-16 uses his new tank mode to kill him first... and then starts laughing at what he just did. D-16 snatches the evidence and takes the lead, his ever-growing intensity and openly stated desire to kill Sentinel leaving Orion more and more unnerved.

Back in Iacon, Alpha Trion is brought before Sentinel, who mocks the "old-timer" and gloats about his station, complaining to Airachnid about the Primes' stuffiness and boring speeches. Trion's word of warning that Sentinel's time will soon be over only annoys the false Prime further, and in a fit of rage he kills the ancient Prime before sending Airachnid back to the surface to hunt down the wayward miners.

[[File:TFoneStarscreamSoundwaveShockwaveInterrogation.jpg|left|thumb|300px|You're playing with the big boys now!]]
Along the path to Iacon, a series of shots ring out, and each bot slips into stasis... Orion and the others are brought back online, bound (and gagged in B's case) as prisoners of the former members of Cybertron's [[High Guard]], who have been fighting a guerrilla war against the Quintessons ever since the fall of the Primes, led by [[Starscream (One)|Starscream]]. D-16 is not impressed, and giving into his growing rage, challenges Starscream's authority, and the two quickly end up in a brawl. While Starscream plays it tough even as D-16 crushes his neck and damages his speech module, his attitude soon changes as D-16 manifests a massive cannon on his arm, aimed directly at Starscream's head. The Guard quickly rallies behind their new leader, ready to take the fight to Sentinel... but Airachnid's forces arrive and ambush them.

[[File:TFOne Airachnid attacks.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Not much of a snake-charmer, are you?]]
Orion, having been buried in the battle, awakens when Elita drags him from the rubble to find that D-16, B-127, and much of the Guard have been taken prisoner, and the data crystal containing the evidence of Sentinel's betrayal has been shattered. Orion despairs, believing their quest to be hopeless now, but Elita won't have it. Though she's still not above taking some digs at Orion, she points out that it is the bot's endless ''optimism'' that makes him a true leader, one that can make bots do amazing (and occasionally amazingly ''stupid'') things. Orion takes the praise (and insults) and decides it's time to rally, and the two quickly formulate a plan; the Guard may be strong, but the last battle proved they aren't enough on their own, they need a true army... and Orion knows exactly where to get one. After Elita quickly shuts down any dissent from the remaining Guard (thanks to a very swift punch to [[Shockwave (One)|Shockwave's]] eye), Orion primes the warriors for the coming battle, with a cry of "''[[Roll out|Transform and ROLL OUT]]!''"

The captives have been brought to [[Hall of Primes|Sentinel's tower]], where the puppet leader gloats over them, mocking Starscream's scrambled voice and sneering at D-16. But the miner does not cower or balk at all, declaring that he is not afraid of Sentinel, as he has nothing left to lose. Noticing the worn Megatronus decal, Sentinel reveals that he took Megatronus's transformation cog when he killed him, ripping the decal from the miner's arm before slapping it back onto his chest... and then, knocking the miner on his back, using a mining tool to crudely ''carve'' the Prime's face into D-16's chest.

Orion uses his new form to rocket-glide into the depths of Iacon City, entering the miners' quarters (and bodily hurling Darkwing aside in the process). Orion reveals the truth to the miners and rallies them to join forces with the High Guard and rebel against Sentinel's regime. Meanwhile, Elita, Shockwave, and [[Soundwave (One)|Soundwave]] have commandeered a returning "garbage" train, transporting the Guard into the city in a sneak attack. But the sudden appearance of hundreds of Trackers makes things look very bad for the plan... until Orion and the miners leap into the fray and cut a swath through the incoming horde, armed with their jet packs and mining tools. Airachnid attempts to kill Orion, slamming him into the train engine, and revealing the ''incredibly horrifying'' array of optics hidden in the back of her head. But her multi-scanning abilities give Orion a sudden idea as the train plows towards Sentinel's tower.

[[File:TFOneSentinelvsD16.jpg|left|thumb|300px|I will not be dictated to. I will not be threatened. I am the morning and the evening star. I am Pharaoh!]]
Sentinel, angered as D-16 once again attempts to rise up, is just about to blow the miner's head off when the train slams into his tower. Soundwave frees the prisoners and the fight spills across the city. Sentinel transforms into combat mode, but D-16 will not be deterred, the two launch into battle. Elita leaps into action, tackling Airachnid and attempting to take her prisoner (with only ''some'' gratuitously satisfying pummeling along the way). She drags the semi-conscious bot to one of Iacon's broadcast stations, and B makes a ''very'' over-enthusiastic entrance. Airachnid's memory banks are quickly scanned, and her memories of Sentinel's most recent meeting with the Quintessons are broadcast throughout the city, leading the populace to also join the fight.

Sentinel fares badly in his fight with D-16, and seeing his cowering before the Quintessons on dozens of screens, his empire in ruins, tries to flee, and when that fails, begs D-16 to spare him, claiming they can co-rule Cybertron. D-16 insists that Sentinel must die for his crimes, but Orion tries to convince his friend that they can be better than their enemies. D-16 violently disagrees, knocking his friend aside and readying the kill shot... only for Orion to leap in the path, the cannon blast tearing through his torso and sending him tumbling over the edge. D-16 grabs Orion's one good arm, horrified... ''that Orion would stop him from killing Sentinel''. With this betrayal, he vows he is ''done'' saving Orion from his mistakes and lets his dying friend plummet into Cybertron's depths. As Orion falls, D-16, insistent that there will be no more Primes, kills Sentinel by bisecting him with his hands. He then seizes Megatronus' cog from Sentinel's chest, replacing the one gifted to him by Trion, which transforms him into an even ''more'' battle-ready form. Declaring himself "Megatron", he commands the High Guard to destroy everything Sentinel built... in other words, what's left of the city.

[[File:One-Megs-Prime-face-to-face.jpg|thumb|300px|Goodbye... brother.]]
Meanwhile, the mortally wounded Orion falls through the planetary strata, which slides and shifts out of his way, until he finally reaches Cybertron's core. There, he encounters the spirits of the Primes as Trion announce that Primus has deemed him worthy for the future of Cybertron and to carry the Matrix of Leadership, reformatting Orion and restoring his spark to declare him the newest of the Primes: "Optimus Prime", before being sent rocketing back to the surface in a blaze of blue light.

Elita and B try and fail to stop Megatron's rampage, their former friend ready to kill them too, but Optimus smashes onto the scene. Megatron is incensed at this new betrayal both by his former friend ''and'' the Matrix itself, and launches himself at Optimus. During their fight, Optimus manifests an energy battle axe to fight against Megatron along with Starscream, Soundwave, and Shockwave before using it to destroy Megatron's new cannon, ultimately winning their fight. Unwilling to kill his oldest friend, Optimus reluctantly banishes Megatron and his new allies to the surface. Megatron seethes but decides that now is not the time, and takes his new army to the surface.

With the return of the Matrix of Leadership, Cybertron is restored to life: energon flows once again from the planet's core to the surface, and ''all'' of the cogless bots receive transformation cogs, becoming fully autonomous "[[Autobot]]s" who vow to defend Cybertron from any future Quintesson incursions. However, the Quintessons are not the only looming threat—though banished from Iacon, Megatron and his followers rechristen themselves the "[[Decepticon]]s" and swear revenge.
{{-}}

==Cast==
{{featuredcharacters
|h1=Miners
|c1=
*[[Optimus Prime (One)|Orion Pax / Optimus Prime]] ([[Chris Hemsworth]])
*[[Megatron (One)|D-16 / Megatron]] ([[Brian Tyree Henry]])
*[[Elita-1 (One)|Elita-1]] ([[Scarlett Johansson]])
*[[Bumblebee (One)|B-127]] ([[Keegan-Michael Key]])
*[[Jazz (One)|Jazz]] ([[Evan Michael Lee]])
*[[Arcee (One)|Arcee]] ([[Jinny Chung]])
*[[Bluestreak (One)|Bluestreak]]
*[[Brawn (One)|Brawn]]
*[[Firestar (One)|Firestar]]<ref group=note name="uncredited">Denotes a character, or unidentified members of a group, who speaks, but has no credited voice actor. The performance was likely done by an ADR voice cast member.</ref>
*[[Hound (One)|Hound]]
*[[Huffer (One)|Huffer]]
*[[Ironhide (One)|Ironhide]]<ref group=note name="uncredited"/>
*[[Mirage (One)|Mirage]]
*[[Moonracer (One)|Moonracer]]<ref group=note name="uncredited"/>
*[[Prowl (One)|Prowl]]<ref group=note name="uncredited"/>
*[[Ratchet (One)|Ratchet]]
*[[Red Alert (One)|Red Alert]]
*[[Sideswipe (One)|Sideswipe]]<ref group=note name="uncredited"/>
*[[Smokescreen (One)|Smokescreen]]
*[[Sunstreaker (One)|Sunstreaker]]
*[[Wheeljack (One)|Wheeljack]]<ref group=note name="uncredited"/>
*[[Windcharger (One)|Windcharger]]

|h2=[[High Guard]]
|c2=
*[[Starscream (One)|Starscream]] ([[Steve Buscemi]])
*[[Soundwave (One)|Soundwave]] ([[Jon Bailey]])
*[[Shockwave (One)|Shockwave]] ([[Jason Konopisos-Alvarez]])
*[[Skywarp (One)|Skywarp]] (Josh Cooley)
*[[Thundercracker (One)|Thundercracker]]
*[[Dirge (One)|Dirge]]
*[[Ramjet (One)|Ramjet]]
*[[Thrust (One)|Thrust]]
*[[Slipstream (One)|Slipstream]]
*[[Redwing (One)|Redwing]]

|h3=[[Thirteen#One film|Primes]]
|c3=
*[[Alpha Trion (One)|Alpha Trion]] ([[Laurence Fishburne]])
*[[Zeta Prime (One)|Zeta Prime]] ([[James Remar]])
*[[The Fallen#One film|Megatronus Prime]]
*[[Alchemist Prime#One film|Alchemist Prime]]
*[[Amalgamous Prime#One film|Amalgamous Prime]]
*[[Liege Maximo#One film|Liege Maximo]]
*[[Micronus Prime#One film|Micronus Prime]]
*[[Nexus Prime#One film|Nexus Prime]]<ref group=note name="uncredited"/>
*[[Onyx Prime#One film|Onyx Prime]]
*[[Prima#One film|Prima Prime]]
*[[Quintus Prime#One film|Quintus Prime]]
*[[Solus Prime#One film|Solus Prime]]<ref group=note name="uncredited"/>
*[[Vector Prime#One film|Vector Prime]]

|c4=
*[[Sentinel Prime (One)|Sentinel Prime]] ([[Jon Hamm]])
*[[Airachnid (One)|Airachnid]] ([[Vanessa Liguori]])
*[[Quintesson High Commander]]
*[[Quintesson Soldier]]s
*[[Primus]]
*[[Tracker]]s<ref group=note name="uncredited"/>
*[[Guard (One)|Guards]] ([[Steve Blum]], Jason Konopisos-Alvarez)
*[[Announcer Bot]] (Steve Blum)
*[[Control Room Guys]] (Josh Cooley)

'''Racers'''
*[[Darkwing (One)|Darkwing]] ([[Isaac C. Singleton, Jr.]])
*[[Chromia (One)|Chromia]] (Jinny Chung)
*[[Injured Racer]] ([[Dillon Bryan]])

|nonumbering=true
}}
<references group=note/>

==Quotes==
"I had to jump out of a window this time. Almost died. It was wild." 
"And digging through ancient data is worth dying for?" 
"Yes, it is." 
"Oh, I need a new best friend..."
:—'''Orion Pax''' and '''D-16''' meet up before their shift.

"Are you ''crazy?!''" 
"Sure feels like it!"
:—'''D-16''' and '''Orion Pax''' summing up their initial relationship.

"Hey, look, I know it's all a big joke to you. But not me. I was paying my dues. I was going places. And now they're gonna bust me down I-- I don't even know how many tiers!" 
'"I'm sorry, D. But come on, didn't you feel it? Even for just a second, didn't you feel liberated? Didn't you feel like you were something else? Like you could be more than what they say you are?" 
"Yeah, I felt it. I did. But it doesn't matter. We're going to get punished ''and'' demoted. Ugh, Sentinel Prime saw the whole thing, this is so ''embarrassing''."
:—"'''D-16''' knows his place, despite what '''Orion Pax''' tries.

"Sentinel Prime. [laughs] '''THE''' Sentinel Prime!" 
"You still mad at me?" 
"I am less mad at you."
:—'''D-16''' meets his idol, and '''Orion Pax''' kills the mood.

"Don't you want to stop him?" 
"NO, '''I WANT TO KILL HIM!''' I wanna put Sentinel in chains and march him through the mines so everyone can see him for the '''FALSE PRIME''' that he is! I want him to '''suffer''', and then to ''die'' in ''darkness.'' But we all know it doesn't matter what I want, ''right'', Pax? The fact is, we're just cogless bots. Right? We had limited options, and now... now we have ''none''."
:—'''Orion Pax''' and '''D-16'''

"What defines a Transformer is not the cog in his chest, but the spark in that resides in their core. A spark that gives you the will to make your world better. My fellow Primes had that spark. And I see their strength in you. Take their cogs and access your full potential. Prima. Onyx. Alchemist. Micronus. Warriors of noble spirit, loyalty, strength. Their uniqueness enhanced by these. They were one. ''You'' are one. '''ALL''' are one!" 
"Wait. We have... You-- You gave us..." 
"The ability to change your world. How you choose to use that power is up to you."
:—'''Alpha Trion''' inaugurates '''Orion Pax''' and our heroes with the tried and true phrase.

"Stand down, old timer." 
"Ah... ''old'' you say?"
:—'''Alpha Trion''' shows the foot soldiers that he prefers the word "experienced".

'''Starscream''': Now, are you spies, or incompetent lackeys? 
'''Orion Pax''': We're not spies. 
'''Elita-1''': But he is incompetent.
:—Elita-1 on her boss-to-be

"Uh... why is he gagged?" 
"He wouldn't stop talking." 
"Even when he was unconscious?" 
"''ESPECIALLY'' WHEN HE WAS UNCONSCIOUS!"
:—'''Elita-1''' asks '''Shockwave''' about B-127's restraints.

"Hey! What are you doing?" 
"I'll tell you what I'm not doing. I'm not cowering in some busted ship, playing king of the throne. I'm not pretending like I'm making a difference by throwing one punch and then running away to hide. I found out that Sentinel is rotten today, and I'm going to make him pay for it! TODAY!" 
"You think you can insult me and just walk away? No one leaves here unless I say so." 
"Is that right? Well, how can you say so... with my head in your teeth?"
:—'''Starscream''' and '''D-16''', right before he beats the living scrap out of him.

"Bear witness! ''This'' is the '''last''' time I show mercy! Decide right now! You can stay here in hiding, bowing before your pathetic leader, or follow me as we march on Iacon and I take down Sentinel '''ONCE AND FOR ALL!'''"
:—'''D-16''', as he usurps the High Guard's leadership from Starscream.

"If we want to be in control of our own destiny, we will have to fight for it. Now is the time for us to stand up. For ourselves. Stand up for this injustice! I promise you, this fight will be worth it. Follow me. Nothing can stop us when we stand together! Together as one!"
:—With the miners chanting his name, '''Orion Pax''' delivers his first heroic speech.

''(Airachnid opens the back of her head to reveal'' dozens ''of eyes.)'' 
"You can't win, miner! ''I see '''everything!'''''" 
"That's right, you do... Except the tower we're about to crash into."
:—'''Airachnid''' gets creepy and '''Orion Pax''' gets an idea.

"You pathetic little twits! Did you really think that you could knock down everything I've built?!" 
"It's over, Sentinel! You can't escape the truth!" 
"What truth? That I plucked the cogs from your newborn chests? Forced you to mine so that I could pay off the Quintessons and live like a king? None of that matters! Because the truth... Is. ''WHAT. I. '''MAKE IT!'''''"
:—'''Sentinel Prime''' teaches '''Orion Pax''' that he won't go down without a fight.

"What's wrong, D-16? ''Rise up!''"
:—'''Sentinel Prime''' mockingly gives D-16 his future slogan.

"I'm ''done'' saving you."
:—'''D-16''' lets his ''former'' friend fall.

"The Age of Primes has ended! '''NO MORE FALSE PROPHETS'''! Follow me, and you will ''never again'' be ''deceived!'' '''RISE UP!''' ''I'' will lead us all into the future! ''I...'' '''AM...''' '''''MEGATRON!'''''"
:—With the death of Sentinel Prime, '''D-16''' renames himself as '''Megatron'''

"''Orion Pax.'' Your noble sacrifice for the greater good has proven you worthy in the eyes of Primus. He entrusts in you the future of Cybertron, and... the Matrix of Leadership! '''Arise...''' '''''Optimus Prime.'''''"
:—Speaking for Primus, '''Alpha Trion''' and the Primes rebuild Orion Pax.

"We could have built the future ''together!"'' 
"I'll build it myself. After I tear down everyone '''''IN MY WAY!'''''"
:—'''Optimus Prime''' and '''Megatron''' set the stage for eons of conflict to come.

"We were given the power to change our world, and you chose to destroy it. Just like Sentinel. You have betrayed Cybertron and its citizens, and you betrayed... ''me.'' Go. Take the High Guard, and leave. You are banished from Iacon. It didn't have to end this way." 
"This isn't over... ''Prime.''"
:—'''Optimus Prime''' and '''Megatron''' share one final exchange.

"This is the greatest day of my life... I get to work for the ''government''!"
:—'''B-127''' knows a good benefits package when he sees one.

"And now we stand here together as one, proving we all have the power to transform; to become who we were destined to be; to right wrongs; to make our world better. Because here, freedom and autonomy are the right of all sentient beings. Here, all are truly ''Autobots''. This message is a warning to all Quintessons: If you dare return to Cybertron, the Autobots will be waiting. ''I'' will be waiting. I... am ''Optimus Prime''."
:—'''Optimus Prime''' gives his first dramatic ending monologue...

"Sentinel, the betrayer, is dead. But his death has given life to a new enemy...a stronger enemy... a ''personal'' enemy. We will ''not'' be blinded by his deception! We are the ones who are... '''DECEPTICONS! ''RISE UP!'''''"
:—...and '''Megatron''' gives the coming darkness its new name.

==Continuity notes==
The movie that would ultimately become ''Transformers One'' entered preliminary development in early 2015, when the project was first pitched as part of a writer's room that would lay out a number of sequels, prequels, and spinoff films that would turn the ongoing [[live-action film series|slate of live-action movies]] into a proper "cinematic universe", an attempt to cash in on the then-meteoric hype of the {{w|Marvel Cinematic Universe}}. Like pretty much all the other "cinematic universes" pitched at around this time, this ambitious vision was not to be: following the box-office bomb that was ''[[Transformers: The Last Knight (film)|The Last Knight]]'', most of these projects were shelved, while others were heavily reworked—perhaps most infamously, ''[[Bumblebee (film)|Bumblebee]]'' was recut into a film that contradicted ''The Last Knight'' and its depictions of Bumblebee fighting in [[World War II]], shifting the film and [[Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (film)|its sequel]] into a more ambiguous "soft reboot" that only loosely connect to the five Bay films.

It appears that a similar conceptual drift occurred over the course of ''Transformers One'''s production. When the film entered full production in mid-2020, ''One'' was said to be "separate and apart" from the ongoing live-action films, though at the time just ''how'' distinct the film would be from its predecessors remained a mystery.<ref name="cooleyreveal" /> When later asked if the film was a prequel to the live-action films, a reboot, or its own universe, director Josh Cooley answered "yes" to all of the above.<ref>[https://comicbook.com/movies/news/transformers-one-director-confirms-new-movies-canon-status/ Transformers ONE Director Confirms New Movie's Canon Status - ComicBook.com]</ref> While a few details and visual nods—such as Bumblebee's original name of "B-127", the function of the [[Matrix of Leadership]] in which it dissolves into dust if it deems someone unworthy to wield it and the incorporation of a closing monologue delivered by Optimus—referenced the live-action films, the film otherwise draws heavily upon the mythology first laid down in the [[Aligned continuity family|"Aligned" continuity family]] and has gone on to inform just about every major ''Transformers'' universe afterwards, particularly in its depiction of Orion Pax and D-16 as former allies fighting against a corrupt Cybertronian government.

As the film's release date drew closer, multiple comments from the film's creatives indicated that the filmmakers viewed the movie as something entirely separate from the ongoing live-action films. In July, Josh Cooley stated that the film was set in a "new Transformers continuity"<ref>{{citesocial|quote= "Hey little nerd in my profile picture, what if I told you someday you'll create a new Transformers continuity, that begins earlier than anything you've seen on the Transformers lore timeline, with the greatest crew and cast ever assembled?"|link= https://twitter.com/CooleyUrFaceOff/status/1817235351095894510 |name=Josh Cooley|site=Twitter|year=2024|month=7|day=27}}</ref>; in another interview from a week before release, di Bonaventura ultimately admitted that ''One'' didn't fit into the chronology of the live-action films, and described ''One'' and the live-action films as "two universes" that would be "[kept] separate".<ref>[https://comicbook.com/movies/news/is-transformers-one-a-prequel-optimus-prime-origin-story-exclusive/ Is Transformers One a Prequel or Reboot? The Animated Movie's Origin Story Is Both, Director Says]</ref> These statements were ultimately borne out by the movie itself, which featured multiple plot points that are pretty much irreconcilable with the live-action films—early on, the film establishes that [[The Fallen|Megatronus]] is long dead, negating his appearance in ''[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen]]''; additionally, the movie ends with the newly christened Megatron killing Sentinel Prime, leaving no wiggle room for the events of ''[[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Dark of the Moon]]'' to occur. As a result, the wiki has opted to treat ''One'' and any potential sequels as a new [[continuity family]] entirely separate from the ongoing live-action films.

==Transformers references==
* As with pretty much every major ''Transformers'' project since 2010, ''Transformers One'' is the latest interpretation of the modernized ''Transformers'' backstory that originated with [[Binder of Revelation|Hasbro's internal design documents]] and was first laid down in ''[[Transformers: Exodus]]''—the story of [[Primus]], the [[Thirteen|thirteen original Transformers]], and the origins of Optimus Prime and Megatron as former friends who fought against inequality on pre-war Cybertron until Megatron's extremism drove them apart. Notably, this version of the story portrays both Orion and Megatron as [[energon]] miners on the bottom of Cybertron's caste system—most other interpretations have instead depicted Orion as a somewhat higher-ranking data clerk. While other tellings of the story have Orion advocating for non-violent social change, this take on the origin ends with Orion Pax working alongside the future Decepticons to directly overthrow the reigning Prime, evoking [[IDW Publishing|IDW]]'s ''[[The Transformers: Autocracy|Autocracy]]'' miniseries.
* Many contemporary works of pre-war ''Transformers'' fiction have established that pre-war Cybertronians organized themselves under a job-based [[Functionism|caste system]], with miners and other manual laborers occupying the lowest ranks of Transformer society. ''One'' features a very simplified version of this hierarchy, where Cybertronians without transformation cogs are an oppressed underclass while other Transformers receive additional rights and job opportunities.
* With the exception of D-16—whose origins as a low-ranking miner date back to IDW's ''[[The Transformers: Megatron Origin|Megatron Origin]]''—all of the other miners shown in the film go on to join the Autobots, while the forerunners of the Decepticons are depicted as ex-members of the elite [[High Guard]]. This specific class divide dates back to the ''[[The Transformers (cartoon)|The Transformers]]'' episode "[[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4]]" and, to a lesser extent, "[[War Dawn (episode)|War Dawn]]", which explained the war between the Autobots and Decepticons as an entrenched conflict between civilian laborers and military robots.
* All the character designs are far closer to their Generation 1 designs (both the cartoon and the original toys) than the previous films. Characters also earn their iconic design traits in pivotal scenes, such as Optimus Prime's [[Energon-axe]] and [[mouthplate]], or Megatron's [[fusion cannon]]. In the final scene, many miners gain details to match their Generation 1-selves even closer after they receive their cogs; in particular, Arcee gains her pink visor from ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]''. Starscream, Soundwave, and Megatron's newly applied insignias in the post-credits scene are also in the same place as their original counterparts, with Starscream's even being upside-down!
* Optimus Prime's original identity of "Orion Pax" is a name taken from the ''The Transformers'' episode "War Dawn". Notably, the cartoon's version of Orion Pax was also a manual laborer, although the film does seemingly pay homage to Orion Pax's other famous job by having him sneak into the Cybertronian Archives at the very beginning of the film. D-16 takes [[Dion (G1)|Dion]]'s place as his best friend and co-worker.
* The 'bot who will one day be known as "Megatron" initially goes by the name "D-16", a moniker lifted from ''Exodus'' and itself based on the [[TakaraTomy]] ID number of the [[Megatron (G1)/toys#The Transformers|original Megatron toy]]. D-16's original body—with a black, dome-shaped helmet and yellow eyes—references Megatron's [[Megatron (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Marvel Comics appearance]], which in turn was based on concept art for an unproduced prototype version of the original Takara Micro Change figure. Much like Orion Pax, his modern gladiator job is paid homage in his fight with Starscream.
* B-127 is heavily based on his [[Bumblebee (Movie)|live-action film series counterpart]]: his helmet design and blasters bear a resemblance to his appearance in those films; additionally, his overly-talkative nature is a meta-gag about his "future" self being best known for not being able to speak. The name "B-127" derives from the [[Bumblebee (film)|''Bumblebee'' movie]], where, much like this film, he did not receive the name "Bumblebee" on Cybertron. B-127's battle mask resembles his [[Bumblebee (G1)|Generation 1 counterpart's]] [[Bumblebee (G1)/toys#The Transformers|original toy]]; towards the end of the film, he fights with a pair of "knife hands" seemingly based on ''[[Transformers: War for Cybertron (games)|War for Cybertron]]'' Bumblebee's melee weapons.
* In general, Elita-1 doesn't draw upon as many specific references as her co-stars, although her purplish-pink color scheme and motorcycle [[alternate mode]] may be a reference to her [[Elita-One (Movie)|''Revenge of the Fallen'' design]]. Notably, of the four main protagonists, Elita's the only one who ''doesn't'' have an alternate alias—especially odd given that her [[Elita One (G1)|Generation 1 counterpart]] originally went by "Ariel" in the ''The Transformers'' episode "War Dawn". (This exclusion is perhaps less odd when one considers that subsequent to 1985, [[Disney]] secured a near-stranglehold on toys named "{{w|Ariel (The Little Mermaid)|Ariel}}".)
* Sentinel Prime is based on [[Sentinel Zeta Prime]], the former leader of Cybertron in the [[Aligned continuity family|"Aligned" continuity]]. Like that version of the character, this take on Sentinel Prime is explicitly a "false" Prime who never carried the Matrix of Leadership, and a puppet ruler who was appointed to the position by the Quintessons. Design-wise, this take on Sentinel draws from his "Aligned" counterpart, his [[Sentinel Prime (ROTF)|''Dark of the Moon'' appearance]], and has details from his [[Sentinel Prime (G1)#Titans Return|''Titans Return'' toy]] and the thematically similar character, [[Nominus Prime]]. Sentinel's battle mode is inspired by his [[Apex Armor (G1)|Apex Armor]] from the ''Megatron Origin'' comic. He also has his [[Sentinel Prime (Animated)|''Animated'' counterpart]]'s glorious chin, as well as carrying on his 'arrogant jerkwad' personality rather than the more stoic attitude of other Sentinels. His Primax blade takes specific inspiration from DOTM Sentinel's [[Primax Blade|weapon of the same name]], now with the additional ability to retract one or both of its blades when required.
* Airachnid is derived from the ''Prime'' [[Airachnid (Prime)|character of the same name]]—a notable inclusion given the primarily G1-based main cast—sharing a similar design, alternate mode as a helicopter, and antagonistic personality. Role-wise, however, she draws from her [[Airachnid (G1)|IDW 2005 counterpart]] being a subordinate of the [[Starscream_(G1)/2005_IDW_continuity|shady sovereign ruler of Cybertron]].
* Like Sentinel Prime, the Quintessons are primarily based on their depiction in the "Aligned" lorebook [[Transformers: The Covenant of Primus|''The Covenant of Primus'']], which depicted them as shadowy manipulators who ruled Cybertron and exploited its natural resources through a proxy government; notably, the Quintessons in the ''Covenant'' helped maintain their hold on Transformer civilization by withholding the power to transform from the general populace. In a notable deviation from traditional ''Transformers'' lore, the bodies and starships of the film's Quintessons appear to be organic in nature.
** It is ambiguous to what the origin of the Quintessons actually is. In most modern media, the Quintessons are the renegade creations of Quintus Prime (such as in ''[[Transformers: EarthSpark]]''). While they do share some similarities, such as part of their names, multiple appendages, need for Energon, and their coloration, nothing is ever stated that Quintus Prime created them. They aren't the creators of the Cybertronian race like in media before Primus was created, either. It is possible that the Quintessons are simply an alien race unrelated to the Cybertronians.
* Primus' design seen in the hologram Orion plays is largely based on the [[IP infringement|"third party"]] 01 Studio Seed figure, itself inspired by the oft-referenced [[:File:UltimateGuidePrimus.jpg|original character model]] for his planet-body from [[DK Publishing|DK]]'s [[Transformers: The Ultimate Guide|''The Ultimate Guide'']]. His head and chest are closer to his ''[[Transformers: Cybertron (franchise)|Cybertron]]'' appearance, also pulling a simplified version of [[Primus#Cybertron|that toy]]'s transformation scheme. Primus' willing sacrifice of his locomotion and birthing of the Thirteen pulls from his appearance in the eponymous ''Covenant of Primus''.
* The Thirteen are similarly based on their "Aligned"' incarnations for their backstory and designs. Nexus, Megatronus, Solus, and Alchemist Prime also draw from their ''[[:File:NexusPrimeflankedbyotherPrimes.jpg|Timelines]]'', ''[[:File:Megatronus.jpeg|Titans Return]]'', ''[[:File:SolusPrime-PowerofthePrimes.jpg|Power of the Primes]]'', and ''[[:File:TheCitizen IaconusCitizens.jpg|Cyberverse]]'' designs, respectively, while Vector Prime is based squarely on his original ''Cybertron'' design.
* Megatronus is also inspired by his ''Revenge of the Fallen'' design, including his face being based on the Decepticon symbol (or vice versa in-universe), although it is far more obvious in this movie, coincidentally evoking [[Tarn (G1)|Tarn]]. Megatronus' face becoming the in-universe inspiration for the Decepticon symbol reflects the real life story of [[Soundwave (G1)|Generation 1 Soundwave]]'s face inspiring the iconic symbol.
* Alpha Trion's abilities to recreate and store memories as information calls back to the archival role of his [[Alpha Trion (WFC)|Aligned counterpart]]. His alternate mode being a leonine beast with a unicorn-esque horn is a direct homage to his [[Alpha Trion (G1)#Titans Return|''Titans Return'' toy]], itself based on his [[Alpha Trion (G1)#Toys|cancelled BotCon toy]].
* The mysterious [[Thirteenth Prime]] is replaced with Zeta Prime, who also takes [[Prima]]'s role as leader and Matrix-bearer, though Prima himself is still present. Zeta's design is also based on "Aligned" Sentinel Zeta Prime, as he appears in the ''War for Cybertron'' video game.
* The Thirteen are not actually referred to as the "Thirteen", but rather the Primes or the "Council of Elders", a term that originated in ''[[Beast Machines: Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Machines]]''. This is likely because it would contradict Sentinel's narrative painting himself as a fourteenth Prime. Notably, none of the archives or displays of the Thirteen include Sentinel.
* The cameo miners mostly draw from the [[The Transformers (cartoon)/cast#Season 1|1984 Autobot cast of the original cartoon]], along with the [[Female Autobots]], [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]], and recolors such as [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]]. The background High Guard characters, meanwhile, are based on the endless Starscream recolors that have appeared throughout ''Transformers'', commonly known as the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seekers]]. Notably, one of their helmet variations is based on [[Starscream (Armada)/Cartoon continuity#Cybertron cartoon|''Cybertron'' Starscream]]'s, while some Seekers including [[Thundercracker (One)|Thundercracker]] sport triple-barreled weapons on their arms that resemble the [[neutron assault rifle]] from ''Fall of Cybertron'' – specifically the split-in-half configuration seen in the [[Starscream (WFC)/toys#Generations|''Fall of Cybertron'' Starscream toy]] and its redecoes, even including a gear-shaped detail behind the barrels echoing the gears on the toy's accessories.
* Shockwave, Soundwave, Starscream/the Seekers, and the cogged versions of Ironhide, Ratchet, and Arcee have details based on their ''Bumblebee'' designs.
*The jet modes of Starscream/the Seekers are also based on ''Bumblebee'', while Soundwave's vehicle mode is based on his [[Soundwave (ROTF)/toys#SS83|''Studio Series Bumblebee'' toy]]. Shockwave's alternate mode resembles his [[Shockwave (WFC)|''War for Cybertron'' counterpart]], and both he and Starscream/the Seekers have details from their [[War for Cybertron: Siege|''Siege'' toys]].
*When Orion "transforms" to run away from the guards, he moves his limbs in a way that evokes [[Optimus Prime (G1)/toys#Toys|his original toy]]'s transformation.
* The Matrix causing Energon to flow and 'killing' the planet when lost calls back to the [[AllSpark]].
* When discussing their mining ability, Elita says Orion "[doesn't] have the touch or the power," a reference to the [[The Touch|beloved song]] from ''The Transformers: The Movie.''
* The Iacon 5000 derives from the Marvel UK ''The Transformers'' [[Source:Darn 'n' Blast#Issue 326|issue 326's "Darn 'n' Blast" letter page]]. Many of the racers in the Iacon 5000 are characters from Generation 1 and ''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (franchise)|Generation 2]]'', with their colors and vehicle modes next to their names on the leaderboard, though they do not correspond to specific models except for the miners, Darkwing, and Chromia.
** Racers based on their Generation 1 counterparts include [[Mirage (One)|Mirage]], [[Clampdown (One)|Clampdown]], [[Silverbolt (One)|Silverbolt]], "[[Deadend (One)|Deadend]]", [[Slingshot (One)|Slingshot]], [[Cliffjumper (One)|Cliffjumper]], [[Dragstrip (One)|Dragstrip]], [[Swerve (One)|Swerve]], [[Powerglide (One)|Powerglide]], [[Jetstorm (One)|Jetstorm]], [[Windblade (One)|Windblade]], [[Afterburner (One)|Afterburner]], [[Blurr (One)|Blurr]], [[Fireflight (One)|Fireflight]], [[Cordon (One)|Cordon]], [[Breakdown (One)|Breakdown]], [[Swindle (One)|Swindle]], [[Tailgate (One)|Tailgate]], [[Lightspeed (One)|Lightspeed]], "[[Spinout (One)|Spinout]]", [[Greasepit (One)|Greasepit]], [[Scattershot (One)|Scattershot]], [[Inferno (One)|Inferno]], [[Motormaster (One)|Motormaster]], and "[[Hotrod (One)|Hotrod]]".
** Racers based on their ''Generation 2'' counterparts include [[Blowout (One)|Blowout]], [[High Beam (One)|High Beam]], [[Double Clutch (One)|Double Clutch]], [[Meanstreak (One)|Meanstreak]], [[Motormouth (One)|Motormouth]], [[Speedstream (One)|Speedstream]], "[[Roadrocket (One)|Roadrocket]]", and [[Staxx (One)|Staxx]].
** [[Jolt (One)|Jolt]] and [[Leadfoot (One)|Leadfoot]] are the only racers based on their [[Jolt_(ROTF)|Bayverse ]] [[Leadfoot (DOTM)|counterparts]].
** [[Override (One)|Override]] and [[Tankor (One)|Tankor]] are based on their ''[[Override (Cybertron)|Cybertron]]'' and ''[[Tankor (BM)|Beast Machines]]'' counterparts, respectively.
**Racers that are only named through dialogue are [[Tailwind (One)|Tailwind]], [[Strafe (One)|Strafe]] (spelled "Streak" in the Spanish subtitles), [[Skyfire (One)|Skyfire]], and original characters [[Thunderglide]] and [[Behemoth]]. Phew!
* After being knocked off the train and stranded on the surface, Elita-1 calls Orion, D-16, and B-127 a bunch of "idiot [[GoBots|go-bots]]" as if referring to their previous toy shelf rivals (although it's spelled the way that Hasbro does for their own figures).
* The film's themes, "Resting Place of the Primes" and "The Fall", include a leitmotif from the main theme of ''Transformers: Prime'', which was also composed by Brian Tyler. "The Fall" also plays a motif lifted from ''The Transformers: The Movie'''s "[[Death of Optimus Prime]]" in a different key. More specifically, the motif is from when [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] flatlines and dies. Fitting, as "The Fall" plays when Orion Pax is dropped into Cybertron's [[core]] and Optimus Prime is born. Incidentally, this scene and the music are also quite similar to when Megatron fatally shoots Bumblebee in the ''Transformers: Prime'' series finale "[[Deadlock (episode)|Deadlock]]" (though the cue originated from the second season finale "[[Darkest Hour (episode)|Darkest Hour]]" when the Decepticons destroyed [[Autobot Outpost Omega One]]).
*D-16's eye color gradually shifting from yellow to red upon declaring himself "Megatron" is similar to how his [[Megatron (WFC)|Aligned counterpart]]'s eye color changed from blue to red after being denied the rank of Prime (and given to his friend Orion, which he viewed as a "betrayal") as seen in the flashbacks of "[[One Shall Rise, Part 3]]".
*The part of "The Fall" that plays when Megatron rips Sentinel in half also includes a leitmotif from [[Transformers: Fall of Cybertron|Fall of Cybertron's]] "The Great Exodus".
* The notion of the Matrix actively rejecting an "unworthy" candidate and disintegrating was a plot point in ''Revenge of the Fallen''.
* Alpha Trion announces "All are one!" as he bequeaths the main quartet their new transformation cogs, a reference to the classic slogan "[['Til all are one]]!" originating from ''The Transformers: The Movie''.
* An empty Matrix chamber is visible behind Orion's chest window after receiving his cog, even before finding the actual Matrix.
* The throne Starscream sits on is loosely based on the crown his [[Starscream (G1)|Generation 1 counterpart]] wore during his coronation in ''The Transformers: The Movie''.<ref>[https://youtu.be/fo7EwIlSNAs?si=8y1UWHCLv46WKzE7&t=190 Brian Tyree Henry & Josh Cooley Dissect The Evolution Of Megatron | Transformers One Behind The Shot]</ref>
*Soundwave scans Orion's electrical impulses to check if he is lying, a rarely referenced ability from his [[Soundwave (G1)|original toy's bio]].
*Shockwave's eye flickers when he speaks, just as it did in the original Generation 1 cartoon. Similarly, Optimus Prime's faceplate bobs up and down when he speaks.
* Starscream has a normal-sounding voice (for Steve Buscemi, anyway) when he first appears, but after D-16 crushes his [[voice box]] during their duel, his voice becomes shriller and scratchier in the style of [[Chris Latta]]'s portrayal of [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] in the [[The Transformers (cartoon)|original cartoon]].
*Shockwave and Elita have a small rivalry, reflecting their Generation 1 versions in Elita's introduction episode, "[[The Search for Alpha Trion]]".
* Soundwave orders the High Guard to "[[Decepticon Mini-Cassette|eject]]" when descending on Sentinel's tower.
[[File:TFoneOrionJump.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Let my people go!]]
* During the battle in Sentinel Prime's tower, Orion leaps into the air and shoots one of the Trackers, with his midair pose homaging Optimus Prime's famous midair shooting pose from ''The Transformers: The Movie''.
* Megatron is the 'bot who shoots Orion and leaves him on the brink of death until he is resurrected as Optimus Prime in what is likely a reference to the ''The Transformers'' episode "War Dawn". However, the specific framing of the scene—in which Megatron shoots Orion and drops him into the depths of the planet, only for him to find the Matrix and return as Optimus—is, however coincidentally, nearly identical to the events of [[Transformation (issue)|issue #9]] of ''Autocracy''. Orion finding the Matrix in the planet's core also evokes the climax of the ''War for Cybertron'' games.
* The fatal wounds Orion Pax sustained from D-16 before his descent into Cybertron's core strongly resemble the wounds Optimus Prime sustained at the end of the ''The Transformers'' episode "[[Dark Awakening (episode)|Dark Awakening]]".
* Megatron disposes of Sentinel Prime in the same manner that his [[Megatron (Movie)|live-action counterpart]] killed [[Jazz (Movie)|Jazz]]—by bisecting the bot with his bare hands. Similarly, this is also how the [[Rainmaker]]s disposed of Sentinel in the [[2019 IDW continuity]].
** Likewise, a damaged Sentinel pleaded mercy and tried to reason to his soon-to-be executioner, the one 'bot who trusted him the most. In ''[[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Transformers: Dark of the Moon]]'', it was Optimus; here, it was Megatron. Also, Sentinel offers Megatron to work together, which they did in ''Dark of the Moon'' until Sentinel briefly usurped Megatron's leadership.
* When both Orion Pax and Sentinel Prime die, [[aggressive depigmentation|their bodies turn grey]].
* Orion is caught by a beam and brought to Primus to be reformatted into Optimus Prime, much like how Megatron was caught by [[Unicron/Generation 1|Unicron]] and reformatted into [[Galvatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Galvatron]].
* "Arise, Optimus Prime", intones Alpha Trion as Orion receives the Matrix, evoking the climax of ''The Transformers: The Movie'', in which a ghostly Optimus Prime said the same to [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]] as he transformed into Rodimus Prime.
* When the energy burst from Optimus' return to the surface blows Megatron off his feet, he crashes to the ground in a [https://www.reddit.com/r/transformers/s/QRpmFJRCXz pose] identical to his G1 self after Optimus threw him off during their duel in ''The Transformers: The Movie.''
* Megatron using a long piece of sharp, orange shrapnel to attack Optimus also comes from the iconic fight in ''The Transformers: The Movie''.
* Optimus using a defeated Shockwave's cannon to attack another enemy is a fighting move Optimus made in ''Dark of the Moon''.
* After Optimus and Megatron's fight concludes, Megatron is shown with "tear stains" of mech fluid under his eyes, precisely matching the fluid-streaks the original Megatron had running down ''his'' face after his fight with Optimus in ''The Transformers: The Movie''. In ''One'', Megatron then declares "This isn't over, Prime," mirroring his line from ''The Movie'': "It's over, Prime."
* When restoring Cybertron's Energon supply, Optimus holds the Matrix in the same pose Hot Rod holds it when transforming into Rodimus at the end of ''The Transformers: The Movie''.
* The restoration of Cybertron's Energon supply is somewhat similar to the planet's revitalization at the end of "[[The Rebirth, Part 3]]".
* Optimus' concluding narration is presented as a "message" being sent into space, continuing the recurring concept of the ''Transformers'' films ending in such a way, introduced in the [[Transformers (film)|first live-action movie]]. This also happens at the end of "[[Darkness Rising, Part 5]]".
*Optimus' transformation during his ending monologue is accompanied by the original transformation noise.
* In the post-credits scene, Megatron brands the Decepticon insignia onto his troops much like his [[Megatron (Animated)|''Animated'' counterpart]] did in "[[A Bridge Too Close, Part I]]". Megatron also orders the Decepticons to "[[Roll out#Transformers_Animated|rise up]]", quoting his ''Animated'' counterpart who originated the phrase "transform and rise up" in "[[Megatron Rising - Part 2]]".
* While the newly christened Decepticons fire into the sky, the glow of the laser beams shines on Megatron's insignia in a way that homages the metallic effect of the [[:File:TF-G1-HD-Logo-Evil-Decepticon.png|original Decepticon ''The Transformers'' logo]], and many a [[scene transition]].

==Real-life references==
* The design of the arcade cabinet in the miners' quarters is based on the {{w|Neo Geo (system)|Neo Geo MVS}}.
* One of B-127's "friends" is named [https://youtu.be/Dd7FixvoKBw?t=104 A-A-Tron].
* As Orion Pax and D-16 approach the finish line in the Iacon 5000, the announcer quotes verbatim Joe Starkey's call of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Play_(American_football) The Play] from the 1982 Cal-Stanford game. "The most amazing, sensational, dramatic, heart-rending, exciting, thrilling finish in the history of—" It can be assumed he would say "The Iacon 5000" in place of "college football," had Chromia not sped past to win the race.

==Errors==
* The history record about Primus, the Primes, and the Matrix that Orion Pax watches in the archives is recorded by [[Laurence Fishburne|a voice]] that clearly belongs to Alpha Trion. Yet, the events described in the history record include the disappearance of the Matrix, which happened after the Primes were killed and Alpha Trion went offline. So how could Alpha Trion have made that recording when he was lying comatose in a cave during that time?
** That said, synthesizing voices isn't all that hard. Considering the record's content, it was likely created by Sentinel Prime as propaganda.
* Many of the miners based on recognizable characters appear multiple times in the background or between shots, with many, such as Ironhide, having numerous occupations and being in multiple places at the same time.
* The High Guard has the same issue. Slipstream is shown to have been captured by the Death Trackers, but is later shown to take part in the attack on Sentinel's tower. Thundercracker is sliced in half by Airachnid, but is present the rest of the film.
* Mirage, with the colors and land-based vehicle mode of his [[Mirage (G1)|Generation 1 counterpart]], appears on the leaderboard of the Iacon 5000, but one of the cogless miners is clearly based on Generation 1 Mirage.
* Chromia is the racer that wins the Iacon 5000, but a bot that better resembles [[Chromia (G1)|Generation 1 Chromia]] appears as a miner too. Production designer Jason Scheier would confirm the miner bot is just a bot that resembles Chromia, while the one in the Iacon 5000 is the 'real' Chromia.
* One of the cogless miners is clearly meant to be [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]], with a black crest, red pelvis, and red pips on his shoulders. However, the scene after the Iacon 5000 in Iacon's medical center has a voice on the intercom paging a "Dr. Ratchet".
* Airachnid's legs are floating behind her back in her conversation with Sentinel Prime after he murders Alpha Trion.
* When Starscream interrogates the main quartet in the High Guard lair, Slipstream's hands are [https://www.reddit.com/r/Transformemes/comments/1gw87v2/something_feels_missing/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=1 positioned] as if she is holding a blaster but the blaster itself is not present at all, resulting in a rather awkward pose.
* The incriminating clips of Sentinel replayed from Airachnid's mind reuse clips from previous scenes of the movie instead of being from Airachnid's point of view. She wasn't exaggerating when she said "I see ''everything''"!
* Additionally, one of Sentinel’s lines in Airachnid’s mind isn’t present in the scene it should come from; her memory of the meeting with the Quintessons includes Sentinel saying “I’m working my miners as hard as I can”, a line that’s never said in the original scene.
* During the long take of Optimus Prime using his Energon axe to fight off Megatron, Starscream, Shockwave, and Soundwave at the end of the film, Soundwave's shoulder cannon is on his left shoulder. In every other shot of the film, he is depicted with the cannon over his right shoulder like his G1 counterpart usually does.

==Music==
A score album, ''[[Transformers One (Music from the Motion Picture)]]'', features the original music by composer [[Brian Tyler]] and was released concurrently with the film. It notably repurposes a leitmotif from his work on [[Transformers: Prime (cartoon)|''Transformers: Prime'']] into this film's main theme. The score also has other Transformers references, both in the melodies and titles of the tracks. The composer, under his electronic side project "Are We Dreaming", also produced the end credits song, "[[If I Fall]]", featuring rappers [[W:Quavo|Quavo]] (of Migos fame) and [[W:Ty Dolla Sign|Ty Dolla $ign]].

Canadian DJ {{w|Excision_(musician)|Excision}} released the dubstep song "Together As One", which samples numerous lines from the film's cast, as part of the film's marketing campaign. Many of the lines in this song would go unused in the film's final cut. Chinese artist {{w|Yuqi}} released the song "ONE" as part of the film's Chinese marketing campaign. Neither song is present in the film.

==Reception==
{{quote|Just when you’re about to give up on stories that endlessly repackage the same trademarked properties, along comes a movie like Josh Cooley’s “Transformers One.” As its subtly confident title suggests, it carries itself as if nobody had ever made a Transformers movie before.|Matt Zoller Seitz|[https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/transformers-one-film-review Rogerebert.com]}}

While [[Michael Bay]]'s ''Transformers'' films were notable for their record-breaking profits despite mixed to overwhelmingly negative reviews, ''Transformers One'' faced the opposite problem. While [[Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (film)|the previous theatrical ''Transformers'' film]] met with mixed reviews, ''Transformers One'' enjoyed an almost universally positive reception from both film critics and casual moviegoers. Critics praised the film's visual design, its nuanced approach to characterization and worldbuilding, and the performances of the film's voice actors, with many singling out Chris Hemsworth and Brian Tyree Henry for their portrayals of Orion Pax and D-16. As of October 2024, its RottenTomatoes rating sits at 89% positive critical reviews and 98% positive audience reviews.

In the United States and Canada, ''Transformers One'' was originally projected to gross between $30-$40 million on its opening weekend. Ultimately, the film only made $24.6 million and finished second in the box office behind ''{{w|Beetlejuice Beetlejuice}}'' (which had been released ''two weeks'' prior) in a surprise upset. <ref> [https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/box-office-can-transformers-one-borrow-a-page-from-spider-verse-and-recover-1236009559/ "Box Office: Can Transformers One Borrow a Page From Spider-Verse and Recover?"] </ref> In its second weekend, the film lost out to rival animated robot movie ''{{w|The Wild Robot}}'', and ultimately took in a mere $9.2 million after suffering a 62.8% drop.<ref>[https://deadline.com/2024/09/box-office-megalopolis-the-wild-robot-1236101618/ "'Wild Robot' Powers To Third Best September Animated Pic Debut With $35M; 'Megalopolis' Collapses With $4M & D+ CinemaScore; 'Saturday Night' Alive In Limited Release -- Box Office Update"]</ref>

The film's theatrical run was finished on November 22, 2024, grossing $128.7 million worldwide, making it the lowest-earning Paramount-released ''Transformers'' film.<ref>[https://www.forbes.com/sites/timlammers/2024/11/22/transformers-one-ends-its-theatrical-run-how-much-did-it-make/ "‘Transformers One’ Ends Its Theatrical Run. How Much Did It Make? - Forbes"]</ref>

==Development timeline==
[[File:Transformers-One-Teaser-Poster.jpg|thumb|right|250px|''There can be miracles when you believe Though hope is frail, it's hard to kill Who knows what miracles you can achieve When you believe, somehow you will You will when you believe'']]
*March 27, 2015 — As part of the development of ''[[Transformers: The Last Knight (film)|Transformers: The Last Knight]]'', [[Paramount Pictures]] negotiates with [[Akiva Goldsman]], hiring him to create a "writer's room" to build a cinematic universe.<ref name="goldsman">[https://deadline.com/2015/03/transformers-akiva-goldsman-paramount-sequels-spinoffs-1201400027/ Paramount Enlisting Akiva Goldsman To Ramp Up 'Transformers' Output] on deadline.com</ref> Among the writers hired are ''Ant-Man and the Wasp'' scribes [[Andrew Barrer]] and [[Gabriel Ferrari]], who pitch the concept of an animated ''Transformers'' prequel set in the [[Live-action film series|live-action series universe]].<ref name="barrerferrari">[https://deadline.com/2015/05/transformers-ant-man-andrew-barrer-gabriel-ferrari-cybertron-1201433402/ 'Ant-Man' Scribes Andrew Barrer & Gabriel Ferrari Join 'Transformers' Writers Room] on Deadline</ref>
*December 20, 2018 — Following the release of ''[[Bumblebee (film)|Bumblebee]]'', [[Lorenzo di Bonaventura]] hints in an interview that the animated prequel is still in the works.<ref>[https://www.metro.us/will-there-be-a-bumblebee-2-whats-the-future-for-the-transformers-universe-heres-what-its-producer-told-us/ Lorenzo di Bonaventura interview for Metro USA]</ref>
*April 29, 2020 — Director [[Josh Cooley]] (''Toy Story 4'') is reported to have been brought into the project to oversee a final draft, which is said to be "separate and apart" from the live-action films.<ref name="cooleyreveal" />
*May 18, 2021 — [[Allspark Pictures]] President [[Greg Mooradian]] credits the animated ''Transformers'' film on his Linkedin page with a 2023 release.<ref>[https://www.linkedin.com/in/greg-mooradian-4a5062200/ Greg Mooradian's Linkedin:] "TRANSFORMERS (Animated Feature), with Oscar-winner Josh Cooley directing (2023 release)"</ref>
*May 24, 2021 — Hasbro CEO [[Brian Goldner]] confirms the animated feature is in development, and will be released at some point after ''[[Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (film)|Transformers: Rise of the Beasts]]''.<ref>[https://news.tfw2005.com/2021/05/24/tfw2005-coverage-of-49th-j-p-morgan-conference-434088 TFW2005 Coverage Of 49th J.P. Morgan Conference]</ref>
*January 21, 2022 — Paramount announces an untitled animated Transformers movie will be released on July 19, 2024.<ref>[https://collider.com/new-transformers-animated-movie-release-date/ Collider: New 'Transformers' Animated Movie Release Date Set For 2024]</ref>
*April 20, 2023 — di Bonaventura reveals that the entire film takes place on Cybertron, and the setting explores how they begin to question the hierarchy of how their society has gotten stratified, and how the common man doesn't have the voice that they want to have.<ref name=collider2023>[https://collider.com/transformers-animated-movie-characters-plot-cybertron-lorenzo-di-bonaventura-comments/ Here’s What the New Animated ‘Transformers’ Movie Is About (Exclusive)]</ref>
*April 21, 2023 — A day after the previous interview, di Bonaventura confirms [[Industrial Light & Magic]]'s involvement as the film's animation studio, bringing the company back to the franchise for the first time since ''Bumblebee''.<ref>[https://collider.com/new-transformers-animated-movie-ilm-lorenzo-di-bonaventura-comments/ The New 'Transformers' Animated Movie Is Partnering With an Industry Giant for the CGI (Exclusive)]/</ref>
*April 27, 2023 — The first members of the film's voice cast are revealed, consisting of [[Chris Hemsworth]] as Optimus Prime, [[Brian Tyree Henry]] as Megatron, [[Scarlett Johansson]] as Elita, [[Keegan-Michael Key]] as Bumblebee, [[Jon Hamm]] as Sentinel Prime, and [[Laurence Fishburne]] as Alpha Trion.<ref>[https://variety.com/2023/film/news/transformers-animated-prequel-chris-hemsworth-scarlett-johansson-1235596692/ ‘Transformers’ Animated Prequel Sets Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson and More Voice Cast]</ref>
*May 24, 2023 — Paramount moves the film's release date to September 13, 2024.<ref>[https://deadline.com/2023/05/transformers-one-release-date-pushed-by-paramount-1235379167/ ‘Transformers One’: Paramount Pushes Date For Animated Feature]</ref>
*June 7, 2023 — di Bonaventura teases how the film stands out from previous entries in the franchise, praises Chris Hemsworth's casting as Optimus Prime, and mentions a vocal transition from Hemsworth's voice to [[Peter Cullen]]'s as the character for audiences to witness. [[Steve Desmond]] and [[Michael Sherman]] (''Knock at the Cabin'') were revealed to be additional writers for the film, but where uncredited when the final credit came in.<ref>[https://collider.com/transformers-one-chris-hemsworth-optimus-prime-lorenzo-di-bonaventura-comments/ 'Transformers One' Producer Is Already Hyped for Chris Hemsworth's Optimus Prime]</ref>
*June 15, 2023 — Scarlett Johansson discusses the film's animation and praises Cooley as director.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWqG5mlRxzs Scarlett Johansson Says Transformers One Looks So Cool]</ref> Chris Hemsworth later brings details on voicing Optimus Prime for the film and his reasoning he joined the project through his love of the script. He confirms that he will not use his regular voice for the character.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWrsvSzWHoE Chris Hemsworth's Optimus Prime Sadly Won't Be Australian in Transformers One]</ref>
*July 20, 2023 — di Bonaventura confirms Optimus Prime and Megatron in the film will be depicted under their Orion Pax and D-16 identities.<ref>[https://onetakenews.com/2023/07/20/lorenzo-di-bonaventura-transformers-one/ Lorenzo di Bonaventura Teases Upcoming Film ‘Transformers: One’: “It’s Something I’ve Wanted To Do For A Long Time” (Exclusive)]</ref>
*December 15, 2023 — Keegan-Michael Key mentions his voice for Bumblebee is closer to his regular speaking voice.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLM71B5xmFY Transformers One: Keegan-Michael Key Reveals What Bumblebee Sounds Like in New Animated Film]</ref>
*April 11, 2024 — The cast of the movie previews the trailer and reveals a new logo for the film at Cinemacon 2024, The Hollywood Reporter also confirms [[Steve Buscemi]] has joined the cast.<ref>[https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/transformers-one-animated-movie-chris-hemsworth-scarlett-johansson-1235871998/ Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson and Brian Tyree Henry Debut Origin Story 'Transformers One' - The Hollywood Reporter]</ref> During the presentation, Hemsworth revealed that Cullen served as a consultant on the getting the voice down.<ref>[https://www.seibertron.com/transformers/news/transformers-one-news-film-is-testing-very-well-and-peter-cullen-consulted-chris-hemsworth-on-voice/48127/ Transformers One News: Film is Testing Very Well and Peter Cullen Consulted Chris Hemsworth on Voice]</ref>
*April 16, 2024 — Chris Hemsworth and Brian Tyree Henry announce the date of the film's first trailer being on Thursday, April 18, 2024, as it will be launched into space.<ref>[https://collider.com/transformers-one-trailer-premiered-from-space/ The 'Transformers One' Trailer Will Be Premiered From Space - Collider]</ref>
[[File:TransformersOne-weatherballoon.jpg|right|thumb|250px|''So how do you judge what a man is worth? By what he [[Toy|builds or buys]]? You can never see with your eyes on Earth Look through Heaven's eyes Look at your life. Look at your life Look at your life through Heaven's eyes'']]
*April 18, 2024 — A livestream hosted by Chris Hemsworth and Brian Tyree Henry follows a small craft launched towards space, with a screen that plays the trailer once it reaches 125,000 feet. The movie's release date has been pushed back by one week, to September 20, reportedly to avoid the release conflicting with that of ''{{w|Beetlejuice Beetlejuice}}''.<ref>[https://deadline.com/2024/04/transformers-one-trailer-release-date-1235889037/ ‘Transformers One’ Launches Trailer In Space, A First For A Movie Studio; Pic Going Later In September]</ref> When asked whether the film is a fresh start, a prequel to the live-action films, or its own thing, Cooley replies "yes to all of the above".<ref>[https://comicbook.com/movies/news/transformers-one-director-confirms-new-movies-canon-status/ Transformers ONE Director Confirms New Movie's Canon Status - ComicBook.com]</ref>
*May 20, 2024 — [[Brian Tyler]] is attached as the film's composer.<ref>[https://filmmusicreporter.com/2024/05/20/brian-tyler-scoring-josh-cooleys-transformers-one/ Brian Tyler Scoring Josh Cooley’s ‘Transformers One’ - Filmmusicreporter.com]</ref>
*June 7, 2024 — Production for the film is revealed to be finished in the following month.<ref>[https://news.tfw2005.com/2024/06/07/work-on-transformers-one-animated-movie-is-set-to-wrap-up-in-july-513038 Work On Transformers: One Animated Movie Is Set To Wrap Up In July - TFW2005]</ref>
*June 10, 2024 — A work-in-progress cut of the film was screened at the {{w|Annecy International Animation Film Festival}} to a standing ovation.<ref>[https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/transformers-one-chris-hemsworth-scarlett-johansson-1235918820/ Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson’s ‘Transformers One’ Draws Laughs, Cheers in Its Annecy Debut - Hollywood Reporter]</ref>
*June 12, 2024 — Several media outlets, including representatives from TFWiki, are invited to an [[Transformers One London advance screening|advance screening]] hosted by di Bonaventura and Cooley.
*June 18, 2024 — Production designer Jason Scheier confirms animation for the film is finished.<ref>[https://twitter.com/ScheierJason/status/1803227407404638226/ Production Designer Jason Scheier's post on Twitter]</ref>
*June 27, 2024 — Sound-mixing for the film is finished, with production finally now complete around three months in advance of release.<ref>[https://www.instagram.com/p/C8vPCEUS3Bs/ @CooleyYourFaceOff - Instagram]</ref>
*July 9, 2024 — A panel for the film has been announced for [[San Diego Comic-Con]] 2024 on Thursday, July 25 at 11:45 am PST at Hall H.<ref>[https://deadline.com/2024/07/transformers-one-comic-con-1236004636/ Paramount Animation & Hasbro Entertainment’s ‘Transformers One’ Will Be More Than Meets The Eye At San Diego Comic-Con]</ref>
*July 13, 2024 — Chris Hemsworth, Bryan Tyree Henry, and Keegan-Michael Key reveal a new clip of the main cast transforming for the first time at the Kids' Choice Awards 2024.<ref>[https://twitter.com/transformers/status/1812285185427431646/ Post from the official Transformers account on Twitter]</ref>
*July 23, 2024 — Cooley discusses how ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]'' influenced ''One''.<ref>[https://ew.com/transformers-one-comic-con-preview-optimus-prime-megatron-origin-story-8676886 Transformers One director reveals how infamous 1986 animated movie influenced new prequel film]</ref> A screening of the finished film was shown at a fan-event at Paramount Studios in Los Angeles and in New York City.<ref>[https://comicbook.com/anime/news/transformers-one-review-first-reactions/ Transformers One First Reactions are Raving Over "Best Transformers Film to Date"]</ref> Hemsworth talks about voicing Optimus Prime in the film and how his depiction stands out.<ref>[https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/transformers-one-chris-hemsworth-optimus-prime-orion-pax/ Chris Hemsworth on Becoming Optimus Prime for Transformers One (Exclusive)]</ref>
*July 24, 2024 — Several new posters are released, along with the announcement of a new trailer the following day at the SDCC panel.<ref>[https://twutter.com/transformers/status/1816111093917573615/ Second trailer announcement on Twitter]</ref>
*July 25, 2024 — Details at the SDCC panel were revealed, along with the debut of the second trailer and Bucsemi's role announced to be Starscream.<ref>[https://deadline.com/2024/07/transformers-one-chris-hemsworth-comic-con-1236022134/ ‘Transformers One’ Ignites Comic-Con With Chris Hemsworth, Brian Tyree Henry & Keegan-Michael Key: How Two Best Friends Became Immortal Enemies]</ref> [[Eric Pearson]] was revealed to be an additional writer.<ref>[https://www.awn.com/news/paramount-drops-transformers-one-trailer-2 Paramount Drops ‘Transformers One’ Trailer #2]</ref>
*August 21, 2024 — A new clip of Orion Pax and D-16 competing in the Iacon 5000 race is released on Paramount's YouTube channel.<ref>[https://youtu.be/7o-bGIBZxdc?feature=shared/ TRANSFORMERS ONE Film Clip IACON Race Begins (2024)]</ref>
*August 23, 2024 — Evan Michael Lee is revealed to be voicing Jazz.<ref>[https://twitter.com/Evanmichaellee/status/1826960202920530306/ Evan Michael Lee on Twitter]</ref>
*August 24, 2024 — [[Jon Bailey]], [[Jason Konopisos-Alvarez]], [[Isaac C. Singleton, Jr.]] and [[Vanessa Liguori]] are revealed to be voicing Soundwave, Shockwave, Darkwing and Airachnid respectively, with Bailey reprising his role from ''[[Bumblebee (film)|Bumblebee]]''.<ref>[https://punto.com.ph/paramount-pictures-our-crew-rolls-deep-meet-the-voice-cast-behind-the-characters-in-transformers-one-in-cinemas-september-18/ PARAMOUNT PICTURES : OUR CREW ROLLS DEEP: MEET THE VOICE CAST BEHIND THE CHARACTERS IN “TRANSFORMERS ONE,” IN CINEMAS SEPTEMBER 18 on Punzo.com]</ref>
*September 6, 2024 — The film's credits song, '[[If I Fall]]' by [[Quavo]], is released.<ref>[https://youtu.be/M3FCIf0HFnk?si=NB1J3bT9XNPOpKCc/ If I Fall (Music from the Motion Picture Transformers One / Lyric Video)]</ref>
*September 12, 2024 — In an interview, Lorenzo di Bonaventura clarifies that ''One'' doesn't directly connect to the live-action films, and describes them as "two universes" that will be "[kept] separate". However, he notes that ''One'' will likely have an influence on future live-action projects.<ref>[https://comicbook.com/movies/news/is-transformers-one-a-prequel-optimus-prime-origin-story-exclusive/ Is Transformers One a Prequel or Reboot? The Animated Movie's Origin Story Is Both, Director Says]</ref> The film's review embargo is also lifted, and the film debuts with an 89% "Fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes.<ref>[https://www.seibertron.com/transformers/news/transformers-one-critic-reviews-are-out-currently-89-on-rotten-tomatoes/48337/ Transformers One Critic Reviews are Out, Currently 89% on Rotten Tomatoes]</ref>
*September 13, 2024 — The film's main theme is released.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFnuXrOH0fs/ Brian Tyler - Transformers One Theme | Transformers One (Music from the Motion Picture)]</ref>
*September 17, 2024 — In an interview with Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Josh Cooley, when asked again about ''One''{{'}}s relation to any of the live-action movies, di Bonaventura stated, "It was like 300 million years before the [[Transformers (film)|first Michael Bay movie]], so if that's a prequel, that's a prequel."<ref>[https://screenrant.com/transformers-one-lorenzo-di-bonaventura-and-josh-cooley-interview/ Transformers One Producer Hopes For Sequel & Confirms G.I. Joe Crossover]</ref>
*September 18, 2024 — An early fan event screening is held, preceded by a seven-minute featurette consisting of interview segments with Hemsworth, Henry, and Key, footage of main cast recording their dialogue, and some [https://twitter.com/damnyouwillis/status/1836584462341054907 hilarious trivia]. Attendees receive one of four exclusive keychains and poster prints featuring Orion Pax, D-16, B-127, or Elita-1.<ref>https://bleedingcool.com/movies/transformers-one-4-new-posters-tickets-go-on-sale-fan-screenings/</ref>
*September 20, 2024 — The first 300 ticket holders at participating theaters receive a poster print of {{w|Shadow the Hedgehog}} to promote the upcoming release of ''[[Sonic the Hedgehog (character)|Sonic the Hedgehog 3]]''.<ref>https://kotaku.com/sonic-3-shadow-print-transformers-one-theater-showtimes-1851649010</ref>

===Changes before, during, and after production===
[[File:DecepticonReflectorEvanConcept.jpg|thumb|right|300px|I will not be the weak link!]]
*Although the broad story beats of ''One'' remained more or less consistent over the course of the film's development, the first draft—written before Josh Cooley's involvement—was a silly, joke-heavy script that was very different in tone from the final product. When first brought on to direct, Cooley pushed for a more serious treatment to bring the film closer in line to the usual tone of the ''Transformers'' franchise.<ref name="gizmodo">[https://gizmodo.com/transformers-one-director-interview-josh-cooley-easter-eggs-2000489187 ''Transformers One'' Director Josh Cooley Talks Lore, Easter Eggs, and Alternate Versions] </ref>
*At one point, a bird robot based on ''[[Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2015 franchise)|Robots in Disguise]]'' [[Aerobolt]] would've played a role in the story.<ref>{{citesocial|quote= "In an older version of the story we explored Aerobolt being part of the story. It never made it into the final."|link=https://twitter.com/ScheierJason/status/1840624306465755358|name=Jason Scheier|site=Twitter|year=2024|month=9|day=30}}</ref>
*An early draft had a scene where Orion and D-16 played an arcade game together, which would've featured an 8-bit version of "The Touch". The gag was eventually dropped, although the arcade machine and a different reference to the song made it into the final film.<ref name="gizmodo" />
*Another draft had D-16 as a gladiator, alluding to another part of the character's standard origin story, but ultimately this concept was cut for time.<ref>[https://www.indiewire.com/features/animation/transformers-one-star-wars-old-republic-interview-1235017651/ ‘Transformers One’ Director Talks Bringing the Franchise to Its ‘Old Republic’ Era - Indiewire]</ref>
*Originally, the film would've ended on a smash cut to the film's title, accompanied by a rendition of the classic ''Transformers'' [[theme song]]. However, Cooley decided that the scene would be overly self-referential, and instead [[Brian Tyler]] scored an original composition to close out the film.<ref name="gizmodo" />
*A shot of Orion, Elita, Soundwave, and Shockwave exiting the train after crashing into Sentinel's tower is not in the final film, and only appears in promotional material.
*Concept art for Airachnid reveals she was initially planned to transform into a spider rather than a drone, which is reflected in her Cog Changers toy.
*Alpha Trion's death at the hands of Sentinel Prime was originally planned to show the old sage getting decapitated by the false Prime.<ref>{{citesocial|quote=|link=https://twitter.com/TFHypeGuy/status/1886386574083944876|name=TFHypeGuy|site=Twitter|year=2025|month=2|day=3}}</ref>
*A bot resembling [[Reflector (G1)|Reflector]] was also present in concept art, but makes no appearance in the film proper. Unless he was the cameraman.
*Storyboards posted to artist Lim Zhi Kang's website reveal a scene from an earlier draft where the four main bots are forced into a fight with the train they ride to the surface, revealed to be an incarnation of [[Astrotrain (disambiguation)|Astrotrain]].<ref>[https://www.limzhikang.com/transformers-one TRANSFORMERS ONE {{!}} ZhiKang]</ref>

==Notes==
*As seen in the cast list above, Arcee and Chromia are voiced by Jinny Chung, the film's story / script coordinator. The Injured Racer is voiced by Dillon Bryan, Josh Cooley's assistant. Cooley himself cameos as Skywarp, the "Control Room Guys", and the PA system.
*Several international releases of the film are edited to cut away from Orion's "finger transformation" a few seconds earlier, as well as changing any mention of Bee's "knife hands" to refer to them as "sword hands" instead.
*The credits feature a dedication to former Hasbro CEO [[Brian Goldner]], who passed away in October 2021.
*Darkwing was named by Hasbro designer [[Mark Maher]], when his boss asked him "If this was a Decepticon flyer, who would it be?"<ref>{{citesocial|link=https://www.instagram.com/stories/markclonus/|name=Mark Maher|site=Instagram|year=2024|month=09|day=08}}</ref>
*The Autobot [[Insignia]] never appears within the story, only appearing at the beginning of the end credits.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''''Transformers/One''''' (トランスフォーマー/ONE ''Toransufōmā Wan'')
*''Cantonese:'' '''''Bin Ying Gam Gong: Choh Chi Pin''''' (變形金剛：初始篇, "Transformers: The Beginning")
*''French:'' '''''Transformers : Le Commencement''''' (France, "Transformers: The Beginning"), '''''Transformers : Un''''' (Canada, "Transformers: One")
*''Hungarian:'' '''''Transformers Egy''''' ("Transformers One")
*''Korean:'' '''''Transformer ONE''''' (트랜스포머 ONE ''Teuraenseupomeo ONE'')
*''Mandarin:'' '''''Biànxíng Jīngāng: Qǐyuán''''' (变形金刚：起源, "Transformers: The Origin")
*''Portuguese:'' '''''Transformers: O Início''''' ("Transformers: The Beginning")
*''Russian:'' '''''Transformery: Nachalo''''' (Трансформеры: Начало, "Transformers: The Beginning")
*''Spanish:'' '''''Transformers One''''' (Spain), '''''Transformers : Uno''''' (Latin America, "Transformers: One")
*''Ukrainian:'' '''''Transformery: Pochatok''''' (Трансформери: Початок, "Transformers: The Beginning")

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

[[Category:One| ]]
[[Category:Real world films]]

Soundwave (SG)

2025-03-02T02:27:32Z

Negatwenty:

{{factions|sgDecepticon|hofsilver}}
{{disambig3.5|the heroic Decepticon|his evil counterpart|Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave}}
:''Soundwave is a heroic [[Decepticon]] from the [[Transformers: Shattered Glass (franchise)|Shattered Glass]] [[continuity family]].''
[[File:TFCC-65-SG-Soundwave.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.4|[[Ryu|Come on, FIGHT!]]]]
Sir '''Soundwave''' is a righteous dude! He and his gnarly [[Decepticon Mini-Cassette|cassettes]]—[[Laserbeak (SG)|Laserbeak]], [[Buzzsaw (SG)|Buzzsaw]], [[Frenzy (SG)|Frenzy]], [[Rumble (SG)|Rumble]], [[Ravage (SG)|Ravage]], [[Ratbat (SG)|Ratbat]], [[Overkill (SG)|Overkill]], [[Garboil (SG)|Garboil]], [[Howlback (SG)|Howlback]], and [[Slugfest (SG)|Slugfest]]—bring the good vibrations to [[Megatron (SG)|Megatron]]'s fight against the totally heinous [[Autobot]]s! Though the charismatic Soundwave is the Decepticons' "Morale Officer", he's also an expert in communications. He can tap into any data source just through proximity, which not only helps him link his fellow Decepticons together while in battle, but also helps him tap any errant Autobot transmission.

Sir Soundwave carries a sonic cannon that can also convert into a monomolecular blade which vibrates at the speed of sound. He is sometimes known as '''Monstroso, the Robot Horror from Beyond'''.

{{quote|You dudes may be numerous, but there's one thing you don't know. I have no mouth... Yet I must ''rock''.|Soundwave. How can you not love this guy?|"[[Eye in the Sky]]"}}

==Fiction==
===Fun Publications ''Shattered Glass'' continuity===
[[File:Soundwave buzzsaw shattered glass.jpg|left|upright=1.1|thumb|It's hard to imagine there was ever a time when Soundwave was a background character.]]
As the [[Decepticon]]s followed [[Starscream (SG)|Starscream]]'s plan to disable the ''[[Ark (SG)|Ark]]''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s launching platform, Soundwave was among the ground forces that followed Starscream, [[Divebomb (SG)|Divebomb]] and [[Whisper (SG)|Whisper]]'s initial assault. Later in the battle he was seen assisting the injured [[Slugslinger (SG)|Slugslinger]]. {{storylink|Shattered Glass (issue)|Shattered Glass}}

When the Autobots tried to take the [[Arch-Ayr]] fuel dump from the [[Decepticon]]s and it was starting to look bleak, Soundwave called in the [[Mayhem Suppression Squad]] as the "cavalry". {{storylink|Dungeons & Dinobots}}

Starscream reported to Soundwave that the [[Slugfest (SG)|Slugfest]] and [[Overkill (SG)|Overkill]] were missing. Soundwave checked the security tapes, but found only minor glitches. The two [[Dinobot (SG)|Dinocons]] were soon discovered, having transformed into octaltrack data cartridges.

When boarding the ''[[Nemesis (SG)|Nemesis]]'', [[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]] assigned Soundwave to the comm. Soundwave brought with him his usual complement of [[Decepticon Mini-Cassette|tapes]] as well as the newcomers Slugfest and Overkill.

Soundwave manned the comm throughout the clash with the ''Ark''. He volunteered to stay and help Starscream guide the damaged Nemesis down to [[Earth]], but Cliffjumper insisted that Soundwave seek the safety of an escape pod, because he would need to communicate with Cybertron about their situation. {{storylink|Do Over}}

[[File:DH Soundwave SG.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|''[[Street Fighter II × Transformers|Street Fighter]]'' superior!]]
Before the ''Nemesis'' crash-landed on Earth, Soundwave jettisoned in an escape pod, but went into [[stasis lock]] when it landed. [[Heatwave (Timelines)|Heatwave]] found him at a scenic spot named [[Wyatt's Roadsideaganza]] and reactivated the escape pod's systems and the on-board scanner, which [[Scanning|scanned]] a vehicle nearby for Soundwave and reactivated him. Soundwave tore a flag from a nearby pole and used it as his {{w|hachimaki}}, then detonated the stasis pod as the pair of them set out to find their fallen comrades. {{storylink|The Desert Heat!}}

Soundwave and Heatwave tracked down the ''Nemesis'' crash site, inadvertently hooking up with [[Henri Arkeville|Professor Arkeville]] and his students who were also out looking to see what had crashed. Soundwave quickly befriended them and defended the humans in general against Cliffjumper's complaints about the ship being shot down. He and the other Decepticons were disappointed when it turned out that the Autobots had survived the crash of the ''Ark'' as well, and had commandeered the humans' [[Global Orbiting Defense Satellite|orbital laser]]. [[Will Hayes|Will]], [[Rick Ottman|Rick]], and Soundwave disguised themselves as ice cream delivery and infiltrated [[Burpleson Air Force Base]], which the Autobots had taken over. While Heatwave broke into the base in a more conventional manner, Soundwave kept the Autobots busy while his comrade talked to the orbital laser control system. Everyone got clear before the control system used the orbiting laser to destroy the base. {{storylink|Eye in the Sky}}

For his various heroic deeds, he was knighted and given the title Sir Soundwave. Shortly thereafter, he attended a [[Misfits]]/[[Cold Slither (band)|Cold Slither]] concert. After Heatwave was lost in an Autobot [[Space bridge|stellar spanner]] experiment, Soundwave realized that an [[oPod]] that Will had installed in [[Blitzwing (SG)|Blitzwing]]'s systems was broadcasting on an Autobot frequency. Unfortunately Blitzwing's broadcast began to spread to Decepticons frequencies, though naturally Soundwave was immune, and went looking for the triple changer so they could surgically remove the oPod. He briefly located Blitzwing at [[Wyatt's Roadsideaganza]], before his target fled in jet mode. Eventually [[Ravage (SG)|Ravage]] spotted a [[Yatter]] update pointing to a particular alleyway, and arrived just as [[Blaster (SG)|Blaster]] found Blitzwing. Soundwave and Blaster fought, until they were interrupted by the arrival of [[Thunderwing (SG)|Thunderwing]] who arrested Soundwave for a transmission he made four million solar cycles ago. Soundwave managed to talk him into suspending the arrest on a technicality and tracked Blaster down as he was preparing to send Blitzwing to Cybertron using the stellar spanner. After Soundwave tricked Blaster into confessing a crime, Thunderwing attempted to arrest the Autobot, allowing Soundwave free reign to rescue Blitzwing. They returned to base, where Thunderwing sentenced Soundwave to 500 hours community service. {{storylink|Blitzwing Bop}}

[[File:Invasion-Soundwaveslice.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.67|To complete your Soundwave, you have to buy two box sets to give him a second weapon-arm.]]

The Decepticons got their own stellar spanner working, and Soundwave was overjoyed to discover that Heatwave had survived his trip to Cybertron. Soundwave was among the Decepticons who attended the unveiling of [[R.J. Blackrock]]'s new [[Mega-Rig]] and found himself facing a group of Autobots who attacked the ceremony. When following the attack [[Sephie Beller]] had herself augmented with Cybertronian technology, Starscream and Soundwave were concerned for their human ally, but she reacted badly to Starscream confining her to base, and Soundwave sent Ravage to talk to her. She had already gone to attack the Autobots, and when the Decepticons went to help, they stepped into an Autobot trap. With the Decepticons bound, the Autobots prepared a firing squad, and were going to shoot Soundwave first to stop the electronic jamming when Soundwave pointed out it wasn't ''him'' doing the jamming. The arrival of Blackrock piloting a [[Centurion (SG)|Centurion]] mech kept the Autobots distracted, and Soundwave freed himself using high-frequency vibrations. Unfortunately before he could do anything, Blackrock knocked him out with an EMP blast. He recovered in time to watch Sephie destroy the Centurion, and took Sephie and Rick back to base. He was disappointed when Sephie turned down a spot on the Decepticon team, though unbeknownst to him, she took the opportunity to copy his [[power chip rectifier]] before leaving. {{storylink|Transhuman}}

[[Image:Dancitron Sunrise.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Entertainment 7-20! ''PEACE!'']]

When the Decepticons were tipped off by Optimus Prime that Ultra Magnus had escaped his prison on [[Paradron]], Soundwave joined [[Treadshot (SG)|Treadshot]]'s team to hunt him down. They traveled through a portal to a strange parallel universe where they encountered Magnus and his army battling their destination universe's heroic Autobots. Here Magnus was after this universe's [[Rarified Energon]] so that he could open up a hole in space time to bring its Earth to his Cybertron, destroying them both. But when Soundwave and the Decepticons appeared, Magnus used his stolen [[Terminus Blade]] to stage an escape.

The heroic Autobots of that dimension were understandably confused, so Soundwave caught them up to speed. (He "tells it ''way'' better" than Treadshot.) The heroic Autobots and heroic Decepticons joined forces and fought back the insidious [[Junkion (species)#Shattered Glass|Junkion]] hive, but after a while Soundwave realized he should sneak away to put an end to Ultra Magnus's scheme. The Junkions swarmed him, however, and Soundwave's end was imminent until he was rescued by [[Overlord (G1)|Gigatron]] and his evil Decepticons. Ultimately, Soundwave was able to expand the forcefield surrounding Ultra Magnus's enigmatic contraption below ground to cover the entire Earth. Soundwave and the heroic Decepticons believed this had averted the crisis, but Magnus scoffed. He wanted to destroy this Earth, yes, but he'd also set in motion the destruction of its entire universe! As Earth was pulled into orbit over their universe's Cybertron, the Earth's entire former dimension was destroyed.

Magnus declared victory and retreated as Soundwave sought reassurance that they had won on some level. {{storylink|Invasion (issue)|Invasion}}

With the stellar spanner damaged, Soundwave was unable to return to his friends on negative polarity Earth. The heroic [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] created a new "mental spanner" to compensate, allowing Soundwave to project his consciousness across space to possess a secondary body created for him on Earth by Deputy Commander Starscream. On Earth, Soundwave was confronted by Blaster, who managed to find a way back to the planet from the moon. {{storylink|Solar Requiem}}

With Blitzwing, Soundwave was invited to the [[Dancitron]], where he excitedly told Blitzwing about his experience with Solarbot. {{storylink|Sunrise}}

===Recordicons===
[[File:Recordicons6-Soundwave.jpg|left|thumb|Run for the border, dude!]]
While hiding outside a [[Taco Horn]], Soundwave cautioned [[Ravage (SG)|Ravage]] to enter stealth mode, including not updating [[Yatter]]. A few moments later, Ravage updated his [[Boxball]] account, as Mexican restaurants were worth three points, and they were consequently found by [[Blaster (SG)|Blaster]]. Soundwave was very disappointed. {{storylink|Recordicons issue 6|Recordicons #6}}

Soundwave was concealed as a light pylon when [[Nightbeat (SG)|Nightbeat]] and [[Hosehead (SG)|Hosehead]] passed by. Unfortunately Ravage picked that moment to fall out, giving away Soundwave's disguise, much to his annoyance. Ravage attempted to blame gravity. {{storylink|Recordicons issue 17|Recordicons #17}} Soundwave grabbed [[Laserbeak (SG)|Laserbeak]], as he needed a guitar so he could play a set as part of [[Tape-Filled Idiots]]. {{storylink|Recordicons issue 25|Recordicons #25}}

===''Timelines''===
[[File:EpilogueTwo SoundwaveMegatronStarscream.jpg|thumb]]
Soundwave was present with several of his comrades on Earth to observe the captured infiltration robot [[Nightbird (SG)|Nightbird]].
{{storylink|Epilogue Two}}
{{L-}}

===IDW ''Shattered Glass'' comic===
[[File:SG Soundwave.jpg|left|thumb|Soundwave learned about Howard Stern during his Earthican getaway.]]
Before the Great War broke out, Soundwave was an anchor for [[ABN]], stepping in after [[Blaster (SG)|Blaster]] was caught on camera insulting the viewers' intelligence. Soundwave later went to visit Blaster at a musical event, hoping to mend fences, only to earn his predecessor's ire. {{storylink|Shattered Glass II issue 2|Shattered Glass II #2}}

Soundwave was the Decepticons' top Morale Officer during the war. {{storylink|Shattered Glass issue 3|Shattered Glass #3}} Alongside [[Cannonball (SG)|Cannonball]]'s crew, Soundwave worked to protect [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]]'s [[Titan Net]] from [[Windblade (SG)|Windblade]] and [[Lightbright (SG)|Lightbright]]'s "Citycrashers". {{storylink|Shattered Glass II issue 4|Shattered Glass II #4}} A member of Megatron's forces on Earth, he was present for the final battle in [[Hollywood]], gathering with the rest of the troops as Megatron gave a rallying speech and engaging the Autobots behind his leader. Later, he retreated back to Cybertron with the surviving Decepticon forces as the tide of battle turned sour and Megatron stayed behind to engage Optimus in combat. {{storylink|Shattered Glass issue 2|Shattered Glass #2}}

Over a megacycle after the end of the war, Soundwave had built himself a new existence hiding away in a [[Kaon (polity)|Gold City]] bolthole, aided by Laserbeak and Ravage in keeping an eye on any Decepticons still alive, reaching out to them on secured frequencies to help them as needed. He reunited with his former commander, as well as Starscream, when the duo came to him seeking aid in reconnecting with their scattered brethren in preparation to take back Cybertron. Soundwave agreed, but was firm that there were some he would not contact under any circumstances, refusing to put those dealing with particular traumas to stress themselves any further, and let them know he'd already called the Seekers once Megatron and Starscream agreed to his terms. He then immediately began starting to strategize the best way to utilize their remaining forces when Starscream stopped him, commending him and asking when the last time he stepped away from duty was. Soundwave responded that he couldn't risk leaving his equipment, refusing to potentially not be there when somebody who needed him hit rock bottom, then switched topics by mentioning that everybody was talking about Starscream's [[Shattered Glass issue 1|lightshow]] near [[Metroplex (SG)|Metroplex]]. {{storylink|Shattered Glass issue 3|Shattered Glass #3}}

Soundwave was present for the full scale Decepticon assault on [[Goldbug (SG)|Goldbug]]'s fortress after soldiers began answering Megatron's call. He was engaged with both [[Ratchet (SG)|Ratchet]] and [[Blaster (SG)|Blaster]] when all on the battlefield heard [[Jetfire (SG)|Jetfire]]'s anguished cry over Starscream's death, and later blasted a path into the compound itself along with [[Dirge (SG)|Dirge]] and [[Reflector (SG)|Reflector]]. {{storylink|Shattered Glass issue 5|Shattered Glass #5}}

As the Decepticons began rebuilding New Kaon, the [[Wreckers]] sent Blaster to destroy Soundwave's communications console only for Soundwave to catch him in the act. Though Soundwave failed to defeat his opposite in combat, Blaster beat a hasty retreat when outside fighting started to spill over to the building. After the Wreckers killed Blaster for failing his mission, {{storylink|Shattered Glass II issue 2|Shattered Glass II #2}} [[Wheeljack (SG)|Slicer]] used his severed head to keep abreast of Soundwave's tranmissions. {{storylink|Shattered Glass II issue 3|Shattered Glass II #3}}

When the Metroplex reactivated, Soundwave was part of the force that met his advance. {{storylink|Shattered Glass II issue 4|Shattered Glass II #4}} After being briefed on the full danger by Megatron, Soundwave made for Metroplex, managing to recruit Slicer as a temporary ally. Upon scaling the Titan, the two discovered that [[Ultra Magnus (SG)|Ultra Magnus]] had swapped bodies with [[Optimus Prime (SG)|Optimus Prime]]. As Magnus monologued, Soundwave listened to Starscream and Metroplex's minds fusing before the Titan stumbled. The distraction allowed Soundwave to break through the Wrecker lines, kill [[Drift (SG)|Drift]] and [[Rodimus (SG)|Rodimus]], before he freed the bound Jetfire, the two managing to disconnect Starscream's spark from Metroplex. After Jetfire flew off with Starscream's spark, Soundwave faced off against Ultra Magnus, taunting the Autobot about his self-confidence issues, before he was saved by Slicer shooting Magnus in the chest. After being carried to safety by [[Laserbeak (SG)|Laserbeak]], Soundwave reflected on the state of the world and that, no matter what, he would never stop the fight to bring peace to Cybertron. {{storylink|Shattered Glass II issue 5|Shattered Glass II #5}}

==Games==
===''Transformers Legends''===
Soundwave took part in a battle which prevented the Autobots from launching from Cybertron in a battleship. {{storylink|Shattered Glass (Legends)|Shattered Glass}}

==Toys==
===''Music Label''===
[[File:Soundwave mp3 spark white.jpg|right|upright=1.67|thumb|"So what? I'm a different character now? When did this happen?"]]
<ul class="iconlist">{{Bp-d1|'''Soundwave Playing Audio Player''' ([[2007]])}}</ul>
:*''Accessories:'' Electric launcher, "Wave Bluster", 2 closed fists (left & right), 2 gun-holding pose fists (left & right), 2 eject-button pose fists (left & right), headphones
{{note|Soundwave's first body was [[repurposing|repurposed]] from the Sonic White version of ''Music Label'' [[Soundwave (G1)/toys#Music Label|Soundwave]].}}

: Released in [[TakaraTomy]]'s ''[[Transformers Music Label|Music Label]]'' series, [[Soundwave (G1)/toys#Music Label|Soundwave]] is an MP3 player which takes a miniSD card. The box says it can take up to 1 GB, but many claims have shown it can support up to 2 GB. The player uses one AAA battery. The player also features a transformation almost entirely accurate to his Generation 1 appearance. He also comes with two sets of hands, his shoulder cannon, and a sidearm. It's totally awesome to so many degrees.

:'''Controls'''
:*Play/Pause (Press and hold for three seconds to power on or off)
:*Next
:*Previous
:*Volume Up
:*Volume Down.

: It also treats Folders as Albums.

: An LED behind the "cassette" door turns on and flashes to indicate the power's on. The single AAA battery lasts for about 6 hours of continuous play. Soundwave was initially released in two color schemes: "Spark Blue", his normal blue and silver colors; and "Sonic White", a mostly white color scheme with some blue detailing, echoing the traditional iPod color scheme.

::*''[http://tfu.info/2007/Destron/MLSoundwave/soundwave.htm More information on Music Label Soundwave at TFU.info]''
{{--}}

===''Timelines''===
{{anchor|TLSoundwave}}
[[File:Timelinestoy-BC2012Soundwave.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.67|Headband sold separately? That's not righteous at all!]]
<ul class="iconlist">{{Bp-multi|'''Invasion''' (Multi-pack, [[2012]])}}</ul>
:*''Accessories'': Blaster/blade weapon

:''[[Transformers Timelines (toyline)|Timelines]]'' Soundwave is a [[retool]] of ''[[Transformers: Universe (2008 toyline)|Universe]]'' Deluxe Class [[Ironhide (G1)/toys#Universe (2008)|Ironhide]], featuring a new head, transforming into an SUV of indeterminate, probably-made-up model, lovingly slathered with a [[Cold Slither (band)|Cold Slither]] mural on the side. Soundwave is armed with a double-ended weapon, which deploys a translucent melee blade from one end, and a gatling cannon from the other. His chest features an [[Automorph Technology|Automorph]]-like gimmick that sees mechanical detailing raise up behind his chestplate when his bumper is lowered. Soundwave's head is designed to look fully forward, rather than tilt down like Ironhide or Ratchet's toys. His [[Soundwave's headband|headband]] is a plastic piece sold separately (with a Soundwave trading card) at the Club store.

: There's a difference in plastic color in the official photos of the robot and vehicle modes. In robot mode, the piece behind his head is white, and in vehicle mode, that same piece forms the roof and is black. While the tinier image of the toy in robot mode within BotCon registration gives Soundwave a black crotch in addition to the piece behind his head, the final toy used a white piece behind his head while having a black crotch and solid-white roof in alt mode. Oddly, the cards that come with the toy *and* the headband still show all these areas as white in the artwork.

: Soundwave was released in a [[BotCon 2012]] [[exclusive]] box set with [[Ultra Magnus (SG)#Timelines|Ultra Magnus]], [[Tracks (SG)#Toys|Tracks]], [[Treadshot (SG)#Toys|Treadshot]], [[Overlord (G1)#Timelines|Gigatron]], and [[Metalhawk (G1)#Timelines|Metalhawk]].

: This mold was also retooled to make ''Universe'' [[Ratchet (G1)/toys#Universe (2008)|Ratchet]].

::*''[http://tfu.info/2012/Decepticon/BCSoundwave/soundwave.htm More information on ''Timelines'' Soundwave at TFU.info]''
::*''[http://www.yojoe.com/archive/actfig/soundwave/invasionsw.shtml Additional information at YoJoe.com]''
{{UniverseIronhideMold}}
{{--}}

===''Shattered Glass''===
{{anchor|SGSoundwave}}
[[File:SGtoy-SolarRequiemSoundwave.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.67]]
<ul class="iconlist">{{Bp-multi|'''SG Soundwave vs SG Blaster''' (Multi-pack, [[2013]])}}</ul>
:*''ID number:'' '''VSE'''
:*''Accessories'': Rocket launcher, 3 rockets, "concussion blaster"

: "SG Soundwave" is a redeco of ''[[Transformers Encore|Encore]]'' [[Soundwave (G1)/toys#EncoreSoundblaster|Soundblaster]] (the then-most-recent iteration of the original ''[[The Transformers (toyline)|The Transformers]]'' [[Soundwave (G1)/toys#The Transformers|Soundwave]] mold), transforming into a microcassette recorder. His extra-deep tape-door chest panel allows him to store two cassettes at once. The two "batteries" that store in the back of the cassette mode becomes a non-firing shoulder-mounted cannon and a spring-loaded rocket launcher for robot mode; as a Japanese-market release, the launcher is fully-functional as it does not have to comply with [[for safety reasons|US toy projectile regulations]].

: He also has a number of extra customer-applied stickers on a big sheet for the whole set, which includes his "headband". As his headband is ''entirely made out of stickers'', transforming him back with the headband applied will ''damage'' the sticker. Either you have to display him in robot mode with the headband applied, or make a cloth headband by scratch.

: He was only available in a big boxed versus set which also includes [[Blaster (SG)#Toys|SG Blaster]], and the microcassettes [[Slugfest (SG)#Toys|SG Slugfest]], [[Ratbat (SG)#Toys|SG Ratbat]], [[Rewind (SG)#Toys|SG Rewind]], [[Ramhorn (SG)#Toys|SG Ramhorn]], and [[Solarbot#Toys|Solarbot]], as well as [[Solar Requiem|a 12-page comic]]. This set was sold through [[e-HOBBY]] in Japan, and imported by [[Fun Publications]] to the US as a "shared exclusive".

::*''[http://tfu.info/2013/Decepticon/SGSoundwave/soundwave.htm More information on ''Shattered Glass'' Soundwave at TFU.info]''
{{G1SoundwaveMold}}
{{--}}

===''Shattered Glass Collection''===
[[File:TF-Shattered-Glass-Collection-Soundwave.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|Now that's righteou...No, [[Photodegradation|that's not righteous at all!]]]]
<ul class="iconlist">{{Bp-sd|'''Soundwave''' (Voyager Class, [[2022]])}}</ul>
:*''Accessories'': Barrel gun, shoulder cannon, hinged blaster

: The fifth and final release in the second assortment of [[Hasbro Pulse]]'s exclusive [[Transformers: Generations (toyline)#Shattered Glass Collection|''Shattered Glass Collection'']] subline, Soundwave is a white and blue redeco of ''[[War for Cybertron Trilogy (toyline)|War for Cybertron Trilogy]]'' [[Soundwave (G1)/toys#2020Netflix|Soundwave]]. He transforms into a microcassette recorder which can hold a single "cassette" from the ''[[War for Cybertron: Siege| Siege]]''-based line of "shield"-bots. In robot mode, he features a new headsculpt with his distinctive headband. Each forearm features a flip-out non-firing blaster, remnants of the original [[Soundwave (G1)/toys#WAr for Cybertron: Siege|''Siege'' Soundwave toy tooling]], where they also act as landing skids for his starship mode.

: Soundwave comes packed with his cassette minions [[Ravage (SG)#Shattered Glass Collection|Ravage]] and [[Laserbeak (SG)#Toys|Laserbeak]], and ships with a copy of ''[[Transformers: Shattered Glass II|Shattered Glass II]]'' [[Shattered Glass II issue 5|issue #5]] outside the box.

: Unfortunately, some parts of his white plastic, like the material used for his shoulder joints and barrel gun, are prone to [[photodegradation]], even immediately right out of the box.
{{--}}

==Merchandise==
===''Magic: The Gathering''===
[[File:MTG-SG-Soundwave.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|Cowabunga!]]
*'''Soundwave, Sonic Spy / Soundwave, Superior Captain''' (2022)
**''ID number:'' '''028'''
**''Set code:'' '''BOT'''
**''Color identity:'' '''White/Blue/Black'''
**''Casting cost:'' '''{1}{W}{U}{B}''' (front), '''{2}{W}{U}{B}''' (back)

:"Soundwave, Sonic Spy" is part of the 2022 ''[[Magic: The Gathering]]'' ''[[mtg:Universes Beyond|Universes Beyond]]'' ''[[mtg:Transformers|Transformers]]'' card set, found in Collector Booster packs of ''Magic''<nowiki>'s</nowiki> ''[[mtg:The Brothers' War|The Brothers' War]]'' set. It can be reversed to become "Soundwave, Superior Captain", representing Soundwave in cassette player mode.
:Soundwave can generate [[mtg:Token|tokens]] of [[Laserbeak (G1)/toys#Magic: The Gathering|Laserbeak]] and [[Ravage (G1)/toys#Magic: The Gathering|Ravage]]. Unfortunately, ''Shattered Glass'' versions of the tokens are not officially available, requiring players to either use the Generation 1 versions or create proxies.
:A variant of this card was available in both Set Booster and Collector Booster packs, depicting [[Soundwave (G1)/merchandise#Magic: The Gathering|"Generation 1" Soundwave]].

{{--}}

==Notes==
*Soundwave was conceived by [[Greg Sepelak]] and [[Trent Troop]] as a hair metal himbo/surfer dude, a character archetype they felt that ''Transformers'' was lacking. Cited inspirations include [[Michelangelo (TMNT)|Michelangelo]] from ''[[Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles]]'',<ref>{{citesocial|quote=SG Soundwave was us FINALLY giving TF its Michelangelo, a character type it's been missing.|link=https://twitter.com/MSipher/status/1576358556340604928|name=MSipher|site=Twitter|year=2022|month=10|day=2|}}</ref> Valhallen from ''{{w|Dexter's Laboratory}}'', and {{w|Bill & Ted|Bill S. Preston and Theodore Logan}}.<ref>{{citesocial|quote=I mean he's a bit more these dudes [images attached of Bill & Ted and Valhallen] than a surfer-type Michelangelo, more hair metal, but the general vibe is the same.|link=https://twitter.com/MSipher/status/1576361393397252097|name=MSipher|site=Twitter|year=2022|month=10|day=2|}}</ref>
*Soundwave's body in "Epilogue Two" is modeled on the ''[[Combiner Wars (toyline)|Combiner Wars]]'' [[Onslaught (G1)#CombinerWars|Onslaught]] toy.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Soundwave''' (サウンドウェーブ ''Saundowēbu'')

==See also==
{{OtherVersions
|charname=''Shattered Glass'' Soundwave
|disambig=Soundwave (disambiguation)
|body=
*[[Soundwave (SG Animated)|Soundwave]], the heroic counterpart to [[Soundwave (Animated)|''Animated'' Soundwave]].
*[[Soundwave (SG BB)|Soundwave]], the heroic counterpart to [[Soundwave (ROTF)|''Movie'' Soundwave]].}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:BotCon exclusives]]
[[Category:Communications specialists]]
[[Category:Convention-original characters]]
[[Category:Dimension hoppers]]
[[Category:E-HOBBY exclusives]]
[[Category:Hall of Fame characters]]
[[Category:Knights]]
[[Category:Repurposed toys]]
[[Category:Shattered Glass Decepticons]]
[[Category:Timelines characters]]

Transformers One (film)

2025-02-06T13:14:09Z

Negatwenty:

{{Nav-one}}
{{movie|
|seriess=Transformers One
|prev=
|next=
|title=''Transformers One''
|image=Transformers One New Theatrical Poster.jpg
|caption=The motion picture you are about to see is an adaptation of the [[Transformers: Exodus|Exodus]] story. While artistic and historical license has been taken, we believe that this film is true to the essence, values, and integrity of a story that is a cornerstone of faith for [[fandom|millions of people worldwide]].
|production companies=[[Hasbro Entertainment]] [[Lorenzo di Bonaventura|di Bonaventura Pictures]] Bayhem Films [[Paramount Animation]] New Republic Pictures
|distributor=[[Paramount Pictures]]
|executive producer=[[Steven Spielberg]] [[Zev Foreman]] [[Olivier Dumont]] [[Brian Oliver]] [[B.J. Farmer]] [[Matt Quigg]] [[Greg Moordain]]
|producer=[[Lorenzo di Bonaventura]] [[Tom DeSanto]] [[Don Murphy]] [[Michael Bay]] [[Mark Vahradian]] [[Aaron Dem]]
|story by=[[Andrew Barrer]] [[Gabriel Ferrari]]
|screenplay by=[[Eric Pearson]] Andrew Barrer Gabriel Ferrari
|directed by=[[Josh Cooley]]
|cinematography by=
|edited by=
|music by= [[Brian Tyler]]
|release date=[[September 20]], [[2024]]
|runtime=104 minutes
|budget= $75 million
|box office=$129 million<ref>https://the-numbers.com/movie/Transformers-One-(2024)#tab=summary</ref>
|credits=Transformers One (film)/credits
}}
'''''Transformers One''''' is an animated film released on [[September 20]], [[2024]]. It is written by [[Eric Pearson]], [[Andrew Barrer]] and [[Gabriel Ferrari]] from a story by Barrer and Ferrari,<ref name="deadlinereveal">[https://deadline.com/2015/09/transformers-writers-room-akiva-goldsman-transformers-5-1201531918/ 'Transformers' Writers Room Wraps] on Deadline</ref> and directed by [[Josh Cooley]].<ref name="cooleyreveal">[https://deadline.com/2020/04/transformers-animated-movie-paramount-hasbro-toy-story-4-director-josh-cooley-1202921100/ Animated 'Transformers' Prequel Activated; 'Toy Story 4's Josh Cooley To Direct For Hasbro/eOne & Paramount]</ref> The movie is an origin story set on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] three billion years ago<ref name="collidercinemacon">[https://collider.com/transformers-one-animated-movie-title/ New ‘Transformers’ Animated Movie Rolls Out a New Title at CinemaCon] on Collider</ref><ref name="screenrantsandiegocomiccon">[https://screenrant.com/transformers-one-timeline-setting-takes-place// When Transformers One Takes Place In The Franchise Timeline] on Screen Rant</ref> in the days before the Autobot-Decepticon war, and focuses on [[Optimus Prime (One)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Megatron (One)|Megatron]] as they go from brothers-in-arms to enemies.<ref name="cooleyreveal" />

{{bigquote|The line between friend and enemy is not as clear as I once believed. Once it's crossed, there is no going back. Because some transformations... are permanent.|[[Optimus Prime (One)|Optimus Prime]]}}

==Synopsis==
Long ago, the benevolent [[Primus]] sacrificed his life essence to become the planet [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], and created the [[Thirteen|first generation of Transformers]], the [[Prime (rank)|Prime]]s. Through the power of the [[Matrix of Leadership]], [[energon]] flowed freely from the planet's core, and the Primes ruled justly for a time. However, when the alien [[Quintesson]]s began a long war of invasion, the Primes were eventually slain, and the Matrix of Leadership was lost, leaving only [[Sentinel Prime (One)|Sentinel Prime]] to rule the planet in their absence after the Cybertronians relocated to massive underground cities, abandoning the dangerous surface.

[[File:TFOne Orion caught.jpg|left|thumb|300px|She's exhausted from the day's work. Uh, not that it was too much! We-we quite enjoyed it!]]
Fifty cycles after the war, Cybertronian society now relies on an [[Cogless|underclass]] of manual laborers born without [[transformation cog]]s, including a caste of miners who physically extract what few veins of usable energon remain from the tunnels beneath the subterranean [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] City, while Sentinel Prime makes periodic journeys to the surface in search of the missing Matrix. One impulsive miner named [[Optimus Prime (One)|Orion Pax]] has been searching for information regarding the Matrix, in the hopes that finding the artifact will restore Cybertron to prosperity and allow him and his fellow miners to choose their own path in life. Unfortunately, this search for information has led him to repeatedly break into the city's data archives without authorization. His latest attempt draws the unwanted attention of two [[Guard (One)|guards]] who have caught him several times in the past already, leading to a wild (and nearly lethal) chase through the skyways, through buildings, and eventually into the ground-level public transport station. Though the guards eventually catch up to Orion, the miner's friend [[Megatron (One)|D-16]] provides a distraction and sends the guards off on a wild goose chase. On the train to work, the pair discuss Orion's latest life-endangering adventure, and Orion, knowing that his friend idolizes the strongest Prime, gifts D-16 a rare first-edition decal of [[The Fallen|Megatronus Prime]]'s helmet he'd found.

[[File:TFOne Mine Explosion.jpg|right|thumb|300px|We're trying to get the funny man out of the well!]]
In the mines, D-16 and Orion work under the supervision of their go-getting captain [[Elita-1 (One)|Elita-1]], using [[jet pack]]s and deployable support poles to keep Cybertron's shifting geology stable long enough for them to extract raw energon. However, [[Wheeljack (One)|Wheeljack]] accidentally hits a vein of unstable energon, and the ensuing explosions trap [[Jazz (One)|Jazz]] under a rockfall. Orion and D-16 defy protocol and use a jet pack to save their coworker, but the chaos ends up damaging and destroying a lot of mine equipment. One of the mine's guards, [[Darkwing (One)|Darkwing]], blames Elita for the disaster, and informs her she's been demoted to waste management duty, despite Orion sticking up for her and taking the blame.

That evening, Sentinel Prime returns to Iacon to announce that he still has not found the Matrix; to take the blow off this bad news, Sentinel declares that the prestigious [[Iacon 5000]] race will be held the next day. Orion tries to persuade D-16 to join him in the race, hoping that they can prove to the rest of Cybertron that mining bots deserve respect, but D-16 has no interest in the idea. On the day of the race, Orion discreetly leads D-16 to the maintenance area inside the giant starting signal above the race's starting line; while D-16 is initially excited to watch from a perfect vantage point, Orion reveals his true intention as he straps jet packs to the two just as the race begins and they're dropped into the thick of a throng of racing robots. Using their jet packs and some quick thinking to compensate for their inability to transform, the two dodge the numerous traps and obstacles and briefly manage to take the lead, sending bots across the city into a frenzy, especially their fellow cogless miners. The pair are just about to limp across the finish line and take first place, but end up being run down by [[Chromia (One)|Chromia]], who snags victory for herself. The pair figure they can still be proud of second place... until several dozen other racers whip by them in vehicle mode.

[[File:TFOne Sentinel visits.jpg|left|thumb|300px|I seek to build an empire, and your only goal is to amuse yourselves by tearing it down. Have I taught you nothing?]]
In Iacon's medical center, where many, many racers have ultimately ended up, Sentinel Prime meets with Orion and D-16; the pair are immediately certain they are in ''massive'' trouble, especially when they're scanned by Sentinel's creepy aide [[Airachnid (One)|Airachnid]] before his arrival, but it turns out it's quite the opposite. Sentinel ''loved'' their little stunt, and tells them that the miners' productivity after that showing was already at 150%. Sentinel offers them a chance to tour the mines and help inspire their comrades to work harder, with promises of some pampering along the way, and the pair quickly agree. However, Darkwing arrives before Airachnid can escort them to Sentinel's private quarters; infuriated that he nearly lost the race to the pair after they humiliated him, he drags them to the planet's fiftieth sub-level (ten levels below what they ''thought'' was the lowest level of the planet) and locks them in a trash incineration station.

The two bots soon meet the eccentric and exceptionally talkative [[Bumblebee (One)|B-127]], who has been trapped at the job of "look at garbage and take anything of value out before it's burned" for years, with only garbage statues for "company". When one of B's pals "[[Steve (One)|Steve]]" utters some electronic gibberish, Orion accidentally beheads the "bot", but discovers within the wreckage an old beacon from the Quintesson war, still broadcasting a set of coordinates located somewhere on the planet's surface. Orion, B-127, and D-16 decide to investigate, escaping the only way they can: by climbing up the dump chute. Ew. The trio stow away aboard an automated surface-bound garbage train but coincidentally encounter Elita-1, who now works the refuse line. She handily clobbers the three but ends up locked in the train with them as it departs. She heads for the front, intending to report them to security, a mad dash that gets all the harder as the train starts moving vertically towards its destination. She manages to pop a hatch and make it out of the train, and the trio gives chase, but all four are stopped cold as they're enveloped in light and they find themselves traveling along Cybertron's surface.

The four are stunned by the planet's natural beauty, only to become horrified as said natural beauty starts violently heaving upwards behind them, tearing up the self-building rail and scattering train cars. They run for it but are thrown off, waking in just enough time to completely miss another train, the rail un-building behind it. Elita is furious, but agrees to join Orion's search for the Matrix, on the conditions that 1) she's in command, 2) she holds the map, and 3) if the quest turns out to be a wild goose chase, then the other three will turn themselves in for their idiotic plan and paint her in a very positive light to the authorities. Orion very quickly agrees, and the four head off, confused by the weird not-metal life growing on the surface. They spy a group of robotic quadrupedal lifeforms, which suddenly snap to attention and run for it as the ground begins to tremble. It's soon apparent the cause of their panic: a massive Quintesson spaceship! As the ship scans for any lifeforms (obliterating one of the Cybertronian fauna with a massive cannon blast when it ends up in the tracking beams), the four barely evade detection and the ship moves on.

[[File:TransformersOne-AlphaTrionTransformationCogs.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.66|Take the staff in your hand, Moses. With it, you shall do My wonders.]]
Soon they find themselves at the end of the map's trail, a [[Mouth of Unicron|hidden and extremely creepy cave]]. Inside they find a scene of absolute horror: the spot where the ancient Primes made their final stand against the Quintessons, their bodies lying broken and covered in overgrowth. Although the Matrix is nowhere to be found, Orion discovers that [[Alpha Trion (One)|Alpha Trion]]'s spark still pulses and uses an [[energon cube]] provided by B to revive him. The four attempt to bring Trion up to speed on recent events, but their mention of "Sentinel Prime" causes Trion to reveal the terrible truth: Sentinel is an imposter, a traitorous aide who led the Primes into a Quintesson ambush in exchange for "ruling" Cybertron under the invaders' command. However, when Sentinel tried to claim the Matrix after prying it from [[Zeta Prime (One)|Zeta Prime]]'s corpse, the artifact judged him unworthy and disappeared. To appease his new masters, Sentinel has deliberately stolen transformation cogs from newborn Transformers to keep them producing energon in the mines; at Trion's urging, the four emerge from the cave to witness Sentinel pledging servitude to the [[Quintesson High Commander]] and learn the city's garbage trains are actually transporting Cybertron's dwindling energon supplies to Quintesson ships, leaving barely enough for the people of Cybertron. These revelations leave the bots horrified, but D-16 takes it the worst of all, having also looked up to Sentinel for years. Alpha Trion decides to give the team hope by gifting them the transformation cogs from four of the fallen Primes, as well as a recording of Sentinel's treachery. However, Airachnid spotted the four when they were watching Sentinel's meeting with the Quintessons, and a squad of Sentinel's [[Tracker]]s arrive. Despite his disrepair, Alpha Trion uses his leonine alternate mode to wipe out the squad, allowing Orion and the others to escape, but is quickly incapacitated by Airachnid.

The four bots have a very rocky time learning to transform in the middle of fleeing a squad of Trackers, tumbling downhill with only ''parts'' of them shifting into their new vehicle modes, but desperation forces them to adapt ''very'' quickly. Each one finds new abilities and an aptitude for combat, and soon they're able to destroy their pursuers. Overjoyed at their victory, they make the plan to use the incriminating information Trion gave them by returning to Iacon and exposing Sentinel as a traitor. In their excitement, they fail to notice a Tracker about to shoot them from behind until D-16 uses his new tank mode to kill him first... and then starts laughing at what he just did. D-16 snatches the evidence and takes the lead, his ever-growing intensity and openly stated desire to kill Sentinel leaving Orion more and more unnerved.

Back in Iacon, Alpha Trion is brought before Sentinel, who mocks the "old-timer" and gloats about his station, complaining to Airachnid about the Primes' stuffiness and boring speeches. Trion's word of warning that Sentinel's time will soon be over only annoys the false Prime further, and in a fit of rage he kills the ancient Prime before sending Airachnid back to the surface to hunt down the wayward miners.

[[File:TFoneStarscreamSoundwaveShockwaveInterrogation.jpg|left|thumb|300px|You're playing with the big boys now!]]
Along the path to Iacon, a series of shots ring out, and each bot slips into stasis... Orion and the others are brought back online, bound (and gagged in B's case) as prisoners of the former members of Cybertron's [[High Guard]], who have been fighting a guerrilla war against the Quintessons ever since the fall of the Primes, led by [[Starscream (One)|Starscream]]. D-16 is not impressed, and giving into his growing rage, challenges Starscream's authority, and the two quickly end up in a brawl. While Starscream plays it tough even as D-16 crushes his neck and damages his speech module, his attitude soon changes as D-16 manifests a massive cannon on his arm, aimed directly at Starscream's head. The Guard quickly rallies behind their new leader, ready to take the fight to Sentinel... but Airachnid's forces arrive and ambush them.

[[File:TFOne Airachnid attacks.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Not much of a snake-charmer, are you?]]
Orion, having been buried in the battle, awakens when Elita drags him from the rubble to find that D-16, B-127, and much of the Guard have been taken prisoner, and the data crystal containing the evidence of Sentinel's betrayal has been shattered. Orion despairs, believing their quest to be hopeless now, but Elita won't have it. Though she's still not above taking some digs at Orion, she points out that it is the bot's endless ''optimism'' that makes him a true leader, one that can make bots do amazing (and occasionally amazingly ''stupid'') things. Orion takes the praise (and insults) and decides it's time to rally, and the two quickly formulate a plan; the Guard may be strong, but the last battle proved they aren't enough on their own, they need a true army... and Orion knows exactly where to get one. After Elita quickly shuts down any dissent from the remaining Guard (thanks to a very swift punch to [[Shockwave (One)|Shockwave's]] eye), Orion primes the warriors for the coming battle, with a cry of "''[[Roll out|Transform and ROLL OUT]]!''"

The captives have been brought to [[Hall of Primes|Sentinel's tower]], where the puppet leader gloats over them, mocking Starscream's scrambled voice and sneering at D-16. But the miner does not cower or balk at all, declaring that he is not afraid of Sentinel, as he has nothing left to lose. Noticing the worn Megatronus decal, Sentinel reveals that he took Megatronus's transformation cog when he killed him, ripping the decal from the miner's arm before slapping it back onto his chest... and then, knocking the miner on his back, using a mining tool to crudely ''carve'' the Prime's face into D-16's chest.

Orion uses his new form to rocket-glide into the depths of Iacon City, entering the miners' quarters (and bodily hurling Darkwing aside in the process). Orion reveals the truth to the miners and rallies them to join forces with the High Guard and rebel against Sentinel's regime. Meanwhile, Elita, Shockwave, and [[Soundwave (One)|Soundwave]] have commandeered a returning "garbage" train, transporting the Guard into the city in a sneak attack. But the sudden appearance of hundreds of Trackers makes things look very bad for the plan... until Orion and the miners leap into the fray and cut a swath through the incoming horde, armed with their jet packs and mining tools. Airachnid attempts to kill Orion, slamming him into the train engine, and revealing the ''incredibly horrifying'' array of optics hidden in the back of her head. But her multi-scanning abilities give Orion a sudden idea as the train plows towards Sentinel's tower.

[[File:TFOneSentinelvsD16.jpg|left|thumb|300px|I will not be dictated to. I will not be threatened. I am the morning and the evening star. I am Pharaoh!]]
Sentinel, angered as D-16 once again attempts to rise up, is just about to blow the miner's head off when the train slams into his tower. Soundwave frees the prisoners and the fight spills across the city. Sentinel transforms into combat mode, but D-16 will not be deterred, the two launch into battle. Elita leaps into action, tackling Airachnid and attempting to take her prisoner (with only ''some'' gratuitously satisfying pummeling along the way). She drags the semi-conscious bot to one of Iacon's broadcast stations, and B makes a ''very'' over-enthusiastic entrance. Airachnid's memory banks are quickly scanned, and her memories of Sentinel's most recent meeting with the Quintessons are broadcast throughout the city, leading the populace to also join the fight.

Sentinel fares badly in his fight with D-16, and seeing his cowering before the Quintessons on dozens of screens, his empire in ruins, tries to flee, and when that fails, begs D-16 to spare him, claiming they can co-rule Cybertron. D-16 insists that Sentinel must die for his crimes, but Orion tries to convince his friend that they can be better than their enemies. D-16 violently disagrees, knocking his friend aside and readying the kill shot... only for Orion to leap in the path, the cannon blast tearing through his torso and sending him tumbling over the edge. D-16 grabs Orion's one good arm, horrified... ''that Orion would stop him from killing Sentinel''. With this betrayal, he vows he is ''done'' saving Orion from his mistakes and lets his dying friend plummet into Cybertron's depths. As Orion falls, D-16, insistent that there will be no more Primes, kills Sentinel by bisecting him with his hands. He then seizes Megatronus' cog from Sentinel's chest, replacing the one gifted to him by Trion, which transforms him into an even ''more'' battle-ready form. Declaring himself "Megatron", he commands the High Guard to destroy everything Sentinel built... in other words, what's left of the city.

[[File:One-Megs-Prime-face-to-face.jpg|thumb|300px|Goodbye... brother.]]
Meanwhile, the mortally wounded Orion falls through the planetary strata, which slides and shifts out of his way, until he finally reaches Cybertron's core. There, he encounters the spirits of the Primes as Trion announce that Primus has deemed him worthy for the future of Cybertron and to carry the Matrix of Leadership, reformatting Orion and restoring his spark to declare him the newest of the Primes: "Optimus Prime", before being sent rocketing back to the surface in a blaze of blue light.

Elita and B try and fail to stop Megatron's rampage, their former friend ready to kill them too, but Optimus smashes onto the scene. Megatron is incensed at this new betrayal both by his former friend ''and'' the Matrix itself, and launches himself at Optimus. During their fight, Optimus manifests an energy battle axe to fight against Megatron along with Starscream, Soundwave, and Shockwave before using it to destroy Megatron's new cannon, ultimately winning their fight. Unwilling to kill his oldest friend, Optimus reluctantly banishes Megatron and his new allies to the surface. Megatron seethes but decides that now is not the time, and takes his new army to the surface.

With the return of the Matrix of Leadership, Cybertron is restored to life: energon flows once again from the planet's core to the surface, and ''all'' of the cogless bots receive transformation cogs, becoming fully autonomous "[[Autobot]]s" who vow to defend Cybertron from any future Quintesson incursions. However, the Quintessons are not the only looming threat—though banished from Iacon, Megatron and his followers rechristen themselves the "[[Decepticon]]s" and swear revenge.
{{-}}

==Cast==
{{featuredcharacters
|h1=Miners
|c1=
*[[Optimus Prime (One)|Orion Pax / Optimus Prime]] ([[Chris Hemsworth]])
*[[Megatron (One)|D-16 / Megatron]] ([[Brian Tyree Henry]])
*[[Elita-1 (One)|Elita-1]] ([[Scarlett Johansson]])
*[[Bumblebee (One)|B-127]] ([[Keegan-Michael Key]])
*[[Jazz (One)|Jazz]] ([[Evan Michael Lee]])
*[[Arcee (One)|Arcee]] ([[Jinny Chung]])
*[[Bluestreak (One)|Bluestreak]]
*[[Brawn (One)|Brawn]]
*[[Firestar (One)|Firestar]]<ref group=note name="uncredited">Denotes a character, or unidentified members of a group, who speaks, but has no credited voice actor. The performance was likely done by an ADR voice cast member.</ref>
*[[Hound (One)|Hound]]
*[[Huffer (One)|Huffer]]
*[[Ironhide (One)|Ironhide]]<ref group=note name="uncredited"/>
*[[Mirage (One)|Mirage]]
*[[Moonracer (One)|Moonracer]]<ref group=note name="uncredited"/>
*[[Prowl (One)|Prowl]]<ref group=note name="uncredited"/>
*[[Ratchet (One)|Ratchet]]
*[[Red Alert (One)|Red Alert]]
*[[Sideswipe (One)|Sideswipe]]<ref group=note name="uncredited"/>
*[[Smokescreen (One)|Smokescreen]]
*[[Sunstreaker (One)|Sunstreaker]]
*[[Wheeljack (One)|Wheeljack]]<ref group=note name="uncredited"/>
*[[Windcharger (One)|Windcharger]]

|h2=[[High Guard]]
|c2=
*[[Starscream (One)|Starscream]] ([[Steve Buscemi]])
*[[Soundwave (One)|Soundwave]] ([[Jon Bailey]])
*[[Shockwave (One)|Shockwave]] ([[Jason Konopisos-Alvarez]])
*[[Skywarp (One)|Skywarp]] (Josh Cooley)
*[[Thundercracker (One)|Thundercracker]]
*[[Dirge (One)|Dirge]]
*[[Ramjet (One)|Ramjet]]
*[[Thrust (One)|Thrust]]
*[[Slipstream (One)|Slipstream]]
*[[Redwing (One)|Redwing]]

|h3=[[Thirteen#One film|Primes]]
|c3=
*[[Alpha Trion (One)|Alpha Trion]] ([[Laurence Fishburne]])
*[[Zeta Prime (One)|Zeta Prime]] ([[James Remar]])
*[[The Fallen#One film|Megatronus Prime]]
*[[Alchemist Prime#One film|Alchemist Prime]]
*[[Amalgamous Prime#One film|Amalgamous Prime]]
*[[Liege Maximo#One film|Liege Maximo]]
*[[Micronus Prime#One film|Micronus Prime]]
*[[Nexus Prime#One film|Nexus Prime]]<ref group=note name="uncredited"/>
*[[Onyx Prime#One film|Onyx Prime]]
*[[Prima#One film|Prima Prime]]
*[[Quintus Prime#One film|Quintus Prime]]
*[[Solus Prime#One film|Solus Prime]]<ref group=note name="uncredited"/>
*[[Vector Prime#One film|Vector Prime]]

|c4=
*[[Sentinel Prime (One)|Sentinel Prime]] ([[Jon Hamm]])
*[[Airachnid (One)|Airachnid]] ([[Vanessa Liguori]])
*[[Quintesson High Commander]]
*[[Quintesson Soldier]]s
*[[Primus]]
*[[Tracker]]s<ref group=note name="uncredited"/>
*[[Guard (One)|Guards]] ([[Steve Blum]], Jason Konopisos-Alvarez)
*[[Announcer Bot]] (Steve Blum)
*[[Control Room Guys]] (Josh Cooley)

'''Racers'''
*[[Darkwing (One)|Darkwing]] ([[Isaac C. Singleton, Jr.]])
*[[Chromia (One)|Chromia]] (Jinny Chung)
*[[Injured Racer]] ([[Dillon Bryan]])

|nonumbering=true
}}
<references group=note/>

==Quotes==
"I had to jump out of a window this time. Almost died. It was wild." 
"And digging through ancient data is worth dying for?" 
"Yes, it is." 
"Oh, I need a new best friend..."
:—'''Orion Pax''' and '''D-16''' meet up before their shift.

"Are you ''crazy?!''" 
"Sure feels like it!"
:—'''D-16''' and '''Orion Pax''' summing up their initial relationship.

"Hey, look, I know it's all a big joke to you. But not me. I was paying my dues. I was going places. And now they're gonna bust me down I-- I don't even know how many tiers!" 
'"I'm sorry, D. But come on, didn't you feel it? Even for just a second, didn't you feel liberated? Didn't you feel like you were something else? Like you could be more than what they say you are?" 
"Yeah, I felt it. I did. But it doesn't matter. We're going to get punished ''and'' demoted. Ugh, Sentinel Prime saw the whole thing, this is so ''embarrassing''."
:—"'''D-16''' knows his place, despite what '''Orion Pax''' tries.

"Sentinel Prime. [laughs] '''THE''' Sentinel Prime!" 
"You still mad at me?" 
"I am less mad at you."
:-'''D-16''' meets his idol, and '''Orion Pax''' kills the mood.

"Don't you want to stop him?" 
"NO, '''I WANT TO KILL HIM!''' I wanna put Sentinel in chains and march him through the mines so everyone can see him for the '''FALSE PRIME''' that he is! I want him to '''suffer''', and then to ''die'' in ''darkness.'' But we all know it doesn't matter what I want, ''right'', Pax? The fact is, we're just cogless bots. Right? We had limited options, and now... now we have ''none''."
:—'''Orion Pax''' and '''D-16'''

"What defines a Transformer is not the cog in his chest, but the spark in that resides in their core. A spark that gives you the will to make your world better. My fellow Primes had that spark. And I see their strength in you. Take their cogs and access your full potential. Prima. Onyx. Alchemist. Micronus. Warriors of noble spirit, loyalty, strength. Their uniqueness enhanced by these. They were one. ''You'' are one. '''ALL''' are one!" 
"Wait. We have... You-- You gave us..." 
"The ability to change your world. How you choose to use that power is up to you."
:—'''Alpha Trion''' inaugurates '''Orion Pax''' and our heroes with the tried and true phrase.

"Stand down, old timer." 
"Ah... ''old'' you say?"
:—'''Alpha Trion''' shows the foot soldiers that he prefers the word "experienced".

'''Starscream''': Now, are you spies, or incompetent lackeys? 
'''Orion Pax''': We're not spies. 
'''Elita-1''': But he is incompetent.
:—Elita-1 on her boss-to-be

"Uh... why is he gagged?" 
"He wouldn't stop talking." 
"Even when he was unconscious?" 
"''ESPECIALLY'' WHEN HE WAS UNCONSCIOUS!"
:—'''Elita-1''' asks '''Shockwave''' about B-127's restraints.

"Hey! What are you doing?" 
"I'll tell you what I'm not doing. I'm not cowering in some busted ship, playing king of the throne. I'm not pretending like I'm making a difference by throwing one punch and then running away to hide. I found out that Sentinel is rotten today, and I'm going to make him pay for it! TODAY!" 
"You think you can insult me and just walk away? No one leaves here unless I say so." 
"Is that right? Well, how can you say so... with my head in your teeth?"
:—'''Starscream''' and '''D-16''', right before he beats the living scrap out of him.

"Bear witness! ''This'' is the '''last''' time I show mercy! Decide right now! You can stay here in hiding, bowing before your pathetic leader, or follow me as we march on Iacon and I take down Sentinel '''ONCE AND FOR ALL!'''"
:—'''D-16''', as he usurps the High Guard's leadership from Starscream.

"If we want to be in control of our own destiny, we will have to fight for it. Now is the time for us to stand up. For ourselves. Stand up for this injustice! I promise you, this fight will be worth it. Follow me. Nothing can stop us when we stand together! Together as one!"
:—With the miners chanting his name, '''Orion Pax''' delivers his first heroic speech.

''(Airachnid opens the back of her head to reveal'' dozens ''of eyes.)'' 
"You can't win, miner! ''I see '''everything!'''''" 
"That's right, you do... Except the tower we're about to crash into."
:—'''Airachnid''' gets creepy and '''Orion Pax''' gets an idea.

"You pathetic little twits! Did you really think that you could knock down everything I've built?!" 
"It's over, Sentinel! You can't escape the truth!" 
"What truth? That I plucked the cogs from your newborn chests? Forced you to mine so that I could pay off the Quintessons and live like a king? None of that matters! Because the truth... Is. ''WHAT. I. '''MAKE IT!'''''"
:—'''Sentinel Prime''' teaches '''Orion Pax''' that he won't go down without a fight.

"What's wrong, D-16? ''Rise up!''"
:—'''Sentinel Prime''' mockingly gives D-16 his future slogan.

"I'm ''done'' saving you."
:—'''D-16''' lets his ''former'' friend fall.

"The Age of Primes has ended! '''NO MORE FALSE PROPHETS'''! Follow me, and you will ''never again'' be ''deceived!'' '''RISE UP!''' ''I'' will lead us all into the future! ''I...'' '''AM...''' '''''MEGATRON!'''''"
:—With the death of Sentinel Prime, '''D-16''' renames himself as '''Megatron'''

"''Orion Pax.'' Your noble sacrifice for the greater good has proven you worthy in the eyes of Primus. He entrusts in you the future of Cybertron, and... the Matrix of Leadership! '''Arise...''' '''''Optimus Prime.'''''"
:—Speaking for Primus, '''Alpha Trion''' and the Primes rebuild Orion Pax.

"We could have built the future ''together!"'' 
"I'll build it myself. After I tear down everyone '''''IN MY WAY!'''''"
:—'''Optimus Prime''' and '''Megatron''' set the stage for eons of conflict to come.

"We were given the power to change our world, and you chose to destroy it. Just like Sentinel. You have betrayed Cybertron and its citizens, and you betrayed... ''me.'' Go. Take the High Guard, and leave. You are banished from Iacon. It didn't have to end this way." 
"This isn't over... ''Prime.''"
:—'''Optimus Prime''' and '''Megatron''' share one final exchange.

"This is the greatest day of my life... I get to work for the ''government''!"
:—'''B-127''' knows a good benefits package when he sees one.

"And now we stand here together as one, proving we all have the power to transform; to become who we were destined to be; to right wrongs; to make our world better. Because here, freedom and autonomy are the right of all sentient beings. Here, all are truly ''Autobots''. This message is a warning to all Quintessons: If you dare return to Cybertron, the Autobots will be waiting. ''I'' will be waiting. I... am ''Optimus Prime''."
:—'''Optimus Prime''' gives his first dramatic ending monologue...

"Sentinel, the betrayer, is dead. But his death has given life to a new enemy...a stronger enemy... a ''personal'' enemy. We will ''not'' be blinded by his deception! We are the ones who are... '''DECEPTICONS! ''RISE UP!'''''"
:—...and '''Megatron''' gives the coming darkness its new name.

==Continuity notes==
The movie that would ultimately become ''Transformers One'' entered preliminary development in early 2015, when the project was first pitched as part of a writer's room that would lay out a number of sequels, prequels, and spinoff films that would turn the ongoing [[live-action film series|slate of live-action movies]] into a proper "cinematic universe", an attempt to cash in on the then-meteoric hype of the {{w|Marvel Cinematic Universe}}. Like pretty much all the other "cinematic universes" pitched at around this time, this ambitious vision was not to be: following the box-office bomb that was ''[[Transformers: The Last Knight (film)|The Last Knight]]'', most of these projects were shelved, while others were heavily reworked—perhaps most infamously, ''[[Bumblebee (film)|Bumblebee]]'' was recut into a film that contradicted ''The Last Knight'' and its depictions of Bumblebee fighting in [[World War II]], shifting the film and [[Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (film)|its sequel]] into a more ambiguous "soft reboot" that only loosely connect to the five Bay films.

It appears that a similar conceptual drift occurred over the course of ''Transformers One'''s production. When the film entered full production in mid-2020, ''One'' was said to be "separate and apart" from the ongoing live-action films, though at the time just ''how'' distinct the film would be from its predecessors remained a mystery.<ref name="cooleyreveal" /> When later asked if the film was a prequel to the live-action films, a reboot, or its own universe, director Josh Cooley answered "yes" to all of the above.<ref>[https://comicbook.com/movies/news/transformers-one-director-confirms-new-movies-canon-status/ Transformers ONE Director Confirms New Movie's Canon Status - ComicBook.com]</ref> While a few details and visual nods—such as Bumblebee's original name of "B-127", the function of the [[Matrix of Leadership]] in which it dissolves into dust if it deems someone unworthy to wield it and the incorporation of a closing monologue delivered by Optimus—referenced the live-action films, the film otherwise draws heavily upon the mythology first laid down in the [[Aligned continuity family|"Aligned" continuity family]] and has gone on to inform just about every major ''Transformers'' universe afterwards, particularly in its depiction of Orion Pax and D-16 as former allies fighting against a corrupt Cybertronian government.

As the film's release date drew closer, multiple comments from the film's creatives indicated that the filmmakers viewed the movie as something entirely separate from the ongoing live-action films. In July, Josh Cooley stated that the film was set in a "new Transformers continuity"<ref>{{citesocial|quote= "Hey little nerd in my profile picture, what if I told you someday you'll create a new Transformers continuity, that begins earlier than anything you've seen on the Transformers lore timeline, with the greatest crew and cast ever assembled?"|link= https://twitter.com/CooleyUrFaceOff/status/1817235351095894510 |name=Josh Cooley|site=Twitter|year=2024|month=7|day=27}}</ref>; in another interview from a week before release, di Bonaventura ultimately admitted that ''One'' didn't fit into the chronology of the live-action films, and described ''One'' and the live-action films as "two universes" that would be "[kept] separate".<ref>[https://comicbook.com/movies/news/is-transformers-one-a-prequel-optimus-prime-origin-story-exclusive/ Is Transformers One a Prequel or Reboot? The Animated Movie's Origin Story Is Both, Director Says]</ref> These statements were ultimately borne out by the movie itself, which featured multiple plot points that are pretty much irreconcilable with the live-action films—early on, the film establishes that [[The Fallen|Megatronus]] is long dead, negating his appearance in ''[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen]]''; additionally, the movie ends with the newly christened Megatron killing Sentinel Prime, leaving no wiggle room for the events of ''[[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Dark of the Moon]]'' to occur. As a result, the wiki has opted to treat ''One'' and any potential sequels as a new [[continuity family]] entirely separate from the ongoing live-action films.

==Transformers references==
* As with pretty much every major ''Transformers'' project since 2010, ''Transformers One'' is the latest interpretation of the modernized ''Transformers'' backstory that originated with [[Binder of Revelation|Hasbro's internal design documents]] and was first laid down in ''[[Transformers: Exodus]]''—the story of [[Primus]], the [[Thirteen|thirteen original Transformers]], and the origins of Optimus Prime and Megatron as former friends who fought against inequality on pre-war Cybertron until Megatron's extremism drove them apart. Notably, this version of the story portrays both Orion and Megatron as [[energon]] miners on the bottom of Cybertron's caste system—most other interpretations have instead depicted Orion as a somewhat higher-ranking data clerk. While other tellings of the story have Orion advocating for non-violent social change, this take on the origin ends with Orion Pax working alongside the future Decepticons to directly overthrow the reigning Prime, evoking [[IDW Publishing|IDW]]'s ''[[The Transformers: Autocracy|Autocracy]]'' miniseries.
* Many contemporary works of pre-war ''Transformers'' fiction have established that pre-war Cybertronians organized themselves under a job-based [[Functionism|caste system]], with miners and other manual laborers occupying the lowest ranks of Transformer society. ''One'' features a very simplified version of this hierarchy, where Cybertronians without transformation cogs are an oppressed underclass while other Transformers receive additional rights and job opportunities.
* With the exception of D-16—whose origins as a low-ranking miner date back to IDW's ''[[The Transformers: Megatron Origin|Megatron Origin]]''—all of the other miners shown in the film go on to join the Autobots, while the forerunners of the Decepticons are depicted as ex-members of the elite [[High Guard]]. This specific class divide dates back to the ''[[The Transformers (cartoon)|The Transformers]]'' episode "[[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4]]" and, to a lesser extent, "[[War Dawn (episode)|War Dawn]]", which explained the war between the Autobots and Decepticons as an entrenched conflict between civilian laborers and military robots.
* All the character designs are far closer to their Generation 1 designs (both the cartoon and the original toys) than the previous films. Characters also earn their iconic design traits in pivotal scenes, such as Optimus Prime's [[Energon-axe]] and [[mouthplate]], or Megatron's [[fusion cannon]]. In the final scene, many miners gain details to match their Generation 1-selves even closer after they receive their cogs; in particular, Arcee gains her pink visor from ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]''. Starscream, Soundwave, and Megatron's newly applied insignias in the post-credits scene are also in the same place as their original counterparts, with Starscream's even being upside-down!
* Optimus Prime's original identity of "Orion Pax" is a name taken from the ''The Transformers'' episode "War Dawn". Notably, the cartoon's version of Orion Pax was also a manual laborer, although the film does seemingly pay homage to Orion Pax's other famous job by having him sneak into the Cybertronian Archives at the very beginning of the film. D-16 takes [[Dion (G1)|Dion]]'s place as his best friend and co-worker.
* The 'bot who will one day be known as "Megatron" initially goes by the name "D-16", a moniker lifted from ''Exodus'' and itself based on the [[TakaraTomy]] ID number of the [[Megatron (G1)/toys#The Transformers|original Megatron toy]]. D-16's original body—with a black, dome-shaped helmet and yellow eyes—references Megatron's [[Megatron (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Marvel Comics appearance]], which in turn was based on concept art for an unproduced prototype version of the original Takara Micro Change figure. Much like Orion Pax, his modern gladiator job is paid homage in his fight with Starscream.
* B-127 is heavily based on his [[Bumblebee (Movie)|live-action film series counterpart]]: his helmet design and blasters bear a resemblance to his appearance in those films; additionally, his overly-talkative nature is a meta-gag about his "future" self being best known for not being able to speak. The name "B-127" derives from the [[Bumblebee (film)|''Bumblebee'' movie]], where, much like this film, he did not receive the name "Bumblebee" on Cybertron. B-127's battle mask resembles his [[Bumblebee (G1)|Generation 1 counterpart's]] [[Bumblebee (G1)/toys#The Transformers|original toy]]; towards the end of the film, he fights with a pair of "knife hands" seemingly based on ''[[Transformers: War for Cybertron (games)|War for Cybertron]]'' Bumblebee's melee weapons.
* In general, Elita-1 doesn't draw upon as many specific references as her co-stars, although her purplish-pink color scheme and motorcycle [[alternate mode]] may be a reference to her [[Elita-One (Movie)|''Revenge of the Fallen'' design]]. Notably, of the four main protagonists, Elita's the only one who ''doesn't'' have an alternate alias—especially odd given that her [[Elita One (G1)|Generation 1 counterpart]] originally went by "Ariel" in the ''The Transformers'' episode "War Dawn". (This exclusion is perhaps less odd when one considers that subsequent to 1985, [[Disney]] secured a near-stranglehold on toys named "{{w|Ariel (The Little Mermaid)|Ariel}}".)
* Sentinel Prime is based on [[Sentinel Zeta Prime]], the former leader of Cybertron in the [[Aligned continuity family|"Aligned" continuity]]. Like that version of the character, this take on Sentinel Prime is explicitly a "false" Prime who never carried the Matrix of Leadership, and a puppet ruler who was appointed to the position by the Quintessons. Design-wise, this take on Sentinel draws from his "Aligned" counterpart, his [[Sentinel Prime (ROTF)|''Dark of the Moon'' appearance]], and has details from his [[Sentinel Prime (G1)#Titans Return|''Titans Return'' toy]] and the thematically similar character, [[Nominus Prime]]. Sentinel's battle mode is inspired by his [[Apex Armor (G1)|Apex Armor]] from the ''Megatron Origin'' comic. He also has his [[Sentinel Prime (Animated)|''Animated'' counterpart]]'s glorious chin, as well as carrying on his 'arrogant jerkwad' personality rather than the more stoic attitude of other Sentinels. His double-bladed weapon takes specific inspiration from DOTM Sentinel's [[Primax Blade]], now with the additional ability to retract one or both of its blades when required.
* Airachnid is derived from the ''Prime'' [[Airachnid (Prime)|character of the same name]]—a notable inclusion given the primarily G1-based main cast—sharing a similar design, alternate mode as a helicopter, and antagonistic personality. Role-wise, however, she draws from her [[Airachnid (G1)|IDW 2005 counterpart]] being a subordinate of the [[Starscream_(G1)/2005_IDW_continuity|shady sovereign ruler of Cybertron]].
* Like Sentinel Prime, the Quintessons are primarily based on their depiction in the "Aligned" lorebook [[Transformers: The Covenant of Primus|''The Covenant of Primus'']], which depicted them as shadowy manipulators who ruled Cybertron and exploited its natural resources through a proxy government; notably, the Quintessons in the ''Covenant'' helped maintain their hold on Transformer civilization by withholding the power to transform from the general populace. In a notable deviation from traditional ''Transformers'' lore, the bodies and starships of the film's Quintessons appear to be organic in nature.
** It is ambiguous to what the origin of the Quintessons actually is. In most modern media, the Quintessons are the renegade creations of Quintus Prime (such as in ''[[Transformers: EarthSpark]]''). While they do share some similarities, such as part of their names, multiple appendages, need for Energon, and their coloration, nothing is ever stated that Quintus Prime created them. They aren't the creators of the Cybertronian race like in media before Primus was created, either. It is possible that the Quintessons are simply an alien race unrelated to the Cybertronians.
* Primus' design seen in the hologram Orion plays is largely based on the [[IP infringement|"third party"]] 01 Studio Seed figure, itself inspired by the oft-referenced [[:File:UltimateGuidePrimus.jpg|original character model]] for his planet-body from [[DK Publishing|DK]]'s [[Transformers: The Ultimate Guide|''The Ultimate Guide'']]. His head and chest are closer to his ''[[Transformers: Cybertron (franchise)|Cybertron]]'' appearance, also pulling a simplified version of [[Primus#Cybertron|that toy]]'s transformation scheme. Primus' willing sacrifice of his locomotion and birthing of the Thirteen pulls from his appearance in the eponymous ''Covenant of Primus''.
* The Thirteen are similarly based on their "Aligned"' incarnations for their backstory and designs. Nexus, Megatronus, Solus, and Alchemist Prime also draw from their ''[[:File:NexusPrimeflankedbyotherPrimes.jpg|Timelines]]'', ''[[:File:Megatronus.jpeg|Titans Return]]'', ''[[:File:SolusPrime-PowerofthePrimes.jpg|Power of the Primes]]'', and ''[[:File:TheCitizen IaconusCitizens.jpg|Cyberverse]]'' designs, respectively, while Vector Prime is based squarely on his original ''Cybertron'' design.
* Megatronus is also inspired by his ''Revenge of the Fallen'' design, including his face being based on the Decepticon symbol (or vice versa in-universe), although it is far more obvious in this movie, coincidentally evoking [[Tarn (G1)|Tarn]]. Megatronus' face becoming the in-universe inspiration for the Decepticon symbol reflects the real life story of [[Soundwave (G1)|Generation 1 Soundwave]]'s face inspiring the iconic symbol.
* Alpha Trion's abilities to recreate and store memories as information calls back to the archival role of his [[Alpha Trion (WFC)|Aligned counterpart]]. His alternate mode being a leonine beast with a unicorn-esque horn is a direct homage to his [[Alpha Trion (G1)#Titans Return|''Titans Return'' toy]], itself based on his [[Alpha Trion (G1)#Toys|cancelled BotCon toy]].
* The mysterious [[Thirteenth Prime]] is replaced with Zeta Prime, who also takes [[Prima]]'s role as leader and Matrix-bearer, though Prima himself is still present. Zeta's design is also based on "Aligned" Sentinel Zeta Prime, as he appears in the ''War for Cybertron'' video game.
* The Thirteen are not actually referred to as the "Thirteen", but rather the Primes or the "Council of Elders", a term that originated in ''[[Beast Machines: Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Machines]]''. This is likely because it would contradict Sentinel's narrative painting himself as a fourteenth Prime. Notably, none of the archives or displays of the Thirteen include Sentinel.
* The cameo miners mostly draw from the [[The Transformers (cartoon)/cast#Season 1|1984 Autobot cast of the original cartoon]], along with the [[Female Autobots]], [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]], and recolors such as [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]]. The background High Guard characters, meanwhile, are based on the endless Starscream recolors that have appeared throughout ''Transformers'', commonly known as the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seekers]]. Notably, one of their helmet variations is based on [[Starscream (Armada)/Cartoon continuity#Cybertron cartoon|''Cybertron'' Starscream]]'s, while some Seekers including [[Thundercracker (One)|Thundercracker]] sport triple-barreled weapons on their arms that resemble the [[neutron assault rifle]] from ''Fall of Cybertron'' – specifically the split-in-half configuration seen in the [[Starscream (WFC)/toys#Generations|''Fall of Cybertron'' Starscream toy]] and its redecoes, even including a gear-shaped detail behind the barrels echoing the gears on the toy's accessories.
* Shockwave, Soundwave, Starscream/the Seekers, and the cogged versions of Ironhide, Ratchet, and Arcee have details based on their ''Bumblebee'' designs.
*The jet modes of Starscream/the Seekers are also based on ''Bumblebee'', while Soundwave's vehicle mode is based on his [[Soundwave (ROTF)/toys#SS83|''Studio Series Bumblebee'' toy]]. Shockwave's alternate mode resembles his [[Shockwave (WFC)|''War for Cybertron'' counterpart]], and both he and Starscream/the Seekers have details from their [[War for Cybertron: Siege|''Siege'' toys]].
*When Orion "transforms" to run away from the guards, he moves his limbs in a way that evokes [[Optimus Prime (G1)/toys#Toys|his original toy]]'s transformation.
* The Matrix causing Energon to flow and 'killing' the planet when lost calls back to the [[AllSpark]].
* When discussing their mining ability, Elita says Orion "[doesn't] have the touch or the power," a reference to the [[The Touch|beloved song]] from ''The Transformers: The Movie.''
* The Iacon 5000 derives from the Marvel UK ''The Transformers'' [[Source:Darn 'n' Blast#Issue 326|issue 326's "Darn 'n' Blast" letter page]]. Many of the racers in the Iacon 5000 are characters from Generation 1 and ''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (franchise)|Generation 2]]'', with their colors and vehicle modes next to their names on the leaderboard, though they do not correspond to specific models except for the miners, Darkwing, and Chromia.
** Racers based on their Generation 1 counterparts include [[Mirage (One)|Mirage]], [[Clampdown (One)|Clampdown]], [[Silverbolt (One)|Silverbolt]], "[[Deadend (One)|Deadend]]", [[Slingshot (One)|Slingshot]], [[Cliffjumper (One)|Cliffjumper]], [[Dragstrip (One)|Dragstrip]], [[Swerve (One)|Swerve]], [[Powerglide (One)|Powerglide]], [[Jetstorm (One)|Jetstorm]], [[Windblade (One)|Windblade]], [[Afterburner (One)|Afterburner]], [[Blurr (One)|Blurr]], [[Fireflight (One)|Fireflight]], [[Cordon (One)|Cordon]], [[Breakdown (One)|Breakdown]], [[Swindle (One)|Swindle]], [[Tailgate (One)|Tailgate]], [[Lightspeed (One)|Lightspeed]], "[[Spinout (One)|Spinout]]", [[Greasepit (One)|Greasepit]], [[Scattershot (One)|Scattershot]], [[Inferno (One)|Inferno]], [[Motormaster (One)|Motormaster]], and "[[Hotrod (One)|Hotrod]]".
** Racers based on their ''Generation 2'' counterparts include [[Blowout (One)|Blowout]], [[High Beam (One)|High Beam]], [[Double Clutch (One)|Double Clutch]], [[Meanstreak (One)|Meanstreak]], [[Motormouth (One)|Motormouth]], [[Speedstream (One)|Speedstream]], "[[Roadrocket (One)|Roadrocket]]", and [[Staxx (One)|Staxx]].
** [[Jolt (One)|Jolt]] and [[Leadfoot (One)|Leadfoot]] are the only racers based on their [[Jolt_(ROTF)|Bayverse ]] [[Leadfoot (DOTM)|counterparts]].
** [[Override (One)|Override]] and [[Tankor (One)|Tankor]] are based on their ''[[Override (Cybertron)|Cybertron]]'' and ''[[Tankor (BM)|Beast Machines]]'' counterparts, respectively.
**Racers that are only named through dialogue are [[Tailwind (One)|Tailwind]], [[Strafe (One)|Strafe]] (spelled "Streak" in the Spanish subtitles), [[Skyfire (One)|Skyfire]], and original characters [[Thunderglide]] and [[Behemoth]]. Phew!
* After being knocked off the train and stranded on the surface, Elita-1 calls Orion, D-16, and B-127 a bunch of "idiot [[GoBots|go-bots]]" as if referring to their previous toy shelf rivals (although it's spelled the way that Hasbro does for their own figures).
* The film's themes, "Resting Place of the Primes" and "The Fall", include a leitmotif from the main theme of ''Transformers: Prime'', which was also composed by Brian Tyler. "The Fall" also plays a motif lifted from ''The Transformers: The Movie'''s "[[Death of Optimus Prime]]" in a different key. More specifically, the motif is from when [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] flatlines and dies. Fitting, as "The Fall" plays when Orion Pax is dropped into Cybertron's [[core]] and Optimus Prime is born. Incidentally, this scene and the music are also quite similar to when Megatron fatally shoots Bumblebee in the ''Transformers: Prime'' series finale "[[Deadlock (episode)|Deadlock]]".
*D-16's eye color gradually shifting from yellow to red upon declaring himself "Megatron" is similar to how his [[Megatron (WFC)|Aligned counterpart]]'s eye color changed from blue to red after being denied the rank of Prime (and given to his friend Orion, which he viewed as a "betrayal") as seen in the flashbacks of "[[One Shall Rise, Part 3]]".
*The part of "The Fall" that plays when Megatron rips Sentinel in half also includes a leitmotif from [[Transformers: Fall of Cybertron|Fall of Cybertron's]] "The Great Exodus".
* The notion of the Matrix actively rejecting an "unworthy" candidate and disintegrating was a plot point in ''Revenge of the Fallen''.
* Alpha Trion announces "All are one!" as he bequeaths the main quartet their new transformation cogs, a reference to the classic slogan "[['Til all are one]]!" originating from ''The Transformers: The Movie''.
* An empty Matrix chamber is visible behind Orion's chest window after receiving his cog, even before finding the actual Matrix.
* The throne Starscream sits on is loosely based on the crown his [[Starscream (G1)|Generation 1 counterpart]] wore during his coronation in ''The Transformers: The Movie''.<ref>[https://youtu.be/fo7EwIlSNAs?si=8y1UWHCLv46WKzE7&t=190 Brian Tyree Henry & Josh Cooley Dissect The Evolution Of Megatron | Transformers One Behind The Shot]</ref>
*Soundwave scans Orion's electrical impulses to check if he is lying, a rarely referenced ability from his [[Soundwave (G1)|original toy's bio]].
*Shockwave's eye flickers when he speaks, just as it did in the original Generation 1 cartoon. Similarly, Optimus Prime's faceplate bobs up and down when he speaks.
* Starscream has a normal-sounding voice (for Steve Buscemi, anyway) when he first appears, but after D-16 crushes his [[voice box]] during their duel, his voice becomes shriller and scratchier in the style of [[Chris Latta]]'s portrayal of [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] in the [[The Transformers (cartoon)|original cartoon]].
*Shockwave and Elita have a small rivalry, reflecting their Generation 1 versions in Elita's introduction episode, "[[The Search for Alpha Trion]]".
* Soundwave orders the High Guard to "[[Decepticon Mini-Cassette|eject]]" when descending on Sentinel's tower.
[[File:TFoneOrionJump.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Let my people go!]]
* During the battle in Sentinel Prime's tower, Orion leaps into the air and shoots one of the Trackers, with his midair pose homaging Optimus Prime's famous midair shooting pose from ''The Transformers: The Movie''.
* Megatron is the 'bot who shoots Orion and leaves him on the brink of death until he is resurrected as Optimus Prime in what is likely a reference to the ''The Transformers'' episode "War Dawn". However, the specific framing of the scene—in which Megatron shoots Orion and drops him into the depths of the planet, only for him to find the Matrix and return as Optimus—is, however coincidentally, nearly identical to the events of [[Transformation (issue)|issue #9]] of ''Autocracy''. Orion finding the Matrix in the planet's core also evokes the climax of the ''War for Cybertron'' games.
* The fatal wounds Orion Pax sustained from D-16 before his descent into Cybertron's core strongly resemble the wounds Optimus Prime sustained at the end of the ''The Transformers'' episode "[[Dark Awakening (episode)|Dark Awakening]]".
* Megatron disposes of Sentinel Prime in the same manner that his [[Megatron (Movie)|live-action counterpart]] killed [[Jazz (Movie)|Jazz]]—by bisecting the bot with his bare hands. Similarly, this is also how the [[Rainmaker]]s disposed of Sentinel in the [[2019 IDW continuity]].
** Likewise, a damaged Sentinel pleaded mercy and tried to reason to his soon-to-be executioner, the one 'bot who trusted him the most. In ''[[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Transformers: Dark of the Moon]]'', it was Optimus; here, it was Megatron. Also, Sentinel offers Megatron to work together, which they did in ''Dark of the Moon'' until Sentinel briefly usurped Megatron's leadership.
* When both Orion Pax and Sentinel Prime die, [[aggressive depigmentation|their bodies turn grey]].
* Orion is caught by a beam and brought to Primus to be reformatted into Optimus Prime, much like how Megatron was caught by [[Unicron/Generation 1|Unicron]] and reformatted into [[Galvatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Galvatron]].
* "Arise, Optimus Prime", intones Alpha Trion as Orion receives the Matrix, evoking the climax of ''The Transformers: The Movie'', in which a ghostly Optimus Prime said the same to [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]] as he transformed into Rodimus Prime.
* When the energy burst from Optimus' return to the surface blows Megatron off his feet, he crashes to the ground in a [https://www.reddit.com/r/transformers/s/QRpmFJRCXz pose] identical to his G1 self after Optimus threw him off during their duel in ''The Transformers: The Movie.''
* Megatron using a long piece of sharp, orange shrapnel to attack Optimus also comes from the iconic fight in ''The Transformers: The Movie''.
* Optimus using a defeated Shockwave's cannon to attack another enemy is a fighting move Optimus made in ''Dark of the Moon''.
* After Optimus and Megatron's fight concludes, Megatron is shown with "tear stains" of mech fluid under his eyes, precisely matching the fluid-streaks the original Megatron had running down ''his'' face after his fight with Optimus in ''The Transformers: The Movie''. In ''One'', Megatron then declares "This isn't over, Prime," mirroring his line from ''The Movie'': "It's over, Prime."
* When restoring Cybertron's Energon supply, Optimus holds the Matrix in the same pose Hot Rod holds it when transforming into Rodimus at the end of ''The Transformers: The Movie''.
* The restoration of Cybertron's Energon supply is somewhat similar to the planet's revitalization at the end of "[[The Rebirth, Part 3]]".
* Optimus' concluding narration is presented as a "message" being sent into space, continuing the recurring concept of the ''Transformers'' films ending in such a way, introduced in the [[Transformers (film)|first live-action movie]]. This also happens at the end of "[[Darkness Rising, Part 5]]".
*Optimus' transformation during his ending monologue is accompanied by the original transformation noise.
* In the post-credits scene, Megatron brands the Decepticon insignia onto his troops much like his [[Megatron (Animated)|''Animated'' counterpart]] did in "[[A Bridge Too Close, Part I]]". Megatron also orders the Decepticons to "[[Roll out#Transformers_Animated|rise up]]", quoting his ''Animated'' counterpart who originated the phrase "transform and rise up" in "[[Megatron Rising - Part 2]]".
* While the newly christened Decepticons fire into the sky, the glow of the laser beams shines on Megatron's insignia in a way that homages the metallic effect of the [[:File:TF-G1-HD-Logo-Evil-Decepticon.png|original Decepticon ''The Transformers'' logo]], and many a [[scene transition]].

==Real-life references==
* The design of the arcade cabinet in the miners' quarters is based on the {{w|Neo Geo (system)|Neo Geo MVS}}.
* One of B-127's "friends" is named [https://youtu.be/Dd7FixvoKBw?t=104 A-A-Tron].
* As Orion Pax and D-16 approach the finish line in the Iacon 5000, the announcer quotes verbatim Joe Starkey's call of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Play_(American_football) The Play] from the 1982 Cal-Stanford game. "The most amazing, sensational, dramatic, heart-rending, exciting, thrilling finish in the history of—" It can be assumed he would say "The Iacon 5000" in place of "college football," had Chromia not sped past to win the race.

==Errors==
* The history record about Primus, the Primes, and the Matrix that Orion Pax watches in the archives is recorded by [[Laurence Fishburne|a voice]] that clearly belongs to Alpha Trion. Yet, the events described in the history record include the disappearance of the Matrix, which happened after the Primes were killed and Alpha Trion went offline. So how could Alpha Trion have made that recording when he was lying comatose in a cave during that time?
* Many of the miners based on recognizable characters appear multiple times in the background or between shots, with many, such as Ironhide, having numerous occupations and being in multiple places at the same time.
* The High Guard has the same issue. Slipstream is shown to have been captured by the Death Trackers, but is later shown to take part in the attack on Sentinel's tower. Thundercracker is sliced in half by Airachnid, but is present the rest of the film.
* Mirage, with the colors and land-based vehicle mode of his [[Mirage (G1)|Generation 1 counterpart]], appears on the leaderboard of the Iacon 5000, but one of the cogless miners is clearly based on Generation 1 Mirage.
* Chromia is the racer that wins the Iacon 5000, but a bot that better resembles [[Chromia (G1)|Generation 1 Chromia]] appears as a miner too. Production designer Jason Scheier would confirm the miner bot is just a bot that resembles Chromia, while the one in the Iacon 5000 is the 'real' Chromia.
* One of the cogless miners is clearly meant to be [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]], with a black crest, red pelvis, and red pips on his shoulders. However, the scene after the Iacon 5000 in Iacon's medical center has a voice on the intercom paging a "Dr. Ratchet".
* Airachnid's legs are floating behind her back in her conversation with Sentinel Prime after he murders Alpha Trion.
* When Starscream interrogates the main quartet in the High Guard lair, Slipstream's hands are [https://www.reddit.com/r/Transformemes/comments/1gw87v2/something_feels_missing/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=1 positioned] as if she is holding a blaster but the blaster itself is not present at all, resulting in a rather awkward pose.
* The incriminating clips of Sentinel replayed from Airachnid's mind reuse clips from previous scenes of the movie instead of being from Airachnid's point of view. She wasn't exaggerating when she said "I see ''everything''"!
* Additionally, one of Sentinel’s lines in Airachnid’s mind isn’t present in the scene it should come from; her memory of the meeting with the Quintessons includes Sentinel saying “I’m working my miners as hard as I can”, a line that’s never said in the original scene.
* During the long take of Optimus Prime using his Energon axe to fight off Megatron, Starscream, Shockwave, and Soundwave at the end of the film, Soundwave's shoulder cannon is on his left shoulder. In every other shot of the film, he is depicted with the cannon over his right shoulder like his G1 counterpart usually does.

==Music==
A score album, ''[[Transformers One (Music from the Motion Picture)]]'', features the original music by composer [[Brian Tyler]] and was released concurrently with the film. It notably repurposes a leitmotif from his work on [[Transformers: Prime (cartoon)|''Transformers: Prime'']] into this film's main theme. The score also has other Transformers references, both in the melodies and titles of the tracks. The composer, under his electronic side project "Are We Dreaming", also produced the end credits song, "[[If I Fall]]", featuring rappers [[W:Quavo|Quavo]] (of Migos fame) and [[W:Ty Dolla Sign|Ty Dolla $ign]].

Canadian DJ {{w|Excision_(musician)|Excision}} released the dubstep song "Together As One", which samples numerous lines from the film's cast, as part of the film's marketing campaign. Many of the lines in this song would go unused in the film's final cut. Chinese artist {{w|Yuqi}} released the song "ONE" as part of the film's Chinese marketing campaign. Neither song is present in the film.

==Reception==
{{quote|Just when you’re about to give up on stories that endlessly repackage the same trademarked properties, along comes a movie like Josh Cooley’s “Transformers One.” As its subtly confident title suggests, it carries itself as if nobody had ever made a Transformers movie before.|Matt Zoller Seitz|[https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/transformers-one-film-review Rogerebert.com]}}

While [[Michael Bay]]'s ''Transformers'' films were notable for their record-breaking profits despite mixed to overwhelmingly negative reviews, ''Transformers One'' faced the opposite problem. While [[Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (film)|the previous theatrical ''Transformers'' film]] met with mixed reviews, ''Transformers One'' enjoyed an almost universally positive reception from both film critics and casual moviegoers. Critics praised the film's visual design, its nuanced approach to characterization and worldbuilding, and the performances of the film's voice actors, with many singling out Chris Hemsworth and Brian Tyree Henry for their portrayals of Orion Pax and D-16. As of October 2024, its RottenTomatoes rating sits at 89% positive critical reviews and 98% positive audience reviews.

In the United States and Canada, ''Transformers One'' was originally projected to gross between $30-$40 million on its opening weekend. Ultimately, the film only made $24.6 million and finished second in the box office behind ''{{w|Beetlejuice Beetlejuice}}'' (which had been released ''two weeks'' prior) in a surprise upset. <ref> [https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/box-office-can-transformers-one-borrow-a-page-from-spider-verse-and-recover-1236009559/ "Box Office: Can Transformers One Borrow a Page From Spider-Verse and Recover?"] </ref> In its second weekend, the film lost out to rival animated robot movie ''{{w|The Wild Robot}}'', and ultimately took in a mere $9.2 million after suffering a 62.8% drop.<ref>[https://deadline.com/2024/09/box-office-megalopolis-the-wild-robot-1236101618/ "'Wild Robot' Powers To Third Best September Animated Pic Debut With $35M; 'Megalopolis' Collapses With $4M & D+ CinemaScore; 'Saturday Night' Alive In Limited Release -- Box Office Update"]</ref>

The film's theatrical run was finished on November 22, 2024, grossing $128.7 million worldwide, making it the lowest-earning Paramount-released ''Transformers'' film.<ref>[https://www.forbes.com/sites/timlammers/2024/11/22/transformers-one-ends-its-theatrical-run-how-much-did-it-make/ "‘Transformers One’ Ends Its Theatrical Run. How Much Did It Make? - Forbes"]</ref>

==Development timeline==
[[File:Transformers-One-Teaser-Poster.jpg|thumb|right|250px|''There can be miracles when you believe Though hope is frail, it's hard to kill Who knows what miracles you can achieve When you believe, somehow you will You will when you believe'']]
*March 27, 2015 — As part of the development of ''[[Transformers: The Last Knight (film)|Transformers: The Last Knight]]'', [[Paramount Pictures]] negotiates with [[Akiva Goldsman]], hiring him to create a "writer's room" to build a cinematic universe.<ref name="goldsman">[https://deadline.com/2015/03/transformers-akiva-goldsman-paramount-sequels-spinoffs-1201400027/ Paramount Enlisting Akiva Goldsman To Ramp Up 'Transformers' Output] on deadline.com</ref> Among the writers hired are ''Ant-Man and the Wasp'' scribes [[Andrew Barrer]] and [[Gabriel Ferrari]], who pitch the concept of an animated ''Transformers'' prequel set in the [[Live-action film series|live-action series universe]].<ref name="barrerferrari">[https://deadline.com/2015/05/transformers-ant-man-andrew-barrer-gabriel-ferrari-cybertron-1201433402/ 'Ant-Man' Scribes Andrew Barrer & Gabriel Ferrari Join 'Transformers' Writers Room] on Deadline</ref>
*December 20, 2018 — Following the release of ''[[Bumblebee (film)|Bumblebee]]'', [[Lorenzo di Bonaventura]] hints in an interview that the animated prequel is still in the works.<ref>[https://www.metro.us/will-there-be-a-bumblebee-2-whats-the-future-for-the-transformers-universe-heres-what-its-producer-told-us/ Lorenzo di Bonaventura interview for Metro USA]</ref>
*April 29, 2020 — Director [[Josh Cooley]] (''Toy Story 4'') is reported to have been brought into the project to oversee a final draft, which is said to be "separate and apart" from the live-action films.<ref name="cooleyreveal" />
*May 18, 2021 — [[Allspark Pictures]] President [[Greg Mooradian]] credits the animated ''Transformers'' film on his Linkedin page with a 2023 release.<ref>[https://www.linkedin.com/in/greg-mooradian-4a5062200/ Greg Mooradian's Linkedin:] "TRANSFORMERS (Animated Feature), with Oscar-winner Josh Cooley directing (2023 release)"</ref>
*May 24, 2021 — Hasbro CEO [[Brian Goldner]] confirms the animated feature is in development, and will be released at some point after ''[[Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (film)|Transformers: Rise of the Beasts]]''.<ref>[https://news.tfw2005.com/2021/05/24/tfw2005-coverage-of-49th-j-p-morgan-conference-434088 TFW2005 Coverage Of 49th J.P. Morgan Conference]</ref>
*January 21, 2022 — Paramount announces an untitled animated Transformers movie will be released on July 19, 2024.<ref>[https://collider.com/new-transformers-animated-movie-release-date/ Collider: New 'Transformers' Animated Movie Release Date Set For 2024]</ref>
*April 20, 2023 — di Bonaventura reveals that the entire film takes place on Cybertron, and the setting explores how they begin to question the hierarchy of how their society has gotten stratified, and how the common man doesn't have the voice that they want to have.<ref name=collider2023>[https://collider.com/transformers-animated-movie-characters-plot-cybertron-lorenzo-di-bonaventura-comments/ Here’s What the New Animated ‘Transformers’ Movie Is About (Exclusive)]</ref>
*April 21, 2023 — A day after the previous interview, di Bonaventura confirms [[Industrial Light & Magic]]'s involvement as the film's animation studio, bringing the company back to the franchise for the first time since ''Bumblebee''.<ref>[https://collider.com/new-transformers-animated-movie-ilm-lorenzo-di-bonaventura-comments/ The New 'Transformers' Animated Movie Is Partnering With an Industry Giant for the CGI (Exclusive)]/</ref>
*April 27, 2023 — The first members of the film's voice cast are revealed, consisting of [[Chris Hemsworth]] as Optimus Prime, [[Brian Tyree Henry]] as Megatron, [[Scarlett Johansson]] as Elita, [[Keegan-Michael Key]] as Bumblebee, [[Jon Hamm]] as Sentinel Prime, and [[Laurence Fishburne]] as Alpha Trion.<ref>[https://variety.com/2023/film/news/transformers-animated-prequel-chris-hemsworth-scarlett-johansson-1235596692/ ‘Transformers’ Animated Prequel Sets Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson and More Voice Cast]</ref>
*May 24, 2023 — Paramount moves the film's release date to September 13, 2024.<ref>[https://deadline.com/2023/05/transformers-one-release-date-pushed-by-paramount-1235379167/ ‘Transformers One’: Paramount Pushes Date For Animated Feature]</ref>
*June 7, 2023 — di Bonaventura teases how the film stands out from previous entries in the franchise, praises Chris Hemsworth's casting as Optimus Prime, and mentions a vocal transition from Hemsworth's voice to [[Peter Cullen]]'s as the character for audiences to witness. [[Steve Desmond]] and [[Michael Sherman]] (''Knock at the Cabin'') were revealed to be additional writers for the film, but where uncredited when the final credit came in.<ref>[https://collider.com/transformers-one-chris-hemsworth-optimus-prime-lorenzo-di-bonaventura-comments/ 'Transformers One' Producer Is Already Hyped for Chris Hemsworth's Optimus Prime]</ref>
*June 15, 2023 — Scarlett Johansson discusses the film's animation and praises Cooley as director.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWqG5mlRxzs Scarlett Johansson Says Transformers One Looks So Cool]</ref> Chris Hemsworth later brings details on voicing Optimus Prime for the film and his reasoning he joined the project through his love of the script. He confirms that he will not use his regular voice for the character.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWrsvSzWHoE Chris Hemsworth's Optimus Prime Sadly Won't Be Australian in Transformers One]</ref>
*July 20, 2023 — di Bonaventura confirms Optimus Prime and Megatron in the film will be depicted under their Orion Pax and D-16 identities.<ref>[https://onetakenews.com/2023/07/20/lorenzo-di-bonaventura-transformers-one/ Lorenzo di Bonaventura Teases Upcoming Film ‘Transformers: One’: “It’s Something I’ve Wanted To Do For A Long Time” (Exclusive)]</ref>
*December 15, 2023 — Keegan-Michael Key mentions his voice for Bumblebee is closer to his regular speaking voice.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLM71B5xmFY Transformers One: Keegan-Michael Key Reveals What Bumblebee Sounds Like in New Animated Film]</ref>
*April 11, 2024 — The cast of the movie previews the trailer and reveals a new logo for the film at Cinemacon 2024, The Hollywood Reporter also confirms [[Steve Buscemi]] has joined the cast.<ref>[https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/transformers-one-animated-movie-chris-hemsworth-scarlett-johansson-1235871998/ Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson and Brian Tyree Henry Debut Origin Story 'Transformers One' - The Hollywood Reporter]</ref> During the presentation, Hemsworth revealed that Cullen served as a consultant on the getting the voice down.<ref>[https://www.seibertron.com/transformers/news/transformers-one-news-film-is-testing-very-well-and-peter-cullen-consulted-chris-hemsworth-on-voice/48127/ Transformers One News: Film is Testing Very Well and Peter Cullen Consulted Chris Hemsworth on Voice]</ref>
*April 16, 2024 — Chris Hemsworth and Brian Tyree Henry announce the date of the film's first trailer being on Thursday, April 18, 2024, as it will be launched into space.<ref>[https://collider.com/transformers-one-trailer-premiered-from-space/ The 'Transformers One' Trailer Will Be Premiered From Space - Collider]</ref>
[[File:TransformersOne-weatherballoon.jpg|right|thumb|250px|''So how do you judge what a man is worth? By what he [[Toy|builds or buys]]? You can never see with your eyes on Earth Look through Heaven's eyes Look at your life. Look at your life Look at your life through Heaven's eyes'']]
*April 18, 2024 — A livestream hosted by Chris Hemsworth and Brian Tyree Henry follows a small craft launched towards space, with a screen that plays the trailer once it reaches 125,000 feet. The movie's release date has been pushed back by one week, to September 20, reportedly to avoid the release conflicting with that of ''{{w|Beetlejuice Beetlejuice}}''.<ref>[https://deadline.com/2024/04/transformers-one-trailer-release-date-1235889037/ ‘Transformers One’ Launches Trailer In Space, A First For A Movie Studio; Pic Going Later In September]</ref> When asked whether the film is a fresh start, a prequel to the live-action films, or its own thing, Cooley replies "yes to all of the above".<ref>[https://comicbook.com/movies/news/transformers-one-director-confirms-new-movies-canon-status/ Transformers ONE Director Confirms New Movie's Canon Status - ComicBook.com]</ref>
*May 20, 2024 — [[Brian Tyler]] is attached as the film's composer.<ref>[https://filmmusicreporter.com/2024/05/20/brian-tyler-scoring-josh-cooleys-transformers-one/ Brian Tyler Scoring Josh Cooley’s ‘Transformers One’ - Filmmusicreporter.com]</ref>
*June 7, 2024 — Production for the film is revealed to be finished in the following month.<ref>[https://news.tfw2005.com/2024/06/07/work-on-transformers-one-animated-movie-is-set-to-wrap-up-in-july-513038 Work On Transformers: One Animated Movie Is Set To Wrap Up In July - TFW2005]</ref>
*June 10, 2024 — A work-in-progress cut of the film was screened at the {{w|Annecy International Animation Film Festival}} to a standing ovation.<ref>[https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/transformers-one-chris-hemsworth-scarlett-johansson-1235918820/ Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson’s ‘Transformers One’ Draws Laughs, Cheers in Its Annecy Debut - Hollywood Reporter]</ref>
*June 12, 2024 — Several media outlets, including representatives from TFWiki, are invited to an [[Transformers One London advance screening|advance screening]] hosted by di Bonaventura and Cooley.
*June 18, 2024 — Production designer Jason Scheier confirms animation for the film is finished.<ref>[https://twitter.com/ScheierJason/status/1803227407404638226/ Production Designer Jason Scheier's post on Twitter]</ref>
*June 27, 2024 — Sound-mixing for the film is finished, with production finally now complete around three months in advance of release.<ref>[https://www.instagram.com/p/C8vPCEUS3Bs/ @CooleyYourFaceOff - Instagram]</ref>
*July 9, 2024 — A panel for the film has been announced for [[San Diego Comic-Con]] 2024 on Thursday, July 25 at 11:45 am PST at Hall H.<ref>[https://deadline.com/2024/07/transformers-one-comic-con-1236004636/ Paramount Animation & Hasbro Entertainment’s ‘Transformers One’ Will Be More Than Meets The Eye At San Diego Comic-Con]</ref>
*July 13, 2024 — Chris Hemsworth, Bryan Tyree Henry, and Keegan-Michael Key reveal a new clip of the main cast transforming for the first time at the Kids' Choice Awards 2024.<ref>[https://twitter.com/transformers/status/1812285185427431646/ Post from the official Transformers account on Twitter]</ref>
*July 23, 2024 — Cooley discusses how ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]'' influenced ''One''.<ref>[https://ew.com/transformers-one-comic-con-preview-optimus-prime-megatron-origin-story-8676886 Transformers One director reveals how infamous 1986 animated movie influenced new prequel film]</ref> A screening of the finished film was shown at a fan-event at Paramount Studios in Los Angeles and in New York City.<ref>[https://comicbook.com/anime/news/transformers-one-review-first-reactions/ Transformers One First Reactions are Raving Over "Best Transformers Film to Date"]</ref> Hemsworth talks about voicing Optimus Prime in the film and how his depiction stands out.<ref>[https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/transformers-one-chris-hemsworth-optimus-prime-orion-pax/ Chris Hemsworth on Becoming Optimus Prime for Transformers One (Exclusive)]</ref>
*July 24, 2024 — Several new posters are released, along with the announcement of a new trailer the following day at the SDCC panel.<ref>[https://twutter.com/transformers/status/1816111093917573615/ Second trailer announcement on Twitter]</ref>
*July 25, 2024 — Details at the SDCC panel were revealed, along with the debut of the second trailer and Bucsemi's role announced to be Starscream.<ref>[https://deadline.com/2024/07/transformers-one-chris-hemsworth-comic-con-1236022134/ ‘Transformers One’ Ignites Comic-Con With Chris Hemsworth, Brian Tyree Henry & Keegan-Michael Key: How Two Best Friends Became Immortal Enemies]</ref> [[Eric Pearson]] was revealed to be an additional writer.<ref>[https://www.awn.com/news/paramount-drops-transformers-one-trailer-2 Paramount Drops ‘Transformers One’ Trailer #2]</ref>
*August 21, 2024 — A new clip of Orion Pax and D-16 competing in the Iacon 5000 race is released on Paramount's YouTube channel.<ref>[https://youtu.be/7o-bGIBZxdc?feature=shared/ TRANSFORMERS ONE Film Clip IACON Race Begins (2024)]</ref>
*August 23, 2024 — Evan Michael Lee is revealed to be voicing Jazz.<ref>[https://twitter.com/Evanmichaellee/status/1826960202920530306/ Evan Michael Lee on Twitter]</ref>
*August 24, 2024 — [[Jon Bailey]], [[Jason Konopisos-Alvarez]], [[Isaac C. Singleton, Jr.]] and [[Vanessa Liguori]] are revealed to be voicing Soundwave, Shockwave, Darkwing and Airachnid respectively, with Bailey reprising his role from ''[[Bumblebee (film)|Bumblebee]]''.<ref>[https://punto.com.ph/paramount-pictures-our-crew-rolls-deep-meet-the-voice-cast-behind-the-characters-in-transformers-one-in-cinemas-september-18/ PARAMOUNT PICTURES : OUR CREW ROLLS DEEP: MEET THE VOICE CAST BEHIND THE CHARACTERS IN “TRANSFORMERS ONE,” IN CINEMAS SEPTEMBER 18 on Punzo.com]</ref>
*September 6, 2024 — The film's credits song, '[[If I Fall]]' by [[Quavo]], is released.<ref>[https://youtu.be/M3FCIf0HFnk?si=NB1J3bT9XNPOpKCc/ If I Fall (Music from the Motion Picture Transformers One / Lyric Video)]</ref>
*September 12, 2024 — In an interview, Lorenzo di Bonaventura clarifies that ''One'' doesn't directly connect to the live-action films, and describes them as "two universes" that will be "[kept] separate". However, he notes that ''One'' will likely have an influence on future live-action projects.<ref>[https://comicbook.com/movies/news/is-transformers-one-a-prequel-optimus-prime-origin-story-exclusive/ Is Transformers One a Prequel or Reboot? The Animated Movie's Origin Story Is Both, Director Says]</ref> The film's review embargo is also lifted, and the film debuts with an 89% "Fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes.<ref>[https://www.seibertron.com/transformers/news/transformers-one-critic-reviews-are-out-currently-89-on-rotten-tomatoes/48337/ Transformers One Critic Reviews are Out, Currently 89% on Rotten Tomatoes]</ref>
*September 13, 2024 — The film's main theme is released.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFnuXrOH0fs/ Brian Tyler - Transformers One Theme | Transformers One (Music from the Motion Picture)]</ref>
*September 17, 2024 — In an interview with Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Josh Cooley, when asked again about ''One''{{'}}s relation to any of the live-action movies, di Bonaventura stated, "It was like 300 million years before the [[Transformers (film)|first Michael Bay movie]], so if that's a prequel, that's a prequel."<ref>[https://screenrant.com/transformers-one-lorenzo-di-bonaventura-and-josh-cooley-interview/ Transformers One Producer Hopes For Sequel & Confirms G.I. Joe Crossover]</ref>
*September 18, 2024 — An early fan event screening is held, preceded by a seven-minute featurette consisting of interview segments with Hemsworth, Henry, and Key, footage of main cast recording their dialogue, and some [https://twitter.com/damnyouwillis/status/1836584462341054907 hilarious trivia]. Attendees receive one of four exclusive keychains and poster prints featuring Orion Pax, D-16, B-127, or Elita-1.<ref>https://bleedingcool.com/movies/transformers-one-4-new-posters-tickets-go-on-sale-fan-screenings/</ref>
*September 20, 2024 — The first 300 ticket holders at participating theaters receive a poster print of {{w|Shadow the Hedgehog}} to promote the upcoming release of ''[[Sonic the Hedgehog (character)|Sonic the Hedgehog 3]]''.<ref>https://kotaku.com/sonic-3-shadow-print-transformers-one-theater-showtimes-1851649010</ref>

===Changes before, during, and after production===
[[File:DecepticonReflectorEvanConcept.jpg|thumb|right|300px]]
*Although the broad story beats of ''One'' remained more or less consistent over the course of the film's development, the first draft—written before Josh Cooley's involvement—was a silly, joke-heavy script that was very different in tone from the final product. When first brought on to direct, Cooley pushed for a more serious treatment to bring the film closer in line to the usual tone of the ''Transformers'' franchise.<ref name="gizmodo">[https://gizmodo.com/transformers-one-director-interview-josh-cooley-easter-eggs-2000489187 ''Transformers One'' Director Josh Cooley Talks Lore, Easter Eggs, and Alternate Versions] </ref>
*At one point, a bird robot based on ''[[Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2015 franchise)|Robots in Disguise]]'' [[Aerobolt]] would've played a role in the story.<ref>{{citesocial|quote= "In an older version of the story we explored Aerobolt being part of the story. It never made it into the final."|link=https://twitter.com/ScheierJason/status/1840624306465755358|name=Jason Scheier|site=Twitter|year=2024|month=9|day=30}}</ref>
*An early draft had a scene where Orion and D-16 played an arcade game together, which would've featured an 8-bit version of "The Touch". The gag was eventually dropped, although the arcade machine and a different reference to the song made it into the final film.<ref name="gizmodo" />
*Another draft had D-16 as a gladiator, alluding to another part of the character's standard origin story, but ultimately this concept was cut for time.<ref>[https://www.indiewire.com/features/animation/transformers-one-star-wars-old-republic-interview-1235017651/ ‘Transformers One’ Director Talks Bringing the Franchise to Its ‘Old Republic’ Era - Indiewire]</ref>
*Originally, the film would've ended on a smash cut to the film's title, accompanied by a rendition of the classic ''Transformers'' [[theme song]]. However, Cooley decided that the scene would be overly self-referential, and instead [[Brian Tyler]] scored an original composition to close out the film.<ref name="gizmodo" />
*A shot of Orion, Elita, Soundwave, and Shockwave exiting the train after crashing into Sentinel's tower is not in the final film, and only appears in promotional material.
*Concept art for Airachnid reveals she was initially planned to transform into a spider rather than a drone, which is reflected in her Cog Changers toy.
*Alpha Trion's death at the hands of Sentinel Prime was originally planned to show the old sage getting decapitated by the false Prime.<ref>{{citesocial|quote=|link=https://twitter.com/TFHypeGuy/status/1886386574083944876|name=TFHypeGuy|site=Twitter|year=2025|month=2|day=3}}</ref>
*A bot resembling [[Reflector (G1)|Reflector]] was also present in concept art, but makes no appearance in the film proper. Unless he was the cameraman.

==Notes==
*As seen in the cast list above, Arcee and Chromia are voiced by Jinny Chung, the film's story / script coordinator. The Injured Racer is voiced by Dillon Bryan, Josh Cooley's assistant. Cooley himself cameos as Skywarp, the "Control Room Guys", and the PA system.
*Several international releases of the film are edited to cut away from Orion's "finger transformation" a few seconds earlier, as well as changing any mention of Bee's "knife hands" to refer to them as "sword hands" instead.
*The credits feature a dedication to former Hasbro CEO [[Brian Goldner]], who passed away in October 2021.
*Darkwing was named by Hasbro designer [[Mark Maher]], when his boss asked him "If this was a Decepticon flyer, who would it be?"<ref>{{citesocial|link=https://www.instagram.com/stories/markclonus/|name=Mark Maher|site=Instagram|year=2024|month=09|day=08}}</ref>
*The Autobot [[Insignia]] never appears within the story, only appearing at the beginning of the end credits.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''''Transformers/One''''' (トランスフォーマー/ONE ''Toransufōmā Wan'')
*''Cantonese:'' '''''Bin Ying Gam Gong: Choh Chi Pin''''' (變形金剛：初始篇, "Transformers: The Beginning")
*''French:'' '''''Transformers : Le Commencement''''' (France, "Transformers: The Beginning"), '''''Transformers : Un''''' (Canada, "Transformers: One")
*''Hungarian:'' '''''Transformers Egy''''' ("Transformers One")
*''Korean:'' '''''Transformer ONE''''' (트랜스포머 ONE ''Teuraenseupomeo ONE'')
*''Mandarin:'' '''''Biànxíng Jīngāng: Qǐyuán''''' (变形金刚：起源, "Transformers: The Origin")
*''Portuguese:'' '''''Transformers: O Início''''' ("Transformers: The Beginning")
*''Russian:'' '''''Transformery: Nachalo''''' (Трансформеры: Начало, "Transformers: The Beginning")
*''Spanish:'' '''''Transformers One''''' (Spain), '''''Transformers : Uno''''' (Latin America, "Transformers: One")
*''Ukrainian:'' '''''Transformery: Pochatok''''' (Трансформери: Початок, "Transformers: The Beginning")

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

[[Category:One| ]]
[[Category:Real world films]]

Beyblade

2025-02-03T22:33:46Z

Negatwenty:

[[File:Beyblade x TF .jpg|thumb|right|upright=2]]
'''''Beyblade''''' (ベイブレード ''Beiburēdo'') is a toy franchise owned by [[TakaraTomy]] and licensed by [[Hasbro]] that focuses on modular spinning tops used for competition. It has spun off various media such as video games, manga, and anime.

There have been four generations of ''Beyblade'':
*''Bakuten Shoot Beyblade'' (爆転シュートベイブレード ''Bakuten Shūto Beiburēdo'') (1999-2005)
*''Metal Fight Beyblade'' (メタルファイトベイブレード ''Metaru Faito Beiburēdo'') (2008-2012)
*''Beyblade Burst'' (ベイブレードバースト ''Beiburēdo Bāsuto'') (2015-2022)
*''Beyblade X'' (ベイブレードエックス ''Beiburēdo Ekkusu'') (2023-present)

==Games==
===''DreamMix TV World Fighters''===
[[Takao Kinomiya]] used his [[Dragoon]] Beyblade in battle against the other contestants in ''[[World Fighters]]'', summoning the sacred beast Seiryū contained within to perform its "Evolution Storm" ability. {{storylink|DreamMix TV World Fighters}}

===''Beyblade Burst'' App===
Three digital exclusive Beyblades depicting [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]], [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]], and [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] were made available in December 2022, under the names "[[Ion blaster|Ion]] Optimus Prime", "[[Stinger (weapon)|Stinger]] Bumblebee", and "[[Gladiatorial combat|Gladiator]] Megatron".

==Toys==
[[File:Beyblade X Transformers OptimusPrime Megatron MultipackSet.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|One shall stand, one shall Burst.]]
===''Beyblade X''===
Two Transformers-themed Beyblade packs were released in 2024 as an exclusive part of Hasbro's ''Beyblade X'' lineup, sold exclusively on Amazon. Each multipack includes two Beyblades based on ''Transformers'' characters, as well as two ''Transformers''-branded Launchers.
<ul>
{{Bp-a1d1|G0352 Optimus Primal and Starscream Multipack Set ([[2024]]) ([[Optimus Primal (BW)/toys#Beyblade X|Optimus Primal 3-60F]], [[Starscream (G1)/merchandise#Beyblade X|Starscream 3-80N]])}}
{{Bp-a1d1|G0353 Optimus Prime and Megatron Multipack Set ([[2024]]) ([[Optimus Prime (G1)/merchandise#Beyblade X|Optimus Prime 4-60P]], [[Megatron (G1)/merchandise#Beyblade X|Megatron 4-80B]])}}
</ul>
These crossover tops are all fully compatible with the rest of the ''Beyblade X'' part system, and they're all legal for official competition within Hasbro's ''Beyblade'' territories.

Like other Collab Beyblades, including ''[[Marvel Comics|Marvel]]'' and ''[[Star Wars (franchise)|Star Wars]]'', scanning the QR code on the underside of the Blade will award the player with 1500 Season Track points, but will not unlock the Beyblade for use in the game.

==External links==
*{{w|Beyblade}} at Wikipedia
*[https://gizmodo.com/hasbro-transformers-beyblade-x-battle-set-price-details-1851474275 Beyblade Transformers Crossover Press Release]

[[Category:Beyblade| ]]
[[Category:Generation 1 technology]]
[[Category:Merchandise]]

Autobot High Council

2025-02-03T22:21:26Z

Negatwenty:

{{disambig3|High Council}}
The '''Autobot High Council''' is the ruling body of the [[Autobot]]s on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]].

It may or may not be related to the [[Autobot High Command]], and it may or may not one day be replaced by the [[Maximal High Council]].

==Members==
===Dreamwave ''Generation One'' continuity===
*[[Grapple (G1)|Grapple]]
*[[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]]
*[[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]]
*[[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]]
*[[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]]
*[[Skids (G1)|Skids]] — chairman

===''Wings Universe''===
*[[Magnum]]
*[[Halogen (G1)|Halogen]]

===Dreamwave ''Armada'' continuity===
*[[Levitacus]] — chairman
*[[Avalon (Energon)|Avalon]] — the suspiciously reasonable and nice one

=== ''Animated'' cartoon ===
*[[Ultra Magnus (Animated)|Ultra Magnus]] — original [[Magnus (rank)|Magnus]]/chairman
*[[Sentinel Prime (Animated)|Sentinel Magnus]] — current Magnus/chairman
*[[Alpha Trion (Animated)|Alpha Trion]] — head of the civilian guilds
*[[Highbrow (Animated)|Highbrow]] — original head of [[Cybertron Intelligence]]; deceased
*[[Shockwave (Animated)|Longarm Prime]] — former head of Cybertron Intelligence; exposed as a traitor
*[[Cliffjumper (Animated)|Cliffjumper]] — current head of Cybertron Intelligence
*[[Perceptor (Animated)|Perceptor]] — (possibly) head of the [[Ministry of Science]]
*[[Botanica (Animated)|Botanica]] — undetermined, yet confirmed to be present

=== Aligned continuity family ===
{|border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="margin:.5em 0 1.5em 0;"
!''War for Cybertron''
!''Covenant of Primus''
!''Robots in Disguise''
|-
|valign="top"|
*[[Autobot High Council leader (WFC)|Head of High Council]]
*[[Contrail (WFC)|Contrail]]
*[[Drivetrain (WFC)|Drivetrain]]
*[[Halogen (WFC)|Halogen]]
*[[Ratbat (WFC)|Ratbat]]
*[[Sigil (WFC)|Sigil]]
|valign="top"|
*[[Sentinel Zeta Prime]]
*[[Elita One (COP)|Elita One]]
*[[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]]
|valign="top"|
'''Post-Cybertron's Reconstruction'''
*[[Cyclonus (WFC)|Cyclonus]]
*[[Skyjack (RID)|Skyjack]]
*[[Treadshock (RID)|Treadshock]]
*[[Riotgear (RID)|Riotgear]]
*[[Cyberwarp (RID)|Cyberwarp]]
'''Post-Cyclonus' Downfall'''
*[[Ratchet (WFC)|Ratchet]]
*[[Jazz (WFC)|Jazz]]
*[[Bulkhead (Prime)|Bulkhead]]
*[[Windblade (RID)|Windblade]]
|}

===2006 IDW ''Beast Wars'' continuity===
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]]
*[[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]]
*[[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]]
*[[Silverbolt (G1)|Silverbolt]]
*[[Hot Spot (G1)|Hot Spot]]
*[[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]]
*[[Tigatron]]
*[[Big Convoy]]
*[[Lio Convoy]]

==Fiction==
===Marvel ''The Transformers'' comics===
{{main|Council of Autobot Elders}}

===Dreamwave ''Generation One'' continuity===
Historically, Cybertron had been ruled by a [[Council of Ancients]], sometimes referred to as the Autobot High Council, {{storylink|Transformers: More than Meets the Eye|Decepticons' ''More Than Meets The Eye'' entry}} but that body eventually became corrupted and was destroyed. {{storylink|The War Within issue 6|The War Within #6}} Twice. {{storylink|The Age of Wrath}}

Some 6 million years later, {{storylink|Transformers: The Ultimate Guide}} [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] was the first Cybertronian to awake from the [[Great Shutdown]]. Taking note of the opportunity before him, he occupied Cybertron alone until it proved inevitable for him to awaken the others, both [[Autobot]] and [[Decepticon]], if he wanted to resuscitate the planet. While both factions agreed to set their differences aside to save their home planet, Shockwave's de facto reign wasn't met with much glee from Autobot side. And so, to prevent them from rallying against him, Shockwave created and swore loyalty to the Cybertronian High Council, a political body made up of former Autobots, knowing full well it had no leadership qualities of its own and would look for guidance to him anyway. {{storylink|Revelation (War and Peace)|Revelation}} Perceptor turned out to be the only miscalculation on Shockwave's part, being more inquisitive than he could tolerate. Thus Shockwave arranged for him to be ousted from the council, which solved that problem. {{storylink|Transformers: More than Meets the Eye|Iacon's ''More Than Meets The Eye'' entry}} The High Council met at [[Central Hall]].
{{groupstub}}

===''Wings Universe''===
{{groupstub}}

===Dreamwave ''Armada'' continuity===
[[File:Multiplicity Jetfire before High Council.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|We went to sit all the way in the back on purpose.]]
The High Council is the main ruling body of Cybertron {{storylink|More than Meets the Eye: Transformers: Armada|Cyber City's ''More Than Meets The Eye'' entry}} and is composed of Transformer elders, who regard themselves as the all-knowing ancients and founders. However, they either overestimate themselves or they willfully lie and keep quiet about a lot since there's quite a few secrets on Cybertron they appear oblivious to. {{storylink|What Lies Beneath}} Before and during the war with the Decepticons, the High Council was probably housed in the [[Loop]] in [[Cyber City]]. After the Unicron Battles, the remains of the Loop were demolished to make room for a new complex, the [[High Halls]], where the High Council gathered from then. {{storylink|This Evil Reborn}} Whenever they can't appear in person, they communicate with each other through the Amalgamation. {{storylink|No Exit}}

Despite the ten years of peace that followed the defeat of [[Unicron]], [[Optimus Prime (Armada)|Optimus Prime]] remained concerned that the Chaos Bringer was not definitely dealt with and so requested the High Council to provide him with the means to launch an investigation. The High Council refused on grounds that resources were still scarce and that the panic the investigation would generate among the population was counterproductive to the goal of prolonged peace, whereas Optimus Prime had no proof that Unicron still posed a threat. Unsatisfied with this decision, Optimus went to see [[Over-Run (Armada)|Over-Run]] to ask him for advice. The [[Mini-Con]] told him of an [[uplink platform]] on the southern polar peninsula where he'd be able to make contact with the [[Hub (Energon)|mass intellect]] of Cybertron itself to learn about Unicron's fate. When Optimus asked the Council about this, they told him they knew of no such construct. He went to try anyway. {{storylink|This Evil Reborn}}

{{bigquote|Yeah, well, I don't trust '''them''' to tell me the right time, so...|[[Hot Shot (Armada)|Hot Shot]]'s opinion of the High Council|"[[This Evil Reborn]]"}}

Finding out that Unicron was in fact still alive ánd sending troops to [[Earth]] to obtain the planet's abundant amount of [[energon]] to revitalize himself, Optimus Prime returned to the Council to argue for an investigation once more. However, the Council was skeptical about his story of [[Alpha Trion (Energon)|Sig-Omega]] and the [[Hub (Energon)|Hub]], neither subjects they possessed knowledge of, let alone his claim [[Megatron (Armada)|Megatron]] was still alive when four of Optimus's own team had testified to have witnessed the [[Decepticon leader]]'s death. Still, they did admit they had made some bad judgement calls in the past, and so did grant Optimus his request... on the condition he did it himself. {{storylink|What Lies Beneath}} A sudden attack by [[Unicron's Four Horsemen]] changed the Council's opinion, who saw in it the proof they needed of Unicron's continued existence. {{storylink|What Lies Beneath, Part Two}} Too bad the Four Horsemen were actually deliberately sent by [[Alpha Quintesson]], in league with the dissident-councilor [[Avalon (Energon)|Avalon]], to get the Cybertronians to spread their troops thin and become vulnerable, the very problem the Council had originally seen in Optimus's plan. {{storylink|Multiplicity, Pt. 3}}

{{bigquote|'''Jetfire:''' "This couldn't have come at a '''worse''' time... Not that there's exactly a '''good''' time, you understand... What with the unrest on Earth, the imminent arrival of the '''Base Units''' and..." '''Prowl:''' "The Council in siege mentality?" '''Jetfire:''' "Yeah, I tell you, Prowl... I'd rather go toe-to-toe with Unicron's '''Four Horsemen''' than step up and petition the Council for reinforcements."|[[Jetfire (Armada)|Jetfire]] and [[Prowl (Armada)|Prowl]]|"[[Multiplicity]]"}}

After having spent some time preparing Earth for an attack by Unicron's armies, Optimus wanted to return to Cybertron to ask the Council for reinforcements and more resources. However, he disappeared during his travel by [[space bridge]]. {{storylink|Omni-Potent}} As such, [[Jetfire (Armada)|Jetfire]] stood up to place the request for resources. Appearing before the Council alongside [[Prowl (Armada)|Prowl]], his case was initially rejected on grounds that sending extra troops to Earth would leave Cybertron completely defenseless. Avalon then chimed in that it occurred to him that if they didn't put effort in keeping Earth's energon out of Unicron's reach, then it didn't matter how many troops they kept on Cybertron because they wouldn't stand a chance against him. This got the rest of the Council thinking {{storylink|Multiplicity}} and they eventually decided to give the Autobots access to all that they would need to complete their mission. Jetfire expressed his gratitude, in particular to Avalon, but the friendly talk was cut short when Prowl brought in news of a massive [[Terrorcon (Energon)|Terrorcon]] attack on Earth. {{storylink|Multiplicity, Pt. 2}}

Once the battle was over, Jetfire returned to Cybertron to speak with the Council about two bits of knowledge he had acquired, namely that Megatron was alive and back and that he knew what had happened to Optimus Prime. Avalon declared that they now had to face the possibility Optimus would not come back, then respectfully disengaged to handle other matters, i.e. figuring out with Alpha Quintesson in which part of Unicron's body Optimus was dwelling. {{storylink|No Exit}}

===''Animated'' cartoon===
[[File:AutobotHighCouncil.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|"First motion: the honorable Councillor for Tyger Pax requests we TURN THE FRAGGING LIGHTS ON."]]
The base of operations of the Autobot High Council is the [[Metroplex (Animated)|Metroplex]]. The ruling [[Magnus (rank)|Magnus]] holds the chairbotship, and correspondingly sits in the highest seat. To his left sits the head of all of the civilian guilds, representing the non-military portion of the council; and to his right sits the head of [[Cybertron Intelligence]]. While the Magnus is head of state, he has to answer to the civilian authorities.<ref>[http://www.allspark.com/content/view/4966/20/ Derrick Wyatt at TFCon 2009]</ref>

Other seats are visible in the council chamber, and while it is unknown whether they have any permanent occupants, [[Perceptor (Animated)|Perceptor]] has a seat on the council, presumably representing the [[Ministry of Science]]. {{storylink|Decepticon Air}}

[[Sentinel Prime (Animated)|Sentinel Prime]] and [[Jazz (Animated)|Jazz]] of the [[Elite Guard|Cybertron Elite Guard]] were once seen to attend in one of the lowest areas, but they had specific business and may not hold positions on the council. {{storylink|TransWarped}}

While Sentinel Prime was technically the ''pro tempore'' Magnus following Ultra Magnus's injuries, the High Council made it clear they did not recognise his authority. They were later forced to due to the public support for Sentinel after he displayed <s>Decepticons other people had captured for him</s> his Decepticon captives.

Sentinel Prime views the Council as being incompetent bureaucrats, but he's a jerk and they'd snubbed him when he said that, so it's probably not true. {{storylink|Decepticon Air}} He happily ignored them and established government protocol when a Decepticon-controlled [[Omega Supreme (Animated)|Omega Supreme]] appeared over Cybertron, taking action when they were still discussing options. Since this action could have ''blown up the planet'', they were not happy, and Alpha Trion openly said he'd remove Sentinel from office if he was able. {{storylink|This Is Why I Hate Machines}}

===Aligned continuity family===
====Aligned novels====
[[File:High Council Chamber.jpg|thumb|In our spare time, we play [[Beyblade]].]]
The High Council consisted of thirteen members and convened in the [[High Council Tower]] in [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]]. The High Councilers saw Cybertron through a [[Quintesson]] [[Age of Wrath|invasion]], the [[Golden Age]] of Cybertron and the beginnings of the [[Functionism|caste system]]. Aware of the Cybertronian populace's disgruntlement with castes, the High Council turned a blind eye to the rising [[gladiatorial combat]]s taking place in industrial areas in and around [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]]. As Orion Pax and [[Megatron (WFC)|Megatron]]'s movement to abolish the castes turned violent and [[Sentinel Zeta Prime|Sentinel Prime]] disappeared, [[Alpha Trion (WFC)|Alpha Trion]] arranged a hearing for them at the High Council Chamber. There Orion claimed the caste system enslaved Cybertronians and demanded a new Prime to lead them in an age of self-determination. He was unaware that [[Halogen (WFC)|Halogen]] had been told by Alpha Trion that Orion might be the [[Prime (rank)|Prime]] who would save Cybertron from civil war, as foretold in the [[Covenant of Primus]], and he appointed him Optimus Prime and sent him on a quest for the [[Matrix of Leadership]]. But this act destroyed Optimus and Megatron's movement, as the jealous gladiator murdered Halogen and claimed Optimus had betrayed him for the High Council's favor. In the subsequent war, only [[Contrail (WFC)|Contrail]], [[Ratbat (WFC)|Ratbat]], and [[Drivetrain (WFC)|Drivetrain]] survived by going over to the Decepticons.

When Optimus Prime came to power, Sentinel was the only original member of the Council still alive, having overseen [[Trypticon (WFC)|Trypticon]]'s construction, though Halogen and [[Sigil (WFC)|Sigil]] were believed to be as almost as old as him. {{storylink|Transformers: Exodus|Exodus}}
{{note|The High Council's involvement in the preceding events, or events mostly similar, were also chronicled in the comic "[[Transformers: War for Cybertron (comic)|Transformers: War for Cybertron]]."}}

====''War for Cybertron'' video game====
[[File:WFC AutobotHighCouncil.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.66|Hey, why don't we ever have lights? Because we didn't pay the damn electricity bill, ''stop asking''!]]
{{quote|The Council exists only to choose the Primes. It is the Primes' directive to lead and protect.|So... essentially, they don't do anything?|''[[Transformers: War for Cybertron (360/PS3/PC)|Transformers: War for Cybertron]]''}}

The High Council's role was to choose the [[Prime (rank)|Primes]], the leaders of the Autobots, but observed that many Primes they choose eventually fell to greed and pride. However, they kept a close eye on [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus]], a courageous and wise soldier who inspired those under his command, and who was marked by fate to one day assume the mantle of Prime, although Optimus rejected that he was worthy of being Prime.

When war raged across Cybertron between the Autobots and the Decepticons, Autobot leader [[Sentinel Zeta Prime|Zeta Prime]] was defeated and captured by [[Megatron (WFC)|Megatron]], who sought the Autobots' [[Omega Key]], a device that would gain him access to Cybertron's core as part of the Decepticon plan to infuse it with [[Dark Energon]]. Despite a daring rescue attempt from the [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]] detention facility by Optimus, [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]], [[Sideswipe (WFC)|Sideswipe]], and [[Air Raid (WFC)|Air Raid]], Zeta succumbed to his injuries and went offline.

Optimus brought Zeta's body to the High Council and begged their guidance in these desperate times. The leader of the Council stated that they existed only to choose Primes, and that it was the Primes who led the Autobots. When Optimus responded that there were no Primes remaining, the Council leader asked if Optimus would still reject his true calling. The Council said that for too long they have watched the Primes fail in their lofty positions, but Optimus was one leader whose wisdom and courage transformed the lives of those around him. Charging him with the mission to remove the infection of Dark Energon from Cybertron's core, the council bestowed leadership of the Autobots onto Optimus, a burden and responsibility he accepted. The council declared that Optimus was now Optimus '''''Prime''''', the last Prime. {{storylink|Transformers: War for Cybertron (360/PS3/PC)|Transformers: War for Cybertron}}

====''Prime'' cartoon====
[[File:OneShallRise3-HighCouncil.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|We like the dark. Dark for dark business!]]
When Megatron came before them, allegedly to call for justice, he arrogantly threatened to remove the old guard by force and demanded to be the next Prime. In contrast, the young Orion Pax was able to move the Council with his words and reason; they chose Orion as someone who may one day be Prime, causing Megatron to cut off ties and turn to violence. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}} Smokescreen mentioned that Alpha Trion requested Halogen and the High Council to make Orion Pax a Prime. {{storylink|New Recruit}}

====Titan ''Prime'' comic====
[[File:Titan4.2 Optimus faces council.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.1|They're not as high in the comics.]]
The High Council was very unhappy with Optimus Prime for letting Megatron escape. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.2|War Story}}
{{-}}

====2015 ''Robots in Disguise'' cartoon====
[[File:TRID S3 E25 EOME SC 2.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Coups always tend to give money.]]
In the years after the [[Predacons Rising (Prime)|restoration]] of Cybertron, and the official disbanding of the Decepticon movement, a new High Council came to govern the planet. {{storylink|Can You Dig It?}} The Council was usurped however by [[Cyclonus (WFC)|Cyclonus]]'s Decepticon cell who assumed command of the planet and began preparing for the rebirth of the [[Decepticon Empire]]. {{storylink|Freedom Fighters}}

As a result, the now-Decepticon Council blamed Optimus Prime and his team for the ruination of Cybertron. The High Council endeavoured to bury Optimus's legacy and push the former members of his team into obscurity, {{storylink|Decepticon Island (Part 1)}} as well as blacklisting anyone who stood by Optimus or defended his memory. They also vowed to keep Cybertron out of interplanetary affairs. {{storylink|Enemy of My Enemy (RID)|Enemy of My Enemy}}

[[Clampdown (RID)|Clampdown]] attempted to blackmail one of the Council members, landing him in prison. {{storylink|Sideways (episode)|Sideways}} They were displeased when [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]] illegally used a space bridge to return to Earth. Some time later, they dispatched [[Jazz (WFC)|Jazz]] to both investigate the crash and distress signal of the ''[[Alchemor (RID)|Alchemor]]'', and to get answers from Bumblebee. However, after a brief stay on Earth, Jazz promised to smooth things over with the Council on Bumblebee's behalf while he remained behind to capture the ''Alchemor''{{'}}s escaped Decepticons. {{storylink|Can You Dig It?}} The Council responded to the news by placing a bounty on Bumblebee's head which both [[Drift (RID)|Drift]] and [[Fracture (RID)|Fracture]] intended to collect on. {{storylink|Hunting Season}}

After the ''Alchemor'' prisoners had been rounded up, Optimus announced his intent to return to Cybertron to confront the new Council. {{storylink|Decepticon Island (Part 2)}} When the ''Alchemor'' returned to Cybertron, the Council freed [[Steeljaw's Pack]] offering them a pardon in exchange for terminating the [[Bee Team (RID)|Bee Team]]. {{storylink|Exiles}} Desiring to summon [[Megatron (WFC)|Megatron]], the Council genetically engineered several Activator [[Mini-Con]]s to free [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] from the [[Shadowzone (dimension)|Shadowzone]] so that he could build a beacon to contact Megatron so that he could lead the Decepticons to glory. {{storylink|Collateral Damage}} {{storylink|Freedom Fighters}}

Anticipating that the people of Cybertron would never willingly support their plans, the Council developed mass mind control techniques. This conversation was overheard by Drift and prompted the High Council to upgrade the defenses of [[High Council Tower|their building]] with sub-sonics. {{storylink|Enemy of My Enemy (RID)|Enemy of My Enemy}} With the mind control system in place, the Council sent an enthralled [[Dropforge]] to arrest the Bee Team. {{storylink|Five Fugitives}}

In preparation for galactic conquest, the High Council dispatched an advance force to Earth to construct a [[space bridge]] receiver, intending to send in a larger incursion in the future. Optimus Prime had gathered intelligence of the Council's corruption during his time on Cybertron but ultimately sent the Bee Team to thwart their plans, reasoning that going with his own team would be too recognizable. The team was joined by [[Steeljaw (RID)|Steeljaw]], who wanted revenge on the Council. Soon after its arrival, the group was surrounded by Council-controlled forces. {{storylink|Enemy of My Enemy (RID)|Enemy of My Enemy}}

While the Council broadcasted to Cybertron that the "glorious invasion of Earth" would soon be upon them, the Bee Team infiltrated the Council chambers and deactivated [[Cyberwarp (RID)|Cyberwarp]]'s [[Light Bender|light bender]], exposing their true Decepticon bodies to the populace. To combat the Autobots, the Council combined into [[Galvatronus (RID)|Galvatronus]]. After the space bridge receiver had been destroyed, Steeljaw managed to deactivate the mind control signal, allowing the population to see Galvatronus announcing the Council's loyalty to Megatron as well as their plans for conquest. Due to Cyberwarp's uncertainty in the Decepticon cause, [[Ultra Bee]] was able to fell Galvatronus.

In the aftermath, Optimus Prime declined the opportunity to assume leadership of Cybertron, instead opting to take a sabbatical. He selected [[Ratchet (WFC)|Ratchet]], Jazz, [[Bulkhead (Prime)|Bulkhead]], and [[Windblade (RID)|Windblade]] to form a temporary High Council until free elections could be held. {{storylink|Freedom Fighters}}

===2006 IDW ''Beast Wars'' continuity===
Over the course of the [[Great War (G1)|Great War]], Optimus Prime supervised the Autobot High Council and its efforts; as the war drew to a close it had expanded its roster to include members of the [[Maximal]] faction. The death of Optimus Prime prompted the surviving members to reorganize their administration into the [[Primal Council]]. {{storylink|Dawn of the Predacus}}

===''Cyberverse'' cartoon===
Early into the [[Great War (Cyberverse)|Great War]], [[Megatron (Cyberverse)|Megatron]] led an attack on the High Council's chamber, with only [[Alpha Trion (Cyberverse)|Alpha Trion]] surviving, albeit with fatal injuries. When [[Optimus Prime (Cyberverse)|Optimus]] arrived at the ruined chamber, Trion entrusted him with the [[Matrix of Leadership]] before he allowed his injuries to claim his life. {{storylink|Matrix of Leadership (episode)|Matrix of Leadership}}

As the Autobots rebuilt the [[Grand Imperium]] following the War's end, Optimus announced his intention for a new High Council to one day rule from within its halls. {{storylink|Enemy Line}}

==Games==
===''Transformers: Earth Wars''===
{{Charstubgames|{{Storylink|Transformers: Earth Wars}}}}

==Notes==
*[[Derrick J. Wyatt]] originally intended to have [[Botanica (Animated)|Botanica]] as a member of the Council in ''[[Transformers Animated (franchise)|Animated]]'', but due to unknown circumstances, this plan fell through for the [[Transformers Animated (cartoon)|cartoon]].<ref>[http://unicron-events-interviews.blogspot.com/2008/04/derrick-wyatt-interview-part-2.html Derrick Wyatt interview, Part 2 at Unicron.com]</ref> ''[[Transformers Animated: The AllSpark Almanac II|The AllSpark Almanac II]]'' picked up on this and established her as a member of the council after all.

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Animated subgroups]]
[[Category:Autobot leaders]]
[[Category:Councils]]
[[Category:Cyberverse subgroups]]
[[Category:Energon subgroups]]
[[Category:Generation 1 subgroups]]
[[Category:Prime subgroups]]
[[Category:Robots in Disguise (2015) subgroups]]
[[Category:Transformer governments]]
[[Category:War for Cybertron subgroups]]

Megatron (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity

2024-12-30T03:25:37Z

Negatwenty:

{{factions|decepticon|decepticong2|predacon}}
{{suite}}
[[File:TFU Megatron Marvel.jpg|thumb|Head on - apply prototypical helmet directly to the forehead.]]
Humiliated but never humbled, '''[[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]]'''<nowiki/>'s tale in [[Marvel Comics continuity|Marvel Comics]] is one of survival against all odds!
==Marvel ''The Transformers'' comics==
{{noteukonly}}
[[File:State games 1.JPG|left|thumb|upright=0.8|ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED?]]
Four million years ago, ''Megatron was a sports hero in the dictator-run city-state of [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]], both as a gladiator in the [[Games (competition)|Games]]'' and a renowned marksman in the [[IntraFormers Sharpshooting Competition]]. In both instances, he competed against [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]]'s [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Optimus Prime]]. {{storylink|State Games}} {{storylink|Sureshot (G1)|Sureshot's ''Transformers Universe'' entry}} ''Unknown to anyone, he had wider ambitions: he wanted to establish a vast empire in space, with Cybertron as a mobile battle-station!'' {{storylink|State Games}} {{storylink|The Transformers (issue)|The Transformers}}

''Megatron became famous in the arena for his incredible brutality: instead of a ritualised show, he just kicked the crap out of people and everyone loved it! Most did not spot that Megatron was deliberately working the crowd to gain support. Optimus had to intervene in a Tarn match to stop Megatron from actually killing [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]]. When the Vos-Tarn war broke out, Megatron decided to head for Iacon to further his ambitions and teamed up with Optimus, who was escorting the [[Overlord (rank)|Overlord]] to safety. En route, he picked up a [[fusion cannon]] from a dead soldier. When Optimus left Megatron to guard the aging figurehead, Megatron left him to die; the Overlord's bodyguard [[Ravage (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Ravage]] went with him, seeing him as a future leader in the making.''

[[File:LegionOfTheLost1-Megatronorigin.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|No, not fascist at all.]]
''Once in Iacon, he started the Decepticons out of the war's bitter survivors: he knew they needed someone to blame and pointed them at Iacon.'' {{storylink|State Games}} ''The Autobots initially believed the 'Cons were just cranks'' {{storylink|Legion of the Lost!}} but Megatron and the Decepticons developed the ability of transformation, using it to begin the war against the Autobots. {{storylink|The Transformers (issue)|The Transformers}} Many of the Autobots, completely unprepared for Megatron's initial strike, fell in battle. Optimus was barely able to form a cohesive army to fight back in time to save his kind from a total genocide. {{storylink|Once upon a Time...}} The Autobots eventually managed to fight back by mimicking the Decepticons' transformation technology. Megatron declared his intent to transform [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] into a "cosmic dreadnought" to conquer the universe. {{storylink|The Transformers (issue)|The Transformers}} ''However, he would only get as far as building massive engines deep beneath the planet's surface.'' {{storylink|Legion of the Lost!}} ''His Decepticons included Tarn and Vos's former leaders, [[Shockwave (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Shockwave]] and [[Starscream (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Starscream]],'' {{storylink|State Games}} ''and that surely could not come back to bite him!''

''[[Stanix]] was one of the first regions Megatron managed to conquer.'' {{storylink|The Magnificent Six!}}

[[File:Megatron brings these gifts TO YOU.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|left]]
Megatron wanted to plunder whatever High Circuitmaster [[Boltax (G1)|Boltax]] was working on but the [[neutral]] was protected by a treaty. The instant he saw Optimus heading there, violating the agreement, he took the opportunity to storm the [[Temple of Knowledge]]. Boltax and all his [[Disciples of Boltax|disciples]] were killed and the planet's superdatabase, the [[Underbase]], almost taken. In order to keep the Underbase out of Megatron's hands, Optimus Prime destroyed the temple and launched the Underbase into space. {{storylink|The Flames of Boltax!}}

[[File:Megatrong1earlymarvel.jpg|upright=1|thumb|Check out my awesome preproduction model!]]
''After the death of [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Sentinel Prime]], Megatron's troops poised themselves around the Autobot capital city of [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]], slowly disintegrating its defenses. [[Emirate]] [[Xaaron]] chose Optimus Prime, a warrior, to take the [[Council of Autobot Elders]]' place as leader of the Autobot forces. Optimus Prime and Megatron's armies then met in battle, and Megatron's forces were defeated when the Autobots detonated a bridge underneath their feet. This failed to keep Megatron down for long, however.'' {{storylink|And There Shall Come...a Leader!}}

In time, the war grew so fierce that Cybertron itself was shaken from its orbit, and set adrift in the cosmos. Eventually, over a thousand years after Megatron's war had begun,<ref>The length of the war is given as "over a thousand years" in [[The Transformers (issue)|Marvel Comics #1]], but it's said to be just a hundred years in Marvel UK's [[Legion of the Lost!|Legion of the Lost!, Part 1]].</ref> the planet fell into the path of an asteroid cluster in the Sol system that threatened to destroy it, and so Optimus Prime led a contingent of his troops in the [[Ark (G1)|Ark]] to reduce the asteroids to rubble, saving Cybertron. The plan was a success, but immediately afterwards, Megatron and his troops attacked, forcing Optimus Prime to crash the Ark into prehistoric Earth. {{storylink|The Transformers (issue)|The Transformers}} {{storylink|Cold Comfort and Joy!}}

Four million years later, in [[1984]], the Transformers were reawakened, and Megatron immediately set about trying to locate a source of fuel for the Decepticons. {{storylink|The Transformers (issue)|The Transformers}} After having his troops construct a fortress out of a nuclear power plant, Megatron found that they were unable to withdraw usable fuel from it. Overhearing the Autobots' plan to have new ally [[Sparkplug Witwicky]] develop usable fuel out of Earth gasoline, Megatron's forces engaged the Autobots in a battle which ended in the kidnapping of the human. {{storylink|Power Play!}} {{storylink|Cold Comfort and Joy!}} Back at their fortress, Megatron forced him to develop a conversion process. Megatron soon found his Decepticons and his base of operations under siege by the Autobot [[Gears (G1)|Gears]] and a strange super-powered human named [[Spider-Man]]. Despite Spider-Man's webbing proving to be of little use against the might of Megatron, the pair escaped with Sparkplug. However, the mechanic had already managed to convert Earth fuel into usable energy for the Decepticons, and given them the means to implement this process. {{storylink|Prisoner of War!}}

[[File:Megatrong1marvelblackhole.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|In early Marvel UK stories, Megatron's colors were blinged up to match his box art.]]
''After an argument with Megatron, Starscream left their headquarters and set about on a plan to position himself above Megatron in the eyes of his comrades. Ravage, sent by Megatron to spy on Starscream, was discovered overhearing Starscream's treachery, and so Starscream tried to eliminate the elusive jaguar. This enraged Megatron, who punished Starscream with a [[Trial by Combat]] against the Autobot [[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]].'' {{storylink|The Enemy Within!}} ''Soon, Megatron and the full fury of the Decepticons under his command laid siege to the Ark itself, but his attack was stopped short by a malfunctioning [[Aunty|Auntie]], the Ark's computer system. Captured with Optimus Prime in a stasis field, Auntie's fatal intentions towards them prompted Megatron to activate his rarely-used ability to tap into the power of a black hole. This proved unnecessary after Ravage and [[Windcharger (G1)|Windcharger]] saved them, so Megatron moved to use his cosmic power on Prime—until Windcharger magnetically launched him out of the Ark and into the stratosphere.'' {{storylink|Raiders of the Last Ark}}

''At some point, [[Soundwave (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Soundwave]] devised a plan to create energy by overloading [[Sherman Dam]] with a tidal wave. The Autobots arrived to thwart the Decepticons and Megatron faced Optimus Prime in a one-on-one duel on top of the dam. When Prime was distracted by [[Hound (G1)|Hound]], Megatron knocked him into the river below, then transformed into gun mode and destroyed the dam itself.'' {{storylink|Decepticon Dam-Busters!}}

[[File:Marvel-us04-last-stand-megatron-stands-supreme.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|So begins Megatron's thousand millisecond reign.]]
Fully fueled with the fuel developed by Sparkplug, Megatron was able to laugh off a full-scale assault by the US Army. Less amusing were Starscream's continuing attempts to undermine his leadership, which Megatron answered with a nasty fusion cannon blast. With the Autobots lacking their own source of fuel and the Decepticons at full strength, Megatron led a full-scale assault on the Ark. The empowered Decepticons soon overcame the Ark's five remaining defenders; Megatron himself took down Optimus Prime—only to collapse himself a moment later! Though Sparkplug had been forced to develop fuel for the Decepticons, he had also secretly poisoned it, deactivating all the remaining Decepticons. Megatron's last sight before going offline was... the explosive arrival of Shockwave, who defeated the Autobots with a single blast. {{storylink|The Last Stand}}

[[File:Megatrong1marvelhumiliation.jpg|upright=1.9|thumb|left|Get used to this, Megatron.]]
Megatron awoke in a repair harness, undergoing restoration at the hands of Shockwave - who now considered himself leader of all Decepticons, including Megatron. Chastened by Shockwave's dissection of his defeat, Megatron just barely managed to restrain his outrage at being casually usurped. {{storylink|The New Order}} Chafing under Shockwave's command, Megatron impudently broke free from his repair harness before he was fully restored and attacked Shockwave, but in his still-injured state, he was soundly defeated. {{storylink|The Worse of Two Evils!}}

[[File:Marvel-g1-07-p18-megatron-ratchet.jpg|upright=1.2|thumb|right|Oh right, in case we forgot -- he's actually supposed to be threatening.]]
Megatron was eventually repaired, and assigned to guard duty within the Ark, wherein he stumbled onto [[Ratchet (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Ratchet]] snooping about. Megatron's first impulse was to simply terminate the Autobot, but Ratchet parlayed with Megatron, claiming he had the means to rid him of Shockwave. Megatron allied himself with the medic, {{storylink|Warrior School!}} and the latter located and reactivated the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]], who had defeated Shockwave in the past. Shown videos of the Dinobots bringing down and defeating Shockwave, Megatron headed out to a rendezvous with Ratchet, to turn over custody of the Ark—a deal he'd never intended to keep! As soon as he announced his intention to kill Ratchet, however, the Autobot loosed the Dinobots on Megatron. The Decepticon leader quickly dispatched them all, and challenged Ratchet to fight like a warrior himself. To his surprise, Ratchet was willing to sacrifice himself to knock Megatron off a cliff. Though seemingly fruitless, Ratchet's efforts caused the cliff to collapse, taking Megatron with it. He transformed to his smaller pistol mode in an attempt to survive the fall, and vanished. {{storylink|Repeat Performance!}}

''Afterwards, Ratchet related the story of the battle at Sherman Dam to the Dinobots.'' {{storylink|Decepticon Dam-Busters!}} ''By this time, video footage of the Transformers' war became more and more accessible to the humans. [[Peter Anthony Morris|Professor Morris]] showed footage of Megatron to [[Roxxon Oil]] executives in an unsuccessful bid to get them to fund his own [[Centurion (Marvel)|giant robot]] research.'' {{storylink|The Icarus Theory}}

''Despite Megatron's apparent demise, Grimlock became convinced that the Decepticon leader would one day re-emerge, and that he would be the one to down him in combat. He fantasized about such a scenario while dreaming in a coma state.'' {{storylink|Victory!}}

[[File:Robotmaster.jpg|thumb|left]]
Eventually Megatron re-emerged, trapped in pistol mode, his higher brain functions disconnected. Used as a weapon by wannabe gangster [[Joey Slick]], Megatron allowed the human to rise in infamy as a big-time crook with a "magic gun." But Megatron was eventually restored to his full working self after being tossed to the ground, the impact reconnecting his circuitry. Though he prepared to slaughter Slick for having the audacity of using him as a prop, the fleshling declared he was not longer afraid of anything, and stood his ground against the Decepticon. Megatron was impressed enough with Slick that he allowed him to live, and then lumbered away. {{storylink|Shooting Star!}} At this point, Megatron was desperately low on fuel and attacked a [[Wyoming base|coal mine]], finding the coal to be an unsuitable type of nourishment. He eventually completely ran out of fuel and froze in place. He was located by Soundwave, who brought him back online, and they subsequently entered into an alliance with the human [[Donny Finkleberg]], who used the alias of "Robot-Master" to con humankind into thinking the Transformers worked for him. {{storylink|I, Robot-Master!}}

''Megatron temporarily went into hiding, using Soundwave to spy on Shockwave as the Decepticons eavesdropped on Optimus Prime and [[Buster Witwicky (G1)|Buster Witwicky]]'s shared [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]] vision of the [[Special Teams]]. Subsequently, he decided that it was time to take back command of the Decepticons and challenged Shockwave to a battle at the Wyoming base—a battle that was narrated by Robot Master and broadcast to the world! When it became apparent that both combatants were too evenly matched, Soundwave interrupted them and their shared indignation at his impudence allowed them to put aside their differences for the time being.'' {{storylink|Second Generation!}}

At this time, Soundwave's signal finally reached Cybertron and [[Straxus (G1)|Lord Straxus]] discovered that Megatron and the other Earthbound Decepticons were still alive. {{storylink|The Smelting Pool!}}

After an initial stand-off, Shockwave and Megatron entered into a period of shared leadership after having established contact with Straxus on Cybertron. {{storylink|The Bridge to Nowhere!}}

''Megatron and the Decepticons were having fun rampaging through a human settlement when a strange energy blast reversed all of their personalities! The cruel robots became big softies, who apologized profusely as they did their best to fix up all the damage they had done. Megatron and Shockwave still debated who between themselves should lead the Decepticons, except both insisted the other was more qualified for the job! Once the blast's effects wore off, the Decepticons tracked its origin to England. They headed overseas to retaliate for what they assumed to be an Autobot trick. Though Starscream found the device responsible, a human invention called the "[[Purnel's Auto-Reverse Defence|PARD]]," it was destroyed before he could take off with it.'' {{storylink|To a Power Unknown!}}

[[File:Laserbeakdeterminescommand.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.66|[[Darkest hour|Now...Laserbeak our evilest shoulder]]!]]
Megatron and about half of their troops left the Wyoming base expecting to meet a group of Decepticon reinforcements through the [[space bridge]], but found that they had been supplanted by an Autobot [[Cybertron Seven|resistance cell]] instead. Preparing to attack them, Megatron was informed that Optimus Prime's Autobots were assaulting the Wyoming base, leaving the Ark apparently undefended. Unable to resist the temptation to take it for himself Megatron instead directed his troops there, only to be utterly defeated by [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]]. However, since Shockwave had allowed the Autobots to capture the secrets of [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]], Megatron was able to spin the situation and reclaim his leadership. {{storylink|Command Performances!}}

So feared was Megatron by the Autobots that Skids once had a nightmare about facing off against the Decepticon leader, who laughingly annihilated him with a single fusion cannon blast. {{storylink|Showdown!}}

[[File:Swoop megatron in the national interest.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|left]]
''When the human reporter [[Joy Meadows]] threatened to expose the Decepticons' Robot Master hoax, Megatron led Soundwave and the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] to pursue her, only to find that she was defended by the Dinobots and the human mechanoid Centurion. After a brief battle, Soundwave brought the conflict to a close by destroying all of Joy's incriminating footage.'' {{storylink|In the National Interest}}

[[File:Megatrong1marveltarget2006.jpg|upright=1.4|right|thumb|SPOILERS!]]
''A mysterious Decepticon called [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]], along with his henchmen [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]] and [[Scourge (G1)|Scourge]], entered the Decepticon camp and claimed he was the future Decepticon leader from the year [[2006]]. Megatron found this preposterous, but though he tried to destroy the alleged impostor, he and Soundwave were buried under rubble by the powerful newcomers. Megatron was retrieved from the rubble by [[Ironhide (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Ironhide]], and he and the Autobots forged an uneasy alliance against Galvatron. This was still not enough, as Galvatron (who was revealed to be Megatron himself from the future) easily disposed of all of them, and was only deterred when he was tricked into believing he had traveled back in time to a past that would not become his own future. Once Galvatron had returned to his own time, Megatron set about calling in reinforcements from Cybertron.'' {{storylink|Target: 2006}}

[[File:Soundwave gets it in the face.jpg|thumb|left|[[Kid Stuff|“You cassette-stuffed wimp!”]]]]
With the space bridge once again operational, the [[Conehead]]s and [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticons]] arrived from Cybertron to carry out Megatron's plan to steal energy from [[Hoover Dam]]. Taking control of the human [[Ricky Vasquez]], the Decepticons had him take the dam's workers hostage, using Megatron in his gun mode as his weapon. While his troops stood guard, Megatron then had Cybertron send over a massive drill to drain out the dam's water, so as to funnel it into turbines which would provide the Transformer homeworld with power enough to last for years. But the newly built [[Aerialbot (G1)|Aerialbots]] ran interference, buying Ricky enough time to break free of his mind-control and use Megatron to destroy the drill instead of the Autobots. Although Megatron was forced to pull back, [[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]] took the opportunity to steal a ride back to the Ark. {{storylink|Aerialbots over America!}} After Bombshell infected Optimus Prime with a [[cerebro-shell]], Megatron was able to tap into the Autobot leader's connection to the Creation Matrix and use it to give life to his latest creations, the [[Stunticon (G1)|Stunticons]]. {{storylink|Heavy Traffic!}} Eager to engage Optimus Prime in a duel, Megatron recruited the [[Battlecharger]]s from Cybertron to issue his challenge personally but [[Runabout (G1)|Runabout]] and [[Runamuck (G1)|Runamuck]] disregarded their mission and went on a tour of America instead, until they were stopped by [[Circuit Breaker (G1)|Circuit Breaker]] and her [[Circuit Breaker's Autobot suit|Autobot captives]]. {{storylink|Decepticon Graffiti!}}

[[File:JeffAndersonMegatronPrey.jpg|thumb|right]]
''Megatron summoned the [[Predacon (G1)|Predacons]] to Earth with the intention of having them hunt down Optimus Prime, but Shockwave used the opportunity to try and remove Megatron from the picture. After trailing Prime through a forest and bringing him to his knees, the Predacons turned on Megatron, blindsiding him, stealing his fusion cannon, and absconding.'' {{storylink|Prey!}} ''When Megatron came to, he continued hunting Prime, but when the Autobot leader attacked him, he summoned the [[space bridge]] in hopes of escaping to Cybertron, only for Prime to be transported with him. On Cybertron, Megatron established contact with local Decepticon commander Lord Straxus, whose body had been destroyed by [[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]], leaving him a head floating in a jar. Megatron then set about leaking false information to the Autobot army, leading them to believe that Prime was really a Decepticon spy sent to infiltrate their ranks.'' {{storylink|...The Harder They Die!}} {{storylink|Distant Thunder!}} ''[[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]] was sent out to spy on the Autobots to make sure Megatron's scheme was unfolding as planned, but he returned to inform Megatron that this was not the case; Prime had managed to escape the misinformed Autobots, and was now on the run. Frustrated, Megatron headed out to deal with matters himself.'' {{storylink|Under Fire!}}

[[File:MegatronAntimatterUK.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|left|Cry me an antimatter river.]]
''Straxus soon came to consider the irrational Megatron a liability and sought to dispose of him by transplanting his mind into Megatron's body, giving him mobility again while trapping Megatron in his remains. Megatron resisted the transfer, however, and the process went awry, leaving both Straxus and Megatron's minds trapped in Megatron's body together. Outwardly, Megatron seemed to become more and more unstable as the two personalities inside him battled for control; when attacked by Prime and [[Ultra Magnus (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Ultra Magnus]], he even proved desperate enough to use his [[antimatter]] manipulation powers, nearly destroying the entire [[Polyhex Decepticon stronghold|Decepticon complex]], until [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]] activated the space bridge and sent him back to Earth. Straxus's consciousness fled Megatron's body, and Megatron himself was left with no memory of the whole affair.'' {{storylink|Resurrection!}}

{{GIJoeTransformersfiction}}
Megatron saw the [[Dreadnok]]s' failed attempt to steal [[Power Station Alpha]] on television and set his own plan in motion to steal it for himself. {{storylink|Blood on the Tracks}} After he had assassinated Optimus, Megatron was confronted by Shockwave about the dangers of his emotional choices. Megatron seemed hardly aware of the conversation however, and strode about as though in a daze. Taking advantage of Megatron's stupor, Shockwave put forth his own plan to steal Power Station Alpha. {{storylink|Power Struggle}}

[[File:Megatrong1marveltooclever.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|left|Yes, you're very smart. Shut up.]]
In order to attain possession of a new energy-generating device, the [[hydrothermocline]], Megatron led his newly created [[Combaticon (G1)|Combaticons]] to [[Energy Futures Industries]]. Unexpectedly, he was met by Optimus Prime and the [[Protectobot (G1)|Protectobots]], who had already evacuated most of the plant's personnel. In order to avoid collateral damage to their surroundings, and at the behest of [[Ethan Zachary|a humans]] that had stayed behind, both faction leaders agreed to forego battling in the real world and instead dueled in the video game ''[[Multi-World]]''. In order to have the battle have any meaning however, both Optimus and Megatron agreed that whichever one of them were to perish in the game would allow themselves to be destroyed in reality. Using a cheat code to continue the fight after he had lost, Megatron sneaked up on Optimus, and cornered him. Prime defeated Megatron again, but at the expense of some of the game's characters, and ruled himself the loser because he would not have committed such an act in real life. {{storylink|Afterdeath!}} Prime was destroyed, and Megatron's elation soon turned into paranoia, as he had not killed Prime with his own hands, and believed he could still be alive. Bringing the Predacons ''back'' to Earth, Shockwave had them pose as Autobots and attack Megatron in another attempt to remove his threat, but the plan failed when the deranged Megatron defeated even [[Predaking (G1)|Predaking]]. Believing (correctly, as it would turn out) that Prime's mind could have been preserved on computer disk, Megatron descended into outright insanity, and boarded the space bridge, vowing to go where Prime could not follow—right before he blew it up with his fusion cannon, apparently killing himself. {{storylink|Gone but Not Forgotten!}} However, the explosion had merely deposited him in [[Dead End (place)|the Dead End]] region of Cybertron, where he wandered as an [[empty]], with no recollection of who he was. {{storylink|The Resurrection Gambit!}}

[[File:Megatrong1marveltwomegatrons.jpg|thumb|buggabuggaWHA?]]
''Megatron's absence allowed a contingency plan arranged by Lord Straxus to be put into motion. In the event that his attempt to seize Megatron's body failed, Straxus had had [[Archforce|a clone]] of Megatron created, complete with a copy of his brain patterns, into which his consciousness retreated following the previous debacle. Straxus lay dormant within the clone, which was activated following Megatron's seeming demise, and sent to Earth, to the sewers beneath [[London]].'' {{storylink|Two Megatrons!}} ''There, the clone—believing itself to be the genuine article—battled the Autobots, [[G.I. Joe (team)|Action Force]], and the mechanoid [[Centurion (Marvel)|Centurion]], and wound up submerged in the [[Thames|River Thames]].'' {{storylink|Ancient Relics!}}

''Some time later, Shockwave found himself in need of a pawn to be used against [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]], a recreated future version of Megatron who had traveled back in time from the year 2006 and posed a threat to his leadership. His thoughts immedietaly turned to his era's Megatron.'' {{storylink|Enemy Action!}} ''The Megatron clone was salvaged by Shockwave,'' {{storylink|Salvage!}} ''who brainwashed it and used it to kill [[Cyclonus (G1)|Cyclonus]] in a test run before unleashed it on his rival.'' {{storylink|Dry Run!}} ''The clone Megatron, however, saw a possible partner in Galvatron,'' {{storylink|Altered Image!}} ''and the two teamed up to battle Autobots and Decepticons from both present and future in the apocalyptic [[Time Wars]].'' {{storylink|Time Wars}} ''Subsequently, the clone returned to Cybertron, where it defeated the ruling Decepticon [[Triumvirate|Triumverate]],'' {{storylink|The Fall and Rise of the Decepticon Empire.}} ''but was then confronted with the ''real'' Megatron—''who was still wandering incoherently through the Dead End until he had saved [[Blackjack (G1)|a Decepticon]] from Autobots and regained his memories. {{storylink|The Resurrection Gambit!}} ''Though Ravage and the Megatron clone at first welcomed the intrusion into their base, both being restless for some action, the pair were confounded when they realized who their visitor was. Ravage found himself unable to strike Megatron, and Megatron likewise found himself unable to harm his old comrade, leaving the Decepticon leader and his clone to sort things out between themselves.'' {{storylink|Mind Games}} ''As they clashed, Megatron revealed to his clone his true origin. Though Ravage balked at the possibility of him working under a false Megatron for months, the words rang true to the clone. At this moment, Straxus's mind made another attempt at taking over the clone's body. Megatron urged his duplicate to fight against the mental usurping, convincing him to destroy himself rather than loose Straxus onto Cybertron once more. Though Megatron was somewhat moved to see another "him" sacrifice himself, he assured Ravage that the Decepticons had achieved a victory in assuring that the true Megatron returned to Decepticon leadership.'' {{storylink|Two Megatrons!}}

[[File:Megs ratch.jpg|thumb|left|As you can tell, the Marvel Comics weren't very good to Megatron. Or Ratchet for that matter...]]
While Megatron's [[Micromaster]] [[Air Strike Patrol]] created a diversion which pitted Optimus Prime's forces against [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]]'s, Megatron sent his Micromaster [[Sports Car Patrol]] to capture Ratchet from the Ark, bringing him to [[Megatron's base|his base]] on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. {{storylink|Back from the Dead}} Threatening Ratchet with the destruction of the Ark and all of his patients aboard, Megatron forced him to recreate Starscream as a [[Pretender]]. {{storylink|The Resurrection Gambit!}} Ratchet did so, but also set about restoring [[Grimlock (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Grimlock]], [[Jazz (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Jazz]] and [[Bumblebee (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Bumblebee]] in the same manner. Unaware of Ratchet's contingency plan, Megatron sent the supposedly mind-wiped Starscream to Earth in order to destroy all of his enemies there, then revealed he planned to destroy the Ark, despite Ratchet's cooperation. By the time Megatron realized what had transpired without his knowledge, Ratchet's allies were fully operational once more, and charged the Decepticon leader together. {{storylink|All the Familiar Faces!}} Despite their upgrades, the Autobots were still no match for Megatron in terms of brute strength, and he summarily pitched all three of them out of his base. While his minions dealt with the Pretenders, Megatron chased down Ratchet, finding him manning the base's [[trans-time dimensional portal]]. Assuming the medic was attempting to escape, Megatron beat him to the ground. At gun-point, Ratchet revealed that he had thrown another spanner in the works: Starscream's personality had only been buried, not erased, and would soon surface once more to ruin Megatron's scheme. Additionally, Ratchet shared that he hadn't been seeking to escape; the portal had been activated to bring the explosives left on the Ark to Megatron's base! When Megatron then attempted to flee through the portal, Ratchet tackled him as the Decepticon's base exploded around them, apparently killing them both. {{storylink|Skin Deep}}

Soon after, however, Autobot detective [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]] discovered that the explosion had actually blown them through the portal, and he dispatched a probe to pull them back from the gaps between reality. However, when they rematerialized, it was revealed that the explosion had fused the two enemies together, into a hideous, twisted mockery of a being, {{storylink|Eye of the Storm}} which ran rampant through the Ark. The monstrosity toppled down all who got in its way, and severely damaged the Ark's systems before locking itself away in the main engine room. Optimus was forced to confront it alone, but couldn't find the strength to pull the trigger on the wretch. Even when the half that was Ratchet begged Optimus Prime to kill them, Prime could not go through with it, and had the Micromaster [[Fixit (G1)|Fixit]] separate their bodies. Unfortunately, Fixit could not separate their minds, as they were bonded at a molecular level; one could not survive without the other. {{storylink|The Pri¢e of Life!}}

[[File:Galvatron2vsmegatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|Two mes enter, one me leaves!]]
Their separated bodies lay in the Ark's medbay until Grimlock pumped them full of [[Nucleon (substance)|Nucleon]], {{storylink|The Void! (US)|The Void!}} though the revitalizing effect took some time to help Ratchet and Megatron come to. Megatron awoke to find [[Galvatron II]], ''another'' version of him from the future, wandering the halls of the Ark as it returned to Earth. {{storylink|Exodus!}} Galvatron II, driven to insanity, initially tried to kill Megatron to purge the memory of him that haunted his mind. Megatron was in no state to comprehend what was going on around him, and began interpreting Galvatron II's blows as coming from Ratchet.

Though Galvatron II and Megatron eventually came to terms with each other while beating up Shockwave (he and Starscream had stolen the ship), vowing to join forces and take over the galaxy, Ratchet doomed them all by igniting the Ark's engines and spiraling the Autobot spacecraft into the Earth below. {{storylink|A Savage Circle}} Megatron was presumed dead among the remains that constituted the crash site in northern [[Canada]]. {{storylink|The Last Autobot?}}
{{--}}

===''Robo-Capers''===
[[File:Megatron robo capers.jpg|thumb|left|upright=0.5]]
At some point during the conflict on Earth, Megatron questioned why he should fear [[Swoop (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Swoop]]. In response, Swoop pooped on him. {{storylink|Robo-Capers issue 87|''Robo-Capers'', UK issue #87}}

Later, Megatron broke the fourth wall to introduce readers to the failed Transformers [[Trax]], [[Goldtop]], [[John (Decepticon)|John]], and [[Chiller]]. {{storylink|Robo-Capers issue 97|''Robo-Capers'', UK issue #97}}
{{--}}

===Transformers Annual 1985===
{{note|Due to being published early in the franchise, these stories are out of continuity with the above.<ref>"Plague of the Insecticons!" was later designated as [[universal stream]] [[Primax 1285.0 Gamma]] by [[Vector Prime]].</ref>}}
Realizing that their mission on [[Earth]] would be infinitely more difficult without capable human allies, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Optimus]] attempted to open a dialogue with the American government. Megatron learned of this meeting through [[Soundwave (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Soundwave]]'s monitoring of Earth's communication network. Planning to sabotage any hope the Autobots had of forming a friendship with the humans, Megatron awakened the [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticons]], and tasked [[Ravage (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Ravage]] with guiding them through their test-run. Together, they would pretend to be Autobots and attack the [[Ronald Reagan|President]], leading him to believe Optimus Prime had always planned on betraying him. {{storylink|Plague of the Insecticons!}}

Upon discovering the existence of rare crystals that he could use to bring new Decepticons to life, Megatron captured an expedition team and put the humans to work excavating these crystals. The whole enterprise went belly-up when a group of Autobots shot Starscream out of the sky, sending the jet crashing down into the mine and destroying it utterly. His operation ruined, Megatron triggered a self-destruct mechanism and fled the scene, the impending explosion forcing the Autobots to rescue the humans instead of pursuing him. {{storylink|Hunted!}}

===Marvel UK future timelines===
{{note|The movie adaptation, originally published by Marvel US, is in italics}}
[[File:Megatron bludgeon aspects of evil.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|DON'T CALL ME INSANE! I JUST HAD TO GO TO THERAPY FOR-ok, I see your point.]]

''At some point in an alternate timeline, Ultra Magnus and Kup managed to evade Megatron while the latter was pursuing them through space near [[Beta 4|Beta Four]] by triggering a domino effect within an asteroid field, sending the space rocks hurling at one another until their fragments jammed the Decepticons' sensors.'' {{storylink|Judgment Day!}}

In an alternate [[1990]], Megatron was in control of Decepticon forces on Cybertron, including [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]], [[Stranglehold]], [[Octopunch (G1)|Octopunch]], and [[Warmonger]]. After they captured a trio of Autobots, the heroes somehow managed to escape custody. They were recaptured, but Megatron realized there must be a traitor in his midst. Accusing Bludgeon of the crime, he attempted to beat the [[Pretender]] into confessing. Instead, Bludgeon demanded a [[Trial by Combat]], as was his right as a Decepticon. Megatron agreed, and sent him out into the wreckage surrounding the base, with his three fellow Decepticons chasing after him, eager for the kill. Octopunch and Stranglehold both tried and failed to destroy Bludgeon, but Warmonger managed to get the drop on him. When Warmonger hesitated to kill a helpless foe, however, Megatron executed him as the REAL traitor. He then revealed this was his plan all along, to draw out the traitor by trusting in the sickeningly honorable [[Autobot Code]] to make the spy reveal himself. Megatron also made it clear he would have had no regrets if Bludgeon had died in the "testing" process. {{storylink|Aspects of Evil!}}

[[File:Megatron prime duel the planet-eater.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.5|Megatron fluffs his line.]]
''Megatron's forces succeeded in conquering all of Cybertron by the year [[2005]], relegating the Autobots to its two moons. When Laserbeak returned from a spying mission on [[Moonbase One]], with information pertaining to an Energon run being made to Earth, Megatron led a boarding party to attack the Autobot shuttle partway to its destination. Forcing his way into the ship, he had Starscream wield him in gun mode to slay all aboard. Then, taking the shuttle to Autobot City on Earth, the Decepticons launched a surprise attack on the outpost. Megatron's forces were detected before they could infiltrate the city, provoking him into ordering the Constructicons to form Devastator and simply muscle their way in.''

''Optimus then arrived, barreling through Megatron's soldiers in order to go toe-to-toe with his nemesis. Megatron struck a fatal blow by feigning defeat during the fight, only to pull out a pistol and blast the unsuspecting Autobot. Optimus nonetheless managed to severely injure Megatron, forcing his forces to pull back in defeat. Megatron would have survived his grievous injuries had Starscream not turned on his leader, and cast him out into space upon their journey back to Cybertron. In the void, Megatron encountered Unicron, and the ancient and terrible god offered Megatron an ultimatum; to become his herald and weapon, or to die. Megatron refused at first, but Unicron persuaded him into changing his mind by unleashing some of his corrosive mist upon him. Megatron was coerced into becoming Unicron's servant, and was re-forged into mighty Galvatron.'' {{storylink|The Planet-Eater!}} {{storylink|Target: 2006}}

In yet another similar timeline, Megatron was also cast out into the void of space by [[Starscream (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Starscream]] after [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Optimus Prime]] had defeated him. Megatron was already insane at this time, but his madness began to fade from his mind as he drifted in the void... until [[Unicron/Generation 1|Unicron]] found Megatron and reformatted him to serve as his instrument of destruction. This Megatron was recreated as [[Galvatron II]], though what remained within his mind of Megatron began "eating away" at him, driving what was meant to be a cold, calculating warrior into a crazed berserker. {{storylink|A Savage Circle}}

A time-traveller from the distant future, [[Dicet Alpha-zero]], would one day traverse the time-stream to observe several key moments in the Transformers' war, witnessing two of Megatron's attacks on the Ark (one prior to its initial crash-landing on Earth, another after the Decepticons had consumed contaminated fuel provided by Sparkplug Witwicky) and his duel against Optimus Prime in [[Ethan Zachary]]'s computer game world. {{storylink|The Quest!}}
{{--}}

===Earthforce===
{{Earthforcefiction}}
[[File:Megs earthforce.jpg|left|thumb|The real culprit behind global warming!]]
Much later, when [[Jazz (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Jazz]] and [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]] were discovered spying on the Decepticons' base early in the Transformers' conflict on Earth, Thundercracker and Skywarp were sent out to deal with the two interlopers. The jets were lured near a military encampment in their strafing run, provoking the humans into attacking them. Megatron called off both of his soldiers rather than continue their attack, as he wished to avoid hostilities against the humans for the time being. {{storylink|...Perchance to Dream}}

In early 1990, Megatron had been deposed as Decepticon leader.

Somewhere in the Arizona desert, Megatron and the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] built a [[Global warming satellite|satellite]] that would launch into Earth's atmosphere and detonate, releasing gasses that would cause the Earth's temperature to increase greatly over time. The resulting heat would power energon-collecting devices, but would also melt Earth's polar ice caps, resulting in world-wide devastation. The Decepticons were interrupted by [[Prowl (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Prowl]] and [[Wheeljack (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Wheeljack]], and though Megatron insisted they were too late to stop the rocket, {{storylink|Starting Over!}} Prowl rode the rocket into the atmosphere, and was able to destroy the satellite the rocket carried before it released its gas canisters. Megatron sent his forces to retrieve the device but they ended up fighting [[Shockwave (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Shockwave]]'s Decepticons instead. {{storylink|Desert Island Risks!}} {{storylink|Life in the Slow Lane}}

Now that [[Grimlock (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Grimlock]]'s [[Earthforce]] had installed itself to counter Megatron and Shockwave's Decepticons on Earth, Megatron found more and more of his schemes thwarted. When he used a [[Flashback Doorway]] to alter time and add the Seacons to his ranks, the Earthforce raided his base and Prowl went after him. Megatron, his mind possessing the past Snap Trap, found himself battling Prowl in... er, Prowl's body, but the Autobot distracted Megatron by pretending to be Optimus and defeated him. Megatron was forced back to the present, but escaped capture upon his return. {{storylink|Flashback!}}

As a result of the escalating conflict between the two Decepticon factions, Megatron and Shockwave decided to hold an [[Enclave]] to foster unity; the Decepticon's rivalry was putting them at risk and they both knew they had to unite against the Autobots. This event was sabotaged by the Earthforce by staging an assassination attempt on Megatron, and Megatron was tricked into renewing his [[Decepticon Civil War]] against Shockwave. {{storylink|The Bad Guy's Ball!}}

After being ambushed at a secret energon drop by Shockwave and the [[Triple Changer]]s, an enraged Megatron demanded that [[Soundwave (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Soundwave]] use his mind-reading powers to find the traitor who betrayed his location to the enemy. Of course, Soundwave WAS the traitor, so this proved difficult. He managed to satisfy Megatron, though, by framing the [[Stunticon (G1)|Stunticon]] named [[Wildrider (G1)|Wildrider]] for leaking the information, knowing Megatron would destroy Wildrider before he could explain himself. {{storylink|Secrets (G1)|Secrets}} When Megatron gained information as to Shockwave's whereabouts, Megatron ambushed him, unaware the information had been deliberately leaked by [[Starscream (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Starscream]]. Starscream and Soundwave subsequently deposed their respective leaders and when they came under attack from the Autobots (who had been alerted to their position by Starscream) Megatron and Shockwave were forced to join forces to escape. {{storylink|Internal Affairs!}}

Megatron and Shockwave soon hired a [[Louisiana bounty hunters|group of inept assassins]] to attack Starscream, knowing he would believe Soundwave had sent them and thus initiate a confrontation between the pair. {{storylink|Assassins}} They then hired the surviving members of the [[Mayhem Attack Squad]]—Bludgeon, Octopunch and Stranglehold—to kill whichever one of the two survived. However, they found the Earthforce were standing in the way {{storylink|External Forces!}} as they needed Starscream's help to save [[Snarl (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Snarl]]. In the resulting battle, Megatron was lit aflame by [[Slag (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Slag]], forcing him to retreat alongside Shockwave, who had gotten impaled by Grimlock's sword. {{storylink|The Lesser Evil!}}
{{--}}

===Another Time & Place===
[[File:TFAnnual1991rip.JPG|100px|thumb|Prime and Grimlock disapprove of Megatron's Bludgeon cosplay.]]
Trapped in non-transforming Action Master bodies, Grimlock and the Dinobots snuck a shuttle to [[Hydrus Four]], where rumor had it a new, less destructive brand of [[Nucleon (substance)|Nucleon]] had been developed. However, the allegedly defeated Decepticons were waiting for just such a trip, and followed the Dinobots to the planet's surface, where they were ambushed and captured. Grimlock woke up to hear endless chants of "Megatron! Megatron! Megatron!" as technicians had strung up the late Decepticon leader's body, culled from his supposed doom on Earth, for repairs. Bludgeon would revive him and revive their fallen, and then the war would begin anew.

But Bludgeon wouldn't get the chance. The cavalry arrived, and Optimus Prime's Autobots quickly quelled the Decepticons' would-be resurgence. As Bludgeon was taken to pieces by a vicious repair spider, a partially-restored Megatron, a visual monstrosity, lunged half-alive at Grimlock and Optimus Prime. With a double-teamed punch, Megatron's undead corpse was easily defeated. The war was truly over. {{storylink|Another Time & Place}}
{{--}}

==''Transformers Comic-Magazin''==
[[File:Megs comic-magazin9.jpg|left|thumb|[[Neon|NEON]] RULEZZZ!]]
Megatron held the rank of Headmaster and served as joint leader with his rival Shockwave. 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. Megatron ordered his forces to ensure not a single Decepticon was downed, or they'd be overrun and forced to retreat. And they ''did'' retreat! {{storylink|Transformers Comic-Magazin issue 2|Attack at Dawn}}

Megatron and the Decepticons attempted to convert humans into Decepticon slaves by dispersing a radioactive isotope into the atmosphere and exposing the humans who breathed it in to various frequency waves that catalyzed the radioactive material to convert them to unwilling drones. {{storylink|Transformers Comic-Magazin issue 10|Wanderer Between the Worlds}}

Megatron had a fiendish plan of making peace gestures to Humanity, and made a public speech in [[New York City]] of how the Decepticons would now agree to live peacefully under human laws (adding in the threat that humanity couldn't ''make'' them do it). As a gesture, a "statue" of [[Snaptrap (G1)|Snaptrap]] was placed in New York, and he promised Decepticons would help patrol the city, assist in human space programs, and help "secure" oil reserves. Unsurprisingly, once Humanity was off-guard, the Decepticons struck, and the Autobots barely stopped them. {{storylink|Transformers Comic-Magazin issue 4|The Troy Principle}} Those events were recorded on a videotape that was later found and watched by Autobots on Cybertron after a [[City of Fear!|nuclear disaster]] in [[Kalis]]. {{storylink|Transformers Comic-Magazin issue 21|In Memory of Earth}}

In [[1973]], {{storylink|Transformers Comic-Magazin issue 17|Powermaster Optimus Prime - A Robot, a Hero}} a more standard plan involved seizing an oil tanker, in order to distract the Autobots from sudden blitzkrieg strikes across America. However, Megatron's plan was thwarted, as Optimus had placed [[Micromaster|Micronaut]] squads across the continent. {{storylink|Transformers Comic-Magazin issue 6|A Big Day for Powermaster Optimus Prime}} Those events would later be observed via log recording by Autobots in the year [[2008]]. {{storylink|Transformers Comic-Magazin issue 17|Powermaster Optimus Prime - A Robot, a Hero}} Megatron later tried to seal off New York's harbour with a mine belt but was conned into heading for the Rocky Mountains for fake oil deposits. {{storylink|Transformers Comic-Magazin issue 7|New York — A City Sinking in Terror}}

Soon after Darkwing bought three stolen [[Nuclear weapon|nuclear missiles]] to a Decepticon hideout, Megatron plotted to use them in his sinister schemes. {{storylink|Transformers Comic-Magazin issue 8|Save Nevada Alpha}} They were used in a threat to nuke New York, Berlin, and Moscow if he was not given one million tons of oil! His demands were met...and he threatened to nuke the same cities unless the world's arsenal was handed over! At the same time, he had Starscream made into a [[Pretender]] to kill Shockwave for him. The Autobot [[Classic Pretender]]s wrecked these plans, though, and Megatron was shot down by the mighty Bumblebee! {{storylink|Transformers Comic-Magazin issue 8|Megatron's Ultimatum}}

When both an oil tanker crashed at Alaska ''and'' an interdimensional portal ripped open, Megatron—now holding Powermaster rank!—naturally decided the tanker was more important. He got the tanker to surrender to him by threatening to make the oil spill worse. Battle broke out with an Autobot rescue team, and the Decepticons were driven off, all while Megatron politely ignored the extradimensional battle raging in eyeshot. {{storylink|Transformers Comic-Magazin issue 9|Headmaster of the Dimensions}}

In a battle with Optimus, Megatron was defeated with "hypnosis-blasts" emitted from his opponent that slowed down his reaction time. Footage of this battle clued Optimus in to the brainwashing plot set in motion before and the Autobots foiled it by spreading a particulate chemical in the air that slowed down the radioactive material's decay. {{storylink|Transformers Comic-Magazin issue 10|Wanderer Between the Worlds}}

Megatron sent out his troops to capture the nuclear material being transported by a submarine, but they failed. {{storylink|Transformers Comic-Magazin issue 13|The Energon Trap}}

Recordings of Megatron's original attack on Alaska and his oil tanker plot were used in a wayward simulation experienced by [[Bumblebee (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Goldbug]]. {{storylink|Transformers Comic-Magazin issue 15|Memories of Bumblebee}}

==Marvel ''Generation 2'' comic==
[[File:Megatrong2cobra.jpg|left|upright=1|thumb|Green with evil!]]
Although thought dead for a year or two, {{storylink|War Without End!}} Megatron had actually survived the Ark crash (though his mental link with Ratchet was forgotten), and had quietly worked to repair it, concealing it beneath the ground. From there, Megatron tracked a signal, mistakenly believing it was another Transformer, but instead he found the shape-shifting castle of the terrorist organization, [[Cobra]]. {{storylink|Unfoldings!}} He entered into a bargain with its leader, [[Cobra Commander]], offering him the technology of the Ark in exchange for the new weapons his organization was developing. {{storylink|Realignments}} Reconstructed into a new tank body with a powerful [[rail gun]], Megatron hung around doing not much but his presence caused [[G.I. Joe (team)|G.I. Joe]] to alert the Autobots. {{storylink|Goin' South}} {{storylink|War Without End!}}

He then made it clear that when he said he wanted weapon designs, he actually wanted the weapon ''designer'' Doctor [[Sidney Biggles-Jones]] (or at least her brain in a jar). The plan went awry when the Joes {{storylink|Sucker Punch}} and a newly arrived squad of Autobots got in the way. His new powers were too much, however, and all but two of the Autobots died. Megatron escaped in the Ark, leaving a duped Cobra with Cybertronian junk parts they could not use. {{storylink|Final Transformations}} Both [[Skydive (G1 Aerialbot)|Skydive]] and [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] had sneaked on board, and following a clearly one-sided battle with Spike's [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster partner]], [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]], Megatron was seemingly killed again when Fortress Maximus threw himself into the Ark's power core, destroying it once and for all. {{storylink|All or Nothing!}}

[[File:Megatron ignores Bludgeon's severed head.jpg|upright=1.6|thumb|''Swindle'' knows you're just biting Bludgeon's style.]]
But Megatron had escaped on a repaired Starscream and challenged the current Decepticon leader, Bludgeon, when the latter attacked Earth. {{storylink|Devices and Desires! (Marvel)|Tales of Earth Part One}} Bludgeon trash talked Megatron's legacy but in the end he was deposed, fatally {{storylink|The Power and the Glory|Tales of Earth Part Two}} ... only for Megatron to continue many of the Pretender's ongoing projects as his own, such as calling the attentions of Optimus Prime to Earth by indiscriminately rampaging across it. {{storylink|The Gathering Darkness|Tales of Earth Part Three}} When Prime finally showed up, Megatron's old foe at first attempted to talk and join forces against the new threat of [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]] and his [[Cybertronian (faction)|Advanced-Decepticons]], but Megatron ignored him, and beat him near-death. He then used a siphon to pilfer Matrix energy from Prime's chest. A squad led by Grimlock arrived in time to save Optimus from Megatron's coup-de-grâce, but with his prize already in hand, Megatron simply sounded a retreat so he could begin infusing a [[Bludgeon's new army|new generation of warriors]] with life. {{storylink|The Gathering Darkness}}

[[File:Megatron Tales of Earth 4.jpg|upright=1|thumb|left|Eh. He's had worse.]]
His new warriors proved to be highly successful, and helped Megatron secure the galvanizing additive known as [[Rheanimum]]. Immediately thereafter, however, Megatron's Decepticons came into conflict with Jhiaxus's forces. Many of Megatron's troops were killed in the resulting battle, and Megatron himself was humbled brutally in battle against Jhiaxus, getting knocked out of space and crashing with immense force into the planet below. He nonetheless clung to life, {{storylink|New Dawn}} and made his way back to Earth. {{storylink|New Dawn|Tales of Earth Part Four}}

In order to gain revenge, Megatron entered into an alliance with the Autobots to "put their house in order". When Starscream grumped they could backstab the Autobots, he was told to shut up. But Megatron was forced to deal with Prime's more altruistic streak; upon news reaching them that planet [[Ethos]] was under attack, the Autobots left immediately to address the issue. Megatron at first held his troops back, considering the situation to be beneath his notice. {{storylink|Escalation!|Tales of Earth Part Five}} When he realized it was once more Jhiaxus the culprit behind the carnage, he had his troops join the battle as well. Together, Autobots and Decepticons obliterated the enemy at Ethos. Megatron relished the opportunity to "set the record straight" and show that his Decepticons were better than their "imitators." {{storylink|Escalation!}} Afterwards, the alliance investigated [[J'asik]], a world already stripped of life... though Megatron suspected that Jhiaxus wasn't responsible; the world had been desiccated at a molecular level, rendering it worthless for cyber-forming. Megatron realized at once that the Transformers would need all resources at their disposal to combat whatever new enemy had reared its head. {{storylink|Swarm (issue)|Swarm}}

[[File:Megatrong2idiot.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|Megatron's getting a little too self-aware.]]
The Autobots' analysis of J'asik's remains revealed that whatever was responsible was yet another [[Swarm (G2)|off-shoot]] of the Transformers' race, a "cousin" species that was devouring whole worlds in a search for purpose. Before the subject could be delved into further, The Autobots' base came under attack. Megatron and Optimus rushed out to meet Jhiaxus's forces, who had finally tracked them down to Earth! {{storylink|Swarm (issue)|Tales of Earth Part Six}} The alliance had been betrayed by Starscream, who joined forces with Jhiaxus's troops, and alerted them to the location of the Autobot/Decepticon camp. Optimus and Megatron fought shoulder-to-shoulder while the latter scolded himself over having brought Starscream to life despite so many warning him not to. Knowing the war would be irrevocably lost if Jhiaxus acquired the Matrix, Optimus asked Megatron if he had the means to reach [[Warworld]] and secure the artifact. As Optimus suspected, Megatron had concealed a spaceship nearby in case the need for a hasty getaway presented itself. {{storylink|Total War!}} Once in orbit, the pair found Warworld firing upon the Cybertronian fleet, despite reports that the enemy had already overrun it. Avoiding detection and sneaking aboard, they found that Starscream had once more turned traitor, and seized the Creation Matrix for himself! Through its power, he had merged with the Warworld, and become a living weapon. {{storylink|Total War!|Tales of Earth Part Seven}} Displaying a startling control over the physical nature of the vessel, Starscream took great joys in torturing Megatron as revenge for all of his past humiliations. Though the both of them were nearly dropped into the ship's plasma core, Megatron managed to cling to a cable before his fall, and flung Optimus to safety. He told Prime to find a way to defeat Starscream on his own while he kept his former underling's attention focused on himself. Megatron nearly met his end by getting crushed within a shrinking room, but was saved when Starscream's attention became too divided and his mastery over the ship slackened. {{storylink|Dark Shadows!}} Ultimately, Starscream relinquished the Creation Matrix to Optimus Prime when it was discovered that the artifact was making him turn nice, allowing Megatron to load a ship with canisters of [[Rheanimum]] gas and head back to Earth, where the [[Swarm (G2)|Swarm]] was beginning its attack. Megatron arrived just in time to coat the remaining Transformers with the gas, which protected them from the Swarm long enough for Optimus Prime to defeat the Swarm with the Matrix. The Swarm departed, changed into a force for good, leaving both Autobot and Decepticon seemingly united for good. {{storylink|A Rage in Heaven!}}
{{--}}

===''Universe'' comic===
[[File:TFUPrimus.jpg|thumb|left|upright=0.85]]
[[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]] and [[Primus]] observed Megatron's fight with [[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]] just as the latter was transported to the [[Cauldron]]. {{storylink|Abduction}}
{{--}}

==Fleetway ''Generation 2'' comic==
[[File:Optimus megatron war without end.jpg|thumb|left|upright=0.85]]
When [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]] launched an all-out attack on [[London]] to attract the attention of [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Optimus Prime]], Megatron waited nearby, where he encountered and subdued [[Grimlock (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Grimlock]]. Once Optimus had confronted and defeated Bludgeon, Megatron revealed his presence. {{storylink|War Without End (issue)|War Without End}}

In a new body (constructed with the aid of human scientists) that was more even powerful than before, Megatron easily knocked Optimus down, but before he could finish the job he was attacked in turn by Bludgeon's Decepticons, Grimlock's [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]] and Prime's Autobots. Facing so many enemies and dangerously low on [[energon]] reserves, Megatron called [[Starscream (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Starscream]] and retreated. {{storylink|War Zone}}

Some time later, Bludgeon attempted exactly the same plan again, bombarding Earth with the [[Warworld]] to attract the attention of Optimus Prime. However, this time it was Megatron and Starscream who answered the call and the former [[Decepticon leader]] demanded his position back. {{storylink|Devices and Desires! (Marvel)|Tales of Earth Part One}} Although Bludgeon attempted to put up a good fight, he was no match for Megatron in his upgraded body and was quickly dispatched. Megatron once again assumed leadership of the Decepticons. {{storylink|The Power and the Glory|Tales of Earth Part Two}}
{{--}}

==''Classics''==
{{noteclassics}}
[[Bug Bite (GoBots)|Bug Bite]] believed that Megatron was a key factor in the splintering of [[Primax 207.0 Epsilon|this universe]] from its [[The Transformers (Marvel comic)|core universe]]. The creation of this universe caused the [[Cataclysm (GoBots)|Cataclysm]], which began to replace Bug Bite's [[Gargent 984.08 Alpha|home universe]]. {{storylink|Withered Hope}}

[[File:Megatronclassicscrossingover.jpg|thumb|I got your child safety right here pal!]]
Fifteen years had passed since Megatron supposedly died along with Shockwave, Starscream, and Ratchet when the Ark crashed violently into the Yukon. The defeated Decepticon army scattered, and the Autobots were able to return to a peaceful Cybertron.

Inexplicably, Megatron returned (in a new body) and once again stalked the Earth, rallying the remaining Decepticons to him. Reflecting on his past failures, Megatron became disgusted with his own weaknesses and dedicated himself to refocusing his mind and becoming once more an unstoppable engine of war. Over several years' time, {{storylink|Hasbro Transformers Collectors' Club issue 17|Megatron's profile in Club magazine #17}} Megatron rebuilt many of his Decepticons using altered specifications created by [[Shockwave (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Shockwave]], who was now nothing more than a disembodied head summoned by Megatron when he desired counsel. {{storylink|Revelations Part 6}} First among the troops he pieced back together was [[Astrotrain (G1)|Astrotrain]], who required extensive labor on Megatron's part, and the lives of many human-slaves, to be rebooted back into functioning order. {{storylink|Hasbro Transformers Collectors' Club issue 14|Astrotrain's profile in Club magazine #14}} With his minion's help, Megatron was also able to revive [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]] among others. {{storylink|Hasbro Transformers Collectors' Club issue 15|Ramjet's profile in Club magazine #15}} He even allowed a surprisingly humbled Starscream to return to the Decepticon ranks when the Seeker came crawling to him, begging to be allowed back into the fold. {{storylink|Hasbro Transformers Collectors' Club issue 18|Starscream's profile in Club magazine #18}} Megatron also established a vast business empire on Earth, using false names, dummy corporations, and falsified government contacts to entrench himself the world over. With this network at his disposal, he nearly pushed humanity into a new World War. {{storylink|Hasbro Transformers Collectors' Club issue 17|Megatron's profile in Club magazine #17}} Eventually, Megatron happened across [[Skyfall (Cybertron)|Skyfall]] and [[Landquake (Timelines)|Landquake]], who had traveled from [[Aurex 405.0 Epsilon|their universe]] in a fantastic energon/force field explosion, {{storylink|Revelations Part 6}} but his evil intentions for them were interrupted by human-piloted [[Armored Robot Hunters]] (or RUNTs) and subsequently a small team of Autobots led by Optimus Prime. {{storylink|Crossing Over, Part 1}}

Megatron managed to escape with Landquake and return with him to the Decepticons' base of operations, where he had Landquake restrained, interrogated, and inspected. Megatron was intrigued by Landquake's claims of being from another dimension. He was further intrigued by a radiation wavelength signature detected in [[South America]] that exactly matched Landquake's readouts, and so Megatron led his Decepticons to the source of the signature. {{storylink|Crossing Over, Part 2}} There, he encountered not only a fleet of jet-piloting RUNTs, but also the Autobots again. This time, with the might of his Decepticons behind him, he eagerly engaged in battle. {{storylink|Crossing Over: Part 3}}

The Autobots and Decepticons continued their struggle while events of cosmic significance took place beneath their feet. {{storylink|Crossing Over: Part 5}} Ultimately, Megatron was unable to claim the power he coveted, as an explosion sealed the area from any further recovery efforts. The Decepticons were forced into a withdrawal. {{storylink|Crossing Over: Part 6}}

Megatron soon received word of a delegation of Decepticons from those loyal to [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]] seeking a parley. When Starscream brought Bug Bite and his agents back to the Ark, Megatron was surprised to see all the Decepticon troops turn against him. Bug Bite had a personal vendetta against Megatron, and had modified cerebro-shell technology to amass enough forces to overpower the Decepticon leader. Or...so he thought. Megatron overcame the effects of the cerebro-shell used against him and, even during an Autobot raid, saw fit to behead Bug Bite with his fusion cannon for the pathetic attempt on his life. {{storylink|Games of Deception}}

In a plot to end the Decepticon civil war with Bludgeon, Megatron distracted him with a space fleet performing [[Offensive Strategy LV-117]] while his mole in Bludgeon's forces, [[Piranacon (G1)|Piranacon]], assassinated the [[Pretender]]. Assuming leadership of all Decepticons, Megatron shared his philosophy on the nature of the Transformer race with Ratchet before leaving him in a [[CR chamber]] for the [[Autobot]]s to find. {{storylink|At Fight's End}}

[[File:TCC52 Megatron.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.0|"I know what it's like to lose. To feel so desperately that you're right, yet to fail nonetheless. It's frightening. Turns the legs to jelly. I ask you, to what end? Dread it. Run from it. Destiny arrives all the same. And now, it's here. Or should I say, I am."]]

Leading his troops aboard the ''[[Talon (Classics)|Talon]]'' starship, Megatron reacquired control of many territories previously captured by Bludgeon's splinter faction. When his crew intercepted a curious distress call from the Earth-based Autobots, Megatron ordered his fleet to stay put in orbit around Bludgeon's former stronghold while he investigated the S.O.S. himself. {{storylink|Hasbro Transformers Collectors' Club issue 50|Dirge's profile in Club magazine #50}} The ''Talon'' arrived in time for the [[Invasion (issue)|destruction of the universe]], and was pulled through the rip in space/time that had swallowed Earth, arriving in the [[Primax -408.24 Epsilon]] universe along with the Autobot ship ''[[Graviton (Classics)|Graviton]]''. {{storylink|Hasbro Transformers Collectors' Club issue 52|Megatron's profile in Club magazine #52}} Both ships were shot down during the ensuing battle, and crashed on prehistoric [[Earth]]. Megatron sent [[Tentakil (G1)|Tentakil]] and [[Nautilator]] outside to secure the area, only to discover the [[energon radiation]] that threatened them. He eschewed [[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]]'s suggestion of organic [[beast mode]]s in favor of energon-absorbing armor. {{storylink|Shattered Time}}

The Decepticons detected three Autobot [[stasis pod]]s and through careful planning, Megatron was able to reach them first and activate them as [[Scylla]], [[Autojetter]], and [[Autolauncher]]. He watched triumphantly as the new Decepticons attacked the Autobots, and when [[Depth Charge (BW)|Depth Charge]] interceded, Megatron blasted the Maximal and prepared to terminate him. By that point, [[Ultra Magnus (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Ultra Magnus]] had recovered enough to blast the Decepticons with his [[Blue Bolts (Timelines)|Blue Bolts]] cannon. {{storylink|Shattered Expectations (BWSG)|Shattered Expectations}}

[[File:ShatteredBalance Gigastorm Armor.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5]]
Megatron and his men tracked the Autobots to a chasm, and himself faced Magnus in single combat on a rock bridge. Unfortunately once the Autobots were safe, Magnus shattered the bridge and blasted Megatron, who plummeted to the bottom of the chasm and was covered in rocks. He was dug out by the other Decepticons, and was overjoyed to find they had stumbled on a [[Vok|giant face]] carved into the rock. {{storylink|Shattered Paths}} He set to work using the systems in the cavern they'd found. {{storylink|Shattered Hope}} Constructing a huge saurian mech, he used it to bust into the cavern in which the Maximals had just found the [[Origin Matrix]], and demanded their prize. {{storylink|Shattered Balance}} The Maximals refused and opened fire but didn't even dent the [[Gigastorm Armor]]; Megatron then ordered the Predacons to counterattack. Magnus called out Megatron to come out and fight, but Megatron responded that he couldn't because he was one with the armor. Magnus then tried firing on the armor to damage it to hurt Megatron, but Megatron transformed the Armor to battle platform mode and took out all the other Maximals. Megatron demanded the Origin Matrix again, but Magnus responded by inserting the Matrix into his gun to power up the Matrix Blaster Cannon and firing, opening a hole in space-time that sucked all the Predacons through. {{storylink|Shattered Destiny}} {{storylink|Timeless}}

Megatron resurfaced on Cybertron in the modern era of the negative polarity universe after that universe's war ended, eager to begin grabbing for power once more. {{storylink|The Future Buried...}}

Rallying his Decepticons, Megatron established a power base in [[New Kaon (polity)|New Kaon]]. {{storylink|Divination}}
{{--}}

==''Regeneration One''==
{{NoteRG1}}
[[File:Megatron loose ends.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Well, you've already destroyed Earth without the Autobots noticing, so, apparently a lot.]]
Megatron was sent offline by the crash of the Ark, and, with the other Autobots having withdrawn entirely from Earth, Spike Witwicky and Fortress Maximus took it upon themselves to protect the crashed ship to ensure that he could never be revived. Unfortunately, a group of humans were able to penetrate the ship in [[1994]], unwittingly causing Megatron's reactivation. {{storylink|Loose Ends, Part 3}} Awakening to a world abandoned by Optimus Prime, Megatron immediately set about attempting to get the attention of his old enemy by rampaging across the planet. {{storylink|Loose Ends, Part 2}} When Prime did not appear, his swathe of destruction only grew wider, forcing humanity to turn to nuclear tactics—Megatron was able to hack their missiles and redirect them to major population centers, reducing much of the Earth to wasteland. With still no sign of Prime, Megatron's schemes grew even more outrageous: returning to the Ark, he used the technical knowledge gained from his mind-merge with Ratchet to get the ship's computer back online, and to reanimate the various deceased Decepticons and Autobots in the Ark's stasis capsules as lobotomized [[zombie]]s that would eliminate the last of the human resistance. {{storylink|Loose Ends, Part 3}} Only two Transformers were spared the full extent of this process: Ratchet, reduced to a decapitated head on the prow of Megatron's [[battle sled]], whose bond with Megatron meant that the Decepticon would die if he did, and Starscream, kept alive as torture for years of treachery. These two were granted a small spark of consciousness beneath the mental conditioning, allowed to be aware of their hideous plight but entirely unable to do anything. {{storylink|Loose Ends, Part 2}} But still, Prime did not appear...

In the year [[2012]], the [[Wreckers]] arrived on Earth, unaware of the planet's fate, merely having been convinced by [[Kup (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Kup]] that they needed to recover the Ark, Megatron, and the other traces of their technology left there. Scanning the planet from orbit, they discovered its grisly fate, and were horrified when Megatron took control of their probe, questioning them from his throne in the ruins of Washington D.C. why they took so long to notice what he had done. {{storylink|Loose Ends, Part 1}} After blowing the Wreckers' ship out of the sky, Megatron set his zombie army to track down any survivors and bring them to him so that he could snuff out their [[spark]]s utterly. When they captured Kup, Megatron explained that he was ''allowing'' the other Wreckers to carry out their plan to contact Cybertron, in hopes that ''that'' would bring Prime to him. {{storylink|Loose Ends, Part 2}}

[[File:Prime megatron loose ends 5.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|When electric shock therapy just isn't working, this is how therapists fix you.]]
After the Wreckers had sent their message, Megatron infected Kup with [[Scraplet]]s from the Ark's mech-hazard lab, and proceeded to use him as bait to lure the other Autobots to Washington. {{storylink|Loose Ends, Part 3}} [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] willingly walked into the trap in order to keep Megatron's attention on him while the other members of his team focused on retaking control of the Ark, but before Megatron could finish him off, a familiar voice reached Megatron's ears: Optimus Prime had come to face Megatron at last. {{storylink|Loose Ends, Part 4}} Before engaging his eternal foe, Megatron coldly killed Springer, sending Prime into a rage. As they battled fiercely, Megatron gleefully revealed that he had taken steps to ensure that this would be their last confrontation: when their duel reached its end, whatever the outcome, the Ark's [[Aunty|computer]] would launch nuclear missiles all across the world, destroying winners, losers, and everyone else. As Prime prepared to crush him with a huge chunk of rubble, Megatron laughed that doing so would make Prime as bad as he is, forcing the Autobot leader to relent. Megatron seized the opening to stab Prime with a shard of debris, turning the tables and allowing Megatron to lean in for the kill. It was at that point that Megatron's own hubris proved his downfall: fighting against all his conditioning, the small spark of life in Starscream revealed to Kup how to kill Megatron: by killing Ratchet! Kup shot the Autobot medic point-blank, causing Megatron to convulse in agony, and allowing Prime to plunge his fist into the Decepticon's chest, ripping out his spark and killing him once and for all. [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Circuit Smasher]] stopped Megatron's final solution by shorting out the Ark's computer systems, shutting down it, the missiles, and the zombie Decepticons. Curiously, just after the death of Megatron, in the frozen wastes of the [[Yukon]]... a crack appeared in the ice... and from the frozen depths, [[Galvatron II|Galvatron]] emerged! {{storylink|Loose Ends, Part 5}}

To make sure that Megatron would stay dead this time, the Autobots dumped his body into a pit with the rest of his deactivated army, and vaporized the remains from space. Starscream managed to escape, though, as he wasn't quite dead yet. {{storylink|Natural Selection, Part One}} Starscream returned to the Ark, where he found Galvatron, and showed the time-displaced Decepticon that Shockwave had been integrated into the Ark's computer core, facilitating Megatron's control of its systems. {{storylink|Natural Selection, Part Two}} As Galvatron was focused elsewhere on the ship restoring its systems, Shockwave regained consciousness, and revealed to an increasingly-cognisant Starscream that ''he'' was the one responsible for lifting the blocks Megatron had placed on his mind. Thus, Shockwave had a hand in facilitating Megatron's final destruction. {{storylink|Natural Selection, Part Five}}

Later, [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]] and [[Bumblebee (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Bumblebee]] reviewed footage of Megatron at [[Ops-Command HQ]] as they attempted to unravel the mystery of [[Hot Rod (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Rodimus Prime]]'s visions during his trip through [[Zero Space]]. {{storylink|The War to End All Wars, Part 1}}
{{--}}

==''Transformers '84''==
[[File:TF84 CounterpunchReports.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.5]]
Though Megatron began the Great War with the intent of enacting [[Project Dreadnought]], he became so obsessed with defeating Optimus Prime that he began funnelling resources away from galactic conquest in favour of the war effort. {{storylink|Secrets & Lies issue 1|Secrets & Lies #1}} Though his sanity degraded, he still wielded his considerable power with such skill that Optimus Prime felt that Megatron represented the greatest threat to Cybertron's future. {{storylink|Transformers '84 issue 0|'84 #0}}

[[File:'84Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.8|[[Dalek|Exterminate! Exterminate!]]]]
In his latest questionable decision, Megatron planned an invasion of [[Stanix]], hoping to push Prime towards [[Kalis]], even as his generals protested overworking the troops. {{storylink|Secrets & Lies issue 1|Secrets & Lies #1}} After personally overseeing the city's conquest, {{storylink|Transformers '84 issue 0|'84 #0}} Megatron was informed that one of the incomplete [[Planetary engine|planetary turbines]] had been damaged, sending Cybertron hurtling towards the [[Stellae Cimeterium]]. Unaware that Shockwave had masterminded these events to try and refocus him on building the [[Decepticon Empire]], Megatron refused to act until Prime did. When the Autobots constructed the Ark spacecraft, Megatron commissioned the ''[[Nemesis (G1)|Nemesis]]'' to follow and shoot down the Autobots. When Shockwave's absence threatened to delay the launch, Megatron sent the [[Conehead]]s to find, berating the scientist when he arrived. {{storylink|Secrets & Lies issue 1|Secrets & Lies #1}}

What Megatron did not know was that Optimus Prime, viewing Megatron as the lynchpin of the Decepticon army, had deliberately crewed the Ark with [[Autobot High Command]] to lure his counterpart off Cybertron. When Megatron inevitably boarded the overworked Ark once it had cleared a path through an oncoming [[asteroid belt]], Optimus would crash the ship onto some alien world and keep [[Decepticon High Command]] isolated from Cybertron. Though such an act was a betrayal of his most loyal troops' trust, Optimus reasoned that, without Megatron on Cybertron, the Autobot army would have a fighting chance. {{storylink|Transformers '84 issue 0|'84 #0}}

As the ''Nemesis'' followed the Ark, Megatron, pushed on by Shockwave, blindly took Prime's bait, winding up stasis locked on Earth. As he led the boarding party, Megatron ordered the Coneheads to trail behind the Ark in their alternate modes in the event any Autobots tried to abandon ship. {{storylink|Secrets & Lies issue 2|Secrets & Lies #2}}

With their leader gone, the Decepticon army on Cybertron fractured amongst the various warlords, even if [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]] sent a token search party to find Megatron. When [[Punch (G1)|Counterpunch]] convinced him that it was unlikely that Megatron would ever return to Cybertron, [[Straxus (G1)|Straxus]] grew confident enough to assume that he was now the [[Decepticon leader]].

[[File:Megatron grimlock secrets and lies.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.7]]
On Earth meanwhile, the Ark's supercomputer [[Aunty|AUNTIE]] had been so badly damaged by the crash that it could no longer distinguish friend from foe. When a supercharged Grimlock made his way to the ship, and ripped through the [[Guardian (Marvel)|Guardian]] droids sent to deal with him, AUNTIE responded by reactivating Megatron, charged up on [[antimatter]], and sending him after the Dinobot leader. {{storylink|Secrets & Lies issue 3|Secrets & Lies #3}}

Having to divide her processing power, AUNTIE was unable to properly contain Megatron's abilities, a situation that was only exacerbated when Grimlock managed to impale the Decepticon leader, causing an antimatter leakage. The sight caused the Coneheads to abandon the planet and retreat back to the ''Nemesis'' while Grimlock plowed into the Ark and forcibly deactivated AUNTIE, which caused Megatron to fall back into stasis lock. Back on the ''Nemesis'', the Coneheads called [[Straxus (G1)|Straxus]] for rescue, a request that the warmonger granted only if the three remained mum on the location of the Ark, and more importantly, Megatron. {{storylink|Secrets & Lies issue 4|Secrets & Lies #4}}
{{--}}

==Royal Mail stamp bio==
[[File:RoyalMailMegatron.jpeg|thumb|upright=1.4]]
Megatron was both a ruthless gladiator and a cunning political agitator. He fomented inter-city unrest to recruit more Decepticons so that he could conquer the Autobots and transform Cybertron into a mobile [[warworld]].
{{-}}

==Notes==
*In the Marvel Comics, Megatron was often drawn with his chest [[insignia]] off-center to his right. This is probably due to his [[character model]] (as seen at the top of this page). In that pose, the insignia is centered with respect to ''his belly'', but because of the way his upper body is drawn, it actually is located farther to one side of his chest. (Compare the distance the insignia is from one side of the line above it to the other.) If he moved to any other camera angle, the insignia would look off-center.
*Megatron [[Gone but Not Forgotten!|once]] crushed [[Brawl (G1)|Brawl]]'s head with his bare hands!
*In the UK comics, [[Dreadwind (G1)|Dreadwind]] explains that Megatron is the equivalent of a 'blueblood,' possessing some royal lineage. "That's why [his fuel]'s green, innit?!" (His other working theory was that Megatron ate too much [[Cybertronian food#Earth food|spinach]].)<ref>[[Source:Dread Tidings#Issue 227|Dread Tidings, issue 227]]</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Beast Wars Predacons]]
[[Category:Classics Decepticons]]
[[Category:Combiners]]
[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Marvel Generation 1 Decepticons]]
[[Category:Marvel Generation 2 Decepticons]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Regeneration One Decepticons]]
[[Category:Robo-Capers characters]]

Judgment Day, Part 2

2024-12-30T03:18:12Z

Negatwenty:

{{episode|
|otherseries=''[[Transformers: EarthSpark (cartoon)|Transformers: EarthSpark]]'' ep 44
|image=JudgementDayPt2-TerratronusVSQuintessons.jpg|
|caption=You would never break the chain (never break the chain)
|prev=Judgment Day, Part 1
|next=
|title="Judgment Day, Part 2"
|season=3
|season ep=8
|airdate=[[October 25]], [[2024]] (Paramount+) TBA, [[2024]] (Nickelodeon)
|production company=[[Hasbro Entertainment]] [[Nickelodeon]]
|writer=[[Dale Malinowski]]
|animation studio=[[88 Pictures]]
|director=[[Sheldon Vella]]
|video=https://www.paramountplus.com/shows/video/sGi2dXMWngwWsz1v8GxMN27TcbTNcduq/
|videosite=Paramount+
}}

'''The twin threats of the Quintessons and a storm of chaos energy hang over Witwicky.'''

==Synopsis==
Cornered, [[Robby Malto|Robby]] and [[Mo Malto|Mo]] don their helmets and take out the advancing [[Quintesson Executioner (ES)|Quintesson Executioner]]s. Mo rips the crest off one of the fallen Quintesson before the pair go in search of [[Twitch]] and [[Thrash (ES)|Thrash]].

On the ground, [[Dot Malto|Dot]] keeps an eye out for the kids while [[Nightshade (ES)|Nightshade]] and [[Wheeljack (ES)|Wheeljack]] complete their work modifying [[Optimus Prime (ES)|Optimus Prime]]'s trailer to absorb the energy of the Chaos storm. [[Megatron (ES)|Megatron]] is raring to go, having been repaired from his previous mishap, but Optimus instead assigns [[Cosmos (ES)|Cosmos]] and [[Prowl (ES)|Prowl]] the task of taking the trailer into the storm. The pair take off, but as they prepare to release the trailer, the strong winds overcome Prowl's ability to remain attached. In the process of trying to reattach himself, Prowl is struck by the Cyber Slayer and plummets downwards, but fortunately he's caught by Megatron who has disregarded Prime's orders and stepped in. Nightshade joins Cosmos and is able to steady the trailer. They drop it into the storm which is rapidly sucked into the trailer, restoring clear skies and almost crushing Megatron and Prowl as it crashes to the ground. As everyone assembles around it, the trailer pops open and [[Aftermath (ES)|Aftermath]] and [[Spitfire (ES)|Spitfire]]. restored to life, jump out. Megatron uses the [[Cyber Slayer]] to repair Prowl. The two Chaos Terrans are tempted to just leave at this point, but the others persuade them to stay.

Distracting the guards with some music played on Mo's phone, the two kids release Twitch and Thrash from their holding cell. Meanwhile word of the escape reaches the [[Quintesson Judge (ES)|Quintesson Judge]] who immediately disintegrates the messenger before issuing a ship-wide alert. The kids, hearing copious alarms, cyber-sync and leave the ship with Quintesson pods in pursuit. As their horrified parents watch, they're shot down and unsync as they hit the ground. Twitch is the most seriously hurt, but the others arrive and she's taken aboard Megatron so that Wheeljack can start repairs.

While Mo and Nightshade head for Terratronus, the Quintesson pods touch down and a number of executioners emerge to face the Autobots. Aftermath soon finds to his glee that the large amount of chaos energy he absorbed has turbocharged his weapons. Mo and Nightshade fly to [[Terratronus]]'s spark chamber, where Mo uses the [[Spark Regenerator Key]] to bring the Titan back to life. Terratronus once more stands on the battlefield and the Quintesson Judge unleashes the firepower of the Quintesson ship on her, which she simply takes out using a massive beam of energy. The Quintesson ship has a massive cannon of its own however, which hits Terratronus in the head, shattering her helmet. Robby and Mo rapidly come up with a plan. Robby syncs with Thrash and Spitfire so the trio can keep the Quintessons busy. Meanwhile Mo, Nightshade, Jawbreaker, Hashtag and Aftermath head to Terratronus. Robby causes a distraction with the Judge, resulting in the ship turning away from the Titan long enough for Mo and the Terrans to cyber-sync with her.

Robby, Thrash and Spitfire do their best to evade the Quintesson firepower, but are finally hit by a missile. Robby uses his cyber-sleeve shield to block the massive beam of energy that fires from the Quintesson ship until the ship suddenly lurches, pulled back by a giant tow-line made of energy. Terratronus, synced with the kids, manifests armor and a sword, the latter of which she uses to bifurcate the Quintesson ship as well as its commander. The ship explodes and the remaining Quintesson Executioners retreat.

Everyone de-cyber-syncs for the reunion on the ground. Optimus thanks Terratronus for her help, while the two Chaos Terrans opt to leave before there's any danger they might be hugged. Megatron arrives back with the now-repaired Twitch and the group assembles on Terratronus's shoulder to watch the stars.

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Wheeljack (ES)|Wheeljack]] (9)
*[[Bumblebee (ES)|Bumblebee]] (12)
*[[Arcee (ES)|Arcee]] (13)
*[[Elita-1 (ES)|Elita-1]] (14)
*[[Optimus Prime (ES)|Optimus Prime]] (16)
*[[Cosmos (ES)|Cosmos]] (17)
*[[Prowl (ES)|Prowl]] (18)

|c2=
*[[Megatron (ES)|Megatron]] (15)

|c3=
*[[Robby Malto]] (1)
*[[Mo Malto]] (2)
*[[Dot Malto]] (4)
*[[Alex Malto]] (5)

|h4=[[Terran]]s||c4=
*[[Jawbreaker (ES)|Jawbreaker]] (6)
*[[Hashtag (ES)|Hashtag]] (7)
*[[Nightshade (ES)|Nightshade]] (8)
*[[Aftermath (ES)|Aftermath]] (10)
*[[Spitfire (ES)|Spitfire]] (11)
*[[Terratronus]] (19)
*[[Thrash (ES)|Thrash]] (20)
*[[Twitch]] (21)

|h5=Others||c5=
*[[Quintesson Executioner (ES)|Quintesson Executioners]] (3)
*[[Quintesson Judge (ES)|Quintesson Judge]] (22)
}}

==Quotes==
"We need to climb above the storm and drop the trailer inside of it." 
"Thanks, Captain Obvious! I was at the same briefing, you know?" 
"Right, then prepare for phase two." 
"Which phase was that again?"
:—'''Prowl''' and '''Cosmos'''

"Now let's finish the experiment!" 
"Experiment? You don't know if this will work?" 
"Isn't science fun?"
:—'''Nightshade''' and '''Cosmos'''

"You didn't say it would feel this weird." 
"Easy, the sync depends on trust." 
"Seriously? That's my Achilles' heel!"
:—'''Spitfire''' isn't fond of syncing with Robby and '''Thrash'''

"Your students truly have become the masters." 
"Spend enough time with me, and my greatness may rub off on you too."
:—'''Prowl''' and '''Bumblebee'''

==Notes==
===Continuity notes===
*If you're keeping track, the Quintesson Executioner from "[[In Ruins]]" is the one who is relieved of his crest by Mo and subsequently meets his end when he reports to the Judge.
*Mo nabbed the Spark Regenerator Key back in "[[No Soldier Left Behind]]". Hopefully you remember it from that episode as no explanation is given for it in this one.
*Spitfire and Aftermath previously met their end in "[[Witwicky, Part 2]]", during which [[Starscream (ES)|Starscream]] relieved them of their [[Emberstone]] shards so he could restore the artifact.

===Transformers references===
*

===Real-world references===
*

===Errors===
*

===Trivia===
*[[Grimlock (ES)|Grimlock]], seen in the previous episode fighting alongside the Autobots, is completely absent from this episode. Maybe he was put in timeout for endangering that one guy during the evacuation of Witwicky.
*For the final shot of the assembled group on Terratronus's shoulder, Arcee, Wheeljack and Cosmos are all mysteriously absent.
*[[Vanessa Marshall]] joins the cast of EarthSpark in this episode but so far as of this episode she is only listed as additional voices, time will tell if she will have a more substantial role.

[[Category:EarthSpark episodes]]

Transformers: EarthSpark (cartoon)

2024-11-29T02:31:25Z

Negatwenty:

{{Nav-earthspark}}
[[File:Transformers-EarthSpark-Poster-Nick.jpg|thumb|upright=1.6|[[Nick Roche|By Nick,]] [[Nickelodeon|for Nick]].]]
'''''Transformers: EarthSpark'' ''' is an animated series that made its debut in November [[2022]] in support of the [[franchises|franchise]] of [[Transformers: EarthSpark (franchise)|the same name]]. First announced on [[February 25]], [[2021]], alongside ''[[Transformers: BotBots (cartoon)|Transformers: BotBots]]'',<ref>[https://deadline.com/2021/02/nickelodeon-orders-transformers-animated-comedy-series-hasbro-franchise-1234700661/ Nickelodeon Orders 'Transformers' Animated Series Based On Hasbro Franchise — Deadline]</ref> the series was co-produced by [[Entertainment One]], [[Hasbro Entertainment]] and [[Nickelodeon Animation Studio]]. In the U.S., the series premiered on [[Paramount+]] on [[November 11]], 2022 with the first 10 episodes of the season. The series also airs on [[Nickelodeon]], with the first two episodes premiering on the same date as a special preview, and the rest of the series premiering on [[February 10]], 2023; a Japanese release followed in October 2023. Following a normal-length first season, the series split its second season into smaller ones [[Netflix]]-style for the remainder of its run, with the second and third "seasons" premiering in June and October 2024 respectively.

{{bigquote|What you are doesn't define who you are. We are all -- MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE!|Tagline}}

==Premise==
Fifteen years after the end of the [[Great War (ES)|war]] between the [[Autobot]]s and [[Decepticon]]s, young [[human]]s [[Robby Malto|Robby]] and [[Mo Malto]] are struggling to adapt after moving from [[Philadelphia]] to the small town of [[Witwicky (town)|Witwicky]], [[Pennsylvania]]. When they find a [[Emberstone|strange object]] in a cave, it grants them mysterious robotic [[cyber-sleeve]]s and gives life to [[Twitch]] and [[Thrash (ES)|Thrash]]—the first ever [[Transformer]]s to be born on [[Earth]]. Bonded to them through their cyber-sleeves, the Maltos adopt the two [[Terran]]s into their family. The Autobots, now working with [[Megatron (ES)|Megatron]] and the secret human organization [[G.H.O.S.T.]] to protect Earth from the remaining rogue Decepticons, reach out to the Maltos and offer the Terrans the chance to be mentored by [[Bumblebee (ES)|Bumblebee]]. With new threats on the horizon, such as the mad scientist [[Mandroid]] and the various Decepticons still at large, the Maltos work together to keep each other safe and learn more about each other, including what it truly means to be a family.

==Characters==
{{featuredcharacters|
|c1=
*[[Bumblebee (ES)|Bumblebee]] ([[Danny Pudi]])
*[[Optimus Prime (ES)|Optimus Prime]] ([[Alan Tudyk]])
*[[Elita-1 (ES)|Elita-1]] ([[Cissy Jones]])
*[[Wheeljack (ES)|Wheeljack]] ([[Michael T. Downey]])
*[[Grimlock (ES)|Grimlock]] ([[Keith David]])
*[[Arcee (ES)|Arcee]] ([[Martha Marion]])
*[[Cosmos (ES)|Cosmos]] ([["Weird Al" Yankovic]])
*[[Prowl (ES)|Prowl]] ([[Eric Bauza]])
|c2=
*[[Megatron (ES)|Megatron]] ([[Rory McCann]])
*[[Starscream (ES)|Starscream]] ([[Steve Blum]])
*[[Swindle (ES)|Swindle]] ([[Nolan North]])
*[[Hardtop (ES)|Hardtop]] (Nolan North)
*[[Skywarp (ES)|Skywarp]] ([[Nicole Dubuc]])
*[[Nova Storm (ES)|Nova Storm]] (Nicole Dubuc)
*[[Soundwave (ES)|Soundwave]] ([[Sean Kenin Reyes]])
**[[Frenzy (ES)|Frenzy]] ([[Tiana Camacho]])
**[[Laserbeak (ES)|Laserbeak]] ([[Jake Green]])
**[[Ravage (ES)|Ravage]]
*[[Breakdown (ES)|Breakdown]] ([[Roger Craig Smith]])
*[[Shockwave (ES)|Shockwave]] ([[Troy Baker]])
*[[Tarantulas (ES)|Tarantulas]] ([[Alfie Allen]])
*[[Bombshell (ES)|Bombshell]]
*[[Shrapnel (ES)|Shrapnel]]
*[[Skullcruncher (ES)|Skullcruncher]]
*[[Brawl (ES)|Brawl]]
|h3=[[Terran]]s||c3=
;Malto family
*[[Twitch]] ([[Kathreen Khavari]])
*[[Thrash (ES)|Thrash]] ([[Zeno Robinson]])
*[[Hashtag (ES)|Hashtag]] ([[Stephanie Lemelin]])
*[[Jawbreaker (ES)|Jawbreaker]] ([[Cyrus Arnold]])
*[[Nightshade (ES)|Nightshade]] ([[Z Infante]])
;Chaos Terrans
*[[Aftermath (ES)|Aftermath]] ([[Flea]])
*[[Spitfire (ES)|Spitfire]] ([[Zelda Williams]])
;Titans
*[[Terratronus]] ([[Claudia Black]])
|h4=[[Human]]s||c4=
;Malto family
*[[Robby Malto]] ([[Sydney Mikayla]])
*[[Mo Malto]] ([[Zion Broadnax]])
*[[Dot Malto]] ([[Benni Latham]])
*[[Alex Malto]] ([[Jon Jon Briones]])
;[[G.H.O.S.T.]]
*[[Karen Croft|Executive Agent Croft]] ([[Kari Wahlgren]])
*[[Mandroid]] ([[Diedrich Bader]])
*[[Jon Schloder|Agent Schloder]] ([[Marc Evan Jackson]])
*[[Bala|Agent Bala]] ([[Krizia Bajos]])
*[[Bagheri|Agent Bagheri]] (Kathreen Khavari)
*[[Kwan|Cadet Kwan]] ([[Sherry Cola]])
*[[Conway|Cadet Conway]] ([[Jason Marsden]])
*[[Rosato|Cadet Rosato]] ([[Kaitlyn Robrock]])
;Others
*[[Fairmaestro]] ([[Richard Ayoade]])
*[[Izzy (ES)|Izzy]] ([[Siena Agudong]])
*[[Smelt|Mr. Smelt]] ([[Daran Norris]])
*[[Mischa]] ([[Grace Lu]])
*[[Bruno Lowe]] ([[Dasan Turner]])
*[[Stevie]] ([[Luca Diaz]])
*[[Sam (ES)|Sam]] ([[Alisha Mullally]])
*[[Taylor (ES)|Taylor]] (Kaitlyn Robrock)
|h5=Others||c5=
*[[Quintus Prime]] ([[Clancy Brown]])
*[[Quintesson Judge (ES)|Quintesson Judge]] ([[Betsy Sodaro]])
*[[Quintesson Executioner (ES)|Quintesson Executioner]] ([[Fred Tatasciore]])
*[[V.A.L.]] (Cissy Jones)
*[[Arachnamech]]s
*[[Fluffy Ears]]
*[[Dweller (ES)|The Dweller]]
*[[Ghoid]]s
;[[Sharkticon (species)|Sharkticons]]
*[[Blitzwave]] (Nolan North)
*[[Razor-Fin]] (Steve Blum)
|nonumbering=true}}

==Episodes==
{{main|List of EarthSpark episodes}}

===Season 1===
{{collist|4|
# [[Secret Legacy, Part 1]]
# [[Secret Legacy, Part 2]]
# [[Moo-ving In]]
# [[House Rules]]
# [[Classified]]
# [[Traditions]]
# [[Friends and Family]]
# [[Decoy (episode)|Decoy]]
# [[Age of Evolution, Part 1]]
# [[Age of Evolution, Part 2]]
# [[Hashtag: Oops]]
# [[Outtakes]]
# [[Missed Connection]]
# [[Security Protocols]]
# [[Bear Necessities]]
# [[Warzone]]
# [[Home, Part 1]]
# [[Home, Part 2]]
# [[A Stygi Situation]]
# [[Disarmed]]
# [[What Dwells Within]]
# [[Prime Time (episode)|Prime Time]]
# [[Stowed Away, Stowaways]]
# [[The Battle of Witwicky]]
# [[The Last Hope, Part 1]]
# [[The Last Hope, Part 2]]
}}

===Season 2===
{{collist|4|
#[[Aftermath (ES episode)|Aftermath]]
#[[In Ruins]]
#[[Control Alt Delete]]
#[[The Butterfly Effect]]
#[[Togetherness]]
#[[Spitfire (episode)|Spitfire]]
#[[The Imposters]]
#[[Dude, Where's My Trailer?]]
#[[Witwicky, Part 1]]
#[[Witwicky, Part 2]]
}}

===Season 3===
{{collist|4|
#[[The Need for Read]]
#[[Attack of the Drive-In Movie]]
#[[The Great Escape]]
#[[No Soldier Left Behind]]
#[[Fire and Ice]]
#[[The Truth Is Out There]]
#[[Judgement Day, Part 1]]
#[[Judgement Day, Part 2]]
}}

==Creative team==
The series was developed for television by [[Dale Malinowski]], [[Nicole Dubuc]], and [[Ant Ward]], who all served as executive producers; [[Ciro Nieli]] joined them in executive-producing the first two-parter, but stepped back to the role of "consulting producer" for the rest of the season. Dubuc also served as story editor for the first season, being joined in the role by [[Mae Catt]] partway through production. Other staff include supervising director [[Glen Murakami]]; storyboard directors [[J.J. Conway]], [[Matthew Humphreys]], [[Alex Kwan]], [[Sebastian Montes]], and [[Jordan Rosato]]; staff writers [[Bernard Badion]], [[Isabel Galupo]], and [[Maasai Singleton]]; character designers [[Nick Roche]] and [[Angelo Vilar]]; voice director [[Kristi Reed]]; and series composers [[Crush Effect]]. The season featured 3D [[computer-generated imagery|CG animation]] by Canadian production house [[Icon Creative Studio]].

''EarthSpark'' underwent a notable shakeup in production for its second season. Dubuc officially departed as executive producer and story editor, having already stepped away from the series halfway through the first season to work on a new project. Mae Catt also did not return as story editor, and was succeeded in the position by [[Amy Wolfram]]. The entire stable of storyboard directors and staff writers were also replaced: taking their places are directors [[Vinton Heuck|Vinton T. Heuck]], [[Will Ruzicka]], [[Scooter Tidwell]], and [[Sheldon Vella]], and writers [[Ian Busch]] and [[Matt Wayne]]. Animation duties were transferred to Indian animation studio [[88 Pictures]]; series CG Supervisor [[Michael Launder]] explained that the change of studio was due to the fact that the stresses of production during season one had caused "the mental health and well being" of the Icon and Nick teams to suffer.<ref>{{citesocial|quote=Some background: hasbro and nick decided to switch to a new studio as the mental health and well being of icon and the nick team was suffering during S1.|link=https://twitter.com/mtlaunder/status/1799443950358692082|name=Michael Launder|site=Twitter|title=|year=2024|month=06|day=08}}</ref>

==Home video releases==
{{main|Paramount Pictures#EarthSpark}}
;United States
*''Transformers: EarthSpark'' - Season 1: Episodes 1-10 (2023)
*''Transformers: EarthSpark'' - Season 1: Episodes 11-26 (2024)

==Notes==
*The series was originally planned to premiere on Nickelodeon first, with international releases to follow. At Nickelodeon's upfront in March 2022, a newer announcement clarified that the series would premiere globally on Paramount+ in November 2022.<ref>[https://www.theilluminerdi.com/2022/03/30/transformers-earthspark-november/ Transformers: EarthSpark Rolls Out on Paramount+ This November]</ref> While its presence on the channel itself remained unclear leading up to release, the first two episodes also premiered on Nick the same day, both in the US and most international markets.
*Early in its development, the show was titled "''Transformers: Home World''".

===Foreign names===
*''Mandarin:'' '''''Biànxíng Jīngāng: Dìqiú Huǒzhǒng''''' (变形金刚：地球火种, "Transformers: EarthSpark")
*''Portuguese:'' '''''Transformers: A Centelha da Terra''''' ("Transformers: EarthSpark")
*''Spanish:'' '''''Transformers: La Chispa de la Tierra''''' ('Transformers: Earth Spark")

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[https://www.paramountplus.com/shows/transformers-earthspark/ ''Transformers: EarthSpark'' on Paramount+]
*[https://www.nick.com/shows/transformers-earthspark/ EarthSpark on Nick.com]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Earthspark}}
[[Category:EarthSpark| ]]
[[Category:Television series]]

Ramjet (Animated)

2023-08-13T04:57:36Z

Negatwenty:

{{factions|decepticon}}
{| style="margin:0 1em; padding:.5em; background:#f7f8ff; border:thin solid #aaa;display:block;" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"
|-
|''The name or term Ramjet does not refer to any other characters or ideas. You certainly can't read more about them by seeing [[Ramjet (disambiguation)]].''
|}
:''Ramjet is'' not ''a [[Decepticon]] from the [[Transformers Animated (franchise)|Animated]] [[continuity family]]''.

[[File:LiarStarscreamConehead.jpg|thumb|250px|[[Derrick J. Wyatt|"No clone army..."]] [[Sam Register|"...definitely no clone army..."]] [[Marty Isenberg|"...absolutely no clone army in this show!"]]]]

'''Ramjet''', certainly not the '''Liar Starscream''', is the [[Starscream (Animated)|original Starscream]], and not a [[Starscream clone (Animated)|clone]].

What? We never said he was the original Starscream.

He does not have a problem with telling the truth. Not every single thing he ever says is a complete lie. Just because what he just said completely contradicts everything he said previously, this doesn't make him an irredeemable bold-faced liar.

{{bigquote|I'm not down! I can escape any time I want to! I... just don't want to.|Ramjet after not getting stasis cuffed by [[Prowl (Animated)|Prowl]]|"[[A Bridge Too Close, Part II]]"}}

{{TOCclear}}
==Fiction==
===''Animated'' cartoon===
{{voiceactor| Not [[Tom Kenny]] (Not English), [[Jin Yamanoi]] janai (Not Japanese)| Ne [[Alexander Kovriznyh]] (Not Russian), Nicht [[Stefan Staudinger]] (Not German), Non [[Daniele Demma]] (Not Italian), No [[Alexis Quiroz]] (Not Latin American Spanish, and certainly not seasons 1 and 2), No [[Leonardo Salas]] (Not Latin-American Spanish, and in no way season 3), Ei [[Kari Tamminen]] (Not Finnish), Pas [[Sylvain Lemarié]] (Not French), Não [[Ricardo Sawaya]] (Not Portuguese, and none of seasons 1 and 2), Não [[Armando Tiraboschi]], (Not Portuguese, and surely not season 3)}}

[[Image:Starscream with Liarscream.jpg|thumb|left|"Argument is an intellectual process. Contradiction is just the automatic gainsaying of any statement the other person makes." "No it isn't." "It is." "Not at all."]]

Ramjet did not first try to assert that he was the original Starscream, then deny he said that, then deny that he was a liar when [[Slipstream (Animated)|Slipstream]] called him a liar. {{storylink|A Bridge Too Close, Part I}}

[[Image:LiarStarscreamABTCpt2.jpg|thumb|200px|He isn't angry at Hasbro, he is not about to fire at them.]]
Ramjet managed to do fairly well in the [[space bridge]] battle. He never told his Autobot targets that he wasn't about to shoot them. He was not trapped by [[Prowl (Animated)|Prowl]] in a pair of [[stasis cuffs]], and after that didn't happen, he wasn't helped to escape by the [[Sunstorm (Animated)|Sycophant]], and he never denied that any of this occurred. When [[Omega Supreme (Animated)|Omega Supreme]] came on the scene, Ramjet did not try to tell the giant his stabilizing servo was unbolted. Had he done so, Omega would have fallen for it and not just promptly kicked the clone a few miles away. {{storylink|A Bridge Too Close, Part II}}

At some point after the battle, a stasis-cuffed [[Lugnut (Animated)|Lugnut]] wasn't helped at all out of his plight by Ramjet. And even if that ''had'' happened, the clone was being completely honest when he promised not to tell Megatron about Lugnut's humiliating failure. But none of that happened so it doesn't matter. Yeah, that's the ticket. {{storylink|Three's a Crowd}}

[[Image:TFAni 5ServosofDoom LiarScream Helpless.jpg|thumb|left|"Your middle name's Judas, but you tell everyone that it's Jonathan."]]
Long after that, [[Lockdown (Animated)|Lockdown]] didn't capture the disarmed and helpless Ramjet for [[Sentinel Prime (Animated)|Sentinel Prime]] in exchange for a gyro-stabilizer. However, Lockdown didn't double-cross Sentinel when Ramjet didn't offer the bounty hunter a better deal earlier. Ramjet didn't break free and stasis cuff the alert Autobot on the spot. As Ramjet didn't try to get away with the armed and dangerous Sentinel, he wasn't knocked out of the sky by [[Jetfire (Animated)|Jetfire]] and [[Jetstorm (Animated)|Jetstorm]], who weren't accompanied by [[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Jazz (Animated)|Jazz]].

Even if they did, the battle didn't go in Ramjet's favor and he didn't use Sentinel as a shield against their attacks. Ramjet didn't try to escape again, but Optimus didn't cover his face with foam. Had that happened, he wouldn't have dropped Sentinel head-first into the ground. After [[Safeguard (Animated)|Safeguard]] didn't blast him out of the sky with a fireball, Optimus and Jazz didn't push a scoreboard on top of him. If they did, it wouldn't have hurt one bit, and he wouldn't have been stasis cuffed and hauled into custody. {{storylink|Five Servos of Doom}} Unlike the other captured Decepticons, Ramjet was not transported back to [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. {{storylink|Predacons Rising (Animated)|Predacons Rising}}

[[Image:TFAni_Decepticon_Air_BoxScream_ConeScream.jpg|thumb|200px|New helmet? What are you talking about?]]
Later, Sentinel Prime didn't steer his ship through a stormy nebula. Nor did it revive [[Swindle (Animated)|Swindle]], who wasn't still immobilized from his own slow-down ray. From there, Swindle didn't free and re-arm Ramjet along with the other captured Decepticons. Swindle also didn't give [[Sunstorm (Animated)|Sunstorm]] and Ramjet strangely familiar helmets to tell them apart. Afterwards, Ramjet and the Decepticons didn't manhandle the Elite Guard. And if they did, they would've captured them before Sentinel sent a coded SOS to Optimus Prime. Fortunately, Optimus didn't appear out of Swindle's chest, and didn't send Ramjet and other Decepticons into chaos. The battle didn't spill out of the ship, where [[Jetstorm (Animated)|Jetstorm]] didn't somehow bombard him with a tornado. Ramjet also wasn't present when [[Blitzwing (Animated)|Blitzwing]] didn't capture the Autobots and didn't try to freeze them in the decontamination unit. If he was, he certainly wasn't frozen when Jazz didn't booby-trap decontamination unit. He ultimately wasn't re-captured and sent to Cybertron, where he wasn't paraded around with the jubilant Sentinel. That's [[Thundercracker (Animated)|Thundercracker]] you're thinking of! {{storylink|Decepticon Air}}

{{--}}

===''The Cool'' comic===
[[Image:StarscreamCloneArmyAttack01.jpg|thumb|left|200px|I've never been in any fancy Japanese comic books! What ''are'' [[you]] talking about!?]]

Ramjet did not join the rest of the [[Starscream clone (Animated)|Clone Army]] in battle for the Decepticon [[space bridge]]. And he was most certainly ''not'' shocked when Optimus Prime and Megatron joined forces to stop him! {{storylink|The Cool Episode 7}}

Ramjet certainly did not get wiped out by Omega Supreme, because he wasn't following Megatron's orders and he wasn't afraid of being destroyed by said warlord. {{storylink|The Cool Episode 8}}
{{--}}

==Toys==
===''Animated''===
[[Image:AnimatedLegendsRamjetClearWhite.jpg|thumb|300px|This is always how I envisioned what my first toy would be like.]]
*'''Ramjet Clear White Version''' (EZ Collection, 2010)

:Not a redeco of a [[Starscream (Animated)#Legends Class|Legends-class Starscream]] in mostly colorful clear (with no opaque white parts), whose vehicle mode looks nothing like a futuristic, forward-swept wing fighter jet mashup of the [http://www.airforce-technology.com/projects/s37/ Su-47 (S-37) Berkut Experimental Fighter] and the [http://macross2.net/m3/macrossplus/yf-19.htm YF-19 "Alpha One] from the series ''{{w|Macross Plus}}.'' Never heard of either of 'em.

:He was available everywhere ''except'' [[Ito Yokado]] stores in Japan, and very definitely ''not'' given away for free to customers there who purchased ''[[Transformers Animated (toyline)|Transformers Animated]]'' merchandise totaling at least 3,000 yen on [[July 24]]th.

:Whoever told you this mold was also used to make [[Starscream (Animated)#ClearPurple|Starscream Clear Purple Version]], [[Skywarp (Animated)#ClearEZCollection|Skywarp Clear Purple Version]], [[Sunstorm (Animated)#ClearEZCollection|Sunstorm Clear Orange Version]], [[Thundercracker (Animated)#ClearEZCollection|Thundercracker Clear Blue Version]], and [[Starscream Clone Black Version]] is spreading falsehoods. That last one definitely sounds like a guy who doesn't exist.

{{-}}{{anchor|Activator}}
[[File:Ani-toy Ramjet Activator.jpg|thumb|300px|At long last! [[Slipstream (Animated)|Slipstream]] finally has a toy!]]
*'''Ramjet''' (Activator, 2010)

:Whatever you might have heard, Ramjet is not a redeco of [[Activators]] [[Starscream (Animated)#Activators|Starscream]], and completely lacks the ability to transform into a futuristic jet with an [[autotransformation]] gimmick, which certainly wouldn't let him transform from vehicle to robot at the mere press of a button. Unthinkable.

:Nobody was ever able to obtain him, since he wasn't an [[exclusive]] "second chance" prize in a ''Transformers''-themed raffle held by Family Mart stores across Japan. He couldn't have been purchased through the mail with a combination of winning E, F, and G prize tickets and 2,500 yen. It was the grand prize for eleventy billion yen and an R ticket. Yeah, that's the ticket.

:This mold could not have been used to make [[Dirge (Animated)#Toys|Dirge]], [[Thundercracker (Animated)#Voyager|Thundercracker]], or [[Skywarp (Animated)#Toys|Skywarp]] even if anyone wanted to (they didn't), because it was stolen by gnomes before anyone was able to do so even if they wanted to, which, as we noted before, nobody did. So there.

{{--}}

==Notes==
[[Image:AnimatedRamjetModel.jpg|thumb|150px|I did not look like this when I was born.]]
*Ramjet's colors are completely original. They have nothing to do with [[The Transformers (franchise)|Generation 1]] [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]] whatsoever, no sir. It's just a coincidence that he has burgundy wings and a white helmet. He certainly wasn't finally called "Ramjet" in ''[[Transformers Animated: The AllSpark Almanac|The AllSpark Almanac]],'' which is a terrible book nobody enjoys. Also, the name "Liar Starscream" was definitely not on his character model sheet.
*Ramjet's colors are entirely consistent. At no point does his off-white ever look cream.
*Ramjet was not given his Generation 1 counterpart's [[Conehead|cone-shaped helmet]] in "[[Decepticon Air]]". He didn't get it from anybody, especially not [[Swindle (Animated)|Swindle]]. Absolutely not. And even if he had, it certainly wouldn't have been drill-tipped, because that wouldn't have been awesome at all.
*Ramjet's nosecone is extremely brittle. It hasn't been reinforced at all. There's no way it can survive any midair collisions.
*He doesn't like toast.
*This entire article is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. The fact that it's about Ramjet (who ''isn't'' a big fat liar) has nothing to do with anything. So there.
*We never said that this article spoke truth. You can't prove anything!

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' Not '''Ramjet''' (ラムジェット ''Ramujetto'')

[[Category:Starscream clones]]

Sovereign

2023-07-21T19:53:14Z

Negatwenty:

{{factions|autobot|{{factions/icons|custom=PotP-AlphaTrion.png|cSize=30px|cLink=Alpha Trion (G1)|cPretty=Alpha Trion}}|onyxprime}}
:''Sovereign is an [[Autobot]] [[Titan Master]] from the [[Generation 1 continuity family|Generation 1]] [[continuity family]].''
[[File:HasbroHeroesSourcebook-Sovereign.jpg|thumb|right|250px|I look nothing like my toy!]]

'''Sovereign''' is an ancient [[Titan Master]] partnered with [[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]]. Probably the most powerful of all Titan Masters, his [[spark]] is infused with the energy of [[Primus]], the creator of the Universe itself. Infinite power is not a gift all are capable of handling, nor one to share with just anyone and Sovereign only shares Primuss might with those he deems to be worthy.<ref>''Titans Return'' Sovereign/Alpha Trion toy bio</ref>

==Fiction==
===''Titans Return'' marketing material===
As Alpha Trion's head, Sovereign accompanied his partner and [[Grimlock (G1)|Clobber]] to the planet [[Jungle Planet (colony)|Eukaris]], where they discovered an ancient artifact linked to the [[Titan (group)|Titan]]s and [[Titan Master]]s. They were attacked by a contingent of Decepticons intent on ambushing the Autobots and stealing the artifact for themselves, but [[Apeface]] managed to blow their cover and give the Autobots time to fight back. {{storylink|Titans Return: The Power of the Titan Masters}}

===2005 IDW continuity===
{{main|G.B. Blackrock#2005 IDW continuity}}

[[File:WhiteHeat Sovereign transformation.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.5|"Your words are as empty as your future."]]

Long ago, [[Shockwave (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Onyx Prime]] sent Sovereign to [[Earth]] to track down the [[Enigma of Combination]]. Disguised as a human and implanted with a set of false memories, Sovereign became known as [[G.B. Blackrock|Garrison Blackrock]]. In the wake of the Decepticon invasion of Earth, Blackrock became world-famous as the eccentric founder and CEO of [[Onyx]]. This cutting edge think-tank was responsible for some of the most advanced consumer electronics on the planet–all reverse-engineered from Cybertronian artifacts Blackrock had gathered, including the Enigma.

Blackrock's success hid a darker part of his life, including an identity crisis sparked by fragmentary visions and haunting dreams left over from his past life. Unsure of whether or not he even had a "soul", Blackrock's fears were confirmed when [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]] revealed the truth behind Blackrock's origins. Things only got worse for Blackrock when [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Sentinel Prime]], one of his Titan Master brethren, forcibly transformed Blackrock back into his original Titan Master configuration, using him as an unwilling catspaw in his own mad scheme. Blackrock was rescued from servitude and returned to Earth. Now an international fugitive, Blackrock discovered that he was able to shift between his synthetic human shape and his more powerful Titan Master form at will, using his flight-capable "Sovereign" body to great effect in the search for the lost [[Talisman (G1)|Talisman]].

==Toys==
===''Titans Return''===
[[File:Generations TitansReturn Sovereign.jpg|thumb|upright=1.0]]

*'''Autobot Sovereign & Alpha Trion''' (Voyager Class, [[2016]])
{{toydesigner|[[John Warden]] (Hasbro)|[[Emiliano Santalucia]] (concept artist), [[Marcelo Matere]] (packaging artist)}}

:Available with ''[[Titans Return (toyline)|Titans Return]]'' [[Alpha Trion (G1)#Generations|Alpha Trion]], Sovereign transforms into a head compatible with any Deluxe-or-larger ''Titans Return'' figure.

:Sovereign was [[retool]]ed into ''Titans Return'' [[Blunderbuss#Generations|Blunderbuss]] and [[Fathom#Generations|Fathom]] and ''[[Transformers Legends (franchise)|Legends]]'' [[Broadside (G1)#Legends|Broadside]]'s Headmaster.
{{--}}

==Notes==
[[File:LubeSovereignConcept.jpg|thumb|upright=1.0|right|When your Titan Master won't fit properly, use some Lube.]]
[[Link title]]
*Sovereign's final design is based on [[Beta Maxx (RID)|Beta Maxx]], the diminutive companion of [[Alpha Trion (SG)|another Alpha Trion]]. An early concept for Alpha Trion instead based the design of Sovereign on a rendition of [[Slapdash (G1)|Slapdash]]'s [[Powermaster]] [[Nebulan]] companion [[Lube]] from [[Dreamwave Productions|Dreamwave]]'s ''[[Transformers: More than Meets the Eye|More than Meets the Eye]]'' #6. Somehow, a rendition of this early design for Sovereign by artist [[Marcelo Matere]] was colored in Sovereign's colors and ended up on a South African retailer's website.<ref name="lube">[http://news.tfw2005.com/2018/10/11/show-me-your-face-mysterious-character-concept-art-revealed-as-alpha-trions-titan-master-sovereign-374067 Mysterious character concept art revealed as Alpha Trion’s Titan Master Sovereign] at TF2005.</ref>
*In the IDW continuity, Sovereign transformed into a head resembling (but not identical to) Alpha Trion's upon connecting to his beheaded body. It is unknown if Sovereign's head mode was coincidentally already similar to Alpha Trion's, or if he adapted his form to the sage's design upon merging with his body, although Infinitus did not adapt a new form upon merging with Trion's body previously.
{{--}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:IDW (2005) Transformers]]
[[Category:Titan Masters]]
[[Category:Titans Return Autobots]]

The Fallen

2023-06-15T04:00:08Z

Negatwenty:

{{factions|{{factions/icons
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|cPretty=
}}|{{factions/icons
|custom=PotP-Megatronus.png
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}}|decepticonfilm|unicron|{{factions/icons|custom=Cyberglyphics Prime Symbol.png|cLink=Dynasty of Primes|cPretty=Prime}}|renegade}}
{{featured}}
{|style="margin:0 1em;padding:.5em;background:#f7f8ff;border:thin solid #aaa;display:block;"cellpadding="0"cellspacing="0"
|-
|''This article is about the scary powerful Judas-bot. For other meanings, see [[Fallen (episode)]], [[Megatronus (disambiguation)]].''
|}
{{suite}}

[[File:HeatScramble-TheFallen.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|The levitation trick gets The Fallen all The Ladies at parties.]]

If the [[Thirteen|first Transformers]] were [[Primus]]' disciples, then '''The Fallen''' is his Judas. At the dawn of time, he was '''Megatronus''', one of a brotherhood of vastly powerful beings dedicated to the well-being of their world. But The Fallen would gain his current moniker by turning against his brother [[Prime (rank)|Prime]]s and his purpose to pursue his own ends, also earning the moniker "the first Decepticon" in the process. His frightening form is a metal cage for primal, burning forces of [[Unicron|chaos]], giving him the appearance of a living furnace. These cauldron-like forces purged him of what empathy and morality remained; all that remains now is hatred and purest rage.

The Fallen is immensely powerful. He commands mystic, entropic arts, and when at full strength he can un-make creation at his focused will. He is rarely defeated; at best he is contained, where he waits with eternal patience for the chance to unleash his dark powers once again. Though he has at times been imprisoned between dimensions, this rarely lasts. When his power is at its height, The Fallen can open [[space bridge]]s and travel between dimensions and realities at will.

Like his brothers, The Fallen was once a [[multiversal singularity]], meaning that in all of the vast [[multiverse]], he had no alternate-universe doppelganger, but that is now [[Shroud|no longer the case]]. In several realities he is the originator of the [[Decepticon]]s, the catalyst that prompted [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]] to claim power for himself rather than the greater good. While the exact details of his past are complicated beyond the understanding of mortals,<ref>See [[Hasbro Q&A/July 2009: Answers|Hasbro Q&A/July 2009: Answer #3]] for more information.</ref> one thing usually remains consistent: He's bad, bad news.

{{quote|You... you're from ''before''. Aren't you?|[[Jetfire (G1)|Jetfire]] on The Fallen|"[[Confrontation (issue)|Confrontation]]"}}

==Fiction==
===Generation 1 continuity family===
====Dreamwave ''Generation One'' continuity====
[[File:Thefallen.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.1|Ah, you know it's funny, these people, they go to sleep, they think everything's fine, everything's good... They wake up the next day and they're on fire.]]

When Primus and Unicron first battled as planets, Primus created the first 13 Transformers to assist him in planet mode. The Fallen's original purpose as one of the 13 was to oversee entropy, the orderly dissolution of all things in preparation for the next creation. But the concept of destruction fascinated him too much, and he lost sight of the goal of rebirth and the necessity of restraint. His investigations into the dark sciences led him to Unicron, to whom he gave himself.<ref>[http://www.seibertron.com/transformers/toys/titanium/the-fallen/1126/2/9/ Fallen's ''Titanium Series'' on-package bio]</ref> Corrupted by Unicron, the Fallen then tried to sabotage his creator's body. This attempt ended in failure, and "The Fallen" fled to his master, but there was little refuge to be found: They were both sucked into a [[black hole]]. {{storylink|Transformers: The Ultimate Guide}}

Approximately 7 million years before the 21st century, [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] were lost in a [[space bridge]] accident. This accident weakened the barrier between reality and [[unspace|the dimension]] in which The Fallen was trapped, allowing The Fallen to eventually break free and return to Cybertron. The Fallen set about initiating the "[[Unbinding]]", to precipitate the return of Unicron, and spent years, if not millennia, subtly manipulating the Autobots and Decepticons, causing them to splinter into multiple sub-factions that engaged in a constant series of escalating conflicts.

[[File:Thefallenseeksfour.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|Hey, The Fallen, ever heard of Tums?]]

As the time for the Unbinding drew near, the Fallen recruited a [[Chaos Trinity|trio of Decepticon outcasts]], [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]], [[Mindwipe (G1)|Mindwipe]], and [[Bugly (G1)|Bugly]], who hungered for a command of [[Dark science|the occult]]. The Fallen promised them all manner of dark powers in exchange for serving him. Leading his three followers to the [[Well of All Sparks]], hidden within Cybertron, he explained that the Unbinding required four particular Transformers, who would function as "angles in the geometry of dissolution", and named [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]] as the first. {{storylink|Fragmentation (G1)|Fragmentation}}

The Fallen and company proceeded to construct a strange machine within the Well of All Sparks in preparation for the Unbinding. Unfortunately, Bludgeon and friends got impatient for more than The Fallen's praise and demanded a more tangible reward: the arcane power he had promised them. The Fallen responded by grabbing Bludgeon's head and giving him a mere glimpse of what he sought: images of a fiery vortex, demonic faces, stabbing swords and a human skull engulfed Bludgeon. The Fallen stated that this was but a peek inside a dark door he would fully open if they served him well. This left Bludgeon suitably inspired to begin hunting down their targets.

[[File:Thefallengrimlock.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.1|Someone should tell Grimlock this more often.]]

Bugly and Mindwipe leaked information to draw the [[Protectobot (G1)|Protectobots]] out into combat with [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]], while Bludgeon hatched a plot to snare both Grimlock and [[Jetfire (G1)|Jetfire]]. {{storylink|Escalation}} Bludgeon, Bugly, and Mindwipe ambushed Jetfire as he attempted a cross-faction meeting with [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]]. When Grimlock crashed the party earlier than they expected, however, The Fallen himself had to intervene and caught Grimlock's blazing energo-sword in his bare hand. {{storylink|Revelation (The Dark Ages)|Revelation}}

Grimlock took one punch from The Fallen yet still got back up, so The Fallen grabbed him by the shoulders and unleashed a huge blast of energy that put the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobot]] leader out cold. Shocked by the display, Jetfire surmised that The Fallen predated the Golden Age. The Fallen responded by knocking Jetfire out cold too. He then dragged Grimlock and Jetfire away and commanded his followers to gather the third angle, while he handled the fourth. The Fallen singlehandedly abducted [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] from his well-guarded holding cell in Autobot headquarters, shrugging off attacks by some of the Autobots' best warriors and causing their weapons to corrode away into uselessness with a mere gesture. Bludgeon's team, meanwhile, succeeded in acquiring [[Hot Spot (G1)|Hot Spot]] from the Protectobots.

[[File:Fallenmoreonfire.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|The Fallen somehow sets himself ''more on fire''.]]

All four angles were strapped to the device in the Well of All Sparks. The Fallen theatrically explained to the awakening Jetfire that they were casualties in the war of the Gods, and would be used to break the Seal of Primus, after which "all chaos will follow". {{storylink|Confrontation (issue)|Confrontation}}

The Fallen continued his villainous monologue, apparently directing it not at Jetfire but at Primus himself, as the four Transformers' unique sparks were drained to unlock the Seal of Primus. A combined army of forces from several factions defeated the Chaos Trinity and penetrated The Fallen's operation. By the time they reached the door, The Fallen was satisfied that the Transformers were too late, until Jetfire arranged a force-field to surround the Seal. The Fallen was further impressed that Jetfire understood enough to try to contain the Seal, but his distraction cost him victory: the God of Light himself was subsequently roused from his slumber where he saw The Fallen. With a gesture of his radiant hand, Primus engulfed his wayward creation in a torrent of searing energy that was then sucked back into the Seal of Primus. {{storylink|Conflagration}}

{{Unreleased DW G1 comic}}
Shockwave broke the Seal for his cloning experiments, siphoning from within it the energy needed to create life. The Fallen's essence had then escaped and corrupted [[Sunstorm (G1)|Sunstorm]]. Following the clone's death, The Fallen's essence passed into Jetfire. Within visions, The Fallen attacked the Autobot over and over, while around them various key moments in Cybertron's history unfolded. Jetfire returned to reality as the Autobots were digging him free from the frozen prison he now found himself in. He was unable to warn them that The Fallen's essence had taken root in his spark as they broke through the ice holding him. {{storylink|The Enemy Within}}

====Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity====
=====Train Wars=====
[[File:TrainWars TheFallen.jpg|left|thumb|upright=2|The aftermath of when Queen Metallia claimed his Sun.]]

The Fallen staged an attack on Cybertron to steal [[Vector Sigma]], smashing his way through all Autobot resistance. The mega-computer managed to wrest itself free of the ancient villain's grip long enough to transform into its "[[Primus|Oracle]]" robot mode and lend its power to [[Overdrive]], who then used his powered-up [[Quantum Dial]] to bring forth reinforcements from time itself. The Fallen responded by summoning up troops of his own, who [[combiner|combined]] with him. {{storylink|Train Wars}} In his new combiner mode, The Fallen laid waste to the Autobots' multiversal reinforcements, impaling them on energy-blades. Recovering Vector Sigma, he began to integrate the computer into his body, but was fortunately distracted by [[Daniel Witwicky (G1)|Daniel Witwicky]] long enough for [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] to arrive with more reinforcements, made up of all kinds of train Transformers. Daniel and his partner [[Shouki]] blasted Vector Sigma free, and [[Shūta Gō]] and [[Goshooter]] then ''kicked'' the computer like a soccer ball, straight into The Fallen's face. The dazed demi-god found himself bound in a [[Trainbot Omni-Car Joint|living chain made up of all the interlinked train Transformers]], leaving him immobilized and open for one final attack. Using the power of Vector Sigma, Shouki unlocked a new transformation, becoming the gigantic "Train Bazooka" weapon, which Shuta then fired at The Fallen, obliterating him. {{storylink|Train Wars 2}}

=====''Legends'' comic=====
[[Smokescreen (G1)|Smokescreen]] cheered on The Fallen in the battle against the opposition. {{storylink|The Road to Legends' Revival Chapter 4: LG-EX Big Powered Prologue Part One|LG-EX Big Powered Prologue Part One}}
{{-}}

====2005 IDW continuity====
{{first|[[The Crucible|''Transformers: Robots in Disguise'' #34]] (mentioned); [[Heavy|''Transformers: Till All Are One'' #9]] (depicted)}}

[[File:TheFirstWhoWasNamed-MegatronusOrigins.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|"[[Darth Vader|What is thy bidding, my master?]]"]]

Twelve million years ago, in the primitive age that followed the departure of the [[Knights of Cybertron]], the 'bot who would become "Megatronus" was a humble nomad who wandered the deserts of prehistoric Cybertron alongside the shepherd [[Onyx Prime|Onyx]] and his flock of beasts. One day, the flock came across a badly damaged Transformer in the wastes—unbeknownst to any of them, this was [[Shockwave (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Shockwave]], who had been cast backwards in time following the destruction of his [[chronal drive]].

Having recognized the figures for who they would become, Shockwave slew Onyx without a moment's hesitation, sending his followers fleeing... all of them, that is, except one of Onyx's compatriots. Realizing that he could use his understanding of Cybertron's past to set the planet's history along the preordained course that he knew it must follow, Shockwave dubbed Onyx's terrified compatriot "Megatronus," naming him after [[Megatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|the Decepticon leader that would one day arise]]. Fashioning a new body for himself from Onyx's remains, Shockwave thus became "Onyx"; knowing from history that Megatronus' conquests would lead to the eventual unification of Cybertron, "Onyx Prime" trained Megatronus in the ways of war and deliberately inspired him to build an empire of his own.

His tutelage complete, Shockwave set Megatronus on the lands to the west, and Shockwave's pupil soon established a kingdom that became known as the "[[Darklands]]". As his power and influence grew over the course of his campaigns, Megatronus became a feared warrior and tyrant, and took to calling himself "The First Who Was Named." {{storylink|The Falling, Interlude: The First Who Was Named|The First Who Was Named}}

[[File:OriginMyths-Megatronuskillspeople.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|"[[Megatron (Movie)|You still fight for the '''weak!''' That is why you '''lose!'''"]]]]

Late into his conquests, Megatronus marched on neighboring [[Protihex|Protohex]] and easily annexed it into the Darklands, overthrowing its ruler [[Septimus Prime]] and murdering his [[Supplicants of Arrius]]. There, he recruited the gladiator twins [[Arcee (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Arcee]] and [[Galvatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Galvatron]], who proved their loyalty to him by slaughtering their old master. The pair thus became the vanguards of the army as Megatronus continued their eastward advance, conquering the [[Forgotten Plains]], deposing [[Liege Maximo]], and giving them the opportunity to attack the humble village that would one day become the [[Crystal City]]. Unbeknownst to Megatronus, "Onyx Prime" and Liege Maximo had arrived beforehand and galvanized the local tribes into allying with his army of beasts to battle Megatronus - and, by doing so, deliberately providing the necessary impetus that would unite the scattered tribes of Cybertron into a single civilization. Megatronus fought on the front lines before three [[Titan (group)|Titans]], drawn to the sounds of battle, arose from the ground. Megatronus paused to look, giving Onyx the opening to fight his way through Megatronus' forces, meet with his old friend, and convince him to stand down. The two armies quickly ratified a proper truce, and Megatronus and his warriors joined the alliance of [[Prime (rank)|Prime]]s. {{storylink|Origin Myths}}

In the era that followed, the seven Primes were joined by five more, giving rise to the [[Thirteen]], who ruled over the [[Thirteen Tribes]]. Many of the Primes had grown arrogant, however, and began spreading rumors that only a Prime could kill another Prime so as to maintain their superiority over their followers. {{storylink|The Crucible}} At Onyx's urging, [[Prima]] began a program of interstellar expansion; aiming to spread [[Pax Cybertronia]] across the galaxy, he sent Megatronus, Onyx, Alpha Trion, [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]], and the [[Guardian robot|Omega Sentinels]] to lead an extraplanetary colonization mission to neighboring [[Antilla]], claiming that their deeds would spread the "enlightenment" of Cybertronian civilization to other worlds. The Cybertronian colonization force quickly encountered severe resistance from the Antillans; the devastating Antillan/Cybertronian war would end when an [[Unicron's creator|Antillan scientist]] deployed a [[Talisman (G1)|doomsday weapon]] that scoured all life on the planet, and the fallout from the war would ensure that the rest of the universe would come to fear the destructive power of the Transformers. {{storylink|Our Finest}} {{storylink|The Falling, Interlude: The First Who Was Named|The First Who Was Named}}

[[File:TheFirstWhoWasNamed-MegatronusKillsSolus.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|"You're with '''HIM!!!''' You brought him here to kill me!"]]

Prima was enraged to learn that their benevolent mission had failed and blamed Megatronus for the disaster; when an insulted Megatronus was subsequently approached by Liege Maximo, the manipulative Prime stoked Megatronus' resentment and eventually brokered a secret alliance, a sequence of events that had been deliberately orchestrated by Shockwave so as to bring about the fall of the Primes as history had foretold. Megatronus and Liege Maximo sought to overthrow Prima, but in the ensuing struggle [[Solus Prime]] sacrificed her life to defend their leader, allowing Megatronus to run her through with her own [[Star Saber (Prima)|Star Saber]]. {{storylink|The Falling, Interlude: The First Who Was Named|The First Who Was Named}} Their conspiracy unveiled, the grand alliance between the Primes collapsed and their followers fell to fighting amongst one another, heralding the beginning of the [[First Cybertronian Civil War]]. {{storylink|Heavy}} Megatronus subsequently fled the planet, leaving his co-conspirator to be imprisoned aboard his own [[Titan (group)|Titan]], [[Vigilem]]. {{storylink|The Falling, Interlude: The First Who Was Named|The First Who Was Named}}

Without Megatronus leading his tribe, his empire collapsed and his followers went their own ways; Galvatron became notable for deserting his post in Megatronus' faltering army in order to wage a personal crusade against the [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]]s of [[Nexus Prime]]. {{storylink|The Crucible}} {{storylink|Earthfall Part 3: The Mind Bomb|The Mind Bomb}} By the time that Galvatron hunted down and killed Nexus Prime, many of the remaining Primes had fled Cybertron entirely {{storylink|The Crucible}} and Megatronus had taken up residence on the barren world of [[Tsiehshi]], using its voltaic blooms to fuel his systems.

[[File:TheFirstWhoWasNamed-Megatronus.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.66|"I '''SMELL''' you, boy!"]]

Seeking to bring him to justice, Prima, Alpha Trion, and Onyx Prime left Cybertron to search for him aboard the Titan [[Emissary (IDW)|Emissary]]. They tracked him to Tsiehshi, where Prima and Onyx faced down the rogue Prime in a final duel; in the ensuing battle, Megatronus simply bisected Prima with his Star Saber. To ensure that the [[Matrix of Leadership]] in the sword's hilt would find its way to its [[Nova Prime|next owner]] when the time was right, however, Onyx coldly informed his student that his usefulness was at an end and murdered him, telling him that—thanks to the impending rise of Megatron—Cybertronians would, after a fashion, remember his name.

On returning to Alpha Trion, Onyx told the record-keeper the version of events that would find their way into the records of Cybertronian myth, lying that Prima had heroically slain Megatronus at the cost of his own life... a fabrication based on the stories that Shockwave had been told in his youth. {{storylink|The Falling, Interlude: The First Who Was Named|The First Who Was Named}}

[[File:OP18-MegatronusDead.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.5|"Who would you be without me, Prime?" "Time to find out."]]

Megatronus' name was stricken from the Cybertronian records for his crimes, and on both Cybertron and its colony worlds he was only remembered as "The Fallen". {{storylink|Conquerors Part 2: Lagrange|Lagrange}} When Alpha Trion recounted the story of the war's end to [[Optimus Prime (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Optimus Prime]], he was unable to elaborate on why Megatronus and Megatron shared such similar names. {{storylink|The Crucible}} He was, however, able to point out that Shockwave had sent one of his [[Regenesis]] ores, [[Ore-8]], to Tsiehshi, where Megatronus had once resided; unbeknownst to Trion, this was because "Onyx Prime" had manipulated events so that his younger self would select this planet for the Regenesis project. {{storylink|The Falling, Interlude: The First Who Was Named|The First Who Was Named}}

On the eve of [[Earth]]'s official induction into the [[Council of Worlds]], Alpha Trion told Optimus Prime, [[Starscream (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Starscream]], and [[Pyra Magna]] the story of how Megatronus' conquests had first brought the Thirteen together all those years ago. Starscream questioned if he was represented in this story by Arcee or Megatronus, believing the latter to be a made-up name. {{storylink|Origin Myths}}

When "Onyx Prime" and his tribe of [[Maximal]]s invaded Cybertron some weeks later, [[Devastator (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Devastator]], driven on by [[Scoop (G1)|Scoop]]'s religious fanaticism, reached an earth-shattering epiphany: the duplicitous, backstabbing Starscream was the reincarnation of Megatronus. Initially unsure of this revelation, Starscream went with it until Shockwave, unmasked as an impostor, revealed that he had orchestrated the decidedly mortal Starscream's disastrous rise and fall from power. {{storylink|The Falling, Chapter 4: The Hallowing|The Hallowing}}
{{-}}

====''Prime Wars Trilogy'' cartoons====
{{voiceactor|[[Mark Hamill]] (English)}}

[[File:POTP-Cartoon-Ep3-SolusDies.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|left|"You will remain here in the Fire Nation."]]

[[File:Megatronus.jpeg|thumb|upright=1.4|"You're weak, just like the rest of your people! They did not deserve to exist in this world, in my world! Prepare to join them! Prepare to die!"]]

Long ago, Megatronus was hailed as a hero for his defeat of [[Unicron/Generation 1|Unicron]] using the [[Requiem Blaster (Megatronus)|Requiem Blaster]]. However, he and his lover [[Solus Prime]] clashed over what to do with the Blaster afterwards, as Megatronus wanted to keep it for his own rather than see it destroyed. {{storylink|The Swamp}} As the two fought, the weapon was accidentally discharged, killing Solus and leaving Megatronus to grieve. {{storylink|Without Warning}} The other Primes took back the Blaster from Megatronus, sealing it away, and he placed himself into exile until he could find a way to reunite with his deceased love. {{storylink|Athenaeum Sanctorum (episode)|Athenaeum Sanctorum}}

Many years later, Megatronus orchestrated the events of both the [[Combiner Wars (event)|Combiner Wars]] and [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]]'s resurrection from behind the scenes in an attempt to claim the [[Enigma of Combination]] and the [[Matrix of Leadership]]. To this end, he recruited [[Overlord (G1)|Overlord]] to his cause and guided him to the [[Matrix of Conquest|Matrix of Chaos]] within Unicron's remains, promising Overlord immense power after his plan had succeeded. [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]] also joined the ranks of his acolytes after Overlord used the Matrix of Chaos to turn him into Rodimus Cron. {{storylink|Volcanicus (episode)|Volcanicus}} After Trypticon's defeat, [[Victorion]] attempted to claim the Enigma and Matrix, but Megatronus surrounded them with a fiery aura, destroying part of Victorion's [[Dust Up|arm]]. He appeared before the other Transformers, warning them that their time had come to an end. [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] attempted to distract Megatronus with an angry outburst, giving [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]] a chance to surprise attack him, but Megatronus brushed Maximus aside and killed Optimus. With no one else daring to challenge him, Megatronus took the two relics and departed to complete his plans. {{storylink|All Things Must Pass}}

[[File:TR-Ep10-All-Things-Must-Pass-Fallen-appears.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.2|"Even with all the power in the world, you are still weak."]]

Determined to reunite with Solus, Megatronus turned his sights towards the missing Requiem Blaster. Unsure where it might have been hidden, he began searching its most likely hiding places, burning them to the ground when left empty-handed. {{storylink|The Swamp}} In the [[Well of All Sparks|Well of Sparks]], he began gathering the sparks of Overlord's and Rodimus Cron's victims and installed the Enigma and Matrix into an device which, when combined with the Blaster, would be capable of ripping the spark from every Transformer. {{storylink|Without Warning}} Taking notice of the Blaster being fired, Megatronus rushed to the [[Athenaeum Sanctorum]], where he revealed his plan. After clashing with Megatron, [[Optimus Primal (BW)|Optimus Primal]] and a Unicron-possessed Rodimus, he grabbed the Blaster and took off to put his plan into motion. {{storylink|Consequences}}

[[File:POTP-Cartoon-Ep7-FlameOn.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|"It's time for this world to end in fire, and for a new world to be born from the ashes."]]

Megatronus returned to the [[Well of All Sparks|Well of Sparks]] and installed the Blaster, activating his doomsday weapon. The machine began to drain everyone's sparks as planned, causing Solus to manifest, but they were interrupted by the arrival of Megatron and his team. Refusing to lose, Megatronus shot down Windblade, but was restrained by Grimlock and Optimus Primal. However, the sight of his nearly-resurrected lover gave him the strength to break free, and he burned all the others except Megatron, who moved to protect them. Before he could finish them off, their battle was interrupted by the unexpected arrival of Rodimus Cron, now totally under Unicron's control {{storylink|Collision Course}} and determined to destroy Megatronus and Solus for being part of [[Primus]]'s Thirteen, along with the Matrix. Megatronus battled against Unicron while repeatedly having to divert his attention towards the others attacking his device. Temporarily incapacitating Unicron, Megatronus attacked the others despite Solus' pleas for him to stop, but was unable to prevent them from releasing the relics as the Matrix transformed Primal into Optimal Optimus. While Unicron attacked the new Prime, Megatronus made a grab for the Enigma and Blaster, only to be restrained by the other heroes. {{storylink|Megatronus Unleashed}} He managed to overtake them and grab the Blaster, seeking vengeance for the failure of his plans, but was caught off guard when new arrival [[Predaking (G1)|Predaking]] landed on him from above. The two briefly battled before Megatronus gained the upper hand and ripped off Predaking's head, and attempted to stop Megatron from destroying Solus. His lover, however, suddenly grew in size and grabbed him. Despite his pleas that his love for her was everlasting, she rebuked him and dragged him into the Well, finally killing him. {{storylink|Saga's End}}
{{-}}

====''Power of the Primes'' marketing material====
Megatronus' [[Spark]] passed into the possession of one of the twelve [[Prime Master]]s; hidden within a suit of decoy armor, they safeguarded the abilities of the Primes until the present day. By uniting with a larger Transformer, the Prime Master could channel the powers of Megatronus' Spark and grant them unique abilities that varied with each new partner. {{storylink|The Fallen/toys#Generations|''Power of the Primes'' Bomb-Burst / Megatronus online bio}}

{{note|For a list of every permutation of Megatronus' abilities, see [[Prime Master/Combinations|this link]].}}

====2019 IDW continuity====
[[File:EndOfTime-Thirteen.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.66]]

Megatronus was remembered as one of the Thirteen, described by [[Termagax]] as avatars of the life pattern that infused Cybertron itself. {{storylink|End of Time}}
{{--}}

===Fun Publications===
[[File:The Evil One.jpg|right|upright=0.8|thumb|"Someone remembered me!"]]

Though [[Vector Prime]] did not necessarily think history was wrong to record Megatronus as a monster, he ''was'' his brother, and Vector still had happy memories of their time together before Megatronus' fall from grace. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime|Ask Vector Prime, 2015/06/14}} During the Thirteen's time in ancient Greece in some [[universal stream]]s, the holomatter avatar that the rage-filled Megatronus used to interact with the human population inspired the myth of {{w|Ares}}. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime|Ask Vector Prime, 2015/07/20}} He used to have an impressive collection of antique melee weapons before [[Sideways (AVP)|Sideways]] ruined it with Cosmic Rust... at least, according to Sideways. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime|Sideways, 2015/07/02}}

In the [[Gargent]] realities, where he went by the name "'''the Evil One'''", Megatronus nearly destroyed [[Gobotron]] with the Dark Heart, only to wind up under the [[Nazca Lines]] on Earth. [[Vector Prime]] noted that this was not the only reality where Megatronus was drawn to human pyramids and wondered if there was any link to [[Devil Z]]'s own affinity for pyramids and the Nazca Lines. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime|Ask Vector Prime, 2015/05/30}} [[Cy-Kill (GoBots)|Cy-Kill]] would even be heard to swear by the Evil One. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime#Renegade Rhetoric|Renegade Rhetoric (1), 2015/10/13}}

{{note|This is a sneaky reference to the ''Challenge of the GoBots'' episode "[[gbwiki:In Search of Ancient GoBonauts|In Search of Ancient GoBonauts]]", where Cy-Kill is looking for the ancient villain.}}

[[File:Vectorprimeut.jpg|thumb|left|Back, and to the left.]]

Jealous of his brothers and sisters, Megatronus was motivated to move against his siblings, and targeted Prima's [[Star Saber (Prima)|Star Saber]], intending to take it for his own. To keep it out of his hands, [[Solus Prime]] shattered the blade with her [[Forge of Solus Prime|Forge]], and each piece was taken by one of [[Nexus Prime]]'s components and scattered across the multiverse. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime|Ask Vector Prime, 2015/05/18}} {{storylink|Out of the One, Many}}

Millions of years later, when [[Vector Prime]] returned to the linear universe to deal with the [[Unicron Singularity]] crisis, he reminisced about his mission and his past, including the silhouetted form of The Fallen. {{storylink|Vector Prime: In the Beginning}} Vector's return was soon followed by the that of Nexus Prime, who set about reassembling the Star Saber. While visiting [[Primax 509.28 Epsilon|one universe]]'s Cybertron as part of his quest for the sword's fragments, Nexus decided to tell his companion [[Aquarius (SG)|Aquarius]] about his quest. As he explained the danger of the artifact falling into evil hands, the face of The Fallen flashed through his mind. {{storylink|The Coming Storm: Part 1}}

When dimensional scoundrel [[Sideways (AVP)|Sideways]] seized control of Vector Prime's [[Ask Vector Prime#Facebook|ANN Q&A column]], he commented, "Every time The Fallen polishes his pistons reality splits." to explain why he could be cloned. Surprisingly, this was actually the truth, more or less. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime#Facebook|Ask Sideways, 2015/06/29}}

When Nexus succeeded in locating the Star Saber, he combined its power with that of the [[Terminus Blade]] to [[Shroud|thicken the walls of reality]], limiting dimensional travel. The Fallen and the other members of the Thirteen gathered to witness this momentous event, and found that, as a side effect, they ceased to exist as [[Multiversal singularity|multiversal singularities]]. {{storylink|Out of the One, Many}}
{{-}}

===Live-action film series continuity family===
====''Revenge of the Fallen'' film====
{{voiceactor|[[Tony Todd]] (English), [[Masafumi Kimura]] (Japanese)|[[Zhao Xiaoming]] (Chinese), [[José Luccioni]] (European French), [[Bert Franzke]] (German), [[Gabriel Pingarrón]] (Latin American-Spanish), [[Ramón Canals]] (Castilian Spanish), [[Carlos Gesteira]] (Portuguese), [[Gaetano Varcasia]] (Italian), [[Ender Yiğit]] (Turkish)}}

[[File:TheFallen-ROTFwithPrimes.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.95|''Ocupado!'']]

Nineteen thousand years ago, The Fallen accompanied [[Dynasty of Primes|his brother Primes]] to [[Earth]] in an attempt to harvest the [[Sun|star]] it orbited. Just as they had completed construction of the [[Star Harvester]], however, The Fallen discovered [[Human|a primitive race of hunters]]. The Primes invoked their rule of the sanctity of life and refused to activate the harvester, but The Fallen despised the humans as simple insects and attempted to activate the Harvester. A great battle took place, but ultimately, The Fallen was defeated and the remaining Primes hid themselves and the [[Matrix of Leadership]], and The Fallen's harvester was concealed within a pyramid in [[Egypt]]. The Fallen dispatched the [[Seeker (ROTF)|Seekers]] to locate the Matrix, but they proved unable and he eventually abandoned them. The Fallen became known as the first [[Decepticon]], and he became the master of [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]], leader of the faction. He employed Megatron in the pursuit of the [[AllSpark]], but after Megatron's defeat at [[Mission City]], the AllSpark was reduced to a mere fragment.

[[File:TheFallen-ROTFNemesis.jpg|thumb|upright=1.95]]

Upon Megatron's revival he traveled to the ''[[Nemesis (ROTF)|Nemesis]]'', where The Fallen stayed in a life-support chair while [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]] oversaw the creation of a new army of Decepticons. Prostrating himself before the Fallen, Megatron said that he had failed his master and their race by allowing the AllSpark to be destroyed. Amused by his disciple's misinformation, The Fallen revealed that the cube was merely a vessel, while the knowledge within the AllSpark was instead placed within the mind of the human who had challenged Megatron, [[Sam Witwicky]]. With the knowledge within Sam's mind, they could find the Star Harvester and the Matrix needed to activate it. Megatron asked permission to avenge himself and reclaim the AllSpark, but The Fallen asked for patience, though he could understand his desire, as The Fallen himself hungered to return to the wretched planet where his brother Primes had betrayed him. The Fallen also explained that the only threat to him was the last surviving Prime, [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus]]. Since Optimus would protect Sam, The Fallen ordered Megatron to capture the boy and draw out the Prime.

Megatron's mission was partially successful: although the boy escaped, Optimus came to defend him and died in the process. The Fallen sensed his death and was very pleased, knowing that the time to strike was now. When the Decepticons traveled to the Earth's surface in [[transition form|re-entry mode]]s, The Fallen accompanied them, destroying an [[USS Theodore Roosevelt|aircraft carrier]] as well as attacking several cities. As the aircraft carrier sank into the ocean, The Fallen quietly intoned that revenge was finally his. The Fallen tapped into Earth's communication network, and announced the presence of the Transformers on Earth on worldwide television, demanding the "human hive" hand over Sam or be destroyed.

[[File:ROTF Fallen headchop.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.66|Can't. Take. Our. Sun. Unless you got buns, hon! And, oh man, he don't.]]

Unfortunately, Sam was in Egypt hunting for the [[Matrix of Leadership]] after being told it might be able to revive Optimus. He succeeded, but moments after Prime's resurrection, The Fallen appeared amongst the assorted NEST troops, scattering the soldiers, pinning Optimus, and stealing the Matrix. He then teleported to the harvester that was uncovered earlier by [[Devastator (ROTF)|Devastator]], and as he inserted the Matrix into the machine, he declared that his brothers had failed as he now claimed the Sun. While it charged, the humans attempted to destroy the harvester with their heavy weapons. Unimpressed with their display, The Fallen demonstrated his considerable power by destroying the attacking military forces with telekinesis, then raised a blockade of debris to prevent an air strike. However, a super-powered Optimus Prime, now fused with [[Jetfire (Movie)|Jetfire]], destroyed the harvester and attacked The Fallen, sending them both falling to the ground below.

[[File:TheFallen-ROTFfacegotten.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|Don't talk to me or my Sun ever again!]]

{{quote|Die, like your brothers!}}
{{quote|They were your brothers, too.|The Fallen and [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]]|''[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen]]''}}

Enraged, The Fallen commanded Optimus to join his brothers in death and two engaged in a fierce duel, but it quickly became apparent that Optimus was strong enough to face The Fallen. Megatron attacked Optimus in an attempt to help his master, but was quickly overpowered and knocked out. The Fallen counterattacked Optimus, managing to rip off Prime's left rocket thruster and strike him in the face with it. However, Optimus eventually managed to impale The Fallen through the shoulder with his own spear, then demanded his face, tearing it off. The Fallen tried to flee, but Optimus Prime punched through his chest and ripped out his spark core, finally killing The Fallen.

Afterwards, a wounded and horrified Megatron fled with Starscream, and the Autobots and their allies declared victory. {{Storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen}}

{{note|The Fallen's involvement in the preceding events, or events mostly similar, were also chronicled in the novels "[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (novel)|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen]]," "[[Revenge of the Fallen: The Junior Novel]]" and "[[The Last Prime]]"; the "[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen Official Movie Adaptation]]" and "[[Movie Trilogy]]" comics; and the storybooks "[[I Am Optimus Prime (ROTF)|I Am Optimus Prime]]," "[[Rise of the Decepticons]]", "[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen Electronic Voice Changer]]" and "[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen Mix & Match]]." Most of these adaptations are based on early drafts of the script and provide more backstory for The Fallen, such as his hunt for the descendants of his brother Primes, and his promise to Megatron that he would make him a Prime—something Optimus exposes as a lie during their final battle, as one can only be born a Prime, leading Megatron to abandon his teacher. In several, Optimus defeats him not by killing him, but by [[:File:TheFallen-thrownintospace.jpg|hurling him into space]].}}
{{--}}

====IDW movie comics====
[[File:Defianceissue4-creation.jpg|left|thumb|upright=0.85|Look [[Prima|familiar]]?]]

According to The Fallen, he and his brothers were the first creations of the [[AllSpark]]. The planet that would become [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] was mostly barren, but as the AllSpark gradually shaped Cybertron around them and gave The Fallen and his brothers power beyond measure, the cube's own power was depleted. They learned that its power could be replenished by harvesting the energy of stars, but they were unable to locate new stars to suit their purposes, despite their amazing ability to travel between dimensions using triangular "[[sarcophagus|sarcophagi]]". {{storylink|Defiance issue 4|Defiance #4}} As he quested, The Fallen came to believe that the AllSpark was speaking to him, telling him of a grander destiny than that of his brothers, picking him as its "chosen one." {{storylink|Tales of the Fallen issue 4|Tales of the Fallen #4}}

To aid the Dynasty of Primes in their quest, the AllSpark created for them a race of [[Transformer|workers]] that had a power of their own: the ability to transform their bodies into new forms! Some, called "[[Seeker (ROTF)|Seekers]]", could change into interstellar crafts that could locate stars for them, the energies of which would then be harvested to power the AllSpark by massive devices built by the [[Constructicon (ROTF)|other workers]]. The Dynasty tempered their search with the rule of sparing stars with inhabited worlds, but The Fallen believed that the Dynasty's compassion would ultimately doom the Cybertronians to inevitable extinction. As he sought a way to fix this problem, The Fallen came to think evil thoughts. What if there were no other Primes to share the AllSpark with? What if its power was his alone? {{storylink|Defiance issue 4|Defiance #4}}

[[File:JetfireROTF-TalesoftheFallen.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|I'm trustworthy!]]

The Fallen began to court some Transformers to his side. He selected a small number of the [[Constructicon (ROTF)|Constructicon]] drones to do his bidding in private, ultimately in service of subverting the Dynasty of Primes in favor of his own agenda. He called this group the Decepticons. [[Jetfire (Movie)|Jetfire]], The Fallen's most trusted and capable Seeker, began to unwittingly harvest the stars of inhabited star systems; the two would scan a system together, but The Fallen would report that his search areas were devoid of life. This practice got The Fallen and Jetfire into trouble with the other Primes, and so The Fallen began to sow seeds of mistrust in Jetfire. He claimed the Primes' refusal to sacrifice life to save their own planet would be its downfall, and that an army had to be readied in case the Primes betrayed them all. {{storylink|Tales of the Fallen issue 3|Tales of the Fallen #3}}

[[File:TalesoftheFallen4-theyshallpay.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.66|Yummy, yummy, yummy, I got hate in my tummy!]]

The Fallen attempted to build a Star Harvester on his own, powered by a counterfeit [[Matrix of Leadership]] he had constructed. However, it was unstable, and the resulting explosion infused The Fallen with power he had never known. He now burned with dark, unimaginable powers from within. The Fallen, feeling a darker sense of purpose that complemented his darker powers, traveled from world to world to world, killing scores of organisms and assimilating their technology, and leaving the dry husks of planets in his wake. He evolved, and during his ascension he planned for the eventual battle with his brothers. {{storylink|Tales of the Fallen issue 4|Tales of the Fallen #4}}

As Jetfire joined the Decepticons, The Fallen took them to a planet named Earth, and they built a [[Star Harvester]] to claim the [[Sun]]. However, it, too, harbored life: The Fallen was building the harvester there to either bait his brothers into taking action (while he was prepared to kill them all) or to remain in limbo. Either way, he won! Jetfire finally turned against his master, just as the remaining Primes arrived, falling into the traitor's trap. The Fallen warped Jetfire and his other underlings away and faced his brothers alone. {{storylink|Tales of the Fallen issue 3|Tales of the Fallen #3}}

[[File:TalesoftheFallen4-notlikethis.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|Ever since he was a child, he was hated by triangles.]]

The battle between The Fallen and the other Primes was costly. They did not expect The Fallen to have so much power, and one by one they fell by his wretched hand. He had "expanded [his] consciousness—absorbed the mental mass of a hive intelligence seventy trillion strong, probed the neural functions of creatures that swim in unrefined thought..." Since last they met, he was "so much more" than they were. The Fallen was able to grab weapons from his stockpile through personal dimensional portals, and one by one he murdered his brothers until there was only one Prime left to oppose him. With one last desperate gamble, the final Prime fled, and he and The Fallen warped from location to location; The Fallen thought this Prime was merely stalling, but he was gravely mistaken. The final Prime had gathered up the bodies of his defeated brothers, and when at last he had collected them all and The Fallen was weak from overteleportation, he used their combined lifeforce to banish The Fallen forever. The Fallen was sent through his sarcophagus and trapped in another dimension, where he crashed into a desolate landscape, swearing revenge. {{storylink|Tales of the Fallen issue 4|Tales of the Fallen #4}}{{storylink|Foundation issue 2|Foundation #2}}

Knowledge of this was lost through the ages, and the Dynasty of Primes became little more than a myth. Thousands of years later, however, The Fallen's sarcophagus was unearthed on modern-day Cybertron and brought to the quarters of the planet's military leader Megatron. There, sensing the fury and resentment, The Fallen established contact with Megatron, filling him with a new resolve to destroy those who sought out the AllSpark. {{Storylink|Defiance issue 2|Defiance #2}} In the aftermath of Megatron's ruthless battle against a band of [[Ejoornian|aliens]] seeking the AllSpark, The Fallen further counseled him to seize control of Cybertron to make way for The Fallen's return. He also told him that [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus]] sought the AllSpark for himself, and Megatron immediately decided that Optimus and his followers deserved to be killed for this transgression. {{Storylink|Defiance issue 3|Defiance #3}}

[[File:Defiance4 Megatron TheFallen.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|left|All right, who changed the thermostat!?]]

But simply taking the planet would not be enough. The Fallen also ordered Megatron to build a [[Nemesis (Movie)|space cruiser]] to seek out the Matrix, which he said was a prerequisite to his return. As the ship's construction came to an end, The Fallen told Megatron the story of his origin and his plans regarding the harvester on Earth. The Fallen ordered Megatron to put his sarcophagus on the ship and then stay behind to fight Optimus' forces and safeguard the AllSpark. [[Soundwave (ROTF)|Soundwave]] and a majority of the Decepticon soldiers crewed the ship.
Meanwhile, on Cybertron, civil war raged between Optimus' Autobots and Megatron's Decepticons, a war which eventually led to the AllSpark being launched into space. {{storylink|Defiance issue 4|Defiance #4}} {{storylink|Foundation issue 3|Foundation #3}}

The ''Nemesis'' came across the AllSpark's energon signature, to Soundwave's disbelief. The Fallen began speaking to Soundwave just as a [[Ark (DOTM)|ship]] crashed into the ''Nemesis'', and disappeared once more through a portal. After landing the ship on a dead planet, Soundwave was commanded to pursue the ship via the portal—that The Fallen recognized as a [[space bridge]]—it left behind. {{storylink|Convergence chapter 1}} Later, Megatron found the abandoned ''Nemesis'' during his pursuit of the AllSpark. He once again spoke with The Fallen, who was furious that Megatron had taken this detour. He ordered him to resume the chase immediately, confident that the Cube would guide them to the harvester. Megatron obeyed, leaving the sarcophagus in the barren wreckage. {{storylink|Defiance issue 4|Defiance #4}}

Thousands of years later, Soundwave returned, having recovered a space bridge [[pillar]] from the Autobot ship. The Fallen informed Soundwave of Megatron's visit, and Soundwave deduced Megatron was one of the Cybertronians rumored to be held captive by the humans, prompting him to return. The Fallen then used the pillar to warp space and time, leaving his prison at last... {{storylink|Convergence chapter 4}}
{{-}}

====''Transformers: The Movie Universe''====
The original Transformers, all of them Primes, were united by a directive that safeguarded all life, and as such they refused to utilize the harvester on the inhabited Earth. One of their number, however, decided "I want Energon!" and slaughtered his brothers so he could harvest the Sun. He threw away his original name and became the Fallen. In the end, he slaughtered all of his brethren, but they were still able to imprison him in a pocket dimension and save the Earth. In the process, his appearance had changed to a terrifying, cage-like exostructure burning with chaotic energies from the universe's creation, forces that had purged him of all morality. Since his body was never meant to contain the unholy power flowing through it, he had to steadily vent that energy to ensure his own continued existence. This created the visual effect of a constant fiery nimbus.

While effectively harmless to the universe outside his prison, his powers remained vast: He could generate space bridges spontaneously, as well as focus his energies into discrete blasts that could unmake creation itself. Were he ever able to escape, he would be a supremely powerful danger. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen: The Movie Universe|The Movie Universe}}

====Titan movie comics====
The Fallen was the worst of the worst—he made Devastator look like a puppy with a bad tummy! {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.3|#3's Contents section}}

Legend had it that the first seven Transformers were created by [[Primus]], but the Fallen believed them to be creations of the AllSpark. Their task was to harvest Energon for the AllSpark without endangering alien life, but the Fallen cared nothing for the [[Human|puny meatsacks]] of Earth and tried to harvest the Sun! {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.3|The Fallen Profile}} His duped servant Jetfire watched in horror as the Fallen imprisoned the other six Primes! {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.8|Jetfire Profile}} However, the Primes still managed to sacrifice themselves to hide the Creation Matrix, key to the AllSpark, while the Fallen was imprisoned in a pocket dimension on one of Saturn's moons... until Megatron released him! {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.3|The Fallen Profile}}

[[File:Titan1 FallenStarscream.jpg|upright=3|thumb|Behold my <s>resting</s> mighty hand!]]

Soon after Megatron's death in Mission City, The Fallen made contact with [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]] and used him to organize the Decepticon army and lay the groundwork for his return. He ordered Starscream and his forces to go to Cybertron and await further instruction, and promised that once the Matrix was found, [[Earth]] would ''burn''! Unfortunately for The Fallen, Autobot twins [[Skids (ROTF)|Skids]] and [[Mudflap (ROTF)|Mudflap]] learned the Starscream was colluding with The Fallen (though not who or what The Fallen ''was''), and headed for Earth to warn Optimus Prime. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.1|Training Day}} The Fallen had [[Soundwave (ROTF)|Soundwave]] contact one of his Seekers still on the planet, [[Ransack (ROTF)|Ransack]], and had him dispatched him to deal with the Twins. He angrily warned Starscream not to fail again, grrrr! {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.2|Dogfight!}}

However, due to his imprisonment, the Fallen could only communicate with his generals and not Ransack directly, which led to Soundwave taking his own actions and working his own angles to try and find the Tomb of the Primes, which included recruiting the Twins, rather than eliminating them. In a fitting act of cosmic irony, the twins turned out to be faking their defection, and they put an end to Soundwave's treacherous scheme. Ransack intended to inform the Fallen, but evidently never made it, while Skids and Mudflap decided that, after all the trouble they had gotten in to after coming to Earth, they'd better not tell anyone about that whole "Fallen" thing they'd learned about after all. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.8|Back-to-Back}}

=====Law and Disorder=====
The Fallen suffered from iron barnacles in the folds of his armor... and if YOU were an Autobot sympathizer, you would be forced to clean them out! {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.7|#7's Law and Disorder}}

====Toy bios====
[[File:TF2010-The-Fallen-art.jpg|thumb|right|250px|I did more things here than on my feature film.]]

Since even before history was recorded on Cybertron, the Fallen has lurked in the shadows, guiding the fate of his fellow machines. His is the hand in the darkness that drives the engines of fate. It was him that engineered the civil war on Cybertron and drove the Decepticons to slaughter their Autobot counterparts. Now on the primitive, flesh-slug infected planet known as Earth, he has stepped out of the shadows to finally seize the [[Star Harvester|power]] he has sought for millennia. {{storylink|The Fallen/toys#Robot Replicas|Robot Replicas The Fallen}}

For thousands of years, the Fallen has recruited proxies to scour the cosmos for the star harvester he required before returning to Earth, the very planet on which his quest began. Nothing will stand in his way this time, and he will scour the surface of this disgusting world clean in the fire of his rage and search through the blasted rubble for that which he seeks. {{storylink|The Fallen/toys#Voyager Class toys|''Revenge of the Fallen'' Voyager The Fallen}}

Aware that only a true Prime can destroy him, the Fallen has entered every battle knowing that the outcome of his victory is inevitable. Modern-day Autobots such as [[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]] and [[Highbrow (TF 2010)|Highbrow]] stand no chance against him, for he wields the power of advanced technology that looks like magic. The Fallen will crush the miserable Autobots that dare to challenge him before proceeding with his plans as if the interruption never occurred. {{storylink|The Fallen/toys#TF2010Voyager|''Hunt for the Decepticons'' Voyager The Fallen}}

As a desperate battle raged in the desert below him, the Fallen reveled in his triumph. The ancient machine with which he intends to harvest the Sun's energy would soon be uncovered and the Earth would be destroyed if he were to win. {{storylink|The Fallen/toys#Transformers (2010)|The Victory of The Fallen}}

====Ask Vector Prime====
Vector Prime recounted the story of [[Tyran 208.28 Gamma]], an alternate timeline in which Megatron and the Decepticons triumphed in the battle of [[Mission City]], but were then trapped on the dead Cybertron by the Autobots before they managed to free The Fallen. Sensing the loss of his servants, The Fallen summoned a new army of Decepticons (including [[Blue Maximus]], [[Chopsaw]], [[Undertow (PCC)|Undertow]], and [[Duststorm (TF 2010)|Duststorm]]) to terrorize Earth! Many an epic battle was fought against them! {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime|Ask Vector Prime, 2015/08/21}}

====''Shattered Glass''====
[[File:Coalescence FallenSunstormAlphaTrion.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.66]]

One version of the Fallen from an unknown universe, while within the agonies of defeat, desperately fled through a seam in reality, but miscalculated, and ended up in [[Primax -408.24 Epsilon|an unconventional reality]]. Due to being in a negative polarity universe, rather than being constantly on fire, the Fallen was now constantly frozen, and only his devoted servant [[Sunstorm (Universe)|Sunstorm]] kept him warm. {{charstubfiction|{{storylink|Coalescence}}}}

===''Animated'' cartoon===
[[Kup (Animated)|Kup]] sardonically compared [[Rodimus Prime (Animated)|Hot Rod]]'s paint job to the Fallen's. {{storylink|Transformers Animated: The AllSpark Almanac II|The AllSpark Almanac II}}

===Aligned continuity family===
====''The Covenant of Primus''====
[[File:MegatronusPrime.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|To have a helmet as good as this will cost you your soul... and also ten cents.]]

Megatronus was the twelfth Prime created by Primus to defeat [[Unicron]]. Rightfully proud of his power and unwaveringly loyal to his creator [[Primus]], he thought of himself as a warrior first and foremost, but his dark powers and conflicted nature meant that he was rarely at peace with himself. His artifact of power—the deadly [[Requiem Blaster (Megatronus)|Requiem Blaster]]—used stellar fusion as an energy conduit, exponentially increasing his already destructive powers. Viewing himself as an outsider, he frequently butted heads with the warrior of light [[Prima]], to the point where even his closest allies among the Thirteen viewed him as an unpredictable and unstable presence. In spite of this, he struck up a close friendship with Solus Prime, which eventually blossomed into a mutual romance. Not even Solus Prime's comforting presence could rein in Megatronus' chaotic tendencies; his private insecurities and hidden fears continued to fester, and soon gave way to something darker.

The thirteen newly created Primes soon began experimenting with their powers and strategizing for the upcoming conflict. Megatronus considered himself a warrior and trained alongside Vector Prime, Prima, [[Onyx Prime]], and [[Amalgamous Prime|Amalgamous]]. Megatronus, having the closest connection to Unicron, offered advice to Solus Prime on how to create the best weapons to defeat the chaos-bringer. Among their collaborative efforts were [[Dark Energon skin]]s, which would protect the Primes from the toxic [[Dark Energon]]. Megatronus eventually requested that a blaster be made for him by Solus Prime. She reluctantly agreed, and the Requiem Blaster was forged. Solus had doubts about the weapon, but her deep faith in Megatronus was what allowed her to trust him with the Blaster.

[[File:COP-Megatronusshootssolus.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|left|"How could this happen? We started out like Romeo and Juliet but it ended up in tragedy!"]]

When the fight against Unicron came, Megatronus fought alongside his siblings, and was ultimately triumphant. However, some of Unicron's darkness had rubbed off on all of them; a fact that Megatronus strangely appeared to revel in. In the era of peace and rebuilding that followed, Megatronus worked alongside [[Liege Maximo]], [[Micronus Prime]], and Amalgmous Prime, refining [[Energon]] for future use. He slowly befriended more of the Thirteen, although his love for Solus Prime never faded.

Unfortunately, this period of peace was not to last. Megatronus and Solus Prime were both being manipulated by Liege Maximo, who managed to drive a schism between the two lovers. Megatronus confronted Solus Prime over a newly created suit of armor intended for Maximo's "farm". Their disagreement eventually grew into a full-fledged fight after Megatronus killed her pet, which had secretly been recording Solus Prime's actions. In the chaos, Megatronus fired the Requiem Blaster without thinking, fatally wounding Solus Prime. Before Solus passed away, however, she professed her love for him.

Megatronus hid himself away in the untamed regions of Cybertron, until the surviving Primes discovered him. Megatronus confessed his crime, but also accused Maximo of setting up the whole plot, and aimed to kill him once and for all. The accusations flew quickly, and before long the argument descended into a free-for-all. In the aftermath, Liege Maximo was apparently blown apart by a shot from the Requiem Blaster, although [[Alpha Trion (WFC)|Alpha Trion]] could not identify just who had fired the weapon. Along with the surviving Primes, a repentant Megatronus attended Solus' funeral. Renaming himself "the Fallen", he donned Solus Prime's suit of armor and went into exile in space, never to be seen again.

Eons later, a young gladiator and social rhetorician named [[Megatron (WFC)|D-16]] took inspiration from ancient folk tales, renaming himself "Megatronus". {{storylink|Transformers: The Covenant of Primus|The Covenant of Primus}}
{{-}}

====Aligned novels====
Megatronus conceived the idea of the [[Requiem Blaster (Megatronus)|Requiem Blaster]], a weapon so powerful that it dwarfed all other weapons in existence. With great reluctance, Solus Prime agreed to forge the weapon for Megatronus, and even then only after Megatronus convinced other members of the Thirteen to petition her on his behalf as well. Even after the weapon was completed, Solus Prime showed great reluctance in allowing it to remain in existence. After demonstrating its awesome power to the Thirteen, she asked for a vote as to whether the Requiem Blaster should be destroyed. Megatronus led the group who voted in favor of retaining the Blaster, and they won by the slimmest of margins, 7-to-6.

At some later date, Megatronus killed Solus Prime in a fit of rage, and became the Fallen, forever more. The reason for the murder is not fully known at this point, although Solus did favor [[Nexus Prime]] over others in the Thirteen, a fact that had stirred jealousy in Megatronus in the past. Though a terrible thing, Vector Prime considered the Fallen lashing out in a moment of anger forgivable over Liege Maximo's active plotting. {{storylink|Transformers: Exiles|Exiles}}

Megatron, who took his name to inspire fear, took a favorable view of the Fallen, considering him the one member of the Thirteen who refused to bow down to the others, and the only Prime who sought his own destiny. {{storylink|Transformers: Exodus|Exodus}}

====''Prime'' cartoon====
[[File:OneShallRise1-WellofAllSparks.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.67|Dum de dum, not thinking about demons...]]

According to legend, at the beginning of time, Unicron and Primus battled each other for eons, with neither side remaining victorious for long. Until, that is, Primus created the [[Thirteen]]. These Thirteen defeated Unicron and cast him into space. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 1}} At some point statues of Megatronus and his brothers were made. They were placed in the chamber of the High Council. A [[Megatron (WFC)|gladiator]] would also name himself after Megatronus before shortening his name to simply "Megatron". {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}}

When [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]] proclaimed to Optimus Prime that he wished to change sides, [[Bulkhead (Prime)|Bulkhead]] sarcastically claimed that he had been [[Cybertronian sport#Lobbing|lobbing]] with the Fallen. {{storylink|Partners (Prime)|Partners}}
{{--}}

====2015 ''Robots in Disguise'' cartoon====
{{voiceactor|[[Gil Gerard]] (English), [[Fumihiko Tachiki]] (Japanese)|[[Klaus Lochthove]] (German), [[Salvador Reyes]] (Latin American-Spanish), [[Martin Spinhayer]] (French), [[Ferenc Borbiczki]] (Hungarian), [[Antônio Moreno]] (Brazilian Portuguese)}}
[[file:RID-phantommegatronus.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.1|"You will bow down before me, Jor-El! I swear it!"]]
In the distant past, Megatronus killed Solus Prime. {{storylink|Battlegrounds, Part 2}} He was eventually imprisoned in another dimension, and held both [[Earth]] and Cybertron responsible for his defeat. {{storylink|Battlegrounds, Part 1}} He maintained a degree of agency over the events in this world, and he was able to influence events so that the prison ship ''[[Alchemor (RID)|Alchemor]]'' crash-landed on Earth, releasing its cargo of [[Decepticon]] convicts in the process. From there, Megatronus bided his time. Eventually, he contacted the Decepticon revolutionary [[Steeljaw (RID)|Steeljaw]], who had just suffered a humiliating rout at the hands of [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]]'s [[Autobot]]s. Introducing himself as "the first Decepticon", Megatronus struck a bargain with Steeljaw: if Steeljaw helped free him from his prison, Megatronus would let Steeljaw and his gang have the Earth. Steeljaw reluctantly agreed. {{storylink|Lockout}}

[[File:RID-Megatronus.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|caption|Kitty ears of DOOM.]]

Megatronus interrupted Steeljaw while the latter was scheming, demanding to know if they had made progress on the device that would allow him to escape. Steeljaw retorted that he needed more Decepticons to help him with the task, but Megatronus was less than moved, using his telekinetic powers to make [[Clampdown (RID)|Clampdown]] pull on his arm hard until Steeljaw capitulated. Megatronus informed his new servant that the device would require a mass of sufficient metal to anchor the energies generated by his arrival- namely, the [[Crown City Colossus]]. Although the Autobots, accompanied with a reborn [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]], attempted to intervene, their efforts weren't enough to stop Steeljaw from activating the portal. A triumphant Megatronus materialized, ready to carry out his plan. {{storylink|Battlegrounds, Part 1}}

[[File:Battlegrounds2-Megatronus.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|"I'll show you the dark side." "You may try, but you cannot deny the truth that is your family." "You're so right."]]

Megatronus moved to attack the weakened Autobots, but was intercepted by Optimus, and the two began dueling. Megatronus gained the upper hand and managed to slash at Optimus, knocking him into the water and temporarily taking him out of the fight. Megatronus retieved his fallen [[Spark fuser]] and activated it, intending to draw the remnants of [[Unicron]]'s anti-[[spark]] from the Earth's core and merge it with the AllSpark, destroying both Earth and Cybertron. When Steeljaw realized this, Megatronus retorted that he had never technically lied to him about his right to own Earth... or whatever would be left of it. Megatronus restrained the furious Steeljaw with his telekinesis and opened a rift in the sky.

[[File:RID-megatronustank.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Megatronus deploys his dreaded drill-nipples.]]

Fighting Steeljaw distracted Megatronus long enough for Bumblebee to resuscitate Optimus, and the two Autobot leaders moved in to finish him off after Megatronus hurled Steeljaw away. While Optimus once again dueled with Megatronus, Bumblebee, [[Strongarm (RID)|Strongarm]], and [[Sideswipe (RID)|Sideswipe]] used their [[Decepticon Hunter]]s to power themselves up. Optimus managed to shatter Megatronus' Spark fuser, closing the rift and ruining his plan. Furious, Megatronus redoubled his attack. [[Drift (RID)|Drift]] helped to drop part of the Colossus on Megatronus. The weight of the statue was enough that Bumblebee's team could blast him with a sustained burst of energy, disintegrating his body and seemingly destroying him, though Bumblebee questioned if he truly was destroyed. {{storylink|Battlegrounds, Part 2}}
{{-}}

====IDW ''Robots in Disguise'' comic====
In later happier times, Bumblebee recalled the events of their battle against Megatronus. {{storylink|Robots in Disguise issue 5|Robots in Disguise #5}}

====''Adventure'' toy bios====
On the moment of Megatronus' defeat at the hands of Bumblebee's team, an evil presence emanated from his wounds and resonated with [[Nemesis Prime (RID)|Nemesis Prime]], powering him up into a new form. {{storylink|Nemesis Prime (RID)#TAV56|Nemesis Prime bio}}

===''Kre-O'' online comic===
[[File:Kreo fallen skybyte.JPG|left|thumb|upright=1]]
When [[Predaking (G1)|Predaking]] attacked [[Metroplex (G1)|Autobot City]], the Fallen stood next to [[Sky-Byte (RID)|Gelshark]]. {{storylink|Behemoth Combination! But They're Cute? The Predacon Unit}}
{{-}}

===''Cyberverse'' cartoon===
Megatronus was one of the [[Thirteen]], {{storylink|Dweller In The Depths (Cyberverse)|Dweller In The Depths}} {{storylink|Silent Strike}} {{storylink|The Other One}} Cybertronians being known to swear by his name in times of shock. {{storylink|The Extinction Event}} {{storylink|The Immobilizers}}

After gaining control of the AllSpark, [[Starscream (Cyberverse)|Starscream]] believed he had pulled Megatronus' spark back to the world of the living and implanted it into one of his "[[scraplet|children]]", though some questioned the legitimacy of his claims. {{storylink|Parley}}

==Games==
===''Transformers: Battle for the Matrix''===
{{Note|Battle for the Matrix is a simplified retelling of the events of ''[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen]]''. It can be played from the perspective of either Bumblebee or Optimus Prime. The final battle is against Megatron and the Fallen at the [[Star Harvester]].}}

[[File:The Fallen battleforthematrix.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.1|Behind you!]]

The Fallen tried to defend the Sun Harvester from some Autobot attackers. {{storylink|Transformers: Battle for the Matrix}}
{{--}}

===''Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen'' - The Game===
{{voiceactor|[[James Arnold Taylor]] (English)|[[Sylvain Lemarié]] (French), [[Luis Fernando Ríos]] (Castilian Spanish)}}

[[File:ROTF 360PS3PC TheFallen.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|I shall light this holy ring, release its cleansing flame, and burn a path into the divine beyond!!! ...Wait, what game is this again?]]

====Xbox 360/PS3/PC====
=====Decepticon campaign=====
With Optimus Prime seemingly defeated, The Fallen and the Decepticons journeyed to Egypt, where he uncovered the Star Harvester from inside the Great Pyramid of Giza and commenced his plans to destroy the Sun. However, the last of the Primes had survived his battle with Megatron and now revealed to the enraged Decepticon leader that The Fallen had betrayed him. The Fallen's promise to Megatron that he would make his student a Prime would never be fulfilled, as Primes were born, not made. Megatron demanded what he had been promised, but the Fallen, disgusted with the creature that he no longer needed, attacked. Righteous indignation fueled Megatron through this battle, and ultimately, he ended The Fallen's mastery over the Decepticons by impaling him through his head and letting the corpse fall into the depths of the Star Harvester. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (Xbox 360/PS3/PC)}}

=====Autobot campaign=====
Optimus Prime had survived his battle with Megatron and merged with the parts of Jetfire, and now this new, powered-up form faced the might of The Fallen at the Great Pyramid. Optimus' ancestor mocked this young upstart who dared to face his elder, telekinetically throwing debris at the Autobot, summoning great bursts of energy from the ground, and unleashing an army of Decepticon drones. However, Optimus Prime's new armour more than enabled him to survive this onslaught, and as he rained energy slugs into The Fallen, the ancient Cybertronian called out to Megatron for help, but to no avail, for his student had since learned of The Fallen's treachery. Optimus ended The Fallen's reign of terror by impaling him through his head and letting the corpse fall into the depths of the Star Harvester. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (Xbox 360/PS3/PC)}}

====PSP====
{{charstubgame|{{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (PSP)}}}}
{{-}}

===''Transformers Autobots''/''Decepticons''===
{{charstubgame|{{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen: Autobots/Decepticons}}}}

===''Revenge of the Fallen'' mobile game===
The Fallen sent [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]] and some Decepticon forces to [[Shanghai]] to retrieve a fragment of the [[AllSpark]]. Starscream returned successful, and The Fallen sent him to NEST HQ as a diversion. The Fallen himself used the AllSpark shard to resurrect [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]] as part of the ongoing plan to gain possession of the [[Matrix of Leadership]] so they could reactivate the "[[Star Harvester|Great Machine]]". The Fallen sent Megatron to [[Egypt]], but when the other Decepticons fell, he himself put in an appearance. The Fallen was confident that [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] had worn himself out fighting Megatron, however Optimus channeled the power of the Matrix into a single blast, destroying The Fallen. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (Glu)}}

====Wii/PS2====
{{charstubgame|{{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (Wii/PS2)}}}}

===''Robots in Disguise'' mobile game===
<center>
{|class="wikitable"border="5"style="width:65%"
|-
!scope="col"width="30%"|'''Version'''
!style="background:#00CCFF;color:black"scope="col"width="35%"|'''Unlock Cost (Energon)'''
!style="background:#BF00FF;color:white"scope="col"width="35%"|'''Unlock Cost (Ultra Sparks)'''
|-
|Starter
|500
|10
|-
|Legion
|1500
|30
|-
|Warrior
|4000
|80
|-
|Warrior Elite
|4000
|80
|-
|Ultra
|8000
|140
|}
</center>

<gallery>
File:TF-RID2015-Mobage-Legion-Megatronus.jpg
File:TF-RID2015-Mobage-Warrior-Megatronus.jpg
File:TF-RID2015-Mobage-Warrior-Elite-Megatronus.jpg
File:TF-RID2015-Mobage-Ultra-Megatronus.jpg
</gallery>

Megatronus was among the many Decepticons available to repel an Insecticon invasion. {{storylink|Transformers: Robots in Disguise (mobile game)|Robots in Disguise}}

===''Splatoon''===
[[Squid Sisters|Marie]] considered Megatronus among the coolest of the Decepticons. {{storylink|Splatoon}}

===''Transformers: Forged to Fight''===
[[File:ForgedToFight-Megatronus.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Megatronus after hitting the jackpot through watching ''Sushi Girl''.]]

One of the original Thirteen Primes created by Primus to combat Unicron, Megatronus betrayed his fellow Primes in his quest for power, leading to his banishment.<ref>[https://transformersforgedtofight.com/bot-intel-report-megatronus/ Bot Intel Report - Megatronous]</ref> He returned in the present day on [[New Quintessa]] to trouble the Cybertronians marooned on the strange planet.

In an attempt by Megatronus to take the power of the dormant [[Quintessa (IDW)|Necrotitan]], their sparks merged to become [[Necrotronus]]. {{storylink|Transformers: Forged to Fight}}
{{--}}

==Toys==
{{main|The Fallen/toys}}

==Notes==
===Generation 1===
[[File:Fallenpatlee.jpg|thumb|upright=0.85|I'm The Fallen, and I can't get up!]]
*The Fallen was created by [[Simon Furman]] for [[Dreamwave Productions]]' ''[[Transformers: War Within: The Dark Ages|War Within: The Dark Ages]]'' comic book. Furman used him to recycle some of the plans he had for the [[Last Autobot]] in the [[The Transformers (Marvel comic)|original Marvel comic]], but which he was unable to use as a result of the comic's cancellation.<ref>[http://www.camphortree.net/tf/tidbits/otfcc2004.txt OTFCC 2004 convention report]</ref>
*The Fallen design was created by [[Pat Lee]], his first (and only) original Transformers character. The early design concept differed incredibly from the final product, noticeably lacking The Fallen's characteristic mouthplate. He was envisioned as a medieval, ancient-looking Transformer who glowed like a furnace, but he was not depicted as being perpetually on fire until [[Andrew Wildman]] penciled his appearances in ''The Dark Ages'' and the colorists caught on. When questioned about him constantly being aflame, Furman responded that they went with it "because it looks cool."
[[File:Thefallentank.jpg|thumb|upright=0.85|The Judasmobile.]]
*Though Lee designed a tank alternate mode for The Fallen, which was shown in the profile series ''[[Transformers: More than Meets the Eye|More than Meets the Eye]]'', it was never used in-fiction. Similarly, The Fallen is said to have ''no'' alternate mode in IDW's ''Revenge of the Fallen'' comics, and he does not actually transform in the film or the ''Prime Wars Trilogy'' cartoons.
*Very little of The Fallen's backstory was given in his first fictional appearances, leaving much of ''The Dark Ages'' somewhat confusing on its own. Helpful inserts from ''More Than Meets The Eye'' and Dorling Kindersley's ''[[Transformers: The Ultimate Guide]]'', published around the same time, spelled out more. Eventually, the packaging profile printed on his Titanium figure gave the rest. Oh, and then years later, he was the titular villain of a summer blockbuster film.
*The proper treatment of his name, with its capital-T "The", is established both in the comics and the ''Ultimate Guide''. The one dissenting source is his on-package [[bio]], which simply calls him "'''Fallen'''" (as in, "'''Fallen''' forgot his real name long ago"). The reason for this awkward treatment is unknown, though the usual culprits behind toy-name oddities—[[trademark]] issues—are suspected.
*The Fallen can speak Spanish.<ref>Fanclub-exclusive Mini Mayhem strip, March 19, 2007</ref>
[[File:TFGenerations2014 Rejected TheFallen.jpg|thumb|upright=0.85]]
*The Fallen's appearance in the ''Train Wars'' manga is based on a mock-up created for a [[Fan polls#Generations Magazine Exclusive Character Popularity Vote|poll]] in ''[[Transformers Generations 2014 Volume 1]]'', one of ten potential exclusives for Vol. 2. A redeco of ''[[Transformers: Generations (toyline)|Generations]]'' [[Onslaught (WFC)#Generations|Onslaught]], it would have featured the [[Ruination (FOC)|Ruination]] head in combiner mode, which would have been making its Japanese market debut. Ultimately, the Fallen only claimed 5% of the votes.<ref>[http://millionhero.sblo.jp/article/101898683.html Poll results at Hero-X]</ref>
*In the [[2005 IDW continuity]], Megatronus' design is based on his Aligned incarnation, like the other members of the Thirteen.
*Megatronus was again redesigned for the ''Prime Wars Trilogy'' cartoons, amalgamating elements of his incarnations from the Aligned continuity (enlarged shoulders, fusion cannons), ''Revenge of the Fallen'' (glowing red accents, an Egyptian-crown-like head) and Dreamwave (his blocky shape, lots of fire). This design would reappear in ''Forged to Fight'', which also revealed his alternate mode to be a Cybertronian jet like his movie counterpart.

===''Revenge of the Fallen''===
*Michael Bay attempted to hide The Fallen's involvement in ''Revenge of the Fallen'', going so far as to claim that statements made by Simon Furman at [[San Diego Comic-Con]] 2008<ref>[http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=17412 Simon Furman confirms The Fallen is a character in an interview with Comic Book Resources (Fallen details removed)]</ref> and [[Chris Mowry]] in an interview with MTV Splash Page <ref>[http://splashpage.mtv.com/2008/07/28/exclusive-transformers-2-prequel-comic-gives-inside-scoop-on-2009-movie/ MTV Splash Page interviews Chris Mowry (Fallen details removed)]</ref> were part of a disinformation campaign, and that only a small number of people had seen the script.<ref>[http://www.shootfortheedit.com/forum/showpost.php?p=44729&postcount=2 A post made by Michael Bay on his forum]</ref> On August 5, 2008, after a fan posted on Michael Bay's forum pointing out that several IDW representatives had said they had the script, all references to The Fallen were removed from the aforementioned interviews, as well as any references to IDW Publishing having the script.
*Voice actor [[James Arnold Taylor]] was originally cast as The Fallen in the film version of ''Revenge of the Fallen'' (which led to him getting the same role in ''[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (Xbox 360/PS3/PC)|Revenge of the Fallen: The Game]]''), but was replaced by [[Tony Todd]] in the final edit of the film, to his disappointment. [[Leonard Nimoy]] was also considered for the role, but did not get it on the basis Bay feared Nimoy would have been paid too little money.{{fact}}
[[File:TheFallen-ROTFstaff.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|Give him the stick! Don't give him the stick!]]
*The Fallen's "Command Staff" (also known as the "[[Void Scepter]]"<ref>[http://www2.hasbro.com/transformers/en_US/discover/cybertronian-database.cfm#/characters/the-fallen The Fallen's bio at Hasbro.com]</ref>) seemed to be a later addition to the film, as the staff made no appearances in secondary fiction and was not included with The Fallen's original toy releases. The later Voyager class figure includes said staff, and the toy's hands were retooled to be able to hold it.
*[[Paul Ozzimo]] and [[Josh Nizzi]] designed Earth modes for The Fallen to take on in ''Revenge of the Fallen'', but like many of the Decepticons he does not assume one in the finished film. Ozzimo clarified on his website he was to turn into an {{w|Aurora (aircraft)|Aurora}} stealth bomber, the alleged modern replacement for the [[Jetfire (Movie)|SR-71 Blackbird]].
*Various on-package [[Hasbro]] [[bio]]s for the Fallen in the ''Revenge of the Fallen'' toyline utilize the derogatory term "flesh slugs" for humanity; the term originally appeared in the same manner in the 1980s ''[[Inhumanoids]]'' cartoon, based on another toyline by Hasbro.
*The Fallen was originally going to be ''huge'' in ''Revenge of the Fallen'': the novelization describes him as making Optimus look like an infant, and ''Defiance'' issue 4 depicts him as about the size of a pyramid. In the finished film, Fallen is only slightly bigger than Optimus and Megatron, and ''[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen: The Movie Universe]]'' clarifies he is 42 feet tall.
*Michael Bay doesn't actually like the Fallen, calling him "kind of a (expletive) character".<ref>[http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/2010-06-11-Transformers11_ST_N.htm?csp=usat.me USA Today, "Next 'Transformers' is due for a switch"]</ref>
*In early drafts of ''Revenge of the Fallen'', the Fallen doesn't appear in person until the climax, communicating with Megatron aboard the ''Nemesis'' via an interdimensional window. This led to the [[sarcophagus]] storyline in the comics, where only discovering the harvester's location would free him. When dropped from the film to give the character more screentime, it led to a massive plot hole in the comic storyline that was only resolved two years later by [[John Barber]] in ''[[Transformers: Convergence|Convergence]]''.

===Aligned===
*Until the ''Robots in Disguise'' cartoon introduced Megatronus as the "first Decepticon" (an idea taken from the live-action Fallen), the Aligned version of the character had no direct connection to the Decepticons in his backstory. He has, however, always had a helmet shaped like their insignia, an idea that also comes from the live-action film character.
*Megatronus' cartoon robot mode is a mishmash of his prior incarnations. He has the general blockiness and tank vehicle mode from the ''[[War Within (comic)|War Within]]'' comics, and his four-lined visor resembles the slots on that Fallen's faceplate. In addition to his status as "the first Decepticon" and his Decepticon-insignia-shaped helmet, he also features the movie character's telekinetic powers and similar forearm [[kibble]], though said kibble is actually put to use as [[fusion cannon]]-like arm weapons.
*Despite not appearing again after the first-season finale of ''Robots in Disguise'', [[Adam Beechen]] stated in a deleted blog that he survived his apparent destruction but left his fate beyond that in the air.

===Fun Publications===
*The Evil One being an incarnation of The Fallen was inspired by [https://tfwiki.net/mediawiki/index.php?title=The_Fallen&oldid=685238 an edit] of this very page back in 2012 noting the similarity. Although removed soon afterwards, it eventually became canon a few years later.<ref>[https://www.allspark.com/forums/topic/129168-out-of-printhard-to-find-media-mega-thread/page-9#entry3440904 Post by Verity Carlo on the Allspark Forums, 2017/02/12]</ref>

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''The Fallen''' (ザ・フォールン ''Za Fōrun''), '''Megatronus''' (メガトロナス ''Megatoronasu'')
*''Mandarin:'' '''Duòluò Jīngāng''' (China, 堕落金刚, "Corrupted Vajra", ''Revenge of the Fallen''), '''Zhèn Tiān Zūn''' (China, 震天尊, "Majesty Shocking the Heaven", ''Robots in Disguise'')

==External links==
{{GBwiki|Evil One}}

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

{{Thirteen}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fallen}}
[[Category:Cyberverse Transformers]]
[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Dreamwave Generation 1 Transformers]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Transformers]]
[[Category:IDW (2005) Transformers]]
[[Category:Matrix bearers]]
[[Category:Prime Transformers]]
[[Category:Renegades]]
[[Category:Revenge of the Fallen Decepticons]]
[[Category:Robots in Disguise (2015) Decepticons]]
[[Category:Thirteen]]
[[Category:Unicron-related characters]]
[[Category:War for Cybertron characters]]
[[Category:War for Cybertron: Earthrise characters]]

The Fallen

2023-06-15T03:57:23Z

Negatwenty:

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{|style="margin:0 1em;padding:.5em;background:#f7f8ff;border:thin solid #aaa;display:block;"cellpadding="0"cellspacing="0"
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|''This article is about the scary powerful Judas-bot. For other meanings, see [[Fallen (episode)]], [[Megatronus (disambiguation)]].''
|}
{{suite}}

[[File:HeatScramble-TheFallen.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|The levitation trick gets The Fallen all The Ladies at parties.]]

If the [[Thirteen|first Transformers]] were [[Primus]]' disciples, then '''The Fallen''' is his Judas. At the dawn of time, he was '''Megatronus''', one of a brotherhood of vastly powerful beings dedicated to the well-being of their world. But The Fallen would gain his current moniker by turning against his brother [[Prime (rank)|Prime]]s and his purpose to pursue his own ends, also earning the moniker "the first Decepticon" in the process. His frightening form is a metal cage for primal, burning forces of [[Unicron|chaos]], giving him the appearance of a living furnace. These cauldron-like forces purged him of what empathy and morality remained; all that remains now is hatred and purest rage.

The Fallen is immensely powerful. He commands mystic, entropic arts, and when at full strength he can un-make creation at his focused will. He is rarely defeated; at best he is contained, where he waits with eternal patience for the chance to unleash his dark powers once again. Though he has at times been imprisoned between dimensions, this rarely lasts. When his power is at its height, The Fallen can open [[space bridge]]s and travel between dimensions and realities at will.

Like his brothers, The Fallen was once a [[multiversal singularity]], meaning that in all of the vast [[multiverse]], he had no alternate-universe doppelganger, but that is now [[Shroud|no longer the case]]. In several realities he is the originator of the [[Decepticon]]s, the catalyst that prompted [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]] to claim power for himself rather than the greater good. While the exact details of his past are complicated beyond the understanding of mortals,<ref>See [[Hasbro Q&A/July 2009: Answers|Hasbro Q&A/July 2009: Answer #3]] for more information.</ref> one thing usually remains consistent: He's bad, bad news.

{{quote|You... you're from ''before''. Aren't you?|[[Jetfire (G1)|Jetfire]] on The Fallen|"[[Confrontation (issue)|Confrontation]]"}}

==Fiction==
===Generation 1 continuity family===
====Dreamwave ''Generation One'' continuity====
[[File:Thefallen.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.1|Ah, you know it's funny, these people, they go to sleep, they think everything's fine, everything's good... They wake up the next day and they're on fire.]]

When Primus and Unicron first battled as planets, Primus created the first 13 Transformers to assist him in planet mode. The Fallen's original purpose as one of the 13 was to oversee entropy, the orderly dissolution of all things in preparation for the next creation. But the concept of destruction fascinated him too much, and he lost sight of the goal of rebirth and the necessity of restraint. His investigations into the dark sciences led him to Unicron, to whom he gave himself.<ref>[http://www.seibertron.com/transformers/toys/titanium/the-fallen/1126/2/9/ Fallen's ''Titanium Series'' on-package bio]</ref> Corrupted by Unicron, the Fallen then tried to sabotage his creator's body. This attempt ended in failure, and "The Fallen" fled to his master, but there was little refuge to be found: They were both sucked into a [[black hole]]. {{storylink|Transformers: The Ultimate Guide}}

Approximately 7 million years before the 21st century, [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] were lost in a [[space bridge]] accident. This accident weakened the barrier between reality and [[unspace|the dimension]] in which The Fallen was trapped, allowing The Fallen to eventually break free and return to Cybertron. The Fallen set about initiating the "[[Unbinding]]", to precipitate the return of Unicron, and spent years, if not millennia, subtly manipulating the Autobots and Decepticons, causing them to splinter into multiple sub-factions that engaged in a constant series of escalating conflicts.

[[File:Thefallenseeksfour.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|Hey, The Fallen, ever heard of Tums?]]

As the time for the Unbinding drew near, the Fallen recruited a [[Chaos Trinity|trio of Decepticon outcasts]], [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]], [[Mindwipe (G1)|Mindwipe]], and [[Bugly (G1)|Bugly]], who hungered for a command of [[Dark science|the occult]]. The Fallen promised them all manner of dark powers in exchange for serving him. Leading his three followers to the [[Well of All Sparks]], hidden within Cybertron, he explained that the Unbinding required four particular Transformers, who would function as "angles in the geometry of dissolution", and named [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]] as the first. {{storylink|Fragmentation (G1)|Fragmentation}}

The Fallen and company proceeded to construct a strange machine within the Well of All Sparks in preparation for the Unbinding. Unfortunately, Bludgeon and friends got impatient for more than The Fallen's praise and demanded a more tangible reward: the arcane power he had promised them. The Fallen responded by grabbing Bludgeon's head and giving him a mere glimpse of what he sought: images of a fiery vortex, demonic faces, stabbing swords and a human skull engulfed Bludgeon. The Fallen stated that this was but a peek inside a dark door he would fully open if they served him well. This left Bludgeon suitably inspired to begin hunting down their targets.

[[File:Thefallengrimlock.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.1|Someone should tell Grimlock this more often.]]

Bugly and Mindwipe leaked information to draw the [[Protectobot (G1)|Protectobots]] out into combat with [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]], while Bludgeon hatched a plot to snare both Grimlock and [[Jetfire (G1)|Jetfire]]. {{storylink|Escalation}} Bludgeon, Bugly, and Mindwipe ambushed Jetfire as he attempted a cross-faction meeting with [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]]. When Grimlock crashed the party earlier than they expected, however, The Fallen himself had to intervene and caught Grimlock's blazing energo-sword in his bare hand. {{storylink|Revelation (The Dark Ages)|Revelation}}

Grimlock took one punch from The Fallen yet still got back up, so The Fallen grabbed him by the shoulders and unleashed a huge blast of energy that put the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobot]] leader out cold. Shocked by the display, Jetfire surmised that The Fallen predated the Golden Age. The Fallen responded by knocking Jetfire out cold too. He then dragged Grimlock and Jetfire away and commanded his followers to gather the third angle, while he handled the fourth. The Fallen singlehandedly abducted [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] from his well-guarded holding cell in Autobot headquarters, shrugging off attacks by some of the Autobots' best warriors and causing their weapons to corrode away into uselessness with a mere gesture. Bludgeon's team, meanwhile, succeeded in acquiring [[Hot Spot (G1)|Hot Spot]] from the Protectobots.

[[File:Fallenmoreonfire.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|The Fallen somehow sets himself ''more on fire''.]]

All four angles were strapped to the device in the Well of All Sparks. The Fallen theatrically explained to the awakening Jetfire that they were casualties in the war of the Gods, and would be used to break the Seal of Primus, after which "all chaos will follow". {{storylink|Confrontation (issue)|Confrontation}}

The Fallen continued his villainous monologue, apparently directing it not at Jetfire but at Primus himself, as the four Transformers' unique sparks were drained to unlock the Seal of Primus. A combined army of forces from several factions defeated the Chaos Trinity and penetrated The Fallen's operation. By the time they reached the door, The Fallen was satisfied that the Transformers were too late, until Jetfire arranged a force-field to surround the Seal. The Fallen was further impressed that Jetfire understood enough to try to contain the Seal, but his distraction cost him victory: the God of Light himself was subsequently roused from his slumber where he saw The Fallen. With a gesture of his radiant hand, Primus engulfed his wayward creation in a torrent of searing energy that was then sucked back into the Seal of Primus. {{storylink|Conflagration}}

{{Unreleased DW G1 comic}}
Shockwave broke the Seal for his cloning experiments, siphoning from within it the energy needed to create life. The Fallen's essence had then escaped and corrupted [[Sunstorm (G1)|Sunstorm]]. Following the clone's death, The Fallen's essence passed into Jetfire. Within visions, The Fallen attacked the Autobot over and over, while around them various key moments in Cybertron's history unfolded. Jetfire returned to reality as the Autobots were digging him free from the frozen prison he now found himself in. He was unable to warn them that The Fallen's essence had taken root in his spark as they broke through the ice holding him. {{storylink|The Enemy Within}}

====Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity====
=====Train Wars=====
[[File:TrainWars TheFallen.jpg|left|thumb|upright=2|The aftermath of when Queen Metallia claimed his Sun.]]

The Fallen staged an attack on Cybertron to steal [[Vector Sigma]], smashing his way through all Autobot resistance. The mega-computer managed to wrest itself free of the ancient villain's grip long enough to transform into its "[[Primus|Oracle]]" robot mode and lend its power to [[Overdrive]], who then used his powered-up [[Quantum Dial]] to bring forth reinforcements from time itself. The Fallen responded by summoning up troops of his own, who [[combiner|combined]] with him. {{storylink|Train Wars}} In his new combiner mode, The Fallen laid waste to the Autobots' multiversal reinforcements, impaling them on energy-blades. Recovering Vector Sigma, he began to integrate the computer into his body, but was fortunately distracted by [[Daniel Witwicky (G1)|Daniel Witwicky]] long enough for [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] to arrive with more reinforcements, made up of all kinds of train Transformers. Daniel and his partner [[Shouki]] blasted Vector Sigma free, and [[Shūta Gō]] and [[Goshooter]] then ''kicked'' the computer like a soccer ball, straight into The Fallen's face. The dazed demi-god found himself bound in a [[Trainbot Omni-Car Joint|living chain made up of all the interlinked train Transformers]], leaving him immobilized and open for one final attack. Using the power of Vector Sigma, Shouki unlocked a new transformation, becoming the gigantic "Train Bazooka" weapon, which Shuta then fired at The Fallen, obliterating him. {{storylink|Train Wars 2}}

=====''Legends'' comic=====
[[Smokescreen (G1)|Smokescreen]] cheered on The Fallen in the battle against the opposition. {{storylink|The Road to Legends' Revival Chapter 4: LG-EX Big Powered Prologue Part One|LG-EX Big Powered Prologue Part One}}
{{-}}

====2005 IDW continuity====
{{first|[[The Crucible|''Transformers: Robots in Disguise'' #34]] (mentioned); [[Heavy|''Transformers: Till All Are One'' #9]] (depicted)}}

[[File:TheFirstWhoWasNamed-MegatronusOrigins.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|"[[Darth Vader|What is thy bidding, my master?]]"]]

Twelve million years ago, in the primitive age that followed the departure of the [[Knights of Cybertron]], the 'bot who would become "Megatronus" was a humble nomad who wandered the deserts of prehistoric Cybertron alongside the shepherd [[Onyx Prime|Onyx]] and his flock of beasts. One day, the flock came across a badly damaged Transformer in the wastes—unbeknownst to any of them, this was [[Shockwave (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Shockwave]], who had been cast backwards in time following the destruction of his [[chronal drive]].

Having recognized the figures for who they would become, Shockwave slew Onyx without a moment's hesitation, sending his followers fleeing... all of them, that is, except one of Onyx's compatriots. Realizing that he could use his understanding of Cybertron's past to set the planet's history along the preordained course that he knew it must follow, Shockwave dubbed Onyx's terrified compatriot "Megatronus," naming him after [[Megatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|the Decepticon leader that would one day arise]]. Fashioning a new body for himself from Onyx's remains, Shockwave thus became "Onyx"; knowing from history that Megatronus' conquests would lead to the eventual unification of Cybertron, "Onyx Prime" trained Megatronus in the ways of war and deliberately inspired him to build an empire of his own.

His tutelage complete, Shockwave set Megatronus on the lands to the west, and Shockwave's pupil soon established a kingdom that became known as the "[[Darklands]]". As his power and influence grew over the course of his campaigns, Megatronus became a feared warrior and tyrant, and took to calling himself "The First Who Was Named." {{storylink|The Falling, Interlude: The First Who Was Named|The First Who Was Named}}

[[File:OriginMyths-Megatronuskillspeople.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|"[[Megatron (Movie)|You still fight for the '''weak!''' That is why you '''lose!'''"]]]]

Late into his conquests, Megatronus marched on neighboring [[Protihex|Protohex]] and easily annexed it into the Darklands, overthrowing its ruler [[Septimus Prime]] and murdering his [[Supplicants of Arrius]]. There, he recruited the gladiator twins [[Arcee (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Arcee]] and [[Galvatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Galvatron]], who proved their loyalty to him by slaughtering their old master. The pair thus became the vanguards of the army as Megatronus continued their eastward advance, conquering the [[Forgotten Plains]], deposing [[Liege Maximo]], and giving them the opportunity to attack the humble village that would one day become the [[Crystal City]]. Unbeknownst to Megatronus, "Onyx Prime" and Liege Maximo had arrived beforehand and galvanized the local tribes into allying with his army of beasts to battle Megatronus - and, by doing so, deliberately providing the necessary impetus that would unite the scattered tribes of Cybertron into a single civilization. Megatronus fought on the front lines before three [[Titan (group)|Titans]], drawn to the sounds of battle, arose from the ground. Megatronus paused to look, giving Onyx the opening to fight his way through Megatronus' forces, meet with his old friend, and convince him to stand down. The two armies quickly ratified a proper truce, and Megatronus and his warriors joined the alliance of [[Prime (rank)|Prime]]s. {{storylink|Origin Myths}}

In the era that followed, the seven Primes were joined by five more, giving rise to the [[Thirteen]], who ruled over the [[Thirteen Tribes]]. Many of the Primes had grown arrogant, however, and began spreading rumors that only a Prime could kill another Prime so as to maintain their superiority over their followers. {{storylink|The Crucible}} At Onyx's urging, [[Prima]] began a program of interstellar expansion; aiming to spread [[Pax Cybertronia]] across the galaxy, he sent Megatronus, Onyx, Alpha Trion, [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]], and the [[Guardian robot|Omega Sentinels]] to lead an extraplanetary colonization mission to neighboring [[Antilla]], claiming that their deeds would spread the "enlightenment" of Cybertronian civilization to other worlds. The Cybertronian colonization force quickly encountered severe resistance from the Antillans; the devastating Antillan/Cybertronian war would end when an [[Unicron's creator|Antillan scientist]] deployed a [[Talisman (G1)|doomsday weapon]] that scoured all life on the planet, and the fallout from the war would ensure that the rest of the universe would come to fear the destructive power of the Transformers. {{storylink|Our Finest}} {{storylink|The Falling, Interlude: The First Who Was Named|The First Who Was Named}}

[[File:TheFirstWhoWasNamed-MegatronusKillsSolus.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|"You're with '''HIM!!!''' You brought him here to kill me!"]]

Prima was enraged to learn that their benevolent mission had failed and blamed Megatronus for the disaster; when an insulted Megatronus was subsequently approached by Liege Maximo, the manipulative Prime stoked Megatronus' resentment and eventually brokered a secret alliance, a sequence of events that had been deliberately orchestrated by Shockwave so as to bring about the fall of the Primes as history had foretold. Megatronus and Liege Maximo sought to overthrow Prima, but in the ensuing struggle [[Solus Prime]] sacrificed her life to defend their leader, allowing Megatronus to run her through with her own [[Star Saber (Prima)|Star Saber]]. {{storylink|The Falling, Interlude: The First Who Was Named|The First Who Was Named}} Their conspiracy unveiled, the grand alliance between the Primes collapsed and their followers fell to fighting amongst one another, heralding the beginning of the [[First Cybertronian Civil War]]. {{storylink|Heavy}} Megatronus subsequently fled the planet, leaving his co-conspirator to be imprisoned aboard his own [[Titan (group)|Titan]], [[Vigilem]]. {{storylink|The Falling, Interlude: The First Who Was Named|The First Who Was Named}}

Without Megatronus leading his tribe, his empire collapsed and his followers went their own ways; Galvatron became notable for deserting his post in Megatronuss faltering army in order to wage a personal crusade against the [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]]s of [[Nexus Prime]]. {{storylink|The Crucible}} {{storylink|Earthfall Part 3: The Mind Bomb|The Mind Bomb}} By the time that Galvatron hunted down and killed Nexus Prime, many of the remaining Primes had fled Cybertron entirely {{storylink|The Crucible}} and Megatronus had taken up residence on the barren world of [[Tsiehshi]], using its voltaic blooms to fuel his systems.

[[File:TheFirstWhoWasNamed-Megatronus.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.66|"I '''SMELL''' you, boy!"]]

Seeking to bring him to justice, Prima, Alpha Trion, and Onyx Prime left Cybertron to search for him aboard the Titan [[Emissary (IDW)|Emissary]]. They tracked him to Tsiehshi, where Prima and Onyx faced down the rogue Prime in a final duel; in the ensuing battle, Megatronus simply bisected Prima with his Star Saber. To ensure that the [[Matrix of Leadership]] in the sword's hilt would find its way to its [[Nova Prime|next owner]] when the time was right, however, Onyx coldly informed his student that his usefulness was at an end and murdered him, telling him that—thanks to the impending rise of Megatron—Cybertronians would, after a fashion, remember his name.

On returning to Alpha Trion, Onyx told the record-keeper the version of events that would find their way into the records of Cybertronian myth, lying that Prima had heroically slain Megatronus at the cost of his own life... a fabrication based on the stories that Shockwave had been told in his youth. {{storylink|The Falling, Interlude: The First Who Was Named|The First Who Was Named}}

[[File:OP18-MegatronusDead.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.5|"Who would you be without me, Prime?" "Time to find out."]]

Megatronus' name was stricken from the Cybertronian records for his crimes, and on both Cybertron and its colony worlds he was only remembered as "The Fallen". {{storylink|Conquerors Part 2: Lagrange|Lagrange}} When Alpha Trion recounted the story of the war's end to [[Optimus Prime (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Optimus Prime]], he was unable to elaborate on why Megatronus and Megatron shared such similar names. {{storylink|The Crucible}} He was, however, able to point out that Shockwave had sent one of his [[Regenesis]] ores, [[Ore-8]], to Tsiehshi, where Megatronus had once resided; unbeknownst to Trion, this was because "Onyx Prime" had manipulated events so that his younger self would select this planet for the Regenesis project. {{storylink|The Falling, Interlude: The First Who Was Named|The First Who Was Named}}

On the eve of [[Earth]]'s official induction into the [[Council of Worlds]], Alpha Trion told Optimus Prime, [[Starscream (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Starscream]], and [[Pyra Magna]] the story of how Megatronus' conquests had first brought the Thirteen together all those years ago. Starscream questioned if he was represented in this story by Arcee or Megatronus, believing the latter to be a made-up name. {{storylink|Origin Myths}}

When "Onyx Prime" and his tribe of [[Maximal]]s invaded Cybertron some weeks later, [[Devastator (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Devastator]], driven on by [[Scoop (G1)|Scoop]]'s religious fanaticism, reached an earth-shattering epiphany: the duplicitous, backstabbing Starscream was the reincarnation of Megatronus. Initially unsure of this revelation, Starscream went with it until Shockwave, unmasked as an impostor, revealed that he had orchestrated the decidedly mortal Starscream's disastrous rise and fall from power. {{storylink|The Falling, Chapter 4: The Hallowing|The Hallowing}}
{{-}}

====''Prime Wars Trilogy'' cartoons====
{{voiceactor|[[Mark Hamill]] (English)}}

[[File:POTP-Cartoon-Ep3-SolusDies.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|left|"You will remain here in the Fire Nation."]]

[[File:Megatronus.jpeg|thumb|upright=1.4|"You're weak, just like the rest of your people! They did not deserve to exist in this world, in my world! Prepare to join them! Prepare to die!"]]

Long ago, Megatronus was hailed as a hero for his defeat of [[Unicron/Generation 1|Unicron]] using the [[Requiem Blaster (Megatronus)|Requiem Blaster]]. However, he and his lover [[Solus Prime]] clashed over what to do with the Blaster afterwards, as Megatronus wanted to keep it for his own rather than see it destroyed. {{storylink|The Swamp}} As the two fought, the weapon was accidentally discharged, killing Solus and leaving Megatronus to grieve. {{storylink|Without Warning}} The other Primes took back the Blaster from Megatronus, sealing it away, and he placed himself into exile until he could find a way to reunite with his deceased love. {{storylink|Athenaeum Sanctorum (episode)|Athenaeum Sanctorum}}

Many years later, Megatronus orchestrated the events of both the [[Combiner Wars (event)|Combiner Wars]] and [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]]'s resurrection from behind the scenes in an attempt to claim the [[Enigma of Combination]] and the [[Matrix of Leadership]]. To this end, he recruited [[Overlord (G1)|Overlord]] to his cause and guided him to the [[Matrix of Conquest|Matrix of Chaos]] within Unicron's remains, promising Overlord immense power after his plan had succeeded. [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]] also joined the ranks of his acolytes after Overlord used the Matrix of Chaos to turn him into Rodimus Cron. {{storylink|Volcanicus (episode)|Volcanicus}} After Trypticon's defeat, [[Victorion]] attempted to claim the Enigma and Matrix, but Megatronus surrounded them with a fiery aura, destroying part of Victorion's [[Dust Up|arm]]. He appeared before the other Transformers, warning them that their time had come to an end. [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] attempted to distract Megatronus with an angry outburst, giving [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]] a chance to surprise attack him, but Megatronus brushed Maximus aside and killed Optimus. With no one else daring to challenge him, Megatronus took the two relics and departed to complete his plans. {{storylink|All Things Must Pass}}

[[File:TR-Ep10-All-Things-Must-Pass-Fallen-appears.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.2|"Even with all the power in the world, you are still weak."]]

Determined to reunite with Solus, Megatronus turned his sights towards the missing Requiem Blaster. Unsure where it might have been hidden, he began searching its most likely hiding places, burning them to the ground when left empty-handed. {{storylink|The Swamp}} In the [[Well of All Sparks|Well of Sparks]], he began gathering the sparks of Overlord's and Rodimus Cron's victims and installed the Enigma and Matrix into an device which, when combined with the Blaster, would be capable of ripping the spark from every Transformer. {{storylink|Without Warning}} Taking notice of the Blaster being fired, Megatronus rushed to the [[Athenaeum Sanctorum]], where he revealed his plan. After clashing with Megatron, [[Optimus Primal (BW)|Optimus Primal]] and a Unicron-possessed Rodimus, he grabbed the Blaster and took off to put his plan into motion. {{storylink|Consequences}}

[[File:POTP-Cartoon-Ep7-FlameOn.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|"It's time for this world to end in fire, and for a new world to be born from the ashes."]]

Megatronus returned to the [[Well of All Sparks|Well of Sparks]] and installed the Blaster, activating his doomsday weapon. The machine began to drain everyone's sparks as planned, causing Solus to manifest, but they were interrupted by the arrival of Megatron and his team. Refusing to lose, Megatronus shot down Windblade, but was restrained by Grimlock and Optimus Primal. However, the sight of his nearly-resurrected lover gave him the strength to break free, and he burned all the others except Megatron, who moved to protect them. Before he could finish them off, their battle was interrupted by the unexpected arrival of Rodimus Cron, now totally under Unicron's control {{storylink|Collision Course}} and determined to destroy Megatronus and Solus for being part of [[Primus]]'s Thirteen, along with the Matrix. Megatronus battled against Unicron while repeatedly having to divert his attention towards the others attacking his device. Temporarily incapacitating Unicron, Megatronus attacked the others despite Solus' pleas for him to stop, but was unable to prevent them from releasing the relics as the Matrix transformed Primal into Optimal Optimus. While Unicron attacked the new Prime, Megatronus made a grab for the Enigma and Blaster, only to be restrained by the other heroes. {{storylink|Megatronus Unleashed}} He managed to overtake them and grab the Blaster, seeking vengeance for the failure of his plans, but was caught off guard when new arrival [[Predaking (G1)|Predaking]] landed on him from above. The two briefly battled before Megatronus gained the upper hand and ripped off Predaking's head, and attempted to stop Megatron from destroying Solus. His lover, however, suddenly grew in size and grabbed him. Despite his pleas that his love for her was everlasting, she rebuked him and dragged him into the Well, finally killing him. {{storylink|Saga's End}}
{{-}}

====''Power of the Primes'' marketing material====
Megatronus' [[Spark]] passed into the possession of one of the twelve [[Prime Master]]s; hidden within a suit of decoy armor, they safeguarded the abilities of the Primes until the present day. By uniting with a larger Transformer, the Prime Master could channel the powers of Megatronus' Spark and grant them unique abilities that varied with each new partner. {{storylink|The Fallen/toys#Generations|''Power of the Primes'' Bomb-Burst / Megatronus online bio}}

{{note|For a list of every permutation of Megatronus' abilities, see [[Prime Master/Combinations|this link]].}}

====2019 IDW continuity====
[[File:EndOfTime-Thirteen.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.66]]

Megatronus was remembered as one of the Thirteen, described by [[Termagax]] as avatars of the life pattern that infused Cybertron itself. {{storylink|End of Time}}
{{--}}

===Fun Publications===
[[File:The Evil One.jpg|right|upright=0.8|thumb|"Someone remembered me!"]]

Though [[Vector Prime]] did not necessarily think history was wrong to record Megatronus as a monster, he ''was'' his brother, and Vector still had happy memories of their time together before Megatronus' fall from grace. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime|Ask Vector Prime, 2015/06/14}} During the Thirteen's time in ancient Greece in some [[universal stream]]s, the holomatter avatar that the rage-filled Megatronus used to interact with the human population inspired the myth of {{w|Ares}}. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime|Ask Vector Prime, 2015/07/20}} He used to have an impressive collection of antique melee weapons before [[Sideways (AVP)|Sideways]] ruined it with Cosmic Rust... at least, according to Sideways. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime|Sideways, 2015/07/02}}

In the [[Gargent]] realities, where he went by the name "'''the Evil One'''", Megatronus nearly destroyed [[Gobotron]] with the Dark Heart, only to wind up under the [[Nazca Lines]] on Earth. [[Vector Prime]] noted that this was not the only reality where Megatronus was drawn to human pyramids and wondered if there was any link to [[Devil Z]]'s own affinity for pyramids and the Nazca Lines. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime|Ask Vector Prime, 2015/05/30}} [[Cy-Kill (GoBots)|Cy-Kill]] would even be heard to swear by the Evil One. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime#Renegade Rhetoric|Renegade Rhetoric (1), 2015/10/13}}

{{note|This is a sneaky reference to the ''Challenge of the GoBots'' episode "[[gbwiki:In Search of Ancient GoBonauts|In Search of Ancient GoBonauts]]", where Cy-Kill is looking for the ancient villain.}}

[[File:Vectorprimeut.jpg|thumb|left|Back, and to the left.]]

Jealous of his brothers and sisters, Megatronus was motivated to move against his siblings, and targeted Prima's [[Star Saber (Prima)|Star Saber]], intending to take it for his own. To keep it out of his hands, [[Solus Prime]] shattered the blade with her [[Forge of Solus Prime|Forge]], and each piece was taken by one of [[Nexus Prime]]'s components and scattered across the multiverse. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime|Ask Vector Prime, 2015/05/18}} {{storylink|Out of the One, Many}}

Millions of years later, when [[Vector Prime]] returned to the linear universe to deal with the [[Unicron Singularity]] crisis, he reminisced about his mission and his past, including the silhouetted form of The Fallen. {{storylink|Vector Prime: In the Beginning}} Vector's return was soon followed by the that of Nexus Prime, who set about reassembling the Star Saber. While visiting [[Primax 509.28 Epsilon|one universe]]'s Cybertron as part of his quest for the sword's fragments, Nexus decided to tell his companion [[Aquarius (SG)|Aquarius]] about his quest. As he explained the danger of the artifact falling into evil hands, the face of The Fallen flashed through his mind. {{storylink|The Coming Storm: Part 1}}

When dimensional scoundrel [[Sideways (AVP)|Sideways]] seized control of Vector Prime's [[Ask Vector Prime#Facebook|ANN Q&A column]], he commented, "Every time The Fallen polishes his pistons reality splits." to explain why he could be cloned. Surprisingly, this was actually the truth, more or less. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime#Facebook|Ask Sideways, 2015/06/29}}

When Nexus succeeded in locating the Star Saber, he combined its power with that of the [[Terminus Blade]] to [[Shroud|thicken the walls of reality]], limiting dimensional travel. The Fallen and the other members of the Thirteen gathered to witness this momentous event, and found that, as a side effect, they ceased to exist as [[Multiversal singularity|multiversal singularities]]. {{storylink|Out of the One, Many}}
{{-}}

===Live-action film series continuity family===
====''Revenge of the Fallen'' film====
{{voiceactor|[[Tony Todd]] (English), [[Masafumi Kimura]] (Japanese)|[[Zhao Xiaoming]] (Chinese), [[José Luccioni]] (European French), [[Bert Franzke]] (German), [[Gabriel Pingarrón]] (Latin American-Spanish), [[Ramón Canals]] (Castilian Spanish), [[Carlos Gesteira]] (Portuguese), [[Gaetano Varcasia]] (Italian), [[Ender Yiğit]] (Turkish)}}

[[File:TheFallen-ROTFwithPrimes.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.95|''Ocupado!'']]

Nineteen thousand years ago, The Fallen accompanied [[Dynasty of Primes|his brother Primes]] to [[Earth]] in an attempt to harvest the [[Sun|star]] it orbited. Just as they had completed construction of the [[Star Harvester]], however, The Fallen discovered [[Human|a primitive race of hunters]]. The Primes invoked their rule of the sanctity of life and refused to activate the harvester, but The Fallen despised the humans as simple insects and attempted to activate the Harvester. A great battle took place, but ultimately, The Fallen was defeated and the remaining Primes hid themselves and the [[Matrix of Leadership]], and The Fallen's harvester was concealed within a pyramid in [[Egypt]]. The Fallen dispatched the [[Seeker (ROTF)|Seekers]] to locate the Matrix, but they proved unable and he eventually abandoned them. The Fallen became known as the first [[Decepticon]], and he became the master of [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]], leader of the faction. He employed Megatron in the pursuit of the [[AllSpark]], but after Megatron's defeat at [[Mission City]], the AllSpark was reduced to a mere fragment.

[[File:TheFallen-ROTFNemesis.jpg|thumb|upright=1.95]]

Upon Megatron's revival he traveled to the ''[[Nemesis (ROTF)|Nemesis]]'', where The Fallen stayed in a life-support chair while [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]] oversaw the creation of a new army of Decepticons. Prostrating himself before the Fallen, Megatron said that he had failed his master and their race by allowing the AllSpark to be destroyed. Amused by his disciple's misinformation, The Fallen revealed that the cube was merely a vessel, while the knowledge within the AllSpark was instead placed within the mind of the human who had challenged Megatron, [[Sam Witwicky]]. With the knowledge within Sam's mind, they could find the Star Harvester and the Matrix needed to activate it. Megatron asked permission to avenge himself and reclaim the AllSpark, but The Fallen asked for patience, though he could understand his desire, as The Fallen himself hungered to return to the wretched planet where his brother Primes had betrayed him. The Fallen also explained that the only threat to him was the last surviving Prime, [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus]]. Since Optimus would protect Sam, The Fallen ordered Megatron to capture the boy and draw out the Prime.

Megatron's mission was partially successful: although the boy escaped, Optimus came to defend him and died in the process. The Fallen sensed his death and was very pleased, knowing that the time to strike was now. When the Decepticons traveled to the Earth's surface in [[transition form|re-entry mode]]s, The Fallen accompanied them, destroying an [[USS Theodore Roosevelt|aircraft carrier]] as well as attacking several cities. As the aircraft carrier sank into the ocean, The Fallen quietly intoned that revenge was finally his. The Fallen tapped into Earth's communication network, and announced the presence of the Transformers on Earth on worldwide television, demanding the "human hive" hand over Sam or be destroyed.

[[File:ROTF Fallen headchop.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.66|Can't. Take. Our. Sun. Unless you got buns, hon! And, oh man, he don't.]]

Unfortunately, Sam was in Egypt hunting for the [[Matrix of Leadership]] after being told it might be able to revive Optimus. He succeeded, but moments after Prime's resurrection, The Fallen appeared amongst the assorted NEST troops, scattering the soldiers, pinning Optimus, and stealing the Matrix. He then teleported to the harvester that was uncovered earlier by [[Devastator (ROTF)|Devastator]], and as he inserted the Matrix into the machine, he declared that his brothers had failed as he now claimed the Sun. While it charged, the humans attempted to destroy the harvester with their heavy weapons. Unimpressed with their display, The Fallen demonstrated his considerable power by destroying the attacking military forces with telekinesis, then raised a blockade of debris to prevent an air strike. However, a super-powered Optimus Prime, now fused with [[Jetfire (Movie)|Jetfire]], destroyed the harvester and attacked The Fallen, sending them both falling to the ground below.

[[File:TheFallen-ROTFfacegotten.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|Don't talk to me or my Sun ever again!]]

{{quote|Die, like your brothers!}}
{{quote|They were your brothers, too.|The Fallen and [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]]|''[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen]]''}}

Enraged, The Fallen commanded Optimus to join his brothers in death and two engaged in a fierce duel, but it quickly became apparent that Optimus was strong enough to face The Fallen. Megatron attacked Optimus in an attempt to help his master, but was quickly overpowered and knocked out. The Fallen counterattacked Optimus, managing to rip off Prime's left rocket thruster and strike him in the face with it. However, Optimus eventually managed to impale The Fallen through the shoulder with his own spear, then demanded his face, tearing it off. The Fallen tried to flee, but Optimus Prime punched through his chest and ripped out his spark core, finally killing The Fallen.

Afterwards, a wounded and horrified Megatron fled with Starscream, and the Autobots and their allies declared victory. {{Storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen}}

{{note|The Fallen's involvement in the preceding events, or events mostly similar, were also chronicled in the novels "[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (novel)|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen]]," "[[Revenge of the Fallen: The Junior Novel]]" and "[[The Last Prime]]"; the "[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen Official Movie Adaptation]]" and "[[Movie Trilogy]]" comics; and the storybooks "[[I Am Optimus Prime (ROTF)|I Am Optimus Prime]]," "[[Rise of the Decepticons]]", "[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen Electronic Voice Changer]]" and "[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen Mix & Match]]." Most of these adaptations are based on early drafts of the script and provide more backstory for The Fallen, such as his hunt for the descendants of his brother Primes, and his promise to Megatron that he would make him a Prime—something Optimus exposes as a lie during their final battle, as one can only be born a Prime, leading Megatron to abandon his teacher. In several, Optimus defeats him not by killing him, but by [[:File:TheFallen-thrownintospace.jpg|hurling him into space]].}}
{{--}}

====IDW movie comics====
[[File:Defianceissue4-creation.jpg|left|thumb|upright=0.85|Look [[Prima|familiar]]?]]

According to The Fallen, he and his brothers were the first creations of the [[AllSpark]]. The planet that would become [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] was mostly barren, but as the AllSpark gradually shaped Cybertron around them and gave The Fallen and his brothers power beyond measure, the cube's own power was depleted. They learned that its power could be replenished by harvesting the energy of stars, but they were unable to locate new stars to suit their purposes, despite their amazing ability to travel between dimensions using triangular "[[sarcophagus|sarcophagi]]". {{storylink|Defiance issue 4|Defiance #4}} As he quested, The Fallen came to believe that the AllSpark was speaking to him, telling him of a grander destiny than that of his brothers, picking him as its "chosen one." {{storylink|Tales of the Fallen issue 4|Tales of the Fallen #4}}

To aid the Dynasty of Primes in their quest, the AllSpark created for them a race of [[Transformer|workers]] that had a power of their own: the ability to transform their bodies into new forms! Some, called "[[Seeker (ROTF)|Seekers]]", could change into interstellar crafts that could locate stars for them, the energies of which would then be harvested to power the AllSpark by massive devices built by the [[Constructicon (ROTF)|other workers]]. The Dynasty tempered their search with the rule of sparing stars with inhabited worlds, but The Fallen believed that the Dynasty's compassion would ultimately doom the Cybertronians to inevitable extinction. As he sought a way to fix this problem, The Fallen came to think evil thoughts. What if there were no other Primes to share the AllSpark with? What if its power was his alone? {{storylink|Defiance issue 4|Defiance #4}}

[[File:JetfireROTF-TalesoftheFallen.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|I'm trustworthy!]]

The Fallen began to court some Transformers to his side. He selected a small number of the [[Constructicon (ROTF)|Constructicon]] drones to do his bidding in private, ultimately in service of subverting the Dynasty of Primes in favor of his own agenda. He called this group the Decepticons. [[Jetfire (Movie)|Jetfire]], The Fallen's most trusted and capable Seeker, began to unwittingly harvest the stars of inhabited star systems; the two would scan a system together, but The Fallen would report that his search areas were devoid of life. This practice got The Fallen and Jetfire into trouble with the other Primes, and so The Fallen began to sow seeds of mistrust in Jetfire. He claimed the Primes' refusal to sacrifice life to save their own planet would be its downfall, and that an army had to be readied in case the Primes betrayed them all. {{storylink|Tales of the Fallen issue 3|Tales of the Fallen #3}}

[[File:TalesoftheFallen4-theyshallpay.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.66|Yummy, yummy, yummy, I got hate in my tummy!]]

The Fallen attempted to build a Star Harvester on his own, powered by a counterfeit [[Matrix of Leadership]] he had constructed. However, it was unstable, and the resulting explosion infused The Fallen with power he had never known. He now burned with dark, unimaginable powers from within. The Fallen, feeling a darker sense of purpose that complemented his darker powers, traveled from world to world to world, killing scores of organisms and assimilating their technology, and leaving the dry husks of planets in his wake. He evolved, and during his ascension he planned for the eventual battle with his brothers. {{storylink|Tales of the Fallen issue 4|Tales of the Fallen #4}}

As Jetfire joined the Decepticons, The Fallen took them to a planet named Earth, and they built a [[Star Harvester]] to claim the [[Sun]]. However, it, too, harbored life: The Fallen was building the harvester there to either bait his brothers into taking action (while he was prepared to kill them all) or to remain in limbo. Either way, he won! Jetfire finally turned against his master, just as the remaining Primes arrived, falling into the traitor's trap. The Fallen warped Jetfire and his other underlings away and faced his brothers alone. {{storylink|Tales of the Fallen issue 3|Tales of the Fallen #3}}

[[File:TalesoftheFallen4-notlikethis.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|Ever since he was a child, he was hated by triangles.]]

The battle between The Fallen and the other Primes was costly. They did not expect The Fallen to have so much power, and one by one they fell by his wretched hand. He had "expanded [his] consciousness—absorbed the mental mass of a hive intelligence seventy trillion strong, probed the neural functions of creatures that swim in unrefined thought..." Since last they met, he was "so much more" than they were. The Fallen was able to grab weapons from his stockpile through personal dimensional portals, and one by one he murdered his brothers until there was only one Prime left to oppose him. With one last desperate gamble, the final Prime fled, and he and The Fallen warped from location to location; The Fallen thought this Prime was merely stalling, but he was gravely mistaken. The final Prime had gathered up the bodies of his defeated brothers, and when at last he had collected them all and The Fallen was weak from overteleportation, he used their combined lifeforce to banish The Fallen forever. The Fallen was sent through his sarcophagus and trapped in another dimension, where he crashed into a desolate landscape, swearing revenge. {{storylink|Tales of the Fallen issue 4|Tales of the Fallen #4}}{{storylink|Foundation issue 2|Foundation #2}}

Knowledge of this was lost through the ages, and the Dynasty of Primes became little more than a myth. Thousands of years later, however, The Fallen's sarcophagus was unearthed on modern-day Cybertron and brought to the quarters of the planet's military leader Megatron. There, sensing the fury and resentment, The Fallen established contact with Megatron, filling him with a new resolve to destroy those who sought out the AllSpark. {{Storylink|Defiance issue 2|Defiance #2}} In the aftermath of Megatron's ruthless battle against a band of [[Ejoornian|aliens]] seeking the AllSpark, The Fallen further counseled him to seize control of Cybertron to make way for The Fallen's return. He also told him that [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus]] sought the AllSpark for himself, and Megatron immediately decided that Optimus and his followers deserved to be killed for this transgression. {{Storylink|Defiance issue 3|Defiance #3}}

[[File:Defiance4 Megatron TheFallen.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|left|All right, who changed the thermostat!?]]

But simply taking the planet would not be enough. The Fallen also ordered Megatron to build a [[Nemesis (Movie)|space cruiser]] to seek out the Matrix, which he said was a prerequisite to his return. As the ship's construction came to an end, The Fallen told Megatron the story of his origin and his plans regarding the harvester on Earth. The Fallen ordered Megatron to put his sarcophagus on the ship and then stay behind to fight Optimus' forces and safeguard the AllSpark. [[Soundwave (ROTF)|Soundwave]] and a majority of the Decepticon soldiers crewed the ship.
Meanwhile, on Cybertron, civil war raged between Optimus' Autobots and Megatron's Decepticons, a war which eventually led to the AllSpark being launched into space. {{storylink|Defiance issue 4|Defiance #4}} {{storylink|Foundation issue 3|Foundation #3}}

The ''Nemesis'' came across the AllSpark's energon signature, to Soundwave's disbelief. The Fallen began speaking to Soundwave just as a [[Ark (DOTM)|ship]] crashed into the ''Nemesis'', and disappeared once more through a portal. After landing the ship on a dead planet, Soundwave was commanded to pursue the ship via the portal—that The Fallen recognized as a [[space bridge]]—it left behind. {{storylink|Convergence chapter 1}} Later, Megatron found the abandoned ''Nemesis'' during his pursuit of the AllSpark. He once again spoke with The Fallen, who was furious that Megatron had taken this detour. He ordered him to resume the chase immediately, confident that the Cube would guide them to the harvester. Megatron obeyed, leaving the sarcophagus in the barren wreckage. {{storylink|Defiance issue 4|Defiance #4}}

Thousands of years later, Soundwave returned, having recovered a space bridge [[pillar]] from the Autobot ship. The Fallen informed Soundwave of Megatron's visit, and Soundwave deduced Megatron was one of the Cybertronians rumored to be held captive by the humans, prompting him to return. The Fallen then used the pillar to warp space and time, leaving his prison at last... {{storylink|Convergence chapter 4}}
{{-}}

====''Transformers: The Movie Universe''====
The original Transformers, all of them Primes, were united by a directive that safeguarded all life, and as such they refused to utilize the harvester on the inhabited Earth. One of their number, however, decided "I want Energon!" and slaughtered his brothers so he could harvest the Sun. He threw away his original name and became the Fallen. In the end, he slaughtered all of his brethren, but they were still able to imprison him in a pocket dimension and save the Earth. In the process, his appearance had changed to a terrifying, cage-like exostructure burning with chaotic energies from the universe's creation, forces that had purged him of all morality. Since his body was never meant to contain the unholy power flowing through it, he had to steadily vent that energy to ensure his own continued existence. This created the visual effect of a constant fiery nimbus.

While effectively harmless to the universe outside his prison, his powers remained vast: He could generate space bridges spontaneously, as well as focus his energies into discrete blasts that could unmake creation itself. Were he ever able to escape, he would be a supremely powerful danger. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen: The Movie Universe|The Movie Universe}}

====Titan movie comics====
The Fallen was the worst of the worst—he made Devastator look like a puppy with a bad tummy! {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.3|#3's Contents section}}

Legend had it that the first seven Transformers were created by [[Primus]], but the Fallen believed them to be creations of the AllSpark. Their task was to harvest Energon for the AllSpark without endangering alien life, but the Fallen cared nothing for the [[Human|puny meatsacks]] of Earth and tried to harvest the Sun! {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.3|The Fallen Profile}} His duped servant Jetfire watched in horror as the Fallen imprisoned the other six Primes! {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.8|Jetfire Profile}} However, the Primes still managed to sacrifice themselves to hide the Creation Matrix, key to the AllSpark, while the Fallen was imprisoned in a pocket dimension on one of Saturn's moons... until Megatron released him! {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.3|The Fallen Profile}}

[[File:Titan1 FallenStarscream.jpg|upright=3|thumb|Behold my <s>resting</s> mighty hand!]]

Soon after Megatron's death in Mission City, The Fallen made contact with [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]] and used him to organize the Decepticon army and lay the groundwork for his return. He ordered Starscream and his forces to go to Cybertron and await further instruction, and promised that once the Matrix was found, [[Earth]] would ''burn''! Unfortunately for The Fallen, Autobot twins [[Skids (ROTF)|Skids]] and [[Mudflap (ROTF)|Mudflap]] learned the Starscream was colluding with The Fallen (though not who or what The Fallen ''was''), and headed for Earth to warn Optimus Prime. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.1|Training Day}} The Fallen had [[Soundwave (ROTF)|Soundwave]] contact one of his Seekers still on the planet, [[Ransack (ROTF)|Ransack]], and had him dispatched him to deal with the Twins. He angrily warned Starscream not to fail again, grrrr! {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.2|Dogfight!}}

However, due to his imprisonment, the Fallen could only communicate with his generals and not Ransack directly, which led to Soundwave taking his own actions and working his own angles to try and find the Tomb of the Primes, which included recruiting the Twins, rather than eliminating them. In a fitting act of cosmic irony, the twins turned out to be faking their defection, and they put an end to Soundwave's treacherous scheme. Ransack intended to inform the Fallen, but evidently never made it, while Skids and Mudflap decided that, after all the trouble they had gotten in to after coming to Earth, they'd better not tell anyone about that whole "Fallen" thing they'd learned about after all. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.8|Back-to-Back}}

=====Law and Disorder=====
The Fallen suffered from iron barnacles in the folds of his armor... and if YOU were an Autobot sympathizer, you would be forced to clean them out! {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.7|#7's Law and Disorder}}

====Toy bios====
[[File:TF2010-The-Fallen-art.jpg|thumb|right|250px|I did more things here than on my feature film.]]

Since even before history was recorded on Cybertron, the Fallen has lurked in the shadows, guiding the fate of his fellow machines. His is the hand in the darkness that drives the engines of fate. It was him that engineered the civil war on Cybertron and drove the Decepticons to slaughter their Autobot counterparts. Now on the primitive, flesh-slug infected planet known as Earth, he has stepped out of the shadows to finally seize the [[Star Harvester|power]] he has sought for millennia. {{storylink|The Fallen/toys#Robot Replicas|Robot Replicas The Fallen}}

For thousands of years, the Fallen has recruited proxies to scour the cosmos for the star harvester he required before returning to Earth, the very planet on which his quest began. Nothing will stand in his way this time, and he will scour the surface of this disgusting world clean in the fire of his rage and search through the blasted rubble for that which he seeks. {{storylink|The Fallen/toys#Voyager Class toys|''Revenge of the Fallen'' Voyager The Fallen}}

Aware that only a true Prime can destroy him, the Fallen has entered every battle knowing that the outcome of his victory is inevitable. Modern-day Autobots such as [[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]] and [[Highbrow (TF 2010)|Highbrow]] stand no chance against him, for he wields the power of advanced technology that looks like magic. The Fallen will crush the miserable Autobots that dare to challenge him before proceeding with his plans as if the interruption never occurred. {{storylink|The Fallen/toys#TF2010Voyager|''Hunt for the Decepticons'' Voyager The Fallen}}

As a desperate battle raged in the desert below him, the Fallen reveled in his triumph. The ancient machine with which he intends to harvest the Sun's energy would soon be uncovered and the Earth would be destroyed if he were to win. {{storylink|The Fallen/toys#Transformers (2010)|The Victory of The Fallen}}

====Ask Vector Prime====
Vector Prime recounted the story of [[Tyran 208.28 Gamma]], an alternate timeline in which Megatron and the Decepticons triumphed in the battle of [[Mission City]], but were then trapped on the dead Cybertron by the Autobots before they managed to free The Fallen. Sensing the loss of his servants, The Fallen summoned a new army of Decepticons (including [[Blue Maximus]], [[Chopsaw]], [[Undertow (PCC)|Undertow]], and [[Duststorm (TF 2010)|Duststorm]]) to terrorize Earth! Many an epic battle was fought against them! {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime|Ask Vector Prime, 2015/08/21}}

====''Shattered Glass''====
[[File:Coalescence FallenSunstormAlphaTrion.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.66]]

One version of the Fallen from an unknown universe, while within the agonies of defeat, desperately fled through a seam in reality, but miscalculated, and ended up in [[Primax -408.24 Epsilon|an unconventional reality]]. Due to being in a negative polarity universe, rather than being constantly on fire, the Fallen was now constantly frozen, and only his devoted servant [[Sunstorm (Universe)|Sunstorm]] kept him warm. {{charstubfiction|{{storylink|Coalescence}}}}

===''Animated'' cartoon===
[[Kup (Animated)|Kup]] sardonically compared [[Rodimus Prime (Animated)|Hot Rod]]'s paint job to the Fallen's. {{storylink|Transformers Animated: The AllSpark Almanac II|The AllSpark Almanac II}}

===Aligned continuity family===
====''The Covenant of Primus''====
[[File:MegatronusPrime.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|To have a helmet as good as this will cost you your soul... and also ten cents.]]

Megatronus was the twelfth Prime created by Primus to defeat [[Unicron]]. Rightfully proud of his power and unwaveringly loyal to his creator [[Primus]], he thought of himself as a warrior first and foremost, but his dark powers and conflicted nature meant that he was rarely at peace with himself. His artifact of power—the deadly [[Requiem Blaster (Megatronus)|Requiem Blaster]]—used stellar fusion as an energy conduit, exponentially increasing his already destructive powers. Viewing himself as an outsider, he frequently butted heads with the warrior of light [[Prima]], to the point where even his closest allies among the Thirteen viewed him as an unpredictable and unstable presence. In spite of this, he struck up a close friendship with Solus Prime, which eventually blossomed into a mutual romance. Not even Solus Prime's comforting presence could rein in Megatronus' chaotic tendencies; his private insecurities and hidden fears continued to fester, and soon gave way to something darker.

The thirteen newly created Primes soon began experimenting with their powers and strategizing for the upcoming conflict. Megatronus considered himself a warrior and trained alongside Vector Prime, Prima, [[Onyx Prime]], and [[Amalgamous Prime|Amalgamous]]. Megatronus, having the closest connection to Unicron, offered advice to Solus Prime on how to create the best weapons to defeat the chaos-bringer. Among their collaborative efforts were [[Dark Energon skin]]s, which would protect the Primes from the toxic [[Dark Energon]]. Megatronus eventually requested that a blaster be made for him by Solus Prime. She reluctantly agreed, and the Requiem Blaster was forged. Solus had doubts about the weapon, but her deep faith in Megatronus was what allowed her to trust him with the Blaster.

[[File:COP-Megatronusshootssolus.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|left|"How could this happen? We started out like Romeo and Juliet but it ended up in tragedy!"]]

When the fight against Unicron came, Megatronus fought alongside his siblings, and was ultimately triumphant. However, some of Unicron's darkness had rubbed off on all of them; a fact that Megatronus strangely appeared to revel in. In the era of peace and rebuilding that followed, Megatronus worked alongside [[Liege Maximo]], [[Micronus Prime]], and Amalgmous Prime, refining [[Energon]] for future use. He slowly befriended more of the Thirteen, although his love for Solus Prime never faded.

Unfortunately, this period of peace was not to last. Megatronus and Solus Prime were both being manipulated by Liege Maximo, who managed to drive a schism between the two lovers. Megatronus confronted Solus Prime over a newly created suit of armor intended for Maximo's "farm". Their disagreement eventually grew into a full-fledged fight after Megatronus killed her pet, which had secretly been recording Solus Prime's actions. In the chaos, Megatronus fired the Requiem Blaster without thinking, fatally wounding Solus Prime. Before Solus passed away, however, she professed her love for him.

Megatronus hid himself away in the untamed regions of Cybertron, until the surviving Primes discovered him. Megatronus confessed his crime, but also accused Maximo of setting up the whole plot, and aimed to kill him once and for all. The accusations flew quickly, and before long the argument descended into a free-for-all. In the aftermath, Liege Maximo was apparently blown apart by a shot from the Requiem Blaster, although [[Alpha Trion (WFC)|Alpha Trion]] could not identify just who had fired the weapon. Along with the surviving Primes, a repentant Megatronus attended Solus' funeral. Renaming himself "the Fallen", he donned Solus Prime's suit of armor and went into exile in space, never to be seen again.

Eons later, a young gladiator and social rhetorician named [[Megatron (WFC)|D-16]] took inspiration from ancient folk tales, renaming himself "Megatronus". {{storylink|Transformers: The Covenant of Primus|The Covenant of Primus}}
{{-}}

====Aligned novels====
Megatronus conceived the idea of the [[Requiem Blaster (Megatronus)|Requiem Blaster]], a weapon so powerful that it dwarfed all other weapons in existence. With great reluctance, Solus Prime agreed to forge the weapon for Megatronus, and even then only after Megatronus convinced other members of the Thirteen to petition her on his behalf as well. Even after the weapon was completed, Solus Prime showed great reluctance in allowing it to remain in existence. After demonstrating its awesome power to the Thirteen, she asked for a vote as to whether the Requiem Blaster should be destroyed. Megatronus led the group who voted in favor of retaining the Blaster, and they won by the slimmest of margins, 7-to-6.

At some later date, Megatronus killed Solus Prime in a fit of rage, and became the Fallen, forever more. The reason for the murder is not fully known at this point, although Solus did favor [[Nexus Prime]] over others in the Thirteen, a fact that had stirred jealousy in Megatronus in the past. Though a terrible thing, Vector Prime considered the Fallen lashing out in a moment of anger forgivable over Liege Maximo's active plotting. {{storylink|Transformers: Exiles|Exiles}}

Megatron, who took his name to inspire fear, took a favorable view of the Fallen, considering him the one member of the Thirteen who refused to bow down to the others, and the only Prime who sought his own destiny. {{storylink|Transformers: Exodus|Exodus}}

====''Prime'' cartoon====
[[File:OneShallRise1-WellofAllSparks.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.67|Dum de dum, not thinking about demons...]]

According to legend, at the beginning of time, Unicron and Primus battled each other for eons, with neither side remaining victorious for long. Until, that is, Primus created the [[Thirteen]]. These Thirteen defeated Unicron and cast him into space. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 1}} At some point statues of Megatronus and his brothers were made. They were placed in the chamber of the High Council. A [[Megatron (WFC)|gladiator]] would also name himself after Megatronus before shortening his name to simply "Megatron". {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}}

When [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]] proclaimed to Optimus Prime that he wished to change sides, [[Bulkhead (Prime)|Bulkhead]] sarcastically claimed that he had been [[Cybertronian sport#Lobbing|lobbing]] with the Fallen. {{storylink|Partners (Prime)|Partners}}
{{--}}

====2015 ''Robots in Disguise'' cartoon====
{{voiceactor|[[Gil Gerard]] (English), [[Fumihiko Tachiki]] (Japanese)|[[Klaus Lochthove]] (German), [[Salvador Reyes]] (Latin American-Spanish), [[Martin Spinhayer]] (French), [[Ferenc Borbiczki]] (Hungarian), [[Antônio Moreno]] (Brazilian Portuguese)}}
[[file:RID-phantommegatronus.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.1|"You will bow down before me, Jor-El! I swear it!"]]
In the distant past, Megatronus killed Solus Prime. {{storylink|Battlegrounds, Part 2}} He was eventually imprisoned in another dimension, and held both [[Earth]] and Cybertron responsible for his defeat. {{storylink|Battlegrounds, Part 1}} He maintained a degree of agency over the events in this world, and he was able to influence events so that the prison ship ''[[Alchemor (RID)|Alchemor]]'' crash-landed on Earth, releasing its cargo of [[Decepticon]] convicts in the process. From there, Megatronus bided his time. Eventually, he contacted the Decepticon revolutionary [[Steeljaw (RID)|Steeljaw]], who had just suffered a humiliating rout at the hands of [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]]'s [[Autobot]]s. Introducing himself as "the first Decepticon", Megatronus struck a bargain with Steeljaw: if Steeljaw helped free him from his prison, Megatronus would let Steeljaw and his gang have the Earth. Steeljaw reluctantly agreed. {{storylink|Lockout}}

[[File:RID-Megatronus.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|caption|Kitty ears of DOOM.]]

Megatronus interrupted Steeljaw while the latter was scheming, demanding to know if they had made progress on the device that would allow him to escape. Steeljaw retorted that he needed more Decepticons to help him with the task, but Megatronus was less than moved, using his telekinetic powers to make [[Clampdown (RID)|Clampdown]] pull on his arm hard until Steeljaw capitulated. Megatronus informed his new servant that the device would require a mass of sufficient metal to anchor the energies generated by his arrival- namely, the [[Crown City Colossus]]. Although the Autobots, accompanied with a reborn [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]], attempted to intervene, their efforts weren't enough to stop Steeljaw from activating the portal. A triumphant Megatronus materialized, ready to carry out his plan. {{storylink|Battlegrounds, Part 1}}

[[File:Battlegrounds2-Megatronus.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|"I'll show you the dark side." "You may try, but you cannot deny the truth that is your family." "You're so right."]]

Megatronus moved to attack the weakened Autobots, but was intercepted by Optimus, and the two began dueling. Megatronus gained the upper hand and managed to slash at Optimus, knocking him into the water and temporarily taking him out of the fight. Megatronus retieved his fallen [[Spark fuser]] and activated it, intending to draw the remnants of [[Unicron]]'s anti-[[spark]] from the Earth's core and merge it with the AllSpark, destroying both Earth and Cybertron. When Steeljaw realized this, Megatronus retorted that he had never technically lied to him about his right to own Earth... or whatever would be left of it. Megatronus restrained the furious Steeljaw with his telekinesis and opened a rift in the sky.

[[File:RID-megatronustank.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Megatronus deploys his dreaded drill-nipples.]]

Fighting Steeljaw distracted Megatronus long enough for Bumblebee to resuscitate Optimus, and the two Autobot leaders moved in to finish him off after Megatronus hurled Steeljaw away. While Optimus once again dueled with Megatronus, Bumblebee, [[Strongarm (RID)|Strongarm]], and [[Sideswipe (RID)|Sideswipe]] used their [[Decepticon Hunter]]s to power themselves up. Optimus managed to shatter Megatronus' Spark fuser, closing the rift and ruining his plan. Furious, Megatronus redoubled his attack. [[Drift (RID)|Drift]] helped to drop part of the Colossus on Megatronus. The weight of the statue was enough that Bumblebee's team could blast him with a sustained burst of energy, disintegrating his body and seemingly destroying him, though Bumblebee questioned if he truly was destroyed. {{storylink|Battlegrounds, Part 2}}
{{-}}

====IDW ''Robots in Disguise'' comic====
In later happier times, Bumblebee recalled the events of their battle against Megatronus. {{storylink|Robots in Disguise issue 5|Robots in Disguise #5}}

====''Adventure'' toy bios====
On the moment of Megatronus' defeat at the hands of Bumblebee's team, an evil presence emanated from his wounds and resonated with [[Nemesis Prime (RID)|Nemesis Prime]], powering him up into a new form. {{storylink|Nemesis Prime (RID)#TAV56|Nemesis Prime bio}}

===''Kre-O'' online comic===
[[File:Kreo fallen skybyte.JPG|left|thumb|upright=1]]
When [[Predaking (G1)|Predaking]] attacked [[Metroplex (G1)|Autobot City]], the Fallen stood next to [[Sky-Byte (RID)|Gelshark]]. {{storylink|Behemoth Combination! But They're Cute? The Predacon Unit}}
{{-}}

===''Cyberverse'' cartoon===
Megatronus was one of the [[Thirteen]], {{storylink|Dweller In The Depths (Cyberverse)|Dweller In The Depths}} {{storylink|Silent Strike}} {{storylink|The Other One}} Cybertronians being known to swear by his name in times of shock. {{storylink|The Extinction Event}} {{storylink|The Immobilizers}}

After gaining control of the AllSpark, [[Starscream (Cyberverse)|Starscream]] believed he had pulled Megatronus' spark back to the world of the living and implanted it into one of his "[[scraplet|children]]", though some questioned the legitimacy of his claims. {{storylink|Parley}}

==Games==
===''Transformers: Battle for the Matrix''===
{{Note|Battle for the Matrix is a simplified retelling of the events of ''[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen]]''. It can be played from the perspective of either Bumblebee or Optimus Prime. The final battle is against Megatron and the Fallen at the [[Star Harvester]].}}

[[File:The Fallen battleforthematrix.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.1|Behind you!]]

The Fallen tried to defend the Sun Harvester from some Autobot attackers. {{storylink|Transformers: Battle for the Matrix}}
{{--}}

===''Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen'' - The Game===
{{voiceactor|[[James Arnold Taylor]] (English)|[[Sylvain Lemarié]] (French), [[Luis Fernando Ríos]] (Castilian Spanish)}}

[[File:ROTF 360PS3PC TheFallen.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|I shall light this holy ring, release its cleansing flame, and burn a path into the divine beyond!!! ...Wait, what game is this again?]]

====Xbox 360/PS3/PC====
=====Decepticon campaign=====
With Optimus Prime seemingly defeated, The Fallen and the Decepticons journeyed to Egypt, where he uncovered the Star Harvester from inside the Great Pyramid of Giza and commenced his plans to destroy the Sun. However, the last of the Primes had survived his battle with Megatron and now revealed to the enraged Decepticon leader that The Fallen had betrayed him. The Fallen's promise to Megatron that he would make his student a Prime would never be fulfilled, as Primes were born, not made. Megatron demanded what he had been promised, but the Fallen, disgusted with the creature that he no longer needed, attacked. Righteous indignation fueled Megatron through this battle, and ultimately, he ended The Fallen's mastery over the Decepticons by impaling him through his head and letting the corpse fall into the depths of the Star Harvester. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (Xbox 360/PS3/PC)}}

=====Autobot campaign=====
Optimus Prime had survived his battle with Megatron and merged with the parts of Jetfire, and now this new, powered-up form faced the might of The Fallen at the Great Pyramid. Optimus' ancestor mocked this young upstart who dared to face his elder, telekinetically throwing debris at the Autobot, summoning great bursts of energy from the ground, and unleashing an army of Decepticon drones. However, Optimus Prime's new armour more than enabled him to survive this onslaught, and as he rained energy slugs into The Fallen, the ancient Cybertronian called out to Megatron for help, but to no avail, for his student had since learned of The Fallen's treachery. Optimus ended The Fallen's reign of terror by impaling him through his head and letting the corpse fall into the depths of the Star Harvester. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (Xbox 360/PS3/PC)}}

====PSP====
{{charstubgame|{{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (PSP)}}}}
{{-}}

===''Transformers Autobots''/''Decepticons''===
{{charstubgame|{{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen: Autobots/Decepticons}}}}

===''Revenge of the Fallen'' mobile game===
The Fallen sent [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]] and some Decepticon forces to [[Shanghai]] to retrieve a fragment of the [[AllSpark]]. Starscream returned successful, and The Fallen sent him to NEST HQ as a diversion. The Fallen himself used the AllSpark shard to resurrect [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]] as part of the ongoing plan to gain possession of the [[Matrix of Leadership]] so they could reactivate the "[[Star Harvester|Great Machine]]". The Fallen sent Megatron to [[Egypt]], but when the other Decepticons fell, he himself put in an appearance. The Fallen was confident that [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] had worn himself out fighting Megatron, however Optimus channeled the power of the Matrix into a single blast, destroying The Fallen. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (Glu)}}

====Wii/PS2====
{{charstubgame|{{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (Wii/PS2)}}}}

===''Robots in Disguise'' mobile game===
<center>
{|class="wikitable"border="5"style="width:65%"
|-
!scope="col"width="30%"|'''Version'''
!style="background:#00CCFF;color:black"scope="col"width="35%"|'''Unlock Cost (Energon)'''
!style="background:#BF00FF;color:white"scope="col"width="35%"|'''Unlock Cost (Ultra Sparks)'''
|-
|Starter
|500
|10
|-
|Legion
|1500
|30
|-
|Warrior
|4000
|80
|-
|Warrior Elite
|4000
|80
|-
|Ultra
|8000
|140
|}
</center>

<gallery>
File:TF-RID2015-Mobage-Legion-Megatronus.jpg
File:TF-RID2015-Mobage-Warrior-Megatronus.jpg
File:TF-RID2015-Mobage-Warrior-Elite-Megatronus.jpg
File:TF-RID2015-Mobage-Ultra-Megatronus.jpg
</gallery>

Megatronus was among the many Decepticons available to repel an Insecticon invasion. {{storylink|Transformers: Robots in Disguise (mobile game)|Robots in Disguise}}

===''Splatoon''===
[[Squid Sisters|Marie]] considered Megatronus among the coolest of the Decepticons. {{storylink|Splatoon}}

===''Transformers: Forged to Fight''===
[[File:ForgedToFight-Megatronus.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Megatronus after hitting the jackpot through watching ''Sushi Girl''.]]

One of the original Thirteen Primes created by Primus to combat Unicron, Megatronus betrayed his fellow Primes in his quest for power, leading to his banishment.<ref>[https://transformersforgedtofight.com/bot-intel-report-megatronus/ Bot Intel Report - Megatronous]</ref> He returned in the present day on [[New Quintessa]] to trouble the Cybertronians marooned on the strange planet.

In an attempt by Megatronus to take the power of the dormant [[Quintessa (IDW)|Necrotitan]], their sparks merged to become [[Necrotronus]]. {{storylink|Transformers: Forged to Fight}}
{{--}}

==Toys==
{{main|The Fallen/toys}}

==Notes==
===Generation 1===
[[File:Fallenpatlee.jpg|thumb|upright=0.85|I'm The Fallen, and I can't get up!]]
*The Fallen was created by [[Simon Furman]] for [[Dreamwave Productions]]' ''[[Transformers: War Within: The Dark Ages|War Within: The Dark Ages]]'' comic book. Furman used him to recycle some of the plans he had for the [[Last Autobot]] in the [[The Transformers (Marvel comic)|original Marvel comic]], but which he was unable to use as a result of the comic's cancellation.<ref>[http://www.camphortree.net/tf/tidbits/otfcc2004.txt OTFCC 2004 convention report]</ref>
*The Fallen design was created by [[Pat Lee]], his first (and only) original Transformers character. The early design concept differed incredibly from the final product, noticeably lacking The Fallen's characteristic mouthplate. He was envisioned as a medieval, ancient-looking Transformer who glowed like a furnace, but he was not depicted as being perpetually on fire until [[Andrew Wildman]] penciled his appearances in ''The Dark Ages'' and the colorists caught on. When questioned about him constantly being aflame, Furman responded that they went with it "because it looks cool."
[[File:Thefallentank.jpg|thumb|upright=0.85|The Judasmobile.]]
*Though Lee designed a tank alternate mode for The Fallen, which was shown in the profile series ''[[Transformers: More than Meets the Eye|More than Meets the Eye]]'', it was never used in-fiction. Similarly, The Fallen is said to have ''no'' alternate mode in IDW's ''Revenge of the Fallen'' comics, and he does not actually transform in the film or the ''Prime Wars Trilogy'' cartoons.
*Very little of The Fallen's backstory was given in his first fictional appearances, leaving much of ''The Dark Ages'' somewhat confusing on its own. Helpful inserts from ''More Than Meets The Eye'' and Dorling Kindersley's ''[[Transformers: The Ultimate Guide]]'', published around the same time, spelled out more. Eventually, the packaging profile printed on his Titanium figure gave the rest. Oh, and then years later, he was the titular villain of a summer blockbuster film.
*The proper treatment of his name, with its capital-T "The", is established both in the comics and the ''Ultimate Guide''. The one dissenting source is his on-package [[bio]], which simply calls him "'''Fallen'''" (as in, "'''Fallen''' forgot his real name long ago"). The reason for this awkward treatment is unknown, though the usual culprits behind toy-name oddities—[[trademark]] issues—are suspected.
*The Fallen can speak Spanish.<ref>Fanclub-exclusive Mini Mayhem strip, March 19, 2007</ref>
[[File:TFGenerations2014 Rejected TheFallen.jpg|thumb|upright=0.85]]
*The Fallen's appearance in the ''Train Wars'' manga is based on a mock-up created for a [[Fan polls#Generations Magazine Exclusive Character Popularity Vote|poll]] in ''[[Transformers Generations 2014 Volume 1]]'', one of ten potential exclusives for Vol. 2. A redeco of ''[[Transformers: Generations (toyline)|Generations]]'' [[Onslaught (WFC)#Generations|Onslaught]], it would have featured the [[Ruination (FOC)|Ruination]] head in combiner mode, which would have been making its Japanese market debut. Ultimately, the Fallen only claimed 5% of the votes.<ref>[http://millionhero.sblo.jp/article/101898683.html Poll results at Hero-X]</ref>
*In the [[2005 IDW continuity]], Megatronus' design is based on his Aligned incarnation, like the other members of the Thirteen.
*Megatronus was again redesigned for the ''Prime Wars Trilogy'' cartoons, amalgamating elements of his incarnations from the Aligned continuity (enlarged shoulders, fusion cannons), ''Revenge of the Fallen'' (glowing red accents, an Egyptian-crown-like head) and Dreamwave (his blocky shape, lots of fire). This design would reappear in ''Forged to Fight'', which also revealed his alternate mode to be a Cybertronian jet like his movie counterpart.

===''Revenge of the Fallen''===
*Michael Bay attempted to hide The Fallen's involvement in ''Revenge of the Fallen'', going so far as to claim that statements made by Simon Furman at [[San Diego Comic-Con]] 2008<ref>[http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=17412 Simon Furman confirms The Fallen is a character in an interview with Comic Book Resources (Fallen details removed)]</ref> and [[Chris Mowry]] in an interview with MTV Splash Page <ref>[http://splashpage.mtv.com/2008/07/28/exclusive-transformers-2-prequel-comic-gives-inside-scoop-on-2009-movie/ MTV Splash Page interviews Chris Mowry (Fallen details removed)]</ref> were part of a disinformation campaign, and that only a small number of people had seen the script.<ref>[http://www.shootfortheedit.com/forum/showpost.php?p=44729&postcount=2 A post made by Michael Bay on his forum]</ref> On August 5, 2008, after a fan posted on Michael Bay's forum pointing out that several IDW representatives had said they had the script, all references to The Fallen were removed from the aforementioned interviews, as well as any references to IDW Publishing having the script.
*Voice actor [[James Arnold Taylor]] was originally cast as The Fallen in the film version of ''Revenge of the Fallen'' (which led to him getting the same role in ''[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (Xbox 360/PS3/PC)|Revenge of the Fallen: The Game]]''), but was replaced by [[Tony Todd]] in the final edit of the film, to his disappointment. [[Leonard Nimoy]] was also considered for the role, but did not get it on the basis Bay feared Nimoy would have been paid too little money.{{fact}}
[[File:TheFallen-ROTFstaff.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|Give him the stick! Don't give him the stick!]]
*The Fallen's "Command Staff" (also known as the "[[Void Scepter]]"<ref>[http://www2.hasbro.com/transformers/en_US/discover/cybertronian-database.cfm#/characters/the-fallen The Fallen's bio at Hasbro.com]</ref>) seemed to be a later addition to the film, as the staff made no appearances in secondary fiction and was not included with The Fallen's original toy releases. The later Voyager class figure includes said staff, and the toy's hands were retooled to be able to hold it.
*[[Paul Ozzimo]] and [[Josh Nizzi]] designed Earth modes for The Fallen to take on in ''Revenge of the Fallen'', but like many of the Decepticons he does not assume one in the finished film. Ozzimo clarified on his website he was to turn into an {{w|Aurora (aircraft)|Aurora}} stealth bomber, the alleged modern replacement for the [[Jetfire (Movie)|SR-71 Blackbird]].
*Various on-package [[Hasbro]] [[bio]]s for the Fallen in the ''Revenge of the Fallen'' toyline utilize the derogatory term "flesh slugs" for humanity; the term originally appeared in the same manner in the 1980s ''[[Inhumanoids]]'' cartoon, based on another toyline by Hasbro.
*The Fallen was originally going to be ''huge'' in ''Revenge of the Fallen'': the novelization describes him as making Optimus look like an infant, and ''Defiance'' issue 4 depicts him as about the size of a pyramid. In the finished film, Fallen is only slightly bigger than Optimus and Megatron, and ''[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen: The Movie Universe]]'' clarifies he is 42 feet tall.
*Michael Bay doesn't actually like the Fallen, calling him "kind of a (expletive) character".<ref>[http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/2010-06-11-Transformers11_ST_N.htm?csp=usat.me USA Today, "Next 'Transformers' is due for a switch"]</ref>
*In early drafts of ''Revenge of the Fallen'', the Fallen doesn't appear in person until the climax, communicating with Megatron aboard the ''Nemesis'' via an interdimensional window. This led to the [[sarcophagus]] storyline in the comics, where only discovering the harvester's location would free him. When dropped from the film to give the character more screentime, it led to a massive plot hole in the comic storyline that was only resolved two years later by [[John Barber]] in ''[[Transformers: Convergence|Convergence]]''.

===Aligned===
*Until the ''Robots in Disguise'' cartoon introduced Megatronus as the "first Decepticon" (an idea taken from the live-action Fallen), the Aligned version of the character had no direct connection to the Decepticons in his backstory. He has, however, always had a helmet shaped like their insignia, an idea that also comes from the live-action film character.
*Megatronus' cartoon robot mode is a mishmash of his prior incarnations. He has the general blockiness and tank vehicle mode from the ''[[War Within (comic)|War Within]]'' comics, and his four-lined visor resembles the slots on that Fallen's faceplate. In addition to his status as "the first Decepticon" and his Decepticon-insignia-shaped helmet, he also features the movie character's telekinetic powers and similar forearm [[kibble]], though said kibble is actually put to use as [[fusion cannon]]-like arm weapons.
*Despite not appearing again after the first-season finale of ''Robots in Disguise'', [[Adam Beechen]] stated in a deleted blog that he survived his apparent destruction but left his fate beyond that in the air.

===Fun Publications===
*The Evil One being an incarnation of The Fallen was inspired by [https://tfwiki.net/mediawiki/index.php?title=The_Fallen&oldid=685238 an edit] of this very page back in 2012 noting the similarity. Although removed soon afterwards, it eventually became canon a few years later.<ref>[https://www.allspark.com/forums/topic/129168-out-of-printhard-to-find-media-mega-thread/page-9#entry3440904 Post by Verity Carlo on the Allspark Forums, 2017/02/12]</ref>

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''The Fallen''' (ザ・フォールン ''Za Fōrun''), '''Megatronus''' (メガトロナス ''Megatoronasu'')
*''Mandarin:'' '''Duòluò Jīngāng''' (China, 堕落金刚, "Corrupted Vajra", ''Revenge of the Fallen''), '''Zhèn Tiān Zūn''' (China, 震天尊, "Majesty Shocking the Heaven", ''Robots in Disguise'')

==External links==
{{GBwiki|Evil One}}

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

{{Thirteen}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fallen}}
[[Category:Cyberverse Transformers]]
[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Dreamwave Generation 1 Transformers]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Transformers]]
[[Category:IDW (2005) Transformers]]
[[Category:Matrix bearers]]
[[Category:Prime Transformers]]
[[Category:Renegades]]
[[Category:Revenge of the Fallen Decepticons]]
[[Category:Robots in Disguise (2015) Decepticons]]
[[Category:Thirteen]]
[[Category:Unicron-related characters]]
[[Category:War for Cybertron characters]]
[[Category:War for Cybertron: Earthrise characters]]

Megatron (WFC)

2023-06-15T03:30:39Z

Negatwenty:

{{factions|decepticon|{{factions/icons|custom=PrimeSharkticonSymbol.png|cLink=Sharkticon (species)|cSize=40x40px}}|hofsilver}}
{{disambigm|Megatron (disambiguation)|Megatronus (disambiguation)}}
{{suite}}
:''Megatron is the [[Decepticon leader]] from the [[Aligned continuity family]].''

[[File:Megatron-Prime-stock-render.jpg|thumb|upright=2.2|"That's the funny thing about heroes—they need to win every time. The villain only needs to win once."]]

The awesomely powerful '''Megatron''' is, in many ways, a fallen hero. He rose up from the oppressed lower working castes of [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]] to become a champion in the region's illegal [[gladiatorial combat|deathmatches]], cast aside his designation of '''D-16''' and took the legendary name '''[[The Fallen|Megatronus]]'''<ref>Megatron was an abbreviation, so it'd be easier for the masses to chant his name; ''Transformers: Exodus'', Chapter 3</ref> as his own. He called for an end to [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]'s decrepit [[Functionism|caste system]] and told the downtrodden that freedom of self-determination was the right of all sentient beings!

But absolute power corrupts absolutely, and Megatron's Decepticon revolution, like many such movements, ended up becoming a whole new tyranny. Powerful, charismatic, violent, and full of rage for any who would stand in the way of his ambition and drive, Megatron brought Cybertron ''past'' the brink of destruction. Now he and his former brother-in-arms [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]] fight on other worlds. Megatron will never forgive Optimus for "betraying" him, stealing from the Council the rank of Prime which was rightfully his. He has reserved for his old friend the greatest honor possible: glorious death at his hands.

Megatron has been gone for three years, but now he's returned. He's brought the monstrous [[Dark Energon]] to [[Earth]], and quite possibly left his sanity in space. Though he's made a few mistakes, he does not intend to make them again!

{{quote|Good and evil fade away. History shall judge me... ''victorious''.|Megatron rejects all moral judgement on his actions|[[Transformers: Cybertron Adventures|Cybertron Adventures, The Ending Begins]]}}
{{quote|I... am the Dominator, I... am the Destroyer, I am '''Megatron!'''|Megatron|''[[Transformers: War for Cybertron (360/PS3/PC)|Transformers: War for Cybertron]]''}}

==Fiction==
===''The Covenant of Primus''===
D-16 was born during the [[Age of Wrath]]. The [[Quintesson]] occupation of Cybertron had neutered the ritual of ascending from the [[Well of All Sparks]], to the point where newly born Cybertronians would emerge without names or developed personalities. After a brief but tantalizing glimpse at Cybertron's sun, D-16 was sent to work in the mines underneath Kaon. He took his name from the sector in which he worked, and eventually befriended some of the other nameless workers who had been dealt similar hands by the Quintessons. One Cybertronian in particular served as a sounding board for D-16's earliest sociological musings. From this nameless bot D-16 realized the importance of a proper name. By the time that the Quintessons had been routed from Cybertron, D-16 was already craving more out of life.

During his time off, D-16 became intrigued by the violent duels held between miners. As Cybertron's [[Golden Age]] drew to a close, he entered his first gladiator matches. D-16 drew upon the old stories of the [[Thirteen]] that the miners told one another, and decided on "Megatronus" as a suitable moniker; hoping that Cybertron's "fallen" society could eventually be restored. Megatronus thrived in the gladiator pits, seeing it as a way to escape the oppression of the [[Functionism|caste system]]. The crowds who regularly watched his gladiator matches soon shortened his name to Megatron. Megatron used his newfound fame to attack the bloated Cybertronian government which kept the miners oppressed, and before long he had carved out a loyal cadre of followers inspired by his rhetoric. {{storylink|Transformers: The Covenant of Primus|The Covenant of Primus}}

===Aligned novels===
[[File:WFCcomicD16.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|"Alright! What's the square root of pi?! What's the capital of Sierre Leone?! What's... awww, this 'ask questions later' thing doesn't work at ''all''."]]

D-16 named himself after the sector of the mine where he performed demolition operations. {{storylink|Transformers: Exodus|Exodus}} At the end of the Age of Wrath, he was one of the many Cybertronians who [[Sentinel Zeta Prime|Sentinel Prime]] called to arms, and aided in the war effort that successfully overthrew the cruel [[Quintesson]] regime. As time went by, D-16 eventually forgot about this event, as did many other Cybertronians.

At some point after Cybertron's Golden Age, a group of [[Sharkticon (species)|Sharkticon]]s foresaw him as the being who would one day lead them to freedom. They managed to carve an image of him on a cave wall before they were executed. {{storylink|Transformers: Retribution|Retribution}}

D-16 eventually turned to gladiatorial combat to escape from the drudgery of his duties. As a gladiator, in killing others he began to appreciate the value of life, and in between matches he became something of an intellectual, debating the castes with other miners. After bosses requested he lose a few fights, D-16 killed them and took over Kaon and [[Slaughter City]]. After murdering one boss in front of his employees, D-16 declared himself Megatronus, whom he considered the greatest of the [[Thirteen]]. After hearing his preaching on the [[Communication Grid]] against the [[Guilds of Cybertron]], the concerned [[Sentinel Zeta Prime|Sentinel Prime]] sent [[Bumper (WFC)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (WFC)|Fastback]] to investigate. Megatronus killed them, believing two lives were worthless compared to the millions doomed by the castes Sentinel created.

After a victorious battle with the [[Insecticon (WFC)|Insecticon]]s, in which the crowd redubbed him Megatron, the gladiator was contacted by the [[Iacon (polity)|Iaconian]] [[Hall of Records|records monitor]] [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Orion Pax]], and they began exchanging their ideas in intense but friendly philosophical discussions. Megatron encouraged Orion to learn self-defense and invited him to visit Kaon, which he did to a warm welcome from Megatron (and from none of his gladiators). By this point Megatron was planning to call his movement the Decepticons, and he had begun sending his followers on a search for artifacts of the Primes, as their discovery would be signs their cause was just. His followers began bombing Cybertron, and Megatron distanced himself from their extremism to gain credibility. Orion and his mentor [[Alpha Trion (WFC)|Alpha Trion]] believed him, but the latter was well aware Megatron might have gained a taste for violence after the attention it earned him. Soon enough, Megatron accepted the gift of a kidnapped Sentinel Prime from [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]].

[[File:WFCcomicHalogendies.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Megatron misinterprets the phrase "ad hominem attack".]]

Alpha Trion organized a hearing for Orion and Megatron with the [[Autobot High Council|High Council]]. They protested involvement in Sentinel's disappearance. When confronted with the phrase "Decepticon", Megatron denied any knowledge of it but accepted his followers' term wholeheartedly, stating deception was necessary sometimes for the corrupt to see the truth. When [[Halogen (WFC)|Halogen]] revealed Megatron's followers had been trying to locate the [[Matrix of Leadership]], he declared that Orion should become the Prime that he desperately wanted to lead Cybertron into the new [[Golden Age]], and find it. Incensed, Megatron killed Halogen, and when Optimus prevented the [[Elite Guard]] from attacking Megatron, the ungrateful gladiator declared Optimus had fallen into the trap of power the High Council had given him. He declared Optimus was no longer his brother (though he would continue to refer to him as such privately), and that the Matrix would be his.

In the subsequent war with Optimus' [[Autobot]]s, the Decepticons took control of eighty-five percent of the planet. Wherever Starscream's [[Seeker (body-type)|Seekers]] aided, they were victorious. Megatron was initially merciful to neutrals, but he let [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] take control of [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]] and torture Autobot sympathizers there. When the [[Praxus|Praxians]], a progressive city-state who were disappointed with the direction Megatron took, allied with the Autobots, Megatron decided he would no longer try to convert followers and launched the first genocide of the war, slaughtering all in [[Nova Cronum]] who would not submit to the Decepticons as they attacked.

As the war dragged into a siege of Iacon, Soundwave's spying bore fruit as he discovered [[Dark Energon]], the essence of [[Unicron/Aligned|Unicron]], was aboard [[Trypticon (WFC)|Trypticon]]. Megatron forgave Starscream for hiding its existence from him, acknowledging its potentially dangerous nature. To ensure loyalty, Megatron's gladiators stormed the Station slaughtering and maiming Starscream's scientists. He forced Starscream to pick two test subjects to be Darkened, and following an astonishingly successful result, Megatron absorbed some, invigorating him. Soon Darkened Decepticons appeared on the battlefield, but it proved to be an inefficient resource and they would have to flee if a battle was prolonged. Megatron needed more, and even Starscream's activation of the [[Geosynchronous Energon Bridge]] didn't provide enough. Megatron felt he would kill all the Decepticons before he was deprived of Dark Energon and turn rabid.

Fortunately, Soundwave revealed the existence of the [[Plasma energy|Plasma Energy Chamber]] within [[Teletraan-1 (WFC)|Teletraan-1]], which required the [[Code Key]]s of Power and Justice to activate it. Starscream recovered the Key of Power, while Megatron and his best soldiers searched for the Key of Justice below the [[High Council Tower]]. Sentinel Prime emerged, to Megatron's surprise. Sentinel confronted him about Bumper and Fastback, and the two dueled. Megatron disarmed and sliced open Sentinel, revealing the Key of Justice within. Starscream made a grab for it, exposing that he had released Sentinel to kill Megatron and take leadership for himself. After fighting Starscream to a standstill, Megatron pardoned him as he found him a better soldier than would-be example, and used the Keys to open Teletraan-1: which activated [[Omega Supreme (WFC)|Omega Supreme]] to fly the Chamber to safety.

The Seekers shot Omega Supreme out of the air, causing him to crash. Optimus' Autobots arrived to fight the Decepticons, but the more they killed them the more Dark Energon left their bodies and empowered Megatron. He was able to knee Omega Supreme and turn him on his back, tearing the Chamber out of his chest. Using the Chamber, Megatron poisoned the [[core]] of Cybertron and Darkened the entire planet. But then the core stopped producing Dark Energon, and Megatron learnt Optimus had gone to the core and received the Matrix. As the Autobots attempted to flee Cybertron via the last [[space bridge]], Megatron used Trypticon to fire on their ships, and used his and Orion's old frequency to criticize Optimus for fleeing. He added he never believed in individual freedom for every Cybertronian, only the illusion of freedom that he as leader would provide and that the Guilds did not. Optimus responded that Megatron had turned his soldiers into addicts and they would turn on him, and used the ''[[Eight Track (WFC)|Eight Track]]'' to board, sabotage and crash Trypticon.

As the Autobots left on the completed ''[[Ark (WFC)|Ark]]'', the Decepticons fully invaded Iacon. Megatron ordered Trypticon to transform into the ''Nemesis'', boarding it with Starscream, Soundwave, [[Lugnut (WFC)|Lugnut]] and other elite soldiers, leaving Shockwave in charge. He used his old frequency once again to warn Optimus that he would hound him through the stars and finally kill him for the Matrix. He explained they were still brothers, as they were bonded for life despite their enmity. Optimus was just glad his hunt would get him off Cybertron. The two ships entered the last [[space bridge]] together, and when the ''Ark'' emerged, the ''Nemesis'' was gone. {{storylink|Transformers: Exodus|Exodus}}

{{note|Megatron's involvement in the preceding events, or events mostly similar, were also chronicled in the comic "[[Transformers: War for Cybertron (comic)|Transformers: War for Cybertron]]."}}

The ''Nemesis'' eventually emerged from the Space Bridge, close to the lost colony world of [[Velocitron]]. The Autobots had already visited the planet and departed, but Megatron's sleeper agent [[Makeshift (Prime)|Makeshift]] had ignited political tensions and sparked a civil war between [[Override (Prime)|Override]]'s loyalists and [[Ransack (Prime)|Ransack]]'s cadre of political malcontents. He was directed by [[Hightail (Prime)|Hightail]] to Ransack. Megatron found Ransack's obsession with speed extremely irritating, but allowed him to pledge his allegiance to the Decepticon cause. Ransack's Decepticons continued their war on Velocitron while the rest of Megatron's forces boarded the ''Nemesis'', tracking the Ark's energy signature.

Megatron's forces tracked the ''Ark'' to on the planet [[Junkion (planet)|Junkion]], and began attacking both the Autobots and the native [[Junkion (species)|Junkion]]s. Amid the chaos, Megatron reunited with one of his long-lost comrades, the marooned Decepticon [[Axer (Prime)|Axer]]. Axer presented his commander with the [[Requiem Blaster (Megatronus)|Requiem Blaster]], which he had scavenged from the core of Junkion. Megatron ordered the gun to be attached to the hull of the Nemesis. The mayhem had also awakened the ancient Transformer [[Cannonspring]], who reunited with several other Cybertronians and combined into the mighty [[Nexus Prime]], who held off both the Decepticon advance and the newly arriving [[Star Seeker]]s. As the planet tore itself apart, Megatron duelled with Optimus Prime, who wielded the [[Cyber Caliber]]. Although Optimus Prime gained the upper hand, he suddenly received a vision regarding the AllSpark's location. Prime fell back to the ''Ark'' and retreated. Since the Requiem Blaster ran the risk of catastrophically overheating, Megatron ordered his troops to jettison the artifact before it could do so. Megatron ordered his troops to follow the ''Ark'' off of Junkion and back into deep space. {{storylink|Transformers: Exiles|Exiles}}

At some point during the voyage, Megatron changed his [[alternate mode]] to that of a Cybertronian spacecraft.

While searching for the trail of the ''Ark'' on the outskirts of the [[Orion Arm]], Megatron ran across the Star Seekers again, who had set a trap for the Decepticons. To take down the ''Nemesis'', the pirates salvaged the abandoned Requiem Blaster and grafted it to their ship. Megatron and the Star Seeker [[Thundertron]] dueled while their ships exchanged fire. Megatron eventually managed to gain the upper hand after exploiting the Requiem Blaster's cripplingly high energy intake, and forced Thundertron's forces into a retreat. Megatron reunited with his treacherous subordinate Axer, who claimed to have gleaned knowledge about the ''Ark''{{'}}s whereabouts during his time spent with the pirates. Megatron considered this, and then sent him to be tortured, just to make sure he was telling the truth.

The ''Nemesis'' eventually caught up with the real ''Ark'' over the planet [[Aquatron]] and opened fire. The Autobots retaliated by deploying [[Superion (Prime)|Superion]], who carved a trail of destruction through the ''Nemesis''{{'}}s engine bay until the combiner met Megatron. The Decepticon leader attacked Superion, and the two fought. Megatron was able to gain the upper hand and fired his fusion cannon at Superion, blowing the combiner apart and sending his components flying out the ship's hangar.

Before the Autobots could try and ram the ''Nemesis'', the Aquatronian native known only as "[[Inquirata (Prime)|the Curator]]" intervened by cutting power to both ships. The Curator scolded the Cybertronians for bringing their war to a neutral planet, but invited Megatron and his Decepticons to the planet's surface to negotiate a possible peace treaty between the two factions. Once the Autobots and Decepticons both agreed to a temporary ceasefire, the Curator revealed that he was a [[Quintesson]], and that Aquatron was a member of the Quintesson Co-Prosperity Sphere. Megatron decided to play along with his captors until he could find a way to escape. That night, Megatron was visited by the Curator, who promised Megatron his own [[Decepticon Matrix]]... if he backstabbed Optimus Prime and destroyed the Autobot leader's own Matrix.

The next morning, Megatron convened with Optimus outside the negotiation hall, only to reveal that he had brought along six [[Vehicon (Prime)|Vehicon]]s with him to kill Optimus. The two began fighting, until [[Skywarp (WFC)|Skywarp]] detonated a bomb outside, which caused the Pavilion to start flooding. Optimus switched off his Matrix and helped Megatron to escape, but on the surface they encountered [[Tyrannicon]] and his [[Sharkticon (species)|Sharkticon]] flotilla, who arrested all the Cybertronians present. The defeated Autobots and Decepticons were rounded up into a prison ship headed for the city of [[Hydratron]]; Megatron spent most of the voyage loudly and angrily criticizing Optimus Prime's leadership. When the prisoners were transferred to a train, Megatron ran afoul of several Sharkticons, who managed to subdue him long enough for him to be loaded onto the train and shipped to Hydratron's [[Hall of Justice]].

Inside the Quintesson's kangaroo court, Optimus Prime was put on trial for public mayhem, treason, and galactic blasphemy. Optimus Prime's brainwashed troops corroborated the Quintesson prosector's line of inquiry. However, Megatron himself came to Optimus' defense, asserting that the Quintessons did not create the Transformers as they so claimed. The trial had also jogged Megatron's memories; he remembered fighting in the war that routed the aliens from Cybertron and vowed that he'd gladly do it again. The Quintesson judges found them innocent, and so sentenced the two leaders to banishment. Whoever killed the other leader in combat would be allowed to leave Aquatron unmolested. The two leaders battled, unaware that the Quintessons were harvesting the energy they exerted to power a space bridge to Cybertron. When the Quintessons had enough, they dumped both of them into a Pirahnacon pit. Optimus and Megatron managed to escape the Pirahnacons with the help of Optimus' Matrix, and escaped into the subterranean tunnels beneath Hydratron.

The duo eventually encountered the [[Gamekeeper]], who was guarding the carvings that the Sharkticon rebels had created. The Gamekeeper taunted them, and revealed that the Quintessons were staging another invasion of Cybertron as they spoke. Megatron tore out the monster's eyes and eventually killed him. The Decepticon leader was intrigued by the carvings, although Optimus was skeptical of their veracity. The two eventually discovered [[Xeros]], who was manipulating his Sharkticon servants with a decoy Matrix. Believing it to be the Decepciton Matrix he was promised, Megatron grabbed it and shoved it into his chest.

The decoy Matrix turned out to be the [[Sharkticon Matrix of Leadership]], and as it re-forged his body Megatron realized that Aquatron was one of the 200 lost colony planets after all- and a planet that had never been able to overthrow the Quintessons. Now sporting Sharkticon features, Megatron called the Sharkticons to his command and ordered them to devour Xeros. Megatron overpowered Optimus and threw him down a nearby elevator shaft. He then contacted Starscream aboard the stranded ''Nemesis'', and ordered his Decepticons to make room for Sharkticon reinforcements aboard the ship.

Before long, Megatron set off to the bottom of Hydratron, to kill the Curator once and for all. He ran into trouble along the way; the city itself began transforming into a giant jellyfish-like creature, which attempted to devour him. Megatron was ale to break free of its tentacles and swim to the bottom of the lakebed, where Optimus Prime and a [[Leviacon]] were already confronting the Curator. Hundreds of Sharkticons swarmed the Curator's fortified command bubble but were unable to break through. The fracas was compounded by the arrival of [[Tyrannicon]], who had come back to Aquatron through the Space Bridge to figure out why his soldiers had rebelled. Megatron, now calling himself "The First of the Many" offered Tyrannicon a place in his new empire, although Tyrannicon refused. Instead, the two battled one another for control of the Matrix, with the Tyrannicon triumphant. Tyrannicon stole the Matrix from Megatron, who collapsed and reverted to his old self. When Optimus managed to destroy the entire underground complex, he also rescued Megatron, and with the Leviacon's help the two leaders returned to the surface, where they reunited with their respective crews.

On their way off the planet, Optimus mused that one day Megatron might understand that the two of them were much stronger as a united force. {{storylink|Transformers: Retribution|Retribution}}

===Ask Vector Prime===
In [[Uniend 610.23 Zeta]], {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime}} Megatron lead his Decepticons in an attack on the Autobot stronghold at [[Tyger Pax]] to obtain the [[AllSpark]] from the [[Well of All Sparks]]. After fighting off [[Rodimus (WFC)|Rodimus]] and [[Springer (WFC)|Springer]], Megatron found himself under fire from [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]], until [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]] managed to shoot the young Autobot down.

Searching for [[Barricade (WFC)|Barricade]], and executing Autobots that had failed to retreat, Megatron, while boasting his victory, saw the AllSpark be launched into space. Though he had failed to gain the AllSpark, Megatron found himself to be close to a badly damaged Bumblebee, who made a point of gloating to Megatron about the Autobots' victory. Grabbing the young mecha by the neck, Megatron, tired of Bumblebee's talking, crushed the Autobot's [[voice box]].

Deciding that [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]] didn't need another martyr, Megatron left Bumblebee alive to remind others that he could take and spare lives as he wished. Satisfied with his work, Megatron retreated with what was left of his Decepticons. {{storylink|Bumblebee at Tyger Pax}}

===IDW Aligned comics===
From Shockwave's lab in the [[Rust Sea|Sea of Rust]], Shockwave and a captured Grimlock watched a feed of Megatron spearheading an attack on [[Metroplex (FOC)|Autobot City]]. {{storylink|Last Stand (FOC)|Last Stand}} {{storylink|Fragmentation (FOC)|Fragmentation}}

===''Prime'' cartoon===
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English), [[Sean Long]] (BotCon 2011), [[Peter Cullen]] (BotCon 2012), [[Keiji Fujiwara]] (Japanese)|[[Fu Chong]] (Chinese), [[Alexander Kovriznyh]] (Russian), [[Juan Carlos Lozano]] (Spain-Spanish), [[Robert Dubois]] (French), [[Ja-hyeong Gu]] (Korean), [[Tony Fuochi|Antonio Fuochi]] (Italian), [[Ferenc Borbiczki]] (Hungarian), [[Hans-Jürgen Wolf]] (German), [[Gerardo Vásquez]] (Latin American Spanish), [[Antônio Moreno]] (Brazilian Portuguese), [[Guilherme Lopes]] ("Predacons Rising", internal monologue), [[Paweł Szczesny]] (Polish), [[Arto Nieminen]] (Finnish), [[Johan Hedenberg]] (Swedish)}}

[[File:OneShallRise3-corresponding.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|"I'm a fox!" "I'm a hound doooog!"]]

In the waning years of the [[Golden Age]] of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], Megatronus (who named himself after [[The Fallen|one of the original thirteen Primes]]) was a gladiator who fought in the [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]] arena. Observing a disparity in freedom among the classes of his race, and that the ruling class was corrupt and all-powerful, Megatron turned rhetorician, trying to effect change. In drawing attention to this inequity, he inspired a [[Hall of Records]] clerk named [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Orion Pax]], and the two joined forces to end corruption and bring equality to the masses. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}} Orion and Megatronus became close allies, almost like brothers. {{storylink|Masters & Students}}

[[File:DarknessRising2-Megsflashback.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|Things were very red in those days.]]

Megatronus shortened his name to Megatron before he and Orion Pax appeared before the [[Autobot High Council|High Council]]. Megatron threatened the council, promising to overthrow them and instate himself as the next [[Prime (rank)|Prime]]—a declaration of hostility that shocked Orion, and moved him to an impassioned speech in favour of autonomy that successfully swayed the council where Megatron had failed. Jealous, Megatron left the council and Orion behind and assembled his followers—including perennial loyalist [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] and scheming second-in-command [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]]—into an army he would name "Decepticons", beginning the war for Cybertron and vowing to find the [[Matrix of Leadership]] which was denied to him by the council. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}}

The war saw Megatron successfully take the city of [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]], which contained the very arena he fought in as a gladiator, as the Decepticon capital. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 1}} During a battle at [[Tyger Pax]], Megatron crushed the Autobot [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]]'s voice box when the scout refused to break under interrogation. {{storylink|Operation Bumblebee, Part 1}} Furthermore, Megatron's wartime achievements were not limited to those achieved through might: he also created the deadly [[cybonic plague]] which wiped out millions {{storylink|Sick Mind}} and found a way to weaponize [[Tox-En]] which he used to wipe out an entire unit in front of a horrified Bulkhead. {{storylink|Toxicity}} It was through similarly poisonous means that Megatron came closest to seizing victory in the war's final stages, [[Dark Energon|infecting]] the [[Core]] of Cybertron itself. In purifying the core, Orion was granted the Matrix Megatron had long-sought, becoming Optimus Prime. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}} After his assassin [[Skyquake (Prime)|Skyquake]] failed to kill Optimus at the [[Battle of Technahar]], {{storylink|Masters & Students}} Megatron became obsessed with the Autobot leader and decided that destroying him was his right alone. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 4}} Megatron had his lead scientist [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] send an army of [[Predacon (Prime)|Predacons]] to Earth to lay waste to any Autobot forces on the planet and secure any and all energon deposits. {{storylink|Project Predacon}}

[[File:DarknessRising2-MegatronDarkEnergon.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|We can relate. We're just like this with our [[BotCon]] toys.]]

Eventually, the war left Cybertron in ruin and forced the whole Transformer race to exile into space. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 2}} Megatron would not leave the planet unguarded and placed a few [[Insecticon (WFC)|Insecticon]] guards in stasis on the planet, should the enemy return. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 3}} In time, Megatron and his army arrived on Earth, establishing mines to collect the Energon that the planet had been seeded with during the war. {{storylink|Stronger, Faster}} He also had some of his best warriors, such as Skyquake to guard deposits not ready to mine. {{storylink|Masters & Students}} After some early conflicts on the planet, Megatron withdrew to space to search for more troops, leaving Starscream in charge. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 1}} Searching the void for three years, Megatron found something better than mere warriors: he discovered a new source of Dark Energon, the "blood of [[Unicron]]", with which he could reanimate fallen Transformers as an army of the undead. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 2}} Returning to Earth, {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 1}} and resuming command of the Decepticons, Megatron tested the Dark Energon on the deceased Autobot [[Cliffjumper (WFC)|Cliffjumper]], reviving him as a [[zombie]] "[[Terrorcon (Prime)|Terrorcon]]" that slaughtered several [[Decepticon Miner]]s, but which posed no threat to Megatron himself. Unfortunately for Megatron, this partial reactivation of Cliffjumper's lifesigns drew Optimus Prime's Autobots to the Decepticons' mining operations. Deciding it was not yet time for a confrontation with Prime, Megatron withdrew aboard the [[Trypticon (WFC)|''Nemesis'']] and continued to brood over the Dark Energon.

[[File:darknessrising3 Megatronglowy.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Megatron, you fool! Rave glowsticks aren't candy!]]
Megatron's inability to control the zombie Cliffjumper convinced him that he needed to integrate the Dark Energon into his own body in order to control the undead legions he planned to create. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 2}} Thrusting a shard of the material into his [[spark]], he was filled with its power, feeling as though he was connected to Unicron's very thoughts. Requiring a test run for his new power, Megatron headed to the site of an ancient Cybertronian battle on Earth, one full of the remains of fallen warriors, where he was confronted by Optimus and [[Ratchet (WFC)|Ratchet]]. Using Dark Energon to raise the dead Transformers as Terrorcons, Megatron successfully found he had complete control of the undead horde, and send them against the two Autobots. [[File:DarknessRising4-Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|I chew scenery while the zombies chew ''you''.]] {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 3}} While Optimus and Ratchet fought their way through the Terrorcons, Megatron flew off before they could reach him, satisfied with his test results and ready put his plan into action—to open a [[space bridge]] to Cybertron and use Dark Energon to revive all the dead. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 4}} Despite the Autobots' best efforts to damage the ''Nemesis'' and prevent the bridge from opening, Megatron succeeded in his plans, and then had his showdown with Optimus Prime atop the bridge itself as he waited for the Terrorcon legions to pass through to Earth. While the two old foes battled, the other Autobots sabotaged the bridge, causing it to explode and destroy both the Terrorcon army and seemingly Megatron himself. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 5}}[[File:Masters&Students-Megatronstasis.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|Well, it's better than just [[Megatron (Animated)|being a head]] I suppose.]]

The Autobots were not so lucky, however: the Dark Energon in his spark allowed Megatron to survive the explosion, but just barely. When Starscream found his leader floating in space, he tore the Dark Energon from his body in the hope that he would expire, but was caught in the act by [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]]'s [[Deployer (WFC)|Deployer]], [[Laserbeak (WFC)|Laserbeak]], and forced to take Megatron back to the ''Nemesis'', where he was placed in [[Stasis lock|stasis]] in the sick bay. {{storylink|Masters & Students}}

Starscream was content to leave Megatron in this state to recover or expire as fate saw fit, but the crew of the ''Nemesis'' disagreed, and voted to bring in the Decepticon medic [[Knock Out (Prime)|Knock Out]] to help heal their wounded leader. But the discovery of an [[Energon Harvester]] forced them to push off Megatron's recovery. {{storylink|Deus ex Machina}} Even with Knock Out's expertise, it seemed unlikely that Megatron would recover, but his assistant [[Breakdown (WFC)|Breakdown]] gave his body a good buffing nonetheless, and Starscream approved, as it meant their ex-leader would look his best for the memorial service. {{storylink|Speed Metal}}



[[File:SickMind megs and bee.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Hey, [[Megatron (Animated)|you]] really ''are'' [[Transform and Roll Out|uglier from this angle]]!]]

When Optimus Prime was infected by cybonic plague, Arcee and [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]] boarded the ''Nemesis'' to search for an antidote. While they failed to find one in the database, the two Autobots did discover Megatron in stasis, and Bumblebee mind-linked with the Decepticon leader via a [[cortical psychic patch]] to try and pluck the cure from his sleeping brain. Bumblebee found himself within Megatron's mind, which took the form of [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]], where the Decepticon's subconscious was spending its time killing endless visions of Optimus Primes. Unfortunately, Bumblebee's intrusion only caused Megatron to become aware of his situation when he found he was unable to kill Bumblebee. Learning what had befallen Optimus, Megatron initially refused to give up the cure until Bumblebee convinced him that he would gain greater satisfaction from finishing his enemy off with his own two hands. Megatron offered the cure in exchange for Bumblebee's help in escaping his mental prison, but Bumblebee double-crossed him, withdrawing from his mind as soon as the cure was in Autobot hands. At the last moment, Megatron was able to effect his own escape, leaping into Bumblebee's mind along with him. {{storylink|Sick Mind}} [[File:OutofhisHead megatron revived.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|IT'S... AAALLLLLIIIIIIIIVE!]] Recalling the sliver of Dark Energon Starscream had removed from his body, Megatron took full control of Bumblebee's body a short time later and used the GroundBridge to return to the ancient battlefield where he had raised his original Terrorcons, recovering the Dark Energon shard he had used to do so. He returned to the [[Autobot Outpost Omega One|Autobot base]], where he dealt with Ratchet and [[Raf Esquivel|Raf]] before again GroundBridging to the ''Nemesis'' and using the Dark Energon to restore his body and return his mind to it. Storming out of the ''Nemesis'' to find Starscream, Megatron snatched his subordinate out of the air in the middle of a battle with Optimus Prime and took him back for his punishment. {{storylink|Out of His Head}}

[[File:Shadowzone-MegsStarscream.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Lulz.]]

Despite his treason, Megatron decided not to terminate Starscream, viewing him as no real threat and taking perverse amusement in his repeated failures. {{storylink|Rock Bottom}} Instead, Megatron proceeded to beat Starscream only to ''near'' death, then had him placed in the infirmary, occasionally visiting to gloat. {{storylink|Shadowzone (episode)|Shadowzone}}

When Breakdown was captured by the humans of [[MECH]], Megatron refuted Starscream's suggestion that they rescue him, announcing that if Breakdown had allowed himself to be captured by those weaker than him, then he deserved whatever he got. {{storylink|Operation: Breakdown}} Breakdown did manage to escape, however, and in his wounded pride, volunteered to recover a [[polarity gauntlet]] for Megatron in order to prove his worth. Megatron was disappointed when his minion returned without the gauntlet, but was placated by the revelation that he had instead brought back [[Airachnid (Prime)|Airachnid]]. {{storylink|Metal Attraction}}

[[File:RockBottom-Starscreamprays.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|left|{{w|Loki (Marvel Comics)|In the end, you will always kneel}}.]]
Discovering that Starscream was still attempting to mine energon for his personal use without his knowledge, Megatron determined that the amusement had come to an end. Taking him to the mine in question, Megatron revealed that he had been aware of Starscream's previous transgressions the whole time thanks to Soundwave, and was about to execute his groveling lieutenant when [[Jack Darby]] and [[Arcee (WFC)|Arcee]] walked in. Seeing red at the sight of the Autobot and her pet, Megatron opened fire on them, giving Starscream time to escape, an act that only increased Megatron's rage. Unfortunately, Megatron's carelessness with his shots
ultimately brought the mine down on top of them all, with Megatron being completely pinned by rubble. Jack happened upon the Decepticon leader with a mining drill, and Megatron, knowing that the human would not help him, instead urged Jack to finish him off. Jack refused, saying that wasn't what Optimus would do, and left, but the opening he had created allowed Megatron to begin his escape. After finally extricating himself, Megatron came upon Starscream trying to keep a large rock from crushing him. Starscream insisted that he had come to rescue Megatron, and begged the Decepticon leader to spare him, and Megatron acquiesced with a smirk. {{storylink|Rock Bottom}}

Though Megatron allowed Starscream to live and continue as his second-in-command, he was furious to learn from Airachnid that Starscream had kept the location of the ''[[Harbinger]]'' from him. He ordered Starscream to lead Airachnid to the crash site and retrieve an [[Immobilizer|experimental weapon]] that was inside. Much to Megatron's fury, Airachnid returned not only without the weapon, but with the news that Starscream had been captured by the Autobots as well. {{storylink|Partners (Prime)|Partners}}

[[File:StrongerFaster-KnockOutMegatronRatchet.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|"Steroids?" "Yup." "Ah."]]

When a formula for [[Synthetic Energon]] was transferred from a [[Cybertronian data cylinder]] into the mind of the Autobot [[Bulkhead (Prime)|Bulkhead]], Optimus Prime petitioned Megatron for the return of the cylinder so they could extract the formula, after which they would willingly hand it over. Megatron briefly considered the proposal, but instead sent Knock Out and Breakdown to capture Bulkhead and dared Prime to fight for the cylinder. When his Vehicon troops were defeated, Megatron simply crushed the device and took flight. {{storylink|T.M.I.}} The synthetic energon formula helped the Autobots counter Megatron's next tactic: causing the Autobots to burn through their energon supplies at an accelerated rate by leading them on wild goose chases. Juiced up on the "SynthEn", Ratchet attacked Megatron and Knock Out while they were surveying an energon mine, and sent the Decepticon leader flying with one punch. Unfortunately for Ratchet, Megatron swiftly recovered and subdued the Autobot medic with ease. {{storylink|Stronger, Faster}}

[[File:PrimeEp23-Megatronjetmode.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|Damnit, jet mode! Hold still so we can screencap you!]]

Convinced by Dark Energon-induced visions that an impending prophecy detailed his own destiny, Megatron stepped up the Decepticons' work in constructing a new space bridge so they could obtain more Dark Energon. When they located the last component they needed, Megatron went in personally, grievously wounding Raf with a blast of Dark Energon on the way and creating an unintended distraction that allowed him to make off with the power source he needed. Soon after, Megatron lured Optimus Prime to a volcano he had seen in his visions, and during their battle, it erupted with Dark Energon, imbuing Megatron with the power he needed to fell Prime. {{storylink|One Shall Fall}} [[File:OneShallFall-visionfulfilled.jpg|thumb|255px|Look, Prime! Look at the fireworks! Aren't they splendid?!]] The intervention of the other Autobots saved Prime's life, but this was of little concern to Megatron, who now had all the Dark Energon he needed and set his miners to work gathering it up. When Soundwave detected a spark-beat coming from within the Earth, Megatron felt it pounding through his brain and realized what his visions had meant: the lifeforce of Unicron himself dwelt within Earth. Leaving Airachnid in command, Megatron flew into the volcano to address Unicron, but did not receive the power he had hoped the chaos-bringer would bestow on him, instead receiving Unicron's displeasure at the fact that Optimus Prime still lived. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 1}}

Spurned, Megatron instead went to the aid of Optimus and his Autobots, who were under attack from Unicron's stone avatars. He offered Optimus his services—he intended to lead them to Unicron's real form so that Optimus could use the [[Matrix of Leadership]] on the Chaos God. While the Autobots returned to base, Megatron kept the giant stone Unicrons busy, and Prime eventually accepted Megatron's offer. On arrival in the Autobot base, Megatron encountered a couple of humans he recognized, Raf and Jack, as well as a [[Miko Nakadai|new loud one]]. Megatron was first to step through the GroundBridge into the [[Earth's core]], and as the Autobots followed, he warned them that Unicron already knew they were there. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 2}}

[[File:OneShallRise3-together.jpg|thumb|255px|left|"Just this once, we work together! Mortal enemies working together for the common good!" "Be quiet!"]]

Despite the persistent influence of Unicron, Megatron led the Autobots through Unicron's insides, even helping them fight off [[Unicron's antibodies|anti-bots]]. The Dark Energon he was imbued with allowed him to enter Unicron's spark chamber with Optimus, though at that point Unicron's influence became so great that the Chaos God was able to commandeer his body. After Optimus unleashed the power of the Matrix, apparently extinguishing Unicron's spark, Megatron went to kill Optimus, only to discover his foe had lost his memory and now believed himself to be Orion Pax. Megatron convinced Optimus that the other Autobots were enemies, and the pair returned to the ''Nemesis'', where Megatron introduced "Orion Pax" to his men. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}}

[[File:Orion-Pax-Part-1-OP-Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|"Megatron, what happened? Where did you go wrong?" "Uh, watch ''Revenge of the Sith''. I know I'm not in it, but it pretty much sums it all up."]]

Megatron wasted no time in spinning a tale of Autobot warlord Ratchet and the destruction of Cybertron, and put Orion Pax to work decoding data from the [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] archives for a [[Project Iacon|project]] of the same name. Though aware that at some point Orion would find out the truth, Megatron made all precautions to make sure that didn't happen before Orion finished his work. Knock Out was ordered to set up Orion's work station a mere few inches away from the Energon storage vault.

During Orion's decoding, the archivist noted several references to Starscream as being Megatron's second in command. As part of his deception, Megatron claimed Starscream to be dead, and ordered Soundwave to carefully remove Arcee from the ship with a GroundBridge. Arachnid offered to destroy the bike bot herself, but Megatron feared that Orion would become weary of their activity's should he bare witness to an Autobot's destruction. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 1}} Megatron attempted to cover for a surprise visit by Starscream when he managed to sneak aboard the ship. Orion asked why Megatron lied, but the con leader stated that Starscream as "dead" to their cause for joining the Autobots. However, Starscream's visit caused Orion to uncover the truth and find out that he was, in fact, Optimus Prime, the so-called leader of the Autobot "invaders". Soundwave notified Megatron of Orion finding information on Optimus Prime, and Megatron realized that harsher methods would be necessary to complete [[Project Iacon]]. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 2}}

[[File:OrionPax3 Megatron threatens Orion.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Do you see what's in your teeth ''NOW''?!]]

Megatron payed Orion a visit to expose Orion's findings. Orion demanded to know the full truth, but Megatron refused, causing Orion to delete his findings. Fortunately, Soundwave had recorded his findings, and the data was saved. Soundwave also informed Megatron of the activity at the space bridge and went there to find that the Autobots had taken control of it, and that one of their [[Insecticon (WFC)|traps]] on Cybertron was activated. Megatron ordered the guards to watch Orion while he went out and threatened to kill the archivist if he had not completed the project. Megatron realized that the Autobots must have been searching for a way to restore Orion to Optimus. Megatron arrived at the space bridge and defeated the trio of Autobots present, and waited for Arcee to return from the open space bridge with the Matrix in her possession. When Orion had overpowered his guards and came to attack Megatron, Orion declared his loyalty to the Autobots, pulled out his blades, and attacked Megatron. The amnesiac Autobot was no match for him. While the Decepticon leader was subsequently kept busy by Arcee, Jack returned the Matrix to Orion, who regained his memory and left with the Autobots, leaving Megatron screaming furiously at his failure. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 3}}

[[File:OperationBumblebee1 spark extractor.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Now ''I'' have [[The Touch]].]]

Following the first of the artifact coordinates left by Orion, Megatron and his men unearthed the [[spark extractor|Spark Extractor]]. While Megatron was bringing it back through the GroundBridge, it was taken from him by Bumblebee. He then ordered Knock Out and Breakdown to retrieve another artifact before Bulkhead and Bumblebee did. {{storylink|Operation Bumblebee, Part 1}} Megatron was pleased when Knock Out returned with a force field generator, quickly demonstrating the object's power with a cannon-blast. Megatron himself joined the mission to get the third artifact, and managed to secure the [[Forge of Solus Prime]] by holding a prone Bulkhead hostage. Unfortunately, he discovered that the Forge wouldn't work without the power of a Prime behind it. {{Storylink|Operation Bumblebee, Part 2}}

When [[Dreadwing (Prime)|Dreadwing]] arrived on Earth, Megatron filled him in on what had happened to his brother Skyquake, but warned him not to seek revenge on his own. When Dreadwing did anyway, Megatron figured that would be the last they saw of him, although he was glad that Dreadwing both survived and learned his lesson. {{storylink|Loose Cannons}}

[[File:Crossfire Megatron and Insecticon close together.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|"You do know that you'll be splattered across the ceiling after this screencap, right?"]]

Reminded of Airachnid's past treachery, Megatron tasked Dreadwing with ridding them of her. Dreadwing not only failed, but returned minus Breakdown, much to Megatron's disgust. Megatron responded to Airachnid's later communication by attempting to get rid of her himself. Although she set an [[Insecticon (WFC)|Insecticon]] on him, the mighty Megatron eventually prevailed against it. The fight took all of his strength, and he was subsequently surrounded by Autobots. With Dreadwing's help, he escaped and made Dreadwing his new [[second-in-command]]. {{storylink|Crossfire (Prime)|Crossfire}}

Megatron responded to reports of Starscream on the ship and found not one but four [[Starscream clone (Prime)|Starscreams]] on the bridge. After attempting to appeal to their treacherous nature, he took advantage of a diversion to offline three of them before the fourth escaped. The diversion turned out to be a mass Insecticon attack, but after a fight, the Insecticons suddenly stopped and announced they were loyal to him. Then the ''Nemesis'' crashed. {{storylink|Armada (episode)|Armada}} Megatron got the ship moving again using Dark Energon, but when it exhibited its own intelligence and refused to follow his orders, he tried to shut it down, only to be put into stasis lock. He only awoke when the kids reversed the energon flow. {{storylink|Flying Mind}}

As Knock Out prepared to go and try to find the first of the four relics which the ship had found the location of, Megatron instructed him to take an Insecticon as muscle. {{storylink|Tunnel Vision}} Megatron then sent Dreadwing to [[Antarctica]] to find the relic there {{storylink|Triangulation}} and then sent [[Hardshell]] and three other Insecticons to a volcanic area at the equator, {{storylink|Toxicity}} before sending Soundwave to find the last relic.

He was impressed with the [[Resonance Blaster]] Soundwave found, but less so with Dreadwing and Knock Out, the latter of whom returned looking like he'd been run over by a train. After they found a grenade implanted in Laserbeak, Megatron set Soundwave back to work decoding the Iacon database. {{storylink|Triage (episode)|Triage}} His rage over Hardshell's failure was mollified when the Insecticon claimed to have offlined Bulkhead, but when they later got a call from [[Wheeljack (Prime)|Wheeljack]] revealing Bulkhead was still alive, Megatron demanded Hardshell bring him Wheeljack's spark as a substitute. Instead Hardshell's corpse was brought back before him, and Megatron was shocked to learn a [[Miko Nakadai|human girl]] was responsible. {{storylink|Hurt}}

[[File:TheHumanFactor Cylas and Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Soundwave, please arrange our guest a carwash.]]
After sending Knock Out to investigate Breakdown's signal coming back online, Megatron expressed distaste at the Breakdown/[[Silas]] hybrid who was brought to the ship. Nevertheless, he allowed "Cylas" the opportunity to prove himself worthy of a place in the Decepticon ranks by supplying them with a [[Project Damocles]] satellite. Though the initial results were promising, he sent Cylas to terminate Raf when the boy's hacking threatened to railroad their plans. When Cylas failed to do so and the satellite was stopped, Megatron called him back, and handed the former MECH commander over to Knock Out for dissection. {{storylink|The Human Factor}}

[[File:Legacy-ohcrap.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Looks like [[Sari Sumdac (Animated)|Sari]] told Megatron where babies come from.]]

When Soundwave decoded another set of Iacon relic coordinates, Megatron initiated a decoy relic beacon to give them the advantage over the Autobots, and went to fetch the latest relic with a team. Though hoping it would be a Decepticon weapon, Megatron was stunned when it turned out to be the [[Star Saber (Prima)|Star Saber]]. When he was unable to extract the sword, he had the Decepticons chip away a chunk of the mountain to be hauled away by the ''Nemesis'' in an effort to ensure it did not fall in Optimus' hands. Unfortunately, the arrival of [[Smokescreen (Prime)|a new Autobot]] delayed them long enough that the other Autobots discovered the deception. Optimus quickly managed to get hold of the sword despite Megatron's best efforts, and as the Autobot leader unleashed the sword's power, Megatron was forced to retreat in his ship, noting it was now the Decepticons' darkest hour. {{storylink|Legacy (episode)|Legacy}}

[[File:AlphaOmegaDarkStarSaber.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|[[Emperor Palpatine|It's treason then...]]]]

Coming up with a new plan to combat the Star Saber, Megatron took Dreadwing through the space bridge to Cybertron, and broke into the tomb of a Prime. After having Knock Out graft the Prime's arm onto Megatron, he was finally able to use the Forge of Solus Prime to forge a [[Dark Star Saber]] with some of his Dark Energon. Once Soundwave decrypted a new set of coordinates, he got the opportunity to test it on Arcee and Smokescreen when the pair found the first [[Omega Key]], whom he swept aside with ease. With new-found confidence, Megatron challenged Prime to a duel, and though his new sword cleaved right through the Star Saber, Megatron was unable to stop the Autobots from getting away with the Omega Key. {{storylink|Alpha/Omega}} Gloating of his destruction of the Star Saber, he allowed Knock Out the opportunity to retrieve the next relic. Upon his return with another Omega Key, Megatron was intrigued by the relic, believing it to be part of a larger piece, and put the doctor to work analyzing it. He was less impressed with Dreadwing who returned empty handed from his mission, and asserted that they needed to locate the Autobot base to recover their relics. Then Soundwave decrypted the final part of the Iacon databse, revealing Smokescreen to be relevant to their search. {{storylink|Hard Knocks}}

[[File:PatchMegatronStarscream.JPG|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Because we haven't seen this before.]]

After they extracted the Omega Key from Smokescreen, Megatron had Knock Out perform a cortical psychic patch procedure on the Autobot to learn their purpose. After discovering that all four could be used to revitalize Cybertron, he left Knock Out to find out where the Autobot base was, Megatron went to place the Omega Key in storage. However Smokescreen escaped and snatched it out of his grasp and made off with the other key as well. Though Megatron and his men gave pursuit as the Autobot jumped off their ship, Smokescreen got away. The Decepticon leader told Dreadwing they would need to locate the Autobot base quickly to retrieve the other keys, only to find Starscream on the bridge, with all four of the Omega Keys as a peace offering. {{storylink|Inside Job}} Intending to find what Starscream really planned, Megatron had himself plugged into the rogue Decepticon with a psychic patch. Despite most of Starscream's memories turning out to be incriminating, he was eventually convinced to allow Starscream to rejoin the Decepticon ranks. {{storylink|Patch (episode)|Patch}}

Megatron attempted to stress to Dreadwing that the Decepticons needed to be united. Unfortunately Dreadwing was more interested in slagging Starscream, and Megatron had to blow a hole through him. Once the location of the [[Omega Lock]] was established, Megatron took the Keys to Cybertron to find it. He and his men were attacked by the Autobots, who got away with the Keys while Megatron was otherwise occupied with the spark extractor. With some help from Starscream, Megatron got hold of the Autobots' human friends to use as a bargaining chip to secure the return of the Keys. {{storylink|Regeneration (Prime)|Regeneration}}

[[File:DarkestHour-thisistheplace.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4]]

Once he had the Keys back, Megatron had the lock activated and revealed that he intended to use it on both Cybertron and Earth so he'd have two worlds to rule, starting with Earth. Shockingly, this news resulted in Optimus slicing Megatron's sword arm off before destroying the Omega Lock. Though the Autobots escaped, Megatron would have the last laugh, as he knew the location of their base and used the Omega Lock to create a fortress there before Optimus destroyed it. If he could not conquer Cybertron, he could at least conquer Earth. From the ''Nemesis'', he and his men attacked and destroyed the Autobot base as their first act of aggression. {{storylink|Darkest Hour (episode)|Darkest Hour}}

As the Decepticons were unable to find any corpses in the rubble, Megatron ordered worldwide surveillance, and even got an opportunity to test his [[Darkmount (Earth)|new citadel]]'s fusion cannons on some foolishly attacking [[human]]s. After having his original right arm reattached to replace the one Prime severed, Megatron contacted [[William Fowler|Agent Fowler]], claiming to want to co-exist peacefully with humanity. With the continuing failure of Starscream to get any information out of the captive Wheeljack, Megatron sent Knock Out to Cybertron to search for the relics lost during the Omega Lock battle. He was pleased when Knock Out returned with the long lost [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]]. {{storylink|Darkmount, NV}} Megatron appointed Shockwave his first lieutenant in charge of science. With failures mounting, including an aborted attempt by Starscream to track down the Autobots by freeing Wheeljack with a tracking device attached, Megatron's anger grew, leading Shockwave to bring to Earth a [[Predacon (Prime)|Predacon]] he had cloned. {{storylink|Scattered}} The [[Predaking (Prime)|beast]] was dispatched, but to Megatron's disappointment it returned empty-handed. {{storylink|Prey (episode)|Prey}}

[[File:Rebellion-prepunch.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|"Right here - go on, right in the chest!"]]

Megatron was furious when Starscream scattered their troops in pursuit of phantom Autobot signals, shortly before Darkmount itself was attacked. The Decepticon leader cut short [[Ultra Magnus (WFC)|Ultra Magnus]]' attempt to assault the fusion cannon control room, and ordered the Autobots executed. Before this could be done, Optimus Prime turned up, comprehensively beating up Megatron and throwing him into the fusion cannon power core. Despite his protests, the other Decepticons dragged Megatron back to the ''Nemesis'' before the Autobots brought the citadel crashing to the ground. {{storylink|Rebellion (Prime)|Rebellion}}

Instead the Decepticons turned their attentions to cloning, with Megatron ordering the creation of more Predacons. {{storylink|Project Predacon}} When the existing Predacon returned, Megatron ordered Starscream to take command of it. He later dispatched the beast and his first lieutenant to [[Scotland]] when a team searching for fossils there failed to report in. {{storylink|Chain of Command (Prime)|Chain of Command}} Megatron was displeased when it turned out Starscream had lost the Apex Armor, and was even less impressed when Starscream caused damage to the communications dish. Knock Out, at least, did not disappoint the Decepticon leader when he returned with another Predacon fossil. {{storylink|Plus One (Prime)|Plus One}} After some near-missteps in gathering the fossils required, Megatron hinted Shockwave should restrict himself to working in the laboratory in future. {{storylink|Project Predacon}}

Megatron discovered that Knock Out and Starscream had been experimenting with Synthetic Energon and had accidentally created a zombie-like plague. After the situation resulted in Airachnid being freed and the loss of the Insecticons, Megatron gave Knock Out orders to turn all of his experiments over to Shockwave, and reserved a ''special'' punishment for Starscream. {{storylink|Thirst}}

[[File:Evolution-Potentialcoup.jpg|thumb|upright=1.67|[[Darth Vader|"I want them alive... No disintegrations!"]]]]

During a visit to Shockwave's off-site laboratory, Megatron was shocked to learn that the Predacon could transform and was intelligent enough to speak. Though [[Predaking (Prime)|Predaking]] affirmed he was loyal to Megatron, the Decepticon leader suspected that once Predaking discovered that the Predacons were superior to ordinary Decepticons, he would turn against them. The Decepticons quickly realized they'd need to terminate Shockwave's cloning process, and Starscream came up with a plan to pin it on the Autobots which succeeded splendidly. In the aftermath of the explosion, the Decepticons discovered that the Synthetic Energon stored in the lab had created Cybermatter. {{storylink|Evolution}}

With this discovery in mind, Megatron put Shockwave in charge of perfecting the Synthetic Energon formula, however they quickly realized that the Omega Lock would need to be repaired to allow for its targeted delivery, and that Ratchet would be needed to complete the formula. Megatron told Shockwave he had decided that Earth and Cybertron were two halves of the same coin, and he intended to rule both. As the Autobots continued to interfere in their plans, Megatron had Predaking take part in protecting the Vehicons, though he insisted it be done with the Predacon in [[beast mode]]. {{storylink|Minus One}}

[[File:Synthesis Megatron and Predaking.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|[[Sam Witwicky]] [[Megatron (Movie)|can't]] [[Transformers (film)|save]] [[Predaking (Prime)|you]] [[Aligned continuity family|here]]!]]

After the Decepticons captured Ratchet and failed to extract the information they needed via cortical psychic patch, Megatron turned on the charm. Once he showed Ratchet the Omega Lock they'd reconstructed, the Autobot reluctantly agreed to help them. {{storylink|Persuasion}} Despite several missteps which he encouraged his men to correct, Megatron was pleased when the Synth-En formula was perfected, and promptly rewarded Ratchet by giving the Autobot to Predaking as a chew toy. Unfortunately Ratchet turned Predaking against him, and Megatron found himself facing the Predacon in combat. With some help from Starscream, Megatron defeated Predaking and expelled him from the ship, however the Decepticons then found their warship under attack from the Autobots. {{storylink|Synthesis}}

[[File:Tfp megatron impaled.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Megatron killed by... Bumblebee!? It could happen... ONLY ON [[Hub Network|THE HUUUUB]]!]]

Megatron intercepted Optimus Prime, damaging the Autobot's [[jet pack]], and proceeded to duel with his foe atop the Omega Lock, all the while giving orders to Shockwave to prepare the Lock for firing. When Bumblebee attempted to pass Optimus the Star Saber, Megatron blasted the scout, killing him. He prepared to finish off Optimus as well, but Bumblebee was restored by the Omega Lock and ran Megatron through with the Star Saber. Megatron's lifeless body fell from the Omega Lock and plummeted Earthward. {{storylink|Deadlock (episode)|Deadlock}}

[[File:Predaconsrising-chaosandcreation.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Seriously, how are you ''not'' Galvatron?]]
Megatron's body lay at the bottom of the ocean until it was revived and restructured by Unicron. Megatron found himself a prisoner in his own body, tortured by his new master and unable to do anything other than observe. Unicron returned to Cybertron, intending to destroy the planet and end Primus. Megatron tricked him into fighting Predaking, reasoning that if their shared body was damaged enough, Unicron would leave it; however, Unicron managed to beat Predaking and raised an army of Predacon Terrorcons with which to attack Cybertron's core. Megatron was only finally freed when Optimus tricked Unicron, drawing the dark god's anti-spark into a suitable container. Though Starscream believed Megatron would once again lead the Decepticons, Megatron had tasted oppression and no longer wished to inflict it, declaring the Decepticon movement dead and flying off. {{storylink|Predacons Rising (Prime)|Predacons Rising}}
[[File:PredaconsRising - TrueMeaningOfOppression.jpg|thumb|center|400px|I may look like I need a bath now, but it’s better than getting thrown into Cybertron’s core screaming.]]
{{--}}

===Titan ''Prime'' comic===
[[File:Titan4.2 Megatron Soundwave piggyback.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.2|The kiddy-friendly comics have Megatron giving piggy-back rides.]]

Under Megatron's leadership, the Decepticons conquered many city states including [[Kalis]], [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]], and [[Vos (polity)|Vos]]. When the time came to strike against [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]], Megatron led a five-con team in under the cover of darkness to bomb the [[Iacon Energon Refinery]]. They had barely planted the first bomb when they were spotted and fired on. After the other three Decepticons were shot down, Megatron gave Soundwave a bomb and set about causing a distraction while his second-in-command went to plant it. When Soundwave was also shot down, Megatron flew into action, helping up the rest of his team and carrying Soundwave as they retreated under the cover of an exploding bomb. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.2|War Story}}

With a new plan, Megatron took [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]] to attack the [[Yamal|NS ''Yamal'']], a Russian icebreaker near [[Antarctica]]. He intended to use a [[static lance]] to cause the ship's reactors to meltdown exposing energon deposits beneath the ice. Unfortunately Optimus got wind of the plan and came storming in. As Megatron detailed his plan during their one-on-one fight, Optimus took possession of the lance. Megatron attempted to take it back, only for Optimus to hit him with it. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.3|Ice Breaker}}

[[File:Titan4.11 Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Megatron works part-time at the Autobot Hotel providing alarm calls.]]

Megatron and Soundwave somehow slipped some code into ''[[Invasionauts II]]'' to hypnotize Raf into opening the GroundBridge so they could send Vehicons through. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.4|Tinker, Tailor, Gamer, Spy!}} Irritated at Starscream's failure to end the Autobot problem, Megatron demanded his subordinate try and lure the Autobots into a trap instead for fruitlessly searching for them. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.6|All the President's 'Bots!}}

Now infuriated at his army being constantly bested by the Autobots, Megatron took the ''Nemesis'' to the [[Erta Ale volcano]] where he had his troops fight in a series of deathmatches to apply the principle of survival of the fittest. He forced Starscream to fight [[Fearstorm]], and when Starscream won, seemed happy enough to let his lieutenant return to the ship. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.7|Megatron's Law}} After Bulkhead destroyed an energon store, Megatron had him captured and taken aboard the warship, where the Autobot was placed in the newly developed [[Ultra Prison]]. Megatron sneeringly informed Bulkhead that the prison would slowly wipe his mind, but it was Megatron who got the raw end of the deal when the ''Nemesis'' was badly damaged during the inevitable Autobot rescue. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.11|The Battle for Bulkhead}}

Intending to show the pitiful humans that their independence was only temporary, Megatron attempted to stage a media circus in which he destroyed the [[Statue of Liberty]]. Unfortunately only Bumblebee and Optimus turned up, and though Megatron tried his best to wreck the statue, Optimus caused more damage to it in the process of defeating him than he did himself. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.13|Protecting the Lady}}

Leaving Starscream in charge of the Nemesis, Megatron returned to find it practically destroyed. He was met by Starscream, who told him the apparent course of events; ''some random Vehicon'' created an unauthorised Predacon clone, which ran amok, before Starscream ''bravely killed it''. Starscream also had ''totally not faked'' video footage to prove it! Despite the Vehicon's protests, Megatron executed him. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.20|Starscream's Beast}}

====Mega-Mouth====
Megatron occasionally takes time out from conquering the universe to...answer fan mail? He also sometimes seems [[Megatron (Movie)|confused]] about which multiverse he hails from, as he claimed he attacked [[Sentinel Prime (ROTF)|Sentinel]] {{storylink|Transformers_Comic_issue_4.1#Mega-Mouth|Mega-Mouth #1}} and also explained why he wore a cowl in ''[[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Dark of the Moon]].'' {{storylink|Transformers_Comic_issue_4.4#Mega-Mouth|Mega-Mouth #4}} He also said he survived ''Dark of the Moon'', after some fan asked how Megatron could be answering fan mail. {{storylink|Transformers_Comic_issue_4.5#Mega-Mouth|Mega-Mouth #5}}
{{--}}

===''Tales of the Beast Hunters''===
After [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] intercepted a message pointing to a derelict starship containing weapons in the [[asteroid belt]], Megatron and [[Predaking (Prime)|Predaking]] headed out to find it. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 2}} They got there and found [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]] and [[Wheeljack (Prime)|Wheeljack]] about to make off with the weapons. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 4}} After [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]] joined the battle, {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 5}} the ship began to explode, and Megatron plunged through the floor along with tons of debris. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 6}}

Injured, Megatron lay beneath the wreckage in the ship, using his damaged comms to monitor events on Earth. Finally his groping hands found an [[Tartarex Warp Sword|ancient weapon]], which used the surrounding debris to repair and rebuild him. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 22}} He returned to Earth and blasted the top off a mountain, {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 23}} intending to make a preemptive strike against the Predacons. The Predacons promptly flew up to engage him in combat. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 24}}

===Full of Fire!===
Disgruntled at the lack of progress in Predacon cloning, Megatron complained to Shockwave, who revealed that the cloning had already borne fruit. Megatron was pleased, though not so much when Predaking and the five new Predacons returned having been defeated by the Autobots. He believed that the Autobots now knew the extent of the Predacon army, however Shockwave was quick to reveal that there were a whole lot more Predacon clones ready to go. {{storylink|Full of Fire!}}

===''Transformers: The Ultimate Pop-Up Universe''===
Once an idealistic young miner, Megatron was forced into the gladiatorial ring, which eventually lead him to become the brutal and ruthless leader of the Decepticons. He once crushed the Autobot [[Bumper (WFC)|Bumper]]'s legs with his tank mode. {{storylink|Transformers: The Ultimate Pop-Up Universe|The Ultimate Pop-Up Universe}}

===2015 ''Robots in Disguise'' cartoon===
Though Megatron was nowhere to be seen, a statue of him was erected on the reborn Cybertron. {{storylink|Pilot (Part 1)}} After [[Cyclonus (WFC)|Cyclonus]]' Decepticon cell had taken over the [[Autobot High Council|High Council]], they began making preparations for Megatron's return, either unaware of, or unwilling to believe, the former gladiator renouncing conquest. {{storylink|Freedom Fighters}}

As he had "helped save the universe from Starscream, Megatron, and Dark Energon," Bumblebee refused to be defeated by [[Bisk (RID)|Bisk]]. {{storylink|More than Meets the Eye (RID)|More than Meets the Eye}} [[Fixit (RID)|Fixit]] once thought a map looked like Megatron's face. {{storylink|W.W.O.D.?}} During their battle, Drift mistook [[The Fallen|Megatronus]] for Megatron. {{storylink|Battlegrounds, Part 2}} Megatron was "light years away" by the time [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] managed to escape the [[Shadowzone (dimension)|Shadowzone]]. {{storylink|Portals}}

As the High Council's plans neared completion, they genetically engineered a quartet of Activator [[Mini-Con]]s to help free Soundwave from the Shadowzone, with the intent that the communication chief summon Megatron so he could lead the Decepticons back to glory. The [[Bee Team (RID)|Bee Team]] thwarted Soundwave, however. Upon confronting the High Council, the Decepticons combined into [[Galvatronus (RID)|Galvatronus]] who decided that the [[Decepticon Empire]] would be reborn and thriving for whenever Megatron returned. {{storylink|Collateral Damage}} {{storylink|Freedom Fighters}}

===2015 ''Robots in Disguise'' books===
An Energon thief came to Megatron's attention and joined the Decepticon army as [[Drift (RID)|Deadlock]]. {{storylink|Drift's Samurai Showdown}}

==Commercial appearances==
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English)}}

*During the war on Cybertron, Megatron had to briefly leave the battlefield, and left [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] in charge. Shockwave took the opportunity to order Soundwave to transform into his boombox mode and play "[[The Touch]]" while he blasted Autobots. {{storylink|Commercial#War for Cybertron|Gamestop Exclusive TV spot}}
*Megatron, {{w|Dan Vs.|Dan}}, and [[Pinkie Pie]] sang a collaborative group song while the scene quickly shifted between a variety of strange alternate universes. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Summer|The Hub summer promo 2011}}
{{quote|{{w|Meatballs (film)|Are you ready for the summer? Are you ready for the hot <s>nuts</s> nights?}}|Megatron}}
*At some point he ended up in detention at a school because he had "anger issues". {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Detention|The Hub promo}}
*He later joined back up with Pinkie Pie as well as other ponies [[Rainbow Dash]] and [[Applejack]], and [[Bulkhead (Prime)|Bulkhead]] in scatting "{{w|Deck the Halls}}" {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Carolers1|The Hub Carolers}} and singing "{{w|Jingle Bells}}". {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Carolers2|The Hub Carolers (Second spot)}}
*He also demanded that viewers vote for him in the Hub's 2010 "Naughty or Nice" contest. They must have been listening, because he was eventually voted the "Naughtiest" villain on the Hub that year.

[[File:MegatronCareBear.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|''Megatron is on the right'' One wonders where exactly the other Care Bear came from.]]

*Megatron declared the Hub his in a commercial for a marathon of ''Prime'' season 1 and 2, {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Darkest Hour|Darkest Hour promo}} doing certain Hub-focused jokes and gags before the commercial breaks during the marathon. One such segment showed [[The Transformers (cartoon)|his home movies]], during which reminisced on how [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|young he looked back then]] and mocked [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave's]] dated choice of alt mode. In other commercials for the marathon, it is revealed that out of all the radio transmissions in the universe, the ''[[My Little Pony]]: Friendship Is Magic'' [[theme song|theme]] is his favorite song, {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Song|Megatron's Favorite Song}} and that he has been working on new transformations, demonstrating his ability to [[Pretender|transform]] into Funshine Bear, a {{w|Care Bears|Care Bear}}, much to his humiliation. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Care Bear|Megatron Transforms into a Care Bear}} Also during the marathon; he commented on how his favorite reason that transformers were superior to humans was that transformers didn't need bathroom breaks. He also commented that the one thing he doesn't get about Autobots is their continuation of transforming into land-based vehicles (not complaining, just observing). He also expressed bewilderment over the way [[United States of America|Americans]] elect [[President of the United States|their leader]] through [[Democracy|democratic means]], rather than just killing off the competition like he would do. He also apologized to [[ALF]] for pre-empting his show, allowing the program to air at a later date under his regime. The only humans that Megatron admitted to liking were those that cower before him and Dan, due to his anger.
*Despite Megatron's might, Raf judged him inferior to {{w|Time Warner Cable}}'s ability to transmit ''Transformers: Prime'' on laptop, tablet and smartphone computers, as demonstrated by a [[Raf's media device|device]] which switched between all three forms. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Time Warner|Time Warner Cable: Competiton}}
*While lounging around the Nemesis, Megatron answered questions about his personal life, took requests from fans, and offered advice to the disillusioned and directionless. He shot down one girl who asked him to the prom, told a guy that the best way to get noticed by chicks is to transform into a jet, suggested that pound cake is the most superior of all baked desserts, and revealed that his ideal form of relaxation involves drawing [[Rainbow Dash]] fanart. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Ask Megatron|Ask Megatron}}
*Megatron narrated ''{{w|A Visit from St. Nicholas}}'' for his troops, which was interrupted by three Vehicons discussing the stirring practices of mice. Megatron threatened to put them on the naughty list. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Naughty List|30-Second Holiday Special: "Decepticon Holidays: Naughty List"}} Megatron shouted down several Vehicons singing about figgy pudding. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Pudding|30-Second Holiday Special: "Decepticon Holidays: Pudding"}} An Insecticon had direct orders from Megatron to send whoever decorated the ''Nemesis'' in holiday lights to the North Pole. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Holiday Schmoliday|30-Second Holiday Special: "Decepticon Holidays: Holiday Schmoliday"}}

==Games==
===''Transformers: War for Cybertron'' (Xbox 360/PS3/PC)===
{{voiceactor|[[Fred Tatasciore]] (English)|[[Oliviero Corbetta]] (Italian), [[Juan Carlos Lozano]] (Spanish), [[Bruno Carna]] (French), [[Jacek Jasiński]] (Polish)}}

[[File:WFC Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.95|He wants the whooole wooorld, in his hand!]]

During the early war on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], Megatron found reference to an energy source called [[Dark Energon]], which had impressive potential as a weapon, and became determined to claim it for himself. One of the few places it was made was in a station in orbit around Cybertron, guarded by a politically neutral force led by [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]]. With this knowledge, he took a ship and launched an assault on the station.

The ship was badly damaged in the attack, and so he ordered [[Barricade (WFC)|Barricade]] and [[Brawl (WFC)|Brawl]], piloting it, to ram the station. He and many of his soldiers survived the impact and escaped the core's detonation. They were then confronted by Starscream, who informed them that they would not allow them to take what he had guarded for ten thousand years. After surviving a trap of sentry guns, Megatron, Barricade, and Brawl were reinforced by more of Megatron's troops, and set out on their way to find the station's Dark Energon stores and claim them for the war effort. They encountered significant resistance, but managed to shoot their way through, with directional aid from [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]]. Barricade noted that the station itself seemed quite primitive; Megatron noted it was very old, and that he intended to modernize it. At one point, the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seeker]] [[Jetfire (WFC)|Jetfire]] confronted Megatron nonviolently, asking him to give up his quest, as Dark Energon would result in only horror, death, and destruction, to which Megatron sneered, "You say that as if it were a bad thing."

[[File:WFC-MegatronmeetsStarscream.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.66|At last we meet, my punching bag.]]

Along their way to the Dark Energon, they found that a large portion of the station had been blasted clean off, the debris field traversable but sparse enough to allow easy viewing of Cybertron itself. Soundwave soon found records indicating that a small amount of Dark Energon lost containment and was the sole cause of the destruction, underscoring Megatron's desire for it. When Barricade asked how he expected to control it when no other had, Megatron said that such power was only for the strong, that he was the strongest, and not to question him again.

When they finally reached the storage chamber, and Megatron averted Starscream's destruction of it, he calmly entered into a container full of raw Dark Energon, while Starscream watched and gloated at his imminent destruction...only for him to walk out, not only unscathed, but crackling with power, which he further bestowed upon Barricade and Brawl. A single blast of Dark Energon was enough to destroy an entire company of station security forces, the last line of defense between Megatron and Starscream and his companions.

Jetfire again tried to warn Megatron about the dangers of Dark Energon, but Starscream interrupted, asking to join the Decepticon leader. Megatron asked what Starscream could offer that he could not simply take. Starscream revealed the station's supply of Dark Energon was almost spent, and he knew how to manufacture more—and as luck would have it, there was a dormant [[Geosynchronous Energon Bridge]] which could be used to power it. Jetfire retreated to inform [[Sentinel Zeta Prime|Zeta Prime]]; Megatron let him go, seeming pleased by the notion of letting the Autobots tremble in advance of their actions, and sent Starscream, [[Thundercracker (WFC)|Thundercracker]], and [[Skywarp (WFC)|Skywarp]] to activate the bridge.

Megatron repeatedly mocked what he perceived as Starscream's slowness in his simple mission, but the Seeker did what he said he could. With a steady supply of Dark Energon, Megatron launched an attack on Iacon City, intending to take a device called the [[Omega Key]] and use it to enter the Core of Cybertron. This time, he took [[Breakdown (WFC)|Breakdown]] and Soundwave with him. The trio took the less-guarded way in—which, since the Autobots were not complete fools (as even Megatron would admit), still had significant military presence. During the attack, Starscream noted that Dark Energon was proving every bit as potent as Megatron had promised. Breakdown let Megatron know of his misgivings about the Sky Commander; Megatron admitted he was treacherous and untrustworthy, but he had useful talents, and his cunning and ambition was intriguing.

The Omega Key had been taken from its normal resting place, however, by Autobot leader Zeta Prime, and so Megatron took his squad on an assault on Zeta's headquarters. They met Brawl, leading an attack on the doors to Zeta Prime's armory, along the way. Even Megatron's touch of Dark Energon could not breach the vault doors, however, and so he called in [[Dark Energon Bomber]]s. When they were shot down, Brawl suggested they take out the Autobots' air defense guns, after which bombers were called in again; Megatron's troops then held off a massive assault from what seemed like the entire Autobot army while waiting for the bombing run to finally arrive.

[[File:WFC Megatron Vs ZetaPrime.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|Zeta Prime, you might be more egotistical than me. I mean really, a huge holographic version of you and smaller holograms doing what you can't do without your pointy stick thing?]]

After the vault doors were breached, they reached Zeta Prime himself, who had constructed several layers of security while he waited. An invincible energy field protected him, while he could drop portions of the ceiling with pistons to crush anything beneath them, and construct endless holographic clones of himself outfitted for melee combat, which Megatron personally found nauseating. However, his defenses were not without flaw: periodically, the power core would need to disperse waste heat, and Megatron's team survived long enough to destroy it during this stage. Zeta fell, buried under the wreckage of his own defenses, and Megatron took the device he'd carried...which started to make electronic chirping noises. Zeta, with dark humor, noted that the device was not the Omega Key. It merely ''activated'' the Key, which would come to them...

Searching for the Key in the skies aboard another ship, Megatron, with Soundwave and Breakdown at the controls, were abruptly confronted by a massive ship, [[Omega Supreme (WFC)|Omega Supreme]], who knocked them out of the sky, causing them to crash back in Iacon. There, they played a cat-and-mouse campaign in a desperate attempt to survive the enormous Autobot's vast firepower, though Soundwave noted that the weaponry they bore had little chance of penetrating Omega Supreme's armor. Megatron, for his part, at least contrived to appear unafraid, claiming that if it came to a real fight, the brute wouldn't stand a chance against Megatron's intellect. However, Omega's attacks drove them underground and left them unable to immediately transmit counter to Starscream, who declared Megatron dead and announced he was taking control. Even when they re-established contact, Starscream's aerial forces only briefly distracted Omega, who dispensed large numbers of troops, sucked up Decepticons with a tractor beam, fired weapons of mass destruction, and mined the roads Megatron and his squad were using.

[[File:Omega Supreme smash.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|"I challenge you to a thumb wrestling competition!" "''That's'' a thumb!?"]]

Soundwave, however, had come up with a suggestion—there were weapons emplacements higher up that had the ability to damage Omega Supreme. Taking them from the Autobots was a battle in and of itself, but nothing compared to the fight against Omega Supreme, who could unload entire squadrons of Aerialbots. Nonetheless, Megatron's boldness and tactical acumen finally shot Omega Supreme out of the sky.

[[File:WFC-hearmynameandtremble.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.66|I stand on your crotch!]]

Gloating, Megatron found that the behemoth was still not defeated, and indeed was drawing power from Cybertron itself to repair his systems, making him stronger, if anything. However, by corrupting the energon batteries with which he was using to feed himself with Dark Energon charges, they were able to weaken him to the point where they could finally blast away his last defenses and brought him to heel. With Omega Supreme defeated, Megatron went underground, directly to the Core, and corrupted it with a massive infusion of Dark Energon, finally bringing Cybertron itself more completely under his control.

At this point, Megatron was clearly convinced, and for good reason, that he'd won, making propaganda broadcasts extolling his greatness and how he had taken away the Autobots' burdens of "liberty" and "choice". When Starscream was defeated and the Decagon retaken, however, he realized the Autobots were not yet going to roll over for him, and sent a distress signal from Zeta Prime, whom he had kept alive in the Kaon prison camp, in order to provoke a rescue attempt from the Autobots. His old acquaintance Optimus took the bait, and Megatron confronted him, telling him that the war could be over tomorrow if Optimus took the Autobots and left. Optimus refused, so Megatron consigned him and his team to the prisons. When they managed to stage a mass breakout, an enraged Megatron ordered his troops to prevent their escape at any cost, to the point of tearing apart portions of Kaon.

This was not enough, however, and they escaped, journeying to the Core, where they kickstarted the cleansing of Megatron's corruption. Doing so, however, would take the Core millions of years of shutdown, rendering Cybertron uninhabitable. Whether Megatron knew this or not, when he saw the Autobots leaving after Optimus' refusal of his earlier offer, he apparently took offense. His earlier plans of renovating Starscream's station had come to fruition; now, it mounted a powerful superweapon, capable of destroying entire structures in one shot. He had it fire upon the Autobot transports as they left. When a team of Aerialbots attempted to disable or destroy it, he called Jetfire, now one of them, and taunted him about his past. He further mocked them when they destroyed the plasma coolant system without apparently having accounted for backups. Finally, during the attack he came into possession of information on Optimus Prime's location, and ordered Trypticon—the name of the weapon, for it was actually a Cybertronian—to fire upon it.

Trypticon, however, was forced into his natural form and defeated after he crash-landed on Cybertron. Megatron's reaction to this went unrecorded. {{storylink|Transformers: War for Cybertron (360/PS3/PC)|Transformers: War for Cybertron}}

===''Transformers: War for Cybertron'' (DS)===
[[File:WFCDS Defeat Omega Supreme.jpg|thumb|left|256px|Simple enough... OH GOD BULLETS.]]

Megatron was the Decepticon Leader during the final days of the Great War. After capturing an Autobot facility, and killing a cadet, Megatron revealed his plan to his troops. Megatron intended to conquer Trypticon Space Station, which had the means and power to manufacture Dark Energon: a variant of Energon which greatly increased the stamina and strength of its host. Megatron fought his way through the station to its commander, the Autobot Starscream. Upon Starscream's defeat, Starscream offered his services and the Dark Energon if he was spared. Megatron agreed, and Starscream joined the Decepticons.

After a test run of the Dark Energon in Kaon Prison, Soundwave deduced the element would only kill the host, but Starscream was able to find a way to fix it. Megatron then decided the time was right, and led his army to the inner levels of Cybertron. He was able to activate the uplink to channel energy from the Core of Cybertron itself to Trypticon Station, but he needed the Omega Key to access it once it was shut down with a firewall.

Megatron learned through a recording from Laserbeak that Autobot Leader Zeta Prime had the Omega Key in his possession and had holed up deep within Iacon. Megatron led a full-scale assault on the city, totally devastating Iacon, until he found Zeta Prime at last. After a hard battle, Zeta fell, and Megatron obtained the Omega Key. However, immediately upon taking it, alarms went off, and Iacon itself was shaking. Zeta Prime, despite being mortally wounded, laughed at Megatron's face, saying the Omega Key was only the key to the ''true'' key: the city-sized Autobot Omega Supreme.

Omega immediately attacked the victorious Decepticons, and quickly decimated their presence in Iacon, save for Megatron's team and a few others. By this point, Megatron was absolutely furious at Starscream: Megatron declared it was he who led them to Omega Supreme and the devastating onslaught he carried out. Starscream bitterly retorted even if Megatron killed him, Omega Supreme would still be out for his blood, helping nothing whatsoever. Megatron angrily let it go for the time being, and led his army to battle. His troops' confidence beginning to falter, Megatron declared they would either be kicking themselves for not acting for the rest of their lives, or heroes in a historic event. His men followed him to battle Omega, and the titan fell. Megatron was free to corrupt the Core of Cybertron with Dark Energon, and obtain near-supremacy of Cybertron.

That kind of went downhill when the new Autobot leader, Optimus Prime, extinguished the Dark Energon and destroyed Trypticon Space Station, didn't it? {{storylink|Transformers: War for Cybertron (DS)|War for Cybertron - Autobots/Decepticons}}
{{--}}

===''Transformers: Cybertron Adventures''===
{{voiceactor|[[Fred Tatasciore]] (English)|[[Oliviero Corbetta]] (Italian)}}

Early in the war, when the Autobots learned of the existence of the orbiting superweapon [[Trypticon (WFC)|Trypticon]], Megatron sent waves of Decepticon forces to keep them from discovering more about it. Megatron, happy to see the destruction Trypticon was creating, ordered Starscream and Skywarp at gunpoint to return to Trypticon and clean up after it, while he took his troops into battle to scour the area for Autobots to kill. Few Autobots other than the medic, [[Ratchet (WFC)|Ratchet]], were spared Megatron's initial assault.

When Megatron found out that Starscream had left his post at Trypticon, Megatron grew angry. But the Autobots had infiltrated the [[Datacore]], so Megatron focused his efforts there instead. Bumblebee was captured, and information useful for the taking of [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] was pulled from his mind. Megatron assigned Skywarp the task of the initial Iacon assault. The traitorous Starscream returned to Megatron's focus, and the Air Commander was ordered to infiltrate the Core of Cybertron to reactivate the [[Geosynchronous Energon Bridge]]. But Starscream took too long, discovering Megatron had already reached the Core by the time he arrived. In a foul mood, Megatron would test Starscream's loyalty by putting him on the Iacon assault's front lines.

The assault went as planned, and Iacon crumbled. As Barricade and Starscream reached an empty Council Chamber, Megatron alerted them to the evacuation of the surviving Autobots. Three Autobot ships positioned themselves to escape, and so Megatron ordered Thundercracker and Skywarp to take them down.

Though Iacon fell, the Trypticon orbiting superweapon was destroyed by the Autobots... but not before Megatron ripped the datacore from its brain so as to salvage its information on Dark Energon. Megatron was pleased. Despite his loss, he still had the upper hand. {{storylink|Transformers: Cybertron Adventures}}

===''Transformers: Fall of Cybertron'' (Xbox 360/PS3/PC)===
{{voiceactor|[[Fred Tatasciore]] (English)}}

[[File:FoC Megatron Profile.jpg‎|thumb|left|upright=1.3|Seriously, Soundwave, where is my fusion cannon?! It was in your remodeling designs, for crying out loud...]]

When Cybertron had begun to die following the Core's shutdown, Megatron blamed [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]], as he was the one who had ruined his plans for the planet. Megatron launched an attack on [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] in order to destroy the Ark and get revenge. While commanding the battle from beneath one of his [[Warp Cannon]]s, he sent [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]], [[Onslaught (WFC)|Onslaught]] and [[Brawl (WFC)|Brawl]] to capture Optimus and bring him before him. As Megatron executed two Autobots before his Optimus' eyes, Optimus pleaded that they only wanted to leave Cybertron, but Megatron wasn't going to allow him. As the Warp Cannon prepared to destroy both the Ark, and the Decepticon leader to do the same to the Autobot leader, the newly awakened [[Metroplex (FOC)|Metroplex]] tore the roof off of the building they were in. Refusing to retreat, Megatron fired at the colossus, only to be pulverized by the giant Autobot's fist.

Due to Megatron's death, Starscream took control of the Decepticons and proceeded to run the organization into the ground by wasting resources and his failure to inspire the troops. Unhappy with the change in management, [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] salvaged what was left of Megatron, rebuilt him into a new form in his Kaon laboratory, and reactivated him with a Dark Energon infusion. After awakening, Megatron was enraged to see that Starscream was in control, and then proceeded to crash Starscream's [[The Transformers: The Movie|coronation]] ceremony. Slaughtering the Seeker's loyalists, Megatron turned on Starscream and drove him off. [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] arrived to inform him of the [[space bridge]] technology he had discovered and [[Earth|an energy-rich planet]] for them to plunder, and they required a suitable power source for a transport to take them.

Due to Starscream's self-indulgence, the Decepticons' energon supply was dwindling, forcing Megatron to find more power. He decided to retrieve the power core from the fallen [[Trypticon (WFC)|Trypticon]] and while doing so, he happily "reintroduced" himself to the Autobots. After arriving at Trypticon's crash site, he realized the beast was still alive and had Soundwave revitalize him. Megatron didn't know or care whether or not Trypticon was still sentient or not, but told the beast that since he had failed him, he would be rebuilt to Megatron's liking. Megatron then told Soundwave to initiate the "Nemesis Protocol" and permanently lock Trypticon in his [[alternate mode|alternate form]]: a transport ship which they would use to traverse the Space Bridge.

The ''Nemesis'' was quickly completed and the Space Bridge opened, and Megatron decided to leave Shockwave in charge of Cybertron in his absence. However, one of Shockwave's [[Grimlock (WFC)|experiments]] destroyed the tower, which reduced the time they have to reach the Space Bridge before it closed. Sending in Soundwave to lead his forces on the Ark, Megatron confronted Optimus and the two fought. Megatron prepared a devastating blow to his enemy with a cannon, only for [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]] to take the shot for Optimus. Their battle reignited, the two leaders traded blows with swords, causing heavy damage to one another. But before a final blow could be delivered by either one of them, the Ark crumbled under the Space Bridge's force, and while Megatron shouted in anger, both ships were drawn through. {{storylink|Transformers: Fall of Cybertron|Fall of Cybertron}}

{{note|Megatron also appears in the game's 'Escalation' mode. He fights alongside [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]], [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]], and [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]], on the 'Oblivion' map. He is the team's [[Tank (FOC)|Tank]].}}

=== ''Transformers: Prime - The Game'' ===
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English)|[[Bruno Carna]] (French), [[Juan Carlos Lozano]] (Castilian Spanish)}}

[[File:Transformers prime the game megatron.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.1|I think I'll force a servant of Unicron about ten times my size to serve me. That won't go horribly wrong at all.]]

Megatron was present when the Decepticons were hauling in an asteroid rich with Dark Energon heading toward Earth. When the Autobots came to stop them, he decided to take matters into his own hands by going toe-to-toe with Optimus again. After they exchanged some wedding vows and got to dancing, the asteroid exploded and interrupted their fight. Megatron managed to survive by flying away, witnessing his enemies fall to Earth. Swiftly, Megatron commanded Starscream to organize a scouting team to retrieve the fallen Autobots.

Megatron was present when Optimus awoke to fight Thunderwing. Megatron commenced an attack on the Autobot with the Nemesis, but once the Autobot escaped, he quickly turned his attention to the giant in the asteroid. After an analysis by Knock Out, Megatron reasoned with the herald of Unicron by promising all of his missing components being returned to him if and only if he swore his undying allegiance to him. As such, Megatron and Starscream arrived at one location to retrieve a component while Dreadwing parted to another. While on their mission, Megatron and Starscream managed to run into their old pals Optimus & Bulkhead. Starscream took his fight to the bulk, leaving Megatron to battle his old foe once again. Megatron was somewhat defeated, but managed to retrieve the component.

Megatron witnessed Starscream attach the component to Thunderwing, and the two were surprised when Thunderwing continued to serve Unicron, even after their deal. Thunderwing attempted to destroy Megatron before making his escape, but he used Starscream as protection. Throwing his commander on the ground like scrap, he pursued Thunderwing only to meet with the Autobots again. Megatron managed to make sport of Arcee, Bumblebee, and Bulkhead, but his third and final battle with Optimus resulted in his ultimate defeat. He vengefully tried to stab Optimus when offered mercy, only to be left open and seemingly destroyed by a blast from the arriving Thunderwing.
{{storylink|Transformers: Prime - The Game}}

===''Transformers Online''===
{{charstubgame}}
{{storylink|Transformers Online (2012 video game)|Transformers Online}}
{{-}}

===''Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark''===
{{charstubgame|{{storylink|Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark (console)|Rise of the Dark Spark (console)}}, {{storylink|Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark (3DS)|Rise of the Dark Spark (3DS)}}}}
{{-}}

===''Transformers Prime: Battle For Energon''===
Megatron and his Eradicons infiltrated the Autobots' headquarters. They then used Scraplets to discombobulate the base's systems. Bulkhead then came along, removed the Scraplets from the headquarters' systems, and defeated Megatron. {{storylink|Transformers Prime: Battle For Energon}}

===''Transformers Prime: Terrorcon Defense''===
Megatron threw wave after wave of Vehicons at the Autobots in the hopes of amassing massive amounts of Dark Energon, before launching an assault on the Autobot headquarters. He was defeated by Optimus Prime and Arcee. {{Storylink|Transformers Prime: Terrorcon Defense|Terrorcon Defense}}

===''Transformers Prime: Pulsar Defense''===
Megatron and his Decepticons built an [[Energon Drain]] weapon, which would render them unstopable if left unopposed. Optimus Prime and his Autobots intervened, and destroyed the weapon. {{storylink|Transformers Prime: Pulsar Defense}}

===''Transformers Prime: Decepticon Strike''===
After the bulk of his troops, and many Vehicons had faced off against Optimus Prime, Megatron took on the Autobot leader himself. Megatron had access to a personal forcefield and powerful energy blasts throughout the battle, and would alternate between his robot and vehicle mode to fight both on the ground and above it. The stack the odds even more in his favor, Megatron was assisted by some of his troops, including Airachnid, Breakdown and Shockwave. Despite all of this, Optimus managed to defeat Megatron, and he was sent fleeing, proclaiming that Optimus had only succeeded in winning a small battle that was part of a greater war. {{storylink|Transformers Prime: Decepticon Strike|Decepticon Strike}}

===''Transformers Universe''===
[[File:Tu-character-art megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|left|Went from shark-face to scowl-face]]
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English)}}

At some point during the Autobot-Decepticon war, Optimus Prime went missing. Megatron and his Decepticons searched the universe for the Autobot leader, but met heavy resistance from the Autobots, who fought to keep their leader's location a secret.

He appears in-game only as a hologram displayed in the ''Leviathan'', [[Switchblade (Prime)|Switchblade]]'s ship. {{storylink|Transformers Universe (Jagex)|Transformers Universe}}
{{-}}

===''Transformers: Battle Tactics''===
[[File:Battle-Tactics-Megatron-(WFC).jpg|thumb|upright=2.2]]
Megatron (WFC) participated in battles against a variety of opponents, both Autobots and Decepticons. Sometimes there were many of him! He was an Epic character available as a reward in the "Cybertron Episode 1" event. {{storylink|Transformers: Battle Tactics}}
{{-}}

==Toys==
{{main|Megatron (WFC)/toys}}

==Merchandise==
{{main|Megatron (WFC)/toys#Merchandise}}

==Notes==
[[File:Tfprimemegatronjet.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Too fast for screen caps.]]

[[File:VectorSigmaBotBuilderMegatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Green With Evil.]]

[[File:RID 15 Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|It's like [[Transformers: War for Cybertron (games)|''War for Cybertron'']] and [[Megatron (Animated)|''Animated'']] were put in a blender.]]

*Megatron's model is usable in ''War for Cybertron'' multiplayer as the Destroyer-type chassis for [[Soldier (WFC)|Soldier]]-class characters. His parts are also available in ''Fall of Cybertron'', now classified as Gunner-type components for [[Titan (FOC)|Titan]]-class characters.
*Megatron's designation as an energon miner was "D-16".<ref>[http://www.hasbro.com/transformers/en_US/play/details.cfm?guid=7fd5ecd9-19b9-f369-1041-a7635be83172 War for Cybertron timeline].</ref> Megatron's original [[List of Japanese ID numbers|Japanese ID number]] was "16". Takara would eventually change the numbering system using a "D" to denote [[Decepticon|Destrons]]. So Megatron's Japanese ID number could retroactively be considered "D-16".
*According to the packing bio for the Cybertronian Megatron toy, Megatron often changes his [[alternate mode]]. This was probably written in an attempt to explain why goes from turning into a tank in the video games to turning into a jet in the cartoon.
**The ''Prime'' staff used the rationale that Megatron, unlike other Decepticons, would not scan an Earth mode out of disgust at humans.<ref>[http://www.tfw2005.com/transformers-news/transformers-prime-39/botcon-2010-transformers-prime-panel-coverage-170054/ BotCon 2010 Transformers Prime Panel Coverage]</ref>
*In ''War for Cybertron'', Megatron has multiple glitches when controlled by the computer, among them shrinking (quite hilariously), losing his Fusion Cannon, and having his Tank mode cannon stick straight up (also humorous). He may be the most glitchy character in the game.
*''Prime'' Megatron takes visual cues from both Generation 1 [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]]—the ever-famous buckethead and lower legs resembling a pistol's handgrip—and [[Megatron (Movie)|"Movie series" Megatron]]—the sharp angles and bits on his shoulders, two-toed feet, a demonic-looking face with sharp shark-like teeth, and even a Cybertronian jet mode. The G1 reference goes further with Welker's casting, but with a darker tone leaning more towards [[Hugo Weaving]]'s portrayal as a movieverse cue (Welker would later deepen this tone for ''Age of Extinction'' and ''The Last Knight'').
*Megatron's body parts are available to use in the Hub website's [[Vector Sigma Bot Builder]] online game. Normally, you cannot configure a generic 'bot using all Megatron parts, but you can see what one would look like at right through the magic of Photoshop.
*A running gag in the advertisements shows that the Decepticon Lord is actually a {{w|brony}} in secret. Soundwave is the only one who knows, and seems to share his leader's taste for ''[[My Little Pony]]''.
**According to the ''[[Commercial/Prime#2012|Transformers: Prime 26 Hour Takeover Marathon]]'' promos, his favorite song is the [[theme song|theme]] to ''My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic''.
**According to an [[Commercial/Prime#2013|Ask Megatron]] segment, his ideal form of relaxation involves traveling to the dark side of Pluto and drawing Rainbow Dash fanart.
**And then there are [[Commercial/Prime#2011|The Hub Summer]] and [[Commercial/Prime#2011|The Hub Carolers]] promos, in which he joins Pinkie Pie, Applejack and Rainbow Dash (his favorite!) for various musical numbers.
**While answering fan mail from the [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=woM_g2cJxlA "Ask Megatron" Segments], he replied that his most embarrassing moment was when he cried in front of Soundwave when [[Twilight Sparkle]] became a princess.
*A note in the "Autobits" edition of [[Darkmount, NV]] states that he enjoys online cat videos.
*Megatron had concept art made for him for the ''[[Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2015 cartoon)|Robots in Disguise]]'' cartoon.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Megatron''' (メガトロン ''Megatoron''), '''Megatronus''' (メガトロナス ''Megatoronasu'')
*''Mandarin:'' '''Megaton''' (Taiwan, 密卡登 ''Mìkǎdēng''), '''Wēi Zhèn Tīan''' (China, 威震天, lit. "Extremely Prestigious" or "Heaven-shaking Might")

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Emperors of Destruction]]
[[Category:Fall of Cybertron Decepticons]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Hall of Fame characters]]
[[Category:Letters page answerers]]
[[Category:Prime Decepticons]]
[[Category:Transformers Online Decepticons]]
[[Category:War for Cybertron Decepticons]]
[[Category:Transformers Universe game Decepticons]]

Megatron (WFC)

2023-06-15T03:27:09Z

Negatwenty:

{{factions|decepticon|{{factions/icons|custom=PrimeSharkticonSymbol.png|cLink=Sharkticon (species)|cSize=40x40px}}|hofsilver}}
{{disambigm|Megatron (disambiguation)|Megatronus (disambiguation)}}
{{suite}}
:''Megatron is the [[Decepticon leader]] from the [[Aligned continuity family]].''

[[File:Megatron-Prime-stock-render.jpg|thumb|upright=2.2|"That's the funny thing about heroes—they need to win every time. The villain only needs to win once."]]

The awesomely powerful '''Megatron''' is, in many ways, a fallen hero. He rose up from the oppressed lower working castes of [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]] to become a champion in the region's illegal [[gladiatorial combat|deathmatches]], cast aside his designation of '''D-16''' and took the legendary name '''[[The Fallen|Megatronus]]'''<ref>Megatron was an abbreviation, so it'd be easier for the masses to chant his name; ''Transformers: Exodus'', Chapter 3</ref> as his own. He called for an end to [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]'s decrepit [[Functionism|caste system]] and told the downtrodden that freedom of self-determination was the right of all sentient beings!

But absolute power corrupts absolutely, and Megatron's Decepticon revolution, like many such movements, ended up becoming a whole new tyranny. Powerful, charismatic, violent, and full of rage for any who would stand in the way of his ambition and drive, Megatron brought Cybertron ''past'' the brink of destruction. Now he and his former brother-in-arms [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]] fight on other worlds. Megatron will never forgive Optimus for "betraying" him, stealing from the Council the rank of Prime which was rightfully his. He has reserved for his old friend the greatest honor possible: glorious death at his hands.

Megatron has been gone for three years, but now he's returned. He's brought the monstrous [[Dark Energon]] to [[Earth]], and quite possibly left his sanity in space. Though he's made a few mistakes, he does not intend to make them again!

{{quote|Good and evil fade away. History shall judge me... ''victorious''.|Megatron rejects all moral judgement on his actions|[[Transformers: Cybertron Adventures|Cybertron Adventures, The Ending Begins]]}}
{{quote|I... am the Dominator, I... am the Destroyer, I am '''Megatron!'''|Megatron|''[[Transformers: War for Cybertron (360/PS3/PC)|Transformers: War for Cybertron]]''}}

==Fiction==
===''The Covenant of Primus''===
D-16 was born during the [[Age of Wrath]]. The [[Quintesson]] occupation of Cybertron had neutered the ritual of ascending from the [[Well of All Sparks]], to the point where newly born Cybertronians would emerge without names or developed personalities. After a brief but tantalizing glimpse at Cybertron's sun, D-16 was sent to work in the mines underneath Kaon. He took his name from the sector in which he worked, and eventually befriended some of the other nameless workers who had been dealt similar hands by the Quintessons. One Cybertronian in particular served as a sounding board for D-16's earliest sociological musings. From this nameless bot D-16 realized the importance of a proper name. By the time that the Quintessons had been routed from Cybertron, D-16 was already craving more out of life.

During his time off, D-16 became intrigued by the violent duels held between miners. As Cybertron's [[Golden Age]] drew to a close, he entered his first gladiator matches. D-16 drew upon the old stories of the [[Thirteen]] that the miners told one another, and decided on "Megatronus" as a suitable moniker; hoping that Cybertron's "fallen" society could eventually be restored. Megatronus thrived in the gladiator pits, seeing it as a way to escape the oppression of the [[Functionism|caste system]]. The crowds who regularly watched his gladiator matches soon shortened his name to Megatron. Megatron used his newfound fame to attack the bloated Cybertronian government which kept the miners oppressed, and before long he had carved out a loyal cadre of followers inspired by his rhetoric. {{storylink|Transformers: The Covenant of Primus|The Covenant of Primus}}

===Aligned novels===
[[File:WFCcomicD16.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|"Alright! What's the square root of pi?! What's the capital of Sierre Leone?! What's... awww, this 'ask questions later' thing doesn't work at ''all''."]]

D-16 named himself after the sector of the mine where he performed demolition operations. {{storylink|Transformers: Exodus|Exodus}} At the end of the Age of Wrath, he was one of the many Cybertronians who [[Sentinel Zeta Prime|Sentinel Prime]] called to arms, and aided in the war effort that successfully overthrew the cruel [[Quintesson]] regime. As time went by, D-16 eventually forgot about this event, as did many other Cybertronians.

At some point after Cybertron's Golden Age, a group of [[Sharkticon (species)|Sharkticon]]s foresaw him as the being who would one day lead them to freedom. They managed to carve an image of him on a cave wall before they were executed. {{storylink|Transformers: Retribution|Retribution}}

D-16 eventually turned to gladiatorial combat to escape from the drudgery of his duties. As a gladiator, in killing others he began to appreciate the value of life, and in between matches he became something of an intellectual, debating the castes with other miners. After bosses requested he lose a few fights, D-16 killed them and took over Kaon and [[Slaughter City]]. After murdering one boss in front of his employees, D-16 declared himself Megatronus, whom he considered the greatest of the [[Thirteen]]. After hearing his preaching on the [[Communication Grid]] against the [[Guilds of Cybertron]], the concerned [[Sentinel Zeta Prime|Sentinel Prime]] sent [[Bumper (WFC)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (WFC)|Fastback]] to investigate. Megatronus killed them, believing two lives were worthless compared to the millions doomed by the castes Sentinel created

After a victorious battle with the [[Insecticon (WFC)|Insecticon]]s, in which the crowd redubbed him Megatron, the gladiator was contacted by the [[Iacon (polity)|Iaconian]] [[Hall of Records|records monitor]] [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Orion Pax]], and they began exchanging their ideas in intense but friendly philosophical discussions. Megatron encouraged Orion to learn self-defense and invited him to visit Kaon, which he did to a warm welcome from Megatron (and from none of his gladiators). By this point Megatron was planning to call his movement the Decepticons, and he had begun sending his followers on a search for artifacts of the Primes, as their discovery would be signs their cause was just. His followers began bombing Cybertron, and Megatron distanced himself from their extremism to gain credibility. Orion and his mentor [[Alpha Trion (WFC)|Alpha Trion]] believed him, but the latter was well aware Megatron might have gained a taste for violence after the attention it earned him. Soon enough, Megatron accepted the gift of a kidnapped Sentinel Prime from [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]].

[[File:WFCcomicHalogendies.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Megatron misinterprets the phrase "ad hominem attack".]]

Alpha Trion organized a hearing for Orion and Megatron with the [[Autobot High Council|High Council]]. They protested involvement in Sentinel's disappearance. When confronted with the phrase "Decepticon", Megatron denied any knowledge of it but accepted his followers' term wholeheartedly, stating deception was necessary sometimes for the corrupt to see the truth. When [[Halogen (WFC)|Halogen]] revealed Megatron's followers had been trying to locate the [[Matrix of Leadership]], he declared that Orion should become the Prime that he desperately wanted to lead Cybertron into the new [[Golden Age]], and find it. Incensed, Megatron killed Halogen, and when Optimus prevented the [[Elite Guard]] from attacking Megatron, the ungrateful gladiator declared Optimus had fallen into the trap of power the High Council had given him. He declared Optimus was no longer his brother (though he would continue to refer to him as such privately), and that the Matrix would be his.

In the subsequent war with Optimus' [[Autobot]]s, the Decepticons took control of eighty-five percent of the planet. Wherever Starscream's [[Seeker (body-type)|Seekers]] aided, they were victorious. Megatron was initially merciful to neutrals, but he let [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] take control of [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]] and torture Autobot sympathizers there. When the [[Praxus|Praxians]], a progressive city-state who were disappointed with the direction Megatron took, allied with the Autobots, Megatron decided he would no longer try to convert followers and launched the first genocide of the war, slaughtering all in [[Nova Cronum]] who would not submit to the Decepticons as they attacked.

As the war dragged into a siege of Iacon, Soundwave's spying bore fruit as he discovered [[Dark Energon]], the essence of [[Unicron/Aligned|Unicron]], was aboard [[Trypticon (WFC)|Trypticon]]. Megatron forgave Starscream for hiding its existence from him, acknowledging its potentially dangerous nature. To ensure loyalty, Megatron's gladiators stormed the Station slaughtering and maiming Starscream's scientists. He forced Starscream to pick two test subjects to be Darkened, and following an astonishingly successful result, Megatron absorbed some, invigorating him. Soon Darkened Decepticons appeared on the battlefield, but it proved to be an inefficient resource and they would have to flee if a battle was prolonged. Megatron needed more, and even Starscream's activation of the [[Geosynchronous Energon Bridge]] didn't provide enough. Megatron felt he would kill all the Decepticons before he was deprived of Dark Energon and turn rabid.

Fortunately, Soundwave revealed the existence of the [[Plasma energy|Plasma Energy Chamber]] within [[Teletraan-1 (WFC)|Teletraan-1]], which required the [[Code Key]]s of Power and Justice to activate it. Starscream recovered the Key of Power, while Megatron and his best soldiers searched for the Key of Justice below the [[High Council Tower]]. Sentinel Prime emerged, to Megatron's surprise. Sentinel confronted him about Bumper and Fastback, and the two dueled. Megatron disarmed and sliced open Sentinel, revealing the Key of Justice within. Starscream made a grab for it, exposing that he had released Sentinel to kill Megatron and take leadership for himself. After fighting Starscream to a standstill, Megatron pardoned him as he found him a better soldier than would-be example, and used the Keys to open Teletraan-1: which activated [[Omega Supreme (WFC)|Omega Supreme]] to fly the Chamber to safety.

The Seekers shot Omega Supreme out of the air, causing him to crash. Optimus' Autobots arrived to fight the Decepticons, but the more they killed them the more Dark Energon left their bodies and empowered Megatron. He was able to knee Omega Supreme and turn him on his back, tearing the Chamber out of his chest. Using the Chamber, Megatron poisoned the [[core]] of Cybertron and Darkened the entire planet. But then the core stopped producing Dark Energon, and Megatron learnt Optimus had gone to the core and received the Matrix. As the Autobots attempted to flee Cybertron via the last [[space bridge]], Megatron used Trypticon to fire on their ships, and used his and Orion's old frequency to criticize Optimus for fleeing. He added he never believed in individual freedom for every Cybertronian, only the illusion of freedom that he as leader would provide and that the Guilds did not. Optimus responded that Megatron had turned his soldiers into addicts and they would turn on him, and used the ''[[Eight Track (WFC)|Eight Track]]'' to board, sabotage and crash Trypticon.

As the Autobots left on the completed ''[[Ark (WFC)|Ark]]'', the Decepticons fully invaded Iacon. Megatron ordered Trypticon to transform into the ''Nemesis'', boarding it with Starscream, Soundwave, [[Lugnut (WFC)|Lugnut]] and other elite soldiers, leaving Shockwave in charge. He used his old frequency once again to warn Optimus that he would hound him through the stars and finally kill him for the Matrix. He explained they were still brothers, as they were bonded for life despite their enmity. Optimus was just glad his hunt would get him off Cybertron. The two ships entered the last [[space bridge]] together, and when the ''Ark'' emerged, the ''Nemesis'' was gone. {{storylink|Transformers: Exodus|Exodus}}

{{note|Megatron's involvement in the preceding events, or events mostly similar, were also chronicled in the comic "[[Transformers: War for Cybertron (comic)|Transformers: War for Cybertron]]."}}

The ''Nemesis'' eventually emerged from the Space Bridge, close to the lost colony world of [[Velocitron]]. The Autobots had already visited the planet and departed, but Megatron's sleeper agent [[Makeshift (Prime)|Makeshift]] had ignited political tensions and sparked a civil war between [[Override (Prime)|Override]]'s loyalists and [[Ransack (Prime)|Ransack]]'s cadre of political malcontents. He was directed by [[Hightail (Prime)|Hightail]] to Ransack. Megatron found Ransack's obsession with speed extremely irritating, but allowed him to pledge his allegiance to the Decepticon cause. Ransack's Decepticons continued their war on Velocitron while the rest of Megatron's forces boarded the ''Nemesis'', tracking the Ark's energy signature.

Megatron's forces tracked the ''Ark'' to on the planet [[Junkion (planet)|Junkion]], and began attacking both the Autobots and the native [[Junkion (species)|Junkion]]s. Amid the chaos, Megatron reunited with one of his long-lost comrades, the marooned Decepticon [[Axer (Prime)|Axer]]. Axer presented his commander with the [[Requiem Blaster (Megatronus)|Requiem Blaster]], which he had scavenged from the core of Junkion. Megatron ordered the gun to be attached to the hull of the Nemesis. The mayhem had also awakened the ancient Transformer [[Cannonspring]], who reunited with several other Cybertronians and combined into the mighty [[Nexus Prime]], who held off both the Decepticon advance and the newly arriving [[Star Seeker]]s. As the planet tore itself apart, Megatron duelled with Optimus Prime, who wielded the [[Cyber Caliber]]. Although Optimus Prime gained the upper hand, he suddenly received a vision regarding the AllSpark's location. Prime fell back to the ''Ark'' and retreated. Since the Requiem Blaster ran the risk of catastrophically overheating, Megatron ordered his troops to jettison the artifact before it could do so. Megatron ordered his troops to follow the ''Ark'' off of Junkion and back into deep space. {{storylink|Transformers: Exiles|Exiles}}

At some point during the voyage, Megatron changed his [[alternate mode]] to that of a Cybertronian spacecraft.

While searching for the trail of the ''Ark'' on the outskirts of the [[Orion Arm]], Megatron ran across the Star Seekers again, who had set a trap for the Decepticons. To take down the ''Nemesis'', the pirates salvaged the abandoned Requiem Blaster and grafted it to their ship. Megatron and the Star Seeker [[Thundertron]] dueled while their ships exchanged fire. Megatron eventually managed to gain the upper hand after exploiting the Requiem Blaster's cripplingly high energy intake, and forced Thundertron's forces into a retreat. Megatron reunited with his treacherous subordinate Axer, who claimed to have gleaned knowledge about the ''Ark''{{'}}s whereabouts during his time spent with the pirates. Megatron considered this, and then sent him to be tortured, just to make sure he was telling the truth.

The ''Nemesis'' eventually caught up with the real ''Ark'' over the planet [[Aquatron]] and opened fire. The Autobots retaliated by deploying [[Superion (Prime)|Superion]], who carved a trail of destruction through the ''Nemesis''{{'}}s engine bay until the combiner met Megatron. The Decepticon leader attacked Superion, and the two fought. Megatron was able to gain the upper hand and fired his fusion cannon at Superion, blowing the combiner apart and sending his components flying out the ship's hangar.

Before the Autobots could try and ram the ''Nemesis'', the Aquatronian native known only as "[[Inquirata (Prime)|the Curator]]" intervened by cutting power to both ships. The Curator scolded the Cybertronians for bringing their war to a neutral planet, but invited Megatron and his Decepticons to the planet's surface to negotiate a possible peace treaty between the two factions. Once the Autobots and Decepticons both agreed to a temporary ceasefire, the Curator revealed that he was a [[Quintesson]], and that Aquatron was a member of the Quintesson Co-Prosperity Sphere. Megatron decided to play along with his captors until he could find a way to escape. That night, Megatron was visited by the Curator, who promised Megatron his own [[Decepticon Matrix]]... if he backstabbed Optimus Prime and destroyed the Autobot leader's own Matrix.

The next morning, Megatron convened with Optimus outside the negotiation hall, only to reveal that he had brought along six [[Vehicon (Prime)|Vehicon]]s with him to kill Optimus. The two began fighting, until [[Skywarp (WFC)|Skywarp]] detonated a bomb outside, which caused the Pavilion to start flooding. Optimus switched off his Matrix and helped Megatron to escape, but on the surface they encountered [[Tyrannicon]] and his [[Sharkticon (species)|Sharkticon]] flotilla, who arrested all the Cybertronians present. The defeated Autobots and Decepticons were rounded up into a prison ship headed for the city of [[Hydratron]]; Megatron spent most of the voyage loudly and angrily criticizing Optimus Prime's leadership. When the prisoners were transferred to a train, Megatron ran afoul of several Sharkticons, who managed to subdue him long enough for him to be loaded onto the train and shipped to Hydratron's [[Hall of Justice]].

Inside the Quintesson's kangaroo court, Optimus Prime was put on trial for public mayhem, treason, and galactic blasphemy. Optimus Prime's brainwashed troops corroborated the Quintesson prosector's line of inquiry. However, Megatron himself came to Optimus' defense, asserting that the Quintessons did not create the Transformers as they so claimed. The trial had also jogged Megatron's memories; he remembered fighting in the war that routed the aliens from Cybertron and vowed that he'd gladly do it again. The Quintesson judges found them innocent, and so sentenced the two leaders to banishment. Whoever killed the other leader in combat would be allowed to leave Aquatron unmolested. The two leaders battled, unaware that the Quintessons were harvesting the energy they exerted to power a space bridge to Cybertron. When the Quintessons had enough, they dumped both of them into a Pirahnacon pit. Optimus and Megatron managed to escape the Pirahnacons with the help of Optimus' Matrix, and escaped into the subterranean tunnels beneath Hydratron.

The duo eventually encountered the [[Gamekeeper]], who was guarding the carvings that the Sharkticon rebels had created. The Gamekeeper taunted them, and revealed that the Quintessons were staging another invasion of Cybertron as they spoke. Megatron tore out the monster's eyes and eventually killed him. The Decepticon leader was intrigued by the carvings, although Optimus was skeptical of their veracity. The two eventually discovered [[Xeros]], who was manipulating his Sharkticon servants with a decoy Matrix. Believing it to be the Decepciton Matrix he was promised, Megatron grabbed it and shoved it into his chest.

The decoy Matrix turned out to be the [[Sharkticon Matrix of Leadership]], and as it re-forged his body Megatron realized that Aquatron was one of the 200 lost colony planets after all- and a planet that had never been able to overthrow the Quintessons. Now sporting Sharkticon features, Megatron called the Sharkticons to his command and ordered them to devour Xeros. Megatron overpowered Optimus and threw him down a nearby elevator shaft. He then contacted Starscream aboard the stranded ''Nemesis'', and ordered his Decepticons to make room for Sharkticon reinforcements aboard the ship.

Before long, Megatron set off to the bottom of Hydratron, to kill the Curator once and for all. He ran into trouble along the way; the city itself began transforming into a giant jellyfish-like creature, which attempted to devour him. Megatron was ale to break free of its tentacles and swim to the bottom of the lakebed, where Optimus Prime and a [[Leviacon]] were already confronting the Curator. Hundreds of Sharkticons swarmed the Curator's fortified command bubble but were unable to break through. The fracas was compounded by the arrival of [[Tyrannicon]], who had come back to Aquatron through the Space Bridge to figure out why his soldiers had rebelled. Megatron, now calling himself "The First of the Many" offered Tyrannicon a place in his new empire, although Tyrannicon refused. Instead, the two battled one another for control of the Matrix, with the Tyrannicon triumphant. Tyrannicon stole the Matrix from Megatron, who collapsed and reverted to his old self. When Optimus managed to destroy the entire underground complex, he also rescued Megatron, and with the Leviacon's help the two leaders returned to the surface, where they reunited with their respective crews.

On their way off the planet, Optimus mused that one day Megatron might understand that the two of them were much stronger as a united force. {{storylink|Transformers: Retribution|Retribution}}

===Ask Vector Prime===
In [[Uniend 610.23 Zeta]], {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime}} Megatron lead his Decepticons in an attack on the Autobot stronghold at [[Tyger Pax]] to obtain the [[AllSpark]] from the [[Well of All Sparks]]. After fighting off [[Rodimus (WFC)|Rodimus]] and [[Springer (WFC)|Springer]], Megatron found himself under fire from [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]], until [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]] managed to shoot the young Autobot down.

Searching for [[Barricade (WFC)|Barricade]], and executing Autobots that had failed to retreat, Megatron, while boasting his victory, saw the AllSpark be launched into space. Though he had failed to gain the AllSpark, Megatron found himself to be close to a badly damaged Bumblebee, who made a point of gloating to Megatron about the Autobots' victory. Grabbing the young mecha by the neck, Megatron, tired of Bumblebee's talking, crushed the Autobot's [[voice box]].

Deciding that [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]] didn't need another martyr, Megatron left Bumblebee alive to remind others that he could take and spare lives as he wished. Satisfied with his work, Megatron retreated with what was left of his Decepticons. {{storylink|Bumblebee at Tyger Pax}}

===IDW Aligned comics===
From Shockwave's lab in the [[Rust Sea|Sea of Rust]], Shockwave and a captured Grimlock watched a feed of Megatron spearheading an attack on [[Metroplex (FOC)|Autobot City]]. {{storylink|Last Stand (FOC)|Last Stand}} {{storylink|Fragmentation (FOC)|Fragmentation}}

===''Prime'' cartoon===
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English), [[Sean Long]] (BotCon 2011), [[Peter Cullen]] (BotCon 2012), [[Keiji Fujiwara]] (Japanese)|[[Fu Chong]] (Chinese), [[Alexander Kovriznyh]] (Russian), [[Juan Carlos Lozano]] (Spain-Spanish), [[Robert Dubois]] (French), [[Ja-hyeong Gu]] (Korean), [[Tony Fuochi|Antonio Fuochi]] (Italian), [[Ferenc Borbiczki]] (Hungarian), [[Hans-Jürgen Wolf]] (German), [[Gerardo Vásquez]] (Latin American Spanish), [[Antônio Moreno]] (Brazilian Portuguese), [[Guilherme Lopes]] ("Predacons Rising", internal monologue), [[Paweł Szczesny]] (Polish), [[Arto Nieminen]] (Finnish), [[Johan Hedenberg]] (Swedish)}}

[[File:OneShallRise3-corresponding.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|"I'm a fox!" "I'm a hound doooog!"]]

In the waning years of the [[Golden Age]] of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], Megatronus (who named himself after [[The Fallen|one of the original thirteen Primes]]) was a gladiator who fought in the [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]] arena. Observing a disparity in freedom among the classes of his race, and that the ruling class was corrupt and all-powerful, Megatron turned rhetorician, trying to effect change. In drawing attention to this inequity, he inspired a [[Hall of Records]] clerk named [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Orion Pax]], and the two joined forces to end corruption and bring equality to the masses. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}} Orion and Megatronus became close allies, almost like brothers. {{storylink|Masters & Students}}

[[File:DarknessRising2-Megsflashback.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|Things were very red in those days.]]

Megatronus shortened his name to Megatron before he and Orion Pax appeared before the [[Autobot High Council|High Council]]. Megatron threatened the council, promising to overthrow them and instate himself as the next [[Prime (rank)|Prime]]—a declaration of hostility that shocked Orion, and moved him to an impassioned speech in favour of autonomy that successfully swayed the council where Megatron had failed. Jealous, Megatron left the council and Orion behind and assembled his followers—including perennial loyalist [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] and scheming second-in-command [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]]—into an army he would name "Decepticons", beginning the war for Cybertron and vowing to find the [[Matrix of Leadership]] which was denied to him by the council. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}}

The war saw Megatron successfully take the city of [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]], which contained the very arena he fought in as a gladiator, as the Decepticon capital. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 1}} During a battle at [[Tyger Pax]], Megatron crushed the Autobot [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]]'s voice box when the scout refused to break under interrogation. {{storylink|Operation Bumblebee, Part 1}} Furthermore, Megatron's wartime achievements were not limited to those achieved through might: he also created the deadly [[cybonic plague]] which wiped out millions {{storylink|Sick Mind}} and found a way to weaponize [[Tox-En]] which he used to wipe out an entire unit in front of a horrified Bulkhead. {{storylink|Toxicity}} It was through similarly poisonous means that Megatron came closest to seizing victory in the war's final stages, [[Dark Energon|infecting]] the [[Core]] of Cybertron itself. In purifying the core, Orion was granted the Matrix Megatron had long-sought, becoming Optimus Prime. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}} After his assassin [[Skyquake (Prime)|Skyquake]] failed to kill Optimus at the [[Battle of Technahar]], {{storylink|Masters & Students}} Megatron became obsessed with the Autobot leader and decided that destroying him was his right alone. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 4}} Megatron had his lead scientist [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] send an army of [[Predacon (Prime)|Predacons]] to Earth to lay waste to any Autobot forces on the planet and secure any and all energon deposits. {{storylink|Project Predacon}}

[[File:DarknessRising2-MegatronDarkEnergon.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|We can relate. We're just like this with our [[BotCon]] toys.]]

Eventually, the war left Cybertron in ruin and forced the whole Transformer race to exile into space. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 2}} Megatron would not leave the planet unguarded and placed a few [[Insecticon (WFC)|Insecticon]] guards in stasis on the planet, should the enemy return. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 3}} In time, Megatron and his army arrived on Earth, establishing mines to collect the Energon that the planet had been seeded with during the war. {{storylink|Stronger, Faster}} He also had some of his best warriors, such as Skyquake to guard deposits not ready to mine. {{storylink|Masters & Students}} After some early conflicts on the planet, Megatron withdrew to space to search for more troops, leaving Starscream in charge. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 1}} Searching the void for three years, Megatron found something better than mere warriors: he discovered a new source of Dark Energon, the "blood of [[Unicron]]", with which he could reanimate fallen Transformers as an army of the undead. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 2}} Returning to Earth, {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 1}} and resuming command of the Decepticons, Megatron tested the Dark Energon on the deceased Autobot [[Cliffjumper (WFC)|Cliffjumper]], reviving him as a [[zombie]] "[[Terrorcon (Prime)|Terrorcon]]" that slaughtered several [[Decepticon Miner]]s, but which posed no threat to Megatron himself. Unfortunately for Megatron, this partial reactivation of Cliffjumper's lifesigns drew Optimus Prime's Autobots to the Decepticons' mining operations. Deciding it was not yet time for a confrontation with Prime, Megatron withdrew aboard the [[Trypticon (WFC)|''Nemesis'']] and continued to brood over the Dark Energon.

[[File:darknessrising3 Megatronglowy.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Megatron, you fool! Rave glowsticks aren't candy!]]
Megatron's inability to control the zombie Cliffjumper convinced him that he needed to integrate the Dark Energon into his own body in order to control the undead legions he planned to create. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 2}} Thrusting a shard of the material into his [[spark]], he was filled with its power, feeling as though he was connected to Unicron's very thoughts. Requiring a test run for his new power, Megatron headed to the site of an ancient Cybertronian battle on Earth, one full of the remains of fallen warriors, where he was confronted by Optimus and [[Ratchet (WFC)|Ratchet]]. Using Dark Energon to raise the dead Transformers as Terrorcons, Megatron successfully found he had complete control of the undead horde, and send them against the two Autobots. [[File:DarknessRising4-Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|I chew scenery while the zombies chew ''you''.]] {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 3}} While Optimus and Ratchet fought their way through the Terrorcons, Megatron flew off before they could reach him, satisfied with his test results and ready put his plan into action—to open a [[space bridge]] to Cybertron and use Dark Energon to revive all the dead. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 4}} Despite the Autobots' best efforts to damage the ''Nemesis'' and prevent the bridge from opening, Megatron succeeded in his plans, and then had his showdown with Optimus Prime atop the bridge itself as he waited for the Terrorcon legions to pass through to Earth. While the two old foes battled, the other Autobots sabotaged the bridge, causing it to explode and destroy both the Terrorcon army and seemingly Megatron himself. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 5}}[[File:Masters&Students-Megatronstasis.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|Well, it's better than just [[Megatron (Animated)|being a head]] I suppose.]]

The Autobots were not so lucky, however: the Dark Energon in his spark allowed Megatron to survive the explosion, but just barely. When Starscream found his leader floating in space, he tore the Dark Energon from his body in the hope that he would expire, but was caught in the act by [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]]'s [[Deployer (WFC)|Deployer]], [[Laserbeak (WFC)|Laserbeak]], and forced to take Megatron back to the ''Nemesis'', where he was placed in [[Stasis lock|stasis]] in the sick bay. {{storylink|Masters & Students}}

Starscream was content to leave Megatron in this state to recover or expire as fate saw fit, but the crew of the ''Nemesis'' disagreed, and voted to bring in the Decepticon medic [[Knock Out (Prime)|Knock Out]] to help heal their wounded leader. But the discovery of an [[Energon Harvester]] forced them to push off Megatron's recovery. {{storylink|Deus ex Machina}} Even with Knock Out's expertise, it seemed unlikely that Megatron would recover, but his assistant [[Breakdown (WFC)|Breakdown]] gave his body a good buffing nonetheless, and Starscream approved, as it meant their ex-leader would look his best for the memorial service. {{storylink|Speed Metal}}



[[File:SickMind megs and bee.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Hey, [[Megatron (Animated)|you]] really ''are'' [[Transform and Roll Out|uglier from this angle]]!]]

When Optimus Prime was infected by cybonic plague, Arcee and [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]] boarded the ''Nemesis'' to search for an antidote. While they failed to find one in the database, the two Autobots did discover Megatron in stasis, and Bumblebee mind-linked with the Decepticon leader via a [[cortical psychic patch]] to try and pluck the cure from his sleeping brain. Bumblebee found himself within Megatron's mind, which took the form of [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]], where the Decepticon's subconscious was spending its time killing endless visions of Optimus Primes. Unfortunately, Bumblebee's intrusion only caused Megatron to become aware of his situation when he found he was unable to kill Bumblebee. Learning what had befallen Optimus, Megatron initially refused to give up the cure until Bumblebee convinced him that he would gain greater satisfaction from finishing his enemy off with his own two hands. Megatron offered the cure in exchange for Bumblebee's help in escaping his mental prison, but Bumblebee double-crossed him, withdrawing from his mind as soon as the cure was in Autobot hands. At the last moment, Megatron was able to effect his own escape, leaping into Bumblebee's mind along with him. {{storylink|Sick Mind}} [[File:OutofhisHead megatron revived.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|IT'S... AAALLLLLIIIIIIIIVE!]] Recalling the sliver of Dark Energon Starscream had removed from his body, Megatron took full control of Bumblebee's body a short time later and used the GroundBridge to return to the ancient battlefield where he had raised his original Terrorcons, recovering the Dark Energon shard he had used to do so. He returned to the [[Autobot Outpost Omega One|Autobot base]], where he dealt with Ratchet and [[Raf Esquivel|Raf]] before again GroundBridging to the ''Nemesis'' and using the Dark Energon to restore his body and return his mind to it. Storming out of the ''Nemesis'' to find Starscream, Megatron snatched his subordinate out of the air in the middle of a battle with Optimus Prime and took him back for his punishment. {{storylink|Out of His Head}}

[[File:Shadowzone-MegsStarscream.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Lulz.]]

Despite his treason, Megatron decided not to terminate Starscream, viewing him as no real threat and taking perverse amusement in his repeated failures. {{storylink|Rock Bottom}} Instead, Megatron proceeded to beat Starscream only to ''near'' death, then had him placed in the infirmary, occasionally visiting to gloat. {{storylink|Shadowzone (episode)|Shadowzone}}

When Breakdown was captured by the humans of [[MECH]], Megatron refuted Starscream's suggestion that they rescue him, announcing that if Breakdown had allowed himself to be captured by those weaker than him, then he deserved whatever he got. {{storylink|Operation: Breakdown}} Breakdown did manage to escape, however, and in his wounded pride, volunteered to recover a [[polarity gauntlet]] for Megatron in order to prove his worth. Megatron was disappointed when his minion returned without the gauntlet, but was placated by the revelation that he had instead brought back [[Airachnid (Prime)|Airachnid]]. {{storylink|Metal Attraction}}

[[File:RockBottom-Starscreamprays.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|left|{{w|Loki (Marvel Comics)|In the end, you will always kneel}}.]]
Discovering that Starscream was still attempting to mine energon for his personal use without his knowledge, Megatron determined that the amusement had come to an end. Taking him to the mine in question, Megatron revealed that he had been aware of Starscream's previous transgressions the whole time thanks to Soundwave, and was about to execute his groveling lieutenant when [[Jack Darby]] and [[Arcee (WFC)|Arcee]] walked in. Seeing red at the sight of the Autobot and her pet, Megatron opened fire on them, giving Starscream time to escape, an act that only increased Megatron's rage. Unfortunately, Megatron's carelessness with his shots
ultimately brought the mine down on top of them all, with Megatron being completely pinned by rubble. Jack happened upon the Decepticon leader with a mining drill, and Megatron, knowing that the human would not help him, instead urged Jack to finish him off. Jack refused, saying that wasn't what Optimus would do, and left, but the opening he had created allowed Megatron to begin his escape. After finally extricating himself, Megatron came upon Starscream trying to keep a large rock from crushing him. Starscream insisted that he had come to rescue Megatron, and begged the Decepticon leader to spare him, and Megatron acquiesced with a smirk. {{storylink|Rock Bottom}}

Though Megatron allowed Starscream to live and continue as his second-in-command, he was furious to learn from Airachnid that Starscream had kept the location of the ''[[Harbinger]]'' from him. He ordered Starscream to lead Airachnid to the crash site and retrieve an [[Immobilizer|experimental weapon]] that was inside. Much to Megatron's fury, Airachnid returned not only without the weapon, but with the news that Starscream had been captured by the Autobots as well. {{storylink|Partners (Prime)|Partners}}

[[File:StrongerFaster-KnockOutMegatronRatchet.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|"Steroids?" "Yup." "Ah."]]

When a formula for [[Synthetic Energon]] was transferred from a [[Cybertronian data cylinder]] into the mind of the Autobot [[Bulkhead (Prime)|Bulkhead]], Optimus Prime petitioned Megatron for the return of the cylinder so they could extract the formula, after which they would willingly hand it over. Megatron briefly considered the proposal, but instead sent Knock Out and Breakdown to capture Bulkhead and dared Prime to fight for the cylinder. When his Vehicon troops were defeated, Megatron simply crushed the device and took flight. {{storylink|T.M.I.}} The synthetic energon formula helped the Autobots counter Megatron's next tactic: causing the Autobots to burn through their energon supplies at an accelerated rate by leading them on wild goose chases. Juiced up on the "SynthEn", Ratchet attacked Megatron and Knock Out while they were surveying an energon mine, and sent the Decepticon leader flying with one punch. Unfortunately for Ratchet, Megatron swiftly recovered and subdued the Autobot medic with ease. {{storylink|Stronger, Faster}}

[[File:PrimeEp23-Megatronjetmode.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|Damnit, jet mode! Hold still so we can screencap you!]]

Convinced by Dark Energon-induced visions that an impending prophecy detailed his own destiny, Megatron stepped up the Decepticons' work in constructing a new space bridge so they could obtain more Dark Energon. When they located the last component they needed, Megatron went in personally, grievously wounding Raf with a blast of Dark Energon on the way and creating an unintended distraction that allowed him to make off with the power source he needed. Soon after, Megatron lured Optimus Prime to a volcano he had seen in his visions, and during their battle, it erupted with Dark Energon, imbuing Megatron with the power he needed to fell Prime. {{storylink|One Shall Fall}} [[File:OneShallFall-visionfulfilled.jpg|thumb|255px|Look, Prime! Look at the fireworks! Aren't they splendid?!]] The intervention of the other Autobots saved Prime's life, but this was of little concern to Megatron, who now had all the Dark Energon he needed and set his miners to work gathering it up. When Soundwave detected a spark-beat coming from within the Earth, Megatron felt it pounding through his brain and realized what his visions had meant: the lifeforce of Unicron himself dwelt within Earth. Leaving Airachnid in command, Megatron flew into the volcano to address Unicron, but did not receive the power he had hoped the chaos-bringer would bestow on him, instead receiving Unicron's displeasure at the fact that Optimus Prime still lived. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 1}}

Spurned, Megatron instead went to the aid of Optimus and his Autobots, who were under attack from Unicron's stone avatars. He offered Optimus his services—he intended to lead them to Unicron's real form so that Optimus could use the [[Matrix of Leadership]] on the Chaos God. While the Autobots returned to base, Megatron kept the giant stone Unicrons busy, and Prime eventually accepted Megatron's offer. On arrival in the Autobot base, Megatron encountered a couple of humans he recognized, Raf and Jack, as well as a [[Miko Nakadai|new loud one]]. Megatron was first to step through the GroundBridge into the [[Earth's core]], and as the Autobots followed, he warned them that Unicron already knew they were there. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 2}}

[[File:OneShallRise3-together.jpg|thumb|255px|left|"Just this once, we work together! Mortal enemies working together for the common good!" "Be quiet!"]]

Despite the persistent influence of Unicron, Megatron led the Autobots through Unicron's insides, even helping them fight off [[Unicron's antibodies|anti-bots]]. The Dark Energon he was imbued with allowed him to enter Unicron's spark chamber with Optimus, though at that point Unicron's influence became so great that the Chaos God was able to commandeer his body. After Optimus unleashed the power of the Matrix, apparently extinguishing Unicron's spark, Megatron went to kill Optimus, only to discover his foe had lost his memory and now believed himself to be Orion Pax. Megatron convinced Optimus that the other Autobots were enemies, and the pair returned to the ''Nemesis'', where Megatron introduced "Orion Pax" to his men. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}}

[[File:Orion-Pax-Part-1-OP-Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|"Megatron, what happened? Where did you go wrong?" "Uh, watch ''Revenge of the Sith''. I know I'm not in it, but it pretty much sums it all up."]]

Megatron wasted no time in spinning a tale of Autobot warlord Ratchet and the destruction of Cybertron, and put Orion Pax to work decoding data from the [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] archives for a [[Project Iacon|project]] of the same name. Though aware that at some point Orion would find out the truth, Megatron made all precautions to make sure that didn't happen before Orion finished his work. Knock Out was ordered to set up Orion's work station a mere few inches away from the Energon storage vault.

During Orion's decoding, the archivist noted several references to Starscream as being Megatron's second in command. As part of his deception, Megatron claimed Starscream to be dead, and ordered Soundwave to carefully remove Arcee from the ship with a GroundBridge. Arachnid offered to destroy the bike bot herself, but Megatron feared that Orion would become weary of their activity's should he bare witness to an Autobot's destruction. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 1}} Megatron attempted to cover for a surprise visit by Starscream when he managed to sneak aboard the ship. Orion asked why Megatron lied, but the con leader stated that Starscream as "dead" to their cause for joining the Autobots. However, Starscream's visit caused Orion to uncover the truth and find out that he was, in fact, Optimus Prime, the so-called leader of the Autobot "invaders". Soundwave notified Megatron of Orion finding information on Optimus Prime, and Megatron realized that harsher methods would be necessary to complete [[Project Iacon]]. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 2}}

[[File:OrionPax3 Megatron threatens Orion.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Do you see what's in your teeth ''NOW''?!]]

Megatron payed Orion a visit to expose Orion's findings. Orion demanded to know the full truth, but Megatron refused, causing Orion to delete his findings. Fortunately, Soundwave had recorded his findings, and the data was saved. Soundwave also informed Megatron of the activity at the space bridge and went there to find that the Autobots had taken control of it, and that one of their [[Insecticon (WFC)|traps]] on Cybertron was activated. Megatron ordered the guards to watch Orion while he went out and threatened to kill the archivist if he had not completed the project. Megatron realized that the Autobots must have been searching for a way to restore Orion to Optimus. Megatron arrived at the space bridge and defeated the trio of Autobots present, and waited for Arcee to return from the open space bridge with the Matrix in her possession. When Orion had overpowered his guards and came to attack Megatron, Orion declared his loyalty to the Autobots, pulled out his blades, and attacked Megatron. The amnesiac Autobot was no match for him. While the Decepticon leader was subsequently kept busy by Arcee, Jack returned the Matrix to Orion, who regained his memory and left with the Autobots, leaving Megatron screaming furiously at his failure. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 3}}

[[File:OperationBumblebee1 spark extractor.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Now ''I'' have [[The Touch]].]]

Following the first of the artifact coordinates left by Orion, Megatron and his men unearthed the [[spark extractor|Spark Extractor]]. While Megatron was bringing it back through the GroundBridge, it was taken from him by Bumblebee. He then ordered Knock Out and Breakdown to retrieve another artifact before Bulkhead and Bumblebee did. {{storylink|Operation Bumblebee, Part 1}} Megatron was pleased when Knock Out returned with a force field generator, quickly demonstrating the object's power with a cannon-blast. Megatron himself joined the mission to get the third artifact, and managed to secure the [[Forge of Solus Prime]] by holding a prone Bulkhead hostage. Unfortunately, he discovered that the Forge wouldn't work without the power of a Prime behind it. {{Storylink|Operation Bumblebee, Part 2}}

When [[Dreadwing (Prime)|Dreadwing]] arrived on Earth, Megatron filled him in on what had happened to his brother Skyquake, but warned him not to seek revenge on his own. When Dreadwing did anyway, Megatron figured that would be the last they saw of him, although he was glad that Dreadwing both survived and learned his lesson. {{storylink|Loose Cannons}}

[[File:Crossfire Megatron and Insecticon close together.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|"You do know that you'll be splattered across the ceiling after this screencap, right?"]]

Reminded of Airachnid's past treachery, Megatron tasked Dreadwing with ridding them of her. Dreadwing not only failed, but returned minus Breakdown, much to Megatron's disgust. Megatron responded to Airachnid's later communication by attempting to get rid of her himself. Although she set an [[Insecticon (WFC)|Insecticon]] on him, the mighty Megatron eventually prevailed against it. The fight took all of his strength, and he was subsequently surrounded by Autobots. With Dreadwing's help, he escaped and made Dreadwing his new [[second-in-command]]. {{storylink|Crossfire (Prime)|Crossfire}}

Megatron responded to reports of Starscream on the ship and found not one but four [[Starscream clone (Prime)|Starscreams]] on the bridge. After attempting to appeal to their treacherous nature, he took advantage of a diversion to offline three of them before the fourth escaped. The diversion turned out to be a mass Insecticon attack, but after a fight, the Insecticons suddenly stopped and announced they were loyal to him. Then the ''Nemesis'' crashed. {{storylink|Armada (episode)|Armada}} Megatron got the ship moving again using Dark Energon, but when it exhibited its own intelligence and refused to follow his orders, he tried to shut it down, only to be put into stasis lock. He only awoke when the kids reversed the energon flow. {{storylink|Flying Mind}}

As Knock Out prepared to go and try to find the first of the four relics which the ship had found the location of, Megatron instructed him to take an Insecticon as muscle. {{storylink|Tunnel Vision}} Megatron then sent Dreadwing to [[Antarctica]] to find the relic there {{storylink|Triangulation}} and then sent [[Hardshell]] and three other Insecticons to a volcanic area at the equator, {{storylink|Toxicity}} before sending Soundwave to find the last relic.

He was impressed with the [[Resonance Blaster]] Soundwave found, but less so with Dreadwing and Knock Out, the latter of whom returned looking like he'd been run over by a train. After they found a grenade implanted in Laserbeak, Megatron set Soundwave back to work decoding the Iacon database. {{storylink|Triage (episode)|Triage}} His rage over Hardshell's failure was mollified when the Insecticon claimed to have offlined Bulkhead, but when they later got a call from [[Wheeljack (Prime)|Wheeljack]] revealing Bulkhead was still alive, Megatron demanded Hardshell bring him Wheeljack's spark as a substitute. Instead Hardshell's corpse was brought back before him, and Megatron was shocked to learn a [[Miko Nakadai|human girl]] was responsible. {{storylink|Hurt}}

[[File:TheHumanFactor Cylas and Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Soundwave, please arrange our guest a carwash.]]
After sending Knock Out to investigate Breakdown's signal coming back online, Megatron expressed distaste at the Breakdown/[[Silas]] hybrid who was brought to the ship. Nevertheless, he allowed "Cylas" the opportunity to prove himself worthy of a place in the Decepticon ranks by supplying them with a [[Project Damocles]] satellite. Though the initial results were promising, he sent Cylas to terminate Raf when the boy's hacking threatened to railroad their plans. When Cylas failed to do so and the satellite was stopped, Megatron called him back, and handed the former MECH commander over to Knock Out for dissection. {{storylink|The Human Factor}}

[[File:Legacy-ohcrap.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Looks like [[Sari Sumdac (Animated)|Sari]] told Megatron where babies come from.]]

When Soundwave decoded another set of Iacon relic coordinates, Megatron initiated a decoy relic beacon to give them the advantage over the Autobots, and went to fetch the latest relic with a team. Though hoping it would be a Decepticon weapon, Megatron was stunned when it turned out to be the [[Star Saber (Prima)|Star Saber]]. When he was unable to extract the sword, he had the Decepticons chip away a chunk of the mountain to be hauled away by the ''Nemesis'' in an effort to ensure it did not fall in Optimus' hands. Unfortunately, the arrival of [[Smokescreen (Prime)|a new Autobot]] delayed them long enough that the other Autobots discovered the deception. Optimus quickly managed to get hold of the sword despite Megatron's best efforts, and as the Autobot leader unleashed the sword's power, Megatron was forced to retreat in his ship, noting it was now the Decepticons' darkest hour. {{storylink|Legacy (episode)|Legacy}}

[[File:AlphaOmegaDarkStarSaber.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|[[Emperor Palpatine|It's treason then...]]]]

Coming up with a new plan to combat the Star Saber, Megatron took Dreadwing through the space bridge to Cybertron, and broke into the tomb of a Prime. After having Knock Out graft the Prime's arm onto Megatron, he was finally able to use the Forge of Solus Prime to forge a [[Dark Star Saber]] with some of his Dark Energon. Once Soundwave decrypted a new set of coordinates, he got the opportunity to test it on Arcee and Smokescreen when the pair found the first [[Omega Key]], whom he swept aside with ease. With new-found confidence, Megatron challenged Prime to a duel, and though his new sword cleaved right through the Star Saber, Megatron was unable to stop the Autobots from getting away with the Omega Key. {{storylink|Alpha/Omega}} Gloating of his destruction of the Star Saber, he allowed Knock Out the opportunity to retrieve the next relic. Upon his return with another Omega Key, Megatron was intrigued by the relic, believing it to be part of a larger piece, and put the doctor to work analyzing it. He was less impressed with Dreadwing who returned empty handed from his mission, and asserted that they needed to locate the Autobot base to recover their relics. Then Soundwave decrypted the final part of the Iacon databse, revealing Smokescreen to be relevant to their search. {{storylink|Hard Knocks}}

[[File:PatchMegatronStarscream.JPG|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Because we haven't seen this before.]]

After they extracted the Omega Key from Smokescreen, Megatron had Knock Out perform a cortical psychic patch procedure on the Autobot to learn their purpose. After discovering that all four could be used to revitalize Cybertron, he left Knock Out to find out where the Autobot base was, Megatron went to place the Omega Key in storage. However Smokescreen escaped and snatched it out of his grasp and made off with the other key as well. Though Megatron and his men gave pursuit as the Autobot jumped off their ship, Smokescreen got away. The Decepticon leader told Dreadwing they would need to locate the Autobot base quickly to retrieve the other keys, only to find Starscream on the bridge, with all four of the Omega Keys as a peace offering. {{storylink|Inside Job}} Intending to find what Starscream really planned, Megatron had himself plugged into the rogue Decepticon with a psychic patch. Despite most of Starscream's memories turning out to be incriminating, he was eventually convinced to allow Starscream to rejoin the Decepticon ranks. {{storylink|Patch (episode)|Patch}}

Megatron attempted to stress to Dreadwing that the Decepticons needed to be united. Unfortunately Dreadwing was more interested in slagging Starscream, and Megatron had to blow a hole through him. Once the location of the [[Omega Lock]] was established, Megatron took the Keys to Cybertron to find it. He and his men were attacked by the Autobots, who got away with the Keys while Megatron was otherwise occupied with the spark extractor. With some help from Starscream, Megatron got hold of the Autobots' human friends to use as a bargaining chip to secure the return of the Keys. {{storylink|Regeneration (Prime)|Regeneration}}

[[File:DarkestHour-thisistheplace.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4]]

Once he had the Keys back, Megatron had the lock activated and revealed that he intended to use it on both Cybertron and Earth so he'd have two worlds to rule, starting with Earth. Shockingly, this news resulted in Optimus slicing Megatron's sword arm off before destroying the Omega Lock. Though the Autobots escaped, Megatron would have the last laugh, as he knew the location of their base and used the Omega Lock to create a fortress there before Optimus destroyed it. If he could not conquer Cybertron, he could at least conquer Earth. From the ''Nemesis'', he and his men attacked and destroyed the Autobot base as their first act of aggression. {{storylink|Darkest Hour (episode)|Darkest Hour}}

As the Decepticons were unable to find any corpses in the rubble, Megatron ordered worldwide surveillance, and even got an opportunity to test his [[Darkmount (Earth)|new citadel]]'s fusion cannons on some foolishly attacking [[human]]s. After having his original right arm reattached to replace the one Prime severed, Megatron contacted [[William Fowler|Agent Fowler]], claiming to want to co-exist peacefully with humanity. With the continuing failure of Starscream to get any information out of the captive Wheeljack, Megatron sent Knock Out to Cybertron to search for the relics lost during the Omega Lock battle. He was pleased when Knock Out returned with the long lost [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]]. {{storylink|Darkmount, NV}} Megatron appointed Shockwave his first lieutenant in charge of science. With failures mounting, including an aborted attempt by Starscream to track down the Autobots by freeing Wheeljack with a tracking device attached, Megatron's anger grew, leading Shockwave to bring to Earth a [[Predacon (Prime)|Predacon]] he had cloned. {{storylink|Scattered}} The [[Predaking (Prime)|beast]] was dispatched, but to Megatron's disappointment it returned empty-handed. {{storylink|Prey (episode)|Prey}}

[[File:Rebellion-prepunch.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|"Right here - go on, right in the chest!"]]

Megatron was furious when Starscream scattered their troops in pursuit of phantom Autobot signals, shortly before Darkmount itself was attacked. The Decepticon leader cut short [[Ultra Magnus (WFC)|Ultra Magnus]]' attempt to assault the fusion cannon control room, and ordered the Autobots executed. Before this could be done, Optimus Prime turned up, comprehensively beating up Megatron and throwing him into the fusion cannon power core. Despite his protests, the other Decepticons dragged Megatron back to the ''Nemesis'' before the Autobots brought the citadel crashing to the ground. {{storylink|Rebellion (Prime)|Rebellion}}

Instead the Decepticons turned their attentions to cloning, with Megatron ordering the creation of more Predacons. {{storylink|Project Predacon}} When the existing Predacon returned, Megatron ordered Starscream to take command of it. He later dispatched the beast and his first lieutenant to [[Scotland]] when a team searching for fossils there failed to report in. {{storylink|Chain of Command (Prime)|Chain of Command}} Megatron was displeased when it turned out Starscream had lost the Apex Armor, and was even less impressed when Starscream caused damage to the communications dish. Knock Out, at least, did not disappoint the Decepticon leader when he returned with another Predacon fossil. {{storylink|Plus One (Prime)|Plus One}} After some near-missteps in gathering the fossils required, Megatron hinted Shockwave should restrict himself to working in the laboratory in future. {{storylink|Project Predacon}}

Megatron discovered that Knock Out and Starscream had been experimenting with Synthetic Energon and had accidentally created a zombie-like plague. After the situation resulted in Airachnid being freed and the loss of the Insecticons, Megatron gave Knock Out orders to turn all of his experiments over to Shockwave, and reserved a ''special'' punishment for Starscream. {{storylink|Thirst}}

[[File:Evolution-Potentialcoup.jpg|thumb|upright=1.67|[[Darth Vader|"I want them alive... No disintegrations!"]]]]

During a visit to Shockwave's off-site laboratory, Megatron was shocked to learn that the Predacon could transform and was intelligent enough to speak. Though [[Predaking (Prime)|Predaking]] affirmed he was loyal to Megatron, the Decepticon leader suspected that once Predaking discovered that the Predacons were superior to ordinary Decepticons, he would turn against them. The Decepticons quickly realized they'd need to terminate Shockwave's cloning process, and Starscream came up with a plan to pin it on the Autobots which succeeded splendidly. In the aftermath of the explosion, the Decepticons discovered that the Synthetic Energon stored in the lab had created Cybermatter. {{storylink|Evolution}}

With this discovery in mind, Megatron put Shockwave in charge of perfecting the Synthetic Energon formula, however they quickly realized that the Omega Lock would need to be repaired to allow for its targeted delivery, and that Ratchet would be needed to complete the formula. Megatron told Shockwave he had decided that Earth and Cybertron were two halves of the same coin, and he intended to rule both. As the Autobots continued to interfere in their plans, Megatron had Predaking take part in protecting the Vehicons, though he insisted it be done with the Predacon in [[beast mode]]. {{storylink|Minus One}}

[[File:Synthesis Megatron and Predaking.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|[[Sam Witwicky]] [[Megatron (Movie)|can't]] [[Transformers (film)|save]] [[Predaking (Prime)|you]] [[Aligned continuity family|here]]!]]

After the Decepticons captured Ratchet and failed to extract the information they needed via cortical psychic patch, Megatron turned on the charm. Once he showed Ratchet the Omega Lock they'd reconstructed, the Autobot reluctantly agreed to help them. {{storylink|Persuasion}} Despite several missteps which he encouraged his men to correct, Megatron was pleased when the Synth-En formula was perfected, and promptly rewarded Ratchet by giving the Autobot to Predaking as a chew toy. Unfortunately Ratchet turned Predaking against him, and Megatron found himself facing the Predacon in combat. With some help from Starscream, Megatron defeated Predaking and expelled him from the ship, however the Decepticons then found their warship under attack from the Autobots. {{storylink|Synthesis}}

[[File:Tfp megatron impaled.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Megatron killed by... Bumblebee!? It could happen... ONLY ON [[Hub Network|THE HUUUUB]]!]]

Megatron intercepted Optimus Prime, damaging the Autobot's [[jet pack]], and proceeded to duel with his foe atop the Omega Lock, all the while giving orders to Shockwave to prepare the Lock for firing. When Bumblebee attempted to pass Optimus the Star Saber, Megatron blasted the scout, killing him. He prepared to finish off Optimus as well, but Bumblebee was restored by the Omega Lock and ran Megatron through with the Star Saber. Megatron's lifeless body fell from the Omega Lock and plummeted Earthward. {{storylink|Deadlock (episode)|Deadlock}}

[[File:Predaconsrising-chaosandcreation.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Seriously, how are you ''not'' Galvatron?]]
Megatron's body lay at the bottom of the ocean until it was revived and restructured by Unicron. Megatron found himself a prisoner in his own body, tortured by his new master and unable to do anything other than observe. Unicron returned to Cybertron, intending to destroy the planet and end Primus. Megatron tricked him into fighting Predaking, reasoning that if their shared body was damaged enough, Unicron would leave it; however, Unicron managed to beat Predaking and raised an army of Predacon Terrorcons with which to attack Cybertron's core. Megatron was only finally freed when Optimus tricked Unicron, drawing the dark god's anti-spark into a suitable container. Though Starscream believed Megatron would once again lead the Decepticons, Megatron had tasted oppression and no longer wished to inflict it, declaring the Decepticon movement dead and flying off. {{storylink|Predacons Rising (Prime)|Predacons Rising}}
[[File:PredaconsRising - TrueMeaningOfOppression.jpg|thumb|center|400px|I may look like I need a bath now, but it’s better than getting thrown into Cybertron’s core screaming.]]
{{--}}

===Titan ''Prime'' comic===
[[File:Titan4.2 Megatron Soundwave piggyback.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.2|The kiddy-friendly comics have Megatron giving piggy-back rides.]]

Under Megatron's leadership, the Decepticons conquered many city states including [[Kalis]], [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]], and [[Vos (polity)|Vos]]. When the time came to strike against [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]], Megatron led a five-con team in under the cover of darkness to bomb the [[Iacon Energon Refinery]]. They had barely planted the first bomb when they were spotted and fired on. After the other three Decepticons were shot down, Megatron gave Soundwave a bomb and set about causing a distraction while his second-in-command went to plant it. When Soundwave was also shot down, Megatron flew into action, helping up the rest of his team and carrying Soundwave as they retreated under the cover of an exploding bomb. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.2|War Story}}

With a new plan, Megatron took [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]] to attack the [[Yamal|NS ''Yamal'']], a Russian icebreaker near [[Antarctica]]. He intended to use a [[static lance]] to cause the ship's reactors to meltdown exposing energon deposits beneath the ice. Unfortunately Optimus got wind of the plan and came storming in. As Megatron detailed his plan during their one-on-one fight, Optimus took possession of the lance. Megatron attempted to take it back, only for Optimus to hit him with it. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.3|Ice Breaker}}

[[File:Titan4.11 Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Megatron works part-time at the Autobot Hotel providing alarm calls.]]

Megatron and Soundwave somehow slipped some code into ''[[Invasionauts II]]'' to hypnotize Raf into opening the GroundBridge so they could send Vehicons through. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.4|Tinker, Tailor, Gamer, Spy!}} Irritated at Starscream's failure to end the Autobot problem, Megatron demanded his subordinate try and lure the Autobots into a trap instead for fruitlessly searching for them. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.6|All the President's 'Bots!}}

Now infuriated at his army being constantly bested by the Autobots, Megatron took the ''Nemesis'' to the [[Erta Ale volcano]] where he had his troops fight in a series of deathmatches to apply the principle of survival of the fittest. He forced Starscream to fight [[Fearstorm]], and when Starscream won, seemed happy enough to let his lieutenant return to the ship. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.7|Megatron's Law}} After Bulkhead destroyed an energon store, Megatron had him captured and taken aboard the warship, where the Autobot was placed in the newly developed [[Ultra Prison]]. Megatron sneeringly informed Bulkhead that the prison would slowly wipe his mind, but it was Megatron who got the raw end of the deal when the ''Nemesis'' was badly damaged during the inevitable Autobot rescue. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.11|The Battle for Bulkhead}}

Intending to show the pitiful humans that their independence was only temporary, Megatron attempted to stage a media circus in which he destroyed the [[Statue of Liberty]]. Unfortunately only Bumblebee and Optimus turned up, and though Megatron tried his best to wreck the statue, Optimus caused more damage to it in the process of defeating him than he did himself. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.13|Protecting the Lady}}

Leaving Starscream in charge of the Nemesis, Megatron returned to find it practically destroyed. He was met by Starscream, who told him the apparent course of events; ''some random Vehicon'' created an unauthorised Predacon clone, which ran amok, before Starscream ''bravely killed it''. Starscream also had ''totally not faked'' video footage to prove it! Despite the Vehicon's protests, Megatron executed him. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.20|Starscream's Beast}}

====Mega-Mouth====
Megatron occasionally takes time out from conquering the universe to...answer fan mail? He also sometimes seems [[Megatron (Movie)|confused]] about which multiverse he hails from, as he claimed he attacked [[Sentinel Prime (ROTF)|Sentinel]] {{storylink|Transformers_Comic_issue_4.1#Mega-Mouth|Mega-Mouth #1}} and also explained why he wore a cowl in ''[[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Dark of the Moon]].'' {{storylink|Transformers_Comic_issue_4.4#Mega-Mouth|Mega-Mouth #4}} He also said he survived ''Dark of the Moon'', after some fan asked how Megatron could be answering fan mail. {{storylink|Transformers_Comic_issue_4.5#Mega-Mouth|Mega-Mouth #5}}
{{--}}

===''Tales of the Beast Hunters''===
After [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] intercepted a message pointing to a derelict starship containing weapons in the [[asteroid belt]], Megatron and [[Predaking (Prime)|Predaking]] headed out to find it. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 2}} They got there and found [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]] and [[Wheeljack (Prime)|Wheeljack]] about to make off with the weapons. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 4}} After [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]] joined the battle, {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 5}} the ship began to explode, and Megatron plunged through the floor along with tons of debris. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 6}}

Injured, Megatron lay beneath the wreckage in the ship, using his damaged comms to monitor events on Earth. Finally his groping hands found an [[Tartarex Warp Sword|ancient weapon]], which used the surrounding debris to repair and rebuild him. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 22}} He returned to Earth and blasted the top off a mountain, {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 23}} intending to make a preemptive strike against the Predacons. The Predacons promptly flew up to engage him in combat. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 24}}

===Full of Fire!===
Disgruntled at the lack of progress in Predacon cloning, Megatron complained to Shockwave, who revealed that the cloning had already borne fruit. Megatron was pleased, though not so much when Predaking and the five new Predacons returned having been defeated by the Autobots. He believed that the Autobots now knew the extent of the Predacon army, however Shockwave was quick to reveal that there were a whole lot more Predacon clones ready to go. {{storylink|Full of Fire!}}

===''Transformers: The Ultimate Pop-Up Universe''===
Once an idealistic young miner, Megatron was forced into the gladiatorial ring, which eventually lead him to become the brutal and ruthless leader of the Decepticons. He once crushed the Autobot [[Bumper (WFC)|Bumper]]'s legs with his tank mode. {{storylink|Transformers: The Ultimate Pop-Up Universe|The Ultimate Pop-Up Universe}}

===2015 ''Robots in Disguise'' cartoon===
Though Megatron was nowhere to be seen, a statue of him was erected on the reborn Cybertron. {{storylink|Pilot (Part 1)}} After [[Cyclonus (WFC)|Cyclonus]]' Decepticon cell had taken over the [[Autobot High Council|High Council]], they began making preparations for Megatron's return, either unaware of, or unwilling to believe, the former gladiator renouncing conquest. {{storylink|Freedom Fighters}}

As he had "helped save the universe from Starscream, Megatron, and Dark Energon," Bumblebee refused to be defeated by [[Bisk (RID)|Bisk]]. {{storylink|More than Meets the Eye (RID)|More than Meets the Eye}} [[Fixit (RID)|Fixit]] once thought a map looked like Megatron's face. {{storylink|W.W.O.D.?}} During their battle, Drift mistook [[The Fallen|Megatronus]] for Megatron. {{storylink|Battlegrounds, Part 2}} Megatron was "light years away" by the time [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] managed to escape the [[Shadowzone (dimension)|Shadowzone]]. {{storylink|Portals}}

As the High Council's plans neared completion, they genetically engineered a quartet of Activator [[Mini-Con]]s to help free Soundwave from the Shadowzone, with the intent that the communication chief summon Megatron so he could lead the Decepticons back to glory. The [[Bee Team (RID)|Bee Team]] thwarted Soundwave, however. Upon confronting the High Council, the Decepticons combined into [[Galvatronus (RID)|Galvatronus]] who decided that the [[Decepticon Empire]] would be reborn and thriving for whenever Megatron returned. {{storylink|Collateral Damage}} {{storylink|Freedom Fighters}}

===2015 ''Robots in Disguise'' books===
An Energon thief came to Megatron's attention and joined the Decepticon army as [[Drift (RID)|Deadlock]]. {{storylink|Drift's Samurai Showdown}}

==Commercial appearances==
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English)}}

*During the war on Cybertron, Megatron had to briefly leave the battlefield, and left [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] in charge. Shockwave took the opportunity to order Soundwave to transform into his boombox mode and play "[[The Touch]]" while he blasted Autobots. {{storylink|Commercial#War for Cybertron|Gamestop Exclusive TV spot}}
*Megatron, {{w|Dan Vs.|Dan}}, and [[Pinkie Pie]] sang a collaborative group song while the scene quickly shifted between a variety of strange alternate universes. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Summer|The Hub summer promo 2011}}
{{quote|{{w|Meatballs (film)|Are you ready for the summer? Are you ready for the hot <s>nuts</s> nights?}}|Megatron}}
*At some point he ended up in detention at a school because he had "anger issues". {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Detention|The Hub promo}}
*He later joined back up with Pinkie Pie as well as other ponies [[Rainbow Dash]] and [[Applejack]], and [[Bulkhead (Prime)|Bulkhead]] in scatting "{{w|Deck the Halls}}" {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Carolers1|The Hub Carolers}} and singing "{{w|Jingle Bells}}". {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Carolers2|The Hub Carolers (Second spot)}}
*He also demanded that viewers vote for him in the Hub's 2010 "Naughty or Nice" contest. They must have been listening, because he was eventually voted the "Naughtiest" villain on the Hub that year.

[[File:MegatronCareBear.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|''Megatron is on the right'' One wonders where exactly the other Care Bear came from.]]

*Megatron declared the Hub his in a commercial for a marathon of ''Prime'' season 1 and 2, {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Darkest Hour|Darkest Hour promo}} doing certain Hub-focused jokes and gags before the commercial breaks during the marathon. One such segment showed [[The Transformers (cartoon)|his home movies]], during which reminisced on how [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|young he looked back then]] and mocked [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave's]] dated choice of alt mode. In other commercials for the marathon, it is revealed that out of all the radio transmissions in the universe, the ''[[My Little Pony]]: Friendship Is Magic'' [[theme song|theme]] is his favorite song, {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Song|Megatron's Favorite Song}} and that he has been working on new transformations, demonstrating his ability to [[Pretender|transform]] into Funshine Bear, a {{w|Care Bears|Care Bear}}, much to his humiliation. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Care Bear|Megatron Transforms into a Care Bear}} Also during the marathon; he commented on how his favorite reason that transformers were superior to humans was that transformers didn't need bathroom breaks. He also commented that the one thing he doesn't get about Autobots is their continuation of transforming into land-based vehicles (not complaining, just observing). He also expressed bewilderment over the way [[United States of America|Americans]] elect [[President of the United States|their leader]] through [[Democracy|democratic means]], rather than just killing off the competition like he would do. He also apologized to [[ALF]] for pre-empting his show, allowing the program to air at a later date under his regime. The only humans that Megatron admitted to liking were those that cower before him and Dan, due to his anger.
*Despite Megatron's might, Raf judged him inferior to {{w|Time Warner Cable}}'s ability to transmit ''Transformers: Prime'' on laptop, tablet and smartphone computers, as demonstrated by a [[Raf's media device|device]] which switched between all three forms. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Time Warner|Time Warner Cable: Competiton}}
*While lounging around the Nemesis, Megatron answered questions about his personal life, took requests from fans, and offered advice to the disillusioned and directionless. He shot down one girl who asked him to the prom, told a guy that the best way to get noticed by chicks is to transform into a jet, suggested that pound cake is the most superior of all baked desserts, and revealed that his ideal form of relaxation involves drawing [[Rainbow Dash]] fanart. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Ask Megatron|Ask Megatron}}
*Megatron narrated ''{{w|A Visit from St. Nicholas}}'' for his troops, which was interrupted by three Vehicons discussing the stirring practices of mice. Megatron threatened to put them on the naughty list. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Naughty List|30-Second Holiday Special: "Decepticon Holidays: Naughty List"}} Megatron shouted down several Vehicons singing about figgy pudding. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Pudding|30-Second Holiday Special: "Decepticon Holidays: Pudding"}} An Insecticon had direct orders from Megatron to send whoever decorated the ''Nemesis'' in holiday lights to the North Pole. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Holiday Schmoliday|30-Second Holiday Special: "Decepticon Holidays: Holiday Schmoliday"}}

==Games==
===''Transformers: War for Cybertron'' (Xbox 360/PS3/PC)===
{{voiceactor|[[Fred Tatasciore]] (English)|[[Oliviero Corbetta]] (Italian), [[Juan Carlos Lozano]] (Spanish), [[Bruno Carna]] (French), [[Jacek Jasiński]] (Polish)}}

[[File:WFC Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.95|He wants the whooole wooorld, in his hand!]]

During the early war on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], Megatron found reference to an energy source called [[Dark Energon]], which had impressive potential as a weapon, and became determined to claim it for himself. One of the few places it was made was in a station in orbit around Cybertron, guarded by a politically neutral force led by [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]]. With this knowledge, he took a ship and launched an assault on the station.

The ship was badly damaged in the attack, and so he ordered [[Barricade (WFC)|Barricade]] and [[Brawl (WFC)|Brawl]], piloting it, to ram the station. He and many of his soldiers survived the impact and escaped the core's detonation. They were then confronted by Starscream, who informed them that they would not allow them to take what he had guarded for ten thousand years. After surviving a trap of sentry guns, Megatron, Barricade, and Brawl were reinforced by more of Megatron's troops, and set out on their way to find the station's Dark Energon stores and claim them for the war effort. They encountered significant resistance, but managed to shoot their way through, with directional aid from [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]]. Barricade noted that the station itself seemed quite primitive; Megatron noted it was very old, and that he intended to modernize it. At one point, the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seeker]] [[Jetfire (WFC)|Jetfire]] confronted Megatron nonviolently, asking him to give up his quest, as Dark Energon would result in only horror, death, and destruction, to which Megatron sneered, "You say that as if it were a bad thing."

[[File:WFC-MegatronmeetsStarscream.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.66|At last we meet, my punching bag.]]

Along their way to the Dark Energon, they found that a large portion of the station had been blasted clean off, the debris field traversable but sparse enough to allow easy viewing of Cybertron itself. Soundwave soon found records indicating that a small amount of Dark Energon lost containment and was the sole cause of the destruction, underscoring Megatron's desire for it. When Barricade asked how he expected to control it when no other had, Megatron said that such power was only for the strong, that he was the strongest, and not to question him again.

When they finally reached the storage chamber, and Megatron averted Starscream's destruction of it, he calmly entered into a container full of raw Dark Energon, while Starscream watched and gloated at his imminent destruction...only for him to walk out, not only unscathed, but crackling with power, which he further bestowed upon Barricade and Brawl. A single blast of Dark Energon was enough to destroy an entire company of station security forces, the last line of defense between Megatron and Starscream and his companions.

Jetfire again tried to warn Megatron about the dangers of Dark Energon, but Starscream interrupted, asking to join the Decepticon leader. Megatron asked what Starscream could offer that he could not simply take. Starscream revealed the station's supply of Dark Energon was almost spent, and he knew how to manufacture more—and as luck would have it, there was a dormant [[Geosynchronous Energon Bridge]] which could be used to power it. Jetfire retreated to inform [[Sentinel Zeta Prime|Zeta Prime]]; Megatron let him go, seeming pleased by the notion of letting the Autobots tremble in advance of their actions, and sent Starscream, [[Thundercracker (WFC)|Thundercracker]], and [[Skywarp (WFC)|Skywarp]] to activate the bridge.

Megatron repeatedly mocked what he perceived as Starscream's slowness in his simple mission, but the Seeker did what he said he could. With a steady supply of Dark Energon, Megatron launched an attack on Iacon City, intending to take a device called the [[Omega Key]] and use it to enter the Core of Cybertron. This time, he took [[Breakdown (WFC)|Breakdown]] and Soundwave with him. The trio took the less-guarded way in—which, since the Autobots were not complete fools (as even Megatron would admit), still had significant military presence. During the attack, Starscream noted that Dark Energon was proving every bit as potent as Megatron had promised. Breakdown let Megatron know of his misgivings about the Sky Commander; Megatron admitted he was treacherous and untrustworthy, but he had useful talents, and his cunning and ambition was intriguing.

The Omega Key had been taken from its normal resting place, however, by Autobot leader Zeta Prime, and so Megatron took his squad on an assault on Zeta's headquarters. They met Brawl, leading an attack on the doors to Zeta Prime's armory, along the way. Even Megatron's touch of Dark Energon could not breach the vault doors, however, and so he called in [[Dark Energon Bomber]]s. When they were shot down, Brawl suggested they take out the Autobots' air defense guns, after which bombers were called in again; Megatron's troops then held off a massive assault from what seemed like the entire Autobot army while waiting for the bombing run to finally arrive.

[[File:WFC Megatron Vs ZetaPrime.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|Zeta Prime, you might be more egotistical than me. I mean really, a huge holographic version of you and smaller holograms doing what you can't do without your pointy stick thing?]]

After the vault doors were breached, they reached Zeta Prime himself, who had constructed several layers of security while he waited. An invincible energy field protected him, while he could drop portions of the ceiling with pistons to crush anything beneath them, and construct endless holographic clones of himself outfitted for melee combat, which Megatron personally found nauseating. However, his defenses were not without flaw: periodically, the power core would need to disperse waste heat, and Megatron's team survived long enough to destroy it during this stage. Zeta fell, buried under the wreckage of his own defenses, and Megatron took the device he'd carried...which started to make electronic chirping noises. Zeta, with dark humor, noted that the device was not the Omega Key. It merely ''activated'' the Key, which would come to them...

Searching for the Key in the skies aboard another ship, Megatron, with Soundwave and Breakdown at the controls, were abruptly confronted by a massive ship, [[Omega Supreme (WFC)|Omega Supreme]], who knocked them out of the sky, causing them to crash back in Iacon. There, they played a cat-and-mouse campaign in a desperate attempt to survive the enormous Autobot's vast firepower, though Soundwave noted that the weaponry they bore had little chance of penetrating Omega Supreme's armor. Megatron, for his part, at least contrived to appear unafraid, claiming that if it came to a real fight, the brute wouldn't stand a chance against Megatron's intellect. However, Omega's attacks drove them underground and left them unable to immediately transmit counter to Starscream, who declared Megatron dead and announced he was taking control. Even when they re-established contact, Starscream's aerial forces only briefly distracted Omega, who dispensed large numbers of troops, sucked up Decepticons with a tractor beam, fired weapons of mass destruction, and mined the roads Megatron and his squad were using.

[[File:Omega Supreme smash.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|"I challenge you to a thumb wrestling competition!" "''That's'' a thumb!?"]]

Soundwave, however, had come up with a suggestion—there were weapons emplacements higher up that had the ability to damage Omega Supreme. Taking them from the Autobots was a battle in and of itself, but nothing compared to the fight against Omega Supreme, who could unload entire squadrons of Aerialbots. Nonetheless, Megatron's boldness and tactical acumen finally shot Omega Supreme out of the sky.

[[File:WFC-hearmynameandtremble.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.66|I stand on your crotch!]]

Gloating, Megatron found that the behemoth was still not defeated, and indeed was drawing power from Cybertron itself to repair his systems, making him stronger, if anything. However, by corrupting the energon batteries with which he was using to feed himself with Dark Energon charges, they were able to weaken him to the point where they could finally blast away his last defenses and brought him to heel. With Omega Supreme defeated, Megatron went underground, directly to the Core, and corrupted it with a massive infusion of Dark Energon, finally bringing Cybertron itself more completely under his control.

At this point, Megatron was clearly convinced, and for good reason, that he'd won, making propaganda broadcasts extolling his greatness and how he had taken away the Autobots' burdens of "liberty" and "choice". When Starscream was defeated and the Decagon retaken, however, he realized the Autobots were not yet going to roll over for him, and sent a distress signal from Zeta Prime, whom he had kept alive in the Kaon prison camp, in order to provoke a rescue attempt from the Autobots. His old acquaintance Optimus took the bait, and Megatron confronted him, telling him that the war could be over tomorrow if Optimus took the Autobots and left. Optimus refused, so Megatron consigned him and his team to the prisons. When they managed to stage a mass breakout, an enraged Megatron ordered his troops to prevent their escape at any cost, to the point of tearing apart portions of Kaon.

This was not enough, however, and they escaped, journeying to the Core, where they kickstarted the cleansing of Megatron's corruption. Doing so, however, would take the Core millions of years of shutdown, rendering Cybertron uninhabitable. Whether Megatron knew this or not, when he saw the Autobots leaving after Optimus' refusal of his earlier offer, he apparently took offense. His earlier plans of renovating Starscream's station had come to fruition; now, it mounted a powerful superweapon, capable of destroying entire structures in one shot. He had it fire upon the Autobot transports as they left. When a team of Aerialbots attempted to disable or destroy it, he called Jetfire, now one of them, and taunted him about his past. He further mocked them when they destroyed the plasma coolant system without apparently having accounted for backups. Finally, during the attack he came into possession of information on Optimus Prime's location, and ordered Trypticon—the name of the weapon, for it was actually a Cybertronian—to fire upon it.

Trypticon, however, was forced into his natural form and defeated after he crash-landed on Cybertron. Megatron's reaction to this went unrecorded. {{storylink|Transformers: War for Cybertron (360/PS3/PC)|Transformers: War for Cybertron}}

===''Transformers: War for Cybertron'' (DS)===
[[File:WFCDS Defeat Omega Supreme.jpg|thumb|left|256px|Simple enough... OH GOD BULLETS.]]

Megatron was the Decepticon Leader during the final days of the Great War. After capturing an Autobot facility, and killing a cadet, Megatron revealed his plan to his troops. Megatron intended to conquer Trypticon Space Station, which had the means and power to manufacture Dark Energon: a variant of Energon which greatly increased the stamina and strength of its host. Megatron fought his way through the station to its commander, the Autobot Starscream. Upon Starscream's defeat, Starscream offered his services and the Dark Energon if he was spared. Megatron agreed, and Starscream joined the Decepticons.

After a test run of the Dark Energon in Kaon Prison, Soundwave deduced the element would only kill the host, but Starscream was able to find a way to fix it. Megatron then decided the time was right, and led his army to the inner levels of Cybertron. He was able to activate the uplink to channel energy from the Core of Cybertron itself to Trypticon Station, but he needed the Omega Key to access it once it was shut down with a firewall.

Megatron learned through a recording from Laserbeak that Autobot Leader Zeta Prime had the Omega Key in his possession and had holed up deep within Iacon. Megatron led a full-scale assault on the city, totally devastating Iacon, until he found Zeta Prime at last. After a hard battle, Zeta fell, and Megatron obtained the Omega Key. However, immediately upon taking it, alarms went off, and Iacon itself was shaking. Zeta Prime, despite being mortally wounded, laughed at Megatron's face, saying the Omega Key was only the key to the ''true'' key: the city-sized Autobot Omega Supreme.

Omega immediately attacked the victorious Decepticons, and quickly decimated their presence in Iacon, save for Megatron's team and a few others. By this point, Megatron was absolutely furious at Starscream: Megatron declared it was he who led them to Omega Supreme and the devastating onslaught he carried out. Starscream bitterly retorted even if Megatron killed him, Omega Supreme would still be out for his blood, helping nothing whatsoever. Megatron angrily let it go for the time being, and led his army to battle. His troops' confidence beginning to falter, Megatron declared they would either be kicking themselves for not acting for the rest of their lives, or heroes in a historic event. His men followed him to battle Omega, and the titan fell. Megatron was free to corrupt the Core of Cybertron with Dark Energon, and obtain near-supremacy of Cybertron.

That kind of went downhill when the new Autobot leader, Optimus Prime, extinguished the Dark Energon and destroyed Trypticon Space Station, didn't it? {{storylink|Transformers: War for Cybertron (DS)|War for Cybertron - Autobots/Decepticons}}
{{--}}

===''Transformers: Cybertron Adventures''===
{{voiceactor|[[Fred Tatasciore]] (English)|[[Oliviero Corbetta]] (Italian)}}

Early in the war, when the Autobots learned of the existence of the orbiting superweapon [[Trypticon (WFC)|Trypticon]], Megatron sent waves of Decepticon forces to keep them from discovering more about it. Megatron, happy to see the destruction Trypticon was creating, ordered Starscream and Skywarp at gunpoint to return to Trypticon and clean up after it, while he took his troops into battle to scour the area for Autobots to kill. Few Autobots other than the medic, [[Ratchet (WFC)|Ratchet]], were spared Megatron's initial assault.

When Megatron found out that Starscream had left his post at Trypticon, Megatron grew angry. But the Autobots had infiltrated the [[Datacore]], so Megatron focused his efforts there instead. Bumblebee was captured, and information useful for the taking of [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] was pulled from his mind. Megatron assigned Skywarp the task of the initial Iacon assault. The traitorous Starscream returned to Megatron's focus, and the Air Commander was ordered to infiltrate the Core of Cybertron to reactivate the [[Geosynchronous Energon Bridge]]. But Starscream took too long, discovering Megatron had already reached the Core by the time he arrived. In a foul mood, Megatron would test Starscream's loyalty by putting him on the Iacon assault's front lines.

The assault went as planned, and Iacon crumbled. As Barricade and Starscream reached an empty Council Chamber, Megatron alerted them to the evacuation of the surviving Autobots. Three Autobot ships positioned themselves to escape, and so Megatron ordered Thundercracker and Skywarp to take them down.

Though Iacon fell, the Trypticon orbiting superweapon was destroyed by the Autobots... but not before Megatron ripped the datacore from its brain so as to salvage its information on Dark Energon. Megatron was pleased. Despite his loss, he still had the upper hand. {{storylink|Transformers: Cybertron Adventures}}

===''Transformers: Fall of Cybertron'' (Xbox 360/PS3/PC)===
{{voiceactor|[[Fred Tatasciore]] (English)}}

[[File:FoC Megatron Profile.jpg‎|thumb|left|upright=1.3|Seriously, Soundwave, where is my fusion cannon?! It was in your remodeling designs, for crying out loud...]]

When Cybertron had begun to die following the Core's shutdown, Megatron blamed [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]], as he was the one who had ruined his plans for the planet. Megatron launched an attack on [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] in order to destroy the Ark and get revenge. While commanding the battle from beneath one of his [[Warp Cannon]]s, he sent [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]], [[Onslaught (WFC)|Onslaught]] and [[Brawl (WFC)|Brawl]] to capture Optimus and bring him before him. As Megatron executed two Autobots before his Optimus' eyes, Optimus pleaded that they only wanted to leave Cybertron, but Megatron wasn't going to allow him. As the Warp Cannon prepared to destroy both the Ark, and the Decepticon leader to do the same to the Autobot leader, the newly awakened [[Metroplex (FOC)|Metroplex]] tore the roof off of the building they were in. Refusing to retreat, Megatron fired at the colossus, only to be pulverized by the giant Autobot's fist.

Due to Megatron's death, Starscream took control of the Decepticons and proceeded to run the organization into the ground by wasting resources and his failure to inspire the troops. Unhappy with the change in management, [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] salvaged what was left of Megatron, rebuilt him into a new form in his Kaon laboratory, and reactivated him with a Dark Energon infusion. After awakening, Megatron was enraged to see that Starscream was in control, and then proceeded to crash Starscream's [[The Transformers: The Movie|coronation]] ceremony. Slaughtering the Seeker's loyalists, Megatron turned on Starscream and drove him off. [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] arrived to inform him of the [[space bridge]] technology he had discovered and [[Earth|an energy-rich planet]] for them to plunder, and they required a suitable power source for a transport to take them.

Due to Starscream's self-indulgence, the Decepticons' energon supply was dwindling, forcing Megatron to find more power. He decided to retrieve the power core from the fallen [[Trypticon (WFC)|Trypticon]] and while doing so, he happily "reintroduced" himself to the Autobots. After arriving at Trypticon's crash site, he realized the beast was still alive and had Soundwave revitalize him. Megatron didn't know or care whether or not Trypticon was still sentient or not, but told the beast that since he had failed him, he would be rebuilt to Megatron's liking. Megatron then told Soundwave to initiate the "Nemesis Protocol" and permanently lock Trypticon in his [[alternate mode|alternate form]]: a transport ship which they would use to traverse the Space Bridge.

The ''Nemesis'' was quickly completed and the Space Bridge opened, and Megatron decided to leave Shockwave in charge of Cybertron in his absence. However, one of Shockwave's [[Grimlock (WFC)|experiments]] destroyed the tower, which reduced the time they have to reach the Space Bridge before it closed. Sending in Soundwave to lead his forces on the Ark, Megatron confronted Optimus and the two fought. Megatron prepared a devastating blow to his enemy with a cannon, only for [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]] to take the shot for Optimus. Their battle reignited, the two leaders traded blows with swords, causing heavy damage to one another. But before a final blow could be delivered by either one of them, the Ark crumbled under the Space Bridge's force, and while Megatron shouted in anger, both ships were drawn through. {{storylink|Transformers: Fall of Cybertron|Fall of Cybertron}}

{{note|Megatron also appears in the game's 'Escalation' mode. He fights alongside [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]], [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]], and [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]], on the 'Oblivion' map. He is the team's [[Tank (FOC)|Tank]].}}

=== ''Transformers: Prime - The Game'' ===
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English)|[[Bruno Carna]] (French), [[Juan Carlos Lozano]] (Castilian Spanish)}}

[[File:Transformers prime the game megatron.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.1|I think I'll force a servant of Unicron about ten times my size to serve me. That won't go horribly wrong at all.]]

Megatron was present when the Decepticons were hauling in an asteroid rich with Dark Energon heading toward Earth. When the Autobots came to stop them, he decided to take matters into his own hands by going toe-to-toe with Optimus again. After they exchanged some wedding vows and got to dancing, the asteroid exploded and interrupted their fight. Megatron managed to survive by flying away, witnessing his enemies fall to Earth. Swiftly, Megatron commanded Starscream to organize a scouting team to retrieve the fallen Autobots.

Megatron was present when Optimus awoke to fight Thunderwing. Megatron commenced an attack on the Autobot with the Nemesis, but once the Autobot escaped, he quickly turned his attention to the giant in the asteroid. After an analysis by Knock Out, Megatron reasoned with the herald of Unicron by promising all of his missing components being returned to him if and only if he swore his undying allegiance to him. As such, Megatron and Starscream arrived at one location to retrieve a component while Dreadwing parted to another. While on their mission, Megatron and Starscream managed to run into their old pals Optimus & Bulkhead. Starscream took his fight to the bulk, leaving Megatron to battle his old foe once again. Megatron was somewhat defeated, but managed to retrieve the component.

Megatron witnessed Starscream attach the component to Thunderwing, and the two were surprised when Thunderwing continued to serve Unicron, even after their deal. Thunderwing attempted to destroy Megatron before making his escape, but he used Starscream as protection. Throwing his commander on the ground like scrap, he pursued Thunderwing only to meet with the Autobots again. Megatron managed to make sport of Arcee, Bumblebee, and Bulkhead, but his third and final battle with Optimus resulted in his ultimate defeat. He vengefully tried to stab Optimus when offered mercy, only to be left open and seemingly destroyed by a blast from the arriving Thunderwing.
{{storylink|Transformers: Prime - The Game}}

===''Transformers Online''===
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{{storylink|Transformers Online (2012 video game)|Transformers Online}}
{{-}}

===''Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark''===
{{charstubgame|{{storylink|Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark (console)|Rise of the Dark Spark (console)}}, {{storylink|Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark (3DS)|Rise of the Dark Spark (3DS)}}}}
{{-}}

===''Transformers Prime: Battle For Energon''===
Megatron and his Eradicons infiltrated the Autobots' headquarters. They then used Scraplets to discombobulate the base's systems. Bulkhead then came along, removed the Scraplets from the headquarters' systems, and defeated Megatron. {{storylink|Transformers Prime: Battle For Energon}}

===''Transformers Prime: Terrorcon Defense''===
Megatron threw wave after wave of Vehicons at the Autobots in the hopes of amassing massive amounts of Dark Energon, before launching an assault on the Autobot headquarters. He was defeated by Optimus Prime and Arcee. {{Storylink|Transformers Prime: Terrorcon Defense|Terrorcon Defense}}

===''Transformers Prime: Pulsar Defense''===
Megatron and his Decepticons built an [[Energon Drain]] weapon, which would render them unstopable if left unopposed. Optimus Prime and his Autobots intervened, and destroyed the weapon. {{storylink|Transformers Prime: Pulsar Defense}}

===''Transformers Prime: Decepticon Strike''===
After the bulk of his troops, and many Vehicons had faced off against Optimus Prime, Megatron took on the Autobot leader himself. Megatron had access to a personal forcefield and powerful energy blasts throughout the battle, and would alternate between his robot and vehicle mode to fight both on the ground and above it. The stack the odds even more in his favor, Megatron was assisted by some of his troops, including Airachnid, Breakdown and Shockwave. Despite all of this, Optimus managed to defeat Megatron, and he was sent fleeing, proclaiming that Optimus had only succeeded in winning a small battle that was part of a greater war. {{storylink|Transformers Prime: Decepticon Strike|Decepticon Strike}}

===''Transformers Universe''===
[[File:Tu-character-art megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|left|Went from shark-face to scowl-face]]
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English)}}

At some point during the Autobot-Decepticon war, Optimus Prime went missing. Megatron and his Decepticons searched the universe for the Autobot leader, but met heavy resistance from the Autobots, who fought to keep their leader's location a secret.

He appears in-game only as a hologram displayed in the ''Leviathan'', [[Switchblade (Prime)|Switchblade]]'s ship. {{storylink|Transformers Universe (Jagex)|Transformers Universe}}
{{-}}

===''Transformers: Battle Tactics''===
[[File:Battle-Tactics-Megatron-(WFC).jpg|thumb|upright=2.2]]
Megatron (WFC) participated in battles against a variety of opponents, both Autobots and Decepticons. Sometimes there were many of him! He was an Epic character available as a reward in the "Cybertron Episode 1" event. {{storylink|Transformers: Battle Tactics}}
{{-}}

==Toys==
{{main|Megatron (WFC)/toys}}

==Merchandise==
{{main|Megatron (WFC)/toys#Merchandise}}

==Notes==
[[File:Tfprimemegatronjet.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Too fast for screen caps.]]

[[File:VectorSigmaBotBuilderMegatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Green With Evil.]]

[[File:RID 15 Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|It's like [[Transformers: War for Cybertron (games)|''War for Cybertron'']] and [[Megatron (Animated)|''Animated'']] were put in a blender.]]

*Megatron's model is usable in ''War for Cybertron'' multiplayer as the Destroyer-type chassis for [[Soldier (WFC)|Soldier]]-class characters. His parts are also available in ''Fall of Cybertron'', now classified as Gunner-type components for [[Titan (FOC)|Titan]]-class characters.
*Megatron's designation as an energon miner was "D-16".<ref>[http://www.hasbro.com/transformers/en_US/play/details.cfm?guid=7fd5ecd9-19b9-f369-1041-a7635be83172 War for Cybertron timeline].</ref> Megatron's original [[List of Japanese ID numbers|Japanese ID number]] was "16". Takara would eventually change the numbering system using a "D" to denote [[Decepticon|Destrons]]. So Megatron's Japanese ID number could retroactively be considered "D-16".
*According to the packing bio for the Cybertronian Megatron toy, Megatron often changes his [[alternate mode]]. This was probably written in an attempt to explain why goes from turning into a tank in the video games to turning into a jet in the cartoon.
**The ''Prime'' staff used the rationale that Megatron, unlike other Decepticons, would not scan an Earth mode out of disgust at humans.<ref>[http://www.tfw2005.com/transformers-news/transformers-prime-39/botcon-2010-transformers-prime-panel-coverage-170054/ BotCon 2010 Transformers Prime Panel Coverage]</ref>
*In ''War for Cybertron'', Megatron has multiple glitches when controlled by the computer, among them shrinking (quite hilariously), losing his Fusion Cannon, and having his Tank mode cannon stick straight up (also humorous). He may be the most glitchy character in the game.
*''Prime'' Megatron takes visual cues from both Generation 1 [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]]—the ever-famous buckethead and lower legs resembling a pistol's handgrip—and [[Megatron (Movie)|"Movie series" Megatron]]—the sharp angles and bits on his shoulders, two-toed feet, a demonic-looking face with sharp shark-like teeth, and even a Cybertronian jet mode. The G1 reference goes further with Welker's casting, but with a darker tone leaning more towards [[Hugo Weaving]]'s portrayal as a movieverse cue (Welker would later deepen this tone for ''Age of Extinction'' and ''The Last Knight'').
*Megatron's body parts are available to use in the Hub website's [[Vector Sigma Bot Builder]] online game. Normally, you cannot configure a generic 'bot using all Megatron parts, but you can see what one would look like at right through the magic of Photoshop.
*A running gag in the advertisements shows that the Decepticon Lord is actually a {{w|brony}} in secret. Soundwave is the only one who knows, and seems to share his leader's taste for ''[[My Little Pony]]''.
**According to the ''[[Commercial/Prime#2012|Transformers: Prime 26 Hour Takeover Marathon]]'' promos, his favorite song is the [[theme song|theme]] to ''My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic''.
**According to an [[Commercial/Prime#2013|Ask Megatron]] segment, his ideal form of relaxation involves traveling to the dark side of Pluto and drawing Rainbow Dash fanart.
**And then there are [[Commercial/Prime#2011|The Hub Summer]] and [[Commercial/Prime#2011|The Hub Carolers]] promos, in which he joins Pinkie Pie, Applejack and Rainbow Dash (his favorite!) for various musical numbers.
**While answering fan mail from the [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=woM_g2cJxlA "Ask Megatron" Segments], he replied that his most embarrassing moment was when he cried in front of Soundwave when [[Twilight Sparkle]] became a princess.
*A note in the "Autobits" edition of [[Darkmount, NV]] states that he enjoys online cat videos.
*Megatron had concept art made for him for the ''[[Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2015 cartoon)|Robots in Disguise]]'' cartoon.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Megatron''' (メガトロン ''Megatoron''), '''Megatronus''' (メガトロナス ''Megatoronasu'')
*''Mandarin:'' '''Megaton''' (Taiwan, 密卡登 ''Mìkǎdēng''), '''Wēi Zhèn Tīan''' (China, 威震天, lit. "Extremely Prestigious" or "Heaven-shaking Might")

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Emperors of Destruction]]
[[Category:Fall of Cybertron Decepticons]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Hall of Fame characters]]
[[Category:Letters page answerers]]
[[Category:Prime Decepticons]]
[[Category:Transformers Online Decepticons]]
[[Category:War for Cybertron Decepticons]]
[[Category:Transformers Universe game Decepticons]]

Megatron (WFC)

2023-06-15T03:20:55Z

Negatwenty:

{{factions|decepticon|{{factions/icons|custom=PrimeSharkticonSymbol.png|cLink=Sharkticon (species)|cSize=40x40px}}|hofsilver}}
{{disambigm|Megatron (disambiguation)|Megatronus (disambiguation)}}
{{suite}}
:''Megatron is the [[Decepticon leader]] from the [[Aligned continuity family]].''

[[File:Megatron-Prime-stock-render.jpg|thumb|upright=2.2|"That's the funny thing about heroes—they need to win every time. The villain only needs to win once."]]

The awesomely powerful '''Megatron''' is, in many ways, a fallen hero. He rose up from the oppressed lower working castes of [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]] to become a champion in the region's illegal [[gladiatorial combat|deathmatches]], cast aside his designation of '''D-16''' and took the legendary name '''[[The Fallen|Megatronus]]'''<ref>Megatron was an abbreviation, so it'd be easier for the masses to chant his name; ''Transformers: Exodus'', Chapter 3</ref> as his own. He called for an end to [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]'s decrepit [[Functionism|caste system]] and told the downtrodden that freedom of self-determination was the right of all sentient beings!

But absolute power corrupts absolutely, and Megatron's Decepticon revolution, like many such movements, ended up becoming a whole new tyranny. Powerful, charismatic, violent, and full of rage for any who would stand in the way of his ambition and drive, Megatron brought Cybertron ''past'' the brink of destruction. Now he and his former brother-in-arms [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]] fight on other worlds. Megatron will never forgive Optimus for "betraying" him, stealing from the Council the rank of Prime which was rightfully his. He has reserved for his old friend the greatest honor possible: glorious death at his hands.

Megatron has been gone for three years, but now he's returned. He's brought the monstrous [[Dark Energon]] to [[Earth]], and quite possibly left his sanity in space. Though he's made a few mistakes, he does not intend to make them again!

{{quote|Good and evil fade away. History shall judge me... ''victorious''.|Megatron rejects all moral judgement on his actions|[[Transformers: Cybertron Adventures|Cybertron Adventures, The Ending Begins]]}}
{{quote|I... am the Dominator, I... am the Destroyer, I am '''Megatron!'''|Megatron|''[[Transformers: War for Cybertron (360/PS3/PC)|Transformers: War for Cybertron]]''}}

==Fiction==
===''The Covenant of Primus''===
D-16 was born during the [[Age of Wrath]]. The [[Quintesson]] occupation of Cybertron had neutered the ritual of ascending from the [[Well of All Sparks]], to the point where newly born Cybertronians would emerge without names or developed personalities. After a brief but tantalizing glimpse at Cybertron's sun, D-16 was sent to work in the mines underneath Kaon. He took his name from the sector in which he worked, and eventually befriended some of the other nameless workers who had been dealt similar hands by the Quintessons. One Cybertronian in particular served as a sounding board for D-16's earliest sociological musings. From this nameless bot D-16 realized the importance of a proper name. By the time that the Quintessons had been routed from Cybertron, D-16 was already craving more out of life.

During his time off, D-16 became intrigued by the violent duels held between miners. As Cybertron's [[Golden Age]] drew to a close, he entered his first gladiator matches. D-16 drew upon the old stories of the [[Thirteen]] that the miners told one another, and decided on "Megatronus" as a suitable moniker; hoping that Cybertron's "fallen" society could eventually be restored. Megatronus thrived in the gladiator pits, seeing it as a way to escape the oppression of the [[Functionism|caste system]]. The crowds who regularly watched his gladiator matches soon shortened his name to Megatron. Megatron used his newfound fame to attack the bloated Cybertronian government which kept the miners oppressed, and before long he had carved out a loyal cadre of followers inspired by his rhetoric. {{storylink|Transformers: The Covenant of Primus|The Covenant of Primus}}

===Aligned novels===
[[File:WFCcomicD16.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|"Alright! What's the square root of pi?! What's the capital of Sierre Leone?! What's... awww, this 'ask questions later' thing doesn't work at ''all''."]]

D-16 named himself after the sector of the mine where he performed demolition operations. {{storylink|Transformers: Exodus|Exodus}} At the end of the Age of Wrath, he was one of the many Cybertronians who [[Sentinel Zeta Prime|Sentinel Prime]] called to arms, and aided in the war effort that successfully overthrew the cruel [[Quintesson]] regime. As time went by, D-16 eventually forgot about this event, as did many other Cybertronians.

At some point after Cybertron's Golden Age, a group of [[Sharkticon (species)|Sharkticon]]s foresaw him as the being who would one day lead them to freedom. They managed to carve an image of him on a cave wall before they were executed. {{storylink|Transformers: Retribution|Retribution}}

D-16 eventually turned to gladiatorial combat to escape from the drudgery of his duties. As a gladiator, in killing others he began to appreciate the value of life, and in between matches he became something of an intellectual, debating the castes with other miners. After bosses requested he lose a few fights, D-16 killed them and took over Kaon and [[Slaughter City]]. After murdering one boss in front of his employees, D-16 declared himself Megatronus, whom he considered the greatest of the [[Thirteen]]. After hearing his preaching on the [[Communication Grid]] against the [[Guilds of Cybertron]], the concerned [[Sentinel Zeta Prime|Sentinel Prime]] sent [[Bumper (WFC)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (WFC)|Fastback]] to investigate. Megatronus killed them, believing two lives were worthless compared to the millions doomed by the castes Sentinel created

After a victorious battle with the [[Insecticon (WFC)|Insecticon]]s, in which the crowd redubbed him Megatron, the gladiator was contacted by the [[Iacon (polity)|Iaconian]] [[Hall of Records|records monitor]] [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Orion Pax]], and they began exchanging their ideas in intense but friendly philosophical discussions. Megatron encouraged Orion to learn self-defense and invited him to visit Kaon, which he did to a warm welcome from Megatron (and from none of his gladiators). By this point Megatron was planning to call his movement the Decepticons, and he had begun sending his followers on a search for artifacts of the Primes, as their discovery would be signs their cause was just. His followers began bombing Cybertron, and Megatron distanced himself from their extremism to gain credibility. Orion and his mentor [[Alpha Trion (WFC)|Alpha Trion]] believed him, but the latter was well aware Megatron might have gained a taste for violence after the attention it earned him. Soon enough, Megatron accepted the gift of a kidnapped Sentinel Prime from [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]].

[[File:WFCcomicHalogendies.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Megatron misinterprets the phrase "ad hominem attack".]]

Alpha Trion organized a hearing for Orion and Megatron with the [[Autobot High Council|High Council]]. They protested involvement in Sentinel's disappearance. When confronted with the phrase "Decepticon", Megatron denied any knowledge of it but accepted his followers' term wholeheartedly, stating deception was necessary sometimes for the corrupt to see the truth. When [[Halogen (WFC)|Halogen]] revealed Megatron's followers had been trying to locate the [[Matrix of Leadership]], he declared that Orion should become the Prime that he desperately wanted to lead Cybertron into the new [[Golden Age]], and find it. Incensed, Megatron killed Halogen, and when Optimus prevented the [[Elite Guard]] from attacking Megatron, the ungrateful gladiator declared Optimus had fallen into the trap of power the High Council had given him. He declared Optimus was no longer his brother (though he would continue to refer to him as such privately), and that the Matrix would be his.

In the subsequent war with Optimus' [[Autobot]]s, the Decepticons took control of eighty-five percent of the planet. Wherever Starscream's [[Seeker (body-type)|Seekers]] aided, they were victorious. Megatron was initially merciful to neutrals, but he let [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] take control of [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]] and torture Autobot sympathizers there. When the [[Praxus|Praxians]], a progressive city-state who were disappointed with the direction Megatron took, allied with the Autobots, Megatron decided he would no longer try to convert followers and launched the first genocide of the war, slaughtering all in [[Nova Cronum]] who would not submit to the Decepticons as they attacked.

As the war dragged into a siege of Iacon, Soundwave's spying bore fruit as he discovered [[Dark Energon]], the essence of [[Unicron/Aligned|Unicron]], was aboard [[Trypticon (WFC)|Trypticon]]. Megatron forgave Starscream for hiding its existence from him, acknowledging its potentially dangerous nature. To ensure loyalty, Megatron's gladiators stormed the Station slaughtering and maiming Starscream's scientists. He forced Starscream to pick two test subjects to be Darkened, and following an astonishingly successful result, Megatron absorbed some, invigorating him. Soon Darkened Decepticons appeared on the battlefield, but it proved to be an inefficient resource and they would have to flee if a battle was prolonged. Megatron needed more, and even Starscream's activation of the [[Geosynchronous Energon Bridge]] didn't provide enough. Megatron felt he would kill all the Decepticons before he was deprived of Dark Energon and turn rabid.

Fortunately, Soundwave revealed the existence of the [[Plasma energy|Plasma Energy Chamber]] within [[Teletraan-1 (WFC)|Teletraan-1]], which required the [[Code Key]]s of Power and Justice to activate it. Starscream recovered the Key of Power, while Megatron and his best soldiers searched for the Key of Justice below the [[High Council Tower]]. Sentinel Prime emerged, to Megatron's surprise. Sentinel confronted him about Bumper and Fastback, and the two dueled. Megatron disarmed and sliced open Sentinel, revealing the Key of Justice within. Starscream made a grab for it, exposing that he had released Sentinel to kill Megatron and take leadership for himself. After fighting Starscream to a standstill, Megatron pardoned him as he found him a better soldier than would-be example, and used the Keys to open Teletraan-1: which activated [[Omega Supreme (WFC)|Omega Supreme]] to fly the Chamber to safety.

The Seekers shot Omega Supreme out of the air, causing him to crash. Optimus's Autobots arrived to fight the Decepticons, but the more they killed them the more Dark Energon left their bodies and empowered Megatron. He was able to knee Omega Supreme and turn him on his back, tearing the Chamber out of his chest. Using the Chamber, Megatron poisoned the [[core]] of Cybertron and Darkened the entire planet. But then the core stopped producing Dark Energon, and Megatron learnt Optimus had gone to the core and received the Matrix. As the Autobots attempted to flee Cybertron via the last [[space bridge]], Megatron used Trypticon to fire on their ships, and used his and Orion's old frequency to criticize Optimus for fleeing. He added he never believed in individual freedom for every Cybertronian, only the illusion of freedom that he as leader would provide and that the Guilds did not. Optimus responded that Megatron had turned his soldiers into addicts and they would turn on him, and used the ''[[Eight Track (WFC)|Eight Track]]'' to board, sabotage and crash Trypticon.

As the Autobots left on the completed ''[[Ark (WFC)|Ark]]'', the Decepticons fully invaded Iacon. Megatron ordered Trypticon to transform into the ''Nemesis'', boarding it with Starscream, Soundwave, [[Lugnut (WFC)|Lugnut]] and other elite soldiers, leaving Shockwave in charge. He used his old frequency once again to warn Optimus that he would hound him through the stars and finally kill him for the Matrix. He explained they were still brothers, as they were bonded for life despite their enmity. Optimus was just glad his hunt would get him off Cybertron. The two ships entered the last [[space bridge]] together, and when the ''Ark'' emerged, the ''Nemesis'' was gone. {{storylink|Transformers: Exodus|Exodus}}

{{note|Megatron's involvement in the preceding events, or events mostly similar, were also chronicled in the comic "[[Transformers: War for Cybertron (comic)|Transformers: War for Cybertron]]."}}

The ''Nemesis'' eventually emerged from the Space Bridge, close to the lost colony world of [[Velocitron]]. The Autobots had already visited the planet and departed, but Megatron's sleeper agent [[Makeshift (Prime)|Makeshift]] had ignited political tensions and sparked a civil war between [[Override (Prime)|Override]]'s loyalists and [[Ransack (Prime)|Ransack's]]'s cadre of political malcontents. He was directed by [[Hightail (Prime)|Hightail]] to Ransack. Megatron found Ransack's obsession with speed extremely irritating, but allowed him to pledge his allegiance to the Decepticon cause. Ransack's Decepticons continued their war on Velocitron while the rest of Megatron's forces boarded the ''Nemesis'', tracking the Ark's energy signature.

Megatron's forces tracked the ''Ark'' to on the planet [[Junkion (planet)|Junkion]], and began attacking both the Autobots and the native [[Junkion (species)|Junkion]]s. Amid the chaos, Megatron reunited with one of his long-lost comrades, the marooned Decepticon [[Axer (Prime)|Axer]]. Axer presented his commander with the [[Requiem Blaster (Megatronus)|Requiem Blaster]], which he had scavenged from the core of Junkion. Megatron ordered the gun to be attached to the hull of the Nemesis. The mayhem had also awakened the ancient Transformer [[Cannonspring]], who reunited with several other Cybertronians and combined into the mighty [[Nexus Prime]], who held off both the Decepticon advance and the newly arriving [[Star Seeker]]s. As the planet tore itself apart, Megatron duelled with Optimus Prime, who wielded the [[Cyber Caliber]]. Although Optimus Prime gained the upper hand, he suddenly received a vision regarding the AllSpark's location. Prime fell back to the ''Ark'' and retreated. Since the Requiem Blaster ran the risk of catastrophically overheating, Megatron ordered his troops to jettison the artifact before it could do so. Megatron ordered his troops to follow the ''Ark'' off of Junkion and back into deep space. {{storylink|Transformers: Exiles|Exiles}}

At some point during the voyage, Megatron changed his [[alternate mode]] to that of a Cybertronian spacecraft.

While searching for the trail of the ''Ark'' on the outskirts of the [[Orion Arm]], Megatron ran across the Star Seekers again, who had set a trap for the Decepticons. To take down the ''Nemesis'', the pirates salvaged the abandoned Requiem Blaster and grafted it to their ship. Megatron and the Star Seeker [[Thundertron]] dueled while their ships exchanged fire. Megatron eventually managed to gain the upper hand after exploiting the Requiem Blaster's cripplingly high energy intake, and forced Thundertron's forces into a retreat. Megatron reunited with his treacherous subordinate Axer, who claimed to have gleaned knowledge about the ''Ark''{{'}}s whereabouts during his time spent with the pirates. Megatron considered this, and then sent him to be tortured, just to make sure he was telling the truth.

The ''Nemesis'' eventually caught up with the real ''Ark'' over the planet [[Aquatron]] and opened fire. The Autobots retaliated by deploying [[Superion (Prime)|Superion]], who carved a trail of destruction through the ''Nemesis''{{'}}s engine bay until the combiner met Megatron. The Decepticon leader attacked Superion, and the two fought. Megatron was able to gain the upper hand and fired his fusion cannon at Superion, blowing the combiner apart and sending his components flying out the ship's hangar.

Before the Autobots could try and ram the ''Nemesis'', the Aquatronian native known only as "[[Inquirata (Prime)|the Curator]]" intervened by cutting power to both ships. The Curator scolded the Cybertronians for bringing their war to a neutral planet, but invited Megatron and his Decepticons to the planet's surface to negotiate a possible peace treaty between the two factions. Once the Autobots and Decepticons both agreed to a temporary ceasefire, the Curator revealed that he was a [[Quintesson]], and that Aquatron was a member of the Quintesson Co-Prosperity Sphere. Megatron decided to play along with his captors until he could find a way to escape. That night, Megatron was visited by the Curator, who promised Megatron his own [[Decepticon Matrix]]... if he backstabbed Optimus Prime and destroyed the Autobot leader's own Matrix.

The next morning, Megatron convened with Optimus outside the negotiation hall, only to reveal that he had brought along six [[Vehicon (Prime)|Vehicon]]s with him to kill Optimus. The two began fighting, until [[Skywarp (WFC)|Skywarp]] detonated a bomb outside, which caused the Pavilion to start flooding. Optimus switched off his Matrix and helped Megatron to escape, but on the surface they encountered [[Tyrannicon]] and his [[Sharkticon (species)|Sharkticon]] flotilla, who arrested all the Cybertronians present. The defeated Autobots and Decepticons were rounded up into a prison ship headed for the city of [[Hydratron]]; Megatron spent most of the voyage loudly and angrily criticizing Optimus Prime's leadership. When the prisoners were transferred to a train, Megatron ran afoul of several Sharkticons, who managed to subdue him long enough for him to be loaded onto the train and shipped to Hydratron's [[Hall of Justice]].

Inside the Quintesson's kangaroo court, Optimus Prime was put on trial for public mayhem, treason, and galactic blasphemy. Optimus Prime's brainwashed troops corroborated the Quintesson prosector's line of inquiry. However, Megatron himself came to Optimus's defense, asserting that the Quintessons did not create the Transformers as they so claimed. The trial had also jogged Megatron's memories; he remembered fighting in the war that routed the aliens from Cybertron and vowed that he'd gladly do it again. The Quintesson judges found them innocent, and so sentenced the two leaders to banishment. Whoever killed the other leader in combat would be allowed to leave Aquatron unmolested. The two leaders battled, unaware that the Quintessons were harvesting the energy they exerted to power a space bridge to Cybertron. When the Quintessons had enough, they dumped both of them into a Pirahnacon pit. Optimus and Megatron managed to escape the Pirahnacons with the help of Optimus's Matrix, and escaped into the subterranean tunnels beneath Hydratron.

The duo eventually encountered the [[Gamekeeper]], who was guarding the carvings that the Sharkticon rebels had created. The Gamekeeper taunted them, and revealed that the Quintessons were staging another invasion of Cybertron as they spoke. Megatron tore out the monster's eyes and eventually killed him. The Decepticon leader was intrigued by the carvings, although Optimus was skeptical of their veracity. The two eventually discovered [[Xeros]], who was manipulating his Sharkticon servants with a decoy Matrix. Believing it to be the Decepciton Matrix he was promised, Megatron grabbed it and shoved it into his chest.

The decoy Matrix turned out to be the [[Sharkticon Matrix of Leadership]], and as it re-forged his body Megatron realized that Aquatron was one of the 200 lost colony planets after all- and a planet that had never been able to overthrow the Quintessons. Now sporting Sharkticon features, Megatron called the Sharkticons to his command and ordered them to devour Xeros. Megatron overpowered Optimus and threw him down a nearby elevator shaft. He then contacted Starscream aboard the stranded ''Nemesis'', and ordered his Decepticons to make room for Sharkticon reinforcements aboard the ship.

Before long, Megatron set off to the bottom of Hydratron, to kill the Curator once and for all. He ran into trouble along the way; the city itself began transforming into a giant jellyfish-like creature, which attempted to devour him. Megatron was ale to break free of its tentacles and swim to the bottom of the lakebed, where Optimus Prime and a [[Leviacon]] were already confronting the Curator. Hundreds of Sharkticons swarmed the Curator's fortified command bubble but were unable to break through. The fracas was compounded by the arrival of [[Tyrannicon]], who had come back to Aquatron through the Space Bridge to figure out why his soldiers had rebelled. Megatron, now calling himself "The First of the Many" offered Tyrannicon a place in his new empire, although Tyrannicon refused. Instead, the two battled one another for control of the Matrix, with the Tyrannicon triumphant. Tyrannicon stole the Matrix from Megatron, who collapsed and reverted to his old self. When Optimus managed to destroy the entire underground complex, he also rescued Megatron, and with the Leviacon's help the two leaders returned to the surface, where they reunited with their respective crews.

On their way off the planet, Optimus mused that one day Megatron might understand that the two of them were much stronger as a united force. {{storylink|Transformers: Retribution|Retribution}}

===Ask Vector Prime===
In [[Uniend 610.23 Zeta]], {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime}} Megatron lead his Decepticons in an attack on the Autobot stronghold at [[Tyger Pax]] to obtain the [[AllSpark]] from the [[Well of All Sparks]]. After fighting off [[Rodimus (WFC)|Rodimus]] and [[Springer (WFC)|Springer]], Megatron found himself under fire from [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]], until [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]] managed to shoot the young Autobot down.

Searching for [[Barricade (WFC)|Barricade]], and executing Autobots that had failed to retreat, Megatron, while boasting his victory, saw the AllSpark be launched into space. Though he had failed to gain the AllSpark, Megatron found himself to be close to a badly damaged Bumblebee, who made a point of gloating to Megatron about the Autobots' victory. Grabbing the young mecha by the neck, Megatron, tired of Bumblebee's talking, crushed the Autobot's [[voice box]].

Deciding that [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]] didn't need another martyr, Megatron left Bumblebee alive to remind others that he could take and spare lives as he wished. Satisfied with his work, Megatron retreated with what was left of his Decepticons. {{storylink|Bumblebee at Tyger Pax}}

===IDW Aligned comics===
From Shockwave's lab in the [[Rust Sea|Sea of Rust]], Shockwave and a captured Grimlock watched a feed of Megatron spearheading an attack on [[Metroplex (FOC)|Autobot City]]. {{storylink|Last Stand (FOC)|Last Stand}} {{storylink|Fragmentation (FOC)|Fragmentation}}

===''Prime'' cartoon===
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English), [[Sean Long]] (BotCon 2011), [[Peter Cullen]] (BotCon 2012), [[Keiji Fujiwara]] (Japanese)|[[Fu Chong]] (Chinese), [[Alexander Kovriznyh]] (Russian), [[Juan Carlos Lozano]] (Spain-Spanish), [[Robert Dubois]] (French), [[Ja-hyeong Gu]] (Korean), [[Tony Fuochi|Antonio Fuochi]] (Italian), [[Ferenc Borbiczki]] (Hungarian), [[Hans-Jürgen Wolf]] (German), [[Gerardo Vásquez]] (Latin American Spanish), [[Antônio Moreno]] (Brazilian Portuguese), [[Guilherme Lopes]] ("Predacons Rising", internal monologue), [[Paweł Szczesny]] (Polish), [[Arto Nieminen]] (Finnish), [[Johan Hedenberg]] (Swedish)}}

[[File:OneShallRise3-corresponding.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|"I'm a fox!" "I'm a hound doooog!"]]

In the waning years of the [[Golden Age]] of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], Megatronus (who named himself after [[The Fallen|one of the original thirteen Primes]]) was a gladiator who fought in the [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]] arena. Observing a disparity in freedom among the classes of his race, and that the ruling class was corrupt and all-powerful, Megatron turned rhetorician, trying to effect change. In drawing attention to this inequity, he inspired a [[Hall of Records]] clerk named [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Orion Pax]], and the two joined forces to end corruption and bring equality to the masses. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}} Orion and Megatronus became close allies, almost like brothers. {{storylink|Masters & Students}}

[[File:DarknessRising2-Megsflashback.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|Things were very red in those days.]]

Megatronus shortened his name to Megatron before he and Orion Pax appeared before the [[Autobot High Council|High Council]]. Megatron threatened the council, promising to overthrow them and instate himself as the next [[Prime (rank)|Prime]]—a declaration of hostility that shocked Orion, and moved him to an impassioned speech in favour of autonomy that successfully swayed the council where Megatron had failed. Jealous, Megatron left the council and Orion behind and assembled his followers—including perennial loyalist [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] and scheming second-in-command [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]]—into an army he would name "Decepticons", beginning the war for Cybertron and vowing to find the [[Matrix of Leadership]] which was denied to him by the council. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}}

The war saw Megatron successfully take the city of [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]], which contained the very arena he fought in as a gladiator, as the Decepticon capital. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 1}} During a battle at [[Tyger Pax]], Megatron crushed the Autobot [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]]'s voice box when the scout refused to break under interrogation. {{storylink|Operation Bumblebee, Part 1}} Furthermore, Megatron's wartime achievements were not limited to those achieved through might: he also created the deadly [[cybonic plague]] which wiped out millions {{storylink|Sick Mind}} and found a way to weaponize [[Tox-En]] which he used to wipe out an entire unit in front of a horrified Bulkhead. {{storylink|Toxicity}} It was through similarly poisonous means that Megatron came closest to seizing victory in the war's final stages, [[Dark Energon|infecting]] the [[Core]] of Cybertron itself. In purifying the core, Orion was granted the Matrix Megatron had long-sought, becoming Optimus Prime. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}} After his assassin [[Skyquake (Prime)|Skyquake]] failed to kill Optimus at the [[Battle of Technahar]], {{storylink|Masters & Students}} Megatron became obsessed with the Autobot leader and decided that destroying him was his right alone. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 4}} Megatron had his lead scientist [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] send an army of [[Predacon (Prime)|Predacons]] to Earth to lay waste to any Autobot forces on the planet and secure any and all energon deposits. {{storylink|Project Predacon}}

[[File:DarknessRising2-MegatronDarkEnergon.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|We can relate. We're just like this with our [[BotCon]] toys.]]

Eventually, the war left Cybertron in ruin and forced the whole Transformer race to exile into space. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 2}} Megatron would not leave the planet unguarded and placed a few [[Insecticon (WFC)|Insecticon]] guards in stasis on the planet, should the enemy return. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 3}} In time, Megatron and his army arrived on Earth, establishing mines to collect the Energon that the planet had been seeded with during the war. {{storylink|Stronger, Faster}} He also had some of his best warriors, such as Skyquake to guard deposits not ready to mine. {{storylink|Masters & Students}} After some early conflicts on the planet, Megatron withdrew to space to search for more troops, leaving Starscream in charge. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 1}} Searching the void for three years, Megatron found something better than mere warriors: he discovered a new source of Dark Energon, the "blood of [[Unicron]]", with which he could reanimate fallen Transformers as an army of the undead. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 2}} Returning to Earth, {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 1}} and resuming command of the Decepticons, Megatron tested the Dark Energon on the deceased Autobot [[Cliffjumper (WFC)|Cliffjumper]], reviving him as a [[zombie]] "[[Terrorcon (Prime)|Terrorcon]]" that slaughtered several [[Decepticon Miner]]s, but which posed no threat to Megatron himself. Unfortunately for Megatron, this partial reactivation of Cliffjumper's lifesigns drew Optimus Prime's Autobots to the Decepticons' mining operations. Deciding it was not yet time for a confrontation with Prime, Megatron withdrew aboard the [[Trypticon (WFC)|''Nemesis'']] and continued to brood over the Dark Energon.

[[File:darknessrising3 Megatronglowy.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Megatron, you fool! Rave glowsticks aren't candy!]]
Megatron's inability to control the zombie Cliffjumper convinced him that he needed to integrate the Dark Energon into his own body in order to control the undead legions he planned to create. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 2}} Thrusting a shard of the material into his [[spark]], he was filled with its power, feeling as though he was connected to Unicron's very thoughts. Requiring a test run for his new power, Megatron headed to the site of an ancient Cybertronian battle on Earth, one full of the remains of fallen warriors, where he was confronted by Optimus and [[Ratchet (WFC)|Ratchet]]. Using Dark Energon to raise the dead Transformers as Terrorcons, Megatron successfully found he had complete control of the undead horde, and send them against the two Autobots. [[File:DarknessRising4-Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|I chew scenery while the zombies chew ''you''.]] {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 3}} While Optimus and Ratchet fought their way through the Terrorcons, Megatron flew off before they could reach him, satisfied with his test results and ready put his plan into action—to open a [[space bridge]] to Cybertron and use Dark Energon to revive all the dead. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 4}} Despite the Autobots' best efforts to damage the ''Nemesis'' and prevent the bridge from opening, Megatron succeeded in his plans, and then had his showdown with Optimus Prime atop the bridge itself as he waited for the Terrorcon legions to pass through to Earth. While the two old foes battled, the other Autobots sabotaged the bridge, causing it to explode and destroy both the Terrorcon army and seemingly Megatron himself. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 5}}[[File:Masters&Students-Megatronstasis.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|Well, it's better than just [[Megatron (Animated)|being a head]] I suppose.]]

The Autobots were not so lucky, however: the Dark Energon in his spark allowed Megatron to survive the explosion, but just barely. When Starscream found his leader floating in space, he tore the Dark Energon from his body in the hope that he would expire, but was caught in the act by [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]]'s [[Deployer (WFC)|Deployer]], [[Laserbeak (WFC)|Laserbeak]], and forced to take Megatron back to the ''Nemesis'', where he was placed in [[Stasis lock|stasis]] in the sick bay. {{storylink|Masters & Students}}

Starscream was content to leave Megatron in this state to recover or expire as fate saw fit, but the crew of the ''Nemesis'' disagreed, and voted to bring in the Decepticon medic [[Knock Out (Prime)|Knock Out]] to help heal their wounded leader. But the discovery of an [[Energon Harvester]] forced them to push off Megatron's recovery. {{storylink|Deus ex Machina}} Even with Knock Out's expertise, it seemed unlikely that Megatron would recover, but his assistant [[Breakdown (WFC)|Breakdown]] gave his body a good buffing nonetheless, and Starscream approved, as it meant their ex-leader would look his best for the memorial service. {{storylink|Speed Metal}}



[[File:SickMind megs and bee.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Hey, [[Megatron (Animated)|you]] really ''are'' [[Transform and Roll Out|uglier from this angle]]!]]

When Optimus Prime was infected by cybonic plague, Arcee and [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]] boarded the ''Nemesis'' to search for an antidote. While they failed to find one in the database, the two Autobots did discover Megatron in stasis, and Bumblebee mind-linked with the Decepticon leader via a [[cortical psychic patch]] to try and pluck the cure from his sleeping brain. Bumblebee found himself within Megatron's mind, which took the form of [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]], where the Decepticon's subconscious was spending its time killing endless visions of Optimus Primes. Unfortunately, Bumblebee's intrusion only caused Megatron to become aware of his situation when he found he was unable to kill Bumblebee. Learning what had befallen Optimus, Megatron initially refused to give up the cure until Bumblebee convinced him that he would gain greater satisfaction from finishing his enemy off with his own two hands. Megatron offered the cure in exchange for Bumblebee's help in escaping his mental prison, but Bumblebee double-crossed him, withdrawing from his mind as soon as the cure was in Autobot hands. At the last moment, Megatron was able to effect his own escape, leaping into Bumblebee's mind along with him. {{storylink|Sick Mind}} [[File:OutofhisHead megatron revived.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|IT'S... AAALLLLLIIIIIIIIVE!]] Recalling the sliver of Dark Energon Starscream had removed from his body, Megatron took full control of Bumblebee's body a short time later and used the GroundBridge to return to the ancient battlefield where he had raised his original Terrorcons, recovering the Dark Energon shard he had used to do so. He returned to the [[Autobot Outpost Omega One|Autobot base]], where he dealt with Ratchet and [[Raf Esquivel|Raf]] before again GroundBridging to the ''Nemesis'' and using the Dark Energon to restore his body and return his mind to it. Storming out of the ''Nemesis'' to find Starscream, Megatron snatched his subordinate out of the air in the middle of a battle with Optimus Prime and took him back for his punishment. {{storylink|Out of His Head}}

[[File:Shadowzone-MegsStarscream.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Lulz.]]

Despite his treason, Megatron decided not to terminate Starscream, viewing him as no real threat and taking perverse amusement in his repeated failures. {{storylink|Rock Bottom}} Instead, Megatron proceeded to beat Starscream only to ''near'' death, then had him placed in the infirmary, occasionally visiting to gloat. {{storylink|Shadowzone (episode)|Shadowzone}}

When Breakdown was captured by the humans of [[MECH]], Megatron refuted Starscream's suggestion that they rescue him, announcing that if Breakdown had allowed himself to be captured by those weaker than him, then he deserved whatever he got. {{storylink|Operation: Breakdown}} Breakdown did manage to escape, however, and in his wounded pride, volunteered to recover a [[polarity gauntlet]] for Megatron in order to prove his worth. Megatron was disappointed when his minion returned without the gauntlet, but was placated by the revelation that he had instead brought back [[Airachnid (Prime)|Airachnid]]. {{storylink|Metal Attraction}}

[[File:RockBottom-Starscreamprays.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|left|{{w|Loki (Marvel Comics)|In the end, you will always kneel}}.]]
Discovering that Starscream was still attempting to mine energon for his personal use without his knowledge, Megatron determined that the amusement had come to an end. Taking him to the mine in question, Megatron revealed that he had been aware of Starscream's previous transgressions the whole time thanks to Soundwave, and was about to execute his groveling lieutenant when [[Jack Darby]] and [[Arcee (WFC)|Arcee]] walked in. Seeing red at the sight of the Autobot and her pet, Megatron opened fire on them, giving Starscream time to escape, an act that only increased Megatron's rage. Unfortunately, Megatron's carelessness with his shots
ultimately brought the mine down on top of them all, with Megatron being completely pinned by rubble. Jack happened upon the Decepticon leader with a mining drill, and Megatron, knowing that the human would not help him, instead urged Jack to finish him off. Jack refused, saying that wasn't what Optimus would do, and left, but the opening he had created allowed Megatron to begin his escape. After finally extricating himself, Megatron came upon Starscream trying to keep a large rock from crushing him. Starscream insisted that he had come to rescue Megatron, and begged the Decepticon leader to spare him, and Megatron acquiesced with a smirk. {{storylink|Rock Bottom}}

Though Megatron allowed Starscream to live and continue as his second-in-command, he was furious to learn from Airachnid that Starscream had kept the location of the ''[[Harbinger]]'' from him. He ordered Starscream to lead Airachnid to the crash site and retrieve an [[Immobilizer|experimental weapon]] that was inside. Much to Megatron's fury, Airachnid returned not only without the weapon, but with the news that Starscream had been captured by the Autobots as well. {{storylink|Partners (Prime)|Partners}}

[[File:StrongerFaster-KnockOutMegatronRatchet.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|"Steroids?" "Yup." "Ah."]]

When a formula for [[Synthetic Energon]] was transferred from a [[Cybertronian data cylinder]] into the mind of the Autobot [[Bulkhead (Prime)|Bulkhead]], Optimus Prime petitioned Megatron for the return of the cylinder so they could extract the formula, after which they would willingly hand it over. Megatron briefly considered the proposal, but instead sent Knock Out and Breakdown to capture Bulkhead and dared Prime to fight for the cylinder. When his Vehicon troops were defeated, Megatron simply crushed the device and took flight. {{storylink|T.M.I.}} The synthetic energon formula helped the Autobots counter Megatron's next tactic: causing the Autobots to burn through their energon supplies at an accelerated rate by leading them on wild goose chases. Juiced up on the "SynthEn", Ratchet attacked Megatron and Knock Out while they were surveying an energon mine, and sent the Decepticon leader flying with one punch. Unfortunately for Ratchet, Megatron swiftly recovered and subdued the Autobot medic with ease. {{storylink|Stronger, Faster}}

[[File:PrimeEp23-Megatronjetmode.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|Damnit, jet mode! Hold still so we can screencap you!]]

Convinced by Dark Energon-induced visions that an impending prophecy detailed his own destiny, Megatron stepped up the Decepticons' work in constructing a new space bridge so they could obtain more Dark Energon. When they located the last component they needed, Megatron went in personally, grievously wounding Raf with a blast of Dark Energon on the way and creating an unintended distraction that allowed him to make off with the power source he needed. Soon after, Megatron lured Optimus Prime to a volcano he had seen in his visions, and during their battle, it erupted with Dark Energon, imbuing Megatron with the power he needed to fell Prime. {{storylink|One Shall Fall}} [[File:OneShallFall-visionfulfilled.jpg|thumb|255px|Look, Prime! Look at the fireworks! Aren't they splendid?!]] The intervention of the other Autobots saved Prime's life, but this was of little concern to Megatron, who now had all the Dark Energon he needed and set his miners to work gathering it up. When Soundwave detected a spark-beat coming from within the Earth, Megatron felt it pounding through his brain and realized what his visions had meant: the lifeforce of Unicron himself dwelt within Earth. Leaving Airachnid in command, Megatron flew into the volcano to address Unicron, but did not receive the power he had hoped the chaos-bringer would bestow on him, instead receiving Unicron's displeasure at the fact that Optimus Prime still lived. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 1}}

Spurned, Megatron instead went to the aid of Optimus and his Autobots, who were under attack from Unicron's stone avatars. He offered Optimus his services—he intended to lead them to Unicron's real form so that Optimus could use the [[Matrix of Leadership]] on the Chaos God. While the Autobots returned to base, Megatron kept the giant stone Unicrons busy, and Prime eventually accepted Megatron's offer. On arrival in the Autobot base, Megatron encountered a couple of humans he recognized, Raf and Jack, as well as a [[Miko Nakadai|new loud one]]. Megatron was first to step through the GroundBridge into the [[Earth's core]], and as the Autobots followed, he warned them that Unicron already knew they were there. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 2}}

[[File:OneShallRise3-together.jpg|thumb|255px|left|"Just this once, we work together! Mortal enemies working together for the common good!" "Be quiet!"]]

Despite the persistent influence of Unicron, Megatron led the Autobots through Unicron's insides, even helping them fight off [[Unicron's antibodies|anti-bots]]. The Dark Energon he was imbued with allowed him to enter Unicron's spark chamber with Optimus, though at that point Unicron's influence became so great that the Chaos God was able to commandeer his body. After Optimus unleashed the power of the Matrix, apparently extinguishing Unicron's spark, Megatron went to kill Optimus, only to discover his foe had lost his memory and now believed himself to be Orion Pax. Megatron convinced Optimus that the other Autobots were enemies, and the pair returned to the ''Nemesis'', where Megatron introduced "Orion Pax" to his men. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}}

[[File:Orion-Pax-Part-1-OP-Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|"Megatron, what happened? Where did you go wrong?" "Uh, watch ''Revenge of the Sith''. I know I'm not in it, but it pretty much sums it all up."]]

Megatron wasted no time in spinning a tale of Autobot warlord Ratchet and the destruction of Cybertron, and put Orion Pax to work decoding data from the [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] archives for a [[Project Iacon|project]] of the same name. Though aware that at some point Orion would find out the truth, Megatron made all precautions to make sure that didn't happen before Orion finished his work. Knock Out was ordered to set up Orion's work station a mere few inches away from the Energon storage vault.

During Orion's decoding, the archivist noted several references to Starscream as being Megatron's second in command. As part of his deception, Megatron claimed Starscream to be dead, and ordered Soundwave to carefully remove Arcee from the ship with a GroundBridge. Arachnid offered to destroy the bike bot herself, but Megatron feared that Orion would become weary of their activity's should he bare witness to an Autobot's destruction. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 1}} Megatron attempted to cover for a surprise visit by Starscream when he managed to sneak aboard the ship. Orion asked why Megatron lied, but the con leader stated that Starscream as "dead" to their cause for joining the Autobots. However, Starscream's visit caused Orion to uncover the truth and find out that he was, in fact, Optimus Prime, the so-called leader of the Autobot "invaders". Soundwave notified Megatron of Orion finding information on Optimus Prime, and Megatron realized that harsher methods would be necessary to complete [[Project Iacon]]. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 2}}

[[File:OrionPax3 Megatron threatens Orion.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Do you see what's in your teeth ''NOW''?!]]

Megatron payed Orion a visit to expose Orion's findings. Orion demanded to know the full truth, but Megatron refused, causing Orion to delete his findings. Fortunately, Soundwave had recorded his findings, and the data was saved. Soundwave also informed Megatron of the activity at the space bridge and went there to find that the Autobots had taken control of it, and that one of their [[Insecticon (WFC)|traps]] on Cybertron was activated. Megatron ordered the guards to watch Orion while he went out and threatened to kill the archivist if he had not completed the project. Megatron realized that the Autobots must have been searching for a way to restore Orion to Optimus. Megatron arrived at the space bridge and defeated the trio of Autobots present, and waited for Arcee to return from the open space bridge with the Matrix in her possession. When Orion had overpowered his guards and came to attack Megatron, Orion declared his loyalty to the Autobots, pulled out his blades, and attacked Megatron. The amnesiac Autobot was no match for him. While the Decepticon leader was subsequently kept busy by Arcee, Jack returned the Matrix to Orion, who regained his memory and left with the Autobots, leaving Megatron screaming furiously at his failure. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 3}}

[[File:OperationBumblebee1 spark extractor.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Now ''I'' have [[The Touch]].]]

Following the first of the artifact coordinates left by Orion, Megatron and his men unearthed the [[spark extractor|Spark Extractor]]. While Megatron was bringing it back through the GroundBridge, it was taken from him by Bumblebee. He then ordered Knock Out and Breakdown to retrieve another artifact before Bulkhead and Bumblebee did. {{storylink|Operation Bumblebee, Part 1}} Megatron was pleased when Knock Out returned with a force field generator, quickly demonstrating the object's power with a cannon-blast. Megatron himself joined the mission to get the third artifact, and managed to secure the [[Forge of Solus Prime]] by holding a prone Bulkhead hostage. Unfortunately, he discovered that the Forge wouldn't work without the power of a Prime behind it. {{Storylink|Operation Bumblebee, Part 2}}

When [[Dreadwing (Prime)|Dreadwing]] arrived on Earth, Megatron filled him in on what had happened to his brother Skyquake, but warned him not to seek revenge on his own. When Dreadwing did anyway, Megatron figured that would be the last they saw of him, although he was glad that Dreadwing both survived and learned his lesson. {{storylink|Loose Cannons}}

[[File:Crossfire Megatron and Insecticon close together.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|"You do know that you'll be splattered across the ceiling after this screencap, right?"]]

Reminded of Airachnid's past treachery, Megatron tasked Dreadwing with ridding them of her. Dreadwing not only failed, but returned minus Breakdown, much to Megatron's disgust. Megatron responded to Airachnid's later communication by attempting to get rid of her himself. Although she set an [[Insecticon (WFC)|Insecticon]] on him, the mighty Megatron eventually prevailed against it. The fight took all of his strength, and he was subsequently surrounded by Autobots. With Dreadwing's help, he escaped and made Dreadwing his new [[second-in-command]]. {{storylink|Crossfire (Prime)|Crossfire}}

Megatron responded to reports of Starscream on the ship and found not one but four [[Starscream clone (Prime)|Starscreams]] on the bridge. After attempting to appeal to their treacherous nature, he took advantage of a diversion to offline three of them before the fourth escaped. The diversion turned out to be a mass Insecticon attack, but after a fight, the Insecticons suddenly stopped and announced they were loyal to him. Then the ''Nemesis'' crashed. {{storylink|Armada (episode)|Armada}} Megatron got the ship moving again using Dark Energon, but when it exhibited its own intelligence and refused to follow his orders, he tried to shut it down, only to be put into stasis lock. He only awoke when the kids reversed the energon flow. {{storylink|Flying Mind}}

As Knock Out prepared to go and try to find the first of the four relics which the ship had found the location of, Megatron instructed him to take an Insecticon as muscle. {{storylink|Tunnel Vision}} Megatron then sent Dreadwing to [[Antarctica]] to find the relic there {{storylink|Triangulation}} and then sent [[Hardshell]] and three other Insecticons to a volcanic area at the equator, {{storylink|Toxicity}} before sending Soundwave to find the last relic.

He was impressed with the [[Resonance Blaster]] Soundwave found, but less so with Dreadwing and Knock Out, the latter of whom returned looking like he'd been run over by a train. After they found a grenade implanted in Laserbeak, Megatron set Soundwave back to work decoding the Iacon database. {{storylink|Triage (episode)|Triage}} His rage over Hardshell's failure was mollified when the Insecticon claimed to have offlined Bulkhead, but when they later got a call from [[Wheeljack (Prime)|Wheeljack]] revealing Bulkhead was still alive, Megatron demanded Hardshell bring him Wheeljack's spark as a substitute. Instead Hardshell's corpse was brought back before him, and Megatron was shocked to learn a [[Miko Nakadai|human girl]] was responsible. {{storylink|Hurt}}

[[File:TheHumanFactor Cylas and Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Soundwave, please arrange our guest a carwash.]]
After sending Knock Out to investigate Breakdown's signal coming back online, Megatron expressed distaste at the Breakdown/[[Silas]] hybrid who was brought to the ship. Nevertheless, he allowed "Cylas" the opportunity to prove himself worthy of a place in the Decepticon ranks by supplying them with a [[Project Damocles]] satellite. Though the initial results were promising, he sent Cylas to terminate Raf when the boy's hacking threatened to railroad their plans. When Cylas failed to do so and the satellite was stopped, Megatron called him back, and handed the former MECH commander over to Knock Out for dissection. {{storylink|The Human Factor}}

[[File:Legacy-ohcrap.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Looks like [[Sari Sumdac (Animated)|Sari]] told Megatron where babies come from.]]

When Soundwave decoded another set of Iacon relic coordinates, Megatron initiated a decoy relic beacon to give them the advantage over the Autobots, and went to fetch the latest relic with a team. Though hoping it would be a Decepticon weapon, Megatron was stunned when it turned out to be the [[Star Saber (Prima)|Star Saber]]. When he was unable to extract the sword, he had the Decepticons chip away a chunk of the mountain to be hauled away by the ''Nemesis'' in an effort to ensure it did not fall in Optimus's hands. Unfortunately, the arrival of [[Smokescreen (Prime)|a new Autobot]] delayed them long enough that the other Autobots discovered the deception. Optimus quickly managed to get hold of the sword despite Megatron's best efforts, and as the Autobot leader unleashed the sword's power, Megatron was forced to retreat in his ship, noting it was now the Decepticons' darkest hour. {{storylink|Legacy (episode)|Legacy}}

[[File:AlphaOmegaDarkStarSaber.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|[[Emperor Palpatine|It's treason then...]]]]

Coming up with a new plan to combat the Star Saber, Megatron took Dreadwing through the space bridge to Cybertron, and broke into the tomb of a Prime. After having Knock Out graft the Prime's arm onto Megatron, he was finally able to use the Forge of Solus Prime to forge a [[Dark Star Saber]] with some of his Dark Energon. Once Soundwave decrypted a new set of coordinates, he got the opportunity to test it on Arcee and Smokescreen when the pair found the first [[Omega Key]], whom he swept aside with ease. With new-found confidence, Megatron challenged Prime to a duel, and though his new sword cleaved right through the Star Saber, Megatron was unable to stop the Autobots from getting away with the Omega Key. {{storylink|Alpha/Omega}} Gloating of his destruction of the Star Saber, he allowed Knock Out the opportunity to retrieve the next relic. Upon his return with another Omega Key, Megatron was intrigued by the relic, believing it to be part of a larger piece, and put the doctor to work analyzing it. He was less impressed with Dreadwing who returned empty handed from his mission, and asserted that they needed to locate the Autobot base to recover their relics. Then Soundwave decrypted the final part of the Iacon databse, revealing Smokescreen to be relevant to their search. {{storylink|Hard Knocks}}

[[File:PatchMegatronStarscream.JPG|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Because we haven't seen this before.]]

After they extracted the Omega Key from Smokescreen, Megatron had Knock Out perform a cortical psychic patch procedure on the Autobot to learn their purpose. After discovering that all four could be used to revitalize Cybertron, he left Knock Out to find out where the Autobot base was, Megatron went to place the Omega Key in storage. However Smokescreen escaped and snatched it out of his grasp and made off with the other key as well. Though Megatron and his men gave pursuit as the Autobot jumped off their ship, Smokescreen got away. The Decepticon leader told Dreadwing they would need to locate the Autobot base quickly to retrieve the other keys, only to find Starscream on the bridge, with all four of the Omega Keys as a peace offering. {{storylink|Inside Job}} Intending to find what Starscream really planned, Megatron had himself plugged into the rogue Decepticon with a psychic patch. Despite most of Starscream's memories turning out to be incriminating, he was eventually convinced to allow Starscream to rejoin the Decepticon ranks. {{storylink|Patch (episode)|Patch}}

Megatron attempted to stress to Dreadwing that the Decepticons needed to be united. Unfortunately Dreadwing was more interested in slagging Starscream, and Megatron had to blow a hole through him. Once the location of the [[Omega Lock]] was established, Megatron took the Keys to Cybertron to find it. He and his men were attacked by the Autobots, who got away with the Keys while Megatron was otherwise occupied with the spark extractor. With some help from Starscream, Megatron got hold of the Autobots' human friends to use as a bargaining chip to secure the return of the Keys. {{storylink|Regeneration (Prime)|Regeneration}}

[[File:DarkestHour-thisistheplace.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4]]

Once he had the Keys back, Megatron had the lock activated and revealed that he intended to use it on both Cybertron and Earth so he'd have two worlds to rule, starting with Earth. Shockingly, this news resulted in Optimus slicing Megatron's sword arm off before destroying the Omega Lock. Though the Autobots escaped, Megatron would have the last laugh, as he knew the location of their base and used the Omega Lock to create a fortress there before Optimus destroyed it. If he could not conquer Cybertron, he could at least conquer Earth. From the ''Nemesis'', he and his men attacked and destroyed the Autobot base as their first act of aggression. {{storylink|Darkest Hour (episode)|Darkest Hour}}

As the Decepticons were unable to find any corpses in the rubble, Megatron ordered worldwide surveillance, and even got an opportunity to test his [[Darkmount (Earth)|new citadel]]'s fusion cannons on some foolishly attacking [[human]]s. After having his original right arm reattached to replace the one Prime severed, Megatron contacted [[William Fowler|Agent Fowler]], claiming to want to co-exist peacefully with humanity. With the continuing failure of Starscream to get any information out of the captive Wheeljack, Megatron sent Knock Out to Cybertron to search for the relics lost during the Omega Lock battle. He was pleased when Knock Out returned with the long lost [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]]. {{storylink|Darkmount, NV}} Megatron appointed Shockwave his first lieutenant in charge of science. With failures mounting, including an aborted attempt by Starscream to track down the Autobots by freeing Wheeljack with a tracking device attached, Megatron's anger grew, leading Shockwave to bring to Earth a [[Predacon (Prime)|Predacon]] he had cloned. {{storylink|Scattered}} The [[Predaking (Prime)|beast]] was dispatched, but to Megatron's disappointment it returned empty-handed. {{storylink|Prey (episode)|Prey}}

[[File:Rebellion-prepunch.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|"Right here - go on, right in the chest!"]]

Megatron was furious when Starscream scattered their troops in pursuit of phantom Autobot signals, shortly before Darkmount itself was attacked. The Decepticon leader cut short [[Ultra Magnus (WFC)|Ultra Magnus]]'s attempt to assault the fusion cannon control room, and ordered the Autobots executed. Before this could be done, Optimus Prime turned up, comprehensively beating up Megatron and throwing him into the fusion cannon power core. Despite his protests, the other Decepticons dragged Megatron back to the ''Nemesis'' before the Autobots brought the citadel crashing to the ground. {{storylink|Rebellion (Prime)|Rebellion}}

Instead the Decepticons turned their attentions to cloning, with Megatron ordering the creation of more Predacons. {{storylink|Project Predacon}} When the existing Predacon returned, Megatron ordered Starscream to take command of it. He later dispatched the beast and his first lieutenant to [[Scotland]] when a team searching for fossils there failed to report in. {{storylink|Chain of Command (Prime)|Chain of Command}} Megatron was displeased when it turned out Starscream had lost the Apex Armor, and was even less impressed when Starscream caused damage to the communications dish. Knock Out, at least, did not disappoint the Decepticon leader when he returned with another Predacon fossil. {{storylink|Plus One (Prime)|Plus One}} After some near-missteps in gathering the fossils required, Megatron hinted Shockwave should restrict himself to working in the laboratory in future. {{storylink|Project Predacon}}

Megatron discovered that Knock Out and Starscream had been experimenting with Synthetic Energon and had accidentally created a zombie-like plague. After the situation resulted in Airachnid being freed and the loss of the Insecticons, Megatron gave Knock Out orders to turn all of his experiments over to Shockwave, and reserved a ''special'' punishment for Starscream. {{storylink|Thirst}}

[[File:Evolution-Potentialcoup.jpg|thumb|upright=1.67|[[Darth Vader|"I want them alive... No disintegrations!"]]]]

During a visit to Shockwave's off-site laboratory, Megatron was shocked to learn that the Predacon could transform and was intelligent enough to speak. Though [[Predaking (Prime)|Predaking]] affirmed he was loyal to Megatron, the Decepticon leader suspected that once Predaking discovered that the Predacons were superior to ordinary Decepticons, he would turn against them. The Decepticons quickly realized they'd need to terminate Shockwave's cloning process, and Starscream came up with a plan to pin it on the Autobots which succeeded splendidly. In the aftermath of the explosion, the Decepticons discovered that the Synthetic Energon stored in the lab had created Cybermatter. {{storylink|Evolution}}

With this discovery in mind, Megatron put Shockwave in charge of perfecting the Synthetic Energon formula, however they quickly realized that the Omega Lock would need to be repaired to allow for its targeted delivery, and that Ratchet would be needed to complete the formula. Megatron told Shockwave he had decided that Earth and Cybertron were two halves of the same coin, and he intended to rule both. As the Autobots continued to interfere in their plans, Megatron had Predaking take part in protecting the Vehicons, though he insisted it be done with the Predacon in [[beast mode]]. {{storylink|Minus One}}

[[File:Synthesis Megatron and Predaking.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|[[Sam Witwicky]] [[Megatron (Movie)|can't]] [[Transformers (film)|save]] [[Predaking (Prime)|you]] [[Aligned continuity family|here]]!]]

After the Decepticons captured Ratchet and failed to extract the information they needed via cortical psychic patch, Megatron turned on the charm. Once he showed Ratchet the Omega Lock they'd reconstructed, the Autobot reluctantly agreed to help them. {{storylink|Persuasion}} Despite several missteps which he encouraged his men to correct, Megatron was pleased when the Synth-En formula was perfected, and promptly rewarded Ratchet by giving the Autobot to Predaking as a chew toy. Unfortunately Ratchet turned Predaking against him, and Megatron found himself facing the Predacon in combat. With some help from Starscream, Megatron defeated Predaking and expelled him from the ship, however the Decepticons then found their warship under attack from the Autobots. {{storylink|Synthesis}}

[[File:Tfp megatron impaled.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Megatron killed by... Bumblebee!? It could happen... ONLY ON [[Hub Network|THE HUUUUB]]!]]

Megatron intercepted Optimus Prime, damaging the Autobot's [[jet pack]], and proceeded to duel with his foe atop the Omega Lock, all the while giving orders to Shockwave to prepare the Lock for firing. When Bumblebee attempted to pass Optimus the Star Saber, Megatron blasted the scout, killing him. He prepared to finish off Optimus as well, but Bumblebee was restored by the Omega Lock and ran Megatron through with the Star Saber. Megatron's lifeless body fell from the Omega Lock and plummeted Earthward. {{storylink|Deadlock (episode)|Deadlock}}

[[File:Predaconsrising-chaosandcreation.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Seriously, how are you ''not'' Galvatron?]]
Megatron's body lay at the bottom of the ocean until it was revived and restructured by Unicron. Megatron found himself a prisoner in his own body, tortured by his new master and unable to do anything other than observe. Unicron returned to Cybertron, intending to destroy the planet and end Primus. Megatron tricked him into fighting Predaking, reasoning that if their shared body was damaged enough, Unicron would leave it; however, Unicron managed to beat Predaking and raised an army of Predacon Terrorcons with which to attack Cybertron's core. Megatron was only finally freed when Optimus tricked Unicron, drawing the dark god's anti-spark into a suitable container. Though Starscream believed Megatron would once again lead the Decepticons, Megatron had tasted oppression and no longer wished to inflict it, declaring the Decepticon movement dead and flying off. {{storylink|Predacons Rising (Prime)|Predacons Rising}}
[[File:PredaconsRising - TrueMeaningOfOppression.jpg|thumb|center|400px|I may look like I need a bath now, but it’s better than getting thrown into Cybertron’s core screaming.]]
{{--}}

===Titan ''Prime'' comic===
[[File:Titan4.2 Megatron Soundwave piggyback.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.2|The kiddy-friendly comics have Megatron giving piggy-back rides.]]

Under Megatron's leadership, the Decepticons conquered many city states including [[Kalis]], [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]], and [[Vos (polity)|Vos]]. When the time came to strike against [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]], Megatron led a five-con team in under the cover of darkness to bomb the [[Iacon Energon Refinery]]. They had barely planted the first bomb when they were spotted and fired on. After the other three Decepticons were shot down, Megatron gave Soundwave a bomb and set about causing a distraction while his second-in-command went to plant it. When Soundwave was also shot down, Megatron flew into action, helping up the rest of his team and carrying Soundwave as they retreated under the cover of an exploding bomb. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.2|War Story}}

With a new plan, Megatron took [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]] to attack the [[Yamal|NS ''Yamal'']], a Russian icebreaker near [[Antarctica]]. He intended to use a [[static lance]] to cause the ship's reactors to meltdown exposing energon deposits beneath the ice. Unfortunately Optimus got wind of the plan and came storming in. As Megatron detailed his plan during their one-on-one fight, Optimus took possession of the lance. Megatron attempted to take it back, only for Optimus to hit him with it. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.3|Ice Breaker}}

[[File:Titan4.11 Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Megatron works part-time at the Autobot Hotel providing alarm calls.]]

Megatron and Soundwave somehow slipped some code into ''[[Invasionauts II]]'' to hypnotize Raf into opening the GroundBridge so they could send Vehicons through. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.4|Tinker, Tailor, Gamer, Spy!}} Irritated at Starscream's failure to end the Autobot problem, Megatron demanded his subordinate try and lure the Autobots into a trap instead for fruitlessly searching for them. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.6|All the President's 'Bots!}}

Now infuriated at his army being constantly bested by the Autobots, Megatron took the ''Nemesis'' to the [[Erta Ale volcano]] where he had his troops fight in a series of deathmatches to apply the principle of survival of the fittest. He forced Starscream to fight [[Fearstorm]], and when Starscream won, seemed happy enough to let his lieutenant return to the ship. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.7|Megatron's Law}} After Bulkhead destroyed an energon store, Megatron had him captured and taken aboard the warship, where the Autobot was placed in the newly developed [[Ultra Prison]]. Megatron sneeringly informed Bulkhead that the prison would slowly wipe his mind, but it was Megatron who got the raw end of the deal when the ''Nemesis'' was badly damaged during the inevitable Autobot rescue. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.11|The Battle for Bulkhead}}

Intending to show the pitiful humans that their independence was only temporary, Megatron attempted to stage a media circus in which he destroyed the [[Statue of Liberty]]. Unfortunately only Bumblebee and Optimus turned up, and though Megatron tried his best to wreck the statue, Optimus caused more damage to it in the process of defeating him than he did himself. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.13|Protecting the Lady}}

Leaving Starscream in charge of the Nemesis, Megatron returned to find it practically destroyed. He was met by Starscream, who told him the apparent course of events; ''some random Vehicon'' created an unauthorised Predacon clone, which ran amok, before Starscream ''bravely killed it''. Starscream also had ''totally not faked'' video footage to prove it! Despite the Vehicon's protests, Megatron executed him. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.20|Starscream's Beast}}

====Mega-Mouth====
Megatron occasionally takes time out from conquering the universe to...answer fan mail? He also sometimes seems [[Megatron (Movie)|confused]] about which multiverse he hails from, as he claimed he attacked [[Sentinel Prime (ROTF)|Sentinel]] {{storylink|Transformers_Comic_issue_4.1#Mega-Mouth|Mega-Mouth #1}} and also explained why he wore a cowl in ''[[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Dark of the Moon]].'' {{storylink|Transformers_Comic_issue_4.4#Mega-Mouth|Mega-Mouth #4}} He also said he survived ''Dark of the Moon'', after some fan asked how Megatron could be answering fan mail. {{storylink|Transformers_Comic_issue_4.5#Mega-Mouth|Mega-Mouth #5}}
{{--}}

===''Tales of the Beast Hunters''===
After [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] intercepted a message pointing to a derelict starship containing weapons in the [[asteroid belt]], Megatron and [[Predaking (Prime)|Predaking]] headed out to find it. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 2}} They got there and found [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]] and [[Wheeljack (Prime)|Wheeljack]] about to make off with the weapons. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 4}} After [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]] joined the battle, {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 5}} the ship began to explode, and Megatron plunged through the floor along with tons of debris. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 6}}

Injured, Megatron lay beneath the wreckage in the ship, using his damaged comms to monitor events on Earth. Finally his groping hands found an [[Tartarex Warp Sword|ancient weapon]], which used the surrounding debris to repair and rebuild him. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 22}} He returned to Earth and blasted the top off a mountain, {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 23}} intending to make a preemptive strike against the Predacons. The Predacons promptly flew up to engage him in combat. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 24}}

===Full of Fire!===
Disgruntled at the lack of progress in Predacon cloning, Megatron complained to Shockwave, who revealed that the cloning had already borne fruit. Megatron was pleased, though not so much when Predaking and the five new Predacons returned having been defeated by the Autobots. He believed that the Autobots now knew the extent of the Predacon army, however Shockwave was quick to reveal that there were a whole lot more Predacon clones ready to go. {{storylink|Full of Fire!}}

===''Transformers: The Ultimate Pop-Up Universe''===
Once an idealistic young miner, Megatron was forced into the gladiatorial ring, which eventually lead him to become the brutal and ruthless leader of the Decepticons. He once crushed the Autobot [[Bumper (WFC)|Bumper]]'s legs with his tank mode. {{storylink|Transformers: The Ultimate Pop-Up Universe|The Ultimate Pop-Up Universe}}

===2015 ''Robots in Disguise'' cartoon===
Though Megatron was nowhere to be seen, a statue of him was erected on the reborn Cybertron. {{storylink|Pilot (Part 1)}} After [[Cyclonus (WFC)|Cyclonus]]' Decepticon cell had taken over the [[Autobot High Council|High Council]], they began making preparations for Megatron's return, either unaware of, or unwilling to believe, the former gladiator renouncing conquest. {{storylink|Freedom Fighters}}

As he had "helped save the universe from Starscream, Megatron, and Dark Energon," Bumblebee refused to be defeated by [[Bisk (RID)|Bisk]]. {{storylink|More than Meets the Eye (RID)|More than Meets the Eye}} [[Fixit (RID)|Fixit]] once thought a map looked like Megatron's face. {{storylink|W.W.O.D.?}} During their battle, Drift mistook [[The Fallen|Megatronus]] for Megatron. {{storylink|Battlegrounds, Part 2}} Megatron was "light years away" by the time [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] managed to escape the [[Shadowzone (dimension)|Shadowzone]]. {{storylink|Portals}}

As the High Council's plans neared completion, they genetically engineered a quartet of Activator [[Mini-Con]]s to help free Soundwave from the Shadowzone, with the intent that the communication chief summon Megatron so he could lead the Decepticons back to glory. The [[Bee Team (RID)|Bee Team]] thwarted Soundwave, however. Upon confronting the High Council, the Decepticons combined into [[Galvatronus (RID)|Galvatronus]] who decided that the [[Decepticon Empire]] would be reborn and thriving for whenever Megatron returned. {{storylink|Collateral Damage}} {{storylink|Freedom Fighters}}

===2015 ''Robots in Disguise'' books===
An Energon thief came to Megatron's attention and joined the Decepticon army as [[Drift (RID)|Deadlock]]. {{storylink|Drift's Samurai Showdown}}

==Commercial appearances==
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English)}}

*During the war on Cybertron, Megatron had to briefly leave the battlefield, and left [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] in charge. Shockwave took the opportunity to order Soundwave to transform into his boombox mode and play "[[The Touch]]" while he blasted Autobots. {{storylink|Commercial#War for Cybertron|Gamestop Exclusive TV spot}}
*Megatron, {{w|Dan Vs.|Dan}}, and [[Pinkie Pie]] sang a collaborative group song while the scene quickly shifted between a variety of strange alternate universes. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Summer|The Hub summer promo 2011}}
{{quote|{{w|Meatballs (film)|Are you ready for the summer? Are you ready for the hot <s>nuts</s> nights?}}|Megatron}}
*At some point he ended up in detention at a school because he had "anger issues". {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Detention|The Hub promo}}
*He later joined back up with Pinkie Pie as well as other ponies [[Rainbow Dash]] and [[Applejack]], and [[Bulkhead (Prime)|Bulkhead]] in scatting "{{w|Deck the Halls}}" {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Carolers1|The Hub Carolers}} and singing "{{w|Jingle Bells}}". {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Carolers2|The Hub Carolers (Second spot)}}
*He also demanded that viewers vote for him in the Hub's 2010 "Naughty or Nice" contest. They must have been listening, because he was eventually voted the "Naughtiest" villain on the Hub that year.

[[File:MegatronCareBear.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|''Megatron is on the right'' One wonders where exactly the other Care Bear came from.]]

*Megatron declared the Hub his in a commercial for a marathon of ''Prime'' season 1 and 2, {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Darkest Hour|Darkest Hour promo}} doing certain Hub-focused jokes and gags before the commercial breaks during the marathon. One such segment showed [[The Transformers (cartoon)|his home movies]], during which reminisced on how [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|young he looked back then]] and mocked [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave's]] dated choice of alt mode. In other commercials for the marathon, it is revealed that out of all the radio transmissions in the universe, the ''[[My Little Pony]]: Friendship Is Magic'' [[theme song|theme]] is his favorite song, {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Song|Megatron's Favorite Song}} and that he has been working on new transformations, demonstrating his ability to [[Pretender|transform]] into Funshine Bear, a {{w|Care Bears|Care Bear}}, much to his humiliation. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Care Bear|Megatron Transforms into a Care Bear}} Also during the marathon; he commented on how his favorite reason that transformers were superior to humans was that transformers didn't need bathroom breaks. He also commented that the one thing he doesn't get about Autobots is their continuation of transforming into land-based vehicles (not complaining, just observing). He also expressed bewilderment over the way [[United States of America|Americans]] elect [[President of the United States|their leader]] through [[Democracy|democratic means]], rather than just killing off the competition like he would do. He also apologized to [[ALF]] for pre-empting his show, allowing the program to air at a later date under his regime. The only humans that Megatron admitted to liking were those that cower before him and Dan, due to his anger.
*Despite Megatron's might, Raf judged him inferior to {{w|Time Warner Cable}}'s ability to transmit ''Transformers: Prime'' on laptop, tablet and smartphone computers, as demonstrated by a [[Raf's media device|device]] which switched between all three forms. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Time Warner|Time Warner Cable: Competiton}}
*While lounging around the Nemesis, Megatron answered questions about his personal life, took requests from fans, and offered advice to the disillusioned and directionless. He shot down one girl who asked him to the prom, told a guy that the best way to get noticed by chicks is to transform into a jet, suggested that pound cake is the most superior of all baked desserts, and revealed that his ideal form of relaxation involves drawing [[Rainbow Dash]] fanart. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Ask Megatron|Ask Megatron}}
*Megatron narrated ''{{w|A Visit from St. Nicholas}}'' for his troops, which was interrupted by three Vehicons discussing the stirring practices of mice. Megatron threatened to put them on the naughty list. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Naughty List|30-Second Holiday Special: "Decepticon Holidays: Naughty List"}} Megatron shouted down several Vehicons singing about figgy pudding. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Pudding|30-Second Holiday Special: "Decepticon Holidays: Pudding"}} An Insecticon had direct orders from Megatron to send whoever decorated the ''Nemesis'' in holiday lights to the North Pole. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Holiday Schmoliday|30-Second Holiday Special: "Decepticon Holidays: Holiday Schmoliday"}}

==Games==
===''Transformers: War for Cybertron'' (Xbox 360/PS3/PC)===
{{voiceactor|[[Fred Tatasciore]] (English)|[[Oliviero Corbetta]] (Italian), [[Juan Carlos Lozano]] (Spanish), [[Bruno Carna]] (French), [[Jacek Jasiński]] (Polish)}}

[[File:WFC Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.95|He wants the whooole wooorld, in his hand!]]

During the early war on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], Megatron found reference to an energy source called [[Dark Energon]], which had impressive potential as a weapon, and became determined to claim it for himself. One of the few places it was made was in a station in orbit around Cybertron, guarded by a politically neutral force led by [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]]. With this knowledge, he took a ship and launched an assault on the station.

The ship was badly damaged in the attack, and so he ordered [[Barricade (WFC)|Barricade]] and [[Brawl (WFC)|Brawl]], piloting it, to ram the station. He and many of his soldiers survived the impact and escaped the core's detonation. They were then confronted by Starscream, who informed them that they would not allow them to take what he had guarded for ten thousand years. After surviving a trap of sentry guns, Megatron, Barricade, and Brawl were reinforced by more of Megatron's troops, and set out on their way to find the station's Dark Energon stores and claim them for the war effort. They encountered significant resistance, but managed to shoot their way through, with directional aid from [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]]. Barricade noted that the station itself seemed quite primitive; Megatron noted it was very old, and that he intended to modernize it. At one point, the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seeker]] [[Jetfire (WFC)|Jetfire]] confronted Megatron nonviolently, asking him to give up his quest, as Dark Energon would result in only horror, death, and destruction, to which Megatron sneered, "You say that as if it were a bad thing."

[[File:WFC-MegatronmeetsStarscream.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.66|At last we meet, my punching bag.]]

Along their way to the Dark Energon, they found that a large portion of the station had been blasted clean off, the debris field traversable but sparse enough to allow easy viewing of Cybertron itself. Soundwave soon found records indicating that a small amount of Dark Energon lost containment and was the sole cause of the destruction, underscoring Megatron's desire for it. When Barricade asked how he expected to control it when no other had, Megatron said that such power was only for the strong, that he was the strongest, and not to question him again.

When they finally reached the storage chamber, and Megatron averted Starscream's destruction of it, he calmly entered into a container full of raw Dark Energon, while Starscream watched and gloated at his imminent destruction...only for him to walk out, not only unscathed, but crackling with power, which he further bestowed upon Barricade and Brawl. A single blast of Dark Energon was enough to destroy an entire company of station security forces, the last line of defense between Megatron and Starscream and his companions.

Jetfire again tried to warn Megatron about the dangers of Dark Energon, but Starscream interrupted, asking to join the Decepticon leader. Megatron asked what Starscream could offer that he could not simply take. Starscream revealed the station's supply of Dark Energon was almost spent, and he knew how to manufacture more—and as luck would have it, there was a dormant [[Geosynchronous Energon Bridge]] which could be used to power it. Jetfire retreated to inform [[Sentinel Zeta Prime|Zeta Prime]]; Megatron let him go, seeming pleased by the notion of letting the Autobots tremble in advance of their actions, and sent Starscream, [[Thundercracker (WFC)|Thundercracker]], and [[Skywarp (WFC)|Skywarp]] to activate the bridge.

Megatron repeatedly mocked what he perceived as Starscream's slowness in his simple mission, but the Seeker did what he said he could. With a steady supply of Dark Energon, Megatron launched an attack on Iacon City, intending to take a device called the [[Omega Key]] and use it to enter the Core of Cybertron. This time, he took [[Breakdown (WFC)|Breakdown]] and Soundwave with him. The trio took the less-guarded way in—which, since the Autobots were not complete fools (as even Megatron would admit), still had significant military presence. During the attack, Starscream noted that Dark Energon was proving every bit as potent as Megatron had promised. Breakdown let Megatron know of his misgivings about the Sky Commander; Megatron admitted he was treacherous and untrustworthy, but he had useful talents, and his cunning and ambition was intriguing.

The Omega Key had been taken from its normal resting place, however, by Autobot leader Zeta Prime, and so Megatron took his squad on an assault on Zeta's headquarters. They met Brawl, leading an attack on the doors to Zeta Prime's armory, along the way. Even Megatron's touch of Dark Energon could not breach the vault doors, however, and so he called in [[Dark Energon Bomber]]s. When they were shot down, Brawl suggested they take out the Autobots' air defense guns, after which bombers were called in again; Megatron's troops then held off a massive assault from what seemed like the entire Autobot army while waiting for the bombing run to finally arrive.

[[File:WFC Megatron Vs ZetaPrime.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|Zeta Prime, you might be more egotistical than me. I mean really, a huge holographic version of you and smaller holograms doing what you can't do without your pointy stick thing?]]

After the vault doors were breached, they reached Zeta Prime himself, who had constructed several layers of security while he waited. An invincible energy field protected him, while he could drop portions of the ceiling with pistons to crush anything beneath them, and construct endless holographic clones of himself outfitted for melee combat, which Megatron personally found nauseating. However, his defenses were not without flaw: periodically, the power core would need to disperse waste heat, and Megatron's team survived long enough to destroy it during this stage. Zeta fell, buried under the wreckage of his own defenses, and Megatron took the device he'd carried...which started to make electronic chirping noises. Zeta, with dark humor, noted that the device was not the Omega Key. It merely ''activated'' the Key, which would come to them...

Searching for the Key in the skies aboard another ship, Megatron, with Soundwave and Breakdown at the controls, were abruptly confronted by a massive ship, [[Omega Supreme (WFC)|Omega Supreme]], who knocked them out of the sky, causing them to crash back in Iacon. There, they played a cat-and-mouse campaign in a desperate attempt to survive the enormous Autobot's vast firepower, though Soundwave noted that the weaponry they bore had little chance of penetrating Omega Supreme's armor. Megatron, for his part, at least contrived to appear unafraid, claiming that if it came to a real fight, the brute wouldn't stand a chance against Megatron's intellect. However, Omega's attacks drove them underground and left them unable to immediately transmit counter to Starscream, who declared Megatron dead and announced he was taking control. Even when they re-established contact, Starscream's aerial forces only briefly distracted Omega, who dispensed large numbers of troops, sucked up Decepticons with a tractor beam, fired weapons of mass destruction, and mined the roads Megatron and his squad were using.

[[File:Omega Supreme smash.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|"I challenge you to a thumb wrestling competition!" "''That's'' a thumb!?"]]

Soundwave, however, had come up with a suggestion—there were weapons emplacements higher up that had the ability to damage Omega Supreme. Taking them from the Autobots was a battle in and of itself, but nothing compared to the fight against Omega Supreme, who could unload entire squadrons of Aerialbots. Nonetheless, Megatron's boldness and tactical acumen finally shot Omega Supreme out of the sky.

[[File:WFC-hearmynameandtremble.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.66|I stand on your crotch!]]

Gloating, Megatron found that the behemoth was still not defeated, and indeed was drawing power from Cybertron itself to repair his systems, making him stronger, if anything. However, by corrupting the energon batteries with which he was using to feed himself with Dark Energon charges, they were able to weaken him to the point where they could finally blast away his last defenses and brought him to heel. With Omega Supreme defeated, Megatron went underground, directly to the Core, and corrupted it with a massive infusion of Dark Energon, finally bringing Cybertron itself more completely under his control.

At this point, Megatron was clearly convinced, and for good reason, that he'd won, making propaganda broadcasts extolling his greatness and how he had taken away the Autobots' burdens of "liberty" and "choice". When Starscream was defeated and the Decagon retaken, however, he realized the Autobots were not yet going to roll over for him, and sent a distress signal from Zeta Prime, whom he had kept alive in the Kaon prison camp, in order to provoke a rescue attempt from the Autobots. His old acquaintance Optimus took the bait, and Megatron confronted him, telling him that the war could be over tomorrow if Optimus took the Autobots and left. Optimus refused, so Megatron consigned him and his team to the prisons. When they managed to stage a mass breakout, an enraged Megatron ordered his troops to prevent their escape at any cost, to the point of tearing apart portions of Kaon.

This was not enough, however, and they escaped, journeying to the Core, where they kickstarted the cleansing of Megatron's corruption. Doing so, however, would take the Core millions of years of shutdown, rendering Cybertron uninhabitable. Whether Megatron knew this or not, when he saw the Autobots leaving after Optimus's refusal of his earlier offer, he apparently took offense. His earlier plans of renovating Starscream's station had come to fruition; now, it mounted a powerful superweapon, capable of destroying entire structures in one shot. He had it fire upon the Autobot transports as they left. When a team of Aerialbots attempted to disable or destroy it, he called Jetfire, now one of them, and taunted him about his past. He further mocked them when they destroyed the plasma coolant system without apparently having accounted for backups. Finally, during the attack he came into possession of information on Optimus Prime's location, and ordered Trypticon—the name of the weapon, for it was actually a Cybertronian—to fire upon it.

Trypticon, however, was forced into his natural form and defeated after he crash-landed on Cybertron. Megatron's reaction to this went unrecorded. {{storylink|Transformers: War for Cybertron (360/PS3/PC)|Transformers: War for Cybertron}}

===''Transformers: War for Cybertron'' (DS)===
[[File:WFCDS Defeat Omega Supreme.jpg|thumb|left|256px|Simple enough... OH GOD BULLETS.]]

Megatron was the Decepticon Leader during the final days of the Great War. After capturing an Autobot facility, and killing a cadet, Megatron revealed his plan to his troops. Megatron intended to conquer Trypticon Space Station, which had the means and power to manufacture Dark Energon: a variant of Energon which greatly increased the stamina and strength of its host. Megatron fought his way through the station to its commander, the Autobot Starscream. Upon Starscream's defeat, Starscream offered his services and the Dark Energon if he was spared. Megatron agreed, and Starscream joined the Decepticons.

After a test run of the Dark Energon in Kaon Prison, Soundwave deduced the element would only kill the host, but Starscream was able to find a way to fix it. Megatron then decided the time was right, and led his army to the inner levels of Cybertron. He was able to activate the uplink to channel energy from the Core of Cybertron itself to Trypticon Station, but he needed the Omega Key to access it once it was shut down with a firewall.

Megatron learned through a recording from Laserbeak that Autobot Leader Zeta Prime had the Omega Key in his possession and had holed up deep within Iacon. Megatron led a full-scale assault on the city, totally devastating Iacon, until he found Zeta Prime at last. After a hard battle, Zeta fell, and Megatron obtained the Omega Key. However, immediately upon taking it, alarms went off, and Iacon itself was shaking. Zeta Prime, despite being mortally wounded, laughed at Megatron's face, saying the Omega Key was only the key to the ''true'' key: the city-sized Autobot Omega Supreme.

Omega immediately attacked the victorious Decepticons, and quickly decimated their presence in Iacon, save for Megatron's team and a few others. By this point, Megatron was absolutely furious at Starscream: Megatron declared it was he who led them to Omega Supreme and the devastating onslaught he carried out. Starscream bitterly retorted even if Megatron killed him, Omega Supreme would still be out for his blood, helping nothing whatsoever. Megatron angrily let it go for the time being, and led his army to battle. His troops' confidence beginning to falter, Megatron declared they would either be kicking themselves for not acting for the rest of their lives, or heroes in a historic event. His men followed him to battle Omega, and the titan fell. Megatron was free to corrupt the Core of Cybertron with Dark Energon, and obtain near-supremacy of Cybertron.

That kind of went downhill when the new Autobot leader, Optimus Prime, extinguished the Dark Energon and destroyed Trypticon Space Station, didn't it? {{storylink|Transformers: War for Cybertron (DS)|War for Cybertron - Autobots/Decepticons}}
{{--}}

===''Transformers: Cybertron Adventures''===
{{voiceactor|[[Fred Tatasciore]] (English)|[[Oliviero Corbetta]] (Italian)}}

Early in the war, when the Autobots learned of the existence of the orbiting superweapon [[Trypticon (WFC)|Trypticon]], Megatron sent waves of Decepticon forces to keep them from discovering more about it. Megatron, happy to see the destruction Trypticon was creating, ordered Starscream and Skywarp at gunpoint to return to Trypticon and clean up after it, while he took his troops into battle to scour the area for Autobots to kill. Few Autobots other than the medic, [[Ratchet (WFC)|Ratchet]], were spared Megatron's initial assault.

When Megatron found out that Starscream had left his post at Trypticon, Megatron grew angry. But the Autobots had infiltrated the [[Datacore]], so Megatron focused his efforts there instead. Bumblebee was captured, and information useful for the taking of [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] was pulled from his mind. Megatron assigned Skywarp the task of the initial Iacon assault. The traitorous Starscream returned to Megatron's focus, and the Air Commander was ordered to infiltrate the Core of Cybertron to reactivate the [[Geosynchronous Energon Bridge]]. But Starscream took too long, discovering Megatron had already reached the Core by the time he arrived. In a foul mood, Megatron would test Starscream's loyalty by putting him on the Iacon assault's front lines.

The assault went as planned, and Iacon crumbled. As Barricade and Starscream reached an empty Council Chamber, Megatron alerted them to the evacuation of the surviving Autobots. Three Autobot ships positioned themselves to escape, and so Megatron ordered Thundercracker and Skywarp to take them down.

Though Iacon fell, the Trypticon orbiting superweapon was destroyed by the Autobots... but not before Megatron ripped the datacore from its brain so as to salvage its information on Dark Energon. Megatron was pleased. Despite his loss, he still had the upper hand. {{storylink|Transformers: Cybertron Adventures}}

===''Transformers: Fall of Cybertron'' (Xbox 360/PS3/PC)===
{{voiceactor|[[Fred Tatasciore]] (English)}}

[[File:FoC Megatron Profile.jpg‎|thumb|left|upright=1.3|Seriously, Soundwave, where is my fusion cannon?! It was in your remodeling designs, for crying out loud...]]

When Cybertron had begun to die following the Core's shutdown, Megatron blamed [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]], as he was the one who had ruined his plans for the planet. Megatron launched an attack on [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] in order to destroy the Ark and get revenge. While commanding the battle from beneath one of his [[Warp Cannon]]s, he sent [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]], [[Onslaught (WFC)|Onslaught]] and [[Brawl (WFC)|Brawl]] to capture Optimus and bring him before him. As Megatron executed two Autobots before his Optimus' eyes, Optimus pleaded that they only wanted to leave Cybertron, but Megatron wasn't going to allow him. As the Warp Cannon prepared to destroy both the Ark, and the Decepticon leader to do the same to the Autobot leader, the newly awakened [[Metroplex (FOC)|Metroplex]] tore the roof off of the building they were in. Refusing to retreat, Megatron fired at the colossus, only to be pulverized by the giant Autobot's fist.

Due to Megatron's death, Starscream took control of the Decepticons and proceeded to run the organization into the ground by wasting resources and his failure to inspire the troops. Unhappy with the change in management, [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] salvaged what was left of Megatron, rebuilt him into a new form in his Kaon laboratory, and reactivated him with a Dark Energon infusion. After awakening, Megatron was enraged to see that Starscream was in control, and then proceeded to crash Starscream's [[The Transformers: The Movie|coronation]] ceremony. Slaughtering the Seeker's loyalists, Megatron turned on Starscream and drove him off. [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] arrived to inform him of the [[space bridge]] technology he had discovered and [[Earth|an energy-rich planet]] for them to plunder, and they required a suitable power source for a transport to take them.

Due to Starscream's self-indulgence, the Decepticons' energon supply was dwindling, forcing Megatron to find more power. He decided to retrieve the power core from the fallen [[Trypticon (WFC)|Trypticon]] and while doing so, he happily "reintroduced" himself to the Autobots. After arriving at Trypticon's crash site, he realized the beast was still alive and had Soundwave revitalize him. Megatron didn't know or care whether or not Trypticon was still sentient or not, but told the beast that since he had failed him, he would be rebuilt to Megatron's liking. Megatron then told Soundwave to initiate the "Nemesis Protocol" and permanently lock Trypticon in his [[alternate mode|alternate form]]: a transport ship which they would use to traverse the Space Bridge.

The ''Nemesis'' was quickly completed and the Space Bridge opened, and Megatron decided to leave Shockwave in charge of Cybertron in his absence. However, one of Shockwave's [[Grimlock (WFC)|experiments]] destroyed the tower, which reduced the time they have to reach the Space Bridge before it closed. Sending in Soundwave to lead his forces on the Ark, Megatron confronted Optimus and the two fought. Megatron prepared a devastating blow to his enemy with a cannon, only for [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]] to take the shot for Optimus. Their battle reignited, the two leaders traded blows with swords, causing heavy damage to one another. But before a final blow could be delivered by either one of them, the Ark crumbled under the Space Bridge's force, and while Megatron shouted in anger, both ships were drawn through. {{storylink|Transformers: Fall of Cybertron|Fall of Cybertron}}

{{note|Megatron also appears in the game's 'Escalation' mode. He fights alongside [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]], [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]], and [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]], on the 'Oblivion' map. He is the team's [[Tank (FOC)|Tank]].}}

=== ''Transformers: Prime - The Game'' ===
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English)|[[Bruno Carna]] (French), [[Juan Carlos Lozano]] (Castilian Spanish)}}

[[File:Transformers prime the game megatron.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.1|I think I'll force a servant of Unicron about ten times my size to serve me. That won't go horribly wrong at all.]]

Megatron was present when the Decepticons were hauling in an asteroid rich with Dark Energon heading toward Earth. When the Autobots came to stop them, he decided to take matters into his own hands by going toe-to-toe with Optimus again. After they exchanged some wedding vows and got to dancing, the asteroid exploded and interrupted their fight. Megatron managed to survive by flying away, witnessing his enemies fall to Earth. Swiftly, Megatron commanded Starscream to organize a scouting team to retrieve the fallen Autobots.

Megatron was present when Optimus awoke to fight Thunderwing. Megatron commenced an attack on the Autobot with the Nemesis, but once the Autobot escaped, he quickly turned his attention to the giant in the asteroid. After an analysis by Knock Out, Megatron reasoned with the herald of Unicron by promising all of his missing components being returned to him if and only if he swore his undying allegiance to him. As such, Megatron and Starscream arrived at one location to retrieve a component while Dreadwing parted to another. While on their mission, Megatron and Starscream managed to run into their old pals Optimus & Bulkhead. Starscream took his fight to the bulk, leaving Megatron to battle his old foe once again. Megatron was somewhat defeated, but managed to retrieve the component.

Megatron witnessed Starscream attach the component to Thunderwing, and the two were surprised when Thunderwing continued to serve Unicron, even after their deal. Thunderwing attempted to destroy Megatron before making his escape, but he used Starscream as protection. Throwing his commander on the ground like scrap, he pursued Thunderwing only to meet with the Autobots again. Megatron managed to make sport of Arcee, Bumblebee, and Bulkhead, but his third and final battle with Optimus resulted in his ultimate defeat. He vengefully tried to stab Optimus when offered mercy, only to be left open and seemingly destroyed by a blast from the arriving Thunderwing.
{{storylink|Transformers: Prime - The Game}}

===''Transformers Online''===
{{charstubgame}}
{{storylink|Transformers Online (2012 video game)|Transformers Online}}
{{-}}

===''Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark''===
{{charstubgame|{{storylink|Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark (console)|Rise of the Dark Spark (console)}}, {{storylink|Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark (3DS)|Rise of the Dark Spark (3DS)}}}}
{{-}}

===''Transformers Prime: Battle For Energon''===
Megatron and his Eradicons infiltrated the Autobots' headquarters. They then used Scraplets to discombobulate the base's systems. Bulkhead then came along, removed the Scraplets from the headquarters' systems, and defeated Megatron. {{storylink|Transformers Prime: Battle For Energon}}

===''Transformers Prime: Terrorcon Defense''===
Megatron threw wave after wave of Vehicons at the Autobots in the hopes of amassing massive amounts of Dark Energon, before launching an assault on the Autobot headquarters. He was defeated by Optimus Prime and Arcee. {{Storylink|Transformers Prime: Terrorcon Defense|Terrorcon Defense}}

===''Transformers Prime: Pulsar Defense''===
Megatron and his Decepticons built an [[Energon Drain]] weapon, which would render them unstopable if left unopposed. Optimus Prime and his Autobots intervened, and destroyed the weapon. {{storylink|Transformers Prime: Pulsar Defense}}

===''Transformers Prime: Decepticon Strike''===
After the bulk of his troops, and many Vehicons had faced off against Optimus Prime, Megatron took on the Autobot leader himself. Megatron had access to a personal forcefield and powerful energy blasts throughout the battle, and would alternate between his robot and vehicle mode to fight both on the ground and above it. The stack the odds even more in his favor, Megatron was assisted by some of his troops, including Airachnid, Breakdown and Shockwave. Despite all of this, Optimus managed to defeat Megatron, and he was sent fleeing, proclaiming that Optimus had only succeeded in winning a small battle that was part of a greater war. {{storylink|Transformers Prime: Decepticon Strike|Decepticon Strike}}

===''Transformers Universe''===
[[File:Tu-character-art megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|left|Went from shark-face to scowl-face]]
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English)}}

At some point during the Autobot-Decepticon war, Optimus Prime went missing. Megatron and his Decepticons searched the universe for the Autobot leader, but met heavy resistance from the Autobots, who fought to keep their leader's location a secret.

He appears in-game only as a hologram displayed in the ''Leviathan'', [[Switchblade (Prime)|Switchblade]]'s ship. {{storylink|Transformers Universe (Jagex)|Transformers Universe}}
{{-}}

===''Transformers: Battle Tactics''===
[[File:Battle-Tactics-Megatron-(WFC).jpg|thumb|upright=2.2]]
Megatron (WFC) participated in battles against a variety of opponents, both Autobots and Decepticons. Sometimes there were many of him! He was an Epic character available as a reward in the "Cybertron Episode 1" event. {{storylink|Transformers: Battle Tactics}}
{{-}}

==Toys==
{{main|Megatron (WFC)/toys}}

==Merchandise==
{{main|Megatron (WFC)/toys#Merchandise}}

==Notes==
[[File:Tfprimemegatronjet.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Too fast for screen caps.]]

[[File:VectorSigmaBotBuilderMegatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Green With Evil.]]

[[File:RID 15 Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|It's like [[Transformers: War for Cybertron (games)|''War for Cybertron'']] and [[Megatron (Animated)|''Animated'']] were put in a blender.]]

*Megatron's model is usable in ''War for Cybertron'' multiplayer as the Destroyer-type chassis for [[Soldier (WFC)|Soldier]]-class characters. His parts are also available in ''Fall of Cybertron'', now classified as Gunner-type components for [[Titan (FOC)|Titan]]-class characters.
*Megatron's designation as an energon miner was "D-16".<ref>[http://www.hasbro.com/transformers/en_US/play/details.cfm?guid=7fd5ecd9-19b9-f369-1041-a7635be83172 War for Cybertron timeline].</ref> Megatron's original [[List of Japanese ID numbers|Japanese ID number]] was "16". Takara would eventually change the numbering system using a "D" to denote [[Decepticon|Destrons]]. So Megatron's Japanese ID number could retroactively be considered "D-16".
*According to the packing bio for the Cybertronian Megatron toy, Megatron often changes his [[alternate mode]]. This was probably written in an attempt to explain why goes from turning into a tank in the video games to turning into a jet in the cartoon.
**The ''Prime'' staff used the rationale that Megatron, unlike other Decepticons, would not scan an Earth mode out of disgust at humans.<ref>[http://www.tfw2005.com/transformers-news/transformers-prime-39/botcon-2010-transformers-prime-panel-coverage-170054/ BotCon 2010 Transformers Prime Panel Coverage]</ref>
*In ''War for Cybertron'', Megatron has multiple glitches when controlled by the computer, among them shrinking (quite hilariously), losing his Fusion Cannon, and having his Tank mode cannon stick straight up (also humorous). He may be the most glitchy character in the game.
*''Prime'' Megatron takes visual cues from both Generation 1 [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]]—the ever-famous buckethead and lower legs resembling a pistol's handgrip—and [[Megatron (Movie)|"Movie series" Megatron]]—the sharp angles and bits on his shoulders, two-toed feet, a demonic-looking face with sharp shark-like teeth, and even a Cybertronian jet mode. The G1 reference goes further with Welker's casting, but with a darker tone leaning more towards [[Hugo Weaving]]'s portrayal as a movieverse cue (Welker would later deepen this tone for ''Age of Extinction'' and ''The Last Knight'').
*Megatron's body parts are available to use in the Hub website's [[Vector Sigma Bot Builder]] online game. Normally, you cannot configure a generic 'bot using all Megatron parts, but you can see what one would look like at right through the magic of Photoshop.
*A running gag in the advertisements shows that the Decepticon Lord is actually a {{w|brony}} in secret. Soundwave is the only one who knows, and seems to share his leader's taste for ''[[My Little Pony]]''.
**According to the ''[[Commercial/Prime#2012|Transformers: Prime 26 Hour Takeover Marathon]]'' promos, his favorite song is the [[theme song|theme]] to ''My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic''.
**According to an [[Commercial/Prime#2013|Ask Megatron]] segment, his ideal form of relaxation involves traveling to the dark side of Pluto and drawing Rainbow Dash fanart.
**And then there are [[Commercial/Prime#2011|The Hub Summer]] and [[Commercial/Prime#2011|The Hub Carolers]] promos, in which he joins Pinkie Pie, Applejack and Rainbow Dash (his favorite!) for various musical numbers.
**While answering fan mail from the [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=woM_g2cJxlA "Ask Megatron" Segments], he replied that his most embarrassing moment was when he cried in front of Soundwave when [[Twilight Sparkle]] became a princess.
*A note in the "Autobits" edition of [[Darkmount, NV]] states that he enjoys online cat videos.
*Megatron had concept art made for him for the ''[[Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2015 cartoon)|Robots in Disguise]]'' cartoon.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Megatron''' (メガトロン ''Megatoron''), '''Megatronus''' (メガトロナス ''Megatoronasu'')
*''Mandarin:'' '''Megaton''' (Taiwan, 密卡登 ''Mìkǎdēng''), '''Wēi Zhèn Tīan''' (China, 威震天, lit. "Extremely Prestigious" or "Heaven-shaking Might")

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Emperors of Destruction]]
[[Category:Fall of Cybertron Decepticons]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Hall of Fame characters]]
[[Category:Letters page answerers]]
[[Category:Prime Decepticons]]
[[Category:Transformers Online Decepticons]]
[[Category:War for Cybertron Decepticons]]
[[Category:Transformers Universe game Decepticons]]

Professor Princess

2023-06-15T02:58:30Z

Negatwenty:

{{disambig2|the young girl with the My Little Pony almost as big as she is|the '''other''' young girl with the My Little Pony almost as big as she is|little girl (Movie)}}
:''Professor Princess is a [[human]] <s>protector of innocents</s> supervillain from the [[Animated continuity family]].''
[[File:Professor princess.jpg|right|upright=1.67|thumb|I'll get those Powerpuff Girls!]]

'''Professor Penelope''' ("'''Penny'''" for short) '''"Princess" Sutton, Ph.D.''' is a little girl out to rid the world of violent boys' [[toy]]s... by violently destroying them and any who stand in her way. Also, she hates rock music. (No accounting for taste...) Her arsenal includes a magic wand, razor-edged flowers, exploding kitten dolls, and her toy flying unicorn, [[Powdered Sugar]], which fires both beam and projectile weaponry from its horn.

Go ahead and laugh, but she took out [[Bulkhead (Animated)|Bulkhead]] and humiliated [[Starscream (Animated)|Starscream]].

She insists she is just trying to save people from dangerous, corrupting influences, and will not classify herself as a criminal or villain.

{{quote|This girl needs to cut down on sweets.|[[Sari Sumdac (Animated)|Sari Sumdac]]|"[[Sound and Fury]]"}}
{{TOCclear}}

==Fiction==
===''Animated'' cartoon===
{{Idw-tfa}}
{{voiceactor|[[Kath Soucie]] (English), [[Megumi Toyoguchi]] (Japanese)|[[Carmen Katt]] (German), [[Anita Sajnóg]] (Polish), [[Ximena Marchant]] (Latin American Spanish), [[Antía Jiménez Álvarez]] (Castilian Spanish), [[Minna Tasanto]] (Finnish), [[Anne Plumet]] (French), [[Raquel Marinho]] (Brazilian Portuguese)}}

[[File:StarscreamProfessorArrivalIssue2.jpg|thumb|left|So is this like, where [[Slipstream (Animated)|Slipstream]] came from?]]

''Professor Princess came across [[Starscream (Animated)|Starscream]] lying in a forest, trapped in [[stasis lock]] after his battle with [[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus Prime]] over the [[AllSpark#Animated continuity family|AllSpark]]. Starscream attempted to get her to reactivate him fully via manual restart switch...but because he didn't say "please", she gave him a faceful of Powdered Sugar's rainbow beam. After Starscream finally asked "nicely" for her help, Princess said that she'd fix him up...which actually meant give him a rather ridiculous makeover, complete with a pink wig and lipstick. Starscream's indignant cries earned him another rainbow blast, which actually jump-started his systems, letting him move freely. The only thing that saved Princess was the threat that should any harm befall her (or Powdered Sugar), an image of the "made-up" Starscream would be broadcast across the planet, if not the galaxy. Starscream politely let Princess go...failing to notice she had drawn happy rainbows and daisies all over his back.'' {{storylink|The Arrival issue 2}}

[[File:TFA Professor Princess Powdered Sugar head.JPG|upright=1.1|thumb|She shouldn't have refused the Don.]]

Later, Professor Princess attacked a toy store where [[Bulkhead (Animated)|Bulkhead]] and [[Sari Sumdac (Animated)|Sari Sumdac]] were shopping as part of her crusade to destroy "awful, violent toys". (''Oh, the irony...'') In her opening attack, she succeeded in incapacitating Bulkhead. However, Sari weakened her with a concentrated blast of very loud music from an [[AllSpark Key]]-enhanced stereo, and Bulkhead pinched Powdered Sugar's laser horn as it was about to fire, causing it to explode. The wannabe supervillainess was left bawling in the middle of the street, her unicorn's decapitated head on her lap. {{storylink|Sound and Fury}}

[[File:Insincerest-ProfPrincessride.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|left]]

''Professor Princess actually became a brief ally of Bulkhead during [[Porter C. Powell]]'s control of [[Sumdac Systems]], as she was completely offended by the proliferation of the clunky, ugly "[[Bulkhead (vehicle)|Bulkhead]]" mega-van (though she kinda liked the one decoed with hearts and rainbows). As the Autobot Bulkhead chased after the Angry Archer, who was escaping a bank heist in his own Bulkhead, Princess swooped in to attack and rant. She flew away when the Archer's vehicle exploded shortly after rolling over and crashing.'' {{storylink|The Arrival issue 4}}

[[Slo-Mo]] later recruited her along with [[Nanosec]] and the [[Angry Archer]] to form [[Society of Ultimate Villainy|a villainous team]] to defeat the Autobots once and for all. Professor Princess was initially opposed to the idea of classifying herself as a villain, but showed little aversion to stealing a large sack full of dolls on the team's first crime spree. Soon, [[Swindle (Animated)|a mysterious benefactor]] recruited the group to steal components for a massive weapon. While seeking out the weapon parts they needed, Princess used her magic wand to neutralize Angry Archer's nasty, violent exploding arrows, preferring her own rainbow-and-pink-glitter-colored explosions instead. At the end of that mission, Swindle betrayed his human lackeys. The group joined forces with [[Bumblebee (Animated)|Bumblebee]] to stop Swindle, but the villains would not completely reform. Botching their getaway by attempting to use the disabled Swindle in vehicle mode, they were captured again and sent back to jail. {{storylink|SUV: Society of Ultimate Villainy}}

===''Legends'' comic===
Professor Princess was one of the many women brought to the [[Legends World]] by [[Tigatron]] using the [[10.2 ultra-drill|ultra-drill]] in an attempt to get women who liked him better than [[Springer (G1)|Springer]]. It did not work out, as all of the women brought over eventually swooned over Springer. {{storylink|Legends Comic: Bonus Edition Vol. 19|Bonus Edition Vol. 19}}

==Notes==
*Professor Princess is an obvious spoof of many toy franchises for young girls, such as {{w|Rainbow Brite}} and [[My Little Pony]].
*The ammo fired from Professor Princess's bazooka in "Sound and Fury"—balls that "pop" open into (exploding) cat dolls—appears to be a reference to ''{{w|Popples}}''.
*Her [[theme song|theme music]] is similar to that of the [http://wikimoon.org/index.php?title=Sailor_Moon eponymous heroine] of ''{{w|Sailor Moon}}''.
*She is apparently able to disarm grenades expertly glued to a stick.
*While we got a bit more of her real name from her mugshot in "[[SUV: Society of Ultimate Villainy]]" ("Prof. Penny Princess Ph.D."), her ''full'' name was revealed in ''[[Transformers Generations 2011 Volume 1|Generations 2011 Vol. 1]]''.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Penny Princess''' (ペニー・プリンセス ''Penī Purinsesu''), '''Professor Princess''' (プロフェッサー・プリンセス ''Purofessā Purinsesu'')
*''French:'' '''Professeur Princesse'''
*''Italian:'' '''Professor Principessa'''
*''Polish:'' '''Profesor Princessa'''
*''Portuguese:'' '''Professora Princesa'''
*''Spanish:'' '''La Princesa Justiciera''' ("The Avenging Princess")

{{DEFAULTSORT:Princess, Penny}}
[[Category:Animated humans]]
[[Category:Fiction-only characters]]
[[Category:Legends humans]]
[[Category:Supervillains]]

Professor Princess

2023-06-15T02:57:37Z

Negatwenty: /*Notes*/

{{disambig2|the young girl with the My Little Pony almost as big as she is|the '''other''' young girl with the My Little Pony almost as big as she is|little girl (Movie)}}
:''Professor Princess is a [[human]] <s>protector of innocents</s> supervillain from the [[Animated continuity family]].''

[[File:Professor princess.jpg|right|upright=1.67|thumb|I'll get those Powerpuff Girls!]]

'''Professor Penelope''' ("'''Penny'''" for short) '''"Princess" Sutton, Ph.D.''' is a little girl out to rid the world of violent boys' [[toy]]s... by violently destroying them and any who stand in her way. Also, she hates rock music. (No accounting for taste...) Her arsenal includes a magic wand, razor-edged flowers, exploding kitten dolls, and her toy flying unicorn, [[Powdered Sugar]], which fires both beam and projectile weaponry from its horn.

Go ahead and laugh, but she took out [[Bulkhead (Animated)|Bulkhead]] and humiliated [[Starscream (Animated)|Starscream]].

She insists she is just trying to save people from dangerous, corrupting influences, and will not classify herself as a criminal or villain.

{{quote|This girl needs to cut down on sweets.|[[Sari Sumdac (Animated)|Sari Sumdac]]|"[[Sound and Fury]]"}}
{{TOCclear}}
==Fiction==
===''Animated'' cartoon===
{{Idw-tfa}}
{{voiceactor|[[Kath Soucie]] (English), [[Megumi Toyoguchi]] (Japanese)|[[Carmen Katt]] (German), [[Anita Sajnóg]] (Polish), [[Ximena Marchant]] (Latin American Spanish), [[Antía Jiménez Álvarez]] (Castilian Spanish), [[Minna Tasanto]] (Finnish), [[Anne Plumet]] (French), [[Raquel Marinho]] (Brazilian Portuguese)}}

[[File:StarscreamProfessorArrivalIssue2.jpg|thumb|left|So is this like, where [[Slipstream (Animated)|Slipstream]] came from?]]
''Professor Princess came across [[Starscream (Animated)|Starscream]] lying in a forest, trapped in [[stasis lock]] after his battle with [[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus Prime]] over the [[AllSpark#Animated continuity family|AllSpark]]. Starscream attempted to get her to reactivate him fully via manual restart switch...but because he didn't say "please", she gave him a faceful of Powdered Sugar's rainbow beam. After Starscream finally asked "nicely" for her help, Princess said that she'd fix him up...which actually meant give him a rather ridiculous makeover, complete with a pink wig and lipstick. Starscream's indignant cries earned him another rainbow blast, which actually jump-started his systems, letting him move freely. The only thing that saved Princess was the threat that should any harm befall her (or Powdered Sugar), an image of the "made-up" Starscream would be broadcast across the planet, if not the galaxy. Starscream politely let Princess go...failing to notice she had drawn happy rainbows and daisies all over his back.'' {{storylink|The Arrival issue 2}}

[[File:TFA Professor Princess Powdered Sugar head.JPG|upright=1.1|thumb|She shouldn't have refused the Don.]]

Later, Professor Princess attacked a toy store where [[Bulkhead (Animated)|Bulkhead]] and [[Sari Sumdac (Animated)|Sari Sumdac]] were shopping as part of her crusade to destroy "awful, violent toys". (''Oh, the irony...'') In her opening attack, she succeeded in incapacitating Bulkhead. However, Sari weakened her with a concentrated blast of very loud music from an [[AllSpark Key]]-enhanced stereo, and Bulkhead pinched Powdered Sugar's laser horn as it was about to fire, causing it to explode. The wannabe supervillainess was left bawling in the middle of the street, her unicorn's decapitated head on her lap. {{storylink|Sound and Fury}}

[[File:Insincerest-ProfPrincessride.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|left]]
''Professor Princess actually became a brief ally of Bulkhead during [[Porter C. Powell]]'s control of [[Sumdac Systems]], as she was completely offended by the proliferation of the clunky, ugly "[[Bulkhead (vehicle)|Bulkhead]]" mega-van (though she kinda liked the one decoed with hearts and rainbows). As the Autobot Bulkhead chased after the Angry Archer, who was escaping a bank heist in his own Bulkhead, Princess swooped in to attack and rant. She flew away when the Archer's vehicle exploded shortly after rolling over and crashing.'' {{storylink|The Arrival issue 4}}

[[Slo-Mo]] later recruited her along with [[Nanosec]] and the [[Angry Archer]] to form [[Society of Ultimate Villainy|a villainous team]] to defeat the Autobots once and for all. Professor Princess was initially opposed to the idea of classifying herself as a villain, but showed little aversion to stealing a large sack full of dolls on the team's first crime spree. Soon, [[Swindle (Animated)|a mysterious benefactor]] recruited the group to steal components for a massive weapon. While seeking out the weapon parts they needed, Princess used her magic wand to neutralize Angry Archer's nasty, violent exploding arrows, preferring her own rainbow-and-pink-glitter-colored explosions instead. At the end of that mission, Swindle betrayed his human lackeys. The group joined forces with [[Bumblebee (Animated)|Bumblebee]] to stop Swindle, but the villains would not completely reform. Botching their getaway by attempting to use the disabled Swindle in vehicle mode, they were captured again and sent back to jail. {{storylink|SUV: Society of Ultimate Villainy}}

===''Legends'' comic===
Professor Princess was one of the many women brought to the [[Legends World]] by [[Tigatron]] using the [[10.2 ultra-drill|ultra-drill]] in an attempt to get women who liked him better than [[Springer (G1)|Springer]]. It did not work out, as all of the women brought over eventually swooned over Springer. {{storylink|Legends Comic: Bonus Edition Vol. 19|Bonus Edition Vol. 19}}

==Notes==
*Professor Princess is an obvious spoof of many toy franchises for young girls, such as {{w|Rainbow Brite}} and [[My Little Pony]].
*The ammo fired from Professor Princess's bazooka in "Sound and Fury"—balls that "pop" open into (exploding) cat dolls—appears to be a reference to ''{{w|Popples}}''.
*Her [[theme song|theme music]] is similar to that of the [http://wikimoon.org/index.php?title=Sailor_Moon eponymous heroine] of ''{{w|Sailor Moon}}''.
*She is apparently able to disarm grenades expertly glued to a stick.
*While we got a bit more of her real name from her mugshot in "[[SUV: Society of Ultimate Villainy]]" ("Prof. Penny Princess Ph.D."), her ''full'' name was revealed in ''[[Transformers Generations 2011 Volume 1|Generations 2011 Vol. 1]]''.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Penny Princess''' (ペニー・プリンセス ''Penī Purinsesu''), '''Professor Princess''' (プロフェッサー・プリンセス ''Purofessā Purinsesu'')
*''French:'' '''Professeur Princesse'''
*''Italian:'' '''Professor Principessa'''
*''Polish:'' '''Profesor Princessa'''
*''Portuguese:'' '''Professora Princesa'''
*''Spanish:'' '''La Princesa Justiciera''' ("The Avenging Princess")

{{DEFAULTSORT:Princess, Penny}}
[[Category:Animated humans]]
[[Category:Fiction-only characters]]
[[Category:Legends humans]]
[[Category:Supervillains]]

Megatron (WFC)

2023-01-05T22:27:10Z

Negatwenty: /* Commercial appearances */

{{factions|decepticon|{{factions/icons|custom=PrimeSharkticonSymbol.png|cLink=Sharkticon (species)|cSize=40x40px}}|hofsilver}}
{{disambigm|Megatron (disambiguation)|Megatronus (disambiguation)}}
{{suite}}
:''Megatron is the [[Decepticon]] leader from the [[Aligned continuity family]].''

[[File:Megatron-Prime-stock-render.jpg|thumb|upright=2.2|"That's the funny thing about heroes—they need to win every time. The villain only needs to win once."]]
The awesomely powerful '''Megatron''' is, in many ways, a fallen hero. He rose up from the oppressed lower working castes of [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]] to become a champion in the region's illegal [[gladiatorial combat|deathmatches]], cast aside his designation of '''D-16''' and took the legendary name '''[[The Fallen|Megatronus]]'''<ref>Megatron was an abbreviation, so it'd be easier for the masses to chant his name; ''Transformers: Exodus'', Chapter 3</ref> as his own. He called for an end to [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]'s decrepit [[Functionism|caste system]] and told the downtrodden that freedom of self-determination was the right of all sentient beings!

But absolute power corrupts absolutely, and Megatron's Decepticon revolution, like many such movements, ended up becoming a whole new tyranny. Powerful, charismatic, violent, and full of rage for any who would stand in the way of his ambition and drive, Megatron brought Cybertron ''past'' the brink of destruction. Now he and his former brother-in-arms [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]] fight on other worlds. Megatron will never forgive Optimus for "betraying" him, stealing from the Council the rank of Prime which was rightfully his. He has reserved for his old friend the greatest honor possible: glorious death at his hands.

Megatron has been gone for three years, but now he's returned. He's brought the monstrous [[Dark Energon]] to [[Earth]], and quite possibly left his sanity in space. Though he's made a few mistakes, he does not intend to make them again!

{{quote|Good and evil fade away. History shall judge me... ''victorious''.|Megatron rejects all moral judgement on his actions|[[Transformers: Cybertron Adventures|Cybertron Adventures, The Ending Begins]]}}
{{quote|I... am the Dominator, I... am the Destroyer, I am '''Megatron!'''|Megatron|''[[Transformers: War for Cybertron (360/PS3/PC)|Transformers: War for Cybertron]]''}}

==Fiction==
===''The Covenant of Primus''===

D-16 was born during the [[Age of Wrath]]. The [[Quintesson]] occupation of Cybertron had neutered the ritual of ascending from the [[Well of All Sparks]], to the point where newly born Cybertronians would emerge without names or developed personalities. After a brief but tantalizing glimpse at Cybertron's sun, D-16 was sent to work in the mines underneath Kaon. He took his name from the sector in which he worked, and eventually befriended some of the other nameless workers who had been dealt similar hands by the Quintessons. One Cybertronian in particular served as a sounding board for D-16's earliest sociological musings. From this nameless bot D-16 realized the importance of a proper name. By the time that the Quintessons had been routed from Cybertron, D-16 was already craving more out of life.

During his time off, D-16 became intrigued by the violent duels held between miners. As Cybertron's [[Golden Age]] drew to a close, he entered his first gladiator matches. D-16 drew upon the old stories of the [[Thirteen]] that the miners told one another, and decided on "Megatronus" as a suitable moniker; hoping that Cybertron's "fallen" society could eventually be restored. Megatronus thrived in the gladiator pits, seeing it as a way to escape the oppression of the [[caste system]]. The crowds who regularly watched his gladiator matches soon shortened his name to Megatron. Megatron used his newfound fame to attack the bloated Cybertronian government which kept the miners oppressed, and before long he had carved out a loyal cadre of followers inspired by his rhetoric. {{storylink|Transformers: The Covenant of Primus|The Covenant of Primus}}

===Aligned novels===
[[File:WFCcomicD16.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|"Alright! What's the square root of pi?! What's the capital of Sierre Leone?! What's... awww, this 'ask questions later' thing doesn't work at ''all''."]]
D-16 named himself after the sector of the mine where he performed demolition operations. {{storylink|Transformers: Exodus|Exodus}} At the end of the Age of Wrath, he was one of the many Cybertronians who [[Sentinel Zeta Prime|Sentinel Prime]] called to arms, and aided in the war effort that successfully overthrew the cruel [[Quintesson]] regime. As time went by, D-16 eventually forgot about this event, as did many other Cybertronians.

At some point after Cybertron's Golden Age, a group of [[Sharkticon (species)|Sharkticon]]s foresaw him as the being who would one day lead them to freedom. They managed to carve an image of him on a cave wall before they were executed. {{storylink|Transformers: Retribution|Retribution}}

D-16 eventually turned to gladiatorial combat to escape from the drudgery of his duties. As a gladiator, in killing others he began to appreciate the value of life, and in between matches he became something of an intellectual, debating the castes with other miners. After bosses requested he lose a few fights, D-16 killed them and took over Kaon and [[Slaughter City]]. After murdering one boss in front of his employees, D-16 declared himself Megatronus, whom he considered the greatest of the [[Thirteen]]. After hearing his preaching on the [[Communication Grid]] against the [[Guilds of Cybertron]], the concerned [[Sentinel Zeta Prime|Sentinel Prime]] sent [[Bumper (WFC)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (WFC)|Fastback]] to investigate. Megatronus killed them, believing two lives were worthless compared to the millions doomed by the castes Sentinel created.

After a victorious battle with the [[Insecticon (WFC)|Insecticon]]s, in which the crowd redubbed him Megatron, the gladiator was contacted by the [[Iacon (polity)|Iaconian]] [[Hall of Records|records monitor]] [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Orion Pax]], and they began exchanging their ideas in intense but friendly philosophical discussions. Megatron encouraged Orion to learn self-defense and invited him to visit Kaon, which he did to a warm welcome from Megatron (and from none of his gladiators). By this point Megatron was planning to call his movement the Decepticons, and he had begun sending his followers on a search for artifacts of the Primes, as their discovery would be signs their cause was just. His followers began bombing Cybertron, and Megatron distanced himself from their extremism to gain credibility. Orion and his mentor [[Alpha Trion (WFC)|Alpha Trion]] believed him, but the latter was well aware Megatron might have gained a taste for violence after the attention it earned him. Soon enough, Megatron accepted the gift of a kidnapped Sentinel Prime from [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]].

[[File:WFCcomicHalogendies.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Megatron misinterprets the phrase "ad hominem attack".]]

Alpha Trion organized a hearing for Orion and Megatron with the [[Autobot High Council|High Council]]. They protested involvement in Sentinel's disappearance. When confronted with the phrase "Decepticon", Megatron denied any knowledge of it but accepted his followers' term wholeheartedly, stating deception was necessary sometimes for the corrupt to see the truth. When [[Halogen (WFC)|Halogen]] revealed Megatron's followers had been trying to locate the [[Matrix of Leadership]], he declared that Orion should become the Prime that he desperately wanted to lead Cybertron into the new [[Golden Age]], and find it. Incensed, Megatron killed Halogen, and when Optimus prevented the [[Elite Guard]] from attacking Megatron, the ungrateful gladiator declared Optimus had fallen into the trap of power the High Council had given him. He declared Optimus was no longer his brother (though he would continue to refer to him as such privately), and that the Matrix would be his.

In the subsequent war with Optimus' [[Autobot]]s, the Decepticons took control of eighty-five percent of the planet. Wherever Starscream's [[Seeker (body-type)|Seekers]] aided, they were victorious. Megatron was initially merciful to neutrals, but he let [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] take control of [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]] and torture Autobot sympathizers there. When the [[Praxus|Praxians]], a progressive city-state who were disappointed with the direction Megatron took, allied with the Autobots, Megatron decided he would no longer try to convert followers and launched the first genocide of the war, slaughtering all in [[Nova Cronum]] who would not submit to the Decepticons as they attacked.

As the war dragged into a siege of Iacon, Soundwave's spying bore fruit as he discovered [[Dark Energon]], the essence of [[Unicron/Aligned|Unicron]], was aboard [[Trypticon (WFC)|Trypticon]]. Megatron forgave Starscream for hiding its existence from him, acknowledging its potentially dangerous nature. To ensure loyalty, Megatron's gladiators stormed the Station slaughtering and maiming Starscream's scientists. He forced Starscream to pick two test subjects to be Darkened, and following an astonishingly successful result, Megatron absorbed some, invigorating him. Soon Darkened Decepticons appeared on the battlefield, but it proved to be an inefficient resource and they would have to flee if a battle was prolonged. Megatron needed more, and even Starscream's activation of the [[Geosynchronous Energon Bridge]] didn't provide enough. Megatron felt he would kill all the Decepticons before he was deprived of Dark Energon and turn rabid.

Fortunately, Soundwave revealed the existence of the [[Plasma energy|Plasma Energy Chamber]] within [[Teletraan-1 (WFC)|Teletraan-1]], which required the [[Code Key]]s of Power and Justice to activate it. Starscream recovered the Key of Power, while Megatron and his best soldiers searched for the Key of Justice below the [[High Council Tower]]. Sentinel Prime emerged, to Megatron's surprise. Sentinel confronted him about Bumper and Fastback, and the two dueled. Megatron disarmed and sliced open Sentinel, revealing the Key of Justice within. Starscream made a grab for it, exposing that he had released Sentinel to kill Megatron and take leadership for himself. After fighting Starscream to a standstill, Megatron pardoned him as he found him a better soldier than would-be example, and used the Keys to open Teletraan-1: which activated [[Omega Supreme (WFC)|Omega Supreme]] to fly the Chamber to safety.

The Seekers shot Omega Supreme out of the air, causing him to crash. Optimus's Autobots arrived to fight the Decepticons, but the more they killed them the more Dark Energon left their bodies and empowered Megatron. He was able to knee Omega Supreme and turn him on his back, tearing the Chamber out of his chest. Using the Chamber, Megatron poisoned the [[core]] of Cybertron and Darkened the entire planet. But then the core stopped producing Dark Energon, and Megatron learnt Optimus had gone to the core and received the Matrix. As the Autobots attempted to flee Cybertron via the last [[space bridge]], Megatron used Trypticon to fire on their ships, and used his and Orion's old frequency to criticize Optimus for fleeing. He added he never believed in individual freedom for every Cybertronian, only the illusion of freedom that he as leader would provide and that the Guilds did not. Optimus responded that Megatron had turned his soldiers into addicts and they would turn on him, and used the ''[[Eight Track (WFC)|Eight Track]]'' to board, sabotage and crash Trypticon.

As the Autobots left on the completed ''[[Ark (WFC)|Ark]]'', the Decepticons fully invaded Iacon. Megatron ordered Trypticon to transform into the ''Nemesis'', boarding it with Starscream, Soundwave, [[Lugnut (WFC)|Lugnut]] and other elite soldiers, leaving Shockwave in charge. He used his old frequency once again to warn Optimus that he would hound him through the stars and finally kill him for the Matrix. He explained they were still brothers, as they were bonded for life despite their enmity. Optimus was just glad his hunt would get him off Cybertron. The two ships entered the last [[space bridge]] together, and when the ''Ark'' emerged, the ''Nemesis'' was gone. {{storylink|Transformers: Exodus|Exodus}}

{{note|Megatron's involvement in the preceding events, or events mostly similar, were also chronicled in the comic "[[Transformers: War for Cybertron (comic)|Transformers: War for Cybertron]]."}}

The ''Nemesis'' eventually emerged from the Space Bridge, close to the lost colony world of [[Velocitron]]. The Autobots had already visited the planet and departed, but Megatron's sleeper agent [[Makeshift (Prime)|Makeshift]] had ignited political tensions and sparked a civil war between [[Override (Prime)|Override]]'s loyalists and [[Ransack (Prime)|Ransack's]]'s cadre of political malcontents. He was directed by [[Hightail (Prime)|Hightail]] to Ransack. Megatron found Ransack's obsession with speed extremely irritating, but allowed him to pledge his allegiance to the Decepticon cause. Ransack's Decepticons continued their war on Velocitron while the rest of Megatron's forces boarded the ''Nemesis'', tracking the Ark's energy signature.

Megatron's forces tracked the ''Ark'' to on the planet [[Junkion (planet)|Junkion]], and began attacking both the Autobots and the native [[Junkion (species)|Junkion]]s. Amid the chaos, Megatron reunited with one of his long-lost comrades, the marooned Decepticon [[Axer (Prime)|Axer]]. Axer presented his commander with the [[Requiem Blaster (Megatronus)|Requiem Blaster]], which he had scavenged from the core of Junkion. Megatron ordered the gun to be attached to the hull of the Nemesis. The mayhem had also awakened the ancient Transformer [[Cannonspring]], who reunited with several other Cybertronians and combined into the mighty [[Nexus Prime]], who held off both the Decepticon advance and the newly arriving [[Star Seeker]]s. As the planet tore itself apart, Megatron duelled with Optimus Prime, who wielded the [[Cyber Caliber]]. Although Optimus Prime gained the upper hand, he suddenly received a vision regarding the AllSpark's location. Prime fell back to the ''Ark'' and retreated. Since the Requiem Blaster ran the risk of catastrophically overheating, Megatron ordered his troops to jettison the artifact before it could do so. Megatron ordered his troops to follow the ''Ark'' off of Junkion and back into deep space. {{storylink|Transformers: Exiles|Exiles}}

At some point during the voyage, Megatron changed his [[alternate mode]] to that of a Cybertronian spacecraft.

While searching for the trail of the ''Ark'' on the outskirts of the [[Orion Arm]], Megatron ran across the Star Seekers again, who had set a trap for the Decepticons. To take down the ''Nemesis'' ,the pirates salvaged the abandoned Requiem Blaster and grafted it to their ship. Megatron and the Star Seeker [[Thundertron]] dueled while their ships exchanged fire. Megatron eventually managed to gain the upper hand after exploiting the Requiem Blaster's cripplingly high energy intake, and forced Thundertron's forces into a retreat. Megatron reunited with his treacherous subordinate Axer, who claimed to have gleaned knowledge about the ''Ark''{{'}}s whereabouts during his time spent with the pirates. Megatron considered this, and then sent him to be tortured, just to make sure he was telling the truth.

The ''Nemesis'' eventually caught up with the real ''Ark'' over the planet [[Aquatron]] and opened fire. The Autobots retaliated by deploying [[Superion (Prime)|Superion]], who carved a trail of destruction through the ''Nemesis''{{'}}s engine bay until the combiner met Megatron. The Decepticon leader attacked Superion, and the two fought. Megatron was able to gain the upper hand and fired his fusion cannon at Superion, blowing the combiner apart and sending his components flying out the ship's hangar.

Before the Autobots could try and ram the ''Nemesis'' ,the Aquatronian native known only as "[[Inquirata (Prime)|the Curator]]" intervened by cutting power to both ships. The Curator scolded the Cybertronians for bringing their war to a neutral planet, but invited Megatron and his Decepticons to the planet's surface to negotiate a possible peace treaty between the two factions. Once the Autobots and Decepticons both agreed to a temporary ceasefire, the Curator revealed that he was a [[Quintesson]], and that Aquatron was a member of the Quintesson Co-Prosperity Sphere. Megatron decided to play along with his captors until he could find a way to escape. That night, Megatron was visited by the Curator, who promised Megatron his own [[Decepticon Matrix]]... if he backstabbed Optimus Prime and destroyed the Autobot leader's own Matrix.

The next morning, Megatron convened with Optimus outside the negotiation hall, only to reveal that he had brought along six [[Vehicon (Prime)|Vehicon]]s with him to kill Optimus. The two began fighting, until [[Skywarp (WFC)|Skywarp]] detonated a bomb outside, which caused the Pavilion to start flooding. Optimus switched off his Matrix and helped Megatron to escape, but on the surface they encountered [[Tyrannicon]] and his [[Sharkticon (species)|Sharkticon]] flotilla, who arrested all the Cybertronians present. The defeated Autobots and Decepticons were rounded up into a prison ship headed for the city of [[Hydratron]]; Megatron spent most of the voyage loudly and angrily criticizing Optimus Prime's leadership. When the prisoners were transferred to a train, Megatron ran afoul of several Sharkticons, who managed to subdue him long enough for him to be loaded onto the train and shipped to Hydratron's [[Hall of Justice]].

Inside the Quintesson's kangaroo court, Optimus Prime was put on trial for public mayhem, treason, and galactic blasphemy. Optimus Prime's brainwashed troops corroborated the Quintesson prosector's line of inquiry. However, Megatron himself came to Optimus's defense, asserting that the Quintessons did not create the Transformers as they so claimed. The trial had also jogged Megatron's memories; he remembered fighting in the war that routed the aliens from Cybertron and vowed that he'd gladly do it again. The Quintesson judges found them innocent, and so sentenced the two leaders to banishment. Whoever killed the other leader in combat would be allowed to leave Aquatron unmolested. The two leaders battled, unaware that the Quintessons were harvesting the energy they exerted to power a space bridge to Cybertron. When the Quintessons had enough, they dumped both of them into a Pirahnacon pit. Optimus and Megatron managed to escape the Pirahnacons with the help of Optimus's Matrix, and escaped into the subterranean tunnels beneath Hydratron.

The duo eventually encountered the [[Gamekeeper]], who was guarding the carvings that the Sharkticon rebels had created. The Gamekeeper taunted them, and revealed that the Quintessons were staging another invasion of Cybertron as they spoke. Megatron tore out the monster's eyes and eventually killed him. The Decepticon leader was intrigued by the carvings, although Optimus was skeptical of their veracity. The two eventually discovered [[Xeros]], who was manipulating his Sharkticon servants with a decoy Matrix. Believing it to be the Decepciton Matrix he was promised, Megatron grabbed it and shoved it into his chest.

The decoy Matrix turned out to be the [[Sharkticon Matrix of Leadership]], and as it re-forged his body Megatron realized that Aquatron was one of the 200 lost colony planets after all- and a planet that had never been able to overthrow the Quintessons. Now sporting Sharkticon features, Megatron called the Sharkticons to his command and ordered them to devour Xeros. Megatron overpowered Optimus and threw him down a nearby elevator shaft. He then contacted Starscream aboard the stranded ''Nemesis'', and ordered his Decepticons to make room for Sharkticon reinforcements aboard the ship.

Before long, Megatron set off to the bottom of Hydratron, to kill the Curator once and for all. He ran into trouble along the way; the city itself began transforming into a giant jellyfish-like creature, which attempted to devour him. Megatron was ale to break free of its tentacles and swim to the bottom of the lakebed, where Optimus Prime and a [[Leviacon]] were already confronting the Curator. Hundreds of Sharkticons swarmed the Curator's fortified command bubble but were unable to break through. The fracas was compounded by the arrival of [[Tyrannicon]], who had come back to Aquatron through the Space Bridge to figure out why his soldiers had rebelled. Megatron, now calling himself "The First of the Many" offered Tyrannicon a place in his new empire, although Tyrannicon refused. Instead, the two battled one another for control of the Matrix, with the Tyrannicon triumphant. Tyrannicon stole the Matrix from Megatron, who collapsed and reverted to his old self. When Optimus managed to destroy the entire underground complex, he also rescued Megatron, and with the Leviacon's help the two leaders returned to the surface, where they reunited with their respective crews.

On their way off the planet, Optimus mused that one day Megatron might understand that the two of them were much stronger as a united force. {{storylink|Transformers: Retribution|Retribution}}

===Ask Vector Prime===
In [[Uniend 610.23 Zeta]], {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime}} Megatron lead his Decepticons in an attack on the Autobot stronghold at [[Tyger Pax]] to obtain the [[AllSpark]] from the [[Well of All Sparks]]. After fighting off [[Rodimus (WFC)|Rodimus]] and [[Springer (WFC)|Springer]], Megatron found himself under fire from [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]], until [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]] managed to shoot the young Autobot down.

Searching for [[Barricade (WFC)|Barricade]], and executing Autobots that had failed to retreat, Megatron, while boasting his victory, saw the AllSpark be launched into space. Though he had failed to gain the AllSpark, Megatron found himself to be close to a badly damaged Bumblebee, who made a point of gloating to Megatron about the Autobots' victory. Grabbing the young mecha by the neck, Megatron, tired of Bumblebee's talking, crushed the Autobot's [[voice box]].

Deciding that [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]] didn't need another martyr, Megatron left Bumblebee alive to remind others that he could take and spare lives as he wished. Satisfied with his work, Megatron retreated with what was left of his Decepticons. {{storylink|Bumblebee at Tyger Pax}}

===IDW Aligned comics===
From Shockwave's lab in the [[Rust Sea|Sea of Rust]], Shockwave and a captured Grimlock watched a feed of Megatron spearheading an attack on [[Metroplex (FOC)|Autobot City]]. {{storylink|Last Stand (FOC)|Last Stand}} {{storylink|Fragmentation (FOC)|Fragmentation}}

===''Prime'' cartoon===
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English), [[Sean Long]] (BotCon 2011), [[Peter Cullen]] (BotCon 2012), [[Keiji Fujiwara]] (Japanese)|[[Fu Chong]] (Chinese), [[Alexander Kovriznyh]] (Russian), [[Juan Carlos Lozano]] (Spain-Spanish), [[Robert Dubois]] (French), [[Ja-hyeong Gu]] (Korean), [[Tony Fuochi|Antonio Fuochi]] (Italian), [[Ferenc Borbiczki]] (Hungarian), [[Hans-Jürgen Wolf]] (German), [[Gerardo Vásquez]] (Latin American Spanish), [[Antônio Moreno]] (Brazilian Portuguese), [[Guilherme Lopes]] ("Predacons Rising", internal monologue), [[Paweł Szczesny]] (Polish), [[Arto Nieminen]] (Finnish), [[Johan Hedenberg]] (Swedish)}}

[[File:OneShallRise3-corresponding.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|"I'm a fox!" "I'm a hound doooog!"]]

In the waning years of the [[Golden Age]] of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], Megatronus (who named himself after [[The Fallen|one of the original thirteen Primes]]) was a gladiator who fought in the [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]] arena. Observing a disparity in freedom among the classes of his race, and that the ruling class was corrupt and all-powerful, Megatron turned rhetorician, trying to effect change. In drawing attention to this inequity, he inspired a [[Hall of Records]] clerk named [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Orion Pax]], and the two joined forces to end corruption and bring equality to the masses. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}} Orion and Megatronus became close allies, almost like brothers. {{storylink|Masters & Students}}

[[File:DarknessRising2-Megsflashback.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|Things were very red in those days.]]

Megatronus shortened his name to Megatron before he and Orion Pax appeared before the [[Autobot High Council|High Council]]. Megatron threatened the council, promising to overthrow them and instate himself as the next [[Prime (rank)|Prime]]—a declaration of hostility that shocked Orion, and moved him to an impassioned speech in favour of autonomy that successfully swayed the council where Megatron had failed. Jealous, Megatron left the council and Orion behind and assembled his followers—including perennial loyalist [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] and scheming second-in-command [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]]—into an army he would name "Decepticons", beginning the war for Cybertron and vowing to find the [[Matrix of Leadership]] which was denied to him by the council. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}}

The war saw Megatron successfully take the city of [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]], which contained the very arena he fought in as a gladiator, as the Decepticon capital. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 1}} During a battle at [[Tyger Pax]], Megatron crushed the Autobot [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]]'s voice box when the scout refused to break under interrogation. {{storylink|Operation Bumblebee, Part 1}} Furthermore, Megatron's wartime achievements were not limited to those achieved through might: he also created the deadly [[cybonic plague]] which wiped out millions {{storylink|Sick Mind}} and found a way to weaponize [[Tox-En]] which he used to wipe out an entire unit in front of a horrified Bulkhead. {{storylink|Toxicity}} It was through similarly poisonous means that Megatron came closest to seizing victory in the war's final stages, [[Dark Energon|infecting]] the [[Core]] of Cybertron itself. In purifying the core, Orion was granted the Matrix Megatron had long-sought, becoming Optimus Prime. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}} After his assassin [[Skyquake (Prime)|Skyquake]] failed to kill Optimus at the [[Battle of Technahar]], {{storylink|Masters & Students}} Megatron became obsessed with the Autobot leader and decided that destroying him was his right alone. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 4}} Megatron had his lead scientist [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] send an army of [[Predacon (Prime)|Predacons]] to Earth to lay waste to any Autobot forces on the planet and secure any and all energon deposits. {{storylink|Project Predacon}}

[[File:DarknessRising2-MegatronDarkEnergon.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|We can relate. We're just like this with our [[BotCon]] toys.]]

Eventually, the war left Cybertron in ruin and forced the whole Transformer race to exile into space. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 2}} Megatron would not leave the planet unguarded and placed a few [[Insecticon (WFC)|Insecticon]] guards in stasis on the planet, should the enemy return. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 3}} In time, Megatron and his army arrived on Earth, establishing mines to collect the Energon that the planet had been seeded with during the war. {{storylink|Stronger, Faster}} He also had some of his best warriors, such as Skyquake to guard deposits not ready to mine. {{storylink|Masters & Students}} After some early conflicts on the planet, Megatron withdrew to space to search for more troops, leaving Starscream in charge. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 1}} Searching the void for three years, Megatron found something better than mere warriors: he discovered a new source of Dark Energon, the "blood of [[Unicron]]", with which he could reanimate fallen Transformers as an army of the undead. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 2}} Returning to Earth, {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 1}} and resuming command of the Decepticons, Megatron tested the Dark Energon on the deceased Autobot [[Cliffjumper (WFC)|Cliffjumper]], reviving him as a [[zombie]] "[[Terrorcon (Prime)|Terrorcon]]" that slaughtered several [[Decepticon Miner]]s, but which posed no threat to Megatron himself. Unfortunately for Megatron, this partial reactivation of Cliffjumper's lifesigns drew Optimus Prime's Autobots to the Decepticons' mining operations. Deciding it was not yet time for a confrontation with Prime, Megatron withdrew aboard the [[Trypticon (WFC)|''Nemesis'']] and continued to brood over the Dark Energon.

[[File:darknessrising3 Megatronglowy.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Megatron, you fool! Rave glowsticks aren't candy!]]
Megatron's inability to control the zombie Cliffjumper convinced him that he needed to integrate the Dark Energon into his own body in order to control the undead legions he planned to create. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 2}} Thrusting a shard of the material into his [[spark]], he was filled with its power, feeling as though he was connected to Unicron's very thoughts. Requiring a test run for his new power, Megatron headed to the site of an ancient Cybertronian battle on Earth, one full of the remains of fallen warriors, where he was confronted by Optimus and [[Ratchet (WFC)|Ratchet]]. Using Dark Energon to raise the dead Transformers as Terrorcons, Megatron successfully found he had complete control of the undead horde, and send them against the two Autobots. [[File:DarknessRising4-Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|I chew scenery while the zombies chew ''you''.]] {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 3}} While Optimus and Ratchet fought their way through the Terrorcons, Megatron flew off before they could reach him, satisfied with his test results and ready put his plan into action—to open a [[space bridge]] to Cybertron and use Dark Energon to revive all the dead. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 4}} Despite the Autobots' best efforts to damage the ''Nemesis'' and prevent the bridge from opening, Megatron succeeded in his plans, and then had his showdown with Optimus Prime atop the bridge itself as he waited for the Terrorcon legions to pass through to Earth. While the two old foes battled, the other Autobots sabotaged the bridge, causing it to explode and destroy both the Terrorcon army and seemingly Megatron himself. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 5}}[[File:Masters&Students-Megatronstasis.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|Well, it's better than just [[Megatron (Animated)|being a head]] I suppose.]]

The Autobots were not so lucky, however: the Dark Energon in his spark allowed Megatron to survive the explosion, but just barely. When Starscream found his leader floating in space, he tore the Dark Energon from his body in the hope that he would expire, but was caught in the act by [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]]'s [[Deployer (WFC)|Deployer]], [[Laserbeak (WFC)|Laserbeak]], and forced to take Megatron back to the ''Nemesis'', where he was placed in [[Stasis lock|stasis]] in the sick bay. {{storylink|Masters & Students}}

Starscream was content to leave Megatron in this state to recover or expire as fate saw fit, but the crew of the ''Nemesis'' disagreed, and voted to bring in the Decepticon medic [[Knock Out (Prime)|Knock Out]] to help heal their wounded leader. But the discovery of an [[Energon Harvester]] forced them to push off Megatron's recovery. {{storylink|Deus ex Machina}} Even with Knock Out's expertise, it seemed unlikely that Megatron would recover, but his assistant [[Breakdown (WFC)|Breakdown]] gave his body a good buffing nonetheless, and Starscream approved, as it meant their ex-leader would look his best for the memorial service. {{storylink|Speed Metal}}

[[File:SickMind megs and bee.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Hey, [[Megatron (Animated)|you]] really ''are'' [[Transform and Roll Out|uglier from this angle]]!]]

When Optimus Prime was infected by cybonic plague, Arcee and [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]] boarded the ''Nemesis'' to search for an antidote. While they failed to find one in the database, the two Autobots did discover Megatron in stasis, and Bumblebee mind-linked with the Decepticon leader via a [[cortical psychic patch]] to try and pluck the cure from his sleeping brain. Bumblebee found himself within Megatron's mind, which took the form of [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]], where the Decepticon's subconscious was spending its time killing endless visions of Optimus Primes. Unfortunately, Bumblebee's intrusion only caused Megatron to become aware of his situation when he found he was unable to kill Bumblebee. Learning what had befallen Optimus, Megatron initially refused to give up the cure until Bumblebee convinced him that he would gain greater satisfaction from finishing his enemy off with his own two hands. Megatron offered the cure in exchange for Bumblebee's help in escaping his mental prison, but Bumblebee double-crossed him, withdrawing from his mind as soon as the cure was in Autobot hands. At the last moment, Megatron was able to effect his own escape, leaping into Bumblebee's mind along with him. {{storylink|Sick Mind}} [[File:OutofhisHead megatron revived.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|IT'S... AAALLLLLIIIIIIIIVE!]] Recalling the sliver of Dark Energon Starscream had removed from his body, Megatron took full control of Bumblebee's body a short time later and used the GroundBridge to return to the ancient battlefield where he had raised his original Terrorcons, recovering the Dark Energon shard he had used to do so. He returned to the [[Autobot Outpost Omega One|Autobot base]], where he dealt with Ratchet and [[Raf Esquivel|Raf]] before again GroundBridging to the ''Nemesis'' and using the Dark Energon to restore his body and return his mind to it. Storming out of the ''Nemesis'' to find Starscream, Megatron snatched his subordinate out of the air in the middle of a battle with Optimus Prime and took him back for his punishment. {{storylink|Out of His Head}}

[[File:Shadowzone-MegsStarscream.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Lulz.]]
Despite his treason, Megatron decided not to terminate Starscream, viewing him as no real threat and taking perverse amusement in his repeated failures. {{storylink|Rock Bottom}} Instead, Megatron proceeded to beat Starscream only to ''near'' death, then had him placed in the infirmary, occasionally visiting to gloat. {{storylink|Shadowzone (episode)|Shadowzone}}

When Breakdown was captured by the humans of [[MECH]], Megatron refuted Starscream's suggestion that they rescue him, announcing that if Breakdown had allowed himself to be captured by those weaker than him, then he deserved whatever he got. {{storylink|Operation: Breakdown}} Breakdown did manage to escape, however, and in his wounded pride, volunteered to recover a [[polarity gauntlet]] for Megatron in order to prove his worth. Megatron was disappointed when his minion returned without the gauntlet, but was placated by the revelation that he had instead brought back [[Airachnid (Prime)|Airachnid]]. {{storylink|Metal Attraction}}

[[File:RockBottom-Starscreamprays.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|left|{{w|Loki (comics)|In the end, you will always kneel}}.]]
Discovering that Starscream was still attempting to mine energon for his personal use without his knowledge, Megatron determined that the amusement had come to an end. Taking him to the mine in question, Megatron revealed that he had been aware of Starscream's previous transgressions the whole time thanks to Soundwave, and was about to execute his groveling lieutenant when [[Jack Darby]] and [[Arcee (WFC)|Arcee]] walked in. Seeing red at the sight of the Autobot and her pet, Megatron opened fire on them, giving Starscream time to escape, an act that only increased Megatron's rage. Unfortunately, Megatron's carelessness with his shots
ultimately brought the mine down on top of them all, with Megatron being completely pinned by rubble. Jack happened upon the Decepticon leader with a mining drill, and Megatron, knowing that the human would not help him, instead urged Jack to finish him off. Jack refused, saying that wasn't what Optimus would do, and left, but the opening he had created allowed Megatron to begin his escape. After finally extricating himself, Megatron came upon Starscream trying to keep a large rock from crushing him. Starscream insisted that he had come to rescue Megatron, and begged the Decepticon leader to spare him, and Megatron acquiesced with a smirk. {{storylink|Rock Bottom}}

Though Megatron allowed Starscream to live and continue as his second-in-command, he was furious to learn from Airachnid that Starscream had kept the location of the ''[[Harbinger]]'' from him. He ordered Starscream to lead Airachnid to the crash site and retrieve an [[Immobilizer|experimental weapon]] that was inside. Much to Megatron's fury, Airachnid returned not only without the weapon, but with the news that Starscream had been captured by the Autobots as well. {{storylink|Partners (Prime)|Partners}}

[[File:StrongerFaster-KnockOutMegatronRatchet.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|"Steroids?" "Yup." "Ah."]]
When a formula for [[Synthetic Energon]] was transferred from a [[Cybertronian data cylinder]] into the mind of the Autobot [[Bulkhead (Prime)|Bulkhead]], Optimus Prime petitioned Megatron for the return of the cylinder so they could extract the formula, after which they would willingly hand it over. Megatron briefly considered the proposal, but instead sent Knock Out and Breakdown to capture Bulkhead and dared Prime to fight for the cylinder. When his Vehicon troops were defeated, Megatron simply crushed the device and took flight. {{storylink|T.M.I.}} The synthetic energon formula helped the Autobots counter Megatron's next tactic: causing the Autobots to burn through their energon supplies at an accelerated rate by leading them on wild goose chases. Juiced up on the "SynthEn", Ratchet attacked Megatron and Knock Out while they were surveying an energon mine, and sent the Decepticon leader flying with one punch. Unfortunately for Ratchet, Megatron swiftly recovered and subdued the Autobot medic with ease. {{storylink|Stronger, Faster}}

[[File:PrimeEp23-Megatronjetmode.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|Damnit, jet mode! Hold still so we can screencap you!]]
Convinced by Dark Energon-induced visions that an impending prophecy detailed his own destiny, Megatron stepped up the Decepticons' work in constructing a new space bridge so they could obtain more Dark Energon. When they located the last component they needed, Megatron went in personally, grievously wounding Raf with a blast of Dark Energon on the way and creating an unintended distraction that allowed him to make off with the power source he needed. Soon after, Megatron lured Optimus Prime to a volcano he had seen in his visions, and during their battle, it erupted with Dark Energon, imbuing Megatron with the power he needed to fell Prime. {{storylink|One Shall Fall}} [[File:OneShallFall-visionfulfilled.jpg|thumb|255px|Look, Prime! Look at the fireworks! Aren't they splendid?!]] The intervention of the other Autobots saved Prime's life, but this was of little concern to Megatron, who now had all the Dark Energon he needed and set his miners to work gathering it up. When Soundwave detected a spark-beat coming from within the Earth, Megatron felt it pounding through his brain and realized what his visions had meant: the lifeforce of Unicron himself dwelt within Earth. Leaving Airachnid in command, Megatron flew into the volcano to address Unicron, but did not receive the power he had hoped the chaos-bringer would bestow on him, instead receiving Unicron's displeasure at the fact that Optimus Prime still lived. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 1}}

Spurned, Megatron instead went to the aid of Optimus and his Autobots, who were under attack from Unicron's stone avatars. He offered Optimus his services—he intended to lead them to Unicron's real form so that Optimus could use the [[Matrix of Leadership]] on the Chaos God. While the Autobots returned to base, Megatron kept the giant stone Unicrons busy, and Prime eventually accepted Megatron's offer. On arrival in the Autobot base, Megatron encountered a couple of humans he recognized, Raf and Jack, as well as a [[Miko Nakadai|new loud one]]. Megatron was first to step through the GroundBridge into the [[Earth's core]], and as the Autobots followed, he warned them that Unicron already knew they were there. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 2}}

[[File:OneShallRise3-together.jpg|thumb|255px|left|"Just this once, we work together! Mortal enemies working together for the common good!" "Be quiet!"]]
Despite the persistent influence of Unicron, Megatron led the Autobots through Unicron's insides, even helping them fight off [[Unicron's antibodies|anti-bots]]. The Dark Energon he was imbued with allowed him to enter Unicron's spark chamber with Optimus, though at that point Unicron's influence became so great that the Chaos God was able to commandeer his body. After Optimus unleashed the power of the Matrix, apparently extinguishing Unicron's spark, Megatron went to kill Optimus, only to discover his foe had lost his memory and now believed himself to be Orion Pax. Megatron convinced Optimus that the other Autobots were enemies, and the pair returned to the ''Nemesis'', where Megatron introduced "Orion Pax" to his men. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}}

[[File:Orion-Pax-Part-1-OP-Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|"Megatron, what happened? Where did you go wrong?" "Uh, watch ''Revenge of the Sith''. I know I'm not in it, but it pretty much sums it all up."]]
Megatron wasted no time in spinning a tale of Autobot warlord Ratchet and the destruction of Cybertron, and put Orion Pax to work decoding data from the [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] archives for a [[Project Iacon|project]] of the same name. Though aware that at some point Orion would find out the truth, Megatron made all precautions to make sure that didn't happen before Orion finished his work. Knock Out was ordered to set up Orion's work station a mere few inches away from the Energon storage vault.

During Orion's decoding, the archivist noted several references to Starscream as being Megatron's second in command. As part of his deception, Megatron claimed Starscream to be dead, and ordered Soundwave to carefully remove Arcee from the ship with a GroundBridge. Arachnid offered to destroy the bike bot herself, but Megatron feared that Orion would become weary of their activity's should he bare witness to an Autobot's destruction. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 1}} Megatron attempted to cover for a surprise visit by Starscream when he managed to sneak aboard the ship. Orion asked why Megatron lied, but the con leader stated that Starscream as "dead" to their cause for joining the Autobots. However, Starscream's visit caused Orion to uncover the truth and find out that he was, in fact, Optimus Prime, the so-called leader of the Autobot "invaders". Soundwave notified Megatron of Orion finding information on Optimus Prime, and Megatron realized that harsher methods would be necessary to complete [[Project Iacon]]. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 2}}

[[File:OrionPax3 Megatron threatens Orion.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Do you see what's in your teeth ''NOW''?!]]
Megatron payed Orion a visit to expose Orion's findings. Orion demanded to know the full truth, but Megatron refused, causing Orion to delete his findings. Fortunately, Soundwave had recorded his findings, and the data was saved. Soundwave also informed Megatron of the activity at the space bridge and went there to find that the Autobots had taken control of it, and that one of their [[Insecticon (WFC)|traps]] on Cybertron was activated. Megatron ordered the guards to watch Orion while he went out and threatened to kill the archivist if he had not completed the project. Megatron realized that the Autobots must have been searching for a way to restore Orion to Optimus. Megatron arrived at the space bridge and defeated the trio of Autobots present, and waited for Arcee to return from the open space bridge with the Matrix in her possession. When Orion had overpowered his guards and came to attack Megatron, Orion declared his loyalty to the Autobots, pulled out his blades, and attacked Megatron. The amnesiac Autobot was no match for him. While the Decepticon leader was subsequently kept busy by Arcee, Jack returned the Matrix to Orion, who regained his memory and left with the Autobots, leaving Megatron screaming furiously at his failure. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 3}}

[[File:OperationBumblebee1 spark extractor.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Now ''I'' have [[The Touch]].]]
Following the first of the artifact coordinates left by Orion, Megatron and his men unearthed the [[spark extractor|Spark Extractor]]. While Megatron was bringing it back through the GroundBridge, it was taken from him by Bumblebee. He then ordered Knock Out and Breakdown to retrieve another artifact before Bulkhead and Bumblebee did. {{storylink|Operation Bumblebee, Part 1}} Megatron was pleased when Knock Out returned with a force field generator, quickly demonstrating the object's power with a cannon-blast. Megatron himself joined the mission to get the third artifact, and managed to secure the [[Forge of Solus Prime]] by holding a prone Bulkhead hostage. Unfortunately, he discovered that the Forge wouldn't work without the power of a Prime behind it. {{Storylink|Operation Bumblebee, Part 2}}

When [[Dreadwing (Prime)|Dreadwing]] arrived on Earth, Megatron filled him in on what had happened to his brother Skyquake, but warned him not to seek revenge on his own. When Dreadwing did anyway, Megatron figured that would be the last they saw of him, although he was glad that Dreadwing both survived and learned his lesson. {{storylink|Loose Cannons}}

[[File:Crossfire Megatron and Insecticon close together.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|"You do know that you'll be splattered across the ceiling after this screencap, right?"]]
Reminded of Airachnid's past treachery, Megatron tasked Dreadwing with ridding them of her. Dreadwing not only failed, but returned minus Breakdown, much to Megatron's disgust. Megatron responded to Airachnid's later communication by attempting to get rid of her himself. Although she set an [[Insecticon (WFC)|Insecticon]] on him, the mighty Megatron eventually prevailed against it. The fight took all of his strength, and he was subsequently surrounded by Autobots. With Dreadwing's help, he escaped and made Dreadwing his new [[second-in-command]]. {{storylink|Crossfire (Prime)|Crossfire}}

Megatron responded to reports of Starscream on the ship and found not one but four [[Starscream clone (Prime)|Starscreams]] on the bridge. After attempting to appeal to their treacherous nature, he took advantage of a diversion to offline three of them before the fourth escaped. The diversion turned out to be a mass Insecticon attack, but after a fight, the Insecticons suddenly stopped and announced they were loyal to him. Then the ''Nemesis'' crashed. {{storylink|Armada (episode)|Armada}} Megatron got the ship moving again using Dark Energon, but when it exhibited its own intelligence and refused to follow his orders, he tried to shut it down, only to be put into stasis lock. He only awoke when the kids reversed the energon flow. {{storylink|Flying Mind}}

As Knock Out prepared to go and try to find the first of the four relics which the ship had found the location of, Megatron instructed him to take an Insecticon as muscle. {{storylink|Tunnel Vision}} Megatron then sent Dreadwing to [[Antarctica]] to find the relic there {{storylink|Triangulation}} and then sent [[Hardshell]] and three other Insecticons to a volcanic area at the equator, {{storylink|Toxicity}} before sending Soundwave to find the last relic.

He was impressed with the [[Resonance Blaster]] Soundwave found, but less so with Dreadwing and Knock Out, the latter of whom returned looking like he'd been run over by a train. After they found a grenade implanted in Laserbeak, Megatron set Soundwave back to work decoding the Iacon database. {{storylink|Triage (episode)|Triage}} His rage over Hardshell's failure was mollified when the Insecticon claimed to have offlined Bulkhead, but when they later got a call from [[Wheeljack (Prime)|Wheeljack]] revealing Bulkhead was still alive, Megatron demanded Hardshell bring him Wheeljack's spark as a substitute. Instead Hardshell's corpse was brought back before him, and Megatron was shocked to learn a [[Miko Nakadai|human girl]] was responsible. {{storylink|Hurt}}

[[File:TheHumanFactor Cylas and Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Soundwave, please arrange our guest a carwash.]]
After sending Knock Out to investigate Breakdown's signal coming back online, Megatron expressed distaste at the Breakdown/[[Silas]] hybrid who was brought to the ship. Nevertheless, he allowed "Cylas" the opportunity to prove himself worthy of a place in the Decepticon ranks by supplying them with a [[Project Damocles]] satellite. Though the initial results were promising, he sent Cylas to terminate Raf when the boy's hacking threatened to railroad their plans. When Cylas failed to do so and the satellite was stopped, Megatron called him back, and handed the former MECH commander over to Knock Out for dissection. {{storylink|The Human Factor}}

[[File:Legacy-ohcrap.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Looks like [[Sari Sumdac (Animated)|Sari]] told Megatron where babies come from.]]
When Soundwave decoded another set of Iacon relic coordinates, Megatron initiated a decoy relic beacon to give them the advantage over the Autobots, and went to fetch the latest relic with a team. Though hoping it would be a Decepticon weapon, Megatron was stunned when it turned out to be the [[Star Saber (Prima)|Star Saber]]. When he was unable to extract the sword, he had the Decepticons chip away a chunk of the mountain to be hauled away by the ''Nemesis'' in an effort to ensure it did not fall in Optimus's hands. Unfortunately, the arrival of [[Smokescreen (Prime)|a new Autobot]] delayed them long enough that the other Autobots discovered the deception. Optimus quickly managed to get hold of the sword despite Megatron's best efforts, and as the Autobot leader unleashed the sword's power, Megatron was forced to retreat in his ship, noting it was now the Decepticons' darkest hour. {{storylink|Legacy (episode)|Legacy}}

[[File:AlphaOmegaDarkStarSaber.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|[[Emperor Palpatine|It's treason then...]].]]
Coming up with a new plan to combat the Star Saber, Megatron took Dreadwing through the space bridge to Cybertron, and broke into the tomb of a Prime. After having Knock Out graft the Prime's arm onto Megatron, he was finally able to use the Forge of Solus Prime to forge a [[Dark Star Saber]] with some of his Dark Energon. Once Soundwave decrypted a new set of coordinates, he got the opportunity to test it on Arcee and Smokescreen when the pair found the first [[Omega Key]], whom he swept aside with ease. With new-found confidence, Megatron challenged Prime to a duel, and though his new sword cleaved right through the Star Saber, Megatron was unable to stop the Autobots from getting away with the Omega Key. {{storylink|Alpha/Omega}} Gloating of his destruction of the Star Saber, he allowed Knock Out the opportunity to retrieve the next relic. Upon his return with another Omega Key, Megatron was intrigued by the relic, believing it to be part of a larger piece, and put the doctor to work analyzing it. He was less impressed with Dreadwing who returned empty handed from his mission, and asserted that they needed to locate the Autobot base to recover their relics. Then Soundwave decrypted the final part of the Iacon databse, revealing Smokescreen to be relevant to their search. {{storylink|Hard Knocks}}

[[File:PatchMegatronStarscream.JPG|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Because we haven't seen this before.]]
After they extracted the Omega Key from Smokescreen, Megatron had Knock Out perform a cortical psychic patch procedure on the Autobot to learn their purpose. After discovering that all four could be used to revitalize Cybertron, he left Knock Out to find out where the Autobot base was, Megatron went to place the Omega Key in storage. However Smokescreen escaped and snatched it out of his grasp and made off with the other key as well. Though Megatron and his men gave pursuit as the Autobot jumped off their ship, Smokescreen got away. The Decepticon leader told Dreadwing they would need to locate the Autobot base quickly to retrieve the other keys, only to find Starscream on the bridge, with all four of the Omega Keys as a peace offering. {{storylink|Inside Job}} Intending to find what Starscream really planned, Megatron had himself plugged into the rogue Decepticon with a psychic patch. Despite most of Starscream's memories turning out to be incriminating, he was eventually convinced to allow Starscream to rejoin the Decepticon ranks. {{storylink|Patch (episode)|Patch}}

Megatron attempted to stress to Dreadwing that the Decepticons needed to be united. Unfortunately Dreadwing was more interested in slagging Starscream, and Megatron had to blow a hole through him. Once the location of the [[Omega Lock]] was established, Megatron took the Keys to Cybertron to find it. He and his men were attacked by the Autobots, who got away with the Keys while Megatron was otherwise occupied with the spark extractor. With some help from Starscream, Megatron got hold of the Autobots' human friends to use as a bargaining chip to secure the return of the Keys. {{storylink|Regeneration (Prime)|Regeneration}}

[[File:DarkestHour-thisistheplace.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4]]
Once he had the Keys back, Megatron had the lock activated and revealed that he intended to use it on both Cybertron and Earth so he'd have two worlds to rule, starting with Earth. Shockingly, this news resulted in Optimus slicing Megatron's sword arm off before destroying the Omega Lock. Though the Autobots escaped, Megatron would have the last laugh, as he knew the location of their base and used the Omega Lock to create a fortress there before Optimus destroyed it. If he could not conquer Cybertron, he could at least conquer Earth. From the ''Nemesis'', he and his men attacked and destroyed the Autobot base as their first act of aggression. {{storylink|Darkest Hour (episode)|Darkest Hour}}

As the Decepticons were unable to find any corpses in the rubble, Megatron ordered worldwide surveillance, and even got an opportunity to test his [[Darkmount (Earth)|new citadel]]'s fusion cannons on some foolishly attacking [[human]]s. After having his original right arm reattached to replace the one Prime severed, Megatron contacted [[William Fowler|Agent Fowler]], claiming to want to co-exist peacefully with humanity. With the continuing failure of Starscream to get any information out of the captive Wheeljack, Megatron sent Knock Out to Cybertron to search for the relics lost during the Omega Lock battle. He was pleased when Knock Out returned with the long lost [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]]. {{storylink|Darkmount, NV}} Megatron appointed Shockwave his first lieutenant in charge of science. With failures mounting, including an aborted attempt by Starscream to track down the Autobots by freeing Wheeljack with a tracking device attached, Megatron's anger grew, leading Shockwave to bring to Earth a [[Predacon (Prime)|Predacon]] he had cloned. {{storylink|Scattered}} The [[Predaking (Prime)|beast]] was dispatched, but to Megatron's disappointment it returned empty-handed. {{storylink|Prey (episode)|Prey}}

[[File:Rebellion-prepunch.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|"Right here - go on, right in the chest!"]]
Megatron was furious when Starscream scattered their troops in pursuit of phantom Autobot signals, shortly before Darkmount itself was attacked. The Decepticon leader cut short [[Ultra Magnus (WFC)|Ultra Magnus]]'s attempt to assault the fusion cannon control room, and ordered the Autobots executed. Before this could be done, Optimus Prime turned up, comprehensively beating up Megatron and throwing him into the fusion cannon power core. Despite his protests, the other Decepticons dragged Megatron back to the ''Nemesis'' before the Autobots brought the citadel crashing to the ground. {{storylink|Rebellion (Prime)|Rebellion}}

Instead the Decepticons turned their attentions to cloning, with Megatron ordering the creation of more Predacons. {{storylink|Project Predacon}} When the existing Predacon returned, Megatron ordered Starscream to take command of it. He later dispatched the beast and his first lieutenant to [[Scotland]] when a team searching for fossils there failed to report in. {{storylink|Chain of Command (Prime)|Chain of Command}} Megatron was displeased when it turned out Starscream had lost the Apex Armor, and was even less impressed when Starscream caused damage to the communications dish. Knock Out, at least, did not disappoint the Decepticon leader when he returned with another Predacon fossil. {{storylink|Plus One (Prime)|Plus One}} After some near-missteps in gathering the fossils required, Megatron hinted Shockwave should restrict himself to working in the laboratory in future. {{storylink|Project Predacon}}

Megatron discovered that Knock Out and Starscream had been experimenting with Synthetic Energon and had accidentally created a zombie-like plague. After the situation resulted in Airachnid being freed and the loss of the Insecticons, Megatron gave Knock Out orders to turn all of his experiments over to Shockwave, and reserved a ''special'' punishment for Starscream. {{storylink|Thirst}}

[[File:Evolution-Potentialcoup.jpg|thumb|upright=1.67|[[Darth Vader|"I want them alive... No disintegrations!"]].]]
During a visit to Shockwave's off-site laboratory, Megatron was shocked to learn that the Predacon could transform and was intelligent enough to speak. Though [[Predaking (Prime)|Predaking]] affirmed he was loyal to Megatron, the Decepticon leader suspected that once Predaking discovered that the Predacons were superior to ordinary Decepticons, he would turn against them. The Decepticons quickly realized they'd need to terminate Shockwave's cloning process, and Starscream came up with a plan to pin it on the Autobots which succeeded splendidly. In the aftermath of the explosion, the Decepticons discovered that the Synthetic Energon stored in the lab had created Cybermatter. {{storylink|Evolution}}

With this discovery in mind, Megatron put Shockwave in charge of perfecting the Synthetic Energon formula, however they quickly realized that the Omega Lock would need to be repaired to allow for its targeted delivery, and that Ratchet would be needed to complete the formula. Megatron told Shockwave he had decided that Earth and Cybertron were two halves of the same coin, and he intended to rule both. As the Autobots continued to interfere in their plans, Megatron had Predaking take part in protecting the Vehicons, though he insisted it be done with the Predacon in [[beast mode]]. {{storylink|Minus One}}

[[File:Synthesis Megatron and Predaking.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|[[Sam Witwicky]] [[Megatron (Movie)|can't]] [[Transformers (film)|save]] [[Predaking (Prime)|you]] [[Aligned continuity family|here]]!]]
After the Decepticons captured Ratchet and failed to extract the information they needed via cortical psychic patch, Megatron turned on the charm. Once he showed Ratchet the Omega Lock they'd reconstructed, the Autobot reluctantly agreed to help them. {{storylink|Persuasion}} Despite several missteps which he encouraged his men to correct, Megatron was pleased when the Synth-En formula was perfected, and promptly rewarded Ratchet by giving the Autobot to Predaking as a chew toy. Unfortunately Ratchet turned Predaking against him, and Megatron found himself facing the Predacon in combat. With some help from Starscream, Megatron defeated Predaking and expelled him from the ship, however the Decepticons then found their warship under attack from the Autobots. {{storylink|Synthesis}}

[[File:Tfp megatron impaled.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Megatron killed by... Bumblebee!? It could happen... ONLY ON [[Hub Network|THE HUUUUB]]!]]
Megatron intercepted Optimus Prime, damaging the Autobot's [[jet pack]], and proceeded to duel with his foe atop the Omega Lock, all the while giving orders to Shockwave to prepare the Lock for firing. When Bumblebee attempted to pass Optimus the Star Saber, Megatron blasted the scout, killing him. He prepared to finish off Optimus as well, but Bumblebee was restored by the Omega Lock and ran Megatron through with the Star Saber. Megatron's lifeless body fell from the Omega Lock and plummeted Earthward. {{storylink|Deadlock (episode)|Deadlock}}

[[File:Predaconsrising-chaosandcreation.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Seriously, how are you ''not'' Galvatron?]]
Megatron's body lay at the bottom of the ocean until it was revived and restructured by Unicron. Megatron found himself a prisoner in his own body, tortured by his new master and unable to do anything other than observe. Unicron returned to Cybertron, intending to destroy the planet and end Primus. Megatron tricked him into fighting Predaking, reasoning that if their shared body was damaged enough, Unicron would leave it; however, Unicron managed to beat Predaking and raised an army of Predacon Terrorcons with which to attack Cybertron's core. Megatron was only finally freed when Optimus tricked Unicron, drawing the dark god's anti-spark into a suitable container. Though Starscream believed Megatron would once again lead the Decepticons, Megatron had tasted oppression and no longer wished to inflict it, declaring the Decepticon movement dead and flying off. {{storylink|Predacons Rising (Prime)|Predacons Rising}}
[[File:PredaconsRising - TrueMeaningOfOppression.jpg|thumb|center|400px|I may look like I need a bath now, but it’s better than getting thrown into Cybertron’s core screaming.]]
{{--}}

===Titan ''Prime'' comic===
[[File:Titan4.2 Megatron Soundwave piggyback.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.2|The kiddy-friendly comics have Megatron giving piggy-back rides.]]
Under Megatron's leadership, the Decepticons conquered many city states including [[Kalis]], [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]], and [[Vos (polity)|Vos]]. When the time came to strike against [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]], Megatron led a five-con team in under the cover of darkness to bomb the [[Iacon Energon Refinery]]. They had barely planted the first bomb when they were spotted and fired on. After the other three Decepticons were shot down, Megatron gave Soundwave a bomb and set about causing a distraction while his second-in-command went to plant it. When Soundwave was also shot down, Megatron flew into action, helping up the rest of his team and carrying Soundwave as they retreated under the cover of an exploding bomb. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.2|War Story}}

With a new plan, Megatron took [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]] to attack the [[Yamal|NS ''Yamal'']], a Russian icebreaker near [[Antarctica]]. He intended to use a [[static lance]] to cause the ship's reactors to meltdown exposing energon deposits beneath the ice. Unfortunately Optimus got wind of the plan and came storming in. As Megatron detailed his plan during their one-on-one fight, Optimus took possession of the lance. Megatron attempted to take it back, only for Optimus to hit him with it. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.3|Ice Breaker}}

[[File:Titan4.11 Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Megatron works part-time at the Autobot Hotel providing alarm calls.]]
Megatron and Soundwave somehow slipped some code into ''[[Invasionauts II]]'' to hypnotize Raf into opening the GroundBridge so they could send Vehicons through. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.4|Tinker, Tailor, Gamer, Spy!}} Irritated at Starscream's failure to end the Autobot problem, Megatron demanded his subordinate try and lure the Autobots into a trap instead for fruitlessly searching for them. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.6|All the President's 'Bots!}}

Now infuriated at his army being constantly bested by the Autobots, Megatron took the ''Nemesis'' to the [[Erta Ale volcano]] where he had his troops fight in a series of deathmatches to apply the principle of survival of the fittest. He forced Starscream to fight [[Fearstorm]], and when Starscream won, seemed happy enough to let his lieutenant return to the ship. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.7|Megatron's Law}} After Bulkhead destroyed an energon store, Megatron had him captured and taken aboard the warship, where the Autobot was placed in the newly developed [[Ultra Prison]]. Megatron sneeringly informed Bulkhead that the prison would slowly wipe his mind, but it was Megatron who got the raw end of the deal when the ''Nemesis'' was badly damaged during the inevitable Autobot rescue. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.11|The Battle for Bulkhead}}

Intending to show the pitiful humans that their independence was only temporary, Megatron attempted to stage a media circus in which he destroyed the [[Statue of Liberty]]. Unfortunately only Bumblebee and Optimus turned up, and though Megatron tried his best to wreck the statue, Optimus caused more damage to it in the process of defeating him than he did himself. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.13|Protecting the Lady}}

Leaving Starscream in charge of the Nemesis, Megatron returned to find it practically destroyed. He was met by Starscream, who told him the apparent course of events; ''some random Vehicon'' created an unauthorised Predacon clone, which ran amok, before Starscream ''bravely killed it''. Starscream also had ''totally not faked'' video footage to prove it! Despite the Vehicon's protests, Megatron executed him. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.20|Starscream's Beast}}
====Mega-Mouth====
Megatron occasionally takes time out from conquering the universe to...answer fan mail? He also sometimes seems [[Megatron (Movie)|confused]] about which multiverse he hails from, as he claimed he attacked [[Sentinel Prime (ROTF)|Sentinel]] {{storylink|Transformers_Comic_issue_4.1#Mega-Mouth|Mega-Mouth #1}} and also explained why he wore a cowl in ''[[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Dark of the Moon]].'' {{storylink|Transformers_Comic_issue_4.4#Mega-Mouth|Mega-Mouth #4}} He also said he survived ''Dark of the Moon'', after some fan asked how Megatron could be answering fan mail. {{storylink|Transformers_Comic_issue_4.5#Mega-Mouth|Mega-Mouth #5}}
{{--}}

===''Tales of the Beast Hunters''===
After [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] intercepted a message pointing to a derelict starship containing weapons in the [[asteroid belt]], Megatron and [[Predaking (Prime)|Predaking]] headed out to find it. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 2}} They got there and found [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]] and [[Wheeljack (Prime)|Wheeljack]] about to make off with the weapons. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 4}} After [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]] joined the battle, {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 5}} the ship began to explode, and Megatron plunged through the floor along with tons of debris. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 6}}

Injured, Megatron lay beneath the wreckage in the ship, using his damaged comms to monitor events on Earth. Finally his groping hands found an [[Tartarex Warp Sword|ancient weapon]], which used the surrounding debris to repair and rebuild him. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 22}} He returned to Earth and blasted the top off a mountain, {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 23}} intending to make a preemptive strike against the Predacons. The Predacons promptly flew up to engage him in combat. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 24}}

===Full of Fire!===
Disgruntled at the lack of progress in Predacon cloning, Megatron complained to Shockwave, who revealed that the cloning had already borne fruit. Megatron was pleased, though not so much when Predaking and the five new Predacons returned having been defeated by the Autobots. He believed that the Autobots now knew the extent of the Predacon army, however Shockwave was quick to reveal that there were a whole lot more Predacon clones ready to go. {{storylink|Full of Fire!}}

===''Transformers: The Ultimate Pop-Up Universe''===
Once an idealistic young miner, Megatron was forced into the gladiatorial ring, which eventually lead him to become the brutal and ruthless leader of the Decepticons. He once crushed the Autobot [[Bumper (WFC)|Bumper]]'s legs with his tank mode. {{storylink|Transformers: The Ultimate Pop-Up Universe|The Ultimate Pop-Up Universe}}

===2015 ''Robots in Disguise'' cartoon===
Though Megatron was nowhere to be seen, a statue of him was erected on the reborn Cybertron. {{storylink|Pilot (Part 1)}} After [[Cyclonus (WFC)|Cyclonus]]'s Decepticon cell had taken over the [[Autobot High Council|High Council]], they began making preparations for Megatron's return, either unaware of, or unwilling to believe, the former gladiator renouncing conquest. {{storylink| Freedom Fighters}}

As he had "helped save the universe from Starscream, Megatron, and Dark Energon," Bumblebee refused to be defeated by [[Bisk (RID)|Bisk]]. {{storylink|More than Meets the Eye (RID)|More than Meets the Eye}} [[Fixit (RID)|Fixit]] once thought a map looked like Megatron's face. {{storylink|W.W.O.D.?}} During their battle, Drift mistook [[The Fallen|Megatronus]] for Megatron. {{storylink|Battlegrounds, Part 2}} Megatron was "light years away" by the time [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] managed to escape the [[Shadowzone (dimension)|Shadowzone]]. {{storylink|Portals}}

As the High Council's plans neared completion, they genetically engineered a quartet of Activator [[Mini-Con]]s to help free Soundwave from the Shadowzone, with the intent that the communication chief summon Megatron so he could lead the Decepticons back to glory. The [[Bee Team (RID)|Bee Team]] thwarted Soundwave, however. Upon confronting the High Council, the Decepticons combined into [[Galvatronus (RID)|Galvatronus]] who decided that the [[Decepticon Empire]] would be reborn and thriving for whenever Megatron returned. {{storylink|Collateral Damage}} {{storylink| Freedom Fighters}}

===2015 ''Robots in Disguise'' books===
An Energon thief came to Megatron's attention and joined the Decepticon army as [[Drift (RID)|Deadlock]]. {{storylink|Drift's Samurai Showdown}}

==Commercial appearances==
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English)}}

*During the war on Cybertron, Megatron had to briefly leave the battlefield, and left [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] in charge. Shockwave took the opportunity to order Soundwave to transform into his boombox mode and play "[[The Touch]]" while he blasted Autobots. {{storylink|Commercial#War for Cybertron|Gamestop Exclusive TV spot}}

*Megatron, {{w|Dan Vs.|Dan}}, and [[Pinkie Pie]] sang a collaborative group song while the scene quickly shifted between a variety of strange alternate universes. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Summer|The Hub summer promo 2011}}
{{quote|{{w|Meatballs (film)|Are you ready for the summer? Are you ready for the hot <s>nuts</s> nights?}}|Megatron}}

*At some point he ended up in detention at a school because he had "anger issues". {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Detention|The Hub promo}}

*He later joined back up with Pinkie Pie as well as other ponies [[Rainbow Dash]] and [[Applejack]], and [[Bulkhead (Prime)|Bulkhead]] in scatting "{{w|Deck the Halls}}" {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Carolers1|The Hub Carolers}} and singing "{{w|Jingle Bells}}". {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Carolers2|The Hub Carolers (Second spot)}}

*He also demanded that viewers vote for him in the Hub's 2010 "Naughty or Nice" contest. They must have been listening, because he was eventually voted the "Naughtiest" villain on the Hub that year.

[[File:MegatronCareBear.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|''Megatron is on the right'' One wonders where exactly the other Care Bear came from.]]
*Megatron declared the Hub his in a commercial for a marathon of ''Prime'' season 1 and 2, {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Darkest Hour|Darkest Hour promo}} doing certain Hub-focused jokes and gags before the commercial breaks during the marathon. One such segment showed [[The Transformers (cartoon)|his home movies]], during which reminisced on how [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|young he looked back then]] and mocked [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave's]] dated choice of alt mode. In other commercials for the marathon, it is revealed that out of all the radio transmissions in the universe, the ''[[My Little Pony]]: Friendship Is Magic'' [[theme song|theme]] is his favorite song, {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Song|Megatron's Favorite Song}} and that he has been working on new transformations, demonstrating his ability to [[Pretender|transform]] into Funshine Bear, a {{w|Care Bears|Care Bear}}, much to his humiliation. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Care Bear|Megatron Transforms into a Care Bear}} Also during the marathon; he commented on how his favorite reason that transformers were superior to humans was that transformers didn't need bathroom breaks. He also commented that the one thing he doesn't get about Autobots is their continuation of transforming into land-based vehicles (not complaining, just observing). He also expressed bewilderment over the way [[United States of America|Americans]] elect [[President of the United States|their leader]] through [[Democracy|democratic means]], rather than just killing off the competition like he would do. He also apologized to [[ALF]] for pre-empting his show, allowing the program to air at a later date under his regime. The only humans that Megatron admitted to liking were those that cower before him and Dan, due to his anger.

*Despite Megatron's might, Raf judged him inferior to {{w|Time Warner Cable}}'s ability to transmit ''Transformers: Prime'' on laptop, tablet and smartphone computers, as demonstrated by a [[Raf's media device|device]] which switched between all three forms. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Time Warner|Time Warner Cable: Competiton}}

*While lounging around the Nemesis, Megatron answered questions about his personal life, took requests from fans, and offered advice to the disillusioned and directionless. He shot down one girl who asked him to the prom, told a guy that the best way to get noticed by chicks is to transform into a jet, suggested that pound cake is the most superior of all baked desserts, and revealed that his ideal form of relaxation involves drawing [[Rainbow Dash]] fanart. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Ask Megatron|Ask Megatron}}

*Megatron narrated ''{{w|A Visit from St. Nicholas}}'' for his troops, which was interrupted by three Vehicons discussing the stirring practices of mice. Megatron threatened to put them on the naughty list. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Naughty List|30-Second Holiday Special: "Decepticon Holidays: Naughty List"}} Megatron shouted down several Vehicons singing about figgy pudding. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Pudding|30-Second Holiday Special: "Decepticon Holidays: Pudding"}} An Insecticon had direct orders from Megatron to send whoever decorated the ''Nemesis'' in holiday lights to the North Pole. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Holiday Schmoliday|30-Second Holiday Special: "Decepticon Holidays: Holiday Schmoliday"}}

==Games==
===''Transformers: War for Cybertron'' (Xbox 360/PS3/PC)===
{{voiceactor|[[Fred Tatasciore]] (English)|[[Oliviero Corbetta]] (Italian), [[Juan Carlos Lozano]] (Spanish), [[Bruno Carna]] (French), [[Jacek Jasiński]] (Polish)}}
[[File:WFC Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.95|He wants the whooole wooorld, in his hand!]]
During the early war on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], Megatron found reference to an energy source called [[Dark Energon]], which had impressive potential as a weapon, and became determined to claim it for himself. One of the few places it was made was in a station in orbit around Cybertron, guarded by a politically neutral force led by [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]]. With this knowledge, he took a ship and launched an assault on the station.

The ship was badly damaged in the attack, and so he ordered [[Barricade (WFC)|Barricade]] and [[Brawl (WFC)|Brawl]], piloting it, to ram the station. He and many of his soldiers survived the impact and escaped the core's detonation. They were then confronted by Starscream, who informed them that they would not allow them to take what he had guarded for ten thousand years. After surviving a trap of sentry guns, Megatron, Barricade, and Brawl were reinforced by more of Megatron's troops, and set out on their way to find the station's Dark Energon stores and claim them for the war effort. They encountered significant resistance, but managed to shoot their way through, with directional aid from [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]]. Barricade noted that the station itself seemed quite primitive; Megatron noted it was very old, and that he intended to modernize it. At one point, the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seeker]] [[Jetfire (WFC)|Jetfire]] confronted Megatron nonviolently, asking him to give up his quest, as Dark Energon would result in only horror, death, and destruction, to which Megatron sneered, "You say that as if it were a bad thing."

[[File:WFC-MegatronmeetsStarscream.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.66|At last we meet, my punching bag.]]

Along their way to the Dark Energon, they found that a large portion of the station had been blasted clean off, the debris field traversable but sparse enough to allow easy viewing of Cybertron itself. Soundwave soon found records indicating that a small amount of Dark Energon lost containment and was the sole cause of the destruction, underscoring Megatron's desire for it. When Barricade asked how he expected to control it when no other had, Megatron said that such power was only for the strong, that he was the strongest, and not to question him again.

When they finally reached the storage chamber, and Megatron averted Starscream's destruction of it, he calmly entered into a container full of raw Dark Energon, while Starscream watched and gloated at his imminent destruction...only for him to walk out, not only unscathed, but crackling with power, which he further bestowed upon Barricade and Brawl. A single blast of Dark Energon was enough to destroy an entire company of station security forces, the last line of defense between Megatron and Starscream and his companions.

Jetfire again tried to warn Megatron about the dangers of Dark Energon, but Starscream interrupted, asking to join the Decepticon leader. Megatron asked what Starscream could offer that he could not simply take. Starscream revealed the station's supply of Dark Energon was almost spent, and he knew how to manufacture more—and as luck would have it, there was a dormant [[Geosynchronous Energon Bridge]] which could be used to power it. Jetfire retreated to inform [[Sentinel Zeta Prime|Zeta Prime]]; Megatron let him go, seeming pleased by the notion of letting the Autobots tremble in advance of their actions, and sent Starscream, [[Thundercracker (WFC)|Thundercracker]], and [[Skywarp (WFC)|Skywarp]] to activate the bridge.

Megatron repeatedly mocked what he perceived as Starscream's slowness in his simple mission, but the Seeker did what he said he could. With a steady supply of Dark Energon, Megatron launched an attack on Iacon City, intending to take a device called the [[Omega Key]] and use it to enter the Core of Cybertron. This time, he took [[Breakdown (WFC)|Breakdown]] and Soundwave with him. The trio took the less-guarded way in—which, since the Autobots were not complete fools (as even Megatron would admit), still had significant military presence. During the attack, Starscream noted that Dark Energon was proving every bit as potent as Megatron had promised. Breakdown let Megatron know of his misgivings about the Sky Commander; Megatron admitted he was treacherous and untrustworthy, but he had useful talents, and his cunning and ambition was intriguing.

The Omega Key had been taken from its normal resting place, however, by Autobot leader Zeta Prime, and so Megatron took his squad on an assault on Zeta's headquarters. They met Brawl, leading an attack on the doors to Zeta Prime's armory, along the way. Even Megatron's touch of Dark Energon could not breach the vault doors, however, and so he called in [[Dark Energon Bomber]]s. When they were shot down, Brawl suggested they take out the Autobots' air defense guns, after which bombers were called in again; Megatron's troops then held off a massive assault from what seemed like the entire Autobot army while waiting for the bombing run to finally arrive.

[[File:WFC Megatron Vs ZetaPrime.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|Zeta Prime, you might be more egotistical than me. I mean really, a huge holographic version of you and smaller holograms doing what you can't do without your pointy stick thing?]]

After the vault doors were breached, they reached Zeta Prime himself, who had constructed several layers of security while he waited. An invincible energy field protected him, while he could drop portions of the ceiling with pistons to crush anything beneath them, and construct endless holographic clones of himself outfitted for melee combat, which Megatron personally found nauseating. However, his defenses were not without flaw: periodically, the power core would need to disperse waste heat, and Megatron's team survived long enough to destroy it during this stage. Zeta fell, buried under the wreckage of his own defenses, and Megatron took the device he'd carried...which started to make electronic chirping noises. Zeta, with dark humor, noted that the device was not the Omega Key. It merely ''activated'' the Key, which would come to them...

Searching for the Key in the skies aboard another ship, Megatron, with Soundwave and Breakdown at the controls, were abruptly confronted by a massive ship, [[Omega Supreme (WFC)|Omega Supreme]], who knocked them out of the sky, causing them to crash back in Iacon. There, they played a cat-and-mouse campaign in a desperate attempt to survive the enormous Autobot's vast firepower, though Soundwave noted that the weaponry they bore had little chance of penetrating Omega Supreme's armor. Megatron, for his part, at least contrived to appear unafraid, claiming that if it came to a real fight, the brute wouldn't stand a chance against Megatron's intellect. However, Omega's attacks drove them underground and left them unable to immediately transmit counter to Starscream, who declared Megatron dead and announced he was taking control. Even when they re-established contact, Starscream's aerial forces only briefly distracted Omega, who dispensed large numbers of troops, sucked up Decepticons with a tractor beam, fired weapons of mass destruction, and mined the roads Megatron and his squad were using.

[[File:Omega Supreme smash.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|"I challenge you to a thumb wrestling competition!" "''That's'' a thumb!?"]]
Soundwave, however, had come up with a suggestion—there were weapons emplacements higher up that had the ability to damage Omega Supreme. Taking them from the Autobots was a battle in and of itself, but nothing compared to the fight against Omega Supreme, who could unload entire squadrons of Aerialbots. Nonetheless, Megatron's boldness and tactical acumen finally shot Omega Supreme out of the sky.

[[File:WFC-hearmynameandtremble.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.66|I stand on your crotch!]]

Gloating, Megatron found that the behemoth was still not defeated, and indeed was drawing power from Cybertron itself to repair his systems, making him stronger, if anything. However, by corrupting the energon batteries with which he was using to feed himself with Dark Energon charges, they were able to weaken him to the point where they could finally blast away his last defenses and brought him to heel. With Omega Supreme defeated, Megatron went underground, directly to the Core, and corrupted it with a massive infusion of Dark Energon, finally bringing Cybertron itself more completely under his control.

At this point, Megatron was clearly convinced, and for good reason, that he'd won, making propaganda broadcasts extolling his greatness and how he had taken away the Autobots' burdens of "liberty" and "choice". When Starscream was defeated and the Decagon retaken, however, he realized the Autobots were not yet going to roll over for him, and sent a distress signal from Zeta Prime, whom he had kept alive in the Kaon prison camp, in order to provoke a rescue attempt from the Autobots. His old acquaintance Optimus took the bait, and Megatron confronted him, telling him that the war could be over tomorrow if Optimus took the Autobots and left. Optimus refused, so Megatron consigned him and his team to the prisons. When they managed to stage a mass breakout, an enraged Megatron ordered his troops to prevent their escape at any cost, to the point of tearing apart portions of Kaon.

This was not enough, however, and they escaped, journeying to the Core, where they kickstarted the cleansing of Megatron's corruption. Doing so, however, would take the Core millions of years of shutdown, rendering Cybertron uninhabitable. Whether Megatron knew this or not, when he saw the Autobots leaving after Optimus's refusal of his earlier offer, he apparently took offense. His earlier plans of renovating Starscream's station had come to fruition; now, it mounted a powerful superweapon, capable of destroying entire structures in one shot. He had it fire upon the Autobot transports as they left. When a team of Aerialbots attempted to disable or destroy it, he called Jetfire, now one of them, and taunted him about his past. He further mocked them when they destroyed the plasma coolant system without apparently having accounted for backups. Finally, during the attack he came into possession of information on Optimus Prime's location, and ordered Trypticon—the name of the weapon, for it was actually a Cybertronian—to fire upon it.

Trypticon, however, was forced into his natural form and defeated after he crash-landed on Cybertron. Megatron's reaction to this went unrecorded. {{storylink|Transformers: War for Cybertron (360/PS3/PC)|Transformers: War for Cybertron}}

===''Transformers: War for Cybertron'' (DS)===
[[File:WFCDS Defeat Omega Supreme.jpg|thumb|left|256px|Simple enough... OH GOD BULLETS.]]

Megatron was the Decepticon Leader during the final days of the Great War. After capturing an Autobot facility, and killing a cadet, Megatron revealed his plan to his troops. Megatron intended to conquer Trypticon Space Station, which had the means and power to manufacture Dark Energon: a variant of Energon which greatly increased the stamina and strength of its host. Megatron fought his way through the station to its commander, the Autobot Starscream. Upon Starscream's defeat, Starscream offered his services and the Dark Energon if he was spared. Megatron agreed, and Starscream joined the Decepticons.

After a test run of the Dark Energon in Kaon Prison, Soundwave deduced the element would only kill the host, but Starscream was able to find a way to fix it. Megatron then decided the time was right, and led his army to the inner levels of Cybertron. He was able to activate the uplink to channel energy from the Core of Cybertron itself to Trypticon Station, but he needed the Omega Key to access it once it was shut down with a firewall.

Megatron learned through a recording from Laserbeak that Autobot Leader Zeta Prime had the Omega Key in his possession and had holed up deep within Iacon. Megatron led a full-scale assault on the city, totally devastating Iacon, until he found Zeta Prime at last. After a hard battle, Zeta fell, and Megatron obtained the Omega Key. However, immediately upon taking it, alarms went off, and Iacon itself was shaking. Zeta Prime, despite being mortally wounded, laughed at Megatron's face, saying the Omega Key was only the key to the ''true'' key: the city-sized Autobot Omega Supreme.

Omega immediately attacked the victorious Decepticons, and quickly decimated their presence in Iacon, save for Megatron's team and a few others. By this point, Megatron was absolutely furious at Starscream: Megatron declared it was he who led them to Omega Supreme and the devastating onslaught he carried out. Starscream bitterly retorted even if Megatron killed him, Omega Supreme would still be out for his blood, helping nothing whatsoever. Megatron angrily let it go for the time being, and led his army to battle. His troops' confidence beginning to falter, Megatron declared they would either be kicking themselves for not acting for the rest of their lives, or heroes in a historic event. His men followed him to battle Omega, and the titan fell. Megatron was free to corrupt the Core of Cybertron with Dark Energon, and obtain near-supremacy of Cybertron.

That kind of went downhill when the new Autobot leader, Optimus Prime, extinguished the Dark Energon and destroyed Trypticon Space Station, didn't it? {{storylink|Transformers: War for Cybertron (DS)|War for Cybertron - Autobots/Decepticons}}

{{--}}

===''Transformers: Cybertron Adventures''===
{{voiceactor|[[Fred Tatasciore]] (English)|[[Oliviero Corbetta]] (Italian)}}

Early in the war, when the Autobots learned of the existence of the orbiting superweapon [[Trypticon (WFC)|Trypticon]], Megatron sent waves of Decepticon forces to keep them from discovering more about it. Megatron, happy to see the destruction Trypticon was creating, ordered Starscream and Skywarp at gunpoint to return to Trypticon and clean up after it, while he took his troops into battle to scour the area for Autobots to kill. Few Autobots other than the medic, [[Ratchet (WFC)|Ratchet]], were spared Megatron's initial assault.

When Megatron found out that Starscream had left his post at Trypticon, Megatron grew angry. But the Autobots had infiltrated the [[Datacore]], so Megatron focused his efforts there instead. Bumblebee was captured, and information useful for the taking of [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] was pulled from his mind. Megatron assigned Skywarp the task of the initial Iacon assault. The traitorous Starscream returned to Megatron's focus, and the Air Commander was ordered to infiltrate the Core of Cybertron to reactivate the [[Geosynchronous Energon Bridge]]. But Starscream took too long, discovering Megatron had already reached the Core by the time he arrived. In a foul mood, Megatron would test Starscream's loyalty by putting him on the Iacon assault's front lines.

The assault went as planned, and Iacon crumbled. As Barricade and Starscream reached an empty Council Chamber, Megatron alerted them to the evacuation of the surviving Autobots. Three Autobot ships positioned themselves to escape, and so Megatron ordered Thundercracker and Skywarp to take them down.

Though Iacon fell, the Trypticon orbiting superweapon was destroyed by the Autobots... but not before Megatron ripped the datacore from its brain so as to salvage its information on Dark Energon. Megatron was pleased. Despite his loss, he still had the upper hand. {{storylink|Transformers: Cybertron Adventures}}

===''Transformers: Fall of Cybertron'' (Xbox 360/PS3/PC)===
{{voiceactor|[[Fred Tatasciore]] (English)}}
[[File:FoC Megatron Profile.jpg‎|thumb|left|upright=1.3|Seriously, Soundwave, where is my fusion cannon?! It was in your remodeling designs, for crying out loud...]]
When Cybertron had begun to die following the Core's shutdown, Megatron blamed [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]], as he was the one who had ruined his plans for the planet. Megatron launched an attack on [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] in order to destroy the Ark and get revenge. While commanding the battle from beneath one of his [[Warp Cannon]]s, he sent [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]], [[Onslaught (WFC)|Onslaught]] and [[Brawl (WFC)|Brawl]] to capture Optimus and bring him before him. As Megatron executed two Autobots before his Optimus' eyes, Optimus pleaded that they only wanted to leave Cybertron, but Megatron wasn't going to allow him. As the Warp Cannon prepared to destroy both the Ark, and the Decepticon leader to do the same to the Autobot leader, the newly awakened [[Metroplex (FOC)|Metroplex]] tore the roof off of the building they were in. Refusing to retreat, Megatron fired at the colossus, only to be pulverized by the giant Autobot's fist.

Due to Megatron's death, Starscream took control of the Decepticons and proceeded to run the organization into the ground by wasting resources and his failure to inspire the troops. Unhappy with the change in management, [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] salvaged what was left of Megatron, rebuilt him into a new form in his Kaon laboratory, and reactivated him with a Dark Energon infusion. After awakening, Megatron was enraged to see that Starscream was in control, and then proceeded to crash Starscream's [[The Transformers: The Movie|coronation]] ceremony. Slaughtering the Seeker's loyalists, Megatron turned on Starscream and drove him off. [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] arrived to inform him of the [[space bridge]] technology he had discovered and [[Earth|an energy-rich planet]] for them to plunder, and they required a suitable power source for a transport to take them.

Due to Starscream's self-indulgence, the Decepticons' energon supply was dwindling, forcing Megatron to find more power. He decided to retrieve the power core from the fallen [[Trypticon (WFC)|Trypticon]] and while doing so, he happily "reintroduced" himself to the Autobots. After arriving at Trypticon's crash site, he realized the beast was still alive and had Soundwave revitalize him. Megatron didn't know or care whether or not Trypticon was still sentient or not, but told the beast that since he had failed him, he would be rebuilt to Megatron's liking. Megatron then told Soundwave to initiate the "Nemesis Protocol" and permanently lock Trypticon in his [[alternate mode|alternate form]]: a transport ship which they would use to traverse the Space Bridge.

The ''Nemesis'' was quickly completed and the Space Bridge opened, and Megatron decided to leave Shockwave in charge of Cybertron in his absence. However, one of Shockwave's [[Grimlock (WFC)|experiments]] destroyed the tower, which reduced the time they have to reach the Space Bridge before it closed. Sending in Soundwave to lead his forces on the Ark, Megatron confronted Optimus and the two fought. Megatron prepared a devastating blow to his enemy with a cannon, only for [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]] to take the shot for Optimus. Their battle reignited, the two leaders traded blows with swords, causing heavy damage to one another. But before a final blow could be delivered by either one of them, the Ark crumbled under the Space Bridge's force, and while Megatron shouted in anger, both ships were drawn through. {{storylink|Transformers: Fall of Cybertron|Fall of Cybertron}}

{{note|Megatron also appears in the game's 'Escalation' mode. He fights alongside [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]], [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]], and [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]], on the 'Oblivion' map. He is the team's [[Tank (FOC)|Tank]].}}

=== ''Transformers: Prime - The Game'' ===
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English)|[[Bruno Carna]] (French), [[Juan Carlos Lozano]] (Castilian Spanish)}}

[[File:Transformers prime the game megatron.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.1|I think I'll force a servant of Unicron about ten times my size to serve me. That won't go horribly wrong at all.]]
Megatron was present when the Decepticons were hauling in an asteroid rich with Dark Energon heading toward Earth. When the Autobots came to stop them, he decided to take matters into his own hands by going toe-to-toe with Optimus again. After they exchanged some wedding vows and got to dancing, the asteroid exploded and interrupted their fight. Megatron managed to survive by flying away, witnessing his enemies fall to Earth. Swiftly, Megatron commanded Starscream to organize a scouting team to retrieve the fallen Autobots.

Megatron was present when Optimus awoke to fight Thunderwing. Megatron commenced an attack on the Autobot with the Nemesis, but once the Autobot escaped, he quickly turned his attention to the giant in the asteroid. After an analysis by Knock Out, Megatron reasoned with the herald of Unicron by promising all of his missing components being returned to him if and only if he swore his undying allegiance to him. As such, Megatron and Starscream arrived at one location to retrieve a component while Dreadwing parted to another. While on their mission, Megatron and Starscream managed to run into their old pals Optimus & Bulkhead. Starscream took his fight to the bulk, leaving Megatron to battle his old foe once again. Megatron was somewhat defeated, but managed to retrieve the component.

Megatron witnessed Starscream attach the component to Thunderwing, and the two were surprised when Thunderwing continued to serve Unicron, even after their deal. Thunderwing attempted to destroy Megatron before making his escape, but he used Starscream as protection. Throwing his commander on the ground like scrap, he pursued Thunderwing only to meet with the Autobots again. Megatron managed to make sport of Arcee, Bumblebee, and Bulkhead, but his third and final battle with Optimus resulted in his ultimate defeat. He vengefully tried to stab Optimus when offered mercy, only to be left open and seemingly destroyed by a blast from the arriving Thunderwing.
{{storylink|Transformers: Prime - The Game}}

===''Transformers Online''===
{{charstubgame}}
{{storylink|Transformers Online (2012 video game)|Transformers Online}}
{{-}}

===''Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark''===
{{charstubgame|{{storylink|Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark (console)|Rise of the Dark Spark (console)}}, {{storylink|Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark (3DS)|Rise of the Dark Spark (3DS)}}}}
{{-}}

===''Transformers Prime: Battle For Energon''===
Megatron and his Eradicons infiltrated the Autobots' headquarters. They then used Scraplets to discombobulate the base's systems. Bulkhead then came along, removed the Scraplets from the headquarters' systems, and defeated Megatron. {{storylink|Transformers Prime: Battle For Energon}}

===''Transformers Prime: Terrorcon Defense''===
Megatron threw wave after wave of Vehicons at the Autobots in the hopes of amassing massive amounts of Dark Energon, before launching an assault on the Autobot headquarters. He was defeated by Optimus Prime and Arcee. {{Storylink|Transformers Prime: Terrorcon Defense|Terrorcon Defense}}

===''Transformers Prime: Pulsar Defense''===
Megatron and his Decepticons built an [[Energon Drain]] weapon, which would render them unstopable if left unopposed. Optimus Prime and his Autobots intervened, and destroyed the weapon. {{storylink|Transformers Prime: Pulsar Defense}}

===''Transformers Prime: Decepticon Strike''===
After the bulk of his troops, and many Vehicons had faced off against Optimus Prime, Megatron took on the Autobot leader himself. Megatron had access to a personal forcefield and powerful energy blasts throughout the battle, and would alternate between his robot and vehicle mode to fight both on the ground and above it. The stack the odds even more in his favor, Megatron was assisted by some of his troops, including Airachnid, Breakdown and Shockwave. Despite all of this, Optimus managed to defeat Megatron, and he was sent fleeing, proclaiming that Optimus had only succeeded in winning a small battle that was part of a greater war. {{storylink|Transformers Prime: Decepticon Strike|Decepticon Strike}}

===''Transformers Universe''===
[[File:Tu-character-art megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|left|Went from shark-face to scowl-face]]
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English)}}

At some point during the Autobot-Decepticon war, Optimus Prime went missing. Megatron and his Decepticons searched the universe for the Autobot leader, but met heavy resistance from the Autobots, who fought to keep their leader's location a secret.

He appears in-game only as a hologram displayed in the ''Leviathan'', [[Switchblade (Prime)|Switchblade]]'s ship. {{storylink|Transformers Universe}}
{{-}}
===''Transformers: Battle Tactics''===
[[File:Battle-Tactics-Megatron-(WFC).jpg|thumb|upright=2.2]]
Megatron (WFC) participated in battles against a variety of opponents, both Autobots and Decepticons. Sometimes there were many of him! He was an Epic character available as a reward in the "Cybertron Episode 1" event. {{storylink|Transformers: Battle Tactics}}
{{-}}

==Toys==
{{main|Megatron (WFC)/toys}}

==Merchandise==
{{main|Megatron (WFC)/toys#Merchandise}}

==Notes==
[[File:Tfprimemegatronjet.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Too fast for screen caps.]]
[[File:VectorSigmaBotBuilderMegatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Green With Evil.]]
[[File:RID 15 Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|It's like [[Transformers: War for Cybertron (games)|''War for Cybertron'']] and [[Megatron (Animated)|''Animated'']] were put in a blender.]]
*Megatron's model is usable in ''War for Cybertron'' multiplayer as the Destroyer-type chassis for [[Soldier (WFC)|Soldier]]-class characters. His parts are also available in ''Fall of Cybertron'', now classified as Gunner-type components for [[Titan (FOC)|Titan]]-class characters.
*Megatron's designation as an energon miner was "D-16".<ref>[http://www.hasbro.com/transformers/en_US/play/details.cfm?guid=7fd5ecd9-19b9-f369-1041-a7635be83172 War for Cybertron timeline].</ref> Megatron's original [[List of Japanese ID numbers|Japanese ID number]] was "16". Takara would eventually change the numbering system using a "D" to denote [[Decepticon|Destrons]]. So Megatron's Japanese ID number could retroactively be considered "D-16".
*According to the packing bio for the Cybertronian Megatron toy, Megatron often changes his [[alternate mode]]. This was probably written in an attempt to explain why goes from turning into a tank in the video games to turning into a jet in the cartoon.
**The ''Prime'' staff used the rationale that Megatron, unlike other Decepticons, would not scan an Earth mode out of disgust at humans.<ref>[http://www.tfw2005.com/transformers-news/transformers-prime-39/botcon-2010-transformers-prime-panel-coverage-170054/ BotCon 2010 Transformers Prime Panel Coverage]</ref>
*In ''War for Cybertron'', Megatron has multiple glitches when controlled by the computer, among them shrinking (quite hilariously), losing his Fusion Cannon, and having his Tank mode cannon stick straight up (also humorous). He may be the most glitchy character in the game.
*''Prime'' Megatron takes visual cues from both Generation 1 [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]]—the ever-famous buckethead and lower legs resembling a pistol's handgrip—and [[Megatron (Movie)|"Movie series" Megatron]]—the sharp angles and bits on his shoulders, two-toed feet, a demonic-looking face with sharp shark-like teeth, and even a Cybertronian jet mode. The G1 reference goes further with Welker's casting, but with a darker tone leaning more towards [[Hugo Weaving]]'s portrayal as a movieverse cue (Welker would later deepen this tone for ''Age of Extinction'' and ''The Last Knight'').
*Megatron's body parts are available to use in the Hub website's [[Vector Sigma Bot Builder]] online game. Normally, you cannot configure a generic 'bot using all Megatron parts, but you can see what one would look like at right through the magic of Photoshop.
*A running gag in the advertisements shows that the Decepticon Lord is actually a {{w|brony}} in secret. Soundwave is the only one who knows, and seems to share his leader's taste for ''[[My Little Pony]]''.
**According to the ''[[Commercial/Prime#2012|Transformers: Prime 26 Hour Takeover Marathon]]'' promos, his favorite song is the [[theme song|theme]] to ''My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic''.
**According to an [[Commercial/Prime#2013|Ask Megatron]] segment, his ideal form of relaxation involves traveling to the dark side of Pluto and drawing Rainbow Dash fanart.
**And then there are [[Commercial/Prime#2011|The Hub Summer]] and [[Commercial/Prime#2011|The Hub Carolers]] promos, in which he joins Pinkie Pie, Applejack and Rainbow Dash (his favorite!) for various musical numbers.
**While answering fan mail from the [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=woM_g2cJxlA "Ask Megatron" Segments], he replied that his most embarrassing moment was when he cried in front of Soundwave when [[Twilight Sparkle]] became a princess.
*A note in the "Autobits" edition of [[Darkmount, NV]] states that he enjoys online cat videos.
*Megatron had concept art made for him for the ''[[Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2015 cartoon)|Robots in Disguise]]'' cartoon.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Megatron''' (メガトロン ''Megatoron''), '''Megatronus''' (メガトロナス ''Megatoronasu'')
*''Mandarin:'' '''Megaton''' (Taiwan, 密卡登 ''Mìkǎdēng''), '''Wēi Zhèn Tīan''' (China, 威震天, lit. "Extremely Prestigious" or "Heaven-shaking Might")

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Emperors of Destruction]]
[[Category:Fall of Cybertron Decepticons]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Hall of Fame characters]]
[[Category:Letters page answerers]]
[[Category:Prime Decepticons]]
[[Category:Transformers Online Decepticons]]
[[Category:War for Cybertron Decepticons]]
[[Category:Transformers Universe game Decepticons]]

Megatron (WFC)

2023-01-05T22:01:59Z

Negatwenty: /* Titan Prime comic */

{{factions|decepticon|{{factions/icons|custom=PrimeSharkticonSymbol.png|cLink=Sharkticon (species)|cSize=40x40px}}|hofsilver}}
{{disambigm|Megatron (disambiguation)|Megatronus (disambiguation)}}
{{suite}}
:''Megatron is the [[Decepticon]] leader from the [[Aligned continuity family]].''

[[File:Megatron-Prime-stock-render.jpg|thumb|upright=2.2|"That's the funny thing about heroes—they need to win every time. The villain only needs to win once."]]
The awesomely powerful '''Megatron''' is, in many ways, a fallen hero. He rose up from the oppressed lower working castes of [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]] to become a champion in the region's illegal [[gladiatorial combat|deathmatches]], cast aside his designation of '''D-16''' and took the legendary name '''[[The Fallen|Megatronus]]'''<ref>Megatron was an abbreviation, so it'd be easier for the masses to chant his name; ''Transformers: Exodus'', Chapter 3</ref> as his own. He called for an end to [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]'s decrepit [[Functionism|caste system]] and told the downtrodden that freedom of self-determination was the right of all sentient beings!

But absolute power corrupts absolutely, and Megatron's Decepticon revolution, like many such movements, ended up becoming a whole new tyranny. Powerful, charismatic, violent, and full of rage for any who would stand in the way of his ambition and drive, Megatron brought Cybertron ''past'' the brink of destruction. Now he and his former brother-in-arms [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]] fight on other worlds. Megatron will never forgive Optimus for "betraying" him, stealing from the Council the rank of Prime which was rightfully his. He has reserved for his old friend the greatest honor possible: glorious death at his hands.

Megatron has been gone for three years, but now he's returned. He's brought the monstrous [[Dark Energon]] to [[Earth]], and quite possibly left his sanity in space. Though he's made a few mistakes, he does not intend to make them again!

{{quote|Good and evil fade away. History shall judge me... ''victorious''.|Megatron rejects all moral judgement on his actions|[[Transformers: Cybertron Adventures|Cybertron Adventures, The Ending Begins]]}}
{{quote|I... am the Dominator, I... am the Destroyer, I am '''Megatron!'''|Megatron|''[[Transformers: War for Cybertron (360/PS3/PC)|Transformers: War for Cybertron]]''}}

==Fiction==
===''The Covenant of Primus''===

D-16 was born during the [[Age of Wrath]]. The [[Quintesson]] occupation of Cybertron had neutered the ritual of ascending from the [[Well of All Sparks]], to the point where newly born Cybertronians would emerge without names or developed personalities. After a brief but tantalizing glimpse at Cybertron's sun, D-16 was sent to work in the mines underneath Kaon. He took his name from the sector in which he worked, and eventually befriended some of the other nameless workers who had been dealt similar hands by the Quintessons. One Cybertronian in particular served as a sounding board for D-16's earliest sociological musings. From this nameless bot D-16 realized the importance of a proper name. By the time that the Quintessons had been routed from Cybertron, D-16 was already craving more out of life.

During his time off, D-16 became intrigued by the violent duels held between miners. As Cybertron's [[Golden Age]] drew to a close, he entered his first gladiator matches. D-16 drew upon the old stories of the [[Thirteen]] that the miners told one another, and decided on "Megatronus" as a suitable moniker; hoping that Cybertron's "fallen" society could eventually be restored. Megatronus thrived in the gladiator pits, seeing it as a way to escape the oppression of the [[caste system]]. The crowds who regularly watched his gladiator matches soon shortened his name to Megatron. Megatron used his newfound fame to attack the bloated Cybertronian government which kept the miners oppressed, and before long he had carved out a loyal cadre of followers inspired by his rhetoric. {{storylink|Transformers: The Covenant of Primus|The Covenant of Primus}}

===Aligned novels===
[[File:WFCcomicD16.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|"Alright! What's the square root of pi?! What's the capital of Sierre Leone?! What's... awww, this 'ask questions later' thing doesn't work at ''all''."]]
D-16 named himself after the sector of the mine where he performed demolition operations. {{storylink|Transformers: Exodus|Exodus}} At the end of the Age of Wrath, he was one of the many Cybertronians who [[Sentinel Zeta Prime|Sentinel Prime]] called to arms, and aided in the war effort that successfully overthrew the cruel [[Quintesson]] regime. As time went by, D-16 eventually forgot about this event, as did many other Cybertronians.

At some point after Cybertron's Golden Age, a group of [[Sharkticon (species)|Sharkticon]]s foresaw him as the being who would one day lead them to freedom. They managed to carve an image of him on a cave wall before they were executed. {{storylink|Transformers: Retribution|Retribution}}

D-16 eventually turned to gladiatorial combat to escape from the drudgery of his duties. As a gladiator, in killing others he began to appreciate the value of life, and in between matches he became something of an intellectual, debating the castes with other miners. After bosses requested he lose a few fights, D-16 killed them and took over Kaon and [[Slaughter City]]. After murdering one boss in front of his employees, D-16 declared himself Megatronus, whom he considered the greatest of the [[Thirteen]]. After hearing his preaching on the [[Communication Grid]] against the [[Guilds of Cybertron]], the concerned [[Sentinel Zeta Prime|Sentinel Prime]] sent [[Bumper (WFC)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (WFC)|Fastback]] to investigate. Megatronus killed them, believing two lives were worthless compared to the millions doomed by the castes Sentinel created.

After a victorious battle with the [[Insecticon (WFC)|Insecticon]]s, in which the crowd redubbed him Megatron, the gladiator was contacted by the [[Iacon (polity)|Iaconian]] [[Hall of Records|records monitor]] [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Orion Pax]], and they began exchanging their ideas in intense but friendly philosophical discussions. Megatron encouraged Orion to learn self-defense and invited him to visit Kaon, which he did to a warm welcome from Megatron (and from none of his gladiators). By this point Megatron was planning to call his movement the Decepticons, and he had begun sending his followers on a search for artifacts of the Primes, as their discovery would be signs their cause was just. His followers began bombing Cybertron, and Megatron distanced himself from their extremism to gain credibility. Orion and his mentor [[Alpha Trion (WFC)|Alpha Trion]] believed him, but the latter was well aware Megatron might have gained a taste for violence after the attention it earned him. Soon enough, Megatron accepted the gift of a kidnapped Sentinel Prime from [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]].

[[File:WFCcomicHalogendies.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Megatron misinterprets the phrase "ad hominem attack".]]

Alpha Trion organized a hearing for Orion and Megatron with the [[Autobot High Council|High Council]]. They protested involvement in Sentinel's disappearance. When confronted with the phrase "Decepticon", Megatron denied any knowledge of it but accepted his followers' term wholeheartedly, stating deception was necessary sometimes for the corrupt to see the truth. When [[Halogen (WFC)|Halogen]] revealed Megatron's followers had been trying to locate the [[Matrix of Leadership]], he declared that Orion should become the Prime that he desperately wanted to lead Cybertron into the new [[Golden Age]], and find it. Incensed, Megatron killed Halogen, and when Optimus prevented the [[Elite Guard]] from attacking Megatron, the ungrateful gladiator declared Optimus had fallen into the trap of power the High Council had given him. He declared Optimus was no longer his brother (though he would continue to refer to him as such privately), and that the Matrix would be his.

In the subsequent war with Optimus' [[Autobot]]s, the Decepticons took control of eighty-five percent of the planet. Wherever Starscream's [[Seeker (body-type)|Seekers]] aided, they were victorious. Megatron was initially merciful to neutrals, but he let [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] take control of [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]] and torture Autobot sympathizers there. When the [[Praxus|Praxians]], a progressive city-state who were disappointed with the direction Megatron took, allied with the Autobots, Megatron decided he would no longer try to convert followers and launched the first genocide of the war, slaughtering all in [[Nova Cronum]] who would not submit to the Decepticons as they attacked.

As the war dragged into a siege of Iacon, Soundwave's spying bore fruit as he discovered [[Dark Energon]], the essence of [[Unicron/Aligned|Unicron]], was aboard [[Trypticon (WFC)|Trypticon]]. Megatron forgave Starscream for hiding its existence from him, acknowledging its potentially dangerous nature. To ensure loyalty, Megatron's gladiators stormed the Station slaughtering and maiming Starscream's scientists. He forced Starscream to pick two test subjects to be Darkened, and following an astonishingly successful result, Megatron absorbed some, invigorating him. Soon Darkened Decepticons appeared on the battlefield, but it proved to be an inefficient resource and they would have to flee if a battle was prolonged. Megatron needed more, and even Starscream's activation of the [[Geosynchronous Energon Bridge]] didn't provide enough. Megatron felt he would kill all the Decepticons before he was deprived of Dark Energon and turn rabid.

Fortunately, Soundwave revealed the existence of the [[Plasma energy|Plasma Energy Chamber]] within [[Teletraan-1 (WFC)|Teletraan-1]], which required the [[Code Key]]s of Power and Justice to activate it. Starscream recovered the Key of Power, while Megatron and his best soldiers searched for the Key of Justice below the [[High Council Tower]]. Sentinel Prime emerged, to Megatron's surprise. Sentinel confronted him about Bumper and Fastback, and the two dueled. Megatron disarmed and sliced open Sentinel, revealing the Key of Justice within. Starscream made a grab for it, exposing that he had released Sentinel to kill Megatron and take leadership for himself. After fighting Starscream to a standstill, Megatron pardoned him as he found him a better soldier than would-be example, and used the Keys to open Teletraan-1: which activated [[Omega Supreme (WFC)|Omega Supreme]] to fly the Chamber to safety.

The Seekers shot Omega Supreme out of the air, causing him to crash. Optimus's Autobots arrived to fight the Decepticons, but the more they killed them the more Dark Energon left their bodies and empowered Megatron. He was able to knee Omega Supreme and turn him on his back, tearing the Chamber out of his chest. Using the Chamber, Megatron poisoned the [[core]] of Cybertron and Darkened the entire planet. But then the core stopped producing Dark Energon, and Megatron learnt Optimus had gone to the core and received the Matrix. As the Autobots attempted to flee Cybertron via the last [[space bridge]], Megatron used Trypticon to fire on their ships, and used his and Orion's old frequency to criticize Optimus for fleeing. He added he never believed in individual freedom for every Cybertronian, only the illusion of freedom that he as leader would provide and that the Guilds did not. Optimus responded that Megatron had turned his soldiers into addicts and they would turn on him, and used the ''[[Eight Track (WFC)|Eight Track]]'' to board, sabotage and crash Trypticon.

As the Autobots left on the completed ''[[Ark (WFC)|Ark]]'', the Decepticons fully invaded Iacon. Megatron ordered Trypticon to transform into the ''Nemesis'', boarding it with Starscream, Soundwave, [[Lugnut (WFC)|Lugnut]] and other elite soldiers, leaving Shockwave in charge. He used his old frequency once again to warn Optimus that he would hound him through the stars and finally kill him for the Matrix. He explained they were still brothers, as they were bonded for life despite their enmity. Optimus was just glad his hunt would get him off Cybertron. The two ships entered the last [[space bridge]] together, and when the ''Ark'' emerged, the ''Nemesis'' was gone. {{storylink|Transformers: Exodus|Exodus}}

{{note|Megatron's involvement in the preceding events, or events mostly similar, were also chronicled in the comic "[[Transformers: War for Cybertron (comic)|Transformers: War for Cybertron]]."}}

The ''Nemesis'' eventually emerged from the Space Bridge, close to the lost colony world of [[Velocitron]]. The Autobots had already visited the planet and departed, but Megatron's sleeper agent [[Makeshift (Prime)|Makeshift]] had ignited political tensions and sparked a civil war between [[Override (Prime)|Override]]'s loyalists and [[Ransack (Prime)|Ransack's]]'s cadre of political malcontents. He was directed by [[Hightail (Prime)|Hightail]] to Ransack. Megatron found Ransack's obsession with speed extremely irritating, but allowed him to pledge his allegiance to the Decepticon cause. Ransack's Decepticons continued their war on Velocitron while the rest of Megatron's forces boarded the ''Nemesis'', tracking the Ark's energy signature.

Megatron's forces tracked the ''Ark'' to on the planet [[Junkion (planet)|Junkion]], and began attacking both the Autobots and the native [[Junkion (species)|Junkion]]s. Amid the chaos, Megatron reunited with one of his long-lost comrades, the marooned Decepticon [[Axer (Prime)|Axer]]. Axer presented his commander with the [[Requiem Blaster (Megatronus)|Requiem Blaster]], which he had scavenged from the core of Junkion. Megatron ordered the gun to be attached to the hull of the Nemesis. The mayhem had also awakened the ancient Transformer [[Cannonspring]], who reunited with several other Cybertronians and combined into the mighty [[Nexus Prime]], who held off both the Decepticon advance and the newly arriving [[Star Seeker]]s. As the planet tore itself apart, Megatron duelled with Optimus Prime, who wielded the [[Cyber Caliber]]. Although Optimus Prime gained the upper hand, he suddenly received a vision regarding the AllSpark's location. Prime fell back to the ''Ark'' and retreated. Since the Requiem Blaster ran the risk of catastrophically overheating, Megatron ordered his troops to jettison the artifact before it could do so. Megatron ordered his troops to follow the ''Ark'' off of Junkion and back into deep space. {{storylink|Transformers: Exiles|Exiles}}

At some point during the voyage, Megatron changed his [[alternate mode]] to that of a Cybertronian spacecraft.

While searching for the trail of the ''Ark'' on the outskirts of the [[Orion Arm]], Megatron ran across the Star Seekers again, who had set a trap for the Decepticons. To take down the ''Nemesis'' ,the pirates salvaged the abandoned Requiem Blaster and grafted it to their ship. Megatron and the Star Seeker [[Thundertron]] dueled while their ships exchanged fire. Megatron eventually managed to gain the upper hand after exploiting the Requiem Blaster's cripplingly high energy intake, and forced Thundertron's forces into a retreat. Megatron reunited with his treacherous subordinate Axer, who claimed to have gleaned knowledge about the ''Ark''{{'}}s whereabouts during his time spent with the pirates. Megatron considered this, and then sent him to be tortured, just to make sure he was telling the truth.

The ''Nemesis'' eventually caught up with the real ''Ark'' over the planet [[Aquatron]] and opened fire. The Autobots retaliated by deploying [[Superion (Prime)|Superion]], who carved a trail of destruction through the ''Nemesis''{{'}}s engine bay until the combiner met Megatron. The Decepticon leader attacked Superion, and the two fought. Megatron was able to gain the upper hand and fired his fusion cannon at Superion, blowing the combiner apart and sending his components flying out the ship's hangar.

Before the Autobots could try and ram the ''Nemesis'' ,the Aquatronian native known only as "[[Inquirata (Prime)|the Curator]]" intervened by cutting power to both ships. The Curator scolded the Cybertronians for bringing their war to a neutral planet, but invited Megatron and his Decepticons to the planet's surface to negotiate a possible peace treaty between the two factions. Once the Autobots and Decepticons both agreed to a temporary ceasefire, the Curator revealed that he was a [[Quintesson]], and that Aquatron was a member of the Quintesson Co-Prosperity Sphere. Megatron decided to play along with his captors until he could find a way to escape. That night, Megatron was visited by the Curator, who promised Megatron his own [[Decepticon Matrix]]... if he backstabbed Optimus Prime and destroyed the Autobot leader's own Matrix.

The next morning, Megatron convened with Optimus outside the negotiation hall, only to reveal that he had brought along six [[Vehicon (Prime)|Vehicon]]s with him to kill Optimus. The two began fighting, until [[Skywarp (WFC)|Skywarp]] detonated a bomb outside, which caused the Pavilion to start flooding. Optimus switched off his Matrix and helped Megatron to escape, but on the surface they encountered [[Tyrannicon]] and his [[Sharkticon (species)|Sharkticon]] flotilla, who arrested all the Cybertronians present. The defeated Autobots and Decepticons were rounded up into a prison ship headed for the city of [[Hydratron]]; Megatron spent most of the voyage loudly and angrily criticizing Optimus Prime's leadership. When the prisoners were transferred to a train, Megatron ran afoul of several Sharkticons, who managed to subdue him long enough for him to be loaded onto the train and shipped to Hydratron's [[Hall of Justice]].

Inside the Quintesson's kangaroo court, Optimus Prime was put on trial for public mayhem, treason, and galactic blasphemy. Optimus Prime's brainwashed troops corroborated the Quintesson prosector's line of inquiry. However, Megatron himself came to Optimus's defense, asserting that the Quintessons did not create the Transformers as they so claimed. The trial had also jogged Megatron's memories; he remembered fighting in the war that routed the aliens from Cybertron and vowed that he'd gladly do it again. The Quintesson judges found them innocent, and so sentenced the two leaders to banishment. Whoever killed the other leader in combat would be allowed to leave Aquatron unmolested. The two leaders battled, unaware that the Quintessons were harvesting the energy they exerted to power a space bridge to Cybertron. When the Quintessons had enough, they dumped both of them into a Pirahnacon pit. Optimus and Megatron managed to escape the Pirahnacons with the help of Optimus's Matrix, and escaped into the subterranean tunnels beneath Hydratron.

The duo eventually encountered the [[Gamekeeper]], who was guarding the carvings that the Sharkticon rebels had created. The Gamekeeper taunted them, and revealed that the Quintessons were staging another invasion of Cybertron as they spoke. Megatron tore out the monster's eyes and eventually killed him. The Decepticon leader was intrigued by the carvings, although Optimus was skeptical of their veracity. The two eventually discovered [[Xeros]], who was manipulating his Sharkticon servants with a decoy Matrix. Believing it to be the Decepciton Matrix he was promised, Megatron grabbed it and shoved it into his chest.

The decoy Matrix turned out to be the [[Sharkticon Matrix of Leadership]], and as it re-forged his body Megatron realized that Aquatron was one of the 200 lost colony planets after all- and a planet that had never been able to overthrow the Quintessons. Now sporting Sharkticon features, Megatron called the Sharkticons to his command and ordered them to devour Xeros. Megatron overpowered Optimus and threw him down a nearby elevator shaft. He then contacted Starscream aboard the stranded ''Nemesis'', and ordered his Decepticons to make room for Sharkticon reinforcements aboard the ship.

Before long, Megatron set off to the bottom of Hydratron, to kill the Curator once and for all. He ran into trouble along the way; the city itself began transforming into a giant jellyfish-like creature, which attempted to devour him. Megatron was ale to break free of its tentacles and swim to the bottom of the lakebed, where Optimus Prime and a [[Leviacon]] were already confronting the Curator. Hundreds of Sharkticons swarmed the Curator's fortified command bubble but were unable to break through. The fracas was compounded by the arrival of [[Tyrannicon]], who had come back to Aquatron through the Space Bridge to figure out why his soldiers had rebelled. Megatron, now calling himself "The First of the Many" offered Tyrannicon a place in his new empire, although Tyrannicon refused. Instead, the two battled one another for control of the Matrix, with the Tyrannicon triumphant. Tyrannicon stole the Matrix from Megatron, who collapsed and reverted to his old self. When Optimus managed to destroy the entire underground complex, he also rescued Megatron, and with the Leviacon's help the two leaders returned to the surface, where they reunited with their respective crews.

On their way off the planet, Optimus mused that one day Megatron might understand that the two of them were much stronger as a united force. {{storylink|Transformers: Retribution|Retribution}}

===Ask Vector Prime===
In [[Uniend 610.23 Zeta]], {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime}} Megatron lead his Decepticons in an attack on the Autobot stronghold at [[Tyger Pax]] to obtain the [[AllSpark]] from the [[Well of All Sparks]]. After fighting off [[Rodimus (WFC)|Rodimus]] and [[Springer (WFC)|Springer]], Megatron found himself under fire from [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]], until [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]] managed to shoot the young Autobot down.

Searching for [[Barricade (WFC)|Barricade]], and executing Autobots that had failed to retreat, Megatron, while boasting his victory, saw the AllSpark be launched into space. Though he had failed to gain the AllSpark, Megatron found himself to be close to a badly damaged Bumblebee, who made a point of gloating to Megatron about the Autobots' victory. Grabbing the young mecha by the neck, Megatron, tired of Bumblebee's talking, crushed the Autobot's [[voice box]].

Deciding that [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]] didn't need another martyr, Megatron left Bumblebee alive to remind others that he could take and spare lives as he wished. Satisfied with his work, Megatron retreated with what was left of his Decepticons. {{storylink|Bumblebee at Tyger Pax}}

===IDW Aligned comics===
From Shockwave's lab in the [[Rust Sea|Sea of Rust]], Shockwave and a captured Grimlock watched a feed of Megatron spearheading an attack on [[Metroplex (FOC)|Autobot City]]. {{storylink|Last Stand (FOC)|Last Stand}} {{storylink|Fragmentation (FOC)|Fragmentation}}

===''Prime'' cartoon===
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English), [[Sean Long]] (BotCon 2011), [[Peter Cullen]] (BotCon 2012), [[Keiji Fujiwara]] (Japanese)|[[Fu Chong]] (Chinese), [[Alexander Kovriznyh]] (Russian), [[Juan Carlos Lozano]] (Spain-Spanish), [[Robert Dubois]] (French), [[Ja-hyeong Gu]] (Korean), [[Tony Fuochi|Antonio Fuochi]] (Italian), [[Ferenc Borbiczki]] (Hungarian), [[Hans-Jürgen Wolf]] (German), [[Gerardo Vásquez]] (Latin American Spanish), [[Antônio Moreno]] (Brazilian Portuguese), [[Guilherme Lopes]] ("Predacons Rising", internal monologue), [[Paweł Szczesny]] (Polish), [[Arto Nieminen]] (Finnish), [[Johan Hedenberg]] (Swedish)}}

[[File:OneShallRise3-corresponding.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|"I'm a fox!" "I'm a hound doooog!"]]

In the waning years of the [[Golden Age]] of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], Megatronus (who named himself after [[The Fallen|one of the original thirteen Primes]]) was a gladiator who fought in the [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]] arena. Observing a disparity in freedom among the classes of his race, and that the ruling class was corrupt and all-powerful, Megatron turned rhetorician, trying to effect change. In drawing attention to this inequity, he inspired a [[Hall of Records]] clerk named [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Orion Pax]], and the two joined forces to end corruption and bring equality to the masses. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}} Orion and Megatronus became close allies, almost like brothers. {{storylink|Masters & Students}}

[[File:DarknessRising2-Megsflashback.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|Things were very red in those days.]]

Megatronus shortened his name to Megatron before he and Orion Pax appeared before the [[Autobot High Council|High Council]]. Megatron threatened the council, promising to overthrow them and instate himself as the next [[Prime (rank)|Prime]]—a declaration of hostility that shocked Orion, and moved him to an impassioned speech in favour of autonomy that successfully swayed the council where Megatron had failed. Jealous, Megatron left the council and Orion behind and assembled his followers—including perennial loyalist [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] and scheming second-in-command [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]]—into an army he would name "Decepticons", beginning the war for Cybertron and vowing to find the [[Matrix of Leadership]] which was denied to him by the council. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}}

The war saw Megatron successfully take the city of [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]], which contained the very arena he fought in as a gladiator, as the Decepticon capital. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 1}} During a battle at [[Tyger Pax]], Megatron crushed the Autobot [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]]'s voice box when the scout refused to break under interrogation. {{storylink|Operation Bumblebee, Part 1}} Furthermore, Megatron's wartime achievements were not limited to those achieved through might: he also created the deadly [[cybonic plague]] which wiped out millions {{storylink|Sick Mind}} and found a way to weaponize [[Tox-En]] which he used to wipe out an entire unit in front of a horrified Bulkhead. {{storylink|Toxicity}} It was through similarly poisonous means that Megatron came closest to seizing victory in the war's final stages, [[Dark Energon|infecting]] the [[Core]] of Cybertron itself. In purifying the core, Orion was granted the Matrix Megatron had long-sought, becoming Optimus Prime. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}} After his assassin [[Skyquake (Prime)|Skyquake]] failed to kill Optimus at the [[Battle of Technahar]], {{storylink|Masters & Students}} Megatron became obsessed with the Autobot leader and decided that destroying him was his right alone. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 4}} Megatron had his lead scientist [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] send an army of [[Predacon (Prime)|Predacons]] to Earth to lay waste to any Autobot forces on the planet and secure any and all energon deposits. {{storylink|Project Predacon}}

[[File:DarknessRising2-MegatronDarkEnergon.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|We can relate. We're just like this with our [[BotCon]] toys.]]

Eventually, the war left Cybertron in ruin and forced the whole Transformer race to exile into space. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 2}} Megatron would not leave the planet unguarded and placed a few [[Insecticon (WFC)|Insecticon]] guards in stasis on the planet, should the enemy return. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 3}} In time, Megatron and his army arrived on Earth, establishing mines to collect the Energon that the planet had been seeded with during the war. {{storylink|Stronger, Faster}} He also had some of his best warriors, such as Skyquake to guard deposits not ready to mine. {{storylink|Masters & Students}} After some early conflicts on the planet, Megatron withdrew to space to search for more troops, leaving Starscream in charge. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 1}} Searching the void for three years, Megatron found something better than mere warriors: he discovered a new source of Dark Energon, the "blood of [[Unicron]]", with which he could reanimate fallen Transformers as an army of the undead. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 2}} Returning to Earth, {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 1}} and resuming command of the Decepticons, Megatron tested the Dark Energon on the deceased Autobot [[Cliffjumper (WFC)|Cliffjumper]], reviving him as a [[zombie]] "[[Terrorcon (Prime)|Terrorcon]]" that slaughtered several [[Decepticon Miner]]s, but which posed no threat to Megatron himself. Unfortunately for Megatron, this partial reactivation of Cliffjumper's lifesigns drew Optimus Prime's Autobots to the Decepticons' mining operations. Deciding it was not yet time for a confrontation with Prime, Megatron withdrew aboard the [[Trypticon (WFC)|''Nemesis'']] and continued to brood over the Dark Energon.

[[File:darknessrising3 Megatronglowy.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Megatron, you fool! Rave glowsticks aren't candy!]]
Megatron's inability to control the zombie Cliffjumper convinced him that he needed to integrate the Dark Energon into his own body in order to control the undead legions he planned to create. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 2}} Thrusting a shard of the material into his [[spark]], he was filled with its power, feeling as though he was connected to Unicron's very thoughts. Requiring a test run for his new power, Megatron headed to the site of an ancient Cybertronian battle on Earth, one full of the remains of fallen warriors, where he was confronted by Optimus and [[Ratchet (WFC)|Ratchet]]. Using Dark Energon to raise the dead Transformers as Terrorcons, Megatron successfully found he had complete control of the undead horde, and send them against the two Autobots. [[File:DarknessRising4-Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|I chew scenery while the zombies chew ''you''.]] {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 3}} While Optimus and Ratchet fought their way through the Terrorcons, Megatron flew off before they could reach him, satisfied with his test results and ready put his plan into action—to open a [[space bridge]] to Cybertron and use Dark Energon to revive all the dead. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 4}} Despite the Autobots' best efforts to damage the ''Nemesis'' and prevent the bridge from opening, Megatron succeeded in his plans, and then had his showdown with Optimus Prime atop the bridge itself as he waited for the Terrorcon legions to pass through to Earth. While the two old foes battled, the other Autobots sabotaged the bridge, causing it to explode and destroy both the Terrorcon army and seemingly Megatron himself. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 5}}[[File:Masters&Students-Megatronstasis.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|Well, it's better than just [[Megatron (Animated)|being a head]] I suppose.]]

The Autobots were not so lucky, however: the Dark Energon in his spark allowed Megatron to survive the explosion, but just barely. When Starscream found his leader floating in space, he tore the Dark Energon from his body in the hope that he would expire, but was caught in the act by [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]]'s [[Deployer (WFC)|Deployer]], [[Laserbeak (WFC)|Laserbeak]], and forced to take Megatron back to the ''Nemesis'', where he was placed in [[Stasis lock|stasis]] in the sick bay. {{storylink|Masters & Students}}

Starscream was content to leave Megatron in this state to recover or expire as fate saw fit, but the crew of the ''Nemesis'' disagreed, and voted to bring in the Decepticon medic [[Knock Out (Prime)|Knock Out]] to help heal their wounded leader. But the discovery of an [[Energon Harvester]] forced them to push off Megatron's recovery. {{storylink|Deus ex Machina}} Even with Knock Out's expertise, it seemed unlikely that Megatron would recover, but his assistant [[Breakdown (WFC)|Breakdown]] gave his body a good buffing nonetheless, and Starscream approved, as it meant their ex-leader would look his best for the memorial service. {{storylink|Speed Metal}}

[[File:SickMind megs and bee.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Hey, [[Megatron (Animated)|you]] really ''are'' [[Transform and Roll Out|uglier from this angle]]!]]

When Optimus Prime was infected by cybonic plague, Arcee and [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]] boarded the ''Nemesis'' to search for an antidote. While they failed to find one in the database, the two Autobots did discover Megatron in stasis, and Bumblebee mind-linked with the Decepticon leader via a [[cortical psychic patch]] to try and pluck the cure from his sleeping brain. Bumblebee found himself within Megatron's mind, which took the form of [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]], where the Decepticon's subconscious was spending its time killing endless visions of Optimus Primes. Unfortunately, Bumblebee's intrusion only caused Megatron to become aware of his situation when he found he was unable to kill Bumblebee. Learning what had befallen Optimus, Megatron initially refused to give up the cure until Bumblebee convinced him that he would gain greater satisfaction from finishing his enemy off with his own two hands. Megatron offered the cure in exchange for Bumblebee's help in escaping his mental prison, but Bumblebee double-crossed him, withdrawing from his mind as soon as the cure was in Autobot hands. At the last moment, Megatron was able to effect his own escape, leaping into Bumblebee's mind along with him. {{storylink|Sick Mind}} [[File:OutofhisHead megatron revived.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|IT'S... AAALLLLLIIIIIIIIVE!]] Recalling the sliver of Dark Energon Starscream had removed from his body, Megatron took full control of Bumblebee's body a short time later and used the GroundBridge to return to the ancient battlefield where he had raised his original Terrorcons, recovering the Dark Energon shard he had used to do so. He returned to the [[Autobot Outpost Omega One|Autobot base]], where he dealt with Ratchet and [[Raf Esquivel|Raf]] before again GroundBridging to the ''Nemesis'' and using the Dark Energon to restore his body and return his mind to it. Storming out of the ''Nemesis'' to find Starscream, Megatron snatched his subordinate out of the air in the middle of a battle with Optimus Prime and took him back for his punishment. {{storylink|Out of His Head}}

[[File:Shadowzone-MegsStarscream.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Lulz.]]
Despite his treason, Megatron decided not to terminate Starscream, viewing him as no real threat and taking perverse amusement in his repeated failures. {{storylink|Rock Bottom}} Instead, Megatron proceeded to beat Starscream only to ''near'' death, then had him placed in the infirmary, occasionally visiting to gloat. {{storylink|Shadowzone (episode)|Shadowzone}}

When Breakdown was captured by the humans of [[MECH]], Megatron refuted Starscream's suggestion that they rescue him, announcing that if Breakdown had allowed himself to be captured by those weaker than him, then he deserved whatever he got. {{storylink|Operation: Breakdown}} Breakdown did manage to escape, however, and in his wounded pride, volunteered to recover a [[polarity gauntlet]] for Megatron in order to prove his worth. Megatron was disappointed when his minion returned without the gauntlet, but was placated by the revelation that he had instead brought back [[Airachnid (Prime)|Airachnid]]. {{storylink|Metal Attraction}}

[[File:RockBottom-Starscreamprays.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|left|{{w|Loki (comics)|In the end, you will always kneel}}.]]
Discovering that Starscream was still attempting to mine energon for his personal use without his knowledge, Megatron determined that the amusement had come to an end. Taking him to the mine in question, Megatron revealed that he had been aware of Starscream's previous transgressions the whole time thanks to Soundwave, and was about to execute his groveling lieutenant when [[Jack Darby]] and [[Arcee (WFC)|Arcee]] walked in. Seeing red at the sight of the Autobot and her pet, Megatron opened fire on them, giving Starscream time to escape, an act that only increased Megatron's rage. Unfortunately, Megatron's carelessness with his shots
ultimately brought the mine down on top of them all, with Megatron being completely pinned by rubble. Jack happened upon the Decepticon leader with a mining drill, and Megatron, knowing that the human would not help him, instead urged Jack to finish him off. Jack refused, saying that wasn't what Optimus would do, and left, but the opening he had created allowed Megatron to begin his escape. After finally extricating himself, Megatron came upon Starscream trying to keep a large rock from crushing him. Starscream insisted that he had come to rescue Megatron, and begged the Decepticon leader to spare him, and Megatron acquiesced with a smirk. {{storylink|Rock Bottom}}

Though Megatron allowed Starscream to live and continue as his second-in-command, he was furious to learn from Airachnid that Starscream had kept the location of the ''[[Harbinger]]'' from him. He ordered Starscream to lead Airachnid to the crash site and retrieve an [[Immobilizer|experimental weapon]] that was inside. Much to Megatron's fury, Airachnid returned not only without the weapon, but with the news that Starscream had been captured by the Autobots as well. {{storylink|Partners (Prime)|Partners}}

[[File:StrongerFaster-KnockOutMegatronRatchet.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|"Steroids?" "Yup." "Ah."]]
When a formula for [[Synthetic Energon]] was transferred from a [[Cybertronian data cylinder]] into the mind of the Autobot [[Bulkhead (Prime)|Bulkhead]], Optimus Prime petitioned Megatron for the return of the cylinder so they could extract the formula, after which they would willingly hand it over. Megatron briefly considered the proposal, but instead sent Knock Out and Breakdown to capture Bulkhead and dared Prime to fight for the cylinder. When his Vehicon troops were defeated, Megatron simply crushed the device and took flight. {{storylink|T.M.I.}} The synthetic energon formula helped the Autobots counter Megatron's next tactic: causing the Autobots to burn through their energon supplies at an accelerated rate by leading them on wild goose chases. Juiced up on the "SynthEn", Ratchet attacked Megatron and Knock Out while they were surveying an energon mine, and sent the Decepticon leader flying with one punch. Unfortunately for Ratchet, Megatron swiftly recovered and subdued the Autobot medic with ease. {{storylink|Stronger, Faster}}

[[File:PrimeEp23-Megatronjetmode.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|Damnit, jet mode! Hold still so we can screencap you!]]
Convinced by Dark Energon-induced visions that an impending prophecy detailed his own destiny, Megatron stepped up the Decepticons' work in constructing a new space bridge so they could obtain more Dark Energon. When they located the last component they needed, Megatron went in personally, grievously wounding Raf with a blast of Dark Energon on the way and creating an unintended distraction that allowed him to make off with the power source he needed. Soon after, Megatron lured Optimus Prime to a volcano he had seen in his visions, and during their battle, it erupted with Dark Energon, imbuing Megatron with the power he needed to fell Prime. {{storylink|One Shall Fall}} [[File:OneShallFall-visionfulfilled.jpg|thumb|255px|Look, Prime! Look at the fireworks! Aren't they splendid?!]] The intervention of the other Autobots saved Prime's life, but this was of little concern to Megatron, who now had all the Dark Energon he needed and set his miners to work gathering it up. When Soundwave detected a spark-beat coming from within the Earth, Megatron felt it pounding through his brain and realized what his visions had meant: the lifeforce of Unicron himself dwelt within Earth. Leaving Airachnid in command, Megatron flew into the volcano to address Unicron, but did not receive the power he had hoped the chaos-bringer would bestow on him, instead receiving Unicron's displeasure at the fact that Optimus Prime still lived. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 1}}

Spurned, Megatron instead went to the aid of Optimus and his Autobots, who were under attack from Unicron's stone avatars. He offered Optimus his services—he intended to lead them to Unicron's real form so that Optimus could use the [[Matrix of Leadership]] on the Chaos God. While the Autobots returned to base, Megatron kept the giant stone Unicrons busy, and Prime eventually accepted Megatron's offer. On arrival in the Autobot base, Megatron encountered a couple of humans he recognized, Raf and Jack, as well as a [[Miko Nakadai|new loud one]]. Megatron was first to step through the GroundBridge into the [[Earth's core]], and as the Autobots followed, he warned them that Unicron already knew they were there. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 2}}

[[File:OneShallRise3-together.jpg|thumb|255px|left|"Just this once, we work together! Mortal enemies working together for the common good!" "Be quiet!"]]
Despite the persistent influence of Unicron, Megatron led the Autobots through Unicron's insides, even helping them fight off [[Unicron's antibodies|anti-bots]]. The Dark Energon he was imbued with allowed him to enter Unicron's spark chamber with Optimus, though at that point Unicron's influence became so great that the Chaos God was able to commandeer his body. After Optimus unleashed the power of the Matrix, apparently extinguishing Unicron's spark, Megatron went to kill Optimus, only to discover his foe had lost his memory and now believed himself to be Orion Pax. Megatron convinced Optimus that the other Autobots were enemies, and the pair returned to the ''Nemesis'', where Megatron introduced "Orion Pax" to his men. {{storylink|One Shall Rise, Part 3}}

[[File:Orion-Pax-Part-1-OP-Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|"Megatron, what happened? Where did you go wrong?" "Uh, watch ''Revenge of the Sith''. I know I'm not in it, but it pretty much sums it all up."]]
Megatron wasted no time in spinning a tale of Autobot warlord Ratchet and the destruction of Cybertron, and put Orion Pax to work decoding data from the [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] archives for a [[Project Iacon|project]] of the same name. Though aware that at some point Orion would find out the truth, Megatron made all precautions to make sure that didn't happen before Orion finished his work. Knock Out was ordered to set up Orion's work station a mere few inches away from the Energon storage vault.

During Orion's decoding, the archivist noted several references to Starscream as being Megatron's second in command. As part of his deception, Megatron claimed Starscream to be dead, and ordered Soundwave to carefully remove Arcee from the ship with a GroundBridge. Arachnid offered to destroy the bike bot herself, but Megatron feared that Orion would become weary of their activity's should he bare witness to an Autobot's destruction. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 1}} Megatron attempted to cover for a surprise visit by Starscream when he managed to sneak aboard the ship. Orion asked why Megatron lied, but the con leader stated that Starscream as "dead" to their cause for joining the Autobots. However, Starscream's visit caused Orion to uncover the truth and find out that he was, in fact, Optimus Prime, the so-called leader of the Autobot "invaders". Soundwave notified Megatron of Orion finding information on Optimus Prime, and Megatron realized that harsher methods would be necessary to complete [[Project Iacon]]. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 2}}

[[File:OrionPax3 Megatron threatens Orion.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Do you see what's in your teeth ''NOW''?!]]
Megatron payed Orion a visit to expose Orion's findings. Orion demanded to know the full truth, but Megatron refused, causing Orion to delete his findings. Fortunately, Soundwave had recorded his findings, and the data was saved. Soundwave also informed Megatron of the activity at the space bridge and went there to find that the Autobots had taken control of it, and that one of their [[Insecticon (WFC)|traps]] on Cybertron was activated. Megatron ordered the guards to watch Orion while he went out and threatened to kill the archivist if he had not completed the project. Megatron realized that the Autobots must have been searching for a way to restore Orion to Optimus. Megatron arrived at the space bridge and defeated the trio of Autobots present, and waited for Arcee to return from the open space bridge with the Matrix in her possession. When Orion had overpowered his guards and came to attack Megatron, Orion declared his loyalty to the Autobots, pulled out his blades, and attacked Megatron. The amnesiac Autobot was no match for him. While the Decepticon leader was subsequently kept busy by Arcee, Jack returned the Matrix to Orion, who regained his memory and left with the Autobots, leaving Megatron screaming furiously at his failure. {{storylink|Orion Pax, Part 3}}

[[File:OperationBumblebee1 spark extractor.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Now ''I'' have [[The Touch]].]]
Following the first of the artifact coordinates left by Orion, Megatron and his men unearthed the [[spark extractor|Spark Extractor]]. While Megatron was bringing it back through the GroundBridge, it was taken from him by Bumblebee. He then ordered Knock Out and Breakdown to retrieve another artifact before Bulkhead and Bumblebee did. {{storylink|Operation Bumblebee, Part 1}} Megatron was pleased when Knock Out returned with a force field generator, quickly demonstrating the object's power with a cannon-blast. Megatron himself joined the mission to get the third artifact, and managed to secure the [[Forge of Solus Prime]] by holding a prone Bulkhead hostage. Unfortunately, he discovered that the Forge wouldn't work without the power of a Prime behind it. {{Storylink|Operation Bumblebee, Part 2}}

When [[Dreadwing (Prime)|Dreadwing]] arrived on Earth, Megatron filled him in on what had happened to his brother Skyquake, but warned him not to seek revenge on his own. When Dreadwing did anyway, Megatron figured that would be the last they saw of him, although he was glad that Dreadwing both survived and learned his lesson. {{storylink|Loose Cannons}}

[[File:Crossfire Megatron and Insecticon close together.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|"You do know that you'll be splattered across the ceiling after this screencap, right?"]]
Reminded of Airachnid's past treachery, Megatron tasked Dreadwing with ridding them of her. Dreadwing not only failed, but returned minus Breakdown, much to Megatron's disgust. Megatron responded to Airachnid's later communication by attempting to get rid of her himself. Although she set an [[Insecticon (WFC)|Insecticon]] on him, the mighty Megatron eventually prevailed against it. The fight took all of his strength, and he was subsequently surrounded by Autobots. With Dreadwing's help, he escaped and made Dreadwing his new [[second-in-command]]. {{storylink|Crossfire (Prime)|Crossfire}}

Megatron responded to reports of Starscream on the ship and found not one but four [[Starscream clone (Prime)|Starscreams]] on the bridge. After attempting to appeal to their treacherous nature, he took advantage of a diversion to offline three of them before the fourth escaped. The diversion turned out to be a mass Insecticon attack, but after a fight, the Insecticons suddenly stopped and announced they were loyal to him. Then the ''Nemesis'' crashed. {{storylink|Armada (episode)|Armada}} Megatron got the ship moving again using Dark Energon, but when it exhibited its own intelligence and refused to follow his orders, he tried to shut it down, only to be put into stasis lock. He only awoke when the kids reversed the energon flow. {{storylink|Flying Mind}}

As Knock Out prepared to go and try to find the first of the four relics which the ship had found the location of, Megatron instructed him to take an Insecticon as muscle. {{storylink|Tunnel Vision}} Megatron then sent Dreadwing to [[Antarctica]] to find the relic there {{storylink|Triangulation}} and then sent [[Hardshell]] and three other Insecticons to a volcanic area at the equator, {{storylink|Toxicity}} before sending Soundwave to find the last relic.

He was impressed with the [[Resonance Blaster]] Soundwave found, but less so with Dreadwing and Knock Out, the latter of whom returned looking like he'd been run over by a train. After they found a grenade implanted in Laserbeak, Megatron set Soundwave back to work decoding the Iacon database. {{storylink|Triage (episode)|Triage}} His rage over Hardshell's failure was mollified when the Insecticon claimed to have offlined Bulkhead, but when they later got a call from [[Wheeljack (Prime)|Wheeljack]] revealing Bulkhead was still alive, Megatron demanded Hardshell bring him Wheeljack's spark as a substitute. Instead Hardshell's corpse was brought back before him, and Megatron was shocked to learn a [[Miko Nakadai|human girl]] was responsible. {{storylink|Hurt}}

[[File:TheHumanFactor Cylas and Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Soundwave, please arrange our guest a carwash.]]
After sending Knock Out to investigate Breakdown's signal coming back online, Megatron expressed distaste at the Breakdown/[[Silas]] hybrid who was brought to the ship. Nevertheless, he allowed "Cylas" the opportunity to prove himself worthy of a place in the Decepticon ranks by supplying them with a [[Project Damocles]] satellite. Though the initial results were promising, he sent Cylas to terminate Raf when the boy's hacking threatened to railroad their plans. When Cylas failed to do so and the satellite was stopped, Megatron called him back, and handed the former MECH commander over to Knock Out for dissection. {{storylink|The Human Factor}}

[[File:Legacy-ohcrap.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Looks like [[Sari Sumdac (Animated)|Sari]] told Megatron where babies come from.]]
When Soundwave decoded another set of Iacon relic coordinates, Megatron initiated a decoy relic beacon to give them the advantage over the Autobots, and went to fetch the latest relic with a team. Though hoping it would be a Decepticon weapon, Megatron was stunned when it turned out to be the [[Star Saber (Prima)|Star Saber]]. When he was unable to extract the sword, he had the Decepticons chip away a chunk of the mountain to be hauled away by the ''Nemesis'' in an effort to ensure it did not fall in Optimus's hands. Unfortunately, the arrival of [[Smokescreen (Prime)|a new Autobot]] delayed them long enough that the other Autobots discovered the deception. Optimus quickly managed to get hold of the sword despite Megatron's best efforts, and as the Autobot leader unleashed the sword's power, Megatron was forced to retreat in his ship, noting it was now the Decepticons' darkest hour. {{storylink|Legacy (episode)|Legacy}}

[[File:AlphaOmegaDarkStarSaber.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|[[Emperor Palpatine|It's treason then...]].]]
Coming up with a new plan to combat the Star Saber, Megatron took Dreadwing through the space bridge to Cybertron, and broke into the tomb of a Prime. After having Knock Out graft the Prime's arm onto Megatron, he was finally able to use the Forge of Solus Prime to forge a [[Dark Star Saber]] with some of his Dark Energon. Once Soundwave decrypted a new set of coordinates, he got the opportunity to test it on Arcee and Smokescreen when the pair found the first [[Omega Key]], whom he swept aside with ease. With new-found confidence, Megatron challenged Prime to a duel, and though his new sword cleaved right through the Star Saber, Megatron was unable to stop the Autobots from getting away with the Omega Key. {{storylink|Alpha/Omega}} Gloating of his destruction of the Star Saber, he allowed Knock Out the opportunity to retrieve the next relic. Upon his return with another Omega Key, Megatron was intrigued by the relic, believing it to be part of a larger piece, and put the doctor to work analyzing it. He was less impressed with Dreadwing who returned empty handed from his mission, and asserted that they needed to locate the Autobot base to recover their relics. Then Soundwave decrypted the final part of the Iacon databse, revealing Smokescreen to be relevant to their search. {{storylink|Hard Knocks}}

[[File:PatchMegatronStarscream.JPG|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Because we haven't seen this before.]]
After they extracted the Omega Key from Smokescreen, Megatron had Knock Out perform a cortical psychic patch procedure on the Autobot to learn their purpose. After discovering that all four could be used to revitalize Cybertron, he left Knock Out to find out where the Autobot base was, Megatron went to place the Omega Key in storage. However Smokescreen escaped and snatched it out of his grasp and made off with the other key as well. Though Megatron and his men gave pursuit as the Autobot jumped off their ship, Smokescreen got away. The Decepticon leader told Dreadwing they would need to locate the Autobot base quickly to retrieve the other keys, only to find Starscream on the bridge, with all four of the Omega Keys as a peace offering. {{storylink|Inside Job}} Intending to find what Starscream really planned, Megatron had himself plugged into the rogue Decepticon with a psychic patch. Despite most of Starscream's memories turning out to be incriminating, he was eventually convinced to allow Starscream to rejoin the Decepticon ranks. {{storylink|Patch (episode)|Patch}}

Megatron attempted to stress to Dreadwing that the Decepticons needed to be united. Unfortunately Dreadwing was more interested in slagging Starscream, and Megatron had to blow a hole through him. Once the location of the [[Omega Lock]] was established, Megatron took the Keys to Cybertron to find it. He and his men were attacked by the Autobots, who got away with the Keys while Megatron was otherwise occupied with the spark extractor. With some help from Starscream, Megatron got hold of the Autobots' human friends to use as a bargaining chip to secure the return of the Keys. {{storylink|Regeneration (Prime)|Regeneration}}

[[File:DarkestHour-thisistheplace.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4]]
Once he had the Keys back, Megatron had the lock activated and revealed that he intended to use it on both Cybertron and Earth so he'd have two worlds to rule, starting with Earth. Shockingly, this news resulted in Optimus slicing Megatron's sword arm off before destroying the Omega Lock. Though the Autobots escaped, Megatron would have the last laugh, as he knew the location of their base and used the Omega Lock to create a fortress there before Optimus destroyed it. If he could not conquer Cybertron, he could at least conquer Earth. From the ''Nemesis'', he and his men attacked and destroyed the Autobot base as their first act of aggression. {{storylink|Darkest Hour (episode)|Darkest Hour}}

As the Decepticons were unable to find any corpses in the rubble, Megatron ordered worldwide surveillance, and even got an opportunity to test his [[Darkmount (Earth)|new citadel]]'s fusion cannons on some foolishly attacking [[human]]s. After having his original right arm reattached to replace the one Prime severed, Megatron contacted [[William Fowler|Agent Fowler]], claiming to want to co-exist peacefully with humanity. With the continuing failure of Starscream to get any information out of the captive Wheeljack, Megatron sent Knock Out to Cybertron to search for the relics lost during the Omega Lock battle. He was pleased when Knock Out returned with the long lost [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]]. {{storylink|Darkmount, NV}} Megatron appointed Shockwave his first lieutenant in charge of science. With failures mounting, including an aborted attempt by Starscream to track down the Autobots by freeing Wheeljack with a tracking device attached, Megatron's anger grew, leading Shockwave to bring to Earth a [[Predacon (Prime)|Predacon]] he had cloned. {{storylink|Scattered}} The [[Predaking (Prime)|beast]] was dispatched, but to Megatron's disappointment it returned empty-handed. {{storylink|Prey (episode)|Prey}}

[[File:Rebellion-prepunch.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|"Right here - go on, right in the chest!"]]
Megatron was furious when Starscream scattered their troops in pursuit of phantom Autobot signals, shortly before Darkmount itself was attacked. The Decepticon leader cut short [[Ultra Magnus (WFC)|Ultra Magnus]]'s attempt to assault the fusion cannon control room, and ordered the Autobots executed. Before this could be done, Optimus Prime turned up, comprehensively beating up Megatron and throwing him into the fusion cannon power core. Despite his protests, the other Decepticons dragged Megatron back to the ''Nemesis'' before the Autobots brought the citadel crashing to the ground. {{storylink|Rebellion (Prime)|Rebellion}}

Instead the Decepticons turned their attentions to cloning, with Megatron ordering the creation of more Predacons. {{storylink|Project Predacon}} When the existing Predacon returned, Megatron ordered Starscream to take command of it. He later dispatched the beast and his first lieutenant to [[Scotland]] when a team searching for fossils there failed to report in. {{storylink|Chain of Command (Prime)|Chain of Command}} Megatron was displeased when it turned out Starscream had lost the Apex Armor, and was even less impressed when Starscream caused damage to the communications dish. Knock Out, at least, did not disappoint the Decepticon leader when he returned with another Predacon fossil. {{storylink|Plus One (Prime)|Plus One}} After some near-missteps in gathering the fossils required, Megatron hinted Shockwave should restrict himself to working in the laboratory in future. {{storylink|Project Predacon}}

Megatron discovered that Knock Out and Starscream had been experimenting with Synthetic Energon and had accidentally created a zombie-like plague. After the situation resulted in Airachnid being freed and the loss of the Insecticons, Megatron gave Knock Out orders to turn all of his experiments over to Shockwave, and reserved a ''special'' punishment for Starscream. {{storylink|Thirst}}

[[File:Evolution-Potentialcoup.jpg|thumb|upright=1.67|[[Darth Vader|"I want them alive... No disintegrations!"]].]]
During a visit to Shockwave's off-site laboratory, Megatron was shocked to learn that the Predacon could transform and was intelligent enough to speak. Though [[Predaking (Prime)|Predaking]] affirmed he was loyal to Megatron, the Decepticon leader suspected that once Predaking discovered that the Predacons were superior to ordinary Decepticons, he would turn against them. The Decepticons quickly realized they'd need to terminate Shockwave's cloning process, and Starscream came up with a plan to pin it on the Autobots which succeeded splendidly. In the aftermath of the explosion, the Decepticons discovered that the Synthetic Energon stored in the lab had created Cybermatter. {{storylink|Evolution}}

With this discovery in mind, Megatron put Shockwave in charge of perfecting the Synthetic Energon formula, however they quickly realized that the Omega Lock would need to be repaired to allow for its targeted delivery, and that Ratchet would be needed to complete the formula. Megatron told Shockwave he had decided that Earth and Cybertron were two halves of the same coin, and he intended to rule both. As the Autobots continued to interfere in their plans, Megatron had Predaking take part in protecting the Vehicons, though he insisted it be done with the Predacon in [[beast mode]]. {{storylink|Minus One}}

[[File:Synthesis Megatron and Predaking.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|[[Sam Witwicky]] [[Megatron (Movie)|can't]] [[Transformers (film)|save]] [[Predaking (Prime)|you]] [[Aligned continuity family|here]]!]]
After the Decepticons captured Ratchet and failed to extract the information they needed via cortical psychic patch, Megatron turned on the charm. Once he showed Ratchet the Omega Lock they'd reconstructed, the Autobot reluctantly agreed to help them. {{storylink|Persuasion}} Despite several missteps which he encouraged his men to correct, Megatron was pleased when the Synth-En formula was perfected, and promptly rewarded Ratchet by giving the Autobot to Predaking as a chew toy. Unfortunately Ratchet turned Predaking against him, and Megatron found himself facing the Predacon in combat. With some help from Starscream, Megatron defeated Predaking and expelled him from the ship, however the Decepticons then found their warship under attack from the Autobots. {{storylink|Synthesis}}

[[File:Tfp megatron impaled.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Megatron killed by... Bumblebee!? It could happen... ONLY ON [[Hub Network|THE HUUUUB]]!]]
Megatron intercepted Optimus Prime, damaging the Autobot's [[jet pack]], and proceeded to duel with his foe atop the Omega Lock, all the while giving orders to Shockwave to prepare the Lock for firing. When Bumblebee attempted to pass Optimus the Star Saber, Megatron blasted the scout, killing him. He prepared to finish off Optimus as well, but Bumblebee was restored by the Omega Lock and ran Megatron through with the Star Saber. Megatron's lifeless body fell from the Omega Lock and plummeted Earthward. {{storylink|Deadlock (episode)|Deadlock}}

[[File:Predaconsrising-chaosandcreation.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Seriously, how are you ''not'' Galvatron?]]
Megatron's body lay at the bottom of the ocean until it was revived and restructured by Unicron. Megatron found himself a prisoner in his own body, tortured by his new master and unable to do anything other than observe. Unicron returned to Cybertron, intending to destroy the planet and end Primus. Megatron tricked him into fighting Predaking, reasoning that if their shared body was damaged enough, Unicron would leave it; however, Unicron managed to beat Predaking and raised an army of Predacon Terrorcons with which to attack Cybertron's core. Megatron was only finally freed when Optimus tricked Unicron, drawing the dark god's anti-spark into a suitable container. Though Starscream believed Megatron would once again lead the Decepticons, Megatron had tasted oppression and no longer wished to inflict it, declaring the Decepticon movement dead and flying off. {{storylink|Predacons Rising (Prime)|Predacons Rising}}
[[File:PredaconsRising - TrueMeaningOfOppression.jpg|thumb|center|400px|I may look like I need a bath now, but it’s better than getting thrown into Cybertron’s core screaming.]]
{{--}}

===Titan ''Prime'' comic===
[[File:Titan4.2 Megatron Soundwave piggyback.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.2|The kiddy-friendly comics have Megatron giving piggy-back rides.]]
Under Megatron's leadership, the Decepticons conquered many city states including [[Kalis]], [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]], and [[Vos (polity)|Vos]]. When the time came to strike against [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]], Megatron led a five-con team in under the cover of darkness to bomb the [[Iacon Energon Refinery]]. They had barely planted the first bomb when they were spotted and fired on. After the other three Decepticons were shot down, Megatron gave Soundwave a bomb and set about causing a distraction while his second-in-command went to plant it. When Soundwave was also shot down, Megatron flew into action, helping up the rest of his team and carrying Soundwave as they retreated under the cover of an exploding bomb. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.2|War Story}}

With a new plan, Megatron took [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]] to attack the [[Yamal|NS ''Yamal'']], a Russian icebreaker near [[Antarctica]]. He intended to use a [[static lance]] to cause the ship's reactors to meltdown exposing energon deposits beneath the ice. Unfortunately Optimus got wind of the plan and came storming in. As Megatron detailed his plan during their one-on-one fight, Optimus took possession of the lance. Megatron attempted to take it back, only for Optimus to hit him with it. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.3|Ice Breaker}}

[[File:Titan4.11 Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Megatron works part-time at the Autobot Hotel providing alarm calls.]]
Megatron and Soundwave somehow slipped some code into ''[[Invasionauts II]]'' to hypnotize Raf into opening the GroundBridge so they could send Vehicons through. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.4|Tinker, Tailor, Gamer, Spy!}} Irritated at Starscream's failure to end the Autobot problem, Megatron demanded his subordinate try and lure the Autobots into a trap instead for fruitlessly searching for them. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.6|All the President's 'Bots!}}

Now infuriated at his army being constantly bested by the Autobots, Megatron took the ''Nemesis'' to the [[Erta Ale volcano]] where he had his troops fight in a series of deathmatches to apply the principle of survival of the fittest. He forced Starscream to fight [[Fearstorm]], and when Starscream won, seemed happy enough to let his lieutenant return to the ship. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.7|Megatron's Law}} After Bulkhead destroyed an energon store, Megatron had him captured and taken aboard the warship, where the Autobot was placed in the newly developed [[Ultra Prison]]. Megatron sneeringly informed Bulkhead that the prison would slowly wipe his mind, but it was Megatron who got the raw end of the deal when the ''Nemesis'' was badly damaged during the inevitable Autobot rescue. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.11|The Battle for Bulkhead}}

Intending to show the pitiful humans that their independence was only temporary, Megatron attempted to stage a media circus in which he destroyed the [[Statue of Liberty]]. Unfortunately only Bumblebee and Optimus turned up, and though Megatron tried his best to wreck the statue, Optimus caused more damage to it in the process of defeating him than he did himself. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.13|Protecting the Lady}}

Leaving Starscream in charge of the Nemesis, Megatron returned to find it practically destroyed. He was met by Starscream, who told him the apparent course of events; ''some random Vehicon'' created an unauthorised Predacon clone, which ran amok, before Starscream ''bravely killed it''. Starscream also had ''totally not faked'' video footage to prove it! Despite the Vehicon's protests, Megatron executed him. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 4.20|Starscream's Beast}}
====Mega-Mouth====
Megatron occasionally takes time out from conquering the universe to...answer fan mail? He also sometimes seems [[Megatron (Movie)|confused]] about which multiverse he hails from, as he claimed he attacked [[Sentinel Prime (ROTF)|Sentinel]] {{storylink|Transformers_Comic_issue_4.1#Mega-Mouth|Mega-Mouth #1}} and also explained why he wore a cowl in ''[[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Dark of the Moon]].'' {{storylink|Transformers_Comic_issue_4.4#Mega-Mouth|Mega-Mouth #4}} He also said he survived ''Dark of the Moon'', after some fan asked how Megatron could be answering fan mail. {{storylink|Transformers_Comic_issue_4.5#Mega-Mouth|Mega-Mouth #5}}
{{--}}

===''Tales of the Beast Hunters''===
After [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] intercepted a message pointing to a derelict starship containing weapons in the [[asteroid belt]], Megatron and [[Predaking (Prime)|Predaking]] headed out to find it. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 2}} They got there and found [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]] and [[Wheeljack (Prime)|Wheeljack]] about to make off with the weapons. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 4}} After [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]] joined the battle, {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 5}} the ship began to explode, and Megatron plunged through the floor along with tons of debris. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 6}}

Injured, Megatron lay beneath the wreckage in the ship, using his damaged comms to monitor events on Earth. Finally his groping hands found an [[Tartarex Warp Sword|ancient weapon]], which used the surrounding debris to repair and rebuild him. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 22}} He returned to Earth and blasted the top off a mountain, {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 23}} intending to make a preemptive strike against the Predacons. The Predacons promptly flew up to engage him in combat. {{storylink|Tales of the Beast Hunters Chapter 24}}

===Full of Fire!===
Disgruntled at the lack of progress in Predacon cloning, Megatron complained to Shockwave, who revealed that the cloning had already borne fruit. Megatron was pleased, though not so much when Predaking and the five new Predacons returned having been defeated by the Autobots. He believed that the Autobots now knew the extent of the Predacon army, however Shockwave was quick to reveal that there were a whole lot more Predacon clones ready to go. {{storylink|Full of Fire!}}

===''Transformers: The Ultimate Pop-Up Universe''===
Once an idealistic young miner, Megatron was forced into the gladiatorial ring, which eventually lead him to become the brutal and ruthless leader of the Decepticons. He once crushed the Autobot [[Bumper (WFC)|Bumper]]'s legs with his tank mode. {{storylink|Transformers: The Ultimate Pop-Up Universe|The Ultimate Pop-Up Universe}}

===2015 ''Robots in Disguise'' cartoon===
Though Megatron was nowhere to be seen, a statue of him was erected on the reborn Cybertron. {{storylink|Pilot (Part 1)}} After [[Cyclonus (WFC)|Cyclonus]]'s Decepticon cell had taken over the [[Autobot High Council|High Council]], they began making preparations for Megatron's return, either unaware of, or unwilling to believe, the former gladiator renouncing conquest. {{storylink| Freedom Fighters}}

As he had "helped save the universe from Starscream, Megatron, and Dark Energon," Bumblebee refused to be defeated by [[Bisk (RID)|Bisk]]. {{storylink|More than Meets the Eye (RID)|More than Meets the Eye}} [[Fixit (RID)|Fixit]] once thought a map looked like Megatron's face. {{storylink|W.W.O.D.?}} During their battle, Drift mistook [[The Fallen|Megatronus]] for Megatron. {{storylink|Battlegrounds, Part 2}} Megatron was "light years away" by the time [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] managed to escape the [[Shadowzone (dimension)|Shadowzone]]. {{storylink|Portals}}

As the High Council's plans neared completion, they genetically engineered a quartet of Activator [[Mini-Con]]s to help free Soundwave from the Shadowzone, with the intent that the communication chief summon Megatron so he could lead the Decepticons back to glory. The [[Bee Team (RID)|Bee Team]] thwarted Soundwave, however. Upon confronting the High Council, the Decepticons combined into [[Galvatronus (RID)|Galvatronus]] who decided that the [[Decepticon Empire]] would be reborn and thriving for whenever Megatron returned. {{storylink|Collateral Damage}} {{storylink| Freedom Fighters}}

===2015 ''Robots in Disguise'' books===
An Energon thief came to Megatron's attention and joined the Decepticon army as [[Drift (RID)|Deadlock]]. {{storylink|Drift's Samurai Showdown}}

==Commercial appearances==
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English)}}

*During the war on Cybertron, Megatron had to briefly leave the battlefield, and left [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] in charge. Shockwave took the opportunity to order Soundwave to transform into his boombox mode and play "[[The Touch]]" while he blasted Autobots. {{storylink|Commercial#War for Cybertron|Gamestop Exclusive TV spot}}

*Megatron, {{w|Dan Vs.|Dan}} and [[Pinkie Pie]] sang a collaborative group song while the scene quickly shifted between a variety of strange alternate universes. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Summer|The Hub summer promo 2011}}
{{quote|{{w|Meatballs (film)|Are you ready for the summer? Are you ready for the hot <s>nuts</s> nights?}}|Megatron}}

*At some point he ended up in detention at a school because he had "anger issues". {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Detention|The Hub promo}}

*He later joined back up with Pinkie Pie as well as other ponies [[Rainbow Dash]] and [[Applejack]], and [[Bulkhead (Prime)|Bulkhead]] in scatting "{{w|Deck the Halls}}" {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Carolers1|The Hub Carolers}} and singing "{{w|Jingle Bells}}". {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Carolers2|The Hub Carolers (Second spot)}}

*He also demanded that viewers vote for him in the Hub's 2010 "Naughty or Nice" contest. They must have been listening, because he was eventually voted the "Naughtiest" villain on the Hub that year.

[[File:MegatronCareBear.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|''Megatron is on the right'' One wonders where exactly the other Care Bear came from.]]
*Megatron declared the Hub his in a commercial for a marathon of ''Prime'' season 1 and 2, {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Darkest Hour|Darkest Hour promo}} doing certain Hub-focused jokes and gags before the commercial breaks during the marathon. One such segment showed [[The Transformers (cartoon)|his home movies]], during which reminisced on how [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|young he looked back then]] and mocked [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave's]] dated choice of alt mode. In other commercials for the marathon, it is revealed that out of all the radio transmissions in the universe, the ''[[My Little Pony]]: Friendship Is Magic'' [[theme song|theme]] is his favorite song, {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Song|Megatron's Favorite Song}} and that he has been working on new transformations, demonstrating his ability to [[Pretender|transform]] into Funshine Bear, a {{w|Care Bears|Care Bear}}, much to his humiliation. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Care Bear|Megatron Transforms into a Care Bear}} Also during the marathon; he commented on how his favorite reason that transformers were superior to humans was that transformers didn't need bathroom breaks. He also commented that the one thing he doesn't get about Autobots is their continuation of transforming into land-based vehicles (not complaining, just observing). He also expressed bewilderment over the way [[United States of America|Americans]] elect [[President of the United States|their leader]] through [[Democracy|democratic means]], rather than just killing off the competition like he would do. He also apologized to [[ALF]] for pre-empting his show, allowing the program to air at a later date under his regime. The only humans that Megatron admitted to liking were those that cower before him and Dan, due to his anger.

*Despite Megatron's might, Raf judged him inferior to {{w|Time Warner Cable}}'s ability to transmit ''Transformers: Prime'' on laptop, tablet and smartphone computers, as demonstrated by a [[Raf's media device|device]] which switched between all three forms. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Time Warner|Time Warner Cable: Competiton}}

*While lounging around the Nemesis, Megatron answered questions about his personal life, took requests from fans, and offered advice to the disillusioned and directionless. He shot down one girl who asked him to the prom, told a guy that the best way to get noticed by chicks is to transform into a jet, suggested that pound cake is the most superior of all baked desserts, and revealed that his ideal form of relaxation involves drawing [[Rainbow Dash]] fanart. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Ask Megatron|Ask Megatron}}

*Megatron narrated ''{{w|A Visit from St. Nicholas}}'' for his troops, which was interrupted by three Vehicons discussing the stirring practices of mice. Megatron threatened to put them on the naughty list. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Naughty List|30-Second Holiday Special: "Decepticon Holidays: Naughty List"}} Megatron shouted down several Vehicons singing about figgy pudding. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Pudding|30-Second Holiday Special: "Decepticon Holidays: Pudding"}} An Insecticon had direct orders from Megatron to send whoever decorated the ''Nemesis'' in holiday lights to the North Pole. {{storylink|Commercial/Prime#Holiday Schmoliday|30-Second Holiday Special: "Decepticon Holidays: Holiday Schmoliday"}}

==Games==
===''Transformers: War for Cybertron'' (Xbox 360/PS3/PC)===
{{voiceactor|[[Fred Tatasciore]] (English)|[[Oliviero Corbetta]] (Italian), [[Juan Carlos Lozano]] (Spanish), [[Bruno Carna]] (French), [[Jacek Jasiński]] (Polish)}}
[[File:WFC Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.95|He wants the whooole wooorld, in his hand!]]
During the early war on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], Megatron found reference to an energy source called [[Dark Energon]], which had impressive potential as a weapon, and became determined to claim it for himself. One of the few places it was made was in a station in orbit around Cybertron, guarded by a politically neutral force led by [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]]. With this knowledge, he took a ship and launched an assault on the station.

The ship was badly damaged in the attack, and so he ordered [[Barricade (WFC)|Barricade]] and [[Brawl (WFC)|Brawl]], piloting it, to ram the station. He and many of his soldiers survived the impact and escaped the core's detonation. They were then confronted by Starscream, who informed them that they would not allow them to take what he had guarded for ten thousand years. After surviving a trap of sentry guns, Megatron, Barricade, and Brawl were reinforced by more of Megatron's troops, and set out on their way to find the station's Dark Energon stores and claim them for the war effort. They encountered significant resistance, but managed to shoot their way through, with directional aid from [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]]. Barricade noted that the station itself seemed quite primitive; Megatron noted it was very old, and that he intended to modernize it. At one point, the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seeker]] [[Jetfire (WFC)|Jetfire]] confronted Megatron nonviolently, asking him to give up his quest, as Dark Energon would result in only horror, death, and destruction, to which Megatron sneered, "You say that as if it were a bad thing."

[[File:WFC-MegatronmeetsStarscream.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.66|At last we meet, my punching bag.]]

Along their way to the Dark Energon, they found that a large portion of the station had been blasted clean off, the debris field traversable but sparse enough to allow easy viewing of Cybertron itself. Soundwave soon found records indicating that a small amount of Dark Energon lost containment and was the sole cause of the destruction, underscoring Megatron's desire for it. When Barricade asked how he expected to control it when no other had, Megatron said that such power was only for the strong, that he was the strongest, and not to question him again.

When they finally reached the storage chamber, and Megatron averted Starscream's destruction of it, he calmly entered into a container full of raw Dark Energon, while Starscream watched and gloated at his imminent destruction...only for him to walk out, not only unscathed, but crackling with power, which he further bestowed upon Barricade and Brawl. A single blast of Dark Energon was enough to destroy an entire company of station security forces, the last line of defense between Megatron and Starscream and his companions.

Jetfire again tried to warn Megatron about the dangers of Dark Energon, but Starscream interrupted, asking to join the Decepticon leader. Megatron asked what Starscream could offer that he could not simply take. Starscream revealed the station's supply of Dark Energon was almost spent, and he knew how to manufacture more—and as luck would have it, there was a dormant [[Geosynchronous Energon Bridge]] which could be used to power it. Jetfire retreated to inform [[Sentinel Zeta Prime|Zeta Prime]]; Megatron let him go, seeming pleased by the notion of letting the Autobots tremble in advance of their actions, and sent Starscream, [[Thundercracker (WFC)|Thundercracker]], and [[Skywarp (WFC)|Skywarp]] to activate the bridge.

Megatron repeatedly mocked what he perceived as Starscream's slowness in his simple mission, but the Seeker did what he said he could. With a steady supply of Dark Energon, Megatron launched an attack on Iacon City, intending to take a device called the [[Omega Key]] and use it to enter the Core of Cybertron. This time, he took [[Breakdown (WFC)|Breakdown]] and Soundwave with him. The trio took the less-guarded way in—which, since the Autobots were not complete fools (as even Megatron would admit), still had significant military presence. During the attack, Starscream noted that Dark Energon was proving every bit as potent as Megatron had promised. Breakdown let Megatron know of his misgivings about the Sky Commander; Megatron admitted he was treacherous and untrustworthy, but he had useful talents, and his cunning and ambition was intriguing.

The Omega Key had been taken from its normal resting place, however, by Autobot leader Zeta Prime, and so Megatron took his squad on an assault on Zeta's headquarters. They met Brawl, leading an attack on the doors to Zeta Prime's armory, along the way. Even Megatron's touch of Dark Energon could not breach the vault doors, however, and so he called in [[Dark Energon Bomber]]s. When they were shot down, Brawl suggested they take out the Autobots' air defense guns, after which bombers were called in again; Megatron's troops then held off a massive assault from what seemed like the entire Autobot army while waiting for the bombing run to finally arrive.

[[File:WFC Megatron Vs ZetaPrime.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|Zeta Prime, you might be more egotistical than me. I mean really, a huge holographic version of you and smaller holograms doing what you can't do without your pointy stick thing?]]

After the vault doors were breached, they reached Zeta Prime himself, who had constructed several layers of security while he waited. An invincible energy field protected him, while he could drop portions of the ceiling with pistons to crush anything beneath them, and construct endless holographic clones of himself outfitted for melee combat, which Megatron personally found nauseating. However, his defenses were not without flaw: periodically, the power core would need to disperse waste heat, and Megatron's team survived long enough to destroy it during this stage. Zeta fell, buried under the wreckage of his own defenses, and Megatron took the device he'd carried...which started to make electronic chirping noises. Zeta, with dark humor, noted that the device was not the Omega Key. It merely ''activated'' the Key, which would come to them...

Searching for the Key in the skies aboard another ship, Megatron, with Soundwave and Breakdown at the controls, were abruptly confronted by a massive ship, [[Omega Supreme (WFC)|Omega Supreme]], who knocked them out of the sky, causing them to crash back in Iacon. There, they played a cat-and-mouse campaign in a desperate attempt to survive the enormous Autobot's vast firepower, though Soundwave noted that the weaponry they bore had little chance of penetrating Omega Supreme's armor. Megatron, for his part, at least contrived to appear unafraid, claiming that if it came to a real fight, the brute wouldn't stand a chance against Megatron's intellect. However, Omega's attacks drove them underground and left them unable to immediately transmit counter to Starscream, who declared Megatron dead and announced he was taking control. Even when they re-established contact, Starscream's aerial forces only briefly distracted Omega, who dispensed large numbers of troops, sucked up Decepticons with a tractor beam, fired weapons of mass destruction, and mined the roads Megatron and his squad were using.

[[File:Omega Supreme smash.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|"I challenge you to a thumb wrestling competition!" "''That's'' a thumb!?"]]
Soundwave, however, had come up with a suggestion—there were weapons emplacements higher up that had the ability to damage Omega Supreme. Taking them from the Autobots was a battle in and of itself, but nothing compared to the fight against Omega Supreme, who could unload entire squadrons of Aerialbots. Nonetheless, Megatron's boldness and tactical acumen finally shot Omega Supreme out of the sky.

[[File:WFC-hearmynameandtremble.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.66|I stand on your crotch!]]

Gloating, Megatron found that the behemoth was still not defeated, and indeed was drawing power from Cybertron itself to repair his systems, making him stronger, if anything. However, by corrupting the energon batteries with which he was using to feed himself with Dark Energon charges, they were able to weaken him to the point where they could finally blast away his last defenses and brought him to heel. With Omega Supreme defeated, Megatron went underground, directly to the Core, and corrupted it with a massive infusion of Dark Energon, finally bringing Cybertron itself more completely under his control.

At this point, Megatron was clearly convinced, and for good reason, that he'd won, making propaganda broadcasts extolling his greatness and how he had taken away the Autobots' burdens of "liberty" and "choice". When Starscream was defeated and the Decagon retaken, however, he realized the Autobots were not yet going to roll over for him, and sent a distress signal from Zeta Prime, whom he had kept alive in the Kaon prison camp, in order to provoke a rescue attempt from the Autobots. His old acquaintance Optimus took the bait, and Megatron confronted him, telling him that the war could be over tomorrow if Optimus took the Autobots and left. Optimus refused, so Megatron consigned him and his team to the prisons. When they managed to stage a mass breakout, an enraged Megatron ordered his troops to prevent their escape at any cost, to the point of tearing apart portions of Kaon.

This was not enough, however, and they escaped, journeying to the Core, where they kickstarted the cleansing of Megatron's corruption. Doing so, however, would take the Core millions of years of shutdown, rendering Cybertron uninhabitable. Whether Megatron knew this or not, when he saw the Autobots leaving after Optimus's refusal of his earlier offer, he apparently took offense. His earlier plans of renovating Starscream's station had come to fruition; now, it mounted a powerful superweapon, capable of destroying entire structures in one shot. He had it fire upon the Autobot transports as they left. When a team of Aerialbots attempted to disable or destroy it, he called Jetfire, now one of them, and taunted him about his past. He further mocked them when they destroyed the plasma coolant system without apparently having accounted for backups. Finally, during the attack he came into possession of information on Optimus Prime's location, and ordered Trypticon—the name of the weapon, for it was actually a Cybertronian—to fire upon it.

Trypticon, however, was forced into his natural form and defeated after he crash-landed on Cybertron. Megatron's reaction to this went unrecorded. {{storylink|Transformers: War for Cybertron (360/PS3/PC)|Transformers: War for Cybertron}}

===''Transformers: War for Cybertron'' (DS)===
[[File:WFCDS Defeat Omega Supreme.jpg|thumb|left|256px|Simple enough... OH GOD BULLETS.]]

Megatron was the Decepticon Leader during the final days of the Great War. After capturing an Autobot facility, and killing a cadet, Megatron revealed his plan to his troops. Megatron intended to conquer Trypticon Space Station, which had the means and power to manufacture Dark Energon: a variant of Energon which greatly increased the stamina and strength of its host. Megatron fought his way through the station to its commander, the Autobot Starscream. Upon Starscream's defeat, Starscream offered his services and the Dark Energon if he was spared. Megatron agreed, and Starscream joined the Decepticons.

After a test run of the Dark Energon in Kaon Prison, Soundwave deduced the element would only kill the host, but Starscream was able to find a way to fix it. Megatron then decided the time was right, and led his army to the inner levels of Cybertron. He was able to activate the uplink to channel energy from the Core of Cybertron itself to Trypticon Station, but he needed the Omega Key to access it once it was shut down with a firewall.

Megatron learned through a recording from Laserbeak that Autobot Leader Zeta Prime had the Omega Key in his possession and had holed up deep within Iacon. Megatron led a full-scale assault on the city, totally devastating Iacon, until he found Zeta Prime at last. After a hard battle, Zeta fell, and Megatron obtained the Omega Key. However, immediately upon taking it, alarms went off, and Iacon itself was shaking. Zeta Prime, despite being mortally wounded, laughed at Megatron's face, saying the Omega Key was only the key to the ''true'' key: the city-sized Autobot Omega Supreme.

Omega immediately attacked the victorious Decepticons, and quickly decimated their presence in Iacon, save for Megatron's team and a few others. By this point, Megatron was absolutely furious at Starscream: Megatron declared it was he who led them to Omega Supreme and the devastating onslaught he carried out. Starscream bitterly retorted even if Megatron killed him, Omega Supreme would still be out for his blood, helping nothing whatsoever. Megatron angrily let it go for the time being, and led his army to battle. His troops' confidence beginning to falter, Megatron declared they would either be kicking themselves for not acting for the rest of their lives, or heroes in a historic event. His men followed him to battle Omega, and the titan fell. Megatron was free to corrupt the Core of Cybertron with Dark Energon, and obtain near-supremacy of Cybertron.

That kind of went downhill when the new Autobot leader, Optimus Prime, extinguished the Dark Energon and destroyed Trypticon Space Station, didn't it? {{storylink|Transformers: War for Cybertron (DS)|War for Cybertron - Autobots/Decepticons}}

{{--}}

===''Transformers: Cybertron Adventures''===
{{voiceactor|[[Fred Tatasciore]] (English)|[[Oliviero Corbetta]] (Italian)}}

Early in the war, when the Autobots learned of the existence of the orbiting superweapon [[Trypticon (WFC)|Trypticon]], Megatron sent waves of Decepticon forces to keep them from discovering more about it. Megatron, happy to see the destruction Trypticon was creating, ordered Starscream and Skywarp at gunpoint to return to Trypticon and clean up after it, while he took his troops into battle to scour the area for Autobots to kill. Few Autobots other than the medic, [[Ratchet (WFC)|Ratchet]], were spared Megatron's initial assault.

When Megatron found out that Starscream had left his post at Trypticon, Megatron grew angry. But the Autobots had infiltrated the [[Datacore]], so Megatron focused his efforts there instead. Bumblebee was captured, and information useful for the taking of [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] was pulled from his mind. Megatron assigned Skywarp the task of the initial Iacon assault. The traitorous Starscream returned to Megatron's focus, and the Air Commander was ordered to infiltrate the Core of Cybertron to reactivate the [[Geosynchronous Energon Bridge]]. But Starscream took too long, discovering Megatron had already reached the Core by the time he arrived. In a foul mood, Megatron would test Starscream's loyalty by putting him on the Iacon assault's front lines.

The assault went as planned, and Iacon crumbled. As Barricade and Starscream reached an empty Council Chamber, Megatron alerted them to the evacuation of the surviving Autobots. Three Autobot ships positioned themselves to escape, and so Megatron ordered Thundercracker and Skywarp to take them down.

Though Iacon fell, the Trypticon orbiting superweapon was destroyed by the Autobots... but not before Megatron ripped the datacore from its brain so as to salvage its information on Dark Energon. Megatron was pleased. Despite his loss, he still had the upper hand. {{storylink|Transformers: Cybertron Adventures}}

===''Transformers: Fall of Cybertron'' (Xbox 360/PS3/PC)===
{{voiceactor|[[Fred Tatasciore]] (English)}}
[[File:FoC Megatron Profile.jpg‎|thumb|left|upright=1.3|Seriously, Soundwave, where is my fusion cannon?! It was in your remodeling designs, for crying out loud...]]
When Cybertron had begun to die following the Core's shutdown, Megatron blamed [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]], as he was the one who had ruined his plans for the planet. Megatron launched an attack on [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] in order to destroy the Ark and get revenge. While commanding the battle from beneath one of his [[Warp Cannon]]s, he sent [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]], [[Onslaught (WFC)|Onslaught]] and [[Brawl (WFC)|Brawl]] to capture Optimus and bring him before him. As Megatron executed two Autobots before his Optimus' eyes, Optimus pleaded that they only wanted to leave Cybertron, but Megatron wasn't going to allow him. As the Warp Cannon prepared to destroy both the Ark, and the Decepticon leader to do the same to the Autobot leader, the newly awakened [[Metroplex (FOC)|Metroplex]] tore the roof off of the building they were in. Refusing to retreat, Megatron fired at the colossus, only to be pulverized by the giant Autobot's fist.

Due to Megatron's death, Starscream took control of the Decepticons and proceeded to run the organization into the ground by wasting resources and his failure to inspire the troops. Unhappy with the change in management, [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]] salvaged what was left of Megatron, rebuilt him into a new form in his Kaon laboratory, and reactivated him with a Dark Energon infusion. After awakening, Megatron was enraged to see that Starscream was in control, and then proceeded to crash Starscream's [[The Transformers: The Movie|coronation]] ceremony. Slaughtering the Seeker's loyalists, Megatron turned on Starscream and drove him off. [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]] arrived to inform him of the [[space bridge]] technology he had discovered and [[Earth|an energy-rich planet]] for them to plunder, and they required a suitable power source for a transport to take them.

Due to Starscream's self-indulgence, the Decepticons' energon supply was dwindling, forcing Megatron to find more power. He decided to retrieve the power core from the fallen [[Trypticon (WFC)|Trypticon]] and while doing so, he happily "reintroduced" himself to the Autobots. After arriving at Trypticon's crash site, he realized the beast was still alive and had Soundwave revitalize him. Megatron didn't know or care whether or not Trypticon was still sentient or not, but told the beast that since he had failed him, he would be rebuilt to Megatron's liking. Megatron then told Soundwave to initiate the "Nemesis Protocol" and permanently lock Trypticon in his [[alternate mode|alternate form]]: a transport ship which they would use to traverse the Space Bridge.

The ''Nemesis'' was quickly completed and the Space Bridge opened, and Megatron decided to leave Shockwave in charge of Cybertron in his absence. However, one of Shockwave's [[Grimlock (WFC)|experiments]] destroyed the tower, which reduced the time they have to reach the Space Bridge before it closed. Sending in Soundwave to lead his forces on the Ark, Megatron confronted Optimus and the two fought. Megatron prepared a devastating blow to his enemy with a cannon, only for [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]] to take the shot for Optimus. Their battle reignited, the two leaders traded blows with swords, causing heavy damage to one another. But before a final blow could be delivered by either one of them, the Ark crumbled under the Space Bridge's force, and while Megatron shouted in anger, both ships were drawn through. {{storylink|Transformers: Fall of Cybertron|Fall of Cybertron}}

{{note|Megatron also appears in the game's 'Escalation' mode. He fights alongside [[Shockwave (WFC)|Shockwave]], [[Soundwave (WFC)|Soundwave]], and [[Starscream (WFC)|Starscream]], on the 'Oblivion' map. He is the team's [[Tank (FOC)|Tank]].}}

=== ''Transformers: Prime - The Game'' ===
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English)|[[Bruno Carna]] (French), [[Juan Carlos Lozano]] (Castilian Spanish)}}

[[File:Transformers prime the game megatron.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.1|I think I'll force a servant of Unicron about ten times my size to serve me. That won't go horribly wrong at all.]]
Megatron was present when the Decepticons were hauling in an asteroid rich with Dark Energon heading toward Earth. When the Autobots came to stop them, he decided to take matters into his own hands by going toe-to-toe with Optimus again. After they exchanged some wedding vows and got to dancing, the asteroid exploded and interrupted their fight. Megatron managed to survive by flying away, witnessing his enemies fall to Earth. Swiftly, Megatron commanded Starscream to organize a scouting team to retrieve the fallen Autobots.

Megatron was present when Optimus awoke to fight Thunderwing. Megatron commenced an attack on the Autobot with the Nemesis, but once the Autobot escaped, he quickly turned his attention to the giant in the asteroid. After an analysis by Knock Out, Megatron reasoned with the herald of Unicron by promising all of his missing components being returned to him if and only if he swore his undying allegiance to him. As such, Megatron and Starscream arrived at one location to retrieve a component while Dreadwing parted to another. While on their mission, Megatron and Starscream managed to run into their old pals Optimus & Bulkhead. Starscream took his fight to the bulk, leaving Megatron to battle his old foe once again. Megatron was somewhat defeated, but managed to retrieve the component.

Megatron witnessed Starscream attach the component to Thunderwing, and the two were surprised when Thunderwing continued to serve Unicron, even after their deal. Thunderwing attempted to destroy Megatron before making his escape, but he used Starscream as protection. Throwing his commander on the ground like scrap, he pursued Thunderwing only to meet with the Autobots again. Megatron managed to make sport of Arcee, Bumblebee, and Bulkhead, but his third and final battle with Optimus resulted in his ultimate defeat. He vengefully tried to stab Optimus when offered mercy, only to be left open and seemingly destroyed by a blast from the arriving Thunderwing.
{{storylink|Transformers: Prime - The Game}}

===''Transformers Online''===
{{charstubgame}}
{{storylink|Transformers Online (2012 video game)|Transformers Online}}
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===''Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark''===
{{charstubgame|{{storylink|Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark (console)|Rise of the Dark Spark (console)}}, {{storylink|Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark (3DS)|Rise of the Dark Spark (3DS)}}}}
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===''Transformers Prime: Battle For Energon''===
Megatron and his Eradicons infiltrated the Autobots' headquarters. They then used Scraplets to discombobulate the base's systems. Bulkhead then came along, removed the Scraplets from the headquarters' systems, and defeated Megatron. {{storylink|Transformers Prime: Battle For Energon}}

===''Transformers Prime: Terrorcon Defense''===
Megatron threw wave after wave of Vehicons at the Autobots in the hopes of amassing massive amounts of Dark Energon, before launching an assault on the Autobot headquarters. He was defeated by Optimus Prime and Arcee. {{Storylink|Transformers Prime: Terrorcon Defense|Terrorcon Defense}}

===''Transformers Prime: Pulsar Defense''===
Megatron and his Decepticons built an [[Energon Drain]] weapon, which would render them unstopable if left unopposed. Optimus Prime and his Autobots intervened, and destroyed the weapon. {{storylink|Transformers Prime: Pulsar Defense}}

===''Transformers Prime: Decepticon Strike''===
After the bulk of his troops, and many Vehicons had faced off against Optimus Prime, Megatron took on the Autobot leader himself. Megatron had access to a personal forcefield and powerful energy blasts throughout the battle, and would alternate between his robot and vehicle mode to fight both on the ground and above it. The stack the odds even more in his favor, Megatron was assisted by some of his troops, including Airachnid, Breakdown and Shockwave. Despite all of this, Optimus managed to defeat Megatron, and he was sent fleeing, proclaiming that Optimus had only succeeded in winning a small battle that was part of a greater war. {{storylink|Transformers Prime: Decepticon Strike|Decepticon Strike}}

===''Transformers Universe''===
[[File:Tu-character-art megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|left|Went from shark-face to scowl-face]]
{{voiceactor|[[Frank Welker]] (English)}}

At some point during the Autobot-Decepticon war, Optimus Prime went missing. Megatron and his Decepticons searched the universe for the Autobot leader, but met heavy resistance from the Autobots, who fought to keep their leader's location a secret.

He appears in-game only as a hologram displayed in the ''Leviathan'', [[Switchblade (Prime)|Switchblade]]'s ship. {{storylink|Transformers Universe}}
{{-}}
===''Transformers: Battle Tactics''===
[[File:Battle-Tactics-Megatron-(WFC).jpg|thumb|upright=2.2]]
Megatron (WFC) participated in battles against a variety of opponents, both Autobots and Decepticons. Sometimes there were many of him! He was an Epic character available as a reward in the "Cybertron Episode 1" event. {{storylink|Transformers: Battle Tactics}}
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==Toys==
{{main|Megatron (WFC)/toys}}

==Merchandise==
{{main|Megatron (WFC)/toys#Merchandise}}

==Notes==
[[File:Tfprimemegatronjet.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Too fast for screen caps.]]
[[File:VectorSigmaBotBuilderMegatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Green With Evil.]]
[[File:RID 15 Megatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|It's like [[Transformers: War for Cybertron (games)|''War for Cybertron'']] and [[Megatron (Animated)|''Animated'']] were put in a blender.]]
*Megatron's model is usable in ''War for Cybertron'' multiplayer as the Destroyer-type chassis for [[Soldier (WFC)|Soldier]]-class characters. His parts are also available in ''Fall of Cybertron'', now classified as Gunner-type components for [[Titan (FOC)|Titan]]-class characters.
*Megatron's designation as an energon miner was "D-16".<ref>[http://www.hasbro.com/transformers/en_US/play/details.cfm?guid=7fd5ecd9-19b9-f369-1041-a7635be83172 War for Cybertron timeline].</ref> Megatron's original [[List of Japanese ID numbers|Japanese ID number]] was "16". Takara would eventually change the numbering system using a "D" to denote [[Decepticon|Destrons]]. So Megatron's Japanese ID number could retroactively be considered "D-16".
*According to the packing bio for the Cybertronian Megatron toy, Megatron often changes his [[alternate mode]]. This was probably written in an attempt to explain why goes from turning into a tank in the video games to turning into a jet in the cartoon.
**The ''Prime'' staff used the rationale that Megatron, unlike other Decepticons, would not scan an Earth mode out of disgust at humans.<ref>[http://www.tfw2005.com/transformers-news/transformers-prime-39/botcon-2010-transformers-prime-panel-coverage-170054/ BotCon 2010 Transformers Prime Panel Coverage]</ref>
*In ''War for Cybertron'', Megatron has multiple glitches when controlled by the computer, among them shrinking (quite hilariously), losing his Fusion Cannon, and having his Tank mode cannon stick straight up (also humorous). He may be the most glitchy character in the game.
*''Prime'' Megatron takes visual cues from both Generation 1 [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]]—the ever-famous buckethead and lower legs resembling a pistol's handgrip—and [[Megatron (Movie)|"Movie series" Megatron]]—the sharp angles and bits on his shoulders, two-toed feet, a demonic-looking face with sharp shark-like teeth, and even a Cybertronian jet mode. The G1 reference goes further with Welker's casting, but with a darker tone leaning more towards [[Hugo Weaving]]'s portrayal as a movieverse cue (Welker would later deepen this tone for ''Age of Extinction'' and ''The Last Knight'').
*Megatron's body parts are available to use in the Hub website's [[Vector Sigma Bot Builder]] online game. Normally, you cannot configure a generic 'bot using all Megatron parts, but you can see what one would look like at right through the magic of Photoshop.
*A running gag in the advertisements shows that the Decepticon Lord is actually a {{w|brony}} in secret. Soundwave is the only one who knows, and seems to share his leader's taste for ''[[My Little Pony]]''.
**According to the ''[[Commercial/Prime#2012|Transformers: Prime 26 Hour Takeover Marathon]]'' promos, his favorite song is the [[theme song|theme]] to ''My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic''.
**According to an [[Commercial/Prime#2013|Ask Megatron]] segment, his ideal form of relaxation involves traveling to the dark side of Pluto and drawing Rainbow Dash fanart.
**And then there are [[Commercial/Prime#2011|The Hub Summer]] and [[Commercial/Prime#2011|The Hub Carolers]] promos, in which he joins Pinkie Pie, Applejack and Rainbow Dash (his favorite!) for various musical numbers.
**While answering fan mail from the [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=woM_g2cJxlA "Ask Megatron" Segments], he replied that his most embarrassing moment was when he cried in front of Soundwave when [[Twilight Sparkle]] became a princess.
*A note in the "Autobits" edition of [[Darkmount, NV]] states that he enjoys online cat videos.
*Megatron had concept art made for him for the ''[[Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2015 cartoon)|Robots in Disguise]]'' cartoon.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Megatron''' (メガトロン ''Megatoron''), '''Megatronus''' (メガトロナス ''Megatoronasu'')
*''Mandarin:'' '''Megaton''' (Taiwan, 密卡登 ''Mìkǎdēng''), '''Wēi Zhèn Tīan''' (China, 威震天, lit. "Extremely Prestigious" or "Heaven-shaking Might")

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Emperors of Destruction]]
[[Category:Fall of Cybertron Decepticons]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Hall of Fame characters]]
[[Category:Letters page answerers]]
[[Category:Prime Decepticons]]
[[Category:Transformers Online Decepticons]]
[[Category:War for Cybertron Decepticons]]
[[Category:Transformers Universe game Decepticons]]

Mederi

2023-01-05T21:39:44Z

Negatwenty:

[[File:YouAreHere-Mederi.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Dial "M" for Mederi.]]

The ancient moon known as '''Mederi''' is an artificially constructed planetoid, the pattern for several other '''Mederi Centers''' specializing in various forms of medicine. The ''original'' Mederi is not where life-forms go to get better, however... rather, the planet operates as a euthanasia clinic, sending its patients into utopic dreams as it kills them in order to ease their passing from this world.

And by "patients", we mean "anyone and everyone who lands there".

==Fiction==
===2005 IDW continuity===
According to [[Ratchet (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Ratchet]], Mederi was supposedly constructed by the [[Omega Guardian]]s many millions of years ago, predating the rise of [[Transformer|Cybertronian]] civilization. The planet was built on the same "spiritual ley-line" that [[Troja Major]]'s [[Howling Town]] capitalized off of. The planet came to be known as a "chameleonic wellness station" fuelled by telepathic [[alien]]s hooked up to a machine within a chamber called Ward Zero, which was defended by the Guardians' stony "throwbacks"; when travelers came within range of the planet, the telepaths would read minds and reshape the [[holomatter]] environment to the patient's liking. Terminally ill patients travelled to Mederi so that they could "die happy". {{storylink|The Everlasting Voices (3): You Are Here|You Are Here}}

Over an unspecified period of time, other Mederi Centers sprang up; the seventh such center was stationed near the planet [[Caminus (planet)|Caminus]]. {{storylink|An Axe to Break the Ice}}

Some ten million years ago, the [[Knights of Cybertron]], suffering from an outbreak of [[atrophosia]] and seeking the nearest medical center, supposedly stumbled across the planet. The telepaths determined that the Transformers, tired, scared, and dying from illness, wanted to return to [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] but still discover new worlds, and resolved these conflicting desires by creating a "perfect" Cybertron for them to inhabit, which would come to be remembered in Cybertronian legend as the mythical "[[Cyberutopia]]". Never realizing the truth of their paradise, and euphoric to the point of forgetting they were dying, they encoded a map to Mederi into the [[Matrix of Leadership]] and sent it home so that others would be able to find their way there. And then, presumably, they all died. {{storylink|The Everlasting Voices (3): You Are Here|You Are Here}}

Once the [[Great War (G1)|Great War]] concluded, over 200 assorted Transformers aboard the ''[[Lost Light]]'' set out to find the Knights of Cybertron, guided by the map within the Matrix. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 1: How to Say Goodbye and Mean It|How to Say Goodbye and Mean It}} The ''[[Vis Vitalis]]'' undertook a similar quest, following the same map as it gradually revealed itself to [[Thunder Clash|Thunderclash]] in his dreams. {{storylink|Little Victories}} The [[Circle of Light]] member [[Axe (G1)|Axe]] took on his own quest to find Cyberutopia, eventually succeeding with Mederi's systems eventually claiming his life. {{storylink|The Everlasting Voices (3): You Are Here|You Are Here}}

In 2018, [[Getaway]] and the crew of the ''Lost Light'' eventually found their way to the planet, which appeared to them as a representation of Cyberutopia. {{storylink|The Plotters' Club (Part 3): Journey's End|Journey's End}} As the crew had no concrete expectations of what to expect from the promised land, the telepathic illusion soon collapsed and revealed the planet's true nature to them. The ''Lost Light'' then came under attack from the forces of the [[Adaptus|Grand Architect]], with Getaway managing to smooth talk his way into the being's good graces allowing his crew to be turned into [[Sparkeater (creature)|sparkeaters]] as a sign of his loyalty. {{storylink|Crucible (Part 2): Lūstrāre|Lūstrāre}}

Shortly afterwards, the Decepticon [[Scavenger (group)|Scavenger]]s warped to Mederi while trying to escape [[Scorponok (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Scorponok]]'s forces, but were tricked into thinking they'd landed on [[Garrus-9]] due to their desire to reach the prison. {{storylink|The Everlasting Voices (3): You Are Here|You Are Here}} Shortly afterwards, [[Team Rodimus]] arrived on the planet after an accident in the [[Warren]], following an inexplicably lucid [[Ten]]'s instructions to guide their [[Skip|ship]] to a nearby Mederi facility to cure an unspecified illness Ratchet had contracted. As Team Rodimus believed that they had died from exposure to compressed space, Mederi created an interpretation of the [[Transformer afterlife|Afterspark]] for them to inhabit, filled with the comforting ghosts of lost loved ones, while they began the process of "ascending". In reality, the program was killing them off, one by one, when their peace and happiness reached a critical point. {{storylink|The Everlasting Voices (1): Metastasis|Metastasis}} The Autobots were able to escape the simulation thanks to Ratchet discovering Ward Zero, forcibly destroying Mederi's fuel supply and detaching the telepaths from their machine. They and the Decepticons (with [[Nautica (G1)|Nautica]]) independently realized the planet was trying to kill them, though in the process lost both Ten and [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]]. When they came together, they discovered Mederi's link to Cyberutopia, and as the Transformers took stock of their situation, they were set upon by the mutated ''Lost Light''ers. {{storylink|The Everlasting Voices (3): You Are Here|You Are Here}}

Salvation came in the form of [[Grimlock (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Grimlock]], [[First Aid (G1)|First Aid]], [[Riptide (G1)|Riptide]], [[Thunder Clash|Thunderclash]], and [[Wipe-Out]] who'd been tracking the ''Lost Light''. While one group went off to dock with the commandeered ship, the rest barricaded themselves inside Ward Zero to try and find a cure. {{storylink|Crucible (Part 1): A Dance Before Dying|A Dance Before Dying}}

Using Mederi's files, First Aid was able to render the sparkeaters into stasis and bring them inside for treatment. As the doctors went to work, the telepaths again spoke as one, first "saying" the symbol of the Knights of Cybertron's coat of arms before counting down from one thousand. {{storylink|Crucible (Part 2): Lūstrāre|Lūstrāre}} When the countdown reached its end, the forces of the Grand Architect opened a tear in the Warren, the Transformers on the moon bearing witness to the rift. After Scorponok had teleported a [[geobomb]] into Ward Zero, the moon travelled through the crack and emerged in the [[Benzene Cluster]]. {{storylink|Crucible (Part 2): Lūstrāre|Lūstrāre}} {{storylink|Crucible (Part 3): Farsickness|Farsickness}}

Once the Architect's "[[God Gun]]" had allowed the [[Functionist Council]] passage into his universe, the Council used their puppeteered version of Cybertron, now transformed into [[Primus]]'s likeness, to rip Mederi to shreds, which the Architect claimed was the sight that had set him on his crusade. {{storylink|Crucible (Part 4): The Return of the King|The Return of the King}}

==Notes==
*Though Mederi's datalogs specify that it's supposed to "kill you gently—and with your full cooperation", it apparently attempts to kill ''anyone'' who enters its field of influence without realising. Considering the planet has ''no actual medical personnel'' to keep track of visitors or patients, it can be deduced that the system is not a very good one.

[[Category:IDW (2005) planets]]
[[Category:Medical facilities]]

Silver Matrix

2022-11-13T22:33:27Z

Negatwenty:

[[File:Silver Matrix.jpg|thumb|400px|Alright hold onto your butts this one's a whole thing:]]
The '''Silver Matrix''' (シルバーマトリクス ''Shirubā Matorikusu'') is the most powerful of the eight Matrices of the [[Primus Vanguard]]. Borne by the Vanguard's eponymous leader [[Primus#The old universe|Primus]], it is possessed of the unique ability to absorb all seven of the [[Star Power]]s emanated by [[The One]], the fundamental energies of the [[Precursor World]].

Legend has it that if filled completely, the Silver Matrix grants the bearer the ability to recreate the entirety of reality in accordance with their will.

When combined with the [[ion blaster]] of its [[G1 World|future]] bearer [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity#Generations Selects Special Comic (2)|Star Convoy]], it gains a more practical application as the [[Vok]]-busting '''Big Bang Cannon'''.

==Fiction==
===Precursor World===
[[File:Primus Heel Reveal.jpg|thumb|left|100px|Let's call this Matrix A.]]
[[File:Primus Victory.jpg|thumb|120px|Matrix A + [[Star Power|7 Lights]]]]

====Primus' Silver Matrix====
In the [[Precursor World]], the Silver Matrix was in the possession of Primus, appointed leader of the [[Primus Vanguard]]. Along with the other seven Matrices that carried the [[Star Power|Seven Lights]], the full power of the Silver Matrix was used to rid the initial set of seven universes of the [[Specter]]s, shadows of the Matrices' light. This had the side effect of unifying the seven universes into one.

In this singular universe, [[Primacron]], Primus' pet, came up with a plan to use his master's Matrix to recreate the universe; exploiting the Silver Matrix, he took some of its essence to create the divine power, [[Angolmois Energy]]. After the Vok attacked this world, Primus realized that multiple parties were hoping to destroy the universe and bring forth a [[G1 World|new, future universe of cruelty]] that he foresaw with the [[Black Legendisc|Black Matrix]]. Seeking to waylay Primacron's and the [[Vok]]'s plans, Primus engineered a complex plan that had him take the empty Silver Matrix from the next universe while keeping the current one on his person. He would eventually reveal this when his plan reached a climax, absorbing the seven Star Powers from his pawns and using the Silver Matrix to ignite the rebirth of the universe- {{storylink|Generations Selects Special Comic Finale Part 1|Finale 1}}

-Only to be blown to smithereens by [[Blue Planet (GS)|Neo Primus's]] central cannon! As Primus' armor shell was shattered revealing the true form of the diminutive energy being known as the Oracle within, the still-fully-charged Silver Matrix was sent flying. {{storylink|Generations Selects Special Comic Finale Part 2|Finale 2}}

[[File:Silver Matrix Theft.jpg|thumb|250px|left|We'll call this one Matrix B.]]

====Star Convoy's Silver Matrix====
The Silver Matrix would seemingly be transformed into the [[Zodiac]] in the events of the [[Big Bang (event)|Big Bang]], contained within the [[Matrix of Leadership]] alongside the core energy form of its steward Primus. It was then dispersed as [[Primacron]] used it to seed life throughout the [[G1 World]]. {{storylink|Generations Selects Special Comic Finale Part 2|Finale 2}}

In [[2050]], [[Dai Atlas (G1)|Dai Atlas]] gathered all of the fragments in one place, and there they coalesced into the worn-out Silver Matrix. Just as this occurred, the young Primus of the Precursor World burst in with [[Golden Age (GS)|his retinue]] to take it for himself. {{storylink|Abominus comic 2}}

[[File:Star Power Drain.jpg|thumb|250px|Matrix B + [[α Matrix|Blue Light]]]]

Returning to the Precursor World, Primus next plucked [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity#Generations Selects Special Comic (2)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Galvatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity#Generations Selects Special Comic|Galvatron]] from [[2011]] of the G1 World into orbit around the [[Blue Planet (GS)|Blue Planet]], gifted Optimus the older Silver Matrix and tasked him with defeating the Vok. Optimus absorbed the "power of stars" to upgrade himself into Star Convoy and made short work of the Vok's [[Novaroid]] swarms by combining the Silver Matrix with his ion blaster to create the Big Bang Cannon. {{storylink|Star Convoy comic}} Primus then directed him to collect Star Power in the Silver Matrix. {{storylink|Seacons comic 2}} Star Convoy was subsequently confronted by [[Turtler]] and his [[Seacon (Masterforce)|Seacons]], who sought out to take the Silver Matrix, {{storylink|Seacons comic 3}} so that [[King Poseidon]] could finally overcome [[Ginrai (human)|God Ginrai]]. {{Storylink|Seacons comic 5}}

An evolved Galvatron interrupted the fight as [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity#Generations Selects Special Comic (1)|Super Megatron]] by blowing away King Poseidon. Seeking the Silver Matrix for himself, Super Megatron fought till he decided to threaten some [[Beast People]], forcing Star Convoy to give up the object; Super Megatron subsequently used its power to become Ultra Megatron. {{storylink|Super Megatron comic 1}} [[File:Silver Matrix Transfer.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Matrix B - Blue Light]] The battle received further combatants as [[Blue Big Convoy]] as the [[Blue Order]] appeared to support Optimus Prime. Blue parried his [[α Matrix]] with Ultra Megatron's Silver Matrix, allowing the latter to absorb the blue Star Power from the α Matrix, upgrading him further into Ultra Megatron Omega. {{storylink|Super Megatron comic 2}}

Taking the Silver Matrix with him to destroy the other Orders of the Primus Vanguard, Megatron Omega ran into [[Purple Wicked Convoy]], who proposed using their Matrices to take over the universe. {{storylink|God Neptune comic 1}} [[God Neptune]] arrived to take Megatron Omega's collected energies for himself, but the [[Decepticon]] was able to defeat the combiner and start using the Silver Matrix to absorb the Matrices that his opponent had gathered, but [[Halfshell]] interrupted and retook the five Star Powers he had previously, reforming God Neptune. {{storylink|God Neptune comic 2}} As Primus' plan reached his climax, he joined the battle between Megatron Omega and God Neptune, wresting the older Silver Matrix from Megatron Omega so that his present Silver Matrix could absorb its blue Star Power. Thus drained, the elder Silver Matrix was cast aside as Primus set about accruing the remaining Star Powers. {{storylink|Generations Selects Special Comic Finale Part 1|Finale 1}} It was briefly retrieved by [[Primacron]] in his massive [[Blue Planet (GS)|Neo Primus]] robot until his defeat by [[Volcanicus (POTP)|Volcanicus]] and the [[Terrorcon (G1)|Terrorcons]] reverted the colossus into the Blue Planet.

[[File:Silver Matrix Fusion.jpg|thumb|left|130px|Matrix A + Matrix B]]
[[File:Galvatron Hangover Selects.jpg|thumb|250px|Gold Megatron - Matrix A - Matrix B - 7 Lights - [[Golden Power]] - Dignity = Galvatron]]

====The Final Battle====
The Silver Matrix of the Precursor World was retrieved by Megatron Omega, now Gold Megatron, who tapped its power to create his [[New Primus Vanguard]]. Upon having the drained Silver Matrix of the G1 World returned to him from the Blue Planet's surface by [[Blue Megatron]], Gold Megatron fused the two instances of the Silver Matrix to create the incomprehensibly powerful [[Gold Matrix]]. Upon his defeat by [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Star Convoy]] and [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity#Generations Selects Special Comic .282.29|his own future self]], the two Silver Matrixes decombined and were left behind when the Oracle returned the de-powered Optimus Prime and Galvatron to [[2011]]. {{storylink|Generations Selects Special Comic Finale Part 2|Finale 2}}
{{--}}

==Toys==
===Selects===
[[File:TF-Generations-Selects-Star-Convoy.jpg|upright=3|thumb|Now solve for OP.]]
*'''Star Convoy''' ([[September 28]], 2019)
**''Accessories'': [[Star Trailer]]/evolution armor, ion-blaster (formed by two blasters), Silver Matrix

:The ''[[Generations Selects (toyline)|Generations Selects]]'' Star Convoy retool of [[Power of the Primes (toyline)|Power of the Primes]] Optimus Prime included a compatible Silver Matrix, with the entire accessory dipped in chrome. This matrix does ''not'' split into two pieces nor contain a [[Prime Master]] like some of its Power of the Primes brethren. The Silver Matrix has a 5 mm post on the bottom and a 5mm hole on top, meant to allow the figure's two guns to combine with it into the "Big Bang Cannon." The post also makes it wieldable by figures with 5mm fist holes for "Matrix Hammer" attacks, as seen in the [[Generations Selects Special Comic|''Generations Selects'' comic]]. While the core and frame aren't interchangeable the Silver Matrix can be put in the chests of other ''Power of the Primes'' leader class figures.
{{--}}

==Notes==
*The Oracle pledges to return his various pawns to their home times and places in the conclusion of the [[Generations Selects Special Comic Finale Part 2|Generations Selects finale]]. Presumably this includes returning the Silver Matrix of the G1 World, though it isn't mentioned by name.
*The Oracle is last seen as a comatose prisoner of the [[Straxus (G1)#Precursor World|Straxuses]] in [[Darkmount (Cybertron)|Darkmount]], leaving the fate of his own Silver Matrix unknown.

==See also==
*[[Omniversal Matrix]]
{{Primus Vanguard}}

[[Category:Precursor World matrices]]
[[Category:Primus Vanguard]]
[[Category:Generations Selects toys]]
[[Category:Golden Age]]

Cyclonus (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity

2022-11-08T06:39:11Z

Negatwenty:

{{factions|unicron|decepticon}}
{{suite}}
[[File:Cyclonus toon.jpg|thumb|upright=1.8|Gonna GETCHA]]
Read about the adventures of '''Cyclonus''' in the [[Generation 1 cartoon continuity]].

==''The Transformers'' cartoon==
{{voiceactor|[[Roger C. Carmel]] (English), [[Jack Angel]] ([[The Return of Optimus Prime, Part 1]] onward, English), [[Minoru Inaba]] (Japanese), [[Fumihiko Tachiki]] (Japanese, "The Rebirth")|[[Yao Huang]] (Chinese), [[Hans-Rainer Müller]] (German), [[Gerd Rigauer]] (German, ''The Movie'' TV dub), [[Willy Schäfer]] (German, ''Generation 2''), [[Vicente Gil]] (Spain-Spanish), [[Carlos Agosti]] (Latin-American Spanish, "The Transformers: The Movie"), [[Éric Legrand]] (European French), [[Éric Etcheverry]] (European French, "Five Faces of Darkness" episodes), [[Francis Lax]] (European French, "Surprise Party" & "Webworld"), [[Bruno Magne]] (European French, "The Dweller in the Depths" & "The Face of the Nijika"), [[Michel Barbey]] (European French, "The Rebirth" episodes), [[Antônio Patiño]] (Brazilian Portuguese)}}

[[File:Cyclonuscoronation.jpg|left|thumb|The [[wikipedia:Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization (1968)#August 1981 strike|air-traffic controllers' strike]] was fresh on the writers' minds.]]
In the year [[2005]], after an abortive attack on [[Autobot City (G1)|Autobot City]], the evil [[Decepticon]]s found it necessary to jettison excess weight from their craft to make it back to their homeworld of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. The injured and dying Decepticons were chosen to be ejected into the void of space, including the commander, [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]], but when their bodies were recovered by the world-eater, [[Unicron]], they were reborn as deadly new warriors in the service of the recreated Megatron, now known as [[Galvatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Galvatron]]. Immediately following his creation, Cyclonus served as little more than Galvatron's personal ship and attack dog, carrying his leader to [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]]'s coronation, into the battle in Autobot City and to the [[Junkion (planet)|planet of Junk]]. He was also involved in attacking and crippling the shuttle of [[Hot Rod (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Hot Rod]] and [[Kup (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Kup]] over [[Quintessa (planet)|Quintessa]]. {{storylink|The Transformers: The Movie}}
{{note|Cyclonus' involvement in these events, or events mostly similar, were also chronicled in the comic mini-series "[[Transformers: The Animated Movie]]," the storybook "[[Transformers the Movie (Ladybird adaptation)|Transformers the Movie]]" and the "Special Edition The Transformers: The Movie extra page" of "[[Transformers: The Ultimate Pop-Up Universe]]."}}

[[File:FFOD1 Cyclonus in Unicron.jpg|thumb|The moment Cyclonus discovered Unicron had subscribed to the cheapest cable package]]
By [[2006]], Galvatron was believed dead and the Decepticons had retreated to the barren world of [[Chaar]]. Although Cyclonus and the [[Sweep (G1)|Sweeps]] remained in relatively good condition, the other Decepticons degenerated quickly with only a meager supply of energon. Disgusted with how far the leaderless Decepticons had fallen as they eked out this miserable existence, Cyclonus resolved to locate Galvatron, daring even to enter Unicron's deactivated, disembodied head. By replaying the planet-eater's memory banks, Cyclonus traced Galvatron to the world of [[Thrull]]. [[Scourge (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Scourge]]'s accelerated sight peeled back light-years of space and confirmed their fallen leader's presence. Returning to Chaar, Cyclonus asked his fellow Decepticons to give of their meager energon supplies in support of a quest to retrieve and revive Galvatron. {{storylink|Five Faces of Darkness, Part 1}}

[[File:FFOD5 Decepticons attack.JPG|left|thumb|You can spot the real Cyclonus by his distinctive purple plumage.]]
The Decepticons' need for a strong leader was driven home when two Autobots invaded Chaar, and the entire Decepticon army couldn't muster up enough energon or firepower to put up a decent fight. Cyclonus and the Sweeps made their way to Thrull after that to retrieve Galvatron. Unfortunately, once extricated from a pool of the planet's plasma-lava, Galvatron proved to have been driven insane from exposure to it and brutalized Cyclonus and the Sweeps before being talked down and returned to his position as leader. {{storylink|Five Faces of Darkness, Part 2}} Despite his lunacy, Galvatron was effective enough to destroy an entire space platform for Earth's defense system. Cyclonus brought him back to Chaar, only to find the Decepticons were missing, having forged an alliance with the [[Quintesson]]s in their absence. {{storylink|Five Faces of Darkness, Part 3}} With Galvatron's permission, the alliance continued, and the Decepticons and Quintessons launched an all-out assault on Cybertron and Earth both. {{storylink|Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4}} The assault failed, and Cyclonus and the Decepticon were driven back to Chaar. {{storylink|Five Faces of Darkness, Part 5}}

As 2006 settled in, Cyclonus was captured by a [[Quintesson]] scientist for study, along with [[Ultra Magnus (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Ultra Magnus]], [[Wreck-Gar (G1)|Wreck-Gar]] and [[Marissa Faireborn]], but when the entire group was sucked through a [[black hole]] into a [[negative universe]], they were forced to work together to escape; Cyclonus and Magnus developed a grudging respect for each other as warriors, but vowed that when they met again on the battlefield, it would be as enemies. {{storylink|The Killing Jar (episode)|The Killing Jar}}

[[File:Cyclonus jet.jpg|thumb|Whenever he said he needed to go [[wikia:Marvel:X-Men Blackbird|take the X-Men to the Shi'ar]], the other 'Cons assumed it was a euphemism.]]
Chasing the Autobots through space, Cyclonus and his great leader ran them down on an abandoned funeral barge floating in the void. The Decepticons pursued the Autobots into the vessel, but were taken completely by surprise by the sudden appearance of the dead Autobot leader, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]]. Galvatron was injured in battle, and Cyclonus had to provide him with support. The loyal lieutenant was willing to fight on against Prime, but when the Sweeps abandoned the barge in fear, Cyclonus was forced to choose the better part of valor and leave as well, carrying Galvatron with him. {{storylink|Dark Awakening (episode)|Dark Awakening}}

[[File:Fightorflee Cyclonus Scourge Superion.jpg|left|thumb|"Scourge, is the Autobot still far away, or close and just smaller? Curse this universe's [[scale]]!"]]
Some time later, outnumbered and fleeing from the [[Aerialbot (G1)|Aerialbots]], Cyclonus and Scourge took refuge inside a vortex, which transported them to the pacifistic, energy-rich planet of [[Paradron]], which had been settled by Cybertronian refugees. Naturally, the duo immediately conquered the planet and summoned Galvatron and the other Decepticons there; the plan was ultimately foiled by the Autobots, but at the cost of Paradron itself, which was destroyed. {{storylink|Fight or Flee (episode)|Fight or Flee}}

[[File:Starscreams-Ghost-Cyclonus-Robot-mode-alt-design.jpg|thumb|His older character model is more vulnerable to possession.]]
Cyclonus and Galvatron met up with [[Octane]] in [[Socialist Democratic Federated Republic of Carbombya|Carbombya]], where they briefly adapted the local oil into a more powerful form of energon before the Autobots chased them out of the country. {{storylink|Thief in the Night}} After Octane fled the Decepticons and started working as a free trader with the [[Junkion (species)|Junkions]] and even the Autobots, Cyclonus and the Sweeps infiltrated Cybertronian air space to deal with the traitor. They chased him into the abandoned Decepticon mausoleum below the planet's surface. Cyclonus marveled at Scourge's pathetic leadership ability when he couldn't even order ONE Sweep to enter the mausoleum ahead of them. He borrowed half a page from Galvatron's book and only ''threatened'' to kill a Sweep if they didn't get moving. Cyclonus' hunt was interrupted by the arrival of Starscream's ghost, who possessed the Decepticon saboteur for his own ends. The next thing Cyclonus knew, it was hours later and he was at the base of Galvatron's throne, having just been blasted by his leader. {{storylink|Starscream's Ghost}}

[[File:Cyclonus&daniel.jpg|left|thumb|The moment Daniel began to suspect Cyclonus wasn't even a real phrenologist]]
On another occasion, Cyclonus clashed with Ultra Magnus aboard the Autobot records asteroid with the fate of [[Daniel Witwicky (G1)|Daniel Witwicky]] in the balance. {{storylink|Surprise Party}}

Sometime later, Starscream's ghost returned and possessed Scourge, causing him to fire wildly. Cyclonus tried to convince Galvatron his fellow warrior was not a traitor, but only malfunctioning. Then Scourge/Starscream shot Galvatron dead center in the chest, and chaos ensued. The Decepticons were a step behind Starscream over the next few hours as he stole one of [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]]'s (invisible) eyes, then Astrotrain, then finally Trypticon himself in a mad scavenger hunt orchestrated by Unicron. Their weapons temporarily neutralized after trying to recover Trypticon, Cyclonus and the Decepticons began limping away from Cybertron when they saw Starscream tumbling uncontrollably through space. Cyclonus rightly questioned how a ghost could tumble uncontrollably ''anywhere'', but Galvatron was just glad his [[particle cannon]] was working again, and he started taking potshots at the flying figure. {{storylink|Ghost in the Machine (G1)|Ghost in the Machine}}

[[File:G1-BigBroadcast Omega Supreme looming.jpg|thumb|The moment Cyclonus realized he'd picked the worst possible time to tell a [[Guardian robot]] joke]]
When Astrotrain reported to Galvatron that the Junkions were shooting at anyone in their airspace, even Autobots, Cyclonus saw opportunity. Although Galvatron couldn't care less about Junkions, Cyclonus investigated further for the good of the Decepticon cause, for the Autobots would lose a valuable ally if the Junkions had indeed turned against them. His personal analysis, however, did nothing to raise Galvatron's interest, only his rage. Cyclonus followed orders and ceased bothering his leader with the details, but still chose to pursue the matter with the Sweeps. {{storylink|The Big Broadcast of 2006 (episode)|The Big Broadcast of 2006}}

Cyclonus was alerted to a mysterious Quintesson signal by [[Predaking (G1)|Predaking]]. He and the Sweeps rendezvoused with Predaking at the source, only to find [[Sky Lynx (G1)|Sky Lynx]] and the Autobots competing with them in their pursuit. They managed to recover the Quintesson journal that was the source of the signal, and they learned it had key information that would be beneficial to peace talks the Autobots were overseeing. Cyclonus and the Decepticons tried to stop the Autobots from orchestrating a cease fire between the warring worlds, but failed. {{storylink|The Quintesson Journal}}

Later, Cyclonus was among the Transformers turned into an energy vampire by the [[Trans-Organic]] [[Dweller (G1)|Dweller]], thrown to the beast by Galvatron to delay his own fate—though at least with Cyclonus he hesitated for a moment before fleeing, almost repentant for his action. Hours later, after the Autobots saved him from an eternal unlife as an energy vampire, Cyclonus reconnected with Galvatron. Out of all the Decepticons in history, only Cyclonus could deliver his relief at Galvatron's safety with such genuine feeling and without a trace of sarcasm. {{storylink|The Dweller in the Depths}}

[[File:GalvatronCyclonusWebworld.jpg|upright=1.4|left|thumb|"Darling one, read my words and hear my heart speak of a love soft and undying: a love that will be with you always."]]
When a group of Decepticons, tired of being beaten and abused by the deranged Galvatron, confronted Cyclonus and demanded that he do something about the situation, Cyclonus was so short on options that he accepted the advice of a Quintesson and tricked Galvatron into accompanying him to the therapeutic mental institution on planet [[Torkulon]]. It pained Cyclonus to see his leader so demented as each attempted therapy met with failure, but when the Torkuli attempted to cure Galvatron by removing the damaged part of his mind, thereby leaving him a vegetable, Cyclonus sprang into action, only to be restrained. Patched into the sentient network of the planet, rather than be cured, Galvatron infected the world itself with his madness and freed himself, decimating the planet, and decided to turn his attention back to fighting the Autobots, rather than dwell on Cyclonus' deception. {{storylink|Webworld}}

While in Europe, Cyclonus and the Decepticons made contact with several human terrorists and unscrupulous mercenaries. They even hired out human mechanics to work on Trypticon and oversee his repairs. Okay, fine. But when Cyclonus ran across [[Spike Witwicky (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Spike]] and [[Daniel Witwicky (G1)|Daniel Witwicky]] wandering around inside Trypticon, shouldn't he have recognized ''them?!'' Apparently, all flesh-creatures DO look alike to the Decepticons. {{storylink|The Ultimate Weapon}}

In a scheme to utilize [[anti-electron]]s against the Autobots, the Decepticons were forced to raid Unicron's head for an additional supply of the substance. Scourge and Cyclonus performed the recovery operation while Galvatron and the [[Terrorcon (G1)|Terrorcons]] kept their Autobot pursuers busy. They had only just returned with the flask, however, when [[Scattershot (G1)|Scattershot]] and the new [[Technobot (G1)|Technobots]] arrived, destroying the anti-electrons and routing the Decepticon invaders. {{storylink|Grimlock's New Brain}}

[[File:Ejectcall.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|"Okay, now am I big or are you guys small? Bah, scale, my nemesis!"]]
Cyclonus and [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundwave]] were at Galvatron's side during a heavy battle with the Autobots, along with Trypticon, the Sweeps, and an assortment of Predacons and Terrorcons. The battle was going relatively well until more than half of Galvatron's forces suddenly responded to a mysterious call that only [[Primitive]]s could hear. Galvatron was enraged at Trypticon and the others for abandoning the field of battle, and so Cyclonus took off after them with his leader and Soundwave. They didn't get far, however, before the energy-absorbing [[Tornedron]] struck them down in the middle of space. Only after the Primitives defeated Tornedron's creator were Cyclonus and the others restored to life. {{storylink|Call of the Primitives}}

[[File:FaceOfNijika Cyclonus Quintesson crowd.jpg|left|thumb|"HOW DO YOU DO, FELLOW ZAMOJINS"]]
Later still, he, along with a group of Autobots and Quintessons, was transported into a region of space cordoned off by the Quintessons, landing on the planet [[Zamojin (planet)|Zamojin]]. There, Cyclonus aided the Quintessons in acquiring [[Perceptor (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Perceptor]]'s [[universal emulator]] in order to repair their systems and return to normal space. He demonstrated a working knowledge of psychology and mob mentality when he prodded the Zamojins into trying to execute their prisoner, the Autobot [[Blurr (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Blurr]]. {{storylink|The Face of the Nijika}}

Cyclonus participated in a major Decepticon attack on Japan. When they were repulsed by the Autobots, he returned to Chaar with Galvatron. The rear guard, [[Stunticon (G1)|Stunticons]] [[Wildrider (G1)|Wildrider]] and [[Dead End (G1)|Dead End]], miraculously managed to steal the Matrix of Leadership from an unconscious Rodimus Prime. After Galvatron was unable to unleash its power himself, he tossed the bauble away as if it were nothing. Scourge seized the opportunity to take the Matrix's power for himself and attempted to take over the Decepticons. Cyclonus refused to bow to anyone but Galvatron, and so was blasted down along with his leader. They eventually recovered and traveled to Earth after Scourge and the Decepticon army. They found Scourge shortly after Hot Rod reclaimed the Matrix from him. Galvatron was... not happy. {{storylink|The Burden Hardest to Bear}}

[[File:ReturnOptimusPrime2 crazycons.JPG|thumb|"Galvatron, we decided your issue is that you're not hateful ''enough.''"]]
When the [[Hate Plague]] swept the galaxy, Cyclonus was infected and seemed to take leadership of the afflicted Decepticons, tracking Galvatron and a group of Autobots into the depths of Chaar and spreading the infection to several of them. {{storylink|The Return of Optimus Prime, Part 1}} {{storylink|The Return of Optimus Prime, Part 2}}

[[File:Cyclonus tm.jpg|left|thumb|"See this? This...is my NIGHTSTICK!"]]
In [[2007]], Cyclonus participated in the massive Decepticon attack on Autobot City, which culminated in the theft of the [[Key to the Plasma Energy Chamber|key]] to the [[Plasma Energy Chamber]]. When the chamber was then opened, the energy released blasted the key and a group of Autobots across the galaxy to the planet [[Nebulos]], and Cyclonus and Scourge led a team of Decepticons in pursuit, attacking and capturing several of the Autobots. {{storylink|The Rebirth, Part 1}} To battle them, the remaining Autobots combined with a group of Nebulan rebels into "[[Headmaster (technology)|Headmasters]]" and bested them in combat. Having learned of this fusion of Transformer and Nebulan, the [[Hive (G1)|Hive]], the evil ruling council of Nebulos, approached the Decepticons to repeat the process, but Cyclonus argued them down to taking the heads of only the animal mode Decepticons, and merely the weapons of the others.

Consequently, Cyclonus became a [[Targetmaster (technology)|Targetmaster]], as his handgun was converted into an exo-suit for the Hive member [[Nightstick (G1)|Nightstick]], giving them enhanced targeting abilities and firepower. {{storylink|The Rebirth, Part 2}} Reclaiming the chamber key with their superior powers, the Decepticons headed back to Cybertron aboard the giant robot [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]], where Cyclonus attempted to convince the disgusted Galvatron of the benefits of being bonded to the Nebulans. The Autobots soon arrived back on Cybertron and invaded Scorponok, only to be captured by the Decepticons and almost executed by Cyclonus before being saved by Spike Witwicky and [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]]. The Decepticons' plan was subsequently thwarted by Spike and the Nebulans, and they were sent spiraling off through space aboard Scorponok by a tendril of plasma energy. {{storylink|The Rebirth, Part 3}}
{{charstubfiction|{{storylink|Carnage in C-Minor}}}}
{{--}}

==Japanese cartoon continuity==
{{note|The events of the Generation 1 cartoon occur in Japanese continuity as noted above, except that season 3, which takes place across 2005 and 2006 in America, is set in 2010 in Japan, and "The Rebirth" does not occur. Japanese continuity inserts several new stories into the timeline, as described below.}}

===''Macrocosmic Seekers''===
[[File:United Expanded Story 7.jpg|thumb|upright=1.67]]
When the Decepticons intercepted an Autobot transmission detailing the acquisition of a "great treasure", Galvatron led Cyclonus and Scourge on a raid to intercept Rodimus Prime's ship. The Autobot vessel was brought down, and under heavy weapons-fire, Kup, [[Wreck-Gar (G1)|Wreck-Gar]], and [[Scrapheap (G1)|Scrapheap]] fled the battleground. Cyclonus and Scourge pursued them, but were unable to hault the Junkions' progress as they would swap places as vehicle and rider every time they took a hit. {{storylink|Unending Battle}} The battle was interrupted by the appearance of the [[Seeker (United)|Seeker]], who abducted all of the combatants into his crystalline spaceship. Cyclonus, alongside Scourge, Galvatron, and Rodimus, were put into suspended animation by the Seeker. {{storylink|A Treasure Lost}} These four transformers intrigued the Seeker, as they had undergone "miraculous" reformattings; Rodimus due to the Matrix of Leadership, and the three Decepticons due to the power of Unicron. Using his advanced technology, the Seeker turned back his captives' internal clocks, and held them in time at the very moment of their reformatting, intending to perpetually keep them in this state as items in his collection. {{storylink|Eternal Moment}} Rodimus was rescued by Junkheap, and in the conflict that followed, stray shots freed Galvatron, Cyclonus, and Scourge from their stasis as well. However, all three were caught in between their former and current identities, leaving them quite confused. Despite his transitional state, Galvatron managed to put a halt to the Seeker's attacks. The group then mobilized to make their escape. {{storylink|Time to Move}} Though the Seeker resumed his assault in short order, Cyclonus found out that he and the others trapped in a transitional state benefited from increased strength and firepower. Additionally, the teleportation powers he had as Skywarp were restored. He put it to good use fighting back against their captor alongside the Autobots. The Seeker's ship sustained enough damage that Cyclonus was able to spot the Decepticons' and Autobots' ship outside. The Seeker went offline soon afterwards. {{storylink|Those Who Resist}} With the energy of the Seeker's experiment depleted, Cyclonus reverted to his normal state. Upon discovering that the Autobots' treasure was an old piece of armor of Optimus Prime, purely sentimental in value, Galvatron sounded a retreat. The Decepticons left without provoking further conflict. {{Storylink|A Treasure's True Worth}}
{{--}}

===''Generations Selects Special Comic'' (1)===
Cyclonus was present when the [[Quintesson]]s first lent the [[Terrorcon (G1)|Terrorcon]]s to the Decepticon cause. {{storylink|Abominus comic 1}}

In [[2011]], Cyclonus was involved in the battle against the reforming Unicron {{storylink|Super Megatron comic 1}} before he was banished to the [[Triple Z Point]]. {{storylink|Generations Selects Special Comic Finale Part 2|Finale 2}}

===''The Headmasters'' cartoon===
{{voiceactor|[[Tomomichi Nishimura]] (Japanese)|[[John Culkin]] (English, Omni Productions dub)}}
[[File:MysteryofPlanetMaster-ScourgeCyclonus.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.6|Omega Supreme gets smaller and we get dumber!]]
Cyclonus and Scourge continued to make token appearances when the new [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]] warriors arrived to dominate the Cybertronian war. Cyclonus fought alongside Galvatron on Cybertron against [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]], [[Jazz (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Jazz]], and the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]]. {{storylink|The Mystery of Planet Master}} Cyclonus seemed rather threatened by the arrival of Galvatron's new lieutenant, [[Sixshot (G1)|Sixshot]]. Cyclonus and Scourge somehow managed to beat Optimus Prime to the [[Vector Sigma]] supercomputer, and battled him at the planet's core. {{storylink|Birth of the Fantastic Double Prime}}

[[File:CyclonusBoulderHeadmasters01.jpg|upright=1.6|thumb|His credentials for the position of Second in Command were impeccable.]] During the attack on the planet [[Beast (planet)|Beast]], Cyclonus attempted to drop a rock on Rodimus Prime, but accidentally clobbered Galvatron ''in the face'' instead, and ran away yelping in fear. {{storylink|Rebellion on Planet Beast}}

Cyclonus felt discouraged when Galvatron declared all his troops were bumbling incompetents, without making a special exception for Cyclonus. {{storylink|The Four-Million-Year-Old Veil of Mystery}} Later, when Sixshot attempted to extort energy from six countries using each of his six modes, Scourge and Cyclonus completely botched his scheme when they failed to realize that he was behind it and attacked him with [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]]. {{storylink|Terror! The Six Shadows}} After Galvatron vanished during Cybertron's destruction, and the unfamiliar [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]] took over as Emperor of Destruction, Cyclonus and Scourge felt even less secure in their positions. When [[Soundwave (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Soundblaster]] proudly sucked up to Scorponok, reporting on a new energy-absorbing satellite named [[Sol 1]] set for launch, Cyclonus vowed to steal the satellite in order to gain favor in Scorponok's eyes. Joined by Scourge and [[Predaking (G1)|Predaking]], he attacked the launch pad, but was repelled by [[Raiden]] and the Headmasters. [[Brainstorm (G1)|Brainstorm]] did some aerial dogfighting with Cyclonus, and the Decepticons were forced to leave empty-handed. {{storylink|The Shadow Emperor, Scorponok}}

Scourge and Cyclonus were concerned that Scorponok's latest series of attacks on Earth were more likely to destroy the planet than allow the Decepticons to gather energy. Scorponok told to them that the awe-inspiring [[plasma energy]] was released from Cybertron in its destruction. {{storylink|The Dormant Volcano Mysteriously Erupts}} In his next scheme, Scorponok explained to the duo that he planned to detonate a series of bombs to destroy the planet [[Mars (planet)|Mars]], and harvest the plasma energy its destruction would surely generate. {{storylink|Explosion on Mars!! Maximus Is in Danger}} Cyclonus was present for the unveiling of Scorponok's new super [[transtector]] on Mars. {{storylink|Explosion on Mars!! MegaZarak Appears}}

Later, Cyclonus and Scourge made arrangements for Scorponok's official society debut as leader of the Decepticons. The Autobots attacked during the proceedings on Earth's [[Moon (moon)|moon]], but all combatants were interrupted by the triumphant return of Galvatron. Cyclonus was quick to redirect his boot-licking towards his old commander, as Scorponok's leadership was immediately overruled. {{storylink|Return of the Immortal Emperor}} Cyclonus and Scourge would later field an SOS call from the planet [[Sandra (planet)|Sandra]], and reported their findings to Galvatron. {{storylink|SOS from Planet Sandra}}

Presumably left behind on Earth while Galvatron plundered the cosmos for energon, Cyclonus and Scourge were not seen for many months. After he returned, Galvatron heaped praise on Sixshot, telling Cyclonus and Scourge that they could learn a thing or two from the Ninja Commander. Grumbling to themselves, the duo noticed [[Punch (G1)|Counterpunch]] acting shifty, but were too caught up in their own problems to think too much about it. {{storylink|The Emperor of Destruction Vanishes on an Iceberg}}
{{charstubfiction|{{storylink|Four Warriors Come out of the Sky}} {{storylink|The Great Cassette Operation}} {{storylink|Approach of the Demon Meteorite}}}}

===''Unite Warriors''===
[[File:CyclonusNewBody-GrandGalvatronChapter.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.3]]
Ten years after [[Galvatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Galvatron]]'s defeat and icy entombment, Cyclonus visited the site of his leader's downfall. There, he began to posit that Galvatron's "[[Grand Galvatron]]" body might be what the Decepticons needed to turn the tide of war. {{storylink|Grand Galvatron Chapter}} [[Galvatron II]]'s ghost fooled Cyclonus into thinking he was his master, {{Storylink|Ruination Chapter, Part One}} and channeled the power of his vengeful thoughts to reformat Cyclonus into a new body. Cyclonus' new form housed Galvatron's soul, which conversed with his underling via a head housed in his torso. Cyclonus ventured out [[Triple Z Point|into deep space]] to [[Unicron]]'s remains, which Galvatron explained they would use to finally implement his "Grand Galvatron" scheme. But the crippled god objected to being used towards this purpose, and instead offered to summon vengeful 'bots from across the [[multiverse]] to join and become Galvatron's new body. Galvatron accepted, and Cyclonus combined with [[Breakdown (WFC)|Breakdown]], [[Roller (G1)|Roller]], [[Thrust (Armada)|Thrust]], and a partially re-materialized [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]] into Galvatron's new body. {{storylink|Grand Galvatron Chapter}}

Cyclonus brought the group to [[Thrull]], where he had them bathe in lava to train their bodies while telling them of a plan to properly resurrect Galvatron. {{storylink|Unite Warriors Offshot#Special Training in the Lava Baths of Planet Thrull!|Special Training in the Lava Baths of Planet Thrull!}}

The team attacked Cybertron in the form of Grand Galvatron, only to be split apart by [[Trailbreaker (G1)|Trailbreaker]]. Cyclonus and the rest made their way to [[Vector Sigma]]'s chamber before re-combining to do battle with [[Sky Reign]]. {{storylink|Sky Reign Chapter}} With the arrival of [[Megaempress]], the rest of the team fled, leaving Cyclonus and Galvatron at the empress' mercy as she threatened to enthrall them both. They were saved when a revived Optimus Prime took Megaempress and her soldiers on. {{storylink|Megatronia Chapter}} When Unicron himself showed up and tried to take Cybertron as his new body, Galvatron was angered and had Cyclonus attack the dark god, but he ended up blasted out of the sky and knocked unconscious. {{Storylink|Ruination Chapter, Part One}} Galvatron II's spirit then left Cyclonus' body, but he remained able to combine and, after recovering, convinced the rest of the team to form Grand Galvatron once more and help defeat Unicron. After their victory, he went into space, plotting to restore the Decepticon army by becoming the next Galvatron. {{Storylink|Ruination Chapter, Part Two}}

===''Legends'' comic===
After Megatron crossed over into the [[Legends World|Legends Universe]], the local [[Waspinator (BW)|Waspinator]] filled [[Megatron (BW)|his own Megatron]] on this new Megatron's life so far, including the time he was turned into Galvatron and gained Cyclonus as a soldier. {{storylink|Legends Comic: Bonus Edition Vol. 13|Bonus Edition Vol. 13}}

===''Generations Selects Special Comic'' (2)===
Under undisclosed circumstances, Cyclonus had reverted to being Skywarp by the [[Selector]] revolt of [[2050]]. {{storylink|Volcanicus comic 1}}

==''TV Magazine'' comic continuity==
===''The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers''===
[[File:CyclonusFlopsyManga01.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|Silly robot! Trix are for kids!]]
Cyclonus took part in many of Galvatron's wacky schemes, including one involving a giant toothy spaceship that ate ''other'' spaceships and stole their energy. When Rodimus Prime infiltrated the ship, Cyclonus, Scourge and Galvatron swiftly ganged up on him. Rodimus, however, was clever enough to trick Galvatron into blasting a hole in the side of the ship, providing him with an escape. As Rodimus left, he dropped off a little "gift" for Cyclonus. Cyclonus was unable to recognize it as a bomb until it was too late. {{storylink|The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers issue 1|The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers #1}}

He was also involved in the Decepticon siege on [[Feminia]]. He was forced to retreat with the rest of the Decepticons after [[Predaking (G1)|Predaking]] was defeated by the [[Omnibot (G1)|Omnibots]]. {{storylink|The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers issue 5|The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers #5}}

===''The Great Transformer War''===
[[File:Galvatron Goes Bwa.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.67]]
Cyclonus stood by Galvatron's side as he commanded the captive scientist Doctor [[Dalton]] to improve Trypticon and their combiner warriors. However, when the Autobots came to rescue Dalton, Cyclonus was distracted watching the Combiners fight outside, allowing [[Blades (G1)|Blades]] to sneak in and free him. Cyclonus was then left with the unenviable task of breaking the news to Galvatron (and Galvatron didn't take it well). {{storylink|The Great Transformer War issue 1|The Great Transformer War #1}}

After the resurrection of Optimus Prime, Cyclonus was seen getting trounced by Hot Rod in outer space. He and the other Decepticons fled, but it all turned out to be a diversionary tactic to divide the Autobot forces, making way for Galvatron's invasion of Cybertron. {{storylink|The Great Transformer War issue 3|The Great Transformer War #3}}
{{--}}

==''Cybertron'' comic==
[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] opening the [[Matrix of Leadership]] on a [[Hate Plague]]-infected Cyclonus, [[Galvatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Galvatron]], and [[Scourge (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Scourge]] was a highlight of [[Vector Prime]]'s career as the guardian of spacetime. {{storylink|Vector Prime: In the Beginning}}

==Rodimus vs. Cyclonus==
Immediately upon his creation, Cyclonus felt shafted by both Unicron and the universe at large; he remembered that he had never been able to amount to anything in his past life, and noted that although his dark master had promised him an army to match Scourge's Sweeps, it never materialized. As such, as soon as Galvatron blew apart Ultra Magnus on the planet of Junk and acquired the Matrix, Cyclonus immediately pledged his allegiance to him, rather than maintain his loyalties to the Chaos Bringer.

Galvatron sent out his two minions to slaughter as many Autobots as they could, promising whichever one amassed the highest body-count a position as his second-in-command. To ensure he would win, Cyclonus planted a false trail for Scourge to follow into the [[Rayzor Nebula]]. He then happened upon a Quintesson ship carrying Hot Rod and his allies, and struck at the vessel. Though Cyclonus was making short work of the ship's defences, he was goaded into halting his assault when Hot Rod invoked the [[Challenge of Aria-Bellum]]; a one-on-one trial by combat. The two opponents met inside the ship's anterior propulsion silo and begun their duel in earnest. Cyclonus quickly gained the upper hand, until Hot Rod started playing into the Decepticon's insecurities, and tricked him into punching into a hot fuel rod, dazing him and allowing Hot Rod to knock his opponent away.

But Cyclonus then revealed he had no intentions of honoring the Challenger of Aria-Bellum, and prepared to resume his attack on the ship... only for Scourge to turn up, miffed at having been led astray. As the two Decepticons squabbled, the Autobots made their escape, disallowing either from scoring any kills whatsoever. {{storylink|Rodimus vs. Cyclonus}}

==''Wings Universe''==
{{Wingsnote}}
[[File:G2Redux-GalvatronCyclonusScourgeZarak.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1]]
Following the rebirth of Cybertron's [[Golden Age]], Galvatron led Cyclonus and the majority of his troops out into deep space, leaving behind their home planet. The Autobots gave chase, and the Cybertronian Civil War moved to new frontiers. {{storylink|Generation 2: Redux}}

In 2010, Cyclonus and Scourge led the Sweeps in an attack on an Autobot shuttle. Unfortunately, they neglected to plan for the raw fury that accompanied interrupting the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]]' story time. {{storylink|Wings of Honor}}

At the signing of the [[Pax Cybertronia]] in 2013, [[Scourge (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Scourge]] noted that the currently offline Galvatron would probably not be happy to learn of the treaty; Scourge planned to have Cyclonus inform Galvatron if Galvatron ever recovered. {{storylink|A Common Foe}}
{{--}}

==Ask Vector Prime==
In one version of the [[Unicron War]] wherein [[Gong (GoBots)|Gong]] and [[Sideways (RID)|Sideways]] mixed in [[GoBot]]s, [[Fracture (Movie)|Fracture]] replaced Cyclonus as Galvatron's warrior created by Unicron. {{storylink|Echoes and Fragments}}

==Notes==
[[File:FriedmanAuctionCyclonusModelEdit.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|]]
* When asked about Cyclonus' design in an online interview, [[Floro Dery]]'s reply was, "Cyclonus was a small time demon."<ref>[http://transformersph.blogspot.com/2007/06/interview-with-floro-dery.html TransFormers Philippines: Interview With Floro Dery]</ref>
* In 2010, a set of Cyclonus' original color models (at right) drawn by Floro Dery for ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]'' went up for sale on Heritage Auctions, sold from [[Ron Friedman]]'s collection of [[Sunbow Productions|Sunbow]] materials. In contrast to his final model by [[Toei Animation|Toei]] and his [[Cyclonus (G1)/toys#The Transformers|toys]], this early color model depicted him with pink, magenta, and cyan parts.
* There exists an earlier variant of Cyclonus' final cartoon model that features the goatee detail from the older models drawn by Floro Dery. Quite often in both the US cartoon and ''The Headmasters'' cartoon, Cyclonus would appear using this model for very brief instances.
* During ''The Transformers: The Movie'', Cyclonus is shown to be [[:File:Cyclonuscoronation.jpg|''huge'' in vehicle form]], serving as a personal attack ship for Galvatron, despite being a normal-sized robot. In the cartoon's subsequent third season, however, Galvatron uses the ''[[Revenge (G1)|Revenge]]'' and his own flight capabilities as his primary means of transport, and Cyclonus never shows such size-changing abilities again except in the episode "Starscream's Ghost".
* Cyclonus' voice in the Generation 1 cartoon is noticeably inconsistent. In some episodes (e.g. "[[The Big Broadcast of 2006 (episode)|The Big Broadcast of 2006]]") he speaks with a sinister, purring baritone. In others (the "[[Five Faces of Darkness]]" episodes) his voice takes on a comical, overly dramatic thespian quality. Sometimes he changes between the two within the same episode.

===Who is Cyclonus?===
[[File:Cyclonus armada tftf.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|"Cyclonus the warrior... ''and'' his stunt double."]]

{{bigquote|I don't know who you are, or even who you used to be... and I don't care!|[[Hot Rod (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Hot Rod]] on Cyclonus' origins|"[[Rodimus vs. Cyclonus]]"}}

When Unicron creates Cyclonus in ''The Transformers: The Movie'', we actually see ''two'' Cyclonuses: In the foreground, the [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticon]] [[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]] (or perhaps [[Insecticon clone|a clone]]) becomes one, while in the background, the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seeker]] [[Skywarp (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Skywarp]] becomes another. While this is happening, Unicron declares, "Cyclonus—the warrior... and his [[Cyclonus' Armada|armada]]." But clearly, one warrior does not an armada make. The reasoning behind the line can be seen in the script, which states that Cyclonus is supposed to have multiple identical duplicates like Scourge's Sweeps.<ref>[http://www.camphortree.net/tf/tidbits/tftm_script.txt Final version of the ''Transformers: The Movie'' script]</ref> However, the idea didn't even survive the next cut; as the group boards [[Revenge (G1)|their ship]] moments later, the second Cyclonus has been replaced with a third Sweep. And while the number of Sweeps would fluctuate constantly throughout the film and the rest of the series, Cyclonus was depicted as a unique individual (barring some animation errors in "[[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 5]]" and "[[The Quintesson Journal]]"). It was, essentially, as if the armada had never existed in the first place.

So which robot actually became Cyclonus? Bombshell or Skywarp? Bombshell is the most straightforward interpretation, as he is shown more prominently in the shot. This would mean Skywarp "really" became a Sweep. But some fans dislike that asymmetry; they believe that if [[Thundercracker (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Thundercracker]], the blue jet from 1984, becomes Galvatron's blue spaceship lieutenant, then Skywarp, the purple(-accented) jet from 1984, "ought to" become Galvatron's purple spaceship lieutenant. (The [[cross-sell]] [[catalog]]s included with 1986 toys even replace Thundercracker and Skywarp with Cyclonus and Scourge in the "[[Decepticon Planes]]" section.) It is also said that Bombshell was at the forefront of the shot simply because having two different, similar-looking guys at the front in consecutive shots is impractical. Another common judgment is that the loyal Cyclonus' personality fits better with Skywarp, as opposed to the frequently treacherous Bombshell. Moreover, the Sweeps' portrayal as inexplicably-endless cannon fodder jibes with the Insecticons' cloning ability, so it seems thematically appropriate for Bombshell to end up a Sweep alongside the established [[Shrapnel (G1)|Shrapnel]] and [[Kickback (G1)|Kickback]]. On the other hand, the fact that they were all intended to be dead at that point makes their former attributes questionably relevant.

[[File:Bombshell-to-cyclonus-storyboard.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|left|What are you going to believe: [[fanon]] or your lying eyes?]]
Unhelpfully, Thundercracker, Skywarp, and the Insecticons all ''continue to appear'' in the film, with Shrapnel even being called for by name in a later scene of the finalized script. This seems to be a vestige of the early draft that did not feature Megatron being cast into space with other contemporary Decepticons; instead, a brawl in the Decepticon [[Hall of Heroes]] results in his body being destroyed and his "[[spark|Life Spark]]" floating off into space. Several shrines in the Hall are broken, releasing the sparks in them as well; it is ''these'' sparks of [[Life Spark|long-dead Decepticons]] who are recreated by Unicron as Cyclonus and the rest.<ref>[http://boltax.blogspot.com/2010/12/heritaage-auctions-transformers-movie.html Early draft of the ''Transformers: The Movie'' script on Jim Sorenson's blog]</ref>

The final script only states that "other Decepticons" are turned into Galvatron's troops, but the storyboard of the scene is slightly more definitive: It shows Bombshell alone (labeled with his name!) being re-created, then a shot of Cyclonus with some unidentified, vaguely Cyclonus-like robots behind him. Cyclonus' ''[[The Transformers Universe (Marvel)|Transformers Universe]]'' [[bio]], the only other contemporary source, states that he is made from "parts of dead Decepticons" (note plural).<ref>Cyclonus' ''[[The Transformers Universe]]'' entry</ref> This would later be echoed in his ''[[Heroes of Cybertron (toyline)|Heroes of Cybertron]]'' and [[Transformers: Universe (2008 franchise)|2008 ''Universe'']] bios.<ref>[http://www.seibertron.com/images/toys/files/84/cyclonus020.jpg Cyclonus' ''Universe Generation 1 Series'' bio]</ref>

[[File:Idwwhoiscyclonus.jpg|upright=0.85|thumb|Not to be confused with [[Cyclonus (Armada)|''Armada'' Cyclonus]].]]

Some more modern attempts have been made to [[Retcon|clear the matter up]], with conflicting results. As mentioned [[Cyclonus (G1)#3H comics|elsewhere]], in 2001 the [[Departure|''Universe: Featuring the Wreckers'' comic]] stars Cyclonus and Skywarp side by side in the future. [[Wreckers: Finale Part II|The 2007 conclusion of that storyline]] contains an exchange between the two wherein Cyclonus says that Skywarp had once been his "Armada". Skywarp retorts that he had always disliked Cyclonus, even when Cyclonus had been "a bug". Also, in 2006 [[IDW Publishing|IDW]] published [[Transformers: The Animated Movie|a comic-book adaptation of the movie]] that puts Unicron's "Cyclonus—the warrior" speech-bubble on top of the Bombshell-Cyclonus, while "and his armada!" is seen over the Skywarp-Cyclonus.

In [[2003]], Cyclonus' profile in the [[The Transformers (PS2)|cartoon-based video game]] for [[PlayStation|PlayStation 2]] stated that Cyclonus was built from Bombshell. Conversely, the same year, [[Madman Entertainment]]'s Australian DVD release of the movie contained character bios that declared Cyclonus to have been Skywarp. These bios were also included in the 2005 [[Metrodome]] UK DVD release. Then in 2006, the Sony edition of the DVD featured a {{w|Lenticular printing|lenticular}} cover showing Skywarp being replaced with Cyclonus, next to Megatron being replaced with Galvatron. And most recently, in 2011, [[TakaraTomy]]'s ''[[Transformers United|United]]'' toys featured pack-in fiction called "[[Macrocosmic Seekers]]" that tells of several characters regressing to a state somewhere between their post-movie forms and their original bodies. This restores old powers, such as Scourge being able to produce Thundercracker-like sonic booms... and Cyclonus being able to [[Teleportation|teleport]] like Skywarp.

''[[The AllSpark Almanac Addendum]]'' has a piece of [[Cybertronix]] that is an [[Ask Vector Prime]] question asking who Cyclonus was created from. [[Vector Prime]] gives the answer that it "varies by universe". A [[10,000 pardons, but you mean Bombshell right?|short]] cowritten by [[Flint Dille]] actually tackled the debate head-on, putting forth the bold claim that they ''both'' became Cyclonus.

Hasbro themselves even leaned into the confusion with the promotional text for Cyclonus' [[Cyclonus (G1)/toys#War for Cybertron: Kingdom|''War for Cybertron: Kingdom'' toy]], which describes his movie origins as "when Bombshell/Skywarp/both/neither were reformatted into the second-in-command of Galvatron," much like [[Frenzy (G1)/toys#War for Cybertron: Earthrise|their input]] to the [[FIRRIB]] debate the previous year, no doubt rekindling the fires of debate for years to come.

MP-52+SW Skywarp's expanded bio mentions that he became Cyclonus, retaining Skywarp's loyalty after his transformation.
{{--}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

[[Category:Generation 1 cartoon Decepticons]]
[[Category:Generation 1 combiners]]
[[Category:Generations Selects Decepticons]]
[[Category:Legends Decepticons]]
[[Category:Targetmasters]]
[[Category:The Headmasters Decepticons]]
[[Category:Unicron-related characters]]
[[Category:Unite Warriors Decepticons]]
[[Category:Wings Universe Decepticons]]

Omnibot (G1)

2022-11-05T04:12:50Z

Negatwenty:

{{factions|autobot}}
{{disambig2|the Generation 1 subgroup|mass-produced Autobots from ''Revenge of the Fallen''|Omnibot (ROTF)}}
:''The Omnibots are an [[Autobot]] [[subgroup]] from the [[Generation 1 continuity family|Generation 1]] [[continuity family]].''

[[File:Lookinsideforaspecialoffer.jpg|thumb|upright=2.2|Camshaft must've pissed the photographer off.]]

The '''Omnibots''' are a trio of Autobots whose distinctive feature is an advanced "armored car" mode involving the deploying of weapons and/or wings from their otherwise-nondescript automobile modes. They have been known to [[Continuity|dimension]]-hop.<ref>Overdrive's ''[[Transformers: Alternators|Binaltech]]'' toy pack-in bio [http://www.fantofan.jp/photo%20gallery/binartech/bt-12/bt-12a.jpg (scan with fan-translated English overlay on FanToFan.jp)]</ref><ref>"[[You Have Been Chosen.]]" toy pack-in flyer</ref><ref>[[Ask Vector Prime]]</ref>

The team consists of:
*[[Camshaft (G1)|Camshaft]]
*[[Downshift (G1)|Downshift]]
*[[Overdrive]]

==Fiction==
===S.T.A.R.S. pack-in flyers===
[[File:PackIn BattleIsFar Inside1.jpg|left|thumb|upright=0.85|Overdrive, no! The text means you no harm!]]

The Omnibots were featured in several [[S.T.A.R.S. continuity|recruitment messages]] directed at [[human]] allies. The first message detailed the Omnibots' arrival on [[Earth]]: The [[Autobot]]s marooned on that planet had sent an S.O.S. to [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], despite not knowing if anyone would be there to receive it. Luckily, their plea was answered in the form of the Omnibots, [[Powerdasher]]s, and [[Time Warrior]]s. The Omnibots quickly adapted to Earth's highways, scouting for and attacking [[Decepticon]]s. {{storylink|Reinforcements from Cybertron!}} This message was later repeated almost verbatim, with minor changes made to accommodate a recruitment drive for [[S.T.A.R.S.]] {{storylink|The battle is far from over!}}

The Omnibot Overdrive personally narrated the next message, describing how he and his comrades had turned the tide in the Autobots' favor and were gearing up to strike at hidden Decepticon bases. However, [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]] was holding back until human allies had been mobilized. Overdrive seemed to be speaking specifically to military personnel, and his message segued into the activities of [[G.I. Joe (team)|G.I. Joe]] and [[Cobra]]. {{storylink|Earthlings: THE S.T.A.R.S. need your help now!}}

The next pair of messages told the story of [[Johnny (G1)|Johnny]], a young S.T.A.R.S. member whose town came under [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]]'s energy-draining attack. He summoned a squad of [[Autobot Cars|Autobot cars]] as well as the Omnibots, but it is unknown how the presumed battle unfolded. {{storylink|Have the Decepticons defeated us once and for all?}}{{storylink|Can one boy, alone, hold back the evil Decepticons?}}

The final message involving the Omnibots was delivered from [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] to the potential new S.T.A.R.S. Commander. Magnus claimed that the Omnibots were "destined to fight a war in another universe on March 31, 1987" if the S.T.A.R.S. Commander did not requisition them. {{storylink|You Have Been Chosen.}} And, indeed, they were absent from all future messages.
{{--}}

===''The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers'' comic===
[[File:Omnibots group.jpg|thumb|250px|right|They strike action poses ''all the time''.]]

During a massive battle on [[Feminia]], [[Galvatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Galvatron]] introduced his latest combining warrior, [[Predaking (G1)|Predaking]]. Predaking simultaneously took out [[Defensor (G1)|Defensor]], [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]], and [[Superion (G1)|Superion]] with a single punch, causing much worry for the Autobots, as [[Sky Lynx (G1)|Sky Lynx]] was already engaged in battle on Earth.

From out of nowhere came Camshaft, Downshift and Overdrive. They swiftly shifted into their vehicle mode and circled Predaking, tying up his legs with cable. Predaking swatted at them to no avail!

Then the Omnibots transformed into their battle modes and...''drove'' at Predaking, which caused him to topple backwards onto [[Bruticus (G1)|Bruticus]], [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]], and [[Menasor (G1)|Menasor]], taking them all out.

The assembled Autobots cheered for these three mighty warriors of great justice, who were subsequently never seen or heard from again. {{storylink|The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers issue 5|The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers #5}}

===Dreamwave ''Generation One'' continuity===
The Omnibots were defeated by the rampaging [[Menasor (G1)|Menasor]], unleashed on [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] by [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]]. {{storylink|War and Peace}}

===2005 IDW continuity===
Downshift and Overdrive were among the Autobots stationed on the [[Autobot Orbital Command Hub]]. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 1|Stormbringer #1}}

===Ask Vector Prime===
Most iterations of the Omnibots are not dimension-hoppers. Dimension-hopping versions of the Omnibots rarely fight against true multiversal threats, and prefer to adventure across the [[multiverse]] and lend a helping hand to those in need. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime}}

==Toys==
===''The Transformers''===
{{anchor|Generation 1}}
[[File:PackIn EarthlingsTheSTARS Inside2.jpg|thumb|upright=0.85|Omni wasn't ''that'' good a [https://archive.org/download/Omni_System/omni_system.png game.] Or {{w|File:1990 Dodge Omni.JPG|car}}, for that matter. It ''was'' a cool {{w|Omni (magazine)|magazine}} though.]]

*'''Omnibots''' (1985)
**[[Camshaft (G1)|Camshaft]]
**[[Downshift (G1)|Downshift]]
**[[Overdrive]]
{{toydesigner|[[Kōjin Ōno]] (TakaraTomy)}}

:The Omnibots were only available via [[Pack-in material#Mail-order flyers|mail-order]], costing $5 USD and 4 [[Robot Point]]s. They came with instructions, decals, some weapon attachments, but no proper [[bio]]s or [[Tech Spec]]s. This was "explained" in the instructions, which claimed that the characters were so new that they hadn't had a chance to be tested before shipping off to Earth.

:The toys were a set of [[Diaclone]] car models unused in the first run of the Transformers figures, and which kept their Diaclone colors and paints as opposed to the rest of the Autobot lineup. They are slightly smaller than the standard Autobot cars of the time, with a similar design style and aesthetic.

:Though not technically [[Triple Changer]]s, the Omnibots were the first [[Transformer]]s to feature "third" modes, in which panels folded out from their car modes to form wings and/or allow attachment of weapons and accessories.
{{-}}

===''Binaltech''===
[[File:Binaltech Overdrive Toy.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|Windcharger could never figure out why Overdrive was more popular with the ladies.]]
*[[Overdrive#Binaltech|Overdrive]] ([[2004]])

:For the ''[[Transformers: Alternators|Binaltech]]'' line, Overdrive was given a new [[alternate mode]] as a [[licensed vehicle alternate modes|licensed]] 1:24 scale Honda S2000 sports car with a removable "ragtop" roof, which doubles as a shield in [[robot mode]], plus a replacement "folded down" ragtop roof piece. Like most ''Alternators'' toys, Overdrive features [[rubber tires]], opening doors, hood and trunk, a detailed driver/passenger compartment complete with seats, dashboard and steering wheel and a working "steering" mechanism (though not connected to the steering wheel).
{{AlternatorsWindchargerMold}}
{{-}}

===''Alternators''===
[[File:Camshaftalternator.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|Bluestreak's brother from another mother.]]
*[[Camshaft (G1)#Alternators|Autobot Camshaft]] ([[2006]])
:A [[retool]] of the ''[[Transformers: Alternators|Alternators]]'' [[Prowl (G1)/toys|Prowl toy]], Camshaft transforms into a 1:24-scale licensed Acura RSX, complete with opening doors, hood, trunk, and an open passenger compartment. His engine becomes a non-firing cannon, plus he carries a clear-plastic nightstick.
{{-}}

===''Universe''===
[[File:RID-toy WarsKB2 TFU-SG Camshaft.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|Camshaft gets two new toys, this must make Downshift the ignored child of the team.]]
*[[Camshaft (G1)#Universe .282003.29|Autobot Camshaft]] (Spy Changer, [[2006]])

:For ''[[Transformers: Universe (2003 toyline)|Universe]]'', Camshaft is identical to the last [[KB Toys]] [[exclusive]] redeco of [[W.A.R.S.]], transforming into a clear-purple [[NASCAR]] Ford Thunderbird stock car. He features through-axle construction that allows him to zip along quickly on smooth surfaces, plus he is compatible with many "Hot Wheels" and "Matchbox" racetracks. He was available only on an individual card from discount chains like The Dollar Store.
{{--}}

==Notes==
* The road to having personalities has been a long and rocky one for the Omnibots.
**The bios included with their North American toys were buried in their instructions, and all they said was that the Omnibots were in the early stages of their evolution and had not yet been tested.<ref>The Omnibots' original English-language instructions, specifically the third panel [http://www.botchthecrab.com/archive/instructions/autobot/1985/instr_camshaft.jpg (scan at BotchTheCrab.com)]</ref>
**They were only given functions in the [[You Have Been Chosen.|last mail-order flyer that offered them]], just in time for them to venture off into "another dimension." That would be the long and short of their official English-language characterization for almost twenty years.
**In Japan, [[TakaraTomy|Takara]] ''did'' release bios with the toys, though their functions bore no relation to the American ones.<ref>Takara bios for [http://tflab.net/japaspe/tf2010/rp04.html Camshaft,] [http://tflab.net/japaspe/tf2010/rp05.html Downshift,] and [http://tflab.net/japaspe/tf2010/rp06.html Overdrive] (and gathered in [[User talk:Apcog#Translating the Omnibot bios|fan-translated English]]; note that Camshaft and Downshift's names are switched)</ref>
**And none of this reflected the profiles found in the [[The Transformers (Marvel comic)|Marvel comic]] [[Production bible|bible]], which were written in both [[The Transformers Universe|''Transformers Universe'']] form and in the pared-down style of on-package bios (with Tech Specs, even!)<ref>Marvel comic bible profiles of [http://web.archive.org/web/20071230230844/http://www.allspark.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=40993 Camshaft,] [http://web.archive.org/web/20071230230833/http://www.allspark.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=40992 Downshift,] and [http://web.archive.org/web/20071230230902/http://www.allspark.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=40994 Overdrive]</ref> These were never officially released to the public.
**The English-speaking public finally got official Omnibot profiles in [[Dreamwave Productions|Dreamwave]]'s 2003 [[Transformers: More than Meets the Eye|''More Than Meets the Eye'' comic]]. These bore varying degrees of similarity to all of the sources preceding them.
*The three Omnibots were among the ten [[redeco]] mock-ups shown in ''[[Transformers Generations 2014 Volume 1]]'' as potential exclusives for Vol. 2... but perhaps unsurprisingly due to their general lack of prominence, the three of them ended up as the least successful of the options, with Overdrive placing eighth, Camshaft ninth, and Downshift dead last in tenth.<ref>[http://millionhero.sblo.jp/article/101898683.html Poll results at Hero-X]</ref>

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Double Changer''' (ダブルチェンジャー ''Daburu Chenjā''), '''Omnibot''' (オムニボット ''Omunibotto'')

==References==
{{Reflist}}

[[Category:Autobot subgroups]]
[[Category:Dimension hoppers]]
[[Category:Dreamwave Generation 1 subgroups]]
[[Category:Generation 1 subgroups]]