Editing Tailgate (G1)

{{factions|autobot}}
{{disambig3|Tailgate}}
:''Tailgate is an [[Autobot]] from the [[Generation 1 continuity family|Generation 1]] [[continuity family]].''
[[File:TFU Tailgate.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|Shake harder, boy!]]
The naïve '''Tailgate''' needs to be liked. It's hardly the most unique of flaws, but he has an unfortunate, childlike tendency towards extremes. Placed in a situation with [[Autobot]]s who don't know him from [[Primon]], this sanitation 'Bot will spin a tall tale the height of a [[Titan (IDW)|Titan]] in an attempt to impress his fellows before it all comes crashing down. And it ultimately will—while he's a 'Bot with a spark of gold, he's broadly unfocused, frequently distracted and easily led, and often gets impulsive, irrational obsessions. And his timekeeping ''sucks''. In spite of this, he sometimes acts as a scout, with strict orders not to break cover for any reason. He is aided by a ridiculously powerful iron-cobalt magnet installed behind his bumper, which he can use to follow closely behind other vehicles and travel far into enemy territory on minimal fuel.

Easily his most distinctive mental issue is his occasional inability to tell the difference between a non-living [[Earth]] machine and sentient robotic life such as himself. While it's a [[:File:Ratchetfriendtrafficsignal.jpg|mistake many other Cybertronians have made at first]], typically they learn quickly and let it go. Not Tailgate. Once he gets it into his head, his compassion turns to rage against the "enslavers", and is quite vocal in his desire to "free" the machines of Earth.

[[Wheeljack's Bizarre Invention! Optimus Power Up!?|That boy ain't right]].

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==Fiction==
===Generation 1 cartoon continuity===
====''The Transformers'' cartoon====
{{voiceactor|[[Ted Schwartz]] (English), [[Ken Shiroyama]] (Japanese)}}

[[File:FFoD5 MiniVehicles.jpg|upright=1.2|thumb|"That machine is alive I tell you! Aliv—" "WE KNOW, TAILGATE!"]]
Tailgate was one of a group of [[Mini Vehicle|Minibots]] stationed at the [[Ark (G1)|Ark]] in 2006. When the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] built [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]] out of a human city, [[Mount St. Hilary]] and the Ark were the first stop on his journey to destroy [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]]. Tailgate and the other Autobots on duty rolled out to defend the Ark with all the firepower at their disposal. It didn't go very well. The Ark was left devastated in Trypticon's mighty wake, and Tailgate's troops were beaten and scattered by the colossal dinosaur. {{storylink|Five Faces of Darkness, Part 5}}
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====Japanese cartoon continuity====
=====''Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers'' manga=====
[[File:FSRLmanga7 Tailgate.jpg|left|upright=1.1|thumb|Rumors help him grow. Paranoia nurtures him.]]
With the [[Autobot]]s being framed by the [[Decepticon Trailer Corps]] for numerous crimes, [[Kenji]] was feeling a bit dejected at how his schoolyard chums were suddenly turning on them. Tailgate appeared to give him a lift home from school and attempted to cheer him up, reminding him that as an [[Honorary Autobot]] he had nothing to worry about. Their drive was interrupted by a crowd gathering around a display put on by a pair of robed figures (secretly [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] and [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]]), decrying the Autobots and preaching the heroism of the [[Decepticon]]s. The rest of the Autobots soon arrived to straighten things out. {{storylink|Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers issue 7|Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers #7}}

Tailgate later responded to a distress signal sent from [[Powerglide (G1)|Powerglide]], who was fighting to rescue a [[Murdered puppy|puppy]] that was brimming over with [[Decepticon super science]] from the [[Combaticon (G1)|Combaticons]]. Dying from its wounds, the dog transferred the super science into Powerglide, giving him brief access to [[Scramble Power]]. Along with the other [[Mini Vehicle|Minibot]]s, Tailgate merged with Powerglide into a [[Minibot combiner]] and swiftly defeated [[Bruticus (G1)|Bruticus]]. {{storylink|Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers issue 8|Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers #8}}
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=====''Transformers Legends'' comic=====
[[File:Transformers Legends LG08 Tailgate and Swerve.jpg|thumb|]]
In [[2015]], Tailgate and Swerve fought [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]] in a battle that went poorly, with Tailgate being easily kicked aside and Swerve stomped into the ground. As Tailgate picked Swerve back up using his Mini-Con partner, [[Neutro|Groundshaker]], a [[Rattrap (BW)|Rattrap]] visiting from [[Legends World|another universe]] asked the two Minibots why they'd even taken on such a huge enemy. The Autobots responded that size has nothing to do with it, telling Rattrap that their Mini-Cons were just as small as him, but nevertheless valuable allies. {{storylink|Legends Comic: Bonus Edition Vol. 8|Bonus Edition Vol. 8}} After Tailgate mentioned that his partnership with Groundshaker let him work with bomb disposal, Rattrap got curious about what Mini-Cons were, prompting Tailgate to explain the history behind the little 'bots. The enamored Rattrap then wanted to be a Mini-Con ''too'', and had an uncomfortable Tailgate wield him into battle with Trypticon. {{storylink|Transformers 2015 Tailgate/G1 Micron Chapter|Tailgate/G1 Micron Chapter}} Eventually, the two heroic Minibots successfully defeated Trypticon. {{storylink|LG-43 Trypticon Project Chapter}}

====''Wings Universe''====
{{Wingsnote}}
[[File:BattleLines6-UltraMagnus.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.66]]
Tailgate was present at the first "meeting" of [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] and [[Ultra Magnus (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Ultra Magnus]] nine million years ago. {{storylink|Battle Lines, Part 6}}
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===Marvel Comics continuity===
====Marvel ''The Transformers'' comics====
{{noteukexclusive|Tailgate}}
[[File:Underworld!-TailgateFlattopSubsea.jpg|thumb|"I'M NOT A COWARD!"]]
Tailgate was one of the Autobots working with [[Emirate]] [[Xaaron]] and [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]]'s covert cell on Cybertron, and was briefly seen when [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Optimus Prime]] came to Cybertron and rallied the troops for an assault on [[Darkmount (Cybertron)|Darkmount]]. {{storylink|Resurrection!}}

He eventually finished his training at the [[Autobot Military Academy]], but upon graduation was provoked into joining [[Flattop (Autobot)|Flattop]] and [[Subsea]] in venturing [[Underworld|underground]], in order to prove his courage. When a group of [[Mutant (G1)|Cybertronian Mutants]] attacked and slaughtered his fellow cadets, Tailgate stood his ground. A blast into [[Smeltdown]]'s chest-furnace obliterated most of the sewer-dwellers, leaving only the ape-like [[Rotgut]]. However, a little quick thinking, and Tailgate was able to use the larger machine's bulk against him, flipping Rotgut into the pyre left in Smeltdown's wake. Thus, he proved he was not a coward... and also not very good at watching his friends' backs in a fight. [[Pipes (G1)|Pipes]] and [[Outback (G1)|Outback]] eventually arrived as Tailgate surfaced and let them know of his fellow cadets' fate.

Unfortunately, Tailgate's actions inadvertently [[Demon|woke something ''worse'' than the Mutants]]... {{storylink|Underworld!}}
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====''Regeneration One''====
{{noteRG1}}
[[File:Decepticons attack destiny.jpg|thumb|upright=1.67|It doesn't get much better than this. Sorry, Tailgate.]]
Tailgate participated in the defense of [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] against the onslaught of the [[Blitz Engine]]s and the Decepticon crew of the [[Warworld]]. He didn't have time to do much of anything except get shot by [[Needlenose (G1)|Needlenose]]. {{storylink|Destiny, Part Five}} He survived, and travelled to the [[Hub (G2)|Hub Network]] with [[Hot Rod (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Rodimus Prime]] to battle [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]] and survived that too. Almost immediately upon returning to Cybertron, however, he was attacked and killed by a [[shadow-leech]]. Ouch. {{storylink|The War to End All Wars, Part 5}}
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===Dreamwave ''Generation One'' continuity===
[[File:BlackSunshine Autobot training failures.jpg|thumb|left]]
Tailgate was among the Autobot civilians who watched [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]]'s anti-Optimus-Prime propaganda broadcasts. {{storylink|Cold War (issue)|Cold War}} Didn't seem to do the trick, though, as he was later seen training alongside several Autobot recruits against [[auto-combatant]]s following Shockwave's defeat. None of them fared particularly well in training, however, much to [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]] and [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]]'s dismay. {{storylink|Black Sunshine}}
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===IDW Generation 1 continuity===
{{ongoing}}
[[File:MTMTE1 tailgate damaged.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|It's a scratch, he'll just walk it off... oh, right.]]
'''Tailgate of [[Rivets Field]]''' was forged from a hot spot that ignited six million years ago, two weeks before the launch of the ''[[Ark (G1)|Ark]]''. {{storylink|Remain in Light 5 of 5: This Calamitous Life|This Calamitous Life}} During this time, he lived in an era of peace alongside the likes of [[Nova Prime]] and [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]]. {{storylink|Primus: All Good Things|All Good Things}} Assigned the role of fourth-class sanitation 'bot, he was tasked with cleaning out the craft's coolant tubes before take-off, {{storylink|Cybertronian Homesick Blues}} but ran late to the job and made the mistake of trying to make up the time by short-cutting across the fragile [[Mitteous Plateau]]. The terrain collapsed out from under him, leaving him badly damaged and trapped underground, but he soon hit upon the plan of detonating the trailer-full of [[energon]] rations he had brought with him in hopes of blasting his way out. Unfortunately for him, he kept repeatedly passing out as he set this up, and with his chronometer damaged had no way of measuring the passage of time. He finally succeeded ''six million years later'', and was dragged from his pit by a group of Autobots who were on their way to depart the planet on the starship ''[[Lost Light]]''. Suffering a panic attack and passing out when he saw his explosion had damaged [[Whirl (G1)|Whirl]], the unconscious Tailgate was brought aboard the ''Lost Light'' by the Autobots, since he'd mentioned "the launch" and they had no idea who he was. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 1: How to Say Goodbye and Mean It|How to Say Goodbye and Mean It}}

Due to an accident with the quantum engine, the ''Lost Light'' was duplicated and ''another'' Tailgate woke up to bond on a different ''Lost Light''. What did he do? We dunno because the [[Decepticon Justice Division]] showed up and killed everyone! {{storylink|slaughterhouse Part 2: The Road Not Taken|The Road Not Taken}}

[[File:MTMTE2 Tailgate.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.1|Just your average kick-boxing, bomb disposing, metaphysics and epistemology student, and I once caught a fish ''this big!'']]
[[Ratchet (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ratchet]] soon discovered Tailgate's age when he studied his ancient systems, and called [[Swerve (G1)|Swerve]] in to carbon-date him. Tailgate woke up before that was necessary (happily observing that he hadn't killed "Nut-Job", as he mistakenly thought Whirl was called), so Swerve instead gleefully took it upon himself to inform him how long he'd been offline. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 2: Hangers On|Hangers On}} Tailgate was horrified and heartbroken: by all rights, he should have been found in days, but the length of his absence made it clear he was so unimportant that nobody had noticed or ''cared'' he was missing. Since there was nobody around who knew the truth, and since he had always wanted to do something big and heroic with this life, Tailgate decided to make up a dramatic, overblown past for himself. {{storylink|Cybertronian Homesick Blues}} He and Swerve went for a walk, during which he claimed that the damaged "Waste Disposal" decal on his arm actually read "Bomb Disposal", and that he had been part of the [[Primal Vanguard]], though Swerve was more interested in seeing his [[alternate mode]]. After Tailgate was introduced to [[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Chromedome]] and [[Rewind (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rewind]], the group were caught up in a battle between the amnesiac [[Skids (G1)|Skids]] and some [[Legislator|strange robots]], in whose repeated chanting of "nineteen-eighty-four" Tailgate took an interest.

A little later, back on the ''Lost Light'', Swerve finally convinced Tailgate to attempt to transform, {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 2: Hangers On|Hangers On}} but he wound up getting stuck halfway. It was at this inopportune moment that the crew were ordered back to their rooms, since a [[Sparkeater (creature)|Sparkeater]] had been reported loose aboard the ship; spotting [[Cyclonus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Cyclonus]], another Transformer from his time, Tailgate asked for some help getting to a room. Cyclonus carried the half-transformed Tailgate there and quite rudely dumped him on the ground. As the Sparkeater situation unfolded outside, the two ancient 'bots discussed the six million year gap in history they missed; Cyclonus described the [[Great War (G1)|Autobot-Decepticon conflict]] to Tailgate as he understood it, romanticizing the Decepticons' position enough that later, as Ratchet was unsticking his half-transformed body, Tailgate declared that he wanted to ''be'' a Decepticon! {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}}

[[File:Cyclonus Tailgate LifeAftertheBigBang.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|Tailgate goes to see his KRAK dealer.]]
Learning of Tailgate's aims, [[Ultra Magnus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ultra Magnus]] insisted that ship's captain [[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rodimus]] set the "confirmed Decepticon sympathizer" straight, so Rodimus recruited Rewind to beam a compressed visual history of the war directly into Tailgate's head. Sobered by what he saw and realizing that the Decepticons were the "bad guys", Tailgate fumed at Cyclonus for misleading him and impotently struck him, leading his icy roommate to reciprocate with a vicious backhand. Leaving their room, Cyclonus kicked the downed Tailgate on his way out, leaving him cowering on the floor. {{storylink|Life After the Big Bang}}

[[File:IDW MtMtE5 MagnusTailgateAttentionDirt.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.66]]
Determined to be one of the "good guys", Tailgate requested that Ultra Magnus teach him the [[Autobot Code]]. By this point, Tailgate had edited his own [[Autopedia]] entry to reflect the false history he had created for himself—claiming he had studied metaphysics under [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]], was a champion kick-boxer who graduated from the [[Ibex School of Epistemology]], helped invent the idealised heat engine, coordinated a search for the long-lost [[Moonbase One|Luna 1]], and he was part of [[Nova Prime]]'s inner circle, encouraging him to explore space—and the impressed Magnus agreed to educate him. Alas, Tailgate was soon to discover this meant an excruciating slog through an intense analysis of ten thousand pages of text. He was briefly interested in section 19, subsection 80, paragraph four because it reminded him of the robots that attacked Skids, {{storylink|How Ratchet Got His Hands Back}} but by and large the experience was a gruelling one, and he moaned long and loud about it in [[Swerve's|Swerve's bar]], especially once he discovered there was an ''abridged'' version of the Code. {{storylink|Interiors}}

After the ''Lost Light'' was impacted by a discarded thumb from [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]], and was subsequently repaired, Tailgate attended an award ceremony honoring [[Brainstorm (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Brainstorm]], Chromedome and [[Highbrow (G1)|Highbrow]] for their part in saving the ship. He chatted with Chromedome during the celebration, and noted how the three honored Autobots had head-related names. Later, Tailgate was having a conversation with [[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]] when they, along with nearly everyone on board the ''Lost Light'' were frozen in place due to one of Brainstorm's experimental weapons accidentally going off. After he recovered, he was awarded a [[Rodimus Star]] "for exceptional endurance in the face of adversity". {{storylink|The Reluctant Specialist}}

[[File:MTMTEannual rodimus writes on tailgate.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4]]
Ultimately, Tailgate passed his Autobot Code exam, though he professed it was not with "his best grades ever". Asking Cyclonus to attend his [[Act of Affiliation]], a step on the way to the full [[Rite of the Autobrand]], he was seemingly ignored - although his fellow Ancient Cybertronian would secretly attend. At the ceremony itself, however, Rodimus was briefly possessed by a [[Titan (IDW)|Titan]] and, rather than drawing his probationary Autobot symbol, scrawled "Set Me Free" in [[Cybertronian language#IDW Generation 1 continuity|Old Cybertronian]] on his chest. {{storylink|Primus: You, Me, and Other Revelations|You, Me, and Other Revelations}}

Tailgate loved "Movie Night" in Rewind and Chromedome's quarters, where he watched such films as the old public information piece "[[Proteus's Promise]]", with several other members of the crew {{storylink|Scavengers (Part 2): Who's Afraid of the DJD?|Who's Afraid of the DJD?}} and would later recall it as the happiest time of his life. {{storylink|Before & After}} He was invited to listen in on Rewind's third communal storytelling session, part of an attempt to help the damaged [[Rung (G1)|Rung]] regain his memories; Tailgate had to interrupt Drift to ask what a [[Relinquishment Clinic]] was, {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}} and was particularly impressed by the skills of one Orion Pax {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 2: Patternism|Patternism}} even though he hadn't realized that Orion was actually [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Optimus Prime]], despite the notes he'd been making to keep track of all the characters. {{storylink|Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|An Intimate Beheading}}

[[File:MTMTE12 panic keeps me focused.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4]]
Tailgate joined a mission to [[Temptoria]] to investigate the possibility that the [[Circle of Light]] were being held there. While the larger Autobots roughed up the occupying Decepticons, Tailgate and Rewind investigated the contents of [[Battery|The Battery]] only to find that the Decepticons didn't have the Circle and were merely converting the native life forms to [[energon]], and had rigged up a bomb. {{storylink|Before & After}} Now forced to actually dispose of a bomb, Tailgate tricked Rewind into telling him how to actually do it. {{storylink|Cybertronian Homesick Blues}} Unfortunately he accidentally triggered a timer, and when he refused to stop work and escape, he had to be physically thrown from the room by Cyclonus. Cyclonus and Rewind were caught in the bomb's explosion, and Tailgate dragged the severely-damaged Cyclonus back to the ''Lost Light''<nowiki>'s</nowiki> medibay on his own. Observing the other Autobots leaving offerings of [[innermost energon]] for Rewind, Tailgate attempted to leave an offering for Cyclonus, only for it to be rebuked. Cyclonus did seem to have a change of heart after seeing Rewind's offerings, and helped Tailgate pick up the pieces of the shattered vial. {{storylink|Before & After}}

‎[[File:MtMtE13-BabyTailgate.jpg‎|thumb|"Congratulations! It's a beautiful baby boy... [[Tailgate (G1)#Notes|We think.]]]]
Some time later, he went to the bars on [[Hedonia]] with his usual crowd (his psycho-reactive [[holomatter|holomatter avatar]] taking the form of a human baby). {{storylink|Cybertronian Homesick Blues}} After abandoning Swerve with a drunken Ultra Magnus, Tailgate and the others explored a gift shop. Tailgate grew bored as Skids tried on hats but decided not to wait outside with Whirl, who was banging his head on a display case. {{storylink|Signal to Noise}} When Rewind was about to show a recording of the ''Ark-1'' opening ceremony that included the naming of its original crew, Cyclonus suddenly flew into a "drunken rage" that disrupted the proceedings. Tailgate ushered the others away so he could calm him down; after they had departed, it became clear Cyclonus had done this so the others wouldn't realize Tailgate wasn't part of the crew. Cyclonus revealed he had known from the start that Tailgate had been lying, and the little 'bot broke down and admitted to having falsified his past, and his grief over being a nobody. Cyclonus took pity on Tailgate and taught him how to sing an Old Cybertronian anthem. {{storylink|Cybertronian Homesick Blues}} 

[[File:MTMTE22 tailgate altmode.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4]]
While lounging around in the ship's oil reservoir, Tailgate, Swerve, and Rewind took to discussing the cool alternate modes of their crew-mates, and entered into a wager to see who could be the first to solve the longstanding mystery of what Rung turned into. Tailgate tried to trick Rung into transforming by holding an "alt mode party", claiming they were all the rage back in his day, but since Rung hailed from the same time as him, it proved an unconvincing gambit. Interviewed by Rewind for a documentary movie about life on the ship not long thereafter, Tailgate continued making up accolades for himself, but openly admitted to never having been happier than he was on the ship, and looking to the future with glee. {{storylink|Little Victories}}

Tailgate and Cyclonus remained close after their experiences on Hedonia; Tailgate was in the ship's workshop crafting a new horn to replace Cyclonus's missing one when the 'bot in question angrily came storming in after learning that their quarters were to play host to "Movie Night". {{storylink|Under Cold Blue Stars}} That concern melted away in the face of [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]]'s subsequent rampage through the ship; Cyclonus and Tailgate sat together during the funeral for the crewmembers who lost their lives in the chaos. After the ceremony, Tailgate went to help Ratchet to care for the dying Ultra Magnus, but accidentally scanned himself with Ratchet's "death clock", which announced that Tailgate had only three days to live. {{storylink|The Gloaming}}

[[File:Tailgate Cyclonus Hope Is A Lie.jpg‎|thumb|upright=1.4|The Hope is a Lie]]
An examination by Ratchet revealed that he had a terminal case of [[cybercrosis]], and Tailgate elected to trust only Cyclonus with the news, though Cyclonus seemed almost disinterested in the tragic announcement. Tailgate went to Swerve's Bar to drink away his sorrows, oblivious to the massive portal that the ''Lost Light'' was about to travel through. When Luna 1 was discovered to lie on the other side of the portal, an evidently distressed Cyclonus made up for his behavior by inviting Tailgate onto the team who would explore the moon. He insisted it was just for the experience, with the caveat that despite Luna 1's reputation as a "Miracle Moon", Tailgate must not hope for a cure. {{storylink|Remain in Light 1 of 5: The Fecund Moon|The Fecund Moon}} 

On arrival on Luna 1, Tailgate was captured and imprisoned with most of the ''Lost Light'' away team, becoming separated from Cyclonus who remained free. As none of the others knew he had less than three days to live, Tailgate's claims of impatience and panic at being in captivity were dismissed. {{storylink|Remain in Light 2 of 5: House of Ambus|House of Ambus}} Things looked brighter once their co-prisoner [[Ultra Magnus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Minimus Ambus]] revealed that he was really a healed Ultra Magnus; when Tailgate asked how he could have cheated his impending death, Minimus declared that the [[Tyrest (G1)|Chief Justice Tyrest]], who has using the moon as a base, had doctors that could apparently work miracles. {{storylink|Remain in Light 3 of 5: The Divided Self|The Divided Self}}

[[File:MTMTE21 tailgate amends law.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.66|Chekhov's [[semicolon]]!]]
Tailgate's clock was down to one day and twelve hours by the time [[Getaway]] sprang the group from the cell, by which time he could no longer walk and had to be carried by Rodimus, though he played off his paralysis as seized-up servos. Reuniting with Ratchet, Tailgate told him of the moons' "miracle medibay", but Ratchet solemnly informed him that only Tyrest's medical minion [[Pharma (G1)|Pharma]] could really use the tools within it. The group proceeded to confront Tyrest and were all apparently immobilized by a "thought weapon" that paralyzed their bodies. {{storylink|Remain in Light 4 of 5: Arm the Lonely|Arm the Lonely}} Tailgate's cybercrosis, however, had rendered him deaf to the frequency of the suggestion weapon. He managed to jump Tyrest and jab him in the head through the "cleansing" hole Tyrest drilled in his own brow. Tailgate deactivated the weapon while Tyrest was distracted, only to be taken hostage by the Chief Justice. Though he urged Rodimus to open fire, admitting his terminal condition, Tailgate was saved moments later by [[Minimus Ambus]]. As the room was swarmed by [[Legislator]]s responding to Tyrest's distress call, Tailgate put his knowledge of the Autobot Code to good use, using Tyrest's computer to amend and repeal the law in its totality. He barely had time to celebrate his achievement before collapsing.

[[File:Cyclonus SparkTransfusion ThisCalamitousLife.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Whomsoever pulls the sword from the Tailgate, they are the one]]
The next day, back on the ''[[Lost Light]]'', Tailgate asked Cyclonus to spare him a lingering death by terminating him, but Cyclonus refused. Though a cure was subsequently found, thanks to Tyrest's collection of esoteric medical equipment, Tailgate's spark had faded to a point where the process would no longer be viable. However, on Whirl's suggestion, Cyclonus used his [[Great Sword]] to directly transfuse energy into Tailgate's spark, boosting it to a condition that allowed the small 'bot's life to be saved. {{storylink|Remain in Light 5 of 5: This Calamitous Life|This Calamitous Life}} Tailgate underwent a period of recovery. {{storylink|The Sound of Breaking Glass}}

After about six months, Tailgate was fully recovered from his cybercrosis, and could even fully transform again. He playfully charged Cyclonus when he first got out of the medbay, demonstrating his new signature move of "finger to the head". Tailgate was surprised by all that had gone on in his absence, including the new captain Megatron and ''Swerve's'' using [[Ten|one of the Legislators]] as a bouncer. {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 2: Words Hang in the Air|Words Hang in the Air}} He'd learned from his experiences ahahahaha just kidding, one of the first things he did was talk up his actions on Luna 1 at the bar. Getaway began talking to him, telling him his heroics were Prime-worthy and when Tailgate admitted to having lied about his old job, the agent bonded with him over his own dull past (Tailgate didn't notice Cyclonus storm out). {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 3: Predestination: A Beginner's Guide|Predestination: A Beginner's Guide}} All of this was a trick: Getaway needed a patsy for Megatron to be tricked into assaulting or killing, as part of his plan to get the ex-Decepticon off the ship and in a prison cell. Tailgate was the ''easiest'' person to groom. {{storylink|The Lopsided Triangle}}

[[File:TwentyPlusOne-cyclonusscoldstailgate.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.7]]
This was all interrupted when the ship had to be abandoned on account of ''vanishing'' {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 3: Predestination: A Beginner's Guide|Predestination: A Beginner's Guide}} and Tailgate was stuck on a crowded [[Rodpod]] with twenty others. When they started vanishing too, Tailgate (pumped up from false bravado from his recent praising) immediately aimed his guns at an amused Megatron—causing a standoff that, to Tailgate's horror, included Cyclonus too. As the vanishings went on, erasing all the original crewmembers, Tailgate had time to see all the other escape ships disappear before he too was claimed. {{storylink|Twenty Plus One}} The cause was identified as the ''Lost Light'' running across the duplicate ''Lost Light'' (where [[Nautica (G1)|Nautica]] and [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]] came across the other Tailgate's corpse) and everything was fixed. And the quantum duplicate Rewind was back too! {{storylink|slaughterhouse}} {{storylink|slaughterhouse Part 2: The Road Not Taken|The Road Not Taken}} And then Getaway told him he thought he could ''be a [[Wrecker]]''! {{storylink|Elegant Chaos Part 2: Stet|Stet}} Tailgate would've been really pleased about all this if he and everyone else hadn't been whacked unconscious by poisoned engex at Swerve's! {{storylink|slaughterhouse}} {{storylink|slaughterhouse Part 2: The Road Not Taken|The Road Not Taken}}

Tailgate was fixed up and made part of a time-travel team (due to a compatible spark), pursuing the poisoner Brainstorm before he could alter the timeline. That meant he got to meet ''ORION PAX OMG''. He squeed about how awesome he was for trying to save infant sparks (and tried to get Cyclonus to agree) and then actually got to ''work with him''! {{storylink|Elegant Chaos Part 1: All Our Parlous Yesterdays|All Our Parlous Yesterdays}} They went further back to pre-war [[Rodion]] and Tailgate had to take control of Cyclonus's comms while the ancient stared into the distance. When Tailgate babbled about the time-travel mechanics freaking him out, he found out Cyclonus was silent because of the chance to once again see an undamaged Cybertron. 

Cyclonus then apologised for hitting him. "Noted", replied Tailgate.

[[File:Stet-curlystraw.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5]]
A further time-jump took them to Maccadam's New Oil House, waiting to see what happened. He listened to pre-war Megatron's poetry, had a drink, and asked for a [[curly straw]]. Rung getting him a curly straw started a bar fight that got Megatron arrested, so it's important to know that Tailgate is responsible for the Great War. {{storylink|Elegant Chaos Part 2: Stet|Stet}} Their final trip went to Megatron's birth and Tailgate was amused to see he was born in a Con facility (as in -structed Cold). During the whole time travel chaos, it was Tailgate who suggested "why don't we use time travel to send the ''Lost Light'' a message from the post telling them ''not'' to do all this bad stuff?". {{storylink|Elegant Chaos Part 3: Predestination: An Expert's Guide|Predestination: An Expert's Guide}} That message made it to the day the ''Lost Light'' launched, but too late to stop them. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 1: How to Say Goodbye and Mean It|How to Say Goodbye and Mean It}} A ticked off Cyclonus pointed out that ''all'' of those bad things turned out well, including that Tailgate himself ''didn't die of cybercrosis''. 

Once back in the present day, Tailgate and the crew watched ''{{w|Back to the Future Part II}}'' and it was so awesome {{storylink|Elegant Chaos Part 3: Predestination: An Expert's Guide|Predestination: An Expert's Guide}} that he went and got his ''own'' [[hoverboard]] and annoyed the crap out of the ''Lost Light'' crew by zooming about on it inside. 

[[File:Getaway's innocent conversation with Tailgate.jpg‎|left|upright=1.67|thumb|''Gaslight'', starring Tailgate of Rivets Field as Paula]] 
He and Getaway got together to go Legislator fishing in the oil reservoir, starting with a friendly booze-up in Mirage's bar [["Visages"]]. After telling him a ''slight'' fabrication of their recent time travel escapades, Getaway just ''happened'' to ''accidentally'' mention that Cyclonus had been saying mean things about Tailgate behind his back. Tailgate was horrified to learn Cyclonus had been insulting him for being scared on his death bed but don't worry Tailgate, Getaway's got your back and another drink would help even if you don't want it and oh don't mention to Cyclonus that he told you this, eh? {{storylink|Our Steps Will Always Rhyme}}

At [[Thunder Clash|Thunderclash]]'s pre-wake, Tailgate used the hoverboard to ''kill it'' on the dance floor! {{storylink|The Sensuous Frame}} Afterwards, at a subsequent EarthDance party at "Swerve's", he had "The Power Of Love" requested and planned to ask Cyclonus to dance with him. When Cyclonus refused and said begging him would be embarrassing, Tailgate muttered "like I don't normally embarrass you" under his breath and went off to dance with Getaway (not noticing Cyclonus had changed his mind). {{storylink|The Frail Gaze}}

[[File:TheOneWhereTheyGoToEarth-tailgategetsmeta.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3]]
Later, he presented First Aid with a farewell present from the crew despite the fact the medic's absence was only temporary. Soon after he was drafted into the team sent to 'Swearth' in order to save Swerve from an unknown illness and while on the strange sitcom world, he found a comic book series detailing the crew of the ''Lost Light'''s adventures. By the time the others had arrived back he was on issue #21 and pointed out that Swerve had opened Brainstorm's briefcase. For the benefit of the mission he skipped to issue #43 (The Swerve disappears story) and discovered a 'story so far page' by the bartender that explained everything. Rung realised the comic book was Swerve's way of reaching out to them and Tailgate witnessed the combination of the three neighbours into Swerve. When Swerve refused to say where the issue was, Tailgate deduced that he had found his happy place and didn't want to leave. After Cyclonus gave Swerve a moralising speech, Tailgate noticed Swerve's shoulder wound and he declared the story wrapped up. {{storylink|The One Where They Go to Earth}}

Tailgate was one of the dozen or so Autobots who landed on the [[Necroworld]], home of [[Censere]], hoping to find out more about the mysterious neutral Transformer. {{storylink|The Not Knowing}}

After months of grooming, Getaway began to start the [[Conjunx Endura|Conjunx Ritus]] and wow Tailgate, they could be [[Conjunx Endura]] and all it would take now is for him to do the "Act of Devotion", ''proving'' he really wanted it. Maybe he could, say, use those ''wicked cool [[mnemosurgery]] needles you totally said you wanted'' to put a special anti-villain virus in Megatron! But it's OKAY if you DON'T, I guess, they'd just have to start the whole ritual again, if they ''wanted'' to...

[[File:TheLopsidedTriangle-sparkspasm.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.6|Tailgate Mega Evolves after exposure to the Tailgatenite.]]
Tailgate duly broke into Megatron's hab-unit with no idea his 'Ravage detector' was a fake and he would have been killed if Whirl, Getaway's co-conspirator, hadn't had an attack of conscience and alerted Cyclonus. When saved, with Cyclonus risking his life against the ''Light'' security team, Tailgate realised that he'd unwittingly started the Conjunx Ritus on the Tetrahexian during his assumed death—holding his hand (Act of Intimacy), confessing his fear of death (Disclosure), giving him the gift of a replacement horn (Proferrence), and being saved with Cyclonus's own spark energy (Devotion). When Cyclonus was shot into stasis lock, a frightened and grieving Tailgate's glowing eyes, his constant tic, built into {{storylink|The Lopsided Triangle}} a wave of spark energy that unwittingly woke up Thunderclash but left Tailgate comatose. {{storylink|Speak, Memory: Part 1}}

[[File:SpeakMemory2 TailgateThrowsRodpod.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|It is I, Super Tailgate! (And I am cute, too!)]]
When he finally came round, the ship was under lockdown as the monstrous [[Sunder (G1)|Sunder, the Tetrahex Ripper]], a mnemosurgeon gone psychotic who could hack your mind on sight. While walking around the ship, he found Getaway's cell and was left furious about how the 'bot wouldn't even talk to him after all he'd done (unaware his mouth had been ''removed'' to stop him talking his way out of the cell) and punched the wall in anger.... shattering the windows. Tailgate found himself dragged into the fight against Sunder and showed another feat of strength when he ''hurled'' the [[Rodpod]] at the villain, crushing him! Which he had not expected. After the battle, [[Velocity (G1)|Velocity]] found that Tailgate was an [[outlier]]: his spark was "uniquely susceptible to mutation as a result of the background radiation generated by quantum travel," and a stress-caused mutation had made him super-strong and super-durable. All coming up Tailgate! {{storylink|Speak, Memory! (Part 2)}}

A time fissure had been discovered at Swerve's and allowed everyone to briefly look back at the past, seeing the departed. Tailgate chose to look back at [[Pipes (G1)|Pipes]] and Drift, where he learned, with visible sadness, that Drift had introduced Pipes to him because the other minibot had been looking for a romantic partner. {{storylink|No Guns, No Swords, No Briefcases}}

During a movie night, Tailgate and some of the other ''Lost Light'' crewmembers watched a documentary about [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Sentinel Prime]] and his death during the earliest days of the war. Brainstorm commented that the ruthless Sentinel was, in many ways, the first Decepticon - a comment that confused Tailgate, as he had only heard good things about the former Prime. {{storylink|The Last Autobot}}

[[File:HowBrightTheirFrailDeeds-powerpunch.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4]]
With his great strength, Tailgate was a key player in the liberation of Millarium and '''POWER PUNCHED''' a rust giant that was threatening Rodimus. Shortly after, it all changed: Tailgate and a dozen others were hit by a psychic attack eminating from an unknown location, with Tailgate hearing Cyclonus in pain and blaming him for what happened with Getaway. The group and some others tracked the signal to the Necrobot's home planet, only to find a Decepticon attack force waiting for them... and when the ''Light'' was contacted, Tailgate and his comrades learned the rest of the crew had let Getaway out and had a mutiny against Megatron and anyone deemed a 'sympathiser'. To Tailgate's horror, the Decepticon Justice Division were on the planet and closing in. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light: (1) How Bright Their Frail Deeds|How Bright Their Frail Deeds}} He naively hoped that the 'fortress' they were in was stopping the Decepticons rushing in but it turned out to be a deliberate psyops tactic to let them stew. There was luckily a way out, the Necrobot's teleporter! Problem is, a search had found stasis pods of organics (Tailgate not believing it mattered ''why'' the Necrobot had had them) in the fortress and teleporting would abandon them. Megatron gave a stirring speech in favour of staying to guard the innocents and Tailgate, with all the others, agreed to stay. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 2: The Sun in Flight|The Sun in Flight}} 

[[File:AtCloseOfDay-tailgatedemolishes.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4]]
When Ratchet returned, he investigated Velocity's description of Tailgate's unusual mutation, raising the concern that several other Transformers exposed to this pulse had experienced devastating system crashes. Meanwhile, Tailgate himself put his great strength to work as he began demolishing sections of the Necrobot's fortress to produce raw material for Brainstorm's inventions. Tailgate later re-convened with the other Autobots in the center of the fortress, where Whirl and Cyclonus revealed that the Necrobot's storm shield prevented them from firing the fortress's weapons. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 4: At Close of Day|At Close of Day}} Instead, Velocity came up with the idea of triggering another mutagenic spark spasm, which would temporarily transform all the Cybertronians nearby into super-strong Outliers. Skids unwittingly sacrificed himself thanks to his traumatic memories, but as he perished the radiation from his spark super-charged the Autobots. 

[[File:RageRage-wastedisposal.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Tailgate's developed a... ahem... punchier personality.]]
The Autobots charged forward to take down the Decepticons, although Tailgate found that his foes weren't willing to play along with his witty banter. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 5: Rage, Rage|Rage, Rage}} The upgrade soon wore off, and Tailgate retreated back to the Necrobot's fortress with the other Autobots as Megatron took down the members of the DJD one by one. When that business as over, Tailgate was present to witness the return of [[Roller (IDW)|Roller]], [[Terminus (G1)|Terminus]], and several other Transformers who had vanished throughout history—in reality abducted by the time-travelling Necrobot and brought to the present day. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 6: Do Not Go Gentle|Do Not Go Gentle}}

At daybreak, he showed off his superstrength by lifting Roller and boasted about his combat prowess to the time-scooped. Cyclonus pulled him aside to quietly inform him that it was wrong to grandstand when not everyone had made it out alive and he bore some responsibility for Skids' loss. That's when time-scooped Decepticon [[Fangry (G1)|Fangry]], irritated that Autobots were celebrating Decepticon deaths, 'oops pardoned me' bumped the two to start a fight. When Tailgate later found Cyclonus to be heavily damaged, he stormed off to batter Fangry, ignoring his partner's cries to leave it. {{storylink|Dissolution Part 1: Some Other Cybertron|Some Other Cybertron}} Tailgate found Fangry and proceded to brutalize him finishing with throwing the Decepticon against the Memorial to the Disappeared with enough force to rupture the Decepticon's neural cluster an act which terrified the other Decepticons into fleeing. Cyclonus then showed Tailgate the corpses of the many Decepticons the minibot had killed to try and get him to better understand his new powers only for Tailgate to collapse from a lack of Energon. {{storylink|Dissolution Part 2: Anomie|Anomie}} When Cyclonus arrived to help Whirl missing half his body, Whirl realized that Tailgate was responsible forcing Cyclonus to confess that, while recharging, Tailgate attempted to tear out his own Spark, forcing Cyclonus to intervene and becoming damaged as a result. Despite Cyclonus' protests, Whirl told Tailgate the truth behind Cyclonus' damages. {{storylink|Dissolution Part 4: Bad Moon Rising|Bad Moon Rising}} Tailgate and Whirl arrived in the main room where Tailgate stoically greeted Cyclonus. {{storylink|Dissolution Part 5: Modes of Production|Modes of Production}} When Necroworld returned to its own universe, Tailgate was the first to welcome back the group. {{storylink|Dissolution Part 6: This Machine Kills Fascists|This Machine Kills Fascists}}

When Rodimus hit on the (somewhat disturbing) plan to supersize the corpse of the Decepticon [[Skip]] to create a large enough spacecraft to escape Necroworld, Tailgate got to work manually converting the now giant Decepticon into starship mode. He was approached by Cyclonus who confessed his fear that Tailgate may be manipulated again as Getaway once did to him only for Tailgate to brush him off, insisting that no one would manipulate him again and invited Cyclonus to leave him alone. When the boarding call came, Tailgate informed Cyclonus that he was staying behind even trying to return the [[Innermost energon|innermost energon]] that Cyclonus had donated as the minibot no longer believed the two had a future together. Once the ship launched, Tailgate confessed to [[Kaput]] his reasons for staying behind, namely not wanting to hurt Cyclonus anymore and asked if Kaput could make him normal once again. After days of study, Kaput hit on a possible answer. Seal Tailgate in an [[isolation chamber]] for six months and flood him with neutronic radiation to try and get his Spark back to normal. Despite the risks, Tailgate agreed yet no sooner had he entered the chamber did Fangry slay Kaput and reset the timer on the chamber as revenge for Tailgate humiliating him. Instead of six months, Fangry buried Tailgate for ''another'' six million years. Fangry promptly cut the communication line and buried the entrance to the chamber with the grass and flowers covering Tailgate's resting point. {{storylink|After Megatron (A Dissolution Epilogue)|After Megatron}}

When the [[Moonbase One|Luna 1]] Autobots arrived on [[Necroworld]], [[Fortress Maximus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Fortress Maximus]] discovered the isolation chamber and summoned [[Cerebros (G1)|Cerebros]] to examine it. The group used [[Beak]]'s super-optics to glimpse inside the chamber and found evidence suggesting the minibot had succumbed to spontaneous Spark combustion. Maximus informed Rodimus of the grim news who then informed Cyclonus. News of Tailgate's demise proved the last straw before all the tensions aboard [[Skip]] came to a boil.
{{storylink|Sardines}}
{{-}}

====Prevenge====
{{voiceactor|[[Susan Blu]] (English)}}
Tailgate was suffering through one of Ultra Magnus's lectures on the Autobot code when his teacher was suddenly whisked away through a trans-dimensional portal. Tailgate was left to ponder if he had caused the portal to open with his brain... for about six seconds, after which Ultra Magnus reappeared. Ultra Magnus told Tailgate that they could call it a day on the lecture, so long as Tailgate promised never to speak of what had just transpired. {{storylink|Prevenge}}

==Games==
===''Transformers: Battle Tactics''===
[[File:BattleTacticsTailgate.jpg|thumb|upright=1.8]]
Tailgate participated in battles against a variety of opponents, both Autobots and Decepticons. Sometimes there were many of him! He was a Common character that could be recruited for 16 units of Cybermetal. {{storylink|Transformers: Battle Tactics}}
{{--}}

==Toys==
===Generation 1===
[[File:G1 Tailgate toy.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|White Rider.]]
*'''Tailgate''' (Mini Vehicle, [[1986]])
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''C-61'''

:Tailgate is a white-and-blue [[retool]]ing of the 1984 Autobot, [[Windcharger (G1)#Generation 1|Windcharger]], transforming into a Pontiac Firebird Trans Am sports car. His head sculpt is much more elaborate than the earlier toy's (which shared the ''[[Micro Change|Microchange]]'' sculpt), and his chest sticker bears an odd resemblance to a portable radio.

:The original version of this mold was used by [[Camaro]] and [[Rook (Universe)|Rook]], as well as the Mexican versions (yes, plural) of Tailgate, which were only redecos of Windcharger. Tailgate's toy was also used as the non-toy comic model for [[Wipe-Out]].

::*''[http://www.transformerland.com/wiki/toy-info/transformers-g1-mini-vehicles-tailgate/1179/ Patent info, price guide, and further reading on Tailgate at Transformerland.com]''
::*''[http://www.tfu.info/1986/Autobot/Tailgate/tailgate.htm More information on Tailgate at TFU.info]''
{{-}}

===Encore===
[[File:Encore Tailgate.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|Immediately, something like scales fell from Tailgate's eyes, and he could see again.]]
*'''Bumble & Minibots''' (Multi-pack, [[2008]])
**''Encore number'': '''10'''

:In 2008, Tailgate was reissued in the ''[[Transformers Encore|Encore]]'' line, bundled with [[Bumblebee (G1)/toys#Encore|Bumblebee]], [[Pipes (G1)#Encore|Pipes]], [[Swerve (G1)#Encore|Swerve]], and [[Outback (G1)#Encore|Outback]]. This version of Tailgate has extra paint details on his face.
{{-}}

===Generations===
[[File:Generationstoy-Tailgate.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|I'm the one that loves the purple oni.]]
====Thrilling 30====
*'''Autobot Tailgate & Groundbuster''' (Legends Class, [[2014]])
**''Series / Number'': '''02 / #008'''

:Part of the sixth wave of [[2012]]-onwards ''[[Transformers: Generations|Generations]]'' [[Legends Class (2005)|Legends Class]] toys, ''[[Thrilling 30]]'' "Autobot Tailgate" is a new mold that's roughly the size of a ''[[Cyberverse (toyline)|Cyberverse]]'' Commander Class toy. He transforms from a white muscle car into a [[robot mode]] largely based on [[Nick Roche]]'s design for [[IDW Publishing|IDW's]] ''[[The Transformers: More than Meets the Eye|More than Meets the Eye]]'' comic, with some blue flame-decals on his hood likely inspired by his ''[[Transformers: Prime (franchise)|Prime]]'' [[Tailgate (Prime)|counterpart]]. He comes with [[Neutro#Generations|Groundbuster]] (based on the [[Micromaster]] [[Neutro#Generation 1|Neutro]]), who transforms into a robot, a bomb disposal skid loader,<ref>[http://www.allspark.com/forums/topic/96686-generations-legends-targetmaster-moulds/?p=2423893 Designer Joe Kyde on "The Allspark" messageboard]</ref> and an extended claw for Tailgate to wield via its [[5mm post]], or mount onto the peg-hole on Tailgate's hood in vehicle mode.

:This mold was retooled into ''Generations'' [[Windcharger (G1)#Generations|Windcharger]] and ''Timelines'' [[Nightracer (G1)#Timelines|Nightracer]]. It also served as the basis of the non-toy ''Shattered Glass'' incarnation of [[Tailgate (SG)|Tailgate]].

::*''[http://www.tfu.info/2014/Autobot/GenTailgate/tailgate.htm More information on ''Generations'' Tailgate at TFU.info]''
{{-}}

====Power of the Primes====
[[File:POTPtoy-Tailgate.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Hi, it's me!  I just think household electronics are people!  What's a Cyclonus?]]
*'''Autobot Tailgate''' (Legends Class, 2017)
:Part of the second wave of ''[[Power of the Primes (toyline)|Power of the Primes]]'' Legends Class figures, "Autobot Tailgate" is a retool of ''Power of the Primes'' [[Windcharger (G1)#Power of the Primes|Windcharger]] with a new head. He transforms from a robot into fictionalized Pontiac Firebird Trans Am sports car that is based on his ''Generation 1'' toy. He also features an opening canopy on his alternate mode to let any Titan/Prime Masters to ride in. 

:Tailgate and the rest of his wave were released at retail in Singapore, and subsequently in the United Kingdom, and later, the United States, before Hasbro even acknowledged their existence, let alone solicited them to online retailers.
{{-}}

===Legends===
[[File:Legends-Swerve.jpg|thumb|It makes your whites slightly darker, and your brights also slightly darker.]]
*'''Swerve & Tailgate''' (Multi-pack, 2015-[[January 24|01-24]])
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''LG08'''

:''[[Transformers Legends (franchise)|Legends]]'' Tailgate is a redeco of ''Thrilling 30'' Tailgate with a closer resemblance to his original toy, with changes such as a darker shade of teal, an Autobot sigil on his stomach and black car mode windows. He also lacks the flame deco on his hood but instead features a silver-painted grill. Tailgate and "Groundshaker" were sold exclusively in a two-pack with [[Swerve (G1)#Legends|Swerve]] and [[Phaser#Legends|Phaser]].
{{-}}

==Notes==
[[File:ToyFair1986-TFpage01a-TailgateHubCap.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Little. Yellow. Different.]]
*In the pre-[[Toy Fair 1986]] catalog, Tailgate is featured with a yellow car body, a black chest/torso, and a red face. Fellow 1986 [[Mini Vehicle]] [[Hubcap (G1)|Hubcap]] is featured with a white car body. Hmmmmm.
*While Tailgate did not appear himself in the [[Marvel Comics|Marvel]] [[The Transformers (Marvel comic)|US comics]], [[Wipe-Out]]'s [[character model]] was based on Tailgate's toy.
*Fan speculation about Tailgate's gender—always presented as male—broke out across Tumblr (because ''of course'') when a ''[[The Transformers: More than Meets the Eye|More than Meets the Eye]]'' promo called him [[:File:MTMTEpromo tailgate.jpg|"The Ingenue"]], a term for a ''female'' stock character.<ref>As debated [http://konora.tumblr.com/post/84182229574 here], [http://konora.tumblr.com/post/84182229574 here], [http://raelling.tumblr.com/post/84200154095 here]...</ref> This was ''completely'' unintentional but Roberts was "pleased" to find out what he'd accidentally done.<ref>[http://womenwriteaboutcomics.com/2015/02/26/james-roberts-on-idws-transformers-more-that-meets-the-eye/ Women Write About Comics: "James Roberts on IDW’s Transformers: More Than Meets The Eye" 18:00 - 18:08]</ref> He went on to approve of [[Susan Blu]] being cast as Tailgate in "[[Prevenge]]" when it was run by him pre-[[BotCon]] and say at an [[Unofficial conventions|Auto Assembly]] panel that he was convinced Tailgate's holoform was a girl baby. It can happen even though it's not on [[Hub Network|the Hub]]!

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Tailgate''' (テイルゲイト ''Teirugeito'')
*''French:'' '''Hayon''' (Canada)
*''Mandarin:'' '''Dǎngbǎn''' (挡板, "Tailgate")

==Footnotes==
<references />

[[Category:Generation 1 Autobots]]
[[Category:Generations]]
[[Category:IDW Generation 1 Autobots]]
[[Category:Legends Autobots]]
[[Category:Lost Light crew]]
[[Category:Mini Vehicles]]
[[Category:Regeneration One Autobots]]
[[Category:Scouts]]
[[Category:Wings Universe Autobots]]