Guardian (Marvel)

The name or term "Guardian" refers to more than one character or idea. For a list of other meanings, see Guardian (disambiguation).

Don't make me angry... You wouldn't like me when I'm angry.

Guardian units are Autobot drones, with the most notable example (often called simply Guardian) being referred to as an Omega Class Battle Droid. Their bodies consist of two-foot-thick armour plating and a hydraulic musculature. They store enough energy to power a spaceship. Designed to be virtually unbeatable, they have two weaknesses: They are susceptible to strong magnetic fields which can interfere with their central data core, and they have a cerebral access point located on the neck that is large enough to fire a thin laser beam into, which can overload their cerebral circuits. Later models may have eliminated some of these defects, though introduced some new ones.

Fiction

Marvel Comics continuity

Marvel The Transformers comics

Events from the UK-only comic stories are in italics.

During a Decepticon attack on the Ark, Optimus Prime attempted to activate the Ark's computer, known as Aunty, to bring the defense systems back online. Unfortunately, Aunty had been damaged in the crash and become unstable. Unable to remember who was friend or foe, she used a magnetic field to subdue all the combatants—all, that is, except for Ravage and Windcharger whose magnetic powers allowed them to counter Aunty's magnetic force. Working together to deactivate Aunty, they encountered the Guardian battle droid. Despite Guardian's power, Windcharger was able to disable him by using his own magnetic powers. Raiders of the Last Ark

Guardian (it may or may not be the same one) was later encountered by Ratchet and the Dinobots as they returned to the Ark after it had been abandoned by the Decepticons. Before he left, Shockwave had reprogrammed Guardian to attack any Autobots who returned there. Decepticon Dam-Busters! After receiving a sound beating that left Swoop injured, the Dinobots began hunting Guardian through the Ark. Managing to subdue him, they were about to destroy him when Ratchet and Wheeljack realised that the Decepticons had placed a thermonuclear bomb inside him that would destroy them all and Mount St. Hilary too. The Wrath of Guardian!

They managed to prevent Grimlock from destroying Guardian by remotely activating the headless body of Optimus Prime and knocking Grimlock's gun away. Guardian managed to escape and, as per his programming by Shockwave, concluded that he could not defeat the Autobots and therefore he should locate them and detonate the bomb that he carried.

Guardian came hunting for the Autobots and engaged them in battle while the bomb counted down to detonation. Swoop was repaired just in time to fly Guardian far from the Ark before he could detonate. Sadly, he cut it far too fine, and was thought to be destroyed in the ensuing explosion. The Wrath of Grimlock! The Icarus Theory

After an incident that had left the Dinobots in a comatose state, Snarl dreamed of a rematch against Guardian, after the droid had killed five Autobots. Snarl quickly decapitated Guardian, but he was overcome by a surprise attack, as Guardian had apparently been modified to continue functioning without a head. Victory!

Later models introduced fingernails.

When Optimus Prime returned to Cybertron and was thought to be a Decepticon spy, Ultra Magnus led a team, backed up by a Guardian unit to track him down. Rack'n'Ruin were the ones to find their target, and distracted the "imposter" long enough for the Guardian that accompanied them to sneak up on Prime and knock him out. ...The Harder They Die! With the help of Outback, Optimus managed to escape from his captives, and Ultra Magnus deployed three Guardian units to assist in hunting them down again. Two of the drones located and attacked the fugitives, badly wounding Outback before Prime could destroy them. Under Fire! Distant Thunder!

You now have 20 seconds to comply.

Following his resurrection as a Powermaster, Optimus Prime had a crisis of confidence when confronted with Autobot casualty list, especially as it included his friend Ratchet. When he set the Ark down on the Moon to brood, Hot Rod revealed a plan to bring him out of this deep funk: he had reprogrammed a Mark V Guardian droid to act as if it was berserk, which he hoped would rekindle Prime's fighting spirit. Unfortunately, the notoriously unpredictable Mark V went berserk anyway, shooting down Cloudburst, Highbrow, and Brainstorm and cutting off Hot Rod's hand before Prime stepped in and demolished it. So the plan worked, kinda. Yesterday's Heroes!

Regeneration One

Regeneration One continues from the Marvel US series, and does not include the UK stories or any subsequently published stories.

Watch your hands!

During his time alone on Earth, Megatron had salvaged the crashed Ark to serve as his base of operations. Having taken control of Auntie, he set up a series of defences around the ship's perimeter, including a squad of Guardian units. Loose Ends, Part 4 Launched into battle against incoming Wreckers and human resistance fighters wearing battlesuits, the Guardians fared well, taking out Broadside and a couple of the battlesuits but were ultimately deactivated when Circuit Smasher infiltrated the Ark and fried Auntie, removing the signal controlling them. Loose Ends, Part 5

Later, as Shockwave and Starscream plotted to wrest control of the Ark from Galvatron, they distracted him by reporting an intruder in hangar nine—which was in reality a Mark V Guardian droid under Starscream's control. Although Galvatron easily managed to destroy the droid, the two Decepticons dealt with his continued presence aboard the Ark by simply venting hangar nine into the void above Cybertron. Destiny, Part Three

Transformers '84

Left damaged by the Ark's violent crash, AUNTIE could no longer distinguish between Autobot and Decepticon. When an overfuelled Grimlock approached the ship, the supercomputer reactivated a trio of Guardians to deal with this threat. The Dinobot quickly eviscerated them, the workout allowing him to burn some of the excess fuel and regain a measure of his faculties. Secrets & Lies #3 Their remains littered the floor of the Ark thereafter. Secrets & Lies #4

2005 IDW continuity

Guardian droids of several different models were responsible for guarding Zeta Prime's New Institute. Despite their great number, they were all wiped out when Overlord, Starscream, and Thundercracker attacked the facility. Remembrance Day

Two dozen Guardian droids were used by Autobot High Command to arrest Impactor after his execution of Squadron X. Zero Point

Swindle's Spiel

Swindle, Swindle and Swindle had Mark IV Guardians among their drones for sale. Ask Vector Prime

Notes

• In the letters page, Soundwave identifies Guardian as one example of a combat droid, which, along with Mechodrones, are unintelligent non-transformable droids Transformers on both sides use for menial tasks.