Longarm (Armada)

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

Longarm is an Autobot-allied Mini-Con from the Unicron Trilogy continuity family.

He fights crime... in a future time!

Longarm was saved from near-death by Red Alert, and was modified in the life-saving process. His previous memories are gone, but he is still a well and friendly Mini-Con. Longarm acts as Red Alert's second brain, making him a wiz at analyzing and diagnosing technical problems, which the Autobot medic can then fix without ever having seen them.

Longarm also teams up with the Autobot Prowl.

“	Complacency does not compute.	”
—Longarm's bio quote.

Fiction

Dreamwave Armada comic

When Cybertron was at peace, Longarm resided Mini-Con village C52. At one point, he helped build satellites in village B13, and befriended a Mini-Con there (likely a member of the Air Defense Team). His friend was captured when the Decepticons began kidnapping Mini-Cons, but escaped and told Longarm about the mecha-sectioning of Mini-Cons that went on in the Decepticons' base. As Longarm helped prepare the defenses for his own village, he shared his friend's story with Jolt. However, despite the village's forceshield, the Decepticons made it inside and Longarm was captured by Demolishor. Armada #1 A short while later, he was freed by Sparkplug and the Air Defense Team, and left Cybertron along with the other Mini-Cons. Armada #2

However, their escape vessel malfunctioned and crashed into Earth's moon, and the section with Longarm in it was broken off and crashed on Earth. Armada #3 After laying dormant for a million years, Longarm was reactivated alongside several other Mini-Cons, and they made themselves a makeshift base in a human junkyard. After an incident involving Rollbar and a trash compactor, Longarm got a television working and learned that the Decepticons had arrived on Earth and were hunting down Sparkplug and the Street Action Mini-Con Team. As the team headed out to rescue their fellow Mini-Cons, they found Autobots on the scene and decided to help out by increasing the strength of the Bulks. Longarm Powerlinxed with Red Alert, and the Decepticons were soon driven off. In the aftermath, Longarm agreed to work with the Autobots only if he and his fellow Mini-Cons were treated as their equals, which Optimus Prime naturally complied with. Armada #5

When the Air Defense Team was captured by the Decepticons, Longarm, Jolt, and Sparkplug went to rescue them, against Optimus Prime's orders. Shortly after arriving at the enemy base, they were forced to fight off Starscream. Armada #6 After getting caught in rubble after the ceiling collapsed, Longarm started cutting his pals out with a laser welder, to little success. Fortunately, the Land Military Team showed up to help out. They quickly made their way to a battle between the Autobots and Decepticons, and Powerlinxed with their respective partners. In the end, the Decepticons retreated and the Air Defense Team was won back. Armada #7 After trying to calm a frustred Sparkplug down, Longarm was suddenly compelled to travel to a strange structure in Kansas, and so were all the other Mini-Cons on the planet. When they entered the structure, it revealed its true nature as a spaceship. Armada #8 Longarm and the others were taken to Earth's moon, where they found that the other passengers on the Mini-Con ship had constructed a fortress where all Mini-Cons could live in peace. Armada #9

The Decepticons wouldn't give up so easily, however, and attacked the fortress. Armada #10 As the base was overrun, Longarm boarded an escape pod and went back to Earth. Armada #11 When it turned out that another pod had ended up buried under ice in Alaska, Longarm traveled there and boosted the power of Red Alert's sonic cannon so that it could be used to cut through the ice. Armada #13 As he and the others returned to base after the mission, they found a strange, different Optimus Prime waiting for them. Worlds Collide, Part 1 of 4 Longarm and Red Alert then traveled to Big Sur National Park to retrieve Over-Run's null-reality pods, only to find them missing. The duo later tried to defend Autobase from a Decepticon attack, but were taken out by a couple of missiles courtesy of Starscream. Worlds Collide, Part 2 of 4

Longarm was among the Mini-Cons who gathered in Arizona to take a space bridge back to Cybertron and face the looming threat of Unicron. After returning to their home planet, the Mini-Cons combined their energies with that of the Mini-Con Matrix, which produced a blast of energy powerful enough to defeat the Planet Eater. The End

Armada cartoon

Voice actor: Terry Klassen (English)

Longarm was one of the first Mini-Cons awakened on Earth. His storage panel was uncovered in a landslide as the Autobots battled the Decepticons. Red Alert took Longarm on as his personal Mini-Con, using him to charge up his rifle during the fight. Along with Jolt and the Street Action Mini-Con Team, Longarm served with the Autobots from the very beginning of their Mini-Con hunt. Base Longarm was often seen accompanying Red Alert on his routine maintenance chores around the Autobot base. Soldier He helped with the installation of a trans-accelerator... whatever that is. Longarm wasn't all about work, though — when Sparkplug and Jolt ran off to the carnival to play, Longarm went with them for the thrill. Carnival

After Cyclonus kidnapped Billy and Fred, the Autobots were reluctantly prepared to turn over Longarm and the other Mini-Cons to Megatron. When the Decepticons broke the deal, however, the Autobots managed to recover both the kids and the Mini-Cons. Confrontation Longarm was briefly seen when the Decepticons deployed their Mini-Cons to search subway tunnels for another of their kind. Underground He also assisted the Autobots on a mission to a volcanic island, manning Prime's combat deck in defense of his friends. Prehistory

Longarm was seen helping Red Alert's self-repair work after a series of losses when the Decepticons acquired the Star Saber. Conspiracy Later on, he went along on a camping trip with Red Alert, Smokescreen and the boys. He used his crane arm for the boys to dive off of into the river. Vacation

Longarm was present at the team meeting when the Autobots decided what to do with the Mini-Cons who formed the Requiem Blaster. Runaway

After Optimus Prime's death, Longarm was one of a group of Mini-Cons who confronted the angst-ridden Hot Shot, forcing the young 'bot to come to terms with the loss of his leader. Remorse As the Autobots prepared to launch into space for Cybertron aboard the Axalon, Longarm was among the many Mini-Cons who boarded for the mission. Depart

When a spatial disturbance claimed Hot Shot and Red Alert, they landed on an unnamed planet, threatened by Megatron, Starscream, and Demolishor as well as a mysterious black copy of Optimus known as Nemesis Prime. As Nemesis Prime gained the upper hand over all the Transformers, Longarm arrived in a ball of light, flanked by the Mini-Con partners of the Autobots and Decepticons alike who were present. They incapacitated Nemesis Prime with a massive bolt of energy before Longarm addressed the Transformers, making him the third known Mini-Con to speak English, after Sparkplug and High Wire. He told the Autobots and Decepticons that the fighting must end, and combined his energies with his fellow Mini-Cons to heal the Cybertronians' wounds and upgrade their armor. Puppet

Panini Armada comic

Back on Cybertron, Longarm enjoyed watching Grindor perform "extraordinary feats", such as lifting heavy metal crates. Just a Memory! He was among the Mini-Cons who escaped from the planet and lay dormant after their ship crashed near present-day Lincoln, Nebraska. Deep Trouble! He and the others were awakened by Rad White, Carlos Lopez and Alexis, but refused to get involved with the Autobot-Decepticon war again. First Encounter! After witnessing the courage Rad displayed to save Optimus Prime, they changed their minds and allied themselves with the Autobots. After towing the injured High Wire out of danger, Longarm power-linked with Red Alert, granting him the power needed to defeat Starscream. Friends and Foes!

The Autobots decided to send Longarm and the others back to Cybertron to keep them out of Megatron's hands, but they refused and stayed on Earth to aid the Autobots. No Way Back! A while later, Longarm went with Jolt and Sparkplug to the Decepticon base in Silver Ridge, where they planned to rescue the Decepticon-held Mini-Cons. Unfortunately, they didn't want to be rescued, and tried to capture Sparkplug for the Decepticons instead. Longarm managed to save him with his crane hook, then made his way outta there. Into the Lions' Den! He later helped monitor a Mini-Con probe sent to the Moon, to awaken his brethren still lying dormant on the satellite. Between Two Worlds!

When the Autobots learned that the Decepticons were planning to nuke them from the Moon, the Mini-Cons gave them some extra time for countermeasures by pretending to surrender themselves to the enemy. Earthshaker! They were stowed aboard a solar barge and pulled towards the Moon by Cyclonus, but Longarm simply kicked his way out of his cell. He had needed something to vent his recent frustration on. After Sparkplug, Jolt and High Wire took care of Cyclonus, the Mini-Cons returned to Earth. Lost in Space!

The Balance of Power

Longarm was one of the Mini-Cons listed in the Autobots' registry. His picture was shown to Hot Shot when Optimus Prime explained to the young Autobot what the Mini-Cons were, and their importance in the battle against the Decepticons. The Balance of Power

This comic was written as a tie-in to the Armada video game, but its details differ from the introduction seen in the game itself. See below for Longarm's role in the game.

Reader's Digest Armada novels

During a Decepticon attack on the Autobots' base, one of Megatron's stray shots caused a rock slide. This rock slide unearthed four Mini-Con panels, one of which contained the Mini-Con that would come to be known as "Longarm." The panel reacted to Red Alert's presence, and the robot within awoke to bond with the Autobot mentally. The Mini-Con then transformed into an additional arm for Red Alert, prompting him to give his new partner his moniker. Longarm's new configuration boasted enough raw strength to easily lift Hot Shot off the ground by itself! Red Alert made good use of Longarm's strength to overpower Demolishor and toss him at Megatron. Overwhelmed, the Decepticons retreated soon afterwards. Race for the Mini-Con Robots

Ask Vector Prime

A Longarm hailed from Aurex 606.0 Kappa. He fought with his Bulk partner Red Alert, Smokescreen, Jolt, and the Emergency Mini-Con Team against the Decepticons Landslide, Drench, and Wind Sheer during the quest for Cybertron. After the Autobots emerged victorious, Unicron suddenly plucked Red Alert to fight in the Cauldron. The Chaos-Bringer would have plucked Longarm as well if Firebot hadn't shoved his friend out of the way and took his place. Ask Vector Prime

Games

Transformers (PS2)

Longarm was one of many Mini-Cons who crashlanded on Earth when fleeing the war on Cybertron. He was trapped inside a Mini-Con-Disc and needed to be saved before the Decepticons could find him. Once awakened, he agreed to assist the Autobots in their battle against Megatron and became Red Alert's Mini-Con partner. You can run him over, but due to gameplay-reasons he actually is invincible. Longarm does not talk, but if attached to Red Alert, he increases his speed in exchange for Energon. If his special powers are not needed, he follows his counterpart by foot, defending and assisting him with shots from his laser gun. There is not much of a story to him. Transformers

Toys

Armada

• Red Alert with Longarm (Max-Con, 2002)

• Takara name: Ratchet
• Sonokong name: Patrol
• Takara/Sonokong ID number: MC-02
• Takara release date: December 26, 2002
• Known designers: Aaron Archer (Hasbro), Hironori Kobayashi (Takara), Marcelo Matere (packaging artist)

Released in the first wave of Hasbro Armada Max-Cons (think Mega/Voyager equivalent), Longarm transforms into a hook-crane truck of undetermined model. As a Mini-Con, he has a "Powerlinx" socket on his vehicle-mode underside (which ends up on his robot-mode tummy) which allows him to attach to any toy with a "Powerlinx" style 5 mm post; some toys have special Powerlinx posts that activate/unlock gimmicks when a Mini-Con is attached. His crane is on a swivel-joint, though it's not very useful in robot mode.

He was only available packaged with the larger Autobot Red Alert.

The Takara Legends of the Microns version of "Hook" (also released in the first wave of that line) and the Sonokong Eunha Yeongung: Cybertron version of "Hook" both added silver paint operations to his truck-mode windscreen. His crane-arm has also been slightly retooled, with both joints now held together with metal pins rather than mere friction.

This mold was also used to make live-action movie Longarm.

• More information on Longarm at TFU.info

• Powerlinx Red Alert with Powerlinx Longarm (Max-Con, 2003)

• Takara ID number: MC-12
• Takara release date: September ??, 2003

For his Powerlinx upgrade, Longarm retained his mainly black coloration in alternate mode, but the blue and tan were changed to gray and orange. He was only available with the Powerlinx version of Red Alert.

Just like the prior release, the Takara version of "Spark Hook" adds silver paint operations to his truck-mode windscreen. He also features a darker shade of orange plastic and the same retooling as "Hook".

• More information on Powerlinx Longarm at TFU.info

• Battle for the Matrix (Multi-pack, 2003)

A completely unchanged-from-the-initial-release Longarm was inexplicably included in the Kmart-exclusive "Battle for the Matrix" multi-pack, without his larger gang-molded partner Red Alert.

The set was released on Black Friday and also included Optimus Prime with Sparkplug, Jetfire with Comettor, and the Adventure Mini-Con Team. Optimus was the only toy in the entire set different from his normal release.

Built to Rule!

Uh... you sure that's a crane truck?

• Red Alert with Longarm (Built to Rule!, 2003)

Built to Rule! Longarm is a building-block toy that can be reconfigured from robot to crane, although neither mode is particularly accurate. Naturally, you can also build something else out of him, but not much. He's just a Mini-Con, after all, so he doesn't have many blocks. He is limited to black and blue blocks and features none of his tan or red details.

Longarm was only available with Built to Rule! Red Alert.

• More information on Built to Rule! Longarm at TFU.info

Energon

• Prowl with Longarm & Starscream with Zapmaster (Multi-pack, 2004)

A redeco of Longarm was included with Energon Prowl, a Red Alert redeco available only at Sam's Club wholesale shopping club outlets. Longarm is still mainly black, but his torso is white and his legs and crane are blue.

He was only available in a multi-pack with Red Alert, Starscream, and Zapmaster.

• More information on Energon Longarm at TFU.info

Notes

Foreign names

• Japanese: Hook (フック Fukku), Spark Hook (Powerlinx, スパークフック Supāku Fukku)
• Hungarian: Hosszúkar
• Korean: Hook (후크 Hukeu)
• Russian: Dlinnostvol (Длинноствол, "Long-gun")

Gallery

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  Armada cartoon robot mode
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  Armada cartoon vehicle mode