Deaspider

Deaspider is a Beastformer from the Generation 1 continuity family.

I shall play you the song of my people

Don't let his frightening appearance fool you, Deaspider (デスパイダー Desupaidā) is actually a very timid and kind sort. How he ended up working for the wicked Alligatron is a mystery, but "was bullied into it" seems likely. He'd honestly rather spend his time on handicrafts, but as it turns out his natural ingenuity, mixed with his ability to create incredibly strong adhesive fibers, makes him an excellent trapper. Not only that, his MVP Weapon, the Death Binder (デスバインダー Desu Baindā) can fuse items together once they get between its twin blades.

Following the Great War, Deaspider ended up as the Emperor of Hogland, serving under King Hedgehog. The two get along very well together, both being somewhat reclusive yet friendly, and Hedgehog's tunneling skill meshes well with Deaspider's trapping abilities, meaning any intruders on their domain are in for a very rough time.

Fiction

Beastformers comic

Deaspider traveled to underneath the dried up Lake Sagan to search for the Three Wise Ones' Water Gem of Stillness together with White Leo, Bowdog, Bluehorse and Badshark. The mission had several possible outcomes and the Beastformers may have either succeeded or been forced to retreat by a giant scorpion or the mysterious enemy Sur, who would battle them for the gem if they found it. In one outcome, Deaspider attempted to use his Death Binder to dig for the Water Gem to little effect, while in another he was responsible for sending the giant scorpion fleeing. The Water Gem of Stillness

Legends comic

In 2038, the then-peaceful Beast was invaded by Galvatron II's Decepticons. Deaspider was part of the joint Beastformer-Laser Beast alliance that fought against the invaders, but he was trounced by Dreadwing's Dread Roadblock Mode. The Road to Legends' Revival Chapter 3

Toys

Beastformers

Ladies and gentlemen ladies and gentlemen!
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• Deaspider (Beastformer, 1988)

• ID number: 27
• Pack: G
• Accessories: "Death Binder" MVP Weapon

Released only in the post-Transformers "RPG"-themed Beastformers sequel series, Deaspider is an anthropomorphic spider in lavender robotic armor. His left hand is molded in an open-palmed pose, preventing him from holding his weapon in that hand. The Battle Emblem on his chest reveals one of three symbols when warmed up; Fire, Water or Wood.

The Hasbro Battle Beasts release of the figure can vary in the tone of the paint used on its armor, with some samples being a glossier blue-tinted lavender; it's uncertain if the Takara version has similar (minor) paint variation. All versions have a penchant for odd yellowish patches on the paint, which tends to be a little sloppy.

As part of the first assortment of individually-boxed Beastformers in the "RPG" line, there was a chance his normal pack-in bio card would be replaced with a rare "Burstsun" holo card featuring White Leo on the front, with a Burstsun Battle Emblem sticker in a little baggie affixed to the back, for you to attach to whichever Beastformer you chose.

Merchandise

Candy toys

• Deaspider (Gashapon/candy-toy Beastformer, 1988)
  • ID number: 11
  • Accessories: "Beastar" weapon

A 1-inch-tall, super-deformed, articulation-free version of White Leo that could come in red, blue or green plastic, representing the Fire, Water and Wood elements (even though he still had a rubsign). All of the SD Beastformers come with a different Beastformer's weapon attached to their left shoulder by a snippable sprue: Deaspider came with Beafox's "Beastar" weapon, while Rabbit Kid came with Deaspider's "Death Binder".

This toy was sold in three different ways. First it was available as a gashapon capsule prize by Takara. Then it was sold as a candy toy from Takara, randomly-packed in a box of three with a packet of ramune-flavored candy tablets. Then again as a candy toy, this time through candy/snack company Meiji, in randomized packs of two with a packet of "chocoballs" (chocolate covered malted milk balls). The Meiji release also has much more elaborate packaging, with newly-painted box art (which sometimes shows characters not made in this assortment), and the entire interior of the box printed with game rules, character bios, chunks of lore, etc.

• Ramune Beastformers Battle Card (1988)
  • ID number: 11

A gold-foil "Battle Card" of Deaspider, featuring painted character art of the kind found on early Transformers: Beastformers bio cards (seen at the top of this page), was available in randomly-packed sets of cards that came with ramune-flavored candy tablets. The back of the card features a severely truncated bio, with data for the game from the Meiji chocoball SD figures' packaging.

Notes

• Deaspider is one of 22 figures that were advertised on multiple Transformers-era materials but not actually released in that iteration of the line.
• Deaspider's name is a combination of "death" (デス) and "spider" (スパイダー); it could also be Romanized "Deathpider" as the /th/ sound doesn't exist in Japanese and is usually replaced with the /s/ sound. "Deaspider" is the official Romanization as seen in the image atop this page.
• His 1988 bio card gives him the nickname "Deaspa" (デスパ Desupa), and notes that he was born in the mountain forests of North Snarl... but not which country in specific said mountains are in. Presumably these mountains are in Hogland, given that virtually every beast rules the land they were born in, but still.

Foreign names

• English: Webslinger Spider