Empty

The Empties are unaligned Transformers from the Generation 1 continuity family.

Telus, Rotorbolt, and their buddy are typical Empties.

Millions of years of war and oppression have taken their toll on Cybertronian civilization. The Empties are inhabitants of the Dead End section of the Decepticon-controlled province of Polyhex who barely manage to eke out a meager existence under such hardship. Fuel is hard to come by for the Empties, and by the looks of their condition, spare parts even harder.

“	If you want to thank me, you'll crawl back into your hole, pal. I've got better things to do than save the rusty hides of robo-wretches like you! Clear the road, wrecks. I'm on important business!	”
—Blaster and Scrounge express what is apparently typical heroic Autobot concern for their fellow Cybertronians.

Fiction

Marvel Generation 1 comics

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

The Predacons often hunted Empties to practice their skills. Prey! Some of the Empties in Polyhex included Wheezel, Telus, Rotorbolt, and their unnamed buddy.

The Decepticons, under the leadership of Straxus, had little regard for any Transformers that were not useful in advancing the Decepticon cause. Those deemed burdensome to the dwindling fuel supply were targeted for recycling into raw materials in the smelting pool. The Empties were high on that list. The Smelting Pool!

When Megatron blew up the space bridge in an apparent suicide, Gone but Not Forgotten! the force of the explosion actually flung his severely damaged body through the bridge and into Dead End. He spent some weeks or months offline and unnoticed until his internal repair systems fixed his systems enough for him to regain consciousness. However, his mind was far from mended and he wandered through Dead End as an Empty himself, babbling incoherently. The sight of two Autobots wearing insignias snapped him out of it. The Resurrection Gambit!

Dreamwave Generation 1 comics

Trip-Up called the Race Track Patrol a bunch of Empties when he and his team bumped into them in the Wastelands. Destined for Nothing

Starscream compared Skywarp's and Thundercracker's involuntary inactivity to the lazy behaviour of Empties. Revelation

Wings Universe

The Coming Storm: Part 5

IDW Generation 1 comics

Before the war, Ratchet had a medical center set up in the Dead End for the purpose of helping Empties, while Sonic and Boom were instead paid to attack the poor 'bots. Post Hoc It would seem their employer was the Institute, who used Empties as guinea pigs for their experiments, seeing as how nobody would miss them and all. Patternism