Duocon

The Duocons are a Decepticon subgroup from the Generation 1 continuity family.

"No, it's easy. Look, I've been practicing: I made a heli-truck."

The Duocons, Battletrap and Flywheels, are unique in that their robot modes are formed from the combination of two separate vehicles that have no other transformation.

Fiction

Marvel Comics continuity

Marvel The Transformers comics

In this continuity, they function as Triple Changers, changing between modes without splitting.

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

Flywheels and Battletrap were Decepticon troopers stationed in Tyrest on Cybertron. City of Fear! Later, they joined the Mayhem Attack Squad in time for their disastrous assault on Galvatron and Megatron. They both apparently died during that battle. Time Wars

Battletrap was among Bludgeon's troops in the days after the coming of Unicron. He got bashed around by Optimus Prime on Klo, but didn't die. End of the Road!

Marvel Generation 2 comic

Battletrap took a beating during an encounter with the latter-generation Cybertronians, and Starscream helped him off the battlefield. New Dawn

The Transformers cartoon

Although Flywheels never appears in an actual episode of The Transformers, he can be seen in the title sequence for season 4. The title sequence recycled animation from the Duocons toy commercial.

The Headmasters cartoon

The Duocons were under the command of Scorponok, who first sent them into battle when the Autobots and Decepticons were fighting over a disk containing data on the Master Sword. Their separate vehicle forms overwhelmed the Autobot Targetmasters, and Battletrap eventually made off with the disk. The Master Sword Is in Danger!! Shortly afterwards, the Duocons helped defend Scorponok as he used the data to create the Zarak Shield. The Zarak Shield Turns the Tide Battletrap later participated in a battle on the planet Master, concealing himself in a cloud while blasting away at Kirk and his troops. Operation: Destroy the Decepticons

Scorponok later ordered the Duocons to plant a bomb on the asteroid Juno, so that he could destroy the Autobot Chromedome and the insubordinate Sixshot during their duel on the asteroid. Duel on the Asteroid The Duocons participated in the final battle against the Autobots in the Arctic, during which Battletrap almost stomped Wheelie and Daniel Witwicky to death only to be fired upon by Sixshot. When it looked like Scorponok was going to destroy the Earth, the Duocons fled into space to watch the results from afar. The Final Showdown on Earth (Part 2)

Dreamwave Generation One continuity

Shockwave experimented to create a Transformer with more than one alternate mode. While he eventually succeeded with the Triple Changers, an early step in the process resulted in the Duocons—a failure due to their consciousness being split between two vehicles. More than Meets the Eye

IDW Generation 1 continuity

In this continuity, Flywheels functioned as a Triple Changer, changing between modes without splitting, complete with kibble from one vehicle mode on the other. Battletrap has yet to play a significant role.

Ask Vector Prime

Vector Prime noted that Duocons such as Overlord possessed mitotic sparks. Ask Vector Prime, The Complete AllSpark Almanac

TransTech

Axiom Nexus News journalist Rook noted that one of Axiom Nexus's most infamous Parallel Killers, Overlord, was a Duocon, as were most of the multiverse's iterations of Battletrap. Rook - Axiom Nexus News: Investigative Journalist

Toys

Generation 1

Battletrap

Flywheels

• Duocons (1987)
  • Battletrap
  • Flywheels

The Duocons were sold in small boxed packages. They share a semi-autotransform feature. Transformation begins by lining up the tab and slot on the underside of their aerial component with the corresponding slot and tab on top of the ground component. With the two parts lined up, pushing the aircraft down causes the tabs on both parts to trip a catch in the other, releasing the springs that keep the components folded up. The aircraft essentially folds in half over the "legs" that form from part of the rear of the ground component to form the robot.

Transformation from robot to vehicles lacks any kind of automatic action. The halves of the robot are pulled apart and the nose of the aircraft is realigned with the fuselage and the leg/torso is folded down to the rear of the ground vehicle, with the moving parts being held by the spring-loaded catches.

The Duocons suffer from a complete lack of useful articulation.

The connection points make vehicles interchangeable, allowing you to create Battlewheels and Flytrap (no, not the garbage truck). This has never been acknowledged in fiction or their packaging, and one can only imagine what effect such a swap might have on their psyches.

Notes

Foreign names

• Japanese: Two-in-One (ツーインワン Tsū in Wan)