Latolata

This article is about the Japanese Blentron. For his nigh-visually-identical American Fuzor counterpart, see Injector (BW).

Latolata is a Blentron from the Beast Wars Neo portion of the Generation 1 continuity family.

It's spelled ラートラータ, but it's pronounced "Throatwobbler Mangrove".

Out of his Blentron brethren, Latolata (ラートラータ Rātorāta, aka Rartorata) is the most cruel servitor of Unicron. Easily the most vicious of the Blentron trio, Latolata is ready to sacrifice anything, even his team-mates Elphaorpha and Drancron, to accomplish his mission.

Besides transforming into a hideous lionfish/hornet monster, Latolata carries the rapid-firing "Poison Arrow", which does as its name implies, and scatters the deadly "Dust Hornet", a numbing powder, from his wings. Both are quite effective for his deadly assassinations. Sometimes there are lots of him.

Fiction

Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity

Beast Wars Neo cartoon

Voice actor: Nobuyuki Saitō (Japanese)

Beast Wars Neo manga

Latolata, like the other Blentrons, was produced in mass numbers by Unicron in his "Black Ball" form, and were sent out to seek Angolmois Capsules. One of the planets they attacked was Jörmungandr, where they exterminated most of the population but were unable to find the Angolmois Capsule there.

When Magmatron's troops dwindled, the Black Ball, who was manipulating the Maximals and the Predacons to gather the Angolmois Energy, offered its Blentrons as replacements. A Battle Fought Alone With the Blentrons, Magmatron set up a trap at an amphitheater floating in Cybertron orbit for the Maximals. When the trap was sprung and Big Convoy was forced to give up the Angolmois Capsules to save his underlings, a Latolata subsequently backstabbed Magmatron, revealing the Blentrons' true allegiance to Unicron! When six capsules were consumed by the Black Ball, Unicron revealed himself, but admitted that he was incomplete without the Angolmois Energy found in both Magmatron and Big Convoy. The Blentrons were sicced on the two, but were all defeated by Big Convoy and Magmatron on their way to attack Unicron himself. Double Cross

After Unicron acquired the Angolmois Energy he needed from Magmatron and obtained Cybertron as a new body, he was lured to the Georgian system by the Maximals. There, Unicron was trapped by crowded and exploding planets. The Maximals picked the opportunity to attack, but Unicron spat out another Blentron army to confront the Maximals. They were held at bay by the Maximals, allowing Big Convoy to make the final strike on Unicron. Return to Zero

IDW Beast Wars comics

But I don't want to go to Earth. I'll miss all my soaps.

In the wake of Unicron's last attempt at eating Cybertron, the hidden cells of cultists continued to operate in secret. As the dead god's consciousness called out to his scattered followers, Rartorata was chosen to be reformatted into a Blendtron. Joining with former construction bot Elephorca and ex-gladiator Drancron, he was instructed by the Chaos Bringer to help gather malcontents to the warlord Shokaract. Beast Wars Sourcebook #3

Flattering their "leader" and offering him capsules of Angolmois, the Blendtrons convinced Shokaract they were facilitating his ascension to the pantheon of Dark Gods that spawned Unicron himself. As his Anti-Matrix filled, he would be transfigured and Cybertron would be remade in his image. The Ascending #1 However, they were in secret agents of Unicron, seeking only to use Shokaract as a "vessel" for the resurrection of their true patron.

mY liFE iS PaIn.

Rartorata was dispatched by Unicron to Earth to deal with the possible threat of the gathered Maximal and Predacon troops, and upon arriving immediately stung Razorbeast, turning him into a raging feral animal. The Ascending #2 Subdued by the combined Maximal and Predacon forces, Rartorata was freed when his fellow Blendtrons arrived. Razorbeast told his allies to flee as he charged in to take on the immense Blendtron. The Ascending #3 Rartorata was ultimately destroyed when Lazorbeak and Spittor impaled Drancron on his stinger, causing a volatile Angolmois reaction that eradicated them all. The Ascending #4

2005 IDW continuity

Latolata was one of Onyx Prime's Maximals. When the Maximals invaded Cybertron, he was one of the many warriors who wound up battling Arcee. Unforgivable

Toys

Beast Wars Neo

File:InjectorRobot.jpg

Lion! Tora! Cheetah! RaTo RaTah RaTora-Tah!

• Latolata (Deluxe Blentron, 1999)
  • Japanese ID number: X-6
  • Accessories: Spring-loaded "ceremonial rapid-fire poison arrow launcher", "Poison Arrow"

Latolata is a barely-altered redeco of the Beast Wars Deluxe Fuzor Injector, transforming into a hornet-lionfish fusion. Pressing down on a plate on the back of his head in either mode tilts it forward and deploys spring-loaded spines on his skull. His beast mode stinger detaches to form a spring loaded missile launcher (the aforementioned "ceremonial rapid-fire poison arrow launcher").

Basically, the only differences between Latolata and Injector are that Latolata has a lighter, charcoal gray plastic instead of Injector's black, plus his rubsign uses the Blentron insignia rather than the Predacon one.

• More information on Latolata at TFU.info

Notes

• Over the years, there were many attempts to romanize this character's name, as its etymology was very unclear. In 2007, the IDW Beast Wars comics chose to romanize it as "Rartorata", likely because it was previously used by Ben Yee for his media. Reading the character's bio included with the toy appears to reveal the answer: the lionfish half is specifically referred to as minokasago (ミノカサゴ), the Japanese word for the Luna lionfish, whose scientific name is Pterois lunulata. Thus, "Latolata" or a variation thereof would be closer to the intention.