Strong Panda

Strong Panda is a Beastformer or Maximal from the Beastformers portion of the Generation 1 continuity family.

Strong Panda (ストロングパンダ Sutorongu Panda), or just Panda (パンダ), is one of the Autobot Beastformers fighting a war on the planet Beast. He was born in the East Yutoranta Steppe. Warm and gentle, his desire to be of use to people led him to study medicine, and thus his role in the Autobot Beastformer forces is a combat medic. He also holds the rank of King of East Yutoranta over Emperor Razorkukku. Why a King is out on the battlefield acting as a medic isn't explained, but maybe that's just proof of how nice he is. Through training he has developed the supernatural ability to heal people with a touch, and he is further empowered by his Strong Aid, an MVP Weapon that emits "life energy" from space that mends injuries and cures diseases. It can also be used offensively to temporarily take away an enemy's life energy.

Fiction

Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity

Beastformers comic

Strong Panda attended Bluehorse's funeral and fought in the war with the Laser Beasts, during which he was seen resting against the Red Phoenix after some exhausting battle. Beastformers VS Laser Beasts

Legends comic

In 2038, the then-peaceful Beast was invaded by Galvatron II's Decepticons. Strong Panda was part of the joint Beastformer-Laser Beast alliance that fought against the invaders. The Road to Legends' Revival Chapter 3

Beast Wars: Uprising

When the Beast Upgrade spread across Cybertron, the Maximal Panzer adopted an ursanokor alternate mode. After the war with the Builders and the Vehicon Apocalypse, Panzer was a medic at Lifeline Memorial Hospital in Stanix. He attended the fallen Lio Convoy as he recovered from a combination of cyber venom and the nano-plague. Derailment

Toys

Transformers: Beastformers

He once offered up his own son's hand in marriage for an okinomiyaki cart.

• Strong Panda (Beastformer, 1987)
  • Beast ID number: 53
  • Accessories: Sword

Part of the third series of Takara's Beastformers toys, Strong Panda is an anthopomorphic giant panda in white robotic armor. The rubsign on his chest reveals one of three symbols; Fire, Water or Wood.

He came in a green-grid generic "Cybertron Beastformer" box, with a bio card with a line-art character image first used in Hasbro's Battle Beasts cast poster (rather than the painted images of the prior two series). Depending on the "Pack" he came in, there was a chance of his bio card being replaced with a rare "Secret Photo", "Bewitching Serpent Seal", or "VS Holography Mirror" card.

Beastformers

• Strong Panda (Beastformer, 1988)
  • Beast ID number: 53
  • Accessories: "Strong Aid" MVP Weapon

Re-released in the Transformers-less Beastformers sequel series, Strong Panda was given a straight re-release with new packaging and a new, more filled-out bio card with corrected coloring. This new card also gave his weapon, now branded an "MVP Weapon", the name "Strong Aid" (ストロングエイド Sutorongu Eido).

He was sold in two similar-but-different styles of boxes. One wholly-generic version, sold in large display boxes like the Transformers releases, advertised the chance for the included bio card to instead be a rare holofoil card of White Leo with a "Burstsun" rubsign in a baggie taped to the back, so you could apply it to the Beastformer of your choice. The more common version has a slightly different box with a peg-hole in the top flap, and has a sticker on the bottom with his name and role on it.

Late in the run, the "mood ring" styled rubsigns were replaced with new rubsigns that revealed full-color Fire/Wood/Water images on black backdrops. (These rubsign variants also happened at the same time in the Hasbro Battle Beast version of the line.)

Notes

Foreign names

• English: Panzer Panda