Scourge (G1)

The name or term "Scourge" refers to more than one character or idea. For a list of other meanings, see Scourge (disambiguation).

Scourge is a Decepticon from the Generation 1 continuity family.

File:Scourgeg1tm.jpg

Looks just like daddy.

Scourge is Galvatron's implacable tracker and leader of his own cadré of huntsmen, the deadly Sweeps. He was created by Unicron from the remains of a dead Decepticon. Immensely powerful like all the Unicronian Decepticons, arrogance is his only true weakness. Despite being quite powerful in his own right, Scourge generally acts as a near subordinate to Cyclonus, and, despite his leadership of the Sweeps, is generally content to take orders from others. Scourge tends to grumble and complain a bit (a habit sometimes shared by his Sweeps).

But then again, you'd also complain if your boss spent so much time beating you up, wouldn't you? His Targetmaster partner is Fracas.

“

What kind of Decepticon are you, ugly?

”

“	The ultimate kind!	”
—Kup and Scourge, "The Burden Hardest to Bear"

In most timelines Scourge is a creation of Unicron as described above, but there are exceptions where his origin is seemingly unconnected to Unicron, Galvatron, or Cyclonus.

French-Canadian name: Fléo (derived from fléau, meaning "Plague")

Italian name: Sheriff

Hungarian name: Ostor ("Whip")

Hungarian name (1st Movie dub): Korbács ("Scourge")

Czech name: Bič ("Whip")

Chinese name (Taiwan): Tīen-chǐen (天譴, "Scourge")

Chinese name (China): Wenyi (瘟疫, "Plague")

Fiction

Cartoon continuity

Generation 1 cartoon

Voice actors: Stan Jones (English); Yutaka Shimaka → Masaharu Satō (Japanese)

File:G1Scourge.jpg

Van-Dyck of destruction.

Following the Battle of Autobot City in 2005, Scourge was created from the remains of Thundercracker by Unicron. Scourge was designated commander of his legion of huntsmen, the Sweeps, and traveled with his new leader, Galvatron, back to Cybertron. Galvatron, Scourge and Cyclonus then returned to Autobot City and sent the remaining Autobots fleeing into outer space.

After blasting their ship, the Decepticons believed the Autobots dead. Unicron sent a painful message to Galvatron, informing him he was wrong. Galvatron argued the point until Scourge reminded his leader "we belong to him". The Decepticons then tracked the Autobots to the Planet of Junk where Scourge and the Sweeps dismembered Ultra Magnus and stole the Matrix of Leadership. Unicron learned of Galvatron's intended rebellion and attacked Cybertron. Whether Scourge, who was vocally loyal to Unicron, fought to protect Cybertron is unknown. The Transformers: The Movie

After the Decepticons were sent packing to Chaar, Cyclonus and Scourge went on an expedition to track down their lost leader, Galvatron, who hadn't been seen since Unicron went kablooey. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 1 They found Galvatron soaking in a lava pit on Thrull, and much to their disappointment, discovered their leader had gone totally nuts. Galvatron was set to plow his way through his minions before Scourge took to bended knee and appealed to Galvatron's ego to stop. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 2 Scourge and Cyclonus took their leader back to Chaar to command the Decepticon army, only to find the planet all but deserted. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 3 It turned out that the other Decepticons had allied with the Quintessons, which after some negotiation led to a Decepticon-Quintesson joint attack on Cybertron. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4 Scourge participated in this attack, but the Decepticons were eventually driven away. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 5

Scourge and his Sweeps were working with Galvatron and Cyclonus to hunt Rodimus Prime, when they came across the Autobot Mausoleum in deep space. Infiltrating the space barge, they continued their attack on the Autobots until Optimus Prime himself rose from the grave to fight back. Scourge and his huntsmen fled before the former Autobot leader, forcing Galvatron and Cyclonus to withdraw as well. Dark Awakening

Scourge and Cyclonus were hunting the Aerialbot called Air Raid for sport, but were caught in an ambush when the other Aerialbots jumped them in an asteroid field. The two Decepticons fled through a nearby vortex and crashed on the peaceful planet known as Paradron. Finding the world rich with energon resources, Scourge and Cyclonus immediately alerted Galvatron to their find and began to plunder the world of energy. Fight or Flee

When Octane took Trypticon to Carbombya without permission, Scourge came with Galvatron and the other Decepticons to chastise the fueler for disobedience. His discovery of super-energon made from Carbombyan oil temporarily assuaged Galvatron's anger, but once the Decepticons were forced out of Carbombya by the Autobots, Galvatron expelled Octane as a traitor to the cause. Thief in the Night Sometime later, Scourge was hunting Octane on Cybertron with Cyclonus and the Sweeps, when their prey fled underground into the Decepticon Crypt. Scourge would prove to be a very poor leader, with his followers, the Sweeps, refusing his order to follow Octane below (though they were scared to death of Cyclonus). Starscream's Ghost

Surprise Party

He was later possessed by the disembodied ghost of Starscream, though this eventually became a mutual partnership. Starscream intended to help Unicron turn Cybertron into his new body in exchange for a new body of his own. Scourge began to have second thoughts about this until Unicron reminded him that "what I have given you, I can also take away". Scourge eventually left Unicron and rejoined the Decepticons. Why Galvatron accepted his return instead of, oh...reducing him to composite particles is unknown. Ghost in the Machine

Webworld

The Big Broadcast of 2006

After Predaking detected a Quintesson transmission, Scourge joined a Decepticon party in attempting to retrieve the secrets of the Quintessons' journal, but ultimately lost out to the Autobots. The Quintesson Journal

The Dweller in the Depths

While searching for a new source of anti-electrons, the Decepticons attempted to raid Unicron's brain. Galvatron and the Terrorcons occupied the Autobots while Scourge and Cyclonus went after the prize. They found a flask of anti-electrons just waiting to be drained, but upset Unicron in the process and were blasted by his internal defenses. Grimlock's New Brain

If that's "the touch," you don't want to get it!

At one point, Autobot commander Rodimus Prime was separated from the Matrix of Leadership by Galvatron. Galvatron, who was haunted by the spirits within it, instructed Scourge to dispose of the Matrix. Scourge decided to use the power of the Matrix to his advantage and installed it within his chest. Very bad idea. The Matrix proved incompatible with Decepticon programming, causing Scourge to morph into a hideous freak with the power driving him mad. Scourge attempted to seize control of the Decepticons until Hot Rod took back the Matrix. Scourge was left at the mercy of a very unhappy Galvatron, but somehow beat the reaper yet again. The Burden Hardest to Bear

The Return of Optimus Prime, Part 1 The Return of Optimus Prime, Part 2

In 2007, the Decepticons stole the key to the Plasma Energy Chamber on Cybertron, and Scourge was set with infiltrating the chamber whilst the other Decepticons performed a full-scale assault on the planet as a diversion. He succeeded, but inserting the key into the chamber led to a plasma energy burst that very nearly killed him. He was saved by an energon infusion from Cyclonus, and was subsequently sent to find the Autobots who had taken the key back while Scourge was unconscious. Together with Cyclonus, Slugslinger, Triggerhappy and Misfire, Scourge tracked the Autobots to Nebulon. The Rebirth, Part 1

After clashing with the brand new Autobot Headmasters and losing badly, Scourge and the others were kidnapped by the Nebulon group known as the Hive, who offered to binary-bond with the Decepticons and increase their power. Scourge chose to become a Targetmaster, getting the loud Nebulan Fracas as his partner, and the Decepticon Headmasters and Targetmasters subsequently attacked and defeated the Autobots. Scourge got the key to the Plasma Energy Chamber back and voiced his desire to destroy the Autobots completely before moving on, only for Fracas to threaten to shoot him unless the Decepticons went back to the Hive as soon as possible. Unfortunately, the Autobots copied their Targetmaster technology and went back into battle, and Arcee managed to knock Scourge down and steal the key back. The Rebirth, Part 2 The Rebirth, Part 3

The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers

The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers #1 The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers #5

The Great Transformer War

The Great Transformer War #3

The Headmasters cartoon

Both Scourge's and Cyclonus' intelligence seemed to have evaporated by the year 2011, leaving Galvatron's once right-hand men nothing but a pair of bumbling oafs.

The Mystery of Planet Master Rebellion on Planet Beast Approach of the Demon Meteorite The Four-Million-Year-Old Veil of Mystery

At one point they attempted to prove their worth by stealing Trypticon and using him to hunt down a mysterious Six Changer. However, that plan failed miserably when that Six Changer turned out to be their own ally, Sixshot. Both Scourge and Cyclonus ditched Trypticon in battle, leading to the Decepticon city's destruction (though he was eventually repaired). Scourge and Cyclonus did little of anything noteworthy after this. Terror! The Six Shadows

The Shadow Emperor, Scorponok The Dormant Volcano Mysteriously Erupts Explosion on Mars!! Maximus Is in Danger Return of the Immortal Emperor SOS from Planet Sandra The Emperor of Destruction Vanishes on an Iceberg

Marvel Comics continuity

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

"I CAN'T GET OUT OF THIS CONFOUNDED MAZE!!"

Following Unicron's consumption of Cybertron's moons, Galvatron, Cyclonus and Scourge traveled back in time from 2006 to 1986 as part of a plan to free themselves from Unicron's control by constructing a massive cannon that would destroy him upon their return to the future. The three Unicronian Decepticons proved themselves almost invincible in the face of the Autobots' attacks, though a lucky shot destroyed Scourge's weapon after he had incapacitated Trailbreaker, and Scourge was relatively weaponless (most of his weapons could only be used in vehicle mode). Though he also took down Grapple, Megatron managed to down Scourge and use him as a barganing chip. The future Decepticons were finally defeated when Galvatron was duped into believing he was trapped in a temporal paradox, and returned to his own time to live out the remaining events of 2006. Target: 2006

2006 was the original date for the movie, amended to 2005 after the production of a treatment which was the only available research when the comics were penned.

"Yeouch!! That's my secret weakness you're pulling at, Cyclonus!"

Following the destruction of Unicron at the hands of Rodimus Prime and the Matrix, Galvatron transported himself back in time to 1987, leaving Cyclonus and Scourge in the future, under Shockwave’s command. The duo were attacked by the freelance peace-keeping agent, Death's Head, who was seeking the bounty on Galvatron’s head, and Cyclonus revealed Galvatron’s whereabouts to him. Wanted:Galvatron — Dead or Alive! Later, Shockwave hired Death’s Head to kill Rodimus Prime, but Cyclonus and Scourge interfered with the job as they sought to kill Rodimus first, in order to reclaim their lost standing amongst the Decepticons. Headhunt This did not please Death’s Head, and consequently, he willingly accepted a contract from Rodimus to hunt down Cyclonus and Scourge, eventually tracking them down to the planet of Junk as 2008 dawned. Before he could finish the job, however, all three of them fell under the mind-controlling influence of Unicron, whose disembodied head had survived the destruction of his body and had landed on the planet, where he was having the native Junkions construct a new body for him.

Under Unicron's control, Cyclonus and Scourge killed Shockwave and became Decepticon leaders, reigniting the stalemated Cybertronian war to a furious degree to cover Unicron's actions. Death's Head, however, was able to fight the mind control and work with the Autobots long enough to stop the chaos-bringer's plan. As explosions destroyed Unicron, Death's Head tackled Cyclonus and Scourge, pushing them through a time portal Unicron had built, promising to kill them another time. The two Decepticons were hurled into the past of Cybertron by the portal, where they came under the command of Scorponok. The Legacy of Unicron!

"I just don't get why we never do anything but attack Qatari villages, that's all."
"SHUT UP AND KEEP FIRING!"

Traveling to Nebulos with the rest of Scorponok's forces, they became Targetmasters and then traveled to present day (1988) Earth. Brothers in Armor!! Once there, they sought out Galvatron, and, no longer willing to serve him, instead demanded that he hand over his time travel device so that they could return to the future and their position as Decepticon leaders. The confrontation was disrupted by the sudden appearance of the Autobot commando squad, the Wreckers, who drew the ensuing battle away from the human settlement it was taking place in by professing to have stolen Galvatron's time jump mechanism, when in reality, the Decepticon no longer even had it for them to take. Wrecking Havoc

Having met with failure again, Cyclonus and Scourge decided to cut their losses and team up with Shockwave's present-day Earth-based Decepticon forces.

At this point in time, the comic book personalities of Scourge and Cyclonus had been well-established, and distinctly different from the cartoon—here, Scourge was the intelligent, scheming brains of the duo, while Cyclonus was the dull-witted brawn, and that personality trait remained as strong as ever.

"Cyclonus, remember that thing that we absolutely, positively, definitely shouldn't say to Shockwave?"
"Yep."
"You're sure?"
"Yep."
"You're not going to mention it at all, are you?"
"Nope."

Unfortunately, Cyclonus accidentally let slip that they would kill Shockwave in the future. Naturally wanting to ensure his continued existence, Shockwave unleashed a brainwashed Megatron clone upon the two. As Megatron killed Nightstick and grappled with Cyclonus, Scourge took aim at the clone...but stopped. He realized that killing Megatron in 1988 would likely prevent Galvatron's creation in 2006, and possibly his own as well. Unwilling to take the chance, he abandoned his comrade and fled. Dry Run!

"Oh no!! I've told Shockwave about me and Cyclonus killing him. Should I kill him? I... can't... resist..."

Cyclonus and Scourge’s displacement into the past had circumvented the normal mass-replacement method used by time-travel, and had hence unbalanced the space-time continuum, causing a rift to appear in the fabric of space and time. Cyclonus' death, eighteen years before he was even created, proved to be the final straw, accelerating the rift, which soon threatened to consume Earth and Cybertron. Realizing that the only way to stop it was to return himself, Galvatron and Cyclonus to their original time, Scourge attempted to recover Cyclonus’ body from Shockwave, only to be attacked by the deranged Decepticon, who had lost his mind due to the illogical nature of the situation, and had strung Cyclonus' remains up like a twisted trophy. Scourge staggered back to the time rift and allowed it to take him, hoping that that would have some effect on the situation. It didn't. Ravage, however, succeeded where Scourge had failed, and was able to bring Shockwave back sanity enough for him to deposit Cyclonus’ remains after Galvatron and Scourge, and then seal it with an x-ray blast. Scourge was not seen again after this, and it is unknown exactly what happened to Scourge after he entered the rift. Time Wars

In the alternate future of 2006, Scourge participated in a battle on Junkion where he was tossed around by Omega Supreme and misidentified as "Sweeps" by Ultra Magnus. He later agreed with Cyclonus who said Junkion should be off-limits to Decepticons. The Big Broadcast of 2006 (US)

In the UK version of the story, the events of "The Big Broadcast of 2006" are a fabrication invented by Wreck-Gar.

The deadliest bathtub in the skies.

An alternate version of Scourge later made a brief appearance, inhabiting an alternate future world of 2009 where Cybertron had been destroyed and Galvatron ruled Earth. With only seven Autobots left alive, Scourge battled Getaway, Chainclaw and Guzzle during the Autobots' last desperate raid on the Decepticon Powerbase. He was killed off-panel by the combined might of these warriors. Rhythms of Darkness!

Dreamwave Generation One comics

Millions of years ago, as Unicron entered a stage of hibernation, the first wave of his herald drone fleet was launched to scour the galaxy, looking for Cybertron. The Alpha done designated Scourge managed to find Cybertron during the Great Shutdown, an enforced shutdown of all Transformers on the planet., and managed to reactivate Shockwave for the purpose of observing the Decepticon from afar. Generation One issue 0 However, Shockwave was soon attacked by the Quintesson Sharkticon extermination units left behind on this world. Forced to intervene, Scourge easily destroyed a number of Sharkticons and drove off the rest, saving Shockwave's life. Cold War As a way a saying thank you, Shockwave shot Scourge in the back, took him prisoner, dissected him and studied the Unicronian Transformer, gaining great knowledge of Cybertron's origin and its inhabitants. Generation One issue 0

Shockwave has a very weird sense of gratitude.

Scourge (or another drone like him) escaped to Earth and attacked Jetfire and Omega Supreme's shuttle just as it arrived on its mission to search for the missing Ark. Tricking the drone into pursuing an escape pod, Jetfire managed to shutdown the advanced Transformer's systems and was dragging him back to their crashed ship when they were both buried in an avalanche. Original Sin

Thousands of years later, the Autobots were drawn to the Alaskan shore, right into a trap set by the Decepticons. The Autobots fought desperately to keep the Autobot escape pod out of Megatron's hands, and during the fighting, it was inadvertently activated. Just as the Autobots gained the upper hand, Scourge ordered the combatants to stand down, informing them that the war was over, the factionalism that had divided their race had ended, and Cybertron was now unified under a new leader. Before he could speak further, Shockwave shot him in the back, declaring both Autobots and Decepticons to be war criminals. New World Order

Evidently Shockwave never bothered to recover Scourge's body, as he was retrieved by the Earth Defense Command and taken to their secret base for reverse-engineering. Unfortunately for the humans, Scourge was such an advanced Cybertronian that they were having serious problems figuring out his systems. Cold War EDC were still working on Scourge when Marissa Faireborn enlisted the aid of the Autobots under Jazz's command in investigating the mystery of San Desto. Infestation

With the bankruptcy of Dreamwave Productions, Scourge's story arc was never completed. Had Dreamwave's comics continued, Scourge would've been rescued from the EDC facility by Cyclonus.

Dreamwave Armada comics

A version of Scourge served as one of Unicron's heralds, along with versions of Thunderwing, Bludgeon, Dirge, and Galvatron. Worlds Collide, Part 1 of 4 He was blown up when Jetfire detonated the Decepticon headquarters that they had taken over. Worlds Collide, Part 4 of 4

G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers

Whlist serving under Shockwave on Cybertron, Scourge and Cyclonus were shocked when one of their Decepticon comrades was suddenly teleported across space and time by Teletran 3. G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II issue 1 Shortly afterwards, he and many other flying Decepticons gathered around the computer and waited for Ultra Magnus's force field to go down. G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II issue 2

In a dystopian future where the Decepticons had conquered Earth, Scourge and his Sweeps patrolled the ruins of New York City. They attacked a team of Joes and Cobras who arrived from the past, but were chased off by the Dreadnoks. G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II issue 3

While this future was eventually averted, Scourge and the Sweeps were later seen in the present, as part of Serpent O.R.'s forces on Cybertron. They fought back against a major Autobot/G.I. Joe assault on Serpent O.R.'s headquarters. The Art of War issue 5

Hearts of Steel

Red Zeppelin

While traveling in the Astrotrain convoy, Scourge transformed into a blimp (with a familiar-shaped gondola) and dropped bombs on the Autobot freight. Sideswipe (or possibly Ironhide) popped his airbag, causing him to crash, then explode. Hearts of Steel #4

There is no sign of Galvatron nor Unicron in the story, and thus Scourge's origin may be quite different from that in mainstream G1 continuities.

IDW comics continuity

This section covers fiction that is ongoing. It will be added to as the story progresses. If it isn't current, you can help by updating it.

Scourge was one of the crew from the original Ark, which was lost in the Benzuli Expanse and ended up in the Dead Universe. All Hail Megatron #14

While accusing Megatron of having no plan or goal beyond the conquest of Earth, Starscream wondered aloud who might be the Decepticon to take action, and suggested Scourge as a possibility. All Hail Megatron #6

It is not known why or how Starscream and Megatron knew of the ancient Cybertronian who isn't even a Decepticon.

After the failure of the Expansion, Cyclonus gathered the remains of his comrades on Gorlam Prime and prepared to melt them down as a warrior's burial. Scourge was barely alive, and Cyclonus sadly said this was the last thing he could do for him. However, Galvatron emerged from the solar pool and blasted Scourge and the others. Though Cyclonus thought him crazy, Galvatron explained the Darkness would not let Scourge die. Scourge recovered, and Galvatron again flung him into the slag, from which he emerged in pain but fully restored. Soon, the other warriors were transformed into clones of Scourge (though Galvatron complained they should have been made in his image). The clones, known as the Sweeps, were bonded to Scourge, who was to keep them in line. Scourge asked Cyclonus what they should do, and Cyclonus responded that as Seekers, they should follow Galvatron's bidding. All Hail Megatron #14

Timelines

Cyclonus, Scourge and the Sweeps surrounded an Autobot shuttle during a surprise attack. They lost track of the shuttle when it disappeared into a nebula. Wings of Honor

Toys

Generation 1

Where are my bat wings and my claws?

• Scourge (Decepticon Jet, 1986)
  • Japanese ID number: D-71
  • Accessories: "Disintegrator Ray", "Laser Blaster"

Scourge has a beard and a mustache moulded onto his face sculpt. It's important to mention this straight-up because it's nearly unique in Generation 1 (and Transformers in general). There are some other arguable cases of facial hair, but Scourge is certainly the only toy in Generation with a beard that's definitely meant to be one by design.

He transforms into a Cybertronic hovercraft. On early releases, the blue on the center of Scourge's alt mode was paint. This was changed to two stickers for later releases. The stickers on his ankles tend to get damaged through normal transformation.

Scourge's design has some oddities to it other than just him being a beardo. His head mounted gun (the "Disintegrator Ray") is on a standardised 5mm post hole, but his fist holes are smaller -- so his Laser Blaster and Disintegrator ray aren't interchangeable. Scourge also has knees. He's got no reason to have knees, they're not part of his transformation or really useful for anything, but he still has them. Maybe he could use them for flying poses in robot mode. Maybe.

Some releases of Scourge came with a piece of a four-part The Transformers: The Movie poster with glow-in-the-dark elements.

• More information on Scourge at TFU.info

• Scourge (Targetmaster, 1987)
  • Accessories: "Fracas" Targetmaster "Incendiary Cannon", "Rocket Booster"

A retool of the original Scourge toy, Targetmaster Scourge's hand-holes and head hole were widened, as was the peg for his "Rocket Booster" (the same piece called a "Disintegrator Ray" in the previous version). His handgun was replaced with Fracas.

• More information on Targetmaster Scourge at TFU.info

Titanium Series

Accept no imitations.

• Scourge (6-inch Cybertron Heroes, 2006)

Scourge once again transforms into a retro-futuristic hovercraft, this time with a more accurate sculpt to his animation model (well, minus the head) and significantly improved articulation. While not 100% accurate, the wings in particular are now hinged in the middle to allow them to open wider, and the legs have a much more closely detailed design. But man does he have a big forehead.

• More information on Titanium Scourge at TFU.info

Timelines

Oh, all you Unicron agents look alike!

• Wings of Honor (multipack, 2009)
• Accessories: 2 wings/blades (left and right), red cyber key

A retool of Cybertron Sideways, Scourge is a blue and white alien spacefighter with Cyber Planet Key-activated pop-out blades built into his battle shield. He comes with a red Planet X style Cyber Planet Key with blue deco. Sadly, the faction symbol-swapping gimmick has been neglected. Scourge was only available as part of a multi-pack at BotCon 2009.

This toy was redecoed to make Sweeps Two, Six and Seven for the same convention. The original version of this mold was also used for the Japanese DVD-exclusive Noisemaze Mass-Production Version and Universe Ratbat.

• More information on Scourge at TFU.info

Notes

• It's not known how much (if any) communication there was between Marvel's US office and the UK offices where Simon Furman was churning out his behind-the-scenes stories, but regardless, Cyclonus and Scourge completely disappeared from the US book after Headmasters—leaving Furman free to send them off to find Galvatron. Wrecking Havoc
• For some reason, Scourge's head-mounted cannon was implied to not be a cannon in the comics, as the loss of a handgun in "Target: 2006" apparently left Scourge completely weaponless in robot mode, making transformation a complete necessity.
• A close examination of Scourge's character model (both final and early versions) reveal that his animation model transforms somewhat backwards from the way any toy representation does. Whereas the toys have the upward-facing torso concealed fully within the wings, the animation model actually has nearly all of the chest and body front details visible on the underside of the vehicle mode. This further implies that the robot head twists 180 degrees and folds backwards to complete formation of the vehicle mode rather than just staring at his own chest.

External links

• Scourge at TFU.info
• Scourge's Universe profile at NTFA.net