Pretender: Difference between revisions
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: The Pretender Monsters are smaller Pretenders with rubbery monster shells. Their inner robots can combine to form [[Monstructor (G1)|Monstructor]]. | : The Pretender Monsters are smaller Pretenders with rubbery monster shells. Their inner robots can combine to form [[Monstructor (G1)|Monstructor]]. | ||
{{-}}{{anchor|Double Pretenders (unreleased)}} | {{-}}{{anchor|Double Pretenders (unreleased)}} | ||
[[Image: | [[Image:DoublePretenders2.png|right|200px|thumb|...Tarantulas? Optimus Primal?]] | ||
*'''Double Pretenders''' | *'''Double Pretenders''' | ||
**Unnamed ape duo. | **Unnamed ape duo. | ||
Revision as of 04:12, 13 March 2010
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Disguise has always been a key component of Transformer operations on other worlds. Pretenders attempt to take this concept to the next level. Pretenders are Transformers fitted with special external armor shells that can disguise their very nature as robots. Rather than hiding themselves as the machinery or vehicles of a world, Pretender Shells allow a robot to take on the appearance of a native life form itself.
On top of its exploration and infiltration uses, a shell can also function as powerful battle armor, aid in self-repair, and even function independently of its robot as a second combatant mentally controlled by its "wearer". The major drawback of the technology is that the core robot will feel whatever pain is inflicted on the shell, sometimes even more strongly than pain inflicted on the robot itself.
The most common style of Pretender is an inner robot with a single humanoid shell (usually resembling a monster for Decepticons or a human in battle armor for Autobots).
Fiction
Marvel Comics continuity
Pretender technology was created by Scorponok and Lord Zarak to help their troops operate quasi-anonymously on an Earth that had become openly and publicly hostile towards giant alien robots (partially due to the influence of the Z Foundation). The idea was that giant, organic-looking alien monsters would somehow attract less attention. Strangely enough, he was right.
This technology was stolen by Optimus Prime (at the time reduced to a computerized personality) and replicated by the Autobots. The Autobots fashioned their shells after humans, with the stated rationalization that the Decepticons were rather unobservant and wouldn't notice that these humans were many stories tall. Just as strangely, they were also right. The attacking Decepticon Pretenders, encased in their giant, fleshy monster shells, were shocked when the giant, fleshy humans turned out to have Autobots inside them. Pretender to the Throne!
Pretender technology allowed Skullgrin to become first a rural legend, then a movie star. Sent to Earth to establish a fuel depot while hidden in his outer shell, he attracted the attention of a B-movie producer, who wrote him into the script of his latest feature. The giant devil-goat monster became a nationwide phenomenon. When Skullgrin revealed his true robotic nature to one of his human co-stars, however, he drew the ire of Circuit Breaker, an encounter which may have ended his movie career. Monstercon from Mars!
During the Underbase Saga, the quasi-flesh nature of the Pretenders' outer shells saved them from the energy blasts of the Underbase-possessed Starscream, even as innumerable Autobots and Decepticons were being destroyed around them. Dark Star
Pretender shells were considered a sufficiently valuable resource that Scorponok was able to offer the technology to Carnivac and Snarler as payment for an assassination job. Survivors! The job didn't go so well; even two shell-equipped Decepticons weren't enough to defeat Fortress Maximus. The Man in the Machine!
The Autobots Landmine and Cloudburst were able to make good use of their Pretender shells while on a mission to acquire spare parts for their fallen comrades. Traveling to a space station where giant humans were common but robots were unwelcome, they were able to bargain for microchips without tipping off their robotic natures. Later, when faced with seeing fellow Autobot Sky Lynx devoured by the Mecannibals, Landmine's robot form was able to attack, free Sky Lynx, and then disappear by hiding inside his own shell. The entire scheme would have gone without a hitch if not for a tip-off from Hi-Test and Throttle, alerting the Mecannibals that the two giant "humans" were in fact robots. Guess Who the Mecannibals Are Having for Dinner?
After bargaining their way free from the Mecannibals, Landmine and Cloudburst continued to make use of their shells, negotiating with the inhabitants of the planet Femax, who also just happened to be giant humans. Cloudburst almost got to experience a little giant human nookie, before revealing to the Femaxians' First One that he was a robot, and therefore not a particularly desirable mate. Recipe for Disaster!
Pretender technology showed another face when Megatron returned to power. New shells he had developed would repair and restore even the most severely damaged robots. The Resurrection Gambit! Ratchet was compelled to resurrect Starscream with this technology, but also managed to bring back Grimlock, Jazz and Bumblebee; all four now had their own Pretender shells. These new shells not only enabled disguise, but also served as great power-boosting enhancements for their wearers and allowed them to fight in two places at once. All the Familiar Faces!
Thunderwing had his mechanical Pretender shell eons ago on Cybertron, indicating that some form of the technology predated Scorponok's use of it. The Magnificent Six! Thunderwing mostly remained inside his shell, only emerging on rare occasions. The Big Shutdown!
Carnivac, meanwhile, used his shell in his initial solo assault on the Mayhem Attack Squad. When he was caught off guard, outnumbered and nearly surrounded, he sent the shell on a suicide run, allowing it to be destroyed. Wolf in the Fold! Though the feedback nearly killed him, the ruse worked, and his pursuers believed him to be dead, allowing him to regain the element of surprise. Where Wolf?
In an alternate future where Galvatron had triumphed, Pretender technology was still in use by his troops, the Pretender Monsters. These Pretenders could apparently somehow phase through their shells, without the shells having to split open like most others. Rhythms of Darkness!
Japanese cartoon continuity
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Super-God Masterforce cartoon
Eight thousand years ago, a starship containing the Autobot Pretenders Metalhawk, Lander, Diver and Phoenix pursued the Decepticon Pretenders Blood, Dauros and Gilmer to neolithic-era Earth, where they crashed. Using their Pretender abilities, the Autobots adopted the form of humans. They transformed the very structure of their bodies into an organic equivalent, shrinking down to normal human size to hide in plain sight among burgeoning Humanity. A Pretender could transform from a human in two stages. If he touched his left wrist with his right hand and yelled "suit on!" a battle suit would form over his human form, leaving only his head visible (at which point he resembled his toy's Pretender shell). If he touched his left wrist and yelled "Pretender!" he would morph and size-change into a Transformer (the toy's inner-robot).
A Pretender could become trapped in his human form if his arms are forcibly held apart so he could not touch his wrists. Heroism!! The Birth of Super Ginrai
The Decepticon Pretenders, on the other hand, adopted the forms of monstrous creatures, becoming feared as demons by early Man. After many battles, the Autobots succeeded in defeating their enemies and sealing them away—Blood in the pyramids of Egypt, Gilmer in the ruins of Atlantis, and Dauros beneath the Nazca Lines in Peru—for thousands of years.
Liberated in the near future by the mysterious Decepticon "god", Devil Z, the three Pretenders entered his service and immediately began to draw the Autobot Pretenders out of hiding, before turning their attention to a series of plans to acquire energy and to disrupt one of the three Chōkon Powers on Earth. After a string of failures, Devil Z supplanted them with his more powerful Godmaster minions, and although they would often participate in missions, their standing was downgraded and their regularity of appearance on the battlefield diminished. Eventually, they generally only served to supply comic relief, and they departed Earth with the other surviving Decepticons when Devil Z was destroyed.
Along the way, the Autobots had been joined by Grand Maximus, who was not only a Pretender, but a Headmaster as well.
Victory cartoon
Pretender technology had advanced to the point that the shells gained sentience, as seen in the shells of the Dinoforce, and could be employed simultaneously with the Transformers' robot modes.
Dreamwave comics continuity
Pretender technology was originally developed as a form of additional body armour. Pretender shells could enhance their wearer’s physical strength and resistance to damage. More advanced shell designs could shrink down to human size and enable their wearer to blend into Earth society unnoticed.
It is possible that the Pretender technology was later adapted to develop the Maximal and Predacon beast modes.
IDW comics continuity
The technology was the invention of the Decepticon Thunderwing and used living tissue painfully culled from live (and quite likely unwilling) subjects to create a powerful symbiotic, living carapace. The goal of this technology was to allow Transformers to survive an impending environmental collapse on their home planet, Cybertron. Even Megatron rejected the concept as unnatural and repulsive. The first experiences were not that encouraging. Both cases where the technology was implemented ended in disaster, as the melding of the robot's mind with the shell was improperly aligned or hastily executed. Subject one, Thunderwing, became unfathomably powerful but totally insane and destructive, ultimately rendering Cybertron too hostile for Transformer habitation. Subject two, Bludgeon, tried to rush the process and ended up comatose inside his new shell. Stormbringer
Surprisingly, Jetfire, formerly aghast at the details of what the process entailed, decided that they needed the technology to penetrate the portal at the Benzuli Expanse. Optimus Prime was a little hesitant on the subject, but Jetfire managed to convince the Autobot leader. The Autobots selected for the process were Cloudburst, Landmine, Groundbreaker, and Waverider. Spotlight: Hardhead
After a long process Spotlight: Doubledealer, the Technobots finally completed the four shells. Unlike the hideous and pseudo-organic look of Thunderwing and Bludgeon, these shells were simply large, bulky armor suits. Suiting up, Cloudburst's team were able to fight off a raging Cyclonus and took the Nega-Cores through the Expanse into the Dead Universe for disposal. The shells proved effective in combating the deadly energies of the dimension, protecting the Cybertronians within. However it was apparent that they could only do so for a limited amount of time under such harsh conditions. Spotlight: Sideswipe
Later, Prowl ordered that Jetfire's research be taken to the Kimia Facility where the scientists there (along with Perceptor) were able to create a new body for Kup, whose former body hadn't been upgraded in so long that it was incompatible with current tech. Lost & Found
Timelines
Black Shadow made good use of his Pretender-style Crossformer shell, which allowed him to simultaneously pursue Hubcap and Jackpot even as they fled in opposite directions. Rather than requiring him to operate it remotely and divide his attention, the entirely robotic shell was equipped with an artificial intelligence which allowed it to function independently, if a bit stiltedly. When Black Shadow's robot form was destroyed, the shell also ceased to function - though this may have been the work of a saboteur, rather than a feature endemic to the shell. Gone Too Far
Shattered Glass
Goldbug, Grimlock, and Jazz snuck into a Pretender laboratory. There were at least six Pretender shells, including the four Classic Pretender Shells and two Double Pretender Shells.
Also, Dirge appeared as a Pretender. Shattered Expectations
Revenge of the Fallen
Alice tried to get information from Sam Witwicky by getting close to him, but later she revealed her true nature as a Pretender.
Toys
Generation 1 (US)
- Pretenders (1988)
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- The basic Pretenders (often called the "large Pretenders" to distinguish them from the smaller toys released in 1989) are the default: a single robot with a single humanoid shell. The shells split into front and back halves. All are essentially statues, articulated only at the shoulder with swivel joints. The inner robots, by comparison, tend to be highly articulated for their time, though they are generally thin-limbed and have simplistic transformations.
- The large Pretenders were released in two waves (Cloudburst, Landmine, Waverider, Bomb-Burst, Skullgrin, and Submarauder making up the first wave, and the remainder the second). Each wave consists of an air, sea, and land themed character for each faction. There is a distinct design variation noticeable between the first and second wave Autobot Pretenders. The first wave shells feature a largely single-color "space suit" style design with the "human" heads partially concealed by the suits. The second wave had brighter, more "Power Ranger"-ish, armor suits with large animal-themed chest plates and fully-visible "human" heads.
- The second wave in general appears to have had production problems or delays; the initial 1988 catalogs omitted their photographs, showing only a "COMING SOON" silhouette (though common in Kenner's Star Wars toyline, such an unfinished "preview" was rare for Transformers); additionally, several of these toys have minor engineering problems, in the form of limbs which don't fold away completely in vehicle mode.
- The first wave of these toys was released in Japan with new names and characterizations, but otherwise unaltered. The second were never sold there.
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- The Pretender Beasts are Pretenders with quadrupedal Earth animal-based shells.
- Pretender Vehicles (1988)
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- The Pretender Vehicles are Pretenders whose shells are vehicles that transform into combat decks for their inner robots.
- Pretenders (1989)
- The 1989 Pretenders (often called the "small Pretenders") were sold carded. Like their larger 1988 brethren, the shells are articulated only at the shoulder and split front-back. Their inner robots are much more thick-limbed than the large Pretenders; they are also small, about the same size as the Mini Vehicles. A portion of each robot's alternate mode detaches and serves as a weapon or shield for the outer shell, rather than being concealed within. There has been some speculation that the designs for Longtooth and Stranglehold may have been switched between factions at some point, as the former better fits the Decepticon monster motif and the latter better matches the Autobots "human" stylings.
- Pretender Classics (1989)
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- Classic Pretenders are smaller-sized figures of 1984-85 characters, the first subline to focus on reinventing previous characters. The inner robots were also released without their shells as Kmart exclusive Legends.
- Mega Pretenders (1989)
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- Both the inner robot and the humanoid shell of the Mega Pretenders transform and can combine their alternate modes into a larger vehicle.
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- The Ultra Pretenders have two Pretender shells. The outermost shell is a large vehicle that can transform into a combat deck for the inner robot. This outermost shell contains a secondary, humanoid Pretender shell that is itself able to transform into a vehicle that can be piloted by its inner robot.
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- The Pretender Monsters are smaller Pretenders with rubbery monster shells. Their inner robots can combine to form Monstructor.
- Double Pretenders
- Unnamed ape duo.
- Unnamed spider-bandito duo.
- Prototypes for "Double Pretenders", two small robots in one shell, which splits top and bottom at the waist, were designed but never put in production.
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Generation 1 (Japan)
- The bulk of the Japanese Pretenders are exactly the same as their US counterparts. Metalhawk was an entirely new mold, however, and Grand featured a new-mold Pretender shell designed to hold the existing Cerebros mold.
- Crossformers (1989)
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- The Crossformers are the Takara counterpart to the Hasbro Mega Pretenders; the shells were remolded to be less organic.
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- The Dinoforce reuses the inner robot forms of the Pretender Monsters, but with cyborg dinosaur outer shells. The inner robots can combine to form Dinoking.
Notes
- Despite the fact that nearly all of the toys split front/back, most Marvel Comics portrayals of the Pretenders show the shells splitting down the middle.
- Transformers: The Ultimate Guide categorizes humanoid Pretender shells into three types: Human shells with thermostatic plating such as Cloudburst's are "Space-Defense Pretender Shells"; monstrous humanoid shells like Bomb-Burst's are called "Predator-Class Pretender Shells"; and shells like Bludgeon's are "Warrior-Grade Pretender Shells".
- Twin Twist has been found in a piece of Pretender concept art, which was likely used to pitch the Pretender toy concept. Given that a large number of the first Pretenders transform similarly to Twin Twist, (bend over at the waist) it seems to have been a successful conceptual model.
- In most parts of Europe, the second wave of the large 1988 Pretenders was never released.
- Not to be confused with reverse-pretender technology, where a Human disguises himself as a Transformer.
External links
- Some photos of unreleased Double Pretenders from SUPER TOY ARCHIVE