Jazz (Animated)

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

Jazz is an Autobot from the Transformers Animated continuity family.

"When push comes to shove, you've gotta do what you love, even if it's not a good idea!"

Though a member of the Cybertron Elite Guard, Jazz is a bit of an independent thinker. He's reluctant to disobey orders, but he has more of an appreciation for the finer things than his compatriots. This is evidenced in his better choice of vehicle mode disguise, a "sweet ride" drawn from Earth culture. He is a Cyber-Ninja, like Prowl. However, his training is more progressed, and instead of ninja stars he wields a pair of nunchaku. He seems to be the only one of the Elite Guard willing to learn, and fits in with the Earth team pretty well.

He is incredibly cool.

“	Any species that can come up with a sweet ride like this can't be all bad!	”
—Jazz digs his new altmode and the humans that created it, The Elite Guard

Fiction

Animated cartoon

Events from IDW Publishing or Fun Publications books are in italics.

Voice actor: Phil LaMarr (English), Jens-Uwe Bogadtke (German), Gabriele Calindri (Italian)

When the Elite Guard decided to begin Project Safeguard, Jazz and Sentinel voiced dissent, stating that Autobots don't fly. Jazz's discomfort only worsened when he saw Jetfire and Jetstorm. He was soon assigned to train them. While taking them on in battle to gauge their abilities, Jazz seemingly won quite quickly, but as soon as he turned his back, the twins defeated him with ease. Later, he was observing the twins in simulated training when Perceptor tried putting Starscream's coding into the program. The Starscream code took over, trapping the twins and preventing Jazz and Sentinel from disconnecting them. They were powerless to help, and the twins had to save themselves by discovering the ability to merge into Safeguard. First (and Second) in Flight

Booga booga!

Jazz accompanied Supreme Commander Ultra Magnus and Sentinel Prime to Earth to retrieve Optimus Prime's crew and the AllSpark. When Magnus ordered Jazz to activate a force field around their ship to prevent organic contamination from the natives, Jazz expressed interest in getting a closer look at them. This prompted Sentinel Prime to warn Jazz that the organics would eventually spit acidic goo that would melt through his body armor and destroy vital circuitry. Jazz was...less willing to meet the organics after that.

Suddenly, Bumblebee's less popular.

When Sari Sumdac managed to sneak aboard their ship, he tried to send her out without provoking her. When she realized that Jazz was afraid of her, she tried to scare him. After Bulkhead explained that humans were harmless (and Bumblebee explained that Sentinel Prime was a jerk), Jazz accompanied the Autobots to a Sumdac manufacturing plant that was going haywire. Jazz and Prowl managed to keep the AllSpark-powered police drones away from Sari and Optimus long enough for Sari to shut down the assembly line. He and Prowl traded several martial arts-centered quips throughout the battle, talking about Metallikato moves like the "Five Servos of Doom" attack. The Elite Guard

When Ultra Magnus started to receive reports of Decepticon uprisings at the rim of the galaxy, Jazz commented that it was probably because they'd "got wind" that Megatron was still online.

"Right now, we need to stop fighting each other and start fighting the bad guy. Dig?"

Later, Jazz noticed a spike in AllSpark energy, and Ultra Magnus took him to investigate, leaving Sentinel Prime to watch Optimus Prime. Their combined attempt to remove the "SmallSpark", which Starscream had booby-trapped, failed, and they were blown off the train in which it was embedded. Optimus and his crew, with the help of Sari and the AllSpark Key, successfully and safely removed the AllSpark fragment, but Jazz could only watch as they received a dressing-down from Ultra Magnus for becoming involved. Then Starscream himself crashed to Earth, courtesy of Megatron's cannon, and knocked out Magnus. Jazz turned to Sentinel for orders, but the panicking Guardsbot was unable to think of anything. Optimus took over, directing his crew and Sari to various tasks and himself, Jazz and Sentinel to take down Starscream—although Jazz needed to talk down the posturing pair of Primes before they could get to fighting the bad guy.

His nunchaku proved ineffective, however, and he was swiftly knocked out, leaving Optimus to save the day again. Jazz later escorted Optimus's crew in taking the stasis-locked and gagged Starscream to be imprisoned in the Elite Guard's ship, before the three Guardsbots and their ship departed, leaving Optimus and his crew to deal with the remaining Decepticons on Earth. Mission Accomplished

Jazz was present as Starscream escaped the Elite Guard ship. A Fistful of Energon

Jazz was still on board the Elite Guard ship, along with Ultra Magnus and Sentinel, during the galactic battles with the Decepticon rebels when they received a transmission from Rodimus requesting back-up. Jazz had told him to hold on a little longer, but by the time the Elite Guard had arrived, Team Chaar had already left, albeit on Megatron's orders. TransWarped

Longarm Prime later sent Jazz, accompanied by Sentinel, Jetfire, and Jetstorm, to go after the supposed traitor Wasp. However, Wasp had retreated to Earth, much to Longarm's dismay, as he had ordered all contact with that planet be filtered through him. Despite this, Jazz and the others still went after the traitor. They found Optimus Prime's crew, who revealed that Longarm was really Shockwave, a Decepticon double-agent, and that Wasp had been innocent the whole time. Despite this, Sentinel Prime still wanted Wasp brought in, but the crazed Autobot got away. Where Is Thy Sting?

Sentinel later succeeded in capturing Swindle, Sunstorm, Blitzwing, and Lugnut, leaving Prowl to suspect he was getting help. Jazz had this suspicion, too, and they followed Sentinel to find that he was bargaining with a double-dealing, bounty-hunting scum. Jazz and the others defeated Lockdown, along with another Decepticon fugitive. While they captured the clone, Lockdown escaped. Jazz later became impressed by Prowl's new armor, especially Yoketron's helmet. Five Servos of Doom

When Sentinel realised he was needed on Cybertron, the Elite Guard packed up and headed for home. Jazz was disappointed, as he had enjoyed being on Earth. Predacons Rising

On the return trip, Jazz and Sentinel were contacted by the Autobot council, who wished to discuss Sentinel's temporary promotion. Sentinel let this go to his head and told Jazz to refer to him as "Commander". He also directed Jazz to take them through an unstable ion storm, despite Jazz's protests. As Jazz piloted them in, energy from the storm somehow restored Swindle, who had been stuck in his alt mode. Swindle instigated a prison break, releasing the other Decepticons, and lead them in an attack on the Elite Guard. Jazz requested that Sentinel contact Cybertron for help, but fearing repercussions for allowing the escape to happen on his watch, Sentinel sent a coded message to Optimus instead. Appearing unexpectedly through a transwarp link within Swindle's chest, Optimus Prime was able to free the Elite Guard. He then made sure the Decepticons could hear him order Jazz to modify the ship's decontamination chamber to freeze its occupants. However, he simultaneously gave Jazz a secret coded order to set up the chamber to freeze those outside of it. Thus, when the Decepticons eventually recaptured the Autobots and placed them in the chamber, it backfired, allowing the Autobots to escape and recapture all the prisoners but Swindle and Lugnut. Decepticon Air

Having returned to Cybertron, Jazz began chafing under Sentinel Magnus's militant approach. When Ratchet and Captain Fanzone accidentally transwarped to Cybertron, Jazz followed orders and helped capture them. However, once they escaped, he tailed them and eventually helped them by granting them access to the Elite Guard infirmary so they could search for Arcee. After battling Shockwave, Ratchet was able to recapture the Magnus Hammer, but refused to give it to Sentinel. Instead, he took it with him back to Earth, intent on keeping it from Sentinel and protecting it for Ultra Magnus. Sentinel started to follow, but Jazz volunteered to go instead. Upon his arrival on Earth, Jazz informed Ratchet that he'd had enough of Sentinel and promptly volunteered his services to the Earthbound Autobots. This Is Why I Hate Machines

Jazz was mighty impressed with Prowl's mastery of processor-over-matter, though his query regarding why Prowl never finished his training went unanswered. When Prowl volunteered to go to the Moon to check up on Megatron's activities, Jazz insisted he stay on Earth to complete his Cyber-Ninja training. The pair retired to some woods, where, with Jazz's encouragement, Prowl was able to reconstitute a fragment of the AllSpark solely through his mental prowess. They returned to base in time to see three Lugnut Supremes dropping on the city. Endgame, Part I

As Optimus Prime attacked the Omega clones with the Magnus Hammer, Jazz helped the rest of the Autobots protect the humans. He later aided Prowl in attacking the two remaining Lugnut Supremes, though to little effect, and the pair retired to Sumdac Tower to work on reconstituting the AllSpark using processor-over-matter. Pooling their processors, they were able to reassemble most of the AllSpark from the scattered fragments, but not enough to protect the city. Prowl donated his own spark, despite Jazz's protest, to complete the AllSpark, and Jazz caught his comrade's lifeless body. Though the city was subsequently saved through their actions and the Autobots were celebratory, Jazz had to break the bad news. With the Earth saved, Jazz returned to Cybertron with the Autobots and received a triumphant welcome. Endgame, Part II

Toys

Animated

File:Animated jazz both mode1.JPG

Enter the Dragon Wagon

• Autobot Jazz (Deluxe, 2008)
  • Accessories: 2 side-pipe "energy chucks"

Part of the third wave of Animated deluxes, Jazz transforms into a car that looks like a cross between his Generation 1 counterpart and a 1950s Corvette. The toy features translucent blue light-piping for its visor, as well as translucent blue headlights. Curiously, all the toy's vehicle mode windows are also cast from this plastic, but tinted black by paint applications. The toy's exhaust pipes can be removed from its forearms, and are connected by a short length of string to serve as nunchaku-style "energy chucks" weapons. They can also be assembled into claw-like weapons.

Also, in vehicle mode, if you flip the trunk open and leave it that way, Jazz will appear to have spoilers, similar to his G1 counterpart's vehicle mode.

File:Animated-toy FreewayJazz.jpg

What's crackin', little ninjas?

• Freeway Jazz (Deluxe, 2009)
  • Accessories: 2 side-pipe "energy chucks"

Freeway Jazz is a redeco of Deluxe Autobot Jazz in movie-inspired colors.

Comes with the world's shortest jump rope.

• Autobot Jazz (Bumper Battler, 2008)

Jazz is part of the second wave of Bumper Battlers. Pressing on the vehicle mode's front bumper activates electronic noises and pops up the roof, revealing a relief of Jazz's robot form. Pressing on the Autobot faction symbol on the hood activates a random string of sound effects and voice samples from the samples available on the toy's sound chip.

Because nothing says "stealth" like silver paint and bright blue pinstriping.

• Stealth Ninja Jazz (Bumper Battler, 2009)

A silver redeco of Bumper Battlers Jazz. Alongside Workzone Bulkhead, it saw release in Australian stores, but whether it will ever arrive in North America is unknown.

Trivia

• The Allspark Almanac identifies his weapons as "laser nunchako," as did his character model sheet.
• The Allspark Almanac Volume 2 revealed that, had a fourth season of Animated gone into production, Jazz was to become part of the main cast, replacing Prowl, just as Ironhide was to take Bulkhead's place.

External links

• Jazz at TFU.info