Galvatron (G1)

This article is about the Generation 1 Galvatron that appeared in most stories. For the other Generation 1 Galvatron from an alternate future in the Marvel comic, see Galvatron II. For a list of other meanings, see Galvatron (disambiguation).

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Galvatron is a Decepticon from the Generation 1 continuity family.

Bwaaaaah! Kneepad of Dooooom!

Born from the fires of Unicron himself, Galvatron is a focal point of power and madness given form. He is blind to all but his lust for power; his whims and desires can be sacrificed in a moment's rage. Not even his own subordinates are safe. Though he is not beyond the capacity for long-term goals, it is his unpredictability and his casual disregard for any and all life that strike such horror in friend and foe alike. Truly, the Decepticon leader is without any sense of empathy.

Galvatron was once Megatron, but was reborn from his death throes in a Faustian pact with Unicron. He retains the memories and spark of Megatron, but his personality was significantly altered after the near-death experience, massive physical upgrade, and reprogramming; just ask Starscream about the difference. And all that was before he went insane. The cause and extent of Galvatron's madness varies between different timelines, as does his physical power. Sometimes he's all but invincible.

“	Please, meet your end with dignity. I despise whiners.	”
—Galvatron, allowing one of his own troops to die, "Five Faces of Darkness, Part 3"

“	Before a society can move forward, everyone must agree on the rules. Now kneel!	”
—Galvatron, "Fight or Flee"

Latin American name: Zan Rás

Mandarin name (Taiwan): Jjīa Bó Wáng (加博王, "King Galva" or "Galva Throne")

Mandarin name (China): Jing Po Tian（惊破天, "Sky-breaking Awe"）

Fiction

Cartoon continuity

Generation 1 cartoon

Voice actors: Leonard Nimoy (English, The Movie), Frank Welker (English, television series), Seizō Katō (Japanese), Carl Béchard (French Canadian), Gerd Wiedenhofen (German, television series), Manfred Erdmann (German, The Movie), Thomas Rauscher (German, Generation 2 dubbing), Jean Claudio (French, television series)

He's more machine now than ma—oh wait, he was a machine to begin with. Never mind.

In 2005, after being mortally wounded by Optimus Prime during the Battle of Autobot City, Megatron was left to float aimlessly through space after being punted out of the overloaded Astrotrain by Starscream, who finally decided to take advantage of his near-death state to take command. He was summoned by Unicron, who offered him a new body, a warship and new troops to command, so long as he destroyed the Autobot Matrix of Leadership. Megatron reluctantly accepted and was upgraded into Galvatron, a more fearsome and powerful warrior, while his former troops were similarly reformatted.

Galvatron quickly retook command of the Decepticons after killing the traitorous Starscream in the middle of his coronation as the Decepticons' new leader. He then went to Earth and attacked Autobot City full-force. Ultra Magnus led him away from Earth, and Galvatron chased him to the Planet of Junk, where he defeated Magnus and took the Matrix, intending to use it against Unicron.

Nothing can save you, Autobot, except maybe the powerful artifact around my neck! But that'll never happen.

Galvatron could not open the Matrix, however, and as punishment for his treachery, Unicron transformed and began tearing Cybertron apart. Horrified, Galvatron transformed to cannon emplacement mode and opened fire on Unicron, but his shots had no effect and the dark god swallowed him whole. Inside Unicron's belly, he met up with Hot Rod. Though he initially suggested an alliance with the young Autobot against the mutual threat of his master, the Chaos Bringer mentally tortured Galvatron for his attempted treachery and then forced him to attack Hot Rod. Hot Rod eventually managed to wrest the Matrix away from Galvatron and open it, leading to his transformation into Rodimus Prime. Flush with new power, Rodimus hurled Galvatron from inside Unicron and into deep space. The Transformers: The Movie

But this would not be the end of Galvatron.

He'll never be let back into this country club ever again.

The weakened Decepticons were subsequently routed by the Autobots and forced off of Cybertron, relocating to the burned-out world of Chaar. After eking out a living there in energy-deprived squalor for some time, they were visited by Cyclonus and Scourge, who'd finally decided to return the Decepticons to glory by seeking out the lost Galvatron. They found him sunk in a lava pit on the distant planet Thrull and managed to free him. However, the effects of the "plasma bath" irrevocably altered Galvatron's sanity chips, rendering him omnicidally insane. Upon regaining his freedom, he thrashed Cyclonus and Scourge and sundered Thrull. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 2 Told that the humans and Autobots had collaborated to build a space station as Earth's first line of defense, he was highly amused, and headed for the nearest Warp Gate. On reaching Outpost One, he and his men attacked the station, quickly destroying it and coincidentally damaging the shuttle piloted by Blurr and Wheelie. Galvatron spotted the shuttle making a break for Jupiter, and demanded the heads of the Autobots as souvenirs. With one blast, he destroyed the ship, but the two occupants had escaped and began plummeting into the planet's atmosphere. One Sweep, blasted by Wheelie, cried out to Galvatron to save him, but was only told to meet his end with dignity. Galvatron then blasted a nearby storm cell, causing an implosion.

Plasma is the Sniffling, Sneezing, Aching, Coughing, Stuffy-head, Fever, So-You-Can-Bwaah! medicine.

“	It's music! The symphony of destruction and the anthem of agony!	”
—Galvatron loves an atmospheric implosion, Five Faces of Darkness, Part 3

Believing the Autobots to be destroyed, Galvatron ordered Cyclonus to take him to Chaar. He was shocked at the conditions that the Decepticon army were forced to live under, and was even more surprised to be told by Blitzwing that the bulk of the Decepticon forces had left under new leadership. Incensed, he announced that he was the leader of the Decepticons, and the usurpers would pay. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 3 He and his loyal men swiftly found the rest of the Decepticons fighting the Autobots on Goo, and Galvatron swiftly ordered an attack. When Cyclonus inquired who they were attacking, Galvatron simply replied "everyone". After making Motormaster beg for his life, Galvatron succeeded in regaining the loyalty of his troops, and turned his attention on those who had usurped him in the first place—the Quintessons. The Quintessons attempted to negotiate, successfully bluffing Galvatron with stories of a Decepticon Matrix of Leadership which they would give him if he destroyed the Autobots down on Goo. Although he tried, the Autobots were snatched from danger by the Junkions. Still, he got to destroy Goo, and the Quintessons were subsequently able to persuade him to join forces with them to destroy both the Autobots and the humans.

Oooooh, what does this bu-tton dooo?

Plans were swiftly drawn to attack simultaneously on Earth and Cybertron. On Earth, the Constructicons constructed Trypticon from a human city, while a decoy human shuttle was crashed into the central power facility on Cybertron, knocking out the planet's defences. Galvatron himself led the attack on Cybertron, unaware that the Quintessons plotted against him. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4 The battle going well, Galvatron sent Blitzwing to give a status report to their allies, but was angered when the triple-changer returned a short time later to say that not only had he not given the status report, but there was no Decepticon Matrix. Blitzwing was soon sent hurtling towards the Autobots. Galvatron soon followed the Autobots and the now-traitorous Blitzwing to a chamber deep inside Cybertron, where a Sharkticon had been about to pull a lever. Convinced that the switch had something to do with the Decepticon Matrix, Galvatron pulled it himself—and every Transformer in the galaxy shut down. Fortunately the human Spike Witwicky destroyed the switch, returning the Transformers to life. Though Galvatron chased the Quintessons, they swiftly escaped in a pod. He was then prevented from blasting Rodimus by Blitzwing, and angrily told the triple-changer that he was no longer welcome in the ranks of the Decepticons before ordering a retreat. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 5

The Decepticon palette was out of everything but purple.

Informed by Blast Off of a new type of ammunition, Death crystals, Galvatron went to planet Dread, where the crystals originated, intending to carry out a new plan—build a cannon which would fire Death crystals at Cybertron. He found a ready-made work force in the slaves left behind by the Orbs, and soon had a giant cannon constructed. Just as all was ready, a group of Autobots, led to the planet by Kup, attacked the installation. Predaking was able to keep them busy while he lined up for a shot at Cybertron, however Kup was also keeping busy, freeing the slaves and waking the monster Chaos. During the confusion of the slave revolt, Kup used the Death crystal cannon to destroy Chaos and causing the volcano to erupt. Galvatron was last seen fleeing the swiftly moving lava. Chaos

While hunting an Autobot shuttle through space, Galvatron and his lieutenants managed to utterly destroy the ship. Not one to fall for the same trick twice, Galvatron continued searching the area until the Decepticons detected the shuttle's lifepod flying towards an enormous structure. This "funeral barge" carried in it the deactivated bodies of the Autobots who died during the Great War. Galvatron and his lieutenants pursued Rodimus Prime's crew into the barge, but were driven off by the sudden arrival of Optimus Prime, seemingly back from the dead. Dark Awakening

Galvatron strangles the Invisible Swordsman.

When Scourge and Cyclonus alerted him to the location of a pacifistic and energon-rich world known as Paradron, Galvatron saw a perfect opportunity for conquest. The Decepticon invasion of Paradron was brief but brutal, and the populace was converted into slave labor. One Paradronian Transformer named Sandstorm escaped, however, and brought the Autobots back to free his people. Eventually the Autobots detonated the planet's primary energon core, destroying the planet itself and driving off Galvatron's troops. Fight or Flee

Following his defeat by Metroplex, Trypticon had been sent to Dinobot Island for recuperation. When the Decepticon fueler Octane removed him, Galvatron went looking for the missing duo and found them consorting with humans in Carbombya. He was ready to annihilate the "traitor" Octane for defying his orders, but Octane quickly explained that the purefied Carbombyan oil made for a super-energon mixture, powerful enough to recharge Trypticon (and, hopefully, make him larger than a small Combiner again). The Autobots soon arrived, however, and drove the Decepticons out of Carbombya. Thief in the Night Galvatron apparently reverted to his original assessment of Octane after this debacle, and drove him out of the Decepticons. When Octane began running cargo for the Autobots, he even sent the Combaticons and a freelance thug out to assassinate the traitor. Eventually, Cyclonus and the Sweeps seemingly plucked Octane from the Autobots' grasp on Cybertron itself, and brought him to Chaar for Galvatron to interrogate. Using the information he "coerced" from Octane, Galvatron caught Rodimus Prime alone and engaged him in single combat. Unfortunately, the whole thing was a ruse set up by Octane and Starscream's ghost, who was possessing Cyclonus at the time. Galvatron was abandoned in the presence of Rodimus, Ultra Magnus and a full Autobot battle group. In what was surely an epic battle (that we sadly didn't see a minute of), Galvatron ultimately escaped and made his way back to Chaar, deposing the usurpers and seemingly driving off the ghost of Starscream. Starscream's Ghost

Upon learning that the Autobots intended to host a first annual peace conference on Cybertron, Galvatron was dead set against letting their plans succeed. Despite several sabotage attempts by the Combaticons, Cyclonus and the Sweeps, though, the conference went through as planned. Surprise Party

File:StarscreamsGhost Galvatron smoking.jpg

Spontaneous combustion? What the hell is th—

Despite Galvatron's earlier attempts to be rid of him, Starscream's ghost returned to plague the Decepticons again. He partnered with Scourge against the Decepticons, kidnapped Astrotrain, and even stole one of Trypticon's eyes, leaving Galvatron even more infuriated than usual at this constant undermining of his operations. When Starscream returned once more and possessed Trypticon himself, it was the last straw, and Galvatron led a full Decepticon battle group after "Trypticon" to Cybertron. The fighting was fruitless, however, and eventually the Decepticons limped away, having exhausted all their weaponry. Not long thereafter, Galvatron's particle cannon had apparently recharged, because he took several parting shots at Starscream while his "ghost" tumbled uncontrollably through space. Ghost in the Machine

Well, that's all wrapped up...

Although Galvatron led the Decepticons on many wacky adventures against the Autobots throughout 2006, his insanity would usually lead to each mission ending in failure. (He loved shooting his own troops, for instance.) At one point, his derangement became so severe, the Decepticon "union officials" Swindle, Motormaster and Laserbeak threatened to strike. The perpetually loyal Cyclonus was left little choice but to dupe Galvatron into taking therapy sessions (albeit by force) on Torkulon, the therapy planet. After nearly murdering an attendant during a word-association session and somehow building a gun in an arts and crafts class, Galvatron was deemed incurable by conventional methods. The doctors attempted to use living extensions of the planet to give him a lobotomy (much to Cyclonus's disapproval), but Galvatron broke free and murdered the sentient organic core of Torkulon. While the planet's core was connected to Galvatron's mind the planet began to go mad, with several of the organic planets functions going out of control. After that, he razed the entire planet's civilization, leaving them so broken it would take centuries to rebuild. After his connection to the planet he appeared to have regained some of his sanity. Webworld

A new plan saw the Constructicons building engines into the side of a comet, with the intention to crash it into Metroplex on Earth. Unsurprisingly the engines were destroyed by the Autobots before they could even be fired up, however the comet was set on course to a nearby world. The comet was shortly obliterated by sound waves emanating from the planet, also causing the Transformers present to plummet to its surface. Galvatron took Soundwave, intending to find the source of the sonic weapon and use it against the Autobots. Although the Autobots reached the city first, meeting with the leader of Eurythma, the two Decepticons eavesdropped and were able to establish that they needed to talk to Allegra. After dropping a bridge on the Autobots, Galvatron and Soundwave were able to talk Allegra into giving them her part of the harmony, and then obtained the other two parts of the harmony in quick succession. The Decepticons headed for Earth to attack Metroplex. Unfortunately Soundwave's attempt to use the destructive harmony were thwarted by the Eurythmans' use of anti-sound. The Decepticons retreated, though Galvatron raged that he hadn't ordered it. Carnage in C-Minor

Yo yo yo yo yo yo yo yo!

Galvatron was in one of his more obstinate moods when Astrotrain came to Chaar reporting on how the Junkions had apparently turned against the Autobots. Even when Cyclonus began advocating for intervention on the matter, Galvatron still couldn't bring himself to care. Eventually, however, the hypnotic television signals being beamed to the Junkions to alter their behavior made their way to Galvatron, along with the rest of the galaxy. He was subliminally drawn into a massive conflict in the skies over the planet of Junk, all part of a Quintesson ploy to create a massive diversion and recover one of their lost journals from Junk. Only after Blaster jammed the signal did the television stop "bewitching" Galvatron. The Big Broadcast of 2006 When Predaking later happened across that same Quintesson journal, Galvatron joined Cyclonus and the Sweeps in an effort to steal the journal away from both the Autobots and the Quintessons. It played like a game of hot potato for a while, but ultimately the Autobots got the journal and the Decepticons just gave up. The Quintesson Journal

One day, Galvatron was in the middle of a morale speech for his troops (re: right about to blast the closest Sweeps into stray particles for sheer pique), when he was interrupted by Quintesson visitors. After his last few dealings with the creatures, Galvatron was ready to blast these Quintessons all the same, but they gave him a gentle lecture about the unfairness of stereotyping which somehow convinced Galvatron to listen to the tentacled freaks. Galvatron brought Cyclonus and the five Sweeps with him to Cybertron, following the Quintessons' directions to the Autobots' new power core beneath the planet's surface. Searching for the power core, the Decepticons inadvertently let loose the monstrous Trans-Organics and the massive energy-draining Dweller. The Dweller began leeching the life from Galvatron's troops one by one as they tried to flee from the creature. Galvatron showed his heart-felt respect for Cyclonus by throwing all the Sweeps into the creature's path first. He even paused for a moment to look back when the Dweller finally caught Cyclonus as well. Galvatron didn't actually try to help or anything, but I'm sure Cyclonus would have appreciated the thought alone. The Dweller in the Depths

Decepticons, I have found the remote control!

Thanks to his plasma damage, Galvatron's sanity really had its ups and down. He was arguably on an upswing during a series of assaults on human and Autobot positions in Europe. Using the attacks as a diversion, Galvatron sent Swindle to infiltrate Metroplex and steal his transforming cog, leaving the city-bot helpless for a rematch with Trypticon. In addition, he began taunting the insecure leader Rodimus Prime with his so-called "Ultimate Weapon", a doomsday device just waiting to be unleashed. As well thought-out and cunning as this scheme may have been, it ultimately fell apart. The Autobots stole Galvatron's idea by taking Trypticon's transforming cog just as Swindle had stolen Metroplex's. Rodimus Prime eventually wised up about the "Ultimate weapon" as well: he called Galvatron's bluff and forced the Decepticon leader to admit he was holding nothing more than a 7-2 off-suit. The Ultimate Weapon

Deep in space, Galvatron was attempting to surpass a Quintesson quadrant lock when the Quintessons and several Autobots interrupted his efforts. In one of his more manic phases at the time, Galvatron chose to stake his claim by hurling Cyclonus face-first through the lock once the Quintessons began to open it. The Face of the Nijika

Galvatron once attempted to destroy the Autobots by feeding anti-electrons into their new power generator. The initial attempt failed, so the Decepticons tried to raid Unicron's head for a new source of anti-electrons inside the planet-eater's brain. The Autobots arrived shortly after Galvatron's team, so he sent his new Terrorcon beasts to occupy the heroes. Galvatron was undone by his own scheming, however, as the anti-electrons had temporarily turned the Dinobot Grimlock into a super-intelligent genius. Grimlock built a new team of Autobot warriors called Technobots from scratch, right inside Unicron's head. The Technobots were skilled enough to destroy Galvatron's new source of anti-electrons, and drive off the Terrorcons' combined form of Abominus. Grimlock's New Brain

"Okay, how the hell did I fit in you?!"
"I don't know mighty Galvatron, but I wish you'd try more often."

In a major fight with the Autobots, a large number of Galvatron's troops began staring off into space in the middle of the battle. He lost some of his best soldiers to this effect, like Trypticon, the Predacons, the Terrorcons, Soundwave's Mini-Cassettes...okay, maybe not the Cassettes, but the rest were important. Galvatron ended the fight to go chasing after the deserters, only to be caught by the power of Tornedron and drained of all his energy. It was only thanks to the fleeing Primitives that Tornedron's effect was eventually reversed. Call of the Primitives

Who are YOU gonna call?

Galvatron was very pleased when Dead End and Wildrider returned from a scouting mission on Earth, having beaten Rodimus Prime and claimed the Matrix of Leadership itself. Galvatron tried to load the Matrix into his particle cannon as a power source, but instead of energy blasts, it summoned the ghosts of departed Autobot leaders. They spooked Galvatron into getting rid of the Matrix, but his underling Scourge claimed the Matrix for himself and managed to magnify his powers a thousandfold. Scourge used his newfound might to overthrow Galvatron and the loyal Cyclonus, temporarily claiming control of the Decepticons. Galvatron and Cyclonus eventually recovered and came to Earth just after Scourge lost the Matrix back to Rodimus Prime. After a few quick particle blasts for emphasis, though, Galvatron soon accepted Scourge back into the Decepticons. The Burden Hardest to Bear

"Just like the good old times, isn't it Prime?"
"There were no good times, ya creep."

Galvatron and the Decepticons had arrived early to reserve their seats at a football stadium, when Ratbat flew in with news that Optimus Prime's body had been preserved at a nearby laboratory. Unfortunately, the Decepticons arrived just in time to be infected by the outbreak of the Hate Plague. Galvatron fled when his warriors turned crazed. The Return of Optimus Prime, Part 1 Half-mad to begin with at the best of times, Galvatron soon learned that even the one-eyed man cannot always rule the kingdom of the blind, and found himself on the run from half the galaxy. However, despite his insanity, he teamed up with the resurrected Optimus Prime to stop the Hate Plague. Galvatron wound up becoming infected by the plague and attempted to kill an unconscious Optimus Prime with an axe. Optimus woke up in the nick of time and opened the Matrix directly in Galvatron's face. The wisdom of the Matrix not only cured the universe of the Hate Plague, it cured Galvatron's madness as well. Well, kinda. Grateful, Galvatron sanely declared, "There will be no war today, Optimus. You have earned Galvatron's respect," and called a brief truce. The Return of Optimus Prime, Part 2

In 2007, Galvatron called off the truce and led an assault on Autobot City, searching for the Key to the Plasma Energy Chamber. Although seemingly lucid during this period, he formulated what was perhaps his most genocidal and unbalanced scheme ever: Having converted Cybertron into a galactic dreadnought, Galvatron manoeuvred it into Earth's orbit, planning to release the Plasma Energy Chamber's payload into Earth's sun, Sol. The resulting supernova would wipe both Earth and Cybertron off the face of the galaxy, presumably leaving Galvatron to gain mastery over everything left. Grudgingly teamed with the Transformer-Nebulan hybrid Lord Zarak, Galvatron was eventually defeated and sent tumbling through space, ushering Cybertron into a new Golden Age. After regaining control, Galvatron vowed to collect energy from disparate corners of the galaxy and return to Cybertron: "We will attack other planets, we will suck them dry! We will build a planet a hundred times more powerful than Cybertron, and I will rule the galaxy!" Zarak made it clear he intended it to be a "we" leadership. The Rebirth, Part 3

Japanese cartoon continuity

The events of the Generation 1 cartoon occur in this timeline as above, except that the events following The Transformers: The Movie are pushed back to 2010 (creating a five-year gap between Galvatron's creation and his return), and the events of "The Rebirth" do not occur. The Japanese animated continuity subsequently adds several new adventures into the timeline, both during the Generation 1 cartoon and after it, as detailed below.

Kiss Players

After being hurled out of Unicron and into space by Rodimus Prime, Galvatron's flight path was disrupted by the Sparkbots, a trio of Unicron's servants who were already working to resurrect their master. The Decepticon leader crash-landed on the planet Earth, obliterating the city of Tokyo. This catastrophic loss of life destroyed Human-Transformer relations and led to the formation of the Earth Defense Command, a governmental organization which drove Transformers from the face of the planet. Appropriating Galvatron's remains, the EDC reverse-engineered a fleet of human-operated "Autorooper" Transformers to perform this task.

As 2006 settled in, Galvatron's impact was revealed to have had an even greater effect than anyone had expected: The blast caused by his impact had scattered his Unicron-empowered cells throughout the planet's atmosphere. When his cells came into contact with other objects and animals, they fused with them, creating an army of monstrous creatures referred to as "Legion". This disastrous event also created the means to defend the world against Legion, however: When Galvatron's cells came into contact with human beings, these humans gained the ability to fuse with other entities containing his cells. With their Autoroopers being the perfect candidates for this "ParasiTech" fusion process, the EDC began recruiting and training these "Kiss Players" as combat squads to battle the Legion.

Seeking to uncover the ulterior motives of EDC Commander Hitoshizuku Amaō, Kiss Players Marissa Faireborn, Shaoshao Li and Atari Hitotonari discovered the remains of Galvatron beneath the EDC headquarters. Amaō's plan to use the Legions to resurrect her daughter, who had died in Galvatron's impact, was foiled when all the Legions and Autoroopers fused with Galvatron's corpse, restoring his cells and reconstituting his body. Galvatron's body was shot back into space, where it went on to crash on Thrull. Kiss Players

The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers manga

Galvatron had plenty of devious schemes up his sleeve throughout 2010, opening with the nutty idea of a spaceship that ate other spaceships, which Rodimus Prime promptly blew up. The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers issue 1

Galvatron went back to his roots for his next scheme, creating a clone army of Megatrons that he dubbed the "Megatron Corps". Galvatron disguised himself as one of the Megatrons and controlled them remotely, making them an effective fighting force that the Autobots had trouble dealing with, until his disguise was penetrated and his control over the robots broken. The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers issue 2

He later attacked Autobot City with Trypticon, but was forced to retreat when Six-Gun destroyed Trypticon's controls with a blast from Brunt. The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers issue 3

On one notable occasion, Galvatron challenged Rodimus Prime to a one-on-one duel in order to lure him into a trap set up in partnership with the Quintessons. In the middle of the fight, the Quintessons' newest creation, an Optimus Prime/Megatron hybrid robot known as Guiltaur, arrived to attack Rodimus, but Galvatron was shocked when Guiltaur turned on him as well. Rodimus and Galvatron called a truce long enough for them to team up and destroy Guiltaur, who, it was revealed, had been possessed by Starscream's ghost. With that threat dealt with, they called off the truce. The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers issue 4

Next, Galvatron attempted to steal the Prime Energy Tower of the planet Feminia with an all-out assault. The Autobots defended the tower, but were overwhelmed by Galvatron's unit of Combiners; the scales tilted in his favor thanks to the presence of Predaking. Galvatron's victory was assued until the Omnibots arrived and toppled the Combiners. The Story of Super Robot Lifeforms: The Transformers issue 5.

The Great Transformer War manga

Later in 2010, Galvatron kidnapped Doctor Dalton, a brilliant scientist from the planet Eran, but Dalton refused to work with the Decepticons and lent his aid to the Autobots instead, upgrading the Technobots so they could defeat the Terrorcons. The Great Transformer War issue 1

One of the Terrorcons' upgrades included a sticky goo that forced the Technobots into working for the Decepticons. Through the intervention of Spike Witwicky, however, the Technobots were freed and the Terrorcons defeated. Galvatron cursed the human for interfering, but declared that his next evil scheme would be one the Autobots would never forget. The Great Transformer War issue 2

After the resurrection of Optimus Prime and the curing of the Hate Plague, Galvatron hastily broke his vow that there would be no war, and he, Cyclonus and Scourge battled Prime, Hot Rod and Kup in space, only to be defeated. Galvatron immediately returned to Chaar and dispatched Sixshot to retrieve the Decepticon Headmasters, as he had need of them for his assault on Cybertron. The Great Transformer War issue 3

The Headmasters cartoon

Voice actor: Seizō Katō (Japanese)

In 2011, a side effect of releasing the Matrix's energy to cure the Hate Plague was revealed when the mega-computer Vector Sigma began to destabilize. Seeking to exploit this imbalance, Galvatron attacked Cybertron, his forces now bolstered by the addition of new Headmaster warriors from the planet Master. Four Warriors Come out of the Sky The arrival of a team of Autobot Headmasters repelled the invasion, but it was then revealed that the Matrix was hidden somewhere on Earth, recharging, and the race began to acquire it and use it to gain control over Vector Sigma. Soon after the race began, Soundwave and Blaster battled and killed each other. Galvatron was not happy. The Mystery of Planet Master Galvatron later visited Earth Decpeticon base to find out what Hot Rod was after. Cyclonus asked Galvatron if Sixshot is ok to lead to troop's at the base. Galvatron suspected Cyclonus had a treacherous plan and pointed his cannon at him. Cyclonus said that he would never betray him. After finding out that Hot Rod was after the Matrix, He and the Decpeticon Headmaster's went to stop him. Galvatron got the Matrix but Chromedome knocked it out of his hand a second later. Galvatron was also attacked by Computron Hot Rod ultimately succeeded in obtaining the Matrix and becoming Rodimus Prime again, and he and Optimus Prime joined forces to defeat Galvatron. Though beaten in battle, Galvatron did at least take solace in the fact that Optimus Prime once again met his end. Only the A[[Chromedome|u]tobot's that were there seemed to care. Birth of the Fantastic Double Prime

Later Galvatron decided to have another crack at taking control of Vector Sigma by creating the Madmachine. To aid him in this plan he revived Soundwave as Soundblaster uasing Scorponok's Transector technology. Galvatron then ordered Sixshot to test the Madmachine on Metroplex. The test was success, he then ordered Sixshot to retreat. Galvatron had the Madmachine and the Decepticon Headmasters sent to Cybertron to take control of Vector Sigma. He gave control of it to Soundblaster, however Galvatron's base on Charr was invaded by Blaster who had been revived as Twincast. The Autobot destroyed the Control in Soundblaster’s chest. This allowed The Autobot Headmasters to destory the Madmachine. The Great Cassette Operation.

Later Galvatron had occupied planet Beast and taken most of the civilians (known as Beastformers) prisnor, execpt for those who would follow them. Galvatron was informed by Alligatoron of Fortress Maximus’s arrival on Beast. Galvatron oredered the Beastformers and Decepticon's destroy the Autobot's. When Rodimus arived Galvatron showed up and battled Rodimus. Cyclonus and Scourge tried to help but damaged Galvatron instead. Galvatron continued to battle Rodimus but was forced into reatret after Fortress Maximus came and attacked him. Rebellion on Planet Beast.

Later a shadow figure appered on TV and demaned Earth's energy. Cyclonus and Scourge suggested that the Shadow figure get's the energy then they take it from him. After an argument betwen them Galvatron apporved the plan. Galvatron later found out that there plan failed and that they stole Trypticon, who had been damaged in a fite with The Autobot Headmasters and Raiden. He was far from happy. Terror of the Six Shadows

After many failed atempt's to control Cybertron Galvatron set his sights on Cybertonuron, a powerful new alloy being developed by Vector Sigma. The Decepticon Headmaster leader, Scorponok, advocated the destruction of the alloy to prevent the Autobots from obtaining it, but when Galvatron refused to consider the notion, Scorponok took matters into his own hands and had powerful bombs planted in Vector Sigma's chamber. Cybertron Is in Grave Danger, Part 1 Scorponok told Galvatron what he had done, and the enraged Decepticon leader ran into the chamber to try and stop the explosion, only to be caught in the blast. Cybertron was reduced to a burnt-out husk, and Galvatron was left missing in action. Cybertron Is in Grave Danger, Part 2

Galvatron's been getting into the energon goodies jar.

Galvatron was thought dead for some time, and during his absence, Scorponok proclaimed himself the new Decepticon leader, only for Galvatron to turn up alive and well during his coronation. Return of the Immortal Emperor Galvatron retook command of the Decepticons and began a devious plot, taking the Decepticons on a series of interplanetary raids that saw them steal energy from numerous different worlds.

Sixshot came up with a plan to set Galvatron's plan into action. By wiping out the Autobot's. Galvatron approved and had The Combaticons, the Terrorcons and the Horrorcons sent with him to Earth. This plan resulted in the death of Ultra Magnus. Ultra Magnus Dies!!

After returning to Earth with a massive stockpile of energon, Galvatron confided to his most trusted warrior, Sixshot, that he intended to use the energon as part of a process that would transform Earth into a new, all-powerful, Unicron-like body for him, dubbed "Grand Galvatron". Additionally, he explained that this process would require only the best components from his most powerful warriors, making it quite clear that he intended to sacrifice Sixshot and the other Decepticons for this insane ambition. Aghast, Sixshot betrayed Galvatron to Scorponok as quickly as possible, leaving the Decepticon leader alone to battle the Autobot Headmasters in Alaska. Thankfully for the Autobots, their double-agent Punch had eavesdropped on Galvatron and Sixshot's conversation, during which Galvatron had revealed that his head was his weakest point. With this information to aid them, the Headmasters entered Head Formation and laid Galvatron low, collapsing an iceberg on top of him and entombing him in ice. The Emperor of Destruction Vanishes on an Iceberg

Galvatron would remain buried in the ice for over fifteen years, until he was resurrected by Dark Nova as the new and improved Super Megatron. The Battlestars Part 6

The Headmasters comic

On planet Chaar, Galvatron ordered the Headmasters of Evil to head for planet Athenia and show the Autobots their "true power". Their "true power" involved trying to blow up the Battleship Maximus with a goofy explosive and failing. Galvatron was displeased. The Headmasters issue 1

Later, while White Leo was abset from Beast, Galvatron made a second attempt to conquer it with the united forces of his Decepticons and the Decepticon Beastformers. With the aid of Kane, the Autobots and the Autobot Beastformers were able to hold the Decepticons off long enough for White Leo to return and send them into a retreat. Galvatron callously left Alligatoron and the Decepticon Beastformers behind to face justice as he and his troops escaped into space. Great Decisive Battle of Planet Beast!

Super-God Masterforce comic

Galvatron, believed to be buried alive in an iceburg, would return to menace the Headmaster Juniors with an army of legendary Decepticon warriors. "Galvatron" and all his troops, however, were eventually revealed to be nothing more than holograms created by the Decepticon Godmasters to fool the Autobots. Burn, Super Soul! The New Commander Super Ginrai!

15 Go! Go! manga

Crazy AND toy-accurate.

At some point after 2025, when Optimus Prime had been restored to life once more as Star Convoy, the mobile computer Teletraan 15 traveled forward in time from 2005 to this era as part of a mission gather data to rebuild Teletraan I's damaged databanks. During her visit, as Star Convoy and Hot Rod prepared to battle Ultra Megatron, a transwarp wormhole suddenly opened above the combatants, and a massive blast shot emerged from it and struck Hot Rod. Badly damaged, Hot Rod could barely warn his commander as Galvatron, appearing from some unknown spot in space and time, descended through the portal. Tearing Teletraan 15's arm off, Galvatron gripped the limb in his teeth as he maniacally throttled Hot Rod. Teletraan 15 passed out and woke up some time later with the outcome of the battle unknown, though she remained haunted by images of the crazed Decepticon clutching her limp and helpless friend. 15 Go! Go!

Scramble City (toy version)

This fifteen-minute, stop-motion, extended toy advert retells the story of the original Scramble City: Mobilization OVA with the addition of Galvatron. Created before the Japanese production staff were aware that Galvatron was a recreated Megatron, this OVA features the infamous gaffe that presents Galvatron and Megatron as separate characters. It ain't in continuity with jack, yo.

During a massive brawl between the Autobot and Decepticon combiners, Megatron took the upper hand. To counter this, Optimus Prime ordered Metroplex to enter the fray. Metroplex rolled onto the scene and towered over his enemies, with City Commander Ultra Magnus in tow. Not to be outdone, Megatron ordered his own City Commander to enter battle. Beaming down from the sky on a ball of light, the silent and menacing Galvatron stormed the battle. Transforming into cannon mode, Galvatron fired a blast of energy at Ultra Magnus, who quickly transformed to robot mode and engaged his foe in hand-to-hand combat. As the fight seemed evenly matched, City Commander Galvatron's city finally arrived to tip the odds: Trypticon! Scramble City

Marvel Comics continuity

There were multiple Galvatrons from various alternate futures who often time-jumped to give the Autobots trouble. Their precise number--and even their precise pre-Unicron character of origin--remains inconclusive, due to the brevity of some stories, the confusing effects of serial time travel, and the retcon being worked into the Marvel comics at about the same time that would eventually reveal the "Megatron" in many of these stories to have actually been a clone vessel for Straxus.

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

Galvatron I

Darn that Soundwave.

After being scolded by Unicron in 2006, Galvatron was ordered to attack Earth and destroy the Creation Matrix. He ordered "Decepticons, to Earth!" but what he REALLY meant was Earth...1986!

Time-jumping from the year 2006 and freeing himself from Unicron's control, Galvatron intended to create a device that would be powerful enough to destroy Unicron in 2006. Galvatron brought Cyclonus and Scourge with himself, and as an effect of time-travel, replaced three Autobots (Prowl, Ratchet, and Optimus Prime) in the timeline. Galvatron deposed his own past self as leader of the Decepticons and began construction of a massive laser cannon which he would then hide on Earth and unleash on an unsuspecting Unicron when the time was right.

File:2006-1.jpg

Sure glad these guys don't have a Pathblaster!

The Autobots and Megatron weren't having any of that and briefly formed an alliance to stop the three Decepticons of the future. The plan wasn't going very well until Hot Rod, Blurr and Kup came from the future to help. Present-day Ultra Magnus also arrived to help and heroically kept Galvatron occupied as the future Autobots set-up a trap.

Galvatron mopped the floor with Ultra Magnus and returned to his laser cannon only to find Cyclonus and Scourge unconscious and Starscream missing. The weapon was then destroyed in a huge explosion. Galvatron emerged from the wreckage to see what he thought was Starscream (but, in fact, was an unconscious Skywarp in disguise), and in a fit of anger, blew him up. After a second he realized that if he destroyed Starscream in the past, how could he have destroyed him in the future? Figuring that he was in an alternate past, and thus, no action taken then would affect his future, Galvatron and his troops returned to their proper time. Target: 2006

No wonder he's nigh-invincible! He's denser than Unicron's skin!

Sometime later, Galvatron returned from the future (this time following the destruction of Unicron). This time, he planned to stay in the past. In an initial confrontation with the Autobots and Decepticons of the present-era, Galvatron mopped the floor with both sides, establishing himself as a severe threat to all Transformers on Earth. Fallen Angel In the coming weeks, Galvatron constructed a massive magma tap as a means of gaining power for himself. He intended to siphon the energy of an erupting volcano to become as powerful as a god. His plans were interrupted by Ultra Magnus, Goldbug, and several Autobots who had travelled back from Galvatron's own era to capture him. Rodimus Prime attempted to manipulate Galvatron's time-jump device to send them all back to the future, but when he and the other Autobots slingshoted back to 2008, Galvatron inexplicably remained behind. It ultimately fell on Ultra Magnus to stop Galvatron alone. In a desperate move, the Autobot flung them into the volcano, and the two of them became trapped under molten lava. Vicious Circle!

Galvatron eventually escaped and planned to take control of the Decepticons away from Shockwave. He opened his plan by menacingly approaching the Decepticon base, compelling Shockwave to attack and try to drive off the futuristic Decepticon. Instead, after easily wading through Shockwave's defenses, Galvatron cunningly announced that he had been coming in peace, but Shockwave's unprovoked assault had made an enemy out of him. He did this to sow discord among the Decepticon ranks, who now blamed Shockwave for gaining them a powerful new enemy. Enemy Action! This prompted Shockwave to concoct a plan to use Megatron as a weapon against Galvatron. Salvage!

Oh no, look out, c-string characters!

Galvatron’s time-travelling (along with that of the other Autobots and Decepticons) eventually caused a rift in time and space that threatened both the present and the future, opening a timestorm at both ends of the timeline that consumed the planet Quintessa in 2008. Space Pirates!

File:MarvelUKTimeRift.jpg

Furman liked Galvatron, he just liked killing characters more.

Shockwave unleashed his brainwashed Megatron on Galvatron, in the hopes of eliminating one or both of his rivals. Unfortunately, Galvatron managed to appeal to the suppressed personality within Megatron, and the two joined forces. Altered Image! Megatron and Galvatron forged an alliance and launched an assault against the combined forces of the present-day Autobot and Decepticons, the future Autobots and Decepticons, and the Wreckers and Mayhem Attack Squad. By this stage, Galvatron was consumed by madness, reliving memories of the same battle as Megatron and unable to stand that things were going differently this time round. In his fury, he was able to overcome all resistance: even a direct Pathblaster to the face and single combat with Powermaster Optimus Prime failed to stop him completely. His threat was only truly ended when the time rift itself lashed out at Galvatron, ripping him apart. Time Wars

At some unspecified point in time,

In an alternate future of 2006, Galvatron was leader of the Decepticons on their home base of Chaar. Astrotrain tried to tell him about some strange activity on the planet Junkion, but he wouldn't listen. Meanwhile, the events on Junkion caused a hypnotic signal to be broadcast out into space, which affected Galvatron while he was watching his bubbling pool. The signal compelled him to travel to Junkion, where he was led to believe he could "be a winner". He was followed by Cyclonus and Scourge.

Once on Junkion, they were soon joined by Autobots. Galvatron immediately attacked Rodimus Prime, and the two battled to a stalemate. The other Autobots worked to disrupt the hypnotic signal, which cleared Galvatron's mind long enough to blast the Junkions' television, which he recognized as influencing his mind. This broke the spell on everyone, including the Junkions, who then added their power to the Autobots' and forced the Decepticons to retreat in Blast Off.

In the course of this battle, his defeat at the hands of Rodimus Prime while inside Unicron was alluded to.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.

Other

• In the year 2356 of an alternate future, a geriatric Rodimus Prime recounted tales of his exploits to a curious youth from his deathbed. In that timeline, the Time Wars had reset history: now the newly-created Galvatron hadn't time-traveled to 1987 Earth, and instead had remained in the 21st-century and conquered Cybertron. This "reset" Galvatron tried to enrage Rodimus—even going so far as throwing Blurr's severed head at him—so that the Autobot leader's vengeful thoughts would corrupt the Matrix itself. This Galvatron was last seen in a flashback to Unicron's third coming in the year 2010 (of that timeline): as Galvatron was left buried under rubble and Transformer corpses, Rodimus noted that on this occasion Unicron had no need for minions. Aspects of Evil!

Transformers PD Type comic

After taking to wearing four Blackballs around his neck as a necklace, Galvatron spotted Rodimus Prime, who'd found another of the precious artifacts. He attempted to throttle the Autobot, only for a brilliant light to shine directly at him. Galvatron fled, believing it to be the power of the Blackball, only for Rodimus to reveal it was just a flashlight... Take a Stand! Rodimus Prime!

Galvatron later led an attack on Battleship Maximus, Bigger than Life! Fortress Maximus! was knocked flat by God Ginrai, Now! Deliver the Finishing Blow! God Ginrai!! and he and his men were sent scrambling as Fortress Maximus and Mega Zarak traded blows. Watch Out! Mega Zarak! When Ultra Magnus found the final Blackball, Galvatron blew the defiant Autobot apart in order to obtain it. As he was enjoying his victory, he was suddenly bowled over — by Ultra Magnus's head. Improve Yourself! Ultra Magnus!

Galvatron's insantiy finally out of control, Sixshot, Liokaiser and the other Decepticons were left with no choice but to bound their leader in rope and try to rationally explain to him that he was too crazy to be left free any longer. Galvatron then reminded them that unless they made his detainment more comfortable, such as providing a futon among other luxuries, he would surely destroy them all. Frightened by his looney faces, the Decepticons quickly brought him a hot cup of tea. Two in One! Lord Galvatron

When a Blackball landed somewhere in a field of tall grass, Galvatron sent Liokaiser to fetch it. bitter with the menial task, Liokaiser began muttering unflattering remarks under his breath. He was then left to nervously explain himself to Galvatron, who was in earshot the whole time. Find the Bright Day! Liokaiser!!

Transformers in 3-D

Galvatron took to talking to Ratbat, as the cassette perched mutely on his shoulder. He was also even more abusive than usual towards his men. He was pleased when a potential new source of Energon was discovered on an asteroid, but particularly displeased when Cyclonus returned with a small alien. After exhaustive tests by a violently coerced Cyclonus, positive results were found, and Galvatron rubbed his hands together in glee before sending out Ratbat to find more of the aliens. Instead, they discovered that the Autobots were also on the asteroid, and Galvatron was more than happy to start inflicting violence on the enemy rather than waste time on small organics. The Test

In search of slaves for the Decepticon energy research laboratory, Galvatron took Razorclaw and Ratbat to attack the space station Exton-9. The Decepticons used their new suspension-ray beam to paralyze the humans, and sat back to wait for the containment ship to turn up. When they detected Cosmos leaving the station, Galvatron ordered Ratbat to contact Cybertron for reinforcements. Unfortunately Cosmos's mission was a success, helping some children to return with the Prism of Power. Galvatron demanded the children surrender and turn over the Prism, threatening to kill them unless they complied, but Cosmos was able to distract him long enough for Ironhide to finish off Razorclaw and blast the Decepticon leader. Transformers in 3-D #2

Alerted to the existence of the Intergon Device, Galvatron led a strike force to Tau-Ursa and successfully seized the device from its inventor, Monitorus, before razing the city to the ground. Building the device into the "Nullification Cannon", Galvatron used it to attack the Autobots' energon plant on Cybertron, rendering its contents useless. While Optimus Prime was distracted by Slugslinger, Galvatron left, announcing as he did so that the Autobots would now have no choice but to surrender. Returning to the ancient, burned-out destroyer which the Decepticons were using as a base, Galvatron was informed by the Clones that the Autobots were searching for Metascan Alpha, the planet of the Logicons that also contained a bounty of energon. While he was ruminating about the implications, Galvatron was forcefully reminded by Lord Zarak that the Nebulan now led the Decepticons. A short time later, Optimus Prime attacked their location, fighting Galvatron. Before Galvatron could stop him, Scorponok swung a claw at the Autobot leader and struck the cannon instead, destroying it. The War Against the Destructons, Chapter 1 of 3

Blackthorne Publishing's bankruptcy effectively ended the story at this point.

Dreamwave Armada comic

An alternate version of Galvatron travelled into this reality as one of Unicron's heralds, along with alternate versions of Thunderwing, Bludgeon, Dirge, and Scourge, to prepare the way for their master's arrival. While the others defeated the Decepticon forces on Cybertron and took control of the Space Bridge Nexus, Galvatron was headed to Earth to track down Over-Run, a Mini-Con refugee from a Cybertron that Unicron was in the process of consuming. Over-Run was carrying the Mini-Con Matrix, which contained the essence of all the Mini-Cons from his reality, and might be a means to defeat Unicron. When Galvatron arrived in San Francisco, he was distracted by several Transformers on this planet, including Starscream, Hot Shot and Thrust, but easily bested them all. However, they managed to distract him long enough for Over-Run to escape. Worlds Collide, Part 1 of 4

When the Megatron of this reality launched his attack on the local Autobots on Earth, Galvatron arrived to destroy him Worlds Collide, Part 2 of 4, declaring that he had killed "many" Megatrons in other alternate realities. Despite his putting up a valiant struggle, Megatron was pummelled within an inch of his life, but before Galvatron could finish him off, the Air Defense Mini-Con Team intervened, forming the mighty Star Saber. This allowed Megatron to overwhelm and eventually destroy Galvatron. Worlds Collide, Part 3 of 4 The gloating Megatron subsequently hacked Galvatron's corpse to pieces. Worlds Collide, Part 4 of 4

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.

Galvatron in the IDW continuity is an ancient Cybertronian who has no links to Megatron or Unicron.

My cannon knows where to go because IT FEARS ME!!!

Galvatron was a crew member on the first Ark, launched during Cybertron's Golden Age as part of Nova Prime's dream of expanding Cybertronian domination throughout the cosmos. However, Galvatron and the crew were lost when he plunged the ship into the mysterious anomaly in the Benzuli Expanse, a selfish act that killed the rest of the crew. Undead, Galvatron became the herald for Nova, now known as Nemesis Prime, ruler of the Dead Universe. Millions of years later, Galvatron was sent on two missions in the living Universe: to destroy an alien starship conducting research on the anomaly in the Expanse, and to return to Cybertron to secure the inactive Thunderwing. After killing Leadfoot by touch alone, Galvatron shrugged off attacks by the Autobot squad under Hound's command and then shocked them when he got up after having half of his head blown off by Sideswipe. In a small act of defiance to his master, he merely incapacitated the Autobots and returned with Thunderwing's body to Gorlam Prime. Spotlight: Galvatron

Bouncers are taking it pretty far these days.

After Sixshot's deployment to Earth, Nemesis Prime sent Galvatron there as well to make sure nothing would forestall their second coming. Devastation issue 3 From a hidden vantage point, Galvatron observed the Decepticons' desperate fight against the powerful alien army known as the Reapers. As Nemesis Prime's plans required Earth to survive, at least for a while, Galvatron took steps to prevent the Reapers from taking over and laying waste to the planet. After blasting an attacking bird-like Ravenous Reaper, Galvatron approached the Reapers' leader, Deathbringer, and unleashed the power of death that was his to command, turning the Reaper into living decay who spread death and disintegration to his fellow Reapers on contact. This turned the tide of battle considerably, and the Decepticons won the day. Galvatron then returned to the Dead Universe to await new orders. However, Nemesis Prime remarked to Jhiaxus that he suspected that Galvatron had his own plans... Devastation issue 6

After Cyclonus secured the Nega-Core and activated its guardian, Galvatron initiated the Expansion with Nemesis Prime and the rest of the Dead Universe crew. Spotlight: Cyclonus Galvatron was paired with Cyclonus to patrol the Benzuli Expanse, charged with destroying anything that might interrupt the Expansion. He let his partner have dibs on destroying Cloudburst and his crew on the Mirror-Manifold. Spotlight: Doubledealer

No arguments! It is time for your bath, young man!

Heading to Garrus-9, Galvatron watched the battle of the Primes, waiting for Nemesis to become completely focused on Optimus, before taking his chance and shooting the Prime in the back. When Nemesis fell, the Darkness jumped to Optimus. As the Autobot leader tried to resist, Galvatron gave him a choice: kill himself in the nearby solar pool or allow the Darkness to pass on to its rightful owner. Prime reached out for Galvatron, but as the Darkness crossed between them, Optimus grabbed Galvatron's hand, and hurled him into the solar pool, destroying both the Darkness and its would-be host.

Or not. Some time later, as the Autobots were recuperating from a series of upheavals, Galvatron's hand burst from the solar pool. Spotlight: Sideswipe The Darkness had consumed him whole! However, both it and he were changed, and Galvatron decided that all that exploration had taught him that change was the one constant in the universe... and now, he and his men were going to force change!

He arrived on Gorlam Prime, where Cyclonus and Scourge were the last surviving members of the Dead Universe crew, and began babbling his intentions at them while throwing Scourge into a smelting pool... causing it to resurrect him, and create a clone army! He then somehow brought Cyclonus back to life, telling him his spirit had always refused to die anyway, and led his army off to fulfill his mission! (The army thinks he might be a bit loopy.) Rebirth

Generation 1 toy bio

Galvatron is an arrogant, compassionless, cold-hearted robotic villain. He is a City Commander, but sets his determination toward nothing less than the leadership of Decepticons. He plots against his own allies, which weakens his position in the Decepticon cause.

Galvatron's toy bio establishes him as a new character with a rank of 9 and the function "City Commander" who covets the leadership of the Decepticons. No mention is made of him having once been Megatron. Given the omission of similar details from Rodimus Prime's bio, it is likely that this was done to avoid spoiling the surprise of Galvatron's origin in the movie.

Universe Classic Series toy bio

At a time when the Decepticons were a scattered confederation of assassins and warlords, Galvatron arrived from parts unknown and quickly asserted his dominance. Crushing all who opposed him, he united the Decepticons into a powerful army "capable of threatening the entire universe". Rumors about his past were plentiful, but facts were hard to come by. Mostly the Decepticons simply cowered before his might, their fear preventing them from even thinking about following anyone else. Those few who dared to conceive otherwise, simply hoped that one day a rival would emerge who could best the tyrant.

It is unclear where this story fits in continuity, or even which Galvatron is being referred to. If one assumes the "Classic Series" bios to be an extension of the Classics comic book, then he is likely "Galvatron II", as that is the only Galvatron established in that continuity. However, if one assumes that the "Classic Series" bios are not tied to any particular continuity, then the identity of this Galvatron becomes likewise open-ended.

Henkei! Henkei! pack-in comic

Upon being cornered with his supply of energon cubes by the Autobots, Megatron took a bite out of one cube, transforming into Galvatron, who easily pulverized the Autobots. Ironhide tried to come to the rescue, but his attempt to attack Galvatron with his blade only ended in it being caught between Galvatron's teeth. But as Galvatron was about to fire upon Ironhide, an explosion occurred, revealing a weakened Megatron, who was then subsequently attacked by Ironhide. Henkei! Henkei! volume 7

Once Megatron learned he had the ability to "power up" and become Galvatron, he later sought the chance to do this again by immersing himself in a pool of molten lava. Cyclonus, accompanied by Starscream and Nightstick, watched and gloated in anticipation of the re-emergence of their unstoppable leader. However, the Autobots arrived, and during the subsequent battle, the lava pool was shot and collapsed. Galvatron did emerge after all...but all he did was berate his defeated troops for having allowed him to be awoken too early, while Cyclonus weakly attempted to protest. Henkei! Henkei! volume 9

Henkei! Henkei! Bun Bun manga

Holy freaking yikes.

Badly wounded in battle by Optimus Prime's energon sword, the defeated and barely functional Megatron was carried from the battlefield by Cyclonus. Brought to a subterranean network of volcanic caves, Megatron was immersed in a "bath" of molten energon cubes to restore his strength. Time of Resurrection While Megatron was recuperating, Starscream led Optimus Prime and Bumblebee to his location, in hopes that they would destroy him so that he could take his throne. As Starscream and Cyclonus battled in the air, Prime approached Megatron, and without hesitation, plunged his energon sword into the Decepticon leader's chest and broke the blade off within his body. Megatron howled in pain and fury, and the energon cubes around him began to react, rising to whirl around him and surround his body with their glow. The maddened Megatron seized one of the cubes and bit into it deeply, causing a huge energon explosion. As the light from the blast faded, Megatron stood restored, renewed and reformatted... now, he was Galvatron! Creation! The New Emperor of Destruction!!

Cue the "oh slag" moment.

The hulking, slavering form of Galvatron immediately lunged for Optimus Prime, displaying a strength far greater than Megatron ever had when he punched Prime so hard that he shattered his mouthplate. Before Galvatron could destroy the fallen Prime, he was attacked from above by Starscream, but easily shrugged off the treacherous Air Commander's attacks. After seizing Starscream and slamming him into the rocks below, Galvatron unleashed the power of his cannon and apparently obliterated Starscream with a single colossal shot. This distraction gave Prime the time he needed to recover, but when he charged at Galvatron with his energon-axe, Galvatron countered it with a dagger-like blade of energy projected from his hand. Next, Galvatron used his cannon to collapse a chunk of the cavern ceiling, hoping to crush Prime, but when Prime evaded the debris by transforming to truck mode, Galvatron shifted to tank mode and pursued him, blasting all the way. Eventually, Galvatron caught up to Prime and pinned him against a wall...by which stage, the other Autobots had arrived to back their leader up! The Threat of Galvatron At first, the combined might of the Autobots seemed to be a match for Galvatron, but with terrifying ease, the reformatted Emperor of Destruction tore through their ranks, defeating each and every one of them. His foes bested, Galvatron then turned his attention to the Autobots' ally Wataru Hoshinoumi, a human born with the power to control energon. Wataru used his powers to create a forcefield to keep himself safe from Galvatron, and another threat soon appeared to occupy Galvatron's attention: Starscream was not quite defeated yet! His body broken and crippled, Starscream still pressed his attack against his former leader, and Wataru leant him a hand, providing a forcefield and boosted weapon power. Before being taken down, Starscream was able to hit Galvatron with one well-placed power-shot, re-opening the gash Optimus had originally torn in Megatron's shoulder with his energon sword. Seeing an opening, Optimus repeated the tactic, thrusting his sword into the wound and tearing Galvatron wide open. The resulted was a catastrophic release of energy from Galvatron's body, which caused the caves to collapse. The Autobots were able to escape to safety, but all the Decepticons were buried. Revenge

Is that how you treat someone after the first date?!

Although badly damaged, Cyclonus was able to survive the cave-in, and recovered the apparently-deceased body of Galvatron. After bringing the "corpse" back to the Decepticons' underwater base, however, Cyclonus discovered that Galvatron was not dead yet when the twisted cadaver of his leader lurched back into life and seized him about the throat, howling Optimus Prime's name...

Now he's copying his subordinate. And they say mimicry is the highest form of flattery.

A little later, the Autobots were shocked to discover Galvatron going on a very public rampage in the middle of Hoshinochō, and were forced to abandon any hope of hiding their presence from the humans in order to stop him. Even more of a monster than before and still bleeding destructive energy from his wound, Galvatron tore through both the human military and Autobot ranks, resisting even Wataru's boosted attacks. When Galvatron dived for the boy, Optimus Prime threw himself into his enemy's path, and Galvatron's claws smashed their way clean through Prime's chest, knocking the Autobot leader out. Unexpectedly, the Autobots' salvation was revealed by Galvatron's actions: Optimus Prime's Matrix of Leadership now stood revealed within his shattered chest. Responding to Wataru's powers, the Matrix surged to life and restored Prime, who struck Galvatron with an enormously powerful blow. As the Decepticon reeled, the energy bleeding from him shifted, and the Autobots discovered they were not fighting Galvatron at all, but Cyclonus...possessed by Galvatron's spark! A Nightmare, Once Again

Comes with power windows (not quite necessary), USB slot for the music collection (unless lacking a USB), adjustable seats with temperature settings (must have!), and the most important one: a cup holder for that wonderful (yet stolen) energon!

His true nature revealed, Galvatron unleashed the full extent of his bizarre powers, raking the cityscape with wild, unrestrained bolts of energy. Charging through the heart of the maelstrom, Prime summoned up the energy of the Matrix and struck Cyclonus's body with one almighty Matrix-powered punch. Cyclonus was atomized, and Galvatron's bodiless spirit flowed over Prime, dissipating into the ether.

The Autobots celebrated the apparent destruction of their eternal enemy, formally revealing themselves to the people of Earth and rounding up the remaining Decepticons hidden on the planet. Just as things seemed their brightest, however, Prime revealed the terrible truth: before disappearing, Galvatron's spark had revealed to him that he was not yet dead. In truth, before his rampage, Galvatron had his body placed in a small spaceship, which was then launched into space, on a course heading back to Cybertron. With a new group of Autobots appointed protectors of Earth, Prime and his team left the planet, hot on Galvatron's trail... To the Sea of Stars

Timelines: Wings of Honor continuity

Generation 2: Redux

Controversy over identity

Yeah, this'll really help with the whole insanity thing.

“	Well, they were the same guy.	”
—Astrotrain's thoughts on the subject, "Five Faces of Darkness, Part 1"

As the above media summaries show, Galvatron has had wildly differing origins across numerous continuities. Some of this was the result of Galvatron's "intended" identity, popularized in the 1986 movie, having not been known in advance by all the creators of all the international franchise branches at once. However, other cases represent later creators deliberately starting from scratch. Since the conceptual existence of multiple dimensional variants of Galvatron predates--by about 17 years--the development of multiple dimensions of Transformers storytelling within a multiverse, it can be especially hard to neatly separate all his appearances into "main" and "peripheral" storylines / personifications.

Even when focusing strictly on Galvatron's most well-known incarnation--the G1 animated series--there has been considerable debate through the years. Some fans believe Galvatron is a psychologically distinct and discontinuous entity from Megatron, almost, or equally, as much as Scourge and Cyclonus, who demonstrate no continuity of memory or personality with their former Decepticon selves. This remains a topic of heated debate in some circles, in spite of a fairly unambiguous canon.

Generation 1 cartoon

In the Generation 1 cartoon continuity, Galvatron evidently still self-identifies as being the same person as Megatron, albeit with greater power and a new name. Although not making a point of revealing this former identity to his troops at large (perhaps to cast off the potential stigma of being a "defeated"/successfully deposed leader), Galvatron makes his sense of self clear when Starscream asks "Megatron? Is that you?" to which he replies, "Here's a hint", before obliterating him. Later in The Transformers: The Movie when Galvatron is poised to crush Hot Rod's neck, he boasts: "First Prime, then Ultra Magnus, and now you. It's a pity you Autobots die so easily, or I might have a sense of satisfaction now." Again, Galvatron is obviously speaking with no sense of discontinuity of identity or personality as he refers to past and current acts as both Megatron and Galvatron without qualification or distinction.

While some might contrast this statement, however, with his earlier line, "I, Galvatron, shall crush you, just as Megatron crushed Prime", interpreting that such a statement implies a disconnect from his former life, this too can easily be explained by Galvatron's apparent reluctance to allow his troops to know that he used to be Megatron. While Galvatron would have fully expected the knowledge imparted in the later statement to Hot Rod to die with the callow youth, the declaration to Ultra Magnus was made in public, with his troops (and, potentially, other Autobots in earshot) present.

During season three, however, Galvatron makes little or no further references to his past life as Megatron, though this could be a side effect of lying in a pool of lava for several months and his increasing insanity. Upon meeting the resurrected Optimus Prime in The Return of Optimus Prime, Galvatron behaves as though simply picking up where he left off with his old nemesis from his Megatron days, as does Prime, saying that he knows Galvatron "all too well". This indicates that the Autobot leader is capable of recognising his former adversary despite the change in name and appearance. Furthermore, in "Five Faces of Darkness", Astrotrain states that Megatron and Galvatron are "the same guy", implying that during Galvatron's absence, the other Decepticons (or, at the very least, Astrotrain) figured out what was going on.

Despite all that, a memorial of Megatron can be seen prominently in the Decepticon Crypt, implying that the Decepticons who built it considered Megatron to be dead. This could possibly be explained by presuming the Decepticons built the marker before Galvatron returned and seized command, though their window of opportunity to do so was rather slim. Starscream's Ghost

Japanese fiction

I hope you enjoyed that shining wizard, Magnus, because it's a very long way down.

Early advertisements for the Galvatron toy presented the character as an altogether separate being from Megatron, and in some cases, even being Megatron's underling. The second "Scramble City" OVA was a remake of the original animated version, albeit including the Galvatron toy for promotion. Galvatron appears to fight his nemesis, Ultra Magnus, as Megatron barks orders from the background. This is likely due to Takara wishing to advertise the toy as quickly as possible, without full knowledge of the character's history. To maintain Galvatron's mystique, he was given the function of "City Commander", with no indication that he was an upgraded Megatron. Continuing this trend of unintentional disassociation, very early promotional artwork featured in TV Magazine and Comic Bom Bom also presented Galvatron as a separate character.

However, this era was very short-lived. In all official Japanese fiction, including the manga and the Japanese-exclusive cartoons, Galvatron is locked in as an upgrade of Megatron. A retcon was created by writer Hirofumi Ichikawa for E-Hobby in order to explain away the bizarreness of some of these early story pages, detailing that the Galvatron seen there was actually a dimension-travelling Galvatron II.

Marvel Comics

In the US and UK Marvel comics, the various time-hopping Galvatrons all demonstrate an awareness of having previously been Megatron with no strong indicators of a break in psychological identification. Indeed, at one point, a Galvatron says outright, "Like Megatron? No—I AM Megatron!" The closest that these Galvatrons come to identity crisis are incidents in which a time-displaced Galvatron is confronted by Megatrons (or copies thereof) and does battle with his former self. Although in these instances Galvatron experiences trains of thought that suggest he sees Megatron as a separate being and/or the source of his madness that needs to be destroyed, these are not the musings of a calm, rational mind. In these instances, Galvatron is in the grips of a psychotic episode, which he generally snaps out of by realising that he and his opponent are indeed the same person.

However, things are complicated by many appearances by Megatron being retconned as a clone of Megatron. There was no hint the clone was a clone until Two Megatrons!, so naturally "Megatron" and Galvatron were written as being past and future versions of themselves. Galvatron even remembers events that happened to the clone, and the clone goes on to plot his schemes under the knowledge that he will become Galvatron one day. The memories, however, don't fit with Galvatron's known backstory at all. (One theory is that this Galvatron wasn't the same one as in Target 2006 but a different one formed from the clone)

A possible explanation for why (any version of) Galvatron retains psychological continuity with Megatron, while his fellow Unicron-creations do not, may be that Thundercracker, et al. were apparently already dead or in total stasis lock at the time of their reformatting, and thus it is widely speculated that only their bodies were used to create Cyclonus and company. Whether this indicates that they retained their life-essences—or sparks, if you adopt the popular retcon—and merely suffered total mind-wipes (either as the result of recent death or by Unicron's doing), or if Unicron actually infused their reformatted bodies with new life-forces is unknown. (On the other hand, none of the other Unicron-created Decepticons have faced their past selves or deeds the way Galvatron has.) Megatron, by comparison, was clearly alive and awake at the time of his reformatting and struck a bargain with Unicron for "a new body", a deal which implied that his mind would remain his own.

Notes

Why can't I see the sailboat???

• According to the 1986 Diamond Transformers: The Movie stickerbook, Galvatron transforms into "a Galvagun". The sentence describing this is phrased somewhat oddly, however, and seems to insinuate that a "Galvagun" is a kind of common object. Of course, it is just a stickerbook...

• Marvel UK artist Lee Sullivan based his rendition of Galvatron on actor Jack Nicholson!

• According to Teletraan II's secret files, Galvatron was reformed from Megatron by Unicron in an attempt to bolster the Decepticon's strength and to lead the Decepticons into a new era. The fact that this information conflicts with the events as depicted in the movie may say something about the quality of the Autobots' intelligence regarding the Decepticon cause.

• A Galvatron Action Master was planned at one point, but apparently went no further than a concept sketch. It is only vaguely similar to Galvatron's normal appearance and may possibly have been a "powered up" Galvatron of some sort.

This toy IS a time paradox.

• A triple changer was proposed which would switch between a very awkward Galvatron, Megatron, and a Walther P-38 handgun with added futuristic silencer and laser sight. It is notable that the strange "Reverse Megatron" design has a mild resemblance to the also unproduced Galvatron Action Master, especially in the chest design.

• Curiously, Galvatron's toy tech specs list his firepower at 9, as compared to Megatron's ranking of 10. This seems odd given that Megatron never showed any ability to perform single-shot disintegrations of his foes and obliteration of entire planets. Some Marvel Comic bio material suggested Galvatron had nearly limitless power through Unicron. Galvatron noted during "Altered Image!" that Megatron was powerful enough to do him some "serious damage", but also indicated that a blast from his own cannon form would destroy Megatron easily. A much better explanation would be while Galvatron draws power for his weapon from galvanic cells, Megatron's fusion cannon drew power from black holes.

• The Galvatron toy's gun mode's only fictional appearances were in the UK comics, which featured it as a shrunken, human-scaled weapon, and a form that he assumed merely so that he could easily be conveyed by other parties, but never wielded as a weapon. It was also referenced in Dreamwave's More Than Meets The Eye profile of Galvatron, which Cyclonus describes as a weapon "none are worthy to wield".

• Galvatron's toy's instruction sheet names the big orange weapon a "laser" which, according to the toy bio, "emits chemically-produced, direct-current electricity". While this is a rather strange thing for a laser to do, it is a neat pun on his name. A galvanic cell, named after Luigi Galvani, is a certain type of chemical voltage source. Though Galvatron's toy's batteries are not galvanic cells, they do produce DC electricity chemically, making his toy one of the more fiction-accurate in the Generation 1 line.

• The UK comics generally referred to Galvatron's big orange weapon as a particle (or particle-accelerator) cannon, in comparison to Megatron's fusion cannon. That seems to jibe with the DC-electricity laser description above. The 2008 Universe Galvatron toy has a "firing particle cannon" callout on the packaging, adding weight to that being the correct name of the weapon.

• In the Generation 1 manga, Makoto has a transforming Galvatron wristwatch that was first available in Japan during the 1980s. However, at the time of the story, Galvatron did not yet exist in-continuity. The circumstances behind this are best not thought about.

• When asked about Galvatron's design in an interview, Floro Dery's reply was, "But about Galvatron, my inspiration for him are those 'stupid people'." ...Ooookay.

• Galvatron's design went through at least seven versions, with the final version being a simplified version of one depicting Galvatron as having mostly exposed mechanical components.

• Just as Megatron's fusion cannon was sometimes shown in commercials to have a handle, Galvatron's particle cannon had a trigger on at least one occasion (during "The Return of Optimus Prime, Part 2"). Galvatron apparently doesn't need to use the trigger; however, several times in season three, he behaved as if he was, holding his cannon with his fist vertically, rather than horizontally, while having one finger in front of the others... go figure.

• The brand director in 1989 who had to approve Transformers comics content, Vinnie D'Alleva, was the victim of an April Fool's Day joke when he was given a story draft and cover layout featuring Galvatron "killing people and eating sheep!" ...That seems pretty plausible, actually.

• In the 1986 Hasbro Pre-Toy Fair catalog, Galvatron's orange cannon is colored dark (either black or a dark purple).

External links

• Galvatron at TFU.info
• Galvatron's Universe profile at NTFA.net
• Who Was Galvatron? at Transformers Omniverse