Soundwave (G1): Difference between revisions
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*''Russian:'' '''Barkhan''' (cartoon, Бархан, "Dune")<ref>Dubbers thought his name was "Sandwave".</ref> | *''Russian:'' '''Barkhan''' (cartoon, Бархан, "Dune")<ref>Dubbers thought his name was "Sandwave".</ref> | ||
*''Spanish:'' '''Sam''' (America ''The Headmasters'') | *''Spanish:'' '''Sam''' (America ''The Headmasters'') | ||
*''Ukrainian:'' '''Zvukohvyl''' (Звукохвил, "Soundwave" | *''Ukrainian:'' '''Zvukohvyl''' (Звукохвил, "Soundwave") | ||
==References== | ==References== | ||
Revision as of 18:24, 16 March 2011
| This article is about . For other uses of "Soundwave", see Soundwave (disambiguation)|The name or term "Soundwave" refers to more than one character or idea. For a list of other meanings, see Soundwave (disambiguation).}} |
| This article is about the Generation 1 character eventually upgraded to Soundblaster. For the Cybertron character, see Soundblaster (Cybertron){{#switch:{{#sub:Soundblaster (Cybertron)|-1}} | != | .= | ?= | .
}} |
- Soundwave is a Decepticon from the Generation 1 continuity family.
Soundwave is one of Megatron's most reliable troops, and he has positioned himself comfortably and irreplaceably in Megatron's upper command structure. He stands at the Decepticon leader's side as a confidant. Though "only" Communications Officer, he is comparable to Starscream and Shockwave in rank and is the only one of the three to display consistent loyalty to Megatron. Soundwave guards his place in the hierarchy fiercely. Other Decepticons (except Megatron) see him as a two-faced snake, since, as Communications Officer, Soundwave hears all and doesn't hesitate to use blackmail to keep himself high in Megatron's esteem. The other Decepticons wouldn't mind abandoning him on the battlefield—if they thought Megatron would let them get away with it.
Soundwave commands a legion of cassette troops to carry out tasks big and small. He has a symbiotic relationship with them, providing them transportation and a cheap, if cramped, place to live in his chest. Sometimes he lets them all out to watch impromptu gladiator games or takes them to discotheques. In return, they perform spy and recon missions for him and make sure no one calls him "un-krozzo-matic".
He usually has all the personality of a stump (as evidenced by his computer-style speech). He also has no imagination, sending the aforementioned cassettes on operations with mundane names.
As an Action Master, he is partnered with Wingthing.
Soundwave's scanning systems are so powerful that he can actually read and decode the electrical impulses that comprise "thoughts" in both organics and Cybertronians. This telepathic power is likely one of the reasons why he is so highly placed in Megatron's hierarchy.
In various universes, Soundwave is upgraded into Soundblaster (サウンドブラスター Saundoburasutā).
Fiction
Marvel Comics continuity
Generation 1
Millions of years ago, Soundwave was one of the first members of the Decepticons; after sowing discontent amongst the masses, he, Megatron and Ravage began the war that tore the planet itself out of its orbit. The Decepticons, including Soundwave, attempted to hijack the Ark four million years ago, only to fail and fall into deactivation sleep for four million years. In 1984, the detonation of the volcano, Mount St. Hilary, reactivated the Autobots and Decepticons, unleashing their war on Earth. Learning the inhabitants of this planet had access to its vast energy sources, Soundwave joined the Decepticons in raiding a drive-in movie theatre. The Transformers Soon after, Soundwave participated in a raid on Harrison Nuclear Power Plant, and after helping the Decepticons make off with large chunks of its machinery, helped use their bounty to build a new headquarters atop a cliffside. Power Play! After returning from S. Witwicky Auto Repairs & Tow Service with Sparkplug Witwicky, a human the Decepticons kidnapped to help them convert human fuel to Transformer fuel, the Decepticons' headquarters were infiltrated by a rescue party of Gears and the human superhero Spider-Man. While Spider-Man caused a diversion in front of Soundwave, Gears was able to suckerpunch him. Prisoner of War!
When Starscream nearly caused the death of Ravage, Megatron rallied the other Decepticons, including Soundwave, to enact vengeance for his treason. The Enemy Within! Later, the Decepticons unleashed a surprise attack on the Ark. After Soundwave defeated Jazz, the battle was halted when Auntie, the Ark's computer system, turned rogue. After the crisis was averted, Soundwave and the others were able to retreat. Raiders of the Last Ark Due to Sparkplug's efforts during his kidnapping, the Decepticons were able to refuel, and Soundwave and his comrades attacked the Autobots. However, Sparkplug had poisoned the fuel, and Soundwave shorted out along with the others. As Soundwave lay deactivated, it was only the surprise arrival of Shockwave that turned the tide. The Last Stand
Shockwave assumed command, and immediately began restoring Soundwave and the other poisoned Decepticons. Soundwave was ordered to prepare the bodies of the fallen Autobots to serve as spare parts for Shockwave's new army of Decepticons. The New Order Megatron objected to this new order and rebelled, but Shockwave quelled him quickly, and paraded Megatron's broken body in front of Soundwave and his peers as a warning to those who would cross him. The Worse of Two Evils! Under Shockwave's command, Soundwave attacked the Blackrock Aerospace Assembly Plant Number One and secured it for Decepticon use. Warrior School! The plant's facilities were used to create the Constructicons, who built a massive radio dish that Soundwave used to beam a message back to Cybertron. However, the radio dish was destroyed when Soundwave was defeated by Huffer and the human trucker Bomber Bill. The Next Best Thing to Being There!
A short time later, during a brief period when both Megatron and Shockwave were missing in action, Soundwave assumed leadership of the Decepticons, happily slagging off Starscream's ambitions of leadership. His first attempt at manipulating Autobots into a trap failed. Crisis of Command! The second, taking advantage of the "Dinobot Hunt", was a major success—six Autobots were badly injured, not counting two of the Dinobots, and a large amount of fuel was stolen while the Autobots tried to stop a Dinobot rampage in a human town. On the way out, Soundwave proudly declared their victory, a turn of events that Optimus Prime did not enjoy. Dinobot Hunt!
When Megatron resurfaced, rendered immobile in a Wyoming coal mine due to lack of fuel, Soundwave sped to his rescue, re-energizing him. I, Robot-Master! Using the splintered state of the Decepticon forces to his advantage, Soundwave worked both sides of the field, reporting to both Megatron and the returned Shockwave, each without the other's knowledge. When Shockwave learned that the human Buster Witwicky had begun to suffer Matrix-induced visions of the next leap in Transformer evolution, Soundwave reported this to Megatron, prompting him to battle Shockwave for leadership. The Decepticons' human ally, Robot-Master, televised the battle, much to Soundwave's distaste, and in order to prevent the Decepticons from looking like fools, he interrupted the duel and insisted that they agree to a joint leadership. Second Generation!
When the Robot-Master hoax the Decepticons were perpetrating was threatened by the investigative work of Joy Meadows, Soundwave was instrumental in ending the conflict that ensued between the Decepticons and the Dinobots by holding the reporter hostage and destroying her footage. In the National Interest Not long thereafter, when the deranged future Decepticon, Galvatron, traveled back in time, Soundwave was intrigued by the fact that he was unable to scan his mind to discern the truth of his identity. Siding with Megatron when conflict erupted, Soundwave and his leader were buried under an avalanche by Galvatron and then rescued by the Autobots in the name of forming an alliance to defeat their common enemy. Target: 2006
Soundwave's loyalty to Megatron was shaken when the latter became increasingly paranoid. Consequently he manipulated his leader into summoning the Predacons to Earth as part of a scheme by Shockwave to ensure a weaponless Megatron was destroyed by Optimus Prime. Prey! However Megatron survived and soon returned to the Decepticon leadership, albeit with his memories of the events lost. Resurrection! Soundwave again served as co-conspirator when Shockwave once more used the Predacons to destroy Megatron. In the process a deranged Megatron seemingly committed suicide on the Space Bridge. Gone but Not Forgotten!
Soundwave was now once again under Shockwave's command, and, while patrolling on the Decepticons' mobile island base, he found himself attacked and subdued by the time-traveling freelance peace-keeping agent, Death's Head, and tricked into giving up information on the whereabouts of Galvatron. Hunters Although Death's Head's attempts to track down the Decepticon met with failure, Galvatron was ultimately entombed in lava, where he was later discovered by Susan Hoffman. Soundwave observed a televised broadcast of her discovery, and he and the Combaticons attempted to destroy Galvatron with explosives planted around the volcano in question. After a battle with the Throttlebots, Soundwave found that he was unable to remote-detonate the explosives thanks to Blaster jamming his signal. Ladies' Night
When Shockwave was removed from power, Soundwave smoothly transitioned to serving under the new Decepticon leader, Ratbat, and helped to operate his Realvision playback system to decode data from Autobot tapes Grand Slam and Raindance. The Flames of Boltax! The tapes, it was discovered, contained information on the Underbase, the power of which was desired by Starscream so badly he sparked off a Decepticon-Decepticon war to cover himself. Soundwave ended up having his fuel pump torn into by Bomb-Burst. Cold War! When Starscream gained the Underbase's power and targeted the Earth, Soundwave co-led the defense of Buenos Aires alongside Fortress Maximus, but was temporarily deactivated by a blast of cosmic power from Starscream. Dark Star
He was back on his feet by the time that Starscream, now a Pretender, was busy doubting his self-worth. Soundwave was extremely scared of Starscream by this point. Fallen Star! He continued to operate under the command of the new Decepticon Earth commander, Scorponok, though like the other troops he was very unhappy about Starscream being allowed back in after trying to kill everyone. Primal Scream He was put in charge of guarding Optimus Prime after the Autobot leader surrendered his troops to Scorponok, hoping to elicit an alliance against the coming of Unicron. When Prime changed his mind about meekly waiting in a cell for Scorponok to make time for him, however, Soundwave provided little resistance in keeping him there. Surrender! After the Decepticon auxiliary army bombed Scorponok's base in New Jersey, Soundwave assumed temporary command of the active Decepticons in fighting back against the traitors, led by Starscream and Shockwave. This "Decepticon Civil War" didn't last long, though, as all the Autobots and Decepticons of Earth were summoned to Cybertron by Primus to deal with Unicron. Out of Time!
Soundwave survived the battle with Unicron, and attended a meeting between the briefly-allied Autobots and Decepticons with Treadshot. There Blaster announced the imminent end of their world, and an evacuation was called for. Soundwave was still hanging out with Treadbolt when he witnessed a fight break out between Grimlock and Fangry. Bludgeon, who had assumed command of the Decepticons, doublecrossed the Autobots by sabotaging their ships. Soundwave was last seen beside Bludgeon as the Decepticons left their self-destructing homeworld. Exodus!
In an alternate future of 2006, Soundwave was briefly seen participating in a battle on Junkion. He didn't do much except retreat. The Big Broadcast of 2006 (US)
Marvel UK future timelines
In 2008, Soundwave was under the command of Shockwave on Cybertron. When the bounty hunter named Death's Head arrived with the deactivated bodies of the renegades Scourge and Cyclonus and demanded an audience, Shockwave had Soundwave wait nearby as a precautionary measure. Sure enough, Soundwave's monitoring abilities alerted Shockwave that the two Decepticons were not as dead as they seemed, and the three invaders began an assassination attempt on Shockwave. Soundwave summoned the Stunticons, hoping that Menasor could breach the sealed doors of the audience chamber in time, but wasn't swift enough. Death's Head killed Shockwave, and together the trio demanded that the Decepticons accept Scourge and Cyclonus as their new leaders. Faced with superior firepower and a hefty dose of explosives, Soundwave was reluctantly forced to accept on behalf of the Decepticons.
Wasting no time, Scourge and Cyclonus commanded the Decepticons to begin a full-scale assault on Autobase. This was effectively suicide, as the two armies were just about evenly matched. That, of course, was the point—Scourge and Cyclonus's true master, Unicron, wanted the children of Primus exhausted and depleted in number by the time of his glorious resurrection. After Rodimus Prime and Death's Head took the fight straight to the recuperating Unicron on Junk, however, he summoned his two minions back to his side. Seeing their "glorious leaders" abandon the battle, Soundwave and Hun-Grrr sounded a retreat. In the absence of Unicron's spawn, Soundwave became the new permanent leader of the Decepticons. The Legacy of Unicron!
Aching to make a name for himself in Decepticon military history, Soundwave soon fell into a Quintesson trap. A lone Quintesson arrived at Decepticon headquarters, seeking an alliance against the Autobots, who supposedly had assembled most of their fleet and were on their way to Quintessa. Instead of helping the Quintessons, Soundwave saw this as an opportunity to invade and destroy the Autobot territory on Cybertron, when most of their warriors were off-world. He assembled his various sub-commanders and set out aboard Astrotrain to claim a glorious victory.
Instead, Soundwave and the Decepticons walked right into an ambush. There were no Autobots on Quintessa: it was a ruse to draw them out of their base, where legions of Allicons and Trident Attack Crafts waited to overwhelm the Decepticons. Seeing the danger his troops were in, Soundwave was forced to call in the Autobots. Sending a garbled distress beacon to Autobase, Soundwave hoped to draw a suitable fighting force of Autobots to their location. He was successful, as Ultra Magnus and his men remained to fight even after learning who the distress call came from. Autobot and Decepticon fought side-by-side until the Quintesson invaders were either destroyed or driven off-world. In a moment of introspection, Soundwave realized how effective the two armies were when fighting as one instead of as enemies... but quickly brushed aside the idea. Simply too much had happened between the Autobots and Decepticons to ever hope for a peaceful end to the war. Space Pirates!
In 2009, Soundwave and the Terrorcons were on Earth, prepping a new energy extraction system to leech the planet dry. A surgical strike led by Kup and Ultra Magnus destroyed all their equipment, however, leaving their power cells empty of energon. Looking for revenge, the Decepticons pursued the Autobots back to Autobot City, only to find an open trans-time dimensional portal. Realizing the Autobots had fled back to 1989 on a mission of unknown purpose, the vengeful Terrorcons wanted to pursue them. Giving in to popular opinion, Soundwave led his troops back through time and right into the midst of the Time Wars.
Recognizing that the uncontrolled timestorm could conceivably destroy all of existence, Soundwave chose to put aside vendettas for the moment, and added his men to the alliance of Autobots and Decepticons from two time periods against the unmatched power and evil of Galvatron and Megatron combined. Still, the alliance was far from perfect: Soundwave was more than willing to allow the Autobots to charge in first, letting them die in order to "soften up" the resistance. When things turned ugly, Soundwave and the Terrorcons then fled back to 2009, apparently without ever getting their hands dirty. Their final fate after reality restructured itself and the timestorm abated is unknown. Time Wars
Earthforce
In an alternate timeline, Soundwave left Scorponok's army and returned to serving at Megatron's side during the Decepticon Civil War against Shockwave. He was not above exploiting the conflict for his own ends, however. When an energon shipment was hijacked by Shockwave's forces thanks to information Soundwave had given them, Megatron came to suspect the presence of a traitor in his ranks, but ironically assigned Soundwave to identify the culprit. To keep his own duplicity a secret, Soundwave set up Wildrider to take the fall, and Megatron destroyed the Stunticon. Soundwave not only got away with his treachery, he went on to happily blackmail everyone he'd mind-scanned. Eat your heart out, Starscream! Secrets
Approached by Starscream with a plan to make them both Decepticon leaders, Soundwave joined forces with the schemer and lured Megatron and Shockwave to an airport, tipping off the Autobots to their location. With the two leaders thus occupied, Soundwave and Starscream took control of both factions. Internal Affairs! Subsequently, Soundwave led an all-out attack on the Earthforce base as a diversion, while Starscream attempted to plunder an oil tanker. Starscream met with failure, however, leading Soundwave to withdraw his forces and hint to them that maybe be should have sole command... Divide and Conquer! Starscream was aware of Soundwave's goals, and when he was attacked by a group of alien assassins, he suspected that Soundwave had ordered the hit and struck back at him. Soundwave was able to convince Starscream he was not responsible and that in actuality, it was the work of Megatron and Shockwave. External Forces!
Soon afterward, Soundwave learned that human reporter Irwin Spoon had secured an interview with the Autobots that could potentially resolve the public view of the Transformer war. Seeking to prevent this, he had the Stunticons capture the journalist. Although the Autobots were able to rescue him, a carefully planted cerebro-shell ensured that the story Irwin wrote was anything but accurate. End of the Road!
Transformers Comic-Magazin
Template:TransformersComicMagazin Soundwave was present when the Decepticons unleashed a robotic hell-beast known as 'King Con' on New York and helped Megatron and Shockwave to set up a mine belt around the harbor. However Optimus Prime rented a helicopter to fly a banner announcing huge raw oil deposit finds in the Rocky Mountains. After a short hesitation, the Decepticons retreated to pursue these findingsTransformers — Transforming Robots in Action: New York — A City Sinking in Terror
Generation 2
After Megatron deposed Bludgeon and reassumed control of the Decepticons, Soundwave once again served Megatron as a close adviser. One of his first acts was to ask, "Why revive Starscream?". Megatron shared Soundwave's concerns, and assured him the on-again-off-again traitor would be dealt with once Megatron had regrown his army. Tales of Earth Part Three
Megatron immediately drew his Decepticons to the moon of Tykos to violently acquire Rheanimum from the natives. However, things soured when Soundwave received a distress call from Skullgrin. In moments, Jhiaxus's Cybertronian Empire was upon them. After several casualties, and Megatron missing in action, Soundwave led a party to discover if Megatron had survived and recover him if he had; when Mindwipe expressed doubts about the mission, Soundwave told him to shut up. He appeared to assume command when Megatron appeared dead, but ceased when Megatron turned out to still function. New Dawn
He was in command of the Warworld while Megatron was on Earth. When the Empire boarded the ship (thanks to Starscream's treachery) he and his bridge crew fled to Earth in escape pods. Total War! He was later seen standing by in the final battle against the Swarm. A Rage in Heaven!
Classics
Soundwave was apparently one of the first Decepticons to return to Megatron's side after the Decepticon leader re-emerged. He helped Megatron rebuild his power base on Earth in secret, using human proxies to covertly recover the remains of Astrotrain and other Decepticons lost on Earth during the Underbase Saga. Astrotrain's Classics profile
After the arrival of the mysterious Decepticon Landquake, Soundwave ran a neural scan on the Transformer to confirm his story of alternate dimensions and Unicron singularities. Soundwave confirmed that, at the very least, Landquake believed he was telling the truth. The Decepticons took off aboard Astrotrain to explore a new energy signature in the Southern Hemisphere...one which materialized at the same time as Landquake and possessed a similar resonance pattern. Crossing Over, Part 2 In South America, Soundwave engaged Optimus Prime's troops alongside Megatron and Devastator on the ground. At Megatron's command, he dispatched Ravage and Laserbeak to intercept the Autobot scouts who had been sent after the energy source. Crossing Over: Part 3
The Cassettes soon reported back that the energy had been discovered, and Megatron rallyed the Decepticons behind Soundwave to break for the source's location. Grimlock interferred with the Decepticons' progress, however, by hurling Constructicons like shotputs until he knocked Soundwave down. Crossing Over: Part 5 Soundwave and Astrotrain got caught exchanging fire with Rodimus and Mirage until the latter Autobot turned invisible and snuck around behind the Decepticons, getting the drop on Soundwave. An explosion from below rocked the battlefield, however, and the Decepticons withdrew from combat. Crossing Over: Part 6
When Bug Bite tried to assassinate Megatron, he used cerebro-shells to take control of Soundwave and several other Megatron loyalists. The shells' effects were soon jammed by an attacking Autobot team, and in the chaos that followed, Soundwave noticed that the Autobots were targeting their base's computers, but failed to stop them. Games of Deception
Soundwave was stationed aboard Starscream's warship when Megatron orchestrated the downfall of Bludgeon and his splinter faction. After their inside men terminated Bludgeon, Soundwave informed Starscream he had received a transmission of surrender from the forces below. At Fight's End
Generation 1 cartoon continuity
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Soundwave was one of the first Decepticons and Megatron's most loyal soldier. Denoted by his eerie, echoing monotone, Soundwave regularly gathered vital intelligence for Megatron's numerous schemes with the aid of his faithful and ever-growing team of cassettes, but despite his primary role as a spy and communications officer, he never shied away the battlefield, and would regularly clash with the Autobot Brawn before finding a true rival in his Autobot opposite number, Blaster. He survived the perilous events of 2005 that took the lives of many of his contemporaries, and continued serving under Galvatron in the 21st century.
In a future timeline that branches off from this one, Soundwave ultimately met his end at the hands of Blaster, but even death could not stymie his loyalty to the Decepticon cause, as he was reborn as Soundblaster through the super-science of the planet Master.
Kid Stuff Talking Story Books continuity
- Voice actor: Unknown
According to Megatron, Soundwave is a "blundering, tape-filled idiot." While the veracity of this statement is subjective, Soundwave does whine a lot. When Continents Collide
Beast Wars cartoon continuity
Beast Wars cartoon
Soundwave was among the many Transformers strewn about the bridge of the Ark when the Predacon Megatron infiltrated the ship on his mission to destroy Optimus Prime. The Agenda (Part III)
3H comics
Soundwave is one of the ancient warriors who appears from J'nwan to help battle the warlord Shokaract. Terminus
Dreamwave comics continuity
Soundwave was chosen by Megatron to lead his second assassination team against the new Autobot supreme commander, Optimus Prime. With the aid of Soundwave's cassette troops, most notably Ravage, as well as Shrapnel, Bombshell, and Kickback, it was assumed he would have no problem with a young, peace-loving Autobot. The War Within #2 Soundwave, like many others, underestimated Prime's resolve and was quickly incapacitated. The War Within #3 He was still out cold when Grimlock came by, The War Within #5 but recovered in time to rescue Megatron after the latter's own battle with Prime. The War Within #6
When Megatron and Optimus Prime vanished in a space bridge accident, the Decepticons were fragmented and Soundwave joined Shockwave's faction. He participated in the attack on The Fallen's minions in an attempt to stop the Unbinding. Conflagration
Eventually, Shockwave attempted to call a truce with the Autobots for the good of the Transformer race, but the initial ceremony was interrupted by Starscream's faction, the Predacons. Soundwave was quite mad about this, telling the Predacons to perish for their crimes against Cybertron as he attacked them alongside several Autobots. Shortly after the Predacons were defeated, Megatron returned to Cybertron with his Aerospace Extermination Squadron and reunited the Decepticons. The Age of Wrath #1 After falling back under Megatron's command, Soundwave reported the progress on his leader's plan to dig a hole to the core of Cybertron. The Age of Wrath #2
In the present day, Soundwave was among the Decepticons defeated by the Autobots and their human allies on Earth. The Ark II, the spacecraft that would have taken the Transformers back to Cybertron, was sabotaged by General Robert Hallo and Adam Rook, and it exploded upon liftoff, scattering the robots across the Arctic Ocean. Soundwave and the others were recovered, Autobot and Decepticon alike, and reprogrammed by Rook to accept commands and were leased to terrorist organisations and military juntas as powerful weapons of war. Prime Directive #2 After Megatron freed himself and the other Decepticons, Soundwave developed a 'metallic virus' that cyberformed Earth organics into cybertronic materials. Prime Directive #3 During the subsequent battle with the Autobots in San Francisco, Soundwave warned Megatron that a nuclear missile launched by Hallo was headed for the city. The Decepticons used the distraction to escape. Prime Directive #6
Soundwave was among the Decepticons who joined Shockwave's forces when the new ruler of Cybertron appeared on Earth. War and Peace When Shockwave brutally deposed Megatron, Soundwave stood by in silence and did nothing to help his former leader. Soundwave worked his way quietly into Shockwave's good graces, earning the ire of Starscream. However, it didn't take many words to bring Soundwave around to the Seeker's point of view. Later, when interrogated by Shockwave, a single, silent look from Soundwave stopped Frenzy and Rumble from revealing that Starscream was behind Megatron's disappearance during their voyage to Cybertron. As the battle between the Autobots and Shockwave's forces intensified, Soundwave followed Starscream's lead without a word, and helped him prepare for a return trip to Earth aboard Sky Lynx. Starscream rewarded him by giving him a present. Soundwave silently approved.
Though Soundwave feigned subservience to Starscream, it was later revealed that he had been serving Megatron the entire time in secret. The Route of All Evil
G.I.Joe vs. the Transformers
Soundwave was among the Transformers on the Ark when it crashed long ago, and was discovered and reprogrammed by the human terrorist organization known as Cobra in the present. G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers #1 Arms dealer Destro made a visit to Cobra Island where Dr. Mindbender introduced him to Soundwave and his cassettes, who were under the complete control of Cobra's scientists. G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers #2 While Destro liked what he saw, he wanted to run a test, and personally operated Soundwave's controls during an attack on the SPS Research Facility.
Meanwhile, a picture of Soundwave was secretly sent out to hundreds of email boxes. The message turned out to be a secret signal from Optimus Prime, which alerted Wheeljack and Bumblebee to the location of Cobra's secret base where the rest of the Transformers were being held. When the two Autobots appeared to stop Destro's attack, the human brought Soundwave and himself back to Cobra Island. G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers #3
Soundwave was released from Cobra control thanks to Wheeljack and attacked his former human masters. With Megatron and the other Decepticons freed, Soundwave went to work making energon cubes. G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers #4 Just as things were going their way, Optimus Prime arrived, powered up using the energon, and punched his fist right through Soundwave's chest, taking him out of the battle. G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers #5 After the Autobots left on a return voyage to Cybertron, Soundwave's head and remains were taken in secret by human scientists for study. G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers #6
Several years later, the scientists managed to use Megatron's technology to create the organic weapon Serpent O.R., who plugged himself into Soundwave's deactivated head after getting free and downloaded data on Cybertron's history. The Art of War #1
Transformers/G.I. Joe
Along with the rest of the Decepticons, Soundwave was buried in the Fera Islands until 1938, when Cobra accidentally awakened them and used them to conquer most of Europe. He sent Laserbeak to spy on the United States' reaction to this, and learned that G.I. Joe had been created to battle the Cobra threat. Soundwave later helped Megatron and Starscream get rid of some Royal Air Force fighters above the English Channel, allowing Cobra to attack the United Kingdom. The Line
When G.I. Joe attacked the Fera Islands, Soundwave infiltrated Flint's unit in the form of a radio transmitter carried by a disguised Zartan. Flint noticed that it wasn't their radio, but that didn't stop Soundwave from capturing him and taking him back to Cobra HQ. Wolves However, the Joes had managed to awaken the Autobots also buried on the island, and Soundwave soon found himself facing down Grimlock. He lost the fight, and either died at the hands of Grimlock or when the Matrix was smashed to pieces. The Iron Fist
Transformers Legends anthology
Soundwave was extremely amused by the footage Laserbeak and Ravage gathered of Starscream falling on his head. He let Megatron know, and they went to pick up Starscream, only to find him gone, taken by the Autobots. The discovery that Starscream appeared to be working with the Autobots only amused Soundwave more, and the Decepticons went to retrieve their former comrade. When it turned out that Starscream wanted to stay with the Autobots, Megatron was enraged, and Soundwave reflected that it was the most fun he'd had in years. Starscream eventually returned to the Decepticons, claiming it was all an act, and Soundwave suggested he should be more careful while mountain climbing in future. Redemption Center
Puzzled by the loss of much of their stock of weapons, Megatron assigned Soundwave to investigate. Using Laserbeak's spying abilities, Soundwave determined that Swindle was selling the weapons on the black market, much to Megatron's outrage. Two for the Price of One
IDW Hearts of Steel continuity
Millions of years in the past, Soundwave was among the Decepticons who took on organic modes in order to battle the Autobots on prehistoric Earth. When an ice age approached, the Decepticons survived by powering down under what would eventually become the San Francisco Bay. Hearts of Steel #1 Soundwave woke up in the mid-19th century, where he came under the command of Starscream. Along with several other Decepticons, he stood by Starscream as he and Tobias Muldoon discussed where they would build their headquarters. Hearts of Steel #2
IDW comics continuity
Long before the war began, Soundwave was the personal assistant to Senator Ratbat. When Megatron caught Ratbat's eye as a champion of the illegal underground gladiatorial matches, Ratbat sent Soundwave to offer Megatron funding and weapons technology. When two Autobots were discovered listening in on their conversation, Soundwave dispatched Ravage, Buzzsaw, and Laserbeak to capture them. After their capture, he read Bumper's mind to see if there was any immediate threat to Megatron's activities. Megatron Origin #2 Some time later, Soundwave was assigned to find a warrior with flight capabilities. He found the Seekers: Starscream, Skywarp, and Thundercracker. During a recruitment rally in which Megatron attempted to kill Senator Decimus, a raid by the Autobots under Sentinel Prime resulted in the participants being arrested. Soundwave, however, was freed under Senate directive, something which greatly angered Sentinel Prime. Megatron Origin #3 Soundwave had apparently switched loyalties at this time, becoming one of Megatron's own in not only helping Starscream exterminate Kaon senators but also to the extent that he destroyed Ratbat's original body, placing his spark into a relatively weak cassette form and thus forcing him into the Decepticons. Megatron Origin #4
Four million years ago, Soundwave and Hook were leading a Decepticon offensive to cover for Octane's convoy of energon. When Optimus Prime slipped away to intercept the convoy, Soundwave went after him and got the drop on Prime from behind. Prime's bodyguard Ironhide turned the tables on him, though, taking out both Soundwave and his Mini-Cassettes. The Iron Age
During the war, Thunderwing contacted various scientists on both sides to discuss his startling findings that the conflict would create such devastation that would render the planet uninhabitable, and that the only way to survive was to adopt the organic carapace idea he had come up with. Soundwave was among those scientists who refused to accept Thunderwing's findings and his proposal. Stormbringer #1
After the end of the cataclysm brought by Thunderwing, as part of a plan to assassinate Blaster, a motivational speaker for the Autobots, Soundwave had Beachcomber captured and used Bombshell to implement a cerebro-shell into him. While Beachcomber didn't outright kill Blaster, his motivational broadcast failed to air at precisely the moment the Decepticons began the big push. Spotlight: Blaster
Centuries later, after Shockwave disappeared, Megatron assigned Bludgeon to delve into Shockwave's research and relay all the information back to him. As the Decepticon leader did not fully trust Bludgeon, Megatron also assigned Soundwave to spy on him. Soundwave followed Bludgeon and his team as they left for Earth in 1984 and established a base within Mount St. Helens, eventually discovering that they intended to resurrect Thunderwing. Though Soundwave tried to stop them, Iguanus used an experimental cannon from Shockwave's arsenal to lock him in his alt mode while they instigated a volcanic eruption. He was eventually recovered by a team of unwitting humans who sold him to a pawn shop. Spotlight: Soundwave
Soundwave was purchased by a human teenager named Jimmy and taken to his home. When Ravage and Laserbeak were reprogrammed by the American government agency Skywatch to find the other Transformers, Skywatch's control signal was blocked by a signal emanating from a functioning Soundwave, still in cassette-player mode. Devastation #4 Sometime later on, Ravage and Laserbeak located the signal and reclaimed their master from Jimmy. Relocating to Mount St. Helens, Soundwave told them that he could barely keep blocking Skywatch's hold on them, due to his weakening state in cassette mode. Shockwave suddenly appeared from a cave entrance and said that the four could make a deal together. Maximum Dinobots #4 Shockwave knew how Soundwave could unlock his robot mode, but would only tell him if he did Shockwave a favour in return, something which Soundwave agreed to. He was told that Skywatch had placed a bomb in Shockwave's head, and that he needed to intercept and copy its disarm code. The plan went off without a hitch, and after transmitting the code to Shockwave, Soundwave was finally freed from his alt mode. Maximum Dinobots #5
After returning to his position as Megatron's right hand, Soundwave helped defeat the Autobot forces on Earth. All Hail Megatron #7 He was present during the attack on New York City, and detected the incoming human military jets. The planes fired, and on Megatron's orders, Soundwave calmly detonated the arsenal. He then launched Laserbeak to take out the human resistance. All Hail Megatron #1
Soundwave reported that the humans had sent a sizable ground force after the Decepticons. Following Megatron's orders, he released Frenzy and set him loose on the humans. The only being immune to Frenzy's infrasonic manipulation, he silently observed his minion's work. All Hail Megatron #2 With the conquest of New York complete, Soundwave listened to Megatron's victory speech. All Hail Megatron #4 When a group of humans led by Cmdr. Spike Witwicky deactivated Rumble with an experimental weapon which originated from Shockwave, Soundwave, sensing this, found Rumble's lifeless body, grieved, and took him away. All Hail Megatron #9
During Starscream attempt to take control of the Decepticons, Megatron revealed that Soundwave had been watching him all along, reporting his planned rebellion to Megatron. All Hail Megatron #10 The infighting amongst the Decepticons stopped when jets from Europe arrived to take them all on, soon followed by the return of the Autobots. All Hail Megatron #11 Megatron was defeated, and Soundwave escaped alongside the rest of the Decepticons. All Hail Megatron #12 Whilst traveling away from Earth onboard Astrotrain, Soundwave and his cassettes took care of their heavily injured leader. Starscream attempted to dissuade him from wasting energon on Megatron, all the while buttering him up with compliments about his loyalty, but all Soundwave said in response was "Negative. Megatron functions." Uneasy Lies the Head
Three years later, Soundwave was still dutifully attending to Megatron's reconstruction. The Transformers #7 He eventually came to the conclusion that his leader's body was beyond repair, and instead recruited Shockwave to build a new body for him. Once Megatron returned in a new and upgraded form, he hatched a plan to use parts of his old body to make Megatron gun replicas that would subconsciously influence humans. Alongside his cassettes and Shockwave, Soundwave helped produce these weapons. Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon He was later present when Megatron got rid of Hot Rod and the Matrix, and was ordered to gather everyone in the base so that their leader could address them. Heart Like a Wheel
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As part of Megatron's master plan, the Decepticons subsequently returned to Earth, where Soundwave led Rumble and Frenzy in an attack on the Skywatch base where several Decepticons were being held captive. Revenge of the Decepticons Part 1: The Demolished Man Soundwave was then responsible for holding Ultra Magnus hostage while Megatron explained to Optimus Prime that he was the one turning the humans against the Autobots. In an attempt to throw off Megatron's concentration, and with it his influence over the gun-wielding humans, Prime fired on Soundwave, blowing off a large portion of his head. The plan worked: seeing his loyal soldier fall sent Megatron into a rage, and he picked up the barely living Soundwave and flew off. Revenge of the Decepticons Part 4: Burning Chrome
In a dream set in an alternate universe wrapped in an enigma surrounded by a soft taco shell dreamt by Mirage, Soundwave was part of the Decepticon strike force who attacked the last stronghold of the Autobots. Soundwave was attacked by Hound, who snapped his head off, killing him. But it was just a dream, so it didn't matter. Right? Spotlight: Mirage
TransTech
Soundwave—in his Laser Cycle body—was seen among the inhabitants of the multiversal hub city of Axiom Nexus. Transcendent: Part 4
Timelines
Soundwave was present with Megatron, Counterpunch, and Breakdown when the topic about finding new ultimate weapon ideas changed to BotCon 2010. As Breakdown mentioned that one of the things he was looking forward to was the debut of the Transformers Hall of Fame, Soundwave turned to Counterpunch and pointed to himself. BotCon 2010 Promo
Commercial appearances
Soundwave's commercial appearances include:
- An appearance in his very own 1984 commercial. This early animation featured a Soundwave model colored in lavender, versus the dark blue used later. Also, instead of the cassettes ejecting themselves from his chest, he reached into his chest compartment with his own fingers and threw the (tiny) tapes into the air.
- He's more on-form in a commercial for the Dinobots, where he, Ravage and Laserbeak are driven back by the robotic monsters amid a thunderstorm.
- Soundwave has a speaking part in the commercial for Blaster. When Rumble strolls into his base carrying a radio, Soundwave immediately identifies it as an "Autobot intruder" and dispatches Ravage and Laserbeak to attack the Autobot. Soundwave is given his correct voice and modulation.
- He's seen grappling with Springer in a 1987 commercial for the Headmasters comic.
Games
Adventure Game: Defeat the Decepticons
When Optimus embarked on his mission to rescue the Autobots' Minicar troops from the Decepticons, Soundwave could intefere with Optimus Prime's progress, diverting him into areas of the Decepticons' maze-like base. Adventure Game: Defeat the Decepticons packaging blurb and game
The Transformers (Commodore 64)
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The Transformers (Commodore 64)
The Transformers (PS2)
- Voice actor: Robert Belgrade
Decepticon story
Soundwave and Starscream were sent to investigate strange reports of space-time warps and UFOs on the planet Zel Samine, bringing a space bridge with them on their shuttle that they would use to transport Megatron to the plant once they had landed. Inexplicably, their ship wound up crashing, and when they attempted to use the space bridge, it malfunctioned, dumping Megatron some distance away. After reuniting with his leader, Soundwave deduced that powerful electromagnetic rays from Zel Samine's sun, Paradius, were responsible for scrambling the systems of the shuttle and the space bridge, and that the Decepticons themselves would be subject to similar catastrophic system disruption if they tried venturing off the planet without a ship. The Decepticons immediately set about raiding local energy sources for energon to repair their craft, starting with a wind power plant on Mount Jaad. Then, after successfully draining the Ranpas geothermal plant—in part thanks to Soundwave deploying Laserbeak to locate any Autobot guards around the facility—Megatron chose the Mongan hydroelectric power station for their next target. Soundwave pointed out the heavy Autobot fortifications that had been set up around the station and suggested a different target, but Megatron dismissed his concerns, and when the Decepticons did indeed emerge victorious, Soundwave apologized for speaking out of turn and doubting his leader.
Via Laserbeak, Soundwave soon discovered that the Autobots on the planet had made contact with the occupants of one of the strange UFOs, and suggested to Megatron that they send a task force to intercept them. In the process, the Decepticons wound up allying themselves with the other UFO's passengers: Galvatron, Cyclonus and Scourge, a trio of Decepticons from the future who had traveled back in time to locate and destroy the powerful Zel Quartz, a weapon that threatened Galvatron's rule in their home time. Soundwave was teamed with Cyclonusto seek out possible locations of the quartz across the planet, and the communications officer stoically carried out his task, all the while struggling to keep Megatron and Galvatron from fighting with each other.
After failing to find the quartz at the Lazalt Ruins, the Decepticons next decided to search the Karzite mine. Cyclonus informed Soundwave that he saw both him and Megatron as "worthless scrap", and warned the communications officer the mine yielded a similar lack of results, then he would be taking the blame, not Cyclonus. Soundwave agreed, but have a warning of his own: he charged a high price for being spoken to with disrespect. As it turned out, the quartz was not in the mine, and Soundwave accepted the blame as promised, only to then reveal his price: he had recorded his conversation with Cyclonus and played it back for Megatron, who did not take kindly to the future Decepticon's insults. At Megatron's command, Soundwave recorded Cyclonus's screams as the Decepticon leader subjected him to a vicious punishment.
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Autobot story
Megatron had Soundwave send out a fake Autobot SOS transmission in an attempt to trick the Autobots into leaving their base. The plan was a success and Optimus Prime and his crew were lured out. When the Autobots realized that they had been deceived, Megatron sent a message through Soundwave's transmitter, gloating how he had tricked Prime and announced that his crew was going to steal the energon the Autobots had on their shuttle. When Megatron had finished his message, Soundwave returned to base. On the way back to their shuttle, the Autobots encountered Soundwave again, this time leading a hoard of Decepticon troops, and fought them. Despite his best efforts, Soundwave was overwhelmed and left to rejoin Megatron. Later, Soundwave fought the Autobots again while they were dealing with another swarm of enemies. He lost again, and left to fight another day.
Later on, Soundwave teamed up with his future self, Soundblaster, and with Full-Tilt as the final defense against the Autobots before they reached Megatron and Galvatron. When the Autobots arrived, Soundblaster started by expressed dull surprise at how the Autobots managed to survive up until the current point. Soundwave continued, warning the Autobots that he would not let them stand in Megatron's way. Both present and future versions of the Communications Officer we all know and love put the best fight they could, but even with Full-Tilt's help, the Autobots overpowered them.
Transformers G1: Awakening
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Toys
- Main article: Soundwave (G1)/toys
Merchandise
- Main article: Soundwave (G1) toys#Merchandise
Notes
- The Decepticon faction insignia appears to be roughly based on Soundwave's head.
- Though Soundwave's toy is a microcassette recorder, his fictional appearances depict him as a stereo cassette deck or Walkman. (Likewise, his microcassette tapes are depicted as regular audio cassettes.)
- The Marvel U.S. comics chose a purple scheme for Soundwave. This could have been an attempt to distinguish him from the other Decepticons, who were mostly blue (especially since blacks also ended up as blues in the industry's then-limited color palette). Or it could have been a simple error. But very likely, it had something to do with his early animation model, which appeared lavender, rather than blue. (See Commercial Appearances.) Compounding this error, Marvel US Soundwave was drawn without a mouthplate by artist José Delbo. The Marvel UK comics colored him blue like everywhere else (partially due to using a more sophisticated coloring system) and always included his faceplate.
- The G1 cartoon almost always depicted him as having to press all his own controls to eject minions or perform other functions even though these are actually part of him. This has led to many a shot of Soundwave pressing his own crotch. What will the children think?
- According to the original script<ref>http://boltax.blogspot.com/2011/02/ron-friedman-auctions-scripts-part-3-of.html</ref> for More than Meets the Eye, Part 1, "Sound Wave" transformed into "a LIGHT STANDARD - identical to the one that exists a short distance away, the perfect camouflage". So... yes, he really did turn into a lamppost on Cybertron.
- Soundwave's distinctive voice proved to be one of Generation 1's most memorable aspects. The highly processed voice (processed by Scott Brownlee) began with Frank Welker basically doing his "Dr. Claw" voice from Inspector Gadget. Whether due to variations in the performance or the processing, the final result varied quite a bit across Soundwave's three seasons on the show. Occasionally, as in the episodes "Roll for It" and "Webworld", the processing was left out and Welker's actual voice can be heard. This Dr. Claw version of Soundwave's voice made a return when Welker reprised the role for Revenge of the Fallen as the processing was, again, left out.
- Similiarly, he often emphasizes words at random, such as his well-known "RavAAAAAGE", or "LAAZABEEK". This may be a side effect of the voice doctoring in the cartoon.
- In the Mandarin dub, Soundwave had a glorious, operatic voice.
- The typically emotionally-barren Soundwave actually laughs on two separate occasions in the Generation 1 cartoon ("Quest for Survival" and "Auto-Bop"), while he screams like a little girl only once ("Roll for It").
- Soundwave has flown in his alt mode one time, in the episode "Masquerade." In Atlus's Transformers game, Soundwave can transform to tape deck mode and kind of bounces around to move in that form. No, really.
- In the Japanese dub of the Generation 1 cartoon, as well as the supporting manga, all of Soundwave's cassette forces which could talk referred to him as "Anikii" (兄貴い) or "Big Brother." This is a fairly common way to refer to others you admire and such in Japanese. It's also a term that gang members use toward older, more experienced members who aren't actual gang bosses. Take it as you will. Whatever it says about his relationship with them, it does give new meaning to the phrase "Big Brother is watching over you".
- Soundwave was in charge of the UK letters page from issues 22 to 78, barring a few interruptions.
- Soundwave's computer model was used for one of the generic Transformers in Beast Machines. It is seen in "Forbidden Fruit" during Nightscream's flashback being cornered by Vehicon drones just before Nightscream flees into the lower levels of Cybertron. Though the model was recolored, it was still really 'Soundwavey,' causing much confusion among fans. His computer model as well as Prowl's continued to show up for the rest of the series, used to represent deactivated Transformer shells.
- Later, Soundwave's character model showed up numerous times in various color schemes as a generic background character in the Armada cartoon.
- Sideways listened to music using a tape deck resembling Soundwave in the Cybertron episode "Memory". Later, after a new Planet X was found, Cybertron Soundwave held tape deck Soundwave in his arms. This caused a great disturbance in the force...
- IDW Publishing seems to be undecided on Soundwave's speech pattern. In Megatron Origin, he speaks in his classic cartoon-based monotone. However, in "Spotlight: Soundwave", he speaks in a normal fashion. Which is once again reverted to the classic speech in All Hail Megatron.
- Guido Guidi made a concept drawing of Soundwave with a modern microcassette recorder as an alt-mode (which are still used by reporters and doctors today) for IDW Publishing's All Hail Megatron maxi-series. This was also unused. Consequently, Soundwave may go down as the Transformers character with the most unused designs.
Foreign names
- Japanese: Soundwave (サウンドウェーブ Saundowēbu)
- Cantonese: Jam Bo (音波, "Voice Wave")
- French: Radar (Canada), Sonore (Canada Action Master, "Sound")
- English: New Soundwave (Omni Productions dub Soundblaster)
- Hungarian: Fülelő ("Listener")
- Italian name: Memor, Vizar (Soundblaster)
- Mandarin: Shēng-bō (Taiwan, 聲波, "Sound Wave"), Shēng Bàu (Taiwan Soundblaster, 聲爆, "Sound Blast")
- Polish: Dźwiękofalowiec (The Movie, "Soundwaver")
- Portuguese: Onda-Sonora (Portugal comics), Microonda (Brazil comics, "Microwave")
- Russian: Barkhan (cartoon, Бархан, "Dune")<ref>Dubbers thought his name was "Sandwave".</ref>
- Spanish: Sam (America The Headmasters)
- Ukrainian: Zvukohvyl (Звукохвил, "Soundwave")
References
External links
- Pages with broken file links
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- Character stubs missing fiction
- Action Masters
- Beast Wars Decepticons
- Classics Decepticons
- Communications specialists
- Decepticon leaders
- Generation 1 Decepticons
- Generation 2 Decepticons
- Go-Bots
- Letters page answerers
- Machine Wars Decepticons
- Robo-Capers characters
- Scientists
- Spies
- Super-God Masterforce Decepticons
- The Headmasters Decepticons
- United Decepticons
- Universe Decepticons
