Signal Lancer (Cybertron)

Signal Lancer is an Autobot from the Cybertron portion of the Unicron Trilogy continuity family.

So if that lance is his traffic light pole, does that mean he's skewering himself whenever he transforms?

After the Autobots were evacuated from Cybertron to Earth, Signal Lancer (シグナルランサー Shigunaru Ransā) is one of several Transformers who took the form of a stoplight. Located in a remote portion of the American desert, his only friend was a Transformer who turned into a pay phone located directly across the road.

Fiction

Cybertron cartoon

Voice actor: Paul Dobson (English), Takayasu Usui (Japanese)

Signal Lancer was "trained" to stay put by Lori, even though a stoplight in the middle of nowhere, not even at a cross-road, was silly. Hidden

Don't cross the street in the middle in the middle in the middle in the middle in the middle of the block!

Later, Signal Lancer was seen with a tour bus refugee when Jetfire made an announcement that the Autobots would be departing from Earth as part of a plan to save it from Starscream's forces. Retreat

At some point, he was joined in his desert vigil by a pay phone refugee.

He would frequently stop Tim Hansen and his boss on their way to Tim's family's home and back.

When the universe was saved from the threat of the Unicron Singularity, Signal Lancer answered the call to travel into space and construct a new system of space bridges. Transforming and proclaiming that he had a great destiny before him, he left his post and joined Metroplex's team. His pay-phone pal wished him good luck.

Tim's boss was rather confused to not see that stoplight anymore afterwards. Beginning

Cyber Key Code content

After the Omega Lock was retrieved and Galvatron finally defeated, "the Traffic Light Autobot" was commissioned by Optimus Prime to join Hightail as his partner and travel across Earth, mapping out every road on the planet.

This information, taken from Hightail's Key Code data, contradicts the Cybertron cartoon's final credit sequence... unless there's another "Traffic Light Autobot", which is possible.

TransTech

Signal Lancer is one of countless "offworlders" residing in Axiom Nexus. He was seen having a drink with the Vehicon Thrust. Gone Too Far

Notes

Get cracking, kitbashers.

• Signal Lancer is only named in Galaxy Force (the Japanese version of Cybertron).
• During the early development stages of the Galaxy Force cartoon series, Gonzo actually created a concept design for the robot mode of the initially unnamed "Traffic Light TF" (seen at top). When Signal Lancer finally revealed his robot mode (and name) in the series' (chronologically) final episode, Mudflap's general animation model and transformation scheme was used as a basis, but the details for the robot mode were directly based on the old concept design. The early design was shown at the Tokyo Anime Fair a few months after the Galaxy Force cartoon series was launched in Japan (see here), and was eventually reprinted in the booklet included with the first Galaxy Force DVD.
• He's awesome.