Birdbrain

Birdbrain is a Decepticon from the Generation 1 continuity family.

You put your right foot in, you put your right foot out...

The special "eagle eyes" in Birdbrain's Pretender shell allow him to target and distinguish his prey in extreme detail from great distances... sometimes. The rest of the time, this talented warrior is led astray by the shell's defective sensor package, causing him to attack the wrong target entirely. He's not dumb or incompetent by any means, but his powerful outer Pretender shell just doesn't work the way it's supposed to, much to his frustration. If it could ever be fixed, he might gain respect from his fellows, instead of their mocking laughter.

He can combine with his fellow Pretender Monsters to form Monstructor.

Fiction

Marvel Comics continuity

Generation 1

In an alternate future where the Decepticons had conquered much of Earth, Birdbrain and his fellow Pretender Monsters were led by Galvatron to the remains of New York City in an attempt to root out the last remaining vestiges of Autobot and human resistance. All they managed to find, however, was a human-made booby trap that buried Icepick under tons of debris.

Not much later, he and the others rejoined the Decepticons to defend the Decepticon Powerbase against an Autobot attack. Rhythms of Darkness!

Dreamwave comics continuity

Millions of years ago, Birdbrain was a member of Ratbat's Ultracon faction on Cybertron. He was among those who arrived at Tyger Pax to sign a peace treaty with the various other factions, shortly before the return of Megatron. The Age of Wrath

Devil's Due G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers comics continuity

Birdbrain was among a group of Decepticons who made a deal with Cobra-La, receiving power-enhancing organic shells in exchange for defending Cobra-La's underground kingdom. They attacked a trio of Autobots aboard the submerged Arc II Black Horizon Part 1, then as Monstructor, defended the kingdom against surface attack by G.I. Joe. They were defeated when Monstructor's head was blown up by the Laser Squad. Black Horizon Part 2

IDW comics continuity

Long millennia ago, Monstructor was the first gestalt, constructed out of the individual Pretender Monsters. Created by Jhiaxus under the direction of Nova Prime, they were intended to be the ultimate fusion of mind and body, a vast amount of intellect combined with unparalleled strength. Unfortunately, they were driven into insanity by the merging process and became monsters. After Nova Prime departed Cybertron in the Ark, Omega Supreme locked them in a dimensionally displaced prison to live out the rest of their horrid existence. Eventually, they escaped and tracked down and attacked Omega Supreme, but were defeated by Optimus Prime and split apart into their individual bodies. Despite Omega Supreme's protestations about the dangers of gestalt technology falling into Decepticon hands, Prime had them taken into custody in an attempt to repair their shattered minds. Spotlight: Optimus Prime

Birdbrain and his comrades were incarcerated at the Garrus-9 penitentiary where Jetfire attempted to carry out Optimus Prime's orders despite Fortress Maximus's misgivings about the whole endeavour. Thanks to a tipoff from the double-agent Dealer, Banzai-Tron's Decepticon Secret Service attacked the facility and absconded with the monsters. Spotlight: Arcee

The breakout of the "Monstructor Six" eventually made its way to the Autobot Orbital Command Hub, and from there to Optimus Prime. Although Earth was currently facing the threat of Megatron and Sixshot, Prime decided that they couldn't risk allowing the Decepticons to gain gestalt technology, and ordered Prowl's team to abandon Earth and head to Garrus-9. Devastation

However, the Decepticons were later attacked in turn by the minions of Jhiaxus and Nova Prime (now Nemesis Prime), who took the gestalt Transformers for the purpose of making Monstructor a guardian of a Nega-Core, a device crucial to Nemesis Prime's grand plans. The Autobot Arcee and the Decepticon survivors struck a deal to capture Monstructor. Spotlight: Hardhead They engaged Monstructor on Rotan, but Arcee left mid-battle to confront Jhiaxus. Spotlight: Sideswipe

Falling back into the hands of the Decepticons, Birdbrain and the others came under the command of Bludgeon. While hunting down Hot Rod, they were confronted by Kup's elite Autobot team, and combined into Monstructor to do battle with them. After Monstructor was downed by a precise shot from Perceptor, his components fled the scene with Bludgeon. Lost & Found

Bludgeon later patched up the weak spot and went to Arduria after learning of Jhiaxus's capture and used Monstructor to distract the Autobots while Bludgeon freed Jhiaxus. The plan worked and they retreated in their separate components and continued Jhiaxus's mission of finding all of the Regenesis missiles. Syndromica (1)

Thus far in IDW continuity, Birdbrain and his partners are not Pretenders.

Toys

Generation 1

File:Birdbrain-toy.jpg

Adorable death-beaked lion thingy.

• Birdbrain (Pretender Monster, 1989)
  • Team ID number: PM6
  • Accessories: Gun, shell, Monstructor waistplate

Birdbrain's Pretender shell is a feathered, black bird-monster. His inner robot transforms into an alce (in 15th Century European heraldry, the wingless male counterpart to the female winged griffin). and folds up somewhat unconventionally to form the lower torso of Monstructor. His simple transformation to beast mode is similar to that of Bristleback. He comes with his shell plate, a small gun, and Monstructor's waistplate.

Birdbrain's inner robot and combiner kibble were also used to make Rairyū.

• More information on Birdbrain at TFU.info

Notes

Foreign names

• French: Linotte (Canada)
• Italian: Avvoltoio