Brainstorm (G1)

This article is about the Headmaster character. For the Marvel comic issue, see Brainstorm!.

Brainstorm is an Autobot Headmaster and one of the most famous notorious inventors from the Generation 1 continuity family.

If a job's worth doing, it's worth OVERDOING!

Brainstorm is a never-ending font of ideas. Whether he's in the middle of a battle or consciously working on another of his projects, new ideas are the background noise of his mind, sometimes to such an extent that his brain will overheat. In his zeal to see these ideas realized, Brainstorm sometimes forgets about things like "basic safety" and "proper experimental procedure". He will happily hand out new and untested inventions to less-than-responsible comrades for field-testing. His inventions range from useful biotechnology, to outlandish anti-personnel weaponry, to devices that harness the bizarre and unthinkable.

Brainstorm is at least partly responsible for developing the Headmaster process. It's sometimes hard to tell how much of it was his doing and how much was his Headmaster partner Arcana's, the two work together so seamlessly.

Sometimes he is also known as Genitus.

Brainstorm was quite different in Japan's The Headmasters animated series. See below for details.

Fiction

Marvel Comics continuity

Marvel The Transformers comics

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

He's green, dammit! Green!

After Optimus Prime and his troops aboard the Ark went missing, Brainstorm was one of several under the leadership of Fortress Maximus. Their faction was mired in a seemingly endless war with a band of Decepticons led by Scorponok, in a struggle so pointless and self-perpetuating that Fortress Maximus decided to leave Cybertron and its war and settle on the peaceful planet Nebulos. Brainstorm followed Fortress Maximus' lead, building the Steelhaven and departing their war-torn home.

It would not be so easy. The Nebulans were xenophobic towards the strange robots which invaded their world, and after several missteps in communication, Fortress Maximus, Brainstorm, and a handful of others surrendered their heads as hopeful proof of their benevolence and compliance. Ring of Hate!

Brainstorm would rather fight and die than live with the knowledge that he ran.

When the Decepticons arrived on Nebulos, Fortress Maximus and Brainstorm's heads convinced Galen to attempt the creation of hybrid warriors through a bio-mechanical engineering process. An experimental surgeon named Arcana constructed the necessary equipment based on the Autobots' theories and underwent the process himself along with several other Nebulans, binary bonding with Brainstorm. Broken Glass!

During an adventure that happened at some unspecified point that was logically impossible given the circumstances, Brainstorm and the other Autobot Headmasters fought the Decepticon Headmasters while the Autobot Targetmasters were held captive by the Decepticons. Mindwipe hypnotized Brainstorm, causing him to crash into Hardhead, and in general, the Autobots put up a terrible fight. But Brainstorm refused to give up and abandon their captured comrades. The four attacked the Decepticons' Fortress of Despair and were overwhelmed, but because the Autobots learned to work together with their new Nebulan partners, they were able to rescue the Targetmasters. Worlds Apart!

The new Headmasters managed to drive off the Decepticons, but also inadvertently created a new "arms race", as the Decepticons later created Headmasters of their own, and both sides also implemented Targetmaster warriors as well. Fearing things could only get worse for Nebulos, Fortress Maximus and Galen took the excuse of an intercepted distress signal from Earth to abandon Nebulos and prevent the war from causing any further harm to the planet. Brothers in Armor!!

On the way to Earth, Brainstorm re-engineered Fortress Maximus to be larger and stronger than ever before. Then, he and Arcana managed to triangulate the Autobot signal to Mount St. Hilary. This led into their first battle with Scorponok's forces on Earth and to the death of Galen. Trial by Fire!

As the Steelhaven orbited the Earth, Brainstorm was kept busy building Goldbug a new body, repairing the injured Fortress Maximus and assisting in the creation of the Autobot Pretenders. Pretender to the Throne! Unfortunately, those projects used up most of the group's available resources and prevented the proper recreation of Optimus Prime. The project proceeded despite Brainstorm's accurate warnings of failure. Totaled!

Can Unicron detect how much cinnamon is packed into every bite of Brainstorm?

Brainstorm was displaced to Limbo along with a handful of other Autobots when Rodimus Prime traveled to the past with a group of Autobots of his own. Time Wars Later, he was one of the victims of a rogue Autobot Mark V Guardian droid, which resulted in him being thrown from the Ark and landing at the feet of Optimus Prime. Brainstorm's flaming body helped contribute to the Autobot leader regaining his desire to fight. Yesterday's Heroes!

Brainstorm was killed when Unicron ravaged Cybertron in 1991. Even Brainstorm's vast intellect failed him when confronted with the devil himself, so he simply screamed and shot desperately until Unicron scooped him up. He was quite tasty. On the Edge of Extinction!

Regeneration One

"I've been asleep how long?! Why did I even invent the alarm clock if no one's going to freaking set it?!

Twenty-one years after the death of Arcana and destruction of Brainstorm's original body, Nebulos had signed an Interplanetary Trade Treaty with Cybertron, which included Project Lazarus—a project to build new bodies for the original heads of the now-deceased Headmasters. Grimlock reviewed transmissions in which Senior Scientist Borx explained that the initial attempts had led to extreme pain and complete rejection of the new bodies, including footage of a disastrous attempt at integrating Brainstorm's head with a new body, until data from Zarak's old files improved the process. Loose Ends, Part 2

However, this "unauthorised" decryption awakened the original head of Scorponok. Aided by knowledge gleamed from his binary bond with the deceased Zarak, he was able to enslave the Nebulans, complete Project Lazarus, and have them build a "mint replica of [his] original body". Natural Selection, Part One With the aid of Grimlock's Nucleon-soaked CNA, who he had captured while seeking a new body for himself and the other Nucleon victims, he completed another project—to create a "Gene Key" which could mute the consciences of Autobots, turning them into "Decepticons". Natural Selection, Part Two The rebuilt Brainstorm—whose faceplate had apparently been forcibly removed, leaving a discolored lower face—was one of the three subjects he demonstrated this on, along with Highbrow and Hardhead, and as soon as they were freed, they proceeded to attack Grimlock for wearing an Autobot symbol. After Brainstorm had been chucked around a bit by Grimlock, Scorponok stopped them, as Grimlock was now working for him under blackmail anyway. They proceeded to travel to Cybertron to begin converting the populace into Decepticons. As soon as they landed at Iacon's Civil Defense Hub, the twisted Autobots shot the shocked Slapdash in the face. Leaving him for dead, they then marched in and began killing Civil Defense Force members until the coast was clear for Scorponok. Natural Selection, Part Two

Later, he stormed through Iacon, turning Autobots with the Gene Key, blindsiding Overdrive amongst others. As the Omnibot roared away, eager to cause chaos, Brainstorm turned on Grimlock, who had been wandering the city searching for the Dinobots, telling him that Scorponok had ordered him back to the Civil Defense Hub and escorting him there. Natural Selection, Part Three. While searching for the other Dinobots, Grimlock activated an alarm at the Nursery, where Slag was being held, which drew the Dinobots there as well as Brainstorm, Darkwing and Dreadwind. Grimlock then shot open the containment capsule holding Inferno. With his temperature spiking to dangerous levels, owing to his Nucleon exposure, Inferno begged them to get clear to no avail—as Grimlock intended, the resulting blast incapacitated Brainstorm and the two Decepticons. Natural Selection, Part Four

Ultimately, Perceptor corrupted Scorponok's "master" Gene Key, intended to convert holdouts across the whole planet, and all the affected were converted back into "Autobots", including Brainstorm. Natural Selection, Part Five Though they wouldn't have been held accountable for their actions while altered by the Gene Key, the three former Headmasters turned themselves in to be tried as war criminals, unable to live with the thought of what they were capable of. Destiny, Part One

Brainstorm later took part in the assault on Jhiaxus's Hub Network but was then captured and held at the Corral, and later executed along with Joyride, Sky High and Crosshairs when Rodimus couldn't call off the Wreckers. The War to End All Wars, Part 4

Generation 1 cartoon continuity

The Transformers cartoon

Voice actor: Michael Bell (English), Hiroshi Naka (Japanese)

"Okay, we'll become Headmasters, but you gotta take the old man."

Brainstorm was first seen on Cybertron, touting his new theory that an integration of human and Autobot would dramatically enhance their fighting abilities. Most of the other Autobots, though, thought he was a crackpot. Things turned around when he and a group of Autobots met a band of freedom fighters while stranded on the planet Nebulos. With several comrades kidnapped and the safety of the MacGuffin key to the Plasma Energy Chamber in jeopardy, the Autobots arranged to bond with the Nebulan soldiers. Their heads were reconstructed to accommodate Nebulan passengers and then "transform" around their partners as personal battle armor. The Rebirth, Part 1

Uh, Arcana, he has a cockpit.

With the help of their partners, the Autobot Headmasters freed their comrades and drove off the Decepticons. Unfortunately, their foes then joined forces with the freedom fighters' enemies, a group of evil machinesmiths called the Hive. They also created a new form of binary bonding called Targetmasters. The revitalized Decepticons returned and engaged the Autobots in battle anew. Mindwipe detected the key on Brainstorm and managed to disarm him. Several Hive agents then swarmed Brainstorm and removed the key from him, but he was able to run a full spectrum exo-scan on Nightstick, one of the Targetmaster partners, before they got away. With that information, Brainstorm was able to recreate the Targetmaster process for the Autobots. The Rebirth, Part 2

Returning to Cybertron in pursuit of the key and the new Decepticon city-base, Scorponok, Brainstorm and the others joined forces with Optimus Prime, and their partners were instrumental in reversing the chamber's power to usher in a new Golden Age for Cybertron. In the aftermath, Brainstorm and the Headmasters returned to Nebulos to clear out the Hive's machines and restore the planet to peace and prosperity. The Rebirth, Part 3

Wings Universe

Wings Universe is based on the Generation 1 cartoon, but deviates from it in cosmetic ways and continuity points.

Following Hi-Q's kidnapping, Brainstorm turned out with Highbrow, Crosshairs and Chromedome to brief Pyro's team. A Flash Forward, Part 3

Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity

In Japan, "Brainstorm" is the name for the combined small head-robot and transtector body. When separated from the large, lifeless robot body, the head unit is called Cana.

The Great Transformer War

Before the Headmasters joined the greater Transformer war, Brainstorm, as part of the Headmasters of Justice, hunted down the Headmasters of Evil on a barren planet. Their ensuing battle was interrupted when Sixshot arrived to retrieve the Headmasters of Evil, as Galvatron had need of them. As they left, Fortress met up with the four Autobot Headmasters and they all boarded Battleship Maximus to pursue the Decepticons to Cybertron. The Great Transformer War #3

The Headmasters cartoon

Voice actor: Ryōichi Tanaka (Japanese), John Culkin (English, Omni Productions dub)

Four million years ago, Brainstorm was one of a number of small Cybertronians who left Cybertron in search of a new home. The Mystery of Planet Master they ended up crashlanding on Master, an inhospitable world with harsh weather conditions and a hostile environment, forcing them to rapidly advance in technology to survive. Brainstorm was among those to become a Headmaster, mastering the art of transforming so he could take control of a Transtector. The Four-Million-Year-Old Veil of Mystery Unfortunately once they'd succeeded, a number of the Headmasters broke away from Fortress's leadership under the command of Scorponok. The Mystery of Planet Master

The events of "The Great Transformer War" manga occur at this point.

"What do you mean 'shouldn't you have a mouthplate?'?"

In the year 2011, when Galvatron launched his latest attack on Cybertron with the added power of his new Decepticon Headmasters, Brainstorm and his fellow Autobot Headmasters travelled to the planet to help their comrades defend their homeworld. Four Warriors Come out of the Sky On arrival, they set about fighting the Decepticons. Brainstorm and Chromedome were able to overcome Mindwipe, despite the Decepticon's powers of hypnotism. Following the battle's conclusion, they traveled to Athenia on board Battleship Maximus to join the Autobot forces there. Though they volunteered to accompany Hot Rod to Earth to help search for the Matrix of Leadership, he insisted on sidelining them. The Mystery of Planet Master After Blaster's death, the Headmasters joined Hot Rod anyway and helped him search. When the came under attack from Abominus, they were able to hold the Decepticon off long enough for Hot Rod to dig up the Matrix. They accompanied him back to Cybertron, where Hot Rod once more became Rodimus Prime, but they failed to stabilize Vector Sigma, and Optimus Prime was forced to do it himself by sacrificing his life. Birth of the Fantastic Double Prime

When the Decepticons created the Madmachine, the four Headmasters were ready to storm over to Chaar and destroy it, but Rodimus intended instead to send the Cassettes. When the Cassettes refused the mission, Brainstorm blocked their way, wanting to know what their problem was. Daniel pointed out they were still upset about Blaster's death, however Fortress resurrected Blaster as Twincast. While Twincast went to Earth, the Headmasters were sent to Cybertron and helped Throttlebots to destroy the Madmachine. The Great Cassette Operation While on patrol in Battleship Maximus, the Headmasters encountered two Beastformers, leading them to travel to planet Beast to thwart a Decepticon invasion. Rebellion on Planet Beast After failing to destroy a strange meteor, they aided the Technobots in a fight against Decepticons. Partway though, they were called back to Athenia so they could accompany Daniel on a mission to destroy the meteor, and Brainstorm and his fellows kept Galvatron's men busy while Daniel completed said mission. Approach of the Demon Meteorite

The Headmasters were sent to Praum to investigate reports of a Decepticon attack. On arrival, they found the base had been devastated and the occupants apparently destroyed, moving Brainstorm to make the sign of the cross. It turned out to be a trap set by Scorponok, but the five Headmasters remembered their struggles back on Master and swapped Transtectors in order to escape. Brainstorm made great use of Highbrow's Transtector during the ensuing battle against the Decepticons. The Four-Million-Year-Old Veil of Mystery While investigating a mysterious blackmailer, the Headmasters checked out the Statue of Liberty. They arrived in London with Metroplex, only to find the Decepticons had leveled the place. They similarly arrived back in New York too late, though Brainstorm spotted Cyclonus and Scourge. They later aided the Trainbots in catching up with and defeating Sixshot, whom they'd encountered before on Master. Terror! The Six Shadows

The Headmasters continued to train, Brainstorm by lifting weights. When Decepticons were reported to be heading for Earth, he opted to remain on Athenia, and later traveled to Cybertron with Fortress when the Decepticons mounted an all-out attack on the planet. Cybertron Is in Grave Danger, Part 1 When the Decepticon Headmasters split mid-battle, Brainstorm figured they were up to something, and they eventually discovered the Decepticons were heading for Vector Sigma and gave pursuit. Unfortunately they failed to stop the Decepticons destroying Cybertron. Cybertron Is in Grave Danger, Part 2

During the launch of the Sol 1 satellite, the Headmasters defended the launch pad. Brainstorm took to the air to try and chase off Cyclonus and Scourge. They succeeded in launching the satellite, but when the Decepticons made another play for it, Sixshot kept the Autobot Headmasters busy. Brainstorm was ready to charge over to Chaar to get Sol 1 back, but Fortress had a better idea where it was. The Headmasters found the satellite near Zarak, but were forced to destroy it to keep it out of Decepticon hands. The Shadow Emperor, Scorponok

The Headmasters went to Earth to assist when a Peruvian volcano erupted. While fighting Predaking and the Decepticon Headmasters, Brainstorm used his whirlwind attack to draw hot ash from an ash cloud and blast the Decepticons with it. He also assisted during the evacuation of the village of Pan by rescuing Pipiro's donkey, Koro. The Dormant Volcano Mysteriously Erupts When they attacked a buridanka plant on Earth, Brainstorm boldly threw himself into one of the plant's mouths. The rest of the fight didn't go much better, and the Headmasters found themselves in danger of termination until Fortress broke out the Master Sword and cut the thing to shreds. Head On!! Fortress Maximus

When reports came in of the Decepticons being up to something on Mars, Brainstorm and the other Headmasters traveled there in Broadside. After tangling with Predaking they rescued Daniel and found out that the Decepticons were planning to blow the entire planet up. Interrogating the Decepticons led them to a crater which naturally turned out to be a trap. Explosion on Mars!! Maximus Is in Danger Both Brainstorm and Highbrow were injured enough that they had to undergo extensive repairs. They finally returned to the fight to save Mars in time to witness MegaZarak's arrival, and Brainstorm's jet mode was swatted out of the air by the titan. As Mars exploded, the four Headmasters joined Fortress aboard Maximus, and they were able to escape the planet thanks to the explosions recharging Maximus' power. Explosion on Mars!! MegaZarak Appears

Brainstorm offered the opinion that a UFO Daniel saw might be aliens. He and the other Headmasters patrolled space near Chaar and came under attack from MegaZarak, but escaped thanks to another appearance by the mystery UFO. It wasn't until the Autobots gatecrashed Scorponok's coronation ceremony that the UFO was revealed to be the returned Galvatron, and they had to retreat. Return of the Immortal Emperor After an SOS was received from Sandra, the Headmasters prepared to take a shipment of energy to that world. The Decepticons set out to stop them, but Brainstorm and Highbrow kept them busy while Chromedome and Hardhead sneaked ahead with the energy. The Autobots arrived on Sandra in time to fight off the incoming Decepticons. SOS from Planet Sandra

As part of Spike's plan to negotiate with the Decepticon, the four Headmasters accompanied him to Shangri-La Island on Earth as an escort. When the Galvatron who met with Spike turned out to be an impostor, Brainstorm and the others rescued Carly and Daniel before attacking the Decepticons. During the escape, Sixshot destroyed the space bridge network, and the Autobots set out in pursuit in Battleship Maximus. Daniel Faces His Biggest Crisis Ever!! When the Decepticons invaded Hive, the Autobots attempted to go help, but were stopped by the Hive ships which opened fire on Maximus. Even Chromedome, Hardhead and Brainstorm going out to try to reason with them failed, and the trio returned to the ship. Fight to the Death on Planet Hive!!

As Maximus neared the Twin Star system, Brainstorm got the other riled up by claiming battle was about brain over brawn. He volunteered to accompany Daniel, Arcee and Wheelie to the planet of Toruin while the others fought the Decepticons on Spherity. The four of them weren't on the barren planet for long before they stumbled on an underground city—the inhabitants of Spherity were using the planet as a refuge. Brainstorm returned to the battle on Spherity, using a head swap technique with the other Headmasters so he could reach Fortress and deliver the news that Spherity was an empty world. He later apologized to the other Headmasters for his earlier comments about warfare. Battle for Defense of the False Planet

An SOS led the Headmasters to the planet Daros where they fought the Decepticons again and overthrew the corrupt government. Find MegaZarak's Weak Spot!! Brainstorm noticed that Battleship Maximus' weapons systems were malfunctioning and had Chromedome and Hardhead go to fix them. When Highbrow was captured by the Decepticons on the planet of Paradise, the three other Headmasters were forced to go rescue him. Head Formation of Friendship

Brainstorm was keen to take the fight to the Decepticons before their foe could return to Chaar. The Headmasters took part in a battle on the Pirate Planet, though there turned out to be no energy there. Mystery of the Space Pirate Ship As the Decepticons returned to Chaar, the Autobot Headmasters returned to Athenia. They traveled to Earth to try to stem a Decepticon attack, but were too late to prevent Ultra Magnus's death at the hands of Sixshot. Ultra Magnus Dies!!

The Decepticons began striking at points across the Earth, but the Headmasters followed Galvatron to Alaska, where they were able to use information passed on by Punch to defeat Galvatron, trapping him beneath the ice. The Emperor of Destruction Vanishes on an Iceberg New information pointed to the Decepticons trying to destroy Earth altogether. As Chromedome had become consumed with guilt over endangering Spike, Brainstorm was put in temporary charge of the Headmasters and sent to the Kamchatka Peninsula with Hardhead and Highbrow. They didn't fare well against the Decepticons there until Chromedome successfully completed Highbrow's research and arrived with the knowledge of MegaZarak's weak spot. I Risk My Life for Earth

With Earth largely abandoned by the Decepticons, the Autobot Headmasters set about finding the bombs they'd planted. Brainstorm and Highbrow retrieved a bomb from a mine and returned it to Battleship Maximus. During the disposal of the bombs in space, an accident created the Targetmasters from a group of refugees from Master and some Autobots and Decepticons. Miraculous Warriors, Targetmasters (Part 1) Brainstorm and Highbrow carried Pointblank back to the ship, though the newcomer dismissed their combat skills. Warned by the refugees, the Headmasters returned to their home world and fought the Decepticons. Miraculous Warriors, Targetmasters (Part 2)

After the Decepticons ransomed Wheelie for information on the Master Sword, Brainstorm and the other Autobots were unsuccessful in keeping said information out of the Decepticons' hands, even after Wheelie was rescued. The Master Sword Is in Danger!! The Headmasters worked on finding Scorponok by searching for unique energy wavelengths and even found the cavern where he was constructing the Zarak Shield, but were too late to prevent its completion. The Zarak Shield Turns the Tide Brainstorm went along with Chromedome's plan to rally the residents of Master against the Decepticons, but it went horribly wrong when Scorponok popped up in the middle of the city and defeated Fortress Maximus in combat. Operation: Destroy the Decepticons

The Headmasters traced Daniel to planet Daira after he became separated from the ship, and were surprised to find he'd been looked after by Sixshot. My Friend Sixshot! When Sixshot challenged Chromedome to a duel and the other Headmasters failed to talk their friend out of it, Brainstorm offered to be Chromedome's second and got a punch in the mouth for his troubles. They were reluctant to let him go alone, but when it turned out the whole thing was a diversion while the other Decepticons headed for Earth, they had no choice but to let him go it alone. Duel on the Asteroid

The Autobots hurried back to Earth, where the Decepticons were busy erecting Death Towers. When they learned that Spike and Carly's plane had crashed in the Andes, the four Headmasters went there with Daniel and Wheelie to rescue them. The Final Showdown on Earth (Part 1) On their way to Egypt to deal with another Death Tower, the four Headmasters had to contend with Mindwipe, Skullcruncher and Weirdwolf, though the trio didn't present much of a threat in the end. After failing to stop the Death Tower from rising, the Autobots' entire army went to the North Pole where they faced the Decepticons in a final battle to save Earth. As Fortress Maximus was caught in the energies preparing to tear the planet apart, Brainstorm and the other three Headmasters attempted a Head Formation to give him more power. It was only when the other Autobots joined in that they succeeded, and the Decepticons' satellite was destroyed. With the Decepticons having fled into space, the Autobots left Earth to pursue them. The Final Showdown on Earth (Part 2)

The Headmasters manga

On Athenia, Brainstorm attended the unveiling of the Optimus Prime memorial statue. He and the other Headmasters of Justice also waylaid a Decepticon bombing attack on the planet. The Headmasters #1

Venturing to Beast, Brainstorm and the Headmasters of Justice investigated an SOS from their allies. On aerial recon, Brainstorm and Highbrow found Alligatron and Predaking attacking innocent Beasts. The Headmasters heroically bought time for the Beasts to flee, but were captured by the Decepticons. Luckily, Hardhead and Chromedome found reinforcements in Kane and the Autobot Beastformers. They provided a needed distraction for Highbrow and Brainstorm to break free from their captors. Through quick thinking and teamwork, the Headmasters, Trainbots, and Beastformers successfully drove the Decepticon forces off of Beest and back to Chaar. Great Decisive Battle of Planet Beast!

Brainstorm and the Headmasters next traveled to an Alaskan energy refinery, where the Headmasters of Evil managed to temporarily get the drop on them, separating the Masters from their Transtectors. Through quick thinking and teamwork, the Autobot Headmasters reunited with their Transtectors and defeated the enemy. The Headmasters #2

The Trainbots joined Brainstorm and the Headmasters on an undersea mission where they found Rippersnapper, Skullcruncher and the Sharkticons stealing(?) energy from subaquatic vents. They also found a giant robot squid lying in wait. Through quick thinking and teamwork, the Headmasters and Trainbots dismantled the squid and stopped the Decepticons' scheme. The Headmasters #3

In a battle with Sixshot, Brainstorm and the Headmasters of Justice failed to prevent the Six Clan ninja from stealing food rations. And kidnapping Daniel. By accident. Way to go, guys. The Headmasters #4

During the Christmas season, Brainstorm and his friends entertained the patients at a children's hospital until the Decepticons arrived. Through quick thinking and teamwork...aw, you get the picture. The Headmasters #6

On Earth, Brainstorm and the crew of the Battleship Maximus helped put out a fire so that Ricochet and Artfire could concentrate on battling the Decepticons. The Headmasters #7

Super-God Masterforce cartoon

Archive footage of a battle in space involving Brainstorm was used to educate the future Headmaster Juniors about the Master Wars. Birth! Headmaster Jrs

The Transformers Adventure Game Books

As the following stories are multipath adventures, details will vary depending on the path taken. See individual pages for information on alternate paths.

Swamp of the Scorpion

Highbrow and Brainstorm once battled Cyclonus, using an electronic circuit jammer to prevent the Decepticon from taking flight.

Brainstorm was supposed to help Highbrow investigate Decepticon activity on the planet Nebulos. Before their mission was fully underway, however, his power-lines begun to over-heat. Brainstorm and Gort stopped at a nearby city to get repaired while Highbrow carried on with the mission. Swamp of the Scorpion

Ladybird Books continuity

As the Decepticons built an energy interceptor at Nebulos's north pole, the Autobots learned their device risked wiping out the entire planet. After destroying the first energy interceptor, the Autobots were nonplussed to learn the Decepticons built a second, more heavily guarded interceptor in its place. Thinking creatively, Brainstorm worked with the Autobot Targetmasters to turn the Decepticon fortress Scorponok's strength against it. During a sabotage raid, the Targetmasters used thermal lasers to melt the ice underneath Scorponok and the interceptor installation, causing them to fall helplessly into the slush. Decepticons at the Pole

When the Autobots located a vast reservoir of oil on the planet, Brainstorm spearheaded the effort to create a major pipeline to pump the oil back to Autobot base. Autobots Strike Oil

Brainstorm later assisted Optimus Prime in charting a planet-wide search for Decepticon activity on Nebulos. Decepticons Underground

IDW Generation 1 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.

"We fire the whole laser beam. That's 65% more laser per laser!"

The 'bot who would be Brainstorm was constructed cold under the name of Genitus, an M.T.O. created for Operation: Solar Storm. Our Steps Will Always Rhyme He kept his origins as a "knockoff" secret from most, however, and instead pretended to be forged, even going to far as to claim that he participated in the anti-apartheid marches that called for "equal rights for knockoffs!" which took place before he was even created. The Fecund Moon

Genitus was among the young scientists recruited for the New Institute, and was soon nicknamed "Brainstorm" by his peers. Two of his co-workers received similar nicknames as "Chromedome" and "Highbrow". The Reluctant Specialist Overly eager and far more likely to ask "Can it be done?" rather than "Should it be done?", Brainstorm fit in well with the vaguely (and sometimes, not so vaguely) amoral experiments and research performed by Zeta's staff. Remembrance Day Despite the destructive scope of his work, Brainstorm had reservations about directly killing others, and never slew anyone by his own hand. Predestination: An Expert's Guide

On one occasion, Brainstorm and Chromedome survived a raid on the New Institute by Overlord and Starscream to rescue Soundwave. Remembrance Day Although Chromedome left the New Institute after that near-death experience, he and Brainstorm remained close friends. In fact, Chromedome once remarked that he was Brainstorm's only friend, and Brainstorm didn't correct him. Rules of Disengagement For all his flaws, Brainstorm stood by the quick-to-love Chromedome as the war went on and he lost three Conjunx Endurae, even though he felt disappointed in Chromedome for using his mnemosurgery skills to wipe his own painful memories after each loss rather than remember his fallen partners. The Gloaming

Brainstorm himself was no stranger to loss. He was deeply infatuated with his fellow scientist and co-worker Quark, to the point that he would later describe him as a "one-way" Conjunx Endura; to what extent Quark may have reciprocated Brainstorm's feelings is unknown, and indeed, would go tragically forever unknown, as he was captured during the fall of K'th Kinsere and imprisoned at Grindcore, where he later died. Brainstorm was devastated but not broken, and, putting his vast intellect to work secretly beginning construction of a paradox trap-exempt time machine with which he planned to save his love. The components of the machine were hidden in his network of Briefcases, the control case of which almost never left his arm. All of this meant, of course, that if he succeeded he himself would cease to exist, Operation: Solar Storm having never happened. Predestination: An Expert's Guide The Custom-Made Now

Ironhide confided to Optimus Prime didn't think much of Brainstorm's chances of survival in the early days of the war. Old Ways He briefly appeared among the Autobot troops fighting Megatron and the Decepticons on Cybertron in the distant past. All Hail Megatron #1 At some point during the war he became a double-agent, joining the Decepticons to gain access to their time-travel technology, a goal that ultimately transcended either allegiance. He kept the Decepticons sweet by spinning old, already known information in different ways to make it seem as if it was new advances (though many didn't quite fall for it).The Road Not Taken Predestination: An Expert's Guide Our Steps Will Always Rhyme

"They say great science is built on the shoulders of giants. Not here. At Kimia, we do all our science from scratch. No hand holding."

He was later stationed at the Kimia Facility, working on lots of experimental technology and weaponry for the Autobot cause, where his designs were often considered the insane standard that all other weapon designers in Kimia held themselves to. More than any other Autobot, he had beaten a path to Room 113 where his creations were time and time again rejected by the Ethics Committee as violations of the Non-Conventional Weapons Act. Undaunted by the rejections, Brainstorm continued to dream up more outlandish and dangerous weapons in his time at Kimia. His most daring inventions were referred to as the "Unmentionables". Bullets

On Prowl's orders, he (alongside Perceptor) used Pretender technology to rebuild Kup into a sane, rejuvenated 'bot. Everything in Its Right Place

At Ironfist's request, Brainstorm agreed to go over the gun that misfired the cerebro-sensitive bullet into Ironfist's skull, looking for what went wrong with the firing mechanism. Brainstorm let the review fall into his backlog for several months, probably because Ironfist neglected to mention the accident had left a bullet in his skull, slowly killing him. Brainstorm finally reported back just as Ironfist was leaving for the Wreckers, revealing his findings that showed the gun had been rigged to go off at a certain angle. The saboteur, Skyfall, wasn't apprehended until nine months later, so Brainstorm apparently did nothing to follow up on his findings after alerting Ironfist. Bullets

We reject your literary device and substitute our own!

Brainstorm and the other scientists were caught by surprise when Cyclonus and the Sweeps invaded Kimia. Lamentations He survived and managed to escape before the facility's destruction, leaving in an escape pod together with Chromedome and a number of other Autobots. They were soon rescued by "a psychopath in pink armor". Kings From her, they learned that they had to save the universe by stopping Galvatron from letting the Dead Universe into it. Brainstorm had a hard time grasping all this, and together with Chromedome wondered if any species other than Cybertronians ever had to deal with this kind of problem. Genesis

As part of his interest in the Dead Universe, Brainstorm examined Hardhead, and during the procedure was struck by an energy discharge from Nova Prime's corpse, which he'd been keeping in his lab. Black Planet Brainstorm was one of the Autobots who chose to accompany Rodimus on his quest to find the Knights of Cybertron. After some convincing, Red Alert allowed Brainstorm to board the Lost Light without checking his briefcase. But as soon as the ship lifted off, an explosion had sent it into quantum jump and had to land on a far, desolate planet. How to Say Goodbye and Mean It Brainstorm and Perceptor investigated what had caused the accident. Although they didn't find the exact cause, they did find something interesting. After Rodimus had insulted his intelligence, Brainstorm informed him that they found a Duobot had stood right next to the quantum generator when it failed, and was "totally mashed into the generator itself". He then made a joke about their deceased comrade, leaving Rodimus a bit taken aback at Brainstorm's callousness. In turn, this left Brainstorm panicking over the idea Ultra Magnus might have heard the joke, but Rodimus just ordered him into the air to join the search for survivors. Hangers On

"Science isn't about WHY! It's about WHY NOT! Why is so much of my science dangerous? Why not invent a special safety door that won't hit you on the butt on the way out, because you are FIRED!"

When a Sparkeater was loose aboard the Lost Light, Brainstorm found himself trapped in an elevator with the creature, which had been hunting Rung. Brainstorm cried out that he was too smart to die and held up his briefcase in an attempt to ward the Sparkeater off. Fortunately for him, the Sparkeater decided to continue chasing Rung, leaving Brainstorm flustered, but unharmed. The Chaos of Warm Things

Soon after receiving a Rodimus Star (along with his ex-colleagues Highbrow and Chromedome) for helping to save the Lost Light after it was hit by a piece of Metroplex debris, an experiment of Brainstorm's went wrong and froze everyone on the ship, except for the forcefield-enclosed Trailcutter. Despite the near-disaster this caused when the ship was invaded during this time by a group of Metrotitan-hunting Decepticons led by Lockdown (not to mention the near-death of an away team who had crashed on a planet protected by a phobia shield and were unable to raise help from the disabled crew The Waiting Game), he still received a huge plaque engraved with a stylised Rodimus figure "for exceptional endurance in the face of adversity" along with the rest of the frozen crew, which P.O.ed Trailguy - who had driven the Decepticons off singlehandedly and only received a "normal" Rodimus Star for his effort - no end. The Reluctant Specialist

Later, new arrival Fortress Maximus went loopy and shot down Dogfight near Brainstorm, who... protected his briefcase. Of course, he later claimed he had tried to stop Maximus. Interiors Following this incident, Rodimus tasked Brainstorm with developing an evasive bullet that would avoid hitting innocent bystanders. Chromedome had Brainstorm to look into the handgun that Skids had been constantly (and unknowingly) carrying with him, but when Brainstorm tried to examine it, the gun exploded in his face. He determined that it only held two cartridges and thus dubbed it a "binary gun", much to Chromedome's annoyance. Brainstorm also offered the opinion that the gun was possibly from the Institute. Rules of Disengagement

When a bunch of Nanocons mysteriously reactivated inside Ultra Magnus, Brainstorm used his mass-displacement gun to shrink Rodimus and some of the crew members to eliminate them. After the situation was handled, Brainstorm attended Tailgate's Autobot Initiation Ceremony where Jackpot placed bets on how long it was going to take for Rodimus to say his famous line, 'Til all are one. Brainstorm bet on eight seconds to the gambling bot's surprise. Despite being three seconds ahead, he still won the bet. Upon reaching Theophany, an encounter with the Galactic Council led to Rodimus and others being teleported to the planet's surface, Brainstorm among them. When they arrived, they found the Circle of Light missing and Crystal City in ruins. As they explored the ruins underground, they came across a Metrotitan. The group discovered the Metrotitan had found Cybertron's "come home" signal but was too low on energy to free himself and return, causing it to scream and try to kill itself by willing its spark to leave its body, which caused the revival of the Nanocons and various deactivated crew members of the Lost Light. With the Galactic Council's troops coming downwards to get them and the Lost Light under attack, Rodimus decided to set the Metrotitan free to help them out of their situation. Brainstorm used his mass displacement cannon to shrink the Metrotitan and gave the large robot more energy. Now able to move, the Metrotitan was able to teleport the Autobots back to their ship, quantum-jump the Lost Light to safety and teleport itself to Cybertron. You, Me, and Other Revelations

After previously wondering why the forcef- magnawheels guy would feel the need for a handheld gun The Reluctant Specialist, Brainstorm would ultimately build guns into Trailbreaker's legs, presumably relating to the latter's envy at Fortress Maximus's leg-guns. Soon afterward, he gave a new gun to Whirl to field test, which the mad helicopter dubbed the "Shoomer" after the noise it made. As soon as Swerve got his hands on it, he proceeded to accidentally shoot himself in the face. Before & After Surprisingly, he survived. As did the luckless Pipes when shot by Brainstorm's existential gun, despite a near-fatal dose of ennui. Cybertronian Homesick Blues

Just a jet sitting at the bar, don't mind me.

Throughout the early months of the voyage of the Lost Light, Brainstorm and several others were interviewed by Rewind for his documentary. Also caught on film was Brainstorm participating in Tailgate's "alt-mode party," which was just a ruse to figure out what Rung transforms into. Little Victories He later collaborated with the psychiatrist to update the Autobots' holomatter avatars to be more energy-efficient and psychologically intuitive. Signal to Noise

When Rewind suffered a near-death experience in battle, Brainstorm and Drift brought Chromedome in on Project: Total Insanity, Brainstorm's helpful nickname for the fact that Overlord was secretly on board the Lost Light. He provided Chromedome with the security codes necessary to access the slow cell attached to the underside of the ship (nicknamed Project: End In Tears). Remembrance Day Perhaps because of the prophetic project name, Overlord soon escaped from the slow cell during one of Chromedome's visits to pilfer his memories. Brainstorm was in the middle of chiding Swerve for fooling around with his metafictional bomb when the alarms sounded, indicating a scene change. Under Cold Blue Stars

Science is about doing things others would never be able to think of! Like bringing your briefcase full of pirated video games to a funeral!

After Overlord's rampage cost the lives of Rewind and many other crew members, Brainstorm was sincerely worried about Chromedome. When the funeral was over, Brainstorm confronted him in his habitation suite about the shadowplay Chromedome performed on himself after the deaths of his last three Conjunx Endurae. Brainstorm begged him not to extract his memories of Rewind too, because that would mean Rewind was truly gone. Drawing on his experience with Quark, Brainstorm promised his friend that the pain would one day evolve into something bearable. The Gloaming Predestination: An Expert's Guide

At some point, Brainstorm fitted Swerve's bar with an elaborate defense system and built My First Blaster™ for the bartender himself, as he was a notoriously poor shot. House of Ambus

When the Lost Light travelled through a portal and rediscovered the lost Luna 1, Rodimus selected Brainstorm to be part of the landing party. On the surface they discovered a reignited "hot spot" of sparks, including a Point One Percenter which Brainstorm immediately set about harvesting before they were attacked by Lockdown's Decepticons. The Fecund Moon Though they fled into a field of deactivated titans, Brainstorm and the Lost Lighters were captured and imprisoned by the insane Tyrest where they found themselves sharing a cell with the mysterious Minimus Ambus, later revealed to be none other than Ultra Magnus. House of Ambus After Ambus departed to get answers from Tyrest, they were joined in the cell by Skids, Swerve and Getaway The Divided Self who used the spring-loaded clasps from Brainstorm's briefcase to help them escape. Confronting Tyrest, Brainstorm was shot by the traitorous medic Pharma which separated him from his briefcase. To compound matters, Tyrest activated a "weapon of mass suggestion" based on Getaway's thought bullet that incapacitated the rest of the Lost Light crew, leaving them unable to prevent him from activating a universal killswitch that would kill every Transformer that was constructed cold. Arm the Lonely That included Brainstorm, who fell victim to its effects but recovered after Rodimus and Perceptor used half the Matrix to reverse the killswitch. This Calamitous Life Upon returning to the Lost Light he visited Swerve's to try and find out if anyone had opened his briefcase while he was incapacitated The Sound of Breaking Glass before secreting himself away in his workshop with the Point One Percenter he had recovered from the Seething Moon. This Calamitous Life He took to carrying the Superspark around in his chest compartment. Predestination: An Expert's Guide

"So, anyway, we're between banks right now, just make those checks out to cash."

Brainstorm was on hand to greet Orion Pax and his crew after the Lost Light snatched their ship from certain doom. Dark Dawn Intending to venture into the Dead Universe, Pax consulted Brainstorm, who was able to use a cyberwraith to manufacture personal force fields to protect Pax and his party from the hostile nature of that reality. Black Metal When the Lost Light was later pulled off course, Brainstorm found the source of the problem—Metroplex's thumb pushing against the roof of shuttle bay 3. He talked Ultra Magnus into investigating where it was pointing them to. Winners & Losers That took them to a water world, where they soon discovered they were surrounded by Ammonites. Brainstorm joined Magnus and the others in commandeering the Rodpod to take the fight to the enemy, and they stumbled on the dormant Metroplex. Into the Abyss

Acting on a hunch, Brainstorm took a sample of the water and found it was full of admium. They left the Rodpod in a drydock, but swiftly got lost in the city-bot's interior and ended back at the dry dock, where they were ambushed by an Ammonite who destroyed the Rodpod. No Exit They survived the explosion when Metroplex's interior rearranged itself on them, and a short time later encountered Nautica and Chromia. The Dead Are Not Enough As the Ammonites subsequently flooded in, Brainstorm was among those who opted to retreat to Metroplex's brain, where they met Windblade. Brainstorm helped hook Metroplex up to the Lost Light remotely, allowing the titan to quantum jump both himself and the ship to Cybertron. Burning Bright When Metroplex appeared to be losing the fight with the Necrotitan, Ultra Magnus suggested Brainstorm open the briefcase. It turned to be unnecessary as an eleventh hour save by Megatron resulted in a victory, and Brainstorm high-fived Nautica as he cracked a situationally relevant joke. Finis Temporis

Brainstorm later relaxed in Swerve's bar, though he was exceedingly cranky, which he put down to sparkache. The Becoming As billions of Ammonites descended on Cybertron as the finale to Shockwave's plan, Brainstorm was recruited by Bumblebee as part of a team to attack the scientist's lab. After they were teleported there by Skywarp, Brainstorm suddenly found he didn't feel well and had to watch as the other tackled Bludgeon. Just as they were losing the fight, the team who had ventured into the Dead Universe popped out of a portal in Brainstorm's chest and lent a hand. Black Planet With several members of said team unable to survive outside the Dead Universe, Brainstorm invited them back to his lab for treatment and Nightbeat suggested he might need to treat himself, as the portal was likely due to his exposure to the Dead Universe. With some encouragement from Rodimus, Brainstorm succeeded in making up a treatment for the injured parties. ...And the Damage Done

Yeah, I'm a black belt. Pretty much in everything. Karate, Larate, Jujistu, kickpunching, beltmaking, Tae Kwon Do... bedroom..."

Brainstorm opted to rejoin the quest for the Knights after Shockwave's defeat, and spent a large amount of time with Nautica, even loading her wrench with extra features. slaughterhouse Less enjoyable for the scientist was watching Chromedome's complete emotional collapse and eventual isolation as the impact of Rewind's death set in. From his friend's misery came an epiphany: Why save only Quark when steering Megatron away from his supposed destiny as a mass-murdering tyrant could prevent the war altogether and save billions? Predestination: An Expert's Guide

When Nautica returned from investigating the disappearance of several fuel rods, Brainstorm saw fit to punctuate her belated return by leaning gently on the fourth wall. The topic of conversation soon shifted to Rung's therapy session with the new co-captain, Megatron. Towards Peace Unbeknownst to anyone else, Brainstorm had a vested interest in the meeting, having slipped a sparkprint capture into one the psychiatrist's model ships with which he hoped to track the Decepticon leader through time and space. As luck would have it, the capture latched onto Rung's energy instead. Predestination: An Expert's Guide

When Rodimus found what appeared to be his own corpse in a mysterious coffin, Brainstorm was called in, along with Chromedome, First Aid, Nautica, Nightbeat, and Skids, to help find out what was going on. Brainstorm's biggest contribution involved using his preemptively preemptive Early Early Warning System to determine that they were all in trouble, though not quite at the "Run for your life!" threshold yet. Then the Lost Light, destabilized by proximity to an accidental quantum duplicate created during its failed first launch, started winking out of existence and they were. Though Brainstorm managed to evacuate, Predestination: A Beginner's Guide he disappeared along with the rest of the original crew as the second Lost Light forced them into a sort of cosmic abeyance. Twenty Plus One

"Alright, this next test may involve trace amounts of time travel. So, word of advice: If you meet yourself on the testing track, don't make eye contact. Lab boys tell me that'll wipe out time."

The remaining crew eventually discovered the remains of this Lost Light, which had been savagely attacked by the Decepticon Justice Division. Its Brainstorm's briefcase was found in a lift by Nautica and Nightbeat, slaughterhouse and Brainstorm's body was later found in his workshop during a search for his mass-displacement gun. As Nautica mourned, she revealed Brainstorm's face. In a surprise to everyone, Brainstorm had a mouth...and a Decepticon emblem painted on the interior of his detached faceplate. As Nautica attempted to deny it and Megatron stated Brainstorm was unlike the usual double agents the Decepticons recruited, Riptide assumed that this alternate evil Brainstorm drew the D.J.D. to the ship by deactivating Overlord's slow cell, making him detectable. It took Ravage to point out that if this Brainstorm was a traitor, so was the one on their Lost Light. After Megatron and the quantum duplicated Rewind deactivated the second ship's engines and returned the vanished Autobots to normal, Brainstorm chose that time to begin his centuries-long plan in earnest, and began by calmly walking into the crowded Swerve's. Joining Atomizer, he placed his briefcase on the table, only to be reminded of Swerve's "No Briefcases" rule. Brainstorm calmly stated that he could do anything he liked as he opened the briefcase, activating an electro-sensitive poison he had spiked the bar's Engex supply with, causing almost everyone on board to collapse. The Road Not Taken The Custom-Made Now

After disabling teetotaler Ultra Magnus with a disaggregator gun, Brainstorm enacted his master plan, using his briefcase network and a link to the ship's Quantum generator to travel back through time and space and prevent Megatron from ever forming the Decepticons...Stet with Megatron believing that Brainstorm was going back to kill Optimus so the Decepticons wouldn't lose the Great War. The Lost Light took action under this false assumption. Though both his and the crew's actions were in fact essential to the timeline, a future misstep by Perceptor as he attempted to shut down the time machine inadvertently caused the birth of a multiverse, and a new timeline in which the Functionist Council had never been overthrown slowly began erasing the old one. The result was a blood-soaked nightmarish present-day version of Cybertron dominated by the totalitarian Council. The Custom-Made Now

As the briefcase was most accurate when aiming for socio-temporal hotspots, his first stop was prewar Messatine, home to Megatron in his dissident miner days. Though he hoped to prevent Megatron's reassignment to Mining Outpost C-12 and thus the taking of his first life, his high-energy arrival instead prompted the evacuation of the outpost. Births, Deaths, and Interventions With that a bust, he tried to intervene before Megatron took his first life, but, due to being fixed on Rung's spark signature, ended up thousands of miles off course at a psychopathology conference. All Our Parlous Yesterdays Predestination: An Expert's Guide Following that, he detoured to the day of Senator Sherma's murder, hoping to catch a glimpse of Quark outside Maccadam's New Oil House. This wistful episode was interrupted when Brainstorm saw Rung fiddling with a model of the Lost Light and realized he had been followed. Though Cyclonus and Tailgate gave chase, Brainstorm traveled back a year, hoping to stop the fateful bar brawl that resulted in a certain miner's arrest. Knowing that Rung played some role, he ambushed and incapacitaed past Rung, but was unaware that time-traveling Rung, part of the team after him, had always been the Rung that accidentally got Megatron arrested.

Finally, desperate and exhausted of all other options, he went back to Megatron's creation with intent to kill.Stet However, Brainstorm still could not bring himself to directly end a life, and the newly arrived Rodimus and co. took advatage of his indecision and lobbed a Grenado at him. Though damaged, he was able to regain a bead on his target, but he paused yet again in response to Rodimus' pleas. As Brainstorm attempted to explain his motivations, Rung took note of his apparent dilemma and the millennia of work which must have gone into his plan. Appealing to his better nature, Rung ultimately convinced the scientist to stand down. Brainstorm filled them in on his progress up to that point as Whirl cuffed him, but his injuries and Rewind's murder of Megatron's nascent spark brought an end to the session. Knowing Megatron's death meant eventual victory for the Functionist Council, Whirl nicked Brainstorm's Point One Percenter and placed it in Megatron's spark chamber, restoring the original timeline. While Rodimus and Cyclonus headed out to recharge the Briefcase, Brainstorm explained his motivations to Rewind and admitted that his goals were perhaps a little lofty. Though he admitted wrongdoing, he professed his desire to stay in the past, a plea which was ignored by the rest of the crew. Brainstorm was then incarcerated upon their return to the present-day Lost Light. Predestination: An Expert's Guide

"Chariots chariots. Whoever this alternate Brainstorm is, he's a jerk. Instead of sending an apology fruit assortment, he just sent a whole bunch of angry wasps. We'll find a way to get back at him, don't you worry. We'll just see who wins this deadly game of cat and other cat."‎

He was put on trial by the closed-room Lost Light Internal Legal Affairs Committee, with Chromedome as an advocate and moral support. Despite a brave face full of jokes (rather than admit being intimidated) and attempts to ask why Rewind wasn't on trial for actually shooting Megatron, he got serious when questioned why his quantum duplicate had betrayed them. He said he couldn't tell why that had happened (though he believed his handler had pushed him to do it), he hadn't done it, and he'd admit to the crimes he'd done but they shouldn't dare pin the massacre on him. After hearing the evidence, the Committee (Ultra Magnus speaking) ruled that the war was over and his Decepticon days were no longer relevant; for the time-altering and poisoning, his time machine would be destroyed and he would be under strict supervision. However, he would not be kicked off the ship unless he wanted to be. Brainstorm said this was his home. (Ratchet would consider this the last straw in regards to Drift, saying it was unfair Brainstorm got a private hearing while Rodimus had Drift humiliated)

"If you're allergic to peanuts, you might want to tell me now, because this may turn your blood into peanut water for a few astroseconds. On the bright side, if I can make this happen, they're gonna have to invent a new type of Nobel Prize to give me, so hang in there."

At the end of his trial, he realised Nautica had left and abandoned the wrench he'd made her. Behind his back, Ratchet talked to her and had her realise that Brainstorm's actions, while they could not be condoned, were selfless and would have erased him from the timeline. As an attempted apology, Brainstorm programmed the wrench to say "BRAINSTORM IS AN ASS!". Our Steps Will Always Rhyme

Brainstorm was hanging out (literally) with Getaway, Skids and Nautica, supposedly teaching her 'practical skills'. Preparing to sell Getaway a Ravage-detecting wrench for one Shanix, he really struck it rich when the latter upped the price to two. Before they could make the trade, however, Rodimus was heard ringing a gong to summon everyone and announce Thunderclash's pre-wake aboard the Vis Vitalis.

He was later seen dancing on the Vis Vitalis's dancefloor. The Sensuous Frame

Transformers Legends comic

In one of Rattrap's dreams wrought about by his size complex, he was approached by Cana, Brainstorm's head robot, who yelled at him to never feel bad about his small stature. He told the Maximal that anyone can grow bigger and stronger with practice, using his Transtector as an example, then combined with it into Brainstorm and shared the story of how he and his compatriots ended up on Master. His point was that despite their size and deadliness of the planet, they didn't just lay down and die, but fought back and became stronger—strong enough that Brainstorm could even knock down Scorponok. When Rattrap woke up, Brainstorm's final words to keep training and never give up inspired him to go jogging. Bonus Edition Vol. 9

In what was presumably another dream, Brainstorm was asked by Rattrap why he looked different from the old days, and he confirmed he'd trained hard and acquired a new version. This bothered Chromedome, who found it unfair that out of all the Headmasters of Justice only he got an upgrade. Brainstorm Chapter Part 1 Cana later woke up with his Transtector missing, only to find Rattrap had stolen it and was smugly claiming he too "trained hard" to get a bigger body. When Rattrap refused to return it, telling the Headmaster to just get a new one, an angry Cana combined with the body anyway, causing its flip-down Tech Spec to trap the rat. Brainstorm Chapter Part 2

Recordicons

After Rewind died, Brainstorm set Chromedome up on a blind date with Eject. Recordicons #27

Games

Transformers: The Headmasters

Brainstorm was kidnapped by the Decepticons and held captive on the Jail planet by Abominus. He was rescued by Chromedome and his other comrades, and in turn helped rescue those who were still imprisoned. Once they had reunited, Brainstorm and the others met with Fortress Maximus for the last battle against Scorponok. Transformers: The Headmasters

The Transformers (PS2)

Voice actor: Peter von Gomm

Autobot story

Brainstorm was available as a playable character in the Autobot campaign during the second playthrough.

Decepticon story

Brainstorm, believing he was the match of the Decepticon leader, challenged Megatron's march on Zel Samine as his forces made their way through an array of wind turbines. They handed his aft to him, leaving Brainstorm shocked and confused; how could his frontal attack against superior forces have failed?

He retreated to formulate a new plan.

Later, at ELTA, Chromedome and Brainstorm joined forces to battle the Decepticons again, to no avail. The Transformers

Transformers Legends

The Autobot Headmasters led by Brainstorm hunted for Starscream's ghost by tracking the electro-magnetic spikes which signaled his manifestations. They were able to prevent him passing over into the physical world, and scattered the Decepticons who had aided him. Ghost in the Machine When the Decepticons aimed to get hold of the Key to the Plasma Energy Chamber, Brainstorm and his fellow Headmasters made off with it but soon crashed on Earth. They were aided by the EDC, who patched them up and helped them fight off Apeface and Skullcruncher. Last Stand of the Earth Defense Command

Transformers: Battle Tactics

Brainstorm participated in battles against a variety of opponents, both Autobots and Decepticons. Sometimes there were many of him! Transformers: Battle Tactics

Toys

Generation 1

File:G1Brainstorm toy.jpg

No no no...

• Brainstorm (1987)
  • Japanese ID number: C-104
  • Accessories: "Arcana" Headmaster pilot, left & right "High-Energy Photon Pulse Cannons"

Brainstorm transforms into a turquoise Cybertronic fighter craft. Both of Brainstorm's twin pistols attach to the front of his alt-mode's nosecone to extend it and augment it with two canard wings. As with all larger Headmaster toys, Brainstorm features both a cockpit suitable for his partner, Arcana, to sit in and an abbreviated Tech Specs bar graph inside his chest hidden under a hinged panel. When a compatible Headmaster head is plugged into the socket on Brainstorm's robot mode, the bars will show three of that character's Tech Specs.

• More information on Brainstorm at TFU.info

Generations

Briefcase sadly not included.

• Brainstorm (Voyager, 2014)
  • Series / Number: 02 / #009
  • Accessories: Head/pilot robot, left & right blasters

Part of the eighth wave of 2012-onwards Generations Voyager Class toys, Thrilling 30 Brainstorm transforms into a turquoise Cybertronian aircraft based off of Nick Roche's design for More than Meets the Eye. He is notable for being the first modern Headmaster-style figure available in general retail after the Generation 1 versions. He also holds the distinction of being the first Headmaster-style figure with an articulated neck. He comes with two pistols which can attach via 5mm post to his hands and the nosecone of the jet. His head transforms into an unnamed robot that is most certainly Arcana, and can be inserted inside the cockpit to be used as a pilot. Putting the pilot robot into the neck socket will reveal Tech Specs like the G1 toy. The Tech Specs are based off the original figure, not the Tech Specs on the box.

Exercise caution while using the Headmaster gimmick, as the main robot's neck socket is painted, making the pilot robot rather difficult to remove. Too much force could separate the pilot robot's own head from his body. However, there have been reports of a Running change in the toy that fixes the Headmaster gimmick; this is signified by a rubber band holding the head in place.

• More information on Generations Brainstorm on TFU.info
• Fixed Headmaster gimmick running change

Legends

File:LegendsBrainstorm.jpg

Some say this deco is overdoing it.

• Brainstorm (Voyager, 1-24-2015)
  • ID number: LG09
  • Accessories: "Cana" Headmaster pilot, left & right weapons

Legends Brainstorm is a redeco of Generations Brainstorm with some minor changes in plastic, such as an orange canopy. He more noticably features additional paint detail, including red and white highlights on his smaller wings, some white added to the red details on his chest, and a silver midriff. Brainstorm's bio is written from a The Headmasters perspective and as such names the Headmaster its Japanese name, Cana. He comes with issue 9 of the Transformers Legends Comic: Bonus Edition comic.

Notes

Please find us clearer footage.

His blue period.

• In early planning stages, the Large Headmasters were to have differently styled heads that would be replaced by their more familiar heads during the Headmaster process. A commercial for Headmasters #1 featuring animation of Brainstorm and others is the only time these designs were used.
• The Headmasters appeared in a second commercial with much more sophisticated animation. In this entry, we see the Autobot Headmasters lined up in vehicle modes as their Nebulan partners run up into their cockpits and then launch into an attack. [1]
• Additional footage of the Headmasters featured in the animated introduction to the first commercial for the Pretenders. As Brainstorm battles Mindwipe, the narration claims that after a series of defeats, the Autobots are required to up the ante by developing Pretender technology.
• In all three of these commercials, Brainstorm is colored in his Marvel Comics colors rather than his color scheme seen in "The Rebirth", with his dark green and orange being replaced with cyan and yellow.
• Brainstorm is a Christian! In the Headmasters cartoon episode "The Four-Million-Year-Old Veil of Mystery", when the Headmasters encounter a massacre on the planet Praum, he crosses himself.

Foreign names

• Japanese: Cana (カーナ Kāna), Brainstorm (ブレインストーム Bureinsutōmu)
• French: Cerveau (Canada, "Brain")
• Hungarian: Agytröszt ("Genius", literally "Brain-Trust")
• Italian: Goblin
• Mandarin: Burn (Taiwan, 伯恩 Bó Ēn), Xiǎo Zhūgé (China, 小诸葛, "Little Zhuge")
• Russian: Fantazyor (Фантазёр, "Dreamer")

External links

• Brainstorm's Universe profile at NTFA.net