Kickback (G1)

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The name or term "Kickback" refers to more than one character or idea. For a list of other meanings, see Kickback (disambiguation).
Kickback is a Decepticon Insecticon from the Generation 1 continuity family.
So Bombshell controls minds, Shrapnel controls electricity, and... I kick things? I call do-over!

Kickback is one of the most charming, likable beings you're ever likely to meet. He collects friends the way others do energon cubes. Scratch the surface, though, and you find a manipulative blackmailer that loves digging up dirt on his new "pals" to force them to work for him. Humans are particularly likely to fall prey to his honeyed words. In insect mode his super-charged legs allow him to jump great distances and kick through solid steel, though he's vulnerable in that mode when attempting to fly through high winds.

Fiction

Generation 1 cartoon continuity

The Transformers cartoon

Voice actor: Clive Revill (English), Toshio Ishii (Japanese), Yū Shimaka (Japanese, "Traitor", "The Insecticon Syndrome"), Masashi Ebara (Japanese, "The Revenge of Bruticus"), Yoku Shioya (Japanese, The Movie) , Edgar Wald (Latin American), Thomas Albus (German, The Movie TV Dub), Ulf-Jürgen Wagner (German, Generation 2 Dub)
GRASSHOPPER KICK!

Kickback, Bombshell and Shrapnel landed on Earth in their own space pod before the Autobot ship arrived on Earth. Their pod crashed into the region of Bali that would become known as "Demon Swamp" and their idento-computers adapted them to transform into giant robot insects and eat organic food to survive.

The "Insecticons”' existence became known to both the Autobots and Decepticons after they began attacking villagers rowing though, and Megatron formed an alliance with them. The Insecticons’ unique powers proved an asset. Kickback, in particular was able to disable Skyfire’s transform circuit with a well-placed blow, and knock both Wheeljack and Brawn back down when they tried areal assaults (he also made short work of a combine, though that was more about goofing off). Later, the three rejoined Megatron at a nearby refinery, dining on the tasty oil. They aided the Decepticons in trying to drive off the attacking Autobots, but when the tide turned in the Autobot’s favor, Kickback and the others decided instead to simply eat all the energon cubes the Deceptions had been harvesting and scram, with Megatron angrily in pursuit. A Plague of Insecticons

Kickback emerges from the Tang.

Megatron didn’t hold his grudge against the Insecticons for long. When the Autobots invaded the canyon when Megatron was working with stolen electro-cells, he had the trio summoned to provide additional support in return for a reward. Kickback even scored a successful, though ultimately non-fatal, shot against Optimus Prime. Kickback thought the two energon cubes given as payment was pretty good though his companions disagreed, calling it “measly” when compared to the haul Megatron was pulling in. The trio only grew more agitated when the cubes went missing with a Decepticon insignia in its place. The Insecticons went back to the canyon, confronting the Decepticons, but Megatron was able to calm them when he figured out it was Mirage framing him. The threesome partook in a Decepticon trap using Mirage. However, they retreated once the electro-cells were destroyed in the battle which knocked the Decepticons out. Traitor

"Don't worry, buddy, buddy. If Blackarachnia doesn't want to go out with you, that's her loss, loss."

On one occasion, the Insecticons were chowing down on redwoods in a national forest when Hound, Beachcomber and Bumblebee arrived on the scene and attempted to stop them. Despite the equal odds, the Insecticons managed to overpower their Autobot opponents and send them into retreat after launching a massive fallen tree trunk at the heroes (naturally, Kickback used his legs to push the tree instead of his arms like the others). Megatron then arrived and offered a deal: if he led the Insecticons to a fresh new source of energy, they would aid him in acquiring some useful data from the heavily-guarded Iron Mountain installation. Agreeing, the Insecticons accompanied the Decepticons to the Nova Power Core, an energy source of considerable power. Consuming it, the Insecticons found themselves more than doubling in size and strength.

Naturally, both groups of 'Cons planned to eliminate each other at the most opportune opportunity, but the Insecticons got the upper hand by secretly placing all of Megatron’s troops under the control of Bombshell's cerebro-shells. Kickback and the others planned to use Soundwave to acquire Iron Mountain's data for themselves, but little did they know that the Nova Power in their systems was explosively unstable. With the help of the Megatron, the Autobots attempted to forcibly administer an antidote to the Insecticons which would reverse their invincibility and self-destruct cycles. Kickback tried to escape with Soundwave, but was felled with a blast of antidote. With Shrapnel and Bombshell also returned to normal, the three fled to fight another day. The Insecticon Syndrome

Kicking it old school.

Again, the Decepticons and the Insecticons buried the hatchet. The Insecticons built up a massive clone army, and were using them to provide energy to the Decepticons. Again, Megatron was shortchanging them on their reward. Their clone forces allowed them to easily repel Autobot attacks and made them too threatening to the world’s food supply. When Cosmos had crashed in a valley, carrying a batch of new robotic insecticide, Thrust was sent to warn the Insecticons to stay clear of that area. Not surprisingly, they didn’t believe the sincerity of the warning. And, yes, Kickback gave Thrust a good kick for some laughs. After dodging some missiles from the angry Seeker, they went straight to the crash site to investigate. There, Insecticons found a field of Morphobots, plants that eat robotic matter. Not realizing the danger, they took their clone army right into the field to feed and instead had their entire group devoured with only Kickback, Bombshell, and Shrapnel escaping.Quest for Survival

Eventually, Kickback and company built up another clone army and went back to their usual tricks, now ravaging cities for energy, with the Autobots rushing to drive them out. When there was trouble on Cybertron, Optimus Prime tried to highjack the Decepticon space bridge, but The Insecticons ran off with the bridge’s control panel. They apparently couldn’t resist nibbling on the thing, because when Megatron later found them in a parking garage they had chewed it up. They dropped the panel and ran before they were chewed out themselves. The Revenge of Bruticus

Well, it was inevitable that he of all people would kick the bucket.

When the Decepticons invaded Autobot City on Earth in 2005, a keen-eyed Hot Rod spotted their hijacked shuttle before they were able to penetrate the city's defenses. As a result, the Autobots had time to activate the base's heavily-armored transformation sequence, and the Decepticons are forced to physically breach the defenses. Kickback and Shrapnel attempted to eat their way into the city, but kept their eyes on their stomachs and were caught off guard by the returning Hot Rod and Kup. Kup used Kickback's head as a ramp to jump his way into the closing city, flattening the Insecticon's head in the process.

Heavily damaged, Kickback was carried by Long Haul back to Astrotrain as the Decepticons bolted. He proved too weak to resist when the 'Cons tossed him and several other weakened warriors out of the shuttle to lighten the load. His was reformatted by Unicron into a Sweep drone, to serve under Scourge. The Transformers: The Movie

Kickback’s involvement in these events, or events mostly similar, were also chronicled in the comic mini-series “Transformers: The Animated Movie.”
Still kickin'?

Either he got better or that was an identical clone, because when the Decepticons were running extremely low on energon, he and Shrapnel were with the others on Chaar to scrap over what little energon the Decepticons had left. They were shot at by Cyclonus and the Sweeps before flying away. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 1

All three Insecticons, along with the Combaticons and Soundwave, were then seen on Earth trying to stop Wheelie, Blurr, Marissa Faireborn and Sky Lynx from delivering the Transformation cog to Metroplex. They were trampled by Sky Lynx. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 5


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Five Faces of Darkness, Part 2 Five Faces of Darkness, Part 3

Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity

Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers manga
Punch back, Kickback!

Along with the other Insecticons, Kickback took part in an attack on Kyushu. The Four-Wheel Drive Corps responded, but the attack turned out to be an ambush as the Insecticons trapped the Autobots in a volcanic crater. Luckily, the Four-Wheel Drive Corps was able to "combine" and perform the fearsome "Four-Wheel Drive Combination Scrumbuster" attack. The blast of energy was so powerful that it sent the Insecticons fleeing in terror (also, Kickback got decked in the jaw by Outback). Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers #3

Metrowars

Somewhere beyond the year 2025, Kickback piloted the Thunder Arrow to extract Metrobomb after he'd stolen vital secrets from Metroplex. Before he and Metrobomb could escape, however, a manipulator arm from Metroplex caught the ship and used an energy surge to fry the stolen data. Metrowars 2

Train Wars


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Train Wars

Mars Attacks: The Transformers

The three Insecticons were among Decepticon forces who formed an alliance with the Autobots during a Martian invasion. They saved Ironhide and Jazz from some of the Martians' giant ants. Mars Attacks: The Transformers

Marvel The Transformers comics

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

Kickback was one of Lord Straxus's warriors operating out of Polyhex. Along with his fellow Insecticons and the coneheads, he pursued another sextet of Autobots who had just carried out some sort of raid on the smelting pool, only to be forced to retreat by a torrent of liquid metal that had just been siphoned off of it. The Smelting Pool! Later, he was present for the testing of the testing of the new space bridge and when an Autobot resistance cell destroyed Darkmount, he was sent flying in the subsequent explosion. The Bridge to Nowhere!

Identified as one of the Decepticons' Ten Deadliest Killers, Kickback was targeted by the Wreckers in Operation: Volcano and they trained against a facsimile construct of him. Scouting ahead of the rest of the Decepticons on information acquired by Shrapnel, he was fooled into believing that Emirate Xaaron was meeting with the Autobot resistance chiefs at the Imperial Amphitheatre, though in reality these too were facsimile constructs. Just as Kickback and the other Decepticons were about to walk into the trap, they were inadvertently saved by Megatron, who called them to Earth. Target: 2006

Kickback gets to use his special power!

Upon arriving on Earth, Kickback and his fellow Insecticons infiltrated Hoover Dam alongside Megatron, with Kickback using his special power to kick down a door. They summoned the Coneheads and an enormous drill across the space bridge in an attempt to drain the dam, using the water to drive massive turbines on Cybertron and when the Aerialbots arrived to stop them, Kickback again used his special power to kick Air Raid off the dam. Ultimately their plan was foiled when the human Ricky Vasquez broke Megatron's mental control over him and the Insecticons helped their leader to retreat. Aerialbots over America!

Kickback, Dirge and Soundwave took control of a NASA space monitoring facility near Mount St. Hilary. Prowl, Jetfire and Trailbreaker engaged the Decepticons but Jetfire made the mistake of going after Kickback, who promptly transformed, shrinking to insect size and effectively disappearing. This gave Dirge the opportunity to knock Trailbreaker down and escape with Soundwave. The Gift

After Ratbat took command of Earth's Decepticons, Kickback followed as Onslaught led a massed assault on the Autobots on the Moon. Totaled!

Earthforce

These stories do not fit into the normal Marvel continuity. See Earthforce for details.

Kickback and the Insecticons worked under Megatron's command during the Decepticon Civil War. At the Enclave, he was seen talking to Long Haul before the fighting broke out. The Bad Guy's Ball! Later, he joined his fellow Insecticons in infiltrating Shockwave's base to spy on their activities. They ate their way through the wall next to the war room, and planned to pick a nice, cozy spot for eavesdropping, but Starscream caught the little pests in a rustbug hoop. He then fed them false information to lead Megatron and Shockwave into a confrontation with each other, giving him a chance to consolidate control over the Decepticons. Bugged! After the coup, Kickback was part of the attack on Autobot Earthbase led by Soundwave. Divide and Conquer!


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Buster Witwicky and the Car Wash of Doom The Desert Island of Space! Plague of the Insecticons! The Planet-Eater!

Kid Stuff Talking Story Books

Kickback and the rest of the Insecticons had enslaved the people of the island of Buru when the Decepticons had discovered that within the island was a plentiful supply of oil. He and the other Insecticons were eventually beaten back by the Dinobots. Slaves of the Insecticons

Marvel coloring books


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The Autobot Spy in the Sky

Big Looker storybooks

Kickback and Bombshell went brainstorming ways to help Megatron seize power and become his right-hand Decepticon when they chanced upon the Autobot architect, Grapple. Kickback told Bombshell Grapple would be a useful tool for Megatron's quest for power. Somehow he talked Bombshell into staying behind to do the work while Kickback flew ahead to take credit for the idea with Megatron. Well done, Kickback. Insecticon Attack!

Find Your Fate Junior

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

Dinobots Strike Back

Kickback accompanied Bombshell on a mission to Hidden Valley, where the Dinobots were lax in their lookout duty, failing to see the two Insecticons approach. After Bombshell knocked out and planted cerebro-shells on four of them, Kickback reported their triumph back to Megatron. Since this occurs before you have to make even the first decision in this multipath adventure, Kickback is the one character whose actions are constant throughout this entire micro-continuity-nexus. Dinobots Strike Back

Attack of the Insecticons

Discovering an underground cave filled with Autobots, Kickback spied on what he discovered to be the testing site for the Sun-Pak, a device invented by the Autobots' human ally Sparkplug. Recognizing how valuable to the Decepticon cause the device would be, Kickback radioed Decepticon headquarters, gleeful at the notion of being rewarded by Megatron for his findings. When answered by Starscream instead of Megatron, Kickback reluctantly informed the Seeker of his discovery nonetheless. Kickback was then lead alongside a number of other Decepticons into the underground cavern by Starscream in order to seize the Sun-Pak by force.

If the Autobots flee the battle and accidentally travel farther underground by confusing their escape route with another tunnel, they become prey to the Electro-Disrupter located at the Insecticons' nest, and must decide whether to secretly send one Autobot away to recharge the Sun-Pak or use the device as a bargaining chip. If Beachcomber is sent away with the Sun-Pak and chooses an underwater route to the surface, he is met with Kickback who easily overpowers the Autobot. But Kickback is in turn defeated by a shot from a blaster courtesy of the humans Sparkplug and Buster, who were unaffected by the Electro-Disrupter, and found a quicker road to the surface than their Autobot comrade. Attack of the Insecticons

Frito-Lay posters


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The Power Struggle


Dreamwave Generation One continuity

Kickback makes a cameo in Transformers: Generation 1 vol. 1: Prime Directive issue #1 as a prisoner aboard the Ark II. His appearance there would be retconned by later stories, though as always with the Insecticons, one could make the case that it is just a clone.

Seen in his pre-Earth dragster mode, Kickback and the pre-Insecticons joined Soundwave and Ravage in making an assassination attempt on the recently-risen Optimus Prime, hoping to extract the power of the Matrix from the green Autobot leader. The War Within #2 Instead, they learned a valuable lesson about underestimating any newborn Prime whose name isn't "Rodimus". The War Within #3 During the Dark Ages after Megatron's disappearance, Kickback and his fellow Decepticons served in the main Decepticon forces under Shockwave. They assaulted a base in Altihex to stop The Fallen unleashing chaos on the planet. Conflagration

At some point after the disappearance of the Ark and Nemesis, Shockwave managed to track the ships to the planet Earth, and dispatched Kickback, Shrapnel, and Bombshell to the planet as part of some longterm machinations which were never made clear. Shortly after landing, they were confronted by the Dynobots who followed them to the planet, but somehow managed to give them the slip. Rules of Extinction

Kickback and the Insecticons made a brief appearance in the second Transformers Trilogy novel, Annihilation, as troops under Starscream's command on Earth. This appearance is contradicted by later Dreamwave stories. Also, in the novel the Insecticons shrink down to insect-size as they did in Marvel Comics, whereas later Dreamwave issues showed them retaining their full size, like their cartoon versions.

The Insecticons were supposed to remain in hiding on Earth until an unknown time, and managed to keep their presence on the planet secret even after the Autobot and Decepticon spaceship crews awoke and began regularly battling it out on Earth. However, Bombshell began instituting plans of his own, mutilating cattle, kidnapping fleshlings, and growing techno-organic "Insecticlones", among other things. Kickback noticed a minor power struggle between Shrapnel and Bombshell, and enjoyed stirring things up between his partners. Bombshell's antics drew the attention of the Autobots and Earth Defense Command, and the Insecticons were forced into the spotlight to do battle. Kickback was personally taken down in combat with Sunstreaker. Extermination

The Insecticons were taken into custody by Jazz and his Autobots after the encounter. The Route of All Evil


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Infestation

G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers continuity

Kickback was part of Shockwave's army as it waited for Ultra Magnus's force field around Teletran 3 to expire so that they could run in and capture the Autobots. G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II #2

In a dark alternate future in which the Decepticons had conquered Earth, Kickback-type Insecticons were a common sight as part of Insecticon swarms. G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II #3

The Beast Within

During an all-out Decepticon offensive against the Autobots, Kickback was one of the first victims to fall to The Beast, the Dinobots’ monstrous combined form. The Beast Within His corpse would later be one of many that littered the battlefield as Autobot survivors tried to escape the Beast. The Beast Within Part 2, Consequences

IDW Generation 1 continuity

Yow ent sin me, roight?

Kickback was very briefly seen among the newly formed Decepticons as they left Kaon's jail and began laying waste to the city-state. Megatron Origin #4

Millions of years later, Kickback was newly created by Deluge alongside Shrapnel, Bombshell and three thousand mindless monsters. He soon joined Megatron's forces on Earth, and helped defeat the local Autobots after they were led into a trap. All Hail Megatron #7 As the Decepticons started conquering the mostly defenseless planet, Kickback listened to Megatron hold a speech in the ruins of New York City. All Hail Megatron #4 The Insecticons later traveled to China and wrecked Beijing, where Skywarp started picking a fight with Bombshell. Kickback and Shrapnel came to his aid, but found themselves outclassed by Skywarp's teleportation skills and fled the scene. All Hail Megatron #6

After returning to New York, the Insecticons were approached by Starscream, who apologized for Skywarp's behavior and told them about his ambitions for the future. All Hail Megatron #8 When Starscream rebelled against Megatron shortly afterwards, the Insecticons joined him in attacking their former leader. Kickback attempted to jump-kick Megatron, who simply grabbed him out of mid-air and tossed him at Bombshell. All Hail Megatron #10 The revolt was cut short by the arrival of European jets and the return of the exiled Autobots. All Hail Megatron #11 In the ensuing battle, Kickback was swatted aside by Sideswipe wielding a broken streetlight, and the Decepticons were eventually defeated. All Hail Megatron #12 Kickback and the others fled Earth aboard Astrotrain. Uneasy Lies the Head

Cold.

Several years later, the Decepticons found themselves living on a resourceless asteroid under their great leader, Starscream. The troops were restless, and Kickback was seen picking fights with Rumble before learning that Dreadwind had been taking more fuel rations than he was entitled to. Alongside Shrapnel and Needlenose, Kickback hunted the criminal down, executed him on the spot, and scavenged his body for parts. All His Engines Unsurprisingly, the run-down Decepticons were quick to abandon Starscream when Megatron returned to lead them. Spotlight: Megatron

Megatron would later use space bridge technology built into in his new body to summon Kickback and the rest of the Decepticons to him on Cybertron. At first they did battle with the Autobots, but were soon mind-controlled by D-Void into combining with Galvatron's Sweep army and forming a huge monster. Kings


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Shockpoint


Hearts of Steel

Along with many other Decepticons, Kickback awoke in the late 19th century when a sunken human submarine crashed onto their submerged ship. Hearts of Steel #1 After Starscream allied himself with Tobias Muldoon, he learned that the humans required money to work, and sent Kickback, Bombshell and Shrapnel to retrieve some. The trio took on the form of an "Insectrain", with Kickback forming the piledriver-equipped front of the train. Using these piledrivers, the Insecticons attacked and robbed a train carrying cash and bullion from the Denver Mint, although Kickback sneered at the concept of "sheets of inert plant matter" being valuable. The following morning, the Insecticons delivered the stolen property to Starscream and Tobias Muldoon. Hearts of Steel #2 Kickback was later present when Starscream announced to his troops that the Autobots had awakened as well. Hearts of Steel #3

Transformers vs. G.I. Joe

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Targetmasters

Games

The Transformers (PS2)

Kickback is a non-playable character. He appears among the legion of Decepticon duplicates in the Autobot campaign.

The Transformers (PS2)

Sector Seven alternate reality game

NBE 125

Video footage was taken of a small mechanical grasshopper on a tree branch. The grasshopper then flew towards the camera changing into a robot and proceeded to attack the camera, breaking the lens. It was sightings like this and others that prompted the secret government organization known as Sector Seven to launch a disinformation campaign called Hungry Dragon. A key part of this was the Takara Agreement, a collaboration with a Japanese toy manufacturer Takara. The goal of the agreement was to portray non-biological extraterrestrials as kids' toys, cartoons, and fiction. Any claims of actual sightings of giant robots would be seen as fanciful nonsense.

It was a great success. You don't believe alien robots actually visited the Earth, do you?

The original footage of the grasshopper was eventually leaked to the public through the internet. Sector Seven (game)

Transformers Legends

Kickback and Sharpshot helped Megatron defeat Sentinel Prime. The War Within

Chafing under Megatron's rule, Kickback and his fellow Insecticons began raiding energy storage and high-energy research facilities worldwide. The energy gave them increased size and power, and it was only when the Autobots and Decepticons formed an alliance that they were able to be stopped. Harvest of the Insecticons When Ultra Magnus returned to Earth with new troops in the form of Wreck-Gar and Wheelie, the Insecticons managed to ambush them. Junkion Reunion After Dirge crashed into a movie set, Kickback, Ramjet and Astrotrain were sent to retrieve him and the weapon he was transporting. Unfortunately they got into an altercation with the Autobots and failed to destroy the film evidence of the crash, which subsequently made it into a blockbuster film. Hoist Goes Hollywood

Kickback took part in the battle of Autobot City, but was forced to retreat after Megatron's defeat at the hands of Optimus Prime. The Battle for Autobot City At some point he was reformatted into a Sweep. The Coronation of Starscream

Transformers: Battle Tactics

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

Transformers: Devastation


The Game Full of Death and Suffering...!

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Transformers: Devastation


Toys

Generation 1

  • Kickback (Insecticon, 1985)
    • Japanese ID number: 40
    • Accessories: "Electrothermic Blast Tube"
File:G1Kickback toy.jpg
I'll transform into a giant mechanical grasshopper and no one will notice me.
Kickback is a redeco of the Diaclone Waruder Insecter Robo "Battas" toy. He transforms into a robotic grasshopper and doesn't do a whole lot more than that.
The mold has gone through a few variations, primarily in the chromed-silver wings. Original versions only had a single rubsign indent, on the outer right-robot mode wing. Later versions not only added indents to all four faces of the wings (for symmetry, apparently), but shortened the wings as well, and rounded off the wing tips for safety reasons.
In Japan, Kickback and the other Insecticons were "re-released" as mail-order items from 1987 through 1988. They each cost 880 yen (their normal retail price) and two Robot Points.
This mold was used to make the Shothole drones.

The Transformers Collection

  • Insectrons (multi-pack, 2004)
    • Japanese ID number: 16 (full set)
Kickback was re-released as part of the Japanese "Transformers Collection" series in a set with Bombshell and Shrapnel. This set also included three energon cube accessories that fit inside their chest compartments.
The Kickback in this set has another change to the wings; this time, the "safety circles" at the wing-tips added by Hasbro back in the day are no longer present, giving them pointed tips. The wings also go back to having a single rubsign indent.

Universe (2008)

  • Insecticons (Toys"R"Us exclusive multi-pack, 2009)
Kickback was released as part of the Universe line, as a Toys"R"Us exclusive, in a set with his Insecticon pals. Unlike his teammates, Kickback keeps his original name, although Shrapnel is mistakenly identified as "Kickback" on the instruction manual.
Amazingly enough, Kickback keeps the pointy wings of the Transformers Collection reissue.


Generations

  • Kickback (Deluxe Class, 2012)
    • Series / number: 01 / #009
    • Japanese release date: 02-23-2013
    • Japanese ID number: TG08
    • Accessories: "Disc launcher", disc projectile, insect wings/twin battle blades
Fall of Cybertron Kickback was repurposed as Kickback by Transformers Legends.
Part of the third wave of 2012 Generations Deluxe Class toys, Fall of Cybertron Kickback transforms into a Cybertronian insect. His wings are attached in insect mode via C joint, and can be removed and used as "battle blades" that are held by his hands via 5mm post. He also comes with a disc launcher that fires its disc via pressure-launch, and is based on the Gear Shredder from Fall of Cybertron. The wing-blades can peg into any of the launcher's four 5mm ports, although the instructions nominally peg them on the front sides, making the launcher look a bit like a crossbow. Aside from his hands, Kickback features additional 5mm ports for mounting, such as on his thighs, legs, and clawed appendages.
In an undocumented feature, the launcher can mount/store on his back in either mode by sliding it into grooves found on top of each of the clawed appendages that hold his wing-blades, and pegging the wing-blades in this configuration while in robot mode will give him a spiffy winged backpack. His instructions also forget to mention that his gold-and-purple chest panels have to be angled up for robot mode.
The TakaraTomy version, part of the third wave of Japanese Generations toys, is noticeably shinier, casting his purple plastic in a darker, metallic shade, having much darker gray and black plastics, replacing his gold paint with pale yellow, and featuring numerous additional paint details, among other deco changes. This version's instructions not only remember to angle up the chest panels, it also includes an additional note showing one how store the launcher on his wings/clawed appendages.

Merchandise

Decoy

  • Kickback (Decoy, 1987)
Kickback was one of the Decepticon Decoys packed in with smaller carded Transformers toys. While the normal purple version could come on any Decepticon toy, the rarer red version was available only on Throttlebot cards and only for a short while before the switch to purple.
  • Destron Hero Collection-22 Set (Decoy multi-pack, 1987)
The entire run of twenty-two Decepticon Decoys were sold as a single boxed set in Japan, only in purple.

Hard Hero

You have learned well, young grasshopper.
  • Kickback (2003)
The first of Hard Hero's "Insecticon Series", Kickback is a 9-inch cold-cast porcelain statue sculpted by Jason Ray. Only 1000 pieces of the statue were produced.


Robot Heroes

They're taking this show on the road!
  • Ironhide vs. Kickback (2008)
Robot Heroes Kickback is a small super deformed figurine with swivel joints in his neck and shoulders. His colors are based on those of his toy rather than his less detailed cartoon character model. Kickback was only available in a two-pack with Ironhide.


Notes

  • Kickback, like the other Insecticons, was originally a Diaclone "Waruder Battas", an evil alien piloted mech in different colors... which were eventually used when the trio were redecoed for e-HOBBY release. This is also the genesis of those opening chest compartments.
  • Kickback's wings did not flap in the television show (although they did in the movie). He and the other Insecticons seem to fly by other means.

Foreign names

  • Japanese: Kickback (キックバック Kikkubakku)
  • French: La Ruade (Canada, "The Kick")
  • Italian: Atrox
  • Mandarin: Fǎnchōng (反冲, "Kickback")
  • Portuguese: Maquia (Portugal comic), Pula-Pula (Brazil comic)
  • Russian: Prygun (Прыгун, "Jumper")
  • Ukrainian: Stusan (ICTV, Стусан, "Cuff")