Bumblebee (G1)/2005 IDW continuity
| This article is about the yellow failed Autobot leader. For the IDW golden Throttlebot leader, see Goldbug (IDW). |
An espionage agent who demonstrated the Peter Principle in action when he became Autobot leader? That's IDW Generation 1 continuity's Bumblebee!
IDW Generation 1 continuity
Early days of the war
Bumblebee of Iacon was forged, Ghost Stories The Not Knowing one of the last generation to be born before the hot spots cooled. Given his nimble alternate mode, he worked as a courier while spending his leisure time with Cliffjumper and Hubcap at the races. Ghost Stories
In the days of Sentinel Prime, Bumblebee attended the joint funeral of Bumper and Fastback, who had been killed by Megatron and his goons. Megatron Origin #3
One day, Bumblebee was plagued by nightmares of spirits demanding him to deliver a package. The nightmares lasted for a month before he delivered the package but to his dismay they resumed shortly after, one containing a bomb that destroyed the Tygun factory. Overcome with guilt, he immediately turned himself in where he first met Orion Pax and Prowl who managed to deduce that Bumblebee was being influenced by an outside signal that was being broadcasted into his processor. Despite being told to remain behind, Bumblebee followed Pax and Prowl to the Decepticon hideout. An enraged Bumblebee attacked Soundwave for the attack highlighting that Decepticons were supposed to fight for the people. In the aftermath, he asked to join Pax's squad. Ghost Stories
In the days of Zeta Prime, Bumblebee was assigned to Orion Pax's Autobot security team. In a mission in Nyon, Bumblebee stopped Orion before he could execute Swindle in plain sight of civilians and berated him for almost killing a defenseless enemy. Law and Disorder After training with Ironhide at the shooting gallery, Parasites Bumblebee was sent to pursue Soundwave, who had infiltrated a Senate meeting where Zeta Prime unveiled the vamparc ribbon. Bumblebee was taken down by Ravage and taken hostage by the Decepticons to assure Orion's cooperation. The Hunt for Soundwave Both Orion and Bumblebee were able to escape the Decepticons when their comrades ambushed them at the Jump Joint and brought Sky Lynx to carry them away. Cause and Effect Orion Pax's crew were soon sent on another mission to Nyon, this time to apprehend Hot Rod. However, the Autobots were willing to listen to Hot Rod's argument. Ruins When Zeta Prime's Omega Destructors attacked the city, Bumblebee and the others attempted to help defend the city, but Hot Rod was forced to detonate bombs scattered around the city, destroying it. Zeta savagely attacked Orion Pax, Purge but Megatron and the Decepticons came to the rescue. The Autobots were taken to Kolkular, where they witnessed Orion Pax agreeing to join forces with Megatron. Choices Together, the Autobots and Decepticons attacked Zeta Prime's forces. Overthrown
With Zeta's defeat, Megatron betrayed the Autobots and began hunting them down, and Bumblebee went into hiding with Ironhide and Ultra Magnus. Before they could decide on a course of action, they were captured in a Decepticon raid on their safehouse. Transformation After a violent interrogation, Bumblebee was set to be executed alongside his fellow Autobots. However, on witnessing the ruthless execution order, Hot Rod decided to join the Autobots and freed the prisoners. They then rendezvoused at Orion's ID signal and learned of his recent transformation into Optimus Prime and the awakening of Metroplex. Rise When Optimus Prime made a rallying call for additional support for their cause against the Decepticon's tyranny, Bumblebee watched possible enemy positions. Broadcast Bumblebee participated in the battle at the Citadel and after the battle, was approached by the survivors of the attack on Nyon who told him that they would now be chroniclers. Endgame
In the earliest days of Optimus Prime's leadership, Bumblebee was his assistant during the meetings of the Grand Convocation. Derelicts He later helped defend the Toraxxis mega-refinery from Scorponok's Decepticons. Rage The battle ended in tragedy as the refinery exploded, killing many civilians as well as Autobots. Having survived, Bumblebee attended the memorial service held by Autobots to honor the lost lives. Fallout During a subsequent Convocation meeting, he interrupted Prime with an emergency report from Prowl. Massacre When Trypticon was unleashed upon Cybertron, Bumblebee stood by Prime's side as the Autobots worked to contain the beast and showed deep regret for the destruction of Harmonex that ensued. The Illusion of Control Their struggle didn't go well, and he had to pull a fellow Autobot to safety during Trypticon's rampage. Annihilation With the monster heading towards Iacon and Optimus Prime being unable to stop it, Snarl was ready to give up, but Bumblebee urged him to hold onto hope. Indeed, Trypticon was finally felled by the combined efforts of Grimlock and Megatron, allowing the Autobots to return home and repair the injured Prime. Belly of the Beast
In one of the war's countless battles, Bumblebee witnessed a yellow Autobot get destroyed in a Decepticon-Autobot crossfire. Drift #2
Not long after Trypticon's defeat, Bumblebee detected a spacecraft on collision course with Iacon and reported it to Prime. Realizing it was Trypticon—now under Decepticon control—the Autobots had Metroplex transform into robot mode and fight the beast. Primacy #2 Once both giants had fallen, the Decepticons and their new Junkion allies invaded the city, forcing the Autobots into battle. Primacy #3 Bumblebee tried to prevent Megatron from reaching Trypticon's fallen form, and though the Decepticon leader acknowledged his courage, he would not be deterred and impaled the young Autobot on a piece of debris. Once the Autobots had won the battle, Bumblebee was carried to safety and repaired by Ratchet. Primacy #4 500,000 years ago during the climactic battle over Metroplex, Bumblebee scouted the Decepticon forces and surmised their offensive wasn't going to end any time soon, prompting the Autobots to send Metroplex off into space for his own protection. Hello Cruel World As they watched the Titan leave, he listened to Prowl lament the stupidity of war. I Dream of Wires
Some time after Metroplex's departure, Bumblebee, Nightbeat, and Jetfire were in space pursuing Bludgeon's ship from a distance, trying to put a stop to them despite being vastly outmatched. When Bludgeon found a remote planet with a small civilization of Urtuskians and his troops started blowing up the place, Bumblebee decided that there was no time to call for reinforcements and he and his two friends would have to make do. He ordered Jetfire to ram their ship into the Decepticons' and the three would fight the troops personally on the surface. Bumblebee took out Waspinator and Barrage before finding himself trapped below ground standing between the legendary, missing Metroplex and Thundercracker. Bumblebee was faring badly when a Urtuskian surprisingly lept to his defense. Deciding Bumblebee wasn't worth his time, and secretly feeling disillusioned about the Decepticons at the time, Thundercracker abandoned the mission. With their ship destroyed, Bumblebee and the others found themselves stuck on the planet for an unspecified amount of time until they were eventually found and rescued. Thankfully, this was another of those "Bumblebee makes a friend" stories, as Nightbeat put it, and so they had hospitable hosts for the duration. The Hunting Party
Infiltration on Earth
Thousands of years later, Bumblebee was part of Prowl's secret counter-infiltration unit on Earth. When Ratchet broke cover by rescuing a trio of humans, Infiltation #0 Bumblebee was the one Autobot who supported his efforts. He was true to his role as an espionage agent and ferreted out their plans to continue joint operations against orders and joined in. Verity thought his alternate form and his holomatter avatar was "coool!" Infiltration #3
He accompanied Ratchet and the humans to investigate an abandoned Decepticon bunker in Nebraska. When Ratchet mentioned how he hated putting their humans at risk, Bumblebee pragmatically commented that, given the need for evidence of unusual Decepticon activity and the consequences of Decepticon Siege Mode, the humans would be "acceptable losses". While the humans were exploring the bunker, two Decepticons attacked, and Bumblebee managed to take down Skywarp, but not before Ratchet was shot and run over by Blitzwing. Infiltration #4
As the bombardment by the Decepticons caused the bunker to collapse, Verity had trouble climbing out of the shaft through which they entered. Bumblebee leapt into action when the tree the rope was attached to buckled under the crumbling terrain. Infiltration #5 He left the humans with Ratchet and traveled to Oregon, the location of the second Decepticon command bunker, observing the situation until the rest of the Autobot unit could arrive. After witnessing Megatron "disciplining" Starscream and subsequently downgrading the infiltration unit's status to Phase Two, Bumblebee departed Oregon with the rest of the unit. Infiltration #6
Bumblebee went with the Autobots to investigate Decepticon activity in the country of Latveria. There they discovered a heavily shielded "array" that the Decepticons were using as a base. Man and Machine, Part One There they skirmished with the humans that were assembled outside who were under the influence of the Decepticons' mind-altering Psycho-Prism. Bumblebee used his holomatter avatar in a "damsel in distress" ruse that distracted Luke Cage long enough for Bumblebee to get a clear shot. Ratchet was able to attach an inhibitor device to Captain America which nullified the effects of the Psycho-Prism. He gave Captain America enough devices for everyone on his team. Now calmed down, the two groups teamed up to destroy the Psycho-Prism. They began attacking the array's defenses which caused the Decepticons to attack. Man and Machine, Part Two
As they fought, Ratchet, Prowl, and Luke Cage were able to slip into the array. Outside, Bumblebee, Jazz, and Prime gave a power-boost to Iron Man in his Transformer-sized armor. After the battle quieted down, Megatron communicated via hologram from inside the array with his new ally Doctor Doom. They showed their captives, Ratchet, Prowl, Luke Cage, and Spider-Man. Megatron ordered their surrender or the captives would die. Optimus Prime ordered the quick destruction of the array. The Falcon objected because their teammates were still inside. Bumblebee argued that those few humans were expendable. There was a brief discussion, but Optimus Prime's orders won out and they all attacked the array. Megatron turned on Doctor Doom for being incorrect about them surrendering. Megatron didn't go through with his threat to kill his captives, instead he went outside to face his opponents and carrying Luke Cage. Man and Machine, Part Three
While Megatron was attacking, Bumblebee, Jazz, and Wolverine orbital bounced into the array. They found that Doctor Doom switched sides and freed Spider-Man, so they went to find the Psycho-Prism. They found it guarded by Ramjet, who wasn't in the mood to fight for Megatron's cause and left. Wolverine destroyed the Prism. Man and Machine, Part Four
He was present when Optimus Prime announced he was bringing in reinforcements from elsewhere to bolster the Earth unit's ranks, due to how pivotal Ore-13 had made the theatre Escalation #3, but did not take part in the subsequent mission to Brasnya. After that mission was complete, Bumblebee was tasked by one of those reinforcements, Nightbeat, to check the area surrounding their base for surveillance. He found a great deal of it, prompting the decision to relocate the Ark-19. He was aboard when the ship was attacked by Sixshot Devastation #1 and as the ship went down he reported that they were fully visible to human sensors at Robins Air Force Base Devastation #2 He survived but was injured in the subsequent battle with the living Decepticon weapon of mass destruction. Devastation #3 Devastation #4 He was presumably on the Ark-32 when it left Earth. Devastation #6
Bumblebee was present to hear Ratchet diagnose Sunstreaker after the later's de-Headmasterification. Replay
Having returned to Earth, Bumblebee was among the Autobots who fell into a Decepticon trap and were soundly defeated by Devastator. All Hail Megatron #5 All Hail Megatron #6 All Hail Megatron #7 The Decepticons banished them all to Cybertron to be eaten by the Insecticon swarm. All Hail Megatron #1
Frustrated at being stranded on Cybertron, he listened to Tracks's story about how awesome and cool Jazz is to pass the time. Spotlight: Jazz
Bumblebee and Wheeljack were sent to search for energon by Jazz, but found the going rough in their Earth modes. Wheeljack suggested he whip up a polymer, but 'Bee very quickly pointed out the fact they hadn't the equipment. To make matters worse, the pair were being followed and their only hope of signaling for help was a million to one shot! Not willing to wait for back-up that wasn't coming, Bumblebee dragged Wheeljack along in an attempt to track the stranger down... when Hot Rod was knocked through a wall by Ironhide. Bumblebee was surprised to see Hot Rod, but more surprised to hear the other bot thought they were a rescue party! All Hail Megatron #4
Later, while being chased by the Insecticon swarm, Bumblebee made a disparaging comment about Drift, but Kup quickly put him in his place. All Hail Megatron #8 As tensions rose, he almost had a throw-down with Hot Rod. All Hail Megatron #9 Along with the other Autobots, Bumblebee was rescued and transported back to Earth by Omega Supreme. All Hail Megatron #10 All Hail Megatron #11 Together with the rest of the Autobots, he fought the Decepticons and drove them off the planet. All Hail Megatron #12
After the departure of the Decepticons, the human military hunted down any remaining Transformer. Somehow Bumblebee got separated from his team in the ruins of New York. He managed to avoid detection until he was forced to reveal his location when a toppling building threatened the families inside. Bumblebee used his body to support the building, even as the nearby military fired into his body. Thankfully, Bumblebee was able to hold out until the humans inside had evacuated, and the timely arrival of Optimus Prime and the others kept the military from finishing him off. Once Bumblebee had been restored to working order, he asked Ratchet if they had heard his radio distress calls. No, Ratchet responded, Bumblebee's radio had been busted, but they heard about his plight on the humans' frequencies. Ratchet laughed, noting that was Optimus Prime's idea, who felt that it was only a matter of time before Bumblebee would have to save somebody and out himself. Hidden
Leadership
Following the resignation of Optimus Prime and his surrender to the human organization Skywatch, Bumblebee was elected to the position of Autobot commander despite not putting himself forward for the role. Ratchet posited his trustworthiness and dependability as factors in his being chosen. ...For All Mankind New Arrivals, Old Encounters Ride-Along
Though at first there was jubilation at Bumblebee's rise to leadership, his diplomatic nature and desire to be nice to everybody eventually led to problems. The Hanging Sword The first of many challenges in Bumblebee's new command was Ultra Magnus, who had arrived to investigate the death of Ironhide. Magnus questioned Bumblebee's suitability for command in light of Hot Rod leading his own group of Autobots away, and was not interested in helping Bumblebee with their current woes. Unfortunately, it was then that Hoist decided to lead yet another exodus of Autobots (consisting of Blurr, Tracks and Beachcomber) away from the main group. A Rude Awakening
Wheeljack had little time or respect for Bumblebee's moping or his perceived lack of leadership ability, leading to several cutting remarks, much to the annoyance of Ratchet. Through some interference from Wheeljack, Bumblebee met with Skywatch rogue Colonel Gordon Horiuchi who gave them protection from Skywatch if the Autobots helped capture Decepticons. Unfortunately this "protection" could also lock them into vehicle mode if they misbehaved, which Horiuchi did when Cliffjumper refused to capture Blurr. The Hanging Sword
Tracking down Blurr, Bumblebee attempted to talk the fugitive Autobot over, to convince him to come quietly. Blurr was shocked that Bumblebee would agree to work with the humans, the people who had imprisoned others of their kind. When Bumblebee revealed that Blurr didn't have much of a choice, the latter decided to take his chances and shot Bumblebee at point blank range, which shorted out his kill-switch badge. Back at base, when Bumblebee refused to turn over Blurr, Horiuchi decided the Autobot needed a reminder of who was holding the leash and attempted to activate his kill-switch. Naturally, it didn't work, but Ratchet convinced Bumblebee to play along and pretend he was locked into vehicle mode. Seeing an opportunity, the Bumblebee concocted a plan where the reluctant Blurr would find a Volkswagen to take his place, allowing him to find a way to free the rest of the Autobots. Before leaving, Bumblebee gave the Autobots an inspiring speech that actually caused Cliffjumper to break character, surprising the Skywatch operatives who were listening in on those Autobots with functional kill-switch badges. Later, communicating with Ratchet via a text-only comm channel, Bumblebee located a large shipment of darmstadtium, the rare metal used in the kill-switches at a shipping port. As he was skulking around, he discovered the Constructicon Scavenger, who had repainted himself to disguise his identity from the humans, as well as the hope that he sneak onto one of the container ships. Bumblebee tried to convince him that they had to earn the respect of the humans, but Scavenger angrily scoffed at this, stating he would rather hide than work with them. Bumblebee left him in peace. The Impossible Knot
When Skywatch arrived to repair "Bumblebee's" kill-switch badge, they inadvertently revealed the identity of Sanjay Bharwaney, a Skywatch researcher who was responsible for the secondary master control board for all of the badges. Bumblebee followed Bharwaney home, following Wheeljack's advice that altering the control board would short out the badges. Obviously unable to retrieve the control board directly, Bumblebee befriended Bharwaney's daughter, Serena, in the hopes she could help him. Much to his distaste, Bumblebee had to lie to Serena, claiming that the control board would harm her father if he didn't "fix" it. He felt so bad about the whole thing that he believed doing this all but confirmed Humanity's opinion of the Transformers, a position that Wheeljack did not tolerate. Unfortunately, it was discovered the control board contained tracking devices, meaning Bumblebee would be unable to get it back to their hideout before Colonel Horiuchi would notice and disable all the Autobots. This forced Bumblebee to make the modifications himself, a task he scarcely completed before Bharwaney returned home. As his friend Serena took the item back into her house, Bumblebee hoped that one day, he could repay her for his betrayal of her trust. The Gift Horse
However, as he was making his way back to the Autobot hideout, Bumblebee detected Skywarp heading towards the Bharwaney house. Arriving just in time to save Bharwaney and his daughter, Bumblebee discovered the scientist to be an embittered man whose wife had died during the Decepticon invasion, and who now saw all Transformers, Autobot and Decepticon alike, as the same destructive aliens. During their flight, Bharwaney decided to use the control board to destroy both Bumblebee and Skywarp, seeing Bumblebee as a traitor to Horiuchi. When Serena appealed to her father, Bharwaney forced Bumblebee to admit that he did use Serena to get to the control board, and 'Bee apologised to the young girl. Letting them both out, Bumblebee asked Bharwaney for the control board so he could free his fellow Autobots. As they argued, Skywatch lieutenant Daniel Klonowski appeared and saved the trio from Skywarp, but despite his interference, Skywarp cut off Bumblebee's escape. Declaring that, unlike Skywarp, he had friends who would fix him, Bumblebee activated the control board, which simultaneously destroyed the kill-switch badges on the Autobots and seriously damaged himself and Skywarp. Sometime later, after Klonowski paid a visit to the Autobot hideout, Bumblebee emerged with a brand new, more powerful body and a new confidence befitting his command of the Autobots. Wings of Wax
Bumblebee's new confidence was tested when Ultra Magnus barged back into the Autobot caves, requisitioning a strike force to arrest Hot Rod for colluding with the enemy. Magnus forced Bumblebee and the others to go along with him almost by sheer force of personality, and they soon arrived at the launch site where Hot Rod and his Autobot & Decepticon allies were planning to leave the planet. Bumblebee and Hot Rod tried to debate the situation, but Ultra Magnus soon grew tired of listening to their concerns and laid down the line: "Right, wrong, I'm the guy with the badge." Any dissention in the Autobots ranks came to a sudden stop when Swindle turned on his "friend" Hot Rod, unleashing the new Stunticon combiner named Menasor. Enemies of the System
Most of the Decepticons joined Swindle and the Stunticons in turning against their Autobot comrades. Scrapper in particular took great joy in showing the Constructicons could still hack it in light of the new combiner robot, and tried to strangle Bumblebee one-handed. Bumblebee was saved by the timely but unexpected intervention of Thundercracker, who had grown just as tired of the war as many Autobots.
Watching the Stunticons at work as Menasor, Bumblebee noticed how poorly integrated their consciousnesses were, and devised a plan to break them apart. By directing the Autobots to focus their firepower first on Dead End, then Motormaster, he successfully led the group in dismantling Menasor. Even Optimus Prime and the latecomers from Skywatch looked to him for direction. Afterwards, Prime blessed Bumblebee's leadership, and 'Bee decreed it was time for the Autobots to stop running. He faced Spike Witwicky head on and made arrangements for a true peace with Skywatch. Bumblebee still had to deal with Ultra Magnus, however, who was insisting on arresting Rodimus for treason. Bumblebee finally told Magnus where he could stuff his statutes. Earthworks
Bumblebee was one of the Autobots who helped fight back against the undead horde that came to Earth. The Transformers: Infestation #1 The Transformers: Infestation #2
Bumblebee and the Autobots then entered into a formal arrangement with Skywatch, and took up residence inside the organization's bunkers. All His Engines Despite his decision, some like Jetfire continued to question the idea of living among those who had hunted them for the last three years. Bumblebee earnestly defended his choice, however, stating essentially that trust had to begin somewhere or else they'd never survive on Earth. Spike soon alerted Bumblebee that Onslaught and the Combaticons had made their presence known in North Korea along the demilitarized zone. Bumblebee quickly determined that, despite appearances, the Combaticons were not loyal mercenaries to the North Koreans, but were playing a larger game. With the President of the United States declaring all Transformers "illegal weapons of mass destruction", though, Spike and Bumblebee decided they would have to intervene...in disguise. The Land Ironclads
Bumblebee later stated to Optimus Prime he had a plan and asked Thundercracker to join the Autobots. International Incident Part 2: "Ranks of Bronze" Thundercracker turned down the offer but Bumblebee eventually convinced the Seeker to join, reminding him of his seeker heritage. Hawk Among the Sparrows Bumblebee, unsure what to do, was back at base watching a full brawl between the Autobots, Combaticons, and Predacons with Kyle Pennington and Silverstreak. The brawl revealed the Autobots to the public and Bumblebee confronted the media to try to solve the already shaky alliance between humans and Autobots. He got blasted by a protester instead. All My Sins Remembered
Bumblebee was severely wounded from the shot but managed to regain composure. Kyle Pennington told the Autobots not to hurt his would be assassin, but Brawn did not like the decision. Revenge of the Decepticons Part 1: The Demolished Man In an interview, Ben Simpson stated Bumblebee's recent action was insane and he had no say in the US policy. Altered Carbon The assassination was followed by a Decepticon attack on the Skywatch base, and though the Autobots attempted to evacuated, they were followed and defeated by a returned Megatron. Woken Furies Dumped in a city in the middle of scared and armed humans, Bumblebee and the others ended up held at gunpoint by a policeman. He attempted to talk the human down using reason, but before he could have any success Jazz arrived and, to his shock and horror, killed the human. Burning Chrome The Autobots were able to escape from the city, escorting the shell-shocked Jazz back to Omega Supreme Full Fathom Five where they began repairs on Bumblebee. Enemy Mine
After a few weeks Bumblebee was back on his feet, though Ratchet couldn't find him a leg replacement joint, leaving him temporarily in need of a walking stick. While joking around with the similarly injured Pennington, they were interrupted by Bluestreak who informed the group that Rodimus was alive and had returned with Ironhide and Sunstreaker, who were also supposed to be dead. Informed by Rodimus that Cybertron was habitable again but occupied by Galvatron, Optimus Prime rallied the Autobots to return home, which only served to remind poor Bumblebee that nobody listened to him even though he was supposed to be leader. While reassuring him he was still in charge, Prime told him Spike Witwicky was suspected of having lied to the Autobots and murdered Scrapper in cold blood, prompting Bumblebee to requisition some Autobots and remain on Earth to investigate Skywatch and track down remaining Decepticons. Orphans of the Helix Police Action: Prologue
With Megatron having surrendered to the Autobots, Bumblebee appeared on Omega Supreme via hologram to discussing his sentence and voted for life imprisonment. Chaos Theory #1
Whilst Prowl focused on investigating their human allies, Bumblebee led the search for Decepticons, taking Groove and Hot Spot on a fruitless night raid. After an argument with Prowl the next morning, The Question Bumblebee was asked by Jazz for permission to hunt down the remaining Decepticons, but was denied due to his murdering a human last time he was in the field. Police Action #1 Realizing that he did know one Decepticon's location, Bumblebee paid a visit to Thundercracker, who after extended pestering surrendered a suspicion that Megatron's new body sported a space bridge and a bridge energy signature from his Titan hunting days. Searching for the signature with help from Sanjay Bharwaney, the Autobot leader was able to locate a veritable army of Decepticons preparing to enter a space bridge linked to Megatron, now on Cybertron with the other Autobots. Bumblebee's attempt to secretly disable the bridge was discovered, and he wound up in a battle with the Stunticons as their allies fled through the portal. Although severely outmatched, he was able to jam his cane into the bridge's cabling and trigger a massive electrical discharge, knocking his opponents unconscious. His captives in tow, Bumblebee returned to base with a renewed faith in himself. The Question
He and Ultra Magnus questioned Sandra about Spike Witwicky, and discovered that Spike murdered Scrapper. Only Forward The Autobots later tried to bring in Ben Simpson. They found Simpson under the influence of one of the Megatron-guns and opened fire on him. Swindle was located at the scene, and he revealed he knocked out Brawl in order to keep his secrets. Swindle told the Autobots that Skywatch's advanced weapons technology came from him via a deal he made with Spike. After severing their ties with Skywatch and Earth, A Second Chance at Eden the Autobots returned to Cybertron on a ship sent by their colleagues on their home planet.
When Bumblebee's contingent arrived on Cybertron, they found the D-Void's Chaos War ended, Galvatron defeated, and the planet somehow alive and primordial. Thousands of non-aligned Cybertronians began arriving back, and Bumblebee had his work cut out for him keeping the situation from inflaming. After Optimus returned with the Matrix, Perceptor discovered that it contained a map apparently to the Knights of Cybertron, and Rodimus and Bumblebee disagreed on what their priorities should be. Optimus presented half of the Matrix to Bumblebee who intended to stay on Cybertron, and the other half to Rodimus, who intended to follow the map. The Death of Optimus Prime To Bumblebee's disappointment, Ratchet was one of those who opted to leave on the Lost Light. Bumblebee tried unsuccessfully to contact Rodimus immediately prior to the ship launch, and he and Prowl watched as the ship apparently exploded in the sky during take off. How to Say Goodbye and Mean It
Bumblebee and non-aligned leader Metalhawk went to greet newly arrived Hipotank, but Bumblebee found his point of view being drowned out by Metalhawk's anti-Autobot rhetoric. Prowl was using Decepticons to enforce the peace, and while Bumblebee was arranging a memorial for the Lost Light crew, some of them began exercising their authority a little too vigorously with Zetca. Consequently, Bumblebee had to activate Horri-Bull's I/D chip, killing the Decepticon. The Autonomy Lesson When Starscream approached Autobot headquarters, Bumblebee stunned the Decepticon with his new modified cane and announced he was done trusting Decepticons. The memorial went ahead, with Bumblebee giving a speech, unaware that the Decepticons were planning to assassinate him. The plot was foiled, thanks to information from Starscream, who interrupted Bumblebee's speech to assert that he, Starscream, must be part of the government. The World & Everything in It
After a mysterious explosion, Bumblebee called in Wheeljack to investigate, though he wasn't keen on being called "King Bee". He tried to suppress his suspicions that the Decepticons were behind the explosion, which turned out to be false anyway when Wheeljack discovered what was happening. As many Cybertronians were saved thanks to Starscream's help, Bumblebee agreed to let Starscream be part of the government, despite the idea angering Silverbolt enough to knock Bumblebee down and depart with his team. Stick Together The three leaders held a speech, though to Bumblebee's dismay, Starscream dominated proceedings. He later found himself having to deal with an increasingly-paranoid Prowl. Devisive When Sky-Byte arrived, Bumblebee passed on turning out to greet the newcomer, as he knew Metalhawk and Starscream would be there to undermine him. Following a brawl and some persuasive words from Metalhawk and Ironhide, Bumblebee made the decision to have the I/D chips deactivated as a first step towards equality between Autobot and Decepticon. A Better Tomorrow
When a ship flying Decepticon colors materialized in Cybertron's sky, Bumblebee summoned Wheeljack to observe the ship's landing. Interference Patterns Metalhawk and Starscream began pressuring him to have an election to let the populace choose their leader, but he claimed not to be ready yet, mostly out of fear of what may happen if they elected Starscream. Dinobot Hunt When an injured Sky Lynx appeared from the wilderness outside the city borders claiming to have lost Ironhide and the Dinobots, Bumblebee rejected Metalhawk and Starscream's offer for help, believing that the election would go in their favor if they found the missing 'bots. Instead he went to Maccadam's Old Oil House and convinced Blurr to aid in the search, but regretfully did so by playing to his emotions and asking him to do it for Ironhide's sake even though his true motives were political. To add to all this stress, Turmoil's time-traveling ship then disappeared right under his nose. Night and the City Bumblebee was too busy investigating the disappearance to deal with the Titan discovered by Blurr, Metalhawk and Starscream. Primus: All Good Things Starscream's popularity skyrocketed after the Titan declared him a conqueror who would unite all Cybertronians, causing Bumblebee to fear the results an election even more, even as he knew himself to be at the risk of looking like a dictator if he kept refusing to hold one. After Starscream's luck turned around due to an apparent Decepticon bombing that had crippled Omega Supreme, Bumblebee was surprised to find that Metalhawk trusted him enough to investigate the attack. This kind of honesty nudged him out of the political mindset, and he started an investigation to search for the truth rather than to blame the Decepticons. The End of the Beginning of the World
Shortly afterwards, Megatron wandered into Iacon from the wilderness, claiming to come in peace. Bumblebee refused to believe this and ordered the Autobots to kill him where he stood, but they were stopped in their tracks by the Decepticon population, who convinced him to take Megatron alive. While he did so, he refused to honor the Decepticon leader's requests to speak with him, knowing it never went anywhere when Optimus Prime tried. City on Fire The return of their leader caused the Decepticons to start rioting, with Bumblebee being unable to calm them down. Realizing that things were never going to be stable under his Autobot government, he finally decided to hold elections the next day and let Metalhawk win. The Verge This was put on ice when he was approached by Blurr and Dirge, who claimed that Prowl was working with Megatron and had been behind all the unrest since day one. While he didn't want to believe them, Bumblebee came with them and Metalhawk to investigate Prowl's quarters, where they indeed found him smack in the middle of believed-dead Decepticons, holding Wheeljack at gunpoint. To his horror, Prowl killed Wheeljack before he could tell him something important, then went on to explain that he was in fact under the control of Bombshell, who had been using him to manipulate events anticipation of Megatron's return. As their plan came to fruition, a freed Megatron turned Prowl into the head of Devastator, crushed Bumblebee's head and prepared to conquer Cybertron. Before the Dawn
Heavily injured but defiant, Bumblebee asked Prowl's partner, Arcee, what her role in the Decepticon plan was. This prompted her to reveal that she wasn't on the Decepticons' side at all and kill Bombshell, shutting off Devastator and giving the Autobots the chance to fight back. Plan for Everything On Metalhawk's suggestion, Bumblebee and the others went after Megatron to save Starscream from his clutches, though as Dirge rightly pointed out, the Autobots were really just out to kill Megatron. When they reached him, the Decepticon leader was preparing to take Prowl's place as Devastator's head, but Bumblebee realized just in time that the "important" thing Wheeljack had mentioned was his trademark system bypass codeword. By using it, the Autobots activated a force field belt hidden inside Megatron by Wheeljack, incapacitating him and saving Cybertron. In the aftermath of the battle, Bumblebee was ready to rebuild, but with Metalhawk killed in battle, Starscream became leader of the NAILs and convinced them to banish Autobots, Decepticons and their war from Iacon. Heavy Is the Head
Out in space, where the Lost Light had survived, crew member Rewind would used a recording of Bumblebee saying "so here" in his stitched-together final message to Chromedome. The Gloaming When the crew finally got their communications back online, Rodimus contacted Cybertron hoping to see the planet united under Bumblebee's leadership, only to be met with a grinning Starscream instead. The Sound of Breaking Glass
Not wanting to cause further conflict with the NAILs, Bumblebee and the rest of the Autobots agreed to leave, but an encounter with some friendly Constructicons led to the unfortunate revelation that not all of Prowl's unlawful manipulations had been Bombshell's fault—he had in fact been behind the assassination of Ratbat. This revelation, piled on top of his injuries and many regrets as a leader, was too much for Bumblebee, who collapsed on the spot. He was forced to receive an extensive repair job from Fixit, who incorporated Goldfire shielding and parts of his second Earth mode in the process, resulting in a brand new body. Second Exodus
As a bright light appeared, Bumblebee and the other Autobots approached it, only for a Titan to emerge from the ground in front of them. Dark Dawn While Bumblebee tried to organize his troops to surround the behemoth, it stayed motionless. Instead the Autobots found themselves under attach from Soundwave's Decepticons. Black Metal Bumblebee tried fruitlessly to appeal to Soundwave to stop the fighting, however they were interrupted by Starscream approaching the Titan. The giant unleashed a wave of destructive energy that left the forces present in disarray. Winners & Losers While Prowl thought they should press the attack Bumblebee favored a more logical approach, which was when Soundwave heard Megatron screaming. Into the Abyss
Following the sound, the combined force found Shockwave's lab, where Nova Prime and Galvatron were attempting to emerge from the Death Universe through a space bridge in Megatron's chest. Startled to find Metalhawk alive, Bumblebee appealed to him to help, but Metalhawk was not pleased at Starscream being handed control of the planet, and attacked Bumblebee. The fight abruptly ended when Shockwave called in the Titan. As Soundwave and Bumblebee's forces emerged to count their wounded, they were met by Megatron, who was promptly ripped in half by Galvatron. Finest Hour Bumblebee later confronted Galvatron and Waspinator in an attempt to retrieve Megatron's body, though he turned out to not be a match for Galvatron, only being saved by the fact that Megatron had been playing possum. With Galvatron down, Bumblebee picked up Megatron and headed for Iacon. The Dead Are Not Enough
Arriving back at the city, Megatron revealed his plan to evacuate to Luna 2, however Bumblebee refused to concede Cybertron, at which point Metroplex and the Lost Light arrived via quantum jump to fight the Titan. Burning Bright Greeting the Lost Light crew as they disembarked, Bumblebee took Megatron aboard the ship to find Metroplex's thumb. Though wary of Megatron's motives, Bumblebee let him space bridge away with the thumb, and when nothing subsequently happened, assumed Megatron had simply cut and run. The ex-Decepticon leader did reunite the thumb with its owner however, allowing Metroplex to win the battle. Finis Temporis Bumblebee insisted Megatron get the best of medical treatment. Once Megatron was repaired, he asked to see Bumblebee and admitted to the Autobot that he'd come to the realization that the war was a mistake. The Becoming
Unfortunately Shockwave's plans weren't as foiled as they'd thought, and as billions of Ammonites poured down on Cybertron, Bumblebee tried to coordinate a retreat until Perceptor broke the news that the universe was literally ending. Bumblebee gathered together a team to return to Shockwave's lair, and used Skywarp's teleportation power to get there. While most of the team battled Shockwave's waiting forces, Megatron and Bumblebee went onwards and encountered Galvatron. Megatron was ready to end Galvatron's life, but Bumblebee managed to talk him out of it, shortly before Shockwave blew a hole through Bumblebee, seemingly killing him. Black Planet Ghost Stories Megatron took Bumblebee's Autobot insignia as his own, as he and Optimus Prime talked Shockwave out of destroying the universe. Shockwave's time drive collapsed into a singularity, and though Megatron tried to save Bumblebee's body, it was swallowed up by the growing blackness. ...And the Damage Done
Legacy
Wheeljack, thought dead since the Decepticon uprising, eventually recovered and was saddened to learn of Bumblebee's death. The fact that he died saving the universe didn't make it feel any better. The World of Tomorrow
Over a year after Bumblebee's death, Starscream began experiencing vivid hallucinations of Bumblebee, who regularly mocked his fitness to be leader of Cybertron. The Transgressors As Starscream began reaching out to the lost Titan colonies, Bumblebee brought up the fact that nobody in Iacon wanted him in control, pointing out that all he had on his side was Rattrap - who was not-so-subtly gunning for his boss's job. Aphelion After bringing together five of the colonies, Starscream didn't feel any better about himself. Bumblebee suggested that if Starscream thought about others more, then he might be happier... a suggestion that Starscream misunderstood, believing that the "others" should all think about him. Choose Me When the Decepticons hijacked the space bridge to Earth, Bumblebee brought up the fact that Cybertronians tended to repeat their history, dooming themselves once again in another war. His needling prompted Starscream to open communications to Windblade and inform her about the situation. Lagrange
As the Cybertronians and colonists settled into their new lives, Bumblebee continued to wheedle at Starscream, accusing him of obsessing over the whereabouts of the supposedly-dead Swindle. 07:00:00 As an angry mob prepared to batter down the doors to Starscream's office, Bumblebee criticized Starscream's attitude and his handling of the situation thus far. Applicable Skills
Following Optimus Prime's controversial annexation of Earth, Starscream had a brief chat with Bumblebee as he gloated about Optimus's recent fall from grace. The Medium and the Message Starscream sent Circuit and Longtooth to Earth to ambush Optimus and provoke him into making risky moves; a ploy that Starscream gloated about to Bumblebee. Bumblebee suggested that Optimus's heroism in the face of adversity would only improve his ratings among the population of Iacon. It's Beginning To And Back Again When Optimus went ahead and raised a Titan from beneath Earth, Bumblebee smugly pointed out he had warned him about what would happen. No Fair Fights
Scarlett and Joe Colton remembered Bumblebee as they discussed the original Cybertronian conflict on Earth and the current threat they posed to the planet Secret Raiders
When Red Alert remembered the launch of the Lost Light, his subconscious warned him of danger by introducing 'continuity errors' into his memory which included Bumblebee boarding the Lost Light. Last Light
Fifteen minutes before the Titan apocalypse, Starscream spoke to Bumblebee about optimism in the face of impossible odds. When Metroplex fell, Bumblebee advised Starscream to seek reinforcements. Ping When Starscream prepared to conquer Carcer, Bumblebee asked what he was going to tell the troops to which Starscream responded that he would simply tell them whatever it took. Desperate Times Bumblebee later commented to Starscream that if he and Windblade weren't adversaries, the two jets could get a lot accomplished. Starscream merely reminded Bumblebee what happened last time the Decepticon considered someone a friend. Desperate Measures When Vigilem managed before Elita One killed him, Bumblebee joined Starscream in cheering. Rubicon
When Starscream flew to the Sea of Rust to spy on Optimus Prime and Pyra Magna, Bumblebee provided him with advice on flying in such hazardous conditions and commented on Starscream's ironic views on mental health. As the two listened to Optimus recount Bumblebee's origins, Bumblebee pointed out that it was good that Optimus had someone who questioned him. As the conversation moved on to Onyx Prime, Starscream dismissed the entire thing as figments of imagination created by guilt, fear and doubt like Bumblebee was to him...
...or maybe not as within the Rust Sea's singularity, Crystal City still stood and was inhabited by the damaged but still alive Bumblebee who seemingly finished his conversation with Starscream as he walked. Ghost Stories
Spotlight: Mirage
Bumblebee was part of a unit heading towards the Pegasus Star Cluster to link up with the last remnants of the Autobots under Optimus Prime's command. He never made it, as the unit was ambushed as soon as it entered the cluster. The self-serving mercenary Mirage took his form to fool the remaining Autobots to allow him to enter their base.
But it was all Mirage's dream... or was it? Spotlight: Mirage
Notes
- Bumblebee appears on six different covers, plus two "foil enhanced" variants reusing art from another cover, during Infiltration - of which only one (#5D) used E. J. Su's redesign, which follows a different transformation schema that, amongst other things, places the roof of the car on his back rather than his chest as in his G1 character model. Things would only get worse from there.
- According to E. J. Su, Bumblebee's Holomatter avatar is modeled after Lindsay Lohan, an actress who plays a girl that drives Herbie, a sentient Beetle. Um, well.[1]
- Mike Costa had originally intended to kill Bumblebee in "...For All Mankind", believing it was the most shocking death he could do. Hasbro said "NO".[2] Not that it stopped him from dying later on (in Dark Cybertron), anyway.
