Dragon

A big, green, fire snortin' lizard. No, not that one.

Dragons are large, reptilian monsters, some of which breathe ice or fire. They are widely believed to be mythological by the humans of modern-day Earth, but real specimens have been known to exist on the planet. The creatures come in all shapes and sizes- bipedal, quadrupedal, winged, have necks of various size, and have heads or tails of varying number. Indeed, since the term "dragon" is so generic, it seems possible to describe creatures not native to Earth which fall under the very forgiving criteria as dragons. This includes the alternate modes of many Transformers.

Fiction

Generation 1 cartoon continuity

The Transformers cartoon

At least one creature has been seen on Earth bearing all the classic dragon traits described above. It lived in medieval times and was tremendous in size, dwarfing both humans and average-sized Transformers (see image at top of page). Although quite dangerous, it was driven off by a wizard using Dragon's Bane. A Decepticon Raider in King Arthur's Court

Throw on a couple of arms, and... whoa. Wait a minute. I think I need to start over. This thing doesn't look... natural.

In modern times, Lord Chumley spent years patiently stalking a smaller, wingless, but similar beast in Borneo. He captured it and eventually set it against Optimus Prime. The creature was a little larger than Prime and did not breathe fire, attacking him with teeth and claws instead. It was smart enough to bat Prime's dropped gun purposefully away from him, but in the end Prime simply threw the animal off a bridge and into some water. It has not been seen since. Prime Target

The fictional movie monster Hojoni bears a striking resemblance to the medieval dragon, though wingless. Kremzeek!

Using consummate V's, give him teeth, spinities, and angry eyebrows.

The only known instance of a non-Terran dragon was in the dimension of Menonia, where a wizard called the Golden One could use magic to take on the form of a large, flying, golden dragon. Madman's Paradise

Maybe some wings, y'know, if he's a wing-a-ling dragon.

When the Quintessons hooked Daniel Witwicky up to a device to turn his dreams into reality, one of the illusionary monsters conjured up was a large pink dragon which dwelt in a castle. This dragon was large enough to abduct Springer and Razorclaw, but was ultimately defeated when the two Transformers teamed up and used a magic lance against it. Nightmare Planet

The Terrorcon Hun-Gurrr and the Horrorcon Snapdragon have alt-modes which resemble dragons, albeit mechanical. Hun-Gurrr's dragon form has two heads, a trait that has not been seen in a biological specimen.

Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity

Legends comic

When Wheeljack created the Monsterbots, he designed one of them, Doublecross, in the form of a winged, bipedal, fire-breathing dragon. Like Hun-Gurrr, his dragon mode had two heads, but unlike the Terrorcon, each head had a separate personality. The Road to Legends' Revival Chapter 3

Beast Wars II cartoon

Puff the Magic Dragon shot you in the face.

When Galvatron arrived on Gaia (actually Earth tens of thousands of years in the future) he commanded the Mother Computer to show him the most powerful things that existed on the planet so that he could scan them for his alternate modes. One was a tank and the other was a dragon, and the process put Galvatron into a deep slumber. White Lion, Run! When he woke, his dragon mode proved to be quite powerful. Galvatron Revived

Beast Wars cartoon continuity

Beast Wars cartoon

The auditions for Reign of Fire were going well.

When the Predacon Megatron took on the spark of his Decepticon namesake and was submersed in lava, his form mutated from a Tyrannosaurus rex to a large, red, ice- and fire-breathing dragon for no real apparent reason. Master Blaster

3H comics

Cryotek attempted to remove Megatron's Transmetal 2 dragon mode and incorporate it into himself, but the process left Cryotek in stasis lock. Megatron's beast mode wasn't removed, but Cryotek was left with a similar body.

2001 Robots in Disguise cartoon

Among the various forms used by the six-changer Predacon leader Megatron, a two-headed dragon was one of his more well-known (and more creative) forms. Later, after his conversion into the more powerful "ten-changer" Galvatron, he gained a second (one-headed) dragon form.

Cybertron cartoon

The leader of Jungle Planet, Scourge, transformed into a mechanical dragon with the ability to deploy up to three heads. Though the Jungle Planet is populated entirely by Transformers who transform into mechanical beast modes seemingly modeled after Earth creatures, it is unknown if Scourge's alt mode has any direct connection to mythological dragons of Earth, which he expressed confusion about.

Classics

The Mini-Con Nightscream transformed into a dragon, as did Trypticon.

Live-action film series

Optimus Prime was granted the power of the world's legendary dragons through biotech upgrades. Optimus Prime Speed Stars bio

The combiner Dragonstorm served as the inspiration for dragons in Arthurian folklore. The Last Knight

Prime cartoon

During the Great War, Shockwave cloned a small army of Predacons which Megatron sent to Earth to destroy Autobots and look for energon. After eliminating the Autobot presence on the planet, the Predacons stood a long vigil on Earth where they awaited the arrival of Megatron but ultimately died where their fossilized bodies were buried at various points around the world. In time, the Predacons entered in human legends as various mythological monsters, including dragons, though the true nature of the creatures remained a mystery to the inhabitants of Earth. Project Predacon

While Bulkhead, Wheeljack, and Miko Nakadai were preparing to blow up an Energon mine, Predaking attacked the three Wreckers. Miko expressed shock that the Decepticons had a dragon, and the two Autobots asked what a dragon was. Prey

Rescue Bots cartoon

Griffin Rock Element Quest featured a dragon lurking around Griffin Rock in its second level. A Virtual Disaster

Beast Wars: Uprising

When the Beast Upgrade came around, lots of Maximals and Predacons chose to adopt dragon alternate modes. Safe Spaces Derailment Most were capable of breathing fire while in their beast modes. Derailment

Notes

• The "beast of Borneo" described above may be based on a real-world legend of a dragon that lives on Mount Kinabalu in Borneo. And there is an actual Bornean lizard species called the Kinabalu crested dragon, but it has never been known to reach Autobot-threatening sizes.

External links

• Dragon at Wikipedia