User:Fanofcoolstuff27/sandbox/WIP

This is where anything I am working on that doesn't require an entire page will go.

Who is Skipjack?

The identity of this Constructicon being a component of Devastator is fairly suspect and should be taken with a grain of salt.

Name origin

"Skipjack" was originally a preliminary name for Rampage during production of Revenge of the Fallen. Similar to Demolishor's working name "Wheelbot", the "Skipjack" name was used in the credits for the actor who voiced him. However, this can be considered definitely inaccurate in Rampage's case, as Starscream addresses Rampage by the toys' name in a subtitle during the film itself. Therefore, the "Skipjack" name in the credits becomes the odd one out.

Rampage discrepancy

All Devastator toys released in the Revenge of the Fallen toyline named the yellow bulldozer "Rampage". Even earlier publishings released around the same time, such as The Movie Universe backed this up. This seemed plausible as most of the Constructicons forming Devastator in the film had a doppelgänger or identical drone. This results in there being some individual Constructicons present during Operation: Firestorm while also having lookalikes concurrently part of Devastator. However, the individual Rampage that was present fighting Bumblebee was colored reddish-orange, while the one forming Devastator's leg was yellow like his earlier deluxe class toys.

Original concept art for Rampage, which also served as the basis for his original deluxe class toy, depicted the character as being colored yellow. [1] As most of the earlier movie toys were based off of concept art so that the toys were released around the same time as the film was screening in cinemas, it is safe to assume that Hasbro made the connection between Rampage (who was yellow to their knowledge at the time) and the yellow bulldozer used in Devastator's combination as being the same character.

However, after the film had been released, Hasbro and Takara both made efforts to re-release earlier Deluxe Rampage toys in a more accurate color scheme.

Even in the Transformers 2010 toyline, a Legends class Rampage was released in orange.

New information

In 2020, the Studio Series toyline introduced a yellow bulldozer replacement named "Skipjack" to give fans a more movie-accurate yellow leg for the toyline's version of Devastator. While this wasn't the first toy released under the name "Skipjack", it was however the first to imply a possible retcon. The packaging bio for Skipjack mentions that he combines with his comrades to form Devastator, completely replacing the yellow Rampage unit previously used in that place. Rampage's bio on the other hand, only mentions him luring Sam Witwicky into a trap to force him to give up the Matrix of Leadership. The Devastator gift set, which was released later that same year, only had Skipjack packaged in with the other components, leaving Rampage as an individual outside of the combination. As most of the Studio Series figures and bios are based heavily on what appears on-screen, this further implies that Skipjack may actually be the bulldozer that forms Devastator's left leg in the film.

Mike B., a Hasbro employee who worked on the Studio Series Devastator, went on to mention in an interview posted on Hasbro Pulse's website that "in the movie, Skipjack and Rampage both have the same build or form but are colored differently, [with] Skipjack being yellow and Rampage being orange." This further reinforces the idea of the retcon being present. The same interview makes note that despite Rampage being the first release of the mold, Skipjack was the original intention for the combined mode in the toyline and that Studio Series Rampage was specifically made to display beside Bumblebee, though because they share the exact same engineering, one could use either in their personal Devastator.

As a result of the latest information from 2020, Skipjack and Rampage appear to be a similar case to fellow Constructicons, Demolishor and Scavenger, who share the same body-type, but are two entirely different characters.