Cheetor (BW)

The name or term "Cheetor" refers to more than one character or idea. For a list of other meanings, see Cheetor (disambiguation).

Cheetor is a Maximal (and later an Autobot) from the Beast Era portion of the Generation 1 continuity family.

There he is, your little guy.

Cheetor's original tech spec indicated he was a seasoned and confident warrior always in search of battle with the Predacons, seemingly in contrast to his youthful and impulsive portrayal in the original show. The tech spec released with his Tenth Anniversary Toy would be much more accurate to the show portrayal.

Cheetor is a speed freak and has a penchant for childishness. Everyone treats him like the rookie, which is appropriate, since he has been known to make brash decisions, like risking his life in an energon storm against Optimus' orders. Cheetor seems to have an affinity for Tigatron, as he is the only other with a feline beast mode, and Cheetor will often refer to him as "Big Cat", to which Tigatron would respond by calling him "Little Cat". An unusual trait of Cheetor's is his tendency to have somewhat-prophetic dreams from time to time, such as 'foretelling' Rhinox's words at the end of an episode, as well as Tigatron and Airazor's return, though where this talent comes from is unknown.

For the first half of the series, Cheetor idolizes Optimus Primal. He tries, with little success, to model himself after Optimus and gain his approval. He also commonly referred to Optimus as "Big Bot" (Optimus at one point calls Cheetor "little buddy"). He later begins to reject Optimus as a mentor after his second Transmetal change, which drove Cheetor to carve out his own identity within the group while still respecting Optimus as his leader; he also seemed to idolize Rhinox as well, willingly trusting Rhinox with his life to help Rhinox activate a new stasis pod. Cheetor had an unreciprocated love interest for Blackarachnia around the time of his second transformation. In pursuit of this, he conducted himself as he had in the beginning of the series with Optimus, by trying desperately to impress Blackarachnia and win her respect and admiration. He became jealous of Silverbolt for his relationship with Blackarachnia. His interest in Blackarachnia faded after she stated she was “sick of his stupid little crush”, although a later comment about how she was really something would seem to indicate that he still felt something for her. Cheetor's character was similar to that of a teenager in the early series, and that of a young adult in Beast Machines. He matures into one of the more competent and dependable Maximals outside of Optimus, becoming second-in-command and leading the team during Primal’s bouts of weakness, instability and over-reliance on the Oracle during the middle run of Beast Machines.

Japanese name: Cheetas

Spanish name: Shitor

Chinese name (Taiwan): Bau-tz (豹子, "Cheetah" or "Panther" or "Leopard") / Hua Bau (花豹, "Leopard", used in Beast Machines sometimes)

Italian name: Ghepard

Indonesian name: Sidor (probably a pronunciation mistake)

French name: Vélocitor

Polish name: Gepardon

Fiction

Animated continuity

Timelines: Dawn of Future's Past

Cheetor would appear in the BotCon Timelines tale Dawn of Futures Past, as a crewmech of the Axalon. Cheetor, Rattrap and Rhinox were members of the crew of the Maximal ship called the Axalon commanded by Optimus Primal, which chased the Predacon criminal Megatron on the stolen Predacon ship Darkside through transwarp space after the theft of the Golden Disk artifact.

Beast Wars

Voice actor: Ian Corlett (English), Wataru Takagi (Japanese), Tata Guarnieri (Brazil)

What? Is it my breath?

The Maximals and Predacons crashed on prehistoric Earth, where high energon levels threatened to destroy the crew unless they adopted organic alternate modes. Cheetor was given the form of a cheetah.

Cheetor served as one of Primal's most trusted warriors for season one, battling against the Predacons on many occasions. However, his brashness and impulsiveness often made him a liability as well; on far too many occasions he rushed out on missions in an attempt to prove himself. On one notable occasion (“The Web”) Cheetor lost a valuable communications device, and, while attempting to redeem himself in Primal's eyes by spying on Megatron's new Megacannon, he was captured by Tarantulas and had to be rescued by Rattrap before he was eaten by the spider Predacon.

On another occasion, he was goaded into proving his bravery against the Predacons by Dinobot, by planting a series of spy probes in the middle of a lightning storm on a bed of unstable energon crystals. A freak accident with a bolt of lightning meant he was teleported into the Predacon base. Despite being hunted down, Cheetor managed to evade the entire Predacon team and stop the Maximal plan to destroy the Predacon base, realising that an Energon seam ran below both bases and would destroy the Axalon as well if the Predacon ship was detonated. During this period of the Beast Wars, Cheetor learned to use his other senses to fight after being blinded in an explosion, and reverted to savagery after being trapped in his beast mode due to the Predacons stealing a component from the Axalon Call of the Wild.

Cheetor would also form close relationships with the other Maximals, particularly with the two new Maximal protoforms discovered during this time - Airazor and Tigatron. Cheetor looked up to and respected the wiser Transformer- who he affectionately referred to as "Big Cat", being addressed as "Little Cat" in return-, while he gave some of his circuitry to give life to Airazor, resulting in her taking on a few of Cheetor's personality traits and becoming like a sister to him. Cheetor even became friends with Dinobot, being the only Maximal to express actual enthusiasm when Dinobot returned to the team after their apparent victory over the Predacons (It is even implied that he voted for Dinobot to become the new leader after Optimus was briefly captured by an alien ship, given that Rhinox's surprise at Dinobot's second vote would imply that he didn't cast that vote) Chain of Command.

Ultra gear!

After Primal's destruction in disabling the lunar alien weapon, the quantum surge of the Transwarp Wave from the destroyed Vok weapon altered Cheetor's structure into a Transmetal form, along with Rattrap. Along with a tougher metal hide and built-in weaponry, his beast mode gained the ability to fly via two powerful thrusters in his torso. Unfortunately, his first attempt at flying led him on a one-way trip into a bulkhead. As Rattrap later remarked after a disastrous rescue attempt, a few flying lessons wouldn't have hurt. Aftermath.

Along with Dinobot, Cheetor and Rattrap defended the Axalon against overwhelming odds during a Predacon attack, until they were saved by Optimus Primal's return Coming of the Fuzors Part 2.

Cheetor continued to serve as one of the Maximals, witnessing Tigatron and Airrazor's capture by the Vok, helping to stop Megatron from returning to Cybertron with a Vok ship, helping to subdue Rampage during his initial appearance, and being present for Dinobot's last words Other Voices Part 2. In the three-part episode "The Agenda", the Maximals teamed up with the former Decepticon Ravage to apprehend Megatron. Sent to locate an Energon cache, Primal and Cheetor were ambushed by Inferno and barely escaped. After Ravage switched sides, the Maximals entered a desperate race to stop Megatron from entering The Ark - but they were too late. Megatron shot the stasis-locked body of Optimus Prime in the head - causing a timestorm that threatened all of history.

The defection of Blackarachnia helped to repair the damage done by Megatron, and Prime's spark survived. However, the Maximals suffered a crippling blow when their base was destroyed by Rampage. The Maximals then moved into the volcano surrounding The Ark.

Cheetor continued to serve as a devoted Maximal soldier, being the first to spot Depth Charge's ship. Shot down by Rampage, he was rescued by the marine Maximal.

Later, Cheetor began exhibiting affections towards Blackarachnia, even going to the trouble of helping her escort the proto-human children home. This greatly displeased Silverbolt and lead to some short lived friction between the two, even though Blackarachnia didn't reciprocate Cheetor's feelings.

Rawr.

After almost inadvertently scrapping Optimus, Cheetor disobeyed orders to help Depth Charge stop Megatron using the Transmetal Driver in his attempt to clone Dinobot. Shot into the active unit's overload, Cheetor slowly mutated into a feral Transmetal II. Despite the need for repairs, Cheetor became somewhat fearful of the CR Chamber, as displayed in a dream sequence, mostly in fear that any attempts of repairing his structure with the underlying mutation may cause him to mutate further. Though he tried to suppress it, he transformed fully into his Transmetal II state in order to save Optimus from the Transmetal II clone of Dinobot, the two engaging in a ferocious struggle while in beast mode. Primal then helped him to gain control over his feral beast mode and Maximize at will. It is noticeable that Cheetor's voice became deeper after his change, and he lost the 'freckles' of his previous form. Cheetor also became less willing to listen to Optimus Primal, almost as though he was now an adult who no longer wished to be treated as a child, a state Rattrap referred to as "Cyber Puberty."

This "new" Cheetor regularly lost his temper, particularly with Rattrap. Still, he was considerably less reckless, and all of his decisions seemed to have a casual air of confidence and a youthful belief in invincibility. At heart, he was still Optimus's little guy.

"Oh, joy," Rattrap remarked on this. "Cyber-puberty."

Dreams out of Joint? He sees Rattrap's rescue attempt before it happens.

Cheetor's surreal dream sequences sometimes contained hints of future events.

As Silverbolt and Cheetor continued to clash over their attraction to Blackarachnia, Blackarachnia did gain an attraction to Cheetor - or rather the powerful new Transmetal body he possessed, which would eventually see her gain one of her own. However, Blackarachnia would put a stop to his affections by declaring she was sick of it (and threatening to shoot him at in the process of this comment). Despite this, Cheetor still appeared to feel something for her, commenting that she was "something special" when mourning her apparent death. Cheetor also became a 'teacher' to the proto-human children he and Blackarachnia helped, as shown in the episode "Go With the Flow", teaching them how to fight Predacons and use basic tools.

After Megatron was captured, Cheetor returned with the other surviving Maximals to Cybertron on board the Autobot shuttle Omega Delta.

Beast Wars Metals manga

Although it picks up after the first season, the Beast Wars Metals manga is not in-continuity with the television series.

Off to go train with Piccolo or something, I'm sure.

Cheetor retained his youthful, inexperienced personality throughout the Japanese interpretation of Beast Wars. For the Beast Wars Metals manga, his character design was retooled for a more visually blunt interpretation of his personality.

IDW Beast Wars comics

Cheetor appeared outside the Ark (in his Transmetal form) alongside Optimus Primal and Rhinox during Beast Wars: The Gathering.

Beast Machines

Voice actor: Ian Corlett (English), Wataru Takagi (Japanese), Hercules Fernando (Brazil)

After returning to Cybertron, Cheetor was one of the four Maximals to escape having their sparks extracted by Megatron's new Vehicon army, although he was initially trapped in his original beast mode. Reformatted by the Oracle into a techno-organic body, Cheetor's new weapons included enhanced super speed and a pair of sabers, which could be used to deflect incoming energy blasts, thrown as boomerangs, and attached at the hilt to form a glider. Trapped in a dark and unfriendly world, he initially relapsed slightly into the dependent bot that he was at the start of the first series, idolizing Optimus Primal and blindly following orders. However, as he slowly got a handle on his new situation, the maturity Cheetor had gained during the Beast Wars seemed to come full circle, to the extent that he was even appointed second-in-command, Optimus recognising that Cheetor's instincts were correct when the rest of the team made a bad decision. No longer the 'child' of the team- a role that fell to Nightscream-, Cheetor was known to argue with Optimus when the team's original leader disagreed with his decisions, with Cheetor soon becoming the team's military leader while Optimus's link with the Oracle made him a spiritual figurehead. At the conclusion of the series, Cheetor apparently became leader of the Maximals, as well as becoming the new 'liaison' to the Oracle with Optimus's demise.

Fun Publications

Wreckers: Finale Part II

It is revealed that Cheetor is a Matrix Templar, as he and Rodimus (another templar) battle Cryotek.

Toys

Beast Wars

• Cheetor (Deluxe, 1996/1997)
  • Japanese ID number: C-3
  • Accessories: Tail-gun, water-shooting gun

File:BeastWars Cheetor Original.jpg

From robot... to brick.

Cheetor transforms into an organic, big cat-like creature somewhat resembling a cheetah. As such, he is yellow and covered in spots. In robot mode, he is armed with a rifle made out of his hindquarters and tail, along with a second "gut gun" formed out of his stomach. As with most early Beast Wars toys, he features a "mutant head" that replaces his face.

There are several variations of this toy. The initial "rocky bubble" version of the toy features blue cheetah eyes and was incredibly hard to find due to delayed shipping. The "smooth bubble" release later in the year gave him red cheetah eyes. He was released again in 1997 (what with being a popular show character) in Beast Wars's second year, this time with bright green cheetah eyes.

This mold was later redecoed for a "Fox Kids" version, as well as both the Hasbro and Takara 10th anniversary versions of the character.

This mold was also used to make Shadow Panther/Ravage and Tigatron. It was slated to be used for Universe Nightprowler, but that toy set was canceled.

• Cheetas Vs. Waspitter (Vs pack, 1997)
  • Japanese ID number: VS-3

In Japan, Cheetor was available both separately and in a Vs pack with Waspinator. Both toys are identical to their original releases.

• Cheetas (Deluxe, 1997)
  • Japanese ID number: C-3
  • Accessories: Tail-gun, water-shooting gun

Takara released two different Cheetor toys; one that was the same as the original, and a running change version that not only has various color tweaks to make him slightly more show-colored (including dark green cheetah eyes), but it also has a slight mold tweak to keep the beast head pointed forward in robot mode, which has been retained on all versions thereafter, excepting Hasbro's initial release of Tigatron. A one-of-a-kind, all-gold version of Cheetor was awarded in Japan for a TV Magazine contest.

• Cheetor (Transmetal Deluxe, 1999)
  • Japanese ID number: C-42
  • Accessories: Tail-whip

File:BeastWars TransmetalCheetor.jpg

I taste things with my hands!

Transmetal Cheetor is the first mostly robotic Cheetor toy. As with most first-wave Transmetal toys, his beast mode is entirely robotic, but his robot mode has organic elements in its design. In beast mode, two rocket boosters can be flipped out of the sides of the cat torso to create a "flight mode", plus his tail rotates 180 to provide a "stabilizer" fin. In robot mode, his removable tail becomes a spiked whip, but he has no ranged weaponry, though you can put his hideous hands together to simulate the "gun" he used on the show. The toy suffers from a design flaw in that the breast plate's hinges that holds both arms up in beast-mode gets a lot of stress on it, and over time, can't hold the cheetah head up properly anymore.

This mold was retooled into Jaguar and BotCon 2001's Tigatron, and slightly retooled to make Armada Cheetor. It was also used as the model for the non-toy character Cataclysm.

• Cheetor (Transmetal 2 Deluxe, 1999)
  • Accessories: Launcher, missile, tail-flail

A body only Primal could love.

Transmetal 2 Cheetor is the first major departure from the usual Cheetor styling, but maintains the standard "stand up cat"-style transformation, for which the robot mode is essentially the beast mode standing on its hind legs. TM2 Cheetor transforms into a saber-toothed tiger-type big cat with a large rocket engine grafted into his back. In robot mode, this rocket engine becomes a spring-loaded missile launcher.

As with all Transmetal 2 toys, he features a spark crystal, a small, clear-colored ball with a vacuum-metalized faction logo inside. Cheetor's spark is placed on his left hind leg.

This mold was later redecoed into Tripredacus Agent. (Notice the pattern yet?)

• Cheetor (Fox Kids Deluxe, 1999)
  • Accessories: Tail-gun, water-shooting gun

In 1999, a redeco of the original Cheetor toy was released, with "Fox Kids" branding on the packaging to advertise the show's move from syndication to a network. Aside from changing the black spots on his fur to a strange maroon color, at first glance, FK Cheetor seems identical to his original counterpart. However, a closer look shows that both the blue and the gold robot parts were all replaced with a metallic blue trim.

Product listings gave this toy the name "Jungle Strike Cheetor", but that name never made it to packaging.

• Cheetor (Fox Kids Transmetal Deluxe, 1999)
  • Accessories: Tail-whip

Shortly afterwards, Transmetal Cheetor received a "Fox Kids" redeco, released along with a redeco of Transmetal Tarantulas. This red-and-charcoal version of Cheetor proved to be hard to come by, as this assortment did not ship for very long at all. Shipping lists listed the toy as "Live Wire Cheetor", but that name never made it to the packaging.

In Japan, this toy was released as a JafCon convention exclusive, along with the "Fox Kids" versions of Transmetal Airazor and Transmetal Rattrap.

Beast Wars Metals

• Metal Cheetas (Deluxe, 1999)
  • Japanese ID number: C-42
  • Accessories: Tail-whip

The Takara Beast Wars Metals release of the Transmetal Cheetor toy features two small changes from the Hasbro version. The more immediately noticeable is that the "CHEETOR" tampograph on his beast mode was changed to "CYBERTRON" and the Maximal faction symbol. The other is that Takara Cheetor has green robot-mode eyes, whereas the Hasbro version has light blue.

• Metals Cheetas Vs Metals Waspitter (Vs pack, 1999)
  • Japanese ID number: VS-42

Once again Cheetor was packaged in a vs-pack with Waspinator, this time in their "Metals" forms. Again, both toys are identical to the individual releases.

• Cheetas (Deluxe, 1999)
  • Japanese ID number: C-49
  • Accessories: Launcher, missile, tail-flail

The Japanese release of Transmetal 2 Cheetor is the same as the American version.

Beast Machines

• Cheetor (Mega, 2000)
  • Accessories: Tail-whip

File:BM Mega Cheetor toy.jpg

Once again, a body only Primal could love.

Part of the first assortment of Beast Machines Megas, Cheetor transforms into a super-lean technorganic cheetah. In keeping with the early Beast Machines design trend of "articulated features", turning the beast-mode head causes its jaw to open and close. His left foreleg has a gear-spring horizontal "swiping" action activated by pushing a section of the above shoulder-armor towards his body.

In robot mode, his head has the same feature; turning it left or right opens and closes his Muppet-like jaw. The "swiping"-action arm—now on his right side—is still available in this mode and can be used to swing his tail-whip around. It needs to be noted that because of cheetor's unusual body proportions and very small feet, he has issues standing up properly in this mode, especially with his legs positioned in the proper cat-like digitigrade style.

• Cheetor (McDonald's Happy Meal, 2000)
  • McNumber:

This tiny, softer-plastic representation of Cheetor is great for the yung'uns. As one of ten toys in the McDonald's Beast Machines Happy Meal promotion, it features an incredibly simplistic transformation with no removable parts.

• Cheetor (Supreme, 2000)
  • Accessories: Tail-sword, 2 missiles

One of the largest Transformers toys ever, nearly as tall as Fortress Maximus in robot mode, Supreme Cheetor was heavily hyped as an "ultimate" toy. Aside from having the most show-accurate sculpting of any Beast Machines Cheetor toy, he features electronic lights and sounds in both modes, articulated jaws on both his beast and robot-mode heads, and raising "hackles" on his beast mode back. Each arm contains a gimmick as well. His right arm has a geared up-and-down "slashing" movement. His left arm has extending fingers (yes, fingers) and also contains a spring-loaded twin missile launcher. It should be noted that even with his wide and rubber-padded feet, like Mega Cheetor he has balance issues in robot mode thanks to his top-heavy construction and oddly jointed legs. His teeth-clenched grin in robot mode is also somewhat off-putting.

This toy was an ultimately inauspicious start for the Supreme price point. It shelfwarmed pretty badly and ended up in blowout sales at online retailers for upwards 75% off its original price tag.

• Night Slash Cheetor (Deluxe, 2001)

File:BM NightSlashCheetor toy.jpg

This is totally backwards. The black repaint is supposed to come AFTER the yellow one.

"Night Slash" Cheetor is a much more angular and mechanical-looking version of the character, with a more show-like face sculpt. Each bicep holds a spring-loaded sword attached by a brace that flips into his waiting hands when released. He has a Spark Crystal mounted on his upper back between his shoulders, and just behind that, a pair of thrusters on his back as well. His interior chest has an odd "roller" mechanism with moving parts whose purpose has yet to be determined.

This mold was used to make CatSCAN.

Universe

• Night Slash Cheetor (Deluxe, 2005)

File:Tscheetoruniverse.jpg

My love for primal is like the sun and the moon, knowing they can never touch...

A redeco of the Beast Machines Night Slash Cheetor toy, the Universe Autobot version gives Cheets a predominantly orangey-yellow coloration again, but this time with a lot of red and some super-dark blue accents. All of his gimmicks from the previous version are retained.

This toy was one of the last Universe toys sold at normal wide-release retail.

Beast Wars Returns

• Cheetas (Mega, 2005)
  • Japanese ID number: BR-02
  • Accessories: Tail-whip

In 2005, the Mega Cheetor toy was re-released as part of the Japanese Toys "R" Us exclusive Beast Wars Returns line. It does not appear that any significant changes were made to it. Reportedly, this item had a run of only 4000 pieces.

"Optimus, I don't wanna be mint in sealed box!"

• Perfect Choice Cheetas (Mega, 2005)

The original Mega Cheetor toy was redecoed in black and silver as a special Beast Wars Returns promotional contest prize. By ordering the cartoon series through the digital cable provider, you were automatically entered in a drawing for the toy, along with several other smaller merchandise prizes. All of the gimmicks from the first version are retained in this one. It is currently unknown how many "Perfect Choice Cheetas" prizes were awarded.

Beast Wars 10th Anniversary

• Cheetor (Beast Wars 10th Anniversary, 2006)
  • Accessories: Tail-gun, water-shooting gun

File:BW10Cheetor toy.jpg

Not completely show-accurate.

In 2006, Hasbro redecoed the original Cheetor toy for their Beast Wars 10th Anniversary reissue line. He was cast in a different shade of yellow, and unlike most of the other toys in the line, he was actually further off-model than his original toy, the biggest difference being that the newer toy lacks the gold paint on its forearms and feet found on the show model. His right beast mode shoulder was tampographed with a Maximal sigil. He came packed with build-a-figure Transmutate's torso and a DVD disc containing the episode "Equal Measures".

Timelines

• Dawn of Future's Past (Multi-pack, 2006)
  • Accessories: Engine-blaster, left & right side-pipes, Maximal "Golden Disk Key"

"Axalon Cheetor" is a redeco of Cybertron Clocker, transforming into a low-ridin' Cybertronian race car with a large Maximal sigil on his hood and a cheetah-pattern deco for his upholstery. Stylin'! Inserting a "Golden Disk Key" into the slot on his back pops up a pair of gun barrels, which can be held in robot mode as his pre-beast Quasar gun. His head is also retooled from the original body to represent his Beast Wars head more closely, making his face even more show-accurate then the original toy's.

He was available only as part of the BotCon 2006 "Dawn of Future's Past" box-set, with "Axalon" versions of Optimus Primal, Rhinox, Rattrap, and "Darksyde" Dinobot.

This toy—with the retooled head—was used to make "Unit 2". The original version was also used to make Cybertron Swerve and movie-verse Clocker. It was also the basis for many many non-toy Maximal Command Security Force members.

Titanium Series

• Cheetor (Cybertron Heroes, 2007)
  • Accessories: 2 scimitars

File:Titanium Cheetor.jpg

ooh...shiny

Titanium Series Cheetor is based heavily on the design of Cheetor seen in the Beast Machines cartoon, albeit with some differences, notably much thicker limbs, making him far more stable in robot mode. His twin scimitars can peg onto his hips for storage and are made of softer, rubbery plastic. His die-cast metal is limited to his shoulders, torso, and thighs.

Care must be taken when transforming Cheetor into beast mode. His robot head must be pushed back into his beast mode's neck until it clicks. Failure to do so will cause his robot mode head to get stuck inside the chest after the cheetah mode's neck is pushed into it, and may require disassembling the torso to get it out again.

Beast Wars Telemocha Series

• Cheetas (Deluxe, 2007)
  • Japanese ID number: TM-03
  • Accessories: Tail-gun, water-shooting gun

In 2007, Takara did the 10th Anniversary thing for the Beast Wars Telemocha Series line, except much more show-accurate than Hasbro, with a ridiculous number of paint applications. The quasar cannon, however, remains a big question mark in terms of show-accuracy. No one's perfect. This release came with a DVD of the Japanese dub of "Chain of Command".

Universe (2008)

• Cheetor (Deluxe, 2008)

Merchandise

• Cheetas (candy toy kit, 1997)

Part of a set of four Kabaya candy toys, this version of Cheetor, based on the original toy, is an unpainted and unassembled plastic kit that transforms (and partially re-assembles) from cheetah to robot mode, though much smaller (and cheaper) than the original toy. It is cast entirely in pale yellow and grayish-tan plastics, as are the other three toys in the set: Dinobot, Rattrap, and Terrorsaur.

• Beast Wars magnet set (1997)

The original cast of ten from the Beats Wars cartoon was rendered in adorable super-deformed style for a set of magnets. Awwwww.

• Cheetor (3D Battle-Card, 2007)

A 31-point character in the 3D Battle-Card Game's "Energon Wars" expansion, Cheetor "transforms" into a Transmetal 2 cheetah. He uses the same parts layout as Ravage and Rampage.

Trivia

The original guns, featuring realistically painted cheetah guts. Hooray!

• The first Cheetor toy was originally intended to be part of the first wave of Beast Wars Deluxes released, but experienced a delayed initial release, coming several weeks afterwards. This was likely due to a change made to his "tail gun", which on the toy is much different from the version glimpsed in catalogues, commercials, and toy packaging cross-sells. The prototype gun is held via a handle on the top side of the tail rather than underneath the haunches and has a small blue gun barrel that flips out. Why this change was made and whether it was the actual cause of the delay are currently unknown.

Cheetor's control art. Yes, that IS Cheetor, not Shadow Panther. Yes, it's not a cheetah.

• Cheetor's design art seems to indicate he wasn't originally designed to be a cheetah...or was at least designed to be generically big-cat-like enough to be other types of feline.

• It's interesting to note that Cheetor fired the first shots of the Beast Wars. First he shot at Waspinator, unprovoked, and again at Megatron while Optimus was attempting to negotiate. What a little rascal.

• Aside from Tigatron, Cheetor is the only character in Beast Wars who is definitely in the correct scale to the lifeform he has adopted as a beast mode. As a result, Cheetor has the odd distinction of being the yardstick by which other Beast Wars characters' scale inconsistencies can be measured.

• On the other hand, Cheetor's original toy is monstrously out of scale with his fellow Deluxe Class toys and is only scale-compatible with larger toys such as the Ultra-class Optimus Primal.

• Mainframe Entertainment's original plan for Transmetal Cheetor was to have his face mature over the course of the season, from a big-eared, wide-eyed, rounded face into one close to the toy. Also, he would have had a "Hero's Heart" which glowed after completing brave or heroic feats, somewhat akin to the classic anime character "Astro Boy". Due to time and financial restrictions, none of these concepts panned out. Thankfully.

I wonder what Beast Machines Cheetor thinks of this artwork?

• Comic Bom Bom advertisements for the Game Boy Color's Duel Fight Transformers Beast Wars: Beast Warriors' Strongest Decisive Battle feature Cheetor with a completely different (and much happier) head than the version which appeared in the game's instruction manual. Both are sickeningly cute, though.

• According to Titanium Series concept designer Don Figueroa, making Titanium Cheetor use his Beast Machines body was his idea. It seems he was told simply to make "Cheetor", but his Hasbro supervisors never specified which Cheetor to make.

• Cheetor has the somewhat dubious honour of being the only Maximal Megatron never refers to by name on the show.

External links

• Cheetor at TFU.info

From Teletraan I: The Transformers Wiki, a Wikia wiki.