Smokescreen (G1)
| The name or term "Smokescreen" refers to more than one character or idea. For a list of other meanings, see Smokescreen (disambiguation). |
- Smokescreen is an Autobot from the Generation 1 continuity family.
Every Autobot has a purpose, be it as a leader, a warrior, a healer, or a scout. Smokescreen's purpose, however, is to charm and deceive. His job is to conceal the Autobots' true mission and lead the enemy astray, and he's not above flat-out cheating to get the job done. Off the battlefield, he uses his naturally friendly and sociable nature to get in close with his Autobot comrades... then reports back to Optimus Prime, giving the Autobot leader an on-the-ground perspective on what his troops are thinking. Smokescreen's armaments are similar to his tactics. If he can't outthink, charm, or just plain outrun you, he'll surround you with a magnetized cloud of smoke, and blast you with his circuit-scrambling weapons while you're stumbling around blindly. Smokescreen affectionately refers to his teammate Powerglide as "P.G." [1]
- Portuguese name (Brazil comic): Cortina
- Portuguese name (Portugal comic): Cortina de Fumo
- French-Canadian name: Écran de Fumée
- Hungarian name: Füstfelhő (meaning Cloud Of Smoke)
- Italian name: Leo
Fiction
Generation 1 cartoon
- Voice actor: Jack Angel (English), Masashi Ebara (Japanese)
Dinobot Island, Part 1 Dinobot Island, Part 2 The Master Builders Auto Berserk Microbots Megatron's Master Plan, Part 1 Megatron's Master Plan, Part 2 The Golden Lagoon
After being transported to planet of giant aliens, Optimus Prime failed to introduce Smokescreen to the alien boy Aron. Smokescreen didn't seem to mind. Child's Play
After fleeing the planet, the group of Autobots were captured by a bounty hunter named Bosch and then de-energised to prevent escape. Somehow, Smokescreen was unaffected, and managed to break free from the containment tubes. He made a deal with Bosche: the bounty hunter would free Smokescreen's friends in exchange for helping the gambling-addicted alien win energon chips on the gambling world of Monacus. After trading in the other Autobots for chips with the local crime boss Lord Gyconi in the city of Sheol, Smokescreen gambled away the freedom of his friends after his cheating is stopped by a small Jawa looking creature. Well done, Smokescreen.
He eventually makes good on his debt thanks to the help of Autobot bounty hunter Devcon, who helped take down the Decepticon-backed Gyconi. After Optimus Prime and the others were reactivated, they all rolled back to Monacus' Casino Row for a little recreation. The Gambler
Quest for Survival The Secret of Omega Supreme Kremzeek! Triple Takeover The Key to Vector Sigma, Part 1 The Key to Vector Sigma, Part 2
Smokescreen was amongst the Autobot participants in the Europa 2000, a charity race from Paris to Istanbul. While the Autobots were ostensibly there to try and win extra money for charity, they were secretly assigned to protect the arrogant American driver Auggie Cahnay. Smokescreen was making good progress in the race until he was rammed off the road by Wildrider, then broadsided by the other Stunticons. After crawling back onto the road, he was discovered by Bluestreak. Trans-Europe Express
Japanese cartoon continuity
Binaltech
When the Decepticons unleashed Cosmic Rust on Earth, Smokescreen was one of the many Autobots infested with the virus. As Earth Defense Command created the Binaltech Project in order to help the Autobots, Smokescreen was one of the first patients to undergo transference into an electro-cell powered new body. With the help of his fellow Binaltech Autobots, Smokescreen and his new power helped drive the Decepticons off the planet. He remained part of the soldiers based at Autobot City on Earth.
Marvel Comics continuity
Generation 1
When the Autobot forces on Earth were severely depleted by several battles, Optimus Prime instructed Wheeljack to construct five additional warriors using a device called the Mind Bank. It seems that before the Ark left Cybertron, Smokescreen and four other Autobots allowed their minds to be encoded on crystalline containment vessels, in case reinforcements were needed on the starship's mission. Left in storage for the last few million years after the crash, the crystals were miraculously still intact, and Wheeljack had constructed new Earthen bodies for the Autobots. Upon their revival, Smokescreen and his fellows were entrusted to Bumblebee's care, to act as their guide in adapting to Earth roads and customs.
As their training and acclimation mission continued, Prime contacted the group and ordered them on an additional reconnaissance mission to watch out for a Decepticon attempt to steal sonic energy at a local rock concert. Naturally, their "reconnaissance only" mission quickly turned into a battle with Shockwave and the Seekers, but Smokescreen and the others acquitted themselves well on their first terrestrial mission. Rock and Roll-Out!
Later, Smokescreen was assigned by Optimus Prime to surreptitiously guard Buster Witwicky from harm, after the young human personally humiliated the Decepticon commander Shockwave in battle using a mech suit. Taking Ironhide, Tracks, Brawn, and Buster's worried father Sparkplug Witwicky with him, Smokescreen followed Buster and Jessie to a demolition derby. Smokescreen was fascinated by the spectacle, seeing it as a form of gladiatorial combat. In fact, he was SO fascinated that he reactivated his Facsimile Construct circuitry in his front seat without realizing that Sparkplug had climbed back inside. An unpleasant silence followed. Devastation Derby!
Smokescreen was among the Autobots who witnessed the debut of Omega Supreme, and he participated in the subsequent attack on the Decepticons' coal strip mine base. Once Bumblebee had extracted combiner technology data from Devastator, Smokescreen and the others retreated. Command Performances!
When Optimus Prime, Prowl and Ratchet mysteriously vanished in a flash of light, Smokescreen shined under adversity and, alongside the likes of Jetfire and Ironhide, rose to a command position among the Autobots during their battles with the evil Galvatron and his minions. He and the others suffered a severe pounding at the hands of the future Decepticons and the Autobot Jazz, who had been temporarily turned into a zombie-drone by Galvatron after being taken prisoner. At one point, Jetfire was ready to pack it in and lead the Autobots in a retreat, but Smokescreen rallied them into continuing the fight. Target: 2006
Despite Smokescreen's valiance, Optimus Prime wasn't thrilled by how fragile the Autobots were during his absence, so he faked his death to force the Autobots to learn how to carry on without him. Smokescreen was among those who gathered for Prime's "funeral". Resurrection! Soon after, Optimus Prime died for real, and Smokescreen watched with the other online Autobots as Ratchet failed to restore their leader to life. Funeral for a Friend! Grimlock was nominated their new leader, and his decisions grew increasingly unpopular among the Autobots. Smokescreen was among those who were visibly not pleased when Grimlock sentenced four Earth children to death. Spacehikers!
Smokescreen joined all of the other Earth-bound Autobots on the Moon in watching Blaster and Grimlock battle for leadership of the Autobots. Totaled!
Marvel UK future timelines
In 2008, Smokescreen and Inferno were assigned a simple taxi mission to bring Autobot ally Wreck-Gar back home to the planet of Junk. That "simple mission" turned ugly when they discovered Unicron's head, alive and functioning, had taken over the minds of the Junkion populace and was forcing them to rebuild his body. Cutting out in an attempt to get back to Cybertron and warn Rodimus Prime, the Autobots were seen and came under fire from Unicron's puppet, Death's Head. Inferno was injured and Wreck-Gar stayed behind to cover their retreat, leaving only Smokescreen to pilot the shuttle back to Cybertron. Without a co-pilot, he was hard pressed to keep the ship in the air AND evade Unicron's other puppets, Scourge and Cyclonus, when they tried to shoot him down before he reached Prime. With the ship going down, Inferno hauled himself out of the medical bay long enough to toss Smokescreen to safety and guide the shuttle down in a suicide crash atop the nearby Decepticon forces.
Once Smokescreen made his report, he joined Rodimus, Scattershot and the Dinobots in returning to Junk to deal with Unicron. While Prime and the Dinobots hit the ground to deal with the Junkions, Smokescreen and Scattershot stayed aboard the shuttle to distract Unicron. Much to Scattershot's dismay, Smokescreen adapted a rather devil-may-care attitude, swooping in too close to Unicron's massive head and barely avoiding his eye-beams. Smokescreen's attitude came from his guilt over leaving Wreck-Gar along on Junk and letting Inferno get killed, but luckily his rashness didn't cause any lasting damage, and Unicron's evil was ultimately contained inside the Creation Matrix by Rodimus. The Legacy of Unicron!
Some months later, Smokescreen was part of the band of Autobots who came to Earth to free Autobot City from an occupying force of Quintessons. Space Pirates!
Generation 2
Smokescreen was fighting alongside his friend, Inferno, and some former Wreckers against the Cybertronian Empire. However, he suffered heavy damage and was apparently killed in battle. Escalation!
Find Your Fate Junior
Early in the war, Smokescreen's home back on Cybertron was almost sent flying off into space when the Decepticons attacked with an unstable anti-gravity weapon. He recalls this event vividly. Desert Flight
Universe comics
Dreamwave comics continuity
Smokescreen and Inferno were under Grimlock's leadership in the Lightning Strike Coalition during the Dark Ages. The War Within: The Dark Ages
After the Great Shutdown, Smokescreen returned to civilian life while the Unified Cybertronian government rose up around him. Initially complacent about shared rule with the Decepticons, Smokescreen's optics were opened thanks to the revolutionary actions of the young Autobot Hot Rod and his followers. Smokescreen gathered a resistance unit of his own with Tracks, Devcon, and several Minibots. Thanks to his Autobot connections in the Triple Changer Strike Force, Smokescreen managed to get Prowl and the rest of the Ark's crew released from custody to join up with his cell. This soon led to a successful insurrection, clearing out Shockwave and his corrupt influence, leaving Cybertron under peaceful Autobot control. War and Peace
IDW comics continuity
Smokescreen was seen briefly on Cybertron after the Battle of Thunderhead Pass. The Autobots were engaged in serious trench warfare, trying to maintain some hold on what was left of their dying planet. Smokescreen was waiting for Blaster's troop-rousing broadcast with Jazz and Landfill when a major Decepticon offensive began. Spotlight: Blaster
Henkei! Henkei! pack-in comic
Toys
Generation 1
- Smokescreen (1985, 2002, 2003)
- Japanese ID number: 45
- Accessories: "Electro-Disruptor Rifle", 2 missile launchers (left & right), 3 missiles
- Smokescreen transforms into a Datsun 280ZX Turbo based upon the Electramotive Davendorf/Sharpe touring car. Contrary to popular belief, the 38 decal is not a reversed "83" (often said to be an attempt to avoid legal issues). In truth, the real life car has raced under both numbers. Though Smokescreen is a Datsun 280ZX, he is a retool of the standard body used by both Bluestreak and Prowl, featuring a much larger front fender and a rear spoiler. He is predominantly blue, red and white in both vehicle and robot modes. Like Bluestreak and Prowl, he features two spring-loaded missile launchers mounted either side of his head, and is armed with a silver "Electro-Disruptor Rifle".
- In 2002, Smokescreen was re-released as part of the Transformers Collection series in Japan. This version has slightly-altered decals, and fully-functional spring-loaded missile launchers.
- In 2003, Smokescreen was released as part of the Toys "R" Us exclusive "Commemorative Series" line in the US. This version of Smokescreen uses a softer, unchromed black plastic for his rifle and missiles owing to breakage issues, plus his launchers are completely non-firing. He uses the same stickers as the Japanese "bookbox" release.
Alternators
- Smokescreen (2003, 2004)
- Alternator ID number: 1
- Japanese ID number: BT-01, BT-07
- Accessories: Turbo intercooler/gun, missile launcher with missile (Smokescreen GT only)
- Alternators Smokescreen transforms into a 2003 Subaru Impreza WRC rally car, with opening hood, trunk, and all four doors as well as a detailed interior. He also features working steering and rubber tires. His robot mode is based upon his original toy, as well as his cartoon model, but with changes made to reflect modern standards of Transformers toys, as well as his new vehicle mode. He is armed with a laser rifle formed from his turbo intercooler, and has the capacity to mount two spring-loaded rocket launchers on either side of his shoulders, though these were only included with his 2004 Binaltech retool, Smokescreen GT.
- There are several major differences between the Takara Binaltech Smokescreen and Hasbro's Alternators version. While the Binaltech version of Smokescreen is constructed partially out of die-cast metal and painted in a metallic electric blue paint job, Hasbro's Alternators release has plain blue plastic. Additionally, Takara released both the number 07 Solberg / Mills and the number 08 Makinen / Lindstrom versions of the 2003 WRC car, Hasbro only released the number 08 version. There have been complaints within the collector community, however, of Binaltech Smokescreen's paint being very easy to scratch, chip and scrape.
- In 2004, Takara retooled Smokescreen for their Binaltech series into Smokescreen GT. He received a new front end, hood, roof, spoiler and wheels to reflect the changes made to the Team Subaru WRC car in the 2004 World Rally Championship. He also included a single spring-loaded missile launcher (with missile) that could be attached either side of his head via two small holes.
Titanium Series
- Smokescreen (3-inch Robot Masters, 2006)
- Accessories: Gun, Autobot-sigil display stand
- This version is of the Alternators toy, but lacks the Alternator's Subaru racing deco. While all Titanium mini-figures are somewhat squatty, Smokescreen may, in fact, be the squattiest of them all.
Universe (2008)
Generation 1 Series
- Smokescreen (Deluxe, 2009)
- Accessories:
- A redeco of Universe Silverstreak (who is a retool of Universe Prowl), of course.
Henkei! Henkei!
- Smokescreen (Deluxe, 2009)
- Japanese ID number: C-21
- Accessories:
- The Henkei! Henkei! version of Smokescreen features a more accurate deco to the original Generation 1 toy and has a more cartoon accurate deco compared to Universe Smokescreen. Like all Henkei toys, he features vacuum-metallized plastic, including his shoulder-mounted missile launchers and his spoiler.
Merchandise
Transformers - Mini Bust
- Smokescreen (Diamond Select, 2009)
- Released by Diamond Select Toys in 2009, Smokescreen was sculpted by Mark Wong of Art Asylum and limited to 250 pieces. Smokescreen, along with his "brothers" Prowl and Bluestreak, is exclusive to online retailer Toyrocket.com. The bust features Smokescreen's electro-disruptor rifle and twin missile launchers. The missile launchers can be attached via magnets on either side of his head. The missile launchers given to Smokescreen do not match the ones on his animation model though the ones given to Bluestreak do. It is unknown if this change was intentional or a mistake.
Trivia
- Smokescreen's original deco has been used for multiple homage toys. Armada Prowl, Cybertron Smokescreen and live-action movie Smokescreen all use the red-and-blue deco with "38" on the hood, and it was also intended to be used for a canceled Universe Smokescreen.
- In late 2005, Subaru displayed a life-size robot-mode prop of Binaltech Smokescreen GT using body shell parts of the then-current Impreza WRC for a corporate event. Ironically this prop had the same parts fits problems in vehicle mode that the increasingly worn-out Binaltech Smokescreen and Streak toolings would exhibit in the then-current Binaltech Asterisk Alert release.
References
- ↑ The Ballentine Find Your Fate Junior book Desert Flight
External links
