Stunticon (G1)

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

The Stunticons are a Decepticon subgroup from the Generation 1 continuity family.

"Roads? Where we're going... we don't need... roads."

The Stunticons are a group of five rebellious Decepticon automobiles that Megatron can barely control. They are the mortal enemies of the Autobot Aerialbots.

The Stunticons consist of:

• The merciless Motormaster (leader)
• The victory obsessed Drag Strip
• The gloom ridden Dead End
• The psychotic Wildrider
• The paranoid Breakdown

They can combine to form Menasor.

Japanese name: Stuntron

Hungarian name: Sztuntikon

Fiction

American cartoon continuity

Generation 1 cartoon

Unfortunately, this image lost the Clint Eastwood reference to the poncho.

In envy of the Autobots' vehicular modes, Megatron stole various human vehicles and customized them so he could have his own car team, the Stunticons. Before they were given life, he brought them out for a test drive via remote control, forcing them to flip, somersault, fly off the road, drive up cliffs and bash through forests without a scratch. The Stunticons having satisfied Megatron's idea of normalcy, he headed to Cybertron to get Cybernetic personalities for them. On activation, they swore loyalty to Megatron... or at least agreed to do what he told them to.

Their first mission was to steal the superfuel from the humans. As they smashed up the superfuel facility, the human guards immediately assumed that they were Autobots, since the Decepticons could not possibly transform into land vehicles. The Key to Vector Sigma, Part 1 Whilst the Autobots were marooned on Cybertron, the Decepticons returned to Earth with the newly awakened Stunticons who began wreaking havoc and damaging the Autobots' good name by attacking the US military base containing the experimental rocket fuel. Eventually, the Autobots returned with the newly built Aerialbots whose combined form Superion defeated the Stunticon combiner Menasor... with a little help from Omega Supreme. The Key to Vector Sigma, Part 2

Despite this defeat, the Stunticons were the key component in Megatron's elaborate scheme to hold a fake charity race from Paris to Istanbul so he could steal US driver Auggie Cahnay's car which would be melted down to house the powerful Pearl of Bahoudin. One by one, the Stunticons disabled the Autobot participants assigned to protect Cahnay, but the downfall of Megatron's plan came when he ordered the Stunticons to stop going after the remaining Autobots. Menasor was eventually defeated by the Autobots and Cahnay. Trans-Europe Express

When Megatron was infected with Cosmic Rust after a trip to the lost Autobot colony of Antilla, the Stunticons were assigned to capture the Autobot scientist Perceptor, who had developed the powerful anti-corrosion Corrostop. After Megatron cured himself and infected the Autobots with the disease, Menasor attacked the Statue of Liberty in New York City with the ancient Lightning Bug heat ray, intent on stopping the Autobots from matter-duplicating more Corrostop from the layer they sprayed on the statue. Superion defeated Menasor and destroyed the Lightning Bug. Cosmic Rust

After Starscream was banished for yet another failed coup, he returned with a powerful new Decepticon team called the Combaticons, who were able to outfight Autobot and Decepticon alike. Needing a trump card, Megatron attempted to call on the Stunticons to help, but they refused as the rebellious Decepticons were busy having a demolition derby with various human-owned cars. However, the Stunticons belatedly arrived after the Combaticons' combined form of Bruticus defeated Devastator and forced Megatron to acknowledge Starscream as the new Decepticon leader. Realizing that Starscream would not stop at Megatron, the Stunticons merged into Menasor and disabled Bruticus in one mighty punch. Starscream's Brigade

Masquerade Five Faces of Darkness, Part 2 Five Faces of Darkness, Part 3 Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4 The Ultimate Weapon The Burden Hardest to Bear

Japanese cartoon continuity

Zone OVA, manga and story pages

Seeking to create a Decepticon Zone to counter the Autobot Zone, Decepticon Emperor Violen Jiger gathered together the Nine Great Demon Generals, upgrading them with powerful new armor and weaponry, then sent them forth to conquer planets. The Stunticons were among those summoned, but only in the form of Menasor. Zone Part 1 Transformers: Zone Enter the New Supreme Commander, Dai Atlas!

Marvel Comics continuity

Soundwave not included.

Dreamwave comics continuity

At some point in Cybertron's recent history, the Stunticons were deemed psychotic and too dangerous to function in society, and as a result were placed into perpetual stasis lock inside of a prison facility. Later, in an attempt to create a diversion while he set his final plans in motion, Shockwave arranged for the release of the Stunticons. They formed into Menasor and ran amuck for awhile, until Ultra Magnus arrived and began insulting them. Unable to reconcile with this, the five Stunticons began to bicker with each other over whose fault it was that they were failing, temporarily stopping Menasor and allowing Ultra Magnus to ram the combiner in the chest, forcing him to separate into his component parts and disabling the Stunticons. Passive Aggression

Devil's Due G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers comics

When Teletran 3 went out of control and started zapping random Transformers into different points in Earth's timeline, the Stunticons found themselves laying dormant in mid-1930's Chicago... except Breakdown, who kept his consciousness and waited for the various humans sent to retrieve the lost Decepticons. While Motormaster was missing, Breakdown woke three of his comrades and the Stunticons chased the humans and Optimus Prime across the city. Eventually they found Motormaster, and were promptly transported back to present-day Cybertron. G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II issue 2

Some time later, the Stunticons were recruited by Serpent O.R., and helped him capture some pesky Autobots and G.I. Joes. Motormaster later attended a Decepticon gathering organized by their new leader, and attacked an Autobot peace ceremony in the form of Menasor. The Art of War issue 3 After the giant helped Piranacon and Predaking take down Omega Supreme, he brought Reflector to Optimus Prime. A short while later, Drag Strip was seen among the Decepticon forces preparing to defend their base from a combined Autobot/G.I. Joe assault, while Breakdown completely failed to guard some human prisoners. The Art of War issue 4 Motormaster helped defend Serpent O.R. from Optimus Prime's fury, but it didn't end well. The Art of War issue 5

IDW comics continuity

Motormaster, Dead End and Wildrider were among the Cybertronians who answered the call to join Megatron in Kaon's underground pit-fighting ring, and later participated in the first street battle against Autobot forces. Megatron Origin issue 3 As the war broke out, Dead End and Drag Strip were seen fighting Autobots as Motormaster attempted to challenge Sentinel Prime. Megatron Origin issue 4

Toys

Generation 1

Learn to count, the Decepticon way!

• Stunticons, 1986
  • Breakdown
  • Dead End
  • Drag Strip
  • Motormaster
  • Wildrider
    • Japanese ID number: D-50 through D-54

As a Scramble City combiner team, the Stunticons consist of four small "limbs", sold carded at the $5 price point, and a single larger leader toy that forms the combined robot's torso, sold boxed for roughly $12. They were available in 1986 and 1987.

The smaller Stunticons, like their Aerialbot counterparts, share a general transformation scheme involving pulling out the back of the vehicle to form legs, and flipping the hood out of the way to reveal the robot head. Dead End and Breakdown share an additional step, requiring rotating their legs at the knees and pushing the legs back in so they aren't incredibly tall and skinny. All four feature shoulder articulation and not much else. Each comes with a small pistol for the robot mode, and a huge double-barreled cannon which plugs into the back of the vehicle mode.

The four smaller cars are fairly close in scale, but Motormaster throws the whole equation off. He's a tiny truck compared to his teammates, a point which becomes doubly obvious alongside the much-larger truck form of the original Optimus Prime toy, his supposed arch-rival.

The Stunticons are slightly less prone to being produced as knockoffs than the other Scramble City teams. Inexplicably, three members of the group (Motormaster, Breakdown and Drag Strip) are frequently packaged by bootleggers with two members of the Technobots. Drag Strip was named "Brain Man" in at least one such set.

Alternators

• Dead End (Alternators, 2004)

Classics

• Menasor (Legends, 2006)

Titaniums

• Menasor (6" Cybertron Heroes, 2007)

Universe (2008)

• Decepticon Drag Strip ("Special Edition" Deluxe, 2008)

Gentei! Gentei!

• Stuntron Wildrider (Deluxe, 2008)

Unreleased

• Generation 2 Stunticons were originally planned to be released alongside the Aerialbots, Combaticons, and Protectobots. Both the Stunticons and Protectobots were dropped from the lineup, but both came very far along in development before then. In fact, Generation 2 Stunticon and Protectobot limbs have surfaced over the years in what appears to be finished packaging. (Motormaster and Hot Spot have never appeared in finished packaging, but unpainted prototypes have surfaced.) However, these are still exceedingly rare pieces, and all told it is believed that less than a dozen of each team member were produced, with one exception: Breakdown, who was available in relatively small numbers (about 300 pieces) as a BotCon 1994 exclusive.