Arcana
- Arcana is an Autobot-allied Nebulan from the Generation 1 continuity family.
For a man whose work has had such a big effect on the lives of so many Nebulans and Transformers, very few people really know the distant and remote Arcana. Not even Brainstorm, who shares his psyche, can claim to truly fathom the workings of his partner's mind. But then, Arcana seems to cultivate an extremely anti-social persona unintentionally, training first as a medical doctor, only to grow bored and focus on long-forgotten and repudiated scientific lore of his planet, earning the ire of medical colleagues. Yet it was this combination of knowledge and skill, along with the combined input of his future partner, that allowed the creation of the Binary Bonding process.
- Italian name: Arcan
Fiction
Marvel Comics continuity
While Nebulos' capital city Koraja was under siege by the Decepticons, the Autobots were voluntary prisoners of the planet, refusing to act on their own in order to ensure the trust of the people. Galen called upon the services of Arcana, a doctor of bio-engineering, to work around these restrictions by placing the Autobots' bodies partially under the control of Nebulan partners. Inventing Headmaster technology on the spot, he submitted himself as one of its test subjects, and became the Headmaster partner of Brainstorm. With Brainstorm and his fellow Autobots' new-found might, they easily beat back the Decepticon onslaught. In the aftermath, Arcana and the other test subjects revealed themselves as the heads of the robots, and he was thanked by the citizens of Koraja. Broken Glass!
Recalling the procedure, Stylor ranted at length about how absurdly dressed Arcana was for a man his age. Shoulder capes? Shoulder-length hair despite his male-pattern baldness? Those cyclops shades? As if! Stylor's Story
Soon after, the talents of the Headmasters, along with the Technobots, were responsible for defeating the Terrorcons and Horrorcons at the resort city of Splendora. This time, the rescued citizens reacted in fear at the sight of their saviors, and Arcana's reveal did less to reassure them. Later, Peer Soriza and the Council of Peers arrived at the Headmasters' base of operations to observe them while Arcana was working on ways to boost the firepower of six of the Autobots' weapons. This visit was cut short when Lord Zarak sent a plea for help. However, this was a trap set by Zarak and the Decepticons, and Brainstorm and the other Headmasters were captured. Love and Steel! Though Zarak used Arcana's technology to become a Headmaster himself, he realized, as he slowly succumbed to madness, that as long as the Autobots and Decepticons remained on Nebulos, it was doomed to war. So he released Arcana and the others, and both factions fled the planet. Brothers in Armor!!
After Brainstorm oversaw the reconstruction of Fortress Maximus into a larger form, Arcana (with some dubious assistance from Stylor) was able to triangulate the source of an Autobot distress call sent from Earth. Again Arcana formed Brainstorm's head, and the Headmasters traveled to the planet's surface. Trial by Fire!
During the Transformers' battle against Unicron, Brainstorm, still partnered with Arcana, was among the first victims. On the Edge of Extinction!
Generation 1 cartoon
- Voice actor: Jack Angel (English)
The oldest and wisest of the Nebulan rebels, he and Firebolt attempted to treat Daniel Witwicky when the youngster was injured by Snapdragon during a fight. They were able to stabilise Daniel, but not enough that he could survive without life support machinery. The Rebirth, Part 1 When the Headmaster project was put into action, he selected Brainstorm as his bonding partner, finding the Autobot to have refreshing ideas despite his undisciplined mind. The Headmasters tested themselves against Hive machines, with Arcana and Brainstorm successfully taking one out. Once the machines had all been destroyed, he worried that the Hive would swiftly discover their actions, but Gort was too exhilarated to care.
After the Autobot Headmasters easily bested the Decepticons in battle, the Decepticons teamed up with the Hive as Headmasters and Targetmasters in order to tip the odds in their favour. Though the Autobots and rebels soon found themselves outclassed, Arcana and Brainstorm were able to scan Nightstick and steal the Targetmaster technology for Autobot use. The Rebirth, Part 2 Traveling to Cybertron with the Autobots, there Arcana and Gort modified Galvatron's rocket engine, reversing its polarity so that a new Golden Age could dawn on the world. After the victory, Arcana and the other Nebulans returned to Nebulos to clean up the rest of the Hive machines. The Rebirth, Part 3
Toys
Generation 1
- Brainstorm with Arcana (Headmaster, 1987)
- Arcana transforms from an armored humanoid into a robot head. Though he only came with his partner, Brainstorm, in head mode, he is compatible with any other Headmaster body. On the larger Headmasters, he gives three of Brainstorm's Tech Spec stats in their display window, but the smaller ones still display their normal heads' stats due to their construction.
