Pipes (G1)
- Pipes is an Autobot from the Generation 1 continuity family.
Pipes is an excellent soldier—tough, brave, and very strong—and otherwise worthy of little note, except for his unusual ability and eccentric hobby. When he came to Earth, Pipes became enamored of the fleshlings' primitive and ingenious technology and could not resist taking home cast-off examples when on missions. Eventually, a previously disused area of the Ark became his own personal museum of nose hair trimmers, patent rulers, and other worthless but fascinating ephemera of the throwaway society. He will gladly talk for endless hours about each prized find.
Only Wreck-Gar can be said really to enjoy an extended tour of Pipes's little museum, but Pipes is a good soldier and a friendly soul, and his comrades generally allow him his little eccentricity.
Pipes's most notable ability, which he is not the most proficient at controlling, is to emit clouds of corrosive gases from his exhaust pipes. This is possible in both modes, but is more useful (except to annoy motorists) in robot mode, where the pipes are on his arms. If he stays at it for at least ten minutes, these noxious gases will eat through a 2" slab of ordinary steel. His own skin is well protected against these gases, but in battle, the coatings may flake off. If he does not notice this (as frequently occurs) he can become vulnerable to his own attack, with unpleasant results.
- French-Canadian name: Tuyo
- Hungarian name: Csőtörő
- Italian name: Roccia
Fiction
Cartoon continuity
- Voice actor: Hal Rayle (English); Kenyu Horiuchi (Japanese)
Pipes was present at the Ark when Trypticon came to destroy it. He and his fellow Autobots made a valiant effort to hold off the Decepticon city-robot, but failed, and the Ark and its volcano were reduced to rubble. When Sky Lynx, Blurr and Wheelie arrived with Metroplex's transformation cog, Pipes installed it, allowing the Autobot giant to transform and defeat Trypticon. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 5
Later, he accompanied Rodimus Prime, Kup, and the Aerialbots on a rescue mission after Perceptor and friends disappeared while looking for a source of chronal energy. They found the Quintessons had constructed a Time Window on an asteroid for the purpose of undoing the original Autobot rebellion against the Quintessons on Cybertron. Perceptor was found alone, suffering serious injuries, and his team missing. Pipes's mechanical skills were put to work as a battlefield medic to try and patch up Perceptor, but Perceptor's incoherent mumblings about theoretical physics didn't do anyone much good. Forever Is a Long Time Coming
Marvel Comics continuity
Pipes graduated from Autobot Military Academy, but nearly lost his friend Tailgate to a stupid initiation stunt when the hapless cadet accompanied some other Autobots into the Underground to prove his courage. Fearing the worst, Pipes and Outback went in after him. When they found Tailgate battling a group of techno-mutants, though, Pipes convinced Outback to hang back and let Tailgate prove himself in combat. Tailgate successfully defeated all comers, and the three Autobots returned to the surface. Underworld!
Dreamwave comics continuity
When Shockwave pumped out anti-Autobot propaganda to discourage public sentiment for the newly returned Ark crew, Pipes was among the Autobot civilians seen watching Optimus Prime's "rampage" through San Francisco. Cold War Later, after the insurrection against Shockwave, Pipes was seen training alongside Red Alert and several other Autobots, under Ironhide's supervision. Black Sunshine
Toys
Generation 1
- Pipes (Mini Vehicle, 1986)
- Japanese ID number: C-60
- Pipes is a blue extensive retool of the 1984 Autobot Mini Vehicle, Huffer. He is changed quite a lot; his front is Huffer's back and vice-versa, and his cab transforms differently. Whereas Huffer simply moves the truck cab up to reveal his head and then flips over the smokestacks for arms, Pipes flips the cab over, repositioning it behind his head instead of shelling it like a hood, and his arms just pull out from their truck position. Amusingly, the tabs that hold the truck cab in place, sticking out of his robot mode chest, are detailed to look like seats.
- In some European markets and Mexico, the toy released for Pipes was not a remolded Huffer toy, but rather a straight redeco of Huffer (with the same transformation as the latter) affectionately known amongst fans as "Puffer".
- Bumble & Minibots (Multi-pack, 2008)
- Encore number: 10
- In 2008, Pipes was reissued in the Transformers Encore line, bundled with Bumblebee, Swerve, Tailgate and Outback. In addition to painted headlights, the reissue tampographs his previously decaled Autobot insignia.
Notes
- Pipes's profile picture in Dreamwave's More Than Meets The Eye series is very... interesting. Apparently he was originally drawn (likely by Pat Lee) with no hands, as per the toy, then hands (drawn by Don Figueroa) were edited onto the picture at a later point. Pipes' right hand comes from Big Daddy's profile picture, while the left comes from Wildfly's.
