Suiken
- Suiken is an Autobot Trainbot from the Headmasters portion of the Generation 1 continuity family.
Despite his rail-riding alternate mode, Suiken (スイケン) is an extremely capable warrior on even the most rugged and uneven terrain. He's a veteran of a great many battles, which has given him an incredible depth of knowledge. He can plan battle tactics or even stellar navigation routes for the Trainbots' combined space-traveling train mode.
Fiction
Cartoon cotinuity
The Headmasters cartoon
- Voice actor: Kazumi Tanaka (Japanese)
In 2011, Suiken and the Trainbots were operating on Earth. After Galvatron invaded Cybertron, the robot trains assembled to transport their fellow Autobots to Cybertron across the Space Bridge. Shōki intervened on Ultra Magnus's first fight with Sixshot, knocking aside the ninja consultant long enough for the Autobots to roll out. The convoy was attacked along the way by the Constructicons, but Metroplex drove them off. Four Warriors Come out of the Sky The Trainbots formed Raiden and fought alongside Defensor and Superion against their Decepticon combiner counterparts. They were nearly crushed by falling debris when Bruticus collapsed a building on them using his sonic stun gun. The Mystery of Planet Master Suiken and the Trainbots returned to Earth just in time to shuttle Hot Rod and the Headmasters back to Cybertron, after their successful quest for the Matrix of Leadership. Birth of the Fantastic Double Prime In their train mode, Suiken and the Trainbots transported Rodimus Prime and the Monsterbots to planet Beest as reinforcements for the Headmasters. Rebellion on Planet Beest They also carried him into battle again on the planet Praum, where Scorponok had set a trap for Fortress and his team. The Four-Million-Year-Old Veil of Mystery
Back on Earth, Suiken and the Trainbots took Danny and Wheelie on a sightseeing trip in Tokyo, Japan. When Sixshot a mysterious robot declared his intention to steal all of Japan's energy, Suiken and the Trainbots remained quietly alert, confident their combination form could handle any threat to their homeland. Their passive response to the danger angered the more action-oriented Headmaster team, especially Chromedome. After fruitlessly chasing behind the bandit in attacks on London and New York, Chromedome was incensed when he arrived back at Autobot headquarters to see Suiken and the Trainbots returning from a shopping spree with Danny. Shōki and Chromedome nearly came to blows with each other before Danny intervened.
When the robot finally made his attack on Japan, Shōki demanded that his team be allowed the first strike against their opponent. Flying to the rescue, Suiken and the Trainbots assembled as Raiden to fight Sixshot. Raiden's victory was prevented by the arrival of Trypticon, piloted by Scourge and Cyclonus. It turned into an all-out brawl after that, with the Headmasters arriving as reinforcements for their comrades. Sixshot was revealed, and he used his ninja training seemingly to duplicate himself, attacking Raiden as several winged wolves. As a demonstration of their newfound trust in each other, Raiden urged Chromedome to shoot at the holographic Sixshots swarming around him, knowing he would certainly be hit by some of the blasts. The Decepticons were eventually driven off, and Shōki and Chromedome shook hands back at headquarters, having forged a warrior's bond on the field of battle. Terror! The Six Shadows
The Headmasters comic
Dreamwave comics continuity
Suiken was part of a big crowd of unhappy Cybertronians who made Prowl look really stupid when he tried to make a speech assuring them that everything would be okay after the collapse of Shockwave's supposedly-benevolent rule. Skyfire
Toys
The Headmasters
- Suiken (Trainbot, 1987)
- Japanese ID number: C-128
- Accessories: "Storm laser" pistol, 3 "joint parts" connectors, left Raiden fist
- Suiken transforms into an Tokai-type 153 Express locomotive. He also forms the left arm of the team's combined mode Raiden... though he can also form the right arm if you're so inclined.
- Raiden (Gift set, 1987)
- The entire Trainbot team was sold both as individuals and in a six-bot Raiden gift-set. All six toys in this set were identical to their individual releases.
- Raiden (TF Jr set, 1987)
- An exceedingly simplified version of the entire Trainbot team was made available as part of the Transform Jr series. Each individual has a (stumpy) representation of their larger robot modes, and could combine to form a stumpy Raiden.
Zone
- Suiken (Trainbot, 1990)
- Japanese ID number: C-357
- Accessories: "Storm laser" pistol, 3 "joint parts" connectors, left Raiden fist
- The Trainbots were re-released during Zone in new packaging, and only as individuals, never in a box set. The toys are identical to their original Headmasters incarnations.
Trivia
- Though it is a little tricky to tell the true meaning of Suiken's name since it is "spelled" in phonetic Katakana rather than Kanji, the most likely translation to English is "Water Fist", a style of Kung-Fu.
- The Trainbots are all originally Diaclone toys, which came in two different color schemes. However, there are several mold differences between the Diaclone and Transformers versions. Suiken's most notable difference is that the connector-peg for his robot-mode backpack went from a long, detailed antenna (as seen on his box-art) to a shorter and far less breakable peg. The Transformers releases also lost the Diaclone pilots (of course) and the little plastic tracks for the trains to ride on.
