Alexis Thi Dang
- Alexis is a human character from the Unicron Trilogy continuity family.
Alexis Thi Dang wants to be President when she grows up. Why does she think she's qualified? Running the free world has got to be less troublesome than keeping her friends Carlos and Rad from killing themselves every day.
- Japanese name: Alexandra "Alexa"
Fiction
Cartoon continuity
- Voice actor: Tabitha St. Germain (English), Akira Tomisaka (Japanese), Anke Kortemeier (German), Mia Kihl (Swedish), Elodie Ben (Armada, French), Victoire Theissmann (Energon, French)
Armada
One day, Rad and Carlos went exploring into the caverns deep beneath Cosmoscope Research Center. Inside, they found the curious remains of a clearly artificial construction, seemingly far in advance of human technology. Rad discovered a Mini-Con storage panel half buried in the rubble, and against Carlos' advice, his friend was drawn towards the strange object. Touching it, the entire structure began to shake, suddenly springing to life as thousands of computers lit up the walls.
At home, Alexis felt the tremors and used her computer to pinpoint the epicenter of the apparent earthquake as the mountain caverns that Rad and Carlos were exploring. Similarly, the scientists and researchers at the observatory were baffled by the sudden movement of the Earth. As Rad and Carlos made their escape with the artifact, a bright light engulfed the chamber they were in, simultaneously shutting down all electronic equipment in Licoln, as well as emitting three distinctly coloured distress signals beams into the sky.
One beam, green, reached an ancient starship wreck on the dark side of the moon, causing it to fire hundreds of smaller beams of green light at the Earth. The two remaining signal beams, coloured red and purple, continued deep into space until it reached Cybertron.
Emerging from the cave with Rad, Carlos turned to see a huge glowing purple sphere of pulsating energy floating in mid-air, which soon solidified into a huge robot. This being was Megatron, supreme leader of the evil Decepticons. As he tried to take the object Rad had found, which had now revealed itself to be High Wire, a sought-after Mini-Con, suddenly another massive robot ordered Megatron to stand down. He was Optimus Prime, leader of the heroic Autobots. As the pair grappled, Rad mused that somehow this was all his fault. First Encounter
The kids attempted to flee on High Wire, but were stopped by the arrival of Starscream and Demolishor. Demolishor tried to grab the boys, but they were saved by the arrival of Hot Shot and Red Alert. Rad fled back into the cave, calling Carlos and Alexis after him. Rad was sure they'd be safe there, but Alexis was concerned that the bigger robots might still follow them. High Wire led the three into a smaller room, to Alexis' further distress; Rad and Carlos, however, assured her that they'd be safer there. While in there, he accessed the ship's computer and the kids learned about the Transformer conflict.
At this point, High Wire activated a hidden storage panel, revealing Grindor and Sureshock, who bonded to Carlos and Alexis. They took their new friends out to play in the woods, but ran into Megatron. The timely arrival of Optimus Prime initially seemed to Rad and Carlos to make things worse, but when Alexis trusted the big Autobot, the boys did as well.
Optimus Prime took them into his cab and sped off to a distant location, where he set them down. Unfortunately, Megatron had followed close behind, and so Optimus had to combine with his trailer to fight him off Metamorphosis. The commanders' battle caused a landslide to fall on the kids, but they were shielded by Hot Shot. They then dug up some more Mini-Cons, but two of those were stolen by Cyclonus.
The Decepticons retreated, and so the kids and robots made proper introductions. Rad was particularly upset by the idea that he had started a massive war by reactivating High Wire
The next day at school, Billy grilled them over recent earthquakes; Rad and Carlos played dumb, while Alexis pointed out that if there was an earthquake, it would have been mentioned on the news. When Billy asked where Rad got his new bike, Rad claimed it was a birthday present from his grandmother. He and Carlos headed on up to the mountain; on the way, Alexis chewed them out for almost blowing their cover.
At the Autobots' base, Optimus Prime presented them with Laserbeak to aid them with their reconaissance work; right then, another Mini-Con was detected Base in the Big Canyon. The kids ran out with the Autobots, Rad falling slightly behind, and got spiffy new adventure suits on the way.
When they got to the canyon, Rad was initially left alone once again when Alexis and Hot Shot sped off, forgetting him. They came back, though. Hot Shot then sped off as fast as he could over the rough terrain, severely shaking up the two humans. Rad sent Laserbeak off to find the Mini-Con, and was himself chided by Alexis for being a coward.
When the Mini-Con was finally found, Optimus Prime, Megatron, and Starscream simultaneously tried to claim it. Rad gave a yell of concern, which inspire High Wire, Grindor, and Sureshock to combine into Perceptor, who managed to hold off both Megs and Screamer. Optimus Prime claimed the Mini-Con - who turned out to be his old partner, Sparkplug - and the kids helped dig up Hot Shot form where he'd gotten himself buried Comrade.
Later, they played tag with Hot Shot, which got him in trouble with Optimus Prime as he was supposed to be helping Red Alert install some equipment. They then went to find a new Mini-Con in Antarctica, where Rad and Alexis rode in Red Alert while Carlos went with Hot Shot. Red Alert ended up having to save Carlos and Hot Shot from Starscream Soldier.
Rad later came up with the sensible notion of bringing some camping supplies to the Autobot base in case they ever had to stay the night. Soon after he got them to the base, another Mini-Con was detected, and so the good guys all warped over to a forest. Carlos found a path that had been cut down by illegal loggers, prompting Rad to make a speech about how important it is to protect the environment.
During this mission, Rad used Laserbeak to find the Mini-Con, Swindle. However, the Decepticons also found him, and started a forest fire. At Rad's insistence, the Autobots temporarily broke off their search to protect the animals, allowing Starscream to make off with Swindle. Rad felt guily about this, but Optimus Prime assured him that his heart was in the right place Jungle.
Back at the base, the kids tried to wake up the dormant Mini-Con they'd found in Antarctica, but to no avail. Rad and Carlos fell for the old "pass me that spanner that's clearly too big for your species to lift" joke and, seeing there was nothing they could do to help, decided to take High Wire and Grindor to a local carnival, followed by Sparkplug, Longarm, and Jolt.
At the carnival, the boys were initially concerned that bringing five alien robots to a crowded area might blow their cover, but quickly came up with the idea of telling everyone they were super-advanced human-developed robots that would be available for purchase in the future. After a while, the boys tried to take the robots home, but it turned out that Billy and Fred were also at the carnival, and got suspicious. They tried to capture one of the Mini-Con, causing the entire situation to descend into slapstick farce.
They were saved by the timely arrival of Hot Shot, Sureshock, and Alexis, who managed to get things under control, swore Billy and Fred to secrecy, and gave the lads a good scolding. As punishment, Rad and Carlos had to clean up their quarters back at the base. Carnival.The kids later accompanied the Autobots to the Sahara Desert, and fell into a sand pit after an altercation with Demolishor. They found themselves in an ancient temple, where they were attacked by ancient guardian robots, but fortunately Demolishor was there to blow them up. Further into the temple, they found a Mini-Con storage panel; Carlos accidentally activated a trap, and Rad knocked him out of the way. After that, the floor collapsed, but Perceptor was able to rescue them. Demolishor got the Mini-Con Palace.
The next day, back in America, Billy and Fred pursued the three to the Autobot base. Rad, Carlos, and Alexis all tried to outrun them, but soon had to split up when Cyclonus attempted to capture them. Cyclonus chased after Rad, but was thrown off the trail by Laserbeak and so captured Billy and Fred instead, intending to hold them for ransom. They tracked Laserbeak to a ghost town, where the kids tried to rescue the bullies, but all ended up being captured by Megatron, who demanded Optimus Prime hand over all their Autobots' Mini-Cons in exchange for the humans' lives. Optimus Prime went through with it, but Megatron, naturally, refused to hand them over. However, Rad was able to use Laserbeak to free all the other humans, and Hot Shot was able to rescue Rad with Fred's surprising help Confrontation.
The day after that, when Hot Shot whined about having to do work on the ship, Rad facetiously offered to take his place. Before anything could come of this, however, a new Mini-Con was detected in a disused subway system. The kids accompanied the Autobots in their search and actually managed to find the storage panel; as soon as they did, however, Smokescreen, who had been discreetly following them, decided to attack.
A while after that, the Autobots received a transmission from Atlantis and took the kids with them to search for yet another Mini-Con. At the ruins, while the Autobots fought the Decepticons, the kids went inside to look around. A holographic display activated, and Carlos chased after the hologram of Amphitrite; Rad and Alexis followed. 'Amphitrite' gave them a canned history of Atlantis, focusing on how its inhabitants used the Star Saber to dominate the world, and were eventually defeated by another civilisation who wielded the Skyboom Shield. Despite this warning of the danger of the Mini-Cons' power, the kids decided to find the Mini-Con in Atlantis anyway, but it was claimed by Leader-1 for the Decepticons. Dejected, the kids left with Optimus Prime. Rad tried to comfort Carlos Ruin,and when they got back, mused that at last he knew what happened to Atlantis.
He asked Optimus Prime if there was any way to end the war with the Decepticons, to which Optimus gave him the origin of the war and what he knew of the Mini-Cons. Rad changed his line of questioning, asking if there was a way to fight without involving the Mini-Cons; Optimus responded that the Decepticons would use Mini-Cons to fight anyway, and so the Autobots had to do the same to prevent them from capturing any more than they alreadt had.
While searching for the Mini-Con of the week, this time on a volcanic island, Rad sent Laserbeak to look for it at Alexis' prompting. They found it, but it was carried off in a lava floe, and eventually claimed by Red Alert Prehistory.
After that adventure, the trio decided to give Billy and Fred a tour of the Autobot base, but were separated when the Decepticons attacked. Since the bullies were in danger of the automatic defenses, said defenses were shut off, allowing the Decepticons to penetrate deeper into the base that anyone would have liked. However, after a battle, the Star Saber was reassembled and in the hands of Hot Shot, so the day ultimately turned out all right Swoop.
The next day, Rad and Carlos tried to sort out the human quarters on the base while Alexis and Sureshock were out shopping. For some reason, the fridge was full of tools Overmatch.
When Alexis tracked down the next Mini-Con, the trio, plus Billy and Fred, rushed off with the Autobots to cheer them on; Rad and Carlos rode in Hot Shot.
Rad and Carlos were let out by Hot Shot so the Autobot could focus on fighting Cyclonus. At that point, Sideways arrived and dropped off Billy, who hugged Rad. Alexis arrived momentarily.
Back at the base, Alexis and Rad discussed Sideways. Both were deeply suspicious of him , but they decided not to raise their misgivings with Optimus Prime in case it turned out their first impressions were false Gale.
With Hot Shot feeling naturally depressed about this disaster, all five kids tried to cheer him up by making silly faces. They also accompanied the Autobots on their search for the next Mini-Con, andmanaged to find it at the same time as Blackout, and after a scuffle, it was taken by Scavenger for the Decepticons. Soon after, however, Scavenger came over to the Autobots, and revealed he had been a double agent all along Conspiracy.
In the aftermath of Sideways' betrayal, the trio weren't exactly eager to trust Scavenger. He seemed to be more interested in sleeping than mentoring Hot Shot, but when the kids tried to raise this with Optimus Prime, his explanation was cut short by the detection of still another Mini-Con. The Autobots warped off to somewhere with a lot of snow, while the kids observed from back at base. Scavenger heroically saved Optimus Prime's life, very nearly plunging to his own death, and so the kids (and Smokescreen) apologised to him for their earlier suspicions when he got back, Scavenger accepted with characteristic stoicism Trust.
At some point after that incident, the boys went on a camping trip with Hot Shot and Red Alert, forgetting to tell Alexis. Carlos, Fred, and Billy played in the water and invited a little boy named Shaun to play with them, while Rad tried his hand at fishing.
That evening, a storm blew in, resulting in a landslide which trapped Red Alert, Carlos, and Shaun beneath a massive pile of mud. Optimus Prime ordered Red Alert to transform in order to escape, but Rad expalined that there was a human news crew present, and so Red Alert transforming would completely blow the Autobots' cover. Hence, he deployed Laserbeak to distract the reporters while the rest of the Autobots rolled in and saved the day in their altmodes. Everybody returned to base post haste, where they found Alexis waiting with baited breath. Fond reunions were had be all Vacation.
All five kids were present at the battle in which Blurr made his first appearance. They tried to make friends with the new arrival, but he turned out to belong to the monosyllabic loner school of heroism.However, Blurr did mellow out a little when his refusal to work as a team led to the Decepticons getting their servos on Downshift, so it mostly turned out all right Reinforcement.
When the Decepticon turncoat Starscream joined the ranks of the Autobots, Alexis took a shine to him. However, Starscream dismissed her and the other human children, as he was only concerned with defeating Megatron. Despite this, the kids asked Starscream to bring them back a souvenir when the former Decepticon and Jetfire travelled to Mars in search of a Mini-Con panel. In spite of his rude, lone-wolf demeanor, Starscream brought back a mysterious green rock for the kids, thus earning him a place in their hearts, in particular Alexis. Mars
In return for his kindness, the kids threw him a surprise party, sewing a large Chamois of Friendship out of several smaller rags. Starscream was touched by this, but unfortunately abandoned the gift ten minutes later when he was duped into returning to the Decepticons by Thrust, ostensibly so as to destroy Megatron. What a jerk. Crack
Much later, she revealed to Starscream that she had fashioned a necklace (that was somehow tied to his very spark) out of the rock he had procured for her. When Starscream was destroyed by Unicron, her amulet cracked symbolically, alerting her to the fact something was very wrong. Cramp
Alexis was hit hardest when Optimus Prime reported Starscream's noble death. At the time, she didn't understand why he did what he did, and sought comfort with Rad. However, when the Autobots and Decepticons forged their new alliance, she was comforted by the fact that Starscream's sacrifice did not go in vain, and felt that he would have loved to see the day the three Transformers factions joined together. Alliance
Energon
Soon after the defeat of Unicron and the reunification of the Cybertronians under the Autobot flag, Alexis travelled to Cybertron as part of the human delegation. Cybertron City
Ten years later, Alexis worked as a diplomat on behalf of the Earth Federation, usually as a liaison between the nations of Earth and the Cybertronian Autobot-Decepticon alliance. Alexis traveled to Ocean City to tell the human crew and their Cybertronian allies about the Federation's decision to declare a position of neutrality in the latest Transformers conflict. While Alexis now represented the interests of Earth, she still had faith in Optimus Prime and trusted his decisions in the Energon war, just as she trusted him during the Unicron Battles. Energon Stars
Cybertron
Alexis continued on in her governmental job, and by 2030 had apparently come to work quite closely with the President in some way, given that she was the only other person present on stage when the President appointed Colonel Franklin Earth's ambassador to Cybertron. Subsequently, she, Rad and Carlos were among the humans who bid farewell to the Autobots as they departed Earth to begin a new space bridge construction program. Beginning
Animated
The multiversal news source ALTernity TODAY reported that Alexis Thi Dang of Aurex 802.23 Alpha won the Whig Party primary for President of the United States. She ran on a platform for a stronger alliance between Earth and Cybertron. AllSpark Almanac II
Dreamwave comics continuity
Armada
Alexis helped Rad and Carlos with Project Supernova, although she was rather cynical about it actually achieving flight. While she ran into some problems on launch day, including homework and Rad's insistance on playing secret agent (she was Agent Bubblegum), Alexis helped throw the Project Supernova off a cliff. Her cynicism was turned around when the craft actuallly managed to stay airborne, but it soon crashed due to outside interference. Alexis was pissed and about to go home when Rad fell into a cave and accidentally awakened four alien robots, whom he promptly hid in his garage. This didn't serve to improve Alexis's mood any, as she felt the robots could be dangerous and that they should tell people about them. Rad and Carlos eventually calmed her down, which was good as the robots turned out to be nice guys who built them a new Project Supernova. Dreamwave Armada issue 3 However, while the kids and bots were flying around on their vehicle, they were attacked by Megatron and fled back to the garage, where an angry Alexis demanded an explanation. The robots told the kids that they were Mini-Cons from the planet Cybertron, and that Megatron was a Decepticon out to capture them. Mad that she and her friends had been pulled into another race's war, Alexis began to argue with Rad, but Carlos made them both realize that they had to lure Megatron away from their neighborhood. The kids and Mini-Cons fled to a nearby canyon, where they found Optimus Prime and his Autobots. Dreamwave Armada issue 4
While Alexis and the others were almost captured and killed by Demolishor, the Autobots and Mini-Cons soon drove the Decepticons away. Dreamwave Armada issue 5 Unfortunately, as the kids were playing around in a forest some time later, Optimus Prime visited them and explained that he couldn't let them get involved with the Transformers' war any longer. Alexis and her friends were subsequently forbidden from hanging out with the Street Action Team. Sparkplug, who was against this, broke order and took the kids with him to rescue some Mini-Cons from the Decepticon base. Their mission was to call for help if Sparkplug's infiltration team wasn't back within 30 minutes. Dreamwave Armada issue 6 When the team failed to return, Alexis and the others called for help and ended up summoning the Land Military Mini-Con Team, although it took some convincing to get them to help Sparkplug. Dreamwave Armada issue 7
After a day at school, Alexis and her friends were riding around on the Street Action Team and eating burgers when the Mini-Cons suddenly stopped responding to them and sped away for an unknown destination. The kids were unable to get off until they came to a halt, which they did next to a mysterious monolith in Kansas. When the Mini-Cons entered the structure, Rad followed them, and Alexis could only watch as the monolith launched into space with her friend onboard. Dreamwave Armada issue 8 Optimus Prime explained that Rad had been taken to the Moon, and Alexis and Carlos couldn't do much other than urge the Autobots to save him. Dreamwave Armada issue 9 While Optimus managed to retrieve a starship to travel to the Moon with, he refused to endanger the humans by letting them come as well. Dreamwave Armada issue 10 Fortunately, simulcrum technology allowed them to be on the ship "in spirit", and Alexis was eventually reunited with Rad. Dreamwave Armada issue 11
After staying out of the Transformer conflict for a while, Alexis, Rad and Carlos learned that the Mini-Cons were all returning to Cybertron to fight against Unicron. They said their goodbyes to the Street Action Team, then watched as the Transformers entered a space bridge and left Earth. The End Some time after the conflict on Earth had ended, Alexis began to compile a comprehensive database of information on several Transformers. She was unaware that this information (which, in several cases, contradicted actual events) was planted into her mind by Over-Run. More Than Meets The Eye
Energon
In the ten years that followed the Transformers' departure from Earth, Alexis became an activist, traveling around the world with other like-minded individuals to (violently) protest the misuse of Earth's natural resources.
One such trip found her in Australia, protesting Alterenergy's 01 Source research. Her group's protest was interrupted when the Transformers returned to Earth in the form of the Terrorcons and attacked the Alterenergy excavation site. Alexis was horrified that they were getting dragged into the Transformer war again, but ended up rushing straight into it to save a young teenager named Kicker from Battle Ravage by shooting the beast in the face with a flare gun. What Lies Beneath The two tried to escape on a motorcycle, but ended up crashing it and getting captured by Battle Ravage, who brought them to Scorponok. What Lies Beneath, Part Two The Terrorcon leader used Alexis as a hostage, threatening to kill her if Kicker wouldn't help him find 01 Source. Fortunately, Rad, who now worked for Alterenergy, came to her aid... or at least it would've been her aid if Battle Ravage hadn't been guarding her. They ended up escaping thanks to Carlos, who aided them from space by remotely detonating the collected 01 Source, knocking the Terrorcon out. What Lies Beneath, Part Three After Rad explained to Alexis that 01 Source was Energon—Transformer fuel—and that Kicker could sense it, the two were suddenly reunited with Optimus Prime, who had arrived to fight the Terrorcons. The Autobots subsequently drove the Terrorcons away and rescued Kicker, who was surprised that Rad and Alexis knew eachother. What Lies Beneath, Part Four
As the Autobots officially revealed themselves to the human population, many began to fear for an invasion and protested against them. Alexis was in Los Angeles at the time, and reflected alongside Rad on how she would probably be protesting as well if she didn't know any better. Rad wasn't happy to hear this, nor was he happy about her way of life, as her frequent trips around the globe meant she never stuck around. Alexis explained that she had merely grown up and didn't see things in black and white anymore, but the disgruntled Rad just said his goodbyes and left. However, he came back and apolozied as Alexis prepared to leave in a taxi, which made her feel better. Then Terrorcon Insecticons attacked Los Angeles and blew up the taxi. Multiplicity Fortunately, she had gotten out in time and was safe and sound and returned to Rad. As he thought Alexis had died in the explosion, Rad had realized how much she truly meant to him, and embraced her and told her never to leave him again. They were both fairly embarrassed afterwards. Multiplicity, Pt. 2 Using Rad's truck, they raced away from the Insecticons and to Alterenergy's west coast headquarters. Multiplicity, Pt. 3 Upon arrival, Alexis spent some time with Carlos, who explained how Rad planned to use the Energon Volant Accumulator to aid the Autobots in the fight against the Terrorcons. Multiplicity, Pt. 4
Panini Armada comics
When Rad and Carlos went spelunking, Alexis followed them to make sure they didn't get themselves killed. She was shocked to see them emerge from the cave with the alien robot High Wire, but didn't have much time come to terms with the situation before Megatron attacked them and tried to capture the smaller robot. High Wire transformed into a bike and took Alexis and the others to safety, where they met several other robots. Sureshock explained that they were Mini-Cons who had ended up on Earth after fleeing from the eternal war on Cybertron. First Encounter! When the Mini-Cons refused to save Optimus Prime, who was getting his aft handed to him by Megatron, Rad decided to do it himself. Alexis protested, but her pleas fell on deaf ears. In the end, Rad taking action caused Megatron to flee and the humans to befriend the Autobots, but Alexis still told him not to let it go to his head. Friends and Foes!
After playing with their new friends on the Street Action Mini-Con Team, Alexis, Rad and Carlos were tasked with finding the locator log onboard the crashed Mini-Con ship. When they were attacked by Demolishor, Alexis again took on the role of warning Rad against taking stupid risks, only for his crazy ideas to work yet again. Deep Trouble! Going back to her daily life, Alexis later visited the local observatory, but was followed by Sureshock. After Sureshock's attempts to "help" the observatory crashed their mainframe, Alexis made a run for it and told the story to her friends. Just a Memory! When the Autobots decided to send the Mini-Cons back to Cybertron, she figured they had no other choice, and told Rad not to get all emotional about it. In the end, the plans fell through and the Mini-Cons remained on Earth. No Way Back!
Alexis and her friends were racing with the Street Action Team again when they were suddenly attacked by Starscream, out to steal their Mini-Con friends. While the Street Action Team held the Decepticon back in the form of Perceptor, Alexis and the others fetched Optimus Prime to help them. The Two-Edged Sword Shortly afterward, they met Amos Hume and helped him save the Land Military Mini-Con Team from the Extra-Terrestrial Response Division. Sale of the Century!
Legends anthology
One Halloween night, Alexis went Trick-or-Treating with Carlos, Rad and their three Mini-Cons. Because she was the mature one, she collected donations for UNICEF instead of candy, though she did dress as a princess. Something Robotic This Way Comes
After Alexis talked Doctor Jessica Theist into letting her niece Kelly come along an archeological dig, she also lent Kelly a computer. And Laserbeak. And Ransack and Dune Runner. Clearly it pays to be connected. Fire in the Dark
Notes
- According to the now-defunct TV Tokyo Micron Densetsu website, Alexis was 11 years old at the start of Armada. The page also stated she was Asian, and that her Japanese name, Alexa, was short for Alexandra.
- Meanwhile, according to the liner notes of The Transformers: Legends of the Microns — Sound of Evolution: Vol. 2 (the second series soundtrack), there were difficulties coming up with character designs for the kids, as the producers had been given three mandated races: white, Hispanic, and Asian. The notes go on to further confirm Alexis as being Asian by specifying that she was the daughter of "Vietnamese boat people". The character was named after the daughter of one of the American staff.
- The Reader's Digest Transformers Armada Official Guidebook backs up the fact that Alexis was 11 years old at the start of Armada. It also specified that she always got great grades and that she was a computer whiz.
- Alexis was never given a last name until the AllSpark Almanac II, which dubbed her "Alexis Thi Dang".
