Sweep (G1)

This article is about the 1986 Decepticon. For the 2003 Mini-con known as "Sweep" in Japan, see Run-Over.

Sweeps are Decepticons from the Generation 1 continuity family.

Noticeably not involved in a heart-warming musical number with Dick van Dyke and Julie Andrews.

Sweeps are the minions of Scourge created by Unicron. Sweeps are visually indistinguishable from Scourge himself, although Sweeps do not necessarily have identical voices. Although only a few are seen initially during Unicron's threat, there appears to be an inexhaustible supply of them later on. That's actually a good thing, as Galvatron tends to shoot them.

Like, all the time.

Only three Sweeps have been graced with defined personalities and identifiers, namely Sweeps Two, Six and Seven.

Dumb Sweep.Sludge calling the kettle black, "Webworld"

Italian name: Incrociatori

Fiction

Cartoon continuity

Generation 1 cartoon

Voice actors: Jack Angel, Dick Gautier, Jerry Houser, Aron Kincaid, Chris Latta, Hal Rayle, Frank Welker (English), Yoku Shioya (Japanese)

Two Sweeps were created by Unicron from the fallen Decepticons Shrapnel and Kickback, though seconds later there were suddenly more of them. They soon followed Galvatron to Autobot City, where one Sweep was destroyed by the Dinobots' fire-breath. The Autobots fled the city, but Galvatron's troops followed suit, and the Sweeps killed Ultra Magnus on the planet of Junk. The Transformers: The Movie

One of the great continuity problems within the G1 animated series concerns the minions of Unicron. Namely, Cyclonus, Scourge, and the Sweeps. The issue stems from the original script never specifying which Decepticons were thrown off Astrotrain and remade into Galvatron’s followers essentially rendering them generics. As the third season episodes were most likely made using the script and not the as-yet-unfinished film, the Insecticons regularly reappeared in later episodes as well as later on in the movie itself. Much scuttlebutt has been made about who has been turned into who, but ultimately, it falls on the viewer to decide who were the genuine article and who were Decepticons that simply looked like these characters.

A rare moment of not being shot by Galvatron.

After Galvatron's defeat at the hands of Rodimus Prime, the Sweeps followed Scourge and Cyclonus in their search for him. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 1 They eventually discovered him on the planet of Thrull, only to be attacked by their crazed leader. Galvatron sent every single Sweep crashing into the planet's plasma pits, and the only one that fought back did no damage whatsoever to his leader. They all survived, though, and followed Galvatron's commands after he regained his senses (kind of). Five Faces of Darkness, Part 2

One of them got shot in the face by Wheelie, and promptly crashed into a storm on the surface of Jupiter, screaming like a little girl all the way down. As this Sweep died an agonizing death, the last thing he likely heard was his own commander calling him a giant sissy. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 3 Next, Galvatron led the Sweeps to the planet Goo and ordered them to fire on all Decepticons who were following the Quintessons instead of him. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4 After Galvatron joined forces with the Quintessons, the Sweeps participated in an all-out attack on Cybertron. Slingshot sent one of them spinning out of control, causing a bunch of them to crash into each other (and Cyclonus). Five Faces of Darkness, Part 5

Dark Awakening

"They're mongrels. No spots! No spots at all!"

Much later, three Sweeps hunted the Decepticon exile Octane alongside Scourge and Cyclonus, and cornered him in a crypt on Cybertron. When Scourge ordered the Sweeps to enter the crypt, all three cowardly refused to be the first one in, until Cyclonus got fed up with it and offered to fight whoever was the last one in. The Sweeps were suddenly very quick on their feet after that. Starscream's Ghost

Surprise Party

Scourge was later possessed by the ghost of Starscream, and the Sweeps briefly fell under the command of Cyclonus. Ghost in the Machine

Webworld The Big Broadcast of 2006 The Quintesson Journal

A number of Sweeps later followed Galvatron when he was tricked by the Quintessons into releasing the dangerous Trans-Organics sealed beneath Cybertron's surface. They didn't fare too well against the monsters, and even worse against the one known as the "Dweller". As Galvatron fled from the beast, he threw the remaining Sweeps at its horde of energy vampires in order to slow them down. The Sweeps all became energy vampires themselves, but were later cured by a massive power surge. The Dweller in the Depths

During a battle with the Autobots on the moon, "Sweeps Six and Seven" made an attack run on the enemy position. This is the only known occasion when the Sweeps received any form of individual identification. Call of the Primitives

The Burden Hardest to Bear

When the madness-inducing Hate Plague spread throughout the universe, the Sweeps were among its numerous victims. At least one of them were shot down by Galvatron as they chased him across Chaar. The Return of Optimus Prime, Part 2

The varying number of Sweeps is never explained in-fiction. As many as five excluding Scourge have appeared simultaneously, "The Dweller in the Depths", not even counting the various destroyed Sweeps. One fairly popular fanon explanation is that since the Sweeps were formed from the bodies of Insecticons, they possess similar cloning powers, but this has never been supported by any official material.

The Headmasters cartoon

Peeking their heads out to see if Galvatron is still kill-crazy, two Sweeps joined Scourge in sabotaging Autobot rescue operations after Metamorpho twisted the Aerialbots into a mess. Approach of the Demon Meteorite Several Sweeps were also seen on the moon during Scorponok's grand declaration of leadership. Return of the Immortal Emperor

Marvel Comics continuity

The Sweeps were created by Unicron to be a pack of hunters for the sole purpose of hunting Autobots and their human allies. Their leader is Scourge. Scourge's Universe profile

G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers

In a dystopian future where the Decepticons had conquered Earth, Sweeps patrolled the ruins of New York City. They discovered a group of time-displaced G.I. Joes and Cobra members, but were taken out by the Dreadnoks. G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II issue 3 Some time after that timeline was averted via time travel, the Sweeps were seen among Serpent O.R.'s forces on Cybertron, fighting back against a combined Autobot/G.I. Joe strike force. The Art of War issue 5

Timelines

Cyclonus, Scourge, and his Sweeps surrounded an Autobot shuttle during a surprise attack. They temporarily lost track of the shuttle when it disappeared into a nebula, but eventually found it again and blasted their way into it. Unfortunately, what they found inside was five very angry Dinobots, who promptly tore the Sweeps apart. Wings of Honor

IDW Generation 1 continuity

This section covers fiction that is ongoing. It will be added to as the story progresses. If it isn't current, you can help by updating it.

On Gorlam Prime, Galvatron tossed the dying Scourge into a solar pool and using the power of the Darkness, brought him back to full strength. The pool, which also contained the remains of denizens from the Dead Universe, reformatted the bodies into clones of Scourge, who would be their master. Galvatron was incensed that the Sweeps were not created in his image. Scourge, his Sweeps and Cyclonus then left to follow Galvatron on his new quest. All Hail Megatron #14

In a universe where a zombie virus collectively called Undermind was attempting to spread to other universes, four portals opened that depicted scenes from four separate universes. In one of these portals, an infected Sweep or two was seen amongst zombified robots and humans. Infestation issue 1

The infection had occurred when Galvatron's ship encountered a space-time anomaly. He ordered three Sweeps to retrieve a frozen chunk of wreckage that had been flung from the anomaly, but when it was brought on board, zombie humans and robots erupted from it, infecting the three Sweeps. Eventually, the ship crash-landed in Earth, where the infected Sweeps scattered through Las Vegas. The Transformers: Infestation issue 1

Toys

Timelines

• Sweeps (multipack, 2009)
  • Accessories: 6 wings/blades (left and right), 3 yellow cyber keys

Why are all the armybuilding versions of this mold rare exclusives?

Sweeps Two, Six and Seven came in an exclusive three-pack at BotCon 2009, all three being identical redecos of the Timelines Scourge toy available at the same convention. The mold is a retool of Cybertron Sideways with a new head, transforming into a blue and white alien spacefighter. The Sweeps are armed with "battle shields" with Cyber Planet Key-activated pop-out blades.

The original version of this mold was also used for the Japanese DVD-exclusive Noisemaze Mass-Production Version and Universe Ratbat.

• More information on Sweeps at TFU.info

Imaginaaaaation-land!

While there have been no official toys of the Sweeps mass-released, and no official toys at all prior to 2009, anyone interested in building a Sweep army is not without options! As the Sweeps are physically identical to Scourge, an enterprising fan, like the one who created the scene pictured at right, can purchase multiples of Scourge's original 1986 toy, his Titanium Series figure or his 2011 Generations toy, and make pretend.