Whirl (G1)
| The name or term "Whirl" refers to more than one character or idea. For a list of other meanings, see Whirl (disambiguation). |
- Whirl is an Autobot Deluxe Vehicle from the Generation 1 continuity family.
Vorns before Optimus Primal coined the phrase "Sometimes crazy works", Whirl was living it in action. Whirl believes that, logically speaking, insanity makes an extremely effective weapon. Enemies flee in terror before the absolutely insane maneuvers he pulls on the battlefield. His extreme maneuverability in helicopter mode lets him spin, bob, weave, dive, and bank like someone totally out of control. Or totally out of his mind. Needless to say, Whirl is a rather reckless fighter and can take damage because of it. He's okay with that, because he absolutely LOVES his job. Sometimes, a little TOO much...
Whirl is a member of the elite Wreckers unit.
Fiction
Marvel Generation 1 comics
Whirl was a member of the elite Wreckers unit under the command of Impactor. Alongside Roadbuster, he accompanied his commander as Impactor argued with Xaaron over Ultra Magnus' trip to Earth to investigate the disappearance of Optimus Prime.
Later, the Wreckers continued preparing for Operation: Volcano, an attempt to eliminate some of the Decepticons' deadliest killers. During the simulation, Whirl demonstrated his trademark aerial combat style to draw fire away from his teammates. As the simulation concluded, Impactor decided that without Ultra Magnus' support, the operation would basically become a suicide mission for the Wreckers. Whirl and the others agreed with him and Impactor left to tell Xaaron that the Wreckers were bowing out of Volcano. Taking some downtime, Whirl, Roadbuster, and Twin Twist went to Maccadam's Old Oil House to unwind. While Roadbuster and Twin Twist were having uneasy feelings about the decision to ditch Volcano, Whirl seemed fine with it, pointing out that it was only logical and no one would say that they were in the wrong. Their discussion was interrupted when they noticed Fang, a Decepticon who began bullying a smaller Transformer in the place. Twin Twist violently intervened, realizing that as Autobots, it was their duty to always do their best to stop the Decepticons. His sudden revelation seemed to energize Whirl and Roadbuster, and after Impactor was convinced by Xaaron to go through with Operation: Volcano, the rest of the Wreckers eagerly volunteered.
Unfortunately, Operation: Volcano failed when most of the targeted Decepticons were unknowingly ordered clear of the ambush by Megatron. Only Macabre went ahead and attempted to assassinate Xaaron, shooting and mortally-wounding Impactor instead. Whirl and the rest of the Wreckers immediately gunned Macabre down in retaliation. Target: 2006
Later, Whirl was seen alongside Ultra Magnus and his fellow Wreckers on a hunt for a Decepticon spy posing as Optimus Prime. This was revealed, thanks to the efforts of Outback, to be a product of Decepticon misinformation and Prime was welcomed back into the fold. Distant Thunder!
Marvel UK future timelines
In an alternate version of 2510, Whirl and the Wreckers led the final Autobot offensive against Decepticon held territory, bringing the war to a close. At the ceremony where he officially announced the end of the war, Rodimus Prime chose to make Springer, leader of the Wreckers, his successor as Autobot leader and carrier of the Creation Matrix. One Autobot named Triton objected to the idea, though: he said Springer was a fighter, not a tactician, and Ultra Magnus would be a better leader for a world at peace. Whirl took offense to Triton putting down his commanding officer, and shoved the little guy in the back, asking where was his "precious Ultra Magnus" when the Wreckers were winning the war? Triton struck back, and the situation turned from bad to worse as the Technobots sided with Ultra Magnus against the Wreckers. Shots were fired, battle lines were drawn, and a new war picked up where the old one left off. Tragically, it seems no one took the time to examine Triton's fallen body, and the hidden Decepticon insignia on his chest. The last act of the last Decepticon was to see that there would never truly be peace on Cybertron. Peace
Dreamwave Generation 1 comics
When the Autobots split into multiple factions after the disappearance of their leaders, Whirl joined Springer's group, known as the Wreckers. During the Dark Ages of Cybertron, he participated in an attack against Devastator. War Within: The Dark Ages
Much later, during Shockwave's rule of Cybertron, Whirl continued with the Wreckers, now a small unit of Autobots dedicated to keeping the peace wherever (and however) necessary. When Starscream released the Stunticons from their imprisonment in Cybertron's Detention Banks, the Wreckers were sent in to deal with the escapees. Unfortunately, both Whirl and Roadbuster were crushed before Ultra Magnus brought down the Stunticons' combined form, Menasor. War and Peace
IDW Generation 1 comics
In the pre-war era, under the reign of Nominus Prime, Whirl served in the Rodion Police. When some friends of his in the forces were beaten up by some working class scum, Whirl took over interrogation of a prisoner and taught him a lesson about how worthless, unwanted mining scum like him shouldn't mess with his betters and how no one will care when the prisoner "escapes" and "has" to be killed. (You saw nothing, Springarm, alright?!) After that Megatron guy was released, Chaos Theory Part 1 police captain Orion Pax learned of Whirl's actions and had him detained as punishment. Some of Whirl's other pals took this badly, since he was a popular guy with friends in the Senate who might be embarrassed if an acquaintance of theirs was arrested. They attacked the Rodion police station and freed him, but Orion Pax wouldn't stand for it and defeated them, shooting Whirl's leg off in the process. Whirl warned his captain that the Senate would not be happy if any further harm came to him, but Orion merely picked him up, went to the Grand Imperium in person and confronted the entire Senate with his actions. Chaos Theory Part 2
A short while later, Whirl would be transferred to the Kaon Security Service. With his mate Roadbuster, he was there to witness the rise of... er, Megatron, now full of psychotic rage, and the fall of Kaon and the slaughter of Sentinel Prime at Megatron's hands. Presumably, Whirl leaves all this off his resume. Megatron Origin issue 2
Whirl and Roadbuster would both sign up the Wreckers. According to official paperwork (trust your government), Whirl was with them when they had their final battle on Pova against their longtime rivals, the Decepticon attack squad known as Squadron X. During the course of the battle, the flightless Wreckers were pinned down in the trenches while Whirl and the other Wreckers fliers fought in the air, but a desperate gambit by leader Impactor and his second-in-command Springer turned the tide. However, after Squadron X was rounded up and put in inhibitor harnesses, it turned out the Wreckers had no jurisdiction on Pova and, for the wider war effort, had to let the prisoners go. Instead, Impactor murdered them while Whirl looked away in apparent shame, but took no action. The atrocity was covered up, Impactor was quietly sent to Garrus-9, and the Autobots were told "Squadron X escaped and died in battle". Last Stand of the Wreckers #4 Last Stand of the Wreckers #5
Years later, Whirl was deployed with the other Wreckers to Varas Centralus to help Bluestreak's counter-insurgency team deal with the Decepticon infiltration team, which had just activated Siege Mode. He, Sandstorm and Broadside assaulted the Decepticon siege emplacement from the sky while the others hit it from the ground. However, they were eventually forced to pull out and return to Cybertron due to the possible resurgence of Thunderwing. Stormbringer #2 Arriving at their homeworld, Whirl, Roadbuster and Topspin saved the Technobots Nosecone and Afterburner from a patrol Centurion droids. The Wreckers, with Optimus Prime broke into Bludgeon's secret base and decimated his forces. Whirl and Roadbuster helped Jetfire from his imprisonment, but they were too late: Bludgeon had recalled Thunderwing home. Stormbringer #3
Whirl joined Springer and Sandstorm in attacking Thunderwing when the mindless Pretender returned to Cybertron's surface. But when Thunderwing ionized the air around the three airborne Wreckers, their weapons were disabled and they were forced to back off. Fortunately, a team of Decepticons led by Divebomb arrived to supplement the Autobot forces and the day was soon won. Stormbringer #4
Later, the Wreckers were called in to fight Thunderwing AGAIN when the denizens of the Dead Universe launched their grand scheme to bring forth the Expansion. On Corata-Vaz, Thunderwing was found guarding a Nega-Core, a device essential to the Expansion. Spotlight: Hardhead Whirl fought hard alongside his teammates Spotlight: Doubledealer and eventually the Wreckers were able to disable the Nega-Core when Jhiaxus lost control of Thunderwing. Spotlight: Sideswipe
During the Decepticons' devastating attack against the Autobots across the galaxy, Whirl and several other Wreckers were captured by Decepticons under the command of Turmoil. Kup led an extraction team to rescue the Autobots from a Decepticon cruiser, and they were ultimately rescued thanks to the efforts of Deadlock, the former Decepticon turned factionless ninja elite swordsman now known as (say it softly)... Drift. Spotlight: Drift
For unknown reasons, Springer began to consider Whirl something of a liability, and chose to replace him on the Wreckers after the Surge. Bullets Whirl ended up in prison after trying to do...something to Springer. He was released, but given a "final warning" by Ultra Magnus to stay out of trouble. Hangers On
After the war was ended, Whirl and Sideswipe were tasked with policing a mob of neutral Transformers that had recently returned to Cybertron. They came upon Optimus Prime being harassed by one of the mob, and promptly began bullying the smaller neutral. Optimus Prime had to pointedly lower Whirl's gun and asked to be filled in on current events. Later, the mob revolted and dragged Whirl to the ground during the ensuing riot. The Death of Optimus Prime
Frustrated with the NAILs and having been kicked out of the Wreckers, Whirl acquired a disturbing method of stress relief. It involved gathering several leftover Sweep carcasses, pinning them to a wall inside a shabby structure out in the middle of Cybertron's wastelands, and apparently mutilating them. Eventually deciding that he'd had his fun, Whirl doused the ruins with fuel and bid a very creepy thank you and farewell to the remains, planning to burn it all. He was interrupted in this by Cyclonus, who wandered in, having misidentified the Sweeps' lingering life readings as those of Scourge. Whirl immediately attacked him and set the place ablaze, intent on covering his tracks. Cyclonus transformed and took off, with Whirl in hot pursuit. The two passed over the launch site of the Lost Light, and Cyclonus finally landed atop a high peak to try and reason with Whirl. Whirl ignored him and ranted about how the Sweeps were barely alive when they were up and active, and that he had done nothing wrong. When Cyclonus corrected him after being labeled a Decepticon, Whirl simply charged and tackled them both off a cliff.
They landed in front of Ratchet, Chromedome, and Rewind, who were all on their way to the Lost Light. Cyclonus absorbed the brunt of the fall's impact and was knocked out. Whirl was quick to lie to the others, claiming that he had caught Cyclonus "desecrating corpses" and moved to finish off his unconscious opponent. When Ratchet suggested that he calm down, Whirl snapped that he didn't need to be "talked down like some kind of maniac" and decided on ending Cyclonus' life with a headshot. But before he could go any further, a massive burst of energy from the trapped Tailgate's underground escape attempt slammed into Whirl, heavily damaging him and knocking him offline. Figuring that Whirl was too dangerous to leave lying around, Ratchet had him brought along with Tailgate aboard the Lost Light. How to Say Goodbye and Mean It
Whirl awoke in the medibay of the Lost Light, after the ship had taken off and suffered a premature quantum jump. His first instinct was to reach out and throttle the nearest person to him, which turned out to be Rung. Ratchet and Swerve tried to calm Whirl down, but he only came to his senses after Rung choked out that he'd go back to prison if he didn't behave. Whirl dropped Rung and left the medibay to skulk around the hallways of the Lost Light. He was eventually found by Ultra Magnus, who brought him into a meeting between Rodimus and Cyclonus. Rodimus suggested that Whirl and Cyclonus should make peace, having heard about their altercation back on Cybertron. Whirl, dodging all responsibility for starting the fight, offered a hand of "forgiveness" to Cyclonus, who responded by drawing him into a hug. Cyclonus whispered to Whirl that he would kill him at some point and the Autobot would never see it coming.
Later, Rodimus addressed the crew to update them on the situation. When he asked if there were any important questions, Whirl made a point to speak up and state that he was embarrassed to be among this group and that they at least needed a decent name. Hangers On
 Plot details for Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things follow. |
When a Sparkeater was reported to be loose on board the Lost Light, Whirl and most of the other crew were ordered to pair off and lock themselves into habitation suites until the creature was dealt with. Being a jerk and all, Whirl locked himself in without waiting for his temporary roommate Animus and ignored the other Autobot's pleas to enter. When Animus abruptly stopped talking, Whirl broke out of the room to find the Sparkeater looming over Animus' lifeless shell. Whirl fired two missiles at the creature, which were intercepted by Trailbreaker's force field. Others arrived on the scene, and Ultra Magnus pointed out to Whirl that a missile hit could detonate one of the unprotected sparks in the Sparkeater's stomach and destroy half of the ship. Whirl's only response was "Which half?". The Chaos of Warm Things
Games
3D Battle-Card Game
Whirl was one of Optimus Primal's many Autobot allies in a fight against Megatron's Decepticon forces, in what might possibly have been an inter-universe battle. Energon Wars Expansion Set
Toys
Generation 1
- Whirl (Deluxe Vehicle, 1985)
- Accessories: "Null-Ray Module", "Paralyzo box", "Photon Beam Rifle", "Shell Cannon"
- Whirl transforms into a light blue Cybertronian attack helicopter, similar to a Bell AH-1 Cobra. In this mode, he has two wing-mounted weapons installed: a Gatling-like "Shell Cannon" and a four-tube "Photon Beam Rifle".
- In robot mode, Whirl is unusual in that he appears quite different from the other Transformers in the line at the time. He has no humanoid hands; instead, his arms end in a pair of mechanical pincers. A "Null-Ray Module" cannon can be fitted over either pincer, while his "Paralyzo-Box" weapon slides onto the fin on his right leg.
- There is a variation in the construction of his canopy; while most are smooth and featureless, some have raised "cage" outlines on the edges.
Classics
- Autobot Whirl (Legends, 2007)
- Accessories: Rotor blade
- A redeco of Legends of Cybertron Evac, Whirl transforms into a blue Eurocopter Dauphin rescue helicopter. A heavily simplified version of the Voyager-class Evac toy, his vehicle mode has a back mounted (non-firing) twin missile launcher which is carried onto his robot mode, and he is also armed with a rotor blade on his left arm which can rotate, but does not spin freely.
- Limited in articulation, he can only move his arms up and down at the shoulder, though he does have ball-jointed hips and knees.
Merchandise
3D Battle-Card Game
- Whirl (2007)
- A 30-point "rare" character in the 3D Battle-Card Game's "Energon Wars" expansion, Whirl "transforms" into a blue helicopter. He uses the same parts layout as Blackout, Evac, and Vortex.
==Notes==Link title
- Both Deluxe Vehicles were licensed from Takatoku Toys by Hasbro for inclusion in the 1985 line, and hence were not included in the Japanese line, the cartoon, or the US Marvel comics. Whirl was originally the "Oberon Gazette" from the Armored Trooper Dorvack toyline, although the toy's dark and light blues were inverted for the Transformers release.
- In recent years, toys sporting the name "Whirl" require an additional "Autobot" prefix for trademark reasons, hence making the official name "Autobot Whirl".
- Poor Whirl never got a printed Transformers Universe bio. One was written though, and finally revealed to the fans on Disciples of Boltax in 2011.
- Whirl is possibly the most influential character in the entire IDW Generation 1 continuity, as Megatron explicitly points to him as the one who "taught" him how to hate and use violence instead of peaceful means; without that, no Great War. Thanks, buddy.
- whirl looks alot like soundwave.and any ways live action movie shockwave takes cues from whirl!
Foreign names
- French: Tourbillon (Canada, "Whirlwind")
