Shrapnel (G1)
| This article is about the Generation 1 Insecticon. For the Cybertron character, see Shrapnel (Cybertron). |
| This article is about the Generation 1 Insecticon. For the Prime character, see Sharpshot. |
- Shrapnel is a Decepticon Insecticon from the Generation 1 continuity family, family. He is sometimes known as Sharpshot, shot.
The eccentric way in which Shrapnel parses his dialogue may seem endearing at first, first. Others are soon to discover that his seemingly benign tic is merely the gateway to a frighteningly twisted and perverse mind, even for a Decepticon, Decepticon. A master of electricity, his dark desires put this skill to use on his victims, victims. Nothing delights him more than to see how they squirm from his touch, touch.
Fiction
The Transformers cartoon
- Voice actor: Hal Rayle (English), Masashi Ebara (Japanese), Toshio Ishii (Japanese, The Transformers: The Movie only), Galina Kristenskaya (Russian), Edgar Wald (Latin American), Tonio von der Meden (German, The Movie TV Dub & Generation 2 Dub)
The mercenary Insecticons landed on earth in their own space pod before the Ark crashed to Earth. (It is unclear whether this pod was launched from the Nemesis or not, as the dialogue seems to suggest maybe it was, but the Insecticons and Megatron's Decepticons do not seem to know each other.) Their pod crashed into the region that would become known as "Demon Swamp" and their idento-computers adapted them to transform into insects and eat organic food to survive. Though they were largely communal, Shrapnel was a leader among then, usually alternating with Bombshell (Kickback was out of luck). The "Insecticons" apparently lived in the swamp for millions of years until discovered by Megatron's Decepticons. They form an uneasy alliance with Megatron, never coming fully under his command but working with the Decepticons when they could be convinced there was something (usually food) in it for them. A Plague of Insecticons
When the Autobots were attacking the Decepticons, the Insecticons were conveniently in the same area, and helped the Decepticon cause during the battle. Shrapnel fought Cliffjumper, but failed to hit him and instead damaged the buffer where Megatron was keeping the electro-cells. Still, they were given a reward of energon cubes... a grand total of two, being exact. Though Kickback was optimistic, Shrapnel and Bombshell were understandably disappointed considering Megatron had so many more. They were even more enraged when Mirage stole the cubes and framed the Decepticons for it. When Starscream showed up and got in a fight with Cliffjumper (who was spying on Mirage nearby), Shrapnel thought that the Decepticons had ambushed them and a huge fight broke out, with Shrapnel grazing and exposing the invisible Mirage. Shrapnel wanted to kill Mirage, but Bombshell decided it'd be better if they made the Autobot into their slave. When Megatron saw Bombshell controlling Mirage, he revealed to the Insecticons that no Decepticon stole the cubes; it was Mirage after all. During an Autobot attack, Megatron destroyed the electro-cells in frustration, and Shrapnel commanded the Insecticons to retreat. Traitor
Even after the Insecticons devoured a huge forest, they discovered they were hungry again. Bombshell announced that it was snack time, and Shrapnel decided that they should eat the redwoods next. A park ranger, Mike spotted the Insecticons and reported it to fellow park ranger Jeff. When Jeff, Hound, Spike Witwicky, Bumblebee, and Beachcomber arrived, Shrapnel used his grenade launcher to scatter them, but they recovered and Bumblebee knocked Shrapnel down. The Insecticons got rid of their enemies by sending a huge tree down the river, sending them down the waterfall (or so they thought; their "demise" was actually one of Hound's holograms). After that, Megatron arrived and struck a deal with the Insecticons, taking them to the Nova Power Plant, a place rife with energy. Shrapnel commended Megatron's taste in appetizers and the Insecticons feasted, but the Nova Power Core within the plant caused them to grow rapidly. Shrapnel decided that the Insecticons would use their new size to seize control of the Decepticons from Megatron, hypnotizing Soundwave to do their bidding. Defeating the Autobot opposition, the Insecticons had become invincible and were now vital to Megatron's plan to control the world, but the Autobots discovered that the Nova Power Core, incompatible with the Insecticons' stomachs, would soon destroy them from within. Later Shrapnel infiltrated Iron Mountain using the humans' defense system against them, and helped himself to the data Soundwave took from the computer. However, Optimus Prime arrived with an antidote for the Nova Power Core, and using Megatron's gun mode blasted it at Kickback and Bombshell, curing and resizing them. Shrapnel, however, was not so lucky, as despite Spike's warnings (and jamming the cure into him), he was blown to pieces. Luckily, Bombshell was able to repair Shrapnel and the Insecticons made their escape. The Insecticon Syndrome
The Insecticons were able to create vast clone armies of themselves at will, a formidable ability that may have been the reason they were able to maintain their autonomy from Megatron. They would use this ability once to create the Insecticon Army which nearly devastated the planet Earth but they were destroyed by the Morphobots. Quest for Survival Even before this, they were shown to be very duplicitous and often betrayed Megatron or disobeyed him.
During the Combaticons' attempt at destroying Earth by sending it into the sun, the Insecticons were seen in large numbers, numbers, again and Shrapnel was responsible for taking apart the Space Bridge controls. He would later be tracked, tracked, by the combined Autobots and Decepticons after which he relinquished the controls. The Revenge of Bruticus
Shrapnel, along with his Insecticon colleagues, attacked Autobot City on Earth, where he was badly damaged and dumped into space from Astrotrain. His floating body would be reformatted by Unicron into one of Galvatron's minions. But that didn't stop him from showing up later on Junkion and threatening Daniel. The Transformers: The Movie He also somehow appeared on Chaar after the Decepticons' defeat to nibble on some energon cubes Five Faces of Darkness, Part 1, and he tried to stop Sky Lynx from returning Metroplex's transformation cog. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 5 Much later, Soundwave briefly spoke using Shrapnel's voice and speech pattern for no reason. Fight or Flee
Marvel Comics continuity
Shrapnel was one of the top lieutenants of Lord Straxus at Darkmount on Cybertron, acting as his Executive Officer and supervising both the technicians that translated Soundwave's message from Earth & assisting on the Space Bridge project. He was also was responsible for capturing Autobot spy Scrounge before he could report back on the whereabouts of Spanner. Despite his rank, Straxus used Shrapnel's face as a stress ball when things went wrong The Smelting Pool! and was willing to send him on a suicidal janitorial mission once simply out of petty spite, but Shrapnel managed to talk his way out of it. The Bridge to Nowhere!
In addition to his high rank, he was one of the most feared and dangerous killers on Cybertron, a key target for the Autobot resistance. The rebel plan Operation: Volcano was kicked off when Shrapnel tortured the information of a (fake) rebel meeting out of an informant, but was ruined by Megatron calling the Insecticons to Earth. Target: 2006 Shrapnel arrived on Earth to play a key role in the Hoover Dam battle, and afterwards served on Earth under Megatron permanently. Aerialbots over America!
Then he served under Shockwave, Ratbat, possibly Scorponok, Bludgeon, Megatron again... all while doing absolutely nothing of note besides being uncommonly easy to spot in crowd shots. He may have been killed by the Underbase-powered Starscream, or alternatively he could've just been really lazy and not gotten involved with things—he's one of Cybertron's deadliest killers, what does he have to prove?
Earthforce
Shrapnel and his Insecticon buddies served under Megatron in the Decepticon Civil War, but their spying mission against Shockwave was foiled by Starscream. Shrapnel got in a good electrified shot at Starscream's bum first, but then he caught them in a rustbug hoop. The treacherous Seeker then drafted them into helping him set up a clash between the two leaders. Bugged!
Beast Wars cartoon
While temporarily out of his mind (well, more than usual, anyway), the Predacon Waspinator believed himself to actually be Shrapnel, and adopted his mannerisms and speech pattern, pattern. Dark Designs
Dreamwave comics continuity
Shrapnel was part of an assassination unit alongside Kickback, Bombshell, Soundwave and Ravage shortly after the rise of Optimus Prime. He and his partners were assigned to eliminate the new Prime, steal the Matrix, and bring it to Megatron so that he could turn Cybertron into a cosmic dreadnought and conquer the universe. The War Within #2 Spoiler alert—it didn't work. The War Within #3 During the Dark Ages after Megatron's disappearance, Shrapnel served with the main Decepticon faction under Shockwave's command. One time Slag sucker-punched him so hard, Shrapnel's colors went wrong. Conflagration Shrapnel was also present at Tyger Pax during the aborted peace treaty between the Autobots, Decepticons and Ultracons. Megatron's sudden arrival with the Aerospace Extermination Squadron put a quick stop to those peace talks. The Age of Wrath
Shrapnel was part of a unit sent to Earth by Shockwave to guide the planet's development and prepare it for invasion. He and his team changed their alternate modes to giant insects (from his original "jet with antennae" mode). They were beaten up by the Dynobots on arrival, then played dead until Grimlock got bored and wandered off. Extermination
Millions of years later, they were discovered by both the EDC and Autobots after kidnapping an entire town. Over the preceding few thousand vorns, Shrapnel had apparently lost control of the Insecticons unit, with Bombshell gathering more and more power for himself without Shrapnel even recognizing it. Kickback pointed this out, but the Autobot incursion prevented the conversation from going any farther. Shrapnel was last seen getting a building dropped on him by Sideswipe. Extermination
Devil's Due G.I. Joe vs the Transformers comics continuity
In an alternate future where the Decepticons had conquered Earth, swarms of Insecticons, including Shrapnel-type ones, was a constant menace. G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II issue 3
In the regular timeline, as part of Serpent O.R.'s forces, Shrapnel defended the newly unified Decepticon army's base against a combined Autobot/G.I. Joe strike force. The Art of War issue 5
IDW comic continuity
Shrapnel, Bombshell and Kickback were created by Deluge, under supervision by Megatron. The Insecticons joined Megatron's forces on Earth, where they helped defeat and capture the local Autobots. The Decepticons then shipped their prisoners off to Cybertron via space bridge, intending to feed them to the failed Insecticon creations known as the swarm. All Hail Megatron #7
The Insecticons then participated in the attack on New York City, during which Shrapnel took part in destroying some human jets. All Hail Megatron #1 After listening to Megatron's victory speech All Hail Megatron #4, the Insecticons traveled to China and helped wreck Beijing. There, Shrapnel and Kickback sided with Bombshell when he picked a fight with Skywarp and Thundercracker, but the three bugs decided to drop the subject and run away when faced with Skywarp's teleportation ability. All Hail Megatron #6 After returning to New York, the Insecticons were approached by Starscream, and Shrapnel demanded to know what the Seeker wanted with them, although Bombshell chastised him for being rude to a superior officer. Starscream apologized to the three for their treatment at Skywarp and Thundercracker's hands, then decided it was time to tell them about his vision of the future. All Hail Megatron #8
The Insecticons subsequently joined Starscream as he rebelled against Megatron, and Shrapnel blasted his former leader with lightning. Unfortunately, this did minimal damage to Megatron, who responded by shooting Shrapnel with his fusion cannon. All Hail Megatron #10 The revolt was cut short when human jets from Europe attacked and the Autobots returned from Cybertron unharmed, All Hail Megatron #11 leading to the Decepticons' defeat. All Hail Megatron #12 As they fled the planet aboard Astrotrain, Shrapnel showed Starscream that Megatron was still functioning, which did not please the Seeker in the least. Shrapnel volunteered to stealthily kill Megatron by siphoning his energon, but Starscream felt assassination wouldn't work in his favor. When he saw that Starscream was going to throw the Autobot Matrix of Leadership down a garbage chute, Shrapnel was shocked and convinced him to keep the artifact as a symbol of leadership. Uneasy Lies the Head
Unfortunately, Starscream turned out to be a less-than-competent leader, stranding his troops on a desolate asteroid where they had to resort to strict rations or even cannibalism to survive. Upon learning that Dreadwind had been stealing precious fuel for himself, Shrapnel, Kickback and Needlenose hunted him down and executed him for his crime. As they proceeded to loot their victim's corpse, Shrapnel was particularly interested in getting his hands on an afterburner. All His Engines
Shrapnel was controlling the base's defenses with Acid Storm when the latter detected an incoming Autobot vessel. While Acid Storm was busy panicking, Shrapnel calmly fired missiles at the intruder... not realizing that the wreckage of the ship would come crashing down on top of them afterward. After getting to safety, he returned to scavenge the remains of the ship, and found a weapons locker. An empty weapons locker. Then Hot Rod shot him in the back with its contents. Heart Like a Wheel
Don't worry he got better. Megatron would later use space bridge technology built into in his new body to summon Shrapnel and the rest of the Decepticons to him on Cybertron. At first they did battle with the Autobots, but were soon mind-controlled by Galvatron into combining with his Sweep army and forming a huge monster. Chaos Part Three: Kings
Hearts of Steel
The Decepticons, including Shrapnel, fought against the Autobots in Earth's distant past until an Ice Age forced them to shut down and wait it out. They awoke in the late 19th century when a failed human submarine crashed onto their submerged ship. Hearts of Steel issue 1 As the Decepticons' human ally required money to help them, Starscream ordered the Insecticons to provide some. Shrapnel disguised himself as one end of the "Insectrain", providing the combined mode with a pair of giant scissor blades to destroy other trains on the railway. The Insecticons robbed a train carrying cash and bullion from the Denver Mint, and despite not seeing the value in human currency, they stuffed Shrapnel's chest cavity full of money and gold. They delivered the stolen property to Starscream and Tobias Muldoon the following morning. Hearts of Steel issue 2 Shrapnel was later present when Starscream announced to his troops that the Autobots had awakened as well. Hearts of Steel issue 3
Games
The Transformers (PS2)
Toys
Generation 1
- Shrapnel (Insecticon, 1985)
- Japanese ID number: 42
- Shrapnel transforms into a robotic stag beetle. He doesn't do a whole lot more than that. Like the other Insecticons, he has a variation on his chromed parts, but this one is on his gun. Some Shrapnels have "fins" on the very back-end of the rifle and a more detailed main barrel, while others (obviously) lack those details. The extra-detail versions appear to be a later run.
- In Japan, Shrapnel and the other Insecticons were "re-released" as mail-order items from 1987 through 1988. They each cost 880 yen (their normal retail price) and two Robot Points.
- This mold was used to make the Zaptrap drones.
- Insectrons ("Bookbox" multi-pack, 2004)
- Japanese ID number: 16 (full set)
- Shrapnel was released as part of the Japanese The Transformers Collection series in a set with Bombshell and Kickback. This set also included three energon cube accessories that fit inside their chest compartments.
- The Shrapnel in this set has the lower-detail rifle, probably in order to keep it closer to the original-original release, particularly for the redeco.
- Insecticons (Toys-R-Us multi-pack, 2009)
- Shrapnel was re-released as a Toys"R"Us exclusive in the Universe line, in a set with his Insecticon pals. Like with his 2007 Robot Heroes incarnation (see below), Shrapnel has been renamed for trademark reasons, this time to "Sharpshot". Likewise, Bombshell's name has been changed to "Hardshell", a name previously used for his Robot Hero.
- This version uses the more detailed version of the gun.
Merchandise
Decoy
- Shrapnel (Decoy, 1987)
- Shrapnel was one of the Decepticon Decoys packed in with smaller carded Transformers toys. While the normal purple version could be included with any Decepticon toy, the rarer red version was available only on Throttlebot cards and only for a short while before the switch to purple.
- Destron Hero Collection-22 Set (Decoy multi-pack, 1987)
- The entire run of twenty-two Decepticon Decoys were sold as a single boxed set in Japan, only in purple.
Hard Hero
- Shrapnel (2003)
- The second installment of Hard Hero's "Insecticon Series", Shrapnel is a 9-inch cold-cast porcelain statue sculpted by Jason Ray. Only 1000 pieces of the statue were produced.
Robot Heroes
- Rodimus Vs. Insecticon (2007)
- As part of the Robot Heroes line of PVC figurines, "Insecticon" (so named because Hasbro was unable to acquire the trademark to "Shrapnel") is a two-inch tall soft-plastic figurine in an adorable "super-deformed" style. He has swivels at the shoulders and neck.
- "Insecticon" was only available in a two-pack with fellow trademark-loss refugee, Rodimus.
Notes
- Shrapnel—like the other Insecticons—was originally a Diaclone "Waruder" evil-alien-piloted mech in different colors... which were eventually used when the trio were redecoed for e-HOBBY release. Specifically, Shrapnel was the Kuwagattler (or Kuwagatra) mecha. This is also the genesis of those opening chest compartments.
- In the cartoon, Shrapnel was often shown as something of a leader among the Insecticons, while Venom is the official leader in other portions of Generation 1.
- Shrapnel's Executive Officer rank would never come up again after The Bridge to Nowhere!, and he ended up as just some guy. Presumably, Budiansky (and later Furman) just forgot about it.
- Shrapnel's alt mode is devoid of wings yet he still manages to fly while transformed as an insect.
- In The Transformers: The Movie, this guy got shot by Blitzwing (thanks to Kup), knocked into a moat by Hot Rod, AND run over by Optimus Prime. THEN he proceeded to get THROWN INTO SPACE by his fellow Decepticons. He was killed by Unicron and his body was used to make a Sweep. Later, he somehow came back to life on Junkion only to get run over by Daniel. Poor guy sure had an off-day.
- Shrapnel, along with Starscream, had his gender switched from male to female in the French dub of The Transformers: The Movie. It is unknown why this change was effected, but it's most likely because of the character's high-pitched voice. The change did not happen in the cartoon, as it had used a different dubbing team from the movie. The change is especially ironic, given that only male stag beetles have the large pincers of Shrapnel's alt-mode.
- His gender was also switched in the Russian dub, mainly because Shrapnel is a feminine noun in Russian.
Foreign names
- Japanese: Sharpnel (シャープネル Shāpuneru)
- French: Éclats D'Obus (Canada)
- Italian: Rantrox
- Portuguese: Estilhaço (Portugal comic), Metralha (Brazil comic), Estilhaço (Brazil comic), Granada (Brazil Beast Wars)
- Russian: Shrapnel (Шрапнель Shrapnel')
- Ukrainian: Shrapnel (ICTV, Шрапнель Shrapnel")
