Bumblebee (G1)/2005 IDW continuity
| This article is about the yellow failed Autobot leader. For the IDW golden Throttlebot leader, see Goldbug (IDW). |
An espionage agent who demonstrated the Peter Principle in action when he became Autobot leader? That's IDW Generation 1 continuity's Bumblebee!
IDW Generation 1 continuity
Bumblebee was assigned to Orion Pax's Autobot team. In a mission in Nyon, Bumblebee stopped Orion before he could execute Swindle in plain sight of civilians and berated him for almost killing a defenseless enemy. Law and Disorder After training with Ironhide at the shooting gallery, Parasites Bumblebee was sent to pursue Soundwave, who had infiltrated a Senate meeting where Zeta Prime unveiled the vamparc ribbon. Bumblebee was taken down by Ravage and taken hostage by the Decepticons to assure Orion's cooperation. The Hunt for Soundwave Both Orion and Bumblebee were able to escape the Decepticons when their comrades ambushed them at the Jump Joint and brought Sky Lynx to carry them away. Cause and Effect Orion Pax's crew were soon sent on another mission to Nyon, this time to apprehend Hot Rod. However, the Autobots were willing to listen to Hot Rod's argument. Ruins When Zeta Prime's Omega Destructors attacked the city, Bumblebee and the others attempted to help defend the city, but Hot Rod was forced to detonate bombs scattered around the city, destroying it. Zeta savagely attacked Orion Pax, Purge but Megatron and the Decepticons came to the rescue. The Autobots were taken to Kolkular, where they witnessed Orion Pax agreeing to join forces with Megatron. Choices Together, the Autobots and Decepticons attacked Zeta Prime's forces. Overthrown
Bumblebee, Ironhide, and Ultra Magnus were later discussing what to do after Megatron had took over Cybertron. They were later raided by the Decepticons. While the Decepticons captured the others, Starscream convinced Hot Rod to join the Decepticons. Transformation
Afterwards, they were taken into Decepticon custody and Megatron decided to execute them, starting with Bumblebee. However, Hot Rod decides to join the Autobots, now seeing the Decepticon's evil ways and frees the prisoners. They then rendezvous to Orion's ID signal and learn of his transformation into Optimus Prime and the awakening of Metroplex, who turned out to be the city Acropolex. Rise When Optimus Prime made a rallying call for additional support for their cause against the Decepticon's tyranny, Bumblebee watched possible enemy positions. Broadcast Bumblebee participated in the battle at the Citadel and after the battle, was told by the Nyon attack survivors that they would now be chroniclers. Endgame
Early in the war that followed, Bumblebee, Nightbeat, and Jetfire were in space pursuing Bludgeon's ship from a distance, trying to put a stop to them despite being vastly outmatched. When Bludgeon found a remote planet with a small civilization of Urtuskians and his troops started blowing up the place, Bumblebee decided that there was no time to call for reinforcements and he and his two friends would have to make do. He ordered Jetfire to ram their ship into the Decepticons' and the three would fight the troops personally on the surface. Bumblebee took out Waspinator and Barrage before finding himself trapped below ground standing between the legendary, missing Metroplex and Thundercracker. Bumblebee was faring badly when a Urtuskian surprisingly lept to his defense. Deciding Bumblebee wasn't worth his time, and secretly feeling disillusioned about the Decepticons at the time, Thundercracker abandoned the mission. With their ship destroyed, Bumblebee and the others found themselves stuck on the planet for an unspecified amount of time until they were eventually found and rescued. Thankfully, this was another of those "Bumblebee makes a friend" stories, as Nightbeat put it, and so they had hospitable hosts for the duration. The Hunting Party
Millions of years later, Bumblebee was part of Prowl's secret counter-infiltration unit on Earth. When Ratchet broke cover by rescuing a trio of humans, Infiltration issue 0 Bumblebee was the one Autobot who supported his efforts. He was true to his role as an espionage agent and ferreted out their plans to continue joint operations against orders and joined in. Verity thought his alternate form and his holomatter avatar was "coool!" Infiltration #3
He accompanied Ratchet and the humans to investigate an abandoned Decepticon bunker in Nebraska. When Ratchet mentioned how he hated putting their humans at risk, Bumblebee pragmatically commented that, given the need for evidence of unusual Decepticon activity and the consequences of Decepticon Siege Mode, the humans would be "acceptable losses". While the humans were exploring the bunker, two Decepticons attacked, and Bumblebee managed to take down Skywarp, but not before Ratchet was shot and run over by Blitzwing. Infiltration #4
As the bombardment by the Decepticons caused the bunker to collapse, Verity had trouble climbing out of the shaft through which they entered. Bumblebee leapt into action when the tree the rope was attached to buckled under the crumbling terrain. Infiltration #5 He left the humans with Ratchet and traveled to Oregon, the location of the second Decepticon command bunker, observing the situation until the rest of the Autobot unit could arrive. After witnessing Megatron "disciplining" Starscream and subsequently downgrading the infiltration unit's status to Phase Two, Bumblebee departed Oregon with the rest of the unit. Infiltration #6
Bumblebee went with the Autobots to investigate Decepticon activity in the country of Latveria. There they discovered a heavily shielded "array" that the Decepticons were using as a base. Man and Machine #1 There they skirmished with the humans that were assembled outside who were under the influence of the Decepticons' mind-altering Psycho-Prism. Bumblebee used his holomatter avatar in a "damsel in distress" ruse that distracted Luke Cage long enough for Bumblebee to get a clear shot. Ratchet was able to attach an inhibitor device to Captain America which nullified the effects of the Psycho-Prism. He gave Captain America enough devices for everyone on his team. Now calmed down, the two groups teamed up to destroy the Psycho-Prism. They began attacking the array's defenses which caused the Decepticons to attack. Man and Machine #2
As they fought, Ratchet, Prowl, and Luke Cage were able to slip into the array. Outside, Bumblebee, Jazz, and Prime gave a power-boost to Iron Man in his Transformer-sized armor. After the battle quieted down, Megatron communicated via hologram from inside the array with his new ally Doctor Doom. They showed their captives, Ratchet, Prowl, Luke Cage, and Spider-Man. Megatron ordered their surrender or the captives would die. Optimus Prime ordered the quick destruction of the array. The Falcon objected because their teammates were still inside. Bumblebee argued that those few humans were expendable. There was a brief discussion, but Optimus Prime's orders won out and they all attacked the array. Megatron turned on Doctor Doom for being incorrect about them surrendering. Megatron didn't go through with his threat to kill his captives, instead he went outside to face his opponents and carrying Luke Cage. Man and Machine #3
While Megatron was attacking, Bumblebee, Jazz, and Wolverine orbital bounced into the array. They found that Doctor Doom switched sides and freed Spider-Man, so they went to find the Psycho-Prism. They found it guarded by Ramjet, who wasn't in the mood to fight for Megatron's cause and left. Wolverine destroyed the Prism. Man and Machine #4
He was present when Optimus Prime announced he was bringing in reinforcements from elsewhere to bolster the Earth unit's ranks, due to how pivotal Ore-13 had made the theatre Escalation #3, but did not take part in the subsequent mission to Brasnya. After that mission was complete, Bumblebee was tasked by one of those reinforcements, Nightbeat, to check the area surrounding their base for surveillance. He found a great deal of it, prompting the decision to relocate the Ark-19. He was aboard when the ship was attacked by Sixshot Devastation #1 and as the ship went down he reported that they were fully visible to human sensors at Robins Air Force Base Devastation #2 He survived but was injured in the subsequent battle with the living Decepticon weapon of mass destruction. Devastation #4 He was presumably on the Ark-32 when it left Earth. Devastation #6
A year later, Bumblebee was hiding out with other Autobots on Cybertron. All Hail Megatron #1
Bumblebee and Wheeljack were sent to search for energon by Jazz, but found the going rough in their Earth modes. Wheeljack suggested he whip up a polymer, but 'Bee very quickly pointed out the fact they hadn't the equipment. To make matters worse, the pair were being followed and their only hope of signaling for help was a million to one shot! Not willing to wait for back-up that wasn't coming, Bumblebee dragged Wheeljack along in an attempt to track the stranger down... when Hot Rod was knocked through a wall by Ironhide. Bumblebee was surprised to see Hot Rod, but more surprised to hear the other bot thought they were a rescue party! All Hail Megatron #4
Later, while being chased by the Insecticon swarm, Bumblebee made a disparaging comment about Drift, but Kup quickly put him in his place. All Hail Megatron #8 As tensions rose, he almost had a throw-down with Hot Rod. All Hail Megatron #9 Along with the other Autobots, Bumblebee was rescued and transported back to Earth by Omega Supreme. All Hail Megatron #11 Together with the rest of the Autobots, he fought the Decepticons and drove them off the planet. All Hail Megatron #12
After the departure of the Decepticons, the human military hunted down any remaining Transformer. Somehow Bumblebee got separated from his team in the ruins of New York. He managed to avoid detection until he was forced to reveal his location when a toppling building threatened the families inside. Bumblebee used his body to support the building, even as the nearby military fired into his body. Thankfully, Bumblebee was able to hold out until the humans inside had evacuated, and the timely arrival of Optimus Prime and the others kept the military from finishing him off. Once Bumblebee had been restored to working order, he asked Ratchet if they had heard his radio distress calls. No, Ratchet responded, Bumblebee's radio had been busted, but they heard about his plight on the humans' frequencies. Ratchet laughed, noting that was Optimus Prime's idea, who felt that it was only a matter of time before Bumblebee would have to save somebody and out himself. Hidden
Following the resignation of Optimus Prime and his surrender to the human organization Skywatch, Bumblebee was elected to the position of Autobot commander despite not putting himself forward for the role. Ratchet posited his trustworthiness and dependability as factors in his being chosen. New Arrivals, Old Encounters
Though at first there was jubilation at Bumblebee's rise to leadership, his diplomatic nature and desire to be nice to everybody eventually led to problems. The Hanging Sword The first of many challenges in Bumblebee's new command was Ultra Magnus, who had arrived to investigate the death of Ironhide. Magnus questioned Bumblebee's suitability for command in light of Hot Rod leading his own group of Autobots away, and was not interested in helping Bumblebee with their current woes. Unfortunately, it was then that Hoist decided to lead yet another exodus of Autobots (consisting of Blurr, Tracks and Beachcomber) away from the main group. A Rude Awakening
Wheeljack had little time or respect for Bumblebee's moping or his perceived lack of leadership ability, leading to several cutting remarks, much to the annoyance of Ratchet. Through some interference from Wheeljack, Bumblebee met with Skywatch rogue Colonel Gordon Horiuchi who gave them protection from Skywatch if the Autobots helped capture Decepticons. Unfortunately this "protection" could also lock them into vehicle mode if they misbehaved, which Horiuchi did when Cliffjumper refused to capture Blurr. The Hanging Sword
Tracking down Blurr, Bumblebee attempted to talk the fugitive Autobot over, to convince him to come quietly. Blurr was shocked that Bumblebee would agree to work with the humans, the people who had imprisoned others of their kind. When Bumblebee revealed that Blurr didn't have much of a choice, the latter decided to take his chances and shot Bumblebee at point blank range, which shorted out his kill-switch badge. Back at base, when Bumblebee refused to turn over Blurr, Horiuchi decided the Autobot needed a reminder of who was holding the leash and attempted to activate his kill-switch. Naturally, it didn't work, but Ratchet convinced Bumblebee to play along and pretend he was locked into vehicle mode. Seeing an opportunity, the Bumblebee concocted a plan where the reluctant Blurr would find a Volkswagen to take his place, allowing him to find a way to free the rest of the Autobots. Before leaving, Bumblebee gave the Autobots an inspiring speech that actually caused Cliffjumper to break character, surprising the Skywatch operatives who were listening in on those Autobots with functional kill-switch badges. Later, communicating with Ratchet via a text-only comm channel, Bumblebee located a large shipment of darmstadtium, the rare metal used in the kill-switches at a shipping port. As he was skulking around, he discovered the Constructicon Scavenger, who had repainted himself to disguise his identity from the humans, as well as the hope that he sneak onto one of the container ships. Bumblebee tried to convince him that they had to earn the respect of the humans, but Scavenger angrily scoffed at this, stating he would rather hide than work with them. Bumblebee left him in peace. The Impossible Knot
When Skywatch arrived to repair "Bumblebee's" kill-switch badge, they inadvertently revealed the identity of Sanjay Bharwaney, a Skywatch researcher who was responsible for the secondary master control board for all of the badges. Bumblebee followed Bharwaney home, following Wheeljack's advice that altering the control board would short out the badges. Obviously unable to retrieve the control board directly, Bumblebee befriended Bharwaney's daughter, Serena, in the hopes she could help him. Much to his distaste, Bumblebee had to lie to Serena, claiming that the control board would harm her father if he didn't "fix" it. He felt so bad about the whole thing that he believed doing this all but confirmed Humanity's opinion of the Transformers, a position that Wheeljack did not tolerate. Unfortunately, it was discovered the control board contained tracking devices, meaning Bumblebee would be unable to get it back to their hideout before Colonel Horiuchi would notice and disable all the Autobots. This forced Bumblebee to make the modifications himself, a task he scarcely completed before Bharwaney returned home. As his friend Serena took the item back into her house, Bumblebee hoped that one day, he could repay her for his betrayal of her trust. The Gift Horse
However, as he was making his way back to the Autobot hideout, Bumblebee detected Skywarp heading towards the Bharwaney house. Arriving just in time to save Bharwaney and his daughter, Bumblebee discovered the scientist to be an embittered man whose wife had died during the Decepticon invasion, and who now saw all Transformers, Autobot and Decepticon alike, as the same destructive aliens. During their flight, Bharwaney decided to use the control board to destroy both Bumblebee and Skywarp, seeing Bumblebee as a traitor to Horiuchi. When Serena appealed to her father, Bharwaney forced Bumblebee to admit that he did use Serena to get to the control board, and 'Bee apologised to the young girl. Letting them both out, Bumblebee asked Bharwaney for the control board so he could free his fellow Autobots. As they argued, Skywatch lieutenant Daniel Klonowski appeared and saved the trio from Skywarp, but despite his interference, Skywarp cut off Bumblebee's escape. Declaring that, unlike Skywarp, he had friends who would fix him, Bumblebee activated the control board, which simultaneously destroyed the kill-switch badges on the Autobots and seriously damaged himself and Skywarp. Sometime later, after Klonowski paid a visit to the Autobot hideout, Bumblebee emerged with a brand new, more powerful body and a new confidence befitting his command of the Autobots. Wings of Wax
Bumblebee's new confidence was tested when Ultra Magnus barged back into the Autobot caves, requisitioning a strike force to arrest Hot Rod for colluding with the enemy. Magnus forced Bumblebee and the others to go along with him almost by sheer force of personality, and they soon arrived at the launch site where Hot Rod and his Autobot & Decepticon allies were planning to leave the planet. Bumblebee and Hot Rod tried to debate the situation, but Ultra Magnus soon grew tired of listening to their concerns and laid down the line: "Right, wrong, I'm the guy with the badge." Any dissention in the Autobots ranks came to a sudden stop when Swindle turned on his "friend" Hot Rod, unleashing the new Stunticon combiner named Menasor. Enemies of the System
Most of the Decepticons joined Swindle and the Stunticons in turning against their Autobot comrades. Scrapper in particular took great joy in showing the Constructicons could still hack it in light of the new combiner robot, and tried to strangle Bumblebee one-handed. Bumblebee was saved by the timely but unexpected intervention of Thundercracker, who had grown just as tired of the war as many Autobots.
Watching the Stunticons at work as Menasor, Bumblebee noticed how poorly integrated their consciousnesses were, and devised a plan to break them apart. By directing the Autobots to focus their firepower first on Dead End, then Motormaster, he successfully led the group in dismantling Menasor. Even Optimus Prime and the latecomers from Skywatch looked to him for direction. Afterwards, Prime blessed Bumblebee's leadership, and 'Bee decreed it was time for the Autobots to stop running. He faced Spike Witwicky head on and made arrangements for a true peace with Skywatch. Bumblebee still had to deal with Ultra Magnus, however, who was insisting on arresting Rodimus for treason. Bumblebee finally told Magnus where he could stuff his statutes. Earthworks
Bumblebee and the Autobots then entered into a formal arrangement with Skywatch, and took up residence inside the organization's bunkers. All His Engines Despite his decision, some like Jetfire continued to question the idea of living among those who had hunted them for the last three years. Bumblebee earnestly defended his choice, however, stating essentially that trust had to begin somewhere or else they'd never survive on Earth. Spike soon alerted Bumblebee that Onslaught and the Combaticons had made their presence known in North Korea along the demilitarized zone. Bumblebee quickly determined that, despite appearances, the Combaticons were not loyal mercenaries to the North Koreans, but were playing a larger game. With the President of the United States declaring all Transformers "illegal weapons of mass destruction", though, Spike and Bumblebee decided they would have to intervene...in disguise. The Land Ironclads Bumblebee later stated to Optimus Prime he had a plan and asked Thundercracker to join the Autobots. International Incident Part 2: "Ranks of Bronze" Thundercracker turned down the offer but Bumblebee eventually convinced the Seeker to join, reminding him of his seeker heritage. Hawk Among the Sparrows Bumblebee, unsure what to do, was back at base watching a full brawl between the Autobots, Combaticons, and Predacons with Kyle Pennington and Silverstreak. The brawl revealed the Autobots to the public and Bumblebee confronted the media to try to solve the already shaky alliance between humans and Autobots. He got blasted by a protester instead. All My Sins Remembered
Bumblebee was severely wounded from the shot but manages to regain composure. Kyle Pennington told the Autobots not to hurt his would be assassin, but Brawn did not like the decision. Revenge of the Decepticons Part 1: The Demolished Man Ben Simpson was interviewed by Nina and stated Bumblebee's recent action was insane and he had no say in the US policy. Altered Carbon Bumblebee was at gun point with a policeman with a Megatron-gun, but he was rescued by Jazz's arrival and was surprised at Jazz's action of blasting the human into flames. Burning Chrome Bumblebee witnessed a rebuilt Megatron claiming Scrapper was murdered, and Optimus sent Prowl to investigate this claim. Enemy Mine
Ratchet told Bumblebee it would take a while to find a leg replacement joint, and Bumblebee joked with Kyle Pennington of having "wheels of his own". They were interrupted by Bluestreak, who informed the group that Hot Rod was alive with Ironhide and Sunstreaker, who were also supposed to be dead. Hot Rod informed Optimus Prime that their home-world, Cybertron, was habitable again but Galvatron was on it. The Autobots left Earth to liberate their home. Orphans of the Helix Bumblebee was left with Prowl to investigate Scrapper's death. Police Action: Prologue
Jazz asked Bumblebee for permission to hunt down the remaining Decepticons on Earth, but was denied due to murdering a human last time he was in the field. Police Action: Part 1 He and Ultra Magnus questioned Sandra about Spike Witwicky, and discovered that Spike murdered Scrapper. Only Forward The Autobots later tried to bring in Ben Simpson. They found Simpson under the influence of one of the Megatron-guns and opened fire on him. Swindle was located at the scene, and he revealed he knocked out Brawl in order to keep his secrets. Swindle told the Autobots that Skywatch's advanced weapons technology came from him via a deal he made with Spike. The Autobots severed their ties with Skywatch and Earth after this, and Bumblebee led the Autobots home to Cybertron aboard Omega Supreme. A Second Chance at Eden
When Bumblebee arrived on Cybertron, D-Void's Chaos War had ended, Galvatron and was defeated and the planet was somehow alive. Thousands of non-aligned Cybertronians began arriving back, and Bumblebee had his work cut out for him keeping the situation from inflaming. After Optimus returned with the Matrix, Perceptor discovered that it contained a map apparently to the Knights of Cybertron, and Rodimus and Bumblebee disagreed on what their priorities should be. Optimus presented half of the Matrix to Bumblebee who intended to stay on Cybertron, and the other half to Rodimus, who intended to follow the map. The Death of Optimus Prime To Bumblebee's disappointment, Ratchet was one of those who opted to leave on the Lost Light. Bumblebee tried unsuccessfully to contact Rodimus immediately prior to the ship launch, and he and Prowl watched as the ship apparently exploded in the sky during take off. How to Say Goodbye and Mean It
Bumblebee and non-aligned leader Metalhawk went to greet newly-arrived Hipotank, but Bumblebee found his point of view being drowned out by Metalhawk's anti-Autobot rhetoric. Prowl was using Decepticons to enforce the peace, and while Bumblebee was arranging a memorial for the Lost Light crew, some of them began exercising their authority a little too vigorously with Zetca. Consequently Bumblebee had to activate Horri-Bull's I/D chip, killing the Decepticon. The Autonomy Lesson When Starscream approached Autobot headquarters, Bumblebee stunned the Decepticon with his new modified cane and announced he was done trusting Decepticons. The memorial went ahead, with Bumblebee giving a speech, unaware that the Decepticons were planning to assassinate him. The plot was foiled, thanks to information from Starscream, who interrupted Bumblebee's speech to assert that he, Starscream, must be part of the government. The World & Everything in It
After a mysterious explosion, Bumblebee called in Wheeljack to investigate, though he wasn't keen on being called "King Bee". He tried to suppress his suspicions that the Decepticons were behind the explosion, which turned out to be false anyway when Wheeljack discovered what was happening. As many Cybertronians were saved thanks to Starscream's help, Bumblebee agreed to let Starscream be part of the government, despite the idea angering Silverbolt enough to knock Bumblebee down and depart with his team. Stick Together The three leaders held a speech, though to Bumblebee's dismay, Starscream dominated proceedings. He later found himself having to deal with an increasingly-paranoid Prowl. Devisive When Sky-Byte arrived, Bumblebee passed on turning out to greet the newcomer, as he knew Metalhawk and Starscream would be there to undermine him. Following a brawl and some persuasive words from Metalhawk and Ironhide, Bumblebee made the decision to have the I/D chips deactivated as a first step towards equality between Autobot and Decepticon. A Better Tomorrow
When a ship flying Decepticon colors materialized in Cybertron's sky, Bumblebee summoned Wheeljack to observe the ship's landing. Interference Patterns
Dinobot Hunt Night and the City Primus: All Good Things The End of the Beginning of the World City on Fire The Verge Before the Dawn Plan for Everything Heavy Is the Head
Spotlight: Mirage
Template:NoteSLMirage Bumblebee was part of a unit heading towards the Pegasus Star Cluster to link up with the last remnants of the Autobots under Optimus Prime's command. He never made it, as the unit was ambushed as soon as it entered the cluster. The self-serving mercenary Mirage took his form to fool the remaining Autobots to allow him to enter their base. Spotlight: Mirage
Notes
- Bumblebee appears on six different covers, plus two "foil enhanced" variants reusing art from another cover, during Infiltration - of which only one (#5D) used E. J. Su's redesign, which follows a different transformation schema that, amongst other things, places the roof of the car on his back rather than his chest as in his G1 character model. Things would only get worse from there.
- According to EJ Su, Bumblebee's Holomatter avatar is modeled after Lindsay Lohan, an actress who plays a girl that drives Herbie, a sentient Beetle. Um, well.[1]
- Mike Costa had originally intended to kill Bumblebee in "...For All Mankind", believing it was the most shocking death he could do. Hasbro said "NO".[2]
