Doubledealer

Doubledealer is an Autobot and a Decepticon Powermaster from the Generation 1 continuity family. In some continuities he goes by the separate names Double and Dealer as well.

"I've got something for you...the lowest-cost SR-22!"

Doubledealer is unique among Transformers as he holds a place in both the Autobot and Decepticon armies. The truth, however, is that this ruthless mechanoid is a mercenary loyal only to whomever is paying him, and then only if no better offer catches his eye. At times, even his own partners are unaware of all of Doubledealer's duplicitous dealings. His skills and power make him a valuable asset to both sides, but neither really trust him as far as they could throw a Guardian robot.

Doubledealer is also almost unique among Powermasters in possessing two binary bonded partners, Knok and Skar, a trait shared only with one version of Overlord.

Fiction

Marvel Comics continuity

Events from the UK-only comic stories are in italics.

Little does Roadhandler know that you can get faction symbols at reprolabels.com.

A Decepticon named "Dealer" escaped with both Chainclaw and the secret Autobot plans he was carrying, despite the Micromaster Race Car Patrol's efforts. A mysterious Autobot named "Double" immediately offered his services, explaining that it was his fault that Dealer got away with Chainclaw. After Roadhandler scanned his Autobrand for authenticity and Optimus Prime granted him energon cubes for the mission, Double left to redeem himself. Meanwhile, Dealer presented the Autobot plans to Scorponok and left.

Double arrived back to the Autobots with Chainclaw, but he appeared severely damaged. He told of how Dealer had taken both his energon and the plans, and pleaded for his forgiveness. Optimus Prime, the Race Car Patrol, and Chainclaw left, leaving Double alone. Surprise! The mystery figure was both Autobot and Decepticon, both Double and Dealer! Having conned each side from both the Energon cubes and the Autobot plans, he took to the air in triumph. (Double) Deal of the Century!

Transformers Comic-Magazin

Doubledealer attended the celebration in New York held by Megatron where a statue of Snaptrap was gifted to the city. Transformers in Action: The Troy Principle

Dreamwave comics continuity

Who wouldn't hire this guy?

Doubledealer carefully chose his partners to best represent him to each faction. Neither Knok nor Skar knows of the other's existence, nor of their master's double life. His two partners are loyal to the Autobots and Decepticons respectively.

Doubledealer appears only in "More than Meets the Eye" in the Dreamwave continuity. His partners are drawn to appear totally robotic. The profile seems to suggest that they are Cybertronians themselves, and not organic beings as all other Powermaster partners have been portrayed. How exactly the Powermaster process would operate between mechanoids is unknown.

IDW Generation 1 continuity

My gun keeps firing and I can't stop it!

A part of Hot Rod's first command, the Autobot called Dealer was left to face a Decepticon ambush alone while Hot Rod, having already lost the rest of his team, escaped with the mission's objective, the Magnificence. Stricken with guilt, Hot Rod infiltrated the Decepticon Penal Colony Styx and evacuated Dealer. Though Hot Rod was at first uneasy around Dealer, considering their history, Dealer explained that he understood Hot Rod's need to complete the mission and leave without him and that he wished to become friends.

Unbeknownst to the young Autobot, however, Dealer was the true reason for the loss of Hot Rod's team. Dealer was an undercover agent working for the Decepticon mercenary Banzaitron and in that capacity had sabotaged Hot Rod's equipment and staged the ambush. With the Magnificence stored in a location known only by Hot Rod, he befriended the Autobot with designs to learn its hiding place. Banzaitron, learning of his hire's double cross, renamed him Doubledealer. Spotlight: Hot Rod

"Doubledealer" attempted to persuade Hot Rod into bribing or coercing others into getting the two-faced double agent reassigned to Earth, but Hot Rod responded noncommittally. Devastation #2 The traitor maintained contact with Banzai-Tron, selling him bits of information such as the existence of Transformer combiner warriors discovered by the Autobots, which the Decepticon used to track them to the penitentiary on Garrus-9, staging a full-scale assault to acquire this revolutionary technology. Spotlight: Arcee

Oh, yeah...he could still be okay.

When the Autobots were faced with the growing threat of Nemesis Prime and his expansion project, Dealer saw opportunity in the chaos. Using their lack of knowledge about the current situation as an excuse, Dealer contacted Optimus Prime and suggested that the Magnificence could be the solution to their problems. Spotlight: Hardhead Agreeing with Dealer's suggestion, Prime sent him to Earth to make contact with Hot Rod and retrieve the Magnificence from its secret location. The two "old friends" returned to Ki-Aleta, as apparently Hot Rod had never removed the device from the very planet on which they acquired it. Seeing the Omega Bunker and the site of his greatest failure, however, made Hot Rod start ruminating about how everything went so wrong so fast on that fateful mission. Dealer did his best to console Hot Rod while still pushing him towards revealing the Magnificence's location. However, he also started to waver under the stress of the memories of belonging to a group who thought of him as a friend - and whom he betrayed. They eventually made it to the rocky mountain peak where the device was hidden, beneath a constant storm of ionic energy to mask its presence. As Hot Rod pulled the Magnificence from its hiding place at the summit, Doubledealer was prepared to shoot his former commander in the back and claim his prize. Unfortunately for Dealer, Hot Rod had finally pieced together enough of the evidence to suspect Dealer of foul play. Once the Magnificence confirmed his suspicions, he spun and shot down the treacherous Autobot first, while Dealer hesitated to shoot his once friend in the back. Doubledealer's chest exploded under fire, and he fell the entire height of the mountain, only to smash into pieces at the base. Spotlight: Doubledealer

Commercial appearances

Piranacon we expect to fall for this. Hey, Prime...?

• Doubledealer features in his own 1988 commercial. Various Autobots wonder amongst each other who the new Transformer with Powermaster Optimus Prime could be. Turns out, it's Doubledealer, the Powermaster Mercenary! And, uh, he's also talking to Piranacon! Well, we hope that's addressed at some point.

Toys

Generation 1

Autobot, Decepticon, and evil imperialist military vehicle

• Doubledealer with Knok & Skar (Powermaster, 1988)
  • Accessories: Engine holder/chest plate, missile top, missile bottom/solid light blaster

Doubledealer's "default" mode is an ICBM missile launcher truck with no visible faction sigils. One engine can plug into the top of the truck, while the other can be stored in the chest plate/engine holder plugged into the back of the missile. By plugging Knok into the engine socket, his Autobot humanoid robot mode is unlocked. In this form, the ICBM splits up to form a handgun and shoulder-mounted (non-firing) launcher. Also, Skar can be stored by plugging him into the robot's butt. By plugging Skar into the socket in truck mode, his Decepticon "bird" mode is unlocked, and the missile splits into a pair of guns (one on his back and the other on his undercarriage). In bird mode, Knok can be stored in the chest plate/engine holder plugged into the back of the missile.

This mold was used to make Doubleclouder.

• More information on Doubledealer at TFU.info
• More information on Doubledealer at Transformers-Universe.com

Generations

• Decepticon Doubledealer (Voyager, 2014)

Part of the fifth wave of 2012–2013 Generations Voyager Class toys, Thrilling 30 Doubledealer is a redeco/retool of Blitzwing from the same line, and transforms into two vaguely futuristic vehicles: a jet with an opening cockpit and back-mounted rocket boosters, with teeth and eye nosecone decorations to evoke the original toy's Decepticon mode, as well as a tank with a rotating turret and a spring-loaded cannon that launches its missile when the barrel is compressed. The cannon can also be swung out and deployed for use in jet mode. He comes with a blaster and a sword, both of which mount/are held by 5mm post. He features 5mm ports for his hands, shoulders/vehicle sides, cannon base, and wings, while both weapons have numerous additional posts and ports.

Notes

• Doubledealer's packaging uses the Decepticon color scheme and logo, even though he's fictionally a "whichever".
• Though his toy bio and all other material describe his Decepticon bird mode as a "falcon", the head of the toy actually looks like a vulture, which would seem more fitting given his mercenary nature.
• In the Super-God Masterforce cartoon, Doubleclouder is colored as if he was Doubledealer, rather than using the Doubleclouder toy's coloration. This isn't the only instance of the cartoon using Hasbro colorations over Takara's; the Decepticon Sparkdash use Hasbro colors as well, rather than their Takara-released toy colors.