Tow-Line (RID)
| This article is about the Robots in Disguise Autobot tow-truck. For the Energon Autobot van, see Tow-Line (Energon). |
- Tow-Line is an Autobot from the 2001 Robots in Disguise continuity family.
"'No parking' means 'no parking'!" is Tow-Line's motto, and it allows for no exceptions. He is so single-mindedly fixated on this apparently senseless purpose that he has been known to tow fire engines away from hydrants, seize children's tricycles, and even impound other Autobots who violate human traffic laws in the course of a mission. Such extreme irrationality, coupled with such total predictability, makes him both a hindrance to his fellow Autobots and an easy target for his enemies.
In battle, he wields his mighty Wrecker Hook![1]
Fiction
2001 Robots in Disguise cartoon
- Voice actor: Lex Lang (English), Masami Iwasaki (Japanese), Oreste Baldini (Italian), José Arenas (Latin-American Spanish)
One of Tow-Line's first acts on arriving on Earth was to tow Side Burn, much to the latter's disgust. Under Prowl's supervision, Tow-Line began towing away Metro City's illegal parkers. Unfortunately his zealousness extended to towing away tricycles, wedding cars, mailmen named Moe, and so on, leading Prowl to reprimand him.
Tow-Line's work was not lost on the Predacons, who ambushed him and dragged him away to do a bit of reprogramming with a disk. Soon Tow-Line considered the other Autobots as villains and began towing X-Brawn. After reasoning failed, X-Brawn attempted to use his grappling hook, causing damage to the other Autobot's circuits, and resulting in Tow-Line dumping him down a hole at the power plant.
Side Burn was also captured easily, but while carrying Rapid Run through the city, Tow-Line was spotted by Prowl and Koji. Intercepted by Optimus Prime and Prowl, he was soon rescued from the disk's control and apologized profusely for kidnapping his fellow Autobots. Even after learning his lesson, Tow-Line still cheerfully hauled off Prowl for parking illegally. Tow-Line Goes Haywire
Tow-Line aided in a deception, helping to disguise Team Bullet Train and Optimus Prime as a transforming dragon in order to trick the Predacons into leaving some statues alone. When Railspike and Optimus toppled over while operating the robot, Tow-Line was able to pull it back into an upright position using his grappling hook. The Ultimate Robot Warrior
Movor briefly tracked Tow-Line from space in an attempt to locate the Autobots' hidden base, but as Tow-Line was spending all of his time towing cars, it wasn't much help. Later Tow-Line and the other Autobots ambushed the Decepticons as they tailed Side Burn. Attack from Outer Space
Tow-Line towed Side Burn to Fortress Maximus' hiding place, so that the Autobot wouldn't get distracted on the way. Maximus Emerges
He was also called in as part of the contingency plan created for the event that Galvatron learned of the location of the Autobot base. Assembling with the rest of the Autobots near a lake, he took part in the battle against the combined Decepticon/Predacon forces. Surprise Attack!
Together with the other Autobots, he shielded Optimus from Galvatron's paralysing beam, allowing the Autobot leader to regroup and form Omega Prime with Ultra Magnus. After the final battle was over, Tow-Line towed some more cars just for the fun of it. The Final Battle
Toys
- Tow-Line / Skyfire (Deluxe 2-pack, 2001)
- Accessories: Grill/rifle
- A redeco of the Machine Wars Hoist/Hubcap mold, Tow-Line transforms from robot to a long-nosed towing truck and back via spring-loaded autotransformation activated and locked with his towing arm. His truck grill pulls off to turn into a shielded rifle in robot mode.
- He was only available in a Deluxe-level two-pack with the Decepticon Skyfire. The only notable difference between this toy and the Takara "Wrecker Hook" version is the size of the Autobot symbol on his hood.
Notes
Foreign names
- Russian: Tyagach (Тягач, "Tractor")
References
- ↑ Bio on the R2 DVDs. Chris McFeely was having fun that day!
