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Transformers: Energon

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Transformers: Energon
GenreAdventure, Mecha
Anime
Directed byJun Kawagoe, Yutaka Sato
StudioACTAS, Inc., A-CAT (CG)
Released January 31, 2004 – May 2005

Transformers: Energon, known in Japan as Transformer: Superlink (トランスフォーマー スーパーリンク, Toransufōmā: Sūpārinku), is the 2004-2005 Transformers toyline, animated series and comic book series, another co-production between Hasbro and Takara and a direct sequel to Transformers: Armada. It is also the first Japanese TF show where the Transformers are CG, (computer-generated, in a cel-shaded technique similar to the Zoids anime) which was a trend that would continue into the next series, Transformers: Cybertron. .

In this series the Transformer's big gimmicks are the Autobots' ability to combine with partners of the same size, the Decepticons' ability to use powered up forms, and the addition of Energon weapons and stars that can be placed on any Transformer. Mini-Cons, from the previous line, are still present, but all Mini-Con pegs are "dead", and do not activate a function on the toy.

Television series storyline

See also: List of Transformers Energon episodes

It has been 10 years since the war of the Mini-Cons and the apparent destruction of Unicron and Galvatron, and the Autobots and Decepticons, working together, have entered into a secret alliance with humankind, building vast Cybertron Cities on Earth and in the solar system to mine for energon, the energy-rich mineral that Transformers need to survive. But ten years is a long time... and in the darkness of space, evil is beginning to rise again...

Summaries

Like many anime, Transformers: Energon can comfortably be broken up into smaller, 13-episode "arcs."

  • Season 1/Episodes 1-13

10 years after the war for the Mini-Cons and the apparent destruction of Unicron, the mysterious Alpha Q, operating out of the husk of the planet-eater's body, releases energy-eating Terrorcons to attack the Autobots' Cybertron Cities in the Solar system, gathering Energon for Alpha Q's plan. As the Autobots mobilize against the new threat alongside their human allies, including the teenager, Kicker, Alpha Q creates Scorponok to lead the Terrorcons, and forges a sword from the Spark of former Decepticon leader Megatron (whose own corpse lies within Unicron), in order to turn the other Decepticons on Earth to his side. Megatron engineers his own resurrection, however, taking control of Unicron's body and forcing Alpha Q to flee in his head, then attacking Ocean City on Earth. Alpha Q recreates Starscream to assassinate Optimus Prime, but Starscream is brainwashed into Megatron's service, all along Scorponok continues to act as Alpha Q's mole within the Decepticons. Meanwhile, as the Autobots begin construction of Energon Towers to protect the Earth, the legendary figure from Cybertron history known as Rodimus makes his reappearance...

  • Season 2/Episodes 14-26

With the activation of Earth's new Energon Grid, shielding it from attack by the Decepticons, the Autobots turn their attention to Unicron. Leaving Earth in the ship, the Miranda II, they locate Unicron's body. Megatron mobilises the chaos-bringer, and pursues the Autobots through their space bridge, emerging in the vicinity of Cybertron. The Transformers' homeworld riddled with Energon towers, fired, leaving Unicron badly damaged. The Autobots form an alliance with Alpha Q, who is already working with Rodimus and his crew, and learn his origin and his motives for stealing Energon - he seeks to use it to recreate that which Unicron has destroyed. Meanwhile, Megatron's forces attack Cybertron, and the Decepticon criminal Shockblast is inducted into their ranks. In the course of Shockblast's escape from prison, guard Wing Dagger swears revenge for the death of his partner, Padlock, and when an Energon tower collapses on him and Tidal Wave, Megatron reconstructs his minion as Mirage, while Primus recreates Wing Dagger as the mighty Wing Saber, who joins the battle alongside Optimus Prime within Unicron. As the battle rages, Kicker arranges to channel all of Earth's Energon into Unicron's head, which Alpha Q then rams into Unicron's body. The resultant reaction with the negatively-charged Energon within the body causes a fissure in reality, through which all the combatants are sucked...

  • Season 3/Episodes 27-39

In the new region of space on the other side of the fissure, Alpha Q has successfully recreated all the worlds destroyed by Unicron, sustaining them from within Unicron's head, which has now become an Energon sun. The Autobots set about establishing Energon Towers on the new planets to protect them, while Megatron sees the new worlds as a source of more Energon to reactivate Unicron. Having brainwashed Scorponok to become fully loyal to him, Megatron attempts to do the same to Inferno, but he fights the process. A rescue team consisting of Cliffjumper, Downshift and Bulkhead is dispatched from Cybertron and Earth and teams up with the Autobots to protect the new worlds, but Inferno is then destroyed when he falls into the Energon sun, unable to fight the Decepticon influence anymore. Thankfully, his Spark is saved and he is reborn as Roadblock, just as the ancient Autobot, Omega Supreme, is awakened on Cybertron and joins the Autobots. Megatron succeeds in animating Unicron, who reclaims his head, killing Alpha Q in the process, but then Shockblast attempts to seize control of Unicron, only to have his own mind taken over by the demi-god, ultimately destroying him. Megatron then resumes control, but falls prey to Unicron's influence as well, as the two minds battle for control as they struggle with Optimus Supreme, the combined form of Optimus Prime and Omega Supreme, enlarged to giant size with a power boost from Primus which also energises several of the other Autobots. In a veritable battle of the titans, Optimus Supreme destroys Unicron, but his mind lives on within Megatron...

  • Season 4/Episodes 40-52

Although many of the Decepticons are captured and imprisoned on Cybertron, Megatron and his remaining forces soon attack the planet and free them. Another escapee is Shockblast's younger brother, Sixshot, who joins Megatron's team to get revenge on Optimus Prime for his brother's death. Guided by Unicron's consciousness, Megatron is led to a subterranean reservoir of Super Energon, which transforms him into Galvatron. Two of the Super Energon's guardians - Bruticus Maximus and Constructicon Maximus - awake from stasis and side with him, but the third, Superion Maximus, sides with the Autobots. In the ensuing battle, the rupture of several Energon Towers sees a blanket of damaging Energon gas coat Cybertron's surface, keeping the Autobots trapped off the planet, forcing them to send in Kicker and the Omnicons to stop the gas flow while Galvatron seizes control of the planet and directs its movement back to Alpha Q's region of space. In a multi-pronged attack, the Autobots turn the tables, but Galvatron then immerses himself in the Super Energon again, growing to a colossal size, as Unicron's mind once again takes over his own and directs him into space to merge with his Spark, still intact in the void. Optimus Prime grows to gigantic size also and forces Galvatron into a battle, bringing his consciousness back to the surface, at which point Prime drains Unicron's essence from his body. Galvatron then seeks to destroy Unicron's spark, but is possessed by it, while all of the Autobots combine their Sparks of Combination with Optimus Prime, reviving him and leading into the final battle with Unicron - which is promptly aborted when Galvatron takes control of his body again and plunges himself into the foundling sun created by Primus from the Super Energon, preferring to die than to be manipulated. With this action, the sun ignites, breathing new life into Alpha Q's worlds, lighting the way to a brighter tomorrow.

Notes

Episode 33, "Scorponok's Scars", did not air in a dubbed form, and has apparently not been dubbed into English at all. The reason for this is unclear, but the following episode, "Crash Course" is even slightly re-written to remove references to this episode.

Episode 44, "Distribution", is a comedic special show which commemorates 500 episodes of Transformers in Japan (however, since that total includes assorted Japanese series, the west is still some distance away from this number). When aired in Japan, it did not air in the usual timeslot for Superlink, and is not in any sort of chronological order - It features the Autobots playing a video game training simulator, which they certainly do not have time to do between episodes 43 and 45.

Homages

Energon acted as a way of commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Transformers franchise in the United States and Japan. Many of the Transformers and events within the series are homages to previous franchises:

  • Rodimus's design is based on Autobot leader Hot Rod/Rodimus Prime. However, his character only loosely resembles that of the original Rodimus Prime.
  • Energon Scorponok is a homage to the original Headmaster villain of the same name.
  • Ironhide's powered-up form of "Energon Ironhide" is a visual homage to G1 Autobot Hound, right down to the large white 'Army' star on his hood.
  • Wing Saber is based on the Japanese-exclusive Autobot Brainmaster and Leader "Star Saber" from Transformers: Victory.
  • Downshift is a homage to G1 Wheeljack, as well as the Omnicon Downshift.
  • Arcee is based on the original Autobot heroine "Arcee".
  • Beachcomber's vehicle-mode is a Dune Buggy, just like that of his G1 counter-part.
  • Bulkhead's design is based on the Autobot Triple Changer Springer.
  • The body design of Prowl closely resembles that of G1 Mirage. Prowl also used the F1 racer as his alt mode in Machine Wars.
  • The idea of Unicron's head being torn away from his body was inspired by the same situation from The Transformers: The Movie.
  • The "god" known as Primus was based on the mysterious comic book entity and the Beast Wars deity of the same name. It was revealed in its robot mode in the sequel, Transformers: Cybertron.
  • Alpha Q is based on the "Quintessons", the sinister race which created the Transformers in the original show.
  • Shockblast's physical design is a homage to the G1 Decepticon Shockwave.
  • Bruticus Maximus, Constructicon Maximus & Superion Maximus are homages to Bruticus, Devastator & Superion, respectively.
  • Starscream appearing as a ghost at the start of the show is a reference to his G1 namesake, who also appeared as a ghost in G1 and Beast Wars.
  • The concept of the Powerlinx combination is similar to the concept of Multiforce from Transformers: Victory.
  • Skyblast greatly resembles G1 Skyfire/Jetfire).
  • Optimus Prime's super mode, a combination with 4 smaller multi-colored vehicles, is most likely a homage to traditional Japanese Super Sentai super robot formations (Power Ranger Zord formations in English markets). Hasbro's Lead Designer, Aaron Archer stated at SDCC 2004 that Energon Super Optimus Prime is actually an homage to the head designer of the Voltron, who passed away prior to the creation of Transformers: Energon.
  • Battle Ravage refers to the G1 cassette minion that ejects from Soundwave.
  • Divebomb was a member of the G1 Predacon combiner team.
  • Insecticon broadly refers to the team of robotic insects from G1, particularly either Bombshell or Barrage. The Insecticons were also known to clone themselves in the original cartoon series, similar to Insecticon's generic minion status.
  • Omega Supreme is a homage to the G1 Omega Supreme. Similarities include a primarily yellow colour scheme, a clawed hand, and a red transparent faceplate.

Comics

Such as with the previous line of Transformers: Armada, the Energon toyline came with its own mini-comic/toy catalogue with a brief five-page story told in multiple languages one after the other; most of them formed parts of an arc, whilst others featured back and forth victories between the Autobots and Decepticons, whilst showcasing the new additions to the line such as the Terrorcons and Omnicons.

Energon's mainstream comic distribution came courtesy of the former comics giant Dreamwave, taking over their Armada comic title with Issue 18, and written by Simon Furman. But whilst the Armada title had faithfully approached the concepts of the animated series, this title took liberties with the characters and told a far more expansive arc, even incorporating completely new players, such as a member of the High Council type Autobot named Avalon secretly collaborating with Alpha Q, who, like his animated counterpart, had a separate agenda, but it may never be known if he had the same goals as the anime version.

The initial story arc also continued plotlines from the final Armada issue, as it retained Optimus Primes' Armada form (in its upgraded grey and blue Powerlinx form) for the earliest portions as Cybertron came under attack from the still thriving, but damaged, Unicron. Several Autobots and a Decepticon Unicron had captured in the final Armada issue became his "Four Horsemen", a nod to one of the past Botcon Hasbro panels in which Aaron Archer called these four Unicron's Four Horsemen. As the Horsemen ravaged Cybertron, Prime interacted with Vector Sigma and was upgraded to his traditional Energon form.

Rad, Carlos and Alexis were given more character development the Energon comic as opposed to the supporting bit parts/semi-cameos they had in the television series, Alexis was now an anti-war demonstrator, in no government position, and was largely responsible for the Autobots being able to retrieve Kicker from a Decepticon ambush. Rad and Alexis would get more time, sans Carlos, as the storylines progressed, with both showing a deeper affection for the other, however the relationship was never fully explored due to the closure of Dreamwave.

The Transformers presence on Earth was also handled with more resentment and hostility from a handful of citizens; this culminated in a large scale Terrorcon assault on Earth during the second story arc, as Megatron transported Optimus into the hub of Unicron, where his spark had been trapped since the conclusion of the Armada comic, and manipulated Prime into freeing him so he could enter a body he had been secretly preparing. Upon release, Megatron swiftly took control of the Decepticons again, killing their leader Scorponok. Optimus remained inside Unicron, fighting off the horrors within heading for a final showdown with the heart of the enemy.

Unfortunately, like many of the plotlines above, the comic folded, with all of the ongoing storylines abandoned, although it was confirmed in the final issue that the intended last arc for the Energon comic would have led directly into DWs' own version of events in Transformers: Cybertron.

IDW, the current holders of the franchise, have not continued publication of the Energon comic or even published a Cybertron comic.

Characters

Autobots

Leader of the Autobots. Although peacetime had afforded Prime the opportunity to train his own elite squadron of Autobots, teaching the martial art of Kumite, the re-emergence of the war has forced him to return to his role as commander. The war for the Mini-Cons, and the truths he was forced to face in his confrontation with Unicron seem to have changed him - now a stern commander, rarely allowing emotion to interfere with his duties, his plans are simple, direct, and often violent, while his dedication to his mission to destroy Megatron and Unicron is unnerving in its single-mindedness. However, he still shows concern for his subordinates, and by the end of the series, he makes numerous personal sacrifices that show that even if he is harsh, everything he does is for the greater good. No longer able to combine with his trailer, Prime has instead been gifted with the Spark of Combination by Primus, allowing him to combine with the quartet of vehicular drones in his trailer, the Prime Force (Grand Force) - Fire One, Copter Two(Gyro), Digger Three and Submarine Four, each of which can form either an arm or a leg when they combine with Prime, creating his Super Mode.

File:Hotshot energon.jpg
Energon Hot Shot

Ten years is not that long of a time to a Transformer, but for Hot Shot, it has seen him mature from a hotheaded young fighter into a seasoned warrior, looked up to and respect by many other Transformers, including the rookie, Ironhide - and he's still the fastest of them all in his sports car mode. Hot Shot possesses the Spark of Combination, and combine with other Transformers his size, most frequently Inferno. During the battle against Unicron, Hot Shot was evolved into a more powerful form by Primus (both incarnations of the animated series continued to refer to him as just Hot Shot, but his toy was named Energon Hot Shot in the US, and Hot Shot Fire or Hot Shot F in Japan).

Jetfire can be relied on for consistency - he's much the same as he ever was, cracking wise on and off the battlefield, but unwaveringly serious in his duties despite any outward appearance to the contrary. He transforms into a spacecraft, and although he can no longer Powerlink with Optimus Prime, he now also possesses the Spark of Combination, allowing him to link up with other Transformers, commonly Ironhide. During the battle against Unicron, Jetfire was evolved into a more powerful form by Primus (while both versions of the series continue to use his original names, the Japanese renamed the toy Skyfire Sonic or Skyfire S, while the Americans released it as a different character named Overcast).

The youthful, impetuous Ironhide is the newest addition to Optimus Prime's team, and is desperate to prove himself to his commanders, particularly his idol, Hot Shot. Indeed, it is not generally the actions Ironhide performs on his own that define his character, but rather the actions taken in his relationships with others, the first such challenging being his partnership with the disagreeable human, Kicker. Neither Ironhide nor Kicker were happy about Optimus Prime's decision to force them together, but despite everything, the two eventually became good friends. Ironhide would also have to deal with the betrayal of Demolishor and the corruption of Scorponok, resulting in an emotional growth that saw him become the object of adoration himself, and leader of his own team. Ironhide transforms into an SUV with roof-mounted cannons, and possesses the Spark of Combination, allowing him to combine with other Transformers. During the battle against Unicron, Ironhide was evolved into a more powerful form by Primus (the cartoons continued to refer to him by his original name, while the toys were released as Energon Ironhide and Roadbuster Wild or Roadbuster W in the US and Japan, respectively).It seems that Ironhide cares very well about his team members. In 'Megatron's Raid", when Starscream attacked Optimus, Ironhide yelled "No, Commander!", and he was very upset when Optimus discovered that Hot Shot was hurt.

Inferno, the level-headed master sniper of Team Optimus Prime transforms into a fire engine and possesses the Spark of Combination, frequently combining with Hot Shot. He tended to play no major role until the Autobots were transported to a new region of space where Alpha-Q had successfully recreated the planets destroyed by Unicron. Here, on Iron Planet, Inferno was charged with guarding Shockblast, but an attack by the Decepticons saw Megatron infuse Inferno with his own energies, trying to brand him with the Decepticon symbol and turn him to his side. Inferno fought the influence in a series of Jekyll-and-Hyde-like transformations, eventually plunging himself into the Energon Sun when he could hold it back no more. Thankfully, Jetfire was able to recover his Spark and had a new body constructed for him, recreating Inferno as Roadblock (Inferno Volt or Inferno V in the Japanese toyline), who now transformed into a truck crane.

  • Team Rodimus (Team Rodimus Convoy)

An age ago, the famous Autobot general, Rodimus (Rodimus Convoy), left Cybertron with a crew of followers, seeking to escape the war which had consumed their home planet. Although many of his followers subsequently became the Omnicons, Rodimus was still accompanied on his interstellar journey by Prowl (Red Alert) and Landmine. Eventually, they encountered Alpha Q, and sided with him in his plan to recreate the worlds Unicron had consumed. However, this led to conflict between Rodimus and Optimus Prime when they met again amidst the renewed conflict with the Decepticons, but eventually, Rodimus ceded leadership to Prime in the name of protecting the universe from Megatron. Rodimus transforms into a tractor truck, Prowl into a race car, and Landmine into a construction vehicle. All three possess the Spark of Combination, and while Rodimus and Prowl frequently Powerlink together and with other Transformers, Landmine instead combines with his weapons pack, into Brute Mode. Also, during the battle with Unicron, Landmine was upgraded to a new, more powerful form by Primus (the character continued to be named Landmine in both versions of the show; the toy was released in the US as Landmine's brother, Landquake).

Wing Dagger was the fairly unremarkable Autobot assigned the duty of guarding the Decepticon prisoner, Shockblast, while he was held in captivity on Cybertron. However, during Megatron's attack on the planet, Shockblast was freed and killed Padlock, Wing Dagger's partner. Wing Dagger swore revenge, and in an attempt to stop Shockblast escaping, he was crushed by a falling Energon Tower, destroying his body. In reward for his courage, Primus rebuilt Wing Dagger as Wing Saber, now with the ability to combine with Optimus Prime [Wing Convoy in Superlink]. Later, Wing Saber was granted his chance for payback, defeat Shockblast in combat and once again making him the Autobots' prisoner.

  • Team Bulkhead (Team Sprung)

Following the disappearance of Optimus and Rodimus's forces through the rupture in space that was the culmination of Alpha Q's plan, a rescue team was dispatched from Cybertron to locate them, consisting of the showboating risk-taker Cliffjumper (Overdrive), and Downshift (Wheeljack), who favours speed over strategy, commanded by the elderly, eccentric, yet highly-respect Bulkhead (Sprung). The trio each have the Spark of Combination, and while Cliffjumper (a dune buggy) and Downshift (a sports car) can combine with other Transformers, Bulkhead can combine with his helicopter mode's afterburner unit into Brute Mode. Additionally, Cliffjumper was upgraded into a more powerful form by Primus during the battle with Unicron (the character retained his original name in both versions of the cartoon, but had his toy released as a separate character named Beachcomber in the US).

A powerful, legendary figure from Cybertron's distant past, Omega Supreme is known to have defeated Unicron at some point in the planet's far-flung history. He slumbered peacefully beneath the planet's surface, until he found himelf awakened by Primus and Doctor Brian Jones, so that he might join the battle against Unicron. Able to transform into a construction vehicle and a battle cruiser, which combine to form a Cybertronian super train, Omega Supreme could also combine with Optimus Prime, forming the mighty Optimus Supreme (Omega Convoy). Boosted by the power of Primus, Optimus Supreme grew in size until he was able to match Unicron inch for inch, and battled the planet-eater into submission, destroying his body. Omega continued to often act as counsel for Prime, combining with him to battle with the situation demanded it, once again growing in size to stop the Decepticon-induced movement of Cybertron, and one final time, merged with all the Sparks of the other Autobots, for the final battle with Galvatron.

As one of the four guardians who protected the reservoir of Super Energon beneath Cybertron's surface, Superion Maximus was awakened from stasis by Megatron, but unlike his fellow guardians, Bruticus Maximus and Constructicon Maximus, refused to fight at his side, instead joining the Autobots, eventually leading to a final confrontation with his former allies, through which he prevailed with the help of the ghostly apparation of his brother, the fourth guardian, who Megatron had destroyed. Superion Maximus's body is composed of five separate jets - the central body (called Stormjet in the toyline), able to transform from jet to robot mode, apparently houses Superion's consciousness, while the four limbs (Windrazor, Terradive, Sky Shadow and Treadshot in the toyline) lack any individuality of their own, and are never shown to transform (in the toyline however, each limb has its own personality and can indeed transform, in the style of the classic five-man combiners from The Transformers).

Omnicons

File:Omnicons.jpg
Strongarm and Skyblast

Formerly Autobots and Decepticons, these two sides set aside their differences and left Cybertron with Team Rodimus. The Omnicons eventually began working together to mine Energon, the energy-rich mineral needed to power Transformers and their technology. Invaluable to the Autobots because of their unique ability to handle, shape and process raw Energon, which is damaging to normal Transformers, the Omnicons created the Cybertron cities as only they can. There are three distinct body types shared among the Omnicon ranks, but unlike the Terrorcons, each Omnicons possesses an individual mind of his own. They are:

  • Strongarm (Blast Arm) - transforms into a jeep, wields an Energon axe.
  • Skyblast (Air Glide) - transforms into a jet, wields an Energon spear.
  • Signal Flare - transforms into a half-track MASER tank, wields an Energon buzzsaw. The dish on his arm can scan and duplicate objects, and can absorb ambient Energon.

Additionally, there is one other Omnicon body-type - that of the unique Omnicon general, Arcee (Ariel). Transforming into a motorcycle and wielding an Energon crossbow, she arrived in the middle of Megatron's attack on Cybertron, guiding the Omnicon forces into subduing Unicron's hunger. She was soon frequently partnered with Kicker on the battlefield. The other omnicons, however, seem to be laid back, as they were lounging on jungle planet.

Mini-Cons

Only two teams of Mini-Cons feature in the series, in minor roles.

Consists of High Wire, Grindor and Sureshock. Together, they can combine into Perceptor. They have had their bodies upgraded, and now transform into a motocross bike, a hoverboard and a dune buggy, respectively. In the early part of the series, Kicker frequently uses them for transportation. They have only once been captured in their individual robot modes.

  • Energon Saber Team

Wreckage, Scattor and Skyboom, who combine to form the Energon Saber. Despite their similarity to the Air Defense Team of the previous era (their toys are retools of them), they are not the same characters. Stationed in Mars City when the Terrorcons attacked the planet, the team was later found to have survived the attack and joined up with the Autobots. Their combined form is regularly wielded by Kicker or Ironhide in battle (and on occasion, Optimus Prime).

Decepticons

Although he was believed dead by both the Autobots and Decepticons, Megatron, like Unicron, had survived the final battle ten years beforehand. Megatron's body was now a decaying husk, absorbed into the equally damaged body of Unicron, but when the being called Alpha Q began his plan to re-energise Unicron, Megatron saw his opportunity, syphoning off some of the Energon that Alpha Q's Terrorcons stole, working towards his own rebirth. To turn the Decepticons to his side, Alpha Q forged a sword from Megatron's Spark, but when an enraged Scorponok stabbed Megatron's corpse with the blade, Megatron was born anew, with a powerful new body that transformed into a gunship, armed with Hyper Power cannons. Taking the sword for his own, he proceeded to take over Unicron's body, sending Alpha Q fleeing in Unicron's head, and restarted his campagain against Earth and the Autobots, seeking Energon to reactivate Unicron, whom he would use as the ultimate weapon.

Megatron eventually succeeded in bringing Unicron to the vicinity of Cybertron and transforming the planet-eater to robot mode. However, in an attempt to stop him, Alpha Q rammed Unicron's head, charged with the positive Energon of Earth, into Unicron's body, interacting it with the negative Energon within. The resultant reaction tore a rupture in reality that led to a new region of space where Alpha Q had recreated all the planets Unicron had consumed, which Megatron immediately saw as a target to acquire more Energon from. After another series of attacks, Megatron successfully reanimated Unicron, but the chaos-bringer's consciousness invaded Megatron's body, taking over his mind. Although Optimus Supreme was able to destroy Unicron's body, his mind lived on in Megatron, directing him to attack Cybertron and uncover a reservoir of Super Energon beneath the planet's surface. Megatron immersed himself in the powerful liquid, once again becoming the mighty Galvatron and quickly asserted control of the planet, forcing the Autobots underground with Energon gas. Using Energon Towers, Galvatron had Cybertron relocated to Alpha Q's region of space, where he once again soaked himself in Super Energon, growing to a colossal height. However, as he did so, Unicron's influence totally seized control of his mind, directing him out into space to re-merge with his Spark. Optimus Prime forced him into a battle, knowing that Galvatron's hatred of him would force his consciousness to surface again, and when it did, Prime drained Unicron's influence from Galvatron, sealing it within himself. Galvatron then intended to destroy Unicron's Spark, but wound up being possessed by it once more, and rather than fight Optimus Prime, plunged himself into the foundling sun created by Primus, igniting the star and seemingly destroying himself, rather than allow himself to be controlled by Unicron.

File:Megatronssword412.jpg
Demolishor after ten years.

After Megatron's demise ten years prior, Demolishor continued to follow his leader's final order to work with the Autobots, and was appointed a guard at the Autobot's Ocean City. Despite frequent conflicts with some of the Autobots there, and an unwillingness to follow the orders of Optimus Prime when it meant he was left out of the fight, he generally served well, fighting strongly against the early Terrorcon attacks. However, when Demolishor beheld the sword forged from Megatron's Spark, he could sense his leader's life energy, and found himself questioning his role. When Megatron himself was reborn and attacked Ocean City, Demolishor faced off against his leader, but could not bring himself to fire upon him, returning to his side. However, there were still some lingering doubts in Demolishor's mind, his experiences with the Autobots and humans clearly having affected him. He made his final decision, however, when he cast his concerns aside and pushed Megatron out of the path of Miranda II's Energon force field, taking the full force of the energy, destroying his body. However, Megatron was able to recover his Spark, and using the powers of Unicron, created a new body for him. As a final insult, however, Demolishor's mind was wiped clean, removing all memory of his time with the Autobots and diminishing his intelligence, turning him once again into a loyal servant. Prior to his reconstruction, Demolishor retained his original form of a missile tank, but after being recreated, his alternate mode became a dump truck, with a hyper power missile launcher.

Working with the Autobots after Megatron's demise, Cyclonus was stationed at Lunar City, the Cybertron City on the moon. It was devastated in a Terrorcon attack, but Cyclonus survived and made his way back to Earth for a happy reunion with Demolishor. The pair were torn apart again, however, by the appearance of Scorponok, wielding a sword forged from Megatron's Spark, which was enough to convince Cyclonus of his leader's continued existence, causing him to immediately turn on his Autobot allies. A short time later, after Megatron was fully resurrected, Cyclonus sustained heavy damage in battle, and Megatron used the power of Unicron to rebuild his body, turning him into Snowcat. Prior to this recreation, Cyclonus retained his original helicopter alternate mode, but as Snowcat, he became a polar exploration vehicle, with Hyper Power cannons, and deployable skis, which soon gave him a fondness for yodelling in place of his original cackling laughter.

Tidal Wave was appointed a position at Asteroid City during his time working with the Autobots after Megatron's death. He was almost twice as big as most other transformers, and armed with four torsomouted twin-cannons, making him a very dangerous opponent. When the Terrorcons attacked the city and abducted Tidal Wave, he was brought before Scorponok, who persuaded Tidal Wave to join his side using the promise of Megatron's resurrection. Even though Scorponok's master, Alpha Q, had no intention of actually reviving the Decepticon leader, Megatron engineered his own rebirth, and Tidal Wave happily returned to his service, although he loudly vocalised his doubts about integrating Shockblast into the team, apparently having had some very bad past experiences with the criminal. Ordered to help Shockblast in battle, however, Tidal Wave was crushed by a falling Energon Tower, and after his body was transported back to Unicron, Megatron used the planet-eater's power to rebuild Tidal Wave as Mirage. Prior to this, Tidal Wave retained his original battle ship transformation (albeit scarred from exposure to unprocessed Energon), but as Mirage, he now transformed into an ekranoplan, with multiple Hyper Power missile launchers. Now a good deal smaller, Mirage was also faster and smarter - not hugely intelligent, but with less of Tidal Wave's childish outlook and a more menacing, intelligent demeanour. When Megatron was transformed into Galvatron, Mirage developed an infatuation with his leader, striking happy heart-shaped poses on occasion. When Galvatron plunged himself into the Energon Sun, Mirage followed, apparently destroying himself in his leader's name. Tidal Wave/Mirage could often, and mostly in battle, be heard chanting his own name monotoniously.

When Megatron seized control of Unicron's body, Alpha Q needed an assassin to destroy him so that he could return to his original task. Using what little Energon he had left, Alpha Q recreated another victim of Unicron - the Decepticon, Starscream, who had been destroyed ten years before. However, Alpha Q ran out of Energon before the process could be completed, leaving Starscream's body unstable, constantly shifting from a physical to an ethereal form, able to teleport by "ghosting" from location to location. He still transformed into a jet, now equipped with Hyper Power missiles and a colossal Energon sword. Additionally, Starscream lacked any of his memories, and was unleashed upon Ocean City, battling Optimus Prime, and then tracking Megatron back to Unicron's body, where he lost a battle to the Decepticon leader, who used Unicron's power to brainwash Starscream, turning him into his right-hand man and most loyal subordinate. Later, as a reward for his loyalty, Megatron allowed Starscream to immerse himself in the Super Energon, stabilising his physical form (the toy of this new body was released as Energon Starscream in the US), while allowing him to retain his teleporting powers. Then, when Megatron (now Galvatron) plunged himself into the Energon sun, Starscream sacrificed himself alongside his leader. His alternate mode is a jet based on an F-22 Raptor. Starscream made his first appearance to the Autobots in "Megatron's Raid". Jetfire was just coming back from a mission and Starscream bumped him and then faded away, right in front of Jetfire. He then battled Optimus Prime and then when Megatron's Raid was nearly over (right before the credits start rolling), Starscream reappeared and watched from a distance and then faded away.

Famed as one of the most malicious Decepticon criminals of all time, and a Intelligent Scientist, Shockblast was at some point captured and imprisoned by the Autobots on Cybertron. When Megatron moved Unicron's body into the vicinity of Cybertron, he sent Decepticon agents to free Shockblast in order to inaugurate him into his ranks, but the chaos caused by the attack had already allowed Shockblast to escape his bonds, and he murdered the Decepticon agent sent to free him because he didn't require him. In the course of his escape, he also ended the life of Padlock, an act for which Padlock's partner, Wing Dagger, swore revenge. Shockblast immediately chafed under Megatron's command, but put on a loyal face, participating in more attacks on Cybertron. In the course of one attack, Wing Dagger accosted Shockblast, and to do away with him, Shockblast crushed him under an Energon Tower. Then, in the midst of Alpha Q's Energon reaction, Shockblast attempt to seize power, only to be swept through the fissure in reality into a new region of space. The other Transformers followed, and Shockblast was captured once again by Wing Dagger, who had been rebuilt in a new body as Wing Saber. Left to be guarded by Inferno, Shockblast was freed by the other Decepticons, but Megatron trusted him far less now - and rightly so, as, when he finally succeeded in reanimating Unicron, Shockblast made his power play and claimed Megatron's throne, only for his body to be invaded by Unicron's consciousness. Driven insane, the powered-up Shockblast battled with Optimus Supreme on Blizzard Planet, until Unicron's body moved and slammed its arm down upon Shockblast, crushing his body and completely extinguishing his Spark. His main weapon was his left arm, which was one big powerful cannon capable of shooting through almost anything.

Sixshot, Shockblast's younger brother, who thinks he is smarter than his brother, but in realiaty he has a lack of Intelligence, he was also an Autobot captive on Cybertron, joined in his cel block by Snowcat, Demolishor and Mirage after the Autobots captured them following the destruction of Unicron. Informing of the death of his brother, Sixshot swore revenge on Optimus Prime, and escaped alongside the other Decepticons when Megatron's forces freed them. Putting his technical expertise to work, Sixshot proved useful to Megatron in controlling the flow of Energon gas and using the Energon Towers to move Cybertron across space, but the weasely Sixshot often complicated matters by directly disobeying Megatron (who had now become Galvatron) in a few attempts to destroy Optimus Prime himself. This led to several beatings at the hands of Galvatron, but Sixshot seemed a glutton for punishment as he played the other Decepticons off against each other and sneaked off to claim the power of Super Energon for himself. Arriving at the reservoir, however, Sixshot discovered that Galvatron had again immersed himself in the liquid, growing to a colossal height, and as punishment for his treachery, the gigantic Galvatron promptly destroy Sixshot by grinding him beneath his heel. However, the gun on his right arm survived, containing Sixshot's spark, which was later found afterward and locked away in the Cybertronian Prison.

Two of the four guardians of the Super Energon were brought back online when Megatron, guided by Unicron's consciousness, unearthed the Super Energon reservoir. Bruticus and Constructicon swore loyalty to Megatron, while the third guardian, Superion Maximus, refused and sided with the Autobots (the fourth unnamed guardian was destroyed by Megatron in a fit of rage before it awoke from stasis). Bruticus and Constructicon participated in the ensuing battles from control of Cybertron, which for them ended with a confrontation with Superion while the other Transformers pursued the gigantic Galvatron into space. Superion defeated (and apparently deactivated) Constructicon Maximus, but Bruticus then destroyed his limbs. Superion combined instead with Constructicon Maximus's limbs, attacking (and again, apparently killing) Bruticus Maximus.

As with Superion, both Bruticus and Constructicon Maximus are quintro-combiners, comprised of one larger central body with four smaller 'bots forming interchangeable arms and legs. In the animated series, it is apparent that the transforming central body houses the only mind involved, while the four limbs possess no intelligence and cannot transform. In the toyline, however, the opposite is true, with all five components being independently functional. Bruticus Maximus is comprised of Barricade (missile tuck, central body), Blight, Kickback (tanks), Blackout and Stormcould (helicopters). Constructicon Maximus is the combined form of Steamhammer (steam shovel, central body), Sledge, Bonecrusher (payloaders), Duststorm and Wideload (truck cranes).

Terrorcons

A triple changer, able to assume the alternate modes of a scorpion-themed construction vehicle and jet, Scorponok was allegedly the grand chamberlain of the armies of Planet Q, and sacrificed his life when he detonated the planet's core to stop the attack of Unicron. The spark of the planet's ruler, later to be known as Alpha Q, continued to exist within the dormant Unicron, and set about forming a plan to recreate his homeworld and other worlds that had been consumed by Unicron, using Energon. From Unicron, he recreated Planet Q's armies as the Terrorcons, and resurrected Scorponok to lead them.

Scorponok managed to turn several Decepticons to his and Alpha Q's side, until Megatron was resurrected. Megatron promptly beat Scorponok to a pulp for trying to usurp the power of Decepticon leader, and branded him with a Decepticon symbol. However, Scorponok continued to act as a mole for Alpha Q, working towards his master's goals from within Megatron's team. When Megatron came to suspect this, he strapped Scorponok to a meteor and hurled him at Earth's Energon Grid, hoping to force Alpha Q out of hiding to rescue his minion. Scorponok survived the ordeal with Rodimus' help, and was reunited with Alpha Q, entering into an alliance with the Autobots to stop Megatron from reviving Unicron. However, after Scorponok's subsequent defeat by Megatron, the positively-charged Energon released from Unicron's head by Alpha Q reacted with the negatively-charged Energon vented from Unicron's body by Megatron, tearing open a fissure in space, through with the teams were sucked. In this new region of space, all of the planets consumed by Unicron had been recreated, but Scorponok was to meet an unfortunate fate as Megatron completely brainwashed him, turning him into a true Decepticon.

During his alliance with the Autobots, Scorponok had earned an admirer in Ironhide, who attempted several times to make him remember who he was and to turn him away from Megatron's service. His words continuously fell on deaf ears, and the two friends-turned-foes had their final conflict on Cybertron as Optimus Prime battled the Unicron-possessed Galvatron. Both combatants were rendered unconscious, but Scorponok was the first to recover as Ironhide's Spark began to glow - Optimus Prime was calling on all his troops to lend him their strength. With the last of his own energy, Scorponok transported Ironhide to Prime's side so that the could join in the ultimate combination, but told him that he was not doing it for him - he was doing it so that Prime could save Galvatron from Unicron. And with that final act, Scorponok died.

In episode 33, "Scorponok's Scars", it is revealed that the spark within Scorponok is not actually that of the grand chamberlain of Planet Q - his spark was completely extinguished in his last act of sacrifice. Alpha Q instead used the wandering Spark of a Decepticon to recreate Scorponok, programming to act and think the way the real Scorponok did. For an unexplained reason, however, this episode was not dubbed into English.

  • Terrorcon Drones

Savage and unthinking, the Terrorcons are mindless drones without intelligence of their own, swarming over their targets and foes like insects. Although comparatively fragile and easily destroyed with artillery fire, they usually achieve their objective through sheer numbers alone. They can transform into robot modes, although they rarely do so. Like Omnicons, they are capable of handling raw Energon, although rather than shape and mould it, they actually consume it, and interally convert it into negatively-charged Energon stars, used to give Unicron sustenance, and later to give the Decepticons power boosts (although they remain harmful to the touch). The Terrorcon body types include:

    • Battle Ravage (Command Jaguar) - One of the most commonly used Terrorcons, these robots have panther alternate forms, with shoulder-mounded cannons and a morning star-style tail weapons. A differently-coloured version of this body type, designed for stealth, was also employed, dubbed Command Ravage (Command Jaguar Desert Type).
    • Divebomb (Shadowhawk) - also commonly used, these Terrorcons have hawk alternate forms, equipped with Energon boomerange weapons. A differently-coloured, Stealth enabled version of this body type was also employed (called Shadowhawk Cosmo Type in Japan, but unreleased in the US, though once referred to as "Blackout" in the English dub of the animated series).
    • Cruellock(Dinobot) - Rarely used, these beasts have dinosaur-like alternate modes, with powerful Energon blades within their tails. (A repaint of the action figure was released in Japan, called Dinobot Magma Type, while in the US, a different repaint was released as Doom-Lock).
    • Insecticon (Chrome Horn) - Again, rarely used, with stag beetle alternate modes. When a group of these Terrorcons found the Super Energon reservoir, they immersed themselves in it and grew to a large size. (A repaint of the toy was released in Japan as Chrome Horn Forest Type, but was unreleased in the US).

Other

The son of Doctor Brian and Miranada Jones, Chad "Kicker" Jones was taken to Cybertron by his father when he was still a young child in the early days of the alliance between Earth and the Transformers. Terrified of the robots, Kicker fled, but wound up stumbling into the chamber of Primus, the sentient energy core of Cybertron, who bestowed upon him the ability to sense Energon. Kicker was subsequently used - a little too offhandedly - by Doctor Jones to locate Energon deposits, leading the boy to bear a grudge against his father, and against the Transformers. When the Terrorcon attacks on Earth began, Kicker insisted that he be allowed to fight alongside the Autobots, and was given a battlesuit to protect him by his father. Unsure of what to do with the boy, Optimus Prime partnered him with Ironhide - something that neither of the two was happy about at first, but eventually, they became close friends. Kicker also developed a close bond with Alpha Q when he met the alien and brokered the truce between him and the Autobots - when Alpha Q recreated the worlds destroyed by Unicron, he fashioned a world of grass and plains, based on an image of Kicker's childhood taken from his memory. Also, a mutual attraction exists between Kicker and Misha.

  • Misha

As lab assistant to Doctor Brian Jones, Misha (initially called "Mika" in the dub) was the first to conceive of using Energon as a weapon. She acted as a science officer on board the Miranda II, and, together with Arcee, won the Autobots' race tournament on Circuit Planet. There is a mututal attraction between her and Kicker.

  • Jones family

The patriarch of the Jones family, Doctor Brian Jones, is the main brain in the Earth/Cybertron alliance, who has conducted most of the research into Energon and its potential uses for Earth, including the development of Energon Towers. Although he loves his son, he was known to neglect him in his early pursit of Energon, offhandedly using the boy to locate the mineral. But Doctor Jones isn't a bad guy, he's just a little scatterbrained, plus he likes a drink now and then. Usually now.

Brian's wife, Miranda, and their daughter, Sally (Kicker's sister) live on Ocean City on Earth. Miranda is also a scientist, apparently, but has never been shown to do anything of importance, besides providing the inspiration for the name of the spaceship Doctor Jones designed for the Autobots, the Miranda II. Sally, meanwhile, is, for lack of a better word, a bit of a brat who doesn't like it if she doesn't get her way, and is constantly annoyed by ber brother Kicker.

  • Other humans

The Autobots' old human friends, Rad, Carlos and Alexis are all grown up and doing their part in the alliance. Rad and Carlos work closely with the Transformers - Carlos is stationed on Mars City, while Rad works with Doctor Jones on Cybertron. Alexis, meanwhile, is now a government operative for the Earth Defence Agency, the planet's representative organisation in dealing with the Autobots, acting as liaison between the two.

Among the many worlds that have fallen to Unicron's unending hunger was one little sphere known as Planet Q. But before succumbing to the world-eater, this planet valiantly fought back as its armies rallied under the command of the world's Grand Chamberlain. But soon it became apparent that they would not be able to stop Unicron, and the Grand Chamberlain resigned himself to his world's fate, choosing a suicide ploy. He instructed the planet's child ruler to detonate Planet Q's core, but when the child refused, the chamberlain committed the act himself, destroying the planet as Unicron consumed it. The explosion failed to destroy Unicron, but it did heavily damage him, forcing him into a state of dormancy. And within Unicron's slumbering husk, the spark of Planet Q's ruler continued to exist.

Driven mad by the solitary existence, the mind of Planet Q's ruler fractured, splintering into five separate personalities. From Unicron's body, the child sculpted for itself a new, armoured body, with four rotating face masks, through which each one of his personalities found voice, with his fifth personality - his origin, true personality - hidden away inside him, speaking only when the armour was closed, concealing his face from view. But within the shattered mind of the insane being that now called itself "Alpha Q", a kernel of genius existed - Alpha Q has discovered that, through the power of Energon, all that Unicron had consumed could be reconstituted. And so, using what little Energon he had, he recreated the armies of Planet Q as the Terrorcons, and sent them to Earth to gather Energon for his plan.

After the first few strikes by the Terrorcons, Alpha Q used a wandering Deception Spark to recreate the Grand Chamberlain in the form of Scorponok, in order to turn the Decepticons working with the Autobots to his side. However, when Megatron engineered his own resurrection, Alpha Q was forced to flee Unicron's body in his head, and subsequently made a failed attempt to destroy Megatron by using the last of his Energon to recreate Starscream. When Megatron flushed Scorponok out as Alpha Q's mole, Rodimus and his crew - whom Alpha Q had previously encountered and convinced of his plan - rescued him, leading to an alliance between Alpha Q and the Autobots, brokered by Kicker, with whom Alpha Q felt a bond. During Megatron's attack on Cybertron with Unicron's body, Alpha Q drove Unicron's head - now charged with the positive Energon of Earth - into the body, where it reacted with the negative Energon contained within, causing a reaction that tore open a fissure in space. In the new region of space that the fissure lead to, Alpha Q was able to recreated all the worlds, as he had set out to do, cultivating and sustaining them from his place within Unicron's head, which had now become a glowing Enegon Sun. However, when Megatron succeeded in reactivating Unicron's body, he had it reclaim the chaos-bringer's head, extinguishing the sun and killing Alpha Q in the process.

Kicker recovered Alpha Q's body from within Unicron, and laid it to rest on Grass Planet. However, Alpha Q's spirit continued to observe and comment on events until the end of the conflict.

A primal force of evil from the beginning of time, his origins lost to the mists of history, the embodiment of all darkness and hate that lurks in the hearts of all beings. When Megatron plunged himself into Unicron's maw at the conclusion of the war for the Mini-Cons, the giant vanished without a trace, apparently ceasing to exist. Unknown to the Autobots, Unicron had sustained a small amount of life. A being once swallowed a millennia ago, Alpha Q, was able to awaken after Unicron's stasis state began. Alpha Q set about attempting to regenerate Unicron with Energon, hoping to recreate the worlds he had consumed, but when Megatron engineered his own rebirth, he took over the job, intending to restore Unicron as a weapon he could use. Alpha Q fled in Unicron's head, which eventually became an Energon sun following an Energon reaction that succeeded in recreating the destroyed worlds. But Megatron then proceeded to pillage these new worlds for Energon to once again repair Unicron. This time, he succeeded, and directed Unicron's body to retrieve his head, extinguishing the Energon Sun and killing Alpha-Q in the process. But the power of Unicron proved too much, in succession taking over the minds and bodies of both Shockblast - who died - and then Megatron. In the ensuing battle between Unicron and the super-powered Optimus Supreme, Unicron's body was successfully destroyed - but unbeknownst to anyone, he lived on in two forms: his minuscule Spark, and his consciousness, which lay buried in Megatron's mind. With quiet, subconscious nudgings, Unicron led Megatron to a massive reservoir of "Super Energon" beneath Cybertron's surface, which transformed him into Galvatron upon his first exposure. After a series of failed battles, Galvatron proceeded to expose himself to the Super Energon once again, and this time grew to a gigantic height. Unicron seized control of his body again and set out to rejoin with his Spark, but a Primus-empowered Optimus Supreme engaged him in battle once more, and drew all of Unicron's consciousness out of Galvatron and sealed it within his own Spark. Enraged, Galvatron prepared to destroy Unicron's Spark, but it merged with him, enlarging him again, leading to another battle with Optimus Supreme, this time bolstered by the combined energy of all his troops' Sparks. Meanwhile, Primus merged with the Super Energon, creating a foundling sun which arrived at the site of the battle. Taking control of his body for a brief moment, Galvatron once again sacrificed himself in order to stop Unicron, plunging himself into the infant sun, which ignited and gave new life to Alpha-Q's worlds.

File:Primus eng.jpg
Primus giving Kicker the power to sense Energon.

Portrayed as an incandescent sphere of light, the mysterious Primus is given no origin or explanation in the series, beyond apparently being the sentient energy core of Cybertron. His first noted act was to imbue the young Chad "Kicker" Jones with the ability to sense Energon. Subsequently, he bestowed upon the Autobots the "Spark of Combination", giving them the ability to Powerlink their bodies together for enhanced strength in the face of the attacks by Alpha Q and his Terrorcons. When these battles eventually led to full-scale Decepticon attack upon Cybertron, Primus's chamber was infiltrated by Terrorcons who began to drain his energy. When the Autobots successfully repelled them, Primus reconstructed the injured guard, Wing Dagger, as Wing Saber, who joined the battle, which resulted in a fissure being torn in space, hurling the Autobots far from Cybertron.

In this new region of space, the Decepticons succeeded in restoring and reanimating Unicron. Primus guided Kicker's father, Doctor Brian Jones, to a subterranean temple on Cybertron, where they awoke the legendary Omega Supreme, who Powerlinked with Optimus Prime into "Optimus Supreme" to aid in fighting Unicron. Primus then transmitted the entirety of his energy across the gulf of space, enhancing the armour and power of Hot Shot, Jetfire, Ironhide, Cliffjumper and Landmine, and allowing Optimus Supreme to grow to a colossal height, to battle and best Unicron one-on-one.

With Unicron defeated, the Autobots were afforded a brief moment of relaxation, but another Decepticon attack launched upon Cybertron soon shattered that. Having expended his energy, Primus was in "sleep mode", and when he began to resuscitate, he immediately found all his power drained once again when he enhanced Optimus Supreme so that he could stop the Decepticon-induced movement of Cybertron. The Omnicons quickly re-energised him with Super Energon from the reservoir beneath the planet's surface, while Optimus Prime struggled with a Unicron-possessed Galvatron. Primus merged himself with the reservoir of Super Energon, creating a foundling sun, into which Galvatron plunged himself, preferring to be destroyed, rather than manipulated by Unicron any further. With this act, the sun ignited, as Primus and Unicron together breathed new life into the stars.

Cast

Japanese Cast (Superlink)

US Cast (Energon)

Arranged alphabetically by last name

Theme songs

Japan (Superlink)

Opening

Ending

U.S. (Energon)

Opening/Ending

  • "Transformers: Energon Theme" by Hasbro
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