The Energon Pub

I know, crazy, right? Well, I've recently gotten obsessed with Lockdown, because the ROTF toy looks pretty badass. I've since taken a shine to the Animated version as well, even though I didn't care for his bot mode before. But reading about his backstory, he's pretty awesome. So now both Lockdowns are on my 'to buy' list.

Anyway, I was googling Lockdown images and came across something very interesting. A figure I'd wanted, but forgot about, because the colors weren't right. Maybe...maybe Lockdown is really Wheeljack. I know, I know, it doesn't work with the backstories, and Wheeljack still exists in Animated, but take a look at this:

Cybertron Downshift



He...kinda looks like Lockdown, doesn't he? Same colors, only reversed, similar alt mode, and those shoulder pads, plus his eyes are kinda mean looking. Here's Animated Lockdown for comparison:



His head could even be considered remotely similar. Same colors obviously (which could be said about a lot of TFs), but Lockdown's horns could be an evolution of Wheeljack's 'ears'.

And ROTF Lockdown for good measure (since Seibs' gallery isn't ready yet):



He's even got Wheeljacks' signature car front for feet and roof for a chest.

So here's my theory. Maybe something happened to Wheeljack. He has a penchant for gadgets and upgrades, right? Well, that's Lockdown's thing too! Maybe something traumatizing happened to him, and he went TOTALLY nuts. Maybe he got some sort of computer virus that fried his processors. MAYBE when he scanned that muscle car back in they Cybertron days, he didn't realize it belonged to bunch of psychotic skinheads hell-bent on DESTRUCTION!

Haha, I'm having too much fun with this. But you know... when I get Cybertron Downshift... he's going to be my Cybertron version of Lockdown.


So anybody else got some crrrraaaaazy backstories they make up for their figures? This is actually the first time I've thought of something like this, and I gotta admit, it's pretty fun.

Yeup, I do that all the time. I try to collect for 1 universe, or at least 1 "Ultimate-verse" for myself. So when I have toys for say Cybertron Hotshot and Cyb Def Hotshot, I have since renamed both those characters for my "verse" and a new complete backstory from the both of them. That's why I never get bent out of shape when we see a toy and he has "so and so's" name. I'll just rename him/her anyway. Classic's Hotshot is Hotshot in my "verse".

So Cyb Hotshot in my "verse" is Excellion and Cyb Def Hotshot is a character named Blockade. Brothers that both are part of Cyb's Elite Guard.

Everyone collects for different reasons and displays their collections in different variations. I'm just trying to do a population of TF's.

I do stuff like that all the time. The best example I can think is I use Universe 2.0 Hot Shot and Hardhead and G1 versions of Animated Bumblebee and Bulkhead. Hot Shot is still called Hot Shot but he has Animated 'Bees personality and Bulkhead calls him "Lil Buddy." I was even planning to replace the soundchip in Hardhead with the one for Battle Bumpers Bulkhead but the only place around me that still has it is K-Mart and they want $15.00 for it! So for now my G1 Bulkhead is silent.

I use Legends Animated bumblebee as "Classics Hubcap", myself - and the smirk even fits.

^ Yeah, that does work pretty well!

I like yours too Zodconvoy. It's always cool when characters have interesting interactions liek that.

Prime Evil wrote:Yeup, I do that all the time. I try to collect for 1 universe, or at least 1 "Ultimate-verse" for myself. So when I have toys for say Cybertron Hotshot and Cyb Def Hotshot, I have since renamed both those characters for my "verse" and a new complete backstory from the both of them. That's why I never get bent out of shape when we see a toy and he has "so and so's" name. I'll just rename him/her anyway. Classic's Hotshot is Hotshot in my "verse".

So Cyb Hotshot in my "verse" is Excellion and Cyb Def Hotshot is a character named Blockade. Brothers that both are part of Cyb's Elite Guard.

Everyone collects for different reasons and displays their collections in different variations. I'm just trying to do a population of TF's.

Cool, yeah I do a lot of renaming of characters, but mostly to fit G1 (Excellion is obviously Hot Rod, etc). This is the first time thought of something not necessarily in the realm of G1.

Anybody got detailed descriptions of their backstories? I'm interested in what kind of stuff people make up!

No reason why there can't be both an Animated Wheeljack AND an Animated Downshift at the same time!

I'm too anal-retentive to pretend characters are someone they're not (usually). But often I repurpise characters as who they really are. For example, Shattered Glass Sideswipe is Deluge, 2007 Breakaway is Getaway (or possibly Lightfoot). And when a Drift figure foes come out, I'm damn well painting him marine blue, sticking a cannon in his bonnet and calling him Boss.

I do this as well.

A couple of examples for me

ROTF Sideswipe = Tracks
Energon Downshift = Wheeljack

Cyber Bishop wrote:I do this as well.

A couple of examples for me

ROTF Sideswipe = Tracks
Energon Downshift = Wheeljack

Downshift is obviously supposed to be Wheeljack, so I don't even count him myself, he just IS Wheeljack.

I do the same for ROTF Sideswipe, I even figured out an alternate transformation to give him the signature wings in robot mode. I've been thinking of repaint ideas too, but I don't think I'll do it.

Diem wrote:But often I repurpise characters as who they really are.

Definitely! As with Energon Downshift.

Every toy in my collection is a part of a a massive multiversal convergence. This allows for multiple versions of a character in the same place and time. I have, however, added the idea of sparks of warriors thought fallen in battle with Unicron being reborn in other universes, thereby repurposing characters from multiple continuities as other characters whom they usually resemble. Examples: Energon Downshift is the Unicron Trilogy version of Wheeljack, where Cybertron Downshift is the reborn spark of G1 Wheeljack in a new form. Brakedown GTS (Cybertron) is Kup, similarly reborn). Each has ties to the universe of their rebirth, while also remembering their original selves. Some have the ability to cross realities at will (Vector Prime, Energon Towline), others are pulled into the converged space by Unicron or Primus. I've also done some work on the character of Storm Jet from RiD, making him the spark of G1 Jetfire, constantly battling a backup copy of BM Jetstorm's core consciousness. As the Spark is Jetfire's he's mostly good, but having Jetstorm's mind backed up in his head he's a bit off.

- Sam

Wow, that's pretty cool. Very interesting having different incarnations of the same character in the same universe, could make for some very epic stories.

I did something similar to reconcile Dead End's appearance in my Alternators collection. In this part of my "universe", Dead End is actually the reformated Sideswipe, who was thought to be destroyed on a mission with his brother Sunstreaker. Nemesis (who I've cast as a crazy Decepticon mad scientist)found him and reformated him into a Decepticon. Sideswipe believes Sunstreaker abbandoned him and left him to die while the Decepticons saved him. He renamed himself Dead End and when the Transformers came to Earth, he took on a similar appearance to Sunstreaker to mock his brother when they met in battle.


Not too sure where thats going to go when I eventually add Sideswipe to my collection though....

Cool, that's an awesome backstory. Maybe you can work alternate realities or clones or something into it when you get Sideswipe?

I allmost forgot I had him but now that I think about it I did buy Movie Wreckage because I thought he looked like G1 Megatron.

Movie Megatron is just ugly and I really wish he hadn't made it into the movie. Wreckage is so much better.

Allso like the remold they did for Starscream's head in the toy line. Alot of movie toys have been made with more G1 refrences than anything that actully appears in the movie. (which is a great marketing stratigy by Hasbro) On the down side though most of them look like Shockwave. Straingly though, Shockwave doesn't even have a toy in the movie line despite haveing so many homages.

Considering movie universe transformers can scan new alt modes at will I like to think that all the Movie Transformers with a single giant eye for a head are just Shockwave who can't make up his mind on a single alt mode. I'd actully love it he appeared in the movie that way, scanning a new alt mode in every scene. In reality they'd have to make several different animation models for him but sence the movie bot modes don't look like anything anyway they could get away with useing the same robot mode for every vehicle.

Interesting idea, not sure how it would work with his Shockwave's traditional backstory, but I'm sure you could figure something out.

I always did think Wreckage looked a little bit like Megatron too. Unfortunately he's too small to be my Movie Megatron. I might pick up the upcoming Takara repaint of ROTF Voyager Megatron.

Just to name a few

ROTF Stockade = Trailbreaker
ROTF Longarm = Wheeljack
ROTF Swerve (repaint of Sideswipe) = Sideswipe
ROTF Sideswipe = Sunstreaker
ROTF Blackout = Vortex
ROTF Bludgeon (2 pack version) = Onslaught
ROTF Barricade (HA) = Prowl
Movie Landmine = Hound
ROTF Armorhide = Swindle

Here's a crazy one..ok get ready........MOVIE BRAWL....IS BRAWL!
By that I mean Combaticon Brawl( I am trying to figure out how to make a movie Bruticus) and my theory is that he was in the movie as sort of a mercenary guy to the Decepticons, like Onslaught sent him or something.


I also say that that little FrokLift guy is actually "Ze Little One" and becomes the hand of Devastator(It's always been my theory that Devastator's hand was the guy that got ripped apart...which leads to my OTHER theory that Scalpel just brought him back).

kirbenvost wrote:I do the same for ROTF Sideswipe, I even figured out an alternate transformation to give him the signature wings in robot mode. I've been thinking of repaint ideas too, but I don't think I'll do it.

Cool, I did something similar with the wings in car mode. I was thinking about putting flames on his hood.

Adding a little, basically what I do is I try to have my one main universe(made of Movie verse toys) and so I use random movie toys(which I plan to repaint and re..weapon? Into characters I like such as Wheeljack(though I haven't found a head for him))

And just a mini thing, but I consider Movie Scrapper the leader of the Constructicons(but then again, when do the movies follow G1?)

Just another random thing(when I get around to making movieverse versions of them) I'm gonna use a movie Red Alert, Hot Shot, ScatterShot, and Ultra Magnus as a sort of rival autobot group to the main movie one.

kirbenvost wrote:Interesting idea, not sure how it would work with his Shockwave's traditional backstory, but I'm sure you could figure something out.

I always did think Wreckage looked a little bit like Megatron too. Unfortunately he's too small to be my Movie Megatron. I might pick up the upcoming Takara repaint of ROTF Voyager Megatron.

Not sure what you mean by traditional. G1, Energon (Technically Shockblast but still looks like Shockwave), and Animated Shockwaves are all completly different characters.

The original and Animated Shockwaves are more simular in that they both remained on Cybertron at the start of the series but sense the animation version of Cybertron at this point in time is completly populated by Autobots Shockwave had to disguise himself as Longarm to remain on Cybertron. The original Shockwave never acted as an Autobot spy. This is really the only major difference between them.

Another possible difference is that fact that the original Shockwave only has 1 hand while Animated has 2. I'm not sure but it's possible G1 Shockwave had 2 hands at some point in his life. Was there ever a reason given for his missing hand?

Energon Shockblast is a completly different character in every way. While his "Wave" counterparts are loyal to Megatron "Blast" and Megatron were enemys. No one trusted Shockblast and the character was a loner. While his faction was still Decepticon he was not even under Megatron's command. The only 2 things he might share in common with G1 Shockwave in terms of personality and back story is that he too only has 1 hand but in Shockblast's case it's part of his transformation so I don't think it actully counts. The other thing is that they're both loners but for different reasons. G1 Shockwave was left Alone on Cybertron and while there were other Decepticons around, well watch "Shockwave's Burdan" Shockblast is a loner by choise not because he was forced into that situation.

So a movie version of Shockwave could work with many different alt modes. It'd be a relitivly small change to his character.

Rial Vestro wrote:

kirbenvost wrote:Interesting idea, not sure how it would work with his Shockwave's traditional backstory, but I'm sure you could figure something out.

I always did think Wreckage looked a little bit like Megatron too. Unfortunately he's too small to be my Movie Megatron. I might pick up the upcoming Takara repaint of ROTF Voyager Megatron.

Not sure what you mean by traditional.

I'm guessing what "kirbenvost" ment by "traditional" would be the description of Shockwaves personality from the G1 tech specs and g1 MARVEL comics as its compared to his portrayal in the G1 toon.

Many fans consider the tech specs and the comics to be the "traditional" story.

I'm getting a friend to repaint Energon Divebomb as Banzai-tron because they had similarly styled bot modes and are both depicted as martial artists.

Given his mercenary nature in the tech specs and the IDW interpretation that has him running the Decepticon secret police, I envision that he's had several run-ins with Jazz, Prime's right hand man and special ops bot.

I like to think that Banzai-tron is not his original name but rather a nick name placed on him by Jazz that stuck and which he hates. Oddly, I'm going with Divebomb as his original name, which coincidently parallels the Swoop/Divebomb dynamic.

I also like to think all the Unicron Trilogy repaints such as Universe 1 Ultra Magnus and Classics Springer and Roadbuster actually count as UT characters as well as characters in the respective series they were repainted for.

At the moment, the aforementioned Springer, Roadbuster and Ultra Magnus are standing here as the Trilogy answer to the Wreckers.

By the same token, I like to group Cybertron Thundercracker and Skywarp with Movie Divebomb as UT seekers and the Movie repaints of the Omni-cons are just more Omni-cons in the Trilogy.

I love the Dreamwave comics and PS2 game and their interpretations of Armada and Energon so I like to epand their universe with these repaints.

After the Botcon set last year, I like to view all the repaints of Energon Starscream as G1/War Within Air Warriors/Seekers. They're just a different model of Seeker to the Tetra Jet/Titaniums. I always thought the powered up Seeker in WW3 resembled the Energon mold anyway.


As a huge fan of the Marvel G1 comics which I consider my G1 canon, I like to retro fit the likes of Soundblaster, Reflector, Acid Storm and the G2 Seekers in there. I say that they, along with hundreds of other Seekers, were aboard the Ark when it crashed. We saw that there were various Decepticon technicians in the background so why not Seekers and others. It boosts the Decepticon ranks nicely because I feel, legions of bad guys always lend to the drama.

I also give Soundblaster the cartoon Soundwave personality where he's unswervingly loyal to Megatron while Soundwave retains his self serving personality from the comics.