Waspinator
Encyclopedia
Waspinator is the name of several fictional characters from the various Transformers universes
. He is sometimes called Wasp. The original Waspinator was voiced by Scott McNeil in the Beast Wars animated series.
: getting destroyed or demolished in almost every episode of Beast Wars
, yet returning in almost perfect condition in the very next episode. He is also dim-witted, talks in a broken third-person speech pattern, often referring to other characters, except Megatron
, Optimus Primal
, and himself,(however when Megatron became a dragon, Waspinator referred to him as "Dragon-Bot") by names that reflected their transformation modes instead of their true names (example: referring to Silverbolt as "Doggy-Bot") and spent most of the series as an underdog, causing him to take constant abuse from Maximal and Predacon alike (thus summing up Waspinator's most well-known line "Why universe hate Waspinator?!") making him one of the more fan-favorite characters on the show. His beast mode is a wasp
and his name is based on The Terminator
.
Waspinator's toy was recolored as the Predacon Buzz Saw, a character who only appeared in the comic series. Waspinator came with two different heads, a robotic and mutant head, but the television series only ever depicted him with the mutant head. Buzz Saw was depicted in the comics with the robot head.
Although a transmetal version of Waspinator was made in the toy line, Waspinator remained in his original form in the television series from first episode to last (the only one of the original five Predacons to do so). There was also a "Fox Kids" repaint of his original form, which was in new colors, and one of his transmetal form which had the colors of Buzz Saw.
In 2005 the original Waspinator toy was one of the toys selected for the Beast Wars 10th Anniversary toyline, repainted in more show-accurate colors. He came packaged with one of the six pieces used to make the Transmutate
toy and a DVD with the episode Possession on it.
As the Vehicon General Thrust he was in charge of the Cycle Drones and was one of the few who remained an ally to Megatron
until the very end.
Scott Mcneil attended Botcon
2006 at the Lexington Convention Center for the 10th anniversary of the TV series.
In 2011, Waspinator was the second fan choice Transformer to be put in the Transformers: Hall of Fame.
, joining him on his raid of the Golden Disk
artifact from the Maximals and being on the Darksyde when it was chased through Transwarp Space by the Axalon
and crashed on prehistoric Earth. High energon levels threatened to destroy the crew unless they adopted organic alternate modes, and Waspinator took the form of a wasp ("Beast Wars Part 1"). Waspinator's body was blasted apart, crushed or disassembled numerous times throughout the series (“Oh sure...don't mind Waspinator; Waspinator just lie here and suffer... drag himself to CR tank...”). Even his fellow Predacons had little respect for Waspinator, often letting him take the shots in battles. Despite the fact that Waspinator never actually led or participated in a rebellion against Megatron, he was not loyal to the Predacon tyrant but merely too cowed and frightened of Megatron to overthrow him, a sentiment which only got worse as Megatron grew more powerful during the series and Waspinator did not. This can be best observed during the first season when Waspinator was shown in a private conversation with himself, revealing his desire to, like most Predacons, overthrow Megatron and establish himself as leader.
In the first season, he was often partnered with Terrorsaur
and proved himself to be a capable aerial combatant. However, Waspinator had few notable roles other than acting as Megatron's aerial muscle. But he did get a successful victory when he stole the Axalons Energon shielding system in "Call of the Wild" and also blinding and nearly destroying some of the Maximals in "Dark Voyage". During the episode "Possession", Waspinator was possessed by the spark of the ancient Decepticon
Starscream
. Starscream betrayed Megatron with the help of Blackarachnia and managed to capture the Axalon from the Maximals, but his own ego and a betrayal in turn by Blackarachnia saw him defeated. In another bizarre incident, he was severely damaged by a reprogrammed Rhinox
, who had developed his own ideas about leading the Predacons. As usual Waspinator survived but this time he had been temporarily damaged mentally, referring to himself as the original Insecticon
Shrapnel, and talking with his speech impediment. In the same scene he refers to himself as Wonko The Sane, which is in turn a reference to The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
, as well as to a prominent Transformers fan who used that name as his online handle. This episode of insanity lasted until an annoyed Cheetor shot him down and Waspinator was repaired (with his last insane line being part of the original transformers theme song "more than meets the eye")..
Waspinator spent much of the season partnered with Inferno and Quickstrike
("Ant-Bot and Two-Head"). He was briefly teamed up with the transmetal II clone
of Dinobot
(who sliced him to ribbons), only to end up quickly shot by Cheetor after the young Maximal completed his own 'upgrade' into a transmetal II. Waspinator's status grew increasingly poor as time went on, to the extent that he was literally taken to pieces by the proto-human girl Una, who had been taught by Cheetor to go for the hinges when attacking robots. Megatron merely described this as "situation normal then". Throughout most of this series he was used as Predacon cannon fodder, while the slightly more powerful ones did more active combat. When the Predacons broke into the Maximal base, he was told that he would be leading the attack, but instead turned out to be a decoy that was literally squashed by Optimus.
After the destruction of the Predacon Base, Inferno, Quickstrike and Waspinator were sent to establish a new base for the Predacons and discovered caves that were inhabited by a tribe of early humans. Just as the Predacons were about to engage the early humans in battle, Waspinator decided he was sick of the evil Predacon ways and of the constant physical abuse he was always receiving and quit in a furious and surprising rant. As the Beast Wars came to an end and the Maximals left for Cybertron, it was revealed that Waspinator stayed behind on Earth, living amongst a tribe of early humans and being worshiped as a god. He even got the last line of the series: “Waspinator happy at last!”.
Waspinator was captured by Megatron's Vehicon
Drones and his spark was transferred into the Vehicon General
Thrust in Beast Machines
. During the series, it was revealed that, following the conclusion of the Beast Wars that the early humans got tired of Waspinator, despite having worshipped him as a deity, and forced him to leave (although he claimed he was tired of them and left because he missed Cybertron). How he got home afterwards was never revealed, though he did say "Took forever, but waaayyy worth it". Even writer Bob Skir mentioned in his website that "someone someday has to explain to me how he hitchhiked his way home..." http://bigbot.com/beast-machines-transformers-bob-skir/Beast-Machines-FAQ/Wed_19_Jan_2000.html It is possible that he just flew under his own power and it took him so long to reach Cybertron that he arrived just prior to the Maximals exiting from transwarp space.
Thrust was the only one of the original three Vehicon Generals who was able to remember on his own that he used to be someone else. For a while, Blackarachnia believed that this someone else was Silverbolt, since Thrust kept displaying a soft spot for the she-spider. She was disappointed to learn that Thrust was not Silverbolt, but the Predacon
Waspinator. Waspinator had been left on prehistoric Earth, to be worshiped by the early humans, but Waspinator accidentally boringly flung a pebble at a human who was building a statue to worship his "godlike" performance, and chased him off. Somehow he returned to Cybertron where his spark was extracted by Megatron and reprogrammed into Thrust. Waspinator was actually very pleased to be inside the "cool biker-bot" because "Chick-bots dig 'brooding loner' bit! " Each of the three original Vehicon Generals had their own personalized command codes; Thrust's was: "Thrust Overdrive!!"
With Cybertron's reformatting at the end of the series, Waspinator was reformatted into a surprisingly small technorganic wasp, but with the head of Thrust. He was then swatted by Rattrap and sent spiraling away through the air. His final line in this series is an ironic contrast to his last on Beast Wars. Bob Skir referred to this version of Waspinator as Thrustinator in the DVD commentary of the last episode.
storyline Thrust would return in his Vehicon form as one of the many Transformers kidnapped by Unicron from alternate timelines.
The original Waspinator also put in an appearance in the BotCon voice actor play. When Rhinox
's attempts to stop Unicron pulling victims from alternate realities resulted in two groups of dimensionally-displaced Autobots being marooned on frozen planetoids, Waspinator, on the side of good for once, was sent alongside Silverbolt and Rattrap to help. They ended up battling Unicron's minions alongside a crew of time lost Autobots (Bumblebee
, Cosmos
and Tracks
) and the two groups of Autobots they had been sent to help (both from the RiD
universes), and, with Rhinox's help, sent them back to their own times and realities.
gathered a crew of like-minded individuals. While Waspinator and Terrorsaur
stole a ship, Megatron, Dinobot
and Scorponok
stole the Golden Disk
artifact, battling the guards and destroying one, disabling a second, and leaving a third to commandeer a ship to pursue them. Waspinator would lose a contest to name the ship with Terrorsaur, christening it the Darksyde (Waspinator's choice being "Buzzerbot"). Picking up the others, they fled and were pursued by two ships: one of which was the Axalon
commanded by Optimus Primal
, the other the Chromia 10 piloted by Airazor. With a little help from Laserbeak
and Buzzsaw (secretly sent by Divebomb to ensure Megatron's plan to change history succeeded) they destroyed one of their pursuers, and the newly christened Darksyde fled into Transwarp space, with the Axalon in pursuit - thus beginning the Beast Wars.
Beast Wars Second Galvatron, Megastorm and the technorganic Predacon Waspinator appeared together in the story Wreckers: Finale Part II by the Transformers Collectors Club in 2007. During the invasion of Cybertron by the Quintessons the Predacons worked together to ambush a Quintesson contingent commanded by Overseer Vashik. Vashik's troops were caught in a pool of molten magma and destroyed.
.
2011, Hasbro named Waspinator as the "Fans' Choice" robot inductee in the Transformers Hall of Fame, beating Shockwave
, Grimlock
, Jazz
and Erector
. He is the second Beast Wars character to be given this honor.
's intervention, Wasp ended up being his scapegoat when Bumblebee believed Wasp to be the double agent working for Megatron. Though it was truly Shockwave disguised as Longarm who was the double agent, using Bumblebee's blind conviction to his own advantage. In the flashbacks, Wasp's color scheme consists of light green and yellow with black highlights, and he has the signature Autobot blue eye color.
By the time of his introduction, Wasp resembles more of his Beast Wars version in both eye/body color and speech pattern. But once converted into Waspinator, his design is very similar to his original Beast Wars CGI model but with a smaller second set of arms that jut from his sides. Originally able to talk normally as a cadet, his time in the Stockade rendered him to speak in a brooding voice that mimics the ravings of The Lord of the Rings
Sméagol/Gollum
, speaking in Waspinator's trademark third-person and adding "-bot" to the names of fellow Transformers. (ex. Bumblebee=Bumblebot)
In his upgraded technorganic form he can fly and shoot stinger lasers from his robot mode hands or his beast mode forelimbs. He is also much larger and more powerful as a technorganic being. According to his toy bio and as seen on the show, Wasp can survive being blown to pieces, just as the original Waspinator famously could. It is unclear, however, if this is a side-effect of his mutation or if Wasp has had this ability from the start.
One notable difference between this newer Waspinator and his Beast Wars counterpart, was that whilst the original Waspinator was a bumbling idiot unlike his Animated counterpart had a murderous, psychotic and deadly personality.
David Kaye
said at TFcon 2010 that the creators wanted to get Scott McNeil
to voice Waspinator, but since he could not work in the US without a permat, they were unable to get him to revise his role.
via Space Bridge
. However, the long imprisonment reduced Wasp into a completely cold and impassive shell of his former ego, seeking vengeance
on Bumblebee for ruining his life. Though hunting him down on the impression he was heading to Megatron, Bumblebee would learn from Shockwave the truth that he really sent an innocent bot to the Stockade. Being pursued by a small team composed of Jazz
, Sentinel Prime, Jetfire
and Jetstorm
, Wasp managed to get to Earth in order to get his revenge. Though Bumblebee attempted to explain what had happened, Wasp was bent to make him suffer just like he had, knocking him out before swapping paint jobs, helmets and voice synthezisers with him, so Bumblebee could take his place while he remained free. To further the trick, Wasp downloaded information from the earth Autobots' computer to know everything he knows. However, when his deception ultimately failed, Wasp used Bumblebee as a shield to make an escape.
After being found, Wasp attempted to evade his Autobot captors as they cornered him, refusing to go back to the Stockade. It was only when two of his pursuers, Optimus Prime and Sentinel Prime, begin arguing over what to do with him that Wasp escaped before being abducted by Swoop
. Swoop took Wasp to Dinobot Island and dropped him before Blackarachnia, whom he fell in love with. Blackarachnia used her charm and mutual past of Autobot betrayal to gain Wasp's trust, using it to make him step into her transwarp generator and be exposed to its energy along with Wasp
DNA
. A few cycles (minutes) later, as Sentinel confronted Blackarachina, Wasp exited the generator as Waspinator to protect his friend. During the fight, Waspinator entered the hallway and ran into Bumblebee. Bumblebee tried to apologize for sending Wasp to the Stockade, and though Waspinator said "Wasp" forgave Bumblebee, he angrily stated that "Waspinator would never forgive him." Waspinator was about to blast Bumblebee when the transwarp radiation stored inside him became unstable, followed by Waspinator overhearing Blackarachnia's rant of using him to suit her own ends. Enraged for being betrayed again, Waspinator followed Blackarachnia outside and tried to kill her, but he went critical with Blackarachnia spinning a chrysalis around her and Waspinator so only they were effected by the energy. Ending up in an African jungle in pieces, Waspinator began to put himself back together, stating that he had "plans". Unfortunately, with the series having ended after its third season, his objectives are a mystery.
Transformers universes
is an entertainment franchise. It began with the Hasbro Transformers toy line, centered on two factions of warring alien robots which are called the Autobots and the Decepticons...
. He is sometimes called Wasp. The original Waspinator was voiced by Scott McNeil in the Beast Wars animated series.
Beast Wars
Waspinator is best remembered for being the universe's whipping boyWhipping boy
A whipping boy was a young boy who was assigned to a young prince and was punished when the prince misbehaved or fell behind in his schooling. Whipping boys were established in the English court during the monarchies of the 15th century and 16th centuries...
: getting destroyed or demolished in almost every episode of Beast Wars
Beast Wars
Transformers: Beast Wars is a Transformers toyline released by Hasbro between 1995 and 2000, and a Daytime Emmy Award winning full-CG animated television series spawned by it that debuted in 1996...
, yet returning in almost perfect condition in the very next episode. He is also dim-witted, talks in a broken third-person speech pattern, often referring to other characters, except Megatron
Megatron (Beast Wars and Beast Machines)
The Beast Wars and Beast Machines version of Megatron is the main antagonist from the aforementioned parts of the Transformers animated series, toy lines, and multiverse...
, Optimus Primal
Optimus Primal
Optimus Primal is a fictional character from the Transformers toyline, and the leader of the Maximal forces and the main protagonist in the Beast Wars television series. He is sometimes called Optimal Optimus...
, and himself,(however when Megatron became a dragon, Waspinator referred to him as "Dragon-Bot") by names that reflected their transformation modes instead of their true names (example: referring to Silverbolt as "Doggy-Bot") and spent most of the series as an underdog, causing him to take constant abuse from Maximal and Predacon alike (thus summing up Waspinator's most well-known line "Why universe hate Waspinator?!") making him one of the more fan-favorite characters on the show. His beast mode is a wasp
Wasp
The term wasp is typically defined as any insect of the order Hymenoptera and suborder Apocrita that is neither a bee nor an ant. Almost every pest insect species has at least one wasp species that preys upon it or parasitizes it, making wasps critically important in natural control of their...
and his name is based on The Terminator
The Terminator
The Terminator is a 1984 science fiction action film directed by James Cameron, co-written by Cameron and William Wisher Jr., and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Michael Biehn, and Linda Hamilton. The film was produced by Hemdale Film Corporation and distributed by Orion Pictures, and filmed in Los...
.
Waspinator's toy was recolored as the Predacon Buzz Saw, a character who only appeared in the comic series. Waspinator came with two different heads, a robotic and mutant head, but the television series only ever depicted him with the mutant head. Buzz Saw was depicted in the comics with the robot head.
Although a transmetal version of Waspinator was made in the toy line, Waspinator remained in his original form in the television series from first episode to last (the only one of the original five Predacons to do so). There was also a "Fox Kids" repaint of his original form, which was in new colors, and one of his transmetal form which had the colors of Buzz Saw.
In 2005 the original Waspinator toy was one of the toys selected for the Beast Wars 10th Anniversary toyline, repainted in more show-accurate colors. He came packaged with one of the six pieces used to make the Transmutate
Transmutate
Transmutate is the name of a fictional character from the various Transformers universes. She is a damaged, but powerful, Maximal protoform who befriends both the Maximal Silverbolt and his enemy the Predacon Rampage....
toy and a DVD with the episode Possession on it.
As the Vehicon General Thrust he was in charge of the Cycle Drones and was one of the few who remained an ally to Megatron
Megatron (Beast Wars and Beast Machines)
The Beast Wars and Beast Machines version of Megatron is the main antagonist from the aforementioned parts of the Transformers animated series, toy lines, and multiverse...
until the very end.
Scott Mcneil attended Botcon
BotCon
BotCon, briefly known as "The Official Transformers Collectors' Convention" , is an annual convention for Transformers fans and collectors. BotCon has been held annually since 1994...
2006 at the Lexington Convention Center for the 10th anniversary of the TV series.
Reception
Wired Magazine once nominated him as one 12 most ridiculous Transformers of all time.In 2011, Waspinator was the second fan choice Transformer to be put in the Transformers: Hall of Fame.
Animated series
Waspinator was a follower of the Predacon criminal MegatronMegatron (Beast Wars and Beast Machines)
The Beast Wars and Beast Machines version of Megatron is the main antagonist from the aforementioned parts of the Transformers animated series, toy lines, and multiverse...
, joining him on his raid of the Golden Disk
Golden Disk
-Beast Wars:The Golden Disk is a relic from the Beast Wars Transformers timeline, and a key plot device for the events of the show. Considered a revered artifact, it is actually the Voyager Golden Record, which includes information on Earth and humanity, and is presumably the only source of...
artifact from the Maximals and being on the Darksyde when it was chased through Transwarp Space by the Axalon
Axalon
The Axalon is the name of the fictional Maximal ship in the Beast Wars cartoon and comic books. In addition, in the Transformers: Armada cartoon, the Autobots constructed a space ship that was also named the Axalon, possibly in reference to the original Maximal ship.-History:The Axalon, commanded...
and crashed on prehistoric Earth. High energon levels threatened to destroy the crew unless they adopted organic alternate modes, and Waspinator took the form of a wasp ("Beast Wars Part 1"). Waspinator's body was blasted apart, crushed or disassembled numerous times throughout the series (“Oh sure...don't mind Waspinator; Waspinator just lie here and suffer... drag himself to CR tank...”). Even his fellow Predacons had little respect for Waspinator, often letting him take the shots in battles. Despite the fact that Waspinator never actually led or participated in a rebellion against Megatron, he was not loyal to the Predacon tyrant but merely too cowed and frightened of Megatron to overthrow him, a sentiment which only got worse as Megatron grew more powerful during the series and Waspinator did not. This can be best observed during the first season when Waspinator was shown in a private conversation with himself, revealing his desire to, like most Predacons, overthrow Megatron and establish himself as leader.
In the first season, he was often partnered with Terrorsaur
Terrorsaur
Terrorsaur is the name of several fictional characters from the world of Transformers universes.Terror-Saur is an amalgamate of terror and saur .-Beast Wars:...
and proved himself to be a capable aerial combatant. However, Waspinator had few notable roles other than acting as Megatron's aerial muscle. But he did get a successful victory when he stole the Axalons Energon shielding system in "Call of the Wild" and also blinding and nearly destroying some of the Maximals in "Dark Voyage". During the episode "Possession", Waspinator was possessed by the spark of the ancient Decepticon
Decepticon
The Decepticons are usually depicted as the antagonists in the fictional universes of the Transformers stoyline and related comics and cartoons, and the enemies of the Autobots and the University of California Davis Aggies...
Starscream
Starscream (Transformers)
Starscream is a fictional character in the Transformers franchise. He is one of the most prolific characters in the Transformers fictional work, appearing in almost all incarnations of the story. Starscream is usually portrayed with the same characterization...
. Starscream betrayed Megatron with the help of Blackarachnia and managed to capture the Axalon from the Maximals, but his own ego and a betrayal in turn by Blackarachnia saw him defeated. In another bizarre incident, he was severely damaged by a reprogrammed Rhinox
Rhinox
Rhinox is the name of three fictional characters from various Transformers universes.-Beast Wars:Rhinox's character in the Beast Wars television series is very different from how the toy was depicted. As one of the first year toys, the toy of Rhinox was created before the television series came...
, who had developed his own ideas about leading the Predacons. As usual Waspinator survived but this time he had been temporarily damaged mentally, referring to himself as the original Insecticon
Insecticons
Insecticons is the name given to a sub-group of fictional characters in the Transformers Universes, referred to as Insectrons in the Japanese version. The name was also used for several fictional characters in the Transformers Universes...
Shrapnel, and talking with his speech impediment. In the same scene he refers to himself as Wonko The Sane, which is in turn a reference to The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a science fiction comedy series created by Douglas Adams. Originally a radio comedy broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1978, it was later adapted to other formats, and over several years it gradually became an international multi-media phenomenon...
, as well as to a prominent Transformers fan who used that name as his online handle. This episode of insanity lasted until an annoyed Cheetor shot him down and Waspinator was repaired (with his last insane line being part of the original transformers theme song "more than meets the eye")..
Waspinator spent much of the season partnered with Inferno and Quickstrike
QuickStrike
QuickStrike is a collectible card game gaming system developed by Upper Deck Entertainment for use in their games. This system made its initial debut in 2006.-Compatibility:...
("Ant-Bot and Two-Head"). He was briefly teamed up with the transmetal II clone
Cloning
Cloning in biology is the process of producing similar populations of genetically identical individuals that occurs in nature when organisms such as bacteria, insects or plants reproduce asexually. Cloning in biotechnology refers to processes used to create copies of DNA fragments , cells , or...
of Dinobot
Dinobot
Dinobot is a fictional character from the Beast Wars Transformers universe.-Beast Wars:Dinobot originally debuts in the series' premiere as a subordinate of Megatron, leader of the villainous Predacons. However, Dinobot challenges Megatron's leadership, and is shortly expelled from his crew. He...
(who sliced him to ribbons), only to end up quickly shot by Cheetor after the young Maximal completed his own 'upgrade' into a transmetal II. Waspinator's status grew increasingly poor as time went on, to the extent that he was literally taken to pieces by the proto-human girl Una, who had been taught by Cheetor to go for the hinges when attacking robots. Megatron merely described this as "situation normal then". Throughout most of this series he was used as Predacon cannon fodder, while the slightly more powerful ones did more active combat. When the Predacons broke into the Maximal base, he was told that he would be leading the attack, but instead turned out to be a decoy that was literally squashed by Optimus.
After the destruction of the Predacon Base, Inferno, Quickstrike and Waspinator were sent to establish a new base for the Predacons and discovered caves that were inhabited by a tribe of early humans. Just as the Predacons were about to engage the early humans in battle, Waspinator decided he was sick of the evil Predacon ways and of the constant physical abuse he was always receiving and quit in a furious and surprising rant. As the Beast Wars came to an end and the Maximals left for Cybertron, it was revealed that Waspinator stayed behind on Earth, living amongst a tribe of early humans and being worshiped as a god. He even got the last line of the series: “Waspinator happy at last!”.
Waspinator was captured by Megatron's Vehicon
Vehicon
Vehicons are a faction in the fictional Transformers, appearing in the animated cartoon series Beast Machines. However, most Vehicons are non-sentient drones, controlled entirely by the will of Megatron or their respective general.-History:...
Drones and his spark was transferred into the Vehicon General
Vehicon
Vehicons are a faction in the fictional Transformers, appearing in the animated cartoon series Beast Machines. However, most Vehicons are non-sentient drones, controlled entirely by the will of Megatron or their respective general.-History:...
Thrust in Beast Machines
Beast Machines
Beast Machines is an animated television series produced by Mainframe Entertainment and distributed by Universal Pictures. Hasbro has the full distribution rights to the show as of 2011. It was a direct sequel to Beast Wars taking place within the continuity of the original Transformers series...
. During the series, it was revealed that, following the conclusion of the Beast Wars that the early humans got tired of Waspinator, despite having worshipped him as a deity, and forced him to leave (although he claimed he was tired of them and left because he missed Cybertron). How he got home afterwards was never revealed, though he did say "Took forever, but waaayyy worth it". Even writer Bob Skir mentioned in his website that "someone someday has to explain to me how he hitchhiked his way home..." http://bigbot.com/beast-machines-transformers-bob-skir/Beast-Machines-FAQ/Wed_19_Jan_2000.html It is possible that he just flew under his own power and it took him so long to reach Cybertron that he arrived just prior to the Maximals exiting from transwarp space.
Thrust was the only one of the original three Vehicon Generals who was able to remember on his own that he used to be someone else. For a while, Blackarachnia believed that this someone else was Silverbolt, since Thrust kept displaying a soft spot for the she-spider. She was disappointed to learn that Thrust was not Silverbolt, but the Predacon
Predacon (Transformers)
The Predacons usually refer to the name of several fictional Decepticon-like teams led by Megatron, however Transformers: Armada, Predacon is the name of a single character.-Transformers: Generation 1:...
Waspinator. Waspinator had been left on prehistoric Earth, to be worshiped by the early humans, but Waspinator accidentally boringly flung a pebble at a human who was building a statue to worship his "godlike" performance, and chased him off. Somehow he returned to Cybertron where his spark was extracted by Megatron and reprogrammed into Thrust. Waspinator was actually very pleased to be inside the "cool biker-bot" because "Chick-bots dig 'brooding loner' bit! " Each of the three original Vehicon Generals had their own personalized command codes; Thrust's was: "Thrust Overdrive!!"
With Cybertron's reformatting at the end of the series, Waspinator was reformatted into a surprisingly small technorganic wasp, but with the head of Thrust. He was then swatted by Rattrap and sent spiraling away through the air. His final line in this series is an ironic contrast to his last on Beast Wars. Bob Skir referred to this version of Waspinator as Thrustinator in the DVD commentary of the last episode.
3H Enterprises
In the Transformers: UniverseTransformers: Universe
Transformers: Universe is a line of toys that consists of re-painted and re-released toys from various Transformers lines of toys. For the comic book series see Transformers Universe .- Toy line :...
storyline Thrust would return in his Vehicon form as one of the many Transformers kidnapped by Unicron from alternate timelines.
The original Waspinator also put in an appearance in the BotCon voice actor play. When Rhinox
Rhinox
Rhinox is the name of three fictional characters from various Transformers universes.-Beast Wars:Rhinox's character in the Beast Wars television series is very different from how the toy was depicted. As one of the first year toys, the toy of Rhinox was created before the television series came...
's attempts to stop Unicron pulling victims from alternate realities resulted in two groups of dimensionally-displaced Autobots being marooned on frozen planetoids, Waspinator, on the side of good for once, was sent alongside Silverbolt and Rattrap to help. They ended up battling Unicron's minions alongside a crew of time lost Autobots (Bumblebee
Bumblebee (Transformers)
Bumblebee is the name of several fictional characters from the various Transformers universes. In most incarnations, Bumblebee is a small, yellow Autobot with the altmode of a compact car.- Transformers: Generation 1 :...
, Cosmos
Cosmos (Transformers)
Cosmos is the name of several fictional characters in the various Transformers universes. He is sometimes referred to as "Autobot Cosmos" for trademark purposes.Wired Magazine once nominated him as one of the 12 most ridiculous Transformers of all time....
and Tracks
Tracks (Transformers)
Tracks is a character in the Transformers Universes. The name is now too generic to license in recent times; so the toys creator, Hasbro had to add a "modifier" - a prefix to the name in order to use it on their product, in this case the name became "Autobot Tracks" or "Turbo...
) and the two groups of Autobots they had been sent to help (both from the RiD
Transformers: Robots in Disguise
Transformers: Robots in Disguise, known in Japan as , is a Japanese anime television series and serves as a self-contained universe separate from any of the other existing Transformers universes...
universes), and, with Rhinox's help, sent them back to their own times and realities.
Fun Publications
The Predacon General now known as MegatronMegatron (Beast Wars and Beast Machines)
The Beast Wars and Beast Machines version of Megatron is the main antagonist from the aforementioned parts of the Transformers animated series, toy lines, and multiverse...
gathered a crew of like-minded individuals. While Waspinator and Terrorsaur
Terrorsaur
Terrorsaur is the name of several fictional characters from the world of Transformers universes.Terror-Saur is an amalgamate of terror and saur .-Beast Wars:...
stole a ship, Megatron, Dinobot
Dinobot
Dinobot is a fictional character from the Beast Wars Transformers universe.-Beast Wars:Dinobot originally debuts in the series' premiere as a subordinate of Megatron, leader of the villainous Predacons. However, Dinobot challenges Megatron's leadership, and is shortly expelled from his crew. He...
and Scorponok
Scorponok
Scorponok is the name shared by several fictional characters in the various Transformers universes. All are Decepticons that turn into Scorpoins.- Transformers: Generation 1:...
stole the Golden Disk
Golden Disk
-Beast Wars:The Golden Disk is a relic from the Beast Wars Transformers timeline, and a key plot device for the events of the show. Considered a revered artifact, it is actually the Voyager Golden Record, which includes information on Earth and humanity, and is presumably the only source of...
artifact, battling the guards and destroying one, disabling a second, and leaving a third to commandeer a ship to pursue them. Waspinator would lose a contest to name the ship with Terrorsaur, christening it the Darksyde (Waspinator's choice being "Buzzerbot"). Picking up the others, they fled and were pursued by two ships: one of which was the Axalon
Axalon
The Axalon is the name of the fictional Maximal ship in the Beast Wars cartoon and comic books. In addition, in the Transformers: Armada cartoon, the Autobots constructed a space ship that was also named the Axalon, possibly in reference to the original Maximal ship.-History:The Axalon, commanded...
commanded by Optimus Primal
Optimus Primal
Optimus Primal is a fictional character from the Transformers toyline, and the leader of the Maximal forces and the main protagonist in the Beast Wars television series. He is sometimes called Optimal Optimus...
, the other the Chromia 10 piloted by Airazor. With a little help from Laserbeak
Laserbeak
Laserbeak is the name given to several fictional characters in the various Transformers universes. He is almost always a mechanical bird, and is partnered with Soundwave.-Transformers: Generation 1:...
and Buzzsaw (secretly sent by Divebomb to ensure Megatron's plan to change history succeeded) they destroyed one of their pursuers, and the newly christened Darksyde fled into Transwarp space, with the Axalon in pursuit - thus beginning the Beast Wars.
Beast Wars Second Galvatron, Megastorm and the technorganic Predacon Waspinator appeared together in the story Wreckers: Finale Part II by the Transformers Collectors Club in 2007. During the invasion of Cybertron by the Quintessons the Predacons worked together to ambush a Quintesson contingent commanded by Overseer Vashik. Vashik's troops were caught in a pool of molten magma and destroyed.
IDW Publishing
Waspinator had a biography printed in the Beast Wars Sourcebook by IDW PublishingIDW Publishing
IDW Publishing, also known as Idea + Design Works, LLC and IDW, is an American publisher of comic books and comic strip collections. The company was founded in 1999 and has been awarded the title "Publisher of the Year Under 5% Market Share" for the years 2004, 2005 and 2006 by Diamond Comic...
.
Other media
Waspinator appears among the characters in Re-Unification, the 2010 TFcon voice actor play prelude comic.Honors
For BotConBotCon
BotCon, briefly known as "The Official Transformers Collectors' Convention" , is an annual convention for Transformers fans and collectors. BotCon has been held annually since 1994...
2011, Hasbro named Waspinator as the "Fans' Choice" robot inductee in the Transformers Hall of Fame, beating Shockwave
Shockwave (Transformers)
Shockwave is the name of several fictional characters in the various Transformers series. Throughout his incarnations, he is usually distinguished by a laser cannon in lieu of one of his hands and his distinctive face, which is featureless save a single robotic eye...
, Grimlock
Grimlock
Grimlock is the name of several fictional characters in the Transformers universes. He is usually portrayed as a tough leader who turns into a mechanical dinosaur...
, Jazz
Jazz (Transformers)
Jazz is the name of a fictional character from the various Transformers universes. He is usually portrayed as a music loving robot and talks with a slang accent. He is also a good friend of Optimus Prime's...
and Erector
Erector (Transformers)
Erector is a fictional character in the Transformers series introduced in 1989. He was nominated as a fan's choice for the Transformers Hall of Fame in 2011. He is sometimes called "Autobot Erector" for trademark purposes by Hasbro, and is called Cragun in Japan.- Transformers: Generation 1...
. He is the second Beast Wars character to be given this honor.
Toys
- Beast Wars
- The original Waspinator toy featured two different heads for his humanoid robot mode. One more human-like and another more insect-like. The insect one was featured in the show as his only head in robot mode. On his redeco, Buzzsaw, they utilized the human-like head to make the characters more distinctive.
- The original Waspinator toy was recolored as Buzz Saw, then remolded into Dirgegun in the Japanese Beast Wars II TV Show.
- An interesting note is that the original issue of Waspinator was composed with many ball and swivel joints that more than easily separated when little force was applied, making him a little more show accurate than would be expected.
- Beast Wars Deluxe Transmetal Waspinator
- In the toyline, Waspinator was a deadly and efficient aerial warrior, who ended up becoming a transmetal with a tertiary mode of a fighter-jet. His jet mode slightly resembled a Mirage 4000, a comparable aircraft to the F-15 which StarscreamStarscream (Transformers)Starscream is a fictional character in the Transformers franchise. He is one of the most prolific characters in the Transformers fictional work, appearing in almost all incarnations of the story. Starscream is usually portrayed with the same characterization...
originally transformed into.- Beast Wars Fox Kids Transmetal Deluxe Waspinator
- A redeco of transmetal Waspinator, done in the colors of Beast Wars Buzzsaw, but oddly still called Waspinator.
- Beast Machines Deluxe Thrust
- A Deluxe sized toy was released for Thrust by Hasbro. His Cycle-Drones were made into Basic sized figures utilizing brand new molds. Oddly enough the Cycle-Drone toys looked more like Thrust in the television series than the Thrust toy did.
- Beast MachinesHappy Meal Thrust
- A smaller version of Thrust was also made as a toy which was included in children's fast food meals.
- Beast Wars Returns Scout Thrust
- A redeco of the Motorcycle Drone toy that was only released in Japan, as part of their 2005 Beast Machines (called Beast Wars Returns there) line. This version is far more show-accurate than the original, owing to its more recent mold and the fact that the show had been around for a longer time when it was released.
- Universe Transmetal Waspinator (unreleased)
- There were plans to release a Transformers: Universe toy of Waspinator, a repaint of the transmetal Waspinator, part of a Halloween Horrorcons 2 pack, but the toy would never be released. However, Waspinator did appear in the 2004 Botcon voice actor play.
- Beast Wars 10th Anniversary Deluxe Waspinator (2005)
- In 2005 the original Waspinator toy was repainted in more show accurate colors and re-released for the 10th Anniversary of Beast Wars.
- Timelines
- A toy of Waspinator in his pre-Beast War vehicle mode was released as a BotConBotConBotCon, briefly known as "The Official Transformers Collectors' Convention" , is an annual convention for Transformers fans and collectors. BotCon has been held annually since 1994...
2006 exclusive toy. This toy is a remold of Machine Wars SkywarpSkywarpSkywarp is the name of several fictional characters in the Transformers toy line. He is usually depicted as a black or purple Decepticon jet with teleportation powers.-Transformers: Generation 1:...
. He turned into a Saab Gripen jet. This was supposed to represent Waspinator on Cybertron before the Beast Wars.
Transformers Animated
Waspinator is introduced as former Elite Guard trainee, named Wasp, around the same time as Bumblebee, both being of the same model with similar abilities, though Wasp is faster, stronger, angrier, and arrogant in personality. Due to LongarmShockwave (Transformers)
Shockwave is the name of several fictional characters in the various Transformers series. Throughout his incarnations, he is usually distinguished by a laser cannon in lieu of one of his hands and his distinctive face, which is featureless save a single robotic eye...
's intervention, Wasp ended up being his scapegoat when Bumblebee believed Wasp to be the double agent working for Megatron. Though it was truly Shockwave disguised as Longarm who was the double agent, using Bumblebee's blind conviction to his own advantage. In the flashbacks, Wasp's color scheme consists of light green and yellow with black highlights, and he has the signature Autobot blue eye color.
By the time of his introduction, Wasp resembles more of his Beast Wars version in both eye/body color and speech pattern. But once converted into Waspinator, his design is very similar to his original Beast Wars CGI model but with a smaller second set of arms that jut from his sides. Originally able to talk normally as a cadet, his time in the Stockade rendered him to speak in a brooding voice that mimics the ravings of The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings is a high fantasy epic written by English philologist and University of Oxford professor J. R. R. Tolkien. The story began as a sequel to Tolkien's earlier, less complex children's fantasy novel The Hobbit , but eventually developed into a much larger work. It was written in...
Sméagol/Gollum
Gollum
Gollum is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium. He was introduced in the author's fantasy novel The Hobbit, and became an important supporting character in its sequel, The Lord of the Rings....
, speaking in Waspinator's trademark third-person and adding "-bot" to the names of fellow Transformers. (ex. Bumblebee=Bumblebot)
In his upgraded technorganic form he can fly and shoot stinger lasers from his robot mode hands or his beast mode forelimbs. He is also much larger and more powerful as a technorganic being. According to his toy bio and as seen on the show, Wasp can survive being blown to pieces, just as the original Waspinator famously could. It is unclear, however, if this is a side-effect of his mutation or if Wasp has had this ability from the start.
One notable difference between this newer Waspinator and his Beast Wars counterpart, was that whilst the original Waspinator was a bumbling idiot unlike his Animated counterpart had a murderous, psychotic and deadly personality.
David Kaye
David Kaye
David V. Hope , known professionally as David Kaye, is a Canadian American actor who is better recognized for his work as a voice actor...
said at TFcon 2010 that the creators wanted to get Scott McNeil
Scott McNeil
Scott McNeil is a Canadian actor and voice actor. He currently resides in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada...
to voice Waspinator, but since he could not work in the US without a permat, they were unable to get him to revise his role.
Animated series
Wasp made his debut in the opening scenes of the episode "Autoboot Camp" when he broke out of his imprisonment and escaped his former drill sergant Sentinel MinorSentinel Prime
Sentinel Prime is the name of several fictional characters in the various Transformers series. First mention of Sentinel Prime was in issue #65 of the US Marvel Comics Transformers series, where he was mentioned to hold the Autobot Matrix of Leadership before Optimus Prime. Sentinel Prime has since...
via Space Bridge
Space Bridge
In Marvel Comics' Transformers comic and cartoon, the Space Bridge is a device used by the Decepticons to travel between different planets, usually between Cybertron and Earth.-Generation One:...
. However, the long imprisonment reduced Wasp into a completely cold and impassive shell of his former ego, seeking vengeance
Revenge
Revenge is a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance, be it real or perceived. It is also called payback, retribution, retaliation or vengeance; it may be characterized, justly or unjustly, as a form of justice.-Function in society:Some societies believe that the...
on Bumblebee for ruining his life. Though hunting him down on the impression he was heading to Megatron, Bumblebee would learn from Shockwave the truth that he really sent an innocent bot to the Stockade. Being pursued by a small team composed of Jazz
Jazz (Transformers)
Jazz is the name of a fictional character from the various Transformers universes. He is usually portrayed as a music loving robot and talks with a slang accent. He is also a good friend of Optimus Prime's...
, Sentinel Prime, Jetfire
Jetfire
Jetfire is the name of several fictional characters from the Transformers universes. He is nearly always depicted as an Autobot with jet or space shuttle alternate mode.-Transformers: Generation 1:...
and Jetstorm
Jetstorm
Jetstorm is the name of several characters in the fictional Transformers universes.-Transformers: Generation 2 :The name Jetstorm was first used in the Transformers toyline on two different toys released on two different continents; however both characters were Aquaspeeders - toys that could shoot...
, Wasp managed to get to Earth in order to get his revenge. Though Bumblebee attempted to explain what had happened, Wasp was bent to make him suffer just like he had, knocking him out before swapping paint jobs, helmets and voice synthezisers with him, so Bumblebee could take his place while he remained free. To further the trick, Wasp downloaded information from the earth Autobots' computer to know everything he knows. However, when his deception ultimately failed, Wasp used Bumblebee as a shield to make an escape.
After being found, Wasp attempted to evade his Autobot captors as they cornered him, refusing to go back to the Stockade. It was only when two of his pursuers, Optimus Prime and Sentinel Prime, begin arguing over what to do with him that Wasp escaped before being abducted by Swoop
Swoop (Transformers)
Swoop is the name of several fictional characters in the Transformers fictional series and toy line. He was first introduced in 1985 and was voiced by Michael Bell in the animated The Transformers series.-Transformers: Generation 1:...
. Swoop took Wasp to Dinobot Island and dropped him before Blackarachnia, whom he fell in love with. Blackarachnia used her charm and mutual past of Autobot betrayal to gain Wasp's trust, using it to make him step into her transwarp generator and be exposed to its energy along with Wasp
Wasp
The term wasp is typically defined as any insect of the order Hymenoptera and suborder Apocrita that is neither a bee nor an ant. Almost every pest insect species has at least one wasp species that preys upon it or parasitizes it, making wasps critically important in natural control of their...
DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
. A few cycles (minutes) later, as Sentinel confronted Blackarachina, Wasp exited the generator as Waspinator to protect his friend. During the fight, Waspinator entered the hallway and ran into Bumblebee. Bumblebee tried to apologize for sending Wasp to the Stockade, and though Waspinator said "Wasp" forgave Bumblebee, he angrily stated that "Waspinator would never forgive him." Waspinator was about to blast Bumblebee when the transwarp radiation stored inside him became unstable, followed by Waspinator overhearing Blackarachnia's rant of using him to suit her own ends. Enraged for being betrayed again, Waspinator followed Blackarachnia outside and tried to kill her, but he went critical with Blackarachnia spinning a chrysalis around her and Waspinator so only they were effected by the energy. Ending up in an African jungle in pieces, Waspinator began to put himself back together, stating that he had "plans". Unfortunately, with the series having ended after its third season, his objectives are a mystery.
Toys
- Animated Deluxe Waspinator (2009)
- A Deluxe sized mold depicting Waspinator's techno-organic waspWaspThe term wasp is typically defined as any insect of the order Hymenoptera and suborder Apocrita that is neither a bee nor an ant. Almost every pest insect species has at least one wasp species that preys upon it or parasitizes it, making wasps critically important in natural control of their...
mode.- Animated Deluxe Fugitive Waspinator (cancelled)
- A green redeco of the Animated Deluxe Bumblebee. This was mentioned, but not yet shown at the 2009 BotConBotConBotCon, briefly known as "The Official Transformers Collectors' Convention" , is an annual convention for Transformers fans and collectors. BotCon has been held annually since 1994...
. It was later shown in the slide show at the 2009 San Diego Comic-Con International. On the back of the packaging of Deluxe Cybertron Mode Ironhide, a picture of the figure is shown. It is unknown if Hasbro will indeed release this figure.- Animated
- The Japan release version by Takara TomyTakara Tomyis a Japanese toy, children's merchandise and entertainment company created from the March 2006 merger of two companies: Tomy and long-time rival, Takara...
is virtually identical to the Hasbro version, with the exception of a silver wasp head and a purple Decepticon emblem. Set for release in Japan on August 2010.