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Though a member of the Cybertron Elite Guard, Jazz is a bit of an independent thinker. He’s reluctant to disobey orders, but he has more of an appreciation for the finer things than his compatriots. This is evidenced in his better choice of vehicle mode disguise, a “sweet ride” drawn from Earth culture. He is also a Cyber-Ninja, like Prowl, although his training is more progressed. Instead of ninja stars, however, Jazz uses a pair of nunchaku. He seems to be the only one of the Elite Guard willing to learn, and fits in with the Earth team pretty well.

He is incredibly cool.

From Teletraan 1

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Ultra Magnus is the Supreme Commander of the Autobots and the leader of the Cybertron Elite Guard. Ultra Magnus is everything you could hope for in a leader; fair, decisive, powerful and not afraid to get his hands dirty. While he is not slow in delivering criticism, he’s as willing to dole out praise where it’s deserved. Originally, he seems to have had a low opinion of Optimus Prime, but after seeing the young leader in action, he recognizes accomplishment when he sees it.

His earth altmode is an 8-wheeled Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck. It doesn’t exactly help him fit in.

He has a hammer the size of a lamp post that helps him deal with things. A handy weapon, you say? It can also call upon storm clouds and shoot lightning.

Like Ratchet, he is a veteran of the Great War.

From Teletraan 1

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Swoop is a Pteranodon Dinobot. He prefers his nice, quiet island to the mainland, but doesn’t say no to crossing over for the odd battle. Not only is it fun to see humans scatter at the sight of him, bashing Decepticons with his flaming flail is more fun than bashing trees.

From Teletraan 1

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Snarl is a Triceratops Dinobot. Built quite a bit better than a tank, there’s nothing he enjoys more than taking the nearest solid object and headbutting it. It’s not so much the mindless destruction he likes, it’s just that Snarl thoroughly enjoys being strong, and smashing things to powder seems like the best way of expressing this. And if he needs to mix things up a little, being able to breathe fire hot enough to melt a garbage truck helps.

From Teletraan 1

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Grimlock is a Tyrannosaurus rex in charge of a small, three-mech group of dinosaur transformers known as the Dinobots. Born from a fusion of Earth and Cybertronian technology, with some AllSpark intervention thrown in, he’s a force to be reckoned with. A little short on brains (at first he didn’t actually realise he was a Transformer) and a lot short on temper, Grimlock’s answer to a problem is usually the simplest: squash it, slash it, bite it, burn it, or eat it.

Physically, Grimlock is one of the most powerful Transformers, with enough brute strength to give even the likes of Megatron pause for thought. In his beast mode, his powerful jaws and flame breath give him excellent short- and long-range combat abilities, while his flaming sword is an effective weapon in robot mode. Factor in his temper, and facing Grimlock can be a terrifying experience.

Currently, Grimlock and his fellow Dinobots are living on an island in Lake Erie, hidden there by Prowl and Bulkhead from the rest of the world. But don’t think he’s not willing to come to the mainland, find the biggest con around and feed ‘em their own chassis after he’s eaten his fill of it. After all, him Grimlock badass.

From Teletraan 1

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Some people are team players, and some…well, aren’t. Prowl falls into the latter category. A loner at heart, he has little interest in teamwork, something Optimus Prime finds extremely frustrating. Prowl feels cooperation with the loud and unsubtle Autobots around him would cramp his style: a keen cyber ninja prowess with elements of Circuit-Su and Metallikato.

Seemingly bound up in his martial-arts philosophy is his deep, deep fascination with Earth’s natural environment. His quarters on Earth is missing most of its ceiling, allowing him a permanent window into nature. In fact, he seems to have a deeper appreciation of his new surroundings than the humans who grew up with them. The phrase “stop and smell the roses” is a life truth for Prowl, and he can spend hours motionless, watching the organic world play out around him.

When called to battle, Prowl uses an array of throwing weapons, such as cutting discs, that he can hurl with high accuracy. While useful as projectiles, these weapons tend to be far more damaging at close range and will occasionally bounce off their target with little damage if thrown from too great a distance. He can project holograms of himself, using them to misdirect his enemies. He is also the only member of his team with a jetpack, granting him limited flight.

Prowl is probably the most skilled fighter of his comrades, but this might not be saying much, as they were a mere space bridge repair crew before finding themselves suddenly defending the AllSpark against the resurgent Decepticons. In fact, Jazz, witnessing him in action, remarked that Prowl must not have “finished” his cyber ninja training. Perhaps that might provide a clue as to why a martial artist like Prowl was assigned to that oft-maligned repair duty.

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Before the Great Wars, Ratchet was a civilian mechanic, and one of the best on all of Cybertron. But war is hell, and Ratchet learned that all too well. It left him bitter and cynical. After the war, he got himself placed in a dead end position of repairing space bridges, seeing it as a chance to get away from what he had experienced. And in his experience, “hero” is another word for casualty, because that’s what most of the heroes ended up being. Still, he knows one when he sees it, and Optimus Prime definitely is one.

His main “weapons” are two electromagnets that can extend from his forearms. With them, he can move metal-based objects, manipulate metallic objects in midair, or create magnetic shields. More recently, he won his electromagnetic pulse generator back from Lockdown the bounty hunter, a device capable of knocking out a Transformer.

He enjoys grumbling about almost everything, being sarcastic, and having war flashbacks, just like any old man.

But he’s not Kup.

Honestly.

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Bulkhead isn’t quite your typical mudflap. Oh he really is a big clumsy mountain of a robot with a simple, untutored nature, but scratch that surface and you’ll find both surprising depths and a spark of pure gold. Sure, Bulkhead enjoys goofing around with Bumblebee and “smashin’ stuff” now and then, but he also has a constructive, artistic side he longs to express. He’s loyal to his core and unswervingly dedicated both to doing the right thing, to his friends and to his dreams. For Bulkhead, entering the Autobot boot camp wasn’t a road to glory or adventure but a way to reach his dream of becoming a real, honest-to-gosh space bridge technician.

Physically, Bulkhead is easily the strongest of the Autobots, with his power often used to wield the tethered wrecking balls he can switch out for his fists. Yet he’s quite gentle by nature and is very curious about humans, especially since they give him an opportunity to explore his artistic side. It’s a pity that he’s a bit of a lummox…okay, he’s a lot of a lummox. You’ll always be glad you spent time with Bulkhead… just make sure you put any breakables away beforehand.

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Bumblebee is the youngest, yellowest, and most energetic of the Autobots…as usual. A hyperactive wisecracker, Bumblebee is quite convinced he’s the fastest—and coolest—thing on four wheels.
He has a tendency to bite off more than he can chew, so it’s a good thing he pals around with the massive Bulkhead. He does not take well to being called short, and his over-eager ways can get on Ratchet’s nerves all too easily. Still, Bumblebee is good people, as evidenced by his fast friendship with Sari Sumdac.

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Click here for Optimus Prime Action Figures

A washout from the Elite Guard, Optimus Prime was reassigned to space bridge repair duty under the supervision of Ratchet. He is a relatively naive and idealistic young leader, prone to long-winded “inspirational” speeches who leads a small and inexperienced Autobot space bridge maintenance team Recently, his crew has landed on Earth, adopted jobs as semi-official superheroes and currently live in an abandoned Sumdac Systems warehouse.

Despite his humble “Bot Next Door” persona, he performs his job with a dedicated seriousness. He transforms into a red truck cab that can be fitted with many kinds of “trailer” attachments (most notably one that makes him look like a fire engine) and wields a kick-ass, rocket-propelled, extendable battle axe, as well as multiple arm mounted modifications, including grappler cables, fire extinguishers and bola-whip throwers.

Sentinel Prime sneers at Optimus’s lowly repair job, and Supreme Commander Ultra Magnus once held the young officer in low regard. More than anything, Prime wished to be a hero. He’s got the speeches, he’s got the moves…but what could he be missing? Maybe The Touch?

But since coming to Earth, Optimus has learned the truth about heroism. It’s not about glory and destiny, it’s about doing the right thing and going to your limit and beyond. Ratchet, for all his cynicism, knows that Prime is a hero, and after seeing him in action, Ultra Magnus himself admitted that Optimus has the qualities of a true leader.