Transformers: Generation 1
| Roadbuster | |
|---|---|
| Transformers character | |
| Information | |
| Affiliation | Autobot |
| Sub-group | Deluxe Cars, Deluxe Vehicles, Wreckers |
| Function | Ground Assault Commander |
| Rank | 8 |
| Motto | "War is a dirty business...and I'm as dirty as they come." |
| Alternate modes | Armored 4WD Vehicle M1117 Armored Security Vehicle |
Roadbuster's bio described him as happiest when he is in battle destroying Decepticons. While he is an inspiring presence and natural leader in battle, he doesn't adapt well to the quiet times between battles. He gets bored and restless easily and does not socialize well with his comrades.
Animated series
Roadbuster was among those Transformers toys that did not appear in the Transformers animated series because the show was going to appear in Japan, where the toy was owned by Takara's rivals.
Comics
Dreamwave Productions
Roadbuster appeared in the second War Within comic series by Dreamwave as a member of the Wreckers led by Springer. He later appeared in the Transformers: Micromasters series, as the Micromaster Hot Rod Patrol attempted to retrieve his remains.
Transformers: Micromasters was a four-issue comic book limited series released in 2004 which takes place in between the War Within and the Generation 1 series. The main focus of the series is the Micromasters subline of Transformers, though it did have some cameos of notable G1 regulars. The first issue alone sold well over 40 thousand copies in total, exceeding all other single issues of Dreamwave Transformers titles in that release period, including their best-selling Generation One series and their lowest-selling regular series Transformers: Energon.
Roadbuster appeared in the second volume of the Generation 1 comic and aided Ultra Magnus in fighting the rampaging Menasor. He later appeared again alongside Defensor and other Autobots to aid Grimlock to defeat a Sentinel.
Ultra Magnus is a fictional robot superhero character from the various Transformers storylines in the Transformers robot superhero franchise, generally appearing as a chief lieutenant of Optimus Prime.
Grimlock is the name of several fictional robot characters in the Transformers robot franchise. He is usually portrayed as the leader of the Dinobots, a subfaction of Autobots that can transform into dinosaurs. In 2007, USA Today polled people as to which Transformer they want to appear in the second installment in the Transformers film series; Grimlock came in tied for second with Devastator.
IDW Publishing
Roadbuster appeared in issue #2 of Megatron Origin. In this story, set on ancient Cybertron he was a member of an Autobot security force in the city of Kaon. His squad was hunting the operators of gladiatorial contests in the degenerate slums, particularly Megatron.
In particle physics, a kaon, also called a K meson and denoted
K
, is any of a group of four mesons distinguished by a quantum number called strangeness. In the quark model they are understood to be bound states of a strange quark and an up or down antiquark.
Roadbuster, in Cybertronian form, appeared in issue #2 of the Stormbringer series by IDW Productions. He aided Springer's Wreckers on the planet Varas Centralus in the Kol system when Optimus Prime redeployed the Wreckers for a mission on Cybertron. He fought the cultists under Bludgeon and later fought Thunderwing himself to provide covering fire for Twin Twist and Topspin - but was taken out by Thunderwing's shockwave attack. He was later seen inspecting Thunderwing's inert body.
The Transformers: Stormbringer is a comic book mini-series, published by IDW Publishing.
Optimus Prime, known in Japan as Convoy, is a fictional character from the Transformers franchise. He is a Cybertronian, an extraterrestrial species of sentient self-configuring modular robotic lifeforms, a synergistic blend of biological evolution and technological engineering. In almost every version of the mythos, Optimus is the leader of the Autobots, a faction of Transformers who are rivals of the Decepticons, another faction. He is defined by his strong moral character and is almost always portrayed as the primary hero of the story, opposing the evil Decepticon leader Megatron.
Cybertron is a fictional planet, the homeworld of the Transformers in the various fictional incarnations of the metaseries and toyline by Hasbro. In the Japanese series, the planet is referred to as "Cybertron" pronounced as Sabertron セイバートロン Seibātoron. Cybertron is populated by mechanical self-configuring modular lifeforms of variable size who can transform into all kinds of machinery. These are called Cybertronians, or Transformers.
Marvel Comics
Roadbuster made several appearances in the Marvel U.K. comic as a member of the Wreckers led by Impactor and later Springer. He was part of the Wreckers for many of the Marvel stories, taking part in such missions as Operation: Volcano, an Autobot resistance plan to remove some of the Decepticon's most lethal operatives (which was foiled by the presence of the future Decepticon's arrival on Earth Galvatron Cyclonus and Scourge) and stopping the mad scientist Flame's plan to turn Cybertron into a warworld. It was during a later mission to stop Galvatron (at the centre of a rift in time and space) that the Wreckers encountered Galvatron and his ally - a clone of Megatron, and the elite squad was routed. Although Roadbuster managed to destroy half of Galvatron's face with an experimental weapon, he was killed when the weapon blew up in his face.
Galvatron is a name adopted by several fictional characters in the Transformers robot superhero franchise. He is usually the recreated form of Megatron, the Decepticon leader; however, it has been used for separate and unrelated characters, most notably the main villain of the anime series Beast Wars II, and the character from the more recent IDW Publishing G1 series.
TFcon comics
Roadbuster appears in the TFcon 2012 live script reading prelude comic. In this story is a member of the Wreckers who confront the Constructicons and Predacons on prehistoric Earth. [1]
Toys
- Generation 1 Roadbuster (1986)
- The toy company Hasbro licensed a robot toy from the Japanese anime series Dorvack (1983–1984) to sell under the new name Roadbuster. The original robot was "VV-54 AR Mugen Calibur", and Katsumi Itabashi and Nobuyoshi Haraba designed the mechanics in Dorvack. [2]
- The Deluxe Autobots were larger and more intricate than most of the other Autobot toys of 1985. [3]
- In the 1980s Transformers were such a success that Hasbro wanted to get as much product out on the shelves with the Transformers name on it as possible. Since they were running out of old Takara molds to use, they obtained licences to use the molds of other companies' robot toys in the Transformers line. Roadbuster, Shockwave, Jetfire, Omega Supreme, Whirl, Chop Shop, Venom, Barrage and Ransack were among those molds. With the licences to those toys now expired Hasbro and Takara no longer have legal rights to those figures and cannot reissue them. [4]
- The same toy was imported in the Convertors toy line in the 1980s as the Defenders Wheels.
- Universe Basic Roadbuster (unreleased)
- A remold of Energon Strongarm was planned as a BotCon exclusive and as an homage to Generation 1 Roadbuster, but it never made it past concept art. This toy was supposed to represent an upgrade of Roadbuster in the Transformers: Universe story.
- Universe Deluxe Roadbuster
- A recolor of Cybertron Cybertron Defense Hot Shot. Part of a Target Exclusive Two-Pack with Dirge dubbed "Autobot Ambush".
