Transmetals
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Transmetals is a subline of Beast Wars featuring toys with mechanical animal modes and organic robot modes. The subline was released in conjunction with Beast Wars
In the fiction, Transmetal technology is an adaptation accidentally discovered by the Beast Wars era Transformers. During a transwarp explosion which claimed the life of Optimus Primal, a "quantum surge" was created which had several repercussions for the Beast Wars. Rattrap, Cheetor, the reincarnated Optimus Primal, Tarantulas, and Megatron were all changed by the wave into the first generation of Transmetals. Rampage and Depth Charge also became subjected to this, and several expanded universe Transformers also underwent the process.
The Transmetal technology allows the Transformers to withstand and actually absorb raw Energon radiation and exist in a non-beast mode in these environments without issue. In addition, Transmetals can utilize a "vehicle" mode, such as wheeled (Rattrap, Tarantulas) or flight (Megatron, Cheetor, Primal). Although not explicitly stated in the cartoons or comics, it's hinted at in the toy series' tech specs that the quantum surge Transmetalization process essentially turned the Transformers 'inside out', making their alt modes the one that is largely mechanical, instead of the other way around as normal. Transmetal 2 technology blur the lines between which mode has the technological and which has the organic, making them partially techno-organic, though far less refined than the process used in Beast Machines.
Later, through experimentation with a Vok device, Megatron was able to create Transmetal 2 Transformers, stronger than the original Transmetals. The first Transmetals 2 were a clone Megatron created of Dinobot, and Cheetor, who was accidentally exposed to the machine while fighting with Dinobot. They were later joined by Blackarachnia, who sought the extra power she would gain by such a transformation.
Although their toys were marketed as Transmetals 2, Tigerhawk and Megatron's new dragon form are not technically Transmetals 2 in the series; they did not use the Vok's Transmetal Driver to obtain their Transmetal forms like the other Transmetal 2 characters in the series. However, in IDW Publishing's mini-series Beast Wars: The Gathering some of the stasis pods discovered had been turned into Transmetal 2s because of interference from the quantam wave responsible for the original Transmetals, implying that the Transmetal Driver is not the only way of obtaining a Transmetal 2 body.
Transmetal characters were often characterized by having a third vehicle inspired form, whereas Transmetal 2 characters were characterized by non-symmetrical mixtures of machine and beast.
One thing to note, is that in the cartoon, a few Beast Wars Transformers were not changed into Transmetals by the quantum surge, although they did have transmetal toys. While their lack of Transmetalized forms in the cartoon was explained for a few characters (specifically, Rhinox and Waspinator, who were both in CR chambers recouperating from damage, and Terrorsaur, who died during his Transmetallization)), the others weren't (Blackarachnia, Airazor, Inferno, and Tigatron)); however as these characters were all introduced as being 'born' from stasis pods who had landed on Earth prior to the wave, it is assumed by fans that this lent them protection from the wave.
In the Dreamwave comic book series, the term Transmetal was expanded to include any Transformer with a metallic alternate mode - therefore all the Generation One cars, jets and other machines were technically Transmetals. When used to describe a character with a beast mode, any with a robotic/metal beast form would be considered transmetal - for example Dinobot Grimlock turned into a transmetal dinosaur.
In the IDW Beast Wars comics more protoforms emerge from stasis pods - some normal, some transmetal or transmetal II, some fuzors and some mutants. It's assumed damage to them from the quantum wave and their crashing to Earth caused these variations.
List of Transmetal (I) Toys - sans later repaints and remolds
- Maximals
- * Optimus Primal
- * Rhinox
- * Cheetor
- * Airazor
- * Rattrap
- * Depth Charge (no "normal" version)
- Predacons
- * Megatron
- * Tarantulas
- * Waspinator
- * Terrorsaur
- * Scavenger (Inferno)
- * Rampage (no "normal" version)
Trivia
- Visually Scavenger looks like a Transmetalized Inferno. The prototype was even called Transmetal Inferno and many fans still call it that. Furthermore he was released as TM Inferno in Japan. It's speculated the change was made to keep the copyright for "Scavenger".
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