Shockwave (TFA)


 * Shockwave is a Decepticon from the Transformers Animated continuity family.



Shockwave is a covert agent in service to Megatron. This size-changing master of disguise has infiltrated Autobot security apparatus at the highest level: his cover persona is Longarm Prime, head of Cybertron Intelligence, reporting directly to Ultra Magnus himself. This puts Shockwave in the perfect position to undermine and mislead the Autobots while feeding strategic information to his true master. To establish his credibility, "Longarm" attended the Autobot boot camp alongside Bumblebee and Bulkhead.

Befitting a double agent, Shockwave is highly secretive and fearful of detection. Befitting a cartoon villain, he can confidently give those secrets away if he thinks he's winning.

"Everything is going as planned, o great one."

- Shockwave, the competent Lugnut

Animated cartoon

 * Voice actor: Corey Burton (English), Helmut Gauß (German)

Shockwave was recruited by Megatron because his mass-shifting abilities allowed him to impersonate effectively a wide variety of Transformer shapes and sizes, making it difficult for Autobots to track him accurately during missions of infiltration and sabotage. It was these traits which led to Megatron sending him to enlist in the Autobot armed services as a means of climbing the ranks and eventually taking the organization down from within.

Disguising himself as "Longarm", Shockwave enrolled in Autobot boot camp, but slipped up in the early days of training and was overheard reporting to Megatron by the black sheep recruit, Bumblebee. Although Shockwave managed to avoid detection right away, Bumblebee was tipped off to the presence of a traitor in the camp and suspected fellow recruit Wasp, whom he spotted leaving the building shortly afterward. Bumblebee turned to the espionage-savvy Longarm for advice, and Shockwave used the opportunity to divert attention away from himself by suggesting that the young Autobot refrain from telling their commander, Sentinel Minor, so that 'Bee could take all the credit when he exposed the traitor himself. Unfortunately, all of Bumblebee's efforts only got him in worse trouble, and his fellow recruits began to bully him, with Longarm being the only one to stick up for him. After several failures on Bumblebee's part, Shockwave took matters into his own hands during a training exercise and switched the firing equipment to live ammo in an attempt to offline the Autobot and keep the whole matter of a traitor a secret. Luckily for Bumblebee, this plan was foiled by Bulkhead.

Eventually, Shockwave found out that Sentinel Minor intended to conduct a surprise inspection, and he contrived to set up Wasp to take the fall himself. After planting a Decepticon communicator in Wasp's locker, Shockwave, as Longarm, informed Bumblebee of the upcoming inspection, telling him that it was his last chance to find the evidence he needed. Using one of his extensible limbs to trip up Wasp, Shockwave allowed Bumblebee to palm Wasp's locker key as 'Bee helped him up, allowing him to find the communicator and show it to Sentinel. In the end, Wasp was dragged off to prison, and Longarm commended Bumblebee for his deductive work.

Subsequently, Shockwave graduated boot camp and became a member of the Cybertron Elite Guard. Now "Longarm Prime", he became head of Cybertron Intelligence and remained in this position, hiding in plain sight, for the fifty stellar cycles that Megatron was lost on Earth.

''After Optimus' ship was lost, Longarm pressed Sentinel to continue the search for the ship's crew, the AllSpark and Megatron. His pleas fell on deaf ears.''

After Megatron succeeded in restoring himself and the Decepticons were assembled on Earth, he re-established contact with Shockwave on Cybertron and initiated a plan to construct a space bridge that would allow the Decepticons to conquer the planet from within. When Megatron's captive, Isaac Sumdac, attempted to alert the Autobots to the existence of the double agent by bouncing a transmission to their base, Bumblebee immediately suspected Wasp, who had just recently escaped from prison. He reported the news to Longarm Prime on Cybertron, but of course, that accomplished nothing.

When the completed space bridge failed to function, Megatron contacted Shockwave and instructed him to locate the top space bridge specialist on Cybertron to help correct the problem. Shockwave was surprised to discover that the specialist was already on Earth; it was Bulkhead! Bulkhead was subsequently captured by Megatron and forced to perfect the space bridge. The other Autobots arrived too late to stop him, and they were defeated by the Decepticons and strung up to watch as the bridge was activated. Shockwave revealed his alter ego of Longarm Prime to the Autobots, disclosing that he had already given Megatron an appropriate access code and forcing Bumblebee to feel the shame of sending an innocent Wasp to prison. When Megatron tried to test the space bridge by sending Optimus Prime through it, Shockwave assured his master that he awaited the "test subject" on the other side. Unfortunately, an attempt by Megatron to boost power caused the space bridge to overload, deleting the access code and setting the space bridge to random coordinates.

Toys

 * Shockwave (Voyager, 2008)
 * Acessories: a crane that morphs into a gun


 * Representing his double nature in the cartoon, Animated Shockwave represents both the Autobot Longarm and Decepticon Shockwave, featuring four distinct modes. In "Infiltration Mode," the shorter, stockier Autobot Longarm transforms into a four-legged crane platform.  In "Spy Mode," he stretches and manipulates himself into the taller, lankier Decepticon Shockwave, as the crane portion of Longarm's body converts into a hand-held cannon.  The symbol on his chest flips between Autobot and Decepticon symbols.  Both chest symbols are vacuum metalized, with very shiny silver and gold used.


 * Curiously, while the rotating faction symbols on his chest use the usual "classic" designs, the tampographed Decepticon symbol on his cannon/crane is in the movie style, in silver, rather than the usual gold for Animated Decepticons.


 * Shockwave VS Bumblebee (multipack)




 * Shockwave is a purple redeco of the Voyager mold packaged with Activators Bumblebee in a Target-exclusive multipack.His purple colouring resembles someone we all know...

Trivia

 * Shockwave's cover has been broken for the Earth-bound Autobots, but apparently is still intact as far as the Cybertron Elite Guard is concerned.


 * Shockwave's body appears to be largely patterned after Armada Megatron; he transforms into an "H-tank", and the front treads end up on his shoulders. He retains the classic Shockwave window-chest and face that is little more than a single, round optic. He does not appear to have a gun as a left hand in-show (yet anyway). As a toy, he can hold his crane-gun in either hand.
 * Additionally, Shockwave's vehicle mode appears to be loosely based on one of the Transtech sketch designs for Megatron, with the high angled treads and turret.


 * As Longarm, Shockwave's alt-mode is a futuristic rough terrain crane.


 * Actor Corey Burton reprises the role of Shockwave from Generation 1, reusing precisely the same British-accented, David-Warner-inspired voice for the character. When disguised as Longarm, though, Shockwave's accent changes to an American one.  He still can use his real accent in Longarm mode when interacting with his Decepticon team. In a recent interview he revealed Shockwave's inclusion in Season 2 arose from a between scenes conversation he had with the production team, regarding how little the original Shockwave actually had to do.


 * Shockwave has been entrusted to remain on Cybertron with the mission to prepare a place for Megatron's return. Déjà vu?


 * This is the second longarm to help a Bumblebee who lost his legs


 * Despite not having a face, Shockwave still manages to have a chin.