Streetwise (G1)


 * Streetwise is an Autobot and a Protectobot from the Generation 1 continuity family.



Who's the black-and-white Protectobot That knows every street and parking lot? STREETWISE! Ya damn right! And who is the bot that would risk his spark For his brother bots? STREETWISE! Can you dig it? What interceptor won't back down Till his target's run to ground? STREETWISE! Right on! They say this cop car is a bad mother- SHUT YOUR MOUTH! I'm just talking about Streetwise! We can dig it! He's a combination bot But no one gets to use him but Defensor. STREETWISE!


 * French-Canadian name: Aviso
 * Italian name: Phantom

Generation 1

 * (Note: Events in italics occurred only in the Marvel UK books.)



Streetwise and the other Protectobots were created on Earth by Wheeljack and the Autobots after they stole a recording of Devastator's combiner transformation sequence and modified it (and after Optimus Prime and Buster Witwicky shared a Matrix-induced vision of the future with the Special Teams in it).

On their first mission, the Protectobots joined Optimus Prime in protecting Energy Futures Industries and the hydrothermocline from Megatron and the Combaticons. After agreeing to battle for prize in a virtual reality so that neither the hydrothermocline nor innocent bystanders would be harmed, Optimus and the Protectobots entered the bizarre landscape of Multi-World. Searching for the Combaticons, Streetwise and First Aid entered Vineland. On a hunch, Streetwise chose to lift a falling web of vines out of their path instead of blasting through it. This left them open to attack by Brawl and Swindle, but it also earned the respect of the living vines populating Vineland, who entangled the Combaticons long enough for the Protectobots to beat their opponents.

''Later, Streetwise helped a young boy teach Starscream the meaning of Christmas. Okay, so actually he was trying to shoot Starscream. And sure, Starscream didn't actually learn the meaning of Christmas so much as deliberately fake it in order to piss off Streetwise because the humans liked him better than the Autobot. But still...holiday spirit and all that.''

Animated continuity
Streetwise and the Protectobots were not given an origin in the cartoon. Instead, the Autobots just picked up the comm one day and called the Protectobots at their already-established headquarters in a major urban center. Most Combiner teams in the cartoon were built on Earth, but it is possible they arrived from Cybertron at some point as well. Either way, Streetwise managed to go 30 episodes without being named on-screen.

Dreamwave continuity


Streetwise stuck with his team after the signing of the Crisis Intervention Accords and took part in the battle against Devastator in the Tagan Heights. Streetwise flipped the switch which overloaded the giant Ultracon. Course he shouldn't be too proud since not long after he was hypnotized into blasting First Aid by Mindwipe.

Generation 1

 * Streetwise (Protectobot, 1988)
 * Team ID number: P1
 * Japanese ID number: C-73


 * Streetwise transforms into a Nissan 300ZX Turbo police car. In car mode, he has a large rear-mounted double-barrled cannon accessory.  He can also form a limb of any Scramble City-style combiner, but his usual place is as Defensor's left leg.  He was avalible both on an individual card or as part of the Defensor giftset.


 * This mold was also used to make Streetstar.

Generation 2

 * Streetwise (Unreleased)
 * Team ID number: P4
 * Streetwise and the other Protectobots were slated to be redecoed and re-released as part of the Generation 2 toyline. However, they and the redecoed Stunticons were cancelled, with less than a half-dozen production samples of each mold known to exist (save the BotCon 1994 Breakdown, of course).  The reason for the cancellation is unclear: it's possible they were considered redundant product due to the Aerialbot and Combaticon re-releases, especially since Hasbro was putting out entirely new-mold Transformers then, and would most likely want those to have as much shelf space in toy aisles as possible.

Trivia



 * Streetwise's animation model appears in the Armada cartoon as a "generic" Cybertron at (presumably) Autobot HQ, alongside Wide Load, Landmine/Lander and Sixknight. He is only seen from the back and pretty heavily miscolored, making him hard to identify.