Scorponok (Unicron Trilogy)


 * Scorponok is a Terrorcon in the Energon and Cybertron portions of the Unicron Trilogy continuity family.



Scorponok ' s origin differs greatly depending on which dimension of the multiverse you are speaking of. What doesn't change however is the fact that he's a massive and terrifying sight on the battlefield, and a vicious military leader in league with the mysterious Alpha Quintesson.


 * Japanese name: Megazarak

Energon
Scorponok was a powerful Decepticon warrior who aided Megatron in his war of conquest on Cybertron. Later, after Unicron's arrival and subsequent defeat, he pledged himself to the Alpha Quintesson in exchange for incredible power and became leader of the Terrorcons. He had Starscream killed in a fit of pique, and led the Terrorcons to Earth to attack Alter-Energy installations and drain the planet of its natural energon. However, the newly-enhanced Autobot forces foiled his plans, and agents of Alpha Quintesson retrieved him.

When Megatron returned, he decimated the Terrorcon drone ranks before finally facing Scorponok himself at a newly-constructed Autobot energon tower in the Yukon. After a brief but intense battle, Megatron ran Scorponok through the chest with his sword, destroying him.

Energon

 * Voice actor: Colin Murdoch (US), Yasunori Masutani (Japan)



Scorponok was formerly the Grand Chamberlain of the world known as "Planet Q," guardian of the planet's ruler, the being who would later come to be known as Alpha Q. When Unicron attacked Planet Q at some undetermined point in the past, the ruler was too frozen with fear to act, and the chamberlain sacrificed his life to detonate the planet's core, blowing it up in Unicron's face.

Within Unicron's body, however, the spark of Planet Q's ruler continued to exist, and when Unicron was deactivated in 2010, he was able to access the chaos-bringer's powers and create a new body for himself, becoming "Alpha Q." By the year 2020, seeking energon in order to recreate the planets consumed by Unicron, including his own, Alpha Q had recreated the armies of Planet Q as Terrorcons and resurrected the chamberlain as Scorponok to be their leader. To turn existing Decepticons to their side, Scorponok was armed with a sword forged from their deceased leader Megatron's spark, but when a fit of rage led him to stab the blade into Megatron's corpse, the Decepticon leader was reborn and ousted Alpha Q from Unicron's body.

Scorponok continued to serve Alpha Q in secret, operating under Megatron's command, until Megatron discovered his deception and attempted to use him as bait to draw out Alpha Q. Chained to an asteroid, Scorponok was cast into Earth's Energon Grid and almost destroyed, but Alpha Q rescued him, and Scorponok then openly served under him in his alliance with the Autobots. During this team-up, Scorponok gained an admirer in the young Autobot Ironhide, but in his final conflict with Megatron within Unicron, Scorponok was defeated and thought destroyed during an explosive energon reaction.

This reaction allowed Alpha Q to achieve his goal to recreate the planets Unicron had destroyed, which were immediately targeted by the Decepticons as sources of energon. It was during the attacks on these planets that Scorponok resurfaced, having been restored by Megatron and now totally loyal to him. Scorponok continued to serve Megatron throughout the remainder of his campaign, but during the Decepticons' takeover of Cybertron, Ironhide engaged Scorponok in battle, smarting from the betrayal of a 'bot he had looked up to. Both combatants were severely wounded and eventually collapsed, but when Ironhide's Spark of Combination activated in response to a summons from Optimus Prime on the Jungle Planet, Scorponok awoke and dragged his body there. Telling Ironhide that he had only saved him so that he might save Galvatron from Unicron, Scorponok finally collapsed and perished.


 * (Notes: There are several significant differences in the story of Scorponok between Super Link and its English dub as Energon. Primarily, the episode "Scorponok's Scars" revealed that Scorponok was not the same entity as the Grand Chamberlain of Planet Q, but merely a being that Alpha Q had created in his image out of an emotional connection, using the spark of a "wandering Decepticon" (who many people may consider to be Thrust, who died on Unicron during Armada) and programming him to behave as the chamberlain had done. For unknown reasons, this episode was never dubbed into English, and the following episode is even redubbed to remove any references to it.


 * Furthermore, while the Energon series only ever presents Scorponok as having been mind-wiped/reprogrammed by Megatron—in the same manner as he did to Starscream, Demolishor and Inferno—during his final confrontation with Ironhide in Super Link, Scorponok reveals that he had not been brainwashed, and—despite it not making a lot of sense after his actions in the full first half of the series—had chosen to serve Megatron for giving him new life in the wake of the energon reaction, in much the same way as he had served Alpha Q for restoring him to life in the first place. )

Fan Club Cybertron comics


Despite Unicron's apparent death inside the Unicron Singularity, his essence's will was still strong enough to use the reality-altering black hole to bring Scorponok to Cybertron. Now Dark Scorponok, this undead creature stalked the evacuated planet surface, screaming in hunger and pain, crying out for Sparks upon which to feast. At first, Dark Scorponok assaulted Skyfall,, who survived due to his powerful force field ability, but the monster was drawn away by Ramjet's evil Mini-Con minions towards the Primary Energon Reserves Control, where Vector Prime and Sentinel Maximus were located. After a prolonged fight, Sentinel Maximus was able to defeat Dark Scorponok, after which he and Vector Prime realized this was just a diversion. They abandoned what was left of Dark Scorponok, unable to solve his affliction, as their attentions were needed elsewhere, below the planet's surface.


 * (Note: The Key code info for Dark Scorponok says that at some point, he located the Jungle Planet and served Scourge as a bodyguard.)

Energon

 * Scorponok (Ultra, 2004)
 * Japanese ID number: SD-05




 * Energon Scorponok transforms into a...scorpion-shaped construction vehicle thing. That just happens to look like a giant scorpion. Yeah. He has two articulated, scorpion pincer-shaped bucket scoops on two articulated arms along with a scorpion stinger-shaped crane hook on the end of a scorpion tail-shaped crane arm. The tail also has a really sensitive sound effects button that is set off whenever somebody breathes near the toy, filling the room with the sound of metal clanking. Of interest (and to reinforce the fact he is a scorpion-shaped construction vehicle thing) are a set of two translucent yellow arachnid-type legs behind each vehicle caterpillar track. The vehicle is also armed with decidedly non-scorpion-like double laser cannons behind each tread, two translucent yellow laser cannons either side of his cockpit, and two flip-out laser cannons on the end of his crane arm, which are activated by pushing the small cockpit-shaped device (which also has a Mini-Con Powerlinx port) forwards. Inside his bucket scoops are two spring-loaded missile launchers in translucent housings. The right pincer houses his spark crystal while the left has another Mini-Con Powerlinx port.


 * Scorponok can also transform into an non-aerodynamic space fighter mode, with his crane arm serving as the nose, the tiny, translucent spikes on his pincer-shaped bucket scoops acting as the wing tips, and the turbines on his ankles becoming the engines.




 * In robot mode, Scorponok bears a significant resemblance to his Generation 1 namesake, though pretty much all Scorponoks who transform into robot mode end up with with a similar arrangement of beast mode parts in robot form. While his legs have articulation typical of toys in that size class of the time, Scorponok has extremely restricted arm articulation due to the fact he has no up-and-down shoulder movement. This could be rectified by leaving his shoulder pads transformed as they would be in space fighter mode, but of course, this is not his proper appearance. On Scorponok's pincers are 5mm peg holes to accommodate all forms of Terrorcon and Omnicon Energon weaponry, as well as most other accessories featuring a similar peg system.


 * The Hasbro Energon release of Scorponok was in a riot of not-exactly-cohesive colours including pale green, black, orange-red, yellow and blue. The Takara Superlink Mega Zarak release removed the black and red, replacing them with metallic dark green and gold.


 * Scorponok (Built to Rule, 2004)




 * The Energon version of Built to Rule Scorponok was designed with a much more solid skeleton and larger, blockier limbs compared to the Armada range of Built to Rule toys. It can be rebuilt from a Cybertronic scorpion-shaped construction vehicle thing into a robot...or into basically whatever you feel like doing with the parts.


 * Unfortunately, due to the slow performance of the Built to Rule line overall, the Energon versions only had a limited, test-market release initially in and around Cincinnati, Ohio. The sets later filtered out into many Tuesday Morning and Ollie's chain stores at drastically reduced prices.

Cybertron

 * Dark Scorponok (Ultra-Class, 2005)




 * Cybertron Dark Scorponok is an extensive redeco of Energon Scorponok, based heavily upon Generation 1's Black Zarak. Naturally, his predominant colour scheme is black with gold and translucent dark red, but it also carries over blue from the Energon release of this toy. As part of the Cybertron line, the crane arm 'stinger' laser cannons and housing have been retooled to accommodate a spring-loaded Cyber Planet Key gimmick, for which inserting the key will cause the lasers to flip out into position.


 * Dark Scorponok includes a silver-bordered, Jungle Planet-style Cyber Key with the Key Code "u812" printed on the back. Entering this into Hasbro's Cybertron website revealed additional bio information and an image of Dark Scorponok's toy control art (basically a modified version of his Energon toy control art, complete with dropped early features.)


 * This is also the only toy in the entire Unicron Trilogy that can accept a Mini-Con, Energon Star, and Planet Key (the three series respective power up gimmicks) all at once.

Attacktix

 * Scorponok (Booster, 2006)
 * Attacktix ID number: TF15




 * Faction: Decepticon
 * Class: Captain
 * Special: Recruit - 10/26 (38%) success ratio
 * Point Cost: 30
 * Base Speed: 10
 * Attack Type: Striker (Scoop Arm)


 * Attacktix Scorponok's scoop attack was designed to tip over other figures by scooping up their bases. It uses a free-swinging joint controlled by the player, rather than a spring-loaded attack like most other strikers. If one turns Scorponok at his waist, it's possible to get a nearly 360-degree swing into the attack, delivering more power than any other striker besides the Mega figure Omega Supreme.


 * This unexpected power level allows Scorponok to knock down any other figure, any defensive formation, and even any Mega figure easily. If Scorponok gets into range, you don't stand a chance. This seemingly unbalanced level of power has led some players to suggest Scorponok should be banned from tournament play. In practice, though, it just makes him your opponent's most immediate target.


 * When Scorponok dies, he has the potential to summon up to two Insecticons from your back-ups. Bringing in multiple Troopers makes him an excellent support figure for the Crumplezone/Ransack combo.


 * Dark Scorponok (Booster, 2007)
 * Attacktix ID number: TF-17




 * Faction: Decepticon
 * Class: Captain
 * Special: Vanquish
 * Point Cost: 30
 * Base Speed: 10
 * Attack Type: Striker (Scoop Arm)


 * A redeco of the Scorponok figure slated for the second series of Attacktix figures, retaining all his lethality. His Vanquish Special Power should allow him to regenerate by devouring figures from your opponent's graveyard. Mmmm. Zombielicious.

Titanium Series

 * Scorponok (Robot Master, 2006)




 * Titanium Series Scorponok is a small, 3-inch die-cast metal-and-plastic figurine of Scorponok based upon his Energon appearance. He can't transform, but has some articulation at the shoulders, neck and waist. He comes with a Decepticon display stand.


 * Scorponok is the only Energon-series character in the Titaniums line, and one of only two Unicron Trilogy characters made for the line so far. It seems unlikely that future waves (assuming there are any after the live-action movie waves) will add to those numbers.

Trivia

 * Scorponok's visor was a late addition to his design, at the insistence of the toy's "mech designer" Hirofumi Ichikawa.




 * Some late changes were made to Scorponok's design, including but not limited to Scorponok's articulated shovel "thumbs" being de-articulated for the final version, Scorponok's hip cannons being severely shortened and losing their joints (also lessening the Generation 1 Scorponok cannon nod a tiny bit), and also entirely losing large cannons that presumably pegged into the now-vacant holes on the sides Scorponok's knees. The first two changes can be readily seen on the pre-release toy shown in Energon Scorponok's box pictures, while the third can only be seen on Scorponok and Dark Scorponok's control art.


 * Scorponok and his Japanese counterpart Mega Zarak seemingly have "swapped" card arts: The deco patterns on each tech spec card more closely resemble the other other country's release. Mega Zarak's tech spec card back even has the US deco of the toy.  Despite the seemingly swapped color of the Dreamwave art/CG render, both Scorponoks have purple thighs—a stronger G1 homage, but notably absent from either deco.