Scourge (RID)

Scourge is a Decepticon from the Robots in Disguise continuity family.

I see a red truck and I want it painted black.

One of Megatron's twisted schemes involved corrupting a stolen Autobot protoform with Decepticon programming. In the process, the protoform scanned some attributes of Optimus Prime, but the Decepticon programming held—and Prime's dark doppelgänger Scourge was born. Scourge is arguably Megatron's second in command, leading the new Decepticon forces, a much more effective unit than Sky-Byte's Predacons.

He is a ruthless and cunning warrior who contains all of Optimus Prime's strengths and skill, but none of his compassion and mercy. He's also a very ambitious warrior, with plans to dethrone Megatron!

Scourge's greatest strength is also his weakness—his temper. Fearless and furious, he charges into battle wildly hacking his broadsword as his trailer combat deck launches missile barrages overhead. Yet his rage also makes him impatient, petulant, and easily provoked; it also scares the heck out of his subordinates.

Naturally, Sky-Byte sees Scourge as a threat on just about every level. For once, he's right.

Fiction

Cartoon continuity

2001 Robots in Disguise cartoon

Voice actor: Barry Stigler (English), Taitem Kusunoki (Japanese), Fabrizio Vidale (Italian), Vladimir Gerasimov (Russian, till Koji Gets His Wish), Mikhail Tihonov (Russian, from Koji Gets His Wish), Alfonso Mellado (Latin-American Spanish), Júlio César (Brazilian Portuguese)

Duffman is thrusting in the direction of the problem. Oh yeah!

The robot who came to be named Scourge was originally one of a crew of six Autobots sent to Earth to reactivate the legendary Autobot battle station, Fortress Maximus. As leader of the expedition, Scourge was equipped with the ability to detect the unique energy signatures of the O-Parts, the Cybertronian components that held the key to reawakening Maximus. Koji Gets His Wish A Friendly Contest However, Scourge never had the opportunity to use that ability in the service of the Autobots, when the team's craft malfunctioned and crashed on Earth in the mid-20th century. Having been in protoform-state with stasis pods for the duration of their voyage, the six Autobots were entombed in their crashed ship.

In the early days of the 21st century, archaeologist and energy expert Doctor Kenneth Onishi's work eventually led him to find the various links in the chain of Fortress Maximus—he located the fortress itself beneath Metro City, mapped the location of the O-Parts, and discovered the location of the crashed Autobot spaceship. However, when the evil Megatron came to Earth with the intent of harnessing Maximus's power, he captured Onishi, and through mental scans, discerned the location of the Autobots' ship. Stealing the six protoforms, Megatron took them to a nearby military base to scan vehicle modes for them, infusing them with a part of his own spark energy to turn them to the side of evil. The first five became the Commandos, but when Megatron targeted a tanker truck to scan as the alternate mode of the final protoform, Optimus Prime leapt into action in order to save the truck's human driver, and as a result, the tanker, Prime and the human were all scanned. With an infusion of Megatron's spark energy to complete the concoction, Scourge was born, emerging from his pod as a dark twin of Optimus Prime, who proved that Megatron's programming had over-ridden any Autobot goodness within him. Appointing himself leader of the new "Decepticons", he quickly established himself as a force to be reckoned with. The Decepticons

I look more like Optimus Prime than Optimus Prime does!

To prove the effectiveness of the new troops, Scourge led them on a mission to attack Sherman Dam and made short work of the Autobot Brothers, tossing them into the lake behind the dam. Once the dam was mined with bombs, he attempted to detonate it, only to find that the bombs had been tampered with—Sky-Byte and the Predacons, annoyed at being pushed down in rank by the new arrivals, had taken control of the bombs in order to prove their own effectiveness to Megatron. The arrival of more Autobots in the form of Optimus and Team Bullet Train caused Megatron to call off the mission with only minor damage to the dam. Commandos

The next mission saw Scourge and the Commandos on guard duty, perhaps as a punishment for their previous failed mission, while the Predacon trio dug under a volcano. Scourge and Sky-Byte both fought Optimus when the Autobot leader arrived with the Spychangers, although the shark appeared to regard Scourge as just as valid a target. When a flow of lava was unleashed, Scourge unleashed a Barrage Attack on the Spychangers who were attempting to stop it, little caring that Sky-Byte and the Predacons were in the blast area. His amusement when the lava soon chased the Predacons into the water was almost palpable. Volcano

After Movor was shot into orbit, Scourge grew steadily impatient with the shuttle's hopeless attempts to guide the rest of the Decepticons to the Autobot base and threatened much bodily injury. Movor was tricked by the Autobots into leading the Decepticons into a trap. While Scourge grappled with Optimus, Movor attempted to help by firing on Optimus from space, but only succeeded in hitting Scourge, who promised to turn the shuttle into "metal confetti". Attack from Outer Space

But I always cut the crusts off!

As part of a new ploy, Scourge interrupted Sky-Byte's attack on an oil rig and chased off the Predacon. Seeing this, Optimus Prime believed that the Decepticons had begun to experience a resurgence of their Autobot sparks. Scourge was disgruntled with Mega-Octane's plan, believing lies and deceit to be unworthy of a warrior, but went along with it. The Decepticons successfully gave the appearance of changing sides to the Autobots and underwent various tests such as cleaning a forest, with Scourge holding his temper barely in check the whole time. The appearance of Sky-Byte (who'd been kept ignorant of the plan) gave Scourge an opportunity to blow off some steam, but his attack endangered the life of a passerby. When Optimus told him to stand down, Scourge exploded and ended up giving the whole plan away, forcing the Decepticons to retreat under the full force of Optimus' rage. The Test

Scourge presented the increasingly impatient Megatron with a new plan which involved attacking power plants. The Autobots were hampered by the misguided assistance of Sky-Byte, but seemed to repel most of the Decepticon assaults. The Fish Test Scourge and the Decepticons subsequently butted in on one of Sky-Byte's plans, stealing a disk supposedly containing the plans to the Autobots' Global Space Bridge which the Predacons were trying to obtain. Unfortunately it was an Autobot trick, and both the Decepticons and Predacons ended up in a sewer. Wedge's Short Fuse

Annoyed by the Autobots constant escapes through the space bridge, Scourge had Ro-Tor track one of the Build Team to the space bridge control center. The Decepticons broke in and Scourge sabotaged the controls, resulting in the space bridge sending any Autobots who used it to a random destination. Once chaos was established, Scourge and Megatron attacked the North Energy Research Center, but were unable to achieve much before the Autobots repaired the space bridge and arrived to chase them off. Landfill

Say hello to my leetle friend

Scourge and Ruination attempted to intercept Optimus on his way to taking the O-Parts to Sky-Byte, who had taken some humans as hostage. Ruination was swiftly disabled by the Autobot, but Scourge was only wounded and trailed Optimus to the site of the CGA Tower attack. He again fought Optimus in an attempt to take the O-Parts, but his threatened attack on the tower itself was thwarted by the Build Team. Optimus was able to chase Scourge off so that the tower could be saved. Sky-Byte Saves the Day

Do NOT 'step on the gas'.

After a semi-successful attempt to raid an oil refinery, Scourge and Mega-Octane leaked a transmission ordering Sky-Byte to look for O-Parts in order to lead the Autobots into an ambush. However instead of the expected Autobots, they were confronted by Ultra Magnus. They attempted to fight the newly arrived Autobot warrior, but retreated after Optimus Prime arrived to lend a hand. Ultra Magnus Back at base, they watched Movor's surveillance of Ultra Magnus beating down Optimus, and Megatron demanded of Scourge to know why one Autobot had done what the Decepticons had failed to do so many times. They were able to track Sky-Byte to the island on which Optimus was recuperating after the battle and mount an attack, but were chased off once again when Optimus and Ultra Magnus merged into Omega Prime. Ultra Magnus: Forced Fusion!

Scourge joined Sky-Byte, Megatron, and the Commandos in watching archival footage of Ultra Magnus in order to get a better understanding of their newly arrived enemy. Mystery of the Ultra Magnus The Decepticons interrupted another of Sky-Byte's plans in order to kidnap the Autobot Brothers. With the three brothers as hostages, the Decepticons led Optimus into a trap and fought the Autobot leader savagely. They were again seen off after Magnus rescued the brothers. The Two Faces of Ultra Magnus Sensing an opportunity, Scourge met with Ultra Magnus to try to persuade the Autobot to join him against both Optimus Prime and Megatron. When Magnus turned him down, Scourge and the Commandos turned on him, only to end up fighting the three Autobot Brothers instead. Power to Burn!

I've got the power!

With information extracted from Doctor Onishi, Scourge and the Decepticons were able to find a huge cavern beneath Metro City housing some ruins. Although the Autobots were on hand to try to fight them off, Scourge attempted to approach the ruins, and his proximity caused Fortress Maximus to rise. Fortress Maximus The exposure to the battle station's energies awakened memories of his original Autobot mission to find and reactivate Maximus and, twisted by Megatron's reprogramming, he became determined to take control of the huge Autobot in order to take over leadership of the Decepticon/Predacon forces and eventually the Universe. With Ruination fighting the Autobots as a distraction, Scourge set out to find Maximus, fighting with Optimus Prime and eventually breaking into the cavern to find that Maximus was gone. Upon retreating, Scourge also discovered that Sky-Byte had freed Doctor Onishi, but covered for him with Megatron so that the Predacon would owe him. Koji Gets His Wish

As the race began to locate the remaining O-Parts, Scourge rediscovered his ability to sense them, part of his original mission as an Autobot. The attempts by Scourge and the Decepticons to stop the Autobots finding the O-Part were hampered by Sky-Byte's misguided attempts to find the O-Parts himself, and eventually the Autobots were able to collect them all. A Friendly Contest Movor was soon able to locate the Autobots in the Sahara, and Megatron himself led the Predacons and Decepticons there to take the Orb of Sigma from them. With the loss of Megatron, Scourge and the Decepticons retreated. Peril from the Past

Behold my insignias! They are pretty!

With Megatron gone, Scourge took command of the Megastar, much to the Predacons' dismay. They were able to successfully capture Cerebros from the Autobots, and Scourge was able to use the Autobot part of his bio-signature to dupe the robot into activating Maximus. However he soon found he was unable to control the giant robot, who ran amok until the Autobots' human ally, Koji, was able to stop it. Additionally the arrival of Galvatron, Megatron's reborn form, during the battle, also meant that Scourge had lost his new leadership. Maximus Emerges Realizing that humans could control Maximus, Scourge then amplified the human part of his bio-signature and succeeded in taking control of the giant, until he was overridden by a large group of human children. The Human Element Seeking to use Koji himself for the process, a case of mistaken identity resulted in the Decepticons capturing his best friend, Carl, instead, but when Carl proved able to activate Fortress Maximus, Scourge dropped his façade of loyalty and ordered Maximus to destroy Galvatron. Mistaken Identity

The revelation of his betrayal brought about a punishment most severe—Scourge and the Decepticons had their autonomy stripped by Galvatron, turned once again into loyal servants so absolutely dedicated to their leader Surprise Attack! that they continued to do his will even after he attempted to kill them with molten lava as a belated punishment. Galvatron's Revenge With Galvatron's ultimate defeat at the hands of Omega Prime, Scourge was captured and taken aboard Fortress Maximus for imprisonment with the other villains. The Final Battle

Dreamwave Robots in Disguise comic

What do you think of my breast-reduction surgery?

Sent by Megatron to help Sky-Byte steal an experimental nuclear generator from a facility in Arizona, he and the Predacon bickered at length, until the arrival of Optimus Prime and Ultra Magnus. After an unsuccessful attempt to engage Magnus in combat, during which he was slammed against the building, he realized that the Autobots' concern for the humans would be their downfall. Threatening the nearest human with his sword, Scourge commanded the two Autobots to surrender.

When Sky-Byte protested that this wasn't part of the mission, Scourge accused him of becoming soft. Magnus and Prime, after a brief discussion, agreed to surrender. Scourge raised his sword to strike them down, however he was interrupted by the Predacons making their escape with the nuclear generator. The distraction allowed Prime and Magnus to simultaneously punch Scourge in the face, and he and his Decepticons set out in pursuit of the Predacons. Ultra Magnus...to the Rescue?

Legends/Unite Warriors

Scourge escaped from the Autobot prison on Cybertron, modified his body into a new form incorporating an Energon Matrix stolen from Vector Sigma, and somehow ended up in the Legends World where he attacked the Tokyo Toy Show, defeating an actor portraying another Optimus Prime and taking Minor hostage. He then encountered Sky-Byte, another visitor to this strange universe, but found his offer to join forces rebuffed when the shark was provoked by his treatment of Minor and challenged him to a fight. After a short battle, Scourge defeated Sky-Byte with his new "Matrix Dead Maser" attack, but was impressed enough by his willingness to fight that he let Minor go and restated his offer, this time explaining that he sought to free Gigatron from prison as his power would be needed if Scourge were to truly achieve galactic conquest. This time Sky-Byte accepted, and the two returned to their home dimension together. Bonus Edition Vol. EX

"I'm the coolest!"

Scourge and Sky-Byte made their way to Cybertron in 2021, where they exposed the true identity of Grand Scourge, who had tricked Ruination into thinking he was Scourge. Sensing that Scourge possessed a Matrix, Grand Scourge crossed blades with him, but Scourge came out on top by calling on Ruination to blow his enemy away. Following a battle with Grand Scourge's master, Unicron, Scourge recruited Ruination to his cause and traveled to the future era in which Gigatron was imprisoned. Ruination Chapter, Part Two Their journey to rescue their leader was put on hold while the other Combatrons enjoyed their baths, to Scourge's annoyance. Strategy Meeting in an Earth Bath?!

Recovering the ship he once arrived on Earth with, Scourge led his troops in an attack on Neo Brave Maximus where Gigatron was held, crashing the ship into Maximus and using Dark Ai to hack T-AI. As he confronted Fire Convoy to demand the release of his leader, Gigatron himself appeared, revealed that he had given up on his evil ambitions and asked Scourge to do the same. He refused, having embraced his evil programming as his true self, and instead attempted to absorb Gigatron's power for himself. He was held back by Sky-Byte, allowing Gigatron to extract the evil he once infused him with, and he reverted to an Autobot protoform. LGEX Scourge Prologue

As the heroic Autobot he had been meant to be, Scourge joined the Dimensional Patrol and was placed in command of a squadron of fellow protoforms as well as drones based on his previous body. A mission to capture his fellow Combatrons saw him return to the Legends World, where he and Skids detained the local Headmasters' transtectors for safety reasons until they got their hands on the final fugitive, Dark Ai. The Autobot Headmasters took this poorly and joined forces with Dark Ai, modifying captured Patrol drones into transtectors as part of a plan to trick Scourge into adopting a Headmaster form himself in order to combat them. When he did so, Dark Ai interfaced with his transtector and installed backup data of his previous identity, restoring his evil programming. Scourge promptly turned on the Dimensional Patrol and chased them off, then restored the captured Combatrons. As he prepared to return home with his new drone forces in tow, he played with the idea of conquering the Legends World, but was dissuaded by the Autobots and scolded by Dark Ai for considering it. Bonus Edition Vol. EX

Scourge and the other Combatrons continued traveling together with Dark Ai, seeking their own destiny. Epiloge

Robots in Disguise toy bios

A no-nonsense field commander, Scourge was created when Megatron scanned both a tanker truck and Optimus Prime; consequently, Scourge especially resented the Autobot leader. Robots in Disguise Super Class Scourge toy bio

Galvatron placed Axer under Scourge's leadership, but Axer resented Scourge. Robots in Disguise Axer toy bio

Shell Game continuity

In Viron 704.31 Epsilon, Scourge challenged Megazarak for leadership of the Predacon/Decepticon forces following the death of Megatron. Megazarak appeared to back down only to poison his rival with Tox-En. He then recycled Scourge's chassis with a new mind, creating Toxitron. Ask Vector Prime, 2015/07/30

Ask Vector Prime

Confused by his sword-less hand.

In Viron 403.0 Beta, the Destructicons, including Scourge, Bludgeon, Dreadwind, and Smokejumper, were the subordinates of Megazarak, their God Emperor Supreme. Ask Vector Prime, 2015/08/11 They fought against the Dinobots, the sole remaining Autobot resistance in their universe. Ask Vector Prime, 2015/05/29 When Megazarak decided to conquer other universes, Scourge and his comrades accompanied their master to Aurex 304.0 Epsilon, where they proceeded to curb-stomp all opposition. The victorious Destructicons were then abducted by Unicron for the Universe War, but Scourge and Bludgeon's fate is unknown. Ask Vector Prime, 2015/08/11

Spychanger continuity

In Viron 1103.12 Gamma, Optimus Prime and Scourge were female. After Earth's energon was rendered toxic and the Predacons' stash blown up, only energy-saving Spychangers could stay active. Scourge was the only villain who could convert and unluckily found herself up against thirteen Autobots! Ask Vector Prime, 2015/08/18

Legacy VS500 Collection Special Comic

The Scourge of the "RID Universe" competed in the Speedia 500 for the chance to become leader of Velocitron. Velocitron Speedia 500 Part 1 His evil antics, including using his tanker's internal weapons and knocking Road Hauler aside, forced Miko Tezuka and Clampdown to intervene in the race. Ultimately, it was all for naught as Override won the race, to Scourge's dismay. Velocitron Speedia 500 Part 2

In the second week of the Speedia 500, the racers were confronted by a trio of new racers; one of which was Shadowstrip, who shot out the lights in the tunnel he and Scourge were travelling through and disorientating the larger Decepticon. Scourge managed to reach the finish line again, but the winner was Galaxy Shuttle this time around. Velocitron Speedia 500 Part 3

Games

Transformers: Battle Tactics

This sword is so hard to lug around!

Scourge participated in battles against a variety of opponents, both Autobots and Decepticons. Sometimes there were many of him! He was a Super Rare character who was available in the first Daily Campaign in May and could be recruited after collecting 20 Alpha cores, 20 Beta cores, 20 Omega cores, and 10 cores of this character. Transformers: Battle Tactics

Toys

Robots in Disguise (2001)

Inverted G2 Black Laser Convoy Prime Clone.
(Takara version pictured)

This toy almost makes the black repaint craze worth it.
(Hasbro version pictured)

• Black Convoy (2000)
• Scourge (Super Class, 2002)

• Takara ID number: D-012
• Takara release date: July ??, 2000
• Accessories: "Black Sword/Sword of Fury", "Plasma Gun", 5 discs, 10 small missiles, 2 large missiles
• Known designers: Masakatsu Saito (concept artist)

First released in the fifth wave of Takara's Car Robots toyline, "Black Convoy" is a redeco of the Generation 2 Laser Optimus Prime mold, transforming into a Western Star 4964EX truck with black and teal paint apps, thick foil stickers, and pink transparent plastic that works exceptionally well for light-piping. The toy lacks all of Laser Prime's electronics to keep costs down, the entire back of the cab is now covered with a black sticker to hide the empty battery compartment.

The chromed oil-tanker trailer has a top-mounted disc launcher, and opens up into a battle station. In this mode it has the disc launcher, a spring-loaded five-missile launcher (which can also be held in the robot's hand), a large air-pressure rocket launcher, plus the robot's double-barreled Plasma Gun can be mounted at the top of the tower. All of these weapons can be stored inside the trailer mode. Care should be taken when opening the trailer into base mode, as the springs in this version are very strong compared to other releases, and will scratch the chrome sides by slamming them into the ground. The toy also suffers from mild mold wear in that the Plasma Gun's rear clip is somewhat warped and the figure's shoulders have a harder time staying upright than Laser Prime's. Due to the Generation 2 Autobot symbols sculpted on Black Convoy's launcher discs, Takara made Black Convoy's faction symbol the Generation 2 Autobot one, but upside down. By extension, this also explains the faction symbol for the Combatrons.

The later Hasbro Robots in Disguise release of the toy, under the name "Scourge", was sold exclusively at Toys"R"Us in the USA, released in May of 2002. The clear pink plastic has been replaced with blood red, the metallic gray plastics are a darker shade, the stickers are now matte gray with Decepticon logos instead of silver foil with "negative-Autobot" logos, the sword tip is blunted, and the discs are retooled to remove the faction symbol altogether (save the small hole in the crest) with thicker edges. Notable paint changes are that Scourge has Decepticon sigils tampographed on his doors, while lacking Black Convoy's teal stripes along the sides of the cab's nose. The license plate sticker on the tanker now states "SCOURGE D-012" (a reference to Black Convoy's ID Number). The toy lacks electronics like the Takara release, but instead of having a large sticker over the battery compartment, the battery lid is simply glued shut.

Early specimens of Scourge sold via the Toys"R"Us website had the Hasbro stickers and mold changes, but retained the Japanese cab paint operations and pink plastic. A later running change variant leaves the bottom finger of both hands unpainted for whatever reason.

This toy was later released by Sonokong as Car Bot Black Convoy in South Korea, with the Hasbro tooling and paint but with Black Convoy's foil stickers.

Scourge's box has one of the worst stock photos ever, depicting the figure about half transformed—his shoulders are folded down oddly and his legs haven't been extended at all, making him hilariously stubby. Considering how simple the figure is and how bad the crude early photoshoppery looks, one can only assume there was a hell of a tight deadline. Similar errors would continue to make their way into other stock images of the toy.

• More information on Black Convoy at TFU.info
• More information on Scourge at TFU.info

Sword-less fury!

• X-Brawn / Scourge (Basic Class, 2002)

Released in the fourth wave of Robots in Disguise Basic figures, Scourge is a simplified Spychanger-styled version of his larger toy. Aside from being the only all-new tooling toy of the character, he features high speed axles and can roll very well across smooth surfaces, but lacks the weight to propel him quickly. He was only available in a 2-pack with a similarly-styled version of X-Brawn.

As with most of the new Robots in Disguise releases, the X-Brawn / Scourge pack was available in Japan as a "USA Edition" mass-released toy.

This mold was later redecoed both as Generation 1 "Spy Changer" Optimus Prime in the Universe toyline, and as "Movie" Optimus Prime for a Japanese pack-in DVD exclusive.

This toy was repurposed as Generation 1 Nemesis Prime in Renegade Rhetoric.

• More information on Spychanger Scourge at TFU.info

It's me again!

• Destructicon Scourge (Deluxe Class, 2003)

• Takara release date: February 20, 2003
• Accessories: Gun, 2 rockets
• Known designers: Andrew Frankel (Hasbro, deco artist)

Destructicon Scourge is a black redeco of Generation 2 Hero Optimus Prime, transforming into a sleek longnose Kenworth truck with a very large rocket launcher/bellows assembly on the back end. In either truck or robot mode, this launcher fires the two large rockets with air power from the bellows; the quicker/harder it's slammed, the further the rocket flies. The launcher is "permanently" affixed to the truck bed/Scourge's right arm. The two rubber-tipped rockets can be stored on clips on the sides of the truck bed, which end up on his back in robot mode.

By the time this toy was released, its tooling had degraded somewhat since Hero Optimus Prime's original production run. As a result, neither robot nor vehicle mode hold together very well on many specimens. Keeping his missiles stored can be difficult, as they may pop out from their storage clips involuntarily. Additionally, initial shipments appear to have been missing a certain part that allowed the waist to ratchet, instead letting it spin freely.

Over time, the rubber portions on the missiles and hose degrade also considerably faster than previous versions.

Scourge and his fellow Destructicon Bludgeon were exclusive to KB Toys in the United States, released under the Robots in Disguise banner in May of 2003, long after the series had been replaced with Armada, which explains why they used the same packaging style. Additionally, they were also available at retail in the United Kingdom four months after their release in the United States, complete with European packaging, but instead exclusive to Toys"R"Us. Both were also Toys"R"Us Japan exclusives, sold as "USA Editions" in slightly-altered US packaging (basically just some Japanese-language stickers for legal info was applied to them).

• More information on Destructicon Scourge at TFU.info

Timelines

Now with bigger shoulders!

• Scourge (TFSS 1.0, 2013)

• TFSS1 number: 1
• Accessories: Sword of Fury

A black and teal redeco of Reveal the Shield Deluxe Class Optimus Prime, Timelines Scourge transforms into a longnosed "racing" truck cab, adorned with the Japanese-style "Anti-Cybertron" symbols rather than Decepticon branding. He comes with a sword that he can wield with both hands, and is folded up and stored between his legs in truck mode, forming the fifth wheel. Scourge also has a (non-detachable) matrix gimmick in robot mode formed by a relief pattern on the inside of the cab's side windows, and is visible through the windshield/chest in robot mode. He is also very articulated and poseable, even featuring ankles and wrists that are both ball-jointed and hinged.

Scourge was the first of six Transformers Collectors' Club exclusive figures to be shipped out via the "Transformers Figure Subscription Service" in 2013. The final version lacks the heat-sensitive rubsign seen in the promotional mockup for the toy, which used a Photoshopped image of the rubsign-having original toy as its base.

This toy was also used to make BotCon 2012 Shattered Glass Optimus Prime, and was retooled into Shattered Glass Ultra Magnus.

• More information on Timelines Scourge at TFU.info

Legends

Now with less SYMBOLISM.

• Black Convoy (2015)

• ID number: LG-EX
• Release date: June 21, 2015
• Accessories: Black Sword

Debuting as a Tokyo Toy Show 2015 exclusive, Legends Black Convoy is another redeco of Reveal the Shield Deluxe Class Optimus Prime. While it broadly resembles Timelines Scourge, its plastic colors and painted deco more specifically match the original Car Robots Black Convoy figure, with such details as the teal striping on the truck cab and "Anti-Autobot" Combatron symbols on the robot shoulders.

Interestingly, though this toy was announced to the public less than one month before its release, that was still enough time for a change to the painted deco: the packaging and widespread stock photographs show silver paint on the robot's inner forearms, but this paint was absent from the final toy.

Unlike all other Legends releases, both this and the Voyager Class figure below buck the trend of using both the character's Japanese Takara name ("Black Convoy") in katakana and its English Hasbro name ("Scourge") in Latin script by instead using only the Japanese Takara name in both Japanese and English text.

The Return of Dark Laser.

• Black Convoy (2017)

• ID number: LG-EX
• Release date: June 3, 2017
• Accessories: Black Sword, Double-barreled rifle, Headmaster

Debuting as a Tokyo Toy Show 2017 exclusive, this Black Convoy is a redeco of Titans Return Voyager Class Optimus Prime, transforming from robot to tanker truck to plane and back. His deco is heavily based on his original Car Robots toy. He comes with a Headmaster redecoed from Diac which transforms from a small robot representing his original identity as a heroic Autobot protoform, into his own post-scanning head (but any Titan Master or Legends Headmaster is compatible) and he has built-in spring-loaded pylons to "bulk up" his noggin, although this step was optional according to the stock photos.

The included mini-manga also depicts a fourth mode the toy can be transformed into, a base mode inspired by the original Black Convoy toy's trailer base. The manga also features Black Convoy Mass Production Type Drones that can be recreated using the toy by repurposing the jet mode engine as a one-eyed head.

Due to unexpectedly high demand, TakaraTomy took the unusual step of producing a second run of this figure, which were made available from TakaraTomy Mall on November 30, 2017.^[1]

This mold was also retooled into Octone.

Legacy

Scourge of the Universe/Universal Collapse

• Robots in Disguise 2000 Universe Scourge (Leader Class, 2022)

• TakaraTomy ID number: TL EX-08
• TakaraTomy release date: February 25, 2023
• Accessories: Energon axe, Energon sword, Matrix
• Known designers: Sam Smith (Hasbro)^[2]

Transformers: Legacy Velocitron Speedia 500 Collection "Robots in Disguise 2000 Universe Scourge" (phew!) is a redeco of Legacy Leader Class Laser Optimus Prime, transforming into a mid-1990s Western Star 4964EX tanker truck. Though he keeps his Hasbro "Scourge" name, the flipped Autobot symbols are from the Takara Car Robots Black Convoy deco. In fact, this toy's shipping case, advance listings on many online dealer sites, and Walmart shelf tags had the name "Black Convoy", suggesting a late-stage name change.

Scourge's tanker trailer can convert into a battle station, complete with adjustable turret. Scourge also has a deep magenta (in contrast to Scourge's usual blood red or Black Convoy's lighter pink) transparent Energon axe and sword, which can store inside his trailer when not used and can combine to create a larger sword. The axe and sword can store either inside the trailer or on the cab, with the sword storing underneath the rear section of the cab like the original and the axe slotting in over the trailer hitch. In tanker mode, the trailer's claw arm can be folded down to act as a jack to allow it to stand freely. He also includes a magenta and silver Matrix, with the casing of the Matrix core left unpainted. The Matrix can be attached to the axe or the combined sword, using the rectangular peg near the axe's haft (normally meant to keep the handle folded neatly for storage). However, it doesn't stand out much due to using mostly the same color scheme. His signature shoulder pylons can open outwards to reveal missile pods. The chest slot where the Matrix plugs in is open in the back, seemingly meant to allow for light piping in robot mode. Unlike Laser Optimus Prime, Scourge's head light-piping is left intact.

As the sword accessory is designed for this mold's open hands, it cannot be wielded by other figures with 5mm hands due to the protruding tab on the handle.

Scourge's robot mode features a new deco compared to previous versions, making almost the entire torso black. This is a deliberate choice, as Hasbro designer Sam Smith cited his unfamiliarity with the character, as well as the desire to better match the truck cab's appearance of black framing pink windows.^[3] Moreover, Mark Maher's request to paint the tanker silver meant that they could not afford to paint the shoulders. Scourge's truck mode's usual teal accent lines have also been reimagined as more elaborate pinstriping. The resulting deco coincidentally makes this Scourge reminiscent of Nemesis Prime. Some stock pictures feature his cab mistransformed, not having his gas canisters on the sides flipped out. His instruction booklet uses the G2 Autobot symbol correctly oriented as opposed to upside-down ones the toy has.

The Velocitron Speedia 500 Collection was exclusive to Walmart in the US, with Hasbro Pulse receiving limited quantities of the figure. The series went up for pre-order on July 21, 2022, and started arriving in stores by August 1. The series was a TakaraTomy Mall exclusive in Japan, and a Farmers department store exclusive in New Zealand.

This mold was also used to make Toxitron.

Notes

• While the honor of first evil black clone of an heroic leader goes to Black Lio Convoy, Scourge's snazzy color scheme set the tone for future black redecos representing evil doppelgängers that continues to this day.
• An unrealized Wings Universe story would have featured Scourge, based on his TFSS toy, as one of Jhiaxus's clones. A conflicted Scourge would have led Jhiaxus's forces in taking down Optimus Prime and Galvatron.^[4][5]

Foreign names

• Japanese: Black Convoy (ブラックコンボイ Burakku Konboi), Scourge (スカージ Sukāji)
• Korean: Black Convoy (블랙콘보이 Beullaek Konboi)

References