Buzz Saw (BW)

Buzz Saw is a Predacon from the Beast Era portion of the Generation 1 continuity family.

Kid Friendly Character Rejection: Wrong kind of Bug

Buzz Saw (sometimes Buzzsaw) is a figure of mystery, feared and respected on both sides in the Beast Wars. He is seldom even glimpsed as he flies at extreme altitudes to gather vital recon information or to rain unexpected death down on the Maximals far below. Little do any of them realize that he is, in actuality, a complete and utter coward, and his long range tactics stem entirely from the fact that he is terrified of coming into direct contact with the enemy. On the occasions where he must appear on an actual battlefield he does his best to remain at the back of the lines, hiding as best he is able behind dozens of other attacking Predacons. Socially he's a bit of a gossip and rather prone to bragging, wanting everyone to know what a great job he did on his last mission.

Buzz Saw is equipped with boosters that make him capable of escaping planetary orbit and flying free in space.

At some point after the Beast Wars he returns to Cybertron and joins the Maximals in their fight against Megatron's Vehicons.

Fiction

Toy bios

Buzz Saw liked to gang up with his equally wicked partner, Waspinator, and reveled in fighting land-based foes to give himself the extra edge in battle. His optical array was impressive, being capable of detecting Maximal activities from 200,000 feet by using infrared scanning sensors. His strategy was then to zero-in on his victims, and temporarily paralyze them with his air-to-ground "sting" missiles. Buzz Saw bio

Buzzsaw was saved from Megatron's virus by Rattrap and became a part of the Maximal band fighting Megatron's rule over Cybertron. Buzzsaw bio

Timelines

Voice actor: Paul Dobson (English)

The Tripredacus agent Flamewar was held prisoner and interrogated by a group of Autobots and Maximals. However, this was actually a ruse perpetrated by Scourge and a group of Megatron followers, among them Buzz Saw (disguised as Obsidian). Intimidation Game

2006 IDW Beast Wars continuity

Just buzzing about. Don't mind me.

The 'bot who would one day call himself "Buzz Saw" served under Megatron at the tail-end of the Great War. Though the Tripredacus Council sought to let hostilities between the Autobots and the Decepticons die out after Optimus Prime and Galvatron both fell in combat, Megatron had more aggressive plans. His squadron attacked Tigatron when he approached them to broker peace between the two factions. While Predaking dealt with Tigatron's entourage, Megatron and his troops headed off for the Primal Counci's base of operation to bring them down. Once there, they managed to surround their targets, only for Silverbolt, Ironhide, Prowl, Unit-3, and Tigatron (who had caught up to them) to combine into Magnaboss and strike back. As they were being pushed back, the Tripredacus Council arrived on the scene, and surrendered to the Autobots on behalf of all Decepticons, ending the war. Dawn of the Predacus

Buzz Saw later came to be one of the protoforms on Earth reprogrammed into Predacons by Magmatron. The Gathering #2 He was sent to search for Razorbeast and his team of Maximals from the air by the recently revived Ravage. The Gathering #3

When Sky Shadow discovered the Maximals' lair, Buzz Saw was among the Predacons who participated in the battle that ensued. After being beaten by the Maximals and their newly arrived reinforcements, Buzz Saw presumably retreated along with the other Predacons. The Gathering #4

He popped up again in the air wing of the Predacons' last ditch assault on the Maximal base. The Ascending #1 After the initial charge, he became a victim of the Pack's attack, with Longrack nibbling on his wings. The Ascending #2 He was presumably left on Earth with many of the injured Predacons and Maximals as the rest returned to Cybertron to fight Shokaract. The Ascending #3

3H comics

Down in front!

Buzz Saw took part in the battle against the Quintesson invasion of Cybertron less than three months after the planet's reformatting into a technorganic world. Wreckers: Finale Part II

One year after the Great Transformation, Buzzsaw got a front row view of several wayward Autobots exiting their spaceship, at least until Rook shoved him out of the way to get a better view. Otherwise, he remained silent and blended into the crowd. Abduction

Wings Universe

Buzzsaw was a Predacon-turned-Maximal who joined Primal Prime's Wreckers. Apelinq's personal logs, 2014/06/18 Aboard the Rodimus Major, he played pranks which annoyed Night Viper and Stockade. Apelinq's personal logs, 2015/01/07

Legends World

Buzz Saw is the little guy on the left.

Buzz Saw and Venin were the sons of Waspinator, with whom they celebrated Christmas. Merry X'mas!! When Tankor tried to convert him into a Generation 1 fan, Waspinator-turned-Thrust refused on behalf of his kids, telling Tankor they had no idea who the original Optimus Prime was. I'm Tankor, dana!

Beast Wars: Uprising

Buzz Saw had a helicopter alt-mode before undergoing the Beast Upgrade to become a pulse wasp. He became a reconnaissance agent for the Resistance during the Grand Uprising. When all contact was lost with the city-state of Damaxus, Buzz Saw and Stormrazor were sent across the Rust Sea to scout the situation. They uncovered one of the first hives of Vehicons, sparkless combat drones able to convert proto-formers into more of their kind. Damaxus was completely overrun by Vehicons...and they noticed the scouts. Stormrazor sacrificed himself to help Buzz Saw escape with the intelligence report, but that delayed the Vehicons for only a few moments. Unable to escape, Buzz Saw attempted to surrender, even offered to turn over Resistance data to save himself. He pled for mercy, only to find the Vehicons had none. Derailment

War for Cybertron Trilogy marketing material

Buzzsaw's the yellow Waspinator lookalike.

The Predacons traveled across time to find the AllSpark and change the fate of Cybertron. While battling the Maximals on pre-Ice Age Earth, both sides were joined by the Autobots and Decepticons, their epic battle changing their combined destinies forever. Kingdom webpage^[1]

In a possible destiny recorded on the Voyager Golden Disk, Buzz Saw was present when Blackarachnia ascended to the leader of the Predacons, alongside Retrax, Predaking, Manterror, and Buzzclaw. Kingdom Golden Disk cards

2021 Beast Wars comic

Buzzsaw's the one not having the best day.

The Cybertronian who would become Buzz Saw was one of the many Maximal protoforms aboard the Axalon. To eliminate the Maximals and Predacons, Tarantulas and the Vok brought every crashed stasis pod they could find online and reprogrammed the protoforms within into loyal "Children of the Vok". Together, they attacked the crashed Darksyde in an attempt to take out the Maximal-Predacon alliance, and in the ensuing battle Cheetor used his super-speed to punch Buzz Saw. Eventually, when the Maximals and Predacons destroyed the Vok themselves, Buzz Saw and the remaining followers agreed to a truce and left to live peacefully in the wilderness. The End

Toys

Beast Wars

(Hasbro version pictured)

• Buzz Saw (Deluxe Class, 1996)

• Takara ID number: D-9
• Takara release date: December ?? 1997
• Accessories: missile launcher, 2 "sting" missiles

A redeco of the original Waspinator mold, Beast Wars Buzz Saw transforms from an organic bee or "yellow jacket bee"^[2] to a robot. His beast-mode stinger separates to become a hand-held spring-loaded missile-launcher. The "sting" missiles for the launcher store in the insect wings' undersides. His torso features a rotating center-block with a robot mode head on each end; one is a "normal" robot mode face (with which he is usually depicted), the other a "mutant" face (which is nominally used by Waspinator).

The Takara release, part of the fourth wave of Takara's Beast Wars line in December 1997, is slightly different from the Hasbro version, using a darker purple plastic, and replacing the lime-green plastic with a muted gray. (Curiously enough, exactly the same plastic changes were done to Blackarachnia's Japanese release. Takara's Waspinator and Tarantulas also had matching changes made to these parts, indicating the spider and hornet molds were at least partially gang-molded.)

This mold was also retooled to make Dirgegun and Thrustinator.

• More information on Beast Wars Buzz Saw at TFU.info
• Takara Buzz Saw at a Japanese toy photoblog

• Deluxe Beast Assortment (two-pack, 1996)

• Accessories: missile launcher, 2 "sting" missiles

Sold exclusively at BJ's Wholesale Club, Buzz Saw was released alongside Wolfang in a "two-pack", which was just the two regular-release toys on regular-release cards, inserted into a generic cardboard sleeve, and sold at a wholesale-cost discount as that's what BJ's does.

• More infromation on Shmax.com

BLACKED OUT WINDOWS

• Kurayami no Taiketsu: Howlinger vs Buzz Saw (Multi-pack, 1997)

• ID number: VS-9
• Release date: December ?? 1997
• Accessories: missile launcher, 2 missiles

In Japan, Buzz Saw was also available in a "Darkness Showdown" (暗闇の対決 Kurayami no Taiketsu) two-pack with Howlinger. The two-pack versions are identical to their individual releases.

Beast Machines

Not to be confused with Gordon Sumner or Steve Borden.

• Buzzsaw (Basic Class, 2000)

• Known designers: Yuichiro Hira (TakaraTomy), Tim Bradley (Hasbro, concept artist)

Part of the first wave of Beast Machines Basics, Buzzsaw transforms into a technorganic wasp. His stinger/left arm is on a long flexible spring with a string "spine", letting it bend freely. It opens up to form a claw with an extending barb, also revealing his spark crystal.

Buzzsaw is one of the few flying-insect Transformers whose bug-wings don't just hang off him as kibble, instead forming his robot mode legs.

• More information on Beast Machines Buzzsaw at TFU.info

Cybertron

• Buzzsaw (Deluxe class, 2005)

• Accessories: 2 missiles, Cybertron Decepticon Cyber Key
• Known designers: Yuichiro Hira (TakaraTomy)

Cybertron Buzzsaw is a redeco and fairly extensive retool of Armada Cyclonus, transforming into a Cybertronian helicopter. The figure's cockpit is retooled into a "bubble" style window that resembles the head of a wasp. While one might think this removes the original Mini-Con "second cockpit" gimmick, the cockpit can still be lifted up to accommodate Crumplezone (or Heavy Barrel). His primary gimmick is a trigger-activated gear assembly that runs through the length of the vehicle mode; pulling the trigger both spins the rotor blade and a gear system in the cockpit area. Normally, this simply causes his cockpit-mounted twin-cannons to shake back and forth. If Crumplezone/Heavy Barrel is attached in secondary cockpit mode, the gears make their cannon move. Attaching a compatible geared Mini-Con to the square frame on the underside of his cockpit (any member of the Destruction Mini-Con Team, the Adventure Mini-Con Team, or Refute) allows the gear system to activate their gear-wheel gimmicks as well by pulling the trigger.

The figure's wing-mounted missile launchers have been retooled to operate off of a Cyber Planet Key rather than a Mini-Con, which also means he cannot wield the helicopter blade as an arm-mounted weapon as the original does. The Powerlinx ports on his legs do not activate the pop-out shin-guns anymore; these are released with a simple nudge.

In robot mode the figure features a retooled head which resembles the "robot" head of the Beast Wars character that is his namesake.

• More information on Buzzsaw at TFU.info

Transformers (campaign item)

• Buzz Saw (Promotional Micron, 2014)

• Release date: May 17, 2014

Buzz Saw a clear-yellow and clear-blue redeco of Generations Legends class Waspinator, transforming into a wasp, a robot with 3 mm-compatible hands, and a gun with a 5 mm handle. He has an autotransformation feature that folds up his wings when his gun barrel is extended.

Due to the change of plastics from softer PVC to hard ABS in the wing-jointing, the wing-blaster-backpack part can be very loose and wobbly. But given the general fragility of clear plastic joints, that might be for the best.

He was part of the "Clear Micron Campaign", exclusive to Joshin and Bic Camera stores, free with the purchase of 3000 yen worth of Lost Age product.

Legacy

If you're wondering: No, he does not fit into Soundwave's door.

• Buzzsaw (Deluxe Class, 2022)

• Accessories: Stinger blaster
• Known designers: Mark Maher (Hasbro), Ittoku Kuwazu (TakaraTomy)

A redeco of Kingdom Waspinator, with a new head based on the original toy's robot head, Buzzsaw transforms from a robot into a "realistic" yellowjacket. The figure, while mostly accurate to his original toy, has a black thorax and black wings. Buzzsaw's weapon is concealed in his abdomen and has sculpting on its underside to resemble Waspinator's pistol (though its lack of transformation and color separation results in an unaltered wasp stinger from most angles). He also has far more 5 mm ports for the C.O.M.B.A.T. System\F.O.S.S.I.L. Technology compared to his Beast Wars compadres.

The figure was a Walmart exclusive in the US and a Farmers exclusive in New Zealand, and unlike other boxed Deluxes from that line, his packaging has a plastic window. He and his case-mates Nightprowler and Sandstorm were notable shelfwarmers, and then showed up in huge numbers at discount chain Ross for the 2023 holiday season.

This mold was also used to make Buzzworthy Bumblebee Skywasp, who comes with a second head that's a redeco of Buzzsaw's.

Merchandise

Beast Wars Transformers Mutating Card Game

• Beast Wars Transformers Mutating Card Game (1997)

Buzz Saw was one of the 24 beast warriors to receive a battle card representation for the Beast Wars card game.

Notes

• Buzz Saw's Beast Wars box art shows him with his "normal" head when in robot mode. This was most likely to make him look different from Waspinator, whose box art (and subsequent fictional portrayals) depicted him with his mutant head.
• The Beast Machines version of the character had the pre-production names of "Mudobber" and "Sting".
• Early concept artwork of Buzzsaw's Beast Machines body portrayed him with a different color scheme.
• The identification of Beast Machines Maximal Buzzsaw as the same character as the Beast Wars wasp stems from the fact that he was originally planned as a Predacon, until Hasbro decided more than two factions in the toyline would be confusing to kids. His bio still reflects this and talks about his conversion to the Maximals. Thus, as a Predacon wasp named Buzz Saw with the function "aerial recon" he would certainly have been the same bot. Hasbro has apparently confirmed this identification.
• The Beast Wars incarnation of Buzz Saw served as the inspiration for the homage-character Buzzsaw from the Cybertron series. Fittingly, 11 years later Cybertron Buzzsaw was repurposed as a body for the Beast Wars: Uprising incarnation of Buzz Saw.
• At some point following BotCon 2015, a plan was conceived to produce new heads, based on the original Waspinator toy's non-mutant robot head, that could be included with Fun Publications' remaining unsold stock of the Waruder Marauders, allowing them to be sold as different characters. The Mudfighter toy was apparently planned to be marketed as a dual-purpose Shattered Glass Waspinator (using the mutant head) and Beast Wars Buzz Saw (using the new robot head).^[3][4] Unlike several other bios produced for the unrealised initiative,^[5] the planned profile card for Buzz Saw was never published, but would have reportedly described a rivalry between him and Barbearian.^[6]

Foreign names

• Japanese: Buzz Saw (バズソー Bazu Sō)
• French: Frelon (Canada Beast Wars, "Hornet")
• Spanish: Abejorro (America Beast Wars, "Bumblebee")

References