Crumplezone (Cybertron)

Crumplezone is a Velocitronian Decepticon from the Cybertron portion of the Unicron Trilogy continuity family.

Trap Jaw called; he wants his head back.

The largest and possibly slowest inhabitant of Velocitron (yet speed-wise he can still smoke most off-worlders), Crumplezone is undeniably the brawn of the gruesome twosome formed with the weaselly Ransack.

It's not that Ransack is really all that much smarter than Crumplezone, it's just that the big lug just tends to leave the thinking to others, going along with whatever scheme his best (and possibly only) friend Ransack has cooked up. Being bad is just easier, and a lot more fun. Plus, Megatron is less likely to blast him then. He openly admits he's an evil moron, and doesn't let that slow him down.

He really, really hates Scrapmetal. Who can blame him?

Fiction

Cybertron cartoon

Voice actor: Mark Acheson (English), Toshihiko Nakajima (Japanese), Ossi Valo (Finnish), Claes Ljungmark (Swedish), Salvador Serrano (Castilian Spanish), Héctor Indriago (Latin-American Spanish), Michel Dodane (French), Mario Bombardieri (Italian), Vilmos Papucsek (Hungarian, 2nd dub), Marek Obertyn (Polish)

Ransack and Crumplezone were the first Velocitronians approached by Megatron upon his arrival on the Speed Planet, and were quickly cowed into servitude. Landmine Now under Megatron's command, they sought out clues to the planet's Cyber Planet Key. They first terrorized Brakedown and Clocker, figuring the elder robot would know something about the artifact, being so old himself. Space Their bullying tactics were interrupted by Hot Shot and Red Alert, who sent the goons fleeing back to their new boss. Megatron, having correctly surmised that the coveted "Planet Cup" was the Planet Key he sought, questioned Override about the trophy, only to be goaded into racing her for the information. Crumplezone and Ransack cheered Megatron on as he raced against both Override and Hot Shot (who had joined the race for his own shot at the Key) but soon realized their leader stood little chance at coming in the lead. Crumplezone decided to sabotage Hot Shot's own chances at winnings with a couple of laser blasts, only to be chased off by Override for daring to interfere in her race. Rush

"Who thought this was a good idea?"

Megatron introduced Crumplezone and Ransack to Starscream, who "borrowed" the pair to test their capabilities. The three of them tracked down Red Alert to a junkyard, and ambushed him there. The Autobot's reflexes proved too quick for either Crumplezone or Ransack to nail him, and when Red Alert retaliated, he sent them both flying off over the horizon. Speed

Crumplezone and Ransack next met with Megatron with some news: the Planet Cup would take place soon, and if they managed to win this race, they would be simply handed Velocitron's Cyber Planet Key. All they needed to do is cheat their way to victory. Megatron approved of the duo's plan before taking off to attend to other business, though he was sure to blast them a bit first, lest they get any ideas about betraying him. Collapse Using their fists, Crumplezone and Ransack convinced Dirt Boss to join the Decepticons and aid them in their task. Search

The duo first tricked Dirt Boss into racing Hot Shot, under the pretense that Override had agreed to race one-on-one whoever would come out the winner. Crumplezone soon grew bored of watching the race, and suggested to his partner they simply skip the middle-man and blast Hot Shot themselves. Ransack offered no objections, and they absconded to a cliff next to the racetrack, raining down lasers towards the road. Hot Shot fought back, and was joined by Optimus Prime, Vector Prime, and Landmine just in time to avoid getting offed. Crumplezone and Ransack later spied on Optimus talking with Override, trying to convince her to give up the Cyber Planet Key and receiving the answer she gave everyone else: the only way to get the trophy was to win the World Cup. Crumplezone and Ransack contacted Megatron about this, and their boss told him not to bore him with minor details; they were to report on whoever won the race and otherwise leave him to his own work. Hero

As planned, Crumplezone and Ransack snuck around, trying to manipulate their way through the competition. During the first heat, they first attacked the Autobots directly, distracting them long enough to keep ahead of the group. Though the duo cut an entire bridge out of the track to prevent their opponents from completing the circuit, all contestants managed to arrive at the finish line, running them over in the process. Race Despite their cheating, Crumplezone and Ransack were allowed to participate in the race's second heat. But because of his wide alternate mode, Crumplezone was left unable to pass any of the other racers during a narrow stretch on the race course. Ransack made it to the lead however, and changed some of the course’s signs to send the other racers on a detour, alerting only Crumplezone to the deception. Despite their ruse, the others caught up to the Decepticons, and overtook them once more. Giving up on winning the race altogether, Crumplezone opened fire on the racers ahead of him while they were in a tunnel, sending debris down on them. Detour While the other competitors practiced in-between races, Crumplezone and Ransack spied on Override... by disguising themselves as trees overlooking her racetrack from the otherwise empty bleachers. Despite these "brilliant" disguises, the pair failed to yield any useful information. Savage The next segment of the race took the competitors through desert dunes. Ransack and Crumplezone came upon Dirt Boss attacking Override during this course, and for once opted to help their ally. Due to their poor aim they wound up blasting Dirt Boss, sending the monster truck into a rage. Dirt Boss's tantrum landed him into a sand trap, and both Crumplezone and Ransack decided it would be best to abandon him there. Sand Having been picked to be part of the final line-up for the Planet Cup, Crumplezone helped Ransack with a "super-duper" tune-up... which involved him mainly smacking his racing partner with a giant mallet repeatedly. The both of them then competed in the vast, twisting track deep inside the planet, but blew all their power very early in the race and were left eating dust by Hot Shot and Override. They decided to attempt to just flat-out steal the Planet Cup, and naturally failed. A second attempt at the theft was equally unsuccessful, despite the duo returning with the rest of the Decepticons as back-up. Champion

After their failure to capture the Speed Planet's Cyber Planet Key, Ransack and Crumplezone joined Megatron's forces off-planet attempting to collect the other Cyber Planet Keys. When Vector Prime, Optimus, and Leobreaker returned to the Jungle Planet, Crumplezone and Ransack were lying in wait for them, and pounced on the Autobots. Despite believing really hard in himself, Crumplezone was unable to defeat Leobreaker and Optimus in their "Savage Claw" mode, and was soundly thrashed by them. Ice Optimus then met with Scourge and tried to convince Jungle Planet's leader to hand over his Cyber Planet Key through diplomacy. Crumplezone and Ransack, watching from the sidelines, talked smack about Optimus during the meeting... until the Autobot asked them to repeat themselves to his face. They slinked away in response. Reconvening at Scourge's temple, the Decepticons and their allies were joined by Backstop, who delivered a message: Optimus had finally accepted Scourge's and was ready to meet him in battle. Honor When Starscream gave Megatron a false map that was in fact a trap, Crumplezone was the only one not trapped in it, and he quickly panicked. However, he went to find their newest ally Scourge, and soon(ish) Megatron was free... and pissed.

Back in black AND smarter than a seven-year-old!

Crumplezone joined his boss on the return to Earth, fighting against both the Autobots and the Decepticons under Starscream's command. The battlefield quickly shifted to Cybertron, where Crumplezone ran afoul of a swarm of Scrapmetal, succumbing to their numbers and exploding. Balance

Near death, he was revived by the ghostly form of Megatron shortly after (in a more powerful body to boot!), and the grateful duo continued to follow Megatron, all the way to Gigantion the Giant Planet. There... they suffered humiliating defeat after humiliating defeat, pretty much. For a brief moment they had a shot at actually achieving something for Megatron by kidnapping the Mini-Con Jolt, but were outsmarted by Coby and his new Cobybot, then subsequently blasted through a few layers of Gigantion by Optimus Prime using Metroplex's colossal axe "Sparkdrinker", which was really overkill. City

Pain is my friend, fool! ... wait, wait, no. That other thing.

When Megatron-then-Galvatron finally obtained the Omega Lock and all four Cyber Planet Keys, they followed him back to Cybertron and the edge of the Unicron Singularity. There, when threatened by hundreds of Transformers from across the colony worlds, Galvatron used the powers of the Omega Lock to make his lackeys gigantic and incredibly powerful. Crumplezone ended up facing off mostly against his fellow Velocitronians, including Dirt Boss. Despite his super-size, he ended up running away as he was attacked on all sides. End

After Galvatron's plans to accelerate the growth of the Unicron Singularity failed, Crumplezone and the other Decepticons left Galvatron, realizing that he had had no intention of sparing their lives from the cataclysm should he have succeeded. They re-appeared on the displaced Jungle Planet, as the citizens and Autobots were trying to prevent one of the massive planetary engines that was returning the world to its rightful place from falling over. Surprising everyone, they helped right the engine, having decided to try being good guys and being on the winning side for a change.Unfinished

Ransack, Crumplezone and Thunderblast journeyed together across each of the worlds, trying to find a place to fit in. Ultimately failing, on Earth they cobbled together a makeshift rocket and headed for the stars, shanghaiing Thundercracker before they left, eager to become the New Decepticon Army.

The rocket crashed on Mars, to comedic effect. Beginning

I want to tell you about the Transformers! This character article is a stub and is missing information on their fictional appearances. You can help Transformers Wiki by expanding it. Primal Trust Trap Revelation Critical Assault Starscream United Cybertron Darkness Memory Escape Titans Warp Giant Fury Ambush Challenge Showdown Homecoming

Galaxy Force manga

I want to tell you about the Transformers! This character article is a stub and is missing information on their fictional appearances. You can help Transformers Wiki by expanding it. Intense Race Planet! Velocitron

Spacewarp's Log

Crumplezone, Thunderblast, and Ransack were found by Spacewarp acting as goons for hire on Spensifax D (or A) when the pirate was trying to steal a Reciprocating Inverted Subspace Knife. Ransack decided to turn her in, though, much to Thunderblast's chagrin. After Spacewarp got away with the RISK, Thunderblast returned and patched things up with him and Ransack. Spacewarp's Log (1), 2015/10/28

Games

Roll Out online game

During Optimus Prime's search for the Cyber Planet Key of Velocitron, the hooligans Ransack, Crumplezone, and Dirt Boss tried vainly to stand in his way. Roll Out

Toys

Cybertron

Vilantor Gear activate! (Hasbro version pictured)

• Crumplezone (Voyager, 2004/2005)

• Takara name: Landbullet
• Takara ID number: GD-04
• Takara release date: December 28, 2004
• Accessories: 2 missiles, Speed Planet Cyber Key
• Cyber Key Code: vj40
• Known designers: Eric Siebenaler (Hasbro), Takio Ejima (TakaraTomy)

Part of the Speed Planet theme, Crumplezone transforms into a three-wheeled Velocitronian rocket car with huge turbine thrusters. These thrusters each contain a spring-loaded missile launcher, and can be swung forward in both vehicle and robot mode by plugging a Cyber Key into his key-jack, which also activates electronic sound effects. Unfortunately, due to how large and heavy the turbine cannons are, the springs can wear out fairly quickly, effectively neutering the gimmick outside of unlocking them. In robot mode, he has a movable jaw, which is great.

There are several minor differences between the Takara Galaxy Force "Landbullet" toy and the Hasbro Cybertron "Crumplezone" toy. Landbullet includes more light green paint on the front bumper, cockpit sides and the top-back roof section, which the Hasbro version omits. The light bars below Crumplezone's rear (or above his hands in robot mode) are also painted gold in the Takara release, but are unpainted in the Hasbro release. Also, the Hasbro version includes a Decepticon insignia which the Takara version did not include, and his Cyber Key has a Cyber Key Code printed on its back.

Landbullet was released first, in the first wave of Galaxy Force product, with Crumplezone arriving later, in the first wave of Cybertron Voyagers.

For reason unknown, Crumplezone's stock photo as seen on package art had a different color scheme than the final toy. The dark green parts on his body were all painted black, making him look a bit hideous. His moveable jaw is also missing as seen on the stock photo, which makes him look even more hideous.

This mold was also used to make the BotCon 2006 exclusive Optimus Primal.

• More information on Crumplezone at TFU.info

When you think "stealth", you think Crumplezone. If you are as smart as Crumplezone, that is.

• Dark Crumplezone (Voyager, 2005)

• Accessories: 2 missiles, Speed-Planet Cyber Key
• Cyber Key Code: v2r2
• Known designers: Eric Siebenaler (Hasbro)

Sold in the fourth wave of Cybertron Voyagers, Dark Crumplezone is an extensively retooled version of his original toy (approximately 80% of its parts have been changed). Crumplezone still turns into a Velocitronian three-wheeler, but this time his design is much more angular, with a "stealth fighter" look to him. Other changes include a pair of extra removable black fins, and new molded guns for his vehicle mode (in robot mode they point downwards and can't be angled forwards).

Despite the extensive remolding he has no new gimmicks, instead retaining all of the original gimmicks (and their penchant for weakening springs). The only difference is that Dark Crumplezone has a different sound clip, much shorter than the original's.

In package, Dark Crumplezone's new fins were not attached to him. Instead, they were in a bag taped to the cardboard insert, in a different place than the packet containing his instructions and missiles. Due to this, and the fact that his instructions don't mention that you need to attach the fins, many fans accidentally threw them out when they tossed the toy's packaging. In fact, chances are that as you're reading this you're thinking to yourself, "Hold on, my Dark Crumplezone doesn't have removable fins." Sorry buddy, but he's meant to. Looks like you threw them out too. Sorry.

This toy was slated for a Galaxy Force release as "Armbullet", but it never happened. Not even an e-HOBBY or "USA Edition" release. Sad. A retool into Shattered Glass Wheelie was mocked-up by Trent Troop in 2014, and that design was later used for a Botcon 2014 souvenir card.

• More information on Dark Crumplezone at TFU.info

Universe (2008)

• Optimus Prime / Crumplezone (Multi-pack, 2008)

• Series: Cybertron Series
• Accessories: 2 missiles, Speed Planet Cyber Key
• Cyber Key Code: vj40

This Costco-exclusive set contains Leader-class "Galaxy Force" Optimus Prime and the original Crumplezone. Both toys were unchanged from their previous individual releases.

Merchandise

Attacktix

• Omega Supreme with Crumplezone (Battle Master pack, 2006)

Three points of articulation is still more than a Generation 1 toy.

Crumplezone is the only Transformers series 1 Attacktix figure with a base speed over 10, making him a devastating opponent in Transformers-only games. His Special Power Sacrifice lets you replace any of your Trooper pieces with the formerly-defeated Crumplezone.

Ransack's Special Power Recover is dependent on having Crumplezone in play. Crumplezone also works well with Scorponok, Rodimus and any other figures who summon Trooper figures into play. Oddly enough Crumplezone's Captain class means that he can also support Skywarp's Infiltrate power, commanding him in battle. What a terrifying thought.

Crumplezone was only available in a pack with the "Battle Master" Omega Supreme piece.

• More information on Attacktix Crumplezone at TFU.info

• Dark Crumplezone (Booster, 2007)

Promotional image: final product may vary. Final product may not actually use an old Star Wars Attacktix base.

A redeco of the Crumplezone figure, this toy was intended to be a random-packed Booster in series 2. However, the line was canceled before the item could come out.

Game over. This Attacktix item has been canceled, with no current plans for release.

Notes

• According to the Galaxy Force Volume 13 DVD booklet, Dark Crumplezone's stats are:
  • Height: 5.5 meters
  • Weight: 17.7 tons
  • Speed: 990 kilometers per hour
• Ransack's nickname for Crumplezone is "CZ".
• Crumplezone (in vehicle mode) appears in the viewscreen of the Hasbro version of the Real Gear Robots toy Longview.... though the decal is upside-down.
• In the Finnish dub of the cartoon, Crumplezone is given a rather thick accent as an apparent attempt to enhance his dumb muscle persona. As a result however, his voice ends up sounding eerily similar to a rather stereotypical way Romani people used to be represented in old Finnish comedy shows.
• Ransack and Crumplezone had preliminary names of "George" and "Lenny" respectively, a (slightly unfortunate) literary allusion to Of Mice and Men. Additionally, a non-final name for Hasbro's release of the toy was Shrapnel.^[1]

Foreign names

• Japanese: Landbullet (ランドバレット Randobaretto), Armbullet (Dark Crumplezone, アームバレット Āmubaretto)
• Hungarian: Zűrzóna ("Chaoszone")
• Korean: Landbullet (레드블릿 Ledeubeullis)

References