- Sparkplug
"This article is about the
Mini-Con partner of Optimus Prime in "Transformers: Armada." For other uses, seeSpark plug (disambiguation) "Sparkplug is the name of a
fictional character in the variousTransformers universes .Transformers character
name =Sparkplug
caption =Sparkplug from "Transformers: Armada"
affiliation =Autobot
japanname =Prime
katakana =
romaji =
rank =5
subgroup =Mini-Cons
partner =Optimus Prime
motto ="We must all learn to live in peace!"
alternatemodes =Sports Car, Cybertronian vehicle
series =Transformers: Armada
Sparkplug (not to be confused with the father of Spike Witwicky) is the young Mini-Con partner of Optimus Prime. He bears a striking resemblance to Bumblebee from the G1 series. He transforms into a sports car and normally
powerlink s with Optimus on his left shoulder. He is very open and outgoing, and quickly makes friends with Alexis, Carlos, and Rad. Sparkplug usually operates the mobile command base trailer when Prime is not using it in his Super Mode.While he was essentially the "leader" of the Mini-Cons in the Armada cartoon, like many Mini-Cons, he played a much bigger role in the comics. He was discovered inside the Mini-Con ship along with the Street Action Team (
Perceptor ) by the kids, and quickly teamed up with Optimus.Dreamwave Productions
Sparkplug appeared among the Mini-Cons in issue #18 of the "Transformers: Armada" comic book who aided
Over-Run using theMini-Con Matrix in the defeat of Unicron.Fun Publications
Sparkplug appeared in the text story from
Fun Publications called "Force of Habit." This story explained where he was during the events of the "Cybertron" story.Ultra Magnus was the commander of various Autobot ships sent to other planets in search for the Cyber Planet Keys. Sparkplug served as captain of the Valiant which was sent to a region nearBetelgeuse .Toy
*Armada Sparkplug:Sparkplug was released as four toys. The first was a fairly accurate representation that came with the Armada Optimus Prime figure. As with all Mini-Cons, it could powerlink on any of a number of ports studded over Prime. :Sparkplug's overall design was heavily inspired by the Generation 1 character, Bumblebee. While the final animated version has some minor design changes, the comic book version retained a lot of details making him very similar to Bumblebee. The Sparkplug toys released in the Armada toy line all take on the more Bumblebee-like design. [ [http://www.tfu.info/2003/Mini-Con/Sparkplug/sparkplug.htm Sparkplug (2003) - Mini-Con - www.tfu.info ] ] [ [http://seibertron.com/toys/gallery.php?id=367&size=0&start=0 Sparkplug - Transformers: Armada - Toy Gallery - Photos 1 - 25 ] ]
*Armada Corona Sparkplug:The second, Corona Sparkplug, was a slight redeco with a metalic gold
vacuum-metalized paint job and came in a number of different sets, including with the recolored Powerlinx Optimus Prime figure. :The golden Corona Sparkplug figure released in later sets is most likely inspired by Bumblebee's metamorphosis into Goldbug. Both characters had slight robot-mode redesigns with a similar vehicle mode and change from a basic yellow to gold. The two characters also have other parallels, such as being Prime's so-called "side-kick".*TV-Boy Prime:There was also a green version exclusive to TV Boy magazine in Japan under its Japanese name, Prime.
*Built to Rule Sparkplug:Finally, a Mega-Blox version was available with the Built-To-Rule Optimus Prime model set. While not very accurate in its robot mode, it was a fair representation in vehicle mode.
References
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