Iguanus
Iguanus is the name of several fictional characters from the various Transformers series.
Transformers: Generation 1
| Decepticon | |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| Sub-group | Pretenders |
| Function | Terror Trooper |
| Rank | 7 |
| Motto | "Sow the seeds of fear and victory is yours." |
| Alternate modes | Cybertronian Motorcycle |
| Series | Transformers: Generation 1 |
Iguanus is a loathsome Decepticon who is in love with his Pretender shell so much he rarely takes it off.
Reception
Iguanus is considered slightly more collectable than his fellow Pretenders because of his "cool" design and motorcycle mode.[1]
Marvel Comics
Iguanus and the other Decepticon Pretenders were presumably with Scorponok's Decepticons through The Transformers: Headmasters series, but were not depicted. His first appearance was in issue 40 of the U.S. comic in a story called "Pretender to the Throne", where Scorponok created the first six Decepticon Pretenders.
Iguanus appeared in the regular U.S. Marvel series with issue #49, "The Underbase Saga Part 3, Cold War!" In this story he was a member of the Decepticon forces under Scorponok's command. They were tricked into fighting the Decepticon forces under Ratbat's command by Starscream, who used the battle to steal Scorponok's ship and get to the Underbase.
Iguanus was featured on the cover of issue #54 "King Con", a parody of King Kong. In the issue itself, he and Skullgrin were dispatched by Scorponok to rig a transceiver on top of the Empire State Building to allow them to produce energon cubes. The plan was thwarted by the Autobot Micromasters.
The Decepticon Pretenders Bomb-Burst, Iguanus and Skullgrin were sent to steal from an oil rig in the "Gulf of New Mexico" in the 1989 U.K. Annual story "The Chain Gang." They were opposed and captured by the Autobot Pretenders Cloudburst, Landmine and Splashdown.
Iguanus appeared in issue #58 "All the Familiar Faces!" where he was among the Decepticon forces led by Scorponok in an attack on the MacDill Airforce Base. The Autobot force leader Optimus Prime realized both sides had been manipulated into fighting by someone else, and just as Scorponok realized Optimus may be correct both groups were attacked by Starscream in his new, powerful Pretender shell.
Iguanus continued to appear after this as one of Scorponok's troops, but made no further major appearances. Iguanus last appeared in issue 75 "On the Edge of Extinction." As he was not seen after this, it is possible he was killed in Unicron's attack.
Dreamwave Productions
Although Iguanus never appeared in the fiction from Dreamwave Productions before it closed, he did get a one-page biography in its More Than Meets The Eye series.
IDW Publishing
Iguanus appeared amongst Bludgeon's acolytes in the Spotlight issue on Soundwave. When their plan was revealed, Iguanus was attacked by Ravage. When Bludgeon badly wounded the cassette, Iguanus used one of Shockwave's experimental weapons to send Soundwave into stasis lock. The three escaped to Cybertron, leaving Soundwave (trapped in cassette mode), and the injured Laserbeak and Ravage on Earth while their volcano base erupted.
Bludgeon's plan came full circle in The Transformers: Stormbringer, as he and his followers kidnapped Jetfire and the Technobots, hoping to dissect them and use their parts to replicate the same grafting process that created Thunderwing, giving them their own Pretender Shells. Hacking into the monster's mind Bludgeon implanted a subconscious suggestion for Thunderwing to seek out and destroy entire planets, believing their sacrifice would enable Cybertron to be reborn, before unleashing the monster on Nebulos. However, their plans were stopped by the Wreckers, who took out his cult. In desperation, Bludgeon underwent the grafting process only to find out, far too late, that the shell hadn't been neuro-aligned; the psychic backlash destroyed his mind. Iguanus, the only other survivor of the Wreckers' assault, sought him out, but the now maddened Bludgeon killed him. (or at least mortally injured him).
Iguanus and the Decepticon Pretenders seen here have completely different robot forms to their toys and bear resemblance to the original toys' Pretender shells. His alternate mode is a Cybertronian motorcycle. In the trade paperback for Stormbringer, bonus art revealed an unused concept for Iguanus in his Pretender shell which transformed into a metallic iguana, like a Mega Pretender.
Toys
- Generation 1 Pretender Iguanus (1988)
Beast Wars
| Predacon | |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| Sub-group | Basic Beasts, Deluxe Beasts, Transmetal II |
| Function | Demolitions |
| Rank |
5 (original) 4.5 (Transmetal 2) |
| Motto | "The shortest path between two Maximal points is a heat seeking missile." |
| Alternate modes |
Giant Frilled Lizard Giant Transmetal Frilled Lizard |
| Series | Beast Wars |
Iguanus is a Predacon who turns into a frilled lizard. His scales are titanium-plated armor, as is the deflective head-plate that shields him from laser fire.
IDW Publishing
Iguanus was among the troops of Magmatron in the Beast Wars: The Gathering series. He worked alongside fellow Predacons Spittor, Manterror, Transquito and Drill Bit. Before leaving for prehistoric Earth, Iguanus was reformatted into a giant frilled lizard. After Magmatron activated the stasis pods it was Iguanus who discovered the Predacon Retrax. Razorbeast was revealed as a Maximal spy when Maximals started coming out of the pods. Iguanus was put in charge of organizing hunting parties. Later, Iguanus located a blank protoform into which Ravage's spark would be inserted. He accompanied Magmatron and Drill Bit to capture Megatron and send him back to Cybertron (to appease the Tripredacus Council). They succeeded in the capture, but failed to prepare the transwarp shunt. Grimlock intervened and ripped Iguanus apart, although Iguanus survived (as revealed in The Ascending).
Iguanus had a biography printed in the Beast Wars Sourcebook by IDW Publishing.[4]
3H Enterprises
In the Primeval Dawn series by 3H Enterprises Spittor and Iguanus were among the Predacon troops led by Tarantulas. Spittor and Iguanus were upgraded into transmetal 2 form in this series, presumably by Tarantulas. They worked together with Razorclaw and Ravage. Although this series was never finished, it is assumed Spittor survived and joined the Maximals in returning to Cybertron, while Iguanus, Razorclaw and Ravage died.
Toys
- Beast Wars Iguanus
- A basic sized Predacon toy. This toy was later redecoed into the Predacon Crazybolt. He came with a tail that turned into a gun.[5][6]
- Beast Wars Transmetal 2 Iguanus (1999)
- A new deluxe sized mold. This toy was later redecoed into the Decepticon Reptilion.
References
- ↑ Bellemo, Mark (2007). Transformers Identification and Price Guide. Krause Publications. p. 203. ISBN 978-0-89689-445-7.
- ↑ Alvarez, J.E. (2001). The Unofficial Guide to Transformers 1980s Through 1990s Revised & Expanded 2nd Edition. Schiffer Publishing Ltd. p. 75. ISBN 0-7643-1364-9.
- ↑ Jon & Carl Hartman (February 1996). "The Transformers: 1988 - Part 2". Lee's Action Figure News & Toy Review 1 (40): 68–69.
- ↑ "Creators of Transformers: Beast Wars: The Gathering are back". M&C News. 2007-08-15. Archived from the original on 2012-04-04. Retrieved 2015-05-20.
- ↑ Alvarez, J.E. (2001). The Unofficial Guide to Transformers 1980s Through 1990s Revised & Expanded 2nd Edition. Schiffer Publishing Ltd. p. 120. ISBN 0-7643-1364-9.
- ↑ "Transformers '96 Beast Wars". Lee's Action Figure News & Toy Review 1 (40): 59. February 1996.
