Crosshairs is a supporting protagonist in the Transformers franchise.
He was voiced by Neil Ross, who also voiced Springer, Slag and Pointblank, as well as Shipwreck and Dusty in G.I. Joe and Moneybags and Bentley in Spyro: Year of the Dragon.
Biography[]
Cartoon[]
Crosshairs was one of the Autobots introduced in the three-part series finale "The Rebirth". He was part of a group stationed on Cybertron in the aftermath of Optimus Prime's return, led by Kup and Hot Rod. Crosshairs confidently expressed the belief that they wouldn't see the Decepticons again, right before Optimus Prime contacted them to warn them the entire Decepticon army was on the way. Crosshairs and the others intercepted Scourge and obtained the Key to the Plasma Energy Chamber, before being blown to the planet Nebulos. They were captured by a group of rebels, who thought they were machines working for the tyrannical Hive. Not long after, the Decepticons attacked, capturing Crosshairs and several others.
The group were rescued by Hardhead, Highbrow and the rest of their fellows, now upgraded to Autobot Headmasters. The Decepticons counterattacked, now similarly allied with the Hive as Headmasters and Targetmasters. As a result, Crosshairs was one of the remaining Autobots partnered with Nebulan sharpshooters as Targetmasters. When Optimus Prime arrived to take charge, the group nearly recovered the Key but were stopped by Scorponok. They followed the Decepticons to Cybertron but were immobilised by the energy from the chamber, which Galvatron was trying to use to destroy Earth. After Spike Witwicky and the Nebulans redirected the energy, Crosshairs witnessed the beginning of Cybertron's Golden Age.
Comics[]
Crosshairs first appeared in the Headmasters miniseries as one of the Autobots who accompanied Fortress Maximus to Nebulos to avoid the war. Facing suspicion from the Nebulans, Crosshairs was one of those who surrendered their weapons to the Nebulans as a sign of peace. After Scorponok's Decepticons followed them there and captured Fortress Maximus and the new Autobot Headmasters, Crosshairs underwent the Targetmaster process, being bonded with Pinpointer, one of a group of Nebulans who supported the Autobots' disgraced ally Galen. They attempted to stop the Decepticons' takeover of the Nebulan nursery but withdrew on realising the battle was destroying the area.
In the UK-exclusive story "Worlds Apart", Crosshairs, along with Pointblank and Sureshot, was captured by the Decepticons as bait to trap the Autobot Headmasters. Scorponok and the Decepticon Targetmasters sprung the trap, but Hardhead managed to free Crosshairs and the others, who united with their partners and turned the tide of the battle.
Crosshairs was briefly seen in the main comic in Issue #38, among the crew of Fortress Maximus' ship as they arrived on Earth. He made a more substantial appearance in the following issue, as he and the other Targetmasters launched an attack on the Earth Decepticons' island base in an attempt to rescue Buster Witwicky, only to be beaten back by the island's defences. He remained with the crew as they made contact with the Earth Autobots led by Grimlock.
After a lengthy gap, Crosshairs made his last appearance in Issue #66, where he was one of several Autobots blasted by Decepticon commander Thunderwing when he stormed the Ark. He is generally assumed to be one of the three Autobots reported deactivated during the battle.
He made a brief appearance in Marvel UK's Earthforce storyline among the newer Autobots who backed up Optimus Prime when he challenged Grimlock over his brutal methods.
Trivia[]
- Neil Ross's voice for Crosshairs is based on Clint Eastwood.
- Crosshairs design in the cartoon and comic is derived from early concept art, while the Japanese design for him is based directly on the toy.
