|
| “ | Bear witness! This is the last time I show mercy! Decide right now! You can stay here in hiding, bowing before your pathetic leader, or follow me as we march on Iacon and I take down Sentinel ONCE AND FOR ALL! | „ |
| ~ D-16 shows his ruthless side at the High Guard's after overthrowing Starscream. |
| “ | I'm done saving you. | „ |
| ~ D-16 betraying Orion Pax by letting him fall to his death and finally giving into his inner villain; his most famous quote. |
D-16, currently known as Megatron, is the deuteragonist of the 2024 animated science fiction action film Transformers One. A rash but kind miner, he was Orion Pax's former best friend, often being the one to get Orion out of trouble while trying to follow protocol the best he could. Like Orion, he idolized the Primes and desired to live up to their example, with his personal favorite being Megatronus Prime.
However, his resentment and fury over the truth about Sentinel's falsely status as a Prime, as well as his crippling of the populace of Iacon, led him down a dark path that culminated in him becoming a ruthless tyrant. Rechristening himself as Megatron, he took control of Cybertron's High Guard and reformed them into the Decepticons, swearing revenge on Orion for banishing him, who later became his now sworn nemesis, Optimus Prime.
He was voiced by Brian Tyree Henry, who also played Lemon in Bullet Train, Alfred "Paper Boi" Miles in Atlanta and voices Jefferson Davis in the Spider-Verse films, Dancarino in Vivo, and also played Mike Norris in the 2019 Child's Play remake, Bernie Hayes in the Monsterverse, and Phastos in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Biography[]
Past[]
D-16 was one of numerous Cybertronians in the miner class, which consisted of Cybertronians without transformation cogs who solely served as menial laborers for the rest of the planet. During his early years, D-16 would befriend fellow miner Orion Pax, both of them coming to be brothers in all but name.
Transformers One[]
He first appeared when he rescued Orion from two guards chasing him, with the former giving D-16 a sticker of Megatronus Prime, the Prime he deeply admired, as a gift for his friend by placing it onto D-16's left shoulder. He then went to the mines with the other miners led by Elita-1. However, the mines exploded which forced the miners to evacuate. Jazz got trapped in the process and both Orion and D-16 stayed behind to save his life. Elita got fired by Darkwing for the duo's ruckus. Orion tried to defend Elita's honor which ended in both him and D-16 getting knocked out by Darkwing.
Wanting to prove themselves as more than miners, Orion and D-16 secretly entered the Iacon 5000 race but lost despite their efforts. However, Sentinel took an interest and, instead of punishing them, had a security guard give them a new post at his residence. Unfortunately, Darkwing sent them to the smelting area out of spite for making him lose the race, where they met B-127. The three of them then discovered a chip in the junk with a distress message from Alpha Trion, one of the Primes, revealing coordinates to his location on the planet's surface.
The three hitchhiked on a train carrying crates to the surface, inadvertently bringing Elita along. They eventually discovered a deactivated Trion and a mass grave of the Primes inside a cavern. After reactivating him, Trion revealed that Sentinel betrayed and murdered the Primes and allied with the Quintessons for power in return for Energon, and secretly removed the miners' transformation cogs to keep them powerless. D-16 started to lose his temper when Sentinel lied to him and angrily swore he wanted to kill him for his deceits.
Trion gave Orion's team the fallen Primes' cogs, allowing them to transform, as well as a chip carrying evidence of Sentinel's treason. However, Sentinel's soldiers arrived, so Trion held them off to allow the others to escape, resulting in him being captured and executed by Sentinel.
Following their escape from Sentinel's forces, D-16 became more distant and vengeful after receiving the T-Cog, as he planned to murder Sentinel Prime in front of Iacon. They ended up being captured by the High Guard, led by Starscream. D-16 challenged Starscream for leadership of the High Guard, which ended in Starscream's defeat and allowing D-16 to become the new leader of the High Guard. However, Sentinel's forces then came to the High Guard's headquarters and captured half of the High Guard, including D-16 and B-127.
At Sentinel's tower, he confronted the High Guard and planned to execute them for treason. D-16 stood up to Sentinel as he said that he had nothing left to lose. Sentinel then realized that D-16 admired Megatronus Prime due to the sticker Orion gave him and burned it horribly into D-16's chest in an agonizing way just to mock both D-16 and the memory of his hero. He also revealed that he stole Megatronus' cog for himself, much to D-16's anger. Orion and Elita came to rescue D and Bee and confronted Sentinel and his forces. While Orion and the others went to capture Airachnid, D stayed behind to fight against Sentinel.
With Sentinel's crimes exposed to all of Iacon, D-16 was determined to execute him on the spot. However, Orion intervened and pleaded with D-16 not to take that path. In the process of stopping him, Orion was shot. Initially horrified by his actions, D-16 coldly told Orion that he was done saving him. Tragically, D-16 foolishly allowed Orion to fall into Cybertron's core, descending into darkness. D-16 then killed Sentinel and took Megatronus' cog for himself. He rechristened himself as "Megatron" and rallied the High Guard to destroy Iacon, showing no regard for the lives he endangered in the process. Elita and Bee tried to stop Megatron from wreaking havoc, but they were powerless against him; with his new core, he was too strong for both of them.
| “ | Optimus Prime: We were given the power to change our world and you chose to destroy it, just like Sentinel. You have betrayed Cybertron and its citizens, and you betrayed... me. Go. Take the High Guard and leave. You are banished from Iacon. It didn't have to end this way. Megatron: This isn't over... Prime. (limps away) High Guard! Follow me! |
„ |
| ~ Megatron being banished from Iacon alongside the High Guard, and swearing revenge on Optimus, foreshadowing the millennia-long feud between him and Optimus Prime. |
Orion returned as Optimus Prime after being deemed worthy of the Matrix of Leadership by Primus and the Thirteen Primes. For the first time, Megatron and Optimus faced each other in battle, with Optimus ultimately defeating him. Heartbroken, Optimus confronted Megatron about his betrayal of Cybertron, pointing out that he was following the same destructive path as Sentinel, especially after gaining power that was meant to be used for good. Optimus then banished Megatron and the High Guard from Iacon. As Megatron left with the High Guard, he vowed revenge, declaring that his conflict with Optimus was far from over. This marked the end of their deep friendship and set them on the path to become bitter enemies. In the post-credits scene, after Optimus rebranded the Iaconians as Autobots, Megatron renamed the High Guard as the Decepticons, adopting the face of Megatronus as their symbol. This change symbolized the beginning of the civil war between the Autobots and Decepticons.
Personality[]
| “ | The line between friend and enemy is not as clear as I once believed. Once it's crossed, there's no going back, because some transformations... are permanent. | „ |
| ~ Optimus Prime remarking on D-16's fall to villainy as Megatron. |
Megatron's personality is shaped by a combination of his oppressive and vengeful upbringing, his deep convictions, emotional volatility, and a growing sense of betrayal. Initially, as D-16, he is shown as a brave, kind, laid back and passionate miner with a strong moral compass, driven by the ideals of justice and fairness that he shares with his friend, Orion Pax. He is loyal and protective, often stepping in to save Orion from trouble, showcasing a caring side and a belief in a better future for Cybertron. He is also capable of politeness and being considerate, irritable and sensitive to others' feelings, as shown when he stopped himself from insulting B-127-a complete stranger-despite finding him strange and annoying. Despite this, he is also initially weak-willed and prone to following Orion's whims. However, as his worldview grew darker, D-16's sense of will became stronger, but also less compassionate.
Beneath his good-natured exterior, D-16 harbors an inner turmoil, especially regarding the oppressive conditions in Iacon and the corruption within Cybertron's leadership conflicting with his desire to follow the rules. His strong sense of justice quickly turns into bitterness and resentment when he and the group uncovered the truth about Sentinel Prime’s deceptions. This sense of betrayal fuels his anger, leading him to foolishly believe that only through force and domination can real change be achieved. The leader he looked up to so much proving to be so despicable absolutely shatters D-16's views to an irreparable degree. He goes from urging Orion to have blind faith in their leaders, to harboring an extreme hatred for anything he can interpret as control or leadership. However, what he retains is the belief that those in power have every right to treat those beneath them as beneath them. His once noble intentions become twisted, and his rash, emotional nature drives him down a path of violence.
Throughout the film, D-16 idolizes Megatronus the most out of all of the Thirteen Primes for his mighty power. He eagerly accepts his friend Orion Pax giving him a rare sticker based on Megatronus' face and begins wearing it proudly on his left shoulder. In the beginning, he also greatly respected Sentinel Prime, accepting his current oppressive reign due to a belief that Sentinel would make the world better eventually. As a result, the reveal that Sentinel is not only a traitor but the one responsible for all their problems, D-16 became aggressive, vengeful and angry, and causes his kindly personality to rapidly erode in rage. By placing all his faith in the system, the system is revealed as unworthy and shatters him. D-16's hatred of Sentinel reaches its peak when the false Prime cruelly mocks him for his hero worship of Megatronus, reveals his possession of the real Prime's cog, and destroys D-16's beloved sticker by painfully scorching a crude rendition of Megatronus' face into his chest. After killing Sentinel, D-16 took Megatronus' cog and installed it into his own chest, renaming himself "Megatron" in honor of his hero and idol. He even created an insignia featuring his hero's face and branded it onto himself and the High Guard, transforming them into Decepticons.
As Megatron, he becomes a merciless, tyrannical, wrathful and power-hungry, yet clever and charismatic leader, using his anger and charisma to rally the Decepticons and wage war on Cybertron. He develops a ruthless and authoritarian streak, believing that peace and order can only be maintained through his iron-fisted rule. His idealism is replaced by a desire for control, and he sees any opposition, including his former friend Optimus, as a threat to his vision of Cybertron's future.
His succumbing to megalomania and cruelty also twisted his perceptions, since despite Sentinel being a false Prime and the real Primes remaining faithful to Cybertron, Megatron still demanded the destruction of the legacy of the Primes, with the sole exception of Megatronus, whom he still idolizes by having his sigil as the Decepticon symbol.
It is worth noting that D-16 always possessed a level of deep-seated anger and hints of a violent personality. While he is good friends with Orion, he is constantly sniping and snarking at him throughout their relationship, threatening to "smelt his face right off" should they miss the Iacon 5000, stating, if given a transformation cog, he would "turn into a shovel and beat [Orion] with it". While this appears perfectly innocent at first, it does show he has a propensity for violence. When he found Megatronus' corpse, he was distraught, but his sorrow very quickly turned to a suppressed-rage. D-16 also strongly believed in the rules and the caste system installed on Cybertron, believing that Darkwing had every right to act like a petty jerk towards them and that he was in the wrong for attempting to diffuse the situation, which also involved punching Orion in the face.
He was also dismissive of Orion's ideas that they could be more than miners. This also translated into a great faith in leadership. This had the side effect that, when the true nature of Sentinel's reign was exposed, his personality flipped completely. He angrily crushed his rank badge and blamed Orion for their situation. He expressed frustration with Orion's desire to break the rules resulting in them being made aware of Sentinel's machinations, which confused Orion, but D-16 stated that "nothing bad happens when you stay on protocol." He accused Orion of being selfish, though in reality, here D-16 exposes his own selfishness. Rather than use this opportunity to find a way to expose Sentinel, like Orion was, he was more concerned about what it would affect him personally.
Throughout the conversation, he notably only describes what will happen to him, in contrast to Orion, who is always saying "we." He becomes so self-centred that he begins to prioritize his revenge against Sentinel over the wellbeing of others and the consequences. When Orion attempts to stop him from executing Sentinel to prevent both D-16 becoming a murderer and the potential societal upheaval caused by murdering a leader in a vigilante execution, a brief glimmer of D's original personality shines through when he catches his friend. However, he soon blames Orion for attempting to stop him, rather than recognize the part he played in shooting him, and ultimately decides to let Orion fall to his death, citing that he has had to save him too many times.
However, once he kills Sentinel, rather than be satisfied, he turns his attention to Iacon itself, desiring to destroy the city and any aligned with Sentinel. During this, he shows clear disregard for civilian life, not caring that his actions will certainly have casualties. When B-127 and Elita try to stop him, despite having once been friends, he very quickly decides they are enemies and attempts to kill them. If anyone is not entirely onboard with his every action, they too are an enemy. Once Orion returns, now reformatted as Optimus, Megatron is taken aback, surprised by his friend's survival and him being bestowed the Matrix of Leadership, but it quickly turns to rage. Once defeated, he is clearly hurt when Optimus banishes him, but once again refuses to take accountability, leading to the millennia long rivalry the two will share in the future.
All in all D-16 believed that, as long as order was maintained, the system was justified, no matter how hard it hurt him. He believed that it's better to go on with your life, and remain ignorant of a system's exploitative nature, as long as your life could remain relatively comfortable. What he believed in was, essentially, peace, through tyranny. Ultimately, while D-16 wasn't always evil, the traits that would transform him into Megatron were present from the very start.
Powers and Abilities[]
Powers[]
Cybertronian Physiology: D-16 possesses the natural abilities inherent to all Cybertronians, but after receiving Onyx Prime's T-Cog from Alpha Trion, D-16 received a major upgrade as all cogless Cybertronians did, growing much taller and nearly all of his body being replaced with stronger enhancements, even gaining the ability to equip a fusion cannon on his right arm. Once he acquired Megatronus Prime's unique T-Cog, Megatron became much stronger, with much of his body being further enhanced, especially his cannon, which upgraded to triple barrel, putting him on a level equal to the Primes.
- Superhuman Strength: After D-16 received a T-Cog, thanks to Alpha Trion, his strength became immense, allowing him to overpower most enemies with ease. His physical power is comparable to the strongest Primes, capable of devastating foes and even tearing apart other Transformers in battle able to fight multiple opponents nothing but his bare hands. And even without a T-Cog, it was implied that D-16 was fairly strong by cogless Cybertronian standards, as seen when he blocked a punch from the much larger and cogged Darkwing with the former even managing to stand his ground.
- Superhuman Durability: His body is highly resilient, able to withstand powerful energy blasts, crushing forces, and extreme damage without being easily destroyed. The T-Cog enhancements make his armored body even more impervious to harm.
- Superhuman Speed: Though not the fastest Cybertronian, D-16's enhanced speed allows him to move with surprising quickness in battle, closing gaps between him and his enemies or dodging incoming attacks with agility.
- Superhuman Agility: Despite his size and bulk, D-16 demonstrates impressive agility, performing complex maneuvers in battle with ease and precision.
- Superhuman Stamina: His mechanical physiology allows him to endure extended periods of physical exertion without tiring, making him a relentless force in combat.
- Superhuman Reflexes: D-16's reflexes are enhanced to near-instantaneous reaction times, allowing him to respond to threats, dodge attacks, and counter enemies with speed and precision.
- Transformation: As with all Cybertronians, D-16 can transform into a Cybertronian tank as he used his cannon to blast at his enemies with ease. He can also activate a his fusion cannon and another smaller blaster. Now as Megatron, his power had amplified significantly.
- Immortality: D-16 is virtually ageless, like some Cybertronians, existing for millions of years.
Abilities[]
- Expert Combatant: Megatron is a highly powerful fighter in advanced combat, combining hand-to-hand techniques, weapon usage and even switching between robot and vehicle forms partially or fully to maintain an edge. He manage to overpower Starscream and hold against Sentinel.
- Master Leader: Megatron's charisma and strength make him a formidable leader. He is able to inspire loyalty and fear within the Decepticons, commanding respect and authority. His strategic mind and tactical brilliance have allowed him to wage war on Cybertron with devastating effectiveness.
Equipment[]
Mining Equipment[]
- Energon Drills: D-16, like every miner, used some powerful drills were essential for breaking through Cybertron’s tough metal crust to access hidden Energon deposits. The drills were mounted on his arms, allowing him to work efficiently and quickly. While primarily tools for labor, they also became useful in self-defense or in physical confrontations, able to crush or damage anyone who threatened him.
- Jet Packs: D-16 uses some Jetpacks to travel to the mines so he can extract Energon, and he and Orion used said Jet Packs to run into the Iacon 5000 race.
Weapons[]
- Fusion Cannon: Manifesting from his right arm, D-16 is able to summon a fusion cannon. This weapon can cause damage as Orion's body had a hole and was scrapped. When he inserted Megatronus’ T-Cog the cannon became a triple-barreled.
Quotes[]
| “ | Orion: Hey, Megatronus Prime. Nice! D-16: Oh yeah. Well, he's my hero. Both: The greatest Prime that ever lived. [chuckling] D-16: I'm D-16. Orion: Orion Pax. D-16: You ever mined Energon before? Orion: No, you? D-16: No. I've heard it’s dangerous. Orion Pax: I'll tell you what. You watch my back, I promise to watch yours. D-16: Alright, thanks... Pax. |
„ |
| ~ D-16 meeting Orion Pax for the first time. |
| “ | D-16: (grunts) Hey! Watch where you're going! Guard #2: (angrily) Oh… What'd you say, no-cog? D-16: Sorry, sir, I didn’t mean you. I was referring to the bot who was behind you. Guard #1: What? Where'd he go? D-16: The filthy red and blue bot? Has a big mouth, squeaky joints, gives off a corroded metallic stench? Guard #2: Where is he? D-16: (points to the right) He went that way. Guard #2: (running to the right) When I get my hands on that bot… |
„ |
| ~ D-16 tricking the Guards. |
| “ | D-16: All right, all clear. Orion: Okay, D-16, I may be a little rusty, but "corroded"? That is too far. D-16: Let me guess. Chased out of the archives? Orion: (laughs) Yeah. I had to jump out of a window this time. Almost died. (laughs) It was wild. D-16: And digging through ancient data is worth dying for? Orion: Yes, it is. D-16: I need a new best friend. Orion: If there are clues in our recorded history that can help locate the Matrix of Leadership, they’re in the archives. D-16: Sentinel Prime. The Sentinel Prime, is up on the surface right now, risking his life for us in search of the Matrix. Orion: That's exactly what I'm doing; Where I'm trying to help him. D-16: Yeah. (chuckles) Okay. Orion: The sooner Energon flows again, the sooner we won't have to mine for it. Don't you want to choose your own path, do whatever you want? D-16: We're miners, we mine. That's all. Orion: No, there's got to be something more I can do. I can feel it. D-16: Oh yeah? Like the time you had a "feeling" you could transform without a cog? Orion: You said you were never going to mention that again. D-16: Took me three days to pry you open. Your feelings get you in trouble. Orion: Yeah, yeah... D-16: Just trust in Sentinel Prime. Orion Pax: I do trust in him. Hey, if we did have cogs- D-16: I'd transform into a shovel, and beat you. Orion: I don't like how fast you answered that. But listen, if you did beat me, I wouldn't give you this awesome Megatronus Prime thing I have here. It's cool, I'll give it to someone else. D-16: What Megatronus Prime thing? Orion: Ah, it's nothing. Just uhh, you know, Mint-Condition Megatronus Prime decal, first edition. D-16: (softly gasps) What? Orion: I mean, if you don't want it I can just throw it away. D-16: Throw it away!?- Don't- that's not funny! Let me see. Orion: Whoa, don't grab. You're gonna crease it. (places the decal on D-16's shoulder) D-16: You know, Sentinel said that Megatronus was the- Orion: The strongest Prime to ever live. I know, buddy. Looks good on you. D-16: Ahh, it's really cool. Thanks. Orion Pax: Always got your back. D-16: No matter what. (D-16 and Orion Pax fistbump) |
„ |
| ~ D-16 chatting with Orion Pax after the former rescued him from the archive guards, then the latter gifts him a Megatronus Prime decal, revealing how they used to be best friends before their future. |
| “ | D-16: Excuse me sir, allow me. (punches Orion in the face) I apologize on his behalf for the disr- (gets punched in the face by Darkwing) Why? | „ |
| ~ D-16 being punched by Darkwing. |
| “ | D-16: ARE YOU CRAZY?! Orion: Sure feels like it. |
„ |
| ~ Orion and D-16 as they compete on Iacon 5000. |
| “ | D-16: IF WE SURVIVE THIS I'M GONNA KILL YOU! Orion: I accept those terms! |
„ |
| ~ D-16 and Orion Pax during the Iacon race, foreshadowing their future rivalry. |
| “ | Orion: So... how long do you think we'll be here? D-16: I'm not talking to you... you know what? I can't believe you made me do that, We are so screwed! Orion: I thought you weren't talking to me. D-16: Hey, look, I know it's all a big joke to you. But not me. I was paying my dues. I was going places. And now they're gonna bust me down I- I don't even know how many tiers! Orion: I'm sorry, D. But come on, didn't you feel it? Even for just a second, didn't you feel liberated? Didn't you feel like you were something else? Like you could be more than what they say you are?. D-16: Yeah, I felt it. I did. But it doesn't matter. We're going to get punished and demoted. (sighs) Sentinel Prime saw the whole thing. This is so embarrassing. |
„ |
| ~ Orion Pax and D-16 in a waiting room after the race when D-16 blames him about the proposal. |
| “ | D-16: Sentinel Prime. (laughs) The Sentinel Prime! Orion Pax: You still mad at me? D-16: I am less mad at you. Orion Pax: I’m telling you, D… I got a feeling that everything’s gonna change and we’re gonna go… Darkwing: (growls angrily) Miners! (growls angrily again) D-16: (nervously) Ah... Darkwing... |
„ |
| ~ D-16 finally meets his idol, and Orion Pax kills the mood, but unfortunately, Outraged Darkwing enters the room, seething mad at the two for embarrassing him and got him eliminated at the race. |
| “ | D-16: Every day... Every single day of my life has been a lie. Orion: My God, I knew it! Deep down, I always felt something was off. D-16: He deceived everyone. Elita-1: Sentinel bought himself power and then put us to work paying off his debt. B-127: I can't believe it. Well, obviously, I can believe it, I just saw it, but I still... I can't believe it. D-16: Sentinel lied to my face. Orion: It was all a sham. How could we have been so gullible? Oh, this... this is going to change everything. D-16: You just had to do it. Didn't you? Orion: Me? What did I do? D-16: You just had to go to the surface; had to enter the Iacon 5000! You just had to break Protocol! Orion: Who cares about Protocol? D-16: I do! I care! Because nothing bad happens when you stay on protocol! Orion: Sentinel Prime has been forcing us to work in the mines until our gears strip, and all the while he's been giving the Energon away to our greatest enemies. D-16: (groans) And What do you think he's gonna do to us when he finds out that we know?! Orion: I'm not thinking about what he's going to do. I'm thinking about what we're going to do! D-16: Well that's the whole thing! You're never thinking about anything else, just yourself! Fantastic! Another Orion Pax master plan! I can't wait to hear this! Orion: But don't you want to stop him? D-16: (angrily) No I want to kill him! I want to put Sentinel in chains and march him through the mines so that everyone can see him for the FALSE PRIME that he is! I want him to suffer and then to die in darkness! But we all know that it doesn't matter what I want, right Pax? The fact is, we’re just cogless bots, right? We had limited options, and now... now we have none. |
„ |
| ~ D-16 witnessing Sentinel's betrayal which causes him to get more angry and frustrated, revealing that he wants to kill him for his betrayal and his first breakdown. |
| “ | Starscream: Hey! What are you doing?! D-16: I'll tell you what I'm not doing. I'm not cowering in some busted ship, playing king of the throne. I'm not pretending like I'm making a difference by throwing one punch, and then running away to hide! I found that Sentinel is rotten today, and I'm gonna make him pay for it! today! Starscream: You think you can insult me, and just walk away? No one leaves here unless I say so. D-16: Is that right? Well, how can you say so with my head in your teeth? |
„ |
| ~ D-16 challenging Starscream. |
| “ | Sentinel: Well, well, what's this about? D-16: I'm not kneeling in front of you. Sentinel: Feeling confident, are we? D-16: You don't scare me. You want to know why? Sentinel: Please. D-16: Because I don't have anything left to lose. You took it all. Sentinel: I sure did. |
„ |
| ~ D-16 daring to stand up to Sentinel. |
| “ | D-16: What are you doing?! Orion Pax: It's over D, Everyone in Iacon knows the truth. D-16: So do I! He took everything from us! I have to do this! Orion Pax: No you don't! Rebuilding Iacon cannot begin with an execution. D-16: He deserves to die! Can't you see that?! Orion Pax: We're better than this. Don't be like Sentinel. D-16: [calmly yet furiously] Pax, you need to move out of my way, before I move you myself. Orion Pax: D, listen... [D-16 punches and kicks Orion out of the way. He then prepares to shoot Sentinel as the latter tries to crawl away.] Stop! (Takes the blast instead, losing one of his arms. He nearly falls off a ledge but D-16 grabs him) D-16: No! No no no no no! Why...? Why did you do that?! WHY?! (His distraught expression slowly turns to anger) Orion Pax: D... No... D-16: (He slowly looks down... and looks at Orion Pax with red eyes) I'm done saving you. |
„ |
| ~ D-16 arguing with Orion Pax over Sentinel's fate, before allowing him to fall to his "death" as he finally embraces the path of evil. |
| “ | The Age of Primes has ended! No more false prophets! Follow me, and you will never again be deceived! RISE UP!! | „ |
| ~ D-16's speech to the High Guard after killing Sentinel. |
| “ | I will lead us all into the future! I... am... MEGATRON!! | „ |
| ~ D-16 completing his turn to darkness, renaming himself as Megatron. |
| “ | Burn it down! ALL OF IT! | „ |
| ~ Megatron demanding the destruction of Iacon City. |
| “ | Elita- 1: Stop! It's over! Megatron: It's over when every last one of his followers is DEAD! |
„ |
| ~ Megatron to Elita-1 while she and B-127/Bumblebee try to stop him. |
| “ | Megatron: Impossible... Primus gave you the Matrix? Optimus Prime: We could have built the future together. Megatron: I'll build it myself... after I tear down everyone IN MY WAY! |
„ |
| ~ Megatron before his first fight against his former best friend and his final villainous breakdown. |
| “ | Sentinel, the betrayer, is dead. But his death has given life to a new enemy. A stronger enemy. A personal enemy. We will not be blinded by his deception. We are the ones who are... DECEPTICONS!! RISE UP!! | „ |
| ~ Megatron officially establishing the Decepticons. |
Trivia[]
- This Megatron is the first villain from a Paramount Animation movie based on a pre-existing IP.
- D-16's origins and motivation are heavily inspired by both his IDW and Aligned counterparts, taking inspiration from both of those versions rise to power as a means of liberating Cybertron from corruption, tragically losing himself in darkness in the process.
- A noticeable detail throughout the film consists of D-16's eye color changes, highlighting his descent into madness and tyranny:
- As a miner, they are a yellow.
- After gaining the respect of the High Guard, they become more orange.
- Right before he allows Orion Pax to fall to his death, they turn blood red.
- During the Iacon 5000 race, D-16 told Orion Pax that he would kill him if they survived, foreshadowing their future betrayal.
- Megatron was originally planned to be a gladiator as part of his origin, much like other versions, but this was later scrapped due to the limited runtime given for the film. However, it was referenced with D-16's one-on-one fight with Starscream.
- In the movie's novelization, it's stated that Megatron initially received Onyx Prime's cog before switching it out for Megatronus'. As Onyx was famed for their foresight and intuition, this mirrored Megatron's short-sighted way of thinking and inability to foresee how his lust for revenge would cause a rift in Cybertronian society.
- Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire and Transformers One, both of which Brian Tyree Henry starred in, came out in 2024.
- The way Megatron kills Sentinel Prime is similar to how his films counterpart kills Jazz, with the only difference is that Sentinel's death is well-deserved, unlike Jazz who's a scapegoat.
- D-16’s character before he became Megatron may have been loosely inspired by Dion whom was Generation One Optimus Prime's best friend and co-worker when he was known as Orion Pax.
- The scene where Megatron give a speech to the people after killing Sentinel Prime has become a meme in the Transformers community, with many people making their own version of the speech.
- The difference between D and Orion's ideology can be seen by how they prefer to themselves:
- D use "me, I" showing that he only saw his problem as what that matter and believe that you have to take matter into your own hand, which is fitting for his ideology that one is always dominant over others.
- In contrast, Orion use "we, us", showing that he saw his problem as everyone's problem and believe the power of teamwork is what matter, which is fitting for his ideology that everyone are equal.
- Another difference to Optimus and Megatron is the strongest weapon they use: Megatron use a triple-barrel gun, a weapon solely for the sake of destruction, while Optimus use an axe, which is a weapon of destruction but also a tool used by worker, which is fitting that Megatron only wants to destroy, while Optimus wants to fight when necessary and rebuild the future.
- Their alt mode is also a difference between their ideology: Optimus is a truck, a vehicle used by workers to transport materials for the sake of building, while Megatron is a tank, a vehicle used only for the sake of destruction.
- If D-16 didn't become Megatron, then Sentinel's downfall wouldn't be possible due to:
- If him and Orion didn't got captured by the High Guard and instead having a proper conversation, this would have let to D's anger being subsided and he may abandoned his idea to kill Sentinel and become Megatron. However, if the High Guard didn't capture them, Airachnid would capture all of them instead, and because they have no help, they would all be framed as traitors and executed.
- If D didn't remain defiance toward Sentinel and get tortured by him, Orion wouldn't have enough time to rally the miners to join the fight, which would lead to the High Guard being outnumbered and wiped out.
- And finally, if D choose to help the group to capture Airachnid instead of fighting Sentinel by himself, Sentinel would have realize the group was going to use her to expose him, and would either save or kill her, and later them.
- Through the movie, there are shots of D's eyes turn red, either briefly or for a while. This foreshadow his slow but inevitable transformation into Megatron.
- This happens after the cave scene where he reveal his desire to kill Sentinel, so it can be interpreted that the moment he reveal his intention, was the moment that marked the death of D-16 and the birth of Megatron, especially since his actions only show traits of Megatron from that point onward.
- The fate of both him, Optimus and Sentinel are sealed the moment all of them kneeling:
- Megatron: His refusal to kneel down to Sentinel even when he's tortured earn him the respect of the High Guard.
- Sentinel: His kneeling toward the Quintessons destroy the respect he once has in the eye of the Iacon citizens.
- Optimus: His kneeling down to the miners earn him the respect from them.
- One can notice that D was so consumed by hatred and anger that he didn't even thought that Orion only stop him from killing Sentinel and taking the shot to prevent his friend from being consumed by the darkness and because usurping a leader by killing them would left behind a bad image, he instead misinterpret Orion's actions as him believing Sentinel's death wasn't deserved, which is something he consider the last straw that would cause him to drop his former friend to his death.
- Prior to learning the truth about Sentinel, D always refer to him as "Sentinel Prime", but he no longer does so after learning the truth and instead refers to him as Sentinel only.
- His backstory of being a former miner rising to power is similar to his Aligned counterpart. Unlike the Aligned Megatron whose tragedy no longer hold up, this Megatron's tragedy still hold up. Their moral status are the exact opposite of each other: Aligned Megatron started out as a villain that ultimately redeem himself, while One Megatron started out as a hero that fell into villainy.
- Although it's true that Megatron's hatred toward the Primes is because of Sentinel Prime's actions, not only does he still idolize Megatronus Prime, name himself after him, using his cog and face as the emblem of the Decepticons, but Sentinel wasn't even a Prime to begin with, as he only took this title for himself after killing them.
- Considering on what happened to him in the film, he's the only miner who didn't become an Autobot and the only one to become a villain.
External Links[]
- Megatron on the Villains Wiki
- D-16 on the Inconsistently Admirable Wiki
- Megatron on the Inconsistently Heinous Wiki
- Megatron on the Transformers Wiki
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