Wideload is a minor character in the Transformers franchise, especially Generation One, acting as a member of the Throttlebots.
He was voiced by Corey Burton, who also voiced Spike Witwicky, Sunstreaker and Brawn in the original series, as well as Ratchet in Transformers Animated, Dale in Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers and Gruffi Gummi in the last three seasons of The Adventures of the Gummi Bears.
Biography[]
Cartoon[]
Wideload first appeared in "The Return of Optimus Prime", the two-part conclusion to the third season, as part of the squad of Autobots who went with Rodimus Prime to try and recover the body of Optimus Prime only to be infected by the Hate Plague. He reappeared in the following miniseries "The Rebirth" serving under Optimus Prime on Earth with his fellow Throttlebots and defending Autobot City from a Decepticon attack.
Comics[]
Wideload debuted in Marvel US Issue #30, where he and the other Throttlebots were captured by the Decepticons while raiding a fuel depot. Decepticon commander Ratbat had learned of a Scraplet outbreak on Earth, which had infected Triple Changers Blitzwing, Astrotrain and Octane, along with their captive Blaster. Ratbat sent Wideload and the others to Earth to destroy all those infected with acid, threatening to destroy Earth if they failed. On arrival, Wideload and Rollbar followed tracks from the crater where the infection was and came across an infected Goldbug. They were prepared to kill him but Goldbug's human friend Charlie Wong demonstrated it was unnecessary by infecting Wideload and then curing both him and Goldbug with water. Returning to the crater, they used this information to team up with the Decepticons and destroy the Scraplets.
In the UK-exclusive story "Ladies' Night", Wideload and his newfound allies prevented the Combaticons from destroying the volcano where Ultra Magnus and Galvatron were entombed, saving human females Joy Meadows, Susan Hoffman and Cindy Newell. This led to their appearance in US Issue #32, where the Combaticons pursued the group, who took refuge in a car lot. However, they were betrayed by the car lot owner Big Steve Ludwig, who disabled them and handed them over to the human anti-robot group RAAT.
Issue #37 revealed Wideload and the others were being continually interrogated by RAAT over a number of Decepticon raids, which had increased in frequency since Grimlock had taken the Earth Autobots off planet. RAAT head Frederick Forsythe had the Throttlebots slated for execution in retaliation but his subordinate Walter Barnett, realising they were innocent, had their brain modules placed in toy cars beforehand. He enlisted the help of Goldbug's old friend Buster Witwicky to return them to the Ark but they were ambushed by Ratbat and the Predacons, with Buster and Goldbug separated from the others. Barnett took Wideload and the others with him when he joined a naval force besieging Ratbat's base, where they witnessed an attack by Fortress Maximus and the Nebulan Autobots.
Wideload and the others were returned to the Autobots at some point and rebuilt into new bodies, only to be quickly deactivated by Starscream during the Underbase Saga.
The post-movie version of the character appeared in "Space Pirates" among the Autobots who accompanied Rodimus Prime to Earth to liberate Autobot City from the Quintessons.
Trivia[]
- The name Wideload would also be used for a Decepticon Mini-Con who featured in Transformers Classics. In Beast Wars: Uprising, the Autobot and Decepticon Wideloads were merged into the same character.
