Repugnus (G1)

Repugnus is an Autobot Monsterbot from the Generation 1 continuity family.

There's ugly, pug-ugly, fugly, pug-fugly...and then below all those there's Repugnus-ugly.

Never a Decepticon, Repugnus is not always an Autobot. No, sometimes he's a former Autobot who has been discharged for insubordination or just plain nastiness, but he always gets called back to perform some mission too unsavory for anybody else. Though he doesn't give a slag for authority or decency, Repugnus always does his job well.

Man, does he love his job. He'll describe with relish how he clawed an enemy within an inch of his life, then beat the bastard's head into a fuel-soaked wad of scrap metal with his own torn-off leg unit. He'll also add plenty of profanities and colorful idioms to the story. His friends would find this disturbing, if he had any.

Fiction

Marvel Comics continuity

Marvel The Transformers comics

Obviously, that whole "quest for peace" thing worked out pretty well for him.

Repugnus decided to join Fortress Maximus in abandoning the war and settling down for a peaceful, quiet life on the verdant paradise of Nebulos. Ring of Hate!

After Decepticon treachery turned the locals against the Autobots, Repugnus and the other Monsterbots attempted to defend the Mercury Gardens of Melanossus from Scorponok's forces. Repugnus fought ferociously, blasting his enemies with optic lasers while trash-talking the Decepticon leader, and was outraged when Grotusque, realizing the gardens were being destroyed by the battle, ordered a retreat.

Repugnus and rest of Fortress Maximus's troops then left Nebulos for Earth. Brothers in Armor!! They made a stop on the Moon to meet the Earth-stationed Autobots and to observe a ritual battle between Blaster and Grimlock for overall leadership of the Autobot forces. Repugnus never got to see the result of the duel, as the proceedings were interrupted by a Decepticon attack. Totaled!

Regeneration One

Repugnus was offlined during the Underbase fiasco and kept in stasis aboard the Ark. His body was reanimated and lobotomised by Megatron and pressed into service as part of a zombie army used to devastate the Earth. Loose Ends, Part 3 When Megatron was defeated by Optimus Prime, all his inactive zombies were gathered up by the Autobots, thrown into a huge pit, and vaporized from orbit. Natural Selection, Part One

Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity

Legends comic (1)

The Monsterbots were created by Wheeljack in 2011 and programmed with low intelligence to keep them from rampaging like some other beast-type Transformers. Their strange personalities made them unsuitable to be placed on the frontlines, leading to their being stationed on Beast where they were treated as equals by the Beastformers and eventually developed more advanced intelligence. The Road to Legends' Revival Chapter 3

The Headmasters cartoon

Voice actor: Michitaka Kobayashi (Japanese)

At least Japan cares about me. sobs

Repugnus and his fellow Monsterbots were sent to the planet Beast by Rodimus Prime, as a fair number of the planet's natives had been enslaved by Scorponok. While rescuing some slaves from the Decepticon base, Repugnus found some sort of blueprint attached to a wall, and decided to take it with him. After Autobots had driven the Decepticon forces off the planet, the blueprint turned out to depict a component of some kind of giant machine. Rodimus Prime subsequently ordered the Monsterbots to stay on Beast and protect it against any future Decepticon assaults. Repugnus was fine with this, replying that it seemed like a nice planet to stay on. Rebellion on Planet Beast

The Monsterbots were later called away from Beast to assist Fortress Maximus and the Headmasters during a battle on the planet Paradise. Repugnus and his comrades attacked Abominus with their fire-breath, and some stray flames served to destroy the energon cubes that the Decepticons had amassed. Head Formation of Friendship

Beastformers catalog

When Devilbat scanned the secret of White Leo's Burstsun power and produced a Secret Photo of it, Repugnus spotted the whole event and gave chase. Devilbat dropped the Secret Photo into Beast's greatest forest during the pursuit. Series 2 catalog

Legends comic (2)

At one point, the Monsterbots returned to Beast to aid the Beastformers in their war against the Laser Beasts. However, their heads were torn off when the Laser Beasts took control of the Head Hunters. LG51 Doublecross Prologue

By 2021, Repugnus had rescaled as a Cyberdroid and ended up on the Legends World with Fortress's crew. He had taken to mooching off of Brawn where he went unemployed and lived on Brawn's salary. When Brawn acquired a larger pilotable body in order to impress Scylla only to fall ill on the day of their date, he pressured Repugnus into getting in the mech and going in his stead. Things went alright until Scylla opened up the mech's car mode and discovered Repugnus, after which she took out her anger on both him and Brawn. Bonus Edition Vol. 48 As thanks for helping out, Brawn then got Repugnus a mech suit of his own. When Doublecross showed up under the control of the evil Tigerburn, Repugnus was confused that his old Monsterbot friend was an enemy now. Bonus Edition Vol. 51 Repugnus and Brawn later offered Broadside use of their armor suits to defeat Armada Thrust, and he was able to pilot an enlarged duplicate of the Repug Armor created using Blowpipe. Bonus Edition Vol. 53

Following the destruction of the Legends World, Repugnus emerged from a portal over planet Beast with the Battleship Maximus and his friends. They intervened on the side of the Beastformers to help Doublecross and White Leo against Tigerburn and the Laser Beasts. Seaspray used water from the Well of Transformation to separate the Laser Beasts from their stolen Headmaster bodies, allowing Repugnus to reclaim his original Monsterbot form as a Headmaster himself. Tigerburn then unleashed the Battle Bases on the Beastformers. Grotusque/Platinum Tiger and Doublecross/White Leo stood up to this new attack, and Repugnus lamented that he needed the power of teamwork as well. Hedgehog had acquired Spike Witwicky's old exo-suit, and offered to merge with Repugnus. They became a new Headmaster combination, but were almost immediately struck by the Shocking Shark. Repugnus repaired Hedgehog's head armor into a copy of his own head, and began using his Legends drone armor as a handheld weapon. The Battle Bases were defeated, and the final battle came down to White Leo and Tigerburn, who locked themselves into a crystal form, finally bringing peace to Beast. The Road to Legends' Revival Chapter 1

In 2038, the Monsterbots greeted Legends Rattrap when he ended up on Beast Legends World in Imminent Danger! Part Two and got him up to speed on things. The destruction of the Legends World had cast the residents to different time periods, and so while Rattrap had only seen Repugnus hours earlier, it was fifteen years later for the Monsterbot. The Road to Legends' Revival Chapter 1

As the Monsterbots and Beastformers met with the new arrivals, Galvatron II brought the Decepticons and his base-ship Nemesis to attack Beast. Repugnus had mass-produced his mini-me drone armor, and he and Hedgehog launched the drones at Nemesis, only for many to be shot down by Galvatron. The Emperor of Destruction was too powerful for the Monsterbots, and he prepared to execute them. Repugnus and his friends tried to save their comrades by separating from their Headmasters before the final blow. This drew out the Three Wise Ones from their Gems, impressed by the Monsterbots' compassion. They fashioned themselves into mechanical head modules and merged with the Monsterbots, filling them with Beast Power. The Road to Legends' Revival Chapter 3

Through the power of the Gem of Earth, Repugnus recombined with Hedgehog as a Getmaster in his chest. This Beastformer configuration enabled him to drive off the Decepticons using explosive needle attacks and defended Rattrap using his MVP Weapon, the Double Jungle Swords. Doublecross was not as fortunate, however, and lost the Gem of Fire to Galvatron. Repugnus Chapter Still, Grotusque and Platinum Tiger were able to tap into their Getmaster mode, and Galvatron was defeated and driven off of Beast. Grotusque Chapter

Repugnus later appeared at the Zone Base with Rattrap and his Legends refugees and they prepared to reconstruct the Legends World. Epiloge

Transformers in 3-D

The three Monsterbots and Kup composed Ultra Magnus's team during the search for Metascan Alpha. The group ended up on a desolate moon, confronted by Cyclonus and the Terrorcons. Although Repugnus was keen to fight "the ugly ones", Ultra Magnus insisted they continue with their mission. They flew down to the planet below, only to find it under attack by the Destructons. Repugnus was batted aside by Bruton's Confusion Club, and the Autobots beat a hasty retreat back to the moon. The War Against the Destructons, Chapter 1 of 3

3H comics

Less than three deca-cycles after the reformatting of Cybertron into a technorganic wonderland, Repugnus and his fellow Monsterbots (apparently all having undergone the Maximal Upgrade downsizing) were seen exiting a bar at Spaceport CSSB-16, soused out of their minds (Repugnus especially so, as he was half carried by Doublecross) on some high-quality energon. The Wreckers: Finale Part 1

Fun Publications comics

I am the Frito Bandito...

A Maximal Repugnus from Primax 1104.30-TW Zeta Ask Vector Prime, 2015/08/02 was one of the Children of Primus involved in the final battle of the Universe War on the surface of Unicron. Revelations Part 2 With the disappearance of Unicron beneath him, he apparently ended up at Axiom Nexus and was "processed". Transcendent: Part 1

2005 IDW continuity

First appearance: Spotlight: Arcee (spark only); Transformers: Maximum Dinobots #2 (full appearance)

"Aw... wook at da cute widdle Monsterbot. Here, boy! Kootchie, kootchie... AUGH! AUGH! IT'S RIPPING MY ARM OFF!"

In the era of Zeta Prime, Repugnus was seen among the crowd of protesters rallying against the Autobot cop who reportedly killed an unarmed Decepticon agitator. To Walk Among the Chosen

Repugnus, apparent leader of the Monsterbots, was held as a prisoner in the Garrus-9 penitentiary complex overseen by Fortress Maximus, stripped down to his spark and held in a tiny box for an as-of-yet unknown crime or offense. Spotlight: Arcee

He has apparently served out his sentence, as he showed up on Earth with the other Monsterbots to bail out Grimlock. Maximum Dinobots #2 He merrily directed his team to mass-murder the Sunstreaker clones, while threatening that Grimlock better have something to make his trip worthwhile—both Monsterbot and Dynobot may be outcasts, but he doesn't do things for free, yes? Maximum Dinobots #3

Do you think I care that this is your series? Give me my damn money!

Later, aboard the Monsterbots' ship, Repugnus and his cohorts had a little sit-down with Grimlock. Repugnus wasn't particularly happy with Grimlock remaining mum on their payment, and not-so subtly hinted that they'd have to resort to violent methods (perish the thought, of course!) in order to extract their due. Grimlock calmly explained that they'd be given payment in the form of whatever information the Dynobots took from Shockwave's ship before they destroyed it. Repugnus seemed satisfied enough by this.

The Monsterbots dropped the Dynobots off at Machination HQ, and even laid down a suppressive bombardment to knock out the anti-air defenses, but that was the extent of their help. Maximum Dinobots #4

When the battle largely went south, Repugnus and crew were summoned again for evac. Slag, Snarl, and Swoop showed up and Repugnus noted that they'd be good fits for his team, being interested only in themselves. This remark didn't appear to sit too well with the three Dynobots and they decided to return to help Grimlock battle Shockwave. The Monsterbots presumably lit out of there in a hurry before Ultra Magnus caught sight of them. Maximum Dinobots #5

Years later, Repugnus had apparently rejoined the Autobot cause proper as a crew member of the Lost Light. Words Hang in the Air When the Lost Light began to rapidly disappear, Repugnus evacuated the ship along with the rest of the crew. Predestination: A Beginner's Guide After the ordeal had been dealt with, Repugnus was having a drink at Swerve's before being knocked out when Brainstorm spiked the drinks. The Road Not Taken Repugnus, along with Doublecross fell on top of Rung, trapping him. The Custom-Made Now

Bug off!

Repugnus was one of the Autobots who was there when Rodimus gave news of Thunder Clash's prewake. As the speech was happening, Doublecross seemed to annoy him.The Sensuous Frame

Repugnus became a member of the security team for the Lost Light after supporting Getaway's mutiny. Like all of the crew, he was subjected to mnemosurgery that made him forget the mutiny and believe Megatron, Rodimus, and Ultra Magnus left of their own accord, abandoning the rest of the crew. He was subjected to additional reprogramming as a member of the security team, causing him to unquestioningly accept Getaway's orders, and believe anyone who opposed Getaway was a Decepticon traitor. Full Circle

Wings Universe

Repugnus was interviewed by Bishop to give an expert entomologist opinion on a recent bug invasion. After Repugnus explained that he liked raising the cute little bug larvae to become massive horrible killers to sic on intruders, he then confirmed that not only was he not an entomologist, he didn't even know what that meant. Around Cybertron #10

Games

The Transformers (PS2)

The Transformers

Commercial appearances

Repugnus and the Monsterbots were created accidentally during an attempt to create new Autobots. Kup raced to warn Rodimus Prime and Blurr of the accident as the wild Monsterbots trashed the lab where they were born. Thankfully the Decepticons attacked just then, and the Monsterbots burst out of the building through the wall to fight them. Repugnus, sweet guy that he is, gave Octane a great big hug. Rodimus expressed relief that, though they were monsters, at least they were Autobot monsters. Monsterbots commercial

Toys

The Transformers

Moonlights as a tin of baked beans.

• Repugnus (Monsterbot, 1987)

• Takara name: Repug
• Takara ID number: C-98
• Accessories: "Venom laser" gun

Released in the fourth year of Hasbro's The Transformers toyline (third in Europe and... sort-of in Takara's Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers line, we'll get to that), Monsterbot Repugnus transforms from robot to bizarre bug-thing and back. His toy can shoot "cold" sparks from his bug-mode mouth by pressing down on a geared button on his bug-skull. This mechanism also makes his mandibles open and close automatically.

In Japan, "Repug" was never made available as part of the normal retail line. Instead, he was first offered as a mail-away contest prize in the second and third waves of the Beastformers spin-off line, a potential prize by sending in five filled-in survey forms from Beastformers toys. After that, he was a normal mail-order item during Super-God Masterforce, costing 2500 yen (200 yen more than the other two Firebots/Monsterbots) and five Robot Points. As a mail-away/prize offering, the Takara release was sold in Hasbro packaging, with only a couple of additional stickers identifying it as the Japanese market version. The ID number "C-98" comes from marketing material.

• More info on Repugnus at TFU.info.

Universe (2003)

• Overbite with Repugnus (Ultra Class, 2006)

• Accessories: Pincer-pack, tail-shield
• Known designers: Marcelo Matere (packaging artist)

Released in the 2003 Universe toyline, this version Repugnus is a redeco of the Beast Wars Fuzor Buzzclaw toy in translucent red and yellow, Repugnus transforms into a praying mantis/lizard monster, with massive hooked claws and enormous mandibles. Pressing a grip on the creature's back causes the claws to swing outwards. This assembly can be used as a hand-held weapon in robot mode, while his tail becomes a forearm-mounted shield.

He was only available in a box set with Universe Overbite which had been originally intended for normal retail release, but with the cancellation of the Universe line at retail, was eventually released as a _target exclusive. Repugnus is an Autobot according to the faction sigil stamped on him, though the packaging labels him a Decepticon.

The same mold was used to create Timelines Buzzclaw, Dirge, and the Virulent Clones. Like those figures, Repugnus came misassembled, with his creature mode mandibles angled perpendicular to the beast head as opposed to their proper parallel position. This does not hamper his robot mode in any way, however.

• More information on Universe Repugnus at TFU.info

Titans Return

Busy suffering the slings and arrows of outrageous Scotsmen.

• Repugnus (Titan Master, 2017)

• Accessories: Insect/jet/blade-weapon vehicle
• Known designers: John Warden (Hasbro)

Part of the fourth wave of Titans Return Titan Master figures, Repugnus transforms from robot based on his original toy to a head based on his character model used in The Headmasters cartoon and the US toy commercials, and he's compatible as a head with any Deluxe-or-larger Titans Return figure. He gives his partner the power to steal data.

Included with him is a shell that he can combine with to resemble his original toy's beast mode. His shell can become a bladed (non-firing) double-barreled blaster, or a jet-like vehicle with four thrusters molded into the legs. Repugnus fits inside the beast and weapon modes as a folded-up component, but "pilots" the jet mode as a robot.

The two pegs at the bottom front of his beast shell can be used to connect his feet, though none of his modes use them in this way. In an undocumented or possibly unintended feature, moving the beast head forward and inserting the Titan Master behind it with arms raised allows the feet to peg firmly here, creating a "rider" mode. The notch in the back of the neck strut is just wide enough to accommodate the waist of the Titan Master.

Like his wavemate Shuffler, Repugnus never saw wide release in Malaysia, due to shelfwarming in the first and second waves.

His head was later redecoed for the Legends line (see below), while his insect/jet/blade-weapon vehicle was redecoed as Legends Broadside's Repug Armor accessory.

If you want me to have eyes, you have to buy me again. Sort of.

• Repugnus (Special Edition, 2018)

• Accessories: Two swords, "Dastard" Titan Master, "Solus Prime" Prime Master

Titans Return Special Edition Repugnus is a very extensive retooling of Deluxe Class Twinferno, transforming into his traditional robot and bug-monster modes. The robot's swords plug into the back in both creature and robot modes to give the appearance of an insect's curved carapace or combine together to create a sled that his Titan Master partner Dastard (or any other Titan Master) can ride. They can also be clipped together onto his arm in robot mode, creating what is apparently supposed to be a bladed gauntlet of some kind. The sled can also be mounted on Repugnus's bug mode shoulder. Titan Master Dastard gives Repugnus a head sculpt very much based on the original toy, unlike the animation-based Repugnus Titan Master listed above. For an unknown reason, the instructions skip a step; the robot mode legs have to be tilted backwards once they form the abdomen, without doing this the Titan Master door cannot be opened. Despite this, the instructions show the incorrect allignment in step 18, and then in step 19 the legs are correct. Unlike standard toys from the Titans Return toyline, Repugnus does not come with a card showing his stats.

Some specimens have red paint on both of the robot pectoral plates, while others have it only on one. It is unknown which version is more common.

The picture on the back of the box shows the toy stretching its bug forelimbs out to the sides, though this is not possible on the final toy without filing down the elbow joint.

This "Special Edition" set, celebrating the Titans Return portion of the Prime Wars Trilogy, was an Amazon.com exclusive in the U.S., first revealed via preorder listing without any official announcement from Hasbro. It was also available at general retail in Hong Kong, the Philippines, and Singapore.

Legends

Does not shoot sparks when installed on Brawn.

• Gong & Repug (Brawn & Repugnus)^[1] (2017)

• Release date: October 28, 2017
• ID number: LG48

Released in the twenty-second wave of TakaraTomy's Legends toyline, Repug is a redeco of Titans Return Repugnus, with the colors based on his animated appearance in The Headmasters. Though he lacks the insect/jet/blade-weapon vehicle accessory of the Hasbro release, he is compatible with the redeco of said accessory included with Broadside.

He was only available in a two-pack with Gong.

• Repug & Grotes (Repugnus & Grotusque) (2019)

• Release date: January 26, 2019
• ID number: LGEX
• Accessories: 2 swords, "Hedgehog" Headmaster

The "EX" version of Legends Repug is a re-release of the Prime Wars Trilogy Special Edition figure. The Takara release is very slightly different, utilizing a glossy paint finish and black screws in contrast to a matte finish and silver screws of the Hasbro release. Also, his Headmaster partner is now a new body for the Beastformers character Hedgehog.

He was only available in a two-pack with Grotes and his Headmaster partner Platinum Tiger, released exclusively online through TakaraTomy Mall.

Merchandise

Tiny Titans

• Repugnus (Tiny Titan, 2015)
  • Series: 3
  • Number: 2/12

Part of the third assortment of Tiny Titans, Repugnus is a lightly-painted PVC figurine of the Monsterbot in insect-monster mode, one of only two Tiny Titans to not be in "robot" mode (the other being the Sharkticon).

He includes a collectible card that renders him in the 2015 Robots in Disguise styling. The card includes a scan-badge for the Robots in Disguise mobile game, which unlocks a random amount of Energon "currency" and a randomized bonus power-up item.

Notes

• The instructions for the original Repugnus and Doublecross toys depict Repugnus with Doublecross's Rust Ray and Doublecross with Repugnus's venom laser.
• The box photography for G1 Repugnus features his robot mode incorrectly transformed, with his bug mode claws hanging above his robot mode shoulders instead of folded across his robot mode chest.
• Repugnus was one of Glen Hallit's last contributions to the Universe line, as the redeco was his brainchild. It's likely that if the Universe comic had continued, Repugnus would have been indicated to be the Generation 1 character, a favorite of Hallit's. Ask Vector Prime would canonize this idea years later, albeit as a Maximal.
• In one of the extras in The Dark Ages trade paperback, Grotusque is listed as a member of Starscream's evil Predacon faction. This seems at odds with what we know of Grotusque's personality, plus he never actually appeared in the comic at Starscream's side. It's possible this is a mistake, and it was meant to be his more unstable Monsterbot colleague, Repugnus.

Foreign names

• Japanese: Repug (リパッグ Ripaggu)
• French: Répugnus (Canada)
• Hungarian: Undor ("Disgust")
• Mandarin: Bàoluàn Shòu (China, 暴乱兽, "Riot Beast")

References