A Bug's Life

Many were disappointed when images of the robots for the Transformers live action movie started circulating on the web. Everybody cursed Michael Bay and his crew for changing the look of their favorite Autobots and Decepticons by creating intricate design aesthetics for the computer-generated robots. The robots “updated” versions discarded the original “blocky” look from the original TV series giving them more menacing and somewhat alien-like forms. The alternate forms of the Transformers also suffered from the movie “updates”. Optimus Prime’s original Freightliner Cab-over-engine alternate mode was discarded and replaced by a Peterbilt 379 Truck. Megatron now had an alternate mode of a Cybertronian Jet rather than his original Walther P38 9 mm pistol mode. Most of the Autobots had GMC vehicles now as their alternate modes: Ratchet became a Hummer H2 Search and Rescue SUV, Ironhide became a Topkick pickup truck, and Jazz had an alternate mode of a Pontiac Solstice roadster. But the biggest blow to the fans of the original series was the reimagining of fan-favorite Bumblebee, originally a cute and lovable Volkswagen Beetle, into a Chevrolet Camaro.

Why did this happen? Why a complete overhaul to the most charming feature of everybody’s favorite bug?

Today, I share a small chunk of vast history of the Transformers franchise about the Autobot Bumblebee.

Bumblebee is the "little brother" of the heroic Autobot faction, constantly striving to prove himself in the eyes of the taller, stronger robots that he respects - especially their leader, Optimus Prime. So strong is this admiration toward others, he takes risks that put him in danger. Although a bit of a wise-cracker, he is a capable and reliable messenger and spy, his small size allowing him to go places that his larger comrades cannot. He is highly fuel efficient, has great visual acuity, is particularly adaptable to undersea environments and transforms into a Volkswagen Beetle.

Bumblebee's primary function in the original Transformers animated series and comics was to serve as the "young" character with whom the youthful viewing audience could identify, and he would befriend the Autobots' primary human ally - the young son of the Witwicky family - to this end, a concept that persists into the 2007 live-action film.

Bumblebee is quite unusual in that, unlike many other Transformers, his name has not been re-used and applied to unrelated characters throughout the ensuing twenty years of Transformers media, due to the loss of the trademark. Bumblebee was later reconstructed in a stronger, more mature form in the animated series to reflect Hasbro Inc.’s loss of the “Bumblebee” trademark in its toys. According to the second arc of Season 3’s “The Return of Optimus Prime” the little Autobot had been so severely damaged that he required an entire reconstruction. In his new, shiny body, he commented that he had gone beyond just being Bumblebee, and was now a "gold bug", prompting Optimus Prime to redub him "Goldbug". Toywise, rather than transforming into an ordinary Volkswagen Beetle, he was made into a golden 1975 Super Beetle to clearly show the Goldbug moniker.

As years passed by and as other Transformers series sprouted out, Bumblebee’s void as the Autobots little brother was filled by other supporting characters. His role as the "young yellow character" had inspired other Transformers characters with the same role such as Cheetor (Transformers Beast Wars) and Hot Shot (Transformers: Robots in Disguise). But still Bumblebee is Bumblebee. Fans waited anxiously for his return and the reestablishment of his trademark.

In 2005, after years of not possessing the "Bumblebee" name trademark, Hasbro finally regained it for their “toy action figures, toy vehicles and toy robots convertible into other visual toy forms” products. This was just in time for their release of a 3 inch tall die-cast non-transforming Bumblebee figure as part of the Transformers: Titanium line in 2006. Fans rejoiced. Bumblebee was back in the game. Taking a step further, Hasbro started approaching Volkswagen to grant them license to use the New Volkswagen Beetle for their new 1:24 scale toy line, Transformers: Alternators (Binaltech in Japan). As one of the earliest concepts designed by Hasbro, Bumblebee was reimagined as a new Volkswagen Beetle.

For those of you who don’t know, Transformers: Alternators is a toyline of the Transformers series produced by Hasbro in North America & Europe and Takara in Japan, the primary selling point of which is the use of 1:24 scale, accurate real-world vehicle modes officially licensed from car manufacturers. Typically for each vehicle there are two toys to go with it to match the base model and the sport model. Years ago, Hasbro approached Porsche for licensing. The very first car mold developed for the Alternators-Binaltech line was the Porsche 986 Boxster, originally conceived as Autobot Jazz. Porsche rejected any involvement with "war machines", making it impossible to attain the license for the figure's release.

Just like Porsche, Volkswagen declined giving the New Volkswagen Beetle license to Hasbro, presumably due to their World War II history, claiming that, as with Porsche, Volkswagen refused to license the car on the grounds that they did not want to associate their vehicles with war-themed media due to the warlike nature of the Transformers. Volkswagen’s licensing further became bleak when Hasbro insisted that Bumblebee carry a gun since all Alternators sport some manner of weaponry. The toy never progressed beyond the line-art phase and the concept drawings could still be found scattered on the web. The design made a cameo as a possible "future" Bumblebee in the BotCon 2005 comic, "Descent into Evil”.

Even if Hasbro could not procure Volkswagen’s licensing, Bumblebee still appeared in the Transformers: Classics, a line of Transformers toys that are based on and resemble the first generation characters and figures introduced in the 1980s. Released towards the end of 2006, Bumblebee has finally returned as a transforming figure. Unable to be an actual Volkswagen due to the company's position, as noted above, Bumblebee is nevertheless a small, stocky car which does not appear to be based on any single production model but rather an amalgamation of features from several different ones. The designers wanted to give Bumblebee a form that evoked the rounded, VW form. The result was a vehicle that is part Subaru, part Peugeot, part Honda hatchback with a few subtle Volkswagen elements mixed in.

Now we know why Bumblebee could not be a Beetle until Volkswagen gives Hasbro the necessary permissions to use the likeness of their car. But why is Bumblebee a Camaro in the movie?

Designs of the robots began in June 2005, and Hasbro heavily collaborated on the live action interpretations of their characters. In keeping with Michael Bay's desire to make Transformers realistic, the robots were designed more intricately to look more three-dimensional and to reflect their alien origins. Morphing in transformations was restricted, unlike the cartoon or comic books, where a character such as Megatron transforms into a Walther P38 pistol. Every character stayed the same size in both forms, which in turn explained the robots' choice of Earth forms during the story. Optimus Prime's original cab over truck form was rejected because it would make him only 23 feet tall, so Bay decided to use the Peterbilt, the largest truck available. Therefore, sticking to the idea that the mass of the Transformers in robot form should be believable compared to their vehicle form, if ever Bumblebee would be a Volkswagen Beetle it would have resulted in him being much smaller in robot form. With his Camaro body, Bumblebee could achieve a height of 16 to 18 meters. Originally a worn-out 1969 Camaro, producers settled on a 1977 model. It is painted yellow with black stripes, primer and rust patches, riveted hood scoop, Cragar SS wheels up front, Eric Vaughn Real Wheels in the back, marine-grade vinyl seats, and even an eight-track player. Later in the movie, when Mikaela criticizes the poor condition of Bumblebee's vehicle mode, he scans a passing 2009 preproduction model of the Camaro donning is as his new alternate mode. This 2008/09 model was built using a 2006 Pontiac GTO by Saleen, the body was built from the same GM R&D molds that were used in the prototype 08/09 Camaros.

But why not use a BMW Mini Cooper? Fans had been eyeing the most popular British-made car ever made as a possible alternate mode for Bumblebee if ever Hasbro couldn’t get the Volkswagen license in time for the movie. Well, just like Porsche and Volkswagen, during the planning stages of the Alternators/ Binaltech toyline, Hasbro and Takara tried to get a license for a MINI Cooper from BMW, the owners of the MINI brand. BMW said that as long as the figure did not have a gun, they would approve it. Hasbro and Takara had already started creating a prototype before getting permission, prompting BMW to revoke the license. And since a Mini Cooper is smaller than a Camaro (and a Beetle) I don’t think Bay would be willing to make a very small robot.

Don Murphy, one of the producers of the live action movie, wanted to retain Bumblebee's Volkswagen Beetle form, but Bay rejected it to avoid comparisons with “Herbie the Love Bug”. Bay chose the Chevrolet Camaro instead, which he described as having a friendly quality. As a tribute to Bumblebee’s past form, in the scene where Sam’s father bring him to a used car shop for him to purchase his first car, we can clearly see an old yellow 1971 Volkswagen Beetle next to Bumblebee’s new Camaro form. Sam has to choose between that old Beetle and the Camaro, but of course chooses the Camaro. Bumblebee damages the Beetle in order to ensure that Sam purchases him. In scenes showing Sam driving the Camaro a bee-shaped air freshener attached to his rear view mirror with the words "Bee-otch" could be seen to which is clearly a homage to Bumblebee.

As an added bonus to the movie’s budget, making Bumblebee a Camaro led a full product placement deal with General Motors, to supply the alternate modes for Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet. The deal saved $3 million, though Bay hoped they would have supplied a bigger car for Jazz than the Pontiac Solstice.

The future looks bleak for the Volkswagen Beetle Bumblebee. Even with the success of the live action movie and a chance to earn big bucks at the side, Volkswagen still wouldn’t budge. But Hasbro doesn’t care anymore. As of writing, Hasbro announced at BotCon 2007 that the Transformers: Alternators line will be discontinued. Here’s hoping Takara, Hasbro's Japanese counterpart, would try to win over Volkswagens approval when they continue their Binaltech line. In the upcoming months, Cartoon Network (in the states) would start to air the newest cartoon series based on the Transformers franchise. Titled Transformers: Animated, this show would feature new “cartoony” designs and alternate modes for both the Autobots and Decepticons. Bumblebee here would transform into something close to his Transformers: Classics toy incarnation – a far cry from the Volkswagen Beetle that fans hope to see again.

Camaro, Mini, Hatchback… for me Bumblebee would always be a Volkswagen Beetle. Sure, we wouldn’t be able to see it again but everytime a yellow colored Volkswagen Beetle pass by me I would always say “Uy! Si Bumblebee yun ah!”. As for his Camaro alternate mode a lot of diehard fans showed their grievances by sending Michael Bay death threats after learning about the changes of the Transformers saying that he single handedly destroyed their “precious childhood memories”.

Me?

I think it’s ok as long as Megan Fox is riding one.

(Author's Note: As you can see most of what is posted above is copied from various toy sites and, of course, Wikipedia! Thank God for Wikipedia! Without it I got nothing to write about...)

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The 10 Toughest Superheroes In Comics

If every superhero would fight each other who would emerge as the toughest?

Nung bata pa ako laging naglalaro sa isipan ko kung sino talaga ang pinakamalakas na superhero kung sakaling maglalaban silang lahat. Kaya kaya ni Superman si Incredible Hulk? Mapapatumba ba ni Batman si Spiderman?

Medyo nasagot ang tanong ko pagkabasa ko ng Marvel Vs DC na comics last year (scanned tradepaperback through bit torrent downloads hehehe) pero nalaman kong ang mga nananalo sa mga labanan ay base lamang sa mga votes ng mga fans.

After searching Google about the strongest superhero this is what I came across. What you are about to read was published in Wizard Magazine #70 in June 1997. Medyo may kalumaan na ang article pero ibang level talaga ang pag-analyze nila sa mga fights at pag rank nila sa mga superheroes.

LAST MAN STANDING: "Wizard" Ranks the 10 Toughest Superheroes In Comics

It's the one debate that's been raging for over 50 years: "My favorite superhero can kick your favorite's ass!" And there's never been a clear-cut answer. Until now.

What WIZARD has done is gathered up all the superheroes in comic-dom, pitted them against one-another and determined not only who the top 10 most powerful superheroes are, but how they placed on that top 10 list as well.

Our criteria for placement was as follows:

1. Only superheroes allowed. No supervillians or ridiculously cosmic beings of a higher "universal" order (like Galactus, Highfather, Neron or Mephisto) allowed.

And ...

2. This was treated as a no-holds-barred, do-or-die contest. Each character is giving it his all in the battles we've set before them.

With that said, meet the #10 man on the list ...

10. HULK

<HIS DEAL: Caught in the heart of a gamma bomb explosion, genius scientist Dr. Robert Bruce Banner finds himself transformed into a 7-foot, one-ton green behemoth with near-unlimited strength, rapid tissue-regenerative powers and nigh-inexhaustible stamina.

WHY HE'S #10: "Hulk Smash! ... and that's about it. Yeah, he may posseses Banner's keen scientific mind and the ruthless cunning of Mr. Fixit, but on this list of supermen, warrior women and Norse gods, the Hulk's muscle just ain't enough to overcome the #10 slot.

9. FIRESTORM

HIS DEAL: Trapped in an experimental nuclear reactor, high school student Ronnie Raymond and Prof. Martin Stein gained the ability to merge into the superhero Firestorm, a being with the ability to alter his own molecular density and the molecular configuration of all inanimate matter.

WHY HE'S #9: Ronnie's a young turk who's easily distracted, even with Stein playing the brainy scientist. While the Hulk's limited powers are something Ronnie could handle, any of the more varied attacks from the really diversified guys on this list would clean Ronnie's clock.

VS. HULK: One heavy-duty adamantium prison cell whipped up outta nowhere, and the Hulk is outta the fight in five seconds flat.

8. PROFESSOR X (PRE-ONSLAUGHT)

HIS DEAL: Born a mutant, Prof. X is the world's most powerful telepath. Despite being wheelchair-bound, he can read minds and wipe minds clean.

WHY HE'S #8: While the good professor may possess the most powerful melon on Earth, his frail body would prove too much a liability against the powerhouses on this list.

VS. HULK: No contest. Prof. X would sense ol' Green-genes' thoughts from a mile away, and after having zero success trying to reason with him, turn ol' Jade Jaws into a green vegetable.

VS. FIRESTORM: Before Firestorm could think of a way to nix him, Prof. X. would "hear" his thoughts and force Stein and Raymond to seperate into their powerless civilian personas.

7. SPAWN

HIS DEAL: Making a deal with the devil, government assassin Al Simmons was resurrected with a price: finite magical powers capable of nearly any feat imaginable but, when exhausted, will drag him back to Hell to lead its forces against Heaven.

WHY HE'S #7: His fear of using his finite powers against the titans on this list would give his oppinents an opportunity to get a second shot in --- which, against this crowd, would be one shot too many.

VS. HULK: Spawn has lost body parts in the past without sweating it too much, so while the greenskin goliath may punch an arm or two off, Spawny-guy here can take the punishment and blast the big guy to atoms.

VS. FIRESTORM: Though they have simliar powers, Spawn has the edge in that he can also create things outta nothing. Bound by common physics, Firestorm wouldn't have a prayer against a guy who has the powers of hell behind him.

VS. PROF. X: When Chuck probes a disturbing alienish mind, he gets all disoriented -- and they don't come more disturbing than resurrected government hitmen/generals-in-training for Satan's war against Heaven. The second Charlie taps into Al's noggin, BAM! the Professor'd be stunned for a few seconds and that's all Al'd need to leave Chuck a stain in a wheelchair.

6. DR. STRANGE

HIS DEAL: As our dimension's Sorcerer Supreme, Steven Strange stands as the first and last line of defense against all magic-based menaces that threaten our dimension.

WHY HE'S #6: While he's beaten cosmic menaces to save the universe countless times, Doc Strange is only human with limited stamina, speed and reflexes.

VS. HULK: He's beaten the Hulk before (Hulk #300), and he'd do it again. Teleporting him to another dimension, forcing him to sleep, making the Hulk believe he's already won the fight and getting him to walk away ... the list goes on and on.

VS. FIRESTORM: Know how Spawn's mystical powers would overwhelm Firestorm? Doc's spellcasting would do it the same way. Just faster.

VS. PROF. X: Wouldn't Prof. X see him coming? Not when Dr. Strange steps out of a side dimension with a host of spells at the ready, kiboshing the Professor before he had time to spin his wheelchair around.

VS. SPAWN: Two things tip it in Doc's favor. First, he's been around a lot longer, traveled to countless dimensions with varied battlegrounds and has forgotten more mystic battles than Spawn's ever experienced. Secondly, while Spawn is cautious with his power, the Doc would just cut loose.

5) THE FLASH (WALLY WEST)

HIS DEAL: Wally West taps into the Speed Force, a universal force that gives him the ability to run, think and react at near-lightspeed.

WHY HE'S #5: It's next to impossible to react to this guy's attack. You're not going to see him coming, and by the time you realize he's there, he's already hit you a hundred times over.

VS. HULK: The Flash would just vibrate through the Hulk and , ewww, make him explode.

VS. FIRESTORM: For all his powers, Ronnie'd have no time to react to the Flash or even turn intangible. Flash would be all over this guy like white on rice.

VS. PROF. X: Knowing the Flash is one-tenth of a nanosecond away from clocking you isn't going to do you much good. Bye-bye, Chuck.

VS. SPAWN: 99 percent of Spawn's foes are just big hulking guys relying on raw power. The Flash represents a foe unlike anything ol' Spawny-guy has ever faced, whereas Wally has dealt with magic-based foes before. This fight's over without Al ever knowing who clobbered him.

VS. DR. STRANGE: Same deal as Spawn. Doc Strange isn't going to know hitting him and isn't going to stay conscious long enough to find out.

4) WONDER WOMAN

HER DEAL: Spawned by Greek goddesses on the paradise island of Themyscira, Dianan is an immortal Amazon granted flight, incredible strength, speed, wisdom, and beauty.

WHY SHE'S #4: Raised an an Amazon warrior, Wonder Woman isn't just some muscle-bound brawler--- she's a highly skilled warrior who knows how to spot an enemy's weakness and exploit it.

VS. HULK: While the two are pretty evenly matched strength-wise, Diana gets the advantage with speed. flight and warrior skills. As cagey and sharp as the Hulk is, he isn't as skilled in tactical combat.

VS. FIRESTORM: Like Flash, Diana'd use superspeed to land one quick punch. And when you're as strong as the Hulk, that's about all you need.

VS. PROF. X: After countless battles of wills through fighting the Greek gods' magic and bending people to her will through her magic lasso, we see Wonder Woman being grabbed by Chuck telepathically. But a sluggish Diana either grabs the Prof with her lasso and commands him to stop or just hits him with some loose debris. Either scenario takes Charlie outta the fight.

VS. SPAWN: She could take the early hits Spawn would probably nail her with, but she wouldn't be hit by that many. Fueled by speed, strength and warrior know-how, Spawn goes down for the count.

VS. DR. STRANGE: Wonder Woman is based in magic, so while Doc is busy unsuccessfully trying to mess with her on that front (no way is he undoing the work of the Greek gods), Diana's superspeed has her on him from all fronts battering his shields with near-Superman-level strength. With that kind of onslaught, she's bound to tag him once, which is all she needs.

VS. FLASH: We see Diana hammered relentlessly by hundreds of blows from the as-good-as-invisible Flash. But between her nigh-invulnerability, superspeed and canny fighting prowess, she'd eventually detect a pattern in the Flash's attack and stun him with a glancing blow. Long enough for Diana to finish the job and then collapse.

3) SUPERMAN (PRE-"ELECTRO-SUPERMAN")

HIS DEAL: Rocketed from the exploding planet Krypton, Clark Kent grew to adulthood on Earth to learn that this planet's yellow sun and weaker gravity gave him near-invulnerability strength, speed, stamina, hearing, etc. Calling himself Superman, he now fights the never-ending battle for truth, justice and the American way!

WHY HE'S #3: This guy's name pretty much says it all. We've already see the power the Flash has as his command with superspeed, so when you mix in superstrength, heat vision, invulnerability and the other dozen powers at Supes' command, he becomes fairly unbeatable.

VS. HULK: We actually saw this already in Marvel vs. DC #3, which saw Supes coming out on top. While the Hulk can stand toe-to-toe in strength, Big Blue's superspeed, flight and heat vision put him over the top.

VS. FIRESTORM: While Supes would be in trouble if Firestorm got a bead on him (Firestorm once trapped Supes in a kryptonite bubble back in Fury of Firestorm #4), Supes' speed has him getting the drop on Ronnie, and ending the fight before it ever begins.

VS. PROF. X: Though Supes wouldn't take Chuck down as fast as the Flash did, it would only be by a half-second or so.

VS. SPAWN: For those of you not in the know, magic (along with kryptonite) is one of the few things that really cripples Supes. Good thing Supes' Flash-like speed lets him get in close to Spawn and take him down with a super-punch before Al even knows what hit him.

VS. DR. STRANGE: We see Supes having a lot more trouble with Doc than with Spawn, simply because Doc's a sorcery veteran. But even if he bounced off an initial deflective shield, no way can Doc get a bead on him for a direct attack. A superspeed delivered punch or zap of heat vision wraps up the flight in under a minute.

VS. FLASH: Yeah, the Flash is faster, but Supes ain't no slouch in the speed department, either, giving Wally only slight edge. Plus, like WW, Supes can take anything the Flash can dish out and eventually land a knock-out blow.

VS. WONDER WOMAN: Now this would be a cool fight! Fairly evenly matched with flight, strength and speed, Supes is still just a little tougher, a little faster and just a tad stronger. Diana would eventually tire, whileSupes is a living solar battery with enough power reserves to be the one (barely) standing at the end of the battle.

2) THOR

HIS DEAL: The actual Norse God of Thunder, Thor possesses "normal" Asgardian attributes including immorality, superstrength and nigh-invulnerability. He is armed with Mjolnir, the mystical war hammer capable of opening passageways through space and time, blocking all sorts of energy blasts and bending the elements to its master's will.

WHY HE'S #2: This guy is a Norse god warrior, trained and skilled in the art of battle. And he's been doing it for countless ages. Give him a magical hammer and the power over the elements, and he's unbeatable. Almost.

VS. HULK: The Hulk may be as tough and as strong as Thor, but Goldilock's got 'im beat in the skill department, seeing as how he's been fighting gods, armies, trolls and wizards for over a millennium. It might mean a couple days bed rest afterward, but Thor wins the belt in this bout.

VS. FIRESTORM: Surprised by the sheer force of the storm and unexpected lightening bursts. Firestorm loses his concentration and becomes tangible. Yeah, he wouldn't be beaten by the storm, but one shot from Mjolnir would knock the Nuclear Man senseless.

VS. PROF. X: Pushing himself to the limits in his search for the mind behind the storm buffeting the mansion (Mjolnir's magic at work), Prof. X detects Thor's presence seconds before Thor clobbers him into unconsciousness.

VS. SPAWN: Puh-lease! Thor's already faced down all sorts of demonic magic types like Hela (Asgard's ruler of Hell), so while Spawn may take some time to wear down, trapping him in the middle of a hurricane, hailing a blitzkrieg of lightening bolts on 'im and pounding him with Mjolnir would leave Al a pile of pulpy necroplasm.

VS. DR. STRANGE: Magic? No problema! You gotta remember that Thor's trusty hammer Mjolnir can handle any magic tossed Thor's way. Doc might as well be weaving a blanket instead of a spell, 'cause Thor'd make him say "good night".

VS. FLASH: Similiar to his bout with Wonder Woman, the Flash would get in some good shots against the Thunder God... but if it's one thing Thor has shown, it's that he can take punishment. Between the monstrous storm that'd spring up out of nowhere, dodging lightening bolts and whirlinghammers, the Flash would eventually be tagged and, well that'd be that.

VS. WONDER WOMAN: The coolest fight on this whole list!!! Two super-strong, super-tough warriors battling it out with sheer power and skills in a battle that would leave both warriors horrifically wounded and completely exhausted... with Thor the last one standing. He's just tougher, with a billion more lifetimes of battle-experience beneath his belt.

VS. SUPERMAN: While Supes has the edge in speed and flight (Thor gets pulled by his hammer; he doesn;t really fly.), once again Thor's warrior training and combat experience would give him the edge he needs to have more of his blows connect, eventually laying the Kryptonian flat. It's all in the name: Super-Man; Thor, God of Thunder.

1) SILVER SURFER

HIS DEAL: As the former herald of the world-devourer Galactus, Norrin Radd possesses he "power cosmic," an energy source capable of almost any feat imaginable, making him one of the most powerful beings in the cosmos.

WHY HE'S #1: The Surfer is the fringe character that seperates humanity from the omnipotence of Galactus or Eternity, making him tops on our list. His power cosmic is so powerful that it's not a matter of what the Surfer can do, it's what he can't. Matter-manipulation, the power reserves of stars, traveling at lightspeed ... he may even be able to create life. He's truely in a power class of his own.

VS. HULK: The Hulk may be physically stronger than the Surfer, but c'mon, our boy Norrin would never let the Hulk get near him. He'd zip up on the Hulk at near-lightspeed, unleash just a fraction of the power cosmic and, when the Hulk came to at the bottom of the smoking crater a couple days later, the Surfer'd be done kicking the crap out of the rest of the heroes on this list.

VS. FIRESTORM: No contest. Whatever Ronnie can do, Norrin can undo. With the skill and far greater matter-manipulation power at his command, Firestorm rates a two-panel fight at best.

VS. PROF. X: Yeah, you guessed it, between the Surfer's incomprehensible speed and indomitable will, Prof. X may give the Surfer a run for his money in chess, but not in combat.

VS. SPAWN: The Surfer's faced down Mephisto, Marvel's version of Satan, so a Satan-flunkie like Spawn ain't gonna do much that the Surfer hasn't overcome before.

VS. DR. STRANGE: Dr. Strange is a human conduit of magic with human frailties, while the Surfer can stand at the center of a super-nova without breaking a sweat. It might take a couple of hours, but Strange would burn himself out trying to dent the Surfer.

VS. FLASH: Sorry, the Surfer is faster than the Flash, with the power of the universe at his command. Once you take away his speed, Wally is just a guy. G'night, Wally.

VS. WONDER WOMAN: Diana may be a better fight, but the Surfer is faster, tougher and more powerful. Ten bucks says Wonder Woman's bracelets aren't up to deflecting the power cosmic.

VS. SUPERMAN: While Supes might land a couple of blows as the Surfer is trying to talk to him, our bald buddy Norrin could either hammer Supes into submission with the power cosmic or suck all the solar energy out of him with his energy manipulation powers.

VS. THOR: Surfer's power cosmic is fairly evenly matched with Mjolnir (whose magical properies aren't affected by the universe's laws of physics), which would absorb/deflect Surfer's power for a while. While Surfer couldn't do much physical damage to Thor, Thor would hammer the Surfer unconscious ... if he could hit'em. And even though Mjolnir could block Surfer's powerful blasts, some would eventually land. As the battle progressed, more and more of the Surfer's blows would connect until one super-blast of the power cosmic would put the Odinson down for the count. And the worst part? The Surfer, one of the most noble spirits in the universe, would search the rubble after the fight, grab Mjolnir and head off to Disneyworld.

Ano? Orayts na ba tayo dito? Anyway medyo outdated naman itong list na ito like sa ngayon meron nang bagong Flash at Firestorm. Mukhang nadadagdagan o nababawasan ang lakas at abilidad ng mga superheroes depende sa mga writers na humahawak ng mga istorya nila. Who knows baka in the future, or possibly bukas, magkakaroon ng bagong set ng mga superheroes na makakatalo sa mga nakalagay sa listahan na ito (at sa tingin ko meron na sila).

Basta sa akin si Cyclops pa rin pinakamagaling hehehe...

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Optimus Prime's Trailer

Matagal ko na gusto malaman sagot nito. Matagal ng bumabagabag sa isip ko ang tanong na ito mula nung bata pa ako.

Hindi ko alam kung sino ang aking lalapitan. Wala sa lahat ng mga pinagtanungan ko ang may alam. Hindi ako kuntento sa mga sagot na binigay ng mga nagtangkang sagutin ang tanong kong ito.

Ako'y uhaw na sa katotohanan. Ilang beses ko na rin gustong sumuko sa paghanap ng kasagutan.

Hindi ako sumuko. Ayaw ko sumuko. Lagi kong pinapaalala sa sarili ko na balang araw ay malalaman ko na rin ang sagot dito. Balang araw ako'y magiging malaya sa pagkabagabag na dulot nito.

Fast Forward tayo ng ilang years...

Matanda na ako at marami na nabago sa mundong kinatatayuan ko. Sa panahon ngayon madali ka na makakuha ng mga impormasyong kailangan mo.Lahat ng nais mo ay madali mo nang maangkin dala ng mabilisang pagbabago ng teknolohiya.

Sa panahong ito nakuha ko na rin ang sagot na inaasam ko.

Sa wakas natapos na rin ang ang aking paghihirap. Tapos na ang aking paghahanap. Malaya na ako.

Alam ko na kung saan pumupunta ang trailer ni Optimus Prime pag nagtatransform siya!

Sa mga nakakaalala sa cartoons dati pag nagtatransform si Optimus Prime from truck mode to robot mode mapapansin mong bigla na lang mawawala ang trailer nya. Babalik na lang ito kung magtatransform siya pabalik ng truck mode. Agad tinignan ng mga pinagtanungan ko sa toy forum kung ano nangyayari sa trailer during transformation gamit ang kanilang mga resources. Pinanood uli nila ang kanilang mga DVD collection. Nung tinignan daw nila ang transformation sequence in slow-mo nakita nilang umaatras yung trailer hanggang mawala sa view ng camera. Naconclude nilang nagtatago lang daw trailer nya.

Hindi ako kuntento sa sagot na ito. Agad akong humingi ng saklolo sa Wikipedia.

Ito ang sagot na nakuha ko.

"The original Optimus Prime transforms into a late 70's or early 1980s Freightliner LLC cab-over-engine (COE) semi-trailer truck, comprising three components. The truck's cab transforms into the robot mode of Prime himself, with vast strength and armed with a laser rifle. Within his chest is contained the mystic talisman known as the Autobot Matrix of Leadership (or Creation Matrix), carried by all Autobot leaders and passed down through the ages. The truck's trailer disconnects and transforms into the Combat Deck, a mobile battle-station/command headquarters with an "Auto-Launcher" robot armed with assorted artillery and beam weapons. It can also serve as radio antenna for battlefield communications between the Autobots. The Combat Deck can launch Prime's third component, Roller, a mobile scout buggy that can easily slip behind enemy lines; when Roller is present somewhere, it is as if Prime is there himself. Injury to one component is felt by each of the others, and while Prime could survive the destruction of either, despite the slight degree of autonomy they possess, the Combat Deck and Roller would not be able to survive without him."

Ano daw? Teka kuha muna ko tissue kasi dumugo ilong ko...

Hindi lahat ng episodes nafifeature ang Combat Deck. Hindi naman ito lagi nagagamit. At kung laging nagiging combat deck ito dapat neextra pa rin ito during battle scenes kahit minsan lang.

Siguro nga nagtatago ito... Nah.

Tinuloy ko uli ang aking investigation and research at nahanap ko rin ang pinakapossible na sagot dito.

Sa Transformers Universe meron tayong tinatawag na "Mass Reduction" kung saan may abilidad ang mga ang mga Transformers na magpaliit ng mga components nila. Ang pinakamagandang example dito ay si Megatron.

"Megatron transforms into a Walther P38 pistol, delivering more focused energy blasts. He can shrink and reduce his mass as he transforms, assuming sizes that comfortably allow either another Transformer or even a human being to wield him. In one instance (the episode "Dinobot S.O.S."), he retained his full size and connected to jet-mode Starscream's underside."

Mass reduction din ang ginagamit ni Soundwave pag nagiging microcassette recorder siya at ni Perceptor kapag nagtatransform siya as a microscope.

So in conclusion since may abilidad silang magpalaki at magpaliit ng mga components it follows na pinapaliit ni Optimus Prime ang trailer nya para maitago ito at kung kelangan na nya during transformation lumalabas ito, lumalaki, at kumakabit sa kaniya sa truck mode. Meron din akong nabasa na yung space na nawala sa pagreduce ng mass ito ay kanilang nilalagay sa isang dimension at ito'y kanilang kukunin pag kailangan na (sana applicable din ito sa mga bilbil ko...).

Pero hindi pa ako tapos. Tinuloy ko pa rin research ko at marami pa ako nakita.

Lahat ng mga kakabanggit ko ay applicable lamang sa Optimus Prime sa Generation 1 cartoon series. Paano naman yung mga ibang version nya?

No problem. Halos lahat naman ng mga alternate modes ng mga ibang versions nya ay hindi gumagamit ng trailer: Gorilla siya sa Beast Wars na series, White Lion sa Beast Wars II na series, Woolly Mammoth sa Beast Wars Neo na series, at Fire Engine siya sa Robots In Disguise na series.

Pero paano yung mga versions na may trailer siya?

Two words... Supermode (one word ba ito???)

Sa mga ibang versions niya may mga modes na dumidikit ang trailer sa kaniya pag nagtatransfrom siya: sa Super-God Masterforce na series nagcocombine sila ng kaniyang trailer pag nagiging Super Ginrai at sa Armada na series nagcocombine din sila ng kaniyang trailer para sa Super Mode na form nya.

Ok na ba tayo dito? Siguro naman marami din kayong natutunan sa akin. Siguro naman hindi lang ako ang naghahanap ng kasagutan dito.

Salamat sa pagbabasa. Iwan ko muna kayo kasi may bago akong nireresearch...

Bakit laging inuuna ni Superman ang pagsuot ng pantalon bago nya isuot brief nya?

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