Yeah, I always like when bad guys become good guys; and I especially liked the throwback to Laserbeak's 1984 design. Rescue Bots Laserbeak has to be one of my favorite versions of the design. By a long shot.
I love that most of Soundwave's recurring minions have shockingly big claims to fame across the franchise. Laserbeak nearly killed Optimus Prime, Buzzsaw is the personal rival to Omega Supreme, Ravage nearly changed the course of Earth's history and wiped the Autobots from existence, and Frenzy has infiltrated a heavily guarded shadow-government facility and used the Allspark as a TOOL to help him personally resurrected Megatron. Next thing you know Rumble will turn out to be rhe reincarnation of Micronus Prime.
Ratbat was also leader of the Decepticons for a time in the Marvel comics. And who can forget that Rumble and Frenzy easily disassembled Devastator in the '86 movie during the Brawl for Decepticon Leadership, followed by Ravage preventing them from trying again?
lazerbeak was a literal plot device for so many episodes as well, like the autobots would find laserbeak and learn something the decepticons were doing 🤣
Laserbeak in Bayverse was straight up his own character and functioned like an independent minicon. He had more screen time and plot relevance then Soundwave himself which says alot.
I just started reading IDW Collection Phase 3 and I agree with you. Hol up, your comment was 4 days ago. This video was just uploaded less than an hour ago
From Cassette, Badass 🎸 Guitar, to the live action Cyber Turkey 🦃, Laserbeaks always remained a badass! Also I gotta admit, his rescue bots version is adorable! ❤
Laserbeak has become one of the defining characters of the Transformers franchise. Its hard to think of a Transformers series that doesn't have the Decepticons greatest spy flying around and doing espionage on the Autobots.
This was the perfect Thanksgiving themed episode. What better way to celebrate it in the transformers universe, then talking about their own turkey of sorts.
Finding out Aligned Laserbeak had a redemption arc, and in Rescue Bots no less, was definitely not something I was expecting. Personally I like the idea of him being a cassette but making Soundwave a Stealth Bomber and turning his cassettes into "Bombs" was genius. All seriousness if you told be Soundwave & Blaster with their Cassettes were prototypes for the Breastforce I would 100% believe it.
@@singletona082 also, to add to the "Proto-Breastforce" idea all of Soundwave's cassettes from the WFC Trilogy have a "shield mode" which means they all meet the requirements of being able chest plate, having a robot mode, and having a "weapon" mode. (I know its a stretch but look at the Breastforce weapons, all of them except the new Tigerbreast that comes with Haslab Deathsaurus are just the chest plate with a gun barrel)
The thing is that laser Beacon Rescue Bots Academy turns into the cassette and the last time we saw sound wave I think he was going to jail which means that laser beak went and reverted to a more traditional cassette form instead of the weird drone he was in Prime and robots in disguise that episode pretty much had a bunch of kids finding of fugitive of the law
Having personally owned the live action Laserbeak toy myself, it's safe to say that the design of both him and Ravage from the Bayverse are among my favourites, as they both invoke the original designs in a way while looking like they can rip you to shreds!
Honestly, even for as many memorable moments that Lazerbeak had in the G1 cartoon, I kinda think Rescue Bots Academy and Cyberverse gave him his most memorable appearances. Like how RBA addressed the prejudice Decepticons suffered from after the war, and it was the only ex-Decepticon of the group that wanted to help him reform. Which made for, in my opinion, the most mature episode in RBA. And how Cyberverse not only shown how Soundwave tamed Lazerbeak in the past, but also how he was basically Soundwave’s best friend; not only for how loyal Lazerbeak was to him, but how Soundwave actually got pissed off when Soundblaster stole Lazerbeak away from him. I kind of saw them like first example giving Lazerbeak his independence away from Soundwave, while the other showed him as actually caring for his master, and that the Decepticons aren’t just brutal villains.
Gotta admit, seeing Laserbeak be an Autobot in RBA was actually very cute. But really, You can't think of Soundwave without thinking of the Cassetticon partners and whether sapient or a loyal pet, this bot will always accompany his master wherever the battle takes them. Or perhaps he meets up with Buzzsaw to act as commentators like they are both watching a sports game. That one is my favorite. On another note, I kinda enjoy the jokes about "Kids not knowing what this "holy" rectangle he turns into.
I appreciate that Hasbro has pretty much thrown their hands up and said "screw it he's an cassette tape!" And just had younger people go "the heck is a cassette?" I'm an 80's and 90's kid so I just prefer thst mode. But it's cool they at least _tried_ to update Laserbeak and Soundwave.
As a kid at 8 in 1984, a cassette that changed into a robotic bird BLEW MY MIND !! So much that I stared at catalogue pictures and built my own out of thin cardboard, (not too much money for toys as a child), and I played with that thing so much....thank you for revisiting this creation for us, all the best this Christmas season to you and fistbumps from Canada :)
My first introduction to Laserbeak was the one in armada safe to say when I found out he was originally a Decepticon surprised me honestly thought he was Autobot throughout the franchise
Despite all the bad reputation of the movies you have to admit the Dark Of The Moon Laserbeak was the scariest incarantion. Seriously, torturing humans? Killing their families? *In a PG-13 movie!!?*
My first Laserbeak was the G1 cartoon version thanks to reruns I honestly have a soft spot for the cassette modes i chalk it up to them still being pretty common when i was little
I didn't experience much for g1 since I was born in 2004 but the cassette modes are absolutely iconic to me and wouldn't have them be any different other than the cool guitar from I find that one to be a creative redesign
It's interesting one of the first non marvel media I had of Lazer Beak was the Ladybird books which came with an audio cassettes, stranger the lady bird books had the designs based completely on the toy line so there was a very different almost scary look and you under why marvel humanised lots of them like wheeljack and Huffer
I got to say that this is first time I'm hearing for Prime Laserbeak making third return; of all places in Rescue Bots Academy and even switching to Autobots. Would like to add I like in Funpub's before events of BW, it showcased how he and Buzzsaw get same upgrade treatment like Ravage- From his Laserbeak toys; his toy that came in Generations GDO line was perfect concept of Laserbeak with humanoid robot mode while retaining his beast robot mode qualities.
"Well done Laserbeak. Unlike some my other warriors, you never fail me". Without a doubt that phrase shows how important Laserbeak was for the Decepticon cause
While not a big fan of Transformers Prime the bond between Laser Beak and Soundwave in that show was rather cool. Just these two silent bots just in the background that where in my mind the only reason the cons lasted so long. And there is something cool about always having someone so small yet strong on your side. Like when fighting Soundwave you never know if Laser Beak will launch out and aid him, or worse is the flying death machine already out and lining up a shot. Or worse is he else where all together attacking friends or gather data that could do more harm if the cons got. Also while I hate the live action movies. Now and then they get great ideas and assassin Laser Beak is a five star idea.
Laserbeak is a drone in Prime. They have no bond. Other Aligned media basically just ignores this and treats him as sentient anyway because that way he’s an actual character Also, Laserbeak has been established as an assassin since his G1 profile, the cartoon just chose to focus on him as a spy
@@Cdr2002 lazerbeak isn’t a drone in transformers prime, and they DO have a bond. Soundwave passed up the perfect opportunity of killing Wheeljack to rescue Lazerbeak when Lazerbeak sent a distress signal. This shows he deeply cares about him. Plus Lazerbeak does exhibit sentient traits such as fear when ratchet was holding him down, which led to him sending the distress signal in the first place. The other deceptions such as Starscream and Megatron acknowledge Lazerbeak as sentient as they refer to Lazerbeak as ‘he’ rather than ‘it’, and we even hear wheeljack refer to Lazerbeak as Soundwave’s pet. People just assume that Lazerbeak is a drone because we don’t see much of him, and he’s always in the background like soundwave. Thus it’s very easy to forget looking deeper into his character.
Well. Ratchet does refer to him as "Soundwave's surveillance drone" in the very episode you're referring to. But Transformers is funny that way, being a "drone" doesn't mean you're not sentient. In the big picture, I think it's pretty obvious the Prime show didn't initially intend the drone to BE Laserbeak - he's more bat than bird, and conspicuously *doesn't have a beak* - so didn't do much to characterise him, treating him more like Soundwave's remote telepresence unit. The drone only starts being referred to as Laserbeak halfway through season 2, an addition probably motivated by the name being used on the toy. In the end I think RID did a lot to bridge the gap between Prime and more standard Laserbeak depictions, keeping the general look of the character and his eerie chittering sound effect while adding some more bird-like qualities and allowing him to act more independently.
@@ChrisMcFeely while I do compleatly agree with your take and definetly think your right the idea of ratchet just being an old racist is way more funny
One of the funniest Laserbeak moments I've found is in the video game Rise of the Dark Spark. There's a moment where Soundwave, Shockwave and Starscream are looking for said Dark Spark on Cybertron and they come to a door that requires 4 guys to press the switches to open it. "A pity then that we are only three." says Starscream. "Laserbeak, eject." Soundwave immediately ejects Laserbeak out of his chest and to "one-up" their numbers. But Starscream is still in the mocking mood so he says, "My mistake. Three-and-a-half." LOL
weirdly enough I normally say Prime have my favorite version of almost any bot that appear and in this case too, but also the entire evolution of Laserbeak on the Aligned continuity is as a whole my favorite, because give the little guy an entire arc and in Rescue Bot he finally reach his goal becoming an Autobot, I find it so adorable and a satisfied conclusion to Laserbeak story in the Aligned saga.
One weird thing about Armada Laserbeak is he has a 3rd mode. A stun gun or hand held human sized blaster mode. It doesn't really do much or anything, but it is in the TOY packaging or such for him!
He doesn't even transform into the gun mode in the show. He can just shock people in his bird and camera modes. Guess they didn't want the human characters waving a gun around
I've always loved Laserbeak. Never cared for Buzzsaw.... Except that time that they were doing the commentary, it was like they were a Statler and Waldorf team. That was cool! Great video as always Chris. Keep up the excellent work my friend!
Love the video, but I wish that his IDW characterization was touched upon more, if only just because his death in the Unicron mini--overcoming his fear and helping to buy the folks on Sanctuary time to escape and then later welcoming Soundwave to the Afterspark--was really touching for me
Mainline Ravage toys peaked with the Classics (that came with Hound for...some reason), why they don't just update that figure's engineering is beyond me.
I wonder why they started packaging laserbeak with soundwave rather than buzzsaw. I feel like it was a good marketing ploy for them to make customers buy two toys by selling them separately.
AUTOBOT LASERBEAK!? WHYYYYYY have I never heard about this!? 😮😮😳😳🤯🤯 As a G1 fan, though?? My favorite iteration is TFP; clearly inspired by the Decepticon Breastforce. (And as a possible toyline exclusive, TFP: Beast Hunters Soundwave now came with Ravage instead.)
funny how my first exposure to laserbeak, one of the stealthest decepticons and one of soundwave's loyal companions........was a scene from the unicron trilogy......as an autobot with no relation or coorelation to soundwave whatsoever
You forgot to mention when the G1 Decepticon versions of Laserbeak and Buzzsaw were chasing (Airazor?) in their spaceship and it was destroyed. They were meant to be in their Beast Wars "Predacon" guises (which were modelled on the bird Terracons from TF Energon).
Laserbeak one of my favorite of the many of soundwave cassette's in my headcannon soundwave and soundblaster sometimes meet up with each other asking for one of the cassettes to assist them.
I love watching the Obscure Characters Month videos to see if I recognize any of them. The vast majority of my TF knowledge is from the Beast era as that was what I primarily grew up with, though I did watch many other series, they just weren't as impactful. I'd love to see an episode on some of the more obscure characters from Beast Wars such as Ramulus or the Fuzors that weren't in the show.
I've been watching G1 recently, and so many episodes have this guy and Soundwave getting caught by the Autobots, or Soundwave gaining information for the Decepticons. It's pretty funny.
Looking sinister in the shadows keeps Laserbeak a favorite I think (as do some other cassettes). I did always wonder though why they chose him as main partner to Soundwave instead of the packaged-in Buzzsaw (even in the Marvel comics). Also being a cassette is NOT outdated at all nowadays with them returning to concerts and Music stores! :)). Great video once again!
Why? Probably to sell toys. Paring them like that in the media meant having to make two purchases if you wanted to make an absolute match when you played. Though I'm sure that a lot of kids just imagined their Buzzsaws to be Laserbeaks despite the name on the box and the color scheme. Especially since the show had already conditioned kids to be flexible with names and colors for the red and blue cassettes.
A combination of marketing and animation decisions The colors of LB probably worked better in the animation than BZ (same thing with R and F) Packing BZ with SW means you still have to get LB separately to truly imitate the cartoon (where the reverse is not true) And the writers probably just liked the name Rumble better than Frenzy , So Laserbeak and a miscolored Rumble became the Varsity team and Buzzsaw and Miscolored Frenzy rode the cyberpine
i always wanted a version of Laserbeak to speak, but more like a parrot or raven not to fluent in normal speech, but just enough to communicate simple words
Does anyone remember those reading books with an audiocassette included? In one of those reading books the switched the colour-scheme of Buzzsaw with that of Laserbeak.
@@CybranMonkeylord And i remember that the Cybertronic mode of Laserbeak, which was seen in the beginning of the first part of the 3-part epsiode 'More than Meets the E.Y.E' was also used for the Laserbeak figure in the Transformers Generations: War for Cybertron SIege toyline.
Love the channel! The nostalgia from origins to current day is great. Just wondering if you did a basics on either the stunticons, kup or wrek gar? Keep up the great work!
Laserbeak has succeeded in many spy missions and even defeated Optimus Prime in G1 and Robots in Disguise(2015). He maybe the most efficient Decepticon of them all.
call me a Bayverse shill, but I think Laserbeak being a sadist from his original profile and being a spy with the comic's depiction sounds amazing, something like the Dark of The Moon's handling with the character, and if you really want the interrogator part, he can do that thing the little crab doctor with the centipedes does in ROTF; badabing badaboom, a scary Laserbeak that you feel dread when he comes on the screen.
I think everyone forgets and takes the legendary condor from the decepticons for granted and he’s often forgotten about and what legendary things he’s done. Soundwave is no soundwave without laserbeak. I remember as a kid watching the 1986 movie as my second only transformers thing I was introduced to and laserbeak was my first G1 character to be introduced to. He’s always been there and I hope he will be there for generations to come
My first ever Transformers toy was a laserbeak-like Decepticon that transformed into an MP3 player with an earpiece that could turn into a cannon for the robot mode (this was part of a role-play line released around the first live-action movie). While not officially Laserbeak, I knew of that name being associated with a bird-like transformer, and since then the little menace has been my favorite of the cast.
My favorite versions of Lazerbeak is in Transformers Dark of the Moon, Transformers Prime and the Robots in Disguise sequel series, the video games, and in recent years War for Cybertron trilogy and Transformers Cyberverse. Great video as well Chris McFeely. 👍 Now, once we get into Obscure characters month, let's do the Basics on some of my favorite lesser-known bots like Mindwipe or Thunderwing. 😁👍
Yet another radical episode from Transformers Fandom’s own Alpha Trion (but a lot younger and more dashing than Trion) on an icon from the G1 cartoon. Interesting that Laserbeak was more or less a comic relief character paired with Buzzsaw for a fair few of the 2005 IDW comics issues. Kinda reminds me of the old guys from the Muppets. Ten out of ten once again, Chris!
I bought Rumble and Buzzsaw as a twin pack when I was a kid. Rumble was my all time fav but one day I left him on the radiator and he melted. I cried all night 😢
As someone whose Introduction to the original TF cast beyond the movies was an old first volume of the Marvel comics, I really liked Lazerbeak and Buzzsaw as a duo and I think it's a shame that the latter has been largely forgotten.
When you mentioned him being updated to new modern forms, I'm surprised you didn't show that time he was an mp3 player in the Real Gear Robots toyline. Or... was that actually Laserbeak? I know they gave them all odd names with letters and numbers.
I love all the cassettes, but Laserbeak, though I’ve never owned him, has always been my favorite cassette. His small role in the 80s movie is so memorable for me.
I kinda love how Lazerbeak's portrayl in animated media contradicts his original profile. He's supposed to be a coward but his lasers are so strong that he only ever needs one fly by to put something on their back.
I like the armada version the best. It's what introduced me to the character. While it's cool that he became an autobot again. I feel that role should've gone to some new decepticon character as laserbeak was an accomplice to Soundwave and Megatrons crimes.
I was the designer for rescubots Laserbeak and I’m very glad so many of you liked him!!!
Yeah, I always like when bad guys become good guys; and I especially liked the throwback to Laserbeak's 1984 design.
Rescue Bots Laserbeak has to be one of my favorite versions of the design. By a long shot.
Bros cappin
Laserbeak eject
🧢
🧢
I love that most of Soundwave's recurring minions have shockingly big claims to fame across the franchise.
Laserbeak nearly killed Optimus Prime, Buzzsaw is the personal rival to Omega Supreme, Ravage nearly changed the course of Earth's history and wiped the Autobots from existence, and Frenzy has infiltrated a heavily guarded shadow-government facility and used the Allspark as a TOOL to help him personally resurrected Megatron.
Next thing you know Rumble will turn out to be rhe reincarnation of Micronus Prime.
Also, Shattered Glass Ravage is waving at you. :3
Ok we need now rumble as reincarnation of microns Prime
Laserbeak was also responsible for big plot points in the 1986 film, as well as Dark of the Moon. Soundwave and his baddies are no joke, all awesome.
Ratbat was also leader of the Decepticons for a time in the Marvel comics. And who can forget that Rumble and Frenzy easily disassembled Devastator in the '86 movie during the Brawl for Decepticon Leadership, followed by Ravage preventing them from trying again?
Ahhh can we get some context on the buzzsaw was a rival to omega supreme thing?
lazerbeak was a literal plot device for so many episodes as well, like the autobots would find laserbeak and learn something the decepticons were doing 🤣
And vice versa. How many times did Megatron only know what Prime and Autobots were doing because of Laserbeak.
was laserbreak a tape or a flying camera
@@waterup380 both
Soundwave: "They are not my pets, nor my slaves. They are my friends."
Megatron: "And never forget it."
And in some non canon instances, they are Soundwaves children.
@@tracyrunyan3329 That sounds even more messed up...
There's always something very charming about seeing Laserbeak perch onto Megatron's arm.
There really is!
Laserbeak knew who.his master was and Megatron was always pleased with his work like he said in the movir
May have something to do with having a superior success rate as opposed to, say, some of Megatron's other warriors perhaps? Who can say?
While not the best movie, the line "Laserbeak, kill them all." gave me chills upon first viewing.
Interesting an actual video about Lazerbeak
"With pleasure" 😈
“Is YoUr DaDdY hOmE?”
Laserbeak in Bayverse was straight up his own character and functioned like an independent minicon.
He had more screen time and plot relevance then Soundwave himself which says alot.
The best Laserbeak and Buzzsaw are the IDW ones who heckle everyone like Statler and Waldorf, don't @ me.
Be older!!!😜
100%! It's the way they were always meant to be depicted!
I just started reading IDW Collection Phase 3 and I agree with you. Hol up, your comment was 4 days ago. This video was just uploaded less than an hour ago
@@boi7316 Patreon subscribers get early access.
Is this some kind of patreon early access? It is strange.
From Cassette, Badass 🎸 Guitar, to the live action Cyber Turkey 🦃, Laserbeaks always remained a badass! Also I gotta admit, his rescue bots version is adorable! ❤
Laserbeak has become one of the defining characters of the Transformers franchise. Its hard to think of a Transformers series that doesn't have the Decepticons greatest spy flying around and doing espionage on the Autobots.
Yeh
Well done Chris McFeely. Unlike some other TH-camrs, you never fail me.
I quite like his Rescue Bots look, very charming!
Nice movie callback, there!
"TH-cam, play back Chris McFeely's findings."
@@stephencastro4723 "As you command, Megatron."
Anyone else read that first line and instantly hear it in Frank Welker's voice?
This was the perfect Thanksgiving themed episode. What better way to celebrate it in the transformers universe, then talking about their own turkey of sorts.
A dangerous Turkey 😂
Finding out Aligned Laserbeak had a redemption arc, and in Rescue Bots no less, was definitely not something I was expecting.
Personally I like the idea of him being a cassette but making Soundwave a Stealth Bomber and turning his cassettes into "Bombs" was genius. All seriousness if you told be Soundwave & Blaster with their Cassettes were prototypes for the Breastforce I would 100% believe it.
Seriously! How did I miss that?!
That really was a genius move on their part.
Also yes.... they are definitely proto-breast force.
@@singletona082 also, to add to the "Proto-Breastforce" idea all of Soundwave's cassettes from the WFC Trilogy have a "shield mode" which means they all meet the requirements of being able chest plate, having a robot mode, and having a "weapon" mode.
(I know its a stretch but look at the Breastforce weapons, all of them except the new Tigerbreast that comes with Haslab Deathsaurus are just the chest plate with a gun barrel)
The thing is that laser Beacon Rescue Bots Academy turns into the cassette and the last time we saw sound wave I think he was going to jail which means that laser beak went and reverted to a more traditional cassette form instead of the weird drone he was in Prime and robots in disguise that episode pretty much had a bunch of kids finding of fugitive of the law
One minute Laserbeak he’s pecking team prime and bee team and the thing you know he’s enrolled in the academy to become a rescue bot.
Having personally owned the live action Laserbeak toy myself, it's safe to say that the design of both him and Ravage from the Bayverse are among my favourites, as they both invoke the original designs in a way while looking like they can rip you to shreds!
Honestly, even for as many memorable moments that Lazerbeak had in the G1 cartoon, I kinda think Rescue Bots Academy and Cyberverse gave him his most memorable appearances.
Like how RBA addressed the prejudice Decepticons suffered from after the war, and it was the only ex-Decepticon of the group that wanted to help him reform. Which made for, in my opinion, the most mature episode in RBA. And how Cyberverse not only shown how Soundwave tamed Lazerbeak in the past, but also how he was basically Soundwave’s best friend; not only for how loyal Lazerbeak was to him, but how Soundwave actually got pissed off when Soundblaster stole Lazerbeak away from him. I kind of saw them like first example giving Lazerbeak his independence away from Soundwave, while the other showed him as actually caring for his master, and that the Decepticons aren’t just brutal villains.
Gotta admit, seeing Laserbeak be an Autobot in RBA was actually very cute.
But really, You can't think of Soundwave without thinking of the Cassetticon partners and whether sapient or a loyal pet, this bot will always accompany his master wherever the battle takes them. Or perhaps he meets up with Buzzsaw to act as commentators like they are both watching a sports game. That one is my favorite.
On another note, I kinda enjoy the jokes about "Kids not knowing what this "holy" rectangle he turns into.
I appreciate that Hasbro has pretty much thrown their hands up and said "screw it he's an cassette tape!" And just had younger people go "the heck is a cassette?"
I'm an 80's and 90's kid so I just prefer thst mode. But it's cool they at least _tried_ to update Laserbeak and Soundwave.
As someone born in 2004 I have to agree with keeping the cassette designs it's just very iconic to me
As a kid at 8 in 1984, a cassette that changed into a robotic bird BLEW MY MIND !! So much that I stared at catalogue pictures and built my own out of thin cardboard, (not too much money for toys as a child), and I played with that thing so much....thank you for revisiting this creation for us, all the best this Christmas season to you and fistbumps from Canada :)
My first introduction to Laserbeak was the one in armada safe to say when I found out he was originally a Decepticon surprised me honestly thought he was Autobot throughout the franchise
Despite all the bad reputation of the movies you have to admit the Dark Of The Moon Laserbeak was the scariest incarantion. Seriously, torturing humans? Killing their families? *In a PG-13 movie!!?*
Passive aggresive, mate?
My first Laserbeak was the G1 cartoon version thanks to reruns
I honestly have a soft spot for the cassette modes i chalk it up to them still being pretty common when i was little
I didn't experience much for g1 since I was born in 2004 but the cassette modes are absolutely iconic to me and wouldn't have them be any different other than the cool guitar from I find that one to be a creative redesign
It's interesting one of the first non marvel media I had of Lazer Beak was the Ladybird books which came with an audio cassettes, stranger the lady bird books had the designs based completely on the toy line so there was a very different almost scary look and you under why marvel humanised lots of them like wheeljack and Huffer
You mean Laserbeak's Fury? I love that one. Still own the book of his character book: th-cam.com/video/WER8vz6jM2M/w-d-xo.html
LaserBeak as Guitar for soundwave is absolutely genius
I like how Laserbeak always likes perching on everyone, it's kinda cute, in a weird sort of way.
I got to say that this is first time I'm hearing for Prime Laserbeak making third return; of all places in Rescue Bots Academy and even switching to Autobots.
Would like to add I like in Funpub's before events of BW, it showcased how he and Buzzsaw get same upgrade treatment like Ravage-
From his Laserbeak toys; his toy that came in Generations GDO line was perfect concept of Laserbeak with humanoid robot mode while retaining his beast robot mode qualities.
"Welcome, Laserbeak! Unlike some of my other warriors, you never fail me." - Someone famous, probably...
"Well done Laserbeak. Unlike some my other warriors, you never fail me".
Without a doubt that phrase shows how important Laserbeak was for the Decepticon cause
While not a big fan of Transformers Prime the bond between Laser Beak and Soundwave in that show was rather cool. Just these two silent bots just in the background that where in my mind the only reason the cons lasted so long. And there is something cool about always having someone so small yet strong on your side. Like when fighting Soundwave you never know if Laser Beak will launch out and aid him, or worse is the flying death machine already out and lining up a shot. Or worse is he else where all together attacking friends or gather data that could do more harm if the cons got.
Also while I hate the live action movies. Now and then they get great ideas and assassin Laser Beak is a five star idea.
Laserbeak is a drone in Prime. They have no bond. Other Aligned media basically just ignores this and treats him as sentient anyway because that way he’s an actual character
Also, Laserbeak has been established as an assassin since his G1 profile, the cartoon just chose to focus on him as a spy
@@Cdr2002 lazerbeak isn’t a drone in transformers prime, and they DO have a bond. Soundwave passed up the perfect opportunity of killing Wheeljack to rescue Lazerbeak when Lazerbeak sent a distress signal. This shows he deeply cares about him. Plus Lazerbeak does exhibit sentient traits such as fear when ratchet was holding him down, which led to him sending the distress signal in the first place. The other deceptions such as Starscream and Megatron acknowledge Lazerbeak as sentient as they refer to Lazerbeak as ‘he’ rather than ‘it’, and we even hear wheeljack refer to Lazerbeak as Soundwave’s pet. People just assume that Lazerbeak is a drone because we don’t see much of him, and he’s always in the background like soundwave. Thus it’s very easy to forget looking deeper into his character.
Well. Ratchet does refer to him as "Soundwave's surveillance drone" in the very episode you're referring to. But Transformers is funny that way, being a "drone" doesn't mean you're not sentient. In the big picture, I think it's pretty obvious the Prime show didn't initially intend the drone to BE Laserbeak - he's more bat than bird, and conspicuously *doesn't have a beak* - so didn't do much to characterise him, treating him more like Soundwave's remote telepresence unit. The drone only starts being referred to as Laserbeak halfway through season 2, an addition probably motivated by the name being used on the toy. In the end I think RID did a lot to bridge the gap between Prime and more standard Laserbeak depictions, keeping the general look of the character and his eerie chittering sound effect while adding some more bird-like qualities and allowing him to act more independently.
@@ChrisMcFeely while I do compleatly agree with your take and definetly think your right the idea of ratchet just being an old racist is way more funny
Prime Soundwave's alt is a predator drone, so in this instance, drone doesn't equal non- sentient. Prime laserbeak always reminded me of a moth.
One of the funniest Laserbeak moments I've found is in the video game Rise of the Dark Spark. There's a moment where Soundwave, Shockwave and Starscream are looking for said Dark Spark on Cybertron and they come to a door that requires 4 guys to press the switches to open it.
"A pity then that we are only three." says Starscream.
"Laserbeak, eject." Soundwave immediately ejects Laserbeak out of his chest and to "one-up" their numbers.
But Starscream is still in the mocking mood so he says, "My mistake. Three-and-a-half." LOL
weirdly enough I normally say Prime have my favorite version of almost any bot that appear and in this case too, but also the entire evolution of Laserbeak on the Aligned continuity is as a whole my favorite, because give the little guy an entire arc and in Rescue Bot he finally reach his goal becoming an Autobot, I find it so adorable and a satisfied conclusion to Laserbeak story in the Aligned saga.
One weird thing about Armada Laserbeak is he has a 3rd mode.
A stun gun or hand held human sized blaster mode.
It doesn't really do much or anything, but it is in the TOY packaging or such for him!
He doesn't even transform into the gun mode in the show. He can just shock people in his bird and camera modes. Guess they didn't want the human characters waving a gun around
Did he turn into a laser gun in the DW comic?
I've always loved Laserbeak. Never cared for Buzzsaw.... Except that time that they were doing the commentary, it was like they were a Statler and Waldorf team. That was cool!
Great video as always Chris. Keep up the excellent work my friend!
Love the video, but I wish that his IDW characterization was touched upon more, if only just because his death in the Unicron mini--overcoming his fear and helping to buy the folks on Sanctuary time to escape and then later welcoming Soundwave to the Afterspark--was really touching for me
I had no idea Lazerbeak became an autobot in Rescuebots Academy! That’s so cool!
Honestly every time I see laserbeak it just makes me wish Hasbro would make a new ravage figure as good as Siege/Earthrise laserbeak.
Mainline Ravage toys peaked with the Classics (that came with Hound for...some reason), why they don't just update that figure's engineering is beyond me.
@@ShinGallon MTMTE homage
@@gabrielchee8470 Aah, that's right. It's been awhile since I read IDW, I'm due for a re-read.
G1 prime and animated laserbeak are my top favorite versions.
I wonder why they started packaging laserbeak with soundwave rather than buzzsaw. I feel like it was a good marketing ploy for them to make customers buy two toys by selling them separately.
One of the most iconic characters of Transformers media next to his master Soundwave. Thanks for such a great video insight on Laserbeak.
IDW and DOTM have to be my absolute faves
Welcome, Laserbeak. Unlike some of my other warriors, you never fail me. Soundwave, play back Laserbeak's findings.
G1 Laserbeak was always my favourite, can't beat Soundwave and his cassettes
AUTOBOT LASERBEAK!? WHYYYYYY have I never heard about this!? 😮😮😳😳🤯🤯
As a G1 fan, though?? My favorite iteration is TFP; clearly inspired by the Decepticon Breastforce. (And as a possible toyline exclusive, TFP: Beast Hunters Soundwave now came with Ravage instead.)
Animated wins in terms of design, but for me, the best characterization is in, of all things, Dark of the Moon. Such a delightfully fiendish sadist.
Laserbeak was one of the first five transformers I ever got. He came along with my third transformer MP soundwave!
Finally after waiting for 4 years you did laserbeak
The beaky buzzard is a true classic, may he perch on Soundwave's shoulder for many more years to come.
I was unaware of his appearance in Rescue Bots Academy. It's surprisingly sweet and nice to see him officially become an Autobot!
funny how my first exposure to laserbeak, one of the stealthest decepticons and one of soundwave's loyal companions........was a scene from the unicron trilogy......as an autobot with no relation or coorelation to soundwave whatsoever
I love the "student" Lazerbeak the most because *he's too adorable!!*
i'm so glad it's now socially acceptable for the cassette bots to turn into cassettes again
I don't know if you forgot, but there was another version of Animated Laserbeak which was a repaint of Swoop from the same line
That's the "Transformers Adventure" Swoop toy you're referring to, which is black and red, but is still just Swoop.
You forgot to mention when the G1 Decepticon versions of Laserbeak and Buzzsaw were chasing (Airazor?) in their spaceship and it was destroyed. They were meant to be in their Beast Wars "Predacon" guises (which were modelled on the bird Terracons from TF Energon).
Laserbeak one of my favorite of the many of soundwave cassette's in my headcannon soundwave and soundblaster sometimes meet up with each other asking for one of the cassettes to assist them.
"Welcome Laserbeak. Unlike some of my other warriors, you never failed me."
- Megatron
I love watching the Obscure Characters Month videos to see if I recognize any of them. The vast majority of my TF knowledge is from the Beast era as that was what I primarily grew up with, though I did watch many other series, they just weren't as impactful. I'd love to see an episode on some of the more obscure characters from Beast Wars such as Ramulus or the Fuzors that weren't in the show.
I actually had the Armada Laserbeak toy back in the day.
I have literally no memory of Buzzsaw ever appearing in any of the old G1 cartoons, I had to just Google to find out which ones he was in...
4:31 canonical Lazerbeak was featured along Buzzsaw in Beast Wars era comics, show evolved and grant ability to transform into a robot.
I've been watching G1 recently, and so many episodes have this guy and Soundwave getting caught by the Autobots, or Soundwave gaining information for the Decepticons. It's pretty funny.
Awesome to see the robotic murder bird whom I named my TH-cam account after finally getting his Basics video.
Amazing work as always! 😄
Looking sinister in the shadows keeps Laserbeak a favorite I think (as do some other cassettes). I did always wonder though why they chose him as main partner to Soundwave instead of the packaged-in Buzzsaw (even in the Marvel comics). Also being a cassette is NOT outdated at all nowadays with them returning to concerts and Music stores! :)). Great video once again!
Why? Probably to sell toys. Paring them like that in the media meant having to make two purchases if you wanted to make an absolute match when you played. Though I'm sure that a lot of kids just imagined their Buzzsaws to be Laserbeaks despite the name on the box and the color scheme. Especially since the show had already conditioned kids to be flexible with names and colors for the red and blue cassettes.
@@radwolf76 Yeah, somehow it feels to me like a mix-up somewhere, not a sale strategy. But could be.
@@radwolf76 yeah I legitimately have a head cannon at this point that Rumble and frenzy just swap paint jobs occasionally to mess with people
A combination of marketing and animation decisions
The colors of LB probably worked better in the animation than BZ (same thing with R and F)
Packing BZ with SW means you still have to get LB separately to truly imitate the cartoon (where the reverse is not true)
And the writers probably just liked the name Rumble better than Frenzy ,
So Laserbeak and a miscolored Rumble became the Varsity team and Buzzsaw and Miscolored Frenzy rode the cyberpine
I literally just saw the pink Bumblebee Bee Lazerbeak at Target yesterday!
Using your bird as an “armored shield” isn’t exactly what I would call responsible pet ownership 😂
i always wanted a version of Laserbeak to speak, but more like a parrot or raven
not to fluent in normal speech, but just enough to communicate simple words
Does anyone remember those reading books with an audiocassette included? In one of those reading books the switched the colour-scheme of Buzzsaw with that of Laserbeak.
I know they exist, and were illustrated directly from toy design.
@@CybranMonkeylord And i remember that the Cybertronic mode of Laserbeak, which was seen in the beginning of the first part of the 3-part epsiode 'More than Meets the E.Y.E' was also used for the Laserbeak figure in the Transformers Generations: War for Cybertron SIege toyline.
Favourite cassette implies that he doesn’t love the other’s when they just one big happy family I reckon
Love the channel! The nostalgia from origins to current day is great. Just wondering if you did a basics on either the stunticons, kup or wrek gar?
Keep up the great work!
Laserbeak has succeeded in many spy missions and even defeated Optimus Prime in G1 and Robots in Disguise(2015). He maybe the most efficient Decepticon of them all.
"Say the line Chris!"
"And was offlined by a cosmically empowered starscream"
I've been looking forward to this, Soundwave's greatest minion!
Wow, Rescue Bots Academy might be Laserbeak's redemption from his previous crimes...
I tip my hat to you Chris . My favorite of all time gets a spot on the basics.
Love how he became an Autobot in the Rescue Bots Academy. He actually looks adorable.
3:33 Ah, yes, the running gag of The Basics series returns.
call me a Bayverse shill, but I think Laserbeak being a sadist from his original profile and being a spy with the comic's depiction sounds amazing, something like the Dark of The Moon's handling with the character, and if you really want the interrogator part, he can do that thing the little crab doctor with the centipedes does in ROTF; badabing badaboom, a scary Laserbeak that you feel dread when he comes on the screen.
Before I even watch this episode I want to say thank you for throwing the spoiler alert out there even though it was unnecessary for me
I think everyone forgets and takes the legendary condor from the decepticons for granted and he’s often forgotten about and what legendary things he’s done. Soundwave is no soundwave without laserbeak.
I remember as a kid watching the 1986 movie as my second only transformers thing I was introduced to and laserbeak was my first G1 character to be introduced to. He’s always been there and I hope he will be there for generations to come
I have waited a loooooooong time for this. Laserbeak is definitely one of my favorites. Bird, Bird, Bird! Bird is the word!
I love LaserBeak! He is one of my favorite minicons. He is the ultimate "Ride or Die" companion.
The most loyal Minicon to Soundwave
Nice work on the video on Laserbeak, my friend! Like all birds of prey, he too is my favorite cybernetic bird character along with Buzzsaw as well.
I have waited Forever for the basics on laserbeak, soundwaves favorite pet
We better be getting an episode on Slayride on Christmas...
My first ever Transformers toy was a laserbeak-like Decepticon that transformed into an MP3 player with an earpiece that could turn into a cannon for the robot mode (this was part of a role-play line released around the first live-action movie). While not officially Laserbeak, I knew of that name being associated with a bird-like transformer, and since then the little menace has been my favorite of the cast.
Is laserbeak obscure though? He's the most well known of soundwave's cassette con.
Is it December yet?
@@ChrisMcFeely .... point taken.
My favorite versions of Lazerbeak is in Transformers Dark of the Moon, Transformers Prime and the Robots in Disguise sequel series, the video games, and in recent years War for Cybertron trilogy and Transformers Cyberverse. Great video as well Chris McFeely. 👍 Now, once we get into Obscure characters month, let's do the Basics on some of my favorite lesser-known bots like Mindwipe or Thunderwing. 😁👍
ahh laserbeak you return. unlike others you never fail me
Yet another radical episode from Transformers Fandom’s own Alpha Trion (but a lot younger and more dashing than Trion) on an icon from the G1 cartoon. Interesting that Laserbeak was more or less a comic relief character paired with Buzzsaw for a fair few of the 2005 IDW comics issues. Kinda reminds me of the old guys from the Muppets. Ten out of ten once again, Chris!
I bought Rumble and Buzzsaw as a twin pack when I was a kid. Rumble was my all time fav but one day I left him on the radiator and he melted. I cried all night 😢
As someone whose Introduction to the original TF cast beyond the movies was an old first volume of the Marvel comics, I really liked Lazerbeak and Buzzsaw as a duo and I think it's a shame that the latter has been largely forgotten.
When you mentioned him being updated to new modern forms, I'm surprised you didn't show that time he was an mp3 player in the Real Gear Robots toyline. Or... was that actually Laserbeak? I know they gave them all odd names with letters and numbers.
Laserbeak my Beloved
What? Damnit McFeely! Now I have to go watch Rescue Bots Academy...... I'm too old for this!
Good stuff Chris as per usual sir loved the original laser beak cassette
YES!!!! iv'e been waiting soooo long for this one dude, totally worth the wait for Lazerbeak man.
I love 'ambiguous rectangle' as an alt-mode descriptor.
I was So confused when i went to target saw that pink bumblebee Laserbeak thinking, WAIT Laser beak is a bird why is he bumblebee!?
I love all the cassettes, but Laserbeak, though I’ve never owned him, has always been my favorite cassette. His small role in the 80s movie is so memorable for me.
I was always a fan of Armada Autobot Laserbeak.
I loved roleplay toys as a kid and Laserbeak was one of my favorites.
I kinda love how Lazerbeak's portrayl in animated media contradicts his original profile. He's supposed to be a coward but his lasers are so strong that he only ever needs one fly by to put something on their back.
I like the armada version the best. It's what introduced me to the character. While it's cool that he became an autobot again. I feel that role should've gone to some new decepticon character as laserbeak was an accomplice to Soundwave and Megatrons crimes.