Dogfight (G1)

Dogfight is an Autobot Triggerbot from the Generation 1 continuity family.

Lock S-foils in attack position!

Dogfight is tough, unflinching, and extremely aggressive. He is a skilled air warrior, and with grim humor will refer to a hard-fought aerial combat as a "dance of doom". Despite Optimus Prime's teaching of mechano-meditation, Dogfight remains violent-tempered and easily provoked. He is extremely protective of his personal airspace and will readily attack any who approach him with unclear intentions.

Dogfight's short temper is not all there is to him, however, nor is he a purely ruthless fighter like Sunstreaker. He does value life; he does value friendship. He knows from sad experience that the merest indecision on a warrior's part may bring defeat in battle, perhaps permanently. Worse, it may mean deactivation or damage to friends, or to non-combatant bystanders. At the same time, he knows that rashness may bring the same result. So, while his quick temper does control him at times, at others he uses it to motivate him, and in the midst of rushing madly upon an enemy he will do his level best to preserve a fragment of his wits, and to fight with lethal skill as well as fury. He is a dangerous opponent.

Besides his temper, his greatest weakness is his great flying skill. Like Powerglide, he is an aerial acrobat who can often outmaneuver a larger foe or one with heavier weapons or stronger armor; even one who is faster in level flight. Such airborne acrobatics earned him his name, but can also earn him a mid-air stall, and a potentially fatal fall. So far, he has managed to recover from these.

Fiction

Marvel Comics continuity

Marvel The Transformers comics

A Grumman X-29 before humans even evolved!

When Optimus Prime was still a junior commanding officer, he led Dogfight and the other Triggerbots on a quest to acquire the knowledge and power of the Underbase. During this quest, Dogfight helped his companions make it safely through a jungle of tentacle-like cables by flying through it at high speeds, cutting the cables with his wings along the way. As he emerged from this trap and landed however, he was caught unaware by Boltax's next challenge, and nearly fell down a hole after some shifting plates opened up beneath him. The four Autobots reached Boltax, where the Disciples of Boltax warned them that pain and suffering would be inflicted on them if they continued. Dogfight was rather put off by this warning, and Optimus Prime decided he had put his soldiers through enough on this mission. He ordered Backstreet, Dogfight, and Override to stay behind while he continued. The Flames of Boltax!

Some millions of years later, Dogfight was being held prisoner by the Decepticons along with the rest of the Triggerbots and Sparkabots. Ca$h and Car-nage! Eventually getting freed under undisclosed circumstances, Dogfight and his fellow Triggerbots next worked for the Autobot Resistance. They were tasked to discover the identity of a mysterious package Darkwing and Dreadwind were hired to retrieve by an unknown party. While tailing the two Decepticon Powermasters near the Earth's Moon, however, they were spotted. Their targets tried to gun their shuttle down, and all attempts to outmaneuver the Decepticons failed. Dogfight was eager to retaliate with lethal force, but Backstreet reminded him that part of their mission was to uncover who had hired the duo; de-atomized 'cons wouldn't be able to share such information. Instead, the Autobots decided to detonate their ship's energon supply, making it appear as though the Decepticons had succeeded in destroying them. Once Dreadwind and Darkwing headed down to Earth, Dogfight and his teammates resumed tailing them covertly.

Making landfall in southern Peru, Dogfight and his teammates learned from Hi-Test and Throttle, the Decepticons' Nebulan partners, that the Powermasters were hired to recover the dead body of Starscream after the Underbase fiasco. But no one had foreseen that Starscream would be putting up a fight; his body had remained animated beyond death due to the lingering energies of the Underbase within it. Backstreet had the team take an archeologist out of the line of fire before engaging the zombie, a decision that resulted in him getting severely injured. Though Override sided with Backstreet afterwards, stating that it had been their duty to safeguard the human, Dogfight was less sympathetic. He bemoaned that they had given up an early advantage in the fight, and insisted they would have been better off engaging Starscream, regardless of potential collateral damage. Worse yet, with the group' energon supply gone, Dogfight didn't have the energy needed to fight in his jet mode. He attempted an aerial assault nonetheless, though all that came of it was getting swatted aside by Starscream. Ultimately, it was Backstreet who realized the corpse was driven by the Underbase, not Starscream's mind, and reasoned with the entity until it stopped fighting. Unfortunately, the Nebulans then jumped in and drained the remaining energies from Starscream's carcass. It crumpled into a heap, allowing the Decepticons to grab it and flee. Backstreet berated himself over the failed mission, though Dogfight assured him that, despite his earlier protests, Backstreet had made the right decisions throughout. Race with the Devil

Guy Smiley had to find work where he could.

Dogfight then became involved with the Matrix Quest with his fellow Triggerbots. On the planet Cheyne, Dogfight intervened when a group of armed riders were seen chasing down a helpless child. The Triggerbots easily outgunned the riders and drove them off. Hud, the boy's father, invited the Autobots to come into his home and freshen up before heading out. Despite the urgency of their mission, Dogfight and the others agreed. As the night wore on, the Triggerbots learned from Hud about how he and his family had been chased off their last homeworld by a political upheaval, and came to Cheyne to settle and build a simple farming life. The riders represented a land development interest who wanted to buy out their farm, and weren't willing to take "No" for an answer. Despite having a vague recollection of somewhere they needed to be, the Triggerbots allowed themselves to be convinced to stay the night and, the next morning, to help work the fields.

When Hud needed to go into town for supplies, Dogfight quickly volunteered to go along with him as protection. While there, he was confronted by a hostile group of robots, demanding to know about something called "the Matrix". Dogfight at first ignored their confusing words, and began firing upon them to protect his friend. Still, these new robots seemed strangely familiar, like something nagging at the back of his central processor. Lost in his own confusion, Dogfight was tossed aside by the robots once they realized he knew nothing of their prize. With Hud having run away in the scuffle, Dogfight was found by the riders who had confronted him earlier. As his mind began to clear, they explained that Hud's family weren't all that they pretended to be. Dogfight realized that Hud had been manipulating his mind and molding his behavior to suit the family's needs. They had pierced his outer gruff nature by toying with his deep inner desire for a peaceful life and an end to the fighting.

Feeling violated, and having regained enough composure to confront his "hosts", Dogfight returned to the farm and forced Hud to reveal his true, hideous form. It seems the family were Vrobians, psychic vampires growing fat by feeding off of the tasty Matrix-energy found in the Autobots' sparks. Dogfight was forced to defend himself against Hud, and the alien was killed in a blaster explosion. Backstreet and Override similarly had to...deal with the rest of the family, for their own survival. The Triggerbots were left feeling empty inside, and no closer to finding the Matrix than they had been when they started. Kings of the Wild Frontier.

Trigger-Happy!

Dogfight was part of a squad assembled for a sting operation meant to capture two Decepticons delivering battle plans. Unfortunately, the ambush was botched when Backstreet, their lookout, fired his weapon prematurely, giving away the Autobots' position and provoking the Decepticons into imperiling the inhabitants of Rivers' Town. Rather than face the consequences of his actions, Backstreet went on the run, forcing the rest of the Autobots to hound their rogue comrade. Two days into the chase, Dogfight located him squatting in an abandoned fairground. Distressingly, Megatron had already approached Backstreet, and was goading him into defecting to the Decepticons! Dogfight relayed the news to Optimus, who dove into the situation personally. Optimus was ultimately able to convince Backstreet that his foul-up wasn't as severe as he had originally imagined, and the prodigal Autobot returned home. Trigger-Happy!

Ask Vector Prime

Some time after the encounter with Boltax, Dogfight was one of five members of the Elite Flying Corps, under the command of Optimus Prime. Along with Divebomb, Strafe, Skyfall, and Doubleheader, he engaged Decepticons in the skies. Ask Vector Prime, 2015/09/20

Transformers Comic-Magazin

Dogfight was present when the Decepticons unleashed a robotic hell-beast known as 'King Con' on New York; however Optimus Prime rented a helicopter to fly a banner announcing huge raw oil deposit finds in the Rocky Mountains. After a short hesitation, the Decepticons retreated to pursue these findings. New York — A City Sinking in Terror

Dogfight assisted many of his fellow Autobots in the defense of an oil tanker. The Transformers' Grand Hour: Headmaster of the Dimensions He worked with the Triggerbots and Sparkabots on another oil-related Decepticon heist. Transformers in Action: He Who Laughs Last ... He also helped stop a Decepticon heist of plutonium rods from a submarine transport. The Energon Trap

Regeneration One

Twenty-some years on from the end of the war, Dogfight was part of a security team alongside Backstreet, Crosshairs, Sureshot, and Override that accompanied the new Autobot leader Hot Rod in apprehending the errant Dinobot Grimlock on his return to Cybertron. Although offered the choice to come quietly, Grimlock chose to do things the hard way, resisting all the way to Bastion-five lock-up. Natural Selection, Part Two Shortly afterwards, Dogfight fell victim to Scorponok's Gene Key. Natural Selection, Part Three cover Later, Dogfight was present at the Sonic Canyons when Grimlock and Perceptor succeeded in reversing the Gene Key's effects. Natural Selection, Part Five

Dogfight joined Blades, Doubleheader, Skyhammer, Cloudraker, Crossblades, Jetfire, and the Aerialbots in defending Cybertron against Bludgeon's Warworld. Destiny, Part Four This was a diversionary tactic devised by Prowl to allow the Wreckers to sneak aboard the Warworld. Destiny, Part Five

Dreamwave Generation One continuity

In the Age of Internment, Dogfight was one of the few Autobots left free on Cybertron. The Age of Wrath Pt.2 He served under Blaster and Perceptor's command as they simultaneously tried to track down the missing Optimus Prime and find a way to eliminate Megatron's cloned Aerospace Extermination Squadron. The Age of Wrath Pt.3

Dogfight and the Triggerbots accompanied Blaster as he used an ancient map of Cybertron's depths to infiltrate Megatron's slave camp, only for them to be discovered by Megatron himself. The Age of Wrath Pt.4

2005 IDW continuity

First appearance: Stormbringer #2

My mouth keeps hanging open, Prime!

Dogfight was called upon to crew Optimus Prime's mission to Cybertron on board the Ark-27, and he was just so gosh-darn grateful for the opportunity. Stormbringer #2 It was like a dream come true for him. He later assisted Prime in the battle against Thunderwing by reprogramming Centurion droids to blow the frag out the crazed Pretender. Surprisingly, he did not tragically die in the mission that followed.

His next dream is for Optimus to actually remember his name.

Dream the impossible dream, Dogfight. Dream the impossible dream. Stormbringer #4

PUPPETMOUTH RETURNS

Unfortunately, when they next met, Optimus Prime was too busy talking to Omega Supreme as the crew of the Ark-27 were hauling him out of a comet. Spotlight: Optimus Prime He was present on the Autobot Orbital Command Hub when Blaster announced his return to the airwaves, and was one of the trusted Autobots Silverbolt choose to help him apprehend the mind-controlled Beachcomber, who was programmed by Soundwave to kill Blaster. Spotlight: Blaster After the Surge, Dogfight was in a skirmish with the Decepticon Justice Division. He received minor wounds on his shoulders and rushed to Delphi to get his team medical assistance. As soon as he stormed into the medical ward, First Aid took special interest in Dogfight's two Autobot symbols. Bullets

Dogfight later joined the crew of the Lost Light as one of the survivors rescued from a recent plague on Delphi. He was among those shot down by Fortress Maximus when he went on a rampage and began firing on Autobots with color schemes similar to Overlord's, but survived and received medical attention. Interiors He later participated in the battle with a group of rogue Decepticons on Temptoria, Before & After and helped defend the Lost Light from Overlord himself. Under Cold Blue Stars Dogfight was among those who celebrated when the Lost Light was finally able to return to Cybertron and reunite with the other Autobots. The Becoming

Dogfight and the security team caught Cyclonus and Tailgate after their apparent assassination attempt on Megatron. When Cyclonus appeared to reach for his Great Sword, the guards opened fire. The Lopsided Triangle

When Getaway launched his mutiny, he had Dogfight and the other security team members programmed by the mnemosurgeon Sunder to be fanatically loyal to him. They turned on the Protectobots when their former crewmates returned and asked too many questions. Filling in the Blanks Dogfight and the security team had another fight with the Protectobots when they tried to escape, gunning down most of their former friends. Journey's End

Wings Universe

During the Machine Wars, Dogfight was promoted to Autobot City Commander by Obsidian. He defended one of the city-states of Cybertron against the onslaught of Jhiaxus's clone soldiers. Termination

Precursor World

A Warrior of the Seven Lights resembling Dogfight was a member of the Blue Order of the Primus Vanguard. When the traitorous Straxus twins unleashed a rage virus to destroy the corps from within, he was slain in the ensuing brawl. Vanguard supreme leader Primus later loaded the Warrior's lingering spark into his Golden Noah in an attempt to ferry his soul to the next world. God Neptune comic 1 Unfortunately, this did not work. Finale

Toys

The Transformers

Hey, you'd have headaches too if your ears were machine guns or missile racks.

• Dogfight (Triggerbot, 1988 / 1994)

• Known designers: Takashi Kunihiro (TakaraTomy)

Released in the fifth year of the original Transformers toyline (fourth year in the European toyline), Triggerbot Dogfight transforms from robot to hypercritical-winged Grumman X-29 fighter jet. Activating his Triggerbot gimmick rotates his wings to a swept configuration, flipping over a pair of large cannons with a geared jackspring mechanism (and making him look less like a winged brick). In robot mode, this simply brings his arms up into a firing position.

All three Triggerbots were released in the fifth year of the Chinese Transformers toyline, over half a decade later than in the US/Europe. These releases have rubsigns, which the originals lacked as they had been phased out for the 1988 line.

• More information on Dogfight at TFU.info.

Notes

• It has been speculated that Dogfight was originally supposed to be a Triggercon, not a Triggerbot. His unchromed, geared-jackspring-activated guns line up with the two ground-based Triggercons, while the Decepticon flier Windsweeper's chromed, spring-loaded guns (and less overtly-aggressive alternate mode) would make him seem a more likely match with the Autobots.

Foreign names

• Japanese: Dogfight (ドッグファイト Doggufaito)
• French: Batailleur (Canada, "Fighter"/"Quarrelsome"), Orage (France, "Storm")