Skullcruncher (G1)

Skullcruncher is a Decepticon Headmaster from the Generation 1 continuity family.

He eats (Autobots) because he's depressed and he's depressed because he eats (Autobots).

Skullcruncher (aka Skullsmasher^[1]) would be an apex predator and darling of the battlefield if it weren't for one little thing: he has an idiosyncratic habit of grinding his teeth before launching an attack. The racket this nervous tic produces is so loud and obnoxious it actually tips the enemy off to his whereabouts. So as one can imagine, few Decepticons wish to be partnered with him and his more enviable qualities go unnoticed and unappreciated.

Perhaps because of this feeling of dismissal, Skullcruncher has developed something of a binge-eating disorder. Or, rather, a "binge-eating-Autobots disorder". While he thinks they taste a little yucky, Skullcruncher will ravenously scarf down as many Autobots as he can during battle, making him positively terrifying to the opposition. This image as a mindless, cannibalistic monster has only further solidified Skullcruncher's reputation as a big, dumb beast no one wants to hang out with.

Skullcruncher is binary bonded to the Nebulan Grax.

Fiction

Marvel Comics continuity

Marvel The Transformers comics

Skullcruncher was one of Scorponok's soldiers on Cybertron. He was first seen eagerly driving a group of Autobot prisoners towards the smelting pool, begging his commander to allow him to torture the captives en route. Fortress Maximus and his band of interlopers jumped them, however, and the Decepticons were forced to retreat. Ring of Hate! After Maximus's unit abandoned Cybertron, Scorponok received word they had come to the planet called Nebulos, and brought a strike team to that world in order to exact revenge. Broken Glass! During the Decepticons' first meeting with Lord Zarak, leader of those who had called the Decepticons to Nebulos, Skullcruncher was so giddy over the thought of blasting the fleshlings that he failed to noticed the disgusting smell Apeface was giving off next to him. Doomsday for Nebulos Skullcruncher joined Scorponok in assaulting the planet's capitol, Koraja, and demonstrated a little-seen fire-breathing ability as the Decepticons tried to penetrate the city's walls. Later he transformed to robot mode and issued the Decepticon rallying cry.

The Decepticons' forward momentum was halted, however, by the arrival of the new Autobot Headmasters. Fortress Maximus and several of his crew members had binary bonded with their Nebulan allies, creating two-in-one warriors. The increased skill and accuracy gained from this combination sent Skullcruncher and the other Decepticons fleeing into the night. Broken Glass! In the remote Plains of Thok, Scorponok's Decepticons made camp at the industrial complex whose hyper-galactic tranceiver had first alerted them to the Autobots' presence. Forced to admit the value of the Headmaster process, Scorponok allowed himself, Skullcruncher, and several other Decepticons to undergo the process, binary bonding with Lord Zarak—political rival of Fortress Maximus's Nebulan partner—and his entourage. Skullcruncher was binary bonded with Grax, the industrialist who owned the communications complex, and had modified it to accommodate the hyper-galactic transmitter. Joining with such a refined businessman did little to boost Skullcruncher's fighting style at first, as Fortress Maximus still managed to fight off both him and Weirdwolf at once, and then used Skullcruncher as a club to knock Scorponok around. Only by threatening civilian hostages were Scorponok and his men able to get the drop on the Autobots. Love and Steel!

When the Autobot Headmasters attempted to rescue the Autobot Targetmasters from the Decepticons, their evil counterparts were sent out after them to feign a defeat, and lure them into an ambush helmed by Scorponok. During the initial fight, Weirdwolf and Skullcruncher chased down Chromedome until he outpaced them, forcing the slower Decepticons to settle with surrounding Hardhead instead. Before he had a chance to move in and do some damage, Skullcruncher was blasted by one of Hardhead's teammates, and crumpled to the ground. The rest of the Decepticons were shortly thereafter "defeated," allowing Scorponok to eventually corner the Autobots within the Fortress of Despair. Worlds Apart!

As the war continued to escalate on Nebulos, both sides decided to quit the planet and moved on to planet Earth after receiving a distress signal. Brothers in Armor!!

Grrr! Begin your sentences with animal sounds so they know that you're bestial!

Once they arrived on Earth, the Decepticons raced the Autobots to Mount St. Hilary, former landing site of the Ark and location of the distress signal. The two Headmaster teams did battle in the volcano caverns. Skullcruncher was heard mocking Weirdwolf's bizarre Yoda-esque speech pattern during the fight, but to be fair he also demonstrated an odd quirk of "grrr"ing before each sentence. Do alligators growl? Trial by Fire!

After the Autobot named Highbrow got the drop on Scorponok and stole his head, leaving the Decepticon leader incapacitated, Skullcruncher and his comrades hunted down Highbrow until he reached an Autobot shuttle parked in nearby canyons. They recovered the stunned Lord Zarak and reconnected him with Scorponok, restoring their leader. Moments after they did so, however, Skullcruncher and five of his teammates were shunted into Limbo thanks to the time-traveling arrival of Soundwave and the Terrorcons from 2009. They remained out of action until the war with Galvatron ended, and the time storm was abated. Time Wars

Decepticons that transform into animals? This is ridiculous!

When Scorponok's army made first contact with Ratbat and the other Decepticons active on Earth, Skullcruncher and the Headmasters went with their leader as his entourage. A breakdown in negotiations led to combat, as Skullcruncher and the group began fighting with the Predacons, and later Ratbat's entire base. Cold War! The Decepticons stopped their civil war and teamed up with the Autobots when it was discovered that Starscream had orchestrated the whole affair to distract from his pursuit of the legendary Transformers knowledge database, the Underbase. In the wake of this event, Scorponok assumed command of all Decepticons and, with Skullcruncher's help, placed a new headquarters, including an Energon converter, under a swamp near New York City. King Con! Sometime later, Skullcruncher responded with a team of Decepticons to the MacDill Airforce Base when the Air Strike Patrol got into trouble with the Autobots. The Resurrection Gambit! The whole event was orchestrated from afar by Megatron to eliminate Optimus Prime and his rivals in the Decepticons. Skullcruncher didn't know any of this, but that didn't keep him from getting beaten up a lot, first by Optimus Prime All the Familiar Faces! and later by a reconstructed version of Starscream. Skin Deep

Skullcruncher was brought to Cybertron by Primus, along with all of the other Earth-bound Autobots, and stood in the far back as Primus spoke to the Transformers through Emirate Xaaron. The Void! Once Unicron attacked, he was seen running in panic with many other Autobots and Decepticons. On the Edge of Extinction! Later, he was on the planet Klo when Optimus Prime first arrived with the Last Autobot to rescue the besieged Autobot forces. End of the Road!

Regeneration One

Twenty-one years after the battle of Klo, Skullcruncher remained a member of Bludgeon's forces, assisting in the genocide of the inhabitants of Torkulon. Loose Ends, Part 3 Later, he was still at Bludgeon's side aboard the Warworld as the Decepticon leader unleashed his Blitz Engines against Cybertron's Autobots, descending to join the battle on the planet's surface alongside Fangry, Krok, Weirdwolf, Horri-Bull, Stranglehold, and Octopunch. Unfortunately for Skullcruncher, the Blitz Engines were defeated by the Dinobots and Demons, Soundwave was incapacitated by Blaster, Monstructor was torn apart by Omega Supreme and Bludgeon himself was thrown through the windscreen of the Warworld by the Autobots' new leader Rodimus Prime. Under the command of Ultra Magnus, the Autobots rallied and quickly claimed victory. Destiny, Part Five

The Transformers cartoon

Voice actor: Chris Latta (English, casting only), Georges Atlas (European French)

You get a line and I'll get a pole, matey / You get a line and I'll get a pole, friend / You get a line and I'll get a pole and we'll go fishin' in the crocodile hole / Buddy, pal o' mine

Skullcruncher was one of the many Decepticons from around the universe gathered by Galvatron to go after the Key to the Plasma Energy Chamber kept within Autobot City in 2007. Eventually, the Autobots were able to steal away with the Key, albeit while crashing on the planet Nebulos, and Skullcruncher was one of the Decepticons under Cyclonus and Scourge's leadership who followed them there. Finding the Autobots in a cave, disoriented by having been kept captive by the small green humanoid natives, Skullcruncher made short work of Blurr, snatching the speedster out of the air with his jaws. Though the Decepticons failed to find the Key, Skullcruncher and the other Decepticons did make away with several Autobot captives. The Rebirth, Part 1 Skullcruncher and the others were subsequently kidnapped by the evil machine-loving overlords of the planet, the Hive. Cyclonus and Scourged bargained with the Hive's leader, Zarak, by volunteering Skullcruncher (and the other Decepticons who transformed into nonhuman animals) to have his head ripped off and stuffed with organic material. Remarkably, this somehow increased his combat skills. The Rebirth, Part 2 When Scorponok came to life, he quickly told Skullcruncher to attack Arcee, as she was carrying the Plasma Energy Key. Once the key was retrieved, Skullcruncher and his fellow Decepticons boarded Scorponok and left Nebulos for Cybertron. When Cerebros and Spike Witwicky returned to Cybertron, Skullcruncher joined in on the attack, but was forced to pull back when the Autobot spaceship turned into a battle station. The Rebirth, Part 3

Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity

The Headmasters cartoon

Voice actor: Kōji Totani (Japanese)

Four million years ago, Skullcruncher was among a group of diminutive Cybertronians who departed Cybertron under the leadership of Fortress, seeking to escape the eternal war that had consumed the planet. The Mystery of Planet Master Alas, engine trouble caused their craft to crash land on the planet Master, an inhospitable world whose murderous environments and wildly changeable atmospheric conditions threatened the lives of the Cybertronians. Fighting against the odds, the Cybertronians made several technological quantum leaps to survive on Master, including the creation of larger, lifeless Transformer bodies called transtectors. Skullcruncher and many of his comrades underwent rigorous physical and mental training to master the art of transformation, learning to transform into heads that connected to the transtectors and placed them under their control. The Four-Million-Year-Old Veil of Mystery Skullcruncher was one of ten warriors who became one of these "Headmasters", but he and several other warriors soon began to chafe under Fortress's leadership, and ultimately rebelled against him, siding with a traitor named Scorponok. Via the Decepticon ninja Sixshot, Scorponok soon forged an alliance with the Decepticon leader, Galvatron. The Mystery of Planet Master

In the year 2011, Skullcruncher and his fellow Headmasters Weirdwolf and Mindwipe joined Galvatron's Decepticons in a massive attack on Cybertron, seeking to seize control of the destabilized Vector Sigma and establish a Decepticon hold over the planet through the computer. Unfortunately for Skullcruncher, he failed to impress Galvatron on this first foray when he made the first demonstration of his vulnerability to Mindwipe's hypnotic powers, and fell asleep in the middle of the battle. A kick from his new leader woke him up so he could participate in an attack on the Autobots' computer base, but before the villains could enter the facility, Fortress's Autobot Headmasters arrived on Cybertron to stop them. Four Warriors Come out of the Sky In ensuing battle, Skullcruncher battled Highbrow and Hardhead, but was forced to retreat alongside the others when Fortress brought the firepower of his battleship, the Maximus, to bear. The Mystery of Planet Master

Soon after, Skullcruncher journeyed with Galvatron to Earth to help interfere in the Autobots' search for the missing Matrix of Leadership, which could restore balance to Vector Sigma. The villains caught up to Hot Rod just as he located the Matrix, but Computron stepped in to keep them busy while Hot Rod escaped to Cybertron. Skullcruncher and company pursued, leading to a showdown in Vector Sigma's chamber, where Hot Rod used the Matrix to become Rodimus Prime again. Skullcruncher and the Decepticons wisely fled, rather than face the combined might of both Rodimus and Optimus Prime. Birth of the Fantastic Double Prime

I want to tell you about the Transformers! This character article is a stub and is missing information on their fictional appearances. You can help Transformers Wiki by expanding it. The Great Cassette Operation Rebellion on Planet Beast Approach of the Demon Meteorite Terror! The Six Shadows Cybertron Is in Grave Danger, Part 1 Cybertron Is in Grave Danger, Part 2 The Shadow Emperor, Scorponok The Dormant Volcano Mysteriously Erupts Head On!! Fortress Maximus Explosion on Mars!! Maximus Is in Danger Explosion on Mars!! MegaZarak Appears Return of the Immortal Emperor SOS from Planet Sandra Daniel Faces His Biggest Crisis Ever!! Fight to the Death on Planet Hive!! Battle for Defense of the False Planet Find MegaZarak's Weak Spot!! Head Formation of Friendship Mystery of the Space Pirate Ship Ultra Magnus Dies!! The Emperor of Destruction Vanishes on an Iceberg I Risk My Life for Earth Miraculous Warriors, Targetmasters (Part 2) The Master Sword Is in Danger!! The Zarak Shield Turns the Tide Operation: Destroy the Decepticons My Friend Sixshot! Duel on the Asteroid The Final Showdown on Earth (Part 2)

Super-God Masterforce cartoon

Archive footage of a battle in space involving Skullcruncher was used to educate the future Headmaster Juniors about the Master Wars. Birth! Headmaster Jrs

Legends comic

In 2021, Skullcruncher's transtector was lost to blackballs after Scorponok detonated a black hole near his own troops, prompting the small Headmasters to travel to the Legends World in search of new bodies. Headmaster Chapter Prologue He began spending most of his time asleep after exposure to Mindwipe's hypnotism caused him to develop chronic narcolepsy. He was the first Headmaster to get a new transtector courtesy of Tarantulas, who had him rampage through Tokyo to lure out and destroy the Autobots. He'd fallen asleep by the time Hardhead showed up, forcing Weirdwolf to wake him up using his own Butla drone, but didn't get a chance to fight as Hardhead noted his weakness and dispatched him with a lullaby. Bonus Edition Vol. 22 Megatron, leader of their company, scolded the Headmasters over their violent methods, but Skullcruncher just slept through his rant. Bonus Edition Vol. 23

Skullcruncher then attacked a concert held by Cancer and Shockwave, annoyed that they were using peaceful methods to spread Decepticon influence. He ended up blasted sky high by Shockwave's blaster mode. Bonus Edition Vol. 24 He was later sleeping at the office when Scourge tried to take control of the company. Bonus Edition Vol. 26 He was also asleep when a bunch of mass-produced Headmasters showed up, and probably didn't notice that one of them briefly stole his transtector. Bonus Edition Vol. 28 To everyone's surprise, Tarantulas later revealed that Skullcruncher's new transtector was actually alive (and liked to chew on its master as he slept). Bonus Edition Vol. 30 Following a failed bid by Weirdwolf to take over Fortress Maximus, Mindwipe and Skullcruncher carried their knocked out comrade to safety. Bonus Edition Vol. 31

When Mindwipe began taking over the world by hypnotizing everyone, Skullcruncher and Weirdwolf complained he was being unfair only to end up hypnotized as well. Bonus Edition Vol. 34 Devil Z then took control of the Decepticons and ordered the three Headmasters to destroy a trailer he suspected of being a Godmaster transtector, but it regenerated from any damage they dealt to it. The trailer was revealed to belong to Ginrai, who bested Skullcruncher and the others with Chōkon Power, forcing Devil Z to power them up with his own Devil Power. Despite knocking Ginrai down with their "Trio Formation Devil Attack", the three were defeated when he opened fire on them using a new base mode. Bonus Edition Vol. 35 Skullcruncher was among the unfortunate victims struck when an enraged Devil Z began spewing lighting around the office. Bonus Edition Vol. 36 His transtector was later stolen by the former Decepticon Headmaster Juniors and used by Bullhorn. Bonus Edition Vol. 37 When Apeface learned to reinforce his own body using telekinesis, he tested his strength against Skullcruncher and overpowered him while still in his small robot mode. Bonus Edition Vol. 38 Later at work, Skullcruncher loaded energon cubes onto Ultra Magnus's vehicle mode. Bonus Edition Vol. 40

Skullcruncher could do little but watch when Weirdwolf was manhandled by the Scorponok of another dimension. LGEX Headmaster Set Chapter He and the other Headmasters later plotted to rebuild Trypticon and use him to overthrow Megatron. LG-43 Trypticon Project Chapter As part of their rebellion they stole and piloted Godbomber, but it was blown up and all they got out of it was data for Trypticon. Bonus Edition Vol. 42 The Headmaster trio tried to take revenge on Ginrai when he was turned into an ordinary Transformer, but fled when he turned into the giant Super Magna Convoy. Bonus Edition Vol. EX When the Scorponok loyalists turned on Megatron and tried to steal Metroplex's transformation cog for Trypticon, Skullcruncher fought with Ultra Magnus. Decepticon Civil War He was stationed aboard the completed Trypticon during his rampage across Tokyo, though the beast was ultimately brought down. Bonus Edition Vol. 43

The Decepticon Headmasters gave up on their scheming and instead established the Wolf Circus, where Skullcruncher was seen when Megatron visited to borrow Noble. Bonus Edition Vol. 63 Skullcruncher was overjoyed when Scorponok came to the Legends World, only to be told by Weirdwolf that their leader was under the control of Devil Z. Bonus Edition Vol. EX

When Scorponok regained his senses, he announced his traditional plan to destroy the Legends World and seize the energy released by the devastation. Skullcruncher joined his leader on the bridge of Majin Zarak, a powerful beast mecha Scorponok had created. Legends World in Imminent Danger! Part One However, he abandoned Majin Zarak when it came under fire, leaving Scorponok to go down with the ship. Legends World in Imminent Danger! Part Two

Arriving in 2023, Skullcruncher and the Headmasters reunited with their allies the Beastformers and helped them in their war against the Laser Beasts. The Road to Legends' Revival Chapter 1 By 2039, Weirdwolf and Skullcruncher retired to planet Earth, running a zoo with Rarigo, Butla, and their other friends. Epiloge

TV Magazine comic continuity

The Great Transformer War

In the closing days of 2010, while significant Transformer battles were being waged on Earth and across space, Skullcruncher and the other Decepticon Headmasters were running from their Autobot counterparts on the planet Master. The Decepticons appeared to flee by leaping into a chasm, but moments later, they burst up through the ground to catch their pursuers unaware. Unfortunately for the villains, the Autobots were able to sneak away under cover of the dust cloud their emergence created, leaving Weirdwolf and Skullcruncher to mistakenly beat up Mindwipe. The Decepticons soon realized their error, but the Autobots then crashed into them in vehicle mode, ending the fight. At that point, the Decepticon ninja Sixshot arrived and instructed them to follow him back to Chaar. The Decepticons fled into space, but the Autobot Headmasters quickly gave chase aboard the battleship Maximus, heading for Cybertron rejoin the larger Transformer war. The Great Transformer War #3

The Headmasters comic

Shortly after their failure to seize control of Vector Sigma, Galvatron led Skullcruncher and the Decepticon Headmasters in a rather direct plan to destroy Battleship Maximus: They would lure it into space, and then throw a bomb into one of his open doors. Unsurprisingly, this plan met with failure when the speedy Chromedome was able to snatch the bomb right out of Mindwipe's hands before he even had the chance to hurl it. The Headmasters #1

Skullcruncher and the Decepticons later made a return to planet Beast, where they were able to capture Highbrow and Brainstorm. The Decepticon Headmasters wanted to take the two Autobots' transtectors for themselves, but their evil scheme was foiled by the Beastformers' human ally Kane, who threw rocks at them and got them to chase him, thereby giving the Autobots time to escape. The Autobot Headmasters then caught up to their evil counterparts, and blasted them before they could deal Kane any harm. The Decisive Battle of Planet Beast!

The Decepticon Headmasters targeted an Autobot energy base in Alaska, and laid a trap for their Autobot counterparts when they arrived. They positioned their transtector beasts to prevent the Autobots from combining with their own transtectors. Despite their strategy, the Decepticons were outmaneuvered by the Autobots. Chromedome and his team merged with their transtectors and then prevented the Decepticons from doing the same. The Headmasters #2

Skullcruncher and Rippersnapper of the Terrorcons oversaw a giant robot squid attacking the Autobot energy bases under the sea. They tried to have their squid crush the Trainbots when they arrived to investigate. The Trainbots separated and lured the Decepticons to the surface, where they merged to form Raiden. The Raiden Tornado Swing defeated the squid, sending it flying into Skullcruncher, Rippersnapper, and their Sharkticon troopers. The Headmasters #3

The Decepticon Headmasters attacked a children's hospital on Christmas. The Autobots used their Head Formation, Hellish Wheel to sweep up the Decepticons into a vortex and hurl them away from the innocents. ​The Headmasters #6

Super-God Masterforce comic

Several years after the Decepticons' departure from Earth, Skullcruncher appeared on Athenia with the other Decepticon Headmasters, working with the new Decepticon Godmasters to disrupt the coronation of Ginrai as Supreme Commander at the behest of their new secret ruler, Devil Z. The Battle Begins! The Earth-Space Alliance Army

Ladybird Books continuity

The Decepticons, including Skullcruncher, went to Nebulos in search of energy. When they found that there was an endless supply of cosmic energy available at the pole, they moved Scorponok there. The Autobots soon attacked, and Apeface and Skullcruncher were sent out to mount a defense, only to find that the ice under their feet was melting and slippery thanks to the Autobots' lasers. A few moments later, the whole base sank. Decepticons at the Pole

The Transformers Adventure Game Books

Swamp of the Scorpion

Skullcruncher and his Nebulan ally Grax were under the command of Lord Zarak while the later attempted to steal Nebulos's oil. Opposing him was a young Nebulan and the Autobot Highbrow. The outcome of the battles that ensued depended on your decisions! Swamp of the Scorpion

Desert of Danger

Skullcruncher helped his fellow Decepticons Weirdwolf and Mindwipe and their Nebulan partners in a plot to smuggle onto Nebulos an army of Attack Squad robots. Whether or not this plot succeeded depended on the decisions that you made! Strangely, Skullcruncher's own Nebulan ally, Grax, was nowhere to be seen during these events. Desert of Danger

2005 IDW continuity

• First Appearance: Transformers: Stormbringer #2

Skullcruncher, shortly before departing for Burning Man

At some point during the war, Skullcruncher served alongside Krok on board a Decepticon Warworld. Some Of My Best Friends Are Autobots Later, he was part of the Nebulos infiltration unit working for Darkwing and Dreadwind, when Thunderwing attacked the planet. Stormbringer #2 Skullcruncher was less than enthused with the idea of attacking the giant Pretender, but Darkwing insisted they make a showing of protecting their investment in order to avoid Megatron's wrath. Skullcruncher rolled out with Ruckus, Crankcase, and Roadgrabber, but was struck by an energy blast from Thunderwing. Darkwing and Dreadwind fled Nebulos shortly thereafter. Stormbringer #3

"What's the deal with Drill Nuts? Is he a drill or is he nuts?"

Skullcruncher survived the encounter and went on to create a new persona for himself as a comedian styled The Self-Hating Decepticon after the war ended. On his No Hard Feelings tour he performed "edgy" material that referenced—amongst other things—the mysterious phase 3 of the infiltration protocol, Megatron's defection to the Autobots and his captaincy of the Lost Light, the Decepticons' strategy regarding Phase Sixers and some Monoformer who named himself after his pet. Thanks to lucrative merchandising deals, he quickly became a billionaire.

Some time later, Crankcase and Fulcrum watched a recording of one of his performances aboard the Weak Anthropic Principle on the planet Tebris VII. Some Of My Best Friends Are Autobots

United

Skullcruncher was part of a squad of Decepticons that waited in ambush for the Autobots on the planet Nebulos. Hidden away in inner-space, the Decepticons took the small Autobot unit by surprise, but dispersed when their leader Straxus was taken out. The Fierce Fighting on Planet Nebulos

TransTech

Interviewing Grimlock to replace Vector Prime's Axiom Nexus News column, Rook thought Grimlock was hilarious, deeming Grimlock "a real Skullcruncher". Rook - Axiom Nexus News, 2015/10/01

Titans Return marketing material

When the Titan Masters joined the Autobot-Decepticon conflict, Skullsmasher was partnered with the Titan Master Grax, who granted him the power of invisilbity. Titans Return Grax/Skullsmasher toy bio Skullsmasher, Grax, and Rot-Gut travelled to Caminus, where they stole some secret Autobot codes. Pursued by Blaster, Stripes, and Rewind, the Decepticons eluded their pursuers by having Rot-Gut combine with Skullsmasher's body, allowing Skullsmasher to fire a cloud of toxic rust. Skullsmasher was later seen participating in Soundwave's all-out attack on Cybertron. Along with his comrades, he was shocked at the emergence of Fortress Maximus. The Power of the Titan Masters

My Little Pony/Transformers

After Shockwave had opened a space bridge back to Equestria, Skullcruncher and Mindwipe were sent to the Everfree Forest to find magical artifacts for the Decepticons. The Magic of Cybertron

Commercial appearances

• Skullcruncher was among several Transformers who left the war on Cybertron behind, to blast their way to the distant planet Nebulon! After arriving on the alien world and surrendering to the native Nebulons, he removed his head and allowed one to fuse with it. The battle between Autobots and Decepticons then resumed on this new world. Headmaster comic book commercial
• Skullcruncher rushed into battle alongside Mindwipe and Weirdwolf while their Headmasters partners rode atop of their beast modes. They came to blows against their Autobot Headmaster counterparts in the middle of a Nebulan city. Headmasters commercial
• Skullcuncher trained under the watchful eye of Grax. His training mostly involved smashing stone sculptures of their Autobot enemies. Decepticon Headmasters commercial

Games

The Transformers (PS2)

Voice actor: Walter Roberts (English)

While the Autobots were searching the Lazalt Ruins, they found Skullcruncher guarding a large stone door. Asking aloud what took them so long, he transformed from alligator mode to robot mode and announced that he was gonna chomp them up. Optimus was unimpressed, and Skullcruncher lost the ensuing fight against the Autobots. Skullcruncher fled in beast mode, vowing the Autobots wouldn't get the key necessary to open the door. Optimus Prime was surprised they'd need a key, but an inspection of the door proved it true. Suspecting that Skullcruncher might have the key in question, Optimus sent the Autobots after him. Spotting his pursuers, Skullcruncher transformed back to robot mode and answered Prime's demand for the key by sending a horde of enemies after them. Fighting their way through, the Autobots gave the Headmaster another pounding. Deciding he'd had enough, Skullcruncher returned once more to alligator mode and retreated, leaving the key behind him. The Transformers

The Game Full of Death and Suffering...! This character article is a stub and is missing information on their video game appearances. You can help Transformers Wiki by expanding it.

Transformers Legends

Skullcruncher and Snapdragon grew tired of waiting around Decepticon headquarters, and decided to set up a false distress signal to lure Autobots into a trap. Hot Spot, Blades, Groove, and Streetwise responded to the false alarm and, despite the duo's schemes, rebuffed the Decepticons' assault. False Alarm Skullcruncher and Apeface pursued a group of Autobots to Earth with the aim of obtaining the Key to the Plasma Energy Chamber, however the Autobots saw them off with the help of the EDC. Last Stand of the Earth Defense Command

Transformers: Earth Wars

Dad, I'm-- I'm not a crazed gunman, dad, I'm an assassin. Well, the difference being one is a job and the other's MENTAL SICKNESS.

Skullcruncher was posted on Cybertron, and wasn't really doing anything important. Once Megatron requested reinforcements to acquire the newly landed Power of the Primes, Skullcruncher was the only man they could really spare. Once he arrived, he immediately asked if there was anything to eat, as he'd eaten something earlier but it was not to his liking. Power of the Primes event

• Class: Gunner
• Weapons: Skullcruncher uses a grenade launcher of Similar make to Seaspray and Octopunch to bombard defenses from afar. Skullcruncher can also regurgitate stuff from his stomach to blow stuff up. Trust us, it's not as weird as it could be.
• Lowest Star Rating: 2 star
• Ability: Fiery Indigestion: Shoot a fireball that punches through everything in a straight line to the target and beyond, dealing 69.3 damage to everything it hits

Skullsmasher at Transformers: Earth Wars Wiki

Transformers Roleplaying Game

Skullcruncher was a brutish Decepticon who formed a binary bond with the ruthless businessman Grax. Despite their differing origins and personalities, they both delighted in destroying competitors. The Enigma of Combination

Toys

The Transformers

I'm even crunching my Nebulan pilot, see?

• Skullcruncher (Headmaster, 1987)

• Takara name: Skull
• Takara ID number: D-85
• Accessories: "Grax" Headmaster unit, "demolecularization gun", "laser"/tail

Released in the fourth year of Hasbro's US The Transformers toyline (third year in Europe and in Takara's Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers line), Headmaster Skullcruncher transforms into a green and pink robotic alligator. Skullcruncher includes one of the most bizarre alt-mode cockpits among the Headmasters for his partner Grax: a small molded seat at the back of his alt-mode mouth, below the large canopy skullcap, his entire upper jaw serving as the hatch to access it.

In robot mode, his chest panel flips down to reveal a three-stat spring-loaded Tech Spec meter activated when a Headmaster is plugged into his neck. This gimmick works with any other Headmaster "pilot" figure, and will display different levels dependent on which Headmaster figure is plugged in. The "laser"/tail's shape actually makes it look more like a short club, but per the instructions and its depiction in the Headmasters cartoon, it's apparently an oddly-held firearm (think Armada Wheeljack's missiles and the way they were depicted in the cartoon).

It is not listed in his instructions, but the rear alligator legs can rotate too, and should be positioned to point downwards in robot mode.

• More information on Skullcruncher at TFU.info

Titans Return

These new CGI promo renders aren't too big on putting in the pins, are they.

• Grax & Skullsmasher (Deluxe Class, 2016)

• Accessories: "Grax" Titan Master, rifle, tail/blaster
• Known designers: John Warden (Hasbro), Emiliano Santalucia (concept artist)

Part of the first wave of Titans Return Deluxes, Skullsmasher (new name likely due to trademark issues) transforms into a robotic crocodile with a pleasingly highly-articulated head. He comes with his Titan Master partner Grax, who can fit inside a compartment in Skullsmasher's beast mode back or transform into his robot mode head. As with other Titans Return toys, Skullsmasher can accommodate any compatible Titan Master figure. Skullsmasher's tail and gun can be combined together to form a gun emplacement that any Titan Master can sit in. In an undocumented feature, it can also attach to him by sliding the crocodile toes on his forearms through the square holes in its exterior. The underside of his crocodile head has a 5mm-compatible hole, allowing for storing his weapons on his back in robot mode.

Unfortunately, this mold is prone to a number of issues: loose leg joints, loose hip joints, loose tail pegs, and the soft plastic flap on his back that covers Grax's hatch being difficult to open are all common problems.

Skullsmasher comes partially disassembled in order to fit in his packaging, with his beast mode head removed. Thankfully it pops into place without much effort.

This mold was retooled with a new Titan Master faceplate as Gatorface and Krok.

• More information on Titans Return Skullsmasher at TFU.info

Legends

Can't sneak up on Impactor because of the ticking...

• Skull (Skullcruncher)^[2] (Deluxe Class, 2016)

• Release date: July 23, 2016
• ID number: LG22
• Accessories: "Grax" Headmaster, rifle, tail/blaster, "Butla" Partner Drone

Released in the twelfth wave of TakaraTomy's Legends line, Skull is a redeco and a retool of the Titans Return Skullsmasher mold, featuring a paintjob more faithful to the original toy, and a headsculpt based on the one seen in the The Headmasters anime. Similarly to other releases of the mold, his hips and knees are fairly loose, but unlike the original Hasbro figure, they are not excessively so.

Skull also comes with the Partner Drone Butla, a redeco of the Titan Master accessory that originally came with Crashbash.

Skull's transtector body is also intended for use with Megalligator.

• Legends Skull at Alfes's Blog

Retro Headmasters

• Skullcruncher (Deluxe Class, 2021)

• Accessories: "Grax" Headmaster, rifle, tail/blaster

Released as part of the Retro Headmasters line, Skullcruncher (he got his name back!) is a redeco of the Titans Return Deluxe Class toy in even more original-toy-accurate colors, and utilizes the Headmasters anime face from the Legends release of figure. He even comes in a window-box that looks as much like the original toy's box as legally possible.

This release addresses many of the issues from the Titans Return release, most notably the loose hip and leg joints. However, a new issue does seem to have occurred with the cockpit hatch: as it is made from softer plastic similar to Fire Blast effects, it can often stick to the painted body, which can lead to stripping paint off the side of the cockpit when opened, and green smudges all over the top of the hatch.

Along with the rest of the Retro Headmasters toys, Skullcruncher was a Walmart exclusive in Canada and the US, and was also sold exclusively at The Warehouse and Toyworld in New Zealand.

Merchandise

Transformers Caramel

• Skull (1987)

A soft-rubber figurine of Skullcruncher was available as part of Kabaya's Transformers Milk Caramel line of "candy toys" in yellow, red, or blue. Like all the figures from the Headmasters assortment, the figure was permanently attached to a flat base that had a rubber stamp of Skullcruncher's face and name on its underside.

Transformers Trading Card Game

• Skullsmasher, Swamp Warrior (2020)
  • Wave 5: Titan Masters Attack
  • Rarity: RT
  • Card Number: T36/T46
  • Stars: 11

This card's set was originally set for an April 2020 release, however due to the global COVID-19 pandemic the release was pushed back to May 29, 2020.

Notes

Rattrap inherited his looks from great-uncle Skullcruncher.

• In the television commercial for Marvel Comics' Headmasters limited series, the Autobot and Decepticon Headmasters are shown having different head designs than the ones their Nebulan partners would later turn into. These designs were seemingly never used in any other piece of Transformers media. The models for most of them, however, turned up in the Generations guidebook.
• An early version of the Skullcruncher toy can be seen in the commercial for the Headmaster Decepticons. While largely similar to the final toy, this one has striped bars in the readout rather than solid purple.
• Skullcruncher's 1987 English packaging calls him an alligator. A note in his TFWiki.net toy write-up once incorrectly claimed the packaging called him a crocodile. Subsequently, the official Hasbro write-up for the Titans Return Skullsmasher toy called him a crocodile. Whoops. That being said, his original Japanese Tech Spec labelled his alt-mode as a crocodile (ワニ wani).
• Both of Skullcruncher's weapons are utilized in the original Generation 1 fiction, but never in the same universe as one another. What his Marvel bio calls his "Demolecularization gun", was only used in Western fiction, such as "The Rebirth", and the Marvel comics, due to it being present in his Marvel Productions model sheet, while his "laser" (the weapon name given to his tail in the US toys' instructions), was only utilized in Japanese fiction due to it being present in his Toei model sheet for The Headmasters (drawn in his hand too, as opposed to the Marvel model, which has the gun floating next to him). Apparently both companies that were involved in designing his character models for their respective works, had entirely different toy references to work from.
  • Skullcruncher's packaging art follows the US models' lead, and depicts him holding the "Demolecularization gun".
  • Even though Skullcruncher's tail was drawn very blade-like in his Toei model, the Headmasters cartoons' animators depicted it as the "Skull Laser" (スカルレーザー Sukaru Rēzā, Japanese name of the "Demolecularization gun"), due to the actual firearm being absent from the model. When firing it in the cartoon, he still holds it like a sword.

Foreign names

• Japanese: Skull (スカル Sukaru), Grax (グラックス Gurakkusu, see above), Skullcruncher (スカルクランチャー Sukarukuranchā)
• French: Broyeur (Canada, "Shredder")
• Hungarian: Fejreccsentő ("Headcrackler")
• Italian: Spaccaossa ("Bonecrusher")
• Mandarin: Kūlóu (Taiwan Omni Productions dub, 骷髏, "Skull"), Èlóng (China, 鳄龙, "Alligatorsaur")
• Russian: Kostolom (Костолом, Bone breaker)

External links

• Gallery of the unreleased Robot Heroes Skullcruncher

References