Venom (G1)

Venom is a Decepticon Insecticon from the Generation 1 continuity family.

It may seem like he's just shaking his fist, but in reality his forehead is giving you the finger.

Venom (aka Venin^[1]) is the official leader of the Insecticons, but he's so paranoid about one of the others trying to usurp his position that he does more damage to his own standing among them than most of the plots they might hatch against him. He trusts none of them and suspects everyone of being after his place. He won't hesitate to utilize his manipulative and destructive psychological warfare techniques on those under him to stay in power: his self-esteem is based solely around his job!

The stinger on his head is loaded with all sorts of chemicals that can mess up organic and mechanical life... as long as it doesn't get stuck in an enemy and break off.^[2]

Fiction

Marvel Comics continuity

Marvel The Transformers comics

Ow. OW.

Venom and his teammates in the elite Mayhem Attack Squad were sent to aid the Wreckers against the team-up of Megatron (or at least his clone) and Galvatron. Despite the Mayhems' reputation, however, they were no match for their opponents, and Venom was slain by Galvatron shortly after the battle began. Twice. Time Wars

Regeneration One

"Thank god, all Venom played was Eminem in there."

Venom, Chop Shop and Ransack were ordered by Soundwave to ensure the Skyscorchers, under siege in the Pax Cybertronia Decommissioning Depot in Kalis, would be "martyrs." The three Insecticons sneaked in and killed their targets, with Venom taking out Eagle Eye and Terradive with a sinister WRUP, and arming a Warbird missile to detonate. However, the Wreckers blew in and captured them inside a detention-sphere. Loose Ends, Part 1

Transformers '84

Early in the war on Cybertron, Venom was part of a Decepticon assault alongside Chop Shop, Barrage, Ransack, Blitzwing, Octane, Runabout, Runamuck, and the Autobot double agent Counterpunch. Secrets & Lies #1

Kid Stuff storybooks

Hey, Ravage! See you.

Venom and his Insecticon forces were in charge of an oil-mining operation on the Pacific Rim island of Buru. Having enslaved the natives with their special venom, they patrolled the island to make sure that no Autobots interfered with the operation. Venom refused Megatron's orders to pump faster, saying it was impossible. When Megatron arrived on his oil driller and transporter to speed up the drilling operations, Venom boarded the vessel to meet with the Decepticon leader. He freaked out Megatron by just staring at him in total silence, leaving Megatron and Soundwave to whisper and speculate what he might be thinking.

Venom's forces were subsequently crushed underfoot by a horde of Dinobots. Slaves of the Insecticons

Dreamwave Generation One continuity

"The Frightful Four?? I wanted to be in the Sinister Six!"

8.2 million years ago, Venom participated in Shockwave's assault on Iacon. The War Within #3 He presumably retreated with the rest of the Decepticons when Starscream activated the planetary engines, devastating the city.

After the fragmentation of the Decepticon forces following Megatron's seeming destruction in a space bridge accident, Venom joined Ratbat's Ultracons. He accompanied Ratbat and fellow Ultracons Chop Shop and Ransack on a mission to the Tagan Heights, where they unleashed the deadly Devastator on the Wreckers. Capturing the Wreckers' leader, Springer, the Ultracons were prevented from executing him when Devastator's battle with Defensor raged out of control. Escalation In the chaos that ensued, Venom and his allies escaped, leaving Devastator behind. Devastation

Later, Venom, Chop Shop, and Barrage were involved in an altercation with Ultra Magnus, Blaster, and Grimlock. Venom also accompanied his leader to the Autobot/Decepticon peace ceremony at Tyger Pax. The Age of Wrath

Lethal Defector.

Venom, along with Barrage, Chop Shop, and Ransack, remained on Cybertron following the departure of the Ark and the Nemesis. The planet's chronic energon shortage reduced them to a vampiric existence, forcing them to capture Micromasters and drain them of their fuel. While pursuing Falcon and Flanker in the Wastelands, they ran into the middle of a conflict between the Hot Rod Patrol and Race Track Patrol. Destined for Nothing

After devouring Falcon, they soon set upon the other Micromasters, but were driven back by the timely arrival of Groundshaker, who left with the Hot Rod Patrol. The subsequent arrival of Shockwave prevented them from devouring the Race Track Patrol, but Shockwave did surreptitiously toss them Flanker as a snack once the others had left. The Gray Race The Insecticons subsequently abducted the Race Track Patrol and several other Micromasters from Little Iacon in an attempt to ferret out the Hot Rod Patrol and gain some new recruits in the process. Venom berated Chop Shop after the latter accidentally snatched Road Hugger, accusing him of trying to undermine the mission. As Venom attempted to persuade his captives to join the Decepticons, he ordered Barrage to blast Blaze Master as a show of force. Taking his captives and recruits back to Decepticon HQ, Venom passed along a communique from Shockwave (actually a disguised Skystalker) to Barricade and his teammates, summoning them to his quarters. Recipe for Hate While attempting to stop an invasion force of Micromasters from freeing their comrades, Venom was skewered by a revived Blaze Master. Victims of the Revolution

The Battle of the Star Gate

When Megatron confronted the two Starscreams on the Trigger, Venom was part of his forces. When the Autobots arrived, the Decepticons battled them, till the Starscream of the future interrupted the battle by merging with the Trigger. In the ensuing conflict, the Trigger was destroyed and the Transformers were sent falling to the Earth, becoming lost. The Battle of the Star Gate

G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers

Venom was caught up in the Dinobots' attack on Shockwave's forces and got knocked around by Snarl. G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers II #4

As part of Serpent O.R.'s forces, Venom defended the newly unified Decepticon army's base against a combined Autobot/G.I. Joe strike force. During the battle, he and Barrage were pounded on by Snarl (again!) and Storm Shadow. The Art of War #5

2005 IDW continuity

First appearance: Spotlight: Thundercracker

"Optics, cooling units, cosmitron. So many snacks, so little time..."

During the early days of the war, Venom served under Bludgeon as part of a team sent to find the lost Titan, Metroplex. On the two-hundred-and-thirty-eighth day of this grueling campaign, Venom and his colleagues destroyed a Nibarian outpost because they believed it was between them and their quarry. A hunch from Thundercracker led them further to a planet inhabited by Urtuskians. As Venom and the other Decepticons started obliterating the primitive outpost, believing Metroplex was underneath (and also because it was fun), their team was caught up to by a team of Autobots who had been trailing them. Venom and the other the Decepticons retreated without accomplishing their goal. The Hunting Party

His experience pursuing Metroplex eventually brought him and his crewmates to the attention of Lockdown, who recruited them to his Titan hunting crew. This found him boarding the Lost Light in search of the sloughed-off portion of Metroplex that its crew had salvaged. Finding the only operational crewman to be the newly christened Trailcutter, he opened fire on the hapless Autobot and pursued him through the corridors until a cruel trick resulted in his head having an unpleasant interaction with a closing bulkhead door. Incapacitated for the time being, he was dragged by Trailcutter back to Lockdown. The Reluctant Specialist

Venom was still working as part of Lockdown's crew on the "lost" Luna 1, where they found Rodimus and a small landing party from the Lost Light investigating a Point One Percenter spark in a giant hot spot. They immediately attacked the Autobots (and Cyclonus and Tailgate) for "trespassing". The Fecund Moon Chasing the "trespassers" into a huge graveyard of deactivated Titans, Venom and the rest of the Decepticons were easily able to round them all up, whereupon they were delivered into the custody of Chief Justice Tyrest. House of Ambus

Legends World

Little guy on the right.

Venin and Buzz Saw were the sons of Waspinator, with whom they celebrated Christmas. Merry X'mas!! When Tankor tried to convert him into a Generation 1 fan, Waspinator-turned-Thrust refused on behalf of his kids, telling Tankor they had no idea who the original Optimus Prime was. I'm Tankor, dana!

My Little Pony/Transformers

Venom was one of the Insecticon clones who invaded Sweet Apple Acres with the intent of eating everything in sight. Although Applejack's first attempts to repel the invasion were unsuccessful, the efforts of her extended family helped drive the Decepticons away. Strength in Numbers

Games

Transformers Legends

Insecticon leader Venom discovered that Bumblebee had formed the Bee Team to strike at Decepticon bases worldwide. Luckily for the Decepticons, Venom and his colleagues managed to keep the Autobots at bay. The Bee Team

Venom was one of the Decepticons under the command of Galvatron when the latter attempted to steal an experimental space bridge from the Autobots. All combatants were sent hurtling back in time when a stray shot hit the device, and found themselves witnessing the epic battle between Primus and Unicron before Cybertron's creation. In a fit of madness, Galvatron ordered his troops to aid Unicron, despite the chaos bringer's victory meaning they would all be wiped from existence. The Autobots and Primus eventually sent Unicron into a retreat, and all time-displaced warriors were sent back to their proper place in the timestream by Primus. Battle of the Brothers

Transformers Roleplaying Game

Venom was the first Insecticon and a master of psychological warfare. He spent most of his time trying to defend his high-ranking position in the Decepticon army with his personal mixture of noxious toxins. Decepticon Directive

Toys

The Transformers

Fear my docile, stingerless beast form!

• Venom (Deluxe Insecticon, 1985)
  • Accessories: electric-blaster gun, battle ax

• Known designers: Shinji Aramaki (concept artist)

The Transformers Venom transforms into a robotic cicada. He uses the mold of the Beet-Zaguna toy previously released in the Japanese Armored Insect Corps Beetras toyline, with a new green and orange deco. He comes with a small blaster and an axe.

• Patent info, price guide, and further reading on Venom at Transformerland.com
• More information on Venom at TFU.info

Generations

Unfortunately, he can only fire his gun mode off once before dying.

• Acid Storm & Venin (Legends Class, 2014)

Part of the seventh wave of 2012-onwards Generations Legends Class toys, Thrilling 30 Venin (renamed due to trademark reasons) is a redeco of Waspinator, in sorta-Generation 1 Insecticon colors. Venin can transform into a purple insect, a robot with 3 mm-compatible hands, and a gun with a 5 mm handle. He has an autotransformation feature that folds up his wings when his gun barrel is extended.

He was only available in a two-pack with the Legends Class Acid Storm. Compared to Waspinator, many of Venin's parts are considerably softer, giving him a much less solid feel.

Venin was originally designed with Venom's usual colors, back when Acid Storm was going to be Thundercracker,^[3] but the colors were changed sometime between then and production, presumably to match his new partner.

• More information on Venin at TFU.info

Merchandise

Transformers Trading Card Game

• Decepticon Venin, Insecticon Tyrant (2019)
  • Wave 2: Rise of the Combiners
  • Rarity: RT
  • Card Number: T17/T46
  • Stars: 9

Decepticon Venin, Insecticon Tyrant is one of forty-six character cards released in Wave 2 of the Transformers Trading Card Game, Rise of the Combiners.

The artwork for the card is reused from the Transformers Legends mobile game.

Notes

• Venom, like all of the Deluxe Insecticons, was designed by Artmic and originally produced by Takatoku Toys for inclusion in their Armored Insect Corps Beetras toyline (甲虫隊ビートラス). Decoed in black and brown, the mold first saw release under the name Beet-Zeguna (ビート・ゼグナ Bīto Zeguna)—likely based on the Japanese word for "cicada", semi (セミ). Takatoku Toys went out of business a short while later in 1984, and their assets were purchased by fellow Japanese toymaker Bandai. At that time, Bandai was not very active in the U.S. market, which made the company a competitor of Takara, but not of Hasbro. Due to this, Bandai had no objection to licensing various Takatoku molds to Hasbro in 1985 for sale primarily in the United States as part of their version of the The Transformers toyline. Nowadays, Bandai has a worthwhile interest in every market and since it only once licensed the molds, there is little likelihood that Venom and company will ever be reissued.
• Since Hasbro and Takara shared the original The Transformers cartoon as promotional material for their respective versions of the toyline, Venom and the other Deluxe Insecticons were not included in its cast to avoid giving Japanese market-competitor Bandai free publicity. The group was also omitted from the US Marvel comics and barely appeared in the UK Marvel comics, making them the least "successful" of the Takatoku molds.
• Barrage, Chop Shop, and Venom (but not Ransack) all appeared in their Beetras color schemes on Hasbro's 1985 packaging mural, along with several other toys in early or unused color schemes.
• Because of the Deluxe Insecticons' regular absence from fiction, Venom has rarely acted as leader of the whole Insecticon group. Instead, the more prominently appearing Insecticon trio usually seems to be rather communal in leadership, though Shrapnel often gets to be in a leadership position of sorts. Venom is presumably keeping an eye on him.
• Real cicadas have no venom. They don't even sting. They're just noisy.
• Perhaps related to this paperwork from 8/15/84 shared by Bob Budiansky at Botcon lists the cicada toy as being named "Chop Shop" and the name "Venom" as assigned to a Hornet. (Perhaps not coincidentally there was a hornet toy designed for the Beetras toyline. The engineering designs for it were among a packet of Beetras development documents sold online.)
  • That said, like many Hemipterans, cicadas can give a slightly painful (but completely harmless) jab with their rostrum in self-defense if you handle them carelessly and scare the poor little things.
• Venom has shown no evidence in any fiction of a desire to eat your brains.
• Combiner Wars Legends Class Bombshell had an alternate "pretooled" head designed by Hasbro for Venom, but this tooling was never used.
• In planning for the BotCon 2015 Waruder four-pack (Storm Rider, Paralyzer, Parasite, and Mudfighter), Fun Publications considered making one of the Deluxe Class wasps a version of Venom, who has long suffered from a lack of any available molds with a cicada alt-mode. However, they shelved this plan upon learning that Hasbro was considering the above Bombshell-based idea. Ultimately, Hasbro only produced a mass-retail toy of Venom (under the modern trademark-friendly name "Venin") from the small Mini-Con-sized Waspinator mold, and in different colours available from Acid Storm's sprue.

Foreign names

• Japanese: Venom (ヴェノム Venomu)

References

External links

• Beet-Zeguna at Diaclone.net