Tailgate (Prime)

Tailgate is an Autobot from the Prime portion of the Aligned continuity family.

A proud sponsor of Tailgate toothpaste.

Tailgate once worked alongside Arcee. They didn't get along at first, but their fighting skills were evenly matched, and the two eventually became a powerful, nigh-unstoppable team.

And then they went and got caught, and Tailgate went and got dead. Arcee didn't take that very well.

Fiction

Prime cartoon

Voice actor: Josh Keaton (English), Yuichi Ishigami (Japanese), Jan Kurbjuweit (German), Óscar Flores (Latin American Spanish), José María Carrero (Spain Spanish), Kimmo Härmä (Finnish), Frédéric Meaux (French), Márcio Marconato (Brazilian Portuguese)

Arcee should stay away from Mini Vehicles.

Tailgate was a member of Delta Team during an unnamed battle. He failed to take out a sniper, forcing Arcee to enter hand-to-hand combat. As the two discussed where to rendezvous, Arcee was captured by Airachnid. Later, Tailgate was also captured and brought before the two of them. Airachnid threatened to kill Tailgate unless she was told the co-ordinates of an impending attack. After Arcee claimed she did not know them, Airachnid made good on that threat. Arcee escaped the same fate, but Tailgate's death hit her hard. Predatory

Later, Arcee found herself captive yet again, this time alongside Cliffjumper, and left to the mercies of Starscream. After escaping the Decepticon, Cliffjumper reminded her that he knew about Tailgate (he was part of the rescue party that freed her from Airachnid's clutches), so he understood why she preferred working alone. Out of the Past

When Airachnid and Arcee later encountered each other on Earth, Airachnid would often torment her foe by bringing up what happened to Tailgate. Predatory Metal Attraction Partners While fighting with Arcee, Starscream taunted her by asking if Tailgate was "weak like Cliffjumper." Partners

Arcee would remind her teammates of how Airachnid was not the only 'Con to have taken a partner away from her. Crossfire

Arcee told Miko a story about one of her adventures with her deceased partner Cliffjumper, and mentioned to Miko that after Tailgate's death, she closed everyone else out, becoming a loner. Out of the Past

2015 Robots in Disguise cartoon

Why would you do this to me, Cyclonus?

Despite his supposed death, Tailgate was one of the Autobots blacklisted by the High Council for associating with Optimus Prime. Enemy of My Enemy

Toys

Prime

For the first time in years, he really went old school.

• Autobot Tailgate (Cyberverse Legion, 2012)

• Series/Number: 2 / 014
• Accessories: "Dual Ion Blaster"
• Known designers: Joe Kyde (Hasbro)

Part of the fourth wave of Prime Series 2 Cyberverse Legion Class toys, Autobot Tailgate is a redeco of Cliffjumper, transforming into a white and blue muscle car resembling a Dodge Challenger. He has 3mm holes in his roof, doors and fists for mounting Cyberverse-scale weapons, such as his "dual ion blaster". Though the packaging artwork features his silver horns, said horns are a metallic blue on the figure itself.

The blaster, in varying colors, was also used by Cyberverse Bumblebee, Arcee, Evac, Hyperspeed Wheeljack, the redeco of Bumblebee that comes with the Bumblebee Battle Suit and 2014 Transformers Protectobot Groove.

• More information on Tailgate at TFU.info

Notes

• While Prime depicts Tailgate as being a reddish-white color of Cliffjumper, the toy is instead colored white and blue like his Generation 1 counterpart.
  • In Robots in Disguise, Tailgate is instead depicted in a completely different body heavily inspired by Generation 1 Tailgate.

Foreign names

• Japanese: Tailgate (テイルゲート Teirugēto)