You have undoubtedly been living under a rock all these years if you have not heard of the Transformers, but even if you haven’t, let me introduce you to these enormous changing robots through one of their most villainous members, Soundwave. Even when it comes to robots, there are excellent and bad, and Soundwave is unquestionably one of the worst.
Megatron, the leader of the Decepticons, has appointed Soundwave as his communications officer. He is one of the most devoted Decepticons, if not the most so, giving his all for the cause. He has a reputation for doing whatever it takes to achieve his objectives. He is a powerful adversary, and this is his tale.
His presence in the Transformers cinematic universe explored
There are more than simply toys, animated TV shows, and comic books in the Transformers franchise. Due to its enormous popularity, the Cinematic Universe has a significant presence in it as well. It should come as no surprise that the character, who is known as Megatron’s right hand, also appears in the movies. Here is a brief summary, but first, some background information about Soundwave.
On Unification Day, thousands of years ago on Cybertron, Soundwave stood by Megatron’s side as a new era of Cybertronian governance that saw the planet administered by two bodies— Defense Megatron’s Force, of which Soundwave became a part, and Optimus’s Science Division— was ushered in. When Megatron called Optimus and said that he was in charge of Optimus’ domain, Soundwave was also there. Megatron made that assertion as a result of his desire for power, and Soundwave, being the devoted servant he was, saw it all and supported his master and the greater Decepticon cause.
Soundwave, the Decepticons’ communications officer, not only understands how to exploit the frequencies that carry data throughout the world, but he also adores them. He is frequently stationed high in the upper atmosphere and has the ability to analyse millions of data streams at once, therefore he is fully capable of gaining control of communications on a planetary scale. After all, he recognises the strength in the knowledge he amasses and may use.
One of Megatron’s biggest supporters, Soundwave has no qualms about recording and reporting any Decepticon who disobeys him or attempts to discredit him to his master, almost certainly resulting in the sad death of his adversary. Because of his high status, Starscream is cautious of the Air Commander, so Soundwave orders his sidekick Ravage to keep an eye on him in case things get out of hand.
Only Soundwave’s Cybertronian satellite form, circling the Earth, can be seen in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. Like his predecessor before him, he works for the Decepticons as a communications officer and intelligence agent, essentially acting as their spy. Regarding his role in the story, it is really true to who he is and what he can do. Wheelie, who was hunting Mikaela Banes in the late 2000s, sent Soundwave a message instructing him to grab a portion of the AllSpark she was carrying. He found a satellite transmitting a conversation between NEST and the US military.
Soundwave tapped into it with his tentacles to listen and heard Theodore Galloway speak of Megatron’s internment in the Laurentian Abyss and another fragment of the AllSpark being kept in storage at Diego Garcia. After coming up with a strategy, Soundwave waited until nighttime on Diego Garcia before sending Ravage—who was outfitted with a Scalpel and the microcons that make up Reedman—to grab the shard. After stealing the shard, they met up with other Constructicons and revived their leader.
While still in space, Soundwave continued to use the satellite he had discovered. Soundwave gave the order to mobilise the troops on the Nemesis when Megatron wanted to announce the existence of the Transformers on Earth after killing Optimus Prime. Ron and Judy Witwicky were located in Paris by Soundwave as the Decepticons raced toward Earth. He contacted Judy on her cellphone and demanded to know where Sam was. The person answered and dismissed the call as a pervert playing a practical joke.
This made it possible for the Decepticons to locate them and capture them so that Sam could use them as bait. Sam was found to be in Egypt by the CIA, and Soundwave informed the Decepticons of this. Soundwave disabled the satellites covering the Egyptian region during Operation: Firestorm, making the situation seem normal. However, General Morshower remained unpersuaded and obtained information on the events at the pyramids from more local informants. Nevertheless, Soundwave did his best.
Soundwave’s origins in Dark of the Moon were changed to indicate that he had lived on Earth since the 1970s. He was shown to have found the Autobot spacecraft, known as the Ark, on the moon. According to the plot, Soundwave attempted to conceal the Ark’s existence on the moon in the 1970s by making human contacts in the United States and the Soviet Union, but their inventive accounting made it impossible to fund additional missions to the moon. One of them was Dylan Gould’s father, and Dylan later agreed to work with Soundwave.
The Decepticons now intended to inform Optimus Prime of the Ark’s existence so he could resurrect Sentinel Prime with the Matrix of Leadership for them after The Fallen and Megatron’s plans fell through.
In order to hide, Soundwave pretended to be a Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG on Earth. He went to see the incapacitated Megatron in Africa with his winged henchman Laserbeak and told the ex-tyrant that Optimus had found an Ark fuel cell at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant and had found Sentinel Prime’s body along with five of his Space Bridge pillars. Soundwave despatched Laserbeak to further entice the Autobots by assassinating many of their human associates, including Jerry Wang, after Megatron determined it was time to tie up any loose ends that may have appeared in the course of carrying out their scheme.
Meanwhile, their human ally Dylan—the only person they spared—”gave” the disguised Soundwave to Sam Witwicky’s new girlfriend Carly Spencer. Soundwave then served as Carly’s ride to Dylan’s celebration. Sam and Carly attempted to exit the party early, but as they did, Soundwave and Laserbeak appeared, and the sonic warrior kidnapped Carly. Sam was compelled to find out the Autobots’ strategy for defence after Gould revealed his link to the two Decepticons and Soundwave threatened Carly with his tentacles.
Soundwave further held a number of Autobots hostage during the Decepticon siege of Chicago until Gould said that things had become nasty and that the Autobots ought to learn a lesson in respect, and Soundwave enthusiastically agreed: “No prisoners, only trophies.” First, he and Barricade killed Que. Then, choosing Bumblebee as his target, he hauled the robot forward and forced him onto the body of his deceased friend. As he was about to slaughter the Autobot, he suddenly ordered him to turn around, but he was deterred by Wheelie and Brains’ sabotage of a Decepticon aircraft carrier, which caused fighters to pelt the battlefield. As they fought through the confusion, the Autobot scout pounced on this tiny window of opportunity and hit Soundwave, prompting him to fumble one of his guns.
Bumblebee eventually managed to shoot a portion of Soundwave’s leg while dodging his sonic cannon blasts, leading Soundwave to drop the other gun and lunge at the Autobot. The ultimate blow was then delivered by Bumblebee, who killed Soundwave by dissolving his head and giving him an uppercut to the torso.
Having died in Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Soundwave was only a passing mention in the next film, The Last Knight. This happened when Viviane Wembly, who had been kidnapped by Hot Rod, had said that her captor had better be a well-known Transformer, like Shockwave or Soundwave, possibly not knowing that both of the Decepticons were long dead at the time.
However, he was seen on screen once again in Bumblebee. On Cybertron, Soundwave, Shockwave, and Starscream are seen leading the Decepticons in their conflict with the Autobots. Soundwave and Shockwave took control of the Decepticon army after Megatron vanished. The Autobots were forced to flee Cybertron as a result of the Decepticons’ conquest of the planet under their shared leadership.
Optimus Prime ordered his soldiers to retreat to the Autobots’ launchpad after the Decepticons began a major offensive on the last Autobot city after Soundwave’s entrance into the battleground and ensuing command for the Decepticons to attack. All of the Autobots save for Prime were able to flee the immediate threat even though the Seekers destroyed the launchpad. Soundwave sent Ravage out to attack Prime when he returned to ground level and ordered the other Decepticons to encircle him. Prime, however, was able to avoid capture and finally escape the planet.
All of his film depictions take heavily from the various animated takes on the character. He has the hallmark behaviour and persona that Soundwave is known for. Being Megatron’s right hand man and most trusted soldier is definitely not easy but Soundwave does it with a certain grace of a Secret Service or CIA operative as he goes about his various missions. While we do not get to see Soundwave in his full glory, the forms he does appear in, in the movies give a fair idea about the powers and abilities he has – while he is not as hot-headed and punch-ready as most of his fellow Decepticons, it is seen that he really can hold his own.
Soundwave in various Transformers animated series
Over the years, Soundwave has appeared in almost all the Transformers Animated series’ in some form or the other – Here are just a few of his most memorable appearances. Starting with Generation 1, Soundwave served as Megatron’s right-hand machine in the initial Transformers animated series. He was frequently dispatched on crucial surveillance operations with his cassettes and regularly played a crucial part in various plots against the Autobots. He discovered the Autobots’ plot to look for energy on all other worlds while snooping on the Autobot metropolis of Lacon on Cybertron using his ability to change into a lamppost.
Soundwave participated in Megatron’s assault on the Autobots’ spacecraft, the Arc, and met the same demise when it landed on ancient Earth, trapping everyone inside stasis. Soundwave was crucial in the creation of Energon cubes and the development of designs for a new space ship to transport the Decepticons back to Cybertron shortly after the Transformers awoke on Earth in 1984.
Later, he employed his abilities to read minds to take from Chip Chase’s memory an antimatter recipe for the Decepticons. He frequently carried out spying operations against the Autobots with his cassette-based minions. One of Soundwave’s most noteworthy debacles occurred in season 2. All hell broke loose when he used ultrasonic vibrations to brainwash people as part of a Starscream plan, which resulted in a confrontation with Blaster, his Autobot Communications Officer equivalent, and the beginning of a bitter feud between the two.
Soundwave rarely showed emotion, and he hardly ever exhibited any behaviours that were consistent with his tech spec. He nevertheless was seen as being utterly devoted to Megatron and only once showed other emotion, expressing grief when one of his cassettes was damaged during a battle. Although Soundwave was devoted to Megatron, he was not particularly talkative – with him or about him. He remained mute after Megatron’s body was sent into space, despite his suggestion that he take over as leader. When Megatron was reprogrammed as Galvatron, Soundwave once more served him with loyalty.
In season 3, Soundwave played a significant role in Galvatron’s effort to discover the mystery of a sonic weapon on the planet Eurythma, where sound and music were the way of life, leaving Soundwave mesmerised by the planet’s flawless melodies. However, Soundwave spent most of the season in a less noticeable role. When the Eurythmans responded to the harmony with white noise, Soundwave was beaten and was forced into another fight with Blaster, who deleted his records. Soundwave had been recording every component of the harmony that had created the deadly sound effect.
Blaster and Soundwave had a heated rivalry in the 1987 anime robot superhero TV series Transformers: The Headmasters. The Autobots and Decepticons were looking for the lost Autobot Matrix of Leadership as the opening cut and thrust of Headmasters showed Soundwave and Blaster fighting it out in the Arctic Circle.
The two foes dealt each other mortal wounds, and Soundwave’s body detonated as Blaster fell to the ground. His tapes were able to recover the pieces of Soundwave. Soundwave was repaired and revived by Zarak using reconstruction technology from the planet Master, the head of the Decepticon Headmasters, and given the new name Soundblaster. Soundblaster is practically the same as Soundwave, with the exception of his predominately black colour scheme.
Moving on from Generation 1, the origins of Soundwave had been significantly changed in Transformers: Cybertron. This iteration of Soundwave was the second Transformer from the enigmatic Planet X, unlike in the original G1 continuity where he was a Cybertron inhabitant like Megatron and Starscream. Additionally, this was the first iteration to feature a true vehicle mode for the Decepticon. He joined forces with a smaller robot named Laserbeak and morphed into a Planet X Jet in this adaptation.
Soundwave first appears in the episode Titan, where he offers to guide Megatron and his henchmen to the planet Gigantion. He faced Optimus Prime and Wing Saber in their Sonic Wing forms during his first confrontation with the Autobots, and he was able to hold his own in the fight until Metroplex overcame Megatron and the Decepticons withdrew.
As soon as they reached Gigantion and Megatron there underwent an upgrade to become Galvatron. Soundwave left the Decepticons and teamed up with Sideways. He explained the story of his planet and how they wanted the Cyber Planet Keys to exact retribution on the people of Gigantion during a battle with the Autobot Cybertron Defense Team. Later, he and Sideways tried to get involved in Galvatron and Starscream’s epic struggle to get the Planet Keys and Omega Lock, but the disruption from their conflict threw them into a parallel dimension.
Later, when Starscream called out to Galvatron across dimensions, appearing to be trapped alongside him and Sideways, Soundwave would, nevertheless, make an appearance. By the end of the series, Starscream appeared to have made a comeback, while Soundwave and Sideways were revealed to have discovered a dimension where Planet X still remained intact.
After this we were presented with a completely new version of Soundwave’s story in the much-loved series, Transformers: Animated. In comparison to most other versions of Soundwave, the genesis story for the Transformers animated version is entirely different. He started out as a toy robot made on Earth, but after being exposed to the Allspark, he developed sentience.
The story follows that Megatron created the original version of Soundwave in the form of a toy robot. As an apparently thoughtful gesture, Megatron proposed that Isaac Sumdac give Soundwave to his daughter as a birthday present. Of course, this suggestion was made with a dark, hidden purpose.
Megatron was aware that his daughter, Sari would use Soundwave’s AllSpark-enhanced key to enable an update that would ultimately transform Soundwave into Megatron’s new body. What Megatron failed to anticipate, however, was that Soundwave would become self-aware as a result of the improvements and be able to command other robots via sound. Soundwave also came to the conclusion that machines should rule the planet and that people would make the best slaves. If Soundwave couldn’t have a new body, Megatron determined he would become a new soldier.
Megatron persuaded Soundwave to join the Decepticons in order to seize control of the machinery in Detroit and grab the AllSpark Key. Soundwave initially objected, but Megatron persuaded him that the purpose of the Autobots was to serve humans, something Soundwave was heavily against. Once persuaded, Soundwave immediately modified his body utilising controlled robots to change, declared himself a Decepticon, and started his mission. Tutor Bot abducted Sari after he first took control of all the robots in Detroit.
The Autobots swiftly rebelled against the robot revolution. Bulkhead was attacked by Soundwave when he arrived to save Sari. Bulkhead was then urged to embrace the revolution by Soundwave since he did not want to harm another machine. Bulkhead pretended that he was going to kill Sari before shattering Soundwave with his wrecking ball. The day was rescued when the machines were brought back to their regular working state.
However, to everyone others’ surprise, Soundwave continued to function as a little, almost invisible media player, even after Bulkhead had beaten him into a pile of scrap.
Porter C. Powell, a former vice president of Sumdac Systems who had obtained Soundwave’s initial patents while running the business, was selling a variety of Soundwave toys over the Christmas season, which is when Soundwave was regenerated, just in time to spread a little holiday cheer in the way he knew best – by creating chaos. Soundwave was able to reprogramme a few of the toys, and he used one of them to tamper with the oil nog for the Autobots. The Autobots were now unconscious and out of action, so Soundwave took them to the basement and put them in a virtual programme in human form in an effort to brainwash them into adopting his beliefs as Decepticons.
The Autobots discovering their true location, coupled with Sari’s failed attempt to intervene temporarily put a stop to the scheme. Ratbat was then used in keytar mode by Soundwave to finish the Autobots’ reformatting after using Laserbeak to drive Sari into a retreat. After successfully capturing the Autobots, Soundwave deployed the many doll-sized versions of himself to seize control of the city’s residents.
Sari, however, was resistant to the mind-control waves since she was techno-organic. When Sari enlisted the aid of Scrapper, Snarl, and Wreck-Gar to combat the brainwashed Autobots, Soundwave was beaten. Ratbat and Soundwave were then dismembered by Optimus Prime using Laserbeak’s guitar form as a makeshift axe. Even though Soundwave’s core was still undamaged, Sari eventually shut it off before Laserbeak could save it. What happened to Soundwave after that remains unknown.
Post this, he was portrayed in true Soundwave fashion in the Transformers Aligned Continuity. In the 2011 computer animated series Transformers: Prime, Soundwave serves as one of the series’ principal adversaries. Soundwave, unlike his older versions, rarely speaks; instead, he replays archive audio and movies from various sources and displays them on his face, which is made completely of an electronic screen, when necessary. This was done in order for Soundwave to contrast with the chatty Starscream, according to the show’s producer Duane Capizzi.
The staff of the show compared him to Boba Fett from Star Wars because of his reserved demeanour. He is equipped with two wires that stretch from his chest, each of which has an electrical appendage with a range of functions and the ability to open portals for the transportation of goods. He mostly works as a communications officer and technology specialist for the Decepticons, rarely participating in actual battle. He does, however, demonstrate the ability to fight well when the situation demands it. At the very end of this series, Raf assists Jack and Miko as they manage to imprison Soundwave in the Shadowzone.
However, there’s no rest for an evil Decepticon and the tenth episode of Transformers: Robots in Disguise’s second season features Soundwave’s exit from the Shadowzone. Bumblebee is imprisoned in the Shadowzone when he escapes. He immediately paralyses the majority of the Autobots after that, only to be duped by Fixit and the humans into letting Bumblebee back in by them.
Soundwave is cornered by the Autobots and sent back into the Shadowzone. He does, however, come back in the last season as a significant enemy in a new body. He seeks to free Megatron from his banishment in “Collateral Damage,” but his scheme backfires when Bumblebee and his team, along with a Hi-Test-equipped Optimus Prime, beat him.
Last but not least, In Transformers: Cyberverse, Soundwave makes infrequent appearances in season one before taking on a more prominent role in season two. He is frequently depicted playing music on his speakers that is appropriate for the circumstances at hand, aggravating both Autobots and Decepticons. This version of him is more boorish and pettier than previous iterations.
It can be said that Soundwave is not evil, just a machine who truly believes in a cause and thus, does what seems righteous to him, giving this character a complexity unlike any other. However, the one main thing that remains constant throughout all of these depictions of Soundwave is his fierce and unwavering loyalty towards Megatron and his efficient work. Often Megatron is seen berating other Decepticons, but never Soundwave – this is because Soundwave is an expert at espionage and does his job thoroughly. Also, his innovative gadgets are super fun to watch in action!
IDW comic book origins explored
The Transformers universe is not limited to television and the big screen, the comics are also an integral part of the franchise and it would be criminal if we did not dive into Soundwave’s comic depictions a little bit. He has a rather interesting IDW Publishing comic book origin story that is worthy of mention.
In the relaunched IDW Publishing Generation One universe, Soundwave made his first chronological debut in the prequel miniseries The Transformers: Megatron Origin. In the narrative, Soundwave serves Senator Ratbat, who shows interest in Megatron, a young gladiator. Ratbat dispatches Soundwave to extend to Megatron and his minions, weapons in hopes of gaining favour with them.
Soundwave also helps Megatron question Autobot soldier Bumper during their interrogation. After being captured by Sentinel Prime’s men and being imprisoned alongside Megatron and others, Soundwave is eventually set free by Ratbat. As Megatron’s scheme is discovered, Soundwave aids Starscream in slaughtering the Autobot Senate. In a subsequent confrontation with Ratbat, he forcibly removes his Spark in order to implant it in one of his Cassette bodies. The second form of Soundwave looks to be a communication vehicle with treads like those of a tank.
Later on, in The Transformers: Stormbringer, Soundwave took part in the scientific gathering convened by Thunderwing, where he refused to believe Thunderwing’s conclusions that Cybertron was perishing. It was also during this time that he grabbed Beachcomber, gave him a Cerebro-shell implant, and forced the unhappy traitor to launch Blaster into the annals of space in order to demoralise the Autobots ahead of a Decepticon assault.
Optimus once said that there was proof that Soundwave had been around throughout Earth’s history in The Transformers: Escalation #1. Despite this, he did not resurface until issue #4 of The Transformers: Devastation, where he intervened with Skywatch’s control of Ravage and Laserbeak while still stuck in cassette player mode.
Afterwards, in his own Spotlight one-shot, Soundwave’s story was resumed. In this instalment, he played a selfish and dishonest Decepticon internal affairs agent. Megatron sent Soundwave to monitor Bludgeon’s examination of Shockwave’s laboratory. He thought he could take full advantage of Bludgeon’s fascination with the Regenesis project, therefore he chose to remain silent about it.
Bludgeon was followed to Earth in 1984, when Soundwave observed his attempts to collect Ultra Energon and challenged him after he had. Soundwave tried to intervene, but was caught in stasis-lock in cassette player form after learning they were using it to reanimate Thunderwing, who had previously destroyed Cybertron, rather than for a power-play.
In the out-of-continuity The Transformers: Evolutions story “Hearts of Steel,” Soundwave also made an appearance as a member of the Decepticon army working under Starscream. He showed up as a subordinate of Starscream. When John Henry and Bumblebee steered the Decepticon rail convoy into a chasm, he was probably destroyed.
What makes him so loyal to Megatron?
Megatron, as we know, is the fearsome leader of the Decepticons. It is also well known that Megatron’s most devoted communications officer is Soundwave. This soldier has shown himself to be totally committed to the original Decepticon goal which is freedom from oppression. In his drive to achieve the goal and stay true to the cause, he has frequently gone above and beyond what was necessary for the task, often forsaking his own well-being in the process. He is either the most or least pure Decepticon, depending on how you look at it, because of his deep views and high morals.
However, the question arises, why is he so loyal to Megatron? The answer is actually quite simple. The Decepticons considered Megatron as the embodiment of the Decepticon cause itself, therefore, they fiercely believed in the being who gave them their purpose and led them into battle. Although Megatron doesn’t regard himself as being synonymous with the cause, obviously that wasn’t the case for his subordinates.
Thus, Soundwave, someone who was obsessed with the cause, and truly devoted to it, viewed him as the focal point of it all. The Deceptions and especially Soundwave viewed Megatron as much more than a leader. They viewed him as the manifestation of the ideal of equality that they strove for. This led to Soundwave developing an intense loyalty to the Decepticon leader.
Furthermore, Soundwave’s commitment is solidified by Megatron’s treatment of him. It is evident that Megatron does respect and value him. In addition to being a great operator, Soundwave’s deployable buddies are crucial assets to the Decepticon cause. Thus, he doesn’t backstab or go behind Megatron’s back like some other scheming Decepticons (I’m looking at you, Starscream) and remains fiercely loyal to Megatron.
Megatron has also rewarded Soundwave for his unflinching loyalty, making him his right-hand man. In fact, Megatron has frequently said that Soundwave is among the few Decepticons in whom he has complete faith in, and the other Decepticons often despise him as a result of how much Megatron praises him.
How powerful is Soundwave?
While his name doesn’t sound terrifying, he is actually incredibly powerful. Remember, power doesn’t always mean physical strength. As the Decepticons communications officer, Soundwave is valued for his recon skills and abilities, albeit he also has superhuman strength.
Similar to other Decepticons, Soundwave has special abilities and powers. As far as his famous reconnaissance abilities are concerned, he does it via the use of a legion of “cassette troops” that are housed in his chest. These smaller robots are at his beck and call, and only answer to him. They thus perform reconnaissance and spying tasks at his behest. He is pretty much known to be the eyes and ears of the Decepticons and also possesses other communications related skills such as hacking.
Soundwave also has the ability to assimilate neighbouring machines into his body. In addition to all this, Soundwave carries a number of conventional weapons on his person, including machine guns and rocket launchers. Powerful speakers, wiretaps, and speech modulators are among some of the unusually numerous weapons and devices in his inventory. According to his Hasbro Battle Bio, he is 22 feet tall and uses sonic cannons as his primary armaments, which can only be fired in the atmosphere because sound waves cannot pass through a vacuum – this is easily his biggest weakness.
Further, Soundwave has superhuman strength and durability that is obviously useful during the times he has to get involved in physical altercations. As a result, despite the fact that Soundwave rarely engages in combat, he is nevertheless powerful. He proved his strength by defeating Wheeljack while looking for the resonance blaster, thus we know he is strong. In fact, he has also effortlessly defeated Bumblebee, Strongarm, and Grimlock in the Transformers Prime sequel. He is also capable of rapid flight.
Furthermore, Soundwave is quick enough to engage Optimus Prime in a chase and maybe put an end to him. Remember, this is the same Optimus who outran Predaking in the air, and Soundwave kept up with the Prime while deploying Laserbeak to take out his jetpack.
Additionally, Megatron once said that Soundwave narrowly lost after a tough fight when he and he faced off, demonstrating that he likely possesses a high level of raw strength. Other elements, though, give Soundwave the edge. He is by far the fastest character on the programme, and that is the honest to God truth. Soundwave’s quick reaction time is unparalleled, and he is also extremely skilled in combat, relying more on strategy than on brute strength. His talent pretty much rivals that of Megatron and Optimus Prime.
Soundwave is pretty much the perfect ally if you look at it. He blindly follows whatever Megatron says because he deeply believes in his leader. He is also an efficient worker and carries out his tasks and operations mostly smoothly, without incident. He is pretty much the eyes and ears of the Decepticons, so without him, they would have a tough time planning attack and defence battle strategies. Lastly, once he takes your side, he will be by it for life – he is practically Megatron’s ride or die. What do you think about Soundwave? Let us know in the comments section below!