Kremzeek

A yellow, electric creature who only says his own name and you have to catch it. Give him red cheeks and we've got a franchise!

Kremzeek, an electrically charged energy being, is quite the sneaky bastard. It doesn't take much for some people to like him or think he's cute, at least until you find out how mischievous he can be. With his abilities to jump through screens and teleport, frazzle the circuits of Autobots, and even multiply if given enough energy, others may find use for him as a weapon.

Fiction

Generation 1 continuity family

Generation 1 cartoon continuity

The Transformers cartoon

Voice actor: Wally Burr (English), Ken Shiroyama (Japanese), Claus Brockmeyer (German), Kai Taschner (German Generation 2)

I choose you!

Kremzeek was accidentally created by Megatron and Starscream whilst experimenting in the lab of the Decepticons' crashed starship-base. Kremzeek immediately began making the electrical equipment aboard the ship malfunction, giving Megatron the idea to use him as a weapon against the Autobots. Kremzeek succeeded in damaging most of the Autobots (leaving only Inferno, Optimus Prime, Omega Supreme, Blaster and Bumblebee functional) before entering Teletraan I and traveling to Japan by riding through the computer's connection to Sky Spy satellite.

 

Kremzeeks come in various flavors and sizes.

The remaining Autobots followed in Omega Supreme, after being made invulnerable to Kremzeek's effects by Sparkplug's (patent pending) Magical Insulating Spray, but no sooner had they set down on the shores of Tokyo than the electrical imp took down the unprotected Omega. Kremzeek proceeded to wreak havoc through the city, terrorizing a bullet train, a hapless passer-by's walkman and a video arcade, before the Autobots cornered him in the Shibuya Manufacturing Corporation building. The chief engineer there, Doctor Sōji Yoshikawa, suggested that Blaster try weakening Kremzeek with radio waves, but the little gremlin tried to fight back by leaping into Blaster's chest compartment. Blaster figured to "fry him with his own juice", but he only wound up feeding Kremzeek with his own energy, and caused him to multiply.

The Kremzeek swarm began tearing through Tokyo, but Prime and Yoshikawa quickly put their heads together and deduced to a way to reunite the individual creatures. Jury-rigging a tower and charging it with all the energy from a local power plant, the Autobots drew all the Kremzeeks in, but the flaw in their plan was revealed when they merged into a giant Kremzeek! As the kaiju-sized Kremzeek stomped through the city, both it and the Autobots began to feel the effects of the Decepticons' energy magnet—the energy-draining device the villains had created while the Autobots were distracted dealing with Kremzeek. Finally hitting on a plan to stop both threats, the Autobots used a nearby radio tower to broadcast Kremzeek straight to the energy magnet, which he destroyed.

As Kremzeek cavorted amongst the remains of the energy magnet, the Autobots approached on a boat with Yoshikawa and some equipment that the scientist could use to disperse Kremzeek's energy and effectively destroy him. Bumblebee spoke out against the plan, dubbing Kremzeek "cute", but Optimus Prime solemnly pressed the fateful button that eradicated the little critter. Reflecting on the whole adventure as they prepared to return home, Blaster remarked that he couldn't help but miss Kremzeek somehow... at which point a solitary Kremzeek, which had previously jumped inside his body, burst from his chest compartment, and the hilarious pursuit antics restarted. Kremzeek!

Kiss Players

Over the next twenty years, Yoshikawa began breeding Kremzeeks in captivity (perhaps after studying the lone remaining creature following its recapture by the Autobots), and weaponized the technology behind the belligerent beasties, creating the "Yoshikawa Type 5 Auto-Kremzeek Launcher" for the Earth Defense Command. These guns, wielded by the E.D.C.'s Autorooper mechanoids, fired "Kremzeek bullets": ceramic shells that each contained a Kremzeek, which would be released when the shell shattered on impact to absorb the electrical energy of any mechanoid it struck. The bullets even had a limited paralytic effect on the nervous systems of humans.

When the hapless EDC Kiss Player Atari Hitotonari wound up swallowing a Legion, her Autorooper shrunk down to enter her body and destroy the beast, but when it tried shooting its Kremzeek bullets inside her, she violently protested. The Autorooper didn't listen, but it depleted its ammo reserves before doing Atari any damage. Atari-chan's Critical Moment!?

Kayu Michikusa's Autorooper was seen firing a Kremzeek bullet at Marissa Faireborn, who was partially paralyzed by the little creature. Kiss Players #2

Dreamwave Generation One continuity

While relaxing at the Alpha Preserve, Ironhide and Prowl enjoyed cans of Kremzeek-branded drink. Ironhide casually discarded his can, which dribbled into the preserve's waters. Skyfire

Push-Button later served these Kremzeek beverages and Energon goodies in the Autobase war room, just before Prowl briefed the assembled Autobots on the threat Sunstorm posed to Earth. Original Sin

2005 IDW continuity

Drinkable Mischief Maker

Kremzeek appeared on a billboard in Kaon. Megatron Origin #1

The Kremzeek drinks, K-Juice, exist in this universe as well, where they are enjoyed by many Cybertronians, from homeless robots Drift #1 to police officers. Patternism Metastasis

Transformers vs. G.I. Joe

Kremzeek, the Devourer of Souls, was a ravenous thing that haunted the afterlife, devouring the bio-electric souls of any Transformer that didn't make it to the Allspark fast enough. A dead Grimlock fled in terror from the beast but the ghostly Optimus pulled him to safety. Transformers vs. G.I. Joe #12

Star Trek vs. Transformers

An image of Kremzeek appeared on Starscream's heads-up display. Prime's Directive, Part One

Transformers/Ghostbusters

"Don't be intimidated, Megatron. Try to imagine him in his underwear..."

A hybrid of electrical and psychokinetic energy, Kremzeek the Scavenger learnt of the AllSpark of Cybertron and made his way to the planet to consume the artifact and augment his power. His arrival was a rather ill-timed one as, not only had the AllSpark been taken off Cybertron by the Autobots on the Ark, but Cybertron had been invaded by Gozer the Traveler. Seizing the opportunity, Kremzeek approached Megatron and offered to turn Decepticon High Command into ghosts so they could live (so to speak) through Gozer's wrath. While Megatron agreed to this, he, Soundwave and Shockwave refused to aid the Scavenger in absorbing the AllSpark, resulting in him absorbing them into his being. Starscream, the only Decepticon who agreed to work with Kremzeek, was sent to scout the galaxy for the AllSpark though the Scavenger quickly grew annoyed by the Seeker's incompetence and traitorous ambitions. Ghosts of Cybertron Part 2 Ghosts of Cybertron Part 4

"...OH NO, HE'S HOT!!"

Starscream eventually made his way to the planet Earth, his signal drawing the attention of both the Ark and one of Kremzeek's children, with Starscream instructing the Ghostbusters on how to dissipate the sprite. Ghosts of Cybertron Part 2 Though Starscream made initial strides in gaining the trust of the Autobot Ectotron, Peter Venkman suspected that the Seeker had ulterior motives and locked him in a ghost trap until Optimus Prime arrived, forcing Kremzeek to free his servant by creating a power surge within the trap. Ghosts of Cybertron Part 3

When Optimus Prime, Ectotron, and the Ghostbusters confronted Starscream at the Grosbeak Generating Station, they wrapped him in proton streams, prompting the Seeker to summon Kremzeek who shattered the streams. Finding a distinct lack of AllSpark present, Kremzeek hit his limit with Starscream and absorbed the Seeker into himself. Once Kremzeek had told his tale to the Autobots and Ghostbusters, he was wrapped in proton streams that he quickly shattered before he began to duel Optimus Prime, all the while using the power plant to recharge himself, opting to beat the Prime to death and find the AllSpark's location from his memory. As the two duelled, the Ghostbusters freed a ghost that fed on electrical energy, the spectre being drawn to Kremzeek's energy signature. Despite Kremzeek's protests, the entity made contact with his physical form, both of their bodies dissipating as a result, though Ray Stantz was sure both would reconstitute in a few months' time. As an unintended side-effect of this, the Decepticon ghosts were now freed from their imprisonment. Ghosts of Cybertron Part 4

2021 IDW Beast Wars comic

Rhinox had once dissected a Kremzeek. The Beginning of the End

Live-action film series

Just hope the AllSpark doesn't give life to this lamp.

Sam Witwicky has a desklamp with a light-up figure based on Kremzeek. Movie Adaptation #1 Movie Adaption #3

The floors of Megatron's home on Cybertron featured Kremzeek-shaped images as well. Kremzeek must be some sort of intergalactic celebrity in this continuity. The Reign of Starscream #3 Later, Lord Starscream was holding a can of Kremzeek as Dreadwing reported that he had found another test subject. Even tyrants with noble ambitions need that extra boost. The Reign of Starscream #4

Animated cartoon

Please stand by as this annoying electric lifeform causes havoc with our machinery.

Voice actor: Susan Blu (English)

Kremzeek appeared on the "please stand by" screen of the local television news station when their feed was interrupted. Sound and Fury

Kremzeek was an ancient Decepticon weapon, inadvertently unleashed by Sari Sumdac when she found herself in the bowels of The Metroplex in a school field trip gone wrong. Kremzeek tried to use the machinery of the Central Cybertronian Recycling Plant to dispatch Sari and the Blurr cube, but was foiled by the arrival of Arcee and the rest of Sari's classmates. Kremzeek then revealed itself and possessed each of Sari's classmates in turn; Nightbeat, Siren, and Hosehead before appropriating Sari's jetpack and flying towards Fortress Maximus. It attempted to destroy Iacon, but Sari's quick thinking enabled her to trap it in a soda can and save the day. The Return of Blurr

Kre-O online manga

Kremzeek was among Megatron's troops when the Decepticons took over the Autobots' base. He got to go down "Decepticon City's" slide! Wheeeeee! Two Giant Bases! Everybody Getting Along, Come On, Fight!

SD SG

Kremzeek was deeply depressed that Blurr was crushed into a cube by Shockwave. However, the Autobot cadets he ran across weren't interested in his plight, and punted Blurr into the distance. The Re-Burn of Blurr

Games

Transformers: Devastation

Kremzeeks dotted the landscape of New York City and the Proudstar, bouncing about and repeating their name and not doing much harm beyond being a pain in the aft to catch. Teletraan-1 observed they could be quite the menace and recommended against taunting them. Transformers: Devastation

Transformers: Earth Wars

In an abandoned power plant far from the main Decepticon base, Soundwave re-generated a batch of Kremzeeks, and unlike the last time, contained them in an insulated containment module. Just then Blaster and Perceptor barged in, and Frenzy and Rumble fought with their powers, but Soundwave warned Frenzy too late that the containment units are weak to his sonic powers. There were Kremzeeks everywhere!

Megatron soon found out, but Soundwave still had a number of isolated and weaponized Kremzeeks left. So Megatron ordered Starscream and the Seekers to drop the Kremzeek payload on vulnerable Autobot defenses.

Meanwhile, Optimus Prime assigned Bumblebee a tac-team with Mirage and Cliffjumper for Kremzeek clean-up duty, and organized a fireteam for Kup and Blaster to the power station. Bumblebee wanted to keep and house-train a sparklet, but Optimus wouldn't allow it. Ultimate Weapon

Bumblebee tried to use neutralizer cuffs on one Kremzeek, but it zapped him and retorted it got a short fuse. Bumblebee happened to have some of Sparkplug's Magical Insulating Spray left from their last Kremzeek incident, so after Cliffjumper and Mirage insulated themselves, they purged all the Kremzeeks, much to Bumblebee's sorrow; he even named one AC/DC, which Cliffjumper found too sappy.

Meanwhile, The Seekers were approaching the strike zone, but Starscream detected and EMP device set to go off and neutralize their entire Kremzeek armory should they enter Autobot airspace. As if someone pre-warned the Autobots. Megatron aborted the mission, but at least he still had his stockpile of Kremzeeks for another time. But unknown to him, Bumblebee had managed to contain some Kremzeeks, and laid down some house rules. Zeek and Destroy

Kremzeek Battle Boosts come in five different colors, each with different effects. They all can jump to a different target up to four times if their current target is destroyed.

• Yellow Kremzeek: Deals damage to a target for 15 seconds.
• Red Kremzeek: Deals damage to a target for 6 seconds. Each jump extends the duration by 1 second.
• Purple Kremzeek: Hacks a defense for 8 seconds, making it attack other defenses.
• Blue Kremzeek: Stuns a defense for 12 seconds dealing damage over time.
• White Kremzeek: Target building takes 40% extra damage for 15 seconds.

Angry Birds Transformers

Kremzeek is an "Accessory" character, giving Deceptihogs he's attached to a boost to their weapon's damage output. This bonus can be increased with upgrades won from random-prize Crates or in the "Shockwave's Tower" mini-game.

He can be unlocked by purchasing him with Gems in the Barracks, with Tokens during specific Challenge Events, or won from Crates and Shockwave's Tower. Angry Birds Transformers

Toys

Kiss Players

• Autorooper X Atari (2006)
  • Release date: December ?? 2006

• Known designers: Yuki Ohshima (concept artist)

A very tiny, soft-PVC figurine of Kremzeek was included in the Kiss Players "Autorooper X Atari" set, what with the toy having a "Kremzeek Gun" that, uh... shoots out Kremzeeks.

This figure is entirely white PVC painted over in yellow, so take care with this one.

Masterpiece

• Megatron (2007)

Megatron comes with a Kremzeek figurine of his own. Sweetness.

And our most tenacious scouts just may receive the much-sought-after Kremzeek badge.

• Skywarp (2007)

Skywarp comes with some Kremzeek stickers.

• Thundercracker (2008)

As does Thundercracker, only in different colors.

War for Cybertron: Siege

• Refraktor Reconnaissance Team 3-Pack (Multi-pack, September 1, 2019)

The Refraktor 3-Pack includes a Kremzeek figurine, which is compatible with the Siege "blast effect" system via the holes in the bottoms of his feet.

Merchandise

Transformers: Kindergarten Series

Baby's first Kremzeek.

• Megatron (2023)

A childlike nontransformable figurine of Megatron was available as part of Transformers: Kindergarten Series, a crowdfunded blindpackaged toyline available exclusively in China. Megatron's figure was one of the commonly-occurring characters, and depicted him cradling a Kremzeek and holding an Energon drink. The figurine included a translucent plastic stand and a small character card.

Notes

• According to Ray Stantz and Egon Spengler, the Transformers/Ghostbusters version of Kremzeek is classified as a "high spectrum Class 5 electroplasmic entity".
• The BotBot Pew Pew Pew has a face modeled after Kremzeek's.

Foreign names

• Japanese: Kremzeek (クレムジーク Kuremujīku)

External links

• Kremzeek at the Ghostbusters Wiki
• Kremzeek Sprite at the Ghostbusters Wiki