Turbo Master

Turbo Master is a Decepticon Action Master Elite from the Generation 1 continuity family.

I'm never getting out, am I?

Turbo Master lives for the sky; supreme domination of a war is accomplished through air superiority. A loner, Turbo Master has no affection from fellow Decepticons, certainly not after ruining their Cyber-poker games with his annoying hovering. That's all right for Turbo Master, though, as he'd much rather spend his spare time testing weapons on Autobot leisure spots, ruining their vacations.

What a jerk.

In battle, Turbo Master prefers to burn through the Autobots, never stopping to think. There's no time to when you're trying for the complete and utter destruction of your enemies.^[1]

Fiction

2005 IDW continuity

I exist! I matter!

Turbo Master was part of a group of Decepticons led by Snap Trap and Hun-Grrr who occupied the Temptorian capital of Sensensica. The Autobot crew of the Lost Light confronted the Decepticons, driving them off. Turbo Master vainly attempted to bring down Ultra Magnus during the battle, and got shot in the chest. Before & After

Toys

The Transformers

Why won't anybody ever color Bruticus into me?

• Turbo Master (Action Master Elite, 1991)

• Accessories: 2 wing blades, 2 propellers, left & right tail fin units
• Known designers: Andy Couzens (Hasbro), Takio Ejima (TakaraTomy), Masakatsu Saito (concept artist)

Released in the seventh year of the European-market Transformers toyline (the first year following the end of the US line), Turbo Master is an Action Master Elite, the only variety of Action Masters that could actually transform into an (admittedly tenuous) alternate mode; Turbo Master transforms into a "dual propeller vertical take-off plane", if lying on one's back with arms and legs in the air can be considered a vehicle. One of the (Bruticus-esque) shoulder cannons is a button which causes both fists to spin simultaneously. The action feature works in both modes: two small helicopter rotors plug into the fists and spin in VTOL plane mode, while the two wings serve as spinning blades when held in robot mode. Turbo Master also has an undocumented pair of holes on either side of his gimmick "backpack" meant for storing the wings in robot mode.

Like the other Action Master Elites, he was only released in Europe and Australasia. As such, he can command some pretty exorbitant prices for a complete, clean figure, even loose. Of the four Elites, Turbo Master is least often found complete due to having many more small removable parts than the other three.

• More information on Turbo Master at TFU.info

Notes

• Like the majority of the Action Master Elites, Turbo Master is an homage to a pre-existing character, with Turbo Master's head and torso evoking Bruticus.
• Although Turbo Master apparently represents Bruticus, at one point Hasbro considered creating a different, non-Elite Action Master Bruticus toy. This toy, as shown in concept art in Transformers Generations Deluxe, would have looked much more like Bruticus than Turbo Master does, with a closer head and chest plate, much closer coloring, and limbs more closely resembling his combiner parts.

Foreign names

• Japanese: Turbo Master (ターボマスター Tābo Masutā)

References