GRIMLOCK
Grimlock is the iconic leader of the Dinobots—a faction of Autobots capable of transforming into mechanical prehistoric beasts, most famously a Tyrannosaurus rex. Renowned for his tremendous physical strength, rebellious defiance of authority, and signature broken speech pattern ('Me Grimlock king!'), he stands as one of the most popular and enduring characters in Transformers history.
Cronologia
Biografia
Grimlock is the legendary commander of the Dinobots, a powerhouse subgroup of Autobots who transform into robotic dinosaurs. Characterized by his unmatched physical power, combat prowess, and frequent defiance of Autobot leaders like Optimus Prime, Grimlock is defined by a deep survival instinct and a warrior's pride.
In many of his classic incarnations, he speaks in a distinct third-person broken dialect, shouting iconic catchphrases like 'Me Grimlock king!' while dominating the battlefield. Although traditionally an Autobot who transforms into a mechanical Tyrannosaurus rex, Grimlock's role varies across different continuities.
In the Marvel Comics series, he assumed the title of Autobot Supreme Commander and later served as Optimus Prime's second-in-command during the Generation 2 era. In other continuities, such as Beast Wars and Robots in Disguise, he has appeared as a Maximal velociraptor or a green excavator component of the Autobot Build Team. Across modern television, comic, and video game storylines, Grimlock balances raw savagery with surprisingly cunning battlefield intelligence and loyalty to his comrades. In series like Transformers: Cyberverse, he even exhibits a dual intellect: acting as a cultured, articulate intellectual in robot mode while becoming a fierce, third-person-speaking T-Rex in beast mode.
Storia
Grimlock's origin story varies depending on the Transformers universe. In the original 1984 Generation 1 animated series, he was constructed on Earth alongside the original Dinobots by Autobot scientists Wheeljack and Ratchet, who used prehistoric dinosaur fossils as design blueprints.
In the Marvel Comics continuity, Grimlock was originally an ancient Cybertronian commander who brought his squad to prehistoric Earth, where they scanned local lifeforms to adapt to the planet's environment.
In comic book developments by Dreamwave and IDW Publishing, his Cybertronian past was expanded to depict him as a veteran gladiator on Cybertron who led the Lightning Strike Coalition prior to adopting dinosaur alt-modes. In High Moon Studios' Fall of Cybertron video game storyline, Grimlock and his team were captured and bio-engineered by the Decepticon scientist Shockwave, who re-formatted their Cybertronian bodies using ancient Earth dinosaur research. In the 2007 Animated series, Grimlock began as an animatronic museum T-Rex brought to life by a combination of Megatron's scheming and Sari Sumdac's Key.
I PEZZI DI GRIMLOCK
Evoluzione
Grimlock's design and characterization have evolved dramatically since his 1983 origin as a Takara 'Diaclone Dinosaur Robo' figure. When introduced to Western audiences in 1984, he became the ultimate Autobot muscle—a stubborn, heavy-hitting powerhouse who mistrusted authority and spoke in simple, third-person sentences. Marvel Comics writers Bob Budiansky and Simon Furman evolved him into a complex, morally ambiguous military commander who held Autobot Supreme Command before learning the burden of leadership.
During the Beast Era and early 2000s, Hasbro experimented with the character's concept: Beast Wars turned him into a white Velociraptor Maximal warrior, while Robots in Disguise transformed him into a green construction excavator named Build Hurricane in Japan. Modern continuities have embraced both his classic roots and complex characterization. High Moon Studios' Fall of Cybertron gave him a dark sci-fi origin as a victim of Shockwave's bio-experiments, while Michael Bay's live-action films transformed him into a colossal Cybertronian Knight. In Transformers: Cyberverse, writers introduced a clever dynamic where he is an articulate gentleman in robot mode and a wild T-Rex in dinosaur mode. In comic media, IDW and Skybound have highlighted his tactical mind, combiner capabilities as Volcanicus, and emotional depth.
Da Collezione
For Transformers collectors, Grimlock is considered one of the holy grails of any Autobot collection. The history begins with the original 1983 Takara Diaclone 'Dinosaur Robo' release, which was repurposed in 1984 as the original G1 Hasbro figure.
Among rare modern oddities, the 2003 Wal*Mart exclusive Deluxe 2-pack featuring Grimlock paired with Terranotron is notorious among enthusiasts: a redeco of the Beast Wars Dinobot mold featuring a red-painted face and white/gold plastic scheme, its gold parts are famously prone to crumbling over time due to 'gold plastic syndrome'. High-end collectors frequently seek out modern Masterpiece releases from Takara Tomy/Hasbro, which capture his cartoon accuracy with die-cast parts, and the Studio Series 86 Leader Class figure, widely regarded as one of the best mass-market G1 representations ever produced. Hasbro also continues to produce limited variant figures through its Comic Edition line, celebrating his appearances in Marvel and Skybound comic books.
Legendary voice actor Gregg Berger originally voiced Grimlock in 1984 and returned nearly 30 years later to voice him in the video games Transformers: Fall of Cybertron and Transformers: Devastation.
