Pointblank Box Art |
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| Autobot | |
|---|---|
| Japanese name | Blanker |
| Sub-group | Targetmasters |
| Function | Weapons Supervisor |
| Rank | 8 |
| Partner | Peacemaker |
| Motto | "Be brief on speech and long on action." |
| Alternate Modes | Cybertronian Rocket Car |
| Series | Transformers: Generation 1 |
| English voice actor | Neil Ross[1] |
| Japanese voice actor | Yûji Mikimoto |
Pointblank is a fictional character from the various Transformers series introduced in 1987. He appeared in season 4 of the Transformers animated series, voiced by actor Neil Ross. He was also a regular in the Japanese Headmasters anime and a recurring character in various Transformers comics.
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He's a somber, no-nonsense sort, weary from millions of years of war on Cybertron. Believes words can do more harm than weapons, so he has few to offer. Understands the reason for the Autobot-Nebulan alliance, but disapproves of it. Peacemaker, his stereophonic sonic blaster, is a Nebulan law enforcement official who's always trying, but failing, to persuade Pointblank to be more accommodating.[2]
In the Japanese series Blanker, as he was known, was leader of the Cybertron Targetmasters. Peacemaker was called Peaceman in Japan.[3]
Pointblank followed the Autobot leader Fortress Maximus to Nebulos in an effort to get away from war. However, they were followed to Nebulos by Scorponok's Decepticons, and the war began anew. Desperate to prove their peaceful intentions to the Nebulans, Pointblank was amongst those who surrendered their weapons. When the Decepticons ran roughshod over the planet, the Nebulans pioneered a bioengineering process where Nebulans in robotic suits could transform into the guns of the Transformers. Pointblank became a Targetmaster as a result, battling the Decepticons on several occasions. After the war proved devastating to Nebulos, Maximus' crew left for Earth, where they encountered the Earthbound Autobots under Grimlock.
Pointblank was featured in the US season 4 episode "The Rebirth", He was amongst the Autobots marooned on planet Nebulos when their starship's engines were overloaded by the Plasma Energy Chamber. While on Nebulos, he is kidnapped with the other future-Targetmasters. The Headmasters rescue them and Brainstorm modifies their weapons as exosuits for the Nebulans.
Pointblank was featured in the Japanese series Transformers: Headmasters, where he was called Blanker. The concept of the Targetmasters in this series was somewhat similar. Instead of Nebulans the Targetmaster partners were small Transformers from the planet Master. After being bonded to their partners the Targetmasters developed a telepathic link with their companions. The weapons replaced the robot's hands rather than held by them.
In the world of Transformers: Headmasters, there are no Nebulons - the Headmasters and Targetmasters themselves are simply small Transformers, who, having settled on the planet Master, learned to transform into heads and connect to lifeless larger bodies named Transtectors. It was to Master that the Decepticon forces returned after the Autobots forced them to flee Earth, and consequently, a ship was dispatched by the planet's inhabitants to alert the Earth-bound Autobots to the Decepticon invasion. At the same time, the youthful Autobot, Wheelie, had summoned three of his old superior officers - Pointblank (Blanker), Sureshot and Crosshairs - to Earth to aid in the clean-up operation currently going on, when Autobot Headmaster Chromedome accidentally activated one of the plasma bombs the Decepticons had left behind. Heading out into space so that the bomb might harmlessly explode out in the void, the Autobots then crossed paths with the approaching Master ship, which was being pursued by the Decepticon Sixshot and three new troops - Slugslinger, Misfire and Triggerhappy. As Pointblank and his men tangled with the Decepticons, the Master refugees offered their help by transporting away the plasma bombs, only to have the bombs detonate in the middle of the battlefield. Recovering from the explosion, Pointblank, Crosshairs and Sureshot discovered that the six Master refugees had been fused to their arms. Although Fortress was able to surgically remove them, a bond now existed between the larger Transformers and the Master refugees, who could now freely attach and detach to their wrists as guns. Unfortunately for these new Targetmasters, the same had happened to Slugslinger and his fellows. The Targetmasters joined up with Fortress's crew on the mission to Master, but quickly clashed with the Headmasters - Pointblank and his men were hard, experienced warriors who thought little of the Headmasters, and Pointblank spent a good deal of time attempting to soothe Chromedome's fiery temper to improve his battle ability.
Although Pointblank and Peacemaker did not appear in any fiction produced by Dreamwave Productions before it went out of business, they did get a one page biography in their More Than Meets The Eye series.
Pointblank was one of the Autobots battling in Transformers: Stormbringer. He was only mentioned offscreen.
Pointblank was among the Autobots who took Omega Supreme for repairs after he was injured by Monstructor in Spotlight: Optimus Prime.