Flak

ALLEGIANCE: AUTOBOT
SUB-GROUP(S): MICROMASTER BATTLE PATROL
FUNCTION: RAPID DEPLOYMENT STRATEGIST
“Good luck is the residue of good planning.”

First Appearance: Transformers 224
Significant Appearances: Transformers 224, 232-233, 251

Flak cannot abide failure in any form. He is abrupt, abrasive and intensely critical. He plots his strategies with the precision of a neurosurgeon. His plans are so intricate and dense that his fellow Patrolmembers have trouble deciphering and executing them. Any failure on their part sends Flak into a barking whirlwind of criticism and abuse. He never accepts responsibility for the inaccessibility of his strategies, instead blaming the other members of the Battle Patrol. Only Big Shot can see that Flak is acting in everyone’s best interests and that in the past, failure has cost lives.

Abilities: Flak can transform into a tracked anti-aircraft missile battery. In this mode he can reach speeds of 20 km/h. From his roof-mounted battery, he can fire up to six plasma shells up to a range of 80 km. In robot, for his size, Flak possesses great strength and resistance. He is also an explosives expert and master lock picker.

Weaknesses: Flak’s strategies are often too clever for their own good. He spends so much time planning for every eventuality, he neglects to plan for the most obvious and this makes him susceptible to traps and ambushes set by his opponents.

History

The Autobot Battle Patrol became the first Micromasters in 1988 after Resistance Leader Emirate Xaaron developed a downsizing procedure for many of his warriors to conserve fuel.

Already at the fore of many resistance raids and counterattacks, the Battle Patrol felt that downsizing would only augment their abilities as a rapid deployment strike force.

Their first mission as Micromasters was to infiltrate Decepticon Leader Thunderwing’s powerbase on Cybertron after hearing of the development of a new superweapon. The mission failed and the Battle Patrol walked into a trap. They were dissected and studied, giving the Decepticons the technology they needed to create their own Micromasters.

Commentary

The Battle Patrol appeared in a handful of issues of the British comic, debuting in Transformers 224’s “Aspects of Evil” story. They took the spotlight in “A Small War” and then had background appearances in the Dark Rodimus saga.

The Battle Patrol were never featured in the American Transformers comic series.

Flak was released in 1989 as part of the Autobot Micromaster Battle Patrol. In Japan the team were recoloured (twice) and released in a boxed set with a white MicroTrailer. In Japan, Flak was called “Powerbomb”.