Dark Hot Rod

Dark Hot Rod is a Decepticon turned Autobot from the Generation 1 continuity family.

A dark clone of Hot Rod built by Megatron, Dark Hot Rod was convinced from his creation that he was the real Hot Rod. He is physically Hot Rod's equal, but lacked the Autobot's honor, respect for life and reverence for Optimus Prime. He was driven to destroy what he thought was the fake Hot Rod, and forcibly take the Matrix from Optimus.

An encounter with the original Hot Rod in a crystal-lined cave changed all that. Through a burst of energy, Dark Hot Rod became aware of the truth of his creation. To atone for his actions, he has joined the Autobots, and fights against the Decepticons who made him!

Fiction

Rodimus Wars

Seeking to neutralize Optimus Prime's successor, but not knowing who it would be, Megatron had Shockwave create an assortment of evil clones of various Autobots, Hot Rod included. However, Dark Hot Rod would become a true Autobot once exposed to the rays emanating from the Crystal Fountain. As an upstanding bot, he became friends with Daniel Witwicky.

When Shockwave's other clones threatened the Autobots on one of their Moonbases, Dark Hot Rod, with his original, set out to destroy Shockwave's cloning lab, all too happy to destroy his birthplace and fellow clones. Shockwave's revelation that the lab's destruction would mean his death did little to dissuade the dark clone. After escaping the Decepticon's grasp and entreating Hot Rod to take care of Daniel, Dark Hot Rod rammed the lab's main computer, destroying it. But this was not his end, as he merged with the original Hot Rod, granting him a new body that he was able to use to defeat Shockwave, who turned out to be a duplicate. Later reunited with Daniel, Hot Rod spoke of his wishes to become a great cavalier, musing it wasn't just his dream. Rodimus Wars

Legends comic

In the Legends World, Scourge attempted to defeat Hot Rod and Shaoshao Li by using the mutated Blowpipe's "electro-clone beam" to create black clones of Hot Rod. Their presence proved useless as Hot Rod used Jinchōkon Power from Shaoshao's Targetmaster mode to disperse the villains. LG45 Targetmaster Hot Rod

A Kreon Dark Hot Rod was among the heroic Kreons who traveled to the Legends World to defend it from the Decepticons. Special Chapter

Games

The Transformers (PS2)

Voice actor: Peter von Gomm (English)

When the Decepticons returned to stop the Autobots from reaching the UFO, they faced an army of Megatron Clones. Afterwards, Dark Hot Rod joined the Decepticons. The Transformers

Toys

Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers

• Black Rodimus (Autobot, 2001)
  • Japanese ID number: C-78B

A redeco of the Autobot Hot Rod toy in blacks and grays sold only at the 2001 Tokyo Toy Festival, Black Rodimus transforms into a futuristic/Cybertronic race car. Though his plastics and paint colors changed, his decals were the same as the normal Rodimus release. It is noteworthy that the hood and door stickers, factory-applied on other versions of the Hot Rod mold, were not preapplied to Black Rodimus, instead being included on a separate sticker sheet. Limited to 1500 pieces and packaged in a monochrome black version of Hot Rod's normal packaging, Black Rodimus was only available with the joint purchase of the "Crystal Rodimus" version of Hot Rod.

• More information on Black Rodimus at TFU.info

Titanium Series

• Black RODIMUS (unreleased)

The final Titanium Series catalog listed a number of figures which were never released (pictured at right). One of the 3" Micro Figures appearing only as a name (with no image) was the oddly cased "Black RODIMUS". This would presumably have been a redeco of the 3" Rodimus figure, but details about its faction or characterization are unknown.

Notes

• This character's English name, "Dark Hot Rod", comes from the character slideshow in Japanese-exclusive video game The Transformers. Despite this, the character's English bio still uses the "Black Rodimus" name.
• A second evil clone of Hot Rod, Black Rodimus Convoy, would later be introduced in the e-HOBBY comic "Destron Doppelgänger Black Rodimus Convoy". This story made a point to note that Hot Rod had encountered the clone synthesizer used to create Black Rodimus Convoy before, apparently intended to indicate that it was also used to create Dark Hot Rod.
• His package art is just Hot Rod's package art in black and white.
• Kreon Dark Hot Rod is, naturally, a "virtual redeco" of Kreon Hot Rod.
• Separately, Hasbro would create the "Nemesis Hot Rod" and "Rodimus Unicronus" corrupted forms of Hot Rod in Power of the Primes.

Foreign names

• Japanese: Black Rodimus (ブラックロディマス Burakku Rodimasu)