crosswise

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Crosswise is the name of several fictional characters in the Transformers universes.

Transformers: Robots in Disguise

Crosswise

Autobot
Japanese name	X-Car
Sub-group	Spy Changers
Function	Gravity Ninja
Partner	W.A.R.S.
Motto	"Lighten up!"
Alternate Modes	Car
Series	Transformers: Robots in Disguise
English voice actor	Dan Woren
Japanese voice actor	Kizatomi Nimura

Crosswise (X-Car in Japan) was the name of one of the Autobot Spy Changers. He is the science officer of the Spy Changers.

Crosswise is a quiet and mysterious Spy Changer. He's completely dedicated to the Autobot causes of peace and protection of all life. He keeps very much to himself and so not much is known about him. He is very technologically inclined. He carries a Crossblaster pistol. ^[1]

The Spy Changers' science officer, X-Car is well-versed in space engineering and also helps out in the development of new machinery and maintenance of his teammates. He is equipped with a gravity beam gun with which he can control antigravity, causing all manner of objects to rise up into the air.

Animated series

In the television series, the Spy Changers received little characterization - usually acting in a group to attack or perform whatever mission they had been assigned.

Crosswise first appeared in episode #4 "Spy Changers to the Rescue".

Toys

Super X-Car, a clear green release of X-Car from Takara.

• Car Robots X-Car (2000)

X-Car is based on the mold first used for Generation 2 Highbeam. Like all Spy Changer toys, Crosswise is 1/64 scale.

Crosswise and his Japanese counterpart X-Car were released in a number of color variants.

• Robots in Disguise Crosswise (2001)

He was packaged with fellow Spy Changer W.A.R.S. or by himself in a Tiny Tin.

• Robots in Disguise Clear Crosswise (2002)

• Car Robots Super Crosswise (2003)

• Car Robots Clear Super Crosswise (2003)

Transformers: Armada

Crosswise

Mini-Con
Japanese name	Shadow
Partner	Rook, Sideways
Motto	"If things are going wrong, that means I'm doing my job right."
Alternate Modes	Head
Series	Transformers: Armada

In Armada, Crosswise is the name of Decepticon head of the herald Sideways. After he double crossed Hot Shot, Sideways shed his black helmet in favor of the silver helmet created by Crosswise.

Dreamwave Productions

Crosswise appeared in Transformers: Armada #11.

Toys

• Armada Sideways with Crosswise and Rook (2002)

When Armada’s Sideways was produced, two production variants existed, based on Sideways's Mini-Cons. The earliest variant has Crosswise wearing orange-red paint on his shins. When transformed into Sideways's head, an Autobot emblem appears in Sideways's windshield. (Rook produced the Decepticon symbol.) In the later version, Crosswise had violet paint on his shins and produced the Decepticon symbol on Sideways when attached. (Rook -- consistently wearing red on his shins -- now reveals the show-accurate Autobot symbol.)

Transformers: Cybertron

Crosswise

Crosswise toy
Autobot
Japanese name	Autovolt
Sub-group	Deluxe Vehicles Earth Autobots
Function	Bounty Hunter (Hasbro) Aggressive Capture Member (Takara)
Motto	"These villains are to be retired!" (Takara)
Alternate Modes	Bugatti Veyron
Series	Transformers: Cybertron
English voice actor	Kenichi Mochizuki (English)

Crosswise is an ancient bounty hunter tricked centuries ago into following a target to Earth, where he was captured and sealed into the side of a glacier in the Alaskan wilderness. Gruff, sarcastic, and always spoiling for a fight, he isn't above resorting to dirty tricks to take down an enemy. Though he rarely works without getting paid, he also has a strong sense of right and wrong, and when he hears about the danger to Cybertron, he is only too glad to sign on with Optimus Prime and the Autobots.

Cyber Key Power - (Force Missiles) Two missile launchers deploy on his back and fire.

Crosswise loves this kind of job - going up against an airborne foe more maneuverable and well armed than him is just the thing to get his oil pump going. After all, he's made a career out of tracking and capturing criminal wingnuts just like Thundercracker. He's known for improvisation, often constructing traps unheard of on Cybertron out of objects in the local environment. He'll go to ground for months, taking his time, learning every aspect of his surroundings, so when it comes time to spring his trap, he can be sure there'll be no escape.

Originally, this character was intended to be called Smokescreen in the U.S. version, as an upgrade to the upbeat Armada character of the same name. Because of obvious continuity concerns, his name was changed. This led to a production mistake where he was initially called this in the first airing of the episodes he was in on Kid's WB. However, by the time his first episode, Trap, aired on Cartoon Network, the dialogue was edited to change all references of Smokescreen to Crosswise. Slated for a fall release is a repaint of Crosswise named Smokescreen, sharing the Generation 1 character's deco.

Like the noble and vampire vanquishing VanHelsing, Crosswise is a Decepticon monster hunter. A true Autobot through and through, Crosswise was one of the original Autobots sent to Earth on the starship Atlantis along with Evac to protect the Earth Cyber Planet Key. When the rogue Decepticons began to make their appearances all over the Earth, his bounty hunters background kicked in and he went into full-on monster hunter mode. After sealing the Decepticons in statis pods, he was somehow frozen, but freed himself by scanning a car from an excavation site. He went back to the monster prison to check if no maniac had released them. He was then ambushed by Starscream and Sideways. When Starscream released all the monsters, he goes to seek out Evac. Later, he and Evac join the Autobots.

Takara Tech Spec (Courtesy of Soundwavesoblivion.com): Since many years ago, Autovolt has continued to protect the Earth from the Destron threat. Usually mistaken for an Earthen car while patrolling the city, and once he spots an enemy, his engine burns with turbo speed and races immediately to deal with the enemy at high speed.

It should be noted that Autovolt is not a new name for a Transformer in Japan. It was the Japanese name for the Generation 2 Laser Rod known simply as Volt in the U.S.

Animated series

Crosswise (Autovolt in Japan) : A monster hunter who sealed away the ancient Earth Decepticons long ago. After he was freed from the glacier he perished in, Crosswise scanned an FBI car and took its alt mode, before speeding off to find Evac. He attempted to keep the ancient "monsters" sealed away, but Starscream freed them, leading to his joining the Autobots.

In "Family" Crosswise begins to live among the Autobot civilians.

In the episode "Unfinished", when the Autobots attempted to use a gigantic rocket to move the Animatros back into its orbit, Galvatron attacked and damaged the rocket. The jungle planet threatened to crash into Cybertron. Scourge, the Autobots, the former Decepticons, and their allies from the various planets were able to combine their strength and move the rocket back into place. He latter become official protector of Earth.

Toys

• Cybertron Crosswise

Crosswise transforms into a black FBI cruiser, greatly inspired by the extremely expensive Bugatti Veyron. The toy of Crosswise is 13 cm long in vehicle mode, whereas a real Bugatti Veyron is 447 cm long, so the toy is at a scale of about 1:34. The toy stands about 14 cm tall, which means Crosswise would stand about 481 cm or 15 feet 10 inches tall.

Like most toys sold in the Galaxy Force toy line by Takara, then later in the Cybertron toy line by Hasbro, there are small paint differences between the two versions of the toy. The Hasbro version has a code number on the back of his Cyber Key, while the Takara version has no number on his Force Chip.

According to Hasbro panelists at BotCon 2006 the head design for Crosswise was inspired by the Generation 1 Autobot Rad.

In 2006 a Target store exclusive 2 pack called the Ground To Air Blast Pack included Cybertron Crosswise and Thundercracker. The toys were identical to their original ones, and the front included a brief mention of how the Autobot Bounty Hunter was hunting the Decepticon criminal Thundercracker.

References