Turtler

Turtler is a Decepticon Seacon from the Super-God Masterforce portion of the Generation 1 continuity family.

Decidedly not a friend to all children.

Turtler (タートラー Tātorā) is the only Seacon who possesses sentience, but he hates his monstrous appearance, and often takes out his frustration over it upon the legion of Seacon drones that he commands. That's no great loss to the Decepticons, though, given the infamous expendability of the mindless creatures, which means that there's always a fresh supply of them to combine with Turtler to form King Poseidon. Turtler is still a powerful foe on his own, though, with the ability to generate a sonic shockwave underwater, and a shell so durable that it can withstand the force of a hydrogen bomb.

Fiction

Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity

Super-God Masterforce cartoon

Voice actor: Masato Hirano (Japanese)

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

After numerous failures on the part of the individual Seacons and their other underlings, Giga and Mega decided that it was time for Turtler to enter the fray. Summoning up the other Seacons with a cackling, dolphin-like shriek, Turtler dramatically combined with the drones into King Poseidon, before doing absolutely nothing, since they were all just standing in Decepticon Base at the time. Eliminate the Godmaster Ginrai

Turtler was dispatched to aid the Decepticon Pretenders and Headmaster Juniors when they kidnapped a group of children and held them prisoner on an island off the coast of America. Wilder and Bullhorn were both rather surprised to see the little-seen Turtler patrolling the waters around the island, but not nearly as surprised as the Autobot Godmaster Ginrai was when he arrived to save the children and was confronted with a Seacon that spoke!

Turtler is epic in defeat.

At Turtler's instruction, the other Seacons combined with him into King Poseidon, but after a fierce battle, Ginrai performed a combination of his own, merging with his trailer to become "Super Ginrai" and defeating King Poseidon. Although the ever-fragile Seacons forming his limbs exploded, Turtler survived and escaped into the ocean. Heroism!! The Birth of Super Ginrai

Turtler later accompanied the Decepticon Pretenders in tracking down Ginrai, who was meeting with the new Autobot Godmaster Lightfoot, but was again defeated by Super Ginrai. Lightfoot: A Dramatic Encounter His next foray into the field of battle was even less successful, when he and his Seacons reinforced the Headmaster Juniors in a battle with the Autobots in the French town of Dagneux, only for the Seacon drones to be wiped out before he could even combine with them! Assemble! The Four Godmaster Gunmen Later still, Turtler led a squad of Seacons in backing up Hydra and Buster when they targeted Lightfoot, but when the other Autobots Godmasters arrived to aid their team-mate, Turtler opted to flee by burrowing underground rather than trying to fight back. Life? Death? The Desperate Lightfoot

When the Decepticons began construction of an advance base off the coast of Australia, the blasting Turtler as the Seacons performed led to the reactivation of a sub-sea volcano that caused an earthquake in Sydney. Lightfoot arrived on the scene to investigate, but his approach was observed by Turtler, who had the Seacons attack the Autobot and entomb him in a crevasse. By the time Ginrai came searching for his teammate, Gilmer had joined Turtler, and instructed him to become King Poseidon to engage the Autobot leader. Predictably, King Poseidon suffered yet another defeat at Ginrai's hands when he was thrown into the volcano. Escape!! The Underwater Volcano Erupts

Not long thereafter, the Decepticons were joined by the final Godmaster, Clouder, and Turtler was instructed by Hydra and Buster to put him through his paces as King Poseidon. Appearance!! The Final Godmaster Clouder was soon installed as a double agent within the Autobot ranks, and the Decepticon used the information he gathered to initiate an all-out assault on the heroes' base. Turtler led the Seacons in invading the base and destroying the magma energy converter that powered it, and then sealed off all the entrances, trapping the Autobots within to await their destruction. The Autobots were subsequently rescued by Ginrai, but that wasn't the worst of it for the villains: Turtler had left Clouder to die in the base. It didn't appear that Turtler did this on purpose—it just seems nobody bothered to explicitly tell him to get Clouder out—but that didn't stop Clouder turning on the Decepticons and joining up with the Autobots. Disaster! The Autobot Base Explodes

Awwww!

Turtler formed King Poseidon again to serve as warden when the Decepticons captured the Autobot Headmaster Junior Shūta Gō, only for the Decepticon Junior Cancer to see the error of his ways and turn his weapons on King Poseidon. Autobot drone Godbomber delivered the final blow, blasting King Poseidon to bits once more. God Ginrai: Showdown at the Decepticon Base Turtler was similarly luckless when Cancer helped the Autobots orchestrate a decisive strike on the Decepticon base, becoming King Poseidon in the opening stages of the fight, only to be immediately blown apart by heavy fire from Grand Maximus. The Ultimate Combination!! BlackZarak, the New Lifeform

When the Decepticons relocated to the Alps in preparation for their final strike against the Earth, Turtler and a contingent of Seacons hid themselves underground, lurking in wait for the inevitable arrival of the Autobots. The unfortunate Metalhawk and the Autobot Headmaster Juniors proved to be the ones who chanced upon Turtler and his drones, and they were soon faced with King Poseidon. The fight went badly for the Autobots, but Ginrai soon arrived to help, knocking the Seacon combiner apart with a "God Punch" attack. The Seacon drones actually managed to remain intact after this separation, so Turtler quickly ordered them to recombine, forcing Ginrai to step up his game and unleash his God Cannon, blasting King Poseidon to cinders in mid-air. As ever, Turtler was the only Seacon to survive the explosion, crashing to Earth badly scorched and swearing revenge on Ginrai. Malevolent and Inhuman! The True Form of Devil Z

Generations Selects Special Comic

After his final defeat by God Ginrai in 2020, Turtler was met by Halfshell, who had come from the future to meet his Seacons' predecessors and to propose a partnership to repair both of their crews via Angolmois Energy. Seacons comic 5 Becoming a space pirate like his "brother", Turtler came across Galvatron, who had been removed from his proper time and space by Primus. Halfshell and Turtler made a deal with the Emperor of Destruction — they would help him attain the power of the stars that Optimus Prime acquired in exchange for the Angolmois Energy contained within the Decepticon leader. After placing Galvatron in a conversion pod, the two Seacons used the Angolmois Energy to give Turtler a more powerful body, making him the new "King of Seacons". Seacons comic 1

Turtler pursued Optimus Prime and his Silver Matrix in the pirates' Photon Sailer, deploying a Gulf and his own cannons. The Autobot combined with his trailer to destroy the first Gulf, prompting Turtler to unleash an entire school of Gulfs. Seacons comic 2 Turtler leapt into battle after his Gulfs to fight with Optimus Prime personally. He recreated his Super Mode as King Poseidon by combining with four Gulfs at once. Seacons comic 3 Optimus struck King Poseidon hard enough to make him disperse, sending Turtler and the individual Seacons crashing down to the Blue Planet. By this point, however, Turtler's last two drone-types, Tentakil and Overbite, were ready to do battle. Confronting Optimus Prime in the seas, Turtler united his Seacons and unveiled their new robot modes. Turtler was confident no one would look down upon the Seacons again. They formed the newly upgraded and supremely powerful King Poseidon. Seacons comic 5

King Poseidon was undone after Galvatron emerged as an upgraded Megatron, seemingly destroying Halfshell and the Photon Sailer in the process. As the King, Turtler was broken apart several times opposing this Megatron Omega, even with Optimus Prime and the Primus Vanguard also fighting him. After taking a respite in his default form, Turtler was surprised that the Beast People of the Blue Planet showed him respect and thanks for defending them from Megatron. As he went to the Sailer to pay his respects, Turtler was surprised to discover the ship was empty. He soon learned Halfshell and the Space Pirates were full restored, seeking the colored Matrixes of the Primus Vanguard on different worlds. God Neptune comic 1 Halfshell nearly completed this quest with the renewed power of God Neptune, but Megatron Omega proved too much for him either. He called Turtler on Blue Planet for backup, but Megatron Omega displayed some memory files he had from when he was on board the Photon Sailer. Halfshell was caught on tape musing about how a God was better than a King, and how Turtler was a useful test subject for the Angolmois Energy process before using it on his mates. Furious at this disrespect by one he saw as a brother, Turtler turned his back on Halfshell. God Neptune comic 2

Matters escalated further as Primus opened a portal to the year 2050 of the Known World, calling forth the Dinobots as Turtler and Optimus watched on. Volcanicus comic 1 Turtler ultimately came to see himself as defender of the Beast People of Blue Planet, their benevolent "king" and protector. When Primus's plotting threatened his people, Turtler dispatched the Seacons to ensure the safety of the Beasts. Finale Prelude More Decepticons came through the portal from 2050, and Turtler used them to form a Scramble 7 combination, returning to the ever-more-dramatic fighting at play. Finale

Zone

Years after the Masterforce War, Turtler and his Seacons were recruited by the supernatural new Emperor of Destruction, Violengiguar. In their newly caped combined form of King Poseidon, they accompanied Trypticon in an attack on the ocean planet Wall, where they lay in wait for Autobot Commander Star Saber. When the Autobot hero arrived, they attempted to drag him beneath the waves, only to be driven off by a combined attack from the Micromaster warriors Overload, Erector, Missile Bull, and Skywave. Zone story page #3 Later, they attacked Earth in search of the powerful Zodiac necessary for their leader's evil schemes, only to wind up being destroyed by the new Autobot leader, Dai Atlas. Enter the New Supreme Commander, Dai Atlas!

TV Magazine comic continuity

Super-God Masterforce comic

Kamille Bidan no baka!

Turtler debuted among the Seacons who gathered at a shoreline along with the other Decepticons, where he was rather demeaningly fed energon cubes by Cancer. On Scene! Our Savior's Name Is Ginrai! Turtler went on to enter the battlefield for the first time when the Decepticons attempted to dupe the Autobots with holographic images of legendary Decepticons of years past. Turtler merged with his Seacons into King Poseidon and loomed over the holographic figures, but just in the nick of time, Autobot Godmasters Lightfoot, Ranger and Road King arrived with a new trailer unit for their leader Ginrai in tow. Ginrai merged with the trailer to become Super Ginrai, and promptly defeated King Poseidon with his mighty "Super Fire Guts" attack. The battered Turtler limped away to safety, reporting the failure of the plan to the Decepticon Pretenders. Burn, Chokon! New Commander Super Ginrai!

Soon afterward, Ginrai and the Autobots travelled to the planet Athenia, where they met with the space-based Autobot forces, and current Supreme Commander Fortress Maximus stepped down and appointed Ginrai in his place. That night, however, Turtler (making his only recorded appearance in robot mode) led a Decepticon attack on the planet, and merged with Blast Off, Brawl, Cutthroat, and Dead End to become "Scramble 7". Chromedome and Raiden were bested by Scramble 7's power, but the threat was overcome when Ranger and Road King channelled their Jinchōkon into Super Ginrai's Cannon Craft weapons. This created the "Magma Vulcan" attack, which blasted Scramble 7 to bits and sent Turtler flying away in torso mode. The Battle Begins! The Earth-Space Alliance Army

Zone comic

Years after the Masterforce War, Turtler and his Seacons were recruited by the supernatural new Emperor of Destruction, Violengiguar. Subsequently, they attacked Earth in search of the powerful "Zodiac" that Violengiguar required for his evil schemes, but were defeated by Dai Atlas. Zone

TransTech

Turtler, an early pioneer of drones in Axiom Nexus, developed the Turtler Test to assess sapience. It replaced the Ambus Test after Mini-Con-rights advocate Sprite pointed out that some Mini-Cons were failing the test. Ask Vector Prime, 2015/08/16 He also presumably had something to do with establishing the Turtler D.O.V.E. scale. Ask Vector Prime, 2015/11/08

It is uncertain if this Turtler was a Primax-native Offworlder or a native Transcendent Technomorph and if both accomplishments were done by the same individual.

Toys

Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers

...and to think he was once a cute little Squirtle.

• Turtler (Seacon, 1988)

• ID number: D-312
• Accessories: Laser gun, sword, shield/chestplate, 2 super robot feet, left and right super robot fists, super robot head

Released in the fourth year of Takara's Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers line under the Super-God Masterforce banner, Seacon Turtler transforms into a turquoise and magenta robotic... well, turtle. Kinda obvious, really. In this mode, he is armed with a pair of back-mounted twin reciprocating cannons, with the "pom-pom gun" motion activated by moving a small lever on the shell back and forth (this action is also available in robot mode, but it's pointed straight up so not super-useful). He can also mount his laser rifle mounts in a hole in the middle of his shell.

Turtler features one of the earliest uses of autotransformation technology; when his turtle forelegs are rotated into place to become his robot mode arms, his fists automatically emerge. The rear half of his turtle shell disconnects for transformation, and can be mounted on either of Turtler's shoulders as a shield.

He can also form the torso to a super robot, with his limbs formed by any "Scramble City"-style limb-robots, though he's meant to join with his fellow Seacons to form King Poseidon.

• More information on Turtler (well, Snaptrap) at TFU.info

• Kingposeidon [sic] (Gift set, 1988)

• ID number: D-318
• Accessories: Laser gun, sword, shield/chestplate, 2 super robot feet, left and right super robot fists, super robot head

Turtler was sold both as an individual, and in a large King Posiedon box set. All of the toys in the set are identical to their individual releases.

Unlike the Hasbro Seacon box-set, which excludes Nautilator, the King Poseidon set comes with all six members of the team: Turtler, Gulf, Kraken, Lobclaw, Overbite, and Tentakil.

Generations Selects

Don't call it a Snaptrap.

• Seacons Turtler (Voyager, 2020)

• Release date: January 25, 2020
• Hasbro ID number: TT-GS03
• Accessories: Laser gun, sword, 2 combiner feet/gatling guns, 2 combiner feet claws/knuckles, shield/combiner chestplate, 2 small blades, 2 large cannons.

A TakaraTomy-initiated addition to the Generations Selects series, "Seacons Turtler" is an extensive retooling of Power of the Primes Voyager Class Terrorcon Hun-Gurrr, sharing the arms, thighs and many internal workings, transforming into... a valiant attempt at turning that mold into a robotic turtle. While the shell-cannons have lost the pom-pom action, they are now detachable at the base and can be hand-held thanks to using the nigh-universal 5 mm post attachment, plus they can accommodate C.O.M.B.A.T. System Fire Blast effects. Disappointingly, he's not really designed to allow non-awkward standing on his rear legs in turtle mode as he typically appears the anime.

He is also able to form a torso mode for any Combiner Wars-style super robot, but is obviously meant to be the core of King Poseidon. He comes with a pair of newly-tooled combiner feet that resemble the original 1988 Piranacon feet, but actually consist of multiple parts - a core foot component, detachable "talon" toe pieces, and cannons on both sides that can be flipped around, turning the whole assembly into a weapon.

Turtler was released as a TakaraTomy Mall exclusive in Japan. The Seacons were also available via Hasbro Pulse and other online retailers in the U.S. and Canada.

This mold was later redecoed to make Halfshell.

Merchandise

Transformers Gum

• King Poseidon Set A (1988)
  • Accessories: Sword, Gun, King Poseidon Head, hands, feet

Released in Series 10 of Kabaya kits in 1988, Turtler was available in a set along with fellow Seacon Overbite. Despite being a snap-together model kit, he is functionally a downsized version of the larger toy, retaining the combining functions and even the reciprocating cannon gimmick. Since he is gang molded with the other Seacons, some of his plastic colors are a bit off. Common among Kabaya kits, he relies on stickers for added detail.

Turtler can form the torso for King Poseidon.

• Turtler (2015)
  • Accessories: Shield, King Poseidon head

Part of the tenth wave of Kabaya's standard snap together kits, Turtler can transform from turtle to robot, though you need to partsform his robot legs to do so. His own personal weapons are included with the other concurrently released Seacons, which he can combine with to form King Poseidon.

Turtler and the Seacons are compatible with the Gaia Scramble combiner limbs released a few years prior.

Notes

Zombie kids like me.

• Turtler is the only Seacon to ever show up in humanoid mode in Super-God Masterforce fiction—but only in the manga. And only in a single panel, where he led the Scramble City-type combiners and ordered them to form into Scramble 7 in "The Battle Begins! The Earth-Space Alliance Army".

Foreign names

• English: Snaptrap (Omni Productions dub, Shout! Factory sub)
• Italian: Tortuga
• Mandarin: Jiān Jiǎ Guī (China, 坚甲龟, "Solid-shell Turtle")
• Russian: Akula (Акула, "Shark")