Prisoners of War: Tigerhawk
Featured Cartoon Appearances: Other Victories, Nemesis
Featured Comic Appearances: None
Featured Fanfic Appearances: "Catching Up" by Richard C. Mistron, "Tigerhawk's Story" by ZacWilliam
Maybe it's the cool voice, maybe it's his unusual powers, maybe it's just the fact that we saw so little of him and will not see any more of him. Whatever the reason, Tigerhawk has been an interest to me since his first episode. Problem is, we don't really have much of anything to go on. Some characters, even those with limited air time, come across to me as "different." Nothing especially tangible, but there's still something there. Tigerhawk is one of those characters.
Tigerhawk's origins are spelled out for us pretty clear...considering it was done by aliens. We still don't know why the heck they took Tigatron and Airazor. Was it for study? If so, what possible information could they get from two former protoforms who were essentially born on the planet, especially considering Tigatron's possible data track loss? I'm sure that if I wasn't lazy and actually thought about it, I'd come up with something. Maybe I'm just bitter. I liked those two characters. :) Whatever the reason, they put the two together and made a new, more powerful robot who was possessed by two of the aliens. This is one big reason we learn next to nothing about Tigerhawk himself. He didn't become an actual individual until the alien force within him was gone and the inexplicably fused sparks of Tigatron and Airazor came back. Even after, in "Nemesis," his major role is asking Optimus Primal questions so the audience can find out about Nemesis. Given nothing on his development as a character and no possible canonical means of exploring it, this essay will be about Tigerhawk's potential as a character.
What do you know about Tigerhawk? First off, he is powerful, and how. He has my favorite weapon yet: the ability to control the weather. In "Other Victories," the Predacons and Sentinel were powerless to stop him. Megatron put up a good fight, but didn't seem to stand a chance. It took a sneak attack by the cleverest being on the planet, in my opinion, to bring him down. And unlike other characters, who seemingly lost their powerful nature after their first episode, this really didn't happen to Tigerhawk. In "Nemesis, Part I," after Megatron talks about finding a way to be victorious, Rampage scoffs that Megatron could not find a weapon that could possibly deal with Tigerhawk. This coming from somebody a supposedly indestructible spark and regeneration powers. Forget about the others, this seems to say, Tigerhawk is the threat. In "Nemesis, Part II," we get another glimpse of what he can do. It took him all of half of a minute to knock a considerable amount of power from the ship and drain the weapon's power to nothing. And it took all of Nemesis' (and we're talking a refurbished war vessel) remaining power at the main gun to take him out. Secondly, there was his general attitude, of which we saw only a glimpse. He seemed to have aspects of both of his "parents" in some ways. He had Tigatron's "let the trails lead where they may" attitude (giving his own life to protect the other Maximals, something I can see Tigatron doing without hesitation) and maybe a glimpse of Airazor as well ("I like the sound of that" with a wink and smile :). Still, we didn't see enough for my tastes.
What could we have seen with Tigerhawk, should the powers-that-be have seen fit to carry him past his exposition-filled dialogue? This character is ripe with options. First of all, there might be some conflict or something involving the two sparks that merged to form him and his fellow Maximals. They know each other, yet they're strangers at the same time. The interaction could be interesting. Perhaps even better would be Tigerhawk's connection to his alien creators. Maybe he could have hidden or repressed loyalties to the Vok. Maybe the aliens could still find a way to use the weapon they created in a potential future episode. The best possible story arc for him would have all parties, himself included, dealing with the two sparks that merged and their own attitudes toward the war (assuming, of course, that the two individuals really do have aspects in Tigerhawk, but the few scenes he's in seems to show this), and the pure power he has.
How would the Predacons, or the Maximals for that matter, deal with it? Megatron would really have to come up with something clever to simply neutralize him in battle, let alone control him. While Rampage was hardly shaking in his boots, he is nonetheless concerned. Megatron must be too. First off, Megatron would want to harvest that power for his own. Whether or not he would try to turn Tigerhawk into a Predacon is a good question. The temptation would certainly be strong, but I think Megs would resist; after all, how many times will the same schtick fail before he gives up on it? :) Even better, maybe Megatron could find a way to use the alien channel that might still be open. Regardless of what he may or may not do, he would undoubtedly have to deal with his firepower might in battle. As for the Maximals, how much would they trust Tigerhawk in the long run, especially with all the power that could suddenly be turned on them? All if could take is a hint for the war-torn Maximals, fighting with their backs to the wall for whatever a season translates to in time units, for the Maximals to possibly (and I stress possibly) start to get a little worried or distrustful.
The biggest struggle with Tigerhawk would most likely be with himself and the Tigatron aspect of his personality. He is the most powerful Transformer active on the planet (a point that is hardly arguable), yet he is a peace-loving sort by nature. I don't think it's a stretch of the imagination to say the Tigatron might have some problems with this, especially if he starts getting used as an extermination tool. He could easily have "Law of the Jungle"-type flashbacks. Instead of the Predacons destroying the planet he loved, his home, he could be the ultimate destroying machine. It's certainly possible that he would decide he must act as Earth's protector even still, even if a tree has to catch on fire in the process. However, Tigatron made such a declaration when he was simply a skilled Maximal warrior, not the powerful alien construct, who can make earthquakes and tornadoes and could seriously contend with a Decepticon battleship, that Tigerhawk became.
This essay is a little different than most of mine have been. There's a lot of speculation (which is nothing new, I'm sure :), but with little to back it up. I feel he died too soon, but at least he didn't pull an Airazor and scan Nemesis before getting destroyed. Still, the character and his potential intrigues me. From his alien design to the two personalities that comprise him, he could have added a terrific twist to Season 4 of Beast Wars. It's a shame he won't be in any more episodes; he's only got one nickname on my Beast Wars Nickname List, the same number as that huge snake in "Dark Designs." If nothing else, he deserves better than that. :)