Earth Defense Command

The Earth Defense Command is an organization originally from the Generation 1 continuity family.

Sticker Defense Command

The Earth Defense Command is a human-run military organization.

Fiction

Generation 1 cartoon continuity

Kiss Players

The Earth Defense Command was formed in 2003 as part of a cooperative human/Autobot effort. When the Cosmic Rust virus critically struck the Autobots later that year, the EDC kicked off the Binaltech Project to shore up its defenses.

When Galvatron was hurled out of Unicron by Rodimus Prime in 2005, rather than immediately crashing onto the planet Thrull, he instead hurtled toward Earth. Landing in Tokyo, Japan, the Decepticon leader's impact decimated the city and scattered his Unicron-mutated cells throughout Earth's atmosphere.

Following this catastrophe, the EDC was reborn as an organization dedicated to driving all Transformers off Earth. The organization built an anti-electron field (previously referred to as an Energon field) to make the planet uninhabitable to Cybertronians, and created a team of 48 transforming robots known as Autoroopers to combat any Transformers that remained, recruiting young women who had been infected with the cells and gained Kiss Player fusion abilities to partner with them.

Although the organization ostensibly defended humanity from attacks by Legion (monstrous creatures resulting from the fusion of Galvatron's Unicron-mutated cells with ordinary objects and lifeforms), it was secretly using those same cells to create its Autorooper forces. Under the command of Hitoshizuku Amaō, it built a facility called the Genital System beneath its Tokyo-based headquarters. Inside this secret chamber, Galvatron's headless body was imprisoned and terrible experiments were conducted using captured Legion remains and EDC Kiss Players. The goal of these experiments was the resurrection of Amaō's daughter, who had been killed in the Tokyo disaster.

A joint attack by Optimus Prime and Marissa Faireborn, Hot Rod and former EDC Kiss Player Shaoshao Li, and current Kiss Player Atari Hitotonari and her Ne-04 Autorooper partner exposed the Genital System facility. Amaō was killed, Galvatron was restored and launched into space, and the anti-electron field was taken down.

The EDC was reformed and returned to its original policies. Together with Autobot leader Ultra Magnus, it created the Kiss Players singing group, which toured the planet to promote peace and goodwill between the two species.

The Transformers cartoon

The Earth Defense Command is a joint human/Autobot military organization dedicated to the protection of Earth and its solar system. It was founded at some point before 2005, and by that year at least three space stations had been constructed (one in Earth orbit, Outpost One at Pluto, and a third near Goo 8739-B). This defense is augmented by a Mars land base, as well as several space vessels that allow quick transit throughout the solar system and beyond.

The Earth orbital station observes traffic to and from the planet, with the authority to call out Autobot and/or human military assistance. Outpost One served much the same function, its proximity to a warp gate making it a first line of defense against hostiles from non-Solar worlds. Unfortunately, even with its advanced technology, this battle platform was destroyed in a matter of moments by Galvatron and his lieutenants. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 3 It is unclear whether the Earth base would survive a similar attack. In 2006, the deep-space station near Goo was demolished by death crystals, even though (according to Grimlock) it was built out of the strongest metal in the galaxy. Chaos

On a smaller scale, powerful technology (most likely Cybertronian) has also been incorporated in land and air vehicles. An EDC car kept up a decent fight during a high-speed road duel involving two Stunticons and Rodimus Prime. The car was armed with a roof-mounted blaster (not to mention incredible crash protection and recovery systems). The Burden Hardest to Bear Also, a similar vehicle has been seen flying despite a lack of suitable wings or the noise of conventional propulsion - just like a Transformer.

The hierarchy of the EDC is unclear, although it appears that the Autobots may be ultimately in charge. It's also unclear whether any Autobots are technically considered EDC officers. All the humans wear white uniforms with blue trim; no Autobots have been seen changing their paint jobs to fit in.

The only EDC officers whose names we know are Marissa Faireborn and Sullivan.

Wings Universe

Clayton "Hawk" Abernathy was a founding member of the Earth Defense Command. Wings Universe Serpent O.R. profile

Beginning in 1993, Optimus Prime and the Autobots worked together with their allies in the Earth Defense Command to increase ties between their peoples. To this end, cyberfactories were created on Earth to give rise to Transformers with the status of citizens of Earth. Though these "second generation" Transformers were created with no faction in mind, by 2010 they had migrated to opposing sides of the Autobot-Decepticon war. Generation 2: Redux

Sometime between 2006 and 2013, the EDC confronted ex-Cobra terrorist Old Snake during his attempt to reactivate an old Cobra project to create the ultimate warrior from Earth's greatest military minds and the discarded body of a Sweep. During the incident, General Hawk's brain was accidentally scanned, resulting in Serpentor, a Decepticon with EDC sympathies. Wings Universe Serpent O.R. profile

In 2013 when Jhiaxus surrendered on Cybertron to conclude the Machine Wars, Serpentor was skeptical, but accepted Jhiaxus's surrender on behalf of the Earth Defense Command. A Common Foe

Dreamwave Generation One continuity

The EDC was founded by Nathaniel Faireborn to deal with extraterrestrial matters shortly after the emergence of the Transformers in the mid-eighties. Its base of operations is located at Area 51. Faireborn's intention was to better Transformer/human relations, but the damage the Transformers conflict caused on Earth, along with an Army General with a last name of Witwicky and a talent for hiding from the camera/reader, often made this difficult. Infestation

2005 IDW continuity

Following a long series of confrontations with the Transformers and the collapse of Skywatch following its collusion with Decepticon forces, humanity reorganized the Skywatch charter to form the Earth Defense Command, which would defend the planet from all future alien incursions, Decepticon or otherwise. General Daniel Witwicky and Director Marissa Faireborn led the organization, with Dr. Sanjay Bharwaney as chief scientist.

The EDC possessed numerous assets designed to deter any future Cybertronian invaders, including particle emission satellites and nuclear warheads based on Cybertronian designs. Detonation Boulevard The organization also collaborated with the Department of Defense and DARPA on "Project Spectrum", designed to spearhead the development and deployment of new anti-Transformer weaponry. O Ship of State Shortly after it was formed, Marissa Faireborn tracked down Thundercracker, the only Transformer to have remained on Earth, using him as an intelligence asset. In return, the EDC gave him a cabin in the Sierra Nevada mountains and a puppy named Buster for companionship. Thundercracker profile

When the Decepticons returned to Earth, they brokered an alliance with the EDC against the Autobots by telling them humanity's enemy, Megatron, was now an Autobot and their new commander, Galvatron, had no ties to the unfortunate misunderstanding from the past. For PR reasons, the EDC kept this alliance secret. Detonation Boulevard Deals were cut for technology and aid in exchange for helping the Decepticons build a space station to live on and the Onyx corporation helped exploit that tech Signals, Calls, and Marches which, unknown to the Decepticons, was augmented by scavenged remains of dead Decepticons. In the Command's Bikini Atoll base, they were building an army of drones modeled after the deceased Ramjet and Thrust! I Dream of Wires

Alpha Trion arrived on Earth and the EDC promptly shot him down. The Crucible They began studying him at the Atoll base. An anti-Transformer "mindbomb" was partially reverse engineered from him (also without telling the Decepticons). Full Fathom Five

The EDC used Thundercracker to lure Optimus Prime's Autobots into a trap as soon as they arrived on Earth. Hello Cruel World After a brief battle the Autobots retreated, and the EDC forces stood back while their Decepticon allies hunted them down. That went horribly wrong when Prick Prowl deliberately got the Decepticons to arrive at Poverty Flat, blowing their cover and leaving them open to a combiner attack. Detonation Boulevard In order to stop the conflict, the EDC had to deploy the "mind bomb" on both Autobot and their oblivious Decepticon allies. As well as pissing off the 'Cons, it meant the Autobots could pick out Alpha Trion's brain patterns in the device and track it to the Atoll base. The Mind Bomb

When an all out war broke out for the Enigma of Combination at Garrison Blackrock's vault, Faireborn and Ayana Jones called in the EDC fleet only for it to arrive too late to fight off the Cybertronians. The Obliterati The EDC later delivered supplies to the Sanctuary Station where Faireborn suspected that Blackrock was manipulating EDC resources for his own benefit. South of Heaven Blackrock used Seeker clones to capture several Autobots, The Nothing Man whom D.0.C. tracked to the EDC's base. Lagrange When the Autobots were freed they were ready to destroy the EDC before D.0.C. and Buster made everyone realize Blackrock was the enemy. Helden Galvatron then showed up, grabbed Blackrock, betrayed the EDC and smugly stated no one could stop his conquest of Earth before he teleported away from the base. Perihelion

When Optimus Prime annexed the planet Earth, the EDC was tasked with defending the planet. Spike Witwicky was reinstated and the Zilong Qian of the People's Liberation Army Mecha Force was assigned to work with them. New Worlds Order They had very limited success. Edge of the Earth They later received Optimus' location in Monument Valley via satellite unknowingly playing into Galvatron's hands. A squad was sent to arrest the Prime. It's Beginning To And Back Again While the Cybertronians in Monument Valley did not return fire at first, Soundwave eventually engaged the EDC, easily holding his own before Optimus raised Metrotitan from the ground. The EDC left with their tails in their legs. As Above...So Below. The President was furious with the recent developments and removed Faireborn from command No Fair Fights replacing her with General Joe Colton who brought in members of his old team and ordered the EDC to the Nemesis to capture the Cybertronians there. White Light Aside from capturing Blitzwing they were soundly defeated by Victorion. White Heat

Convinced that the Cybertronian action on Earth would eventually culminate in rendering the planet lifeless, Joe Colton attempted to use his new position to deploy the Talisman against the mechanical aliens. Lured onto a helicopter by someone he respected however, he discovered the ranks of the EDC were infested with Dire Wraiths with one of them assuming his likeness and full command of the EDC. Ghost in the Machine First Strike #2

As a result of the Wraiths, the EDC began keeping a close eye on Rom's activities in California. They also used the failed alliance with Galvatron as justification on how the new EDC should operate, deliberately stoking the fires of conflict and xenophobia. Secret Raiders

"Colton" eventually resurrected G.I. Joe as an elite squad within the EDC to combat Cybertronians, giving them access to cutting edge EDC equipment and technology. Optimus Prime was not impressed with the results, making it clear he thought higher of Faireborn's leadership. No sooner had he said this did Rom arrive and disintegrate Colton and three other false Joes. Concorde Hymn

Following the messy events of Ore-13 and Baron Karza, the EDC was considered defunct and a newly international G.I. Joe team took the lead on alien incidents. Crisis Intervention A Lonely Pillar on the Plain

The dissolution of the organization would cast a long shadow across Earth's geopolitical landscape: with alien incursions now commonplace around the world, salvaged EDC weaponry that had been reverse-engineered from Cybertronian technology flooded global blackmarkets, threatening to violate the articles of the Tyrest Accord. Optimus Prime would use this fact as leverage while trying to push the President into finding an ambassador to represent Earth in the Council of Worlds. To Walk Among the Chosen

Some weeks later — after the President had found such an ambassador in Marissa Faireborn, ex-EDC commander — a cynical Slide would point out that Optimus had stopped trying to quell the flow of illegal EDC weapons, noting that the situation was no longer politically useful for his goals. Primeless, Part 1

Beast Wars: Uprising

The EDC was formed from the G.I. Joe Star Brigade in 2003. In 2017, they would declare all human space off-limits to Transformers following an attack on the colony world New Earth. By 2029, the EDC had been reorganized into the Confederated Terran Colonial Fleet. Micro-Aggressions

Games

Transformers Legends

EDC agents came to the assistance of a group of Autobots who crash-landed on Earth. It wasn't long before a small team of Decepticons arrived, aiming to obtain the Key to the Plasma Energy Chamber which the Autobots were carrying, however the EDC was able to help the Autobots fight them off. Last Stand of the Earth Defense Command

Notes

Foreign names

• Japanese: Chikyū Bōei Gun (地球防衛軍, "Earth Defense Force")