Jazz (G1)/2005 IDW continuity

Will Jazz A. Try to gain her friendship, B. Shoot at her, or C. Lose an arm somehow?

Jazz takes things as they come, working bumps in the road into a personal rhythm that only he is in step with. When he makes a mistake, Jazz will eventually turn it into an opportunity to better himself and his friends' circumstances. His ability to improvise is second-to-none, serving him well as a lead Special Operations agent. Jazz has handled everything from daring rescue missions and solo stealth ops to even taking a command role in certain dire situations.

Despite his impressive skillset and coolness under pressure, the easygoing Jazz would rather wield his treasured Aghartan electro-bass than a weapon. He always has one optic on an existence without conflict, and takes any opportunity to make new friends, build bridges, and generally appreciate the simple pleasures in life- especially music. The war forced Jazz to become a professional killer, and while he'd love to leave that part of himself behind, he also won't hesitate to use his abilities to fight for a just cause wherever and whenever he's needed.

First appearance: Infiltration #3

Fiction

Joining the Autobots

Jazz of Staniz was a free spirit from an early age. Though he spent his formative years in the industrialized spaceport town of his birth, he wasn't drawn to shipbuilding or tourism, the city's two primary industries. Instead, he gravitated to the music scene that naturally sprung up around restaurants and bars. A chance encounter with a magna marching band gave the young robot the reason to leave his city behind. Moved by the music, he decided to tell people that he was named for the harmonious melodies of the band—a name that translated to "Jazz". What It's Really Like

Millions of years ago, Jazz was a member of the Kaon Security Services prior to the Decepticon uprising and the subsequent civil war. He spent many an hour being bored to death by Prowl. How little things change. Megatron Origin #2 During a major assault on Iacon by the Decepticons, Jazz helped fight them off. Primacy #4

Don't give up hope! We're from 1984!

During the war, Jazz was part of a team taking part in a rescue mission. He managed to find the blinded lone survivor, Tracks, but before the two could be extracted, their transport was destroyed by the Predacons. Though Tracks was rightfully frightened to face Megatron's most elite troops, Jazz convinced him to not give up hope. Jazz's first attempt to ambush the Predacons met with some success, but Jazz was heavily damaged as a result. The two fled, but they wouldn't escape the Predacons for long. Finally, after Jazz dressed down Tracks for giving up hope, they were surrounded. Jazz fought the Predacon leader, Razorclaw, in a one-on-one battle that would have ended badly for Jazz if a second extraction team hadn't found them. Tracks and Jazz were lifted away and sent off for repairs. Tracks never did learn Jazz's identity, but he did learn a strong lesson from his mysterious helper. Spotlight: Jazz

Four million years ago, Jazz was present at a victory celebration after the Autobots halted a major Decepticon energon convoy. The Iron Age

Shortly after Thunderwing's rampage across Cybertron, Jazz was holed up in a bunker with Smokescreen and Landfill while they awaited a rousing, morale-boosting broadcast from Blaster, a transmission that was never made. Shortly thereafter, their position, along with every other Autobot position on the planet, was hit by the Decepticons. Spotlight: Blaster

On Earth

In modern times, Jazz was the first Autobot to be stationed on Earth. Police Action #1 Chosen by Optimus Prime for his talent at improvisation, Jazz scanned a native alternate mode and kept tabs on Starscream's infiltration unit. Time Will Rust While undercover, he grew particularly fond of the musicians of the era such as Miles Davis and Ornette Coleman. In seeing how such a young race had produced so much culture, Jazz would consider that the Cybertronians had wasted their potential in fighting the Great War. What It's Really Like After being joined by his fellow Autobots, they operated covertly on the planet for at least four years, attempting to foil a Decepticon insurgency. He was present when Prowl gave Ratchet a dressing down for risking their secrecy by saving Verity Carlo, Hunter O'Nion, and Jimmy Pink from the Decepticon infiltration team. Infiltration #3 When Ratchet and Bumblebee's unauthorised sojourn to the abandoned Decepticon bunker in Nebraska uncovered Starscream's plans for Ore-13 and Megatron's arrival on Earth, Jazz and the rest of the Autobots moved out to the Decepticon Siege Armature in Oregon in the hopes of containing the confrontation between the Decepticon leaders. Fortunately for all concerned, Megatron downgraded the Infiltration status of the mission and left the Autobots alone. Infiltration #6

Jazz went with the Autobots to investigate Decepticon activity in the country of Latveria. There they discovered a heavily shielded "array" that the Decepticons were using as a base. Man and Machine, Part One They skirmished with the humans that were assembled outside who were under the influence of the Decepticons' mind-altering Psycho-Prism. Bumblebee used his holomatter avatar in a "damsel in distress" ruse. While Wolverine was distracted trying to tell Luke Cage that the projection had no scent, Jazz was able to run him over, pinning him to the ground. Jazz got his tire slashed with adamantium claws for his trouble. Ratchet was able to attach an inhibitor device to Captain America which nullified the effects of the Psycho-Prism. He gave Captain America enough devices for everyone on his team. Now calmed down, the two groups teamed up to destroy the Psycho-Prism. They began attacking the array's defenses which caused the Decepticons to attack. Man and Machine, Part Two

As they fought, Ratchet, Prowl, and Luke Cage were able to slip into the array. Outside, Bumblebee, Jazz, and Optimus Prime gave a power-boost to Iron Man in his Transformer-sized armor. After the battle quieted down, Megatron communicated via hologram from inside the array with his new ally Doctor Doom. They showed their captives, Ratchet, Prowl, Luke Cage, and Spider-Man. Megatron ordered their surrender or the captives would die. Optimus Prime ordered the quick destruction of the array. After a brief discussion, they all attacked the array. Megatron turned on Doctor Doom for being incorrect about them surrendering. Megatron didn't go through with his threat to kill his captives, instead he went outside to face his opponents and carrying Luke Cage. Man and Machine, Part Three

While Megatron was attacking, Bumblebee, Jazz, and Wolverine orbital bounced into the array. They found that Doctor Doom switched sides and freed Spider-Man, so they went to find the Psycho-Prism. They found it guarded by Ramjet, who wasn't in the mood to fight for Megatron's cause and left. Wolverine destroyed the Prism. Man and Machine, Part Four

Whoops! I better wind down my woofers!

Shortly after the arrival of Optimus Prime on Earth, Jazz received a crash course on Earth culture by Hunter, Verity, and Jimmy, and was surprised to find the emotionless, dead-eyed fixed smile on his holomatter avatar creeped people out. However, the humans were forced to leave the Ark-19, ostensibly for their own safety. Jazz observed how unhappily the humans took their eviction, so he later thanked them for their help. Escalation #1 After Ironhide and Sunstreaker were ambushed (and the latter thought to have been destroyed) by a highly skilled and organized human group, Jazz and Wheeljack were attacked by the clandestine organization's agents when trying to locate Sunstreaker's remains, but fortunately survived. Escalation #2 He was later deployed to Brasnya with the other Autobots to investigate Megatron's meddling in the fragile region's politics. He remarked that orbital bounces scrambled his circuits, to which Prowl told him to shut up. Prowl is a jerk. Escalation #3 He was forced to engage the Decepticons when they tried to stop the Autobots from capturing the Georgi Koska facsimile construct. Escalation #4 Escalation #5 After Optimus Prime was seemingly killed by Megatron, Jazz didn't think even their best efforts could stop the Decepticon leader. Fortunately, Optimus Prime returned from the brink of death and Megatron was forced to retreat. Escalation #6

He's had worse.

After it was decided to move the Ark-19 due to the Machination's knowledge of their whereabouts, Jazz brushed off Verity and Jimmy when they pointed out that the Autobots were doing very little to find out about Sunstreaker and Hunter's disappearance. Jazz was tasked with monitoring the engines when the Ark-19 lifted off from Lake Michigan and subsequently shot down by the Decepticon "living weapon" Sixshot. Devastation #1 Devastation #2 He fought Sixshot alongside the other Autobots, Devastation #3 but was seriously injured when the Decepticon tore off his right arm with apparent ease. Devastation #4 He was still injured when Optimus Prime ordered the Autobots to leave Earth for Garrus-9 due to the liberation of the prison's newest inmates. Devastation #5 Devastation #6

Jazz was present to hear Ratchet diagnose Sunstreaker after the later's de-Headmasterification. Replay

Jazz soon returned to Earth with the other Autobots, only to be lured into a Decepticon trap due to a traitor among the Autobot ranks. They were summarily defeated by Devastator and thrown in a portal leading to Cybertron, where the Insecticon swarm was waiting for them. All Hail Megatron #8 Everything in Its Right Place With Optimus Prime severely injured, Jazz took command of the Autobots. At one point, Prowl brought him some bad news which left him despondent. All Hail Megatron #1

His tone is "I'll kick your ass."

The Autobots had begun to despair due to their situation, but Tracks told the story of how he was rescued by a mysterious Autobot from the Predacons. His peers' spirits lifted, Jazz thanked Tracks for giving them hope. Spotlight: Jazz

Jazz then had to sort out an argument between Prowl and Ironhide that ended with Ironhide punching Prowl after he told Ironhide that he might be the suspected Autobot traitor that put them in this predicament. Prowl wondered why Ironhide wasn't afraid of him, but was of Jazz, to which Jazz replied "tone", after which they discussed their situation. Later, Jazz and Ironhide talked about the good old days, with Ironhide getting upset that Jazz was hiding something from him and the Autobots. Ironhide also believed that Mirage was the one who'd sold them out, but Jazz told him to leave Mirage alone. All Hail Megatron #4

Not long afterwards, the Trion crashed on Cybertron, and Jazz met with the commander of the vessel, Kup. Kup wasn't too impressed with Jazz's supposed "special ops" skills, but changed his mind after seeing Jazz shove a gun in his face after taking out Springer and Blurr in mere seconds. After Jazz had proved himself to Kup, he showed Optimus's comatose body to the older Autobot. Kup easily figured out what it was Jazz was keeping secret from the other Autobots: Megatron had seized the Matrix of Leadership. All Hail Megatron #5

Jazz and Kup subsequently combined their forces, with Kup offering Jazz the position of his second-in-command. However, Jazz didn't approve of the way Kup's team worked, and was none too happy about becoming "another of Kup's little soldiers". Kup retorted that Jazz's hands weren't exactly clean either—he had read files on the top secret missions Jazz had carried out in the past. While at first speechless, Jazz quickly realized that arguments would get them nowhere, and accepted the position at Kup's side. All Hail Megatron #6 Later, he gave Kup a detailed story about how his team had ended up on the planet. All Hail Megatron #7

Never tell me the odds!

After Sunstreaker revealed himself as the traitor, and subsequently killed himself, Jazz told Drift not to confront Ironhide about it. Drift didn't listen. All Hail Megatron #8 When Optimus Prime recovered from his injuries, Jazz stood by his side. All Hail Megatron #9 Shortly afterwards, he asked Prowl what he thought about an incoming swarm attack. When told that there was only seven scenarios out of over 6,000 with an Autobot victory, he suggested that Prowl keep that little calculation to himself. Luckily, Prowl hadn't anticipated that Omega Supreme would appear out of nowhere and save them. All Hail Megatron #10

Omega carried Jazz and the others back to Earth, where they confronted the Decepticons in New York City. All Hail Megatron #11 They won, but were left knowing the Decepticons were dropping a nuclear bomb on the city. Jazz stated the obvious in that they needed someone who could fly in order to take it out. Thankfully, the Decepticon Thundercracker offered to do it, and Jazz and the others celebrated as the nuke was diverted and the Decepticons left Earth. All Hail Megatron #12 When Bumblebee went missing in one of the human disaster areas after the Decepticons evacuated, Jazz was part of an Autobot squad who went in to retrieve him. Hidden

Working with the humans

Hot Rod stole my chest, so I stole his!

Jazz was still on Earth two years later, hiding in a cave system along with the other Autobots. New Arrivals, Old Encounters After Bumblebee was elected to be their new leader, Jazz listened to his speech about how they would stand up to their treacherous ally, the Skywatch Colonel Gordon Horiuchi. The Impossible Knot

Jazz helped repel an undead Earth that arrived to Earth afterwards. Heart of Darkness #4

When Ultra Magnus learned that Hot Rod's splinter faction of Autobots had joined forces with the Decepticons to build an illegal spacecraft, Jazz was one of the Autobots recruited by Magnus to arrest Hot Rod and the others. These Autobots escorted Ultra Magnus to the construction site, where it was discovered that the Decepticons who Hot Rod had taken under his wing had double-crossed him, and in a very bad way. Jazz watched as the Stunticons merged for the first time into Menasor, a recent creation of the treacherous Swindle. Enemies of the System

After the Autobots and Skywatch had unofficially formed an alliance, Jazz was one of several Autobots sent to South Korea when the Combaticons invaded under the command of North Korea. Because the President of the United States had unwittingly declared that nations using Cybertronians as mercenaries would be considered to be using weapons of mass destruction, the Autobots and Skywatch were forced to operate in disguise, fighting in vehicle mode with Skywatch weapons bolted onto their bodies. During the ensuing battle, Jazz fought Brawl, but at a disadvantage in vehicle mode, failed to prevent the Decepticon's escape. Ranks of Bronze After their initial failure to apprehend the Combaticons, the Autobots formulated a new strategy that would allow them to fight in robot mode whilst spy satellites monitoring the situation would be none the wiser. Now, without needing to be stuck in vehicle mode, Jazz helped Prowl fight Brawl by holding his tank turret in place while his comrade blasted at the gap between the turret and hull. Then the Predacons showed up. Hawk Among the Sparrows

Thanks to some aggravating from the Combaticons, a battle broke out between the Autobots and Predacons, but it was cut short when the spy satellite plan failed and the conflict was revealed to the world. Russia immediately attempted to nuke the Transformers, causing the Predacons to flee while the Autobots figured out a plan to stop the incoming warhead. Jazz was hoping that their temporary ally Thundercracker could do his nuke-aversion-trick again, but dismissed the Decepticon as a coward upon hearing that he had already flown off somewhere. All My Sins Remembered

Dammit Jazz, you've got to stop kidnapping and shooting at people.

After the day was saved once again, the Autobots began to return home on a Skywatch plane. During the trip, Jazz began feeling like something bad was going to happen, and sure enough, a pilot soon reported that something was approaching them at high speeds. Jazz shouted at the humans to hurry into their crash suits, and moments later, the plane was shot down. The Demolished Man The Autobots and suited-up humans survived their impact with the Pacific Ocean and made it to shore. Woken Furies

As it turned out, Megatron had returned to Earth and defeated the Autobots who didn't go to Korea. Prime's team learned that Megatron had dumped the injured Autobots in the city, and that they were being threatened by civilians with Megatron-guns. Prime sent Jazz to transport Spike Witwicky and Campolongo into the city to take control of the situation. Although Prime incapacitated Soundwave and stopped the signal inciting the humans, a lone cop threatened to shoot the Autobots just the same. While Bumblebee attempted to reason with the officer and began to have some success, Jazz's special ops training kicked in and he leapt into action to save his friends, killing the officer point blank with his photon gun. Burning Chrome In the aftermath, the shellshocked Jazz had to be carried away by Bluestreak and Huffer. Full Fathom Five

Jazz was later dressed down by Optimus Prime, being relieved of duty until Bumblebee was well enough to deal with him. Enemy Mine Jazz was one of the many Autobots who lined up to look at Megatron, now captured. Chaos Theory #1 He was present when Hot Rod (now "Rodimus") returned to Earth with news that Cybertron was now healed but had come under the control of Galvatron. Most of the Autobots wasted no time in leaving Earth to liberate their home planet. Orphans of the Helix

Serious Jazz is serious.

A few of them, including Jazz, were chosen to remain on Earth under Bumblebee's command. He disapproved of Bumblebee focusing on an investigation of Spike instead of tracking down the Decepticons on the planet, and even offered to do it all by himself, but Bumblebee refused to let him out into the field after his killing of a human. Jazz tried to explain that he was more horrified than anyone over his actions, but his words fell on deaf ears, and he stormed out. Police Action: Part 1

When Ultra Magnus assembled a team to capture Ben Simpson, he too ordered Jazz to remain behind, telling him he was a liability. Once it was revealed that Spike had been lying to the Autobots and purchasing Cybertronian technology for Skywatch's use from Swindle since the beginning, Jazz had had enough of the whole thing. Together with Pennington he traveled to Skywatch's abandoned New Mexico base, where he contacted General Allenby, informed him of Spike's crimes and declared the alliance between the Autobots and humans to be over. He went on to record the conversation for the news media, then erased as much information on Cybertronian tech as he could by setting off an EMP in the base before burning it down. A Second Chance at Eden

Post-war Cybertron

Mellow Jazz is mellow.

The Autobots returned to Cybertron, which had been pacified after the "Chaos War" with Galvatron and D-Void, but so did a lot of neutral Cybertronians who blamed their war for ruining everything. When these "NAILs" started a riot, Jazz tried to pacify them alongside other Autobots and Decepticons. The Death of Optimus Prime He then witnessed the disastrous launch of the Lost Light. How to Say Goodbye and Mean ItCybertronian Homesick Blues Later he wandered around in a crowd of NAILs. The Autonomy Lesson Jazz was at the Autobot base when he and the others received word of an arriving Sky-Byte. A Better Tomorrow

Jazz was later performing a musical/poetic duet with Sky-Byte at Maccadam's Old Oil House. Interference Patterns When most Decepticons began rioting in the streets in celebration of Megatron's return, Jazz holed up in the bar and prepared to defend his NAIL friends. City on Fire In the face of growing attacks, they were soon forced to abandon the bar The Verge and relocate to Fixit's med-center. Before the Dawn When the building was attacked by Devastator, Jazz urged Sky-Byte to take the injured to safety while he stood strong alongside Autobots, NAILs, and disillusioned Decepticons in an attempt to hold the giant back. Plan for Everything After the battle ended with Megatron's defeat, he witnessed Starscream take leadership of the NAILs and banish all Autobots and Decepticons. Heavy Is the Head Unlike most Autobots, Jazz instead chose to abandon his faction and remained in Iacon with the NAILs. Second Exodus

He was on guard at the parapets with Swindle when Shockwave's glowing ores began to shine over the horizon. Dark Dawn Jazz later allowed Starscream time alone with the accused saboteur Scoop in the detention block, but warned his "leader" that the Autobot better not have a scratch on him when he returned. Black Metal

When the Necrotitan attacked New Iacon, Jazz helped move civilians out of the line of fire, transporting them to the Autobot camp outside the city. Finis Temporis As the dust settled after the return of Metroplex and his defeat of the Necrotitan, Jazz and Sky-Byte found themselves at Swerve's bar on board the Lost Light with the united Autobot and Decepticon soldiers. The Becoming After Shockwave's defeat and Megatron's trial, Jazz and Jetfire heard Prowl voice his outrage towards the trial's outcome to Optimus. Detonation Boulevard Jazz would then solemnly rummage through the ruins of Iacon, finding what was left of his electro-bass, before being approached by Optimus. After apologizing for abandoning the Autobots to stand with Starscream, Jazz was surprised that Optimus still wanted him to come along on a new mission to Earth; seeing how much Prime still believed in him, Jazz accepted. Full Fathom Five

Return to Earth

Okay, Jazz, you REALLY need to stop doing that.

When the Ark-7 came under attack after entering Earth orbit, Jazz was among those Optimus took aboard Sky Lynx to make a stealth landing. Going along with Optimus and Kup to investigate a mysterious signal, Jazz became mighty suspicious when they came upon the source of the signal in a shack and lost contact with Cosmos. His intuition turned out to be correct as the group found not only Thundercracker, but a joint Decepticon-Earth Defense Command force. Hello Cruel World Jazz tried opening fire on Laserbeak, but the Decepticon lured him into almost hitting some humans, causing him to remember how he had killed John Powell and panic—also giving Blitzwing a chance to deck him. Jazz and the others then made a run for it, Arcee and Sideswipe giving them some covering fire, until they were chased right into the town of Poverty Flat. Jazz refused to fight there, but could do little else but watch as Devastator came crashing down onto the Decepticons. Detonation Boulevard Observing how the combiner didn't seem to have much of Prowl's intelligence, Jazz helped the other Autobots in getting the nearby humans clear until the battle ended and Sky Lynx took them all back to the Ark-7, where Jazz told Kup how angry he was that he had almost harmed more humans. The Mind Bomb

After the Autobots had tracked Alpha Trion down to the Marshall Islands, Jazz was sent in alone using Jetfire's new stealth paint to infiltrate the EDC base stationed there. Soon enough, he came across Trion's ship and then, following a distraction created by the other Autobots outside, Trion himself. Before Jazz could unhook Trion from the humans' mindbomb, however, he found a gun pressed up against the back of his head courtesy of Prowl. Full Fathom Five Fortunately, Prowl explained that he only wanted to stop Jazz from disconnecting Trion and subsequently triggering an alarm—not that that made Jazz feel any better about having a gun to his head. After Jazz was convinced by Prowl that the EDC must have had another source of Cybertronian tech than just Alpha Trion, the two went to investigate a giant door, only for Prowl to suddenly collapse from the mindbomb's effects. Jazz then tried dragging Prowl to safety, but found himself held at gunpoint again, this time by Soundwave. Shocked by Soundwave's claim that there was a spy in the Autobots' ranks, Jazz was just as shocked when some nearby tanks and jets suddenly became active and blasted the Decepticon away. Suspecting that it was Prowl's work, Jazz continued to drag the unconscious 'bot outside, where he regained consciousness and the pair was reunited with Optimus and the others. On their way back to the Ark-7, Jazz assisted the injured Kup. I Dream of Wires

OW! Not that arm again, dammit!

As part of the Autobots' investigation into Onyx's use of Cybertronian coding, Jazz was part of a team sent to Bouvetoya along with Jetfire, Kup, Sky Lynx, and D.0.C. to find the source of a mysterious quantum signal embedded into Onyx's coding, bantering with Kup all the way. Upon finding an Onyx facility, however, the team was attacked by a squad of Thrust/Ramjet clone-combiners! After Jetfire was knocked out, Jazz refused to abandon Kup and joined him in opening fire on the monstrosities, but he was taken out of the fight himself when one combiner got ahold of him and tore off his arm, sending him into unconsciousness. The Nothing Man Jazz then later awakened in a dark room full of black liquid, and soon found himself screaming in intense agony as the liquid started burning his exposed spark. Aphelion It would end up being D.0.C. and Thundercracker's dog, Buster, who rescued Jazz and the others, as the two found their way into the room and D.0.C. burned a hole through the ceiling, prompting Jazz to apologize for everything bad he'd ever said about the drone. Although an angry Jazz was raring for a fight when he and the other Autobots emerged from their prison in the EDC's base, D.0.C. quickly explained that the EDC was not responsible for their captivity. Teaming up with the EDC, the group busted into the base's prison to seize the real culprit, Garrison Blackrock; Jazz was not very happy to see Spike Witwicky there as well. Along with both the other Autobots and the humans, Jazz looked on in shock as Galvatron teleported in with Skywarp and explained that Blackrock was actually a creation of Onyx Prime! Helden Keeping their guns trained on Galvatron after he seized Blackrock, Jazz told Kup to prepare to grab the Onyx CEO before Skywarp suddenly teleported Galvatron, Blackrock, and himself out. Despite Jetfire and Kup's desire to go to Shanghai to stop Galvatron's plans, Jazz pointed out that they had no transport due to Sky Lynx's injuries. Perihelion

Yes Jazz, STOP the humans from getting shot.

Left with little choice, the EDC made preparations to use a full-spectrum mindbomb to try to stop the Decepticons, something which Marissa Faireborn warned a confused Jazz and Kup would cause them some pain. In the aftermath of the battle in Shanghai, Optimus arrived at the EDC base in the Skyroller to pick up his lost comrades. Jazz backed up all that Thundercracker told Prime about Blackrock being the one responsible for their capture, and then went aboard the Skyroller. As the Autobots began setting up their new base at Thundercracker's homestead, Jazz was among the injured who they could do little for but put on a slab as they waited for more supplies. Once Upon a Time on Earth Once Optimus announced his intentions to annex Earth into the Council of Worlds, the Autobots started engaging in humanitarian acts all across the globe to prove their good intentions, with a repaired Jazz stopping a police officer from shooting an unarmed black youth. When Ayana Jones tried to tell the President of the United States about how Jazz made it clear the Autobots weren't there to hurt them, the President simply brought up footage of Jazz's killing Powell. Later, after Optimus arrived at the Autobots' new base in Monument Valley following a confrontation with the President, Jazz empathized with his having lost an arm during the encounter. Edge of the Earth

Well...okay, you can probably shoot at these guys.

Jazz was among those who participated in the joint Autobot/Decepticon effort to raid the Nemesis in the Indian Ocean and take down Galvatron and his forces. Jazz became more than a little worried when Galvatron sent the Seeker clone combiners onto the battlefield. It's Beginning To And Back Again Superion managed to shut down these and other combiners, allowing Jazz and several of his comrades to enter the Nemesis, although Jazz couldn't help but notice how Superion was growing larger. The group soon came across Garrison Blackrock and, although Jazz tried to convince him that his being Cybertronian meant he should come with them, he was snatched out of their grasp by the EDC and Skywarp. As Above...So Below Jazz then joined the allied 'Bots and 'Cons outside, No Fair Fights and tried to stop the captive Blitzwing from making a run for it before Kup managed to knock him out. White Light Despite Prime's orders to the contrary, Jazz and several others were forced to fire on humans as G.I. Joe launched its own assault on the allied factions, although this had little effect, with Jazz being blasted by Deep Six. He was relieved when Sky Lynx came to the rescue, and forced Dreadwing to get aboard the large Autobot before they made tracks for Autobot City. White Heat

At least it's a different arm this time...

Jazz and Arcee then went to Portland to assist in recovery efforts after a flood there, and although Jazz couldn't believe the humans would attack them in the middle of such activities, they soon found themselves under attack once more by G.I. Joe. Despite reservations, Jazz joined Arcee in fighting back against the humans, only for a mysterious alien to join the fray and begin murdering several of the Joes. Realizing that the alien would likely be mistaken for one of them and they'd take the blame, Jazz tried to stop him, only to lose another arm when Rock 'n Roll blew it off. Victorion then used her gravity-manipulating powers to get Jazz and the others off of the battlefield. Concorde Hymn The group then confronted the alien, Rom, with Jazz remarking how impressive it was that the Space Knight had managed to flip Prime onto his back, although he was confident it wouldn't happen again. The Divine Source of Liberty After Rom was brought to Autobot City, Jazz stood guard outside at its entrance with Arcee and Victorion. O Ship of State Snake-Eyes sneaked past him and Victorion, however, and the two soon found themselves face-to-face with the entire M.A.S.K. team and a horde of Dire Wraiths. As Victorion was overwhelmed by these forces, Jazz rushed inside to warn the others, but several of the M.A.S.K. vehicles and Wraiths soon overtook him. The New Colossus The Transformers, G.I. Joe, M.A.S.K, Micronauts, and Rom would end up uniting their forces after Baron Karza merged with the Dire Wraiths. Metrotitan transformed to starship mode to protect most of the allied heroes from a gambit meant to stop the Karza/Wraith hybrid, with Jazz looking down at the scene. He was later present when Optimus told the Joes that he had come to realize they were equals. Valley Forge

Jazz, why you gotta punch down all the time?

Optimus, Arcee and Jazz (now sporting yet another shiny new arm) later returned to Monument Valley to investigate a Space Bridge fluctuation where Jazz defended Optimus's decision to annex Earth before the three Autobots decided to leave, finding nothing of worth...until an enraged Baron Karza appeared wearing the body of Micronus Prime! Karza swatted aside his foes before they could overcome their shock, Wrath of Karza #1 and placed them in a special prison. The three Autobots were freed by the Micronauts and joined in the fight against Karza's Acroyear III army before Lady Shazraella arrived wreathed in Time Traveler energy. Wrath of Karza #4 Optimus took advantage of the distraction to attack Karza only for the tyrant to again enerchange with Micronus and engaged the Autobots. Shazraella then utilized her time powers which caused the Autobots to flash through earlier alternate modes before they began growing out of control however. A horrified Karza appealed to the Autobots for aid and they agreed to help him. Shazraella's new powers proved too much form then until Oziron Rael returned, now having become a Time Traveler himself and ended the threat. Jazz witnessed Optimus pledge to the Time Travelers that he would aid the refugees of Microspace adapt to Earth. Wrath of Karza #5

Trying to make amends

Jazz! No killing, no kidnapping, and NO stalking either!

Sometime after these events, Jazz went with Prime, Soundwave, and Arcee into Mexico City following an attempt to recover some reverse-engineered Cybertronian tech had gone a bit south. Jazz tried to help a woman named Sofía Orozco who had been trampled by a panicking crowd, but she angrily rebuked his efforts, calling him a "monster". To Walk Among the Chosen Nonetheless, Jazz followed her to try and properly understand the human perception of Cybertronians. Behind My Bleeding Back After again failing to talk to her, Sharkticons began dropping from the sky. Sofia's rant prompted Jazz to question her profession before the Sharkticons all began leaving. Future Glories Lost In the aftermath, Sofia revealed herself to be a television intern, inviting Jazz to tell his story to her network. Feel Safe Without Regrets

"No, Mr. Jazz, don't take your anger out on me! M-Mr. Jazz, nooooo-!"
"Dramatization! May not have happened!"

Arriving at a converted warehouse, Jazz was interviewed by Hector Ramirez about his early life, the start of the Great War and the start of the war on Earth. When the questioning reached John Powell however, Jazz became annoyed by Ramirez's constant twisting of answers and decided to leave. And not a moment too soon as a message from Optimus made him realize a G.I. Joe squad was on its way to arrest him. Leaving his aghartan electro-bass behind, Jazz fled though not before shooting Sofía a disappointed look. He was already fifteen miles outside the city when G.I. Joe arrived at the warehouse. What It's Really Like Authorities searched for him to no success. The Life of Sideswipe

Deciding to make the best of bad situation, Jazz opted to continue the mission of tracking the black-market EDC weaponry. Primeless, Part 2 Outside of Oaxaca, Mexico however, he came under fire from angry Mexicans wielding Cybertronian-derived weaponry where the Colonist Soldiers caught up with him. Primeless, Part 1 Briefly confused to see the Colonist Soldiers away from Optimus, the Autobots nonetheless subdued the humans. After learning that Optimus was trapped on Cybertron, Jazz was touched that the Colonists had come to rescue him but declared that they had to find the weapons. To that end, he "politely asked" Mateo Chavez where the weapons were coming from.

Being led to a small ghost town in the southern United States, Jazz instantly recognized the arms dealers as holomatter avatars and crushed one before he tore the ghost town apart to find the weapons cache. On cue, Rumble and Frenzy made themselves known and tried to flee only to be quickly surrounded. Jazz then asked if Optimus had sent the Colonists after him only to learn that they had truly come of their volition. That proved to be the last straw for Jazz as Optimus had seemingly hung him out to dry. Overhearing Slide and Aileron's conversation, Jazz remarked that Optimus would sweep everything under the rug to try and please everyone before deciding to strike out on his own for a while, requesting that Aileron give his greetings to Jetfire and Kup and offering a confusing metaphor about making mistakes whilst playing jazz. Primeless, Part 2

Continuing to hunt down humans with Cybertronian technology, Jazz's latest target was infected with Dire Wraith bio-matter, bringing him into contact with Rom the Space Knight once again. After the two had defeated the rogue humans, Rom convulsed in pain as he sensed an object of great power threatening his homeworld of Elonia. With both keenly aware that Rom would never make it back home in time under his own power, Jazz led his friend to Mount Rushmore, the current resting place of Trypticon, where he surrendered himself to the humans so that Rom would be allowed to make use of the Titan's space bridge. Unstopped and Unstoppable Chained up, Jazz was placed under the watch of Spike Witwicky, trading barbs with his jailer over his own immoral actions, before his mind drifted back to when he first arrived on Earth, viewing his arrival as the catalyst for all the Cybertronian-related chaos that now plagued the organic world. Outside, the Dinobots, enraged at Jazz's incarceration, had been petitioning for his release only to come to blows with the Colonist Soldiers, Slide leading them on a half-cocked rescue mission. When Jazz heard the struggle, he unhesitatingly snapped his chains and rushed outside, arriving just as Rum-Maj tried to unleash her Sharkticons on Earth once again, but managing to stop the fighting. Before a respite could be had however, Unicron teleported above Earth. Time Will Rust

Role reversal.

As everyone gaped, Sofía Orozco arrived to do a news report, Jazz bitterly vouching for freedom of the press before Rom and Soundwave arrived, the former sadly informing Jazz that Unicron had destroyed not only Elonia, but Cybertron as well. It was then that Peaceful Revolution arrived, materializing underground thanks to Goldbug's dodgy flying, with Prowl taking everyone to Victoria Falls to regroup with Optimus. Later on, Jazz took a moment to clear the air and receive an apology from Optimus for being recently left to fend for himself. Jazz reflected on the fact that they now had a younger generation to worry about making a future for. A Sunrise Dark Within Metroplex, Jazz attended a briefing on Unicron's origins, and the plan to use the Talisman against the monster, before he joined in the diversionary attack on the Decepticon Vengeance Division. Assembly

Though the fleet was taken by surprise and quickly destroyed, the remaining Maximals were quick to launch a savage counterattack. Much to Jazz's amazement, Starscream soon gave his spark to activate the Talisman but the Autobots' gaping left them open to an attack by one of the Maximals, whose claws cut right through Ironhide. Though Bumblebee quickly dispatched their attacker, the damage was too great and Jazz mournfully cradled his friend who professed that it was alright before he peacefully died. Soon enough, Optimus had convinced the spirit of Unicron's creator to stand down with Jazz flying to join Metroplex's space bridge back to Earth, though pausing to question Bumblebee and Aileron on their plan to hang back. Ceremony

In the new era of co-habitation on Earth, Jazz led a team of Cybertronians, humans, and Space Knights in repairing San Francisco before Sofía Orozco approached him to try and get another interview. Still smarting from the previous one, Jazz rebuked the woman, telling her simply that he was here to do what was right, unconcerned about any media attention, or even receiving thanks. Post

Notes

• In Spotlight: Blaster, Jazz is wearing his War Within body. From Infiltration to All Hail Megatron, Jazz had an original body design by E. J. Su. In The Transformers vol. 1, he had a redesign from Don Figueroa. In Robots in Disguise "Season 1", he took on his "Aligned" counterpart's War for Cybertron game design. And from Robots in Disguise "Season 2" until the end, he had a redesign from Andrew Griffith (seen at right).
• Jazz's aforementioned Earth design by Griffith employs the Porsche 918 as an alt-mode.^[1]
• According to Hasbro Heroes Sourcebook #2, Jazz is 32 feet tall and weighs 15 tons.^[2]

References