Live action TV
Description
Jetfire is an ancient Transformer who appears in the 2009 film Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. He was originally a Decepticon and a direct servant of the villain known as the Fallen, one of the first Primes. Jetfire belonged to an elite class of Transformers called Seekers, whose mission was to travel across the universe to locate suitable stars for harvesting, a process that would convert the star's energy into fuel for the Cybertronian race. During his service, Jetfire unknowingly helped the Fallen destroy a populated star system, which began to sow seeds of doubt in his mind about his master's true intentions. When the Fallen betrayed the other Primes on ancient Earth, he abandoned Jetfire and the other Seekers on the planet, leaving them to enter a state of stasis lock from lack of energy. For millennia, Jetfire remained dormant, taking the alternate mode of a Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird spy plane, and was eventually put on display in the National Air and Space Museum.
Jetfire's personality is defined by his immense age and physical decay. Reawakened in the 21st century, he is portrayed as a crotchety, eccentric, and senile old warrior who is literally falling apart. His body is rusted and malfunctioning, his memory is faulty, and he moves with a hunched posture, using a landing gear strut as a walking stick. Despite his infirmities, his personality is sharp, irritable, and laced with a peculiar sense of dignity. He is openly contemptuous of Earth, which he renames as Planet Dirt, and is prone to rambling, nonsensical monologues, such as his claim that his father was the first wheel, which transformed into nothing but did so with honor and dignity. His primary motivation stems from a deep-seated feeling of abandonment and a desire for redemption. He was left on Earth to rust by the Fallen, whom he now despises, and this betrayal fuels his decision to finally take a stand. He reveals that he defected from the Decepticons because he no longer wished to live a life filled with hate, making him a rare and valuable turncoat.
In the story, Jetfire serves as a crucial source of exposition and a turning point for the Autobots’ fortunes. After being reawakened by Sam Witwicky using a fragment of the AllSpark, Jetfire is initially confused and hostile. However, upon learning that the Fallen is active again, he remembers his original mission to find the Matrix of Leadership. Using his internal space bridge, a teleportation ability, he transports Sam, his companions, and several Autobots to Egypt to find the tomb of the Primes and the Matrix. His key relationships are defined by his role as a mentor and a bridge to the past. He holds a profound reverence for the Primes, and his interactions with the human protagonists are marked by impatient lectures about ancient Cybertronian history. His most significant relationship, however, is a brief but pivotal one with Optimus Prime. After witnessing Optimus resurrected as a living Prime in the midst of battle, Jetfire is filled with awe and a sense of purpose, realizing that this is his moment to do something worthwhile.
Jetfire undergoes a complete and final character arc from a forgotten relic to a heroic sacrifice. He begins as a broken, retired soldier who can barely remember his own mission. After providing the heroes with the knowledge they need, he chooses to rejoin the fight. During the final battle, despite being decades out of practice and physically failing, he demonstrates his legendary combat prowess by single-handedly killing the Decepticons Mixmaster and Scorponok, though he is mortally wounded in the process. In his final moments, seeing that Optimus Prime is being overpowered by the Fallen, Jetfire delivers a defining speech about having never done a thing worth doing in his life. With that, he willingly tears out his own spark, the core of his being, killing himself so that his advanced parts and weapons can be grafted onto Optimus. This sacrifice empowers Optimus Prime to combine with his parts, a form known as Jetpower Optimus Prime, giving him the strength to destroy the Fallen’s sun harvester and kill the ancient Decepticon leader.
Notable abilities include his transformation into the high-altitude SR-71 Blackbird, which makes him exceptionally fast. He is armed with a large battleaxe and an arm-mounted rotary cannon. His signature ability is the creation of a space bridge, which allows him to teleport himself and others across vast distances, though his age can cause the process to be somewhat unstable. Even in his decrepit state, his combat skills are formidable, as he dispatches two Decepticons with brutal efficiency in his final battle. Ultimately, his most significant contribution is his own body; his afterburners, armor, and weapons systems are powerful enough to give Optimus Prime the edge needed to save the world.
Jetfire's personality is defined by his immense age and physical decay. Reawakened in the 21st century, he is portrayed as a crotchety, eccentric, and senile old warrior who is literally falling apart. His body is rusted and malfunctioning, his memory is faulty, and he moves with a hunched posture, using a landing gear strut as a walking stick. Despite his infirmities, his personality is sharp, irritable, and laced with a peculiar sense of dignity. He is openly contemptuous of Earth, which he renames as Planet Dirt, and is prone to rambling, nonsensical monologues, such as his claim that his father was the first wheel, which transformed into nothing but did so with honor and dignity. His primary motivation stems from a deep-seated feeling of abandonment and a desire for redemption. He was left on Earth to rust by the Fallen, whom he now despises, and this betrayal fuels his decision to finally take a stand. He reveals that he defected from the Decepticons because he no longer wished to live a life filled with hate, making him a rare and valuable turncoat.
In the story, Jetfire serves as a crucial source of exposition and a turning point for the Autobots’ fortunes. After being reawakened by Sam Witwicky using a fragment of the AllSpark, Jetfire is initially confused and hostile. However, upon learning that the Fallen is active again, he remembers his original mission to find the Matrix of Leadership. Using his internal space bridge, a teleportation ability, he transports Sam, his companions, and several Autobots to Egypt to find the tomb of the Primes and the Matrix. His key relationships are defined by his role as a mentor and a bridge to the past. He holds a profound reverence for the Primes, and his interactions with the human protagonists are marked by impatient lectures about ancient Cybertronian history. His most significant relationship, however, is a brief but pivotal one with Optimus Prime. After witnessing Optimus resurrected as a living Prime in the midst of battle, Jetfire is filled with awe and a sense of purpose, realizing that this is his moment to do something worthwhile.
Jetfire undergoes a complete and final character arc from a forgotten relic to a heroic sacrifice. He begins as a broken, retired soldier who can barely remember his own mission. After providing the heroes with the knowledge they need, he chooses to rejoin the fight. During the final battle, despite being decades out of practice and physically failing, he demonstrates his legendary combat prowess by single-handedly killing the Decepticons Mixmaster and Scorponok, though he is mortally wounded in the process. In his final moments, seeing that Optimus Prime is being overpowered by the Fallen, Jetfire delivers a defining speech about having never done a thing worth doing in his life. With that, he willingly tears out his own spark, the core of his being, killing himself so that his advanced parts and weapons can be grafted onto Optimus. This sacrifice empowers Optimus Prime to combine with his parts, a form known as Jetpower Optimus Prime, giving him the strength to destroy the Fallen’s sun harvester and kill the ancient Decepticon leader.
Notable abilities include his transformation into the high-altitude SR-71 Blackbird, which makes him exceptionally fast. He is armed with a large battleaxe and an arm-mounted rotary cannon. His signature ability is the creation of a space bridge, which allows him to teleport himself and others across vast distances, though his age can cause the process to be somewhat unstable. Even in his decrepit state, his combat skills are formidable, as he dispatches two Decepticons with brutal efficiency in his final battle. Ultimately, his most significant contribution is his own body; his afterburners, armor, and weapons systems are powerful enough to give Optimus Prime the edge needed to save the world.