Jorge Figueroa, commonly known by the nickname Fig, is a human character who serves as a Chief Warrant Officer and technical officer in the United States Army. He is stationed in Qatar under the command of Captain William Lennox as part of an elite team of Army Rangers based at the U.S. SOCCENT Forward Operations Base. A proud and outspoken individual, Fig has a strong connection to his heritage and frequently expresses himself in Spanish, often to the amused or annoyed reactions of his fellow soldiers. He is unapologetic about this habit, asserting it as his right to speak his native language. Fig also has a notable appreciation for unusual culinary facts, specifically his opinion that alligator meat is the most succulent.

His personality is defined by a blend of humor, cultural pride, and battlefield competence. Fig claims to have inherited a gift of precognition from his mother, which he says gives him a feeling when danger is not yet over. This intuition, combined with his quick thinking under fire, proves valuable when the base comes under sudden attack from a transforming Decepticon that appears as an MH-53 Pave Low helicopter. During this assault, Fig demonstrates his tactical awareness by using his grenade launcher to damage the chest-mounted weapon of the attacker, an act that helps create an opportunity for the surviving members of his unit, including Captain Lennox and Sergeant Epps, to escape the destruction of their base.

Fig's primary motivation is the survival and protection of his unit. After the initial attack, he joins the surviving soldiers as they trek through the desert. When the group is ambushed by Scorponok, a giant, metallic scorpion-like Decepticon, Fig provides critical suppression fire for his comrades. His role in this battle is direct and dangerous; while laying down covering fire, he is struck by one of the enemy's missiles and suffers serious injuries. His fate is complex, as a scene depicting him dying from his wounds was cut from the final version of the film, and he is last seen being evacuated by stretcher and taken away by paramedics after returning to the United States, leaving his ultimate survival ambiguous in the movie continuity.

Fig has strong working and personal relationships within his small team. He serves directly under Captain Lennox and fights alongside senior non-commissioned officers like Sergeant Epps and Sergeant Donnelly, with whom he shares a camaraderie typical of a close-knit military squad. His joking claim about alligator meat is met with a declaration from Epps that he would never eat at Fig's house, highlighting their easygoing banter. The unit reacts with visible distress when Fig is wounded, and he is carried from the battlefield on a stretcher by his comrades, underscoring the bond they share.

Throughout the story, Fig does not undergo a significant personal transformation but rather consistently acts as a capable and resilient soldier. His key abilities are his proficiency with military hardware, particularly his skill with a grenade launcher, and his resourcefulness in combat against an entirely unknown and superior technological foe. His casual mention of his mother's precognition suggests a belief in intuition that he treats as a practical asset in the field rather than a supernatural power. In alternate versions of the story, such as the children's novelization where he is renamed John Figuerosa, the character is definitively portrayed as dying from his injuries, a fate that remains ambiguous and the subject of discussion in the primary film continuity.