Oiler

Oiler is an Autobot Micromaster from the Generation 1 continuity family.

Don't call him Captain Planet... seriously.

Oiler, leader of the Metro Squad, is an oil addict—in reverse. Determined to preserve energy at all costs, he under-fuels himself to conserve energy, and thus runs dry in precarious situations. His squadmates think this is just the result of his ceaseless efforts to protect the innocent, though Oiler does use his above-average intelligence to hide the truth from them, rationalizing away as he does. However, his actions are beginning to take a toll on his functions.^[1]

His combiner partner on the Metro Squad is Slide. In some universes, Oiler is female, but oddly enough not in the universes where Slide is also a lady.

Fiction

Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity

Return of Convoy toy bios

Oiler was a member of the Fire Tanker W Team under the leadership of Wheel Blaze. Fire Tanker W Team bio

Legends comic

In 2038, Oiler was on Zone when it was invaded by the forces of Violengiguar and Dark Nova. Along with a number of fellow Micromasters, Oiler swarmed the possessed body of Dai Atlas, distracting the Decepticon spirit inside until heavier weaponry could be brought to the battlefield. LG-EX Big Powered Prologue Part One

2005 IDW continuity

First appearance: Optimus Prime #1

Oiler and his twin sister Slide hailed from the colony world of Devisiun, settled by Transformer colonists millions of years ago and subsequently evolving into a civilization of linked Transformers where each formed one half of a single alternate mode. Oiler and his sister were raised to believe that their pioneering forebears had "civilized" this once-verdant planet for its own good; they spent their early years playing with the native creatures, viewing them as backwards lifeforms whom the Transformers had "saved" from their own feral existence. Time Will Rust

He's busy watching the Oilers on Metrotitan's sick 4K display.

Like the other Titan colonies, the Devisiens were highly religious, and a common belief was that Primes were holy figures, wise keepers of the ultimate truths. Primeless, Part 2 Shortly after Devisiun joined the Council of Worlds, the twins learned of Optimus Prime, who eventually visited their planet in search of new recruits to help keep the peace on Earth. Post Despite Slide's initial hesitance, Oiler was excited at the prospects of working alongside the Prime, following in the footsteps of their ancestors by saving humanity from itself. Time Will Rust and so both twins joined Prime on Earth at some point after the Ore-13 crisis. Like the other recently arrived Colonist Soldiers they began wearing mouthplates to emulate him. To Walk Among the Chosen At some point, Oiler and the other recruits traveled to Eukaris with Optimus during this recruitment tour, picking up Gimlet and Bump as fellow rookies. Time Will Rust

The new recruits got their first taste of real action when they were sent to Mexico City with Aileron in the hopes of locating a cache of recovered Cybertronian technology. They discovered that an anti-Transformer mob had set up a protest that had quickly turned into a riot. When a human protester shot Midnight Express with a weapon of Cybertronian origin, Optimus summoned reinforcements. While Soundwave, Arcee, and Jazz saved the day, the new meat watched in awe. Back aboard Autobot City, the assembled colonists continued to laud the myriad deeds of Optimus; Oiler mentioned that he would follow Optimus no matter where the Prime traveled. Their combined hero-worship managed to annoy even Aileron. To Walk Among the Chosen

After Optimus Prime made contact with the Junkions, the colonist platoon badgered a recently returned Optimus with questions about the newcomers. Soundwave wasn't inclined to field their questions and told them to shut up, though Slide cracked wise partway through Soundwave's story about the Battle of Junkion. A Lonely Pillar on the Plain

Oiler and the other colonists knelt as Optimus Prime returned to Earth from Cybertron, and later watched on as Optimus and Pyra Magna had a heated argument about Prime's use of the Matrix. The twins were present on the deck of Metrotitan when Optimus held a summit with several human governments... only to be interrupted when the Junkions unleashed a horde of ravenous Sharkticons. Dance Among the Shadows The awed colonists watched as Optimus ordered Metrotitan to lay siege to the Junkion mothership, and Oiler and Slide fought to keep the Junkions off the Titan's deck. Though Oiler fought hard, it wasn't enough: a Junkion caught him by surprise and sliced his head in two. He was avenged by Slide, who blew his killer to bits. Future Glories Lost

Oiler's body was subsequently laid to rest in the old EDC base in the Bikini Atoll. This only infuriated Slide further, as it was now home to the same Junkions who had slain him. At his funeral, she lamented that, due to their linked Devisen physiology, she couldn't even transform anymore. The Next Day, and the Next

Beast Wars: Uprising

During the Grand Uprising, Oiler was a squad commander in the 74th Division under Erector's leadership in contested Tesarus. Faced with the inevitable advance of the Resistance-allied Pack, she ordered Strikedown and the rest of her squad to dig in and fortify their position before the Pack arrived. Derailment

Toys

The Transformers

He wants to oil on you!

• Metro Squad (Micromaster Combiner Squad, 1990)

Released in the seventh and final year of the original Hasbro Transformers toyline in the US (sixth and non-final year in Europe), Oiler transforms into a trailer truck that is intended to be the front half of a blue and white tanker truck that he forms with his combiner partner Slide. He can, of course, combine with any other Micromaster Combiner to form a new vehicle, as well as connect to any Micromaster Combiner Transport.

Oiler was only available in a six-pack with his squadmates Slide, Power Run, Roadburner, Strikedown, and Wheel Blaze.

• More information on Oiler at TFU.info

• Fire Tanker W Team (Micro Transformer W Team, 1991)

• ID number: C-365
• Accessories: Micro Trailer #5

A year later, Oiler was released in the Return of Convoy part of the original Takara Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers toyline, as part of the Fire Tanker W Team.

The other three toys in the set are Roadburner, Wheel Blaze, and Slide, all identical to their Hasbro-release versions. The set also comes with Micro Trailer #5, a storage/launching vehicle for Micromasters which can also attach to a Micromaster half-vehicle, plus a decal sheet with extra stickers to adorn your Micromasters with.

Notes

• For years, Oiler's only fictional "appearance" was in the pages of Dreamwave's 2003 More than Meets the Eye profile books, which established the character as male in its biographical information. In 2016, a Beast Wars: Uprising text story characterized Oiler as female (sans any Metro Squad colleagues), but in an odd coincidence, IDW's Optimus Prime comic series introduced a male Oiler alongside a female Slide in the same month.

Foreign names

• Japanese: Oiler (オイラー Oirā)
• French: Aéro (Canada)
• Italian: Pluton

References