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- You may be looking for other versions of Rotor. See Rotor (disambiguation).
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Rotor Walrus was a key member of the Knothole Freedom Fighters. Starting out as the team's handy-man, his skills and knowledge of technology and mechanics provided the mobians with an edge against the former despot Dr. Ivo Robotnik and, since his demise, the forces of Dr. Eggman. Following Sonic the Hedgehog's return from outer space, Rotor had limited his involvement with field operations and stuck to providing data and technological assistance. In 3237, he was voted in as a member of the new Council of Acorn. However, when Ixis Naugus' manipulations resulted in NICOLE being unjustly banished from New Mobotropolis, Rotor immediately resigned from the Council in disgust and returned to full field duty as the leader of the new Team Freedom.
History[]
Sonic Origins[]
Rotor hails from Walrus Island in the North Sea where his family was part of the Walrus Herd. His father, Sherman Walrus, was a veteran of the Great War, serving as a member of the Royal Army along side Jules, Bernadette and Sir Charles Hedgehog as a driver for their troop. Along with Rotor's mother Georgette Walrus, Sherman had relocated from Iceborough seeking a better life for his family. Rotor was in Mobotropolis for educational purposes during Dr. Ivo Robotnik's coup d'état but was evacuated to Knothole Village along with the other children in the city. His father perished while resisting Robotnik's takeover, while his mother-then pregnant with his younger brother, Skeeter Walrus-returned to the Northern Tundra. Inspired by the Original Freedom Fighters, Rotor joined with Sonic, Princess Sally, Antoine D'Coolette and the young Miles "Tails" Prower to form the Knothole Freedom Fighters after the original group's demise, becoming the team's handy-man whom the other members would turn to for when they needed nick-nacks or do-dads. His fascination for powerful weaponry-a result of having grown up listening to his father's stories of the Great War-coupled with the sometimes disastrous results of his engineering efforts, earned him the nickname "Boomer." (StH: #77, #142, #143, SSS: #5, SA: #2, CSE)
Dr. Ivo Robotnik's Tyranny[]
When Sonic returned to Freedom HQ from one of his outings, Rotor assured an eager Tails that would brag to him of his exploits. When Antoine reported that a leak was threatening to flood Knothole Village and flush them out of hiding from Dr. Ivo Robotnik though, Rotor and his group headed out to the edge of the Great Forest where they discovered that the source of the leak was a stand of Weeping Willow Trees "crying" over the loss of their friends. Rotor and his group were soon after attacked by Robotnik and Buzzbomber, but Sonic made them retreat. Afterwards, Rotor worked with his friends to plant new trees that made the Weeping Willow Trees stop crying. Later, Rotor provided Sally with a device he had been working on for months, hidden in her boot, which would could compromise and analyze a roboticizer for the purpose of discovering a way to reverse the roboticization. As such, Sally left to let Robotnik capture her. When Sally returned to Freedom HQ though, Rotor discovered that their plan had been ruined by Sonic, Tails, and Antoine. Despite this, Rotor took those news calmly, believing that they would get another chance. Later, Rotor and Tails went out to meet up with Sonic on a fishing trip, only to find Sonic missing and everything at the fishing site chewed up. Suspecting something was up, Rotor retrieving his Bathysphere, and he and Tails went underwater, where they found Sonic about to drown while Jaws watched. Firing air-producing torpedos at Jaws, the pair rescued Sonic, who proceeded to ruin Jaws' roboticization operation. After that, Rotor and his friends went back on land for lunch. (OSM: #0, #1)
When the Magic Crown of the Acorn Kings had its Freedom Emeralds stolen, Rotor would put the crown back together while his teammates recovered the emerald. Once the crown was recompleted, Rotor handed it over to Sally. Some time afterwards, Rotor made a robot disguise that he personally tested out on Sonic when Sally called him in. With Sonic falling for the disguise, Rotor made Sonic don the disguise for a bigger plan that Sally had prepared. (OSM: #2, #3)
Later, back in Freedom HQ, Sonic and Sally brought Antoine, who had gotten entangled in vines from the rapidly spreading Krudzu in the Great Forest, to Rotor. After Rotor got the vines off Antoine and Tails watered the cuttings, which caused the vines to blow up, Rotor figured out that the Krudzu was a machine made by Robotnik. Their problem with the Krudzu spreading through the forest was soon after solved when a rainfall destroyed the mechanical weed. Soon after, Rotor and his team called in Sonic to fold a map for them, which Rotor revealed to Sonic was used to pinpoint Robotnik's whereabouts in Casino Night Zone, prompting Sonic to head there. Rotor later saw Sonic return in time to help Antoine open a child-proof cap. (StH: #1)
When Sonic reported that Robotnik had seemingly acquired a nuclear device, Rotor, despite his concerns of dealing with such a threat, joined Sonic and Sally on a mission to acquire the device. After Sonic and Sally distracted Robotnik, Rotor disguising himself as Robotnik to steal the bomb from Crabmeat. Unfortunately, Robotnik returned and had the idea of disguising himself as Rotor to trick the Freedom Fighters, which led to a ridiculous mix-up that Sonic resolved. Returning to Freedom HQ with the device, Rotor and the others discovered that the bomb was just a pesticide. Later, after learning that Robotnik had operations in the southern regions Mobiuys, Rotor and Sonic traveled there. There, the two saw Bunnie Rabbot get captured by SWATbots and thrown into a Port-O-Bot. Due to having been tethered to Rotor for their travel though, Sonic got delayed as he tore the SWATbots apart and rescued Bunnie, leaving the rabbit partially-roboticized. Afterwards, Rotor helped Sonic bring the unconscious Bunnie back to Freedom HQ. There, Rotor saw Bunnie recover and commit herself to the Freedom Fighters' cause, just as a giant Burrobot arrived in the Great Forest. After Sonic and Bunnie stopped the Badnik, Rotor welcomed the latter to the team. (StH: #3)
After detecting Universalamander in the Great Forest, Rotor observed Sonic's confrontation with the robot on the Great Forest Monitor, which ended in Sonic's victory thanks to the reduce/enlarge component that he and Sonic had salvaged from the Port-O-Bot. During their subsequent victory feast, Rotor saw Sonic play a prank on Antoine. When his team was later challenged by Robotnik to compete in the Robotropolis Olympic Games for a chance to win Mobius' freedom or face roboticization in the case they lost, Rotor was against it until Sonic convinced him and the others that they could not lose with him as their main athlete. When Rotor and his team showed up in Robotnik Stadium however, Sonic fell ill. Regardless, Rotor and the others decided to compete in Sonic's stead. However, Rotor lost to a SWATbot in weight lifting. Fortunately, thanks to Sonic, the team won the last event and Robotnik's bet. Rotor and the others were then spared roboticization anyway when Sonic made Robotnik and his connies retreat. Later, Rotor would order an ant farm from a magazine that he had read. When his package arrived in Freedom HQ though, what he got was a Termite-Nator that threatened to devour the entire Great Forest. Fortunately, Sonic found a way to clamp the mouth on the growing bug shut. Rotor then discovered that the Termite-Nator was a robot made by Robotnik, and so rewired it to eat metal instead and sent it back to Robotnik. (StH: #4, #5)
When later launching an attack on Robotnik, Inc., Rotor and his team discovered that Robotnik had moved his operations to the Veg-O-Fortress, which prompted Sonic to head there. Later, Rotor caused an accident in Freedom HQ that led to the discovery of a treasure map leading to Chuck's most important treasure. Hoping it was an invention that could defeat Robotnik, Rotor and his friends went in search of it in Mobius Natural Park, only to get attacked by Robotnik, who wanted the treasure for himself, and his Badniks. Rotor himself was grabbed by SWATbots, but was saved by Sonic. Though Robotnik got away with the treasure in the end after Rotor and his friends found it, Sonic had realized that the treasure was just his bronzed baby shoes moments before. Not long after, Rotor got ready to attend the annual Fright Night Party. (StH: #6, #7)
A while later, Rotor watched Sonic's battles with the Super-Powered 'Bots on the R.B.V. After Sonic's victory over the bots, Rotor would celebrate it with his friends. Rotor and his team later went to Mobius Concert Hall to get some music instruments after getting a music performance from Sonic. There, the group was shrunk by Robotnik, who attempted to suck them into a Port-O-Bot. When Sonic got trapped inside Robotnik's Pest Buster while keeping Rotor and the others from getting sucked up, the group worked together to keep Robotnik from roboticizing Sonic. As the shrinking effect then wore off, Rotor and his team chased off Robotnik before using his shrinking device on the Badniks that the doctor summoned to the concert hall, rendering them harmless. Back in Freedom HQ, Rotor later witnessed the arrival of Pseudo-Sonic. Before the robot could reveal Knothole Village's location to Robotnik though, he was destroyed by Tails. Rotor subsequently analyzed Pesudo-Sonic's remains before throwing them out with the trash, during which he welcomed the real Sonic back from his outing. When later celebrating Sally's birthday, Rotor observed Sally's less-than-stellar reception to Thorny, who wound up eating her birthday cake. When Rotor offered to make a new cake, Sally headed out to get the ingredients herself. (StH: #8, #9)
When a mission to steal power from Robotropolis later went wrong, Rotor and his team encountered a Nerb, allowing them to flee to the underground town of Nerberhood to avoid Robotnik's forces. However, when the Nerbs refused to help them despite suffering from Robotnik's actions, Rotor and his team tried going home. Along the way though, Rotor and his team found a way to a underground operation being carried out by Robotnik. After Sonic foiled Robotnik's operation, Rotor and the others were made honorary Nerbs by the Nerb King. Later, while Rotor and his team looked for a spot for their annual picnic in Antoine's hot air balloon, the team got popped out of the sky by Buzzbombers. As such, Rotor would doubt the usefulness of Antoine's balloon. Afterwards, during their picnic, Rotor and his team were attacked by Robotnik and his forces, but Antoine would foil the assault with the aid of his balloon. (StH: #10)
Rotor and his team later found Robotnik trying to spread pollution with his Slopmaker factory. Calling Sonic for help, Rotor awaited his arrival. When the hedgehog finally came, Rotor saw Sonic clean up the pollution and destroy Robotnik's machine with a Super Scooper. (StH: #11)
When Sonic was amnesia-ridden and convinced by Dr. Robotnik to attack the Freedom Fighters, Rotor's security systems detected the micro-transmitter placed on Sonic to provide the location of Knothole. Rotor attempted to keep Sonic out of their secret hideout but was bypassed by Sonic with relative ease. Eventually Sonic's memory was restored and the device removed. (StH: #27, #28)
Rotor later developed the "Neuro-Overrider", a device which would allow a Mobian who was roboticized to maintain their free will. Sally hoped to use this to allow herself to be roboticized so she could then infiltrate Robotropolis and steal a roboticizer to learn how to reverse its effects. The Neuro-Overrider fell off Sally as she was roboticized however and she was robbed of her free will. She was safely restored to normal by Dulcy the Dragon. (StH: #29)
Search for the Herd[]
After receiving a distress call from his mother in the Northern Sea, Rotor piloted his Bathysphere and travelled there to see what was wrong. Upon his arrival, Rotor discovered his family and the entire Walrus Herd had been placed under mind control from a Neuron Bomb by Dr. Robotnik. When he discovered that Robotnik was hoping to freeze the entire planet, Rotor attempted to escape and warn his friends, but was knocked into the ocean by an Icebot. He was quickly rescued by two of the Arctic Freedom Fighters, Sealia and Augustus. The three then managed to infiltrate the Walrus Herd and Rotor attempted to free them of their mind control. However, the entire Herd attack Rotor, though Sealia and Augustus managed to save him and bring him to safety. Rotor vowed to return and liberate his family from Robotnik's mind control. (StH: #31, #32)
Continued Battle Against Robotnik[]
After the Knothole Freedom Fighters (except Sonic) were infected by a biochemical weapon from Robotnik, Rotor managed to inform Sonic of what had happened before falling unconscious. Sonic used the Reduce/Enlarge Component to become microscopic and go inside Rotor to assist his Aunti Body in the fight against the French Frirus and Paris-Site. Sonic was successful and Rotor and the others recuperated. (StH: #33)
Following this, Rotor attempted to de-roboticize Sonic's Uncle Chuck. Despite his efforts, Chuck remained a Robian. (StH: #34)
Not long after this, Rotor created a remote which enabled the Freedom Fighters to travel to the Zone of Silence and locate Sally's father King Max. However, due to King Max being under some sort of spell, the Freedom Fighters are unable to retrieve him and are forced to return back to Mobius Prime. (StH: #36)
Some time later, Rotor sat on the council to review Sonic's idea to use the Neuro-Overrider and allow himself to be roboticized. Rotor objected along with the rest of the council, saying the idea was too risky. After Sonic was captured by Nack the Weasel and roboticized, Rotor helped prepare Bunnie to defend the village against Mecha Sonic. After Bunnie was defeated and Knuckles the Echidna was knocked out, Rotor managed to catch the Echidna in a net during his fall. As Knuckles came to he suffered from delusions, and attacked Rotor as he thought that (due to his weight) he was Robotnik. Sally managed to knock Knuckles back to his senses however and the fight continued. Rotor oversaw the Neuro-Overrider used on Knuckles to allow him to keep his free will while becoming Mecha Knuckles to combat Mecha Sonic. After the battle ended, Rotor worked with NICOLE to transform the damaged Mecha Sonic back to a Mobian. (StH: #39, SMM)
Weeks later, with the help of Rotor's Neutralizer, Sonic travelled to the Zone of Silence and was able to finally rescue King Max from the Zone of Silence. Following this, Rotor worked with Dr. Quack to create the Dream Watcher so that they could look into King Max's mind and bring him out of his comatose state. Sonic managed to do this, though King Max remained in his crystallized state. (StH: #41, #43)
Days later, Rotor revealed his new weapon to Sonic, the "Party-Hearty Quadra Sonic Rock 'N' Roller", as well as his Remote Scanner. The same day the Freedom Fighters found themselves working with Knuckles the Echidna to fight Anti-Knuckles and Anti Sonic. They then went to Anti Mobius where they discovered Dr. Ivo Robotnik stealing the energy from the Sunken Island's Chaos Emeralds. After Robotnik was transported back to Mobius Prime, Rotor was disappointed he never got to use his Remote Scanner during the ordeal. (StH: #44)
During Operation: EndGame, Rotor was in Knothole when Dr. Robotnik arrive on the scene. Saying "Robotnik in Knothole? Not in this lifetime!" he attempted to blast Robotnik with the Party-Hearty Quadra Sonic Rock 'N' Roller. Robotnik managed to phase out the gun's blast and destroy it, taking the entire village hostage. Rotor and Tails later managed to sneak into the sewer system, but were caught trying to escape by Combots. (StH: #48, #49)
Return to the Herd[]
With the death of Dr. Robotnik caused by the Ultimate Annihilator, Rotor decided to return to the Herd. When he arrived back he was relieved and astonished to find that the Herd had regained their free will as a result of the Ultimate Annihilator firing. He spent several weeks with the Walrus Herd, enjoying time with his mother and younger brother Skeeter. However, while there Rotor was unaware that Robo-Robotnik had travelled to Mobius Prime and replaced the late Dr. Robotnik. Thus when the herd suddenly came back under the mind control spell, Rotor did not know what was going on. Hiding out in his Bathysphere, the Herd managed to damage it and cause it to sink. Rotor was rescued by the Arctic Freedom Fighters, who informed him that Robotnik had returned. (StH: #72, #85)
Activities Against Eggman[]
Rotor working with The Freedom Fighters
Returning to Mobotropolis (as he was unaware it was re-conquered by Robo-Robotnik), Rotor found himself meeting up with Mina Mongoose and shortly afterwards Sonic. The group returned to Knothole and Rotor began attending Knothole High School along with his other Freedom Fighters. (StH: #91, #94, #96)
After the Freedom Fighters learned the Sword of Acorns could restore Robians' free will, Rotor asked that they could use it on the mind-controlled Herd to restore their free will as well. Returning to Walrus Island, Rotor planted a bomb on the Walrus-constructed Oil Rig while Sally used the Sword of Acorns to restore the Herd's free will. (StH: #109)
During Sonic's year in space, Rotor stepped up in the war against Robotnik by building even more powerful weapons. Unfortunately, his efforts led to not only the destruction of robots, but also to the injury of his fellow Freedom Fighters, including Larry Lynx. Horrified by what he had done, Rotor resolved never to construct another weapon, though he later assisted in the construction of the Metal Sonic Troopers to defend Knothole. He would later come to feel that this decision was a betrayal of his vow, though he also realized that he had perhaps gone too far in his efforts. (StH: #158, #215)
Rotor continued to help his friends in any way he could, even acting as a quasi-mentor to Tommy Turtle, helping him become acquainted with his new life. Unfortunately, this relationship came to an end after Tommy was enslaved by A.D.A.M., resulting in his death under the guns of the Egg Fleet. (StH: #168, #169)
Rotor saves Tails.
Rotor was also one of the many citizens captured by Eggman during the destruction of Knothole, though quick action by the survivors of the attack resulted in a successful rescue mission. However, injuries to his back (caused by him shoving Tails free from beneath a collapsing roof during the destruction of Knothole) left him unable to participate in Freedom Fighter activities for some time afterwards. (StH: #175, #177)
Council Member[]
Rotor supports Sally after her confrontation with Hamlin.
Rotor was elected a member of the new Council of Acorn, a group of six elected members and King Elias established to bring about some much-needed political changes in the Kingdom. Rather than get a break from the stress of combat, however, Rotor found himself in the middle of an even more dangerous situation: Knuckles' arch-nemesis, the Chaos Emerald powered entity called Enerjak, had been reborn thanks to the machinations of the Dark Legion scientist Dr. Finitevus and was intent on conquering Mobius. He and the other council members were informed of the issue by Dimitri, but voted against taking action until more information could be gathered. Fortunately, the matter was soon resolved by the efforts of Sonic and the Guardian Locke. (StH: #179, #180, #184)
Rotor was attacked by his Anti Mobius counterpart, Boomer Walrus, who mocked him for not being able to defend himself. Rotor was brought to tears when he was unable to help defend Freedom HQ from the Suppression Squad as a result of his neck injuries. Instead, he fled the scene to contact the Chaotix about the situation and later voted to send a mission to retake Freedom HQ, only to be outvoted by the rest of the Council. He later assisted Sonic in traveling to Moebius, an order given by Sally that later brought the Walrus to her defense when she was put on trial for defying an order the Council had given regarding Sonic. He would later provide backup for the Freedom Fighters and Chaotix in the final push against the Eggdome; after the Egg Phoenix was destroyed, Rotor erected a force field generator so the Freedom Fighters could call it a day, but he failed to get any sleep himself and instead readied the visual link to New Mobotropolis. He later stayed behind while the others went on the final assault, and after Sonic managed to defeat Eggman, Rotor helped transport them home in his jeep to celebrate their victory. (StH: #189, #190, #197, #198, #199, #200)
Their victory was cut short as the Iron Dominion took over the empire, which the Freedom Fighters would learn from Monkey Khan. When the Iron Queen took control of NICOLE and thus all of New Mobotropolis, Castle Acorn was sealed shut, trapping the royal family and Council of Acorn within. Rotor was later revealed to have been taken prisoner and was among those brought to the Coliseum for public "legionization" -- a process that forcefully converts a Mobian into a brainwashed Dark Legion cyborg. When Rotor was brought out before Snively, who was in charge of the operation, he angrily reminded the Overlander that they had worked together in the past; smugly dismissing this, Snively was caught by surprise when Rotor suddenly attacked the Legionnaires holding him, subduing them simultaneously before lunging at a terrified Snively. Unfortunately, Rotor's heroic efforts were quickly halted by his injured back flaring up. Fortunately, Amy Rose, Antoine and Geoffrey St. John soon appeared, and Amy destroyed the operating table to which Rotor was being dragged, scattering the villains and saving the walrus. (StH: #201, #208, #210)
Final Time Saving The Herd[]
With the threat of the Iron Dominion ended, Rotor and his fellow council members set about revising the new constitution of the Republic of Acorn. As such, Rotor did not accompany Sonic and Sally to become a member of the Wolf Pack Nation despite having been invited. Just as Sonic and Sally helped resolve a crisis there, however, Rotor was informed by Hamlin that the Arctic Freedom Fighters had called in with news that a Dark Egg Legion chapter had captured the Walrus Herd.(StH: #213, #214)
Rotor ready to save his herd.
After learning of the situation, Sonic invited Rotor to go along with him, though Hamlin was quick to deny the Hedgehog's request, and Rotor agreed that he planned to stay in the city. However, after having NICOLE meet him at his house, he informed her that he had every intention of going to aid the Herd, requesting that she construct a suit of armor from the nanites for him. Departing, he flew to the Northern Tundra, contemplating his previous actions as a Freedom Fighter and determining that he would retire permanently once this mission was completed. Before he got to the battlefield, however, he was dragged out of the air by Silver the Hedgehog, whom he engaged briefly in battle only to find himself helpless. Silver then accused him of not being "Boomer" Walrus, and then of being a traitor to the Freedom Fighters. Silver attempted to short Rotor's battle armor and use his telekinesis to halt him, but when Rotor explained what was at stake with the safety of his Herd and the Tundra area as a whole, Silver agreed to help him. When they arrived, they quickly found Dr. Eggman's nearby base, and found a neural interface Eggman could use to control the herd personally. Silver used it to send a psychic pulse, breaking the Herd's mind control and also scrambling the Orca members of the Dark Egg Legion in the area. Silver later said he also sent a signal that would forever block the Walrus Herd from future mind control attempts. He also figured out for himself that Rotor was indeed "Boomer", but the information he had about him was out-of-date. (StH: #215, #216)
Naugus and NICOLE[]
When Geoffrey St. John seemingly betrayed Sonic during a mission and went MIA, the Council of Acorn was unsure of how to respond, as they had no way of knowing if Geoffrey, leader of the Secret Service, was working on secret orders. Additionally, they were left to deal with ever-increasing public concern over NICOLE's control of the city. Unknown to everyone, these issues became tied as Geoffrey, working with Ixis Naugus, manipulated the public's fears of NICOLE in order to set Naugus up as a potential savior of the people and giving his bid to take control of the Republic of Acorn more sway. Rotor pushed his fellow councilors to discuss the issue with NICOLE, as the AI had been emotionally hurt by the public's increased fear and hatred of her, but when they were about to do so, Naugus himself arrived before the council, claiming the crown as rightfully his. Rotor was vehemently opposed to this, even going so far as to attempt to rally the other former Freedom Fighters among the council, but thanks to the wizard's ability to twist and amplify negative emotions, everyone soon began bickering with each other. Eventually, to Sonic and Rotor's displeasure, it was decided that the matter be dealt with formally and that Naugus be given a chance to argue his claim. However, all were taken by surprise by the unexpected launch of the new Death Egg. (StH: #219, #222, #223, #224)
As the Freedom Fighters united to head into battle, the Royal Guard began ushering the council to the safety of the Royal Military Headquarters. However, Rotor ducked out with the intention of returning home to change into his nanite suit and join his friends in battle. He began changing when suddenly, the Genesis Wave enveloped Mobius... (FCBD: #6)
Genesis[]
"Boomer" reprograms a Buzzbomber.
After a mysterious weapon fired from within the Death Egg, the world became awash in white. Soon after, Sonic found himself in a strange but oddly familiar setting; he eventually came across a prison pod and released those inside it, who introduced themselves as Sally Acorn, Antoine Depardieu and Boomer Walrus, having seemingly never met before. The group explained that they believed one Dr. Eggman to be responsible for several recent kidnappings, and Boomer added that he might be behind the increased number of earthquakes lately. Sonic agreed to help them hunt down the doctor. In the Marble Zone, they were attacked by Eggman's robots; Boomer captured and disabled a Catakiller with his bare hands, impressing Sonic, and then set to reprogramming a damaged Buzzbomber, thinking it would be good to have the extra help. He did not want to stoop to Eggman's level and force a small animal to act as the robot's power supply, however, but Sally was able to get a Flicky bird to volunteer. This proved useful, as Boomer later used the Buzzbomber to airlift himself and Antoine to safety. Eventually, Sonic caught up to Dr. Eggman and fought him, forcing the doctor to retreat; Boomer was thoroughly impressed, and the group continued on to an underground tunnel they believed would lead them to the doctor's lair. After becoming separated from Antoine in the Labyrinth Zone, Boomer and his comrades pressed on through the Star Light Zone and finally into the Scrap Brain Zone, where Boomer almost fell down a pit. Soon, the group found Eggman deep with his Final Zone base, as well as a waterlogged Antoine. After dealing with Eggman's final machine of death, Sonic sent the doctor hurtling out of his base in his destroyed Eggmobile. As Boomer and the heroes watched as the Doctor descended, Sonic voiced his inkling that they hadn't seen the last of the omelette dictator. (StH: #225, #226, #227)
With the matter of the mysterious earthquakes still shaking things up, the heroes set out to find the cause, now accompanied by Sonic's buddy Tails. After making it out of the Chemical Plant Zone in one piece, Sonic decided that he wants to head directly to Eggman's new base. Taking Tails, Boomer and the others were left to make their way through the Oil Ocean Zone, where they were nearly wiped out by aerial badniks. Nonetheless, they soon made it to the centre of the refinery and shut off the oil pipelines, leaving Eggman's bases without power. When Sonic set off another Genesis Wave aboard the Death Egg, now high up in space, Boomer began to panic as everything around him started whiting out, but a smiling Sally assured the walrus that everything would be fine; while baffled by the fact that she referred to him as "Rotor" during this exchange, he nonetheless trusted his friend in her certainty, as the planet completely faded to white. (StH: #228, #229)
Return to Duty[]
When the Prime Zone returned to its original state, Rotor found himself in his home, midway into changing out of his councillors uniform. Rotor struggled to recall why he was doing this, before glancing out of the window and noticing the new Death Egg glaring down over the city; it all came back to him. He was in the process of donning his nanite suit in order to join the Freedom Fighters in combatting the flying fortress, but as he caught sight of the Tornado and Freedom Fighter Special zipping around in the sky, he realised the city needed him to do his duty as a part of the council. (FCBD: #6)
In the aftermath of Eggman's Operation: Clean Sweep, Sally was roboticized, while Naugus took advantage of New Mobotropolis' fear of NICOLE, unwittingly caused by Mina, to save the city from a Titan Metal Sonic and usurp Elias as king. When the Council took a vote to exile NICOLE to Freedom HQ, everyone but Rotor voted to do so because it was what the people wanted. Rotor was so disgusted and upset by the turnout that he resigned from the council right then and there. (StH: #235)
With Sally's roboticization, Antoine's severe injuries, and Bunnie's departure, the Knothole Freedom Fighters were forced to disband. However, Rotor, along with Sonic, Tails, and Amy, successfully convinced the Council (sans Naugus) to approve two new Freedom Fighter teams: Team Freedom, who would protect the city itself, and Team Fighters, who would pursue Eggman's forces. Rotor himself used a special power suit that circumvented his back injury and let him return to active duty. (StH: #236)
Rotor in action with Team Freedom.
As the leader, Rotor accepted Big the Cat, Cream the Rabbit, and Cheese, and also rebuilt Heavy and Bomb, bringing the roster to six members. Though Naugus continued to dismiss the group's reliability, Team Freedom proved their worth when the community center collapsed due to an unseen attack by Tails Doll; with Naugus incapacitated due to inner personal matters, Rotor and his team sprang into action and successfully stopped the collapse, simultaneously gaining public support and discrediting Naugus. The team further distinguished themselves when the Death Egg returned to the city, launching Egg Swats and Team Metal. Bravely leading his new team, Rotor activated the shield generator only for it to be destroyed, and then assigned Cream to lead civilians to safety while the more seasoned members of the group continued fighting. Naugus arrived on the scene and attempted to prove Team Freedom's superfluousness with a blast of crystalline magic on some Egg Swats, only for his body to undergo a hideous and painful mutation. Grudgingly complimenting the wizard's skill in the hopes of getting him back into the fight, Rotor defended his unwanted king and called on Big to carry him to safety. He then went up against Metal Tails, and was able to destroy the robot after Elias-working with his new Secret Freedom Fighters-damaged the robot with a crossbow bolt. The team celebrated their victory, though Rotor came to suspect that they had been aided from the shadows. (StH: #236, #240)
Rotor's next task was nothing as dangerous-using his suit's ability to interact with the nanites, he opened a door with a broken lock affected by Larry Lynx's jinx. Penelope thanked him for his assistance, joking that he couldn't seem to stop working for the council between leading Team Freedom and working with the nanites. She asked him if he "unclog[ged] drains too" to which Rotor replied that he could and that he would just need to get Big so that he could use his fishing rod. Shortly afterwards, Rotor and the rest of Team Freedom attended a concert held by Mina Mongoose that was aimed at raising support for bringing NICOLE back to the city. When the stage unexpectedly collapsed-again courtesy of Tails Doll-Rotor and his team leaped into action to save Mina and her band, the Forget Me Knots. Rotor also rushed to Antoine's room at the hospital when Metal Sonic v3.7 took him hostage, but arrived to find the robot gone. (StH: #241, SU: #44, #50)
Rotor later joined NICOLE at the ribbon cutting for the restored Castle Acorn, where he assured the AI that the people had no reason to distrust her. He also expressed gratitude at the absence of both Naugus and Geoffrey, though NICOLE chastised him for being so unkind given Naugus' condition. After learning of her efforts to complete a device created for the wizard's benefit, he remarked that she was too kind, but was then shocked as the castle began to crumble. He then asked whether the foundation was failing, but was informed that something was affecting the nanites. Cream then approached him with the theory that Tails Doll was behind it, though she was initially embarrassed by her convoluted explanation. Rotor was quick to praise her reasoning, and decided to put the theory to the test. Their suspicions were proved correct as Tails Doll, believing Team Freedom to be occupied, entered the city power station only to find the heroes lying in wait. Unfortunately, they were then forced to face the robot's true power as it used a number of reprogrammed nanites to create a demonic new form for itself. The monster's objectives were simple: destroy the power generator, allow Robotropolis' radioactivity to enter the city, and eliminate Team Freedom. Soon after though, the team was engulfed by the second Genesis Wave... (StH: #247)
Appearance[]
Rotor's original design
Rotor is a generally large Mobian walrus with violet fur, a large peach muzzle, and darker toes and fingers. He also possesses a large belly due to being overweight. For attire, early in his career as a Freedom Fighter, he wore a teal bandolier-like tool belt and a backwards yellow cap. Originally, Rotor, like many characters early on, started off with black eyes, which were later depicted as light blue; they've since been established as green. (StH: #3)
As a child, he wore green overalls. He briefly sported a wool cap, shirt and large medallion, but his biggest shift in design came with the addition of glasses, a brown bomber jacket and a slight tuft of hair. For a short time he wore a neck brace. Aside from his everyday outfit, he was sometimes depicted in his blue and red Council of Acorn uniform up until his resignation fro the council. As "Iron Rotor", Rotor is clad in his nanite battlesuit, a yellow and gray outfit that covers most of his body. The helmet is separated from the rest of the suit, and is fitted with a transparent visor.
Personality[]
Rotor is usually a very calm and easygoing individual, rarely showing aggression. As such, he would often embrace things like Sonic's arrogance or Tails's overeagerness with a smile on his face. While knowing when to take danger seriously, he would nevertheless show calmness when he knew a situation was well in hand. Due to his easy-going ways, he would as well say things in a matter-of-fact way. However, he despises Dr. Ivo Robotnik and anyone who follows the latter's beliefs. He is also very defensive of his family and friends, and will help them in any way possible. (OSM: #0, StH: #1, #3)
During Sonic's time in space, Rotor became vehemently opposed to the use of firearms due to accidentally injuring fellow mobians, such as Larry Lynx, by weapons he had designed to help fight Dr. Eggman in Sonic's absence, making him vow never to use guns again. As a result, he would go as far as to contradict himself when faced with guns, like when he told Fiona Fox that "The Freedom Fighters never use guns. Never have, never will" despite his past usage of weapons that he had designed, such as the Party-Hearty Quadra Sonic Rock 'N' Roller. (StH: #148, #215, CSE)
Rotor's breath is also said to smell like fish. (StH: #3)
Abilities[]
As a mobian walrus, Rotor is a bulky fighter and adept swimmer, and possesses above-average strength. However, his greatest talent lies in his mechanical abilities and genius intellect. As the original handy-man of his team, he is known for his numerous creations and understanding of robotics as advanced as Dr. Ivo Robotnik's that aided the Freedom Fighters early on. Some of these include the Bathysphere and the Neuro-Overrider. Rotor also assisted Dr. Quack in keeping the crystallized King Max alive by providing him with medical technology and later helped his patients Geoffrey St. John and Hershey Cat by creating nanites to destroy the nanoprobes Eggman had infected them with. Other inventions include the Party-Hearty Quadra Sonic Rock 'N' Roller and the Remote Scanner, as well as designing his own suit of nanite battle armor. His battle suit was probably his most dynamic invention, which enables him to take flight and employ projectile weaponry against opponents. (StH: #5, #9, CSE, SA: #2)
Rotor holding the Party-Hearty Quadra Sonic Rock 'N' Roller
His talent for designing weapons is something he became reluctant to make use of, having constructed weapons during Sonic's absence that inflicted friendly fire-fortunately nonlethal-upon other Freedom Fighters. However, he remains a determined aid to the Freedom Fighters in creating other useful gadgetry. (StH: #29, #31, #43, #44, #118, #215)
Background Information[]
- By mistake, Rotor was referred to as Boomer in the earliest issues of the comic book. It was corrected in issue #6, as well as reprints for these early stories. However, in the letters page, when a fan asked the deal with Rotor's old name, it was explained that "Boomer" was actually a nickname the character had in his childhood; some stories depicting the Freedom Fighters in their childhood even have him addressed as Boomer. Ironically, this error later provided the basis for a Silver the Hedgehog plotline, in which he found Rotor listed as Boomer in a record of the early Freedom Fighters and came to the conclusion that they were separate entities entirely. As a further nod to it, Rotor's counterpart from Moebius changed his name to Boomer following the reorganization of the Anti-Freedom Fighters into the Suppression Squad.
- Rotor's age is taken from the letters page of Sonic the Hedgehog #46 where it is stated he was 16. Since the issue canonically took place two years ago, in 3235, Rotor's current age would be 18. Given there is no contrary information regarding his age, this is recognized by this site's canon policy.
- In Sonic: Evolution of a Hero, it is stated that Rotor helped in educating Tails to genius levels.
- Former writer Ken Penders revealed Oct. 30, 2009 on his message board that he considered Rotor to be homosexual, stating "I thought it was fairly obvious Rotor was gay, and begun laying the groundwork for that storyline during the MOBIUS: 25 YEARS LATER segments. I even showed his life partner without saying as such and planted clues between the lines.". (1) This suggests that Cobar was Rotor's "life partner" in Mobius: X Years Later, which was confirmed on his message board. (2). Because of the fear of backlash over the relationship, SEGA ordered Ken to keep the relationship low-key, only providing subtle hints in the series as to the relationship. (3)
- Penders later clarified that it was likely then-editor Justin Freddy Gabrie that he had spoken with, with whom he had mutually agreed to keep Rotor's sexuality low-key, and not SEGA. Penders said of Bob Repas, the initial source, "In any event, something was lost in the translation between initial conversation and what gets posted on the message boards. It happens. [...] And Bob didn't lie either. He simply gave his spin on what I said at the time." (4)
- According to Penders' successor Ian Flynn, this is considered non-canon; on his blog, he admits that he could've continued the reveal had more been done with it on Penders' end, but with the lack of evidence in-comic leading to the reveal, he considers the whole deal "Irrelevant".
- Rotor can imitate the voice of James Cagney. (StH: #3)
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