Megatron
Megatron is a fictional character from the "Transformers" franchise created by American toy company Hasbro in 1984, based on a design by Japanese toy company Takara. Usually portrayed as a villain, Megatron is the supreme leader of the Decepticons, a faction of war mongering Transformers who seek to conquer their home planet of Cybertron and the rest of the known universe. A cruel and power hungry leader, Megatron leads the Decepticons with an iron fist and has little to no tolerance for failure. While some Decepticons under his command have challenged and attempted to take his place as leader (most often Starscream), Megatron maintains his power and authority over the Decepticons by proving himself as the most powerful in their ranks. He serves as the nemesis of the Autobot leader Optimus Prime. In most incarnations, after meeting his demise, usually at Optimus' hands, Megatron would be resurrected as Galvatron.

Megatron is usually depicted as having risen up from being a lowly worker to become a champion in gladiatorial combat. As a gladiator, he took the name of the legendary "Megatronus"—one of the original Thirteen Primes who betrayed his comrades and became the first Decepticon—as his own, and would similarly inspire a later villainous character. He became an activist, trying to reform Cybertron's corrupt governing body and end its unfair caste system. He mentored the young Orion Pax, and together they championed the downtrodden and preached that freedom of self-determination was the right of all sentient beings. Orion Pax would later become Optimus Prime and utilize Megatron's teachings against him when he became corrupt.

The original Megatron could transform into three types of guns: a Walther P38 handgun, a particle-beam weapon, and a telescopic laser cannon. He has the ability to transform between his robot shape and various weapons or vehicles, but these "alternate-modes", his origins and even personality, can vary depending on which "universe" he is depicted in. This origin is considered the most consistent between the various incarnations. Further differences are listed in the respective sections below.
Q1323565
Transformers
EVE
Q501476
Hasbro
ORG
Q3028965
Takara
ORG
Q1050840
Decepticon
ORG
Q126351
Autobot
MISC
Q151583
Optimus Prime
MEDIA
Q482999
gladiator
Concept
Q1139154
Megatronus
MEDIA
None
villainous character
UNK
Q484416
caste
Concept
Q151583
Orion Pax
MEDIA
Q157586
Walther P38
MISC
Q1574963
handgun
Concept
Q2611823
particle-beam weapon
Concept
Q4213
telescopic
Concept
Q2074906
laser cannon
Concept
Q828473
Megatron
MEDIA
Q828473
Megatron
MEDIA
Q828473
Megatron
MEDIA
Q828473
Megatron
MEDIA
Q828473
Megatron
MEDIA
Q828473
Megatron
MEDIA
Q828473
Megatron
MEDIA
Q828473
Megatron
MEDIA
1984-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
1984
DATE
+38^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
38
NUMBER
characters
instance of
enemy of
creator