Binary Bug

From The Transformers UK Appendix
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Emerald form, purple prose.

Joseph Rambo could have been one of the greats: knowledgeable enough to build his own computer and skilled enough to be able to interpret vast swathes of data, he could have been at the forefront of the insurance industry's digital revolution. Instead, he got too greedy, using these skills to steal from the company's clients.

Spurned by Delmar Insurance for all that fraud he did, Rambo used his technical know-how to turn to a life of crime as the Binary Bug. His hi-tech "bug pod" gifts him the ability of flight, cloaked by a grey cloud, and features an on-board computer capable of calculating over a million possible safe combinations in three seconds. His suit can interface directly with computers and, in combat, produce a smokescreen gas to blind his enemies, as well as an electronic shock to render them unconscious. As a last resort, the "bug pod" can fire two tracer missiles. Rambo also has devices prepared for facing Machine Man, such as the techno-breaker, which confuses machines with electrical fields, and the sonic blaster, capable of overloading electronics.

His overconfidence in his own abilities could prove to be his undoing, whether it's overlooking all the intricacies of security systems or not paying attention to his flight paths.

Fiction

Joseph Rambo worked as an investigator for Delmar Insurance, until he was fired for stealing from their wealthy clients by tampering with the company's computers. Swearing vengeance against Delmar and its president, Byron J. Benjamin, Rambo designed the "bug pod" and suit, which was built for him by the Tinkerer (and delivered by Toy). His plan was to burgle property from the company's clients, gaining the wealth for himself, and forcing Delmar to make expensive payouts until it went bankrupt. Some of his earliest raids as the Binary Bug were clients named Rotsler and Evanier, netting him four million and two million dollars worth of stolen property respectively.

The Binary Bug on Marvel Database, an external wiki

Seeking a more direct vengeance, the Binary Bug broke into a luxury condominium to steal valuable bonds from Benjamin's apartment. Overlooking one security measure, he was caught by guards Harry and Frank, though he subdued them quickly. The robbery was prevented by the arrival of Machine Man and Peter Spaulding, though the Binary Bug was able to escape.

The following day, from his loft on the Lower West Side, Rambo planned a break-in at Delmar using his homemade computer console. Entering their records room between shifts, the Binary Bug hacked into Compucord and got the scoop on his next target – though his exit from the skyscraper as a grey cloud was spotted by Machine Man, in his street-level guise of Aaron Stack. The Bug went straight to the Anderson estate in Westchester County, where he performed a smash and grab on a guest's sable, the proprietor's Ming vase, and three million dollars' worth of property, including diamonds.

Using his stolen valuables, Rambo was able to cash in and move to a fancy penthouse on Park Avenue. From there, he plotted his biggest and most dangerous heist: invading the airship fortress Xanadu, where he threatened the elusive crime lord Khan for his ten million dollars in insured valuables.

Khan was not easily swayed, and this bought enough time for Machine Man to track the Binary Bug down. Hitting him with a sonic blaster, the Binary Bug fled the scene, realising the odds were against him. Machine Man chased him and, following a brief dogfight, Rambo collided with some live power lines, laughing as he ignored Machine Man's warnings. Byte of the Binary Bug!