Bumblebee (Transformers)

Bumblebee is one of the main characters from the Transformer franchise.

Overview
Bumblebee is one of Optimus Prime's most trusted lieutenants. Although he is not the strongest or most powerful of the Autobots, Bumblebee more than makes up for this with a bottomless well of luck, determination and bravery. He would gladly give his life to protect others and stop the Decepticons. Badly damaged in battle, Bumblebee lost the ability to speak verbally after Megatron torn his voicebox out, though he can still communicate over inter-Autobot frequencies (in a fashion that seems somewhat akin to instant messaging, a usable but more distant and less personal means of interaction).

Personality
Despite his massive, hulking size and rather violent, brutal nature on the battlefield, Bumblebee is actually a gentle and sweet Autobot. He appears to hold a lot of attachment towards his human companions as he consider Sam Witwicky as his closest friend and on some level brother, he also protected the Yeager family from the threat of Cemetery Wind, Harold Attinger, James Savoy and Lockdown. Tragically, however, he cannot speak as his voice-box was damaged while travelling from Cybertron to Earth, so he compensates by communicating with the radio, proving that he was accustomed to Earth customs.

Abilities
Bumblebee is an excellent scout, due to his speed and small size. He is able to hold his own in battle facing off opponents such as Breakdown. He possesses leadership qualities which is shown in "Predacons Rising", as he lead the Autobots in the fight against Unicron. He is armed with two Energon blasters in his arms, he is also armed with an energy shield along with a plasma cannon. Interesting, he does not use his Energon blasters in the sequel most likely due to him being a cop.

After Cybertron's restoration Bumblebee grew into a veteran warrior, which he has proven to be an adept fighter as he can easily engage numerous Decepticons twice his size, even going toe-to-toe with Steeljaw. Interestingly, he appears to have inherited many of his former allies abilities including Arcee's dexterity as he can perform many amazing feats of high jump attacks and close-quarter combat, Bulkhead's strength which he uses to face off against challenging opponents, Ratchet's strategic mind and technological skills and Optimus's leadership qualities which ultimately make Bumblebee one of the strongest Autobots on-line.

Trivia

 * A weapon considered for Bumblebee was a pair of arm-mounted electrical "stingers". The idea was ultimately abandoned for the movie, but influenced other media.
 * According to an article on Edmunds.com, the filmmakers wanted Bumblebee's original Earth form to be the 1976 iteration of the Camaro because it was the worst Camaro possible that also had chrome bumpers.
 * The same article indicates that the 1976 Camaros used in the film were all purchased via online auction for under $6000 each, one for less than $2000. That one didn't run.
 * One of the 1976 Camaros was sold on eBay. The bidding ended on July 18, 2007; the final price was $40,100.01.
 * The Bumblebee computer-generated model consisted of 7608 individual parts, 1,511,727 polygons, 19,722 rig nodes, and 8094 texture maps. The volume of all the pieces came to 1069.01 cubic feet.
 * Bumblebee stands approximately 16 feet tall, according to the official game strategy guide
 * Bumblebee's character animation is based on the performance of Michael J. Fox in the Back to the Future movies.
 * The 2008 Concept Camaro used for Bumblebee was built by Saleen in 30 days, using a heavily modified 2006 Pontiac GTO body as the basis. The '08 Camaro was not in production at the time that the film was being made, hence an identical mock-up was needed to fill the role.
 * Despite being the only mute Autobot (or perhaps because of this), Bumblebee is the most emotional and expressive of the Autobot team, emphatically pointing, shrugging, and even waving his hands and acting as if he's speaking while he uses the radio to communicate. He likely does this to make himself better understood despite not being able to speak properly.
 * Apparently, this "language barrier" between Bumblebee and Sam might be inspired by the interaction between ET and Eliot in the movie E.T., whose director, Steven Spielberg, was also the executive producer of the live action Transformers movies.
 * In a TV spot video, there was a scene which Hound and Bumblebee dancing with Tessa (while Drift bobs his head in the background) but it was not present in the final cut of Transformers: Age of Extinction.
 * Bumblebee's vehicle mode makes a cameo in the 2017 Power Rangers movie; when red ranger Jason Scott pilots his T-Rex Battle Zord, it accidentally steps on a yellow Camaro, prompting its pilot to say "Sorry Bumblebee!".
 * In the film (2007), Bumblebee scanned a working, drivable Camaro—with the same paint job—that won't be released until some time later this year (2009). However, it is possible that the Camaro in question was being road-tested by GM engineers, like they are doing in the real world.
 * In the online virtual world simulation/game Second Life, there is a full replica of the Sector Seven base which contains a giant discussion room where Michael Bay held a question board. This room contains a giant frozen Megatron replica and free avatars of both Bumblebee and Barricade. Both freebies are non-transforming. Also, the Bumblebee avatar has his battle mask down and it can't be raised. However, some sellers have created a transforming version.
 * His license plate reads "4NZZ454" in the first and second movies, in dark of the moon it reads "900 STRA".
 * Bumblebee, before each and every successful kill in the movie series, emphatically lowers his mask. Bumblebee's mask tends to be a warning signal for when he intends to bring the pain.
 * Before shooting Brawl, he snaps it down.
 * Before tearing apart Ravage and Rampage, he looks into the camera and snaps it down.
 * Before turning the tables on Soundwave and killing him and two Protoform troops, he faces the camera and snaps it down.