In any Transformers series, the Decepticons have been the mortal enemies of the Autobots for a long time. However, it wasn’t always like that. Decepticons used to just be the working class of Cybertron. Megatron decided enough was enough and lead his group in a fight for better conditions and rights.
He went about it all wrong, however, and ended up starting a war that led to the destruction of their planet Cybertron, and they eventually brought their war to Earth. The Decepticons have always been cool and kinda misunderstood. This list will count down the best Decepticons based on how iconic, powerful, and how cool their transformation is.
12 Barricade
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Barricade is one of the earliest seen Decepticons in the original Micheal Bay movie. He is most notably known for tracking down Sam and Bumblebee and chasing them throughout a parking garage. His design is also very cool and has unique details included in his classic police interceptor look, such as the quote “To Punish and Enslave” on the rear of the Mustang that he transforms into.
Barricade also has the ability to project a police officer into his driver’s seat to further keep him hidden from the humans. Barricade lives through the movie and makes several more appearances later on. He’s very basic, yet extremely cool.
10 Sideways
9 ![Decepticon Sideways From Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen]()
Sideways is a cool character who didn’t have a lot of screen time. He transformed into one of the sleekest sports cars, the Audi R8. He is most famous for being chased by the Arcee sisters and Sideswipe down the busy streets of Shanghai.
Sideways is ultimately killed by being cut in half while still in car form by Sideswipe, the first Transformer to die in vehicle mode. He was, however, featured more in the movie tie-in game for Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen, where his main weapons were sniper rifles and graviton mines.
8 Blackout
Blackout was the very first Decepticon on screen in the original Transformers movie. He was responsible for attacking a destroying the military base in the Middle East and setting Captain Lennox and his small team off into the desert. He has a very cool robot design, and he is even able to use his helicopter rotors as a spinning-bladed weapon.
Blackout’s vehicle form is a Sikorsky MH-53 Helicopter that is as scary looking as it is deadly. He doesn’t make it out of the first movie because he is later killed by Lennox and a squad of F-22 Raptor jets. Very sad that such an excellent character was lost so soon.
7 Blitzwing
There couldn’t be a list of Decepticons without at least one that can turn into a jet. Blitzwing in the Bumblebee movie is very different from the one in the original show. Originally, he had multiple personalities and the ability to turn into a tank as well as a jet fighter.
Blitzwing is best known in the movies for leading the small squad of Decepticons that first landed on earth in the 1980s. He also had an intense fight with Bumblebee near the end of the movie. Blitzwing was also responsible for tearing out Bumblebee’s voice synthesizer and making him mute.
6 Shockwave
Here is another character whose design differs in the movies from the original show. The constant that remains the same is his one eye as the only feature on his head. Shockwave is the resident scientist for the Decepticons and reports to Megatron directly on most things.
Just because he knows a lot about science doesn’t mean you should discount his ability on the battlefield. Shockwave is able to transform into a Cybertronian tank with his arm as the main cannon. He was able to go toe to toe with Optimus Prime for a short time after prime killed his pet. Sadly, he did not win the fight against Prime and was killed. He could make an appearance in the new Transformers game.
5 Astrotrain
Astrotrain is the first entry on this list without an official live-action appearance. He is still a cool enough character regardless. Like Blitzwing, he also is able to transform into two types of vehicles: a space shuttle and a train. During the original cartoon series, he was responsible for transporting other Decepticons through space to go to other planets.
He also became the king of an alien civilization for a short time as well during the original show. Astrotrain has a very cool design and is just as terrifying to humans as any other Decepticon on this list.
4 Starscream
Starscream is always known for being tricky and trying to become the leader of the Decepticons. His appearance in the movies is quite similar to his original design, minus the color changes. His appearance in Bumblebee was closer to his original show design.
Starscream was responsible for leading the Decepticons after Megatron’s death for the next two movies until he was later killed by Sam and Captain Lennox. He is best known for his screeching voice and somewhat terrifying appearance. Starscream’s jet form is based on the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor, with Decepticon patterning on the wings and fuselage.
3 Galvatron
Galvatron is essentially Megatron’s consciousness in a new living metal body. During Transformers: Age Of Extinction, a human company was able to reverse engineer how to make Transformers and made them out of living metal. Instead of transforming, they just morph between robot and vehicle shapes.
Megatron’s severed head was used to figure this out, and that’s how his mind got into Galvatron. His design in this form is a lot like Optimus Primes because Galvatron transforms into a 2014 Argosy Semi-truck. He is still just as powerful in this form, but isn’t quite as menacing.
2 Soundwave
Soundwave went through a lot of changes over the course of the movies. He started out as a satellite in Earth’s orbit and then eventually came down to earth as a sweet-looking Mercedes-Benz SLS. Soundwave can also deploy smaller robots that he controls called Laserbeak and Ravage, both of which have been seen in the movies.
His look is also very different between the main movies, Bumblebee, and the original show. He is most recognizable by his even more robotic-sounding voice and his previously mentioned ability to summon allies. He ends up being one of the coolest Decepticons there is, even getting turned into a Magic The Gathering card.
1 Megatron
It is very hard to beat the very best. Megatron is by far the most iconic and best Decepticon. He was responsible for the Decepticon uprising and being the cold leader of the Decepticons. In the first Transformers movie, he was responsible for killing Autobot Jazz by tearing him into two pieces with his bare hands.
He starts out transforming into an alien ship, but later becomes a transport truck and a tank. Megatron is also one of the few robots to be equal, if not more powerful, than Optimus Prime. Truly, he is a force to be reckoned with.
