Motobug (Sonic Boom)

The Motobug is a character that appears in the Sonic Boom television series. They are a ladybug-based Badnik model created by Dr. Eggman which make up a part of Eggman's foot soldiers. They are usually stationed at Dr. Eggman's lair where they guard Eggman's fortress and have been used against Team Sonic on numerous occasions.

Appearance
The Motobugs are diminutive robots about Orbot's size. As per their template, the Motobugs resemble ladybugs, with an oval-shaped and slim body with red elytra, a swirled rear and with two black spots on each side and one in the middle. Their head is grey with two sharp mandibles, four stubby spikes on the front of their face, cyan eyes with slit-like pupils and two lighting bolt-shaped antennas. They also have an yellow and grey appendage on each side with a claw for a hand, a black tire on the bottom of their body and an exhaust pipe on their left side.

TV series
On many occasions, the Motobugs have been deployed against Team Sonic and its members, only to quickly be destroyed by the heroes one way or another. Other times, they have guarded Eggman's lair, but with limited success.

When Dr. Eggman held a surprise party for Orbot and Cubot, a number of Motobugs participated in the festivities until Eggman brought them to an end. To guard the captured Team Sonic, T.W. Barker ordered a batch of Motobugs from Eggman which were all destroyed when the heroes escaped. A lone Motobug was also used to test a freeze ray and another helped Eggman in his laser tag exercise where it lost to its master. When later working on a Motobug, Orbot and Cubot were neglected by Eggman in favor of his new friend Nominatus, which made them deflect, though not before Orbot bid goodbye to a dear Motobug. However, Nominatus soon showed his true colors by taking control of the Motobugs to destroy all life forms, and used them to attack his enemies. Nominatus was soon defeated though, freeing the Motobugs.

Eggman later took a Motobug with him to Meh Burger to hold his place in the court, but it failed to keep Sonic from cutting in front. The Motobugs were later abandoned by Eggman when he deserted technology until the incompetent Lightning Bolt Society took over Eggman's lair, who made the Motobugs go on random rampages in both the Village and at the lair until Team Sonic and Eggman reclaimed the lair. Multiple Motobugs and other Badniks were later summoned by Eggman to kill Dave the Intern and destroy Chez Amy, but due to Team Sonic, they only accomplished the latter. When Eggman shot his mind-enslavement movie, several Motobugs served as actors during the filming. Some Motobugs later attended the screening, but when the movie turned out a failure, they were sent away by Eggman.

A Motobug squadron accompanied Eggman to the Valley of the Cubots to exterminate the residential Cubot prototypes. With Sonic and Tails protecting the prototypes though, the surviving Motobugs soon retreated. Another time, several Motobugs joined Giant Robot for an invasion of the Village, but were all destroyed solely by Tails. Eggman would later assemble his Motobugs again for a mission he sponsored to remove Knuckles as the host of the Comedy Chimp Show, as a part of a sponsor deal with Comedy Chimp (during which the Motobugs advertised Eggman Industries). However, Team Sonic made them retreat. Another time, the Motobugs were assigned to protect Hypno-bot which Eggman used to steal Tails' inventions. As the Motobugs fought Team Sonic, Tails got Hypno-bot to stop the Motobugs by making them dance.

When Eggman harnessed solar power, remotely super-charged Motobugs were sicced on the Village which Team Sonic kept safe. Meanwhile, Eggman tried hiding those in his lair from the Archipelago Homeowners Association or risk eviction. However, the Motobugs malfunctioned from power overload during a thunderstorm, making them uncontrollable and blow Eggman's cover. While Eggman avoided eviction by convincing the association that his Motobugs were art, he spent the night getting them under control.

Archie Comics
The Motobugs have on several occasions been deployed to battle Team Sonic, only to quickly be destroyed by the heroes one way or another. During the Eggtoberfest, hordes of Motobugs were unleashed on the villagers by Eggman when he could not earn the villagers' trust. Fortunately, the Motobugs were crushed by Team Sonic.

Sonic Dash 2: Sonic Boom
In Sonic Dash 2: Sonic Boom, the Motobug is one of the enemies encountered during the stages. When they spot the playable characters, they will start driving towards them for a premature collision. Like other enemies, they can be defeated with a single attack.

Personality
Silent, single-minded, unquestioningly dedicated to Eggman's orders, the Motobugs are ruthless and efficient, but also appear to possess personalities of their own, including festive and celebrative emotions. As per their programming, they will only obey orders after being threatened.

Powers and abilities
The Motobugs have moderate speed and are equipped with several additional abilities. They are capable of flight for aerial combat, possess a laser targeting system on their forehead, and can fire small energy beams. They are also each fitted with a retractable missile launcher/laser cannon for ground- and aerial combat. Like other Badniks, they can also receive power remotely from Dr. Eggman's lair.

Weakness
The Motobugs are rather clumsy and when they crash they are practically incapacitated. They are also fragile, as a simple well-aimed whack is enough to disable them. Their antennas are especially weak points as pulling them out will make them fall apart.

Trivia

 * The Motobug was the first Badnik-based robot from the Sonic the Hedgehog video games to appear in the Sonic Boom television series.
 * Coincidently, the Moto Bug was the first enemy encountered in the video games.
 * The Motobug is the first Badnik-based robot from the video games to be called by name.
 * According to Eggman, the Motobugs are costly to produce.
 * Bill Freiberger has explained that the reason the Motobugs have retained their name from their game counterparts is because their name describe what they are, as opposed to the Crabmeat/Crab Bot and Buzz Bomber/Bee Bot.