Changes: Rod Redline

Revision as of 18:11, 17 July 2014

thumb|right|300px Rod "Torque" Redline was a character in Cars 2. He's the American agent that Finn McMissile and Holley Shiftwell were supposed to meet until circumstances forced him to pass crucial information to Mater, whom the two British spies mistook for Redline wearing a "clever" disguise.

Cars 2

Rod “Torque” Redline was considered by many as the greatest American spy in the world. Recruited after the Cold War for both his brains and brawn, Torque was a tough-as-nails Detroit muscle car with a mastery of disguises. In his latest deep-cover operation, he obtained vital information about the plot to sabotage the World Grand Prix. So Rod planned a rendezvous with his British counterparts to share his discoveries at the World Grand Prix welcome reception in Tokyo, Japan. But with the bad guys hot on his tailpipe, Rod was forced to ditch the intel early and with the first party guest he sees — a rusty American tow truck named Mater.

He was first seen on the oil rig (at the beginning of the movie) disguised as a Gremlin. Rod later came to the Tokyo party to exchange info with Finn McMissile, but his plan was infiltrated when he was ambushed by Acer and Grem. When Mater comes across them, Rod passes the device with the info onto Mater's undercarriage when no one was looking.

After doing this, Rod was captured by Grem and Acer, who brought him to Professor Z in their secret lair, where they tied him down. He was then pumped with the fuel "Allinol", and Professor Z demonstrated, on the agent himself, what happens when cars fueled with Allinol are exposed to an electro-magnetic pulse. As a result, Rod was killed from a gargantuan spontaneous explosion.

After his engine was blown, you could slightly see his corpse in the reflection of the screen of him in the bathroom with Mater.

Cars 2: The Video Game

Rod re-appears in Cars 2: The Video Game as a downloadable character on the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions. He can also be downloaded in his Gremlin disguise.

Personality

Rod has a cool manner. He does not worry even though he knows there is no chance for him to live even after the encounter with the lemons. Instead of worrying, he tries to keep up a smile and even insults the lemons.

Under his disguise, he is seen smiling at everyone he talks to except when meeting with the lemons.

Specifications^[1]

Top Speed: 145 mph
Zero – 60 mph: 4.4 seconds
Engine Type: 5.5-liter V-8
Horsepower: 550

Weaponry and Gadgets

Gremlin disguise: Rod has an integrated disguise of an ocre AMC Gremlin which is not a hologram but composed of physical pieces, unlike the disguises of his British colleagues.

Rod removing his Gremlin disguise
Concealed gun: Located in the front left wheel.
Telescoping utility arm: A small screwdriver-like arm, located in the right wheel. Rod used this to attach a small device on Mater that was containing top-secret information.
Status bar: Right under his eyes, Rod has a screen in the form of a bar that gives him his sitrep, notably giving the amount of fuel, and several other parameters.

Trivia

Rod's interrogation scene was criticized by many as surprising or even inappropriate in a kid film. In an interview, John Lasseter said that the scene was necessary to explain efficiently and visually the working and high danger of Professor Z's camera. It also enabled to get in the movie a certain tone of the spy genre. Story Supervisor Nathan Stanton said that while "watching spy films, where your character is basically tortured and it can be a really horrifying scene, I remember thinking that if we could just get five-percent of this in one of our scenes, if we could just get a little of this in what we want, it would be great. It would go a long way."^[2] Lasseter, and supervising animator Dave Mullins, mentioned that the scene as it had originally been conceived was much more dark and cruel, and that several people of the studio reacted to it.^[3] They say in consequence they "backed off tremendously"; the changes included making Rod a "tough guy".^[4]
Rod's design is a mix of a 2005 Ford Mustang GT and a Dodge Challenger R/T.
His license plate is M1911A1, which is also the name of a gun.
According to his license plate, he is from Michigan. Michigan is the birth place of actor Bruce Campbell, who voices Rod.
G4 DXR labels on Rod may be stating the fictional name of his car model.
A Toys "R" US Lego exclusive of Rod was released for free on October 15, 2011 in the US.
Rod is seen talking to Shigeko meanwhile in his Gremlin disguise.
When Rod has his Gremlin disguise on, his eyes are brown instead of blue.
Rod is downloadable in Cars 2: The Video Game, even though he was killed in the film. However, since all the tracks are just simulations, it's possible that Rod is part of the simulations.

Quotes

"Whoa. A TV Camera? What does it do?"
"Okay, McMissile. I'm here. It's time for the drop."
"I'm fine."
"Well, you know. I was just wearing a disguise. You guys are stuck looking like that!"
"Allinol? Thanks, fellas! I hear this stuff is good for you."
"Whatever you say, Professor."
"Your mother. Oh, no, I'm sorry, it was your sister! You know, I can't tell them apart these days!"
"What do I care? I can replace an engine block!"
"No!" (his last word, after the lemons find out he put his intel on Mater)