Mikaela Banes

Origin

Mikaela Banes attended high school alongside Sam Witwicky. Generally independent, after breaking up with one of her high school boyfriends she is offered a ride home from Sam, this small act opening the way for them to becoming friends. Mikaela Banes is a very skilled mechanic, something she had learned from her father, whose activities were not always of a legal nature, Mikaela's father having spent time in prison for those indiscretions. Striking up a friendship with Sam, she also learns of the Transformers, and the war between the Autobots and Decepticons, all whilst growing closer to Sam and doing her part to help save the world from the Decepticons and Megatron.

Creation

Mikaela Banes is a character who originates from the Transformers franchise. The character was initially created for the 2007 released Transformers movie, before reappearing in its sequel Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. The character has been adapted for various comic books published by IDW Publishing. The character is portrayed by Megan Fox in the movies. The characters first comic book appearance is in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen Movie Prequel: Alliance #1 released in 2009.

Character Evolution

As a character adapted from movies, the character of Mikaela Banes does not experience much character growth or evolution. Essentially the female romantic lead to the stories protagonist she is otherwise portrayed as a tough, sexy character who is supposedly deeper than she may initially present herself as, and with skills and experience as a mechanic. In many ways she is a modernized version of Carly Witwicky, a human protagonist from the original Transformers cartoon series, who was the romantic interest of the then male protagonist Spike Witwicky. The later Transformers movie sequel, The Darkside of the Moon introduces a character bearing the name Carly, although her shared traits with the cartoon character are only name deep.

Major Story Arcs

Revenge of the Fallen

After the events involving the Transformers, the Autobots and Decepticons arrival and war on Earth, and Megatron's defeat by Optimus, Sam is off to college, and Mikaela's father has been released from prison, and both he and her work in a garage as mechanics. Mikaela and Sam maintain a long distance relationship. As he leaves to college Sam entrusts her with a fragment of the AllSpark he had recently discovered. Mikaela hides the fragment in a safe at her father's motorcycle repair shop, but she is followed by the Decepticon spy Wheelie, who is intent on recovering the fragment. She catches the spy and interrogates him. After going to inform Sam at college, Mikaela saves Sam from the Decepticon Pretender Alice whom she later kills after it chases and pursues them both, only to be captured by Grindor and taken to the recently repaired Megatron. Rescued by Optimus Prime, Mikaela and company escape, and on the recommendation of Sam's college friends they seek help from the man who ran a giant robot conspiracy website, who ends up being the former Agent Simmons. Simmons and Wheelie lead them to Jetfire, who uses a Space Bridge to transport the group to Egypt, where the Autobots and their allies battle the Decepticon and The Fallen. She is devastated when Sam apparently dies, but is ecstatic when he is revived and admits that he loves her. She survives the battle and having helped save the world again.

Powers and Abilities

Mikaela possesses no superhuman abilities or attributes. She is a typical human, though one who is fit and healthy, and regularly works out. She is also a skilled mechanic, and also willing to risk life and limb for heroic causes.

Other Media

Movies

Transformers (2007)

Mikaela appears in 2007's Transformers movie as the daughter of a car thief. She is played by Megan Fox. Sam Witwicky offers her a car ride after she breaks up with her then boyfriend. After Sam drives her home, he tells her that there's more than meets the eye with her. They re-meet when Sam was running from his car on his mother's bike, but a cop car arrived and when Sam tried to get help, it transformed into a giant robot. It was Barricade, one of the Decepticons. Sam's car Bumblebee arrives, and saves them. Hours later, the rest of the Autobots arrived on Earth, Optimus Prime, Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet. Optimus explained the situation to them and they need the glasses where are the coordinates of the All-Spark. Megatron was found frozen in Antarctica by Archibald Witwicky, Sam Witwicky's grand-grandfather in 1897. Later on Sam and Mikaela are put in a team with Maggie, Lennox, Simmons and Bumblebee, so at this point they're were the only hope of Sector, 7 as it was revelead that Megatron is kept there frozen. Frenzy, who had disguised itself as Mikaela's cellphone, freed Megatron and he reunited the Decepticons and led an invasion against Mission City in order to find the AllSpark. Bumblebee and Optimus was damaged in the fight and Jazz was killed. After the battle in the city, the AllSpark was destroyed as was Megatron. Sam and Mikaela then begin dating.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009)

Mikaela returns in the 2009 film Revenge of the Fallen, still very much in love with Sam, and carrying on in a long distance relationship with him. She is portrayed once again by Megan Fox, although this is the last time the actor and character appear in the moves, save for minor verbal references by other characters.

Transformers: Dark of The Moon

Mikaela didn't appear in the 2011 sequel Transformers: Dark of the Moon. Mikaela apparently has broken up with Sam. She supposedly left Wheelie and Brains with Sam in Washington, and both retorted, saying she was "mean" and that they did not like her, which contradicts the previous film where Wheelie worshiped her as his "Warrior Goddess". However in said movie Mikaela injured Wheelie's eye and threatened to take out his other eye, so he could still have that grudge.