The Ass Blaster, as it was nicknamed by Jodi Chang, is the third and final stage in the Graboid life cycle. Ass Blasters, also referred to as "Flying Shriekers", Blast-Offers or Butt Launchers, lay the eggs that later hatch and turn into Dirt Dragons, thus starting the cycle anew. Ass Blasters are the primary antagonists of Tremors 3: Back to Perfection, which is also their origin. Ass Blasters have continued to appear in later installments, such as Tremors: The Series, Tremors 5: Bloodlines, and Tremors: A Cold Day in Hell.
Ass Blasters have the unique ability among Graboids to both fly and see heat signals, which makes them arguably a greater threat than Shriekers. Burt Gummer is one of the notable individuals to believe that Ass Blasters are the most dangerous Graboid evolution, due in part to their gliding abilities and heightened heat-seeking capability. Burt claimed that fighting Ass Blasters is "twice as dangerous" as fighting Shriekers. Shriekers molt into Ass-Blasters over the course of twelve hours, which resemble their original Shrieker, shedding their skin as they grow and change. They are capable of gliding with the use of red/pink-colored sail-like structures at the sides of their bodies, consisting of a semi-translucent skin supported by rigid stems and a third dorsal sail that extends from the spine down the back and tail. In order to take flight, they shake and quiver their tails and backsides and seem to be mixing two liquids which produce an explosion of flames from their rear end, similar to a Bombardier beetle's blast of acid, hence their name.
Description[]
American Ass Blaster[]
The Ass Blaster is the term for the third and final morph/stage of the Graboid's life cycle, the imago stage. Much like butterfly is the term for the imago stage of a caterpillar. A Shrieker having achieved maturity, enters the third known phase of the Graboid life cycle: the Ass Blaster. The Ass Blaster differs from the Shrieker in three significant ways: It possesses wings; it has a rocket-like ability to launch itself into the air; and it has the ability to lay eggs. It is considered by some (including Burt Gummer), to be an even larger threat than Shriekers and Graboids due to their heat seeking abilities and ability to glide after blasting off. This ability to fly is the result off the Ass Blaster's most unique trait in which the Ass Blaster works two chemicals into its tail section. They come from two separate organs in the body with these in turn go to two separate sacs that inflate with the chemicals so that they can mix them in the air and blast off. Once these two chemicals mix, they become volatile and react violently when exposed to the air, creating a lifting explosion. Much like the Bombardier Beetle. Their African Counterpart operates on a slimier principle.
According to Burt Gummer in the TV Series, Ass Blaster launch residue smells like "rotten eggs marinated in bad beer".
African Ass Blaster[]
The African Ass blasters are the African variant of their American counterparts with a circular mouth filled with shark-like teeth rather than three mandibles and a beak. Their jets of flame propellant also last longer and seem more concentrated on the American Ass Blaster. When focusing on protecting a nest of eggs, these Ass Blasters will ignore all other sources of heat and go directly for the threat they see. They will also attack nearby human locations if they feel they are a threat to their offspring. One notable difference is these Ass Blasters are nocturnal rather than operating during the day like their American counterparts. They also seem to be more immune to harm as shown when one was shot several times yet was uninjured enough to grab a full-grown man and take off. Another one was shown to explode after taking enough fire, though this may be due to where the Ass Blaster was hit as the other Ass Blasters were not shown to explode upon death.
Known Individuals[]
Notable Incursions[]
Trivia[]
- Jodie coined the name, but Jack was against it as it sounded like it was the name of a porno.
Victims[]
Tremors 3: Back to Perfection (2001)[]
- Miguel - Unceremoniously knocked off cliff
Tremors 5: Bloodlines (2015)[]
- Basson - Ass-Blaster Basson-wich
- Thaba - Would you like a doggy bag?
- Johan Dreyer - ! got a crush on you
Tremors: A Cold Day in Hell (2018)[]
- Royal Mounted - The ol' stomp n' yank
Deaths[]
Tremors 3: Back to Perfection (2001)[]
- Ass Blaster #1 - Made past tense by a fence
- Ass Blaster #2 - Butane butt blown up
- Ass Blaster #3 - Blown up like a cartoon duck - Won the Burt's Hunting Trophy, because it's ridiculous.
- Ass Blaster #4 - This is my boom boom stick
- Ass Blaster #5 - Boom boom stick strikes again
- Ass Blaster #6 - The boom boom stick trilogy
- Ass Blaster #7 - Cannibalized by El Blanco
Tremors 5: Bloodlines (2015)[]
- Ass Blaster #1 - The Voorhees strategy™
- Ass Blaster #2 - Blasty you're a firework
- Ass Blaster #3 - General blaster's last stand
- Ass Blaster #4 - Blown up with grenade
- Ass Blaster #5 - Shotgunned by Baruti
Tremors: A Cold Day in Hell[]
- Ass Blaster #1 - The power of planes propels you! (Collision with airplane)
- Ass Blaster #2 - I want to take his ass/off (Shot and blown up)