The Omnitrix is a piece of alien technology designed by Azmuth and built by the combined efforts of him and his assistant Myaxx. It allows the wearer to transform into whatever alien species whose DNA is within its database. It was sent to Earth by Xylene to get it away from Vilgax and it was found by Ben Tennyson. It has 1,000,904 alien DNA samples within it.
Purpose[]
Azmuth created the Omnitrix with the intention of providing the various species of the universe with a better understanding of each other, essentially walking a mile in another's shoes. Vilgax and other aliens only saw combat potential in such a device and sought to possess it. Fearing for his own safety, Azmuth sent the Omnitrix away to parts unknown. Eventually, the device landed on Earth.
Azmuth also designed the Omnitrix with a secondary purpose: a countermeasure against the Highbreed. The Omnitrix has the DNA of all sentient species in the galaxy and serves as a means to repopulate them if their species go extinct. To Azmuth, this function was so important that he decided to forbid Ben from fighting Highbreed. He compared the Omnitrix to Noah's Ark and Ben to Noah.
Description[]
The Omnitrix is portrayed as a small alien device that attaches to the wrist of the user like a watch. When a button on the side is pressed, the face pops up and shows a silhouette of an alien. The aliens come in sets of ten. The face can then be twisted to select different aliens. By pushing the face back down, the Omnitrix binds the selected alien's DNA to the user's own, transforming them into the alien of their choice. Because of the manner in which it operates, the Omnitrix becomes difficult to remove once attached. Large amounts of energy seem to work, though not consistently, and removing it through amputation also works. The device is described as a prototype by the show's creators, who also falsely hint that Vilgax had something to do with its creation.
When used normally, the Omnitrix only allows the wearer to occupy a specific form for a limited amount of time, usually around ten minutes. When the Omnitrix is about to deactivate, it beeps and flashes red. When it finally deactivates, it remains red and is unusable until it recharges from a few minutes to almost a quarter of an hour. It may also implement a change other than the one selected. It has even refused to activate on several occasions, actually resisting Ben's attempts to push the face down. When damaged or under the influence of a virus, it can malfunction, causing strange mutations in the various alien forms. As revealed in Race Against Time the limited period in which it stays active (10 minutes) is a fail-safe designed to keep the alien DNA from overwhelming the user. Still, this movie is counted as non-canon.
Various methods exist to bypass its normal limits, most of which require some technical knowledge of the device. Four buttons on the face of the Omnitrix act as a combination lock for the Omnitrix's full potential. When a proper code (out of billions) is entered, the Omnitrix will receive some form of enhancement, such as unlocking a new alien form. Another code allows the user to remain in any form indefinitely and switch between different forms at will. Ben accidentally discovers this code but is forced to clear it later. It is clear that he was able to reactivate it at some point within twenty years into a possible future. By pressing the symbol seen on Ben's alien forms, the user can either switch from any alien form to another or deactivate the Omnitrix, though only Vilgax and Ben's future self have shown the ability to do so, suggesting more to the feature than the simple touch. In Season 2 of Ben 10:Alien Force, it is shown that Ben has gotten the ability to change his alien form at will. On one occasion, the Omnitrix was hit by a power surge in Vilgax's ship, forcing Ben to morph from alien to alien at random for a limited time. In Ben 10: Alien Force, the Omnitrix changes and becomes smaller and lighter. It can now disinfect DNAliens and other genetic defects and talk.
The Omnitrix is depicted as being more life-form than machine, being able to grow as any life-form would to fulfill its function. Every part of the Omnitrix contains alien DNA as well as its own power source. This is noted in "Dr. Animo and the Mutant Ray" where the face of the Omnitrix, when separated from the device, mutates several creatures and generates a massive amount of power on its own. The Omnitrix also has its own defenses against enemies, though such defenses are mainly in defense of itself and not its host. Should anyone attempt to remove it by force, it will emit a large feedback pulse to repel the assailant. Conversely, those who know how to operate it can do so safely, regardless of whether or not the current user wants them to. It will protect its host on occasion and can recharge instantly if the user is in danger, as it did when Zs'Skayr tried to possess Ben in "Ghostfreaked Out" or when Kevin tried to skewer Ben in "Grudge Match" as well as in "Last Laugh" when Ben was confronted with a major villain directly after a fight that ended with the watch timing out.
The DNA in the Omnitrix is collected from various aliens across the galaxy. The Omnitrix can also absorb and integrate alien DNA into itself, as shown in various episodes in the third season. In "Benwolf" the first instance, a gradual transformation takes place during the process, slowly transforming the user into that alien. The later episodes merely have the Omnitrix quickly adding the form to the total selection. A few of the originating species have been featured in various episodes, such as Tetrax Shard (a Petrosapien). Several versions stored in the Omnitrix have noted enhancements from the species they're based on, removing some of the more debilitating weaknesses of those species.
It's been shown that each alien tends to have its own personality, which somewhat intermingles with Ben whenever he becomes them. Ben first notes this in "And Then There Were 10" where he says that it felt like he was both himself and someone else while being Heatblast. Ghostfreak, whose personality was trapped in the Omnitrix, had a particularly strong influence on Ben while Ben was using the form; thus, Ben was usually apprehensive about using it. Grey Matter, on the other hand, shows a lighter side of the personality mixing. While in that form, Ben will often make a complicated scientific analysis and then have no idea what he meant by it.
The aliens have also been shown to age as the user does. The thirty-year-old Ben in "Ben 10,000" had alien forms with obvious differences to those of present Ben; future Ben's Stinkfly had much more pronounced insect features and visible pupils, for example. In addition to the aliens changing, the Omnitrix itself had also become larger and changed shape, either by expanding itself or being artificially modified. Conversely, all of Ben's aliens become children when Ben is exposed to water from the Fountain of Youth. The aliens also adapt the user's clothing; all of Ben's aliens wear the same shirt. Future Ben's Diamondhead and Cannonbolt also have coloring schemes matching his inverted clothing compared to present Ben.
At some point in the years between the original series and Ben 10: Alien Force, Ben managed to remove the Omnitrix by an unknown but difficult process. When Ben puts it back on, the Omnitrix reconfigures into a more watch-like shape, giving Ben access to a new set of alien forms and a holographic alien display rather than merely presenting the silhouettes of the aliens. Also, Ben has lost his previous alien transformations; this is noted in "Ben 10 Returns pt. 2", when he first uses the new Omnitrix and states that he doesn't recognize anyone in his selection, in "Everybody Talks About the Weather", when he told Alan Albright that he used to turn into Heatblast, and in "Pier Pressure" when he saw a Galvanic Mechomorph and told Julie Yamamoto that he used to be able to turn into Upgrade. Ben himself also retains any injuries suffered by his alien forms, although this has not been shown to be a real problem as of yet. Also, Ben is able to transform multiple times in succession, but it will eventually shut down to recharge. In addition, the Omnitrix has the ability to repair genetic damage, such as that caused by DNAlien mutation. It uses a previously unseen speech function to inform Ben of this feature.
The Omnitrix possesses a self-destruct protocol, which was created in case it ever got into the wrong hands. However, its paranoid creator went somewhat overboard in designing it: not only does it destroy itself, but the resulting explosion will create an energy ripple that will disintegrate the universe along with it. Only the Omnitrix's creator, Azmuth, knows how to shut it off.
Modes[]
The Omnitrix looks like a wristwatch, primarily black and gray in color, with a green dial in the middle, which has a shape like four triangles with their point ends facing each other and joined. The inside of the two vertical triangles glows in different colors at special moments. These colors signify the state that the Omnitrix is presently in
- Green: Active Mode. Active mode means that it can be used or that it is in use. The actual time limit that it can remain active is unknown, usually between ten and twenty minutes, and it can time out at spontaneous moments. It seems to time out faster the more it is used, especially during extenuating fighting. If its regular timeout isn't allowed to happen, such as by Ditto's clones being to far away from each other, then after the Omnitrix times out, it will take much longer for it to recharge, or the next transformation will be significantly shorter. The Omnitrix symbol on the transformed alien forms is also green.
- Red: Recharge Mode. It signifies that the Omnitrix needs to recharge energy before being used again; it beeps this color to warn the user that they are about to transform back into their normal forms. It then remains red until it is recharged, then it changes back to green. This mode is used to prevent an alien's genetic personality from overwhelming the user.
- Yellow: DNA Collection Mode. When the Omnitrix has encountered unrecognized (uncatalogued) DNA, then it changes to a yellow color as it attempts to acquire its DNA for future usage. This form can also reclaim DNA samples from aliens that escaped or were removed from the Omnitrix (such as Ghostfreak's DNA)
- Orange: Self-Destruction Mode. Meaning that the Omnitrix is in S.D.M. Any transformation while the Omnitrix is in this mode will cause the self-destruct timer to accelerate.
- Purple: Eon-Tampering Mode. When Eon used his abilities to prevent it from working, and also while he was entering his genetics into the Omnitrix. Non-canon, since it was seen in the move "Ben 10: Race Against Time.
- Blue: Recalibration Mode. The Omnitrix changes shape while it selects a new set of ten aliens when the Omnitrix is placed on a new wearer, barring the first instance.
Repertoire of Omnitrix Aliens[]
Original 10 Aliens[]
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Other Aliens[]
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DNA Acquired Aliens[]
- Technically, Ghostfreak also fits into this category.
- Benwolf (Loboan)
- Benmummy (Thep Khufan)
- Benvicktor (Transylian)
Alien Hybrids[]
- Main Article: Alien Hybrids, for hybrids not seen in the show.
- Stinkarms
- Diamondmatter
- Heatjaws
Future Aliens[]
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Alien Force First 10 Aliens[]
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Additional Alien Force Aliens[]
Ben 10 Power of the Omnitrix[]
- Squidstrictor (Cephalod-ae)
- Rocks (Basalt)
Omnitrix Wearers[]
- Ben Tennyson/Ben Tennyson (Alien Force) in every episode except "Gwen 10", "A Change of Face" however, he and Gwen only switched bodies, and the beginning of Alien Force.
- Vilgax in his fantasy in "Secrets".
- Gwen Tennyson in the episodes "Gwen 10" and "A Change of Face" however, she and Ben only switched bodies.
- Max Tennyson in the episode "Gwen 10".
- Enoch in the episode "Perfect Day" however, it was only in a dream sequence.
- Kenny Tennyson in the episode "Ken 10".
- Albedo in the episode "Good Copy, Bad Copy".
Omnitrix Experts[]
Additional Omnitrixes[]
- See article: Multiple Omnitrix Controversy
In the Ben 10 universe, there is the normal Omnitrix, but some duplicates have been constructed. In "Good Copy, Bad Copy", Albedo had a duplicate Omnitrix used to fight good. But two Omnitrixes in the world prove too much, as when Albedo and Ben's Omnitrixes meet, Albedo's body becomes that of a distorted clone of Ben. Azmuth comes and says two Omnitrixes are too much and there can only be one in the universe, but in "Ken 10", an older Ben Tennyson creates an Omnitrix for his son, Ken Tennyson, through the intelligence of Brainstorm, Benvicktor, and Grey Matter.
- Ken's Omnitrix
- Albedo's Omnitrix
- Ultimatrix
Trivia[]
- Nanomachines break down the clothing of the user when they transform and store it until they resume normal form. Dwayne McDuffie calls this "Broadcast Standards and Practices Modesty and Y-7 Rating Preserver." This breaking down process also works for Goop's, Gravity Disk.