The Intruder (Character)

The Intruder was a big red blob-like creature featured in two Total Immersion Events, The Intruder and The Intruder II. In The Intruder II, The Intruder was voiced by a combination of Sonny Strait (the voice of TOM 1) and Steve Blum (the voice for TOMs 2-6).

Background
This entity has been seen in connection with several disturbances dating back at least 100 solar years before the start of The Intruder. Below is a list of all known disturbances in which the Intruder is suspected to have appeared.
 * UC 184 - Entity destroys deep space way station Reliant in Alpha Quadrant. Description fits profile of current Intruder. Once the station was destroyed, the "blob" disappeared.
 * UC 199 - Deep space mining vessel "CYGNA 5" reports contact with "unknown life form." 2 solar days later, CYGNA 5 broadcasts universal distress signal, detailing near complete destruction of ship, followed by escape of 85% of crew into lifeboats. The crew was rescued, delirious, 15 solar days later. Again, contact with the entity is lost.
 * UC 210 - Earth scientific research probe "Voyager IV" reports back contact with unknown alien - a "large amoeba-like being" floating in deep space. Contact with Voyager is lost permanently thereafter. Voyager IV is assumed eaten by entity.
 * UC 220 - Galactic congress orders interstellar combat vessel "Horizon" to patrol quadrant where last known sighting of the entity was reported. After arriving at the last known position of the entity, the Horizon disappears from scanners and is never heard from again.

Intruder Aboard the Absolution
The Intruder invaded the Ghost Planet Spaceship Absolution, apparently in search of sustenance. The Intruder was first detected aboard the Absolution on the 49th level, aft starboard side, where it began consuming the ship's starboard engine. The ship's AI, SARA, detected this, and promptly alerted TOM, who was in the middle of a conversation. When TOM set out to search for the Intruder, it attacked him, sending TOM flying out of the ship, and disabling his nuclear reactor.

By the time TOM recovered and was back aboard the Absolution, the Intruder had eaten multiple Clydes, and grown to a massive size. TOM promptly went on a search to find the Intruder before it got to the starboard engine. TOM was searching for The Intruder for quite some time, until he finally found it and proceeded to use his laser against it, to no avail. With no other recourse, TOM once again fired a laser blast at the Intruder, momentarily stunning it before the Intruder devoured TOM.

Much later, with the Intruder having consumed most of the starboard engine, SARA, having kept a copy of TOM's programming, proceeded to upload TOM into a new body, dubbed TOM 2. TOM 2 then set 2 explosive devices in the starboard engine to cut the Intruder loose before it completely took over the ship.

Aftermath
The Intruder was not destroyed along with the Absolution's compromised engine, as the Intruder returned in The Intruder II. However, prior to this rematch, it was revealed in the Intruder II companion comic that the Intruder previously faced off against TOM 4 sometime between the cancellation of Toonami in 2008 and the return of Toonami in 2012. In the comic, the Intruder also displays previously unseen sentience and tech controlling abilities. It was revealed during The Intruder II that it killed TOM 4 after the comic's conclusion.

The Intruder II
The villainous Intruder returns once again, this time facing off against TOM 5 and SARA. However, it is revealed that the Intruder has absorbed TOM 1 (his remains can be seen in the Intruder), gaining intelligence and the ability to speak (voiced by both Sonny Strait and Steve Blum, implying that he speaks through TOM 1's and TOM 4's voice boxes). It is further revealed that his goal is to steal SARA's AI matrix from the Absolution and to "make [TOM] suffer." He was destroyed when TOM destroyed the Intruder's ship to sacrifice the Absolution in episode 6 of The Intruder II.

Trivia

 * The Intruder resembles the science fiction movie monster, the blob. It also boasts similarities to the "grey goo" concept.
 * Since the newest incarnation of the Intruder is a monstrous combination of the blob-like form and TOM 1, it knows who TOM 4 and 5 are, as well as SARA. It states that its "upgrades" occurred due to merging TOM 1's consciousness with its own.
 * The "upgraded" Intruder seems immune to TOM 5's weapon fire, mirroring the fatal flaw that doomed TOM 1.
 * An early trailer of The Intruder II featured a shot of TOM 1's blaster pistol on the Absolution's floor, covered in ooze, hinting that he would return in some form (0:15). Like most of the trailer, this footage was not actually used in any episodes.
 * In episode 5 of The Intruder II, the Intruder states that it killed TOM 4. This is somewhat supported by a scene in the end of the Intruder Comic, which reveals Intruder slime left behind as TOM 4 attempts to warn TOM 5. The Intruder also states that TOM 4's attempt to warn TOM 5 was what allowed him to locate the Absolution.

Gallery
Intruder I=