Our Steps Will Always Rhyme

2018-01-08T16:03:56Z

Miniconsuffrage:

{{Comicstory
|series=mtmte|issueno=40
|prev=The Permanent Revolution
|next=The Sensuous Frame
|image=MTMTE40_regcvr.jpg
|title=Chief Medical Officer Ratchet in: "Our Steps Will Always Rhyme"
|caption=Looks like Ratchet has been collecting [[Cyberverse (toyline)|Cyberverse]].
|publisher=[[IDW Publishing]]
|date=[[April 29]], [[2015]]
|coverdate=April 2015
|written by=[[James Roberts]]
|art by=[[Brendan Cahill]]
|colors by=[[Joana Lafuente]]
|letters by=[[Tom B. Long]]
|editor=[[John Barber]]
|continuity=[[IDW Generation 1 continuity|IDW continuity]]
|chronology=[[IDW timeline|Current era (2015)]]
}}

'''A hearing is convened to decide Brainstorm's punishment, which inspires Ratchet to venture off on a mission of his own—but not before he says his farewells properly.'''

==Synopsis==
[[File:Pharma ratchet steps shall always rhyme.jpg|thumb|left|upright=2]]
[[Ratchet (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ratchet]] has never been very good at saying goodbye, whether to [[Roller (IDW)|Roller]], to [[Pharma (G1)|Pharma]], or even to [[Hunter O'Nion]]. Such thoughts are on his mind today, as he enjoys a drink in the deserted [[Swerve's]], while the [[Swerve (G1)|bartender himself]] and [[Ten]] pass the time arranging a huge pyramid of glasses. The pyramid is lucky to be spared what happens next; Ratchet is not so fortunate, and is knocked head over heels as [[Tailgate (G1)|Tailgate]] comes careening into the bar on a new [[hoverboard]] that he has purchased in [[Fortuna]], capital city of the planet [[Scarvix]], where the ''[[Lost Light]]'' is currently berthed while its [[quantum generator]]s recharge. Tailgate apologizes, but notes how empty the bar is, which Swerve whines is the result of [[Mirage (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Mirage]] opening a competing establishment, [["Visages"]] (quotation marks included!), after the recent poisoning incident at Swerve's. While Swerve laments, Tailgate tells Ratchet he's going fishing for [[Legislator]] body-parts in the [[oil reservoir]] with [[Getaway]]; this turns the subject of conversation towards the put-upon Ten, who [[Ultra Magnus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ultra Magnus]] has been trying to convince Swerve to treat better. Realising he is running late, Ratchet departs...

...in order to attend the first meeting of the [[Lost Light Internal Legal Affairs Committee]], headed by Ultra Magnus, [[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rodimus]], [[Xaaron]], and an absent [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]], who are holding a hearing to decide what [[Brainstorm (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Brainstorm]]'s punishment will be following his recent deceptions. Brainstorm queries why [[Rewind (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rewind]] is not on trial, having been the 'bot who actually fired the fatal shot on their time travel adventure, but [[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Chromedome]] has already pleaded Rewind's case in private. When confronted with the [[Decepticon]] symbol within his faceplate, Brainstorm does not deny the implication; [[Nautica (G1)|Nautica]] storms out as Brainstorm details how he chose to become an undercover agent in order to obtain from the Decepticons the resources necessary to build his [[time case|time machine]], but notes that he never provided his handlers with any information that would harm the [[Autobot]]s. When the subject of the alternate ''Lost Light'' and the act of treachery by its Brainstorm that resulted in the death of the entire crew is raised, Brainstorm takes a stand, refusing to be held accountable for actions that were not his own—a stand that earns him a solo round of applause from [[Perceptor (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Perceptor]]. The Committee begrudgingly admits that this is true, but conclude he must still be punished for his attempts to alter history; his time machine is to be destroyed, and his access to his lab is to be strictly regulated, but much to Brainstorm's surprise—and Ratchet's silent but visible dissatisfaction—he is ''not'' going to be kicked off the ship.

[[File:Getaway's innocent conversation with Tailgate.jpg|thumb|upright=1.7]]
Following the hearing, Magnus checks in on the melancholy Megatron, to see if he has taken a missing datapad belonging to Magnus. Megatron denies any involvement, but cryptically claims to be "working". Ratchet, meanwhile, heads to "Visages" to borrow Tailgate's hoverboard; the little 'bot is in the bar with Getaway, and grows confused and upset as the escapologist continues to ply him with drink and 'negative compliments', and claims that [[Cyclonus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Cyclonus]] has been talking about Tailgate behind his back.

Under the patently phoney ruse that Tailgate's board is infected with teleporting "super-[[scraplet]]s", Ratchet has [[First Aid (G1)|First Aid]] round up a select few of the crew for "examination". He uses the short, one-on-one sessions to talk candidly with each of them: he scolds Rodimus for the inconsistent treatment Brainstorm has received in comparison with exiled [[Drift (G1)|Drift]]; he gives [[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]]'s number to [[Rung (G1)|Rung]] in order to get him counselling; he asks [[Skids (G1)|Skids]] to be a friend to Rung outside of officer hours; he helps [[Nautica (G1)|Nautica]] understand that Brainstorm's actions were truly selfless, as he was an [[M.T.O.]] and would have been erased from history had his mission succeeded; he suggests that Swerve try getting Megatron to perform some of his poetry to reinvigorate his bar; and he tries to console Ultra Magnus, who has come to believe that the rest of the crew does not respect him after finding a tiny figurine of his innermost form, [[Minimus Ambus]], outside his hab-suite door.

[[File:MTMTE40 Ten's mural.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Is it wrong to say we give it 10 out of 10?]]
Once the examinations are done (and First Aid has made it clear he knows Ratchet was making up the "super-scraplets"), Ratchet is once again clobbered by Tailgate on his ''new'' hoverboard, which Tailgate explains was built by Ten. His curiosity piqued by the similarity in artistic style of the drawing of Tailgate on the hoverboard and the Minimus Ambus figurine, Ratchet visits Ten's makeshift "quarters", where he discovers that the soul of an artist glows within the vocally-impaired robot: Ten has drawn a beautiful mural of the ship's crew on his wall, and built a wide range of miniatures of the same with to-scale dioramas. Noticing that there's a display dedicated to Ultra Magnus, Ratchet realizes that Magnus is Ten's "favorite", and that Ten, wanting something of his, secretly took the missing datapad in exchange for the Minimus figure. Examining the pad, Ratchet discovers why Magnus was so eager to get it back: it contains a poem he is trying to write! Ratchet encourages Ten to return the pad, and types a message for Magnus into it to explain the situation.

A little later, with his new friend Ten at his side, Minimus Ambus enters Swerve's, which is now the popular spot once again after Swerve had Megatron perform... at "Visages"! While Minimus talks about the strange message Ratchet left him, brief moments play out across the ship: Brainstorm and Nautica reconcile; Getaway and Tailgate fish; Cyclonus broods; Rodimus and Perceptor burn Brainstorm's briefcases... save one, which is secretly recovered for Megatron by [[Ravage (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ravage]]; and First Aid finds Ratchet's quarters deserted, with a communicator and a note at long last appointing First Aid the ship's chief medical officer. As the ''Lost Light'' departs Scarvix, Ratchet watches it go from a small shuttle of his own, before he too takes off... in search of Drift.
{{--}}

==Featured characters==
(Characters in ''italic text'' appear only in flashbacks.) 
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
{{{!}}border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="background:transparent"
{{!}}-
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*[[Ratchet (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ratchet]] (1)
*''[[Pharma (G1)|Pharma]]'' (3)
*[[Tailgate (G1)|Tailgate]] (6)
*[[Siren (G1)|Siren]] (7)
*[[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]] (8)
*[[Hosehead (G1)|Hosehead]] (9)
*[[Swerve (G1)|Swerve]] (10)
*[[Xaaron]] (12)
*[[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rodimus]] (13)
*[[Ultra Magnus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ultra Magnus]]/ [[Minimus Ambus]] (14)
*[[Rung (G1)|Rung]] (15)
*[[Nautica (G1)|Nautica]] (16)
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*[[Riptide (G1)|Riptide]] (17)
*[[Perceptor (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Perceptor]] (18)
*[[Rewind (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rewind]] (19)
*[[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Chromedome]] (21)
*[[Brainstorm (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Brainstorm]] (22)
*[[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]] (24)
*[[Hound (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hound]] (26)
*[[Getaway]] (27)
*[[Mainframe (G1)|Mainframe]] (28)
*[[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]] (29)
*[[Mirage (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Mirage]] (30)
*[[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] (31)
*? (32)
*[[First Aid (G1)|First Aid]] (33)
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*[[Skids (G1)|Skids]] (34)
*[[Bluestreak (G1)|Bluestreak]] (35)
*[[Jackpot (G1)|Jackpot]] (36)
*[[Grotusque]] (mural, 37)
*[[Trailbreaker (G1)|Trailcutter]] (mural, 38)
*[[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]] (figurine, 39)
*[[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]] (40)
*[[Slapdash (G1)|Slapdash]] (41)
*[[Atomizer]] (42)
*[[Rad (G1)|Rad]] (43)
*[[Crosscut (Autobot)|Crosscut]] (44)
*[[Broadside (G1)|Broadside]] (45)
*[[Drift (G1)|Drift]] (figurine, 46)
{{!}}}
|c2=
*''[[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]]'' (5)
*[[Ravage (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ravage]] (23)
|c3=
*''[[Hunter O'Nion]]'' (4)
|c4=
*''[[Roller (IDW)|Roller]]'' (2)
*[[Ten]] (11)
*[[Cyclonus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Cyclonus]] (20)
}}

==Quotes==
"I '''hate''' it. I ''(muffled)'' everything about it. It sounds ''(muffled)'' '''awful.'''"
:—'''Swerve''', on "Visages"

'''Brainstorm:''' "Everyone who's ever built a '''fully functioning time machine''', stand up." 
''(Riptide stands up.)'' 
''(beat)'' 
'''Riptide:''' "Oh, a '''time''' machine...! Sorry." 
''(Riptide sits down.)''

"The Decepticons have had their suspicions about me for '''ages.''' I'm the worst double agent '''ever'''. Worse than '''Rung.'''" 
''(beat)'' 
"Joke. Not funny."
:—'''Brainstorm'''

"If I had sarcasm-powered legs, I'd do a '''happy dance'''...!"
:—'''Nautica''' takes the news of a potential scraplet infection poorly

"How do I feel. How do I 'feel'." 
"It's not meant to be a trick question."
:—'''Ultra Magnus''' and '''Ratchet'''

"Are these your '''favorites'''?" 
"Ten." 
"Yeah. Mine too. You're '''missing someone''', though. Not your fault: you joined after he left. After we '''sent him away.''' You'd have liked him. '''I''' did—probably a lot more than either of us realized."
:—'''Ratchet''' and '''Ten''' talk about Drift

"I don't trust poetry. What's the point? All these people trying to say something by hiding it behind something else." 
"Someone once said that poetry is a hazardous attempt at self-understanding. It's certainly '''difficult'''..."
:—'''Swerve''' and '''Minimus Ambus'''

'''Brainstorm:''' "I added a new button:" 
'''Nautica's wrench:''' "Brainstorm is an ass!" 
'''Nautica:''' "It's my new favorite."

"This ship is a refuge for the '''emotionally inarticulate'''. Oh, people talk. People talk '''all the time'''. They just don't '''say''' very much. They're too worried about people knowing how they '''feel'''. Too worried about being '''found out'''. For better or worse, we're judged by what we do, and not what we '''say'''. And if it takes us a while to get around to doing something '''important''', well... better late than never."
:—'''Ratchet's''' farewell message

==Notes==
===Continuity notes===
*Ratchet's first flashback shows his parting with [[Roller (IDW)|Roller]], which chronologically takes places between the scenes of the past shown in [[Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|issues #11]] and [[Elegant Chaos Part 1: All Our Parlous Yesterdays|issue #36]].
*His second flashback is set before his departure for Earth, prior to [[Infiltration issue 0|''Infiltration'' #0]], IDW's first ''Transformers'' issue. We also learn that Ratchet's departure was what convinced Pharma to transfer to [[Delphi]], where we met him in [[Life After the Big Bang|issue #4]]. Pharma is depicted tinkering with a transformation cog, foreshadowing his eventual fall from grace.
*The third flashback shows Ratchet (in his "-ations"-era body, complete with [[holomatter]] avatar and even speech-bubble and font design from that time) returning [[Hunter O'Nion]] home following his separation from [[Sunstreaker (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Sunstreaker]], set in the missing year between [[Maximum Dinobots issue 5|''Maximum Dinobots'' #5]] and [[All Hail Megatron issue 1|''All Hail Megatron'' #1]]. [[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]] is shown watching Hunter, alluding to his eventual capture of the boy and the pillaging of his mind, revealed in [[All Hail Megatron issue 8|''All Hail Megatron'' #8]].
*Hunter is noted to be going to his sister's house, a small allusion to the non-canonical strip "[[Hail and Farewell]]", in which Hunter's sister was noted to be his only remaining family.
*Tailgate's been inspired to get a hoverboard after watching ''Back to the Future Part II'' in [[Elegant Chaos Part 3: Predestination: An Expert's Guide|issue #38]].
*The oil reservoir is full of Legislator body parts after Skids tore an entire battalion of them apart down there back in [[Remain in Light 2 of 5: House of Ambus|issue #18]].
*Someone has written "I failed the [[Ambus Test]]" on Ten's back; the test, an indicator of sentience, was previously mentioned in [[Into the Abyss: Dark Cybertron Chapter 4|issue #24]].
*Getaway's behaviour towards Tailgate has grown noticeably more creepy from when we first saw it in [[World, Shut Your Mouth Part 3: Predestination: A Beginner's Guide|issue #30]].
*Ratchet feels Hoist needs "someone to talk to"; that's likely because of his isolation issues, which we saw illustrated in [[The Waiting Game|''Spotlight: Hoist'']], and which are no doubt flaring up after [[Trailbreaker (G1)|his roommate]] died in [[Births, Deaths, and Interventions|issue #34]], only the week before the events of this issue.
*We've known that "Brainstorm" isn't Brainstorm's real name since [[The Reluctant Specialist|''Spotlight: Trailcutter'']]; here, Nautica reveals that it is "Genitus of Operation: Solar Storm".
*Ratchet encourages Skids to get the "puncture wounds" on his neck fixed; those would be the [[mnemosurgery]] holes Chromedome left after [[Scavengers (Part 2): Who's Afraid of the DJD?|issue #8]].
*In keeping with her professed enthusiasm for engex in issue 28, Nautica nurses a giant-sized drinking glass at Swerve's.
*In the same panel, "Whirl Wuz Here" can be seen scrawled on a chair. Whirl's propensity for graffiti was previously brought up in the Annual, as well as earlier this very issue in relation to the writing on Ten's back. Further, the specific words call back to the desk graffiti on one of the (out-of-continuity) covers to issue 5: "Whirl Wuzent Here".
*Also in this same panel, Brainstorm's Autobot symbol is noticeably absent from his chest, presumably a consequence in some way or other of his revealed duplicity.
*Ratchet's departure leads into his role in the [[The Transformers: Drift - Empire of Stone|''Drift - Empire of Stone'']] mini-series, already published in full by the time of this issue's release.
*The long-range communicator Ratchet takes bears a noticeable resemblance to the "time phone" of the Elegant Chaos arc, which makes sense seeing as how the latter certainly didn't seem constrained by distance in its depiction.
*First Aid's tenure as Chief Medical Officer will be brief, as he and several others will be leaving the ship shortly in order to be part of the "[[Combiner Wars (comic)|Combiner Wars]]" storyline. In fact, the comic showing his departure, "[[The Possible Light]]", had been published two weeks prior.

===Transformers references===
*The planet Scarvix appeared in [[Headhunt|issue #133]] of the [[The Transformers (Marvel comic)#Marvel UK|Marvel UK Generation 1 comic]].
*The 'bots who Tailgate nearly knocks down while on his board are Siren, Nightbeat, and Hosehead, the full roster of 1988 Autobot [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmasters]]. As a cute reference, Hosehead claims Tailgate "nearly took [his] head off".
*As Swerve directs Ten around, he says: "A little to the left... a little bit more", a verbatim quote from [[Kup (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Kup]] in ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]'' as he arranges the positioning of a roadblock, right before Hot Rod comes crashing through.
*The rise and fall of Mirage's bar was first mentioned in [[The Possible Light|''The Transformers'' #40]], just a few weeks before this issue was published.
*When Ratchet describes the "super-scraplets", he uses the onomatopoeia "Vop!" to illustrate their teleportation abilities. That's the sound effect IDW uses for [[Skywarp (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Skywarp]]'s teleports.

===Real-life references===
*This issue's title is a lyric from the {{w|Leonard Cohen}} song, "{{w|Hey, That's No Way to Say Goodbye}}", a pretty self-explanatory reference.
*Siren's exclamation of "I'm walkin' here!" is an oft-quoted line of {{w|Dustin Hoffman}}'s from the 1969 film ''{{w|Midnight Cowboy}}''.
*When Ratchet leaves Hunter home, the human notes he is going to catch up on a lot of television, listing off the hot-name shows that were airing at the time the scene is set, in the late 2000s: the reimagined ''{{w|Battlestar Galactica (2004 TV series)|Battlestar Galactica}}'', ''[[Doctor|Doctor Who]]'', and ''{{w|Heroes (TV series)|Heroes}}''.
*After Tailgate smacks into Ratchet for the second time, Ratchet returns his hoverboard and says "Hey, kid, thanks", paraphrasing similar lines from ''{{w|Back to the Future}}'' and {{w|Back to the Future Part II|its sequel}} when {{w|Marty McFly}} returns borrowed boards to their owners.
*The individual mentioned in Minimus's remark on the nature of poetry, quoted above, was {{w|Robert Penn Warren}}, who wrote: "For what is a poem but a hazardous attempt at self-understanding: it is the deepest part of autobiography."

===Errors===
*Ratchet's interaction with Rodimus is pretty off-base. The medic's ire is focused on the "disproportionate punishment" he believes Drift received, but completely ignores the fact that ''Rodimus'' was the one who was responsible for bringing Overlord on-board the ship (which we know from [[Burning Bright: Dark Cybertron Chapter 8|issue #26]] that Rodimus admitted to the whole crew) and that Drift had actively ''volunteered'' to take the blame for the fiasco and allowed himself to be exiled—there was no "punishment" involved for Ratchet to be angry about. The No-Prize-y explanation would be that Rodimus didn't tell the crew that Drift chose to be exiled, which would kinda-sorta fit with [[Drift - Empire of Stone issue 1|''Empire of Stone'' #1]], in which Ratchet knows that Drift is not to blame for the Overlord situation, and claims he was "following orders". The trade paperback changes the wording of Ratchet's complaint to "inconsistent treatment", which papers over the problem by making it more about how the difference between the two Autobots' sentences appears to the rest of the crew, rather than about the punishments themselves.

===Other trivia===
*After running a month behind for the first quarter of 2015, ''More than Meets the Eye'' gets back on schedule with this issue, the second of two released in April.
*There are plenty of ''Lost Light'' regulars who aren't part of Ten's mural, but it's pretty telling that Ten has left Swerve himself out of the artwork.
*The shared faves of Ratchet and Ten are Chromedome, Tailgate, Rung, Skids, Hoist, Getaway, and Rodimus (and Magnus).
*Also, Ten seems to depict himself with eyes in both his mural and his miniature, despite being a Legislator and having none.
*In accordance with Ratchet's suggestion, Skids can be seen socializing with Rung in the background, towards the end of the issue.
*Brainstorm mentions his 'handler' but doesn't tell us who that would be. Will we ever find out?
*Nautica has a pretty drastic reaction to Brainstorm's admission of being a double agent, considering how she was an outsider to the whole war.

===Soundtrack===
*"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rgb8am3NQU0 Nobody's Empire]" by {{w|Belle and Sebastian}}
*"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYRoZELZY3w Love Expression]" by {{w|It's Jo and Danny}}
*"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-bJPmasXKs Hey, That's No Way to Say Goodbye]" by Leonard Cohen

===Covers (3)===
*'''Regular cover:''' The ''Lost Light'' crew in Ratchet's tender hands, by [[Alex Milne]] and [[Josh Perez]]
*'''Subscription cover:''' Tailgate on his hoverboard as Getaway, Cyclonus, and Ultra Magnus look on, by [[Nick Roche]] and [[Josh Burcham]]
*'''Retailer incentive cover:''' Brainstorm in the spotlight, with Nautica, Ratchet, and Ultra Magnus silently judging, by [[Brendan Cahill]] and [[Joana Lafuente]]

<gallery>
File:MTMTE40 regcvr.jpg|He's got the whole gang in his hands.
File:MTMTE40 subcvr.jpg|Well, it beats pod-racing.
File:MTMTE40 cvrRI.jpg|'''CHUNG CHUNG'''
</gallery>

===Advertisements===
*''More than Meets the Eye'' #41
*"[[Combiner Wars (comic)|Combiner Wars]]"
*''[[Transformers vs. G.I. Joe]]'' [[Expelled from the Garden|#6]]
*''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Ghostbusters'' trade paperback
*IDW ''Skylanders'' comic
*IDW ''[[Jem|Jem and the Holograms]]'' comic
*''[[My Little Pony]]: FIENDship Is Magic'' comic book event
*Disney comics are back! (back cover)

==External links==
*[http://www.comicbookresources.com/comic-previews/transformers-more-than-meets-the-eye-40-idw-2015 Preview]

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Our Steps Will Always Rhyme