Starscream (G1)/2005 IDW continuity
Ever the opportunist, Starscream's boundless ambition drew him into the nascent Decepticon movement and catapulted him through the ranks as Cybertron collapsed into endless war. Though an intelligent, capable leader in his own right, Starscream struggled to distinguish himself from the shadow of Megatron–a relationship that ended with Megatron invariably reminding Starscream of his place after several failed coups and bungled stints at leadership.
Following the end of the war and the revitalization of Cybertron, Starscream found the burden of leadership placed on his shoulders once more after a wayward Titan declared him Cybertron's "Chosen One", destined to reunite and rebuild their ruined world. A subsequent series of crises saw Starscream leaving the Decepticons forever, establishing himself as the "High Chancellor" of Cybertron's growing neutral population and carving out a new anti-factionalist government in the ruins of Iacon. But even after finally achieving his dream, Starscream still seems to be the same person he's always been: self-serving, prideful, treacherous, and perfectly willing to cheat, lie, and step on other 'bots to get his own way. His stubborn refusal to change his ways for the greater good is a constant thorn in the side of his reluctant allies.
Beneath it all, though, Starscream struggles with the ramifications of his morally dubious actions and the growing shadow of his future legacy–a struggle that, in the end, he may not win.
- First appearance: Infiltration #0
Fiction
[edit]There at the beginning
[edit]
Starscream was constructed cold. Arm the Lonely As with all constructed cold Transformers, Starscream's spark carried genetic instructions for a "natural" shape, but the circumstances of his birth meant that his Spark was simply implanted into one of many identical, pre-constructed bodies. Over the course of his life, Starscream developed a predilection for periodically changing bodies; some would interpret this as a sign that his spark was still trying to find its "true form," Your First Mistake while others would simply write it off as a sign of his vanity. Another Mine
In his early life, Starscream studied at the prestigious Nova Point Academy, but eventually moved to the city of Iacon, where he became a street hustler running scams for his personal gain and ran afoul of a young police officer named Orion Pax. The Hallowing Unlike most members of Cybertron's flight class, Starscream took pride in his alternate mode, and, eventually, his silver tongue landed him a handsomely-paying job as a precinct senator in Vos. Starscream: The Movie Disappointed by the lack of fame or respect this job offered, he spent most of his time drinking and reluctantly attending political rallies when he could be dragged away from the bar. The Hallowing Eventually, Starscream grew tired of politics and used his political connections to embezzle a vast sum of money from his constituents before deserting his post. He used his new fortune to recruit a pair of outliers named Skywarp and Thundercracker from the Jhiaxian Academy of Advanced Technology. After arranging their release from the school, he convinced the duo to undergo extensive rebuilds so that they'd look like him, a way to confuse any taxpayers who tried to pursue him. Starscream: The Movie
Some four million years ago, he became a fan of the gladiatorial games that existed in Cybertron's underworld, Megatron Origin #2 and came to idolize the rhetorician-turned-gladiator Megatron for his teachings that Transformers didn't have to accept their lot in life. All Hail Megatron #10 The trio were eventually approached by Soundwave; Megatron Origin #3 seeing Megatron's nascent uprising as good a place as any to lose himself, Starscream: The Movie Starscream and his two lackeys believed that they were joining Megatron's team in the arena, but, after pledging allegiance to the Decepticon leader, learned that their leader had other plans for them: his Decepticon movement required air support as they made the move from activists to insurgents and beyond. Megatron Origin #3
Early on, the charismatic and cunning Starscream was tasked with recruitment of others to the Decepticon cause; significantly, he was the one assigned to approach the disenfranchised Senator Shockwave and bring him into the fold. Shockwaves Starscream was also given another key Senate-related task when he and his fellow Seekers were ordered to capture Senator Decimus, who would then supposedly be executed at Megatron's next recruitment rally. When security forces intervened in the rally and arrested the Decepticons, Starscream bargained for his freedom by offering to reveal all of Megatron's plans. Megatron Origin #3 However, this turned out to have been Megatron's plan—brought before an emergency assembly of the Senate for questioning, Starscream, together with Soundwave, executed the Senators with Starscream personally executing Proteus himself. The Chaos of Warm Things The two then freed every prisoner in the building, with Starscream arming the prisoner and even presenting Megatron with his the fusion cannon that would become his signature weapon. He then joined in their attack on Kaon, during which he bested Trailbreaker. The battle culminated in Megatron's defeat of Sentinel Prime, whose body Starscream dumped in front of Sentinel's men in a fly-by. Megatron Origin #4
Following the ascension of Zeta Prime, the Decepticons were forced back underground for a time but continued their militarization: arming sympathizers with weapons—ostensibly in the name of "self-defense"—Starscream coordinated several illegal arms shipments from off-world suppliers, showing off his handiwork to a shocked Soundwave. Behind My Bleeding Back When it became clear that Orion's Autobots would crack down on this gunrunning, Starscream rigged the latest arms shipments to detonate if the Autobots ever found it, Feel Safe Without Regrets assuring Soundwave that the Decepticons caught in the crossfire were making the ultimate sacrifice for the cause. Future Glories Lost
When gunrunners Horri-Bull and Needlenose had their latest transaction revealed as an Autobot-coordinated sting operation, Starscream destroyed the weapons cache, leaving Soundwave to lie to the two that the Autobots had booby-trapped the shipment. Though Soundwave was appalled, Starscream felt Megatron would have approved. Feel Safe Without Regrets
With war now definitively declared, Starscream continued in his recruitment duties; he was unable to convince the youthful Hot Rod to join the Decepticons Ruins, and had similarly bad luck with racing champion Blurr despite a very pointed effort. Not long after, Starscream was part of a unit that tried to stop Blurr from couriering a message to new planet leader Zeta Prime. Spotlight: Blurr His identity evidently unknown to most, Starscream was also positioned as a delegate to the new Senate that was formed by Zeta Prime, though exactly who or where he was masquerading as the delegate of is unclear. While attending one of Zeta's security sessions, he brought a disguised Soundwave with him to record the Senate's newest plans for how to stop the growing Decepticon menace. When Zeta expressed surprise at how easily Starscream accepted his idea of draining energy from civilians to power weapons, he almost let slip that he'd done worse things in Megatron's name. To cover up his blunder, he drew attention to the spy in their midst, giving Soundwave a cue to reveal himself and stage an escape, distracting Zeta. Parasites
Since turning down Starscream's offer to join the Decepticons, Hot Rod had carried out some insurgent activities of his own, and Megatron and Starscream monitored the situation through Laserbeak with some degree of pleasure as Autobot leader Orion Pax hunted him down. Ruins In Orion's absence, Zeta Prime then attacked Nyon's population with his vamparc ribbons and Omega Destructors—an action Starscream compared to Megatron's own tactics, though, Megatron assured him he was capable of much more. Purge In spite of Starscream's opinion that Megatron was a "stubborn wreck" for his repeated attempts to sway Orion Pax to his cause, they were successful, and the Decepticons joined forces with Orion's Autobots against Zeta Prime. Choices Together, they attacked Zeta Prime and his Omega Destructors, with Starscream personally leading the Seekers as air support. Overthrown
After Zeta Prime was defeated, Megatron betrayed Orion and installed himself as ruler of Cybertron, then had the Decepticons hunt down all remaining Autobots. Starscream led a force to raid an Autobot hiding place in Ultrix and took special interest in Hot Rod, once again offering him the chance to join the Decepticons. Transformation Starscream also tortured and interrogated Bumblebee, but learned little for his efforts. Rise Orion soon returned, however, having become Optimus Prime, and with new warriors at his side, he led the Autobots in an attack on Megatron's citadel. Starscream and the Seekers were ordered to take them out but were intercepted by the Aerialbots. Broadcast
Megatron was subsequently defeated by Optimus Prime, and Starscream conspired with Scorponok to overthrow him and have him exiled to Junkion. Derelicts While Scorponok became the new Decepticon leader, Starscream seemingly preferred to stay in the background and showed no signs of being his second-in-command in public. Wreckage He annoyed Scorponok by urging him to take action rather than just hold grandiose speeches, causing Scorponok to let him in on his plan to capture the Toraxxis mega-refinery for the Decepticons. Starscream participated in this attack by leading his Seekers to the refinery. Faces of Darkness Scorponok ordered him to keep the Autobot defenders busy while he left to deal with Grimlock personally. Rage The plan ended disastrously when the refinery exploded, killing thousands and leaving the planet cripplingly low on energon; Starscream berated Scorponok for his actions, unable to see any point in staying on the dying planet himself. Massacre Fortuntely, Megatron soon returned from his exile and retook Decepticon command. Starscream attempted to welcome him back, but was quickly silenced. The Illusion of Control
There was a brief lull in the war, Primacy #1 before Megatron regrouped the scattered Decepticons for an all-out attack on Iacon. Starscream went to Canis Tor to inform the Predacons that Megatron was back and after that, bribed the Combaticons into coming home. Primacy #2 He fought during the siege of Iacon but it led in a Decepticon rout. Primacy #3 Primacy #4
As the war bore on, Starscream was present when Megatron faced Optimus Prime in open battle on Sherma Bridge, Chaos Theory #1 witnessed a yellow Autobot get destroyed in an Decepticon-Autobot crossfire in another of the war's countless battles, Drift #2 and stood side by side with the Decepticon Deadlock in many other combat scenarios. Drift #3 He would later admit that at one point, he had genuinely looked up to Megatron, but that changed when he realized that he feared the Decepticon leader, rather than respected him Infiltration #6 and was disgruntled that Megatron was leading them into a seemingly endless war. All Hail Megatron issue 10 That epiphany evidently led to further attempts to take leadership from Megatron, but in time, these power plays ceased, and Megatron hoped that it meant he had moved beyond such things. Infiltration #6 At some point, Starscream participated alongside Overlord and Thundercracker in a mission to rescue Soundwave from the New Institute. Remembrance Day
Starscream would even eventually end up as Megatron's bodyguard, and developed a mutual hatred with Sixshot, professing that he would not be able to defend Megatron against such a powerhouse. Devastation #5 But Starscream's appointment to this position was largely for show—Megatron could, of course, protect himself, and would later reveal that he kept Starscream close by despite his predilection for treachery as a reminder to himself to always watch his back. Spotlight: Megatron
At one point, Starscream's treachery reached the attention of the Decepticon Justice Division, who had him added to their dreaded list of targets. He was later removed from this list, perhaps due to Megatron's insistence on keeping him close by. An Axe to Break the Ice
Xetaxxis, Earth and Ore-13
[edit]Millions of years later, after the war had resulted in Cybertron becoming uninhabitable and the Autobots and Decepticons had spread out across the galaxy, Starscream came to be in command of one the small Decepticon units that secretly infiltrated planets across the galaxy. Infiltration #0 In the mid-19th century, the group had conquered the Huni System and were approached by the Dire Wraith Vekktral, who wanted to propose an alliance. Though Starscream initially wanted to kill the organic, Vekktral made him interested by showing him the Space Knight Stardrive. Though Dirge had his doubts, Starscream realized the Solstar Order must have an Energon source to keep Stardrive alive and agreed to Vekktral's alliance. The group slew a Galactic Council force due to meet with the Solstar Order, and Starscream left behind a Vehicon and a bloke who turned into a bulldozer to destroy their ship while Astrotrain assumed its form. Shining Armor #2
Upon arriving at Orchid Crossing, Starscream swatted some pest out of the sky before he tried to recruit Stardrive. Failing to do so, he instead used her as a battering ram to reach her energon synthesizer only for Bumblebee and Ultra Magnus to show up with a standoff ensuing. Shining Armor #1 As Stardrive expressed confusion over who the Autobots were, Starscream again offered her a spot in the Decepticons, only to be shot through a wall by Ultra Magnus. No sooner had the Seeker regained his bearings did Magnus ram Starscream in truck mode. After a Wraith merged with Sky Blast and turned into an ungodly abomination, Starscream opted for the better part of valour and decided the Wraiths could serve as canon fodder. Grabbing Doomwings (after getting his name wrong), Starscream made his way to the energon synthesizer only for the Wraith/Cybertronian hybrid to tear Doomwings apart. Starscream told Vekktral to get the beast under control, only to learn neither the Wraith or Sky Blast was in control. Starscream then took Astrotrain and made another run for their prize, only for the station to begin tumbling. He emerged to find Magnus had disabled its power, and he quickly destroyed the Autobot shuttle before giving the evacuation order, deciding to dig the energon synthesizer out of the rubble. In the skies of Xetaxxis, Starscream questioned if the synthesizer was durable enough to survive reentry and how long it took for space stations to fall, before being informed the hybrid had survived. Shining Armor #2
Starscream and Vekktral tracked the hybrid to a Xetaxxian village where the situation neatly resolved itself. After the two performed a quick check on whether or not the Xetaxxians were mechanical (they weren't), Starscream bluntly told Vekktral he had no interest in furthering the Wraiths' agenda and merely wanted the synthesizer before mobilizing their forces. When the Seekers arrived at the crash site however, the Space Knights had beaten them there. When Stardrive tried to evacuate some Xetaxxians past the Seeker blockade, Starscream expertly manoeuvred around her and shot the organics before turning his attention to the Space Knights, landing foot first on Rom. Rom and Livia managed to use their speed to outmaneuver him with the former socking the Seeker square in the jaw. Sneaking away from the battle, Starscream made his way to the Energon synthesizer in Stardrive's room. The Camien soon realized he was there however and threatened to destroy the synthesizer with her Neutralizer before she offered to trade it in exchange for him leaving Xetaxxis. Shining Armor #3 After expressing his supreme annoyance at Rom's melodramatic speech pattern, Starscream tried to recruit Stardrive once again by extolling Cybertronian superiority and claiming to need her knowledge of the Wraiths to protect their kind from the Dire Wraiths. He might have succeeded had Rom and Livia not thrown Dirge into him forcing him to retreat. The Seekers then watched Stardrive suffer a mental breakdown and attack her allies before they annoyingly worked everything out. The promised Dire Wraith backup however soon arrived in the form of Vekktral having possessed Ultra Magnus. As Starscream gloated about a mutual Dire Wraith/Decepticon victory however, Vekktral turned on him. Shining Armor #4
After being saved by Sata and Stardrive, Starscream blasted the Wraiths off his troops and made a run for the synthesizer. As he fished it out of the rubble, Stardrive confronted him again where, after making one last half-hearted effort to recruit her, Starscream downed her with his null-ray and prepared to execute her only to be shot in the chest by Livia. In his daze, he was assaulted by Stardrive who brutally beat him down and tore off his wings. Though grounded, Starscream's Seekers came to his rescue while he detonated the energon synthesizer and hitched a ride on Astrotrain. Reporting to Megatron on the Dire Wraiths' unfeasibility as allies, Starscream was congratulated...for finding yet another way to disappoint his master. Shining Armor #5
Roughly a century later, learning through undisclosed means of at least some of the secrets behind Shockwave's Regenesis program and the super-powerful energon Ore-13 that the scientist had seeded on Earth, Shockpoint and seeing in it the potential to challenge Megatron for Decepticon leadership once again, Starscream took his unit to that planet. There, they set about destabilizing Earth's governing organizations and create global anarchy in accordance with the strict infiltration protocol the Decepticons now operated to, all the while searching for Ore-13. After around four years, their search bore fruit when a seam of Ore-13 was uncovered in Nebraska, but later, the discovery of an even purer source of the ore in Oregon prompted Starscream to step outside traditional infiltration protocols and move the Decepticons' base of operations to the new site, establishing a fortified "siege mode" bunker well in advance of the standard timeline. Infiltration #3 Unfortunately for Starscream, the abandoned Nebraska bunker was then infiltrated by Stoker, an agent of the human organization known as the Machination, necessitating that both he and the data he gathered—including images of Starscream himself—be eliminated by the Decepticons. Infiltration #1 Starscream sent Thundercracker, Runabout and Runamuck after Stoker, and although they were successful in slaying the human, Starscream failed to count on another human obtaining Stoker's SM-40 computer and falling in with the Autobot counter-insurgency unit also operating on the planet. Infiltration #0
{{#if:StarscreamInfiltration issue 6|| “ | Thanks to Ore-13, Megatron, I have evolved... beyond you! I am the future! | ” |
| {{#if:Starscream| —Starscream{{#if:Infiltration issue 6|, Infiltration issue 6}} }}}} | ||
Concurrently with the search for Stoker, Starscream and Astrotrain successfully mined the first batch of Ore-13 from the Oregon seam. Starscream urged speed, aware that breaking protocol the way they had was sure to elicit a response from Megatron. Infiltration #2 As he waited for the ore to process, Starscream ordered Blitzwing and Skywarp to cover the Decepticons' tracks by destroying all evidence of Stoker's travels, including what remained of the Nebraska bunker. Infiltration #3 Unfortunately for them, Megatron himself had arrived on Earth and was in the bunker, catching up on what Starscream had been up to, when they attacked. Infiltration #5 Starscream emerged from the infusion capsule brimming with the incredible power of Ore-13 just as a furious Megatron arrived at the Oregon bunker and offered the Decepticons a choice: stand down, or be destroyed. Every one of his men surrendered, but the super-powered Starscream roared into battle and unleashed his full fury against Megatron. Alas, the power conveyed by Ore-13 proved insufficient to destroy the Decepticon leader, and Megatron blasted Starscream with his fusion cannon at point-blank range, virtually obliterating him. Megatron left Starscream's remains to be tended to by the Decepticons, unconcerned if he lived or died. Infiltration #6
Starscream was placed in a CR chamber for extensive repairs but even with him out of the picture, the power of Ore-13 convinced Megatron to continue Starscream's subversion of infiltration protocol. The last straw for the other Decepticons came when Megatron called Sixshot in early, leading Astrotrain to propose reactivating Starscream so that he could challenge Megatron's actions. Devastation #1 Blitzwing and Astrotrain proceeded to bring Starscream back online, but no sooner was he back on his feet than the alien Reapers attacked the Decepticon base. Devastation #4 With Megatron unaware he had been reactivated, Starscream initially decided to hold back and allow the Reapers to cause trouble first, but when Sixshot arrived, Starscream emerged from base and called the hated Six-Changer out. Starscream's appearance caused the living weapon to decide to accept the Reapers' offer to join their ranks... at which point Starscream promptly activated Sixshot's shutdown command, sending him crashing to the ground. Starscream then turned his weapons on the Reapers, causing Megatron to agree to take the fight to the aliens. Devastation #5 Spotlight: Grimlock Starscream once again accepted Megatron as his liege, and together they teamed up to destroy the alien invaders, with Starscream wielding Megatron in his Ore-13 empowered pistol mode to devastating effect. As the battle came to an end, Starscream stopped Megatron from punishing Blitzwing for going behind his back with the observation that a fleet of human jet fighters had arrived, and that the Decepticons' existence was now known to humanity. Devastation #6
The Decepticon ideal
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While the Decepticons were occupied battling the Reapers, the Autobots had left Earth to deal with an incursion by the Dead Universe. Exploiting their enemies' absence, Starscream and the Decepticons went into hiding; when Autobots returned, they could find no trace of the villains, who kept one step ahead of them for months. They secretly returned to Cybertron, where Starscream stood by his leader's side as he received updates from scientist Deluge on his experiments to create a monstrous Insecticon swarm. Upon returning to Earth, the Decepticons then staged a phony schism within their ranks, allowing the Autobots to believe that they had "disappeared" as a result of a power struggle that had split their ranks into two camps, one led by Megatron and one by Starscream. All Hail Megatron #7 To complete their plot, Starscream approached the disenfranchised Autobot Sunstreaker with the proposition that the Autobots join with his fictitious forces against Megatron. Sunstreaker accepted, All Hail Megatron #8 but when he led the Autobots to the designated time and place, they were instead confronted by the united Decepticon army and promptly defeated. Starscream stood by Megatron's side and watched as the bested Autobots were exiled back to Cybertron through a space bridge. All Hail Megatron #7
With a year now passed since their battle with the Reapers, and with their enemies disposed of, the Decepticons began to lay waste to the Earth with the intention of taking it for their new homeworld. Starscream headed up the attack on New York City with glee, though he objected to Skywarp's insinuation that he could not sow destruction and terror on the same level as Megatron; Megatron soon arrived to prove him wrong. All Hail Megatron #1 After joining in the efforts to beat back military attacks and bomb the city's bridges, All Hail Megatron #2 Starscream headed for Washington, D.C., where he personally shot down the fleeing Air Force One. That task done, he returned to New York, to join Megatron in savoring their victory. Megatron mused that it was fitting to have a long-serving a Decepticon at Starscream beside him; Starscream believed he was being sarcastic, but Megatron's praise was genuine, going so far as to describe Starscream as the living embodiment of the Decepticon ideal, but a step short of full embracing it due to his own blindness to that fact. All Hail Megatron #3
With the conquest completed, Starscream stood at Megatron's side as he addressed the gathered Decepticons. All Hail Megatron #4 However, as time passed and Megatron made no further new moves, content to allow his troops to wreak havoc around the world, Starscream began to suspect that Megatron had no further plan, and was merely giving his troops free reign as a distraction to keep them from turning on them. He confronted Megatron with this knowledge, and taunted him with the fact it was essentially his own fault for assembling an army of sociopaths and monsters in the first place. All Hail Megatron #6 Legitimately disheartened to see the leader he had once looked up to go so far astray, having led them through an endless war with no vision for what lay beyond, Starscream began secretly meeting with the other Decepticons, recruiting those who shared his feelings in preparation for a coup. After winning over the Constructicons, he approached the Insecticons, and also successfully convinced them to join him. All Hail Megatron #8
Starscream made his move a short while later, sending the Insecticons to attack Megatron, but the Decepticon leader summarily defeated them and revealed that he had known about Starscream's plans all along; he had, in fact, been doing nothing in order to allow the dissenting element of his army to weed themselves out. He had, however, failed to predict that the Constructicons would take Starscream's side. All Hail Megatron #10 As fate would have it, Starscream's uprising was suddenly cut short when the Decepticons came under attack, first from human jets arrived from Europe, and then the returning Autobots. Starscream was forced to team up with Megatron, who assured him that someday he would get be in charge, someday after the Decepticons won, after he successfully crushed Megatron in the way that the taking of leadership required... but not today. After giving this some thought, Starscream organized his troops to fight back, hailing Megatron's name. All Hail Megatron #11
Megatron was subsequently defeated by Optimus Prime, but as the Autobot leader moved to inspect his fallen body, Starscream stepped in and picked up his injured leader, refusing to let the Autobots finish him off. For the moment, Megatron's words had struck home: Starscream told Prime that he now knew leadership had to taken by force, not gained through chance. Starscream led the Decepticons in withdrawing from the planet, though as he left, he reminded Prime that though the Autobots had won a battle, the Decepticons still reigned throughout the galaxy. All Hail Megatron #12
Leadership of the Decepticons
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Decepticons: "You ARE our darkest hour, you putz!"
Along with a few other Decepticons, Starscream took off into space aboard Astrotrain. Despite what he had told Prime, he was not pleased that Soundwave was keeping Megatron on life support, but his attempts to dissuade the loyalist were met with failure. Afraid of the uncertainty that simply tossing Megatron out and airlock would result in, Starscream was ready to give up, knowing that the Decepticons had no real reason to follow him, and that the faction would fall to infighting as soon as others challenged his rule. All he had was the Autobot Matrix of Leadership, which Megatron had seized from Optimus Prime earlier, but he had failed to find any supposed "ultimate power" within it, and prepared to throw it away. Caught in the act by Shrapnel, Starscream was reminded of the talisman's significance to the Autobots by the Insecticon, and had the idea to use its reputation for his own ends. Gathering the Decepticons, he professed that the Matrix had chosen him to light their darkest hour, but as they began hailing his name in the face of this alleged holy appointment, he stepped from the room already regretting his decision. Uneasy Lies the Head
Starscream took the Decepticons to a barren asteroid that they could use as a staging base to regroup, but as more and more soldiers began arriving, circumstances quickly spiraled out of his control. With most of their limited resources tied up by Shockwave, who he had assigned the task of building a space bridge, Starscream charged Bombshell with finding a way to fabricate energon to feed his starving troops. When no breakthrough ensued, and the energy-deprived Decepticons turned to cannibalizing each other's bodies to survive, Starscream stormed into Insecticon's lab to discover he had been spending his time working on mind-controlling cerebro-shells. Though initially angry, Starscream conceded that he could use these devices after he employed one to take out a rebellious Quake. All His Engines Later, visiting Shockwave for an update on his progress, Starscream discovered the scientist working with Soundwave to cut open Megatron's body and make weapons from his remains. Just as Starscream began to express fake outrage about this presumed "coup", Megatron himself appeared, revealing that the two had built him a new body with a built-in space bridge. He grudgingly admitted he knew Megatron would be back sooner or later, though Megatron neglected to take back leadership as long as Starscream had the Matrix, which he considered a possible threat. Altered Carbon
His leadership a complete failure, Starscream became sullen and withdrawn, lost in distant contemplation of the unknowable mysteries within the Matrix that hung around his neck and lashing out at any Decepticons who attempted to touch the talisman. After Starscream ignored his warning that an Autobot ship had crashed on the asteroid, Bombshell tried to remove the Matrix in hopes of snapping him out of his stupor, but was violently struck for his trouble. As it turned out, the wrecked ship had contained Rodimus, on a quest to take back the Matrix. After first using a cerebro-shell on Razorclaw to make him attack Starscream, he confronted the Decepticon leader on his own. Starscream was unimpressed, having used his rank to give himself nigh-impenetrable armor, only to be taken by surprise when Rodimus shot the Matrix around his neck instead, causing it to release a burst of energy and incapacitate Starscream. Rodimus snagged the Matrix, but both he and it were then blasted out into space by Megatron. Heart Like a Wheel With the threat of the Matrix now removed, Megatron re-established himself as leader of the Decepticons, and decided to inaugurate his return by beating the living daylights out of Starscream. The Seeker, however, had lost the will to continue: he would not rise to Megatron's mockery, and when the Decepticon leader aimed his fusion cannon at him, Starscream simply held it to his chest and demanded he fire. But Megatron kept pushing, eventually causing Starscream to snap and open fire with his own weapons, only to immediately regret the decision and attempt to flee in jet mode. A vicious dogfight above the asteroid ensued, culminating in a pained Starscream questioning how Megatron could understand what it felt like to have his dream crumble so completely. This inquiry only enraged Megatron further—his dream was the Decepticon faction itself, and Starscream had utterly destroyed it in his absence. But Megatron was not without mercy, and after pummeling Starscream to within an inch of his life, he offered him the chance to return to the fold as his subordinate. Meekly, Starscream accepted. Spotlight: Megatron
As Megatron put his new plans into action and had the Decepticons return to Earth, Starscream went off on his own to meet with Thundercracker, who had abandoned the Decepticon cause following their previous defeat. Altered Carbon He tried to convince his fellow Seeker to join with him and overthrow Megatron again, seeing him as obsessed with petty revenge on humanity and lacking long-term goals. When Thundercracker refused, Starscream lost patience and gunned him down, but before he could finish the job he was attacked by Brawn. Starscream denied Brawn's accusation that he had been responsible for shooting down a plane carrying Optimus Prime, pleading for his life by suggesting he would be more valuable as a hostage. Woken Furies Fortunately for him, Brawn chose to carry Thundercracker to safety rather than capture him. Burning Chrome Starscream returned to the other Decepticons and watched Optimus Prime confront Megatron in a one-on-one battle. Enemy Mine
Megatron subsequently surrendered to the Autobots and had himself transported back to Cybertron, in order to use his built-in space bridge to teleport the Decepticons back to their homeworld. Starscream and the other Decepticons gathered at a Native American settlement to await the bridge's opening, but were found by Bumblebee at the last minute. Starscream ordered the Stunticons to dispose of the Autobot, while he led the other Decepticons through the bridge. The Question Emerging on Cybertron in the midst of the Autobots' battle with Galvatron's army of Sweeps, Starscream and the Decepticons soon found themselves entranced by Galvatron's unseen puppetmaster, the D-Void, who merged their bodies and minds together with the Sweeps to form a huge monster. Kings Once this "Deceptigod" was defeated, the weakened component Decepticons were captured by the Autobots and outfitted with I/D chips. The Death of Optimus Prime
The Chosen One
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Two weeks after the Deceptigod's defeat, the Decepticons were still imprisoned, and Starscream was growing increasingly tired of Ratbat's attempts to control the situation. Realizing that it was better to go along with the Autobots' orders for now rather than push back against them, Starscream joined most of his fellow Decepticons in serving as an enforcer, helping to put down a riot by NAILs—unaffiliated Cybertronians who had recently returned to Cybertron and objected to Autobot governance. The Death of Optimus Prime He lurked in the background when Prowl visited the Decepticon camp to lecture Ratbat, The Autonomy Lesson then finally elected to depart the Decepticon camp after an argument with the new self-appointed Decepticon leader. Considering Ratbat's methods and goals regressive and seeking a new approach to power, Starscream paid a visit to Autobot high command with a legitimate desire to talk with Bumblebee about the future, only to be shocked by the distrusting Autobot's taser-cane and taken into custody for his troubles. Interrogated by Prowl, Starscream explained that Ratbat was planning to assassinate Bumblebee during the memorial ceremony for the Lost Light. While the Autobots dealt with that threat, Starscream proceeded to gate-crash the ceremony himself and announced to the gathered masses his desire to be part of the planet's new government. The World & Everything in It
Naturally, all the Autobots were suspicious, but Starscream did his best to prove his good faith: he helped Prowl to cover up Arcee's assassination of Ratbat, then worked with Wheeljack to rescue some NAILs from a series of mysterious explosions. Wheeljack spoke up in his favor, convincing Bumblebee to let him join the government; the Aerialbots were so disgusted that they ceded from Bumblebee's leadership, and while Starscream expressed his regret to 'Bee in private later, he assured him the Autobot he would not regret his choice. Stick Together That proved untrue almost immediately, as Bumblebee, Starscream, and NAIL representative Metalhawk soon held a public assembly to introduce their joint governance, and Starscream talked rings around both of them. Devisive Soon afterwards, Starscream approached Onslaught to buy his services as he made his play for Iacon's leadership. In exchange for protecting him from those like the Decepticon Justice Division or unruly bots, Starscream would allow Onslaught a position of power when the time came. Applicable Skills
Starscream joined Metalhawk in greeting ex-Decepticon Sky-Byte when he returned to Cybertron, but the new arrival's obvious distaste for his former faction prompted Starscream to step back and leave the welcoming to his fellow leaders. A Better Tomorrow Given his genuine desire to see the new government work out, Starscream was just as suspicious of the next returnee as his fellow leaders—noted Decepticon warmonger Turmoil, claiming altruism, no less. Turmoil immediately began to foment distrust among the government by planting more doubts about the Autobots in Metalhawk's mind, so Starscream took the NAIL to Maccadam's Old Oil House to talk the matter out, calling upon bar owner Blurr to recount his own experiences with Turmoil as evidence for the prosecution. Interference Patterns
Not long after the Turmoil incident, Starscream and Metalhawk paid a visit to Autobot High Command to pester Bumblebee about setting up elections. Dinobot Hunt That night, the pair returned to High Command, this time to check on the recently injured Wheeljack and to offer their assistance in locating Ironhide and the Dinobots, who had gone missing in the wilderness earlier that evening. Fearing that Starscream could leverage a successful rescue to his advantage during the elections, Bumblebee refused their offer. Night and the City
That, however, didn't stop the pair from setting out regardless at dawn the next day. They watched as Blurr, also out searching, was caught in an explosion which revealed a subterranean cavern, but were prevented from entering the cave by the quick arrival of Prowl's security team. To put pressure on the Autobots, Starscream rounded up a crowd of NAILs and Decepticons and demanded that Prowl explain the situation to them. The Autobot was forced to admit that the cavern was home to the abandoned Crystal City, and that Metrotitan had teleported into the abandoned city, injuring itself in the process such that the surrounding area would shortly be destroyed. As Prowl returned to Wheeljack, at work in the cavern, Starscream snuck in after him, and a brief chase with the security officer led them to the Titan's face. Suddenly, it awoke, and lauded Starscream as a conqueror who would unite Cybertron, something witnessed by the entire crowd, who had followed them down into the city. The group fled to escape the Titan's detonation, and on the way back to Iacon, the divinely blessed Starscream was held aloft by NAILs and Decepticons. All Good Things
Being a 'bot of little faith, Starscream didn't actually believe Metrotitan's words, but he knew how to exploit everyone else's belief to virtually guarantee himself victory in the upcoming elections. He attempted to get an endorsement from Omega Supreme live on television, but Omega had greater matters to ponder; however, that night, Omega was the victim of a bombing that Starscream presumed to be the actions of the other Decepticons attempting to ruin his aspirations for political power. Finding that public opinion was already turning against him by association, Starscream confronted Shockwave over the attack, but received only an ambiguous warning to keep out of the one-eyed Decepticon's way. As he was leaving the Decepticon pen, Starscream was approached by Dirge and Swindle, who sought to trade information on Prowl's recent shady dealings in exchange for sanctuary from the coming storm. Starscream accepted, and used the info to blackmail Prowl into disposing of Shockwave's Decepticons for him. He was feeling quite pleased with himself, until a one-two punch of bad news took him down a peg: first, Arcee revealed she knew exactly where he had secreted Dirge away, meaning his bargaining chip was essentially useless... and second, Megatron returned. The End of the Beginning of the World
Starscream alerted the Autobot to Megatron's approach on the city, and watched as Bumblebee and the Autobots gunned him down and took him into custody. Starscream tried to dissuade the other Decepticons from marching on high command to call for Megatron's release with a stirring speech about discarding the old ways, but it failed rather spectacularly, so Starscream decided to visit the medical center and appeal to Megatron directly. City on Fire This "chat" was very one-sided as Megatron offered no response to Starscream's word save a smile—though that alone was enough to terrify the Seeker. The Decepticons' march subsequently turned into a riot, during which the prison was stormed and Megatron was liberated. The Decepticon leader dragged Starscream along to the Black Room, where it was revealed that Prowl, mind-controlled by Bombshell, had been working for Megatron all along. The Verge Bumblebee and Metalhawk were soon brought to the Black Room as well, and Starscream tried to explain to them that he had had no part in Megatron's scheme; Megatron verified that, save to note that Starscream's political machinations had provided a useful distraction. Before the Dawn
Megatron then began his endgame, unleashing a perfected Devastator upon Iacon, and forcing Starscream to watch, professing that any political victory he had won would have been one of compromise, rather than a true Decepticon triumph. Plan for Everything Rendered near-paralytic with the seeming totality of his defeat, Starscream was dragged through the streets by Megatron, until the Autobots and Metalhawk surprised him by coming to his rescue. Separated from the main fight, Starscream and Metalhawk were confronted by Turmoil, and the re-energized Starscream killed him using Metalhawk's severed arm as a blade. The Autobots then foiled Megatron's scheme, and Starscream saw his moment to strike: though he admitted to Metalhawk that he genuinely was his friend, he used Turmoil's cannon to kill him, and presented his body to the crowd as a victim of the fighting. He called for the abandonment of factions, and the majority of the population rallied behind him, appointing him their leader Heavy Is the Head and cheering for the banishment of all those who didn't renounce their faction.
The Autobots attempted to fight this, first pointing to their wounded needing care, but Starscream promised they'd be fixed up. And hey, you didn't have to leave. All you had to was just... stop being an Autobot or Decepticon.
You're almost all leaving? Such a shame. Second Exodus
Starscream the First
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Starscream's first night of leadership was a troubled one as the city of Iacon struggled to deal with the aftermath of Megatron's attack. One of the many problems he had to deal with was the blackouts that the city was suffering from. This was only made worse for Starscream by Scoop and his construction patrol vowing to repair the city. He then visited the Medical Center to check on Dirge's condition but he was rebuffed by the former seeker. During an interview with Circuit on how he was planning to deal with the city's problems the power was restored by Scoop, it was at this moment that Rattrap approached him with the revelation that the power grid had been sabotaged with phosphex. As Scoop repaired the communication array he attempted to open his toolbox and instead found out that Scoop was a "religious nut" who believed Metrotitan's prophecy. When Rattrap tripped over Scoop, Starscream soon took the opportunity to accuse him of sabotaging the power grid, however Starscream later revealed that he was fully aware that Rattrap had planted the phosphex in Scoop's toolbox. Three Monologues
Soon afterwards, Tyrest's universal killswitch was activated, and Starscream was among those affected, and Starscream wondered if Megatron was causing it. Arm the Lonely However Starscream was saved thanks to Rodimus and Perceptor. This Calamitous Life He later succeeded in getting a "pep" talk from Wheeljack's headless body—who had survived being shot by Prowl earlier. Three Monologues Starscream was the one who answered when the Lost Light when they called Cybertron with Tyrest's communication system; by this point, he'd started calling the place the Republic of Cybertron. The Sound of Breaking Glass Having successfully risen to power, Starscream reneged on his deal with Onslaught. Applicable Skills
After being rebuilt into a new body, Starscream's secluded admiration of his new form was interrupted by Rattrap's worries about an unidentified glow just over the horizon. A scan of the phenomenon revealed a classified-but-familiar reading, that of the Dead Universe, causing Starscream to seek out the crew of the Lost Light for expertise, particularly that of Cyclonus. Dark Dawn Subsequently, an undead Titan suddenly burst free from the ground, and so Starscream rounded up some weaponry in order to take out the behemoth, but Rattrap instead suggested caution. Starscream decided to visit Scoop in his cell, and the zealot pronounced Starscream as the dark answer to a prophesy hidden in the Covenant of Primes. Black Metal Next Starscream visited the dead body of Metalhawk, succeeding in getting a "pep talk" out of his "old friend" as Rattrap eavesdropped. On his way out of the building, Starscream reassured his citizens that he could handle the ongoing situation—after all, he handled Megatron—and flew out towards the Necrotitan. Meanwhile, Scoop confided in Rattrap that while Starscream was the Chosen One, he may have been chosen to destroy everything. Starscream landed on the Necrotitan's shoulder and tried to start a conversation, but suddenly its eyes flashed and a deadly, chaotic wave of energy burst forth from its body. Starscream desperately tried to beat the wavefront home, but arrived just before it lay waste to the city. The wavefront had a strange and inconsistent effect on everyone, to the point that it reanimated the dead body of Metalhawk. Metalhawk beat down his murderer and abducted the captured body of Megatron, leaving with it for elsewhere. In the chaos that followed the city's destruction, Starscream soon found himself the subject of everyone's ire. Winners & Losers The wave also left a strange black mark on Starscream's chest that Scoop believed was a message from Primus—Starscream was the cause of Iacon's problems. Into the Abyss
He later had the mark checked out at the Iacon Medical Center by Flatline and used this as an opportunity to check on the casualties of the Necrotitan's wave. This merely led to him being berated by Tankor on how he was letting the population down—only for the Necrotitan to then smash its way into the medical center. No Exit Starscream then received another berating, this time from Scoop, on how the fact he was the "Chosen One" was a responsibility to the people of Cybertron. The Dead Are Not Enough He was later approached by Rattrap and the remaining Autobots and Decepticons and merely lamented that all hope of defeating Shockwave was lost while Prowl explained his plan. He did however inform Prowl of the situation at the medical center as Flatline and Fixit "teamed up", he was then present when Megatron explained his alternative plan for defeating Shockwave. Burning Bright
Later, Starscream was further lamenting about the hopelessness of the situation when the Lost Light arrived with Metroplex. He was observing the battle between the Necrotitan and Metroplex when Scoop started to recite the "Dark Cybertron" prophecy and was later cured when Metroplex released the Ore-7 stored within his thumb. Finis Temporis Starscream was later gloating to Scoop about how the prophecy was not fulfilled when he learnt its true origin—Shockwave. It was just at this moment when Metalhawk appeared with Skywarp and Waspinator and shot him. It was at this moment that Shockwave started to reveal his endgame to Galvatron and 70 billion Ammonites appeared in the sky above Cybertron. The Becoming Starscream then provided Bumblebee's group with a way of reaching Shockwave's base by revealing that Skywarp was still alive. He elected to take Waspinator along (much to Waspinator's objections) as the group required someone who knew the layout of the base, however he was nearly driven catatonic by the fact that Scoop willingly volunteered to remain behind instead of helping to defeat Shockwave with rest of the group. When he recovered he attacked Jhiaxus but the reactive armor Jhiaxus was wearing provided him with all of Starscream's new body's abilities. Black Planet Starscream was not impressed by the reactive armor however (even going so far as accusing Jhiaxus of cosplaying as him) and continued to fight Jhiaxus, even though Jhiaxus had the advantage due to him knowing everything that his new body contained and could do. He beat Jhiaxus by using the swords that were integrated into his body. He was later unfazed by Rattrap's claim that he would have difficulty maintaining control due to Metalhawk sacrificing himself to defeat the Ammonites by claiming that by killing them Metalhawk was a "genocidal despot" ...And the Damage Done
Starscream attended a meeting on the subject of what was to be done with Megatron to represent the People of Cybertron—who wanted a trial. Rodimus was not impressed with Starscream's rule of Cybertron. Towards Peace He was later called to provide a statement where he claimed to be "High Chancellor of the Refulgent Cybertronian Dynasty, Emperor Perpetua and Defender of the Realm". His statement on Megatron claimed that the former Decepticon leader was addled and impotent with a lack of control over his forces and that he deserved pity. Starscream was pleased with his statement as it increased his approval ratings with only one downside—the ratings of the Autobots increased as well. Words Hang in the Air Starscream's testimony had also convinced Megatron that he needed to leave behind a better legacy, and changed his plea to not guilty while invoking one of the forgotten laws of Luna-2. Starscream, fearing that Megatron wouldn't be executed as he hoped, protested, however Optimus would allow Megatron freedom of movement and shared command of the Lost Light. Predestination: A Beginner's Guide
Some time after Megatron's trial, Starscream approached Prowl and Cosmos to gloat about his control of Cybertron, only to be reminded by Optimus Prime that Metroplex was an Autobot and that Ironhide and Windblade were keeping a close eye on him as well; upon being asked if he had any further comments on the situation by Circuit, he merely claimed that he couldn't feel better. Hello Cruel World Some time after Metroplex started acting as a city for Cybertrons population, Starscream began mining operations on the Titan's filtration systems in an attempt to retrieve one of Shockwave's ores from the Titan, and hired some of the Terrorcons as guards. A Long Way Down
Six months after the events of Dark Cybertron, Starscream maintained a less than healthy relationship with Windblade due to Metroplex's constant systems failures. He confronted Windblade on the constant blackouts Metroplex was suffering with the claim that the population was blaming him for the system failures, he then threatened Windblade with serious consequences if she didn't solve the problem and left with Rattrap to discuss the rebuilding Iacon again. Starscream later claimed the blast that damaged Windblade was caused by poor maintenance and later entered her recovery room uttering the phrase "Well. Look who isn't dead". A 'Bot and Her City The ruler of Cybertron then went on to insist on how the explosion was a fortunate accident as Windblade had survived it with only minor injuries. He then threatened the cityspeaker again by claiming that she would probably not be able to cheat death twice before being kicked out of the room. Starscream then asked Rattrap to ensure that he was in the clear before Windblade made a move... A Long Way Down
Starscream later oversaw the capture of Windblade and the group she had taken into Metroplex to expose his mining operations. With the group in his custody, Starscream attempted to obtain confessions to prove that Windblade was trying to undermine his regime as well as revealing the Badgeless—his new anonymous enforcers. He then tried to find out Windblade's try purpose on Cybertron as he believed that she was deliberately trying to sabotage Metroplex to gain further power. Starscream was seen confronting Blurr and Slug as Windblade and Chromia escaped from his prison. Windblade vol. 1 #3 As Chromia and Windblade rushed towards Metroplex's brain, Starscream fought Slug and Blurr, easily defeating them thanks to his handy shoulder cannons and then left to pursue the Camiens. Catching up to them at Metroplex's brain, Starscream was then attacked by Chromia as the fembot tried to buy more time for Windblade to merge with Metroplex. Starscream, however, managed to quickly dispatch Chromia and wound Windblade, before the Cityspeaker managed to successfully merge with the Titan. Despite this, Windblade still managed to merge with Metroplex and activate the Titan's defenses while she made one last attempt to find out who the mystery bomber was.
While Chromia attempted to convince Windblade to use Metroplex's space bridge to jump to Caminus, a desperate Starscream cried out that jumping while Metroplex still served as a city would kill all those who were not completely within the Titan's borders. Deciding to not make the jump, Windblade revealed to Starscream that there were other colonies formed by the ancient Titans and offered the use of Metroplex's space bridge to the leader of Cybertron to unite the colonies in return for not revealing any of the events surrounding the bombing to anyone else. Agreeing to the deal, Starscream left Windblade to deal with the aftermath. Windblade vol. 1 #4
With Monstructor still on the loose and Devastator causing trouble on Earth, Starscream became aware of his own military shortcomings. To this end, he reactivated Wheeljack, in the hopes of bringing Megatron's failed experiment Superion back into fighting shape for the sake of his regime. Still struggling to come to terms with the vastly changed Cybertron, Wheeljack reluctantly agreed and began repairing the gestalt. A Decepticon ghetto had also grown up outside Metroplex, made up of 'Cons who were disgruntled with the status quo and loathed Starscream as a sellout. The World of Tomorrow
A series of murders took place in the Decepticon ghetto, which Starscream was willing to dismiss as just one of them things but allowed his passionate officer Barricade to investigate. Starscream then left to welcome Optimus back to Cybertron after a six-month absence and, with Windblade, talk him through the new status quo. The Prime's social conscience saw them both walking the ghetto City of Steel and sparking a riot. Starscream swept in and helped pull Optimus free of the mob. The murderer they were tracking killed Heavy Barrel in the midst of the riot, with Optimus and Starscream stumbling onto his still-smoking corpse. Fight or Flee Eventually, Starscream settled on the Firecons as the obvious scapegoats culprits and joined Optimus in capturing them: a mission that went disastrously wrong thanks to brutality by the Dinobots and Sandstorm. Quest for Fire Optimus went on to suspect the Dinobots.
When the murderer followed up by killing Autobots, Starscream told Optimus he'd been dumb and decided to raze the ghetto: the public would accept Decepticon murders but would want harsh action for Autobot ones. Barricade refused the order and went on to find a crucial clue The Killing Jar and Optimus talked Starscream into helping him with a plan: faking a fight with the Dinobots to draw out the real killer, who turned out to be Sandstorm all along. Forever Is a Long Time Coming
After Windblade repaired Metroplex's space bridge, Starscream hatched a plan to turn Caminus back into a protectorate of Cybertron—a plan that involved the recently purloined Enigma of Combination. Starscream recruited Swindle and the Stunticons for the job. While he bided his time, Starscream decided to pick out a new body for himself, although he was interrupted by Optimus Prime. The two bickered for a while about using Superion as a weapon (it's part of planetary security, honest) drawing up a truly representative government for Cybertron (as if!). Starscream finally shot down Optimus by pointing out that the people of Cybertron had chosen him as leader, although Optimus insisted that if Cybertron contacted its colonies, the governing body needed a council, not an empire.
On his orders, Swindle used the Enigma on the Stunticons and Starscream's mole Blackjack, combining them together and re-creating Menasor. Now, however, Blackjack's short temper amplified Menasor's already prominent anger problems, creating a completely uncontrollable monster. Starscream sicced Menasor and Swindle on Caminus, intending to use the similarly revived Superion to swoop in, save the day, and win the permanent adoration of the Camiens. First Contact Unfortunately word got out to Optimus Prime and Windblade, forcing him to deploy Superion early on. Starscream just couldn't win, especially after Optimus—a holy figure to the people of Caminus—upstaged Starscream in front of the Mistress of Flame. The Sum and Its Parts
In the lull, Starscream took the opportunity to upgrade into his new body before overseeing the first contact ceremony between Caminus and Cybertron. While he was there, he bragged about Superion and how the combiner would keep them all safe. With that done, Starscream let Swindle take the fall for his actions by throwing him in his secret prison. But then, at the Space Bridge, Optimus Prime announced on live TV that Starscream intended to build a democratic Council of Worlds, throwing a wrench in Starscream's imperialistic plans and forcing him to go through. Starscream really just couldn't win. The Possible Light Starscream, Prime, and some Camiens set about hammering out a legislation, although things didn't go particularly well—mostly because Starscream knew that the Camiens would always follow Optimus Prime's vote. The meeting was quickly adjourned after Mirage brought word of an attack on the space bridge. It turned out that Prowl wasn't happy about the situation, and had decided to form Devastator and just smash the Space Bridge. Not even Superion managed to defeat him, so Starscream used the Enigma to resuscitate the defeated Aerialbots. Realizing that Superion couldn't do the job alone, Starscream zapped a recently arrived group of representatives from the Lost Light, fusing them together into Defensor. The two combiners trounced Devastator, and in the aftermath Starscream had Prowl dragged off to a public jail. Not the Constructicons, though; he had plans for them... Mistakes and Mayhem
Starscream stationed both of his combiners on Caminus to keep the peace and guard the space bridge before heading back to his secret prison, where he had stashed the Constructicons. Hoping to turn Devastator back to his side, Starscream used the Enigma on Scoop and the Constructicons. This new version of Devastator, while still temperamental, was willing to go along with the commands of his "Chosen One" thanks to Scoop's mental influence. After an escaped Menasor sparked a Decepticon riot, Starscream deployed Devastator to calm things down. Defensor wound up attacking Devastator, who in turn went postal and started wrecking up Caminus. Oops. You, Me, and the Universe With no other recourse, Starscream and his Badgeless troops put in a personal appearance at the space bridge, helping to keep down the non-combined Decepticons while Devastator and the newly born Optimus Maximus tumbled from colony to colony. With Devastator defeated, Starscream's snide remarks convinced Optimus Maximus to separate so that Prowl could be arrested. All That Remains Starscream later permitted Devastator to reform so that the Constructicons could be safely removed from Caminus. Now and On Earth
A weakening grip
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Despite finally starting to bring the colonies together, Starscream was bitter and frustrated that nobody believed he could do it and that people were talking about him behind his back... so he said to a hallucinated ghost Bumblebee, who he demanded recognise that he'd finally made it. Arcee, unaware of what was going on, arrived with a captured Badgeless and executed him in front of Starscream to make a point. She informed him of a growing problem with the Decepticons, who Starscream needed to keep happy on Cybertron to avoid an uprising and invasion of other planets, and that he was the only one keeping the planet together so he better try harder. The Transgressors
With Caminus in the Council, Starscream turned his attention to the next Titan colony: Velocitron. To this end he met with delegates Knock Out and Moonracer, although Knock Out wasn't particularly impressed with Cybertronian culture. Starscream was disturbed by the extremely hostile planet he'd glimpsed through the Space Bridge, and mentioned to Rattrap that he wouldn't set foot on the planet if he was paid. This might be why negotiations broke down. Windblade vol. 2 #4
After Windblade decided to sneak off to Velocitron to convince them to join the Council, Starscream recruited Superion for a secret jaunt of his own: a trip to the planet Devisiun. The tiny modular colonists were very impressed by Superion's combiner technology, and sent Fireshot and Vanquish as delegates. Windblade had had enough of the secret power plays, though, so after a heated debate the two agreed to travel to the next colony together. That planet turned out to be Eukaris, a planet colonized by xenophobic beast mode Transformers, who were less than thrilled to have vehicle-based Transformers set foot on their planet. Their Titan, Chela, was even less thrilled than they were, so unhappy that he decided to just blow them up and be done with it. Starscream thought otherwise, and flew into his brain module, where he shot the Titan dead in spite of Windblade's protests. At least Eukaris decided to join the council. Race Against the Light Windblade vol. 2 #6
Windblade and Starscream bickered some more after returning from Eukaris, although Starscream maintained that he had done the right thing—even saved Windblade from certain death. The next day, the two headed out to the final colony Metroplex had discovered, a spaceborne Titan he identified as Tempo, crewed by philosophers. As it turned out, the ship was actually staffed by a well-armed military dictatorship. Captain Elita One claimed that their Titan was actually named Carcer. Starscream tried to convince them to join the council, but his remarks just made Elita angry, and she threatened to kill him. Windblade managed to salvage the situation at the last minute, convincing them to join the council so as to counter Starscream's growing influence. The Will of the Few
Stink, stank, stunk!
In a conversation with dead Bumblebee, a bitter and lonely Starscream decided to get some of the goodwill felt by the colonies' return and declared a new holiday, "Chosen One Day". While he intended for everyone to remember they owed their goodwill to him and show him some, it was misread as a holiday to show your loved ones goodwill instead. This worked in his favour as everyone assumed he'd done that deliberately. Wheeljack, Windblade, and the Council members showed up to toast him and honour him with a night of friendship. Choose Me
During a broodfest, Needlenose showed up with his fellow Decepticons to oh so politely ask for a 'favour': they wanted Starscream to look the other way while they used the spacebridge later. Aphelion Rather than cause trouble, Starscream allowed it and when Tracks at the space port noticed the Decepticon movement, Starscream told him not to "overreact" to "a stroll". Later, unsure and talking it through with 'Bumblebee', he let an actual moment of conscience decide his actions and informed Windblade of the Decepticon movement. But a bit too late! Lagrange Starscream headed in with reinforcements to help in the form of Badgeless and Superion and was pissed to find Optimus there already with his own combiner, pulling rank again. He ordered all the defeated Decepticons rounded up for later and agreed to get the spacebridge up and running to allow Optimus to stop Galvatron on Earth. Perihelion The situation swiftly went terrible again as the Decepticons started fighting again as soon as Victorion was gone and when Starscream called in Devastator, he only trashed the place and let fugitives escape. Man, how could this get worse—Optimus declaring Earth a protectorate? Yeah, that'd do it. Once Upon a Time on Earth
After Windblade, Optimus et al. had kept hinting he was a dodgy neo-imperialist, Starscream was utterly livid when Optimus actually annexed a planet and part of the Council of Worlds, all without talking to anyone else. He said they couldn't give Prime a seat and justify conquest, and was left distraught when Windblade agreed but said they should give Prime the benefit of the doubt. In a conversation with dead Bumblebee, Starscream compared Prime's actions to Megatron's and Sentinel Prime's and warned that this would go the same way. New Worlds Order Shortly after, Starscream witnessed a broadcast from the Lost Light of crew members about to be executed. He watched with fear as he knew they were victims of the Decepticon Justice Division. How Bright Their Frail Deeds Roughly around this time, Starscream came into contact with Airachnid, a Eukarian mnemosurgeon whom he tasked with finding Swindle's body. The Price of You
Airachnid's methods however were less than subtle and following a series of mnemosurgical attacks on Decepticons around Iacon, Starscream oversaw a meeting of councillor Obsidian's Justice Committee. The Carcer delegate proposed Ironhide be appointed to investigate possible Badgeless involvement in the crimes, and Starscream reluctantly agreed to consider the proposal while feigning ignorance about the murders. After Badgeless officers shot a drunk Decepticon under suspicious circumstances later that day, Windblade accused Starscream of orchestrating the murders in an attempt to locate the seemingly missing corpse of Swindle, but the sovereign of Cybertron threatened her in return with his knowledge of Chromia's bomb plot. Immediately afterwards, Starscream was aghast to discover that video footage of the murder had surfaced and was being broadcast on the city news. 07:00:00
A mob of angry citizens quickly formed outside Starscream's residence. After being needled by dead Bumblebee, the ruler of Cybertron was dragged to an emergency meeting of the Council of Worlds, where he immediately proposed that the Decepticon ghetto be locked down by the Badgeless. The other councillors quickly shot down the idea, and Starscream in return refused Rattrap's proposal to summons Victorion from Earth. He went on to explain his fear that events were being manipulated by his former ally Onslaught, out for revenge, before eventually agreeing to a plan for the situation: appoint Ironhide the new head of the Badgeless, to carry out a full investigation of recent events. As they watched Ironhide, Starscream confided in Windblade that he didn't possess Swindle's body, before blackmailing the Cityspeaker into taking responsibility for dealing with Onslaught and his Combaticons. Applicable Skills
Several weeks later, Starscream caught Windblade on the way out of a council session to demanded a report, and was told that Onslaught was, by all appearances, not carrying out any scheme or plan. They were interrupted by an incoming message for the Cityspeaker, but Starscream refused to let her answer it until he was certain she was carrying out his bidding, again dangling his knowledge of Chromia's misdeeds in front of Windblade. Things We Said We'd Never Do As it happened, the call had been from Chromia, who had now witnessed the Combaticons use the Enigma of Combination to merge with the brain-dead Swindle into Bruticus. As security forces evacuated the councillors, Starscream attempted to blackmail Windblade into helping kill the rampaging combiner. Ultimately, however, Ironhide took down Bruticus, whilst Chromia admitted to her crimes on a live news broadcast, as an unhappy Starscream looked on. The Line Between Us
Optimus (who'd been haunted by dreams of Starscream accusing him of hypocrisy) finally contacted Starscream, along with the Mistress of Flame and Soundwave, proposing to meet with each of them to discuss recent events. Edge of the Earth When Prime arrived on Cybertron for his meeting with Starscream and the Council of Worlds, the ex-Decepticon took a moment to revel in the Autobot leader's newfound bad reputation before arriving fashionably late. Accusing Optimus of starting an interstellar war, Starscream dismissed Optimus as another tyrannical Prime who took power rather than being chosen like he was. Citing the general populace's loss of faith in Optimus, Cybertron's leader announced that the council would not stand with Optimus, before striding away. The next morning, Starscream summoned the news team of Circuit and Longtooth for a special task – travelling to Earth to show everybody firsthand what Optimus Prime's actions had wrought. The Medium and the Message
This plan worked out rather nicely for Starscream, who watched with joy as live footage of human military forces attacking Optimus Prime's troops was beamed back to Cybertron. Dead Bumblebee insisted Prime's refusal to retaliate would show his heroism, but Cybertron's leader was confident he could spin any outcome to his advantage. It's Beginning To And Back Again When the humans finally surrounded Prime, Starscream was ecstatic, but moments later, was taken aback when the Autobot raised Metrotitan, thought dead, from the ground! As Above...So Below The ex-Decepticon was quickly called to an emergency council meeting by Windblade. Prime's holy act changed the group's tune, and they soon decided to declare Earth a colony world. Looking out over his planet, Starscream sulked about the decision whilst Bumblebee said "I told you so" – Optimus Prime had come out on top. No Fair Fights
When a massive energy discharge was detected at the former site of Kaon, Starscream was roped into investigating personally by Windblade. Shockingly, they found the city intact within a crater, but this matter was quickly forgotten when the pair were called back to Iacon, where none other than the long-dead Sentinel Prime was on a rampage! Starscream fired on the false Prime, but got a spark disruptor thrown onto his chest for his troubles. Luckily for the ex-Decepticon, Windblade was able to jump the disruptor onto her own spark, where its detonation was non-fatal thanks to the differing frequency of Camien sparks. The pair quickly flew to regroup with the forces fighting Sentinel Prime at the space bridge. The Last Autobot
Discussing recent events, General Joe Colton, Scarlett and Miles Manheim recalled Starscream's part in the Transformers' early battles over Ore-13 on Earth. Secret Raiders When Windblade merged with Metrotitan's mind, she saw glimpses of all her possible pasts and futures, many of which included Starscream. Informed
Starscream and Rattrap were soon summoned to Ironhide's office to discuss turning over the Enigma of Combination to Ironhide which Starscream (shockingly) refused to do. Ironhide them gave him a stirring speech telling him it was time for Starscream to actually start leading instead of playing political games. Before anything else could be said all three of their communicators pinged at exactly the same time. Regrouping at the Spire, Starscream was shocked to hear Windblade and Obsidian's report of a fleet of undead Titans bearing down on Cybertron. Taking Ironhide's speech to spark, Starscream told everyone to rally for war and drafted every ship into service. After transmitting a rousing speech (and saying any ship who fled would be either shot down or declared an enemy of the state), the fighting began. While things began promisingly enough, Metroplex soon fell and Starscream saw fit to contact Elita One to request Carcer be transformed and brought to the surface. She refused. Ping After another failed try, Starscream gathered the Council of Worlds and told them to begin evacuating Cybertron. Windblade refused to do so however believing that either she or Lightbright could access Carcer's brain and convince the Titan to aid Cybertron on their own. Agreeing, Starscream sent a contingent of Cybertronian ships and Devastator to attack Carcer as a distraction informing Elita to never underestimate the depths of his pettiness. Desperate Times While waiting for news, Bumblebee commented that Windblade and Starscream would get so much more accomplished if they were actually friends. Starscream reminded Bumblebee what happened to the last person Starscream had considered a friend prompting a confused look from Airazor at Starscream for talking to himself. Desperate Measures When Windblade had succeeded in awakening Carcer who himself had been successful in destroying the invaders Starscream cheered! Rubicon
Which was short lived because not only was Starscream informed "Carcer" was Vigilem and he'd freed Liege Maximo, he soon had to preside over a court case regarding a Badgeless killing some pleb. Though the Badgeless was clearly innocent, Starscream wondered if declaring him guilty would help things. He called a recess when he learned Elita was taking credit for "Carcer's" victory and called her to his office flanked by Fireshot, Tigatron, Moonracer and the Mistress of Flame. When Elita arrived, she recapped the history of Maximo and his Titan before explaining she'd thought to keep their existence a secret in case someone might have proven foolish, arrogant or desperate enough to free the ancient Prime before telling the Council to ready themselves for war against the member of the Thirteen and walked off. Starscream agreed that, for the moment, Maximo's freedom should be kept a secret before the Mistress of Flame requested Chromia be turned over to her. Starscream refused so the Mistress instead requested Swindle and the Stunticons. Bumblebee soon appeared to Starscream and told him what to do: Rule the Badgeless innocent, hand over Chromia and stand against Elita. When Starscream pointed out doing all three would make him an easy target, Bumblebee said Starscream was choosing to fight and he could be better. Too bad Starscream didn't believe that himself as he convicted the innocent 'bot. He then freed Chromia into the Mistress's custody on the condition that she hunt down and slay Liege Maximo. Heavy
With Elita soon ready to return to orbit, Starscream was summoned by Airachnid to give her report on the Combaticons. Airachnid revealed that while it was normally impractical to try and alter the minds of so many, she could do so after the five had combined but needed a willing lynchpin to make sure the other four didn't pick up on the lie. Starscream had Airachnid patch him into Blast Off's mind where Starscream offered to make his dream of "domestic bliss" with Onslaught a reality. Blast Off agreed and Starscream later spoke with Ironhide that the now loyal Combaticons would not be prosecuted since Airachnid had discovered (through genuine medical examination of course) that the Combaticons could not be held culpable for their actions. The Price of You Starscream was soon approached by a doctor who brought him to Windblade revealing her to not be brain dead but to have shut down due to too much data in her brain. Deducing it was Vigilem, Starscream nonetheless refused to delegate a mnemosurgeon. This was the final straw for Bumblebee who demanded to know why Starscream always pushed good people away. Starscream responded that every time he opened himself up, life (usually wearing Megatron's face) would beat the tar out of him. Seeing the odd looks he was getting, Starscream pretended to turn on his comm. and told Bumblebee to leave if he was so disgusted by him. And leave Bumblebee did. Starscream then allowed Blast Off to see Swindle while consulting Airachnid about how to help Windblade. The answer was simple: A third bot would enter her head and help her destroy Vigilem assuming the strain of three minds didn't kill all three. Reluctantly Starscream realized he had no choice but to help her. If I Know You
Starscream arrived and made a heroic entrance by shooting Vigilem in the back. Alas, Windblade was not grateful as Starscream had failed to consider a risk in the plan. By linking his mind to hers, Vigilem was able to access it and escape through Starscream. The evil Titan smirked and adopted the form of Starscream's worst fear: Megatron.
Now in Starscream's mind, Vigilem began beating Starscream through all his bodies wearing down his confidence before he prepared to execute him and take his body. Windblade saved him by scooping up Starscream's spark before she witnessed his birth. Horrified by cold construction, Windblade summoned a mental copy of the Forge of Solus Prime and began forging Starscream's true self, each strike bringing up a mental projection of someone who had an impact on Starscream's life, the ghosts holding off Vigilem. When she was done, Starscream stood as a towering version of what he would look like were his spark allowed to shape its own body. Stomping down Vigilem, the two jets were able to defeat the Titan and returned to the real world though Starscream insisted nothing had changed. Windblade cheekily bounced away telling Starscream not to be so foolish or close minded and that she'd now be her own bot and not just a mouthpiece for others. Your First Mistake
Optimus Prime later showed up to try and petition the Council of Worlds to grant Earth a spot on the Council and trade with the Junkions. Starscream refused both citing the Tyrest Accord saying Cybertron needed its resources to rebuild and that aliens were likely to use Cybertronian technology to attack Cybertron. Behind My Bleeding Back When Jazz was interviewed by humans, he remembered Starscream's presence in the invasion of Earth as well as mentioning that Starscream now ruled Cybertron. What It's Really Like When Sideswipe was given a mental projection to die peacefully, he remembered Starscream's deal with Sunstreaker. The Life of Sideswipe
When Optimus and Pyra Magna returned to Cybertron to the Sea of Rust, Starscream spied on them from afar with Bumblebee. Starscream scoffed at how saccharine Bumblebee's origins were before the conversation turned to Onyx Prime. Starscream then flew off while commenting to Bumblebee that the yellow 'bot was just a figment of the Seeker's imagination. Ghost Stories
While a new hot spot had lit up in Alyon a few months earlier, Starscream was in no rush to harvest the sparks and instead kept its existence a secret, explaining to an outraged Swift that what with all the recent attacks, Cybertron was currently too dangerous to introduce a new generation to. He also sought to take care of the Dinobots, who'd gone rogue, killed many Badgeless and supposedly kidnapped Strafe, but since they were still Autobots and he didn't want conflict with Optimus Prime, he acted off the record by offering Sandstorm freedom in exchange for their deaths. Unfortunately the Alyon sparks were stolen by Bludgeon and used to revive Trypticon. prompting Starscream to deploy Devastator in Iacon's defense. After Trypticon was freed from Bludgeon's control and made off with the sparks, Starscream recovered the defeated Bludgeon, one of his mutated sparks and the remains of Slug, and began making plans. Salvation The experiments eventually bore fruit, succeeding in bringing Slug back to life. The Dead Come Home, Part 1
Soon before Earth announced its chosen ambassador, Lord Starscream (best to get in the habit now) was called to Alpha Trion's apartment (and was bemused by the books) where the old sage recounted the origins of the Autobot insignia. Starscream, failing to grasp the story's meaning, questioned whether he was supposed to be Megatronus or Arcee, expressed disbelief that Arcee and Galvatron were twins, found "Megatronus" to be a made-up name and asked that since Alpha Trion said all stories were lies, why should be believe any of it? Earth then called to announce its representative to the Council of Worlds, Marissa Faireborn. Starscream grumbled and said he'd prepare the plaza. Origin Myths
As the ceremony started, Starscream began a speech only for an explosion to cut him off. Demanding a status report from Ironhide and Windblade, he learnt that tiny red robots were waiting to strike inside false Cybertronians. Starscream suspected human involvement and ordered the Space Bridge closed. First Strike #1 Heroically cowering in the Spire, Starscream accused Elita One of treachery only for the femme to say humans were responsible and prepared to execute Marissa. Marissa however soon humbled Elita into calling for reinforcements from Carcer...only for the Solstar Order to transmit to Cybertron that they'd detected Dire Wraith energy signatures emanating from Cybertron and had quarantined the planet. Starscream called foul on this, familiar with the tactics of the Dire Wraiths and suspected Elita was up to another trick but the Carcerian informed him that Cybertron was on its own. First Strike #2 The debate of what to do continued until G.I. Joe and M.A.S.K. were brought before the Council where Elita ordered them executed. First Strike #3
As the Council debated over that, Starscream advised Elita not to mention her past before he shut everyone up and reminded them of the fact that he was in charge of Cybertron and thus the final decision was his. Conceding that tricking Soundwave was nigh-impossible, Starscream asked Scarlett what Colton's plan was and she revealed to knowing nothing save a gut feeling that it involved some sort of bomb. Scoffing at the threat of humans bringing any harm to Cybertron, he threw G.I. Joe and M.A.S.K. in jail under suspicion charges before informing Optimus that not everyone shared Elita's feeling about him, some hated him even more than she did. Despite his posturing however, he sent Ironhide and Sunstreaker after Colton so as to not look weak with approval to use lethal force. First Strike #4
Obsidian soon brought the news that Optimus had broken the humans out of jail with Windblade arriving soon after to deliver the same news. Before doing anything, Starscream took a moment to enjoy the fact that everyone had come to him for help in stopping Optimus Prime.
Starscream then called in Ironhide and directed everyone to follow Optimus's trail, with orders to bring the humans in alive. Elita surprisingly offered herself and Obsidian as backup, though Starscream reminded her that he was in charge. First Strike #5
The group caught up with the hostiles outside the core chamber, where Starscream placed everyone under arrest and fired a missile at Optimus, before engaging him in melee combat. The fighting was interrupted by Garrison Kreiger activating the alien Talisman and revealing himself as an alien sorcerer known as Merklynn, creating New Prysmos and teleporting all combatants back to Iacon. On the surface, Starscream took Colton's rueful mumblings as his "witnessed confession" but was prevented from executing the human by Scarlett. First Strike #6
With Cybertron's own energon now unpalatable to its people, Starscream sampled the human-made substitute. It was terrible. At a Council meeting to debate the energy crisis, Starscream opined that the Solstar Order was indebted to Cybertron for their obstructive blockade before he was called away by Optimus Prime and Garrison Blackrock. Scoffing at Prime's accusations regarding the Seeker concealing the existence of the newborn protoforms, Starscream loaned them Slug and sent them on their way, The Dead Come Home, Part 1 hoping that the protoforms would then be turned over to him. The Dead Come Home, Part 2 When Bludgeon used the Void Scepter to make Slug attack the Dinobots, Bumblebee noted he was not acting according to Starscream's plan. The Dead Come Home, Part 1 After being informed of this, the Seeker came running and shattered the Void Scepter before going on a rant about his plan falling apart. The Dead Come Home, Part 2
Soon afterwards, Starscream repaired Bludgeon and the Void Scepter, sending the mad scientist out into the galaxy to rally all the lost Decepticon cells and bring them back into the fold. Unstopped and Unstoppable Stranger Eons
From atop his tower, Starscream watched the unwashed masses lavish praises onto Optimus with The Birth of Cybertron playing in the background. The old film gave Starscream an idea to consolidate his power and win over Earth. To that end, he sought out Thundercracker and hired him to produce a biographical film about Starscream's life. Starscream: The Movie
To mark Windblade's return to the Council of Worlds, Starscream called in Circuit and Longtooth for a photo-op but promptly kicked them out when Windblade nearly revealed Liege Maximo's freedom. When Windblade stormed off to inform Circuit and Longtooth of this news, Starscream promised to look the other way if the Mistress of Flame wanted to tackle Windblade down. On Elita One's "advisement", Starscream called for free elections and confessed to Bumblebee that after seeing his "true self", he only had the best intentions for Cybertron, before organizing the debate schedule. Later on, he outlined his power infrastructure plans to Bumblebee before Windblade arrived with a briefcase containing all of his very dirty laundry. Unable to manipulate Windblade anymore, Starscream aggressively began looking for holes in the evidence, only to learn Bumblebee would not help him, saying the Seeker had to decide how much his future expansion meant to him. The Chosen One
Thundercracker then visited Starscream to find out what the Decepticons had meant to the chancellor. Starscream claimed it had been his job to point the Decepticons on the path of righteousness. A task that had failed due to the Decepticons ignoring Starscream's advice. But now they weren't. Now everyone listened to Starscream. Starscream: The Movie
If I'm gonna tell it, then I gotta tell it all
At the electoral debate, Starscream listened to Windblade's speech before he had a moment of conscience and, before all of Cybertron, confessed each and every one of his crimes (which took over an hour), costing him everything and landing him a life sentence.
Visiting him in his cell, Windblade gifted Starscream with a holo-projector of his forged body, signifying that he had finally fulfilled the ancient prophecy of the "Chosen One". By getting Cybertron to turn against him, he had succeeded in uniting the planet. The Chosen One
Incorporating this latest development into his film, Thundercracker visited Starscream in his cell and showed him the finished product. Displaying uncharasteric concern for others' feelings, Starscream claimed the film was "delightful but irrelevant" given his imprisonment. Despite his attempts to bury the film, Thundercracker was insistent on it getting out prompting Starscream to request Beachcomber pass along a message to a friend. On Starscream's orders, two Badgeless then diverted Thundercracker to Prion where they tried to kill him. Starscream: The Movie
Decepticon once again
[edit]
But are they actually bad? No!
Starscream took his life sentence in stride, happy to let others carry the burden of planetary leadership and convinced his reign would be viewed, at worst, as a step in the right direction. When Scoop arrived to vent his disappointment, the discussion was interrupted when Bumblebee told Starscream that a gigantic optic had appeared in the sky. Surfeit of Primes The confusion passed quickly as the Seeker was more content to stare at the holo-image of his "true" self and languish what he could have been if he'd been allowed to live as he was meant to. Bumblebee disputed that, believing everyone was defined by the sum of their own experiences and that, at least in part, Starscream's imprisonment was on him. Starscream disagreed. Another Mine Soon enough, Devastator broke Starscream out of prison, hailing him as the Chose One once again, before Metrotitan space bridged in to do the same. As Metrotitan began an attack on Nemesis, the evil Titan simply fired a crippling shot through his brother's torso, downing him. The Ground
After witnessing Onyx Prime throw Optimus into the Crystal City black hole, Devastator revealed to Starscream his theory that the Seeker was the reincarnation of the Fallen. Deciding to spin this to his advantage, Starscream had Devastator carry him to Metrotitan whereupon he set the combiner on the Autobots while Bumblebee vanished. Conversing with the Titan, Starscream was elated to find out he really was divine... whereupon Shockwave, who had been sent back in time and posed as Onyx Prime, arrived to reveal he had masterminded the "Chosen One" prophecy as a means of keeping a vain fool in charge of Cybertron and leaving the planet unprotected for his machinations. To punctuate his statement, Shockwave slew Metrotitan leaving Starscream to mutter where Bumblebee had gone. The Hallowing His will to fight completely gone, Starscream despondently made his way back to his cell only to be noticed by the rioting Decepticons. After he explained himself to them, they hesitatingly suggested that he become the Decepticon leader once again. Though initially dismissive of such a prospect, Starscream soon realized he was the best choice for such a job. Endless Forever Once Shockwave had been captured and the Maximals had retreated, Starscream resumed leadership of the Decepticons, leading his army away to draw up plans of conquest. Unforgivable Camping out in Metrotitan's corpse, Starscream outlined his plans to the Decepticons, and defended his choice of a hideout, before Rhinox entered seeking to bring Starscream to Shockwave. Unstopped and Unstoppable
"Damn, that's dash cunning of him."
When he arrived, Shockwave told Starscream of his plans to create a new Decepticon Empire, with Starscream in charge, but said Cybertron would have to be sacrificed to Unicron. Scoffing at the offer, Starscream instead went to meet with the Camien refugees and announced he would be saving Cybertron. Last Stand When brought to the Council war room, Starscream revealed the existence of the Decepticon Vengeance Division, a fleet of capital ships, all capable of destroying whole planets, that he'd ordered to corner and destroy Unicron at G Nebula 89. As debates flew over what course of action to take, Chromia revealed the DVD was already facing Unicron to no effect. Soon enough, the monster had freed itself from the DVD and teleported to Cybertron, now having attained a robot mode. Stranger Eons In light of this, Starscream proposed space bridging away, even more so when it was revealed the Talisman could kill Unicron if left behind. Unwilling to allow to sacrifice so many, Soundwave telepathically informed every Decepticon that their leader was willing to abandon them causing them to swarm into Metroplex. When Windblade began working on an alternate strategy, Starscream voted to stay, claiming he owed Windblade for the faith she'd put in him. Our Finest Metroplex did indeed space bridge to Earth soon after though all Starscream did was grumble about the humidity in the Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park, an attitude which earned him a sock to the jaw from Arcee. Road's End
After waving off some employee complaints about his leadership, Starscream attended the briefing on Unicron where he told Jetfire to cut to the chase. As part of the final plan to save the universe, Starscream reunited with Skywarp and Thundercracker, ferrying Optimus Prime to Unicron so the Prime could use the Talisman to destroy the Chaos Bringer. Assembly Though the fliers initially managed to slip past the mutated DVD, Skywarp and Thundercracker were soon forced to fall back, the latter tossing Starscream the Talisman. Unable to reach Unicron's core without Skywarp, Starscream realized there was only one way to complete the mission. After requesting that they give his best to Windblade, Starscream activated the Talisman, its magical energies consuming him completely but allowing the device to burrow its way to Unicron's core, ultimately allowing the monster to be felled. Ceremony
In the new era, Bumblebee became Cybertron's ambassador to the Galactic Council. Before the scout left Earth, he conversed with the ghostly Starscream (now himself trapped in infraspace) on a beach. Though Bumblebee openly invited his friend to join him, the Seeker knew he wouldn't be welcome. When the scout thought Starscream was annoyed that Optimus would receive all the credit for saving the universe, Starscream laughed it off, content that people would simply remember him. Post
Spotlight: Mirage
[edit]At the war's end, Starscream and a small team of Decepticons accompanied the mercenary Mirage to the Pegasus Star Cluster. He led the Decepticons into the Autobot bunker after Mirage destroyed the Autobot security system, but stood back during the ensuing fight. After Megatron ordered the Autobot prisoners executed, Starscream held Ratchet back as Mirage prepared to kill Hound.
But it was all Mirage's dream... or was it? Spotlight: Mirage
Notes
[edit]
- As the issues go by, Starscream takes to a habit of changing into a new body whenever the toyline at the time releases a new toy rendition of him, which is eventually explained in-universe as a subconscious rejection of his bodies. Or maybe he's just a vain git.
- Starscream debuted in Infiltration with an original design as an F-22 drawn by E. J. Su.
- In All Hail Megatron, Starscream (and Thundercracker and Skywarp) was drawn by Guido Guidi according his Masterpiece toy as an F-15.
- Starscream's appearance in the first half of Robots in Disguise seems to be based more on this concept drawing (at right) of him for the War for Cybertron game, rather than his actual appearance in either of the two games. This is most noticeable when looking at his pelvic region and thighs.
- Also, the crown he occasionally wears in later issues of the comic is based on the crown he sports in Fall of Cybertron, which in itself is based on the crown he wears in The Transformers: The Movie.
- Dark Cybertron #1 updated him to the Thrilling 30 toy of his Armada counterpart.
- The Transformers vol. 2 #40 debuts his Combiner Wars toy body.
- And from Till All Are One #5 until the end, Starscream had his evergreen design (similar but distinct from the Power of the Primes toy).
- James Roberts clarified on Twitter that any members of the Functionist Council who survived into the Great War era were assassinated by Starscream at Megatron's behest.<ref>{{#if: Yep. Those that survived the various prewar political convulsions were hunted down and assassinated, mainly by Starscream. |"Yep. Those that survived the various prewar political convulsions were hunted down and assassinated, mainly by Starscream."—|}}{{#if: https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/1055006971848519681 |James Roberts|James Roberts}}{{#if: Twitter |, Twitter|}}{{#if: |, ""|}}{{#if: 2018 |, 2018{{#if: 10 |/{{#switch:{{#len:10}}|1=010|10}}{{#if: 24|/{{#switch:{{#len:24}}|1=024|24}}|}}}}|}}{{#if: https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/1055006971848519681 ||}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/1055006971848519681%7C7%7C11}}%7Cweb.archive= (archive link)|}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/1055006971848519681%7C8%7C11}}%7Cweb.archive= (archive link)|}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/1055006971848519681%7C7%7C10}}%7Carchive.is= (archive link)|}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/1055006971848519681%7C8%7C10}}%7Carchive.is= (archive link)|}}{{#if: | (dead link)}}</ref>
- According to Hasbro Heroes Sourcebook #3, Starscream is 28 feet tall and weighs 22 tons.<ref>For reference, this equals 8.5 metres and 20 metric tonnes.</ref>
