Wannabee, Part 2

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	"Wannabee, Part 2" {{#if: \| {{#if: \|; (')}} {{#if:\|; ""}}}}
Publisher	IDW Publishing}}
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First published	March 25, 2020}}
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Cover date	February 2020}}
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Written by	Kate Leth and Cohen Edenfield}}
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Art by	Alex Milne}}
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Colors by	David García Cruz}}
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Letters by	Jake Wood and Val Lopez}}
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Editor	David Mariotte and Tom Waltz}}
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{{#if: TFGalaxies 6 cvrA.jpg | {{#if: IDW Publishing | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: March 25, 2020 | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: February 2020 | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: Kate Leth and Cohen Edenfield | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: Alex Milne | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: David García Cruz | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: Jake Wood and Val Lopez | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: David Mariotte and Tom Waltz | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: 2019 IDW continuity | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: | {{#if: |

{{#switch:{{#sub:xx|2|14}}|dark cybertron=}}

Exposed as an impostor and framed for a crime he didn't commit, it's up to Cliffjumper to save the people of Probat, who all want him dead!

Synopsis

Cliffjumper has spent his entire life living in Bumblebee's shadow; while Bumblebee's forging in Iacon was marked by joyful celebration and a warm introduction to his mentor Shutter, Cliffjumper, an unprecedented accidental forging, emerged from the Pyramid mere hours later, alone, unwelcome, and unloved save for the brusque ministrations of Sentinel and an unfriendly Voin.

Now, on the planet Probat, all of these past problems pale in comparison to Cliffjumper's current dilemma: Deathsaurus towers over his much smaller compatriot, but suddenly shows a moment of uncharacteristic concern for the panicked Cliffjumper's well-being by inviting him to help himself to whatever energon he can get in the refinery while Deathsaurus goes out to "refine" some more from the homespires of the native Probat, rich in flammable, energon-catalyzing guano. But when Cliffjumper—the murder of Natalus still fresh in his mind—asks what will happen to the inhabitants of those spires, Deathsaurus drops the charitable act and coldly tells him that the Probat can either get out of the way or burn where they stand. Cliffjumper protests that Probat is a Cybertronian colony world, under the protection of the Senate, but Deathsaurus just laughs off his concerns; with Sentinel Prime offworld, the Senate will be rent by infighting and paralyzed by indecision, powerless to prevent Deathsaurus from taking whatever he wants. Cliffjumper doesn't pick up on the sarcasm, however, and boldly tells Deathsaurus that he'll report the ambassador to the Senate... at which point Deathsaurus, tired of having to make nice with Cliffjumper, simply picks up the smaller 'bot and piledrives him straight through the nearest wall. Taking only a moment to wipe his face clean of sprayed energon, Deathsaurus steps outside to deliver the terrible news to the throngs of adoring Probat gathered around the refinery: their hero "Bumblebee" has been unmasked as a villainous impostor and, worse, a murderer, as evidenced by Natalus's charred skull. It doesn't take much of this off-the-cuff slander to properly rile the crowd and unite them in hatred against the "false Bee"—and thus, when Cliffjumper finally pulls himself free from the wall, he's immediately beset by a tide of bloodthirsty Probats bent on avenging their fallen leader!

Unable to reason with the angry mob, Cliffjumper flees through the abandoned refinery, then transforms and zooms out of the nearest window—but the mob soon catches up with him on the ground below. Although he's initially confused by their sudden change of opinion, Cliff quickly puts the pieces together when one of the Probat accuse him of killing Natalus; realizing that he's been framed, Cliff swerves into a deserted section of the Probat city to try and calm his nerves... only for a little voice to pipe up, praising him for his skill. That voice, it turns out, belongs to a young Probat child, who stowed away in his passenger compartment. Although the Probat child means Cliffjumper no harm, this revelation could not have come at a worse time—when the mob catches up with Cliffjumper, they accuse him of having kidnapped the child, just as Deathsaurus foretold! Cliffjumper panics and swerves into the nearest cave, where the pair take shelter behind a boulder that conceals them from the sonar of their pursuers. The other Probat assume that the trail's gone cold and leave, and Cliffjumper warns his new friend to fly away before the aliens come back before correcting himself, remembering that all Probat have their wings shorn. He's quite surprised when the child reveals that she does have her wings intact, only because she's not old enough—once she grows up, however, her wings will be taken from her. Cliffjumper asks why, and the girl explains: once, all Probat flew... but when the Cybertronians uplifted their race and appointed Natalus head foreman of their new energon refinery, Natalus claimed that the Transformers told him only he should be able to fly, and ordered that all other Probat be stripped of their wings. Cliffjumper swears that he didn't kill Natalus, and the girl agrees with him—not only because she doesn't think a 'bot like him could be capable of murder... but also because she can sense the presence of the other Cybertronian.

As Probats flee from his monstrous beast mode, Deathsaurus begins his rampage and torches the first of many homespires with his fiery breath; although Cliffjumper orders his new friend to stay put, the little Probat cajoles Cliff into taking her with him, and Cliffjumper grudgingly obliges. Transforming into his vehicle mode, the child climbs aboard as the two race towards the inferno while Cliffjumper explains: sufficient heat catalyzes the sacred Probat "substance" into energon. Cliffjumper shouts for Deathsaurus to stop, but his pleas are ignored; Deathsaurus doesn't want to kill every Probat. Once he's burned down their city and stolen their energon, he'll let them rebuild... then come back every megacycle to conduct this grisly "harvest" all over again. As the first homespire crystallizes into a skyscraper-sized mass of energon, Cliffjumper races up its side, while his Probat passenger grabs a chunk of the crystal and jams it into Cliffjumper's dashboard. Deathsaurus quickly realizes that he's miscalculated, and fumbles for Cliffjumper's name to try and talk him down... but the overenergized Cliffjumper triumphantly shouts his name as he rams into Deathsaurus at full speed, transforms, and impales the monstrous Transformer on his own energon spire!

Back on Cybertron, an incredulous Prowl and Chromia grill Cliffjumper about the bizarre failure of what should have been a routine diplomatic mission, one that's ended with a comatose Deathsaurus and no energon to show for their troubles. Cliffjumper lies that he and Deathsaurus had to scuttle the refinery after the planet's energon dried up, and Deathsaurus sustained an injury after the leftover energon exploded; with the exhaustion of the planet's resources, there's no reason for any Cybertronian to go back there. The conversation is interrupted when a group of Cybertronians cheer for a passing Bumblebee, and Chromia grudgingly lets Cliffjumper go, but warns him that this investigation isn't over. Although Chromia can't remember his name, the red Cybertronian doesn't mind; after all, he knows who he is... and so do the grateful inhabitants of the planet Probat, who now soar free, on newly healed wings, over a massive statue of their new savior: Cliffjumper.

Featured characters

Characters in italic text appear only in flashbacks.
{{#if: ||(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)}}

{{#if:* Nominus Prime (9)

Sentinel (12)|

{{#if:* Nominus Prime (9)

Sentinel (12)|| style="background:#ffdddd;" valign="top" |
Nominus Prime (9)
Sentinel (12) }}{{#if:* Soundwave (4)
Megatron (5)
Elita-1 (6)|

Autobots }}{{#if:* Soundwave (4)

Megatron (5)
Elita-1 (6)|

Ascenticons }}{{#if:|

Humans }}{{#if:* Brainstorm (1)

Windblade (2)
Wheeljack (3)
Cyclonus (7)
Bumblebee (10)
Shutter (11)
Cliffjumper (13)
Deathsaurus (14)
Prowl (16)
Chromia (17)|

Cybertronians }}{{#if:* Voin (8)

Probat child (15)|

Others }}{{#if:|

Misc }}

Soundwave (4)
Megatron (5)
Elita-1 (6) }}{{#if:|

}}{{#if:* Brainstorm (1)

Windblade (2)
Wheeljack (3)
Cyclonus (7)
Bumblebee (10)
Shutter (11)
Cliffjumper (13)
Deathsaurus (14)
Prowl (16)
Chromia (17)|

Brainstorm (1)
Windblade (2)
Wheeljack (3)
Cyclonus (7)
Bumblebee (10)
Shutter (11)
Cliffjumper (13)
Deathsaurus (14)
Prowl (16)
Chromia (17) }}{{#if:* Voin (8)
Probat child (15)|

Voin (8)
Probat child (15) }}{{#if:|

}}

Quotes

"H-hello? I exist, I guess? Sorry..."

—Cliffjumper's first words

"Oh, please do. Please whine to the Senate. Sentinel is playing with the organics, so... Orion Pax will dither, Megatron will pontificate, and the other factions will whisper while the big boys flirt."

—Deathsaurus

"The horned menace of Cybertron...Clogjammer! He's here to, hmm...steal your young? Yes. Better kill him first! For Natalus!"

—Deathsaurus knows how to work a crowd!

"You'd be safer here."
"Oh, yes, I'm sure I will be able to find my way home. And that my home is not on fire. After all, it is not that far to walk, even with legs as small as mine..."
"Okay! Okay! Weeping spark, you should be on the Senate!"
"Yes. I should."

—Cliffjumper discovers his Probat friend is an accomplished guilt-tripper.

Notes

Continuity notes

It's not entirely clear when this story takes place: Deathsaurus notes that Sentinel Prime is off "playing with the organics" in what seems like a reference to his tour of Cybertron's colonies that occurred over in the main ongoing, leaving Orion Pax and Megatron in control of the Senate; however, Bumblebee shows up in the final scene, seemingly as a member of Security Operations—when Transformers issue #5 revealed that Bumblebee had been expelled from that organization. With that in mind, it's possible that Sentinel has taken multiple offworld trips, and that this comic took place while he was away on some prior tour of the Cybertronian commonwealth. Transformers #28 would go on to confirm this interpretation, as Bumblebee notes that Deathsaurus has been missing for years after the Probat incident.
Bumblebee previously alluded to his time with his own mentor way back in Transformers #3; although Shutter's gender is not revealed in this issue, Transformers had Bumblebee describe her as female to Rubble.
The crowd who turns out to attend Bumblebee's forging includes Brainstorm, Megatron, Elita-1, and, most intriguingly, Cyclonus, who, in the present day, has become a reclusive hermit. Evidently, something must have happened between then and now to push him out of Cybertronian society...
Shutter is shown with a wrist-based communicator similar to the one that Bumblebee tried to set up for Rubble in Transformers issue #3.
The flashback also features the earliest chronological appearance of Sentinel Prime as just "Sentinel;" much like his counterpart in the 2005 IDW continuity, he appears to be acting on behalf of the Senate before his ascension to the rank of Prime.

Transformers references

As he attempts to steady his jangled nerves, Cliffjumper mumbles that "he's got the touch" in reference to Stan Bush's song of the same name.

Real-life references

While trying to remember Cliffjumper's name, Deathsaurus accidentally calls him "[[wikipedia:{{#if:|:}}Clickbait|{{#if:Clickbaiter|Clickbaiter|Clickbait}}]]."

Errors

In the flashback sequence, both Bumblebee and Cliffjumper are drawn identically to their present day selves, complete with vehicle mode kibble. In this new universe, however, it's something of a key plot point that newly born Cybertronians, such as Rubble and Gauge, don't have alternate modes when they're newly forged, and must voluntarily choose a shape for themselves as part of their development.

Other notes

Originally solicited for February 26, this comic arrives a month late.

Covers (3)

Cover A: Cliffjumper in front of a stained-glass panel of Deathsaurus, by Alex Milne and Josh Perez
Cover B: Cliffjumper is Probat's Most Wanted, by Beth McGuire-Smith
Retailer incentive cover : Deathsaurus vs. Cliffjumper, by George Caltsoudas

The Church of Deathsaurus keeps bringing the wrong people in.
"It's not what it looks like, I SWEAR!"
"This can end two ways, and my track record tells me I'm walking in the wrong direction!"

Reprints

Transformers Volume 2: The Change In Their Nature (September 16, 2020) ISBN 1684056756 / ISBN 978-1684056750
- Collects Galaxies issues #1–6 and Transformers (2019) issues #13–18.
- Bonus material includes alternate covers.
- Hardcover format.

Volume 2: The Change In Their Nature – cover art by Cryssy Cheung

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