Editing Natural Selection, Part Two

{{Comicstory|
|seriesissue=''[[The Transformers: Regeneration One]]'' #87
|prev=Natural Selection, Part 1
|next=Natural Selection, Part 3
|title=Natural Selection, Part 2
|image=RG187 cvrB.jpg
|caption=
|publisher=[[IDW Publishing]]
|date=[[January 10]], [[2013]]
|coverdate=January 2013
|writer=[[Simon Furman]]
|penciler=[[Andrew Wildman]]
|inker=[[Stephen Baskerville]]
|colorist=[[John-Paul Bove]]
|letterer=[[Chris Mowry]]
|editor=[[John Barber]]
|continuity=[[Marvel Comics continuity]]
}}

'''Hot Rod departs on a quest into the depths of Cybertron just as Grimlock returns and begins spreading the effect of Scorponok's Gene Key.'''

==Synopsis==

On [[Nebulos]], [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]] subjects [[Brainstorm]], [[Highbrow (G1)|Highbrow]] and [[Hardhead (G1)|Hardhead]] to the effects of his [[Gene Key]], re-writing their [[CNA]] to activate what he terms their "warrior gene", altering their morality to transform the three into [[Decepticon]]s of a sort. The trio's new attitudes are on full display as they emerge from their capsules and immediately turn on [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]], but the new [[nucleon]]-free, fully-transformable body that the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobot]] leader has been granted by Scorponok allows him to easily take down his three attackers. Scorponok quells the fighting, and orders them to depart for [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]].

On the Transformers' home planet, acting commander [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]] receives a report from [[Lightspeed (G1 Technobot)|Lightspeed]] on an excavation project that has, at last, successfully located the tunnels once used by Grimlock, [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] and [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] to access the chamber of [[Primus]]. Hot Rod's buoyed spirits are sadly almost immediately deflated by the arrival of [[Crosshairs (G1)|Crosshairs]], bearing news that Grimlock has returned. Rodimus gathers the Autobot [[Targetmaster]]s and the [[Triggerbots]] at the [[Cybertropolis]] spaceport with intent to apprehend Grimlock, who has had a warrant out for his arrest since his disappearance years before, but the Dinobot's renewed ability to transform briefly startles them into inaction, and he shoulders past, heading for the [[Nursery]]. Regaining his wits, Hot Rod has the Autobots restrain Grimlock and lock him up, but the young Autobot senses something is not right about the whole scenario.

Meanwhile, on [[Earth]], the brain-damaged [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] manages to sneak into the [[Ark (G1)|Ark]], only to be confronted by [[Galvatron (G1)|Galvatron]], who demands to know what he is doing there. Realizing that Starscream is unable to speak, he instead orders him to lead him to the reason he has returned to the downed craft. These two Decepticons are not the only Transformers still on Earth: elsewhere, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Optimus Prime]] informs the departing [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] that he will be staying on Earth to help humanity rebuild, despite the humans' wishes that all the Autobots leave. Prime believes his resurrection at the hands of the [[Last Autobot]] was a mistake, and that it is time for Hot Rod to take leadership and leave Prime to undo the damage his inaction has caused to Earth.

Back on Cybertron, Hot Rod charges [[Siren]], [[Grapple]], [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] and [[Hosehead]] with overseeing Grimlock while he heads out to help in the excavation of the recently-discovered tunnels. Not long after he has left, however, a second ship containing Highbrow, Hardhead and Brainstorm sets down in the [[Badlands (Cybertron)|Badlands]], and the three genetically-modified Autobots immediately make for the [[Iacon Civil Defense Hub]], blasting their way in and massacring all who stand in their way, opening the way for Scorponok. Simultaneously, Perceptor examines Grimlock, deducing the origin of his new body, but when the scientist's guard is down, Grimlock hits him with the Gene Key. Precisely none of this is seen by the inattentive guard [[Kick-Off (G1)|Kick-Off]], who Perceptor then sinisterly summons to Grimlock's cell...

Elsewhere on Cybertron, Hot Rod arrives at the excavation point, and heads down into the tunnels in an elevator, unaware that the excavation party has been attacked by a swarm of [[Demon]]s, and that he is heading right into their midst!

And back on Earth, Starscream leads Galvatron to the deactivated computer core of the Ark. Galvatron blasts the wall-sized databanks open, and everything becomes clear as he peers inside to see a partially-dismembered [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] wired into the ship's systems!

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
{{{!}}border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="background:transparent"
{{!}}-
{{!}}style="background:transparent; border-right: 0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*[[Highbrow (G1)|Highbrow]] (1)
*[[Brainstorm]] (2)
*[[Hardhead (G1)|Hardhead]] (3)
*[[Grimlock (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Grimlock]] (4)
*[[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]] (6)
*[[Lightspeed (G1 Technobot)|Lightspeed]] (7)
*[[Nosecone (G1)|Nosecone]] (8) 
*[[Crosshairs (G1)|Crosshairs]] (10)
*[[Sureshot (G1)|Sureshot]] (11)
*[[Override (G1)|Override]] (12)
{{!}}style="background:transparent; border-right: 0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*[[Dogfight]] (13)
*[[Backstreet (G1)|Backstreet]] (14)
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Optimus Prime]] (17)
*[[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]] (18)
*[[Siren]] (19)
*[[Grapple]] (20)
*[[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] (21)
*[[Hosehead]] (22) 
*[[Kick-Off (G1)|Kick-Off]] (23)
*[[Slapdash (G1)|Slapdash]] (24)
{{!}}}
|c2=
*[[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]] (5)
*[[Starscream (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Starscream]] (15)
*[[Galvatron II|Galvatron]] (16)
*[[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] (26)

|c3=

|h4=Others|c4=
*[[Primus]] (9)
*[[Demon]]s (25)
}}

==Quotes==

==Notes==

*Grimlock touches down in [[Cybertropolis]], a Cybertronian city introduced in the ''[[Beast Machines: Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Machines]]'' cartoon.
*Hot Rod threatens to put Grimlock in a [[variable voltage harness]], an implement of torture that Grimlock himself was quite fond of in the original Marvel series, first appearing in [[Child's Play (issue)|issue #35]], and often brought up in the UK comic's [[Letters page (Marvel UK)|letters page]].
*Hot Rod had a vision of a demon—prototypical creations of Primus from the original Marvel series—in [[Loose Ends, Part 4|issue #84]], which looks close to coming true.

===Errors===
*Brainstorm now has a mouth, while Hardhead has a [[mouthplate]], in contrast to their Marvel [[character model]]s (though Hardhead's [[toy]] was similared mouth-plated, while Brainstorm spontaneously grew a mouth for the ''[[Transformers: The Headmasters (cartoon)|Headmasters]]'' animated series). Brainstorm even had his proper mouthplate design in issue #81! He is, however, still being ''colored'' as if he had a mouthplate, with a swathe of brownish-yellow covering the bottom half of his face.
*In fact, Christ alone knows what's going on with Brainstorm this issue, as it's really only his color scheme and the use of his name that lets us know it's him—he doesn't look anything like himself except in the most basic of ways, and the specifics of his body design fluctuate all through the issue.
*Crosshairs is colored blue and grey as he stands next to Hot Rod on page 7.
*An excessively literal interpretation of Perceptor's original Marvel character model—which colored him as if he had his toy's mouthplate, with a splash of blue across the bottom half of his face, like Brainstorm in this issue—results in the ''lineart'' actually rendering him with a line horizontally bisecting his subsequently-dual-colored face.

===Covers (3)===
*'''Cover A:'''  Galvatron reaches for Starscream, by Andrew Wildman and [[Jason Cardy]].
*'''Cover B:'''  Hot Rod "greets" the returning Grimlock, by [[Guido Guidi]].
*'''Cover RI:''' Severely off-model Hardhead, Brainstorm and Highbrow on the rampage, by [[Geoff Senior]] and [[Josh Burcham]].
<gallery>
Image:RG187 cvrA.jpg|
Image:RG187 cvrB.jpg|
Image:RG187 cvrRI.jpg|
</gallery>

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[[Category:Regeneration One issues]]