Editing Starscream (G1)/2005 IDW continuity

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[[File:StarscreamIDWF22-Infiltration4cvrA.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|"BANZAAAAI KICK!"]]
Ambitious. Treacherous. Opportunistic. '''Starscream'''''.

{{quote|Starscream... He's never '''''known''''' a good greater than his own well-being. He's pure '''''ambition''''' with no '''''ideology'''''&ndash;not even '''''Decepticon ideology'''''|[[Bumblebee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Bumblebee]] damns the winner|"[[Heavy Is the Head]]"}}
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==IDW Generation 1 comics==
{{ongoing}}

===There at the beginning===

Starscream and his comrades, Skywarp and Thundercracker, were recruited by Soundwave when [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]] requested fliers. They believed they had been called to join Megatron's gladiatorial team, but accepted the offer to join the Decepticons. Starscream immediately proclaimed his allegiance and declared how much of an honor fighting alongside Megatron would be. After going through some upgrades to boost their firepower, the Seekers' first duty was to capture a senator, who would be executed at Megatron's recruitment rally. He was also informed by Megatron of confidential plans in which he would play a key role. When the security forces intervened, Starscream was captured, and—surprise, surprise—offered to reveal Megatron's plans to save his own neck.  {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} However, this turned out to have ''been'' Megatron's plan—Starscream, together with Soundwave, executed the council questioning him, then freed every prisoner in the building, solidifying his loyalty to Megatron... until such time as Starscream felt like betraying his leader.  {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 4|Megatron Origin #4}} 

{{storylink|Shockwaves}}

In the very early stages of the war, one of Starscream's duties appears to have been recruitment, as he made a very pointed effort to convince [[Blurr (G1)|Blurr]] to join the team. {{storylink|Spotlight: Blurr}} Around the same time he appeared as a delegate during one of [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]]'s security sessions, bringing with him a disguised Soundwave to spy on the [[Senate]]'s 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 [[vamparc ribbon|weapons]], he almost let slip that he'd done worse things in Megatron's name. To cover up his blunder, he yelled out that there was a spy in their midst, causing Soundwave to escape and distracting Zeta. {{storylink|Parasites}}

Having been unable to recruit [[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hot Rod]] to the Decepticon cause, Starscream was pleased to see that the insurgent was targeting the troublesome Autobot [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]]. Megatron let him know he was wrong about Hot Rod's intentions. {{storylink|Ruins}} When Zeta Prime then attacked [[Nyon]]'s population with his vamparc ribbons and [[Guardian robot|Omega Destructors]], Starscream compared it to something Megatron would do, but Megatron assured him he was capable of much more. {{storylink|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. {{storylink|Choices}} Together, they attacked Zeta Prime and his Omega Destructors. Starscream personally led the Seekers as air support. {{storylink|Overthrown}}

After Zeta Prime was defeated and Megatron installed himself as ruler of Cybertron, he 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, offering him to join the Decepticons. {{storylink|Transformation (issue)|Transformation}} With new help, the Autobots began their all out assault on the Citadel. Starscream and the Seekers were ordered to take them out but were intercepted by the Aerialbots. {{storylink|Broadcast}}

After Megatron's first defeat at the hands of Optimus Prime, Starscream conspired with [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]] to overthrow him and have him exiled to [[Junkion (planet)|Junkion]]. {{storylink|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. {{storylink|Wreckage (issue)|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. {{storylink|Faces of Darkness}} Scorponok ordered him to keep the Autobot defenders busy while he left to deal with [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]] personally. {{storylink|Rage (IDW)|Rage}}

[[File:Devastation5-StarscreamAchinglyNaive.jpg|thumb|upright|left]]
Starscream was present when Megatron faced Optimus Prime in open battle on [[Sherma Bridge]]. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} During the war, he ended up as Megatron's bodyguard, a position largely for show, and developed a mutual hatred with [[Sixshot (G1)|Sixshot]].  {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}} He would also appear to settle with Megatron instead of carrying on being an attempted traitor. Megatron viewed this as them moving on from such things but it was actually because Starscream feared him—a fear he initially thought was respect. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 6|Infiltration #6}}

===Earth and Ore-13===

{{bigquote|Thanks to Ore-13, Megatron, I have evolved... beyond you! I am the ''future!''|Starscream|[[Infiltration issue 6]]}}

[[File:Infiltration6 takeyourpunishment.jpg|285x240px|thumb|Starscream, seen here actually getting off easy!]]
Millions of years later, Starscream was the leader of a Decepticon [[Infiltration protocol|insurgent cell]] that had operated covertly on [[Earth]] for at least four years, working to destabilize Earth's governing organizations and create global anarchy. However, since the discovery of the mysterious, Energon-like substance known as [[Ore-13]], Starscream had stepped outside standard procedure, establishing a second command bunker in [[Oregon]] above a richer seam of the ore than the one in [[Nebraska]]. Unfortunately, the abandoned Nebraska bunker had been infiltrated by a human named [[Stoker]], who had managed to obtain data on Starscream's operations, forcing Starscream to have the human eliminated, though he didn't count on [[Verity Carlo|another human]] obtaining Stoker's [[SM-40]] computer and an [[Ratchet (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Autobot counter-insurgency agent]] bringing the evidence to the Autobots.  {{storylink|Infiltration issue 1|Infiltration #1}} Meanwhile, Starscream had ordered [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] to cover his tracks by destroying all evidence of Stoker's travels and what remained of the Nebraska bunker.  {{storylink|Infiltration issue 5|Infiltration #5}} Starscream intended to use Ore-13 to challenge [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]] for leadership of the Decepticons, but when the moment of truth finally arrived, the energy source proved insufficient to destroy the Decepticon leader, and Megatron blasted Starscream with his fusion cannon at point-blank range, virtually obliterating him.  Megatron told the other Decepticons, "See to the remains. If he lives, then I'll decide what to do with him."  {{storylink|Infiltration issue 6|Infiltration #6}}

[[File:Starcasm idw dev6.jpg|left|upright=0.85|thumb|Sarcasm from Starscream??  NO!]]
As it turns out, Starscream survived and was placed in a [[CR chamber]] for extensive repairs. The other Decepticons were worried that Megatron was jumping the gun by calling in [[Sixshot (G1)|Sixshot]] early, and Astrotrain realized Starscream might be the only one of them willing to tell Megatron this.  {{storylink|Devastation issue 1|Devastation #1}} During an attack on Decepticon headquarters by the [[Reaper]]s, Starscream completed his recovery and was confident that he would prevail in the upcoming battle.  {{storylink|Devastation issue 4|Devastation #4}} 

When Sixshot arrived, he initially attacked the Reapers, but they insisted he join them or die. Starscream then emerged from base calling out Sixshot—his hatred of Starscream caused the living weapon to decide to switch sides after all, at which point Starscream promptly activated Sixshot's shutdown command, sending him crashing to the ground. Starscream then proceeded to bomb the Reapers, causing Megatron to agree to take the fight to the Reapers. (Based on the timing of his emergence and his co-plotter Astrotrain immediately going "look at brave Starscream, Megatron!", it seems having an excuse to take out Sixshot and thus force Megatron to go against the Reapers was all planned by Starscream)  {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}} Starscream once again accepted Megatron as his liege, and together they teamed up to destroy the alien invaders.  {{storylink|Devastation issue 6|Devastation #6}}

===The Decepticon ideal===

At some point during the following year, Starscream met with [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]] and persuaded him to lead the rest of the Autobots into an ambush (under the pretense that Megatron would be defeated, the Autobots could leave Earth, and the Decepticons would get Earth to themselves), {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 8|All Hail Megatron #8}}, where they were promptly defeated. Optimus was rendered almost offline, and Starscream watched in glee as Megatron delivered the news of a [[Sunstreaker (G1)|traitor]]. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}}

Some time later, Starscream, was back in a subordinate position under Megatron and getting increasingly annoyed with it. He joined in Megatron's attack on [[New York City]], quite enjoying that whole "killing humans who can't fight back" thing.  {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 1|All Hail Megatron #1}}  

[[File:AHM3Starscream.JPG|upright=0.85|thumb|Hey, I just spotted the janitor from ''Futurama''!]]
Starscream personally shot down the fleeing [[Air Force One]] in [[Washington, D.C.]], after which he returned to join Megatron in New York City.  Upon his arrival, Megatron mused that it was fitting to have Starscream beside him, as a Decepticon who had been with the cause since the start. Starscream, believing Megatron to be sarcastic, retorted that he'd been there before even Megatron. A somewhat weary Megatron clarified, congratulating him and complimenting his skills. He further explained that Starscream was very nearly the living embodiment of the Decepticon ideal, but a step short of realizing it.  {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 3|All Hail Megatron #3}}

With the conquest completed, Starscream stood at Megatron's side as he addressed the gathered Decepticons.  {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 4|All Hail Megatron #4}} However, he soon reverted to type when he noticed Megatron didn't have a proper plan now that he'd won and the fun on Earth was a distraction for the troops. He taunted Megatron with the knowledge that he knew this and told him other Decepticons would start getting restless, so Megatron's position would soon be challenged by hordes of bored sociopaths whom Megatron had indoctrinated to be violent and take things.  {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}}

Later, Starscream met with the [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticons]] (passing a depressed [[Reflector (G1)|Reflector]] on the way) and discussed the possibility of overthrowing Megatron. They agreed. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 8|All Hail Megatron #8}} He made his move a short while later, sending the Insecticons to attack Megatron. His allies were summarily defeated, however, and Megatron revealed that he had known about Starscream's plans all along. Starscream explained his reasoning behind the revolt: while he once idolized Megatron for teaching the Decepticons to fight the "old order" and take what they want, all he had done since was lead them into a war without end. He then revealed that the Insecticons weren't his only loyalists, as he had also managed to sway the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] to his cause. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}}

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... but not now. After giving this some thought, Starscream organized his troops to fight back, ending his orders with "All hail Megatron!" {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 11|All Hail Megatron #11}} When Megatron was eventually defeated, Starscream picked up his injured leader, refusing to let the Autobots finish him off. When Optimus Prime asked why, he replied that leadership of the Decepticons is to be ''taken'', not offered up by chance. Before retreating, he reminded Prime that the Decepticons still had the advantage in most parts of the galaxy. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 12|All Hail Megatron #12}}

===Leadership of the Decepticons===

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. He considered just throwing his former leader out Astrotrain's airlock, but had a [[The Transformers: The Movie|nagging feeling]] that he'd "somehow return, [[Galvatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|even more powerful than before]]." 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. When [[Shrapnel (G1)|Shrapnel]] stopped him, saying that the Matrix was used by the Autobots to choose their leaders, Starscream suddenly realized that it was just what he needed to rally people to his cause. Gathering his followers, he told them that he had unlocked the unlimited powers of the Matrix, and that he had been chosen to light their [[darkest hour]]. While the roused Decepticons started hailing his name, Starscream knew fully well that his newfound leadership was wholly reliant on a seemingly useless Matrix, and wondered if this was really the right thing to have done. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 13|Uneasy Lies the Head}}

Starscream quickly proved to be an incompetent leader, gathering his troops on a lifeless asteroid and doing nothing to expand their territory or improve their conditions. As the Decepticons resorted to stealing energy and cannibalizing each other for parts, he demanded [[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]] do something about it, but the Insecticon would rather work on his [[cerebro-shell]]s. Though initially angry, Starscream conceded that he could use these devices after he used one to take out a rebellious [[Quake (G1)|Quake]]. {{storylink|All His Engines}} When he went to ask [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Shockwave]] about the same issue, he found him and Soundwave cutting open Megatron's body to make weapons. Just as Starscream began to express fake outrage about this "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. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}}

Some time later, Bombshell approached Starscream to report that an Autobot ship had crashed on their defenses, but he did nothing but shrug it off and stare emptily at his Matrix, responding violently when Bombshell offered to take it from him. As it turned out, the wrecked ship had contained [[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rodimus]], on a quest to take back the Matrix. After first using a cerebro-shell on [[Razorclaw (G1)|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, and Megatron subsequently took back control of the Decepticons. {{storylink|Heart Like a Wheel}}

{{storylink|Spotlight: Megatron}}
{{charstubfiction}}

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. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|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 (G1)|Brawn]]. As the Autobot accused him of shooting down a plane carrying Optimus Prime, Starscream pleaded for his life and revealed that Megatron was to blame. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 3: Woken Furies|Woken Furies}} Fortunately for him, Brawn chose to carry Thundercracker to safety rather than capture him. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 4: Burning Chrome|Burning Chrome}} Starscream returned to the other Decepticons and watched Optimus Prime confront Megatron in a one-on-one battle. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 5: Enemy Mine|Enemy Mine}}

Megatron would later use the space bridge technology built into in his new body to summon Starscream and the rest of the Decepticons to him on Cybertron. At first they did battle with the Autobots, but were soon mind-controlled by [[Galvatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Galvatron]] into combining with his [[Sweep]] army and forming a huge monster. {{storylink|Chaos Part Three: Kings|Kings}} Once this "[[Deceptigod]]" was defeated, the weakened component Decepticons were captured by the Autobots and outfitted with [[Inhibitor/deterrence chip|I/D chips]]. Starscream spent his time in prison snarking at [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]]'s attempts to take control of the situation. {{storylink|Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime}}

[[File:AllGoodThings-Starscream.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|[[Furmanism|Like a vast, predatory]]-oh, forget it.]]

===The Chosen One===

Starscream was present when [[Prowl (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Prowl]] visited the Decepticon camp to lecture [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]], who had begun to put a plan in motion. {{storylink|The Autonomy Lesson}} Believing Ratbat's methods and goals were regressive, Starscream departed the Decepticon camp to talk to the Autobots, only to be shocked by the distrusting Bumblebee'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 his desire to be part of the planet's new government. {{storylink|The World & Everything in It}} Naturally, all the Autobots were suspicious, but Starscream soon proved his good faith when he helped [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] rescue some NAILs from a series of mysterious explosions, convincing Bumblebee to let him join the government. {{storylink|Stick Together}} Bumblebee, Starscream, and NAIL representative [[Metalhawk (Masterforce)|Metalhawk]] soon held a public assembly to introduce their joint governance, although Starscream did most of the talking, much to Bumblebee's chagrin. {{storylink|Devisive}}

Starscream joined Metalhawk in greeting ex-Decepticon [[Sky-Byte (G2)|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 leader. {{storylink|A Better Tomorrow}}

Given his genuine desire to see the new government work out, Starscream was just as suspicious as his fellow leaders when noted Decepticon warmonger [[Turmoil]] returned to Cybertron with claims of altruism. 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 (G1)|Blurr]] to recount his own experiences with Turmoil as evidence for the prosecution. {{storylink|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. {{storylink|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 (G1)|Ironhide]] and the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dinobots]], who had gone missing in the wilderness earlier that evening. Bumblebee refused their offer, and when Turmoil's spaceship disappeared shortly afterwards, Starscream and Metalhawk joined the Autobots at the spot from which it vanished. {{storylink|Night and the City}}

At dawn, the Decepticon and NAIL set out to search for the missing Autobots regardless. Shortly after spotting Blurr, also out searching, they saw the Autobot get caught in an explosion which revealed a cavern containing the original [[Crystal City]]. However, Prowl's security team quickly arrived, and prevented Starscream and Metalhawk from entering the cave. 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 admitted that a [[Metrotitan (body-type)|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 Metrotitan'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. As the titan began to detonate, group fled together. On the way back to Iacon, the divinely blessed Starscream was held aloft by NAILs and Decepticons. {{storylink|Primus: All Good Things|All Good Things}} Starscream then attempted to obtain a blessing from [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]] but was unsuccessful as Omega had things to ponder.

While Bumblebee and Prowl discussed whether or not Bumblebee could win the elections, Starscream was trying on different crowns with the confidence that he was going to win- then Omega Supreme was bombed by the other Decepticons. Claiming that they were going to "ruin everything" for him. The fact that Omega was bombed by the Decepticons subsequently turned the population against him. Seeking answers on why Omega was bombed Starscream then confronted Shockwave and the other loyalists of Megatron, when he was approached by [[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]] and [[Swindle (G1)|Swindle]] who merely wanted to find sanctuary from the coming storm. Starscream then used this information to make a deal with Prowl to deal with the remaining Decepticons in the pen with the Starscream believing that he had a bargaining chip in Dirge- until [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] revealed that she knew exactly where he had hidden him. Then Starscream witnessed Megatron return.{{storylink|The End of the Beginning of the World}} Starscream then immediately went to the Medical Center to inform the Autobots of Megatron's return- winding him up with a front row ticket to witness the confrontation between Bumblebee and Megatron. Starscream then unsuccessfully tried to calm down the Decepticon rioters with a speech that even managed to impress Wheeljack. He used the riot as an opportunity to have a "chat" with Megatron in his cell. {{storylink|City on Fire}} This "chat" was very one-sided as Megatron was paralyzed but Megatron still had enough movement left in his body to manage a smile- something which terrified Starscream. As the Decepticons later stormed the prison Starscream was paralyzed with fear- meaning that [[Bluestreak (G1)|the]] [[Jetfire (G1)|Autobot]] [[Warpath (G1)|guards]] were easily defeated. Starscream was dragged along to the Black Room were Megatron thanked him for helping him to conquer Cybertron{{storylink|The Verge}} Prowl then proceeded to hold Wheeljack and Starscream hostage until the Autobots and Metalhawk arrived and Wheeljack was shot in the head. He then lamented how he had nearly taken control of the Decepticons as Megatron gloated about his victory.  {{storylink|Before the Dawn}} 

Starscream was the dragged along by Megatron so that he had to witness Megatron's plan come to fruition while being unable to act, with Megatron further gloating about Starscream's failings as a leader. {{storylink|Plan for Everything}} Starscream was later downhearted as Devastator continued his rampages across Iacon and Megatron further revealed his plan for conquering Cybertron, claiming that the Autobots and Metalhawk were not his friends. He was surprised at Metalhawk returning to rescue him from the Decepticons as he had believed that Metalhawk had turned against him. It was at this moment that Turmoil attacked him and Metalhawk while accuding them of being a coward (Metalhawk) and an opportunist (Starscream) respectively, a label that Starscream liked. He then killed Turmoil by using Metahawk's arm as a blade. He then killed Metalhawk with Turmoil's fusion cannon to blame both factions of just creating conflict and war and to gain the support of the population. {{storylink|Heavy Is the Head}}

===Starscream the First===

Starscreams 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 (G1)|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 (BW)|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 the 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. He later succeeded in getting a "pep" talk from Wheeljack's headless body- who had survived being shot by Prowl earlier. {{storylink|Three Monologues}} Starscream was the one who answered when the Lost Light called Cybertron with Tyrest's communication system. {{storylink|The Sound of Breaking Glass}}

[[File:DarkCybertron1-Starscream.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.4|Even the Mini-Cons have abandoned me.]]

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 with a classified-but-familiar reading, that of the [[Dead Universe]], caused Starscream to seek out the crew of the ''[[Lost Light]]''' for expertise, particularly that of [[Cyclonus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Cyclonus]].  {{storylink|Dark Dawn: Dark Cybertron Chapter 1|Dark Dawn}}  Subsequently, an [[Necrotitan|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 Primus]]. {{storylink|Black Metal: Dark Cybertron Chapter 2|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. {{storylink|Winners & Losers: Dark Cybertron Chapter 3|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. {{storylink|Into the Abyss: Dark Cybertron Chapter 4|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 (BM)|Tankor] on how he was letting the population down- only for the Necrotitan to then smash it's way into the medical center. {{storylink|No Exit: Dark Cybertron Chapter 6|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. {{storylink|The Dead Are Not Enough: Dark Cybertron Chapter 7|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 on defeating Shockwave. {{storylink|Burning Bright: Dark Cybertron Chapter 8|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. {{storylink|Finis Temporis: Dark Cybertron Chapter 9|Finis Temporis}} Starscream was later gloating to Scoop about how the prophecy was not fulfilled when he learnt it's true origin - Shockwave. It was just at this moment when Metalhawk appeared with Skywarp and [[Waspinator (BW)|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. {{storylink|The Becoming: Dark Cybertron Chapter 10|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. {{storylink|Black Planet: Dark Cybertron Chapter 11|Black Planet}} Starscream was not impressed by the reactive armor however (even going so far as accusing Jhiaxus of [[Fandom|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 intergrated 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 the by killing them Metalhawk was a "genocidal despot" {{storylink|...And the Damage Done: Dark Cybertron Finale|...And the Damage Done}}  

===Spotlight: Mirage===
{{noteSLMirage}}

At the war's end, Starscream and a small team of Decepticons accompanied the mercenary [[Mirage (G1)|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 (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ratchet]] back as Mirage prepared to kill [[Hound (G1)|Hound]].  {{storylink|Spotlight: Mirage}}
{{-}}

==Notes==
[[File:Wfc-starscream-0.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb]]
*Starscream's appearance in ''[[The Transformers: Robots in Disguise|Robots in Disguise]]'' seems to be based more on this concept drawing of him for the ''[[Transformers: War for Cybertron (games)|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 ''[[Transformers: Fall of Cybertron|Fall of Cybertron]]'', which in itself is based on the crown he wears in ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]''.

==References==

[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Decepticons]]
[[Category:Matrix bearers]]
[[Category:Neutrals]]
[[Category:Seekers]]
[[Category:Turncoats]]