Transformers I.Q. issue 3

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Publisher	Fun Publications
Published in	Hasbro Transformers Collectors' Club #45
First published	June/July 2012
Script	Jesse Wittenrich
Art	various
Continuity	TransTech

You and I-QUEUE take a more in-depth look at some Cybertronians throughout the multiverse. Plus: the Constructicons!

Synopsis

Heading further into the Axiom Nexus Cybernet Infocore, I-QUEUE wishes to set some time apart to quiz you on Cybertronians of varying importance throughout the multiverse, and has you name the following Transformers:

1. Which Maximal was head of the Convoy Council, and died during an attack on Unicron? A. Rodimus Convoy B. Big Convoy C. Grand Convoy D. Great Convoy

2. Which Mini-Con aligned himself with Optimus Prime and his Autobots to stop the Decepticons from abusing the power of the Mini-Cons? A. Goldbug B. Sparkplug C. Spike D. Bumblebee

3. This Decepticon sleeper agent is so well disguised as an Autobot teacher, she doesn't even realize she isn't an Autobot. Who is she? A. Flip Sides B. Feedback C. Projector D. Rosanna

4. This Decepticon sharpshooter is equally as sharp with her mouth as with her shots, keeping other Decepticons from befriending her. Who is she? A. Nightsister B. Nightracer C. Nightbird D. Nightraven

5. This Autobot is known for his heat-resistant metal hide, his great patience, and his concern for the well-being of his friends. Who is he? A. Flamewar B. Blazemaster C. Smolder D. Artfire

I-QUEUE proceeds to go further into a topic from last time; the Constructicons. In one particular universe, the combined Constructicons, known as Devastator, won the Decepticons multiple battles during the Third Cybertronian War. A group of desperate Autobots ambushed the six at Elevation Recostalus, neutralizing them before they could combine. Unfortunately, this wouldn't be the end; by 1984, Megatron had gathered enough resources to repair them. Having their bodies sent over via space bridge, the Decepticon leader re-built them, and had Scrapper replace Hook as leader to remind them that he does not accept failures.

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

TransTech A.I.
I-QUEUE (1)

Notes

Transformers references

• The correct answer to the first question is Great Convoy, who was a Maximal from the Beast Wars Neo anime series. The question is illustrated with an image of him from the September 1999 issue of TV Magazine. The other options include Rodimus Convoy, the Japanese name for Rodimus Prime; Big Convoy, leader of the group of Maximals seen in Beast Wars Neo; and Grand Convoy, the Japanese name for Energon Optimus Prime.
• The correct answer to the second question is Sparkplug, who is illustrated with a screencap of him from Armada episode "Carnival". The other options include Bumblebee, the Generation 1 Autobot who served as a source of inspiration for Sparkplug's design; Goldbug, Bumblebee's upgraded Throttlebot form; and Spike, the son of Sparkplug Witwicky (with whom Sparkplug shares his name) from The Transformers cartoon (and later, the Marvel The Transformers comics).
• The correct answer for the third question is Flip Sides, a cassette Transformer sold with the Collector's Edition reissue of Twincast. She's illustrated with the image of her from her toy bio card. The other options include feedback and projector, fairly generic terms, and Rosanna, an Autobot cassette from Kiss Players who shares the Rewind/Eject molds. The two's Animated counterparts have hinted a connection before, with The AllSpark Almanac II implying that Rosanna is a Decepticon sleeper agent code named Flip Sides.
• The correct answer for the fourth question is Nightracer, the exclusive toy for BotCon 1995, who is illustrated with a panel from "A Flash Forward, Part 3" (pencils and inks by Matt Frank, colors by Thomas Deer) from the same issue. Other options include Nightbird, a man-made ninja android from Transformers episode "Enter the Nightbird", Nightsister, and Night Raven (see "Real-world references" below).
• The correct answer for the fifth question is Artfire, an Autobot Targetmaster remolded from Inferno for the Headmasters toyline. Illustrating this question is a panel of him, Chromedome, and Stepper from the United comic "The Fierce Fighting on Planet Nebulos" (art by Guido Guidi) published in the second volume of Transformers Generations 2011. The other options include Flamewar, an Decepticon motorcycle exclusive to BotCon 2005; Blazemaster, an Autobot helicopter from the Revenge of the Fallen toyline; and Smolder, a Decepticon fire department vehicle from the Power Core Combiners toyline.
• The "Last Issue Review" serves to help smooth over the conflicting origins of the Constructicons from the original Transformers cartoon; initially presented as newly-built Decepticons in "Heavy Metal War", the season 2 episode "The Secret of Omega Supreme" would depict them as neutral robots brainwashed by Megatron, and season 3 episode "Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4" would contradict both by depicting them as the creator of Megatron. Previous Wings fiction had elected to ignore "Five Faces", depicting them as a separate group of Constructicons; this installment goes with "The Secret of Omega Supreme", depicting them as being part of the war on Cybertron, and retconning "Heavy Metal War" by indicating that they were repaired by Megatron, rather than built from scratch.
  • Unfortunately, this creates a new continuity error in the process; "The Secret of Omega Supreme" established that the Constructicons fled Cybertron to escape Omega Supreme, joining up with the Decepticons on Earth. However, this being the Wings Universe and not the cartoon proper, it simply might not have happened in this universe.
• The idea that the war seen in the cartoon is the Third Cybertron War comes from season 3 episode "Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4".
• Hook was established to be the former Constructicon leader in the prose story "A Team Effort".
• Elevation Recostalus is named for Mike Costa, writer of the 2009-2011 IDW Publishing The Transformers ongoing comic.
• The Autobots attacking the Constructicons include Hauler, a character briefly seen in "More than Meets the Eye, Part 1" the first episode of Transformers cartoon, and Autobot Micromaster Erector. They were retconned into being former Constructicons by their e-HOBBY bio and Hall of Fame bio, respectively.
• Images illustrating this review includes the full piece of art with pencils and inks by Casey Coller and colors by Josh Perez seen last issue, originally from Erector's tongue-in-cheek Hall of Fame video (depicting the Constructicons in a cross between their animation models and their toys), and screencaps from "Heavy Metal War" depicting the Constructicons standing at attention in front of Megatron, Starscream, Soundwave, and Skywarp, and a close-up of Scrapper.

Real-world References

• The Nightsisters are a clan of force-sensitive witches from Star Wars. The Night Raven is a Cobra vehicle from G.I. Joe. Starscream transformed into one in the first Devil's Due G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers mini-series.

Errors

• Mini-Con is spelled "Minicon".
• Night Raven is spelled "Nightraven".
• The "Third Cybertron War" is called the "Third Cybertronian War".