Spotlight: Metroplex

« The Transformers Spotlight #24 »
"Metroplex is my kinda town!"
"The Transformers Spotlight: Metroplex"
Publisher	IDW Publishing
First published	July 1, 2009
Cover date	July 2009
Written by	Andy Schmidt
Art by	Marcelo Matere
Colors by	Priscilla Tramontano
Letters by	Chris Mowry
Edits by	Denton J. Tipton
Continuity	2005 IDW continuity
Chronology	Pre-All Hail Megatron

While on the run from Sixshot, the Throttlebots come across a mysterious Cybertronian ghost town.

Synopsis

The Throttlebots are stationed on the Orvus Base laboratory orbiting Salvvatan VI, serving as couriers for a top-secret research project, when the base is attacked and destroyed by Sixshot. They escape in a ship as the only survivors of the attack—with Sixshot in hot pursuit—eventually making their way to Salvvatan VIII, which they are surprised to discover has signs of Cybertronian life. They land and make their way into the giant city on the planet, hoping to find someone who can help.

But as they drive through the city they discover it's eerily empty, though there's still supplies of energon available. Their searching and scavenging is eventually cut short when Sixshot catches up with them, and he promises that if they hand over the information on the destroyed lab's research he'll give them a merciful death. The Throttlebots decide to transform and make a break for it again, and Sixshot chases after them.

Final Smash! LANDMASTER!

His robot mode blasters send Chase crashing hard into a wall. He transforms into his tank mode and lands on Freeway, running him over and crushing him, then blasts Wideload with his turrets. He returns to robot mode and hauls the injured Freeway up, asking him if he's going to talk. All Freeway can do is groan in pain, so he tosses the Throttlebot aside and addresses the remaining three, telling them to come out and face him.

As the three follow his command, Searchlight asks how Sixshot can be back to normal again when he last saw the Decepticon as a zombie on Bhul's moon. Sixshot explains that he traded some of Jhiaxus's technology—specifically the space bridge schematics and failsafe overrides—to Megatron in return for being restored to his normal self.

The Throttlebots tell Sixshot they're determined to go down fighting, and Sixshot starts to boast about how that will cost them, when Rollbar transforms and sideswipes Sixshot's leg, knocking him off balance. Sixshot grabs onto the Throttlebot with a hand, and Rollbar pulls Sixshot along behind him before deliberately crashing them both hard into a wall.

The impact causes an alarm to sound, with a voice calling out about an intruder alert and perimeter breach. Sixshot is distracted and confused for a moment, prompting Searchlight and Goldbug to try to get the jump on him. But the unimpressed Sixshot quickly rounds on and shoots both of them. He then approaches Searchlight and is about to finish him off with a close range headshot when a giant arm emerges from an opening in the city and pounds Sixshot into the ground. To Searchlight's amazement, Sixshot not only survives the impact but manages to stand up again, only to have the city—really Metroplex—transform into robot mode and step on him.

As Searchlight, Goldbug, and Rollbar recover and stare up in amazement at the giant Titan, Metroplex states that his position has been compromised and they all need to leave. When Rollbar asks why, Metroplex explains that they need to hide, that since they found him there will be others who will come. Rollbar protests that there's a war going on, and that they need Metroplex's help, but the city-bot simply looks away sadly and tells them where they can find a shuttle and supplies. When Goldbug asks what kind of Autobot would abandon his own, Metroplex explains that he has a mission to protect "it", then transforms into a gigantic space vessel and takes off.

As the three Throttlebots head off to try and find the rest of their little group, they speculate what "it" might be. Searchlight has a theory, but refuses to share any details, much to Rollbar's irritation. Meanwhile, back in the impact crater of Metroplex's initial stomp, the crushed and battered Sixshot clenches one of his outstretched hands into a fist...

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Autobots	Decepticons
Scrounge (1) Chase (3) Searchlight (4) Freeway (5) Goldbug (6) Rollbar (7) Wideload (8) Metroplex (9)	Sixshot (2)

Quotes

"Surrender. Hand over the lab's information. Die without pain. You don't want the alternative."

—Sixshot gives the Throttlebots a choice between death and worse death.

"I am Sixshot. And..."
"I AM METROPLEX."

—Metroplex's foot is unimpressed.

"You're leaving us to die? What kind of Autobot are you?"
"I HAVE A MISSION. A PURPOSE. TO KEEP IT SAFE. I WEEP FOR MY FELLOW AUTOBOTS BUT I CANNOT HELP THEM."

—Goldbug and Metroplex

Notes

Continuity notes

• An editor's note at the beginning states that the events in this issue start right before All Hail Megatron #1.
• Searchlight is altered from his Stormbringer appearance to look more like the other Throttlebots.

Transformers references

• A lamppost resembling Soundwave's Cybertronian alternate mode from the Sunbow cartoon is seen on the side of the road leading to the city.
• Cover B references the cover of Marvel UK comic #186 Space Pirates!
• The Throttlebots' guns are based on the ones they carried in their first Marvel Comics appearance, in "The Cure!".

Errors

• On page 4, Goldbug mistakenly addresses Chase as Freeway. This was corrected in the trade paperback collection, though the correction was not carried through to the IDW Collection Volume Four collection.
• Also on page 4, it references Searchlight's encounter with Sixshot as occurring in "The Transformers: Spotlight: Revelation," incorrectly conflating the actual issue (Spotlight: Sideswipe) with the title of the Revelation mini-series it was a part of.
• Jhiaxus's name is consistently misspelled "Jiaxus". This was also corrected in the trade paperback collection.

Other trivia

• Goldbug is not Bumblebee.
• The issue consists of mainly 2-page spreads to illustrate Metroplex's sheer size.
• Due to IDW's subsequent relaunch of the series as a proper ongoing, as well as Last Stand of the Wreckers and the Bumblebee miniseries, the Spotlights took a hiatus after this issue.
• John-Paul Bove had made a pitch for Spotlight Metroplex before the Schmidt version, which he said in 2013 would "explore the idea of an unintended consequence of the Transformers infiltrations and interference on alien worlds and to explore the idea of evolution and how places can become living things." Here, Metroplex is a long-abandoned city that had been built larger and larger until he'd developed sentience, and in his search for the truth of his origins he runs into the equally abandoned Trypticon. The very little information Metroplex can glean about his world—a garbled mess of imagery and myth that indicates a devastating Transformer battle that was seen as a war of gods—is sent to Trypticon and awakens him delusional, believing himself a god, and the two fight as Metroplex tries to protect the knowledge of the dead world. He dumps all the data into Scamper and then has an EMP triggered, seemingly killing all involved (including Scamper). The last shot, for whatever reason, would have been of the equally dormant Overlord and apparently Omega Supreme???

Covers (3)

• Cover A: Wraparound cover of an angry Metroplex and the Throttlebots vs Sixshot; art by Marcelo Matere and colors by Priscilla Tramontano.
• Cover B: Metroplex's GIGANTIC hand emerging from the ground, while the Throttlebots watch; art by Guido Guidi and colors by Josh Burcham.
• Cover RI: Virgin (title-free) alternate of cover A.

• 
  "You guys are making me itch!"
• 
  Just before 'Plex flips the bird.
• 
  Metroplex a virgin? I believe it. Who could satisfy him?!

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Reprints

• The Transformers: All Hail Megatron Volume 3 (October 28, 2009) ISBN 1600105416 / ISBN 978-1600105418
• The Transformers: The IDW Collection Volume Four (May 25, 2011) ISBN 1600109381 / ISBN 978-1600109386
• The Transformers: The Complete All Hail Megatron (July 27, 2011) ISBN 1600109551 / ISBN 978-1600109553
• The Transformers: Spotlight Omnibus Volume 2 (September 9, 2015) ISBN 1613779429 / ISBN 978-1613779422
• Transformers: The Definitive G1 Collection: Volume 42: Revelation (October 17, 2018)

• 
  All Hail Megatron Volume 3 – cover art by Trevor Hutchison
• 
  The IDW Collection Volume Four – cover art by E. J. Su
• 
  The Complete All Hail Megatron – cover art by Trevor Hutchison
• 
  Spotlight Omnibus Volume 2 – cover art by Jeffrey Veregge
• 
  The Definitive G1 Collection: Volume 42: Revelation – cover art by Don Figueroa and Nick Roche