The New World

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Screw Klo, first he's got a new Transformer race to create.
"The New World"
Publisher	Transformers Collectors' Club (main story: online exclusive; prologue: published with Diamond Edition of "Games of Deception")
First published	July 25, 2007 (online at the Transformers Collectors' Club)
Writers	Greg Sepelak and Trent Troop
Illustrations	Greg Sepelak
Continuity	Marvel Comics continuity
Chronology	1992
Page count	18pp

The Mini-Cons are charged with rebuilding Cybertron... but some are not content to simply give up the world they've built to others.

Synopsis

15 years ago, Cybertron has been all but abandoned; with the planet tearing itself apart after Unicron's attack, and the new leaders of the factions taking off after each other, all that remains are a group of humans and Hi-Q, Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity's Powermaster partner. Carryi8ng his partner's life-force within him, the Nebulon leads the group to the Last Autobot, hoping his abilities can revitalize the Transformers' world. However, when the Last Autobot senses the pain of the Autobots on Klo, he uses his powers to create a new Transformer race. Taking data from Prime and Hi-Q's merged Action Master form, and using the Matrix energy scattered across Cybertron, he create the race of Mini-Cons, the first of whom is named Modus Prime. Giving each Mini-Con a sliver of his spark, allowing them to access his powers, the Last Autobot charges them with the restoration of Cybertron, and to destroy horrors that exist below the surface. Taking off, he leaves the Mini-Cons behind to prepare...'

Quotes

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Mini-Cons	Mutants	Others
Modus Prime (3) Broadside Dreadwing Overbite Snarl Dinobots: Knockdown Terrorsaur Hacksaw Maccadam's Mini-Con waiter Flatbed Steel-Belt Wide Load Road Hazard Sledge Yardarm Thunderwing Nightscream Steel Wind Divebomb Firebot Strongarm Remedy Dirt Rocket Grindor Oil Slick	Sawtooth Meathook Guttersnipe	The Last Autobot (1) Hi-Q/Optimus Prime (2)

Notes

• Mentioned characters include: Unicron, Bludgeon, Grimlock, Primus, the group of humans who Hi-Q travels with,
• Characters seen in art but not in-story include: Thunderpunch, Rapture, G.B. Blackrock, a loader-type Mini-Con, a crane-type Mini-Con, three plane-type Mini-Cons.

Continuity notes

• The story is set in 1992, right after the events of Marvel's Transformers issue #80 in the Classics continuity. The prologue brings up many of events from the last 6 issues of the comic, including the attack of Unicron in #75, the death of Optimus Prime in #76, the search for the Last Autobot in #79, and the attack on Klo in issue #80.

• In the Marvel comic "Still Life!", Hi-Q/Optimus Prime pleads with Grimlock not to kill a fallen demon, because all life is precious. The Mini-Cons, under Modus Prime, were created for the purpose of wiping them out with no quarter.
  • The only one to question this is Broadside, who calls it a mission of genocide. It is a factor in his disillusionment with the Mini-Con cause.

Transformer references

• Modus Prime's name is derived from "Minimodus," the Canadian French/Spanish name for Mini-Cons used on Armada's toyline packaging.
• The mutants are a borrowing from the UK Marvel comics.
• Likewise for Maccadam's.
• Scorponok and Zarak died in the great battle with Unicron.
• Hacksaw occasionally lapses into pronoun-less Dinobot-style speech: "Terrorsaur, you are stupid violent beast." "No, but makes sense anyway."
• "'Til all are one" is a common Autobot mantra.
• Ankmor Park would reappear in "Wreckers: Finale Part II". The name is derived from Terry Pratchett's writings.
• Other Cybertronian locations mentioned include the Memnon Overpass and Gygax.
• The Dirt Digger team use a data-con for their dirty work.
• Most of the Mini-Con teams are based on the Classics Mini-Con toy 3-packs. However, none yet have allegiance here. Several fiction-only teams are added to the mix as well.
• Broadside forms his Demolition Team here, but they are never mentioned by name. Sledge and Wide Load both appear as members of other fiction-only teams, which are subsequently destroyed.

Real-world references

• Three Decepticon-aligned Mini-Cons seen in the preview are based on three real life jets: the Northrop P-61 Black Widow (bottom, purple and green, the McDonnell Douglas X-36 (top, shades of green), and the unmade Short PD.13 (grey and purple). (See right)
• Snarl invites the mutants to "come out and plaaaaaay-ee-aaay!", quoting a famous line from The Warriors.
• Overbite mugs (ha!) with the severed face of a mutant ("Hey, look everyone! I'm a mutant! Booga-booga-booga!") Far Side-style.
• The neon sign at Maccadam's refuses to stay lit properly, in the tradition of dive bars everywhere.
• "Sector Spellos" is in homage to voice actor Peter Spellos.
• They serve Siebenaler Vintage at Maccadam's.
• One assumes, based on the name, that the Urban Renewal Team tears down nice old things and replaces them with horrible new things.

Other trivia

• Unlike most of the other Club stories, The New World was free to read to non-members. When the prose section went back up after an extended disappearance, however, all stories became free to read.

External links

• "The New World" at The Official Transformers Collectors' Club