Shadow of Evil

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<tbody><tr style="background-color: rgb(231, 212, 146); text-align: center; font-size: 12px;"> <td colspan="2" style="font-size: 14px; background-color: rgb(231, 212, 146); color: black; font-weight: bold;" align="center"> <table style="background-color: transparent;" width="100%">

<tbody><tr style="font-size: 14px;"> <td class="tti_buttonlink"><a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Edge_of_Impact" title="Edge of Impact">«</a> </td><td align="center"><a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Generation_1_%28Marvel_Comics%29#Marvel_UK" class="mw-redirect" title="Generation 1 (Marvel Comics)">The Transformers (UK)</a> #253 </td><td class="tti_buttonlink" align="right"><a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/White_Fire" title="White Fire">»</a> </td></tr> <tr class="tt1_secondarynav"> <td class="tti_buttonlink"> </td><td align="center"> </td><td class="tti_buttonlink" align="right"> </td></tr></tbody></table> </td></tr> <tr> <td colspan="2" style="font-size: 12px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" align="center"> <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Image:MarvelUK-253.jpg" class="image" title="MarvelUK-253.jpg"><img alt="" src="Shadow%20of%20Evil_files/230px-MarvelUK-253.jpg" border="0" height="305" width="230"></a><br>You're MY WIFE now! </td></tr> <tr> <td colspan="2" style="font-size: 14px; background-color: rgb(231, 212, 146); color: black; font-weight: bold;" align="center"> "Shadow of Evil" </td></tr> <tr> <td>Publisher </td><td> <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Marvel_Comics" title="Marvel Comics">Marvel Comics</a> </td></tr> <tr> <td>Date published </td><td> <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/January_14" title="January 14">14th January</a> 1990 </td></tr> <tr> <td>Cover date </td><td> <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/January_20" title="January 20">20th January</a> 1990 </td></tr>

<tr> <td>Writer </td><td> <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Simon_Furman" title="Simon Furman">Simon Furman</a> </td></tr>

<tr> <td>Art </td><td> <a href="http://tfwiki.net/w2/index.php?title=Cam_Smith&action=edit" class="new" title="Cam Smith">Cam Smith</a> </td></tr>

<tr> <td>Letterer </td><td> <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Annie_Halfacree" title="Annie Halfacree">Annie Halfacree</a> </td></tr>

<tr> <td>Continuity </td><td> <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Marvel_Comics_continuity" title="Marvel Comics continuity">Marvel Comics continuity</a> </td></tr>

</tbody></table> Unicron has possessed Rodimus - everyone's buggered...

<a name="Synopsis"></a><h2><span class="editsection">[<a href="http://tfwiki.net/w2/index.php?title=Shadow_of_Evil&action=edit&section=1" title="Edit section: Synopsis">edit</a>]</span> <span class="mw-headline">Synopsis</span></h2> <div style="border: 2px solid rgb(238, 238, 238); margin: 0pt auto 0.2em; padding: 2px; width: 90%; background-color: rgb(239, 239, 239); text-align: left;">Note: This story follows on from <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Edge_of_Impact" title="Edge of Impact">Edge of Impact</a>.</div> The possessed Rodimus is slaughtering the <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Autobot" title="Autobot">Autobots</a> by the dozen, and, as they are reluctant to kill him, their weapons are set to stun. Kup has called for help from <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Autobot_City" title="Autobot City">Autobot City</a>, and until it arrives, he feels they owe it to Rodimus to let him have a chance fighting against the real enemy...

Rodimus flees through a nightmare world, pursued by Unicron, now in the form of a walking shadow. Rodimus is running scared when he should fight, and he is lost.

The possessed Rodimus pauses due to this psychic battle, and as reinforcements arrive, Arcee makes Kup realise they have to take this chance and shoot to kill...

<div style="border: 2px solid rgb(238, 238, 238); margin: 0pt auto 0.2em; padding: 2px; width: 90%; background-color: rgb(239, 239, 239); text-align: left;">Note: This story is continued in <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/White_Fire" title="White Fire">White Fire</a>.</div> <a name="Featured_characters"></a><h2><span class="editsection">[<a href="http://tfwiki.net/w2/index.php?title=Shadow_of_Evil&action=edit&section=2" title="Edit section: Featured characters">edit</a>]</span> <span class="mw-headline">Featured characters</span></h2> (Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

<table style="border: medium none rgb(128, 0, 0);" align="center" border="5" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="5"> <tbody><tr> <th style="background: rgb(255, 238, 238) none repeat scroll 0%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;"> <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Autobots" class="mw-redirect" title="Autobots">Autobots</a></th><th style="background: rgb(255, 238, 184) none repeat scroll 0%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;"> Others </th></tr> <tr> <td style="background: rgb(255, 238, 238) none repeat scroll 0%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" valign="top">

• <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Getaway" title="Getaway">Getaway</a> (deactivated) (1)
• <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Quickmix_%28G1%29" title="Quickmix (G1)">Quickmix</a> (deactivated) (2)
• <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Hot_Rod" title="Hot Rod">Rodimus Prime</a> (3)
• <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Siren" title="Siren">Siren</a> (4)
• <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Red_Alert_%28G1%29" title="Red Alert (G1)">Red Alert</a> (5)
• <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Kup" class="mw-redirect" title="Kup">Kup</a> (6)
• <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Arcee_%28G1%29" title="Arcee (G1)">Arcee</a> (7)
• <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Doubleheader" title="Doubleheader">Doubleheader</a> (8)
• <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Hosehead" title="Hosehead">Hosehead</a> (9)
• <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Longtooth" title="Longtooth">Longtooth</a> (10)
• <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Afterburner_%28G1%29" title="Afterburner (G1)">Afterburner</a> (12)
• <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Perceptor_%28G1%29" title="Perceptor (G1)">Perceptor</a> (13)
• <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Blaster_%28G1%29" title="Blaster (G1)">Blaster</a> (14)
• <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Strafe_%28G1%29" title="Strafe (G1)">Strafe</a> (15)

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• <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Unicron" title="Unicron">Unicron</a> (11)

</td></tr></tbody></table> <a name="Items_of_note"></a><h2><span class="editsection">[<a href="http://tfwiki.net/w2/index.php?title=Shadow_of_Evil&action=edit&section=3" title="Edit section: Items of note">edit</a>]</span> <span class="mw-headline">Items of note</span></h2>

• Unicron's name is not mentioned either here or in "White Fire".

• Rodimus/Unicron appears to take out a fair number of Autobots

in this issue. As well as the deactivated Getaway and Quickmix, we see him blasting Siren, Doubleheader, Hosehead and Longtooth (along with some poor sod in silhouette who is pretty much disintegrated). It would be the last time we would see these characters in the future timeline, leaving their eventual fates uncertain.

• The Autobots really are in trouble; the "heavy artillery"

ordered in by Kup consists of Blaster, Perceptor, Afterburner and Strafe. We could be charitable and assume the other <a href="http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Technobot" title="Technobot">Technobots</a> are just off-panel, but they're still not more heavily armed than, say, any other group of random Autobots.