Epilogue Two

« Transformers Collector's Club: The Official Magazine Comic Bonus Transformers: TransTech
"Epilogue Two"
Publisher	Fun Publications
Published in	G.I. Joe vs Cobra #9: “Project Downfall", Diamond edition
First published	January 25, 2017
Writers	Jesse Wittenrich & Pete Sinclair
Pencils	Kotteri
Inks	Robby Musso
Colors	Josh Perez
Letters	Jesse Wittenrich
Managing editor	Pete Sinclair
Continuity	TransTech
Chronology	Present day

As one door closes, another door opens.

Synopsis

There is not one universe, but many, in a multiverse. Millions of universe orbiting around one another...and in the center on one Cybertron is Axiom Nexus, a city home to the super-advanced TransTech. They were once stewards of the multiverse...but they are no longer its protectors, with the Shroud cutting them off from the rest of the multiverse. But, with their door having been closed, another one now opens...

Rhinox shuts down the last of the monitors observing the multiverse, sorrowfully noting that after millions of years, they're no longer able to show them much of anything. As Heinrad and Thrustinator warp off to parts unknown, Rhinox presses one last button, and says goodbye...

...And on the flipside, in a negative-polarity universe with an Axiom Nexus of its own, Airazor and Rhinox succeed in opening a window in the multiverse for the first time, proving their theories. Rhinox vows to observe this multiverse first hand, refusing to limit himself to simple monitor duty. The two are interrupted, however, when High Chancellor Megatron, wary of Rhinox's ambition, enters the room. Airazor explains to the High Chancellor how, before, they believe they were the only universe in existence, but now they have undeniable proof; some sort of veil has lifted them, showing them many worlds to...explore. Astonished by the multiverse's beauty, Megatron tells them to begin recording these universes...

...and in one of these, the heroic Decepticon Starscream to his leader, Megatron, that Nightbird is no Autobot plaything, but a robot invented by Doctor Fujiyama the Infamous Scientist to steal the World Energy Chip the Decepticons were entrusted with. Megatron consults with Mr. Xamot, who ensures to Megatron that America's highly-trained, special mission force, Cobra, will be there to help the Decepticon against the Autobots and anyone else who threatens Earth!

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Heroic Decepticons	Evil/"morally ambiguous" Autobots	Heroic Autobots	Others
Megatron (6) Starscream (7) Cyclonus (11) Soundwave (13) Starscream (14) Megatron (15) Bombshell (17) Thundercracker (18) Skywarp (19)	Airazor (4) Rhinox (5) Optimus Prime (8) Bumblebee (9) Rodimus (10) Tailgate (12)	Rhinox (2) Heinrad (3)	Thrustinator (1) Nightbird (16) Xamot (20)

Notes

• Characters mentioned include: Doctor Fujiyama the Infamous Scientist, Lt. Cisarovna, and General Kessler.

Continuity notes

• The event which cut off the TransTech from the multiverse—and, apparently, opened up the "Shattered Glass" multiverse to the negative-polarity TransTech—is the Shroud, initially foreshadowed on the "Rook - Axiom Nexus News: Investigative Journalist" Facebook page and created by Nexus Prime in "Out of the One, Many".
• Rhinox turning off his screens was referenced in the final day of the Rook and Andromeda Facebook pages, with Waspinator misinterpreting the screens going off as the universes themselves disappearing.

Transformers references

• The text box recounting the origins of the TransTech is done in homage to the text box published at the top of the first page of every issue of Marvel's The Transformers comic.
• Mirror TransTech Rhinox shares his body-type with his positive counterpart, but in the colors of Armada Rhinox. It may be a reference to "Withered Hope", where TransTech Rhinox was described as "rust-red or burgundy" in a description inconsistent with his later visual appearances.
• Megatron ending a sentence with "yes" is, of course, a nod to his Beast Wars incarnation.
  • The worlds shown are each "mirrors" of notable Transformers universes:
    • "Cybertron -AA02", a counterpart to Aurex 802.23 Alpha, the universe of the Unicron Trilogy cartoons. It depicts Cybertron Optimus Prime in the colors of Shattered Glass Optimus Prime.
    • "Cybertron -MA07", a counterpart to Malgus 1207.26 Alpha , the universe of Transformers Animated; presumably, it's not the same as Malgus -411.27 Zeta, which would be "-MZ11". It shows Shattered Glass Animated Bumblebee.
    • "Cybertron -PG05", a counterpart to Primax 1005.19 Gamma, the 2005 IDW continuity. It shows a version of Shattered Glass Rodimus recolored from Rodimus's More than Meets the Eye design.
    • "Cybertron -PE08", which appears to be Primax -408.24 Epsilon, universe of most Shattered Glass fiction to date. Its image shows Cyclonus and Tailgate (in the colors of Nightracer) together, a reference to their IDW counterparts' pairing in More than Meets the Eye.
    • The universe that the mirror TransTechs select to observe is "Cybertron -PA84", a counterpart to Primax 984.17 Alpha, the Generation 1 cartoon continuity, and is of course full of references to the original cartoon.
• The whole scene shown in the universe of Cybertron -PA84 is a big old reference to "Enter the Nightbird". Starscream refers to Doctor Fujiyama the Infamous Scientist building Nightbird, who is modeled on her positive-universe counterpart, but in the colors of Dust Up (whose head is notably similar to the original Nightbird's).
• Soundwave is depicted as a "virtual retool" of Combiner Wars Onslaught. Starscream, Thundercracker, and Skywarp are all based on the Transformers Unite Warriors Starscream mold. As with their previous Shattered Glass versions, Starscream and Thundercracker are in the colors of Jetfire and Action Master Thundercracker, while Skywarp is in the colors of Cybertron Skywarp... which makes him look near-identical to G1 Skywarp. They can't all be winners.
  • Starscream was subsequently released as the mystery figure in the final Transformers Figure Subscription Service assortment.

G.I. Joe references

• G.I. Joe guys showing up in a mirror of the Generation 1 cartoon continuity is a reference to the various cross-Sunbow Easter eggs that indicated a shared universe for all their cartoons, which was made explicit by The AllSpark Almanac II. These "Shattered Glass G.I. Joe" characters have actually appeared before, as part of the "Adventure Team: Shattered Glass" comic in Fun Publications' G.I. Joe fan club magazine.
• The Decepticons speak to a mirror version of Xamot, who promises them the aid of Cobra, who are in this universe the good guys. Xamot, of course, has a scar on his left cheek instead of his right, because it's a mirror universe, geddit?
• Xamot mentions talking to Lieutenant Cisarovna, a mirror version of the Baroness, and General Kessler, who must be either a counterpart of Billy Kessler or his father, Cobra Commander. If he is a mirror of Billy, his being a general could also be a homage to General Flagg, Jr, son of the original General Flagg.
• Cobra is "America's highly-trained special mission force", i.e. what G.I. Joe was according to the intro of their cartoon.

Errors

• In the top text recounting the story of the TransTech, the second "the" in the sentence "this is the home of the TransTech" is misspelled as "he".

Other trivia

• This two-page minicomic was released as bonus content at the end of the Diamond edition of G.i. Joe vs. Cobra issue #9, "Project: Downfall", Fun Publications' GIJoeCon 2016 comic. Its odd name is a reference to the TransTech-focused epilogue to Of Masters and Mayhem, the final comic arc to run in the Hasbro Transformers Collectors' Club magazine.
• The image of Cybertron on Shattered Glass TransTech Rhinox's screen is taken from "Cybertron's Most Wanted", with lineart by Matt Frank and colors by Thomas Deer and Wade Alexander.