The Transformers (Madman)

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<tr style="background-color:#e7d492;text-align:center;font-size:12px;"> <td colspan="2" style="font-size: 14px; background-color:#e7d492; color:black;font-weight:bold;" align="center"> <table width="100%" style="background-color:transparent">

<tr style="font-size:14px;"> <td class="tti_buttonlink"> </td><td align="center">Madman Transformers Comic </td><td align="right" class="tti_buttonlink">» </td></tr> <tr class="tt1_secondarynav"> <td class="tti_buttonlink"> </td><td align="center"> </td><td align="right" class="tti_buttonlink"> </td></tr></table> </td></tr> <tr> <td colspan="2" style="font-size: 12px; background-color:#ffffff;" align="center"> <img alt="" src="/w2/images2/thumb/0/0b/Madman_comic_cover.jpg/230px-Madman_comic_cover.jpg" width="230" height="317" border="0" /><br />I've seen this before. </td></tr> <tr> <td colspan="2" style="font-size: 14px; background-color:#e7d492; color:black;font-weight:bold;" align="center"> </td></tr> <tr> <td>Publisher </td><td> Madman Entertainment and IDW Publishing </td></tr> <tr> <td>Date published </td><td> June 26, 2007 </td></tr> <tr> <td>Cover date </td><td> None </td></tr>

<tr> <td>Written by </td><td> Simon Furman </td></tr>

<tr> <td>Art by </td><td> Nick Roche </td></tr>

<tr> <td>Colors by </td><td> Josh Burcham </td></tr>

<tr> <td>Letters by </td><td> Unknown </td></tr>

<tr> <td>Edits by </td><td> Justin Eisinger </td></tr>

<tr> <td>Continuity </td><td> Generation 1 cartoon </td></tr> <tr> <td>Chronology </td><td> Generation 1 cartoon timeline </td></tr>

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As the Autobots flee their war-torn homeworld, a young Autobot glimpses his destiny.

Synopsis

It is the year 2001, and the Autobots are evacuating their remaining forces from the Decepticon-held Cybertron. On the relatively safe haven of Earth, a dejected Hot Rod laments to Spike Witwicky that while every other Autobot is fighting to protect the escapees, he is stuck on guard duty over a construction site. The human tries to cheer him up, assuring the young Autobot that his time is coming, and for now, just to enjoy the view of the future Autobot City. Hot Rod thinks his duty is a waste of time, as there's nothing there that anyone would want to steal.

Ratbat, Beastbox, Squawktalk, Overkill, Slugfest: Eject. Operation: Screentime.

At that moment, an Autobot transport drone drives down to the construction site carrying Soundwave! The Decepticon communicator replays footage recorded of Optimus Prime telling Ultra Magnus that he will hide the Autobot Matrix of Leadership in a bunker on the site, in case he is captured or killed during the evacuation effort. Soundwave commences Operation: Excavation, ejecting Ratbat, Squawktalk, Beastbox, Overkill and Slugfest to dig up the Matrix.

Meanwhile, Hot Rod daydreams about Optimus Prime single-handedly holding the Decepticons at bay while the other Autobots help the survivors escape. His fantasy is interrupted when Spike alerts him to Soundwave's activities, causing the Autobot to leap into action. Unaware, Ratbat happily reports that minimal fuel was used in the successful operation while Soundwave calls for retrieval. Suddenly, Hot Rod comes barreling through, knocking over the land-based tapes and seriously scaring the crap out of Ratbat. As the Matrix flies through the air, Hot Rod transforms and catches it. For a split second, he sees a vision of himself fighting a powerful Decepticon while Spike's words echo in his mind's eye: "Everyone has their time. Yours is coming!" Soundwave attempts to counterattack, but is not nearly as fast to the trigger as Hot Rod, who quickly subdues the Decepticon with laser fire.

Later, the Autobot refugees and the rescue teams return. As Hot Rod hands the Matrix to Optimus Prime, the young Autobot tells the venerable leader that the artifact spoke to him. For a brief moment, the energy from the Matrix links both Autobots, and Optimus Prime replies that perhaps Hot Rod's destiny is greater than he knows. As Prime leaves, Kup dismissively informs Hot Rod that he thinks the 'over-revved young punk' just nearly screwed up. Hot Rod merely sighs at his lot in life.

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

<table border="5" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="5" align="center" style="border:#800000"> <tr> <th style="background:#FFEEEE"> Autobots</th><th style="background:#EEEEFE"> Decepticons</th><th style="background:antiquewhite"> Humans </th></tr> <tr> <td style="background:#FFEEEE" valign="top">

• Hot Rod (1)
• Ultra Magnus (4)
• Optimus Prime (5)
• Springer (11)
• Arcee (12)
• Kup (15)

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• Soundwave (3)
• Ratbat (6)
• Overkill (7)
• Slugfest (8)
• Beastbox (9)
• Squawktalk (10)
• Squawkbox (13)
• Galvatron, in a vision (14)

</td><td style="background:antiquewhite" valign="top">

• Spike Witwicky (2)

</td></tr></table>

Errors

• None yet identified.

Items of note

Cameos

• Space battle above Cybertron: Omega Supreme, Skyfire, Astrotrain, Sky Lynx, Shockwave, Cosmos, Blast Off, Sixshot
• On Cybertron: Huffer, Wheeljack, Dirge

• This comic was only available exclusively with Madman Entertainment's The Transformers Complete Collection DVD set.

Star Wars: Episode III

• The large Ark-like Autobot starship seen in the space battle on the first page features a design using elements of the later Marvel Ark and the Ark as it appeared in the cartoon.
• Slugfest and Overkill's appearance in this storyline marks their second (though chronologically the first) appearance in the cartoon continuity.
• Ratbat's sole line about fuel outlay is based upon his Marvel comics personality, rather than his animal-like cartoon characterization.
• After the story, there is an essay by artist Nick Roche about how Transformers wrecked his life... and that he couldn't be happier.
• The Transformers cartoon timeline in the book lists events from the beginning of the Quintesson creation of the Transformer race to the Rebirth of Cybertron. Interestingly, it includes Scramble City as part of this timeline, even though Simon Furman has professed to have never seen the episode, which is why he didn't include it in this comic. It this possible this inclusion of Scramble City was done by a Madman staff member.

Covers (1)

• Cover: Cybertron by Don Figueroa (re-use of art from Stormbringer issue 3).

Advertisements

• Madman's release of The Transformers: The Movie Special edition DVD, a rather pointless advertisement for their The Best of The Transformers DVD, and Beast Wars Seasons 1, 2 and 3 DVD sets.
• Otakuwear's range of Transformers clothing.