The Cure!

"Show me, show me, show me how you do that trick, the one that makes me scream," she said.

Ratbat sends a team of Autobot prisoners to kill all Transformers infected with the Scraplets. If they don't comply, the Earth will be destroyed.

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Marvel US issue #30

(Story also appears in: Marvel UK issues #126-127)

Script: Bob Budiansky
Pencils: Don Perlin
Inks: Ian Akin and Brian Garvey
Lettering: Janice Chiang
Colors: Nelson Yomtov
Editor: Don Daley

• Major characters (in order of appearance): Chase, Freeway, Searchlight, Wide Load, Rollbar, Ratbat, Astrotrain, Octane, Blitzwing, Blaster, Charlie Fong, Goldbug, G.B. Blackrock
• Originally published: July, 1987

Synopsis

Gold Metal Syndrome.

Ratbat captures the Throttlebots during a fuel raid. Rather than have them executed, he sends them to Earth on a mission to destroy all Transformers infected with Scraplets. They are given 10 hours to complete this mission, after which Ratbat threatens to destroy the Earth. Meanwhile, Charlie Fong discovers the cure for Scraplets: Water.

Goldbug arranges for G.B. Blackrock to have water transported to the crater to cure all the infected Transformers, but when Goldbug prepares to cure Blaster and the Triple Changers, Blaster tells Goldbug to kill him rather than save the Decepticons. During Goldbug's hesitation, the Scraplets merge into a conglomerate monster to fight back. The Scraplet monster proves more than a match for the weaponless Throttlebots, and Goldbug decides to cure Blaster and the Decepticons to provide enough firepower to fight against the monster. The gambit proves effective, and Blaster finishes the Scraplets off with the acid that Throttlebots brought with them. Goldbug uses the last of the water Blackrock brought to the crater to remove the Scraplets that had infected the Throttlebots during the fight.

Astrotrain learns enough about Blackrock to believe him to be of use to the Decepticons, and attaches a small microchip to Blackrock's forehead. The chip flashes a light pattern in front of Blackrock's eyes, then falls away unseen by anyone else. The Decepticons then escape carrying the cargo from the freighter which brought the Scraplets to Earth.

Errors

• Despite Ratbat's threat to destroy the Earth, no effort is made by the Autobots to contact him after the Scraplets threat is averted. Apparently, the Earth does not get destroyed...

• The color schemes for the three sports car Throttlebots are constantly confused in this issue. Searchlight, Chase and Freeway all switch color schemes on the opening splash page. They're drawn and colored correctly after that, but later Chase is shown with Searchlight's head and colors. Someone must have referenced this issue for the later GI Joe/Generation 2 crossover, because the same error repeats there.

Items of note

• On page 13, Goldbug refers to Blackrock's company as "Blackrock Enterprises"

• References to other Transformers continuities/issues: The freighter was sent by Ratbat on a secret mission last issue (#29) before becoming infected by Scraplets. The nature of it's secret cargo will be revealed next issue (#31).
  
  
  From Teletraan I: The Transformers Wiki, a Wikia wiki.