Last Stand (Unicron)

From MediaWiki
Jump to navigationJump to search
« Transformers: Unicron #1 »
Publisher IDW Publishing
First published July 11, 2018
Cover date Early July, 2018
Written by John Barber
Art by Alex Milne
Colors by Sebastian Cheng
Letters by Tom B. Long
Editor David Mariotte
Continuity IDW Generation 1 continuity
Chronology Current era

As the Transformers defend Caminus against Unicron, Optimus Prime ventures into the planet-eater.

Synopsis

From Cybertronian legend, it has come: Unicron, the opposite of Primus, banished in the primordial past by the Transformers' creator-god, but foretold to return, whereupon the The Arisen, last of the Thirteen Primes, would be there to destroy it. That time is now. Unicron has returned, and it has destroyed nine of Cybertron's thirteen colonies—LV-117, Prion, Gorlam Prime, Velocitron, Elonia, Eukaris, Arduria, Tsiehshi, and Devisiun—consuming the planets and adding their mass to its own body. Having been on the back foot and unable to stop Unicron thus far, this time, the Transformers are not caught by surprise; by tracking the movements of the Maximals—the army of beast Transformers who previously followed Shockwave, but who now, for reasons unknown, serve Unicron—they have been able to deduce Unicron's next target is the colony of Caminus, and rally to its defense in advance of the monster planet's arrival. With Rom the Space Knight at their side, the united forces of Cybertron strike back!

As battle erupts in the skies over Caminus, down on the planet's surface, Skyburst and Stormclash work feverishly to get the space bridge operational, in order to evacuate the populace to Cybertron. The Mistress of Flame calls for her people to have faith, but Pyra Magna is well past believing in higher powers and Primes.

In the midst of the space battle, Optimus Prime observes as the Maximals' ship, the Nemesis, sets down on Unicron's surface. This moment has been prepared for; Bumblebee zooms into action, piloting his small, one-man ship on a collision course with the Nemesis, then bailing out just before it strikes the giant eyeball-ship dead center. Arcee grabs 'Bee, and the pair join Prime in heading down, through the fresh hole that has just been punched in the Nemesis, into the interior of Unicron.

Attempts to talk the Maximals down and convince them they are being led astray having failed, Soundwave now fights alongside Rom. Fearing that they will not make it out alive, Soundwave suggests the Space Knight return to Cybertron, that he may survive to aid his people, Rom refuses to abandon his allies. Alas, the threat is too large to combat on every front; Rom can do nothing but watch as Dirge comes to the aid of Lightbright and Sparkstalker, only for a a huge, clawed Maximal to slaughter him. Moments later, Unicron comes within range of Caminus and releases a beam of energy from its maw that begins the consumption of the planet. Skyburst and Stormclash successfully activate the space bridge and the evacuation begins, with Windblade coordinating from Cybertron and the Mistress continuing to assure everyone that their faith will see them through...

Within Unicron, Arcee tracks a path towards the evil planet's center. A piece of debris Prime recognizes from LV-117, first of the colonies consumed, tells the group they are close... and soon, they have arrived at the chaotic core of Unicron, a mad blend of every world it has eaten, rocks and trees, waterfalls, machines, cities, event bits of Titan, organic and technological, all somehow blended together, all still "alive" in some form, as part of Unicron. Amidst it all, the trio are shocked to find the ruined form of an Omega Sentinel, one of the ancient defenders of Cybertron, which seems to suggest that there is truth to the legends that claim Cybertron and Unicron have clashed before. Before they can investigate any further, the group is attacked by Unicron's "immune system"—hideous, twisted, composite creatures made up of all the things it has absorbed! Unable to match the monsters' might and ferocity, Prime is wounded, and Bumblebee contacts Soundwave to teleport them back to the Ark Zero.

Concurrently, the Maximals succeed in breaking through the Transformers' resistance, and start flooding down to the surface of Caminus, perfectly happy to die with the planet if it means they can kill the Camiens before they can finish evacuating. Pyra Magna stands ready to bar the Maximals' way, poised to give up her life for her people, but the Mistress of Flame orders her to stand down, and takes up the task herself. As the Maximals descend, the Mistress incinerates one after another with beams of fire shot from her chest... but their numbers are too great, and soon, with a sad smile on her lips, the Mistress is overwhelmed. But her sacrifice is not in vain; all of the Camiens are successfully space bridged to Cybertron, even as Unicron feasts on their world.

Back on Cybertron, Starscream, responding to a summons from the incarcerated Shockwave, has just blasted his way into his former comrade's jail cell and knocked out the guard, Beachcomber. The pair watch as the Camiens and the Cybertronian fleet start arriving, and Shockwave explains his reason for calling on Starscream. Unicron will be coming to Cybertron next, but through Shockwave's millennia-long machinations, Cybertron has been poisoned. Consuming it will kill Unicron, leaving the rest of the universe open to conquest by a new Decepticon empire Shockwave and Starscream can build together. But Starscream isn't interested in Shockwave's vision of the future; he has other plans...

Disembarking the Ark Zero, the wounded Optimus regretfully tells Windblade that he found no answers within Unicron. Prime solemnly states that Cybertron and the orbiting Titan colony of Carcer are now all that stand between Unicron and Earth... but Bumblebee, counting on fingers, realizes that only accounts for twelve colonies. Before the mystery of the unknown thirteenth colony can be discussed, Starscream's voice cuts in. Waving a huge Decepticon flag, Starscream addresses the Camiens, welcoming them all to Cybertron and declaring that he is here to save Cybertron and all their lives. Suffice to say, Optimus Prime is not happy...!

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Autobots Decepticons Maximals Others

Quotes

"Our true selves are forged in the pressure of action... 'heroes' are just the ones who get noticed."

—Optimus Prime


"Stop whining. Nobody's sick of you being back—yet."

—Arcee rescues Bumblebee


"Sparkstalker—who was that?"
"His name was Dirge. Once, we were Decepticons... but he died a Cybertronian."

—Lightbright and Sparkstalker eulogize Dirge


"Arcee... there's no one I'd rather follow into a malevolent planet bent on universal destruction."
"You really know how to flatter a 'bot."

—Optimus Prime and Arcee


"I'll hold them off, Aileron. Tell Optimus... tell him this is all his fault.."

—Oh, Pyra Magna...


"Things will get better, my children... but first, I fear... first things will become much worse."

—The Mistress of Flame's final words


"In the eyes of all but the most deluded Cybertronians, the gods are dead. The Matrix of Leadership is gone; the Primes revealed to be false idols. Faith itself is a fiction I invented."

—Shockwave


"I, Starscream the First, the Chosen One... have returned to light your darkest hour. The Autobots may have failed you... but I know exactly how to save Cybertron."
"Over my dead body."

—Starscream and Optimus Prime

Notes

Continuity notes

  • The events of Unicron spin straight out of "The Falling," the seven-part story told in Optimus Prime #15-21. While Unicron #0 was supposed to come out over a month in advance of the conclusion of that story, to tease the storyline, this issue was not; some particularly bad delays in June and July led to this issue being released week in advance of the final chapter, Optimus Prime #21, hitting the stands. It manages to not spoil much, save for the fact that Shockwave was defeated and captured, that the Matrix "is gone," and that his Maximals now serve Unicron for unknown reasons.
  • For the last seven years, IDW stories have made occasional reference to "Primus's opposite," an oblique way of referring to Unicron without ever saying his name. As this issue begins, Optimus Prime at last confirms explicitly that this "opposite" is Unicron, confirming that he is known by name in Cybertronian legend.
  • Soundwave's impassioned speech to the attacking Maximals, where he attempts to convince them to change sides, is reminiscent of his (successful) attempt to persuade the Sharkticons to do the same, back in Optimus Prime #5.
  • Dirge (and by extension, Acid Storm) is once more in his design from Rom vs. Transformers. Alex Milne clarified on Twitter that he thought for the scenario at hand Dirge would change back to an old wartime chassis intended for intense space combat.[1]
  • The piece of LV-117 rubble that Prime's team discovers within Unicron is the mysterious Quintesson mural originally seen when the planet was first introduced way, way back in Spotlight: Wheelie. It's still never been expounded on...
  • Bumblebee notes he's only ever met one Omega Sentinel, referring to Omega Supreme. Omega is noted to be "accounted for" on Cybertron, reminding us that he's still alive, despite having been offline for years after injuries sustained in Robots in Disguise #11.
  • The final page of Starscream arriving with a the Decepticon flag isn't a direct mirror of the final page of The Transformers vol. 2 #49, when Optimus Prime arrived on Earth with an Autobot flag, but it feels like it's evoking it either way.
  • Starscream is once again wearing his Decepticon insignias, which he removed all the way back in Robots in Disguise issue 16.
  • Several references are made to Cybertron's tainted energon reserves. This and Shockwave's seeming intent to poison Unicron when he attacks the planet suggests that the events of First Strike and Transformers vs. Visionaries were yet another part of his 12 million year machinations.

Transformers references

  • Alex Milne's rendition of Primus on page 1 is largely based on his standard IDW appearance, as designed by Guido Guidi for the 2012 More than Meets the Eye annual, but rather than the glowing yellow he has been depicted in up to now, he is coloured in the reds and blues of the Primus design created in the early 2000s by Don Figueroa, seen in Transformers: The Ultimate Guide. Milne has also added a glowing circle to his chest, a mark of the Figueroa design also reflected in the character's Transformers: Cybertron incarnation.
  • On the same page, Unicron is drawn based on his classic Generation 1 character model, as seen in The Transformers: The Movie, with bit of the ol' Milne zazzing-up.
  • Optimus Prime has outfitted himself with twin-barreled shoulder cannons reminiscent of those from his Generation 1 Powermaster body.
  • The skies are alive with Maximals! Though many appear to be generic, numerous recognizable characters from Beast Wars and its Japanese sequels appear among Unicron's hordes, some who are taking their first bow in IDW's pages, and others who have appeared in preceding issues of Optimus Prime, like Optimus Primal and Megatron. Stressing that these are really just crowdfiller goons, two Megatrons actually appear simultaneously—one in his original Tyrannosaurus body, and the other in his Transmetal 2 dragon form.

Errors

  • Confirming an implied error from issue #0, Gorlam Prime is seen being eaten by Unicron, when there was no planet left to eat, due to it collapsing into a portal to the Dead Universe in Robots in Disguise #19.
  • On page 2, panel 9, Devisiun is misspelled "Divisiun."

Deathlist

  • Dirge; bisected by Rampage
  • Mistress of Flame; overwhelmed by Maximals then consumed by Unicron along with Caminus

Other trivia

  • This issue also includes a four-page ROM back-up strip, "Ad Infinitum," by that book's creative team. Bumblebee appears, but mostly stands silently behind the Space Knight as he convinces his fellow knights to join the fight against Unicron.
  • Other backmatter includes the first installment in a series of interviews with creators from IDW's past. This issue, it's Simon Furman and E. J. Su, the creative team who launched the IDW universe back in 2005 with The Transformers: Infiltration.

Covers (8)

  • Stadium Comics exclusive cover: Our heroes in a recreation of the poster for The Transformers: The Movie, by Alex Milne and Josh Perez; available only from Ontario retailer Stadium Comics
  • San Diego Comic Con exclusive cover: Unicron, by Alex Milne and Sebastian Cheng; available only from IDW Publishing at San Diego Comic Con 2018
  • Diamond retailer exclusive cover: black and white lineart version of Milne's SDCC cover

Advertisements

  1. ↑ Tweet by Alex Milne (@markerguru), 2018/07/06
Retrieved from "https://tfwiki.duckdns.org/index.php?title=Last_Stand_(Unicron)&oldid=1267884"