An Arcee Sort of Day
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| "An Arcee Sort of Day" | |||||||||||||
| Publisher | IDW Publishing | ||||||||||||
| Published in | Synergy: A Hasbro Creators Showcase | ||||||||||||
| First published | March 27, 2019 | ||||||||||||
| Cover date | February 2019 | ||||||||||||
| Written by | Peri Mercer | ||||||||||||
| Art by | Umi Miyao | ||||||||||||
| Colors by | Elaina Unger | ||||||||||||
Arcee's bad day has one silver lining...
Synopsis
Arcee was once one of the most feared 'bots on Cybertron, a ferocious warrior without equal... but now, with Cybertron's Great War at an end, she's been feeling increasingly rudderless as her troubled homeworld tries to adjust to peacetime once more.
After getting an application for a housing loan rejected, Arcee tries to go home, but gets into a fight with a particularly reckless driver on the way. Passing religious cultists and a violent brawl while doing her shopping, Arcee finally comes home to her run-down apartment after a long day, where she's greeted by her faithful pet, a robotic cat. Despite everything, she muses, maybe it's good to have a home after all.
Featured characters
(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)
| Autobots | Decepticons | Others |
|---|---|---|
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Quotes
"You want me to show you what cutting truly is? Back in line!"
- —Arcee threatens a reckless driver
Notes
Continuity notes
- This three-page story was commissioned as part of Synergy, an anthology that celebrates female characters and creators across the Hasbro brand.
- Though the strip makes many nods to the original IDW universe, it doesn't really seem like it could fit all that neatly in there... not least because that continuity's version of Arcee didn't own a pet.
Transformers references
- Naturally, the strip draws inspiration from the acclaimed "Phase 2" of the IDW Generation 1 continuity. Most obvious is the character of Arcee herself, who's pretty much just a straight transplant of IDW's take on the character: a fierce, unstoppable warrior with a soft side, left rudderless after the conclusion of the Great War. The concept of a true "postwar" setting was another notable feature of IDW's late-run comics.
- Arcee's body is a wholly original design, appearing to take inspiration from both the original IDW incarnation of Arcee and Chromia's upcoming "Siege" toy. Additionally, she's shown wielding a pair of laser swords, as per her IDW self; combined with another version of Arcee dual-wielding energy blades in the recent Star Trek vs. Transformers miniseries, maybe these are just her signature weapons going forward?
- Arcee's memories of being surrounded by leering, fanged faces may be a nod to her one-woman stand against Shockwave's monstrous Maximal horde in Optimus Prime issue #5.
- One of the religious cultists Arcee passes in the street shouts that "The world is ending!" while a different member cries "Unicron is upon us!"... which is, of course, how the original IDW continuity really did end, with the Unicron miniseries that concluded in November 2018.
- One member of the cult appears to be Damus, who long-time IDW fans will recognize as the true identity of the Decepticon Justice Commander "Tarn." Another appears to sport First Aid's helmet.
- Arcee is shown eating "rust sticks," which appear to be a variant of the energon sticks occasionally shown in More than Meets the Eye.
