Last Bot Standing issue 1

Publisher	IDW Publishing
First published	May 11, 2022
Cover date	May 2022
Written by	Nick Roche
Art by	E. J. Su (pg. 1-22, 24-30) Nick Roche (pg. 23)
Colors	Rebecca Nalty
Letters by	Jake M. Wood
Editor	David Mariotte and Riley Farmer

At the end of time, on the edge of space, the last Cybertronian discovers that he is not alone.

Synopsis

In the far-distant future, long after the end of the Great War between the Autobots andDecepticons, a small space pod hurtles towards a remote world and makes planetfall in an empty stretch of desert. After a moment, a single Transformer climbs from the vessel and slowly lurches away...

For the humanoids who inhabit the planet Donnokt, it is a time of rapid change as an industrial revolution spreads across the planet: mining consortiums have enriched sleepy towns like Fembrance and introduced them to an age of steam-powered wonders, including the smoke-belching buggies so beloved by local rich boy Stambo Flentz and his friend Brennet. Not all of the people of Fembrance are so enamored with progress, however: as the pair rip through town, they spray mud over an incoming wagon and catch an earful from its owner Shib Walkis. Annoyed that the two brothers have used their new toys to get into the delivery business and undercut her own livelihood, she's found that her longtime customer doctor Brel Tonder has even hired them while she and her brothers were away on a delivery. When Brel suggests that Shib could modernize, Brel refuses: her cart's been in the family for generations, and the loss of her parents at a young age means that she's had more than enough change for one lifetime. After Brel pays them for their delivery, Shib and her brothers trundle home in their wagon, while, elsewhere, the Cybertronian intruder slowly trudges through the barrens.

At home, Shib washes up, puts her brothers to bed, then tends to a small box of family heirlooms that includes photos, includes a set of necklaces, each one containing a vial filled with a strange, blue fluid. A sudden knock at the door catches her attention—the sheriff of Fembrance has come calling to ask for her assistance in rescuing a group of wounded miners trapped up in the mountains. Shib grumbles, but ultimately accepts the job, hitches her wagon, and rides off with Brel, even as the lone Cybertronian, leaking a strange, green fluid as it goes, marches closer and closer to their town. Hours later, Shib returns, bringing with her a complement of injured but still-living miners. Even the loudmouthed Stambo can't help but sheepishly complement her prowess... but any celebrations are cut short when an onlooker shouts in fear and points to the distance, where the Cybertronian has arrived! At first, the arrival merely takes in the sight of this unfamiliar town—until, unexpectedly, Shib's own wagon creaks, shudders, and, as the draft animals bolt, lurches to life all by itself, then sheds its outer tarp to reveal another Cybertronian, Rodimus! The intruder can't believe he's found another member of his kind... but Rodimus coldly tells him to die, and promptly pile-drives him into the ground.

Amidst the madness, the townsfolk abruptly round on Shib—did she know her wagon was "enchanted"? Shib says nothing, but merely watches as the other Transformer desperately pleads with Rodimus to stop, and swears that they are brothers... but when he lands an unexpected hit on his opponent and seemingly takes him out of the fight, the realization of what he's done compels the Visitor to momentarily realize what he's done. As he pleads for his opponent to wake up, he makes the mistake of asking his name; as he does so, Rodimus mumbles his name as he remembers a time before, when, under siege by a Decepticon flotilla, he deliberately crash-landed his ship and stranded himself on this remote world. As the citizens of Fembrance grab their guns, the visitor sincerely thanks Rodimus for providing "them" with a new home... but Rodimus quickly finds his footing, roars that Donnokt is not theirs, and promptly finishes the fight by ripping the other Transformer's head from his body. As the sheriff orders the town militia to open fire on Rodimus, Shib runs over to the old Autobot; although Rodimus has vague memories of her from his time masquerading as her wagon, he merely warns her and the other citizens of Fembrance not to pick a fight, wraps the remains of the wagon around him to form a makeshift cloak, and warns the people of Fembrance not to follow him as he tosses the severed head of his victim over his shoulder and leaves.

Unbeknownst to Rodimus, however, "they" have already arrived: even now, a second pod crash-lands in the desert, and disgorges a second Cybertronian invader...

Featured characters

(Characters in italic text appear only in flashbacks.)
(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Autobots	Others
Rodimus (5) Prowl? (9) Strongarm (10)	Visitor (1) Brennet (2) Stambo Flentz (3) Shib Wallkis (4) Travyon Wallkis (6) Beets Wallkis (7) Brel Tonder (8) Moon (11)

Quotes

"These steamramblers—these... these people thinkin' they can get rich quick from it... don't it feel like crazy has come to town, doc? An' that, maybe, it mightn't leave?"

—Shib

"Don't worry, Stambo. Them guys didn't get blowed up too much. They'll be back to work soon enough to fetch you more bang for your little fun-buggy. And thanks for not stealing more of my business while I was away."
"...who says we didn't?"

—Shib and Stambo

"No... this place—this place is not for us."
"Hnnn! No, wait—we're the same—"
"Not. The. Same!'"

—Rodimus versus the Visitor

"My name is Rodimus. And I have no kin."

—Rodimus

Notes

Continuity notes

With IDW Publishing's time on the Transformers brand winding down, Last Bot Standing commemorates seventeen years of IDW Transformers comics by presenting a "final" Transformers story, an imaginary tale in the vein of Old Man Logan or Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?. Like those stories, Last Bot Standing was not written to fit into any specific continuity and is not intended to be a "definitive" end to Transformers as a whole; according to author Nick Roche, it can—with a little bit of squinting—serve as a hypothetical "last adventure" for basically any Transformers universe. ^[1]

Transformers references

The opening narration notes that "it always starts the same way", alluding to the great tradition of Transformers stories beginning with the robots falling from space, crashing on Earth. It might also be a deliberate inversion of Simon Furman's old chestnut, "it never ends".
As mentioned above, Last Bot Standing isn't written with the intent of slotting into any one continuity, but we'd be remiss if we didn't point out that our hero apparently just goes by "Rodimus", not "Rodimus Prime", which was a naming quirk the character adopted in IDW's original Transformers universe.
Meanwhile, the basic idea of a future era in which an aged and withered Rodimus has outlived many of his contemporaries is likely inspired by the Marvel UK story, "Aspects of Evil!", especially given Roche's history as a Marvel UK fan and a member of the famous fan-fiction group that continued the series. The idea has been revisited before, in IDW's Marvel sequel series Regeneration One.
The two draft animals who pull Shib's "wagon" are named "Sparks" and "Firebolt": Firebolt was the name of Hot Rod's Targetmaster partner, and "Sparks" was the name Firebolt occasionally went by in the Marvel comic.
As she leaves to rescue the miners, Shib announces that it's time to "roll out".
The killer rabbit leaving the space pod on the final page is Moon, a transforming bunny who debuted in the Beast Wars II television show. In that cartoon, Moon was not, in fact, of Cybertronian origin; he and his android friend Artemis were human creations, overseers of an abandoned Earth many thousands of years after the disappearance of their creators. Given this comic's far-future setting, we're wondering if the choice to include this specific character might not factor into the plot of future issues...

Other trivia

Backmatter for this plus-sized issue includes Nick Roche's concept art for Shib, Trayvon, Beets, Tonder, Rodimus, the "Visitor", and some of the miscellaneous steam cars seen throughout the issue.

Covers (6)

Cover A: In the desert, Rodimus walks, by Nick Roche and Josh Burcham
Cover B: Everyone Rodimus knows goes away in the end, by Alex Milne
Cover C: Stabbed in the back, by Gavin Spence
Cover D: Rodimus and Shib, by Phil Knott
Online exclusive cover: Famous Cybertronians, by Rui Onishi
Retailer incentive cover: Rodimus and the citizens of Fembrance, by E. J. Su