Make a Surprise Attack on the Super Weapon Base!
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| "Make a Surprise Attack on the Super Weapon Base!" 超兵器基地を奇襲せよ!
(Chō Heiki Kichi o Kishū Seyo!) | |||||||||||||
| Publisher | Comic BomBom | ||||||||||||
| First published | October 1998 | ||||||||||||
| Cover date | November 1998 | ||||||||||||
| Story | Shōji Imaki | ||||||||||||
| Art | Shōji Imaki | ||||||||||||
| Continuity | Beast Wars manga continuity | ||||||||||||
Reinforcements arrive in the form of Hyper Convoy Star Upper, but is the Maximal what he says he is?
Synopsis
Intergalactic boxer Star Upper makes his way toward Gaia, responding to a Maximal distress call. There, he's determined to finally make a name for himself.
The Gaia-bound maximals have uncovered a Predacon super weapon base. With Lio Convoy still away on a personal training mission, they've called in Convoy-class help. Star Upper arrives, brushing off questions about his proof of Convoy status by claiming to be from the secretive "Super Convoy Brilliant Special '98" rank. As someone involved in covert infiltration missions, he can't afford to carry a Matrix around...
Star Upper leads a direct assault on the base, where his nonstrategic tactics earn praise from the rest of the crew, fed up with Lio Convoy's usual caution.
At the base, the team are ambushed by Predacons led by Gigastorm, the powered-up saurian evolution of an Angolmois-infused Megastorm. The base itself is revealed to be a false facade designed to trap the Maximals. The group is forced into a losing battle.
As the Maximals fall around him, Star Upper admits to his shameful ruse. However, only Tasmania Kid was listening! Kid implores Star Upper to fight on as their last hope, then passes out due to his injuries.
Newly inspired, Star Upper transformers into robot mode and lays out Gigastorm with a "Star Upper" uppercut—a near-light-speed punch of nearly infinite mass!
The Maximal victory is cemented by the arrival of Lio Convoy, who has returned from his training mission. Recognizing Star Upper from the latter's intergalactic boxing career, Lio Convoy nevertheless keeps the Maximal's secret in thanks for saving his team. Star Upper, having fled in terror from his title match, resolves to return to his athletic career with renewed vigor, going on to take the championship title.
After the commotion, Maximal HQ is visited by their intended reinforcement. The team—aside from Tasmania Kid—regard the new arrival with caution. Surely he's a fake!
Featured characters
(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)
| Maximals | Predacons |
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Notes
- Before passing out, Tasmania Kid appears to cough up blood (no, not that Blood) onto Star Upper's boxing glove. Er, maybe it's Energon. Or oil.
Continuity notes
- Lio Convoy's solo training mission continues from the previous chapter, in which he took off to learn to control his power over Angolmois, having nearly succumbed to its intoxicating power during a bout with Galvatron.
- Though not yet established, Galvatron has also taken leave of the Predacons to construct the artificial planet Nemesis above Gaia, leaving command of the planet-bound forces to Gigastorm. Galvatron will reveal his whereabouts and lack of knowledge of on-planet events during this timeframe in Mission-007.
- Aside from two group-shot panels in Mission-007, the two panels in this chapter's ending gag mark Magnaboss' sole appearance in the manga. His individual components are never shown (though his introductory caption makes it clear he is still a triple-combiner), and his fate following the battle on Nemesis is unknown. Don't forget to buy the toy, kids!
Real-world references
- The number in Star Upper's made-up rank refers to the year of the chapter's publication.
