#Was the war for Cybertron and what happens on Earth truly that troubling?

[the-orange-solace]

Day 0 of no system in-fighting

[mk-wizard]

Proof that the Autobot Way is Flawed

Now, before I start exploring this Transformers theory, I want to make it clear that I do not think that Autobots are secretly evil. You can be part of a flawed system and be a good person. Heck, you can be part of a flawed system and even be aware of how flawed it is. Autobots have long since proven that they are good, well meaning people who want to keep their society clean and want to do good for the world, but it is NOT a perfect society. It has flaws that are glaring, feudal and in fact holding Autobots themselves back. And there are many instances which show that the Autobot way has flaws. Also, many of them are from Animated which I give honours to @auraturner for bringing up in her article here as many others did too. Here they are;

If you want to live in an Autobot society, you MUST identify as an Autobot yourself or you are not truly a part of the society and cannot live among Autobots. - Ever noticed that on Cybertron, EVERYONE identifies as an Autobot? And I recall in the G1 series, when Spike and Carly were given the ultimate honour among Autobots, what was this honour? Being called an Autobot. In other words, they were not true allies or equals up until that moment. While we would find being an Autobot cool as a kid, as adults, this feels off and kind of disturbing. Then there was the issue of Jetfire in G1. Why should he HAVE to be an Autobot to prove that he is good? He was good even when he identified as a Decepticon! He could have kept being a Decepticon and just fight alongside the good guys. What if a Decepticon wants to continue being a Decepticon, but just doesn’t agree with tyranny or Megatron’s way? What if a Decepticon was a good person, wasn’t even a fighter, had no criminal record and only wanted to live a quiet private life on Cybertron? Unless that Decepticon is willing to change their faction, the Autobots will deny them the right to live on Cybertron.

They have no trouble conscripting and imprisoning kids. - While we find it cute that Bumblebee is a young teenager, this implications here are actually very dark. What is a teenager that young doing in the army and going to war? Also, in the Animated series, Wasp was arrested and sent to the stockades and he was no older than Bumblebee. This is not ok. You do not give a kid and adult sentence.

Autobot society works almost like a hive mind or at least under the thumb of the Prime. - While Optimus and Rodimus were good and kind Primes who care deeply for others and allow personal freedoms, a large majority of the Primes were not like this. It is implied that Autobot society is a borderline communist society in which everyone plays a role to keep the system as it is forever and it is very rigid towards new ideas and such. This is why Megatron resorted to war in the first place. Nobody would listen to him. They listened to Optimus (as Orion Pax) in Prime, but the problem with this is that Megatron knows the problems better and knows the solution cannot be negotiated. Optimus doesn’t get that because he hasn’t walked in those shoes. Might I also add that the Autobots shot and used aggression first when Megatron start proposing change. That doesn’t look good. Moreover, you all have to believe in the same thing without question. Nobody is allowed free speech and speaking out against the Prime is considered as stepping out of line and if you question the Autobot way or point out that it has flaws, you will be accused of heresy.

While the Autobot faction came to be, their ancestors deleted a lot of the records. - This chilling fact is official in the actual Allspark Alminac. I don’t think I need to say much on this one. Anyone who throws away part of their own history is obviously hiding something.

Autobots have no respect for other factions or beings. - While the Autobots showing a lack of respect for the Earth or Decepticons is played off for laughs, such things are actually quite despicable. When Autobots mine for energon rather than produce it using alternative sources (like the Decepticons did in G1), it does a heck of a lot of damage to the planet. And you know what else does damage to Earth’s property and environment? The Autobot’s war and often at times their own clumsiness. I recall one episode in RID where the Autobots carelessly destroyed and entire golf course in seconds while duking it out amongst themselves and while this moment got passed off for comedy, I didn’t find it funny. It takes a lot of work to set up a golf course and even more to build a building, make a car and don’t get me started on how many injuries bystanders can endure. It is any wonder Prime’s Agent Fowler didn’t like them? I would be mad to if I gave amnesty to people who showed a lack of gratitude through a lack of respect for my home. Also, since the days of G1, the Autobots have mocked and objectified their prisoners either by taunting them or by taking pictures with them. Moreover, Autobots call Decepticons racist terms like “Con” or “Decepticreep”. I have never seen a Decepticon mock a captive except for Starscream and Megatron chastised him for it calling him childish and saying he shamed himself. Also, I have never ever heard the Decepticons call the Autobots a racist slur. Heck, Autobots including Optimus himself have used the term “Decepticon” as another word for “evil”. I also want to throw out there that Autobots do not take prisoners very often nor do they show a lot of mercy. Yes, Starscream is a sadist and a half, but the other Decepticons will not kick someone when they’re down or kill if they don’t have to. In fact, sometimes, their honour drives them not to. As for Autobots, they are not so nice and sometimes, even the noblest ones (including Optimus himself) have been known to take getting even too far.

They do not allow alt mode autonomy. - If you don’t know what that means, it means you are not allowed to choose an alt mode you want. It has to somehow relate to your job or the Autobot way. I know this is all fiction, but wouldn’t the right to choose which alt mode you want be a form of bodily autonomy? And how does your alt mode relate to your job especially when you can only do your job in robot mode? We see Autobots sneak this lack of letting a bot pick and choose the alt mode they really want even in Rescue Bots. When Blurr and Salvage join the team, he takes them to a hanger full of vehicles that are exclusively trucks or automobiles of some kind. In other words, everything four-wheeler. And even in Rescue Bots Academy, this sneaky tactic of guiding the bot’s hand towards a specific alt mode is still there. The bots play up how much the recruits admire them and almost all of them choose alt modes that are similar to their teachers. In the episode where Hotshot choose a fire truck, if Heatwave was a bigger bot, he would have encouraged Hotshot to stick with the rocket like he wanted to be because there’s a reason he wanted to be that and he already changes into a four wheeler of some kind. I think Autobots only allow dinosaur forms because they have proven to be useful, but if you compare the amount of diversity of alt modes among Autobots to that of Decepticon, it’s a night and day difference. I mean... they allow a warrior Decepticon to change into a CAMERA (REFLECTOR) and no one mocks or judges the guy. Now that I look at it, how many Autobots out there change into things that are not trucks or automobiles? Not many. In fact, even Blades wasn’t originally a flyer. It worries me to think what would have happened if a jet flew by in the air and Blurr requested to change into it as it is fast. Or if either he or Salvage didn’t like any of the trucks or automobiles.

They delete feelings and memories. - This is just creepy and the more I think about it, the more it frightens me. A society that considers amnesia acceptable as way of coping with trauma makes me think this society is very crooked and only looks at short term solutions. Not to mention, the concept of dealing with problems is by forgetting them is also telling. It makes me wonder if they apply this as a treatment for all trauma victims or anyone they consider as a heretic. And by any chance, do they use this as a means of ensuring that a former Decepticon becomes a proper Autobot? Holy cow, this is scaring me... And it’s making me wonder how many Autobots were actually once Decepticons, but even they themselves don’t even know it because their entire identities were deleted?

They don’t allow misfits and freaks. - The most disturbing aspect of all. All Autbots are physically perfect and none are beast types with the exception of the Dinobots who are also deemed openly as the exception. I also don’t notice many handicapped Autobots with the exception of Fixit who became handicapped after his accident. I highly doubt he would have gotten a job if he was handicapped from before and even currently, he is treated like an invalid even though he isn’t. They won’t even allow him to fight or inform him of his fighting capabilities even after discovering that he can hold his own. As for Decepticons, you will see tons who do not fit into some perfect mold or have ailments like having psychological issues or other handicaps, and most importantly, you’ll find diverse beast types. It is not for nothing that a large majority of the misfits of society rebelled against the Autobot way. The Autobot way outcasts the flawed and imperfect.

[writeyouin]

For the Halloween ask how about tfa Megatron finding out his human s/o (is a vampire or witch or Android you pick) how would he react finding that out and would he still love them?

TFA Megatron X Reader – The Witch’s Spell

A/N – I went with witch cos I felt like android wouldn’t have much effect, being similar to him and I think vampires are fairly obvious to notice with the whole sunlight thing and such.

Warnings – None.

Rating – T

“Okay Megatron, I love you… andi’mawitch.”

You sighed, looking at your reflection, evidently too afraid even in your practice run to admit that you were a witch. How would Megatron react? He was a mech of science, not mystic mumbo jumbo. Not that witchcraft could accurately be called that; if it were up to you, you would call it by its proper title, The Arcane Arts.

Whatever you called it didn’t matter. The only thing you cared about was what Megatron would think of you when you told him. Would he even believe you? You supposed you could prove it to him, but at what cost. The few other witches you knew had a strict code of remaining hidden, even from loved ones; it wasn’t so much of a rule as a guideline, to protect oneself from any emotional pain.

You looked at your reflection, which had grown a pale sickly colour in all your anxiousness. You took a steadying breath, though it did little to calm you and you were forced to take another. You silently vowed to tell Megatron the next time you saw him; that would be fine, so long as you didn’t see him for maybe a month or so. You could avoid him for a while, right?

“(Y/N),” Icy-Blitzwing popped his head into your designated cavern. “Megatron wants to see you in his hab-suite.”

He switched to Hothead, “NOT THAT IT’S MY JOB TO CHASE AFTER YOU, PATHETIC HUMAN!”

With that, he stormed out, leaving you feeling worse than before. Naturally, the universe would decide to bully you the second you decided to tell Megatron your secret. Fine, you had made a promise to yourself, and you planned to carry it out.

Megatron stared at you with calculating optics. Upon seeing him, you had accidentally blurted out your secret rather than talking him through it properly. You waited for any kind of reaction that would give away how he was feeling, but you should have known better; Megatron was well-versed in hiding his emotions until the opportune moment when he needed to display them. Understanding his behaviour didn’t help however, as you waited for him to shout, laugh or perhaps lock you up for your madness. Instead, he simply kept on staring at you, thinking his own private thoughts that you were not privy to.

“A witch?” Megatron sounded the word out slowly. He’d been stranded on Earth with that imbecile Professor Sumdac to know about its unusual myths and legends, which meant he didn’t need an explanation.

“Yes,” You said in a wavering voice. “And I can prove it if you need me to, my love.”

Megatron didn’t respond to the pet name, he was far too busy thinking about your rushed declaration. He thought about moments in the past that couldn’t really be explained. Instances wherein you were angry and mirrors would shatter, or times when you knew what a meeting was going to be about before you had been told, as if you had had a premonition of some kind. Too many small moments of the unexplained had gone by for Megatron to refute your claim.

While he had previously thought of witches as superstitious nonsense, he now realised that they were just a new kind of being, using magic in place of the word science. He wondered the extent of your abilities and was already planning a myriad of tests to find out your limitations. This could be the best thing to ever happen to him, having a witch on his team, in a relationship with him that he often used to control you.

However, before he considered using your abilities to his advantage, a question needed to be asked or it would burn vehemently in the back of his processor until he did.

“(Y/N), can you cast spells on others?”

You nodded, hating to admit that you could manipulate others’ free will with a few rhyming words if you so decided to. You had only done it twice on Cybertronians, and that was only on Blitzwing and Lugnut, to make sure they didn’t kill you when you first approached their leader Megatron. You hadn’t known then that you would fall in love with him, having only wanted to talk him out of his war; instead, he had talked you into it, telling you the memories of his past that had sparked the war, making you pity him and hate Cybertron.

Megatron stared at you piercingly, “Have you ever used your powers on me?”

“No,” You answered, your voice shaking with pain that he could ask you such a thing; you knew it was a fair question, but it still hurt to be asked all the same.

Megatron took a few steps to his berth which he rested a servo on, not looking at you. He prided himself on knowing when people were telling the truth; it was how he had got so far leading the Decepticons without being stabbed in the back… Well, unless you counted Starscream, but that little pest had been taken care of at least. That was how he knew you were speaking the truth then.

He knew he should have been coming up with plots of how to use you to defeat those pathetic Autobots, but suddenly your confession had left him reeling, though he wouldn’t let it show behind his mask of composure.

“Leave me now,” Megatron said softly. “I must think on this.”

You inhaled a shallow breath, willing yourself not to cry, and nodded weakly, though he could not see you. Megatron waited till he heard the closing of his hab-suite’s door before leaning heavily onto the berth. He should have been celebrating this new-found knowledge. A witch of his very own, it was perfect. Yet, instead of being happy, Megatron found himself afraid.

He wasn’t scared of you. Rather, he was fearful of himself. The only reason Megatron had recruited you in the first place was because you could go to some places that Cybertronians couldn’t. After that, he found that you were questioning his methods against the Autobots. So, Megatron did the only thing he could to keep you in line and though it disgusted him at the time, he formed a relationship with you. Making you love him was far easier than intended and he used it greatly to his advantage.

Finding out you were a witch only a few clicks ago made perfect sense. You had obviously put him under a spell, or so he thought. But when he asked and you had told him that it wasn’t so, everything that Megatron knew had shattered, causing him to crumble under the cacophony of thoughts that drowned his processor. The question that troubled Megatron so greatly was unanswerable for the moment.

If you hadn’t cast a spell on him, then how had he truly fallen in love with you? He didn’t know, nor did he care to find out at that moment. His only priority was to make sure the other Decepticons never found out. His followers knew that he was merely using you to get what he wanted; if they ever found out that Megatron actually cared for you, the consequences would be catastrophic for you and him.

Megatron closed his optics and sighed. Although there was no spell on him, he knew, now and forever that he was enchanted by you, and nothing had ever scared him more.

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[solar-bean]

A Talk With The Prime Himself

(Reader insert-ish)

I stood by in the entrance of the warehouse, one foot outside the ajar door and my shoulder resting on the other. I heard the calm rhythm of the rain against the forest floor and trees. With each subtle gust of wind, a spray of mist cooled my face. Closing my eyes, I let out a sigh of content. Nothing could ruin this peaceful moment.

" Is there something troubling you?"

Ok you'd think a giant, metal robot breaking the silence would, but his deep, gentle voice did the exact opposite.

I turned slightly and made eye contact with Optimus over my shoulder. It wasn't too hard to find his glowing, blue optics in the dark.

" No. Why do you ask?"

He came a step closer. How he managed to do so with little sound, or sneak up on me to begin with, baffled me.

" You are normally in stasis at this hour. The others, including Ratchet, are deep in slumber if I might add."

I grinned. Of course he checked on everyone before heading to bed. If he ever slept that is. He was always the first one up and usually the last one, besides Ratchet, who was still up working on a datapad late in the night. He never showed any signs of fatigue so maybe he did rest every now and then. That or he was just good at hiding it.

" I just wanted to see the rain is all."

" I see...do you mind if I join you?"

I shrugged.

" Not at all."

We stood and watched the rain with the door fully open. I thought back on the first time Optimus had seen rain. We were on the open road when all of a sudden he'd panicked at the first drop on his windshield. Speeding to the nearest shelter, with the rest of the Autobots in tow, I found myself cluttered under a rock formation with them.

I'd barely gotten the chance to ask what was the matter in the mist of it, so I did once they'd seemed to calm down. Ratchet didn't hesitate to scold me on not mentioning earth's toxic rain. Which of course rose many questions. Optimus took the liberty of answering them, still clutching me to his chassis, as the others stared fearfully at the downpour.

I kindly asked him to put me down, then proceeded to step into the rain despite their protests. Once they all saw that I was indeed not burning alive, one by one they came out of the shelter. We'd probably spent a half an hour playing in the rain. By which I mean Ratchet watched as the others, especially Bumblebee, ran around and jumped in mud puddles. Optimus, however, kept his head titled to the clouds, optics shut. I'd never seen him more at peace.

It was one of my fondest memories of them. Optimus had even kept the cab's heater on so that I wouldn't get sick. Although I could've dealt without paying for all of them to got to the car wash.

After what couldn't have been more than six minutes, the rain came to a slow stop.

" Huh......I thought it would last longer." I whispered.

" I did as well."

Oh right, I keep forgetting how sharp their hearing is. It really doesn't help for those who think out loud a lot.

" Well," I stretched out my back with a groan. " Guess I should head to bed." I began to walk towards my room before pausing to see if he was heading to his. He was still looking out the door.

" Are you staying up?"

He blinked as if coming out of deep thought.

" I was contemplating on watching the stars. The sky seems to be clearing faster than I expected."

" Oh, well don't stay up too late. Can't have our fearless leader falling asleep during his own speech."

His shoulders shook as he let out a small chuckle. It was a sound I rarely heard, which probably added to why it was one of my favorites.

" You have my word. I hope you have a pleasant stasis."

" You too. Goodnight." I only made it ten steps before turning back around. " Actually I have an idea."

----

Optimus strolled through the forest, his peds creating a soft smush sound on the rain-drenched grass, while I sat on his shoulder. I don't when the habit started, but whenever given the chance I'd find myself situated on his shoulder. Sometimes, I did so to chat with him, others was just to have a comfortable place to read or on occasion nap.

Optimus didn't seem to mind at all. He was normally the one to put me up there if I couldn't reach. No one seemed to question our ritual either. A few perplexed glances at first, but that was it. It felt nice though, having the privilege of being this close to him, his presence calming me. The view was nice as well.

We soon arrived at a cliff in one of the clearings. It overlooked the rest of the expansive forest, trees seeming to go on for ages. However, our view was turned upwards.

The stars were brighter than I'd ever seen them. Growing up in the city truly deprived me of such a sight. If only I knew every constellation.

" Are you enjoying the view?" I asked him. He was now sitting on the edge, peds dangling. His posture inclined backwards enough so that I wouldn't slip off of him.

" Immensely." he replied, optics not leaving the sky.

We sat there for several moments in a peaceful silence, besides the occasional cricket. Then I remembered something that I'd been wondering for a while.

" Do you.....like it here on earth?"

" Yes. Why do you ask?"

I looked to the ground.

" It's just that...I can't imagine needing to leave my planet then settling on another and starting over. It just seems so...terrifying."

He hummed in thought. His audiual fins twitching slightly and quite adorably.

" It was a challenge, settling here, but I've come to admire this planet dearly."

I smiled, but it soon turned back into a frown.

" I wish that this war didn't happen."

He turned to me sharply, as if concerned.

" Are you sure that you're alright? First you stay up later than usual and now this."

" I'm fine I just," I groaned and sunk my head into my hands. " I just keep thinking about how better your lives would have been if you weren't at war. I know that my time with you has barely been a fraction compared to long it's been going on, but even to me it's becoming tiresome. You've all gone through so much and you deserve to be happy yet...."

" Yet?" he pressed on.

I sighed.

" Yet everytime I think about the war not happening, I get sad. Your conflict with the Cons is the only reason why you came to earth. So if it never happened then...."

" ...Then we never would have met you." he continued.

" Exactly," I let out a quiet, sorrowful laugh. " Isn't that selfish? Me getting all mopey over you being happy without me."

I could feel my eyes sting with oncoming tears. Come on! Now is not the time to cry. Not in front of Optimus of all people.

" I don't think it's selfish at all."

I was taken aback and made eye contact with him again.

" Really?"

" Of course, in fact, you're one of the most selfless beings I have ever had the honor of meeting. If anything, I'm the one who has been selfish."

" What?! Optimus I think you of all people are incapable of being selfish."

He gave me a small smile. It held a bit of guilt to it.

" You have done everything in your power to help us even though you are merely a bystander in this war. You have put your life on the line countless times for our sake and I have not repaid you in any way. I haven't even been able to protect you properly." his field radiated with regret. I'm still surprised that I can feel it. Not as strongly as a cybertronian would, but there was still a faint feeling when were close. Since that was often, I've learned to distinguish each emotion. Regret, however, was rare, especially directed towards me.

" I won't deny that there have been close calls," I felt a chill go up my spine at the memory of Megatron grabbing me, much harsher than any of the Bots. I had been sure that I'd die then and there in his cold, tight grasp. " But you have repaid me. Countless times actually."

His audial fins perked up.

" I have?"

" Of course you have. Do have any clue how in a funk I was before you guys arrived. I was lonely too but I guess thats on me for living in the woods. But when you showed up, it's like everything was new. By showing you my world I realized just how much I love it. Some people not so much, but the goods ones for sure. Then I was able to further my knowledge, learn about an alien race, make new friends AND fight killer robots,"

I caught my breath which soon turned to short giggle.

" Opty, I'd say you paid me in full before you even owed me. " I still can't believe he lets me call him that.

For a while he just stared at me fondly and I did the same.

" When all of this is over. When everything is safe here on earth....I'm going to take you to Cybertron."

My head whipped to face him although he was still looking at the sky, determination in his optics.

" Really...?" I muttered in disbelief. " You'd...you'd do that? You'd take me there?"

He turned to me and nodded.

" If it's to repay me then you don't need to. It would be too much of a hassle and what would the others think of you bringing an organic? As a Prime no less!"

He stared at me intently before raising his servo and cluthing me gently. It's what he normally did when I was distressed.

" I'm not taking you to my home because I feel that I need to. I'm taking you because I want to. I want you to experience my world as I've experienced yours. And ....to be completely honest...I...."

I gingerly touched his digit to urge him on.

" I don't think I'm quite ready to part ways with you either....For this to be over..."

We both didn't need to ponder on what this was. We never did and probably never will. Whatever it was it was certainly mutual. The Bots knew too. Probably even the Cons.

" I don't think I ever will..." I leaned my head against his faceplate and he nudged back, optics closing in content.

" I can't promise that you'll be accepted. I can't promise that it'll be all that you hoped. And I can't promise that I'll survive to be able to take you....but I promise that I'll try...with all my spark." he whispered with his optics still shut.

I could feel tears welling up in my eyes. I let a few fall.

" You have to promise one more thing. And not as a Prime or even an Autobot. Just as you and only you."

" And what would that be?"

"....that you'll never forget me, no matter what happens."

He chuckled. Almost sadly as if realizing what I meant. That even if he did survive my lifespan would dwarf his. It was inevitable.

" How could I promise such a thing? Primus himself couldn't stop me from forgetting you."

And he didn't.

He never did.

[eddycurrents]

For the week of 18 December 2017

Quick Bits:

Accell #6 concludes Danny’s first confrontation with new villain Midnight Blue and it’s interesting to see him still navigating how to be a hero, in this case ultimately failing. Damion Scott’s art is easily worth the price of admission alone.

| Published by Lion Forge / Catalyst Prime

Angelic #4 really starts getting into the happenings behind the scenes and the truth of what humans did before disappearing from the face of the Earth. It also shows that both the monks and the mans have been perpetuating their own ideologies and systems of belief to retain their own power structures. Not surprising, but like Orwell’s Animal Farm it’s a good way to show us some of our own failings through analogy.

| Published by Image

Assassinistas #1 isn’t exactly what I was expecting, but this is better. For whatever reason, I was expecting madcap female assassin action a la Kill Bill. That element is present, but this is really an interesting, humorous, and heartfelt look at three women who were assassins, who have moved on with their lives to create families and different situations. It’s about what happens after the usual exploitation movie, and it’s wonderful. Tini Howard has created some believable and interesting characters that are perfectly suited to Gilbert Hernandez bringing them to life.

| Published by IDW / Black Crown

Backways #1 is off to a good start. Anna’s girlfriend Sylvia goes missing amidst dabbling with magic and the occult, leading to Anna’s quest to find out what happened to her. Justin Jordan and Eleonora Carlini create some interesting characters and setting here, with some great art by Carlini.

| Published by AfterShock

Betty & Veronica: Vixens #2 gets us into the recruitment phase of the gang. I like the two narratives that Jamie Lee Rotante is providing, one of the current day gang and one of their formation. The art from Eva Cabrera fits this story perfectly.

| Published by Archie Comics

Dark Ark #4 gives us the battle between Nex’s vampires and the rest of the ark. It’s not pretty. The art by Juan Doe, though, is glorious.

| Published by AfterShock

Deadpool vs. Old Man Logan #3 manages to make Wade and Logan feel like an old married couple. It’s hilarious.

| Published by Marvel

Evolution #2 makes me sad that this isn’t weekly or released in huge chunks. The story from James Asmus, Joe Keatinge, Christopher Sebela, and Joshua Williamson is great, with each group of characters having their own unique point of view to give a broader picture of the coming epidemic. But the real star remains Joe Infurnari, whose art just pulls the whole thing together and elevates it to what’s looking like a horror masterpiece.

| Published by Image / Skybound

The Family Trade #3 sends Jessa on the run as the intrigue amongst the Family and the Clans begin to reach a boiling point. Morgan Beem’s art again makes this one of the most unique looking books on the shelves, very well done.

| Published by Image

Hellboy: Krampusnacht is a beautiful one-shot illustrated by Adam Hughes showcasing Hellboy vs. Krampus. It’s a fun take on the folklore, changing it up to more suit Hellboy’s world.

| Published by Dark Horse

Jim Henson’s The Storyteller: Fairies #1 kicks off a new anthology mini series with Matt Smith’s interpretation of the Icelandic fairy tale, “The Elf Queen and the Shepherd”. It’s a good story, with a bit of humour about talkative birds, and Smith’s art is beautiful.

| Published by Boom Entertainment / Archaia

Joe Golem: Occult Detective #4: Flesh & Blood #1 starts off a new two-parter with an interesting mystery of either a haunted house or a possessed woman or possibly both. Although the stories by Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden are good, the main draw for this series for me has been Patric Reynolds’ depictions of the Drowning City. New York City recast as a derelict Venice just has something inherently right about it and Reynolds continuously nails the visuals.

| Published by Dark Horse

Kong on the Planet of the Apes #2 continues to feel like a seamless fusion between the two properties. The artwork from Carlos Magno is wonderful as expected, and I really like how Ryan Ferrier has incorporated some of the tropes of Kong stories, even briefly in the explorer’s notes as narration at the beginning of this issue.

| Published by BOOM! Studios

Made Men #4 makes a bit of a mess of their operation regarding the captain who ordered the hit on Jutte and her squad. There are some great comedy moments again this issue with Hadry continuing to adjust to the changes in society. Month in, month out, Paul Tobin and Arjuna Susini continue to make this one of my favourite books on the shelves.

| Published by Oni Press

Marvel Two-in-One #1 finally gets around to dealing with the aftermath of Secret Wars and the disappearance of Reed and Sue. Chip Zdarsky and Jim Cheung manage to create something mournful and beautiful here.

| Published by Marvel

Optimus Prime #14 closes out the “Dead Come Home” arc with more gorgeous artwork from Livio Ramondelli. It’s also interesting as to how many threads John Barber is weaving from to craft this story. There’s bits from various Spotlight issues, the Dinobots trilogy, the recent Shining Armor mini, the First Strike crossover, and more, yet it never seems confusing or busy.

| Published by IDW

Redlands #5 is probably the darkest issue to date. While it focuses a bit on Bridget’s history, with Zuzu and with darker entities further back in time, it also dives deep into different narratives of abuse, “ownership”, and forced prostitution.

| Published by Image

ROM and the Micronauts #1 spins out of the First Strike crossover, but there’s not much continuity there that isn’t repeated in the first couple of pages. The rest of the book is heavier on the previous ROM series continuity, but it shouldn’t really serve as an impediment. Basically, ROM and the Micronauts team up to take on the combined forces of the Dire Wraiths and Baron Karza, then everything goes to hell. Christos Gage sets up an interesting predicament for the heroes and a compelling reason for them to continue together. Paolo Villanelli again proves adept at just about everything the Hasbroverse can throw at him artistically.

| Published by IDW

Sherlock Frankenstein & The Legion of Evil #3 is a turning point in Lucy’s investigation, as she searches out the Metal Minotaur and uncovers some of the secrets of Sherlock Frankenstein’s villainous meeting. The twist is interesting and should lead to a good final confrontation. The art again from David Rubín is truly amazing.

| Published by Dark Horse

Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #15 begins Aphra’s latest mission for the murder bots. The dialogue for this issue from Si Spurrier is just spot on as it punches up some of the more humorous aspects of the series. Emilio Laiso’s art also gets to shine again, with some of the best depictions of various species throughout the Star Wars universe. 

| Published by Marvel

Summit #1, like Noble and KINO, focuses on one of the astronauts who were sent out to stop the asteroid from crashing into Earth. Ostensibly, Valentina Resnick-Baker was the only one to publicly survive, even though we as readers know at least the fates of David Powell and Alistair Meath, which makes Val’s supposed visions of her crew a little more interesting. Amy Chu and Jan Duursema seem to have one of the more central books here to the comics universe’s central plot, with explicit ties to Foresight and following up on the deliberate murders of scientists who knew the truth about the asteroid, so it’s nice to see the story focus on character more than plot. It’s also really nice to see Duursema’s art again. 

| Published by Lion Forge / Catalyst Prime

Tales of Suspense #100 is a great first issue from Matthew Rosenberg and Travel Foreman. Rosenberg’s Hawkeye is very much in the Fraction vein and his interactions throughout the comic are hilarious.

| Published by Marvel

Transformers: Till All Are One Annual 2017 brings both the series and Mairghread Scott’s tenure to a close. This ties up a few loose ends from the series and from the First Strike crossover, while giving Cybertron a new status quo going forward. This change hasn’t been reflected yet in the other Transformers titles yet, but it should be interesting to see a potentially friendlier and more progressive Cybertron. I am hoping that some of the personal revelations about Starscream will be picked up by either Optimus Prime or Lost Light.

| Published by IDW

Unholy Grail #5 brings the series to a close. In order to do so, it jumps over a few things, and pushes forward the timeline, which to me makes it feel a little rushed compared to previous issues. Still, the entire series has been a bleak reinterpretation of the Arthurian myth and that time shift adds to the feeling of emptiness. Wonderful artwork from Mirko Colak.

| Published by AfterShock

Other Highlights: 30 Days of Night #1, America #10, The Beautiful Death #4, Big Trouble in Little China: Old Man Jack #4, Centipede #5, Champions #15, Curse Words Holiday Special, Dark Fang #2, Defenders #8, Doctor Strange 383, Generation X #85, Genius: Cartel #5, Guardians of the Galaxy #149, The Harcourt Legacy #2, The Hard Place #5, Head Lopper #8, Horizon #17, Incredible Hulk #711, Lazaretto #4, Luke Cage #168, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #22, Mighty Thor #702, Monsters Unleashed #9, Ms. Marvel #25, Ninja-K #2, Old Man Logan #32, Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man #298, Quantum & Woody! #1, The Realm #4, Rockstars #8, The Shadow #5, Spider-Gwen #27, Star Wars: Poe Dameron #22, TMNT Universe #17, Tomb Raider: Survivor’s Crusade #2, Uncanny Avengers #30, Unholy Grail #5, Vampirella #9, Venom #159, Wormwood: Gentleman Corpse Christmas Special, X-Men: Grand Design #1

Recommended Collections: All New Guardians of the Galaxy - Volume 2: Riders in the Sky, Black Hammer - Volume 2: The Event, Cosmic Scoundrels, Deadly Class - Volume 6, Grrl Scouts: Magic Socks, Hawkeye - Volume 2: Masks, Hillbilly - Volume 2, Monsters Unleashed, Secret Weapons, Superb - Volume 1: Life After the Fallout, The Unbelievable Gwenpool - Volume 4: Beyond the Fourth Wall

d. emerson eddy is going to collapse and go to sleep now.

[renaroo]

Lost but Not Lonesome

Disclaimer: Transformers, Beast Wars, and related properties belong to Hasbro Warnings: Canon-typical language and violence, References to autism and ableism Rating: T Pairing: AirazorxTransmutate Prompt: ( @vo-kopen ) Just for the sake of asking, and feel free to reject this, but maybe a sequel to the Beast Wars stories I commissioned, taking place in a version of Beast Machines? Prompt - Tigatron is still missing along with Rampage's Spark and other members of the team, and Airazor has been trying to distract herself from mourning by teaching Trans-Mutate Chirolingual (Cybertron sign language by hand holding) During a session Trans-Mutate signs a very intimate phrase, and Airazor is unsure of how she feels.

A/N: Thank you for such an interesting prompt! 

For those unfamiliar, I have written two fics for this same series based in a Beast Wars AU already that developed a what-if for Airazor and Transmutate’s friendship in an alternate canon. So I’m going to build somewhat off of those for this fill. 

Returning home was not supposed to mean such sparkbreak. 

There was a part of Airazor, a bitter part down to her core, that was beginning to wonder what she and the others had done over the years to deserve their constant misfortune. To deserve every hitch in their path.

What she did to deserve losing her sparkmate.

Of course, it was unfair that she viewed it all with such limited vision. Improper, really, considering that her vision had always been her most pointed gift. But at the end of the day, it was difficult for her to see past the veneer of mourning she had veiling her. 

Never before would Airazor have believed that seeing Silverbolt and Blackarachnia could fill her frame with such jealousy. 

Why did they get to survive together, where she still did not know where her dearest Tigatron ended up? 

She had done something truly unfair that her spark was being eternally punished for, she was sure of it. 

Curled up into herself, still getting used to the transmetal body she had been molded into after their crash landing, Airazor was left to her usual queries. Where was Tigatron? Was his spark still beating? Was he where the other missing Maximals were? Was he missing her with the same amount of pain in his spark she felt? 

Would he still love her despite her feathers and softness being transformed to be more machine than beast? He had felt so strongly about the importance of Beastmodes and nature. 

Could he still see beauty in the way she was now?

Curling into herself tighter on her perch, Airazor hid her all-seeing optics into her knees and cycled them off tiredly. 

Her depression and anguish were beyond exhausting. 

But before she could fully get her rest, she heard the loud ad familiar approach of Optimus Primal. 

While she considered feigning recharge, Airazor knew that the only instinct in her that was still honed pointedly beyond longing for her spark-of-sparks, was her duties as a Maximal soldier. She looked up, optics cycling back on before she slowly got to her feet in her leader’s presence. 

“Hello, Sir,” she said with true lackluster. “Is there something you need me to do?” 

She hoped he would see her exhaustion and anguish and leave her be, leave her to mourn more. 

But again, Airazor proved to be eternally cursed.

"I know things are difficult for the Maximals right now,” he understated. “No more so than for you, I’m sure.”

Airazor lowered her head and squeezed her eyes closed. By the Pits, she loved Optimus like a father but he was increasingly bad at making her feel better in these most dire situations.

“But Transmutate is... crying,” Primal continued, and by the hesitation he gave and the expression he wore on his face, Airazor knew that he was not meaning any normal cry or anguish but the reverberating, dangerous sonics which Transmutate was capable of producing. “And the rest of our abilities to communicate with her are proving... woefully ineffective.”

Scowling slightly, Airazor looked meaningfully toward Optimus. “None of you have effectively communicated to Transmutate. None of you other than Silvebolt an myself have gotten to an understanding with her.”

He did not back down from her rebukes, accepting them all and standing his ground. Airazor found herself marveling at the mech she already respected so much. 

“You are right,” he said. “And that has been a mistake, a mistake that was excused repeatedly by myself and others as a less important issue to be addressed at later times that never came. We did not see the value of the effort and time which you and Silverbolt have managed.”

It was certainly a comment that took Airazor a moment to fully process. She lowered her head, somewhat bashfully. “That means a lot, Sir. Thank you.”

“I’m glad it does,” he explained. “Because I want you to take things to the next level and try to expand Transmutate’s capacity for communicating with the rest of our team -- her team. There are too few of us left now for us to not work to use what is best for each and every one of us.”

Confused, Airazor folded her arms. “I agree that it sounds like a good idea, sir, but... I’m curious about where exactly we are supposed to get there. Transmutate still has trouble communicating a lot of her feelings, and she’s very... kinetic in addressing people she’s comfortable with.” Subconsciously, Airazor reached for her wings, feeling the transmetal sleekness rather than the soft billows of feathers she loved. “She associates feathers with safety... acceptance. Love. And, unfortunately, on top of everything else we’ve lost, Silverbolt and I have lost the ability to give her that small comfort.”

Optimus Primal looked almost disappointed in her. “It’s not like you to give up so easily, Airazor.”

Airazor hugged herself. “Guess it was more than my feathers that changed after all of this, Big Bot,” she replied sadly. 

“All the same, you’re my mech for the job,” he assured her. “You’ve proven your relationship with Transmutate, you’ve proven your patience, and most importantly, you were the one that discovered that she prefers kinetic interactions.”

“Yes?” Airazor asked, tilting her helm. 

“So I think the logical step is for us all to facilitate her preference,” Optimus explained. “You should give her lessons in Chirolinguistics.”

At first, Airazor was just processing the suggestion, then her optics widened. “That’s... genius, Optimus! You’e wonderful for coming up with that! Thank you!”

“I probably would have been able to think of it sooner if I had been listening to you from the beginning, Airazor,” Optimus said humbly. “I trust you to take care of this.”

“Sir, yessir,” Airazor answered with a salute.

Chirolinguistics as at least as old, if not older, than spoken Cybertonian. It was meant to surpass dialects, class, and rankings. 

A language of intimacy, between friends and colleagues and more -- it was a language that was perfect for Transmutate. 

Transmutate, much like the rest of them, had received unexpected augmentation and upgrades when they transitioned from hyperspace and eventually crashed and lost much of their crew. Her body was more complete than it had been on the ancient earth, more coherent in its connections, though whether or not she had altmode this time around was still questionable.

Fortunately, she had much more dextrous hands than she had had while they had been on earth, and that was making the chirolinguistics lessons move along much better. 

“That’s right,” Airazor said warmly as Transmutate answered a question that had been asked in chirolinguistics. “You’re doing so well, Transmutate! Honestly I’m horrified we never considered this approach with you before.” She paused, a frown tugging at her face. “Well, I’m horrified that I never considered trying other ways to communicate with you before. I suppose I was... I was almost satisfied that you could talk to me, and I hadn’t made enough considerations for how you or the rest of the team were supposed to talk together.” She looked up sorrowfully at her friend. “I hope you can forgive me for being so shortsighted. I won’t let it happen again.”

In response, Transmutate smiled and ran a finger across Airazor’s knuckles. It was untranslatable to spoken language, but Airazor recognized it for its warmth and generosity. 

Forgiveness. 

“Alright then,” Airazor said, with a small, breathless laugh. “Let’s move on to the next lesson, alright? Now, this is a greeting -- the shorter it is the less intimate it is. A lot like most conversations in chirolinguistics. Dragging sensation and touch is a sign of familiarity, friendship. And the slower it is, the more you mean to convey the importance of the relationship to you.” She then made a quick few pecks of her fingers, fast and rapid, enough that it alarmed Transmutate and she pulled away. “Sorry, I was just hoping to show you what it feels like to go too fast -- that’s rude.”

Nodding in agreement, Transmutate looked far from pleased. “Rude,” she echoed. 

“For someone you think of as a deep, close friend, you use much longer strokes,” Airazor explained. “Like you and I, we’re each other’s best friends. We’re all each other has.” The entire time she was speaking, Airazor traced into Transmutate’s palms, running against the crevices, dragging into the curves and circling around her servos. “There are few people you would spend that much time speaking with, but I definitely think you and I qualify.”

“Oh,” Transmutate answered. She repeated the pattern but at first her movement was so slow, Airazor believed her to be hesitating. Transmutate drug her fingers, pressing deep and meaningfully into each stroke against Airazor’s palm. 

It was long, sensual, and by the end, the words took on a different meaning than what Airazor had written into Transmutate’s  palms. 

They were a confession, and Airazor felt her faceplate heat up. 

“T-Transmutate,” she said, flustered. When the other looked at her in slight concern, Airazor assured herself it was an error. That Transmutate’s speed was simply out of slowness to catch on. “It’s... I think you should practice that again.”

A knowing smile curved onto Transmutate’s face and she started to trace the words into Airazor’s palms once more. 

Somehow, Transmutate found a way to go slower. Airazor closed her eyes and allowed her breathing to match the sensual drag and drop of Transmutate’s words. She felt nothing but the chirolinguistics against her hands, slow and budding with tension. 

Before the final words could be spelled out, Airazor stopped Transmutate breathlessly, lacing their fingers together and squeezing Transmutate’s hands back. 

Her wings flailed behind her, fanning air her way as Airazor tilted her head forward, only for her forehead to be met with Transmutate’s. 

Airazor was so surprised, so speechless. 

Shaking her head, Airazor tried to look into Transmutate’s eyes but she couldn’t bring herself to part their foreheads. “Do you know what you meant when you did that?” she asked softly. 

Slowly, Transmutate spelled out yes into Airazor’s palms. 

Since losing Tigatron, since losing herself, Airazor had forgotten what it felt like to have such openly spoken love shown her way. She didn’t know how to feel, only how to spell it back into Transmutate’s hands.

They had loved and truly lost, but together, Airazor felt for the first time in her broken spark, they could maybe love again. 

[spryfilm]

“Transformers: The Last Knight” (2017)

Sci-Fi/Action

Running Time: 149 minutes

Written by: Art Marcum, Matt Holloway and Ken Nolan

Directed by: Michael Bay

Featuring: Mark Wahlberg, Stanley Tucci, Josh Duhamel, Anthony Hopkins and John Turturro

Sir Edmund Burton: “It started as a legend, one of the greatest of all… For a thousand years, we’ve kept it hidden, to protect Earth from what is expected to arrive…”

One thing about Michael Bay’s ‘Transformers” movies is that every single one of them boast an ‘A’ list cast, it seems that there is an endless queue of actors just waiting to be in this now five picture series. In “Transformers: The Last Knight” (2017) the latest big name actor to appear is the great Anthony Hopkins who chews scenery like the pro you would expect him to be – it is easy to see he knows exactly what kind of film this is – even if other members of the cast seem a little lost within this franchise. The question is now, after all these films that seem to be eerily similar, can there be anything more to see and experience from a new movie?  Is there a plot that can convince people to pony up the bills to not only go and see this movie but to take the family as well? The simple answer is that this is a hot mess with little real point to exist other than to try and buy Paramount a much needed hit as they struggle to make any money this year.

I am not a Michael Bay hater at all, in fact I probably like most of his movies, he is unashamedly a male movie director, caring little for anything else other than testosterone to be made physical onscreen. I truly believe he loves movies, the problems is he is making movies only he wants to see. Bay has the clout to pretty much do anything he wants, yet he has continually returned to this ‘Transformers’ Universe, even though with each movie he says it will be his very last – something he had echoed to the days leading up to this movies theatrical release.But why wouldn’t he return, the last four ‘Transformer’ movies have generated almost US$4 billion at the international box office – surely one of the biggest franchises in film history. These movies gave Shia LaBeouf, Josh Duhamel, Megan Fox, Tyrese Gibson careers, as well as solidifying Mark Wahlberg as a box office giant (although this last film may damage that repuataion). They also created great over the top roles for character actors John Turturro, Jon Voight, Stanley Tucci, TJ Miller and Kelsey Grammer to name a few.

There is much to like with these movies, of course there is much to dismiss – one of these is the bloated running times, another is the action which at times can be hard to follow – something that harkens back to the first film and continues through to this fifth one.

This new Transformers movie is concerned with the absence of Optimus Prime and the war that has commenced between the Transformers Reaction Force (humans) and the Transformers. To save their world, Cade Yeager (Mark Wahlberg) forms an alliance with Bumblebee, an astronomer named Sir Edmond Burton (Anthony Hopkins), and an Oxford University professor named Viviane Wembley (Laura Haddock) to learn the secrets of why the Transformers keep coming back to Earth.

I am not going to get into plot details but needless to say Bay and his new team of screenwriters have attempted to keep the plot simple (as much as they can), however I did feel myself start to get a little confused at one point with the myriad of characters as well as their motivations. There is a lot to the story that seems to contradict itself particularly in the last thirty to forty minutes. In terms of that if you are willing to let these elements go then you will be able to cope, however if plot is important to you then you probably shouldn’t be watching this movie. At some points it almost seems like Bay has too much power of the studio, Paramount, a studio that seems lost amongst its peers and competitors.

There are a few reasons why I actually enjoy these movies; I am talking specifically about the Transformer films here, not overblown expensive and non-sensical blockbusters as a rule. I really like Optimus Prime as a characters, as well as a hero, he leads a seemingly endless, while small number of characters, the highlight of them is always Bumblebee. Prime’s home, Cybertron, has been left broken (there have been a few reasons given) as a refugee from space he is really trying to fit in and do his best for his people among humans. The action and special effects are almost always excellent, although the way in which they have been directed have been uneven over the entire run of these movies, a problem that is getting solved a little better with this film especially. I found it was much easier to follow what was happening onscreen, this could have something to do with a lot more wider shots being incorporated by Bay and his special effects team. The other thing that I enjoy is that whilst they attempt to be broad in scope as well as onscreen, they are nothing more than the original cartoon version’s brought to life at cinemas, they are escapist where there is a good guy as well as a bad guy, one will win, one will lose. Of course Bay overly complicates this by having multiple good and bad guys with different (not really) motivations but in the end it is always sorted out – the good guys win and vanquish the baddies. Of course the issue always is where to go to next, Bay has an answer, as does his new cadre of writers – or so they would have us believe – but i saw nothing here that was really new enough to justify the running time let alone another movie but as long as audiences keep turning up at the cinemas, the will keep churning them out.

After saying all that there are still issues with the movies, it mostly for me boils down to plot as well as narrative choices that are made – as well as characters that are introduced, then dumped for no reason. There is also the issue of choices that are made that seem to contradict motivations that have been set up either in the current story or previous films. More troubling, particularly with this current installment is the fact that the finale is not one, as we are given a pre-ending credits sequence that vainly attempts to set up another film, making me feel like I just sat through two and a half hours for nothing more than reinstating Prime’s home, Cybertron, as a macguffin for the number six.

As I have said there are any number of good actors that appear in these movies, the reason to have them is that they are the ones bringing the story to life, in this case the three standouts are Mark Wahlberg, Laura Haddock and the great Anthony Hopkins. These three main characters, when together onscreen, or just interacting with each other, really made this movie fun for me – even when the plot was way out of control or over the top. Wahlberg has turned into such a star that it is easy to forget he has made some pretty terrific films, just over the last year he has appeared in two legitimately great under seen films in “Patriots Day” (2016) as well as “Deepwater Horizon” (2016), both directed by Peter Berg. Here he carries a movie that could have dreadful but is saved by his expert ability to incorporate not only massive amounts of green screen acting but also bringing in two other actors to let them showcase their own skill. The highlight for me was Anthony Hopkins, brilliantly playing his age, acting against at times, green screens, other actors, a phone as well as giving great reaction shots – my favorite is him flipping people off during a high speed chase. Laura Haddock who almost plays like a Megan Fox lookalike comes into her own towards the end of the film, she could have been just another Bay babe, but has the chops to know what film she is in, and unlike previous versions of her character has much more experience in film to be treated too badly – I mean she seems to be playing her age – 31 – and has multiple degrees – so I think that is a step up from previous versions of this character.

Another thing that Bay has seemed to want to do is make some narrative sense out of the previous films, by not only upping the reason why Sam (Shia LeBeouf) was so important in the first three films – it involves his heritage and the great Witwicky name, but also bringing back John Turturro as some kind of Transformer legend expert – although he spends the entire film on a phone from Cuba – which was a little jarring – the entirety of this sub-sub-plot could have been removed easily with no harm to the plot – yes I used the word plot.

This is primarily an action movie with a sci-fi twist as well additions of humour, that is it – it is not a drama or a war film (although I think Bay may have grander things in mind). The best action films always move forward in terms of narrative, plot as well as the action itself – if it doesn’t do this it fails. One of the best action/sci-fi films that did this was James Cameron’s “Terminator” (1984), it was exposition heavy but when something was explained to the audience there were action set pieces taking place so we felt like it was perfectly natural – by the way it always lowers the running time of the movie, something Bay could take lessons from. What we have with these Transformer movies is action then explanation then more action – not only that it seems the action has nothing to do with the story, even with the massive ending, there are major holes of logic where the goal of the movie just keeps changing to encompass these huge CGI scenes, of really, after a while, is of  little interest.

It’s a real shame to see how this movie turns out; I thought there was going to be more meat on the bones, especially with Mark Wahlberg and Stanley Tucci returning to the movie – it seemed there was going to be a logical progression from number four, but this is put to rest in the opening scenes of Camelot (oh dear), with a particularly nasty bait and switch with Tucci, then an exposition heavy catch up on where we are in terms of the Transformers – by then I was more than a little confused as well as let down. The other element I disliked, which added to the confusion was the arbitrary way characters enter the story, disappear completely, then reappear, again for no real good reason. My feeling was that this was not a completed script with the special effects being planned before anything else – to me it feels like an Ed Wood film with hundreds of millions of dollars thrown at it. Look I have no problem knowing that people will go to this movie, but the question remains will enough people go to make a sequel worthwhile – who knows? There is some kind of Bumblebee movie planned for next year, but at this stage it may be too little too late for that character to have any impact on this behemoth of a franchise.

After all that I would actually say that this is an action movie that is PG, so all the family can enjoy it for what it is – a truly forgettable popcorn movie – it lacks the heart of Marvel films but also eschews the darkness of those terrible DC movies as well. It is more concerned with wowing an audience with CGI characters that are mostly fun but lack depth. This is the perfect example of a post-modern action film, there is nothing new to be added to a shallow legend, it has all been done before, but maybe thats the comfort of the Transformer movies. When I was a child I would have loved these movies, after all that is who they are aimed at. I would not bother buying this movie, maybe if it is streaming it might be worth a watch, but at a bloated running time I would not be hanging out for it – I for one will not be watching this again!

“Transformers: The Last Knight” is out now on DVD & Blu-ray.

DVD & Blu-ray review: “Transformers: The Last Knight” (2017) “Transformers: The Last Knight" (2017) Sci-Fi/Action Running Time: 149 minutes Written by: Art Marcum, Matt Holloway and Ken Nolan…

[mealstromknight96]

Transformers Prime: Iron Man Chapter 4

The next day as Jack was leaving work, he noticed that Arcee was parked in the exact same place he had met her for the first time. Walking over, he wondered why she was here. Maybe to keep an eye on him? Who knows?

“Arcee really, Miko already tried last night. Tell Optimus that I respect him, but if you’re fighting a war with the Decepticons, then I want no part of it.” He said.

“Optimus didn’t send me Jack.” Arcee replied. Sighing she continued on. “Maybe it’s the grief talking, but I just lost someone I cared about. Maybe you’ve grown on me. But whatever it is, I’m not ready to lose another partner.”

"I truly am sorry for your loss Arcee, but…..I just don’t think I can join in on your war.” Jack said as he turned away from Arcee and looked at the KO Burger sign.

“I understand Jack. And goodbye.” Arcee said before she activated her holoform and drove off.

Sighing, Jack turned to watch Arcee speed off, before he went to unlock his bike and head back to his workshop. Peddling his way to his workshop, Jack kept going back to what Miko had said about him last night, about him being a hero, about being born to do more. The more he thought about it, the more he thought about what his father had told him when he was six years old.

Flashback

Jack opened the front door as he returned from school and saw his mother preparing dinner, while his father was watching the TV.

“Welcome home Jack. How was – JACK!!” His mother cried out as she saw the state that her son was in.

Getting off from the couch, Aaron Darby quickly made his way to Jack and knelt down in front of him while June went for the medical kit. Taking a closer look at Jack, Aaron saw that he had a busted lip and a few bruises on his face. Taking his bag away from him, Aaron carried Jack to the couch where June was waiting for them.

Setting Jack down and letting his wife help heal their son, Aaron sat down on the nearby chair and covered his face in his hand and sighed. Once June was done, Aaron looked at Jack, who was covering his face by curling into a ball, trying to be as small as possible.

“Jack.” Aaron spoke up. “Jack look at me and tell me what happened.”

Jack looked up at his father but kept silent. Sighing, Aaron got off his chair and knelt in front of his son. “Jack, please I need to know what happened to you. You’re not going to be in trouble.”

Sighing, Jack kept silent until he decided to speak up. “It was Vince and his friends, they were bullying one of my classmates after school. I told them to leave him alone, but they simply laughed at me. When I didn’t they - .” at that Jack clammed shut.

“They what Jack? What did they do to you?” Aaron asked.

“They beat me up. After they were done they left. When I tried to help my classmate, he yelled at me for helping him. He told me that he didn’t ask for my help and that I should just stay away from him.” Jack explained. “Was he right dad? Did I do the right thing helping him? Even if he didn’t ask for it.”

Looking at his son, Aaron smiled at him and sat next to his son on the couch. “Listen to me Jack. What you did was indeed the right thing. I want you to remember what I’m about to tell you ok. Can you do that?” he asked. Getting a nod from Jack, Aaron continued. “Doing what is right sometimes doesn’t always reward you with a thank you. What you did was heroic, Jack. Even if you don’t believe it yourself. I believe there’s a hero in all of us. That keeps us honest. Gives us strength. Makes us noble. And finally allow us to die with pride. Even though we have to be steady and give up the thing we want the most….even our dreams.”

“So doing what is right, makes us a hero?” Jack asked.

“Exactly Jack.” Aaron praised. “You know those comics you read? The one’s with the superheroes.” He asked getting a nod from Jack. “You know how they don’t always get praised for their deed? Have you ever wondered why they continue to be heroes?” Jack shook his head. “Well it’s simply because they can do so. If you have the ability to help someone, then you should. No matter the outcome, good or bad, you can look in the mirror and say that you did good helping someone.”

Flashback

Opening the door to his workshop and turning on the lights. Jack made his way to his work table and sat down.

“J.A.R.V.I.S, what are the Autobots doing?” he asked his AI

“They are currently at the Space Bridge, above Earth’s atmosphere.” J.A.R.V.I.S answered. “They hope to stop Megatron from bringing an army of undead Cybertronions to Earth, sir.”

“Right then, do you have a fix on their location?” Jack asked.

“Yes sir.” J.A.R.V.I.S answered back. “Time to suit up J.A.R.V.I.S, get me the War Machine armour.” Jack said as he went to change into his full bodysuit.

Once he was ready, Jack stepped onto the platform where the War Machine armour was waiting. It was mostly black coloured with gunmetal grey at certain areas such as the midriff and legs. It had a large machine gun attached to its back, two miniguns hidden in his arms and several missiles hidden beneath the exoskeleton. The suit was built to take a lot of punishment, as well as dish it out. The suit opened up from behind and closed around Jack when he stepped inside.

“J.A.R.V.I.S open a Ground Bridge to the Autobot Base. Once I’m in I need you to shut it off then open it again to the same coordinates Optimus and the others are in.” Jack instructed.

The green vortex appeared in front of him. Stepping into it, Jack realised that Ratchet was the only one in the base, and was staring at him. As Ratchet turned was about to shut the Ground Bride down. It suddenly shut down by itself and then turned back on. Hovering, Jack shot forward through the bridge and was transported immediately in front of the Space Bridge.

“J.A.R.V.I.S patch me into the comms with Optimus and the others.” Jack instructed as he made his way closer.

“Already done sir.” J.A.R.V.I.S replied.

“Optimus, can you hear me. If you can, know that the cavalry is here.” Jack spoke out.

There was nothing before the familiar baritone voice of Optimus Prime answered. “I hear you Jack. But I must ask that you leave quickly. You are no match for Megatron or his army.”

“No can do Optimus. I came here to help and that’s what I’m going to do.” Jack replied before he shot forward towards a squadron of Decepticons flier’s ad turned into scrap by firing his machine gun at their engines.

Continuing his flying, Jack continued to take out the Decepticon fliers till none came anymore. Suddenly there was a bright flash of light as the Space Bridge activated. Seeing Megatron rise from within the warship, holding a large purple crystal and then throwing it at the Space Bridge. Jack quickly sped forward, firing his missiles as well as his minigun to hopefully destroy it before it reached the Space Bridge. The missiles hit the crystal formation and caused a large chunk to break off, but not enough to stop it as the formation went through Space Bridge.

“So….how do we defeat a whole planet of the undead?” Jack heard Bulkhead ask through the comms.

“Optimus, I’m reading a rapidly increasing mass in their Space Bridge vortex. One with a peculiar Energon signature. Ratchet stated.

“Dark Energon.” Optimus answered. “Ratchet, we must destroy the Space Brigde. There is enough live Energon coursing through it to cause to achieve detonation. But we lack the firepower to do so.”

“If I had a technical readout of the Space Bridge, I could help you achieve such a feat. But Optimus, I must say that the Space Bridge is our only way back to Cybertron. Are you sure this is what you want?” Ratchet asked.

“I am afraid so, old friend.” Optimus answered.

“Then by all means, let us light our darkest hour!” Ratchet cried out.

“Autobots, take your positions and follow Ratchet’s lead.” Optimus ordered. “While I deal with Megatron.”

“You mean we deal with Megatron.” Jack stated as he flew up next to Optimus. “And I’m not taking a no for an answer Optimus.”

Before he could reply, Megatron landed in front of them. “Your fellow Autobots are wise Optimus, they know when to retreat.” He stated, only to notice Jack. “And who is this? A minicon?”

“I have no illusions of engaging your army Megatron. Bit I might derail its objective, by removing its head.” Optimus said as he transformed his arm into a sword.

Megatron simply laughed. “Highly unlikely Optimus, as I am infused with their very MIGHT!”

Optimus simply narrowed his optics. “One shall stand. One shall fall.”

As if some unspoken signal was given, Megatron unsheathed his sword, gave a war cry and ran towards Optimus, as he did the same to Megatron. Meeting in the middle, they clashed their swords together, parrying and dodging each other’s strike, until Optimus landed a punch to Megatron’s head. Seeing his chance, Jack quickly shot forward from the side and punched Megatrons head, causing the warlord to stumble. Thrusting his hands forward, Jack fired off beams from his repulsors as well as firing his shoulder missiles. Megatron was thrown back from the impact the missiles had, but not before firing three shots at him, to which he avoided them all.

“Sir, I highly suggest that you do not get hit by those shots.” J.A.R.V.I.S called out to Jack. “They contain Dark Energon. If you get hit by them, your suit would shut down, sir.”

“Duly noted J.A.R.V.I.S.” Jack replied.

Seeing Optimus was lying on the ground, with Megatron standing above him about to kill him, Jack shot forward. “J.A.R.V.I.S, put everything we have into the thrusters.”

“I just did sir.” J.A.R.V.I.S replied.

Flying as fast he could, Jack fired off his repulsors at Megatron to keep him busy while Optimus recovered. Landing a little ways away from Megatron, Jack activated every weapon he had and aimed it at him. Growling Megatron ran forward hoping to squish what he thought was a minicon. Hoping that he could slow him down, Jack fired everything at Megatron. Missiles blew up upon impact, bullets bounced off his armour, like hard pellets and his repulsor blasts slowed Megatron even more. Flying towards Megatron, Jack proceeded to deliver a beat down on Megatron, and due to his small size, Megatron had a hard time catching him.

Ultimately his luck had to have run out at some point, and that came when Megatron swatted him away with his arm, causing him to fall to the ground. Struggling to get up, he was suddenly picked up and thrown towards Optimus.

“Power at forty-two percent, sir.” J.A.R.V.I.S stated.

Looking up, Optimus and Jack saw Megatron raise his sword before something seemed to have stopped him. Whatever seemed to have stopped him, caused him to look at them amused. “Ah, misdirection. You would have made a fine Decepticon, Prime.”

Megatron swung his sword down, only for it to be stopped by Optimus’ own broken one. “I chose my side.” He said before changing his sword to that of a gun and fired.

Flying back Megatron quickly evaded the rest and transformed into his vehicle form and flew off. Jack quickly took off after him. As Megatron flew to where Arcee, Bulkhead and Bumblebee were, Jack fired at his machine gun at his engines. When one of the bullets hit inside Megatron’s engine, it caused him to lose control and transform back into robot form. Shooting forward, Jack continued to fire his weapons at Megatron. So focused was he at firing at Megatron, he did not realise that the Decepticon returned fire at him until he was thrown back from the blast.

The blast was a lot stronger than when the Decepticon drone fired at him yesterday. Jack was thrown back even further when Megatron continued to fire at him, most of the shots missing, but those that managed to hit made it harder for him to regain control of his suit.

“Power at twenty percent and dropping fast. I suggest a retreat, sir. Also the Space Bridge is about to explode” J.A.R.V.I.S said.

“Autobots, jump!” Optimus ordered as the Ground Bridge opened

“J.A.R.V.I.S reroute whatever power we have left to the unibeam and fire.” Jack ordered. Charging up his unibeam.

Once the chare as complete, Jack fired it straight at Megatron, who returned fire by shooting two shots at Jack, both of which impacted him on the chest and sending blasting into the Ground Bridge.

“Is he okay, Ratchet?”

“What happened Prime?”

“And what of Megatron?”

“Come back to us Jack, please.”

These were some of the things Jack heard as he slipped in and out of unconsciousness. But it was the last one that caused him to wake up from his lack of consciousness. Getting up, the first thing Jack saw was the Autobots, Miko, Raf and Agent Fowler all listen to Optimus. Knowing that none of them noticed him, he got up and staggered towards the ‘bots. When they heard footsteps behind them, they turned to see Jack stagger towards them before stopping in front of them.

“Hey everyone.” He greeted as he raised his visor.

“Hello Jack, are you well?” Optimus asked smiling down at him.

“I’ll live Optimus. What about you and the others?” Jack asked as he looked at the scraps and dents they had.

“We are fine Jack. Thank you for your assistance in dealing with Megatron and his forces.” Optimus answered.

“If it’s all the same Optimus, I would like to join you guys. That is if you guys will have me.” Jack asked.

Optimus nodded and smiled at him. “You are always welcome here Jack.”

Nodding Jack turned to look at Raf, Fowler and Miko. He stepped forward and got out of his armour, before standing in front of them. He was suddenly hugged by Raf and Miko, smiling he hugged back.

“You came back.” Raf stated with the biggest smile Jack had ever seen.

“You bet Raf.” Jack assured him.

“Well done son, you’ve done your country and your race proud.” Fowler praised as he put a hand on his shoulder. “I’ll make sure you’re properly rewarded for this.”

Turning to Miko, Jack simply smiled at her. “Thank you Miko.” Confused Miko gestured for him to continue. “For what you said last night. About me being born to do more and for believing in me.” He finished before he kissed her on the cheek.

As the Autobots discussed about what would happen now that Megatron was gone and Starscream was in charge of the Decepticon. Jack knew that whatever was going to happen, he knew that they would not be alone in their fight with the Decepticons.

Because he is Iron Man.