COUNTDOWN: 10 noteworthy moments from Skybound’s Transformers #12 – The Source Report

COUNTDOWN: 10 noteworthy moments from Skybound’s Transformers #12

It’s official – we’ve made it to the end of the first year of Skybound’s epic Transformers comic and the conclusion of the second story arc!

It’s hard to believe how quickly we’re ploughing through the book, but as ever, there was plenty to say about it this month. So, let’s dive right in and see what was going on!

WARNING! MAJOR SPOILERS ahead for Transformers so far!

#10: Autobots vs Decepticons

This issue begins hot on the heels of the last cliffhanger as the Autobots are severely outnumbered and outgunned after Ultra Magnus’ impromptu retreat! With Devastator fully merged for the kill and the other Decepticons assembling all around, things look dire for our heroes as they struggle to get any traction in battle. Fortunately for us, it’s nothing but gorgeous art all the way, as Jorge Corona brings his a-game to pencil duty, assisted ably by the outrageously vivid colours of Mike Spicer! This whole sequence gave me major Generation 2 vibes as the visuals had a Derek Yaniger style in certain places, particularly the blocky, sketchily realised depictions of the bots themselves. Terrific.

#9: Carly strikes!

It’s not long before we get the first of this issue’s twists and turns as Carly, watching events unfold on the Ark’s viewscreen, revs up her van and careens through the portal in an attempt to save Cliffjumper! It’s a rabble-rousing entrance that proves the human can handle herself on the battlefield, as she momentarily takes down Soundwave and Shockwave in the process. It gives her and Cliff a brief moment of respite as Carly apologises to her Autobot friend after they’ve been at loggerheads since the events of #6. However, this reunion is sadly short-lived, to say the least…

#8: Devastation

No sooner has Cliffjumper been saved than he’s in trouble again, as Devastator does what he does best and crushes the van! Fortunately, the Autobot manages to rescue Carly in the nick of time, as the giant Decepticon proceeds to kick it – and Cliff – into the air, sending it hurtling towards the Spacebridge and tumbling through onto Cybertron. It’s a surprise for the Combaticons laying in wait on the other side, but it also puts our little red hero back in jeopardy as he essentially becomes a comatose McGuffin for the rest of the issue.

In terms of the art, it’s intriguing to see Corona’s style evolve to match that of Daniel Warren Johnson’s in several places, most notably in the panels of Devastator kicking Cliffjumper. The exaggerated proportions and use of deformed body parts to indicate movement are so familiar that for a moment there, it felt as if this series’ original artist had returned!

#7: The Autobots strike back

Though one might imagine that Devastator’s presence in this fight would be a death knell for the Autobots, it seems they’re not all discouraged by Magnus’ retreat, or perhaps at least inspired by Carly’s bravery! They quickly work on bringing down the green meanie, with Elita-1 taking a page right out of The Empire Strikes Back and firing a tripwire around his legs to bring him toppling down! It’s an exciting sequence and sees the tide turn in favour of our heroes yet again, not least because it also destroys Shockwave’s energy-harvesting machine and, as it turns out, the Spacebridge link to Cybertron.

#6: Prime on the warpath

However, the action doesn’t stop there as Shockwave quickly flees back to Cybertron for reinforcements. With Cliffjumper stranded on their homeworld and at the mercy of the Decepticons once more, Prime is determined to rescue him before the link is entirely severed, following the monocular menace through the portal. We quickly see why a battle-ready Optimus is not to be trifled with as he makes mincemeat out of the remaining Combaticons, taking down Vortex, Swindle and Blast Off with seemingly little effort and causing them to retreat despite Shockwave’s protestations. It’s a far cry from the Autobot leader’s temperament at the end of #9, and it shows just how guilty he feels at having left Cliffjumper behind the last time!

#5: Optimus vs Shockwave

Though Shockwave attempts to stop Prime’s assault by threatening Cliffjumper’s life, the Autobot leader is having none of it and swiftly removes the threat by destroying the Decepticon’s left arm with a single well-placed shot. Shockwave attempts to get the jump on him despite his obvious disadvantage, but Optimus proves too powerful. It’s not long before he repeatedly pummels his adversary in the face in a scene that seems rather out of character for our hero. At this point, Prime begins having visions of Spike as a baby yet again, although here they become disturbed and morph into something far more nightmarish and ghastly, all coinciding with a kind of rage taking over Optimus’ mind. His eyes turn purple, and he appears almost out of control as he forcefully crushes Shockwave’s head, seemingly ending his enemy’s existence (at least for now?). Elita congratulates Optimus and says she can see his ‘old self returning’. However, Prime is clearly disturbed by what has happened as he glances at his right hand, which, of course, originates from Megatron. Could it be that the Decepticon leader’s appendage is causing some sort of corrupting influence after all?

#4: Elita’s decision

With Shockwave defeated and Cliffjumper rescued, Prime prepares to go back to Earth through the Spacebridge as Cybertron is soon about to fully return to its rightful place in the galaxy. However, he is thwarted by Elita-1, who blows up the portal door in a shock twist, explaining that Optimus is precisely where he needs to be already. She reveals that she never set the charges intended to detonate the Decepticon warship earlier and thus intends to use the energy already collected by Shockwave to fuel the Autobot war effort on their homeworld, with Prime’s help. It’s an astonishing moment, although perhaps not so surprising when you consider everything Elita has evidently been through over millions of years protecting her planet. Still, it’s sad to see her willingness to sacrifice Earth and its resources, and this story certainly showcases a real sense of moral ambiguity on the part of the heroes here.

#3: Optimus’ choice

For Optimus, though, there is no question about the right course of action, as he raises his cannon arm to destroy the machines collecting energy from Earth. We see his Megatron hand twitching with what can only be some anger, again perhaps hinting at an influence at play in his mind. Still, either way, there’s little doubt of the nobility of his sacrifice here, as he apologises to Elita before taking the shot. We soon see that his action has essentially severed the Spacebridge link, thus stranding the piece of Cybertron left to go through the portal above Earth and returning the rest of it with a sizeable chunk missing but Elita-1 present. I will say I had to re-read this scene a few times over to make full sense of everything that was happening here, but it’s beautifully done nonetheless, and certainly manages to utilise both big stakes action and heartfelt character dynamics to good effect!

#2: Crashing to Earth

As the ramifications of Optimus’ choice become apparent, we find our hero tumbling off the excised husk of Cybertron and free-falling through Earth’s atmosphere to a seemingly hazardous landing ahead. He begins taking unprecedented damage on the way, with his Megatron cannon arm looking significantly worse for wear, for one thing! At this point, Prime seems to accept his fate, revelling in Earth’s beauty one last time as he falls. It’s a stunning sequence, all beautifully rendered and with striking colours yet again, and it feels suitably epic for the final part of this arc!

#1: Beachcomber to the rescue!

Not all is lost, however, as Beachcomber swoops in out of nowhere and does his best Silver Surfer act before rescuing Prime mid-fall! Again, I was slightly perplexed by the geography of all of this on first read, but it’s an emotionally satisfying conclusion if not a particularly logical one! Whatever the case, the blue Minibot saves the day, and Optimus survives, although it seems there will be major consequences to his actions. The chunk of Cybertron appears to be falling and crashing into the sea, which will likely be bad news for the Earth come the next issue. Equally, it remains to be seen what the state of play is on Cybertron with Elita back home for now, as the issue finishes on a sombre note as Prime laments his actions. What a ride it’s been!

So that’s our list! Did you enjoy #12?

TTFN

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About Sixo

Transformers collector from the UK, collecting vintage G1/G2, CR/RID, UT & Masterpiece/3P. Find me at twitter.com/SixoTF or on YouTube at youtube.com/SixoTF

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