I have acquired Another Starscream Spoiler: phone photos are lorge Because all the Mystery Box Robots are barely-edited recolors of each other, he has extraneous wheels on his alt, but he does have teeny wings and... thrusters? Afterburners? I don't know plane parts :P
I'm thinking of streaming a bayverse movie marathon over two sessions before the new one comes out. If anyone's interested, check in at the rec room thread in top serket.
Apropos of nothing, I still can't believe that Grimlock of all people created Computron. Also, apparently it's not just a joke: Wreckers Combine!
Spoiler: Sudden stupid idea Sudden stupid idea: What if Rung's real purpose is to undo combinations? The only actual time we've seen his alt mode actually used was when Swerve used him to hit the Stentarian agent, decombining him. What if the reason the Council fears him is that he can undo their combination into the Key to Vector Sigma?
Ruination What an excellent, perfect combiner name, I'm actually a little angryjealous that I didn't get to think of it first
I feel like at least two people here will appreciate that Forged To Fight, the new crossover game, confirms that dark energon really is a neurotoxin equivalent that nukes a bot's impulse control and planning abilities and we weren't just seeing things when TFP Megs picked up the Idiot Ball whenever he used it.
I used to find Overlord offputting because of his sadism and rampant murder, but this thread just keeps expanding his fractal wrongness. thanks. i guess.
Spoiler: TAAO 8 That was a really good issue. Excited to learn more about the thirteen primes! It's really interesting that the citizens of Carcer were apparently Maximo's followers that turned on him. Hopefully Elita will give us exposition. Oh, and hopefully Windblade isn't for-real dead.
Spoiler: TAAO 8 Mostly delighted shrieking, and excitement for more about Elita One and company, but if Windblade is for-real dead, the shrieking will become extremely distressed. I'm pretty sure she's not, because the ongoing was originally going to be called Windblade, and killing her so early in the game would have been lame. Plus she's one of the first new ladies who's been introduced and was designed by fan input? I think? If Swindle didn't die, she shouldn't die either. But basically, they'd BETTER not kill her. I don't think they would, but. They'd better not. But! I had also better see some distress from Starscream next issue OuO He said nice things! About Windblade!!!!! I want him to feel things. Feeeeeeeel thiiiiiiiiiings. Starscream and feelings is all I want from this world, FEED ME.
Spoiler: !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! taao 8, secretly mostly fic idea talk because PRIORITIES AHHHHHHHHH AND BUMBLEBEE ISN'T PROPERLY DEAD EITHER, SO!! Oh my god, Windblade getting a direct line in to Starscream's actual thoughts and hurt and despair, the same way Bumblebee has. Starscream believing that this is just more guilt. Bumblebee is the guilt over Metalhawk. Windblade is his guilt over this. The bodies of people he should have been able to have as allies keep piling up, and it's his fault. He lasted four million years of war, but this is his mind finally cracking, and it's only getting worse. And now one of the pillars holding up the city infrastructure is gone. One of the high-ranking officials who could (attempt) to intervene with Optimus's shenanigans is gone. One of the most powerful people in the city who nominally supported his rule is gone. And Bumblebee and Windblade get to watch all of that. Oh my goodness, I'm too excited to type out all the things I'm excited over. This......... this could use fic. I need Starscream feelings? I'LL WRITE THE STARSCREAM FEELINGS >:O Aaaaaah, I'm too a-flutter to think of what angle to take to distinguish it from the ghost Bumblebee/Starscream fic, especially because I'd been mmmmaybe hoping to fit another starbee fic into that series before Bumblebee comes back to life. But there's only so much ghost/person porn that can be done without repeating yourself. HMMMMM. Well, if I play off V-shaped poly dynamics and the fic works on closing that third side, that could work, but building that up from total scratch would take some nuance. With Starscream and the two (not actually) imaginary ghosts of people who could have supported him and represent his guilt and mounting failures, showing up as people he could have cared about, if he'd had the chance. Or if he'd just moved faster. And then things might have been-- different. Maybe with Bumblebee and Windblade in charge of the scene, but Starscream directing them to touch each other. Something tastefully understated about how he isn't happy and he doesn't deserve to be happy, but maybe he can at least nudge the people he cares about towards happiness. Kind of like Whirl's thing. Though it cheapens the ghost side of the equation if somebody is able to make actual contact with somebody. HMMMMMMMMMMMMM. Maybe it would work if Windblade and Bumblebee had their sex drives switched off as ghosts. So they're strictly PG intimacy and closeness, while Starscream is touch-starved and sexual. This could also have them talking back and forth over his head, getting some banter going, instead of Bumblebee trying to get a drunk, depressed Starscream to engage. Ooh, and fussing over him in general, even with him refusing to engage. And I could also include additional tastefully understated stuff about how he badly wants to be a part of something, and have someone else at least nominally in his corner with him, so this is a kind of painful not-solution, but being able to tell people hallucinations to do this personal, sweet thing and have them listen and kind of sort of respect him, it still helps. It makes him more aware of everything he doesn't have, everything he's been trying to convince himself he doesn't want or need. Which hurts, and really taps into that pit of despair. But also, it helps. For self-indulgent, self-referential callback points, I could put him in the same solo position as Engraved So Deeply In My Veins, when he thought Megatron was coming for him, but as a positive scene instead
I'm usually in too much of an instant gratification rush to slow down and look close at covers, so I just noticed this one, and I love it?? Check out the variety in these ladies! Look at the big beefy one in the top left! Look at the one with the gorgeous jazz-esque visor in the middle! Look at the one with the beautiful cyborg eye in the middle left. She is my new favorite, I'm going to marry her. Also Firestar holding Nautica's hand up triumphantly. I love. Iirc, there are character sheets for these guys out there and names, but it's like... super late and I'm super lazy. But this cover. I love it. Spoiler: large
Hey, guys, also Notice Bluestreak commenting outright in the first panel that Swerve hasn't been doing so great. But he doesn't follow up in any way. Because it can't be THAT bad, right? yeah, swearth is two issues away, just a day or two of in-comic time. I've wondered for ages why Bluestreak went along with the main party for swearth, and I wonder if it's because he feels guilty over this. He's Rung's longest-standing patient, so I'd guess that he has some idea of how important mental health is and how bad it can get. I went looking for all the scraps of character I could find the other day, because I want to know more about this guy, and there's.... really not much. He's a chronic background guy. This connection is pretty speculative, but I like it.
Spoiler: TAAO8 I do like that we're getting to see the old Primes. I wonder how Galvatron felt about Liege Maximo, who at least in the Aligned Continuity was the one to trick Megatronus into betraying the other Primes. Also, nice Shaft headtilt there, Windblade.
Why does that hot robot have a single cyclopsian eye in an otherwise humanoidish face? It reminds me of empurata but also v clearly not, since it's not dehumanizing. I wonder what her alt is!
Spoiler: taao 8 ALSO, I just want to say how *swoon* it was that after millions of years of keeping Vigilem tucked away with his brain switched off, Elita still had her crew drilled extensively in what to do if something happened. No complacency, and that code suggested there are plenty of other drills they had lined up. And the whole crew was sitting nice and tight on this secret, because of how incredibly wrong things could have gone if other people found out about Vigilem. And I appreciate the detail that while Obsidian was hella on top of strategically cutting off the invaders (even if it wasn't quite enough) and he was still a competent fighter, he got pinned and take out of the fight part of the fight. And he was making good points trying to argue against Windblade and company, but he was very pinned. It was Elita and Strika who came in and SHOT. SHIT. UP. I love this colony and everyone on it. I mean... they've got Elita, Strika, Obsidian, Greenlight, and Lancer. Plus whoever's chilling with Optimus on earth but those people barely have personalities at all yet, they don't count. Carcer/Vigilem has got two of the baddest-ass ladies out there in charge, including making Elita incredibly awesome compared to her bland G1 roots, one of the smartest dudes is also in charge and has a giant, buff wife, and they took two of the very, very few G1 ladies and gave them personalities and made them a couple. They're batting five for five as far as I'm concerned. Actually, you know what, Arcee is fabulous, she's been fabulous from the start and phase two just finally gave her some space to shine. But I am adoring all the ladies who are getting introduced now. Especially the big bruiser destructive ones. Because I have a type. Between Elita, Pyra Magna, and Strika, just... take me now. I'm so pleased. This is everything I could have wanted from ladies in this franchise. Except for more, please, I have a powerful need. ps, I badly need to write Pyra Magna <3< Optimus Prime sometime soon, but I also have a STRONG desire to figure out Pyra Magna/Elita One in some way. Elita's not too hard, but Pyra Magna is more difficult. But! Optimus-sized leader lady! With complex emotions and anger and violence skills! I am DISAPPOINTED in myself for being uninterested in her at first, because she is fascinating and I need to dig out all her secrets. The other torchbearers too, but they've all been shorted on screen time and it makes me le sad. I don't care about IDW optimus and his sad face or his angry shouty face and his bad decisions. I want Pyra Magna kicking ass and taking names. And Dust Up and Jumpstream also. I neeeeeeeed more of them. Wives in a military unit, in a combiner. This is all the best things in the world. IDW, you can't dangle that in front of my face and not give me all the delicious, delicious character. This is very important.
