Doctor, Doctor, Give Me the News, I’ve got a bad Case of Loving You.
More Than Meets the Eye issue 4: Life After the Big Bang. April 18th 2012.
All I see is a room full of the dead and the dying. And believe me, that’s a generous use of the present tense.
With the characters and setup establishing opening arc of the series over, the main—well. One of the main as there’s a lot going on here—purpose of this second story is to establish how the season 2 of Buck Rogers in the 25th Century having adventures as you search for your lost tribe format is going to work on a month-to-month basis.
Starting with Roberts showing how much he thinks in TV terms, with what can only be called a pre-credits sequence that reintroduces us to one of the key characters from Bullets, First Aid.
Who is making a log from the medical base on Delphi, establishing that he doesn’t regard himself as special, that his medical superior Ambulon (whose old life shows through his paintwork) has had him demoted for being too interested in Autobot badges and their previously obscure and on the edge of DJD territory base will, by the time anyone reads his report, be an infamous swearword and warning to everyone.
All I see is a room full of the dead and the dying. And believe me, that’s a generous use of the present tense.
With the characters and setup establishing opening arc of the series over, the main—well. One of the main as there’s a lot going on here—purpose of this second story is to establish how the season 2 of Buck Rogers in the 25th Century having adventures as you search for your lost tribe format is going to work on a month-to-month basis.
Starting with Roberts showing how much he thinks in TV terms, with what can only be called a pre-credits sequence that reintroduces us to one of the key characters from Bullets, First Aid.
Who is making a log from the medical base on Delphi, establishing that he doesn’t regard himself as special, that his medical superior Ambulon (whose old life shows through his paintwork) has had him demoted for being too interested in Autobot badges and their previously obscure and on the edge of DJD territory base will, by the time anyone reads his report, be an infamous swearword and warning to everyone.
It's a slightly breathless start, largely because of the entirely sensible decision that they couldn’t depend on everyone who’s jumped on this relaunch having read Wreckers, let alone a trade-exclusive story, so it has to ram in First Aid’s quirks as well. But the art at least does have fun showing his collection of Autobot badges on the wall, with the one that actually had a message in it from Bullets in a special frame.
He then gets into the actually important part of his message: The Decepticon Justice Division being right outside means three days ago, two deserters came knocking at the door, looking for sanctuary. Bringing in the really major new character introduced here: Pharma. A doctor so beloved and cool, he gets introduced over a double page panel that splits him down the middle.
Which is ironic considering what happens to the stood next to him Ambulon.
He then gets into the actually important part of his message: The Decepticon Justice Division being right outside means three days ago, two deserters came knocking at the door, looking for sanctuary. Bringing in the really major new character introduced here: Pharma. A doctor so beloved and cool, he gets introduced over a double page panel that splits him down the middle.
Which is ironic considering what happens to the stood next to him Ambulon.
Pharma hates Decepticons. Like, really, hates them in a way that’s emphasised hard enough to immediately make him look suspicious. There’s no real attempt at a mystery here, it’s more in the style of how Russel T Davies handled Cassandra in Doctor Who, less “Did they do it?”, more, “I can’t wait for this smug little shit to reveal they did it.”
This hatred leads to an argument between him and the keen to give everyone a second chance Ambulon, that’s only resolved when it becomes clear the two cons are Monoformers, indeed part of the Militant Monoform Movement (Tripple M), with scars showing their transformation cogs have been removed.
They then turn out to be even more ill than thought, having a branched spark that requires them to be put in the same cell.
And not long after, and this could be called burying the lead, patients started crying themselves to death.
That’s a very info-packed three pages, so in pre-credits terms it’s more like the very talky myth X-Files episodes than a monster of the week one. It’s also immediately obvious from his swagger and how we’re told he’s above reproach that Pharma is behind all this. But the lore building is very good, and there is a slow building tension to First Aid’s almost matter of fact reporting and the way it ends with the reveal of the deaths.
This hatred leads to an argument between him and the keen to give everyone a second chance Ambulon, that’s only resolved when it becomes clear the two cons are Monoformers, indeed part of the Militant Monoform Movement (Tripple M), with scars showing their transformation cogs have been removed.
They then turn out to be even more ill than thought, having a branched spark that requires them to be put in the same cell.
And not long after, and this could be called burying the lead, patients started crying themselves to death.
That’s a very info-packed three pages, so in pre-credits terms it’s more like the very talky myth X-Files episodes than a monster of the week one. It’s also immediately obvious from his swagger and how we’re told he’s above reproach that Pharma is behind all this. But the lore building is very good, and there is a slow building tension to First Aid’s almost matter of fact reporting and the way it ends with the reveal of the deaths.
After the titles, we’re on the Lost Light, with the introduction of one of the comic’s key locations: Swerve’s bar. Which Rodimus and Magnus don’t know about yet, but Swerve is totally sure they’re going to be fine about.
Booze is going to be a big theme going forward (not always to the comfort of Hasbro, as we’ll see with some of the toy pack-in edits), but a Transformers series with a social hangout setting was pretty unique, and allows for more character-based drama, so it’s no surprise that John Barber will also be adding a similar pub before not too long.
Ratchet is disappointed to get his “Either very far away or the world’s smallest drink” free first on the house drink (though you have to wonder what everyone is paying for their second drink with), especially as his wonky hands are no longer good enough to hold it, and as far as he’s concerned, they can’t be replaced like just happened with Rodimus.
Which feels like Roberts suddenly realising he’d created that question and had better shut down readers asking about it pretty fast.
Ratchet isn’t there to socialise though (even if Skids is, and notice his gun he doesn’t see vanishes between panels in foreshadowing), he knows Swerve was also a subscriber to Fisitron’s Datalogs and wants a second opinion on the new, mystery one that dropped last night.
Booze is going to be a big theme going forward (not always to the comfort of Hasbro, as we’ll see with some of the toy pack-in edits), but a Transformers series with a social hangout setting was pretty unique, and allows for more character-based drama, so it’s no surprise that John Barber will also be adding a similar pub before not too long.
Ratchet is disappointed to get his “Either very far away or the world’s smallest drink” free first on the house drink (though you have to wonder what everyone is paying for their second drink with), especially as his wonky hands are no longer good enough to hold it, and as far as he’s concerned, they can’t be replaced like just happened with Rodimus.
Which feels like Roberts suddenly realising he’d created that question and had better shut down readers asking about it pretty fast.
Ratchet isn’t there to socialise though (even if Skids is, and notice his gun he doesn’t see vanishes between panels in foreshadowing), he knows Swerve was also a subscriber to Fisitron’s Datalogs and wants a second opinion on the new, mystery one that dropped last night.
Which at first seems gibberish, but it turns out to be the patient logs at Delphi, revealing that within the last two years, the death rates have increased hugely against the standard average (presumably not counting the galaxy wide massacre of Autobots just prior to these stats). So, it’s time to make a house call.
The forcing in of Fisitron is a little awkward, especially as it’s not clear how First Aid would have accessed the ability to send out new ones. It’s also not much of a mystery who on Delphi could be the whistle blower either.
There’s a quick diversion to set-up the issue’s subplot, as Ultra Magnus reports to Rodimus (who’s using a knife to cut a pattern in his desk) about Tailgate’s desire to become a Decepticon and unload about his own increasing stress with this wacky crew.
Rodimus doesn’t even know which one Tailgate is (he’s really not the guy who blew up a city and lost everyone under his first command), but thinks Magnus needs to learn to chill out. Plus, he has a solution…
On Messatine (the planet Delphi is located on), Drift, Ratchet and Pipes are hurtling towards the medical facility on MARBS (the flying sleds that were how the Marvel comics construed the detachable part of the original Ratchet toy), with Pipes both being curious about why they’re being so cautious in sneaking up, and happy to be on his first ever real alien world.
With 200 odd Autobots on the Lost Light, this feels like there will be more of a rotation of characters, bringing in people who may not be part of the key cast usually for guest roles to flesh them out and give some underused fan-favourites a chance to shine.
The forcing in of Fisitron is a little awkward, especially as it’s not clear how First Aid would have accessed the ability to send out new ones. It’s also not much of a mystery who on Delphi could be the whistle blower either.
There’s a quick diversion to set-up the issue’s subplot, as Ultra Magnus reports to Rodimus (who’s using a knife to cut a pattern in his desk) about Tailgate’s desire to become a Decepticon and unload about his own increasing stress with this wacky crew.
Rodimus doesn’t even know which one Tailgate is (he’s really not the guy who blew up a city and lost everyone under his first command), but thinks Magnus needs to learn to chill out. Plus, he has a solution…
On Messatine (the planet Delphi is located on), Drift, Ratchet and Pipes are hurtling towards the medical facility on MARBS (the flying sleds that were how the Marvel comics construed the detachable part of the original Ratchet toy), with Pipes both being curious about why they’re being so cautious in sneaking up, and happy to be on his first ever real alien world.
With 200 odd Autobots on the Lost Light, this feels like there will be more of a rotation of characters, bringing in people who may not be part of the key cast usually for guest roles to flesh them out and give some underused fan-favourites a chance to shine.
This won’t be the case; Pipes is basically going to be a recurring punchline and it will become unusual for someone outside that core group of characters to come along in a featured role on a mission like this. Which will be a shame as Pipes is immediately very likeable, especially his excitement at how wet snow is.
Still struggling with their tensions are Ratchet and Drift, notably in a discussion about making Pharma the new CMO if there is nothing wrong after all, because his hands are that amazing. Making Drift get a needle in with a callback to an idea from Chaos Theory; Asking if this means all the best medics were forged?
We may not yet fully understand the difference between being forged and being constructed cold yet, but Ratchet is definitely not happy as Drift’s implied pro-apartheid stance and makes it clear that even if it is true, he’s not going to start believing in Adaptus (which, as Umar pointed out to me when I asked them to look over this, pointed out is actually insane, Ratchet does the Transformers equivalent of going "I believe white doctors are better, but for science reasons").
Which is a new and entirely throwaway name to us, but Roberts planting it in during a conversation about Pharma is very much him making sure that anyone looking back at this after the entire series was done, would absolutely realise he’s been plotting the entire thing out very carefully, rather than doing a Chris Carter.
Someone who does have that Cris Carter make it up as you go along approach is Pipes, who, upon them finding the entrance to Delphi has a big red X on the door (and because Drift is too busy making it clear to Ratchet his is not scared of the DJD for explanations to get offered by the doctor), decides to ramraid it to get inside as part of his new go-getter personality.
Still struggling with their tensions are Ratchet and Drift, notably in a discussion about making Pharma the new CMO if there is nothing wrong after all, because his hands are that amazing. Making Drift get a needle in with a callback to an idea from Chaos Theory; Asking if this means all the best medics were forged?
We may not yet fully understand the difference between being forged and being constructed cold yet, but Ratchet is definitely not happy as Drift’s implied pro-apartheid stance and makes it clear that even if it is true, he’s not going to start believing in Adaptus (which, as Umar pointed out to me when I asked them to look over this, pointed out is actually insane, Ratchet does the Transformers equivalent of going "I believe white doctors are better, but for science reasons").
Which is a new and entirely throwaway name to us, but Roberts planting it in during a conversation about Pharma is very much him making sure that anyone looking back at this after the entire series was done, would absolutely realise he’s been plotting the entire thing out very carefully, rather than doing a Chris Carter.
Someone who does have that Cris Carter make it up as you go along approach is Pipes, who, upon them finding the entrance to Delphi has a big red X on the door (and because Drift is too busy making it clear to Ratchet his is not scared of the DJD for explanations to get offered by the doctor), decides to ramraid it to get inside as part of his new go-getter personality.
Leaving him crashing into a pile of bodies and covered in the excreta of dead people as Ratchet pointedly explains that the X is the Universal symbol of plague, a great big do-not-enter under any circumstances.
Pipes is really not a lucky guy. But more so that someone stumbling towards him from behind who, in a great moment from Milne, gets chopped into teeny tiny pieces by a leaping Drift. Much to Ratchet’s increasing frustration at the clowns around him, as he points out this was a patient walking glacially rather than a zombie. Even someone he knew, “Prowl,” who had changed his name to avoid confusion with the other Prowl and wound up stuck with “Dent” because all the best names are taken.
The awkwardness is added to when First Aid comes looking for his patient and Drift tries to make it sound like he beat off a violent attack, which is played for dark comedy, but that he basically impulsively commits murder and then tries to cover it up is telling considering he was still going to be a villain at this point.
Luckily for everyone, First Aid is too concerned with Pipes to worry about sudden violent death, as being covered in the innards of victims of the plague puts him at risk, so a big red warning cross is put on his face.
Pipes is really not a lucky guy. But more so that someone stumbling towards him from behind who, in a great moment from Milne, gets chopped into teeny tiny pieces by a leaping Drift. Much to Ratchet’s increasing frustration at the clowns around him, as he points out this was a patient walking glacially rather than a zombie. Even someone he knew, “Prowl,” who had changed his name to avoid confusion with the other Prowl and wound up stuck with “Dent” because all the best names are taken.
The awkwardness is added to when First Aid comes looking for his patient and Drift tries to make it sound like he beat off a violent attack, which is played for dark comedy, but that he basically impulsively commits murder and then tries to cover it up is telling considering he was still going to be a villain at this point.
Luckily for everyone, First Aid is too concerned with Pipes to worry about sudden violent death, as being covered in the innards of victims of the plague puts him at risk, so a big red warning cross is put on his face.
Big red warnings are also the order of the day on the Lost Light, as Tailgate is marched into Rodimus’ office for a show from Rewind, “Everything that matters” about the war (now there’s a telling phrase), downloaded directly into Tailgate’s brain in 11.3 seconds. Hilariously at this stage, still including Roberts originally planned death for Zeta Prime and “the gunshot that killed a civilisation.” At which point he can choose, Bots or Cons.
Inevitably of course, he chooses to crush the con badge after seeing such horrors, but the implication this is carefully edited ignoring anything the Autobots did highlights is definitely the most interesting thing in this scene.
Back in Delphi, First Aid gives a quick summary of events to date: Five days ago, a mysterious noise like an explosion went off, at which point people almost immediately started getting sick (starting with leaking out their eyes), without any obvious rhyme or reason beyond Ambulon theorising that the medics are more immune, whilst First Aid himself just believes “Life persists” (now there’s a familiar phrase).
Ratchet himself notes the patients who’ve been there longest don’t seem to have the plague, including a mysterious, shadowy figure he’s not only surprised to see is alive, but had almost hoped wouldn’t be. Leading First Aid to talk about his amazing new theory of, basically, Spark Jump Starting, he thinks could help the patient but no one else will respect because it’s too dangerous to the person using their own spark for the jumpstarting.
Leading to a hilarious moment of First Aid just ignoring Ratchet when he tries to move the conversation back over to the current crisis and speak to Pharma so he can keep pushing his mad plan.
Inevitably of course, he chooses to crush the con badge after seeing such horrors, but the implication this is carefully edited ignoring anything the Autobots did highlights is definitely the most interesting thing in this scene.
Back in Delphi, First Aid gives a quick summary of events to date: Five days ago, a mysterious noise like an explosion went off, at which point people almost immediately started getting sick (starting with leaking out their eyes), without any obvious rhyme or reason beyond Ambulon theorising that the medics are more immune, whilst First Aid himself just believes “Life persists” (now there’s a familiar phrase).
Ratchet himself notes the patients who’ve been there longest don’t seem to have the plague, including a mysterious, shadowy figure he’s not only surprised to see is alive, but had almost hoped wouldn’t be. Leading First Aid to talk about his amazing new theory of, basically, Spark Jump Starting, he thinks could help the patient but no one else will respect because it’s too dangerous to the person using their own spark for the jumpstarting.
Leading to a hilarious moment of First Aid just ignoring Ratchet when he tries to move the conversation back over to the current crisis and speak to Pharma so he can keep pushing his mad plan.
Leading us to what is, just one page, but is probably going to be the meat of this piece, so apologies for another very long one, but makes up for having taken two weeks off, eh?
On the Lost Light, Tailgate storms into their hab suite to complain at Cyclonus about how he basically set him up to look like an idiot on a crew of Autobots. To which Cyclonus feeds him some Obi Wan style “What I told you was true from a certain point of view” bullshit. Outraging Tailgate to the point he uses his full strength to punch Cyclonus in the arm, which might, at best, have slightly indented the metal for a second before it popped back into shape.
At which point Cyclonus violently hits him across the room, viciously kicks him between the ribs and then storms out, leaving Tailgate whimpering and crying on the floor that he’s “sorry.”
Now, I’ve kind of given this and how future events reflect on it a bit of a pass before, on the grounds that (as we again know from the notebooks), that this was never meant to be a romantic relationship, so even though the smoothing over from this to that won’t be very neat, you could forgive how unfortunate it is what becomes this great love affair starts with a moment of domestic abuse.
But even as a moment between roommates, this is appalling when it comes to the complete lack of fallout from it. Especially when the plan was still for them to become good enough friends that the original plan was for it be tragic when Cyclonus has to euthanise him (in a death that won’t ultimately happen).
On the Lost Light, Tailgate storms into their hab suite to complain at Cyclonus about how he basically set him up to look like an idiot on a crew of Autobots. To which Cyclonus feeds him some Obi Wan style “What I told you was true from a certain point of view” bullshit. Outraging Tailgate to the point he uses his full strength to punch Cyclonus in the arm, which might, at best, have slightly indented the metal for a second before it popped back into shape.
At which point Cyclonus violently hits him across the room, viciously kicks him between the ribs and then storms out, leaving Tailgate whimpering and crying on the floor that he’s “sorry.”
Now, I’ve kind of given this and how future events reflect on it a bit of a pass before, on the grounds that (as we again know from the notebooks), that this was never meant to be a romantic relationship, so even though the smoothing over from this to that won’t be very neat, you could forgive how unfortunate it is what becomes this great love affair starts with a moment of domestic abuse.
But even as a moment between roommates, this is appalling when it comes to the complete lack of fallout from it. Especially when the plan was still for them to become good enough friends that the original plan was for it be tragic when Cyclonus has to euthanise him (in a death that won’t ultimately happen).
If you’ve a friend, or even just someone you live with, who kicks you in the ribs after goading you into a situation where they can say “I was provoked,” that’s a situation you need to get out of quickly.
That Tailgate is apparently so desperate for companionship of any sort that he doesn’t just move out or even telling anyone, is deeply uncomfortable and makes even a growing friendship from here look positively Getawayian.
And yes, Cyclonus is dealing with his own post-war trauma, bad people can heal and become better (that will be a major theme in “Season 2”), but there will be attempt to create a decent comeback from this, it will go unmentioned until a sudden and random two panel apology that Tailgate doesn’t even get to react to, so long after the fact it would have been easy to assume this entire scene had been retconned out.
Plus, this whole business is incredibly out of character for Cyclonus as he is now. He’d not set up nasty little manipulative traps to make virtual strangers look foolish, and Whirl had to actively try and kill him much harder than throwing out a weak-ass punch before he fought back.
It’s all very odd, and the first real big misstep in a series that will occasionally miss the mark on how it engages with social issues, but which will rarely feel again so much like no thought at all has been put into what the implications might be.
That Tailgate is apparently so desperate for companionship of any sort that he doesn’t just move out or even telling anyone, is deeply uncomfortable and makes even a growing friendship from here look positively Getawayian.
And yes, Cyclonus is dealing with his own post-war trauma, bad people can heal and become better (that will be a major theme in “Season 2”), but there will be attempt to create a decent comeback from this, it will go unmentioned until a sudden and random two panel apology that Tailgate doesn’t even get to react to, so long after the fact it would have been easy to assume this entire scene had been retconned out.
Plus, this whole business is incredibly out of character for Cyclonus as he is now. He’d not set up nasty little manipulative traps to make virtual strangers look foolish, and Whirl had to actively try and kill him much harder than throwing out a weak-ass punch before he fought back.
It’s all very odd, and the first real big misstep in a series that will occasionally miss the mark on how it engages with social issues, but which will rarely feel again so much like no thought at all has been put into what the implications might be.
It’s also frankly odd to do a two-parter with a subplot that ends in the first part (as far as I recall anyway). Creating the feeling this is meant to be the equivalent of when Deep Space Nine did a comedy subplot to a serious A plot they’d have end early in the episode so as not to unbalance the serious “Will Worf leave Dax to die?” style moments.
Speaking of the apparently serious A plot, back in Delphi, Pharma is stuck in quarantine behind the sort of big glass divider door that just got used twice in the Doctor Who 60th anniversary specials because even Disney money means they have to recycle sets still. For some reason that’s not even clear, they can’t talk to him (a quarantine room without an intercom seems a bad idea), but, keeping the symbolism of the importance of hands going, he burns a message into his hand saying, “Your friend is upset.”
Pretty hardcore as he could have just pointed at the now crying blood and infected Pipes behind them, but that it’s a mildly sarcastic message says a lot about him as well.
In quick succession, Ratchet lets the immediately runs to the cells Pharma out the quarantine bay, Drift (transforming whilst doing so) knocks out Pipes in a non-lethal way and they get the Autobot to a medibay, where Ratchet holds his hand, because even if they are otherwise failing, he can still offer comfort, something the now infected Drift.
At which point the two Decepticon Monoformers rush in (throwing a knocked-out Pharma before them) and prepare to kill everyone…
Before First Aid (with, wonderfully, literal jump leads attached to his nipples) introduces them to a friend of his: Fortress Maximus!
Speaking of the apparently serious A plot, back in Delphi, Pharma is stuck in quarantine behind the sort of big glass divider door that just got used twice in the Doctor Who 60th anniversary specials because even Disney money means they have to recycle sets still. For some reason that’s not even clear, they can’t talk to him (a quarantine room without an intercom seems a bad idea), but, keeping the symbolism of the importance of hands going, he burns a message into his hand saying, “Your friend is upset.”
Pretty hardcore as he could have just pointed at the now crying blood and infected Pipes behind them, but that it’s a mildly sarcastic message says a lot about him as well.
In quick succession, Ratchet lets the immediately runs to the cells Pharma out the quarantine bay, Drift (transforming whilst doing so) knocks out Pipes in a non-lethal way and they get the Autobot to a medibay, where Ratchet holds his hand, because even if they are otherwise failing, he can still offer comfort, something the now infected Drift.
At which point the two Decepticon Monoformers rush in (throwing a knocked-out Pharma before them) and prepare to kill everyone…
Before First Aid (with, wonderfully, literal jump leads attached to his nipples) introduces them to a friend of his: Fortress Maximus!
Who, in order to bring readers that have jumped aboard with the relaunch up to speed, has to breathlessly recap the events of Last Stand of the Wreckers (in particular, his lobotomising and suffering at the hands of Decepticons), before getting to the actual cliffhanger badass boast line whilst he still has any exposition energy left in him: “You two Decepticons, being the very first Decepticons I’ve encountered since I was all but beaten to death, are standing in the very worst place in the Universe.”
That’s he’s saying all this deadpan, without a single exclamation mark, only adds to effect.
As the opening of the first “Regular” story, this mostly works very well. Delphi is a nice new location, Milne and Roberts get to be nicely gross and horrific for the first time, the new and guest characters are all well sketched and it’s a nice new take on the zombie story.
Some of the mystery is a little obvious, but, coupled with some very strong art from Milne (and Pharma is a fantastic design), the A plot works well.
The Tailgate stuff is, once you know what the fallout from it will really be, terrible and has not aged well at all. Which is unfortunate as that the part that’s setting up a chain of dominos that will take us to the very end of the series.
Next week (hopefully for real this time), Prowl drops a Bombshell.
AUTOCRACY 7
2012
COMMENT
KO-FI
That’s he’s saying all this deadpan, without a single exclamation mark, only adds to effect.
As the opening of the first “Regular” story, this mostly works very well. Delphi is a nice new location, Milne and Roberts get to be nicely gross and horrific for the first time, the new and guest characters are all well sketched and it’s a nice new take on the zombie story.
Some of the mystery is a little obvious, but, coupled with some very strong art from Milne (and Pharma is a fantastic design), the A plot works well.
The Tailgate stuff is, once you know what the fallout from it will really be, terrible and has not aged well at all. Which is unfortunate as that the part that’s setting up a chain of dominos that will take us to the very end of the series.
Next week (hopefully for real this time), Prowl drops a Bombshell.
AUTOCRACY 7
2012
COMMENT
KO-FI