Revisitation 174: Carry On: Don't Lose Your Head.

19/1/2025

This week, Pax commits the perfect crime with only a few Glitches, Red Alert gets fridged and Windcharger has someone remember he exists.

All in my look at the conclusion to Shadowplay!

2 Comments

Llama God

19/1/2025 11:19:06 pm

I've spoken previously about my trepidation around MTMTE (and RiD), and whether IDW editorial would allow them time to see out their plans before reverting to the status quo (as I expected they inevitably would at some point), and this is the issue that convinced me that, yes, this comic was here to stay. Because what an audacious issue it is.

Obviously I'm referring to the Shockwave reveal, which was pretty mindblowing in itself, given that Shockwave has never had a "secret origin" aspect to his character, but which is also of course pretty horrifying. This is most certainly one of those moments that sticks with you. And it's a testament to Roberts' writing that it also actually feels organic, and isn't something that he just tacked on to a story somewhere. He's been building his version of the Transformers universe for a while now, and to learn that one of the key characters from our childhood was a victim of the conditions of that universe really has an impact.

Of course, the other ways in which this issue is audacious only really make themsleves apparent on re-reading it, but they do nevertheless show that at this point Roberts has a lot of confidence. And that shows in his writing of the rest of the issue, and how strong it is.

This story certainly isn't just the lead up to a shock reveal, it's satisfying in itself. It's a great, fun heist, and our heroes win their moment, but their victory ends up being short lived - and that's also the kind of thing that sticks in the memory. Obviously, with the history of Cybertron that we have at this point we know it's not going to be a completely happy ending, but the rug pull (or many rug pulls) that our heroes end up having to face really drives home the situation, and how unwinabble things would have seemed before the war.

I will confess that I'd not noticed the whole business of how Chromedome's old name not being mentioned mirrors the Shockwave reveal, and I'd certainly not drawn the parallel with Tailgate not realising that Orion was Optimus - I thought it was just a cute gag. But yes, now you mention it I can completely see what they're doing, and I'm sure they contribute to how the Shockwave reveal doesn't feel tacked on or out of nowhere - it's perfectly in keeping with the rest of the story. Sneaky bugger there, that Roberts.

So yeah, plenty going on, shock reveals, and foreshadowing that doesn't seem like foreshadowing because the rest of the story's just so good - you're quite right in saying that this is pretty much as good as Transformers comics ever get.

And before I finish up, whilst I've (rightly) been lauding Roberts' wriing, Milne once again deserves plenty of credit for this, with his art style nicely grounding some of the more ridiculous aspects of the storying and making them believable. And also for just making that final stage so very, very gruesome.

In summary, fantastic stuff. And this era (from this story until the end of Remain in Light, really) is what I think of when I think of MTMTE being the best Transformers comic out there. What a time it was...

T-Wing link

22/1/2025 06:05:14 pm

One of my favorite things that Brian Ruckley did was make it so everyone oiled themselves when they heard they had to fight Windcharger.

This is a great conclusion, but I actually don't remember being that "shocked" at the last page revelation. I think I had figured it out already, or at least narrowed the Conspicuously-Unnamed Senator's identity to only a couple suspects. It still lands though, and this is definitely a high point of MTMTE S1.

Wish Roberts (or anyone) did more with Macabre at some point. We're closer than we've ever been to getting an actual Macabre toy, just give the Studio Scourge/Senator Ratbat mold a new head and wings!

Revisitation 174: Carry On: Don't Lose Your Head.

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