And up to Your Neck in Darkness, Everyone Around You was Corrupted.
Transformers Infestation Issue 2. February 16th 2011.
You don’t get a say in the matter. I don’t think I do either—”
Though this is broadly a forgotten crossover (at least by Transformers fans), it’s fair to say the second issue contains one of the more infamous moments of this era, one that may have skewered the perception of the series as a whole.
Not that you’d immediately know that from the opening, where Robo-Britt using the power of the Infestation to bring Prime and Galvatron to their knees in pain, like many a Normal Man on the internet when confronted by the sight of a new woman Transformer.
She uses this moment to recap the evens of the first issue of the main Infestation series. Which is handy for people only reading the issues of the franchise they like but must be quite annoying when reading the trade of the entire crossover, if every one of those series did this in the same way.
You don’t get a say in the matter. I don’t think I do either—”
Though this is broadly a forgotten crossover (at least by Transformers fans), it’s fair to say the second issue contains one of the more infamous moments of this era, one that may have skewered the perception of the series as a whole.
Not that you’d immediately know that from the opening, where Robo-Britt using the power of the Infestation to bring Prime and Galvatron to their knees in pain, like many a Normal Man on the internet when confronted by the sight of a new woman Transformer.
She uses this moment to recap the evens of the first issue of the main Infestation series. Which is handy for people only reading the issues of the franchise they like but must be quite annoying when reading the trade of the entire crossover, if every one of those series did this in the same way.
Me coming to say hi to you at the TFN Minicon.
She does close with new information though: That the portal threw this aspect of her and the various human and robot zombies out into deep space, where they froze for a few centuries until Galvatron found them, at which point she used her magic zombie vampire powers to put the idea that she was a Decepticon everyone knew into the minds of anyone who saw her, letting Galvatron bring them to a planet for her to infest.
Which is fine to a point, but I’m not sure why she continues to project an image of herself as a Transformer after the bluff is blown.
One person not standing for long exposition is Kup who, even as he sees Prime and Galvatron as creatures from his hallucinations (complete with Britt saying “More than meets the eye” again, I wonder if Abbett and Lanning will do this once every one of their issues?), fights back with a good strong backblast.
Not that this does much good as the good guys get overrun by the zombies, until, in one of the dafter moments, Galvatron pulls out the Heart of Darkness and throws it like a cricket ball, somehow causing an explosion so impressive it worries even Spike, who cannot have any idea who Galvatron is, leaving them all are in awe and terror of his new powers. And Prime not terribly impressed with Galvatron’s lack of regard for innocent lives.
Which is fine to a point, but I’m not sure why she continues to project an image of herself as a Transformer after the bluff is blown.
One person not standing for long exposition is Kup who, even as he sees Prime and Galvatron as creatures from his hallucinations (complete with Britt saying “More than meets the eye” again, I wonder if Abbett and Lanning will do this once every one of their issues?), fights back with a good strong backblast.
Not that this does much good as the good guys get overrun by the zombies, until, in one of the dafter moments, Galvatron pulls out the Heart of Darkness and throws it like a cricket ball, somehow causing an explosion so impressive it worries even Spike, who cannot have any idea who Galvatron is, leaving them all are in awe and terror of his new powers. And Prime not terribly impressed with Galvatron’s lack of regard for innocent lives.
The Ian Botham of Transformers.
One has to wonder how Furman felt about all this (and he did at least eventually glance at it for the Hachette books), he was forced to hurriedly wrap up his own storylines to make way for a clean slate, and now, just a couple of years later, things he wrote out on orders and being reintroduced and going to play a… interesting role going forward.
Outside the city, Wheeljack makes his one panel an issue appearance to say his shield is failing, and Prowl points out their security is compromised now Kup is in Britt’s thrall. All being enough to make everyone just ignore Galvatron trying to claim leadership of the group.
The security compromise is bigger than they think, Britt now has access to all the Autobot technology in his mind (considering his age, not that impressive, he likely can’t even program a VHS), allowing her to use her super vampire zombie undermind powers to build a Stargate that will take her to an incredibly ripe world… Cybertron. But of the past. Because Kup knows how to build time portals as well now, I guess.
Somehow, despite being no where near her when she explains this to Kup, Bumblebee knows exactly what her plan is and starts to panic about the destruction of their history. Making me wonder, alongside the idea that taking Kup compromises all their security and technical knowledge, if the writers were treating the Autobots as having access to some sort of cloud or hive mind?
Or sloppy writing.
Outside the city, Wheeljack makes his one panel an issue appearance to say his shield is failing, and Prowl points out their security is compromised now Kup is in Britt’s thrall. All being enough to make everyone just ignore Galvatron trying to claim leadership of the group.
The security compromise is bigger than they think, Britt now has access to all the Autobot technology in his mind (considering his age, not that impressive, he likely can’t even program a VHS), allowing her to use her super vampire zombie undermind powers to build a Stargate that will take her to an incredibly ripe world… Cybertron. But of the past. Because Kup knows how to build time portals as well now, I guess.
Somehow, despite being no where near her when she explains this to Kup, Bumblebee knows exactly what her plan is and starts to panic about the destruction of their history. Making me wonder, alongside the idea that taking Kup compromises all their security and technical knowledge, if the writers were treating the Autobots as having access to some sort of cloud or hive mind?
Or sloppy writing.
Me following the Ana de Armas Stan accounts.
Luckily, Prowl has the solution. The infestation has only hit Kup’s conscious mind, so Prowl opens up his own mental link and activates the Pretender program, letting Kup remember everything in the process.
This completely mentally breaks Kup, and is reacted to with mild surprise by everyone else, but it does let him reprogram with Stargate to another destination, as suggested by Galvatron, the Dead Universe at the beginning of time. A place with nothing for the zombies to feed on. To which the entire horde, including a sad and tired Kup, are zapped.
Now, this was of course the controversial moment. And Nick Roche, though he took it on the chin well and with the sensible attitude of a freelancer on a franchise they don’t control, has admitted the irony in him being the one to draw the issue that wraps up his plots in a way he wouldn’t have done, and kills Kup a year after he decided not to.
And indeed, like Furman and the deathless Dead Universe, no writer “Owns” any of these concepts, and some of the best stories we’re going to get down the line will be following up on previous ones in ways their creators might not have considered the right way to go.
But equally, fans are fans, and for all the realities of licenced publishing, it is a undeniable shame to see one of the great dangling threads wrapped up in a crossover no one will care about when its over, and killing off a popular character to no good long term end.
This completely mentally breaks Kup, and is reacted to with mild surprise by everyone else, but it does let him reprogram with Stargate to another destination, as suggested by Galvatron, the Dead Universe at the beginning of time. A place with nothing for the zombies to feed on. To which the entire horde, including a sad and tired Kup, are zapped.
Now, this was of course the controversial moment. And Nick Roche, though he took it on the chin well and with the sensible attitude of a freelancer on a franchise they don’t control, has admitted the irony in him being the one to draw the issue that wraps up his plots in a way he wouldn’t have done, and kills Kup a year after he decided not to.
And indeed, like Furman and the deathless Dead Universe, no writer “Owns” any of these concepts, and some of the best stories we’re going to get down the line will be following up on previous ones in ways their creators might not have considered the right way to go.
But equally, fans are fans, and for all the realities of licenced publishing, it is a undeniable shame to see one of the great dangling threads wrapped up in a crossover no one will care about when its over, and killing off a popular character to no good long term end.
A moment so good, it'll be done again in a better comic.
It’s telling that we are less than a year away from an era of extreme continuity fetishism, where no old story or idea is bad enough to be ignored rather than explained and followed up on. But when (SPOILERS) Kup gets better from being dead, Roche will get to write him learning about Prowl’s machinations and the horrors of what was done to him, and he’ll do it as if it was the very first time. Everyone around him will even act more shocked and horrified than the first time it broke.
And then IDW will surely have learnt their lesson about killing Kup in crossovers no one asked for.
There isn’t even time to grieve here, with Kup’s death just acknowledged before Galvatron makes one last attempt to appeal for a team-up against a mystery bigger foe and, when rejected again, simply has the making his one panel appearance Jhiaxus beam them all out of there.
Which is all something that will come to make more sense over the next few months.
This kind of falls apart after the fun of the first half and it’s hard not to feel that what we have here is one issue badly stretched out to two, with all the weaknesses of that mostly in the back end. That long term readers are likely to be annoyed by the ending (and God knows what anyone outside the fandom just reading a crossover made of all this) doesn’t help, but it was already meandering rather wildly. The great Las Vegas setting is rather wasted here as well.
And then IDW will surely have learnt their lesson about killing Kup in crossovers no one asked for.
There isn’t even time to grieve here, with Kup’s death just acknowledged before Galvatron makes one last attempt to appeal for a team-up against a mystery bigger foe and, when rejected again, simply has the making his one panel appearance Jhiaxus beam them all out of there.
Which is all something that will come to make more sense over the next few months.
This kind of falls apart after the fun of the first half and it’s hard not to feel that what we have here is one issue badly stretched out to two, with all the weaknesses of that mostly in the back end. That long term readers are likely to be annoyed by the ending (and God knows what anyone outside the fandom just reading a crossover made of all this) doesn’t help, but it was already meandering rather wildly. The great Las Vegas setting is rather wasted here as well.
One Girl, One Kup.
But, there’s still some fun, with Nick Roche remaining the MVP and, if nothing else, he sells Kup’s final moments extremely hard (and I suspect had a hand in the dialogue), with the nice conceit of him becoming more and more like his Spotlight design as the issue continues.
Though for some reason, his Prowl is off this issue. With a very flat face and what can only be described as “No ass”.
With the Transformers side over, the question remains, how does the overall story wrap up?
THE TRANSFORMERS ISSUE 16
2011
COMMENT
KO-FI
Though for some reason, his Prowl is off this issue. With a very flat face and what can only be described as “No ass”.
With the Transformers side over, the question remains, how does the overall story wrap up?
THE TRANSFORMERS ISSUE 16
2011
COMMENT
KO-FI
