At the risk of going OT, I thought Dealer's death was pitch-perfect and I wouldn't change a thing about it.

That said, that issue was never exactly followed up on. Where's the Magnificence? Who knows? All we know is suddenly brain modules look exactly like it, but nobody's mentioned it since that issue.

 

Yeah, after asking the Magnificence (hate that name) if Dealer betrayed them. As soon as it said "yes" he dropped it, turned, and unloaded all 6 barrels into his chest right as Dealer was firing.

Now that I bring that back up, I wonder if they're going to bring that macguffin back for some reason? I hope not, at least not without revealing the cost that was hinted at before.

 

So,

Spoiler

Starscream has been confirmed to get his Armada body on the cover for Dark Cybertron #1 . Does that mean that the character could become more of an honorable warrior like that version was?

Starscream was pretty introspective in this issue. He wants to call Wheeljack a friend but will that friendship just end up the same way as his last one? The Metrotitan chose Starscream because he's supposed to reunite Cybertron's scattered warriors. Well, he sent them off in different directions to wander the wasteland. For the Metrotitan's prediction to come true, he'd have to move beyond his current self-centered political motivations and find a way get them to come back, united (good luck with that). Maybe he eventually buys into the hype of his being the chosen one and that causes to do the honorable thing. Unless, he's actually meant to act as the catalyst that causes the nails and exiled Autobots and Decepticons to rally around the need to get rid of him  

 

One thing I found amusing in this issue, Barbers had his characters doing internal monologues in every single issue, now we have a story called Monologues, and not one to be seen!

 

Haha, my biggest complaint about Barber has been fixed. And yes, I picked up on that too Sarnian lol. Barber is tricky though--he did have Starscream talking to a lot of dead/incapacitated bots in this issue, thereby achieving the effect of an internal monologue. Still, the lack of internal monologues was a refreshing and much needed change.

I actually really liked this issue, much more than the last Orion Pax issue. Some really good Starscream moments, and didn't mind the surprise ending as I think his return will provide for some good conflicts. At this point, nobody is dead until the characters in the book confirm a character as dead. For SS's sake, I hope Megatron can't hear him.

A lot of bots are getting physical makeovers, it makes me wonder if there's some greater significance aside from the toys.

Thought Rattrap was well done--seemed to be a darker take on the character. His beast mode proportions resembled a streamlined version his Beast Machines form--appropriately rat-like.

Happy we got an update on Superion too.

Damn, I think Griffith was on his game with this issue. Still not perfect, but I think this is the best I've seen him draw. I think he's really nailed SS's postures and facial expressions, and the faces don't seem as skeletal as they did in earlier issues. The colors were popping too.

Looking forward to a little 'wave on 'wave action!

Haha, was he banned?

 

Do you guys think Megatron heard Starscream when he was gloating?

 

He did look somewhat with it. I wonder what does Screamers want with Wheeljack is more the question I would be asking.

 

I dunno if time is a thing. Rotorstorm died straight away.

 

Who WOULDN'T want Wheeljack on their side? This is the guy who's skills and sneakiness took down Megatron. It's no surprise Starscream has taken an interest.

 

So

Spoiler

Shot in the face= Die, Shot in the back of the head = survive

?

 

Yeah, but he picked up his narrative over at Seibertron without missing a beat.

more of a, was the brain actually destroyed. Like perceptor said in MTMTE, most chest wounds actually miss the spark.

 

*snicker*

I just read a review where the article writer had counted the number of Starscream's drawn in the issue. He counted 78!

I dunno whether that made things easier on Mr. Griffith by drawing the same figure over and over or if he got quite bored with it and it all became a chore. Wish we could hear his thoughts on drawing this issue.

 

I think most comic book writers don't have that kind of say so for the most part. in the end it comes down to the editor. The writer sells his story or plot arc and any deaths have to be okay'ed by the editor and management (Hasbro too) or the editor mandates it due to the need to increase sales (that's the general thinking in comics industry) .

Either way, if a character dies because a writer is paying the fan base back for a perceived slight, you just have to wait for the next writer to come along. And trust me, if this were the case; you wouldn't be waiting long for that to happen.

I'm thinking that last part. He unites the people against him. This is Starscream we are talking about. Unbridled ambition and un-tempered arrogance are his trademarks and not many can stand to be under that yolk for long.

 

I agree with Mecha but I am going add it feels like the vibe for this issue is now comfortable. The writers and artist comfortable as team so it seems to flow together better. I think reason why comics are better is there good team working together not about egos.

 

Didn't like this issue. I thought it was a bit simplistic, and Starscream continues to be portrayed mostly as a colossal doofus. Meh.

Truer words never spoken.

Did you and I read the same story?  

Isn't a MTMTE thread exactly the RIGHT place to go to talk crap about MTMTE? And likewise for RID? I mean, criticism is still on topic, after all. It's still a valid discussion.

Well, except that Tyrion Lannister was actually smart, and reasonably good at his job. Starscream's plotting here seems to be incredibly clumsy. The guy has all the wit, social acumen and the intuition of a pipe-wrench.

Or... maybe this series is actually just being written for 10-year-olds? Because this issue certainly felt like an episode of a particularly un-subtle TV series.

Yeah, that is pretty funny. A while back, I actually openly challenged Barber to write a story without resorting to internal monologues. So what does he do? He writes a story where Starscream spends most of his time monologuing OUT LOUD to 3 different dead guys.

Like seriously... everything that normally would be constrained to captions has just been transposed to Starscream talking to himself. Nice try, but not quite John.  

zmog

 

We sure did. Again, I don't mind when Starscream is portrayed as unpleasant and uncharismatic. It's been interesting to see people not like him but him get power anyway for being one of the guys who does abandon the factions and still keep a ruthless edge.

 

Nah... it just doesn't work. Watching a bumbling and unrealistically clueless anti-hero stumble past an inconsistently simple-minded array of antagonists really sucks all the drama and interest out of a story. Most of the characters in this story had the nuance and sophistication of particularly broad kiddie cartoon archetypes... which might be fine if this were an episode of Prime, but it doesn't carry a comic for me.

zmog

 

Yeah, I totally agree with you that the last part is the most likely scenario. I was just thinking out loud about how his new body might fit into the story beyond just the need to sell a new toy. Though I do hope what actually happens is a bit more creative and that they do take the opportunity to let Starscream grow as a character.

 

He doesn't seem bumbling or clueless in this issue. He has Rattrap figured out from the start, and he correctly recognizes Scoop as an (unwitting) threat--which is maybe a little paranoid, but not totally unhinged. So he's a bumbler because Dirge and Blurr were a little meaner to him than he expected? He put out the feelers, and lost nothing by their rejection. So he got caught on camera threatening Dirge (though they didn't pick up his voice). Big deal, he already won the big prize by killing Metalhawk.