^Agreed.

Tinfoil hat theory!!! It wasn't the DJD, it was Overlord in Rewind's body  

But seriously, i wonder if there's still an Autobot mole amongst them. He was mentioned in one of the prose Wreckers stories; i believe his name was Agent 113? But that also hints to the Decepticon Justice Division being a bigger entity than just five guys. I wonder if that's still a thing, or if that was before James had completely figured out what he wanted the DJD to be. Either way, it'd be really cool for the mole to come forward now.

Also, i wonder what's up with Bluestreak and Broadside and First Aid and all the other guys who weren't with the Lost Light from the start

 

It's a pretty big and probably untrue assumption that none of the DJD sustained any injuries. It probably took them hours and a lot of hits. But with even half-decent tactics, their huge firepower and ability to rally around Tarn would have been decisive.

Plus, you know, Tarn can KILL YOU WITH HIS VOICE.

For that matter, all that slaughterhouse shit was clearly a kind of psychological warfare. Without that decisive factor, I don't see Blaster and company on the bridge just transforming to be executed. Granted the current bunch plays it cool, but try doing that when it's happening to you, and you're grappling with the DJD's reputation for invincibility to start with.

 

Oh that's good. That's very good. I love all these additions to the horrors we've already been shown.

 

5 giant BADASSES!

 

Comixology says that 33's out next week. Really hope it's not true because that's going to make the wait until 34 agonizing...

 

It's not on Diamond's shipping list for next week, so I don't expect we'll see it, though I don't think we'll have to wait until the end of the month for it this time around.

 

That's good then. I'd rather wait 3 weeks then 4, rather than wait 1 then 6.

 

I really hope Roberts isn't about to 'Harry Kim' Rewind back to life.

 

Is that what Brainstorm's briefcase does? Distort time and space?

 

That would be my best guess. It really is bizarre. Man this issue is just filling up with even more mystery; it's like when MTMTE first started all over again.

 

I think that's a fair guess. That page is prone to interpretation but in a sense it is of course meant to be mixed up. While I knew there would be some significance to the huge level number in the background from its first appearance, I'd still get something out of poring over an issue like this in a TPB, as opposed to my first resort of Comixology.

I should elaborate on 'a fair guess'. That is, I think, that the briefcase scrambling time (either discreetly in the time in which the case was opened or creating at least one paradox) is the best of what must be a suite of options, applied to what the Brainstorm - conceivably from another timeline/near impossibility eventuality split [NIES for short?  ] - had in said case at the time.

That is to say, firstly, Roberts' LSOTW prose implies that Brainstorm changes what is in his briefcase. Secondly, and effectively, if there are/were two different Brainstorms or maybe even not, it's possible that the Brainstorm we've been following in the main story for the last couple of years has something different in his case to the one we saw in this issue. Indeed both Brainstorms may have changed the contents of their respective briefcases several times.

Since we know the tip of the iceberg as to how differently things have played out, it's probable that both Brainstorms have had quite different things in their cases. It might be a bit 'butterfly flaps its wings' for some, but that briefcase belonged to a Brainstorm who, for instance, never analyzed Skids' nudge gun for Chromedome.

While that seems pretty minor, and in the context one one character is a symptom, the end result speaks for itself. Well, as much as it can while remaining a mystery, at least 'til next issue.

 

What I don't understand - is the point of Nightbeat and Nautica's unscrambled conversation about the briefcase. If you read it in the correct order, it says that whatever was in Brainstorm's briefcase was probably stolen...

Don't quite see how that fits into any of the information we have. Nautica agrees with Nightbeat, and I don't see why either.

"An unlocked case, accessible to all".

 

it implies they had no realization that time got screwed up for a page. i still think brainstorm doesn't know either

 

I came here to post that exact same thing. I'm shocked someone else thought of it.

It totally changes the way you look at Harry Kim for the rest of the series... Though if it happens here, people will know about it.

 

Outside possibility but I read a theory on another forum that perhaps Tarn and Dominus Ambus have something to do with each other. Would explain how he knew about the Tyrest trigger and why Rewind (his former Conjunx Endura) was left alive.

As a side note, I could see something happening where Rewind II survives, is reunited with Chromedome, and suddenly Rewind I is revealed to be alive after all. What does Chromedome do?

 

Oh that would have been an awesome moment to see. That said, I'd still love for an actual Overlord vs DJD battle.

Agreed, of course, we still don't know how often a member of the DJD falls in battle either  

Then again, isn't it totally possible that Tarn "allows" Rewing to live so there's video evidence of what will happen to anyone who crosses the DJD.

 

Yeah I wondered if that lightning was part of a phenomena and/or deliberate action that put Rewind there.

I also think (without poring over every issue to make sure my timeline's spot-on) that some names in your third question might go a long way to answering your first. In the story we know and have been following for years, Pharma had been dealing with the DJD at least during his time on Delphi, though it may have stopped at that. He also knew, or got to know Tyrest from at least a short time after that, if not earlier. Of course Tyrest knew about the palm triggered teleporter and may well have told Pharma.

All that's pretty easy, but none of it might be relevant. Firstly, and most practically (that is, setting aside much of the time travel/alternate ship or reality theorizing), we can't be sure that Pharma remained in contact with the DJD after he met Tyrest.

During Remain In Light, a cool theory came up that Tyrest is eitehr responsible directly or some kind of figurehead or colluded with not just whoever is his Ultra Magnus was, enforcing the Accord with the Autobots, but also for Star Saber and the DJD, operating in a similar capacity for the Circle of Light and Decepticons respectively, with each taking the task in their own style. This would mean the middle man - Pharma - was cut out and that the DJD could have known the true nature of the Magnus Armour for quite some time.

This raises a question though. If the DJD knew about the Armour, why didn't Megatron know about it? Megatron himself points out that they follow the Decepticon cause as they see fit, and not him, strictly speaking. To this, such a detail might seem trivial to a team whose work seems like a hobby even when killing rouge Phase Sixers. As such, they might never have needed to trouble him with reports. Still, one might wonder by which system The List was updated, and it's also worth noting that Megatron suggests calling in DJD assets during Dark Cybertron, make of that what you will!

Perhaps the DJD is somewhat larger than we know. Or at least the roster might change to a degree; where, for instance, is the Autobot's embedded agent who operated in the DJD on Delphi. Of course it would be remiss of me to so clearly separate this from the whole disappearing/alternate crew and ship situation when this issue's so violently tied them together -though not resolved everything, of course.

 

Question for the floor, just to move on a bit from the DJD and the ship

The last 4 months have been full of questions and debates about Megatron's motives and sincerity. How do people feel following this issues?

 

Good call, and it's funny that you raise that point. I was having a look in the Comics section at upcoming solicitations, and after MTMTE #32, this one seems to have a little more grounding or significance to it:

http://www.tfw2005.com/transformers-news/attach/3/9/6/4/7/OctSolic2_1405490901.jpg