Comics Reading Club: Zob's Thoughts on Marvel Comics THE TRANSFORMERS #19

[Zobovor]

Ugh! I got sick yesterday. Totally forgot it was the 15th. My bad.

THE TRANSFORMERS issue #19 was entitled "Command Performances!"  First printed on May 13, 1986, the issue had a cover date of August 1986 (the same month that The Transformers: the Movie hit theaters, incidentally).  The cover, illustrated by Herp Trimpe, boasts, "You asked for him—you got him!  Omega Supreme!"  That's a common Marvel catch phrase, used frequently on their front covers to drum up prospective interest.
"You asked for it, you got it!  Hulk vs. Spider-Man!" or some such nonsense.  The cover showcases the mighty Autobot single-handedly battling the bulk of the Decepticon forces, crushing Starscream in his claw and blasting Rumble to bits.  But, we know the front cover is often merely a representation of the story within, and that it's sometimes not a literal depiction of events.  Surely they wouldn't actually kill off all these Decepticons... right?  Right?

Bob Budiansky scripted this issue, of course, with Don Perlin providing the pencils and the team of Ian Akin and Brian Garvey inking the art.  (Akin & Garvey would later go on to embellish the artwork for the official character models appearing in TRANSFORMERS UNIVERSE, so in some ways I associate their art style with the true and correct look for Transformers as they appear in Marvel Comics.)  Janice Chiang is our letterer for this issue and Nel Yomtov was the colorist.

The story begins outside the Ark, with all the Autobots (including the Dinobots, who we haven't seen in a while) gathered to witness the unveiling of the mighty Omega Supreme.  This was the special project Grapple was assigned to work on back in issue #14, and the reason why we haven't seen him recently.  

Optimus laments that the Autobot technology used for Omega Supreme isn't quite up to snuff.  While they managed to figure out how to get his rocket and tank modules to combine into a single robot, it pales in comparison with the Decepticon technology that generated Devastator, who can separate into six fully-independent Decepticon warriors.  Devastator tech is clearly superior.  Prime's plan, then, is to use Omega Supreme to guard the Ark, while he launches an attack on the Decepticons to study Devastator and attempt to learn the secret of his combining ability.  

In some ways, we can all sort of see where this is heading.  We know that the 1986 product line includes toys like the Aerialbots and Protectobots and Combaticons and Stunticons, and we also know that as of yet, the Autobots don't have a combiner team of their own.  So, within the context of Marvel Comics, the innovation of Devastator evidently paved the way for the Autobots to eventually crack the secret of combiner technology for themselves. (Shockwave developed the Constructicon ability to combine, so one supposes he's just a lot smarter than Grapple.)

Ratchet expresses worries about the dozen-odd Autobots still injured and recovering inside the Ark, but Omega promises to defend them.  Skids openly questions whether attacking the Decepticons is a good idea, but Optimus rebuffs his concerns.  Grimlock also takes the opportunity to question Prime's plans.  "We are warriors, but because you say we would stand out among humans, we never go to war!" he complains.  With that, the Dinobots storm off.  Prime assures the others that he was counting on the Dinobots reacting badly, and in a strangely overconfident moment, decrees that "their departure changes nothing."  In Optimus we trust.  With that, the active Autobots (Prime, Bumblebee, Wheeljack, most of the 1985 Autobot Cars, and Jetfire) head for the mission.

At the Decepticon base, a strip mine in Wyoming, Shockwave has arranged for the Constructicons to fortify the base, making it virtually impregnable.  As always, Shockwave and Megatron quibble about the command decisions being made.  Shockwave sees no point in the continued presence of Robot-Master, for example.  Megatron, meanwhile, places no faith in the defenses Shockwave has constructed, finding them cowardly.  Megatron takes most of the troops with him to go meet the new Decepticons they're expecting to arrive over the space bridge, which they'd arranged with Straxus last issue.

Optimus Prime's team passes through a human city, so they activate their facsimile circuitry, hiding their Autobot badges and producing fake human drivers to avoid suspicion.  Skids is daydreaming and fails to notice a parked Lamborghini Countach until he clips its rear bumper.  When he tries to explain to Optimus, his leader advises him to press on and focus on the mission. Reluctantly, Skids follows orders.

The owner of the car, Jake Dalrymple, is less than charitable as he watches Skids drive off, and vows to go after him.  (There's an inaccuracy in the artwork when Jake and his girlfriend open the doors to the car.  The Countach had gullwing doors that would swing upwards, not outwards like a normal car.  Of course, it's highly unlikely that any of the artists had ever seen a Countach in real life... not on a Marvel salary, anyway!)

When the Autobots encounter a military blockade, Jetfire swoops into action, distracting most of the military personnel and giving the Autobots the opportunity to press on.  Jake Dalrymple isn't so lucky, and is stopped by the remaining military troops.  The Autobots make it to the Decepticon base, and are assaulted by a barrage of weaponsfire.  Again, Skids questions Prime's judgment, but Prime is steadfast and determined.  Skids is going to get his comeuppance before too long.  He's almost become the Autobot version of Starscream.

Elsewhere, Megatron's group arrives at the river bed where the space bridge was supposed to deliver the Decepticon reinforcements.  Instead, they spot Blaster and his group, still surrounded by the police vehicles, as seen at the end of last issue.  (Confusingly, Blaster is colored like Optimus Prime for a single panel.)  Before Megatron can strike, however, Shockwave alerts him to the Autobot assault and recalls him.  Megatron recognizes this as his opportunity to capture the Ark (again), believing it to be completely undefended.  

Back at the base, Prime knows that if the Autobot assault is aggressive enough, it will eventually compel the Decepticons to unleash Devastator to tip the scales.  Sure enough, Shockwave issues the order for the Constructicons to combine.  Bumblebee is on hand, recording their electronic transformation pattern with an electro-signal interceptor.  (Weirdly enough, the narration boxes describe Devastator's transformation as taking about thirty seconds to complete.  It's almost as if, in the Marvel universe, the transformations take as long as it takes to transform the toys in real life!)  The artwork is also really weird here, showing construction vehicles connecting into each other in ways that has nothing to do with Devastator's transformation.  Mixmaster's mixing drum somehow morphs into Devastator's FACE. Figure THAT one out.

As everyone's attention is on Devastator, Donny Finkleberg, who was being guarded by Ravage, takes the opportunity to flee.  When Bumblebee reports that he's captured the information he needed, Prime calls the retreat.  Jake Dalrymple continues to argue with the military personnel.  Ravage notices that Robot-Master is missing, and goes to look for him.

At the Ark, Megatron observes that a tank and rocket are the only things guarding the base, and in his overconfidence decides to attack.  Skywarp is blasted out of the air before the Decepticons even get a chance to land, and Megatron casually dismisses his destruction.  "The fool deserved it for being so careless!" he scoffs.  So heartless.  

The Decepticons are zapped by Omega's electrified tracks, giving him the time he needs to combine into robot mode.  He proceeds to speak loudly and dramatically.  "I AM THE NUMBER YOU CANNOT COMPUTE, DECEPTICON! I AM THE TERROR THAT FLAPS IN THE NIGHT!  I... AM DARKWING DUCK!"  Okay, not exactly.  But close.

One by one, Decepticon troops are obliterated.  Rumble, Frenzy, Buzzsaw, Thundercracker, even the mighty Starscream.  I would have thought Budiansky would have cherry-picked Starscream to survive, but evidently not.  I guess with Shockwave already questioning Megatron's every move, there's no real reason for a Starscream in this story.  Anyway, Laserbeak narrowly avoids a blast intended for him.  Eventually, it's down to just Omega Supreme and Megatron.  The two go head-to-head, but Megatron's weapons are unable to penetrate Omega's densely-armored body.  Eventually, defeated, Megatron calls for Laserbeak to carry him away, and the two are the sole survivors of their encounter with Omega Supreme.  

Wow.  Given Budiansky's penchant for flipping the script, I would have expected Omega Supreme to be depicted as a slow, blundering dunderhead who is incapable of doing his job.  I mean, that's kind of what we got with the first appearances of Dinobots and Devastator and the 1985 Autobots.  Given the track record, I definitely wouldn't have expected Omega Supreme to basically single-handedly destroy nearly the entire Decepticon army!

This issue really does represent a turning point in the comics.  We've seen that numerous Autobots are inactive and possibly down for the count, but this is the first time the Decepticons have suffered major losses.  A great many of the original 1984 characters have effectively been phased out of the story, ostensibly to make room for the many new 1985 characters.  (Also, as long-time readers already know, the casualties will only continue to pile up!)  Unlike the cartoon series, which continued to use all the 1984 characters in a diminished capacity, the comics are a very different animal.  Killing off characters, or at least permanently incapacitating them, is the answer to make room for new characters.  In some ways, Bob Budiansky was way ahead of The Transformers: the Movie, which was the first time in the cartoon that we saw the deaths of major characters.  Who needs Galvatron to kill Starscream when you've got Omega Supreme?

On their way back, Skids apologizes to Optimus for openly doubting his plan.  Here's where it all comes to a head.  Ravage has been tracking Robot-Master and spots the Autobot group returning home.  At the same time, the military personnel spot the Autobots, and Jake Dalrymple recognizes Skids from earlier.  He jumps in front of Skids, yelling at him to stop.  Skids, refusing to harm a human, screeches to a halt.  This gives Ravage the opportunity he needs to blast Skids with a missile, knocking him off the road and tumbling down a cliff.  Prime, ever resolute, knows stopping for Skids will endanger the mission, so he presses onward.

Laserbeak returns to the Decepticon base with the damaged Megatron.  Laserbeak returns to Shockwave like a robotic falcon trainer, resting on his shoulder.  Shockwave begins gloating, seeing Megatron's assault as a failure and further evidence he must be removed from command.  Megatron has a very different perspective on things.  Megatron lays the blame on Shockwave, recognizing the Autobot attack was clearly a distraction and that they must have achieved their goal.  Moreover, Megatron doesn't see the assault as a defeat at all.  "As for the Decepticons we lost today—they mean nothing!  They can be replaced!" he says.  

Shockwave takes a moment to consider things before he realizes Megatron is right.  Even Laserbeak seems to recognize that the power hierarchy has shifted, and takes his rightful perch upon Megatron's shoulder.  Shockwave steps down, acknowledging Megatron as the true commander.

Back at the Ark, the Autobots have gathered up the Decepticon wreckage and placed it all in cold storage.  The other Autobots are in a mood to celebrate, but Prime is not as happy.  The apparent loss of Skids weighs heavily on his conscience.  As much as he tried to anticipate every possible variable, he admits that he completely failed to account for the human factor.  However, we see the damaged Skids in a ditch, still playing music from his radio, suggesting that perhaps his story isn't quite over...

Next issue promises that "the Transformers meet the Wild West in SHOWDOWN!"  Anyone who's read the comics before knows that this is a spotlight story for Skids, and one of the issues that is frequently brought up when the subject of Marvel Comics is raised.  Naturally, we'll be looking at that one next month!


Zob (writes these things about a month in advance, so you'd think I'd remember to actually post them on time)