Engineering is about precision and careful calculation. Except when there’s no time and something is really, really stuck.
Then, it’s about the judicious application of brute force.
Keep reading for a review of Transformers #24.
After watching the Autobots on Cybertron flail around ineptly (I know the Ascenticons and the Rise are a type of problem they’ve never dealt with before but seriously guys get a clue) it’s nice to watch Wheeljack and his team tackle a big, mechanical problem. A really big problem.
I thought the Tether attached the Winged Moon to Cybertron was just a pipeline, to transfer the Energon down. Turns out, it was also a literal tether, keeping the moon from falling out of orbit. In related news “sun-dive” is an awfully cool name for what the Moon’s about to do.
There’s sort of an A-Team feel to this issue, several experts trying to solve a problem on a deadline, cobbling together one solution after another. It also reinforces the idea that you can’t just go digging on Cybertron or its moon, because it’s not a planet, it’s a machine, and cutting holes in it will probably break something important.
I hadn’t really realized before now that Wheeljack is Gears’ mentor, and he has a great speech that really sums up the unending patience of the teachers I’ve met.
Speaking of Wheeljack and mentors, we also got a flashback to his days working with Termagax and the Ascenticons. Up till now we only saw her as a bitter recluse, refusing to talk to anyone except Megatron. In the flashback we saw a younger, more idealistic Termagax, who believes the only way to change things is to go into politics. It’s a pretty timely message, the idea that lots of people go into politics with the idea of doing some good, and it doesn’t take long for all that optimism to get smacked around and destroyed.
But it’s also a reminder that the Winged Moon is one of Termagax’s creations, so Wheeljack has one more reason to save it.
Also, this issue we see a mention of “Infiltration Troopers.” Does anyone know how long that’s been the accepted term for Soundwave and Blaster’s cassettes? I know they’ve tried “Deployer” and “Mini-Cons,” but Infiltration Trooper sounds to me like the better name. Also, I don’t think they’re connected to Soundwave or Blaster yet, I wonder how that’s going to happen.
And, no spoilers, the ending surprised me, I definitely wasn’t expecting that.
Beth-McGuire-Smith had the art this issue, and not only do we get some impressive shots of the Moon when it’s way too close to the sun, but all the expressions were great too, even on bots like Wheeljack and Cosmos, who don’t have mouths, you could still see all the emotions.
