« The Transformers (UK) #287 »
"Inside Story!"
Publisher	Marvel Comics
First published	8th September 1990
Cover date	15th September 1990
Writer	Simon Furman
Pencils	Pete Knifton
Inks	Pete Venters
Lettering	Stuart Bartlett
Continuity	Marvel Comics continuity/Earthforce

Irwin will do anything for a story. Anything.

Synopsis

Irwin is a none-too-successful journalist, hoping to one day find the "Man bites dog" story that will make his career. His column details how he came to be in this situation.

Irwin is being carried at the end of a rope by Springer and reaches Superion. Irwin swings inside at the foot level and Springer flies away just as Superion smashes a house. As Irwin starts to climb through Superion, his column decides to start at the beginning.

Irwin had picked up a story on the police scanner about a giant robot running amok in upstate New York. He decided to check it out and couldn't believe his luck—some photographs and a write-up and he could name his own price. Then he was approached by Grimlock, Prowl, and Springer who declared they wanted him.

Prowl explained that Superion is an Autobot, one of the good robots, and was only rampaging because Bombshell implanted a cerebro-shell in his brain. As Superion is too strong to be subdued by force, the Autobots needed someone to remove the shell from the inside. And it was obvious who that "someone" was to be. Irwin asked what was in it for him and Prowl offered an exclusive interview with Grimlock. Irwin agreed.

Irwin continues to climb through Superion, thinking of getting a Pulitzer Prize or the cover of Time magazine. This distracts him from the pain inflicted by internal defences Prowl forgot to tell him about.

Superion has now reached a town and Grimlock orders that, if necessary, they must destroy the giant. The three Autobots raise their weapons and Prowl shouts for Irwin to come on.

Just at that moment, Irwin reaches the brain and pulls out the cerebro-shell. Superion's personality reasserts itself and everyone is relieved. And Irwin realises this is a "Man bites dog" story!

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Quotes

"[Narrating] I believe in that old journalistic rule that says 'Dog bites man' is not news. But 'Man bites dog' - that's news!"

—Irwin

"This is it. We not allow Superion to destroy town - even if we have to destroy him!"

—Grimlock

"[Narrating] Now this...is what I call 'Man bites dog!'"

—Irwin on saving the day.

Notes

Artwork and technical errors

• Superion's cannon appears to be an extension of his right arm, rather than a separate weapon, and is not damaged when he punches his right first into the ground.

Continuity errors

• Previous cerebro-shells used by Bombshell are small enough to travel in a human's bloodstream. The one in Superion's brain box is the size and shape of a spherical lollipop, which is probably not much smaller than Bombshell himself in insect mode.

Continuity notes

• Irwin's surname is not given in this issue, but it is revealed to be "Spoon" in "End of the Road!".
• Irwin uses "man bites dog" as a metaphor for a newsworthy story here, but in the very next issue the tabloid Front Line! runs a story literally titled "Man bites dog!" on page two.

Real-life references

• TBD

Other trivia

• American fan Liane Eliot writes in to complain the UK comic can't be found Stateside anymore and asks Dreadwind to publish full addresses of Yanks, so UK fans can write to them and send copies. This is something he'll end up doing. Dread Tidings also confirms Titan distributed the comic overseas; in a decade's time, they'll start reprinting the comic and go on to make their own!
  • Eliot goes on to have letters published in the penultimate US issue and Generation 2 as well, the only fan to pull off this hat trick.

Back-up material

• Additional Transformers story: Deadly Obsession
• Other strips: G.I. Joe the Action Force - "Fair Trade" and Combat Colin
• AtoZ: Unicron

Cover

• Issue #287 cover: Superion menaces Springer, by Stewart Johnson.

• 

  Issue #287

Reprints

• Transformers: Perchance to Dream: Menasor smacks down Superion, detail from the cover of issue #259, by Andrew Wildman.
• Transformers: The Definitive G1 Collection: Volume 20: End of the Road: Bludgeon (art reused from Dreamwave's More than Meets the Eye profiles) above an interior scene of Grimlock punching through Fangry (from US issue #80), by Andrew Wildman.

• 

  Perchance to Dream
  (Titan Books, 2006)

• 

  The Definitive G1 Collection: Volume 20: End of the Road
  (Hachette Partworks, 2018)