« The Transformers Legends of the Microns #8 »
"Linkage" Part 8
Publisher	Columbia Music Entertainment
First published	26 November 2003
Written by	Hirofumi Ichikawa
Art by	Hirofumi Ichikawa
Continuity	Armada cartoon
Packaged with	Legends of the Microns 8

The Mini-Cons make arrangements with the Autobots. Meanwhile, their enemies make a new plan...

Synopsis

Outside the Autobot base at Mount Astrogate, Servo reunites with Rollbar and also talks with High Wire, noting that the bike-former actually met up with "them". Servo then relays that Redline saw "the terrible one" during his journey into the Linkage and has begun working hard on unlocking the Master Key, which he believes can grant their race true freedom. Rollbar is doubtful, and High Wire asks Servo to come back to the Autobots with them, but Servo politely refuses, relaying Redline's message "Prepare for the transformation."

After they say their goodbyes, Servo explains the plan to Falcia and Twirl, who were guarding the trio. Falcia notes she'll stick with Redline for now, having seen the same horror while in the Linkage...prompting Twirl to giggle about families sticking together. This prompts Falcia to try and injure Twirl.

Meanwhile, a Seeker Bug has located the Mini-Cons' spaceship base off the coast of the northwestern Hawaiian Islands. The Aqua Raider Team are dispatched to the area, under orders to capture a few for experimentation and kill the others. Meanwhile, the Speed Chaser Team are in Antarctica, receiving a pair of mysterious objects from Sideways and Mirror: a large metal casket, and a container with a mysterious, glowing gem....

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Quotes

"Oh, way cool! Like, I just love when families stay together!"
"Say zat again, Twirl, an' I'm-a puttin' you offline!"
"EEEK! Abusive mother! Save me, Servo!"

—Twirl and Falcia have a moment

Notes

• This comic was available only with the eighth volume of the Legends of the Microns DVD in Japan, along with the exclusive Freeboot toy. Later pressings of the DVD did not include either.

Transformers references

• The "them" Servo refers to when talking to High Wire are the three human children Rad, Carlos and Alexis, since in the Armada cartoon, these three children turn out to be the reason the Mini-Cons developed souls and free will, starting with High Wire. This plot point had been revealed on the aired-on-TV episodes by now, but not in the released-on-DVD episodes.
• Rollbar apologizes for making the Super Stunt Team worry, having run off with Scavenger back in Part 4.

Stupid toy-accuracy keeping me from crossing my arms...

• High Wire, Sideways and Mirror are drawn really toy-like, rather than using their more simplified cartoon models. This is simply Ichikawa's general preference for drawing the more detailed toy models...plus since that's how he'd been drawing the Linkage-original characters, cartoon models would clash heavily.
• The thing Redline saw in the last issue is explained somewhat as the eyes of "the terrible one". Though it's not explicitly said who that is, it's the Mini-Cons' creator, Unicron. Again, because the DVD episodes hadn't revealed him yet, he's not explicitly named.
• Sideways has been absent from the cartoon storyline since the episode "Awakening" (released on the previous disc), where he seemed to come back from the dead to taunt both the Autobots and Decepticons, his allegiance to a shadowy, unnamed menace revealed back in "Chase". This is also a vanishingly rare appearance of his "real" robot-mode head.

Trivia

• Another text-heavy issue, but again, necessary.
• All three members of the Aqua Raider Team show up at once, all unnamed (though since the DVD came with the Freeboot toy, people knew who he was). Of them, only Freeboot and Bilge get dialogue, and only Freeboot is shown in robot mode.
• Bilge's pirate-speak was added to the English translations by Doug Dlin at the request of writer Hirofumi Ichikawa.
• Page four is a Team bio for the Sonic Assault Team.

External links

• "Official" Linkage mini-comic translations (archived)