People Power!
From Transformers Wiki
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Get... in... me... belly! | |||||||||||||
"People Power!" | |||||||||||||
Publisher | Marvel Comics | ||||||||||||
First published | March 1988 | ||||||||||||
Cover date | July 1988 | ||||||||||||
Writer | Bob Budiansky | ||||||||||||
Breakdowns | José Delbo | ||||||||||||
Finishes | Dave Hunt & Don Hudson | ||||||||||||
Colorist | Nel Yomtov | ||||||||||||
Letterer | Bill Oakley | ||||||||||||
Editor | Don Daley | ||||||||||||
Continuity | Marvel Comics continuity |
A small band of Autobots take Optimus Prime's consciousness to Nebulos to have a new body built for him, but encounter some potentially deadly challenges.
Contents |
Synopsis
On the planet Nebulos, an alien jet attacks the Gardens of Eternal Peace and Harmony Macrobiotic Restaurant. The jet splits into the bickering Decepticons Dreadwind and Darkwing, who each discharge a transformable humanoid passenger. The two bio-engineered Nebulans, Hi-Test and Throttle, confront the maitre d' and demand a dozen of the restaurant's best entrées.
Meanwhile, the Steelhaven arrives in orbit over Nebulos. Its crew, Goldbug, Slapdash, Joyride, and Getaway, journey to the surface and meet with the Nebulan scientist, Hi-Q, at his research facility. Hi-Q is reluctant to help them in their mission to construct a new body for Optimus Prime, though not because he's unwilling.
Hi-Q explains that after the departure of the Transformers from their world, Brothers in Armor!! he and his former partner Hi-Test were charged with preventing the Transformers from ever returning. Under his direction, a bomb was detonated, tainting all fuel sources on the planet so as to be poisonous to any Transformer. Hi-Q's success drove the jealous Hi-Test to quit, however.
When Darkwing and Dreadwind arrived looking for Scorponok's crew, they soon found themselves victim of this poisoning, and lay dormant for a time. Hi-Test recruited the thief Throttle to steal Hi-Q's research into what he called the Powermaster process, allowing a bio-engineered Nebulan to serve as a replacement power source for a poisoned Transformer. Hi-Test and Throttle undergo the necessary alterations, and partner with the two Decepticons, reviving them. A major side-effect is that, in order to generate the energy, the Nebulans must consume huge quantities of food, and many of Darkwing and Dreadwind's attacks are to secure supplies. Hi-Q has thus far been unable to devise a way to stop them.
Goldbug says they can stop the rampaging Decepticons, but Hi-Q reminds them that they, too, will be poisoned if they partake of local fuel resources. Goldbug is adamant that they at least stay and complete their mission, despite the danger to themselves. Hi-Q says that he, his staff, and his facilities are at their disposal... but that he will not be saddened when the Autobots inevitably fall.
Darkwing and Dreadwind, meanwhile, attack the Council of Peers at Koraja, determined this time to find out what happened to Scorponok's crew. The Autobots hear of the attack and come to the rescue, only to get soundly trounced by the Powermaster-enhanced Decepticons.
Returning to the lab, the steadily-weakening Autobots complete Optimus Prime's new body with Hi-Q's help. Even though he will only live a short while in his poisoned body, Goldbug is adamant that it is "far better for Optimus Prime to die a whole Autobot" than carry on in his current condition. Thus Prime's mind is transferred into the new body. He can now combine with a new trailer component, granting him greater power than ever before—an upgrade he can't wait to use in the next game! Goldbug despairs; even restoring him to life hasn't convinced Optimus that he's not just a computer simulation.
But, suddenly, Optimus Prime is struck by pain as the poisoned fuel kicks in. He realizes that since he can feel pain and potentially die, he must be alive... and thanks Goldbug for freeing him from the living death of the disk for a few precious moments of life. Hi-Q is struck by the realization that the Autobots are both alive and as noble as any Nebulan he's met. He volunteers to save Optimus by undergoing the Powermaster process himself. Three of his staff eagerly agree to help out Joyride, Getaway and Slapdash. Only the pacifist Kari refuses to participate, but luckily, Goldbug is quite fuel efficient and has plenty of fuel reserves left.
Some time later, Darkwing and Dreadwind have coerced the location of the Autobots from the Nebulans, and move to attack Hi-Q's lab. They are met by the rejuvenated Powermaster Autobots, however, who can now match them shot for shot. The entry of Optimus Prime into the battle causes it to end very quickly; the Decepticons crash and burn. Hi-Q confronts Hi-Test, pointing out what his petty jealousy has caused: the return of war to Nebulos. The Council has already sentenced Hi-Test and Throttle to exile from Nebulos; they rejoin their partners and rocket off to parts unknown.
Goldbug prepares to depart alone in the Steelhaven; the Powermaster process has inextricably tied the Autobots and the Nebulans together, and the robots are now bound to the world of their partners. But Kari points out that Nebulos may not be a suitable home for the binary-bonded Nebulans anymore. Hi-Q realizes she's right—their presence endangers the planet. The Autobots and their new partners all say a sad farewell to Nebulos.
Featured characters
(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)
Autobots | Decepticons | Nebulans |
---|---|---|
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Quotes
"Time to separate, Darkwing! Get off my back!"
"Only a rust infection could be worse than staying there, Dreadwind!"
- —the Powermasters introduce themselves to the reader, fully in character.
"You'll pay for that insult, Nebulan - with your life!"
"And without him what would become of you, Darkwing --? ...You would grind to a halt, your body corroding, festering, sinking into an irreversible, inoperative oblivion, with no hope for --"
"Stuff the rosy forecast, Dreadwind. I get the point."
- —Darkwing and Dreadwind, ladies and gentlemen
"Your fuel is poisoned. You're... dying."
"Of course. Dying... such a fascinating sensation. But... in order to die... I would have to be more than just a pattern of magnetized bits on a disc. Much more. I must be alive."
"And I have doomed you. I... am sorry, Optimus."
"Don't apologize, old friend. Existing on that disc... was a living death. Escaping it... for these few moments of precious life... is well worth it. I... thank you."
- —Goldbug and Optimus Prime
"Better the black abyss of permanent shutdown than any more of this barrage!"
"You take the abyss route, Dreadwind -- I'm taking off!"
- —Dreadwind and Hi-Test
Notes
Artwork and technical errors
- On the cover, Joyride is colored green/dark blue/white and Getaway is colored orange and silver-blue.
- The Nebulan capital city of Koraja appears radically different than it did in the Headmasters miniseries; the new version of Koraja is both much larger and more overtly high-tech than the miniseries' version.
- The Gardens of Eternal Peace and Harmony Macrobiotic Restaurant that Dreadwind and Darkwing attack at the start of the story has "RESTAURANT" written across the entrance in English instead of Nebulanese; a flying cab has TAXI written on it.
- Page 6, panel 9: Hi-Test is shown in his Powermaster armor before he's actually become a Powermaster.
- For his first appearance in his super-robot mode, José Delbo swiped Optimus Prime's pose directly from his character model as depicted in his The Transformers Universe|Transformers Universe profile.
Continuity errors
- Goldbug describes Hi-Q as "precisely the human we came to see". Whether describing Nebulans as "human" is an error or not depends on how pedantic you want to be; the Nebulans are for all intents and purposes identical to the humans of Earth. Furthermore, the "error" could just be chalked up to a mistake on Goldbug's part - he's never been to Nebulos before. On the other hand, H-Q himself refers to the inhabitants of the planet as "humans" when talking about the radiation bomb that was detonated. (This highlights an interesting split in the Marvel comics. The US issues repeatedly use the term "human" when referring to the inhabitants of Nebulos, while the UK comics more often call them "Nebulans".)
- Goldbug says Optimus Prime looks identical to how he remembered, but there are a few minor changes made to his character model to make it look more like the toy, including hip wheels, no gas cans on his legs, and smokestacks that protrude from inside of his shoulders instead of attached on the outside. He's also miscoloured from his character model as his forearms should be blue, a mistake eventually fixed in "King Con!".
- Is it really plausible that a humanoid could power a full-size Transformer via the contents of their stomach, particularly one with high fuel demands required by flight capability? Admittedly, this all could be a self-aware parody of the already-typical 'Decepticons raid resources for fuel' storyline.
- The three Powermasters-to-be are supposed to be lying helpless in the repair bay while Optimus Prime is reactivated, but they're shown up and about instead.
- Nebulos apparently eliminated all their weapons to make sure that they would never be able to fight again. Despite this Hi-Q and company decided, apparently of their own volition, to build a heavily armoured trailer that Prime could combine with to form a super robot equipped with at least 4 different guns. Mixed messages, guys.
Continuity notes
- Slapdash, Joyride, and Getaway all made their first appearances in the previous issue, in which they were charged with guarding the Optimus Prime disk on board Steelhaven.
- Hi-Q explains the steps that the Council of Peers took to keep invading robots off Nebulos after the final issue of the Headmasters miniseries. Flashbacks recall the first battle at Koraja and the final panels of the Headmaster series as the Nebulans rebuild.
- The Autobots literally start falling apart from lack of fuel, a concept not seen before or after this issue.
UK printing
Issue #176
- Back-up strips: Action Force - "Pit-Fall" and Combat Colin
- AtoZ: Optimus Prime (updated)
- In Grim Grams, Grimlock declines to answer a puzzle involving guessing the identity of a Dinobot who transforms into a T-Rex, hates Blaster, and answers the letter page.
Issue #177
- Back-up strips: Action Force - "Pit-Fall" and Combat Colin
- In Grim Grams, Grimlock states he doesn't believe that an appearance by an issue of Transformers on long running UK soap Coronation Street could be considered an honor.
Other trivia
- The letters page of the US printing confirmed a second 4-issue Transformers Universe to be released in the summer of 1988, which was seemingly canceled at the last minute due to declining sales. As a result, starting with issue #47 Universe profiles were occasionally included in issues of the ongoing series, allowing Marvel to maintain the per issue page quota while also reducing production costs.
Bot Roster
- Ark Autobots: 47 active as Optimus Prime is returned to life; 5 bodyless Throttlebots. (52 total)
- Steelhaven Autobots: 28 active.
- Ratbat's Decepticons: 32 active; 8 presumably rescued from the Ark; 4 offline/missing. (44 total)
- Scorponok's Decepticons: 25 active.
Courtesy of my...
- Dreadwind fires one of his thermal melters at Goldbug.
Covers (3)
- US issue #42 cover: battle royal, by José Delbo and Dave Hunt.
- UK issue #176 cover: Darkwing and Dreadwind by Kev Hopgood; the image of Dreadwind from this cover was reused as part of the first "Dread Tidings" masthead during the character's stint on Marvel UK letters page.
- UK issue #177 cover: Optimus Prime cover by Jeff Anderson proclaiming the character's return. This image would later be cropped and used as the character portrait in the info block on future UK covers.
UK issue #176 – Oh no, not again!
UK issue #177 – Yep, he's back, and here to stay. Until he gets killed again. And then is back to stay again. And then gets killed again. Because the Fates have decreed that this is the path of the Hero.
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US
- Jolly Ranchers Apple Stix - inside front cover
- Infocomics - between pages 4 & 5
- Marvel's Evolutionary War - between pages 5 & 6
- New England Comics - between pages 7 & 8
- Comic distributors and Sketchy ads - between pages 8 & 9
- Marvel Super Hero Medallions - between pages 16 & 17
- Wizards & Warriors video game / J&S Comics - between pages 17 & 18
- Bullpen Bulletins and checklist - between pages 19 & 20
- Several comic distributors and Marvel Super Mart - between pages 20 & 21
- Transmissions
- Marvel subscription service
- Konami NES video games: Jackal and Contra - inside back cover
- TSR Marvel Super Heroes RPG (back cover)
UK
Issue 176
Issue 177
- Powermasters - page 9
- Classifieds - page 22
- Mutant (glow in the dark pseudo-Silly Putty) - back cover
Reprints
- Transformers: Maximum Force TPB – Scorponok, a Targetmaster gun, the Steelhaven and half of Skullgrin's head, by Andrew Wildman.
- Transformers: Maximum Force HC – Skullgrin, by Peter Snejbjerg.
- Transformers: Magazine #1 – Optimus Prime and Megatron clash, by Robby Musso.
- Classic Transformers Volume 3 – Panels from US issues #35, #36, #42 and #44, by José Delbo, Don Perlin, Dave Hunt, Don Hudson, Ian Akin, Brian Garvey, and Nel Yomtov.
- The Transformers Classics, Vol. 4 – Starscream, by Guido Guidi.
- Transformers: The Definitive G1 Collection Volume 12: Cosmic Carnival – Skullgrin and the Cosmic Carnival, by Don Figueroa, Frank Springer and Danny Bulanadi.