« Optimus Prime #16 »
"The Falling Chapter 2: Another Mine"
Publisher	IDW Publishing
First published	February 28, 2018
Cover date	February 2018
Written by	John Barber
Art by	Kei Zama
Colors by	Josh Burcham
Letters by	Tom B. Long
Editor	Carlos Guzman
Assistant editor	David Mariotte
Continuity	2005 IDW continuity
Chronology	Current era

Soundwave's concern mounts as Onyx Prime meets with Optimus Prime and the Council behind closed doors.

Synopsis

In a moment of lapsed focus, Soundwave's super-senses overwhelm him, and his mind drifts back in time... back to when he was supervisor in the mines of Luna 2 under the overseeing eyes of Sentinel Prime and Prowl, when Ravage was still helping him learn to focus his abilities. Then, his thoughts move forward to the recent past, to when Optimus Prime blackmailed him into working at his side, threatening to fracture the Decepticon dream he had built aboard Sanctuary Station by revealing that Soundwave was responsible for taking Horri-Bull's life. Realizing how much he had compromised in the name of his dream, Soundwave believed he could move past old grievances and work with Optimus...

...but today, he finds himself in a mine once more, in Kentucky, on Earth, mining Ore-13 for Cybertron, and wonders if it was all worth it. As he ruminates, a call comes through from Aileron; something has happened on Cybertron. Soundwave heads to Autobot City, where Pyra Magna and the Torchbearers are on standby, awaiting what Pyra believes is an inevitable call to action to save Cybertron—but until such a call comes, she isn't going anywhere, so Soundwave heads through the Space Bridge to Cybertron alone. He is unprepared for the sight that greets him: the colossal eyeball-ship of Onyx Prime, who now descends to the surface of the planet to meet with its leaders. Onyx asks to speak with Optimus Prime alone, Prime-to-Prime, to discuss the fate of his prisoner, Liege Maximo, but Windblade denies the request. At the urging of the Mistress of Flame, the Council of Worlds and the Primes—including Alpha Trion—withdraw to the Spire to discuss matters together, behind closed doors instead of in the middle of the street, leaving Soundwave behind.

From a nearby rooftop, Scoop and the Constructicons watch the scene. The fact that Starscream knew about Onyx's arrival despite being locked away in prison has proven "miraculous" enough to re-ignite Scoop's dormant faith, but the other Constructicons aren't buying it, and suggest he find a different drum to bang.

Of course, Scoop has no way of knowing that Starscream was given the information by the invisible "ghost" of Bumblebee—who even now is updating the imprisoned former ruler of Cybertron on what's going on. Starscream isn't very interested, though, instead lost in thought staring at the hologram of his "true self". But Bumblebee doesn't believe in all that Camien talk about "god-given forms"; in his opinion, a 'bot makes their own shape, and Starscream needs to accept that it wasn't being denied some idea of his "true self" that led his life to this point—that is on Starscream himself.

Happy to see that the word of a Prime is not being taken as law, Soundwave brings news of Onyx Prime's return to a group of Decepticons visiting from Sanctuary Station. Dreadwing and Needlenose aren't convinced this isn't the beginning of a slide back to the way things once were, so Soundwave invites them, Swift, and Tracks to accompany him to the Spire so they can learn for themselves. There, Liege Maximo is being guarded by Beachcomber, Seaspray, and two of Onyx's "Maximal" beast-bots; feeling guilty after a recent error of judgement concerning Starscream, Beachcomber allows Soundwave five minutes to speak with Maximo, but Soundwave is unable to obtain any information from the Prime of Lies, as he finds he cannot read his mind. He instructs the rest of the group to wait while he ascends the Spire to the Council meeting chamber...

Floors above, Onyx and the Council discuss matters. Onyx is happy to see Cybertron becoming united again after millions of years of disharmony, but Alpha Trion reminds him that, misguided though they were, the Decepticons' rebellion against the Functionism that arose from the Primes' tribal divisions of the populace was ultimately a good thing. Onyx is suspicions of humanity after the recent invasion, however, and claims to have the power to repair Cybertron's tainted, diminished energon, freeing the planet from its current reliance on Earth. Optimus flushes with anger; he is in no rush to accept Onyx at face value, given the threat Galvatron warned he posed. Windblade objects to Optimus speaking this way, as he has no official rank within the council any more, but the Mistress of Flame comes to Optimus's defense, still steadfast in her belief that, as "The Arisen," Optimus is the future of Cybertron. Trion tries to calm the Mistress, but she persists, reminding them of Onyx's attack on Caminus... an attack Windblade knew nothing about. The arguing escalates, and Optimus calls for calm, making the point that Galvatron was the worst of the worst, so perhaps they shouldn't take his words too seriously...

...which is the precise moment Soundwave bursts into the room. Hearing Optimus advocating for Onyx proves to be the tipping point; Soundwave angrily announces his refusal to let the Decepticons stand idly by while the old Prime-led regime reasserts itself. Then, as everyone argues, and just as Alpha Trion realizes something awful about Onyx, a massive explosion of unknown origin suddenly rips through the Spire. It is in this moment of lost focus that Soundwave's mind dances through time; a moment later, he pulls himself together and surveys the damage, noticing that Alpha Trion has taken the worst of the blast. Soundwave rushes to his side, but it is too late: the old 'bot has perished. The accusing finger of Onyx points at Soundwave—the explosion, the Lord of Beasts declares, must be the work of the Decepticons, and as it has claimed the life of a Prime, it shall fall to the Primes to seeks justice. Soundwave and the Decepticons will now be tried alongside Liege Maximo for their crimes!

Featured characters

Characters in italic text appear only in flashbacks.
(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Quotes

"Good luck."
"When has luck been on our side?"
"Always a pleasure."

—Jetfire and Soundwave exchange "pleasantries"

"Governments come and go... Primes are forever."

—Onyx Prime

"Forged or constructed cold, we get what we get."

—The Zen of Bumblebee

"The Decepticons were a societal course-correction that couldn't stop its own momentum."

—Alpha Trion

"Onyx Prime... have you come to draw us together or pull us apart?"
"Sometimes, Mistress... a leader must do one to accomplish the other."

—Mistress of Flame and Onyx Prime

"I was there when the first tribes of Cybertron united. It is nice to see this same thing happening again."

—Onyx Prime

"Despite their crimes, they moved the world away from blind loyalty to our legacy."

—Alpha Trion on the Decepticons

"Have you come to see what a real Prime looks like?"

—Liege Maximo

"Of course—Prime stands with Prime. Each new regime meets in secret to decide our fate. This is what we Decepticons fought against. We refuse to be deceived."

—Soundwave

Notes

Continuity notes

• Soundwave's flashback takes place after he met Ravage, Laserbeak, and Buzzsaw, but before he was recruited by Ratbat; both events were chronicled in Robots in Disguise #22. Prowl mentions that Soundwave has been sent to the mine from "some school in the north"; presumably this must refer to the Jhiaxian Academy of Advanced Technology, which Shockwave was using as a training ground for super-powered outliers like Soundwave, as seen in More than Meets the Eye #11. The idea that Soundwave and Shockwave had any familiarity with one another before meeting as Decepticons is new (and indeed, doesn't really feel very reconcilable with what issue #22 presented as being their first meeting). Evidently, the mine's subsequent closure must lead to Soundwave becoming the unemployed derelict he was when Ratbat approached him.
• Soundwave's meeting with Optimus Prime aboard Sanctuary Station took place in The Transformers #52.
• Alpha Trion and Soundwave refer to their last meeting, in which the former stabbed the latter, and the latter beheaded the former. This happened in The Transformers #57, when Sovereign had hijacked Trion's body.
• Windblade notes that a team led by Chromia had been sent to locate Liege Maximo after his original escape, as seen in the 2017 Till All Are One annual.
• Needlenose talks about acts perpetrated by the Dinobots and the Wreckers during the war; not exactly softies at the best of times, the Dinobots were established to be participants in one of the most horrifying battles of the entire war on Varas Centralus in Punishment mini-series, while the Wreckers' various atrocities and the way they haven been kept under wraps have been the subject of the Last Stand and Sins of the Wreckers mini-series.
• When Soundwave reads Beachcomber's thoughts, we learn that Beachcomber allowed him to see Liege Maximo because he feels guilty about "once aiding Starscream". That particular story was told over in the 2018 Optimus Prime annual, released on the same day as this issue.

Transformers references

• Beachcomber's design is based on his new Power of the Primes toy, while Seaspray's is based on his Titans Return toy. While their inclusion in this story at all would appear to have been inspired by the fact they have these new toys, Barber stated that it was a coincidence.^[1] In any case, neither of the pair have been seen in IDW continuity since the 2009-2011 ongoing series, save for Seaspray being shown in a flashback during the 2017 Transformers annual.
• Beast Wars characters continue to appear as Onyx's followers: the two 'bots guarding Liege Maximo are Ramulus, and, repeating an appearance from last issue, the Beast Wars incarnation of Megatron, this time in full color and everything! He's not likely to be called "Megatron" in this universe, of course...
• Furthering the Beast Wars connection, Onyx Prime calls his beast-bots "Maximals", the heroic faction from the series.

Errors

• On page 6, Fireflight is coloured like Slingshot. Slingshot's dead!
• On page 7, panel 4, Fireshot is colored like Vanquish, with black/blue forearms instead of purple.
• On page 9, panel 4, Scoop, Bonecrusher, and Scavenger are at the front of the shot, while elements of Hook and Long Haul can be made out standing behind them. A small bit of green—somebody's arm or leg—is also seen on the far left of the shot, which therefore must be Mixmaster. But dialogue in this panel and the following one comes from off-panel to the far right, even though all six Constructicons are visible on the page.
• On page 12, panel 2, Moonracer is colored like Knock Out. Additionally, Fireshot now has a huge fin on the top of his head; this is accurate to his original toy, but the feature hasn't been part of his IDW character design.

Soundtrack

• "Solitude Standing" by Suzanne Vega
• "Adore" by Savages^[2]

Covers (3)

• Cover A: Soundwave, Ravage, Laserbeak, and Buzzsaw, by Kei Zama and Josh Burcham
• Cover B: Our cast, within the silhouette of the Soundwave, by Casey Coller and John-Paul Bove
• Retailer incentive cover: Primes Onyx and Optimus, by Marcelo Matere

• 

  A Blast from the Past.

• 

  Soundwave's got a lot of story in him.

• 

  Prime vs Prime

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• Optimus Prime #17
• Optimus Prime Annual 2018
• Rom vs. Transformers: Shining Armor TPB
• Clue TPB
• Free Comic Book Day 2018
• IDW at NC Comicon 2018
• CGC Comics
• G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero vs. the Six Million Dollar Man

Reprints

• Optimus Prime Volume 4 (November 21, 2018) ISBN 1684053633 / ISBN 978-1684053636
  • Collects Optimus Prime issues #15–21.
  • Bonus material includes art from most covers.
  • Trade paperback format.

• Transformers: The Definitive G1 Collection Volume 84: The Falling Part 1 (January 22, 2020)
  • Collects Optimus Prime issues #13–17 and Annual 2018.
  • Bonus material includes a page about the Primes, a cover gallery and an intro by Simon Furman.
  • Hardcover format.

• 

  Volume 4 – cover art by Marcelo Matere

• 

  The Definitive G1 Collection Volume 84: The Falling Part 1 – cover art by Dreamwave and Kei Zama

References

External links

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