IDW - Transformers (2019) #13

Title: The Change in Your Nature, Part 1

Written by: Brian Ruckley

Art by: Angel Hernandez & Alex Milne 

Colours by: Joana LaFuente 

Letters by: Tom B. Long

Editors: David Mariotte & Tom Waltz

Plot

The Ascenticons have their bodies branded with the new purple Ascenticon insignia, and Bee decides to use this moment to confront Skytread for him attacking him during the attack on the Ascenticon HQ, allowing the Rise to capture Barricade. Skytread tries to ignore the accusation, but Bee attacks the other Ascenticon, until Elita-1 steps in a separates the two, with Bee pointing out to her that something is wrong with her Acsenticon Guard.

At the medical centre, Ratchet tells Chromia that Windblade should be able to wake up soon to heal by herself, and the topic shifts to the list she recovered from the Rise base, some of whom have been identified, and are being hunted down, but to no real avail, and they learn that more riots are starting up, and some calls for elections are starting to begin...

Whilst on patrol, Sideswipe and Springer are informed of a break-in at a near-by sub-station, so they head out to investigate, with Springer going ahead, using his aerial mode (much to Sideswipe's annoyance).

Springer soon arrives at the station, and finds a Rise team raiding the facility, he confronts them, but is overwhelmed by them, Sideswipe soon arrives and the duo chase the Risers to an Immersant, where they've holed up and attack the security members from the mountainous Cybertronian's body, stopping them from getting closer.

Meanwhile, at Ascenticon HQ, Bee tries to hack into the personnel records of the Ascenticons, but is caught by Elita, who he convinces to help him, due to her also finding things strange lately. Elita breaks him into the database, but finds that the records for Barricade and Quake were both erased, right after they were capture and went missing, respectively, the latter, being the same night Rubble was killed, and that these files were deleted by Soundwave himself.

Soundwave bursts in, demanding to know what they were doing, and Elita quickly lies that Bee wanted to know what information was being held on him, which Soundwave seems to accept. He informs them to get ready for a mission to the Immersant, as they can use this situation to show off the new face of the Ascenticons to the world...

Chromia is sending out Security to aid in the fight at the Immersant, but is stopped briefly by Ratchet, who wants to tell her his findings in person. Most of the Risers on the list were ex-miners, gladiators, intelligence and military officers, but noticed one name, who was both a miner and intelligence officer at different stages, someone who is fond of using drills...Frenzy...

Characters

Autobot

Sentinel Prime - Space Shuttle

Orion Pax - Truck (Mentioned)

Security Forces

Chromia - Car

Prowl - Police Car

Crosshairs - Van

Sideswipe - Car

Springer - Car/Helicopter

Nightbeat

Windblade - VTOL Jet Still in CR Chamber

"Autotroopers"

Other Security Officers

Ascenticon

Soundwave - Hovercraft

Elita-1 - Car

Bumblebee - Winged Hovercraft

Acid Storm - Tetrajet

Skytread - Tank and Jet

Jhiaxus - Jet

Deadlock

Ambulon

Refraktor - Hovercraft (Mentioned)

Other Ascenticons

The Rise

Ruckus

Wirespike

Kaskade

"Drill-bot"

Quake - Tank (Mentioned)

Barricade - Police Car (Mentioned)

Sixshot - Jet/Car/Tank/Gun/Beast (Mentioned)

Lugnut (Mentioned)

Other Cybertronian

Ratchet - Ambulance

Damus

"Immersant Titan" Went Immersant as a Mountain Range

"Energon Production Rep"

"Movie Hubcap"

Other Bar Patrons

Brainstorm - Jet (Mentioned) Dead

Rubble (Mentioned) Dead

Hoist (Mentioned)

Flatline (Mentioned)

Heretech (Mentioned)

The Reversionists (Mentioned)

Primus (Mentioned)

Notes

• Hernandez deals with the artwork for the scenes dealing with the Risers and their stand-off at the Immersant, the rest of the issue is done by Milne (the main artist for MTMTE, Unicron and other series from old IDW) 
• Despite using the new insignia here, the Ascenticons are not identified as "Decepticons" yet...This will be confusing if I forget about this point later in the series!
• Former Decepticons turned Autobot from old IDW, Deadlock and Ambulon appear this issue, time will tell if they will jump ship like they have in the past this time too.
• Bee uses the head-mounted light he used at the start of the series, but this time in a combative way, using it to blind Skytread briefly, before punching him.
• Ratchet confirms that Windblade can get out of her CR chamber to finish healing herself soon. I'm not going to believe this until she is out of it though, especially after what happened to the old IDW's Sideswipe.
• The Dremden system is mentioned briefly as being a past opponent in a battle with Cybertron, this is likely where the Occulted Dremden, first mentioned last issue, come from
• The second bot who meets with Sentinel is unidentified, so it's unclear if he's a new character, or an older one, but with an unfamiliar design.
• The bot being chased by the "Autotroopers" appears to be based on Movie series Hubcap, but using the Dipstick/Tappet character model
• The Autotroopers appear to be based on the toy of Power of the Primes Jazz's mold (though that is a basic character design, so it may just be a coincidence)
• Brainstorm is revealed to have been killed by impaling with machinery, likely a drill.
• This issue confirms that Sixshot does indeed still have six modes.
• Following the murder of Brainstorm, security have added monitors to the sub-stations to alert security to intruders etc.
• Elita-1 is continuing to show signs that she is going to switch sides, along with Bee, with her being uncertain over the recent events in the Ascenticons and the blatant cover-up taking place
• The unnamed drill-bot Rise member goes unnamed here, but due to his mention at the end, it is possible that this character is Frenzy, but in an unfamiliar design, however he does bear a superficial similarity to Drillhorn, a character with a drill tank mode, and also has a rhino theme (hence the horn thingies on his head)
• The security trucks at the end of the issue look similar to the alternate used by Roller in the old IDW, implying that one of them might be him
• It was mentioned earlier in the series that the bot who killed Brainstorm looked "blue or bluish") so if Frenzy was the killer, then this is a FIBRIR universe, and I am okay with that :)