IDW - Beast Wars #3

Title: Savage Landing, Part 3

Written by: Erik Burnham

Art by: Josh Burcham

Letters by: Jake M. Wood

Assistant Editor: Riley Farmer

Editor: David Mariotte

Supervising Editor: Tom Waltz

Plot

Nyx has been brought to the Predacon's crashed ship, the Darksyde, and is strapped to an interrogation table, where she is grilled for information on the Maximal ship and how many there are on the planet. During the interrogation, Dinobot gets distressed, and even forces them to stop when they almost kill her by putting the electrical charge to maximum. However, Tarantulas deduces through her silence that there must be more Maximals, or she wouldn't be trying so hard to protect them.

On the Axalon, Cheetor is getting worried about Nyx still being missing, but Primal says that she probably got lost, and they should wait until the morning to find her, so they don't get lost too. They also start making plans to use the stasis pods in orbit to help enhance their scanning and communications feed across the planet.

As a reward for his interrogation, Megatron allows Tarantulas to experiment on Nyx, and he uses an experimental device in her, that forces her to stay in robot mode, which will slowly kill her, due to the planet's Energon radiation. The Predacons shoot at her to toy with her, but Dinobot betrays them, but destroying the device, allowing the weakened Nyx to finally transform.

The Predacons turn on Dinobot, and he manages to knock them all back, and traps them in the Darksyde using a lockdown program, which the Predacons will need to reset the computers to reverse...

Megatron however is impressed by how flawless Dinobot's betrayal was...but, he promises to kill him for his actions...

Characters

Maximal

Optimus Primal - Gorilla

Rhinox - Rhino

Cheetor - Cheetah

Rattrap - Rat

Nyx - Bat Injured by the Predacons

Maximal Protoforms (Mentioned) In Orbit

Predacon

Megatron - Tyrannosaurus Rex

Dinobot - Velociraptor On Run, after betraying Predacons

Tarantulas - Tarantula

Waspinator - Wasp

Terrorsaur - Pteranodon 

Scorponok - Scorpion

Skold - Alligator Snapping Turtle

Decepticon

Megatron (Mentioned)

Notes

• The Darksyde is finally named on panel this issue. It's still unclear if that is the ship's official name, or one renamed by the Predacons who stole it.
• Nyx mentions that the original Megatron is mostly forgotten to history, something that was shown a lot in the original cartoon, where most of the G1 characters were considered legends, even to the point that the Predacons didn't know about Starscream's traitorous nature.
• The device used by Tarantulas to mode-lock Nyx is based on the Transformation Lock Lens from the original cartoon, however that version forced the victim into their beast mode, the exact opposite of this version.
• Dinobot's betrayal of the Predacons is a little more pronounced in this version of the story, in the cartoon he basically just tried to revolt against Megatron because he thought they were brought to the wrong planet, here, he outright attacks the other Predacons and frees their Maximal prisoner.
• Nyx's alternate mode is constantly referee to as "alt-mode" here, rather than "Beast mode" like in the cartoon and previous comics, this is most likely due to trademarking reasons.
• Skold is mentioned as being "young" this issue, possibly a reference to her being created for this series, much like Nyx.

IDW - Transformers #28

Title: War World, Part 4: Hunt

Written by: Brian Ruckley

Art by: Anna Malkova

Colours by: David Garcia Cruz

Letters & Design by: Jake M. Wood

Editor: David Mariotte

Assistant Editor: Riley Farmer

Supervising Editor: Tom Waltz

Plot

Cyclonus breaks into the Decepticon Gladiator Pit base, knocking out several guards in the process, so he can finally confront Sixshot over his destruction of the Memorial Crater.

Elsewhere, the Decepticons are continuing their takeover of the planet's main systems, including the Energon Distribution Centers and the Titan Network Hub, but when they reach the prison cells, they find that Swindle's business partners, Trickdiamond and Headlock have broken him, and a couple other prisoners, Roughstuff and Bumblebee, free already.

At the Gladiator Pit, Andromeda is forced into a staged interview to broadcast, framing the Autobots as corrupt and the Decepticons as the greater good, where they also announce Sixshot as the new head of the Decepticon Guard, and claim that the Rise was just a story made up by the Autobots to scapegoat their own mistakes.

Elsewhere, Starscream has Refractor pass onto an Autobot guard, Vibes, to ask Perceptive about "Titansparks" so that both sides have the information at hand, and to try a convince Megatron that he needs his intelligence gathering skills to win this war...

Later at the Gladiator Pit, Cyclonus finds Sixshot, and attacks him, despite the latters uninterest in the fight, and quickly ends it by informing Cyclonus that the Autobots have released Pyra Magna from prison, after consulting another of his ghosts, he offers to bring Sixshot Pyra's head...

Following their prison break, Swindle's crew, including Bumblebee, who still wants to kill Barricade, enter a hidden chamber under Swindle's bar, where Bee notices Deathsaurus inside an Immersion Chamber, where Swindle explains he's been there's since getting repaired following his injuries from an off-world mission some time ago, and will be there until he disengages himself.

Inside the chamber, Deathsaurus continuously chases and kills Cliffjumper, the one who almost killed him before....

Characters

Autobot

Grapple - Crane Truck

Hot Spot - Fire Truck

Wheel Blaze - Fire Truck

Zetar - Drill Tank

Seawatch - Boat

Stakeout - Police Car

Slapdash - Race Car

Vibes

Pyra Magna (Mentioned)

Decepticon

Megatron - Tank

Soundwave - Hovercraft

Strika - Battle Tank

Ratbat - Cassette

Skytread - Tank and Jet

Sixshot - Tank/Gun/Jet/Winged Beast/Car

Mindwipe - Bat

Sparkstalker - Insect Monster

Bitstream - Jet

Crasher - Race Car

Treadshot

Catgut

Battleslash - Helicopter

Refraktor - Hovercraft

Nautilator - Lobster

Twirl - Jet

Runamuck - Car

Runabout - Car

Swift - Helicopter

Howlback - Cassette

Ravage - Cassette

Singe Imprisoned

Storm Cloud - Jet Imprisoned

Other Random Decepticons

Shockwave - Flying Artillery (Mentioned)

Jhiaxus - Jet (Mentioned)

Gutcruncher (Mentioned)

Quake - Tank (Mentioned) Dead

Barricade - Police Car (Mentioned)

Elita-One - Car (Mentioned) Confined to Quarters 

Other Cybertronian

Starscream - Jet

Cyclonus - Jet

Swindle - Van

Trickdiamond - Car

Headlock - Forklift

Bumblebee - Winged Hovercraft

Roughstuff - Truck

Deathsaurus - Dragon In Immersion Chamber

Andromeda - Car

Blaster

Playback

Wavelength

Gizmo - Buggy

Glyph - Car

Tap-Out - Car

Steeljaw

Immersion Chamber Users

Cliffjumper - Car (Simulation Only)

Grudge (Ghost) Dead

Provoke (Ghost) Dead

Gridlock (Ghost) Dead

Highfire (Ghost) Dead

Paragon (Ghost) Killed by Pyra Magna

The Titans (Mentioned) Slowly Crashing

Termagax - Armoured Van (Mentioned)

Fake Termagax (Mentioned) Killed by Megatron

The Senate (Mentioned) Overthrown by Decepticons

Perceptor (Mentioned)

Turmoil (Mentioned)

Breaker (Mentioned) Killed during War of the Threefold Spark

Bruteforce (Mentioned) Killed during War of the Threefold Spark

Ultimatum (Mentioned) Killed during War of the Threefold Spark

Kickstart (Mentioned) Killed during War of the Threefold Spark

Frontrunner (Mentioned) Killed during War of the Threefold Spark

Stormwave (Mentioned) Killed during War of the Threefold Spark

Outsider (Mentioned) Killed during War of the Threefold Spark

Other

The Thraal (Mentioned)

The Voin (Mentioned)

Skitters (Mentioned)

Notes

• Cliffjumper and Deathsaurus were last seen in Galaxies 6, which is now confirmed to have occurred "kilocycles" ago.
• Amongst the prisoners seen by Swindle are Singe (who was arrested and interrogated by Prowl) and Storm Cloud who was left behind during the fight at Swindle's bar, and Roughstuff, who was shot and left for dead by the Risers during their escape from Leviathan.
• I'm pretty sure with his opinion in them leaving him for dead, that Roughstuff has probably left their group now (the others are probably still fine with them though)
• Gutcruncher is mentioned as having joined the revolution, which we have been seeing in the Escape comics.
• Elita is being implicated as a traitor, but I'm not sure why...she was a loyal Ascenticon, but disagreed with how Soundwave did things.
• Vibes finally gets an in-story namecheck for the first time!
• Paragon is confirmed to be a former lover of Cyclonus' who was killed by Pyra Magna, which also confirms why she was imprisoned, for mass murder.
• Paragon's ghost doesn't appear to have any damage on it, implying that it was either a lower body damage-based death (since we only see him from the chest up) or he was killed internally perhaps?
• Flatline is mentioned to be giving Starscream some cosmetic surgery for his injuries, but he still appears to be neutral so far, and just working in repairs for everyone who needs them.

IDW - Transformers/Back To The Future #3

Written by: Cavan Scott

Art by: Juan Samu

Colours by: David Garcia Cruz & Candice Han

Letters by: Neil Uyetake

Editors: David Mariotte & Chase Marotz

Plot

The Constructions find Scrapper's deactivated body and blame Biff for it, forcing the human to run. Bonecrusher goes after him, but the Construction gets blasted by Doc Brown's nullifier, just like Scrapper.

Doc explains his plan to try make contact with the Autobots using a nearby communications tower to get them to help Emmet recover his time machine to fix the timeline. When they reach their destination, Doc manages to get out a signal, but Biff, who has taken his nullifier, shoots the tower, shutting it down, and escorts his new prisoners back to the Constructions, and their newly arrived boss, Starscream.

Having picked up the signal, Rodimus and his small band of remaining Autobots head to Hill Valley, where they see Biff about to execute Doc and Marty's parents, Marty however grabs some piping and smashes Biff's exosuit gun, saving them.

The Autobots join in and attack the Decepticons, stealing the nullifier back from Biff and uses it to knock down Biff and the remaining Constructicons, using Skilz's new hoverboard mode to do so. Starscream gets knocked out by a powerful punch from Rodimus, and the Decepticons in the area are all defeated...

Suddenly, the Hill Valley Courthouse transforms into a giant robot, looming over them all....

Characters

Autobot

Rodimus Prime - Caravan

Bumblebee - VW Beetle

Gigawatt - Modified DeLorean

Skilz - Hoverboard (Formerly Skateboard)

Decepticon

Starscream - Fighter Jet Punched out by Rodimus

Hook - Crane Shot by Rodimus

Bonecrusher - Bulldozer Blasted by Doc Brown

Scavenger - Excavator Blasted by Marty

Long Haul - Dump Truck Blasted by Marty

Mixmaster - Mixing Truck Blasted by Marty

Scrapper - Front End Loader Deactivated

Human

Marty McFly

Doc Emmett Brown

George McFly

Lorraine Baines-McFly

Biff Tannen Exosuit Blasted by Marty

"Goldie" Wilson (Image on Billboard Only)

Other

Courthouse Bot - Hill Valley Courthouse

Einstein, the Dog

Notes

• It's unclear yet if Doc's Alpha-Wave Ionic Nullifier is fatal to Cybertronians, Scrapper is mentioned as being "deactivated" and it does damage the communications tower, but he never says it has killed any of them. It's likely it's designed to just shut down their systems, putting them in stasis lock.
• Biff's new Exosuit is based on the ones used by the humans in season three and four of the G1 cartoon, but more heavily armoured than theirs were.
• Despite scanning a Skysled for his new alternate mode, Skilz takes on a hoverboard design, reminiscent of Marty's one from the future scenes of the Back To The Future movies, possibly meaning he just scanned the engine parts to upgrade his existing skateboard mode
• The giant Courthouse robot at the end of the issue isn't identified, or even hinted at by any of the Decepticons during this issue, baking me believe it's possible it's not a Decepticon, and couild be anyone really (my hopes are for a Vector Prime type character)