Assembly (OMAM)

The name or term "Assembly" refers to more than one character or idea. For a list of other meanings, seeAssembly (disambiguation).

« Club magazine comic » Of Masters and Mayhem,Part 1
"Assembly"
Publisher	Fun Publications
Published in	Hasbro Transformers Collectors' Club#67
Writers	Jesse Wittenrich&Pete Sinclair
Pencils	Dan Khanna
Inks	Jake Isenberg
Colors	Evan Gauntt
Letters	Jesse Wittenrich
Managing editor	Pete Sinclair
Continuity	Of Masters and Mayhem
Chronology	2020

Five years after their dimensional displacement, the Pretenders and Spike continue to try to learn where they are as an old enemy reawakens...

Contents 1Synopsis 2Featured characters 3Quotes 4Notes 4.1Continuity notes 4.2Transformers references 4.3Real-world references 4.4Other trivia 4.5Errors

Synopsis

Five years ago,the humans of the Earth of the "Classicsverse",among the last survivors of their universe, were transported to another Earth by anunknown force.This new Earth was identical in nearly every way...but there were no humans. In the years since, people have moved on with their lives, seemingly finally rid of theTransformers.But, as they should know, it never ends...

FormerHeadmasterSpike Witwickyis walking on the streets ofMerida,glumly reflecting on his new situation, when he's brought back to reality by a car crash. Attempting to help the young girl and her father trapped inside, Spike is unable to reach them, until the AutobotPretendersCrossbladesandVroom,having also been transported to this Earth, arrive to help. Freeing the girl and her father, Spike and the Autobots flee the scene before their super-strength can arouse suspicion. However, onebystanderseems to have taken interest in the three...

Arriving back at Spike's apartment, the three are greeted by Autobot commanderMetalhawkand Spike's girlfriend,Elizabeth,who has Spike's brotherBusteron an@mosferikvideo call. Buster, having paid for Spike's apartment, is annoyed his older brother has still not found a job, but before he can berate him anymore, Buster's young sonGaleninterrupts his father. Spike marvels at how big his nephew is, and uses his sister-in-lawJesse's entrance to take Galen to bed as an excuse to hang up. Metalhawk, too, is annoyed at Spike's relaxed behavior, having remembered how Spikewasthe responsible Witwicky brother some years ago. Spike claims that he's been responsible during these last few years, and that he's earned a little time to be relaxed. Spike then changes the subject to dinnertime, and decides to use Metalhawk's new job to pay for a nice Italian restaurant on the other side of town

Arriving as the sun sets, Spike, "Vroman", "Cross", and Elizabeth all make some smalltalk, while "Hawk" uses some of his money to pay a homeless man sitting outside the restaurant. Once they're sat at the table, "Hawk" is all business, reminding the others that they andBustersigned up withBlackrock Globalto figure out what their new home has to offer. "Hawk" explains they were sent to theYucatanto investigate a mysterious radio signal from last year, a signal that Spike previously had hoped could have been the other Autobots. Spike, however, has long since stopped believing that. After paying for the meal, Spike tries to explain to the Autobot commander that they have made some progress, but the five are interrupted by amugger,who grabs Elizabeth. Having seen "Hawk" pay the homeless man, the mugger refuses to believe their "excuses", and fires off, as a black stain spreads across Spike's chest...

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the Yucatan, the Herald ofUnicronRamjetawakes from his year-long meditation, the source of the signal the Autobots detected. Trapped on the atomic level in the Earth, Ramjet uses his cosmic senses on the universe, having been cut off from his master. Having found that Unicron has never and will never exist in this universe, Ramjet uses the energy he's built up to escape, reformatting himself into a newer, more compact body. While he may be more limited in power now, Ramjet is still able to sense agreat evil...and he plans to use that power to rip this universe apart, allowing him to escape!

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Quotes

Metalhawk:"Where were you three?"
Spike:"Saving lives, like usual. How about you?"
Buster:"Earning a wage."

Notes

• Characters mentioned but not seen include: adead alien robotin Spike's head,Ximena,Skyhammer,Unicron,and"something else touched by evil".

Continuity notes

• The humans and animals of the "Classicsverse" Earth (and, as later chapters will note, the man-made structures and objects) were transported to this alternate Earth byPrimusand Unicron's sister,Gaea,in "The Future Buried...",to protect them as she transformed to confront theShattered Glassincarnation of Primus. The Pretenders, too, were sent alongside the humans, seemingly an accident because of the genetic makeup of their shells; later chapters would reveal they were actually sent intentionally. Spike notes that it has been five years since they were transported; "Another Light"was said to have taken place in 2015, placing this story in 2020. However, see errors below.
• Somewhat uniquely among classicTransformersmedia, the humans of the MarvelThe Transformerscomic were depicted as being very untrusting of both the Autobots and Decepticons, not recognizing the differences between the two factions and considering them "invaders". While most of the previousClassicsmedia hasn't focused on the relationship between the two species, it's clear that at least some portion of humanity is glad to seemingly be rid of the Transformers; Spike passes by a poster display "ALONE AT LAST" inImpactfont, accompanied by an image of Optimus Prime's head crossed out by a red "X".
• Crossblades is wearing a shirt with the "S. Witwicky Auto Repairs & Tow Service"logo on it, the service station of Spike and Buster's father,Sparkplug,seen on and off throughout the first 30 or so issues of the MarvelThe Transformerscomic.
• Elizabeth is theClassicsversion of Lisa, Spike's lover on a post-apocalyptic Earth ruled byGalvatron,seen in issue#67of the MarvelThe Transformerscomic.
• Buster Witwicky was last seen in "Invasion"stationed with several Autobots on board theArk IIinCanada.At some point in the last 32 years, he's married his former girlfriend Jesse (last seen in issue#47ofThe Transformers). They've had a son recently, Galen, named after theNebulanpartner ofFortress Maximuswho sacrificed his life for Spike and to whom Galen passed on his bond to the Autobot in issue#38ofThe Transformers.
• Spike claims he has a "dead alien robot's consciousness" in his head; presumably, either the destruction ofNebulos(where Fort Max's head was last seen in issue#4of Marvel'sThe Transformers: Headmastersmini-series) in "Invasion", or Spike's separation from his control helmet and the rest of Fort Max in "The Future Buried..." has caused Fortress Maximus' death, leaving the mental engrams of the Autobot in his binary bonded partner's head. Spike also notes that he still has his surgical Headmaster alterations, given to him off-panel in issue#39ofThe Transformers.
• Buster works for Blackrock Global, presumably a new name for Autobot ally and industrialistG.B. Blackrock's company, originally known as Blackrock Enterprises and later renamed Blackrock Industries. Blackrock himself was last seen in issue#80ofThe Transformers,returned to Earth alongside theNeo-Knightsby the Autobots after the battle onKlo.
• Spike notes they've dealt with alternate dimensions before, with the "Classicsverse" earth being sent to the "Shatteredverse"in" Invasion ".
• The Pretenders' shells are able to break down organic food for energy;Ultra Mammothand his "Maximals" (who new organic-based alternate modes were derived from, among others, Pretender technologies) were shown to use organic food as a substitute toenergonin "Shattered Balance".
• Ramjet was last seen being banished byVector Primein "Revelations Part 1".It's unclear how long he has been trapped (and any timeline would be unhelpful, as the"Balancing Act" and "Revelations"storylines took place in 2030, ten years "after" this story would take place), but it would appear he has been trapped here for some time, as he notes he's been trapped for stellar cycles. His inability to link to Unicron is the result of Nexus Prime strengthening the multiversal walls "Out of the One, Many";Ramjet notes that, for whatever reason, Unicron is not present in this universe, and never will be. It would appear that his Mini-ConsThunderclash,Terradive,andThunderwingwere destroyed, as they were last seen Powerlinxed to their master;Gunbarreldid escape, only to be shot down byOver-Runin "Revelations Part 2".

Transformers references

• The Autobot Pretenders Crossblades, Metalhawk, Vroom, and presumably Skyammer are regular human-sized instead of the usual height of Pretenders, in nod to theSuper-God Masterforcedepiction of the Pretenders, who actuallytransformedinto humans. Later chapters note they achieve this throughholomatterandsize-shifting.Metalhawk has taken on the human identity his counterpart used in theSuper-God Masterforcecartoon of "Hawk"; Vroom and Crossblades have also adopted human names, "Vroman" and "Cross". The other Pretenders, meanwhile, are expies for the otherMasterforceAutobot Pretenders. The lanky Vroom takes up the role ofLander;Lander was shown to have ahuman girlfriendin the cartoon, and so does Vroom, dating a photographer named Ximena, much to the confusion of the others. The stocky, relaxed Crossblades takes the role ofDiver.And Skyhammer, the only Autobot Pretender not in the Yucatan, takes the role ofPhoenix;both of them are stationed inGermany.
• The poster for theParque Zoologico de Meridacolors the rhinoceros brown rather than gray, presumably in reference toBeast WarsRhinox.
• The ambulance seen rushing to the car crash is the alt-mode ofGeneration 1Ratchet.Looks like they're still in service 25 years later, and in another country as well!
• Ramjet's reformatted form is his new "free incentive"Timelinesfigure, obviously enough. His profile in this issue notes that its smaller and more compact than his older body, which is true for the real-life toys.

Real-world references

• The title of this storyline is obviously derived from the 1937 novellaOf Mice and Men,by American authorJohn Steinbeck.
• Metalhawk says that they're currently inYucatan,a state in the country ofMexico.It's not until the next issue that it's clarified that they're in Merida.
• Buster complains that Galen could have interrupted a call withRoxxol;it would seem that they are a new, copyright-avoiding version of theRoxxon Energy Corporation,an unethical company from the Marvel Universe introduced in theirCaptain Americacomics. The company showed up in issues#45-46of Marvel UK'sThe Transformerscomic asRoxxon Oil.
• Vroom hadcacciuccothe last time he went to the Italian restaurant, an Italian fish stew native toTuscanyandLiguria;Elizabeth refuses to order it, put off by the fish "staring" at her.

Other trivia

• Author Jesse Wittenrich noted that Elizabeth's role in the story was initially intended for Carla Greer, aka the secondDocfromG.I. Joe,but was latter replaced with Elizabeth to avoid having "yet another"G.I. Joereference in aTransformerscomic.
• Spanish throughout the comic translates to:
  • The homeless man's sign reads: "¡Ayuda! Sin hogar," meaning "Help! Homeless."
  • The mugger (named Mendez in the next chapter) shouts "¡Ahora!" and "¡Damelo!" which means "Now!" and "Give it to me!"

Errors

• As noted above, this storyline takes place in 2020. However, Spike claims it has been nine years since they were first transported to the "Shatteredverse"; "Invasion" took place in 2012, which was only eight years ago.