Goin' South
From Transformers Wiki
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 Look Megatron, there's Starscream, and he just made fun of your color scheme! | |||||||||||||
| "Goin' South" | |||||||||||||
| Publisher | Marvel Comics | ||||||||||||
| Cover date | September1993 | ||||||||||||
| Script | Larry Hama | ||||||||||||
| Pencils | Chris Batista | ||||||||||||
| Inks | Chip Wallace | ||||||||||||
| Colors | Bob Sharen | ||||||||||||
| Letters | Rick Parker | ||||||||||||
| Editor | David Wohl | ||||||||||||
| Continuity | Marvel Comics continuity | ||||||||||||
Megatron and Cobra Commander fetch the Ark, and land it in Anytown, USA.
Contents |
Synopsis
As per the deal made withCobra,MegatronleadsCobra Commanderand his retinue to theArkinCanada.The Commander is initially unable to spot the ship, but Megatron soon reveals he hid it under a hillock so that its damage could be repaired in peace. Technology contained within the ship excitesDoctor Biggles-Jones,who looks forward to messing with themagnetic drive,plasma impellers,photon accelerators,andanti-gravity.SliceandDicetake in the scene, musing about how Biggles-Jones must be unable to contain her excitement, but the still-injuredScarlettnotes that Cobra Commander will have little need for her onceDoctor Mindbenderawakens...
InTrans-Carpathia,Destro,theBaroness,andZartaninfiltrate theSilent Castlewith hang-gliders. Their presence is immediately detected by the occupyingCobra Vipers,who swarm the main hall. They are met with the visage of Cobra Commander, who claims to be doing a surprise inspection, berates the troopers for taking so long, and commands them to throw down their weapons. After they disarm, "Cobra Commander" reveals himself to be Zartan, and he welcomes Destro back to his home.
TheArkis brought toMilleville,which Cobra Commander reveals is controlled by Cobra when Megatron raises concern about revealing themselves to the public. The town's populace is made up of people brainwashed by Mindbender'sBrain-Wave Scanner,and they are commanded by the Commander to unload the Cobra helicopters and theArk.One man suddenly breaks free of his conditioning and the ensuing fight with theAlley-Viperscauses nearbyCobra Vipersto drop the tube containing Doctor Mindbender. It breaks and the body receives an electric shock. The man is finally knocked out byRoad Pig,and Cobra Commander orders the man to be taken to receive an extra dose from the main Brain-Wave Scanner and Mindbender cleaned up. But before the latter can be done, Mindbender wakes up and Cobra Commander attempts to sway the doctor with cloying words. When Mindbender recognizes Megatron's presence, he decides to put grudges on hold to see how things play out.
Unbeknownst to Cobra and Megatron, their presence is observed by the eagle,Freedom,who brings news to his partner,Spirit.Muttcommunicates the information to anotherG.I. Joeteam in the area led byHawk,who is glad thatthe tipgiven to G.I. Joe via theDepartment of Defensehas paid off. They soon contactRoad-Block,who leads other team into the sewer pipes. Another team,Ninja Force,is mobilized, and they leap from aYo Joe Colatruck to anArbcotruck heading into Milleville. Road-Block's team heads towards the center, whileSnake-Eyes,having received intelligence that Scarlett was in town, logically heads to the hospital where she would be treated. There, Snake-Eyes andStorm Shadowpeer into Scarlett's window whileT'JbangandDojospot Mindbender recuperating in another room. Biggles-Jones dismisses the other people in the room and reveals to Scarlett that she has known that she was a mole for G.I. Joe all along. Snake-Eyes unsheathes his sword in preparation...
After reaching the center of town where Megatron and Cobra Commander are,Tunnel Ratspots the Decepticon, which is communicated to Hawk, who then contactsMainframe,who works in conjunction withProfessor Mottin sending a signal out into space...
...toCybertron.BumblebeeinformsOptimus Primethat G.I. Joe have activated thetrans-dimensional warp communicatorto inform them of Megatron's presence onEarth.Optimus sends out an alert to allAutobots:Their work on Earth has yet to be finished.
Featured characters
(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)
| Autobots | Decepticons | Humans | G.I. Joe | Cobra |
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Notes
- The cover title of the series for this issue isG.I. Joe Starring Snake-Eyes and Transformers: Generation 2.However, the title in the indicia (and hence the legal title) isG.I. Joe A Real American Hero.
- Our first exposure to Milleville is a sign reading, "WELCOME TO MILLEVILLE!...A NICE PLACE TO LIVE..." This makes it the only town in America to putellipseson its welcome signs.
- Cobra Commander asks Megatron to switch to tank mode so he'll be less conspicuous to passing aircraft. One assumes they found someplace to hide the aircraft carrier-sized Ark.
- Cobra Commander refers to Zarana as "steatopygous". This is a medical condition that can loosely be described as "fat-assed".
- He also refers to Milleville as "uliginous", meaning "marshy".
- When Doctor Biggles-Jones comments unfavorably on all the brainwashing, Cobra Commander tells her to spare him from her "cacophemisms", meaning "bad words". Most people only are familiar with "euphemisms", "good words", but Cobra Commander, he likes to show off his vocabulary, he does.
- Mindbender gives us a 3-line rundown on early 1990s culture, mentioning aDemocrat in the White House,the cancellation ofCheers,and thesubstantial changestoMichael Jackson's appearance.
Errors
- Naked Dr. Mindbender is drawn with an extra finger on his pointing hand.
- While the Joes refer to Cobra's "air armada", they never refer to theArkspecifically. They aren't concerned about the huge alien spaceship?!
- On the last page reveal, Optimus Prime is massively miscolored. He's got way too much red, and in all the wrong places.
Covers (1)
- Cover A:Megatron and Cobra Commander byChris Batista
Advertisements
- None yet identified.
Reprints
- CollectsG.I. Joe Starring Snake-Eyes and Ninja Force#135–138,G.I. Joe Starring Snake-Eyes and Transformers: Generation 2#139–142, andG.I. Joe Starring Snake-Eyes#143–145
- Despite the various titles, all stories are part of theG.I. Joecomic.
- Collects#138–142(with #138 in a summary w/ a short excerpt only) and the earlierG.I. Joe and the Transformersseries.
- The title given above is the indicia title; the cover title isG.I. Joe The Transformers 1.
- Transformers: The Definitive G1 Collection:Volume 89: Realignments(March 4,2020)
- Collects issues #138–142 (with #138 reprinted in full, this time), as well asG.I. Joe and the Transformers#1–4.
- Bonus material includes a cover gallery and an intro fromSimon Furman.
Classic G.I. Joe Volume 14TPB;art byJonboy MeyersandAnthony Washington
G.I. Joe/Transformers,Volume 1;art byKlaus Scherwinski
The Definitive G1 Collection Vol. 89: Realignments;art by Dreamwave (Goldbug),Chris Batista,Baskerville,Williams,andHudson
