Identity Politics

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Los Pollos Hermanos!Taste the Family!
"Identity Politics"
Publisher	Transformers Collectors' Club(online exclusive)
First published	September 13,2016
By	Jim SorensonwithDavid Bishop
Illustrations	Tomoya Hosono
Colors	Winston Bolen
Continuity	Beast Wars: Uprising
Chronology	Circa2363
Page count	29pp

A shady business venture leads Scorponok into Cybertron's criminal underworld.

Synopsis

Say my name.

One night outside aDynamic Energon Distilleriesplant,Scorponok—a nervous programmer—has a run-in with twoMaximals.Just as he thinks he's gotten away without the situation getting violent, he bumps into the plant's security officerImpound,who realizes the two Maximals had been robbing the place, and Scorponok had just stopped them.

Three days later, as Scorponok gets back into the usual groove of work, the plant's administrator summons him for a meeting. ThePredaconin question, a large, bombastic sort namedGnashteeth,proves to be good-natured and approachable. The two spend a whole three megacycles talking about Scorponok's passion for programming. As he leaves, Scorponok cannot help but feel optimistic for the future.

Elsewhere, the BuilderDouble Punchmeets with CouncilorsSigilandHalogen,who are very interested in bringing a new Decepticon into the Builder Assembly, especially if it shuts up their fellows who suggest bringing on aMicromaster,orworse,a Predacon. Immediately realizing the implication, Double Punch leaves, knowing the day has come to have a talk with Gnashteeth. In a meeting at the Builder's opulent estate, Double Punch tells his protégé, even a friend, that the time has come for him to make a play for theBuilder Assembly,thanks to Gnash's sterling work on his behalf improving the efficiency of the D.E.D. plant. Of course, he'll have to make someone his replacement as chairman, and it isn't going to be Gnash. After all, there's no way any Builder will knowingly take the orders of a Predacon. Angered, Gnash asks if his job will be a risk too. The situation gets heated, with Double Punch telling Gnash to show some gratitude to his "betters" for being allowed to get further than a Predacon has a right to. Managing to get his anger under control, Gnash bids his mentor good day, but as he goes, the ancient Decepticon can't help but feel apprehensive.

Things go on the up-and-up for Scorponok, with a promotion to senior programmer at the plant. Twenty-one solar cycles after his first meeting with the administrator, he's summoned to his office again, where the larger Predacon is brooding. Gnashteeth quickly changes the topic of conversation to a suggested increase in efficiency Scorponok promised him. The problem is that the time it would take to properly test it would take deca-cycles, lest they risk a meltdown, and Gnashteeth wants it implemented now, to prove his worth to the Builders. This leaves him in a bind. He cannot suggest the idea openly, for it will be shot down, and he can't implement it in secret without having to explain the sudden increase of energon. Then Scorponok idly mentions that if it was just energon he'd found, he could've sold it. This gives Gnashteeth an idea. They implement one of Scorponok's ideas, and take the surplus cubes for themselves.

MAGNETS!

Their first sale goes smoothly, but Gnashteeth notes they were swindled on the price for their fifty-four cubes. So he declares next time, they will just sell directly to the customers. Scorponok points out they'll need people to help with that, which they don't. Gnashteeth just says they'll get them.

Time passes, and the two gather a bevy ofEmptiesto sell their produce, despite some roadbumps, like one of their dealers stealing his supply of cubes, forcing Gnashteeth to put a hit on him, and their best dealer, a 'bot namedDipstick,getting murdered by theKopsegogang. Back at the plant, Double Punch is replaced by a Builder namedEgo,who has Gnash bumped down to co-deputy administrator in favor of a skidplate namedDatamine,who plans to set Gnashteeth against his former deputyBudora.An angered Gnashteeth vows not to be forced from the streets the same way. He tells Scorponok to spread the word out that he wants to meet with the Kopsegos, and he wants muscle for when they do.

The two, and their hired security, wait for the meeting in a secluded alleyway, only for fifteen cycle to pass without the Kopsegos showing up. Just as Gnashteeth declares the endeavor a waste of time, the gang leader—a large Maximal namedThunderhoof—makes his presence known. He compliments the quality of Gnashteeth's goods, then bristles when Gnash mentions "respect". He then pays Gnash and Scorponok's security to make themselves scarce. Once they're gone, Thunderhoof offers the Predacon a deal: three thousand and five-hundredcyber planet keysfor one-hundred and seventy-five cubes. Gnashteeth is incensed at Thunderhoof's attempted underselling, and refuses Thunderhoof's second offer of five thousand keys. In response, the Maximal viciously beats Gnashteeth down. In response to the Predacon's colorful threat to hang Thunderhoof's head from the spires of Iacon, Thunderhoof's goonTerrorsaurmockingly calls him "Megatron".After blowing Gnashteeth's leg off, Thunderhoof tells him he has a solar cycle to think about the offer, before departing.

Scorponok takes Gnashteeth's battered body back to the D.E.D. plant, and a CR Chamber. Within a megacycle, Budora appears and mentions it might be best if Gnashteeth resigns without a fuss. After thirteen megacycles, Gnashteeth finally emerges. Scorponok suggests taking what they can and going to another city, but Gnashteeth refuses. If they can't play by the rules, they won't bother. Rather than breaking his resolve, Thunderhoof's beating has increased it. They're going to takeallthe energon.

Fulminated mercury, and a little tweak of chemistry.

Double Punch returns from his first day at the Builder Assembly in a good mood, only to find something suspicious going on at his estate. Making his way inside, he finds his vaunted weapons have been taken. At that point, Gnashteeth makes his presence known. The Predacon has burgled a Builder, murderedhis bodyguard,and framed the Kopsego gang. Realizing he's going to die, Double Punch demands to know why Gnashteeth is even doing this. The last thing he hears is Gnashteeth announcing how Double Punch's pawn has become a queen.

With newfound confidence, the two Predacons march back into the plant, Gnashteeth telling Scorponok to head to the loading dock, while he goes to "talk" with Budora. By the time Scorponok gets there, Gnashteeth has dealt with his former deputy. With the flip of a switch, the former administrator triggers a meltdown. Scorponok opens the doors, allowing the workers to flee, while he programs the small fleet ofDropkickdrones to head to a new destination with their loads of energon. As he does, he notices the meltdown is happening a bit quicker than his projections estimated, and tries to slow it down to let the haulers fill up further. But as Scorponok works, Impound shows up, thinking the diminutive Predacon is trying to play hero, and tries dragging him out, ignoring Scorponok's protests. Left with no recourse, Scorponok shoots Impound dead.

A deca-cycle after Double Punch's murder, and Thunderhoof is increasingly on edge in his new position as public enemy number one, which is forcing him to stay out of trouble. Then news comes to his receptors that the newbies want to meet up with him again, in a little warehouse by the Rust Sea. Wanting to bring the purple Predacon under heel, Thunderhoof attends the meet. Almost immediately, the Predacon alarms Thunderhoof by addressing him by name, then by mocking his goons' lousy opinion of him. Offended, Thunderhoof demands Terrorsaur andScavengerkill the Predacon... and nothing happens. Demanding to know how this happened, Terrorsaur shows him the warehouse stacked full of energon Gnashteeth has bought their loyalty with. Before Thunderhoof can repay his minions, they shoot him down.

Later, Gnashteeth and his newly acquired underlings celebrate Thunderhoof's death, as his head hangs from the spires ofIaconas Gnashteeth promised. Scavenger mentions that with the Kospegos literally decapitated, they'll need a new name. Scorponok thinks of what Terrorsaur had said back during the first meet-up, and the gang settle upon the name of "Darksyders".Asking Gnashteeth if he likes the name, Scorponok is told not to call him that any more. As the Predacon explains, Gnashteeth died with the D.E.D. plant. From now on, they shall refer to him... asMegatron.

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Quotes

"Why, Gnash? You were my friend."
"I was your pawn! To be sacrificed the moment it became embarrassing to have a Predacon in your company. But this pawn… has become a queen."

—Double PunchandMegatron

"You shall call me by the name I was truly protoformed to hold. A name torn from prophecy, and from history. From now on you can call me… Megatron."

—Megatron

Notes

• Characters mentioned but who do not appear include: theDestron Boys,theFirestormers,the original Megatron,Optimus Prime,Halogen,Kudon,Cross-Cut,Borehole,Hydrau,Bulletbike,Krunix'spartner,Traachon,and theMinions of Unicron.
• Characters in the Cybertronix section include:Cyberbee42296,FSS15,GEOFAN,MesothulasSinner,ravagekitteh,andAgent3P.

Continuity notes

• Chronologically, this story is the earliestBeast Wars: Uprisingfiction, discounting "A Change to the Agenda",which straddles an intersection between timelines. On top of no mention being made of theGrand Uprising,the story revolves around the formation of the Darksyders, who were established inAlone Togetherto have been the Predacons fought byOptimus Primal's team of Maximals, as described in"TransTech" Blackarachnia'smagazine bio."Not All Megatrons"confirms that this story takes place twenty-one stellar cycles before the events of"Broken Windshields".
• Following the trend of previous stories, Gnashteeth/Megatron has a body based on an existing toy, in this caseG1 Megatron'sThrilling 30Legends Class toy.Scorponok is hisTFSS 5.0 toy—and the story was written by editorial request to promote the toy^[1]—while Terrorsaur takes hisBotCon 2016 toy body.Thunderhoof's design, save for his Maximal insignia, is lifted directly from that of hisoriginalRobots in Disguisecounterpart.
• Several members of the Builder Assembly in this story were previously mentioned in "Broken Windshields".
• Continuing from that, Sigil mentions there are notions of bringing Micromasters onto the Builder Assembly, which he and Halogen are opposed to. Given the chronologically later "Broken Windshields" had the Micromaster Riker identified as one of the Assembly, it's safe to say Sigil and Halogen would ultimately lose that battle.
• The Maximal Flying Corps was first mentioned in "Burning Bridges".
• The Firestormers were previously mentioned as one of the gangs onUprisingCybertron in "Trigger Warnings".Their nature is not elaborated upon, but their membership is probably made ofCyberdroids,given that their leader Ptero is based on aHeadmaster-style toy.

Transformers references

• TheDestron Boysfirst appeared in "Gone Too Far"as anOffworldergang inAxiom Nexus.
• Electronic paint(shortened here to "E-paint" and used as an analogy for graffiti) first appeared in theAnimatedcartoon.
• A version of Bulletbike as a businessbot first appeared in theTransTechstory "I, Lowtech".
• The original Megatron being the gladiatorial champion ofTarncomes from theMarvel UK continuity.
• Gnashteeh/Megatron'sant-droidcolony, and the later reference to himself as a queen, is a reference to the titleInfernogave him in theBeast Warscartoon, which really annoyed him.
• On Page 14, Impound summons a padlock fromsubspace.Later, on Page 24, Scorponok sends his new "Blacking Cannon"intosubspace, and then pulls it back out on Page 25.
• Cyber Planet Keysoriginate from theCybertronfranchise. Here, they are used as a form of currency, as first depicted in theBotCon 2014Timelinescomic story "Hoist the Flag".
• On Page 15, Gnashteeth/Megatron swears "By the Inferno," an early name forThe Pitfrom theBeast Warscartoon. The Pit is later sworn by directly on Page 16 and Page 23.
• The Scourge of Atheniais named after bothGeneration 1Scourgeand the planetAtheniafrom theGeneration 1 cartoonepisode "Five Faces of Darkness, Part 1",and which featured heavily inThe Headmastersfranchise.
• Emptiesoriginated from theMarvel Comics continuity,whileTappetandDipstickoriginated from the2005 IDW continuity.
• Krunix debuted in the Marvel UK comic as an art error which resulted in a Fracas-looking bot who wasn't Fracas. Rather cleverly, this storyrepurposestheTitans Returnversion of Fracas(a formerHeadmaster) as theUprisingversion of Krunix, who works as the bartender of The Scourge of Athenia, while still giving theUprisingversion of Fracas his original NebulanTargetmssterstatus.
• RazeandStingare both characters from theTransformers Legendsanthology, though each is from a different story.
• Thunderhoof leading a gang called the Kospegos comes fromthe fictitious being of the same namewhich hisRobots in Disguisenamesakepretended to be.
• Page 20: Thunderhoof mockingly calls Gnashteeth/Megatron "A regularEmperor of Destruction".
• Page 21: Scorponok thanks theAllsparkfor Gnashteeth/Megatron's recovery in theC/R tank.
• Double Punchhas a sculpture ofFloronin the center of his home's circular driveway.
• Double Punch's Tyrant Blade is a different-named version of theTyrant Spear,the personal weapon ofBlack Zarak,whom Double Punch's originalAction Master Elitetoy greatly resembles. Once the blade is appropriated by Gnashteeth/Megatron, it is renamed to its classic "Tyrant Spear" name.
• The name of the Darksyders being coined based on a reinterpretation of Terrorsaur's line, "Welcome to the dark side", is pretty much exactly how the naming of theDarksydecame about in the real world.

Real world references

• According to Jim Sorenson, many aspects of the story's plot (about a novice who enters the criminal underworld, eventually gaining a feared reputation) were partially based on the television seriesBreaking Bad,with Megatron in the role ofWalter Whiteand Scorponok in the role ofJesse Pinkman.There are many more similarities throughout the story.
• Megatron's ant-droid colony is said to be made oftransparent aluminum,aStar Trekmaterial first introduced in the1986filmStar Trek IV: The Voyage Home.
• Protoforms of Anarchyseems to be named in reference toSons of Anarchy.
• Page 27: Thunderhoof exclaims "What thefrakis this? "using the famous expletive fromBattlestar Galactica.

Errors

• On Page 2,Impoundis described as a "green and burgundy mech," and again as a "bulky green mech" on Page 14. But in the illustration of him on Page 25, he is instead colored pale yellow and lilac purple, with only a few highlights of green.
• On Page 22, Cerberus is mistakenly called "Bruticus"by the narration text in the second-to-last paragraph.
• On Page 23, it says "The Tyrant Blade functioned as a dagger in Gnashteeth's Decepticon hands"; that should be "Double Punch's Decepticon hands."
• On Page 27, "The purple leaned forward," should probably say something like "The purplePredaconleaned forward, "or" The purplemechleaned forward, "instead.
• In the Cybertronix text, Scorponok's username keeps changing (from "Megabee42296" to "Cyberbee42296" to "CyberBee42296" ).
• Also in the Cybertronix, MesothulasSinner's line about "shall we aggressive strategy" is missing a "say".

Other trivia

• According to Scorponok, fifty-four energon cubes would be enough to power him from anywhere from a stellar cycle to three orbital cycles at full power.
• Once again, interludes between scenes containCybertronixtext; when translated, this turns out to be a conversation involving Scorponok (as "Cyberbee42296") onalt.software.dev;other users include "FSS15","GEOFAN","MesothulasSinner","Agent3P",and..."ravagekitteh"?!
• Scorponok was originally to have been named "Scorponaut", but the idea was nixed.^[2]

See also

• "Identity Politics" Cybertronix translation

References

External links

• "Identity Politics"at The OfficialTransformers Collectors' Clubwebsite
• "Identity Politics" annotationsbyJennifer Alexis Carlo