The Beauty of Cybertron
From Transformers Wiki
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| "The Beauty of Cybertron" | |||||||||||||
| Publisher | IDW Publishing | ||||||||||||
| Published in | The Magic of Cybertron#3 | ||||||||||||
| First published | June 30,2021 | ||||||||||||
| Cover date | June 2021 | ||||||||||||
| Written by | James Asmus | ||||||||||||
| Art by | Priscilla Tramontano | ||||||||||||
| Colors by | Luis Antonio Delgado | ||||||||||||
| Letters by | Jake M. Wood | ||||||||||||
| Editor | Megan BrownandDavid Mariotte | ||||||||||||
Rarity and Ratchet search for a way to reverse King Sombra’s evil spell and receive some unexpected Decepticon assistance.
Contents |
Synopsis
King Sombra'sTransformerslaves rampage acrossCybertron,stealing resources for their new master and pursued byRatchetandRarity.Although the Autobot medic admits he's far out of his depth, Rarity urges him to do what he can—after all, as a result of her adventures withTwilight Sparkle,she hassomeexperience with magic, and together they just might be able to find a way to find a cure for the afflicted Cybertronians and break the spell for good. As the brainwashed mob strips a broken-down transport vehicle for parts, the two launch an ambush to capture a potential test subject: riding on top of Ratchet's ambulance mode, Rarity uses a high-tech net to bring down one of the Cybertronians. When the pair recovers their captive, however, Ratchet recognizes the struggling Decepticon and quickly realized that they haven't caught one of Sombra's slaves at all—they've capturedKnock Out!Opportunistic and vain as ever, the Decepticon medic has taken advantage of theEquestrianinvasion to steal some accoutrements for himself amidst the chaos. As Rarity helps him free from the net, however, Ratchet slaps a device on his shoulder and tells Knock Out that he's just been drafted into their rescue mission—one wrong move and he'll remotely detonate the bomb he's just planted on the Decepticon.
As the trio head out into the badlands, Ratchet asks if Knock Out overheard anything about where Sombra's slaves might strike next. Unfortunately, Knock Out has no clear leads for them, beyond briefly overhearing them mumble something about power supplies... and points out that he was far more interested in finding a set of suitable racing tires. Exasperated, Ratchet snaps that Knock Out is the most selfish medic he's ever met, but the Decepticon snaps that he didn'twantto become a battlefield medic or some kind of martyr for the cause—he went into the business to bring beauty and refinement to Cybertronians with taste. But when Rarity innocently compliments Knock Out on his finish, pointing out that he is one of the only beautiful things she's seen on Cybertron, this provokes an unexpected reaction from the Decepticon. He'll help them track down the brainwashed Transformers... but informs them that if they want his assistance, they'll be doing thingshisway.
As they pursue the brainwashed Transformers across the planet, Knock Out takes time to show Rarity that Cybertron has a beauty all its own—the yearly migration of theradiant shralls,slumberingTitans,and the naturalenergon springs,a "waterfall" of pure liquidenergon.That's where they catch up with Sombra's victims, who are working to tap the flow and process it intoenergon cubes... and Ratchet advises Knock Out to keep his head and remember who he's working for, because Knock Out's partnerBreakdownis part of the group! Knock Out and Rarity cause a distraction while Ratchet whips up a neural disruptor that will hopefully disrupt Sombra's mental control—but Knock Out grabs the controls before they're ready and unleashes a paralyzing electrical. While the blast successfully incapacitates Breakdown, the other 'bots take advantage of the distraction to retreat with their energon cubes, and Rarity gently tells Knock Out that it will take more than a simple electric shock to break the spell. Ratchet, fighting off more Sombra slaves, snaps that they can't just use friendship to override Sombra's spell... but Rarity points out that friendshipwashow they bested Sombra the last time they crossed paths. Her words give Ratchet an idea: could she do it again?
Ratchet plants his device on Rarity's head, who then channels her natural unicorn magic through the device's Cybertronian circuitry to keep Breakdown and others pinned in place.Herfriendship won't free the Decepticons, however—she needsKnock Outto do that. Knock Out reaches out from his heart to try and break the spell; his impassioned speech that he couldn't bear to live in a world without his better half by his side is channelled through Rarity's magic and amplified by Ratchet's neural disruptor. After a moment, the spell is lifted as Breakdown's eyes return to normal—their plan has succeeded! Rarity suggests that Ratchet could release Knock Out as thanks, but the Autobot medic just laughs—the "detonator" was a harmless tracking device that could have been removed at any time. Now that they've discovered a way to free Sombra's victims by intensifyingunicornmagic with Cybertronian technology, Ratchet wonders ifWheeljackcould somehow find a way to innovate on the principle, but hopes that Sombra won't figure out the same trick—unaware that Sombra has eyes everywhere and has already learned their secret...
Featured characters
(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)
| Autobots | Decepticons | Equestrians |
|---|---|---|
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Quotes
"Please—you want to talk about theft? You should see howegregiously overpricedthese designer racing tires are! "
"Ugh!Tellme about it! I think a few couture shops in Equestria wouldliterallycharge a horn and a leg if they could. "
- —Knock OutandRarity
"I confess, Ratchet darling, this plan feels an awful lot likenothaving a plan. "
"Medical breakthroughs are trial and error!The plan is totrythings—andhopewe survive long enough tolearnfrom the errors. "
- —RarityandRatchet
"Listento me, you big hunk of metal—I need you tosnap out of it.Right now. Not just because I don't want tohurtyou—but because you're the strongest bot I know. And ifyoucan't break free of that spell—no one will. But also because... because you're mybetter half.And frankly, if I have to fight to keep this world from falling into agrim, unicorn dystopia—and we lose—I'd hate to spend eternity on a scrap heap next to anyone else. "
- —Knock Out
Notes
Continuity notes
- Breakdown appeared inthe first story of issue #1as one of the many Decepticon victims of King Sombra's opening attack.
- Rarity uses the same glowing net thatStarscreamand the other Seekers deployed against a group of brainwashed Cybertronians inRainbow Dash's spotlight story.
- Rarity remembers the last time she and her friends went up against King Sombra in "The Beginning of the End - Part 2"—as she notes here, they were able to trounce the evil king by using theElements of Harmonyagainst him.
Transformers references
- Knock Outis, of course, based directly on thefan-favorite Decepticon sportscarwho debuted in theTransformers: Primecartoon. In terms of characterization, however, this version of Knock Out hews closer to the version that appeared in IDW's ownWindbladeandTill All Are Onecomics, a cosmetic surgeon in an explicitly romantic relationship with Breakdown.
- This continuity's version of Cybertron takes a few cues fromBrian Ruckley's unique interpretation of the planet from IDW'songoingTransformerscomic—notable points of commonality include the presence of organic alien lifeforms like theradiant shralls,multiple dormantTitans,and luminescent rivers ofenergon.
- After Knock Out snatches the neural disruptor, a frustrated Ratchet cries "I needed that!" in reference to his running gag from thePrimecartoon. Usually this was directed at other Autobots, but he said it to Knock Out inthe finale movie.
Errors
- The "bomb" on Knock Out's right shoulder comes and goes: it's missing during his argument with Ratchet, the subsequent travel montage, and the battle against Sombra's slaves from on pages four to six, reappears when he paralyzes Breakdown, then vanishes again.
- On page five, Knock Out's right headlight is missing.
