This is a better group shot, but still lame as a cover to the 23rd issue.
Transformers Energon #23
Dreamwave (May, 2004)
“What Lies Beneath” part four WRITER: Simon Furman PENCILER: Joe Ng INKER: Elaine To COLORISTS: Jong-Im Lee, Stuart Ng, & Josh Perez LETTERER: Ben lee
Rad and Alexis meet up with the Autobots just as Optimus comes up with a new plan. This includes sending Hot Shot, Skyblast, and Strongarm to rescue Kicker from Tidal Wave while the other Omnicons use their Energon weapons to overload the other Terrorcons. However, Kicker led the Terrorcons to an impure strand of Energon and the stored energy explodes. The Terrorcons are pulled back to Unicron to face a very unhappy Alpha Quintesson, while Optimus decides his team will be staying on Earth, and this time making allies with the humans.
What they got right: Forming an open alliance with the humans? Why can’t more comics Optimus Primes realize that this is a good strategy? Worked for the original cartoon and Transformers Animated. Kicker is also less of a jerk than his cartoon counterpart in this issue and I hope that remains the case. I hate cartoon Kicker as a person and a character.
What they got wrong: Hot Shot shoots Tidal Wave in the head–point-blank, mind you–and it just makes him mad? Was the Mirage toy (which was supposed to be Tidal Wave in a new body, as Japan likes doing with Transformers) not out yet so he couldn’t be upgraded?
Recommendation: This is a morning where a Simon Furman-penned Transformers story was MORE fun and interesting than the one that isn’t. That is too weird. Get this series.
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