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VOOZH | about |
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VOOZH | about |
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| π RID5 cvrB.jpg | ||||
| "A Better Tomorrow" | ||||
| Publisher | IDW Publishing | |||
| First published | May 30, 2012 | |||
| Cover date | May 2012 | |||
| Story by | John Barber | |||
| Art by | Andrew Griffith and Casey Coller | |||
| Colors by | Josh Perez | |||
| Letters by | Shawn Lee | |||
| Editor | Carlos Guzman | |||
| Continuity | 2005 IDW continuity | |||
| Chronology | Current era (2012) | |||
The arrival of Sky-Byte causes events on Cybertron to reach a critical juncture, prompting Ironhide to take a surprising stand.
Contents |
Ironhide watches as another NAIL shuttle arrives on Cybertron, its sole occupant proving to be an ex-Decepticon poet and old acquaintance of his named Sky-Byte. The obvious distaste Sky-Byte has for his former faction prompts Starscream to step aside and leave the welcoming to Metalhawk; Bumblebee, meanwhile, eschews taking part at all. Prowl, though, elects to watch Sky-Byte's welcome from afar, with Arcee quietly whispering in his ear all the while. He instructs her to get back to looking for Dirge, but she cautions him to remember that she is not his assassin to order about.
Metalhawk takes Sky-Byte to meet with fellow NAILs Tappet, Hipotank, and Zetca, who address his concerns about Decepticons being allowed to roam free by telling him about the inhibitor/deterrence chips, though that only increases his worries about the Autobots' methods. The next day, Sky-Byte withdraws to the edge of the city to ruminate on what he has learned, and is found by Ironhide just as he is composing a poem over some Sweep remains. Ironhide tells Sky-Byte about his lost memories and the new perspective his missing years have given him, and surprises the shark by proposing that he speak to some Decepticons in order to get the whole picture before making any choices about life on Cybertron. The pair return to the city, and while Sky-Byte heads off to follow Ironhide's suggestion, the old soldier continues to play advice-giver by meeting with Blurr and convincing him to fulfill his old pre-war dream of opening a bar by refurbishing Maccadam's Old Oil House.
Back at Autobot command, Metalhawk kicks off another argument with Bumblebee over the I/D chips, holding up Starscream as evidence that the Decepticons can change. Bumblebee counters with the fact that even the NAILs hate the Decepticons, and that Sky-Byte tried to kill him once. Starscream sarcastically notes that there were too many those who wished to do this. Enraged, Bumblebee orders Prowl to remove both Metalhawk and Starscream, but the police-bot has disappeared during the conversation.
Sky-Byte, meanwhile, has met with Swindle, who tells him of Prowl's recent Decepticon executions, and takes him to a bolt-hole where Needlenose is watching over Dirge, from whom they learned of the Constructicons' deaths. Unfortunately for them, Sideswipe, having learned of Ironhide's suggestion to Sky-Byte, has tricked another NAIL to keep tabs on Sky-Byte's movements for him by telling him that he was responsible for nearly killing Zetca. Following the information he receives, Sideswipe leads Streetwise and Prowl into the Decepticons' hideaway, where a firefight ensues. Dirge and Swindle escape, but Sky-Byte and Needlenose are captured, and a riot ensues when they are brought above ground and a crowd of NAILs attempts to lynch them. Ironhide comes smashing his way into the crowd and puts the mob down, then, as he finds himself staring down the barrel of Prowl's gun, makes a speech that concludes with a plea to Bumblebee to have the I/D chips turned off as the first step towards equality for the future.
The next morning, Prowl confronts Ironhide and Sky-Byte in the repaired and re-opened Maccadam's, furious over Bumblebee's decision to follow Ironhide's advice and deactivate the chips. Stopped by Blurr before things get physical, Prowl grumpily sits down for a drink with the pair and demands to know why Ironhide is so sure everything is going to work out. Ironhide explains that in the moment when everything turned to white as Cybertron was reborn, he had a vision of the future, of himself and Alpha Trion telling stories to the next generation of Transformers on Gorlam Prime. That's how he knows the future is bright: because in it, all the other Autobots and Decepticons and all their old grudges... are dead.
(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)
| Autobots | Decepticons | NAILs | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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"Starscream?"
"My reputation precedes me."
"You're known throughout the galaxy. A conniver, a liar, and a killer. In short aβDecepticon."
"I like this guy."
"Barren wasteland
consumes so many. Desire
leaves me alone."
"Sky-Byte's reactin' like that 'cause he used to be a Decepticon. Tried to kill me once."
"Who hasn't?"
Japanese
I am the yellow guy in charge, not you!
Ironhide smash!
Robots in Disguise Volume 1 β cover art by Andrew Griffith and Josh Perez
Robots in Disguise Volume 1 β cover art by Livio Ramondelli
The IDW Collection Phase Two: Volume 1 β cover art by Saren Stone
Robots in Disguise Box Set β cover art by by ???
The Definitive G1 Collection: Volume 54: A Better Tomorrow β cover art by Don Figueroa and Andrew Griffith
