Transformers #21: The Decepticons Mean Business

Transformers #21 sees the return and rise of Megatron continue as the Autobots continue to struggle to survive. Meanwhile, the Autobots on Cybertron struggle to come up with a plan of action as Shreadhead is caught up to speed on everything he needs to know in order to help Optimus once he arrives on earth. Together, these stories tell a tale of the Autobots continual frustration while hope lingers Full of surprise revelations and this series’ trademark sense of relatable commentary on the state of the world, Transformers #21 continues to exemplify the aspects of this series that make it so astounding each and every month.

This issue opens with a short segment featuring the captured Ultra Magnus speaking with his captors, a U.S government group of G.I Joe characters. This section really highlights the nature of Ultra Magnus and his role in this story thus far, essentially escaping captivity as a prisoner of war and then transferring to another prison. Unfortunately for him, he is now captured by a completely different force, one that hates him purely out of ignorance. This creates an interesting dynamic that sees Magnus have some brilliantly written dialogue about why this is all happening to him and the futility of it all.

Much of the remainder of the issue focuses on Optimus finally attempting to discover what exactly has been wrong with him over the last several issues. He has been doing his best to lead but has, at times, fallen into a fit of blind rage that is totally out of his character. Without revealing anything here, it is pretty clear what exactly the issue is and thankfully, the creative team wastes no time in creating a temporary solution that both solves the problem while simultaneously making the Autobots situation worse. This issue is very emblematic of the position that Johnson has placed these characters in since day one, which will hopefully pay off as one of the best comeback stories of all time.

The main star of the show here is Megatron, whose arrival started with destruction and continues down that path as he chooses to immediately march on Autobot turf. This is exemplary of Megatron’s forward approach that has made him so successful in the past, which also differentiates him from the others who attempted to lead the Decepticons. While Megatron has a clear vision of his next steps, the Decepticons continue to plague themselves with in-fighting and threaten to doom the operation. While it is not clear if this will be their ultimate downfall, the foreshadowing is clear and, with the conclusion to Johnson’s run right around the corner, the heat picking up is making each issue end even more climatically than the last.