The Lopsided Triangle

« The Transformers: More than Meets the Eye #47 »
Why don't you go away, Getaway Stay away Getaway Get away Getaway You're hopelessly hopeless
"The Lopsided Triangle"
Publisher	IDW Publishing
First published	November 25, 2015
Cover date	November 2015
Written by	James Roberts
Pencils by	Brendan Cahill
Colors by	Joana Lafuente
Letters by	Tom B. Long
Editor	John Barber
Continuity	2005 IDW continuity
Chronology	Current era (2015)

Cyclonus is faced with a difficult choice as Getaway's intentions with Tailgate finally become clear.

Synopsis

Cool motive, still murder!

In the deserted "Visages", Getaway teaches Tailgate chirolinguistics, but soon digresses long enough to recount the story of his birth during the Corcapsia Incursion, and how he earned his name by shamefully running from the battle. After using Nautica's wrench to uncover Ravage drinking nearby, Getaway invites Tailgate to return to his quarters with him so he can give him a present, which turns out to be a set of clip-on mnemosurgery needles. Tailgate is a little confused, as he cannot ever remember claiming to want a set for himself the way Getaway claims he did, but Getaway soon changes the subject with a surprising revelation: he has, in actuality, been secretly walking Tailgate through the Conjunx Ritus, the four ceremonial acts which will make them Conjunx Endura. The "Act of Intimacy" was their holding hands as he taught him chirolinguistics; the "Act of Disclosure" was his tale of his birth; the "Act of Profference" was the giving of the needles as a gift; and now all he needs is for Tailgate to carry out the "Act of Devotion" by performing a spectacular demonstration of his love...

Elsewhere, Cyclonus awakes in his and Tailgate's shared hab-suite to see that his room-mate is not on his recharge slab. He silently heads to "Swerve's"—observing Chromedome and Rewind holding hands as he goes—where Swerve offers him an Old Corroder as thanks for saving him during the "Swearth" debacle. Cyclonus takes the drink to "steel his nerves", then strides from the bar... but rather than go looking for Tailgate, he instead heads to Whirl's quarters. He expresses his concerns about Tailgate and Getaway to the one-eyed watchmaker, fearing that the escapologist does not have his little friend's best interests at heart, but Whirl simply laughs in his face and tells Cyclonus that Tailgate will be better off with Getaway than he would be with him. Whirl asks why Cyclonus has even bothered to come to him with his problems, and Cyclonus responds that Whirl is the only one he could rely on to tell him the painful truth, because he knows he doesn't care about his feelings.

Getaway makes sure the readers really hate him.

A few minutes later, an attack of conscience has Whirl call Getaway and Atomizer to his room. This pair, it turns out, were the ones who conspired with Whirl in the recent past to bait Megatron into a fight in hopes of disgracing the ex-Decepticon and forcing him out. That remains their goal, and is the reason that Getaway has been "grooming" Tailgate all this time; he has no feelings of love for the minibot and has simply manipulated him into the "Act of Devotion", requesting that Tailgate prove himself by using the mnemo-needles to reprogram the sleeping Megatron's mind. Or rather, that's what Tailgate thinks he is going to do—the needles are only fakes, but when the mnemophobic Megatron awakes, Getaway expects him to murder Tailgate on the spot, resulting in Megatron either being killed by the ship's security or shipped back to Cybertron for imprisonment or execution. But Whirl isn't willing to go through with the plan anymore—not at the cost of Tailgate's life. Unfortunately, it's too late; Tailgate is already on his way to Megatron's quarters, and Getaway promptly has Atomizer shoot Whirl with his old nudge gun, wiping his memories of their plan. As his memories slip away, the drowsy Whirl manages to project his holomatter avatar to various locations around the ship, eventually appearing outside the window of Cyclonus and Tailgate's room. Realizing something is wrong, the startled Cyclonus sprints to Whirl's room, but by the time he has arrived, Getaway and Atomizer are gone and Whirl has forgotten everything. Cyclonus is confused, but then spots a clue Whirl managed to leave before Atomizer pulled the trigger: he has set all the chronometers in his room to "113", Megatron's hab-suite number.

Tailgate, meanwhile, has managed to screw up enough courage to sneak into Megatron's quarters, sweeping the room with Nautica's wrench to search for the lurking Ravage. Unfortunately, Getaway has deliberately disabled that function of the wrench, so Ravage goes undetected, and it is his cry that alerts Megatron as Tailgate is about to begin his task. Awakening in panic and rage, Megatron seizes Tailgate, but before he can do anything, Cyclonus's Great Sword comes flying through the doorway and sinks into Megatron's chest. Cyclonus runs in and bludgeons Megatron into unconsciousness with a chunk of recharge slab, then grabs Tailgate and makes a run for an escape pod, knowing that his actions could well have sealed both their fates. As they run, the pair realize that Getaway set Tailgate up... but more importantly, as Tailgate's mind runs back over his relationship with Cyclonus, he realizes that when he was on his deathbed, they unknowingly performed the Four Acts themselves—Tailgate held Cyclonus's hand, confessed his fear of death, and gave him the gift of a replacement horn, while Cyclonus proved his devotion by sharing the energy of his spark to save Tailgate's life. Just before they make it to the escape pod, however, the ship's security team catches up to them, and when Cyclonus reaches for his sword, they open fire. Cyclonus shields Tailgate from the barrage of firepower with his body, and, grievously wounded, bids the little 'bot farewell before collapsing in front of him. The horrified Tailgate's eyes flare with light the way they always do when he panics... but this time, the glow builds and builds, until his whole body radiates a pulsewave of blinding rainbow-light that surges throughout the entire ship...

Featured characters

(Characters in italic text appear only in flashbacks.)
(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Quotes

"Sorry about the mess."
"What mess?"
"No, but that's what people say in these situations, isn't it? "Come in, come in, sorry about the mess." "How was your trip?" "What brings you here at this hour?" I don't know! I've never entertained before. How am I doing so far?"

—Whirl and Cyclonus

"Coming Soon: Cyclonus of Trixylix in "My Friend's Got a New Friend." HA! You devil! I thought this was life-and-death, not sad-face boo-hoo relationship problems. Here you go. Have a reality check, free of charge. By sheer happenstance, you and Panic Button ended up being roomies. What makes you think there's any connection beyond that? The only thing you've got in common is a front door...
"I saved his life."
"And? So what? He owes you? You own him? He's not allowed to make other friends?"
"I... care about him."
"Again: so what? Here's a thought: maybe he just likes Getaway more he likes than you. Would anyone find that surprising? What can you offer him apart from your guaranteed disapproval and a face like a funeral? All you do is stare out the window! My advice to you? Get over it —because he's clearly over you. And let's face it... he's better off with the other guy."

—Whirl gives Cyclonus the painful truth.

"There's no shame in surrendering to your limitations. Even the best of us fail. If you really don't feel brave enough to do this, just say "I'm not the 'bot you thought I was," and we'll forget this whole conversation."
"All of it...?"
"Well, I mean, we'd have to start the Four Acts again—if we still wanted to do that. And if we did, I'm sure there are other ways you could demonstrate your devotion... although none that would impress Cyclonus as much as saving the entire crew from Megatron."

—Getaway is a manipulative asshole and Tailgate can't see it

"I don't like sending him into the devil's den, but then I don't like a filthy fascist scumbag murderer getting an Autobot badge and a pat on the back from high command."

—Getaway

"Goodbye, little one."

—Cyclonus, breaking everyone's hearts

Notes

Continuity notes

• We first heard of Corcapsia back in issue #31, in which Getaway revealed he was created during the "Corcapsia Incursion".
• The full meaning of the term "constructed cold" is revealed at last through Getaway's flashback to his birth. The reference to a spark being "defrosted" made in issue #31 was not euphemistic: the mass-produced sparks were actually frozen, in which state they were inserted into pre-fab bodies to thaw out. Frozen sparks are here noted to be stored in photonic crystals—the same type of crystal that makes up the core of the Matrix of Leadership, as we learned in Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime.
• Getaway refers to how "everything they'd decided [he] needed to know" took shape in his mind at the moment of his awakening. While the truthfulness of his account is, of course, questionable—given how many lies we know he's been telling—this would certainly seem to contradict the account given of M.T.O.'s early lives in issue #31, which explained that they had to undergo a multi-step training program of exams that required extensive revision, before being released into the world. If Getaway is considered to be telling the truth, this would suggest he was one of the later M.T.O.'s, who only had to go through the three-step program that didn't even last an hour, which this issue would imply was a pre-programmed thing that didn't require any conscious effort on his part.
• "Visages" is deserted because, in addition to Swerve tricking Megatron into reciting poetry there in issue #40, Mirage isn't even on board the ship to run the joint any more, having left in issue #43.
• Chirolinguistics was introduced in issue #31.
• Tailgate notes that Cyclonus was going to teach him how to sing in Old Cybertronian; he first gave him a lesson in issue #13.
• Getaway had Brainstorm add the Ravage-detecting torch to Nautica's wrench in issue #41.
• "Old Corroder" was previously mentioned in issue #11.
• Getaway claims he found the mnemo-needles he gives Tailgate in Fortuna, where the Lost Light docked in issue #40.
• While Getaway had started grooming Tailgate earlier, it was in #31 that Getaway saw that Tailgate would definitely risk confronting Megatron.
• At last, it is revealed that the unseen co-conspirators with whom Whirl conversed in issue #28, who had him attempt to coerce Megatron into a captaincy-ruining fight, were Atomizer and Getaway. Remember that back in issue #32, Getaway discussed Megatron and how to properly hate him ("that's the problem: the greater the crime, the harder it is to process a response"). Getting rid of Megatron is not their endgame, however: Atomizer has shown interest in manipulating the ranks of the Lost Light before there was any indication Megatron would be coming on board in issue #29, when he gave Rodimus a faked list of crewmembers who wanted to vote him out.
• Tailgate mentions Scalp, an old friend of his who he brought up before in Spotlight: Trailcutter. Turns out he was a mnemosurgeon. This fits with the head-themed naming convention for all other mnemosurgeons in that very same issue.
• Megatron's fear of mnemosurgery was originally displayed in issue #28. We learned the story behind his phobia in issue #34.
• We've only ever seen Skids's nudge gun before, but we learned that Getaway had one of his own back in issue #20, in which it was explained that Tyrest confiscated it when he captured him and used it to develop the "Weapon of Mass Suggestion" he employed to immobilize the Lost Lighters. Getaway notes it took him ages to find it again.
• Tailgate's deathbed experience occurred back in issue #21. Two of the four acts—Cyclonus holding his hand, and Tailgate confessing how terrified of dying he was—happened off-panel, the first taking place before we joined the scene, and the second occurring when Cyclonus left the medibay in response to a summons from Ratchet.
• Powerflash and Aquafend have previously appeared as members of the Lost Light security team in several previous issues, but this is the first time Strafe, Dogfight, or Boss have been shown to be part of the group.
• Strafe was previously established to have stayed aboard the Lost Light after its second departure from Cybertron in the letters page of Redemption.
• Cybertron's gravity is stated by Getaway to be 10.2 meters per second squared, slightly higher than Earth's.

Real-life references

• This issue concludes with a quote from the 1962 French film, Jules et Jim: "We played with life and lost".
• Whirl mocks the heartbroken Cyclonus as being from "Trixylix" - Tixylix is a brand of infant cough medicine in the UK, usually given to crying children.

Errors

• On page 12, Getaway's speech bubble about his nudge gun is coming from Atomizer. This is fixed in the trade.
• Back in issue #28, the inside of Megatron's body was established to be filled with space bridge portals, to Whirl's loss (of hand). Shouldn't Cyclonus's Great Sword have been similarly truncated?
• Dogfight's looking a little off-color, with grey parts instead of pale blue, and entirely grey head, instead of his usual, more distinctive blue helmet and red face.

Soundtrack

• "Wuthering Heights" by Kate Bush^[1]
• "Are You Ready to Be Heartbroken" by Lloyd Cole and the Commotions^[2]
• "Water From the Same Source" by Rachel's^[3]
• "Avril 14th" by Aphex Twin^[4][5]

Covers (4)

• Regular cover: Tailgate is quite literally torn between Cyclonus and Getaway, by Alex Milne and Josh Perez
• Subscription cover: Whirl's holo-avatar, adrift in space, by Nick Roche and Josh Burcham
• Retailer incentive cover: Verity Carlo, Perceptor, Springer, and Kup, by Brendan Cahill and Joana Lafuente; part of November's series of Sins of the Wreckers incentive covers.
• Merrymac Games and Comics exclusive cover: Combiner Wars Voyager Class Optimus Prime in package, by Craig Rousseau; available exclusively from Merrymac Games and Comics.

• 

  Uh guys, you did a very bad thing!

• 

  Nice one, Whirl!

• 

  Wreck'N'Rule!

• 

  MISB

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• More than Meets the Eye #48
• The Transformers #47
• Transformers vs. G.I. Joe #10
• Sins of the Wreckers #1
• The Transformers: Redemption
• IDW Transformers graphic novel library

Reprints

• The Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye Volume 9 (May 4, 2016) ISBN 1631406159 / ISBN 978-1631406157
  • Collects More than Meets the Eye issues #45–49.
  • Bonus material includes covers of each issue.
  • Trade paperback format.

• Transformers: The Definitive G1 Collection: Volume 66: Speak, Memory (December 25, 2019)
  • Collects More than Meets the Eye issues #43–49.
  • Bonus material includes a one-page article about the Scavengers, a cover gallery and a forward by Simon Furman.
  • Hardcover format.

• The Transformers: The IDW Collection Phase Two: Volume 10 (January 1, 2020) ISBN 1684055849 / ISBN 978-1684055845
  • Collects Windblade (2015) issues #6–7, The Transformers (2012) issues #44–45, Combiner Hunters #1, Sins of the Wreckers issues #1–5, More than Meets the Eye issues #45–47 & #48–49, and The Transformers Holiday Special: Choose Me & The Thirteenth Day of Christmas.
  • Hardcover format.

• 

  More Than Meets the Eye Volume 9 – cover art by Alex Milne and Josh Perez

• 

  The Definitive G1 Collection: Volume 66: Speak, Memory – cover art by Dan Khanna (Getaway) and Hayato Sakamoto (retro)

• 

  The IDW Collection Phase Two: Volume 10 – cover art by Marcelo Matere

References

External links

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