Death's Head: Transformers and the Doctor
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scans_dailyAn origin of the species and a trip to the Doctor.
From Transformers UK #147-#151 and Doctor Who Magazine #135
Art by Dan Reed, Geoff Senior, Jeff Anderson and Bryan Hitch.
We pick up from the previous issue with Death's Head delivering the bodies of Cyclonus and Scourge to Shockwave on Cybertron and attempting to claim his bounty.
Of course, you don't get to be leader of the Decepticons without assuming that everyone is out to get you, even if you are a walking calculator. Shockwave does the logical thing and once again gets Soundwave to make good use of his mind reading abilities.
All dead? A reference to a certain iconic cover perhaps?
There then follows a game of cat and mouse between Death's Head and Shockwave, as the two deadly mechanoids try and take each other out in a contest of survival. There's a nice sequence in a shooting range which sadly I had to cut for page count, but culminates in a final showdown which is to have repercussions on future storylines and made quite an impression on my young mind for its brutality.
Yes, that's Shockwave's cerebral circuits that Death's Head is crushing with a pitiful sound effect. Thus Shockwave dies, not with a cry, but a 'krik'.
Unicron's plan, it transpires, is to install Cyclonus and Scourge as Decepticon leaders in Shockwave's stead and have them start an all out war on Cybertron between Decepticon and Autobots. When both sides have practically wiped each other out, he intends to sweep in with his rebuilt body and consume the planet.
However, he didn't reckon with the Wreck-Gar, the Junkion's leader, returning to the planet Junk with Smokescreen and Inferno in tow. After discovering that Unicron still lives and his plan for their homeworld, the Autobots attempt to flee.
Death's Head's continued resistance of Unicron's influence is notable. Although Galvatron rebelled in Transformers: The Movie, the planet eater was able to keep him in check more easily. Something to do with Death's Head's origins maybe? (Of which we will learn more in time.)
Or it could just be that Unicron is only a fraction of his further self. Still, he's managing to keep a head.
Geddit?
Anyway, Unicron has big plans far beyond Cybertron…
Turns out the bounty hunter can do magic shit too. Don't say Gary Stu. But, yep, something to do with his origins , yes?
But being inside Unicron's mind doesn't mean he can handle it. But after 150 issues of the UK Transformers comic, we come to the ORIGIN OF THE TRANSFORMERS. Which turns out to be way more cosmic than we anticipated and heavily influenced all future incarnations of the franchise in the decades since.
Having expositioned a lot inside his own mind, Unicron is so distracted he doesn't notice that the Autobot leader and his closest aids have snuck off of Cybertron and headed to Junk, having been warned by Smokescreen.
He does notice when they turn up and start firing at him though, in an issue drawn by the 17 year old Bryan Hitch.
He calls Cyclonus and Scourge back to Junk to assist…
The distraction caused by Death's Head and Unicron's desire to monologue has had other benefits too. Rodimus is able to sneak down to the planet's surface and Wreck-Gar has been busy planting a bunch of explosives under Unicron's head, all ready to be triggered at the right moment. And it isn't the end of the freelance peacekeeping agent's assistance.
Prime is just playing dead, of course. Death's Head manages to open the pathway into Unicron's mind so Rodimus can confront him on the same level. Unfortunately the Autobot leader is still outclassed, but once again that distraction is useful and the explosive are all primed ready to destroy Unicron once and for all.
And thus ends Unicron (for now, anyway) and Death's Head's involvement with the Transformers. Despite his promise, he doesn't get to kill his targets another time. Cyclonus and Scourge go on to play a role in future UK Transformers storylines and this postscript neatly explains how they end up in Marvel US's Headmasters Transformers comic as background characters. (Aside from the fact they had been re-released as Targetmasters as part of the toy line).
As for Death's Head, his travels through the time vortex were interrupted when he literally bumped into a certain time traveller, also published by Marvel UK at the time…
Whoops. Luckily the Time Warden is there to help smooth over any disputes about right of way.
And thus Death's Head is shrunk down to human size .The Doctor smooths things over by agreeing to hand over the TARDIS, but instead uses the controls to transport Death's Head to a random time and place. Which happens to be Earth in 8162, the setting of Marvel UK's other US format title at the time, Dragon's Claws.
But that's another story that we've already seen.
However, with Death's Head getting a new title and a new partner, that means promotion! In the form of a one-page story/ad published in the Marvel UK titles at the time. Apparently between drawing his least appearance in the Transformers series and Death's Head's own title, Bryan Hitch had been reading a lot of Alan Davis books.
But there's also future encounters with the Doctor to come in time…
From Transformers UK #147-#151 and Doctor Who Magazine #135
Art by Dan Reed, Geoff Senior, Jeff Anderson and Bryan Hitch.
We pick up from the previous issue with Death's Head delivering the bodies of Cyclonus and Scourge to Shockwave on Cybertron and attempting to claim his bounty.
Of course, you don't get to be leader of the Decepticons without assuming that everyone is out to get you, even if you are a walking calculator. Shockwave does the logical thing and once again gets Soundwave to make good use of his mind reading abilities.
All dead? A reference to a certain iconic cover perhaps?
There then follows a game of cat and mouse between Death's Head and Shockwave, as the two deadly mechanoids try and take each other out in a contest of survival. There's a nice sequence in a shooting range which sadly I had to cut for page count, but culminates in a final showdown which is to have repercussions on future storylines and made quite an impression on my young mind for its brutality.
Yes, that's Shockwave's cerebral circuits that Death's Head is crushing with a pitiful sound effect. Thus Shockwave dies, not with a cry, but a 'krik'.
Unicron's plan, it transpires, is to install Cyclonus and Scourge as Decepticon leaders in Shockwave's stead and have them start an all out war on Cybertron between Decepticon and Autobots. When both sides have practically wiped each other out, he intends to sweep in with his rebuilt body and consume the planet.
However, he didn't reckon with the Wreck-Gar, the Junkion's leader, returning to the planet Junk with Smokescreen and Inferno in tow. After discovering that Unicron still lives and his plan for their homeworld, the Autobots attempt to flee.
Death's Head's continued resistance of Unicron's influence is notable. Although Galvatron rebelled in Transformers: The Movie, the planet eater was able to keep him in check more easily. Something to do with Death's Head's origins maybe? (Of which we will learn more in time.)
Or it could just be that Unicron is only a fraction of his further self. Still, he's managing to keep a head.
Geddit?
Anyway, Unicron has big plans far beyond Cybertron…
Turns out the bounty hunter can do magic shit too. Don't say Gary Stu. But, yep, something to do with his origins , yes?
But being inside Unicron's mind doesn't mean he can handle it. But after 150 issues of the UK Transformers comic, we come to the ORIGIN OF THE TRANSFORMERS. Which turns out to be way more cosmic than we anticipated and heavily influenced all future incarnations of the franchise in the decades since.
Having expositioned a lot inside his own mind, Unicron is so distracted he doesn't notice that the Autobot leader and his closest aids have snuck off of Cybertron and headed to Junk, having been warned by Smokescreen.
He does notice when they turn up and start firing at him though, in an issue drawn by the 17 year old Bryan Hitch.
He calls Cyclonus and Scourge back to Junk to assist…
The distraction caused by Death's Head and Unicron's desire to monologue has had other benefits too. Rodimus is able to sneak down to the planet's surface and Wreck-Gar has been busy planting a bunch of explosives under Unicron's head, all ready to be triggered at the right moment. And it isn't the end of the freelance peacekeeping agent's assistance.
Prime is just playing dead, of course. Death's Head manages to open the pathway into Unicron's mind so Rodimus can confront him on the same level. Unfortunately the Autobot leader is still outclassed, but once again that distraction is useful and the explosive are all primed ready to destroy Unicron once and for all.
And thus ends Unicron (for now, anyway) and Death's Head's involvement with the Transformers. Despite his promise, he doesn't get to kill his targets another time. Cyclonus and Scourge go on to play a role in future UK Transformers storylines and this postscript neatly explains how they end up in Marvel US's Headmasters Transformers comic as background characters. (Aside from the fact they had been re-released as Targetmasters as part of the toy line).
As for Death's Head, his travels through the time vortex were interrupted when he literally bumped into a certain time traveller, also published by Marvel UK at the time…
Whoops. Luckily the Time Warden is there to help smooth over any disputes about right of way.
And thus Death's Head is shrunk down to human size .The Doctor smooths things over by agreeing to hand over the TARDIS, but instead uses the controls to transport Death's Head to a random time and place. Which happens to be Earth in 8162, the setting of Marvel UK's other US format title at the time, Dragon's Claws.
But that's another story that we've already seen.
However, with Death's Head getting a new title and a new partner, that means promotion! In the form of a one-page story/ad published in the Marvel UK titles at the time. Apparently between drawing his least appearance in the Transformers series and Death's Head's own title, Bryan Hitch had been reading a lot of Alan Davis books.
But there's also future encounters with the Doctor to come in time…
