Infiltration # 4
Written by Simon Furman
Penciled by EJ Su

Summary:

We begin with a flashback to three years prior; a younger Verity Carlo is being assessed by a social worker.  The social worker reveals that Verity has run away from every foster family or home they've placed her with, and they're running out of options on what to do with the little girl.  The social worker reads Verity's file, which describes the runaway as "uncommonly bright with deep socialization issues".  The older woman thinks that Verity puts up a tough front, but is actually a troubled and frightened little girl.  Flash forward to present time; Verity is scaling down a shaft that leads to the hidden Decepticon bunker as Jimmy, Hunter, and Ratchet and Bumblebee's holo-matter avatars watch from above.  Jimmy and Hunter comment on Verity's need to seem independent and tough, as they prepare to follow her down into the darkness of the bunker.  Ratchet informs his human friends that when there is the slightest bit of danger evident, they are to return to the surface.  Bumblebee adds that even though this bunker appears abandoned, it is possible the Decepticons have left booby-traps; even ones for organic creatures.  Jimmy comments that a human has made it through before, and Hunter affirms that it is important they discover why the Decepticons abandoned this particular bunker.  Bumblebee warns them to be careful again, explaining that he and Ratchet cannot risk any kind of holo-matter detection, so the humans are going to have to go in blind.  Once the three kids have safely made it to the ground, Ratchet voices his distaste for this scenario.  But Bumblebee reminds him that they need solid evidence to convince Prowl of the increased threat, and if worst comes to worst; three humans are acceptable losses compared to the entire planet.  Down in the bunker, the kids check their equipment and split up to begin exploring and filming the interior so Ratchet can analyze what they discover later.  Meanwhile in a large office building in Texas, a mysterious human organization called "the Machination" is meeting.  A "Mr. Drake" walks into the meeting, being greeted by the other members of the organization; Mr. Dante, Ms. Svenson, and Mr. Jolly.  Mr. Jolly informs Drake that recent events have opened a window for possible "appropriation".  Jolly switches the TV on to show reports of the recent Decepticon attacks over the last few issues.  Mr. Jolly hands Mr. Drake a file, and says that their organization believes that the "visitors" are moving further towards their ultimate goals.  Drake examines the file, which appears to be a final report logged by an operative by the name of Stoker, which we recognize as the businessman who was initially carrying the palm computer with the images of the Decepticon bunker.  Meanwhile in said bunker, Verity attempts to add her own commentary to her video recording of the bunker, but is embarrassed when Hunter hears her over the radio link.  Hunter contacts Jimmy, who hasn't found much of anything yet.  Suddenly, Verity finds a large structure with weird "pods" jutting out of it like branches from a tree.  While most of them are empty, Verity spies one that may have some content in it, and despite Hunter's protests opens it.  To her horror, there is a desiccated human corpse within the pod, which causes Verity to freak out and back away, on the verge of tears.  Hunter frantically asks what's wrong and begins to radio Jimmy for help when Verity shakes herself out of it and tells them both to stay put.  Jimmy radios her and tells her she can leave if she wants, but Verity is having none of that and moves on after gathering her composure.  Meanwhile above ground, Ratchet and Bumblebee wait for the kids' return to the surface.  Ratchet is nervous, but Bumblebee is simply bored.  Suddenly, Ratchet warns Bumblebee to move as a missile suddenly strikes where the Autobots were just parked a moment prior.  Skywarp and Blitzwing have arrived, and Ratchet surmises that their target is the hidden bunker.  In the air, Blitzwing wonders aloud what two Autobots are doing here, but Skywarp could care less and resumes his attack on the two ground-bound Transformers.  Dodging fire from the Decepticons, Ratchet radios the kids to evacuate the bunker immediately.  Within said bunker, Hunter and Jimmy begin making their way towards the exit, but Verity isn't satisfied yet.  She ditches her radio and moves to explore something beyond a half-opened doorway.  Outside, Bumblebee and Ratchet continue to avoid Decepticon firepower as they come to the realization that the bunker will collapse in on itself with enough sustained bombing.  Skywarp emerges from a warp portal above the Autobots as they reconnoiter and lays down some machine gun fire.  Bumblebee deploys a rifle from his hood compartment and tries shooting the Decepticon Seeker down, but Skywarp vanishes again through another portal.  Transforming to robot mode, Bumblebee does a quick scan of estimated entry points for Skywarp to emerge from and fires upon them all, hoping to randomly hit the Decepticon.  He's successful as Skywarp appears and gets his wing clipped by the Autobot's fire.  Off-balance, Skywarp swoops low over the battlefield causing Bumblebee to transform back to car mode to avoid being rammed.  A few yards away, Blitzwing flies towards Ratchet on a bombing run, but Ratchet cleverly uses a strobe effect to blind the Decepticon Triple-Changer.  Losing control, Blitzwing crashes to the ground several yards away from Ratchet.  Transforming to robot mode, Ratchet knows he has to finish the job and begins to advance on his fallen foe, lamenting his lack of substantial weaponry along the way.  Suddenly a powerful blast strikes Ratchet square in the chest, blowing a hole in him and knocking him off-line.  A not-so-defeated Blitzwing, having converted to tank mode slowly rolls towards the downed Autobot.  Meanwhile in the underground bunker, Verity makes her way into a new room and is shocked to find that this bunker isn't as abandoned as they all assumed.  Standing at a console, a none-too-happy MEGATRON regards the teenage runaway!  TO BE CONTINUED!


Slagged!:

-Verity finds the corpse of some human in a small "stasis pod" of sorts.  While the body is apparently desiccated, the clothes (which seem to indicate military personnel) are totally fine.  Gross.  Whatever the Cons did to that guy, it probably wasn't pleasant.

-Bumblebee manages to out-fox Skywarp by blasting everywhere the Seeker might appear in the sky.  He manages to blast Skywarp's wing, prompting the Decepticon to try and "pull a Ramjet" on Bumblebee.

-Ratchet manages to blind Blitzwing into crashing his jet mode, but takes a shot to the chest from the Triple-Changer's tank turret in retaliation.  Doesn't look good for our hero.


Sightings:

-Check the coffee mug on the social worker's desk on the first page- Gen 1 Shockwave's head!

-Seeing how the corpse Verity finds is wearing a military-style suit, could the Decepticons be "replacing" chief military figures in the government with holo-matter replicants to further their goal of global destabilization?  Just some speculation to chew over there.

-Bumblebee's got a big rifle hidden under his hood, and Ratchet uses his hidden wrist weapon again; EJ Su sure went the extra mile in designing hidden weapons and gadgets for everyone.

-The design for Megatron is a whole new one for this comic series, although very similar to Don Figueroa's War Within Megatron.  Clearly the alt-mode is still some kind of Cybertronian tank, but the robot mode bears a strong resemblance to the original Gen 1 gun Megatron robot mode.


Hearings:

-Bit cold of Bumblebee to dismiss Verity and the gang as "acceptable losses", ain't it?  Makes me wonder more about Prowl's line last issue about "getting rid" of the humans.  Forgive me for saying so, but; these aren't your father's Autobots.

-The Machination organization seems to dabble in acquiring Cybertronian tech, it would seem.  They appear to have an inside track as to the existence of the Transformers and such.  It could be nothing, but it struck me that Mr. "Drake" never changed his facial expression or talked, much like Ratchet and Bumblebee's holo-matter avatars.  Could he be a "holo-person"??????  Well, maybe I'm reading too much into it.

-Verity catches the end of a conversation Megatron is having with someone, presumably over a communication channel.  We only hear "Yes.  Especially Cybertron".  What is Megs talking about and who with?  I guess we find out next issue.


Wreck and RULE!:

-We get a little more characterization on Verity here; her tough act is just her way of dealing with feelings of abandonment (probably), and deep down she's still a "scared little girl".  I must say about the scene where she finds the corpse in the pod; EJ Su really nailed it.  You see Verity's horror and fear laid out on her face, and you really feel for the poor kid.  It is a very effective and genuinely haunting scene, in my opinion.

-I really like how Bumblebee is characterized here.  He's clearly not a "little brother" or sidekick, and certainly not naïve in the ways of war.  He doesn't back down, improvises on the fly, and manages a minor victory over Skywarp.

-Blitzwing and Skywarp are also well in character, and their exchange before commencing their full attack on the Autobots is amusing.

-The Bumblebee and Ratchet versus Skywarp and Blitzwing battle is a great sequence, and Mr. Su proves he can capture motion quite well in his artwork.  From the vehicular maneuvering the Autobots engage in to avoid Decepticon firepower to the sheer force of Blitzwing's blast when it strikes Ratchet, everything has a "weight" to it and just flows fantastically.

-The reveal that Megatron is in the bunker that Starscream wants destroyed is intriguing to say the least.  Personally, I'm not sure that Starscream ordered the bunker's destruction because he knew Megatron was in there.  I think Screamer was just destroying evidence, and now Megatron has secretly arrived on Earth to put a stop to whatever scheme his treacherous lieutenant is cooking up.


Wreck and ROT!:

-The human-centricity continues this issue, although not as heavy as previous ones.  While Verity, Hunter, and Jimmy are actually well-developed characters, they are starting to get an unbalanced amount of panel-time compared to the Autobots and Decepticons.  I'm hoping this corrects itself next issue with Megatron's debut.  The Machination organization scene is pretty dull too.  Furman should switch the focus to the Transformers soon or he risks alienating fans who simply don't care about the human factor.

-"FGH"?  "YEH"?  "EHH"?  "G'WRR!"?  What kind of cries of anxiety and/or pain are those?  I know Furman is known for writing odd verbal sounds in his comic stories, but still; weird.  Personally, I miss "SHEAAAGH!!!"

-One sour note with EJ Su's Transformers; their facial expressions are all kind of flat and cold sometimes.  The last page splash of Megatron should emanate menace, but his facial expression just sort of downgrades that to mere annoyance at Verity's intrusion.  Maybe Mr. Su is trying to go for the cold, "alien" look, but I'd prefer my Megatron to have a more terrifying countenance.    

-The roster chart on the inside cover pretty much gives away that Megatron would be appearing in this issue, so any surprise the reader might have had at his appearance is negated.


Final Judgment:

Another solid installment of Infiltration, but as I mentioned above, the increased human spotlight is starting to get a little annoying.  While we have been getting a lot of Transformer action too, most of it is overshadowed by our three teenage human characters.  Still, nothing aside from that to complain about.  The dialogue is fun and the plot continues its slow move towards what hopefully will turn out to be a stellar finale to this first arc.  EJ Su's artwork continues to impress, both in technical detail and in capturing the action of scenes.  With Megatron in the mix now, the body count is going to mount and the action will certainly kick up a bit.  I can't wait to see Megatron begin the discipline of his wayward troops next issue.  Peace.


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