Transformers: Autocracy #12 Creator Commentary from Chris Metzen

PAGE 1: The big climatic battle begins. After 11 previous issues, was this the way the story was always going to end, or did it go through different versions before arriving at what we see here?

CHRIS METZEN: This was it! When we started conceptualizing the story, we knew it was really all about Hot Rod – and how he was at this tipping point between the two ideologies… we wanted Prime and Megatron to duke it out – but create a scenario where Hot Rod would finally have to buck up and “choose” which side he’d be on. Given my obsession with the 1986 animated film, it seemed like a slam-dunk to relook at that famous “duel” scene and spin it the other way. I think Flint really wanted to push the idea of Hot Rod getting a “web-redemption” and making good for the screw-up all those years ago. This ending was one of our favorite scenes in the series.

That said, even 12 pages was pretty tight to get all these ideas to “breathe” and really take shape. But I think as people read the series all in one sitting, they’ll see that Hot Rod was always right in the center of the tale – and this ending both pays homage to his role in the franchise’s history, as well as his role in its future.

PAGE 2- The Dynobots and a few familiar Autobot allies arrive to make their stand against Megatron as the battle escalates. Was going through the IDW backstory and finding places to bring these characters in a challenge in itself?

CHRIS METZEN: Sometimes. There were a few characters we wanted to show/include who (through some research) we discovered weren’t quite on the scene yet. But I feel we painted a pretty good illustration of the stakes and scale of the conflict and I’m very happy with the results. Hey, we got in HUFFER – so I’m good to go.

PAGE 3- Zeta Prime’s Vamparc weapon reappears. We all saw how dangerous this was in previous issues. The new design and colors really give it that greater threat here.

CHRIS METZEN: Yeah, I think Livio [Ramondelli, the series artist] really portrayed the ultimate version of the weapon in a striking way. The whole vamparc concept was just a tool to illustrate how far Zeta and the Senate would go to maintain order. There’s something really draconian and elemental about the way Livio rendered the weapons and their effects. I also loved the scene at the end of 12 where we suggested that the vamparc stuff was just the tip of the iceberg… It was Flint [Dille, series co-writer]’s idea to show how Optimus handles that revelation — and I think the scene is a testament to how Optimus will be a different kind of Prime than any one before him.

PAGE 4- Metroplex arrives too really up the odds, in terms of sheer size and scale! When thinking of these pages, was the way Livio does his pages always in the back of your minds?

CHRIS METZEN: The way Livio lays out his pages is always in our minds as we write the scripts. In many ways it defines how we approach the storytelling. Livio’s pages are so deep and cinematic; they just lend themselves to certain shots and angles. Doing something epic scale (like Metroplex smashing through a city) was always something we wanted to build toward. It’s always good to see Livio unleash.

PAGE 5- Metroplex wrecks things and brings Megatron crashing down to Earth (or Cybertron in this case). Just how much bigger is this finale going to get!?

CHRIS METZEN: Umm... pretty damn big. It cuts right to the heart of the conflict between Prime and Megatron… The WAR has begun. It’s no holds barred from here out.