WARNING! Spoilers ahead for Transformers #8

Skybound Entertainment’s Energon Universe reboot of Transformers officially launched with the surprise appearance of Jetfire in Void Rivals #1, kicking off a new era for the franchise, one that has been successful both commercially and critically. Now, Jetfire returns to kick off the second year of Skybound’s shared universe, although the old Cybertronian comes back in a radically different form than readers last saw him.

Transformers #8 picks up on the thread from the previous issue, which saw Optimus Prime looking for a new transport whilst looking through the comatose Transformers on the Ark.

After being awakened in the pages of Void Rivals, Jetfire then headed for Earth, where he reactivated the dormant Cybertronians in Transformers #1. Unfortunately, he also reawakened the Autobot/Decepticon war, and was destroyed in the ensuing fracas by Starscream. Now that Prime has retaken the Ark, the Autobot leader has a shocking new use for Jetfire’s body.

Jetfire Is the Autobots’ New Transport, In The Reboot’s Most Disturbing Twist Yet

Transformers #8 – Written By Daniel Warren Johnson; Art By Jorge Corona, Mike Spicer & Rus Wooton

Prime resurrects Jetfire as a transport, seemingly stuck in his alt-mode as a fighter jet. Disturbingly, Jetfire regains some semblance of consciousness in this new form, basically as little more than a zombified husk. “Is that what I am to you now?” Jetfire asks hauntingly. “A husk? I cannot move.” It was a difficult choice to make, but Optimus explains that they’re low on Energon; the Autobots needed a transport, and they could only bring Jetfire back as such. This creates a nightmare scenario for the Energon Universe’s first Transformer, as Jetfire is trapped in a body where he can’t even see.

“Everything is… black,” Jetfire reflects, “I cannot see the stars anymore.” While disturbing, this creates a great deal of conflict for the series’ Autobot characters. Optimus Prime is committed to looking after his people no matter what, and thus is forced to make some tough decisions in order to ensure their survival. Resurrecting Jetfire, and essentially trapping him in his alt-mode to use as a transport, is a shocking decision, but it is not one that Prime makes lightly; Optimus even agrees to stay with Jetfire after he is revived, so the fallen Cybertronian knows he is not alone.

Trapping Jetfire In His Alt Mode Is A Gamechanger For The Energon Transformers

Anything Could Happen Next

Whether or not Jetfire ever fully recovers enough to become a full transforming robot again remains to be determined, but it will be interesting to follow how he fares as the Autobots’ transport. His resurrection also raises the possibility of other fallen Autobots rising once again. Fan-favorite Bumblebee was killed off right from the jump in Transformers #1, though this makes it seem possible that he and others might be revived in due time. In the Energon Universe, anything is possible, so Transformers fans will have to keep their eye on Skybound’s series to see what happens next.