Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for Transformers #13Remarkably, I actually feel bad for Starscream now, one of the most popular villains in all of Transformers lore. Typically, Starscream is Megatron’s second-in-command and air commander of the Decepticon Seekers. However, he’s usually depicted as incredibly disloyal, often trying to sabotage and backstab Megatron to take his place and gain even greater personal power. That said, Starscream’s brand-new origins have just been revealed, and I can’t believe I now hold a degree of sympathy for this classic Transformers foe.
In previous continuities, Starscream is usually pretty slimy even before he joins the Decepticons. However, the new Energon Universe reveals alternate origins in Daniel Warren Johnson’s Transformers #13. In the present, Starscream is expectedly awful leading the Decepticons in Megatron’s absence. Case in point, he cruelly kicked Soundwave’s minicon Ravage, which came back to bite him with Soundwave beating and nearly killing Starscream before taking over. However, this new issue confirms Starscream was once far kinder. Formerly known as Ulchtar, I found myself completely taken by surprise by this cartographer whose darkness only emerged after the loss of his friends during Cybertron’s Great War:
With Jetfire having just left Cybertron to find a way to save their planet without war, Ulchtar losing his other friend during a firefight between the Autobots and the Decepticons was naturally quite painful. As such, it’s no wonder that Ulchtar eventually picks the side of the Decepticons, especially with the reveal that it was none other than Optimus Prime who killed Genvo. Furthermore, Genvo being a Decepticon himself likely influenced Ulchtar’s decision, especially once Megatron finds his future second-in-command in the rubble.
Ulchtar Lost Everything When Megatron Found Him
Lost And In Need Of Purpose
I found this new first meeting between Megatron and Starscream to be quite fascinating and unique. Completely directionless and without purpose, Ulchtar doesn’t yet have the drive or treacherous ambition he’s known for as Starscream. Instead, he’s tragically grieving over the loss of his friend who chose a side when he did not, as his clan had thus far been neutral in the Great War.
This is something Megatron himself takes great advantage of. Having already inspired Genvo to take up arms for his cause in the past, Megatron similarly offers Ulchtar a place by his side, offering him a way forward beyond his grief (however dark it might be). As such, I find this new origin to be as surprising as it is brilliant.
Related
Starscream’s New Origin Reveals That Transformers’ Despicable Villain Was Once Heroic
Fans get a look at Starscream’s past in the preview for Transformers #13, learning that he wasn’t always the despicable villain of the modern day.
The present-day relationship between Starscream and Megatron has yet to be fully defined in the new Energon Universe’s canon. After all, Megatron is MIA (having been held captive by G.I. Joe’s Cobra Commander). However, I can easily imagine Ulchtar perhaps growing bitter towards his new commander as his dark ambitions grow, gradually turning him into the Starscream fans are more familiar with in the present.
Starscream Was Born Out Of Desperation & Vengeance
It Makes Me Wonder About What Might Have Been…
To put it simply, Starscream was born out of a dark combination of grief, desperation, and the desire for vengeance stoked by Megatron himself, having transformed to literally put a gun in Ulchtar’s hand. As such, it’s a tragically genius new origin for the classic Transformers villain, one that has surprisingly made me more sympathetic to Starscream than I ever thought I would be. That said, it also makes me wonder what might have been. Seeing as how Ulchtar was neutral at the time, perhaps Starscream could have become a truly great Autobot had the tragic circumstances been different.
Transformers #13 is now on sale from Skybound & Image Comics.
Transformers (2023)
Optimus Prime was supposed to have led the Autobots to victory. Instead, the fate of Cybertron is unknown, and his allies have crash-landed far from home, alongside their enemies—the Decepticons. As these titanic forces renew their war on Earth, one thing is immediately clear: the planet will never be the same. New alliances are struck. Battle lines are redrawn. And humanity’s only hope of survival is Optimus Prime.
- Writer
- Daniel Warren Johnson
- Penciler
- Daniel Warren Johnson
- Colorist
- Mike Spicer
- Letterer
- Rus Wooton
- Publisher(s)
- Image Comics , Skybound Entertainment