The canon that goes boom
Usually, we have the whole weekend together. This weekend, however, LJ's off on a mad-cap camping trip that she's been talking about for ages. Her sole regret was we'd miss out on our usual Saturday game: playing, for hours, with all of her toys in a canon of her own creation. The sting was more potent because, tonight, her new Super Hero Squad toys had arrived from the US.
"Well," says I, "we'll just have to play our game tonight, won't we?"
LJ's grin lit up the whole house. And so off we went into the magical hyper-reality she's crafted in her bedroom... the personal canon to beat all personal canons.
My daughter's take on Transformers is well documented on this blog. They've been her primary plaything ever since Animated first started airing. Since her Escape of the Fallen epic, though, things have changed up somewhat. The 'bots and 'cons have been joined by an ever-growing cast of mutant turtles, super heroes and space adventurers in a non-stop crossover that'd make Marv Wolfman's head spin 'round.
Read on, true believers!
----- One -----
In the wake of his ignominious defeat, the Fallen hits upon a new plan. Desperate to regain his god-like powers, he hatches a scheme to steal the AllSpark and use it to rejuvenate himself. Devastator is sent into the sewers to dig a tunnel beneath the Autobot base so a sneak attack can be launched.
Nearly mindless but utterly loyal, the massive Decepticon bores through everything in his path... including the subterranean haven of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Leonardo, Raphael, Michelangelo and Donatello are swatted aside like gnats and can only watch, helpless, as their home is destroyed. Salvaging what they can, the terrific terrapins swear vengeance. After Devastator leaves, they follow the tunnel to its point of origin - not realising, in their confusion, they're actually going the wrong way.
The Turtles burst through the factory floor and attack the Autobots. Stunned, the 'bots defend themselves and the battle is joined. Though it wasn't what he had planned, the Fallen nonetheless takes advantage of the situation. Ravage and Laserbeak are dispatched and, undetected in the chaos, steal the precious AllSpark. Too late, the Autobots and the Turtles realise they have no quarrel with one another (thanks to a meeting of the minds between Bumblebee and Michelangelo). Honourable to the last, Leonardo promises Optimus his ninja will help recover the AllSpark.
The Decepticons, meanwhile, have taken to the highest structure in the land - Sumdac Tower - to better symbolise the Fallen's ascension. While his dark master communes with the life source, Megatron turns the tower into a Decepticon-laden death-trap for his enemies. The Autobots and Turtles battle valiantly, though many fall along the way. In the end, only Optimus and Leonardo make it to the roof. They defeat Megatron but the Fallen - almost back at full power - is too much for them. His energy blast knocks Prime from the roof to the streets far below... a fatal drop.
All, it seems, is lost. Then Leonardo does what a ninja does best: the unexpected. He drives his katana into the heart of the AllSpark, shattering it into thousands of pieces. The Fallen cries out uselessly, his rejuvenation foiled. The shards fall, like rain, onto the ground and around Optimus. In a moment of destiny realised, the jagged pieces re-form into a perfect orb, encased in gold with silver handles. This newly created Matrix of Leadership installs itself within Prime's chest - and the young commander of Animated ascends to become like the legendary hero of G1.
(It was at this point LJ borrowed The Transformers: The Movie soundtrack so "The Touch" could blast at full volume.)
Optimus Prime opens the Matrix to "light the darkest hour". The wrecked Autobots are brought back to life. The Turtles, injured and depleted in spirit, rally. The Decepticons - especially Megatron - are terrified by this mass resurrection and flee. The Fallen has no choice but to follow suit, cursing his descendant all the way. With nowhere else to live, the Turtles accept the Autobot's offer to move into the factory. Two teams become one joint fighting force, trading skills to better themselves and each other.
Realising he is outmatched, Oruku Saki - the Shredder - approaches the Fallen. He swears the eternal loyalty of both himself and his Foot Clan in exchange for the power to destroy his enemies. The Fallen obliges, enhancing Shredder into a cybernetic terror and granting him the technology to create super-powered servants - Tokka, Rahzar and Slash the evil Turtle. Having ninjas of his own helps to balance the scales, and the war against the Autobots continues.
Megatron watches jealously, secretly coveting ninja abilities of his own. In one memorable adventure he instructs Barricade and Blitzwing - his dimmest soldiers - to "kidnap the best Turtle". Eavesdropping on Michelangelo boasting of his pizza-eating skills, the dull duo steal him away. Megatron uses a new device to drain Mikey's personality and use it to bolster his own... becoming, in the process, a giant metallic surfer-dude with mad-on munchies for pizza! Mikey decides "Meggie" is his new best friend and the two tear up the town before the Autobots and Turtles can catch up with them. Ratchet and Donatello reverse the process and Megatron departs, cowed... but still possessed of a craving for a hot, fresh slice.
----- Two -----
Meanwhile, in the deepest jungles of Africa, the secret Gorilla City is under threat. Its rogue son, Grodd, has used his mind-control helmet to enslave the populace. Batman, Green Arrow and the city's defender, B'wana Beast, team up to defeat him. Before they can retrieve the deadly helmet, it's stolen away by a mysterious black muscle car. Batman and Green Arrow confront the vehicle, only for it to transform into a giant robot before their eyes! Shocked, they fail to stop the car escaping and so give chase, following it all the way back to Detroit.
Ratchet, out on a drive, comes across the car too... and realises it's his old foe, Lockdown. He moves to intercept, accidentally fouling Batman's plan to catch the bounty hunter. Upon seeing Green Arrow, the Autobot medic mistakes the hero for another foe, the Angry Archer, and sounds the alarm. The Autobots and Turtles arrive. Mikey recognises Batman from news reports and stops things before they get out of hand, but Lockdown slips away nonetheless.
His client is, of course, Megatron. He wants to boost the helmet's power so he can enslave the entire human race. That way, he'll have slaves to harvest Energon - and human shields against Autobot attacks (and, secretly, all the pizza he wants). His plan is, of course, foiled by the heroes and he sounds the inevitable retreat. Batman, the Autobots and Turtles take possession of the helmet and celebrate their new alliance. Sadly, they are unaware a greater threat has arisen.
Grodd has escaped from his Gorilla City cell and made his way back to America. He makes contact with Owlman, Gentlemen Ghost, Sportsmaster and Black Manta - old comrades from "a time long since past". They become his army, which has one goal: the destruction of Cybertron. Grodd believes in large-scale revenge. The villains overpower the guards at the Decepticon Space Bridge and invade Iacon (built out of Lego by LJ and I), running through Shockwave and his (Go-Bot) troops like a hot knife through butter. Then they make their way to the centre of the planet and attach bombs to Vector Sigma. The countdown begins...
Shockwave, with the last of his strength, beams a distress signal to the only force capable of countering the villains... the Autobots. Having received the call, Optimus assembles a battle unit. It is joined by the Turtles, Batman, Green Arrow and their Justice League team mates - Blue Beetle, Red Tornado, Aquaman, Plastic Man, the Atom and B'wana Beast. The "Justice Army" boards Omega Supreme and races to the rescue. The battle is, as always, truly epic and ends with the villains teleported into Earth prisons, the bombs defused by Batman and the day saved by team work. Batman and his friends promise to work with the Autobots and Turtles again should the need arise.
----- Three -----
Far away, someone is watching all of this action and is very, very impressed. Iron Man is the leader of the Super Hero Squad - comprised of Wolverine, Iron Fist, Spider-Man, Hulk and himself. Having defeated their enemies - Doctor Doom and the Lethal Legion - and ended the threat of the Infinity Sword, the Squad needs a new challenge. And Iron Man has two brilliant ideas (the only type he has).
The first is to invite the Autobots, Turtles and Justice League to live and work from his newly-constructed Avengers Mansion. The second is to build a giant tower that turns solar and wind power into Energon. That way, both the Autobots and the world will have safe, clean energy to use at no charge. Best of all, Super Hero City will become the central hub of heroic defending for the entire planet. Optimus, Batman and Leonardo accept the invitation, and the greatest force for good ever known is formed.
This makes the Fallen very, very unhappy. He orders Megatron, Shredder and his forces to break Grodd and the villains out of jail. They are offered a choice - join or die - and so become the latest additions to the army of evil. Megatron sees his power base dwindle even more... his importance, in the eyes of his "god", starts to fade... and begins to make plans of his own. All he needs is a power source sufficiently strong enough to spark his evolution into a Bumper Battler...
Assaults on the Energon Tower are repeatedly deflected. It is an object from the sky that gives Megatron the opportunity he wants - Norrin Radd, the Silver Surfer, has crash-landed on Earth. Soundwave and his minions steal the Surfer's board, and Shockwave makes it the central piece of a reformatting machine. The heroes find the Surfer and launch an attack to recover the board - but it is too late. The Autobots and Squaddies arrive at an abandoned warehouse to find Megatron already inside the machine.
Everything goes horribly wrong. Megatron evolves (and is freed of his pizza cravings), emerging from the process more twisted and evil than ever. Rejecting a suggested name change ("Call myself 'Galvatron'? You're an idiot, Starscream!"), Megatron thunders into battle. The heroes are nearly decimated by his unstoppable onslaught. The Decepticon leader can suddenly fire energy from his hands and eyes, and even suck the Sparks from his foes. The heroes look set to fall, but are saved by the Surfer. He reconnects with his board and drains the Power Cosmic from Megatron, returning the evil mech to normal Bumper Battler power levels self. Both sides limp away from the battlefield, realising their conflict has turned a corner.
No one understands this better than Blackarachnia. Her attempt to use the Fallen's stolen power - hidden inside Devastator - backfires and leaves her near-death. She throws herself upon the mercy of the heroes, begging for their help. At Optimus' request, the Surfer uses his powers to reformat the suffering femme... and she becomes a new being. At long last, Optimus and Elita One can finally be together. The Surfer, joyous at the expression of love, volunteers to become the newest Squaddie. Amidst the gathering darkness, the heroes find a glimmer of happiness.
----- Four -----
Megatron's misuse of the Power Cosmic has done more than change the stakes on Earth. It has ripped a portal open in space through which emerges the tattered remnants of the Imperial Army. A Stormtrooper squad lands on Earth, backed up by reconditioned Battle Droids from the era of the Clone Wars. They have with them the charred remains of Darth Vader, the Dark Lord of the Sith. Though the man inside, Anakin Skywalker, has become one with the Force, the troops hope to find an entity powerful enough to re-animate the armour, to give life to the memories contained within its databanks... to create a new Darth Vader.
That entity is the Fallen. In exchange for fealty, he does as the Stormtroopers request. Darth Vader rises again, completely unaware that he is but a copy of his former self. Still connected, by gross fluke, to the Force, he leads the villains against the heroes with the intent of claiming the Energon Tower. No one - Autobot, hero, Turtle - is prepared for the full power of the Force. Vader almost single-handedly takes down the good guys. For horrific effect, he turns the unconscious Autobots into his throne and imprisons Sari within it.
Only Ratchet manages to escape. Vader tells his forces not to bother; the "old foe" is no threat to them. He may be right - Ratchet is fighting stasis lock and collapses, still far away from Avengers Mansion. The last thing he registers is a shadow passing over him and an electronic beeping sound...
... and wakes up to unfamiliar, but friendly, faces. Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Chewbacca, R2-D2 and C-3PO have flown the Millennium Falcon through the rift. Through the Force, Luke has sensed the desecration of his father's memory and wants it stopped. Artoo has repaired Ratchet beyond the medic's expectations; battle plans are drawn up.
Ratchet, seemingly alone, returns to the Energon Tower. He shouts and curses and makes as much noise as he can, as if he's gone mad, to draw Vader and company into the open. When the bad guys take the bait... BAM! The Falcon soars in with its cannons blazing! Luke and Vader square off in a huge lightsaber battle, but the Dark Lord is nonetheless driven off. The Rebels decide to stay on Earth until they can put an end to the fake Sith once and for all, and so move into the Mansion with the other heroes.
The alliance becomes stronger when the groups work together to rescue Princess Leia from Lockdown and his new business partner, Boba Fett ("the Sarlaac doesn't like frag grenades, Solo... it finds them indigestible.").
----- Five -----
Having two spaceships - Omega Supreme and the Falcon - allows the good guys to stage an all-out assault on the villains' compound. They annihilate it, leaving the bad guys homeless and hopeless. Megatron, the Fallen and their flunkies are banished to the outskirts of Super Hero City. They wander, aimlessly, for days until they find... Villain Ville. The cycloptic base once occupied by Doctor Doom rises up before them and the Fallen knows, instantly, they have found a new home.
Unfortunately for him, the original owner wants it back. Doctor Doom and his chief minion, MODOK, were not as vanquished as the Squaddies had hoped. Nor is the Infinity Sword shattered any more. Doom has it and, with it, the power to warp reality itself! First, though, he must reclaim his fortress.
Though Devastator, the Fallen's door-mech, makes quick work of MODOK ("Ooh, me love soccer!"), he is no match for the Latverian genius' power. Nor, it seems, is anyone within the base. Finally, Doom and the Fallen come to blows and find their battle to be a stalemate. Doom is cheered on by Grodd and the other super villains, who reveal they used to work for him back in the Lethal Legion days. Megatron interrupts the fight, suggesting an alliance would be beneficial for all sides. Doom, arrogant as always, refuses to work for the Fallen, and will agree only to an equal partnership. Grudgingly, the ancient Cybertronian accepts. The villains shake hands... and try to electrocute each other at the same time. Trust isn't going to be a feature of the new villain regime, but that doesn't make it any less dangerous for our heroes.
Even with the additions of Thor and War Machine to their ranks, will the Autobots, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Justice League and Super Hero Squad be able to survive Doom's Infinity Sword-fueled scheming?
----- To be continued! -----
It's going to be a long wait until next weekend, when we can go on with her saga. But it'll be worth it, because this has all been a hell of a lot of fun.
Greet the Fire as Your Friend,
SF
"Well," says I, "we'll just have to play our game tonight, won't we?"
LJ's grin lit up the whole house. And so off we went into the magical hyper-reality she's crafted in her bedroom... the personal canon to beat all personal canons.
My daughter's take on Transformers is well documented on this blog. They've been her primary plaything ever since Animated first started airing. Since her Escape of the Fallen epic, though, things have changed up somewhat. The 'bots and 'cons have been joined by an ever-growing cast of mutant turtles, super heroes and space adventurers in a non-stop crossover that'd make Marv Wolfman's head spin 'round.
Read on, true believers!
----- One -----
In the wake of his ignominious defeat, the Fallen hits upon a new plan. Desperate to regain his god-like powers, he hatches a scheme to steal the AllSpark and use it to rejuvenate himself. Devastator is sent into the sewers to dig a tunnel beneath the Autobot base so a sneak attack can be launched.
Nearly mindless but utterly loyal, the massive Decepticon bores through everything in his path... including the subterranean haven of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Leonardo, Raphael, Michelangelo and Donatello are swatted aside like gnats and can only watch, helpless, as their home is destroyed. Salvaging what they can, the terrific terrapins swear vengeance. After Devastator leaves, they follow the tunnel to its point of origin - not realising, in their confusion, they're actually going the wrong way.
The Turtles burst through the factory floor and attack the Autobots. Stunned, the 'bots defend themselves and the battle is joined. Though it wasn't what he had planned, the Fallen nonetheless takes advantage of the situation. Ravage and Laserbeak are dispatched and, undetected in the chaos, steal the precious AllSpark. Too late, the Autobots and the Turtles realise they have no quarrel with one another (thanks to a meeting of the minds between Bumblebee and Michelangelo). Honourable to the last, Leonardo promises Optimus his ninja will help recover the AllSpark.
The Decepticons, meanwhile, have taken to the highest structure in the land - Sumdac Tower - to better symbolise the Fallen's ascension. While his dark master communes with the life source, Megatron turns the tower into a Decepticon-laden death-trap for his enemies. The Autobots and Turtles battle valiantly, though many fall along the way. In the end, only Optimus and Leonardo make it to the roof. They defeat Megatron but the Fallen - almost back at full power - is too much for them. His energy blast knocks Prime from the roof to the streets far below... a fatal drop.
All, it seems, is lost. Then Leonardo does what a ninja does best: the unexpected. He drives his katana into the heart of the AllSpark, shattering it into thousands of pieces. The Fallen cries out uselessly, his rejuvenation foiled. The shards fall, like rain, onto the ground and around Optimus. In a moment of destiny realised, the jagged pieces re-form into a perfect orb, encased in gold with silver handles. This newly created Matrix of Leadership installs itself within Prime's chest - and the young commander of Animated ascends to become like the legendary hero of G1.
(It was at this point LJ borrowed The Transformers: The Movie soundtrack so "The Touch" could blast at full volume.)
Optimus Prime opens the Matrix to "light the darkest hour". The wrecked Autobots are brought back to life. The Turtles, injured and depleted in spirit, rally. The Decepticons - especially Megatron - are terrified by this mass resurrection and flee. The Fallen has no choice but to follow suit, cursing his descendant all the way. With nowhere else to live, the Turtles accept the Autobot's offer to move into the factory. Two teams become one joint fighting force, trading skills to better themselves and each other.
Realising he is outmatched, Oruku Saki - the Shredder - approaches the Fallen. He swears the eternal loyalty of both himself and his Foot Clan in exchange for the power to destroy his enemies. The Fallen obliges, enhancing Shredder into a cybernetic terror and granting him the technology to create super-powered servants - Tokka, Rahzar and Slash the evil Turtle. Having ninjas of his own helps to balance the scales, and the war against the Autobots continues.
Megatron watches jealously, secretly coveting ninja abilities of his own. In one memorable adventure he instructs Barricade and Blitzwing - his dimmest soldiers - to "kidnap the best Turtle". Eavesdropping on Michelangelo boasting of his pizza-eating skills, the dull duo steal him away. Megatron uses a new device to drain Mikey's personality and use it to bolster his own... becoming, in the process, a giant metallic surfer-dude with mad-on munchies for pizza! Mikey decides "Meggie" is his new best friend and the two tear up the town before the Autobots and Turtles can catch up with them. Ratchet and Donatello reverse the process and Megatron departs, cowed... but still possessed of a craving for a hot, fresh slice.
----- Two -----
Meanwhile, in the deepest jungles of Africa, the secret Gorilla City is under threat. Its rogue son, Grodd, has used his mind-control helmet to enslave the populace. Batman, Green Arrow and the city's defender, B'wana Beast, team up to defeat him. Before they can retrieve the deadly helmet, it's stolen away by a mysterious black muscle car. Batman and Green Arrow confront the vehicle, only for it to transform into a giant robot before their eyes! Shocked, they fail to stop the car escaping and so give chase, following it all the way back to Detroit.
Ratchet, out on a drive, comes across the car too... and realises it's his old foe, Lockdown. He moves to intercept, accidentally fouling Batman's plan to catch the bounty hunter. Upon seeing Green Arrow, the Autobot medic mistakes the hero for another foe, the Angry Archer, and sounds the alarm. The Autobots and Turtles arrive. Mikey recognises Batman from news reports and stops things before they get out of hand, but Lockdown slips away nonetheless.
His client is, of course, Megatron. He wants to boost the helmet's power so he can enslave the entire human race. That way, he'll have slaves to harvest Energon - and human shields against Autobot attacks (and, secretly, all the pizza he wants). His plan is, of course, foiled by the heroes and he sounds the inevitable retreat. Batman, the Autobots and Turtles take possession of the helmet and celebrate their new alliance. Sadly, they are unaware a greater threat has arisen.
Grodd has escaped from his Gorilla City cell and made his way back to America. He makes contact with Owlman, Gentlemen Ghost, Sportsmaster and Black Manta - old comrades from "a time long since past". They become his army, which has one goal: the destruction of Cybertron. Grodd believes in large-scale revenge. The villains overpower the guards at the Decepticon Space Bridge and invade Iacon (built out of Lego by LJ and I), running through Shockwave and his (Go-Bot) troops like a hot knife through butter. Then they make their way to the centre of the planet and attach bombs to Vector Sigma. The countdown begins...
Shockwave, with the last of his strength, beams a distress signal to the only force capable of countering the villains... the Autobots. Having received the call, Optimus assembles a battle unit. It is joined by the Turtles, Batman, Green Arrow and their Justice League team mates - Blue Beetle, Red Tornado, Aquaman, Plastic Man, the Atom and B'wana Beast. The "Justice Army" boards Omega Supreme and races to the rescue. The battle is, as always, truly epic and ends with the villains teleported into Earth prisons, the bombs defused by Batman and the day saved by team work. Batman and his friends promise to work with the Autobots and Turtles again should the need arise.
----- Three -----
Far away, someone is watching all of this action and is very, very impressed. Iron Man is the leader of the Super Hero Squad - comprised of Wolverine, Iron Fist, Spider-Man, Hulk and himself. Having defeated their enemies - Doctor Doom and the Lethal Legion - and ended the threat of the Infinity Sword, the Squad needs a new challenge. And Iron Man has two brilliant ideas (the only type he has).
The first is to invite the Autobots, Turtles and Justice League to live and work from his newly-constructed Avengers Mansion. The second is to build a giant tower that turns solar and wind power into Energon. That way, both the Autobots and the world will have safe, clean energy to use at no charge. Best of all, Super Hero City will become the central hub of heroic defending for the entire planet. Optimus, Batman and Leonardo accept the invitation, and the greatest force for good ever known is formed.
This makes the Fallen very, very unhappy. He orders Megatron, Shredder and his forces to break Grodd and the villains out of jail. They are offered a choice - join or die - and so become the latest additions to the army of evil. Megatron sees his power base dwindle even more... his importance, in the eyes of his "god", starts to fade... and begins to make plans of his own. All he needs is a power source sufficiently strong enough to spark his evolution into a Bumper Battler...
Assaults on the Energon Tower are repeatedly deflected. It is an object from the sky that gives Megatron the opportunity he wants - Norrin Radd, the Silver Surfer, has crash-landed on Earth. Soundwave and his minions steal the Surfer's board, and Shockwave makes it the central piece of a reformatting machine. The heroes find the Surfer and launch an attack to recover the board - but it is too late. The Autobots and Squaddies arrive at an abandoned warehouse to find Megatron already inside the machine.
Everything goes horribly wrong. Megatron evolves (and is freed of his pizza cravings), emerging from the process more twisted and evil than ever. Rejecting a suggested name change ("Call myself 'Galvatron'? You're an idiot, Starscream!"), Megatron thunders into battle. The heroes are nearly decimated by his unstoppable onslaught. The Decepticon leader can suddenly fire energy from his hands and eyes, and even suck the Sparks from his foes. The heroes look set to fall, but are saved by the Surfer. He reconnects with his board and drains the Power Cosmic from Megatron, returning the evil mech to normal Bumper Battler power levels self. Both sides limp away from the battlefield, realising their conflict has turned a corner.
No one understands this better than Blackarachnia. Her attempt to use the Fallen's stolen power - hidden inside Devastator - backfires and leaves her near-death. She throws herself upon the mercy of the heroes, begging for their help. At Optimus' request, the Surfer uses his powers to reformat the suffering femme... and she becomes a new being. At long last, Optimus and Elita One can finally be together. The Surfer, joyous at the expression of love, volunteers to become the newest Squaddie. Amidst the gathering darkness, the heroes find a glimmer of happiness.
----- Four -----
Megatron's misuse of the Power Cosmic has done more than change the stakes on Earth. It has ripped a portal open in space through which emerges the tattered remnants of the Imperial Army. A Stormtrooper squad lands on Earth, backed up by reconditioned Battle Droids from the era of the Clone Wars. They have with them the charred remains of Darth Vader, the Dark Lord of the Sith. Though the man inside, Anakin Skywalker, has become one with the Force, the troops hope to find an entity powerful enough to re-animate the armour, to give life to the memories contained within its databanks... to create a new Darth Vader.
That entity is the Fallen. In exchange for fealty, he does as the Stormtroopers request. Darth Vader rises again, completely unaware that he is but a copy of his former self. Still connected, by gross fluke, to the Force, he leads the villains against the heroes with the intent of claiming the Energon Tower. No one - Autobot, hero, Turtle - is prepared for the full power of the Force. Vader almost single-handedly takes down the good guys. For horrific effect, he turns the unconscious Autobots into his throne and imprisons Sari within it.
Only Ratchet manages to escape. Vader tells his forces not to bother; the "old foe" is no threat to them. He may be right - Ratchet is fighting stasis lock and collapses, still far away from Avengers Mansion. The last thing he registers is a shadow passing over him and an electronic beeping sound...
... and wakes up to unfamiliar, but friendly, faces. Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Chewbacca, R2-D2 and C-3PO have flown the Millennium Falcon through the rift. Through the Force, Luke has sensed the desecration of his father's memory and wants it stopped. Artoo has repaired Ratchet beyond the medic's expectations; battle plans are drawn up.
Ratchet, seemingly alone, returns to the Energon Tower. He shouts and curses and makes as much noise as he can, as if he's gone mad, to draw Vader and company into the open. When the bad guys take the bait... BAM! The Falcon soars in with its cannons blazing! Luke and Vader square off in a huge lightsaber battle, but the Dark Lord is nonetheless driven off. The Rebels decide to stay on Earth until they can put an end to the fake Sith once and for all, and so move into the Mansion with the other heroes.
The alliance becomes stronger when the groups work together to rescue Princess Leia from Lockdown and his new business partner, Boba Fett ("the Sarlaac doesn't like frag grenades, Solo... it finds them indigestible.").
----- Five -----
Having two spaceships - Omega Supreme and the Falcon - allows the good guys to stage an all-out assault on the villains' compound. They annihilate it, leaving the bad guys homeless and hopeless. Megatron, the Fallen and their flunkies are banished to the outskirts of Super Hero City. They wander, aimlessly, for days until they find... Villain Ville. The cycloptic base once occupied by Doctor Doom rises up before them and the Fallen knows, instantly, they have found a new home.
Unfortunately for him, the original owner wants it back. Doctor Doom and his chief minion, MODOK, were not as vanquished as the Squaddies had hoped. Nor is the Infinity Sword shattered any more. Doom has it and, with it, the power to warp reality itself! First, though, he must reclaim his fortress.
Though Devastator, the Fallen's door-mech, makes quick work of MODOK ("Ooh, me love soccer!"), he is no match for the Latverian genius' power. Nor, it seems, is anyone within the base. Finally, Doom and the Fallen come to blows and find their battle to be a stalemate. Doom is cheered on by Grodd and the other super villains, who reveal they used to work for him back in the Lethal Legion days. Megatron interrupts the fight, suggesting an alliance would be beneficial for all sides. Doom, arrogant as always, refuses to work for the Fallen, and will agree only to an equal partnership. Grudgingly, the ancient Cybertronian accepts. The villains shake hands... and try to electrocute each other at the same time. Trust isn't going to be a feature of the new villain regime, but that doesn't make it any less dangerous for our heroes.
Even with the additions of Thor and War Machine to their ranks, will the Autobots, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Justice League and Super Hero Squad be able to survive Doom's Infinity Sword-fueled scheming?
----- To be continued! -----
It's going to be a long wait until next weekend, when we can go on with her saga. But it'll be worth it, because this has all been a hell of a lot of fun.
Greet the Fire as Your Friend,
SF