Old Ways

« The Transformers: All Hail Megatron #13 »
"Old Ways"
Publisher	IDW Publishing
First published	July 22, 2009
Cover date	July 2009
Written by	Simon Furman
Art by	Don Figueroa
Colors by	James Brown
Letterer	Chris Mowry
Editor	Andy Schmidt
Associate editor	Denton J. Tipton
Continuity	2005 IDW continuity
Chronology	All Hail Megatron

Optimus Prime thinks back to the first time he met Ironhide.

Synopsis

In an old Autobot artillery ordnance, Ironhide admits that he is finished and done with the war. He is old, tired, and is ready to be stood down. All the battles, wars and campaigns have become a blur to him, and because of that, Ironhide has lost who he once was. Optimus Prime says that he respects Ironhide's decision and won't bother to change his mind. The world is changing before their eyes, with new challenges ahead on the horizon, and they have to re-learn, reassess and adapt. Ironhide exclaims that that isn't it; he wants to meet those challenges head-on, but he no longer trusts his judgment, due to his situation with Mirage on Cybertron. Optimus reminds him that he was never much of a judge of character, and that during the early years of the Great War, Ironhide thought that Optimus was just a young upstart with no right to be called a "Prime". Ironhide counters that he stands by that...

In Cybertron, during the early years of the Great War, Kup goes over a list of Autobot soldiers that are standing at attention to Optimus Prime. Optimus is impressed by the group assembled, but notices that Ironhide has something on his mind. Ironhide asks for permission to speak; Kup denies it, but Optimus lets him anyway, much to Kup's chagrin. Ironhide says that the "army" Prime has assembled aren't soldiers, due to the fact that they have never picked up, let alone fired, weapons before and will probably die before they ever do; and Prime is unlikely to increase their odds of survival. Kup angrily calls Ironhide out of line, but Prime lets him speak again. Ironhide continues on, saying that they're at war, and motivational words out of him aren't going to win it. It takes guts, resilience, muscle and know-how. They need a leader that has fought in the trenches, fought and killed for something more important than a medal, and Prime isn't that leader. Kup explains that Ironhide served in the Cybertronian Civil Militia, and has taken his share of knocks...to the head. Looking straight at Ironhide's face, Optimus asks him to teach him how to be a leader...

He gives you his face.

In the present day, Ironhide unscrews the casing of a missile and remarks that at the right point in its half-life, it's like drinking energon with a kick. He reminds Optimus Prime that he took every harsh word that was said to him, and learned from it. Taking a swig from the opened missile, Ironhide offers a cup to Optimus, who accepts it by opening his mouthguard. Ironhide goes on to say that lots of leaders would have put him in the brig, but not Optimus, who went on to prove Ironhide wrong on more than one occasion...

During a battle on Cybertron, the Autobots have come under heavy fire. Optimus Prime agrees with Ironhide's suggestion that they can't stay where they are, but refuses his second suggestion to outflank their position and counterattack from the west. Instead, they'll head east to a corridor that they earlier cleared mines from, and from there, take up new positions at Polyhex. Ironhide thinks they're running, but Prime corrects him by saying that they're retreating instead, knowing that they would head to a trap by going west. Ironhide angrily says that he checked the area himself and there was nothing there. From experience, Prime thinks that it's too good to be true, but Ironhide isn't impressed, stating that retreating now would lose the sector they're on, and that this decision dishonors every Autobot who sacrificed their lives for it. Optimus tells him to either give the order to go east or he'll find someone else to do it. Reluctantly, the order is given, and not a moment too soon, as Trypticon arrives from the west...

In the present day, Optimus Prime says that everything he brought to their battles came from Ironhide, who gave Prime the tools he needed to win. But Prime knows instinctively that some battles can't be won, that they have to cut their losses and live to fight another day. Ironhide, "drunk" on the energon he drank, staggers up, saying that he needs more of the stuff if he wants to listen to old stories some more. Optimus steadies him and decides to switch to something less "fissionable". Optimus believes that Ironhide's main weakness is that he meets everything head-on, but Ironhide retorts, saying that Prime can also be every bit as unbending...

One time, Optimus Prime and Ironhide fell for a Decepticon trap, resulting in Ironhide's left foot being blown off and the two of them hanging on a ledge for dear life. Ironhide tries to speak, but Optimus won't allow it, for even a whisper is magnified a hundredfold, and the ledge won't hold them for long. Prime sees a rescue vessel in the distance as Ironhide tells him to leave him behind, but Prime refuses. Suddenly, the part of the ledge Ironhide is holding on to breaks, but Prime catches his arm in time. Ironhide says that they won't make it, but Prime reassures him that they will...

Optimus Prime, with a hand on Ironhide's shoulder, tells him that his example honed Prime into the leader that he is today, and that Ironhide overcame impossible odds. Nowadays, other Autobots look up to him for his no-nonsense, practical know-how style, and the depths of resolve and indomitable fighting spirit that the Autobots need—and if Prime ever wavers, he turns to Ironhide for his hard-nosed, honest counsel. Prime says that if Ironhide decides to leave, they'll carry on, but they'll all be lessened by his absence, and Prime will miss his friend. Ironhide, taking a moment to think it over, decides to stick around instead, being outmaneuvered tactically by his military protégé.

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Notes

Continuity notes

• Subsequent story "Chaos Theory Part 2" showed Orion as a decorated and well-educated hero cop, which fits nicely with Ironhide's jab. (Later ones show he once fought a guerrilla war against Sentinel Prime, which does not, but that was probably kept quiet at the time)
• Ironhide was shown to be in the same unit with Optimus back in Spotlight: Blurr, which at the time appeared to occur before this story. At the time of publication, Spotlight: Blurr was the only story that was contradicted in this regard, but many subsequent stories published by IDW showed that Optimus (as Orion Pax) had indeed fought many battles and for something greater than a medal and Ironhide had fought with him on several of them, including the very time Pax became Prime in Autocracy. The flashback in this story leaves us some wiggle-room, though, as it is not dated in any way and Optimus is not actually referred to by name during it; to fit it into the expanded 2005 IDW timeline, then, it must be considered to occur before either Spotlight: Blurr or Autocracy, back when Optimus was still Orion Pax and was assembling the Autobots as a military force under Zeta Prime. Present-day Optimus remarks that Ironhide didn't think he was "fit to be a Prime" when they met, but we'll have to assume that's a figure of speech.

Transformers references

• Although it isn't directly stated, the ledge that Optimus and Ironhide are hanging off is probably within the Sonic Canyons, considering Prime's comment about "whispers being magnified a thousandfold."

Real-life references

• Motorhead's design here bears a passing resemblance to English heavy metal musician Lemmy Kilmister... who is the sole and constant member of the band Motörhead.

Errors

• Optimus Prime's live-action movie-inspired details such as the sun visors are consistently coloured red like his torso, even though they should be silver. Meanwhile, the small windows/door flaps on Prime's shoulders are coloured silver/grey, when they should be red.
• One of the 'bots Ironhide says isn't a real soldier is Hubcap, who served with Ironhide in the Security Services back in Megatron Origin.
• Brainstorm also appears in the line-up of assembled early Autobots, which wasn't an error when this story was published, but would be contradicted years later by More than Meets the Eye, which established that Brainstorm was an M.T.O..

Other trivia

• Don Figueroa's art style changed significantly since "Shattered Glass" in 2008. His new style, first seen in the Revenge of the Fallen movie prequel Defiance #3 and briefly seen again on his cover for Spotlight: Cliffjumper, now has Don drawing the Generation 1 characters in the style of the live-action Transformers movies. Figueroa commented that he wanted to draw in a new style that was significantly different from the style he was known for, which he was getting tired of.^[1] It was an infamous change, leading to many complaints when he later used it on the ongoing series.
• And speaking of the movies, Prime's mouthplate can retract, just like his movie counterpart.
• Dull surprise? No! Perpetual sneer!

Reprints

Other than full or partial collections of All Hail Megatron.

• N/A

References