WARNING! Potential spoilers ahead for Transformers #15
The Energon Universe era ofTransformerscontinues to keep ratcheting up the stakes, as the Decepticons have a brutal new battle plan that could spell doom for everyone. Soundwave has shown a calculating coldness as the Decepticon’s new leader, showing that there are no limits to what he will do, as long as it leads to a Decepticon victory.
Skybound Entertainment shared a previewforTransformers#15 – written by Daniel Warren Johnson, with art by Jorge Corona – which opens witha scene of the Decepticons senselessly attacking Tacoma, WA. As it turns out, this is all part of a new plan to root theAutobots out of hiding, following their last battle.
Soundwave points out that the Autobots’ one weakness is their compassion for humanity, so theDecepticons are going to attack humanity until their enemies are drawn out of hiding and forced to intervene.
The Decepticons Are “Agents of Death,” As The War For Cybertronian Supremacy Threatens All Life On Earth
Transformers#15 – Written By Daniel Warren Johnson; Art By Jorge Corona; Color By Mike Spicer; Lettering By Rus Wooton
“We will act as agents of death,” Soundwave proclaims, saying that the Decepticons will go “city by city, human by human” until the Autobots are forced to take action. It’s a dark proclamation, butone that is entirely rooted in Soundwave’s cold efficiency.Unlike previous leader Starscream, Soundwave doesn’t engage in these horribly violent acts out of pettiness or cruelty, but rather as a means to achieve an end. His orders also act as a nice opportunity to show a little bit of characterization for Thundercracker.
Optimus Prime Brutally Kills a Major Decepticon as He Heads Down a Dark Path
Optimus Prime takes one Decepticon out of the picture in the Energon Universe, signaling the Autobot leader could be heading down a dark path…
Uneasy at the thought of such senseless slaughter, Thundercracker’s reaction is the perfect way to pay homage to his previous characterizations that showed empathy for humanity. Soundwave’s plan will be destructive, but it may wind up backfiring in his face. Optimus Prime has shown great care in how he treats humanity since the Transformers were awakened on Earth. This piece of Prime’s characterization wasperhaps best exemplified inTransformers#2, where the Autobot leader showed great remorse after accidentally stepping on and killing a deer.
Optimus Prime’s Characterization Is A Central Pillar Around Which Skybound Is Building The Energon Universe
The Autobot Leader’s Greatest Strength Is Compassion
Earlier in the series, Prime even cut the Autobots off from Cybertron to prevent further destruction to Earth from the Autobot/Decepticon war – a major sign of how committed he is to preserving and protecting human life. This is what gives Soundwave the spark ofhis idea to threaten humanity as leverage against Prime, yet this could also be the key to the Decepticons undoing. Given how the Autobot leader has been shown to care for the Earth’s well-being, Soundwave may have just awakened a sleeping beast in Optimus Prime.
With no less than three factions of Transformers currently running amok on Earth, there’s no telling whether humanity will survive in the Energon Universe.
Soundwave is going to have his hands full not just in dealing with the Autobots, but alsoStarscream’s new faction of former Decepticons. The leader of the Seekers was recently revealed to have survived his battle with Soundwave, and Starscream has used the animosity felt by Astrotrain and the Combaticons to form a new faction of Transformers to take back control of the Decepticons. With no less than three factions ofTransformerscurrently running amok on Earth, there’s no telling whether humanity will survive in the Energon Universe.
Transformers#15will beavailable August 16, 2025 from Skybound Entertainment
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.
