Disassembled: Heroes and Villains

Why Metroplex Proves Real Strength Serves Others - Transformers Deep Dive

• Tom Bedford of Handsome Comics • Season 1 • Episode 17

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He doesn’t speak often.

He doesn’t move quickly.

But when he does… the world shakes.


Metroplex is no ordinary Autobot. He is a Titan—a city that walks, a fortress with a spark, and Cybertron’s oldest protector. For ages he lay silent, buried beneath the planet’s surface. But when the war demanded a shield against Decepticon destruction, Metroplex rose.


In this episode of Disassembled: Heroes and Villains, we uncover the towering legacy of Metroplex across Transformers lore. From his awakening in Scramble City to his defining role in Headmasters, to his reimagining in modern continuity as one of Cybertron’s living Titans, Metroplex proves that sometimes the greatest warriors are not built for conquest, but for survival.


We explore:

– Metroplex’s debut as Autobot City and its living guardian

– His battles against Trypticon and the devastation of Cybertron

– His place among the Titans and the mythic scale of his role

– Why his story is less about victory, and more about enduring as Cybertron’s final line of defense


Because Metroplex isn’t just a soldier.

He’s a world that walks.


🔥 New episodes of Disassembled: Heroes and Villains every Thursday

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🎙 Written and hosted by Tom Bedford | Handsome Comics

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE STRONGEST AMONG US REFUSES TO ACT? WHEN A TITAN, MADE FOR WAR, CHOOSES STILLNESS OVER DESTRUCTION? ACROSS UNIVERSES, METROPLEX ISN'T DEFINED BY WHAT HE CONQUERS, BUT BY WHAT HE REFUSES TO. HE IS A CITY, A SANCTUARY, A SENTIENT FORTRESS WHOSE VERY FRAME CARRIES THE WEIGHT OF CIVILIZATIONS. SOME CALL HIM A GOD, SOME A MYTH, BUT METROPLEX, HE'S A MONUMENT TO RESTRAINT. WHILE OTHERS ROAR, HE RUMBLES. WHILE TYRANTS SEEK POWER, HE HOLDS IT IN SILENCE. HE'S BEEN THE CORE OF WORLDS, THE LAST HOPE OF DYING RACES, A WEAPON POWERFUL ENOUGH TO SHATTER MOUNTAINS, YET HE STAYS STILL, UNTIL THE MOMENT TRULY MATTERS. BECAUSE STRENGTH, WITHOUT SERVICE, IS JUST NOISE. AND METROPLEX IS NOT HERE TO MAKE NOISE, HE'S HERE TO SHIELD THE FALLEN, TO HEED THE CALL OF THE LAST PRIME, TO REMIND US THAT POWER ISN'T MEASURED BY HOW LOUD YOU ARE, BUT BY HOW LONG YOU'RE WILLING TO STAND WHEN NO ONE ELSE CAN. THIS IS DISASSEMBLED, HEROES AND VILLAINS, AND TODAY, WE ENTER THE HEART OF A LIVING CITY WITH METROPLEX. TO ASK THE QUESTION, WHAT MAKES A GUARDIAN STAY STILL? METROPLEX WASN'T ALWAYS A MYTH. BEFORE THE LEGENDS, BEFORE THE SILENCE, HE STOOD, STEEL AND CIRCUIT, ON THE BATTLEFIELD OF AUTOBOT CITY, NOT AS A WEAPON TO BE UNLEASHED, BUT AS A SANCTUARY TO BE TRUSTED, A PROTECTOR WHOSE WALLS COULD SPEAK AND THINK. BECAUSE IN THE BEGINNING, METROPLEX WASN'T A SYMBOL OF RESTRAINT, HE WAS A CITY, A LIVING MIND BUILT TO HOLD THE LINE WHEN EVERYTHING ELSE FELL, AND IN THE HEAT OF WAR, THAT CITY, BEGAN TO AWAKEN. IN THE EARLY DAYS OF AUTOBOT CITY, METROPLEX WAS JUST A SHAPE, A MASS OF WALLS, WEAPONS, AND STEEL, A FORTRESS BUILT TO ENDURE, A BASE DESIGNED TO DEFEND, AND THEN CAME SCRAMBLE. CITY, A CODENAME FOR THE NEXT EVOLUTION OF AUTOBOT DEFENSES, A LAST STAND WRAPPED IN TITANIUM AND FIREPOWER, AND AT ITS HEART, SOMETHING STIRRED. BECAUSE SCRAMBLE CITY WASN'T JUST METAL AND CIRCUITRY, IT WAS ALIVE, A SPARK, EMERGING FROM THE STEEL. HIS TRANSFORMATION FROM CITY TO GIANT WASN'T SOME ACT OF DIVINE SPARK, IT WAS NECESSITY. DECEPTICONS HAD ESCALATED THE WAR, TRYPTICON, AN ENTIRE BATTLE STATION, WAS ON THE MOVE, AND IN RESPONSE, METROPLEX STOOD. NOT AS A WARRIOR HUNGRY FOR CONQUEST, BUT AS A SHIELD, FORGED TO WITHSTAND IT. POST-1986, THE WORLD CHANGED. AUTOBOT CITY WAS NO LONGER JUST A COMMAND POST, IT BECAME A HOME, A BEATING HEART OF RESISTANCE BUILT INTO METROPLEX'S FRAME. BLASTER MONITORED TRANSMISSIONS FROM HIS CHEST, HOT ROD DROVE THROUGH HIS VEINS, THE AEROBOTS LAUNCHED FROM HIS SHOULDERS, AND STILL, METROPLEX REMAINED SILENT, WATCHFUL. EVEN WHEN THE BATTLE CALLED, HE RARELY ANSWERED FIRST, BECAUSE THAT WAS NEVER HIS PURPOSE. HE WAS NOT A GUN TO BE DRAWN, HE WAS A WALL TO BE LEANED ON. IN THE HEADMASTERS SERIES, THAT SILENCE DEEPENED. METROPLEX BECAME MORE THAN A BASE, HE BECAME A PRESENCE, INTELLIGENT, SOLEMN, ALMOST PRIEST-LIKE IN HIS ATTACHMENT, AND THEN CAME TRYPTICON. A RIVAL FORGED NOT JUST IN STEEL, BUT IN PHILOSOPHY. WHERE TRYPTICON THUNDERED IN RAGE AND INSTINCT, METROPLEX MOVED WITH CALCULATION, DELIBERATE, HEAVY. THEIR BATTLES WERE NOT FAST, THEY WEREN'T ELEGANT, BUT THEY WERE MONUMENTAL. FIST MET CLAW, LASER MET CANNON, ENTIRE CITIES SHOOK BENEATH THEIR FEET. BUT WHILE TRYPTICON SOUGHT DESTRUCTION, METROPLEX FOUGHT FOR PRESERVATION. HE DIDN'T STRIKE FIRST, HE RESPONDED. HE ENDURED COLLAPSED TOWERS, AND EVEN WHEN HIS SYSTEMS FAILED, HE WAITED. BECAUSE METROPLEX UNDERSTANDS A TRUTH MOST TITANS FORGET, NOT EVERY BATTLE MUST BE WON WITH SPEED. SOME ARE WON BY STANDING LONGER THAN ANYONE ELSE. HIS FIGHT WITH TRYPTICON WAS MORE THAN A SPECTACLE, IT WAS A METAPHOR. BRUTE RAGE AGAINST RESTRAINED MIGHT, DESTRUCTION AGAINST DEFENSE, AND EVERY TIME METROPLEX ROSE AGAIN, HE REMINDED THE WORLD THAT PATIENCE IS NOT PASSIVITY, IT'S STRENGTH. THE STILLNESS HE EMBODIED IS A WEAKNESS, THAT WAITING ISN'T SURRENDER, BUT STANDING STILL IS NOT THE SAME AS STANDING FREE. BECAUSE WHEN YOU ARE A CITY, YOUR BODY IS NOT YOUR OWN. YOU CARRY SOLDIERS IN YOUR HALLS, CHILDREN IN YOUR SHADOW, ENTIRE LIVES CURLED WITHIN YOUR CORRIDORS, WAITING FOR YOU TO HOLD, AND EVERY TIME YOU REFUSE TO STRIKE FIRST, YOU CARRY THE WEIGHT OF WHAT MIGHT COME NEXT. THE MISSILES THEY DON'T SEE, THE SCREAMS THEY DON'T HEAR, THE COLLAPSE YOU WERE BUILT TO WITHSTAND ALONE. STILLNESS ISN'T PEACE WHEN WAR WALKS YOUR STREETS, IT'S BURDEN, IT'S FEAR IN SLOW MOTION. METROPLEX DOESN'T IGNORE THE DANGER, HE ABSORBS IT, AND WHEN HE BREAKS, IT'S NOT STEEL THAT FRACTURES, IT'S SANCTUARY. BECAUSE THE COST OF BEING A CITY ISN'T COUNTED IN METAL OR AMMO, IT'S MEASURED IN TRUST. AND KNOWING THAT WHEN YOU RISE, IT MUST BE FOR THE RIGHT REASON, BECAUSE WHEN YOU MOVE, THE WORLD MOVES WITH YOU, AND IF YOU MOVE TOO SOON, YOU TAKE EVERYONE DOWN WITH YOU. AND SOMETIMES, THE STRONGEST THING YOU CAN DO IS WAIT. TO HOLD THE LINE WHEN EVERY VOICE TELLS YOU TO ACT, TO REMAIN CALM WHEN CHAOS DEMANDS ATTENTION, TO ENDURE, NOT BECAUSE YOU CAN'T FIGHT, BUT BECAUSE YOU KNOW THE COST OF FIGHTING. METROPLEX DOES NOT RUSH INTO BATTLE, HE DOESN'T NEED TO, BECAUSE HIS PRESENCE IS THE BATTLEFIELD, AND WHEN HE MOVES, IT'S BECAUSE EVERYTHING THAT COULD HAVE BEEN SPARED NO LONGER CAN. BUT WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE SILENCE BECOMES SACRED, WHEN THE STILLNESS OF A CITY ISN'T JUST RESTRAINT, IT'S REVERENCE? ACROSS TIME AND SPACE, IN ANOTHER UNIVERSE ENTIRELY, METROPLEX IS REBORN, NOT AS INFRASTRUCTURE, BUT AS LEGEND. HE NO LONGER SIMPLY CARRIES SOLDIERS, HE CARRIES CULTURE, MEMORY, MYTH. THE WAR HAS AGED, CYBERTRON HAS FRACTURED, AND THE LINE BETWEEN WEAPON AND WARSHIP HAS BLURRED. FROM THE PAGES OF THE FIRST IDW UNIVERSE, METROPLEX IS NOT THE BATTLEFIELD, HE IS THE LAST SANCTUARY LEFT TO FIGHT FOR, AND WHEN HE FALLS, ENTIRE WORLDS TREMBLE. BECAUSE IN A GALAXY OF WARRIORS SHOUTING FOR DOMINANCE, METROPLEX TEACHES ANOTHER LESSON. YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE LOUD TO BE MIGHTY, BECAUSE SOMETIMES, THE QUIETEST VOICE SPEAKS FOR THE SOUL OF CIVILIZATION. SOME ARE SILENT SENTINELS FORGED THROUGH MYTH AND LEGEND, AND IN THE WORLD CREATED FROM IDW, METROPLEX IS BOTH. HE IS NOT JUST A CITY THAT WALKS, HE IS THE FIRST TITAN. THE ORIGINAL AMONG. CYBERTRON'S DIVINE MACHINES, A MYTH WHISPERED IN THE ANNALS OF CYBERTRONIAN CULTURE, SAID TO HAVE WALKED WITH PRIMUS, TO HAVE STOOD AGAINST TRYPTICON IN THE ANCIENT DAYS, AND WATCHED AS THAT MONSTER WAS BURIED DEEP IN THE PLANET'S CORE. HE IS NOT BORN FROM BATTLE, HE IS BORN FROM PURPOSE. LONG BEFORE THE RISE OF MEGATRON OR THE LEGEND OF OPTIMUS PRIME, METROPLEX PRESIDED OVER THE FATE OF CYBERTRON'S MOST ANCIENT CONFLICTS. HE AND THE OTHER TITANS, CHELLA, CAMINUS, METRO TITAN, SEALED AWAY CORRUPT PRIMES, CAST DOWN THE TREACHEROUS VIGILUM AND LIEGE MAXIMO, AND HELPED ENSURE CYBERTRON'S FUTURE DIDN'T BELONG TO TYRANTS. BUT LEGENDS FADE, TIME ERASES MONUMENTS, AND METROPLEX VANISHED. SOME SAID HE HAD DIED, OTHERS THAT HE WAS NEVER REAL, BUT THE TRUTH WAS FAR STRANGER. METROPLEX HAD BURIED HIMSELF BENEATH THE RUINS OF NYON, DORMANT, SILENT, WATCHING. NOT OUT OF FEAR, BUT OF CHOICE. BECAUSE IN THIS WORLD, METROPLEX IS MORE THAN METAL, HE IS A MEMORY. A SYMBOL NOT JUST OF POWER, BUT OF THE PAST WE FORGET WHEN WAR BECOMES THE ONLY LANGUAGE SPOKEN. WHEN THE DECEPTICONS DESTROYED NYON, METROPLEX FELT IT. THE CRIES OF THE DYING, THE WEIGHT OF THE INNOCENT CRUSHED BENEATH CONQUEST, AND HE MOURNED THEM. HE STIRRED BENEATH THE RUBBLE. BUT WHEN OPTIMUS PRIME CALLED OUT USING THE MATRIX OF LEADERSHIP, METROPLEX STOOD. THE ACROPOLEX WAS NO LONGER JUST A RUIN OF THE GOLDEN. AGE. IT WAS METROPLEX REBORN, AND FOR THE FIRST TIME IN MILLENNIA, THE TITAN WALKED. BUT NOT TOWARDS VENGEANCE. HE TENDED TO THE WOUNDED FIRST, LIFTED THE SURVIVORS TO SAFETY, AND ONLY THEN, ONLY THEN, DID HE RETURN TO BATTLE. BECAUSE HIS STRENGTH WAS NEVER MEANT FOR DOMINATION, IT WAS MEANT FOR DELIVERANCE. TO BRING LIGHT TO A DARK WORLD. WHEN THE WAR REACHED IACON, METROPLEX ANSWERED AGAIN. HE SHATTERED. MEGATRON'S VAMPARK ANNIHILATOR IN A SINGLE BLOW, CRUSHED THE DECEPTICON'S CITADEL BENEATH HIS FEET, TRANSFORMED HIMSELF INTO THE NEW CAPITAL CITY, A SANCTUARY BUILT ON THE RUINS OF TYRANNY. BUT EVEN THEN, HE REMAINED SILENT. NOT BECAUSE HE WAS BROKEN, BUT BECAUSE HE CHOSE NOT TO RULE. OTHERS DEMANDED OBEDIENCE. METROPLEX OFFERED REFUGE. AND YET, EVEN TITANS CAN BLEED. WHEN TRYPTICON WAS REBORN AND DROPPED FROM THE ORBIT TO DESTROY HIM, METROPLEX ENDURED. OPTIMUS REROUTED ALL OF. IACON'S ENERGY INTO THE TITAN'S FRAME. AND FOR THE FIRST TIME IN AGES, METROPLEX FOUGHT NOT AS A SYMBOL, BUT AS A SOLDIER. HE GRAPPLED HIS RIVAL TO THE GROUND, CURB STOMPED TRYPTICON'S SKULL, AND STOOD VICTORIOUS. AND JUST IN TIME TO BE IMPALED BY MEGATRON'S WARSHIP, CRASHING FROM THE SKY. BECAUSE STRENGTH IS NOT INVINCIBILITY, AND SACRIFICE IS NOT WEAKNESS. THE DAMAGE WAS CATASTROPHIC. METROPLEX VANISHED INTO THE STARS, GUIDED BY ALPHA TRION, HIS OLD COMPANION, TO HEAL, TO REST, TO PROTECT HIS SECRETS FROM MEGATRON'S REACH. BUT THIS WAS NO RETREAT. OVER CENTURIES, METROPLEX DRIFTED FROM WORLD TO WORLD, HIDING, REFUELING, WAITING, UNTIL A BATTLE WITH SIXSHOT REVEALED HIS PRESENCE AGAIN. AND THE TITAN, RATHER THAN SEEK REVENGE, SAVED THE AUTOBOTS, PROVIDED THEM WITH TOOLS, THEN TRANSFORMED INTO A SPACE-FARING MODE AND VANISHED ONCE MORE. NOT TO FIGHT, BUT TO PROTECT SOMETHING DEEPER THAN WAR. EVEN WHEN THE AMMONITES INVADED, WHEN SHOCKWAVE'S PLANS CRACKED CYBERTRON IN HALF, METROPLEX DID NOT SPEAK. HE LET OTHERS SHOUT. HE LET OTHERS RAGE. BUT WHEN HIS SPARK FLICKERED BACK TO LIFE, WHEN WINDBLADE RECONNECTED HIM TO HIS BRAIN MODULE, METROPLEX DID SOMETHING EXTRAORDINARY. HE LAUGHED. BECAUSE IN THAT MOMENT, SURROUNDED BY 70 BILLION ENEMIES, HE REMEMBERED WHO HE WAS. A PROTECTOR. A CITY. A SOUL. IN TIME, METROPLEX BECAME THE LITERAL HEART OF A NEW CYBERTRONIAN AGE. HE OPENED THE SPACE BRIDGES. HE REUNITED THE COLONIES. HE GAVE RISE TO THE COUNCIL OF WORLDS. CAMINUS. VELOCITRON. EUCHARIST. DIVUSIA. DIVISION. EACH CONNECTION WAS A RISK. EACH ACTIVATION COULD BRING WAR, BUT HE DID IT ANYWAY. NOT BECAUSE HE WANTED TO BE A GOD, BUT BECAUSE HE REMEMBERED WHAT IT MEANT TO SERVE. TO SERVE. WINDBLADE, HIS CITYSPEAKER. TO SERVE A WORLD REBUILDING FROM RUIN. EVEN WHEN STAR. SCREAM SIPHONED HIS ENERGY. EVEN WHEN RIOTS AND SABOTAGE RAVAGED HIS SYSTEMS. EVEN WHEN HE LOST ONE OF HIS EYES. BLINDED NOT IN BATTLE, BUT IN SILENCE. A GOD MACHINE WOUNDED BY THOSE HE SHELTERED. EVEN WHEN HE COULD NO LONGER SPEAK TO ANYONE BUT WINDBLADE, METROPLEX ENDURED. BECAUSE BEING THE STRONGEST DOESN'T MEAN SHOUTING THE LOUDEST. IT MEANS STANDING WHEN NO ONE ELSE CAN. IT MEANS HOLDING A CITY TOGETHER EVEN AS IT TEARS ITSELF APART. IT MEANS CARRYING BURDENS ONLY THE DIVINE BEAR, AND NEVER ASKING FOR THANKS. AND WHEN THE END CAME. WHEN UNICRON RETURNED, METROPLEX STOOD ONE LAST TIME. HE BRIDGED THE SURVIVORS TO EARTH. HE JOINED TRYPTICON IN ORBIT. HE SHIELDED THE WEAK. AND EVEN THEN, HIS FINAL WORDS WEREN'T COMMANDS. THEY WERE REMINDERS. THAT EVEN GIANTS MUST LISTEN. THAT SILENCE ISN'T EMPTINESS. IT'S SACRED. BECAUSE YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE LOUD TO BE MIGHTY. YOU JUST HAVE TO STAND. BEFORE THE LAST SPACE BRIDGE COLLAPSES AND THE SPARKS FADE INTO SILENCE. MAKE SURE TO FOLLOW OR SUBSCRIBE TO DISASSEMBLED HEROES AND VILLAINS ON YOUR FAVORITE PODCAST APP. EVERY WEEK, WE UNCOVER THE LEGACY OF POP CULTURE'S GREATEST LEGENDS AND DARK EST MONSTERS TO FIND THE MEANING BEHIND THE MYTH AND HUMANITY INSIDE THE MACHINE. AND NEXT WEEK, DISASSEMBLED DEEP CUTS RETURNS TO EXPLORE THE DARKEST REFLECTIONS OF CYBERTRON'S GREATEST HERO. A BLACK MIRROR HELD TO THE FACE OF OPTIMUS PRIME. A FUSION OF RAGE, VENGEANCE, AND HOLLOW SALVATION. NEXT WEEK, WE DESCEND INTO THE EVIL CLONES OF NEMESIS PRIME. BUT THAT'S NOT ALL. BECAUSE SOON AFTER, WE FACE A GOD WHO DOES NOT BEG. A WARRIOR FORGED IN THE FIRE OF LOSSES. A FATHER. A MONSTER. A KILLER OF GODS. KRATOS IS COMING TO DISASSEMBLED. HEROES AND VILLAINS. AND IF YOU WANT TO DECIDE WHO WE COVER NEXT, CAST YOUR VOTE EVERY WEDNESDAY ON THE HANDSOME COMICS YOUTUBE COMMUNITY POLL. NOW, BACK TO THE SILENCE AND THE TITAN WHO CHOSE THE STAND. IN SOME WORLDS, METROPLEX FADES INTO MYTH. AND OTHERS, HE BECOMES THE MYTH ITSELF. BUT THERE'S ONE UNIVERSE WHERE THE TITAN DOESN'T MERELY ENDURE. HE LEADS. NOT THROUGH FEAR. NOT THROUGH FIREPOWER. BUT THROUGH EXAMPLE. BECAUSE IN THE UNICRON TRILOGY, METROPLEX ISN'T JUST THE CITY. HE'S A SOVEREIGN. A WARRIOR OF DISCIPLINE. A BUILDER WHO SPEAKS SOFTLY. AND CARRIES A SPARKDRINKER AX THE SIZE OF A STARSHIP. AND WHEN OPTIMUS PRIME CROSSES HIS PATH, METROPLEX DOESN'T CHALLENGE HIM FOR POWER. HE CHALLENGES HIM FOR PURPOSE. AND NOW LET'S TRAVEL TO THE GIANT PLANET, GIGANTION. IN THE TRANSFORMERS CYBERTRON SERIES, METROPLEX IS NOT A GOD ASLEEP BENEATH THE SOIL. HE'S AWAKE. ALIVE. AND ALREADY IN COMMAND. HERE, HE RULES THE GIANT PLANET OF GIGANTION. AN ENTIRE WORLD BUILT ON LAYERS OF ENDLESS CONSTRUCTION. SKYSCRAPERS RISE ATOP ALL THEIR CITIES LIKE SEDIMENT ON TECTONIC PLATES. AND AT THE HEART OF IT ALL STANDS METROPLEX. NOT JUST A BUILDER. BUT A LEADER OF BUILDERS. WIELDING THE COLOSSAL AXE SPARKDRINKER. HE'S BOTH FOREMAN AND PHILOSOPHER. COMMANDING RESPECT WITH FEW WORDS AND IMMENSE STRENGTH. BUT METROPLEX DOES NOT RULE THROUGH FEAR. HE DOESN'T CRAVE WAR. HE VALUES ORDER. TRADITION. AND DISCIPLINE. A TRINITY OF PRINCIPLES THAT HOLD GIGANTION TOGETHER LIKE GIRDERS IN A SUPERSTRUCTURE. SO WHEN OPTIMUS PRIME AND HIS CREW ARRIVE IN SEARCH OF THE FINAL CYBER PLANET KEY. METROPLEX DOESN'T GREET THEM WITH OPEN ARMS. HE MEETS THEM WITH SCRUTINY. RESPECT MUST BE EARNED, NOT DEMANDED. AND WHILE HE SENSES NOBILITY IN OPTIMUS, THE LAWS OF GIGANTION CANNOT BE IGNORED. AT LEAST, NOT UNTIL WAR COMES CRASHING THROUGH THEIR FOUNDATION. THE YOUNG BRUTE METASAUR, TWISTED BY DECEPTICON PROMISES, JOINS MEGATRON AND UNSANCTIONED JOR-EL DEEP INTO THE PLANET'S SACRED LOWER LEVELS. THE WORLD TREMBLES. AND WITH IT, SO DOES METROPLEX'S RESOLVE. BECAUSE TRADITION MEANS NOTHING IF YOUR HOME IS IN RUINS. WITH GIGANTION AT RISK, METROPLEX AND HIS SECOND IN COMMAND QUICK MIX BREAK WITH CUSTOMS. BREAK WITH TRADITION. SIDE WITH OPTIMUS PRIME AND JOIN THE MISSION TO SAVE THE UNIVERSE. BUT THIS ISN'T SUBMISSION. IT'S EVOLUTION. A RECOGNITION THAT STRENGTH IS MEANINGLESS WITHOUT WISDOM. AND LEADERSHIP, WITHOUT FLEXIBILITY, BECOMES TYRANNY. TOGETHER, THEY DESCEND INTO THE DEPTHS OF GIGANTION. NAVIGATING ANCIENT RUINS, LONG LOST RECORDS, AND EVEN A HIDDEN ARTIFICIAL SKY. ALONG THE WAY, METROPLEX LENDS HIS MIGHTY SPARKDRINKER TO OPTIMUS PRIME. NOT AS A GESTURE OF SUBSERVIENCE, BUT OF TRUST. BECAUSE IN METROPLEX'S EYES, POWER IS NOT SACRED. PURPOSE IS. EVEN WHEN GALVATRON SHRUGS OFF SPARKDRINKER'S MIGHT, METROPLEX DOES NOT RETREAT. HE KNOWS HIS FIGHT IS BIGGER THAN PRIDE. HE ENDURES. BUT FOR ALL HIS STRENGTH AND DISCIPLINE, METROPLEX'S GREATEST GROWTH COMES NOT FROM FIGHTING A TYRANT, BUT FROM RECONCILING WITH A STUDENT. MENASOR, BRASH, BITTER, AND HUNGRY FOR VALIDATION, FINALLY CONFRONTS. METROPLEX IN BATTLE. HE REVEALS HIS RESENTMENT, HIS ANGER AT BEING TREATED LIKE AN INFERIOR JUST BECAUSE HE'S YOUNG. AND FOR A MOMENT, MENASOR GAINS THE UPPER HAND. HE ALMOST KILLS HIS MENTOR, BUT WHAT STOPS HIM IS IN A WEAPON. IT'S A SPARK. TWO TINY PARTNERS, DRILL BIT AND HEAVY LOAD, AND EMERGE FROM THEIR CHEST, WILLING TO DIE TO PROTECT THE ONES THEY BONDED WITH. IN THAT MOMENT, BOTH WARRIORS REMEMBER WHO THEY USED TO BE. THEIR STRENGTH ISN'T ABOUT WHO'S THE TALLEST, BUT WHO STANDS FOR OTHERS. METROPLEX SEES IT CLEARLY. THE MISTAKE OF FORGETTING WHO HE WAS. THE ARROGANCE OF JUDGING A YOUNG WARRIOR WITHOUT TEACHING HIM. AND SO, THE BATTLE ENDS NOT IN DEATH, BUT IN FORGIVENESS. PURSE SWITCHES SIDES, AND FOR THE THIRD TIME, SPARKDRINKER IS PLACED IN THE HANDS OF OPTIMUS PRIME. HE USES IT TO STRIKE GALVATRON DOWN. IT WOULD BE ENOUGH FOR THE REST, THEN, TO REBUILD, BUT THE WAR ISN'T OVER. GALVATRON ESCAPES. WILLING THE OMEGA LOCK AND CYBER PLANET KEYS TO THREATEN ALL EXISTENCE. AS HE GROWS TO COSMIC PROPORTIONS, METROPLEX AND THE OTHER PLANETARY LEADERS, OVERRIDE OF VELOCITRON, SCOURGE OF THE JUNGLE PLANET, AND EVAC OF EARTH, STAND BESIDE OPTIMUS PRIME FOR ONE FINAL ASSAULT. FIVE VOICES, FIVE WORLDS, ONE PURPOSE. COMBINED STRENGTH SHATTERS GALVATRON'S DEFENSES AND ALLOWS OPTIMUS TO RECLAIM THE LOCK. WITH THE KEYS RESTORED, THEY AWAKEN THE POWER OF PRIMUS, THE LIFE FORCE OF CYBERTRON ITSELF, AND SEAL THE GROWING BLACK HOLE THAT THREATENED TO CONSUME THE MULTIVERSE. IT'S A TRIUMPHANT MOMENT, BUT METROPLEX KNOWS SALVATION ISN'T THE END OF DUTY, IT'S JUST THE BEGINNING. WHEN OPTIMUS FINISHES WHAT GALVATRON STARTED, METROPLEX RETURNS TO THE STARS TO HELP REALIGN THE SHAKEN ORBIT OF THE JUNGLE PLANET, RECONSTRUCTING NOT JUST WORLDS, BUT HARMONY BETWEEN THEM. AND WHEN THE DUST FINALLY SETTLES, HE JOINS THE FIRST INTERPLANETARY PEACE CONFERENCE TO BUILD A NEW SPACE BRIDGE NETWORK, CARRYING THE LEGACY OF GIGANTION INTO THE FUTURE. THIS IS THE METROPLEX OF THE UNICRON TRILOGY. NOT A SILENT TITAN BURIED BENEATH A WORLD, BUT A LIVING CITY WHO LEADS THROUGH ACTION. A WARRIOR WHO BREAKS TRADITION NOT OUT OF REBELLION, BUT TO PROTECT THOSE TRADITIONS FROM BEING LOST FOREVER. HE WIELDS POWER, YES, BUT NEVER WITHOUT PRINCIPLE. HE LENDS HIS AXE, BUT NEVER HIS INTEGRITY. AND WHEN THE MOMENT COMES TO STRIKE, HE NEVER DOES IT ALONE. BECAUSE STRENGTH MEANS NOTHING WITHOUT A SOUL. AND THE GREATEST LEADERS, THEY DON'T DEMAND OBEDIENCE, THEY EARN IT. BUT EVEN THE MIGHTIEST CITIES MUST ONE DAY FALL SILENT. IN THE AGE OF GIGANTION, METROPLEX STOOD TALL. A BUILDER, A LEADER, A TEACHER WHO CHOSE ACTION OVER PRIDE. BUT IN ANOTHER WORLD, IN ANOTHER WAR, HE WOULD RISE NOT TO TEACH, BUT TO PROTECT. NOT TO PRESERVE PEACE, BUT TO BUY TIME. BECAUSE IN THE ALIGNED CONTINUITY, THERE ARE NO ANCIENT TRADITIONS LEFT TO GUARD, ONLY RUIN, ONLY SURVIVAL. AND WHEN HOPE ITSELF BEGINS TO FLICKER, METROPLEX DOES NOT HESITATE. HE ANSWERS THE CALL, NOT AS A RULER, NOT AS A WARRIOR, BUT AS THE FINAL SHIELD. A LAST BASTION OF STEEL, STANDING BETWEEN EXTINCTION AND ESCAPE. IN FALL OF CYBERTRON, THE WAR IS NO LONGER ABOUT CONQUEST OR PRIDE, IT'S ABOUT SURVIVAL. THE DECEPTICONS HAVE RAVAGED THE PLANET, THE AUTOBOTS ARE OUTNUMBERED, OUTGUNNED, AND OUT OF TIME. THEIR ONLY HOPE LIES IN A DESPERATE PLAN TO ESCAPE ABOARD THE ARK, AN INTERSTELLAR LIFEBOAT MEANT TO CARRY THE LAST REMNANTS OF CYBERTRONIAN LIFE TO THE STARS. BUT AS MEGATRON'S FORCES DESCEND WITH OVERWHELMING FIREPOWER, EVEN THAT HOPE BEGINS TO DIE. UNTIL, THE CITY ITSELF BEGINS TO MOVE. BURIED FOR EONS BENEATH THE SURFACE, AN ANCIENT POWER STIRS, MASSIVE, MECHANICAL, AND ALIVE. METROPLEX, ONCE A TITAN OF OLD CYBERTRON, HE HAS LAIN DORMANT FOR CENTURIES, FUSED WITH THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE CITY. BUT WHEN OPTIMUS PRIME WILL BE WOUNDED, YET UNBROKEN, REACHES DEEP INTO THE HEART OF THE CITY, METROPLEX AWAKENS. NOT OUT OF DUTY, NOT OUT OF PROGRAMMING, BUT BECAUSE HE HEARS THE VOICE OF THE LAST PRIME, AND CHOOSES TO STAND. AND WHEN HE RISES, THE WORLD SHAKES. TOWERS FALL, ARMIES SCATTER, THE SKY ITSELF SEEMS TO SPLIT AS. METROPLEX JOINS THE BATTLEFIELD. HE IS MORE THAN A WEAPON, HE IS JUDGMENT IN MOTION. WITH. OPTIMUS PRIME MARKING TARGETS, METROPLEX RAINS DEVASTATION FROM ABOVE, PULVERIZING THE DECEPTICON LINES AND TURNING THE TIDE. EVEN MEGATRON'S HEAVIEST ARTILLERY CANNOT HOLD, BUT THIS IS NO ONE-SIDED WAR. WHEN METROPLEX ATTEMPTS TO DESTROY THE FINAL ANTI-AIR CANNON HALTING THE. ARK'S LAUNCH, HE'S STRUCK POINT-BLANK, HIS MASSIVE FRAME COLLAPSING UNDER THE WEIGHT OF THE BLAST. FOR A MOMENT, SILENCE. THE AUTOBOTS FEAR THEY'VE LOST HIM. IN OPTIMUS, HE'S CAPTURED, DRAGGED BEFORE MEGATRON, TAUNTED AND BROKEN. BUT ARROGANCE IS ITS OWN DOWNFALL. AS MEGATRON MOCKS HIS PRISONER, A SHADOW FALLS OVER THE DECEPTICON BASE. METROPLEX LIVES. HE TEARS THROUGH THE FORTRESS WALLS, IGNORING BLASTER FIRE, IGNORING PAIN. THERE IS ONLY ONE TARGET, WITH RIGHTEOUS FURY, HE SLAMS HIS FIST DOWN AGAIN AND AGAIN, UNTIL MEGATRON LIES SHATTERED AT HIS FEET. THE TYRANT IS DEAD, THE AUTOBOTS ARE SAFE, AND THE ARK IS STILL GROUNDED. THE ENERGON SPENT DEFENDING THE CITY HAS DRAINED THEIR FINAL RESERVES. THE AUTOBOTS HAVE NO FUEL LEFT TO FLEE, AND SO, ONCE MORE, METROPLEX CHOOSES. AGAINST PRIME'S WISHES, HE DONATES HIS OWN SPARK ENERGY, HIS LIFE FORCE, TO POWER THE ARK. TO CARRY HIS PEOPLE FORWARD, HE DOES NOT HESITATE, HE DOES NOT ASK FOR RECOGNITION, HE SIMPLY KNEELS, CONNECTS, AND GIVES. AS THE ARK LAUNCHES INTO THE STARS, METROPLEX COLLAPSES ONE FINAL TIME, HIS FRAME STILL SMOLDERING, HIS VOICE A WHISPER, TILL ALL ARE ONE. HE NEVER SEES THE STARS, BUT BECAUSE OF HIM, THE AUTOBOTS DO. THIS IS NOT A TALE OF A GOD-KING, OR A WARLORD, OR A LEGEND CARVED IN GOLDEN CIRCUITS, THIS IS THE STORY OF A GUARDIAN, ONE WHO GAVE EVERYTHING NOT TO WIN, BUT TO LET OTHERS LIVE. IN THE END, METROPLEX'S SACRIFICE WASN'T IN THE BUILDINGS HE CARRIED OR THE WEAPONS HE WIELDED, IT WAS IN HIS SERVICE, HIS SACRIFICE, HIS WILLINGNESS TO FALL SO OTHERS COULD RISE. BECAUSE POWER ISN'T MEASURED IN SIZE, IT'S MEASURED IN PURPOSE, AND EVEN GIANTS CAN FALL WHEN THEY FALL FOR OTHERS. BUT, METROPLEX DOES NOT RISE AGAIN, HIS SPARK, ONCE BEATING AT THE HEART OF A CITY, NOW FUELS A VESSEL OF HOPE, NOT FOR GLORY, NOT FOR RECOGNITION, BUT SO THAT OTHERS MIGHT LIVE. AND IN THAT MOMENT, HE DOESN'T JUST CARRY THE AUTOBOTS TO FREEDOM, HE CARRIES US, TO THE HEART OF SOMETHING DEEPER. BECAUSE ACROSS EVERY UNIVERSE, EVERY CONTINUITY, METROPLEX STANDS NOT MERELY AS A WARRIOR OR A WEAPON, BUT AS A WITNESS, A LIVING MONUMENT TO THE VALUES THAT HOLD THE CRUMBLING WORLD TOGETHER. SERVICE OVER PRIDE, DUTY OVER COMFORT, AND SACRIFICE OVER SELF. HE DOESN'T DEMAND BELIEF, HE EARNS IT, THROUGH STRENGTH, GUIDED BY MERCY. AT A TIME WHEN POWER IS WORSHIPPED AND TRUTH FEELS NEGOTIABLE, METROPLEX REMINDS US OF SOMETHING TIMELESS, THAT REAL POWER DOESN'T DOMINATE, IT DEFENDS. THAT FAITH, LIKE A FORTRESS, MUST BE BUILT BRICK BY BRICK, CHOICE BY CHOICE. THAT THE GREATEST LEADER'S NOT THE ONES WHO SHOUT THE LOUDEST, BUT THE ONES WHO STAND THE TALLEST WHEN IT MATTERS MOST. SO WHAT CAN WE LEARN FROM THE WALKING CITY? WHAT DOES THIS TITAN TEACH US? NOT JUST ABOUT WAR AND PEACE, BUT ABOUT WISDOM AND RIGHTEOUSNESS. BECAUSE WHEN THE WORLD BEGINS TO SHAKE, WHEN THE FOUNDATION CRACKS AND THE FUTURE FEELS UNCERTAIN, WHAT YOU NEED ISN'T NOISE, YOU NEED A TOWER OF TRUTH. METROPLEX IS MORE THAN METAL, MORE THAN MIGHT, MORE THAN A CITY THAT WALKS. HE IS A MORAL ANCHOR, IMMOVABLE WHEN EVERYTHING ELSE BREAKS APART. ACROSS CONTINUITIES, METROPLEX SHOWS US THAT STRENGTH ISN'T THE ABSENCE OF GENTLENESS, IT'S THE WILLINGNESS TO BEAR WEIGHT OTHERS CAN. HE DOESN'T BOAST, HE DOESN'T RULE FOR GLORY, HE SERVES, QUIETLY. FAITHFULLY, EVEN WHEN NO ONE SEES. AND IN THAT, HE REFLECTS SOMETHING SACRED. IN TRANSFORMERS. CYBERTRON, HE TEACHES US THAT TRADITION IS NOT WEAKNESS, IT'S THE SCAFFOLDING OF CIVILIZATION. BUT TRADITION, WITHOUT HUMILITY, BECOMES DOGMA. THAT'S WHY METROPLEX KNOWS WHEN TO HOLD THE LINE, AND WHEN TO BEND. HE LEADS BY WISDOM, NOT BY WHIM. BY CHOOSING PURPOSE OVER PRIDE, HE PRESERVES NOT JUST HIS PLANET, BUT HIS PEOPLE. IN FALL OF CYBERTRON, HIS SACRIFICE BECOMES SOMETHING DEEPER. IT'S NOT JUST STRATEGY, IT'S STEWARDSHIP. WHEN HE GIVES HIS SPARK TO POWER THE ARK, IT IS NOT JUST HEROIC,

IT'S BIBLICAL. AS JOHN 15:

13 STATES, GREATER LOVE HAS NO ONE THAN THIS, TO LAY DOWN ONE'S LIFE FOR HIS FRIENDS. AND THAT IS THE SPIRIT OF METROPLEX. HE STANDS NOT BECAUSE HE MUST, BUT BECAUSE SOMEONE MUST. IN AN AGE THAT GLORIFIES CHAOS, HE IS ORDER. IN A CULTURE THAT TRADES CONVICTION FOR CONVENIENCE, HE IS TRUTH, ROOTED, FIRM, UNSHAKABLE. AND PERHAPS, THE GREATEST LESSON OF ALL, METROPLEX DOESN'T SEEK TRANSFORMATION FOR ITS OWN SAKE. HE BUILDS, HE PROTECTS. HE GUARDS THE SPARK OF SOMETHING ETERNAL, NOT BY CHASING POWER, BUT BY EMBODYING PURPOSE. DISCIPLINE. TRADITION. SACRIFICE. NOT OLD IDEAS, FOUNDATIONAL ONES. WE LIVE IN A WORLD THAT DESPERATELY NEEDS MEN LIKE METROPLEX, NOT JUST TO FIGHT, BUT TO STAND. TO LEAD NOT WITH EGO, BUT WITH RESOLVE. WITH VIRTUE. WITH FAITH. MEN WHO DO NOT CHASE APPLAUSE, BUT LIVE FOR ACCOUNTABILITY. MEN WHO AREN'T SWAYED BY TRENDS, BECAUSE THEIR ROOTS GO DEEPER THAN CULTURE. MEN WHO DON'T FEAR RESPONSIBILITY, BECAUSE THEY UNDERSTAND IT IS THE WEIGHT THAT FORGED STRENGTH. METROPLEX REMINDS US THAT MASCULINITY IS NOT TOXIC WHEN IT IS TEMPERED BY PURPOSE. THAT HONOR IS NOT OUTDATED WHEN IT IS ANCHORED IN TRUTH. AND THAT REAL LEADERSHIP, THE KIND THAT ENDURES, ISN'T ABOUT DOMINANCE. IT'S ABOUT SERVICE. IT ISN'T FLINCH FROM SACRIFICE. HE EMBRACES IT, BECAUSE HE KNOWS SOME BURDENS MUST BE CARRIED, EVEN IF NO ONE ELSE WILL. IN EVERY TIMELINE, METROPLEX IS PROOF. WHEN THE FOUNDATIONS CRUMBLE, WHEN THE CITY FALLS SILENT, IT WON'T BE THE CLEVER MEN WHO SAVE US. OR THE LOUD ONES. OR THE SELFISH ONES. IT WILL BE THE STEADY ONES. THE BUILDERS. THE PROTECTORS. THE GUARDIANS OF WHAT IS GOOD AND RIGHT WAS MEANT TO BE A SHELTER. OR WHEN THE LAST LIGHT FADES, AND THE FINAL GATE CLOSES. IT WILL BE THE MAN WHO STANDS ALONE IN THE BREACH. WHO GIVES WHAT HE CANNOT GET BACK. WHO CHOOSES FAITH OVER FEAR. WHO WHISPERS, NOT WITH BRAVADO, BUT WITH CONVICTION, TILL ALL ARE ONE. THANK YOU FOR WALKING WITH US THROUGH THE SILENCE, STRENGTH, AND SACRIFICE OF METROPLEX. THROUGH THE RUINS HE REBUILT. THROUGH THE WORLDS HE'S PROTECTED. THROUGH THE BATTLES HE DIDN'T WANT, BUT NEVER RAN FROM. WE'VE SEEN A WARRIOR MADE NOT OF RAGE, BUT OF RESTRAINT. A CITY THAT WALKS, BUT ONLY WHEN ALL ELSE HAS FALLEN. AND IN THAT SILENCE, HE REMINDS US OF SOMETHING WE OFTEN FORGET. THAT STRENGTH ISN'T ABOUT MOVING FIRST. IT'S ABOUT KNOWING WHEN NOT TO MOVE AT ALL. METROPLEX DOESN'T RUSH INTO BATTLE TO PROVE HIS POWER. HE WAITS. HE WATCHES. BECAUSE SOME FIGHTS AREN'T ABOUT VICTORY. THEY'RE ABOUT CONVICTION. HE REMINDS US THAT POWER WITHOUT PURPOSE IS JUST DESTRUCTION, WAITING FOR AN EXCUSE. THAT THE TRUE TEST OF STRENGTH IS NOT HOW LOUD YOU ROAR, BUT HOW DEEPLY YOU SERVE. AND MAYBE THAT'S WHY METROPLEX STAYS UNTIL THE VERY END. BECAUSE STILLNESS IS NOT SURRENDER. IT'S FAITH. IT'S DISCIPLINE. IT'S THE QUIET CONFIDENCE OF A GUARDIAN WHO KNOWS HIS WORTH AND WAITS UNTIL THE WORLD NEEDS IT MOST. SO ASK YOURSELF, IF ALL YOU PROTECT IS YOURSELF, ARE YOU REALLY STRONG OR JUST AFRAID TO SERVE? SO STAY SHARP, STAY BRAVE, AND AS ALWAYS, STAY HANDSOME. AND REMEMBER, THE TALLEST TOWERS DON'T NEED TO MAKE A SOUND TO CAST A SHADOW.