Transformers Transtopia News on Seibertron.com

Transtopia art challenge September 2009

Date: Wednesday, September 2nd 2009 2:05am CDT
Categories: Site News, Transtopia
Posted by: Dead Metal | Credit(s): Transtopia

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Views: 45,874

Welcome Seibertronians, Transtopians and readers: seibertron.com is proud to announce the revival of the seibertron.com art challenge--this time bigger and better than before!

This time it will be a monthly challenge taking place on the 1. or 2. of each month with the best 3 entries receiving a special signature for 1. 2. and 3. place.
But we also need a bit of help from those that cannot make art themselves; we need 3 judges every round.

This is how it works:

A subject for the challenge is chosen and contestants will then have 14 days to submit their entries. The judges will have 7 days after submission to discuss via PM the three that they think deserve to be ranked 1. 2. 3. These will then be announced and highlighted at the end of the month. The winner will then pick the challenge subject for the next round.

Judges will be re-picked each month to prevent corruption, but former judges can re-apply if they want to. Simply apply by sending Dead Metal a PM.


To submit your entry simply post it as an attachment or with "img tags" in the corresponding thread by clicking here by 16.09.09 (US 09.16.2009).

This month's subject is:

Transformers comic art re-imagined

For this round you just pick a panel from any Transformers comic, be it old or new and render it in your own way. Comic panels can be found either by searching the internet or simply by using your own comics.


The rules for this round:

* Pick one or a maximum of 3 comic panels from any Transformers comic.
* The panel must feature at least one Transformer.
* When uploading your work supply us with the comic title, issue number and page number you found the panel in and of course the panel in question.
* Entries must be at least inked, color is not needed.
* Supply speech bubbles and or text boxes containing the same text the original panel has to create the effect of it being an actual part of a comic.
* No direct copying of the original art--draw the panel in your own style and if you want to from a different angle or perspective--just use the original version as an inspiration or a script.

Entries that break any of the above mentioned rules will be disqualified.


For any questions post in this thread.

All entries will be featured at the end of the month with the winners being highlighted.

UPDATE:
We now have all 3 judges, please try next month.

Transtopia Newsletter - August 2009

Date: Sunday, August 16th 2009 12:41pm CDT
Categories: Site News, Site Articles, Transtopia
Posted by: First Gen | Credit(s): Team Transtopia

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Views: 167,631

Hello Seibertronians and welcome to the newest Transtopia Newsletter. This month we have a nice arrangement of custom works from the fine patrons of the Transtopia Forums that we want to showcase for all you diehard Transformers fanatics.

Each month, we go through a detailed review of submissions for the monthly newsletter along with searching the posts in the Transtopia Forums for new works that may have not been submitted. The Transtopians here at Seibertron.com do some of the finest customizing in the field and we are very thrilled and proud to bring you the next batch of modified goodness.



How to Showcase Your Work…
The newsletter is your opportunity to show off your work and talent. We rely on your articles, artwork, and customs to make it interesting. Entries will be reviewed on a monthly basis. You can submit your work here:
Repaints, Kitbashes, Scratchbuilds
Fan Art
Fan Fiction
Guides



Newsletter Credits:
Design - Flix
Formatting – Mattyc1007, First Gen
Fan Art - Mykltron
Customs - First Gen
Fan Fiction – Name_Violation
Editing – First Gen, hellkitty
Artist Interview - Burn







We don’t get much (or any, to my knowledge) artwork submitted that is purely photo manipulation so I thought I’d bring tljhtr1979’s contribution to your attention this month.

In ‘Battle For The Arch’ we see Megatron beckoning Optimus Prime as Prime prepares himself to leap to the challenge. In the background Bumblebee seems to be preparing to comb the wreckage of a nearby damaged building for survivors, unaware that Starscream is lurking atop a building behind him.

tljhtr1979 has used ‘09 concept Bumblebee, ’07 Movie Megatron with ROTF Prime and Starscream. Pictures of these are superimposed onto a photograph of a street scene which has had rubble and damage added.

It’s a shame that tljhtr1979 is not also a talented model painter. This picture would look better if the toys used had been painted to add that extra touch of realism, but even so, this is a very effective piece of work.




Bumblebee sig by Aman10000




The Soundwave Complex by Noshrok Grimskull

"Well, now what?" also by Noshrok Grimskull





Burn was kind enough to talk to resident Transtopia Artist Psychomud this month for our Artist interview. Here’s what he had to share:

Joining us this month from Transtopia is none other than Psychomud. Residing in South Korea, Psychomud is a talented artist who took out 2nd place in this year's BotCon art contest for his rendition of Apeface, and was also crazy enough to put his hand up to be interviewed. So enthusiastic he virtually interviewed himself for me!

About me in a nutshell:
1. I live and work in South Korea for the Department of Defense.
2. I won 2nd place at Botcon for "Decepticon Apeface".
3. At Chicago Comic-con (Wizard World) 2008 - i was a featured artist at the Sketch Magazine artist alley table.
4. Did a pin-up for Skystorm Studios "Art of HellGirl" comic.
5. I have designed and illustrated logos for various organizations/sporting venues/motorcycle clubs here in South Korea - including recently designing/illustrating for the Songtan-Si Dart Association (dart league). I work for them to design the special award dart pins.
6. I DREAM to one day work for IDW - preferably but not limited to drawing transformers.
7. Right now, I am working on a "mosaic-like" 1-shot full comic written by Mike Priest and Shaun Flaughterty (which I am sure I misspelled his last name).
8. I has survived 2 wars (once as military, once as a contractor - as I am now) and if things keep going like they are - might be in a 3rd one here on the Korean penninsula. ;(
9. Although I started working hard at obtaining an illustration career late in life (36 now) - I have been drawing since 3. Not to mention, I know illustration pays next to nothing, and with my current job I will be able to retire in Thailand (at 45-ish) to live/work - hopefully long distance as an illustrator for IDW.
10. I love seibertron.com - and play HMW while I draw.


But I wasn't about to let it end there, I had to explore deeper, find out what makes Psychomud tick, or at least ask a few more questions so I look semi-professional!

Plenty more to this interview, click here to get the full scoop on Psychomud!




Universe Jazz (WIP) by hXcpunk23



ROTF Octane with Motormaster by Jin Saotome



ROTF Soundwave with tentacles and satellite also by Jin Saotome






This past month saw a huge increase in Repaint postings. Please submit your work that you’d like to be featured each month as getting to every new work posted can be a task.

Universe Aerialbots by our own Mykltron





ROTF Ravage by Universe



Movie Acurate Optimus Prime by hakka with 20 LED’s



Universe Treadshot by leobreaker1977








Universe Scourge by hXcpunk23









Alright folks, Name_Violation here, reminding you its that time again. So this month I searched high and low (not really) to find this months fanfic selection. I would like to thank everybody who submitted something this last month, I actually had something to do this time.
This months tale is set in the Movie universe, and is about humans, Autobots, and... well i should Just let everyone find out for themselves. A good read and precursor of things to come. I rate this pick 3.5 stunticon names out of 5.

Dead End
by hellkitty


Pars Prima
Bourzey Castle, Southern Syria

Ratchet ducked, instinctively, at the buzz-thump of the EMP burst. Yellow dust shook down from the large stone walls of the gateway he crouched in. Something deep in his chassis gave a sickening dropping feeling as he heard the distinctive clattering crash one of his fellow Autobots falling over. He cursed, softly.

“Ironhide,” Flareup said, her voice sick. “He’d gone ahead.”

“As usual,” Lennox added.

Prime gave a worried scowl. He wasn’t angry at Ironhide, Ratchet knew; but he’d been fighting these challenges to his authority for cycles now. It didn’t make them any easier that they were familiar. “We’ll need to disarm the EMP before we can retrieve him,” he said, calmly, changing the mission objectives instantaneously, without any outward sign of the inner distress he was feeling.

“On it,” MacCallum, one of the NEST soldiers, said, shucking his electronic equipment and grabbing a tool kit and running into the darkness of the Syrian night. The stars above gave a cold and lightless light , just enough for the humans to be able to pick out the contours of the old castle which the Decepticons had picked for their first base on Earth. Ratchet and the other bots had no choice but to wait. One EMP casualty was enough, especially on a mission with one approach route up a steep grade of shifting gravel and very little chance of a Chinook pickup. Chromia and Flareup rolled up to Prime.

“We can go on with the humans,” Chromia said.

Prime shook his head.

“We’re faster than Ironhide. We can dodge an EMP. You know that: that’s why you brought us along.”

“You might be able to dodge one, but they might have daisy chained them.” Lennox, cutting in. He was strangely protective of the cycle bots.

“So what do we do?” Flareup rolled back and forth on her wheel, anxious, peering into the night into which MacCallum had run.

Want to read more,

Transtopia Newsletter July 2009

Date: Friday, July 17th 2009 9:36am CDT
Categories: Site News, Site Articles, Transtopia
Posted by: Dead Metal | Credit(s): Transtopia

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Views: 73,357

And another month has passed and a new one has began and with it comes a new Transtopia Newsletter!

I would like to remind every body that we still need a replacement customs editor for the next two months. If you're interested please shoot Dead Metal a pm!

And remember, to check out the Transtopia forum for the latest action.

-Dead Metal



How to Showcase Your Work...
The newsletter is your opportunity to show off your work and talent. We rely on your articles, artwork, and customs to make it interesting. Entries will be reviewed on a monthly basis. You can submit your work here:
Repaints, Kitbashes, Scratchbuilds
Fan Art
Fan Fiction
Guides


Newsletter Credits:
Design - Flix
Formatting – Mattyc1007
Fan Art - Mykltron
Customs - Dead Metal
Fan Fiction – Name_Violation
Editing – Dead Metal
































Send us your artwork!
Art entries are reviewed on a monthly basis for the newsletter. Send your entries here by February 28th for the March newsletter.





Do you have modeling or art tips to share with other members? Why not write a guide? Feature tips from - repainting, kitbashing, drawing, sculpting, and even computer graphics: Send an email to Transtopia.Guide@gmx.de for details.




Hello Bots n' Con's, its your old pal Name_Violation here with this months Fan Fiction. I must admit I was rather disappointed in the lack of submissions in the Fan Fiction department, and i would love to see a "Spotlight Trypticon" type story (hint hint) if anyone is capable. Anyway this month I recommend the follow up to last months pick. Rather than bog everything down, This months choice is a little long so I think I'll just post an excerpt, and post the link if anyone is interested in more.

Now if a few more of you would just post some stuff... Glad this job doesn't pay by submission or my family would be goin' hungry. People have been complaining about the plot, or lack there of, in the new movie. Can you do better? Think so, then prove it! Put up or shut up people. Come on now, I know alot of you guys have talent, lets see it!

This G1 fanfic is set in the beginning, when Spike and Sparkplug are still new acquaintances of the Autobots, and learning how to help and get along. A definite read, especially if you liked last months. I give this 4 up-tight medics out of 5.

'Till next month...
N_V


Chapter Two: The Hypo-critic Oath Part I
By Neko


“But if the coolant lines are supposed to go to this limb, wouldn’t it have to feed through here?”

Spike looked up from homework toward where his Dad and Wheeljack were discussing Cybertronian anatomy. Despite his diligence in completing his assignments, it was difficult to keep his attention from wandering off. He was somewhat knowledgeable with cars and machinery and once in a while he would pick up familiar words and quite a few foreign ones.

What was a hydraulic flux dampener?

School had started a mere two weeks ago and already he was being virtually crushed beneath the amount of homework his teachers were giving him and his peers. So much work was drastically cutting into Spike’s regular ‘Hanging out with and/or watching giant robots’ time. Luckily he only had one more page of chemistry equations to work through and he would be free to spend the afternoon as he saw fit.

Mole conversions, you have met your match! As the teen tackled the last few problems, Wheeljack and his father continued on with their lesson.

“No, no, no,” said Wheeljack. “If we did that and he bent his arm, it would end up cutting right through the line, see? Which would be very bad.”

Pointing to something deep inside the armor plating of the injured Mech, the Autobot engineer dictated to the smaller humanoid life form perched upon the chest of the patient on the proper techniques and procedures of repairing such a deep wound. Their debatably lucky subject was a burly minibot named Brawn who laid motionless upon the examination table. While his body remained still, his face was contorted into a look of perpetual annoyance at his current occupation. One arm lay sprawled out away from the rest of his form, the top plating below the shoulder sporting a good sized hole where a Decepticon laser had caught him, severing a coolant and motor line, making said appendage all but useless. Ratchet’s Medbay was full of those worse off then Brawn, so he had been sent to Wheeljack’s lab for a quick repair. When Wheeljack saw the injury, he was struck with a brilliant idea that would potentially lead to shortening the quick repair to a simple quick fix! However, the quick fix was running much longer then intended as Brawn suddenly found himself an impromptu teaching aide. After all, Wheeljack had to make sure his new pupil knew what he was doing before he went spelunking into the body of a Mech.

Wheeljack bent over his patient and helper while explaining how to go about feeding the new coolant line properly into the arm for adequate temperature control. Sparkplug looked down into the open wound and nodded, seeming to be enthralled at the opportunity to help repair an injured Mech.

Spike father, ever the grease moneky...

“Alright, so then where does it go?” Sparkplug asked....

Want more? View the rest at viewtopic.php?f=9&t=52771&p=940657#p940657[/quote]


Send your entries here.





Hey Transtopia folks - Burn wants to interview you. How did you get into Transformers? Why are you addicted to kitbashing? What was your first repaint like? What do you do with your spare time?

Don’t keep Burn waiting any longer – he’s getting bored at work. Send him a PM here.

Newsletter June!

Date: Tuesday, June 16th 2009 7:02am CDT
Categories: Site News, Site Articles, Transtopia
Posted by: Dead Metal | Credit(s): Transtopia

Discuss This Topic · Permanent Link
Views: 128,174

OK now I hope you like gold as I decided to keep the gold for another month, why? Well I'm currently in the stress of my final exams and changing the banners costs time not a lot but it still costs some time.
In this Newsletter we even have two pieces of art that where displayed at BotCon, Psychomud's Apeface picture that came in second place of the art contest and passiondesigns's diorama of Movie Megatron hunting down Sam and the AllSpark.
And we have photos of the BotCon fanart panel cutesy of our very own SupremeConvoy! You can download these photos by clicking here.

Oh and if you feel up to it, we need a replacement for Mattyc1007 who is in charge of /repaints/kitbashes/scratchbuilds but only till he comes back in September of this year. If you're interested drop Dead Metal a pm and first come first serve!

Enjoy the awesomeness of Transtopia's art!

And checkout Transtopia for the latest in Transformers art.



How to Showcase Your Work...
The newsletter is your opportunity to show off your work and talent. We rely on your articles, artwork, and customs to make it interesting. Entries will be reviewed on a monthly basis. You can submit your work here:
Repaints, Kitbashes, Scratchbuilds
Fan Art
Fan Fiction
Guides


Newsletter Credits:
Design - Flix
Formatting/repaints/kitbashes/scratchbuilds – Mattyc1007
Fan Art - Mykltron
Fan Fiction – Name_Violation
Editing – hellkitty, Dead Metal




Here are a few of Transtopias many repaints, click the images to see the threads and full size images!












Just a few of the very very cool kitbashes Transtopians produce, and yes click the thumbnails to see the thread and full size images!






/energonpub/viewtopic.php?f=143&t=54212




















There wasn't much artwork submitted in May so I thought I'd write about two of them that really grabbed my interest.
When I saw Rabotnik's picture (without seeing any information about it) my first thought was 'that looks like Optimus Prime and Megatron combined'. It turns out that is exactly what it is. The two modes are full of references to both leaders;
The metallic grey, the rocket launcher on the arm, the two dark shapes (wheels) on his hips, the bucket head, the rocket launcher behind his shoulder all mimic G1 Megatron whilst the red and blue suggests G1 Optimus Prime, as does the windows representing pectorals. Notice the head unifies both characters by being both blue and buckety.
This is the only Transformer art work that Rabotnit has produced, and he only signed up at Seibertron to share this picture. This is a shame as I would like to see what other strange concepts he could come up with. Imagine the strange stories that could be created in a universe where Prime and Megatron get spliced together...
Take some time to look around Rabotnik's website: http://www.rabotik.nl/ as it has some cool stuff, including a short animation showing the development of Optimega Pron. You'll find it here.


If you look at Hanch Prime's first page of his blog you'll see several excerpts of comic art featuring G1 Optimus Prime, Megatron and Starscream. A close look at these pictures suggests he used the Masterpieces as models, and it is worth taking a close look as the pictures have such intricate details. The lines are crisp and clear so the level of detail doesn't confuse the eye. What is also interesting is that, similar to Rabotnik's website, Hanch Prime has given us two versions of the pictures - one showing the rough planning sketches and the other showing the finished (but uncoloured) line drawing.

Send us your artwork!
Art entries are reviewed on a monthly basis for the newsletter. Send your entries here by May 28th for the July newsletter Please note that your artwork needs it's own thread/gallery or both.





Do you have modeling or art tips to share with other members? Why not write a guide? Feature tips from - repainting, kitbashing, drawing, sculpting, and even computer graphics: Send an email to Transtopia.Guide@gmx.de for details.





All right boys and girls, it’s that time of the month again (no not THAT time of the month). It’s time for this month’s fanfic. WE NEED MORE SUBMISSIONS! I can’t stress this enough. I know you people are creative, let’s see it!

I'd like to throw a topic at everyone this month. This month I would love to see some submissions about a city-bot: Metroplex, Tripticon, Fortress Maximus, Scorponok, Grand Maximus, or Metrotitan. Maybe about their thoughts and goals, maybe a fight, or maybe whatever else you can come up with. Who will write next month’s chosen submission? Only time will tell….

All entrants have received a cookie for their participation (check your folders). This month’s runners-up include CrabHeart for a laugh, and an old entry by The_Fires_Of_Inferno for a dark and artistic tale. Thanks, guys! 

This month’s winning story is a great G1 story of first impressions and misunderstandings between Autobots and humans. It’s a lighthearted read, written by Neko and definitely recommended. I give this story 4 cultural misunderstandings out of 5.

-Name_Violation-



Shoots and Ladders
by Neko » Tue May 05, 2009 12:20 pm 




Synopsis: G1.

Sometimes first impressions aren’t always the right ones, but around the Ark, one truth remains firm and everlasting: When in doubt, duck. Spike-centric series of related one-shots.

Chapter One: Traffic Tickets and Color Wheels


The day had begun much like the day before and the one prior to that.
For the most part, it was very pleasant. Strange, alien, and mind-boggling, but pleasant.

Everything around him was big. Very big. Just looking up at the ceiling too long made him dizzy, which was kind of fun for a while until he started feeling nauseous. After taking a moment to secure his equilibrium, Spike returned to his current pastime: Robot Watching. Well, they referred to themselves as Mechs and even seemed to have taken offense when Spike used the ‘R’ word.

He was careful not to do that again. When he could help it.

It had barely been a week since the world had woken up to having Giant Alien Ro—er, Mechs wandering around their backyard and Spike was still riding a giddy high that’d been with him since he and his father had been rescued from the waters of the Pacific ocean after the oil rig they’d been on was attacked…by other giant alien Mechs.
Evil giant alien Mechs. Who called themselves Decepticons. Spike made a mental note to ask one of the Autobots how they came up with those names! Perhaps the name has more of a terrifying connotation in their native language, but something seemed to have been lost in translation.



It was fascinating to watch the Autobots as they went about their duties to get their ship-turned-impromptu-base up and running: repairing bits of corridor, replacing broken panels and consoles, testing out everything. They appeared so alien-like yet so human; the young boy could not help but be fascinated. The Ark was a complex, highly advanced piece of technology that boggled Spike’s mind whenever he attempted to wrap his around the sheer improbability of it all. Everything seemed so intricate, so delicate; circuitry and the like ran through almost everything, the floors, the walls, everything.
Had Spike not been seeing Mechs who most certainly weighed a good couple tons walk on the flooring he was certain he would be scared to do anything but tip-toe across the metal plating, all too aware of the delicate, and likely expensive as hell, circuitry underneath. Yet everything was guarded, reinforced, and covered to a degree virtually unknown and certainly unheard-of to mankind. Even if he had a diamond crowbar, Spike didn’t think he could do the ship any real damage; maybe a dent in the wall if he swung hard enough. But that was a big maybe.

Sitting on the ledge of one of the consoles, Spike allowed the scene before him unfold like some never-ending television show.
For the most part, what was once the bridge of the ship had become the main control room, the official room of business. It was here that Spike had the best vantage point to observe humanity’s newest allies and really it was one of only a few places where he could be out of way of large clambering feet. The Autobots were always outwardly careful whenever he was around, but in everyone’s best interest Spike always took the liberty to find elevated seats to keep from getting caught underfoot. For the most part, the day was routine and uneventful and Mechs wandered through the control room, deaf and unaware to all except their work.
He hadn’t met all of the Autobots yet, or spoken to most, but they didn’t seem to mind the young human watchong them as they worked; though Spike did notice one of them kept glancing at him as if to see if he was still there. After a while it began to nag at the boy, wondering if maybe the Autobot was silently trying to tell him to scram, that he was annoying them. The last thing he needed was a pissed-off robot. He was about to scoot off the edge and find some other room to observe when the door to the far right of the room opened and a Mech walked in, malice seeming to rise off his red armor plating like heat.
When the Mech glanced toward Spike and then tromped forward with deliberate steps, Spike froze. In his mind, he wondered what he had done to anger anyone. He couldn't think of anything, perhaps he wasn’t looking at Spike. Maybe it was one of the Mechs next to him or….

“You!” The Autobot said, pointing toward Spike and any hope of avoiding a confrontation was deflated. What had he done?
As the Autobot approached, Spike shrank back, glancing pleadingly to the two Mechs who were working on the large computer only a little ways off, but they seemed just as confused as he and even a little curious. Spike belatedly realized that the Mech was a lot shorter then most of the Autobots and he had a similar shape to Bumblebee, but despite the similarity, the Mech’s red armour and little horns made him look more like a (comparatively) little devil. The small Autobot impended over Spike, blue eyes aglow with fury. His hand shot forward and Spike clenched his eyes shut instinctively. When nothing happened, he opened his eyes warily and was greeted with a small slip of paper pinched between the Mech’s large fingers.

Bemused, Spike glanced up at the angry ‘Bot quizzically.

When no explanation was forthcoming, Spike attentively reached out and took the little piece of paper, giving the Mech one more uncertain glance. Looking over the words on the paper, Spike clamped down on the sudden urge to giggle inappropriately. He bit his lip and looked up, noting the Autobot seemed to expect something from him.

“OK?” Spike asked, unable to completely mask his amusement.

“Explain this!” boomed the Autobot.
If the situation hadn’t gleaned the attention of the room before, it certainly did now. The perpetual sensation of diminutiveness suddenly multiplied as the Autobot practically loomed over him. It was quite a disconcerting feeling, especially considering this was supposedly an ally.

“You’re human, you should know!”

“I do know; It’s a ticket,” said Spike simply. What was there to explain?

“What is it for?!”

He blinked, confused. “…Says here you ran a red light….”

Logic told him that should have quelled the red Autobot, however it only seemed to create more ire. “So?” the ‘Bot demanded.

Spike struggled to answer the question with any sort of dignity.
“Well…that’s against the law.”

“Says who?”

Spike regarded the Mech with an incredulous stare. Was he being serious? “Uh…The Law? The President, Congress…our entire judicial system? Everyone.”

“Well, how do you expect us to know that?”

Spike blinked, unsure how to answer him. “Well…. Everyone knows…it’s just common knowledge.”

“Everyone knows what?”

Spike allowed himself a small smile as he explained a concept he knew since he was in kindergarten. “…that red means stop.” It was curious to see the Mech’s face change from intensely furious to utterly confused in the span of a second.
“That makes absolutely no sense. Red is a color, it doesn’t mean anything.”

It was Spike turn to look confused and even a little offended. “Of course it does. All colors have a meaning. Well, most do. It’s psychological.”

“How stupid!”

Spike was vaguely aware that there was now a small audience gathering around them, some of them looking rather amused. A tall green Mech walked up beside the smaller red one and placed a placating hand on his shoulder. “What’s wrong, Cliffjumper?”

The red mini-bot turned to the taller one. “I got pulled over by the human police today and the stupid fleshy gave me this thing!” he waved the itty-bitty slip of paper around like a piece of confetti. “A ticket!
How stupid is that?”

“You ran a red light,” Spike reminded him. “That’s a big traffic no-no.” Despite the probable imprudence of such an action, Spike wagged a finger at the Autobot as if gently scolding a toddler.

“What does it mean when you get a ticket?” the green Mech asked Spike before Cliffjumper could respond.

“Well…usually it means a fine. This is your first one so that’s pretty much all it means, but if you’re a repeat offender you could lose your license or get sent to jail. But if that ever happened to one of you guys I don’t think they’d send you to jail…the impound lot, maybe….”


“For not obeying a stupid light?” Cliffjumper demanded, furious again. “What’s the point? Are they some religious relic or something? Is it some taboo to not respect the shiny lights? Have I offended your primitive culture?”

Spike rolled his eyes, trying not to feel offended. “No. They’re traffic lights. It helps regulate the flow of traffic at intersections to keep people from crashing into each other when they cross the road. When you ran a red light you broke the law. You could’ve caused a wreck and hurt someone.”



Cliffjumper shook his head in exasperation and grumbled. “What a useless system. Using colors as traffic signals….”

“Works for us,” remarked the human with equal grouchiness. As enthralling and as fascinating as these Autobots were, he had limits on how many insults on his people and culture he could take. “Red means stop, yellow means caution, green means go.”

“Why? Why not blue means stop and red mean go? Or black means stop. That makes more sense than red.”

“We wouldn’t be able to see a black light very well. And…red is kind of…well, people see it as kind of an ominous color.
It grabs people’s attention.”

“Cliffjumper being the exception, apparently,” a dark blue and yellow Mech smirked from the group of spectators, a red chevron on his forehead. Spike had noticed several of the Autobots with a similar design. It made it kind of hard to remember their names.

“Ominous?” Cliffjumper asked dubiously. “How? Red is an Autobot color!” He pounded his fist against his chest with bravado. “The color of bravery and strength! It’s a heroic color. What’s so slagging ominous about the color red?”

Spike was silent for a moment as he analyzed his own perceptions of the color in question and why it always caught his attention. “…red’s the color of human blood.”


The group went silent as they absorbed the statement, understanding and confusion playing their minds at once.

“Usually when we see red the first thing we think of—well, I think of—is blood. And then other related images pop up. Like anger, death, murder, pain, torture, war…and so on,” added Spike. “But it also has the same connotations like you said. There are some colors that have multiple meanings depending on the context.”

“How so?” The green Mech—Hound, wasn’t it?— asked. He, like several of the other Autobots, looked intrigued and Spike felt a bubble of jollity rise from the pit of his stomach. So far, his time around the Autobots was spent being virtually ignored by all save a few he’d made friends with, and his insides filled with the warm-fuzzies at the notion they were actually paying attention to him and even asking him things. His inner child squealed with joy.

“Well, let’s take your color for instance: green.
Usually we associate green with nature, for obvious reasons—it’s the most abundant color in nature. From that association we get things like life, peace, freedom, and tranquility.” The green Mech smiled at that. “But then green can also mean jealousy. There’s a saying that describes someone as being ‘green with envy’.”

“How about yellow?” asked Bumblebee, one of the few Mechs so far he had gotten to know fairly well. Spike had not seen him come in.
Beside him stood a Mech he had been introduced to as Prowl and beside him was Optimus Prime. With such a prestigious audience hanging on his words, Spike began to feel a bit self-conscious.

“Yellow? Oh, us, well in a traffic light it means caution and you’re supposed to slow down…,so when the light turns red you can stop.” He paused and add, rather embarrassed, ”But then again, most people speed up so they can dodge the red light, so I guess that one’s a bit of a catch-22. But yellow can also mean happy, peaceful, and fun. It’s considered a happy color.”

Bumblebee smiled at that, but Spike was confused when around him, the Mechs began chuckling and murmuring to each other. Spike caught a muttered ‘oh the irony’ and ‘Someone go tell Sideswipe.’ Spike hadn’t met anyone named Sideswipe, or at least he didn’t think he had.

He turned to look at Bumblebee, tilting his head quizzically. The yellow minibot merely shook his head and waved the silent inquiry away, chuckling.

“I’ll tell you later,” he said.

“What about blue?” someone asked to Spike’s left, but he didn’t see who.

“Blue? Ah, that’s kind of a hard one. See, a light blue, like the sky, is considered a happy color. But a deep blue is more mellow and sad. We don’t call certain styles of Jazz ‘The Blues’ for nothing. Blue can either mean really happy or really sad.
One extreme to another depending on the shade or hue. But there’s an old idiom that says someone who talks really fast without stopping is “Talk up a blue streak” but I’m not sure how that relates to the actual color.”

The room erupted in another bout of laughter and several Mech were shouting ‘Ain’t that true!’ Spike made a mental note to ask Bumblebee about that as well.