Makin' Tracks!

In the Body Shop in Autobot Earthbase, Wheeljack explains to Optimus Prime and Grimlock that Tracks's resurrection has been hit by sabotage attempts, but he will still be ready on schedule. Prime notes that other accidents have occurred, including Tracks's name being deleted from the revival computer program and his body going missing. Unless the massive surveillance equipment has failed, the culprit has to be one of the Earthforce. Grimlock says he has no idea who it could be. Prime leaves as the operation enters the final, critical stage.

Grimlock expresses his frustration to Wheeljack that he has to oversee Tracks being revived. Wheeljack replies that Tracks may not be everyone's favourite Autobot but the Ark doesn't have a Body Shop like the Earthforce's and an Autobot is an Autobot. Grimlock stomps off, still angry and then comments that as the final stage of the reactivation isn't complete it would be a pity if the saboteur got to Tracks!

Later, Wheeljack places Tracks on a conveyor belt to go into the ACU and starts the machine, then, as it will take ten minutes, he decides to go for a rest. The moment he has left the room, Grimlock sneaks in with a hammer. He approaches the machine and is about to attack Tracks's body when the machine suddenly grabs him and pulls him inside. There, numerous lasers and scapels attack his body.

Tracks comes out of the machine in pristine condition, bar a scar on his chest, followed by Grimlock in a rather worse state. Grimlock tells the now returned Wheeljack to say not a word and privately thinks that at least Optimus Prime will take Tracks with him. But Tracks announces how happy he is that Prime wants him to serve with Grimlock! He asks Grimlock to help with the scar.

This is all Grimlock wants to hear and he chases Tracks out of the base with his sword. Tracks doesn't know what he said to cause this!

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Autobots
Tracks (1) Wheeljack (2) Optimus Prime (3) Grimlock (4)

Quotes

Notes

Artwork and technical errors

Tracks's scar only appears on one panel.
In the last panel, Grimlock's chest has healed all the holes punched in it by the ACU machine.

Continuity errors

Continuity notes

When last seen prior to this story, Tracks had fallen victim to an acid bath from Blot in "Dark Star".
The remains of Hound can be seen in Wheeljack's Body Shop.
This story seeks to explain why so many previously deceased Autobots are alive and well during the Earthforce stories, and potentially detach the explanation from Nucleon and the upcoming US strips. It's yet another clue to add to the mystery of when the Earthforce stories take place.
Grimlock's reasons for hating Tracks are never fully explained. He mentions that Tracks is vain—but already has Sunstreaker on his force—and a pain—but again, this feature is not unique. The two characters have shared very few panels before, but Grimlock may have developed his hatred off panel between the events of "King of the Hill!" and "Dark Star".

Real-life references

Other trivia

In the letters page for issue #292, Dreadwind informs us that "ACU" stands for "Automated Construction Unit".^[1]
Grimlock totally tried to bump Tracks off. Damn!