Summary

• Carly emerges as a darker, more complex protagonist in Transformers #8, seeking vengeance on the Decepticons for her father's death.
• Carly's struggles with trauma and loss set her on a path of anger and revenge, pushing her into a unique friendship with Cliffjumper.
• Carly's journey to healing under Arcee's guidance as the first human "Iron Apprentice" promises to be a fascinating storyline in the Energon Universe era.

WARNING! Spoilers ahead for Transformers #8

Spike Witwicky has long been the main human protagonist in the Transformers franchise, but the Energon Universe has allowed another character to take center stage. Spike’s girlfriend Carly has taken on a much more prominent role in the new series, and it proves to be a genius choice for the franchise moving forward.

Coming from the creative team of Daniel Warren Johnson, Jorge Corona, Mike Spicer and Rus Wooton, Transformers #8 continues Carly’s story as she reunites with Spike after he was grievously wounded in a previous issue.

Still reeling from the death of her father, Carly copes by setting her mind to gain vengeance on the Decepticons. This has also sadly led to a wedge being driven into her relationship with Cliffjumper, as Carly is mad that the Autobot didn’t take out Starscream when he had the chance in issue #6.

Carly first appeared in the classic G1 cartoon from the 1980s, where she was depicted as a gifted MIT student. She would eventually marry Spike and give birth to their son Daniel, with the two of them acting as diplomatic envoys to Cybertron in the future.

Carly Takes Center Stage As A Darker, More Complex Human Protagonist

This new version of Carly is one of the most fascinating human characters in the franchise thus far, due to her darkness and complexity. The creators have been playing with the themes of trauma and loss throughout the new series, showing how each character reacts to violence and death in very different ways. Carly’s response is to lean into her anger, desperate to seek vengeance on Starscream in particular for coldly murdering her father. Starscream was also responsible for wiping Cliffjumper’s clan out entirely on Cybertron, so Cliffjumper and Carly wound up developing a rather special bond early on in the series.

What truly makes Carly a special character is that she isn’t perfect; she’s left broken in the wake of her father’s death, and watching the character learn and heal under the apprenticeship of Arcee will be a fascinating story.

Cliffjumper and Carly’s friendship is cut short when the two of them come face to face with Starscream. The pair are able to outwit the crazed Decepticon leader, giving Cliffjumper the perfect opportunity to take out Starscream once and for all. Cliff can’t pull the trigger, however, something that Carly has been unable to cope with in subsequent issues. Carly has leaned more and more into the idea of getting revenge, which causes her to isolate herself even further. Arcee recognizes what Carly is going through, and decides to take Carly on as her “Iron Apprentice” to learn the ways of the Autobot warrior - making Carly the first non-Cybertronian to be allowed to do so.

Arcee Takes On Carly As Her New “Iron Apprentice”

What truly makes Carly a special character is that she isn’t perfect; she’s left broken in the wake of her father’s death, and watching the character learn and heal under the apprenticeship of Arcee will be a fascinating story to watch play out. Carly is the perfect choice as the human protagonist to follow in this new era, as this depth of character allows the franchise to explore more varied themes. In that way, Carly has become not just the most interesting human character, but one of the best characters in the entire Energon Universe era of Transformers.

Transformers #8 is on sale now from Skybound Entertainment.