Field Test

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ROM:
Revolution one-shot
ROM Rev1 regcvr.jpg
"Field Test"
Publisher IDW Publishing, Ted Adams
First published September 21, 2016
Cover date September 2016
Written by Chris Ryall and Christos Gage
Art by Ron Jospeh
Colors by Jay Fotos
Letters by Shawn Lee
Editor David Hedgecock

Rom faces a new enemy and learns the Wraiths are capable of far more than he ever thought.

Synopsis[edit | edit source]

After leaving Darby Mason, Rom and Camilla Byers travel to Seattle, Washington, only to be intercepted and attacked by a monster calling itself Axiom, from whom Camilla gets a strange feeling in her wound. Axiom attacks and Rom sets Camilla down on the Space Needle in order to engage the creature. Unsure if Axiom is a Dire Wraith, Rom uses his Energy Analyzer, which, despite Axiom's monstrous appearance, registers the creature as human. While Rom is hesitant to fight because it may be human, Axiom leaves him no choice, telling him to fight or die. The Space Knight tries to fight, but the creature is too fast for him, slicing through his armor. When Axiom reveals a Wraith palm spike, Rom is certain his adversary is a Dire Wraith. Axiom says that he is more than Wraith AND more than human.

Six months earlier, Deepwave Technologies founders Aaron Grundy and Caleb Awan, having recently sold their startup to the military, await their new owners. Aaron is worried about what will happen when the military sees that their Axiom tech suit's mental interface doesn’t work, but joe Colton then arrives, telling them he has the answer to their problems: Ore-13. After a week of development, the Axiom suit is perfected. Colton tests it by firing organic-looking weapons at Aaron while he’s in the Axiom suit. Aaron easily deflects them and takes away their guns. General Colton says that now that they've finished the suit, it's time to work on Aaron Aaron is tied up in "bio-webs" by Joe Colton, who reveals himself, his soldiers, and Caleb, to be Dire Wraiths. One of Colton's soldiers, Kohl, transforms into her Dire Wraith form and begins to infect the Axiom-clad Aaron.

Back in the fight, Rom is able to temporarily knock Axiom out. Rom refines his Analyzer and scans Axiom again, shocked by the results. He tries to offer Axiom his help, but Axiom shows no concern over his predicament, thanking the Dire Wraiths and taking off his helmet to reveal a monstrous visage. Before Rom can finish off Axiom with his Neutralizer, the Wraiths order Axiom to return to base, orders Camilla picks up. Rom expresses his fear at the idea that the Wraiths are able to meld magic and technology into such a weapon, mentioning that while his didn't detect any Wraith presence, it did detect the Ore-13 in Axiom's suit. Camilla tells Rom that she heard the Wraith mention Ore-13, also mentioning that Axiom was created by General Colton. Rom determines that he must find General Colton… and put him down.

Featured characters[edit | edit source]

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Quotes[edit | edit source]

"You act like I'm not human."

Axiom

Notes[edit | edit source]

  • This comic takes place after ROM #4, but was released before to coincide with the release of Revolution #1.

Continuity notes[edit | edit source]

  • The Axiom armor is referenced in ROM #3 as being in development.
  • Colton tells Aaron that the Axiom suit is needed to deal with a "situation" in Utah, referring to the events of the "All Hail Optimus" story in The Transformers.
  • As established in the main ROM series, the Wraiths have found a way to conceal themselves from Rom's analyzer. The means of how would later be revealed in the main Revolution series to be Ore-13.

ROM references[edit | edit source]

  • Axiom calls Rom "toaster-face", a common fan-given nickname for the Space Knight.

Real-life references[edit | edit source]

  • The Colton wraith proposes to "skip the FDA crap", referring to the Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. federal agency responsible for protecting public health.
  • A bicycle can be seen stuck in a tree. While this may seem like an error, this is a real life tree in Vashon, Washington; Berkeley Breathed wrote a book about it.
  • Camilla refers to Axiom as "Mothra".

Errors[edit | edit source]

  • (tbd)

Covers (6)[edit | edit source]

  • Retailer incentive cover: Rom fighting Axiom in front of the Seattle Space Needle, by Ken Christiansen, part of an interconnecting image with the twelve other Revolution issues.
  • Desert Wind Comics and Collectibles Exclusive Cover: Rom faces off against Axiom, by Sal Buscema and Mindy Wheeler.
  • New York Comic Con Exclusive Cover: Rom activates the Energy Analyzer, by Gabriel Rodriguez and Jay Fotos.