Universal Pictures

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

The narrative connects directly to the film series, beginning after the events of the first movie where Marty McFly returns home to Hill Valley in 1985 while Doc Brown departs for 2015. In this shared universe, the Decepticons and Autobots fight over Doc's time machine, leading Marty to a dystopic future where Megatron rules Earth with Biff Tannen as his second-in-command. The timeline diverges when Doc meets Rumble in 2015; unaware of the Decepticon's agenda, he inadvertently helps repair the DeLorean. Rumble then travels back to 1974 to use Biff for developing Energon supplies for Megatron's arrival. A trans-scanned Cybertronian named Gigawatt, formerly a Decepticon who fled after witnessing human worker abuse, locates Marty to fix his damaged flux capacitor and stop the invasion.

In Their Own Story

The conflict escalates when Rodimus Prime reveals Doc's unintentional role in the catastrophe. Marty teams up with Gigawatt and Skilz, a Cybertronian disguised as a skateboard, to confront Starscream before reaching the surviving Autobots. In Hill Valley, Doc saves Biff and Marty's parents from Constructicons, but Biff attempts to execute them until Marty and the Autobots intervene. The group faces Watchtower, a giant Decepticon disguised as the courthouse. During the battle, Doc repairs Gigawatt's flux capacitor, allowing Marty and Gigawatt to travel back to 1984 to prevent Rumble from awakening Megatron. Although Gigawatt suffers critical injuries, a repaired version exists in 2015 where the Autobots protect Earth. The cycle concludes with Marty returning to 1985, receiving a new pickup truck from his parents that is secretly a Decepticon in disguise.

Reader's Guide

Fans can access this specific four-issue crossover miniseries published by IDW Publishing starting in October 2020. The series was written by Cavan Scott and illustrated by Juan Samu. For those interested in the physical media, Hasbro released a toy figure of Gigawatt based on the DeLorean time machine as part of their Transformers Collaborative line. The story strictly follows the continuity established after the first film's ending, detailing the specific mechanics of Rumble's 1974 trip and the construction of Energon supplies. Key moments include the trans-scanning of the DeLorean by Gigawatt and the formation of a resistance led by Doc Brown in the dystopian timeline.

Did You Know?

• The crossover miniseries debuted in October 2020 to celebrate the 35th anniversary of both franchises.
• In this story, Biff Tannen serves as Megatron's second-in-command in a dystopian future.
• Gigawatt is a Cybertronian who trans-scanned the DeLorean time machine to escape the Decepticons.
• Skilz is another Cybertronian ally disguised specifically as Marty McFly's skateboard.
• The series was written by Cavan Scott and illustrated by Juan Samu.