Metafictional bomb
From Transformers Wiki
The metafictional bomb, or meta-bomb for short, is an "abstract weapon" developed by Brainstorm in his time aboard the Lost Light. When activated, those affected by the device become convinced that they are characters in a fictional narrative, with the intended consequence being that the enemy loses the will to fight. You probably shouldn't leave one lying around your laboratory for irresponsible metallurgists to find.
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Fiction
2005 IDW continuity
When Rewind visited Brainstorm to inquire as to Chromedome's whereabouts, Swerve tagged along, and the metallurgist's curiosity was piqued by the meta-bomb, which was resting on a stand in the laboratory. When its inventor realized what Swerve was toying with, he worriedly checked that the device hadn't been activated. After assuring Brainstorm that he hadn't done so, Swerve confided in Rewind that he had, although it didn't seem to have had any effect. When asked when he'd triggered it, Swerve responded that it must have happened off-panel, despite having no idea what the phrase meant.
Not long afterwards, the escaped Overlord went on a violent rampage through the ship, and Swerve began a strangely familiar monologue about the situation they found themselves in, much to Drift's confusion. Under Cold Blue Stars
The effects of the meta-bomb would continue to plague Swerve and, when combined with a recursive time-loop in his holomatter generator caused by opening Brainstorm's briefcase, resulted in the creation of a replica of planet Earth populated by sitcom characters and containing just one source of literature—a comic book series called More than Meets the Eye. These effects were only dispelled when the rest of the Lost Light's crew beamed their own holomatter avatars down to "Swearth" and convinced Swerve that despite recent events he was still a "main character" and a lot of people cared about him. The One Where They Go to Earth The effects of the meta-bomb also allowed Swerve to see the words "To Be Concluded" in a panel he appeared in, letting him know the crew's adventure wasn't quite over yet. A Spark Among Embers
Games
Transformers: Earth Wars
Brainstorm explained to Streetwise that his processor was of such sophistication that he could simultaneously conduct theoretical research on dark matter, work towards a nanite antibody to Cosmic Rust, and develop a metafictional bomb. Brainstorm arrival
Notes
- Swerve's speech during the battle with Overlord is in fact the solicitation description for the issue he is currently appearing in.
Foreign names
- Japanese: Meta bakudan (メタ爆弾), metafiction bakudan (メタフィクション爆弾)
