Just thinking how in the bit where Starscream's cold constructed he's one of many identical seekers, but for all that most seekers look similar, he's the only one who's still recognizably of that batch after millions of years + prob. the only one left

Just thinking. About that.

Just thinking about how he convinced his trine (two forged seekers) to mod themselves to look more like him in what they assumed was for crime reasons but was maybe for other reasons too, all his other-self siblings gone, gone, gone, and him the only one left standing

What was his early life like? Megatron was made a miner but Starscream was born a weapon, an MTO before MTOs existed, and the only thing we know for sure was that he said "well, fuck that" and went in for a gradually-escalating set of cons and grifting instead

I would not be at all surprised if he washed out of the military due to mouthing off at the wrong commander or ignoring stupid orders, and, finding him intractable, they dumped him off on the Dead End with the rest of the dregs (But Starscream is nothing if not a survivor)

Actually this would explain a lot about that whole weirdly sincere "I pledge my loyalty undying" thing. Maybe this time, with a cause he believes in and a competent commander, he can be what he's supposed to be. Functionist slag, sure, but hard not to buy into