Grimlock ♥ Ultra Magnus

And I'm finding that I never get tired of Maximus, partly because he's so multi-faceted.   To the point where his character would seem to be actually out of character at times, except... he's not.   He's always scheming, even when he says he cares for his brother - and means it.   He's in love with his cousin, Medusa, who also happens to be his brother's wife.   He was driven mad by one of Black Bolt's scream, the one that killed their parents. 

In other words, he can care about his brother and still plot against him.   He's chaotic neutral, the true chaotic neutral that Liege Maximo was not in the Robots in Disguise novel.  That was just a cheap trick, and he ended up being a cookie cutter villain, laughing and twirling his ridiculous mustache.   Maximus is, however, brutally efficient, smart, and can both care and shrug his shoulders and seem not to care at the same time.   That's because he was a cardboard cutout villain - and writers, talented writers who cared about him and his world, turned him into something deeper, something more.   There's a reason that when Black Bolt set Inhumanity into motion, he called on his brother.   Maximus is doing horrible things - arguably for a good purpose.   He's okay with doing those awful things, either for himself or for others.   There will undoubtedly be a price for his help at the end.   

He's a sociopath who charms, or bullies, or bargains his way into getting what he wants, and he's on brilliant display here.   He's a lot of fun - and oftentimes frustrating.   If you can accept that about him, then he's well worth getting to know, and this issue is all about him and his plans.  They're breathtaking - and I hope that I get to see how they end.  I hope that, in the end, what I want to does happen in The Royals.