Comic Review...

Cover "A" by Nick Roche

Transformers Spotlight: Megatron

Writer: Nick Roche
Artist: Nick Roche
(covers by Nick Roche, Livio Ramondelli, Clayton Crane (RI) and Alex Milne (RE))


Summary:  MEGATRON IS BACK! Writer/artist Nick Roche takes us back to the last time MEGATRON returned--when he found his DECEPTICON forces in tatters under the control of STARSCREAM. In this never-before-revealed tale, we learn exactly how Megatron reacted… and how Starscream survived!


Comments:  Megatron is reborn in his new stealth bomber form (during the Mike Costa series) and is surprised by how his forces have crumbled to all but nothing under Starscream's command. He is also stunned by how even Starscream seems to have given up his will to rule in the face of having insubordinate troops. He sets out to resolve this by engaging Starscream in a short battle, forcing the other to snap out of his stupor and return to normal. He then rallies the troops, plotting his next terrifying strike against their enemies.
   This issue is a bit of a mixed bag. The plot is good, as stand-alone stories go. I found the dialogue a bit long-winded for Megatron though. It seems to me like he should act more and talk/think less. In this case, Roche could've let his art do the talking a bit more in the action scenes. Instead we get long thought boxes with Megatron thinking about everything and using long, formal style sentences for it all.

   The Megatron/Starscream dynamic in this story works fine (generally) but the state of their relationship in IDW is a bit confusing. Megatron all but killed him in the earlier Furman stories (remember how he shot a big hole through Starscream at one point?) Later, Starscream all but shames the Autobots over their victory and the loss of Megatron in AHM. Then, he seems fine with Megatron being out of commission in the subsequent stories so that he can rule and finally, here he's lost all hope and resolve. Granted, this is different writers doing different things but it makes things confusing if you were actually paying attention all this time.
   One could argue that Megatron doesn't really care all that much about Starscream and all this attention to getting him psyched back up for battle seems like a bit too much effort on his part. I always saw Megatron as more of a user of his troops to get what he wants rather then really being too concerned about their well-being (but I admit I might be nitpicking here).
   Also, this story is set during the ongoing TF comic/Costa era. A series I truly hated and have no interest in nor wish to recall. This story is largely irrelevant to the current stuff and doesn't really advance either character along in my estimation (also, Megatron rallies the troops then enacts his plan, beats the crap out of Optimus and surrenders to him afterward. The chronology is bizarre and inconsistent, isn't it. Why be so gung-ho to return to glory in this story but then ultimately seem to give up in the Costa stuff?)
   The art (also by Roche) is pretty good and it's always nice to see him draw more when he can.


Verdict:  Average. I didn't care for it but it seems to be about par for the course with IDW's output.

Cover "B" by Livio Ramondelli

Comic Review...

Cover "B" by Nick Roche

Transformers: More Then Meets The Eye #12

Writer: James Roberts
Artist: Alex Milne and Brendan Cahill (pencils), Alex Milne, Atilio Rojo and Brian Shearer (inks)
(covers by Alex Milne and Nick Roche)



Summary:  AUTOBOTS VERSUS DECEPTICONS! The crew of the Lost Light confronts a band of rogue DECEPTICONS-with terrible consequences. As an AUTOBOT slips closer to death, a single decision sets in motion a chain of events that might just spell the end for RODIMUS and his band of travelers. 

Comments:  The gist of this comic is that it's set before and after a major battle between the Lost Light's crew and some Decepticons they encounter on a world (who they believe captured the Circle of Light). Appropriately, it's called "Before and After". 
   I found this issue dry and uninteresting. Several characters are seriously injured and we get some yap about "Innermost Energon", Spark compatibility between Spark types (say what?), and blah, blah, blah. I just don't care for the writing style of this series...it's not exciting or even interesting to me. It never has been, really. I want to feel like the comic I'm reading is going somewhere and this one always feels like it's meandering all over the place. This issue, for example, is about a battle but gets so bogged down with jumping back and forth explaining who's injured and, eventually, getting to a plot point about how some were injured. Mostly, I don't really care about any of it--in fact, I had trouble even remembering the plot to this issue before I sat down to review it.

Verdict:  Pass. I will likely be dropping this title. After a year of reading it I don't feel it's going anywhere anyway and I'm not prepared to devote any more time to pursuing it and hoping it will adhere more to what I want in a TF comic. 

Comic Review...

Cover "A" by Alex Milne

Transformers: More Then Meets The Eye #9

Writer: James Roberts
Artist: Alex Milne

(covers by Alex Milne and Nick Roche)


Summary:  SHADOWPLAY begins here! One AUTOBOT connects the crew of the Lost Light with pre-war CYBERTRON and the rise of the DECEPTICONs. His name? OPTIMUS PRIME. The past and the present collide as Rewind begins telling his crew mates the most shocking story of all!

Comments:  Basically, a flashback story that the crew of the Lost Light tell in an attempt to get Rung's cerebral circuitry functional again (he has a head once more). The story involves a younger Orion Pax discovering a drugged out Drift (before he was Drift) and taking him to Ratchet. Later, Ratchet and Pax go to speak to his Senator friend. Meanwhile, Prowl and Chromedome investigate the death of a Senator. In the present, Red Alert's headless body (is he dead?) is retrieved and Rodimus believes it the work of Cyclonus.
   The bulk of this issue is the flashback. Unfortunately, we don't really learn all that much about where it's going, just set-up for the next issue. Also, we don't know why Rodimus expects Cyclonus of being behind Red Alert's apparent demise. Is he truly to blame or is it somebody else entirely?

Verdict: Average. Needed a bit more to be truly entertaining.

Comic Review...

Transformers: More Then Meets The Eye Annual 2012

Writer: James Roberts
Artists: Jimbo Salgado, Emil Cabaltierra and Guido Guidi
(covers by Tim Seely and Alex Milne)


Summary:  THE ORIGIN OF THE KNIGHTS OF CYBERTRON! Rodimus and the crew of the Lost Light finally reach Crystal City, home to the mysterious Circle of Light. But what they find waiting for them is going to change everything-and not necessarily for the better!


Comments:  It's a long and involved tale but a couple of the highlights of this story were the crew of the Lost Light finding a Metrotitan underneath Crystal City (colored, naturally, like the Metrotitan toy from Japan). I also appreciated Roberts doing something different and trying a new origin for Primus and the Transformers. That was the sort of thing I'd initially been hoping for when Furman first started doing TF comics for IDW. Take an old concept and try some new spins on them. For a long time, too many of the various writers struck to the established canon and I'm glad he took a chance and went in a new direction here (I also noticed he kind of glossed over whether or not Unicron exists in this continuity).
   I'd not heard of Salgado or Cabaltierra before but their art seemed fairly competent to me. I hadn't really noticed the retro coloring style in the flashback until the RID counterpart used it more extensively (then it became much more obvious).

   A fairly good story overall.


Verdict:  Good.

Cover "A" by Tim Seely

Comic Review

Transformers: More Then Meets The Eye #8

Writer: James Roberts
Artist: Alex Milne
(covers by Alex Milne, Nick Roche and Marcelo Matere)

 Summary:  DINOBOT MONTH! Three years ago, Grimlock disappeared from his prison cell on Garrus 9. Where did he go? What happened to him? One thing's for certain: the leader of the Dinobots is back-and he's itching to settle some scores!

Comments:  Most of this story follows the scavengers (Krok, Flywheels, Spinister, Misfire, etc.) on Clemency. They are forced to fight the Decepticon Justice Division, feeling it's their only real option besides certain death. They reactivate Grimlock, who was in stasis aboard the ship the found). He puts up a strong but short-lived fight before the DJD knock him down. Flywheels gets killed and so does Krok (boo!) before Fulcrum unleashes a Cybernought drone from the nearby ship then tries to self-detonate himself (he becomes a bomb) but his power doesn't work (he was deactivated earlier when the others found him--but he didn't realize it as he was unconscious). Finally, the DJD detect Overlord's spark elsewhere (he's on the Lost Light, of course) and decide to leave and pursue him instead since he's a much higher priority target.
   A fairly good story overall. I think MTMTE works best when it's more focused on one or two story threads overall (unlike earlier issues where five things could be going on at once). It was also nice to see a story mostly centered on a group of Decepticons for a change. There was also a "B" story with a few scenes about Skids and Chromedome (also referencing the events of the MTMTE Annual, which was supposed to be out in August but was delayed until Sept. 12th, so the reference to it is lost on the reader). Also, we find out Grimlock is severely damaged mentally (he's described as being "practically brain dead"), which is why the Decepticons on the ship had abandoned him. Frankly, I think that sucks and it seems like Roberts didn't feel like trying to give him any real story time so he used this as an "out". I hope Grimlock gets repaired soon.

Verdict: Good.

Cover "A" by Alex Milne

Cover "B" by Nick Roche

Retailer Incentive Cover by Marcelo Matere

Comic Review...

Transformers: More Then Meets The Eye #7

Writer: James Roberts
Artist: Alex Milne
(covers by Alex Milne and Nick Roche)

Summary: DECEPTICON MONTH! The war's over - but no-one told the DECEPTICON Justice Division! Meet the five deadliest DECEPTICONS in the galaxy. Their sole purpose: to hunt down and kill anyone who has ever disobeyed MEGATRON. Who's their next target?

Comments: This issue introduces the Decepticon Justice Division (or, more accurately, its principals). Five robots, each named after a city on Cybertron. Their leader is Tarn. A malicious character (with the face of the Decepticon sigil) who delights in his job of hunting down rogue Decepticons and administering "justice".
   Roberts continues his trait of introducing an obscure character then killing them off almost immediately after. Black Shadow is the victim this time around. I kind of wish he'd stop it--I'd rather they save such characters for a later date and story then waste them in a one-off cameo like this. I can see why they do it--better some appearance then potentially none and it helps add more depth to the story universe. But I'd rather they leave them in reserve for a more appropriate appearance later on. My two cents. 
   We learn Rung has survived his brush with death this issue--except that he's missing an important appendage (his head). Also, Red Alert confides in his fallen form that he's found Overlord aboard the ship and it's some kind of conspiracy the Decepticon is there (which is confirmed when someone covertly removes the data file he planted on Rung's body). It will be interesting to see what becomes of the whole Overlord sub-plot.
   There's also a sub-plot involving some lost Decepticons on a world, lead by Krok. They find a downed Decepticon ship at the story's end and a surprising passenger aboard. I think it's cool we finally will discover what happened to said character after his prolonged absence from the story.
   All in all, MTMTE is getting a bit better as it goes. The story's been a little bit more focused these last few issues and shows signs of a potential longer term point, which I've been hoping for.


Verdict:  Good.

Cover "A" by Alex Milne

Cover "B" by Nick Roche

Comic Review...

Transformers: More Then Meets the Eye #5

Writer: James Roberts
Artist: Alex Milne
(covers by Alex Milne and Nick Roche)


Summary: TERROR BEYOND THE STARS! The dark secret at the heart of Delphi is revealed as Ratchet's world starts to fall apart. Time is running out for the Autobot's Chief Medical Officer and his band of followers, who must confront an enemy that literally cannot be reckoned with. Warning: not everyone will make it out alive!

Comments: This was part two of the story about Delphi and the Cosmic Rust and I enjoyed it more then the first part. It just felt more... coherent somehow. More focused on the "A" story and less on the other various plots Roberts likes to throw in there. We learn how the virus got its start, who started it and why. Ratchet is the hero of the piece as well, which is always a plus. We also get to see the holo-avatars used once again.
   The art is competent as always. Milne does some fine work here...

Cover "A" by Alex Milne

Verdict:  Very Good.

Comic Review...

Cover "A" by Alex Milne

Transformers: More Then Meets The Eye #4

Writer: James Roberts
Artist: Alex Milne
(covers by Alex Milne and Nick Roche)

Summary:  DANGER IN SPACE! Investigating the abandoned AUTOBOT facility on DELPHI-one-time home of fan-favorites THE WRECKERS-RATCHET uncovers a danger greater than he's ever faced and the return of a character long thought lost! Will this bring them closer to their goal of finding the Knights of Cyberton-or kill them?!

 Comments:  The Autobots visit Delphi, where First Aid (and others are). It turns out there's a plague of Red Rust happening at the medical facility there. Of the landing party, Pipes accidentally gets infected (I think this is probably the first time I can ever remember Pipes being in a TF comic. Cool!) Then Drift gets infected too, leaving First Aid and Ratchet to try to figure out how to cure them. Elsewhere, Tailgate learns the truth of the Great War and confronts Cyclonus over it. Back on Delphi, the Decepticon Justice Division Decepticons get into the base--just in time to be confronted by a resurrected Fortress Maximus!
    This issue was better then last issue's tale about the Spark Eater. Having said that, I still didn't find it all that great. I keep wondering if Roberts comic is going to be mostly about (nearly) mundane happenings on the Autobots ship and mostly episodic--or if it will get some kind of general arc going on. I need something more to get invested in this comic and so far it hasn't delivered on it (I don't want a "writing for the trade" style like Mike Costa seemed to do but I do want to feel like we're going somewhere, at least generally, in the comic and so far it feels like the writer's making it all up as he goes). Whatever he thinks he's doing with this comic (trying to reinvent the wheel? Do an action comedy? I dunno), it hasn't been working for me so far.

Verdict:  Average.

Comic Review...

Cover "B" by Nick Roche

Transformers: More Then Meets The Eye #2

Writer: James Roberts
Artist: Alex Milne
(covers by Alex Milne, Nick Roche)


Summary: The new TRANSFORMERS direction blasts off! Trapped in space, their ship critically damaged, the Autobots try to rally what's left of their forces. And to complicate matters, Skids arrives on the scene, guns blazing! Who is he? What does he want? Where does he come from? Unfortunately, not even Skids knows the answers...


Comments: I was surprised to see Skids show up this issue. Where he came from is not clear in the story but it seems to infer he was already on the planet that Rodimus and the others crashed on. To Roberts credit, Skids is given an interesting and flattering appearance here (sometimes it seems like so many G1 characters get relegated to boring background roles so this spotlighting of him was nice).
   In general, the story for issue two is more stream-lined then issue one's (no need to introduce everybody this time around and set it all up). It appears like most of the people blasted out of the Lost Light at the end of issue one were saved after all (disregard my rant about Rad, Fizzle, etc. from last time). It did seem like at the end of last issue that the ship was heavily damaged and they might be marooned on the planet but by the end of this issue they're already repaired and ready to go.
   I'm still not crazy on the whole late 80s Justice League-like banter in these comics (humorous asides and little jokes littered in places). It's cool in some comics but I'm not sure I like it here for Transformers (I'm not saying it's bad per se, just that it doesn't quite fit with my personal view of TF fiction. Your mileage may vary).
   I noticed the art seemed a little different this issue and wondered if Roche had changed his style or something. As it turns out, Alex Milne actually drew this issue (oops. Well, I read the issue late at night and because I had the Roche cover just naturally assumed he drew it all). Anyway, Milne does a fairly good job here (although I wonder if Roche will be back soon. They made a big deal about Roberts/Roche on this series so I assume he'll do more then just one issue. Perhaps they'll alternate issues to lessen the workload?)
   All in all, a slight improvement on issue one. (I know I said I wasn't planning to get more of this series but I saw one solitary issue of MTMTE #2 when I went on my comic run and got it out of habit while getting RID and some other stuff).

Verdict: Good.

Comic Review...

Transformers #18


Writer: Mike Costa
Artist: Alex Milne

(cover art by Nick Roche and Marcelo Matere)


Summary: The Autobots have been beaten down, backed into a corner, and harried into making a huge mistake. But the biggest blow has yet to fall, as Prime sets out to face Megatron one-on-one in the final chapter of REVENGE OF THE DECEPTICONS. Nobody dies... but somebody's gonna wish they had.


Comments: From reading the solicitation synopsis above, one would assume this issue is mind blowingly awesome. That would be wrong. It's not a terrible issue per se but, frankly, not a lot really happens. After last issue's dramatic ending I had hoped for a real follow-up. Instead, the whole Jazz thing is all but ignored and Optimus goes storming off to fight Megatron. Megatron beats him but then surrenders himself--he wants to watch the chaos that is coming. Optimus is given suspicions that his human allies might not be as copesetic as they pretend... The Prime/Megatron battle is dull and the rest of the issue is set-up for future things (at least, I think it is. Costa doesn't seem to understand how to write comics very well. If you're going to set up a story element then pay it off! Don't set it up and ignore it because you suddenly had some other whim to pursue).

Verdict: Mediocre.



(Cover "B" by Marcelo Matere)

Comic Review...

(WARNING: The following review contains story spoilers for the issue's ending).


Transformers #17

Writer: Mike Costa
Artist: Alex Milne

(Covers by Marcelo Matere and Nick Roche)


Summary: Megatron's plan enters its second stage as the Autobots continue to fall under attack from heavily armed humans. Elsewhere, Starscream attempts to initiate a plan of his own with an old ally. Costa and Milne aren't bringing everyone out of this issue in one piece as the REVENGE OF THE DECEPTICONS continues!


Comments: We start the story with Optimus and company finally being accounted for after missing for a couple of issues (they were shot down). Anyway, it's mentioned in passing that Megatron either shot them down or ordered it. He sends them a message and we find he has the Autobots from last issue as hostages. What makes no sense is that when last issue ended, it seemed like he'd left after having taunted them so I guess he turned around for some reason and captured them all anyway. The rest of the story makes sense otherwise and ends on an attempt at drama. Jazz does what any of the Autobots would've realistically done and kills a human when he sees it threatening fellow Autobots with a Megatron gun (unless we're supposed to assume they're all retarded or something. Why wouldn't they defend themselves rather then allow humans to kill them?) What he didn't realize is that the others had all but talked the man down (oops!) I look forward to seeing this resolved. Hopefully Prime will stick up for Jazz and not just have him be lead off and disassembled or killed.

Verdict: Recommended.


(Cover "A" by Marcelo Matere)

Comic Review...

Transformers #16

Writer: Mike Costa
Artist: Alex Milne

(covers by Marcelo Matere and Nick Roche)

Summary: MEGATRON's plan enters its second stage as the AUTOBOTS continue to fall under attack from heavily armed humans. Elsewhere, STARSCREAM attempts to initiate a plan of his own with an old ally. Costa and Figueroa aren't bringing everyone out of this issue in one piece as the 'Revenge of the Decepticons' continues!


Comments: For once, I can honestly say I liked this issue. It wasn't earth shattering or anything but I found it sufficiently entertaining. Also, Milne's art was pretty good... I do wonder why Megatron revealed himself so early on in his scheme--I had assumed he'd want to stay behind the scenes for a while and pull strings (of course, he hasn't left Ultra Magnus and the others by the end of the issue so perhaps there's more to reveal next issue?) Also, I find it interesting that now that Megatron's back in charge again, now Starscream decides to act--against him. He had control of the Decepticons all that time and did nothing. Does he need Megatron as his muse or something? I would rather see Starscream act as a competent leader for once (just for the purposes of character development, if nothing else). All things considered, though, this wasn't a bad issue. Hoping more will be revealed next issue...

Verdict: Average.


(Cover "B" by Nick Roche)

Comic Review...

Transformers: Drift #4 (of 4)

Writer: Shane McCarthy
Artist: Alex Milne

(cover by Alex Milne)

Summary: The time for conflict has arrived! But can Drift possibly hope to survive the coming onslaught? Old fears are put aside and new bonds are forged as Drift and the Knights prepare to make their final stand!

Comments: The final battle. Can good triumph over evil? Is the sky blue? An adequate ending to an adequate story. As usual with IDW, this story just didn't wow me... it was okay but that's all the praise I can really give it. We all knew it was a flashback and that Drift would survive so there was little real drama there. As mentioned in my previous reviews, not enough is done to establish Drift's true motivations in becoming a Decepticon in the first place nor in his change of heart in this story. Without that, this story has no real soul and feels like a superficial exercise instead of the epic it should be. We don't even have much happen to the Neutrals so Drift doesn't even have any guilt to carry with him in that aspect either. Shallow storytelling with nice art... (of all the issues I think the first one was the best).

Verdict: Mildly recommended.
The Series as a Whole: Neutral.

Comic Review...

Transformers: Drift #2 (of 4)

Writer: Shane McCarthy
Artist: Alex Milne

(cover by Alex Milne)

Summary: What is the secret behind DRIFT's startling rescuers? How is it they came to be on the isolated, desert planet and what does this have to do with DRIFT's future? As DRIFT uncovers answers, he's suddenly faced with a decision that could alter his life forever!


Comments: Another issue and another reasonably good story (although I have to admit I can see the ending coming a mile away). The story is not mind shattering (nor has anything IDW's done to-date) but it is competently written and about what one would expect. Milne's art is also still good (too many characters look alike, though. It's hard to tell the difference between Drift and Wing most of the time). The character revealed at the end (a shout-out to Animated--yes, really) is a welcome addition to the IDW-verse.

Verdict: Recommended.

Comic Review...

Transformers: Drift #1 (of 4)

Writer: Shane McCarthy
Artist: Alex Milne

(cover by Alex Milne)

Summary: What was it that caused one of the DECEPTICON's most ruthless soldiers to turn his back on them? And what ancient secret lies hidden deep within an alien planet? All this and more as the origin of the newest AUTOBOT, DRIFT, is finally revealed!

Comments: One thing I noticed right away was how many G2 characters are in the background in the opening pages. We see Terradive, Skyjack, one of the Predators (Skydive? Talon?), Dreadwing and Smokescreen (and possibly others). On the one hand, it's cool to see a shout out to these neglected characters. On the flip side, it seems like the artists do this stuff a lot in IDW... The story is about Deadlock (aka the future Drift), a merciless Decepticon who tries to lead a coup against his commander, only to fail and have to flee for his life. He ends up on a planet with a mysterious character that needs his help to rescue some slaves... but in a display of his usual bravado, things end up going horribly wrong. It's a fairly solid first issue of story and since the series is only four issues, we don't have to worry so much about McCarthy stretching it out too long like he did in AHM. The story and art are both pretty good. I can predict where the story will go ultimately but hopefully it will be an interesting journey to get there. One review I saw mentioned that many of the TFs look too Gundam-esque in their designs (that is, overly elaborate) and I would tend to agree (but it's a minor quibble). I also liked the "two guns" joke--it's an old standard but it worked well in this case.

Verdict: Recommended.