Saturday, May 12, 2012

Comic Review...

Transformers: Robots in Disguise #4

Writer: John Barber
Artist: Andrew Griffith
(covers by Andrew Griffith and Casey Coller)

Summary:  PROWL UNCHAINED! In what's sure to be the most shocking Transformers comic of 2012-PROWL defends the fledgling government of CYBERTRON against the DECEPTICONS. But how far will he go-and who will chose to stand by his side? The answers will shock you!


Comments:  Dirge discovers a dead Decepticon. When Prowl investigates, he finds Dirge less then cooperative so he follows him and discovers he has been brainwashed by a Cerebro Shell. Prowl, Arcee and Blurr come up against Bombshell and the Constructicons. Sunstorm shows up for a couple of panels to die at Arcee's hands. Blurr chases Bombshell but is outnumbered by the Constructicons. Prowl kills Bombshell when he refuses to give over his fellow conspirators...Dirge escapes (technically he's innocent anyway). Prowl detonates all of the Constructicons I/D chips, blowing all of their heads up. He resolves to do whatever it takes to maintain control and order from here on in.
   I still like this title better of the two. It just seems a bit more focused...  I do wonder about the logic of killing so many "named" Decepticons though. At this rate, who will be left to restart the War when it happens in the next series with the next writer (and we all know it will, sooner or later). They'll have to implausibly bring everyone back now (the usual "they're just there and alive again for no reason" thing). I think, while less dramatic, they could've opted to use the I/D chips to put the Decepticons into perma-stasis instead (thus giving them an "out" in-story).
   I guess Prowl's transitioning into more of a hardline character as of this story... I would also like some overall arc in this comic. The Autobots are slowly being pushed in a more tyrannical direction as they try to maintain order and--whatever. Right now, it also seems a bit too episodic for my liking (I do like episodic, but I also like some overall direction too). There does seem to be a hint there's more Decepticons out there planning to do something radical but right now we haven't gotten anything else to go on. I hope whenever it happens that they succeed and aren't just put down by Prowl's forces in one issue or something.
   Continuity award: This issue and MTMTE #4 each share the same joke. In MTMTE, we are told a dead TF was once called "Prowl" (but then changed his name to "Dent"). Drift is disbelieving but Ratchet reminds him "all the good names are taken". In RID #4, the dead Decepticon in the beginning is named "Skydive". "Like the Aerialbot?" :) (Incidentally, Skydive is/was a Decepticon Predator). Barber gets points for using this in his story--it was just kind of neat to see across two titles simultaneously.


Verdict:  Good. I do hope it goes somewhere bigger soon though.




Cover "B" by Casey Coller

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