Not your father's autobots! And thank goodness for that, since these losers would have lost the battle with the Decepticons in five minutes.
Monday, April 2, 2012
Transformers Generation 2 #1
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122 comments:
Drowning in corpses? No reference to Doom's "Knee Deep in the Dead" episode?
I'm one of those who thought the series as whole wasn't too bad, but...yeah, the first issue is pretty lame, and the art is wonky throughout the book's run. Still, things come together in issue three or four, and Jhiaxus is a legitimately interesting villain.
Sadly, this series is also bogged down by going through all the trouble to resurrect Megatron. G1 Megs is a loser, in the cartoons, comics, and Bay films. Thank Primus a purple dinosaur came along to bring some dignity to the "Megatron" name. It's a real tragedy because the Decepticons actually had *competent* leaders in the comics, most of whom were named on Prime's flashback page.
(Another item of note: When Grimlock is talking about learning from the humans, and you can see a human boy menaced by Ratbat, Grims is actually flashing back to the Carwash of Doom story. Continuity!)
Actually, IDW is releasing reprints of the Marvel TPBs. They even include the missing Spider-Man issues. http://www.amazon.com/Transformers-Classics-Volume-1-TP/dp/1600109357/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1333400442&sr=1-1
Loved the Grimlock impression. He's my favourite of the Dinobots, he's freaking awesome! Although I'll agree that Prime being emo was lame, seeing Grimlock and Prime as buddies was still pretty nice.
Good stuff as always. keep it up, and thanks!
Marvel in the 80s was weird for having the likes of G.I. Joe, Transformers, and Godzilla in their continuity. Then again, some ideas presented with those properties were awesome like The Avengers fighting Godzilla to save New York.
You neglected to mention Circuit Breaker, a character that mostly only appeared in the Transformers comics, but was technically owned by Marvel. Because of that, IDW was unable to reprint issues featuring her as well. Which caused a serious problem, giving that she was responsible for the defeat of Unicron in the comics (I'm not kidding at all).
Also, there was a non-Transformers comic that Simon Furman wrote that you've done a review of, but I can't remember what it was.
Transformers and Gritty don't go together because of the show? That's like saying TMNT can't be dark because of the 80's show! Read Last Stand of the Wreckers.
Dude. Linkara. Your Shakespearean Grimlock? AWESOME. And the update from "The Touch". Overall, good review.
As always great review
Avengers Academy ran into the ROM situation when they used a villain from that series. They asked how to beat it and they go "A space hero guy defeated him before."
"Great! Where do we find him?"
"He's dead..."
So that's what happened to ROM...
Geez, I feel like this comic was too 90's for 90's kid to show up.
Aaah, looks like that specific transformer from the cover was one of the dinobots, and the dinobots weapons were always odd with respect to their toys in Gen 1/2.
Gah, what did the 90's do to Cliffjumper?
Huh, the autobot killer from your critique looks like Vortex (Rotor in RID), one of the combaticons that form bruticus.
Clearly the dinobots have never been in a boardroom with ED-209.
Looks more Rodimus (no prime) than Hot Rod.
All those who add mouths on the nemesis page also appeared to have either over- or underbites. Which is odd because, y'know, robots.
"The Touch" Is timeless, Foo!
It's like Grimlock was the only one competently written in the entire comic. The writer Must be a fan.
Sounds like you had an encounter with Willis in the story from the stinger. Plus, Gen 2 toys have been gone from stores for many a year.
I like the touch of Rage against the machine for the intro to the comic.
Good god, this comic is so 90's stereotypical. If that makes any sense.
The writer, wow, what a jack ass. Why bother including characters, and story if its, "NOT a continuation?!"
Great review Linkara, thanks.
After reading up the description of this book, I was really looking forward to this review!
Some of their people are trucks! Why do they need bloody pouches?
Smiling in a comic? Dude, get with the program. Smiles are like, completely unradical. That's, like, for people from the 80's! Which were completely unradical! Though, admittedly, rather groovy.
wait, isn't premonition a synonym for vision?
I hope transfomers #81 is good.
Okay, no offense but you did bring up a few things which did make sense if you were a long-time fan of the franchise. For example, the Autobot known as Blades who was known for being bloodthirsty amongst their ranks and was a big exception amongst their ranks. Killing a surrendering enemy is something he would have done as it’s a part of his character, not because the writer was trying to make the Autobots “edgier” or something. I’d rather not look like I’m nit-picking so I’ll just leave this at that.
Anyway, as the G1 comics were generally much darker than the 80s cartoon but I agree it was never gritty. Explosive, outlandish, dark and 90s perhaps, but definitely not gritty in the sense of, say, Sin City. The closest Transformers ever really got to that was in some of the previous IDW stories on Earth and their quality is questionable.
I don’t agree with your overall assessment of the first issue, but it was still entertaining review. The zen Grimlock impressions were particularly good.
Stabbed? As in, LITERALLY? Or do you mean they just wanted to make you pay more than the toys were worth? I hope it was the latter! Oo
I heard bout this comic, but decided to ignore it precisely because it was a grim-and-gritty 90s reboot of a comic I did like and follow for a while in the 80s. I'm not what you would call a big Transformers fan, but I have a healthy respect for the franchise, Optimus in Particular.
I do, however, have Marvel's Transformers Universe encyclopedia, which described the robots in detail not unlike their own Marvel Universe books do. And you know what? According to it, originally most Transformers weapons were physical- things like lasers were rare. That means yes, mostly they used missiles and bullets (though presumably bullets more advanced and powerful than any we have today) and even the odd sword or axe. I know, the laser things is mostly from the cartoons and their "no real weapons" policy. Though at least in the robots' case it makes a lot more sense for them to have beam technology than for GI JOE.
You know, the whole enemy surrendering thing was talked about by Spoony's counter monkey video. Basically there is no good way to deal with that situation.
I remember reading this for the first time, the only worthwhile thing for me is when Megatron admits he's an idiot for resurrecting Starscream.
Your Grimlock voice is absolutely hilarious, especially the "Tempest" part!
I'm actually interested in hearing about that toy store tale you were talking about. I take it that's a new Cybermat? Looks like we're getting back to story stuff, which I always enjoy. I'm guessing that it will lead up to the fourth anniversary.
So, next week is another one-time publication? No wonder it sounded silly. I'm curious if it's something like Blackweb.
I liked the episode but are you sure the colors are washed out and not just the effects of being printed on newstand? It looks the same to me as any other comic from that period.
"Do robots even have butts?"
Yes. Where do you think they pull those giant guns out from? :)
I have one of the titan books, spidey is normal.
Awesome review I love the stuff from the 90s reviews they always have a lot of material for you to work with!
I thought the G2 Optimus was the one with fire flame paint job they used in the Bay movies!? I guess that happens latter!?
I think that one on the inside cover you couldn't identify was one of the Dino-Bots! The Stegosaurus one to be more precise from the spiny plates and tail bits on his back and shoulders!
Yeah, I don't like it either when they want to make once noble characters more gritty by making them kill for no good reason! That's why the 3rd Transformers movie failed to me(besides all the other crap) their version of Optimus lost my respect when he murdered an injured Megatron(who also just changed sides and helped him and was willing to make peace) at the end and killed an unarmed Sentinel!
So they wanted people to read this without any prior knowledge but they included the G.I.Joes and Cobra another toy comic with a rich in-depth history and catalogue of characters!? Good job!
I'm getting a bad feeling form this comic that this comic is where the 4th live action movie is going to go with the plot as I said above they literally killed off all the villains the the film franchise... even secondary ones so there would be no more movies! But breaking a billion is more than enough to make them change their minds!
Hey, have you read any of those G.I.Joe/Transformer crossovers? Any of them worth being on here!?
Also, did you get that thing I sent you!?
There was a "2001" comic??!!! Geez and I thought the California Raisins were a stretch.
Boy, this was a dull comic. There are good way to add more darkness and intensity to a previously-lighthearted story. Having the hero suddenly go emo just because a villain talked trash is NOT one of the them. Also, killing in cold blood does not equal cool. Other than that, I don't know enough about Transformers to comment on it.
Well done on a terrible comic about a great franchise. I actually own this comic, but it was soo... blegh, that I actually forgot I bought it! I still can't get over the over-the-top guns the artist had drawn them with. Especially that gun the autobot in the beginning was using. Why did it have a grenade launcher that fired the kind of grenades that you throw? They even have the pins and spoons still in them!
And speaking of art, this was just so meh. I've never been a fan of this style (the John Romita Jr. style that is). I always felt like it looked like they had sprinkled dirt on the page, scraped some off (messing up the ink in the process), and then scanned it in to the computer to work on it. It's just so messy. If I had turned something like that into my art teacher back in high school, I would have been ashamed. But then, I suppose that's a stylistic difference of opinion.
By the way, that autobot named blades? The one who killed the surrendering decepticon? He's their equivalent of a DOCTOR! He even turns into a medivac helicopter. Worse yet, he was part of a five-man team called the Protectorbots! And is it just me, or were the dinobots other than Grimlock awfully coherent in their speech patterns? Just sayin'.
Oh hell yes. As a fan of the esteemed Mr. Willis I just couldn't not comment on that stinger....
Yeah that was the comment on the stinger ;)
You made a big mistake dude, IDW HAS reprinted the missing issues including the one with spider-man and circuit breaker. And the series IS in print via new versions of transformers classics that while shorter then the originals by maybe a few issues, they DO include all the missing issues.
All I'm hoping is we can get the same effect with Godzilla. G.I. Joe has also has the same treatment but no missing issues. Sorry if this has been brought up before, but they are major mistakes.
Actually the Death's Head character came from Transformers UK... sort-of. Hasbro's contract with Marvel meant that any character who first appeared in the book... so While Death's Head was created for Transformers he was given a one page appearance in another book so Marvel could maintain the rights. This really worked in Hasbro's favor for the most part...
It's a bit weird though IDW was able to keep the Hulk cameo in GI Joe, I guess because it's just a man in a suit.
Cobra didn't so much locate Megatron's remains as much as Megatron launching a full frontal assault on Cobra's Silent Castle cause he thought it was a Transformer.
Simon Furman's strength is building up a mythos (he created the Primus/Unicron dichotomy)... and the mythos behind Generation 2 is interesting. This issue is not too strong but it does plant some interesting ideas...
The music switch joke was the highlight of the review... that was so funny. Great review over all.
If you want Transformers and gritty, try this:
http://tf-war-journal.deviantart.com/
Good stuff as always but using This is bad comedy makes me think you owe the Mistress a crossover.
Hey, it's Scarecrow again. Although I am a devout Transformers fan, I take no offense when you take these occasional dips into the bad stuff in the series. I am all for the idea of criticizing bad things in series I like so as to pave the way for better things in the future. Trial and error so to speak. I get angry when they don't heed advice and continue down a path into the land most know as my garbage bin. Or review shows, where they get torn apart. Mostly both. This is the case for all things I watch/read, so I'm talking about movies and other media as well.
Like always you did a great job Linkara and I am very glad to see another great episode. Keep up the amazing work!
Gee, if the first issue is 90s-level bad, I wonder how bad this Generation 2 series is going to get as it progresses.
Great review. Can't wait for the next one.
I'm so anti-Furman I've had an article series (which I should get back to) chronicling all my problems with him. Basically, this is how he's written Optimus and Grimlock (the latter a "pet character") and I've never cared for it.
And I hate the G2 comic like you can't believe.
Gritty Transformers... these two things shouldn't go together.
As much some writers seem to try and make it work.
Did Rob Liefeld have anything to do with this? Oh no, wait, too many feet. Also, I guess 90s Kid is on spring break?
I had to watch chunks of "2001" for a class this afternoon. At the risk of losing all my geek cred, I would rather watch "Batman & Robin" twice in a row than subject myself to that (admittedly nice-looking) nap inducer ever again. So the fact that there's a comic book version floating around someplace--AND that it will appear on AT4W someday--is enough to make me giddy. And hey, any comic with helicopters fighting a giant robot man on the cover has GOT to be more interesting than two and a half hours of nothing set to music.
Just something I have to wonder at, ya know many series can be considered "gritty" if you think about them, even Transformers. You and I grew up with Beast Wars, so don't tell me you don't remember Terrasaur and Scorpinock drowning in lava alive, dinobot (basically the second most popular character) being butchered and several random Cybertronians being either murdered or mind wiped and forced to become Predicons upon arriving on planet earth. The series had some messed up moments. Hence it DUUUUUUDE IT WAS AWESOME! (C'mon, give into the 90s kid in you.)
A defense for the bullets (even though I SERIOUSLY doubt the writers thought of it). Bullets and other kinetic weapons have a very large amount of kinetic energy when fired (hence the name). It's fairly simple to get more materials on a planet like Earth (or wherever Autobots and Decepticons might come from) to make more. There's a reason why the most innovation firearms have had recently is redirecting bullets (and even those don't move fast enough for military standards). If that's not enough, consider railguns.
And if they are in an era of peace than what was that previous scene with a serous battle for a planet and why would Autobots be forming small units to continue fighting? Who are they fighting? The first battle suggested that the war was continuing. Why is Optimus suggesting that the war is over? Where is the continuity between scenes? Where?
Sadly this comic actually could have been much better. Something where former Autobots and former Decepticons moved past the war and established a system alien to Optimus and his team would have made a decent storyline with Optimus trying to decide if this is something to support or not.
We have plenty of time to hear that epic story Linkara. Please tell.
G2 Transformers has Starscream in it and every TF fan worth their salt LOVES that guy. His the fav of 1/3 of the fanbase too:)
Not a Transformers fan but do admit: 90s and Transformers don't mix...unless it's Beast Wars. Yeesh, my guess is seeing how Grimlock was the most interesting one in this comic gave them the idea of making animal mechs in prehistoric times.
Can't wait to hear that story...maybe not in a stinger but we'll see what happens.
Heh, I love that Crimson Permanent Assurance joke since I have Monty Python's "The Meaning of Life" in the DVD player. Though wouldn't the Omni Consumer Products board room be just as dangerous? (Considering how many board members ended up shot through the window.)
So if a story similar to this would be written today, or at least without all those 'Liefeldian' era cliches, would you consider it to be a bit better? Just wondering
Also the Autobot you were confused about in the opening is Snarl, the Stegosaurus Dinobot seen here http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Snarl_%28G1%29.
Just a quick question did you ever watch Dragonball (kinda of random i know) also FIRST!!!
So what that stinger at the end a reference to your appearance in Shortpacked! ?
...Linkara got stabbed by Ninja Rick?
I think the site you're thinking of is seibertron.com. The site still exists as a Transformers news and information site, but the scans have long since been taken down.
And I was under the impression that your last visit to a toy store went fairly well.
I highly recommend watching Transformers Prime if you were a fan of Beast Wars. It's definitely the best Transformers series since Beast Wars.
...I think I'm less likely to get into anything Transformers now. Yeesh, it's all way over my head!
Clearly you haven't read IDW's "Last Stand of the Wreckers" the greatest mini-series involving Transformers of all Time!
Later continuities would include plenty of grittiness. The Aligned continuity is pretty dark. Or am I misunderstanding the term "gritty?"
And wasn't that Snarl, the stegosaurus dinobot who is holding the hugeass gun near the beginning?
The artwork in G2 is so over-the-top it's wonderful. Of course, judging by your previous efforts, you can't appreciate artwork that isn't boring. You really should stop trying to find things to complain about every panel. Over a half-hour of bitching tends to be annoying.
Wow, looking at the cover, based on the way the metal is bent, those should be exit wounds. But those look like they are meant to be giant shotgun shells going into his head.
Of course they also look a lot like unfired shotgun shells. Those rims around the back are going to cause a lot of drag.
Yeah.... Carwash of doom will never ever live up to idiocy of Arcee's sex change which ironically of all things involves Jhiaxus.
Actually, Jhiaxus is not a Decepticon. He's symbol is green and Decepticon Symbols are purple. Confusing, yes. Jhiaxus is a part of the Cybertronian Empire.
Another great, funny review.
Great review and I love your Optimus Prime voice. Its really sad, considering Simon Furman has written some amazing Transformers comics. Apparently, every great writer has to do one bad story in his life.
I think Transformers=gritty has been done right in Last Stand of the Wreckers mini-series (f you forget (and please, do so) the transformers equivalent to Watchemn" bullshit).
Lovely review, man. Hilarious as usual. Sonofagun, the art is painful. I grew up with I think, Energon and Cybertron series-es(...?) and this is WAY too 90's for me, being of newer stuff. Have to ask, how would 90's kid take this semi-confliction? Also, teeny nitpick: Optimus's guns, in the toys, are the weird exhaust pipes in the back of the cabin and the top of the cabin. No explanation for the others, though.
P.S. I'm noting a loss of actual transformers on the "Transformers" toy line, being replaced by lame masks and Super Soakers. Hath the unspeakable M.B. brought his wrath upon Hasbro's decency?
P.S.S. Sorry about odd sentence flow in this.
I find it slightly strange how Megatron AND Galvatron each got a mention since they are the same being (aside from one being voiced by Leonard Nimoy). Galvatron still had Megatron's personality and memories, just a new name a new transformation.
There seem to be a lot of old toy lines that Marvel had tie-in comics too, but I can't seem to recall any from DC. Did they EVER try to compete seriously in that market, or did they just stick to the DCU?
Good review, though in mentioning Transformer's impact on the marvel continuity you forgot to mention Death's Head.
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/ComicBook/DeathsHead?from=Main.DeathsHead
Oh god, why would you ever take something like Transformers and make it "gritty?" Or ever even use the word "gritty" in advertising? It takes away most of the credibility that you may have otherwise had.
Also, I certainly hope that you make a vlog about your toy store story. :-D
Man, you hit the nail on the head, and good. BOOOOOOOOOORING is what this comic was from start to finish. Still, and I hate to say this, but that factor seemed to hamper your review. I only found myself laughing a couple of times while the rest of the time, I felt as bored as I'm sure you did reading this thing. I'm not a reviewer myself, but if I could offer some advice, I think you should come up with maybe a tweeked style of handling something so dull like this. Did that make any sense? I hope so.
I can't wait for the rest of the episodes on the schedule :)
"Bayformers sucks. Windows sucks. These are both funny because they're true facts, and if you disagree you are not only wrong but deserve to be burnt at the stake."
Seriously, I expected better, especially from you.
You got stabbed? Is the stabber's name happen to be Rick?
The thing with first issues is, that the followups can increase in quality. I'd really be interested if the later issues are better than the first.
Liked your review none the less, although I was expecting Guns'N'Roses :D
I can't wait for all the reviews you promise, especially the 2001: a space odyssey comic, which I can't believe they made. The review is great, especially the 'transformers.' 'Gritty.' joke.
Just so you know going in... it's said that anything written by Simon Furman is like wank material for Grimlock.
And is it me, or do the "colored shapes" in the word balloons match the colors of who's talking?
first, funny review Linkara
second, Simon Furman also wrote the IDW series of Transformers (which I find better then the Marvel series)
and last, Transformers (and some 80's shows) were ruined by merchasdizeing. while most people love the 87 Transformes G1 movie, and it's not bad, but bogged down merchasdizeing and what new toys they the company needs to sell.
lol, too much of rant there
Loved the multiple "Grimlock" impressions.
Gritty + Transformers could make sense (example, since Beast Wars was mentioned, Dinobot during Season#2 especially or DepthCharge during Season#3, both fan favorites). Sadly, it seems 90s action comics style sensibilities killed all hopes of that.
And for some reason, given recent internet trends, I half expect the individual who "stabbed" Linkara was some 30 year old dude gunning for the last Pinkie Pie plush. (>^_^)>
Whenever any kind of fiction has transparent good guys and bad guys that state that fact, I always think of this comedy sketch about the nazis
http://youtu.be/FsNLbK8_rBY
More robots? To be honest, I wonder how long it's going to be before it's taken over by one of your enemies.
Wow its a good thing this Optimus wasn't the one in the original series/movie. Megatron would give him an existential crisis in every battle.
Megatron: Why throw your life away so recklessly Prime?
Optimus: By Primus I never thought of it that way before. Have I always been so quick to action? I need time to think this through.
I had to laugh at your mention of the Terrible Zodin at the end. The one villain in the Doctor Who Universe that has been mentioned so many times, but never seen or heard. Awesome.
I guess Furman felt 'fresh start' meant 'give lots and lots of backstory on the old stuff', based on what you showed us here. Speaking of Simon Furman, I don't think this comic had any of his trademarks in it. It didn't center around Grimlock or Galvatron, for one thing. Also, it didn't have any of his signature phrases. That's something in and of itself.
I can't wait for your review of Car Wash of Doom, that sounds like a so-bad-it's-good story.
Also, the one in the pull-open spread that you didn't know who it was is Snarl, one of the Dinobots... Which makes his gun even MORE rediculous, since he doesn't even HAVE a vehicle form.
Finally, I wanna say that I like how the Dinobots were handled in the comics. At least in explaining their alt-modes. They, along with Shockwave, ended up in the Savage Land of all places. Yes, THAT Savage Land. From the X-Men.
Admittedly, beast wars and beast machines had quite a bit of grit for a kid's show from what I recall of it. So it is not impossible
* Lewis, IDW may have released trade releases of the Marvel G1 comics with some edits as you say, but they are currently releasing a NEW set of trade releases with all missing issues put back in, as well as remastered artwork.
Here is a link for the old trades from 2008:
http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Classic_Transformers
And here are new trades that are currently being released:
http://tfwiki.net/wiki/The_Transformers_Classics
In addition, IDW is also putting out trade releases of the Marvel UK Transformers G1 comics as well, which not only contain the UK comics, but the UK annuals and some pretty in-depth editorials about each issue collected in each volume:
http://tfwiki.net/wiki/The_Transformers_Classics_UK
* As for how Transformers can be "gritty", The live action Bay movies (for better or for worse, depending on who you ask) got pretty dark at times. And Beast Machines was a very dark and grim series, as is the current cartoon Transformers: Prime (or at least, certain episodes are, being dark for dark's sake).
* The black guy with the red head you don't recognize is Sideswipe. His colors were inverted from red with a black head to this for Generation 2. And, no, those spikes on his wheels are not really part of his vehicle mode. They were just drawn on his wheels like that to make him look tougher. But yes, all those weapons stashed onto his body (also to make him look tough) look excessive and ridiculously silly.
* I commend you for correctly pronouncing Jhiaxus's name.
* Just because they're robots doesn't mean they can't feel. Why the opening line of the G1 cartoon explicitly states that they can "think and feel". And the current fiction even describes them as robotic "organisms" with their own biology, despite their being mechanisms instead of flesh and blood lifeforms.
* Do robots have butts, you say? Well, to use more colorful terms, they have "afterburners", "exhaust ports", "skidplates", "solenoids", "tailpipes", etc. Not to mention that both Rhinox and Cheetor farted in Beast Wars. See also:
http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Anatomic_euphemism
* Hey, what's wrong with chins? The 2008-2009 Transformers Animated cartoon was full of them, and all of them were glorious! XD
* LOL at the choice of music for Prime's action scene.
* I wholeheartly agree that Jhiaxus should not be taken as seriously as Prime claims. I mean, who does this guy think he is that that he can suddenly come in and take the seat belonging to the already long established villains of the series? Jhiaxus is a nobody who thinks he and his gang are all that, when really he's completely in over his head about all of this.
Though, as you keep referring to him and his forces as "Decepticons", it should be noted that, in later issues, they stop referring to themselves as "Decepticons" (due to them deeming it an outdated term associated with Megatron's forces, whom they also see as a relic), and instead start referring themselves as just "Cybertronians": A single faction who view themselves as the pure, true race of Cybertron, with the Autobot and Decepticon factions being seen as obsolete and outdated entities.
* What, no '90s Kid joke about all the heavy gun use or whatnot? Missed opportunity there, dude.
Great review, I myself being a long time TF fan of all things TF (except the second and third Michael Bay TF movies they sucked balls though I find the first one to be, well, adequate), I read these Gen 2 comics when I was younger not realizing how colored by 90's cliches that Gen 2 suffered from. I would love to see you review some more of the Gen 2 stuff either from the GI Joe/ Gen 2 crossover, (the issue numbers I don't recall sadly but I bet I might be able to dig them up somewhere and send them to you if you are interested, could make for a really fun review with 90's cliches influencing both GI Joe and TF Gen 2), TF Gen 2 issue two (which I don't have sadly), TF Gen 2 issue 12 (which I do have and would make for great fodder for a review), or something more from the failed DW line of comics such as issues from the "TF War Within: The Age of Wraith" (these stopped in the middle of the six books as the company folded, and these I can also send to you and they might make for good future reviews). Another one I am curious about seeing you review would be the last two issues of the third book of the TF Gen 1 series, the ongoing series or Gen One issues 9 and 10 though, I am not sure what kind of review you would get from these as the only down side I recall to these was that they ended abruptly with DW folding (and in scandal) but my eyes like many other TF fans were colored by the nostalgia of the fan moments in these comics, though they might not be as good as I remember or they could be just as great as I recall and therefor not be proper for a review. Fortunately I can you a lot of TF DW comics so I will send an email asking you about it (along with another VERY 90's Batman comic with the Joker and Eclipso - full of many cliches and ridiculousness which would be perfect for your show).
Gritty Transformers?
I'd say Transformers Prime has it's moments (alto it does have it's share of silliness as well)
More than Transformers, this comics reminds me of Warhammer 40000
(which makes sense, considering that 40K is basically the 90s distilled, and mixed with cosimc horror)
You could have easily chosen goofier clips from the tv show to highlight the contrast between TFs and "gritty."
I thought for sure you were gonna play the "darker" version of The Touch for the 90s action scene. www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3_EXxwDpq0
I mean, I know it was 2009, but still.
And if you've got problems with the art NOW, wait till Manny Galen joins the crew.
That stinger made my night. No joke. I finished reading Shortpacked! (and the related prequels) just, like, two weeks ago, so I thought of those folk as soon as the 'Generation 2' thing was mentioned, and then you go and bring up the cameo and there was much happysquee.
Though... I must wonder how in the world that episode ended with you being stabbed. :\ I don't remember Rick seeming too stabby-minded...
Yeah, that's the thing with fighting for Autobots or even those with incredible superpowers; Collateral damage is going to happen, and to be honest, trying to limit those who are trying their best to fight might not be the best tactical decision if only because you might not be able to defeat or make a consistent victory against your opponents. I'm not saying to limit it, but these things do happen..especially with the Transformers, even the Autobots.
...it was Ninja Rick that stabbed you, wasn't it?
Uncle Linkara! Tell us the tale of the Battle for Toys-R-Us!
I have this comic,and several others as well. As a transformers fan I see how this book failed,but please...NO MORE BAD GRIMLOCK IMPRESSION.
The point about collateral damage was great. That was actually a joke in "Team America: World Police" when they leveled Paris stopping the terrorists.
And as silly as the 1990's artwork is, it is still easier to distinguish the transformers from each other than it is in the Bay movies.
Actually that spider-man bit isn't the last time there was some general connection between Transformers and Marvelverse as a whole.
I think the dinobots were actually retrieved from the savage land.
And one of the comics later on has a throwaway background reference to Dazzler from the X-men singing on the radio.
And SHIELD also gets mentioned somewhere around that same time I believe.
But yeah post their comics hitting the 20's for numbers I don't think there was any further reference like that off hand, at least not in the transformers themselves, Secret Wars does have Circuit Breaker show up in it.
That is slag, he turns into a stegosaurus, which probably raises even more questions on where that gun was hid.
Good review Linkara nice to see more Transformers stuff. I have to wonder will any of IDW's run with Transformers end up on the show? I mean I haven't read enough of the run to know whats bad or not, but if I were to choose it be
Transformers vs Avengers (I've barley heard anything good about it)
Infestation (Even I must admit Transformers fight human size zombies is dumb)
For all Mankind (Not a terrible story but the art is a mess it was trying to go with a pseudo movie look but the faces of the robots look horrific)
Heart of Darkness (Again just bad art)
I get the impression you're going to be inundated with comments about that unknown Autobot being Snarl, mass-shifting being a possible explanation for holding guns, and whatnot, so I'll let others field those.
I will say that I very much liked the idea of a Cybertronian Empire if not the execution: it makes sense that a spacefaring species which lives for millions of years might go off into space, and offers an excellent continuation after the resolution of the Autobot-Decepticon war as well as a viable threat. I don't understand Furman talking about this as a continuation, though, it really should just be considered a total rebeoot from the start.
It's a shame you didn't at least include some pictures of G2 toys simply because the toyline was composed of the most garish, loud and preposterous colour schemes of any toyline. Juxtapose that with the grim & gritty nonsense (TF wasn't all fun and games, but it never became particularly pretentious) and you could've had neon-coloured robots reenacting Sin City.
I'm only familiar with Transformers Beast Wars. I'm very curious about that noodle incident mentioned and about that person you mentioned in it by name. Is he going to be in a story line or just part of the joke at the end ?
Okay, wait - what's wrong with Rage Against the Machine? Or 90s music in general? Seems pretty elitist....
Also, I don't think it's a big deal that they use guns. For one, lasers/energy weapons don't necessarily imply unlimited ammo - in the Star Wars universe, pretty much every laser/blaster weapon has some kind of finite charge, and in Gundam too. Speaking of Gundam, most of the robots there also use guns instead of lasers.
The unidentified Autobot on the cover is Snarl.
http://www.ntfa.net/universe/english/index.php?act=view&char=Snarl
http://www.tfu.info/1993/Autobot/Snarl/snarl.htm
The human face could be a Pretender shell... but then the helmet doesn't look like any toy I instantly recognize. Plus, with Snarl apparently shooting the guy, it should be a Decepticon, whose Pretender shells rarely looked human.
The murderous Autobot at the beginning is Blades. He's actually acting in character.
http://www.ntfa.net/universe/english/index.php?act=view&char=Blades
Meanwhile, Sideswipe is in his Generation 2 toy colors... but the spiky wheels and the pouches and everything else are made up for the comic.
http://www.tfu.info/1993/Autobot/Sideswipe/sideswipe.htm
Also, it wasn't until Beast Wars that weapons were regularly integrated into the alternate modes. During G1 and G2, the weapons were either just separate parts you just didn't use in alternate mode, or they could be attached to the roof of the vehicle mode. The fiction reflected this but not bothering to explain where they store their weapons when transforming. Just think of where Optimus Prime's trailer goes in the cartoon.
Also, this comic is a lot more boring than I remember. I read it about ten years ago.
Oooh boy, Simon Furman!Almost depressing we didn't get any 'Furmanisms'
"Like a great predatory bird"
I do hope you dig deeper into the G2 comics soon.
I 'think' Titan had the UK rights to a lot of Marvel stuff at the time because Spider-Man is in the trades aswell.
Back in the 90s they made there money by releasing trades for a lot of DC/Marvel/Dark House/Image comics.
You see here in the UK most newsagents only sold UK comics (still do) and if you want the same stuff as America you have to go to specilist stores.
Interesting piece of trivia - US1 makes a cameo in the issue featuring Spider-Man. http://tfwiki.net/wiki/U.S._1
As far as I'm concerned, there were 332 issues of the G1 comic, not the mere 80 you Americans got. Seeing Megatron and Galvatron join forces against everything else was a thing of awesomeness.
As to the review, I do believe this is the first comic you've reviewed that I've actually read. Your criticisms are absolutely spot-on. Sterling work, Mr. Lovhaug.
By the way, the Transformer who you were wondering where he keeps his gun is Snarl, who transforms into a Stegosaurus. Since he was a G1 toy, he didn't actually keep any of his weapons anywhere; the toy came with them detached, and in the cartoon and comics, he just magicked them out of hammerspace whenever he needed to shoot something.
The one with the big spiky wheels is Cliffjumper, who evidently decided he needed to be more 90s right before this was published.
@ItsWalky!
You're upset that he's picking on a Simon Furman book, aren't you?
And going over the top doesn't make it wonderful. WHY does Sideswipe have spikes coming out of his tires? Why does every robot save Prime have the same scowling side profile? What's so wonderful about that?
""Bayformers sucks. Windows sucks. These are both funny because they're true facts, and if you disagree you are not only wrong but deserve to be burnt at the stake."
Seriously, I expected better, especially from you."
The live-action Transformers movies are, unfortunately, not very good. And when did I say Windows sucks? *I* use Windows. I made a joke about a robot upgrading its operating system, especially in light of the stuff we've seen for Windows 8. I didn't specifically mention 8 because something in my head clicked and worried about dating the joke. Sometimes I'm willing to do that, other times not so much.
"Okay, wait - what's wrong with Rage Against the Machine? Or 90s music in general? Seems pretty elitist...."
Nothing's wrong with them. I was just making a joke about a contrast of styles.
Earlier one of the commenters asked why Galvatron was mentioned as being a different entity than Megatron since he was just a remade Megatron.
Thats "not quite" how it went down in the Marvel Transformersverse.
The Galvatron that popped up there was actually retrieved from a different universe by Unicron and the mainstream one wasn't touched.
Though; it is strange that Galvatron gets a mention as a "Leader" or mover and shaker.
In that reality all they know is he showed up during the unicron battle, helped to fight him off and then ended up MIA after a fight with Fort Maximus in the artic.
As for "emo-Optimus" believe it or not, its not the first time Marvel Prime went emo on us in that continuity.
"Nothing's wrong with them. I was just making a joke about a contrast of styles."
Ok, my bad lol
It's just you tend to go pretty hard on the 90s in general, and while I can laugh with you at a lot of the other 90s comics (despite the fact that 90s X-Men are like my fav comics), but when I thought you were going after RATM, that's too far dude lol
Wow. This makes me look like some moron who can't be bothered to read anyone else's comments. I swear when I posted my comment, Linkara hadn't approved anyone's comments yet, so it appeared to me that I was actually the first person to comment. I bet it looked the same for everyone else, which is why there's so much repetition.
Anyway, I'm kinda between Walky and Linkara here. On the one hand, this comic is so over the top 1990s that it becomes a parody. On the other hand, yes, the story is boring. But still, Linkara: You're tending to nitpick so many minor things these days (and retread them several times within the same review) that your videos are now 30 minutes long by default. "Longer" isn't always "better". Condense, man!
So what happened between you an Ninja Rick after he lifted you up humming a version of "Up Where We Belong" with incorrect lyrics?
"Anyway, I'm kinda between Walky and Linkara here. On the one hand, this comic is so over the top 1990s that it becomes a parody. On the other hand, yes, the story is boring. But still, Linkara: You're tending to nitpick so many minor things these days (and retread them several times within the same review) that your videos are now 30 minutes long by default. "Longer" isn't always "better". Condense, man!"
*Shrugs* Really it's just a matter of "I call it as I see it" when I write, which sometimes makes stuff longer and I just try to tell jokes and analyze what I can. It doesn't help that I keep running into comics that are longer than the standard 22 pages.
"So what happened between you an Ninja Rick after he lifted you up humming a version of "Up Where We Belong" with incorrect lyrics?"
I'm not sure, exactly. I think they were training in a new employee, he saw her, screamed "desu desu desu" and then stabbed me repeatedly. And that's not even half the full story there.
Is that a Proton Cannon that Optimus is blasting you with in the title card? If so, apparantly the autobots have been stealing Tony Stark's tech as well :).
Happy 4th no TAIS month Linkara
"Happy 4th no TAIS month Linkara"
Happy 'Pay Attention to the Update Posts Wherein I already stated that TAIS is pretty much dead.' ...Day.
Hey Linkara! Was wondering your thoughts on this. We're hoping it might go through and be a thing:
http://marvelwomenkickingass.tumblr.com/post/20566935060/all-female-team-a-possibility-its-more-likely-than
Show your support if you're in!
While I found your review entertaining, I disagreed with most of what you said. This series was a strong extension of the prior Transformers series. Maybe if you read all 12 books, you'll change your opinion a bit. I generally enjoy your videos, but there are times where it seems that you are looking for things to crack a joke at just for the sake of trying to crack a joke. Also, you come across as uninformed at times. The 12 issues together do read as a tight story. It's too bad that it didn't get past that though as there were some great ideas. Most importantly, this was a fun book.
So I watched this last night. Well until I stopped paying attention and it became background noise anyway. Nice to see you still pick and choose context to make points "funnier" and act like everyone is as dumb as the lowest common denominator.
I had no trouble following this issue when I first read it at the age of eight, and I hadn't even read much of Furman's original run at that point.
The jokes are way forced as has been previously mentioned. The oil dripping from Prime's head on the cover isn't some big mystery-conspiracy to mock, it's just what it is.
Grimlock actually performing Shakespeare would be better than Lewis doing so. He knows what he's saying when he recites Shakespeare about as much as the nothing he knows about comics.
The "I'm busy pontificating" crack thing about Prime while forced did make me chuckle, only because I've actually read all the Marvel Transformers comics and made me think about Hamlet-Prime or whatever you want to call him.
Though, for someone that supposedly has read the entire 80 issue run of the Marvel series....he sure doesn't seem to know who anybody is that wasn't in Transformers the Movie. I mean Sideswipe? Snarl? Blades? How could you read all 80 issues of the Marvel series and then not know who any of those guys are.
Does everything need to be explained within the span of a single page for it to be reader friendly? It's like the review criticizes something and then a page later when it's explained, he'll be like "oh well too late I've cracked my unfunny joke!" If this were Grant Morrison he'd be singing it's praises, but here it's a double-standard.
The only thing that he can come up with that is "gritty" are clips of Sin City? That Hot Rod's face looks "old"? Oh NOES Prime has Neck MUSCLES?
Not like G2 is the pinnacle of comic books or anything, but the comic doesn't suck and shouldn't have been made out like it did for some hack review/so-called jokes.
After like 10 or 15 minutes it just became static noise. It's clear Linkara didn't read any of the original Marvel comic, because he wonders who Bludgeon is (after posting scans of the original comic, pages from an issue heavily FEATURING Bludgeon.
It doesn't even work in the context he's using it as criticism for- that Furman isn't following the "fresh start" guideline he wrote about. First off, Bludgeon is featured in that montage of past Decepticon leaders, which is really all the information you need as to his identity.
Secondly, Bludgeon APPEARS IN THE VERY NEXT ISSUE, so it's not like you would have been left hanging even if you were dumbass enough to get hung up over that.
"It's clear Linkara didn't read any of the original Marvel comic, because he wonders who Bludgeon is (after posting scans of the original comic, pages from an issue heavily FEATURING Bludgeon"
I know who Bludgeon is. The joke was in context as the hypothetical "new reader who did not know anything about Transformers" that this series was SUPPOSED to be aimed towards. And let's face it, "Optimus Prime" and "Megatron" are fairly recognizable for people who have a passing knowledge of Transformers. Bludgeon is not. And I should note that even though I did read the old series, it's been YEARS since I read it all the way through, so names of certain characters can be forgotten or plot points can be muddled. I don't remember Blades AT ALL.
Not to say he wasn't there, but I don't recall the character. I recall stuff like the horrific fused Megatron and Ratchet. I recall the incident where Optimus Prime decided that he should be killed because he dared allow virtual people to die, but his brain was backed-up on a floppy disk. I recall Ratbat of all Transformers leading the Decepticons for a time. I recall a bizarre issue that seemed to take place in the TV show continuity where we jumped ahead to 2005, saw Galvatron and the Junkions, then somehow Galvatron was sent into the comic continuity for reasons that escape me. I recall Grimlock being the leader of the Autobots for a time, wherein he showed SOME leadership capability but otherwise was too aggressive, uncaring for the humans, and generally walked into situations strictly because he wanted to fight and wouldn't listen to reason. I recall Primus being at the center of Cybertron and being awoken as he explained the history between him and Unicron. I recall Megatron being stuck in his gun mode for a while and being used by a criminal for... something, I can't remember, until he was able to transform back, but he did spare the human for displaying courage (if I recall correctly). I recall the humans who were given extraordinary powers to fight the Transformers on earth, but were eventually convinced to help the Autobots. I recall that in the wake of Unicron's destruction, the Autobots and Decepticons joined forces for a brief time, but with the alliance being understandably shaky until it fell apart and the Decepticons left to conquer a new world until the Autobots intervened, almost becoming defeated themselves until a newly reborn Optimus appeared.
And even then, I know there's a lot else that happened that I don't recall. And even then, I'm a very casual fan of Transformers, so I'm bound to get stuff wrong. The last series I saw in full was Beast Machines, also years ago. If you didn't like the review, that's fine, but this is still my opinion on it and in my opinion this starting issue sucks. Maybe it got better, but this issue didn't convince ME PERSONALLY to keep on reading.
Comics were exciting back in the 90s if you chose your titles correctly. Today, all the covers have to be a painting, characters have to be simple and moderately attractive. I guess women's rights won and comics lost. I want my Cadillacs and Dinosaurs, not Namor submarine sandwich maker.
....WHY ARE THE DINOBOTS SMART!? Sure Grimlock's dialog is the same, but it's like they only kept that so that they could cash in on the nostalgia. It is CANNON that Grimlock is the SMARTEST of the Dinobots. Dear lord they're waxing poetically! How is that 'primative'?
"Comics were exciting back in the 90s if you chose your titles correctly. Today, all the covers have to be a painting, characters have to be simple and moderately attractive. I guess women's rights won and comics lost. I want my Cadillacs and Dinosaurs, not Namor submarine sandwich maker."
Yes, because who would like to see characters to look like actual human beings and women not being reduced to sex objects.
@Linkara:
"I recall the incident where Optimus Prime decided that he should be killed because he dared allow virtual people to die, but his brain was backed-up on a floppy disk."
Blades was in that issue. :p
But in all honesty, the most he ever did was in the UK comics, in a crossover with Action Force (the UK version of G.I. Joe) named "Ancient Relics".
"I recall a bizarre issue that seemed to take place in the TV show continuity where we jumped ahead to 2005, saw Galvatron and the Junkions, then somehow Galvatron was sent into the comic continuity for reasons that escape me."
You're mixing two stories there. There was a filler issue that was a straight adaptation of the season 3 cartoon episode "The Big Broadcast of 2006", with no connection to the rest of the series. In the UK reprints, that story was given extra prologue and epilogue pages that made the whole story Wreck-Gar's fictionalized recount of real events that had transpired in order to reconcile it with the UK comics-only future timeline (which acknowledged the events of Transformers: The Movie '86 as canon, but ignored the cartoon episodes from all seasons).
The other story was "Rhythms of Darkness", a US story which took place in yet another future timeline that was based around the premise "What if the Decepticons had won at the end of TF:TM, and Galvatron killed Rodimus Prime?" At the end of that story, Galvatron was abducted back into the past (i.e. the comics' then-present day) to serve Unicron once more.
"I recall Grimlock being the leader of the Autobots for a time, wherein he showed SOME leadership capability but otherwise was too aggressive, uncaring for the humans, and generally walked into situations strictly because he wanted to fight and wouldn't listen to reason."
There's two sides to this. On the one hand, this was a case of heavy-handed writing as far as I'm concerned, because one issue has a somewhat aggressive, yet still competent Grimlock (who is still capable of talking normally) coming to the Autobots' aid, whereupon he is appointed their new leader. The very next issue (by the same writer!) has Grimlock suddenly talking like he did in the cartoon ("Me Grimlock") and acting like a complete jerkass. Sure it's all there in his personality, but I always found the abrupt change from "proves to be a competent leader" to "corrupted by power" rather jarring. Also, he kept the Autobots away from fighting the Decepticons for an entire year.
On the other hand, Grimlock succeeded in getting the Ark repaired and capable of flying again, something that the Autoots never accomplished in the cartoon.
"I recall Megatron being stuck in his gun mode for a while and being used by a criminal for... something, I can't remember, until he was able to transform back, but he did spare the human for displaying courage (if I recall correctly)."
That was a very early issue, right after the first storyarc.
@kriss1989:
"....WHY ARE THE DINOBOTS SMART!? Sure Grimlock's dialog is the same, but it's like they only kept that so that they could cash in on the nostalgia. It is CANNON that Grimlock is the SMARTEST of the Dinobots. Dear lord they're waxing poetically! How is that 'primative'?"
The Marvel Transformers continuity is different from the cartoon continuity. Has been like that from the very start. The Dinobots were never really "stupid" in the comics. Arrogant, maybe, but never truly "dumb", neither like the dangerous loose cannons they were in the first two seasons nor like they bumbling comic relief they were from the '86 movie onwards.
Elaborate dogfights as a positive?
Eh...
I dunno. I'm a fan of the Gold Digger comic, but I've been reading some of the early stuff lately and almost an entire issue is given over to an elaborate aerial dogfight realized with still pictures. It really, REALLY didn't work. Especially didn't help that it ended on a cheap deus ex machina, but I'm getting off track.
Maybe that example just took it farther than TF did, though.
The website that held most of the scanned G1 and G2 comics (American and British) was likely transfans.com. There are other sites with similar names, but to my knowledge the original no longer exists.
Which is funny cuz the Turtles did start out as a gritty comic, the cartoon came later.
I'm pretty sure the Decepticon with the human face was a Pretender shell. Yeah, they confused me, too.
Transformers Archives(TFarchives) was the website. I remember, because I as well was able to read every issue of the the classic TF comics thanks to that site. Although that was back in 2000, when Dial Up was still king, and it took 5 minutes for a page to upload.
Whoa, did you really get stabbed in a toy store, or was that a joke?!
"Whoa, did you really get stabbed in a toy store, or was that a joke?!"
Just a joke in reference to the webcomic Shortpacked!. ^_^
Oh sorry, I only read one or two of them so I'm not totally familiar with it.
If you're looking for a good Transformers comic, I would highly recommend the current ongoing "More Than Meets the Eye" from IDW publishing, it's an all around brilliant comic full of hilarious dialogue mystery, intrigue, complex characters, creative world building, and epic storytelling.
Well... Our opinions can differ.. I'm a Transformers fan but not in the rabid kind of way, there are awful issuses/miniseries/series (the bland reboot All Hail Megatron, the boring Ongoing, the godawful Heart of Darkness to name a few recent ones), but G2 is not one of them. Dude, this is one issue out of a whole series... To sum up a few things:
1, Jhiaxus and the others are not Decepticons. They are descendants of the Decepticons, but they refer to themselfes as Cybertronians. They are cold blooded, cut all bonds with their ancestors. Everything gets an explanation later on...
2, The series was granted 12 issues, more if the sales were promising. Hence the name of the main villain, Jhiaxus (Gee-axe-us). Furman had to keep everything in-continuity, but gave new readers a fresh start. There are nods to the G1 series for those who read it, and he cut a few loose ends, while trying to keep the pace of the story. I think he did a respectable job.
3, The art style... How many comics did you read? I thought you were a comics "expert" judging by the blog. Every artist has a different style, take Wildman, Senior, or Delbo... Or more recently Alex Milne or Nick Roche. Some are more fitting than others, I really enjoyed the somewhat grotesque and overdone style, it was something fresh after the more streamlined and realistic depictions. It's really fitting for the darker take on the story.
4, Huge guns. They are huge robots that turn into vehicles. They've been at war for millions of ages. Whats the problem with that? Oh and what you said that the G1 series had brawls and fights, why use guns? Let me give you a knife next time you are in a gunfigth. You'll get shot to death before you make a step. Thats just ridiculous.
5, The "Decepticons" (Cybertronians...) are now construction workers... They are colonists man... By the way have you ever heard of the Constructicons and the miriad of other Decepticons who turn into construction vehicles? They are colonising planets for a higher goal.
6, The Autobots are ruthless because these are special commandos, you dont really see Beachcomber or Perceptor in a figth here do you? They have been at war for most of their lives, they cant just make the switch after all they have been through, thats just the way life is for them. So they travel around the galaxy and help those in need and put a good use for it. They dont just run around and murder innocent beings...
I could go on and on and on and on but... why bother? I couldn't take the review seriously after about 5 minutes. Not because I disagree, because it felt like endless bitching and moaning about everything. If you do a review, go do your research before you sit in front of the camera. Making fun of everything without trying to find the positives and negatives. How "hilarious" and "professional".
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