Transformer Roll Out: Autobots Deal With Loss in 'More Than Meets the Eye' #16

Julian Titus is a writer/editor for PixlBit.com and the host of the Nerds Without Pants podcast. He's also the biggest Transformers fan I've ever met and will be covering IDW's Transformers comics right here on a regular basis. This week, he's reviewing the latest book from IDW...

Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye #16, "The Gloaming"

Welcome back to the Roll Out! After a week’s hiatus I’m back with the aftermath of Overlord’s rampage on the Lost Light.

One of the things that have made the Transformers stand out for me over the years is the fact that they are machines with the capability to feel the same range of emotions that we have. This, I believe, sets them apart from most other robots in science fiction. More Than Meets the Eye #16 takes this emotion to a new level, as the entire story centers on how different characters deal with grief.

Variant cover for Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye #16. Hasbro/IDW.

Simply put, Overlord did lasting damage to the crew of the Lost Light, and not everyone made it through. Writer James Roberts handles the survivors with care and really hits on their individual personalities. As expected, Swerve hides behind his humor, while Chromedome retreats within himself. The real standout though, is Tailgate. Easily one of my favorite characters in this series, I loved his perspective on the shocking events of last issue. Since he was out of commission for the entire 4 million year Autobot and Decepticon war he’s stunned at how he’s the only ‘bot freaked out by the pile of casualties from one battle. It really adds weight to an already somber story. This is one not to be missed.

Agustin Padilla doesn’t bring quite as much personality to the pencils as Nick Roche or Alex Milne, but to be fair he has to draw a lot of Transformers in this issue. He’s a new face in the Transformers universe for me, but if he sticks around for a few issues I won’t mind. Next month looks to be the start of something big, and I can’t wait.

Last week, Robots in Disguise volume 3 hit shelves. I...really don’t have much to say about this one. This trade opens up with a story revolving around Optimus Pri—sorry, Orion Pax, and it’s a jumbled and confusing mess of a story. This is compounded by one of my least favorite artists to grace a Transformers book: Livio Ramondelli.

Things pick up with the annual, which has some great flashback sections revolving around Nova Prime. These bits flesh out more of the IDW universe backstory, and the art is done in the old Marvel style from when the first comic was just starting off. I’d almost suggest this volume just for that, and if you wanted more information on the Metrotitans from More Than Meets the Eye vol. 3, this book has it.

Transformer Roll-Out: 'Robots in Disguise' #15 and 'More Than Meets the Eye' Vol. 3 Advance Reviews

Julian Titus is a writer/editor for PixlBit.com and the host of the Nerds Without Pants podcast. He's also the biggest Transformers fan I've ever met and will be covering IDW's Transformers comics right here on a regular basis. This week, he's reviewing the latest books from IDW..

Transformers: Robots in Disguise #15: Plan for Everything

Cover for Transformers: Robots in Disguise #15, art by Andrew Griffith. Hasbro/IDW Publishing.

It’s with great satisfaction that I can come to you this week and say that for the second month in a row, Robots in Disguise is worth reading. Not just worth reading, but kind of great. That’s high praise coming from a guy that only slogged through the previous 13 issues because I got to read them for free. It may come to light that - once this arc reaches its conclusion - things couldn’t go down any other way, and the lengthy buildup is integral to the story. But for now, I’m just stoked that things are finally happening in this book.

Let’s start with some good old fashioned Decepticon carnage, shall we? A large portion of this issue is told from the perspective of the new Devastator, who has merged for the kill. That’s far more interesting than it sounds, and it gives some great insight into the way combiners work in the current IDW Transformers universe. There’s plenty of action between Devastator and Superion (apparently the first and only Autobot combiner), including a final page that made my jaw drop.

Meanwhile, the uneasy peace between the Autobots, Decepticons, and Non-Aligned Indigenous Lifeforms (NAILS) leads to some shocking changes to character loyalties. Bumblebee and Megatron find that they can’t count on the ‘bots they thought they could, and Metalhawk finally has to take up arms.

I can’t stress enough how impactful that final page is, and I can’t wait to see what happens next month when Megatron’s push to take over peacetime Cybertron sees its conclusion.

Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye Vol. 3

Cover art for Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye Vol. 3 collected trade paperback. Hasbro/IDW Publishing.

The Roll Out has only been around for about two months, but it should be pretty clear by now that I’m a big, big fan of More Than Meets the Eye. I put it right up there with Invincible and Ultimate Comics All-New Spider-Man as a book that I can’t wait to devour when I get a new issue or trade paperback. I’ll sing the praises of this book for as long as it continues delivering this much entertainment, and I totally think you should try it out, even if your knowledge of the Transformers is minimal.

Volume 3 is a great jumping on point for a variety of reasons. The MTMTE Annual that kicks off this collection not only reestablishes the reason for Hot Rod and the crew of the Lost Light to be gallivanting through space, but it hits that perfect blend of humor and drama I’ve come to expect from this comic. The annual also gives the first telling of the creationist origin of the Transformers, something that has only been hinted at in this incarnation of the story.

After that, you’re in for a treat with the three-part "Shadowplay" story. Simply put, this is an expertly woven tale told from multiple perspectives, as various members of the crew get together to talk about their lives before the war, and how they all came across a certain influential transformer by the name of Orion Pax. You may know him as Optimus Prime, though. Shadowplay is part gritty police procedural, part political drama, and part comedic farce. Do yourself a favor and pick up this trade!

(Transformers: Robots in Disguise #15 and Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye Vol. 3 arrive in comic stores on Wednesday, March 26.)

Transformer Roll-Out: 'Transformers: Robots In Disguise' #14 Advance Review

Julian Titus is a writer for PixlBit.com and the host of the Nerds Without Pants podcast. He's also the biggest Transformers fan I've ever met and will be covering IDW's Transformers comics right here on a regular basis. This week, he's got an advance look at the latest issue of Transformers: Robots in Disguise...

Finally.

That was my reaction to Robots in Disguise #14. This has been my least favorite Transformers comic since possibly Marvel’s Transformers Generation 2. The plodding pace of the bleak story with few likeable characters has never gelled with me, and it’s a book that I’ve read only because it takes place in the current IDW version of the universe.

That changes now, and as Good Ol’ J.R. would say, “business has just picked up.”

It feels like the previous 13 issues have been a slow boil for what ‘s to come, and issue 14 is the beginning of that. All of Starscream’s politicking has been for naught, because Megatron is back, and the time for free elections and debate is over. As always, Megatron has a plan, and this issue cements just how devious and strategic the Decepticon leader can be.

I honestly don’t want to say much more than that. Robots in Disguise #14 is filled with shocking moments and revelations. I get that writer John Barber has been going for a political and military drama with this book, kind of like the modern Battlestar Galactica TV show, but up until now, Robots in Disguise has been woefully lacking in action. I enjoy a tense character drama as much as the next guy, but the Transformers have already been humanized to the point of absurdity, and they’re at their best when there’s an enemy to fight.

It took me 13 issues to care about what goes on in this book, but I can honestly say that if this issue is a taste of things to come then I’m in it for the long haul.