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IDW Transformers #35 Review

Date: Wednesday, September 22nd 2021 6:37am CDT
Categories: Comic Book News, Reviews
Posted by: ScottyP

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The long road through the Cybertronian War, or at least one of them, continues onwards with today's release of Transformers #35. Several months of build-up and maneuvering have culminated in a showdown at Termagax's house, House. While a single issue alone will never be enough to get me back "in to" this series, it came as a surprise to find plenty to like in the trenches of this series' latest installment.


Most of "Lord of Misrule: Sea of Rust II" takes place in the same setting as issue 34, though after a brief but pretty enjoyable skirmish at the beginning the action cools. An opportunity to have one very well focused issue, or at least relatively for this series, is cast aside so we can find out what "Skywarp" is up to this month. Some readers will like that, but I found it distracted from what this issue was doing on the whole. My intense dislike of what Brian Ruckley has done with the character and the series' presumable overarching villain probably doesn't help here.


That aside, and without giving too much away, what this issue does is set up and begin to execute a big, exciting, fun to read set-piece battle between a bunch of Autobots and a just-as-large group of Decepticons. It provides at least a small amount of payoff for the series' excessive cast, jumping from group to group while nearly managing to pull off the impressive feat of building up that cast in a positive way as it does so. While I didn't like every development within the battle and found Optimus Prime to be abhorrently misused during it, it was still very exciting and makes this the most entertaining issue of the series in a long while.


The art steals the show here without question, as Anna Malkova shows off every skill she's developed as a Transformers artist in as big a way as could be imagined. There are dozens and dozens of characters in this issue doing dozens of different things while conveying a wide spectrum of emotion and it's hard to pick a spot where things ever get bad, though Sandstorm's teeth are a little weird. David Garcia Cruz and Evan Gauntt provide the colors, and outside of the orange tinted hues of the Sea of Rust looking marvelous there's great lighting work as well. Jake M. Wood's letter work never distracts and some of the effects serve as a welcome compliment to Malkova's transformation sequences. You can't literally hear Sky Lynx or Sixshot transform, but you will and they sound very different. Tremendous stuff.

This section went a bit long so remember that as always, you can find all the cover images and full credits for the issue through our Vector Sigma Database page for Transformers #35.


Transformers #35 could have been another chapter of this series where I frantically looked to push this review off onto another staff member, but the art and key battle sequence provided enough entertainment that I wanted to let you all know about it. There's certainly still a healthy helping of things I really, genuinely disliked, but at least there's cool stuff here to distract from, say, one of the hands-down worst versions of Optimus Prime that has ever existed, which I'm happy to go into on the boards where spoilers can roam more freely.

If you ignore everything but the battle scenes this is a 4.5/5, but on the whole, the issue has some really excellent stuff that's dragged down by its wider circumstances and context. If you've been enjoying the series, ignore my "average" rating for this one and keep that high score in mind instead.


This issue is out today, September 22nd, and you can pick it up at the Seibertron.com eBay store or at your local shop, check here to find the closest shop to you.

Five Page Preview of IDW Beast Wars #8

Date: Tuesday, September 21st 2021 9:55am CDT
Category: Comic Book News
Posted by: ScottyP | Credit(s): IDW Publishing

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Be ready to get out of stasis lock tomorrow when Transformers: Beast Wars #8 arrives from IDW Publishing. Those familiar with the Beast Wars story know what to expect for awhile, and that's a fight over the orbiting stasis pods safeguarding Maximal protoforms. Whether this new iteration will stay on this story beat for as long as the cartoon did is yet to be seen, but based on this preview and the synopsis just below, it looks like at least this next issue will look to that as its focus.

(W) Erik Burnham (A) Winston Chan (CA) Andrew Griffith
"Pod," part two! Blackarachnia has made her way to the Maximal ship, the Axalon, and encountered her first Maximal, Cheetor. Now she's gone missing again and it's up to the whole crew to find the mysteriously disappearing spider... before she finds them!

Check out the preview below and be sure to pick this issue up tomorrow at your local comic shop, through a licensed digital comics retailer, or via the Seibertron.com eBay store.

Five Page Preview of IDW Transformers #35

Date: Tuesday, September 21st 2021 9:54am CDT
Category: Comic Book News
Posted by: ScottyP | Credit(s): IDW Publishing

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Views: 22,433

It's time for your monthly dose of Rucklin' and rulin', or something, as the ongoing Transformers title from IDW Publishing reaches issue 35 tomorrow. This is the second part of the "Sea of Rust" story, and features art by Anna Malkova, colors by David Garcia Cruz and Evan Gauntt, and letters by Jake M. Wood. The official synopsis for the issue says:

(W) Brian Ruckley (A) Anna Malkova (CA) Joana Lafuente
"Sea of Rust," part two! Termagax has many secrets - information that could forever tip the scales in the favor of the Autobots or the Decepticons. As the Decepticons close in, she allows Optimus Prime and the two other Autobots she respects into her inner sanctum to share her knowledge. But will the Autobots be able to act on it before the Decepticons start their siege? And where does Skywarp factor into the equation?

Check out the preview below and be sure to pick this issue up tomorrow at your local comic shop, through a licensed digital comics retailer, or via the Seibertron.com eBay store.

IDW Transformers Comics Solicitations for December 2021

Date: Friday, September 17th 2021 6:31am CDT
Category: Comic Book News
Posted by: ScottyP | Credit(s): IDW Publishing

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Comics solicitations are a funky business, with the quirk of a month that ends on a Thursday meaning this latest batch of books to expect from IDW Publishing gets its information out there somewhat earlier than in a typical month. December will cap the year with more action from the Maximals and Wreckers, Grimlock and the Shattered Glass crew conclude their mini-series, and the Transformers ongoing keeps doing whatever it does. Most of the cover art for this month is not available yet, likely due to how early in the month this information is being released, but at least we get a look at Alex Milne's latest amazing homage to Derek Yaniger's Generation 2 #5 "Alas, Poor Bludgeon" cover.

Check out all of the solicitation information below, and to support any of these series ask your local comic shop how to order copies of all these issues in advance. Click here to find a local comic shop near you.

Transformers: Beast Wars #11—Cover A: Sid Venblu
Erik Burnham (w) • Josh Burcham (a & c) • Sid VenBlu (c)
“Maximals Strike Back,” Part Two! The throwdown kicks into high gear as the mighty Maximals tangle with the treacherous Predacons. Optimus Primal vs. Skold! Razorbeast vs. Terrorsaur! Dinobot vs. Megatron! Don’t miss the massive midpoint of this three-part battle royale.

FC • 32 pages • $3.99

Transformers: King Grimlock #5 (of 5)—Cover A: Cian Tormey
Steve Orlando (w) •Agustin Padilla (a) • Cian Tormey (c)
The epic conclusion to King Grimlock! Grimlock faces off against his greatest opponent yet, the Sun God of Menonia, Soltron! But first, he’ll have to get past Soltron’s newest accolite... his own former student, Arko! It’s the battle for not just the kingdom, but the whole world!

FC • 36 pages • $4.99

Transformers: Shattered Glass #5 (of 5)—Cover A: Alex Milne
Danny Lore (w) • Guido Guidi (a) • Alex Milne (c)
Shattered Glass isn’t your average Transformers tale… “Shards” is the story of the ongoing battle between the power-hungry Autobot autocrats and the freedom-fighting Decepticon laborers. Join author Danny Lore (James Bond, King in Black: Captain America, Champions) in exploring this fractured alternate universe just before it shatters.

In issue #5, Jetfire's loyalties are tested when Goldbug asks him to commit the ultimate sacrifice in the name of the Autobots. His decision results in a Cybertron-shattering event and an epic conclusion to "Shards."

FC • 32 pages • $3.99

Transformers: The IDW Collection Phase Three, Vol. 2
Mairghread Scott, John Barber, James Roberts (w) • Sara Pitre-Durocher, Kei Zama, Alex Milne, Jack Lawrence (a) • Sara Pitre-Durocher (c)
Presenting the final phase of IDW's Transformers universe in recommended reading order, including one-shots, crossovers, and event series!

The fate of Cybertron lies in the hands of Starscream and Windblade as each tries to win allies and support for control over the Council of Worlds. After the costly victory against the Titans, Iacon is in shambles and Starscream finds himself on shakier ground than ever. The key to his political (and likely literal) survival rests in the outcome of a very unlikely event: the trial of the Council’s first official war criminal—Chromia of Caminus!

The revolution is over—but the danger to Earth is just beginning. As Optimus Prime pulls Earth into the larger universe, he’s painted a target on it… and a new alien incursion begins when a corkscrew-shaped craft drills into our world! Plus, follow the adventures of the crew of the Lost Light! In the aftermath of Revolution, Rodimus and his crew are stranded with no ship—and no hope of escape!

Collects Transformers: Till All Are One issues #9–12, Transformers: Optimus Prime issues #1–6, and Transformers: Lost Light issues #1–7.
HC • FC • $59.99 • 384 pages • 7” x 10.8” • ISBN: 978-1-68405-877-8

Bullet points:
Available in March 2022.

Transformers: Wreckers—Tread & Circuits #3 (of 4)—Cover A: Adam Bryce Thomas
David Mariotte (w) • Jack Lawrence (a) • Adam Bryce Thomas (c)
The race is on! The Speedia 500 has begun and the Wreckers are doing their best to keep up with the finest racers from across Velocitron. But following an explosion, it’s mayhem on the track as an assault is launched on the race. Can the Wreckers maintain their cover and take down their foes, or will they be both wrecked and ruled?

FC • 32 pages • $3.99

Transformers #38—Cover A: Alex Milne
Brian Ruckley (w) • Anna Malkova (a) • Alex Milne (c)
“Darkness, Once Gazed Upon” is a rescue mission to Iacon as Arcee, Windblade, Chromia, and Smokescreen link up with two long-lost allies left in the city. Their goal: to rescue a captured Autobot general. But things are never easy when Swindle’s involved!

FC • 32 pages • $3.99

IDW Transformers #34 Review

Date: Wednesday, September 1st 2021 2:36pm CDT
Categories: Comic Book News, Reviews
Posted by: Mr.MicroMaster

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Views: 49,381

Issue #34 kicks off the new Sea of Rust story arc and this issue like many others in this series is heavy on the dialogue but has a decent mix of action thrown in. The writing for this issue is on par with Ruckley’s previous outings. The art in this issue as per usual is done by Anna Malkova who brings her characteristic flare and competence in the art department.

Now let’s dive into the writing of this issue. There is no denying that Ruckley is very passionate about this series unfortunately that does not seem to have translated into reader passion. However, personally I enjoyed this issue. Is the story groundbreaking? No, but I had fun reading and that is what matters. Ruckley has definitely gotten better at bouncing back and forth between the different groups of this series. We pick up with Prime, Megatron, Shockwave as well as the Insectiacons, and it will be interesting to see how everything plays into this arc. This balance was missing from earlier issues. Termagax has lot of potential and hopefully this arc delivers on that. She also gives weird vibes like she cannot be completely trusted. The way Skywarp is written makes him feel like Loki from the MCU, but he didn’t feel quite all there.

You can find full credits for Transformers #34 in our Vector Sigma Database entry for this issue

The standout of this issue has to be the art Malkova continues to deliver. Her splash pages this issue are spectacular and some of the best moments in the book. The art overall is just really fun in this issue. Malkova is just superb at facial expressions. Both David Garcia Cruz and Evan Gauntt’s colors complement Malkova’s art incredibly well. They truly bring out the best in each other. No complaints with Jake Wood’s Lettering either.


Overall, I had a splendid time reading this book and the art is just fantastic. However, that does not mean this book is great. It is an okay story with superb art, but that being said I like this book and I am interested to see where this arc is going. Hopefully we will finally see some progress in this series or at the very least some combiner goodness.


This issue is out today, and you can pick it up at the Seibertron.com eBay store or at your local shop, check here to find the closest shop to you.

Five Page Preview of IDW Transformers #34

Date: Tuesday, August 31st 2021 5:44pm CDT
Category: Comic Book News
Posted by: ScottyP | Credit(s): IDW Publishing

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Views: 31,654

As of tomorrow we'll have hit Transformers #34 in IDW's new-ish Transformers comic continuity and this time around it looks like we'll be catching up with Termagax, Landmine and Geomotus for the first time in months, at least if this five page preview is anything to go on. The publisher's synopsis for this issue says:

(W) Brian Ruckley (A) Anna Malkova (CA) Winston Chan
"Sea of Rust," part one! Megatron has learned that his former mentor, Termagax, holds a key artifact that could tip the scales of the war firmly in the Decepticons' favor, eliminating the Autobots once and for all. The first order of business, of course, is finding Termagax's House, a mobile building on the run. And as tensions erupt between Megatron's Decepticons and his old mentor, the Autobots put themselves in the crossfire!

You can check out the five page preview provided by IDW Publishing below.

Review of IDW Transformers: Shattered Glass #1

Date: Wednesday, August 25th 2021 4:53pm CDT
Category: Comic Book News
Posted by: Mr.MicroMaster

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Views: 29,262

This issue is the beginning of an intriguing reimaging of the Shattered Glass Universe. The plot quickly pulled me into the story with gritty art that makes the world come to life. The story kept me engrossed from beginning to end. This issue was overall fun and exciting as well as a nice change of pace from the Ruckly ongoing.



The art in this book is phenomenal. Guido Guidi’s art in this book has a certain “je ne sais quoi”. There are some amazing panels where Blurr’s face is absolutely terrifying. The splash pages in this book are both amazing. Guidi’s art is complemented greatly by John-Paul Bove’s coloring which is just superb. The lettering this issue is down by Lettersquids who does a fantastic job with this book.

You can find full credits for Transformers Shattered Glass#1 in our Vector Sigma Database entry for this issue



This series is being written by Danny Lore. Lore’s writing in this book shines best in its characterizations. Blurr being my favorite as his characterization is just superb. Which makes sense since the story is told from his point of view. This issue also serves to set up the new SG universe which it does a commendable job at. Lore does an excellent job depicting the SG universe in their writing.



Overall, this book is solid with great art and an equally great story. If you are looking for a change of pace from the current ongoing this may just, be it. This is a great start for this five issue mini-series.



This issue is out today, and you can pick it up at the Seibertron.com eBay store or at your local shop, check here to find the closest shop to you.

Review of IDW Beast Wars #7

Date: Wednesday, August 25th 2021 8:42am CDT
Categories: Comic Book News, Reviews
Posted by: ScottyP

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Views: 36,806

IDW's trip to prehistoric Earth or some near-to-that equivalent continues with today's release of Beast Wars #7. The issue begins a new arc called "Pod" and features the first appearance in this comic of Blackarachnia, and that's not a spoiler when she's on the darn cover. Her fictional debut is accompanied by another that's probably the hot topic when it comes to this particular issue, as a new artist takes over for a little while.


I'm personally a big fan of Josh Burcham's art style, but I'm also not blind - it's definitely a style and reading our boards here at Seibertron and elsewhere on the internet will tell you that style is not enjoyed by some fans. For those fans (who are wrong, but that's ok, I'm wrong on the internet a lot too) it may come as good news that issue 7 features Winston Chan as the interior artist, bringing along a change in that aforementioned style concept. Chan's beast modes are stellar, managing to find that careful point between realistic-ish animals and animals that are so large and out-of-scale with one another that they're completely unreal. SidVenBlu (yes, written like that) takes up the color work and brings major consistency with the opening arc of the series that helps make the transition from one artist to another much less jarring than I'd feared.


If there's an area where Chan's art has room for improvement, it's in the characters' robot modes. Something I'm not art-literate enough to describe just looks off about many of the facial expressions, but aside from that, some of the poses the characters are depicted in feel very stiff and artificial. It's worth noting that the action scenes were better than the talking scenes in this regard. Those action scenes are also bolstered by some of Jake M. Wood's best letter work to date - check the image before the one just above (with Dinobot and Optimus Primal from page 2) for an example. Multiple fonts, fun usage of onomatopoeias and nothing in the way of other things makes for a good time.

Art's usually not the first part of my reviews, but it's good to change things up, so this is also where I'll remind Seibertron.com readers that you can find all the cover images and full credits for the issue through our Vector Sigma Database page for Beast Wars #7.


As much as the art's changed and is rightfully the main point of interest in this issue, the plotting has changed very little, and by that I mean the decompressed pace of events. Eric Burnham's writing leaves little to be desired and gets out of the way when it needs to. The characters are further defined and more of each faction's situation is elaborated on. All of that's good to have, but just like with the "Savage Landing" arc, "Pod" is off to a start that makes it feel much like an episode of Beast Wars' first TV season, which is not as much of a compliment as it may sound like to some. If you see the switch in the book's credits where David Mariotte has moved to supervising editor while Jazmine Joyner takes up the mantle as editor and hope for a change to the pacing from that, let me go ahead and give you the bad news - there isn't any. This issue feels like it was plotted out for the trade paperback, just like nearly every issue of this series so far.


Beast Wars #7 continues a story where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. The series itself is quite enjoyable, but it's tough to find a single issue that jumps out as better or worse than others. It's strange that comics publishers will judge a book's success based on how many monthly orders it gets from comic shops while simultaneously creating a product that is best enjoyed by those shops' customers when they abstain from the practice of subscribing to boost those monthly numbers as they wait until the collected version is released. You have to wonder when this anachronistic business model will crack, but that's another tangent for another time.

In short, this was another enjoyable issue that works well as part of the series, it's still not something that shines extremely brightly on its own, and fans turned off by the initial art style may find more to like here than in previous issues.



Look out for this issue today, August 25th, where you can pick it up at the Seibertron.com eBay store or at your local shop, check here to find the closest shop to you.

Five Page Preview of IDW Transformers: Shattered Glass #1

Date: Tuesday, August 24th 2021 9:45am CDT
Category: Comic Book News
Posted by: ScottyP | Credit(s): IDW Publishing

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Views: 36,897

This is not your father's Botcon 2008 as IDW Publishing's new Transformers: Shattered Glass #1 is out tomorrow, and they've provided a five page preview of the new title for your enjoyment. Well, and to get you to go buy the book tomorrow if you can't wait for it to be delivered with your shiny new SG Blurr toy from Hasbro Pulse. The teaser for the issue says:

(W) Danny Lore (A) Guido Guidi (CA) Dan Khanna
Shattered Glass isn't your average Transformers tale... "Shards" is the story of the ongoing battle between the power-hungry Autobot autocrats and the freedom-fighting Decepticon laborers. Join author Danny Lore (James Bond, King in Black: Captain America, Champions) in exploring this fractured alternate universe just before it shatters.

In issue #1, many kilocycles after the Cybertronian War has destroyed Earth, Blurr, an evil Autobot Seeker, hunts his newest bounty who holds a piece of information that could reignite the war.

Check out the preview below and be sure to pick this issue up tomorrow at your local comic shop, through a licensed digital comics retailer, or via the Seibertron.com eBay store.

Five Page Preview of IDW Beast Wars #7

Date: Tuesday, August 24th 2021 9:43am CDT
Category: Comic Book News
Posted by: ScottyP | Credit(s): IDW Publishing

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Views: 31,994

Prepare to maximize your Wednesday with Transformers: Beast Wars #7, set to arrive from IDW Publishing for your weekly new comic book day. Winston Chan takes up the art duties for a short run beginning in this issue, and you can check out the five-page preview provided by IDW further below in this post to get a taste of that for yourself. The publisher's listing for this issue says:

(W) Erik Burnham (A) Winston Chan (CA) Fico Ossio
"Pod", part one! After their first explosive battle, both the Maximals and Predacons have allowed a lull to refresh and regroup. But when the first protoform pod comes down and a new entrant to the Beast Wars enters the fray, things are going to change in a major way! But whose side is Blackarachnia on?!

Check out the preview below and be sure to pick this issue up tomorrow at your local comic shop, through a licensed digital comics retailer, or via the Seibertron.com eBay store.