Transformers #1 Review

 

Writer: Daniel Warren Johnson

Artist: Daniel Warren Johnson & Mike Spicer

Cover Artists: Daniel Warren Johnson, Mike Spicer, Ryan Ottley, Cliff Chiang, Orlando Arocena, Bryan Hitch, & Ian Bederman

Publisher: Image

Price: $4.99

Release Date: October 4, 2023

 

While Sparky mourns his son Jimmy, his surviving son dreams of becoming an astronaut. Spike's friend Carly also dreams of attending university. How will the Transformers' arrival change their world? Let's leap into Transformers #1 and find out!

 

Story

Sparky works all night and drinks all day. His coworker Davey looks after him and worries that Spike needs his father. At least Spike’s got a hobby. He and Carly take Jimmy’s telescope to Hanger's Rock to observe the Full Moon. Instead, they get an earthquake. A crevasse opens! The teens fall into a giant spaceship.

 

Jetfire searched the cosmos for a means to save Cybertron. He missed out on the war that tore the planet apart. When he activates Teletraan One, the computer system doesn’t just awaken Autobots. Starscream grabs his chance and fires on all awakening enemies. Optimus Prime takes the fight to the Decepticons and escapes the ark with the surviving Autobots and the tiny teenagers.

 

The intent of the first page is unclear. Likewise, Jetfire's statement that he changed the Transformers' appearance doesn't compute. Yet Transformers #1 fires a shot across the bows of comic book readers. Fueled by heart and punctuated by pathos, this nightmarish new series is action-packed.

 

Art

The brutally direct Transformers #1 draws inspiration from the original Marvel years. The art will please fans of IDW's Transformers Vs. G.I. Joe series. It targets action more than quiet moments. Brash and unapologetic, the debut issue packs a gut punch that will take your breath away.

 

It's hard to evaluate the issue’s readability, given the color watermark underlying the review copy and the Do Not Share warnings covering each page like shotgun pellets. Yet the balloon size looks appropriately sized to the panels. Forget splash pages and double-page spreads. The average number of panels per page in Transformers #1 may reach double digits!

 

Final Thoughts

A grieving man and his son suffer loss and make powerful allies when a race of robots brings their savage war to Earth in the brutal and devastating Transformers #1.

 

Rating 8.5/10

 

For more great covers see my review at Comic Book Dispatch. 

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