Writer: Daniel Warren Johnson
Artist: Ludo Lullabi
Colorist: Adriano Lucas
Letterer: Rus Wooton
Cover Artists: Daniel Warren Johnson & Mike Spicer; Jorge Corona & Mike Spicer; David Nakayama; Steve Beach; Frederic Pham Chuong; Ludo Lullabi; Raymond Gay; Chad Hardin; Dicky Maulana; Mark Spears; Matthew Waite; Freely Abrigo
Editor: Ben Abernathy
Publication Design: Andres Juarez
Production: Ashby Florence
Publisher: Image
Price: $3.99
Release Date: April 9, 2025
Starscream’s appetite for destruction lost the Decepticons the Ark. Soundwave's cold-as-ice reason turned his biggest supporters against him. As the lying Decepticon leaders tore each other apart, their combiners left Seattle in ruins. With the Autobots retreating or captured, can Megatron rally the rage-filled Decepticons? And how did he become such a unifying force for the Decepticons on Cybertron? Let's recharge our Energon batteries, leap into Transformers #19, and discover Megatron’s transformative journey!
Story
In Daniel Warren Johnson’s story, Megatron awakens in strange surroundings. The last thing he remembers is being on Moonbase 1. When Dezimir arrives, Megatron asks why he is there. Dezimir says he abducted Megatron to enslave him. Yet Megatron should not worry about how he got here. Nor should he rail at his imprisonment. Instead, Megatron should embrace this opportunity. Like the Hulk on Sakaar, only a privileged few get a chance to demonstrate their greatness.
In Transformers #19, Dezimir puts Megatron through his paces. Each time he enters the arena, Megatron meets Dezimir’s combatants. Yet Dezimir ratchets up the stakes until Megatron loses. Megatron isn't a tiny, squishy human. He is an enormous metal man with an immense gun. Yet Dezimir demolishes Megatron at every turn. And every time, Dezimir insists that failure is not an option. Megatron may be insignificant in the scheme of things, but he must rise above his limitations.
Megatron's transformation in Transformers #19 helps us understand how he became such an influential leader. It also sheds light on Shockwave's role among the Decepticons. Megatron transformed Ulchtar from a Cybertronian who prized life into a Decepticon who reveled in death. From Megatron’s perspective, Ultra Magnus may be Shockwave’s biggest failure. Unlike Dezimir, the former ruler of Cybertron tortured Ultra Magnus for centuries. Still, Shockwave couldn’t transform the Autobot icon into a force for the Decepticons.
Art
Megatron kneels as the Bailiffs approach. When the armored reptilian warriors make way for their leader, Megatron looks up. As Megatron prepares to smite his captor, the Prosecutor parts his red cloak and unleashes pinkish energy from his chest. Megatron struggles to remain on his feet and aims his cannon at Dezimir. More pinkish energy surrounds Megatron as he collapses. Then, carrying their spears with double hook-shaped axe heads, the mailed-and-tailed Bailiffs drag away Megatron in Transformers #19.
Adriano Lucas enlivens the purple and gray surroundings populated with Ludo Lullabi’s formidable characters and vicious battles. The Prosecutor is a tiny spot of red amid the gray courtroom. But when a purple drone hovers above the advancing yellow-eyed Sharkticon horde, Megatron’s red joints and eyes link with Dezimir’s red eyes. The green tentacled Prosecutor looks down from a blue-gray hoverdisk like the Red King watching the Hulk fight his opponents in Transformers #19. Then the gray floor gives way to orange, evoking Starscream’s trial with Soundwave acting as Prosecutor and Judge.
While Megatron's "impressive" alt mode illuminates Optimus Prime's meltdown in Tacoma, Washington, Rus Wooton fills the Transformers' rectangular white balloons with italicized black words. The letters grow bold for intonation, swell for raised voices, change color for drama, and shrink when Megatron says, "Please." Sound effects help us hear giant doors open, energy rip through Megatron and incinerate Sharkticons, and Dezimir unleash his titanic strength. Thanks to Image Comics, Skybound Entertainment, and Hasbro for providing a copy for review.
Final Thoughts
Do our weapons control us? Does holding a gun change how we regard the world? As Transformers #19 probes our relationship with instruments of violence and death, it ponders how we evolve. Before we can embrace new ideas, we must discard our preconceptions. To become something new and better, we must recognize that we are broken and need transformation.
Rating 9.4/10
For more cover art (including one from the C2E2 Comic-Con) see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.
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