“Come on, Autobots, what’s keeping you?”
Transformers: Generation One volume 3 #1
Dreamwave (January, 2004)
“Night Of The Combaticons” (or “Holy crud, we’re actually naming our issues now!”) WRITER: Brad Mick PENCILER: Don Figueroa INKER: Elaine To COLORISTS; Espen Grundetjern & Rob Ruffolo LETTERER: Ben Lee
Starscream has actually shown some strategy and, aided by the Combaticons and their combined form, Bruticus, managed to take down the Autobots who remained on Earth after the events of Volume 2. Ratchet and Brawn, the last two uncaptured, manage to destroy the Ark & Teletran-1 before the Decepticons get their hands on it. But there’s a new player in the game. Back on Cybertron, Runabout and Runamuck are searching Shockwave’s lab and come upon more of those Seeker clones from War Within: The Age Of Wrath and one more Seeker, glowing and with strange power. And like Bumblebee’s aid team, he’s headed for Earth!
What they got right: I didn’t like the changes Figueroa made to his Transformers art style when he joined IDW but I love it here. At the least it’s an improvement over what Pat Lee was doing but they look really cool. I also like the small details like Bumper, an obscure Minicar, showing up and Brawn using his toy face as a battle mask.
What they got wrong: Who are the Battlechargers working for now? Megatron is still gone, Shockwave is chilling with Palpatine at the bottom of a shaft, and Starscream is on Earth. I don’t think they’re working with the Autobots. That’s not their style.
Recommendation: A good start with a mystery as to what the golden Seeker is (yes I know who he is, but he hasn’t been revealed in the comic yet so don’t ruin it!!!) and an actual war story that doesn’t have Megatron as an Autobot and Starscream ruling Cybertron. (I’m just not the audience for IDW’s current direction with the G1 characters.) Pick this one up, because this is where the series really got interesting for me back in the day.
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