- Transformers (ongoing)
- Image & Skybound
- Written & Illustrated by Daniel Warren Johnson
- Colors by Mike Spicer
- Letters by Rus Wooten
Optimus Prime was supposed to have led the Autobots to victory. Instead, the fate of Cybertron is unknown, and his allies have crash-landed far from home, alongside their enemies—the Decepticons. As these titanic forces renew their war on Earth, one thing is immediately clear: the planet will never be the same. New alliances are struck. Battle lines are redrawn. And humanity’s only hope of survival is Optimus Prime.
Superstar creator Daniel Warren Johnson (Do a Powerbomb, Wonder Woman: Dead Earth), alongside showrunner Robert Kirkman (The Walking Dead, Invincible), reimagines Hasbro’s robots in disguise for a brand-new generation.
I know, I know… “Dude, I thought you Pullbox characters were all about indie comics. This is Image!”
Sure, Image & Skybound Comics are bigger than what you might consider “indie”. But relax, we’re not going corporate. This quick spotlight review is more for you, the readers, than the publishers. I’m throwing this together because four issues into this series & I’m hooked. It’s just one of those cases where I read a thing that’s so good, I have to share it.
Daniel Warren Johnson is taking the robots in disguise well beyond their origins, and there’s nothing childish about this story (which earned two Eisner Awards this year). It starts pretty simply… average everyday humans stumble across a mysterious spaceship full of robots, and then find themselves caught up in a war for which they are ridiculously unprepared. Robotic beatdowns ensue.
Johnson takes the time to show more subtle character moments in his story, & that’s where this version of the fan-favorite stands apart from what’s been done before. Between scenes of explosive combat worthy of Michael Bay, Optimus Prime tries to figure out how to preserve the lives of his Autobots while learning just how fragile this world is.
It’s not too lat to jump into the Energon Universe, tying Transformers into a shared universe that includes GI JOE (check out Skybound titles Scarlet, Duke, Cobra Commanders, & Destro), and the sneak attack that was Void Rivals. We’ve got individual issues, trade paperbacks, & the promise of much more to come.
