THE TRANSFORMERS: COMICS, BOOKS AND MANGA

CURRENT TRANSFORMERS COMICS FROM IDW PUBLISHING

Transformers Regeneration One #93
Reviewed by Blackjack

“Instead of seeping into Cybertronian Legend, I remain mired in the stigma of that ignominious defeat.”

Another decent (if tiresome at this point) setup issue, putting all the players where they are supposed to be. Finally, after, oh, six or seven issues of them just getting one panel each page travelling through space, the Ark and the Warworld both finally arrive on Cybertron. I mean, I realize they travel through space and that takes a long, long time, but why waste page every single issue showing us, oh, hey, Galvatron exists! Oh, hey, Bludgeon exists! I mean, you need to show Soundwave giving Bludgeon the Thunderwing remains, sure. You need to show Starscream and Shockwave conspire to take out Galvatron, sure. Furman just takes up way too much space as easy padding.Warworld both finally arrive on Cybertron. I mean, I realize they travel through space and that takes a long, long time, but why waste page every single issue showing us, oh, hey, Galvatron exists! Oh, hey, Bludgeon exists! I mean, you need to show Soundwave giving Bludgeon the Thunderwing remains, sure. You need to show Starscream and Shockwave conspire to take out Galvatron, sure. Furman just takes up way too much space as easy padding.

That said, though, I thought this issue wasn’t bad. We first open with a freaking awesome grisly image of a mutilated Bludgeon, which shows that Guido Guidi has taken up art duties from Andrew Wildman… but is drawing in his style. But, you know, not sucking. There are faces everywhere and everyone is on model and it looks more like the old Wildman comics than when the real Wildman was doing it. Certainly the change in artists is a massive improvement to the story, even moreso since the art is better. We get to see Bludgeon’s motivations in two pages, which is to redeem himself of his shameful retreat and to seek a glorious death. If the Autobots die in the process, it’s a bonus. And it’s a really powerful scene! And it makes sense, not like Scorponok’s ‘oh, let me borrow Jhiaxus’ motivations’. And it doesn’t take half an issue to ramble on through that! Why can’t Furman tell all his stories like this?

We then cut over to Galvatron for a while in a rather unnecessary scene, before Starscream and Shockwave screw Galvatron over and kind of flush him out of the ship. I do like how the two of them are just teaming up to survive from being in the insane Galvatron’s proximity, and Galvatron’s obsession with Ultra Magnus and going around shouting ‘I am Galvatron, slayer of Primes!’ is kind of fun too. However, as much fun as the scene was, I thought it felt too long.

The Wreckers attacking a base (with a rather cool-looking invisibility effect) only to discover it’s a Decepticon trap takes up far too much space, though, being obvious padding because the Wreckers survive the explosion right away for no reason. It’s a waste of four pages when it could’ve been done in one. I do like the quick sequences that show Magnus coordinating Prowl and Silverbolt and stuff, and that random reveal of Monstructor. Soundwave’s quick speech about how they’re going to usher in a new age of Decepticons for Megatron feels nice too.

Though Monstructor’s appearance is awesome it’s worrying that Furman might lapse into regurgitating IDW ideas the way he did during the Scorponok arc. Hell, I’m surprised the Dead Universe and freakin’ Nightbeat (who isn’t dead in this continuity!) haven’t made an appearance yet.

Hot Rod and the Dinobots discovering Primus’ head and seeing some random multiverse shit (are we dragging Furman’s unused Universe ideas into the mix too?) feel too long-winded. The Demons, of course, randomly turn feral again despite Hot Rod domesticating them before, making Hot Rod’s plan to get them to the surface sound even more moronic. There’s the little mystery about the corpses – which could have been easily revealed alongside all the Demon stuff from Hot Rod’s first journey… and of course, Primus isn’t dead and Grimlock is god now. While the Hot Rod scene and dealing with the Demons have been one of the more interesting stuff so far this just ends up eliciting nothing but a big, big groan from me. Grimlock-Primus? Multiversal obscure Hot Rods which will only excite, like, five people reading the comic? I absolutely hate it when things bring up the multiverse randomly for no good reason.

Overall, pretty solid if uninteresting. I do like the Soundwave and Bludgeon stuff, and the Galvatron/Shockwave/Starscream scene is functional if not particularly interesting. However, the Primus, Hot Rod and padded Wrecker scenes end up bloating this issue and bringing it down. Oh, also, and Cosmos dies randomly. Poor little dude. I liked Cosmos. Why can’t it be Sideswipe or someone that got blown up?


This marks the first appearance of Wingthing in, well, anywhere! Wingthing was Soundwave’s Action Master partner, but like so many toys from that period he seldom appeared. This also marks the first appearance of Monstructor in the Marvel continuity, though his component parts have made an appearance in the alternate-universe Marvel story ‘Rhythms of Darkness’.

Speaking of Rhythms of Darkness, Galvatron refers to having killed the Ultra Magnus in his home universe. He also dubs himself the ‘slayer of Primes’, which he also did – he killed hia native Rodimus Prime as well.

Bludgeon flashes back to Optimus Prime’s resurrection and his own retreat in Transformers #80.

Shockwave sends a Mark V Guardian robot against Galvatron, which is the more particular model of the Guardian robot that appeared in the US comics. The earlier, humanoid models are UK-exclusive and had shown up earlier during the ‘Loose Ends’ arc.

Starscream calls the Ark’s weapons as ‘asteroid-smasher cannons’. I’m not sure if it was ever specifically called that somewhere in the Marvel continuity, but the Ark’s original mission in the Marvel continuity was to destroy an asteroid storm to save Cybertron.

Galvatron uses his cannon as a means to propel himself in space, a rarely-used ability first seen in the 1986 Movie.

Rack’n’Ruin reference ‘hammer time’, from the MC Hammer song ‘U Can’t Touch This’.

The alternate universe Hot Rod/Rodimuses are all, obviously, Hot Rods from other continuities. On the first row, from left to right, is Rodimus from Transformers: Energon (dude with wheel-shoulders), Hot Rod from the Japanese-exclusive Return of Convoy (the Micromaster), IDW’s Rodimus, specifically his appearance from More than Meets the Eye (the one in the center), Rodimus Prime from Transformers: Animated (the darker red one) and the Rodimus toy from Alternators (dude with flames on his arms). The second row, from left to right, include ‘New Rodimus’, an unproduced toy from Japan (the extremely boxy guy), Hot Rod from the DS War for Cybertron game (the dude with metal flames), the legends class Rodimus toy from the second Universe line (smaller dude between two indistinct Hot Rods), Armada Hot Shot, in his Hot Rod repaint colours (the one that is not the same with the rest – though Hot Shot is called Hot Rod in Japan) and Hot Rod from the Generation 2 comics (the magenta one with the frowny mouth). In addition to that, one of the silhouettes seems to be based on the Classics Rodimus toy as well.

Among the pile of corpses that Hot Rod and the Dinobots discover seem to be the remains of Runabout, who was dragged down by the Demons in #75. The corpse that Hot Rod touches and crumbles seems to be based on Zeta Prime from IDW’s Autocracy.

Primus speaks through Grimlock’s body, which is his favourite method of communication, having possessed Xaaron before in the Marvel continuity. Primus is kind of a dick.




Galvatron’s hologram has Prowl, Ultra Magnus, Grimlock and Jetfire as the higher ranking Autobots he’s planning to take out. While Grimlock and Prowl certainly hold high rank throughout the Marvel history, and Ultra Magnus’ random appearance in the Regeneration One continuity (he only shows up in UK) also puts him at high rank, I’m not sure why Jetfire is in there instead of Perceptor or someone, never really being shown to be a high-ranking Autobot… or really do anything.

If the Ark had a Mark V Guardian robot, I’m not quite sure why it didn’t use them to fight the Wreckers back in ‘Loose Ends’, instead using a bunch of the older ones instead.

I’ve just remembered this while seeing the Wreckers in action since they haven’t really been seen entirely before, but Leadfoot seems to have been completely absent from the team – he hasn’t made an appearance after getting flipped over by that autogun back on Earth, and was listed as ‘critical condition’ by First Aid during the breather issue, but has not (and will not) make another appearance. Guess Furman just… forgot? I certainly did.