Humble Transformers Bundle 2 Presented by IDW

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estram
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Humble Transformers Bundle 2 Presented by IDW

Post by estram »

Mostly because I posted the last one, it seemed fitting to post the next!

https://www.humblebundle.com/books

Cheesey blurb -
This bundle is more than meets the eye! Transformers comics and Humble Bundle go together like Optimus and Prime, which is why we're reteaming to bring you even more camouflaged androids (better known as robots in disguise)! Name your price for the first 37 issues of Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye. If you pay more than the average price, you also get volumes 1-6 of Transformers: Robots in Disguise as well as Transformers: Dark Cybertron Vol. 1. Pay $5 above the average price or more, and you'll receive all of the above plus Transformers: Days of Deception #35-37, Transformers: Robots in Disguise #33 & #34, and Transformers: Dark Cybertron Vol. 2.

Pay what you want. This collection of comics would normally cost up to $155 if purchased separately, but here at Humble Bundle, we leave it up to you to decide what amount of cash you'd like to transform into comics.

Read anywhere between here and Cybertron. These comics are available in multiple formats including CBZ, PDF, and ePub, so they work on your computer, e-readers, iPads, cell phones, and a wide array of mobile devices! Instructions and a list of recommended reading programs can be found here.

Support charity. You choose where your money goes -- between IDW Publishing and the Hasbro Children's Fund, a charity whose core principles include programs which provide hope to children who need it most. If you like this bundle, a tip to Humble Bundle would be greatly appreciated and would make you an honorary Autobot in our book!
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inflatable dalek
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Post by inflatable dalek »

This is basically the good shit peeps, anyone not reading should give it a punt.
REVIISITATION: THE HOLE TRUTH
STARSCREAM GOES TO PIECES IN MY LOOK AT INFILTRATION #6!
PLUS: BUY THE BOOKS!
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Unicron
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Post by Unicron »

That is a sick deal, and is tempting, despite the fact I have the physical copies of MTMTE Vol 1-6.
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Denyer
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Post by Denyer »

Just coming to check this'd been posted. I've gone with the suggested donation. Big run of comics I like without DRM. Might even read the RID stuff.
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Post by Auntie Slag »

Good god, that's incredible value!
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Post by Cliffjumper »

Bit. Got to have my fix of wacky old Swerve.
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inflatable dalek
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Post by inflatable dalek »

I look forward to your indifference and cries of "Other people did it first!" ;)

It's needlessly mean to make even a mild criticism considering the price and the charitable intentions, but Dark Cybertron only being included on the two upper tiers is a bit sneaky, it means if you go for just More Than you've got five issues in the middle that won't make any sense.
REVIISITATION: THE HOLE TRUTH
STARSCREAM GOES TO PIECES IN MY LOOK AT INFILTRATION #6!
PLUS: BUY THE BOOKS!
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Auntie Slag
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Post by Auntie Slag »

That's still better (and cheaper) than another seven that won't make any sense either.

So they're actually saving you time AND money!
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Post by Cliffjumper »

First book of RID was a good little read, if a bit puff pastry. Currently finding it hard to work out why it's hated and MTMTE is preserved in calcified spunk. Lack of nutty Minibots?
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inflatable dalek
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Post by inflatable dalek »

I really like early RID and do think it gets overlooked, certainly everything up to the Annual (is that included?) is really nice stuff.

It does go off the rails a lot as Barber, rather gallantly, decides to take on all the set up for Dark Cybertron himself. There's a frustrating four or five issues before the crossover starts where basically nothing happens beyond a very good Soundwave flashback (though that's spread out to two issues by a dull framing sequence of two characters having a fight to the death in a room where neither one of them can die).

Various major things set up don't get any sort of pay-off either.
REVIISITATION: THE HOLE TRUTH
STARSCREAM GOES TO PIECES IN MY LOOK AT INFILTRATION #6!
PLUS: BUY THE BOOKS!
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Denyer
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Post by Denyer »

Yeah, and Megatron works better as deliberate comic relief than idiotic supposed mastermind.

Barber seems to do alright with one shots and ideas but execution is very patchy.
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Post by Cliffjumper »

inflatable dalek wrote:Various major things set up don't get any sort of pay-off either.
Crikey, be a shock having that happen in an IDW comic.

The paint Optimus Prime issue is beaut.
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Terome
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Post by Terome »

Yeah, RID started strong. A lot of goodwill was curdled by some silly developments later on but it seems to have found an entirely new groove for itself since that is nicely entertaining.
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Post by Cliffjumper »

Read the first six books of RiD and am now up to the fifth of MTMTE. Both are pretty similar, soapy froth dependent on 'shock' character reveals and last page deaths which turn out to be not deaths, though most of MTMTE's jokes are pretty annoying second time around. Swerve especially is terrible, especially when he keeps having his little "real me" moments and it's impossible to care because he's such a little prick.

RiD's just DW Vol 3. MTMTE feels like offbeat interlude stories without any meat inbetween to give it any sort of counterbalancing weight. What's the point in getting invested in any sort of character development if said character snaps back into the previous shape the next issue? It's like the G1 cartoon.
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inflatable dalek
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Post by inflatable dalek »

Oh, if you're reading RID first, you should probably stop before volume 5 and go back and catch up on MTMTE because otherwise I think that'll ruin the Shockwave reveal...

Oh, too late.

Sorry, should have said that earlier.

With RID, I wound up hugely disappointed it had set up this big political plotline about the elections which seemed interesting and fresh for Transformers... and instead ending all of that with a giant monster stomping things and going "RAAAGGGGHHHHHH" a lot. Which turns out to happen on the same day another giant monster comes to Iacon and starts stomping things and going "RAAAGGGGHHHHH" a lot. I think it would have worked better (at least in terms that his coming to the comic had to happen by mandate no matter what) with Megatron returning and there still being an action scene without Prowlestator... but the elections happening in the aftermath and Starscream winning them.

Indeed, that would make sense of how characters keep talking about Starscream having been chosen by the People even though that never happened and we only ever get scenes where we see everyone hates him.

I think the character development in early MTMTE is about revealing why characters are behaving in certain ways rather than changing their world views (Rewind and Chromedome being the most obvious example, to avoid any controversy it writes them as a loving couple but only comes out as saying "Yes, this is a loving couple" after the waters have been well and truly tested). Though they clearly do develop as they go along, I think the one of the big themes of the series is the redemptive power of friendship- from hanging about with your mates in the pub to full on love- and it the development of things like Cyclonus and Whirl's antagonism and Magnus needing to learn to relax do carry over from issue to issue fairly well for me.
REVIISITATION: THE HOLE TRUTH
STARSCREAM GOES TO PIECES IN MY LOOK AT INFILTRATION #6!
PLUS: BUY THE BOOKS!
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Post by Cliffjumper »

How can you spoil a reveal about a thirty-year old character doing what they've been doing for thirty-odd years? The unifying thing about all of IDW's work has been a complete lack of surprise value in anything because it's all feeding off older stories and characters, not to mention decades of fanfic where all sorts of permutations have been carried out. Maybe one day the writers of both titles will realise this and cut down the massive amount of fake-outs (OMFG, Tailgate's dead dead dead! OMFG, magic sword bullshit!) and cheap reveals which make both titles hilarious soap-operas.

Chugged through Dark Cybertron now, and it was fun in an AHM sort-of way. By which I mean it's amiable tat. The whole universe has a nineties X-Men feel to it where you just sort of roll with things even though you're vaguely aware it's derivative rubbish.

When does early MTMTE stop being early MTMTE? Is this going to be an Animated thing where any year now it'll start being dead good, honest? Cos I'm up to about Book 4 (which is two Watchmens or ninety-odd percent of a Planetary) and it's still glib filler.
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Post by Warcry »

Cliffjumper wrote:When does early MTMTE stop being early MTMTE? Is this going to be an Animated thing where any year now it'll start being dead good, honest? Cos I'm up to about Book 4 (which is two Watchmens or ninety-odd percent of a Planetary) and it's still glib filler.
I'm probably in the minority but I think "entertaining" is a better description of the series than "good". The tone of the book is all over the place, but so far I'd say that Roberts has made the silly filler a lot more memorable than the serious, dramatic parts. The plots have honestly been fairly predictable and repetitive, for the most part, especially when it comes to the tiresome death fake-outs.

The zany characters and wacky antics are definitely what keep me coming back.
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