Public five-page preview:
http://www.newsarama.com/forums/show...threadid=41520
Nevermore's preview:
[Denyer]
Mine's further down the thread, and probably has fewer spoilers if you're bothered by 'em. [/Denyer]
Just got this in as a PDF. IDW gave me EXPLICIT permission to review it, but:
NO SCANS ALLOWED.
Anyone asking for scans will be ignored.
So...
Covers:
Two wrap-around covers included. First one (BotCOn exclusive) is using lots of concept designs by Aaron Archer (not E.J.Su, as I originally claimed), spanning Armada, Energon and Cybertron, plus some REALLY weird stuff. Main focus on the front cover is, of course, Optimus Prime.
Second cover is showing Shockwave. Sorry, no matter how impressive he might look, nothing EVER beats the legendary "Are All Dead" cover.
Intro: "They are among us". w00t, this is for the Australians, eh?

Anyway... the intro text informs us that the Transformers have apparently been on Earth for two years, unnoticed by the general public.
Confirmed characters to appear in this issue are Ratchet for the Autobots, and Starscream, Thundercracker, Runabout and Runamuck for the Decepticons.
Now, on to the actual story.
EDIT: Since some people (NOT IDW!) were complaining that I was spoiling too much, I trimmed down the summary.
So... 16 pages of story are about a runaway kid named named Verity Carter, who steals something which appears to be what the Decepticons are after. She runs into an alien conspiracy theorist named Hunter O'Nion (don't ask), who is confident that alien robots in disguise have invaded Earth two years ago.
We only see Starscream in shadows, plus the Battlechargers and Thundercracker in jet mode. And then there's a certain ambulance with a holographic driver...
Oh, the Decepticons' base is in Oregon. Wee.
Page 17 is a teaser page for issue #1, which shows Ratchet's robot mode. A little blocky, but I like it. Beats the old Marvel model. Plus, he has a red helmet!
Page 18 shows DW editor Chris Ryall in a mech suit (drawn by Nick Roche). He introduces himself and claims his alias is "Chrischarger". Irks. He asks fans to send in mails and stuff.
Pages 19-21 feature an interview with Simon Furman, talking about the new direction he's going to take with "Infiltration", updates on alt modes (Starscream as an F-22) etc..
There's an interesting take on Optimus Prime and Megatron on pages 20-21. Megatron's using a lot of "toy" details, but still manages to look quite impressive. But are miles above Ugh Lee's crap.
The interview states Veritiy's last name as "Carlo". Wasn't it "Carter"? Also mentioned is some guy named Jimmy Pink (UGH!), who's going to debut in issue #1.
Pages 22-33 give us some samples of E.J.Su's artwork and a brief explanation as to who Su is and how he had been involved with Transformers before.
The last two pages feature a) a preview of all four regular covers of issue #0, as well as the two wrap-around covers, and b) the "Optimus Prime wants you!" promo poster we've seen before.
-------------------
How I rate this issue: E.J.Su can draw humans. Wee.

Reserving my final judgment on his take on the Transformers until I see more of them (other than "silhouette in shadows").
Colors are an interesting departure from the Dreamwave photoshop candy colors. Got some more, how shall I put it? "Life" in them.
Writing... need to read more. This is only issue #0, after all. Hope we're actually going to see the Transformers next issue. I don't want to see six issues of talking cars and only have them finally transform on the last page of issue 6.
Overall impression: Wow, an actual story. We actually get introduced to the characters and find out some stuff about the Transformers in this world. Which is more than we got in the DW G1 vol. 1 preview.
Erm, the names... are not good. Really. "Hunter O'Nion"? Its this supposed to be a cue to the online tabloid parody or what? And "Verity"? The hell? And next issue "Jimmy
Pink"? Argh.
Dialogue... Okay, I guess. We get some quasi-swearing woth "Sonofa" and "Geezus". Heh.Though the two characters we get to know (Verity and Hunter) sound kinda exchangeable, which is sort of a Furman trademark.
Oh, and token fat "move on, nothing to see here" cop. Cliché as cliché can.
Overall impression: Looks kinda positive. Focus seems to be the story rather than the art, which is a plus.
One complaint, though: The "mystery" about what the Decepticons are after is kinda predictable after so many years of reading comics. Sigh.
* * *
[Denyer]
Figured I'd throw in this reminder from IDW again:
"Your local comic book shops are now placing their orders for the October titles and that includes Transformers #0 "Infiltration" written by Simon Furman with art by E.J. Su. The 24-page introductory issue is priced at only $0.99 - and with four variant covers it's expected not to last long on store shelves. Don't miss out!"
"Transformers #0 "Infiltration" can be found on page 299 of the August issue of Previews (V15 #8) - Diamond Code: AUG05 2972" [/Denyer]