Comic review: Robots in Disguise ongoing

[Paulbot]

(Please post comments or even a fully comprehensive review - these are just brief details)

Comic review - Transformers Robots In Disguise
Creators - John Barber (writer), Andrew Griffith (artist)
Publisher - IDW
Retail Price - AU$4.50 (approx) per issue (US$3.99)
Page count per issue - 22 pages
Series length - Ongoing
Released - January 2012 to
Collected edition(s) - TBA

[Paulbot]

The book gets off to a good start with Issue 1 but not as great as MTMTE #1 did. The cast is smaller so far, but the introductions seem a bit shallower. It doesn't feel like something brand new but rather a continuation of the regular ongoing. This is not necessarily a bad thing.

Bumblebee continues to grow into leadership in a very difficult situation. Prowl is not used as effectively as in the other book and I've got a good guess on who his ruthless partner is. The US version of Metalhawk is an interesting new character too but is far removed from the Japanese version. I did like the use of Ratbat as the former senator aims for control, and I think that's partly because I liked the out of the box thinking that made him commander in the Marvel comics.

The art is nice (although Horri-Bull looks an odd shade of yellow).

The issue tries to raise the stakes in the last few pages, but it's not as compelling as the adventure and interesting new takes featured in MTMTE. Overall if MTMTE hadn't been so good I would consider this a good book but it is currently the weaker of the two.

[kup]

The book gets off to a good start with Issue 1 but not as great as MTMTE #1 did. The cast is smaller so far, but the introductions seem a bit shallower. It doesn't feel like something brand new but rather a continuation of the regular ongoing. This is not necessarily a bad thing.

Bumblebee continues to grow into leadership in a very difficult situation. Prowl is not used as effectively as in the other book and I've got a good guess on who his ruthless partner is. The US version of Metalhawk is an interesting new character too but is far removed from the Japanese version. I did like the use of Ratbat as the former senator aims for control, and I think that's partly because I liked the out of the box thinking that made him commander in the Marvel comics.

The art is nice (although Horri-Bull looks an odd shade of yellow).

The issue tries to raise the stakes in the last few pages, but it's not as compelling as the adventure and interesting new takes featured in MTMTE. Overall if MTMTE hadn't been so good I would consider this a good book but it is currently the weaker of the two.

Nice review!

Although MTMTE is better than RID, would you still say that they are within the same league?

[Paulbot]

Of the two issues? No, MTMTE is all around better, but RID is a step up from the early issues of IDW's ongoings. It wants to be 'mature' and deal with politics but how well that will work? James Robert's writing finds interesting tweaks on TF concepts that make each of his issues a joy to read. This doesn't really say anything new, nor is it as outright entertaining. Omega gets a funny line but it's otherwise missing some fun to it.

[kup]

Of the two issues? No, MTMTE is all around better, but RID is a step up from the early issues of IDW's ongoings. It wants to be 'mature' and deal with politics but how well that will work? James Robert's writing finds interesting tweaks on TF concepts that make each of his issues a joy to read. This doesn't really say anything new, nor is it as outright entertaining. Omega gets a funny line but it's otherwise missing some fun to it.

Just a step up from the early issues of the previous Ongoing? To me that is still classified as horrible as the Ongoing was like the worst trash I had ever read in a comic. It made the McCarthy issues look like a literary masterpiece. They were what made me give up on IDW.

I am asking because I really want to get back into reading TF comics but don't want to be disappointed once again as I was with IDW's previous offerings. MTMTE was superb and it reignited my interest in TF comics, I don't want it to be trashed again..

[Paulbot]

I think just stick with MTMTE, this issue deals with some of the fallout but the two should be independent enough that you could just read one book.

As far as the RID cast is concerned Rodimus and his crew all died when the ship blew up when they departed and are unaware it jumped into transwarp (and Metalhawk is pointing the blame at BB among the Nails) so there shouldn't be any overlap.

But also see what others have to say. My hopes were high so I think that has biased my review.

[i_amtrunks]

Local store are blaming Australia Day for not getting their stock on shelves today, so no comic for me until tomorrow night.

Not expecting as much for this issue as MtMtE, but then again my hopes for that series are lowere now I know that Roche is not staying on the series, I know the quality of character will slide a bit.

This was always going to be the harder sell, but also has the potential to be very interesting as long as Prowl remains the conniving, controlling factor he has been since Roche got his paws on him.

[Paulbot]

The problem is that in this issue Prowl seems to be pushed around, by Ratbat, the deputized Decepticons, by his shadowy agent, rather than in control. That's the impression I got on my first read anyway.

[kup]

The problem is that in this issue Prowl seems to be pushed around, by Ratbat, the deputized Decepticons, by his shadowy agent, rather than in control. That's the impression I got on my first read anyway.

Looks like I may have to bite the bullet and buy it just so that I can make up my mind about it.

[Sky Shadow]

Robots In Disguise #1 is a very good comic book. Yes the story is not as strong as More Than Meets The Eye #1, but it's still leagues beyond anything Mike Costa has ever written or will ever write. There's an '80s Budiansky/Furman feel to the title's focus on characters not from the core US G1 cartoon cast - Needlenose, Horri-Bull, Broadside, Ratbat and Metalhawk all get speaking roles, while Soundwave, Shockwave, Bombshell et al are eerily-silent window dressing. (On page nine, I chuckled at the fact that superfluous Decepticons stand around on platforms like they're on toy collection shelves.) Ratbat doesn't do too much this issue other than use reverse psychology, but we know he has a plan. Back with the Autobots, Regular IDW readers will recognise Prowl's partner in ruthlessness and their interaction does an amusing job of lampshading and retconning Costa's limp characterisation of everyone's favourite love-to-hate Autobot police car. This is not a decompressed comic - stuff actually happens, but it's still clearly building up to something in the next issues. It feels a lot like Marvel US #76 - Optimus Prime is gone, the Autobots and Decepticons are in a precarious truce of sorts, Cybertron is angry, a Decepticon Headmaster Junior is picking fights and Prowl is trying (and failing) to control everything. (Being like #76 is a good thing - those final five issues of the US Marvel comic are amongst the best Transformers issues ever produced.)

Andrew Griffith's art is fantastic - it's clear and crisp, and characters are identifiably themselves. Artwise, this title is set to be the stronger of the two ongoings since Alex Milne is taking over art duties on More Than Meets The Eye and his Transformers tend to look like constipated Gundam mecha (see his cover for #2 of MTMTE where it looks like he's trying to crap on Rollout). The only thing I'm pissed off about regarding the art in RID is that in the issue immediately before this one (The Death Of Optimus Prime), Sideswipe was in his G2 colours (and with his trademark bandolier of bullets.) They've already gone back to Sideswipe's Geewun colours, which is disappointing, but not Griffith's fault. Sadly IDW editorial is as strong as ever - there's already a typo by page 8 ("Autobot's" should be "Autobots'") and the preview for next issue reads "CYVBERTRON WILL RISE AGAIN!"

So now with two main ongoings per month and Autocracy in the gaps we're pretty much back to weekly G1 Transformers comics. It feels like the eighties again.