IDW Character Depth

[Jinto]

NOTE: This post does not contain plot spoilers for the comics, but it does mention some of the characters that get more screen time than others and in which series.

During it's first season MTMTE shone the spotlight on many characters that don't usually get a lot of air time. Swerve, Tail Gate, Rewind, Skids; these guys have all come from relative obscurity (to general fans and especially within the IDW-verse) to fan favourite characters, thanks to pivotal roles and amazing writing by the MTMTE team.

I think this is fantastic (can't get enough of Tailgate & Skids) but I also think it highlights how the previous comic runs have given short shrift to the majority of even the 'A-list' cast.
Take Soundwave for instance. I've read pretty much the entire IDW TF run (except Hearts of Steel, but come on...) and I feel like I hardly know the guy. I know who he is, what he's like, etc, but the writers behave as if I already have the whole story on Soundwave. Aside from a couple of half hearted "oh, yeah, he did 'X' before the war" morsels we don't really know him except that yup, he's super dedicated to Megatron & the Cassettes.
Even in RID, I feel like I'm finally getting to know Starscream. Not just see someone who remembers how they were portrayed in a cartoon in the 80's. It's excellent.

Who else would you like to see become more developed as their own person, not just riding on what we're already supposed to know from other media?

[GoktimusPrime]

This isn't something that's entirely new. During the 1980s comic writers often looked at characters that weren't as prominent in the cartoon (e.g. Skids) or didn't even appear in the cartoon at all (e.g. Jumpstarters, Deluxe Autobots, all post-1987 toys ). And even some characters who did appear more prominently in the cartoon were simply given more interesting characterisations in the Marvel Comics (e.g. Shockwave, Grimlock, Scorponok etc.). But I totally agree that it's fantastic how IDW have decided to focus on previously lesser known and/or lesser developed characters -- like Thundercracker... the one Decepticon with so much character potential from his original 1984 toy bio that no previous TF writer had ever tapped into before! And I absolutely love how IDW's Overlord is based on Hasbro's Overlord (as per his Hasbro toy bio), not Takara's!

As for which characters I'd like to see... geez... where to start? There is still a wealth of characters from G1/G2 to choose from. Hubcap comes to mind. He's the one G1 Mini-Bot who's had the least amount of characterisation (well, and Bumblejumper ).

But this is also why I'm personally not a massive fan of non-toy characters like Ambulon, Rung, Tyrest and the Decepticon Justice Division -- the DJD would be a lot cooler if they were made of up an assortment of toy-characters (much like the Decepticon Mayhem Attack Squads in G1). Okay, it turns out that Ambulon and Rung needed to be invented ... but surely Tyrest and the DJD could've been existing toy characters.

[Paulbot]

Bumper got a spotlight in a couple of issues of the Dreamwave Ongoing and popped up in Megatron Origins. I think that means he had more appearances and lines of dialogue in (western) TF fiction than Hub Cap's ever got.

The recent Soundwave spotlight in RID was good at fleshing him out, so much more so than the actual Spotlight Soundwave comic!

One problem I have with MTMTE (and I have very few) is that the characters, while great, sometimes don't reflect the G1 bios at all - or if they do it's at a very long stretch. And sometimes that's because of other factors, like when they swapped Powerglide out and Tailgate in, Tailgate picked up the habit of exaggerating his role on pre-Ark Cybertron which would have fit Powerglide better. In some cases they may as well be new robots entirely. I woudnt mind a few more little nods to their G1 bios showing up.

[GoktimusPrime]

^This is true. I really love characters like Ultra Magnus, Overlord and Thundercracker because they were so true to their toy bios. Then there's characters where they've picked up the toy bio and ran with it well beyond the scope of the bio, but not necessarily against it - e.g. Whirl. His toy bio describes as a crazy and reckless nutjob, but IDW went and made him a completely amoral sociopath! But then there's other characters whose personas are departures from their toy bios, but are arguably still interesting characters in their own right, such as Swerve: originally described as a craphouse driver with ADHD; IDW have made him into "Class Clown" (i.e. someone who likes to make everyone laugh to hide deep seated insecurities)... in a way he kinda has Hubcap's personality, only without the nastier aspect (i.e. untrustworthy con artist).

[bassbot]

I LOOOOVED the RID two-parter that focused on Soundwave (issues 21-22 I think) and found myself totally feeling for the guy.


Swerve has become my dearly loved favourite character and I hope he still has some great moments in MTMTE season 2!

I personally do not mind at all if more non-toy characters show up because you can really see the freedom that comes from that, and then with guys like the scavengers who have roots in G1 and toys are also so amazing. So, I say just let James go for it!

[GoktimusPrime]

I personally do not mind at all if more non-toy characters show up because you can really see the freedom that comes from that, and then with guys like the scavengers who have roots in G1 and toys are also so amazing. So, I say just let James go for it!

But then how can we incorporate these characters in our toy play??? That's the one thing that truly frustrates me with non-toy characters.

[Jinto]

But then how can we incorporate these characters in our toy play??? That's the one thing that truly frustrates me with non-toy characters.

Maybe you need to take up kitbashing, Goki!

[Gouki]

Repurposing works, too.

[Jinto]

Repurposing works, too.

Yup. Beast Hunters Optimus Prime is my IDW Magnus. I'd like to give him some blue paint touch ups when I get around to it but he fits the bill very convincingly.