Comic Review: Windblade (ongoing)

[philby]

I really liked how the issue ended with Optimus Prime being faced with a moral dilemma and acting on it in a way that doesn't directly contradict his core persona. On one hand, if he stood by and did nothing, he would risk Caminus being manipulated by Starscream to their detriment... or he could go to Caminus and allow himself to manipulate the Camini's religious blind faith in defence of their freedom. He's not actively deceiving the Camini by claiming to be a living deity, but he is arguably passively deceiving them by playing along with their beliefs and not at all refuting his godhood. He needs the Camini to believe and worship him as a god if he is to stand a chance to challenge Starscream's influence over Caminus. So he was forced to choose what he believed to be the lesser of two evils -- abuse an entire people's religious faith for the sake of defending those people and their liberty... and in doing so, safeguarding his core belief that freedom is the right of all sentient beings. It was an informed decision and I liked how Windblade didn't want to force Optimus' hand either, even saying that being Starscream's colony wouldn't necessarily be a terrible thing (although clearly not preferable).

so it was kind of like luke using threepio to scare the ewoks in return of the jedi?

[Bidoofdude]

I'm looking to read this on an IDW read through. Is it worth it?

My current list (in order)
-Megatron Origin
-Spotlights
-Drift
-All Hail Megatron
-LSOTW
-TF Ongoing
-Heart of Darkness
-Death of Optimus
-RID Ongoing
-MTMTE Ongoing
-Dark Cybertron
-Windblade

Is there anything else on there I should skip or is not worth reading? I'm wanting to skip the -ation books because they don't seem to be my style.

[prjkt]

The original Windblade series is great, shows an interesting side to Starscream and those left on Cybertron.

I chose to read everything, from the start, as I like to know what's happening. There are hints in the original -ation series to events even as late as Dark Cybertron. Don't forget to read the Maximum Dinobots miniseries as well, that closes off a few loose ends from the -ation series and finishes what Spotlight: Shockwave and Spotlight: Grimlock started.

[Paulbot]

I'm looking to read this on an IDW read through. Is it worth it?

My current list (in order)
-Megatron Origin
-Spotlights
-Drift
-All Hail Megatron
-LSOTW
-TF Ongoing
-Heart of Darkness
-Death of Optimus
-RID Ongoing
-MTMTE Ongoing
-Dark Cybertron
-Windblade

Is there anything else on there I should skip or is not worth reading? I'm wanting to skip the -ation books because they don't seem to be my style.

If you skipped Drift and Heart of Darkness you wouldn't be missing much. Heart of Darkness is so ugly. If you skip the -ation books it'd be a shame, they are great story, although rushed to a climax. Four of the Spotlight comics are the end of the -ation series in fact.

If you do skip the -ation books, you can have my copy of the Transformers Continuum (fairly sure it's still lying about my comic pile somewhere). As TFwiki points out, it's a not a great book and has errors, but it is a summary of everything up to the start of the TF Ongoing.

As for this series, you'll want to read at least the first few issues as they are parts of the Combiner Wars crossover. It's expected that these issues will turn up with wave 3 or wave 4 Combiner War deluxes.

[i_amtrunks]

If you skipped Drift and Heart of Darkness you wouldn't be missing much. Heart of Darkness is so ugly. If you skip the -ation books it'd be a shame, they are great story, although rushed to a climax. Four of the Spotlight comics are the end of the -ation series in fact.

As for this series, you'll want to read at least the first few issues as they are parts of the Combiner Wars crossover. It's expected that these issues will turn up with wave 3 or wave 4 Combiner War deluxes.

Agree with all of this. Skipping the -ations is a shame, but understandable, but make sure you go back to everything pre AHM at some point!

[Bidoofdude]

The reason I don't think I'd like the -ation books is because of the art style, at least what I can see from the outside. Does the continuum cover most of the important stuff?

I was a fan of Dark Cybertron, and what from what I understand, Windblade starts somewhere in there. I'll give the first few issues a go.

Megatron Origin looks really cool as well. I'm always into his development as a character.

[Paulbot]

I got issue one, but have only flicked through it so far. The crossover doesn't particularly grab me and starting a new series with the second chapter of another story seems wrong to me.

The reason I don't think I'd like the -ation books is because of the art style, at least what I can see from the outside. Does the continuum cover most of the important stuff?

I was a fan of Dark Cybertron, and what from what I understand, Windblade starts somewhere in there. I'll give the first few issues a go.

Megatron Origin looks really cool as well. I'm always into his development as a character.

The Continuum book covers all the main plot points broadly, and gets some a little wrong, but is a good cheat sheet if you're going to skip those comics. The Windblade miniseries takes place after the Dark Cybertron crossover. The ongoing Windblade series occurs now in the Combiner Wars crossover.

[i_amtrunks]

Megatron Origin looks really cool as well. I'm always into his development as a character.

Then don't read Megatron Origins. It was a complete cluster.... Of a series that contradicted much of the then current IDW history and required massive retcons and re workings to now fit. Art was nice.

Shame you aren't a fan of EJ Su's art, I always found his work on the -ations books to be some of my favourite, and was one of the many reasons I started reading them to begin with. Sure beat the previously decent Figueora art we got in the ongoing!

If you plan on rewarding the spotlights, read the -ations, it's less than 30 issues and will help a lot with the spotlights which weave in and out of them, plus they all tie back into Dark Cybertron anyway.

[Bidoofdude]

Then don't read Megatron Origins. It was a complete cluster.... Of a series that contradicted much of the then current IDW history and required massive retcons and re workings to now fit. Art was nice.

Shame you aren't a fan of EJ Su's art, I always found his work on the -ations books to be some of my favourite, and was one of the many reasons I started reading them to begin with. Sure beat the previously decent Figueora art we got in the ongoing!

If you plan on rewarding the spotlights, read the -ations, it's less than 30 issues and will help a lot with the spotlights which weave in and out of them, plus they all tie back into Dark Cybertron anyway.

If I ever see them I might give them a flick through. The only art I've actually seen is covers and a few TFwiki pictures.

[philby]

Then don't read Megatron Origins. It was a complete cluster.... Of a series that contradicted much of the then current IDW history and required massive retcons and re workings to now fit. Art was nice.

Shame you aren't a fan of EJ Su's art, I always found his work on the -ations books to be some of my favourite, and was one of the many reasons I started reading them to begin with. Sure beat the previously decent Figueora art we got in the ongoing!

If you plan on rewarding the spotlights, read the -ations, it's less than 30 issues and will help a lot with the spotlights which weave in and out of them, plus they all tie back into Dark Cybertron anyway.

what's wrong with megatron origins? usually the tfwiki has some snarky sarcastic comments about things that were crap or silly but I didn't notice any.

I bought MTMTE vol 1 trade paperback as pretty much my first TF comic and after that started buying the hardcover IDW collections which start with megatron origins. so i don't know what's been messed up (i also don't seem to absorb as much so i may have just missed it...)