Comic Review: Go-Bots #2

Go-Bots #2

IDW Publishing

Writer and Artist: Tom Scioli

Tom Scioli’s second issue of Go-Bots paints a vision of the uncannily Transformers-like toys that is as dark as it is accurate to the original cartoon. The villainous Cy-Kill leads a Go-Bot revolution against their human makers. Only a handful of the sentient, vehicular machines and their human “owners” stand against him. Throughout this struggle, the Go-Bots participate in gruesome moments that are still in line with the original kid-friendly image of the property. The actions are horrific, even if the visuals are pretty tame. Some moments, like a Go-Bot opening fire on a restaurant, another hurling someone into a power line, and the machines destroying each other’s faces, are shocking no matter how they are presented.

Scioli’s art and writing in Go-Bots #2 capture the feeling of playing around with your toys as a kid. They end up in absurd and, in hindsight, disturbing situations. It ends up reflecting real-world issues, albeit dressed up in bright hues and stiff movements. Scioli’s art emphasizes the unwieldiness of the Go-Bots, channeling the original toys.

Where most Transformers adaptations have nearly always made changes to the characters’ designs, Scioli embraces the aesthetics of the Go-Bots toy line, warts and all. That decision further plays into the “toy” aspect of the narrative. At the same time, it’s only palatable thanks to Scioli’s strong grasp of comic book storytelling. His use of the designs and their interactions with the surroundings gives them a sense of motion and weight that would otherwise be completely absent.

Go-Bots is fully committed to its premise. It’s the fully realized dark side of messing around with toy soldiers in a sandbox. And no one was a master storyteller in elementary school. The characters are still one dimensional, regardless of whether they are human or mechanical. Even its central plot isn’t particularly complex. It overtly discusses the ethics of science, the cycle of oppression, and technology’s role in society. But the execution is admittedly shallow. Once again, all of this plays into the specific tone Go-Bots seems to be going for. Brightly colored robots have trouble parsing these sorts of complex, real-world issues. But there’s a good chance that’s Scioli’s point.

Scioli is certainly a master of his craft but like much of his work, Go-Bots has had an acquired taste. His art uses modern techniques to resurrect archaic conventions. The same goes for his writing. If you can take Go-Bots at face value, you’ll be treated to a surreal experience. His art might be far from what’s popular in mainstream comic books but there is a complexity and passion to it that’s hard to find. Unfortunately, that means Go-Bots isn’t entirely compatible with the tastes and expectations of modern comic book readers. But that’s the fault of an increasingly jumbled medium and not Scioli himself. Go-Bots asks a lot from its readers but it does that for a reason.