Comic Review: Transformers (2019-) #4

Transformers (2019-) #4

IDW

Writer: Brian Ruckley

Artists: Sara Pitre-Durocher, Angel Hernandez, Andrew Griffith

Issue 4 of Transformers puts a lot of focus on some of the minor characters that played a role in James Roberts’ More Than Meets the Eye. I hold that series to be the gold standard of Transformers media. With that in mind, I do feel that it’s a little unfair to compare it to Brian Ruckley’s new series. But this issue introduces one of MTMTE’s staples and the funeral of another. It’d be easier to take Transformers on its own if it wasn’t currently the franchise’s only major comic. With that in mind, I should mention that MTMTE had one of the eventful, competently written first issues I’ve ever read. One that set up nearly everything that would come afterward in a nonintrusive way. Meanwhile, Transformers is still idling its engines four issues in and it’s hard to say where it’s going.

To its credit, Transformers #4 is a big improvement over the last issue. The hunt for Brainstorm’s killer finally takes an interesting turn when Windblade and Chromia try to take Cyclonus in for questioning. The haunted veteran has become a hermit but clearly let’s know that he’s letting on. The old warrior was one of the most compelling members of MTMTE’s cast. And that was the book’s strong point, to begin with. Ruckley’s rendition isn’t too big of a departure from that interpretation. However, this Cyclonus lacks the intimidating presence and softer qualities that made the latter version so endearing. Transformers clearly has in more in store for the bot. Unfortunately, like so much else in the book, the character has been slotted into a fairly obvious role that draws too heavily on common tropes.

Transformers #4 does have one of the best scenes in the series, the birth of a new bot. It’s depicted as a momentous event and lends Cybertron the guise of being a functional society without abandoning the series’ roots. The same goes for Brainstorm’s funeral, which delves into the religious strife on Cybertron. It also hints some more about the missing Termagax. Even with all the great work the recent IDW books did, non-combat related issues are still woefully under-examined in the Transformers franchise. I hope this series puts more emphasis on the cultural dynamics going forward. Up until this point, it’s been overly concerned with largely aimless, insular drama.

While the art still has room for improvement, it’s certainly better suited to the sort of story Transformers #4 tells than those of previous installments. This issue also brings aboard two artists, Sara Pitre-Durocher and Andrew Griffith. They handle lighting, emotion, and really everything else much more competently than the regular artists. To Angel Hernandez’s credit, his art conveys the scale of the crowds that dictate so much of issue #4’s story. Unfortunately, the art is still generally lacking. Almost every other Transformers comic I’ve picked up the last few years has had remarkably good art, so it’s unfortunate to see the reboot break that trend. And I’m starting to think that goes for the writing too.