You all know the routine! This thread is for discussion of the Ramjet Spotlight issue. Go pick up the issue, come back, and talk away!

Since this is a discussion on the Ramjet Spotlight, people who have not read this issue yet should be aware that there are likely SPOILERS below. Read at your own risk.

 

I liked that the story was both stand-alone, yet you could see where it took place in the story in the breaks provided. By only problem was the ending. Megatron shouldn't smile like that EVER, let alone while being flanked by two other Decepticons, just as happy. It looked campy.

IMO, a better ending would have been same text, but it would have pictured Skywarp leaning against a wall like the last shot, but Megatron just walking down the hall with Ramjet's head in hand, as opposed to making it look like they just posed for a picture.

 

I get the feeling that this was meant to be a stand-alone, campy, cheesy issue. From the Mini-Constructicons (haha satellite radio, "yo R.J.") to the end scene, I'm not sure if they meant this to be completely serious. Either way they intended it, it was still an enjoyable read.

For those wanting more mystery ro more answers to questions, you're not going to get that here. It's stand-alone and really doesn't leave much unanswered. But, it's fun.

On another note, there is *somewhat* of a tie-in to New Avengers/Transformers, in that Skywarp does mention that Megatron has no use for Ramjet since...... (he doesn't finish his sentence). So, there's no official written word that suggests a tie-in. Take Skywarp's comments however you want to take them.

The few lingering questions...
- What happened to Ramjet's device? Last we saw, it was knocked out of Ramjet's hand in the forest and is laying on the ground. Do the Decepticons have it?
- Megatron pulls out what appears to be Ramjet's spark. Is his spark still functional? Could Ramjet be reborn or could his spark be put into a new body (either as the same character or a new character)?
- Will the last surviving Mini-Constructicon be seen again? I sure hope so! Harsh!

 

Don't mess with IDW's Megatron, there won't be much left of you.

 

LOL, Ramjet is a humorous wannabe Starscream that takes himself far too seriously...I wanna see Thrust and Dirge...

So was Ramjet ALWAYS there? It seems like it...

 

Oh this was hilarious! Ramjet had like five G1 episodes' worth of hairbrained schemes in motion at once. Of course, Skywarp the sneaky bastard stabs him in the back and Megatron is there to meet, greet and dismember his traitorous underling.

And of course, traitorous underlings are a time-honored Decepticon tradition. You almost expect to see it on their resume when they apply for employment. Yet another betrayal is in the works in Escalation.

I loved the initial pages, Ramjet giving Skywarp the "plans within plans" speech while flying around the globe. Loved the mini-Constructicons. Loved the Hollywood University facsimile. Loved the full page soliloquy!

And it was a great character insight into Skywarp as well. Sure, he'll play along, humor you. But don't expect anything resembling loyalty unless you are the overwhelming favorite. He screwed Ramjet, ratting him out to Megatron, just as he turned on Starscream in Infiltration. I don't have my Escalation comics here at work. But from his behavior here it seems a huge stretch he'd participate in another coup against Megatron. He's not that stupid.

LOVE LOVE LOVE the art here. Classics Ramjet is a fantastic toy of course and it's great to see it featured here. Megatron must have plans for his spark, hopefully his corpse, and probably a few irons from RJ's fire.

I guess it's true. You DO have to be a masochist like Ramjet to attempt to overthrow IDW Megatron!

 

Interesting take on Ramjet. I love how well he planned things out. He could be an excellent strategist if given the chance.

I love Robby Musso's art in this. I hope we see more comics drawn by him.

 

Wow...just wow...I don't know how to react to this issue! It was money well spent no matter how I look at it. So far, it seems like IDW Spotlight fall into the following categories: Great stories despite not being classically Transformers, Great Transformers Stories, Stories that fall a bit flat but are important in the grand sceme.

Examples of that would be:

Great Non-Traditional Stories:
Kup
Ramjet

Great Transformers stories:
Optimus Prime
Ultra Magnus
Shockwave

Fall a bit flat, but add to plot/universe:
Nightbeat
Hot Rod
Galvatron
Sixshot
Soundwave

Don't get me wrong, I've enjoyed all the Spotlight. Some much more than other's of course.

 

Skywarp didn't really betray Starscream for Megatron in Infiltration. He kind of just laid down arms as opposed to fighting him. He did try to fight him, I think, in issue 5, but in 6, he just knew when not to be stupid.

 

It was Thundercracker that backed down with the rest. Skywarp got blown out of the sky by Megatron. Doubt he's willing to go through that again.

 

You see, I liked the issue. It was a fun little comedy relief story, and I enjoy those every now and again. Ramjet spends the whole story devisng a needlessly overcomplicated plot, complete with jive-talking robo gangstas, only to get his crap dismembered at the end. It was funny.

Stories that advance the overall plot of the series are great, but every once and awhile I like comedy relief stories, too.


Also, glad they kept that reference to Avengers/Transformers as vague as possible. I can ignore it so much easier, this way.

 

MC's = full of win!

(OMG WTF BBQ! if they spoke like teh 1337 hAx0rz!)

Maybe the nano-bots will?    

I never thought much of Ramjet, I still don't, and I enjoyed reading why.

 

It was pretty funny, I thought.

Here's Ramjet, with this massively elaborate plot.

Meanwhile, despite all this, he remains COMPLETELY oblivious to the events of Escalation. He's the Invader Zim of the Decepticons - he gets so caught up in his elaborate schemes at the expense of reality checks.

At least Starscream was always a cool customer (somewhat) - even in G1, whenever he tried some kind of coup, his plans weren't nearly as elaborate as Megatron's.

 

Huh. That was darn good stuff.

As a stand alone story that fit's into the overall continuity, it's a really nice effort by Moore. Very strong dialogue, some of the best from IDW yet. Good characterization, something I wasn't expecting given Moore's performance on the New Avengers crossover bit. It's like the guy has been spending his free time getting caught up on TF lore or something, because on this front he delivers the goods.

And the artwork was fantastic! No problem here telling what's going on, I'll tell you that. This Musso/Burcham effort is crisp, clear, and cool. I hope to see more from this team, as it's some of the best I've seen from IDW.

The plot, though simple, was presented in such a way that I was hooked despite the cliche 'subordinate attempting to overthrow leader" theme. Wasn't expecting that. For a minute there, I actually believed Ramjet might pull it off.

And the Miniconstruciticons were the breath of fresh air that I have been hoping for for a long time. Now that's the kind of characterization I like to see. It shows how dialogue can infuse even characters that last but a few panels with some real character. It's not cookie-cutter characterization, let's just say that.

Pleasantly surprised by this comedic spotlight. I give it an "A-", finding very little not to like here.

 

All in all, I was pleasantly surprised. Excellent, fresh, attractive art from Robby Musso and an amusing, yet interesting story by Moore. Though, I am slightly confused when Megatron wasted Ramjet--is he holding Ramjet's spark or is that an artistic rendition of his victory over another pretender to the throne?

Also, little things like Skwarp's immediate rebuttal of Ramjet's plans and the Hollywood University facsimile were great additons to the story.

 

Robby's take on the designs is good. I wish the planes were drawn more accurately(some of you know me as a rivet counter, but not as diehard as most, even though I seem pretty gung ho about it), but overall, nothing like marshmellows. Ramjet's characterization adds more to his character, I'm glad to know him more than just the conehead leader. The minicon wannabe thugs were funny.

The inks needed some cleaning up, the flow of the story from panel to panel is broken in some sequences. Some of them just seem like excuses to draw Ramjet and Skywarp in different angles rather than advancing the story. This is prevalent during the first 1/2 of the story. The last half of the book doesn't have this problem except for a few panels(Megatron's death blow sequence is a bit difficult to follow, I know whats going on but it lacks clarity, its not instantly clear). There isn't much foreground and background seperation colorwise, due to similar saturation of colors in both. Also, I have not seen anyone else comment on this, but I think cel shading would have worked better than the random textured application of color. Cel shading would provide a more cleaner look to accentuate Robby's pencils/inks, rather than adding a texture on the edges that does not aid anything. It would also help his line work "pop out" more. Aside the color saturation, brush edge textures, and what I mentioned above, the color choices are good, its the application of color that can be refined.

 

I liked it, but I don't think it was anywhere near the best of the Spotlights. I like ones that really tie into the series well, like Galvatron's or Nightbeat's. It seemed a bit too stand-alone-ish, though if Megatron DID keep Ramjet's spark at the end, it may not be all THAT stand-alone...

Art was great, of course. Dialogue was a bit campy at times, but what really made the comic was just the come-out-of-nowhere complete p0WNage by Megatron. That was freaking awesome, especially since Ramjet just gave us SO MANY details about his plan, you'd have thought it was going to have gone further than it did. And Mini-Constructicons FTW.

 

I didn't like this issue. It was boring, not funny and a waste of a Spotlight. Why use a character that you kill off and don't plan on brining back? Worst issue since Nightbeat Spotlight, Megatron Origin, and the Avengers crossover.

 

Was Harrison's car on page 18 a facsimile too?! XD

As far as Easter Eggs go, check out the computer on Page 13! It's the IDW Publishing Forum!

On Page 17, Soundwave appears though isn't he still missing at the time of this Spotlight?

Who is to say that Ramjet is dead? After all death is a very abstract concept when you're a mechanized organism. There were plenty of characters that "died" in the DW universe and came back.

 

He might come back. After all, we all saw Starscream return in Devastation after being PWND to hell in Infiltration.