Has IDW officially acknowledged War Within as canon, since the events in Stormbring, Megatron Origin, etc don't directly contradict Vol1 and 2?
And what's more, events in SPOTLIGHT:BLURR would seem to present a different version of Optimus' ascent to leadership of the Autobots than seen in WAR WITHIN. Possibly even with him succeeding "Zeta Prime" rather than Sentinel Prime, and so contradicting events as implied in Megatron:Origin. Frankly I didn't quite like the style of Spotlight:Blurr, but I did find the cameo by Optimus interesting. zmog
Well, Ratbat having his spark ripped out and stuck in one of Soundwave's tapes kind of contradicts vol. 2 where he's humanoid again and leading the Predacons.
I think War Within deserves a much better toy line than just the titaniums. The designs in this comic are fantastic !!!!!
I thought it was pretty clear that IDW and Dreamwave are two separate universes, so I don't see why IDW should recognize War Within. That's sort of like trying to mesh the G1 cartoon and comic.
IDW has its own backstory, as told in Megatron Origin and in Spotlight Blurr. It semi-contradicts itself (though if you think about it, I'm sure there's a way to get it to sit together), but that is canonical to that universe. War Within has one huge flaw that keeps it from being canon - Combiners exist in the Dark Ages, when they clearly cannot exist at that time (Omega Supreme had the only combiner Monstructor imprisoned the whole time). That means that the Dark Ages does not fit with the overall structure of the IDW universe. The first War Within also shows the rise of Optimus from a data clerk, which he clearly is not in either Megatron Origin (he seems to be a peacekeeper with Ariel and Magnus) and in Spotlight Blurr (where he's a battlefield commander. Optronix had never seen a battlefield before getting the Matrix).
OK, thanks for this clarification. I'm catching up with TPBs and it was suggested to me that WW is kind of a loose backstory, but obviously theres some contradictions. I know IDW and DW are seperate, but the names and faces are the same so its no surprise that even if a few details don't match up, a great deal of it does, and could have happened in IDW. still, as a standalone book I'd gladly pass WW on to any new fan, in the same way that Superman The Movie is a good introduction to Superman, even if its events aren't exactly something you'd need to follow Superman comics...
Whoa... when did Optimus show up in Megatron Origin? I don't remember that at all! I never really liked the Optronix origin War Within. There's no "hero's journey"... he's just a pencil pusher who gets a magic upgrade, and suddenly he's Optimus. Besides that, he's such a brooding, whiny, negative sulk before AND after he gets Matrixed, that it's hard to imagine him inspiring anyone. He certainly didn't earn his respect. zmog
Its no better than Orion Pax..."Hey, look the Decpticons they're so cool cause they fly. I wanna be just like them. Hey, mighty Megatron can I join!" Blam! Pax gets wounded, AT turns rebuilds him into pre-matrix Prime, and suddenly he's kickin all types of Decepticon ass. At least, Optronix had some understanding of the War before becoming Prime.
During the funeral in the second or third issue, there's a huge gathering of Autobots. He's there without his traditional helmet but you can tell it is him because he looks a bit like Orion Pax. He's stood next to a white version of himself (Magnus) and he's got his arm around Ariel (yeah, which contradicts the whole "no females" thing)
Indeed. I never liked the Orion Pax origin either, for the same reasons... no hero's journey, no history, no development or earning of his wisdom and status. It's all about magical wish fulfillment for little kids, which to me conflicted with Prime's wise father-figure presence. Like Darth Vader, the evolution from early days, into the character we recognize, should be a story unto itself, not an instant transformation from whiny kid to deep-voiced icon, that happens when you get mortally wounded, and rebuilt by your mentor. Ah, so it was one of those sight gags/cameos that were all over the place in the art for Megatron:Origin, regardless if they made any sense in continuity. I'd be inclined to discount that as an artist's inside joke, rather than a solid piece of canon (since nothing in the script identifies the characters). But that is sort of funny. zmog
My favourite "Optimus Early Days" is still that as told by the Marvel UK comic. I enjoyed "State Games" and "And There Shall Come A Leader". Good stuff.
If you define heroism by violence, then let's see: he beat the crap out of a bunch of Decepticons sent to ambush him (twice), and defeated Megatron. Optimus Prime wanted to evacuate the Autobots from Cybertron to limit the cost of lives and damage caused by the war, but the Matrix showed him that if the Autobots packed up and ran, it would only spread the war across other worlds, so they stayed for both the hope of victory and to keep the war contained for as long as possible. It was their responsibility as Autobots. Grimlock seemed to respect him by the end.
The only clear continuity lines i see are these: Megatron Origin>War Within Spotlight Blurr>AHM and everything that Furman has written in the IDWverse ties into itself. War Within has plot holes when you try to tie it into the -ation series at any rate, but i still sort of see its premise as being a likely concept for Furmans particular universe. (personally, i want to see more Stormbringer-like stuff)
See that's it. He had a big power-up, he beat on some guys, and his first instinct was to quit. The whole development and ascension just seemed antithetical to "epic", and didn't make him into a character I liked terribly. Prime shouldn't be a sulky whiner, nor should he become "Prime" in a flash of plot devicey goodness. It just rubbed me the wrong way... I liked his humble beginnings, but there wasnt' enough of a transition for me. zmog
Trying to take them offworld to limit the losses is a sound idea though. Flawed, since he'd have let Megatron turn Cybertron into a warworld, but from the point of view of a number-cruncher, it made sense. That said, his little bit in Spotlight Blurr was right on the money, and harked back to the Optimus Prime seen in the old Marvel comics who declared "Never Surrender!" and led a charge against innumerable Decepticons.
