Hey guys! I'm fairly new to Transformers fandom, and I'm burning for more content. Yesterday, I was leafing through my small collection of comics and came across my sole Tranformers comic, "Spotlight: Wheelie". I picked it up on a whim, and absolutely loved it. Now, I know there's a lot of different comics from a lot of different companies, including standalones, miniseries, and ongoing series-- and I have no clue where to begin. So, where should I? What are the best Transformers comics ever produced? What are the classics any newbie should enjoy?
Subjective, of course, but a mixture of "best ever" and "classics": - Simon Furman's run on the Marvel US G1 and G2 comics - Issues 56 - 80 of the Marvel US G1 comic and issues 1 - 12 of the Marvel US G2 comic. Collected in the TPBs Primal Scream, Matrix Quest, All Fall Down, End of the Road, Dark Designs and Rage in Heaven. The G1 stuff is Furman's "Unicron" arc in the comics and, IMO, the best run of TF comics ever. There's a bit of continuity from issues 1 - 55 of the Marvel US G1 comic that comes up, but reading those issues isn't vital to understanding these stories (and, TBH, 1 - 55 are generally pretty bad). - Dreamwave's G1 Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye profile books - Eight individual issues that have been collected as a two-volume TPB set. The character profiles borrow heavily from previous profile series and the toy/cartoon characterizations, so they're a great way to get to know the TFs. There's a little bit of DW continuity interspersed in them, but it can be easily ignored. - Target: 2006 - Another Simon Furman story, this time from the Marvel UK G1 comics. Collected in the TPB of the same name. Furman's first story involving time-travel and Galvatron and, IMO, the best one before the whole idea started getting convoluted. - IDW Infiltration and Escalation - The first two miniseries from IDW, collected in TPBs of the same names, that took a fresh approach to the TF war and presence on Earth. Good reading, with the caveat that the story starts going off the rails in the next mini-series (Devastation) and crashes and burns by the end (Revelation). - Dreamwave G1 TF ongoing series (Issues 1 - 10, IIRC) - Some of the best art TF comics have ever seen, with an interesting plot that had a lot of potential. Worth checking out for a taste of some of the best of DW, but with the caveat that virtually none of the plot points will ever be resolved due to DW going tango-uniform. Not sure if this was ever collected in a TPB.
I don't buy many comics, but if you're a fan of the movieverse, I would like to recommend The Reign of Starscream. It's a 5-part miniseries telling what happens directly after the first movie when Starscream permanently offically takes command. It's got a lot of characters from the movie line (Dreadwing being a personal favorite of mine), and is definitely worth a read. Also, the TPB features an art gallery, concept sketches, character bios, and a commentary section where the writer Chris Mowrey reveals a lot of cool Easter Eggs and references, both obvious and subtle.
Totally agree with the above recommendations. I would start with the Marvel comics first but be prepared for some very wacky stuff in the earlier issues. Things pick up after Simon Furman's run. I would follow that with Dreamwave. A pity that the company folded because some of the later story arcs were really interesting and good. I really liked the idea of a "unified" Cyberton which Shockwave managed to achieve while the original TFs were on earth. IDW starts off very well also. The build up of the tension was pretty good. One of the arcs that lead to the revealing of Megatron was good and the subsequent showdown with Optimus. After that it felt too rush for me.
You might aswell begin at the start of the IDW stuff. Its easier to get a hold of than the older stuff and its more relevant with the spotlight comic you mentioned. Infiltration Stormbringer Escalation Devastation
Hmm. I'd recommend you picking up a few more Spotlights first, rather than investing a bunch of money in TPBs or tracking down older back-issues. If you're still interested, follow the recommendations above, by all means. I've always loved the comic universe! I'd check out Spotlight Shockwave, Kup, Jazz, Grimlock (a sort of sequel to Shockwave), and Soundwave.
Wow! Thanks guys! These are some great suggestions. I really appreciate it! I know my friend has a bunch of Spotlights-- and I'll start looking for those early Marvel collections you guys brought up. Thank you again!
