TFW2005 is proud to provide another early Transformers comic review! Today, we review Last Stand of the Wreckers #5! Last Stand of the Wreckers #5 is out tomorrow – Wednesday, May 19th – from IDW Publishing. Check out the review and a few new images from the issue by reading on. Last Stand of the Wreckers #5
Credits
Publisher: IDW Publishing
Written by: Nick Roche & James Roberts
Art by: Nick Roche
Colors by: Josh Burcham
Letters by: Chris Mowry
Editor: Andy Schmidt
Associate Editor: Denton J. Tipton
Covers
Cover A – Art by Nick Roche and Colors by Josh Burcham
Cover B – Art by Trevor Hutchison
Retailer Incentive – Art by Trevor Hutchison
Review
The biggest thrill ride to hit Transformers comics in years ends with the release of Last Stand of the Wreckers #5. Issue #5 delivers much like the rest of the series, providing even more death, action, and carnage than the first four issues.
As Issue #4 ended, Overlord was set for a face-off against Springer, Impactor, Kup, and Guzzle while Perceptor, Ironfist, Pyro, and Verity debated whether to set off the deterrence chips implanted within each former prisoner of Garrus-9 (including Impactor). The deciding vote on the matter was up to Ironfist, who had just downloaded Aequitas. The primary content of the final issue is, of course, the showdown between the Wreckers and Overlord. How the Wreckers team came back together for the final showdown is explained as well as the big reveal regarding why Impactor was imprisoned in Garrus-9. The story concludes with an epilogue that ties the series back to characters in the ongoing and details the fate of several of the characters many have grown to love during this series. The epilogue also asks a big question which can be touched upon down the road, a question that could tear the Autobots apart during such fragile times as we currently see in the ongoing.
Nick Roche and James Roberts do a splendid job of wrapping up the series, somehow exceeding the efforts from already excellent previous issues. The final battle is gritty and doesn’t back down. The issue starts in grand fashion with a shocking moment and delivers many other surprises throughout the rest of the issue. There are more deaths, but each death has meaning behind it rather than being a simple way to reduce body count. Rather than take the simple way out with the resolution of Overlord’s story, the duo took another route and provides quite an impact when combined with Josh Burcham’s art. Overall, the two provide a feel in this issue that this is indeed the Last Stand of the Wreckers and not just a catchy name to sell some books. For those who like cameos and references, characters such as Flame and Nightbeat appear. The meaning behind the Tyrest accord is revealed as well.
Because the issue is so loaded with content, some items of resolution are unfortunately dropped. While there are some confirmed survivors and deaths, the fate of two Wreckers are not revealed. Given that their damage at the hands of Overlord seems to be less than that suffered by another Wrecker who survived, a betting man would place cash on seeing them in the future. Still, it would have been nice to know if we’ll be seeing them around in the future.
The art duties on this issue were consolidated, with Nick Roche handling art duties alone and Josh Burcham handling colors. The two artists who kicked off this series finished it in grand fashion. The imagery in this issue is outstanding. Nick didn’t hold back in drawing a gruesome battle. A spear in the eye, a face ripped off, a robot ripped in two, a robot skeleton on fire. Josh’s colors accentuate Nick’s art and provide emotion to the feeling surrounding the final battle.
The Land Stand of the Wreckers mini-series is over, but is it truly the last stand for the group? The fate of some of the character does leave the door open for a future return and (dare I say it?) a sequel. If a return or sequel never comes to pass, the team behind Last Stand of the Wreckers can hold their heads up high knowing that they’ve produced the best Transformers comic series in years and one that will be used as a benchmark for Transformers comics years from now.
SMOG
I'm not sure why there would be a distinction. From the Autobot point of view, they're all Cybertronian criminals. Why build 2 maximum security super-prisons, when you can put everybody in one? Simple question of resource management. They might have kept them in a different part of the facility though…
zmog
UltraMagnus3786
I think it's kinda messed up that Autobots and Decepticons were kept in the same facility. I understand that both sides have their war criminals, and that they were probably kept separately, but it was poor management that 'bots and 'cons were both locked up on G-9.
SharkyMcShark
As if they'd kill off Grimlock off panel.
BigPhill
Grimlock was probably hiding or locked up on Shockwave's ship.
Rotorstorm
hmm, every prisoner dead, It's not looking promising for Grimlock.
SMOG
I'm coming too!!
I think it's "Fisitron", being an anagram for Ironfist.
Yeah, that bugged me too… especially the massacre of EVERYONE in G9. It just kind of felt like an EXCESSIVE downer. Though I suppose if a future writer wanted to retcon survivors of G9, it wouldn't be hard. Overlord ordered the murder of all the inmates, but that doesn't mean that it was carried out and that, knowing Transformers, each murder "stuck", y'know?
Possibly, but in context, it seems unlikely…
zmog
UltraMagnus3786
perhaps the "life persists" line is a critique of tennyson more than anything else…
Coeloptera
Dammit. I will see that storyline referenced somehow, if I have to go to the IDW offices with a tire-iron and a handful of pills.
Okay, so is it "Fisitron" or Fistitron"?
But I too found "life persists" to be a bit trite, considering all that happened. In the end, the team took terrible losses, made sacrifices, and all to retrieve and destroy information that Prowl found politically (and for the purposes of morale) inconvenient.
Not to mention the loss of pretty much every living being on Garrus-9 except a swarm of deeply damaged Decepticons. Remember, every Autobot prisoner was killed. Even the defeat of Overlord isn't actually that great a victory, considering that he had already willingly removed himself from the greater conflict for a long time. His defeat changes little, in the end.
A definite downer, but a good war story.
– Coeloptera
Maximo Prime
i've enjoyed the discussion here, especially the dissecting of Prowl.
and while i don't have much to add, i'll just say that this finale actually had me choked up a bit, revolted a lot (in a good way)… and i can't wait to read it again.
One of the best finales i've ever read.
SharkyMcShark
Probably. Roche has said that he wants to experiment with the concept of the wreckers as a rotating lineup
SMOG
Y'know, in IDW, it seems like Kup is actually a really high-ranking Bot… so it's possible that he just kind of goes where he wants and does whatever he wants, with whatever unit he wants to attach himself to…
… so long as Prowl is okay with it at least.
zmog
BigPhill
I think at the time, the Wreckers just needed to bolster their ranks, and Kup and Perceptor were good enough for them after the All Hail Megatron stuff.
Sideswipe1954
You know that is a good question.
Rotorstorm
is kup a member of the wreckers then? he's not mentioned in the epilouge
Sideswipe1954
I thought Perceptor was part of the unit specifically to be near Kup, since they rebuilt his body using the Pretender tech, and in turn making sure his cy-gar was always available which killed the cravings Kup acquired while trapped on that planet in the Spotlight?
SMOG
Yeah, that occurred to me too… however if the thesis/summation of the series is essentially "life goes on", that's still a pretty weak note to end on. I mean, yeah… I get it, but it's still a fairly bland platitude.
zmog
hupla
Since it seems some people dont get "life persists", ill say what it meant to me. I felt the message was about how no matter what may happen to you and the people around, you have to keep moving forward, even though a lot of shit went down on G9 the autobots and verity cant stop and stay in sorrow, they have to keep living, no matter who died.
SMOG
To be fair, he's still alive. I'd describe him as more of a prominent intellectual and media awareness lecturer/author/theorist than a "dissident" really.
I noticed that too, but I wasn't sure if it was a meaningful reference or just an incidental private joke.
zmog
Foster
I think she was paraphrasing Tennyson throughout the issue, penning new articles under the "Fistitron" name, which was used as the issue's narration. My issue is at home or I would research further.
UltraMagnus3786
One more:
Issue #5, Verity has a book on the table of the diner that reads "Tennyson" on the spine. Lord Alfred Tennyson was a poet whose phrases have become commonplace in English, such as "Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all." It's not improbable that he also wrote "life persists."