I tried looking up some info myself, but I ended up really confused and not any closer to the answer I was looking for than before I started... What I'm wondering is, where do I start? I really want to read the stories in the comics, but there seem to be so many continuities that I don't know where to start. I'd like to read the original G1 story which, I believe, was published by Marvel, and I've been hearing good things about stuff IDW has been publishing. Are they related at all or is IDW something new entirely? If someone could point me in the right direction I would be really appreciative. Also, I went to my local comic shop and did not find ANY Transformers comics. Are they available online anywhere? Thanks in advance!
IDW is something new entirely while still holding many of the original G1 aesthetics and characters. You're still following the G1 characters, though it's in a different continuity, and some develop in interesting ways. The comics you will want to be reading are Transformers More than Meets the Eye, and Robots in Disguise by IDW (mtmte and rid are the common abbreviation for them). I'd start with MTMTE first, though both series occur simultaneously and eventually crossover around issue 23 each. This is the reading order I- and I'm sure many others would recommend. These first three are a trio of miniseries that don't necessarily have to be read in order, but they are highly recommended as they are very important to the plot of More than Meets the Eye. Last Stand of the Wreckers #1-4 (Also highly recommended for quality) Drift #1-4 The Transformers (ongoing) #22-#23, dubbed "Chaos Theory" That's where the real fun begins, and probably the best jumping on point for the ongoing comics. The Death of Optimus Prime (oneshot that leads into both series) followed by: More than Meets the Eye #1 - 7 More than Meets the Eye: Annual More than Meets #8- #22 Spotlight Trailcutter Spotlight Hoist It's around this point the series crosses over to the Dark Cybertron event, where if you're interested, you may want to catch up on the concurrent series Robots in Disguise. But like Mtmte, there are a few issue that are recommended reading first for some context on the later stories. These are: Spotlight: Shockwave Spotlight: Wheelie Spotlight: Optimus Prime Spotlight: Arcee Spotlight: Megatron The Transformers (ongoing) #25, #27, #29, Dubbed "Police Action" Spotlight Bumblebee The Transformers #31 RID follows after the first issue of MTMTE, only chronicling the events and characters on Cybertron while the former chronicles a group of 200 Autobots travelling through space. Robots in Disguise #1-#9 Robots in Disguise: Annual Robots in Disguise #10-#22 In terms of the 80s Marvel you really just might as well buy the US collections. They read really quickly and are all pretty straightforward. When it comes to buying them, if you can't get them at your local comic shop then there are some apps such as Comixology where you can download them on your phone or tablet. Otherwise you can purchase the TPBs and issues off of Amazon.
Great advice already given, but if you want to get into Marvel, in addition to the US collections, check out the UK collections (Transformers UK ran concurrently and somewhat independently of the US book). Good stuff, and each collection has a ton of extras compiled by the very spiffy James Roberts.
Also, once/if you get into the modern books... ask for 'em at your local by name. If they won't get them for you- find a new shop!
I started at RiD#1. I didn't find it that overwhelming, it establishes the status quo and most of the characters are familiar; the ones that aren't are just as unknown to you as the cast themselves.
This. All of this. Though prepare to be emotionally slaughtered. You will walk away feeling things for characters you never thought you would ever feel. Digitally you can get the comics at Comixology.com Or if you want to buy the physical trades, check out BookDepository.co.uk (free shipping worldwide).
All Hail Megatron follows which issue? Cause I remember reading a bit of it and as I was reading the Autobots at the time claimed that they lost the war and there on Cybertron, while the Decepticons creating havoc on Earth
yeah there is like a 3 year gap between revelation/maximum dinobots and all hail megatron that wasn't ever really fleshed out
Well said. You will completely lose track of the fact that these are robots as they are fleshed out better than most human characters in other superhero books.
Personally, I started from the very beginning of the comics, and I feel that gives a much wider feel the world, and makes it feel a lot more storied than just starting with the latest stories. However, if you aren't a completionist or just want to get to the best stories, I recommend starting with all hail megatron, then continuing on in the reading order. While AHM and the ongoing arn't all that great, it makes it a lot easier to understand what's actually going on. As for how to get your comics, I recommend ordering the trade paper-backs from an online store.
This too, Roberts is amazing. To the original poster, it is hard to figure out where to start. There are probably 3 paths I could recommend. 1. Start at the very beginning. Go all the way back to US Marvel issue #1. The art is nowhere near as strong as what you get today, but some of the stories are excellent. I highly recommend the first 14 issues of the US run. I especially love the first 12 issues, as the Autobots really get put in some difficult spots, and go up against seemingly no-win situations. I love those stories, as that's where you see some amazing heroism and you see what characters are really made of. After issue 14 it starts getting a little odd and uneven. I highly recommend the issues involving the deaths of Optimus and Megatron, and then the Powermaster return of Optimus in issue 43 (?). You can get most of these in trade format. I would not necessarily recommend reading the entire run, you can start with the first collected edition or two, then if you enjoy it keep going. I think the run started strong, became uneven and then ended strong. The Matrix quest storyline and issues 75-80 are great, with issue 75 being widely regarded as the high point of the US run because it involves the battle with Unicron. Most of the run was written by Bob Budansky, who is one of the fathers of Transformers. Simon Furman, the regular UK writer who is also one of the gurus of Transformers picks up the torch later in the run. 2. Start with the original UK run. Get the "best of the UK" trades that are available. These are written by Simon Furman, who does a terrific job and writes some very memorable stories involving time travel, Unicron, and other great elements. There is a lot of fun to be had here, and some very good characterizations. Furman does a very good job of making the characters into living beings, rather than simple mechanical robots. 3. Start with the modern IDW stuff. If you go this route, I would probably recommend starting with the "ation" stories. The first story is "Infiltration." If you like that, then continue forward with the different trades. Infiltration is a good modern jumping-on point, as you get introduced to the Transformers world through some human viewpoints and learn in that fashion. If you like each chapter, it will take you through Furman's run and into the more current stuff with McCarthy, Costa and Roberts. That would include "All Hail Megatron" and MTMTE. Although there are outstanding stories like "Last Stand of the Wreckers" out there, I initially found it confusing as I am a US G1 fan and I don't know the Japanese characters very well. While I was vaguely familiar with the character Overlord, I didn't know who he was when he was first introduced in LSOTW. Also, the Wreckers featured prominently in the UK comics of the 80's and 90's, and deservedly so as those stories are fantastic. However, being a US G1 guy, I did not become familiar with the Wreckers until much later when the UK stories started getting re-printed and became more available in the early 2000's. Anyways, hope this helps, and have fun!
I introduced some non-TF fans to MTMTE and they said this very thing. They're now completely invested in the series and the characters. I think if non-TF fans with no knowledge of TF jargon can hop on MTMTE as a starting point and still follow along and enjoy it, OP should have no problems with it.
We know the major events, but in some ways no major events happened that really need that much addressing. Think of the G1 cartoon, you didn't really need to know everything that happened between the end of season 2 and the start of the movie. Sure, it'd be cool to know all the ins and outs, but nothing major other than the Autobots losing Cybertron happens. Either way, the current stories in the comics are pretty far removed from that era. Although the current plot in RID is definitely tying back to All Hail Megatron.
