IDW Transformers Vs Terminator 1 Review

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This is a special week in the world of Transformers comics because not only are we getting two books, but these two books are the last we'll be receiving for a while.

And one of them happens to be Transformers Vs Terminator, a book that intrigued quite a few. I know it intrigued me. The fact that the now legendary Transformers artist Alex Milne was attached to it, made it even more of a must check out. And now it's here and while I am still just as intrigued to see where it goes, the first issue didn't really do it for me.

My main issue here is that the first issue is very derivative, on purpose. It's basically just a retelling of the terminator lore, filled with the typical lines so that someone can say "oh, he said the thing!". It didn't make for the most engaging read.

I much prefer the first few pages which were already shown to all in the preview which show the future all out war of Transformers vs Terminators, featuring new Transformers designs by Alex Milne.



Speaking of the art, that opening is also where we see the most bots and thus where Alex Milne shines most. Now don't get me wrong, Alex Milne is as fine an artist as they come, but he has this amazing skill for depicting Transformers which really make him stand out compared to everyone else. However, when it comes to humans, there isn't as much in the style that makes him stand out.



Also, while he does aim for Sarah Connor to look like Linda Hamilton, I did not realize that the terminator was supposed to be of the Arnold variety. It could be Michael Beihn as much as it could be Arnold (which is actually what I thought they were going for at first, like some sort of switcheroo) or Duke from GI Joe. So that iconic Terminator aspect, which the script is clearly going for, is lost in the art too. When I read the panel you'll see below, I realized the author was hoping we'd been reading the Terminator's dialogue with Arnold's accent but the art never gave us indication of that so it took me out of it. It's like the nuts and bolts of the comic suddenly appeared and I saw a writer inserting some dialogue to make up for them not being able to get the rights to an actor's likeness.



Just a side note, I did find it interesting that the Terminator drives an Optimus Prime looking truck in this issue, smashing into cops, when the T-1000 drove a "nemesis prime" deco of a similar looking truck in Terminator 2, while dressed as a cop.





The final splash page is enough to have any fan want more, I just wish the first issue as a whole felt more meaty rather than just going through the motions to get to that final page. It was an average issue overall so I'll give it an average score.



This issue is out today, March 25th, and you can pick it up at the Seibertron.com eBay store or at your local shop, check here to find the closest shop to you, but you may want to call to get their operational status before making a trip.