Sneak Peek - IDW Transformers: Revolution One-Shot iTunes Preview

Reasons why Thundercracker is my favorite seeker part.... some large number

Y'know, it's a real lesson in context when Marissa Faireborn is now the most sensible and logical person in the room.

Also, HOORAY for the return of our favorite part-time screenwriter!

Finally, back to the good characters! Been meaning to see how Thundercracker's been dealing with the whole being an autobot thing. And Soundwave allying with them. And Revolution in general.

And it's nice to see Faireborn too! I was getting a bit sick of GI Joe in Revolution. Faireborn's at least fun. Not my favourite, but I like her.


AND they're fighting against dire wraiths? Suppose Revolution can be redeemed yet. Partly. In some parts.

Synopsis
THEY CAME FROM MICROSPACE! What terror reaches through the tendrils of entropy into our universe—and why does ROM want to kill it? Meanwhile, M.A.S.K.’s MATT TRAKKER makes a startling discovery about the TRANSFORMERS—but will G.I. JOE’s SCARLETT believe him?



Story

Is this review a week late? Yes, yes it is, my apologies. I'm sure that whoever was wanting to read the third issue in the core story of Revolution has done so already - if you're a fan of any of the other franchises involved, make sure to check Tigertrack's guide to who this book might appeal to here - but nonetheless, we have a series to follow, a rep to maintain, and finally a spare afternoon to catch up!



And, admittedly, there's not that much more that can be said as we hectically stumble across the midpoint in the story, really. There was some brief discussion at Seibertron HQ, and the points raised are essentially the same as for the previous two issues: a lot of new material, a lot of old material reused, not enough space, time, or any other dimension to allow it to fit properly.



If, on one side, the Micronauts are finally close to finding out the much larger world out there - i.e. here - the fact that they are now part of that wider universe also waters down the charm that the title had kept while operating more or less on its own. They have yet to properly interact with the rest of the IDWverse, but I'm dreading what might happen at this point.



The biggest sore note in Barber and Bunn's script, I'm sorry to say, is still GI Joe - and in particular, Scarlett. They have been proven incompetent, non-existing, pointless, replaceable, and the result? They're all angry, or sassy, or mouthy, or angry caricatures of the already tropey ensemble that they risk to be given the nature of their original characterisation.

Art

Much like the previous two issues, Fico Ossio's art has some wildly swinging reactions, in terms of consistency, in terms of clarity, in terms of getting the newly developed designs (which I still like!) to shine on the page instead of just making them flashier and bolder. Again, it's a shame, because the style can really work if taken at a slower pace and more neutral layouts.



Similarly on the colours: Sebastian Cheng does some excellent work with lighting, and shades of different colours according to light sources, environments, characters and adding some sheen and chrome where it really can work - but I can't help but feel that sometimes it's just a little too vibrant, tripping into flashy for flash's sake.



I also still have nothing else to add to the stellar work - that follows suit from the previous two comments - that Tom B. Long does on the lettering, not only following the visual narrative, but helping out with character and voice establishing too. And as for the covers, there are at least 8 variants (the thumbnailed one by Brandon Easton), and they're all worth a look, for sure! Make sure to check them out where you can.


Thoughts
Spoilerish ahead

As I said above, I have very little to add to previous comments that staff have made about the book, in the previous two reviews. If anything, we now have virtually all players on board for the ride, so it can only move forwards from here - with the final two issues, somehow. A lot of story, a lot of characters, a lot of patience to keep up with something that is not as engaging as it really wants to and deserves to be.



I am actually going to say, though, that one of our comics readers on staff made an extremely good comment on the boards, and I'll use it to close off this review. Kurona, take it away:

it feels like some sort of labour of love; some well-intentioned fans of these series who wanted to do something awesome and bring them all together in some ultimate universe of great team-ups and diversity and all around fun. But then they had no clue how to do it and hastily ended up writing something really generic and disappointing.

This is what it feels like to me. Like someone had a really great idea and was really excited to do it but fell short at executing it. I can't say I feel rage at the guys behind this; just... a lot of pity, honestly.

Gotta say, I feel the same way as Kurona. I just hope that when this unholy mess is done with, the TFs can go back to normal with Optimus Prime, Lost Light and TAAO continuing on their original courses and quietly ignore the "Revolution".

The next book to tie in with the IDW Publishing Revolution crossover event is the John Barber/Andrew Griffith The Transformers series, wrapping up (for now) the presence of Cybertronians on Earth - with a good dose of Thundercracker and Buster (plus Bob, DOC, and Marissa Faireborn). Check out the full preview via Comics Alliance below, and head back to Seibertron.com next week for our review!

Transformers: Revolution #1
John Barber (w) • Andrew Griffith (a) • Marcelo Matere (c)
THUNDERCRACKER AND BUSTER SAVE THE WORLD! A DECEPTICON who wants to be a screenwriter. A dog who wants to, I don’t know, eat stuff and chase squirrels or whatever dogs want to do. A White House under siege by DIRE WRAITHS. And the phone call that brings them all together.
FC • 32 pages • $3.99

In other IDW Publishing news, and still in the Revolution event, we follow Windblade to Earth as she joins the other Cybertronians already present, and as the link between Titans, Primes and Microspace is explored in all its tiny but giant ramifications. Check out the iTunes screenshots below!

WINDBLADE ON EARTH! The mysterious link between METROTITAN and MICROSPACE threatens to tear two universes apart, and only WINDBLADE has a chance to heal the Titan… and there she learns a terrifying secret that changes the stakes of the REVOLUTION.

yay for all

I see Thundercracker has been catching up on his Seinfeld recently. Excellent!

Shuttershock wrote:I see Thundercracker has been catching up on his Seinfeld recently. Excellent!

I answer the phone the same way when it's obvious who it is & they're (predictably) frantic about "nothing." The reactions are hilarious, but people rarely get the reference.

And so the rest of the preview continues to prove the Thundercracker one-shot is going to be the best thing about this event. Trust him to do so :')

And Windblade's should be fun too. Nice to see an actual Torchbearer not combined. Maybe we can get around to giving them some personality soon?

Wait, if the human government is aware that dire wraiths exist doesn't that put ROM out of a job?

A good Thundercracker story is always good, and this one looks to be just as cool.

And that artwork for TAAO is interesting

ricemazter wrote:Wait, if the human government is aware that dire wraiths exist doesn't that put ROM out of a job?

It didn't when they found out in the Marvel book. They still have no idea how to tell who's a Dire Wraith and who's not.

And, uh. Earth is one planet. Apparently they're spread out through the entire universe.

iTunes has provided us with a new preview, this time for Revolution #4! This sneak peak picks off right where #3 ended, and in a special way. With the silent Snake Eyes taking center stage, the whole 3 page preview is done in the "silent" form with only the art speaking for itself, and no speech bubbles to be found. It is unclear if the whole issue will follow this suit. Check out the full preview below.

SILENT INTERLUDE! One human has the skill to break into AUTOBOT CITY—but what is SNAKE EYES going to do when he finds himself face-to-knee with OPTIMUS PRIME? And outside, MILES MAYHEM and the M.A.S.K. team wait to see who walks out alive…

looks great

Not entirely sure how much of a fan I am of the... very heavy artistic liberties on Victorion.

And poor Jazz still doesn't have a new arm

So, with regards to the comics that came out this week:

Transformers: good read and a nice send off to the title. Thundercracker remains a great character that I enjoy, and his little animal team was adorable. Wonder where Sunstreaker is though? But combining has made them friends, which is fun for me. the whole Dire Wraith thing felt like it came out of nowhere, but apparently Revolution #4 is supposed to help with that. the fact that so many were in the White House was an issue was well. Plus, that one dude totally had his fingers ripped off, metal. Storytelling did feel a bit rushed and there were lots of jokes, but overall I liked it.

Action Man: I thoroughly liked it. The Iron Giant made the whole comic for me honestly. Plus, we're finally getting around to the point that people are liking Transformers, realizing they are living things, and that Mayhem is slime. Plus, Action man + Kup + Mayday = revolutionaries set up. Spike and Talon felt completely useless in the story though, like they were obligated to be there but there was no effort to make them mean anything. they were just annoying and grumbling.

Both good, both somewhere between a 3 and a 4 out of 5 for me.

Synopsis
THUNDERCRACKER AND BUSTER SAVE THE WORLD! A DECEPTICON who wants to be a screenwriter. A dog who wants to, I don’t know, eat stuff and chase squirrels or whatever dogs want to do. A White House under siege by DIRE WRAITHS. And the phone call that brings them all together.



Story

I am still catching up on schedules and timings, so apologies for the slightly late review again! And, with that out of the way, a word of warning: I have not had the easiest time with this comic or its review. I spoke to other staff members, and took a look around other readers to form a better idea of it. I'm still unsure about some aspects, too. BUT - read on for more!



The Transformers ongoing dips its toes in the Revolution pool by letting John Barber bring us back to one of the unsung heroes of the series, Thundercracker - and it's definitely the most apt choice that could've been made for the setting and plot: Earth lover, dealing with Earth issues and truths and things that may not be what they seem.



The device used in the script - using the infamous Josh Boyfriend screenplay as running introspective commentary - is well placed, and nicely executed. Sometimes, however, I felt like some of the action was forced for the sake of a joke or a twist in the words, and it jerked me out of the enjoyment. On the other hand, we also get some very nice Faireborn characterisation, and some good moments with sounboards Buster, DOC, Bob, too.



The plot itself, while obviously not irrelevant, is nothing to write home about, and the book truly is about Thundercracker's place in the conflict, in the story, in the factions, and in relation to the characters around him since we've seen him return in the IDWverse. But for me, sometimes, that doesn't land fantastically. Yet more thoughts below.

Art

It's good to see the other hand responsible for this incarnation of the big blue back in action on the title, and Andrew Griffith brings all of his experience into the visual side of the book, with some great layouts and accompanying presence to the wordings - including some of the human features that I still at times find a little off putting (some of the jawlines, mainly), though never too distracting.



A relatively new colour collaborator joins Griffith on the book: Teyowisonte Thomas Deer. We've seen in on covers and in action on Till All Are One, but the style he uses with this linework is more muted, perhaps a little grittier and definitely fitting the Dire Wraiths plot side of the story - and a pleasure to watch, really. Some of the contrasts in palette are top notch.



Lettering wise, we also have a new name: Gilberto Lazcano. And he really does bring it all: the screenplay captions, the Dire Wraith dialogue, the differences in volume and the sound effects are incredible, and incredibly well balanced, something that is very much needed with this type of issue. And of course, we once more have a whole lotta covers, so you can pick and choose, from Matere to Griffith and Lafuente, to Christiansen to Ramondelli (thumbnailed), to Tyndall and Moss, via Coller and Bove.


Thoughts
Spoilerish ahead

The script device, while amusing and introspective as I said above, can also lead to some crowded panels, and the visual team are good at making sure they're not over crowded, but still. It got in the way at times, and I kept thinking something was off - though I still cannot figure out what or why (there are definitely some editing issues, that much is true).



The dialogue is good, but the words are busy; the art is busy, but it does everything pretty much right; the lettering, the colouring, the layouts are clearer than what the script might create, and the story is impacting the Revolution plot somewhat tangentially, and it leaves a great hook for Thundercracker from here on. So please bear with me as I try placing my finger on what didn't work for me.

I loved it personally. Easily the best thing out of Revolution so far - it's funny, it advances the plot, it has characters that are fun and I actually care about, there's none of the trite let's-me-and-you-fight-over-stupid-shit-even-though-we're-obviously-gonna-end-up-allies that has made Revolution such a bad read... this is great. I loved it.

Kurona wrote:I loved it personally. Easily the best thing out of Revolution so far - it's funny, it advances the plot, it has characters that are fun and I actually care about, there's none of the trite let's-me-and-you-fight-over-stupid-shit-even-though-we're-obviously-gonna-end-up-allies that has made Revolution such a bad read... this is great. I loved it.

I know that's what it was, and by all means and reasons I should've loved it too. But I didn't. And I cannot figure out why.

Dr Va'al wrote:

Kurona wrote:I loved it personally. Easily the best thing out of Revolution so far - it's funny, it advances the plot, it has characters that are fun and I actually care about, there's none of the trite let's-me-and-you-fight-over-stupid-shit-even-though-we're-obviously-gonna-end-up-allies that has made Revolution such a bad read... this is great. I loved it.

I know that's what it was, and by all means and reasons I should've loved it too. But I didn't. And I cannot figure out why.

I can certainly see why it'd fall flat for someone too. It has all the ingredients it needed to be great - great characters, great dialogue, great art, great... an okay story for those to play on - but it was kind of... a bit overcooked? I don't mind that because if my fish is a little burnt it's okay, but it's definitely not gonna taste as great as it could have been.

Coming next week is the fourth part in IDW's multifranchise crossover Revolution, and we have Snake Eyes and what's left of G.I. Joe taking centre stage, and some odd timeline clashing (as the GI Joe one-shot hasn't happened yet) - check out below the full preview for Revolution #4, via Newsarama (kinda), and head back here for review after its release!

Revolution #4 (of 5)
Cullen Bunn & John Barber (w) • Fico Ossio (a) • Tradd Moore (c)
SILENT INTERLUDE! One human has the skill to break into AUTOBOT CITY—but what is SNAKE EYES going to do when he finds himself face-to-knee with OPTIMUS PRIME? And outside, MILES MAYHEM and the M.A.S.K. team wait to see who walks out alive…
FC • 32 pages • $3.99

Bullet points:
Variant cover by Ken Christiansen, part of a 13-part connected cover!

I really don't like the art that much here. I was ok with it at the beginning but Arcee oh Arcee

D-Maximus_Prime wrote:I really don't like the art that much here. I was ok with it at the beginning but Arcee oh Arcee

Yeah to me Arcee's face looks like an angry man with lick stick here with this art.

I mean I guess she was a man (Thanks Simon Furman) but still.

Can we just agree that we're all ready for Revolution to be over at this point?

BombshellDaBug wrote:Can we just agree that we're all ready for Revolution to be over at this point?

Kinda... but at least the upcoming MTMTE and Windblade Revolution one-shots look nice. Soothes the pain.

I reread the Thundercracker issue again today, and I figured out what's off about it (at least for me). Simply put, Thundercracker and Faireborn are DICKS in this issue. We've definitely seen both of theses characters being rude, sarcastic, and generally pretty antagonistic to everyone around them, but they still usually come across as two of the more genuinely 'good' characters in the series. In this issue, they are too concerned with joking around and being clever, to the point where they both needlessly endanger other people just to set up a joke.

The review mentions that the script spends goes too far out of its way to set up clever moments, but I think it's even worse than that, because the characters are the ones doing that. I don't like TC just because he's funny; I like him because he's pretty much the only Transformer who really cares about people, and it's a shame to see Barber forget that in one of his most important moments in the spotlight.

That being said, I do agree that this is easily the most entertaining thing that Revolution has produced so far, and I do love the cheesy jokes even if they are off-putting.

You may have a point or several there, CaptainMagic!

Another comic due next week is the one-shot issue of Transformers: Till All Are One, part of IDW's Revolution franchise crossover event, as written by regular Mairghread Scott and featuring art by Naoto Tushima! Check out the full preview below, and head back here for a review after its release.

Transformers: Till All Are One: Revolution #1
Mairghread Scott (w) • Naoto Tsushima (a) • Sara Pitre-Durocher (c)
WINDBLADE ON EARTH! The mysterious link between METROTITAN and MICROSPACE threatens to tear two universes apart, and only WINDBLADE has a chance to heal the Titan… and there she learns a terrifying secret that changes the stakes of the REVOLUTION.
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Bullet points:
· Only WINDBLADE can heal the ailing TITAN—but what is his secret?
· Featuring OPTIMUS PRIME, ROM, and much, much more!
· Variant cover by Ken Christiansen, part of a 13-part connected cover!

Oh shoot.

Kurona wrote:Oh shoot.

This might be one of the few interesting things in the Revolution, based on what I've gathered.

MagicDeath wrote:

Kurona wrote:Oh shoot.

This might be one of the few interesting things in the Revolution, based on what I've gathered.

Micronauts and the Thundercracker one-shot are the only things worth it so far imo. TAAO and MTMTE are promising to me, though - admittedly mostly because both books have been tremendous so far imo.

Kurona wrote:

MagicDeath wrote:

Kurona wrote:Oh shoot.

This might be one of the few interesting things in the Revolution, based on what I've gathered.

Micronauts and the Thundercracker one-shot are the only things worth it so far imo. TAAO and MTMTE are promising to me, though - admittedly mostly because both books have been tremendous so far imo.

Well, I generally don't read the comics (Although I do like what I've read about them), and I'm too young to remember when these franchises started, so...

What I was getting at was that a good amount of the revolution has not been well-liked, and an obscure reference is always usually a good sign.

You probably figured as much with that last bit, though.

MagicDeath wrote:

Kurona wrote:

MagicDeath wrote:

Kurona wrote:Oh shoot.

This might be one of the few interesting things in the Revolution, based on what I've gathered.

Micronauts and the Thundercracker one-shot are the only things worth it so far imo. TAAO and MTMTE are promising to me, though - admittedly mostly because both books have been tremendous so far imo.

Well, I generally don't read the comics (Although I do like what I've read about them), and I'm too young to remember when these franchises started, so...

What I was getting at was that a good amount of the revolution has not been well-liked, and an obscure reference is always usually a good sign.

You probably figured as much with that last bit, though.

If you've liked what you've seen, I'd definitely recommend them if you get the chance. MTMTE is a pretty good fresh starting point with very few reading order diversions (though the crossover is a pain)

But yeah, definitely agree

Synopsis
WINDBLADE ON EARTH! The mysterious link between METROTITAN and MICROSPACE threatens to tear two universes apart, and only WINDBLADE has a chance to heal the Titan… and there she learns a terrifying secret that changes the stakes of the REVOLUTION.



Story

We return the world of Till All Are One - which is pretty much the whole universe, given the presence of the Council of Worlds - for this one-shot of IDW's Revolution crossover, only to find out that while the universe out there is much bigger than it seems, it is also much smaller too - and may hold bigger revelations than we thought.



Some of the lines in this issue, storywise, were vaguely spoiled by the release order of Revolution being off - and we had the Micronus/Microverse reveal in the Micronauts books. And yet, despite knowing where things will end up, Mairghread Scott brings a well-rounded exploration of Windblade's character as a refraction of the universe she inhabits.



As a diplomat, City Speaker, ambassador, and tentative believer, Windblade has been placed in a number of fairly heated debates since her introduction - but here, we finally see once more act as intermediary between powerful, and potentially dangerous, factions, interacting with the Microverse's facets and the events happening in her own space.



There is some very good material being offered, in terms of dialogue, characterisation (not just for Windblade, but also Shazraella, Micronus Prime, and even Optimus to an extent), and a penchant for darker twists to a story of diplomacy and compromise for greater goods. And I have one extra thought on that last point, below.

Art

Artist Naoto Tsushima, infamous in the Transformers art community for his NSFW work, has reigned in enough of his potentially unsavoury skills - especially for this type of book and narrative - resulting in a seriously stunning and craftily creepy series of pages, including a wonderful deconstruction splash page for Windblade herself.



On the colouring side, DAI-XT coordination with the artwork adds an extra dollop of creepy vibes, with a choice of fairly cold palettes, even in the red/pink accents and the excellent grey scales that make up that splash page - which I realise now is also a really interesting parallel with the explosion in the original Windblade run.



While there is nothing overly fancy with the lettering, it is its usual crisp, clean, good fonted work by Tom B. Long, which is always a pleasure to see alongside nice art. We've shown all the covers - Pitre Durocher and Deer's, and Tsushima and DAI-XT's - with the different previews, and you can check them out again in our database entry for the issue, except for the Ken Christiansen one in the thumbnail. And they're all stunning, actually.


Thoughts
Spoilerish ahead

The whole team involved does an excellent job at conveying the delicate balance that Windblade is trying to achieve between four realities (at least) while also still coming to terms with her own place in relation to them - and her identity. The splash page on that point is marvelous.



While there is a good line of enquiry to follow - at some point about - Scott's penchant to place Windblade in ..well, inquisitive contexts, with Starscream-esque parallels in the questioners (literally, in this book, too), there is also a definite dark streak to compromises, deals and greater good. I'm calling Madoka Magica, here, for the record.

Dr Va'al wrote:Artist Naoto Tsushima, infamous in the Transformers art community for his NSFW work

Pretty sure that's Hayato Sakamoto who's infamous for that stuff, not Naoto Tsushima.

Shot Put wrote:

Dr Va'al wrote:Artist Naoto Tsushima, infamous in the Transformers art community for his NSFW work

Pretty sure that's Hayato Sakamoto who's infamous for that stuff, not Naoto Tsushima.

I wouldn't quite call Sakamoto's work "NSFW". "Cheesecake", yes, but it's not full on X-rated porn. Something more like Kiss Players (for its first storyline) would better qualify as "NSFW", and we have Yuki Ohshima to thank for... that.

Naoto Tsushima, on the other hand, is known for many AWESOME TF works, including The Battle of the Star Gate, the RobotMasters manga, the Henkei! Henkei! manga, Transformers Animated: The Cool, and more.

Sabrblade wrote:

Shot Put wrote:

Dr Va'al wrote:Artist Naoto Tsushima, infamous in the Transformers art community for his NSFW work

Pretty sure that's Hayato Sakamoto who's infamous for that stuff, not Naoto Tsushima.

I wouldn't quite call Sakamoto's work "NSFW". "Cheesecake", yes, but it's not full on X-rated porn. Something more like Kiss Players (for its first storyline) would better qualify as "NSFW", and we have Yuki Ohshima to thank for... that.

Naoto Tsushima, on the other hand, is known for many AWESOME TF works, including The Battle of the Star Gate, the RobotMasters manga, the Henkei! Henkei! manga, Transformers Animated: The Cool, and more.

They are both unsafe for workplaces. Most definitely so.

Again, while there's been a lot of controversy over Sakamoto with that stuff, I recall seeing zero for Tsushima.

ok so I'm a little confused (ok a lot confused) IDW has this listed as between Revolution #3 and #4 in terms of reading order, but it clearly takes place before #3 (by which point Windblade is already on earth), to make matters worse...this just came out this week when it should have came out before, or at least the same week as Revolution #3. I guess they really don't care about confusing their fans much...

o.supreme wrote:ok so I'm a little confused (ok a lot confused) IDW has this listed as between Revolution #3 and #4 in terms of reading order, but it clearly takes place before #3 (by which point Windblade is already on earth), to make matters worse...this just came out this week when it should have came out before, or at least the same week as Revolution #3. I guess they really don't care about confusing their fans much...

It's a prequel that requires context from previous Revolution issues to understand entirely. It's just non-chronological order.

Hey, for those looking for the Revolution #4 review, it will be going up within the next 2 hours or so. Been a bit busy and am still working on finishing it up. But it is coming!

Synopsis
SILENT INTERLUDE! One human has the skill to break into AUTOBOT CITY—but what is SNAKE EYES going to do when he finds himself face-to-knee with OPTIMUS PRIME? And outside, MILES MAYHEM and the M.A.S.K. team wait to see who walks out alive…



Story

Well, we've reached the next to last issue, the one where we generally get the majority of the major reveals of the whole storyline. The one where the ending will leave you wanting more, with the heroes on the ropes and the bad guys all standing tall in place for their final victory. And, in the case of crossovers, the place where everything generally all comes together.

In some of those respects, Revolution #4 did not disappoint.

The entirety of the Crossover is finally revealed, with everyone falling into place and everyone's adventures finally crossing their final paths, set for the big-named characters conclusion (well, save one that only appeared very briefly so far). At least with regards to bringing everyone together for that big ending, the story has worked out and is good. And the ending of the issue does make you want issue #5 to be here soon.

So, why am I not in love with this comic? Let's take a closer look...



I can understand the difficulties of bringing together multiple big-name characters and making them all coexist alongside one another. I've seen it done well, and I've seen it fall flat. There is a very specific rhythm you need to set, a very precise way to make the gel that holds it altogether. Unfortunately, this crossover has just not done that. Getting everyone into the comic feels too forced, too clunky, and it is throwing in way too much to handle within the pages of the book itself. It feels rushed at times, underdeveloped at others, and overall just a bit too crazy for my liking. The ordering of the releases is not helping matters either, considering some important expositions have been revealed after they were needed and in some cases entire releases being spoiled by stuff coming out first. It's just not working for the Revolution storyline as a whole.

Art

Art duties have been taken up by Fico Ossio, and there are some places in the book where the art really works and it looks pretty nice. The Micronauts benefit from Ossio's style of art, and ROM and Snake Eyes are not bad either, and considering both do get a fair bit of exposure in the comic, there are some good highlights.

But then there are other parts that just don't work at all. I'm not sure why, but most of the Cybertronians in this issue feel too far removed from their regular designs. Victorion, Arcee, and Windblade in particular feel off this issue, with Arcee being a recurring art difficulty throughout the crossover. It just feels too organic and too stylized for me to like. And the faces are not turning out too well either. Some of the Joes - mainly Scarlett - also suffer a bit in the artistic department, which is strange considering how well the Micronauts have come across.



Sebastian Cheng joins in on coloring duty, and he does a pretty good job of adding some extra spice to the pages, so to speak. His backgrounds do work well, such as the starry night seen below, and the big double-spread battle sequence is helped out by his colors setting parts of the action apart. I particularly liked his work with the Dire Wraiths, despite how bland they are supposed to be.



Tom B. Long takes up lettering duty, and does not fail to keep the story moving as well as it can with his speech bubbles. The conversations from the viewpoints of the Micronauts are particularly good, seeing as how they give us some good perspective on not being able to understand a single noise others are saying.



You can also check out a full database that shows off all the covers for this issue (as there were many) as well as a list of all the others who helped contribute to Revolution #4, art and otherwise!

Final Thoughts



As I said before, there is some stuff to like about Revolution, and let's face it: a large crossover with big names does sound like a cool idea. And there are some things that are coming out of the event well (I'm still trying to decide if Action man is better off for not being in this, considering how well his Revolution comic went and I do like him). But as has been said for a couple reviews now, it is just not working out as well as it should have and could have been. This should have been the Avengers of the Hasbro properties world. It could have been a big thing that jumpstarted a comic, continued another excellent comic, and given life to some new comics. Instead, it feels clunky, off, and more like a chore to read than an enjoyment.

I will finish off reading Revolution, but I cannot wait to get back to regular comics. I just wish I could have gotten the enjoyment out of the crossover it truly did deserve, like I did with Transformers: Revolution and Action Man: Revolution.

The art for the Transformers in the 'main' Revolution books is a poor fit for the characters. The plot should be fun, but isn't. It's too busy taking itself seriously to be fun.

There are so many characters that none are a focus. Not one. Who is this story about, really?

The dire wraiths don't feel like a serious threat, especially now that they're all out in the open sort of? They're hard to follow, and I blame that on something else: the layouts. These books are legitimately hard for me to follow. There's so little plot but it's spread over the pages in such a helter skelter way that it sometimes takes re-reads to figure out what the hell is happening in what order.

I'm very interested to see how 2 and 3 sold compared to the first issue, which sold a big mess of copies for IDW. Then again, with the brands involved it might just sell by default.

I'd like to be positive about something though now. TAAO was good. Real good. Character building, actual peril, teases that make me want to read on, visceral imagery, things happen in reasonable order, and it moved some overarching plots along while giving nice context to others. I thought Tsushima towed an excellent line and never went into "sexy" territory, at least not to me. Scott knows the character so well at this point and this was a great spotlight on her. Though I do have to say that they need to give her penchant for self-sacrifice a rest for a little while. That just happened in the TR one shot.

Finally, TF Revolution was also good and I wish the main Rev books were more like that. Josh Boyfriend saves the world, and Thundercracker helps too.

That panel where Optimus shows up leading the Autobots, ROM, Snake-Eyes and the Micronauts into battle just sums up what I feel about this crossover.
That panel? It should feel friggin' awesome. A badass team-up of badass team-ups. You've got Optimus, you've got ROM, you've got Soundwave, you've got Snake-Eyes, you've got these Micronauts dudes who while not iconic, I've really grown to like in their own comic.
... but it falls flat when you start thinking... why are they suddenly teamed up? The Autobots and ROM, sure, they've allied. But... but why the Micronauts and Snake-Eyes? Why did they team up? Why are they fighting alongside Prime? Where's the explanation, where's the getting past animosities; where's them saying more than one friggin' sentence? It's just so frustrating; like... like they got the beginning and end nailed but failed to show the actual journey.
And you know what? I feel the same way with the Dire Wraiths. Outside of Thundercracker's own little spin-off I didn't get any build-up to them, they're just... they're here now, I guess. They've got Ore-13 now, I guess. They're allied with Miles Mayhem, I guess... what is going on? Did I miss something? Was it in the individual franchises' issues, because surely I should just be able to get the basics of everything from the numbered issues themselves.
This thing is so frustratingggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggg






Windblade issue was good though. Kudos.

By the way, everyone saying this - I know that's the purpose Revolution is for, and it's supposed to be able to be a jumping-on point for every series involved... but please, Primus above, do not recommend anyone interested in the IDWverse to start with Revolution.
I've read everything of IDW from Death of Optimus Prime onwards - aside from the Autocracy/Primacy/Monstrosity stuff, and the side prose stories - and Revolution is bar none the lowest point it has ever gotten.
I'm not gonna act like modern IDW has been a perfect run. Dark Cybertron was a bit of a bore for what it was and annoying to slog through just to continue the otherwise excellent two series involved. Combiner Wars was frustrating as all heck and interrupted so much just because Hasbro decided to shove their advertising full-force into a series which was benefiting from having that in minimum supply. All Hail Optimus was... not as good as it could have been.
But y'know what? All the problems of those pale in comparison to Revolution. I'd read Dark Cybertron as many times as I could in 24 hours before looking at Revolution. I'd ask for a thousand other to-sell-toys fueled arcs like Combiner Wars - which up until now, was the worst point of modern IDW - before wanting something like Revolution to happen again.

Revolution is a generic mess of an Avengers wannabe which, while perhaps fueled by good intentions, is nowhere near the incredible heights IDW has shown us Transformers fiction can reach. Tell anyone interested to start with MTMTE, to start with Windblade; for god's sake tell them to read Combiner Wars but don't get them to start with Revolution. Because I honestly can't think of a bigger way to turn someone off the comics.

Kurona wrote:and the side prose stories

There are only a couple of these and they are really good! I recommend them.