Tom Scioli & John Barber Interview - IDW Transformers vs. G.I. Joe #1

Bleh

This is a quiet week for Transformers comics, in terms of new IDW Publishing output. Here at Seibertron.com, however, we wanted to make sure to give you the full sequential art coverage, and, before issue 1 actually hits stores next month, we went back to review the Free Comic Book Day Issue #0 of the new Transformers vs G.I. Joe ongoing!



“Some missions are so secret, so sensitive, so serious that as far as America’s concerned--they never occurred. The agents sent on these classified missions are code-named Seibertron Comics Staff.”

---INITIATE REVIEW(ish) THING

As the saying goes, ‘these are not your father’s ________________’ -fill in the blank with whatever pop culture item, sports team, or ‘other’ that might be relevant at the time’ In this case, it’s ‘GI JOE VS. TRANSFORMERS’.

Tigertrack - TF VS. G.I. JOE or JOES VS TF (whichever is your slant) have had several incarnations over the years that have seen print, and even a few more that have not.

Va'al - (It's technically Transformers vs G.I. Joe..)

TT - Fine fine.

While not really moving either of the franchise’s further ahead in their respective universes these crossovers have proven to be fun elseworld stories, generally ‘what if’ type situations, that have left both franchise followers feeling less than satisfied asking several questions, including: why do they continue to do this?

The newest comic crossover between these two siblings may perhaps come closest to creating the feeling I had when I would play with and display my GI JOE and Transformers toys together when I was a child, and represents perhaps a very real portrayal of what I might have been thinking the story might have been like. I’m not quite sure if that is meant to be a compliment or not.



V - See, I think that was my problem with this comic: I have never really been any part of anything that had something to do with G.I. Joe, despite the two franchises being so close through the years. It made it harder for me to assess what Tom Scioli and John Barber were trying to do plot, story and context-wise.

STORY

The FREE COMIC BOOK DAY ‘prequel’ sets up the future ongoing. One part Transformers to three parts GI JOE, this comic is more of a Joe-centric story than a TF story. The beginning of the book introduces Bumblebee and Starscream, and how they seemingly get themselves sprinkled into the middle of the final results of another COBRA threat that GI JOE is working bravely to thwart. But don’t let that fool you. The COBRA and GI JOE action is the main part, and Starscream and Bumblebee are only minor pieces of the pages they are in, seemingly unimportant to the actual threat of the creeper bombs that COBRA is about to unleash.

V - And here I felt that it was more of an introduction to G.I. Joe for readers like me, who have very little clue about the franchise. So while I'd agree it's more G.I. Joe in content, I'd say it's trying to appeal to regular Transformers readers - so it needs to say very little about our favourite transforming robots. The issue introduces many GI JOE and COBRA characters, using almost infodump-y tiny file cards as a means to share names and specialties. And jokes. And plot points. So many cards.



TT - I like your point about it being an introduction to joe for TF fans, I often felt it was the transformers that drove (hah!) the stories and GI joe was there to get a boost or feed off TF popularity.

The story itself seems to take place before many of the characters are quite who we knew/know them to be yet. Duke is a ‘rookie’ who is constantly hitting on Scarlett ala Ripcord from THE RISE OF COBRA. Scarlett is possessed with taking down the COBRA COMMANDER. Snake Eyes is not yet mute or mutilated, he’s actually a very vocal, veteran leader. Other Joes from different parts of joe history show up like Doc, Roadblock, Wild Bill, Ace, and Bazooka.

ART

V - Now, the artwork. Tom Scioli is doing everything, from layouts to pencils to inks to colours, and is explicitly referencing a Kirby-esque Silver Age (debated term, but let's use it anyway) style of art. The facial expressions, the dots, the shadowing, the dots, the backgrounds - all the elements are there, undoubtedly.



Does it always convince? No, not really. But I enjoyed it nonetheless, in a strange way of recognising its amibition and completely bonkers scope. The execution will divide a lot of opinions (and indeed already has) but there is no doubt in claiming that Scioli knows Kirby's work, and is a good sequential storyteller. Whether the style is what the two fandoms wanted is an entirely different conversation.

I believe my position of not really being that tied to either franchise in its early incarnations allows me to see this with a fresher perspective, and doesn't hit the 'childhood memories' of either. In fact, it captures the silliness of both series looking back on them now, in a fashion!

THOUGHTS

TT - The issue has some slapstick banter, hard core fighting, and a somewhat sweet payoff full page shot. Even more so there is the final page payoff, in which --

V - That thing happens, with those characters saying those things to each other.

Is it a must? Not sure. Is it fun? For me, it was: I found it amusing, ambitiously out there, with some interesting plotting and planning, some intriguing if not always convincing artwork (but impressive, as it's all Scioli's work, from start to finish). It's still free around the internet somewhere, so I'd give it a look if you can!



TT - I suppose this series will replicate that previous formula of the Joes being the established Earthians to contact/conflict with the Transformer aliens and cobra looks to use the bots for their benefit somehow teaming with the cons and then double-crossing them. I'm not expecting much surprise-wise.

I still very much dislike the art. I think I know what is being attempted, I just find it pretty disappointing for the most part so far. The SDCC covers are very bothersome. But I will still work to support this and enjoy it, so maybe someday we can get the ultimate crossover.


We'll see what the actual first issue brings - but until then, GOOOO FORMERS!

----END REVIEW(ish) THING

I thought this was a really fun romp. And while I'm hoping they eventually get around do a dead-serious toy line and comic book, this strikes a chord for any old G1 fan.

Most everyone my age watched the two cartoons back to back, and at some point read one or both of the comics... so doing a time warp 25 years back to your childhood for a grin is a surprise out of left field. Refreshing and fun comic to read. Art, banter, and outlandish plot points make it a great time.

Hoping they continue with at least a 4-part in this style. A recommended read, if only for the campy fun. Very enjoyable and light. Will make you feel like a kid again.

Eh. I tried it.
The drawings are childish and sloppy. The writing is equally childish and sloppy. It's like they took the very worst aspects of both the original comic series, magnified them, and eliminated the good stuff, and then put it on the page.

Courtesy of the official IDW Publishing Facebook page, we get a look at the subscription cover for issue #3 of the John Barber/Tom Scioli Transformers vs G.I. Joe ongoing - check out the Megatron-centric art below!

They're charging money for this? I'd almost pay NOT to see that artwork again... Almost.

The Joes kinda remind me of those lil wrestling figures that came out during the late '80s.

The artwork looks a heck of a lot like that of boardmember of old GrimSqueaker.

I have to say... after reading the first one (and understanding it's a bit of a playful, joke comic)... I'm loving this series. The retro art and inside jokes really made me laugh... and feel like a child in the 80s again.

It was off putting at first, but by the time I reached the end of the comic I was sold.

The IDW comics have been taking a couple of breaks this month, but with this final week of July, they definitely catch up! Check out below a full preview,via Newsarama, for the first offering: the truly bonkers Transformers vs G.I. Joe #1! (And head back here on Wednesday to find out if we have finally formed an opinion on it..)

Transformers VS G.I. JOE #1—SPOTLIGHT
Tom Scioli & John Barber (w) • Scioli (a & c)
SPACE WAR I! Earth makes contact with an alien race—and G.I. JOE is on the front lines of first contact! But when the TRANSFORMERS arrive—their version of “peace” does not match our own…
FC • 32 pages • $3.99

Bullet points:
Variant cover by Rob Liefeld!
Launching out of the smash-hit FREE COMIC BOOK DAY comic!
ALL NEW STORY, ALL NEW ART!

Scioli is the best artist in the whole 3rd grade!

But otherwise, I like this and I will buy ( and probably complain).

Never in my almost 40 years of reading comics has an art style turned me off so much. I could see this working for another comic or a kid's storybook, but it just doesn't fit G.I. Joe or the Transformers at all.

I think you have to be an older fan to really appreciate these... having read comics for a good 35 years, I can recognize that this art is homaging a different era of comics... and see it as the tongue-in-cheek, funny project it is.

But for younger or casual fans, it would look really childish and odd. Maybe after reading the trade paperbacks of all the 80s TF comics and the excellent UK series you could warm up to it and see the humor?

I'm still getting my head around it, with a mixture of amusement, bemusement and confusion.

It's just so wacky in its scope!

Ignoring the artwork, I enjoyed issue 0. The humor worked pretty well. I'll pick up this comic, but I do hope that they do something about the art eventually. I get that it is a homage, but the art that they are referencing never had this many issues, especially with the perspective.

Also, I hope that they stop making everything in red, including the speech bubbles, in the briefing room scenes. Trying to read black on dark red in this preview was just painful.

Yeah, I admit I kinda hated it until I read it. About 2/3 through I started to "get it" and by the end I was having a lot of fun. I think it's a good gimmick for a limited series. If they do an ongoing Joe/TF series, I'd want a serious reboot and some modern art.

That said, I really loved the older Dreamwave crossover that was so dark and painterly. It was really gritty. But I digress...

I'd agree on the mini-series idea, rather than ongoing. But we'll see what happens to it after the initial run.

First issue is already on second printing!

I'm twenty one years old, and I'm digging on what's going on here. It isn't so much age as exposure to the material they're riffing on/basing it on that's a necessity, I think. Kirby, classic comics from the 70s and 80s, etc. It's an ungodly, beautiful chimera.

Synopsis
SPACE WAR I! Earth makes contact with an alien race—and G.I. JOE is on the front lines of first contact! But when the TRANSFORMERS arrive—their version of “peace” does not match our own…



Story

On a completely different note, artistically, thematically, tonally, from the concluding issue of Windblade... This week also marks the beginning of a new Transformers vs G.I. Joe ongoing from the mind and hands of John Barber and Tom Scioli, co-plotting and co-writing the whole run (as far as we know, at least). We've seen issue #0, but come along for a look at the actual start of a new thing right below here.

[Credit: Tigertrack is remotely helping out with this review, though all conclusions are my own.]



It's still completely out there. Nothing has shifted since Free Comic Book Day, as Barber and Scioli plot the arrival of Cybertronians onto Earth, as the Joes set out to meet a Decepticon delegation headed by Soundwave and the cassettes. Where is Cobra? Oh, they're there. Where are the Autobots? Do is it really matter at this point, with Soundwave taking centre stage?



Plot-wise, there's a simplicity which might turn some people off the book, almost going back to the original cartoon plots from the two series - but in comics form, revelling in the creative spaces left from a stripped down narrative. There are sight gags, wordplay moments, slapstick, and some quite good action sequences, too.



The countdown sequence in particular is well thought out, and really shows the decompressed, almost slowed down to the bare minimum approach that the writers are taking. And we end up picking up a plotline started in issue #0, almost to its conclusion, along with what I think is an extremely intriguing ending to the book. Both of them.

Art

Ok. So Tom Scioli is taking care of absolutely everything here, from layouts to lines to inks to colours to lettering, this is his book definitely a lot more than Barber's, and it's his vision of the two franchises that we're seeing, with his artistic tendencies and influences coming into it - and that will work two ways with readers: yes, or no.



I can't see a middle ground, to be honest, the style does not allow for it. And I have to say, after getting my head round issue #0, I've come to enjoy this one a lot more than jumping into the cold deep end straight away - though I think another one to fully enjoy it. Credit note: even with Scioli on everything, I do want to make a note towards Chris Mowry's production work on this, especially the page design, and Carlos Guzman on editing, which cannot have been easy.



As SDCC is coinciding with the launch of the new series in this first issue, multiple variant covers were to be expected; here's a list of what you can get: Rob Liefeld with Romulo Fajardo Jr, James Stokoe, several Tom Scioli ones, Jamie Tyndall with Ula Mos, interlocking, single, blank, GI Joe dominant, TF dominant - you name it! It's Liefeld and Fajardo in the thumbnail, in case you were wondering.


Thoughts
Spoilerish ahead

As we said in the double-team review of issue #0, this series is setting itself up to be completely bonkers, with a method in the madness. I can't stress this enough: it's not for everyone, it does not take itself seriously, but it does it with such a charm and clearly heartfelt research and execution of styles, references and planning that it will at least crack a smile.



I am still ambivalent about the artwork, as much as I do like the darker hues and overly filled panels, but it does fit the entire concept of the book from what I take from it - and my opinion quite definitely is not that of the entire comics staff! But if you're into your nostalgia pandering, your cosmic sagas, celebrations and parodying in parallel, this is definitely an issue for you - TF or Joe fan alike.

A rating too high to post, huh?

Convoy wrote:A rating too high to post, huh?

It's something like twentyfive purples out of D snakes.

Every time I see this, I keep coming back to this:

Even though I am still not a fan of the artwork, I did have an easier time following what was going on than in issue 0.

Besides that, I did really enjoy this issue and it made me chuckle a few times. Like the review said, it seems closer to the original cartoons than the comics, especially in terms of ridiculousness.

Merp.

Well at least we have another joe and TF series. And they really seem to be trying to cram in tons of joe vehicles and characters. Sadly, there's still not a lot of TFs. 0 Autobots this issue. Bets on the joes blowing up bumblebee or another Autobot next issue?

This thing is just crazy.

Someone pointed out elsewhere that this comic is getting a lot of good buzz from comics readers that are not strictly part of either fandom - which is excellent news for the writers, publisher and franchises, to be honest!

It might be one of those gateway series into the Transformers/G.I. Joe published universes, and that can only mean well for future ventures.

Va'al wrote:Someone pointed out elsewhere that this comic is getting a lot of good buzz from comics readers that are not strictly part of either fandom - which is excellent news for the writers, publisher and franchises, to be honest!

It might be one of those gateway series into the Transformers/G.I. Joe published universes, and that can only mean well for future ventures.

That's my hope.

Next week sees the second issue of the IDW Publishing Transformers vs G.I. Joe ongoing crossover series, but Amazon.com already has a pre-order for the first trade paperback volume! Release expected in December, price currently at $15.77, more information below.

SPACE WAR I! Earth makes contact with an alien race - and G.I. JOE is on the front lines of first contact! But when the Transformers arrive, well, let's just say you've never seen TRANSFORMERS or G.I. JOE like this! Visionary comic book maker Tom Scioli (with Transformers fan-favorite John Barber in tow) combine two of the biggest names in entertainment into the surprise breakout hit of 2014!

This is seriously hideous in appearance. I like the idea that we see how some people got their injuries and modifications but I can't get past this artwork that looks like it's done by someone that has no concept of proportions, depth, and straight lines. Sadly, I've been sitting comics out for a few years because the price tag is too steep.

Hideous.. Just hideous. My 10 year old daughter has made better artwork than this..

Everything about the art aside it's kind of funny they are putting up a collection of these things for pre-order when we only have issues 0 and 1 out.

Visionary comic book maker Tom Scioli (with Transformers fan-favorite John Barber in tow) combine two of the biggest names in entertainment into the surprise breakout hit of 2014!

This is the big hit? What happened to everyone loving Windblade?!

gothsaurus wrote:I think you have to be an older fan to really appreciate these... having read comics for a good 35 years, I can recognize that this art is homaging a different era of comics... and see it as the tongue-in-cheek, funny project it is.

But for younger or casual fans, it would look really childish and odd. Maybe after reading the trade paperbacks of all the 80s TF comics and the excellent UK series you could warm up to it and see the humor?

Plus you have to have been a fan of both Transformers and G.I. Joe for that long. I came in during Beast Wars and I never got into Joe except for Renegades, so this series is leaving me cold so far.

DanaCornZine wrote:This is seriously hideous in appearance. I like the idea that we see how some people got their injuries and modifications but I can't get past this artwork that looks like it's done by someone that has no concept of proportions, depth, and straight lines. Sadly, I've been sitting comics out for a few years because the price tag is too steep.

It's the writing that bothers me. It feels like plot and characterization take a backseat to trying to string together a bunch of in-jokes and one-liners.

Nemesis Primal wrote:

Visionary comic book maker Tom Scioli (with Transformers fan-favorite John Barber in tow) combine two of the biggest names in entertainment into the surprise breakout hit of 2014!

This is the big hit? What happened to everyone loving Windblade?!

Outside of established TF readership, this comic is selling like ridiculously hot cakes.
The first issue went to multiple printings almost immediately, as they sold out at distributor level.

Yeah, Windblade and MTMTE are amazing on different levels... plus also love some Ramondelli. BUT I love all those for very different reasons. Same for this crossover. It's light, funny, and hits that nostalgic spot that makes you feel like a kid again... reading the original Transformers comics twenty years ago.

I guess my point is, doing side by side comparisons doesn't make a lot of sense for this one. You either get it, or you don't.

Coming at you like a python wrapped around an Energon-fuelled torpedo, is this month's issue of the new IDW publishing crossover ongoing from the minds and hands of Tom Scioli and John Barber: Transformers vs G.I. Joe! Check out a full preview below, keep an eye out for the Seibertron.com review.

Transformers VS G.I. JOE #2
Tom Scioli & John Barber (w) • Scioli (a & c)
BOOTS ON THE GROUND! The war has begun—and no bars will be held! SCARLETT’s forces go head-to-head with MEGATRON’s hordes—and the most off-beat adventure in comic book history hits a new level of dangerous alliances, deadly invasions, and devastating betrayals!
FC • 32 pages • $3.99

Bullet points:
The comic book event of the millennium!
One world was never enough for this war!
Cosmic action as you like it!
Connecting Variant Cover by Tom Scioli

Yep. This is incredible.

Synopsis
BOOTS ON THE GROUND! The war has begun—and no bars will be held! SCARLETT’s forces go head-to-head with MEGATRON’s hordes—and the most off-beat adventure in comic book history hits a new level of dangerous alliances, deadly invasions, and devastating betrayals!



Story

The introduction to Tom Scioli's world of G.I. Joe and Transformers has really been like nothing else so far, in issues #0 and #1, even with John Barber's vigilant watch. And issue #2 continues the streak of whatever-it-is this comic is doing, with its anachronistically retro style and feeling, toy advertising without the products and general action-packed whimsicalness.



We headed with Scarlett's team to Cybertron at the end of last issue, and this is where we find ourselves straight away, as the Joe team brings the war begun by the Decepticons to their own turf - and it sets up the rest of the universe, as Autobots are subjugated by the Kirby-esque merciless godhead figure of Megatron, and his minions.



Though the big bad gun is a slow build-up, Scioli does not hold back on the even bigger, if not the brighter, guns: Trypticon and Devastator, all still through the (I guess) military eyes of Scarlett and the other humans, searching for targets in true Earthican foreign policy: stamp on, blow up, then investigate the remains.



There are some amusing references to the nature of all the characters and their plastic counterparts, though as I said, without the toys existing. The dialogue is still completely over the top, and is still not for everyone, along with the thread being very very thin, though a little tighter than last month. But it's also extremely enjoyable if you can buy into the whole premise.

Art

And I suppose, the artwork. Tom Scioli perseveres in his Silver Age style of dotted galaxies, peculiar proportions, referential work (with Flash Gordon also featuring in some scene set-ups, as the commentary expands upon), mirroring what is already present in the dialogue and set-up with the visual style that some readers still consider a hurdle.



Personally, however, I find that not only does the style really work with the aim of the series, it allows Scioli as both writer and artist to place all of his toys across the drawing board, and just go wild with the colours, interactions and the stupidly fun lettering touches, from the titles to the ID cards to explosions and EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE.



I applauded the production of the book last issue as well, but it is nice to see Chris Mowry's work still shaping the final product. I am not a gigantic fan of the exclusive Liefeld and Tyndale covers, but the Ed Piskor Cobra heavy one and the two Scioli versions are perfectly in keep with the tone and content of the book (thumbnail: Retail Incentive cover by Scioli).


Thoughts
Spoilerish ahead

If you're not on board with Transformers vs G.I. Joe by now, I'd recommend to stop trying. This comic is clearly not for you, and by no fault of the readership. It is doing what it does unapologetically, and received warm-heartedly by many for very good reasons, and it's little to do with the actual lore of the franchises involved in the crossover, if only maybe as reference material and gags. And Scioli and Barber are clearly having barrels of fun with it.



What is particularly enjoyable, is that after the rollercoaster up a snake with wings in its nose that is the story, the two creators give themselves almost the same amount of space to talk about what went into the creation of the issue, page by page, panel by panel, deconstructing the whole frame and proving just how not seriously this is to be taken - but also how to, if so one wished. I will stop warning readers about this by next issue, but enjoy some green mean killing machines in #2 for now.

This actually looks like a lot of fun! I've never been a Joe fan, and whilst the vs comics never caught my attention, I'd certainly like the idea of it becoming toys. However this comic looks like just what the doctor ordered-a good dose of fun in a franchise (TF) that seems to be trying too hard and failing everywhere! I'm so exhausted by the toys nowadays, they say they are going back to kid friendly but they look as appealing as cheap knockoffs. IDW's main TF titles sound awesome in themselves, but I feel the fandom get a bit too heavy and that adds negative weight to the stories (Gender, Hard head and Rewind, etc) I try not to dislike Bay's movies, but seriously the whole thing is also so very exhausting now.
This comic looks like a nice dose of marmite-you either love it or hate it! It's not trying to be agnostic or please everyone. If you hate it, you're not gonna discuss it or try to disect or argue it, and if you love it, you'll clearly have a blast. If I could find comics in my area, I'd probably get into this series for a nice bit of Brain down time!

In other IDW Publishing news this week, we also have a preview for the return of the crackers comics crossover: Transformers vs GI Joe #3! Check out below the first handful of pages from the issue, and check back in with Seibertron.com later this week for a review.

Transformers VS G.I. JOE #3
Tom Scioli & John Barber (w) • Scioli (a & c)
CYBERTRON INFESTED! The Transformers’ homeworld is crawling with tiny green invaders from the planet Earth—the G.I. JOE team! Also this issue—Funeral for a Friend. Many AUTOBOTS and G.I. JOE soldiers have fallen in the line of duty—but you've never seen a send-off like this!
FC • 32 pages • $3.99

Bullet points:
WAKE THE DEAD!!! In 3-D!!!
Not actually in 3-D—but you will not believe your eyes! Guaranteed!
The biggest thing ever gets bigger!
Interconnected Variant Cover by Tom Scioli!

oh man. I just cant like this art. sorry.

I'm sure there are people who do...for whatever reason, but it is, in a word, ugly.

I guess it has nostalgic value...it reminds me of the pictures I drew in 5th grade.

Optimizzy wrote:oh man. I just cant like this art. sorry.

I'm sure there are people who do...for whatever reason, but it is, in a word, ugly.

I guess it has nostalgic value...it reminds me of the pictures I drew in 5th grade.

I was
Thinking I was only one don't like this style

I think they're going for the early Marvel style of both comics.

However, why is Starscream like Underbase sized?

This book just gets worse. I thought it would grow on me. NO. It's terrible. The art is terrible, the writing is terrible. Yeah, I know, it's intentional, but just because it's intentionally bad doesn't make it good.

For that matter, why is the purple cyclops calling himself SOUNDwave

What the hell is up with the size? If Starscream transformed, he'd be 20x bigger than those jets falling into the sea. Same goes for Soundwave, they are all Godzilla sized?

Flashwave wrote:For that matter, why is the purple cyclops calling himself SOUNDwave

He isn't. Soundwave died in the first issue. Shockwave is avenging his death.


I still do not like the art style, but I do think the comic captures some of the goofiness and bizarreness of the cartoon series.

My bad, typo on Shockwave's name because I read Soundwave off of the panel too lol.

This comic is fantastic. What if Steranko and Kirby worked on Transformers and G.I. Joe?