Transformers: Robots in Disguise Ongoing #16 Preview

Wow, Ironhide can jump pretty high I am kinda interested in this, but Metalhawk really turns me off of this. Watch, he'll die a Martyr and never get what's coming to him

So Rumble is red again.

And in his United tank body.

I am okay with both these things.

Blurrz wrote:I hope Turmoil gets it

Me too, but not before metalhawk. Sad when I'm rooting for the heroes to die before the merciless villians

What, Starscream?! WHAT IS THE THING WITH OPPORTUNISTS?!

I look forward to this. Was anyone else really turned on when Arcee threatened to tear out Rumble's Spark with her teeth? Or am I just a really sad specimen?

Nemesis Maximo wrote: ...Was anyone else really turned on when Arcee threatened to tear out Rumble's Spark with her teeth? Or am I just a really sad specimen?

It's not just you. That was actually pretty damn hot.

I feel like the only person who likes Metalhawk.

And Turmoil.

;-;

Personally, I can't stand Bumblebee, but it's in that sort of 'OH GOD I LOVE HATING YOU' hateboner way.

HK, FOREVER ALOOOOOOONE

hellkitty wrote:I feel like the only person who likes Metalhawk.

I quite like Metalhawk too, actually!
I'm a fan of all the neutrals, really, as they're relatively new characters, and offer some perspective on the story.

But I'm not feeling this issue from the preview.
Which is a shame, as I really enjoyed RiD up to Megatron's return.

I know that I'll probably say this until Takara Tomy makes a Masterpiece version of Wheeljack, reissues Masterpiece Grimlock, makes a Masterpiece Skyfire, reissues both Chromedome and MegaZarak, and reissues most of the Masterforce/Victory/Zone figures... But I like Metalhawk as well. Same with Arcee. Because the whole unaligned aspect is the only thing that helps make the franchise interesting to me. ^^;

Oh, and I wonder if Bumblebee will sacrifice himself and later return as Goldbug. :p

Im not a fan of how Ironhide is somehow now omnipotent. We all know he exists past the war ending, and now that means hes somehow super Ironhide and can jump up and punch devastator?

I don't think Ironhide necessarily has super powers. I think Sludge hit him with his tail like a baseball for a home run on Devy.

Synopsis
FINAL BATTLE! The leadership of Cybertron will be decided once and for all! It’s all-out war against the forces of MEGATRON! Will the Autobots wrest control from their attackers—or will the DECEPTICON flag fly over Cybertron forever? Heroes will fall, and nothing will stay the same.





Story

Everyone's fighting, robots are fighting, there is some fighting and some more fighting too. So far, mostly fighting. And talking. But no Shockwave. Superion's gone, Prowlestator is on a rampage, things look bad for most characters. Did I mention fighting?



Apparently, this is supposed to be the conclusion to the first story-arc, started in issue 1, after the split from MTMTE. And I guess it does do that, after a fashion. There is a sense of closure for some of the storyline's aspects that started with the series' inception, but not really that much, and some aspects of the plot are just left hanging, in my opinion.



Bumblebee's voice is the narrative thread running through the entirety of the issue, in the usual Barber caption commentary. I understand the need for something other than pure action sequences, but having the little boxes showing up all over gives me the impression of trying to fit too much into one arc/issue/volume.



Mind you, the writing in the captions is good, but some of the scenes in the issue really didn't do it for me. Either too silly, or predictable, I feel. There are some good points, though, like the legacy of other Cybertronians we've seen so far, and a little resolution, plus a set-up for a promising expansion of the setting for the series in the near future. And a good, if not entirely surprising, conclusion, too.


Art

The artwork, on the other hand, is gorgeous. While I have still some concerns with some of the characters' faces, I really enjoyed the details that Griffith, Shearer and Ketcham added to each of the players in the battle: damage, scarring, cracks, creaks, and so on and so forth – no one is as clean as after a Hollywood movie battle scene, and that is an excellent thing.



There are some amazing soundwords too, and the lettering for them is brilliant. Lee has really put himself into these! Additionally, Perez' colours, especially in some of the bigger resolution moments – which I will not spoil for anyone – are gorgeous. And I love the tones of the last pages, especially in the final panel.



So yes, the art-colour-lettering jobs definitely bring up the issue a notch, allowing it, in my judgement, to pass. They're not just aesthetically pleasing, they're well done, and convey exactly what this type of situation would entail in a physical scenario.


Thoughts
Spoilerish ahead

I wasn't a fan of this one, I have to admit. There was the same sense of prolongued fighting as the previous issue, and it tried inserting some tension relief with secondary characters like Swindle and the Dinobots, which may or may not have entirely worked. The conclusion is not entirely unexpected, but pleasing enough, though!



There are some loose ends still to tie up (and where is Shockwave?!), but there are some excellent scenes in terms of artwork, colouring and page-span. There were ups, and as I said, this may lead into something a lot better, but for now, I'm a little disappointed. Here's hoping for better with the next arc.

Disappointing to hear, but not surprising. I'm tempted not to pick it up but I do want to know what happens. I think the need to fix Costa's mess has really hurt this. I wish they just dropped some of it instead of trying so hard to make it fit. hopefully the next ark can finally try to put these old plot points to rest and move on to new stuff. I still have some faith that Barber can pull this off.

sabrigami wrote:Disappointing to hear, but not surprising. I'm tempted not to pick it up but I do want to know what happens. I think the need to fix Costa's mess has really hurt this. I wish they just dropped some of it instead of trying so hard to make it fit. hopefully the next ark can finally try to put these old plot points to rest and move on to new stuff. I still have some faith that Barber can pull this off.

Yeah, that is the general feeling among the couple of reviewers I've spoken to.
Hopefully, as you say, after this issue Barber will be able to do his own stuff - but it would've been nice if he had started doing it already, rather than feeling the need to sew on continuity patches.

Va'al wrote:

sabrigami wrote:Disappointing to hear, but not surprising. I'm tempted not to pick it up but I do want to know what happens. I think the need to fix Costa's mess has really hurt this. I wish they just dropped some of it instead of trying so hard to make it fit. hopefully the next ark can finally try to put these old plot points to rest and move on to new stuff. I still have some faith that Barber can pull this off.

Yeah, that is the general feeling among the couple of reviewers I've spoken to.
Hopefully, as you say, after this issue Barber will be able to do his own stuff - but it would've been nice if he had started doing it already, rather than feeling the need to sew on continuity patches.

I agree, but I also believe that Costa's ( and even McCarthy's) run needed the patches. The comics have been so riddled with continuity holes since Furman's run was cancelled.

Nemesis Maximo wrote:I agree, but I also believe that Costa's ( and even McCarthy's) run needed the patches. The comics have been so riddled with continuity holes since Furman's run was cancelled.

That is true. But it could have been done without having to sacrifice originality, I believe.
Or at least, I would've liked to see Barber do it.

However, we are now finally back to the end of All Hail Megatron, as if the Costa run never happened! (Except for the references.)

Costa's run is the most unappreciated in all of Transformers. Mike Costa is a great writer who tried to insert realism into the Transformers story. Blame Andy Schmit for all the continuity errors as he was a really bad at that as an editor. Now, we have John Barber who is great at continuity. Mike's run had characters make *gasp* mistakes and was really decompressed. But hey, what do I know. I have loved Transformers all my life and his run ranks up there.

Its loads better than Dreamwave.

I'll copy and paste what sums up my thoughts about Costa's run from the IDW boards.

* Good, interesting ideas with terrible execution

* ZERO subplots or development for future mysteries/questions/narrative

* Absolutely decompressed storytelling - even compared to other writers like Bendis - i've done the stats.

And I'm a big fan of War Within so I suppose we just don't agree.

I didnt mind the stories for costas run. I just hated the artwork when they changed them all to look more realistic. Figueroas wierd bayverse look. Horrible. Much better art now

burning_sirius wrote:Costa's run is the most unappreciated in all of Transformers. Mike Costa is a great writer who tried to insert realism into the Transformers story. Blame Andy Schmit for all the continuity errors as he was a really bad at that as an editor. Now, we have John Barber who is great at continuity. Mike's run had characters make *gasp* mistakes and was really decompressed. But hey, what do I know. I have loved Transformers all my life and his run ranks up there.

You bring up some valid points. I don't hate Costa's writing (in fact I think he does a pretty decent job with G.I. joe), I just don't think it does the Transformers justice. What I didn't like was how he had to screw with Prowl's scheming ways - it was just too indecisive for my taste.

Characters like Starscream or Bumblebee acting out of character is IDWs idea of "fresh and new"? Now Barber is depicting Dirge as a heroic Autobot instead of a creep. It seems like Shane is the only dude at IDW that can write an authentic Transformers story.

What do you mean by 'out of character' and 'authentic', exactly?

I like what Barber has been doing with the Cybertronians, making sure that binaries are (finally) blurred out - Metalhawk stands for that, and makes some really good points throughout this issue.

I like seeing a more human side to Starscream. He wanted Decepticons to win, but wanted to do it through a political manner rather than by force. Sounds crazy but people often forget Megatron wants peace through tyranny and no more war, its all idealogical, and really, Starscream was trying to do it his way. Its unique for his character, not out of character.

A very interesting issue. I personally liked Starscream's arc in this. I'm also happy that Metalhawk was finally taken care of. Hated that guy. It was really satisfying to see SS betray him in the end. Now, I guess if history repeats itself, it's only a matter of time before the neutrals' civilization is run into the ground via SS shining leadership skills . it's also only a matter of time before they go begging the outcast bots and cons for help too. they are really the only set of experienced guns between them and inevitable trouble.

I do agree that some points really seemed a bit meh. Prowl was handled a bit to quick and easy for my tastes .Being forced into being a combiner and ripping himself off of said combiner sure didn't seem to make him worse for wear. We also never got any real insight as to what Meg's REAL plan was (if he ever really had an idea).

I'd give it a 4. the ending, as I said, really left me in a nice place. I'm looking forward to seeing where this heads.

I also have a question. I'm a bit unsure whether I should be using spoiler tags or not in this thread. do I need to? A lot of the posts tend to mark spoilers even though they are in threads that I would assume to be spoilerific (like this one).

*edited to add spoiler tags

I used spoilers before, as the issue had not yet been made available to all timezones, to my knowledge.

I think we're safe to assume that from now on we can ignore them.
I'll ask El Duque to add [SPOILERS] to the title thread, maybe - would you all agree?

I dont have the issue yet.

Va'al wrote:I used spoilers before, as the issue had not yet been made available to all timezones, to my knowledge.

I think we're safe to assume that from now on we can ignore them.
I'll ask El Duque to add [SPOILERS] to the title thread, maybe - would you all agree?

yes please. It's annoying trying to type my thoughts and organize them between what's a spoiler and what's not

AltarofPlagues wrote:I dont have the issue yet.

Hm. Yes. Maybe we should wait until this evening, when/if the commentary gets posted on Facebook.

Then we'll add the spoiler warning to the thread.

Sabrigami, can you wait that long?

Well, im in the UK, and my copy hasnt come through the post yet. But hey, chat away, ill just hang on till I get it and stop looking at the thread lol

Va'al wrote:What do you mean by 'out of character' and 'authentic', exactly?

I like what Barber has been doing with the Cybertronians, making sure that binaries are (finally) blurred out - Metalhawk stands for that, and makes some really good points throughout this issue.

Okay, Starscream's back in classic form, I'm happy about that... but Barber's Dirge isn't creepy, he doesn't even qualify as a goon now. Bumblebee being led by the Autobots is something a 6 year old would come up with. Even Cybertron is out of character, it's not a machine world anymore it's a metallic Oregon! IDW is taking a crap on classic Transformers on a monthly basis and I am tired of it!

Va'al wrote:
Hm. Yes. Maybe we should wait until this evening, when/if the commentary gets posted on Facebook.

Then we'll add the spoiler warning to the thread.

Sabrigami, can you wait that long?

seems I have no choice ty for the clarification. I always try to follow board etiquette. Doesn't help that every board is different.

84forever wrote:

Va'al wrote:What do you mean by 'out of character' and 'authentic', exactly?

I like what Barber has been doing with the Cybertronians, making sure that binaries are (finally) blurred out - Metalhawk stands for that, and makes some really good points throughout this issue.

Okay, Starscream's back in classic form, I'm happy about that... but Barber's Dirge isn't creepy, he doesn't even qualify as a goon now. Bumblebee being led by the Autobots is something a 6 year old would come up with. Even Cybertron is out of character, it's not a machine world anymore it's a metallic Oregon! IDW is taking a crap on classic Transformers on a monthly basis and I am tired of it!

The idea of having a reluctant leader with an inferiority complex was good, but maybe a bit dragged out, yes.

Dirge is an interesting character from the Decepticon camp showing that even within their ranks people believe change is possible, and it doesn't have to be imposed (ish). Could have been worked out better? Maybe, but I liked him!

Cybertron is supposed to be a wasteland after the events of Chaos.


I wonder if you'd be more interested in the ReGeneration One series, actually.

I added a spoiler warning to the title, I really don't see the need in using spoiler tags once the review has been posted. I mean it's a review, spoilers should be expected right?

El Duque wrote:I added a spoiler warning to the title, I really don't see the need in using spoiler tags once the review has been posted. I mean it's a review, spoilers should be expected right?

I agree, but I still like avoiding divulging massive plot points before everyone has had at least a chance to read the issue.

That said..


Sabrigami, what was your point again?

Va'al wrote:

El Duque wrote:I added a spoiler warning to the title, I really don't see the need in using spoiler tags once the review has been posted. I mean it's a review, spoilers should be expected right?

I agree, but I still like avoiding divulging massive plot points before everyone has had at least a chance to read the issue.

I went and removed the tags from my post to make it easier to read. Ty for the insight guys.

Va'al wrote:That said..

Sabrigami, what was your point again?

what point? did I miss something? (hmmm. this post makes me feel like Sprite for some reason...)

Just to be clear, Seibertron.com is not a spoiler free zone for the most part. If there's a review, the review will divulge spoilers as necessary. If you're on a fansite that likes to break news about upcoming toys, movies, comics, cartoons, video games, etc ... you should expect spoilers. I own this site, I'm surrounded by spoilers all day long, I get early access and sneak peeks into many things before they go public ... yet somehow I manage to avoid reading about things that I don't want to have spoiled (such as the comics ... I love having a physical comic book inhand, I can't stand reading comics on a computer something about it kills the flow of a book to me). Use of this site though makes encountering spoilers unavoidable. It goes with the territory of being on a fansite.

With that said, some spoilers we will avoid just to be fair, but that is at our own internal discretion. For example, if a major character dies in an upcoming comic, cartoon, or movie, we won't have a headline that says "[INSERT CHARACTER NAME HERE] dies in issue #20!" but that doesn't meant that it won't be discussed in the news story itself or elsewhere on the site in our forums.

I meant what were you talking about.

Metalhawk - why such hate against him?
Not just here, but also on the IDW boards.
I'm actually curious, not just lamenting it!

Seibertron wrote:Just to be clear, Seibertron.com is not a spoiler free zone for the most part. If there's a review, the review will divulge spoilers as necessary. If you're on a fansite that likes to break news about upcoming toys, movies, comics, cartoons, video games, etc ... you should expect spoilers. I own this site, I'm surrounded by spoilers all day long, I get early access and sneak peeks into many things before they go public ... yet somehow I manage to avoid reading about things that I don't want to have spoiled (such as the comics ... I love having a physical comic book inhand, I can't stand reading comics on a computer something about it kills the flow of a book to me). Use of this site though makes encountering spoilers unavoidable. It goes with the territory of being on a fansite.

With that said, some spoilers we will avoid just to be fair, but that is at our own internal discretion. For example, if a major character dies in an upcoming comic, cartoon, or movie, we won't have a headline that says "[INSERT CHARACTER NAME HERE] dies in issue #20!" but that doesn't meant that it won't be discussed in the news story itself or elsewhere on the site in our forums.

Excellent, good to know. Thanks Ryan!

What I did mean about spoilers though, to make myself clear too is more about me remembering how frustrating it was for not being able to join in the discussion until I could read the issue, and missing out on a lot of posts, really.

But I think we'll work with the fact that once the review is up, spoilers are game.

Va'al wrote:I meant what were you talking about.

Metalhawk - why such hate against him?
Not just here, but also on the IDW boards.
I'm actually curious, not just lamenting it!

I'm not a fan of IDW Metalhawk either. I don't like his design (the skinny waist is really bizarre, I think "anorexia" every time I see him ... get that 'bot some more Energon goodies!). I don't like him as a Pacifist either. Masterforce Metalhawk is one of my all-time favorite characters, but I just don't care for his representation in the IDW books so far, though I will say it's much better than how Fun Pub handled him last year.

Va'al wrote:

Seibertron wrote:Just to be clear, Seibertron.com is not a spoiler free zone for the most part. If there's a review, the review will divulge spoilers as necessary. If you're on a fansite that likes to break news about upcoming toys, movies, comics, cartoons, video games, etc ... you should expect spoilers. I own this site, I'm surrounded by spoilers all day long, I get early access and sneak peeks into many things before they go public ... yet somehow I manage to avoid reading about things that I don't want to have spoiled (such as the comics ... I love having a physical comic book inhand, I can't stand reading comics on a computer something about it kills the flow of a book to me). Use of this site though makes encountering spoilers unavoidable. It goes with the territory of being on a fansite.

With that said, some spoilers we will avoid just to be fair, but that is at our own internal discretion. For example, if a major character dies in an upcoming comic, cartoon, or movie, we won't have a headline that says "[INSERT CHARACTER NAME HERE] dies in issue #20!" but that doesn't meant that it won't be discussed in the news story itself or elsewhere on the site in our forums.

Excellent, good to know. Thanks Ryan!

What I did mean about spoilers though, to make myself clear too is more about me remembering how frustrating it was for not being able to join in the discussion until I could read the issue, and missing out on a lot of posts, really.

But I think we'll work with the fact that once the review is up, spoilers are game.

We could wait to post our reviews on Wednesday morning but I don't see the point in that when people can just join in once they've got the book themselves. This isn't like a TV episode where the majority of people watch an episode when it airs and then there's a smaller portion of people who watch it via DVR or online at a time of their own choosing (meaning that most people don't rush out at 10am on Wednesday morning to get the latest issue, with comics it is a slower trickle so based on that there really isn't a good time to post it other than to post it ASAP).

Va'al wrote:

84forever wrote:

Va'al wrote:What do you mean by 'out of character' and 'authentic', exactly?

I like what Barber has been doing with the Cybertronians, making sure that binaries are (finally) blurred out - Metalhawk stands for that, and makes some really good points throughout this issue.

Okay, Starscream's back in classic form, I'm happy about that... but Barber's Dirge isn't creepy, he doesn't even qualify as a goon now. Bumblebee being led by the Autobots is something a 6 year old would come up with. Even Cybertron is out of character, it's not a machine world anymore it's a metallic Oregon! IDW is taking a crap on classic Transformers on a monthly basis and I am tired of it!

I wonder if you'd be more interested in the ReGeneration One series, actually.

No. The Mars Attacks one shot has been the most authentic Transformers story I have seen from IDW so far. I really think that History will look back on the majority of the IDW stories as being some of the worst ever.

Va'al wrote:I meant what were you talking about.

Metalhawk - why such hate against him?
Not just here, but also on the IDW boards.
I'm actually curious, not just lamenting it!

Oooooh. okay. just wanted to make sure what you were referring to. I got kinda confused there lol.

I just don't like him. Well, to be clearer I don't like how he carries on. He talks peace and equality but judges the bots and cons more harshly than anyone else. I haven't seen many instances where he tries to understand their sides of the conflict.

He's written to be a very close minded, judgemental and self righteous individual. I have no problem with different opinions but state them kindly and with respect. Talking down and judging others is not cool. No matter how much you don't like someone, you don't have a right to judge them imo, because you haven't walked in their shoes.

84forever wrote:I really think that History will look back on the majority of the IDW stories as being some of the worst ever.

I'm pretty sure that History will have very little concern for Transformers comics in general.

I still don't understand what you mean by authentic, though.



Sabrigami and Seibertron:

I take both your points, and agree with the fact that Metalhawk has been written as an annoying, superiority-fuelled character. And I don't like him as in I think he's likeable, I just like that he exists in the series as a balance to the others.
I do think that he's perfectly right in judging both faction though - he has all the right to be bitter. But he could have been a little more decisive.

People upset about spoilers? Don't read this thread until you've read the book. It's what I do!

So ... Metalhawk is dead, no surprise there, kinda saw that coming.

The one thing that I don't get though, if Bumblebee is so determined to be there for Cybertron, then why not tear off his badge? Why retain it and be cast out into the wilderness? All Autobots for that matter, if they truly believed in a peaceful Cybertron, then why allow themselves to be cast out? Are their egos that inflated that they'd rather retain their precious faction than to try to unite, even if it means giving Starscream a win? Are they THAT egotistical?

I can understand the 'Cons not wanting to give it up, they want to rule, and most wouldn't want to follow Starscream. But the Autobots? No ... they just turned their back on everything they'd been fighting for.

Burn wrote:People upset about spoilers? Don't read this thread until you've read the book. It's what I do!

So ... Metalhawk is dead, no surprise there, kinda saw that coming.

The one thing that I don't get though, if Bumblebee is so determined to be there for Cybertron, then why not tear off his badge? Why retain it and be cast out into the wilderness? All Autobots for that matter, if they truly believed in a peaceful Cybertron, then why allow themselves to be cast out? Are their egos that inflated that they'd rather retain their precious faction than to try to unite, even if it means giving Starscream a win? Are they THAT egotistical?

I can understand the 'Cons not wanting to give it up, they want to rule, and most wouldn't want to follow Starscream. But the Autobots? No ... they just turned their back on everything they'd been fighting for.

Yes, very good point. My short answer is yes.

They're also rejecting all responsibilty for what has happened. They were given a choice to stand up and face the consequences of their action or leave, and they chose the latter.

Nice show there.

Admittedly it's a little unclear. Starscream gave his speech telling people to cast off their allegiances. Bumblebee speaks of the people casting them out because they chose Starscream. That COULD be read in a way that says the people voiced their opinion.

I don't think that's it however. The people chose to stand beside Starscream, and by doing so they (silently) voiced their opinion of "no factions".

So for Bumblebee to walk out, and every (well we assume every) Autobot to follow him, it's selfish, it's egotistical, it's spitting in the face of the very thing they fought for. Every war fought, every ally lost, all in the sake of bringing peace to Cybertron.

All it says is that "we want things back to the way they were when there were classes and those who became Autobots had it good, that's what we want, not peaceful co-existence where everyone is equal".

Thus validating my long held belief that it's the Autobots that are the true villains in this story.

Va'al wrote:

Burn wrote:People upset about spoilers? Don't read this thread until you've read the book. It's what I do!

So ... Metalhawk is dead, no surprise there, kinda saw that coming.

The one thing that I don't get though, if Bumblebee is so determined to be there for Cybertron, then why not tear off his badge? Why retain it and be cast out into the wilderness? All Autobots for that matter, if they truly believed in a peaceful Cybertron, then why allow themselves to be cast out? Are their egos that inflated that they'd rather retain their precious faction than to try to unite, even if it means giving Starscream a win? Are they THAT egotistical?

I can understand the 'Cons not wanting to give it up, they want to rule, and most wouldn't want to follow Starscream. But the Autobots? No ... they just turned their back on everything they'd been fighting for.

Yes, very good point. My short answer is yes.

They're also rejecting all responsibilty for what has happened. They were given a choice to stand up and face the consequences of their action or leave, and they chose the latter.

Nice show there.

hmmm. now that you point this out I can't help but agree. they kinda did bail didn't they? I guess if it was possible for them to put their pride aside they wouldn't really be in this mess though.

The official Transformers Facebook page has uploaded a five page commentary to today's Transformers: Robots in Disguise #16. For those of you without Facebook access, we've mirrored the interview with writer John Barber below.

TRANSFORMERS: ROBOTS IN DISGUISE #16 hits the stands today, courtesy of IDW Publishing and Hasbro! This is it—the climax of the first big ROBOTS IN DISGUISE story. The fate of Cybertron’s leadership is decided, as Bumblebee and the Autobots battle Megatron’s forces in the city of Iacon. Artist Andrew Griffith—along with inker Brian Shearer and colorist Josh Perez—pulled out all the stops on this one; and we sat down with writer John Barber to talk about this monumental issue. TF:RID #16 is available at comic book stores everywhere and at https://transformers.comixology.com/ or via the Comixology and iBooks apps on your computer or mobile device!

PAGE 1- The might against Megatron continues with Bumblebee and his team. Considering the different factions trying to live together on their home world, was there ever a right or wrong in the decisions he took? Or was it simply that he wasn’t strong enough to hold them all together?

JOHN BARBER: That’s a good question. Bumblebee was trying to do what was right, and here—battling Megatron—it’s clear what needs to get done. But would Megatron have had support, would the Decepticon masses have followed him, had it not been for Bumblebee’s policies? He locked them up, he put in the Identification/Deterrence chips, and even once those were gone, he still clearly didn’t welcome them with open arms. I mean, Bumblebee had reason to be angry at the Decepticons, and reasons to not trust them. So maybe he never had a chance.

There isn’t really a clear-cut answer, as to whether Bee was right or wrong, and that’s one of the big themes of the series. I hope the readers will argue about it.

Was Bumblebee too weak? That’s how he sees himself, and how some of the others see him. Maybe he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time, though. Could anybody have accomplished what he set out to do? Again—I don’t mean to evade the question, it’s that the question is the main thing about the series. I don’t want to cop out on anything, but the question is more interesting to me. And hey, if I had the actual answer, I should be ruling the world myself.

PAGE 2- Megatron, Devastator and the other Decepticons pile on the pressure. You think right now Starscream is regretting the things that he has done prior to this issue, and not done what might have previously done before?

JOHN BARBER: Starscream thought he was playing everything correctly for a while—up to issue 11—then he had a crisis of… well, not “conscious,” as this issue will demonstrate… but a crisis of faith in himself. I’m sure that, in his head, he’s running through every action he’s ever taken, but I don’t think he has Bumblebee’s capacity for self-reflection. He’s more likely to see any failure as a failure of circumstance, not of himself. But this was a big fall—he was about to gain control of the city, and then Megatron showed up and ruined everything, so it’s a crushing blow.

Anyway—he definitely doesn’t have Bee’s capacity for beating himself up over his decisions.Actually, his ego probably protects him a little here (like Prowl’s does).
What is why, at this point in the story, even if it doesn’t look like it, he is actively looking for any opportunity amidst all the action.

PAGE 3- Arcee and Sideswipe do their best to carry on the fight back. With Arcee, was the plan always to make her as ambiguous as possible until she was forced into making a decision on where she truly stood?

JOHN BARBER: Yeah—Issue 18 is where we actually get into her head, and see how she thinks. She just approaches things from a way that other Cybertronians don’t. Her worldview is skewed by all the events in her life—I mean, everybody’s is; it’s just that her event are just a little more unusual.

So, yeah, she was definitely keeping quiet about what she knew, who she would side with, all that—until she had an opportunity to strike most effectively. Which, I don’t think exactly worked out—she definitely didn’t want out-of-control Prowl-Devastator running around, so it’s not like she actually succeeded in her plan. But things could have been worse.

Nevertheless, from my perspective, she’d have been better off going to Bumblebee in issue 4. But she didn’t think he’d trust her, and Bee definitely didn’t act like he was looking to trust Prowl’s secret warrior. So she didn’t think that was a legitimate possibility. And now, hey, look what all that mistrust has sown.

PAGE 4- Ironhide and the Dinobots pile in to provide reinforcements? Considering what is happening to his friends, do you think Ironhide is certain that the visions of the future he saw are going to come true, despite the devastation around him? They seem to have been driving his recent actions.

JOHN BARBER: Ironhide has come to realize that, even if he believes what he saw, there are multiple ways of looking at “fate.” He can just sit back and let the future happen, or he can take an active role. And if he takes an active role, he has to be himself. Beyond that—well, there’s more to come.

PAGE 5- Ironhide literally tries to knock some sense into Prowl/ Devastator’s head, and Bumblebee can see the tide of battle turning. This issue marks the end of the current arc in the series. In the grand scheme of things to come, how important are the issues we’ll find within these pages?

JOHN BARBER: Very. I mean, this issue is the close of the first big RID story arc. The story of Bumblebee versus Starscream versus Metalhawk struggling for control of Iacon comes to a close this issue. And however it works out, any one of them (or none of them) “winning” control of the city will change the face of Cybertron. There’s a lot going on in this issue, a lot of stories coming to a close, and it all matters a lot.

But it’s not the end of the series, and there are still going to be big, pointed questions looming. Where’s Shockwave? Why did what happened to the Aerialbots happen—and what’s the status of them now? Not to give anything away, but how does Starscream justify his actions? What’s up with Ironhide’s vision of the future? What does Jhiaxus want with Gorlam Prime? Lots and lots of other questions…

Not everything ends here—we’re back with another issue in a few weeks—but all that comes will be built on what we’ve done here. And there will be impacts felt in our sister series, TRANSFORMERS: MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE, too. But I can’t talk about that without spoiling anything. I can say, that events from MTMTE spill into RID next issue… but if you’ve followed what MTMTE revealed about Shockwave, I don’t think that will be a surprise. Anyway—this comic, RID #16, will have repercussions in the comics—and maybe beyond—for some time to come.

But I do want to thank all the readers who’ve read this series—and read MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE, and all the other Transformers comics, too—from the beginning, or who’ve come in during the run, or who are just joining us. Thanks for being there, hope you’ve enjoyed the ride so far, and it just gets better from here on out.

Seibertron wrote:With that said, some spoilers we will avoid just to be fair, but that is at our own internal discretion. For example, if a major character dies in an upcoming comic, cartoon, or movie, we won't have a headline that says "[INSERT CHARACTER NAME HERE] dies in issue #20!" but that doesn't meant that it won't be discussed in the news story itself or elsewhere on the site in our forums.

Guess I need to clarify what I said above some more because I didn't know what kind of spoiler was being debated before I jumped into the conversation.

Out of courtesy for everyone else, this type of thing should be left as a surprise, at least for a week. Most plot details are fair game, but I think this should be left as a spoiler for a little while. Just have to draw a line in the sand somewhere.

Metalhawk is dead.