Transformer: More Than Meets The Eye Ongoing #18 Preview
Friday, June 14th, 2013 7:36AM CDT
Category: Comic Book NewsPosted by: El Duque Views: 19,151
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Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye #18
James Roberts (w) • Alex Milne (a) • Milne, Sean Chen (c)
"DON'T LET THEM TAKE SKIDS!" The crew of the Lost Light left CYBERTRON before they could hear those words—part of a message from the future warning of terror and catastrophe and a threat to the entire Cybertronian race. Can the AUTOBOTS do anything to stop the beginning of the end?
*2 regular covers will be shipped in a 1-to-1 ratio
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Expected in-store date: 6/26/13
Variant Covers: Nick Roche variant cover!
This is the big one—everything since MTMTE #1 has been leading to this story!
Heroes will fall—and revelations will change your perceptions of everything, ever!
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Posted by ScottyP on June 14th, 2013 @ 9:14am CDT
That preview is more interesting than the entirety of the Costa ongoing.
Posted by gothsaurus on June 14th, 2013 @ 9:39am CDT
At the top of my titan repaint list though:
blue - Metrotitan
orange - Autobot city color
gray - G1 toy accurate color Metroplex
dark - some Necropolis
But yeah, this comic has taken my top slot, mostly based on story. I have to say I do love the dark painterly art of Monstrosity, but it's definitely a slower read... and one I primarily enjoy for the art.
Posted by Henry921 on June 14th, 2013 @ 9:42am CDT
Posted by SG Roadbuster on June 14th, 2013 @ 12:47pm CDT
also, a Metrotitan Graveyard, creepy. A city of the dead, built from dead guys that tf into cities, I smell a potential Metroplex redeco/retool literally named Necropolis
Posted by Randomhero on June 14th, 2013 @ 9:02pm CDT
seriously Ambus is the master mind. He's a con now.
Posted by Hypershock on June 14th, 2013 @ 10:51pm CDT
SG Roadbuster wrote:are....are those Jet Vehicons on either side of Lockdown? have Vehicons retroactively become part of G1 canon now? is that was The Decepticons are doing in/to the Hotspot, making Vehicons?!
I totally was just going to say that!! that is weird though, i hope we get to see more of them in the comic
Posted by Sodan-1 on June 15th, 2013 @ 6:25am CDT
Hypershock wrote:SG Roadbuster wrote:are....are those Jet Vehicons on either side of Lockdown? have Vehicons retroactively become part of G1 canon now? is that was The Decepticons are doing in/to the Hotspot, making Vehicons?!
I totally was just going to say that!! that is weird though, i hope we get to see more of them in the comic
Same here, but nobody cares about third place so I'll keep quiet.
I really need to get back into the swing of things and catch up with my comic reading.
Posted by Va'al on June 15th, 2013 @ 7:14am CDT
Sodan-1 wrote:I really need to get back into the swing of things and catch up with my comic reading.
Yes, you do.
Posted by Va'al on June 18th, 2013 @ 7:35am CDT
(Spoiler free-ish)
Synopsis
"DON'T LET THEM TAKE SKIDS!" The crew of the Lost Light left CYBERTRON before they could hear those words—part of a message from the future warning of terror and catastrophe and a threat to the entire Cybertronian race. Can the AUTOBOTS do anything to stop the beginning of the end?
Skids, being observant
Story
Rodimus is still telling his story to Ambus, as the crew we know of seem to be stuck in a room, or a cell. And we've reached the point at which we actually start finding out what has happened - at least, as much as Roberts will let on within the span of a single issue.
Tick tock
At the same time, though, the part of the crew left on the ship, all of the parts of the crew left on the ship, are fighting off the legion of Legislators that have invaded The Lost Light. Swerve and Skids, Whirl and Cyclonus, Trailcutter, Dipstick, Hoist - everyone. And Ratchet faces Pharma. Mad Doctor Pharma.
Yeah, that guy
I will not spoil anything about this issue, because saying anything will ruin, in my opinion, the reading experience. I will not hold back on spoilers if this keeps happening though. What I will say is: There is one big reveal, a startling one and silent yet massive one. Oh, and a minor shocking one.
This might be one of them - sort of
There is a distinct feeling that Roberts has been trying to cram a lot of things into this issue, and I think that detracts from the full enjoyment of the story. That said, it's still a fun, fast-paced, swift-turning read, and plenty enjoyable.
Art
Milne is definitely back, since last issue, and his style just shines through. Shearer's work on inks really makes it show, as well. There are some amazing-looking panels, including the Metrotitan graveyard, and there are so many action shots that it's incredible he can keep everything working at the same time. But it works. He manages to drop in some cameos too.
STEVE(S)!
There are some seriously amazing things being done with colour and lettering too. The Metrotitan graveyard shot is nothing short of gorgeous, with Burcham's toned-down grey and brown and the sheer sense of scale of these things. And Tom B. Long gets a double round of applause for his My First Blaster singing-bubbles.
Customisers everywhere go in a frenzy
What can I add, the artistic team on this issue does a fantastic job. Milne and Shearer do great linework, Burcham adds his colour magic and Long rounds it off with amazing lettering. Seriously, I have nothing to say on top of that!
Thoughts
Spoilerish ahead
So the issue is well paced, shifting almost seamlessly between narration, multiple action scenes and present-time happenings. It looks gorgeous, and there are some wide shots which are truly breathtaking. Why do I feel there's a but coming, then? Too many revelations.
I bloody well hope so
I know, people will complain because I'm complaining about new things happening, but as I said before, I think too much has been thrown into a single issue, something that had happened already with the Overlord battle. It's a little too packed to score a perfect ten (well, five) but it's an amazing issue, and you'd be a fool not to pick it up.
Posted by sabrigami on June 18th, 2013 @ 8:42am CDT
Anywho, just my 2 cents since I know you were having some reservations with this review. Can't wait to see what you were alluding to tomorrow
Posted by Va'al on June 18th, 2013 @ 8:49am CDT
My shorter version of the review:
That one? And that one is here? And they're behind that? And who is that?!
Posted by CaptainMagic on June 18th, 2013 @ 10:00am CDT
Posted by Va'al on June 18th, 2013 @ 10:13am CDT
CaptainMagic wrote:I agree with sabrigami. Va'al, I look forward to your reviews almost as much as the actual comics every week. Too many other comic reviewers just write bad book reports that are just a really long summary of the plot with a few comments here about whether or not they liked said plot, while you actually take the time to avoid talking plot and dig into the technical aspects, which is exactly what needs to be done. Please keep up the good work, because if you stop writing the reviews I'll probably never be able to get used to anyone else.
You are going to make me blush, but thank you! I like to give credit where it's due, and comics are not the product of one author.
Glad that some of that comes through in my reviews.
Posted by sabrigami on June 18th, 2013 @ 10:17am CDT
In other news I just read a twitter post by Roberts saying that there is a very disturbing panel near the end. wonder what that could be about. I'm worried now, he's pretty twisted
Posted by Va'al on June 18th, 2013 @ 10:33am CDT
sabrigami wrote:In other news I just read a twitter post by Roberts saying that there is a very disturbing panel near the end. wonder what that could be about. I'm worried now, he's pretty twisted
There are several. But I think I know which one he's talking about.
Posted by sabrigami on June 18th, 2013 @ 10:36am CDT
Va'al wrote:sabrigami wrote:In other news I just read a twitter post by Roberts saying that there is a very disturbing panel near the end. wonder what that could be about. I'm worried now, he's pretty twisted
There are several. But I think I know which one he's talking about.
Now I'm scared for sure. I sense tears in my future
Posted by Lilformerz on June 19th, 2013 @ 5:32am CDT
Posted by Va'al on June 19th, 2013 @ 3:16pm CDT
TRANSFORMERS: MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE #18 — the new comic book from IDW Publishing and Hasbro— kicks the epic “REMAIN IN LIGHT” story into overdrive! With Rodimus and his crew under attack on the surface of the long-lost Luna-1, the starship Lost Light is under attack! The acclaimed creative team of writer James Roberts and artist Alex Milne hold nothing back—and we had a chance to talk to James! MTMTE #18 issues is available at comic book stores everywhere and for downloaded at https://transformers.comixology.com/ or via the Comixology and iBooks apps on your computer or mobile device!
PAGE 1: Tell us about the Legislators, your initial ideas for them and their final design.
JAMES ROBERTS: It’s a little difficult to give a full answer without spoiling the rest of the issue, so for now I’ll say that when I wrote issue #2, when the Legislators first appeared, I knew they’d reappear in “Remain in Light,” and I knew that the three we saw chasing Skids were part of an army. They’ve not been called Legislators in the comic yet, you know. The name slipped out there when their design appeared in the back of the first MTMTE trade...
In issue #18 we see that there are a number of variations in the basic Legislator design—the one in Swerve’s bar is “Legislator Mark II” in the script.
I knew from the outset that they should carry swords and that they should be blind. I originally asked for them to have no eyes at all, but Alex [Milne]—because he’s good at this—convinced me of a way to make them look cooler, which was to have the suggestion of eyes—sort of these sinister indentations (“Sinister Indentations” sounds like a pretentious story title).
And, you know, sometimes you need a good “clone army”-type enemy for these epic, end-of-the-world stories, especially when in the crew of the Lost Light you’ve got over 200 heroes at your disposal. It’s not enough to have a single bad guy: he needs thousands of crazed, sword-wielding, fire-breathing soldiers... with sinister indentations.
PAGE 2: Swerve's bar literally fights back! Is this one of those scenes you always wanted to show but never had the opportunity to do so until now?
JAMES ROBERTS: Actually, the idea came pretty late in the day. I usually have a very clear idea how scenes and plots and issues are going to play out, but in this instance I don’t know if I’d worked out how Swerve was going to escape from the Legislator. Possibly he was going to be saved by the wider Lost Light battle spilling into the bar and giving him an opportunity to get away. The main point of the scene in earlier drafts was to show the bar being shot to pieces, because I thought it would give the story an emotional kick.
I’ve said it lots of times, so forgive me, but “Remain in Light” is conceived as an end-of-season story, and having the Legislator blow up Swerve’s bar is like tearing apart a familiar set, one that you’ve become accustomed to over the course of the “season.” Something like that can work particularly well when the location in question represents safety/security for the characters, because it feels like a violation.
PAGE 3: Swerve unleashes his new toy—best gun ever! Where did this come from, it takes Swerve to a whole new level.
JAMES ROBERTS: That was a good day, when that idea popped into my head. I was with my two year old son at a noisy play area at a garden center, surrounded by dozens of hyperactive toddlers jumping into ball pits and throwing padded bricks everywhere, and I thought of it. Rung would have a field day with that train of thought.
There’s a whole page of the script—literally, an entire page—dedicated to describing what I’d like the gun to look like, because I was so keen for that scene to work. Of course, the scene only really gels—to me, at least—because the weapon was made by Brainstorm, who would do that sort of thing, and because we’ve established that Swerve is not a good shot. Plus the fact that he only has three fingers on each hand helps, because in some weird way it’s the equivalent of a child getting to grips, literally, with manipulating complex objects.
There was a character in British SF comic 2000AD, Rogue Trooper, who had a weapon implanted with a “biochip”—basically, his gun had a personality. Maybe that’s where we’ll go with Swerve: one barman and his talking gun versus the rest of the universe.
PAGE 4: The rest of the Lost Light crew are engaging other Legislators around the ship. It's almost like facing Overlord all over again, but with one coming at them when another has fallen. Do these guys really have much of a chance?
JAMES ROBERTS: The Legislators are a force to be reckoned with—if you were fighting them one-to-one, there’d be no guarantee that you’d win. But a whole army of them? That’s what made the story exciting, for me: they’re an army. And as we’ll see, there are a LOT of them on Luna 1.
They’re like ants swarming the ship, and again that played into the “end-of-season” vibe, and that sense of somewhere safe becoming the opposite. I liked the contrast with Overlord, too: then, it was just one person against everyone else, and so the fight was largely static. He stood there and fought the crew. Here, the enemy is everywhere, so the fight is everywhere, so there’s lots going on at once. I wanted to highlight that by cutting to lots of different locations throughout the ship, and by showing a variety of familiar characters fighting to survive.
And of course Alex and [colorist] Josh [Burcham] visualize it all perfectly. I can’t overstate how essential, how integral these two geniuses are to the MTMTE experience.
PAGE 5: Skids and his story has always been there from the start of the series. Are all of the answers to his story now forth moving in a big way?
JAMES ROBERTS: In short: yes. Before “Remain in Light” is out, you’ll find out what the deal is with Skids. We’ll revisit key scenes from earlier issues, and—fingers crossed!—everything will be tied together with a big blue bow.
Posted by craggy on June 21st, 2013 @ 7:19pm CDT
Va'al wrote:sabrigami wrote:In other news I just read a twitter post by Roberts saying that there is a very disturbing panel near the end. wonder what that could be about. I'm worried now, he's pretty twisted
There are several. But I think I know which one he's talking about.
the first one? or the second?
That could have ended a book, quite easily. Then they have the ball-bearings to go and give us a bunch more pages! There were at least 3 "endings" here, but unlike Peter Jackson, they get better as they go on, with each giving more things to look forward to, and the final panel making us really eager to see next issue, and still inspiring intrique, whilst also dialling it back a little from something quite seriously disturbing that's happened not long before.
also: Rung is awesome.