“But I know it’s not easy, or simple. I’m not sure anything is, now.”
“You have no idea.”
Keep reading for a review of Transformers #10 (2019).
(Minor spoilers below.)
We got a big-ole piece of information dropped on us this issue, about someone’s death and who was responsible for it. There really wasn’t any lead up to it, so it felt abrupt; I would’ve liked a little foreshadowing, but I think it was meant to shock us.
We also see the fallout from Chromia, Windblade, and Sideswipe’s trip to the Rise’s underground headquarters: Windblade floats unconscious in a bacta-tank (oh I know it’s not, but let me have my Star Wars reference) while Sideswipe gets patched up. He’s still going on about that thermal lance of his; it got mentioned twice last issue and once here, so I’m guessing we’re supposed to pay attention to it? Maybe the writer is just seeding something he wants to be a running gag?
(Weirdly, there’s no sign of Chromia all issue, despite being so prominently featured on the main cover, and having been at the ambush that tagged Windblade last issue.)
Meanwhile, Megatron is escorted (by Alita and Bumblebee, both of whom are feeling uncomfortable with the current political climate) to a Senate meeting, where he gripes about the Autobots always being afraid of a little disagreement, never wanting change, always blaming the Ascenticons for the recent deaths. I’d say he has a point, but we know he’s been sneaking around trying to consolidate power, and we get a few more pieces of the puzzle this issue that doth make his protesting a bit much.
We know Megatron has reasons to want change (and Optimus sounded annoyingly smug about the Autobots holding the majority of senate seats Sorry Not Sorry We Get To Make The Rules) so I want to be on Megs’ side, but knowing what we know, is the change he wants balanced out by what’s happening on Cybertron now? How long would the planet have stayed peaceful if he hadn’t meddled? And would it have been worth it? What’s an acceptable price for safety, especially when not everybody has to pay it?
(Yes, lots of parallels between this and real world events, but it didn’t feel preachy to me.)
The word “deceit” gets thrown around a few times, followed by “deception,” so I’m sure the Ascenticons are due for a name change any day now. Plus we see the return of a few more familiar faces, and I’m looking forward to seeing how these new (old) personalities work in this rebooted series.
And I can’t wait to see Prowl and Soundwave get into it, oh boy oh boy oh boy.
We had three artists this issue, and Angel Hernandez’s art is the most recognizable to me by now; it’s a pretty distinctive style, everything looks so three-dimensional. Combined with the colors, all the shapes just leap off the page.
I’m less fond of how he draws Megatron’s mouth, it feels a little awkward (especially when he’s yelling) but that’s a pretty nitpicky quibble. I still have trouble seeing much emotion in the faces Angel draws, but they’re awfully pretty to look at.
Anna Malkova and Beth McGuire-Smith’s style seem very similar to me, but in this issue Beth just had four pages of Megatron in an underground area (plus one more bot who I won’t mention because spoilers) and it’s hard to get a really good idea of style with such similar panels. I think Anna’s poses are slightly more natural and relaxed. I like both their work with faces equally well, in a different way than how I enjoy Angel’s faces: Anna and Beth’s faces have more emotion, and are closer to what you’d see in the original cartoon. Angel’s are more detailed and dimensional, closer to what an actual robot’s face might look like. Both have their appeal.