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Thanks to our friends at IDW Publishing, we are able to offer you a full preview of next week's issue of More Than Meets the Eye, the second chapter in the Dark Cybertron event! Check out the solicit and images below, and come back on Tuesday for the Seibertron.com review.

Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye #23: Dark Cybertron Part 2 (of 12)
James Roberts & John Barber (w) • James Raiz, Atilio Rojo & Livio Ramondelli (a) • Casey W. Coller (c)
THE DEAD UNIVERSE! ORION PAX—the ’bot who was once OPTIMUS PRIME—joins RODIMUS and the crew of the Lost Light in a desperate bid to outmaneuver SHOCKWAVE—by returning to the legendary Dead Universe! Meanwhile, BUMBLEBEE faces down the biggest—literally biggest—threat he’s ever seen on CYBERTRON!
FC • 32 pages • $3.99

Bullet points:
The TRANSFORMERS comics event of the decade continues!
Co-written by regular MTMTME writer James Roberts and RID writer John Barber!
Variant cover by Phil Jimenez!

I hope this is the last book with any James Raiz. It's not low quality, it just doesn't fit.

Why is the art so... "dirty"?

That last shot of Brainstorm is creepy, it's giving off a Reanimator vibe

I actually really like James Raiz' work. Especially his close-ups. That last panel with Brainstorm. Reminds me of why I got into the comics - for the excellent art of Don Figueroa.

Pre Mike Costa days, ofcours.

It's not looking to bad so far. Shame they feel the need to waste a page with the "previously" stuff. A little blurb in the front pages used to do it just fine.

I like Raiz's art. Especially now that the inked lines have been toned down a little. That last panel of Brainstorm is heavenly

I like it...A LOT! Gritty, edgy, not the crisp, clean, vibrant stuff we've had in some of the other issues which, while it works for the over-all visual clarity for the readers sake, didn't convey that these bots are bound for some hard-core action. Raiz's look gives us great detail on the robots while still letting us know that this is a dark point and things are only going to get darker and rougher from here on out.
Now so long as the handle Orion's return decently and don't make a farce of it, then the rest of the Dark Cybertron arc should go well. Very much looking forward to more of this run.

Raiz's art style is somewhat looks like L.V.O. Detailed, but only good for covers and large prints but not good for comics. The detailed style also makes the tone way too serious and the characters look less attractive than Milne's era.

MagnusLabel wrote:Raiz's art style is somewhat looks like L.V.O. Detailed, but only good for covers and large prints but not good for comics. The detailed style also makes the tone way too serious and the characters look less attractive than Milne's era.

That's how I feel, the dialogue hasn't gotten much more grim, at least not yet, and it just doesn't match the art. On the other hand...

T-Macksimus wrote:these bots are bound for some hard-core action. Raiz's look gives us great detail on the robots while still letting us know that this is a dark point and things are only going to get darker and rougher from here on out.

This is a good point. However, I'd tend to think it's -too- gritty, it looks gritty and dirty for the mere sake of doing so.

IDW artist Casey Coller has just tweeted two images of his cover artwork for next week's More than Meets the Eye #23 (full preview here) - check out the two images below, one with linework and one coloured by Teyowisonte Thomas Deer!

Lay off the black ink, Raiz!

Why good artists draw the covers only and bad artists draw the pages?

Synopsis

THE DEAD UNIVERSE! ORION PAX—the ’bot who was once OPTIMUS PRIME—joins RODIMUS and the crew of the Lost Light in a desperate bid to outmaneuver SHOCKWAVE—by returning to the legendary Dead Universe! Meanwhile, BUMBLEBEE faces down the biggest—literally biggest—threat he’s ever seen on CYBERTRON!



Story

After the setting up and minor reveals in DC#1, it's time to get things going. But first - We get another brief 'Previously' page, which while nice (and bit melodramatic), did not feel as necessary this time round. We'll see if it becomes customary, and if it overstays its welcome in the next issues. The Roll Call page was nice, on the other hand, even if just to convey a sense of the cast, and its major players.



While Bumblebee/Goldbugfire and the Auto/Dinobots stand around on Cybertron not doing much, Orion Pax and his crew now aboard the Lost Light concoct their plan to approach the Dead Universe, to which we've been introduced for so long now it feels like that relative you always dread at family reunions - though Brainstorm seems fascinated by it.



It seems as though the dialogue has picked up again, and it may or may not be more of Roberts' words than Barber's this time round. But it does feel welcome. The two writers manage to approach the characters of Orion and Starscream in a good, more nuanced way, giving us a better look at what might be happening below the surface.



It is gaining some momentum, and we're developing a much better sense of what is at stake and what may happen, with the focus shifting to other characters than the ones we're all execting (though I worry about falling back onto the same ones eventually) - but I feel it'll work a lot better in TPB format than as a single issue.

Art

Now, the artwork. I'm having some trouble making my mind up about this. I welcome the introduction of new names into the franchise, and it's good to see variation between different styles. But having three artists (Raiz, Rojo and Ramondelli) with very different styles in the same story does not convince me as much. They all do an impressive job, though Rojo's faces can seem a little off in proportion, but I feel as though Raiz and Rojo could've been swapped, with the latter on the Lost Light and the former, darker style, on Cybertron.



The colours, however, are Perez' usual goodness. They play really well with the sources of light and shadows in the panels, and the two different art-styles, without jarring with Raiz' darker or Rojo's lighter lines. Ramondelli, as usual, colours his own art, and does an equally good job in terms of tone and mood setting. The new letterer, Gilberto Lazcano, is intriguingly light-touched, and I would like to see more from him in the future.



The three styles work by themselves, with some shining moments for each, but I have a hard time deciding whether I like their juxtaposition or not. I have nothing to complain about the colours, and even though I chose not to show any Ramondelli images in the review, his work is good and definitely well suited to the tone of that part of the story. The cover by EJ Su is also excellent!

Thoughts
Spoilerish ahead

The story seems to be gaining its ground, and seeding some future plot elements nicely. It still reads as a bit jumbled though, even if just because of the sheer scale of the cast and settings for the action to take place. I'm fully confident, though, that by next month, once this and RID have had a chance to settle, we'll be back to the usual, expected greatness.



The confusion is not entirely helped out by having so many artists work on different parts; even if it does make clear where we are, the styles don't always work with the tone. The colours, on the other hand, always suit the style. I am curious to see what will happen as this goes on, and if it is to be the new standard to differentiate settings.

Va'al wrote:[center]Black Metal

Art

Now, the artwork. I'm having some trouble making my mind up about this. I welcome the introduction of new names into the franchise, and it's good to see variation between different styles. But having three artists (Raiz, Rojo and Ramondelli) with very different styles in the same story does not convince me as much. They all do an impressive job, though Rojo's faces can seem a little off in proportion, but I feel as though Raiz and Rojo could've been swapped, with the latter on the Lost Light and the former, darker style, on Cybertron.

Are the new names are referring to Raiz, Rojo and Ramondelli?

Raiz has been penciling TF comics since DW-era.
L.V.O <- everybody knows.
Rojo <- part of MTMTE #12

I prefer Rojo much more than L.V.O and Raiz. His penciling is much cleaner than the latter two and makes the comic readable.

MagnusLabel wrote:

Va'al wrote:[center]Black Metal

Art

Now, the artwork. I'm having some trouble making my mind up about this. I welcome the introduction of new names into the franchise, and it's good to see variation between different styles. But having three artists (Raiz, Rojo and Ramondelli) with very different styles in the same story does not convince me as much. They all do an impressive job, though Rojo's faces can seem a little off in proportion, but I feel as though Raiz and Rojo could've been swapped, with the latter on the Lost Light and the former, darker style, on Cybertron.

Are the new names are referring to Raiz, Rojo and Ramondelli?

Raiz has been penciling TF comics since DW-era.
L.V.O <- everybody knows.
Rojo <- part of MTMTE #12

I prefer Rojo much more than L.V.O and Raiz. His penciling is much cleaner than the latter two and makes the comic readable.

Should've made it clearer: new names to the series. I know Rojo worked on it before, and I interview Raiz myself about his return to Transformers - and of course we all know Livio.

Bad phrasing on my part!

Loved the story and the progression of characters in this book. I think it can be confirmed that this is the one that comes with the Scoop toy.

Still annoyed by the art, but it seems to have its fans, so mmk.

I'm glad that we finally get to see Nightbeat again. Always thought he was waisted potential back in the Furman days.

Not really digging Rojo's art, though. Most of the characters he draws look like muppets to me. I mean, don't get me wrong - I love the Muppets. But not as robots.