Transformers: Robots in Disguise #18
John Barber (w) • Atilio Rojo (a) • Rojo, Casey Coller (c)
SURVIVOR'S GUILT! After the shattering events of the past two issues, we can't tell you who's alive and who's dead. But we will hint that one CYBERTRONIAN has to reconsider her worldview—while she comes face-to-face with some old enemies. We won't mention any names, but she's in for the fight of her life!
*2 regular covers will be shipped in a 1-to-1 ratio
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Expected in-store date: 6/5/13
Variant Covers: Phil Jimenez variant cover!
T-Minus 4 months to the event that will rock the TRANSFORMERS to their core!
Superstar artist Phil Jimenez contributes a powerful variant cover!

• Livio Ramondelli
• Josh Burcham
• Matt Frank
• John Barber
• and more!

• Your Choice of a Transformers Red Label IDW Limited book (a $125 value)!
• Meet with Transformers Artists, including at least one unique sketch!
• Tour of the IDW Facilities with CEO/Publisher Ted Adams!
• The Botcon-Exclusive Transformers/My Little Pony Variant!
• Advanced peeks at upcoming projects!
• Your name in an upcoming Transformers comic!
• Q&A session with Chris Ryall and John Barber!
• Gift bag of IDW comics for every guest!
• Free shuttle service to and from the botcon hotel!
• Surprises! Cake! More!

Q:We’re halfway through MONSTROSITY. The first series that you worked on withChris Metzen and Flint Dille, AUTOCRACY, focused on Orion Pax becoming OptimusPrime. Why did the focus was shift to Megatron and what happens to him, whileshowing bits and pieces of Prime on Cybertron?

LIVIO RAMONDELLI: Itfelt like a natural progression in the story to shift things a bit more toMegatron’s story. He suffered a big defeat at the end of AUTOCRACY, and soseeing how his followers respond to that interested us. Plus, we wanted tocontrast that against Prime having a more political battle ahead of him, andshowing the hardships of leadership for a divided world.

Q:Megatron has obviously suffered prior to the series and gone through a littleredesign? How did you come to the design we see him in now?

LIVIO RAMONDELLI: Weknew that he’d repair himself with pieces he’d scavenged on Junkion, and so wedefinitely wanted him to be asymmetrical. By the end of his time on that world,he’s almost unrecognizable as Megatron… his colors have rusted and hisDecepticon logo has burned away. He really needs to find himself once again,essentially.

Q:There have been a few new characters making themselves know so far in theseries. What led to those characters coming into the series rather than others?Are any of them you just wanted to see in there?

LIVIO RAMONDELLI: Absolutely.Trypticon, Sharkticons and Quintessons were the ones I most wanted to include.I felt like they lent themselves well to the story we wanted to tell, and theyadded a more monstrous side. We knew they’d be in there from way early on. Andthen others like Dai Atlas and Bulkhead grew organically from the story, wherewe felt like we had a place for them that also felt natural.

Q:The Dynobots are going though a bit of a journey in the series. What is itabout this team that makes you want to creative something with them involvedafter all the previous material with them involved?

LIVIO RAMONDELLI: Ithink they’re a very classic part of the TF universe. Funny enough, they’re allover the place now in the various games and the TV shows, but when we firstdecided to use them they weren’t really around. And as Chris said it, MONSTROSITYis about a man becoming a monster (Megatron), and a monster becoming a man(Grimlock). I always loved that.

Q:We have the Quintessons making their first real appearance in the IDW universe,after being previously teased at the end of SPOTLIGHT: WHEELIE in 2008. Was thisa deliberate nod to the 1986 TRANSFORMERS animated movie (after the nods we sawin AUTOCRACY)?
LIVIO RAMONDELLI: Nota deliberate nod, exactly, since we use the Quintession Pentius in a verydifferent way, here. Though, of course, we drew from the movie since, visually,we felt there were some great things we could do that hadn’t been seen in [the IDWcomics] before. And we wanted to certainly tease the Quintessons without givingtoo much information about their race… certainly leaving more to be revealedabout them in future stories.

Q:Taking into account what you established in Autocracy, was there much researchthat had to be done about Megatron to see what was already established abouthim in the IDW world so you could figure him out?

LIVIO RAMONDELLI: MEGATRON:ORIGIN is a big favorite of mine, and so I knew a lot of his history prettywell. And then of course James wrote the great “Chaos Theory,” which furtheradded to it. Our take on him is meant to reflect those but also portray him asincreasingly dangerous… a truly growing threat. [Editor] John [Barber] is greatat jumping in and suggesting things or filling us in on some continuity we mayhave missed.

Q:With Dai Atlas, he has some backstory in the IDW universe, but also some gaps.When figuring out his role in this story, do you think it was the intention toshow he was more than we previously may have thought? He’s proven to be a hellof a fighter.

LIVIO RAMONDELLI: Wecertainly wanted to shed more light on him. And also, TRANSFORMERS: ROBOTS INDISGUISE #17 that I did with John [also on sale today!] will also give us bigmoments with him in the past. I think he was perfect to use in this prequelbecause we know he left Cybertron… and now we get to see the why and how of it.And there’s a sadness to seeing him and Prime trying to work things out becausewe know it doesn’t succeed. Their final moment together in Monstrosity is anemotional favorite of mine.

Q:Given that you worked with Flint and Chris before, has the creative processbeen any smoother for you all this time around, now you know how each otherbetter?

LIVIO RAMONDELLI: We’remuch closer just as friends by this point. In AUTOCRACY, it was really theirstory and I was coming in to draw it. But they embraced me warmly, and let mereally suggest a lot of stuff… it was the most fun I’ve ever had in my career.And now with this current series, it’s only gotten better. It’s a truecollaboration and I feel very much a part of the story. Chris and Flint areawesome guys, and I’m very thankful for their generosity and friendship.

Q:What is your favorite stage of the creative process when putting the seriestogether?

LIVIO RAMONDELLI: There’sa few… I love the early stages of just chatting about any insane idea andseeing if we can connect the dots. I also love when the issues start coming outand the reader responses arrive. And then finally finishing a series is a veryrewarding moment since you know that story will live on forever and hopefullybe passed around to new readers.

Q:Would you say working in a digital format, with less page space than a regularcomic, is a plus or a minus point for both you?

LIVIO RAMONDELLI: It’sboth. Certainly, there are times it can be a minus because you want to do bigmoney shots and sometimes don’t have the space. But as a plus, it makes usreally concentrate on the screen time and make every moment count. As a result,I think the pacing in these issues feels very fulfilling… we cover a lot ofstory and readers seem to really love that.

Q:Tease us about future issues of MONSTROSITY. What would you like to say aboutthe series to anyone looking to pick it up for the first time?

LIVIO RAMONDELLI: Obviously,the revelation that Trypticon has been discovered is a huge clue for the restof the series. We wouldn’t show something like that and have it not wake up.And we’re aiming for a level of destruction with Trypticon that hasn’t beenseen before. Optimus Prime will really be put to the test, as he has beenthroughout the series. Megatron will of course return to deal with his betrayalat Scorponok’s hands… and he isn’t the merciful kind.

And for anyone who hasn’t read ityet… I’d say it’s the story of a world coming apart at the seams, showing how asociety can destroy everything they love and not even be fully aware of it.

Q:Can you see the story that you’re telling branching out even further into thewar, maybe offering up a third digital series after this one?

LIVIO RAMONDELLI: Withoutsaying too much… I think there’s a very good possibility…

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Transformers: Monstrosity #7 (of 12)
12 CHAPTER DIGITAL EXCLUSIVE SERIES! BATTLE OF JUNKION! MEGATRON is under attack-by his own Decepticons! With everything at stake, he makes a fateful decision --and brutal final combat ensues!

TRANSFORMERS: ROBOTS IN DISGUISE #17

John Barber (w), Livio Ramondelli(a), Ramondelli, Casey Coller (c) SHOCKWAVES! The fate of Cybertron is sealed -- but what is the DECEPTICON scientist called SHOCKWAVE planning? After the stunning revelations in MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE, learn the origin of the one-eyed, gun-handed master of machinations... and the countdown begins for the biggest TRANSFORMERS event in comic book history.

32 pages, $3.99.

• Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye #20
• Transformers: Robots in Disguise #20
• Transformers Regeneration One #94
• Transformers Prime: Beast Hunters #4
• Transformers Prime: Beast Hunters #4—Subscription Variant
• Transformers: Prelude
• Transformers: Monstrosity #3 (of 4)

Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye #20
James Roberts (w) • Alex Milne (a) • Milne, Sean Chen (c)
NOWHERE TO RUN! The end is nigh for the surviving members of the Lost Light crew, as enemies old and new move in for the kill. But on the fringes of known space, an ancient visionary is about to eliminate the Cybertronian race with a wave of his hand.
2 regular covers will be shipped in a 1-to-1 ratio
*Retailers: See your order form for incentive information.
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Expected in-store date: 8/28/13

*Retailer incentives:
Order 10 copies, get one free variant Nick Roche cover!

Bullet points:
• The penultimate part of the shocking Remain in Light!
• Not for the faint-hearted!

Transformers: Robots in Disguise #20
John Barber (w) • Andrew Griffith (a) • Griffith, Casey Coller (c)
NEW CYBERTRON! It’s a brand new day—and STARSCREAM is in charge! But running a planet isn’t as easy as it looks… if BUMBLEBEE couldn’t do it, why does the former DECEPTICON think he can?
2 regular covers will be shipped in a 1-to-1 ratio
*Retailers: See your order form for incentive information.
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Expected in-store date: 8/14/13

*Retailer incentives:
Order 10 copies, get one free variant Livio Ramondeli cover, interconnected with issues 21 and 22!

Bullet points:
• Introducing fan-favorite character RATTRAP into the world of ROBOTS IN DISGUISE!
• The dawn of a new age—or the end of everything?!
• The countdown to DARK CYBERTRON continues!

Transformers Regeneration One #94
Simon Furman (w) • Guido Guidi (a) • Andrew Wildman, Guidi (c)
CYBERTRON UNDER SIEGE! As BLUDGEON’s Blitz Engines wreak havoc, the AUTOBOTS struggle to muster a response to a threat that feels all too close to home! But their “greatest warrior,” ULTRA MAGNUS, has problems of his own… in the shape of a fighting mad GALVATRON. It’s the clash of titans you’ve (almost) never seen before!
*2 regular covers will be shipped in a 1-to-1 ratio
*Retailers: See your order form for incentive information.
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Expected in-store date: 8/7/13

*Retailer incentives:
Order 10 copies, get one free Geoff Senior variant cover!

Bullet points:
• Cover-to-cover battle action!
• ULTRA MAGNUS versus GALVATRON—the rematch of the millennium!

Transformers Prime: Beast Hunters #4
Mairghread Scott & Mike Johnson (w) • Agustin Padilla (a) • Ken Christiansen (c)
PRIMEVAL PREDATORS! The DINOBOTS have stumbled upon some of SHOCKWAVE’S old experiments… now they are running rampant across the Cybertronian underground. It’s up to GRIMLOCK and SWOOP to subdue the enemy! But with pressure mounting and his foes wreaking havoc, can GRIMLOCK keep his own rage in check?
*Retailers: See your order form for incentive information.
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Expected in-store date: 8/21/13

*Retailer incentives:
Order 25 copies, get one free animation art variant cover!

Transformers Prime: Beast Hunters #4—Subscription Variant
Mairghread Scott & Mike Johnson (w) • Agustin Padilla (a) • Michael Lark (c)
For subscription customers only… enlist up at your local comic shop! A variant cover by artist Michael Lark! Only for loyal subscription box customers!
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Expected in-store date: 8/21/13

Transformers: Prelude
Nick Roche, John Barber, & James Roberts (w) • Steve Kurth, Chee, Nick Roche, David Daza, Matt Frank, & Agustin Padilla (a) • Nick Roche (c)
The Spotlight falls on Orion Pax, Thundercracker, Megatron, Bumblebee, Trailcutter, and Hoist in this collection of six individual stories that explain an important moment in each character's life. From the distant past to current events each story adds to Cybertronian lore.
TPB • FC • $19.99 • 152 pages • ISBN 978-1-61377-716-9
Expected in-store date: 8/7/13

Bullet points:
• Collecting all the hit TRANSFORMERS Spotlight issues!

Transformers: Monstrosity #3 (of 4)
Chris Metzen & Flint Dille (w) • Livio Ramondelli (a) • Ramondelli x 3 (c)
MEGATRON UNCHAINED! In the early days of the war, MEGATRON—exiled on JUNKION—battles to reclaim the throne of CYBERTRON. But the TERRORCONS have other ideas… Meanwhile, GRIMLOCK and the DINOBOTS threaten OPTIMUS PRIME’s fledgling republic!
*3 regular covers will be shipped in a 1-to-1-to-1 ratio
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Expected in-store date: 8/7/13

Bullet points:
• In print for the first time!
• Terror on Junkion!

In an unprecedented crossover between Hasbro's "Transformers" and "My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic," Pinkie Pie cosplays as Optimus Prime, dancing on the massive hand of the Big Bot himself, as he gives a quizzical tilt of his head. The variant cover will be available at this year's Transformers Botcon in San Diego from June 27 - 30.

TRANSFORMERS: REGENERATION ONE #91—the comic book that continues the original 1984 TRANSFORMERS series, courtesy IDW Publishing and Hasbro—launches an all-new story arc! “DESTINY” part one sets the stage, as BLUDGEON and SOUNDWAVE launch their ultimate assault against the universe, thanks to legendary writer Simon Furman—who we sat down with for a brief chat!—and artist Andrew Wildman. TRANSFORMERS: REGENERATION ONE #91 is out now at comic book stores everywhere, and for download at https://transformers.comixology.com/ or via the Comixology and iBooks apps on your computer or mobile device)!

PAGE 1: We’re on the world of Cresta Superior, with some beetle-like war machines in operation. What was your inspiration on the design of these machines? Did you have a specific look in mind or did you let artist Andrew Wildman design what he thought would work best?

SIMON FURMAN: A lot of the design of Bludgeon’s Blitz Engines comes (naturally enough) from Andrew. But of course I threw a bunch of ideas into the mix in the script too. My main requirement was that they in no way appeared humanoid. We went that route in Generation 2 (in which there’s a parallel story of Bludgeon and Matrix-infused clone troopers, one of a few G2 elements that are finding their way into the REGENERATION ONE mix… another big one of those says hi this very issue!), and I wanted these to be visually distinct and just generally big, threatening and armed to teeth.

They’re siege engines, tanks on legs basically. And Andrew took that and ran with it, creating these almost crab-like mechs that really look like they can just plough through anything (and anyone) in their way. They’re going to get a lot of action in #94-95, and to have even the slightest hope of combating them, the Autobots are going to have to wheel out a really BIG gun of their own.

PAGE 2: The machines are slaughtering the humanoid soldiers and breaking their way through into their base. Cresta Superior is a brand new world in TRANSFORMERS. Why create something new instead of using a previously established world for this scene?

SIMON FURMAN: One criticism I’ve seen leveled at RG1 is that we’re very focused down on just three worlds (Cybertron, Earth and Nebulos… and there’s a reason for that, trust me, which will become apparent in the final arc), so I took the opportunity to just remind readers that there are other worlds (and other mech species) out there (again, something that will form a big plot-point in the final arc), and lay in the idea that there are vast distances and gulfs of outer space that while maybe mapped aren’t well travelled or continually on the Cybertronian radar. Remember, a lot of RG1 (initially) was about Optimus Prime having (disastrously) taken his eye off the ball, allowed his sphere of awareness to focus too much on Cybertron (to the exclusion of all else). The business with Earth (and to an extent Nebulos) is going to turn out to be quite a micro-failing compared to what’s been happening out in the wider (macro-) universe.

PAGE 3: Bludgeon and Soundwave are talking, and we’re seeing that the machines are called Blitz Engines and are Bludgeon’s creations. Tell us about where Bludgeon is coming from in his point of view and how he sees the universe. And what he believes should happen to it.

SIMON FURMAN: Bludgeon’s a complex character. He has this whole martial arts style warrior code he adheres to (more or less) that skews his conventional motivations. Bludgeon is much more concerned with his wider legacy and how he’ll be regarded (by future generations) than the here and now. So while his current goal seems straightforward (return to Cybertron and the conquest of the same), it’s much more layered. Bludgeon believes in predestination, and that if that destiny is not forthcoming he must force the issue. He sees this life as merely stepping-stone to another (greater) destiny, and that makes him incredibly dangerous. Death holds no fear for him. Maybe even attracts him?

PAGE 4: Soundwave and Bludgeon are discussing their future plans, which would appear to involve Thunderwing. Even though Soundwave and Bludgeon are Decepticons and on the same side, are they really fighting for the same common cause or pursuing two very different agendas here?

SIMON FURMAN: There’s a certain amount of crossover in Bludgeon’s and Soundwave’s motivations/goals, but there’s also a whole side to what Bludgeon wants that Soundwave isn’t privy to. Soundwave is all about keeping Megatron’s banner raised over Cybertron, even post-mortem, whereas Bludgeon wants… well, that’d be telling.

PAGE 5: Looking at the aftermath of what Scorponok was doing in the previous issues. Is everything really back to normal on Cybertron? Can these guys just go back to the way things were before events of war took their toll on the population again?

SIMON FURMAN: I think that irrevocable damage has been done by Scorponok’s gene-engineering, but it’s not insurmountable. Part of the reason I wanted to do that particular arc was to show what a tenuous hold the Autobots have on the “heroic” side of their nature, that (actually) every day is a battle to hold onto the values and moral ideals they live by. (Grimlock, for example, walks that line a little more visibly.) They’re supremely powerful beings, appointed guardians/custodians of the entire universe. How could that degree of power, responsibility and status not go to your head? So every day is a struggle to keep on the side of right and virtue, and thanks to Scorponok that struggle is a little tougher, a little more evident.

Description
REMAIN IN LIGHT! MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE's first full-blown epic moves into high gear as RODIMUS leads his crew to the gates of heaven -- or hell. But larger forces are closing in and an ancient plan is reaching fruition -- and as an old friend calls time on the AUTOBOTS' quest, one thing becomes clear: the LEGISLATORS are on the march.

This is it. The beginning of the end. The pieces are all now in play and Transformers: Regeneration One #91 kicks off the climactic confrontation(s) that will, like dominos falling, culminate with the shocking, searing uber-battle that is issue #100. In the meantime, #91 goes on sale this week, Wednesday May 15th (officially anyway… it was released to digital buyers a week early… or on time… and we knuckle-dragging print ‘n’ paper folk are behind a week… I don’t know. Anyway…), and as usual I present my delve into the darker recesses of the brain that produced it (ie. mine) with the pure and simple aim to tantalise and torment. BUT, should you prefer to read #91 with wide, agog, clear-of-potential-spoilers eyes, then abort now. Okay, so the first chunk of “Destiny”, our third RG1 arc, kicks off a certain amount of aftermath from the shocking events of Scorponok’s dark reign, as you’d expect, and a certain amount of rumbles of the gathering storm that will rock Cybertron and the Cybertronians to their very core (and yes, I mean that quite literally). Just about everyone is now either on Cybertron or en route to Cybertron, with a wide and complex set of festering motives. There’s Bludgeon and his nomadic group of Decepticons, armed with a WarWorld and a whole heap of Matrix-powered clone war machines, coming back to even several raw and burning scores, and Galvatron (displaced from an alternate future), determined to have what he most desires, and was denied in his own timeline — total domination of Cybertron (and in his way a certain ‘Cybertron’s Greatest Warrior’). And meanwhile, Hot Rod (acting C-in-C on Cybertron in Optimus Prime’s absence) has concerns more close to home on his mind, and a restless populace about to let him know exactly what they feel about his current scheme to reunify them with their distant (and feral) ancestors. It’s an incendiary situation about to combust in spectacular fashion, especially as one key player (so far not on the board) ramps up his involvement. Phew… and if you think you know where all this is going, think again. We’re about to toss in a huge and entirely unexpected curve-ball mid-arc, which will throw a bunch more stuff into the cauldron that is RG1 (and shatter a fair few pairs of trousers in the process). News of that soon! In the meantime, RG1 #91 hits stores in a mere two days, and you can view the official IDW preview here. Trust me, we are at the top of a really big rollercoaster, and the plunge downhill starts now…

We promised that this would be a special week of guest announcements and we thought that we couldn’t let things rest with just Jason Cardy and Kat Nicholson so we thought that it was time to continue… so we’re proud to announce that in August, once again we are being joined by none other than Nick Roche for Auto Assembly 2013!

This will be Nick’s fifth appearance at Europe’s largest Transformers convention and as well as signing autographs and sketching, he will be taking to the stage alongside our other IDW guests James Roberts and Andrew Griffith for a panel currently scheduled for the Sunday. Time to dig out your copies of Last Stand Of The Wreckers again everyone…

But that’s not all… we are also being joined once again by prominent fan artist and our in-house art supremo, Ed Pirrie. Ed has once again provided the convention with a stunning array of artwork for the convention this year including our exclusive t-shirts, all of this year’s postcards (with more being revealed shortly) and is hard at work on this year’s comic strip for The Cybertronian Times. Ed will be sketching all weekend in our guest area.

We still have more guests to announce so stay tuned…

TRANSFORMERS:MONSTROSITY #6 - the digital-first comic book from IDW Publishing and Hasbro is ready for download! In the early days of the Autobot/Decepticon war, a secretbelow the ruins of Cyberton may bring deliverence… but will it end theDinobots. Chris Metzen and Flint Dille write this mind-shattering sequel to last year’s hit TRANSFORMERS: AUTOCRACY, and now we sit down with superstar artist Livio Ramondeli to talk about this 8-page, 99¢ comic - available now at https://transformers.comixology.com/ or via the Comixology and iBooks apps on your computer or mobile device!

Q: Is the way you’re working on pages for MONSTROSITY changed at all from when you did AUTOCRACY last year?

LIVIO RAMONDELLI: It’s a sort of constant evolution, but I’m not doing anything intentionally different than AUTOCRACY. I’m just trying to make the art look better and better, as well as clearer. I’m always trying new little things here and there to really pop highlights on the characters, and make the images brighter in general. Even when dealing with dark shadows.

Q: It’s clear you sure like playing with light and colors on your pages. Was this something you taught yourself or something you learned at school?

LIVIO RAMONDELLI: Definitely both. I studied color in school, but I spend more time thinking about it now. I’m always looking for new ways to balance out the colors and play with light. It’s tricky with TRANSFORMERS because they’re so bright, and you’re always fighting pages looking like clashing colors. Sometimes it works better than others.

Q: How much leeway does the script give you — do you follow what’s on the script page, or do what you feel is best to make it work?

LIVIO RAMONDELLI: The scripts always call for specific shots, but the page layouts (and the size of the panels) is my call. Also Chris and Flint are great at letting me change things when I feel like something might work better. I’m always looking to make each shot important, and so I’ll sometimes cut out panels that I feel we can cover in a line of dialogue and that gives us the space for more money shots. For example, in MONSTROSITY #5 we initially saw a couple panels of Scorponok and Blitzwing about to blast the door open to the refinery. But I suggested that we just show the door exploding, which gave us a cool reveal, more space, and didn’t cost us anything since your mind fills in what came before.

Q: In this issue, we hear about a sixth member of the Dynobots team — Skar. Was it a surprise to see this new character appear and how much did you enjoy the process of designing this previously unseen team member?

LIVIO RAMONDELLI: It was tricky, because you’re adding something to a classic group of characters and trying to make it feel natural, which is always hard. At first I actually designed Skar to look closer to Swoop (since Swoop tends to stand out differently from the other Dinobots, and it made sense to me that another would look like him). But it was Chris’s desire to really see Skar as Grimlock’s close friend as well as resemble him a bit physically. Like he could have been as strong as Grimlock, and tragically didn’t make it. So he ended up being a bit of a cross between Grimlock and Swoop — his head has some Swoop elements to it. I wasn’t surprised by the reveal as I knew from the beginning of the story Skar would appear. It was just a question of hopefully making it natural.

Transformers Regeneration One #91
Simon Furman (w) • Andrew Wildman (a) • Wildman, Guido Guidi (c)
THINGS FALL APART! The very fabric of the TRANSFORMERS’ universe begins to unravel, as huge and ancient cosmic forces take note of CYBERTRON’s (and the CYBERTRONIANS’) descent into chaos and anarchy. As HOT ROD struggles to hold things together, still reeling from his own game-changing wake-up call, competing destructive forces inch closer to a cataclysmic confrontation. The end begins here.
*2 regular covers will be shipped in a 1-to-1 ratio

FC • 32 pages • $3.99


Variant Covers:
Geoff Senior variant cover!

Bullet points:
If CYBERTRON falls—can the universe be far behind?
Continuing the story of the original 1980s TRANSFORMERS comic book series!
Non-stop action in the Furman/Wildman manner!

Today we kick off our Artist Alley announcements, with the first being that BotCon 2013 will in fact feature its largest Artist Alley ever! With so many amazing artists scheduled to attend BotCon 2013, this is one show you will not want to miss! And with that, we are thrilled to announce two of the artists attending BotCon In San Diego this June: Livio Ramondelli and Casey Coller!

LIVIO RAMONDELLI is the artist of various Transformers projects for IDW Publishing. His credits include Autocracy, Monstrosity, Chaos, Robots in Disguise and various covers for Spotlights and other series. He will also be doing upcoming Star Wars covers for Dark Horse Comics. He previously worked as a concept artist for DC Universe Online at WildStorm Productions.

CASEY COLLER is a professional illustrator best known for his work on various Transformers comic books from IDW Publishing. He's done covers and/or interior art for various titles, including: Transformers: Ironhide, All Hail Megatron, Robots in Disguise, Spotlights Drift, Blurr and Cliffjumper, More Than Meets The Eye, Transformers Ongoing, and Heart of Darkness. He has also done artwork for Hasbro, the Transformers Collector's Club Magazine and BotCon. Casey lives in Western Massachusetts with his wife Grace, daughter Rose, as well as a cat, two guinea pigs and four chickens.

TRANSFORMERS SPOTLIGHT: HOIST rises to the top of this week’s new comic book releases, courtesy IDW Publishing and Hasbro! Written by TRANSFORMERS: MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE scribe James Roberts—and set firmly in that series’ timeline—and drawn by rising TRANSFORMERS superstar Agustin Padilla (TRANSFORMERS PRIME: RAGE OF THE DINOBOTS and TF:MTMTE #16), this one-shot comic book story delves into the personality of one of the longest-running TRANSFORMERS characters. We sat down with writer James Roberts to talk about the issue—available today 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: What was it that stood out about Hoist as a character that would allow you to tell this story about him and all that he is?

JAMES ROBERTS: Truthfully? What stood out for me, going back and re-reading previous stories that he’s been in (and there aren’t many, and I’m afraid I didn’t seek out the G1 TV episodes), is that nothing much stands out! He’s the archetypal “background ’bot”–competent, pleasant, hardworking, straightforward. But that’s not a bad thing when you’re settling down to write a SPOTLIGHT about someone. It gives you more of a canvas. Having said that, I sort of made his vanilla-ness a plot point in itself. I deliberately put him with three characters (excluding Bob [the Insecticon] for a moment–sorry, Bob) who are larger-than-life, and let the story play out from there. If I’ve done by job properly, Hoist will be a more fully-rounded character by Page 22.

PAGE 2: How was the collaborative process for you with artist Agustin Padilla? Was there a lot of give and take on how the pages turned out?

JAMES ROBERTS: This was the first time I’d worked with Agustin (we collaborated again on MTMTE #16), and while he and I would communicate very little (English is his second language and he works with—I don’t know what the word would be? An intermediary?—who passes his pages back and forth.

Anyway, Agustin would submit the rough page breakdowns and then respond to any feedback, and in the art itself he’d make choices that improve on how I saw things play out in my head. I love what he’s done—the art has a real Geoff Senior vibe about it—all those heavy blacks, all those close ups, all that weight—so I was a happy little scribbler.

And the first three pages of this SPOTLIGHT are uncharted territory for me: pages without dialog. But Agustin makes them look so beautiful and kinetic and alive (that shot of Hoist in midair on Page 1!)… it’s enough to make me wonder why I don’t go for the silent treatment more often.

Special mention, also, to Joana Lafuente’s scrumptious color work. Together, Agustin and Joana create pages that invite close scrutiny and then slap you in the face—in a good way.

PAGE 3: This issue is set between issues of TRANSFORMERS: MORE THAN MEET THE EYE. Is it hard to find a gap for the story to slot seamlessly into?

JAMES ROBERTS: So far, there are two big gaps in MTMTE where you can squeeze any number of “lost” stories: the gap between issues #5 and #6, which is where the Hoist and Trailcutter SPOTLIGHTS take place, and the gap between issues #12 and #13. So for any fanfic writers out there: go fill those gaps! I didn’t deliberately create those gaps, incidentally, but I’m glad they exist.

PAGE 4: Swerve and Sunstreaker are revealed inside of Hoist’s craft. Sunstreaker hasn’t had a lot of page time in MTMTE—why bring him along for this trip with Swerve and Hoist?

JAMES ROBERTS: I think you’ve answered your own question! The fact that Sunstreaker doesn’t get much page time was a big reason for making him one of the crew. And I know that he has a lot of fans out there, and people had been clamoring to see more of him, and Bob, so I thought that doing this would people happy. Same with Perceptor, to be honest. I almost put Hound in there too, but it would have been too crowded. I do want to write a little off-shoot story featuring the likes of Hound, Huffer, Gears and so on—all the classic G1 characters that we only see in the background of MTMTE. Maybe one day.

PAGE 5: This comic is going to be included with a toy—do you feel a sense or pride this could be someone’s introduction to Transformers through your work? What would the boy inside you say?

JAMES ROBERTS: The fact that this will be someone’s first TF comic—and maybe their first introduction to any TF continuity—was a little daunting. I wanted to write something that would appeal to the uninitiated and to regular readers. I didn’t want the former to feel left out or the latter to feel they were reading something that didn’t complement the style of story they’re used to.

Of course, my most fervent wish is that a boy or girl buys Hoist, reads the comic, and dives headlong into the IDW books, old and new. Hoist as an entry point into Everything Else. I like that!