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Let me start by writing that I realize the subject of this post might be irrelevant or even unknown to newer or younger members of the fandom. I'm writing this post for myself as much as for anyone else reading.

Today is Marvel comics writer Bob Budiansky's 69th birthday.

I won't write about him much, if you don't know and want to, TFWiki is your friend. What I would like to share is what this man's work means to me and why I feel the need to recognize his contributions.

Back in the mid to late 80s I grew up in a simple household. I won't say we were poor because i always had everything I needed, but things like cable TV were luxuries at the time. So I never got to see the G1 cartoon when it was on at 1st, I only ever saw it in reruns in the early 90s after we finally got cable in '91.

My 1st experience with Transformers wasn't even the toys. It was the comics. I loved comics in general, I was a big fan of Superman, the Uncanny X-Men and Spider-Man. Then 1 day at the newsstand I spotted another comic which I hadn't seen or noticed before. It was Transformers, Marvel US issue #13. I picked it up, and I've been a fan ever since. This was in '87 or '88, because I learned how to read before I ever got to elementary school and it was thanks to comic books. So it must have been either a reprint or a used copy.

Some fans might consider "Shooting Star" as 1 of the weaker stories, but to me it's still special, and it was a great way to introduce me to the franchise, and it's also 1 reason I never really disliked Megatron despite him being THE bad guy. The next issue, I was introduced to Shockwave and the Seekers, as well as Prime, Jetfire and some of the other Autobots.

When I was young in the early 90s, I loved to read and couldn't wait to get my hands on the newest issues of comics. Transformers was fascinating and I loved every story that was printed, even those that seem to not hold up as well as others after 35 years. And most of them were written by Bob Budiansky in the US. They're the reason I'm a fan to this day and got to enjoy all the other aspects of the fandom, from collecting toys to the present day all the way to the last Bay movie and the end of IDW's 1st universe in 2018.

So I just wanted to pay a small tribute to the man whose creativity captured my attention and imagination 35 years ago and made me a fan to this day. No matter what I had (and have) going on in life I can always turn to the original comics (as well as other continuities) to facilitate my escape to happier times.

Thank you for the good times, Mr. Budiansky, and happy birthday!

Bump. 70 this year...