The Energon Pub

Sabrblade wrote:

Seibertron wrote:

Sabrblade wrote:

Seibertron wrote:The comic book that came with Magnificus was really interesting. It featured Oilmaster, the given name to the prototype Pretender Gorilla from the 80s that we never got. G2 Hawk/Eagle Eye was also featured in the comic oddly. It's not a great read because of the translation, but the artwork and the characters featured were fascinating. I've wanted "Oilmaster" since I saw his prototype at BotCon 1996 or TransCon 97 but now I really want him.

Is yours the e-HOBBY version or the TCC version? Cuz the latter will have a proper English translation.

As for the story itself, it serves as a prequel to the United EX fiction, being set one year before both it and Operation Combination, in the year 2034 (since Op Com and United EX take place together in 2035).

It's the e-Hobby version, but it has English in it and Japanese text above it. It'll be the same comic you get. It's just not that great of a read, just like the terrible Shattered Glass Soundwave/Blaster set's comic. Good artwork, interesting read, but not that great of an English translation in my opinion.

Well, as mentioned, the TCC one will have a proper English translation instead of bilingual Japanese/"Engrish" text.

The SG Soundwave/Blaster TCC one had a good translation too.

I somehow doubt that they are doing different print runs when the Japanese version actually has English text in it. When you get yours, scan a page or panel if you don't mind so that I can compare.

Seibertron wrote:I somehow doubt that they are doing different print runs when the Japanese version actually has English text in it. When you get yours, scan a page or panel if you don't mind so that I can compare.

I'm not too keen on scanning, but I do have my SG Soundwave/Blaster issue on hand, and I say that it has no Japanese text in the speech bubbles and reads quite legibly. It even includes everyone's speech quirks like Soundwave's righteous dude slang and Blaster's German accent.

On the front cover in the bottom-left corner are the following credits for the SG Soundwave/Blaster comic:

Story by Jesse Wittenrich
Art by Hidetsugu Yoshioka
Translation by Andrew Hall

I'd imagine that the TCC version of the Magnificus comic would similarly feature coherent English-only speech bubble text with no Japanese.

The comic is definately the same as the eHobby print, with Japanese text in the voice bubbles and small print English translations below.

Also, my Magnificus has a bum right leg. It's too loose, so whenever I try to stand him up, his right leg just collapses back down and makes him topple over. I'm talking specifically about the joint that would hold the leg in place when fully extended for robot mode, as opposed to collapsed for vehicle mode. The left leg fuctions as intended.

UPDATE:

Superglue fixed the problem! And yes, it does still transform. The glue didn't freeze the leg in the extended robot mode configuration.

Just opened my Magnificus from the TCC. I'm saddened to see that the comic is just straight up the e-HOBBY version when the TCC release of SG Soundwave vs. SG Blaster went the extra mile of having a fluent English translation with no Japanese text.

Sabrblade wrote:Just opened my Magnificus from the TCC. I'm saddened to see that the comic is just straight up the e-HOBBY version when the TCC release of SG Soundwave vs. SG Blaster went the extra mile of having a fluent English translation with no Japanese text.

I received the e-Hobby version of the Shattered Glass Blaster and Soundwave set from BigBadToyStore.com. The comic had the same English text you described without the Japanese text. I'm assuming that's the only version of the comic that exists just as this version is the only one that exists for Magnificus.

I still stand by my original statement that both of these aren't great reads, even though the artwork is magnificent.

Seibertron wrote:Version of the Shattered Glass Blaster and Soundwave set from BigBadToyStore.com. The comic had the same English text you described without the Japanese text. I'm assuming that's the only version of the comic that exists just as this version is the only one that exists for Magnificus.

For real? I had no idea.

Well, now I feel sorry for any Japanese consumers who bought that set and don't know English fluently enough to read the comic.

Seibertron wrote:I still stand by my original statement that both of these aren't great reads, even though the artwork is magnificent.

I'd have to agree, now having read the comic myself. Though, I can't really recall when an E-HOBBY pack-in comic has been all that great anyway. It's kinda their shtick to produce one-shot TF comics that are isolated cases of randomness and fanwank.

Though, with some additional insight to the behind-the-scenes details of this comic, it does become a fit more fascinating. Like, you already pointed out Oilmaster being the canceled gorilla Double Pretender, but aside from him, there's G2 Eagle Eye, who here is rendered with G1 Micromaster Eagle Eye's head, indicating the two to be one and the same in this story, which means that the G1 Autobot Micromaster defected to the Decepticons at some point. This defection also explains why Eagle Eye is absent during the United EX stories, in which all three of the other Air Patrol members made an appearance (Tread Bolt is Jetmaster, Blaze Master is Choppermaster, and Sky High is Airmaster).

The setting of the story, Iron Town, was featured in episode 1 of the Victory cartoon, being the old western town planet we first see Star Saber in.

And most importantly of all is the appearance of "Skyquake". I put his name in quotes because Magnificus only thinks that it's Skyquake, but it isn't. In reality, it is none other than the Decepticon High Regent known as Scrash, the uber-obscure Decepticon leader from the Operation Combination figure.

There's also some minor nods to other things, like Magnificus referencing Metalhawk when Eagle Eye identifies himself as "Hawk". Or Eagle Eye using the term "guzzler" to refer to standard-sized Transformers like how Micromasters used that same term in the same fashion (which makes this another reference to Eagle Eye's having once been a Micromaster). Or mentioning Mebion, which was Magnificus's hometown on Cybertron.

It's true that this comic isn't all that special from a storytelling standpoint, but all these little things that were put into it do help to bring out some extra goodness from it.



Though, regarding the SG comic story, it helps to have read the TCC Shattered Glass prose stories (HIGHLY recommended, BTW) and the "Invasion" comic to better understand it, as it was written to tie in to those.