The Energon Pub

Hey everyone! I have been away from TF Fandom for a while (last TF comics i read were the old Dreamwave miniseries... and that was mainly due to the hype surrounding them at the time)

What is a good jump on point for someone who wants to get into the IDW Generation 1 comics? I can't seem to find the "Infiltration" book anywhere (amazon has it for $40 used?!) and I'd also rather not have to buy like six trades just to get caught up.

I've read some of the movie stuff IDW is putting out and I like it!

I recommend checking out TFWiki's article on IDW Generation 1 continuity. If you look near the bottom of the page under the "Media" section, the list of IDW comics are in approximate chronological order. It's what I used as my reading guide for the IDW comics.

I wouldn't recommend idw at all, they let you buy and read an awesome story for 3 years, then they cut that story short and throw most of it away move into a new direction and retcon huge chunks of what you read before. Then they reboot the reboot a little bit more until it no longer resembles what it started out as.

If you do want to read it so you can read new current TF comics start with their new G1 ongoing comic series and trow a huge fit in 3 years when they retcon and reboot that in 3 or so years.

Yeah, I kiiinda agree with DM up there.

Right now, I'd say is a good time to begin anew because it's like the 3rd IDW reboot. I know they are saying it's not a reboot, but it is. Style/design, characters, storyline. None of it follows each other very well. So if you pick up the ongoing that is due to come out soon, that will be a fresh start.

We had Simon Furman do his IDW stuff (IMO, I liked), then we had Shane McCarthy's cartoonesque version of TF's that just ended. That was a 12 month run of "what the heck is going on here, this makes no sense with what we read before" storyline that just ended. And now the ongoing which is supposed to take place 3 years after the story that juuust ended. WTF! Not only that, but IDW and Hasbro seem to think the Bayformers is now the future so the ongoing looks like a cross between Bayformers and somewhat EJ Su's incredible work. It's being drawn by Don Fig. As much as I love his style, the new stuff so far isn't to MY liking. Some might, but not me.

I will be picking up the new series, cause TF comic books are all that I read, but if I were someone else and read other comic books, I'd say stay away and stick to good writing cause IDW's version of TF's is really starting to agitate me. And I've been hanging on straight since the beginning of the DW days. I'm definitly thinking about dropping TF comics for the first time since DW. Since DW, there has been no consistancy from the publishers. No continuity. It's a shame really. So much potential wasted on reboots, reboots, and more reboots.

Even though All Hail Megatron was kind of a let down, we still have everything that led up to it, which was ridiculously awesome. The writing was top notch (even if it was littered with Furmanisms), though maybe the hugest plus was that it didn't have DW marshmellow art. In fact, IMO, IDW easily has the best TF art ever done.

Now, I'm not a huge fan of the look of the new ongoing, especially since its drawing from the movie-verse even though the movie-verse already has its own series, but I haven't read any of it, so I'm with holding judgment.

I'd say to read Furman's stuff (Infiltration, Escalation, Devastation, Revelation and Maximum Dinobots). Stormbringer isn't really essential, as you can basically get the gist of what happens in the later offerings. The first fifteen Spotlights are interesting, and slot into the material rather well.

Avoid anything even remotely related to AHM like the plague. That includes Shane's stuff (#1-#12), the four issue patch (#13-#16) and the Spotlights attached to it. (SL: Blurr to SL: Metroplex...well, except maybe Jazz. That one was cool. But definitely avoide the one on Gary Stu.)

Y'know what though. We do have a Wreckers comic book coming out, and that will be drawn AND written by Nick Roche and not look like Bayformers. I'm actually excited about this series coming out. I think it hits shelves in December. Nick hasn't let us down with his drawings and writings so far. So I do recommend picking this up if you do see it. It will be call "Last Stand of the Wreckers".

Whups, due out in January...

I've only recently gotten back into the Transformers comics and while I also criticize the already mentioned issues that the IDW continuity has, I just can't seem to have the negativity some people do.

I find that the different takes on characters is pretty refreshing for the most part and is a big reason why I enjoy the IDW comics so far. The instances out of synch writing is annoying because I found myself sometimes reading in cicles trying to make sense of some plot points but the IDW TF comics aren't alone in that offense.

I think Nick Roche is great. The way he tied up and explained things in AHM 15 was really well done. I can't wait to read the Last Stand of the Wreckers. I really enjoy is more 'toony style because it doesn't sacrifice detail that tends to go hand-in-hand with a lot of artists' work who use a more cartoon style in their Transformers art.

One other aspect of the IDW comics I enjoy is the artwork. I found that the Dreamwave art was great but often a bit too "puffy" for my liking. The fairly consistent art in IDW by various artists have elements of G1 blockiness but good body proportions for the bot modes.

I love Don Figueroa's current approach to the body stylings of bot modes with the more detailed mechanical features. The faces, not so much but really, I think they're perfect for Decepticons but not the Autobots. If they were a little fuller then they'd be great for the Autobots.

I have to admit that after reading almost all of Furman's IDW run I was blown away by how cool ALL Hail Megatron was when I read the first TPB, I actually perfer AHM over Furman's run.

Thanks for the info everyone! Although some of the earlier collections, like the Infiltration trade and first Spotlight Trade are sold out EVERYWHERE!

and I can't even find the first AHM megatron trade (which IDW apparently is pushing as the "new reader" comic), as it is goig on Amazon for $$$ too! does anyone know if IDW is going to reprint any of these trades?

Wangster wrote:Thanks for the info everyone! Although some of the earlier collections, like the Infiltration trade and first Spotlight Trade are sold out EVERYWHERE!

and I can't even find the first AHM megatron trade (which IDW apparently is pushing as the "new reader" comic), as it is goig on Amazon for $$$ too! does anyone know if IDW is going to reprint any of these trades?

IDW reprints everything at least 3 times.
There is a huge omnibus of the first 3 years of the idw universe collecting everything that's idw canon in one huge book for I think under $40, I think it's called something like the complete Universe or so.

Dead Metal wrote:There is a huge omnibus of the first 3 years of the idw universe collecting everything that's idw canon in one huge book for I think under $40, I think it's called something like the complete Universe or so.

I think you're thinking about the Premiere Hardcovers, of which two about their TF work have been done, reprinting the bulk of IDW's TF output aside from the Marvel reprints and recent stuff.