Buy My Cover: Guido Guidi

The release of Transformers: Infiltration is quickly approaching and Transformers fans will soon be faced with a question: What cover should I buy? They all look awesome, but aside from some of the more die-hard collectors out there, buy at least four different covers of every issue simply isn’t an option. So I’ve invited the four (regular) cover artists of the Infiltration series to ask you, the Transformers comic buying public, to buy their cover!

On the hot seat today is Mr. Guido Guidi!

Professor Smooth: Hey Guido, thanks for joining us today.

Guido Guidi: Hey Professor, nice to meet you again!

Professor Smooth: Let’s start off with the contents of the cover itself. Good ol' Bumblebee. A beloved character, definately, but not the most obvious choice. Fans of seeing something new instead of the same old retread should be pleased already! Why did you choose these characters for the cover of the first issue?

Guido Guidi: The first cover I did for IDW was the one featuring Bumblebee being chased down by the seekers...and I did choose that character randomly.

Professor Smooth: How did the cover to Transformers: Infiltration #1 go from an idea in your head to one of the four (regular) covers we’ll all have the option of adding to our collections in January? What’s that process like?

Guido Guidi: Well, this cover was the winner among a set of concepts sketches I did. IDW didn't asked me for something necessarily story related and left a lot of creative freedom. I wanted to do a “Autobot vs Decepticon jets” piece, and casually I did put Bumblebee there, more like a sort of “placeholder” for the Autobot character (I just find easy to draw him)- thinking that I would have replaced him later with another Autobot, like Sunstreaker or Ratchet.

It was unintentional, but it ended in being a sort of "homage" to an old TF Marvel cover so... I left the ol' Bumblebee there… and it happened that this one has been approved by IDW! As for the Bumblebee design, as I do in most cases, I started this TF piece using the old cartoon model and then I added details and stuff. This Bumblebee has arms, chest and hips from the cartoon, shoulders from the toy, head and legs too are a mix of G1 cartoon and G1 toy. And, of course, articulations are inspired by that masterpiece that is the 20th ann. Optimus Prime.

The other concept sketches shown to IDW were a Blitzwing transformation sequence (jet-tank-robot), Astrotrain and Blitzwing fighting back at enemies, an Autobot patrol being ambushed by the Decepticons.

Professor Smooth: Some fans might be thinking to themselves, “I really like all of the IDW artists, so I’ll buy at least one cover from each of them.” If an international Transfan like Mr. Optimus Prime who’s currently stationed in Iraq is going to pay several times the regular cover price for one of your covers, which one of your Infiltration covers do you think he should buy?

Guido Guidi: Can't really say. I have to agree with E.J. Su, it's matter of taste... readers may like different styles, and I think they will find at least one cover appealing. I think it's a great opportunity to give such freedom of choice both to artists and to readers.

Professor Smooth: Final Question: Why should fans Buy Your Cover?

Guido Guidi: "Nostalgia factor"? If you like a style reminescent of the ’80 cartoon and comic, my cover is for you. ;)

Professor Smooth: Aside from the Transformers, can fans look for your artwork on anything else?

Guido Guidi: Well, I’d like to point those UK comic readers who are interested, that this year I had the opportunity to start drawing some short strips about Marvel characters for the UK magazine Marvel Rampage (Panini comics)… it was my first try on the superheroes genre, and it has been an amazing challenge. So far 2 strips have been published, and another one is set to be printed on 2006.

Professor Smooth: Thanks for joining us, Guido! That's three of the cover artists for January's Transformers: Infiltration that have stopped by to tell you, the comic buying Transfan, why you should Buy Their Cover! Will James Raiz make it a clean sweep? Will the cover artist of a store exclusive join the fun? Even I don't know! What I do know is that Seibertron.com is giving away copies of the BotCon exclusive Transformers #0 and that you'll find out how to win one of those copies very soon!

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