Review for IDW Transformers Beast Wars #5

This was a very pleasant issue to read and as a Beast Wars fan, I had fun. What I always loved in the original series was that the limited cast meant you could often have them all in the same scene or within the same show, and you got to know them better. You could say that second to beast modes, that's the biggest difference between Beast Wars and G1, which had an ever sprawling cast and new side characters added in every episode. This is the very first issue that really made me feel like I was watching an extension of the Beast Wars show, which is odd since this series was mandated to feel like the first few episodes at first.

This is also the issue where we get some backstory to the world and the alliance between Predacons and Maximals. We even get a better explanation at Dinobot's turn and his motivations. Of course, writing this AFTER the conflicting behaviour we read for a few issues is really poor thinking on the part of the writer. The handling of Primal was well done. From the first issue, we were told exactly how he differed to the show, which explained how he acted later. But for Dinobot, we get our explanation after being puzzled. This isn't memento, it's a Beast Wars comic. If there is something important we should know in a comic that is acting as a retelling of the show at times, then let us know.



There are of course come inconsistencies, like a character claiming ignorance to certain things while previous issues said that the reputation of certain Predacons was widely known. And most of all, DO NOT REFERENCE BETTER MATERIAL. Those jokes never ever work, ever. Didn't work for the Dark Phoenix film, didn't work for Coming to America 2, just stop it. Let's just move past that and enjoy the meat of this issue, which is... action!



Most of the issue is made up of a fight scene and it was a blast. Lots of fun interactions with great money shots like Primal and Megatron finally facing off. We even got to see Cheetor in action, which is great since that character has been sidelined all this time.

I have grown accustomed to the artwork so I don't mind it, but there are still some really jarring moments when it comes to scale, like this moment where Tarantulus pounces on Rattrap.



Some writing and scale inconsistencies aside, this was by far the most enjoyable issue so far. Since all that happened in previous issues is referenced in the dialogue, I would honestly recommend anyone who is interested in this series to just start with this issue, no need for the previous ones.

Oh and that one joke about school was quite funny.


out of