Full Preview for IDW Transformers Optimus Prime #14

Randomhero wrote:Anyone recognizing any Easter eggs in prowls weapons cache? So far I think I see AOE lockdowns face gun, maybe the sniper rifle from WFC/FOC and a second vamparc ribbon


Oh and a giant stone head of Unicron

I was looking at that head trying to figure out what it was. It looked more like a skull, but now I see Unicron clearly.

The one gun looks like Megatron's fusion cannon hanging from the roof. As for the others, I may need to reread A/M/P to see if I recognize any of them

soooo, are IDW not allowed to let competent artists draw the Dinobots anymore? cuz for the last 2 (almost 3 years), every time the Dinobots show up, they're drawn by that hack Ramondelli.

the Dinobots are my favorite characters, and every time I read a solicit that mentions them I get excited. until I see Ramondelli's name in the art credits, at which point my excitement shrivels and dies like an earthworm on a Texas Sidewalk in July.

idw has dozens of amazing artists working for them. Matt Frank, Alex Milne, Jack Lawrence, Sarah Pietre Durocher, Guido Guidi, Kei Zama, Hayato Sakamoto, Andrew Griffin, E.J. Su, just to name a few.

hell, at this point i'd rather have Pat Lee back.

OK, so to start things off with, this was a difficult story for me to get my head around. When I first read this issue, I had to take a step back, wonder what I just read, take a few more moments, and reread. And even then, I still wasn't sure of what I read.

Take a few moments to read some other staff inputs, and some more sense it made.



Now, that is not to say that this is an issue that is very confusing. It's not an issue where we are jumping around time, not one where things are jumbled, not one where the writing is bad. The story itself is a really good read and another great installment for the Optimus Prime run. It's just an issue where, much like last issue, there is a lot of stuff going on. It is dense in its content. And most of that is saved for the final few pages, where a reveal throws all kinds of continuity dense implications to us.



Now that we got that out of the way, here are some actual thoughts. The opening pages with Prowl and crew, it felt cool and yet unique. Here we have a crew of misfits essentially, those who have not been accounted for over the past few years, mostly. Wheelie and Garnak once again make a triumphant return, the Throttlebots, and Stardrive, not to mention all of Prowl's tech. The one oddball thing about this whole section: what on Earth is Prowl gathering everything for? And why this crew of characters? It does make me smile some to see Prowl is still up to his old ways, even if it does feel a bit weird following the ending of Titans Return.

Cut back to Cybertron: the whole section feels just a bit wonky, but it still works out for me. This is the first part that gave me some pause. The way the characters fight each other feels a bit weird, but bringing together characters developed in different stories for this section will do that to you. I did enjoy the Trypticon "reveal" part though, and jokes about Dinobot child resemblance made me smirk several times. The writing with the Dino-crew is a great story in and of itself to follow.



Arcee had some good moments in there, as did Prime. With Till All Are One coming out with some big new story developments, it was fun to see Starscream interact with both Bumblebee and Bludgeon. I'm interested to see where the Dinobots go from here too, along with Sandstorm.

As for the final 2 pages, that is a reveal I didn't see coming, but one where things make all kinds of sense, and they make me worry about what is about to happen next. Taking 2 of the biggest... pricks/pains-in-the-back characters and now showing them to be in cahoots with each other is interesting and a take that is setting up even more tension prior to the Unicron story to come. Barber is probably the only one who could handle this whole set up, and as far as I am concerned, he is nailing it, and he is setting us up for some truly fun stuff to come.



The story was helped a lot by Livio Ramondelli and his art, and as I and others have said, his art has improved greatly. I really enjoyed the scenes he was drawing, and there are distinct close ups that he nails perfectly, such as Arcee and Prowl. Everything Trypticon is awesome in this story too. I give props to Livio for continued improvement, his art has become something that is quire enjoyable to follow.



And Tom B. Long continues to do great work with the lettering. I am especially appreciative of the inverted speech bubble colors. He helps add that mysticism that Bludgeon is helping to set up.

As a close friend of mine likes to say: "long story short": this is a great book, and one that nicely compliments issue 13 as a 2 part continuity-heavy saga leading up to the Primes and Unicron. Things are being done, they are being done right, and they are being done enjoyably, with no major complaints on story, art, or otherwise.



The story has moved, old continuity points are being sewed up, and we are getting set for a big year next year with comics. And I am glad this crew continues to be a flagship for the comic run.

In the full list of IDW Publishing comics solicitations for January 2018 - posted here - we had seen one of the covers for the upcoming The Falling arc in the Optimus Prime ongoing series, by Casey Coller.

We now also have, directly from the source herself and via fellow Seibertronian Sunstar, the cover as imagined by regular artist Kei Zama and colourist Josh Burcham, featuring a very different take on the concept, though with Optimus, Windblade and the Mistress of Flame still taking front stage. Give it an eye below!

Also mirrored from Previews World is the Brendan Cahill retailer incentive cover, featuring a scene with Megatron and Optimus Prime that has nothing to do with the interior of the comic itself, but pretty impressive nonetheless!

“THE FALLING, PART 1!” Darkness falls over Cybertron as the legendary Onyx Prime returns. What does this mean for Optimus Prime—and the Earth? Windblade defends an already tense planet against a secret that could shatter Cybertron forever.

I see Optimus Primal and BW Megatron!

Awwwwwwwwwwwww yeah, this is what I have been looking forward to! And Primal and Beast Megatron are there! Hopefully they actually get called out by name this time, seeing as how both were seen in issue 10 I believe(?) and unnamed in Trion's story.

The art is fantastic Zama and Burcham are a perfect team.

ZeroWolf wrote:Am I being blind? I can see Optimus Primal clearly but I can't see bw Megs...there's also a few others I recognise like the bunny one, but I can't place a name on him.

BW Megatron is alright right beside Primal in the same panel as him. He's a bit trickier to identify, but you can see the glow of his T-Rex head on his hand.

and the bunny would be Stampy, except he showed up in sins of the Wreckers in a different role, so it must be different

So by the colors I’m guessing those two bots with The Mistress Flame are previous torchbearers.

Are you ready for some bots to the wall mythological action? Next week's IDW Publishing comic book, from the ongoing Transformers title Optimus Prime, sees John Barber, Kei Zama, and Josh Burcham bring back in full the story of Onyx Prime, the Mistress of Flame, and the Torchbearer predecessors to the Rust Renegades who form Victorion. You can see the full preview below, courtesy of fellow Seibertronian Sunstar and entertainment website Newsarama - join the conversation in the Energon Pub discussion boards, and stay tuned after the book's release for the Seibertron.com review!

Optimus Prime #1
Cover A: Kei Zama
John Barber (w) • Kei Zama (a & c)
“THE FALLING, PART 1!” Darkness falls over Cybertron as the legendary Onyx Prime returns. What does this mean for Optimus Prime—and the Earth? Windblade defends an already tense planet against a secret that could shatter Cybertron forever.
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Bullet points:
· Variant cover by Brendan Cahill!