Posted by
Va'al
Jun 9, 2017 at 7:00am CDT
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From Vince Brusio of Previews World, we have some more information about the upcoming IDW Publishing Hasbro Universe event First Strike - which will apparently change the concept of shared universe even further - courtesy of an interview with the two writers Mairghread Scott and David Rodriguez! The full piece can be read here, but some relevant snippets (such as who is directly involved, and what is the role played by Joe Colton in it all) are copied below - check them out, and beware that some spoilers for current stories are present!
Vince Brusio: What core idea helped to first strike sparks for this story? How did the concept of this Hasbro crossover first begin, and then grow to the point where it took two writers to make it all fit?
Mairghread Scott: The core concept is two-fold: IDW and Hasbro very much wanted G.I. Joe on Cybertron – a fight so big it dragged all the other Hasbro brands into it, and that idea is super-fun! The two franchises have a long history together and it’s definitely something I was interested in exploring. But I wanted to bring a second, more personal, layer to the story and so we hit on our central theme. Scarlett, the head of G.I. Joe is now being pitted against her own mentor, Joe Colton, who seems to be hell-bent on dragging Earth into an interplanetary war!
So it’s not just a question of saving the Transformers, or saving all of Earth, it’s also a question of saving one man in the midst of this who means the world to you. Is it really Colton doing this? Could he be brainwashed or coerced? If not, can he be redeemed? That balance is one we’re really striving for in this book. Big action, but with a big heart behind it.
David Rodriguez: It gives the entire story a great, emotional core. We’re all for piles of ninjas (so many ninjas) and explosions, but having this conflict that the series pivots on grounds it in stakes that are relatable on a human level. And to make matters more interesting, Colton is not a supervillain with a grandiose or cartoonish plan. He is thoughtful, tactical and incredibly dangerous. He’s spent years planning and assembling the execution of this mission. And Scarlett knows that Colton would not have pulled the trigger unless he knew he had a reasonable shot at pulling this off. So even though the Transformers think the humans pose little to no threat to Cybertron, the reality is that the entire planet is in very real and immediate danger.
[...]
Mairghread Scott: Well, fighting global genocide should never take away from petty squabbling. Naturally our primary heroes (Scarlett and her team from G.I. Joe, Matt and Gloria from MASK, Soundwave and Optimus from Transformers) get along fairly well, they’re not without conflict. Lady Jaye throws a lot of shade at people and Soundwave is not a fan of humans, but his character is weirdly adorable. (He’s really trying to be respectful of these vastly inferior, squishable things but…ugh.)
On the bad guys’ side, keeping competing minds like Storm Shadow from GI Joe and Shazraella from Micronauts (who gets a big upgrade in our story) together is a tall order. Miles Mayhem totally lives up to his name and it’s a joy to write whenever he gets cut down a peg. But they’re not the only people causing trouble. Elita One ends up throwing a wrench in everyone’s works when she steamrolls in with her own agenda. Let’s just say she makes Starscream seem like an upright citizen.
David Rodriguez: The twins (Skyburst and Stormclash) might be my new favorites. I wasn't really familiar with them before the series, but after researching them and seeing them in action in the story I am totally smitten. They have so much energy in their designs and personality that its hard not to enjoy every panel that they're on. But what is great about the human characters is that they hold their own in every scene. Any normal person would be dwarfed (in every sense) by the Transformers, but there really isn't anything “normal” about Scarlett and her team. They rise to the occasion and stand shoulder to shoulder with their robot allies. (Well, metaphorically. In the literal sense they sometimes stand on their shoulders. But that's purely tactical). The other duo that caught me by surprise are Stormshadow and Shaz. They need to have their own, buddy-villain, spin-off after this is said and done. Luckily vans and talking animals are easy to come by.
