Grimlock's adventure in Menonia continues with today's release of Transformers: King Grimlock #3 from IDW Publishing, and they've turned in a swiftly-read action comic that's indicative of everything this series has been so far. If you enjoyed the first two issues, you'll enjoy this too, though there are some shakier bits this time around. Read on to learn more, or skip to the end and look at the score blindly. It's your robot adventure.
It isn't, but if this were to turn out to be the missing link between Last Stand and MTMTE #6, well... ok, I'm good with that.
Story-wise, things are at the "mini-boss" stage for this mini-series, which makes sense with a couple more issues still remaining after this one. Issue 3 shows the results of Grimlock's efforts to aid the Menonians in the first two chapters, resulting in a book that's light on words and big on splash pages. While it's certainly a quick read, it never feels like space is wasted. It's clear there was some conscious decision to approach this as an action comic, so more of writer Steve Orlando's wordier areas get less page real estate than the big, flashy action scenes.
Busy, busy, busy
The art, with lines by Agustin Padilla and colors by Jeremy Colwell, never becomes actively bad, but there are some moments that are busy and visually confusing, at least digitally. Despite some panels and pages that might not reach their intended grasp, the flow of the action always worked for me and helped tell the story of a battle effectively, with little doubt as to what the result is. Jake M. Wood's letters didn't distract from focus on the other visuals at any point, which is another credit to the artists as it rarely looked like the bubbles were fighting to have space to exist.
Three cover options are available as usual, with the "A" cover by Bryan Lee, the "B" cover by the interior art's team of Padilla and Colwell (which serves as this review's news story's thumbnail image), and a 10-copy retailer incentive cover by Alex Milne, just in case you need more MTMTE vibes from this one. As always, remember that you can find all the cover images and full credits for the issue through our Vector Sigma Database page for Transformers: King Grimlock #3.
Verdict
Your character arc is beneath me
Your character arc is beneath me
King Grimlock is a fun series that continues to be just that with its latest issue. The art is mostly good with a few busier, rougher patches and the story continues on a predictable but logical and entertaining path. Of course, I say predictable but should mention there's a twist at the end which, while foreshadowed, maybe didn't feel super well-earned. Its worth is likely to be determined by what's done with it as the story moves towards its conclusion, so it's not really considered with much weight in the score below.
Final Score
.
½
out of
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½out of
Look out for this issue today, October 13th, where you can pick it up at the Seibertron.com eBay store or at your local shop, check here to find the closest shop to you.
