issue 3
Posted: Thu Aug 04, 2022 5:50 pm
Issue 3:
My problems with this series are mostly technical.
The art is everything that has been wrong with IDW over the years, being heavily stylized to the point that it is not always clear which characters are doing what. And, the same "stylistic" choices extend to the lettering. (Some of the dialogue is obnoxiously difficult to read. This is inexcusable in a licensed book from a publisher that markets itself as artistically competent.)
The premise itself works. Cybertronians have been consistently depicted as a rapacious and greedy species. This is an "end of the line" story, and it makes sense for Roche to build off of that, with Cybertronians having degenerated to the point of eating anything and everything, existing at near famine levels despite being near-extinct. (Steeljaw and his crew are the equivalent of a civilization that makes no distinction between pets and livestock, and still cannot keep itself fed or otherwise manage resources.)
With more polish and time (rather than being rushed out as the license expires), this could have been excellent. Instead, it will be remembered as a missed opportunity.
My problems with this series are mostly technical.
The art is everything that has been wrong with IDW over the years, being heavily stylized to the point that it is not always clear which characters are doing what. And, the same "stylistic" choices extend to the lettering. (Some of the dialogue is obnoxiously difficult to read. This is inexcusable in a licensed book from a publisher that markets itself as artistically competent.)
The premise itself works. Cybertronians have been consistently depicted as a rapacious and greedy species. This is an "end of the line" story, and it makes sense for Roche to build off of that, with Cybertronians having degenerated to the point of eating anything and everything, existing at near famine levels despite being near-extinct. (Steeljaw and his crew are the equivalent of a civilization that makes no distinction between pets and livestock, and still cannot keep itself fed or otherwise manage resources.)
With more polish and time (rather than being rushed out as the license expires), this could have been excellent. Instead, it will be remembered as a missed opportunity.