Transformers - ongoing series

[Shockwave]

It's interesting to find an alien, with maybe a few hours to study the Matrix, apparently was able figure out more about the Matrix than Megatron could while he had it during AHM.

Not really. All he figured out was that it was a source of limitless power. Megatron had come to the same conclusion but didn't know how to access it. Even the alien wasn't sure what would happen or if he'd be able to use it either.

[Sparky Prime]

Not really. All he figured out was that it was a source of limitless power. Megatron had come to the same conclusion but didn't know how to access it. Even the alien wasn't sure what would happen or if he'd be able to use it either.

The alien figured out more than that. He actually had built a device that could tap into the Matrix's power. That's what Rodimus ended up using to power the spaceship so they could escape. The part the alien admitted he wasn't so sure on was if the Matrix would be able to keep Rodimus alive and power the ship.

[Shockwave]

I guess that does make him a little more astute than Megatron (or even Starscream for that matter) then.

[BWprowl]

I think it's worth noting that the Matrix has clearly been 'switched on' since the previous times we saw it. That's why it's glowing and making Rodimus not-dead. The fact that it wasn't like that before is reason enough for me why Megatron wouldn't be able to garner any knowledge from studying it. Now, we don't yet have any idea how it wound up like that. Did Rodimus being dead near it somehow cause it to attach itself to him and turn on? Or...what? Remember, we still don't know what the Matrix really *is* in this continuity, so any answers we may get remain to be seen.

[Sparky Prime]

I think it's worth noting that the Matrix has clearly been 'switched on' since the previous times we saw it. That's why it's glowing and making Rodimus not-dead. The fact that it wasn't like that before is reason enough for me why Megatron wouldn't be able to garner any knowledge from studying it.

Except the Matrix was clearly shown to be always be glowing the previous times we've seen it... Save for one scene after Rodimus stole it and he got blasted into space by Megatron, which I think may have just been a coloring error given the Matrix wasn't effected by the shot and was glowing again in this latest issue. And it giving Rodimus life doesn't really suggest anything as we haven't seen it used in that way before.

I don't see any reason to believe the Matrix has ever been "off". This is just the first we've seen it used for anything and that anyone has been able to figure out how to tap into it's power.

[Dominic]

Issue 20 is due out tomorrow.


Dom
-ain't read issue 19 yet.

[Shockwave]

Well this was an interesting issue (#20). My prediction for Galvatron showing up on Cybertron came to pass and Wheelie and Hot Rod also show up there and meet up with Ironhide and Sunstreaker. They all have a lot to catch up on but only get time to share bits and pieces before heading off to Earth. It seems the Matrix was "deactivated" by being used to power the ship so it'll be especially interesting to see what happens with it when Prime gets it back (which from the teaser will be next issue). Apparently Ironhide didn't kill ALL of the swarm insecticons but the remaining ones are in scattered swarms which are a lot less of a threat. There are also apparently some random rogue ones that are trainable. Sunstreaker now has a pet Insecticon named "Bob". This cracks me up to no end. So yeah, next ish is going to have Ironhide and Sunstreaker back on Earth so you could call that back to Status quo except for the situation there which is currently anything but. This series is good and is staying good and this issue even has me excited to see the next issue of Heart of Darkness (which technically takes place before this issue).

[BWprowl]

This little arc was okay, though I think it raised more questions than answers with the Matrix (though it at least seems set up to answer them later). I do like how Rodimus realized what a jerk he'd been by seeing how the crazy alien scientist from the Wheelie's planet acted with rather similar motivation. It's a good catalyst for his character development. I also like seeing how Sunstreaker and Ironhide have turned out after half a year or so of hanging out on Cybertron. And things are sure to get interesting with Sunstreaker headed back to rejoin the rest of the Autobots now... I wonder how he'll react to the news of Hunter's death? If at all?

Anyway, as for Transformers going all 'Event Book' next month...I dunno. I was enjoying the Ongoing the way it was, even if I saw that one of the points of it was to make TF more like the Big 2's comics. I dunno, maybe I've just got it too stuck in my head that, when it comes to big event maxi-series, it's going to be really hard for a TF book to beat All Hail Megatron. And what's with them jumping to issue 125 in the last month there? We're shooting for standard comic gimmickery now too?

Keep in mind that I'm really just bitching here. As much as I often complain about how it looks like the Ongoing is turning, Costa almost always ends up pleasantly surprising me. So we'll just see how things turn out with 'Chaos'.

-BW "I realized last night that IDW Transformers now easily has more issues under its belt than Marvel Transformers" prowl

[Dominic]

Found this at the IDW forums.

http://forum.idwpublishing.com/viewtopi ... 04&start=0

The basic idea is that Prowl is going to be the game changer, for good or ill.

We could pick over details a bit, but I tend to think the general theory and thinking behind it, is sound.


Dom
-and this is why the ongoing is my current favorite.

[Dominic]

Sparky, the math for #125 works as well as any other legacy numbering. The ongoing, various "Spotlights", "All Hail Megatron", the Furman run and the like all add up to 125 issues. The math works. I did it once. That was enough.

Chris Ryall had said in interviews around the time that story came out that it does take place in-continuity. But being a cross-company crossover, I don't think they can acknowledge it as such in any of the stories, so it might as well be a separate continuity, which is why I didn't count it.

I recall that. And, the Ramjet "Spotlight", (by the same writer), has a one way reference to "that incident in....".

On the other hand, IDW swore up and down that "Infestation" was in continuity for all of its titles. But, Andy Schmidt has since said, "except maybe not" in regards to the "GI Joe" chapters. Yeah, I dunno either.


Dom
-assumes that the Avengers all died during AHM, thus solving the problem.