The Covenant of Primus

[Dominic]

Lewis has a preview of the upcoming "Covenant of Primus" that includes 2 (partial?) chapters.

The whole thing is a sourcebook written in character voice (Alpha Trion). If you think of the "in-character voice" profiles from Dreamwave's old "More than Meets the Eye" sourcebook, you will not be far wrong. It is easy to make that sort of gimmick work for a page or two. But, over the course of a book, it can become tiresome for both the reader and the writer. I read the first chapter, but only skimmed the second. (This should be taken more as a reflection of how much time I had for idle reading more than anything else.)

The first chapter is a "and then there was light" type thing. Hasbro makes clear that there was something that existed before Primus. (In other words, Primus is not "G_D". But, he is clearly a god of some kind.) It describes Primus and Unicron as being literally two halves of the same whole, which arguably sets up the binary nature of 90-odd percent of TF content ("good guys v/s bad guys"). This largely draws (if only thematically) on Furman and the UT. It is probably the best treatment of Unicron that one could reasonably expect.

Several of the original 13 Primes are described in detail, while several others are mentioned in passing.

Given that the final book is going to cost something in the neighborhood of $100, this had better not be the final/complete listing. (Seriously, Hasbro needs to put up or shut up regarding the first 13 Primes.)
LIege Maximo is decribed as being a skilled orator, which is the sort of idea that the second generation Cybertronians of the old comic could arguably be a debased form of.
There is also Quintesson Prime that represents the ideals of life and curiosity, both of which could be argued as being debased in the "later" Quintessons).
The Fallen was created to provide necessary tension and variety, and that ultimately led him to betray Primus. (Nothing particularly new here, at least nothing beyond the Fallen being another debased ideal.)

Those are the only three that made an impression on me.


The price tag ($???.??) is enough to make any sensible person wary. The only people I can see buying this are the hard-core collectors/fans. Most other people will either not care or will happy enough with discussions and summaries of the actual book. (I might buy a copy, money allowing. But, I am not going to commit to that at the moment.)


-Dom

[Shockwave]

Yeah $100 is a hefty price tag for a book. Especially when compared to how many actual TFs one could buy for that amount.

[Dominic]

I am given to understand that much of the price is presentation (it comes in a fancy box and such), which arguably detracts from the value even more.

If I end up getting this, it will be as much because I like to read as it is because I like "Transformers". And, for $100 or so, it needs to impress the hell out of me.


-Dom

[Almighty Unicron]

Think they'll end up selling it as an ebook at some point?

[Onslaught Six]

There is a market for this kind of thing, it seems, given the release of stuff like "Transformers: Vault" a few years back.

[Sparky Prime]

Didn't we already have a topic for this book in the G1 forum?

[Dominic]

Ah, that is why I could not find it.

Joking aside, having flipped through the preview, "Covenant of Primus" is more or less "Aligned", so it makes sense to discuss it here.


Dom

[Sparky Prime]

Ah, that is why I could not find it.

Joking aside, having flipped through the preview, "Covenant of Primus" is more or less "Aligned", so it makes sense to discuss it here.

I'm just saying, there already was a topic for it.

[JediTricks]

I am given to understand that much of the price is presentation (it comes in a fancy box and such), which arguably detracts from the value even more.

If I end up getting this, it will be as much because I like to read as it is because I like "Transformers". And, for $100 or so, it needs to impress the hell out of me.


-Dom

A fancy electronic box with sounds and a motor, I believe. The box makes The Jedi Path and Book of the Sith more fun, but those are meant to be in-universe books so they'd be in in-universe equipment:
http://www.amazon.com/JEDI-PATH-Manual- ... 00BIUZJWA/
http://www.amazon.com/Book-Sith-Secrets ... 612182615/

whereas the Primus book in a giant Autobot faction symbol box is not believably in-universe. I will not pre-judge it too harshly until I see it in person though.


I'll merge the threads.

[Dominic]

There is a market for this kind of thing, it seems, given the release of stuff like "Transformers: Vault" a few years back.

"Vault" was excellent. It was a sound over-view of the franchise as a whole. And, from what I am seeing, it is a much better value for the money than "The Covenant of Primus".

I do not care how well written the in-universe entries are. I am not spending $100+ for a book that is packaged in a glorified roleplay accessory. (That fact that the accessory is, as JT points out, not very well executed does not make it more appealling.)



Also, I am not sure why this is in the G1 section. (It should be in the "Aligned"/"Prime" section.)

-Directed Dom....