Revisitation 168: A Superior Force.

12/5/2024

Another unplanned two week break due to outside factors (I'm getting old), so no preamble, right back into Ironhide on the run with my look at Robots in Disguise issue 9!

3 Comments

Llama God

15/5/2024 11:22:07 pm

An odd issue this one. Not bad, by any means - as you say, it is indeed plenty of fun, and a lot happens in it. But also, at the same time, not enough happens, and it feels a little like it's just marking time until the main event happens (because a single Special Team is never enough on its own - I've been doing this for long enough...).

The main cause of this really is the thread of Ironhide and the Dinobots. I know that each issue of RiD has so far featured a main point of view character, and this issue is no different with that character being Bumblebee. But at the same time the way that the last issue finished somehow leaves the reader (or this reader, anyway) with the sense that this is still Ironhide's story, and that what he and the Dinobots are up to and discovering out in the wildnerness is the main story at the moment. And it's not to say that they don't find anything - they find Superion - but that's clearly not a conclusion by any means.

Possibly not helping this odd feeling is how many separate, small things are also going on in this issue. Again, this isn't strange for the RiD we've seen up until now, it just seems like lots of little distractions from the main meat of things, which, as I say, feels like it should be Ironhide. The Arcee segment, in particular, doesn't seem to do much on its own, except for serving to remind us that she's there.

So it all ends up giving this issue the feeling of being a bit of padding, as we don't end up making much progress through the story (although we do nudge some things along by the smallest of increments).

But that is indeed not to say that it's bad. All of the scenes themselves are entertaining, with 'Bee's confrontation with Blurr and with Metalhawk and Starscream being the highlight.

As you say, the real star of this issue is Griffth, with his art continuing to make Cybertron look like a real - and really dangerous - place. His redesign of Superion is excellent, as is the whole double-page splash - it's when doing things at a large scale that Griffth's art really sings.

So yes, as I say, not a bad issue at all, just an odd one due to pacing, but it gets away with it by being pretty. Just as long as we don't have to wait too long for answers...

LiamKav

18/5/2024 05:24:42 pm

I always forget about Griffith when I think of the IDW1 artists. Roche had the cartoony fun, Milne the intricate detail, Zuma the G2 style grittiness, and Guidi the perfect updated Sunbrow style. Which is unfair. Griffith does good stuff. It's always clear, he can do a great splash page, and he's good with designs from really disparate artists.

It reminds me a bit of how Lee Sullivan would get overshadowed by Wildman and Senior.

T-Wing link

20/5/2024 12:17:25 am

More Barber spinning hay into... not quite gold, but silver at least. I remember being impressed when I realized he was actually going to address the Reflector continuity cock-up with their role here. And pulling some character depth from Spotlight: Blurr was also fairly impressive.

Revisitation 168: A Superior Force.

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