Transformation 192: Less Cash, More Carnage.

15/1/2016

It's the debut of the Transformers newest, deadliest enemies: The fearsome and highly memorable Road-Jammers!

And who is Mr Z? And does he pronounce it "Zed" or "Zay"?

Also featuring the shocking fate of the Sparkler Mini-Bots, all in my look at:

Cash and Carnage! Part 1.

9 Comments

Tetsuryu

16/1/2016 04:41:34 am

Z is for Zachary Zziiz, obviously.

Ralph Burns

16/1/2016 09:32:48 am

Who could the mysterious Mr Z be? Could he be...ZARDOZ???!!!

THE GUN IS GOOD! THE PENIS IS BAD!

ZARDOZZZZZ!!!!! ZARDOZZZZZ!!!!!

SPECIAL TEAMS!

Dave

16/1/2016 02:55:57 pm

Z stands for Zip Zulander, trying to create a gap in the market.

Stuart

16/1/2016 03:22:29 pm

Oh Ralph. You have to bring the penis into everything.

snowkatt link

16/1/2016 03:26:56 pm

Z stands for Zordon obviously.

John D. link

17/1/2016 08:48:39 pm

Oh my God these Bob stories were so bad and the art was so blocky and horrific. Stu are you saying that these were ousblished after Underbase in the US but before Underbase in the UK? I had a firecon, from memory to change it into a robot you turned it around or something? I recall the transformation was minimal and pose ability was non existent. What were Hasbro thinking?

Stuart

17/1/2016 08:55:06 pm

Nope, it's before Underbase in the US as well. The mucking about comes with placing Time Wars during Underbase.

Nathan

22/1/2016 10:52:04 am

The firecon and mini sparkler bot toys were dreadful, but they got used quite well in the comics considering their small size. And not having a cheesy creation story made them more likeable. As galvatron and the firecons kicked the living sh#t out of the sparklers a while back it makes sense for them being imprisioned (clever furman, see he can tie up loose ends). And the double page spread of the charging firecons in the annual is brilliant!

Felicity link

13/11/2019 06:54:19 pm

Yes, just to be pedantic, I pronounced it “Fant-four-stick” every time. ☺

Also you may appreciate this comedy sketch, especially starting at the three-minute mark:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pf6bdSPmsDQ

[Cued up to three-minute mark (though this sometimes doesn’t work):]

https://youtu.be/pf6bdSPmsDQ?t=180

Once again if Bob Budiansky was tired of writing “Transformers” he hid it well enough that I didn’t pick up on it. This was a fun issue with the usual good José Delbo art and Bill Oakley lettering.

I liked Burn Out, at least visually. He looked cool. And I liked Felix and Skunge as characters. I have less of an opinion about Road Hog but he appeals to the wrestling fan in me.

I enjoy how Messrs. B, K, and L look in stylish 1980s business suits (and how somehow their Headmaster armour fits under those suits—holograms?). The red-headed one looks a little like the Sixth Doctor.

The Triggerbots weren’t famous for anything or super-memorable but they did get some usage, both from Budiansky in an “Underbase” saga flashback and from Furman in the “Matrix Quest.” I found their struggle with the Vrobian psychic vampires to be interesting. But before I say more about that I should wait until I’ve caught up to your review on that issue. ☺

And I liked in their commercial when the singer says “♬ And when the Triggerbots battle the Triggercons, there’s no doubt there’ll be a real shoot-out! ♬” with the odd emphasis on “out” making for a nice verbal syncopation.

The prison scene is nicely atmospheric, from the coziness of the cell to the demoralised mood of the Autobots to the way the Firecons make short work of the Autobots in their under-energised state. I liked the “bricks with legs” design of the Firecons because it was cute, but I’ll grant that it probably would have been more appropriate if their designs had been massaged a bit to look more graceful, as the 1984 characters were (compared to their toys).

We have to conclude that Delbo draws from whatever reference he’s given. If there’s a model sheet with a gracefully humanoid Transformer in it, we get that, and if he has to go by what the toy looks like, we get that too. Still, even when he’s drawing them toy-accurate (chunky and awkward) he does a good job of conveying the three-dimensionality because he’s a solid professional.

I wonder if Cobra Commander ripped off Big Steve to get that car. I liked the dialogue they gave him about typing up the papers in the office so that if they get pulled over it looks like they’re legitimate.

Since the comic was written by an American, the writer probably heard the “Z” in “Z Foundation” and “Mr. Z” in his head as “Zee,” not “Zed” or “Zay.” As a Canadian I hear it in my head as “Zed.” Who knows how “Mr. Z” himself pronounces it though, given where he comes from (I’m trying not to spoil it! ☺).

Transformation 192: Less Cash, More Carnage.

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