Transformation 63: Talkin' Bout My Generation.

26/7/2013

This week we get one of my all time favourite images in the comic, and I'm not talking about Jessie's worryingly forward thrusting chest. We also get not one, but two lengthy recaps of the story so far, just in case you're not paying attention.

All in my look at the Transformers comic with the single worst cover of all time:

Second Generation! Part 1.

My PC should be sorted for next week, meaning the picture editing should go from utterly terrible to just mildly poor once more.

5 Comments

Tim Roll-Pickering link

26/7/2013 11:36:08 am

Is it just me or is that Motormaster's own arm sticking out of Menasor? Either he's the Zaphod Beeblebrox of the Transformers or even the box art artist wasn't terribly enthused.

Just who did think the Special Teams were going to be the next big thing?

Stuart

26/7/2013 03:37:07 pm

Well that's ruined that cover for me. :(

The poor old special teams do seem to have fallen through the cracks in both cartoon and comic don't they? After their intros (and as far as the cartoon goes only three of them got a special introduction, the American comic couldn't even manage that with Protectobots and Combaticons all turning up in the same issue without explanation... at the same time the death of Prime and Megs steals all the attention) they all pretty much get lost in the wave of movie toys.

Which wouldn't be so bad if the Uk didn't make such a fuss of them.

Tim Roll-Pickering link

27/7/2013 07:24:08 am

Not sure I'd agree they were lost in the cartoon - they got the last ten episodes of the second season, they're prominent in a number of third season episodes like the Ultimate Weapon or the Return of Optimus Prime and they're amongst the few rare older toys in the Rebirth. If anything they're amongst the survivors. But yeah, the great hope of the future of the Transformers race isn't exactly seen much.

As for Menasor's limbs, it seems most artists and animaters just couldn't grasp that the cars are integral parts o the body, not decorations.

Simon Hall

28/7/2013 03:20:20 pm

I actually like the Special Teams arc. Yes its shameless toy plugging, but its very well done - better than the dry stuff in the US comics where they're just built or whatever. This arc makes them a bit more interesting than just being the latest bunch of 'bots off the production line. The nightmare at the start works well - I don't think the arrival of the combiners towards the end of Buster's dream is as badly done at all. I never took the 'future of the Transformers race' stuff seriously though. That just came across as a bit of melodrama (it does read like various characters are booming this out though) and read it a bit more literally in so much that they will form part of the Transformers future and seem to represent an escalation in the conflict. In some ways, this is the one thing we've never seen the consequences of - except on the odd occasion where Devastator gets busted loose to yawn at cities (Dreamwave) or do proper smashing (IDW).

One thing I did like very much about the Marvel Comics was that the various team members were all treated as individual characters and not forever lumped together with their teammates just because they had to be, because they combine and stuff. The tightly knit Predacons being the obvious exception to this.

Although they were quickly moved aside for the next batch of toys, I do remember them being quite a big deal in my playground - although I remember the more exotic Terrorcons and Technobots and their bright colours being a bit more of a draw.

Took me bloody ages to complete Defensor. Couldn't find Groove anywhere up my end. Eventually ended up trading Snapdragon to get him at secondary school around 1990 ish, guy I swapped him with felt I was getting a poor deal so gave me a near complete Bruticus and the Micromaster Sports Car patrol as well as Groove.

I have long since sold all the above! After all that effort, too.

Still, I have recently acquired the Stunticons and think they are marvelous.

Felicity

28/10/2019 01:50:24 am

One year on vacation with my mom I saw Biggles: Adventures in Time on the hotel room cable TV service and I enjoyed it a lot. 25 years later I picked up a copy of it on VHS at a thrift store. I had not seen it again in all that time and it was not as good as I remembered. But I’m still glad I got to see it again.

Transformation 63: Talkin' Bout My Generation.

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