Transformation 81: The F1 Car... OF DOOM.

29/11/2013

This week things get dark, very dark. Ironhide muses on the decisions that saw the Autobots royally fuck up and Galvatron becomes the only Evil Villain Time Traveller in history not to want to alter history. The scamp.

All in my look at:

Target: 2006 Part 3!

Next week's entry will (hopefully) be joined by something that may well become an annual event if it goes down well, the 2013 Christmas Quiz! Which will have actual prizes.

Just not very good ones.

21 Comments

Tim Roll-Pickering link

29/11/2013 12:57:18 pm

I guess Jetfire assumed command in line with the wall chart guide earlier in the year - IIRC he's the "Aerospace Commander" (in line with his tech specs?) though exactly what he's normally in command of is one of those question we just weren't expected to ask. With Prime and one second-in-command plus the "honorary member of the High Command" all missing and the other 2iC captured then the leadership probably wound up being inherited more than anything else. And this issue just shows why such a detailed order of succession can be silly hence later leadership questions get settled rather differently.

And although nothing whatsoever to do with Transformers, by my calculation this was about the week my first ever regular comic came to an end. It was called "Pippin" and published by Polystyle, best known for TV Comic and the original Doctor Who strips. It was another weekly TV tie-in focused on various British TV shows - the strips I remember from the final years included Superted, The Wind in the Willows, Portland Bill and Jimbo and the Jet Set. All used the text under panels method of story telling rather than speech bubbles. Pippin was cancelled and some of the strips transferred to Buttons, which had a slightly younger pitch, and I didn't follow a regular comic again for a few years, probably because our local corner shop didn't stock them and I rarely found myself in front of a rack whilst my parents for whatever reason didn't feel a need to get one for me. (You're very near one of the three issues I found at a fete that kickstarted my collection after an earlier one-off discovery.)

Simon Hall

29/11/2013 02:39:04 pm

Good to hear some nice things said about Jeff Anderson. I like his work on Transformers. I know its not as thrusting and dynamic as some artists, but I just like how solid and dependable his stuff is. His upcoming work in Prey is some of my favourite Transformers art. His contribution is very much overlooked these days, but I love it. Its just good stuff :) If you're out there Jeff, I hope you are well!

Chris Chapman

29/11/2013 02:59:36 pm

I think this could be my favourite ever issue of TF UK. The whole thing has such a wonderfully grim and nightmarish atmosphere - I love it.

Stuart

30/11/2013 11:41:41 am

Pippin rings a bell, just about. I was always a Beano man myself.

@Simon: Jeff became a cleric I believe after leaving comics, he was mildly surprised at the first AA he went to that people remembered his work at all.

@Chris: Agreed it's one of the very best issues.

simon hall

30/11/2013 02:54:38 pm

oh wow, I didn't know that. I knew he'd done a graphic novel version of the bible - which is really good and has some of the best art I've seen of his - so that all slots into place.

I like the very last few panels where its revealed what Ironhide has been digging up. Although Prowl, Ratchet and Optimus are out of the picture,I am surprised that the likes of Ironhide and Jazz haven't a clue about what to do. Although I appreciate that being humiliated by Galvatron and taking down some of your toughest warriors my do that to you. Where's that Omega Supreme when you need him, eh?

Alex Smith link

30/11/2013 05:53:16 pm

I've long-loved Jeff Anderson's work on Transformers. I'm glad his work on 'Prey' had been mentioned, as that full-page splash of a torn-up Optimus Prime is one of my favourite pieces of Transformers work.

Post-Marvel, I thought his art on 'The Last Days of Optimus Prime' was lovely. As a UK artist who never crossed the pond to the US edition, it seems appropriate that he was the artist on a story that continues to be denied 'canonical' status' in a similar way to the manner in which the UK stories are often dismissed or forgotten (even by Furman himself!), much like Lee Sullivan providing the illustrations for 'Alignment'.

Pippin rings a bell for me, also, but I was a pretty hardcore Buttons reader as I recall. Admittedly, that is all I can recall...

Nick

2/12/2013 05:36:27 am

For some reason, I took a several month break from 'Transformers' and this was the first issue I picked up, probably since the Dinobots/Constructicons fight. It was a real shock. Very bleak as Transformers stories go and the first real display of Galvatron's raw power. That panel of him shaking off the Autobots' assault is awesome with the caption 'and he just stood there and laughed.' It reminded me of one of the earlier stories where Earth troops opened fire on Megatron to no avail. I loved the Hercules backup strip - thought it was loads of fun and Layton draws the best Herc around. I met him earlier this year at London Super Comic Con and he clearly loved putting together that comic.

Nick

6/12/2013 07:34:40 am

Yeah, so that teaches me to comment before reading the blog ... Stu drew the same comparison I did. On command, I'd have thought Ironhide ranked quite highly, being Prime's Head of Security? Probably not above Jetfire though. This was a weird story in that Jetfire was drawn at 'normal' Autobot size, where he was twice the size of Prime or Megatron in the cartoon.

Tim Roll-Pickering link

6/12/2013 08:14:52 am

The chart gives Ironhide's rank as "Security Officer" but plonks him amongst "Technicians" rather than "High Command". Overall the chart makes the top Autobots Optimus Prime (Commander), Prowl, Jazz (joint Second-in-Commands), Jetfire (Aerospace Commander) and Mirage (Military Intelligence Officer) plus Ratchet is an "Honorary Member of the High Command". So that's possibly why Mirage is the first to be targetted and Ironhide's position is more functional than hierarchical.

Nick

6/12/2013 08:40:09 am

Hnnsk. Obviously Wheeljack's a technician but I remember reading somewhere that he ranked extremely highly - think he had a tech specs rank of '8' or some such and so was next in line after Prowl and Jazz. I'm surprised that a sneaky 'erbert like Mirage was awarded such a high rank.

Nick

6/12/2013 07:34:51 am

Stuart Webb

6/12/2013 09:29:11 am

I won't delete the double comment as from the website control panel... thingey it's not clear which one the replies are for. That is annoying though isn't it? I've no idea why it happens.

Nice to hear the Layton enjoyed his Herc work, despite dragging a bit in the middle I've found it to be a very fun series so far.

As for ranks... I'd completely forgotten Mirage is ratted so highly. That absolutely tickles me for some reason.

Nick

6/12/2013 02:54:11 pm

You might be interested to hear Bob did a follow-up in 'Marvel Comics Presents', taking us a couple of decades past this adventure and introducing Hercules' son. Herc's great, anyway, I'm glad he's getting more attention from Marvel nowadays and has broken away from Thor's shadow a little.

Auntie Slag

6/12/2013 10:32:50 am

This was a really great story undermined by two things:

1) Jeff Anderson's Ironhide. I absolutely hated Ironhide; his bland body design, his tin-cap head... he was just a big, blocky mess accentuated moreso by Anderson's clumsy pen. If people had a reason not to like Transformers, to see them as childish, then Ironhide's character design helped me see through their sceptical eyes... the epitome of a boring blocky red robot man. Hated his stupid stubby feet too like a cheap Dr. Who robot.

And yet Ratchet was ok. His look in 'Warrior School' was rather fresh & dynamic. Ironhide even looked 30% respectable in Dinobot Hunt & Devastation Derby. But sorry Jeff, despite his sad story in this issue being compelling and sad, in the eyes of a kid, he was a useless red prat who looked tired and fat against Galvatron's sleek, articulated design.

2) Last page of the comic: Shrapnel with a harpoon through the brain! In the eyes of a kid; "F*** that's COOL!" Roll on next issue.

However in credit to Jeff Anderson, I always thought he drew the best robot hands.

The only other thing that annoyed me about this issue was the artists forevermore using fat, dumpy cartoon depiction Smokescreen as a frame of reference over the cool looking one we saw in Devastation Derby. Despised his little pea-shooter shoulder cannons...

Nick

6/12/2013 02:51:40 pm

Ratchet and Ironhide are basically the same design though, right, except Ratchet has that weird 'chevron' crest and Ironhide has a Mr T mohawk? Agreed that Ironhide seems like an Autobot stripped down to bare essentials, no fuss, no nothing but I liked that about him. I probably preferred the cartoon colour scheme which mixed the red with a bit of grey but I thought his look fit his personality - big, tough, no-nonsense and no-frills.

snowkatt

23/12/2013 01:26:41 pm

but ratchet always had a personality
from unwilling last one standing and savior ( marvel G1 )
to instigator and rule bender ( the ation arcs )
to grouchy old man with a sarcastic streak ( mtme )

he always had a likable personality

ironhide other then being red stripped down to his bare essentials a bland personality and a southern accent has nothing

when the most interesting thing about a character is his accent in the cartoon you know there isnt much to him
ironhide is just boring

Nick

30/12/2013 01:42:06 am

I was talking more about their look. Ratchet was a cool character in G1, both comics and cartoon.

Nick

24/12/2013 12:06:35 am

I dunno, I thought Ironhide was one of the most well-rounded Autobots in the cartoon. The only guys who probably received more attention were Prime and Bumblebee, possibly Jazz but he was very one-dimensional.

snowkatt

24/12/2013 10:00:19 am

i think thats more a condemnation of how shallow one dimensional and flat the cartoon characters truly were beyond voice acting and a accent

ironhide has very little personality beyond but prahm ! and a gung ho attitude and he has been coasting on that ever since

Nick

30/12/2013 01:40:12 am

I dunno, he was brave, tough, stubborn, temperamental, headstrong and dependable. That's about 5 more character traits than most of the Autobot cars. In most cases, it seemed like the writers glanced at the toy bio, chucked in a token line to conform with it and then forgot about the character in question forever. I figured Mirage might become a major character after 'Arrival From Cybertron', especially because he had a more interesting personality than most Autobots, but it never happened. My favourite Autobot car was Bluestreak - in one episode, he cracked a joke at Hound's expense and in all the others, he was basically just any other Autobot soldier, albeit a very fast one. Sideswipe was another of my favourites and I don't think he got anything at all.

Felicity

8/9/2016 08:08:06 am

IIRC Jetfire was among the group of Autobot officers called together to select a new leader in US issue #26, since all of them “occupy a position of leadership” in the Autobots, which was a neat idea.

Transformation 81: The F1 Car... OF DOOM.

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